#yes this version of me has a little French mustache

[haveyoureadthisfanfic]

ngl I've gotten some intriguing food inspiration from your creative followers this week. probably not what you were intending when you started this blog, but food recs and fic recs go hand in hand, right? now if you'll excuse me, I need to go put sour cream and ghost pepper hot sauce on walnut waffles

I don't know why, but I'm picturing myself as a fanfic sommelier at a pizza place.

"Yes, sir. May I recommend a nice destiel with your meal? It pairs wonderfully with hot sauce."

[oldfritz]

this was surprisingly hard because half of them I wanted to throw in f, but then felt guilty about it so here’s where we are. explanations under the cut to be nice (fair warning: I’m writing this while tipsy so this is a journey)

S-tier

Old Fritz: look me in the eyes. look at me. are you looking? good. where else was I was going to put him? where? in C with the other losers? foolish. I am ruining my life for this man, I’m going to go into debt so I can be moderately qualified to write books on him so Tim Blanning and Christopher Clark don’t boo my off the stage. I sit here sometimes and I’m like ‘y’know, I would start a podcast to talk about his life’ as if I’m some straight white guy who thinks any of you want to listen to me for an hour. he’s a bastard, a smug bastard, and is the epitome of self-destructive tendencies. and, honestly, I wouldn’t mind if he wasn’t so fucking misogynistic all the time. ‘oh women aren’t fit to rule’ shut up Fritz before I time travel to fuck your wife and make her have one night where life feels worthwhile. but he’s funny, I enjoy how he does foreign policy, and he’s unfortunately relatable to me. cheers, Fritz. here’s to never being satisfied from one gay disaster with anger issues to another. may we burn in hell together

A-tier

Friedrich iii: “Suzanne, he was only on the throne for 99 days!! how can he be this high up when some of these bastards refused to die?” I hear you, my friends, and I have answers. I’ll tell you two words you’ll be shocked to hear put together: liberal Hohenzollern. a rare breed, isn’t it? imagine, friends, a world where he got over his throat cancer because he listened to a doctor and we get through the 1910s, 20s, even the 30s without Wilhelm II Electric Boogaloo being in power. Prussia is still on the map, the Anglo-Prussian alliance is strong, and I live in peace. but no. this stupid man had to keep smoking. because he’s selfish and doesn’t care about my needs. you know, he actually loved his wife. rare in this family. loved her and wasn’t abusive. the bar is so low, guys. and his wife is amazing too, Victoria. the world would’ve been in competent hands if they’d been in power longer (and Bismarck would’ve been out of a job still but at least these guys are smart. their son inherited grandma Vicki’s IQ). I would sleep with both of them and would thank them for the honor (when it should always be the other way around, remember that)

B-tier

Friedrich I: if your name is Friedrich and only Friedrich, we’re buds. that’s my rule. I have to give him credit where credit’s due. he was the first. while I agree with Fritz in his proscription that he was ‘small in big ways and big in small ways’ (I may have flipped that around), he wasn’t a bad guy. he just was born into the wrong job for him. I appreciate that he rode on his father’s coattails of proving useful to the Habsburgs and did a little himself to get that sweet, sweet kingship. smart move. I also like that he saw Louis XIV and said to himself “I stan, I kin, on God we’re gonna do that’ and tried. only for have his stupid, ungrateful, unclassy son to do away with that. I, too, am a woman of luxury and self-indulgance and if I had all the riches of Brandenburg and Prussia at the time (not much), I would spend them ridiculously on outfits and music and art. now, what did he do as king? what policy legacy did he leave behind? that’s a good one :)

C-tier

Friedrich Wilhelm III: now as a king he sucks. and I stand by this because, you know, he lost to him *imagine me pretending to be short and saying ‘oui, oui’ in a bad french accent*. and as any proper Englishwoman I can’t support a monarch who goes around losing to the French unless their name is Mary I. but, he’s a pathetic little man. he really is. so indecisive, so unsure of himself. what are you doing little guy? you think because your last name is Hohenzollern, God thinks you’re a good king? well it is like 1805 and, while divine right isn’t really being used as much, it’s as good as any reason on why you’re the chosen one and my family is eating dirt in Sicily and on the Scottish border. he’s really just a dude, nothing extraordinary about him except that his wife was the only one with brains and was the first to establish that (sorry Wilhelm I). he cried when he found out that his children didn’t call him ‘papa’ and went into a deep depressive state when his wife suddenly died. he’s an average man, of average abilities, but of big heart. and the big heart is what bumps him up, for me, from his old place as an F to a C. though, his moralizing is tedious

Friedrich Wilhelm II: this man should have partied with Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. everyone’s got that one ruler whose all about sex, drugs, and rock ‘n roll. for the US it’s JFK, for the UK it’s Margaret Thatcher Charles II, France has Louis XIV. Prussia has this guy and we should thank him. so many mistresses, so much sex, so much revelry and debauchery and sin! this guy’s personal life is like a treasure trove of political and sexual intrigue. if you’re into that - as I am as a town gossip - you’ll love him. I am constantly amazed by the fact that some STD didn’t kill him. syphilis, herpes, crabs. something, man, anything. but he didn’t. he’s a shit king though. absolutely horrible. all he did was whine that he didn’t get taught anything by Uncle Fritz and, yes, that’s not good if it’s true (but it’s not completely because the treatises are detailed but I guess he didn’t have time to read) but c’mon. actually apply yourself and learn on the job. I know that would’ve required him to not be balls deep somewhere, but unfortunately he’s not Dorian Gray. there’s work that needed to be done and he didn’t do it. boo!!

D-tier

Wilhelm I: apparently he was a good guy, unlike the other 3 who populate the lowest rungs of Prussian kinghood. so I give him that and I can respect that. but what did he do? what were his own ideas? I thought about putting Bismarck as king instead because, really, he was. Bismarck was a minister who ran around the king’s back to set things up exactly as he liked and it fucking worked because he was the brains. his wife was intelligent too, but theirs wasn’t a wamr and loving marriage. and Bismarck worked to get Wilhelm to distrust her because she was liberal and the fact that Wilhelm would listen to Otto even if it meant allowing himself to be drowned in the Rhine is pathetic. fun party at Versailles though. hope it was worth the war reparations

F-tier (bastard time) I’m going in a different order because I want to go from the ones I hate least to most xoxo

Friedrich Wilhelm IV: “I won’t accept a crown from the gutter” then you won’t accept a crown at all, stupid idiot! god, the smugness. the authoritarian impulses. I know it was the cool thing in 1848 to put down any revolts/protests with as much force as possible, but man, at least the Habsburgs were transparent. homie was like “yeah guys lol I’ll make a constitution and it’ll be epic! you’ll have so many rights! xoxo gossip girl” and then...nope. and AND he wanted the Habsburgs in charge of things too! Mr. ‘I’m Nostalgic For When HRE Was Great And We Blew Austrian Dick!’ grow up man. it’s Prussia time buddy, Austria is beginning to fall apart. don’t look to the past, look to the future, but you didn’t have that vision did you?

Wilhelm II: *banging pots and pans* I blame this man for everything! now, intellectually, does Germany take all the blame for WWI? no, that’s foolish and propaganda of the Allies only. if you’re a European power in 1914, you get to share the blame (ex: why did UK need to make this a naval arms race? Austria should’ve declared war on Serbia sooner if that’s what it wished to do. Russia, please stay out of the Balkans then and forever). but does my irrational hatred of Wilhelm blind me to this truth when I see his stupid face and that ugly fucking mustache that I wish to yank off? my god, yes. I see him and Rule Britannia and The Yanks Are Coming start playing so loud in my head and I’m like ‘yeah, the kaiser’s gonna pay.’ I’m sorry that Bismarck’s ego was bigger than yours but did you have to prove him right by getting incompetent buffoons who were playing checkers when he set the board up for chess to replace him? Did you have to prove Freud right by displacing private problems onto public life with your little tit-for-tat with George IV (VI?) because his mummy loved you more? Why did you need to fuck every naval vessel you saw like an inferior of Peter the Great who believed he was Sir Francis Drake? but that’s just the first war and he lived to see things setting up for the second. wasn’t in convenient for you to be close with the N@zis when you thought they might want a king back on the throne and you could reclaim your little tyrant. like every goddamn Prussian conservative or Junker, you thought you could play the tyrannical cockroach. sure, you figured out earlier that he was no pal, but you still collaborated and you still allowed yourself to get played like the weak man of conscience you are. cheers!

Friedrich Wilhelm I: ladies and gentleman, the moment you’ve all been waiting for! the biggest bastard straight outta Berlin, FW1! and who doesn’t love an abusive father? who doesn’t love a man, so insecure and pathetic, that he needs to terrorize children to be able to look at himself and have a little pride. I understand that it was because he wanted his kids, specifically Fritz, to be best. but being best and perfect meant being miniature versions of him and aren’t we supposed to want our children to be better than a carbon-copy of a small man? honestly, I could live with the occasional smack for this time period. it’s within the norm and, while horrible, isn’t irreparably damaging. this guy really had to beat the shit out of Fritz and Wilhelmina and I’m sure Augustus and Henry and Amalia and all the others (so many kids) didn’t get spared either because if you hit one, you’ll hit ‘em all. and I judge them for their flaws all the same but, for some of them, it gets hard to. because what fighting chance did they have when their father was telling them how worthless they were and beating them senseless and threatening death and life imprisonment on some? I’m constantly impressed by Henry and Fritz and Wilhelmina for amounting to any semblance of maturity, even though it’s always fleeting, because this man didn’t give them the tools to be functioning adults. but each of them managed to be greater than their father, as did Amalia managing a really cool coup in Sweden. and what did FW1 get? he built up his army, had a tall guy fetish, increased the treasury, and made the cabinet and executive offices more efficient. there used to be this one guy on here that would argue that that was all a good king made and that this lowlife didn’t deserve the contempt he got by some on here (an obvious vague of me) for his behavior as a father. and maybe I’m a crackpot, but I believe the quality of a man outshines all those other achievements and that that’s meaningless to me, in my personal life. and when I get to hell, before I go to any of these other men, I’ll go to him and ask him how hell’s fires feel because, if his God was real, it would never love him. and that’s beautiful

[godrics]

NCT DREAM BEYOND LIVE CONCERT!RORY

gif made by x

NCT DREAM BEYOND LIVE CONCERT!RORY

UNDER READ MORE  (bc it’s actually really long now that im on tumblr)

okay so the concert started with the vcr/video from the dream show ..

rory's little scene was her as a teacher !!! so cute

OOH and then the transition into her into her teacher clothes into a suit .. thats my girl

her hair is still like this. much more vibrant than it was because she redyed it oops

first song was GO!! change ur ways

she was wearing this [ black cargo pants, a black crop top, belt, along with chains lmao idk how to describe. oh and black boots ] for go, drippin', we go up, and stronger performances!

it was kind of awkward at first but then she saw nctzens' faces so she was happy

"to the world, this is the nct! we are nct dream”

she clapped excitedly, jumping up and down

"beyond the dream show~"

when haechan asked the time where the fans were, she read the comments, squinting funnily at the screen before gasping

"one of the czennies said it was 3am!"

the other boys gasped in shock before clapping slightly

"thank you for watching us even though it's 3am!" rory said to the fans. "but go to bed as soon as this is over~ or whenever you're feeling tired, that's okay too!"

"for our global fans, we prepared something special, right?" haechan said and rory nodded, smiling

"so we prepared our greeting in various languages"

rory's greeting was in french! fans went crazy bc she sounded SO good and her pronounciation was good too

after that she says, "renjun took english from me" in english and playfully glared at the older boy who laughed.

she turned to the fans and said, "but um, wendy-unnie taught me that so .. if it sounds bad it's all her fault." she claps as the other boys laugh

when they were talking about how they felt, rory said "i watched superm and wayv's concerts so i was excited because i knew we'd hear from the fans just like they were here with us in person. they were really loud, too" and laughs

when renjun told them to scream, she hit him lightly and said "yah, don't you remember what i just said? some fans it's 3am there!"

"oh dont scream then," renjun laughed, making her laugh before she went back to waving at the fans as they waved their lightsticks

when the fans appeared behind them, her eyes widened and she immediately ran to the screen, waving in all directions

she noticed when she got close to a fan's screen, they'd start waving their hand/lighstick even harder and it made her laugh

"rory, come back!" jaemin laughed, tugging her with him back to where the other 5 were

"wow, pretty grass" rory mocked mark as she stared at the lightsticks where the audience were supposed to be and on the screens

haechan had to hide a laugh

then there was we go up performance

woo fun

then stronger! she loves that song is2g

okay for the next vcr

she was in a school uniform standing in between jeno and jaemin

"you guys suck," rory laughed, watching the boys try to succeed

when renjun comes over and succeeds in under one minute and one hand, she gasped in shock lightly before watching him walk away coolly and put his head back down on the desk

jaemin nudged her as she laughed, "you guys are just losers!"

and then it ends on her walking over to renjun and bending down to face him and tapping him on the shoulder

he jumps from how close she is and she laughs, grinning at him, "that was cool" before going back over to the boys and he watches her

next video of the vcr oo

she gets hit in the head by the basketball(she's after chenle) and luckily saves it before it falls to the ground and throws it towards the basket, renjun jumping up to hit it in

why is she always getting hit in the head rip rory's head

next performance is dunk shot!!!

she hated the outfits tho jfc

she was wearing white loose shorts that ended midthigh and a pink button up over a white t-shirt

yeah super plain im so sorry rory that the stylists did you dirty like that

(to be fair the boys looked bad too like what was that matching .. there was NONE)

NEXT IS CHEWING GUM!!

AND THERE WERE HOVERBOARDS

SHE MISSED THE HOVERBOARDS SO MUCH

she hyped up jisung so loud during his solo dance

and had a huge ass smile on her face during it

she was in the middle of renjun and chenle at the bottom

AND THEY LEFT A SPACE FOR MARK IN BETWEEN JAEMIN AND JISUNG SHE ALMOST CRIED

"i think chenle changed the most" rory laughed, talking about the difference from now and almost four years ago when they debuted

"you changed a lot, too" chenle poked her and she huffed out a laugh, choosing not to respond to him and shook her head

when it was time for the interactions, she had to hide her wince because since she watched wayv and superm's, she was worried about how it would go because some fans' wifi connections were bad(so were sm's but anyways--)

oh luckily the first fan spoke korean !!

"hi!" she waved excitedly at the fan

when the fan said her name, she quietly repeated it to herself but it was still heard from the mic

"there's a song called 7 days in your album. what do you guys mean to each other?"

rory's mouth went dry at that question as she rubbed her hands together, looking at the boys silently as they ahhed and oohed

she smiled slightly as she saw how big their smiles got at the question

chenle said that the members were his family. they're literally siblings

she laughed at that

hyuck said that the members were apart of himself and that he grew up with all of them

jisung said bc they're older than him, they're like his younger siblings

rory had to look away in order to not laugh at his answer LMFAO

she couldnt contain how big her smile got when jaemin said that he couldn't live without them

she literally almost cried from tears of laughter from jeno's answer "onion"

renjun said that the members are youth to him

and him bringing up the stupid bottle to his face . i s2g she quickly yanked that from him so quick while laughing

and then finally it was her turn

"um, thank you for the question, siyoung!" she clapped slightly before continuing. "to me, the members are .. my childhood" she nodded slightly as she spoke. "we all grew up together so each of them have a piece of my childhood that i dont want to leave"

renjun pulls her into a side hug as jeno says "cute~"

wolfies(rory's stans) cried

when the fan said she'd stick with nct dream seven days a week, she laughed from the sudden overwhelming feeling at her words and bowed towards the fan, keeping her eyes to the ground so the camera wouldn't catch her teary eyes

too bad the camera did once she looked back up

"nct dream have 8 members--" when haechan said that, rory smiled big and nodded her head

"infinity" rory cheered, the members following behind

the next caller was up!

"ooh, poland" rory smiled

the fans question was "what are your biggest dreams" which she translated for them

rory's answer was "i have no doubt that nct dream will stay together forever so ... i my biggest dream is nctzens staying with us forever. even when we all grow up and have our own lives, i hope nctzens will some day think of nct dream and smile"

jaemin literally walked over and pinched her cheek, cooing at how cute she was

rory rolled her eyes playfully but let him

ah yes to this day he's still the only one she'll allow to give her skinship in public

rip other boys

she felt so sad when the third caller's connection was bad

"ah ... difficult technicalities"

she put a thumbs down

anyways next was don't need your love!!!

she LOVES this song so much guys its unreal

her place at the start is right in between renjun and jisung again lmao

shes leaning against chenle and jaemin

she loves hearing the boys' english btw

also in this version she has more lines but im not gonna tell which ones that's too much work

and next is we young!!

watching the part when they take a pic .. made me cry so it made rory very nostalgic

rory's wearing a professional suit but like . with a skirt i forgot what its called rip

she's standing in between hyuck and jeno

when jaemin laughs she laughs

she has that pic in her phone case btw

along with an ot8 pic

when they're talking abt the 50 years later OO im gonna . cry again

"so we can see how we change"

"um, we're gonna look older" rory laughed

btw grandma rory literally still looks good as hell sorry i dont make the rules

rory: "chenle would look like steve jobs but like .. chinese"

chenle was so offended bye

rory: "jisung if you grow a mustache i will never forgive you"

"wHY DOES IT MATTER?????"

"bc you'd look stupid i cant be seen with someone looking stupid"

the other pic where renjun jumps .. her face is literally so genuinely shocked in that pic LMAO she didnt expect that

NEXT IS BEST FRIENDS OH MY GODD I LOVED IT SO DID SHE

SHE JUST WISHED MARK WAS THERE .. AND HE KINDA WAS

btw she was wearing a black blazer but it was shorter .. and another black skirt with a white crop top underneath rip

OKAY HYERI MADE NCTZENS CRY SO HARD

so theyre uneven rn right?

so instead of her being a third wheel(not really)

when it's her part, she's backstage and as she's doing her part, she reached into an open closet and .. pulls out a cutout board of mark :((

yeah she cried too when she thought of it and luckily sm let her!!

at the end of her part towards the end of the song, she smiles and says, "right, mark-oppa?" and forms half a heart up to the camera

(taeyong later sends her a video of mark reacting to her parts and when she does the heart he puts half a heart up next to hers <3)

next is candle light! they dont really have a choreo to this one either

anyway candle light wouldnt have been her first choice bc she'd prefer to perform dear dream .. BUT ANYWAY

next is PUZZLE PIECE and 7 DAYS!!

the camera catches her and jisung doing their little handshake . so cute

she then hugs chenle so he wouldnt feel left out

end posing of puzzle piece, she's in between chenle and jisung AGAIN SLDJDJL

they form a heart with her doing the bottom and chenle and jisung doing the top/sides

when they read the comments after performing jeno reads one that says "rory is so talented, her vocals are so good"

and then hyuck read "rory's parts in best friends was so cute"

she blushes so cute

when they talk abt the album

rory says in english, "thank you for supporting us and we hope you guys enjoyed listening to the album as much as we enjoyed making it .. think of it as our gift to you for always loving us!!" cute baby. and then gives a little finger heart

special guest is mark, jungwoo, and doyoung!!

she expected mark but was surprised about jungwoo and doyoung

she couldnt stop smiling the whole time because literally all she had to do was see 127 and smile immediately like they dont even got to do anything

the technical difficulties .. rory said in english again "i think you need to get your wifi checked, mark"

"no mark-oppa?" he teased and she laughed

when they were complimenting them, jungwoo said that mark really enjoyed rory's parts in best friends and she full out giggled from nervousness, blushing from embarrassment

doyoung complimented her vocals and rap and shes never been so proud of herself

compliments from 127? her greatest achievement

jungwoo then said she was so cute wow more blushing

she found the challenge boring and wouldve preferred if 127 picked the damn challenge themselves bc then it wouldve been funnier and more fun but alas .. sm >:(

she picked puzzle piece tho

THE FUCKING NEXT VCR .. so emotional when she watched over it

she literally just watched her and her friends grow up in literal seconds

there's a clip of her from chewing gum on mark's back while he's riding the hoverboard

.. also somehow they got a clip of her hugging jaemin when he came back sigh

emotional manipulation!! she was kinda pissed that was in there bc it was supposed to be private but what can she do .. it's sm

there's a video of her chasing jeno during we young era while on the mv set

and another one of renjun literally dragging her on the ground because she wouldnt let go of his legs in mfal era

in mfal era she's seen running over chenle when he's out of their little cars

its funny he almost fell if jeno didnt catch him LMAO

but its ok dont fret he was in the grass

mfal era where hyuck tries to make a basket but fails and she steals the ball from him and makes it in .. he pouted FOREVER after that

the video of them in chewing gum era and then goes to ridin' era ..

her clip is her smiling shyly at the camera WITH HER CUTE PIGTAILS OH MYGODDD SO SOFT SO BABY

and then it goes to her in ridin' era with her leaning against the car and a lollipop in her mouth, staring dead straight at the camera somehow intimidatingly

n then ofc the music changes and the videos go more recent

theres clips of her behind the scenes in we young, go, dnyl, and boom

also some of her at that dream show concert

the ridin' stage was prerecorded but anyway she's wearing the same outfit she does in the mv

she saw a clip of the car cg and she yelled at the members jokingly saying it almost ran her over

wearing same outfit for quiet down which was live

they had one more song after :( she was really sad and she made sure nctzens knew that

"i wish we could perform more songs for you guys but .. only one more :(" and then sighed really loudly

"i wish you guys were here in person as well but your health is way more important and until then .. well, hopefully we can see each other again in the future! i miss seeing all your pretty faces" she then pouted as the other members oohed loudly and she laughed

after the other members continue she then reminds them all to "wash their hands and wear their masks over their noses if they have to go out"

when renjun says bonjour her eyes widen and she says "wow, so you stole my english and now my french?" she jokingly raises her hand to hit him but all he does is laughs and grabs her hand to 'stop her'

last is boom!

they shouldve performed dear dream or mfal but i guess booms good too not like they havent had to hear that song for 9 months

anyways

at the end she sneakily gives the camera a finger heart

[kazamastar]

Welcome to 2021

Ver. 2.1 - Ok. February but still, here we are. “Behold it’s me” as Logic would say. [...] I’m sorry I’m a bit shook because I started to write at 10:01AM, and it’s precisely 12:07AM, I was progressing pretty well in the process of writting and then I made a bad move and lost everything I wrote. I’m kinda mad. Really, I was this 👌 close to give up on writting it, and you can notice that the pixels are touching. But I guess the “I said I’d do it, so I’m going to do it” mentality is taking me places, once again. Even if I have to start again (that's called mental strength, take notes). And I said I’d write it baked so here I am, baked and hella motivated to do it. So, W shouldn’t help me reminding me what I wrote in the first version but nevermind. So I guess I'll put the most things I remember. I can tell there were good ideas ! I'll take this occasion to remind everyone the concept of these posts but first we will recap numbers of this year (well, more or less accurate for 2020 as I'm writting one month late) (and I'll fucking stop writting on the tumblr site and switch to OpenOffice so my next words are not lost again). 637 Nakamas (thank y'all for being here, even if I post 12847 times in a row. You're the best). 3609 posts and 23 376 likes. (109 drafts : lol it's less than a few weeks ago)

Pic : Plot twist 2. No more smile, but the return of the bowtie. (aka « The 4 days late suit » aka « I'm old enough to know better »)

The choice of this picture was so simple. Or maybe I should have chosen the one with the mustache only I took during lockdown ? Ahah. But … this picture could almost resume the year on its own. If I'd describe it in depth and explain the context, I could review 70% of the events that happened this year (and I think I'll go for that later, interesting exercise).

So. First let me explain the goal of these sums up. Each « Welcome to XXXX » is a resume, a sum up of the year XXXX-1. I write these for me, it's a funny way to keep track of all these years. I try to describe more or less precisely what happened during the year. I allow myself to be more or less precise because I firstly write these for me. And sometimes these posts tend to be long. Especially this one. It's gonna be sooo long. Like, idk maybe highlight this line and take a few seconds to scroll down and see how looooong it is. Kinda discouraging isn't it ? Lucky you it won't go on forever though as today, as I'm writting that it's 12:23PM and I'll have to be gone at 4 or 5PM. But I think contraints make art, even if I don't like to write under any kind of pressure. But I'm determined to do it in one take. So in these posts I also write about the TV Shows, manga, anime, movies I've seen/read. Even books, as I finally had the chance to read « Le Petit Prince » this year. We all know we had time this year, don't we ? And at the end, I post a 12 songs playlist (+ songs that I discovered this year that also are going to remind me of the year). We can roughly say it's « 1 song/1 month » but it's not always true. These songs are songs I like a lot, like really (but not necessarily my favorite) but above all, they remind me of the year I'm resuming (it can also be older songs). I also post my top 3 albums of the year. I'm thinking also of detailing my choices of playlist. Maybe not explaining all of them but a few. [12:36PM. And I'm already hungry.] On the 1st try I remember I talked about the TV shows I saw. I forgot to mention it but I write in English for a few reasons. First is : it helps me exercising my English. For me, it's the most beautiful langage to talk and it's a good occasion to do so. And then I actually enjoy writting in English. And it prevents unwanted people who don't master English to read all that (as it is pretty intimate). But joke's on me, I'm conscious the people I'd like to keep away from reading this all master English, and even better than me for some of them. (It surely is the case for 27 at least, even though we all know she still won't read this lol). Yes, I never drop names in these sum ups. Or at least, some names are blacklisted. I always chose a number to nominate them they would normally recognize themselves. So, talking about English, I've seen « Emily in Paris » on Netflix. It may surprize you but I'm very interested in dubbing. French dubbing is amazing. For example I bought « Spiderman » on PS4 this year and the french voice is the same voice actor as in the « Amazing Spider-Man » (yes the one with Andrew Garfield). (UNPOPULAR OPINION : Andrew Garfield actually is the best spiderman. Or at least the one I prefer and by far). Emily in Paris is funny because I watched it in English and it kinda disturbed me that it took place in Paris but everybody spoke English. On the other hand, if you watch it in French, langages people are talking become logical (French people speak french) but you'll have to deal with the DEADLY ANNOYING French voice of Emily. And her accent. I think I just watched 1 or 2 episodes like that, I couldn't take more ?. If you have time you should take 5 seconds to listen to what I'm talking about. But it was quite a good show. It was so fun to see these streets I've been visiting for so long in a Netflix show. By the way, I think it's easy to say that I'm missing Paris so much. But not only for the tourism, but most and foremost for the competitions. Before being a tourist I was a competitor there. So, I'm missing Paris but I'm also missing karate competitions. And also just karate. I haven't stepped on a tatami for 3 weeks and it still seems like it won't get better, and we all know why. I'm curious if I could talk about this year without mentioning a very famous virus but I think it's just impossible. But this virus gave me a lot of time in March and April. Maybe less in November tho. I could finally finish The Walking Dead, which last seasons were surprisingly good. And it was so fun to watch the reactions of people on Youtube [#]. Talking about karate competitions, I also watched Cobra Kai ! What an amazing job they did there. Adding more depth to the first movie, it's funny to change perspective and see that the Daniel we were rooting for wasn't that much of a « perfect good guy » we saw (I'm not talking about the kick in the face etc). It's also funny to notice I kinda went fro Daniel to Johnny lol. But having a Netflix show talking about martial arts and value they teach to their students ? It was perfect, even more when you see that some of my students also saw it so when we were training I was refering to it they almost all got it. And it's also funny to see that it's not as Manichean as the 1st movie was. It's a 9/10 for me. If I read the last sum up right, I said : « This year 2020 I really need to watch Kimetsu no yaiba, Jojo, Violet evergarden, Gintama and i have to keep ready 7 deadly sins. » So : Kimetsu no Yaiba was dope. The anime was beautiful and the manga was very entertaining. Not a top tier manga but definitively a good one. Jojo's anime was cool but too long. I stopped after season 2 or 3 I guess ? Violet Evergarden was TRASH (and very bad for a date, if you ask me) and I didn't take time to explore the 2 others. I also saw : Assassination classroom (5/10, i couldn't finish it so i skipped directly to the last episode, was as moving as people said), Validé (8/10, with an insane final episode), No Game No Life (8,5/10, i loved it), Freaks and Geeks (7,5 but i didn't finish it, I really like the old school vibe), Code geass (7/10, great anime and great opening). I finally discovered Community and it was worth it. What a funny show. And what a pleasure to see Mr Donald Glover on screen. Makes me think that I need to watch Atlanta again. The problem with Community is the last seasons broke the 4th wall too much for me, it became painful to watch. But the 3 or 4 seasons are crazy. Another show that was even more funny : IT Crowd. I finally had the chance to see the episode of « I came here to drink milk and kick ass, and I just finished my milk ». This show is a 9,25/10. Grand Army was also a great show of 2020. Dom is an amazing character (but I already said it). Kengan Ashura was also so cool ! I think it's what Baki would have liked to become. This year I also started to watch « American horror Story » again (alone and not alone). These last seasons were awesome. I also converted Elodi to «my hero academia », it was so cool to share that. Other things I saw : SAO S4 (AMAZING, SO BEAUTIFUL), Erased, SNK Last season) ; The Mandalorian, 24's 9th season.« Queen's gambit » have been one of the greatest show I've seen this year. And I really want to say that I played chess before the show came out (add me on Lichess if you want to play with me. Same username. I'm not strong -about 1000 ELO I guess- but I'm always happy to play and learn). If you want a precise idea of my level, on the chess.com app, I can beat Emir 🇹🇷 (1000 ELO) often but I didn't win once against Sven 🇸🇰 (who is ~1100 ELO). I'm so happy talking about all these lengthen the post even more. Kinda satisfying. But I could also talk about Tekken and chess this year. I think I have a thing with dueling sports. I'm a Karate competitor, I love Tekken and I like chess. I guess someone has something to prove haha. But come on, chess is incredible. For the 1st lockdown, I was just playing (not alone) but I wanted to make progress just by practicing. And that's how I got BB 5 or 7 (yes, it means Beat By = my number of loss in a row). But at the end of the 2nd lockdown I finally allowed myself to study a little more, thanks to Youtube (once again). This is SO INTERESTING. Like the strategies, the top players. French content creators are fun but I like american ones more. Eric Rosen is my favourite. He's always calm, he often finds solutions. GothamChess is also very entertaining. You can say by how he talks he has been a teacher. He's great. So, once again on some shonen shit, I started studying more. Mid December, a kid beat me 2 times in a row. He's a smart kid, I like him. He didn't brag or anything. And then, during Christmas Holidays I spent 2 or 3 hours a day watching chess videos. I guess he hasn't been able to beat me since then haha. By the way I should play with him later on today. Playing chess is a way for me to make sure my brain doesn't let me down, like gym for the brain. At least, it's what I thought when I started but I quickly discovered that it's a game of patterns recognizing, so memory is really challenged here. I mean, in the middlegame you have to be smart to get by but at the beginning and ending … you have to know your openings. I have also thought of joining a club but I don't know if chess communities are benevolent. I also noticed that high ranked players seem to have strong personalities. And then for Tekken (yes, 3 years and a half later I'm still on this game) I'm still making progress. In March, someone made me want to play Heihachi. What a funny character. Not top tier, but fun. Leroy Smith is also fun to play. There was no offline tournament but I won one, the 1st organized by Tekken Toulouse and finished 5th at the second. It's funny to live that level of stress straight from my bed. Usually, that kind of stress making my whole body trembling is usually found nearby tatamis of Karate competitons. (Yes, these Tekken tournaments make me stressful and that's the reason I can't play Jin in tournaments). But Eddy is still a sure value. Still progressing in movement, and whiff punishing. Mishimas are getting more consistent on electrics but it's not perfect. By the way, if you love fighting games and Bruce Lee, there's a video you need to see (whoever you are) : [#]. If you're really interested in these topics, you should appreciate this video as much as I did [2:10 PM. I have eaten, but now I have the feeling that I'm late.] Btw I don't skip line to add some « length » effect. Once again I'm sorry if making it until here was painful to read, but I need to make this paragraph the least attractive I can. This line I'm writting is almost on the 3rd page of OpenOffice. And I try to avoid using emojis, so there's just text. Tout dans le fond, pas de forme. Also, congratulations for making it until here, you must be very motivated. I'm writting slowly because it's the 1st time I write this by daytime, and I swear at the begining people were harassing me ahah. It's fun because the sum up of 2019 was so short. Just with its form, you can tell how 2019 have been peaceful. I don't remember if I talked about it already but a disaster could have happened in September/October 2019. But karate kept my mind busy so the worst have been avoided. Time spent on the tatamis kept me away from overthinking about my problems. And that was a good strategy indeed. Because in 2020 it wasn't the same. If we count right. Dojos were opened in January, February, 1st half of march, reopened in September and october, closed on november and opened in December (Mon Dieu quel … CASSE-TEX hahaha merci c'est tout pour moi). It was a weird karate year. Today is the 1 year anniversary of my last competition. During the 1st lockdown, I had litteraly no desire to train. Some of you know why. But let's talk a bit more about COVID and lockdowns. The most important thing is that I didn't spent the 1st lonely. This was the most challenging time of my life, but I can say that I made it thanks to 0808 so I'm eternally grateful for that. So, if we recap months by months : January was a funny month. One thing that I thought a miracle happened (until I found out months later what a real miracle was). I also almost went into a brawl. I guess this weird ass month set the tone for the 11 months to follow. February … was one of the calmest month. I had an awesome dojo session in Balma with 0808 in February. I think there were a lot of beautiful sunsets this month. Guess our weather power was at its peak. These 3 1st months of 2020 had a lot of trainings, even if I was injured due to kumite. March and April are kinda the same for me. I won't talking long about these but I'd simply say that I'm glad that I hadn't to write to 27. So, the Miracle happened by mid April. Mid april to mid may, it was cool. We were at home but … the weather was nice, I was doing sport everyday (but no real karate trainings) and I could keep this rythm of exercising until … Half July, which is good. It's the first time in my life I'm that consistent in doing sports at home. From mid may, I started to train with Coach O. on a weekly basis. It was incredible. These days were still bliss in my mind. I was there, no « real problems » in mind, I wasn't alone, I was making progress physically … It was really great. And from mi may to end of July, it kept getting better.Indeed, I fell in love again in January and it was getting stronger by the months. It's been a while I haven't fell this hard for someone. But she gave it back to me nicely. And then … Mala suerte 3.0. This point of the sum up is funny because I do remember when I talked about mala suerte in the other sum ups. I do realize how it's always the same thing when I write those : « 1st part of the year is cool, then not cool, then cool again but in a weird way because I have insane difficulties to repair broken parts of me » but hey. This time it's not my fault. It makes me realize how cyclic all this is. So, August, September and October have been terrible and chaotic months. A level of sadness rarely reached until there. Maybe comparable to September 2018. A high level of anger also. But still, with rare occasions to train, so no occasions to let go off steam. In fact, let's talk a bit about this anger. I've always took a lot of pride in the fact that I could most of the time remain calm in a lot of situations. Plus, being patient isn't something natural but … I learned to be through the years. I was so surprised to notice how angry I became … It simply wasn't me. But the reason is simple : I really think karate brings me balance in life, on a lot of levels (and it concerns me a lot for when I'll stop competing one day …). But I realized it so I'm working on it. In 2020, I led a lot of fights, sometimes I won and often I lost, but I also avoided a lot of them. One of the reasons I think I'm not ready to be a good partner is first I think I'm too angry. I don't think I could be mean to my partner but … I think I could be annoying to deal with. But mainly, I'm not ready to better myself now. To find the good partner, you need to become a good partner first, and this is precisely what I'm not ready to become. Despite being not perfect, I'm fine that way and I know how far from perfect I'm right now. But nevermind. This is the kind of state of mind you can't afford when you're in a relationship. I'm not saying you need to change to fit your partner's ideals. But if you notice something's wrong in your behaviour/habits and don't want to correct it, you might be a bad partner (but I could be wrong, I'm not a couple therapist lol).

Oh. And that's the moment I can describe my photo to tell the story differently. So this shot was taken precisely on Sunday, 4th of October. 1302 got confirmed so we had to go to the Temple du Salin. I went there with my father and he decided to rock a bowtie so I wanted to match him. It was so fun. That was the first time we stepped in a church after « all these events ». It was a strong moment for me. So, this picture (taken by me, thank you tripod) was taken 4 days after I « took a gamble ». I took a lot of gambles this year. One memorable gamble that lead to beautiful pictures of Toulouse was on August 27th (lol). This was after our breakup. I gave her an adress and an hour, and I hopped she would come. She never came so this was a lost gamble. (So I had a great time watching « Back to the future » outdoors, on a big movie screen, but I was alone). But this time was different. I did suppose she would be at one place on a certain day at the end of September. And I gambled right because she was there. And even if the context was so particular, I can tell we had a great time. I was so ready that I put on my best white shirt, because I knew she kinda liked it. I was there to win her back but I simply failed. Guess the shirt wasn't enough. So it was funny to wear the full suit 4 days later, I was like « Dude, nice effort but it's too late  lol» (plus the Temple du Salin is on the other side of the closest bridge from her home) but I still hopped to cross her road on that day. Oh and as we're analyzing this picture, I really like the bokeh on the autmun-colored leaves. I had the luck to have a very sweet light when I took these pictures. And the post processing was really funny. I have a lot of versions of this picture indeed. But all these colors in the background always make me think of a quote I love :  « Autumn shows us how beautiful it is to let things go » and this quote is so damn right. I discovered this year that I have difficulties to let things go. The thing is I hate injustice. I hate to see things that litteraly belong to me, things I deserve, simply run away from me. Sometimes I'm telling myself it's just my karma making me pay for all the شيطان I've done in the past. But other times I just try to convince myself to let go. It's been the 2nd most challenging thing this year. These levels of depression have never been reached before. But still, here I am. But not stronger than before. I had this conversation a few weeks ago about « what doesn't kill you makes you stronger ». To support this idea, some people might evoke the principle of « Kintsugi » as an example. But I strongly disagree about the first statement. I'm not a goddamn bowl. I take the example of my lower belly scar : it didn't kill me but it didn't get stronger either. That's the exact opposite indeed. Sometimes it still hurts even though it's been done 12 years ago (the last time it hurt was this night, almost stopping me from finding sleep). It's a personal opinion but what didn't kill me made me weaker. And I'm not just talking about physical injuries. Losing the ability to trust after all these events isn't what I'd call « getting stronger », even though « I didn't do anything wrong ». That's an expensive price. Bref. I think you can overcompensate with something else but the damaged parts may stay weak after. [3:03 PM. So I have about 1 hour to finish it. Easy.] There's one thing I wanted to talk about in this sum up, related to the fact of « being strong ». I read Blach again (you can tell by my december posts) and I started with the lost agent arc, followed by the TYBW arc. There's 2 things about it : its poetry, through the words and the drawings will always amaze me (it amazed me even if it’s the 2nd time I’me reading it), and the 2nd thing : I love how Ichigo become stronger. He lost his Shinigami powers but then found his Fullbring powers. And that is very important because he becomes strong again, but it's a different kind of strong and I LOVE THIS. It's like in real life. I was very strong in June 2012 (videos as proof), but it's not the same strong as in July 2017 or April/November 2018. June and July 2020 have been a different kind of strong. Not that I gained 10 kgs in 2 months (unfortunately) but I was exercising daily. I was getting my body ready for the supposed heavenly month of August that was awaiting me (us). Unfortunately there was no videos of karate at this period (but I made some in september!) but I was feeling great physically. In fact. This May/June/July 2020 period could be considered as “bliss” for me. Of course there was some background problems but ... Mentally I was getting back on my feet, I was deeply in love, physically pretty feeling myself. Plus on the 1st half of July i could go back to the tatamis ... I swear this level of peace and life appreciation have rarely been reached before. Well, this concept of getting stronger differently is almost obsessing me for a simple reason : I'm feeling like I'm getting older. 27 is a weird age for competing in karate. If I look back, I realize I'm older than William when he stopped (it's his birthday tomorrow!!). Also older than Zak, Teddy and so on. I guess I'll never be physically like 10 or 5 years ago but I'm really asking myself if I can be better. But as seen as the pains I go through after the trainings … It's going to be complicated. Plus I did my body wrong this year. There was pain in mars, april, august, september, october, november and december. I tried a lot of things to make it go. I tried to smoke it, i tried to sleep it, i tried to drink it also. I tried to fuck it of course but none of these things worked. But can we consider I won if only my cock still works ? Compared to 2018 : yes it is a win. And at least when I'm with someone, that makes less time crying and overthinking shit. Anyway, I also tried to smoke it really hard. And that's an habit I'll have trouble to let go but nvmd. Still, one of my 2021 resolutions is to smoke less. Also, I took a funny resolution that is : « I'm not accepting defeat this year ». And I realized only a few days after taking it how hard it will be. I'm not dumb, when defeat is unavoidable, I'll just take it. But I decided to be a real Scorpio and be more stubborn than ever. We can say it's above all pride. Same pride as Vegeta, Bakugo or even Endeavour. Really touched me when Bakugo talked about « Absolute victory ». Sometimes I find myself too soft. I'm not going to become an awful person (or at least, not more awful than I am right now). I'll still be kind … But I'll go get the victories I deserve a little harder. Talking about my age, I'm a bit deceived I have no close old friends to share the memories. Every one is kinda gone. Sometimes it's my fault, and sometimes it's just people who are shit but life's like this. Also, every year I try to think of my best encounter of the year. It's kinda hard because sometimes, you meet someone a few years earlier but you really get to know each other later etc … So I'm not clear if this should count only people met this year or simply the people I've spent the best times with. Because I received a curious message this summer and my God. What a luck she took the chance to write me. We realized a few days ago we were in the same class in 10th grade (2nde) (we saw the class picture, what a laughter we had). We get along so well. And it's the proof that 2nd chances deserve to be given. I swear that I also lost some important people this year. But I'm not fighting to get people back anymore. I've done it too much and I'm simply done. People need to realize it's a luck to be in my life. I have my ways but you'll hardly find a friend that's patient and kind as I am. But nevermind, it always makes more time and attention for the people who are here, who really care for my hapiness. Focusing on the people who are here was one of the main concern this year, for a lot of reasons. I thought I was good for selecting the good people in my life but looks like I still can improve. So I'm still letting people go off my life. [3:36PM. Guess I said mostly what I had to say. Maybe 5 pages is enough, but maybe not.] Oh I can still tell the rest of the year. November have been one peaceful month. Away from all the obsessions. Focused on me. No karate but still courses by videoconference. The weather was very sweet even tho it was November. This second lockdown was not that funny but we've seen worst. And December … had it's ups and downs. It was cool to meet my kids 1 month after all these video courses. They clearly got stronger, it was cool. I could also talk about my experience as a sensei this year because there's a lot to say. At the beginning of February, it was my last competition but also for my kids. We litteraly took the competition by storm. On était TROP CHAUDS. But then the Covid stopped us. We kinda were ready for Occitanie championship, if you forget that I was sick the week before the competition. I'd have loved so much to see how far their training would have taken them on this competition. But thank God they cancelled it, guess He didn't want to see me lose ahah. So, I've seen a lot of kids getting better. What a pleasure. Later on this year I told them that I wanted to see them become stronger than me. Seems cliché, but I'm happy they took it seriously. Of course I'm dead serious. We also talked about I will be waiting for them in Senior. Hope they'll continue until then. And above all I hope I will still be competing. I really want to have a positive impact on these kids, competitors or not. And I guess it's working. (Btw I'll surely do a post about Whitebeard soon, just to show him love). So. What lessons can we draw from this chaotic year ? Always treat your high school comrades well. Be picky about who you let in your life. Before engaging in a relationship, ask why her previous relationship ended. Trust no B. (And BBW's are heaven sent). Now it's 3:50PM and I guess I'm done. But I keep myself the possibility to add things if I think of things to add. It's 6 pages long (Arial, 12) but if I can make it longer I will.

[Friday. 00:55AM] Edit : Ok. The story is funny. I really wanted to finish that in one day. So I wrote the previous lines between 10 AM and 4 PM Wednesday knowing I would need more time, just to check and to add a few more details. And one of those Lonely Wednesday Night would have been perfect just to finish the job. So I planned to finish it on wednesday night but the fact is I forgot my computer home …. So here I am one day later. Still baked, so still in the right state of mind to do it. It gave me time to proofread myself (?) and most importantly, it gave me time to read again some of my previous sum ups. It was interesting to compare how they're all different, and also how my writting evolved. Tbh I think I'm becoming more comfortable with my English. Or maybe the more I express myself, the more I look at ease with the langage. This sum up is the longest I've ever written. But still, I'll add things because I still haven't told everything. For example, I haven't spoken about the fact that all the Kazamastar adventure might be closer to the end than the beginning. Like, I'm not immediatly done with all that. I'm still having a lot of fun here. Anon visitors are also part of the game, but it's still all fun. It also keeps my « photograph eye » opened. This makes me think of the quote «I want to be so awfully happy that I never need to write poetry again. » [#] and more precisely I'm thinking about : do I post more when I'm happy or sad ? But I noticed this tumblr kinda works like therapy for me. (And especially, this post is a therapy by itself. Wednesday I woke up feeling bad, lower belly aching and making this post really helped me going through the day.) I post a lot when I'm sad but it really allows me to get all of these negative feelings out of me. I do stylize things but I know I'm not a poet or anything. But can you imagine being so happy that you don't write again ? Would be an amazing feeling. (Indeed, I've already done it once [#]. I've ended a blog on a perfect happiness and yes it felt amazing. ) Imagine if I do it here. After all the trials and tribulations I went through, it would be a perfect way to finish this tumblr. But as I'm speaking, I think there's like … less than 5% chance that it ends happily. If it does, it could be in a long time. I have a few ideas of when and how it could end, but Imma have to keep these selfishly for myself. You'll see when we'll get there.:) Also, I'm realizing right now the things I'm adding to the text make the timestamps through the text a bit less accurate but that's just a detail. [2:37 AM] Earlier I talked about this blog being a therapy for me. But it’s not only this tumblr. This year I proudly finished another tumblr (yes you can guess I was proud as I posted about that 17325 times already and pinned a post). This was such a relief to end it after letting it still for litteraly 2 years. Well that’s it for tonight !

No transition : let's go for the explanations of my choices for the playlist followed by the playlist itself. It's kinda easy to understand why « la mienne » is here, for the first month. This “I can’t touch you I’m not allowed to” really made me think of someone and this someone came back. Incredible. The next song with a Boogie is perfect for February. Very peaceful month, really full of very good moments (in the backseat of a certain car for example). The 2 next songs are for March. These are kinda « lockdown anthems » as The Weeknd album came out right at that time and so did Laylow's. Plus « Escape from LA » have the vibe I really love from Abel. 2 next songs are for April. Dsvn really smashed when he put that « A muse in her feelings » album. (and the « Amusing her feelings » is even better but that won't happen before January 2021). The sequence between « Outlandish – Keep it going - flawless » was one of the best thing I heard musically this year. But keep it going is insane. « Meilleurs » from Oboy is … special. And so are the 2 following songs. Meilleurs is now blacklisted but it's still one good song. But I can't listen to it anymore. Maybe that's exactly because it reminds me June and July. Count me in reminds me precisely of August 8th. Btw what a funny day, very far from all expectations we built up through the years (let's remind that the countdown started with more that 400 days, but I guess patience and loyalty is not always rewarded). I might digress from the playlist one second, but on this day we were in Treilles with the guys, and thank God I had them in this moment ... That’s when I drank to heal, with “count on me” for soundtrack. For September, I hesitated between « DEUX TOILES DE MER » or « MEVTR » (which means « Meilleur d'Entre Vous Tous Reunis », the 1st stage name of Damso). Damso’s flow on MEVTR is huge. He makes a whole verse rhyme and on but … 2 toiles is more iconic. Talking about iconic, « Bande organisée » wasn't a masterpiece but a force to be reckoned with (i find this expression funny ahah). I mean, in hip hop nowadays we don't see often rappers teaming up with big groups like that. Plus on this song particularly some of them have interesing flows and a lot of energy. And you can tell it comes from the South. Not of them are goods, some are excellent but this makes a very decent track. « Route 66 » was cool, even tough it's for November (so 2nd lockdown) it gave me really lovely vibes. And I take this occasion talking about November 2020 to remind it was the 10th anniversary of Kanye West's MBDTF and I celebrated it the right way héhé. Finally, this featuring is really ending the year well. Dinos dropped an insane album, his best since a long time and Tayc also (respectively « Stamina, » and « Fleur froide »). So having them on the same track was risky but it paid very well, incredible vibe from those two combined. They could have been in the top 3 albums but some people made better than them. Trinity is my top 1 one 2020. The concept, the musics … it was INSANE. QALF was also great. It's insane to see Damso get rid of « artistic barriers » to focus only on sound and music. No communication etc … Just music. And Eternal Atake from Lil Uzi Vert because it was long awaited but also because it was perfect, also a 1st lockdown album so it helped me forget my loneliness but so much good tracks ! And finally we have the very special songs that I coudn't tell why I like them. I just love their vibes. So now is 4:15 PM and I'm offically finished but I still have to tweak it. Know I won't hesitate to add things that are related to 2020 and that come to my mind :) Thanks for reading me. Have a lovely day, or night.

2020 Playlist

Tayc – La mienne (Accoustic)

A Boogie – Reply feat Lil Uzi Vert

The Weeknd – Escape for LA

Laylow – Nakré

dvsn – Keep it goin ✨

PartyNextDoor – Believe it feat Rihanna

Trippie Redd & Russ – The Way

OBOY - Meilleurs

Kehlani - Serial Lover

Juice WRLD & Marshmello - Come and go

THEY. - Count me in

Damso - Deux toiles de mer

13 Organisé - Bande organisée

Joe Dwet File - Route 66

Dinos & Tayc - Je wanda

Spécial : Lil Tecca - Last Call  YNW Melly  - City girls

Jessame - Times we had ~ Dennis Lloyd - Never go back ~  Elliot Trent - computer love

3 top albums de 2020 : 

Trinity de Laylow - Qalf de Damso - Eternal atake de Lil Uzi vert

[lirusstories]

No Place Like Home Chapter One: Breakfast Time! Edited and Re-Uploaded

A/N: Thank you to everyone who managed to read through it the first time around here is a hopefully better version.

(Word Count: 3,758)

        Liru finishes setting the food on the table just as the smell of Peach Blossoms and Honey fills her nose, the sound of someone entering the dining room causes her to turn and see freshly showered JJ already dressed for his day.

        “Good-morning Κούπες. I hope you slept well.” She greets as she meets him half-way with a soft kiss.

        “Good-morning our Ψυχή.” His 1920’s British-Irish voice is quiet as he speaks, sleep still lingering with it.

        “It’s pancakes, fruit and sausage for breakfast this morning, I set some honey and whipped cream aside for you.” His eyes light up as he peeks over to the table causing the women to giggle at his adorable reaction.

        “Go sit and eat. I know you need to go to the doctors soon besides I need to go get the others anyway.” He walks over to his spot, an eager skip in his step as she smiles at before leaving following the smell of Mint to Remus’ room humming to herself as she does. She gets to his room and opens the door to see him singing along to the same song she was just humming as he sews some beads that he definitely took from her onto a large piece of fabric.

“I take my pills and I’m happy all the time

I’m happy all the time

I’m happy all the time.”

        Liru looks it over and sees that he’s made a tapestry making what is currently their family as the soul-marks. She could see that the background of the tapestry is her own soulmark, the beads reflecting anything light that shines against them. She looks it over seeing that he was finishing up his own, a black and green crown with black octopus tentacles coming from it wielding a black and emerald green sword crossed with a silver morning star, a perfect replica of the one on the left of his lower back.

“I love my girl but she ain’t worth the price

she ain’t worth the price

no, she ain’t worth the price.”

        He moves away as he finishes sewing in the last bead looking over his handy work as it hangs from the ceiling.

        “So what do you think?” His voice nearly makes her jump and she quickly looks at him seeing that he’s staring at her with his red and green eyes, proud smile on his face making his mustache curve, reminding Liru of the Cheshire cat in a way.

        “It’s beautiful.” She says, unable to keep the slight awe out of her voice even if she wanted to. He left holes in it to fill in as they join our family although there are quite a few she doesn't recognize. He must have seen her eyeing those spots curiously because he speaks up again.

        “Yeah I don’t know either. It just felt right.” She raises an eyebrow at him while he just has a smile on his face.

        “Weirdo.” He lets out a dramatic gasp that she giggles at.

        “Why thank you for noticing.” His voice was just as dramatic as his gasp sending her into a little fit of giggles.

        “Breakfast is ready. It’s pancakes,” He lets out an excited squeal. “with fruit and sausage among various other toppings.” He jumps a bit and goes to bolt out the door.

        “Wait!” She says loudly, making him stop and pout looking at her.

        “What?”

        “Clothes.” She says gesturing to his naked form with a finger. He pouts more before snapping his fingers now wearing ripped black skinny jeans with a pale green tank top, a studded black leather jacket and three inch heeled combat boots.

        “There. Happy now?” He asks, still pouting.

        “Considering you are no longer flashing me and will not flash anyone else, yes I am. The fact that I’m pretty sure you’re commando, not so much.” He throws his head back laughing as he walks over and messing up her hair. She swats his hand away making him laugh more.

        “You know it!” He yells and goes to run to the dining room.

        “Don’t start a food fight either. JJ has a doctors appointment after breakfast.” He just rolls his eyes before speaking.

        “I don’t understand why he needs to go to a doctor to confirm he’s pregnant, he already knows he is.”

        “You know he enjoys the novelty of doing human things.” She reminds him, although she doubts he needs it.

        “Sounds like a waste of time to me.” He remarked, a small laugh in his voice as he began to walk.

        “He’s the master of time Green Bean, he has nothing but time.” He just laughs before running off to the dining room. She lets out a small snort at her brother's antics before going to get the others and along the way she runs into Emile already dressed for the day and walking to the dining room.

        “Heya mom.” he greets enthusiastically, obviously excited about something if the smell of French Toast radiating from him is anything to go by.

        “Hey sweetie, you going somewhere today?” She can’t help but ask as he bounces on the balls of his feet as his reddish purple hair bounces with him just barely falling above his gold ringed plum eyes that are shining with excitement.

        “Yep! I convinced the others to go shopping with me today in New York City.” He’s obviously excited as his skin reflects the light a bit in a swirl of pastel blue and pink.

        “Oh good! It’s about time you guys went out together. And if you need anything JJ, Remus and Remy will be there as well. Although I think it would be best if you just called, your brother JJ shouldn’t be doing anything stressful and Remus is too much of a wild card and draws too much attention.” He smiles widely at the news that more of them will be there having fun.

        “Finally, I’ve been trying to get them to do something other than hide in the castle.”

        “Manor.” She reminds him

        “At this size it might as well be a castle.” His voice is still as excited as before as he continues to bounce on the balls of his feet and it makes Liru smile seeing one of her kids so excited for the day.

        “Well breakfast is ready, it’s pancakes, fruit and sausage.” She tells him as she moves out of his way.

        “Delicious.” He beams as he continues his trek to the dining room while Liru resumes her search for the rest of her children and husbands. She knows three are close, Two husbands and a child if the smell of Leather, Pine Needles and Iced Caramel Coffee, Yancy, Anti and Remy, is anything to go by. She walks into one of the living rooms and hears the familiar sound of Steven Universe playing as she looks over and sees Remy asleep in a love seat while Anti was asleep on top of Yancy who was asleep with his arms wrapped around Anti while they were sprawled across a couch snoring softly.

        Liru walks over to Remy, grabbing his sunglasses from the side table and gently patting his cheek.

        “It’s time to wake up Cub, breakfast is ready.” He stirs slightly before relaxing again. She pat his cheek again and he stirs again before yawning, showing off his wolf like teeth before he opens his golden eyes blinking the sleep from them as he looks up at her.

        “Good-morning sweetheart.” Liru greets her child as he sits up, stretching with his honey brown tail stretching with him, his ears flattening against his head as he yawns before relaxing and the tail disappears and his ears turn into human ones that are covered by his honey brown hair. She hands him his glasses and he takes them with a quiet “Thank you,” before he puts them on. He takes a deep breath before making a ‘mmm’ sound.

        “Pancakes and sausage.” He says getting up stretching more and popping his back and neck a bit before grabbing his leather jacket and throwing it on, his outfit changing to a darker pair of jeans and black shirt that says ‘Move I’m Gay’.

        “And fruit.” She reminds him as he puts on his sneakers, hoping a little as he does so while not making a sound.

        “Just because it’s not in a pie or a drink doesn’t mean you aren’t eating it.” He groans a bit.

        “Beside I got you some Oregon Blackberries anyway.” He perks up at that.

        “So you better hurry before Remus gets it.” His lip purse in annoyance as he manages to get his other shoe on.

        “He knows I’m not afraid to shoot a bitch.” His tone is sassy with a little bit of sleep left over in his voice.

        “And you know that won’t do anything to him.”

        “It’s the message that counts Momma.” He reminds her, obviously remembering the time she threw someone out the window into a pool rather than concentrate. Granted she had been aiming for the concrete but the bastard disappeared after that so he was no longer a problem.

        “Just go and eat. You're going to be around a lot of people today so you need the energy.” He nods a bit before leaving to go to the dining room as she turns her attention to the still sleep Yancy and Anti on the couch. She walks over, turning off the T.V. as she does, before shaking them both lightly, keeping her voice soft as she does.

        “It’s time to wake up Loves.” They both groan as Yancy buries his face into Anti’s green hair while Anti buries his face into Yancy’s shirt.

        “Come one my Αγγελος Incarnation.” She says teasingly as Yancy’s deep purple eyes snap open, staring up at her annoyed at the pun while Anti bursts into a fit of giggles.

        “I want a divorce.” Yancy says in a deadpan voice sending Anti into even more giggles.

        “I get Anti. He knows a good pun when he hears one.” She giggles out, making Anti giggle harder as he looks up at them. His giggling subsides as he has a tired but happy smile on his face.

        “Mornin’ Dolls.” Yancy yawns out as she leans over giving Anti a deep kiss that he returns a bit sleepily.

        “Nice view.” Yancy says which causes her to reach a hand down and smack causing him to laugh while she pulls Anti deeper into the kiss who just seems to melt into it.

        “Alright, alright no makin’ out on me without me.” he says, making both her and Anti giggle as they pull away from each other. Yancy brings one hand up pulling Liru down to him and gives her a kiss. She gladly reciprocates it before he pulls away and gives a deep kiss that the green haired man gladly returns the kiss before they pull away, Yancy sitting up making Anti sit up as well.

        “It’s Pancakes,” Anti perks up excitedly, “fruit and sausage for breakfast.” Anti gets up quickly giving both Yancy and Liru quick cheek kisses before bolting out the room while yelling.

        “I’ll see you in a few!” And rushing towards the dining room leaving her and Yancy behind with our amusement. She looks at Yancy who is watching where Anti left fondly before looking over at her and she can see him trying to hide the sadness in his eyes, although the plants in the room were beginning to droop proving that something was wrong.

        “That memory again?" His eyes flicker to the floor before nodding a bit as he swallows harshly. She sighs and bends down pulling him into a hug which he quickly reciprocates.

        “You know I’m here when you need to talk to someone. We all are.” He nods slightly as he leans his head against her shoulder.

        “I know.” His voice is quiet, cracking just a bit.

        “I know it’s just…”

        “I know sweetheart, believe me I know.” She keeps her voice soft as he takes a shaky breath. He pulls away and wipes his eyes quickly obviously trying to hide the fact he was about to cry. She looks at him a bit sadly before he stands and she gives him a quick kiss.

        “Go eat Stripes, I need to get the others.” He laughs a little before asking,

        “Who’s left?”

        “Illi, Dark, Wil and all the kids minus Remy and Emile.” He laughs a bit more before giving her a peck on the cheek.

        “Good luck Doll. I’ll see you at breakfast.” he says before leaving the room. She looks around the room before singing softly,

“I take my pills and I’m happy all the time

I’m happy all the time

I’m happy all the time

I love my girl but she ain’t worth the price

she ain’t worth the price

no, she ain’t worth the price.”

        The plants in the room return to their normal perky state even if they are a bit bigger than before Yancy’s nightmare but they still stand tall again. She leaves the living area bouncing a little as she walks, humming the song again. She approaches the game room which is filled with the smells of Freshly Fallen Snow, Robbie, a Burning Candle, Yan, A Grassy field in the summer, Sammi, Dark Raspberry Chocolate, Kira, Spiced Rum, Oliva, and Freshly Cut Grass in the Spring, Jamie. 

        She can hear both Sammi and Yan shouting and the sound of the joy sticks hitting against the boundaries rather harshly. Sighing exasperatedly she enters the room to see Yan sitting on Kira’s lap, both of them playing just as violently as Sammi who is on the floor next to them shouting at the game. Looking at the T.V. Liru can see that they were playing Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. How they got Kira to play is beyond her.

        She looks over to the couches and sees Robbie draped over a love seat while reading a book, by the looks of it it’s Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Oliva and Jamie sitting on the couch with controllers in their hands as they both violently press buttons their tongues sticking out of the corner of their mouths as they focus on the game. She sighs again just as Yan lets out a victorious shout as the game flashes her character, Mewtwo, on the screen.

        “Well if you're quite done,” They all jump, heads snapping towards her from where she stands in the doorway. “it’s time for breakfast.” Sammi looks confused as she asks,

        “Wait. What time is it?” She groans rubbing the bridge of her nose before answering,

        “9:37 currently.” They all simultaneously make ‘Oh shit’ faces confirming the mother’s suspicions of them being up all night. She rubs my face in concern and annoyance.

        “You guys are lucky you don’t need to sleep often.” Sammi, Yan and Jamie grin sheepishly while Robbie, Oliva and Kira refuse to make eye contact. She sighs again, exasperated.

        “Come on you guys turn it off and get to breakfast.” Sammi gets up and turns the console and T.V. off as the others get up from their spots, Yan lets out a loud squeal as Kira, their wife, picks them up in a bridal carry, spinning a little eliciting a louder squeal from them.

        “Kira! Stop it, put me down!” Kira just lets out a small laugh as she stops spinning but doesn’t put them down. Liru moves out of the door as she quickly walks past with a quick “See you at breakfast!” while Yan just yells and protests to being held with no real fire. The others snicker and laugh at Yan’s fading, verbal pouting as they all shuffle out of the rooms giving me quick hugs that Liru gladly returns as they leave the room with variations “See you at breakfast, mom!”.

        She looks around the room one last time before sighing and with a wave of her hand the mess they left behind disappeared. She leaves and walks to Illinois’ room knowing he was probably examining one of the artifacts she kept in the basement. Sure enough, when she walks into his room, he’s passed out at his desk, a golden dagger with a diamond hilt that had been carved into a skeleton lays on his desk. A closer look at you could see that it had the name ‘Mori’.

        ‘Oh.’ He must have looked in her room. Mori is one of her reapers, she gave Liru her dagger to be able to contact her if need be. She gently shake his shoulder leaning over and whispering in his ear,

        “Time to wake up Simia, it’s time for breakfast.” He moans in protest as she gently pulls him back so he is sitting up.

        “Oh don’t whine at me, you know very well that you needed to sleep last night.” He groans opening his honey eyes as he pouts a little. She smiles softly in response.

        “Come on Simia, you need to get up and eat.” He yawns loudly and slowly gets up and she reaches over grabbing the dagger.

        “And,” She says, gently booping his nose. “don’t take my shit.” He looks confused before seeing the dagger in her hand and his face flushes a bright red.

        “S-Sorry Love.” He stutters out obviously embarrassed about getting caught.

        “It’s alright Simia, now get to breakfast. You said you were dragging Yancy to the museum today anyway.” She boops his nose again before giving him a quick kiss.

        “Alright then Sweetheart, I'll see you at breakfast.” He gives her a kiss on the cheek before walking out, yawning a little as he does and Liru smiles a little before looking down at the dagger. She frowns a bit frown a bit as I look it over noticing that even after ninety years, I could still smell the faint scent of Cold Bubble Gum Ice Cream on a summer’s day after 90 or so years. She grips it tightly remembering when she first gave it to Ethan, and remembering when she took it off his corpse.

        She feels a jolt of… something, she’s not sure what, rush over her and it nearly knocks her off her feet before she steadies herself. She looks down at the dagger before sending it to a small pocket dimension for the time being before leaving Illinois’ room and going towards Dark’s, knowing Wilford was there as well if the smell of Bubblegum Liquor with Dark’s Salt Water Taffy is anything to go by.

        Just as she approaches the room both Dark and Wilford exit, Wilford babbling away about something while Dark tries his best to not look amused. They both noticed Liru almost immediately with Dark smiling softly while Wilford visibly perks up more than he was.

        “Sugarplum!” Wilford shouts excitedly as he jogs over, Dark right behind him.

        “Good morning my Loves.” She greets them both with kisses and hugs which they both return.

        “Good morning My Dear.”

        “Mornin’ Sugarplum!”

        “Breakfast is ready, I was just coming to get you guys. It’s pancakes, sausage and fruit.”

        “That sounds-” Dark gets cut off by Wilford shouting.

        “Delicious!” She just laughs as Dark just sighs at Wil’s antics.

        “Yes it does, now let's go eat.” The three of them walk to the dining room getting there just as JJ is leaving. He sees the three of them and smiles brightly walking over quickly and Wilford scoops him up in a big hug thankfully not a tight one before setting him down beaming at him.

        “Mornin’ JJ!” The Pink mustached ‘man’ greeted happily.

        “Good-Morning Wil.” JJ greets back, a smile on his face.

        “Where are ya goin’?” Wilford asks, a confused look on his face. And before JJ could answer back a loud crash from the dining room catches our attention, quickly followed by Yan and Sammi shouting at each other, most likely over who got the most wins in their game. Dark sighs in annoyance besides her while Wilford just looks towards the doorway, his eyebrows raised in mild surprise, obviously not expecting them to start arguing about something like that this early. Thankfully though Anti and Yancy seem to quickly get it under control before they could throw anything else at each other.

        “You two should go and sit down before anymore fighting breaks out and there’s glass in the food.” I inform them, and they both nod in agreement, Wil letting out a small chuckle before he gives JJ a quick kiss on the cheek before walking into the dining room, a small skip in his step. Dark gives JJ a slight nod as he walks past him which JJ returns before he disappears into the dining room greeting the others as he does.

        She goes and pulls JJ close and enjoys the warm feeling his smile brings before though she can’t stop the chuckle that leaves her when he stands on his tiptoes to give her a kiss she gladly returns leaning down for him. She reaches up cupping his cheeks gently before they pull away a jovial smile on both of their faces.

        “I love you, My Κούπες.” Her voice is a soft but loving whisper as she tells him, enjoying watching his cheeks become a little pink as he smiles.

        “I love you too, Our Ψυχή.” His voice is just as soft and loving while he whispers back and a dopey grin spreads across her face at the words and it sends him into a small fit of laughter.

        “Be safe darling, make sure not to attract attention.”

        “Aren’t I always?” She snorts, he is absolutely not. He attempts to pout but his face quickly pulls into another smile as she fixes his slightly crooked bow-tie.

        “I will don’t worry.”

     ��  “You know that's never gonna happen Dear.” He rolls his eyes playfully and jumps a little to give her a quick kiss on the cheek.

        “Alright, I need to go or i’m gonna be late, bye Love.” 

        “Goodbye, I’ll see you later.” He gives her a slight wave as he leaves and she turns walking into the dining room where Liru sees Emile explaining to Kira why she doesn’t need to worry about clothes not fitting her while the others chat idly with each other, Yan and Sammi still shooting playfully challenging looks to each other from across the table. She smiles to herself as she goes and sits in her spot between Yan and Robbie thinking to herself.

        ‘Today is gonna be a good day.’

Translations:

Greek ones courtesy of @antis-gauge

Κούπες = Heart

Ψυχή = Soul

Simia = Monkey

Tip: The reason she calls Anti and Yancy Αγγελος Incarnation together is because She calls Anti, Άγγελος and Yancy’s soulmark on his romantic Soulmates is a Red Carnation.

Red carnation symbolizes love, pride and admiration.

She calls Illinois Simia/Monkey because he climbs everything.

Tags:

@kittican

@antis-gauge

@flowers-zombie-rob

@trixie8264

@animallover4000

@i-maybe-exist

@nightanjel

@thegamerbook

@smolbean-pma

@the-chemist

@therealtiger77

@immabethehero

@oh-itskitkat

@protectjj

@nyx-thatsme

[zebraslovescupcakestoo]

Golden eyes chapter 1

It was a lovely late night for a burglary. I was in one of the Grande Hotel Riche's suite for investigation which the crime took place that evening. The room itself was one of those that looked like a Victorian style and a bit of modern for convenience. I glanced at the window before I turned to my colleague. “Woody, my dear fellow, I think we can inform the Countess that we found out how the  Lavender Pearls were stolen and by whom.” My friend looked at me dumbfounded.  “Did ja really solved the theft case that easily, Felix? Cause the Chief will be flying off the handle at ya if you screw this up, ESPECIALLY when it comes to important guests like royalty.” “Yes I do understand, but I assure you, it's a bit unbelievable if I told you who are the culprits.”

Before he asked, our Chief came to visit, along with our robbed victim, Countess Violette. My Chief, Inspector Hank Blake, was my 40-something years old boss. The man's got brown eyes, a small, short, french moustache and has a few wrinkles in his face. He had a old fashioned bowler hat with a black ribbon and a stripped beige vest and brown pants.  The Countess Viollette, was probably in her late 20's, wavy, brown hair and green eyes. Did I forgot to mention she's obsessed with that colour purple? Her entire outfit, Vest, skirt, hat, glove and all just screamed that message. “Ah! Felix, my good men! I knew you were always on a crime scene for personal reason  but I'm surprised it doesn't involve the mafia this time.” He pronounced. “You look quite the charmer, better than what Mr. Inspector described, and here! Even Lilly adore you!” Countess Violette complimented.

I blankly glanced at the dog, a Beagle to be precised, was wagging her tail and tried to climb on me. I REALLY can't explain why, but most dogs are friendly to me and I'm not really a dog person.

“Down Lilly! Please! Do not disturb the man!” The woman ordered.

“No harm for a friendly dog, Milady, and for the burglary, I may have a plausible, yet unbelievable answer and our culprits identity.”I told her. “Well?” My chief asked.

“How about we start at the beginning so we can all be at the same page.” I suggested and my hand gestured at the empty glass case. We all stand in front of the case with a small hole on top of the glass case. “It was at 7:40 pm when our Countess was worried about her Beagle when she noticed her companion started barking in the lobby and rushed through the stairway. She was frantic at the door of this room and you hear an odd pitch and then a shattering sound, correct?”

The countess replied. “Yes, I called immediately the room services as I was rushing down. The manager has the spare key while I had my own, but I was terrified to unlock alone and when we opened the door, there was a broken window and the glass case with a circle cut right where my Lavender Pearls were.... It was a very lovely light shade of purple and I do love that colour very so...”

“Yeah, your belongings explained to us very well-oof!” Woody replied with an elbow 'bump' by the chief and a cough followed. “Please continue, Felix.” He ordered.

“R-right, umm... During that time you explained, our thief had a diamond on him to cut opened that glass panel and if  you looked closely at the broken-window...” I jested with my left hand. “You can see a crescent-like  line at the left side of the frame. It was almost unnoticeable until I saw a bit unusual. Normally, the cracked glass on the right are all straight or zig-zaged. But on the left, only a crescent line mark.”

Woody says with amazement. “Woah! You're right. Anybody would just assume it was just a break in with all of those cracks and totally missed THAT particular one.”

The Countess was excited. “Oooh! It's like one of those Nancy Drew books I read back in my private school for lecture classes!”

The chief looked at me with annoyance. “Continue, Please.” he replied.

I resumed. “Now speaking of which, I believed that there was where our second fellow waited for that diversion.”

“Wait a second, you telling us it's just a distraction?” Woody questioned and the chief followed. “And for what reason? Unless he's furious enough that he couldn't enter the same way as his partner did so he forced in the window-.”

I gave them my score. “One point for Woody, nil for our chief.” My chief raised an eye brow out of confusion. “I beg your pardon?”

Here's why: “My friend here was correct about that diversion of making us think it was a 'forced' robbery, but more of a cunning strategy for a clean getaway. As for the second , it wasn't that his partner wanted to enter the room, as I explained.”

Now he's baffled. “Then HOW did our thief entered this room, then? The windows were locked from the insides and the only entry was from that door. There was only two keys. The manager's and the Lady herself. Both had it on them when the time it took place.”

I bet you never did any field work at my age... “Is that so? I asked the owner of this establishment and he confirmed the was three keys. Both are exactly where you described and the third one is with the cleaning maid on duty tonight.”

Woody spoke. “So it's the-” “No, she's innocent. Our female police officers were in charge of rummaging woman’s personal for privacy. They detected no jewelry and she had an alibi. Our thieving character was using their staff's cleaning schedule for his and his partner’s advantage. Earlier that day, the lady opened the key to this room for cleaning in the afternoon. Our thief was hiding close to her and when she when inside, he snuck in and quietly wait for her to finish her duties and locked the door.” I clarified.

Our Countess was having fun, despite the situation.  “Astounding! How did he do it without being noticed?”

My chief sighed. “I'd say it's impossible. Even if he was small and an acrobatic, no human can do it without being detected!”

Heh! I think he hit the jackpot for once! “Perfect score, because he's NOT a human.”

Woody stared at me like I said something stupid. “Say what?” “Like the chief said, no human can accomplish this task even he's as small as a child. Unless-”

“A... monkey? Maybe?” Our countess thought. “Bravo, Countess. Your thief is indeed a trained monkey, to be more precised, a golden lion tamarin from Central America.” Thank God for those trips at the zoo. But the chief glared at me and said. “Preposterous! Is there any evidence to support your theory?”

I can do that only better. “There is and there's his long orange hair behind that flower pot in the corner over there. If my theory is corrected, our friend was hiding there until the evening. His accomplice gave him the signal, a high frequency whistle alerted him and at the same time, your dog. While he was cutting out the glass case that contained the necklace, the dog was alerting at the door. Once he attained the necklace the attempted to go out the window, but the accomplice thought other wise. He whistle again and this time,the thief hid on top of the chandelier, as suggested, there a couple of missing candles, is there not?”

We look up to the decoration, for conformation. “Then, our accomplice bust through the window without entering. Giving the impression it was a 'break in' and as the staff arrived, it was during the confusion that our agile little thief makes a quick getaway through the door that was locked.”

The Chief questioned still. “But Felix, how DID anyone, let alone in Chicago, gets a trained monkey?”

I turned to the Countess for the answer. “Milady, did you visit a Chinese circus during your stay? And was there cute animals?”  “Why yes!” she exclaimed with delight. “ There was a fascinating show with animals, including the darling monkeys. Some of them with an orange fur on their back with cute little vests.” Woody then smack a fist on his hand, indicating he's got the point. “So our culprit at that circus! Shall we have an arrest warrant, Sir?” The chief admitted his defeat. “I still doubt it's possible, but I'll have my trusted men to look with you. As for Felix, I think you might needed some rest. I did promised you off tomorrow until this incident occurred. You wanted to see your nephews right?”

I nodded. “That is correct. I did promised to attend their soccer practice in the afternoon, and I hardly have any time for them. I'd really like to spend time with them.” He nodded in return. “I understand. We'll take things from here and I'll call you when something's up.” “Thank you, chief and don't worry milady, we shall do our very best to find your necklace.”

“I am pleased and despite the event, I feel much better.” She said. Afterwards, I exited the room.

While I walk out from the Grande Hotel Riche to report at the police station, let me introduce myself. My name is Felix, Felix Lockheart. I'm a detective here in Chicago. My mission is to put a end to this endless mafia crime spree for the innocence and victims. Ha! I sounded like a superhero there, right? Anyways.....

This is the third robbery that involves necklaces.  

Just to recap from my notebook; The first was the case of the Emerald Snake. It was one of those streets where the new wealthy people rent their luxurious homes. That place looks like a small version of a mansion. That a bit unusual to me because the scene of the crime is much too tidy and there was no sign of force or pick-lock entry, even on the glass case itself, no sign of any kind. The robbed victim was Mr. Julian Vermelho. A well, successful business man who deals in the fresh fruits and vegetables, including transports of exotic plants, several flowers and herbs shops on the public image. The man was from a south American continent that I forgot the name to. He had the Latin gentlemen look: A boater hat, with a green ribbon. A forest green buttoned shirt underneath a lime green shirt and a very dark green pants. His skin was tan and he had slick, wavy black hair, a small mustache, brown eyes and boy oh boy did I ever see so many green than a whole vegetable chart in my life. Apart for Mr. Vermelho, there was only the butler, the housemaid, and the rottweiler whom was chained in his corner,  both are telling the truth of where they were in the kitchen at the time of the crime....

The second case is the Snowflake Diamonds. It didn't took long to find his address, considering it was only a few houses away. It was a very white mansion and it looked like a castle from those fairy tale except the garden was a bit neglected. This time it was a forced entry with an entrance that looked like someone ram a car through and judging by the glass case, it has seen  better days. The second Business man who was a CEO from that big company, the WHITE A.C.M.E,. is Mr. Blancheur. He had partially bald head which he keep underneath a white wig, and like the others, he had white all over his clothes and his house. THAT guy is a real piece of work! That 67 year old cotton swab was one of those cranky grandpas who over react on a tiny spec of common mistakes. He wasn't co-operating, he's very stingy of how we should investigate without touching. Obviously, did anyone mention him at least once that white things can easily be stained? This time it was a forced entry and judging by the glass case, it has seen  better days. There was no glass left untouched and presumably by a very large thug and he might have been in a hurry. Afterwards, he demanded to speak to the chief for the money.  Anyone care to guess who was the 'lucky' soul that had to deal with him and my chief? That right, THIS unlucky black cat! It was a nightmare to defused those two. The only thanks I got was from his white little poodle, Marcel.

But apart from the theft, they all had similar ties to that special exhibition for that jewelry show Kitiana, my girlfriend, really wanted to see at the end of the month.

Next to that, all three were competing at the dog show held in next weekend. I really don't think there's something worth noting but just in case, I marked it down if something comes up. I yawned after I finished writing that note. I should really get home otherwise I might accidentally take a cat nap in the middle of the game.

It was a bright day for a good soccer game at the school. I was in the good upper part of the spectators area that I can see my nephews. It's a bit of a long story, but I'm their guardian uncle who's taking care of them after a tragic accident that happened to my father. I wish I can tell you more of that but now is not the time. OH THERE IT GOES- “GOOOOOAL!!!” I can't believe it! My nephews won the game! Inky was the good player and Winky was the goalie. I guess they take it after me when I was at their age. I used to be a pretty darn good soccer player back in middle school and high school. At least until that faithful day... No no, Felix there was nothing you can do at that time. I need to be there for my nephews. I was very proud until something just had to show up of all days. A fancy black Cadillac pulled up from the parking lot indicates it's for a very special guest with whom I can guess from this familiar chauffeur.... Bendy De Mon himself with Boris Wolfenstein.  All my happy thoughts were gone in the thrash can whenever that demon shows up. Why? Cause I know he's the king of the Chicago mafias! I can't even lay a finger on him when he's out in public. According to my observation, he announced and giving out a donation support to the principle for the soccer team's upcoming tournament next month. 'It's just a facade for covering his “main” business.' My thoughts told me. Luckily for me, he was only there for a few minutes until he had to leave for his appointment with his animators.  My nephews came up to me and says:

“Uncle! Uncle! Did ya heard? We're getting new uniforms!” Inky exclaimed. “I can't wait for our next soccer game! Can you teach us more, please?” Winky begged me.

I sighed in defeat, but at least these two tried to lift my spirit. “Alright, but don't forget to do your homework once we're home, and help me dry the dishes.” “OK!” They both replied.

“TOP OF THE AFTERNOON! How's my favorite jazz cats doing?” Woody surprised us from behind he. “Uncle Woody!” They said in fusion.

I turned and glanced at my colleague and friend, Woody McPecker. He was my first friend when I started working at the police force. I can always count on him to keep a close eye on things when I'm working long hours. How he and I met well... That a story for another day... “So how's my favorite rascals doing? Staying out of trouble?” He asked them. “Uncle Woody! I did two goal!” Inky did a kicking pose. “And I blocked three!” Winky did a cross pose.

He chuckled a bit. “Sounds like yer uncle taught you well. If it was me, yall'd act like cows and be eatin' greens” We all laughed and played a bit. It was a great time for me to unwind until I go to work tomorrow....

And for good reason too.... The next day, Kitty barged in from my door and shoved this in my face----->>>

//// MISSING!!! FAMOUS SAPPHIRE COLLAR DISSAPERED OVERNIGHT!  /////

It was highly printed on the front line of this morning newspaper in. Kitty was upset. “I can't believe anyone can steal such a lovely necklace!Not only that, but the others famous jewels too! I wanted to go there for our girls only date but now, the show will get cancelled!” I tried to sugar coat it. “Calm down, I'm pretty sure we can figure something else we can do.”

“But it's the second time we had to take a rain check! First it's the creeps at the docks for suspects in an investigation now this! Normally, I'd say let's leave this to someone else who's better suited for this field but now this time, I'm not letting this one slide! I told our chief we'd both go as soon as you start so I'll be waiting in the car. Wait too long and I'll put spicy onion sardines and hot peppers in your next lunch.” Saying so, she left the building in a furious yet determined attitude. I really can't win an argument with her... That was Kitiana Katarina, Kitty Kat for shorts. She's my girlfriend since high school. You can tell she's quite a gal! I hardly knew any other girl who can wear cute dresses and beat up five jocks when they couldn't stop hitting on her friends. Despite her tomboyish and headstrong attitude, she's actually a sweet, bubbly, caring person who's been there when I'm having a tough time. She's also staying with me and my nephews cause she doesn't have a place but I made sure she has a spare room at mine cause 1. I wanted to respect her privacy. 2. I want to set an good example and 3. I'm a gentlemen at heart. YES, GO AHEAD AND LAUGH ALL YOU WANT! Just because chivalry's on the life line, it doesn't mean it's dead. Without further delay, I REALLY need to get going...

We've arrived at the Chicago Art Gallery, where that jewelry exhibition was supposed to be held. My first thing to do was to investigate at the huge main room where all the historical and new sellers would display their goods along with a built-in stage for the show. Once there, Kitty told me she'll be gathering some information for others, so that will leaves me with the main famous necklace itself; The Sapphire Collar.

I started with the rectangular case itself. There was a large, well-shaped hole at the top which tell me that either it was a very large piece of jewelry or our robber has large hands. I saw a thrash can and something's fishy in that bin. I reached in and grabbed what appeared to be a red cloth with some substance. There's also a familiar mark at the bottom corner but I can't place my fingers where I've seen it before... I've decided to put it in my evidence bag for analysis later. I've examined the other cases that were opened but... To be honest, I've ruled out for a large-handed culprit... some has small holes and some are just for show. Either way, this guy likes to play a game for us! Next on my agenda was to talk to the owner of this gallery, Mr. William Babera, who was with Kitty. He looks like he's in his 60's, has grey hair slicked back, a short beard and mustache.  He is almost the same height as I.

“Mr. William Babera, I assume?” I asked.

“Mr. Felix, I've heard a lot about your well known accomplishment. You make a fine example of a honest cop and ease our minds in this corrupted times.” He complimented me on our first impression? Hmmm...

“I thank you for the compliments but I cannot accomplish without help from my colleagues and friends. Tell me, can you describe me the night of the robbery? At the time from beginning to the end.” I might be over thinking it.

“From what I can get from the security cameras, there was a black out at 1 o'clock in the morning. There was no suspicious character around the building. I've only had my two security guards and a few of your own guarding inside and out for this special exhibition. I had both mine in the security office, one in the main hall, two for paroling the rest of the museum and two for outside. I believed that during the black out, the inside where all knocked out by sleeping gas that were cleverly disguised as toys. As there's proof in your lovely assistance possession.” He gestured at the unusual toys in a large bag. “Somehow, there were no sign of force entry or easy access. We locked them in and we only have tree keys to this place which only my Janitor, one of the officers, and myself.” He explained.

I put on my thinking cap. “Unusual, so during the black out, the toys released the knock out gas, and the culprit took his or her sweet time to take most of the jewelries, leaving a few and added some. Some of these holes are just for show.” “Your observation is quite correct.” He nodded.

“Mr. Babera, there's a question I wanted to ask. Why did they leave a few behind? Were they fake or they didn't like them?”  That's a good question, Kitty. “Ah, it's a bit humiliating but the remaining pieces are actually fakes or copies. They are just for show and our 'visitor' might knew about them if they were still here.” He replied honestly.

Odd. Did our suspect knew in advance or can detect the authentic? I asked. “May I asked who are sponsoring this show?”

“That would be the famous Disney Inc. They wished to display their first new collection along with a variety of famous treasures like the Sapphire collar. I'm pretty sure the recent news of other famous necklaces that were robbed has reached to your ears.”

“My friend actually DID investigate these cases! How did you know?” She asked.  “I read the newspapers, and his deduction were quite spot on even if it's a bit of talented ridiculousness solution.” He joked. I was not amused at the last part...

Kitty Giggles a bit. “So tell us, is there something special about the stolen necklaces or the Sapphire itself?”

“Ah, they all have a bit of history behind each stones which they will take a long time to tell all about them.” He said.

I decided to go with the main subject. “How about you tell us a bit about the Sapphire collar's history. I wanted to know more about it and why was it infamous.”

He then tells us. “The Sapphire was actually lend to us by China's representative. As for it's story, They told us that it was one of the archaeologist fellows who found it in a secret tomb during an excavation. It was just an unusual but a lovely piece of jewelry made for an empress, until it changes color when it was day or night. It's stones looked like any other ordinary sapphires in daylight, but it changes into a crimson red in the moonlight. Historians are still not sure it's origins, but it was such a discovery, even just the change of colors, it draws attention to anybody. To this day, no other jewelry or gemstones  can out shine nor came close to this unique piece even after a decade has passed. But now it is lost to a scoundrel. I believed that the necklace was worth at least five hundred thousands US dollars. Maybe it was the usual greed motive.” He then sighed.

“No need to be so glum, we shall do our best to find this missing Sapphire and plausibly the others.” I tried to assured.

“I do hope so, the exhibition will be delayed until at least the sapphire collar and most of the missing jewels are found.” He told us.

“Please rest assured that we will find them!” She added with a thumb up and the most cutest wink and tong out face. I so wanna cuddle her right now! No. Not now Felix, you're at work. I cleared my throat and say our goodbyes.

As we walked out of the place, I staggered a bit and Kitty replied “Felix! Are you alright? You looked pale.”

Yikes! “Please don't worry. I just feel light headed a bit from being-”

“FEEEEEEEEEELIX! KIIIIIIIIIITY! I GOT AN EMERGENCY FROM THE CHIEF!!!” We glanced in surprised when Woody was ridding his bicycle at full speed. It was fortunate he didn't tear up the road at that speed. “What's wrong?” Kitty asked, worried.

GAAAAAAASP! “DOG!” BREATHE “COUNTESS!” BREATHE “CHICKEN!”

My mind drew blank at the last one “.....what?”

Woody addressed himself once he catch his breath and said: “That Beagle dog of Count Violette gone missing!”

TO BE CONTINUED>>>> Chapter 2

This is my first FanFiction. 

I was inspired by Marini4′s Doushinji of Bendy before the Ink machine.

I wanted to write a parallel universe with Felix as the protagonist about a story before the ‘main’ one begins.

There will be cross overs here and there so I hope you’ll enjoy a little story.

BBTIM characters belongs to Marini4

[archive-03012022]

great comet 8/24/17 (matinee with dave malloy + blaine krauss u/s anatole)

ok so this is more for me to remember than for anyone else but here’s a song-by-song breakdown of great comet from when i saw it lol (lots about technical stuff)

i was in the top row of banquettes which is honestly the best place to sit in the entire theatre. we could see every part of the theatre (balcony and mezz included) without having to spin our heads around like owls and there was a+++ audience interaction (i’ll get to that later)

pre-show

ok so everyone literally burst out of the entrances randomly without any warning and just started talking to everyone it was great

a man with a sparkly mustache made sure we were all ok with strobe lights and if not to just deal with it and cover our eyes

i got a pierogi box thrown at my face. fun times.

theres an announcer guy that starts speaking in russian and english before just switching over to english

announcer: cameras? ensemble: NEIT!

my grandmother got super into this format and started shouting along #quality family bonding

prologue

dave malloy is a god end of story

but seriously the prologue is such a jam 

before the song actually starts theres a super sad scene of natasha saying goodbye to andrey and she hands him his coat and letters and he gives her the locket (she has a hearbreaking “no!” as he starts leaving)

the lights go from basically pitch black to full blast at the line “anD THIS IS ALL IN YOUR PROGRAM”

denee benton is so beautiful

the ensemble was roaming around everywhere and came over to where we were a LOT

bolkonsky made his entrance right next to us after his costume change right before the minor characters line by screaming and jumping through a curtain with his guitar 

the whole ensemble gathers on the platform by the doors for the beginning of pierre

pierre

dave malloy is a god end of story

while they’re all gathered watching pierre for the first bit of pierre, sonya is rubbing natasha’s back, reassuring and soothing her

i love the ensemble,,,,,, so much,,,,,,,,

helene conducts all the women dancing during “he is charming he has no sex”

the “good russian men” part singled out azudi and he looked so offended at pierre lol

all of the “ahhhh”s were magical

theres not much that hasn’t already been said about this song tbh?

oh and right after it’s over all the ensemble members drop out of their poses and deadpan, walking to the exits with bored expressions like “alright shows over, bye guys, our job is done”

moscow

marya? hates sonya so much?

but when they’re introducing each other natasha is super prim and proper and sonya does this awkward, lopsided bow with her little hand puff half hanging off brittain is such a dork im love her

natasha’s humming is so childish/naive i love it

“you’ll read to me while i K N I T”

marya casually roasting the audience? iconic

marya’s whole speech to natasha is honestly just great

mary walks between marya and natasha when she’s mentioned

private and intimate life of the house

he

draws

out

every

single

word

“people enjoy me though” got a really good laugh

gelsey bell? the godsent angel? yes, Her

B R I N G M E M Y S L I P P E R S (he finally started screaming it again)

“natasha is young and worthless and dumb” natasha literally looks so offended its great

mary picks a “suitor” from the audience and he was so confused

BOLKONSKY KISSED HIS ���CHEAP FRENCH THING” ON THE LIPS FOR SUCH A LONG TIME AND HER DAUGHTER WAS LITERALLY DYING BEHIND HER

paul pinto’s servant character. that’s all.

marya plays the cowbell during the “where are my glasses” breakdown and generally looks disappointed in him the whole time 

natasha and bolkonskys

there was a 12 year old boy who had no clue what was happening and kept getting in the way of them putting the stools down it was great

all of bolkonsky’s interjections are met with a really quick spot on him and idk it was just super funny to me (he also did this really weird/hilarious lip trill at the end of “i do not wish to see herrrrrRRRRR”

denee and gelseys harmonies 

mary and natasha’s fake laughter

“says the mean old man in his underthings”

HOLY SHIT GUYS WAIT

WHEN MARY SAYS “AND HE LOOKED AT HER ONCE / HEAD TO TOE” BOLKONSKY MUTTERED “NOT IN MY HOUSE” AND I DIED

bolkonsky exits past marya who, once again, just sort of glared at him

no one else

the blue light change??

all of the light bulbs slowly start coming down and fading on to look like stars its gorgeous

at the “we were angels once, don’t you remember?” she said it right to this teenage girl at a table who literally grinned and turned away to be like “holy shit that just happened” it was really sweet

natasha is so innocent throughout the whole song its honestly so beautiful

andrey is shown in a blue spotlight with snow falling around him and he unwinds the red ribbon from her letters (and wraps it around his wrist like a bracelet for safe keeping) and starts reading them 

when he leaves and runs into the darkness natasha steps into his spot under the snow and starts singing the “you and i”s after him

the opera

marya is such a godmother is so cute

sonya’s narration is gorgrous and i’ll never get over it

ensemble members twirl mirrors around natasha at the beginning

this song makes me think about how important it is for natasha to have people like her which makes the ending even more sad :(

helene’s entrance is honestly so her idek how else to explain it

pierre’s fist pump when he says “though i’m enjoying myself at home :D”

marya is super obvious about mentioning pierre to helene since she’s with dolokov

the curtain “rising” is shown by the lightbulbs going back into the ceiling

the opera is such a good satire

GELSEY’S GOT SOME PIPES

when the dancers are “dying” they’re making this really funny, drawn out sighing noises and its amazing

denee’s face was hilarious after the dance seen she was just like :o

anatoles entrance is so extra

with every little *bum* *bum* he moved his head in a different direction and the lights flashed

helene and anatole have this creepy little moment where they’re standing under a light bulb and anatole taps his cheek for her to kiss but turns his head so she kisses him on the lips and right as their lips touch the lightbulb goes out

the opera singers continue miming in the doorways of the balcony and it was really cool to see

the ensemble was in costumes on the stairs acting out the opera as well

not only was anatole constantly looking at natasha, so was helene,,,,,,,,,

natasha hallucinates andrey’s dead body being torn apart, holding out the ribbon that held her letters together towards her

natasha and anatole

anatole checks himself out in the mirror before entering the box (blaine was really funny in purposefully pulling down a single curl over his forhead for ~fashion~)

i feel like he sings deeper than anatole but its wayyyy smoother like damn

when he’s asking natasha to the costume tournament her little “oh (:? oh,,,, i (:” when shes feigning modesty gives me life

blaines voice holy s h i t

when he grabs her from behind its really sensual and denee moaned really loudly and i

have i mentioned i love blaine’s voice

when anatole steals her flower natasha looks so scandalized

at one point he smells it and seems so in love

helene is watching the whole thing go down (basically the whole time the two of them are “alone” together she’s watching them)

after chasing each other around the stage a bunch them sitting down next to each other was treated as a Big Moment

the duel

in between songs anatole walks to pierre’s study fist bumping and grabbing at his head like “YES! YES YES!”

at “oh dear andrey’s betrothed?” anatole did like this little so-so hand gesture that was hilarious

the strobe lighting was way more intense than i expected

i watched grace mclean grind on a riding crop and then put it between her teeth it was great

lowkey threesome up in the mezz/balcony

and the girls were essentially using the railings as stripper poles

during “just as a duck is made to swim in water, god has made me as i am” anatole moonwalks, does the chicken dance, and gets grinded on by two girls

there was just A Lot during the duel

but i was too focused on celia mae’s glow in the dark thong to notice most of it

“here’s to health of married women.... and their lovers ;D”

oh i just remembered there was girl passed out drunk over someone’s box and all the people sitting in it were howling with laughter

helene’s voice is cracking when she says “he will kill you stupid husband” and might i say,,,,,,,,,, character depth

paul pinto’s announcer voice for duel

helene screams when the gun is shot

when pierre holds out his arms to be shot but starts looking around in confusion omg

idk but i love “we live to love another day”

dust and ashes

dave’s version is honestly so gut-wrenching

i never noticed in the recording but the strings on this song are honestly so beautiful??

he acts the hell out of this song and its just so :(

during the “we are asleep until we fall in love” the ensemble lines up in the orch aisles and in front of the mezz all backlit and its just so haunting 

as their “ah”s get more and more intense the lights don’t change at all and it just seems very church choir-y

sunday morning

sonya and natasha seem like they’re sneaking around in the beginning and its really cute

“everyone sees a man” is delivered so well, like she’s trying to reassure her 

the whole time natasha is staring into the mirror pierre is standing right behind her looking at her through the mirror

marya still hates sonya

charming

helene enters through the double doors with her face covered by her cloak and its sort of a mystery who it is until she starts singing

natasha seems embarrassed at first (since shes basically in her underwear) but then starts fixing her garters and stuff almost like she’s trying to impress her

amber gray holy shit

since natasha is still in just her corset and garters helene gives her her cloak 

“he was thinking about you, kept sighing about you” natasha literally lights up and puts her hand over her mouth and walks away like a middle schooler lol

when natasha gets her dress on first she runs around and twirls but then starts imitating helene but its still really childish

helene yanks andrey’s necklace off of natasha before giving her her own and keeping it for herself

in summary this song is Not Straight Whatsoever

the ball

all of the couples enter from the doors doing this weird little movement before going down the stairs 

two girls danced in front of us together (edit: it was gelsey and katrina i only just remembered) and it made my day 

all of the dancers (all through out the theatre, all the way into the balcony) are doing the same movements as anatole and natasha but since they’re in dark greens/black and anatole and natasha are in white it’s easy to not get distracting

blaine as anatole,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, yeah

the “i love another” seems a bit forced on natasha’s side like she’s just saying it out of habit rather than for real

helene is still watching them

the kiss

lasts

a

long

time

BUT

when you look away you see that everyone has wine glasses and are putting their fingers around the rim to make the little noise

helene has a lightbulb over her and a spot. she’s the last one to stop.

the way natasha’s little part after the kiss goes it makes her look like she’s going to choose andrey because she’s singing to the orchestra but turns to anatole to sing the “i will love youuuu” part

the ensemble is lined up on the staircase, “ahhh”ing and holding their glasses up to toast them

anatole and natasha run through the doors together

letters

the whole cast comes in through the double doors

my grandmother screamed “HEY HANDSOME” when blaine passed by wlfkjvbvjnrev

most of the cast had stuck their letters to audience members into their bras/shirts

andrey stands on the platform in front of the doors (the same place he enters pierre and andrey) and pierre speaks directly to him for his letter

at “it is NAPOLEON” the portrait of napoleon on the wall (which was right above my seat lol) lights up and pierre starts pointing the gun at him

anatole and andrey stand on walkways next to each other when natasha is writing her letter

pierre, natasha, and mary all stand in a circle around the study singing at each other and it looks really cool

ok so anatole’s love letter..............

dolokov was holding the letter

they actually made the woman passing the letter walk up on stage to pass it to natasha

blaines “just says yes”s were suuuuuuuuuuper stretched out but he was pressing his face in her chest, stomach, thighs and trailing his hand up her whole body and it was uhhhhhh way more sensual than how lucas steele plays anatole

sonya and natasha

sonya steals the letter from natasha while shes’s sleeping

their argument is honestly everything

“its seems to me i’ve loved him a hundred years............ :)” sonya is just like “what the fuck natalie”

“would you think so badly of me??” brings me back to how much natasha just wants to be loved and cared for 

sonya and natasha yelling at each other is so heartbreaking

her letter to mary is all very final

sonya alone

the whole theatre is dark and theres a single lightbulb and spot on sonya as she sings

natasha makes her way up the stairs to the mezzanine (PASSES ANDREY WHO’S SITTING THERE WATCHING HER)

and wanders all the way across the mezz and back down the stairs on the other side

the whole time, sonya never takes her eyes off of her

i think we need to appreciate that in the realm of musical theatre, there are no other songs about just loving your friend? and wanting to help them?

“i know you’ve forgotten  me” natasha is back in front of the stage left stairs, but a light bulb lights up over her and she stops, looking at sonya

“it’s all on me” kills me she’s so selfless shes sacrificing her friendship with her best friend just to save her and just kjvn;efvaer

preparations

pierre literally doesnt care about what anatole’s doing 

theres a spot on sonya and natasha when they are mentioned

helene brings dolokov the tea

anatole shaves in front of a mirror

there was still shaving cream left on his face and dolokov had to wipe it off his face while they were arguing lol

the two of them were arguing really aggressively it was intense

i think helene was playing the drum during this whole part

balaga/the abduction

paul pinto deserved a tony

my grandmother stole egg shakers from the row in front of us

balaga runs up into the mezz and starts wreaking havoc it’s great

the musicians were all running all over the place saying hi to audience members and generally being great

anatole’s “woooooooooooo” and cape spin was a sight to behold tbh

blaine did a little “mm” noise when everyone went quiet after the big "WOOOOOOOOAHHHHHHHH”

his “gooooooooooooodbye” was so stretched out that the ensemble started swaying really slowly but then had to go the other way before starting again it was really funny

during the goodbye my gypsy lovers part marya slid on the end of the banquette seats i was in and i was freaking out so she blew me a fucking kiss and ran away

everyone dancing in a circle around the study

there was a little accordion-off 

alex gibson came over and was like “WATCH ME! WATCH ME OVER HERE!” and had a dance off with a guy all the way up in the balcony

there were people dancing allllllllll over these platforms through out the theatre there was never a dull moment

alex gibson also started humping a drum next to us and banging it while he moaned

he was so into it that he didn’t realize he was blocking lauren zakrin from chucking pages of war and peace everywhere (which i caught out of the air which is pretty neat)

one of katrina’s braids was coming loose so she started helicopter-ing them in our faces

i saw helene and marya make out and it was great

all of it was so completely organized chaos that was so incredible watch i love rachel chavkin with all my heart

when anatole sat down on the banquette next to the girl he made her kiss him on the cheek and did the “stretching” to put an arm around her thing it was hilarious

the girl leaned her head on him and they just chilled out (they actually looked like a real couple tbh) for an awkwardly long time before they all ran up the stairs

marya’s entrance is just as incredible as you would imagine

anatole did like a little smile like “uhh, hi” and then sprinted down the stairs away 

in my house

grace mclean deserved a nomination for best featured. seriously.

the maid servant tries to apologize to marya but she just points her back inside the doors

ok so grace kept it all super calm and contained until she exploded on natasha

she honestly plays this scene so well she’s ocnstantly jumping between concern, disappointment, and pure, unfiltered rage

natasha screaming is terrifying

when natasha “falls to the sofa” (she’s stand completely upright with her arms crossed) marya softens and becomes very calm again but when sonya tries to go to her she snaps again

natasha? still? thinks? anatoles? coming? :(

a call to pierre

the letter is followed by the light bulbs and lights under the mezz as it makes its way across the stage

paul pinto is the best

he stretches out the announcement

so

much

“........................................w h a t”

grace and dave have such good chemistry

the ensemble’s vocals make this scene so much more tense

“natasha and A N A T O L E  K U R A G I N”

marya’s whole demeanor changes when she hears that he’s married

find anatole

pierre literally walks down to the study, back up, puts on a coat and is already wheezing its actually pretty funny

“the club” is just the ensemble along the stairs and mezz dimly lit and gathered in small groups pantomiming its really realistic

“he cant BE MARRIED!” is said in complete disbelief and heartbreak

helene sits with anatole’s head on her lap

on his way to the study anatole passes sonya who glares at him

and if looks could kill

pierre and anatole

blaine plays off anatole as faking his confidence from the very start of the scene thinking pierre will just let him off

pierre literally pins him down and almost bashes his head in with a paperweight

OH WAIT I JUST REMEMBERED

helen is watching the whole thing from the stage right staircase (she was right in front of me) as if she’s eavesdropping from the hallway or something

she flinches when pierre stars grabbing at anatole and reaches her hand out to help when he’s about to hurt him

the letters look almost exactly like the ones natasha gave to andrey #parallels

anatole sits at someone’s table pouting and covering his ears like a child throwing a tantrum

“amuse yourself with women like my wife” helene actually seemed a little surprised at pierre actually knowing about their relationship

it hit me during the show that the only reason that anatole is upset is because pierre is calling him names which is just so childish considering everything happening

natasha walks between them arguing and pours arsenic into her glass, chugging it and then lets out this guttural scream

she runs up and meets marya and sonya who rush her through a curtained exit

blaine can hit the petersburg note 

natasha very ill

this song is honestly just so haunting

dolokov plays guitar in the double doors

the whole stage is dimly lit and its all very ominous

pierre and andrey

andrey enters through the same doors he left during the prologue and speaks to pierre on the opposite side of the stage before they meet in the middle platform

the “well, how are you?” seems a bit comical and sarcastic

i could write essays about how much “theres a war going on” does for the story at this point

andrey acts like he doesn’t really care about the whole ordeal and like he’s already trying to distance himself from it, almost laughing at himself

“i much regret her illness” is so cold and passive aggressive that it hurts

oh and if this scene didnt hurt enough, mary is watching the entire thing

after “dont every speak of this again” he shoves pierre. hard.

when he leaves, he passes mary who smiles and tries to hug him but he just puts his hand up and walks past her before taking his place in his father’s chair and folds in on himself

natasha and pierre

i’ve been classically conditioned to cry to these piano notes no joke

natasha comes down the stairs really slowly, relying heavily on the railing to help her

pierre tries to help but she brushes him off

she’s in a white, shapeless nightgown (she only wears white through the whole show), is barefoot, and has her hair in a braid and looks like a little girl

when she starts singing its very weak

ALL 👏 SHE 👏 WANTS 👏 IS 👏 LOVE 👏 AND 👏 TO 👏 BE 👏 FORGIVEN 👏

oh and all of the ensemble members since find anatole have taken places all over the theatre and are just. sitting. watching the ending of the show. i noticed mostly courtney basset sitting cross-legged on the walkway in the orchestra

when natasha begins to cry, its not crying. it’s loud, almost primal sobbing

pierre is just so tender towards her and :’)

when pierre tell her that she can talk to him they both look confused

right before the proposal natasha is making her way up the stairs and turns back around when pierre starts talking

dave’s delivery of the proposal is So Good

he choked on the “and for your love”

the mini pierre reprise is heartwrenching

natasha made her way really slowly back up to the doors, but seems hopeful

the great comet of 1812 

ok so

the song is song in complete darkness, theres barely even a spotlight on pierre

veeeeeery slowly individual light bulbs start fading on but you cant see much

then the chandeliers start to slowly light up

but this is all super gradual and doesn’t really become notciable for a few minutes

hearing the ensemble coming in from all sides is gorgeous

then the comet prop above pierre’s study starts lowering (i think around the time its mentioned by name for the first time)

as most of the chandeliers are coming on, a tiny light on the bottom of the comet fades on and starts illuminating the larger comet

now the entire theatre is lit only by the lightbulbs, chandeliers, and the slwoly brightening comet. no table lamps, no stage lights, nothing.

as the final minute or so approaches all of the lights start to dim except for the comet until it’s the only thing remaining lit

and in 100% honesty every single one of the 1200 people in that theatre had their eyes fixed on it for the final moments of the show

then, as the song ends, the lights on the comet fade until only the tiny light on the bottom remains. pierre is collapsed in his chair looking up peacefully and the conductor raises his hands to praise it as it’s dimming until the theatre is in complete darkness

anyway this really wasnt for anyone else to read but if you made it this far? im sorry? this was a complete mess i’m still a wreck from this show

[bibhabmishra]

Ghostbusters

I’ve read a lot of film books and they’ve taught me a few things about how film books should be written if they are to be taken seriously, and these are lessons that I feel are as useful in life:  1. Drop in random French phrases wherever possible so it looks like you’re quoting from the French film magazine Cahiers du Cinéma, because even if you don’t know what the hell you’re talking about, nobody will be able to tell; 2. When in doubt, start waffling on about Godard; 3. Never describe a film as your “favorite film.” This looks unprofessional and childish. Instead, claim—in ringing tones comme les écrivains de Cahiers du Cinéma—that it is the Greatest Film.  Zut alors! Malheureusement, not all the French in the world could convince any- one that I am more interested in Godard than The Goonies, so that’s a non- starter. But I shall make use of one of these handy life lessons and state that the best, most brilliant, most extraordinary, the most deftly created piece of au- teur film work of all time is Ghostbusters. For pretty much most of my life, I’d assumed that this was a fact accepted by everybody: Ghostbusters is the greatest movie ever made. Sure, people tend to say random words like “Citizen Kane!” and “Vertigo!” when asked by Cahiers du Cinéma for their favorite film.

But I thought they did this just as, when asked who they’d like to have at their dream dinner party, they say, “Mother Teresa and Nelson Mandela!” as opposed to who everybody would actually like, which is, obviously, Madonna and Bill Murray. Now, one could take my massive assumption that my tastes reflect those of everyone else on the planet two ways:  1. I have an ego the size of Asia coupled with a narcissist’s complex and incipient sociopathic tendencies; 2. Ghostbusters is so good that even if it’s not everyone’s FAVORITE movie, it is probably in their top ten and so whenever I mention my love of Ghostbusters people say, “Oh yeah, everyone loves Ghostbusters.”  For the purposes of this chapter, we will go with option 2. I never thought of my Ghostbusters obsession—and it is, I fully admit, an obsession—as remarkable. If anything, I saw it as a perfectly natural response to a great work of art. Devoting an entire shelf to books and articles by or about the people involved, however tangentially, in the making of this movie? Com- mendable intellectual curiosity. Spending two hundred dollars on a book about Ghostbusters that came out the year the film was released, just because it finally explains why the character of Winston is squeezed out of the movie? Hey, that’s an investment piece! Refusing to go on a second date with someone be- cause they failed to recognize a completely random (and not, to be honest, wildly relevant) Ghostbusters quote over dinner?I Well, why waste time with losers? It wasn’t until I found myself awake at 2 a.m. at the age of thirty-three on a Tuesday scrolling through eBay in search of a rumored copy of Bill Mur- ray’s original Ghostbusters script, which obviously was not going to be on eBay, that I felt it might be time to look at what, precisely, was going on here and why, after all this time, Ghostbusters still feels so special, maybe even more spe- cial, to me. There is sentimentality, for sure, not exactly for my childhood but for the city of my childhood. Ghostbusters is as much a love letter to New York as any- thing by Woody Allen, and a less self-conscious one at that, showing New Yorkers reacting with relative normality to an invasion of the undead.II Many of the jokes in Ghostbusters stem from the idea that, ghosts aside, Manhattan it- self is an out-of-control Wild West place, a Gotham city where a man could collapse against the windows of the Tavern on the Green, the ritzy restaurant that used to be in Central Park, and the diners would simply ignore him. Trash is piled on the sidewalks and Checker cabs whizz around corners: this re- creation of New York, 1984—the New York of my childhood—is still how I think of the city, even though it has, for better or worse, changed a lot since then. Even the hilarious anachronisms give me a sentimental frisson: Louis being mocked for his love of vitamins and mineral water; Ray and Peter snarfing down cigarettes while toting nuclear reactors on their backs; Larry King in a cloud of cigarette smoke while chatting drily on the radio; the bad guy being the man from the Environmental Protection Agency. These all look particularly out of date in the Manhattan of today, and I can’t help but feel the city is a little poorer for it. But my absolute favorite New Yorky moment in the film is at the end, when a doorman brings Ecto1 round after the Ghostbusters have saved the world—or at least Central Park West—from destruction. Despite having battled a giant marshmallow man, Dan Aykroyd still has a couple of dollar bills in the pocket of his ghost uniform with which to tip the doorman. You cannot get more New York than that. But there is something else in Ghostbusters that makes me sentimental, something else that I love in it that doesn’t exist anymore. That is, its depiction of how a man should be.  •  •  •  Just in terms of sheer variety, one could do a lot worse than turn to eighties movies for lessons in how to be a man. When most people think of mas- culinity in eighties movies, they probably think of that strange genre that sprouted and bulged up in that decade like Popeye’s biceps after eating spinach, consisting of men who look like condoms stuffed with walnutsIII speaking their lines in confused accents and emphasizing random syllables, strongly suggesting they’d learned the words phonetically: Schwarzenegger, Lundgren, Stallone,IV and, toward the end of the decade, Van Damme. Chuck Norris, too, can be included here, despite his lack of walnutness, but he earns membership in this group with his similar lack of obvious acting talent and strong fondness for right-wing messages in his films.V But there is more to eighties men than that. For a start, there are the men who raise babies and children (Mr. Mom, Three Men and a Baby, Uncle Buck), which some feminist critics argued at the time was a backlash against femi- nism because the films seemed to mock the idea of feminized men. In fact, in retrospect, these films look more like movies awkwardly coming to grips with feminism (Tootsie, too, can be included here, with a man pre- tending to be a woman, and occasionally looking after a child, and becoming a better person for it). Mr. Mom (1983), in which Michael Keaton loses his job and looks after the kids while his wife works, is clearly none too sure what to make of this “feminist” thing: the movie’s message is that the swapping of traditional gender roles will probably destroy the marriage and almost certainly the house (somewhat dismayingly, the film was written by John Hughes). But by 1987, Three Men and a Baby was getting much more of a handle on things. The men (Tom Selleck, Steve Guttenberg, and Ted Danson) are unex- pectedly lumbered with a baby girl and, by the end of the film, very much want her to stay with them in their bachelor shag pad, even after the baby’s dippy English (foreigners—tchuh!) mother turns back up. It turns out that, unlike Mr. Mom, they are capable of looking after a baby without causing havoc to domestic appliances (men—amirite??). The men in Three Men and a Baby are

notably much less obnoxious than les mecs in the original French version, Trois Hommes et un Couffin, who have a pact never to let a woman stay more than one night in their flat and have a tendency to call the baby “a swine” when it has an accident on the sofa. Ahh, les Français—ils sont tres masculins, ooh la la!VI Which is not to say that the American version is without its anxieties. Three Men and a Baby goes to such lengths in order to reassure audiences of the übermasculinity of the three guys, despite their TERRIFYINGLY FEMINIZED baby-raising skills, that they become hilariously camp. Peak camp is reached, for me, when Selleck goes out jogging wearing little more than a tiny pair of shorts and an enormous mustache, and he picks up a sports magazine full of photos of muscled-up half-naked men. Now, if that isn’t the definition of throbbing heterosexual masculinity, I don’t know what is. Yes, the eighties were a different time and American movies in that era seemed to think that homosexual was merely Latin for “psycho killer or flouncy interior decorator.” But nonetheless, whenever I watch this movie (which is more often than I’m going to commit to print) I think it’s a shame the director (who was the late Leonard Nimoy, very pleasingly) didn’t just go with the obvi- ous option here and make the guys gay, living in a happy yuppie ménage à trois. After all, this would explain why three apparently very solvent guys in high- flying careersVII in their thirties would choose to share an apartment in mid- town Manhattan as opposed to getting their own American Psycho–style bach- elor pads. And for heaven’s sake, have you looked at that Broadway-themed mural Steve Guttenberg paints of the three of them in the atrium of their apart- ment? No amount of references from Selleck to his love of sport can obscure the fact he and his two friends are living in the campiest New York apartment north of Fourteenth Street. These guys—the actor! the architect! the car- toonist!—are basically the eighties yuppie version of the Village People. And let’s talk about that homoeroticism! Accidental homoeroticism is yet another one of the great joys of eighties movies, and it was the last decade that would be blessed with the pleasure because from the nineties onward, gay cul- ture and references would be too mainstream and recognizable to slip past studios unnoticed. The plethora of eighties buddy movies easily and frequently tip into acci- dental homoeroticism, with the female characters being explicitly excluded from pretty much the whole film and all sorts of intense emotion between the two male leads. Lethal Weapon is one example and an even more obvious one is Stakeout, in which Emilio Estevez and Richard Dreyfuss spend an entire movie living together in faux domesticity and, in the case of Estevez, voyeuris- tically spying on his male partner’s sexual encounters. The Lost Boys is the most blatantly homoerotic mainstream movie ever made for teenage boys. In this film, young Michael (charisma vortex Jason Patric) is initiated into the manly life of a new town by going into a cave with Kiefer Sutherland and his male buddies (none of whom seems the least bit interested in the fact that a half-naked Jami Gertz is wandering around drunk- enly in front of them) and drinking their body fluids. Sure, why not, right? Vam- pires are inherently homoerotic and the director Joel Schumacher (who later homoeroticized Batman—not difficult, admittedly—by sticking nipples on the batsuit) revels in the connection in this movie in a way Twilight later deter- minedly, somewhat dismayingly avoids. Michael does at some point have what looks like deeply unsatisfying sex with Jami Gertz, but the person he gazes at with the most intensity is young Jack Bauer. And I haven’t even mentioned that Michael’s little brother Sam (Corey Haim), who dresses like he’s trying out for Wham!, has a poster on the door of his closet of Rob Lowe lifting up his shirt. Because sure, why not, right?