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sparklyjojos · 5 years ago

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THE SAIMON FAMILY CASE recaps [3/13]

In which the family’s magic show continues and resolves.

9. GUILLOTINE TRICK

Once the break comes to an end and everyone finds their seats, a spotlight shows Koyomi and Kotensui standing on the stage with a short table between them. On the table is a mysterious wooden something and, for some reason, a few carrots and daikon raddishes.

“Are you having fun, Kotensui?” Koyomi asks.

“So much fun! I even won at rock-paper-scissors!”

“You really did! But you know, Kotensui, I really want to learn your secret now.”

“What secret?”

“I want to explain how you were able to make your hand split like that.”

She picks up that wooden something from the table. It looks like a thick plank stood on its short side, with one big hole near the top and a smaller hole near the bottom. The audience can clearly see the scenery on the other side through the holes. She shows everyone that this strange flat box can be opened, but that’s there’s nothing suspicious inside… except for a heavy glinting blade. The blade can be lifted and lowered manually when holding it by the part sticking outside the box. It looks like it has no other way to go but up and down… and through whatever would be stuck through the holes.

“What is this, Koyomi?” Kotensui inquires.

“It’s an arm guillotine,” she explains, her tone turning darker. “A guillotine used to chop off arms.” To demonstrate the mechanism, she sticks a carrot and a raddish through the holes and swiftly brings the blade down, cutting the vegetables in half.

“Wow, it really cut them!” Kotensui seems amazed. “I hope you’re not going to stick your arm in there, are you?”

“Of course not! It’s going to be your arm.”

“What? W-wait, Koyomi!”

“Like I said, I want to discover your secret!” She grabs his left wrist and pulls him closer. “It’ll be fine! You’re a wooden puppet, so even if I cut off your arm, I can just put it back once I know what’s going on!”

“No, no, please no!” Kotensui struggles so much that she gives up.

“Jeez. Okay, let me show you something first, then.” Once again she puts two vegetables through the holes and drops the blade. This time, however, only the vegetable in the bottom hole gets cut in half. The one in the top hole is magically intact, despite the fact that the blade clearly had to go right through it. “See, Kotensui? It’s magic! It’s safe to put your arm in there.”

“Oh, alright then!” Kotensui goes back to his cheerful innocence and sticks his gloved left hand through the top hole, but his joy turns to confusion when Koyomi grasps his forearm tightly. “Er, why are you holding my arm?”

“It’s dangerous if you move too much.”

“D-dangerous?! But you said it was safe!”

"Now hold still…!”

As the puppet obediently freezes, Koyomi brings the blade down… and Kotensui’s severed hand tumbles off the table, making him scream in fear.

“Huh?” Koyomi looks perplexed. “But it shouldn’t… did I make a mistake? No, wait, there’s something strange about this…” She picks up the discarded hand and inspects it carefully. It seems there’s something moving on its own inside the glove. Koyomi throws it in the air towards the audience, but it doesn’t fall, instead turning into a white dove. It flies back to perch on Koyomi’s arm.

“Stop playing around, Kotensui,” she says seeing that he’s still in shock. “Just like I thought, your arm didn’t really get cut off!”

“Huh? It didn’t?” Kotensui stares at his sleeve and a trembling gloved hand slowly peeks out of it. “Oh—oh, you’re right! I’m fine! Sorry!”

10. MAGIC HANDS

“By the way, Koyomi,” Kotensui asks still looking at his hand, “can you do something like… this?” He stands with his front to the audience, left arm raised to his side at a 90 degree angle.

“Like this?” Koyomi imitates his pose.

“Like this!” Kotensui pokes his hand as far as he can out of his sleeve. Koyomi does the same with no difficulty, but then Kotensui stretches his arm a bit further… and further… and further still… until his hand is a good twenty centimeters further than it should be before the arm retracts to its natural length. “Cool, huh? Now look at this!” This time he raises both his arms to the sides, and both stretch half a meter outward. His fists rotate and slowly the five fingers unfold one by one. Since the elongated part of each arm (?) is dark and hard to see in front of the black curtain, it almost looks like his white gloved hands are hovering in the air a good distance away from the puppet. Then the arms stretch out some more, and out of each sleeve peeks out… another hand in white glove, holding what the audience now understands is not Kotensui’s really long arm, but a black rod with an openable “hand” on its end.

“What are those?” Koyomi asks.

“Magic Hands! They stretch like Son Goku’s staff. Hey, look at this!” Kotensui lowers the open Magic Hands to brace against the ground, and by progressively inching them closer and closer to himself uses the rods to lift his body three meters in the air, like he’s walking on stilts. Then he raises both his legs towards the ceiling, so he’s entirely upside down now, balancing his entire body weight on his hands (or maybe—seeing as he’s a puppet—just on a bunch of cleverly hidden strings, but even so, it’s still a marvelous show of skill on the puppeteer's part, whoever that might be).

Once Kotensui turns right-side up again, he looks at something above him. The wooden bell hammer from earlier is still there, hanging six meters above the floor. Kotensui steels himself, then quick as lightning takes one Magic Hand entirely off the ground and points it upwards, where its hand part grasps tightly around the bell hammer. He does the same with the other Magic Hand, and as a result is now hanging from the bell hammer like from a trapeze. Both Magic Hands retract slowly—first Kotensui’s real (?) hands hide back inside his sleeves, then the black rods progressively disappear inside—thus pulling him upwards, until he’s able to innocently sit on the bell hammer like on a swing, holding onto one of the ropes used to suspend it. The Magic Hands are once again fully hidden inside his sleeves.

As the audience explodes in applause, the bell hammer is slowly lowered to the stage. Kotensui invites Koyomi to join him. Once she's sitting by his side, her hand holding the other suspension rope for safety, the bell hammer is lifted up six meters above the stage.

“Oh, it’s really high!” Koyomi exclaims.

“Now we can watch the show too! And from the best seats!”

As they look down in anticipation, the spotlight on them progressively dims, finally enveloping them in darkness and bringing the audience’s attention back to the ground, where the stagehands in black have just finished cleaning up the stage.

11. LINKING HULA HOOPS

Three middle-school-age girls enter, each holding a long white ribbon they wave around as they dance. The girls look identical like triplets, all wearing similar white leotards. After dancing for a while they stand in a triangle formation. The ribbons are tracing complicated spirals above their heads, but all of a sudden those white soft rings magically turn into hula hoops that the girls then keep on gracefully gyrating around their bodies.

Then a clown sporting typical make-up, a brown mohawk and a cape shows up, riding in on top of what seems to be a globe. As he circles around the stage, two of the girls shift their paths closer and closer to each other, their moving hula hoops dangerously close to colliding, any second now… but instead of crashing, the hoops seem to pass through each other, with the third girl soon approaching and demonstrating that her own hoop likewise seems intangible. Finally the three gain some distance and finish the dance, triumphantly rising their hoops among applause.

12. BALL OF FIRE AND CIRCLE OF RED

The clown riding the globe takes the central spot on the stage, stops, bends backwards until he touches the ground, and performs a handstand, the ball kept up by his legs. He jumps back upright and starts switching positions from one to another, balancing the globe on his forehead, knee, chest... Meanwhile, the three girls throw the hula hoops off stage and in return each gets a silver sports ball that they use to enact another dance in the background.

The clown is now bouncing the globe up using his head, sending the ball higher and higher, until it rises all the way into the darkness above the stage… and doesn’t fall back down. The clown looks up in puzzlement.

“Oh! Sorry, were you still using this?” comes a familiar voice from above.

A new spotlight reveals the two children still sitting on the bell hammer, Koyomi using one arm to hold the rope and the other to help steady Kotensui, whose both hands are occupied with the globe. After the clown overdramatically gestures at them to give the ball back, Kotensui says, “Ah! Understood. Just one moment!”

The spotlight on the children disappears. The clown still looks up, prepared to catch the globe, but suddenly seems to change his mind and steps aside, causing the globe to narrowly miss him and hit the ground—with a loud thud that startles even the three dancers.

The clown approaches the ball with a suspicious expression, and it starts wobbling slightly on its own, as if it’s an animal easy to spook. He takes a few more steps, and the globe rises slightly in the air. The clown takes off his two-sided black-and-white cape and holding it slowly approaches the ball like a careful hunter. With the black sequin side of the cape as the background, the globe really brings to mind the Earth in starry space.

The clown quickly throws the cape over the globe and presses it to the ground. It visibly struggles under the cloth, trying to fly in all directions to escape, until it apparently gives up and settles down. Contented, the clown lets the ball out, and just like before it rises slightly in the air, the black part of the cape once more being held as the backdrop.

But just as it seems things finally calmed down, the globe suddenly rises much higher and goes up in flames. The clown quickly wraps the ball in the cape—the white side of it facing outside—and this seems to extinguish the flames. But then the globe escapes his grasp and with the cape still covering it flies off towards the audience, zigzagging chaotically over their heads like a confused ghost. Whenever it returns to the stage it narrowly escapes the clown’s attempts to catch it. Finally, he pins it down to the ground with his entire body weight… but the cape underneath him goes completely flat. Confused, the clown lifts the cloth and reveals that the ball has disappeared. What’s more, the black inside of his cape has turned white, and there’s what looks like a red round imprint that the burning globe must have left on the material—making it look like the flag of Japan.

13. FIVE-BALL CASCADE

The clown gets two of the three girls to hold the cape from each short end, so that the newly created flag of Japan faces the audience. Then he retrieves a black wooden plank from somewhere, drops it and catches it again, and it has magically doubled into two planks in the process. The planks are connected and unfolded into what looks like the same table that Koyomi and Kotensui used earlier, just in adult size.

The clown then stands behind the flag and puts his fist against it so hard it bulges, probably trying to demonstrate that it’s one continuous piece of fabric. However, when he then tries the same from the front, his fist seems to effortlessly enter the red circle, and once he takes his hand back out, he is now holding a stuffed ball made of red material. He passes the ball to the unoccupied third girl, who gently caresses the fabric with her hand, making it magically turn white, and sets it down on the table. The clown pulls out another ball that the girl turns white, and another, and so it repeats until there are six white balls.

The clown then retrieves a long cylinder that has been attached to his costume, briefly turning it bottom-first to the audience so they can see it’s an empty tube. He stands the tube on the table, takes one stuffed ball and throws it in from above. When he then lifts the tube, what comes out the other end is not the ball, but a long white object similar to a bowling pin. The tube is once again shown to the audience bottom-first, and just like before it’s completely empty. The ball disappeared. It couldn’t just be sneakily dropped to the floor, since the audience can clearly see underneath the simple table. This magical transformation is repeated until all the balls turn into pins.

Finally, the clown pulls out one more red ball from the flag, but doesn’t pass it along. Instead he gestures at the two girls holding the flag, and they first show the other side of it to the audience—just like before, it’s completely white—then fold the flag and forcefully stuff it down the tube.

Then all three girls take two white pins each and retreat to the back of the stage, where they stand in a triangle formation again and begin a juggle act. They’re passing the pins along themselves in a never ending circle: each girl throws the pin in her right hand to her companion on the right, passes the pin from her left hand to her right, and with the now empty left hand receives the pin that has been just thrown by her companion on the left. It must require amazing coordination, yet the girls perform it so fluidly and quickly that the pins almost seem to create a circle linking them.

While they’re doing this, the clown directs everyone’s attention to the red ball he’s holding up. He makes a simple gesture, and the ball has now multiplied into two, then three balls held between his fingers. He chooses one of these three to repeat the multiplying act using his other hand, so now he has the total of five red balls. He starts to juggle all five at once using his hands and legs, and as the balls go around, their color magically turns from red to white, then back to red, to white, to red, white, red… Not only that, the white pins juggled by the three girls in the background suddenly change to red too.

The clown and the girls stop their act when a new character joins in from backstage: another clown, this one with a red afro and a tricorn hat, who rides in on an unicycle holding two trays with many glasses balanced on them. He comes to a stop, steps off his ride and unloads the trays onto the table.

The tube from earlier is still there on the table, with the flag of Japan presumably still stuffed inside. The mohawk clown approaches and somehow manages to fit all five of his balls inside, and after him the girls have no problem putting in all six pins. Now empty handed, everyone stands in a row and bows to the audience. (They all keep on professional smiles, but it’s easy to guess how exhausted the girls and the mohawk clown must be at this point.)

14. MISER’S DRINKS & DROPS

The newly arrived afro clown is the one to lift the tube this time, and out comes not a ball, not a pin, not the flag of Japan… but a bottle of beer. He knocks on it to show that it’s real glass, then turns it around and shakes vigorously. Not even a drop comes out.

However, when he picks up a glass and tilts the bottle above it, what looks like beer comes pouring out in plenty. Using the same bottle he then fills another glass, and another, and another, and as he goes on he puts away the filled glasses on top of one of the trays held by the mohawk clown. Sixth, seventh, eighth glass... In the end, a giant tray worth of glasses is filled with just one bottle, and the mohawk clown takes them into the auditorium, asking the adult audience members to help themselves. Since many people won’t say no to a free drink, the liquid is quickly confirmed to be authentic beer. As one clown distributes the drinks, the other keeps pouring, and this time it’s one of the girls who takes a full tray into the audience. There are still some empty glasses left, so after the afro clown fills them, the remaining two girls simply grab the table from both sides and haul it around like yet another tray.

The only one left on stage is now the afro clown, who turns the infinite beer bottle upside down… and not even a drop comes out. He takes off his tricorn hat, shows the audience that it’s empty, puts the bottle inside, tosses the hat in the air, catches it, and when he once again shows everyone its interior, the bottle has disappeared.

The bell hammer is lowered to the stage, allowing Koyomi and Kotensui to disembark before it takes to the heavens again. The afro clown lifts them both up so they can sit on his shoulders instead.

“Oh, looking at all that beer I’m getting thirsty too!” Kotensui says.

“We're children, we can’t drink beer!” Koyomi lectures. "Hm, but I would like to get something too…"

The afro clown sets the two of them back down, takes off his tricorn hat again and shows everyone that it’s empty. He gestures at the children to stick their hands out, shakes the hat above them, and out comes pouring candy, many little drops in colorful wrappers. Seeing them eat the sweets (or pretending to eat in Kotensui’s case), many children in the audience start demanding candy too, so the clown grabs entire handfuls out of his hat and throws them around, eventually walking down the auditorium so even the back rows can get some.

15. RISING FLAG CARD

While the audience is busy eating and drinking, stagehands bring in a two-meter-tall box looking like it would contain a giant version of a deck of playing cards. Judging from the art on the box, the back of each card bears a cartoonish portrayal of the Earth in space, done in a blue and white two-tone style. Additionally, a normal-sized deck of cards is put on the table.

“I’m sorry to break the relaxed mood, but I still have a bit of magic to show you,” Koyomi tells the audience. “Actually, it’s more like just a tiny show of sleight-of-hand.” She spreads a bunch of the normal-sized cards in a fan, showing that their backs portray the same cartoonish Earth.

“What are these, Koyomi?” Kotensui asks curiously.

“These? They’re national flag cards!” She turns them around and the audience can see their fronts portray flags of different countries.

“Ohh, it has all the world’s flags?”

“Not all of them, there’s too many countries for that. We have exactly fifty four flags here.” She returns her cards to the pile and gives it a shuffle. “Now, I’m going to pick up a few cards from the top. I’ll show everyone the cards I got, one by one, and then put them aside. If anyone knows what country a flag belongs to, please shout its name loud so I can hear! You too, Kotensui! Also, please make sure to quietly keep count of how many cards I’ll have shown.” She is about to begin, but hesitates. “Wait, Kotensui, it’s cheating if you stand right next to me behind the table. Go sit in front of it instead.” Kotensui listens and plops down in front of the table, his back to the audience, watching Koyomi as intently as everyone else.

Koyomi picks up a few cards, takes one and shows it to the audience. A red circle on white background.

“Japan!” yells everyone including Kotensui.

Nodding, Koyomi puts the Japan card down on the table and shows everyone the next one: a red maple leaf on white background, a red vertical stripe to each side.

“Canada!”

The third card: a red square with a white cross in the center.

“Switzerland!”

The fourth card: two horizontal stripes, the top one red and the bottom one white.

“Indonesia!” (But can also apply to Monaco, as Koyomi explains.)

The fifth card: looking just like the last one, except with a white crescent moon and five stars on the red stripe.

“Singapore!” (The audience is by now a little surprised that little Kotensui got them all right so far. Even if he’s one of the troupe’s men… or rather, one of the troupe’s puppets, wouldn’t he still need to perfectly memorize all those flags?)

Sixth card: a white crescent moon and a star on red background.

“Turkey!”

Seventh card: two horizontal stripes, but this time the top one is white and the bottom one red.

“Poland!” (Only a few people guess this one correctly, among them Kotensui.)

Eighth card: three horizontal stripes, red-white-red.

“Austria!”

Ninth card: a white circle on red background, inside the circle a red crescent moon and a star.

“Tunisia!” (Once again, only a few people are shouting.)

“This next one may be a little hard to guess, since they only gained independence a few years ago,” Koyomi says and shows the tenth card: mostly red, but in the left corner is a small white rectangle with a red cross inside. It does seem to pose a challenge, as barely anyone shouts its name, Kotensui among them.

“Tonga!”

“Last one!” Koyomi shows the last card she’s holding: red background and two white stripes creating a cross, their meeting point offset slightly to the left.

“Denmark!”

With this, Koyomi puts the last card on the little pile to the side and asks the audience to remind her how many country flags they went through.

Most of the audience promptly answers “eleven!”, though more careful spectators give a hesitant “twelve��?”, considering that the flag of Indonesia is also a flag of Monaco, so counts as two.

“It seems you aren't sure, so let’s count them together!” Koyomi picks up the little pile, then starts putting the cards back on the table one by one.

“One!” everyone counts. “Two! Three! Four! Five! Six! Seven! Eight! Nine! Ten! Ele—” But just as everyone starts to say “eleven”, they realize that Koyomi’s hands are already empty.

“Huh? Why only ten?” Kotensui voices everyone’s surprise.

“It’s very simple. Let me explain it, so you can all try it yourself later!” She picks up the card with the flag of Indonesia. “Those of you who said “twelve” earlier counted this flag as belonging to two different countries, right? Indonesia and Monaco. But the truth is… it belongs to three countries!” She rotates the card 180 degrees, the red and white stripes switching their places… which makes it the flag of Poland. “See, after I showed you this card and acted like I'm putting it on the table, I actually sneaked it back into the pile in my hand. Then I showed it again, just upside down. By the way, if you’d like a deck like this to fool your friends, we have some in the shop booth outside the tent, detailed instructions included. Now that we’re done with that little illusion… here comes the actual magic! But first, I’ll need a person from the audience. I think I’ll choose them through a little game this time!”

“Ohh, a game?” Kotensui seems excited. “What is it, what is it?”

“Once again, I’m going to pick up a few cards and show them one by one. If you know what country the flag shown belongs to, you pass to the next round and can keep guessing. But if you guess wrong, you’re eliminated! I’ll keep showing you flags until everyone but one person gets eliminated, and that last person standing will get to assist me on stage!”

“That seems like fun!”

“It is fun! But, Kotensui… you know all the flags, don’t you?”

“All of them! I can speak the world’s many languages, too!” (It seems impossible that any child his age could speak more than two, maybe three languages… but since he is a puppet in a show, the audience seems ready to accept this as part of the setting.)

“You can? Then I have a request for you! You won't be guessing countries this time. But after the audience gives the right answer, you will greet them in the main language of that country!”

“Oh, that’s simple! Let’s start already!”

And so, once Koyomi shows the first card and everyone yells “USA!”, Kotensui wishes everyone a “Good afternoon!” in English, with perfect native accent to boot. The next card is shown, the audience yells “Soviet Union!”, and in return Kotensui greets them with a “Dobriy den!” in impeccable Russian. More flags and languages follow, slowly switching from well-known—China, Germany, France, Italy, Spain—to more and more obscure ones, Kotensui keeping up with greeting everyone in perfect native accents of so many languages. The audience members progressively get eliminated, until only one person guesses the final, fifteenth flag of Kenya.

The last person standing is a man in his thirties, who unsurprisingly turns out to be a local geography teacher (and judging by whooping and whistling from the audience, some of his students are here too). Koyomi asks him to confirm for the audience that it’s the first time he’s met the two kid performers.

“Kotensui and I will both turn around now,” Koyomi says and they swiftly do just that, “and while we’re looking away, please pick any card from the deck. Choose any flag you like.”

“Alright, I just pick one…” The teacher approaches the table, seems to hesitate for a second, then picks up the deck and shuffles through it for a bit before settling on a card. “Uh… okay, then… I picked it.”

“Please show the flag to everyone but us.”

The teacher quietly shows everyone his pick: the well-known flag of Japan.

“We’re going to turn around now. Please hold your card face-first against your chest, so we can’t see which flag it is yet.” The kids allow the teacher a moment to press the card to his chest, then turn around. “Thank you. Now, while I think everyone has already guessed it, I should explain what that big box is: it’s also a deck of national flag cards. Using this deck, I’m going to find the bigger version of the card that has just been picked! Ah, but first—Kotensui, could you turn the box around?”

Kotensui turns the box around to show everyone its other side that says simply “NATIONAL FLAG CARDS”. It seems that whichever card comes out of the box, it will be facing the audience with its flag side.

Koyomi retrieves a normal-sized sealed deck of cards from her pocket, then takes out and shows a few cards to the audience so everyone can confirm they are also flag cards. She spreads a multitude of those cards in a giant fan and, without her touching it, one of the cards starts to slowly rise, peeking over the rest, and on its front is… the flag of South Korea. As this is going on, the giant deck opens and from the inside rises on its own… a bigger version of the card with the flag of South Korea.

“Your choice was South Korea!” Koyomi exclaims, then finally catches on to the awkward silence. “Huh? Was I wrong?... What card did you choose, sir?”

“Japan…”

“Japan? Understood! Everyone, keep your eyes on the big card now!”

As the audience looks on, the card suddenly starts changing: the black trigrams shorten and disappear, the blue half of the circle grows red… until it looks exactly like the flag of Japan! Not only that, when the audience turns their attention back to Koyomi, they notice the small card that sticks out has also turned into the flag of Japan.

“There we go.” Koyomi turns to the teacher. “Could you show us the card you picked, sir? Just to confirm it matches.”

The teacher finally uncovers the card he’s been holding to his chest, glances at it... and his jaw drops, because the flag on it is no longer that of Japan, but of South Korea. Koyomi thanks him for the assistance and lets him take the transformed card home as a souvenir.

16. WATCH & SKETCH CONTROL

The stagehands take away all the small and big decks, in exchange leaving a large sketchbook and a black marker on the table.

“That was amazing, Koyomi!” Kotensui cheers. “What are we going to do now?”

“Hmm… for this next part, I think I’ll need three members of the audience. And here’s how I’ll choose them: I’m going to start listing personal attributes, like “wears glasses” or “is an adult woman”. If you don’t match an attribute, you get eliminated, so in the end there should be only one person left who fulfills all the criteria. We’ll do it three times, so don’t lose hope if you don’t get chosen at first! Okay, let’s begin! First… I see a lot of families in the audience today, but I’d like to pick someone who hasn’t brought any family members with them… who is also an older man, in his forties… who does not wear glasses… who thinks his name is unusual… and who came here from a prefecture far away.”

With this, only one person is left: a middle-aged man dressed with a very poor sense of fashion, who says that he came here all the way from Kyoto for important job reasons.

Koyomi picks up the sketchbook, opens it on a blank page and holds it so the audience can see. It’s so big in comparison to the girl that she has to prop it from behind with one arm.

“I’m going to draw a simple picture now. Once I’m done, please tell me what you think it is.” Using the black marker she draws a big circle.

“It’s a normal circle,” the man says at first, then seems to change his mind. “No, it’s the flag of Japan.”

“The flag of Japan? Certainly it would look that way, was the circle red. Now I’m going to add something…” She draws an arrow inside the circle. “What do you see now?”

“It’s a clock, or maybe a scale…”

“A clock or a scale?”

“Let’s go with the clock."

"Alright. Could you please look at your watch and tell me what time it shows right now?”

“I’m afraid my watch is five minutes early, but it shows 3:52.”

“Okay! Let me draw this hour on the clock.” She adds the minute hand and the hour hand, so the drawn clock now shows more or less 3:52. “Thank you for your cooperation! You can go back to your seat now.” But just as the man scuttles away and sits down, she adds: “But before that, please list the criteria for the next chosen member of the audience!” The man immediately stands back up with a troubled expression, but eventually complies and starts listing his criteria.

The next person chosen is a grade school student, who is a girl, who wears glasses, and who has never before seen a magic show.

“Please tell me what your favorite hour and minute is,” Koyomi requests. “Any time will do! Aside from 3:52, that is.”

“Um… 10:12?”

This time, Koyomi doesn’t add anything on the clock, but writes a big 10:12 below it.

The girl chooses the last person: someone who is left-handed, with blood type AB, and with no cavities, which leaves a single male high schooler standing.

“Alright, now please look closely at the clock.”

Everyone’s attention is now on the clock, and suddenly—the drawn arrows start to move around the circle like real clock hands. Koyomi shifts her position, so the audience can’t see where exactly the hands are.

“Say stop at any moment you like!” she prompts the high schooler. “Any moment at all.”

“O-okay, then… stop!”

The instant he says it, Koyomi lets everyone see the clock again. Its hands are no longer moving, and the hour they stopped at is 10:12, the same time as the one written below.

That’s not the end of surprises: Koyomi somehow pulls out an actual, real clock from behind the sketchbook and sets it down on the table. Its hands are also pointing to 10:12, frozen in place as if the battery died.

Finally, Koyomi moves her hand over the sketchbook page… and the drawn clock magically fills in with red. Just like that middle-aged man from Kyoto said, it really is a flag of Japan! Koyomi rips out that page from the sketchbook and announces that everyone will be able to inspect it at the exit after the show.

17. CARP SCALING THE WATERFALL

The audience is naturally a little tired at this point, seeing as the show has been going on for quite a while. Koyomi comments on this and tells everyone not to worry: there is just one last illusion left.

The sketchbook is taken away, and instead the stagehands bring in an empty milk bottle, an empty wine glass, and a pitcher with water, putting them on the table next to the clock. Additionally, a fish tank filled with water (but no fish in sight) is pushed in on a little table with wheels. The tank is about a meter wide, half a meter tall, which may not seem that big, but since the two kids are so small, any of them could probably fit inside.

“We’ve done a lot of magic today,” Koyomi says. “Aren’t you tired, Kotensui?”

“Not at all!”

“Oh, right. You are a puppet, after all.”

“A puppet can get tired too, you know.”

“You mean the person moving you?”

“What ‘person moving me’? I’m the one moving myself.”

“There has to be someone else controlling you.”

“There’s no such person! I mean, where would they even be?”

They both look up with curiosity, but don’t seem to spot anyone, and as far as the audience can see, no obvious strings are hanging down.

“Alright, fine,” Koyomi sighs and starts preparing the next illusion.

She shows the pitcher of water and the empty milk bottle to the audience. There doesn’t seem to be anything strange about them. She gives Kotensui the bottle to hold, then pours in some water from the pitcher… and once it finds itself in the bottle, the water turns white like milk. Next, Kotensui holds the wine glass, and Koyomi once more pours some water in… and it turns red like wine.

“I have a question for you, Kotensui. What do you think is going to happen if I pour both of these into the tank?” Koyomi asks, holding the bottle of milk in one hand and the glass of wine in the other.

“Um… a really weird color mix? There’s a lot of water in the tank, so the color may be a little faint…”

“Well, let’s try and see!” She pours in the milk first, and the white color spreads all throughout the tank. Then she adds the wine, and starting from the place it was poured in, the liquid in the tank slowly turns… transparent again. However, there is now a beautiful red-and-white koi carp swimming inside.

“Were you surprised, Kotensui?” she asks.

“Very surprised! But it can’t be where the trick ends, can it?”

“Of course not! I’m just getting started.” Koyomi pushes the tank on wheels towards the back of the stage, where it’s soon hidden behind the big projection screen from the beginning of the show. All the normal lights but the one behind the tank are turned off, making the giant shadows of the tank and the gracefully swimming carp inside clearly projected on the screen. Besides that there’s just a little spotlight on Koyomi and Kotensui, who are still standing in front of the screen.

“Do you know the legend about a carp that climbed a waterfall?” Koyomi begins. “There is a big river in China, the Yellow River. It has a waterfall called the Dragon Gate, and the legend says that if a carp climbs all the way up that waterfall, it will turn into a dragon. Since this is just a legend, there is no way a carp can actually turn into a dragon… but wouldn’t it be wonderful? Let’s watch, everyone...”

The spotlight on them vanishes, leaving only the projected image among the darkness. At first nothing happens, but then—with a sound like a crashing wave, a tall pillar of water suddenly rises from the tank towards the heavens, the carp rising together with it. The pillar stops for a second, as if taking a breath, and then shoots up again, roaring like a waterfall and splashing water around. As the carp once again moves upwards, suddenly its shape starts to change, grows bigger and elongated like a serpentine dragon, until with a deafening roar it shoots up, towards the ceiling of the tent—and at the moment it collides with it, the entire tent shakes as if in an earthquake. The dragon seems to burst through the ceiling, taking into the skies and disappearing from the projection screen.

The screen is lifted, revealing that the previously small water tank is now a round glass pillar so giant that indeed a dragon could have fit inside, about 10 meters in diameter and 3 meters in height. There’s just a little bit of water left inside.

That’s not the only change: the previously black curtain in the back now bears black-and-white stripes, just like those used at funerals.

There's a quiet sound like water droplets falling on the tent’s material. It’s quickly intensifying, as if it’s just started raining outside. The intense rain even enters the tent, presumably through the hole left by the escaping dragon, water mercilessly beating against the stage and flowing down to the little moat surrounding it.

“Wah, it’s raining!” Kotensui shouts flailing his arms in panic.

“Kotensui, here! Quickly!” Koyomi produces a big flower-printed umbrella out of nowhere. Kotensui quickly ducks underneath it (which shouldn’t be possible, considering the puppet’s strings should catch on the umbrella, but somehow it works.)

“Why is it raining inside, Koyomi?!”

“It’s the dragon! The dragon is sending down rain!”

The children turn away from the audience and look up at the giant tank, which starts to slowly fill with falling water. The umbrella is so big in comparison to the kids that it shields their upper bodies from view.

As the rain is falling, the clock on the table comes to life, its hands moving quickly as if time itself was put in fast-forward. Finally, the raging rain lessens and stops, and the clock’s hands once more go still. The giant tank is now filled with water.

Finally safe from the rain, Koyomi lowers the umbrella…

...and is now an adult woman.

18. SWING WITH NO STRING

Tensui’s beautiful assistant sets the open umbrella on the ground to let it dry.

“The lady who disappeared!” Kotensui seems as shocked as the audience. The assistant bends forward to be at eye level with him.

“You’re the boy from earlier… how do you know my name?”

“Huh? I don’t know your name!”

“But you just said it: Koyomi.”

“You’re Koyomi too?!”

“What do you mean, too?”

“There was another, smaller Koyomi!”

“There’s only one Koyomi here, and that’s me. Are you sure you weren’t dreaming just now? By the way, have you seen that man I talked about earlier? A splendid man called Soga Tensui, dressed in the same outfit as you.”

“I haven’t seen him.”

“Strange… you know, you look a lot like he did as a child. But now that I think about it… I can’t remember it well, but I think that when I myself was a child, I used to play with a puppet of a boy, one very similar to you. Maybe that really was you? Puppets can’t grow any older, after all.”

“They can’t grow any older...?”

Adult Koyomi picks up the umbrella once more, revealing a small stool has appeared behind it along with a roll of adhesive tape. She picks up the tape and uses it to affix all four legs of the stool to the ground.

“What are you doing?” Kotensui asks.

“If I don’t secure it, it may be dangerous.”

“Dangerous? What may be dangerous?”

Koyomi sits down on the chair, umbrella in hand.

“Sometimes, I think... that I would like to go back to when I was a child. But no one can turn back time. That’s why I’m jealous of you, who will always stay a child.” She shields herself from the audience with her umbrella and pulls her legs up so she cannot be seen. The umbrella turns once, twice, thrice and falls to the ground, leaving an empty stool behind.

“Koyomi? Where are you?!” Kotensui picks up the umbrella confused, then—

“Kotensui, watch out!” comes Koyomi’s shout through the speakers—not the adult assistant’s voice, but the little girl’s. “Look up!”

Suddenly, the giant Press Hammer is falling down!

Hearing Koyomi’s warning, Kotensui manages to run away in time, but the chair is smashed into pieces. Once it had proven its destructive force in this way, the Press Hammer is slowly lifted once more.

“Koyomi, where are you?” Kotensui shouts, apparently concerned more about her well-being than about his own near-death experience. “Koyomi! Where have you disappeared to?!”

There is no answer. The lights around go out, leaving only a lonely spotlight for Kotensui as he sadly walks around searching. The bell hammer is lowered down, so Kotensui sits on it and starts slowly swinging left and right (just how a temple bell hammer like that moves), followed closely by the spotlight. Kontensui’s taking only half of the big bell hammer, holding the rope with his right hand, the place next to him depressingly empty. A lonely child in an empty playground.

“Everyone went away somewhere…” Kotensui laments. “Time passes and the world changes. But I don’t change at all…” The bell hammer swings a bit stronger and is at once slowly being lifted in the air. “No, even if I’m a puppet, I should be changing a little. Nothing in this world is unchanging. Even a puppet will break one day.” The bell hammer is now several meters in the air, rocking strongly from side to side, assisted by quiet sounds similar to metronome’s ticks.

Below, another spotlight shines on the clock left on the table. Its hands are moving again, as if the swinging bell hammer really is a pendulum measuring time, its ticking representing passing seconds. For a while, nothing else is happening.

Then the sound of ticking suddenly goes quiet, and what comes through the speakers next—

—is Kotensui’s horrified scream as the rope he's holding onto snaps where it connects to the bell hammer, causing it to slip away from under him.

Fortunately, Kotensui's right hand gets tangled in the rope, keeping him from falling. The bell hammer swings away still suspended with the other rope. But since the entire construction has just been swinging strongly to the sides, the power of inertia sends the heavy bell hammer and Kotensui flying towards each other on a collision course. Kotensui manages to spin around on the rope and avoids a tragedy by the breadth of hair. He gets away a second time, a third time, and finally their movements slow down enough that he’s safe from the hammer.

Before long the rope holding the bell hammer also snaps, letting it fall down to the dark stage, a loud splash of water suggesting it has fallen right into the giant water tank. A spotlight highlighting the tank is quickly turned on, and there really is something in the water now—but not a lifeless bell hammer; instead, it has transformed into a real, deadly hammer shark, swimming in an open tank just a few meters under struggling Kotensui.

Even though the audience knows Kotensui is a puppet, even though they know he’s just a doll with a boy’s voice, he still looks and acts like a little child and no one wants to see him fall down and be torn apart. As the audience watches in fear, the rope holding Kotensui finally untwists and he falls down straight into the darkness between his spotlight and the tank, his scream mixing with the audience’s.

But no splash can be heard. Kotensui doesn't fall into the tank. For a moment, things are completely quiet.

Then another spotlight shines just above the tank, showing someone miraculously standing on water: a man with elegant jet-black hair and a thin Kaiser moustache, wearing a black diving suit this time—and cradling little Kotensui to his chest.

With the puppet safe in his arms, Soga Tensui first walks on water to the edge of the tank, then—simply keeps on walking, now stepping on thin air, as if smoothly descending an invisible hill back to the stage. It’s a splendid demonstration of his two most famous illusions, Sea Walk and Sky Walk.

19. NOSTALGIC ILLUSION

“Wah, this was so scary!” Kotensui says as he’s still being held in Tensui’s arms. “I almost fell! Thank you so much for saving me! But… who are you? The man that Koyomi was looking for?”

Tensui simply nods and sets Kotensui down.

“So you’re Mr. Tensui… um, are we related somehow?”

Tensui’s mouth still doesn’t move, but a new voice comes through the speakers. Refined, deep, it fits the man perfectly.

“You are my past, Kotensui,” the voice says.

“I am… your past? What do you mean?” But I’m just me!, Kotensui’s body language seems to be saying.

“Ever since I was your age, I have been standing on the stage of illusion, just like today showing the audience my magic. Several decades have passed... I continue to stand on the stage. That innocent little boy I was is still there inside me, deep on the bottom of my heart. That boy is you. You are my precious past itself. Even now, you remain in my heart.”

“I… I don’t really understand…”

“It’s fine if you don’t. You’re still a child… no, you will always stay a child.”

“Because I’m a puppet and I can’t grow old?”

Tensui lightly shakes his head, his expression gentle.

“Because everyone holds the child they once were deep inside their heart. No matter how old they may grow, this will never change.” His voice sounds honest, as if he’s speaking from the depths of his soul. “Back when I was just starting my life on the stage, a certain magician showed me something I will never forget: the underwater escape. That scene I saw as a child has stayed with me forever, and I wished with all my heart that one day, when I grew up, I would revive that magic myself. After several decades, the time has finally come. I want to show you the underwater escape that charmed me so much when I was a child.”

Stagehands appear again, first putting a few light stands around the stage to provide atmospheric lighting, then bringing in a three-meter-tall round cage without a ceiling.

“The most famous escapologist in the history of magic, Harry Houdini, has performed many escapes from perilous situations throughout his life. Among them was his specialty, underwater escapes, and many after him kept their fame alive. However, out of all the underwater escapes I have seen throughout the years, the one I witnessed as a child was, without a doubt, performed in the most severe circumstances…”

Tensui lets himself be handcuffed, then steps inside the cage. The stagehands wrap two heavy chains around his entire body, affixing it to two opposite walls of the cage in the process. The stagehands leave locking the door; the only way out of the cage is now up. Next, suspension hooks are attached to the cage, and soon it's lifted up and moved over the shark tank. The black-and-white funeral curtain in the background now seems a dark omen of things to come.

“The magician was handcuffed and tied with chains inside a cage, which was then dropped into a tank with a starving man-eating shark. He had exactly three minutes to escape. After three minutes, a giant press hammer would fall down and kill him. The opening at the top of the cage was just big enough to allow its passage.”

The deadly Press Hammer is moved to hang above the cage and lowered to about halfway through its height, demonstrating that it can indeed fit through. It almost touches Tensui’s calm face as he looks up at it. The Press Hammer is lifted again, looming over the scene.

“The timer will now be set to three minutes,” Tensui’s voice says as a stagehand fiddles with the clock on the table. “To make sure the last rows can see it easily, these three minutes will be shown like three hours, the hand starting at nine and ending at twelve.”

The cage is slowly lowered, submerging Tensui up to his neck.

“Please know that there is no secret hole in the cage or the tank. There is but one way to escape: to get out of the chains and the cage in under three minutes, then reach the edge of the tank while avoiding the shark. I will now perform the most unforgiving underwater escape in history. Let us begin.”

The cage sinks to the very bottom of the tank, which makes it fit perfectly under the surface. The timer starts.

Tensui instantly starts to move, attempting to take off the chains, but doesn’t seem successful in his efforts for a good half a minute. Only two and a half minute left. The hungry hammer shark attempts to charge the cage, but it’s sturdy enough to withstand the attack with ease. Tensui is still bound, struggling with the chains.

Just as the first minutes passes, the Press Hammer starts its deadly descent, pausing about three meters above the cage.

Tensui manages to get his left hand out of the handcuffs and tugs at the chains, but they’re still binding him tightly. One and a half minute left, and he gets his right hand free too, but the chains still won’t yield. He wriggles and pulls at them, but all he achieves is that his left arm gets twisted behind him in a painful-looking manner, making him grimace in suffering. But with this movement he apparently finds the opening he was looking for, gets both his arms free and starts working on the chains.

The second minute has passed. The Press Hammer descends once more, stopping right above the cage, only a small space of air left between it and the water level. If allowed to make its next move, it will certainly kill.

When Tensui finally manages to untie all the chains, only thirty second are left. Swimming up he’s able to breach the surface and catch a breath, but the Press Hammer has already descended so low that he may not be able to squeeze through the gap between it and the cage’s wall. When he attempts it anyway, the shark immediately attacks, forcing him to retreat. Tensui takes one last breath, still with perfect composure dives to the bottom of the cage and moves his hands over the walls, as if trying to find something. He strikes at the cage’s door, but it won’t open. He attempts to do something with the cage’s bottom, but it won’t budge either. Suddenly he stops in his tracks, looks up at the Press Hammer looming above him—

Ten seconds left, nine seconds, eight seconds—

Tensui crosses his arms in front of his face and curls his knees up to his chest, making himself as small as possible—

Four seconds—three—two—one—

The Press Hammer falls.

Its final descent creates a milliard of bubbles obscuring the view and causes gallons of water to rush out of the tank with a splash. The clock hand stops.

The audience looks on speechless, fearing what they’re about to see once the bubbles clear. As if sensing the tragedy, the lights on the stage go out, leaving the tent in darkness.

The very next moment, a spotlight is directed at an aisle near the back of the auditorium, and standing there is a very wet, but very much alive Soga Tensui.

Tensui walks down the auditorium among a standing ovation, at one point starting to nonchalantly walk in the air to get back on the stage...

...where the black-and-white colors of the funeral curtain in an instant change to a happy, triumphant red-and-white.

“That was amazing, Mr. Tensui!” Kotensui’s entire body language expresses joy. “Amazing!”

Tensui and the puppet shake hands, then bow deeply to the audience several times. Finally, Tensui leaves the stage, and little Kotensui puts both his hands up, as if asking the audience to listen to just one more thing. Everyone obediently falls silent.

The puppet holds his head between his hands, spins it around 360 degrees, lifts it completely off his shoulders…

...and from underneath it peeks out a face of a real living boy, who looks exactly like Kotensui.

“Ah, it really was so much fun!” comes Kotensui’s voice from the speakers as the tiny boy gives the shocked audience a satisfied, relaxed smile.

The spotlight dims slowly, finally bringing the wondrous show of magic to its end.

[>>>NEXT PART>>>]

#sparkly reads the saimon family case #maijo and jdc stuff #this one's REALLY long

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nothingeverlost · 5 years ago

Text

Fic: Things Half in Shadows (14/14)

Fandom: Once Upon a Time

Pairings: Gold/Belle (eventually) with side pairings that probably include Graham/Bay, Archie/Emma and others.

Summary: The first thing you learn, back in Psych 101, is that you never get emotionally involved with a patient. For 25 years Dr. Gold hasn’t had a problem walking that fine line. Something changes, though, when he meets Belle French. AU

Author’s Note: I can’t begin to express what this fic and the people who read it have meant to me. Thank you all. This is the last chapter. I chose to leave it here and pick it up again in a sequel. The second half is relationship-centric and will begin with Belle leaving Storybrooke.

TRIGGER WARNING: Indirect mentions of abuse and sexual assault

Chapter 14 - Small Steps

There was a book on the table next to her customary cup of tea. The cover was free of words, only a pattern of roses that looked like an old bit of wallpaper.

“A journal?” she guessed. She’d never kept a diary before and felt a flutter in her stomach when she remembered the last time her doctor had asked her to write anything. Eight words and everything had changed. For the better, maybe, someday, but nothing had ever hurt so much. She hadn’t had the numbness to shield her. She would try, though, if he asked.

“While that’s never a bad idea that’s not my intent today. It is for writing but I don’t want you to write about yourself.”

“Who should I be writing about?” She knew he wouldn’t ask her to write about her father.

“You read a lot of stories, Belle. It’s a comfort to step into the world someone else created, to attend a ball with Elizabeth Darcy or to push the Dread Pirate Roberts down a hill. I want to see you try writing a story with your own words. It can be as simple or as complex as you like.” From his pocket he took a pen, resting it on top of the book.

“That’s it? Just write something?” She hadn’t written anything since a creative writing class she took her first semester in college. She couldn’t remember if she’d liked it or not.

“Anything you want. When you’re done you can show it to anyone you want or you can keep it to yourself. You can show it to me, but only if that’s what you want.” He took a sip of his tea. Belle remembered her own cup and took a sip, and a bite of the coffee cake he’d brought in that morning. She liked the blueberries. “What’s the first story you remember as a child?”

“Cinderella.” She was distracted by the book, picking it up and running her fingers over the lightly textured cover before opening it up. The pages were blank. So much empty space; it seemed lonely without words. “Not the Disney one; it was a pop-up book. There was this page with all the stairs and in the middle the glass slipper. I remember running my fingers up and down the stairs, pretending I’d lost my shoe. One page had the carriage and you could open the door and look inside. I wanted to shrink so I could fit inside, just for a little while. It was such a pretty little carriage.”

“Perhaps you can tell the story of a little girl who did manage to shrink,” he suggested. “When my son was wee there was a story he loved about a family that lived in the walls of a house.”

“I loved Thumbelina. My mama would watch the movie with me; it was the first VHS I remember owning. We liked to sing the songs together.” They would cuddle under a blanket and share a bowl of popcorn that they’d made together on the stove. Her mama loved to sing. She’d almost forgotten how she’d sung when she was washing the dishes, or combing her hair, and always at bedtime. “I don’t remember anything about the movie except that she was little and there was singing.”

“I’m sure we could find a copy, sometime.” He scribbled a note on a piece of paper. It was strange, most psychiatrists she had seen wrote a lot. Some seemed to barely look at her, they were so busy writing about what she said. Her doctor rarely wrote more than a few sentences and she always got the feeling that it was making sure he remembered things rather than analyzing her. “It sounds like a memory worth holding onto.”

“I think it is.” It hurt to think about her mama; maybe it always would. But it made her feel warm, too, to remember the way they had sung together. Maybe getting better meant that the warm was just as strong as the hurt. She took another bite of her coffee cake and waited for questions about her mama that didn’t come. Her doctor turned back to the subject of stories for the rest of her session.

Belle’s entrance to the art room was blocked by the sprawled form of Jefferson on the floor, arms and legs both spread eagle. She held her new book to her chest and looked down at him, wondering if she needed to go back and get help. His eyes were open, though, and she couldn’t see anything that looked like danger.

“Don’t mind him, he’s just being a drama queen.” August leaned against the back of a chair nearby. “Even more so than usual.”

“I’m bor-ed. Bored. B-b-b-bored.��

“I’m starting to get the idea that Jefferson’s bored. Anyone else getting that feeling?” Ruby was using the art scissors to trim bits of her hair.

“Does this place have a yelp? I’m giving them one star. Can I do no stars? I’m going to do that. The food is pedestrian, the entertainment is abysmal, and I’m sure there’s beds of nails that are more comfortable than what passes for accommodation here.”

“Fortunately there’s always the chance that a patient will provide entertainment,” Ruby said pointedly.

“You call this entertaining?” August rolled his eyes.

“Do you think they might let us have a picnic?” Belle offered tentatively. They’d had sunny afternoons the last couple of days.

“A party.” Jefferson sat up. “Rabbit, you’re brilliant.”

“Christmas is over.” From the corner of the room a small sad voice piped up. Astrid was working on something involving glue and a lot of glitter.

“Anyone have a birthday coming up?” Jefferson asked hopefully.

“Mine was last month.” Mary Margaret was the first to pop Jefferson’s bubble. Belle just shook her head. No one had mentioned holidays or birthdays since she’d arrived, almost as if time was standing still. Maybe that’s what they all hoped, that time was still and they would be able to just slip into their lives when they returned home. If they returned.

“This is perfect. Bake the cake and hire the clowns, we’re having a birthday party.” Jefferson shot up so fast it was hard to tell how he’d gotten to his feet.

“No on has a birthday until June, sweetie,” Ruby reminded him.

“Please tell me you’re not serious about clowns.” August crossed his arms. “That’s not funny.”

“If it’s no one’s birthday then it’s everyone’s unbirthday. What’s better than an unbirthday party?” He raced around the room, pulling fake flowers and ribbons from bins, stopping behind Astrid’s chair to lean down low. “More glitter, little mouse. We need more sparkle.”

“This is going to be interesting.” Ella picked up the flower that had landed in her lap.

“That’s one word for it,” August commented, pointedly ignoring the ribbons that had landed on his shoulder. “Not the word I’d pick, though.”

“Have you ever read any fairy tales?” Belle threw a pea into the lake, a little farther from the shore this time. The ducklings were getting bigger now, and Graham said that they needed to work a little for their food.

“Maybe when I was a kid. I don’t remember, really.” They reached for a pea at the same time, their fingers touching. Belle hardly thought about it, or the fact that only a few weeks ago it would have startled her.

“I was rereading some yesterday.” She had hoped they would inspire her own idea for a story. “They’re very black and white. Stepmothers are always evil. The princess is always good and pure. Fairy godmothers will always help. Wolves can’t be trusted.”

“A lot of people don’t understand about wolves. They’re nobel.” Graham tossed another pea into the water, a little farther from the ducks. One of the ducklings dove to get it and came up, shaking out its feathers.

“Maybe it’s easier to pretend that the scary things are so simple. As easy to see as a wolf in pajamas.” Fairytales never taught you to be scared of the people that said they loved you; at least none that she’d found.

“Wolf wouldn’t be happy wearing anyone’s pajamas, but he does like sleeping bags. I had to buy one for him or I’d never get any sleep when we go out. He gets in and curls up until all you can see is his nose. He has to carry it, though, if he wants it.” The last of the peas were gone. Graham opened the other bag he’d brought and set out two white chocolate cranberry cookies.

“He carries his sleeping bag?” Graham had mentioned camping, once. Belle had never had a pet, but didn’t imagine that was something they usually did.

“It clips onto his harness. He’s always excited when I put it on because he knows we’ll sleep outdoors. Besides, I carry food for both of us, it’s only fair he carries his own bedding.” Graham took a bite of one of the cookies and pushed the other one a little closer to her. “Somehow I ended up with an extra if you want one.”

“Thank you.” Nurse Whale had mentioned she was up seven pounds and had been pleased when he added the note to her file. Someday maybe she could meet her doctor’s son and thank him for all the muffins and cookies. “Does Wolf have to carry his own tent too?”

“We don’t use a tent. Just a sleeping bag apiece and a campfire. Can’t see the stars in a tent, and they tell a different story every night.” it was midday but still Graham looked up at the sky as if he could see the stars.

“What happens if it rains?”

“We get wet.” Graham shrugged. “If it’s a heavy storm we find a shelter. But look at the ducklings, they love to get wet. A lot of animals do. There’s nothing harmful in a little rain, and afterwards everything smells new.’

“I’ve never been camping.” She and her mama used to make tents out of sheets and imagine they were camping. They made s’mores in the oven and ate them sitting around a flashlight. She’d mentioned camping to her papa once and he’d taken her to a resort that summer in upstate New York. They’d served a chocolate mousse topped with meringue and graham cracker and called it a s’more. Her papa had called her princess and gifted her with her first bikini. She’d ‘lost’ it after the second day, and was glad they never went back.

“There’s berries and mushrooms growing on the other side of the lake, at the edge of the woods. It’s not camping but we could go for a walk,” he suggested, finishing his cookie.

“Are you sure it’s alright?” She’d never walked past the edge of the lake.

“As long as you stay with me.”

By the time they returned from their walk Belle had almost forgotten about fairytales. Graham had shown her the signs of edible mushrooms, but cautioned her not to eat any without him there. He’d pointed out a nest in a branch that still held eggs. There was a bush full of berries that might make a good cookie. Her questions had been tentative at first but he’d answered them all, speaking more than he usually did. She was eager to learn more and he walked with her to the library to point out a few books they had about local flora and fauna. Caught up in the books she almost didn’t notice someone joining them in the library.

“Belle.” Gaston had his hands in his pockets, his height seeming so much taller than she remembered. “Can we talk?”

“Visitor’s hours are Saturday. This isn’t a good time.” Graham took two steps to his right, coming between her and the doorway.

“You’re not Belle, so I wasn’t talking to you. I was talking to my fiance.” Gaston was less forceful than usual, but she knew that he wouldn’t leave.

“It’s okay, Graham.” She didn’t know what he wanted, but it was usually quicker to give it to him than argue. Logic wasn’t Gaston’s strongest suit. “He’s driven a long way to be here. We can talk.”

“You heard her. I’m sure there’s someone else in this place that needs your attention.” Gaston sat on one of the sofas, his feet on the table. Belle was reminded of his home office, though the Storybrooke library didn’t have any animal heads mounted on the walls.

“Right now my job is to be here.” Graham crossed his arms. Gaston’s cheek muscle twitched.

“Can we have a few minutes, Graham? You could wait right outside the door.” She could call for him if she needed him. She wondered if she actually would.

“A few minutes and the door stays open,” Graham agreed reluctantly. Once he was out of the room Belle dug her nails into the arm of the couch. She tried to remember what it was like to sit at dinner with him and make small talk.

“You look good, Gaston.” He had a tan that she knew came from a tanning bed this time of year and a body sculpted with the help of a personal trainer named Lefou.

“You look… fine.” His eyes swept over her, and she knew he was seeing the hair pulled back in a ponytail and the bulky sweater that was warm but unfashionable. She hadn’t put on any makeup since she’d arrived, except the nail polish Ruby had used a few days ago to make her nails a pale pink. “Are you… fine?”

“I’m learning a lot about myself.” Fine was right up there with okay on the list of words she didn’t know how to define. There were a lot of things people said to each other that didn’t mean anything, polite lies that meant not talking about anything real..

“Moe said you would be coming home soon.” Belle flinched, but she was certain Gaston didn’t notice.

“I’m not ready for that.” Belle shook her head. She wouldn’t ever return to the place that Gaston called home. For weeks she had asked Doctor every day about the restraining order, needing the reminder that it was real. She had spoken to the sheriff once, as well. It had been almost a month now, and no lawyers had shown up. No threats had been made. She was beginning to believe she was safe for him, at least within the small world of Storybrooke. What happened when she left she didn’t know; she didn’t have a home anymore.

“I don’t understand why you’re here. You’re not like them.” He gestured towards the doorway, where the sounds of art therapy could be heard. “You’d do better being around your own people.”

“These are my people.” They were all trying to heal from things. She wondered if Gaston would even be able to understand what it was to need to heal. He spoke of little other than hunting and business, boating and stocks. If she was honest with herself there was very little she knew about the man she’d said yes to marrying. He knew even less about her.

“Your people are at home; there’s a dinner at the club this weekend. People keep asking me when you’re coming home, not that they know where you are.” Too restless for the couch Gaston rose and started pacing. “They ask me about the wedding.”

“I can’t marry you, Gaston.” She said the words in a hurry, afraid she wouldn’t say them all if she didn’t say them all at once.

“You don’t mean that. When you get home…”

“No.” She shook her head. When her father had brought Gaston home she had accepted it, as she did everything else. She hadn’t gone away to college because he didn’t want it. She hadn’t babysat as a teen. Hadn’t gone to school dances. She was always a dutiful daughter, even when it came to dating the man that was picked out for her. And saying yes when expected, whether it was diner, sex or an engagement ring. If she stayed with Gaston she was still her father’s prisoner. It didn’t matter that Gaston was unaware of who Moe French really was or what he had done. “I’m sorry Gaston.”

“I don’t understand, we had plans. You said yes.” Any plans they had, Belle knew, had been his own. A wife to take care of his house and play hostess for his parties. The right type of woman to show off at the club. Children, probably, but she couldn’t even think about that. For a moment she imagined a daughter, soft brown curls and her mother’s eyes. She thought of her father, and wondered if she would have more power to protect a daughter than she’d had to save herself.

“Belle.” He said her name sharply, and probably not for the first time. It was enough to bring Graham into the room. She thought of the stories he’d told her about Wolf, and wondered if that was why she was reminded so strongly of a predator. The narrow eyes and tense muscles might have scared her from another man, but she trusted him. He was there to protect her.

“I’m alright now.” She spoke to Gaston but looked over his shoulder to Graham. She could make it through this conversation but she wasn’t going to ask him to leave again.

“This place is making you worse, not better,” Gaston groused.

“I’m not someone you would want to marry.” There wasn’t any point explaining to him anymore than that. “The ring is in my jewelry box at home. You should have it back.”

“You shouldn’t make decisions in a place like this. When you change your mind…”

“I wish you the best, Gaston, I really do. I need you to go now.” Graham took a step closer. Perhaps Gaston felt it, or perhaps he decided his ego was smarting from the rejection.

“If I take back the ring that’s it.” When she didn’t say anything he got up and strode from the library. She hesitated for a moment before running after him.

“Gaston, wait.” She could feel Graham standing behind her, not trying to touch her but his presence unmistakable.

“I knew it.” His smile was the cocky one she was most familiar with. Belle took a breath, closing her eyes. She could be brave. She could speak up.

“You move in the same circles as my father. Parties, the club, charity events. You should know…” She felt her nails against the underside of her forearm and paused, pulling them away. She would not hurt herself. “He can’t be left alone with little girls. They need to be protected.

“You can’t mean…” She’d never before seen all the color drain from Gaston’s face. The horrified look in his eyes was probably the most real emotion she’d ever seen from him. She nodded and waited to see that he understood what she meant, then turned her back to him. She couldn’t allow him to ask questions, couldn’t speak any clearer than she already had. It had taken all of her bravery to say that much.

Doctor Gold was standing on the other side of the doorway. “Graham thought you might like a cup of tea. I thought we could take some out to the garden.”

“I would like that.” She was surprised to see that her hand wasn’t trembling. The hot tea would be welcome. Before she followed him she looked over her shoulder on last time. “Goodbye, Gaston.”

She stood completely still until she could feel him leaving. Graham was gone too, and she knew without having to ask that he was following Gaston. Making sure he didn’t linger, didn’t ask anything more of her. After almost two years and an engagement it was strange to think that she’d most likely seen him for the last time. It was probably stranger to think she had agreed to marry him but wouldn’t miss him.

“He’s gone, dearie. Would you like to sit down?”

“In the garden.” She looked down at her feet and willed them to move. After a moment they did, and if she thought about nothing else but walking she could get herself to the bench outside before her knees let her down. He handed her a mug of tea poured from his thermos as soon as she sat. It seemed cooler outside than it had half an hour ago when she’d been walking with Graham.

“He shouldn’t have gotten as far as the library without anyone stopping him, Belle. I’m sorry.” He waited a moment to speak, or maybe it was five minutes. She wasn’t sure how long she’d been staring at her tea before looking at him.

“He wasn’t a threat. He never hurt me.” She wasn’t sure she could say that Gaston was a good man. He worked and he hunted and he went to the club. He hated books and was sometimes frustrated when he saw her reading rather than socializing, but he was never cruel. He didn’t go out of his way to help anyone but neither did he hurt anyone. “I didn’t even know I didn’t want to be with him. It was easier to just say yes.”

“It was what other people wanted from you,” he commented softly.

“I said no to him today.” Had she ever said that before? She couldn’t remember the last time she’d said no, not to something as simple as where they were going for dinner or as complicated as an engagement ring. Not to trips with her papa or his college plans or anything. “Even when it made him mad.”

“The only emotions you are responsible for are your own.” His tea was on the bench, his hands both on the handle of his cane. He moved it restlessly, the tip moving bits of gravel around the ground. He always moved, even when he was sitting still. “What you did today took a good deal of courage.

“I was scared. Not of him.” He made her feel small next to him, his confidence and control making her feel like everything centered around him, but she hadn’t feared him. Or loved him. She’d simply existed next to him. “Everything’s changed now.”

“The unknown can be very hard to step into, even when the known is hurting us. It’s normal to be scared.” His voice was low and soothing. Belle allowed herself to close her eyes and just listen to him. His words settled into her bones with the same warmth as the tea.

“So now I start over?” With Gaston gone she had no connection to the people she’d called friends, who were really just social acquaintances. With the restraining order against her father she was an orphan in all the ways that mattered.

“As much as we might sometimes wish for a blank slate there is no such thing. No tabula rasa.” He quirked his lips into something that wasn’t quite a smile, or at least not a happy one. “We continue on a step at a time because the only thing we can do is move forward or stand still. What we do get to decide is what we carry with us and what we work on shedding.”

Belle looked down at her hands, seeing only the cooling mug of tea but knowing she held onto so much more. “I left Gaston behind.”

“You did. Are you feeling alright about that?” He picked up his mug, but only played with the handle.

Belle nodded. The conversation had been hard but knowing it was over was easy. “It’s not so simple with papa.”

“No, it’s not. But you’ve already taken the first steps.” He paused, looking at her. Belle took a shaky breath and nodded. It helped that he didn’t lie to her. Didn’t pretend that anything was going to be easy. If she’d taken the first steps there were still dozens more to take.

“One step at a time.” She rubbed her arm. There was no pain, and she’d stopped herself from digging her nails into the skin when she’d spoken to Gaston. That was a step too.

Belle deliberately chose the same sofa in the library she’d shared with Gaston the next day, an exorcism of sorts. She curled up with her notebook and pen, took a deep breath, and started writing. An hour later she had twelve pages of writing and a sore hand. The wolf was about to rescue Little Red from her grandmother when Jefferson threw himself at the other side of the sofa, making the whole thing bounce.

“Put the books away, it’s time to play.” He wore a top hat made from construction paper covered in glittering gears and offered her a pipe cleaner tiara with tissue paper roses. “Your unbirthday awaits.”

“I thought it was everyone’s unbirthday.” She slipped her book into the oversized pockets of her cardigan before accepting the tiara.

“You’re one of the everybody, aren’t you?” He tipped his hat at her, stood, and offered her his hand. She only hesitates a moment before letting him help her up.

“I am.” She followed Jefferson to the garden where her friends were waiting to celebrate. It was one more small step.

#rumbelle fic #mr. gold #belle french #graham humbert #jefferson #ruby lucas #things half in shadow #my fic

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quintessence-sentimentalist · 5 years ago

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quintessence-sentimentalist Takes on 30 Days of W.i.t.c.h.versary!: Week Two

Another week, another seven days of WITCHversary! Days 8-14 below the cut!

Day 8 Favorite extra/special

If I’ve read all or most of the specials, I can only remember like three of them... That said, of those three I have to go with W.i.t.c.h. On Stage.

The artwork... isn’t my favorite, and my judgment is it takes place on the cusp between the Ragorlang and New Power arcs (or New Power and... whichever one comes next), which is a time period I largely ignore, but what can I say, it’s a fun special! I’m such a sucker for “let’s talk about our adventures in the form of a fictional story” narratives (part of why I love Will’s potential future as a writer in issue 50), so this special really hit on that with the girls creating a play about being Guardians. Even more fun is the existence of M.A.G.I.C. to be their stars, although it still would have been fun to see the girls play a fictionalized version of themselves.

But most of all, this special has a [ahem] special place in my heart because this was how I discovered that there were more issues after the Ragorlang arc ended the English translations. Even though, again, I largely ignore everything that happened after that arc, it was still such an exciting time to find out that my girls still had many many more adventures after things seemingly ended.

Day 9 Favorite Guardian uniform

Ok, I’m doing Top 3 (in no particular order) because this is difficult and my favorites are favorites for different reasons.

1) Will, classic Guardian design: This is absolutely where my obsession with bell sleeves began. Also really loved those boots. I generally preferred the uniform tops to be purple and the bottoms green, so this worked for me on multiple levels. Will’s was the uniform I would totally wear myself (sporty but still with some fun, girly aspects via the sleeves), so I’ve always adored it. I don’t particularly like how New Power updated it (with the exception of the long fingerless gloves), so this is my preference for Will.

2) Cornelia, classic Guardian design: I’m in love with that off-the-shoulder neckline and the pointy sleeve hem and that long, elegant skirt. Might not be the most practical design for fighting, but it’s just so pretty that I love it regardless.

3) Hay Lin, New Power: Vast improvement over the classic design (which was cute but, well, threadbare) while still capturing its essence and Hay’s as well (all the ribbons). I also adore Hay’s buns and the rest of the hair hanging free - the change from the pigtails really made it hit home that these girls have evolved and grown up (granted, not that the narrative will let them age) over the course of the series.

Day 10 Favorite world/planet

Hmm, well, at the risk of sounding boring, I still think I’m going with Earth. I do love the design and bits of world-building we get from the other worlds (primarily with Meridian), but I appreciate how the girls’ home was developed, considering quite a bit of action still happened there.

I enjoy how Heatherfield is still something of a larger city, but also has a... not necessarily small-town feel, but I guess more like a college town or a neighborhood off of a major city. Like you still get the city experience, but there are also cozy local hangouts that’ll become your usual haunts. There’s the diner, and the dance school, and the old bookstore... maybe I’ve just lived in a few too many of these types of places myself (where I can walk into one of my favorite little shops and the cashier recognizes me immediately), but that’s the vibe I get. Plus, Heatherfield is home to a few eclectic non-magical characters who largely make up the supporting cast, so that’s fun as well.

And it’s not just Heatherfield I like. Redstone was a cool change of pace, sending some of the girls to the other side of the world and to what I still think is an awesome campus. I also liked that we got at least a glimpse at/general idea of Fadden Hills with the visits to Kadma and the Year Before special, instead of just leaving it as mere spoken reference to Will’s old home. We even get to see Open Hill after Eric moves, so I think it’s pretty cool that things on Earth aren’t just limited to the girls’ hometown like it’s the only city that exists.

Day 11 Something awesome

Oh, I’m so tempted to do another Top Three/Top Five, but most of the ones I’d cover I’ve either already reblogged from someone else (i.e. the comic transformation sequences, the final battle in Z is for Zenith, etc.) or waxed poetic about before (*cough* everything about animated Shagon). So I’m just going to go with the top most awesome thing I have in mind.

Listen. “We Are W.i.t.c.h.” is still by far the most played song in my music library. The first time I heard the full version waaaaayyy back when was on Radio Disney during a weird hour of the day, and from then on I had the radio on every moment I could so I could catch it again. (I never did, not until I got the CD.) I still get chills and a major throwback whenever I watch the US opening sequence. Long story short, I couldn’t ask for a more kickass theme song.

Day 12 Something that made you cry

It takes some effort to make me cry (or I’ll cry at the most unexpected things), so I’m not sure anything has actually made me burst out in physical tears. But here are a few things that just get me in the heart:

1) Dormouse’s death: In the retrospect of having lost a beloved pet over the last few years, this one is more painful than I can say. Especially so when you think about it and how it was basically used as tragedy fodder after things finally start looking up for Will. (Her father’s dropped the custody case! Things are actually alright with her mom for once! They’re going for a walk to celebrate! Really, can the poor girl’s happiness last for more than two seconds???) The US English translations (via the chapter books) ended with issue/book 26, and this event is omitted entirely, with the story ending on the happy note of Thomas dropping the case and then the back-end comic excerpts being replaced by a scrapbook-like section of the girls’ adventures.

2) Cedric’s death: At least this tragedy had some sort of impact on the narrative rather than just being senseless, but it’s still painful and some of the effects of his death (read: the writing-out of Orube) are uncalled for and hurt equally as much.

3) That first reunion with Yan Lin in Kandrakar: Tears. Happy tears, but oh so many of them.

Day 13 Something heartwarming

Hrm, that’s a tough one. My immediate thought is “everything about animated Will/Matt,” but let’s go for some new material from me for once.

Oooh! My second thought was the issue about Anna Lair and her old friends and how she came to be in Irma’s life. We don’t often have focus on the girls’ parents and who they are outside of their daughters, and Anna is fascinating because we don’t even find out until issue 25 that - despite their near-identical appearances - she’s Irma’s step-mother and not her biological mother. That reveal is dropped in as hurtful words in an argument, and this detail is pretty much forgotten for three story arcs, until we finally get this issue on Anna’s past.

It’s heartwarming to me because it hits on so many tropes I love: (flashback) focus on a minor character, a different character (in this case, Irma) bringing back around something meaningful from the focus character’s past (fulfilling the pact Anna made with her two friends and reuniting them at the beach all these years later), and a tie-in to the main plotline via the W.i.t.c.h. girls promising that - should life take them in different directions - they’ll one day meet again in Heatherfield.

And now I really want to reread this issue, it’s one of my favorite standalones...

Day 14 Something that irks you

I think we’re all in agreement when I say this, but New Power Matt is the woooooorst. And I’m just going to leave it at that because I have tried to block it from my mind as much as possible, and if I start dredging things up and talking about it we will be here for a while.

Okay, maybe just a little bit...

It just makes no sense!!!! If they framed it like Matt’s memories of Kandrakar had been sealed the whole time or he was an emissary who’d been reincarnated as a normal Earth human, and he only got his true memories back “when the time was right,” that would at least explain some things! Like yeah, his behavior would still be downright dickish, but at least I could spin him as a more sympathetic character - one struggling with who he has been and who he used to be/now is again, and that’s why he’s behaving so erratically. (This is my area of expertise when it comes to fic. I could easily and enjoyably pick apart New Power Matt’s mind if we had this for context.)

But noooooo, we’re told that he’s known about Kandrakar the entire damn time, and he just... what, flat-out lied to Will and pretended to be surprised about everything related to Guardianship? Way to make both Will and the readers feel like fools. If this the story we’re supposed to believe, was comics Will/Matt a sham this whole time, just New Power Matt trying to weasel his way into the Guardians’ inner circle until he can finally play his true role? Ugh.

Like seriously, screw this entire plot point and just give me that New Power Eric idea I had a while back that actually made sense and would have worked so much better.

#30daysofwitchversary #30 days of witchversary #w.i.t.c.h.#quintessence-sentimentalist rambles

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idleblooming · 7 years ago

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New Year's Eve

A/n- I originally wrote this for my honors English class. I’m not super proud of this, but since it’s new years day today, I figured I should post this in my attempt to write more this year. If you have anything you think I should work on, I would really appreciate it. Enjoy!

The last bell rang and sent the students out of their classrooms. I put in my second earbud to start walking to my house. As I stepped out of the school building a gust of cold air whipped past my face, causing it to sting. I pull my dark denim jacket tighter around myself in an attempt to keep warm. I hear quick footsteps behind me and turn around to see a familiar face.

“Hey Lucas. Why aren’t you walking home?’ I said.

“My mom has to work so she won’t be home until late. Is it okay if I hang out with you for a bit?” He asked.

“Uh, yeah sure. Though you should have told me you were coming over when we were in math.” I retorted. I don’t mind him coming over, but I like to be prepared.

“Yeah yeah, you told me that last time.” he chuckled. “What are you doing over break?”

“Nothing much. I’m probably going to visit my family but that’s about it. ” I answered

“You’re so boring.” he joked, “Me and Kaia are thinking about having a new year’s party. If you aren’t feeling lazy, you should come.” He said as he playfully pushed me.

“I’ll think about it. I’ll see if my parents are doing anything that day.” I said as I giggled.

“Great. Now come on, you’re walking too slow!” Lucas teased as he started running.

“That’s not fair! You got a head start!” I laughed as I started to chase after him.

⛧

We ran all the way to my house. Every inhale of the cold air caused my throat to burn and with every exhale you could see my breathe. I coughed a few times, making Lucas look back to me and laugh at how terribly slow I was. When we made it home my hands were practically frozen. Lucas was cold too, seeing as how his face was flushed red and he was rubbing his hands together.

“You want some hot chocolate? We have the little marshmellows you like.” I offered.

“Yeah that would be great” he said as his lips turned into a slight smile.

He started to remove his jacket as I went into the kitchen. I then grabbed a kettle to fill with water and put it on the stove. After turning the stove on, I walked back to the living room to see Lucas sitting on the couch searching for something to watch on T.V. He was wearing a grey long-sleeved shirt with dark jeans and black sneakers. His navy blue coat was draped across the armrest of the loveseat along with his tan scarf. His dark hair was messy from running.

“Try to find a christmas movie. I’m in the holiday spirit.” I said leaning against the doorway of the kitchen.

“One step ahead of you. Already found some on On Demand. You want to watch Home Alone or A Christmas Story?”

“Is that even a question? Home Alone.” I said in a ‘duh’ tone. I then heard the kettle whistling, signaling that it was ready. I walk back and remove it from the stove after turning it off. I set it on the counter and grabbed two mugs from the cupboard. One with snow and Christmas trees on it and the other with a snowman. I poured the hot water into the mugs and then grabbed the hot chocolate packets.

While mixing the chocolate powder with the hot water, I heard the beginning song of Home Alone. It was my favourite Christmas movie ever. Last year I watched it every single day of December. I wanted to keep up the streak again this year, but there were too many things to do. I plop in the mini marshmallows and carefully carry the warm mugs to the living room.

I warned him about how hot the drink was, and then started to hand the mug to him. My hand grazed passed his, causing my face to heat up. Lucas laughed at how our hands fumbled and grabbed the mug. He thanked me and set it on the coffee table to cool down. I do the same and sit on the couch next to him.

“I was hoping you would get tired of this movie after watching it every day for a month.”

“Nah,” I said, dragging it out “This movie is too good to get tired of. You know what does get boring after watching dozens of times?”

“If you say The Polar Express-”

“The Polar Express.” I said interrupting him. He chuckled and shook his head at me. I laughed and held my hands up in defense.

“I’m just saying that the animation makes me very uncomfortable.”

“It makes everyone uncomfortable. You just have to get past it to really enjoy the story.”

“It’s just boring to me okay. Let’s keep watching the best christmas movie known to man.” I say cockily, turning my attention back to the television. Lucas sighed as he took a sip of his now cooled down hot chocolate.

⛧

II wake up to a cold gust of air from the front door. My head was leaning on Lucas’ shoulder and his arm was loosely wrapped around mine. Our empty mugs sat on the coffee table and the television was half-way through Home Alone 2.

“Wake up Becca,” my mom said as she stepped inside the house taking off her long, blue petticoat. “Oh, and you too Lucas. I need both of your help.”

“Uh, sure. What do you need?” I ask getting out of Lucas’ grip.

“I need you guys to go to the storage room and get the boxes that are filled with christmas decorations. All of them should be labeled with the letter ‘C’ on them.”

Me and Lucas both grab our coats and walk to the back door. We walk through the backyard to the storage room.

“Why do you guys have 3 boxes of christmas decorations?”

“My mom has this competition with the neighbors on whose house looks the best. She likes to win.” I said opening the opening shed doors. We turn on the light to see three boxes stacked on top of each other in the corner.

“Those must be the boxes. Lucas, don’t knock anything over. My mom spent an hour stressing on how to organize the shed. Be careful.” I warned him. He nodded his head, making sure to maneuver through all of the old relics of my childhood.

“Hey look. That’s the bike you used to ride when we were in middle school.” he said as he grabbed the handle bars and wiggled them a little.

“Yeah. You always used to push me off when I was still learning how to ride it,” I glared at him jokingly.

“Now come one. Don’t touch anything.”

“Okay, okay. You grab the top box and I got the bottom two.”

⛧

We finally put the last ornament on the christmas tree. My mom, Lucas and I spent an hour decorating the house before we finished.

“It looks perfect. Now we have to wait for your dad to get home so he can top it off with the star.” my mom said, peering at the tree decorated with silver and gold ornaments and glittery ribbon.

"Yeah. Well I have to get home. I think my mom is making almost done with dinner” Lucas said looking at his phone, seeing the time say 6:45pm.

“Okay. Thanks for helping us out. Tell Lilith I said Hi.”

“Will do. See you later Becca. Are you coming to the New Year’s party?” He asked, half-way out the door.

“Uh yeah. Starts at ten, right?”

“Yeah. It’s going to be at my place. See you then.” He grinned and waved as he closed the door behind him. I stood there, smiling at where he was. I turn around mom whose smirking at me. I shake my head, knowing what she would say if I didn’t leave right then.

“Would you just tell him you like him already?”

She always made fun of my “crush” on Lucas, saying that I’ve liked him ever since I came out of the womb. I’ll eventually tell him. Eventually.

⛧

Glitter covered my eyelids as I made my way to the crowded house. People were jumping and dancing to the latest song that came on the radio. I took off my coat to reveal a black sequin dress. I maneuvered through the clumps of people to try and find Lucas. I looked around to see his dark hair over other people’s heads. I make my way over to him to see him talking to Kaia with a red cup in his hand.

“Becca!” he exclaimed, “I thought you would never make it.” He had the biggest smile on his face once I walked over to him. His smile made my stomach do flips and turns.

“Yeah. Not gonna lie, I kind of forgot about the party.”

Lucas and Kaia laughed while handing me a cup.

“That’s the most ‘you’ thing I’ve ever heard. Here, it’s sparkling grape juice.” Kaia said. She turned around to see her friend and left me and Lucas alone.

“You look great, by the way”

“Thanks. This was more of a last minute thing, considering I remembered the party was going on like an hour ago.” I say, trying not to seem nervous.

“I want to say I’m surprised by you forgetting, but I’m not.”

We laughed as we heard people starting to count down from twenty. People were finding who they were going to kiss once the clock hit twelve and others were screaming at the tops of their lungs.

“19, 18!”

I turned to Lucas, who was already looking at me. I began to feel nervous.

“17, 16, 15!”

“I’ve been wanting to tell you something for a really long time, Becca” he said as he grabbed my hand.

“14, 13, 12!”

“I’ve liked you for what feels like forever and-”

The rest of his sentence gets drowned out by the abundance of teenagers counting down from ten.

“10, 9, 8”

I couldn’t believe what he was saying. I smiled really big, trying to find something to say. I was in shock.

“7, 6, 5!”

I hugged him tight, as if he was going to disappear if I didn’t. He wrapped his arms around my waist and set his head on top of mine.

“4, 3, 2!”

I pulled back from the hug to see him smiling. I leaned in to connect my lips to his. Glitter and confetti filled the air along with shouts and applause as the clock had finally struck 12. We pull back smile at each other for what seems like ages.

“Happy New Year’s, Becca.” he whispered.

“Happy New Year’s, Lucas”

#short story #writeblr #writing #new years eve #i wrote a thing #this is so long i swear to god #i kinda don't like it but whatever

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misskieshakate · 7 years ago

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Me: *typing that shklance thing i’m doing* Ah time to rest a bit. Me: *hanging out in the shance tag and suddenly seeing Shallurance* My curious ass: hmm I’ve never seen Shallurance content before… *reads the whole thing* Brain: Hmmm Me: No. DON’T. YOU. DARE. Don’t you fuckin dare! Stop. STAH- Brain: Werewolf AU Me: Fuck you. Fuck you that’s brilliant. Agh I hate you BRAIN!

the Shallurance I’m talking about by @fratboyshiro

Shiro is the Alpha of the Voltron Pack (i couldn’t think of any cool wolf pack name, bite me). He’s mateless for a long time and would love to keep it that way. But his pack members as well as his brother and Beta, Keith, urges him to find their Luna immediately.

You see, the Galra- a group of Rogues- were once again wreaking havoc on their borders. Th other members were questioning his ability to protect them and the land. It was Keith’s idea to convince Shiro to participate in the upcoming “Run”. The Run happens every year where unmated wolves from every pack in the vicinity come together to find their mates. All wolves that are of age with lower ranks are given thirty minutes to run into the woods. The Alphas and the Betas will enter the woods after the half hour mark. From this point on, there’s no holds barred. If you find your mate, you can Mark them and Bond with them immediately, regardless of consent.

Keith has confidence that Shiro will find his mate during The Run. That’s how he found Hunk in the first place. And since Keith was the younger- not related by blood- brother, he was happy that no one interfered with his Bonding or even pressured him into keeping the pure Alpha bloodline. It was also a way to shut down any threats of challenge and usurping from his pack members.

With Shiro pushed to a corner, he made the decision to participate in this year’s Run. Unfortunately for him, this year’s Run falls under a Red Moon.

The moment Shiro stepped foot on forest grounds, his senses were overwhelmed with how many werewolves were there. Various scents from different packs made him skittish and suspicious. It was a normal reaction when people you don’t know invade your land. He had to fight down the growl that almost escaped his lips when his wolf, Black, whispered Danger in his mind.

The smell of testosterone and pheromones charged the air, along with a wild static energy that came with a Red Moon. He could feel the pull of Turning to his wolf form, giving Black the power and control over his body. To simply let his instincts take over and run wild. That’s the power of a Red Moon.

Shiro sniffed at the air, familiarizing himself with the scents of the different packs that were in his land. He can smell citrus, flowers, honey, musk, spices-

Wait.

He took a deep inhale, focusing on that one single scent that brought shivers throughout his body. He couldn’t find the source of the scent, but when he met his brother’s eyes, understanding flowed between their bond and he couldn’t help but smile.

It was 10:30 in the evening and everybody was itching to run. The event starts at 11:30 where the other wolves are tasked to run into the woods, and at 12 midnight the Alphas and Betas run after them. But before that, a small ceremony is held, blessing the forest grounds, and giving time fore the wolves to get ready. All participants must prepare a change of clothes that must be retrieved after the Run. Everyone should wear minimal clothing (tube tops, crop tops, or no shirts at all, paired with shorts or cargo pants or tights…), and wear the mask specifically made for every pack. Since the Moon is strong, there is no need to apply oils on the body to accentuate one’s scent.

The first bell rang, prompting the other wolves to head straight to the woods. Shiro stretched his arms and legs, cracking his neck and back, calming himself and his wolf down. He’ll soon have his mate.

When the second bell rang, Shiro dashed to the woods. He outran the other Alphas who nipped at his heels. Shiro let Black control his movements knowing well that the predator in him has the highest chance of finding his mate.

There!

His head snapped left, then up and up to a canopy of trees. Shiro smirked, already loving the challenge of meeting his mate. He leaped to the nearest tree, then climbing it all the way up to the top before jumping over the next one, then the next one, then the next until the smell of sand and waves crashing into each other became stronger. The predator inside him growled in anticipation.

There was a rustle of leaves in front of him then a flash of blue. A figure dashed to his right then jumped off. Shiro watched as his mate gracefully landed on their feet before swiftly running away. Shiro noted his mate’s antler mask with a blue ribbon tied to one of the horns. His mind also memorized his mate’s flimsy, large shirt that exposed their elegant neck and a shoulder, as well as their bare long legs. Shiro was salivating with only a glimpse of his mate. Goddess, he wanted to taste them now.

Shiro jumped off the tree and started running off to their mate’s direction. Shiro was in pursuit, allowing Black’s assistance to add a ferocity to his movements. He stopped when he heard a small giggle. It rang in his ears and was the most beautiful sound he has ever heard.

“I know you’re here, Mate.“ There was a growl in his voice which only made his mate giggle more. Shiro loved that sound, but to Shiro’s wolf it was a challenge, taunting him to catch the prey that dare play with a predator.

“I can’t run anymore.“ A voice, a light tilting voice pulled Shiro’s attention to a bush near him. “You win.“ His mate panted, finally stepping out of the shadows.

Shiro had to remember how to breathe.

The figure that stepped out of the shroud of darkness was a person with a willowy figure, all long graceful arms and legs. A swimmer’s body, he thought. The shirt they were wearing had a low and loose neckline, exposing a shoulder. It ended mid thigh where his mate’s long legs were waiting for him to bite and taste.The antler mask covering his mate’s face did nothing to cover the vibrant blue, almost glowing eyes.

“I’d want to remove my mask but I’m guessing you’d want to do the-aaahn.“

His mate’s appearance, his smell, his everything was too much. The urge to claim was much too strong. The moon amplified his animal instincts, prompting Black to the forefront of his consciousness. The animal inside him had no trouble erasing Shiro’s rational mind and replacing it with reckless impulsiveness, driven mad with the desire to claim what is his. Shiro surged forward, grabbing his mate’s soft neck and biting into flesh.

It was like tasting fireworks on his tongue. Explosive, almost electric feeling override Shiro’s senses. Flashes of the beach, soft caramel skin, brown fur, blue eyes… his mate’s memories, he noted. It was like the Goddess herself was tying them together. Her handiwork pushed his mate’s essence into him and Shiro almost felt overwhelmed with all of it, like another person was invading his soul.

He heard a surprised yelp from his mate but later on turned into a moan as Shiro licked and sucked on his Mark. His Mark. Mine. All Mine. A guttural growl escaped his lips when he felt soft hands exploring his chest.

“I need to do the same. Please? Please let me Mark you too.” His mate was breathing hard against his exposed chest (Shiro didn’t wear a shirt, typical), kissing and licking at his collarbone.

Shiro groaned, stretching his neck for his Mate. He hasn’t done this before. He was an Alpha his whole life and exposing someone’s neck was a sign of weakness. But in order for their Bond to be complete, his mate needs to Mark him too.

His mate reached up, their fingers digging on the back of his neck so Shiro leaned down to let his mate nuzzle into him. HIs mate lifted their mask just enough for them to expose their mouth. Without warning, Shiro’s mate bit him.

Ah, he thought, so that’s why he’s mate was panting when he bit them. Biting his mate may have been a series of fireworks, but being bitten and claimed was a whole new sensation. It was like a soft caress of silk against skin, rubbing oh so right in every nook and cranny, but that was only the first few seconds of the Bonding. That friction made by the smooth caress of his mate’s presence grew and grew until it became an immense heat that consumed him.

The term Bonding suddenly makes sense. He felt bound to the person before him, his body, mind and soul binding itself to his mate, intertwining in a complex knot no way in finding where it starts and where it ends. For the first time, he felt complete, a missing half he didn’t know has now been put in place.

His mate licked the mark they made sending shivers up and down Shiro’s spine. His mate pulled their mask down, covering their mouth and looked up. With blue eyes twinkling under the moonlight, his mark swollen on that slender neck, Shiro have never seen someone so beautiful.

Shiro knew something was wrong the moment he and his mate stepped out of the woods. His brother was cheering and hollering at him, his fist pumping up the air while Hunk, his mate, was smiling at him. The others, the wise old advisers that were loyal to his family, were frowning and shaking their heads. Shiro wondered why they were acting that way. He found his Luna, the Alpha bloodline will never be broken, shouldn’t they be happy?

A woman with dark skin and brown hair ran up to them and hugged his mate. A feeling of possessiveness surged through him.

Mine!

He shoved the woman away and bared his teeth at her, growling menacingly in her direction. The woman didn’t cower in fear nor whimper when she hit the ground. She bared her teeth too, a feral growl rumbled in her throat. She didn’t back down even when Shiro was forcing his Alpha presence towards her, ordering her to yield.

The woman had the guts to scoff at his attempts and flicked her hair off her face. His mate’s head was down, not refusing to look at both him and the woman.

“It seems like you found yourself an Alpha, Lance. A possessive one at that.” The woman dusted off the dirt on her immaculate dress. Shiro noted the blue ribbon tied around her neck.

Lance, finally a name for his mate. Wait… Lance doesn’t sound like a femini-

“Heh, he’s not that bad.” His mate replied, laughing while scratching the back of his head. “Compared to you, he’s a lot easier on the eyes.”

That voice… The rush of his mate’s scent and meeting them for the first time distracted him of all the details concerning his mate. He now realized that his mate’s voice was low, lilting in a way that sounded like he was singing; his shoulders were way too broad but back there in the woods with the moonlight as their lightsource, it softened those sharp angles of his mate’s body.

The reason for the elders’ frowns were starting to make sense.

Lance looked up at him, their Bond burning hot and bright between them. Lance’s blue eyes casted down, not because of fear or intimidation but because of understanding. Lance’s fingers shook as he lifted the mask off his face.

The elders gasped when short brown hair puffed up his mate’s head. Sharp, angular features adorned his mate’s face- sharp almost elven eyes, a pointed nose, a crooked mouth that made his mate look like he’s always smirking, strong and sharp chin, smooth jaw… his mate was a male.

“Oh.“ Shiro sounded like the air was punched out of him.

“Yeah.“ His mate refused to look at him, but the damp smell of Lance’s sadness broke his heart. “I’m guessing you want to break the bond because, you know, I’m a guy.“ Lance stepped away from him, swaying on his feet and clutching the ends of his shirt. The watery thin tone lance used made his wolf whimper.

“What are you talking about, Lance?“ The woman ignored Shiro’s petulant glare and placed a hand on Lance’s shoulder. “The Bond is sealed, the Goddess gave you her blessing, why break it?”

“Can’t you see, he doesn’t want me.“ When did Lance moved so far away from him?

“Alpha Shiro, what is the meaning of this?“ One elder, an old woman with leathery skin and wispy white hair stepped forward, addressing Shiro without fear. She was staring at the Mark on his neck and looking at the bite Mark on Lance’s neck. Shiro knew she understood what was going on, she only asked because she wanted Shiro to explain it to the whole pack, to humiliate him in front of his own pack.

Shiro looked at Lance, his wolf howling at the though that he finally found his mate. Lance finally met his stare and Shiro knew at that moment that he will never let anything happen to Lance, never let anyone hurt his mate. He vowed to the Goddess. A flash of lightning sealed the deal… The goddess blessed them, he remembered what the woman said.

Shiro strode towards Lance whose blue eyes widened, his scent suddenly became stronger, pulling him in.

“I found my mate.“

I’m cutting it here because the second part is where the drama happens haha. Hope you guys liked it. This one has been sitting in my drafts for so long :D

Thoughts?

#voltron #shance #shallurance #ahh the wips are piling up!!#what have i done?!

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kaoruyogi · 7 years ago

Text

Another Tag Meme Monsterpost

I realize I’ve been tagged in a whole bunch of stuff lately, and I mostly haven’t been doing them because I haven’t been at my computer. I also wasn’t doing them because I’ve been in a funk lately, and we had a few bad days recently. Long story short, a co-worker died unexpectedly, we adopted a puppy who had aggression issues toward our dog and we agonized over our eventual decision to give her to a local rescue, I’ve been trying to find work in Washington so we can get out of SoCal, and my parents were over (that was awesome, it just kept me away from the computer).

So, let me start by tagging everyone who tagged me. I won’t be tagging anyone to do these memes, cause that would just be cruel and most all of them have been done to death.

@gugle1980, @ladydracarysao3, @galadrieljones, @kagetsukai, @aerismoon, @thevikingwoman, @princessvicky01, @inner-muse, @makers-breath, and @roguelioness. Thank you all for your tags, and sorry for the spam that is about to occur.

30 Random Things About Me Meme

Rules: answer 30 questions and tag 30 people.

Nickname: Red, Ginger, Ginge

Name: Amanda

Gender: Female

Star Sign: Scorpio

Height: 5′8″/173 cm

Time: 8:46 am

Birthday: October 30

Favorite Band: At this very moment, probably Fleet Foxes, but there are too many I love to pieces for that to be anything but momentary

Favorite Solo Artist: At this very moment, probably Andrew Bird, but there are too many I love to pieces for that to be anything but momentary

Song Stuck In My Head: Eivør - Trøllabundin

Last Movie I Watched: Dragnet

Last Show I Watched: Preacher

When Did I Create My Blog: Years ago, though I started posting in June 2016

What Do I Post: Cullen everything, fanfic, random musings...

Last Thing I Googled: 5′8″ in cm

Do You Have Other Blogs: I’m a mod for @cullen-in-command and I have an NSFW blog that you can ask me about if you want it

Do You Get Asks: Occasionally

Why Did You Choose This Blog Name: It’s my tag for pretty much everything

Blogs You Are Following: 195

Followers: 1,049

Favorite Colors: Rainbow, then blue then green

Average Hours of Sleep: 4-8

Lucky Number: 17

Instruments: Voice

What Am I Wearing: Blue slouch t-shirt and black yoga pants

How Many Blankets I Sleep With: 1

Dream Job: Video gam attorney

Dream Trip: Next? Belgium to The Netherlands to Germany to Denmark to Sweden

Favorite Food: Italian or Sushi

Nationality: 98.2% Ashkenazi Jew

Favorite Song Now: I will never, ever be able to answer this question

Kissing Meme

Rules: name 10 characters you would kiss, then tag people.

Cullen Rutherford - Dragon Age

Alistair Theirin - Dragon Age

Nathan Drake - Uncharted

Joel - The Last of Us

Shadow Moon - American Gods

Zeke Tilson - The Brink (You can replace this with Mad Sweeney from American Gods if you want. It’s still Pablo Schreiber.)

Solas - Dragon Age (mostly because I’m curious?)

Blackwall - Dragon Age

The Iron Bull - Dragon Age

Knight Captain Rylen/Professor Bram Kenric - Dragon Age (I cheated)

10 Songs I’ve Been Listening To

Links are on Spotify or YouTube

Fleet Foxes - On Another Ocean (January / June)

Fleet Foxes - Kept Woman

Eivør - Mjørkaflókar

Royksopp - Forsaken Cowboy

Ludovico Einaudi - Promessa

The Rapture - In the Grace of Your Love

alt-J - 3WW

Joshua Messick - Woodland Dance

Gorillaz feat. De La Soul - Momentz

Thomas Newman - Accidental Happiness (from the “Passengers” score)

10 Questions Meme (from @thevikingwoman and @galadrieljones)

1. Dream car?

Audi R8

2. Favorite animated movie?

Wall-E

3. Something you really want to learn to do?

Fly helicopters and speak every language

4. What is your eye color?

Hazel

5. A fanfic you wish someone else would write (any fandom)?

I don’t really have anything i wish someone else would write. I like to write my own ideas.

6. If you could undo one historical event, what would it be, and how would you think the world would be different.

I don’t believe in changing the past. The human race as a whole is incapable of learning unless it learns from its own mistakes.

7. When playing games, which class do you usually pick? Do you have a go-to class (mage/archer/healer/stealth/melee/etc)

I usually go with mages or something that can do long-rage damage, though if I’m clunky enough at a game, I usually pick something I can use to get up close and bash shit with.

8. Place you think everyone should visit, if they can?

The place they want to go most. Everyone is different, but everyone has someplace they’d like to go.

9. Video game character you would like to go drinking with?

I don’t drink, but I’d love to see the DA:I crew cut loose.

10. Favorite breakfast?

Eggs Benedict with Cheesy Hashbrowns

1. Favorite small town? Real or fictional.

Whitefish, Montana

2. Video game or DLC you’re most looking forward to right now? (sans DA4)

Besides DA4...ummm...The Last of Us 2

3. Favorite fictional world? (i.e.: Middle Earth, Thedas, etc.) Why?

Thedas, cause it’s beautiful and complex, and Cullen lives in it.

4. Where/what was the best cup of coffee you’ve ever had? If you don’t drink coffee, what’s the best meal you’ve ever head?

That’s a really hard question. I’ve had amazing steak in Paradise, California. I’ve had amazing fish n’ chips and king crab in Alaska. I’ve had amazing sushi in the Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo. I’ve had amazing food down the street and on the other side of the world. I just love food.

5. Where/when do you do your best daydreaming?

Whenever and wherever I’m supposed to be doing something else.

6. Favorite TV show right now?

This is also a super hard question. I love Game of Thrones, I really enjoyed the first seasons of American Gods, A Handmaid’s Tale, and Harlots, Insecure is a guilty pleasure...the list goes on and on.

7. Is your canon Inquisitor reluctant about their power, or do they embrace it full-force, or something in-between?

Something in-between.

8. What’s the best purchase you’ve ever made?

It might fall somewhere between my engagement ring (my husband and I split the cost) and my first law school book. Hopefully soon it’ll be a house.

9. Favorite or go-to clothing brand/designer/store?

Target. All day. It sounds silly, but they actually have really good quality, versatile clothes that I really like.

10. Are there any popular TV or video game character arcs that really bother you? How would you change them, if you could?

I get annoyed and bothered by a lot of characters, but I wouldn’t necessarily change them. They are who they were intended to be, and it’s not my place to say they are right or wrong.

15 Associations Meme: Belle

Rules: Repost and fill in the answers you most associate your character with to each question.

1. ANIMAL: Fox

2. COLOR(S): Rainbow

3. MONTH: October

4. SONG(S): The Maccabees - WWI Portraits (these lyrics aren’t the complete verse, and they’ll read a bit disjointed at the start and end)

A go-getter, go-getter You’re the best of all You’ve seen it four, five hundred times on repeat You’re like a leftover better than a ribbon-tied treat Narrow roads, never limit, never temper your speed And when the river froze solid you’re still swimming upstream You’d hold your own in the presence of pauper and a king Leave a singing bird silent, make a hummingbird sing You are a rope-a-doper coming back queen

5. NUMBER: 17

6. DAY OR NIGHT: Night

7. PLANT(S): Hydrangeas, Coniferous Trees

8. SMELL(S): Pears, Peaches, Lilies, Garlic/Basil/Oregano Trifecta

9. GEMSTONE: Opal

10. SEASON: Autumn

11. PLACE(S): Skyhold, The Emerald Graves (once she finally goes (if ever))

12. FOOD(S): Pasta and Sushi, but in Thedas, Roasted Duck or a Ham and Cheese Sandwich

13. ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Scorpio

14. ELEMENT(S): Fire, Water

15. DRINK(S): Water, Fruit Juice

#memes #meme monsterpost #ask meme #oc meme

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meticulousfox-theparadox · 7 years ago

Note

DO ALL OF THEM MWAHAHA

Omg. Thanks you evil anon. 😂😂

1: when you have cereal, do you have more milk than cereal or more cereal than milk?

I always add more milk than cereal, and it makes me so sad.

2: do you like the feeling of cold air on your cheeks on a wintery day?

I actually freaking love it. ngl.

3: what random objects do you use to bookmark your books?

I sometimes just random strings/ribbons I find, or like a hair tie. But this one time I used bobby pins.

4: how do you take your coffee/tea?

Coffee: I love diabetes with my coffee. (I love a lot of sugar tbh) which is like so bad for me, but whatevs. Tea: uhh I just drink it???

5: are you self-conscious of your smile?

Very self conscious, I hate it. But I show it because I’m generally pretty happy.

6: do you keep plants?

No, but I would love to have plants! It would be fun to own a garden.

7: do you name your plants?

I would name them if I had them!

8: what artistic medium do you use to express your feelings?

I write poems honestly.

9: do you like singing/humming to yourself?

All the freaking time. I love singing tbh.

10: do you sleep on your back, side, or stomach?

I switch between my stomach and my side. But mostly my stomach tbh.

11: what’s an inner joke you have with your friends?

1-800-DrugFlab. It’s a looooong story. 😂😂😂😂

12: what’s your favorite planet?

Oooo, that has to be Saturn. I just love how it’s a gaseous planet and that gravitational pull of debris that creates it’s rings is pretty freaking tiiiight. In my opinion.

13: what’s something that made you smile today?

Recieving a phone call from a said awesome person. 💕

14: if you were to live with your best friend in an old flat in a big city, what would it look like?

It would look amazing. Tapestrys, christmas lights, and nature paintings everywhere! And soft couches and chairs. With pretty rugs. 😍

15: go google a weird space fact and tell us what it is!

The largest asteroid ever recorded is a mammoth piece of space rock named Ceres.

The asteroid is almost 600 miles in diameter. It’s by far the largest in the asteroid belt and accounts for a whole third of the belt’s mass. The surface area is approximately equal to the land area of India or Argentina. It’s so big, there’s actually some debate over whether to refer to it as a dwarf planet instead of an asteroid, even if it has mostly asteroid-like qualities.

(Ayyy we all learned something new today.)

16: what’s your favorite pasta dish?

That’s so hard, because I love all pasta. But I guess my favorite has to be chicken Alfredo.

17: what color do you really want to dye your hair?

I REALLY want to do a black to greyish/white ombre. Because I think I would look so cute with it.

18: tell us about something dumb/funny you did that has since gone down in history between you and your friends and is always brought up.

It was my first year of high school/secondary school. And I was rocking in one of the chairs, I fell back and as I fell, I turned off the front classroom lights which in a way created a spotlight for me when I landed on the ground with a big bang. I was so freaking embarrassed, but my friends found it hilarious.

19: do you keep a journal? what do you write/draw/ in it?

I don’t necessarily keep a journal or anything. But on my phone I like to go into my notes and write poems and stuff. Nothing too fancy or post worthy though.

20: what’s your favorite eye color?

I love light coloured eyes tbh. Seeing as mine are brown. I adore blue and green. But blue is my 100% favorite.

21: talk about your favorite bag, the one that’s been to hell and back with you and that you love to pieces.

My red backpack I got like almost five years ago. It’s my favorite and I had it through high school and I still use it now when I go sleep at a friend’s house. lol

22: are you a morning person?

Not really. I prefer the night time more.

23: what’s your favorite thing to do on lazy days where you have 0 obligations?

I personally just love to listen to music, play video games, or just talk on the phone with people that mean something to me.

24: is there someone out there you would trust with every single one of your secrets?

Of course. And he knows who he is. (:

25: what’s the weirdest place you’ve ever broken into?

Uhhhh, my friend’s interested house to plant a vaccuum cleaner in his closet. For his birthday. Annnnnd like I never went there before that day annnnnnd he’s also my general manager at work. Sooo. Lol.

26: what are the shoes you’ve had for forever and wear with every single outfit?

That has to be my black vans. I wear them to work every day too.

27: what’s your favorite bubblegum flavor?

I really don’t chew gum tbh.

28: sunrise or sunset?

I personally love the sunset.

29: what’s something really cute that one of your friends does and is totally endearing?

Sing to me and play guitar. (:

30: think of it: have you ever been truly scared?

Oh hell yeah, more times that I can count tbh.

31: what is your opinion of socks? do you like wearing weird socks? do you sleep with socks? do you confine yourself to white sock hell? really, just talk about socks.

I wear mismatch socks. With either Disney villians, Harry Potter, or Pokemon on them. I hate sleeping with socks on ngl.

32: tell us a story of something that happened to you after 3AM when you were with friends.

Uhhh, I remember one time we got super drunk at a friends house. We were playing fuck the dealer. Where like you had to guess the card on hand. You had to tries and if you didn’t get it, you had to take the number of that card, in shots. We were so gone, and then after that we just played music, ate taco bell and chilled. (My 3 A.M. stories are usually just drinking or drug related so. Lol)

33: what’s your fave pastry?

Danishes. Cheese or cherry or even blueberry. Mmmmm.

34: tell us about the stuffed animal you kept as a kid. what is it called? what does it look like? do you still keep it?

I had a plush dog that I named Clark and I gave him away to my friend recently because he was moving away from me.

35: do you like stationary and pretty pens and so on? do you use them often?

Uhhhh noooo. I do not. Lol

36: which band’s sound would fit your mood right now?

Honestly, EDM artist fit my mood more than bands tbh. 😂😂

37: do you like keeping your room messy or clean?My room is mostly clean besides like clothes on my bed sometimes. But that’s the worst of it.

38: tell us about your pet peeves!

Dishes in the sink, interruption during my favorite part of a song, video game, book, ect. And over neediness.

39: what color do you wear the most?

That’s so hard, cause I wear a lot of colour. I used to wear a lot of black, but I kind of grew out of that. The only time I wear like a lot of black is for work. Hahah. I guess I wear blue a lot though??

40: think of a piece of jewelry you own: what’s it’s story? does it have any meaning to you?

My gold rose ring that I always wear on my right ring finger. My dad got it for my birthday last year. And it just means a lot to me.

41: what’s the last book you remember really, really loving?

The Fallen by Thomas E. Sniegoski

42: do you have a favorite coffee shop? describe it!

There’s this freaking coffee shop downtown of where I am! And I can’t remember for the life of me what it was called. But they have the best chai tea lattes and scones. Like omg. 😍

43: who was the last person you gazed at the stars with?

My friend Cydnie like two months ago. We traveled to this quiet spot near the water where we could see the big bridge of the city and see all the lights of the bridge reflecting on the water, and the stars were so bright, even with the light pollution.

44: when was the last time you remember feeling completely serene and at peace with everything?

Right now tbh. I honestly love my life and everything/everyone that is in it. (:

45: do you trust your instincts a lot?

Oh god, yes. My gut never steers me wrong.

46: tell us the worst pun you can think of.

I’m a situational pun person, so you only get one. From the last post. (;

47: what food do you think should be banned from the universe?

Brussle sprouts. They smell horrible and should fuck off. (Sorrynotsorry) lol

48: what was your biggest fear as a kid? is it the same today?

Fucking Spiders, I still can’t handle them. It’s such an irrational fear that causes me to hyperventilate. 😅

49: do you like buying CDs and records? what was the last one you bought?

Records. The last record bought was a Mastodon album. Once More ‘Round the Sun, to be exact.

50: what’s an odd thing you collect?

Not odd but plush animals.

51: think of a person. what song do you associate with them?

Doses & Mimosas. ✌

52: what are your favorite memes of the year so far?

YEAH BOIIIIIII

53: have you ever watched the rocky horror picture show? heathers? beetlejuice? pulp fiction? what do you think of them?

I looooooooove them. Bettlejuice is bae though.

54: who’s the last person you saw with a true look of sadness on their face?

One of my friends at work, I was very concerned. ):

55: what’s the most dramatic thing you’ve ever done to prove a point?

Put myself in awkward situations which calls a lot of attention to myself. (That’s also funny because I comically prove points)

56: what are some things you find endearing in people?

Geniune emotions, intelligence, good humour. I find people that just embrace their weirdness and what makes them so very endearing.

57: go listen to bohemian rhapsody. how did it make you feel? did you dramatically reenact the lyrics?

Honestly? It made me extremely happy. And I definitely reenact the lyrics, Every. Damn. Time.

58: who’s the wine mom and who’s the vodka aunt in your group of friends? why?

I’m the wine mom. Because I love wine firstly and because I’m all loopy and come up with stupid but silly ideas for fun. Plus, I’m like super over caring and giggly intoxicated.

Vodka aunt? Oh man, that has to be Matt. He gets so fucking queenie while drunk. And he even goes overboard and gets to the point where he can barely walk. I love him though, he’s hilarious.

59: what’s your favorite myth?

Vampires. Because low key, I would love to be one if that was even a possibility.

60: do you like poetry? what are some of your faves?

I love poetry. I have too many favorites tbh.

61: what’s the stupidest gift you’ve ever given? the stupidest one you’ve ever received?

Oh god, I can’t really think of one. On both ends.

62: do you drink juice in the morning? which kind?

Uh not really but if I did, I would drink Orange or Apple juice.

63: are you fussy about your books and music? do you keep them meticulously organized or kinda leave them be?

Ehhh I just leave them be tbh. I’m really not fussy about it unless there’s a chance of them getting damaged. Then I freak out.

64: what color is the sky where you are right now?

Blue and the sun is out very brightly.

65: is there anyone you haven’t seen in a long time who you’d love to hang out with?

There are many friends that I miss dearly, and I would love to see them all again.

66: what would your ideal flower crown look like?

Multicolored, vibrant and just free.

67: how do gloomy days where the sky is dark and the world is misty make you feel?

At peace honestly. I love when it rains and I love gloomy weather a lot.

68: what’s winter like where you live?

Not as cool as I wish it was. It snowed here once, and it was just an inch of freaking snow. Which is lameee. But like it’s humid here so it’s weird when the temperature drops and rises. Along with it being so bipolar here.

69: what are your favorite board games?

I always loved Candy Land for whatever reason. It’s the simplest game and a fast playing game. But I guess that’s why I love it. The simplest things make me happy.

70: have you ever used a ouija board?

Naaaaaah. And I really don’t plan on it. Call me what you may, but I don’t want to attract any negative energy in my life.

71: what’s your favorite kind of tea?

I love green tea.

72: are you a person who needs to note everything down or else you’ll forget it?Depends on what the information is, but for the most part I have a decent memory.

73: what are some of your worst habits?

I have a bad habit of not brushing my hair every day. My hair is freaking curly and when I brush it, it gets all frizzy. It just doesn’t work. But I regret it when I brush it after a shower the next day.

74: describe a good friend of yours without using their name or gendered pronouns.

Short, coloured hair, absolutely hilarious, EDM lover, chill af, loved by most, knows how to have a good time, and a really kind heart.

75: tell us about your pets!

I have a German Shepard, name Attila and he is fucking adorable. And huge.

76: is there anything you should be doing right now but aren’t?

I should probably do some laundry, but I really can’t be bothered to do so.

77: pink or yellow lemonade?

Omg pink all the way! I’ll settle for yellow if that’s all you have though.

78: are you in the minion hateclub or fanclub?

Is there an indifferent club? Because that would be where I stand. lol

79: what’s one of the cutest things someone has ever done for you?

I really think of the cutest. I have had a lot of cute things done for me. Plantonically and romantically.

80: what color are your bedroom walls? did you choose that color? if so, why?

There are white, I did not choose this colour. And I would paint it if I could, but alas, I’m in an apartment.

81: describe one of your friend’s eyes using the most abstract imagery you can think of.

The eyes that I’m imagining are the deepest blue I have seen. It’s like staring into the ocean and seeing the waves rushing around. There’s a storm in those eyes. And just seeing the waters calm, is like the sun comes out and the blue becomes bright and looks like the sun glistening on the waters of Bora Bora.

82: are/were you good in school?

I was pretty chill at school. I didn’t really do homework though and I skipped class a lot. Which I really regret now, but when I go back I’m planning on being completely focused and working towards my goal.

83: what’s some of your favorite album art?

Mastodon’s album covers are nice tbh. Plus some of the EDM artist artwork are beautiful ngl.

84: are you planning on getting tattoos? which ones?

I have so many tattoo plans, if I even started to explain all that I wanted there would be a novel here to read. Haha.

85: do you read comics? what are your faves?

Nah I don’t. It never called my attention, but I never even tried so. Hmm.

86: do you like concept albums? which ones?

Ehhhhhh.

87: what are some movies you think everyone should watch at least once in their lives?

Lord of The Rings Phantom of the Opera&&&Moulin Rouge.

88: are there any artistic movements you particularly enjoy?

Not that I know of really. But I’m open to explore them!

89: are you close to your parents?

I’m really close to my dad. I have no relationship with my mother and that’s whatever tbh.

90: talk about your one of you favorite cities.

Tumblr post: “I’m in love with cities and countries I never been to.” I can’t even pick a favorite yet because I haven’t gone to them yet.

91: where do you plan on traveling this year?

If I had the money, there are many places I would be travelling this year.

92: are you a person who drowns their pasta in cheese or a person who barely sprinkles a pinch?

Droooooowns my pasta in cheese. I fucking love cheese, man.

93: what’s the hairstyle you wear the most?

I wear my hair down the most, I really don’t do much with my hair. Other than wash it and go.

94: who was the last person you know to have a birthday?

My queenie boo Matt. We went out to dinner and then went to a gay bar for karaoke, it was so lit.

95: what are your plans for this weekend?

I really don’t think that far ahead?? All my plans are very spontaneous. The way I like it tbh.

96: do you install your computer updates really quickly or do you procrastinate on them a lot?

I have no computer and it fucking sucks.

97: myer briggs type, zodiac sign, and hogwarts house?

ESFP! Sun Taurus! And Ravenclaw!

98: when’s the last time you went hiking? did you enjoy it?

I went hiking like three or four months ago? With Cydnie and Matt. It was really fun. Even though we couldn’t find the waterfall.

99: list some songs that resonate to your soul whenever you hear them.

Pretty Girl - Cheat Codes X Cade remixStay Free - Proto ft. DjodieFriends - Chase Atlantic Drowning - Eden ProjectMad Hatter - Melanie Martinez(There’s so many more)

100: if you were presented with two buttons, one that allows you to go 5 years into the past, the other 5 years into the future, which one would you press? why?

Five years into the future, because I would like to know if I’m on the right path to a good future or if I have changes to make. The future scares me the most.Plus, I wouldn’t change my past because that’s what made me who I am today. And I like to think I’m a pretty great person. (:

That took fucking forever, I had to really think about this. It was fun though. So thanks. Haha.✌

#asks #anon #answers

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