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recentanimenews · 4 years

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Bookshelf Briefs 5/28/20

Dr. STONE, Vol. 11 | By Riichiro Inagaki and Boichi | Viz Media – Balloons! Yes, Dr. STONE is taking it upon itself to do something it does best, which is show off the gorgeous vistas of this not-really-that-explored future Japan it takes place in. And that means hot air balloons. It also means speedboats! But alas, just because Senku is a scientist does not mean he can cook. So they use some of the last remaining fluid to un-stone a butler-cum-chef-cum-everything, Francois, who is flamboyant and also a lot of fun. There’s actually some really good humor in this volume as well, be it the reporter getting her camera and its undercutting right afterwards, or Senku’s Einstein impersonation. This remains one of the essential Jump titles. – Sean Gaffney

Dungeon Builder: The Demon King’s Labyrinth Is a Modern City!, Vol. 2 | By Rui Tsukiyo and Hideaki Yoshikawa | Seven Seas – After wrapping up the cliffhanger from the first volume (he names his first monster girl, which gives her the power-up (and bust expansion) she needs to win), the cast gets down to the nitty-gritty of what he wants to do: build a city, not a dungeon, which feeds on positive emotions. Of course, there are a few problems. Location, labor costs, the neighboring demon lords, and of course Marcho’s impending death, which she seems to have accepted more than Procel has. This remains sort of mid-tier manga—not interesting enough to stand out, but the pages turn easily, and you could do worse. Also, brilliant pun for the back-cover blurb. – Sean Gaffney

Éclair Blanche: A Girls’ Love Anthology That Resonates in Your Heart | By Various Artists | Yen Press – The second of the Éclair anthologies to come out over here, this one seems to focus more attention on love that is already in bloom when the story begins than love that we see the start of. There’s a nice mix of funny, heartwarming, sad, and generally melancholic. Some highlights are “Azalea Corner,” about a minion’s crush on the arrogant ojou she follows; “The Unemployed Woman and the High School Girl,” which should be awful but is by Canno so is cute instead; and “That Summer Won’t Come Again,” about a girl trapped in her sister’s past who bonds with a senpai and learns to swim again. There’s good and not-so-good here, but overall well worth buying. – Sean Gaffney

Éclair Blanche: A Girls’ Love Anthology That Resonates in Your Heart | By Various Artists | Yen Press – This is the second Éclair anthology, but aside from two continuations, all the stories here are new. The quality varies, and it seems the better stories are in the front. The first story, Fly’s “Flowers in a Storm,” sets the tone for bittersweet, ambiguous endings with the tale of a first kiss that comes too late. There are also several stories about unrequited love for a friend who loves someone else, be it another girl, an idol, or a guy. Kabocha’s “Though Summer Won’t Come Again” is a standout, about a girl who assumes the senpai she’s developed feelings for prefers her older sister, as everyone else seems to. Unfortunately, I found the stories toward the end of the volume to be less enjoyable, particularly the final one, which includes the most awkward teacher-student embrace I have ever seen. Still, I will read the next installment when it comes out! – Michelle Smith

I Didn’t Mean to Fall in Love | By Minta Suzumaru | Futekiya (digital only) – Yoshino Kiritani is a beautiful 30-year-old salaryman who happens to be both gay and a virgin. With no relationship prospects on the horizon and wanting to finally have sex, he goes to a gay bar, meets a charismatic college student named Rou, and sleeps with him. The back-and-forth that follows between these two guys is so well done. Rou is a notorious playboy with a hot-and-cold routine he has employed many times to manipulate his conquests into falling for him and confessing their feelings. He tries this on Yoshino, even though he’s actually serious about him, but it doesn’t work. Self-effacing Yoshino genuinely thinks Rou wants nothing more to do with him, forcing Rou to face the seriously scary prospect of rejection by declaring his feelings first. There are a few explicit scenes, but they serve the characters and story well. Highly recommended! – Michelle Smith

Love Me, Love Me Not, Vol. 2 | By Io Sakisaka | Viz Media – First of all, a word of advice to the author: don’t sink people’s ships in your author’s notes, OK? Secondly, this continues to have the strengths of Io Sakisaka titles—it gets teenage love in a good way, has characters who are likeable but clearly flawed, shows gradual character growth, and has clean, easy-to-follow art. She’s still trying to balance out the idealistic girl with the realistic girl, though it may be leaning towards the former. Sadly, it also contains what’s always been one of this author’s big weaknesses to me—I like her series but never love them. Each volume is fun to read and I’d call it good, but it’s never going to be tops in my favorite shoujo manga lists. It’s not life-changing the way a Yona of the Dawn is. – Sean Gaffney

Ping Pong, Vol. 1 | By Taiyo Matsumoto | Viz Media – Ever since Matsumoto was a guest at TCAF in 2013 and spoke in depth about the series, its development, and how it fit into his overall career, I’ve been desperately wanting to read Ping Pong in English. When the excellent anime adaptation came and went soon after and the original manga still hadn’t been licensed, I didn’t expect that we’d ever see it translated. But it is actually here! The first of two beautifully designed omnibus volumes. And I am absolutely in love with Matsumoto’s Ping Pong. Ostensibly a high school sports manga, Ping Pong spends very little time explaining the ins and outs of the game even though table tennis is essentially omnipresent; instead, the series devotes its attention almost entirely to the characters themselves. With strong psychological elements, in part the work’s themes explore talent, motivation, and self-determination, all supported by Matsumoto’s distinctive and spectacularly dynamic and expressive artwork. – Ash Brown

Prince Freya, Vol. 1 | By Keiko Ishihara | VIZ Media – The land of Tyr is threatened by Sigurd, the empire to the north. Our “wimpy and weak” heroine, Freya, happens to be the spitting image of Prince Edvard, who’s just been poisoned by Sigurd, and so takes on the role of impersonating him to protect her country. Alas, Freya’s performance as Edvard (and characterization in general) is inconsistent and in a way that doesn’t seem intentional on the mangaka’s part. Sometimes she boldly and capably takes action, sometimes she just cries. In my notes I wrote, “This ain’t no Basara,” prompted by a panel in which Freya is making an extremely insipid face because of something sappy her love interest has just said, but then something super dramatic and unexpected occurs and… well, now I’m cautiously on board. It may turn out to be fluffier than I would like, but I will at least give it a couple more volumes. – Michelle Smith

The Quintessential Quintuplets, Vol. 9 | By Negi Haruba | Kodansha Comics – There’s less swapping in this one, but the one time there is a swap it blows the reader out of the water. I suspect Ichika’s popularity took a nosedive after this volume, as her ideal of “all’s fair in love and war” is taken to a somewhat cruel conclusion. She’s not even the thirstiest of the quints, as both Nino and Miku are trying to make their feelings for Futaro as clear to him as possible. Meanwhile, Yotsuba is trying the opposite tactic, saying that she’ll support whichever sister that isn’t her he picks, showing off a core of self-deprecation that we’ve seen before, but never to this level. And then there’s Itsuki, who seems to have forgotten she was supposed to be first girl. Great harem antics. – Sean Gaffney

Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts, Vol. 9 | By Yu Tomofuji | Yen Press – I missed reviewing the eighth volume of this, for some reason; I’m not sure why. It continues to be quietly sweet, with a heroine who perhaps leans a little too much towards “can save everyone by the sheer power of being really nice.” That said, nice can only go so far, and when she discovers a country that’s being blackmailed into slavery, nice becomes determined and fierce. There’s also some tortured romance at the start—the king’s chief bodyguard and the princess’s attendant clearly are headed towards each other, but there are a few steps back here before we can move forward once more. I admit that I’d likely enjoy this more without its central conceit of animal people, but oh well. – Sean Gaffney

Snow White with the Red Hair, Vol. 7 | By Sorata Akiduki | Viz Media – I admit I was a bit more surprised than Shirayuki was at the identity of the leader of the Lions of the Mountain. That said, it does remind us that Shirayuki is another one of those great “shoujo heroines who underreacts to everything,” which can be quite amusing when done right. That said, this volume is when the series transitioned from the quarterly DX to the main LaLa magazine, and as such much of the middle part is taken up with introducing new readers to the main cast and the situation. This includes an amusing “personality reversal” chapter where Mitsuhide starts acting like a chivalrous knight. the book ends with the implication that their love is going public. How will that go? Great shoujo. – Sean Gaffney

Wandering Witch: The Journey of Elaina, Vol. 1 | By Jougi Shiraishi, Itsuki Nanao, and Azure | Square Enix – This is a manga adaptation of the first fourth or so of the light novel, and it’s a very good adaptation. I will admit that Elaina is a lot more expressive than I was expecting… her delivery in the novels is somewhat cool… but it makes sense given the manga’s visual medium, and she’s cute. This volume shows off what we’re going to get from now on: some cute fluffy stories, some melancholic stories with deaths, some stories of Elaina having to extricate herself from a situation, and some backstory showing how she came to be wandering. The final story was one of my favorites in the book, and it’s the best one here too. A nice adaptation. – Sean Gaffney

By: Ash Brown

#Anime #News #Manga Bookshelf

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unexpectedreylo · 5 years

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The Straight Dope On Galaxy’s Edge

I went to Disneyland Aug. 7-10 for my birthday because where else would I rather be than in the GFFA?

It’s amazing! It’s like a Ralph McQuarrie painting come to life. Even though it is “set” during the ST, it tries to have a little bit of something for every Star Wars fan. And maybe even for your friends and family who aren’t into it as much as you are.

Don’t believe the hype that it’s not doing well. Disneyland has had annual passholder blackout dates to keep attendance below crazy levels and while overall attendance is down 3% (probably due to fears of massive crowds as well as higher ticket prices), I can safely tell you that there was a great deal of interest in Galaxy’s Edge by attendees. On Thursday and Saturday, everyone made a beeline for it just as the park opened in the morning. I was doing the Griswold family dash to Wally World myself, power walking the best my middle aged/out-of-shape self could as kids and teenagers went past me. Requiring reservations for Oga’s Cantina and Savi’s Workshop (where you build the lightsabers) prevented hellacious hours-long lines for those attractions. Smuggler’s Run has had waits as long as three hours over the course of the summer. It reached its 1 millionth rider in mid-July. On Thursday, the longest I wait I saw was 80 or 90 minutes and that was on a weekday blackout date. The section of the park was busy both Thursday and Saturday mornings. For what it’s worth, it seemed like half the people at Disneyland overall had some kind of Star Wars t-shirt on. It was like a Celebration with rides.

Attendance isn’t the only metric. What really matters is whether people are spending money there and I can vouch that people were buying. The lightsabers are $200 a pop alone. There were merchandise I wanted to get but weren’t available, such as the japor snippet necklace and the Rey vest (sizes XS-L were sold out). White kyber crystals are still sold out. I saw signs everywhere limiting certain items to one per person. People were packing the cantina and all of them got drinks. Ronto’s Roasters did pretty steady business.

Just bear in mind that parks play the long game and it probably serves Disney’s long term interests to allow paying attendees and not just local APs the chance to experience Galaxy’s Edge. Hell crowds would just make people angry they spent all of that money and couldn’t see or do a thing.

Now, here’s where I’m going to dish some advice to those of you who are planning to go either to the one in Anaheim or at WDW. The WDW version is at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, so some of this won’t apply to the Mouse House East but I think a lot of it will.

Tip #1--Your best bet is on a weekday, first thing in the morning as the park opens. If it’s an AP blackout date, that’s even better. Remember, Disney is like con...you don’t come to sleep.

Tip #2--Stay at a Disney hotel to take advantage of Magic Hour. I know, I know, they’re $$$ while there are many cheaper alternatives but if you really want to beat the crowds this is the way to do it. Galaxy’s Edge will not be accessible during Magic Hour (at DL it’s just Fantasyland that’s open) but you can start lining up at the ropes in front of Frontierland and Adventureland. While GE at DL has three entrances, they will send you the looong way through New Orleans Square and Critter Country when the park fully opens. If you’re at WDW, stay at the Art of Animation, Caribbean Beach, or Pop Century resorts...they’re the ones closest to Hollywood Studios though you’ll still have to take the Disney bus to get there. (The Swan and the Dolphin are on Disney property but are NOT Disney resort hotels, so no Magic Hour.)

Another perk to staying at a Disney hotel now is that as part of our travel package we all got free exclusive Galaxy’s Edge lanyards with a pin!

Tip #3--Ladies...I think with the exception of the First Order boutique and the cosplay items, I liked the a lot of t-shirts and stuff for kids more than the ones for adults! So if you are on the small side, you might be able to fit in the bigger kids’ wear. For instance I got a great Black Spire hoodie for $40 at Jewels of Bith...the adult hoodie was like 20 bucks more. My mom liked it so much she got one for herself and my niece. Note: the merch you buy inside GE don’t say “Galaxy’s Edge” or have Star Wars logos. If you want those, you’ll have to buy them in the regular Disney stores.

Tip #4--Oga’s Cantina. Reservations are required so as soon as you plan your trip, go on the DL/WDW app and reserve right away. I think now you can reserve up to 60 days in advance...if not, definitely 14 days in advance. You are NOT guaranteed a seat. You are given an area to hang out in (at the bar, at a table, or at a booth) and you are to remain there. You can’t run and grab a booth for instance if a party leaves. Your limit is 45 minutes and two drinks. I will say though that service is fast (I guess most drinks are pre-mixed) and in our case, we didn’t even need to stay the entire 45 minutes. I got the Cliff Dweller (I don’t drink) while my brother got whatever they call the beer and my dad got the teal-colored “white” wine. My older niece got the blue milk with the Bantha cookie. She gave rave reviews for both. The younger niece got the stuff that came from the creature tank. It sounds gross but she liked it. There are no restrooms inside the cantina btw.

Tip #5--Savi’s Workshop. Again, reservations are required and they should be made as soon as possible. The lightsabers are $199 and you pay when you check in. The day I went they were running behind, so while my reservation was at 3:00, I didn’t actually get in the building until like 3:30. The process takes about 20 minutes. You are ushered into a shop and there’s a whole narrative and everything. The “gatherers” have harvested scrap metal and kyber crystals and crafted lightsaber parts. Based on the “theme” you selected at check in (stuff like “power and control” or “peace and justice”) you are given trays with parts to choose from and a crystal (blue, green, purple, or red). Your guides are in character and sometimes it’s all earnest af, but then again so are the movies. I found it surprisingly easy to put these together. The “gatherers” put the blade in for you then you step forward, turn on the switch, and yay, you got a new lightsaber! You get to wave them in the air and stuff. On the way out you are given a free sheath bag to put it in. If you don’t want to lug your new lightsaber on a plane or have to check it in, you can have it shipped home for $17 at the First Order boutique (though I don’t know if other stores will do it for you too).

Tip #6--Smugglers’ Run. The best time to go on the ride, since to date there are no fastpasses, is right when the park opens. Thursday morning at 8:10 a.m. had the shortest wait, 15 minutes but I pretty much walked right onto the ride. The next best option is going single rider, which is what my brother and I did the second time we went on it. It was about half the regular wait time. Have your camera ready to get that chess table photo op because you will get called right away for your “boarding group” (assigned with a color). Two pilot, two shoot, two “engineer.” The light up buttons make it easy to figure out what you have to do but accuracy is tough. I piloted the first time, shot the second time. The good news is I did not crash either time. Which is miraculous.

Tip #7--Other food and drink. Unfortunately I didn’t get the opportunity to eat at Docking Bay 7 or Ronto Rosters. I’m told the breakfast wrap at Ronto Roasters is phenomenal. Don’t expect typical Disney fare in Galaxy’s Edge; the closest it comes is the Star Wars popcorn. No galactic churros or Mickey ice cream pops here. In fact an in-character cast member and Chewbacca were really curious about our churros when we went into Galaxy’s Edge on Saturday. My younger niece even tried to give Chewie a piece to try, LOL. What you can get is blue milk and green milk. We got one of each on Thursday to try. Both were better than the notoriously sweet butterbeers at Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Tasty and refreshing on a hot day. But I kinda think we all leaned more toward the blue milk. In fact the nieces insisted on another round of blue milk when we returned on Saturday. You can get the Aurebesh label soda and water at a variety of stands and at Docking Bay 7. (Maybe Ronto Roasters too.) They’re pricey but everything at Disney is 30-50% more expensive than they would be anywhere else. And the Aurebesh bottles make for low cost souvenirs.

Tip #8--Characters. Chewbacca and FO stormtroopers were around quite a bit. I saw Vi Moradi twice and Kylo a couple of times (Chewie and Kylo get treated like rock stars), but I totally missed Rey. My parents saw her though. Characters here do NOT sign autographs, something my nieces found out the hard way when they tried to get them from stormtroopers. LOL.

Tip #8--Dok-Ondar’s Den of Antiquities. This is where you buy your holocrons and loose kyber crystals (only with purchase of a holocron). They were still out of white crystals so I bought a red one. When you put a red crystal in your Jedi holocron, Yoda warns you about the dark side. Bonus: the kyber crystals you buy here can be put in your lightsaber from Savi’s Workshop. So if you buy both a holocron and a lightsaber, make sure you get a different color crystal for each so you can switch them around! Here you’ll find a lot of Jedi cosplay, Leia cosplay, and the headdress Padme used in AOTC as part of her peasant disguise, among other goodies. The stained glass portraits of Leia and Queen Amidala were stunning but they were kinda big and 95 bucks apiece. They had a set of ceramic busts of everyone’s favorite mother-daughter duo for $55 but I didn’t feel like lugging those around at the time. For older Star Wars fans, this is probably going to be your favorite store.

Tip #9--Other merchandise/shopping. The First Order boutique is located right next to Kylo’s parked shuttle and across from the “milk” stand. The Resistance has two carts at the entrance in front of the (unopened) Rise of the Resistance ride. I kinda like that the underground Resistance is on the “outskirts” of the outpost while the conquering FO is right there in the center of town. Makes sense for the narrative. Savi’s and the store where you can build a droid (no reservation necessary...this was a hit with kids) are next to each other. Everything else is in the marketplace in a series of smallish stalls. Keep an eye out because nobody has signs. (Note: layout might be slightly different at WDW.)

Tip #10--Wear a hat and sunscreen. The marketplace is the only area in GE with shade. The rest of it is out in the sun, so be prepared because in CA it’s easy to get a sunburn and in FL, it’s easier still. Bring a rain poncho if you’re at WDW because of those hit and run thunderstorms.

Tip #11-- You don’t have to be a passive tourist. Some cast members get into it more than others but you’ll get more out of Galaxy’s Edge if you play along. As Star Wars fans, you’ll get the lingo (for instance they do call kids “younglings” and talk about money as credits) so that’s no problem. When you’re inside of Galaxy’s Edge you can go on the DL/WDW app and activate your “datapad” and scan stuff at various locations. My brother did this with his phone while we were poking around and you can earn rankings and stuff within the different factions.

Overall I think what Galaxy’s Edge is now is just the beginning. Rise of the Resistance opens this winter at both parks and from what I’ve heard, more attractions and shows are in the works. Personally, I’d love a hair braiding station where you can get your hair done like Leia or Rey or Battle of Geonosis Padme since that’s probably her easiest style! I want a Reylo night time show! But it’s absolutely worth visiting as it is. You can easily spend half the day or longer there, depending on how much you want to do. Few Star Wars or Disney experiences will ever top entering Galaxy’s Edge, huffing and puffing from having to go up and down hills, hearing the music over the loudspeakers and the cast members and various characters coming out to wave hello to everyone. Even the stormtroopers. I felt like I’d just finished the Batuu 5K! And then seeing everyone gawk at the Millennium Falcon in front of Smuggler’s Run.

#galaxy's edge #star wars #disney #reylo #geekylife #geek travel

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stereksecretsanta · 5 years

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Merry Christmas, @otpsfloat!

This was a blast to write, I really hope you love it as much as I loved writing it for you! I tried t make it light, fun and silly because it's how Christmas is supposed to be ♥

Read on AO3

*****

More than words can say

When Stiles was 8, he met a very scary werewolf.

He was at Cora’s birthday party, along with other kids from their same grade at school. Cora’s elder sister, a werewolf named Laura, had been kind to them, hugging each kid gently at their arrival.

But Cora’s older brother scared the poop out of him. Derek was dressed in black, from head to toe, and his pale face was blank while he stared at the kids playing on his backyard.

For a few hours, Stiles forgot about him. However, at some moment, Stiles went in searching for a bathroom. His mom and dad were telling Mrs. Hale a funny story and Stiles didn’t want to bother them.

After finishing his business in the bathroom, Stiles heard the low humming of a different music playing, coming from upstairs. He had never heard anything like it before.

Curious to a fault, Stiles followed the song and found a door ajar at the end of the corridor.

He looked through the gap and froze. Sitting on the floor by the end of the bed, surrounded by art supplies, was Derek The Scary Werewolf.

But - he didn’t look so threatening anymore, because there was a small smile on his lips and a serene expression on his usually blank face.

Stiles must have made some noise, because Derek stopped doing whatever he was doing and looked straight at him, his face carefully devoid of any expression again.

Stiles hesitated and then as if he was entering a dragon’s lair, he stepped inside the room, walked a few steps, and promptly fell by Derek’s side. He peered over a very stiff shoulder and gasped.

On the page Derek was holding, there was a perfect copy of the house and the forest outside. It was very beautiful.

He probably said it out loud, because Derek snorted and said. “I am glad you like it. It’s not finished though.

Stiles nodded, distracted, but couldn’t stop staring at the picture. After a few minutes, when it became clear that Stiles wasn't planning on leaving, Derek asked hesitantly “Tired of the party?”

Stiles glanced at him and looked down at his hands. “I just” - don’t like being treated as a joke - “don’t have many friends here.”

Derek nodded, considering his next words. “Would you like me to draw something for you? You could paint it here, with me”.

“YES!” Was Stiles eager response. Derek seemed surprised by his reaction, but then he got a new page and asked: “What do you want to paint?”

Stiles considered it for a second, then “A unicorn!” Derek made an unhappy face but complied.

Sometime later, his mom and Mrs. Talia showed up at the door. “Stiles, are you bothering Derek?” Said his mom reprovingly. Before he could say anything, Derek shook his head. “He is fine, Mrs. Stilinski. He is fun.”

Stiles felt happy all of a sudden. Painting by Derek’s side, listening to the music playing on his radio, was strangely soothing. He proudly showed his mom his paint. “Look what we did!”.

His mom looked at the page, which was a catastrophe of shapes and colors, smiled a fond smile at him. “It’s beautiful honey”, she said while Mrs. Hale laughed softly at the door. “We will hang on the fridge when we get home, ok?” Stiles nodded, content.

Before they left, Mrs. Hale said to Derek “We will be cutting the birthday cake soon. Bring Stiles, ok?”. Derek assented.

After a few minutes, Derek let go of his paper and pencil and stretched. “We should go back”, he said. Stiles felt strangely sad at the words as if it meant no more painting with Derek.

As if sensing the change in the mood, Derek continued “We can sing the birthday song, eat and then come back here. I can maybe draw something else for you -”

“Like a dragon?” Stiles gasped, the heavy feeling leaving his chest. Only unicorns were better than dragons, everyone knew that.

Derek looked surprised, opening and closing his mouth a few times, then he shrugged. “I can try”.

Stiles smiled a crazy smile, all white teeth. He couldn’t help it, he was so, so happy. Aside from his mom and dad, nobody had been this nice to him before. Derek looked at him with uncertainty for a moment, then got up and extended a hand towards him. “Come on”.

Stiles followed him out of the bedroom, and glanced at the mirror on the corridor wall, surprising himself by the yellow color fading from his eyes. He blinked, and it was gone.

_______________

After that, it became a common thing to see Stiles exploring the Hale house, usually after a very moody teenager. Even though Stiles always said to his dad that he was going to spend time with Cora, and there was a four-year gap between Derek and Stiles, everyone knew the truth.

Everyone but Stiles recognized the way that Derek attracted Stiles like a mock to a flame.

In one of those days, while all the Hales and the Stilinskis enjoyed a warm afternoon at the pond behind the property, Stiles sat at the dock in a way he almost never did, still and focused as if his life depended on it. And maybe it did.

His eyes were drawn to the careful way that Derek applied black polish nail to his toes. Even in this weather, Derek wore a large black t-shirt with ripped sleeves over his swim truck.

“Is it cool to use a polish nail?” Why was he asking this, of course, it was cool. Derek was doing it, wasn’t he?

He perked up at the barest hint of a smile on Derek’s pierced lip. The werewolf looked at him through his long bangs. “Do you want me to do your nails too?”

Stiles could barely contain the surge of energy at the proposal. “YES!”

All eyes glanced at them, them away, exasperated and fond. But the boys didn’t notice it.

Derek started with his bitten fingernails, and Stiles chatted animatedly about the color, and how he was a cool kid now, and how he was going to impress everyone at school on Monday.

Through all his rant, Derek worked diligently. He was the only person who never told Stiles to shut up. Not even Scott had that much patience. It warmed Stiles heart in ways he couldn’t explain yet.

_______________

Stiles was walking back from summer school when he saw a particularly dark head enter the ice cream shop. It was easy to spot Derek among every other BH citizen: his dark clothes, ripped jeans, band t-shirts, the side bangs… it all made a very compelling image. If it was on anyone else Stiles was sure the look would be ridiculous, but he suspected Derek could walk around in a dinosaur costume and still be cool as fuck.

Stiles followed him to the shop without thinking twice and was greeted with the sight of Derek sitting at a table, holding one cone of Chocolate and another one of assorted flavors for Stiles.

He immediately hurried and got hold of his delicious ice cream, sitting across from Derek. “How did you know I was coming?” Stiles asked while licking his dessert.

“I heard your heartbeat”, Derek says, shrugging. “You are not exactly quiet, pup”.

Of course, he chose the bitterest of all flavors, a chocolate so dark it didn’t even reflect the light anymore. It was devoid of any soul, just like Derek tried to pretend he was. Stiles rolled his eyes, praying for patience, then flourished his right hand. In a second, the flavor turned pink and full of different toppings.

Being a spark had its advantages sometimes.

Derek eyed his new ice cream with a resigned expression on his face, the barest hints of a pout on his lips, and Stiles could not hold back anymore, busting out a loud laugh and scaring the other customers.

“You look ridiculous holding it”, he exclaimed, giggling like a child, which he was not anymore. He was sixteen, ok? He tried to get a hold of himself, saying “You don’t have to eat it. Here” he extended his hands to grab the desert, planning on buying something else for Derek as an apology for the prank, but Derek leaned away. Without missing a beat, Derek started tasting his bright monstrosity of ice cream, eyeing Stiles the whole time with a challenge in his eyes.

Stiles gasped.

Derek smirked, the asshole. “It’s good”, he said, as if he hasn’t blown Stiles’ mind by eating the strawberry ice cream.

Swallowing, Stiles said with as much nonchalance he could muster “Your welcome.”

When they finished their deserts, Derek asked “Are you free this afternoon? Or do you have homework”

Stiles thought about it for a second, about how fortunate it was that Derek was back from college for summer vacation and how much Stiles missed him while he was away, then smiled a huge smile. “Why? Do you want to spend time with your best friend, aka Moi, the greatest person you ever met?”

Derek rolled his eyes, standing and offering a hand to Stiles. “Yes, oh great one. Want to play video games?”

Stiles' heart skipped a beat, he was so happy and couldn’t explain why. This was just the usual. But when he took hold of Derek’s hand and got up, nodding excitedly, he knew that there was no one else he would rather spend his day with.

_______________

Stiles was nervous, ok? Dying from it. Just eyeing the phone got his heart beating madly in his chest. But he sucked up and dialed the number.

“Hey pup, what’s up?” Derek’s voice came all calm and quiet, and Stiles almost died from nerves.

“Der? I - “ he stopped.

Derek waited, not mentioning how late it was, not saying anything, and that gave the courage Stiles needed to carry on. “I go to college next week, you know?”

“I know”, murmured Derek.

“And I was wondering, you know if you could give-me-a-tattoo-as-a-birthday-present?” He shrieked.

“Uh - What?”

Stiles sighed. “I want a tattoo Der. As an acceptance present.” He repeated, defeated already. There was no way Derek would accept it.

“You was accepted two months ago”, is what the asshole says.

“Then it just means that this present is long overdue, don’t you think?” Stiles said rudely and cringed, but Derek somehow knew it was just the nerves talking.

“I take the Sheriff doesn’t know, or you wouldn’t be calling me at this hour.”

“I am 18! I can make my own decisions!” Stiles paced back and forth around his childhood bedroom, biting his nails and staring at his Star Wars and Star Trek posters.

“He will kill me,” Derek murmured on the line then said louder “Meet me at the parlor in half an hour.” Then hang up.

Stiles made there in fifteen minutes and waited for Derek on the sidewalk.

Derek arrived fully clothed in a tight Pink Floyd t-shirt and light jeans, his hair pulled into a messed knot on his head, and his own tattoos showing up on his forearms. Stiles knew there were more hidden by his clothes.

They entered Derek’s tattoo parlor, the one he worked along Laura, Erika, Boyd, and Isaac, though at this time of the night it was empty. Stiles was glad for it.

Derek took him all the way to the back, to the place Stiles helped him decorate to be his own room, and motioned for Stiles to sit on the tattoo chair while he walked around, preparing his supplies. They didn’t breathe a word to each other since the phone call, and Stiles was beginning to get overtaken by his fears. Was Derek mad at him?

“Are you mad at me”, he blurted.

Derek paused, and walked over to him, putting a hand on his neck. “Of course not. Are you sure of this, Stiles?”

Stiles nodded. “You know I am.”

A single eyebrow rose, and Derek touched their foreheads, some of his stray bangs tickling Stiles’s skin. “Do I?” He smiled, and it made his piercing move, attracting Stiles’ attention to it for a second.

Stiles could smell him, and it grounded his nerves. “You also know what tattoo I want.”

That made Derek pause again, and he leaned away enough to look Stiles in the eye. Directly into his glowing yellow eyes.

He nodded once, standing up to grab his supplies and the draw of the moon cycle he had made for Stiles a couple months ago, and that Stiles promptly framed and brought back to put on the wall of the newly renovated room. For good luck , he had said with a wink.

“Where do you want it?” Derek asked.

“Here” Stiles opened the buttons of his flannel shirt and turning on his back. Derek would know what to do. And he did, after reverently touching the smooth skin of Stiles’s back.

After a while, Stiles noticed the lack of pain and a quick glance told him that Derek was using the hand steadying him to pull his pain. “Do you do this to all of your customers?” He asked, strangely invested in the answer.

Derek snorted. “What do you think? Do you often see me pulling pain from other people?” He shook his head. “There is no way I would do it. If they want to tattoo themselves so badly, that comes with the pain as well”.

Stiles didn’t know what to make of that information. “So I am special?” he murmured, staring at the black lines on Derek’s forearms.

“You know you are” Derek answered honestly. Stiles reached out and put his hands on Derek’s tight, silently conveying the gratitude he couldn’t put into words.

_______________

College was hell. Junior year was more than Hell, it was the devil incarnate himself.

Stiles came home for Christmas break with a battered soul and mind. He would have to sleep for centuries just to recover the past weeks.

Of course, that was not how real life worked. He arrived just in time to sleep and spend some time with his parents, and then the next day was the Christmas party at the Hale’s. It was tradition , and he wanted to see Derek so fucking badly. They didn’t talk as often as he would like, and he knew it was his own schedule’s fault.

He knew the tattoo parlor was going great, and that Derek had a road trip with Laura and Cora during summer, all through the girl’s social media. It was maddening.

So he wasn’t surprised when he arrived and saw that Derek had got a haircut. But he was mad for not having seen it sooner. His hair was now cut short on the side and styled at the top.

After giving his greetings to all the others (having received a huge hug from the Hale matriarch), he left his own parents talking with Derek’s dad on the highly decorated living room and followed the noise to the backyard. The scenery was breathtaking, with hanging lights all around, and tables decorated with flowers and small Christmas trees.

He found the werewolf close to the table with all the drinks, listening to an animatedly Laura and Isaac talk his ear off with God knows what this time. Derek must have heard him approach, because he suddenly got another cup, pouring a weird looking juice inside, gave Laura a kiss on the cheek, and met Stiles halfway.

He gave Stiles the drink as a greeting and smiled expectantly at him.

Stiles smiled back, sipping carefully at the drink. He immediately reared back, because that - it was alcohol! On Christmas! Hell Yeah! He sipped again, glancing at Derek. “My dad will kill you. Nice knowing you, Der.”

“Ha ha”, Derek rolled his eyes. “I wasn’t there for your booze birthday, so we are celebrating it properly today.”

“On Christmas' Eve”, Stiles exclaimed, trying for horrified but smiling too much for it.

“When else?” Derek put an arm over his shoulders and kissed the side of his head. “Welcome back, pup.”

The rest of the night was a blur. Maybe at some time, he got so drunk he thought it was funny to change Derek’s shirt to a Christmas sweater, and instead of the usual cute Santa Claus’ reindeers, they were zombies! It was awesome, especially the way the sweater hugged Derek’s torso. He might have said that out loud too.

The morning after though, not so much. His head hurt as if someone was beating a sledgehammer against it, and Stiles hated it.

“I hate it”, he said to no one in particular.

“I can see it”, Derek answered, and Stiles almost died from a fucking heart attack. “What. The. Fuck.” Stiles said, grabbing his chest to calm his crazy heart. He recognized this room. They were in Derek’s apartment, close to the preserve and to the Hale house.

Derek just smiled indulgently to him from the door. “I figured you must be hungry”. He carried a tray with breakfast, which he deposited by Stiles’ side and sat on the bed too. “I brought you here last night because it was faster, and I was kind of too drunk to drive to your house. Your parents had left too early last night. Or maybe not so early. I don’t know. We drank way too much.”

With a headache still going strong, Stiles stared through narrowed eyes at his messed hair, gray sleeveless shirt, his tattooed arms and pierced lips, and dark boxer briefs. Derek’s eyes still had the smudge of the eyeliner he had used last night, and his nails were still painted black, as always.

Stiles had never loved something as much as he loved Derek right now.

So he didn’t question it, couldn’t have stopped it if he wanted to. He just leaned forward and brushed his lips on Derek’s for a second. From this close, he could count the long eyelashes on Derek’s eyes, and he knew his own must be glowing yellow, the way they always did for Derek, and only with him.

“I missed you a fucking ton”, Stiles said, putting some space between them. “You wanted me here too, right?”

That was why he brought Stiles to his den, instead of letting him stay at the Hale house. His parents had a lot of rooms for guests up there. But no, Derek kept him close and made him breakfast. And Stiles never wanted to leave this bed. Never ever.

Derek didn’t say anything. He didn’t have to. He just chased Stiles’ mouth with his own.

FIM.

#otpsfloat #stereksanta18 #*fic18 #*gifts18

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Drew Barrymore ‘I don’t pretend to be perfect’

Drew Barrymore is back on our screens, this time as a flesh-eating estate agent. She tells Rebecca Nicholson about the endless ups and downs of her life from child star to teen rebel, and savvy producer to business woman and explains why shell fight to the death to be happy

Drew Barrymore walks into the hotel room in Berlin flanked by assistants, caked in heavy TV make-up and wrapped in a brown fluffy jacket that makes her look like a very glamorous teddy bear. Within seconds, the entourage has disappeared, shes wiped every last scrap of foundation from her face and shes rummaging around underneath her dress, a kind of earth mother hippy smock, regretting her decision to wear tights on this sub-freezing day. Why does anyone wear pantyhose? she exclaims, barefaced, faux-exasperated, shifting in her armchair, trying to get comfortable. Theyre so fucking sadistic! Theyre not even control pants, she says, conspiratorially, but Im forcing them to be.

For a lot of women, especially women who grew up between 1982 and the early 2000s, Barrymore is a particular kind of icon. Shes the accessible rebel we all wanted to be, or be friends with. Shes the child star of ET who hit the skids early and hard, and not only survived, but went on to be one of the most popular (and bankable) female stars of the past three decades. She appeared in, and often produced, the kinds of movies that are vital viewing for teenagers, from the trashy taboo-busting rebellion of Poison Ivy, to the triumphant high school romcom Never Been Kissed, to the moody angst of Donnie Darko. Plus, in her 20s, she seemed to hang out with the best bands, go to all the best parties and always looked like she was having the time of her life. She was the manic pixie dream girl before it became a tacky indie film stereotype. The memoir she wrote in 2015 is, appropriately, called Wildflower.

She looks genuinely pleased that she holds such a place in peoples minds, and decides that if people do like her, If anyone has any goodwill towards me, careful not to sound arrogant, its because she extends goodwill to other people. Not in an annoying way, but just, like, being in peoples fucking corners. Its this combination of soft and sharp, all wrapped up in that valley girl lilt, that has carried her through life. I want people to be happy, but I know happiness has to be fought for. Its a warrior trophy. Its not hippy, she insists. Im like, fight. Fight to the death to be happy, and dont kill anyone along the way.

Little riot grrrl: Drew Barrymore with Steven Spielberg at the age of five on the set of 1982s ET. Photograph: Everett Collection/Rex Features

Were in Germany to talk about Santa Clarita Diet, the new Netflix series which has brought her back into the spotlight again at 41. Its a warm and occasionally gross 10-part comedy about Sheila and Joel, estate agents who have been together since their school days, and whose marriage is tested when the amiable Sheila develops a sudden taste for human flesh.

I stopped working to have my kids and take care of them and raise them, and so I was nervous about working again, she says. I was going through a dark time in my own life. And then I read it and I liked it. Now what am I supposed to do? I cant do this right now, its terrible timing, my whole life is falling apart. She ended up executive producing it as well as starring.

That her life was falling apart out of the spotlight was a new thing for Barrymore, who had played out most of her life in a very public sphere. No ones talking about my life. I mean, yes, I had a divorce, but even that was real quiet. She split up with actor Will Kopelman, the father of her two children, Olive, four, and Frankie, two, at the beginning of 2016, but recently posted an Instagram of him running the New York marathon; she was there, with their daughters, to support him. It was like, Oh, they didnt work out, I wonder why? Oh my God they seem like such good friends, and so amicable, I guess well stop giving a shit. I was so happy about that, she says, breezily.

Warm and occasionally gross: Barrymore in Santa Clarita Diet. Photograph: Erica Parise/Netflix

In the midst of her divorce, Santa Clarita Diet was a transformative experience. Ironically, it wasnt the worst timing. It was great. It was really happy. It was a good summer. My daughters and I got to go out to California and I got three days off a week. Just as becoming a proto-zombie saves Sheila from the numbing boredom of domestic life, Barrymore went through her own kind of rejuvenation. I feel like Sheila. I feel like maybe I was dead inside, she says cheerfully, blowing her nose. I dont know. I was in a place in my life where I had gained a lot of weight, and been in a place of fear and sadness, and I felt stuck. I dont think thats so much unlike the character.

Until she took time away from acting to have kids, Barrymore had never not worked. She began her career at 11 months in an advert for dog food, quickly becoming the main breadwinner for herself and her mother, Jaid, who raised her alone. Her father John Barrymore, of the Barrymore acting dynasty The great line of loonies from which I come, as she puts it wasnt around much. Her extraordinary youth was public and well-documented. Her breakout role in ET, at five years old, was followed by an outlandish few years of childhood boozing and drug-taking, rehab and institutions, and the sense that, at 14, she was washed up and her career was over.

But it wasnt. She moved into an apartment by herself, got a job in a coffee shop, learned how to do her own laundry and, eventually, clawed her way back into the business, defeating the curse of the child actor where so many others have been lost. She has said her 20s were a kind of delayed adolescence. Now, in her 40s, shes had a lifetimes worth of parties and experiences, and says she doesnt miss it at all. I dont feel like Im not at the centre of things. I dont worry about career stuff. I dont worry about who the hottest band is or that Im not at that show that night. I dont care if the latest trend is happening and its just passing me by.

Star quality: Barrymore with Cameron Diaz and Lucy Liu in Charlies Angels. Photograph: Image Net

Her idea of a good time these days is taking the girls to Disney World, or setting up movie nights for the kids in my daughters class. I just watched Home Alone and all the moms and I were crying at the end. Oh my God, its so good! I appreciate it now much more than I did when I was younger.

Shes too classy to be drawn into any child actor comparisons it would be patronising, annoying, no thanks, she says, nicely but firmly but we talk more broadly about celebrity scandals. Everyone goes up and goes down. Thats life. Nobody wants all of it looked at and discussed. However, if you do put yourself out there, then you need to be prepared for that to be examined and you have to handle it to the best of your abilities. So for people who are like [she puts on a whiny voice]: Dont look at me you put yourself out there!

Is there any way to avoid being examined and discussed? Not in this day and age. You just try to manage things in the healthiest way you can. And by the way? You wont all the time. Youre gonna fuck up. So fuck up, then pick yourself back up. But just be nice and kind and humble and gracious and have a sense of humour. And dont pretend to be perfect.

Golden girl: winning a Golden Globe for Grey Gardens in 2010. Photograph: NBC/Getty Images

Barrymore dealt with her own initial fuck-ups in an incredible and startling memoir, Little Girl Lost, which she wryly calls, The mea culpa book I wrote when I was 14. She appeared on Oprah with her mother to promote it, to go over what went wrong. You can watch it on YouTube; shes 15 going on 35. Yet the book has a cult following, in part because it makes all the partying she did as a young child sound kind of adventurous. Yeah! Its like an 80s cult tragedy book, which is super cool and wrong and fun all at the same time. Its a little riot grrrl, you know?

Theres a chapter where Barrymore describes being hauled off to an institution at her mothers behest, and shes furious at the starstruck guards. God, youve just yanked me out of my house with cuffs on, I thought, and now youre asking me what it was like to meet ET. What jerks, she writes. Even at 14, she had a disdain for celebrity. Still do, she says, today.

We meet on the afternoon of Trumps inauguration. She plans to watch it later, as shes a total news junkie, but she doesnt particularly want to talk about what she thinks of him. Im not a painter and Im not a musician and I think people dont want to hear it from actors, she says. I read this op-ed in the New York Times that was saying, just do things quietly, in your art.

Slasher: Barrymore in Wes Cravens Scream, 1996. Photograph: Allstar

Barrymore is more about the practical. During her screen break, she wrote Wildflower, which became a New York Times bestseller, and shes built a sizeable business empire, including Barrymore wines, a production company, Flower Films, and beauty brand Flower Cosmetics. All of which channel some of that free-spirit warmth into profits reports suggest shes worth $125m. Theres a line in Santa Clarita Diet where Sheila announces: I sleep two hours a night. I get so much done! It struck me that for Barrymore, spinning so many plates, that might be funny. Actually, she says, it was originally written that Sheila would use her spare time to learn French. Me, in my real life, would spend time learning French. This woman literally has a ticking clock on her mortality. Shed be studying fucking Bruce Lee moves and learning to do shit. The line was changed at Barrymores request: instead of learning a language, Sheila would get the ability to parallel park in one move. Im, like, yes! Thats practical!

Its strange to see Barrymore, who seemed to be an eternal teenager, starring as the mother of a teenager in Santa Clarita Diet, partly because her fame is life-long, and you can see interviews with her at almost every age on YouTube. But, she says, she never watches them, never goes back. Hell no. The only thing I ever think when I see myself when Im younger, if Im on a talk show and Im stuck there having to watch clips, is that I was so much more brassy when I was young. Im like: Where do you get the balls, kid?

She says it as if those balls have disappeared with age. She claims shes much more polite now. Sarcastic, but polite. And worse still, she tries to say shes newly dull. In my life Im just so quiet and boring, she declares, not entirely convincingly. This is Drew Barrymore, after all, who talks with the hunger of someone who will always be on the lookout for something new, whether thats being a mother, a businesswoman, or playing a friendly estate agent who kills and eats bad people. I am pretty boring, she insists. I tell her I dont believe it. She smiles slyly, and leans in. Theres a rebel in her still. Im not sure I believe it either.

Santa Clarita Diet launches on Netflix on 3 February