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therabbitthatpostthings · 3 months

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TLDR: Eddie's self-consciousness about his place in the neighbourhood and lack of identity cause him to momentarily panic which lead to him seeing beyond the reality of the neighbourhood and becoming somewhat self-aware that his world isn't "real".

This is gonna be rambly btw..

So about Eddie,

Eddie rather became self-conscious of himself or self-aware.

We see from the commercials that Eddie doesn't know how to deal with himself. He is constantly look to help someone or do his job. Eddie is also one of the few characters that has no known origin. Eddie is described as absent-minded and forgetting where he is from, it a running joke. Eddie is the only other neighbour that doesn't quite fit in with the rest of the wacky cast. This update was clearly meant for Eddie. It's him on the cereal box puzzle that sends us to the website that shows us him struggle. This has lead me to come to the possibility that Eddie has self-identity besides being the mailman (What a conclusion I know...).

I'm not going to argue on who became self-aware first just because there is no clear cut evidence on just how Welcome Home crew/Marlo/and other associates were able to get this footage or manipulate these scenes. This is all going on the fact that Sally spoke of monsters in the woods walking around the neighbourhood while they all sleep. Julie never refuted this so she at least knows it's not her family. And the neighbours can clearly interact with the narrator in the Storybook Records. There is a clear disconnect on if the Neighbourhood is REAL, I'm not gonna get deep in that subject but it's confusing at least for me.

Besides Eddie, Frank is the other neighbour with no other known point of organ. Everyone else has a family member or home noted except for Frank and Eddie. Unlike Eddie, Frank fits into the stuck-up nerd archetype of wacky and zany characters you would see on a kids show. Eddie's Post Office is also the only one not decorated for Homewarming. So once Eddie sits down at the Homeswarming Party and the Narrator says he is happy is when I think Eddie starts to think about how happy he is. He really starts to think about it. My theory is that Eddie, hearing what the narrator is saying, really starts to think about if he is happy and that leads him into a spiral of just who he is. And for a moment he starts to see everything for what it is, the cartoon reality breaks and he sees the world in puppet form (the version of the neighbours we see). Frank coming over to talk to him is what solidifies this for me. He calls him "Eddie." Frank breaks the "script" and if the Frank Bug Theory is true, Frank should already be partly aware at this point (again not gonna get into it but I do believe if not Frank, Barnaby was the first to notice). Eddie says "I should go home." really quietly before Narrator takes over at that point. The transcript makes it a point to mention the panic and strain in his voice while images of Home pop up. Home knows and whoever controls Home (if something does) is also aware of it and ends the broadcast.

It makes the most sense to me that the odd ones out, Frank and Eddie, would be the ones to notice something is off but unlike Frank who seems to be (hypothetically) holding it together, this reality break absolutely destroyed Eddie. Now the question is, what will they do with Eddie?

Edits: you can hear Eddie speak, I just couldn’t 🤷🏾‍♀️

#welcome home #welcome home arg #welcome home puppet show #clownillustrations #partycoffin #welcome home eddie #Eddie dear #frank frankly #welcome home frank

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thestuffedalligator · 1 year

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Youtube bootleg of the 1989 recording of Into the Woods with the original cast for PBS’s American Playhouse, I owe you my life.

#into the woods #my first exposure to into the woods was the disney movie #which is. bad #but oh my god the stage production is so good #joanna gleason could kill me and i’d thank her #bernadette peters Would Just Kill Me full stop

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ecoamerica · 1 month

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youtube

Watch the 2024 American Climate Leadership Awards for High School Students now: https://youtu.be/5C-bb9PoRLc

The recording is now available on ecoAmerica's YouTube channel for viewers to be inspired by student climate leaders! Join Aishah-Nyeta Brown & Jerome Foster II and be inspired by student climate leaders as we recognize the High School Student finalists. Watch now to find out which student received the $25,000 grand prize and top recognition!

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k-dokja · 2 years

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summary: cheer up malleus... you're just socially inept, you're still rich and powerful!

settings: established relationship + reader is married to malleus + arranged marriage, but they're intimate

author’s note: i love clowning malleus 🥴 also briefly i forgot the name of their house and kept thinking briar draconis for some reasons.

malleus was... whistling when you passed him earlier.

it is decidedly unnerving for you to see the young prince in a good mood, even if you knew the origin of his pleasant disposition. and like how his happiness does not go unnoticed by everyone, someone notices your apprehension.

"i hope you don't mind me intruding. you've been out of the spot lately, i just wanted to come and see if something's the matter."

it's lilia who approaches you while you're stuck doing paperwork at your personal office. with malleus' eventual enrolment to the college, much of his duty is taken up by you. the increased pile of work is a nice distraction from your feeling about the entire ordeal.

not that it's enough to fool the eyes of the wise one.

"ah, vanrouge," you keep your face perfectly neutral at his arrival, "i just thought about calling for you, have a seat."

lilia wears an indulgent smile befit for a parent. as you put aside the documents, he makes himself comfortable on the chair in front of your desk. "i assume this has something to do with our mutual source of concern? his highness would argue that he is not a child for us to fret so much over."

drearily, you smile back, "even if would that be the case, malleus has never gotten a good record when dealing with the common people." you pinch the bridge of your nose and push away the memory of the last excursion to the town.

it has been decent until his true identity slipped. the masses take all but a second to scurry away from him or cower in fear. controlling the damage afterwards has been a pain in your back on top of the lengthy lecture his grandmother gave the two of you.

never again. you can handle pouting malleus, but the queen of briar valley is springy for her age and she can talk for hours about his safety, not to mention her scolding you. back then, you were meant to be the responsible one and not led him into potential danger. with your experience combined with his raw magic, you'd argue that both of you were never been in a rough spot.

however, you also forgot your position as the princess consort of the briar valley. his well-being should've been the priority of concern, you were beside yourself that time. not this, however, you were going to play the dutiful one like you were tasked to be.

"based on past experience, i have concerns that he will continue to be disappointed. in an environment of young, even if educated, boys, they are too young and impressionable to deal with someone of malleus' strength and status. from what we've learned, there are other royal children and nobles enrolling... but none of them has interacted with malleus in recent years, if at all."

"mhm, this has been worrying you, hasn't it?" lilia nods thoughtfully. "here i thought you were strangely supportive when malleus brought this up."

"i am not against the idea. it will do well for our future monarch to be in touch with the common people," you correct. "however, as it stands, i do not want this experience to upset him. if this turned foul, he might be more alienated from the children of men and our common people than he ever was."

lilia casts a side-long look at the painting of your wedding day. it perches on the wall left where you sit, framed by black wood and golden ornament. the picture moves at times, but both of you know it has no life. the imagery painted carries a fragment of memories from that day, when you and malleus were wedded. the two of you take the centre of the painting, surrounded by your family and closest friends.

lilia included.

a strange smile curves lilia's lips, "that's what i will be there for, you have nothing to worry about with me there. have i ever disappointed you, your highness?"

you want to bring up the weird murder of crows which incant dead languages that he brought to your wedding day. but outside of his moment of eccentricities, lilia is, by far, the most trustworthy and reliable man you can count on.

you sigh, resigned to the situation, "let's hope it won't come to the need for your intervention."

yes, all it boils down to now is hope.

malleus keeps correspondence with you during his time at the college.

in the first week, he was enthusiastic and hopeful. he notified you of his success in overthrowing the previous housewarden of diasomnia. you wrote back with congratulation. inside, however, you had thought that if he lost then there be not enough damage control for the media coverage of that royal embarrassment.

the messages got less enthusiastic as time goes by. his hope dwindles more and more by the time his first month is completed. however, you encouraged him to stay vigilant. children of men are flexible, they will adapt to him at one point.

then comes the second month and the same pattern of the last repeats.

you cannot help but worry more, even if malleus stays hopeful during his message with you. although your responsibility keeps you occupied, you try to uplift malleus whenever you can. however, even with the positivity from him, you cannot help the feeling that something is amiss.

(you, later on, learned that his name was leona kingscholar, another foreign prince)

the visit has been an impromptu one, notified to only concerned parties: lilia and crowley. both of which are out of necessities instead of want. you don't want to alarm either of the old men about the sudden appearance of a foreign and powerful magical source.

but outside of that, your decision to check in has been a secret even to malleus.

no sooner than after you step into the hall of mirrors, you're greeted by an oppressive atmosphere native to the college ground. before, when you tread the campus to assert its suitability for malleus, you've sniffed this out from the age-old architect of the buildings.

however, here, without a patron guiding your way, it has become even more prominent. the spirits which dwell here do not react kindly to strangers, even if they are allowed ones.

you push away the thought and hasten your steps towards the diasomnia mirror. never mind the spirits of this place, you prefer to go in and out without another student spotting you. it'd have been weird trying to explain the situation when you only want to deal with a family issue.

the mirror turns into a cool liquid on your skin when you thrust your hand through it. however, your plan never gets the chance to fall into place.

"going somewhere?"

you recoil in surprise. but upon seeing the asker, you heave out a sigh, hands propped on your hip. "malleus," you say, "it's not nice to surprise your elders."

he smiles. it's awkward and unpracticed. you have a feeling he hasn't done that for a while. then, it vanishes as fast as it comes, "you should've told me you were coming. i would've prepared to greet you."

"i'm only here for a couple of minutes," you sigh, "i've come to meet you, actually."

"oh?"

you nod and wear a pleasant smile. yours is practised and natural. no one can even suspect a thing. "i've missed you," you say readily, "lilia said it's not wise for married couples to be away from each other for far too long."

malleus looks vaguely amused, "there is only a month left until the break, but if that's the reason you've given, then i will believe it. just this time."

he narrows his eyes at you. but you keep your smile, perfect and innocent. in the end, he relents before you, "come with me, we shouldn't be seen here."

once you stepped up within arm's reach, malleus takes hold of your waist and pulls you closer to him. the brush of his magic on your skin is electrifying. a jolt shoots down your spine, more a pleasant buzz than a numbing shock.

by the time it's gone, the two of you are somewhere else entirely. a secluded corner in a garden, where life springs forth even on night raven's cursed ground. malleus lets go of you upon arrival, giving you the chance to take in the scenery.

"i like this area of the garden," he muses, "it's serene and beautiful, almost untouched by the ravage of men. the flowers bloom brighter and stronger here. i come here whenever i miss you."

"it's gorgeous, malleus, but wouldn't your bedchamber be more prudent for privacy?" you question matter-of-factly.

however, malleus answers with a sly smile, "do you think your visit can be 'a couple of minutes' if we went to my bedroom?"

"malleus," you cross your arms, "do you plan on scandalizing your entire dorm? you know we are not subtle without the wards blocking the residual energy."

he only shrugs, "the warding can be prepared for next time. for magic, noises, and any subsequent tremors. if you have any concerns about the students, i will ask for lilia's assistance with evacuating the dorm beforehand. he will understand if it's for the purpose of continuing the draconia line."

"it's improper to talk of this on the campus ground," you say, "it's a place for education, we shouldn't sully it with carnal matters. besides, you're committing to your education. we can save the heir-making for when you graduated."

"i can always leave if anything ought to happen," then, he adds with a morose note, "i do not have anything to hold me back from leaving this place, in any case."

your eyes widen. even if it's expected of him, you never expect it to affect him so. "i thought you were hopeful about this?"

"i was," he says shortly, glaring at the ground like he wants to burn a hole into it, "but i've interacted with enough children of men here to know nothing will change. yes, it might be a different environment with different people, but they continue to cower in front of me. some even flee at the mention of my name, it does make me wonder what have i done to instil in them with such fervour."

"oh, malleus," you step up to him. his shoulder stops tensing upon your close proximity, but he stays petulant, "it is their nature to fear the unknown. briar valley is secretive about its magic and people, they're simply afraid because they've not gotten the chance to familiarize themselves with you properly. i reckon most of them have never seen fae in their lives."

you cup his face and draw his gaze to your eyes. he softens, only a little, but remains silent. so, you continue, "i'm sure they'd react the same if i was in your position," you reassure, "give it at least a semester or even a year, and they'll go easy to your presence. children of men are adaptable, they will come to see you for who you are, not who you represent."

this time around, he smiles when you smile. but it fades when he sighs, "i suppose i should be more patient and realistic. even if my goal for socialization fails, at least, i will gain some experience as a normal student in a college."

there are at least several factors which make him an abnormal student, you'd argue: his age, his origin, his existing education, and his guardian. but that's neither here nor there. "that's better," you lean up to him, then kiss him on the chin, "you're the scion of the draconia, there's nothing you can't do."

"i'd say there are a few things," he wryly adds, "making friends, for example, but i'll try to live up to your expectation."

you nod, pleased with the outcome of your little intervention. that does not go unnoticed by malleus, "so, did you come here simply because of your fear of my ineptitude or was there something else?"

"what? noooo," you let out a forced laugh, "i missed you, remember? but i might have a teeny itty bitty little thing i need to discuss with lilia before leaving."

"so it's not just me but lilia you're also missing then," malleus teases, "let us go find him before your couple of minutes run out. his usual dwelling is only a short distance from here."

he takes your hand into his hand, fingers threaded with each other, "let us walk, i want to be with you longer."

the two of you continue with quiet chatter while you traverse the halls of the school's academic building. if not for his perceived frightening reputation, you reckon malleus would've garnered a lot of fans and friends alike. once his outer shield is down, he's sweet and charming.

his care for you shines through even in the simple touches, has it not for his natural affection, you don't think your relationship would've gotten this close.

however, your little bubble is burst when you round a corner without checking. you're discovered before malleus, who steps back in time, but not enough to prevent your exposure. two students stumble upon you, their eyes widening in surprise.

"you—"

"she's—"

"oh great sevens—"

they mutter among themselves, stunted to see you. when malleus ventures towards revealing his own presence, you raise a hand to stop him. you want to make an example and demonstrate the point of your earlier discussion. these children of men are simply shocked by a foreign figure, they're not malicious.

"you must be..." the first one stutters, his lips trembling when he talks, "p-princess consort of briar valley—"

your name, coming from him, sounds different. it's breathed out with an air of reverence that surprised you. both of them bow deeply at in front of you, it takes a second before you reply, "ah right, at ease. who might you two be?"

they both spring up and continue to admire you with reverence. "o-oh! we never thought we'd get to see you here!" the other one gushes. "we had dreamed when we learned that crown prince malleus would be here but to see you in person...!"

ah.

"oh... i did not expect the common people to know of me this far from our homeland," you say, "this is unexpected."

the first one continues, fervent adoration filling his eyes, "you've amassed a big following on magicam, your highness...! i, myself, run a fan account of you, it has gotten over t-two millions followers!"

"y-yes! you've inspired me to take up my historical study more seriously. i've decided to pursue a history major after reading about your accomplishments...!"

they continue to gush about you, mixing between future aspirations and media influences. after a while, their words confuse you, but you continue to wear a genial, understanding smile. that does not last for long. seemingly has his patience worn out, malleus is no longer content with standing there waiting.

he steps out from the shadows, lime-green eyes regally staring down at the two students. immediately at his appearance, the two snap taut with tension. gone were the previous affection they poured towards you, their eyes are now filled with an unspoken fear.

before you can even speak up to mitigate the tension, malleus speaks up, "i see my wife has taken up quite the intense admirers. how nice." the statement is factual, devoid of any emotion. yet, it is enough to spring the students into action.

"w-we didn't know you were here, your highness...!"

"we're deeply sorry!"

malleus tilts his head, "ah, but you haven't done something worth apologizing. there is no reason to fret, unless...?"

immediately, your admirers spring into action and run in the opposite direction, "we're sorry, your highnesses!" they yell as they escape. "we didn't mean to!"

their retreat is so sudden that you're left agape while malleus remains confused. after they disappeared completely from sight, malleus turns to you, frowning. "do you see what i meant? it is not a problem with fae, it is a problem with me."

"ah, but that was simply an anomaly," you pat him amicably on the arm, "the next one will be different, you'll see."

turns out your reassurance falls flat on the ground and gets trampled over. the next few "experiment" the two of you conducted with the students repeats the original encounter. if not them gushing over you, then the student either fawns or hits on you of some variety. by the fourth flock of students that you come across, malleus is visibly displeased and fuming.

you suspect it only has a little to do with how the last one kisses your hand for far too long.

"uhm."

"we'll never speak of this again."

"agreed."

so much for coming over to cheer him up.

#malleus draconia #malleus draconia x reader #twisted wonderland x reader #twisted wonderland #twst x reader #fics

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bestmusicalworldcup · 4 months

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#musicals #broadway #grammys #polls

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tired-reader-writer · 14 days

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Okay so for some unknowable reason I fell into watching a let's play series of a horror game, and now I'll definitely be jumping at shadows for the foreseeable future until the spell wears off. I'm not good with horror. I knew this, and yet I felt compelled to watch it—

But enough about me, let's kinda vomit out the AU brain mulch that has formed in my head in an incoherent manner.

This has to do with Hilmes, Ranna/Ashaya, and the Haunted Temple™ that will be featuring in the fic.

I would highly recommend you check out the link first to get some context on what the everloving fuck I'm talking about because this thing ain't coherent, baby!

Also, some stuff might contradict each other, I'm still trying to suss out what works and what doesn't, this is basically unfiltered brain soup.

Folk tale added to the Temple, it's deep in the woods, “don't go into the woods, don't go into the ruins, it'll eat you up” is a cautionary tale everyone knows about.

Wonky time mechanics. You wander into the Temple, you've only been there for a hour you swear but you come back out months later.

Folk tale as a foreshadowing device: a royal princess was said to have been snatched up by a bandit in this region— some say she was kidnapped, others say she fell in love with this bandit. Who knows, really? Is the tale even true?

The above folk legend as a foreshadowing device for Ashaya being 1) a secret princess, 2) joining the clan though I guess it's not much of a foreshadowing since they'll most likely be gone w Farangis in the same chapter the myth is mentioned [because the clan got mistaken for bandits and got killed in the first chapter, remember?], 3) falling in love with Alfarīd aka a bandit.

The tale could also be an “explanation” for a princess that actually went missing— a young woman who wandered into the temple for some reason (unclear) finds out something so terrible that she can't bear to face the world outside again.

(it's about Kaykhusraw's betrayal)

I'm still not sure whether I'll actually keep the princess part. It could be a neat bit of foreshadowing for Hilmes discovering smth, maybe he sees an imprint of her, but I feel there's no way to communicate her journey effectively in the story since nobody actually knows what happened to her

Still though, I like the idea of Parsian royal women having worldbuilding and perhaps even plot relevance. I don't think the family tree thing from the novel extras (iirc??) even provided female members of the royal line. Tanaka, I swear.

It'll be forever before we actually get to that point but I'm actually worried about writing Hilmes' (terrible terrible) time in the haunted temple turning into a side quest problem if you know what I mean? An arc/event so divorced from the rest of the plot and world that screeches the pacing to a grinding halt. I mean, the temple tumble is necessary to his character growth, but it really has the potential to become... tedious to read.

For the record, I'm worried about Alfarīd and Ashaya's scenes having this same problem too, since they break off from the rest of the cast to have an adventure together. But at least having them have a plot progression that ties into other plot threads is easier than doing the same with Hilmes because they're not trapped in an isolated location.

Wait, info about the bells can actually be revealed here, and not have the clan remember throughout? Or if they did remember the bells existing then the locations of where the bells had vanished to could be received from the temple.

They'll need to decode it first, though.

Okay, I'm not sure what to do with the Rukhnabad. I was originally gonna have Hilmes not pull it out and cause problems but I... kinda need the damn thing for the plot. Maybe he gets Shooketh™ from whatever he learned in the temple that it compromises his ability to be chill about the looming threat and he yoinks it out of desperation—

(or maybe Ashaya can be the one to take it, as a twist, though what would their reasoning for doing so be?)

SYMBOLISM SYMBOLISM SYMBOLISM

Okay, so, death.

Sherine (Ashaya's original name before they changed it upon joining the clan) is dead. She died when she disappeared into the woods.

The clan has a death-and-rebirth thing going on. Someone joins the clan, they either choose to keep their name or not, but the self they were before they joined is gone, dead to the world, essentially. They could not belong in the living world, hence why they joined the “dead”. Folks who had complicated relationships with the parents who gave them their name, their old families, their old selves, those people typically discard their names (as Ashaya, Kashi, Kazai, etc did) while those who had a positive relationship with their families but lost them in a traumatic way would keep their names (as Farangis and Gieve would). I know I've talked about this before but I can't remember if I put it in a post or in a comment.

Y'know the changeling thing? The died-but-came-back-wrong thing? The same principle, it's not literal, mind you, it's a metaphorical, symbolic thing.

So, a secret royal child goes into or near this place and is reborn as someone else (Ashaya)

Only years later, another secret royal goes into this place, gets trapped in it, and is reborn anew (Hilmes)

Words are not wording rn but you get the idea, right?

Also, mentioned somewhere that the temple holds onto things of the past, aka if you have a belonging on your person that represents something from the past that you cling onto, bye-bye item, you're not getting that back.

Aka, the temple snatched Hilmes' mask because it's a representation of his fixation w the past and everything that's tied to it aka his trauma his identity his sense of self etc etc

Hilmes can't get out bc he built his everything around his past, ergo, his whole person is a figment of the past

Like recognizes like, hence why he's trapped until he's forced to build a new identity that doesn't revolve around his, well, everything

Ashaya probably didn't get trapped bc, well, kid's not fixated to the past they just wanted out (from their shitty family situation)

Bloodstains, screams, inexplicable items vanishing and manifesting, hallucinations/visions that were probably actual memories of the past, Hilmes is not gonna have a fun time

The temple's haunted but in like, an intangible way, so to speak? No literal spooky ghosts floating about, they're fused to the building so the building itself is a haunting, you get what I mean?

Maybe there is one tangible ghost Hilmes can actually see. Maybe two, if I end up keeping the royal lady.

Okay, maybe I won't keep the royal lady.

But something could guide him through this whole ordeal and lead him to whatever truth bombs it wants to reveal.

Could his parentage be revealed here? Unlikely, the temple's hauntedness is it basically reliving the past over and over, not much space for... hm.

Maybe Kaykhusraw's journals could appear inside— no, no, probably too far-fetched.

So many specifics I need to nail down.

#arslan senki #the heroic legend of arslan #heroic legend of arslan #wolfpack au #winds of wolfsong #hilmes #ranna (oc)#ashaya (oc)#gods I need to sort out her tag #AAAAAAAAAAAAAA

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planetkiimchi · 2 months

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4 in the morning | h.gh

featuring: hendery x gn!reader

summary — fishing in the woods with hendery. that’s it. that’s the post.

word count: 664 words

author's note: i wanted to write this for jaemin originally, but hendery posted (x), and who am i to deny the temptation of writing for my beloved? also, this was orginally inspired by my trip to the park with a few family friends, and we went to the docks and i saw some signs on sustainable fishing and just thought i wanted to write something domestic about fishing. hope y’all like the brainrot.

p.s. if anyone wants to hear about “the language of thorns’ by leigh bardugo and how i’m unconsciously heavily influenced by ya authors… i’ll be waiting for you.

p.p.s. (yes i have a lot of thoughts what about it) here is a worship song rec for anyone who's christian, gratitude - brandon lake. i first heard this song last tuesday and it fits this vibe well so here you go!

The silver specks of moving creatures slipping past the gentle sway of the waves caught your eye, the tiny fish glittering under the hints of the rising sun’s rays. A breeze blew, taking with it the remnants of the morning dew growing too heavy for the delicate green leaves of the plants that littered the forest floor.

The nature reserve hummed with bright energy, feeding off the thrum of all the precious animals protected within its enclave. There was little threat here to the lives of those who sought shelter beneath the towering trees, and you found solace in the cool shade that accompanied the beginnings of the day.

There was a rustle beside you, and you turned to see Hendery standing there, feet moving surely amidst the grass. The second and third buttons of his shirt were fastened, and the wind played with his collar, the part of his shirt that was left free billowing out in the wind.

He took his place beside you, atop that small plank of wood that served as a seat, both of your feet dangling just above the river. He cast his rod into the stream, sending splashes and ripples dancing across the surface of the water.

The forest brimmed with newfound energy as the sun rose in the sky, a backlit glow casting the barest of shadows on Hendery’s face. His lips lifted as something tugged on his fishing rod, and he lifted it to inspect the fish he had caught.

“Barbodes rhombeus,” he murmurs, and you hastily draw a line in the column for that fish in the journal he’s taught you to keep.

It’s not often that you catch new species of fish, so catching this particular barb for the fifth time this week shouldn’t be disappointing.

Yet, the corners of your lips droop ever-so-slightly when you catch sight of the familiar silver glinting off its scales, wishing something more exciting would happen.

Hendery measures the length of the fish, saying it aloud for you to record, and releases it back into the stream. It wriggles off happily, glad not to have been kept in captivity.

Silence descends upon the clearing once more as Hendery attaches new bait to the hook and tosses it back into the river, leaving the two of you to watch the water and wait for another fish to bite.

Tired, you lay your head upon his lap, his body shielding you from the light as you stare up at his chin, counting the seconds between each measured blink of his. He swallows, his Adam’s apple bobbing, and you nuzzle slightly into him, enchanted by the familiar scent of his clothing detergent.

Like your mother would say, tā yǒu tàiyáng de wèidào—he bears the scent of the sun. Perhaps it’s the way the sun has seeped into his tanned skin, calling the melatonin to its surface, or the way he hangs his clothes to dry just before midday, when the sun’s rays are the strongest. Either way, it rolls off his clothes like the curl of a surfer’s favourite waves, not sunkissed, but sun-dried.

“Y/n,” he whispers. “Y/n, love, I’ve caught something.”

You sit up in habitual excitement, eyes twinkling with curiosity as he pulls this fish out of the water. It’s both heavier and larger than the previous ones you’ve caught, and Hendery doesn’t identify it immediately.

“Channa gachua, I believe,” he says. “A new one for the collection.”

Happiness bubbles up inside your heart like a pot of milk on the stove, glad that there is finally something new gracing the pages of the journal. You write its name down in the book as Hendery spells it aloud, and draw a neat, dark line next to it.

The warmth spreads through your fingers, your limbs slowly finding life after the hours of biding your time in the woods, sleeping on the forest floor overnight in order to start fishing earlier.

Your patience has finally paid off, and as you glance at the look of concentration on Hendery’s face and the slippery fish he’s cradling in his hands, you think that even hundreds of hours would make this memory worth it.

notes:

*Barbodes rhombeus (Indochinese Spotted Barb) is a small, light greenish brown to silver species of fish that occurs in the Chao Phraya river basin in Thailand, and the huge Mekong river system.

*the 汉字 (hànzì, chinese characters) for tā yǒu tàiyáng de wèidào is 他有太阳的味道

*Channa gachua (Dwarf snakehead) is a species of fish with a maximum length of 18-36 cm, and its body is typically brown to blue-grey, with blue fins, with a red border. It is native to freshwater habitats in southern Asia, where it has a wide distribution from Iran to Indonesia.

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glimeres · 6 months

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Joanna Gleason and the Original Broadway Cast of Into The Woods in the recording studio, 1987 Phoography by Nick Sangiamo

#ngl just wanted to post these pictures of joanna looking gorgeous #joanna gleason #chip zien #danielle ferland #into the woods #stephen sondheim #james lapine #nick sangiamo #musical #broadway

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krscblw · 11 days

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Ministry Perfume Associations

I’m back yet again with more thoughts about Ghost and perfume! This time it’s fragrances from my own collection that remind me of various places in my headcanon of the Ministry. (Usually these lists are mostly made up of perfumes that I don’t actually have, but this time I can vouch for all of these! I didn’t include any that I thought weren’t good.)

For the sake of organization these are divided into places in the New Wing (the most recent addition to the Ministry), the Old Wing (the original Ministry buildings), and the grounds (gardens, forests, etc). And as always, if you have your own thoughts or want me to do more of this, please let me know! I would love to talk more about Ghost and perfume.

(also: so sorry for the weird formatting, idk how to fix it on mobile but it should be fine on desktop)

New Wing:

Library: old books, wood, dust, paper, ink

The library is part of the New Wing of the Ministry, although it’s not very new anymore. Built in the early 1900s, the New Wing is all soaring ceilings, stained glass windows, and intricate woodworking, done in the Art Nouveau style of the time. The library’s floor-to-ceiling shelves are full of books ranging from ancient esoteric tomes to modern fiction paperbacks, interspersed with desks and secluded reading nooks. The library also houses the Ministry’s private collection of artifacts - some occasionally used for ritual purposes, some purely academic in nature. The library is always very still, with the occasional susurrus of turning pages and quiet voices. It smells like polished wood, faint dust, and the leather and paper of old books.

Library Ghost - Poesie

marshmallows, books, ink, polished wood

Myself Invisible - Poesie

stacked books, spilled ink, black tea, violets

Bibliotheca - Alkemia

leather-bound books, vintage vinyl records, mahogany, fountain pen ink, black tea, plum brandy

Canoodling in the Library - Nui Cobalt

old books, mahogany shelves, fallen leaves, ancient stone stairs, amber resin, warm skin musk, vetiver

Miskatonic University - Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab

irish coffee, dusty tomes, polished oakwood halls

Personal Quarters: carved wood furniture, tea and coffee, soft bedding, books and clutter, spices, vanilla

The personal quarters are also in the New Wing, separated into human quarters and ghoul quarters (for everyone’s comfort and safety). The personal quarters tend to feel very cozy and lived-in, as they are the rooms most frequently used. The furniture is comfortable, often occupied by off-duty siblings or ghouls, and the arch windows overlooking the gardens and forest cast soft beams of light onto the wood floors in the afternoon. The siblings’ quarters tend to smell like the possessions of those who occupy them - books, scented candles, tea and coffee, and faint spices from the small kitchen. The ghouls’ quarters are similar, but with the scents of various elements - smoke, greenery, damp stone, fresh air, resin.

Mysterious Fossils - Poesie

smoked black tea with creamy vanilla oat milk, a cashmere sweater, tortoiseshell glasses, a cedar chest containing fossils encased in amber, sandstone, and limestone

Whisper Your Bitter Things - Poesie

pressed coffee beans, dried clove bud and cassia bark, jasmine, neroli, roasted vanilla pods

Grey Cat - Nui Cobalt

smoked vanilla, marshmallows, fresh blueberries, lavender, earl grey tea

Kensington - Fantome

earl grey tea, cashmere, vanilla bean, cedar, rose petals, mandarin zest, pink peppercorn, bergamot

Ouija - Possets

cedar, rosewood, black vanilla, fat vanilla, rose, black silk, coriander

Our Days Bewitched - PULP Fragrance

walnuts, brandy, roasted cocoa beans, copal, cardamom, labdanum, black vanilla, aged oak barrels

Old Wing:

Chapel: resinous incense, polished wood, wine, smoke

The chapel is part of the Old Wing. The exact dates of its construction could probably be found somewhere in the Ministry’s records, but the gothic architecture suggests it’s been there for at least 500 years. The cold grandeur of the exterior’s intricate stonework and vibrant stained glass windows is matched in the chapel. It is perpetually cold, made fully of elaborately carved stone, and colorful sunlight filters through the enormous stained glass windows onto the altar and the pews. The heavy, still air smells like residual incense smoke, snuffled candles, fragrant wood, and ritual wine.

Holy Terror - Arcana Wildcraft

burning frankincense, sandalwood, myrrh, dusty beeswax candles

Anastasia the Patrician* - Deconstructing Eden

paper, ink, frankincense, myrrh, benzoin, copal, rose, juniper berries, wine

Leo* - Deconstructing Eden

frankincense, myrrh, benzoin, amber, liatrix, blood cedar, blond tobacco absolute, sweet spices, honey

Parlour - Fantome

mahogany, rosewood, burning incense, vetiver

*i think these were discontinued? sorry

Crypt: cold damp stone, smoke, dust, ashes

The crypt is the only place in the Ministry that truly reflects its age. It feels like it has been standing, underground, inhabited only by the dead, for hundreds of years. It’s well-maintained, but perpetually freezing cold and slightly damp. The stone walls are minimally decorated, and the candles in their niches do very little to illuminate the cavernous space. The air is weighty, and all sound is muffled. The crypt smells like damp stone, cold air, sweet dust, and smoke.

Gargoyle - Nui Cobalt

rain, lavender, cathedral incense, beeswax candles, ancient stone

Summoning/Ritual Chambers: cold stone, ritual incense, blood, wine, smoke

The ritual chambers are where summonings and rituals are performed. They are where every new ghoul comes into the world, and, more rarely, where they’re banished from it. The walls and floor are stone, and there are no windows. When in use, the chambers are lit by dozens of flickering candles, some in sconces, some piled onto tables, and years of melted wax have created puddles and formations on the walls and floor. The air is dense, thick with dust, herb smoke, ritual incense, and the scent of dried blood.

Baba Yaga - Fantome

black and red musk, smoke, cracked bones, cardamom, wood, animal skins, mugwort

Conjure - Solstice Scents

vanilla, amber, cedar, spices, cauldron smoke

Gothique - Alkemia

frankincense, styrax benzoin, myrrh, cassia, spikenard, canella, liquidambar orientalis, labdanum, atlas cedar, vetiver

A City on Fire - Imaginary Authors

cade oil, spikenard, cardamom, clearwood, dark berries, labdanum, a burnt match

Vassago - Fantome

A silver dagger, red wine, blackberries, cloves, orange peel, blood, a black mirror

Grounds:

Gardens: dirt, greenery, sun, fruit, flowers

The Ministry sits on a huge expanse of land. Most of it is still wild and forested, but there is a good amount of it dedicated to gardens, both decorative and functional.

Decorative Gardens:

The decorative gardens are lush and heavy with flowers and fresh greenery most of the year, tended to by the Earth ghouls. Some of them are small cloistered gardens, decorated with statues and fountains, and some are larger, intended for gatherings or wandering alone. The decorative gardens tend to smell like fragrant herbs and flowers - sweet jasmine and magnolia, heavy white lilies and heirloom roses.

Basilica - Milano Fragranze

thyme, rosemary, incense, milk, labdanum, cedarwood, cypriol oil

Fox in the Flowerbed - Imaginary Authors

jasmine, tulips, frankincense, wildflower honey, pink peppercorns, silver thistle, alpine air

Isabella - Possets

rose, light resin, white tea, honey, cream musk, spices

Olwyn - Fantome

magnolia blossoms, white lilies, jasmine, gardenia, buttery vanilla, myrrh, benzoin, orange blossom

Silver Narcissus - Possets

silver base, narcissus

Functional Gardens:

The functional gardens supply the flowers for decoration within the Ministry as well as the herbs and most of the produce for the kitchens. The gardens, orchards, and greenhouses are managed by the Earth ghouls, and yield so much produce that, despite the relatively small size of the gardens and the relatively large size of the Ministry, they still end up with extra. That surplus is sold at the local farmers’ market to unsuspecting humans who wonder in open amazement about the size and quality of this mysterious farm’s produce.

Sundrunk - Imaginary Authors

neroli, rhubarb, honeysuckle, rose water, orange zest

Drider Crossing Guard - Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab

dry, earthy fig, black pepper, nutmeg, black plum tea

Wilcox’s - Solstice Scents

dry woods, fresh herbs, dried herbs, warm spices, sweet annie, sage, rosewood

Lake: water, trees, evergreens, greenery, stone

The Ministry’s lake is very deep, cold, and still. It’s objectively beautiful, with its glassy blue-gray waters and lush vegetation, but something about it feels dangerous. The pebbled shores are visited only by the bravest siblings, and even then only on the hottest and most desperate of summer days. The water ghouls, on the other hand, love it (which is possibly why the siblings tend to stay away). It is located at the border between the new and old forests, and its mossy banks are surrounded by evergreens, ferns, and rushes. It smells green and a little salty.

Villa Diodati - Poesie

wild rosemary, balsam pine, crystal clear lakewater, dry, dark vanilla

Every Storm a Serenade - Imaginary Authors

danish spruce, eucalyptus, vetiver, calone, ambergris, baltic sea mist

The Forest: trees, dirt, damp air, greenery, wildflowers, fungi

New Forest:

The new forest is a nickname given to the shallow edges of the forest that are closest to the Ministry. The trees are widely spaced, and the ground is thickly carpeted with grasses and wildflowers. Sunlight filters easily through the sparse leaf canopy and illuminates the fallen logs and patches of moss that make popular spots for siblings and ghouls looking to unwind. The air is light, and the breeze carries with it the scent of fresh greenery, tree sap, and sweet flowers.

Cape Heartache - Imaginary Authors

douglas fir, pine resin, western hemlock, vanilla leaf, strawberry, old growth, mountain fog

Dendrophilia - Nui Cobalt

moss-covered deadfall, birchwood and pine, lingering resins, sunlight through the leaves, a trace of woodsmoke, faint vetiver and cedar

Duende - Fantome

oakmoss, cedar, fir, labdanum, benzoin, tree sap, wild violets, lilac

Solovey - Fantome

black amber, violets, black currants, espresso, labdanum, black agarwood, tobacco

Old Forest:

If you go far enough into the new forest, you will eventually get to the old forest. The trees are bigger and closer together, the sunlight struggles to reach the ground, and there are more mushrooms than flowers. The air is damp and cool and smells like fungus, loam, and rotting leaves. The old forest is avoided by siblings both because of the unsettling watched feeling any human who enters feels and the unspoken knowledge that if you don’t come back out no one will go looking for you.

Gaea - Alkemia

forest loam, ferns, decaying leaves, lichen, wet stones

Dies Irae - Possets

black musk, fog, bitter galbanum, hawthorn, rotting leaves, orris, smoky oude, frankincense, black amber

Feuillemort - Alkemia

dying leaves, smoked autumnal spices, dried grasses and fungi, Tibetan incense, cedarwood, rum soaked agarwood, and borneol

Samhain - Haus of Gloi

freshly turned earth, wet leaves, cold wind

if you made it this far 1) thank you lol and 2) i hope you enjoyed! if you have your own thoughts i would love to hear them!

#the band ghost #ghost bc #perfume thoughts #ghoul perfume thoughts #ministry headcanons #ghost band headcanons

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panzershrike-pretz · 2 months

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Album Tag Game!

Thanks for the tag, @sweetxvanixlla! I love you!

6 albums you've been listening to, plus one track from each that you're especially fond of

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As sommesone who doesn't quite listen to albuns, just the songs alone on a Big Playlist Of Everything, my approach tot his is: find out if I listen to more than one song from an album and pick stuff from there (half of these is musicals because. Yeah).

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SELF-ISH - Will Wood and the Tapeworms

-> Cotard's Solution (Annatta, Dukkha, Anicca)

Probably my fave song on this list and my playlist, so I had to include this! I cames to thes conclusion that I absolutely adore this album since I have so many of its songs and they are honestly so good??? :0

I have 6 songs of this album, so I guess I'm winning

The Normal Album - Will Wood and the Tapeworms

-> I / Me / Myself

This one is also too hard of a choice! I was so lost between all the 4 songs I listen constantly from this album!

And I can relate to it a bit, as someone who is constantly struggling to undertand my own gender and how I actually feel confy, but oh well. Too hard 👍

Duality - Set It Off

-> Why Worry

This is probably my favorites song from all of Set It Off and since I have 2 from this album, it counts. Don't you dare argue with me.

Heathers: The Musical (World Premiere Cast Recording)

-> Candy Store

I know all the song and coreograhies by heart. I now every line of dilogue. It was the first musical I ever saw and my favorite once and always.

Nerdy Prudes Must Die (Original Starkid Cast Recording)

- High School Is Killing Me

Pokooootho

Bliklotep...

T'noy K'raxis

Nibblelinephim

Wiggog Wighog Y'wrath

(I know its not from the right song but like. Who really cares)

Yeah I also know all the songs and lines i'm so very normal about the musical honestly I think its a masterpiece. I mean.

Score - The Jolly Rogers

-> The Day Of The Clipper

Its self explanatory if you hear the songs.

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Tags, no pressure (make it better than mine tho): @jiang-mingyi @xxluckystrike @executethyself35 @dontirrigateme @1waveshortofashipwreck @ronsenthal

#tag game #my critessria is: do I listen to more than one?#if esst that equates to the whole album even if its only 2 #thanks.#🥨🪶

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werewolfpdfs · 1 year

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"Love shouldn't be dictated." "Nothing should be dictated!"

"And because she always looked dusty and dirty, they called her Cinderella."

— ella enchanted, gail carson levine // neverafter e4, brennan lee mulligan as cinderella, dimension 20 // cinderella - love me forever, pinkshift) // into the woods, 1991 original broadway cast reunion recording // cinders' song - once upon a time (in space), the mechanisms // cinderella, the brothers grimm

agency, safety, love, control

#web weaving #neverafter #cinderella #my beloved <3 good morning to people who had a lot of feelings about cinderella #something something agency something something narratives #spot the pinkshift (kissing love me forever forever)#and the mechanisms this one was really fun for so many reasons hello #id in alt text

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all-de-fandoms · 4 months

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MEAN GIRLS MUSICAL MOVIE LESGOOO

I literally just found out about this today and- yeah yeah yeah I know the musical got a lot of hate but genuinely I adored it (and it was one of my go-tos whenever I got dragged to a scary horror movie!). So to find out that they're making a movie out of it..... I mean yes, I've got some mixed feelings, but mostly I'm excited!

I've listened to the movie album on Spotify already, and held it up against the original. I have lots of opinions.

Cast Performance

Erika Henningsen vs Angourie Rice as Cady Heron: I’m sorry Angourie I’m sure you’re great but Erika really put her soul into her Broadway performance. So much emotion, so much energy and personality in her voice. By comparison, Angourie mostly seems to be singing to sound good rather than to communicate parts of the story in the musical. (I will say however that she did do pretty good in her last song, “I See Stars”.)

Taylor Louderman vs Renee Rap as Regina George: Renee! She did actually play Regina on Broadway after Taylor Louderman. Truth be told, I love Taylor’s version (lol) the best but Renee’s is nothing to sneeze at either. 10/10, no notes.

Ashley Park vs Bebe Wood as Gretchen: Ashley Park did it better. Bebe’s songs are.. okay. But they did cut a lot of Gretchen’s lines in the MG 2024 Spotify album, so that does affect her rating.

Kate Rockwell vs Avantika as Karen: I can’t choose, they both did a good job with their roles. I feel like Kate’s Karen really echoed Amanda Seyfried’s Karen in the original movie, but from what I could tell in the Spotify album, Avantika’s spin on Karen sounds equally good. I do wish they’d given her more songs/lines!

Barrett Wilbert Weed vs Auliʻi Cravalho as Janis!! OH MY FUCKING GOD you guys. If Renee gets a 10/10 Auli gets an 11/10 from me. Auli'i definitely did her homework. Amazing, amazing, amazing.

Grey Henson vs Jaquel Spivey as Damien: There's absolutely nothing wrong with Grey's version of Damien, it's a very good match for the movie one. But Jaquel’s Damien? He had such a beautiful voice, he really went above and beyond for Damien. My vote’s for Jaquel all the way.

The Songs

I won’t be listing them all because that would make this post much too long but here are my highlights:

They cut “It Roars” for “What Ifs” in the movie. Booo. “It Roars” told a good story, “What Ifs” is forgettable, in my opinion.

Auliʻi Cravalho’s version of “Revenge Party” is awesome. She absolutely killed it (/positive) and although I’m not one to usually approve lyric changes, I love the enhancement to Janis’ character by making the song more bloodthirsty.

Renee Rap nailed “Someone Gets Hurt” but I expected no less of course.

They changed some of the lyrics in some of the songs. Some of the lyric changes were just one line, or shifting around of roles ("Apex Predator").

“Meet the Plastics” got pared down in the movie album. Actually, a lot of songs got pared down for the movie album, or just moved altogether. I guess it was to adjust for time, and also to accommodate Angourie Rice’s vocal range. Aaron apparently has no singing roles at all.

"What's Wrong With Me" is another one that got pared down. The original song from the Broadway version tops this one, hands down. Had more plot and characterisation to it, this one was. Not it.

They cut Karen's funny lines in the beginning of the song "Sexy" which. Again, is such a shame. Avantika did amazing though.

They changed parts of "I See Stars", but I'm not mad at it tbh

Final Thoughts

I think my main gripe with the movie (from what I can tell based on the Spotify album) is that Angourie Rice is just not built for the powerful belting songs that Cady sings in the musical. That’s not bad, but I just. Surely they could have found another actress to play Cady? One who could actually perform in a musical? I’m a little tired of people being cast in a movie musical and still singing as if they’re trying to record an album. They’re two different things, people.

I guess they were trying to communicate Cady’s innocent and naïve personality in the original movie? but they cut out the rest of her personality in the new songs, making her just. So flat. This is particularly noticeable in the Broadway version of “Stupid With Love” vs the movie one. We were also robbed of Cady's growl in the line "watch me shake my mane" from "Apex Predator" (which is one of my favourite parts of the musical!) It’s tragic, is what it is. I don’t think this is necessarily all Angourie’s fault- mostly, this is poor writing and/or directing.

Similar gripe with Christopher Briney, Aaron’s actor in the movie. Apparently, he didn’t even want the role when he found out it would be a musical, so they cut out Aaron’s singing parts for him. Like?? Just? Hire someone else? It’s a musical, they ought to be committing to it.

Auliʻi has such a freakin beautiful voice, and as far as her singing performance goes she is the perfect casting for Broadway-Janis. Her performance is on parr with Barett’s in my opinion. She is the perfect example of someone who almost certainly did her homework: she understands the role, she puts in the attitude, the grunge, the “fuck you” attitude that made Barett’s version so damn good. I freakin love her.

Honestly from what I can tell I do love most of the people in this album (Jaquel Spivey!!) except for Cady and Aaron. Which is kind of a shame.

#Mean Girls the musical #Mean Girls #Mean Girls 2024 #musical theatre #Broadway #Auli'i Cravalho #Barett Wilbert Weed #long post

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neonponders · 1 year

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To @kittyphoenix12-xx for Harringrove for Turkey!! Thank you so much for donated and a big thank you for your endless patience!! 💗

~ read on ao3 ~

• • •

Steve Harrington smelled. That was Billy’s current problem.

Because Harrington smelled good. Like the gold and amber warmth in sunlight that has soaked into a slept-in, pine-green blanket sort of way.

Billy didn’t like thinking of smells in terms of colors, but here he sat. Smelling colors while being stuck on Steve Harrington because their last names were right next to each other. Hawkins was so small that even outside of school, Billy felt like he was playing bumper cars.

And he could always find Steve. That proved to be a boon and a curse at this very moment, because Billy swung wide between feeling deliciously warm and satiated on Steve’s lap, and absolutely furious and indignant at being on four legs instead of two.

“Ow! Jesus shit, I should’ve known you were a cat,” Steve griped after a claw sliced his palm open. The smell of salty blood was gratifying, at least. Billy yowled deep in his chest as Steve picked him up like a heavy towel, dumping him onto the passenger seat. “I’ll apologize to you later. For now, try not to piss on the upholstery.”

How in gods name a party in bum fuck Hawkins had turned into Billy riding in Steve Harrington’s car…more specifically, how a piss in the woods had turned into Billy writhing in the most itchy, burning, bone-piercing ache, and then staring up at Steve…who seemed weirdly larger than Billy remembered.

Steve wasn’t larger.

Billy had turned into a cat.

And his excursion to the woods had been too successful, because he would very much like to give Steve’s car exactly what it deserves.

“Are you still Billy in there? Because you’re not speaking English right now, dude,” Steve said as he drove through the winding suburban roads. Billy stood on his passenger seat with his front paws on the window ledge. He was vaguely aware that his voice—his fucking meow—was deeper than a standard cat’s whine, but he was too overwhelmed to give a shit.

Night vision was nothing like movies made it out to be. Instead of really being able to see through shadows, his eyes snatched onto every moving detail. Hawkins had a lot more rabbits than Billy had previously noticed. And deer. Why the hell were deer strolling around backyard pools and flowerbeds?

Sound moved differently around his ears than it did for a human head. But on top of it all was Steve. All of his car. Every variation of scent that one human teenager could saturate within the interior of his stupid BMW. Behind it all, Billy could distinguish what must have been the aromas left behind by the original driver, Harrington Senior, but Steve had long since moved into this vehicle.

Billy could smell the days he landed in the car after basketball practice. The mornings he drove after a fresh shower. He could smell the moist soil on Steve’s shoes now and the salty freshness of new sweat and outdoor air on his skin—

“Jesus Christ,” Steve groaned. “I always knew you got mouthy when you were full of yourself but this is something else. Someone’s going to think I cat-napped you.”

Billy cast a silent glare at him, willing Steve’s brain to blow a fuse as Billy fumed, Worse, you gave me paws, asshole!

Almost like he had heard this, Steve sighed, “I assume you didn’t know you were able to turn into a cat, huh? We’re here.”

Billy’s smaller body sagged with the car turning into a driveway and rocking with the brakes. In record speed and agility, Billy sleuthed out of the war when Steve stepped out on his side—

“Wait a second, Billy! ” Steve shouted, and to Billy’s acute annoyance, he paused. Steve took advantage of the moment and stretched his arms out before they fell to slap against this thighs. “Where are you gonna go? I know you don’t think much of it, but Hawkins is dangerous at night. Can you at least let me take you inside and explain?”

Billy hissed, ears pinned back against his skull. In the back of his mind, he felt his earring weighing down the thin pinna of his ear. You’re not carrying me like a fucking pet.

Steve huffed tiredly. “I know you understand me. At least let me help you get back on two legs.”

Billy growled again, but even he could hear the annoyed tolerance in his yowl. Relief infused Steve’s features when he realized Billy’s slow footfalls were in the direction of the house. He pressed his thumb against his house key as he teased, “I won’t make you eat cat food—Hey!”

Billy swiped at the back of his ankle, catalyzing Steve’s pace toward the front door. Despite being a witch, Steve used his key to unlock the house and toed his shoes off on the welcome mat. Billy didn’t have clothes to remove. They were bunched up under Steve’s elbow—after Billy had zapped into a smaller body and Steve used the clothes like a burrito to wrestle Billy into the BMW.

Billy’s ears swiveled toward the sound of Steve rubbing his hands together. For a long moment, Billy processed how Steve’s fidgeting meant nervous, alongside Billy’s own desire to claw his way up Steve’s body so he wasn’t standing below knee level anymore. Considering this would result in Steve carrying him, Billy grumbled a low growl and started walking down the length of the foyer towards what he presumed would be a living room—

“Here, we’re gonna need to burn something.” Billy froze, Steve’s jogged steps making the floor tremble on his way to the sliding glass door. As soon as he looked back at Billy, he realized this and winced. “Shit, I’m sorry.”

Billy yowled on his way past Harrington’s stupidly large feet. Steve followed him out but left the door open. The backyard was…too much. The landscaping was all fragrant herbs and then there was the pool. Thankfully the saltwater was not as pungent as a chlorine pool, but Billy found himself retreating back to the carpet just inside the door. From there, he observed Steve ripping leaves off of one plant, and then flowers form another.

When he noticed Billy sitting inside, he barked, “What? Get out here.”

Billy pawed at his nose. He and Steve stared at each other until Billy chirped at him and touched his nose again. Steve’s large eyes drifted down to the herbs in his hand, before he pivoted to look at all the criminals in his smelly yard. “Oh. Okay.”

He came inside and, to Billy’s relief, shut the door. Like he was wadding up a ball of paper, Steve crushed the leaves and flowers in his hands before sprinkling them over the carpet. To Billy’s surprise and fondness, he recognized the flowers.

No wonder Harrington’s never with the weed kids behind the bleachers. He grows his own stash.

Billy filed this away for later, under the caveat of how, if this went well enough, he might hit Steve up for some of this later. Preferably free, at the expense of Steve’s guilt for getting him in this situation in the first place.

Billy’s mind infused with the familiar sour fragrance, as well as the neutral bitterness of green things. His ear twitched, making him vaguely aware of Steve going to the kitchen. Not having a pair of eyes on him helped him relax after what felt like a long night. It had only been perhaps half an hour, but Billy lowered himself over the carpet all the same, sniffing at the leaves and petals, wondering distantly what kind of spell Steve could do. Didn’t witches need cauldrons or something? Steve had just dumped everything on the floor…

The kitchen began to smell like spaghetti sauce. The telltale oven door sounds before garlic bread infused the air. Billy let his back legs flop to the side as he blinked slowly, one side of his skull drifting on sour kush, and the other tickling with the promise of spaghetti and bread…

Perhaps the pain brought his mind into clarity. Or simple hunger. Either way, Billy distinctly thought, Why the shit is Harrington cooking dinner instead of helping me? the same time he found Steve watching him over the island counter.

What’s more, Steve grinned like a teenager after experiencing his first tequila sunrise. “That was easier than I thought.”

Out of some whim of annoyance, Billy stood up—

All the way up.

Blood rushed to his head and he teetered, heavy, human feet loud and clumsy underneath him. All of a sudden, Steve’s hands were around his ribs, holding him up like a child. In other circumstances, Billy would have knocked his hands off and shoved him to the ground, but he had never faced this kind of nausea before. It was like all of his limbs had gone numb and his blood was too slow getting back to his fingertips and toes.

“Come here, sit down. I’ll get you a soda. You’ll feel better in a few minutes. I hope.”

“You’re a ray of sunshine,” Billy groaned. He couldn’t say that Steve was wrong, since with every step toward the couch, he did feel more clarity. Clear enough to notice Steve jerking the throw blanket down to spare the couch from Billy’s naked ass. “I’ll try not to be insulted by that.”

“You can wrap up in it, asshole,” Steve remarked on his way to the fridge. When he came back, he poured the ginger ale into a glass. Billy huffed at the gallantry, causing Steve to warn, “Don’t make me prefer you as a cat. Do you want food or not?”

“Oh, I’d love some. Do I get a placemat too?”

“No, but I can get you a bib,” Steve smiled.

“The faster you feed me, the less likely I am to beat your ass…unless you’ve got other tricks up your sleeve that you’ve been holding out on me.”

Something behind Steve’s eyes lit up, visibly processing that as a compliment. Billy frowned a little, since his track record over Steve was still one to zero.

Instead of answering, Steve worked on getting two heaping piles of pasta to the coffee table, with half a baguette, each, slathered with garlic butter. Billy nursed his soda, taking one, wrapped up forkful at a time. His stomach had just shrunken to the size of a cat’s, after all. And now that he thought about it…

“After drinking at the party, why haven’t I thrown up yet? My stomach has just accordion shifted between sizes.”

Steve’s eyes went wide as he worked on chewing through the lump of food in his cheek. “Wishful thinking? Please don’t barf.”

Billy’s lashes fell to half-mast. “So you don’t know anything about turning into a cat even though you forced this on me?”

“I didn’t force anything! You can turn into a cat on your own.”

“I’ve never run on four paws, Harrington,” he argued tiredly. Billy resigned himself to beat his ass tomorrow. For now, he just wanted this meal and a heavy night’s sleep.

Steve sighed and set his pasta on the table. “I take it your dad and stepmom don’t go for moonlit runs in the woods?”

Billy grimaced at him. “The hell are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about how you don’t know anything about this. Which means your mom is a big freaking help—”

“Don’t talk about my mom,” Billy said quietly. Like one monotone warning.

Steve took it. “Okay. I’m sorry.”

Billy pursed his lips into an impertinent line as his nostrils flared with his inhalation. “If I can turn into a cat, why haven’t I? Plenty of nights behind me to have discovered that party trick.”

The air crunched with Steve’s bite into his bread. His cheek refilled as he shoved the bite to the side and enunciated, “Well, you’re not a werewolf. If no one prompted you to change, I guess, why would you?”

“Then what were you doing in the woods, Steve?” Billy accused. “You were awfully available to scoop me up as soon as I went down.”

Steve countered, “What were you doing so close to me?”

“Taking a piss. Regular woodland activities. Last I checked, Hawkins was way too Christian to have Wiccans.”

Steve shook his head. “What are those?”

“It’s like witch religion. California’s full of them. They own half the incense stores that front for weed sales.”

Steve’s brows lifted, absorbing that with a chirped, “Huh.”

Billy’s eyes widened. “Explain, already! Don’t make me leave you bloody on the floor again.”

“Christ, okay,” Steve cursed under his breath. He rubbed his hands over his face and took a deep breath. “I’m a witch but an atheist one, I guess. All the practice but none of the…pagan stuff. We don’t needs god mojo but we still need energy for spells. The party was like a power plant.”

Billy plunged his fork back into his food, feeling like this was even enough footing for his stomach accept nourishment. Even if Steve sounded like a crackpot. “What sort of spells? Trying to get Wheeler to take you back?”

“No, we’ve been over for months.”

“New girlfriend?”

“I’m too busy getting rejected from colleges and job applying to have one right now.”

“So, what, then? A spell for good fortune? What does a rich boy like you need help with?”

Steve exhaled heavily again. His large hands rubbed over his knees, making Billy glad his heightened ears and nose were gone. “Witches don’t need Satan or gods…but familiars are real.”

“What is that? Familiar what?”

“An animal familiar,” Steve reiterated, and the light bulb went on above Billy’s head.

“You cast a spell to get a dog?”

“I cast a spell to invite a willing animal to keep me company. That’s the whole shtick about witchcraft: consent. I can’t just go into a pet store and buy one. I can put out an invitation, but that’s about it. And then you showed up.”

“I’m not a damn animal, Harrington,” Billy growled.

“I know, but unfortunately for both of us, you’re the one who answered the invitation.”

“I didn’t answer shit, but you’d be damn lucky to have me.”

A laugh sputtered out of Steve. And then of all the questions to ask, “Do you even like me? Outside of all the bullshit you throw at me, do you actually have an interest me? If you can answer honestly, I’ll make you a stronger drink.”

Billy frowned at him, staring hard enough that Steve squirmed, “What? What? ”

“Who was the one who lied to my face?”

Steve cleared his throat, having the grace to look ashamed. “Me.”

“Who was the one trying to make you suck less at basketball?”

“Your coaching needs a lot of work. I can’t tell the difference between harassment and advice from you.”

“Tommy was right there, giving you shit about Wheeler and Byers. You were an easy target, but who tried to remind you that girls don’t matter?”

Steve’s face scrunched up until he licked his lips with a popping sound. “I can’t tell the difference between a guy who hates women and a guy who’s just gay. Especially when you’re both—is that what I’m supposed to get from that?”

“I didn’t say shit about being gay,” Billy fumed. “That’s like me assuming you wanted something disgusting from those animals.”

“There’s nothing wrong with being gay,” Steve recoiled. “Relax, jesus. I mean, I don’t know a lot about it, but realizing you were the one in the woods wasn’t the worst news I’d ever gotten.”

Something diffused in the air between them. Like a coiling wire had finally relaxed and unwound. Billy’s eyes narrowed at him as he processed that. “What exactly is a familiar supposed to do?”

Steve shrugged. “Nothing, really. Just keep me company. Maybe act as a lookout and an alarm bell while I’m distracted with spells.”

“And you’d…want me to keep you company.”

For the first time tonight…not the first time in a while, though, Billy noticed how tired Steve looked. His posture was bad, and he looked like he hadn’t had any wind in his sails for a long while. Frankly, he looked lonely. Billy knew what that looked like. Every time he saw it in the mirror, he smiled at whoever stared at him the most and got them in his bed.

Steve rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah. I guess I would. If you could get your head out of your ass long enough.”

“No, I’m gay, we can’t do that.”

“That’s impressive. You should put that flexibility to better use.”

Billy couldn’t help the smile warming his features. “Like what?”

“Like practicing being a cat. It’s as much a part of you as running or swimming. I’d love to hear you purr.”

“Over my dead body.”

“Or mine,” Steve huffed, and Billy grinned.

“Yeah, or that. What did you use to make me change back?”

Steve had to get another bite down before he answered, “Weed and catnip. I was trying to make you relax long enough for your body to do the rest.”

Billy shook his head. “You’re lucky I’m sore like a car wreck.”

“That’s why you should practice,” Steve chimed encouragingly.

“I’m not going to sit on your lap so you can pet my fur. Get over yourself.”

Steve shrugged, unbothered. “That’s a shame. You smell nice as a cat.”

Billy froze, and whatever grimace he wore made Steve clear a laugh out of his throat and say, “I didn’t know cats smell good. Like a clean, salty breeze. It suits you better than those awful colognes you use.”

“You know what? I’m not sore enough to hit you.”

They had a long night ahead of them. And against all odds, many nights to come.

#harringrove #harringroveforturkey #harringrove for turkey #shape shifter!billy #witch!steve #familiar!billy #neonponders #fic rec

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