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fandom-imagination-ss · 2 years

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day 6 of 31 days of Halloween Imagines

Imagine: The Building is having a Halloween Party and you confess to Mabel that you have a massive Crush on Theo Dimas

(Author Note: this is being writing in August and the second season is still playing So if This Adorable Man is Dead, or the killer or doesn’t have happiness even a little bit by the season of season 2 i will cry )

you grew up in the building, you knew Bunny, you Knew everyone in the old impressive building. you were friends with Mabel and you were generally shocked to learn about the first murders. and that Theo Dimas was a jewel thief. you tried to communicate with Theo. Even going as far as learning Simple ASL. Theo wasn’t Ever Mean or Rude but he always was too busy dashing in and out of the building. Hinge sight Now knowing his Dad forced him to Rob Dead peoples Graves. you understood why he was always so busy!

getting to the Halloween party across from your Apartment you were dressed as Hermione grander Not a Sexy Hermione you dressed as close as possible to the character without sexualizing your fictional idol! you were holding a bottle of wine to give to the Host the entire Building was invited and you were standing out in the hall with Mabel, Charles and Oliver were bickering with each other as Mabel asked how you not so Sutle Crush was going.

During the first Murders Charles, Oliver, and Mabel questioned you for the Podcast you were convinced that Theo and his dad who was always So kind to you weren’t killers. and it came out that you had a crush you had to Beg on your hands and knees. and ended up feeding Oliver for a week for that to stay out of their podcast. Now. with the murder of Bunny, Theo, and his Dad on House arrest you rarely saw Theo. you didn’t even know he was back until Mabel mentioned it.

Shaking your head as you spoke up, “he just seems so Hug deprived and I love giving Hugs!” Mabel who was dressed up as an Old Lady spoke, “well why don’t you ask him out? he isn’t that bad of a guy.”

you reached over grabbing her arm as you laughed, “I Would take just a conversation in the Elevator. He Doesn’t like me! I spent weeks learning Some ASL and he Never sticks around to let me show him!”

“But it’s So romantic you learned it for him.”

you laughed taking a drink. you knew your crush on Theo was one-sided and pointless he would never look at you that way Hell you would take Him just glancing in your direction. you realized after It came out he Robbed Dead people of their jewelry that you had No chance. Not that you thought he was a bad guy. but you learned he liked Zoe and you remember Zoe. she was Nothing like you so you gave up.

the Pumpkin flavor drink you were having was Awful. somethings shouldn’t be Pumpkin spiced flavored and Liquor was one of them. you took another sip as you spoke, ‘I would have better luck with the ghost of one of the dead tenants.”

“it can’t be that extreme yet that your sinking that low on the Dating pole.”

“I mean out of Charles and Oliver. Charles is the better match- but he’s older than my dad. so-” Mabel laughed loudly saying god her ears as you spoke, “I shall Live with the fact I will never attract Theo Dimas. it just sucks.. but not as bad as these drinks! I’m getting anything else that isn’t Pumpkin flavor you good/’

she nodded her head as you went into the apartment to get better drinks. Mabel noticed Theo walking in a few minutes ago he was dressed in his normal regular clothes so not on the floor to attend the party. the truth was he came to see what you dressed up as. he wasn’t disappointed to see the bushie brown hair, the white tube socks, and the black cloak. he knew you were Hermione. you Loved Harry potter and he knew it. you would read the books growing up and would have a Harry potter theme party once a year. always a different location last year was the Hogwarts express train. it was mainly an excuse to have a marathon. Mable noticed Theo watching you leave as she spoke, ‘hey Theo.” he nodded his head Signing Hey as he Signed, “Did Y/N say she liked me?”

he couldn’t believe read your lips correctly. He wasn't great at lip reading. But sometime he swears he can understand everything you saym it was in the eyes. Every emotion or thought is visible to your face. And he waa stunned he lip read you liked him .he he was dreaming of hearing say you fancied him for years.hes. liked yoi since. you moved into the apartment and you were always smiling and he was addicted. he found himself taking the Long way In and out of the building just so he could catch a glimpse of you.

“Shit.. yes! But - Look I didn’t tell you.”

you returned with two drinks as you spoke, “the table is full of Pumpkin flavored things. it’s awful oh Hi Theo.” you waved weakly as he smiled back beaming brightly as you spoke, “I got you a drink Mabel just cause that line for the drinks is long.”

I’m Good why don’t you offer it to Theo.” you smiled at Mable you had been waiting for almost 3 years to finally Sign to Theo. For Once he wasn’t speeding off. you handed the drinks to Mabel who grabbed them awkwardly still holding her own drink as you started to Sign, “do you want a drink?” Theo smiled brightly as he signed ‘Yes Please.” you smiled handing one to him as he smiled thanking you.

Oliver and Charles came over dragging Mabel away as you ended up sitting on the floor in the hallway as you talked with Theo all night. you ended up asking him out you meant to Sign “Do you want to go get food.” but you signed “do you want to get Glitter?” Theo chuckled as you smiled saying as you spoke, “was I close to Food? I was asking you out for food.. did I sign food? it was that or this one you signed for food as he chuckled as he signed, “you were close.” you laughed as he smiled he couldn’t really hear your laugh but he loved the way your head titled back and he could see it was a genuine laugh. he smiled nodding his head as you smiled as you spoke up, not knowing how to Sign “take out?” he nodded his head knowing what you said as you both got up and left the Halloween party. for taking out at your apartment.

#Only murders in the building #Only murders in the building imagine #OmITB #omitb imagine #fandom imagine #imagine #fandom #theo Dimas #theo dimas imagine #31 days of halloween imagine #halloween imagine

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malewifegrantaire · 3 years

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The Birthday Thing

READ PART ONE HERE

PART TWO: Guess who’s coming to dinner hang out for no apparent reason (as far as Grantaire can tell)?

Combeferre had inadvertently ruined the rest of Grantaire’s week. It wasn’t his fault, of course. He couldn’t be blamed for Grantaire’s Incredibly Bad Brain. But still, “I just know Enjolras and I know he likes you” is a very reckless phrase to pepper into a conversation with someone of Grantaire’s constitution. He could hardly fall asleep that night because the words I know he likes you were clanging too loudly against the bars of the jail cell he called a mind. He didn’t mind too much though. The clanging was because Enjolras liked him, which made all of the noise sound a bit like music.

Grantaire picked out an outfit for the party and laid it out like he was a little kid excited for a school trip. Embarrassed with himself, he threw the entire outfit into his clothing hamper so he wouldn’t have to look at it lying out on his dresser anymore. Which was obviously a mistake, because now the clothes were are wrinkled and they were touching his actually dirty clothes. Which meant now he had to do a half load of laundry on a weekday, which he really didn’t like doing.

As he folded his laundry, Grantaire felt his phone buzz in his pocket. Huh. It was from Combeferre. Odd.

hey, are u free? sorry lol i am bored and wanted to know if u wanna hang out ??

Very odd. Maybe the wrong number? Just to be safe, Grantaire texted back:

grantaire is folding laundry right now, like a responsible adult.

Two texts back:

very interesting use of third person..

i can help if u want! i love 2 fold things

So this was Grantaire’s life. He used to be young and wild, and now he’s the sort of person that makes plans with people who text him sentences like “i love 2 fold things.” He typed his response.

uh, sure? might get boring, but i’ll never say no to an extra set of hands.

About fifteen minutes later, Combeferre was inside of Grantaire’s apartment. “You got here fast.” Grantaire said.

“I was in the neighborhood.”

“Aren’t you always?”

Combeferre took in Grantaire’s apartment, which gave Grantaire such a wave of self-consciousness that he thought he might be sick. It was a fine apartment, kept clean mostly because Grantaire hardly spent any time in it. The ceilings were far too low for Combeferre.

“This is a really nice place.” Combeferre said. “Have you lived here long?”

“Five years, I think.” Grantaire said. “I think the landlord thought I’d have left by now, but, well. I’m still here.”

“Yeah, I mean, it’s nice. Good windows. Not easy to come by.”

Grantaire laughed at that. “Hey, was there something you wanted to talk about? Or are you just here to admire my big beautiful windows?”

Combeferre looked slightly embarrassed. “Uh, the latter, I guess.” he said. “I mean, just what I texted, I was bored, and I guess . . . I don’t know. I guess I thought we could just hang out?”

Now it was Grantaire’s turn to be embarrassed. Of course. Combeferre is the sort of person who’s actually, you know, decent. He was just trying to be nice and Grantaire was accusing him of having an ulterior motive. Way to go. Grantaire cleared his throat. “Well, thanks for coming. Feel free to park wherever. I only did a half load of laundry so I’m finished folding, sorry. I know how much you love to fold.”

“I went through a very intense Marie Kondo phase.” Combeferre grinned. “Let me know if you ever need your closet to be reorganized.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Grantaire said. It was dawning on him that, being more of the roaming type than the nesting type, Grantaire almost never had people over his apartment, and therefore had very little hosting experience. So he did what he always did in situations like this - said what people say in movies and books and all that.

“Can I offer you a beverage of some kind? I’ve got . . . tap water. And orange juice. And maybe beer?”

“I’m alright, thanks.” Combeferre said kindly. Combeferre’s fridge was probably fully stocked with sparkling water in every flavor for guests to sip on, the bastard. He sat down in a little chair by the kitchenette. “What, what is it?” he asked, looking at Grantaire’s expression. “Why are you - what’s funny?”

“Everything is too small for you in here. It’s like shoving a Barbie doll into a Polly Pocket house.” Grantaire said with a laugh. Combeferre tucked his long legs a bit closer to himself.

“Well, Barbie is a good role model, so I’ll take that.”

“I think an averaged sized woman or two might disagree. Anyways, you’ve got impeccable timing.”

“What do you mean?” Combeferre inquired.

“I mean that someone must have wanted us to hang out today. God, the Fates, some non-denominational arbiter of Destiny.” Grantaire was doing that thing he always did where he ended sentences in a way that begged the listener to ask him to explain himself. Why he chose to speak in these irritating circles? We will likely never know. Grantaire sure as hell didn’t.

Combeferre rolled his eyes, but he seemed more amused than annoyed. “You’re impossible.”

“It’s been said before.” was Grantaire’s reply. “What I mean to say is I’m literally never home. Not literally-literally, but, you know. This apartment is basically a glorified storage unit that I visit when there is absolutely nothing else to do. So the fact that you happened to be passing by on a laundry day...”

“... a work of divine intervention?” Combeferre finished.

“I’d go so far as to call it a miracle if I believed in that sort of thing.” Grantaire said.

Combeferre’s next question caught Grantaire off-guard somewhat. “So you’re an atheist, then?”

Grantaire had never actually seen a shrink, but he had the passing sensation of being sprawled out on some brown leather fainting sofa. Maybe that’s what this was, a psych eval. He’d get a message from the official Les Amis de l’ABC e-mail account later in the week saying “sorry, R, you’ve been deemed mentally unfit to be a part of this organization. We know the Musain is public property, but if you could avoid the premises during our scheduled meeting times we all think that’d be for the best.”

“Well, yeah, aren’t all of the lefties heathens nowadays? At least that’s what Twitter tells me.” he said. His paranoia would not rob him of his (debatable) sense of humor.

Combeferre just shrugged. “I guess if I had to call myself something I’d say I’m agnostic.”

“Huh!” Grantaire said, genuinely surprised. “A member of the ‘namby-pamby, mushy pap, weak-tea, weedy, pallid fence-sitter’ brigade, are we?”

Two things occurred to Combeferre at once: One, that Grantaire was quoting Richard Dawkins, and two, that Grantaire could not have been certain that Combeferre would recognize the quote when he said it. Grantaire was both the sort of person that committed Dawkins to memory and the sort that didn’t really care if someone mistook his references for a string of improvised insults. The more Grantaire spoke, the more Combeferre became aware of how little speaking they’d ever done.

“I guess I just think one can never be sure.” Combeferre said.

Grantaire thought now would be a good time for a subject change. “So, how is party planning going?” he asked.

Combeferre sighed. “It’s . . . it’s going.” he said. “Well, okay, I’m being dramatic. Courfeyrac is actually the one doing most of the planning. I just get weird about stuff like this. I want Enjolras to like everything, you know?”

“I don’t think Enjolras is capable of disliking anything you do.” Grantaire said in a way that to the untrained ear might sound like a veiled insult, but that Combeferre suspected was an attempt at genuine sincerity.

“Well, thanks.” Combeferre smiled gratefully. “I just want him to have a good time.”

“He will. It’s the rest of us you’ll have to work to entertain.”

“Well, Courfeyrac has a slew of party games he’s preparing. Oh, and, uh, Enjolras mentioned he’s glad you’ll be able to make it. By the way.” Combeferre said, which made Grantaire blush, which made Combeferre smile.

Grantaire hated that. Not just when Combeferre did it, when any of them did. Making faces or little comments, as if they were in on some big secret. It’s like they were proud of themselves for noticing Grantaire’s little crush, like they knew something funny or scandalous or cute. But they didn’t know anything, not really. Grantaire didn’t have a crush on Enjolras at all. It was more like a religion. Maybe he’d been too quick to brand himself an atheist earlier.

His annoyance with Combeferre soured the rest of their conversation. He became mean, curt, and downright humorless. This wasn’t at all fair, he knew. Grantaire probably annoyed Combeferre every third sentence (maybe every third word) and that had never stopped Combeferre from being his usual amiable self. There was another difference between the two: Grantaire lacked both grace and graciousness, and Combeferre, it seemed, never ran out of either.

“Well, I guess I should be leaving.” Combeferre said after a while, rising from the squat chair he was sitting in.

“I guess.”

“Uh, thank you for having me over. We should do this again some time. I had fun.” Combeferre lied.

Grantaire smiled, but the smile did not reach his eyes. “Yeah, why don’t we all do brunch some time? You can bring your friends, it’ll be a real party. Everyone can sit around admiring my huge windows. What a blast!”

Combeferre knew he was joking, but he couldn’t decipher the punchline. What would be so bad about having all of their friends over for brunch? Why did he say the word “friends” like that, all sardonic and italicized? Combeferre almost asked him, but instead he just shook his head and smiled.

“Okay. Well. Bye!”

Grantaire waved lazily. “See you around.”

Under normal circumstances, the phrase “Enjolras mentioned he’s glad you’ll be able to make it” would have found itself fluttering in the pit of Grantaire’s stomach. Instead, there was something else sitting in there. Something that felt a bit like failure, a bit like guilt, and - most surprising of all - a bit like affection.

This is precisely why he didn’t like having people over.

#LOL this was fun.#next up: the actual birthday thing!#ok tags time #grantaire #combeferre #les amis #les miserables #my fic #uhhhhh what else....#cw alcohol mention #it’s sort of blink and you miss it but you know #again it’s peripheral but might as well:#e/r #i’ll come back if i think of anything else

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britishassistant · 3 years

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But I Like One Piece (20)

They all turn to stare at him.

“Dear? How do you know that?” Okaa-san says.

Otou-san shakes his head and sits down heavily on the stairs. “The manufacturer for those weapons is in Yukigakure. Just like the incriminating ryo left at the scene of that theft.”

Oh.

Oh sweet Merry.

She mutters, “Shika said—when we were talking about the theft, he said it had to be an inside job, because an outsider couldn’t know anything. But if they were like me—if they’d read the comic based on Konoha in their past life, they would know. They’d know almost everything even if they never set foot here.”

She swallows, throat suddenly dry. “If it was plot-relevant, then they’d know more about what was valuable and how it was defended than people who’d lived here their whole lives. They’d even know the weaknesses of the ninja sent after them, if those ninja were major characters.”

Otou-san nods. “And if he or she needed to finance the manufacture of those weapons, what could be easier than to steal something from here and sell it to another hidden village?”

She sits down heavily on the stairs.

Her heart’s pounding too fast. The side of her head is throbbing in time with the beat.

“Well.” Okaa-san coughs. “That’s mildly terrifying.”

She lets out a humorless chuckle at the understatement.

Horror wars with elation in her brain. Elation at the knowledge that she isn’t alone here.

Horror at the idea of someone knowing everything about this place and deciding to use that knowledge for their own gain. If robbing Konoha wasn’t low for them, would they stoop to manipulating Naruto, Sakura, Uchiha? To hurting them to get their way, change a narrative they don’t like?

“But Iruka-sensei said Yukigakure gave us those guns for less money than they gave them to other villages.” Naruto says suddenly. “Maybe that’s the not-Mayu’s way of making it up to us?”

“You think villains who would commit such an unyouthful action would be capable of feeling guilt?” Lee says doubtfully. “Shouldn’t we tell Gai-sensei about this?”

“We can.” Otou-san sighs. “But I’m not sure how helpful it would be. Nara-san said Yamanaka-san knew about the Yuki connection between both the theft and these “guns”. For all we know, the price reduction could be a concession negotiated between the Hokage and the thief, and we just have a morsel of knowledge about that deal which would endanger Mayu more than it would help the village.”

She fidgets, tracing the scar on her lower lip.

Lee’s brows are furrowed, his mouth pulled down in a frown.

Okaa-san reaches out and smooths a hand over his hair. “Why don’t we get Ichiraku’s and sleep on it? I think Sanji would agree we’ll all make better decisions with some ramen in our bellies.”

Naruto springs to his feet. “Yeah! Ramen’ll fix everything, believe it! C’mon, I’m hungry, let’s go, let’s go!”

It doesn’t quite fix everything, she reflects later as she descales and fillets the pike for the offerings tomorrow. There’s still another reincarnated person who robbed the village, had her father take the fall for their crime, and is now mass-producing the very weapon that killed her past self, which they can do next to nothing about.

But ramen smoothed out the crease in Lee’s brow when they all agreed it was better to tell Gai-sensei than not. It lightened the mood and made everything this day had thrown at them seem a little less important in light of the celebrations planned for tomorrow.

Their small garden is now even smaller thanks to the a large wooden structure that sits next to the back fence.

It’s a bit like a cross between a shed and a greenhouse, if it only had three walls and no doors or windows. The roof is curved and the walls are sturdy, to protect the shrines inside from the elements.

There’s a length of thick white rope fastened with red twine inside the front gable, which is meant to ensure that the shrines are protected from malicious spirits.

Each one of the shrines has a small building that is sealed automatically once the shrine has been assembled, keeping a small object for the deity to inhabit safely locked away from prying eyes. There’s a small recess before this structure, for offerings to be placed, and a little column that puts them above the eye level of a kneeling person.

They’d debated setting aside a space for the shrines in the living room inside the house, to ensure they could be protected and cared for. But she kept getting impulses of outside, of wind and rain, freedom, that eventually they decided it was better than keeping them cooped up inside.

Plus this way, Luffy can’t raid the fridge as easily.

She’s already found certain small cuts of cooked meat have gone missing. If he’s anything like the manga, then she’s not giving him the chance to clean out the entire fridge.

They’ve been working on constructing it and the shrines on weekends and in the mornings during training. According to Gai-sensei, it’s excellent practice for C-rank missions.

Now all that’s left is to paint the structure and the ten shrines housed within.

Working out what to set out as offerings for tomorrow had been a challenge and a half.

For the most part, the Strawhats can be grouped into small sections of what they will and won’t eat.

Nami and Chopper are fruit lovers. Sanji, Zoro, Brook and Usopp are partial to seafood. Luffy, Franky, and Robin are happy with beef and other land-based meats.

However, Zoro, Sanji and Brook like varieties of seafood that are difficult to get in Konoha— octopus, lobster and prawns are expensive and hard to find, while sea king meat just doesn’t exist here. At least Zoro is happy enough with a traditional plate-2-bowls meal with rice.

Robin prefers sandwiches, and she’s not quite sure if the burgers Franky loves fit into that criteria. Chopper can’t stand spicy or bitter foods, but Zoro and Robin dislike sweets.

She’s just thankful that Luffy, Nami Usopp, and Merry are so easy to feed. Pike’s one of the few fish that Konoha doesn’t need to import, so it and tangerines relatively inexpensive.

There’s no chance of combining all their preferences into one dish. Her head hurts just imagining the clash of flavors.

So she had to somehow come up with a way of creating a meal that would (hopefully) make each of the pirates she idolizes happy.

No pressure.

Chouji ended up being her savior in this respect.

And maybe Uchiha did as well, but only a teeny tiny bit.

She’d been brainstorming different versions of meals she could try making that would satisfy everyone, but kept coming up short.

The added tension from Sakura’s friendly-again-but-still-not-quite-sitting-back-at-their-table thing at this time wasn’t exactly helping her think either.

“I’ve got cola, coffee, tea, heck even sake, but still no idea on what to pair any of them with.” She complained, tapping her pencil against the list in front of her.

Chouji had leaned over, a thoughtful look on his face. “Why not make them lunchboxes? That way you can make lots of things in smaller amounts and personalize each lunchbox for each of them.”

“Hm. That is a good idea.” She gnawed on her lower lip. “Only downside is working out when I can cook what and how much time the preparation of each portion is going so everything in the bentos is relatively fresh for when it’s offered... how much d’you think eleven more lunchboxes would cost?”

She’d just begun sketching out lines for a tentative timetable when Uchiha complained, “Why do you think you’ve gotta do everything on your own?”

She looked up, a little offended. “I’m not praying for help with this, are you mad? That’d be like asking someone to bake their own birthday cake.”

“What Sasuke means,” Chouji intervened. “Is that we could always split the work three-ways between us, and bring it to your house on the day?”

She blinked. “You...you guys would help me like that?”

Chouji smiled, then made a squeak of surprise when she lunged over the table to hug him tightly. “Thank you.”

“I have lunchboxes to spare.” Uchiha drawled. “Plus someone’s got to make sure you don’t mess up.”

She had then let Chouji go so she could boot Uchiha in the shin.

As a result of this arrangement, when she wakes up on The Day, all she has to worry about is preparing the pasta for Sanji, Nami and Usopp’s lunchboxes after training with Gai-sensei.

She’s almost worried that her timining be a little delayed because Gai-sensei grabs her in a bone-creaking hug when she arrives at training and spends about three minutes weeping over how youthful she is.

He then makes them run fifty times around the village balancing the paint pots they’ll be using later to ensure that the paint is agitated enough “so its most YOUTHFUL colors will shine through!!”

They nearly lose the purple when Naruto fumbles slightly over a root.

She bolts down her food at breakfast.

She puts on more rice again in preparation for the sesame onigiri, and pulls out a pot to fill with water that’s set to boil and a pan to gently heat some oil on the stove.

She smashes a clove of garlic and drops it in when the oil has begun to smoke gently, deseeding and dicing up some chilis and tossing them in as well for flavor.

She can’t help her grin when the heady spicy-savory scent fills the air, finely chopping capers and anchovies to toss in once she’s fished out the smashed garlic.

The scent mellows somewhat when the diced pike hits the pan as well, and she pushes it around until the fish is almost-but-not-quite cooked through.

Then in with a generous glug of wine and the heat is turned down to a gentle simmer to let the alcohol cook off.

Just in time for the rice to have cooked and cooled enough to begin mixing with yellow and black sesame seeds and begin forming into ten onigiri.

They don’t have any fillings other than the sesame, because they’re designed to take the edge off the stronger flavors of the pasta (her) and the takoyaki (Chouji), as well as serve as a substitute for a sesame topped bun accompanying the hamburger steaks (Uchiha).

The others begin to arrive at around ten.

Sakura and the Harunos arrive first alongside Ino and her dad.

She shouts a hello as Naruto and Lee lead Ino and Sakura through the kitchen to the back garden, nails orange with peeled tangerine.

Ino darts forward and steals two slices, chortling in response to her indignant “Oi!” and passing one to Sakura, who grins as she nibbles on their way out.

Yamanaka-san is totally at home chatting with Gai-sensei and Otou-san, but he snickers when Nara-san immediately gravitates towards him when he arrives. Shikamaru gives her a nod as he follows the adults outside and she puts the pasta on to boil.

She’s set aside two extra tangerines for when Shino and his father arrive. After all, she, Chouji and Uchiha are making enough to feed eleven deities and many many people, so shouldn’t their insects also be able to eat as well?

Shino’s dad stares at her inscrutably when she explains her reasoning, before accepting the fruit with a nod and a “thank you” barely audible over a loud buzzing.

Shino shifts from one foot to the other during this exchange before gently tugging his father’s sleeve. It occurs to her as she drains the pot-full pasta and adds the sauce alongside a cup of boiling water to emulsify everything that this might be the closest she’s ever seen him to being embarrassed.

Chouji and his dad arrive as she’s sprinkling in some parsley as a finishing touch.

They’re both carrying huge containers full of takoyaki and cooked spring greens, and she spares a small moment to be envious of all the amazing things Chouji’s family can afford to do.

Then she launches Chouji another hug to thank him for all his help once he’s set his cargo down.

He squeaks like he did last time and Akimichi-san laughs loudly, for some reason.

Iruka-sensei and Uchiha arrive with eleven lunchboxes, two dogs, Kiba and his mum, and Hinata in tow.

Uchiha keeps sneaking what appear to be morsels of meat to Akamaru and Kuromaru.

There’s also a pale-eyed frowning boy who Iruka-sensei introduces as Hyuuga Neji, Hinata’s cousin who’d been sent along to act as her chaperone.

The boy sniffs disdainfully when they greet him and goes to stand in a corner of the garden near Mebuki, completely ignoring Lee when he waves to him.

She doesn’t think she likes Hinata’s cousin very much.

The lunchboxes Uchiha brought are black lacquer decorated with gold and red tomoe, much fancier than anything she’d been expecting.

When questioned, he just shrugs and says, “It’s just old stuff from New Year’s. It’s just taking up space at home, so it’s better off here.”

She knows better than to say anything like “sorry”, so she just pats his shoulder and says “No, that compartment’s too small for the onigiri, put it in this one.”

“That’s way too big, it looks tiny in that one.” Uchiha snaps, but with a bit less bite than usual.

Iruka-sensei looks mildly overwhelmed by all the people in the back garden. Okaa-san comes along, hands him a drink, pats his shoulder and says “They’re in my house,” in a sympathetic tone.

Iruka-sensei gives her a pitying look and knocks the sake back in one go.

Adults here can be weird.

Finally they’ve finished serving and she calls out “Food’s up!”

The adults come in to help take the larger platters of food outside, a huge plate of pasta, several smaller hamburger steaks in the style of what they’d call “sliders” in her world, and mound upon mound of takoyaki and spring greens and tangerines.

There’s a clamor outside as people begin getting their portions.

She, Chouji and Uchiha are each balancing either three or four lunchboxes per person as they take them outside.

Sakura is helping Kiba paint a pattern of cherry blossoms across Chopper’s already vibrantly pink shrine. Evidence of her handiwork on Robin’s shrine is clear is the decoration of swirling petals and the streaks of matching purple paint all over her forehead.

Ino and Naruto obviously have had a battle over the orange judging by the splashes on their hands and clothing. On the plus side Nami and Luffy’s shrines are looking particularly colorful.

Shikamaru and Hinata are splotched with green, light blue and black-and-white. Lee is smudged with brown, cyan and white paint and beaming proudly.

Shino has yellow paint on the end of his nose and is looking at the detailed illustrations of insects on the sides with pride.

The only shrines that aren’t quite done are Sanji’s, which has a blue overcoat but no decoration, and Zoro’s which doesn’t have half its roof painted yet.

“We were waiting,” Naruto says, holding out two buckets of green paint and blue respectively, “For you guys to add your bits.”

She beams at him.

Of course, Uchiha has to ruin it by immediately grabbing the green.

“What?” He says, offloading his three lunchboxes onto Kiba. “I’ll give it back once I’m finished with it.”

Ino rolls her eyes and shoulders her paintbrush, adding another orange splotch to her outfit. “Ugh. I’ll help Mayu-chan, it’s better to get it done quickly. Let’s go before the food gets cold.”

Orange, red, and yellow fish on the blue background are much more vibrant and eye-catching than green, though Uchiha does “help” by flicking the paintbrush at her while she’s distracted.

In thanks, she smears yellow on the back of his neck.

After the extra decorations are finished, Lee, Sakura and Kiba redistribute the lunchboxes to make their offerings.

The only problem is there’s eleven of them and ten lunchboxes.

“You all go ahead.” She steps back. “I’ll do the next bit.”

Each one of them place the pirate lunchboxes down in front of the shrines and step back.

For some reason, she feels like traditional prayers and chants appropriated from the sage guy won’t really be all that welcoming to them.

But then, what? What could help them feel at home at these shrines, so far from the sea?

Her gaze falls on Brook’s shrine.

Oh.

Oh, well it’s obvious when it’s put like that, isn’t it?

She just hopes she remembers the words correctly. She doesn’t want to butcher them on accident.

“Yohohoho, yohohoho~ Yohohoho, yohohoho~”

Her voice sounds frail and quiet, and she can feel everyone’s eyes on her. Still, she stumbles through the last two refrains of yohohoho’s to the first verse.

“Binksu no sake wo, todokei ni yuku yo, umikaze, kimakase, namimakase~ Shio no mukou de, yuhi wo sawagu, sora nya, wao kaku tori no uta~”

Naruto joins in on the next verse, singing along slightly out of tune and mixing up some of the words.

His cheeks look as flushed as hers feel, and it’s hard not to giggle when they catch each other’s eyes. Somehow they both manage to keep singing.

Gai-sensei and Lee boisterously shout DON alongside them as they join as well, Gai-sensei’s voice strong and sure, while Lee’s volume makes up for any deficiencies in wording. She almost can’t hear Okaa-san’s melodious voice and Otou-san’s decidedly tone-deaf one join in on the second set of Yohohoho’s over their noise.

Sakura and Ino’s voices are both high-pitched, but they carry the tune well enough. So does Kiba, though he’s pitching up to a falsetto for some reason. Hinata’s voice is soft, but she’s genuinely singing, unlike Shikamaru and Sasuke who’re mumbling through all the bits apart from the yohohoho’s. Shino is monotone if precise and enthusiastic, while Chouji has a surprising set of pipes on him.

Akamaru is just howling to the beat. And with that accompaniment, how could anyone stop themselves from singing along?

It feels like more people than could possibly fit into their house and garden are bellowing Bink’s Sake together by the time they’ve reached the third set of Yohohoho’s.

It can’t exactly be called “harmonious”. Everyone’s a little out of tune, a little off beat.

But the mixing of all the voices of her family and friends feels so right, it makes her voice stronger, lets her sing louder.

She opens her eyes and nearly chokes on the next note.

Hovering in front of the brightly painted shrines, slightly faded but gaining color and substance with every passing moment, They stand.

Merry appears in all her glory, as if in mid- sail. Brook is playing his violin, a foot tapping to the beat. Franky is winding up for his SUPA pose, grinning broadly. Robin is resting a hand on Chopper’s hat. Chopper himself is peeking at them the wrong way round from Robin’s leg.

Sanji’s tapping out his cigarette with a grin and giving a small salute. Usopp is waving to them, like a captain would to his 8,000 followers. Nami’s blowing a kiss as if to adoring fans.

Zoro...is climbing over the garden fence and jogging to take his place in front his shrine next to the others. Nami shoots him a Look while Luffy laughs at him, sitting in mid air and clapping his feet together.

The Captain of the Straw Hat Pirates then turns to her and gives her a wide grin.

She blinks away tears as he and his crew fade away with the last notes of the song.

The food in the lunchboxes is gone.

The food on Naruto’s plate is also gone.

In fact, all the food in the immediate vicinity appears to be gone.

It’s just that Naruto looks down at his plate and yells in indignation first.

She lets out a wet laugh. “Darn it Luffy.”

18 notes · View notes

onyourzeus · 4 years

Text

raining | kyh

ykcyj ➝ arskyh

title: raining pairing: kang younghyun (youngk of day6) & you genre: fluff, fictional universe words: 4.4k

was listening to this playlist while writing. author’s note: overwhelmingly cliche, like kdrama levels of it. be forewarned. i am in my youngk feelings tonight, folks. i just wanted to write something sickeningly cute & i think i achieved it lol. do enjoy, regardless.

any requests? check my pinned post if i’m accepting any at the moment, thanks!

The moment you step outside the door, you immediately regret it. You were never one to love the cold, you actually welcome it— but when signs of heavy rain are bound to happen within the hour or so it’s not advisable for anyone to enjoy a walk outside.

You pull on the ends of your sweaters even more, keeping the tips of your fingers enclosed in the warmth of the fabric. A slight yet wintry breeze whispers against your ear and you shiver involuntarily. It was a win-win situation to cover your head with the hoodie as your hair had seen better days before, and it keeps you extra protected from the cold.

The convenience store was a mere ten to fifteen walk from your street, it shouldn’t be a big deal. So here you are, shuddering in house clothes, trudging your way to the nearest mart to snag yourself a cup of noodles or two, and maybe buy a drink to keep you toasty on the way back.

Hands tucked in between your sides, you briskly make your way to your destination. At eight in the evening on a weeknight, there seems to be a couple of people enjoying a chilly stroll outside.

Well, the only difference is that they’re all dressed for the occasion: thick coats, thicker scarves, and an overwhelming sense of excitement for this weather.

“They better go home soon before it starts to rain,” you mumble under your breath, costing a fog to escape in front of you. It looks nice, though, that they have one or another person accompanying them tonight. Some with hands held tight and others just comfortably walking side by side.

The sudden chattering of your teeth makes you question your bitter sentiment. You decide not to think about it any further as you approach the blinding lights of the convenience store.

Pushing the door open with some elbow grease (they really need to replace that), you’re welcomed with a whiff of plastic packaged items, coffee brewing on the side, and the silent hum of cash registers at the front.

You’re starting to feel the heat of the inside replace your slight shivering, but you ought to keep the hood on and make the trip as fast as possible.

Walking towards the ramen aisle, your eyes widen at the sheer possibilities of microwavable meals you can have tonight: curry-flavored, spicy seafood, extra hot with three Xs, it’s shameful that you find these all so appealing.

Before your mouth waters embarrassingly, you grab three cups of your choice and cradle them in one hand securely. Moving over to the chilled section, you check the price of a small container of kimchi to see if you’re lucky enough to spice up your dinner for tonight.

Unfortunately, you don’t think it fits your budget, recalling that you just grabbed a couple of coins from the counter before leaving the apartment.

Somehow, while being preoccupied by the fact that you can’t have any kimchi, your head collides against someone’s back. In the most awkward encounter that can happen, cups of noodles drop on the floor. Your hoodie falls off your head, revealing the hair you’re trying to keep away from the public.

With heated cheeks, you apologize profusely to this person’s back, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry! I wasn’t looking!” You don’t even wait for them to turn around as you quickly bend down and grab your items.

He picks them up before you do.

You get a glimpse of him in the seconds he’s bent down; his hair parted in the middle with a little curl to them, roots are dark brown but everything else of a faded grey, his thick brown coat nicely shaping his shoulders, and as he slowly stand upright you have a clear view of a black turtleneck that hugs his neck perfectly, and his face—

“No worries, it happens,” he tells you casually, holding onto your dropped items. His eyes are slanted and yet you see gentleness in them. As he gives you a small smile, you notice his high cheekbones protruding from such graceful features.

The sudden warmth emanating from your thrift-store find sweater makes your face feel like it’s about to erupt from embarrassment. You scramble over to grab your cup of noodles from his grasp, grazing the skin on his hands. Even that sensation felt so soft for such a short period of interaction.

You do need to go out and see people more.

“T-thanks,” you manage to blurt out. From all the apparent staring you’ve done in the past minute or so, you find your eyes glued on the floor intensely.

“Excuse me…” you trail off almost inaudibly, but he gives you space in the aisle you’ve collided so you can stand in line for the register.

It felt like an eternity being face to face with him as people have formed a queue to pay already, but you will yourself not to look back. It was a… lucky accident?

If you can call it that— you still look like you haven’t unearthed yourself from your hermit cave for months. And him— well, to put it frankly, he just looked unreal to be sauntering his way at a local convenience store.

You shake your head, quickly pull up your hoodie once again and tighten the straps a little bit more forcefully this time.

It’s hard to hide the shame, but at least your hair will be out of sight again.

Impatiently, you tap your foot with the sound of the clock on the wall. Some problem of some kind with the scanner up front was causing the line to lag, and not to say so first-world problem-haver, but the less time you spend in here, the more time you can scream into your pillow back home.

A stretch of the neck, you look up, down, and side to side. On your left, your eyes catch something too familiar.

Something in the universe is clearly toying with you because as soon as you crane your head just a tad bit further, you find the same gorgeous man standing behind you. He’s looking somewhere else, eyes pointed in the distance and his lips pursed together in thought.

Why. Is He. So. Cute. Just standing there like that?

“Hi,” you see his lips move, voice low but friendly. “Your ramen alright there?”

“Me?” you squeak out. His eyes train themselves on you, and for a second he looks just as confused. But he comes back with a short laugh, and you feel like shrinking into dust.

But it doesn’t sound like he’s laughing at you, it wasn’t mean or said with a grimace at all.

He nods his head confirming your silly question and adds, “Yes, the ones you’re holding onto for dear life in there.”

“These?” you ask again, like a complete dysfunctional human machine. “Oh, um— yeah. They’re fine. Hahaha,” you reply and you sound nervous.

You shouldn’t be, he’s asking a legitimate question and you’re making it out to be like an interrogation! Snap out of it, reprimanding yourself in the head. This is not how you talk to people at all.

“Good.” He continues smiling at you, but his eyes shift elsewhere. Well, that’s probably your cue to stop this uncomfortable situation for yourself, and for his good as well.

But he’s still talking, and addressing you it seems.

“I think it’s your turn.”

“Hi, I can take your stuff right here, miss.”

“Yes, please! Thanks,” you hurry off to the front, out of breath and out of words left to speak.

There was no point to keep looking back, you’ve done your part acting the way you did. Maybe you should have just waited until tomorrow to get groceries, you would have benefitted from sleeping in earlier than showcasing how clumsy you can be to a complete stranger. (Not to mention someone your type.)

The employee speedily checks out your items and puts them in a paper bag. She asks if there was anything else you’d like, and you contemplate on the hot coffee that you wanted. You pull out the coins and one lone paper bill you had in your pockets to assess if it’s within your budget.

“Is this enough for what I got?” you lay out your change and then some on the counter. It may be your imagination, but it feels like the guy behind you is watching. You shift to the side slightly to hide the fact that you’re paying with coins.

She glances at your choice of payment, and says words that could literally be the cause of your death tonight. “I’m sorry, do you have an extra fifty cents? These would only pay for three of your cup noodles, miss.”

Robbed of one, already cheap choice of dinner tonight, her voice seemed to increase in volume revealing your insufficient amount of cash on hand to everyone in the store.

She watches as you blink your eyes tight, face squirming hard.

“It’s okay… I’ll just get those that I can pay for,” you respond meekly, and she nods. You don’t hear anything else anymore, maybe she was offering a coupon or whatever, you had one mission and one thing in mind only: get the hell out of there.

You take the paper bag, bow your head in thanks, and head out the door faster than you can realize that the rain had started pouring hard for what seemed like a few minutes prior.

Now your sweater is drenched, your paper bag is starting to crumble from the bottom, and you didn’t bring an umbrella.

Nor do you have any money or phone with you to call a cab to your apartment.

In an effort to keep some parts of you not wet, you keep to yourself just barely outside of the store where the roof is still hanging; just enough to cover half of your body from the pouring rain. It’s amazing, you think, what absolute god must you have angered for you to be stuck in something so stupid like this?

You can’t go back in the store, the guy is still there— suddenly you realize with a panic in your heart. He’ll see you here, right next to the door, waiting for the rain to stop once he exits out of the store.

Either way, he’ll recognize you, and to pity you or laugh at you secretly, it’s his choice now. It’s his right to, you wouldn’t care anymore.

Let the clown music reverberate in your ears, it’s an anthem you’d proudly sing amidst pouring rain.

With your thoughts seeming to come to life for the nth time, the door opens with an annoying chime, and as you look up it’s him, of course, it’s him.

But he’s not laughing nor does it look like he’s just going to avoid your sorry figure. He stands next to you, opens up his black umbrella at an arm’s reach and puts it over both your heads. His shoulders touch your wet sweater, and you’re inclined to move away but the umbrella can only cover a tiny area.

You hold in a breath, afraid when you exhale he’d see panic written all over your face.

“You okay?”

You nod, keeping your gaze forward, into the dim surroundings and the pitter patter of the night sky.

“Do you have any means of going home?” He asks again, and you’re sure he’s looking at you.

“I was planning on walking…” you finally quip, quiet and unsure of yourself. “Once the rain stops,” you let out a shaky breath. Frankly, you feel more stressed out than nervous at this point.

He doesn’t strike you as a man with malicious intent so far, and if he were to rob you right here right now, well — he should know, of all people in this store (aside from the cashier) that there’s nothing of value with you at the moment. You’re basically of no value as far as you can tell.

Sad.

“It doesn’t look like it’s stopping anytime soon,” he says, and you take a quick peek at him. He scans the surroundings, eyes focused and eyebrows knitted together. He looks back at you, and you’re frozen in place.

“Let me call a cab for you,” he tells you with concern.

“I wouldn’t want to be a bother,” you say frantically, dismissing him with one hand. The other was still holding the wet paper bag against your chest, and you feel it dampening your sweater each second that passes by. “I can just wait it out in the store.”

He continues to look at you as he pouts, and you stand there next to him feeling small. You appreciate his kindness, really, but you know a guy dressed like that has better places to be at and you’re here slowing him down.

“Honestly, it’s okay,” you try and ease his worries, but he doesn’t look convinced. “I live, like, fifteen minutes away. I have nothing else to do at home, so there’s no reason for me to be back so soon.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive,” you urge on, smiling at his politeness. “Besides, I don’t want to keep you here. I’m so sorry for the inconvenience.”

“Nonsense. It should be the rain apologizing to us,” he says with a tsk.

You can’t help but giggle at his silly remark. He’s handling this stress-free while you haven’t stopped sweating since he stood beside you with the umbrella.

“How about this, I give you my umbrella—” you start to protest but he puts a finger up, coaxing you to bite your lip to keep it shut. “— so that you can walk home without getting rained on too much, and I’ll call myself a cab.”

It was a tempting offer, but not quite reasonable to you yet.

It’s the generosity he’s offering which shouldn’t be too much of a surprise, in fact, you should feel relieved. But your guard is still up, even if the rain isn’t letting up itself anytime soon.

If you keep declining him, who knows how much more patience he has to appease your feigning grandiose modesty?

“I’d pay for your cab if I had money with me right now,” you admit shyly. “Unless you’re comfortable with an online transfer, I’d have to know your information...” It was a stretch because maybe at that point you’d learn of his name, but you didn’t want to go too far.

“Don’t worry about me for a moment. You can take my umbrella, and I can take a cab. We get home safely, with one of us less drenched unfortunately, but everything will work out in the end. Deal?” His proposition sounds so firm and settled that you had no reason to deny him anymore.

So you relent, much to your own benefit, too. “Fine.”

He chuckles at your unintentional curt response. You correct yourself, “I mean— thank you, for the umbrella. Sorry, I was just stupid to go out without one, knowing it was gonna rain sooner than later.”

“Happens to the best of us,” he chuckles again while pulling something out of his own paper bag. You recognize it immediately, the cup noodles you had to let go of.

“Oh, you shouldn’t have—”

“There you go again, rejecting what I’m putting down here,” he chastises. “It would be a shame if,” he looks at the label before continuing, “Savory Shiitake Soup was left out unwillingly with his other cup noodle pals.”

You stop yourself from internally cringing at how he read it so slowly, as if he’s never had cup ramen in his life. You’d believe it, too, but then again he’s the one parading his sophisticated looks in a local store at a random town.

“I stick to the basic kinds,” he explains, seeing the meek surprise on your face.

It is almost twenty degrees out yet your body temperature is steaming hot. You admit defeat (to yourself) and open up the paper bag so he can put the cup inside. Secretly, you’re thankful the whole gang is in there which makes your stomach grumble all of a sudden. And he hears it.

“I take it, it's almost dinnertime,” he points out.

“Shut up,” you say, lips pouting. To a stranger.

He laughs at the bluntness. “It’s the perfect meal for a weather like this. If you have any eggs at home, I recommend cracking one in right before you eat it.”

“Yes!” You exclaim loudly, eyes shining with interest.

You’ve always done that with your ramen, albeit you hear of some people’s disgust over such a technique.

“I do have eggs at home, thank god, but I can’t believe you do it that way too,” you disclose. It makes the soup eggy and more creamy, what can you say?

“I add a drop of chili oil for added spice on mine, that really seals the deal for me,” you continue, feeling a little less uptight being next to him. However, the moment you uttered those words, his face grimaces for a second as he gulps and nods absently at you.

“You’re not a spicy guy yourself?” It comes out before you register what those words could mean otherwise.

He doesn’t catch it or at least, he doesn’t mind. He laughs again, and the gleeful contrast of his voice to the harsh rain is somewhat giving you warmth inside.

(And not the sweaty kind.)

“Not in regards to food, sadly no,” he says. “My friends tolerate it better than I do, so whenever I have the chance to cook for them I have to separate their portions if the recipe called for some kick to it.”

“You cook?”

“I try to,” he implies sheepishly, cheekbones turning up with the way he grins. It was endearing, watching him explain how it’s become a hobby of his for the past few months and that his roommates have benefited as a result.

All the food talk continues to make you hungrier, but the way he shares personal stories all of a sudden is a delightful experience for you. His eyes glint animatedly when he recalls the time when two of his friends fought over leftover bulgogi, in which he had no choice but to make some more. At two in the morning.

You listen intently, and laugh when he reaches the punchline and prideful banter about the people he seemed to deeply care about. It didn’t even matter how hard hitting the rain felt against the ground, you were actually covered quite expansively by the umbrella.

In return, you quickly notice that the side of his coat has been drenched all this time. Instinctively, you pull at the sleeve of his clothing, surprising him by the movement as you butt heads for a moment. It wasn’t hard, but it definitely paused the natural flow of conversation you two were having.

“You’ve had the umbrella mostly on me this whole time,” you chide almost regretting doing so, “Sorry.”

“It’s just clothes,” he chuckles upon realizing what just happened, but afterwards his smile returns. “Thanks for looking out for me, though.”

You feel yourself smiling too wide from that comment.

You think of something to say before you get too comfortable with this feeling, and then you remember: “You haven’t booked your way home yet.”

“Oh! You’re right,” he says a little too quickly, and you feel a twinge of disappointment weighting in your stomach at how fast he reacted to that.

Of course, at the end of the day, he’s just stuck with you due to some unlucky situation you found yourself in. He’s just doing you a favor.

He checks his phone for a few minutes, the light illuminating on his face. You notice the hard lines of his jaw and the curvature of his nose a bit more definitely now, and it’s amazing how one person can look like that.

This time, you reprimand yourself from staring too much and so you watch the people passing by again. Hand in hand, raincoats and umbrellas in their grasp as they fight against the current of the rain.

“Okay, I just finished booking it on the app. It says it should arrive in less than five minutes,” he brings you out of your reverie.

“That’s great to hear,” you say with as much enthusiasm as you can. You eye the handle of the umbrella in which his hand has been gripping all this time. You know you’re soon to be left with it, alone, as he rides the cab and finally part ways with you.

“I can keep holding on to this until it gets here,” he says, almost reading your mind. “I hope it is of good use to you tonight, and in the near future.”

“I’ll keep it safe and useful, of course,” you say, feeling the pit of your stomach get heavier and heavier. You’re not sure what it is, or you’re probably in denial. You start to count the seconds in your head, imagining how to tell him goodbye and perhaps… never seeing him again.

You don’t even know his name.

“I’m Younghyun— before I forget,” yet again, he hears the pleas in your mind and you ought to keep the thoughts silent as he suspiciously introduces himself.

“I’ve been exposing my friends’ and their ways of borderline gluttony to you, I haven’t even given you my name yet.”

Younghyun, you repeat in your head. Your lips curl upward at the sound of his name, it suits him well.

“Do you mind if I can get yours as well?” It was a polite question, nothing out of the ordinary of two people meeting each other for the first time.

But Younghyun seemed to have other, further plans from that. His phone is still on, and it’s facing in your direction. Looking down, you see that he has an unfilled out contact information on the screen.

“Oh,” you mumble out loud, not wanting for it to sound too pleasantly surprised. He takes it the other way, however, as he tries to retract his phone. “Sorry, I thought— I just wanted to know if you got home safely and—”

“No, please! It’s okay. I’d— um, I don’t have my phone on me right now but I can text my number if that’s alright with you,” you explain quickly before he can put it back in his pocket.

With an openly relieved expression, Younghyun changes the app to his messages and gives you his phone. You type in something easy to recognize in addition to your name on it, and send it to your number. Right as you give it back to him, a car with its headlights on park upfront, beaming the two of you with its brightness.

“I guess that’s my ride,” Younghyun hesitates. “I know it seems odd, but I really enjoyed talking to you despite…,” he finishes by looking at the puddle forming underneath where you both stand. You agree with a hearty laugh, the uneasiness you feel inside dissipating.

“Thank you, for the umbrella. And my cheap shiitake noodles,” you humor him, but your words are laced with sincerity.

He hands you the umbrella, enclosing his fingers over yours as you grip onto the handle tightly. His hand is just the right temperature, cozy and warm. It immediately sends your head reeling.

“Are you sure you don’t want to share the ride with me? I think I’ve proven enough to you that I’m just a beginner in the kitchen, and not an evil person,” Younghyun suggests. You nudge him just enough to tip him over the edge, playful and amicable on your end.

“I’ll text you, I promise. Is that good enough for you, Younghyun?” With the sound of his name coming from you, lips widen in the most cheerful grin he’s shared to you today.

If you’re being really honest with yourself, you feel a little special.

“You better stay true to your words.”

“Go home, Younghyun!”

You watch his ride pull out of the parking lot, and drive into the night. It’s funny because the rain went from hazardous conditions to gentle whispers of droplets which makes walking back home easier for you, probably even without an umbrella.

But you hold onto it tight, knowing that Younghyun had his hands on the same spot makes you squeal like a teenage girl on the way home. You walk faster than normal, pools of water on the pavement splashing at the ends of your sweatpants. It’s disgusting, you most likely need to change completely, but it was far from your concern.

You get home and head straight for your bed where your phone was, disregarding the drenched clothes you have on dripping on the sheets.

The text from Younghyun’s number came through, and inspecting further he texts you two more times.

You giggle, finally letting out giddy feelings where no one can judge you. You text him back.

And you think that’s the end for today, and you think of things to say for tomorrow that wouldn’t make you seem like you’re overstepping it. But your phone vibrates in your hand, and your eyes stare at his quick response.

Your heart pounds in your chest; it’s heavy, weighing down on you but for completely different reasons.

You plop down on your bed head first, pillow against your cheek. You actually do it, you scream. Not of what you thought you’d be doing, but the complete opposite.

Before you pass out in excitement, you manage a reply.

You do end up staying up late at night, eating your well deserved hot cup of noodles. But the laptop isn’t on, and you decide you can catch up on shows some other time.

You and Younghyun text the night away, it’s not awkward anymore. You feel yourself easing up to his banter through messages and gifs which you try to one up him every so often.

The rain had stopped sometime in the night, and instead your heart continued to pound heavily in your chest. It was exhilarating, to say the least, but you welcomed the feeling of having something to look forward to.

You remind yourself to not only do groceries tomorrow, but also do your laundry. (You never got to change into something more dry that night.)

#young k scenarios #young k imagines #day6 scenarios #day6 imagines #brian kang imagines #brian kang scenarios #young k x reader #young k au #day6 au #by:jiae

36 notes · View notes

army-of-mai-lovers · 3 years

Note

hello arthur!! tbh people are being terrible in your inbox and the last ask killed my brain cells so this is your free bingo card to talk about anything you like. also sometimes googling sharks with human teeth (exactly what it sounds like) helps!! much love <3

oh my gosh I’m OBSESSED with these photos they’re so cute!!!! and thank you for the bingo card Effie I appreciate it so much. I’m gonna rant about Deadly Class (a show I definitely don’t like and thus don’t run a fan blog for....smh) bc it’s on my mind and it looks like it’s just going to go quietly into that good night instead of being made fun of and dissected and I think that should change bc goodness gracious that show does not deserve a dignified death. also I’m gonna put this rant under a readmore bc this is gonna be long and it has nothing to do w atla. warnings for discussions of racism, callous mentions of murder and death, swearing, discussion of Nazis, discussion of gore, abuse ment

Okay so for those not in the know (which is probably everyone considering the show was on Syfy and it’s being canceled due to low viewership) Deadly Class is a teen murder drama set in the late ‘80s starring Lana Condor, which makes it sound like it was engineered in a lab to appeal to me. Literally my friend and I were in the middle of watching Schitt’s Creek, which I adore, and she was like “well I heard about this show called Deadly Class” and described it and I was like fuck Schitt’s Creek we’re watching this. It had a 64% on Rotten Tomatoes, which usually makes me nervous, but I was literally like “I don’t care because I know I’m going to love it.”

And well. I did not love it.

I truly do not understand how one fucks up “teenagers (mostly) of color go to murder boarding school in the late ‘80s” that bad (I mean the Russo brothers are involved and they fuck up everything they touch so perhaps it was just that). I haven’t read the comic the show is based on but it does appear that a *lot* of the issues of the show stem from the comic, which is...disappointing. Basically, our MC, Marcus, starts off the show homeless after his group home burned down (and it’s heavily implied that he was the one to do it) and gets hunted down by these elite teenage murderers who invite them to their murder school.

Already, numerous problems are starting to show themselves. First of all, Marcus is Latino, which, yes, it’s very cool that the MC is Latino, except he is literally the white-passingest man I’ve ever seen in my life, and I’ve seen my dad. I didn’t realize that he was Latino until they showed his extremely stupid backstory in a shitty animated sequence and whoever was voicing his dad did this really, really thick Nicaraguan accent and I was like wait a damn minute. So then, I looked it up, and the guy playing Marcus is named Benjamin Wadsworth, which immediately made me think that they had pulled a Noah Centineo and made me think this fully white actor was half Latino (and yes, Latinos can be white, but I think Marcus is supposed to be a nonwhite Latino, and I thought Benjamin Wadsworth was both white and non-Latino). But you know, as an light skinned ethnically ambiguous mixed kid myself, I thought I owed it to him to dig a little deeper, and turns out our pal Ben is mixed (also, he’s like six months older than me and married, which is a trip). And like, okay, I guess I’m glad they didn’t get a white non-Latino man to play a Latino character, but they literally got the whitest looking Latino they could think of to play him. He originally auditioned for Billy. Billy’s the token white. And the producers were like “wait you have Latino ancestry?” (how they found that out I don’t fucking know) and let him go for Marcus. And like. Okay. The character in the comics is light-skinned but he does not look white, and Benjamin is not a good enough actor for them to just pass on the actors who surely auditioned for that role and were more visibly Latino but like. Okay, I guess.

Second of all, this show is mega racist and it starts to reveal itself when you look at how the murder kids are styled in literally their first appearance. What struck me the most was the fact that the Latina (whose name is fucking Maria, for heaven’s sake) was wearing a sexy red dress and Day of the Dead makeup, which, I’m sorry, huh? That just so happens to be the Mexican girl’s murder outfit? I’ve tried to give them the benefit of the doubt and speculate that maybe she wears it to like, subvert people’s expectations, but at this point idk how this is subverting anyone’s expectations nor why she’d be so invested in that. Also, she’s supposed to be a teenager. It’s fucked up to sexualize any of your child characters but it really hits different when it’s your Latina character (and yeah, I know the actress playing Maria isn’t a teenager, but still, it’s the principle of the thing). And then of course, the Black guy, Willie (no he’s not related to Billy they were just like yeah two guys with rhyming names in our main cast sounds legit) is a gangbanger dude who talks the way that white people think Black people talk. I keep waiting for this guy to have one line that’s not complete garbage, but I’m five episodes deep and so far nada, which sucks so bad because there’s like, kernels of an interesting character buried in this horrible racist trope. Also, they had him sleep with a N*zi. I hate it here. Lana Condor (her character’s name is Saya) gets off fairly okay, at least in this first shot (they don’t have her wearing a kimono to go murder people, thank fuck), but the way she behaves is super weird, like kinda flirty towards Marcus, kinda badass but not enough to actually do anything, etc. Billy’s white so they couldn’t make him a racist caricature or anything but I have no idea why he’s here. See, instead of talking about the real politics of the real world, Deadly Class makes up fake prejudice that honestly makes the lok bender/nonbender bullshit look sensible. Maria, Willie, and Saya are Legacies, which means that their families are established murderers (fun fact: the N*zi girl is also a Legacy, because her father murdered hundreds of civil rights activists. And the characters of color align themselves with her. I don’t understand.) Billy, and later Marcus when he decides to go to murder school, are Rats, meaning they have no affiliation with established murder groups. So, in this show, the people of color have privilege over the (mostly white) Rats. Make it make sense. Further, this means that Maria, Saya, and Willie should have absolutely no reason to hang out with Billy, and yet they do because the Russo brothers have heard that the kids these days like the found family trope, so they put five unlikely friends in a room together and insinuated that they could all be besties. I swear, this show is the La Croix of found family tho, in that there is absolutely no flavor whatsoever. None of the characters develop into a found family. Saya is bound to care for Marcus for reasons, Maria is using him, Willie is also using him, and Billy is only his friend because they’re both Rats. Saya and Maria are already friends (and honestly their friendship is the most compelling thing in the whole show). There are no other connections between the characters. But they’re totes a found family!!!!/s

Also, they don’t let Saya be mean. Every character says “oh Saya’s such a bitch” but do we ever see Saya being a bitch??? No! Saya is literally just a nice girl who is kinda quiet sometimes and murders people and has a tragic backstory. There’s an argument to be made for Maria being more bitchy than her tbh. And like, fine, if you want Saya to be nice, she can be nice, but stop telling me she’s mean then!!! If you’re gonna tell me that I’m gonna get to see mean Lana Condor in a leather jacket in this show then deliver bitch.

There’s truly so much more I could talk about (Chico??? What the fuck is Chico’s arc???? What in the actual hell were they thinking when they were writing anything to do with Chico????? my DUDES WHAT IN THE SAM HELL. also making Billy straight was so fucking stupid he’s literally gay come on now, also Master Lin is so fucking useless what is he even doing here) but instead I’m going to outline the version of Deadly Class my friend and I have been talking about while we watch the inferior real Deadly Class.

lots of things are the same actually because there are some elements of the show that have potential. Marcus is still homeless at the beginning, everybody still thinks he burned down the group home but he didn’t, Willie is still a pacifist, he and Marcus are still partners for their first murder school assignment, Saya’s mean (but like actually), Billy still has green hair and is the token white of the group (although a Billy of color.....thinking), and they all hate Reagan

in an ideal world Willie and Maria would have different names (Willie bc his name rhymes with Billy’s and that’s fucking stupid, also Willie is just a terrible name in general, Maria partially because it sounds way too similar to Marcus and I don’t understand why the guy who wrote this couldn’t make his characters have different sounding names, and partially because no Latina character of mine is going to be named fucking Maria), but for the purposes of this outline I’ll keep their names the same for clarity.

Marcus doesn’t initially have his rep. He’s on the streets when he sees a girl his age (Saya) come out of this elevator in the back of a restaurant brandishing a sword, and decides to go into the elevator, sees the stash of weapons, and decides to steal one so he can fend for himself better.

also keeping the detail of Rory murdering a bunch of homeless kids, but now Marcus knows that Rory is actively hunting him down.

in the process of robbing the school’s weapons collection, Marcus figures out that it’s a murder school

Master Lin catches Marcus robbing the school, they fight, Master Lin overpowers Marcus and ties him up. He says the weapons are for students only, and Marcus says he’s applying. Lin asks what his qualifications are, and Marcus says “you know that group home that burned down three months ago? all the kids that died? I started the fire.”

(also no shade to Benjamin Wadsworth but in this version he is not playing Marcus. Marcus is not white-passing)

Master Lin initially doesn’t believe him, but Marcus presses on and eventually convinces Master Lin that this is really what happened, and so Lin welcomes him to murder school.

Marcus’s first class is Poisons, and his lab partner is Billy, who takes a shine to him and shows him around school. There’s no Legacy/Rat nonsense, but you do have normal high school drama adapted slightly for murder school. Maria is the prettiest and most popular girl in school, Saya is the mean girl/valedictorian, Willie is the jock, and Billy’s the punky weirdo.

Marcus is, of course, the new kid with a reputation to live up to.

Things kind of fall apart when Willie and Marcus are paired up for an assignment: to seek revenge on somebody.

also Willie’s backstory is extremely different. his dad was a Black Panther, and he was murdered by the FBI when Willie was a kid. distraught, his mom moved to Texas, where she started working a corporate job and rose really high in the ranks. To maintain her status in the company, she had to do some really horrible things, including working with the FBI to take down other civil rights activists. Willie found out about this and was absolutely horrified. his mother insisted she was doing this so that he could have a better life, but he refused to listen to her, and ran away, and ended up at murder school.

Willie got into murder school because Lin knows who his mom is, and assumes that Willie is just as cutthroat as she is. he gains a reputation as well.

also, Willie’s extremely wealthy, and this shows in the way he dresses (preppy jock vibes)

you don’t find out about this backstory for a minute tho bc unlike Albert Kim and the Russo Brothers, I can wait until the right opportunity presents itself for a backstory drop.

ok anyway back to what I was saying earlier

they have to seek revenge on somebody. Marcus asks Willie if there’s anybody he wants revenge on, and Willie very sincerely says no. Marcus scoffs at him and says he’s clearly had a very easy life, to which Willie replies, “Well, who do you want revenge on?”

Marcus immediately says, “Rory.”

So they track Rory down, and since Marcus hasn’t actually killed anybody, he hands the weapons over to Willie. Willie frowns and says that he has nothing against this dude he’s never met before, so Marcus should be the one to hurt him. Marcus says that this is a group project and Willie’s got to pull his weight, and they get into an argument

the argument gets loud, and Rory hears them fighting and starts chasing them.

in the midst of the chase, both of them divulge their secrets to one another. Willie laughs hysterically and says that they deserve each other bc they both lied to get where they are, and now they’re going to die because of it

Rory backs them into a corner, and Marcus uses one of the swords he tried to steal earlier to shank Rory

They throw the body in a dumpster, and after this, they’re friends, and Marcus decides he’ll fit right in at murder school.

ok so that was only one episode but things to look forward to in the version of Deadly Class that only exists in me and my friend’s heads: Marcus dealing with the emotional and moral fallout of his first murder, Willie trying to figure out what it means to be a pacifist in a world so hellbent on doing violence towards him, Saya being mean to everyone except Maria, Maria convincing Saya to relax and have fun, the gang bonding in a Breakfast Club style situation adapted for murder school and making a joke about how this is like the Breakfast Club because it’s the 80s and the movie just came out, Saya and Maria falling in lesbians, Marcus and Saya being depressing edgelord besties, Billy being gay and fighting his abusive father, Marcus and Billy being uncool weirdo bffs, Willie and Maria rolling their eyes at Marcus and Saya’s cynicism, Billy coming out to Marcus and talking about his experiences being gay, which makes Marcus think “hang on, why do I relate to that?”, Willie seeing Marcus make a sarcastic comment about kissing a guy and having a crisis, Marcus and Willie falling in love, the gang taking a road trip to Vegas to murder Billy’s dad and giving Billy a gnc thrift store makeover on the way, and eventually the gang murdering the shit out of Ronald Reagan.

#caps tw #effie tag #replies #not atla #racism #murder tw #death tw #swearing tw #nazi #finn don't look #politics tw #gore tw #abuse ment #you do not have to read this effie it was very satisfying just to write it #arthur tags for later #gonna show this to my friend bc we haven't outlined anything this specific yet

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telinuauthour · 3 years

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This is when Ukyo became my favorite character. After 42 episodes and 90 chapters of reactions to the curse, Ukyo is the first and only person in the entire series to have a positive reaction. And just look at her, she is enjoying herself. Sure Ranma is annoyed with it, but compared to being threatened or physically abused when the cruse is revealed, this is nothing.

I was too young and naïve to realize that Ranma 1/2 was a series that would never resolve anything and that Ukyo was just there for more flavoring to get in the way of Ranma and Akane. But when I first experienced this, this was the ship I cared about.

Akane STILL gets mad constantly about Ranma’s curse at this time and never changes her viewpoint. To this day, I still have my issues with her and wonder why Rumiko Takahashi, and the internet for that matter, loves tsunderes so much.

Ukyo and Akane are opposites in many ways. Ukyo is alone, she has no one else to support her, while fanfics try to give her the whole “My dad forced me” thing, EVRYTHING she does is her decision. She chose to give up her femininity, she chose to seek revenge, she chose to come to Nerima to loo for Ranma, and she chose to get over 10 years worth of baggage and try the engagement again. She has her own restaurant, lives by herself, and literally has no one in her corner in the entire series.

Meanwhile Akane has by far the most support out of anyone, she has lived in a comfortable home her whole life, and she so much dictated for her. She did not go after Ranma, or instigate the engagement, or has really made any big decisions in her life. Even her haircut was not by choice.

While Ukyo has continued to dress like a boy and in many ways acted rather boyish, she is the one Ranma calls cute, and in my opinion, acts like it way more often. Just look at this gif! Ukyo chooses her wardrobe, her look, her life, and as such she is truer to herself. Akane has absolutely no domestic skills at all and keeps trying despite not improving. She has been trying to emulate Kasumi instead of being true to herself, which is why, despite wearing dresses and skirts almost all the time, she ends up being the one that is seen as more manly.

Since Ranma 1/2, girls in anime and manga have only gotten more and more girly. The amount of girls that even dare to wear pants is pathetically low. So whenever I watch or read stuff with Ukyo, it is feels different. Here is an independent, confident, boyish girl who has passions in life and knows who they are even if it is not what society deems acceptable.

I did not fall for Ukyo, I looked up to her. And still all these years later, I admire her. Ranma 1/2 was ahead of its time in some ways, (and shows its age in others) as even now I have yet to find a character like her. I do wish fan depictions would stop robbing her of agency, she has the most out of everyone in the series.

#ranma 1/2 #ukyo kuonji #ranma saotome

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bardicknowledgeblogger · 4 years

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Critical Story Beats

While it’s not really an aspect of the rules anymore, a lot of us who play D&D and other similar TTRPGs like to make use of the Nat 20 = Auto Success, Nat 1 = Auto Fail rule with varying degrees of success and excitement.

I’ve seen people post their stories of Nat 20s and 1s resulting in hilarious and ridiculous moments as a DM allows the player to get away with something they probably shouldn’t have been able to, or failed horribly at something that really should have been easy to accomplish. I’ve read posts from frustrated DMs trying to keep players with godlike luck from just auto succeeding encounters they shouldn’t be able to waltz through like this. And in my own games, I’ve simply seen Crits be... well, not much. You succeed or fail in a way that doesn’t really make much of a difference from a normal success or failure.

Obviously everyone runs their games a bit differently, and there’s not anything wrong with having silly story moments or more low key interactions at your table if that’s what works for you. But lately, I’ve been trying to challenge myself to make moments in my stories more engaging, and that includes handling Critical Failures and Successes. So I wanted to share a few different ideas, philosophies, etc... on how to handle these rolls! Hopefully you find some things to apply to your own games as well!

(This is mainly on how to make the most of your Nat 20s and Nat 1s - if there’s interest I will make a different post about how to handle problems with it, such as succeeding the impossible and how to curb that without players losing “faith” in their Crits)

Everything below the cut because it’s a tad long...

Making Things Interesting

This has been a guiding philosophy for me lately in all of games, as I strive to make sure that every choice made, while still narratively coherent and satisfying, is also as interesting and intriguing as possible. I want my players to feel enraptured with every moment, and that idea has carried over into my narration of critical fails and successes.

In the past, I wasn’t very good at handling Crits, especially the failures. In a combat, if a player rolled a Nat 1 for their attack, my response was often to have them just.... drop their weapon, or a spell just failed to cast. It wasn’t very interesting and proved to just irritate and frustrate the players because it was a minor inconvenience that resulted in a wasted turn and nothing more. Similarly, Nat 20s in many non-combat situations were the same as usual successes with the added flourish of “You do it flawlessly” Which was.... fine, but not very exciting. This year, I started to try and change things.

When a player rolls a Nat 1 or a Nat 20, I take a moment to pause as I think “What would be the most interesting thing to happen in this situation? What bad thing could completely shift the tide in this one moment and introduce a new conflict/what amazing thing could shift everything in their favor and create a satisfying and exciting moment for all?”

A recent example I’ve had of this - My players were navigating through a massive underground cavern, and were entering a larger room that was pretty dark and had some unique traits that had been different from the rest of the cave system. I had my players roll Perception, to see how many of these details they picked up on, and one of the players rolled a Nat 1. Now, in the past, I would have made some joke about them being too busy watching their feet to make sure they didn’t trip that they didn’t notice anything happening around them. But this time around, after some consideration, I decided on something different.

What if instead, they were so focused on trying to see something, trying to see anything, that they started seeing and hearing things that weren’t really there. Many of us have been in that position before - it’s late at night and you get an uncomfortable feeling so you look around in the dark of your room, and suddenly you feel like you definitely saw something move out of the corner of your eye, or heard a shuffling noise. So that’s what I did.

While the other players started to get details about how the cavern was carved out, signs of drawings on the walls, etc... the player who rolled a Nat 1 became convinced that they could hear whispers and shuffling in the darkness, could see dark shapes flitting about just at the edges of their vision. They started to panic and nearly started blind firing spells in an attempt to chase whatever it was off and had to be coaxed the rest of the way through the cavern.

Instead of a forgettable moment, it become a defining experience for this player as they navigated through the cavern - an experience that has shaped them in some way. And that’s the goal.

How Do You Want To Do This?

If you’re a fan of Critical Role then you’re familiar with this line and the excitement it can summon up. This is something you can carry into your games as well in regards to Critical Successes.

Now obviously not everything is going to be something you can give any player control over. But allowing the player the opportunity to really bring the vision of their character to life for an exciting conclusion to an encounter, or for any epic moment really, does a lot to build hype and excitement in the game. It make players eager to see that 20 come up on their die, and gears them up for what is coming next.

The easiest place to put this into practice is in combat. Obviously this works incredibly well if they get a Critical Strike that finishes the enemy off, as you can give them full control of the narrative if you’d like. However, there are still ways to apply it in the combat even if they aren’t finishing it off.

I try to reward my player’s combat crits by turning the tide of the fight pretty drastically, allowing them to stagger or even cripple the opponent with their attack. If your players seem eager to engage with narrative and add their own flavor and flare to the actions of their character, this can be a great place to allow them to do so. You can tell them “Your attack manages to cripple the opponent’s arm - how do you want to do this?” And let them build their role in the story. It may not be quite as spectacular as you had originally imagined, or perhaps its something completely different from what you would have done - either way, it is likely to get your players more engaged, and way more excited for these strikes.

Extra Rewards and Penalties

Finally, and something I’ve already vaguely alluded to in the previous sections, you can handle Crit Fails and Successes with “extras”. Sometimes a player fails or succeeds a task where there’s not a lot you can do with it - Maybe they’re picking a lock, and they roll a Nat 20 to do so. There’s unfortunately not a lot they can get beyond succeeding to unlock it (unless you had planned additional traps or something that they can now bypass) so in these instances, I try to think about what extra they might get out of the situation.

Maybe as they re-positioned themselves to finish unlocking the door, they jostled a nearby potted plants and noticed that just in the dirt was a small ring of keys that may be able to be used on other doors or chests within this place. Maybe, if you were planning an encounter in the next room for a guard they were going to alert coming in, they find that guard asleep and you mention that the player was so expertly silent with their lockpicking they didn’t alert or awaken the guard, allowing the players to bypass him altogether.

Obviously there are still some limitations here, and it may not be the most exciting thing, but it can still elevate a success from “Yay, you did it just like you would have if you rolled one of the other 3 numbers” to being something special. This same principle can be applied with Nat 1s, if they fail at something that simple can’t have consequences.

I mentioned my Perception example above, but sometimes a Perception check simply can’t be twisted into anything more. So in addition to them missing out on whatever was going to be noticed, give them something extra to focus on instead. Maybe they trip over something and twist their ankle - not enough to have major mechanical effect, but enough to be frustrating and something to keep them preoccupied from the other information. Or perhaps they see something that is ultimately useless but stands out to them - a shiny pebble on the side of the road that has a strange green hue to it. If the player really plays along and even takes the pebble, trying to determine what it does, this is something you can potentially play with later. Maybe the pebble is a mark used by goblins to track potential people to rob? Perhaps the stone grows bigger every day until they start receiving movement penalties. They possibilities are truly limitless.

There’s obviously a lot more you can do, but these are the things I’ve been trying to incorporate into my own games. I want there to be magic to seeing a 20 come up on the die, and a sense of dread to seeing a 1. I don’t want it to be a minor annoyance, I want it to be a defining moment in the story.

As mentioned at the top - I will look at doing another one talking about how to handle Impossible Successes and Failures if there’s some interest!

#d&d #dungeons and dragons #rpg #dming #dm tips #critical success #critical failure #crit #crit fail

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canyouhearthelight · 5 years

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The Miys, Ch. 46

I’m on a roll! Yet another chapter beta’d by @parisconstantine (in which I learned about French terms of affection), and I’m already 1600 words into chapter 47. I’m not sure if the next chapter will be a long one or if I’ll end up splitting it into two parts. Time will tell on that front.

Oh! Oh! Sam and Simon both get last names in this chapter!

This covers the first six hours of the Food Festival, so minor mentions of food. I can’t think of any other warnings beyond that, but if you find something please shoot me a message so I can update it. I’m learning every day about things that trigger people, so sometimes I miss things that aren’t glaringly obvious. However, I’m always willing to learn. At the end of the day, this is very slice-of-life, after all.

Edit: I am reposting this, for 2 reasons. Most importantly, I included some characters in this chapter who I need to attribute to their rightful creators. So, Thank you @charlylimph-blog for Ivan Thorson and Coffee Williams. You are an incredible writer, and I didn’t want these two to languish in obscurity after all the hard work you put into submitting them for the last contest.

The second reason is just because I posted it too early and wanted to put it out there for the people who look for my chapters on Tuesdays. I love you all!

“Okay, everyone for Alpha Shift, sound off.”

“Tyche Reid, Admin Observation, is online.” I could hear the smirk in my sister’s voice.

“Antoine Costa, Support Personnel, online.”

“Sophia, do I really have to do this?” a familiar voice wheedled.

“Yes. I need to know who is my eyes and ears on the ground.”

“Ugh. Zach Khan, Support Personnel, online.”

“Derek Okafor, Civilian Observation, online.”

“Sam Richardson, Civilian Ob-observation, o-o-online.” I couldn’t help grinning that Sam agreed to help out. Usually, he kept out of any operations on the ship, but he was the original tester for Antoine’s project, so he had just assumed he would be part of today’s actions.

“Maverick Okima, Support Personnel, online.”

“Alistair Worthington, Resource Adjunct, online,” my assistant dutifully called off in a bored tone. Only I could see the sardonic look he shot me.

“Sophia Reid, Resource Command, online,” I breathed in relief. “Thank you, everyone. You have two objectives today: first, a general assessment of the low-stim session so that we know what we did right and what we can improve on in the future; second, getting feedback on how Mr. Costa’s dampening and proximity updates to the translation chips are working, again with a goal for future enhancements. Tyche Reid has graciously volunteered to be our control on the chip project, so she will be providing only a baseline evaluation of the low-stim session and the quiet rooms.” In reality, my sister wasn’t volunteering so much as refusing to get the upgrade until I agreed to do the same.

“Soph, if you are going to keep being so formal, we may as well shut this down now,” my sister huffed. “Mr. Costa my foot.”

“I’m trying to be professional,” I grumbled back. “This is an official Council operation, to be saved for posterity.”

“Do you truly believe that Xiomara will tolerate being referred to as ‘Miss’ or ‘Councillor Kalloe’ for six hours, Sophia?” Antoine asked smoothly.

Fighting back a chuckle, I refused to concede his point. “That’s Simon’s problem, not mine. She and I are on shift in the festival at the same time, so Simon will be running the show from here.”

“And you have deluded yourself to believe that Mr. Rodriguez will continue to address everyone formally?” Alistair scoffed. Et tu, Brute? I had argued with him for weeks to call me Sophia.

“If you start calling me Mr. Okafor, I’m going silent until this is over, Sophia,” Derek threatened.

I threw my hands up defensively, even if most people couldn’t see me. “Fine! I get it, I get it. I’ll chill out with the names, but I am going on record that it was under duress and threat of operative failure.” I shook my head and took a deep breath. “Okay, so, back to the point. Tyche, your job is providing an assessment of the low-stim Festival session, as it appears to someone without the implant upgrades. Derek and Sam, your jobs are to evaluate the session with the upgrades. I need all three of you to report back two specific things: what worked better than your past experiences, and what still sucked. Maverick, Zach, and Antoine: you are there both in your capacities as support personnel in case something goes horribly wrong, and to make sure I hear about anything they don’t realize shouldn’t be happening. Everyone clear on your jobs?”

I got six affirmative answers before continuing. “Okay, other than that – have fun! Try new foods, let me know what to try when it’s my turn, just enjoy yourselves as much as possible!” With that, I left the group channel open and watched the map of the festival. The three teams were entering from different points to ensure that, between the six of them, everything could be evaluated. In theory, everything should go off without a hitch. The vendors were already briefed to be prepared for attendees during this session to provide a list of flavor and texture aversions, and Miys was already stationed in security alcoves to ensure that the vendors were complying and attendees weren’t abusing it.

It was only fifteen minutes before we got our first update.

“Team Try New Foods, reporting early success,” Zach Khan’s voice broke in. “Kosher food stall was an overall hit, the Jainist stall admitted they had nothing that Derek could like except papadums, and Derek tried both falafel and chicken tikka masala. Jury’s out on the masala, but he likes falafel.”

“I really thought falafel would be too squishy,” I admitted.

“Apparently not,” Zach chuckled. “He said it’s like a meatball, but no meat.”

“I mean, yeah,” I agreed, still dazed. “That’s cool, though. And the Jainist vendor didn’t give him a hard time about the list?”

“Nope,” he popped the last letter, something he tended to do when he was really excited. “Just smiled, read it, and apologized that everything he had was either spicy, sour, or squishy.”

“How did the Kosher and Halal vendors react to the list?”

“Thoughtfully,” Derek interjected. “The Kosher vendor clarified if I like onions, and the Halal vendor just wanted to know if I meant pepper-spicy or herb-spicy.”

Awesome. “Good job, guys. And congrats, Derek, on the new foods. Keep it up and let me know.”

Thirty minutes later, not everything was sunshine and rainbows, though. Sam and Maverick had so far reported three vendors whose stalls were too pungent to approach, and Alistair was already in contact with and arguing about the need to keep the dishes covered during the low-stim session. “I understand that the smell is what draws people in, usually, ma’am, but you agreed to keep all smells to a minimum for the first six hours. That includes keeping the atmospheric scrubbers engaged and keeping the dishes sealed.” When the woman on the other end started to argue, he swiftly cut her off. “When you signed up to be open during this session, you were given a list of the restrictions, and you signed off on it. Low Stimulus, and that includes stimulating the nose. You can either seal the food, as you agreed, or we can have your stall closed down for the remainder of the Festival, per the agreement you signed.” With that, he disconnected sighed before turning to me. “So rude,” he informed me with a shake of his head.

“Which stall was that?” I asked, wrinkling my nose in dread.

“Fortunately, just the seafood stall,” he explained. “Along with the Cajun and Jamaican stalls. So, pungent, but no one has reported nausea as of yet. Miys is already in the area, trying to dissipate the odor.”

“As long as it isn’t the Japanese stall,” I gulped. They had insisted on serving natto, but explained that it would be sealed in individual portions throughout the festival, and only opened by the person eating it. While I couldn’t exactly argue, I didn’t have to be happy about it.

I heard from Tyche right at one hour into the event.

“Soph,” my sister practically shouted at me. “Do you want to explain to me why one of the Quiet Rooms looks like you robbed my quarters?”

Oops. Forgot about that. “Tyche, they’re designed to be relaxing, quiet, and provide low stimulation. I can’t help it that your quarters are practically a smooshy cave.” Three, two, one…

“A hammock!?” she demanded. “Why don’t I have a hammock?”

“Make up your mind, Tych. Are you offended that the room looks like your quarters, or jealous that it’s better equipped?”

“Both. Definitely both,” she asserted. “Ooo, you included the sound scrubbers we had installed in your quarters, didn’t you?”

“I knew it!” I almost shrieked. “I knew it sounded muffled in my quarters since I got back! That was completely uncalled for, you brat. You know I’m hard of hearing!”

“You also have an implant in your brain that directly translates language into your auditory cortex, so it’s not like you couldn’t hear us,” she pointed out. “And all your alerts and alarms were already calibrated for you to see them as well as hear them. What I don’t understand is why you never had Miys fix your hearing.”

“Are you kidding?” I scoffed. “Loud noises are bad enough as it is. I can’t imagine how it would be if I could hear them better.”

“Aaannnnnnd that’s why we put the scrubbers in your quarters,” she finished. Well, walked right into that one, I admitted to myself. “This room is nice, by the way, once I got over the shock. Quiet, relaxing on the eyes and ears. How buff are the atmo scrubbers? It’s like my nose just quit working, but I can still breathe.”

“Really buff,” I clarified. “I’m not sure how many food and personal odors are going to be at the main event, so I erred on the side of overkill.”

“Do all the quiet rooms look like this?” Antoine asked, his tone full of curiosity.

“They do not,” I grinned. “Antoine, you’re going to love this, I think. There are five different themed quiet rooms, and two of each for a total of ten. You two are in one of the Dark Rooms. The Green themed rooms are furnished with plants and small fountains. Medium theme looks more like my quarters, with lighter grays and some purples thrown in. Cool theme is mostly blues, with diffuse light to give an underwater or polar night kind of feeling. Finally, the Light themed room is whites and pale yellows, with indirect light to create a feeling like a sunny day.”

A hum of approval. “I think that makes the most sense,” he agreed. “Not everyone finds the same things soothing, but I think you created enough variety to cover everyone.”

“So, how is the event going for you guys?”

Tyche sighed. “It’s going okay, but I’m not entirely certain that’s not because of who I am. I haven’t seen any flashing lights, no loud music is playing, so that’s good. The vendors have been very deferential, which I didn’t think to expect, honestly.”

“I don’t think that’s because of you,” I hummed. “Derek is having a similar experience, honestly. Sam has reported some vendors with fragrant stalls, but that’s been addressed. Alistair, anything else?”

Without glancing up from his data screen, he shook his head. “Other than the incident with the smells, nothing negative reporting yet. Derek and Zachary have dutifully sent in additional reports regarding the reactions of each vendor to the food preference lists, so far the balance is in the positive. Samuel and Maverick are reporting similar responses.”

“And the upgrades?” Antoine asked hesitantly.

“So far, nothing major…” Alistair trailed off. “Support personnel are reporting receiving proximity alerts from non-clients, and I’ve received several queries regarding if that is normal?”

“It’s expected,” Antoine sighed. “We are working on an algorithm that would reduce the alert volume for support personnel who are on duty and in the presence of their respective clients, but it wasn’t ready in time for this event. But, yes, it is normal and to be expected.”

“Understood. Request approval to release a mass communication to all registered support personnel?”

“Approved,” Antoine and I answered immediately. I continued. “Alistair, do we have any reports regarding the effectiveness of the dampeners?”

“Yes and no,” he stated. “General reports indicate conditions that are difficult to separate from the intended atmosphere of the event.”

“Tyche, are you still on Level Fourteen?”

“Yeah, why?”

“If we send you the reports from any participants in that area, do you have time to corroborate?”

“I mean, I do, but I thought I was supposed to be participating?”

“Sorry,” I winced in contrition. “You’re right. I just… got ahead of myself. Yeah, it can wait until after your shift at the event. Just make sure you’re recording your observations so you can do an accurate comparison later, okay?”

“We’re both recording full video, Soph,” she assured me, a rustling noise in the background. “I’m about to head back out into it, but I promise to keep my eyes peeled. I’ll keep shooting reports to you as I make my way through the vendors, okay?”

“Sounds good,” I exhaled, leaning back in my seat as she disconnected. Watching the map for a few more minutes, I saw all three teams circulating through the event. Sometimes a team would stop at a Quiet Room for several minutes before continuing. Small reports were trickling in, some from the three teams, some from vendors, and others from support people who were simply attending the event in a professional capacity. However, no further urgent matters were reported aside from Derek and Sam finding a handful of new foods each.

Finally, we were approaching the end of the low-stim session.

“Alpha Shift teams, relief teams for Beta Shift are on their way,” I notified them once we were fifteen minutes out from the end. “Beta Shift teams, please report when you are online.”

“Amelie Marechal, Crowd Control, reporting online and heading to rendezvous with Derek and Zach,” a cheerful voice chirped not two minutes later. I managed to smother a chuckle as Alistair scowled at me, remembering our conversation the day before.

“Coffee Williams, Crowd Control, reporting online and arriving to relieve Costa and Reid” came the next, this time a smooth baritone. I hadn’t spent much time around the man, but Antoine assured me that he was perfect for diffusing difficult situations.

“Ivan Thorson, Crowd Control, online,” followed quickly after. “Heading to meet with Amelie and relieve Tyche and Antoine.”

The next two Beta Shift members left me speechless. “Conor MacMaoilir, Crowd Control, online and relieving Maverick and Sam.”

“Grey Hodenson, Crowd Control Command, online. I’m with Conor and we are relieving Okima and Richardson.”

Alistair managed to sneak in a couple surprises of his own, apparently. When I glared at him, he merely smirked at me before tipping a non-existent hat towards me. I barely caught Mr. William’s teammate checking in before I managed to recover. “Sophia Reid, Alpha Shift Resource Command, reporting for hand off to Crowd Control Command. Grey, confirm handoff?”

“Handoff complete, Sophia,” came the familiar, neutral voice. Finally, they cracked and I could hear a smile in their next words. “Please take care to get some rest between now and Delta shift. We expect that shift to be crowded, and you will be Resource Observation. Also, I would like to request that you do not allow Xiomara to kill Simon?”

“Hey, that’s a tall order!” I objected, only half-joking. “I’ll try, no promises. And I promise to get some rest. First, I need Alpha shift teams to come debrief in my office, then I’ll take a rest interval for Gamma. Deal?”

“Mr. MacMaoilir and I agree that is sufficient.”

“Maverick, make sure she gets some sleep, or I’ll let Tyche give you what for,” Conor interjected. I didn’t even try to suppress the groan that followed.

Introducing the two of them had turned out to be a terrible idea on my part.

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#the miys #science fiction #humans are weird #humans are space orcs #earth is space australia #original fiction #tw: food #cw: food #apocalypse #aliens

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kingofthewilderwest · 5 years

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Hey :) I want to watch more httyd but sadly I've seen all the movies, are the tv series' any good? Which one should I start with?

Oh goodness, I have a post somewhere answering this very question, but I’m too lazy to find it. TIME FOR A REWRITE! XD

I find the HTTYD television materials VERY worthwhile additions to the DreamWorks Dragons franchise. I feel like we are extremely blessed to have over a hundred episodes of a show filled with fantastic moments and memories. Personally, I always encourage people to check them out. The shows won’t be for everyone, which is alright, but I feel that the television series has a lot going for it. I love the shows myself and constantly reference some points from them in my analyses because I think they’re so critical. I’ll explain pros and cons so you can make your own choice about whether or not the shows might be your thing.

I’d say the number one highlight of the television series is the increased time with the dragon riding gang - Hiccup, Fishlegs, Ruffnut, Tuffnut, Snotlout, and Astrid. Many of these characters are secondary in the movie trilogy, having little time on screen, but the television series fleshes them out. It’s because of the show that I fell in love with Snotlout’s character and saw him in three-dimensional depth; I’d say he’s the character they handle best, going into how he hides his insecurities with machismo because he wants to impress a berating father. It’s the show for why I attach to the twins; their sibling devotion and love for one another is brought out wonderfully on screen. There’s good moments with everybody, and you’ll see everyone pair up with everybody - what’s the friendship between Astrid and Tuffnut like? Now you’ll know.

I think a decent test for whether or not you’d enjoy the character dynamics is… well… did you like the character bantering that happened in THW? If so, that had a very distinct tv series feel to it - to the point that they were even referencing ongoing television series gags like Snotlout getting his ass caught on fire.

There’s other characters to meet and engage with too! We’ve got Heather, a badass young woman who connects well with Astrid. We’ve got Gustav, an obnoxious wannabe “Snotlout” who shadows the older dragon rider. We’ve got Mala, the queen of a warrior-trained society that reveres dragons. And there’s Atali, Minden, Throk, Savage, Alvin, Dagur, Mulch, Bucket, Mildew, Krogan, Johann, Viggo, Ryker, and more!

The television series is also good for laughs. Did you ever want a musical episode where Snotlout sings about how amazing he is? Did you ever want to see an entire pile of fish dunked on Hiccup’s head? How about where Hiccup painstakingly tries to talk without using the letter s? “TOOTHLEH! PLAMA BLAT!” is a moment I’ll never stop laughing at.

I also think the best DreamWorks Dragons villains are in the television series. Alvin the Treacherous is a hoot on screen, delightfully voice acted by Mark Hamill. Dagur the Deranged has his fan base for a reason. And for me? Viggo Grimborn is my number one favorite villain from the DreamWorks side of HTTYD - a manipulative, morally gray trader who is such a keen strategist he makes Hiccup appear a foolish child.

One small last point: there’s extra depth to appreciate about the films if you go through the shows. Astrid sympathizing with Hiccup in the first film makes even more sense once you realize her family name got tarnished and she felt social ostracization herself. You see Hiccup attempting to develop his flight suit and sword, leading into HTTYD 2 material. The presence of Fireworms in the third film is a reference to a dragon species introduced in the shows. A conversation point in THW about having dealt with “their kind before” (that is, dangerous people like Grimmel) is a reference to Hiccup’s adventures with Viggo Grimborn. The underground caves that become stables in HTTYD 2 were first found in the television series, explored in DOB. Stoick and Hiccup have several conversations about leadership that lend extra feels to the tragedy in HTTYD 2. Tuffnut yakking to Hiccup ridiculously in THW brings up all the memories of weird conversations they’ve had before… there’s extra context, content, and background to appreciate when you approach the movies with knowledge of the full franchise.

Now, the shows aren’t perfect, and it’s usually the same reasons why people don’t get engaged with the shows. Again: some fans love the shows and scream their way through episodes, some fans dislike the shows and refuse to touch them, and some fans are “meh” about the shows and get through them with liquor. It’s all dependent on the sorts of things you tend to attach to, and the things that tend to bother you.

One reason some people don’t engage is that the first episodes of the first series (Riders of Berk) can feel childish in tone with low stakes. It is to note that the adventures and stakes do grow from the start. The animation levels also drastically improve from start to end… it’s a wild difference to compare the first episode of Riders of Berk with the finale of Race to the Edge.

Another reason is that the shows are not about the dragon characters. There will be the introduction of many cool dragon species like the Death Song, Scauldron, or Thunderdrum, but the shows aren’t about the humans connecting with their dragon friends. They do not focus on the dragon characters. So don’t go here for Hiccup and Toothless dynamics. There’s a few feelsy moments to talk about, but not many; Toothless is mostly a background character as the stories focus on the humans instead.

Next, some people feel like the characters are “dumbed down” or written inconsistently, and while I wouldn’t phrase it exactly like that, there’s a point to be made there. Some audience members especially don’t like how Hiccstrid gets handled in the first half of RTTE, where they feel like the bumbling hesitant startings of romance is inaccurate to how the two would develop relationally. (It’s to note that another group of people fawn over the Hiccstrid dynamics). Others hate Heather, calling her a “Mary Sue” (a term I think should be retired from existence because it’s a pointless criticism word anymore, but anyway, some people feel like Heather is an Angst Child who takes too much screen time, and that’s a fair point too). Astrid sometimes feels too damsel-in-distress-y for me. As far as Hiccup? Well. Hiccup’s personality is presented a bit differently than you usually see in the movies. RTTE!Hiccup is some of my favorite Hiccup, but he is presented with a different flavor.

Next, some people say that the television series story is inconsistent, completely irreconcilable, with the events of the trilogy. I personally find the continuity blips minor at best, and similar to franchise blips that happen anywhere, but it’s your call, and it’s totally fine if you find the continuity irreconcilable. It’s your take! It’s your experience with the story! Things like Hiccstrid romantic development, whether or not Berk was at peace during the five year gap between HTTYD and HTTYD 2, whether or not Hiccup knew anything about Bewilderbeasts, and whether or not Hiccup had run into other dragon riders before Valka… well… the television series will present something different than you might have presumed from movie material alone. This HIGHLY irritates some people, as it can feel like it sabotages the efficacy of certain moments in the films. For other people like me, it’s an entire non-issue. All is all fair because we engage with media in different ways! Here’s the issue just so you know: you can make your call about whether or not continuity questions will bother you.

Last, the plot. The first two television series, the plot is straightforward and fine. For RTTE, the plot is not the best presented. I think the first two seasons start out GREAT, but then it gets increasing issues. It’s for this reason that some people like ROB and DOB but aren’t engaged with RTTE. There’s a lot of fun to be had in it, and there’s many points at which I was fully engaged. In many ways, RTTE does some things BEST of the whole series. BUT. It doesn’t take much observation to realize there are logic gaps, motivation questions, convoluted but repetitive plot twists, some eyebrow-raising unrealistic moments, and instead of showing smooth characterization, people have a tendency to suddenly jump forward or shift in spurts. If you’re someone who gets invested in a show primarily for long-term plot arcs, you might get irritated at decisions in RTTE. But if you’re someone who’s willing to go along for the ride and just have fun and take it for what it is, RTTE has an entertaining story with lots of adventure.

For me? The television series is a blessing and COMPLETELY worth the watch. But I hope this discussion of pros and cons can make your decision best for you!

So! With all that said! What order should you watch them in? The order that they were released:

Riders of Berk

Defenders of Berk

Race to the Edge

Riders and Defenders of Berk are not on Netflix and you’ll have to go elsewhere to watch them. Race to the Edge got released on Netflix and is still available there… though all the shows have been released on DVD by this point.

I highly encourage you to watch the shows start to end as they came out because of plot reasons. RTTE especially needs to be watched in episode order, but RTTE makes sense only in the context of you seeing ROB and DOB first. There are filler episodes, but there are overarching plots. If you went straight into Race to the Edge first, you’d have no idea who the Helheim Heather and Dagur are, and why it’s important to run into them.

I hope this helps you and any others considering the shows! It’s so much more dragons dragons dragons dragons dragons and I hope that, if you watch, you have just as much of a blast as I did!

#httyd #How to Train Your Dragon #DreamWorks Dragons #Riders of Berk #ROB #Defenders of Berk #DOB #RTTE #Race to the Edge #if you want to find my other answer to this question it should be buried somewhere in my faq tag #at least it BETTER be #faq #ask #ask me #analysis #my analysis #rtte #something-wicked-this-waycomes #also the tv show basically made Snotlout bisexual so WOOT

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jj-lynn21 · 5 years

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VEE Chapter 2

ch 1 ch 3

Warnings: Violence, blood, decapitation

Bill photo

Jen never knew what to expect at work Monday mornings when she had been off three days, but it was never easy. The floor manager, Brenda, was always on her for things that didn’t get done over the weekend. She thought Brenda was probably jealous because she was cute and petite. Brenda was a monstrous height for a woman. She would never talk back to a boss, but she joked to a friend once, “I should get the ladder in the back and climb it to look her in the eyes while she is borating me.”

Jen got to work assessing the department she would be working in today which was more than one department today. Brenda came storming out of the back looking around. Jen was the only one there. One person scheduled on a Monday. That just makes things more stressful.

Brenda yells, “Why weren’t the cloths put away all weekend? Why can’t you do your job quicker, so others don’t have to clean up after you on Monday morning.”

Jen glared at her, “I didn’t work since Thursday morning. When I left everything was caught up, so this mess isn’t my fault. Maybe you should ask one of the staff members that buy you lunch or drinks at the bar instead of dressing appropriately and doing their job.”

Brenda scoffed, “what other workers do or don’t do is none of your business…”

Jen shushed her mid-sentence and went to the back to grab the ladder. Brenda had a perfectly stunned look on her face as Jen climbed the ladder. She was looked down on Brenda for a change. Jen felt the angriest she had ever been. She opened her mouth. Jagged sharp teeth formed. She bit Brenda’s head clean off. Blood was bursting in her face as Brenda’s lifeless body fell.

Jen screamed as she woke with her heart pounding. Disoriented she checked her teeth. They were fine. She laughed at herself as she woke up completely. It was 11:45 a.m. on Sunday.

She yawned while stretching out in the bed. She reached for her phone, but it wasn’t on the charger. The night before started coming back to her. The good and the frightening thought, that kinky freak bit me. What the Hell. She pulled the covers off to feel her inner thigh where she thought it happened.

She didn’t feel anything. That sort of thing was bound to leave a mark. She stood up. Feeling a bit lightheaded so she sat back down. Then got up slower, slid off her dress and grabbed her rob from behind the door. Looking at her tired eyes she thought, I must have dreamed some of last night. Just like the early morning dream biting my boss’ head off. That made her laugh.

The mind can come up with some crazy things, she laughed to herself again. As soon as She walked out of the bedroom, she saw her purse and cellphone laying on the glass coffee table in front of the couch. She grinned replaying some of the events of the evening thinking, I guess it wasn’t all a dream. I hope I didn’t fall asleep when he was performing so well. I was tired but damn how could I do that to him. She grabbed her phone. Then she grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator before taking the cellphone back to her room.

Jen noticed several messages from the girls. They were just asking if she was still alive since she wasn’t answering last night. She put the phone on the standing charger and picked the whole thing up to start a group chat.

Molly, Sara, Beth: I’m fine. Hope your hangovers aren’t debilitating. LOL

Sara: Not funny.

Molly: I’ll live.

Beth: I need a hangover cure. Breakfast anyone? Or should I say late brunch? Lol

Jen: sure, the usual spot in about an hour.

Sara: Sure, but I might still look like death warmed over.

Molly: I’ll have to make it a quick brunch. I have-to work tonight…ugh.

Jen finished the water and walked to the kitchen to put on coffee. She needed the caffeine to really wake-up. Looking at the clock she guessed she had about five or six hours of sleep last night. A hot shower should help. On her way out of the kitchen she noticed her keys were hanging from the hook by the door which reminded her, her damn car was still at the bar.

Beth lived closest so Jen would text her for a ride to get her car after she got ready. She was very curious about what was going on there anyway. She hoped the fire damage wasn’t bad. Maybe it was considering Bill didn’t want her to go out front to get her car. She hoped her car was ok. She really couldn’t afford repairs right now or a new car. All sorts of worse case scenarios went through her mind as she was showering and getting dressed. Did the fire burst out of the building and blow up my car? Would it be stripped by the time I got there? Would I see Bill while picking up my car and he wanted nothing to do with me since I fell asleep? Over thinking can drive you crazy if you are not careful but she was often over thinking. After she poured some coffee, she texted Beth

Jen: My car is still at the bar. Can I get a ride?

She added sweet N low and Cheesecake flavored creamer to her coffee. She sipped it from time to time while brushing her hair out.

Beth: no problem. Ten minutes, we can go get your car after brunch.

Jen: Sounds good.

She finished getting ready. She put her hair in a ponytail slicked back to stay in place with leave in conditioner. She looked though her purse, which honestly, she usually does sooner after a night out, to make sure everything was in it. Nothing was missing. That was a load of her mind. She put her keys and cellphone in her purse. She went out locking the door behind her. When she turned to watch for Beth her car was right in the driveway. She grabbed her phone to cancel the pickup, but Beth was pulling up.

Beth leaned out her car window laughing. “I guess you don’t need a ride after all.”

Jen laughed, “I guess not. It was an interesting night for sure. We will exchange stories at brunch.”

Beth grinned, “wasn’t it though. See you at Papa’s.”

There is only street parking at Papa's. It’s a small café in the middle of the Santaria's shopping district. A Sunglass Hut is on one side of Papa's. On the other side is Shabby's, a clothing store with mostly jeans and funny saying T-shirts. There are five outdoor tables at Papa's with umbrellas for shade. The girls were already sitting with their mimosas when Jen joined them at one of the tables.

“We all know I got laid last night. Derick is so amazing,” Beth bragged. So, how was your first one-night stand, Jen? Inquiry minds want to know.”

Jen blushed but was ready to spill it all when Bill swung a chair around to their table, he sat backwards straddling it.

He took her hand and kissed it. “Good morning ladies. Last night wasn’t a one-night stand, I hope.“ He looked to Jen for an answer.

Jen blushed, “No, I think there is much more we could try.”

Sara’s eyes bulged in surprise, “Wow, so you just dropped her off.? That’s different.”

Beth was intrigued, “I’m not sure if that is just really weird or super romantic.”

Jen grinned, “Well, he didn’t just drop me home.”

Bill got up, “I was there, so I don’t need to get in the way of your girl time, Jen. I have some business to attend to. I just saw you and want to ask if you wanted me to come over later?”

Jen tried to play it cool even though her body was begging for more, “Yeah, that’s cool. I’ll be around. “

He gave her a kiss on the cheek and left.

Beth laughed, “Wow.”

Sara looked at Jen in shock; “Tell us everything.”

Molly grinned, “Oh, you totally hit that.”

Jen told them about popping his shirt button. That made them laugh. Then she continued with the other details as much as she remembered. She didn’t have to exaggerate at all. She was a bit flushed as she shared, but in this-day-and-age everyone seems to kiss and tell all the little details. Sometimes she doesn’t even want to hear her friend explicit stories. Her friends eat up every exploit anyone would tell them.

Sara swooned, “how romantic. He brought your car back to your house. He even stopped here when he saw you.”

Molly had her doubts, “There are no fairytales. Its who can get you off the best and stick around to annoy each other until death do you part or a divorce gets you everything. “

Beth said, “Don’t be so cynical Molly. I am totally in love with Derick. And Jen is head-over-heels in love with Bill. He is completely enamored with her.”

Jen laughed, “I don’t know about love. He could just be a stalker. We had a fight at the bar about him manipulating the situation to meet me. He saw Derick and Beth getting to know each other. We did catch each other’s eye, but he had to leave so he set up the meeting at VEE with Derick. “

Molly shook her head, “I vote stalker. “

In Beth’s mind she was already thinking double wedding, “I vote romantic.”

Sara giggled, “Romantic stalker. It’s just what every girl wants and dreams.”

They all were laughing as the waiter came over to take their order. Jen order a mimosa and pasta primavera. She then told them her work-related dream which just got applauses.

Sara was laughing so hard orange juice came out of her nose, “I didn’t know you had such a dark side Jen. Brenda is the worst, but she is probably miserable and powerless in her personal life, so she takes out her frustrations on us, well mostly you for some reason. I say let her suffer and we have a good time.”

Molly got up, “Which reminds me I have to jet. I hope she isn’t the floor manager tonight.”

In unison Jen, Sara, and Beth yelled, “Good luck.”

They finished brunch chatting about other things. Jen was barely listening really. Her mind was wondering to Bill coming over later. She had to get to know him a lot better before things went any farther. She didn’t think he was really a stalker. Still she felt he wasn’t telling her something important. She often felt that way about people in general. He wasn’t any different. In general, people suck.

#blood #horror #friends #writing #creative writing #romance #lovestory #romantic #stalker #romantic story #shortstory #short story #scary #creepy #lol #Vee #bill skarsgard

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disasterhumans · 6 years

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Fjord and the Nature of “Evil”

Now that we’re getting into more of Fjord’s patron lore, I figure the “Fjord is evil!” theories will begin popping back up, so I wanted to write this to sort out why the “X character is evil” theories/assessments tend to irritate me so much.

Disclaimer: I’m not at all an expert on how alignment is “meant to work” in Dungeons & Dragons, and am mainly relying on the 5e PHB for this. Mostly this is me thought dumping my observations about Fjord and how they line up with my understanding of “evil.”

So, what is “evil?” Obviously that’s a question with no easy answer and has led to centuries of philosophical argument. But let’s go with a basic definition.

As far as denotative definitions go (outside the scope of D&D) we have: “profoundly immoral and malevolent.” Note the specific use of the word “profound” in that definition.

From his observable behavior, Fjord is not obviously “profoundly immoral” or “malevolent.” He may join in the general chaos that is the Mighty Nein, but generally speaking their actions mostly fall into either “mostly trying to be good” or the not-profound flavor of “immoral.” (Matt said that the Nein “wasn’t a moral group,” not that they were “a profoundly immoral group,” or “an evil group.”) The closest we’ve seen him get to “malevolent” is him threatening Algar. He’s also had a few dispassionate moments (e.g. not feeling moved to save Kiri).

As far as Dungeons and Dragons goes, the Fifth Edition PHB isn’t ultra specific about how it breaks down the “good v. evil” axis and the “law v. chaos” axis, instead providing brief definitions of each individual alignment.

Lawful Evil creatures methodically take what they want within the limits of a code of tradition, loyalty, or order

Neutral Evil is the alignment of those who do whatever they can get away with, without compassion or qualms

Chaotic Evil creatures act with arbitrary violence, spurred by their greed, hatred, or bloodlust

Going through the descriptions of D&D alignments (in reverse order):

Fjord categorically does not act with arbitrary violence, and does not at all seem spurred by greed, hatred, or bloodlust. Again, the only exception to this I can think of is him chopping off Algar’s hand--which was arguably driven by hatred and/or bloodlust, but was also a very impulsive decision. By definition, Chaotic Evil characters would have a difficult time hiding their true alignment.

Fjord is occasionally dispassionate, but wouldn’t describe him as being utterly without compassion. That’s entirely disproven by nearly every interaction he has with Beau and Jester. And he doesn’t seem to have any desire to do “whatever he can get away with.” In fact--impulsivity aside--he is often one of the only members concerned with ramifications (e.g. him threatening Caleb for putting the team at risk by taking the scrolls in “Midnight Espionage.”) While a Neutral Evil character could ostensibly mask their alignment, in Fjord’s case it would also imply that he was fundamentally putting on an entirely different personality.

Of the three Evil alignments, Lawful Evil seems like the most “viable” alignment for Fjord to secretly be, as it would allow for ongoing machinations, whereas the other two evil alignments seem designed to account for descriptions of day-to-day behaviors. But, again, we don’t really have any in-game proof that Fjord has some sort of complicated long-con going on beyond “I want to learn more about where my powers come from.” And that may well lead him down an evil path, but power is not an inherently evil motivation, and it doesn’t mean that’s Fjord’s starting from an evil place. At this point the relative evil v. goodness of said power appears to have more to do with his patron’s alignment than Fjord’s.

At worst, with the information we have to go on--which is Fjord’s in-game actions--he’s Neutral, but easily influenced by the moral standards of those around him. Some parts of this fandom seem to have a tendency to take any sufficiently “not good” action and label it “evil.” Which in my mind robs these incredibly layered characters of their moral complexity while also weakening the strength of what we mean when we say “evil.” Ostensibly, “evil,” is reserved for the most morally repugnant.

And actually, I fully believe Travis that Fjord, before meeting the Mighty Nein would have at least believed himself to be Lawful Good (“counted on to do the right thing as expected by society). Fjord grew up outside of the empire and spent much of his adult life within the micro-society of working on sailing ships. Fjord was accustomed to being a hard-working member of a crew. And a crew has to work together and follow orders for the good of the ship. Furthermore, Fjord (and Jester) made a point of warning the Nein about the seriousness of committing crime on the Menagerie Coast, which in combination with Travis describing Fjord as Lawful Good, I will take to mean that while living in Port Damali he did actually act in a lawful manner. In my view, this is why he takes particular issue with Sabien.

I think my main problem with “Fjord is evil,” theories is that, first and foremost, it requires believing that nearly everything either Travis or Fjord has said about Fjord has been a lie or, at best, disingenuous. And I don’t just mean factual information--it would also likely require believing that Fjord’s entire demeanor, personality and emotional expression was a facade. And while that’s not technically impossible given his deception score, and the fact that Fjord has not been insight-checked very often by most of the party, it still feels like a stretch. And honestly it would be narratively unsatisfying to believe that literally everything we know about his past and motivations are a lie. At present what we know about Fjord is:

He was raised an orphan with no orcs around him (this appears to be true not only based on what Fjord has literally said, but about his demeanor when talking about orcs, and the fact that it made him feel strongly enough to want to help other orphans). Being raised as the only member of his race, with little idea of his lineage (and experiencing a lot of bullying), seems to have made Fjord feeling particularly vulnerable and unsure of himself in a lot of different ways. As others have argued before, Fjord is likely easily won over by people who are openly supportive and friendly toward him, and potentially more susceptible to manipulation (borne out by his low wisdom score). Fjord likely also places a high value on loyalty, in keeping with his original alignment.

Fjord’s captain--Vandren--died after another crew member--Sabien--blew up the ship. There have been some theories that Fjord was actually the person who blew up the ship, but even if that did happen, it seems to me that Fjord genuinely believes it was Sabien. Almost every time Fjord brings up Sabien he is visibly angry, and while they’re in Nicodranus he asks almost everyone he meets if they know Sabien. Maybe Fjord is looking to get rid of the only witness to what was actually his crime, but seeing as most people probably believe there were no survivors of that explosion, putting himself back on Sabien’s radar seems ill advised. (Also, if Fjord blew up the ship, how did Sabien manage to escape? The implication for each of their survival is that Sabien set the explosion into motion but abandoned ship before it triggered, and that Fjord’s patron saved Fjord. Meaning that assuming Fjord is telling the truth, that Sabien would assume Fjord dead as well.) Once again, Fjord valuing loyalty above other moral concerns would seem to be driving his anger toward Sabien, which very much reflects his frustration when Caleb appears to place the team at risk.

After making his pact with his patron (something that Fjord seems to not be entirely aware of) and receiving his warlock abilities, Fjord wanted to learn more about his magic by seeking out Soltryce Academy. As far as I can tell, most Evil!Fjord theories rely on him having an ultimate “evil” goal. But while Fjord may not necessarily be entirely open and honest about his past, and is certainly being guarded about the specificity of his patron, he has actually always been quite vocal about his personal goals. And, yeah, he could be lying or bluffing about just wanting to “learn more.” But if that’s the case, it wouldn’t have meant anything or have made any sense for him to suddenly change the nature of his goals post-Lorenzo. Fjord has never covered up the fact that he’s overwhelmed by his sudden acquisition of powers, or the expectation from the rest of the Nein for him to assume responsibility. And his talk with Beau the other night about how since receiving his powers he’s moved from trying to solve problems through communication to solving them with combat and power seem to imply that he feels uncomfortable with this shift in himself. Again, the specificity of that conversation seems not to jive with an “evil” person trying to assimilate (Fjord could very well just have mirrored Beau’s words without contributing anything of substance).

Above all, I think that Fjord is a vulnerable and easily overwhelmed (and potentially easily manipulated) person who values loyalty and trust in those around him above most other moral concerns, and is thus willing to run with the moral alignments of his companions if it means maintaining cohesion (e.g. when he tells Nott that he won’t try to change her). The only times he truly objects to the decisions the others make is when those decisions appear to put the group in danger. That being said, his recent conversations with Beau suggest that he views himself as being a largely good person, and is currently experiencing some regret over personal moral choices he has made recently. [EDIT: Also, while Fjord definitely seemed excited to meet someone going through the same experience as him, he also seemed uncomfortable with the way Avantika expressed her...devotion to Uk’otoa. (At one point, I believe Travis said ooc “I feel so uncomfortable,” but that may have been in response to all the innuendo.) And despite him finally revealing the falchion to her, he was still distrusting of her by the end. Where we stand right now, it still seems like Fjord is more firmly in “learn what the fuck is going on mode.” And not, “alright I’m gonna be a cultist now,” mode.]

There is certainly a lot of moral contradiction and conflict that Fjord is experiencing right now, but in my mind that internal conflict and confusion--and the strong likelihood that Fjord’s patron is evil--is far more compelling than some eleventh hour plot twist that Fjord has been secretly evil all along.

#critical role #(in that this was prompted by the most recent ep)#fjord #i didn't realize i had so many fjord feelings #but apparently i do #join me next month when i inevitably write another caleb or beau version of this post

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loxxxlay · 5 years

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Mob anon here desperately wanting to get off anon and talk to you about grandthorki zombie au! I just love your blog and your ideas!

ahhhh mob anon i love u so much

here’s some key aspects of my grandthorki zombie au daydreaming lmao in case anyone is interested:

thor and loki are teenagers on their own, maybe looking for their sister idk. struggling. half starving and shit. their parents have died or are assumed dead (i don’t like writing frigga and odin and so i get rid of them like this, i’m so sorry lol)

grandmaster runs this kinda place that maybe is like the paradise place in The Bad Batch that everyone is trying to get to (a weird fucking movie, but listen, it did my kinks justice)… or maybe it’s more like that outpost place in Black Summer where the group get all the guns from.

(So to sum up ^ place for those who haven’t seen either XD, we’re talking a place where everyone is safe but… for a price. usually noncon. or doing drugs. so like there’s the low tier sex trafficking victims, the upper tier normies who might have gained some perks by being seemingly more consenting in granting sexual flavors. and then the people who do the taking advantage of. and then the grandmaster who is the leader who organized it all and probably has a clique of favored individuals whom he spoils. haha so kinda almost like the standard penthouse structure in your au XD

anyway so thor and loki get in a Really Bad situation where probably they’re gonna die. maybe loki gets sick. maybe they’re cornered by a bunch of zombies. maybe they’ve gone into a gang’s territory and are about to get fucking robbed of all their supplies or something and maybe killed. (maybe nonconned mmm)

this is when the grandmaster and his people swoop in and saveeee themmmm

for a price: thor and loki alternate between low-tier and up the ladder from there, and as they slowly grow more and more accustomed, they work up to the becoming the grandmaster’s Favored Pets -> ultimate perks, unlimited food, water, clothes, medical care, etc… but always noncon/dubcon.

and eventually, maybe they try to escape… or maybe they don’t… it depends on what they feel is worth it between scavenging and dodging zombies on the streets versus safe and in luxury but having to be high and dubconned all the time. this is why i like zombie aus and post apocalyptic shit. this decision right here

(speaking of ^ decision, mad max did it so fucking well wow)

anyway most recent addition to my grandthorki zombie au daydreaming (which has been going on for about a year or two) is this:

the story being in Valkyrie’s point-of-view maybe. where thor and loki are already top tier and she comes into this Paradise place (but a different route - as a person who goes on runs or who fights whenever a group tries to encroach on their territory) and she kinda sees them from an outside perspective

and maybe she likes the Paradise place at first and thinks the Grandmaster is pretty generous. she sees thor and loki as spoiled and shit though, and so she’s kinda envious of them? until the grandmaster maybe starts showing his true ways around her… or maybe:

thor and loki somehow realize that she’s one of the only Good People around here. maybe they catch her giving water to someone who’s dying of thirst. or being kind to an orphan child. or something. something that shows the softness under her rough exterior

and so they start reaching out to her hoping for her to help them escape (at least once she’s been promoted to a position where that would be possible for her to do)

and she’d refuse at first because this place is Good, they all have it Good. Or at least it seems good and this place has plenty of alcohol to drown in when Bad Shit happens in her presence. which isn’t that much, she can handle it

But then… maybe dubconnish things start lurching a little too close to comfort to her (i would never write val actually having been dubconned/nonconned because of… Reasons… idk it makes me uncomfortable…. but maybe something gets a little close to the line and she decides to Nope out of there). or maybe she starts being pressured to go on the capture-and-traffic-humans runs herself. maybe she’s been doing that for a while, but there’s one person she captures who really sets her off and makes her never want to do it again.

or maybe she starts to care a little too much about thor and loki, and there’s a tipping point: loki tries to commit suicide or something, idk i’m shameless.

and then all 3 of them just bound off and be free. even though it’s tough and hard, they still make their way and have each other

So literally the premise basically of The Bad Batch lmao don’t judge me, that movie was weird but it really hit my kinks okay

Anyway that all said, more personal and potentially bleh response to anonymity thing behind read more, sorry T_T

I’m sorry if this upsets you, but I actually already know who you are lol T_T to stay anonymous you have to log out when you submit things, and you’ve been logged in ever since you submitted your first update, so i see your username. I actually change that for you when I post them so that your anonymity is super protected! Which I am so very happy to do!

I actually thought you already knew this because I explained it a while ago back at update 1, but I guess I didn’t explain it well enough, which is typical of me :( So I’m so sorry for not being clear. Esp if you feel like you’ve been lied to. wahh i’m so sorry :(

I’ve never told anyone who you are and I never will unless you ask me to, and we can go back to pretending that I don’t know, too. XD I am good at compartmentalizing information. I just don’t want to be dishonest, so that’s why I’m telling you.

And also this means you are totally welcome to PM me if u ever want because the cat has already been out of the bag XD

#grandthorki #frostmaster #thorki #valkyrie #marvel #grandthorki insp #grandthorki for ts #i need a fucking headcanon tag #or an idea tag #lox thinks #idk #cw dubcon #cw noncon #cw suicidal ideation #mob anon #lox replies #anon

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leelee10898 · 6 years

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Back to you: Chapter 15 pt 1 - Welcome to New York

Characters belong to Pixelberry, except those created for the story.

Summary: We pick up the morning after the fight at the speak easy, where Leo and Aria spend the night together. We say goodbye to Paris and Hello to NY! Someone has left court,and Leo comes face to face with Arias Best friend Ellie, who is NOT his biggest fan. Catch up on past chapters HERE

Rating: 18+ Slight NSFW, Fluff and sort of angsty..

Chapter/title inspiration: Welcome to New York - Taylor Swift

Tag list: @bobasheebaby @scarlettedragon @annekebbphotography@speedyoperarascalparty @greyeyedsmile14 @stopforamoment @mind-reader1 @xxrainbowprincessxx @hopefulmoonobjectalicars @katurrade @indiacater @bella-ca @blznbaby @blackwidow2721liamxs-world @simsvetements @crookedslimecreatorpasta

As always if you would like to be added to the tag list, let me know and we can make it happen! Enjoy

Bang bang bang

Lady Aria

“Ugh make it stop.” Aria groaned

Bang bang bang

Lady Aria I can not believe you are still asleep, have you learned nothing?

Aria jumped up out of bed stark naked. “shit I need clothes.” She fumbled around the floor, finding a button up dress shirt she buttoned the middle two buttons as she hopped around trying to put on the boxers she found crumpled on the floor

Bang bang bang

Lady Aria we have a schedule to keep now get u-

Aria flung the door open cutting Bertrand off “what Bertrand? what the actual fuck?” She snapped. Bertrand assessed her attire, his face flushed “ah well ah, yes plans have changed we are headed for New York, flight leaves in 5 hours. ” Bertrand hastily walks off embarrassed.

“I thought Bertrand was going to curl up into the fetal position. ” Leo chuckled now sitting up in bed. Aria smiled at his joke. “Shut up, Bertrand knows I hate that shit.” Leo grinned looking her up and down. She was beautiful all dolled up, but he loved when she was wearing his boxers and shirt, her long brown hair thrown in a messy bun. “What?” Aria noticed his gawking. Leos smile spread across his face “just admiring the view.” He tilted his head in appreciation . “Well shows over its time to pack.” She advised waking over to the night stand to check her phone. Leo grabs her by the waist and pulls her onto the bed. “Leo!” Aria giggles as he rolls on top of her, kissing her neck and un buttoning his shirt she was wearing. “Hey you heard Bertrand, we have a plane to catch.” Aria protested in between kisses. “What I heard was we have a plane to catch in 5 hours.” He whispers as he kisses her down her chest before removing the boxers and settling in between her legs . “Leo. We cant.. OH, mmmm, ok.” Aria moans, she could feel the grin on his face between her legs.

***********

4 hours later Aria was packed and waiting in the lobby. She was so excited to be going home. She missed Ellie terribly, she would have to carve out some down time to visit with her before they headed back to Cordonia. Cordonia she thought. So many questions swirled around her head. What if Tariq wasn’t found? What would she do then? She couldn’t be Liams mistress, she wouldn’t. What was she going to do about that mess? She loved Liam, still after everything that had happened, but then there was Leo. He was so amazing, helping her through everything, so protective and caring and the sex. Well the sex was amazing, but was it just sex? No, it was more then just sex. Last night during his fight with Liam, Leo let it slip that he loved her. She didn’t know how to approach it so she didn’t bring it up. She knew she loved him, she never stopped. Part of her wanted to lose herself in the feeling again, but that cautious side hit the breaks hard. She loved Liam, and she loved Leo, what the hell was she to do?

“I hope im not interrupting anything.” A voice pulled her out of her thoughts. She smiled “Liam. No you are a welcomed distraction.” She patted the bench next to her for him to sit. “Where’s your shadow?” She wondered sarcastically. Liam rolled his eyes and groaned. “Madeline caught and earlier flight, something about shower arrangements. I could care less honestly.” “Hey how are you? After last night? ” She questioned looking at his puffy lip. “I am very sorry about the way I acted in front of you. I should have never allowed my jealousy to put you in a position to be harmed. ” liam hung his head in shame. “Liam i’m fine, sometimes we lose our cool.” She lifted his head up, stroking his cheek gently. “How have the blackouts been? Have anymore episodes?”

“No I haven’t had an episode in a few days, not since, well that terrible day in your room.” Liam winced at the memory. “ when you have them, are you doing anything before?” She prodded. “Well, it happens different times, I am never doing the same thing its sporadically.”. Aria reached out to take Liams hand. His heart skipped a beat. “Aria, I miss you, I miss us.” His voice a low whisper. “I miss you too Liam, everything is just.” “Complicated?” He finished her sentence for her.

“There you are.” Leo calls out interrupting the moment. “Leo.” Liam acknowledged “Liam.” Leo nods, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Liam stands and takes Arias hand, placing a soft kiss on it “I will see you later, perhaps we could talk a little more once we’ve landed in New York?” “Yes, that would be wonderful. ” Aria gives a polite smile as Liam walks away giving Leo a dirty look.

Leo pulls out a box from behind his back “for you my lady.” “Are these?” She starts to say staring at a beautiful pastel arrangement of macaroons. “they are.” He beams as he hands her the macaroons from her favorite bakery in the city. . She jumps up into his arms and kisses him on the lips. “You really are my super man.” She giggles pulling a macaroon out and biting it. Savoring its Devine flavor. Leo smiles and takes her hand “we’ve got a plane to catch.”

After a long flight their plane touches down at JFK international in New York. They gather their luggage and a short ride they arrive at their hotel. Madeline greets everyone in the lobby. “I have made everyone’s room arrangements. Liam and Leo will be on the 2nd floor with Kiara, Peneolpe and myself. The Beaumonts, Aria, Olivia and Drake will be on the 6th floor. "What about Hana?” Aria asked, noticing her name wasn’t mentioned. “Ok so everyone get some sleep, we have brunch with the mayor tomorrow.” Madeline turns and walks away, ignoring Arias question. Liam, Bertrand and Maxwell head off to their rooms. “Madeline where is Hana staying?” Aria followed after her demanding an answer. Madeline turned and let out an annoyed sigh. “Lady Hana has left court and returned home,if you must know.” She turns and calls for Penelope and Kiara to follow.

Aria stood their stunned, why would Hana leave without saying goodbye? Something did not feel right. First Liam is having black outs and now Hana is gone? “You ok Beautiful?” Leo approaches placing his hand on her shoulder. “No, Hana would not just leave without saying goodbye. Its 4:30 am in shanghi. I will have to call her later.” Aria sighed. She grabs her room key “I guess I will see you later.” Aria gives Leo a quick peck on the cheek and heads to her room.

She sits down on the bed and stares at the trunk containing all of her dresses and proper clothing. Its been nothing but dinners, teas, balls, formal events for months. She longed for some greasy food and a soda. She pulls out her phone and sends Ellie a text

Aria:What are you up to tonight?

Ellie: Hello stranger!! Lindsay and I are meeting Jay and Rob at Timothys. You?

Aria: Omg I would kill for some honey bbq wings from Timothys right about now.

Aria: another day another fancy hotel. You at home? Hows the apartment? What time are you guys meeting up?

Ellie: around 7. Apartment is fine, im at Lindseys. just getting out of the shower, gotta get ready. Call me later, I miss you.

Aria: miss you too.

Aria tosses her phone on the bed. She digs around in her duffel bag until she finds her keys. She could have told Ellie she was in New York, but that would ruin the surprise. Aria was going to stop at their Apartment and get some clothes before heading to Timothy’s. She opens the door to find Leo standing on the other side. His hand lifted like he was just getting ready to knock. Aria jumps back “oh shit, you scared me.” She puts her hand on her chest. Leo chuckles “sorry. You going somewhere?” He notices her keys in her hand. “Actually, i’m going to my apartment and I think i’m going to surprise Ellie, shes going to Timothy’s and i’m dying for some wings!” Aria bites her bottom lips and twirls her hair. “Oh I see, I ah, I came to see if you wanted to grab a bite to eat, but I see you’ve made plans. Ill leave you to it. ” he turns to leave “Hey Leo, want to come with me?

Leo smiled "Yes, absolutely. ”

They head to the lobby about to leave when Leo re directs her towards the parking garage. “I have other transportation arrangements.” He grinned leading her over to a shiny black motorcycle. Her eyes light up. “This isn’t the same bike is it?” “I had it brought here, to many memories to let it go.” He handed her a helmet before swinging his leg over and mounting the bike. Aria climbs on the back, she gives Leo the directions to her place and they drove off.

They arrive at a stone building that was one of the nicer places on the block. There was no elevator so they had to walk up a few flights of stairs until they reached the 3rd floor. They walk into the apartment, Aria half expected to find a huge mess but it was clean. “So this is me.” She motioned around the small space. “Its not much but its home.” She fiddled with her fingers, she was nervous bringing him there. “It suits you, its very comfortable and inviting. Much like you.” There were pictures of her and Ellie growing up, pictures of their friends having fun all around. “Bathrooms down the hall, along with the bedrooms. El is on the right, i’m on the left. "Oh, yeah? Is there a tour.” He perks up. They start walking down the short hall “Yes, I need to change.” She turns and gives him a serious look “hands to yourself Rhys we don’t have time for your shenanigans right now.” He puts his hands up waving them in defense. Aria walks over to the dresser pulling out a bra and pantie set, Leo arches his brow. “You turn your head.” She orders. “I’ve seen your ass love.” He smirks “turn it Super man.” She motions her finger in a circle If he played his cards right he would get to see them later on

. He puts his hand over his eyes, he parts his fingers to steal a peak. He sees her putting on a lacey black thong. He groans as he tilts his head slightly. “Hey I said no peaking. ” she hollars. She throws on a pair of tight jeans and pairs it with a black off the shoulder shirt. She threw on a pair of sandals, and let her hair down. “Ok, let’s get going.” She called over to Leo who was now lounging across her bed. “Yup.” He jumps up and the leave for the bar. They arrive at Timothys a short time later. “So before we head in, I should probably tell you, you are not Ellies biggest fan.” Aria mentions biting the bottom of her lip. He tucks her hair behind her ear and drops his voice low. “If you keep biting that lip were never going to make it into the club.” He winks and leans in giving her a deep kiss before pulling back, leaving her breathless.

They walk into the crowded bar, Aria searches out her friends in the crowd. She spots them but she makes a B line to the bar. She knew a few of the waitresses so she stopped one asking if they received their order yet. The waitress informed them she was just getting ready to take it over. Aria whispered something into her ear and the waitress agrees. Leo stood there and watched her work her magic. They follow the waitress to her friends table. Aria and Leo stand off to the side so they weren’t spotted. Once the waitress distributed the order she turns to Ellie. “I have something else for you but you have to close your eyes.” Ellie looks at her and reluctantly closes her eyes. Aria walks over and stands where the waitress was, right in front of Ellie. “Did someone order a side of best friend?” Aria giggles. Ellie’s eyes fly open and she screams, jumping up and hugging Aria. “Oh my god, you’re here. When did you get here, oh my god.” Ellie hugs Aria while jumping up and down. “We just got in today. I had to come see you. And we wanted wings.” Aria chuckled. “Wait, who’s we?” Ellie looked at her curious. “Hello Ellie.” Leo joins Arias side. Ellie eyes him coldly. “You brought him?” Ellie turns to Aria with her hands folded across the chest. “What the hell for?” Aria swallowed hard, this was going to be a disaster.

#choices trr #trr fanfic #trr #prince leo #leo trr #leo roe #king liam #cordonia #back to you #back to you fan fic #playchoices

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helpingmaster · 4 years

Text

Smart Blood Sugar {Imagine… No restrictive diet. No crazy exercise program.}

Hi, I am helpingmaster. Although this seems incredible. But imagine...no restrictive diet. There is no crazy exercise plan. How does a 59-year-old diabetic chop 80 points from fasting blood sugar-in fact overnight? And after three days, he stopped taking insulin!

he key is to say “no” to restrictive diets. They’re impossible for most people to stick with.

Instead… revolutionary “Diabetes Reversal Recipe” enables you to enjoy the food you and your body crave… food that flips your blood sugar “switch” back ON… so your body quickly and efficiently burns up all the sugar in your blood stream… like striking a match to gasoline!

Just ask 59-year-old John Hiatt…

John’s a Type II Diabetic whose blood sugar had been rising for years… so his doctor put him on 3 different blood sugar meds and 2 kinds of insulin.

But even with all that churning in his body, his fasting glucose soared to dangerously high levels — bouncing between 200 and 275.

That’s organ-failure territory!

All that roaming sugar thickened his blood and slowed his circulation. As a result, his vision got blurrier each day. His organs, hands, and feet were slowly starving to death, robbed of the nutrients they needed.

No wonder he lived in fear of the day — a day he prayed would never come — when his doctor would put a hand on his shoulder and break the bad news…

“Sorry, John… you’re going to lose that foot.”

Then, one Sunday night, alone at his computer, John stumbled upon my “Diabetes Reversal Recipe.” He learned he could still eat delicious foods that automatically turned his blood sugar “switch” back ON.

He had nothing to lose. So he put it to work that very night.

The next morning, John checked his blood sugar and was shocked — his blood sugar had dropped 80 points!

He wondered if it was a fluke — would his blood sugar bounce back up again? To test this, he continued the plan that day and the next morning…

His blood sugar dropped again — 40 more points!

He was astonished: a drop of 120 points in just 2 days? He had never seen anything like it before.

But the amazing part was when he decided to stop taking insulin that very night. Understandably, his wife was worried — what if John’s blood sugar shot up during the night? What if he slipped into a diabetic coma?

Well, when he woke on the third day of following the Diabetes Reversal Recipe, both he and his wife were shocked to see that his numbers had stayed at their all-new low!

As a result,

John hasn’t taken a drop of insulin since!

This means he pockets an extra $400 a month — that’s how much he used to pay for insulin out of his own money. That’s $5 grand a year for him to keep; as he calls it, “it’s a vacation in Hawaii 。

Plus, as an added “bonus”, John lost 25 pounds — without trying. He says his gut is “almost gone.” His friends do a double-take when they see him for the first time.

John says, “This was an epiphany.I thank god。

I am truly humbled to hear from people like John… people who were desperate for a way to lower their high blood sugar… who hated taking a fistful of pills and injecting insulin every day…

…but who felt they had no other choice:

Eat brown rice, tofu and carrots for the rest of my life? No thank you! I’d rather — I’d rather be sick

So their eyes light up like a Christmas tree when they discover they can feast on delicious food… and…

…watch their blood sugar numbers sink like a stone!

That’s why you can eat this way for the rest of your life! Because it’s easy! This is the key. Everyone is different, so of course some folks take longer than others to lower their blood sugar. But because I’m not asking you to “tough it out” or rely on willpower, you get to enjoy eating while your body heals.

Because while you savor each mouth-watering bite, the specific nutrients in the Diabetes Reversal Recipe go to work, invisibly repairing your blood sugar “machinery.” Here’s how: Essentially,

Each cell in our bodies has a blood sugar “switch”…

When the switch is “ON”, our cells burn the sugar from meals… just as soon as we eat.

That means you can eat ice cream, a candy bar, whatever — and all that sugar gets burned up as energy.

Maybe you’ve even known people like that… people who can eat whatever they want without worry. Lucky devils.

Well, this is why — their Blood Sugar Switch is “ON.”

But for many of us, our switch turns “OFF.” What does this?

The hormone Insulin.

That might sound odd, because as you may know, insulin is the hormone that stores sugar into your cells. Without insulin, sugar can’t get inside. You definitely need it.

But here’s the strange thing…

Too much insulin over time is the same as having too little — both cause your blood sugar switch to turn OFF. Here’s why:

Think of insulin as the “key” that opens the “lock” on your cells. When insulin works properly, it opens the cell doors, and sugar races inside to be burned as energy.

But over time, too much insulin exposure damages these locks: they get “stripped” from over-use.

When this happens, you have insulin resistance. Your cells resist insulin, and so you don’t efficiently burn sugar. Your switch turns OFF.

With nowhere to go, that sugar gets stored as fat — ballooning your waistline!

Worse, it piles up dangerously in your body. It thickens your blood, slows your circulation, and can permanently damage your eyes, organs, and feet.

But here’s where the Diabetes Reversal Recipe works its cellular magic. With a precise calibration of nutrients, it works to flip the blood sugar switch in your body back “ON” — reversing even years of insulin resistance — so you can burn up sugar again and rush it from your bloodstream.

That means lower blood sugar numbers than you’ve seen in years!

Just like Robert C. from Canton, NC saw: “My A1C was 6.9… down from previous visit’s 7.4. Weight down 6 pounds. My doctor took me off Lantus. Blood Glucose readings are mostly within normal range… all from using the Diabetes Reversal Recipe.”

Now, you can put in the diabetes reversal recipe to change your life!

The method is as follows: Put a simple step-by-step instruction book called "Diabetes Reversal Recipe" into...

Smart Blood Sugar!

This handy guide is the product of natural medicine training conducted at the Health Center in Austin, Texas and years of perfecting diabetes reversal recipes.

There’s no fluff or technical jargon to wade through. Just practical, real-world help. This means you get to the “good stuff” you can use today.

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You’ll also get extra “bonus material”…

You see, I’ve picked up a handful of “quick tricks” that shortcut the healing process and make it even easier… and I want you to have these shortcuts in your back pocket when you need them…

Shortcuts like…

…How to eliminate sugar cravings — without will power.

It’s actually simple when you discover what drives a “sweet tooth” — it’s not something you’re born with. Sugar cravings come from specific “programming” in the brain, but I’ll show you the easy way to “Feed your brain”, so the cravings disappear.

You can still enjoy sugar, by the way — you just won’t be a slave to it. You will be in control.

In fact…

You Can Lower Blood Sugar While Eating Sugar!

t may sound too good to be true, but I’ll show you a 60-Second “Cheat trick” that forces your body’s cells — even if they’re “insulin resistant” — to instantly gobble up sugar from your blood stream… even when you indulge in that slice of chocolate cake. (Your lab results will still impress your doc — he’ll never know you “cheated.”)

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he bite-sized snacks to keep in your pocket for an instant pick-me-up…

Personal story: These tiny energizers kept me going when I pedaled my bike across the country. These treats worked like magic to give me long-lasting energy without a crash, unlike energy bars. If they could keep me pedaling for 20 miles a day, imagine what they’ll do for you. I now keep a few in my purse at all times.

Plus more helpful “tricks”…

How to order at a restaurant like a normal person… Just by requesting THIS at the start of the meal. Then order whatever you want.

Do you crave cola? You’ll see the easy way to kick a soda habit, even if you currently guzzle it by the case. This sneaky trick will fool your taste buds so you don’t miss the cola…

How to enjoy healthy sweeteners: Most sweeteners spike your blood sugar and are toxic for your body (like aspartame). But it’s easy to pick the right kind when you shop — you just have to spot three specific letters on the label.

The Japanese “miracle noodles” that don’t raise blood sugar one iota. You’ll love their mild flavor and soft, chewy texture. Please your pasta cravings without spiking your blood sugar…

My “Heavy Artillery” For Lowering Blood Sugar!

These 2 blood sugar busters can reset your blood sugar switch in the shortest time possible.

I do have to warn you: these 2 “big guns” take a bit of effort, and they may not be for everyone. But if you choose to use them, they work like magic.

The first is the fastest way to reverse insulin resistance. What is it? A specific form of movement that vacuums up extra glucose in your blood stream.

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(Forget wasting your mornings like those poor souls stuck on a treadmill — you’ll be done before they’ve even warmed up!)

And the second “Big Gun” is actually a secret found in Scripture.

This religious practice (which anyone can use, no matter your denomination) almost miraculously resets blood sugar. In fact, you can do this just once a month and enjoy lower blood sugar for days.

True story — I’ve even read of one doctor who does this faithfully every other day… and then on the other days, she eats whatever she wants… we’re talking all the McDonalds and candy bars she feels like — and she still remains healthy. She’s slim as a rail.

(Not that I’m recommending you do this, but it does show how effective this ancient technique can lower blood sugar and drop extra weight.)

Put all this together, and Smart Blood Sugar delivers everything you need to know to get your blood sugar under control… faster and easier than you thought possible — even if you feel like you’ve seen it all.

Now, I can’t promise you’ll achieve the exact results you’ve heard today. Your results depend on several factors, including how closely you follow the Diabetes Reversal Recipe. Your blood sugar may take longer to heal… or… it may heal even faster. That’s why I strongly recommend you wait for your doctor’s blessing before you stop taking any medication.

But this is the only method I know of that safely and naturally gets your blood sugar under control.

So if you’re sick and tired of “feeling sick and tired”… of living with unpleasant drug side effects…

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You’re protected with an extremely generous 60-day, 100% money-back guarantee. You have a full two months to decide if Smart Blood Sugar is right for you. If you’re not completely thrilled with Smart Blood Sugar — for any reason — then you get a no-hassle refund anytime in the next two months.

To get started, all you need to do is click the big order button below. Next, you’ll see a secure ordering page. After your order is processed, you’ll be able to download your digital copy of Smart Blood Sugar without delay.

You can also receive a physical copy of the book for a small shipping and handling fee.

As soon as you download your copy of Smart Blood Sugar on to your computer or other device, you’ll be able to put the Diabetes Reversal Recipe into action. It’s that simple. At your very next meal — today — you can begin turning your blood sugar switch back “ON.”

And it’s easy to get started today with the low price I’ve reserved for you.

Now, I’m sure you’ll agree that this kind of potentially life-saving information is extremely valuable…

Many of my patients pay several hundred dollars, starting with a $150 fee for their first visit. That’s when I share the Diabetes Reversal Recipe and explain how it works.

But I want to make sure as many people as possible avoid the horrors of uncontrolled diabetes. I don’t want price to keep you from that. So I’ve arranged with my publisher to price Smart Blood Sugar at half this starting price — just $67.

But WAIT!

That’s not the price YOU will pay today.

By watching this entire presentation to the end, you’ve proven you’re committed to improving your health. You’re the kind of person willing to take action.

When I see a patient like you, I get a big smile on my face — because it means my job is halfway done.

So as a thank you, you can have Smart Blood Sugar for a fraction of its value…

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FREE GIFT #1:

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This is a deal: "Diabetes Reversal Recipe" was given to a professional chef and asked her to design a simple and easy-to-use recipe...,

She created months of these delicious, precisely calibrated recipes that are easy to make — most take 20 to 30 minutes, and many can be made in advance and frozen for the week. (Especially nice when you come home and just want to eat!)

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As Susan C. from Franklin, TX discovered…

FREE GIFT #2:

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Like the fruit that wards off gout attacks … the food that prevents bruising… the mild type of lettuce that can save your eyesight… the spice that soothes joints and calms upset stomach… plus dozens more health bonuses.

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#blood sugar #lower blood sugar #recipe #healthy #Kitchen witchcraft #diabetes

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doomedandstoned · 6 years

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The Doom Doc Traces Metal’s Heaviest Genre To Its Roots

~Review by Shawn Gibson, with Billy Goate~

The story of doom begins two generations ago in the UK with a band called Black Sabbath. An important new film, titled The Doom Doc, seeks to connect the dots from those early days to the present, just one city away from Ozzy, Tony, Geezer, and Bill’s Birmingham roots. Directed by Connor Matheson, the Sheffield documentary was released the same year as Black Sabbath played their last.

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DOOM /do͞om/

noun

death, destruction, or some other terrible fate

verb

condemn to certain death or destruction

The Doom Doc made its timely appearance in 2017; the year Birmingham legends Black Sabbath decided this was (really) The End. Roughly an hour-and-a-half north, we’re met by the hustle and bustle of Sheffield, England. Traffic is awash in a glowing red hue. Pedestrians going to and fro in crowded movements reminiscent of a group of ants.

Sheffield is home of Def Leppard, Human League, and Pulp for the mainstream. For the underground, it’s home to Kurokuma, Regulus, Ba'al, ARAE, and a steady swell of others who are making sure the UK doom scene stays on the map right where Black Sabbath left it.

We hear the voice of Craig Bagshaw, who lives in Sheffield and also fronts Holy Spider Promotions. He tells a tale of going to a party and one of his mates answering the door with a screwdriver in hand and a wild look in his eyes. Upon entry, Craig's friend tells him that he's got some MDMA and he's already toasted. There is an argument about quality of said MDMA. Craig's friend then takes his belt off and starts whipping his mate’s asses as if he was their dad! He screams some twisted gibberish about the Holy Order of the Spider.

Most everyone reading this understands how DIY metal is and even more so with doom and sludge. Jack Newnham of Slabdragger argues, "You’ve just got to make your own scene. You've got to make it happen! If you don't, there isn't a scene." Not surprisingly, heavy music for these folks has become a lifestyle. "It goes beyond hobby to a lifestyle," insists Slabdragger’s Sam Thredder.

Doom may mean different things to different people, but to George Ionita of Kurokuma and ARAE, "Doom’s like fucking apocalypse! It's like when it rains down on you, like when it's so heavy...When we come out with a heavy riff, we'll take off our plugs and stuff and just fucking mosh. That's what doom is! It's the pleasure inside, when I close my eyes playing the song and I see visuals.” George has an example in mind for us, too. “We've got this song about a fucking volcano. I close my eyes and I think about the volcano. I see the volcano overflowing, exploding. It's boss! It's all I've got to say."

Bandmate Joe E. Allen chimes in: “You don't go to doom-sludge shows to hear nice melodies and to hear someone singing nice songs. You go because you want feel like something heavy hitting you in the chest and that's the kind of shows we put on with Holy Spider. We don't want something that feels like a normal metal gig. We want to do something that feels like you’re on some other plane of existence. It's just mashed together into this experience of really loud, really. Really extreme heavy, affecting music."

Sheffield-based writer Rachel Genn serves as narrator of The Doom Doc, tracing doom metal all the way back to the almighty Black Sabbath. Sabbath changed everything and influenced everybody. They’re the first band to tune down, she recounts, because Tony Iommi had to in an attempt to play guitar after an unfortunate industrial accident clipped several of his fingertips. The incident is recounted in Tony’s own memoir, Iron Man: My Journey Through Heaven and Hell with Black Sabbath (2011).

"That started the whole thing," affirms drummer Vinny Appice of Black Sabbath, Dio, and Heavy & Hell fame. "Tony plays in the pocket, playing these chords. You wanna hear doomy chords? Just let Tony riff for a little bit. It's amazing! That's why we call him Mr. Riff -- The Riff Doctor!"

"Yeah it's all about Sabbath really, isn't it, to be honest?” turning back to Slabdragger’s Sam. “Like, they just smoke weed all the time -- so did all the bands in the ‘60's -- and they make the music we pretty much make."

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Rachel sums it up nicely for us all: "Doom metal is a subgenre of metal and involves very slow tempos, extremely loud volumes, repetitive, sometimes psychedelic, riffs, and long compositions. Lyrics dealing with evil negativity, spirituality or fantasy. It’s the musical equivalent of wading through black treacle."

I’ve not had an experience with black treacle, but it sounds tantalizing.

"I think like one of the main things with like the Conan guitar sound is, in general, that the fact that the guitar is tuned to drop F, which is totally, ridiculously low,” Says Chris Fielding of Conan and Skyhammer Studio with a chuckle.

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Breaking down doom even further, the documentary tells us where the subgenres of sludge metal and stoner rock fit into the equation. "Sludge is like a wilder, greased-up version of doom,” we’re told. “It was Melvins from Washington who first begun the sound." The Seattle band, of course, famous for its punked-up doom tendencies. Other bands like as Eyehategod, Sourvein, Thou, and Crowbar would go on to define the genre even more distinctively.

Speaking of which, the great Kirk Windstein now makes an entrance to tells us about the sludgey roots of the venerated NOLA band Crowbar. "We had come from thrash backgrounds and all that kind of shit. We were like, We just want to do something completely different. We're burned out on it. We kinda just did the opposite of what everybody else was doing. Everybody else was tuned to E standard, playing 1000 miles an hour [so we] tuned it down to fucking B and drop A, playing super slow. We felt it made it a lot heavier.”

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It appears that Kirk has been caught up in the Spirit at this moment in the interview, as he then exclaims: “God it's so fucking heavy! There's no way to describe it. I love heavy music!"

Cheers to Kirk Windstein and his earth-shakingly heavy riffs.

In the '90s there was another scene that must be mentioned to understand the evolution of doom metal. Several states down from Washington, another important development in heavy music was taking place in the much sunnier terrain of the southwest. Most famously, bands like Kyuss and Fu Manchu dabbled in fuzzy, tuned-down rock ‘n’ roll, which we simply call stoner rock. Stoner bands began appearing not only in California, Arizona, and Texas, but all around the freaking world.

Rob Graham of the Sheffield-based Wet Nuns and Drenge mentions being a little irked by the term stoner rock. “I think it's sad when any form of expression becomes just about the drugs that the people are into,” he says, while also noting: “It's pretty cool to smoke weed and listen to heavy music.” A better word to focus on? Blues. “To begin with we were sorta just a blues band. Like we were this thrashy kinda garage blues band. Bored, creative people that wanted to really [make] fuckingly stupid loud music.”

As the conversation goes along, we stumble upon a familiar theme: “Somewhere along the way we stumbled across this like kinda thing heavy, so heavy!” Rob says, notably enthused. “That's what we're about we were trying to be as heavy as we could be. It's like trying to run in a swimming pool! It's like being stuck in a tar pit and melting. That's what it conjures to me, anyway."

Anyone up for little skinny dip in a lake of treacle?

While “stoner” may be used in a derogatory sense, there’s no denying that marijuana has been a huge influence for doom metal and stoner rock bands alike, leading to the advent of stoner-doom. If Black Sabbath started doom’s love affair with their ‘71 single “Sweet Leaf,” bands like Electric Wizard and Sleep (with their monumental opus, Dopesmoker) forever married Mary Jane to The Riff. Others, such as Weedeater, Weedpecker, Bongzilla, BelzebonG, Dopelord, Dopethrone, have become important mile markers for the scene.

"Yeah the two seem to go hand in hand," says Kez Whelan of Terrorizer Magazine and Nottingham doom-grind act Shrykull. “Even though it's associated, that sweet leaf is the influence it isn't for everybody in the doom scene.”

Not everyone is down with the dope, however. Craig and Joe’s counterpart in Holy Spider Promotions, Terry Larkin, is introduced to us next. A UK doom fan, he is quite; a marijuana fan, not so much. "I was never really into the whole listening to music and smoking weed. It doesn't affect me nicely at all!” He does seem to contend that we can get high on the music composed by a musician under the influence. “They can actually channel it into the music effectively giving the listener that same feeling, too." Music makes you high? That’s a thesis we can get behind.

Kirk Windstein returns, because you know he has stories to tell from all those years hanging with Phil Anselmo, Pepper Keenan, Jimmy Bower, and the rest. "A lot of the guys did smoke weed,” he recalls, “so we were very creative sitting in a circle together with a good buzz, you know, coming up with shit that ended up being great. Down was much more of a collaboration and a jam session type thing. So we jammed from fuckin’ in the afternoon until whenever -- fuckin’ two o’clock in the morning. By then, everybody was tanked or high or whatever might be. We were able to come up with some great music doing it that way!"

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By this point in The Doom Doc, we’re clear on at least one thing: doom, whatever the flavor, is about keeping it real. You’ll never be short of songs about the despair, depravity, and greed in this dog eat dog, eye for an eye world of ours. Doom metal bands are straight shooters. Whether it concerns religion, politics, or human nature, they call it like they see it.

"Bands like us and in our genre and the whole nine yards, we write and speak about reality," Kirk says. "A lot of people are scared of reality. The truth hurts. A lot of people try to sugarcoat it [and] sweep it under the rug. I think it's important. People always ask me, you know, ‘Can we talk about this, can we talk about that?’ I’m like, you can ask me anything you want. I might not answer, [but] chances are I'm gonna.” What he says next really resonated with me, as I’m sure it will with many of our readers: “I think it’s really for people struggling, you know, with depression -- or its alcohol and drugs. It's very important for them to realize they’re not alone and other people have been there."

Ethan McCarthy of Primitive Man chimes in: "We're writing about real life stuff, you know, so it's like a way to release bad feelings about life's shit, if that makes sense." It makes good sense to me.

"I don't know what we're into, but I fucking like it!" proclaims the great Bill Ward, adding: “You know, for me, playing in a loud, aggressive band, which is what Black Sabbath was, it’s the most comfortable, sonic, and heartfelt place one could be.”

Doomed & Stoned’s Elizabeth Gore and Hugo Guzman were fortunate enough to contribute to this portion of The Doom Doc, visiting the Black Sabbath drummer at his studio in Los Angeles.

This scene we invest in. We choose to nourish this garden.

"Doing a live gig,” Bill Ward says, “I need to thrash and to play and get everything out of me and reach that place of satisfaction inside. I like to come off the stage wasted...It’s very sexual. It’s like, you know, it’s the same thing we have to do when we get together and have sex!" Oh, Bill. You do have a way of leaving us speechless.

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“Playing live on stage gives me that same feeling," Bill continues. "That's what music is supposed to do! It's supposed to go wherever it's supposed to. It’s pretty simple. I find no faults, no judgement, you know. Leave that to someone who’s more righteous. As far as I'm concerned, metal's fucking metal!"

Returning now to Joe E Allen from Kurokuma: “I remember Conan being extremely atmospheric, extremely heavy, extremely loud -- and that was only amplified by the way we were feeling. It was almost a transcendental experience. I was touched by the finger of doom that night!"

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As a vested fan of the genre, this was pretty much my “Hell, yeah!” moment of the documentary. From start to finish, The Doom Doc is an evident work of passion. For fans of doom, it should be required watching. I’m not sure how newcomers to the genre will take it -- it’s hard to be objective when you listen to it, write about it, play it, and live it. Nonetheless, this 90-minute film is a welcome entry into a fairly small collection of documentaries on the heavy underground. Hopefully viewers will be inspired by it to dig into their own local scenes and do a little riff-mining of their own.

Upcoming Screenings of The Doom Doc

International Film Festival Rotterdam (Holland), January 2018

Desertfest London (UK), May 2018

Bristol (UK), May/June 2018

Brutal Assault (Czech Republic), August 2018

Look for The Doom Doc on DVD by this summer at www.theDoomDoc.com

UPDATE!

The Doom Doc DVD is now available pre-order, with worldwide shipping and streaming options availalbe. Visit: thedoomdoc.bigcartel.com

#D&S Reviews #Doom Doc #Holy Spider Promotions #Connor Matheson #Black Sabbath #Bill Ward #Crowbar #Kirk Winstein #Conan #Jon Davis #Kurokuma #Slabbdragger #Doom #Metal #documentary #Shawn Gibson #Doomed & Stoned

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