timeskip Molly concepts - probably when she's around 16-17 ish, maybe even early college? ( I'm not a big fan of the "ooh the bubbly character gets older and is now SUPER SAD" trope so this is more like... Molly is still Molly, she just gets older and faces more hardships/life stressors that come with age, and struggles to maintain the same high level of positivity/resiliency she used to have )

Tgamm S1 11-A ¨Ice Princess¨ episode analysis

The Mcgees find out about the Brighton urban legend, the ¨Ice Princess¨: An ice skater ghost that every four years covers the entire city in a blizzard while she repeats her routine over and over. The Mcgees try to find a way to persuade her into stopping the blizzard...

¨Ice Princess¨ is an episode that surprised me the first time i watched it. It has multiple elements that makes it a great episode. It’s able to tell a sweet story about people finding their passion again for something they used to love doing, all in eleven minutes.

One thing that separates Tgamm from other animated shows is how ghosts are potrayed. They aren’t exactly ¨naturally evil¨ as more it’s something that some ghost choose to be. They have their own personalities and backstories and are treated as supernatural beings that happen to be connected to the human realm. More often than not, in the series, ghosts are lost souls who need help or had an ¨unfinished business¨ from their human lives. This was the case with Howlin Harriet, who only was looking for her missing toe.

In this episode the main antagonist is a ghost who has been tormenting herself because of the public humiliation she went through after she failed at doing a ice skating move when she was still alive. Sonia was a well known ice skater in Brighton that, after her mistake in the Winter Games, it is hinted that she left the sport, something she loved doing. Every four years, as a ghost, she returns to Brighton and tries repeating the same routine she failed at doing, covering the city in a blizzard during the process. She can’t find a way to rest from that mistake that has been haunting her even in her afterlife.

I like how the Mcgees try talking to her and find a way to help her with her problem. It’s a unique approach to ghost antagonists that i don’t see that much in other shows and i appreciate the series doing this. I also find interesting that Molly isn’t the one that helps Sonia, it’s Pete because he has a talent for ice skating.

Another aspect i really liked from this episode is that Pete gets some charcater development. It’s revealed that in his youth he used to an ice skater and, much like Sonia, he went through a similar humiliating situation that made him stop skating. Because of this, he relates to the Ice Princess story and offers himself to do ice skating with her. In addition to this, it’s hinted that Pete’s older siblings used to mock him when he was a kid, something that gives context for his current insecurities and it gets later explored in the ¨Twin Trouble¨.

This way ¨Ice Princess¨ tackles the theme of people who dedicate themselves to sports or art becoming obsessed with doing everything perfect that they forget to have fun. They feel so pressured in doing things just right that they start to loose their passion for the sport, in this case. After Sonia and Pete skate together and still fail in their routine, they both realize that they don’t have to be perfect and recover that joy in ice skating they lost many years ago.

In smaller note, Scratch gets a bit of extra development in the sense he starts to notice that he is really into ice skating. He enjoys seeing Pete and Sonia practicing their routine and later asks Pete to show him some of his movies. I think it’s a nice addition to his character and it is sweet to see him joining Pete near the end of the story.

On last point, the song sequence is well animated and it fits nicely the theme. It has this sports movie song vibes that manages to be quite emotional. It does a good job at showing how the characters feel at the moment. The whole musical scene is one of my favourites from this half of the season. 

In conclusion, ¨Ice Princess¨ is great episode that delivers a good message about passion in sports and manages to to tell an interesting story about a secondary character in a short time. It also gives some development for Pete’s character, which it is appreciated. Overall, a solid episode.

Release Day Review! Dangerously Dark by C.J. Burright, Plus an Interview w/ the Author!

Dangerously Dark (The Dreamcaster Series #3) by C.J. Burright Genre: Adult Fiction (Paranormal Romance) Date Published: November 13, 2017 Publisher: Ravenrock Publishing LLC

Some call him Purgatory’s Missing Prince. Demon Master. Overlord of Shadows. Only one woman may call him hers.

A master of dreams, a failure at life…

After another botched career attempt, Quinn Carmichael escapes to a remote lodge for a weekend recharge, needing respite…especially from the nightmares that haunt even her days. When a wounded, sexy-as-sin stranger faceplants unconscious on her kitchen floor, there’s something disturbingly familiar about him—as in he’s the boy from her childhood dreams. Mr. Dark, Dangerous, and Diabolical may be the key to unlocking the mysteries of her past and future, and Quinn isn’t about to let the opportunity—or him—escape without a fight.

His time is running out…

Known as Purgatory’s Missing Prince, Zaire’s existence has been one of endless pain, torture, and loss. Resigned to his fate, his final goal is simple—rescue his nephew before succumbing to the deadly darkness inside him. But when a fateful misstep brings him face-to-face with the one woman who could have saved him once upon a dream—the one woman he treasures above all else—he battles to keep his distance before he destroys her, too. But he would gladly sell his soul for just one taste.

Love draws them together, destiny will tear them apart

With ruthless enemies closing in, Quinn and Zaire must fight to save each other and those they care for before it’s too late—even if it means they’re doomed to live apart forever.

Dangerously Dark is the third book in the Dreamcaster series by C.J. Burright. This series just gets better and better. This time we see things mostly from the perspectives of Zaire and Quinn, though we do get glimpses from other characters from time to time. These different views really helped to build the situation and what was going on. Zaire has had a horrific life. Granted he has also done a lot of horrific things. Quinn was unique. She has used her dreams to strengthen herself it seems. She is a survivor. So, when Zaire disappeared from her dreams, she learned to fight them herself.  I loved her strength. I also love when they showed their vulnerabilities too. Characters like these are what makes fiction believable. I love it. The romantic tension is palpable. You don't know if they're going to rip each other's throats out or rip each other's clothes off. Add in the horror and mystery that always surrounds the world of the V’alkara, and this is completely impossible to stop reading. The whole Dreamcaster Series story line is pretty ingenious. Each book blows me away. I can't get enough. 

The ARC of Dangerously Dark by C.J. Burright was kindly provided to me by the author & Bewitching Book Tours for review. The opinions are my own.

Quinn tossed the note on the coffee table and wrapped one hand around the warm ceramic mug, absently petting Wolfgang with the other. Dusk took over beyond the wall of windows, made darker by the blizzard. Falling snow hid the skirting tree line. Wind howled at the house corners and turned treetops into jerking puppets. The perfect meltdown location. No phones, no people, no problem. The lamp flickered and died, leaving her with only the dancing firelight, not that she minded. The power had lasted longer than she expected. Stoked fire, hot cider, and now she had a great excuse to procrastinate reading unhelpful flyers. She sipped her drink and wriggled back on the couch. Wolfgang launched off her lap, kicking papers everywhere and sloshing her drink. “Bad cat!” He scurried into the kitchen, out of sight. A distinct thud followed, which meant Wolfgang was up to no good. “I should’ve sent you off to the Nameless One.” Quinn shoved the remaining flyers aside and nabbed the flashlight from the end table. “You’d make an amazing hat, and there’d be enough fur left to make a stole, the perfect ensemble to compliment her plastic face.” She flicked on the flashlight and shuffled into the kitchen, ignoring how the light made all the shadows twist and scuttle on the walls and ceiling. Broken bones might bother her, but the dark never had. Wolfgang expectantly stood at the back door. He meowed, high and plaintive. Nothing looked out of place. Whatever had made the thud wasn’t in the kitchen. Maybe the wind had blown a loose branch against the house. “What, you’re a snow leopard now? There’s no fancy feline feast waiting out there for you.” Wolfgang rubbed his cheek against the doorframe, circled, and meowed again. Thud. The entire door shook. Quinn jumped. That was no branch. All the horror movies she loved to watch and ridicule flashed to mind, a lot less funny now. Alone in the woods. Killer storm. No electricity. No connection to the outside world. Wolfgang’s purr rumbled, and he slid his face over the jamb again. The noise hadn’t spooked him even a little, and animals always sensed evil. Wolfgang had had no problem detecting it in Molly. She squared her shoulders. No one would be roaming around in a blizzard. An animal had probably knocked the trashcan into the door, and a quick look would ease any worry. At the first glimpse of fur or fang—or red, glowing eyes—she’d go for the door slam. Pushing Wolfgang back with one foot, she cracked open the door. Wind exploded in, ripping the doorknob from her grip and firing snow and ice into her eyes. The door banged into the wall, and the storm’s full force rushed inside. Quinn scrambled for the knob and stopped, frozen by more than the sudden blast of cold. A man filled the entryway from threshold to frame, dark as the nightfall behind him. Steam drifted from his bare head. Frost coated his short, sable hair, and even in the flashlight beam, his complexion held an unhealthy blue-gray hue. One hand was anchored to the doorpost in a white-knuckled grip. The other brandished a wicked as sin knife. She shone the light on his face, and her stomach roller-coastered. Her demon. The one who’d haunted her nightmares years ago and then abruptly bailed, never to return. No matter what face he wore, his death-black, abysmal eyes were unforgettable. Or were her delusions returning with a vengeance? “Get out of my way.” His chest heaved, and he lurched forward, the knife pointed at her. His guttural words erased any suspicion that he might be another hallucination. He was too present, too solid to be anything but real. Merde. He was real.

How long have you been writing?  Growing up in the boonies, I had to find ways to entertain myself after I’d read all the books on hand, so I turned to writing my own stories when I was in my teens. I wouldn’t call them good stories and they are best kept in a shoebox in the deepest, darkest recesses of the attic. Those early scratchings should probably be burned to avoid becoming blackmail material. What inspired you to write The Dreamcaster Series? A dream started the whole thing. Appropriate, huh? 😊 I dreamed of Kalila from Wonderfully Wicked, standing in a café with Lydon standing menacingly behind her, and I had to know why he was stalking her. Then I started plotting, and as more characters come out of the shadows, I find I must write their stories too. Did you always plan for it to be a series? Once I started writing Wonderfully Wicked, I knew there was too much in this supernatural world of dreams and nightmares that I wanted to explore to include in a single book. And as I fall in love with the broken characters, I want them all to experience their own HEA. It wouldn’t be fair to leave them all hanging, right? What was the weirdest thing you had to google while doing research? I did Google some angelic language, which was both weird and interesting. I thought about using a bit since Zaire knows how to speak in angel/demon tongue, but I didn’t want readers stumbling over how to pronounce words like oxex and gmicalzo. But I’ll definitely name my next cat zvrza. This series would make some great movies. Would you want to turn your books into movies or TV shows? Ooh, thanks for saying that! I’d choose a long-running TV show like Supernatural – with awesome (and hot) guys, spooky stuff, action, fun times, and romance. Maybe Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki could find a new acting home. 😊 Which of your characters do you relate to most and why? They all have a piece of me stitched into them, but I relate most to Kalila from Wonderfully Wicked and Quinn from Dangerously Dark. Kalila is guarded with people she doesn’t know well or trust (like me), but I’m also an idealist like Quinn. And like both of them, I’m not afraid to fight for what’s important to me when necessary. Ka-pow! What is a secret about you that nobody else knows? I’d be on Dancing with the Stars if I could partner with Val Chmerkovskiy. And dancing (especially in public) sooooo isn’t my thing. What book have you read too many times to count? The Magic Garden by Gene Stratton Porter. It’s antiquated, beautiful and bittersweet, and a rescued treasure from my grandmother’s library. I’m not usually prone to waterworks, but this story gets me. Every time. What is the best piece of writing advice you ever received? Keep writing, keep learning your craft, and never give up! If you could hop into the life of any fictional character, who would it be and why? Claire from Outlander because…Jamie. He’d be worth giving up a couple hundred years of technology. What was one of the most surprising things you learned while creating your books? In researching dreams, it was interesting how some people are so paralyzed by their dreams they can’t move and even have trouble breathing. It’s amazing how the subconscious (or is it some outside force?) can affect the body. What do you like to do when you're not writing? I have a day job which takes up an unfortunate amount of my time, but when I’m not writing or working, I’m reading, working out, or playing Assassin’s Creed surrounded by my adoring cats. It’s a superb life. Are any of the things in your books based on real life experiences or purely all imagination? My stories are a mixture of both—I think it’s impossible not to color my writing with my own life experiences—and as far as who and/or what are based off truth…I’ll never tell! Thanks so much for having me! <3

Thank you for hanging out at my blog & answering all my questions!

Check out my review of the previous books in this AMAZING series!

C.J Burright is a native Oregonian and refuses to leave. A member of Romance Writers of America and the Fantasy, Futuristic and Paranormal special interest chapter, while she has worked for years in a law office, she chooses to avoid writing legal thrillers (for now) and instead invades the world of urban fantasy, paranormal romance, or fantasy. C.J. also has her 4th Dan Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do and believes a story isn’t complete without at least one fight scene. Her meager spare time is spent working out, refueling with mochas, gardening, gorging on Assassin’s Creed, and rooting on the Seattle Mariners…always with music. She shares life with her husband, daughter, and a devoted cat herd. To learn more about C.J. Burright and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter.

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Chapter 19 - Flight

Everything changed after that. Asgore gifted me a fully furnished apartment in MTT Towers. I was grateful of course, but the idea of living outside of the Border was very intimidating. I did use the apartment, just not that much, and mostly during the day. I rarely stayed overnight. Fortunately, Asgore understood that I needed some time to adjust to, everything.

Molly had become my constant companion, always close by. Mettaton had gotten the idea of having her trained to become my service dog as part of the show. I had agreed to the idea after having looked up what a service dog does. Molly still needed to be checked to see if she was eligible for the training, but the odds were in her favour.

After having been fast-tracked through the diagnostic phase which resulted in ‘complex post-traumatic stress disorder' I had been assigned a team of psychiatrists. It existed of both humans and monsters, they were specialised in helping those who have endured long-term abuse. And was also given prescription meds. Benzodiazepines. I was allowed to take one whenever I was feeling an anxiety attack coming on. I had weekly appointments with my main psychiatrist as well. I knew she were just trying to help, but so far all she did was make me uncomfortable.

Opening up as hard.

All the while time passed.

It was almost time for the launch of Mettaton's new show.

For me to tell the world I existed.

To tell the world what I'd been through.

What…

What had I agreed to?!

I couldn't do that!

"You are my secret. Nobody else can know about you. About what you can do. You belong to me. You are my property! Do you hear me! You are mine! MINE!"

  "hey kiddo"

I lifted my head from my knees just enough to see Sans was standing in front of me. It was a little scary that I had failed to sense his soul until now. He sat down next to me. He wasn't wearing his uniform. He put an arm around me and gave my shaking shoulder a squeeze.

The rushing of the water and my sobbing was all that broke the silence for a long time.

"How did you find me?"

"i had a hunch you'd be here. you could call it a gut feeling."

I smiled faintly, still shaking though I was out of tears.

"i'm guessing you didn't take your meds in time, huh?"

I hung my head in guilt. I hadn't even thought about the medicine I had been provided with.

"it's okay kid, i get it. a lot of things are changing very fast and even if it's for the best, it's scary."

I turned my head, letting my temple rest of my knees, to look at him again. He was staring off at the fluorescent water. It's glow enough to highlight his dominant features making it easy for me to see him despite my shades.

"How did you know I would be here?"

"i told you, i had a hunch."

I stared at him for a long time, hoping he'd give me more of an answer. He sighed.

"because i used to come to waterfall as well when i needed a break. i have to say, though, i am impressed that you managed to get here so fast. i'd almost suspect you'd knew a short cut."

I looked away, to the black lily pads in the water, pulling my knees a little closer.

"I just… ran… I had to. It was all I could do. I just had to get out… I had to…"

My breathing was picking up again and I could feel panic crawling back onto me. There was a squeeze on my shoulder and a hand holding a small pill appeared before my face. Automatically I opened my mouth and swallowed the pill dry as soon as it hit my tongue.

"there you go. it's okay. you're safe. nobody else is here."

The words sounded distant, it was hard to put meaning to them. I frowned as I tried to make sense of what had just been said. I lifted my head, looking around. I did get the meaning right. There were no other souls here. Just us. The sensation, or rather the lack of, was both relaxing as well as a little unsettling.

With a sigh, I rested my head against the cold wall behind me, my legs stretching a little. A drowsy calm settled over me, numbing everything, making me tired.

"I heard him… In my head…"

A heavy tension settled between us. I didn't have to explain who I was referring to, Sans knew. I grabbed the scars on my wrists, my fingers covering most of the smooth lines of raised skin, but not all. Never all. There were too many for that.

"do you remember what he said?"

"I don't want to remember…"

"i know the feeling"

The silence returned. Both of us mulling over our own thoughts. The effects of the medicine grew stronger. Slowing my thoughts. My fingertips and toes were numb. I had no idea if that was because of the medicine or the wet cold that had been seeping into my body.

"how are you feeling?"

"Numb… ish? Not really, but kinda. Like my emotions are submerged. I'm tired."

"let's get you to bed."

I closed my eyes and braced myself. Teleporting was an uncomfortable sensation. Similar to the feeling like when you're falling asleep and you feel like you're actually falling, just add nausea and disorientation to the mix.

The damp ground gave way to nothing only to be quickly replaced by something soft and flexible. The sound of nails scratching over floorboards shortly followed by a wet nose pressing against my hand. I opened my eyes to find myself sitting on the edge of my bed in my apartment, looking out over the dark town below. Molly was standing in front of me, licking my hand. I scratched her behind her ears. Sans pulled back his arm and got up. Closing the curtains for me, hiding me from the outside world.

"try to get some sleep."

He was leaving.

"How did you know I was gone?"

"gabriel called the guard station after having tried calling you unsuccessfully. you had a lot of people worried."

"I'm sorry…"