Prompt 13: Confluence

FFXIV 30 Day Writing Challenge Prompt 13: Confluence

HEY. READ THIS. Welcome to The Hereward Fic for this year. For the new folks, this means the following CONTENT WARNINGS are in play: Parental death, parental abandonment, and emotional abuse. Please take care of yourself if you choose to read this.

Oh, and Will’s Accent, even if Will isn’t the one talking.

“Life is made up of meetings and partings. That is the way of it.” — Kermit the Frog, A Muppet Christmas Carol

Meetings

Brigid’s first memory of her father, the first real clear one, was of being carried in his arms along a beach. She must have been two? Three? She wasn’t sure, so many years on. The sun was setting, full of beautiful colors reflected on the water.

She’d flung her arm out, pointing at the water, shouting something, though she couldn’t remember what anymore. She couldn’t remember the exact thing her father had said in return, but she remembered that it was happy, and warm, and had a laugh mixed in. It was safe, he was safe, and would always keep her so.

He had held her closer, dropping a fond kiss on the top of her head, and they’d walked on, likely to meet up with her mother and brothers.

Partings

Brigid’s last memory of her father was of standing at the door to their house, herself and William on the threshold while their father stood on the stoop. Llewellyn was somewhere behind the twins, and Arthur and Connor somewhere else. She was thirteen, nearly fourteen, and nearly a year without a mother.

It was raining. The ground outside their home was almost sandy mud from the wet, and her lungs ached. Their father kept his eyes on William, on Llewellyn, anywhere but on her. She’d noticed, after a few weeks, how he never looked at her anymore. She tried not to think about why.

“When will you be back?” Llewellyn had asked, in that quiet way of his that *radiated* disapproval if one knew how to listen.

“Few sennights,” their father had replied, shrugging his shoulders. His voice was flat, and he already stank of drink. Llewellyn hummed softly, nodding as he did. None of them believed him.

“Are ye havin’ tae leave?” Brigid asked softly, and tried to ignore how he just looked over her shoulder as she spoke.

“Havin’ tae gae whaur th’ work’s bein’,” he said, shrugging again. A moment of silence passed between the four of them, before he sighed, focusing instead on Llewellyn. “Look after ‘em, ye’re th’ man ay th’ house now.”

Llewellyn nodded. “I will.”

There was an awkward moment, where their father tried to hug each of them, Arthur pushing him away almost instantly and Connor clinging, not understanding. Brigid wanted to cling, wanted to keep him there. But she couldn’t, and didn’t. And then Hereward O’Donnell turned and went into the rain, leaving his children behind.

That was the last time Brigid looked at her father.

Good morning what are the movies or tv shows that traumatized you as a kid mine are the BBC production of A Christmas Carol and a handful of David Suchet Poirot episodes

Pac-Man is an alternate telling of Charles Dickens’ Christmas Carol:

A greedy man, taking as much as he wants (the pac pellets) is pursued by 4 ghosts (Jacob Marley and the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future), but in the video game, Scrooge is able to slay his ethereal guides so that he may complete his greedy goals and consume all the pellets and fruits for himself.

When Love Is Gone from The Muppet Christmas Carol hits so hard.

The other day I was showing my partner a stupid Christmas show and in it they kept referring to a felt doll (not even a puppet) as a Muppet because it was purple I guess? I didn’t say anything, but at one point my partner said, “that’s not a Muppet, stop calling it a Muppet.”

Thank you, I love you, you understand me

Tomorrow I am going to buy baldurs gate as soon as I've finished work and I am BUZZING WITH EXCITEMENT

oh yeah guys i finally got around to watching monkie kid and it fucking slaps, the fact that this is actually one of the most accurate to the original mythos than so many other shows that are based off of wukong its rad

thinking about how so many christmas songs are sad songs, about things we used to know and people we wish we could be with.

i went to my husband's catholic aunt's house for christmas day and they always say grace before dinner, and they were listing off people the family had lost in the last year and it was a long list. some years go like this.

my husband and i watched muppet christmas carol as always and because we're mourning a friend that had often spent christmas with his family, the scene where scrooge sees tiny tim's death hit especially hard--as i get older i'm always struck by a line that passed right by me as a kid, which is when scrooge says to the ghost, "must there be a christmas that brings this awful scene? how can we endure it?" and of course kermit the frog as bob cratchit and his matter-of-fact delivery of the line, "life is made up of meetings and partings, that is the way of it." in this movie that was the first one the muppets made after jim henson died, directed by his son.

i'm also thinking about my family's christmas dinner, where a bunch of us were gathered around the table with several loud overlapping conversations, and my cousin came over to me to show me something on her phone--she had found a home video on VHS dated 1990 and converted it to digital, and it had my grandpa, who has been dead for over 15 years, bouncing a baby on his knee and she wondered if that baby was me, actually? as she played the video, my grandpa said something on the screen that i could barely make out over the phone speaker but across the table my mom suddenly looked up from the conversation she was in, bewildered, and said, "that's my dad."

clingy

Steve Rogers x reader

A/N I'm sorry for not posting for a few days, I will catch up but my son has been ill and I've been focusing on him. This is a part of my 100 followers celebration. Also, all mistakes are my own, so if you see any feel free to comment them and other comments, likes and reblogs are appreciated.

THIS IS NOT AN 18+ FIC BUT I STILL FEEL UNCOMFORTABLE WITH MINORS READING MY FICS SO PLEASE DNI IF YOU ARE A MINOR

Summary whenever you come home from a mission Steve feels the need to be touching you at all times

DO NOT REPOST ON ANY OTHER APPS/WEBSITES. THE ONLY PLACE THIS FIC IS ON IS TUMBLR.

Warnings fluff

Steve wasn’t really a clingy person but when you come back from a mission, you saw a different side to america’s golden boy. 

As soon as the quinjet landed, Steve was running over, waiting for you to walk out. He picked you up and walk ed into the compound with your legs wrapped around his waist and your bag over his shoulder. 

He didn’t put you down until you reached the living room on your shared floor: he put your bag on the table and sat on the couch with you on his lap. 

“I missed you so much baby,” Steve mumbled into the crook of your neck. 

“I missed you too stevie,” you replied, running your hands through his soft locks of hair. 

You stayed like that for a while until your stomach grumbled. This made Steve chuckle and pick you up again.

“What do you want to eat darlin’?” he asked.

“I’m thinking takeout from that Thai place we went to before I went on this mission.”

“That sounds like a good idea babe. I’ll call them and you can go and get some blankets to make the couch more comfy,” he said, kissing your forehead and putting you down.

You walked into your shared bedroom and grabbed every blanket in sight (there were many since you loved to hoard blankets) and arranged them on the couch. Then, you grabbed the pillows off your bed and arranged them so both you and Steve would be comfy. 

A few minutes later, Steve walked into the living room and laid down on the couch with his head on your lap.

“They said it should be here in 15-20 minutes,” Steve told you with a smile on his face since you had started to play with his hair.

“That means we can start a film. What do you want to watch baby?”

“What was the film you said you wanted to watch with me before you went on the mission?” 

“Are you talking about A Muppets Christmas Carol?”

“Yeah, that one.”

“We can watch that baby, I just gotta find it on Disney+ first.”

Not many people knew this but Steve loved musicals, he didn’t know why but theres something so magical about them that always captivated him. He doesn’t tell many people this fact about him though since he’s a bit embarrased about it (he was almost too embarrassed to tell you but a few kisses sorted that issue out.)

You pressed play on the remote and saw a smile creep onto Steve’s face. You loved to see him so happy. 

15 minutes into the film you were alerted by F.R.I.D.A.Y that someone was at the gates with a delivery for you.

“I’ll go and get it darlin’” Steve told you, smiling.

It wasn’t long before Steve was back. You grabbed you food and sat on the couch. Steve walked over to you but he didn’t sit on the couch, he sat between your legs- you had already put a few pillows and blankets there on the floor, knowing Steve would sit there. He rested his head against your left leg while he ate his food and watched the tv.

Once the both of you had finished eating, Steve wrapped his arm around your left leg and gave your thigh a kiss. This didn’t look like anything special, but to Steve it was a perfect level of intimacy for him and his slight clingyness.

This being accompanied by you constantly running your hands through his hair made him feel happy and content that you where home but also that you were ok with his need to be touching you at that moment.

If you want to join my taglist to know when I post these fics or any others please click on the link.

Also, if you want to see what I reblog, my other account is @sebastianstanisahotmf-reblogs

Taglist: @buckys-wintersoldier, @nicoline1998enilocin

okay so i have gained a new species of spore for my collective brainrot and i have found the perfect selling pitch to drag everyone i care about down with me. if you know the show this is hilarious. if you haven't watched it pay attention:

the show's called leverage. you know how there's those crime serials that aren't good at all but we've all watched a little too much of at least one of them even though they are blatant copaganda which is morally terrible? take your favorite one of those, but remover the copaganda. all the characters are criminals but their only victim is capitalism. every cop in the show is stupid at best and blatantly corrupt to a disgusting level most of the time. there is just as much genuine and intelligent social commentary as this premise demands.

i sense i already have you hooked. i can make this better. stick with me for a minute on this: the character dynamic is a muppet movie but also the Scooby gang

stick with me here!

You have Parker, who fit into the Scooby gang as Scooby and would be played by Gonzo. her crime thing is that she is a cat burglar and she is very good at it. her skill with it is borderline slapstick (hence Scooby) and she is very autistic coded and misunderstood (hence Gonzo)

You've got Eliot, who is the Shaggy and is played by Sam Eagle. He is the brute force of the team and he wants you to think he is all serious and grimdark. but he loves making the employees and victims of their capitalist targets aware of unions and he is a big himbo. i say he is shaggy because he plays Parker's straight man, he has the second most cartoonlike abilities, and he has a passion for cooking

Hardison is Velma as played by Kermit. he is a geeky hacker with a passion for orange soda and he is the heart of the team. he gets overlooked as leader even though he is the driving force of everything they do. like Velma. he also has that trademark Kermit brand of slapstick and deadpanned humor in balance.

Sophie is Daphne as played by miss piggy. she is basically the world's best grifter, she usually the front man interacting with the target the most. she has that crazy streak and the self defense capacity that miss piggy and Daphne (when she's done right) both have. she also has the confidence and style.

Nate is Fred and he is the human character. Fred has "let's split up gang" and Nate has "then we have to steal *fill in the blank with something comedically unfit to finish the sentence*" Fred and Nate are both flat characters with the main trait "i think I'm the leader but my smart friend does all the work" and the main interest of "trapping and screwing over capitalists" he mainly gets to call himself the leader because he's the idea guy and he has an apartment. his role in the muppet analogy is the peak of my pitch if you're still here. because while this is definitely not the Christmas Carol, Nate is the human character because he is Ebenezer Scrooge if instead of being a capitalist, Scrooge was an alcoholic and instead of character growth he was just steadily losing his mind. his moral compass and general intelligence are on a roulette wheel that is spun at random intervals lasting from seconds to the occasional few hours. also he and Sophie have divorced parents of grown children syndrome and the other three are said children. in vibes, of course, they aren't actually related.

if anyone stayed with me through all of that you should seriously watch it. even if i sound like i pulled this all out of my ass. it's so good.

it's an actively anticapitalist, copaganda free crime show where you get to see fun characters beat up every thing bad in society and fuck it all over. it balances fun comedy and wild characters with serious topics and moments in a way that is very natural and genuine. it also has one of my favorite autistic coded characters, a positive and healthy relationship that develops in a way that feels natural to the characters (as well as a rockier one if you're into drama) and it is in the midst of what looks to be an actually well handled revival series with the original cast. i haven't caught up yet but I'm so excited for it. the original had 5 seasons and the revival is waiting to be renewed for season 3.

please go watch leverage. it's so good and it deserves more fans. also i want more fic and that next season

Christmas Fics 2023 (Part 8):

Keep It Like a Secret by PacificRimbaud - M, one-shot - He regards her with interest, cool as the ice in his G&T. “What do you want?” On close inspection, he's a bit deadly. It's the combined power of self-regard, an open ear, and a cunningly tailored suit. Hermione wants— “An expiration date would be nice.” She suctions up the watery dregs and signals for more. “Let’s say I want . . . a year. Exactly one year of monogamy without the possibility of further commitment."

When Love is Found by Biirdiee_Rose - T, one-shot - “You’ve read Charles Dickens— yes?” “Yes, I read Great Expectations when I started exploring muggle literature.” “Well, he wrote a book called A Christmas Carol.” She bends down to grab a few gifts from beneath the Christmas tree. “Ah, so we’re from the book then—” “Sort of,” She interrupts, “Then they made a movie of it with these little puppets called The Muppets, and it was my favorite.” - Hermione and Draco go to a muggle Christmas party with the theme to dress up from a favorite Christmas movie. Hijinks ensue.

Mutual, I'm Sure by LadyUrsa - E, WIP - If Draco Malfoy could have one wish in his life, it would be to not be a Veela. Wait, no. It would be to not have Hermione Granger be his mate. Fuck, at this point he would settle for Hermione Granger just being aware of the painfully obvious fact that she was his mate. But only as long as it resulted in monogamous bliss. And getting a cat. ** Two meddlesome best friends, two idiots who are bad at feelings, and a snow-filled Christmas reunion in Vermont. The only thing this White Christmas is missing are some musical numbers.

Cookies, Spice and Other Mushy Non-Practical Stuff by Trombones - G, one-shot - A very short Christmas Dramione one shot. Featuring your favourite Harry Potter snow man, a haughty but caring Draco and a Hermione that can't help but be won over by his charms.

The Well-Traveled Sage by MarinaJune - M, one-shot - Bookseller Hermione Granger, some shop holiday decor, and Draco Malfoy in need of a last-minute holiday gift.

An Ode To Falling In Love by Ada_P_Rix - M, one-shot - He gave her a lopsided grin then, his hair falling into his eyes as he looked down at her. "I think you're drunk." He observed her after a few moments, his eyes glassy as she rolled hers up at him. "And I think you'll regret the hangover in the morning." Hermione gave him a look that had him raising his eyebrows at her. "Amongst other things." "Well you know what they say, Granger-" Malfoy stumbled slightly, causing her to cling to his arm and pull him further against the side of her body as they walked along to the apparition point. "The truth always comes out when you're shitfaced," another grin from him had her shaking her head; Hermione had never witnessed him being this intoxicated before. "All kinds of nasty little secrets end up spilling out with the alcohol-induced vomit."

Santa Baby by Biirdiee_Rose - E, one-shot - “Now, if I were to say yes to this whole…thing, what do I get out of it?” She asks hesitantly, hating the way he perked up immediately. “My, my, Granger— how Slytherin of you.” She narrows her eyes and he relents, surely very aware he did not have the upper hand in the situation. “You’ve been shot down for funding time and time again for that very generous Wolfsbane project–” Now it was her turn to perk up, spine straightening as she leans over the desk, hands clasping as her brain puts together what he’s offering her. “If you agree to this, agree to being my girlfriend until at least after Christmas, then I will fully fund your Wolfsbane project for the next two years.” - Draco Malfoy needs a favor, and Hermione Granger seems to be the only witch around to fit the bill. Attempting to get out of yet another marriage contract, Draco tells his mother he’s dating the one and only Hermione Granger. One little issue, they’re not actually dating. With a good old fashioned bribe of funding the Wolfsbane Project she’s been trying to start for years, Hermione reluctantly agrees. No need to worry dear readers, it’s not like they’d develop feelings for each other or anything… Right?

The Christmas Party by arielle_reads - M, one-shot - Robards hosts a Christmas party for the Ministry but his gift-giving plan goes awry when everything gets swapped. Firewhiskey shots are introduced and Draco worries someone else will get the present he chose for Hermione.

Magical Merry Mistletoe by greyditto - T, one-shot - What happens when pureblood tradition, a Yule party, and a Secret Santa gift exchange all take place in the same event? Naturally, Draco's nearest and dearest conspire to get him what he always wanted...

Icy Truce, Warm Hearts by Serpent_Sortia - E, one-shot - The war has been raging for years but things are starting to go the Order's way thanks to the information provided by a spy high amongst Voldemort's ranks. Hermione is called out to meet the mysterious informant on a snowy Christmas Eve so he can deliver important news... until their meeting spot is compromised.

Messing with Christmas and How to Fix it by Astrangefan - not rated, one-shot - Hermione has been homesick for a home she no longer has. She finds some old decorations at Grimmauld and brings them back to Hogwarts. Draco likes what she's done, but says it in a way only Draco Malfoy can say and everything goes wrong. Now he has to come up with a grand gesture to apologise.

The Holiday by LunaLunaria - E, one-shot - A remix of The Holiday (2006) featuring cinnamon roll with hidden depths Neville Longbottom, chaotic manic pixie Pansy Parkinson, hyper-productive, seduce-me-with-your-brain Hermione Granger, and literary bachelor with a side of snark and sentiment Draco Malfoy.

Wolfsbane and Mistletoe by yes_a_witch - E, WIP - Seven years after her 8th year at Hogwarts, Hermione is feeling lonely. Ron and Harry are both happy with their new families, and her work is meaningful yet taxing. Though she has branched out and made new friends since school, none provide that sense of community she’s been missing. When Malfoy invites her for Christmas with the Slytherins everything changes in ways she never expected.

‘Twas The Night For Traditions (Some Old, Some New) by megiswritingsomething - M, one-shot - Christmas Eve traditions were sacred for Hermione, Draco, and Scorpius - such a shame Draco is nowhere to be found as the night drawls to a close… OR The one where Hermione reads ‘‘Twas the Night Before Christmas’ to Scorpius while reminiscing about their Yuletide traditions. Meanwhile Draco is MIA on urgent Christmas-related business.

For a minute my brain thought “Scrooge. (That song from the Muppets Christmas Carol).” When I read “Scrooge: A Christmas Carol.”

oh yall can request any christmas carol song... I love the tale but have seen very little of it!! And I think the 2022 one is neat :3

What I think is the ACTUAL meaning behind the movie Nightmare before Christmas:

I was googling the meaning behind a Danny Elfman song today and something unrelated popped up. It was a Tor dot com article about the "Meaninglessness of Nightmare before Christmas."

It seemed "profound" as far as online articles go but obnoxiously it was clearly an opinion piece dealing with someone's personal interpretation that the movie has no meaning. And Google had sucked up as a valid source of information and "facts." And it was mostly just this pretentious author insisting that the whole thing is "beautifully meaningless." and there's no moral and no one grows and there's no meaning at all. Yeah... No. I disagree. I do NOT think The Nightmare before Christmas is meaningless. Though I don't think it is the deepest thing ever. "Or perhaps it's really not as deep as I've been lead to think. Am I trying much to hard?" - Jack Skellington quote from the song Jack's Obsession by Danny Elfman.

And no, I don't fall in line with the popular interpretation that it's a big metaphor for cultural appropriation. That sort of thing never mattered much to Tim Burton as a film topic and he has said he was just inspired by seeing a store window display change over from Halloween to Christmas. So what do I think it's actually about? ...Love.

Let me explain. We begin with Jack finishing a successful Halloween but he feels empty inside. For all the praise and cheer, he's lonely, isolated. He's the big celebrity everyone fauns over. He knows he's popular but he's always separate, always alone. He has his dog but that's it. He's lonely in that crowd of cheering fans. He feels a longing and he doesn't know what that longing is for. He aches for someone to just understand and accept him, not idolize him. An equal. A companion. When he discovers Christmas that "Empty place is filling up." Christmas spirit is all about love. The Muppet Christmas Carol even has the song "The Love we've Found." The joy Jack associates with Christmas is akin to love. He wants others to feel this happiness, this desire to give and bring joy to others. What he is experiencing is something David Bowie once decribed in his song called Soul Love. "All I have is my love of love. A love that's not loving." Jack tries to share this wonderful feeling with the rest of Halloween but they don't understand it. Most of them don't crave love the way he (and Sally) do. And Christmas is all about love. Not necessarily romantic or carnal love but a love, just the same. A love for others, a love to give. A love of making others happy. Jack substitutes love with Christmas. And he wants to share it with his people. "Well, at least they're excited but they don't understand that special kind of feeling in Christmas Land. Oh, well..." Through the story Jack goes through an identity crisis, partly out of boredom and partly out of this child-like craving for love he doesn't fully understand. Sally gets it though. "Jack, I know you think something's missing..." First Jack has to come to terms with himself and self-acceptance. He does that. He comes to a new appreciation for who and what he is as he talks himself out of despair in the song "Poor Jack." when he exclaims "I am The Pumpkin King!" And then at the very end of the movie he finally connects with that thing he had been missing all along. And it's fitting that it's on Christmas that he discovers that thing he's been longing for - love, combined with a new reinvigorated appreciation for who and what he is. He finally finds that love that fills the void in both himself and in Sally because she has already told us that she feels the same way as Jack (*Whispers* She's just smarter than him...). Though Sally didn't exist in Tim Burton's original children's book / poem that became the film, he did approve of the creation of the character Sally and provided the early concept art. He even modeled Sally on his then girlfriend, Lisa Marie. And the book The Making of Nightmare before Christmas tells us that Sally gave the film its heart. She gave substance to the thing Jack was longing for and had never known- the love of another that wasn't idol worship. I know Henry Selick was the director and Caroline Thompson wrote the script but Tim Burton created the characters and he told the story bit by bit to Danny Elfman, who composed the songs before there was a script. So they conceived of Sally before anyone else and I think Danny Elfman caught on to what an important keystone Sally was for the story. Also Tim Burton is a romantic at heart. All of his films have a love story in there somewhere. And he tends to prefer that the couples get their fairytale ending "And they lived Happily Ever After." He even managed to turn Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow into a romantic fairy tale with a happy ending in his 1999 film, Sleepy Hollow. So there you have it. I feel that the real meaning behind Nightmare before Christmas- the thing Jack was longing for and ultimately realized was right there waiting for him- was love.

Secret Santa 2023

🎁 Happy Holidays! This is a gift for @binniesbang courtesy of the Stayblr Secret Santa event hosted by @changbeens ❄️ I hope you enjoy! I also wrote a short, fluffy fic to go with it because I couldn't get these two out of my head 🤭 fic under the cut

Pairing: Bang Chan × Reader x Changbin

Length: 1.5k

Warnings: none! Just soft, poly, friends to lovers, winter vibes with BinChan 🤍 this quite literally is the softest thing I've ever written in my LIFE. i love them. 🥹

You were fully immersed in the Muppets Christmas Carol, sitting between your two best friends when your eyes were drawn to the window by a fluttering movement. And when you realized what it was that you had seen, you couldn’t stop the gasp that tore itself out of your throat. Snow. The first in what felt like ages. You threw yourself off the couch and ran to the door, giggling as you went. 

You had already pulled on your coat by the time Chan and Changbin had scrambled off the couch, both of them staring at you. “Ma’am, do you mind explaining yourself? We were about to see the Ghost of Christmas Present, which is arguably the best part of this movie, and then you were gone!” Chan huffed, putting his hands on his hips and raising an eyebrow at you. 

You rolled your eyes and dropped to the floor to pull on your snow boots, “Guys, it’s snowing! We have to go out before it stops!” You exclaimed, grinning at them.

“Alright, angel, I’m in. Whatever you want,” Changbin shrugged, winking at you before turning to the row of coats hanging by the door and pulling his off the hook.

But Chan’s huff stopped you both, eyebrows furrowed. “It's getting dark, we can't go out tonight. We’ll have to wait till morning.” 

You frowned at him as he crossed his arms over his chest, “Just for a little bit? I promise we’ll come in before it gets too dark and cold, but we can’t just wait till morning! It’ll be done snowing by then. Come on Channie, please?” You pouted up at him.

“Yeah come on Channie, please?” Changbin pouted, the same sad expression on your face mirrored on his.

Chan looked between the two of you for a minute before rolling his eyes and snatching his coat off the hanger. You and Changbin both giggled in excitement, finishing putting on your layers as quickly as possible so Chan couldn’t change his mind. 

Changbin reached out to you to help you off the floor, both of you about to dart out into the cold when a hand caught yours; Chan had a soft smile on his face and took a step forward, making you both nearly nose to nose. The butterflies in your stomach floated up into your chest and got caught in your throat; seeing him so close always did that to you. His dimples deepened for a second before he looked over your shoulder, presumably at Changbin, and rolled his eyes. The moment was gone, but you still felt the sparkles of electricity bouncing around you as he wrapped another scarf around your neck and pulled you outside.

The snow wasn't coming down too hard, but you didn’t care. The setting sun lit up the clouds from the inside, bathing everything in a muted glow that felt like something out of a movie. It was like your own personal snow globe, and you couldn’t think of anyone you’d rather be with. 

The three of you wandered around, not seeing a single other person as you walked. Changbin had steered you off the beaten path and into a large clearing you’d never seen before. The entire expanse was covered in a perfect, even layer of snow. The three of you all exchanged looks and less than 10 seconds later, you simultaneously decided to run out into the field and start throwing it at each other. 

You couldn’t remember the last time you had laughed so hard or had so much fun. You felt like a kid again, playing outside with your two best friends; Chan’s nose was tinged pink and his grin absolutely infectious, and Changbin was giggling maniacally as he ran around, snowflakes clinging to the curly hairs sticking out from underneath his beanie. 

“Hey, that's not fair!” Changbin shouted as you and Chan teamed up to take him down, tackling him into the snow after he had managed to shove a handful of snow down your back and land a snowball to the side of Chan’s face.

“All is fair in love and war, Binnie,” you laughed, collapsing onto your knees next to him, slightly breathless.

“And you definitely started it so don’t even complain about what’s fair, Bin,” Chan chastised playfully, slumping over onto your back, chin resting on the top of your hat covered head. “We should get going though, it’s gonna be dark soon.” 

You agreed, Chan helping you up before you both dragged a whining Changbin off the ground and out of the field. The trek back was quiet, but comfortable. The darkening sky had shifted into a dreamy muted purple. Walking in the lavender haze sent a bittersweet pang through your chest; you wished the three of you could stay in this moment forever. You would never get sick of the feeling of their hands in yours, but they weren’t yours. And you would never risk the friendship between the three of you to choose between them. Instead, you tried to remember every detail about that day, burning the memory of it into your mind. 

“What’s going on angel?” Changbin asked, squeezing your hand softly as he pulled you to a stop, both he and Chan looking concerned. “You look like you’re about to cry.”

You shook your head, smiling at them softly, “No, Binnie. I’m perfect, just trying to make sure I always remember today. I can’t remember ever being so happy.” You saw both Chan and Changbin get shy, turning away from you to hide their smiles, making you chuckle.

Chan cleared his throat, “Alright, no more distractions ma’am. Time to head home to thaw you out,” he said, grabbing your hand in his again and pulling you behind him. 

Changbin quickly grabbed your free hand, matching the swift pace Chan set, “He’s right you know, we don’t need you to turn into a snow angel, now do we?”

By the time the three of you made it inside, your teeth were chattering and you could barely feel your fingers or toes. “Bin, wanna make our girl some hot cocoa to defrost? Miss ma’am here has been trying to get her shoes untied for the last 5 minutes,” he joked.

You stuck your tongue out at him as Changbin laughed, disappearing into the kitchen. “Are you just gonna be a meanie or are you gonna help me out, Christopher Bang?”

“No,” he whined, “not the full name!” You rolled your eyes and held your boot-clad foot up to him with a raised eyebrow. A smile broke on his face and he grabbed your boot and yanked it right off you, the other following immediately after. “Anything else, ma’am?”

You giggled and shook your head, pulling him into the living room into the spot next to you on the couch. You busied yourself with setting up the Muppets Christmas Carol from where you had previously abandoned it as Changbin shuffled in. 

“Angel, this one's for you,” he beamed, placing the cup in your hands. He gave the other mug to Chan before sinking into your other side, sandwiching you between them. You let the two of them warm you up as you finished the movie, stealing glances at both of them out of the corner of your eye. Their eyes were sparkling with joy as they watched, making your heart feel like it was being wrapped in cotton candy. 

As the credits began, you heard Chan sigh, making you look at him in concern. “What’s up Channie.” He made eye contact with Changbin over your shoulder, mouth opening and closing as his eyes flicked between the two of you. 

But it was Changbin’s voice that cut through the silence, “We should date.”

“What?” you nearly screamed, whipping around to look at him. “We can’t–I mean–I can’t–our friendship–and—”

“What Changbin meant to say,” Chan scoffed, grabbing your hand, “was that we’ve talked about it and we think that all three of us should be together. Like officially.”

“Yeah, I mean. We all hang out all the time anyway, so we should just add kissing and real dates and commitment to it. Because I’ve had a crush on both of you for… ever.” Changbin admitted, tucking his chin into his chest with a sheepish smile.

“Me too, I–I don’t want to be with anyone else,” Chan stuttered, “U-unless you don’t feel the—”

“I definitely feel the same,” you whispered, goosebumps breaking out across your arms as your heart started fluttering in your chest.

“Well then ma’am, what do you say? Can we be your boyfriends?” Chan teased, whispering in your ear, pressing a gentle kiss to your cheek.

“Don’t leave us hanging, angel,” Changbin cooed, nuzzling his nose against your cheek.

You couldn’t find the words to answer them, simply squeezing their hands and nodding, earning a squeal of happiness from Changbin that dissolved into giggles from the three of you and a flurry of kisses against your cheek from Chan.

“I guess it’s time for our first official fight as your boyfriends, angel…” Changbin sighed after he stopped giggling, making you frown and cup his face.

“Why? What’re we fighting about Binnie? What’s wrong?” You asked.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Chan asked, “We have to fight over who gets to kiss you first.”

Sigh... "When Love Has Gone" this, "When Love Has Gone", that...

Why does no one ever talk about the two other songs on The Muppet Christmas Carol soundtrack that didn't make it to film?

The first is the one above, as Bunsen Honeydew and Beaker attempt to sway Scrooge to the concept of generosity and it's benefits. I think it might be Honeydews only lead in a musical number.

There's also this gem, sung by Headmaster Sam Eagle to young Scrooge as he details a lifeplan for him.

Now, in fairness I'm not sure either of these made it as far as filming (Whereas "When Love Has Gone" did), but it's a shame that a couple of fun songs sung by Muppets not usually given the musical spotlight, ended up going nowhere. :(

Still, they're here, so enjoy!

So my mum and I were revisiting one of our all-time favorite Christmas movies, The Muppet Christmas Carol, and I think maybe -- just maybe -- there's some really fun symbolism we've all been missing out on. And it all has to do with our main character Scrooge and the color red.

Okay, so at the beginning of the film, Scrooge is in all black, from head to toe. It makes him this wonderful dark shadow over the rest of the cast, and also makes him immediately stand out when he's in public, since everyone else is much more colorfully dressed.

Contrast this especially to the people who are closest to him, Bob Crachit and his nephew Fred.

Well, well, isn't this interesting...both of them have red in their costumes. Even later on, at Fred's Christmas party, we see his wife also wearing red.

The Ghost of Christmas Present -- the ghost who in this film arguably influences Scrooge the most out of all of them -- has a bright red beard...

Oh yes, and we mustn't forget that our favorite narrator "Charles Dickens" is also wearing a bright red coat. (Even his friend Rizzo has some red in his scarf.)

Red as a color can mean lots of different things symbolically -- violence, passion, anger, courage, danger...but I think the one most relevant to this reading is love and warmth. Why? Because even when we see Scrooge as a young man prior to the "all black" treatment, his definitive color is a dark blue.

Notice how much cooler young Scrooge's overall color palette is compared to the much flashier, rosier Fozziwig. (And yes, I think that rosy palette is on purpose -- in the film, Scrooge even describes Fozziwig as being "as hard and as ruthless as a rose petal.") It also makes it so that when Scrooge meets Belle (at this point dressed in pale green with pink rose details), their palettes compliment each other a little bit more, even if Belle's look is still softer, lighter, and warmer in tone to Scrooge's cool, serious ensemble.

But when Belle and Scrooge part ways, we see them wearing colors that contrast much more. Scrooge is still in cool, detached blue, but Belle is in...

Red. Specifically, like Bob and Fred, she has red right around her neck, in the form of her bonnet's ribbon. And it's presumed that over time, after losing Belle and withdrawing more into himself and his own greedy self interest, that Scrooge lost the remaining color of his life and became the cold, black-hearted moneylender we see in the film.

Then of course Scrooge goes through this radical transformation thanks to the Ghosts of Christmas, as we all know...and the very first Christmas present he receives, as a thank you for his charity, is from one of the charity workers, played by Beaker. What is it?

A red scarf.

It's a gift given in the spur of the moment, and yet from Scrooge's reaction, we can tell it's something foreign to him. It's likely it's been ages since he's received such a modest, and yet heartfelt gift from anyone. Scrooge feels the warmth of the gesture, not just because a scarf keeps one's neck warm, but because it was given out of such sincere gratitude and kindness. And as startled as he is by it, he responds with such sincere joy, and wears it happily for the rest of the day. He wears that warmth as easily as Fred and Bob wore it earlier in the film -- as if it's become a part of him. And in a strange way, it has.

For the first time, arguably in his whole life, Scrooge has a true understanding of selfless, loving warmth. The warmth that he should and does feel for the people most central to his life and identity -- his nephew and niece-in-law, his loyal subordinate, his first employer, his first love...even the Spirits who taught him the true "meaning of the season." A kind, generous warmth that permeates the entire story of A Christmas Carol because it's what Charles Dickens loved so much about the holiday season and so wished to spark in his audience.