#we'll see out it goes but that's not my circus any more

[gynoidluddite]

I've had luddite in my username for a while but I did actually have to find a new job because of being replaced by automation recently.

[the-s1lly-corner]

hello I hope ur request are open! If not be free to ignore this!! Okay so TADC x y/n? (The amazing digital circus also it can be muti characters or one!! The choice is yours!! ^ ^)

OKAY OKAY SO WHAT IF..🥁🥁🥁 y/n was like Jessica rabbit from "who framed roger rabbit" 👀 and was very like motherly to everyone but when she was called doll,/toots,/ect, by jax or anyone SHE WOULD PUNCH THEM HARDDDD (kinda like the lola bunny fanfic??) Also she is like one inch taller then jax (she a tall women👀❤️)

(HAVE FUN WITH THIS IDEA!! DONT RUSH YOURSELF TO DO IT TAKE UR TIME ON IT!! AND DRINKS LOTS OF WATER AND EAT FOOD!! HAVE A WONDERFUL DAY/NIGHT!!🫶🫶)

Digital Circus x a jessica rabbit-type reader!

since im a little melty brain from blasting through a bunch of requests today im going to do part of the cast! mostly characters i think would be interesting with this kind of reader as well as some characters i just wanna write more of (cough cough kinger cough cough)(i was originally going to do gangle as well but uhuh!!) ...this reminds me ive never watched who framed roger rabbit... or rather i have, but its been so long that ive truly forgotten nearly every aspect of the movie relying on the character wiki talking about her personality to guide me through this

CAINE:

caines and jax's parts are both likely going to be on the shorter side thanks to both of their cores holding similar themes in regards to half of the idea

anyways he's going to call you pet names, especially if he's interested in you.. good luck trying to land anything on him, though, he's going to easily zoom through the air

okay nod to the lola bunny request aside, i think caine would be just head (jaw?) over heels for you, i mean, he would be anyways, but something about your caring and quick witted personality

probably makes literal heart eyes at you and audibly goes "awooga"

absolutely loves watching you do your thing during the in house adventures, on the few times he actually spectates them; though you may or may not be the reason he watches

seems like the kind of person to call you "hot stuff" or "babe"

doesn't really care about the height difference since he rarely ever stands on the ground anyways, plus he doesn't care how small he is

JAX:

to get a good idea of how jax would interact with you, i recommend this similar post! hope this links correctly, im still new to linking stuff in my posts!!

a lot of elements from the post above bleed into this, but lets add some more to it to make it a little more unique to the jessica rabbit idea!

takes it upon himself to try to get some sort of reaction out of you, outside of the name stuff... which proves to be a little harder than he thought.. actually, oddly enough, you seem to enjoy his antics?

well thats certainly new to him...

aaaaaand oh! hey would you look at that you've officially caught his attention, congratulations!

does not take too kindly to being the new second tallest, though... sure you're barely taller than him but its the principle! how can he lord his height over everyone else now!

KINGER:

so here's where i may be biased since i love kinger and i wish more people wrote for him, so his part may be a little longer, we'll see! i write these lil notes as i work on the post

right away i dont think he would call you any of the petnames listed above, or anything similar. i think, should you guys get on a nickname basis he would call you sweeter ones, "my love," "my darling", "my sweetheart", and similar stuff!

does not have lightning reflexes like jax and caine but if the names genuinely do bother you he would likely stop, you'll just have to remind him

imma be so real this man needs someone to stand back and just be there for him because he is going through it, so to have someone in his corner who has his best interests at heart will really do a lot for him

no comment on the height difference since kinger is pretty tall himself (and hes taller than jax! the only reason jax isnt upset about that is because kinger is always hunched), but i dont think he gives a darn about height

i am once again thinking about the in house adventure prompt with kinger that i had earlier, where he gets stuck somewhere and you have to go rescue him... this + that prompt, JUMPS UP N DOWN

[cartoon-cass]

Comprehensive breakdown of MURDER DRONES - Episode 7: Mass Destruction

I saw a breakdown of this episode on youtube and it was just clearly rushed so I want to do this episode justice so here's my comprehensive breakdown.

New intro, look at them! They look so happy, that is not the case in the episode, to say the least. With how much rubber hosing this animation has I would not be surprised if this was done by Kevin Temmer Tunes with what he learned from amazing digital circus Edit: N was animated by Micah Preciado and Uzi by Zachary Preciado

Bad day to accidentally grab the wrong uniform, I do wonder where the actual Dr.Chambers was in all this. Wonder if it would have made a difference... probably not.

Not actually important but having the shadows of the claws that aren't actually there be the thing to interact with the world is fucking cool as hell. This whole scene is a cool twist on an exorcism with robots and science.

Like look at this, it's a pentagram magnet, a normal pentagram from my basic pop culture understanding it's meant to not only summon a demon but also keep them from leaving the circle. A strong magnet is so smart for this case as it's used to keep Nori in place, I mean it doesn't end up working in the end but it's the thought that counts.

It took my second watch of this episode to realize why the lights got turned on, it revealed the tentacles and claws but it's sun light, the same stuff that burns the Disassembly Drones and Uzi. It even has the same effect as in the end of Episode 4

Can I just say how extra it is making the USB a crucifix, I love it. Also I just notice that on the end of the crucifix the detailing is actually in the shape of a USB symbol, the details in this show is amazing, you can see all the love that went in to it.

This is probably the most terrifying way to hold these robots. I couldn't blame any of the robots for wanting to kill the human good god. Also Yeva playing Tetris, the game has a lot of ties to Russia so wonder if she spoke Russian too, she doesn't speak in this episode and not sure if we'll get more flashback with her so not sure if we will ever find out.

Not sure why Mitchell stop Yeva from entering the church but I like to think he thought Yeva was like a kid, look at him holding her hand in the scene before, and was trying to keep her save and knew something was off. That being said I'd love to hear what you think is his reasoning, sound off in the comments/reblogs.

Pulling back we can see Nori, specifically her core, looking at a crucifix comparing it to the USB crucifix in the video to see if it's the one with the patch, it's not, so she goes out for the hunt to see if she can find it.

Like daughter, like mother, honestly cool little details that lets us know what kind of character Nori is with the very little time we have with her. Drawing made presumably by her of herself as a human cat girl, twice, motor oil cans everywhere, a fricking ninja star, nightcore music, a anime statue that might be a reference to something but I have no clue, also magnets which have been used in the passed like drugs so that's um... something.

was originally just going to point out the funny little animation errors in this scene, as the paper goes through the Ipod and the crinkled paper is mirrored but then I wanted to check what was on the paper and...

It's a missing poster of all things? it uses the exact posters used in episode 3 it's probably just reusing assets but I thought it was a cool thing to point out.

Uzi bleeds blood in these scenes and it's not necessarily mentioned out loud, clearly something AS related, but there might be more to it, or it just looks cool.

This man is in some serious denial, but credit where credit is due, when "Tessa" tells N to stop he turns around, and when Uzi apologized for not being able to help he immediately apologized for Snapping at her. Also look at Tessa's little pointing, thought it was funny.

N: "We're not going to hurt you."

I can't blame Uzi for taking this the wrong way, he's clearly telling Tessa off but all Uzi hears is "hurt you", hence why she only parrots that part.

Thad: "Aaand you won't tell me why we're wandering around 'cause...?" Lizzy: "I'm a good friend, and secrets are blackmail. And it's not about football." Thad: "Okay. Does your secret friend want to know about football, or...?"

Anyone else wondering who Lizzy's good friend is? The only 2 characters we know are good friends with Lizzy are Doll and V. It's possible that through everything Doll sent a text to Lizzy asking her to do something but I feel like V just makes more sense. This does assume V made her way away from the sentinels, if I had to guess she's just a core at the moment which might be why she couldn't do it herself, no wings nor weapons as a core, also makes the blackmail line make more sense.

N: "I deserve this. I deserve this. I deserve this."

Baby girl NO! no you don't, your too hard on your self

That scream. That cut. *chef's kiss* perfect.

This scene just shows us why Uzi went towards the church. Also note when she's the most stressed her eye turns yellow so it does seem stress is the deciding factor whether she can be possessed.

V/AS: You know, you're one of the main reasons... [voice glitching] ...I wanted your team to retain your personalities.

This quote I think has some interesting implications, I mean it obviously confirms that the DD squad was influence by AS but it might also be why it keeps a bit of the personality of which ever host it's using.

This scene holy shit, the music, the lighting, the sound design and animation, that's how you do horror! You don't even need detailed gore, in fact most of it is just off screen. like look at the DD's off in the distance one catches the pilot of the helicopter mid air then they fight over it like hungry animals.

Ok so I hit the image limit and it's almost 1 in the morning so I'm gonna go to bed and continue this tomorrow

~to be continued~

[chaifootsteps]

Still thinking about Viv's claim that she thinks both sides are in the wrong and it's bugging me enough to do a quick episode run down to see how exactly that claim stacks up. Hopefully quantifying a bit more will help see where we're actually at

Ozzies: Between episodes 6&7 Stolas gets a personality transplant and goes from calling Blitzo his 'impish little plaything' and demeaning him to being head over heels for him, calling him by his name and bowing to him. When the car drives away the camera lingers on Stolas crying, though the episode ends on Blitzo and his emotions so we'll call this one even

Queen Bee: We see Blitzo's emotions in the aftermath in the form of a self-destructive bender, but noticeably what he says to Loona is that he's upset that he'll die alone. He doesn't say anything about being upset about feeling used or mistreated by Stolas (he even says his name along with the others before he throws up)

The Circus: Retcons galore backstory about how Stolas and Blitzo were childhood friends and despite using him for sex all s1, Stolas was apparently really in love with Blitzo the whole time?? It doesn't make a lot of sense but go with it. Episode ends with a song where Stolas not only implies Blitzo was somehow lying to him this whole time (Genius.com contributor suggests Stolas believed Blitzo actually loved him, which seems the obvious interpretation of these lyrics) but also makes him out to be a weak victim. He shows no guilt whatsoever for the part he played in making Blitzo feel degraded and used.

What’s between you and I Just a comfortable lie I’m the fool who believes When you look in my eyes

Seeing Stars: Stolas being framed as badass while he's choking his butler and it not being remotely bad on his part that he continues to sexually accost Blitzo in their first meeting after Ozzie's. Any criticisms Blitzo makes of Stolas (not remembering his own spells) are dismissed by Stolas with nonsensical arguments (it's relevant Blitzo can't remember Moxxie's phone number, apparently?)

Exes and Ohs: Stolas isn't in this episode or mentioned at all

Western Energy: Text message exchange after Ozzie's show Stolas giving a non apology where he doesn't actually address the problem, literally doing a 'I'm sorry if something I said or did upset you'. Episode ends on Stolas alone in the hospital where the viewer should pity him that Blitzo didn't come to visit :(

Unhappy Campers: No Stolas!

Oops: Blitzo dismisses the notion that Stolas cares about him by using examples obviously meant to favor Stolas. He is framed as jaded and unreasonable and Fizz is the obvious voice of reason. The imp who hates royalty is called a supremacist, Blitzo is the in between who dislikes Stolas and Fizz - the one who capes for royalty - is presented as in the right

Full Moon: Blitzo again criticizes Stolas, without getting to mention anything specific from s1. He is framed as going too far and tries to apologize. Stolas acts like the deal was a mutual thing even when admitting it was wrong

By my count that's basically no examples in Blitzo's favor. And I imagine if we counted all the Twitter likes from Viv on posts favoring Blitzo we'd turn up a big goose egg there, too

Careful, now! You laid out all the facts and stated them plainly, and we know that that makes a certain subset of fans angry and scared.

Viv can claim that "they're supposed to both be in the wrong" all she likes, but it doesn't mean a thing if every other word of writing in season 2 suggests the opposite. I guess the real test will come in Apology Tour, when we get to see who's actually doing the apologizing.

[poppystheories]

An Eye Theory

There's been a lot of debate, over the years, about whether Mana ever loved "Allen".

In the flashback, we clearly see Mana is a compassionate man who wanted to help a kid in a bad situation; in his final moments as himself, he wanted to take Red away from the circus with him. He wanted them to leave together. But that was compassion, not love.

And then Apocryphos used Red's Innocence to shatter his mind. After that, it's very much a question of if Mana was even capable of loving "Allen", as mentally unstable as he was. From what we've seen, he was very affectionate, and though he got Allen the dog and Red the kid mixed up, he eventually went on to introduce "Allen" to the symbols. You don't try to teach a dog to read your secret code. He understood "Allen" was a person, but more than that, we don't really know.

But the soul the Earl excised out of himself and had Allen put into an Akuma did some stuff that doesn't line up with it being the soul of a completely clueless man.

If we go on the assumption that the Earl was trying to rid Mana of any inconvenient memories through this process, we can assume Akuma!Mana is a conglomerate of just more than "Mana Walker". My best guess is that when the Earl excised Akuma!Mana, the memories he was trying to get rid of included stuff that re-stabilized Mana Walker, including knowledge of what actually happened when he met Red. If we consider that as a possibility, a lot of other things become more explicable.

First: If he remembered their first meeting, Akuma!Mana could know that "Allen" was an accomodator with an already activated Innocence capable of combat, perfectly able to destroy a level 0. He also would know “Allen” was fated to be an exorcist, and the threat that Akuma therefore pose.

Second: Akuma!Mana could have gained access to some of the original Mana's knowledge, including stuff about the Earl, Akuma, and souls.

Akuma!Mana said the usual Akuma stuff, and did the usual Akuma stuff, which Akuma cannot seem to help. But Akuma!Mana also did more than that: the "I'll curse you!" wasn't just bluster. He actually did manage to "curse" Allen, which the Earl clearly didn't know about. The Earl must not have thought the Akuma even capable of it, so he certainly wasn't making the Akuma do that specifically.

Mana couldn't control all the instincts of the Akuma, but he could use them to his own advantage.

As evidence, we gotta go on a bit of a tangent:

In the second volume, Hoshino mentions a play that inspired Lala and Gozul. The play goes like this: Old servant falls in love with high-class young lady. She plays with his feelings and he dies. As a vengeful spirit, he decides to curse her. But in the end, he changes his mind, and decides that as a spirit, he'd rather protect her instead, so long as she promises to remember him.

I've seen people dismiss this play in the analysis of DGM before, because let's be real, the premise here is kinda creepy. And it doesn't seem to actually have much to do with Lala and Gozul besides the aesthetic of "old man" and "beautiful maiden".

But the concept of a vengeful spirit saying they'll curse someone they once loved, only to overcome their negative feelings and decide to protect that person instead is present in the story, in a pair of characters the deliberately parallel Lala and Gozul.

Or maybe even more than one pair of characters that parallel Lala and Gozul.

We'll be focusing on Mana and Allen for now though.

I pointed out before that Akuma!Mana didn't need prompting by the Earl to attack, unlike Claire. I think Mana was using the programming of the Akuma to his advantage; if he attacked, he could place the anchor (the star) he'll need on Allen's face without the Earl finding his actions suspicious, and Allen's Innocence would activate to protect Allen, destroying the Akuma shell and freeing his soul to latch on to that anchor.

This gave Allen the ability to see souls, probably because it was Mana's power originally, ensuring Allen would be protected in the future. Thanks to this ability, most of the risk of being ambushed as an exorcist is minimized, so Allen’s career as an exorcist would be relatively safer.

Mana was the "vengeful spirit" (aka Akuma) that decided to become a guardian spirit of someone he loved instead, just like in the play. Allen is "younger loved one" that, in exchange for that protection, must carry Mana's memory.

But it's not just Mana's memory Allen carries, but Nea's too. Nea's also a spirit haunting a loved one, but he hasn't decided whether he wants to destroy or protect yet.

Of course, there’s no guarantee any of this is true. I might be completely off base here. But it’s my current theory, and I’m gonna roll with it, because it does explain a lot of things.

And, most importantly, means Akuma!Mana did mean it when he said he loved “Allen”.

[scarltzwitch]

A NEW BEGINNING — LOGAN HOWLETT

PAIRING: Logan Howlett x Katherine ( Fem!OC!Mutant )

SUMMARY: Logan, Jean, and Scott search for their kidnapped friends in a circus. Logan finds a feline mutant, Katherine, who helps them locate and free the prisoners. Mystique joins the mission, and together they rescue Hank, Kitty, Bobby, and Kurt. At the X-Mansion, Katherine is welcomed and finds a special connection with Logan. She begins a new chapter in her life, grateful for the new opportunity.

The circus was full of bright lights and a lively crowd. Logan, Jean, and Scott moved swiftly among the people, searching for Hank, who had been kidnapped during a mission along with Kitty, Bobby, and Kurt Wagner. The cheerful music and the smell of popcorn and cotton candy filled the air, contrasting with the tension they felt.

“Hank could be anywhere, this place is a maze,” growled Logan with a hint of anger and frustration. Jean nodded at his comment and began to expand her mind to sense the nearby presences. "I can't feel Hank or any of the others; the noise and the crowd's emotions are blocking my perception. We'll have to search more specifically."

Scott adjusted his visor glasses to see better among the crowds. "The last clue led us here, we should split up and search through the different areas of the circus. We might have better chances of finding them. Let’s keep in touch."

“Agreed,” Logan said firmly. “We’ll meet at the rendezvous point in twenty minutes.”

After heading backstage, the mutant found a young girl in a cell, desperate to know where his teammates were. Logan pinned the young mutant against the bars, his claws pressing gently against her skin. The girl, with feline features, green eyes, and pointed ears, looked at him steadily, showing no fear, but with evident tension in her body.

“Where are they?” growled Logan, his eyes locked on her. “Speak!”

The mutant girl, visibly agitated, looked around before letting out a nervous laugh. “Look, I don’t know exactly where they have them. They’ve had me captured long before your friends, okay? But I know everything that goes on around here. I can help you if you help me get out.”

Logan gave her a slight shove. “Where are they?” The feline girl wiped a drop of sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand, which showed sharp claws like talons. “There’s a storage tent, off the circus path. That’s where they keep the rest of us when they don’t need us and then move us to the block,” the feline girl responded, hopeful that he could be her ticket to freedom.

Logan observed the sincerity in her eyes for a moment before letting her go. “Alright, I’ll free you only if you take me to where they are.”

The girl nodded, and Logan manipulated the lock that kept her imprisoned with his claws. They headed towards the storage tent, staying in the shadows to avoid being seen. The tent was far from the hustle and bustle of the circus, and as they got closer, they noticed two security guards patrolling the area. They moved cautiously, using their agility and stealth to avoid them.

Meanwhile, in the main tent, Jean and Scott entered discreetly. The tent was filled with lights and extravagant decorations, with the stage still set from the last show. Jean used her telepathy to try to pick up any signals from their friends, but the noise from the crowd and the installations made it difficult for her to concentrate.

“Something’s not right here,” Jean muttered. “I can’t sense anyone clearly, but there’s a large amount of security equipment in the restricted areas. They must be hidden somewhere nearby.”

Scott adjusted his visor and began scanning the area. “Let’s check the dressing rooms and the backstage areas. The kidnappers might be using these places as hiding spots.”

They headed towards the dressing rooms, carefully checking every corner. As they searched, they found a hidden access behind a curtain. “Do you think they might be there?” Scott asked, hopeful of finding their friends.

Jean nodded. “Let’s check it out.”

In the storage tent, Logan and the feline mutant managed to evade the guards and found a secondary entrance. They entered silently, finding a space full of boxes and equipment. They moved through the shadows, looking for any sign of Hank and the others. They began to hear voices.

Logan approached carefully, followed by the feline mutant, who stayed behind him, fearing that she might be caught and locked up again. They saw several men with security gear discussing how they were going to transport the prisoners. In the shadows, Logan distinguished the figures of Hank, Kitty, Bobby, and Kurt, tied up and unconscious.

Logan prepared to attack, but just as he was about to make his move, a noise behind him made him stop. He turned to find Mystique, who was watching him with a sly smile.

“Seems like you arrived earlier than expected,” Mystique said calmly.

Logan frowned. “And what are you doing here?”

“The same reasons as you, maybe,” Mystique replied. “I don’t like seeing my former teammate in a situation like this.” She was referring to Hank.

Just at that moment, Scott and Jean arrived, following Logan’s trail. Jean frowned when she saw Mystique and the mysterious young woman standing behind Logan. “What’s going on here?”

“It seems that the situation is more complicated than we thought,” Mystique said. “I can help you, but we need to sort this out quickly.” Logan nodded and moved towards the group of prisoners. “Let’s get Hank and the others out of here before it’s too late.”

The X-Men, along with the two girls, managed to defeat the guards and free Hank, Kitty, Bobby, and Kurt. Once everyone was safe, they quickly headed to the Jet to return to the mansion, and Mystique decided to go her own way. While flying, the feline girl, now sitting next to Logan, turned to him with a grateful smile.

“My name is Katherine, by the way,” she said softly, finally revealing her identity. Then, without warning, she hugged him and kissed him on the cheek. Logan, surprised by the gesture, could only manage a small smile while the others on the Jet watched, some in amazement.

When they arrived at the mansion, Professor Charles greeted them and, upon learning of Kat’s situation, offered her a place to stay. “You could teach self-defense to our students,” Charles suggested with a welcoming smile.

Katherine, excited by the opportunity, accepted eagerly. “It would be an honor,” she replied, her face lighting up with happiness.

Logan looked at her and nodded in approval. “Welcome to the team,” he said, giving her a warm personal welcome.

As they walked through the mansion’s halls, Kat admired the place that would soon be her new home. Despite the harshness of the mission they had just faced, she felt strangely comfortable by his side. Logan, for his part, noticed the curiosity in her eyes and the determination in her step.

“This place is amazing,” Kat commented, her voice full of admiration. “I can’t believe I’m going to stay here.”

“You’ll get used to it quickly,” Logan replied, his tone softer than usual. “Charles is a good guy. He’ll take good care of you, just like he’s taken care of all of us by creating this school.”

As they continued walking, Kat began to feel a growing connection with Logan. There was something about his presence that made her feel safe, something that went beyond the fact that he had rescued her. Maybe it was the way he had looked at her, or how he had fought to protect his friends, but she felt a kind of bond, even though she barely knew him.

They arrived at the door of the room that would be Kat’s. Logan stopped and looked at her seriously. “This is your new start. Don’t waste it.”

Kat nodded, feeling warmth in her chest. “Thank you. For everything.”

Logan gave her one last look, something in his eyes seemed to reflect the same connection that Kat felt. “Rest. The work starts tomorrow,” he said before turning to leave.

Kat watched as he walked away, wondering if that bond would grow over time. As she closed the door behind her, she couldn’t help but smile, knowing that in the X-Mansion, she had found more than just a refuge. She had found a connection that might help her discover who she really was and how far she could go.

@unadulteratedyandere

I wanted to thank you for your patience as I worked on my writing. I know it took a long time, and I said I would publish it on Friday, but here it is as promised. I hope you enjoy it, and I also want to thank all of you who read what I write. Your support means a lot to me.

Thank you so much.

— XOXO, LILY. 💜

[bearsinpotatosacks]

Everytime I watch Top Gun Maverick (or clips of it like I have today) I get such an urge for a time travel fic where the Daggersquad & Mav end up in '86 Top Gun

The ship goes through a storm and the daggersquad end up in 1986

Mav ends up in his '86 body but is still his TGM self because he was there when they time travelled but Bradley wasn't yet

I'm unsure whether it's all 12 or just Rooster, Phoenix, Bob, Coyote, Hangman, Payback and Fanboy because managing all twelve may seem a little cluttered so we'll just go with those

I mainly want this just because 1) Rooster, Hangman and Coyote will have to somehow figure out how to fly f-14's because they're double seaters and 2) I want them to experience flying in the cold war, because like the film says "they've been dropping bombs from high altitudes with little to no dogfighting"

Like, the attitude has got to be different from today

Also, Rooster's heartbroken the entire time because his dad is right there but he has to act like just another Naval Aviator

Phoenix is the only female aviator there, I checked and they were allowed in but probably weren't common, the first woman to graduate from Top Gun was in 2004! So yeah, 🌟 80s Misogyny 🌟

I have a few scenes in mind, one where Goose happily walks into the locker room after getting a call from Carole saying that she’s got the time off work and will have 2 whole weeks with him

Slider says he didn't know the circus was coming to town

Also, maybe Goose giving advice on how to please a woman, Rooster's mortified and didn't realise how sexual the locker rooms could be

Talking of locker rooms being suggestive, everyone from the daggersquad picks up on Ice and Mav, including Mav because he's from the future

But things start to change as Mav spends more time with the daggersquad, trying figure out how to get home

Such as, when Carole and Bradley are there, what usually happens is: the Bradshaws + Mav go out for dinner, get spotted by Hollywood and Wolf, then by Ice and Slider until it becomes a group hangout

But, Mav’s with the daggersquad, so it's just the Bradshaws, so Hollywood and Wolf leave them be for some family time, so Goose gets to have the night with his wife he's been planning for almost 10 months

He runs around to Mav’s room and, disregarding the daggersquad, practically begs Mav to take Bradley for the night as he "is a loyal husband"

Mav’s confused, this hasn't happened before, so Goose sighs and blatantly says "I haven't had sex in almost 10 months and my wife is getting into something 'more comfortable' that 'we'll both enjoy', so please, take Bradley"

Rooster's even more mortified

Mav realises they're changing the past and has some hope that maybe they'll be able to save Goose

All is not well, as Bradley and Rooster are starting to see each other’s vision and almost passing out because there's 2 Bradley's in one timeline

They end up passing out and they all have to come clean

If you have any ideas, please tell me! Also feel free to suggest any fics like this, I love them 😍. Thanks for reading this!

[lostrandoblog]

Okay so after watching the pilot episode of The Amazing Digital Circus, I have a lot to say.

I'll start with Jax, who is quite popular. He may not be as much of a shithead as he may appear. He leaves the two most mentally fragile characters behind (he likely had the sense that something was wrong), snapped Pomni out of her dissociative panic, shoved Kinger and Gangle into the hole to hide before jumping in himself even though he could have easily just left them behind. He's still a jerk, obviously, but there are subtle tells that he isn't as mean as he plays himself out to be.

Also, I know his stepping on Gangle's mask seemed mean, but I swear it feels like more to me. Masking and hiding emotions is an unhealthy coping mechanism, which Jax can probably recognize. So he did it in his passive-aggressive way of being helpful.

Which Segways into what I want to say about Gangle. I saw a short on YouTube that discussed the hints about the characters via their designs. In which it was stated Gangles mask could symbolize she's dramatic and being made of ribbon because she's fragile. Both of them make sense but I think also alternatively, Gangle has a habit of Masking. Whether in autistic sense or emotional sense, it's too soon to truly tell. (Probably both) and being made of ribbon symbolizes that she bends to others whims. So basically she's a doormat. Maybe? Idk maybe I'm projecting a bit too much with this one.

Now for Zooble. What I find interesting about Zooble is their ability to be taken apart and put back together, which isn't a trait we see in the other characters. Pomni tries and gets as far as pulling her eye out of her socket, but it goes right back into place when she lets go. Bubble is able to pop, but they're an ai, and it's not quite the same. This unique trait could be symbolism for how much of a mess they are? Also, the chaotic design feels like it could be a sign of struggling with decisions or a sense of self since there's very little rhyme or reason to their appearance. Once again, we'll have to wait and see.

Next is Pomni. An absolutely delightful, anxious mess. I've seen some hate for her and that's she's being overdramatic and I just?? Don't see whatever these people are seeing. Pomni is rightfully freaked out, in such a strange place surrounded by strange people, not even able to remember her own name. Not to mention, her first day was chaotic. She still hadn't come to terms with the situation when she met her first Abstraction. Of course, she would panic. Any even semi sane person would panic. And she didn't immediately flee like Jax did either, she wanted to help Ragatha but there was too much going on and it seems entirely possible she wasn't even capable of helping given what happened when Pomni tried to grab Ragatha's hand. She went back for her too, so it's clear that Pomni does care to an extent even if she's unable to fully comprehend her situation.

Wow this post is already very long. I think I'll leave it off here for now but I have plenty more thoughts on this whacky series. It's my new hyperfixation so I'll probably ramble again about them in the near future. Pardon me if this was terrible I don't make posts like this often.

[piracytheorist]

So as I mentioned, I got my copy of the Family Portrait stories!

It feels weird to suddenly have to turn the pages the left-to-right way, lol. But I guess it wouldn't work the right-to-left way for a book translated to English.

Opening it there's this cute illustration, as well as the winter-y one on the back, which kinda makes me wonder: why is it bound on the book?? I wished there was a safe way for me to rip it off and hang it on my wall. Anyway, both illustrations are super cute!

And so my collection continues to grow!

I might order the Eyes Only guide soon, I'm just wary of it including spoilers from a few future chapters. So we'll see. In any case, this might be the first time since I was a child collecting Disney's Ducks comics (and I wasn't that meticulous with those, even) that I've made such a collection! Should things keep going well I intend to keep buying the volumes to the end of the story :D

Spoilered thoughts about the stories included in the book below!

The first mission with the Eden kids going camping actually reminded me that I can find the dynamic between Anya and Damian pretty funny, at least from seeing how stubborn Damian gets. The illustration especially of Damian holding Anya's hand with Anya going like "He can be nice for real??" and Damian going like "How dare she manipulate me into feeling bad for her!!" is terrific and the only way I'll ever see this dynamic, thanks. Also really loved the moment of Damian kinda and dismissively admitting to himself he's also scared of the thunderstorm. Also found it really funny how at the end, Loid is described as handsome XD the writer knew her audience!

In the second story I think I lost count how many times I laughed. While with a deep, interesting layer, Yuri is just so entertaining to me. The most normal guy ever, wishing he was an ingredient so his sister could chop him into her dishes along with pieces of the cutting board 🥰

No, but really, I think there was a lot of care in writing Yuri here. His inner monologue is unending and bound to give Anya a headache, though it was quite sudden to hear him refer to her as a bastard and the spawn of Loid's loins 😳 but I liked the darker tone as he "acted" as a cop and took out his frustrations on the actor, picturing him as a potentially-abusive Loid. It ticks at a very interesting dynamic which I very much hope Endo explores at some point :D

(I actually wonder if there will be a moment post-identity reveal (where Yuri also knows about both Loid and Yor) and he makes a really ugly quip at Anya and Loid goes all protective like "Say whatever you want about me, but hurt my daughter again and I won't hesitate, bitch")

While I found Anya's "interrogation" scene funny, I found it a bit repetitive that she used the same technique that she used with the Red Circus guy from the bullet-in-butt date. Small note, but still XD

For the third story I have both praises and criticism... I understand how it was needed for the story, but I don't like it when characters' disabilities are taken away. It would have made for a bit more complicated setting but it would have been a little more respectful to have Alessa unable to see Franky because she had eye surgery for whatever reason aside from being blind before, and she had bandages on and couldn't see. And Franky would feel like he's on borrowed time because he knows from day to day she'll get the bandages off and she'll face him.

Also, making her nineteen instead of sixteen is just on the verge. And because I have met people who are now professional singers... nineteen is way too young to be considered for opera. She could be training, of course, but it's a very long-term investment. There's a reason most opera singers you see in concerts are in their late twenties at the earliest. And I get that she comes from a musical background and she has a talent or whatever, but again. She could have been aged up to mid-twenties and to me it would have made much more sense.

But as for the good parts, I was actually surprised by how convincing Franky was about wanting to deceive her. And when Twilight turned and asked "Are you sure you're okay with this?" I might have felt a chill. I should have given Franky more credit, haha. And the banter between them was nice, with Twilight teetering on thinking of Franky as a friend, and how Franky ended up handling the situation... that was good, I liked it.

I had already read the last story through a fan translation, so I wasn't surprised by anything new there. It was just as fun and wacky as you'd expect it to be. By the way, I liked the point that story drove on, that despite the painter's success and fame, he only had a cheap apartment for himself and donated all his earnings so that future art students could paint without worrying about the cost of their supplies. Very in touch with the whole story's message :)

What struck me as odd was when Loid hugged Anya to keep the pretense of him being a doting father. I was like "He would not fucking do that" cause we know homeboy isn't ready for such proximity, and an actual hug between Anya and Loid has to have a big impact, the times he held her up while she slept or whatever notwithstanding.

But the ending was really sweet, with Twilight feeling a sense of warmth and getting a bit of honesty in his smile. The last illustration by Endo was very fitting!

Overall, it was interesting to hold a book in my hands and read about the characters that way. I think Aya Yajima did a good job capturing the characters, and I'm always happy to read Endo's afterwords, he really seems like a very chill and down-to-earth guy.

[spookyserenades]

Questions and thoughts

So, rereading all the chapters some questions cane to mind. I really hope i remember all of them but if not then I'll just send another ask.

I need to know more about hybrid laws and hybrids in general in the world you created. What i gathered until now is that they can't walk without their version of collars and microchip (hybrid ID) and that's kinda the only thing that twigged as law to me. Oh and that they are not allowed to work. What are other laws? Also you'd think that if they were created with the intention of house pet that can talk, wouldn't they only create non-exotic hybrids? But i guess that the exotics are made with the purpose of entertaining the rich. As you said hunting them, maybe sexual desires? Or how Jin was in the circus.

Back to their adoption. Can i ask what everyone was thinking in a few words? Like they new they were going to that rich guy but boom random 23-24 year old girl pops in Hi I got you babes! I'd ask you if you could make a small drabble but I'm too impatient 🤣😭. I was thinking about it and I feel like JK probably thought Oh nice I'm not dying yet but I'm gonna go to a sex house yuhuu.

Scenting! From what I understood all hybrids do it. Please tell me it's not as sexual as the 7 of them make it out to be 😭 Not that i don't enjoy it because that is more hot than a sex scene in my opinion. But i can't imagine Daisy doing it😭😭😭

Let's say for the fun of it Hoseok gets together with Alice. He will want to scent her too. Will he stop scenting Y/N? Will she have to give him to Alice in documents and stuff?

Now relationship wise. Do you plan for them to have a poly relationship or more of a open relationship? Because I don't see any of the boys falling in love with each other but that might be just me.

And now a few random questions. How the fuck does JK get dressed with the antlers? How is Y/N so rich because i want to be rich too? How good is that hearing and smell of theirs because I'd be to anxious to have any bodily functions? (In moments like this it would be nice if girls actually pooped rainbows and farted roses ngl😭) Would it be alright after you finish this if i print it out and make it an actual book?

I think that's it right now... For sure i had more stuff to ask. I'll probably remember after i send this. I love this series a lot and idk if you are belive in shifting or not but I'll definitely try to shift to this world. You are amazing Dana and i can't wait to see what happens next ❤️

Oooh let me see if I can give you some answers (also, thank you for sending in your thoughts 🥺)

For the laws... In Trouvaille, adopted hybrids end up getting an ID card to indicate their adoption status, rather than a collar or a microchip. The only forms of legal "employment" is working with the National Parks, like Jimin, and being circus/zoo performers, like Seokjin. Everything else is a sort of under the table operation or even exploitation-- think Yoongi, his mother and he were favored by a nightclub owner and were permitted to live and work there prior to being adopted. Taehyung, on the other hand, was created and exploited at a logging plant for his labor. I haven't come up with any other laws within this universe, yet, but we'll see as time goes on if any more pop up 😉 As for the creation of exotic hybrids, in the past, they were seen as flashy companions to the rich. In the present, they're either adopted by elites who wish to hunt for sport, or because of their superior strength compared to, say, a rabbit hybrid, to be workhorses illegally. Third, for circuses/zoos, like Seokjin.

HA okay they were probably all mad confused when Y/N showed up to adopt them... I think distrustful would be a word that comes to mind for Jeongguk, Namjoon, and Taehyung. Seokjin was too weak to properly react, and grieving over the fact that he didn't know what happened to Hannah. Hoseok and Jimin were just relieved to get the fuck out of there LMAO... and Yoongi, we now know already knew Y/N, and was probably hoping she was just there for him. I'm CRYINGGGG you're so right about Jeongguk thinking something like that, like the world they live in, it would make sense for someone to adopt them all to abuse :(

Scenting: Definitely not an inherently sexual act like the boys made it with Y/N 💀 While most of them are oblivious to Y/N's deeper feelings towards them, they can most definitely smell her attraction to them, and I think that's what triggers them to become menaces... As for Daisy, I picture the way her scenting Ben/Roy as childish nips to the wrist, like a toddler biting her dads, essentially. 💜

Even if Hoseok was to become romantic with Alice, he wouldn't scent her. That act is reserved for adoptive guardians! I don't see Y/N ever giving him up, either, nor would Hoseok want to leave his home.

The relationship is like you said, kind of an open relationship sort of situation. It's sort of unconventional, but I think they'll end up making it work 🥺

fdjksafsd good question about Jeongguk and his shirts! He often wears button downs and concert tees with loose collars. I think after years of having those antlers of his, he's learned how to maneuver things like hoodies over them in a specific way. LMAO I know Y/N has that MONEY! I think her family is old money, her maternal grandfather started an unspecified company, and her dad was an innovator of hybrid cardiology surgery.... she was pretty much born into it 💀 Lucky girl!

Their sense of smell and hearing is excellent, but not God-tier! I think behind several closed doors and whatnot they wouldn't be able to hear someone blowing up the toilet, or smell it, even 😭💀

STOP that would be so adorable if you ended up printing Trouvaille out and making it into a book 🥺🥺 It's alright with me as long as I don't see it on Etsy bestie 😘 (also I'm blushing thank you sm I'm honored)

IIIII- me and my best friend talk about how we want to shift into Trouvaille, too. Let me know if you are ever able to do it successfully, bc I want in on that!

Sending you love and thank you for letting me hear your thoughts 💕💕

[z0urcherri]

Z0ur's 2023 Recap

Here goes with a personal first. To start, 2023 for me was transformative. I felt more confident, more focused, and doing the things i love has felt even easier. Less emphasis on working hard was the key. I'm very proud of this change. I'm also proud of my accomplishments. In no specific order, i've given my blog a structured queue, i've started up a Neocities, and have finally picked up projects that have sat dormant for years. Alzier is seeing character modeling and soundtrack work being done, and Burrowed Alive has a main cast and a plot synopsis ready. I'm sorry i promised a preview and then never got around to it, so i'll simply release it when the time's right. With all that out of the way, here's other cool things i did: In music This year (especially in comparison with 2022) i got serious about sharing my favorite tunes, some obscure and some more well-known. In particular were some ear-catching artist discoveries: The Twilights, Coral City, Russ Freeman. I dusted off acts like The Return, Janis Ian, Paolo Conte and Jimmy Wayne in hopes that listeners could make their own discoveries. Plenty of tunes were subject to hours and hours of replays-Nocturne, Juicy, and City Magic, for example, bring an irresistible feel-good vibe to any occasion. I also played the hell out of Charmless Man, In E, Concrete Blonde's Little Wing, Time Goes On and much much more. Seriously, it's an enormous list. Check out #hand-picked music for everything! In film Finding time to watch a movie can be a challenge, especially when you're busy. That challenge doubles when you're also planning around movie night with loved ones. It doesn't always work out. However, movies were watched, from classics to a select few new releases. Puss In Boots: The Last Wish, despite being released in 2022, took 'til this year to get around to and is easily among my top 5 flicks. Facing off with a dull and uninspired Five Nights movie, Willy's Wonderland was put to the test, which it passed with flying colors. And in the tradition of watching horror around Halloweentime, i chose the Final Destination series, somewhat to combat my own phobia of death. I'd seen the first one, but i have yet to finish the 2nd. I also got started on Venom and Transformers. Lastly, i gave Raggedy Ann & Andy a watch, and while i didn't hate it i ultimately have a couple bones to pick with it. I'll do a full review later. In streaming Less time spent dealing with technical issues is always a plus. It's allowed me to bring a new segment, live drawing, into the mix. #z0ur artz is where you can find not only finished pieces, but also a 3-minute timelapse of the drawing process! I'm also happy with the new chatbox, and plan to experiment with different graphics in the future. In Syphon Filter, i've just defeated the first boss, Anton Girduex. Let me tell you, it wasn't easy. I fear for the next boss fight already. In Tarzan, my biggest problems are falling out of a tree and missing out on collectibles. Corruptions have been steadily improving, and the results are no longer simply "pixel puke" and crashes. I've been diving into lots of corruption tutorials, so expect to see it pay off in the coming year. We'll also be starting some new playthroughs! In closing And, of course, i've met some incredible creators like @lucianinsanity, @razialart, @lace-arts, and more this year! Please, do check them out. I ultimately learn from and find inspiration in everything in the #hand-picked art tag. New fandoms include Amazing Digital Circus, Toontown Corporate Clash, Welcome Home, Emesis Blue, and others i can't think of right now. And that's about it! Be seeing you. - Malcolm

[2ofswords]

I've thought a lot about the worldbuilding in tma and specifically about how the podcast makes it very clear, that there is no easy dichotomy between humans and avatars (pre-change).

But what about the difference between avatars and monsters? I will ignore for now (we'll come back to it!!!) that a lot of avatars get called monsters too and use the distinction, that Jon makes in MAG 111 which boils down to "avatars are corrupted by the fears and monsters are created". This assuption that there are unambiguous and created monsters never gets challenged by... anyone really. It seems like a given: This is a world where monsters exist.

However... is that actually true?

My hypothesis is:

Monsters cannot be created by the entities. They always rely on Avatars. Which means that all monsters have been normal humans (or at least normal living beings) before a transformation.

Let's look at some edge cases and examples under the cut:

Nicola Orsinov calls herself a monster. She also seems like one but... Nope! See how Jon describes her in MAG 119: "Yes… yes. I see the sad clown, bitter and hateful. I see him finding his way into the circus where nobody knew him. I see him torn apart, becoming the mask, remade by a cruel ringmaster." Like... Damn. She wasn't created by the powers, she was an Avatar the whole time! And also a very unwilling one, calling herself a monster now. And even the tiny Doll in the "Strange Music"-Statement creates other dolls out of humans. Heck, they need human skin to make the choir work, I wonder why that is a thing! And speaking of human skin: the quote goes on. "Sometimes a doll, sometimes a mannequin, always hiding in somebody else’s skin. Somebody else’s name." Does the whole "always hiding in somebody else's skin" ring familiar?

The Not-Them feels like a monster... for quite a while. They call themselves that as well. But... what does that actually mean? Are we sure they haven't been human? Do we actually know? They definitely subjugate humans to a similar state of being in MAG 165. They also do not have a different position or even behavior to any human in the post-change (and now that I think of it, we also never see or hear of an Avatar in Season 5 (other than the Not-Them) who has not been either human or animal.) And they also act.... extremely human with a lot of emotion and resentment and misplaced glee. The same goes for Breekon and Hope, who seem like supernatural agents first and foremost... until Hope dies and Breekon in MAG 182 doesn’t even want to do the fears evil bidding. I heavily feel like the stranger's skill is not really letting something inhuman feel human. (That would be the domain of the spiral...) It is great at making something human feel more monstrous than it actually is....

Maxwell Rayner falls on the opposite side of that coin. He was a human once and he feels like an Avatar but is like... a blob of darkness, that literally "died in the light" (MAG 173). Where does he fall under the human/monster dichotomy? Is he still human enough to never imagine a world, where he would be called just another monster? Because he seems to have a goal and human followers and a weird thing going on with Jonah Magnus, who is literally just a bunch of eyeballs that we could fling straight into Artifact Storage? The guy who literally loses all of his personality together with the change to become a glorified beatbox?

The monster under Alexandria is literally the epitome of something that is seen only as a monster (even by the end of the podcast) and is also confirmed to have been human at some point. And even Anabelle Cane, who can transform into a spider, lends some credence to the theory, that an avatar - if "corrupted" enough - can kind of become... anything really.

And last but never least there is The Distortion, which, ironically, is the most clear cut case I can remember of a monster. Micheal at least says that they always existed. Or well... they asked: "How far back should it go? To the beginning of me? Centuries? Millennia? How do you define the start of your being when in some ways you have always been?" (MAG 101) Putting aside the wording and well... the whole "being Delusion Incarnate"-Problem, the Distortion is not a physical thing: It's a concept. The question of "What lurks behind a smile?" (MAG 187) That definitely existed for a long time! The new question would be: Can The Distortion manifest without a person to smile? And could it create that person?

I don't have an exhaustive list of monsters in TMA and how they could be Avatars. And there is the post-change caveat, though even the monsters we meet in the domains are interesting: The monsters in Night Night (MAG 173) are probably not real, the fake humans in The Processing Line (MAG 178) are "a grim reflection", so they can be seen more as a mirror of the people trapped, since the domains are made not only by the avatars but also the victims. So I guess an exception could be beings that are literally manifested by a specific fear of the victim (like the faceless crowd in MAG 57: Personal Space). But I don't think that those manifest into autonomous monsters, that go around and haunt everyone. And we already talked about the ex-archivists, who definitely were human once.

I could be forgetting a very clear-cut monster-case, but there is a heavy president of things that appear to be monstrous actually having been a living human being (or animal) before, that only got corrupted enough to be seen as inhuman. And, in some cases, I wonder just how quickly these characters, who see monsters everywhere were to make judgement calls.

[sitpwgs]

Hi! I'm sorry I took a few days to reply. Omg I'm so sorry you don't have a voice right now! That sounds so awful. Just try to drink as much water as possible I guess and hopefully it gets better. I think baking is a lot easier for me too..just because I don't make that many cooking recipes or anything and it's harder to know what dishes to make. I also think it takes a lot longer and same here..everyone is better at it than me and never gives me enough time to learn or anything. But I definitely think it will be a New Year's resolution for me to work on it more and just try harder. I hope your voice has at least gotten a little better since I last replied to you and that you're feeling better overall. Hopefully you can start the new year healthy but I hope you feel better sooner than that haha. The only time I've ever lost my voice is at concerts. I remember after my Taylor show, my sister lost her voice and couldn't talk for three days..but I've never had laryngitis. Well I also enjoy apple pie and I'm a fan of most desserts actually.

I think I will be happy with any vault songs she gives us and some of those are familiar to me too. I'm not sure why she didn't release Let's Go (Battle) but I think Need could be put on rep eventually..even if we know it's for Lover, it almost sounds more like rep. But it also reminds me a little of False God too so I'm not sure. I think she will add Beautiful Eyes to debut honestly which would be good since I don't really listen to it. The holiday album I'm more iffy on but I guess it could come this year maybe? I think I heard a rumor about it so idk.

Well I think I might have been confusing that one with NFU cuz he says I just miss the way that we talk..but I agree that I should give it another listen. But I really liked that one, and Glitter and Honey. I'm sorry you couldn't make the concert..that's such a bummer. Btw Saw you in a Dream is one of my fav songs ever but I actually haven't heard many other songs..just a few besides her newest album and maybe her EP before that. I don't actually know what my vinyl player looks like because it's unopened so I have not played anything on it yet but I hope you find what you're looking for and get lucky.

I liked him and think he will do good in the role but only saw one clip so far which was Wait For Me. I will have to look for more. Ooh who is the euryidice stunt cast? I hadn't heard about it. I still haven't got a chance to watch the parade performances or any Dancing performances actually. The only thing I saw was Taylors tour choreographer talking about the Vigilante Shit chair dance which is cool. She is the same choreographer who worked on the La La Land movie so that's pretty cool and I love the dancing in that movie so maybe I will watch a few. I also like the dancers in the tour during Lover and Enchanted.

Well I guess one goal I have is to finish more books that I start lol. Then of course finish the ones I'm in the middle of right now which is going to be paired up with a few on the list. My sister wants to read more too and I have a few in mind we can read together already that we never got to..which is the ones about twins and also the Night Circus. We also started Daisy Jones together a long time ago. Read more books that I own and are on my shelf and I made the goal of reading two books a month so far so we'll see how that goes. Wow that also is the same number of the year which is 24! So hopefully I stick to that. I also said that this year and failed miserably lol. I think I only read two full books this year and maybe two I was in the middle of from the previous year lol. Or maybe I will try to finish one or two I'm in the middle of right now before the year ends. I do not know many upcoming releases yet but Emily Henry and Carly Fortune are definitely two I'm looking forward to and the If he had been with me sequel. So I am supposed to reread that with my sister maybe next month since it comes out in February I think. Or Night Circus and Starless Sea too..idk cuz maybe those will take more than a month though. If you have any other books you think we can read together this year let me know. There is also the Today Tonight Tomorrow sequel and I hope to read the first one as it gets closer. What are some upcoming ones you're looking forward to?

So the movie was good! Like it was a pretty good and faithful adaptation I think. But I also didn't love it as much as other people really seem to either. It felt like they changed a few little things from the book or maybe just cuz I speed read it..oops. Although I'm not sure if you would get it as much if you didn't read the book..like if it would be confusing. I filled in a few things for my sister for example. I feel like the narration in the book made things clearer that was hard to show in the movie. The performances were good though at least. I liked the songs but I need to listen to the soundtrack again. It did not feel like the kind of movie I would wanna watch again really and it was kinda long. In fact it just made me want to rewatch the Hunger Games again and those movies were a lot better. It's just my opinion though I guess. I do like all the edits I've been seeing or connections and reading people's analysis though. I think we are also going to see the Renaissance movie this weekend too and I will probably enjoy that more lol. Although I'm worried it looks more like a documentary of the tour than the full concert..which kinda sucks cuz we didn't get to go.

I know she's been working on it a lot so I guess I wonder what will happen. What genre would you hope for in her new music? I've always wanted her to try more rock honestly so it makes sense why I loved I Can See You so much. I know it might be about her breakup though so I'm not really sure. Red also had hints of rock like State of Grace which is another one of my top favorites so I still have some hope. I also wonder if the music she's working on now could be for her upcoming film too..which it seems like no one has considered. That's so awesome that you saw all of your faves live this year..omg! If I ended up going to Paramore..then I could have said the same haha. They are definitely going to be one of my top artists haha. So I got Say Don't Go right technically but I think that was the only one. I also forgot that she already sang Afterglow or else I wouldn't have guessed it. Yes omg! I think that was my favorite pairing of these shows but I would've been fine with Innocent and Now we don't Talk. I love Say Don't Go but dislike it's Time to Go lol. Now that she's resetting the surprise songs next year, it will be harder to guess..which also makes it more fun! She also says there's extended version of the movie for her bday but didn't mention Cardigan in that list. Also she just put You're Losing Me on streaming finally. Maybe I will finally appreciate this song more but its also kinda just there for me lol. I wish I liked it more. I think it's honestly one of my least favorites out of all the songs she has released this year so hopefully TS11 has better songs. I hope you feel better and continue to have a good week. Happy wonderful Wednesday!!! 🩷

hi friend !! it has been ... ten (?) days without a voice now, which is just very frustrating but i'm mostly still in good spirits! the one downside is that my friend is coming into town friday through sunday, and i'm worried i won't have a voice by then still. but i can't really do anything about that, so we'll see. might have to continue doing text to speech robot voice! it's her first time in seattle too which makes it all the more interesting! but yes, staying hydrated, sitting next to the humidifier and just hoping i'll feel better soon! i went back to my best friend, the doctor's, and he gave me some new medication yesterday so hopefully that'll do it's magic soon! i'm surprised that i didn't lose my voice from eras weekend at all, but i did from boston (although that one is more so because i got sick → got laryngitis). guess it also makes a huge difference that eras took place over the summer!

what's your favorite dessert? mine is a toss up between black forest cake (what my mom makes for my birthday every year), tiramisu, and chocolate cake! but i also love oatmeal raisin cookies (probably my personal favorite thing to bake). my mom's also really good at baking bread, and i definitely need to pay more attention to her little tips and tricks when she does!

oh i could see the false god/need comparison! two of my close friends really want need to be released, and i hope it is for their sakes! i would loveeee the holiday album to come soon but i feel like it might be a "end of tour" gift next year? maybe? if tour is even over by then?

i was listening to i miss you already + i haven't left yet on vinyl yesterday as i worked! was thinking of you 🤍 i do think i still like his debut album more than i miss you already, but i also have listened to that one more/longer/etc. so maybe it's just recency bias! i feel like i'm starting to get burnt out (?) on new music? if that makes sense. but i'm also really excited for the holly/MUNA into your room, and then noah kahan/gracie abrams everything everywhere remixes that come out this week! but i think that's different since it's not new new music? i've been listening to fruitcake ep by sabrina carpenter a lot though! that one's really fun. saw you in a dream is soooo good and i also really like f a r a w a y ! but sunshine baby is definitely my favorite.

i heard rumors about lizzy mcalpine as eurydice? which i don't know how to feel about! for many reasons! here's an audioboot, if you're so inclined! i did see that quote and i thought that was really cool! i'm really excited that eras movie will be on streaming; i've got like ~ $25 amazon digital credits saved up, so i'm going to be streaming it on her birthday i think! just a little something fun! i notice new things every time, and i like picking a dancer — or two — to focus on! i would love to see a a BTS documentary of eras after it's done; i'm so curious about the quick changes, the rehearsal process, etc.

two books is still two more than you previously read! it's not a competition, and reading is supposed to be fun!! i almost started a new book tonight but i was too tired and then i remembered i haven't replied to you yet so i grabbed my laptop to do so! i think i'm going to try to work more on my les mis/night circus annotations tomorrow, and that'll probably be the last time i get to read until sunday or monday! i also need to update my reading thread — and make my 2024 reading tracker in google sheets! so much to do! i usually do a post on my book blog for 2024 anticipated releases, but i'm SO out of it that i can't even think of anything aside from my friends' books that are coming out!

i've never seen the hunger games movies aside from the first one, but i think what i want to do is do a series reread, watch the movies, read tbosas, then see it? maybe? or maybe read them all then watch them all? i have no idea! but all my friends have been talking to me about it and i have to be like WAIT I HAVEN'T READ IT YET DON'T SAY ANYTHING !!! it definitely has taken over my entire fyp, and i'm always in awe of how good people's editing skills are! i hope it's the full concert; you'll have to let me know how it is since i won't be seeing it for a while (if i end up seeing it)!!

i'm also not the biggest fan of it's time to go! i love the "but i've got me" line and think it's so symbolic of how this entire tour has been for her, and hearing her sing it live has definitely made me like it a bit more but i'm still not the biggest fan of it for some reason! out of all the surprise song combos in 2023, which one was your favorite? i wonder if cardigan will be on the streaming version, or in a physical DVD exclusive? we'll just have to wait and see! feels weird for her to exclude just cardigan. i did not expect her to release YLM today! i woke up and my phone was blowing up from friends about it haha! i do like it more with you know, proper production, dolby atmos, etc. and not ripped from an audio somewhere, but it's definitely not my favorite!

hope you have a good rest of your week!! 🤍 are you doing anything fun this weekend/anything you're looking forward to in december? love you!

[claire-starsword]

The Guardiana Magic School Run - Part 5

We arrive at Rindo, home of the greatest weapon of all time.

I can't buy it :')

To be fair, I don't want the squishy characters anywhere near the next opponents so it might be fine. The Steel Rings were a priority due to being chapter exclusive.

I guess I also need to talk about this peculiar drop. The Evil Ring is a cursed weapon that greatly raises attack. I barely remember how curses work in this game because i don't have an habit of equipping these. It can also be used to cast an overpowered Bolt, but that's against my rules. So I don't think this will be seeing any use.

It's okay though, because as the center of commerce Rindo has no shortage of stuff to pick from.

We pick up the Speed Ring and give it to Khris, who is terribly slow, this +4 boost barely gets her around Lowe's agility. Speaking of, one of her Steel Rings goes to him, and now they're tied at 8 defense.

As for the usual speciality ring, Rindo has the Charm Ring, clearly a help against the Marionette we'll deal with eventually. As you can see though, it is Slightly Costly. I'm not as much in a rush to get these as I was for the Steel Rings, because everyone in this team has some magic resistance already, but it would be nice. Kinda depends on how important the power staves turn out to be. More on that soon. Or right now, actually. There's no more window shopping to do and this town is too fancy for our tour, so we must head to Manarina where our magic advertisement will be much better received.

The Doll Hater is a beautifully named staff. From what I recall it's already stronger than the Power Staff by itself, and also gets bonuses against Mishaela's dolls. Clearly this version wanted players to have an easier time at the circus battle. Given how I don't have Power Staves yet, this would be a massive help and save money.

Unfortunately I can't say I have hope to get it.

Most of this battle with be in the desert, where everyone sucks at moving. While the enemies at the start are simple fare by now, dark dwarves and snipers and bats and other stuff we can kill quickly, but then there's this group of zombies at the end. Zombies tend to be an absolute pain both offensively and defensively, I do have some hope due to being in a greater level than I usually am on normal runs, but I have few characters to beat them up, and they can gang up on a single character. And poison. And the mages can come up as a duo for massive damage.

I hate this battle, okay. I hate it so much. It takes a bazillion turns to get to the hard part and then you suddenly die.

So yeah. I want to not die so I'll need to be extra careful and I think that ruins our chance of getting the clear bonus. Alas! Let's move.

The start of the battle is boring and easy yet takes seven turns. Dark dwarves are pathetic at this point so Max and Gong wipe them out taking scratch damage, with Khris even managing to get a kill and a level up with +4 MP, sucks that it doesn't apply to the current battle. I wanted to save Tao's MP for the zombies, but the bat is annoying and dodges several attacks and puts Max to sleep, and I'm trying to move fast, so in the end Tao has to do everything with two Blazes on it. Thankfully Max already woke up, but god this is slow.

At least when Gong hits, he HITS.

He continues to advance as the team's one punch man, killing a sniper for breakfast. Since he can't reach the mage next, I do some healing as Blaze 2 is still a lot of damage at this point.

There are also two bats coming from the right, but I don't want to waste time going after them especially when I'm likely to miss, I hope they come.

They come after Max's ass of course, what else did you expect. The mage also came after Max's ass. The Sniper came after Max's ass. You wish your feeble mind could conceive just how attractive that ass is. He's doesn't share the excitement though and is asleep again.

And wakes up immediately! Honestly that's really lucky, having the guy stuck for long could be a real problem here.

We are at turn 12, this might be impossible. Gong has one punched the dark mage who was the only big threat, so I'm wondering if it might be possible to go on ahead and let the bats follow me. Even that might not be enough to reach the zombies in time though. Also, I don't want to repeat my one death by thirst of an impossible bonus again.

afraid to say i'm doing it anyway though

Obviously the bats continue to chase Max, and he finally lands a counter to kill one, he had attempted this last turn but missed.

Unfortunately, the other bat has more typical behavior, so he's asleep.

I think this is on the reach of a single zombie? Please?

I think this guy will go for Max and not her, so I'm hoping to do some damage while not wasting much MP.

Turn 14. One zombie successfully baited and doing 1 damage, Max woke up. This is probably as good as it gets here. Gong gets to punch the zombie for half its HP as well, and is rewarded by all his efforts so far by getting Heal 2. The only thing against us as usual is that we might not have enough time, especially since the healers won't be hitting for much, and taking massive damage from the zombies. They have 8 defense each against the zombie's 16 attack. Tao has 9 defense as well. I don't want any of these people taking damage.

"And remember kids, you can't take damage if they turn to ash first."

I'm doubting Khris will ever reach anyone to do healing up there with the zombies, and she'll be even less useful as a fighter, so I'm wondering if she can be more helpful dealing with these guys instead.

:/

She thankfully takes only one damage (Steel Rings :D), but she's asleep now. oops.

Lowe however manages to kill the Sniper, so that's something.

Turn 15, I think Gong can survive on this side and then heal himself, hopefully the others will have managed to move closer by then.

Turn 16. Lowe has defeated the bat, but I don't have the slightest hope of him and Khris doing anything else now. Max and Gong have survived, Gong badly because of Blaze, and both are poisoned. I didn't prepare with any antidotes and Lowe is the Detox guy, so I'm gonna have to count on healing spells and herbs to counter the damage only.

I do think Gong can survive this turn though, he'll kill the mage, take 1 damage from the zombie, 2 from poison, and nothing else reaches him. He should survive. Please survive, man.

He can because Max is just too sexy. Turn 17 and I think we can do this, Gong should still survive at 1 HP after killing the mage and the enemies should beat up Max instead, who has 5 HP even after the Blaze 2 he took to the face last turn. We can do this let's goooooo

It works. Gong kills the mage, Max kills one zombie, Tao blazes the other for 5 HP. Next turn Gong has 1 HP and has to heal himself immediately to survive the poison, Max has 2 HP and probably could kill the zombie but I'm irrationally paranoid so I actually used an herb. Who knows, maybe the zombie has an evasion of 0.0000001% and I was gonna be the lucky soul to find out! So Tao blazes it again. Nothing more fitting as she is the face of this stupid run and its glorious school.

YEAH BABY

Our great efforts give us the privilege of being big haters on Mishaela from here on. We trash her circus area like delinquents and prepare for the next battle. Thankfully, the preparations do not include healing from poison, that's not a thing in this version, I forgot. Everyone's fine, which makes sense as Lowe has Detox, he can just make himself useful off screen like SF2 priests.

Speaking of Lowe, he has 1 more defense than Khris so I guess he'll be taking the Hater. Look at that. That's +2 compared to the Power Staff. This thing is pretty much the reason I considered doing this run, staff weapons at this point of the game get ridiculous.

The deals section continues to disappoint, so I sell Lowe's old staff to barely make enough money for a Charm Ring. I give it to Max because of how targeted he is, but I don't think a single one will help much after all, I'm hoping to stack more later.

That's all we can do, next time we finally get to Anri. I expect things to be chill there, but the circus and abbey battles in the future could be dicey.

Losses: 0 Deaths: 1 The expected deaths on Narsha interludes: 0/3

[leam1983]

On Alternative Lifestyles and Found Families

So, I spent part of this night getting probed by Walt's GP as to my sexual history. Officially, this wasn't quite it, of course - it's his GP wanting to make absolutely sure that Sarah and I are being safe - but all three of us feel scrutinized, honestly. It's borderline patronizing, if not the exact kind of homophobia I have the hardest time digesting.

See, I can handle bigots. You either provoke a non-response out of them or you let them be. Then there's people who aren't technically bigots, but who can't yet reason outside of the stigma they've grown up learning about. In Walt's GP's case, that stigma would be the perceived notion that gay and poly couples and throuples are, well, promiscuous.

So, I opened up. Walt clasped my hand, and I opened my bag about my hooking back up with a former lecturer and professor of mine from years ago, after graduation, and spending a little over a year in absolute fucking bliss. Prof was freshly out, I was out by a few years but didn't quite want to admit it to myself, and we were so gaga for one another that, well, other partners just wasn't something that came to mind. We knew one another's schedules and knew that with my age at the time and his own - and with Prof's later cancer diagnosis - shopping around just wasn't in our cards.

Walt, Sarah and I had already done this dance with Sarah's GP, who was notably more chill about us three. Her verdict amounted to Be honest, make this work and you won't have any reasons to worry. Just - don't stop wearing protection.

So far, so good. My GP, being on the private sector, wanted to log everything. She didn't suspect one of us to pull a string of flings and to carry a bug or two around, but she wanted us to avoid the very possibility. Again, this was out of the notion that either Walt or myself would act like what you saw in porn vids from the seventies and eighties, and mostly collect raunchy encounters with the ravenous energy of rabbits on PCP. I was quick to figure this out as being another shot at billing me for something.

Walt's? Well, I'm guessing graybeards get graybeard GPs. A little leaner than Walt, with thicker glasses and a shirt that was probably in style back when Walt had hair on top, and a palpable sense of, well, let's call it kindly disapproval.

Walt opens his own bag, and so does Sarah. We reassure the GP that we have been undergoing regular tests and will continue to do so out of respect for one another and for the sake of honesty. The old coot takes the other two docs' details and acts like we're the first sane polyamorous group he's met.

"I've seen things, you know," he notes. "Back in the Disco years, when saunas were popular in Montreal..."

I add a fake laugh. "I'm sure you did, sir. The thing is, this is 2022, and I love this man and this woman far too much to consider weighing them down with an STD. We love one another, and we've already been taking steps to ensure nothing goes awry."

He acts like I told him I'm from Mars. "I'm sorry for saying this, but gays weren't quite so responsible, in my time."

Walter saves face, picks up his overcoat and waves us out, knowing I would love nothing more than to coldcock his physician.

In the car, Sarah is outraged. "We're adults! We chose each other, I don't see the straights getting blackbagged by the Bedroom Gestapo! These cheating fucks pass on shit to their wives and girlfriends all the time!"

It's Walter's time to be reassuring, like I was after my eye exam. "The only thing that matters is our being accountable for each other. This little circus wasn't set up to appease a bunch of white coats, it was set up so we'd all get records to consult if anything happens. The tests give us a window of time, and if anything happens, we'll have an easier time figuring out Patient Zero among us three. It'll make it easier for all three of us to be honest, and it'll hopefully eliminate any and all fears we might have over what goes on in mine and Grem's bedroom, no matter if it's the three of us or just Sport and myself."

He briefly looks at Sarah as he drives. "Everyone else can take a hike, Sar. This is our mutual health insurance policy. Take it from me, the straights wish they had the balls to set something like this up. It might dissolve a bunch of marriages, but it could also save a few."

Silence settles in for a few streetlights, until she finally looks back at Walt. "I'm okay," she says, nodding. "It was hard, is all."

The big guy nods, slowly. "It's hard, but it'll buy us peace of mind. Like I said, everyone else can take a long hike off a short cliff."

I nod pensively. "I like this. Being here for you two, I mean. It makes this whole thing feel mature. Thought-out. Like it's not just my hormones losing it over Walt's necktie knot or Sarah melting when he hugs her."

He glances back at me and looks back at Sarah. For a second you could think we're a family of sorts, an older gentleman discussing with his two adult children. In a way, we are family, now. Have been for several months.

"I still have the keys to the old place for a few days," Walter notes, and I'll remind you that I left a mattress and old bedsheets there. The old place is a house, not an apartment, and we won't be heard from the basement. No shared walls."

His eyes twinkle. "We can't rightly celebrate next to Grem's parents, they'd throw us out and end his lease if we got too noisy. The duplex is out, and you've long been out of alternatives, Sarah."

We slowly share a grin, all three of us. Walter keeps his tone intentionally breezy. "Two pit-stops, one at IGA and the SAQ for some food and some booze, and another one at the SDQC for something that'll get us nice and cozy. We head for my old place, set up in the basement - and see where that takes us..."

I can't repress a chuckle. "Wile E. Coyote's got nothing on you, you genius."

A long, love-filled moment passes. Sarah breaks it simply enough, and in a way that rips laughter out of all three of us. She looks at us like she's cornered some sort of enigma, her reddish-auburn hair playing under the passing streetlights. Her glasses make her look impish, and she owns it.

"Fuck, I love you guys!" she swears. I clasp her shoulder from the back, Walter reaches back while driving, to use his free hand to touch both of ours.

"Tonight," he says, "we're consecrating our family. It might not last forever, sure, but for now, we've got each other."

The weight of the moment won't hit me until hours later - now, at least, when I've retreated from two splayed bodies I deeply love, for the sake of a few moments of clarity, to go plink this out on a laptop. All three of us are naked, and I'm covered in so many scents and sweat-related accents I didn't remember existing. The soles of my feet sting with little concrete pebbles and forgotten sawdust.It's been a long while since I made love to a woman, and Sarah was as patient as she could've been. Walter and I more or less sandwiched her, which left me to take a more proactive role while he stroked her neck or kissed her cheek from the back.

Sarah and Walt just finished on their own, and I can hear him thanking her. Having known himself to be gay for decades, now, Walt's prior experience with women is sparse, and lifetimes removed. From the sound of things, he's not half-bad.

It's come to my attention that we're all damaged goods. Me with my disability, my struggles, the death of my first genuine lover, and my knowing that I'll probably never be fully autonomous, for reasons outside of my control. All of my loved ones and lovers have always assisted me to some degree or another, and both Walter and Sarah accepted it with disarming ease.

Sarah's started to open up, and I've learned that her interests stem out of an unhappy childhood. Where else do you escape from a broken household than in your deadbeat father's old D&D 2.5 Ed. books? She's always felt inadequate, always felt less than. Like I always have.

As for Walter, it'd be safe to say he ate his abuse, his trauma. His many rejections, unfulfilling careers, abortive relationships... You don't come close to two hundred and eighty pounds of self-gratification if the weight doesn't feel like some sort of comfort, in a way. He couldn't get jacked, couldn't fight back - so he got fat. Got hard to move, learned to conjoin that with outwardly airs of extroversion when any instance that saw him act as such triggered a week or two's worth of binge eating and comfort-seeking.

All of this, and Sarah and I are the first persons to tell him that, sometimes, some people do look good in situations like his. He could've been a slob, or the type to hide it, to stoop or to dress in baggy clothes - but he never did. He cinched it, instead. Framed it, recalled old standards like Fat Men's clubs - and worked his ass off to make it work. The Sales guys pick off-the-rack stuff; Walter gets his measurements taken by a guy he knows and has already-expensive fare tailored and adjusted. He turned his need for comfort into culinary classes, and told himself that if he was going to equate anything depressing or bold or funny with food, then he'd eat well.

Damaged goods, all of us.

Sarah eventually stirrs awake. "Come back to bed; there's half a joint left, and Walt left you a slice of chocolate cake."

I can't quite repress a laugh. There's probably weirder reasons to crawl back into bed with your second family, but I can't think of anything in the moment.

[pesterloglog]

Karkat Vantas, Terezi Pyrope, Dave Strider

Act 6, page 5927-5938

KARKAT: DAVE ARE YOU THERE

KARKAT: COME IN DAVE.

KARKAT: THIS IS KARKAT.

KARKAT: OVER.

KARKAT: ANSWER ME YOU JACKOFF.

KARKAT: DON'T BE ALL LIKE YOU'RE TOO BUSY TO PICK UP, WHO ARE YOU TRYING TO KID.

KARKAT: YOU ARE QUITE POSSIBLY THE ONLY PERSON ON THIS METEOR WHO'S GOT EVEN LESS ON HIS NUTRITION PLATEAU THAN ME.

KARKAT: EVEN THE MAYOR HAS A MORE DEMANDING SCHEDULE THAN WE DO, LET'S FACE THE FUCKING FACTS.

KARKAT: WHAT. DID YOU THINK CAN TOWN RUNS ITSELF??

KARKAT: FAT CHANCE.

KARKAT: DAVE.

KARKAT: GOD DAMN IT DAVE.

KARKAT: I HAVE A PROBLEM.

KARKAT: NO.

KARKAT: *WE* HAVE A PROBLEM.

KARKAT: SKAIA IS NOW VISIBLE TO THE NAKED EYE.

KARKAT: WE CAN'T BE MUCH MORE THAN A FEW HOURS AWAY.

KARKAT: THIS IS IT. THIS IS WHAT WE'VE BEEN WAITING FOR.

KARKAT: THREE OF THE LONGEST HUMAN "YEARS" WE'LL EVER HAVE TO LIVE FOR THE REST OF OUR LIVES.

KARKAT: SUNK INTO THIS DEPRESSING LABORATORY WHICH BY ALL ACCOUNTS SHOULD NEVER HAVE FUNCTIONED AS ANYTHING BUT OUR ETERNAL TOMB.

KARKAT: I HAVE NO IDEA HOW WE'RE EVEN SUPPOSED TO STOP THIS THING. DO YOU?

KARKAT: OH WELL, SENDING IT BLASTING OFF SOMEWHERE AT THE SPEED OF LIGHT SURE SEEMED LIKE A GOOD IDEA AT THE TIME!

KARKAT: AND NOW THAT WE'RE FINALLY HERE, AFTER ALL THE WAITING AND DRAMA AND BOREDOM AND STUPID BULLSHIT WITH OUR ANCESTRAL GHOSTS

KARKAT: AND EVEN DISREGARDING THE ONE HILARIOUSLY NEGLECTED DETAIL THAT THIS METEOR HAS NO FUCKING BRAKES

KARKAT: I STILL DON'T THINK WE'RE READY FOR THIS.

KARKAT: *SIGH*

KARKAT: I DON'T

KARKAT: ...

KARKAT: HOW DO I EVEN BEGIN TO ADDRESS THIS SHIT.

KARKAT: OK, HOW ABOUT THIS.

KARKAT: SINCE I CAN'T THINK OF A BETTER GENERAL PURPOSE QUESTION TO HELP BREAK THE ICE IN LITERALLY ANY IMAGINABLE SOCIAL SITUATION.

KARKAT: WHERE ARE YOUR FUCKING PANTS?

TEREZI: ZZZZZZZ

DAVE: my pants

DAVE: what are you talking about

DAVE: theyre on my legs

KARKAT: I WASN'T TALKING TO YOU.

DAVE: oh

KARKAT: DAVE, WE HAVE A BIG PROBLEM HERE.

DAVE: what

KARKAT: I THINK IT'S TIME WE HAD A...

KARKAT: WHAT DID YOU CALL IT?

KARKAT: AN INTERVENTION?

DAVE: for rose?

KARKAT: NO, NOT ROSE.

KARKAT: WHY WOULD I BE TALKING ABOUT ROSE?

KARKAT: SHE DOESN'T HAVE A MAJOR PROBLEM THAT SHE NEEDS TO BE CONFRONTED ABOUT BY HER FRIENDS BEFORE SHE FLUSHES HER WHOLE LIFE DOWN THE GAPER, DOES SHE??

DAVE: uh yeah kind of

KARKAT: WHY? BECAUSE SHE LIKES TO DRINK THAT GOOFY HUMAN SOPORIFIC THAT MAKES HER A LOT FUNNIER AND MORE CHARMING THAN USUAL?

KARKAT: HOW IS THAT A PROBLEM?

KARKAT: I WAS TALKING ABOUT TEREZI.

DAVE: man terezi doesnt need an intervention

DAVE: she just drinks a lot of soda

KARKAT: HOW CAN YOU NOT SEE HOW THAT IS A *HUGE* FUCKING PROBLEM.

DAVE: its red fizzy shitwater dude who cares

KARKAT: OK, CAN WE JUST ONCE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE ARE MUTUAL ALIENS TO EACH OTHER AND AS SUCH POSSIBLY HAVE DIFFERENT VALUES AND STANDARDS ABOUT THINGS???

KARKAT: JUST THIS ONE TIME DAVE? THANKS!

DAVE: terezi has made her choices

DAVE: among them was to begin guzzling untold liters of that putrid circus cola

DAVE: think of it as like a rite of passage

DAVE: like something that just goes with the territory when someone you know almost imperceptibly begins turning into a juggalo

DAVE: wait fuck

DAVE: maybe she does need an intervention

KARKAT: SHE NEEDS TO WAKE UP SO WE CAN TALK TO HER ABOUT THIS.

KARKAT: SHE WON'T WAKE UP, WHAT DO I DO.

DAVE: did you try kicking her

KARKAT: YES.

DAVE: im out of ideas

TEREZI: SNOOOOOR3

KARKAT: WELL, WHENEVER SHE WAKES UP, WE ALL NEED TO HAVE A SERIOUS TALK ABOUT THIS.

KARKAT: IF SHE'S IN THIS CONDITION WHEN WE GET TO THE NEW SESSION, IT'LL BE A GODDAMN EMBARRASSMENT.

KARKAT: NOT TO MENTION DEADLY! NEED I REMIND YOU WHO'S STILL FOLLOWING US? SHE DOESN'T LOOK PRIMED FOR BATTLE FROM WHERE I'M STANDING!

KARKAT: WE NEED TO ACT AS A UNIFIED FRONT, DAVE. WE NEED TO LET HER KNOW THAT AS HER FRIENDS WE CAN'T STAND BY AND WATCH HER DEGRADE HERSELF LIKE THIS.

DAVE: man i dunno

DAVE: sounds like you wanna make this needlessly melodramatic

KARKAT: STAND BY. I'M PUTTING YOU ON SPEAKER CRAB.

DAVE: speaker crab

KARKAT: YES. SPEAKER CRAB.

DAVE: man dont put me on speaker crab

KARKAT: SHE NEEDS TO HEAR FROM YOU DAVE. SHE TRUSTS YOU.

DAVE: god

DAVE: honestly she can do whatever she wants i put this all behind me a while ago

DAVE: why do you really want me in on this conversation is it just that you dont know what to say by yourself

KARKAT: MAYBE IT IS DAVE!

KARKAT: MAYBE THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT IT FUCKING IS.

KARKAT: I'M SORRY. I'M NOT A "GOD TIER".

KARKAT: I AM NOT SO FORTUNATE AS TO BE BLESSED WITH THE "GIFT OF GAB" LIKE YOU.

DAVE: what

KARKAT: THAT BADGE YOU EARNED. YOU KNOW, THE ONE THAT MAKES IT EASIER TO TALK TO PEOPLE?

KARKAT: LIKE, REALLY OPEN UP ABOUT YOUR FEELINGS AND SAY WHATEVER NEEDS TO BE SAID?

DAVE: hahaha thats what you think that does?

KARKAT: ISN'T IT??

DAVE: no dude thats not what gift of gab does

KARKAT: OK WHAT DOES IT DO THEN WISE GUY!

DAVE: its utility isnt really comprehensible to lowly mortals sorry

KARKAT: YOU SNIDE CHUTE HUFFER.

KARKAT: WHY DON'T YOU COME UP HERE SO I CAN PUSH YOU OFF THIS BUILDING?

DAVE: nah

KARKAT: I'M PUTTING YOU ON SPEAKER CRAB, AND THEN TOGETHER WE ARE GOING TO KEEP IT *REAL AS SHIT*, DO YOU HEAR ME?

DAVE: what do you actually want from her

DAVE: do you want her to stop drinking faygo and falling asleep in puddles of red fructose corn slobber

DAVE: or do you want her to somehow address the root of those habits and cut all that out for good

KARKAT: YES! I WANT HER TO DO THAT!

KARKAT: THE LATTER THING.

DAVE: yeah i can understand where youre coming from

DAVE: but in situations like this i think you need to remind yourself theres only so much you can do for somebody

DAVE: and maybe they arent going to want or need your help and you just have to figure out how to deal with that

DAVE: like at some point in your life one of your friends might start spending all her time with a guy you think is bad news

DAVE: and you have to decide if you need to intervene as a friend or just let it go because people can change or drift apart or whatever because thats just something that happens

KARKAT: DAVE

KARKAT: YOUR WISDOM, MY GOD

KARKAT: IT'S KNOCKING MY SOCKS OFF. HOLY SHIT, PLEASE TELL ME THE SECRET TO YOUR WISE WAYS.

KARKAT: AND WHILE YOU'RE AT IT, MAYBE YOU COULD TELL ME WHAT THE FUCK YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT.

DAVE: look all im saying is

DAVE: there comes a time in every young womans life when she has to come to terms with the decision to gradually morph into a juggalo while all her friends and loved ones watch in dismay

DAVE: terezi has strolled through the dark carnival and taken a great brooding whiff of that decisions festive asshole and the choice she has made is all too clear

DAVE: shes down with the clown

KARKAT: NO, DON'T SAY THAT.

DAVE: its true man

DAVE: you can live in denial for only so long

DAVE: but as your bro i have to say it like it is

DAVE: she and gamzee man

DAVE: that is literally a thing

DAVE: they are in the hate square together

DAVE: total kismespades dude

KARKAT: NO, THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEAN.

KARKAT: I MEAN, I KNOW THAT.

KARKAT: JUST WHY DO YOU HAVE TO PUT EVERYTHING SO "COLORFULLY"?

KARKAT: I GUESS I DO THE SAME THING, BUT YOU ALWAYS SEEM TO TAKE THINGS TO A DIFFERENT LEVEL OF GROSS. JUST PLEASE SAY SHIT NORMALLY FOR A CHANGE, OK.

KARKAT: REGARDING GAMZEE, YEAH. I KNEW ABOUT THAT ALREADY.

DAVE: oh

DAVE: really?

DAVE: then what the fuck have i been tiptoeing around all this time god damn

DAVE: i thought this was supposed to be like this "big secret" that would "destroy you" if you found out

KARKAT: MOTHERFUCKER, PLEASE.

KARKAT: DO YOU THINK I'M AN IDIOT? I'VE SUSPECTED THIS WAS GOING ON FOR A LONG TIME.

KARKAT: I WAS JUST BEING LIKE YOU, PLAYING IT COOL, LETTING HER DO WHATEVER.

DAVE: then why is it a problem now

KARKAT: BECAUSE THIS IS THE LAST STRAW! WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE READY FOR ACTION BY NOW.

KARKAT: NOT COMATOSE, HALF NAKED AND FAYGO STICKY.

KARKAT: GOD, I WONDER WHAT SORT OF BULLSHIT HE'S GOT HER BELIEVING IN NOW? ABOUT THE MIRTHFUL MESSIAHS AND SHANGRI LA AND ALL THAT GARBAGE.

KARKAT: IT MAKES ME SO SAD TO THINK SHE'S CAUGHT UP IN HIS SUPERSTITIOUS WEB OF LIES.

KARKAT: IT'S BEEN AWFUL WATCHING THE PERSON I USED TO KNOW SLOWLY DRIFT AWAY FROM ME, TO THE POINT WHERE SHE MIGHT AS WELL BE GONE.

KARKAT: HOW DID YOU MANAGE TO DEAL WITH THAT?

DAVE: what

KARKAT: YOU AND SHE USED TO SEE EACH OTHER ALL THE TIME. WHAT HAPPENED?

DAVE: like i said i just put it behind me

DAVE: she started sneaking around in vents and stuff acting suspicious trying to hide the fact that she was seeing him

DAVE: like she was obviously ashamed of it and worried how id react

DAVE: but it was hella transparent that was going on so i just said

DAVE: thats fine yall can do your blackrom thing with the juggalo its your decision

DAVE: but i cant keep playing along

DAVE: i cant do the quadrant thing its just too weird for me

DAVE: im not a troll and im not all open minded about gettin multicultural

DAVE: i still dont understand the spades thing and it makes me really fuckin uncomfortable even trying to imagine how that works and i sure as fuck dont want to date anybody whos got a hateclown on the side

DAVE: so i said no hard feelings i still like you and all, do whatever makes you happy ill just be over here in the hyper gravity chamber training to beat lord english

KARKAT: WE HAVE A HYPER GRAVITY CHAMBER???

DAVE: no

KARKAT: OH

DAVE: but what about you

DAVE: havent you been talking to gamzee this whole time

DAVE: or is he just balls out lying to you about sneakin around the meteor with terezi

DAVE: i thought moirails were supposed to be open with each other about stuff like that

KARKAT: YEAH. UH.

KARKAT: GAMZEE ENDED OUR MOIRALLEGIANCE QUITE SOME TIME AGO.

DAVE: oh shit

DAVE: sorry to hear about that

KARKAT: IT'S FINE. IT WAS REALLY A DEAD END PALE RELATIONSHIP.

KARKAT: AT FIRST IT REALLY SEEMED LIKE I WAS A NECESSARY PART OF HIS LIFE, KEEPING HIS SHIT UNDER CONTROL...

KARKAT: BUT AS TIME WENT ON HE JUST GOT COMPLETELY DISINTERESTED AND WASN'T KEEPING UP WITH HIS END OF THE THING AT ALL.

KARKAT: HE STARTED GETTING SO UNBELIEVABLY SELF SATISFIED AND PIOUS, LIKE WAY MORE THAN HE EVER WAS BEFORE.

KARKAT: LIKE HE'S JUST SO COMPLETELY CONVINCED HE'S FOUND HIS CALLING, THAT THIS SESSION IS THE GATEWAY TO THE PROMISED LAND WHERE HE'LL FULFILL HIS DESTINY.

KARKAT: HE'S SO CAUGHT UP IN HIS IDIOTIC SCHEMES HE COULDN'T GIVE A FUCK ABOUT ME ANYMORE.

KARKAT: WHATEVER. AT LEAST HE STOPPED KILLING PEOPLE.

DAVE: amazing i spent three years on this rock and never said one thing to the guy

DAVE: i saw him once tho

DAVE: just a glimpse in a dark hallway

DAVE: it was kinda like seeing a blurry purple bigfoot with a huge boner

KARKAT: OH GOD!

KARKAT: THAT FUCKING GOD TIER OUTFIT.

KARKAT: WHAT A GODDAMN FAKER. I CAN'T FOR THE LIFE OF ME IMAGINE WHERE HE GOT THAT THING.

KARKAT: I KNOW KANAYA SURE AS HELL DIDN'T MAKE IT FOR HIM.

KARKAT: THE MAN LITERALLY HAS NO SHAME.

DAVE: why is he wearing it

KARKAT: I DON'T KNOW!

KARKAT: I DON'T THINK EVEN HE KNOWS.

KARKAT: MAYBE TO MAKE A "GOOD IMPRESSION" ON HIS FAKE ASS RELIGIOUS IDOL, AFTER HE THRUSTS HIS SACRED COD PIECE THROUGH THE GATES OF SHANGRI LA.

DAVE: ahahaha the best thing we ever do together is slam this assholes dumb religion

KARKAT: YEAH!!!

DAVE: really its the most hilarious fucking horseshit ive ever heard

DAVE: i mean pretty much all religions are wrong but theres wrong and then theres WRONG

DAVE: as in ZERO CHANCE YOU ARE EVER PROVEN RIGHT ABOUT EVEN A SINGLE THING DUDE, EVER EVER EVER

KARKAT: HAHAHA! IT'S SO TRUE.

KARKAT: I WISH I COULD SEE THE LOOK ON HIS FACE WHEN HE FINALLY REALIZES EVERYTHING HE BELIEVES IS A LIE.

DAVE: be one sad clown that day

DAVE: his bulge will probably deflate and make this high pitch noise plus corresponding flatulence

KARKAT: HEY DAVE.

KARKAT: WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL HAPPEN TO US AFTER WE MEET UP WITH THE OTHERS.

KARKAT: I MEAN, AS FRIENDS.

DAVE: what do you mean as friends

KARKAT: I MEAN WILL WE STILL GET TO BE BROS.

DAVE: uh

DAVE: yeah?

DAVE: no offense dog but thats a dumb and neurotic question

KARKAT: NO BUT SEE

KARKAT: WE'RE GOING TO MEET ALL THESE OTHER PEOPLE.

KARKAT: JOHN AMONG THEM.

KARKAT: AND JOHN IS YOUR BEST FRIEND, SO YOU WILL OSTENSIBLY RESUME THAT FRIENDSHIP WHERE YOU LEFT OFF.

KARKAT: AND JOHN AND I HAD A FEW TESTY CONVERSATIONS WITH EACH OTHER ONE DAY, AND IN MOST OF THOSE I MADE A FOOL OF MYSELF.

KARKAT: AND I GUESS WE BECAME FRIENDS THAT DAY? MAYBE??

KARKAT: BUT THE REALITY IS IT WAS JUST ONE DAY, AND HE'D BE WELL WITHIN A REASONABLE FRAME OF MIND NOT TO GIVE A CRAP IN HINDSIGHT ABOUT THE GUY WHO TROLLED HIM ONCE THREE YEARS AGO.

KARKAT: AND THE SAME GOES FOR JADE!

KARKAT: I THOUGHT WE HAD A DECENT RAPPORT, BUT AGAIN, IT WAS ONE DAY FOREVER AGO. SHE PROBABLY BARELY REMEMBERS ME AT THIS POINT.

KARKAT: WHEREAS THAT DOESN'T MATTER FOR YOU, BECAUSE YOU GO WAY BACK WITH THEM. THIS IS LIKE A FUCKING *HEARTFELT REUNION* FOR YOU GUYS.

KARKAT: BUT WHERE DOES THAT LEAVE ME??

KARKAT: I CAN HARDLY CALL GAMZEE A FRIEND ANYMORE. WHO KNOWS IF MY FRIENDSHIP WITH TEREZI WILL EVER BE WHAT IT WAS BEFORE. I USED TO BE PRETTY CLOSE WITH KANAYA, BUT NOW SHE AND ROSE NEVER LEAVE EACH OTHER ALONE FOR MORE THAN A FUCKING MINUTE.

KARKAT: ALL MY OTHER FRIENDS ARE DEAD, AND NOW WE'RE LEAVING THE DREAM BUBBLES BEHIND.

KARKAT: AND THEN THERE'S YOU.

KARKAT: SO

KARKAT: I'M JUST WONDERING WHAT HAPPENS NEXT.

DAVE: you forgot the mayor

DAVE: youre pretty damn tight with the mayor arent you

KARKAT: THE MAYOR'S FRIENDSHIP IS A UNIVERSAL CONSTANT, AND I AM INSULTED BEYOND COMPREHENSION AS WELL AS MY CAPACITY TO VOMIT THAT YOU WOULD INSINUATE OTHERWISE.

DAVE: yeah the mayor rules

DAVE: but as usual you are overcomplicating this

DAVE: just like you overcomplicate everything

DAVE: friendship leadership romance

DAVE: shipping grids and dick battles

DAVE: this is real simple

DAVE: our meteor will somehow tokyo drift to a dead stop in the new session

DAVE: at which point we will keep being bros for life or something

DAVE: i will start being friends with john and jade again because they are my friends and never stopped being that

DAVE: john will also be your friend because hes cool and also a doofus who is easy to be friends with

DAVE: jade will be your friend too cause shes nice and likes being friends with people

DAVE: i can personally guarantee that she will be happy to see you

DAVE: and as for the new people i dont know about them but theyll probably be your friends too

DAVE: all i know is two of them are my parents and two of them are johns parents and aint no rule that says you cant be friends with your bros mom and pop

DAVE: especially when your bros mom and pop are a couple of sassy teens

DAVE: as for terezi i dont know i guess well see what happens

DAVE: and as for gamzee fuck that guy with a balloon poodle

DAVE: friendship lesson secured the end

TEREZI: ZZZZZZZ ZZNK SNOOORT

TEREZI: SM4CK SM4CK

TEREZI: NNNRNNNNNNNRRNGNGNHGHGL3

KARKAT: UH OH, LOOK WHO'S STARTING TO COME AROUND!

KARKAT: WAKE UP SLEEPY HEAD!

KARKAT: HONK HONK HONK, YEAH THAT'S RIGHT! IT'S TIME TO FACE THE FUCKING MUSIC.