#yes the title is from a mountain goats song

[ok-boomerang]

Good Reasons to Freeze to Death | Fic Complete!

read on ao3🔥🌊

chapters: 6/6 | rating: T

Two years after the war, Fire Lord Iroh wants Prince Zuko in the Southern Water Tribe for a diplomatic mission. Zuko has plenty of reasons to say no, like the fact that he’s busy enough being a prince of the Fire Nation (and because of her dark hair, her deep blue eyes, her fiery will, her—) To placate his uncle, he writes a list of reasons it would be good to go. But Zuko knows it’s a futile exercise; there’s nothing that could convince him that visiting the Southern Water Tribe is a good idea…

[epersonae]

Reverse unpopular opinions: lofi mountain goats

I think John Darnielle's long period of obsessive experimentation was an important part of his identity as an artist, and the experience of just constantly making new things, writing and performing and just using what he had available, gave him an artistic flexibility that is still part of the whole Mountain Goats thing.

It also gives him this huge back catalog for live performances that reinterpret the material with better recording equipment/more complex instrumentation/etc etc.

Specific lofi era songs that I love, actually:

The original take of Coroner's Gambit (which apparently only still exists because of Napster?)

Tollund Man, the Jordan Lake version (this was how I heard it the first time, and it regularly and randomly gets stuck in my head)

This live version of Family Happiness

This live version of California Song

Shadow Song, the actual album version (tbh Coroner's Gambit is the One Good Lofi Album, Actually) (and yes, this is where I got the title from for my 2x3 Bad Ending fic)

[reverse unpopular opinion: send me a topic and I'll tell you what I like about it]

[bastardsofravenkroft-blog]

ok so for pints of guinness i wrote this:

i really like the beginning. "evelyn i'm not coming home tonight" immediately makes me think of emily dickinson. love the vocals. the rawness and drawn out words "toniiiiiiiiight" is excellent.

i love that i can hear the strumming pattern of the acoustic guitar (i think that's acoustic. it might be unplugged electric idk tho)

there's a song that this reminds me of. it's by Crywank, it's called Welcome To Castle Irwell. i recommend you give it a listen! anyway back to pints of guiness make you strong.

the "i just wouldve let myself die" part made me tear up augh. i really like the SLIGHTLY out of sync backing vocals it makes it feel real. i dont know how else to explain it haha!

i liked the little short strum at the end i pictured fingers trying to strum one last time but just falling down and off of the strings from lack of strength or will to strum anymore. yeah 👍

9/10 i very much enjoyed it and i'll be listening to this again!! sorry that was so long 😮‍💨

DO NOT APOLOGIZE FOR LENGTH. LENGTH GOOD.

anywhos

it was written abt her grandmother!, i just think thats so sweet

pretty sure its all acoustic on that album and it was recorded in like one day? maybe two, but very fast and yes GOD the RAWNESS of everything just cuts so deep (when you can fucking understand what shes hollering lmao)

since you like it i very much recommend the whole of reinventing axl rose, the self titled ep, the crime ep, and also stay alive which is laura’s solo album. its different way more similar in vibe to the mountain goats but h o l y s h i t

[merge-conflict]

18, 74, 26 for the fic writer asks! 🖤

Questions here

18. Do you title your fics before, during, or after the writing process? How do you come up with titles?

Yes. Yes. Yes.

I usually retitle a fic or chapter at least once. I used to sit and agonize over the coolest title and just could NOT move on until I've done it, but now I just relax because I know I can update it. Generally what it's named in my Scrivener project is just some sort of placeholder or feeling. My usual vibe is "lyrics from a song which vibes" (yes. it is often the mountain goats... but not always! sometimes it's brown bird.) or "common phrase, but changed slightly" or "technical in-joke". Whatever I find most amusing.

Recently posted a fic called "done dying" which was originally titled "anthem for the already defeated" both of them from song titles (the first is actually "When I Was Done Dying"). I wrote all of the "the binds that tie" (playing with "the ties that bind") before settling on the title, but in my drafts it was always 'sudo chown -R vim:vim .' (now the chapter title). I like to have my cake and eat it too whenever possible. For stuff I can't come up with names for I've started titling them 'scrap: brief summary' or something I think is grandiose or funny so I can stop obsessing over it and start writing lol.

74. You’ve posted a fic anonymously. How would someone be able to guess that you’d written it?

Gosh. I've been thinking about this lately, and I do think I have a distinctive style but it's hard to describe because it's just.. the way I write? I know I have a problem repeating adjectives like 'just' 'some' 'only' a lot, so that's one give away. My habit of just smash-cutting into the middle of a scene without much setup is probably another. My habit of using repetitive sentence construction to hammer in a point. My habit of writing too much damn banter.

26. Which of your fics would you call your wildest ride?

Tbh the damn things overlap was created to be each damn thing overlapping the next, a huge mess, very little time to breathe (condensing the canon timeline down to about two weeks of Valentine going through main storyline stuff. ~a week of which is actually in the the fic!) I wanted to write a story where you feel relieved when characters get to sit down or take a nap, and I think I've succeeded thus far.

Honorable mention to when her edges soften, where Johnny and Valentine hit the town and each other. Straight from "I'm not gonna fuck you" to competitively tracking the number of orgasms they've both had in the past 3 hours while fucking in alleyways and cars. That might qualify as a sort of wild ride. :3

[cha-melodius]

Ten Tags, Ten Tunes

Rules: Put your Spotify (or non-spotify equivalent) on the 'On Repeat' playlist, shuffle it and then share the first 10 songs. Then tag 10 people.

Thanks for the tags @iboatedhere and @welcometololaland. From my Apple Music Favorites Mix playlist:

Darkness is Cheap – Wilco

A Lifetime to Find – Trampled by Turtles

Forgotten – The Punch Brothers

The Information – Beck

False Dichotomy – Metric (YES, this is the song where the title of the YGM AU comes from lmao)

Free Radicals – The Flaming Lips

Stop Stop – The Black Keys

City of Ghosts – Mason Jennings

Bad Day Lately – Jeff Tweedy

Hardpan Song – The Mountain Goats

Somehow three of these ten songs were written by Jeff Tweedy, which seems like a lot, but it's also not wrong, so...

No pressure tagging @three-drink-amy, @tedlassc, @mirilyawrites, @wolfpup026, @heytheredeann, @youtastelike-sunlight, @statueinthestone, @jettestar, @pragmatic-optimist, @daisymae-12

[honeyblockm]

25,12,15

25. Have you ever upset yourself with your own writing?

yes. many times. writing process typically swings between getting really emo about the characters and going full sickos mode about it all. things that I would call upsetting would probably be all of I speak as one about to die. mmm tragedy. and the torture scenes in NO SAFE PLACE. especially the part about Lazar. Um. Crumbling like a wet cookie? turns out writing torture deals psychic damage to me, who knew. other fics have been sad for me and lived in my brain for a while but i would not call them upsetting on the same level.

12. Do you have a playlist for your current WIP(s)? Share it!

I don't have playlists for my current WIPs. I haven't really gotten into the habit, though I totally should, but usually my character/relationship playlists serve the same function. Anyways I did make one for the cquackity / karlnapity & cdream slasher wedding fic that is currently. not being worked on at all. it is. entirely made up of songs from Bleed Out and MCR songs.

15. How do you come up with titles for your fics/chapters?

I use a lot of song lyrics! A lot of mountain goats lyrics. 13 out of my 32 works use tmg lyrics for titles. I look for songs that I feel like match the vibe or theme of the fic. The Mountain Goats have many songs with many themes. Otherwise I like using lines from the source text, if the fic in question was inspired by or was an au of something. Silver Dollar is from Arguing with the Ghost of Peter Laughner About His Coney Island Baby Review by TMG. because like. Dead guy. Elegy. gestures vaguely. put on your chairman mao coat because it pleases me to have that as a title and because commandante can be about dream and sapnap actually, if you look at it from the angle i'm standing at. Harlem Roulette can be about fundy and q, etc etc.

Everything Now As Day is a line from the Menelaiad by John Barth and WE ALL THINK YOU'RE A GRAND GIRL is a line from Antigonick by Anne Carson. I speak as one about to die is from Anne Carson's translation of Agamemnon. Kassandra says it :) you don't have to love it is a line from CM Punk's snake promo. left pining for transience is a line from the deeply wonderful Fiona Lu's poem Turing Test. dawn and mourning dove grey and turning from the plow are both lines from a song from the webcomic Sword Interval by Ben Fleuter, since both those fics exist in the SI au. The chapter titles for dawn and mourning dove grey are the names of the entries in the apocalypse log that reveals the circumstances of the worldbuilding and sets the stage for the final arc of the webcomic.

Titles that aren't direct references to something are still made with consideration to the fic itself. sometimes a fic is big enough 2 warrant a very simple and encompassing title as The Death Poem. The fox who traveled to the end of the world is called that bc I was trying very hard to emulate the style of the fairy tales and fables I read growing up, and those are like. Decently straightforward and referring 2 fundy as a fox emphasizes his trickster-ness. NO SAFE PLACE and BED [DIS]ASSEMBLY are like that because i appreciate all caps quite a lot, maybe an ill-advised amount. also sometimes its just the vibes. the vibes call for all caps.

before we cut to Alexandria is. hm. Well I can't recall atm the exact leaps in my thought process but the general gist is that it's a study of a very specific and liminal period of cabinetduo's relationship, set between the larger and Historical events of the election and the red festival and nov16, and Alexandria is this big important city and it's also a place that gets kind of famously destroyed a little but this isn't yet about Alexandria/L'Manberg. The poem doesn't even leave the White House. I also know it was inspired somehow by tmg's album Songs for Pierre Chuvin.

Journeying Into the Center of the Earth To Retrieve Your Dead Ex Boyfriend because that is what the fic is about and though it is not an instruction manual it is still a detailing of a process. and also because the concept was inspired by Carmen Maria Machado's Help Me Follow My Sister Into the Land of the Dead

[rudojudo]

Giant of Light Playlists

Inspired by some posts I saw, I put together a playlist of music for the GoL experience. Then I split it in two, because of the duality built into the game. They might not be perfect for background music, since they're a bit lyric heavy in a way that might distract from the table, but there are some connections I'm happy with. Also, they work on shuffle, but the order is intended to make a rough sketch of an Episode of play from either perspective. They're on Spotify:

Side A: Heroes

Side B: Kaiju

And of course you can buy the game here.

If you don't use Spotify (I don't blame you), there's a track listing below, along with commentary, because I love to explain myself.

Side A: Heroes

-Goshowa Kudasai Ware no Na wo! (Endo Masaki)

This is the opening theme to Ultraman Z. Obviously, I was going to include some music from the franchise, but I didn't want it to be the whole playlist. I chose this one because the title and opening line translates to "I ask that you chant my name," which is a wonderful bit of poetry asking for faith.

-The Legend of Chavo Guerrero (The Mountain Goats)

This is about that faith from the other side, a song about having a hero. "The telecast's in Spanish, I can understand some / and I need justice in my life, here it comes," devastates me every time.

-Starman (David Bowie)

Maybe a bit obvious, but all the same, Ultraman is full of visitors from space whose differences from humanity leave them alienated, but still capable of seeing the beauty and value of the Earth.

-Hands (Oishi Masayoshi)

Theme to Ultraman R/B and my personal favorite theme in the whole franchise. The leads in this series have no experience or training and are thrown into the deep end and I like the way this track reflects the drive to stay positive. "These are the things we shouldn't have to protect."

-Pump it Up (Elvis Costello and the Attractions)

This represents the rising tension in the "Episode" happening here. The thumping, elegant bass line and lyrics about matching intensity always begged for an action scene in my mind.

-Brave Love, TIGA (Kagaku Tokusoutai, not the original version, this is a group that does covers of tokusatsu songs)

This is the ending theme to Ultraman Tiga and it's a bit of a parallel to Legend of Chavo Guerrero, since it's a plea to the title character. It's a child, asking their hero, please, do the things I can't. Protect the world. Show me how to be brave.

-X Gon' Give It To Ya (DMX)

Am I guilty of coming to the same conclusion as the writers of the Deadpool movie? Yes. But as a Millennial, I defy you to find a track that more powerfully says that shit is about to go down.

-Veridis Quo (Daft Punk)

Something wholly without lyrics to depict the final fight. I've always thought that the melody of this song implied a situation that's rapidly becoming more complicated.

-Dare (Stan Bush)

Come the man, cometh the hour, this is the personal theme of Hot Rod from The Transformers: The Movie (1986). Hot Rod is the chosen one, even if he doesn't know it until the end, but his theme is all about being brave enough to become the person needed. Also, the sample character Ultraman Giant Hero Cadmium is a direct reference to Hot Rod, including the piece of character art he's in.

-Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight) (ABBA)

I think the transition from the last track to this one is the best thing I do in either playlist. Again, this is a song about who you want around when things get bad. Also feels final, like the fight can be won here.

-BRAND NEW WORLD (Miura Jam BR)

This is the opening theme to my favorite arc of One Piece (Enies Lobby), but that's incidental. Here, the track represents the "new world" created by the Main Characters in saving the day, and the moment of joy together after it happens.

-Ultraman 80 (Kagaku Tokusoutai, again a cover)

"He came to us from the stars." Nothing more than a moment of gratitude for this immense power that joins together with us to protect our world. Ultraman gets a bit religious (by design, the life of the original creator Tsuburaya Eiji was often defined by faith). Also a relaxing end to represent the "end credits."

Side B- Kaiju

-Trigger (Sakuma Takao)

This side's less optimistic, more conflicted, but I still wanted to open with a theme, this time from Ultraman Trigger. It's a bit more aggressive, all about letting loose. Doesn't connect to that show much, but it's exactly what's happening here.

-When You're Evil (Aurelio Voltaire)

Being self-consciously "evil" is mostly the provenance of teenagers, but there's a sort of immaturity to a lot of the Kaiju Users I took inspiration from when writing the game. There's a certain kind of person who says to themself "no, I'm bad, really, I'm dangerous, watch out!"

-Wolf Like Me (TV on the Radio)

Another approach to playing a Kaiju User is to have werewolf vibes: "this is something inside me and when I let it out, you should run." This is a good song to depict prowling around town, looking for trouble.

-Life on Mars? (David Bowie)

An intentional parallel to Side A, another Bowie track using aliens as a metaphor for alienation. This one's a bit grittier, more critical of society, and more explicitly Queer, which is why it's on this side.

-Werewolf Gimmick (The Mountain Goats)

Like I said, this vibe is strong. The theme of performance (and taking that performance too far) is also a good link to the way a Kaiju User might play with their public image.

-V: The Stand (Man or Machine) (The Protomen)

This song ruled my college years. With a fight imminent, two people who would rather not fight argue, proving why they have to. In your games, the primary Kaiju User can even be either side of the fight, depending on how you've built things up.

-It Has To Be This Way - Platinum Mix (Jimmy Gnecco)

Meme music it may be, but this is great for being the next phase of that argument as the fists start flying. It's only from one perspective, which is fun, because the speaker might be completely off-base about the similarities between the two fighters (which is the case in the game it's written for, a lot of the memes and such overlook that).

-Foreign Object (The Mountain Goats)

Kaiju Users are often at a disadvantage, and this song really captures the spirit of fighting uphill because you're meaner and even if you can't win, you'll make your opponent regret it.

-KARATE (BABYMETAL)

This is the song for the main fight here, picked mostly for sheer kinetic energy. BABYMETAL's trademark pop idol/heavy metal contrast here is the symbol for the fact that a lot of Kaiju may be city-destroying beasts, but people on the internet will still look at them and say "what a good dog!"

-Light Up The Night (The Protomen)

Sometimes, winning means being willing to burn yourself up.

-Hero (The Verve Pipe)

The mirror spot to When You're Evil for a reason. This is the truth at the core of that facade, that underneath the way they scorn humanity and embrace their outcast status with mischief, they really long to be accepted. And something that GoL tries to say is that you can be, even if your powers are scary and destructive, you can still be a hero, no matter what your self-loathing says.

-ZERO to INFINITY (Miyano Mamoru)

Another track from the franchise, this is the theme to the web series Ultra Galaxy Fight: The Absolute Conspiracy, which is mostly a big crossover punch-em-up. But here, I like the optimism of saying you can get to the end of your path as long as you keep pushing, which can be applied to Kaiju Users of many different moral orientations.

Whew! So I started out trying to not repeat artists at all, let alone on the same playlist, but it couldn't be helped, Beat The Champ by The Mountain Goats is the best album about wrestling ever (not a high bar, mind, but it's very good), and the parallels between pro wrestling and tokusatsu are very deep. Anyway, have fun, let me know your thoughts on the listening experience, and play the game!

[morningstarbee]

there's this really interesting phenomenon that's unique, I think, to fandom spaces, and specifically people who read fanfiction a lot (like me)

It's happened to me several times now, where'll i'll listen to a new song i'd never heard before and recognize quite a few of the lyrics due to them being fanfiction titles

like it's happened to me about 3 times in the past month

one, for From Eden by Hozier which i heard in a good omens playlist but the lyric "I slithered here from eden" I recognized as a title from a Hannibal fanfic

two, for That Unwanted Animal by The Amazing Devil which was recommended to me to add to my hannigram playlist and I recognized as the title of a good omens fanfic

(yes the fact that theyre switched is hilarious to me)

three, for the song No Children by The Mountain Goats, which I saw people talking about on the timeline today and I listened to and recognized several of the lyrics as fanfiction titles, specifically "Hand in unlovable hand" and "I hope you blink before i do"

the whole thing is just very funny to me, especially because for some of these, I had read these fics several months, or even YEARS in the case of the last one, before i ever heard the song they were titles after

[abattoirstars]

9! 21! 29!

9. A song that makes you happy.

As C will attest to I'm not a habitual Happy Music listener and I often have to make the case that yes the song I'm listening to is bleak but I'm fine, it just bangs. I'll say Candlelight - Relient K, the 'actual music not written for a joke in a film' version of Ultraviolet - Stiff Dylans

21. A favourite song with a person's name in the title.

Jenny - the Mountain Goats. bang. easy. there's no other option. He played it live when I saw them last November and it Went The Fuck Off, and now their next album is a Greek Myth-Inspired Rock Opera that continues the story of the couple. Easily the best song to ever feature the words 'hi diddledy dee', and easily the most emotion those words have ever been imbued with.

29. A song that you remember from your childhood.

Lot of quite funny answers for this because my parents were/are both huge fans of 80s glam/hair metal. In lieu of admitting my love for Yankee Rose - David Lee Roth, though (he has a conversation with the guitar), I'll go with Fascination - Alphabeat. This is the first song I can remember seeing the music video for, all of us in my dad's little study watching it on his computer like I imagine people were with The Wireless in the 40s. This also wins because the other month my childhood best mate who I don't talk to too much anymore dm'd me out of the blue saying he'd heard it and that it reminded him of dancing to it when we were kids, which was nice. It's a banger, and the band has THREE motherfuckers named Anders in it.

ty danny ^^

[nihilisticlinguistics]

@astriiformes challenged me to name 10 songs I like with names in the title! This was really hard, since most of the music I listen to is for D&D playlists which kinda drives me away from songs that name-drop people lol

Here's my list:

Fred Astaire - Jukebox the Ghost

Icarus - Bastille

Cry for Judas - The Mountain Goats

Hey, Mario - Patent Pending

Oh, Ms. Believer - Twenty One Pilots (I'm counting this one :P)

Evelyn - Gregory Alan Isakov

Jackie and Wilson - Hozier

Cassius, -- - Fleet Foxes

Icarus - Ben Thornewill (yes, that's two songs about Icarus on this list)

Modern Jesus - Portugal. The Man

tagging @junewild @andtheremustbetowers, @eviethameskeepey, @fishglass, and @jack-of-all-gays

[storiesoffolpara]

First draft of chapter 1 of my Dresdar and Wyn story. I don’t have a title for this story yet but I have no idea what to name it. I’m lowkey thinking maybe at least for now going with “Riches and Wonders” just bc that’s a song by The Mountain Goats I fucking love, and the cover of it by Eliza Rickman and Jherek Bischoff makes me think of Dresdar and Wyn every time I listen to it. Like that cover is what would play at the end of the movie for their happily ever after as they dance around a ballroom, can you see the vision?

ANYWAY here is chapter 1

Chapter 1

Wyn stood at the edge of the short dock sticking out over the small fish pond. They hung a small lantern on a wooden post before slipping off their sandals and sitting down. Breathing a sigh of relief, they put their feet in the water, the cool water wrapping around their calves. The heat of the day was waning with the setting sun, but not fast enough, and the water helped soothed Wyn’s aching feet. It was the third day of The Raining and with festivals and events in full swing, the temple had been full of travelers and villagers visiting the shrines.

Wyn leaned back and looked up at the sky. The sky was cloudless, with the warm yellow pink of twilight fading into the deep purple blue of night. As they look to the West they can make out the first stars and comets beginning to show. At this point in The Raining the comets were almost constant, and Wyn’s eyes dart around as they try to keep up with every dash of light. After a moment they close their eyes and lean back further until they’re laying flat on their back. Crickets began to take over the natural symphony the birds leave behind as night extends more. Wyn lays there for a while, gentle humming only interrupted by the swatting of mosquitoes.

The moment is peaceful, and after a busy day of tending to all the visitors, Wyn could almost fall asleep. They are forced back awake as the temple door that leads to the garden opens. “Wyn!” A voice calls. “Will you come help clean the kitchen? Sorriel and Robin had to go to a house call.”

“Yes, be right there!” Wyn calls back, sitting up and scooting back to pull their feet out of the water. Standing up, they grab their sandals with one hand and the lantern with the other, water pooling on the wooden boards at their feet. With neither moon out the comets are crisp white streaks against the now black sky. Wyn looks up at them as they take a step forward to walk down the dock.

The hairs on the back of their neck stand up.

As shivers run down their spine Wyn’s head snaps down so quickly, so instinctively, it almost scares them more than the flash of adrenaline that follows. In an instant their breathing is heavy and their heart is racing in their chest.

Sweat is already beading on their forehead as they take another tentative step forward, eyes scanning the trees ahead. The forest has marked the edge of the temple’s property since long before Wyn had lived here. They have chased off the foxes that try to steal chickens from the temple or watched the deer drink from the pond. They hear the coyotes yapping and barking occasionally but the canines rarely come near the temple, preferring the safety from hunters the forest provides. As Wyn gulps, they take a step forward. They have no choice but to move forward down the dock until they can turn and make for the temple.

Raising the lantern, Wyn squints at the tree line. There! Finally they spot them, two small eyes crouching near the ground in the tree line. At this distance they barely reflect the lantern light, almost flickering in and out of existence. Wyn heaves out a couple of heavy sighs and tries to calm their racing heart.

The eyes are close to the ground. Wyn thinks, having a sort of staring contest with the creature. So probably not a deer, and coyotes aren’t this quiet.

“AY!” Wyn practically barks at the fox. A small smile passes over their face as they see the eyes startle at the noise. “PSST! You better NOT get into the trash, OR the chicken coop!” Wyn walks forward more confidently as they yell now, knowing someone will probably still have to scare the pest off again later tonight.

As Wyn steps off the dock and onto the ground, the warm yellow light spills over the grass and shrubbery. The light hits some of the closest trees but their dancing shadows seem to only emphasize the deep darkness of the woods. The lantern swings in their outstretched hand.

The eyes aren't reflecting… They’re glowing.

Before Wyn can decide to make a break for the temple, the eyes begin to slowly move up.

Two white glowing lights move seamlessly directly vertical. Wyn stands frozen in fear as the eyes that were moments ago only a couple feet off the ground moved up to a deer’s height- their own height- higher still. Then the eyes slowly moved forward.

Stumbling back a few steps, Wyn can hardly muster anything more than a whispered “Oh my Gods…” as the creature stalks forward from the inky blackness of the forest. The eyes looking down at them are not eyes, but two pinpricks of light sunk into the impossibly black sockets of an animal skull. Wyn’s eyes travel down from the skull to take in the human torso it is attached to. They are frozen as they watch the creature walk forward and see the human torso meld into the four legs of an animal, paws brushing silently over the grass.

Fear is flooding Wyn’s system l as the creature bends its torso upper half down slightly, unnaturally long arms allowing its large hands to graze the ground by its paws. Its head tilts to the left slightly, almost inquisitively.

It was getting too close now, less than 10 feet, but what could Wyn do? They had yet to ever come in close enough contact with large predators to test if running makes them chase you, and certainly did not want to take that chance right now. They couldn’t break eye contact as the creature loomed closer before finally stopping just a few feet away. Its mouth opens slightly, almost emphasizing the large canines that protruded downward from either side of its upper jaw.

“You dropped these.” Its deep voice rumbles out.

Wyn blinks in confusion before looking down as the creature holds out its hand, the loops of Wyn’s sandals hooked by the claws. The shoes dangle between the two like a shield.

Naelymm.

The word came crashing into Wyn’s mind from somewhere. Maybe the Gods themselves whispered the word in their ear, but Wyn didn’t care to think about how they came to this conclusion, only how much more it probably just complicated the scenario. If this had been just some monster, some werewolf or basilisk from some fairy tale, then Wyn would be killed. Tragic, but that’s just the way it ends for the lone person at the beginning of every story who first discovers there is a monster in the woods. But a Naelymm?

“O-oh, thank you!” Wyn says out of habit. They had been in such a state of shock watching the creature lurk out of the woods they hadn’t even realized they dropped them. As they reach their free hand forward to grab the shoes, a thousand and one different thoughts race through their head. Is this actually a Naelymm? Whatever is it, what is going to do me? Was it watching me? What does it want? What do I do?, What do I do?, WHAT DO I DO?

Wyn grab the sandals.

“You are welcome.” The creature replies. Wyn can’t help but be slightly unnerved, the way the bony jaws of its skull just open and words come out. Wyn is frozen standing there, unsure of how best to make it out of the interaction alive without accidentally insulting the god standing before them.

“I-I’m sorry I yelled at you.” They say, flitting between making eye contact and not. “I thought you were a fox trying to go after our chickens again.”

The creature gives a couple small nods. “Understandable. It is forgiven.”

The silence that follows only lasts a few seconds before Wyn’s nervous energy forces words out of their mouth. “My name is Wyn. I work at this temple.” They glance at the stone building behind them, silently hoping Klint would come back out to yell at them to hurry up to the kitchen.

“My name is Dresdar. I have visited this temple before but it has been many years.”

Dresdar. The name sounded so familiar but Wyn couldn’t think on it as the silence filled in once again. What should they say, what does this thing want, WHAT SHOULD I DO!?

“What brings you back?” Wyn asks with a nervous smile. Oh my Gods, what are you doing making small talk with a Naelymm!?

Dresdar shrugs his shoulders as he takes a few steps around Wyn toward the pond. “Because I had not been here in so long and I was curious what it looked like. This pond was not here before.” He keeps his distance but stays within the light of the lantern.

As Wyn watches the creature move, they forget their fear in place of awe.The Naelymm was like a centaur from storybooks but instead of part-horse, the lower half was something more like a canine or big cat. Where the glossy dark fur faded into spots and combined with the flickering lamp light, it rippled like water. Wyn found themself turning to follow and walk with Dresdar to get closer to the pond.

“Yeah, they made it five years ago.” Wyn looked over the reeds lining the shore. “There’s a few new herbs we’ve been able to start growing here now instead of having to go out and collect them.”

Dresdar hummed in understanding before looking out over the grounds. “Do you tend to the garden?” It gestured to the grounds closer to the temple where most of the growing was done. Wyn unconsciously follows the movement, leading the way down the center path of the garden.

“Yes. Well, we all do.” Wyn said with a slight laugh before cringing on the inside. What are you doing? Why are you talking about gardening? What else am I supposed to talk about!? Wyn tries to ignore the internal argument they are having with themself. “Honestly I’m not very good at gardening, I just find nature to be peaceful.”

“Why do you say you are not very good?” Dresdar asks, sounding genuinely interested in the answer.

“I get impatient, then bored, then forgetful.” Wyn gives an embarrassed laugh. “So, I’ll leave all the planning to Klint and Xayla and just show up to plant and harvest or water the garden when I’m told. Do you garden?” Again, Wyn cringes at themself. The question came out before they could realize, a habit in the art of small talk to always turn the question back on the asker. Thankfully, Dresdar did not seem to find the interaction as annoying as Wyn feared.

“I do.” It replied almost excitedly. Dresdar turned to glance at the forest. “I have cultivated plants from this forest before.”

“Really? What sort of plants do you enjoy working with the most?” Wyn asked.

Dresdar opens his mouth to reply but before he can the back door to the temple swings open again.

“WYN, are you coming? I still need you to-“ Klint stops mid sentence as the scene before him tries to register in his brain. Wyn is also stuck in place, looking between Klint and Dresdar. Wyn realizes how unreal the moment must look but can think of nothing to say other than-

“This is Dresdar.” Wyn tries to force the situation to feel normal, like they’re just introducing Klint to an old friend.

“Hello.” Dresdar gives a small nod to Klint before looking back down at Wyn. “I will not keep you from your duties. It was pleasant speaking with you.”

“O-oh, yeah. You too, goodbye!” Wyn gives a small dip of their head before smiling. They watch the creature turn and walk back down the center path the two had come down. It raises its hand and a runic circle of light materializes in front of Dresdar. The Naelymm walks forward without hesitation, disappearing into nothing. Its tail is swallowed by light and the rune burns itself out, flickering into a few dying embers before the dark of night takes back it place.

“WYN, WHAT HAPPENED!?” Klint yelled as he jogged across the garden to their side.

“I DON’T KNOW!” Wyn yelled back as he approached. They handed the lantern off to him and took a few intense breaths.

“Was that a Naelymm?” Klint asked incredulously.

“That’s what I assume it was.” Wyn was starting to realize how dry their mouth was and began to lead the way back to the temple. “I was sitting on the dock, then started to come inside, and then it just came out of the woods.”

Klint shook his head in disbelief. “I know Naelymm can cross over during The Raining but I never…” He looked at Wyn. “And you spoke to it! What did it say?”

“It asked about the pond, and the garden…” the two were at the back door and Wyn brushed the dirt off their now dry feet before slipping their sandals back on. “Its name was Dresdar.”

Klint furrowed his brow slightly, thinking. “Dresdar… I don’t think I’ve heard of that one before.”

Wyn sighed. “Me neither. I might go through some of the old records tomorrow, but right now I can barely even process that it happened.” They swung open the door. “So let’s just pretend it didn’t and go clean the kitchen.”

[icarusthelunarguard]

The Grazing Old Goat

(Normally I don't post the chapters of my story on FIMFiction, but I just wanted a little moment in your sun. So, from my story, "Dreams"...)

In Batlinsburgh there is a rhyming picture book story with a cute title of “The Grazing Old Goat”. It’s a relatively new foalhood story, but slowly gaining popularity out there. It took a little while for me to track it down, but the author remains a mystery. Maybe it's just a local story from long ago, or brought in from the old mountain cave families. In any event it was too beautiful for me NOT to include.

And yes; I cried too.

There once was a Goat, with a white-speckled coat, and ears too long to stand.

She wandered away, chewing grass and hay, And never had anything planned.

She traveled along, Never singing a song, And stopped at a village a while.

She told of her walk, How she never would balk, When grassways turned into tile.

She regaled of her travels, How miles unraveled, Of languages needing to be learned.

And after her stay, She’d wile away. And never a bridge had she burned.

One day, a surprise! She found she’d arrived, Back at her home starting place.

She’d come home full circle, Not planned, but still thankful. And tears streamed down her old face.

The town had turned out, To welcome and shout. “You’re home! We’ve everyone missed you!

“Please tell us the tales, Of the streams, plains, and gales.” And all remained silent and gave heed to.

She told them the stories, Of roads and of glories. How everyone taught something new.

Her birthday, they decided, Let’s make her delighted. A party inviting everyone through.

And as the day came, The creatures remained, But the Old Grazing Goat made no sound.

For her home turned up empty, The search for her lengthy. But a hoofwritten note there was found!

“I've set out again, To find some new friends. So I send you all off with a kiss.

“Remember your names, Your food, stories, and games. You're friends now; enjoy that bliss.

“One day I’ll return, And I hope that you’ve learned: I taught you all from your own lives.

“Help one another, Like sisters and brothers. Because we are all of the same tribes.”

[poisonheadcrabsalesman]

shows up at your doorway. hi stumpy :3

💞, 🖥️, 💗, 🍺, 🎉 and 🎧 for ya!

💞 - favourite moment in a game?

I would like to say the entirety of The Ark level of Halo 3, but when the Forward Unto Dawn swoops down and delivers the tanks for the next section. Always cool and has always stayed with me.

🖥️ - favourite AI?

You know this. Cortana is queen of my heart, but I've pavlov'd myself into liking that nuisance Roland. He's just really neat and more than a comic relief character and is just a guy thrown in the deep end trying his best.

💗 - favourite halo game?

I think the 2800 hours in halo 3's multiplayer says it all. Yes most of it was in custom games and it is ingrained into my psyche. Favorite to replay, fav music with the leitmotifs and references, fav one liners and warthog run.

🍺 - who would you have a drink with?

See, I'd love to talk to so many of these characters, but it'd quickly devolve into "are you okay? no seriously, are you okay?" I'd also love to get a drink with one of the normal folks on the Infinity, like how and why did you end up with this deployment? I guess for this question, Lasky, because I want to assess that man and poke him, "don't you want to go apeshit? what if you stopped being nice?" Also - the insane lore given to us from the fucking Halo Official Cookbook means that there's a chance he'll give me a flag from his destroyed high school. Who doesn't want a Corbulo flag from a man in his late forties hanging out at a bar. Real normal Halo

🎉 - share your favourite character headcanon

Miller doesn't vape. He smokes. And maybe knows who to trade contraband with.

🎧 - song you associate a halo character with

uGHGHG. I should make you fight me before giving away my secrets but there are a few. Or wait. Dodging this. Bleed Out - title track of the Mountain Goats album is Halo Infinite Era Chief. He is an old dog ready to go upstate. No need to call the med evac. He's done.

[mikhailandericka]

I don't have followers to ask me, so I'll just answer them all:

1. [Title Pending]. I've been writing this story on and off since 2016 and never settled on a title! I just call it Ericka and Michael usually.

2. Spies!

3. Spies! Well, young adult/new adult, romance, espionage, light sci-fi elements.

4. The kids who liked Gallagher Girls and want something a little more grown up in that same vibe.

5. Too long! 7 years, give or take. I have worked on many other projects in the meantime but I come back to this one every time.

6. It's fully outlined, only some parts are actually genuinely down and written. I'm a mess and terrible at finishing things... but at least now I have the excuse of being too busy with school?

7. It is 95% outlined. It's a dual timeline story so that includes 4 years of past story and about 3 months of present time, and I know pretty well what would happen in both a first and second sequel, but I'm not 100% sure I'm doing those. Lately I've been outlining sequel 2, set about 5 years after the first (& potentially second) book.

8. Scrivener helps my ADHD brain work.

9. Gallagher Girls, Undercover Girl, Alias, and Nikita. I've been obsessed with spies since I was little and these 4 pieces of media have heavy influence on my story, it's basically a tribute to them.

10. Miss Missing You - Fall Out Boy

11. Spy-fi? Is that an aesthetic?

12. Traditional, but in this modern world who knows?

13. Ericka is lovely and hardworking and athletic, but prone to anxiety. Dealing with self-confidence issues in the past storyline and grief in the present storyline. Michael just wants to be a real boy.

14. Hana - Ericka's bestie and roommate. Feisty, crafty, opinionated. Imogen - Michael's bestie, Hana's on-again off-again girlfriend. Cold and aloof because she needs to be. Owen is a high achiever and natural born leader. Colin is sweet as pie and could kill you before you realized you were a target. Naomi is just looking for something to care about. Ksenia wants revenge.

15. A corporation! But I'll talk about Genevieve to be specifc... dangerously intelligent, willing to do whatever it takes to reach her goals. Oh, and about Gabriel--Michael, you thought you had a rough childhood? It could have been worse!

16. Mixed setting! The past storyline is set at a boarding school in rural Pennsylvania, the present is more varied.

17. Melanie Sutton for President! Don't trust the Atlas Corporation!

18. Lots of picrews and online dress-up dolls and AI face mashups. Too many to post, and I'm bad at tagging systems. No IRL face claims.

19. Just Say Yes - Snow Patrol (Ericka) Clairvoyant - The Story So Far (Michael)

20. Never thought of one for Atlas or Genevieve. Maybe for Gabriel... Control by Halsey? I've never thought of songs for him before.

21. Many! Honestly, all my secondary characters are neatly paired up, which is honestly something I should probably change. Michael and Ericka are my favorite couple, as my main couple! Hana/Imogen, Colin/Naomi, and Owen/Ksenia are all my side couples, with these relationships being of varing importance and canon-ness.

22. Ericka & Hana

23. Michael & Ksenia maybe?

24. Up the Wolves - the Mountain Goats

25. Probably Michael, because I love sad boys. It's easier to tap into what he's gone through than Ericka, but she's so close to my heart so she's second place.

26. Ksenia, because I have to balance her similarities to Michael and her very different backstory from him.

27. Hana! I try to avoid giving my own traits to any character but her. She's a much cooler version of me.

28. Not anything too strange, I'm more basing my stuff off spy fiction then getting bogged down in the logistics of it all. Can't worry too much about reality when your world has a spy school for teenagers.

29. Latest I've stayed up? The whole night! I don't get up early for anything, though.

30. Every name is meticulously picked, except for Ericka and Mikhail which are names that spontaneously came to me after I woke up from a dream (which was the true spark for this story, other than the influences I listed above). The story evolved so only Ksenia calls him Mikhail/Mishka, though, whereas when I started out it was more his 'true name'. He no longer has any 'true name', only an attachment to 'Michael'. I couldn't decide on Erika or Erica so I used both, and added an in-story reason for it.

31. I don't have just one line, especially because my draft is so... not a draft. I have scenes and exchanges I love but I don't feel like seeking them out.

32. Despite being a spy story it's not crazy heavy with the action, but not relaxed either--more like tension all throughout.

33. Too many to name... this whole WIP is my favorite tropes!

34. 👦🏻💕👧🏽 🏫 👦🏻💀🕐🕓🕖🕚 👩🏽🔎⚰️ (I'm bad at emojis and doing this on desktop so I'm ending there, at the beginning of the novel.)

35. Grief, what it means to be human, morality.

36. I need to be a lot further along in this WIP for this... because mostly I just want to be like yeah! I love spies! Something something idealism and broken dreams? Uhhhhhh lying and secrets are bad? Unless they're good? I dunno, man!

36 WIP questions

1. What is the title of your WIP?

2. What is your WIP about?

3. What Genre is your WIP?

4. What is the target audience for your WIP?

5. How long have you been working on your WIP?

6. What draft are you on?

7. Did you plot your WIP before you started writing, or are you pantsing it?

8. What program do you write your WIP in?

9. What inspired your WIP/how did you think of it?

10. Share a song that makes you think of your WIP.

11. What is your WIP’s aesthetic?

12. Do you want to publish your WIP traditionally, self publish, post it online, or keep it for yourself?

13. A little bit about your protagonist?

14. A little bit about your supporting cast?

15. A little bit about your antagonist?

16. What is the setting of your WIP like?

17. One fun fact about the world of your WIP?

18. Do you have any faceclaims/picrews for your characters?

19. Share a song that makes you think of your protagonist.

20. Share a song that makes you think of your antagonist.

21. Does your WIP have romance? If so, what is your favorite couple?

22. Favorite friendship in your WIP?

23. Characters with the best dynamic?

24. Share a song that makes you think of your favorite character dynamic.

25. Easiest character to write?

26. Hardest character to write?

27. Which character is the most like you?

28. What is the strangest thing you’ve had to research for your WIP?

29. What is the latest you’ve stayed up/earliest you’ve gotten up to write?

30. Do any of the names in your WIP have significance?

31. Favorite line from your WIP?

32. Is your WIP action heavy, or more relaxed?

33. What are your favorite tropes you use in your WIP?

34. Sum up your WIP using only emojis.

35. What are some of the themes of your WIP?

36. What is the message you want readers to take away from your WIP?

[clambuoyance]

Could you do an analysis of Conner's character with the song "I'm Still Here (Jim’s Theme from Treasure Planet)"

Because there is some correlation there but my mind ain't thinking of the words to form a sentence about it. And I've been listening to it for days- and want to hear someone talk about it. My favorite cover is Annapantsu's.

Just imagine Conner mumbling the lyrics under his breath and fumbling his fingers on the strings of the guitar mimicking its melody. He'd be so sad but finds comfort in a song that reflects his hope and his situation he was in. Like brrruuuhhh, cause I get that feeling when a song relates to me a lot and still wishes hope for the listener. Anyway got songs that makes you think of Superboy?

GOD. it's been AGES since i've seen this movie but this song is giving me brainworms. Jim even has an undercut and an earring and a cool jacket in the movie im getting ideas uh oh...

anywaysss this song is very fitting in general for like young ppl trying to grow up and form their own identity but it fits so well with kon like.

"i am a question to the world/ not an answer to be heard" idk but this is like his debut and clone origins in ROTS i guess, like what will the world look like without superman. actually i think part of kon's early character was based on the question "what would superman be like if clark was not raised by the kents when he was young?"

and the next verse is sooo him. "i won't listen anyway" yEAH he never listens he's a bit of a rebellious boy, "and i'll never be what you want me to be" *gestures wildly at his whole schtick* yeah. yeah that fits

"I'm a boy/No, I'm a man" God a major part of his whole character is relationship to aging and maturing and being young and growing up THIS DO BE HITTING DIFF

"And how can you learn what's never shown/yeah, you stand here on your own" he literally only has implanted knowledge and memories but like. He's never shown or taught things and kinda just fucks around and gets himself into messes and SOMETIMES people come in and lecture him

"And I want a moment to be real/Wanna touch things I don't feel/Wanna hold on and feel I belong" ive seen people say that another reason kon acts like That in the beginning is bc he wants to experience everything bc everything in his brain is not his own or artificial and he wants to make it his own. and ugh yes BELONGING T-T

"And how can the world want me to change" everyone telling him to grow tf up

"They're the ones that stay the same" ironically its usually HIM who doesnt want to do the changing

And then the whole "Im not here" to "Im still here" just gives me the vibes of him hating being called superboy and the very thought of being STUCK as superboy and never getting a chance to be superman, to him accepting the title and saying things like "I'm superboy! I don't have a mother or father--all I got is who I am!" LIKE no matter what he will get up again and give his whole heart and everything into things

OKAY I COULD GO ON BUT YES. GOOD SONG CHOICE

as for others that remind me of Kon:

Get Famous - The Mountain Goats (i wanted to make an animatic to this butttt oh well)

Runaway Runaway - Mars Argo

Good Kid - The Lighting Thief Musical (this whole musical fits the yj/teen hero squad but this song in particular reminds me of kon)

Zero to Hero - Hercules

So many Lana Del Rey and MARINA songs...

[ghostboyjules]

weeeeellllll hey folks! Finally back again - after ages of promising this - with Hob's playlist. I'm definitely not gonna be as wordy this time, mostly because I am Tired™, but hopefully these songs and their lyrics speak for themselves better than I could anyway. I'd like to dedicate this beast to these particular wonderful humans; @wordsinhaled, @wizardofgoodfortune, ily'all 🥺 y'all keep me creative <3 and to @landwriter for the amazing title inspo and just being super dope and having excellent Hob Gadling character takes in general.

This playlist is a lil more structured than Dream's was, so I don't recommend listening on shuffle, at least for the first time through, lol. I also have marked in my notes which songs relate to which like. Span of years, but tbh that could be kinda flexible, so use your heart ig asjhfvafbab Without further ado, below the cut will be my lyric selections and small note thingies. If you've read even this far, I thank you *mwah* (yes there's 30 songs I'm SORRY I can't be stopped 😭)

1389 –

Avi Kaplan – I’m Only Getting Started

[Verse 1]

Eyes clouded, blood on my face

No mercy coming my way

Yeah, I'm only getting started

Cracked knuckles, fist shaking

These rivers run, but I'm staying

Yeah, I'm only getting started

OKAY... thought this was kind of a cool one to open up with, plus the interesting thing about making this playlist is that I feel like I have a very linear sort of character progression to work off of, which is fun.. so this song speaks to me of that rough and tumble merc/bandit Hob of 1389... been through some shit, lost family,

Alice In Chains – Rooster

[Verse 2]

Walkin' tall machine gun man

They spit on me in my homeland

Gloria sent me pictures of my boy, mm-mm

Got my pills 'gainst mosquito death

My buddy's breathin' his dyin' breath

Oh God, please, won't you help me make it through? Mm-mm

[Chorus]

Here they come to snuff the Rooster, aw yeah

Yeah, here come the Rooster, yeah

You know he ain't gonna die

No, no, you know he ain't gonna die

this gives me very much merc or soldier Hob, kinda unhinged a lil bit cause he definitely should have died a few times there…but he didn’t.

The Mountain Goats – Up the Wolves

[Verse 1]

There's bound to be a ghost at the back of your closet

No matter where you live

There'll always be a few things, maybe several things

That you're going to find really difficult to forgive

There's gonna come a day when you feel better

You'll rise up free and easy on that day

And float from branch to branch

Lighter than the air

Just when that day is coming, who can say? Who can say?

makes me think about maybe after a long time at war or fighting as a merc or any plethora of things honestly, he’s like struggling with that.

Emigrate, Cardinal Copia – I’m Not Afraid

On the street that I remained

Some have made another hole

Could it be that I'm to blame?

When the ground has turned so cold

Can it be an audacing?

Can it be a guarded hole?

And what we say is just a game

The one we play 'til we get old

All, all the hands I have laid

All written along my face

I'm not afraid of anything

I just let it go

And now I take on everything

To get out from the hole

maybe avoiding thinking about things just so that he’s able to be the kind of man he wants to be rather than the kind the world is wanting to turn him into…but then he has to think abt them to come to terms with them (also no matter what I do,it will not recognize 'audacing' as a word but I googled it and everything so...lmao)

1489 -

Ryn Weaver – New Constellations

[Verse 2]

There's no walls and no ceilings as far as I know

Just the echoes of scars and the unbeaten road

Trip the gun on cautions that I've been sold

'Cause it's hard to believe that it's wrong to want more

Than the truest of blue and a love like a roar

I will run to wherever I want to go, oh

[Chorus 2]

Charting Neptune by the fire of the Sun

I'm looking for new constellations, new constellations

[Verse 3]

So keep callin' me crazy 'cause I never learned

You should stop loving fire because you got burned

Now it feels like I'm living some sick déjà vu

Like the answers were there when I stared into you

"What if there's more? What if there's more?" The more I look into this the more I want to cry about 1489 Hob and all the things he's seen.. I was on the Wiki page for ‘Spherical Earth’ and the years it was giving me... god he sure was just. there for that. the number of things we know to be just. absolute FACT, now that were kinda up in the air for the majority of his 600+ years??? are you kidding me? the maps the books the science the

Dawes – Living In The Future

[Verse 1]

I know all of my exits

I'm always planning my escape

It's the most aggressive symptom

Of this collective phantom pain

And the more that you ignore it

The more it makes you go insane

Just look around

[Chorus]

We're living in the future, so shine a little light

It may not make it any better, I'm just hoping that it might

I'm not talking about forever, how about just getting through the night?

We're living in the future, so shine a little light

ANXIETY… doesn’t wanna be caught being immortal…but also amazed and trying to see the brighter side of things, wanting to learn

Good Tiger – Salt of the Earth (Acoustic)

I tightened my grip

Around my bow

I'll try to save you all

Knuckles turning white

Blood runs cold

There's a boy with no face

I don't feel there's much separation

I'm an animal

Hope leaves when the waves come crashing

I've never been a religious man

But I'm slipping under drowning

In your eyes

I've never been a religious man

But I'm slipping under drowning

In your

More themes of being animalistic.. kinda nightmare-ish huh … this makes me think of maybe him having nightmares trying to help him understand how he really felt about all the killing he’s had to do, while also hungering so so deeply for more. More life, more knowledge, more people, more experiences. An animal wanting ..

1589 –

Hozier – Angel of Small Death and the Codeine Scene

[Verse 2]

Feeling more human and hooked on her flesh, I

Lay my heart down with the rest at her feet

Fresh from the fields, all fetor and fertile

It's bloody and raw, but I swear it is sweet

[Verse 3]

In leash-less confusion, I'll wander the concrete

Wonder if better now having survived

The jarring of judgement and reason's defeat the sweet

Heat of her breath in my mouth; I'm alive

I’m looking at this song as him falling in love with Eleanor, and I really like whenever they’re depicted as having this kind of.. definitely unconventional type of relationship for the time, and also maybe both being just a smidge unhinged, because Hob certainly is and I could absolutely see him being smitten with Eleanor because she’s maybe, kind of odd or something.. who’s to say..

Fair to Midland – A Seafarer’s Knot

[Verse 1]

Lucky are the leaves of the clover

She's digging for chemistry with the butcher's tools

Shifty are the eyes of the gambler

He's making his tricks his trade, and a job well done

[Pre-Chorus]

Through the motions, waving wishes

To your confidence and eloquence

[Chorus]

He's turning a-green from these envious glorious things

Applied ambitious faith that can keep us all safe

Invoking a blue that's meant for us too

What small amazing things we will turn to rain

Fair to Midland is one of my favorite bands of all time, so I was saving them for something special lol. A lot of the time Darrow’s lyrics don’t make.. a huuge amount of linear sense, but I feel like these are straightforward enough to take enough meaning. This, to me, feels like an examination of what Hob did to get to 1589, and perhaps some of the feelings behind that.

(bonus, made me think of the toast scene…ow)

[Bridge]

Gather 'round, hold your glasses up high

Drink to love while we wait for high tide

Keep it short, keep it brief, you have my word

Gather 'round while we wait for high tide

Everything Everything – Blast Doors

[Chorus]

Down in my beast heart, I build an empire

Whenever I'm blind, I open my wild eye

(repeated)

[Bridge]

I hear the death rattle of a time wasted

Time wasted

You know that I believe in it

You know that I believe in it

But I'm wasted

Back again with ‘animal hunger’ Hob. With this one I was really thinking about how… he really wanted to impress his stranger… only to be barely spoken to and then walked away from with no explanation. Like yes that hurts initially, but I’m thinking about all of the things he had to do to get there, I’m sure he didn’t like a lot of it.. and then to find out he pretty much wasted a lot of his time for an idea that had turned out to be wrong? oof

Ray LaMontagne – Such a Simple Thing

[Verse 2]

Take it if you want it

I'm so tired I just don't care

Can't you see how much you hurt me?

It's like I wasn't there

[Chorus]

Tell me what your heart wants

Such a simple thing

My heart is like paper

Yours is like a flame

I mean… -motions to lyrics- asfjvnfnb. Teehee abandonment issues lolololol

1689 –

40 Watt Sun – Stages

If I was only wise enough

To know everything sure and true about myself

You would not be here

What have I brought you to, my love, that you have followed me?

It is all my heart is worth

And more than I would ask of you

Y’all I’m so sorry that this is a 16 min song aldkfjgadj feel free to like, just look at the lyrics if you don’t have the brain space for the full thing, but I kind of forgot that it was so long until after I was so set on it 💀

Sleeping at Last – Jupiter

[Verse]

Wrote it down in the winter of 1610

Just a secret under lock and key until then

While collecting the stars, I connected the dots

I don't know who I am, but now I know who I'm not

This song always has and always will ruin me,, I just love the line “I don’t know who I am, but now I know who I’m not” honestly just everything about that song… make my messes matter, make this chaos count.. (also had to include because.. 1610 lol)

Gregory Alan Isakov – If I Go, I’m Goin

And I will go if you ask me to

I will stay if you dare

And if I go, I'm goin' shameless

Let my hunger take me there

This house, she's quite the talker

She creaks and moans, she keeps me up

And the photographs know I'm a liar

They just laugh as I burn her down

This song just has very Hob energy, like I feel like he would like it, as well, but also just OOOOOOFFFF this do be hurtin….

The Moody Blues – Melancholy Man

[Chorus]

I'm a melancholy man, that's what I am

All the world surrounds me and my feet are on the ground

I'm a very lonely man, doing what I can

All the world astounds me and I think I understand

That we're going to keep growing, wait and see

Another case of -motions to lyrics- tbh

1789 –

Sleeping at Last – Pluto

[Chorus]

Until one day I had enough

Of this exercise of trust

I leaned in and let it hurt

And let my body feel the dirt

When I break pattern, I break ground

I rebuild when I break down

I wake up more awake than I've ever been before

“I rebuild when I break down” this is put here specifically to signify his,, literal rebuilding of himself after the struggle of the previous century,..

The Deep Dark Woods – The Place I Left Behind

I'm a good ole ramblin' boy

Now that's just what I am

This fair land that you call yours

I do not give a damn

I've got the ramblin' fever down in my bones

And everywhere that I wanna go

The only place that I ever loved

Is a place I left behind

Discontent, I think, with where he’s at currently. Still missing and grieving his family, I imagine he probably spends these years pretty alone, and that could be why he seemingly turns his goddamn brain off -_-

Tunng – Fatally Human

Fatally human

We hover in the world

Fatal someone

We flounder in the dark

Take hold of another

Go mad in a moment

The soil and the wonder

Sway to the terror

There’s not really a lot I can say here, but. Yeah.

1889 –

The Oh Hellos – I Have Made Mistakes

I have made mistakes

I have made mistakes, I continue to make them

And the promises I've made

The promises I've made, I continue to break them

And all the doubts I've faced

All the doubts I've faced, I continue to face them

But nothing is a waste

Nothing is a waste, if you learn from it

This song sounds like how Hob looks when he makes that little jab at himself about making and learning from mistakes… couldn’t get that idea out of my head. Plus this song just really hits.

Greg Puciato – Through the Walls

Winter, I'm out of tune

Heating frozen stars

I'll keep spilling my guts out to you

Wherever you are

Dragging my anchor through you

I want you to know

Me before this night is through

Then you'll never go

Careful to not disappear

Offering dreams to the dawn

Nothing's impossible here

Still we can't go on

I didn’t want to make anything TOO outwardly Dreamling, but like… this song, omg…

Tubeway Army – Are ‘Friends’ Electric?

[Chorus 1]

So now I'm alone

Now I can think for myself

About little deals and S.U's

And things that I just don't understand

Like a white lie at night

Or a sly touch at times

I don't think it meant anything to you

[Verse 3]

So I open the door

It's the 'friend' that I'd left in the hallway

"Please sit down."

A candlelit shadow on a wall near the bed

Made that last comment and then there’s this song WHOOPS sdkfgadfbaasfjghfb

1989 –

Marina – To Be Human

[Chorus]

All the people living in, living in the world today

We're united by our love, we're united by our pain (Ooh)

All the things that I've done and I've seen

Still, I don't know, don't know what it means

All of the little name drops and the meanings and.. it just gave me very much the century flying by so violently but also colorfully and SO much happening..

Orville Peck – Dead of Night

[Verse 3]

Six summers down, another dreamless night

You're not by my side

Scratch on the moon like a familiar smile

Stained on my mind

Some other town, someone else's life

Dead in the night

In the night

Ofc I had to add Orville… this song and it’s placement… I wanted it to feel purposeful, and I hope it does. Character and theme-wise, and also like irl things happening in those decades..

Danny Schmidt – This Too Shall Pass

[Verse 3]

We think too big, we think our self is one whole thing

And we claim that this collection has a name and is a being

But deep inside when every cell divides

Well, it sets upon the rule that states self-interest is divine

[Verse 4]

And cancer too lives by this golden rule:

That you must do unto the others as the others unto you

All for the best, because it's all that life accepts

And so we kill it like a buffalo: with awe and with respect

This song also gives me overall Hob vibes, musically and lyrically, but.. I just think about the kind of friends he made and the things he tried to do in this century. Helping the people he could and loving those he couldn’t help. The knowledge that yes, this too shall pass…

1990’s-ish – Went on a lil’bit of a bender

Alice in Chains – Would?

[Verse 2]

Drifting body, its sole desertion

Flying, not yet quite the notion

[Chorus]

Into the flood again

Same old trip it was back then

So I made a big mistake

Try to see it once my way

I feel like after 1989.. and the overwhelming barrage of a century that was, I feel like he has some, emotions to sort through. N and I talked a lot about grunge phase 90’s Hob and like yes very much influential here, but I think I’d associate him with Alice in Chains, regardless. Stone Temple Pilots too, I think.. there’s more lmao

Def Leppard – Animal

[Verse 1]

A wild ride, over stony ground

Such a lust for life, the circus comes to town

We are the hungry ones, on a lightning raid

Just like a river runs, like a fire needs flame

Oh, I burn for you

[Chorus]

I got to feel it in my blood, whoa, oh

I need your touch don't need your love, whoa, oh

And I want, and I need, and I lust, animal

And I want, and I need, and I lust, animal

This man fucks. Obvi

2022 –

The National – I Am Easy To Find

[Verse 1]

How long have we been here?

Am I ever coming down?

I need to find some lower thinking, if I'm going to stick around

I'm not going anywhere

Who do I think I'm kidding?

I'm still standing in the same place where you left me standing

[Chorus]

I am easy to find

The National will always be my favorite sad Dad band, I cherish them. I feel like Hob would also like them, but this song of course had to be added because. “I am easy to find.” …. ach

The Narcissist Cookbook – Joy! Joy! JoooOOY!

[Verse 2]

Tonight let's turn the shower on

Full blast and hot

Lie down in the bath like it's a casket or a cot

We'll try to sleep

But we won't sleep

I thought writing it down might make me wanna stop

But I want more and more

And more of this

Til there's no room in me

There’s not a lot I can say about this one either, just.

Broken Bells – Perfect World

[Verse 1]

Oh, London moon, help me stumble home

Let me lose myself along the way

I've got nothing left, it's kind of wonderful

'Cause there's nothing they can take away... away

[Bridge]

But it's another way to win a useless fight

You've been lying so long don't know when you're faking

See the water on the rise

Just another day into a useless night

I've been pushing so hard now my hands are shaking

See the water on the rise

This song is beautiful. I think I had a religious experience when I heard it for the first time a few years ago,,, it’s also just very much a Hob song to me. Not overly optimistic, but still down for life.. the struggles…

Avi Kaplan – Song For The Thankful

[Verse 3]

Goodbye evening, hello to the night

I'm not seein' the wrong from the right

Walkin' blindly on a path without an end

Then the morning comes and leads me out again

I thought this would be the perfect song to end on.. I hope I’m right.