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coralinnii · 1 year

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Hello to you! I was wondering if you were taking requests. I just had a prompt I thought you might like! Any characters you'd like, with an s/o who can and will get violent easily if someone disrespects the love of their life? Like someone calls cater fake and suddenly a chairs getting thrown at their head. I'm sorry for asking, I just thought this was funny :)

❋ Feral!MC who defends their man ❋ feat: Epel ⭑ Ace ⭑ Cater ⭑ Malleus genre: fluff, humour note: gn!reader, no pronouns used with reader, established relationships, reader is implied to be magicless, depictions of physical fighting and violence (punching, kicking, etc),

So, I usually just randomly pick a set of 4 characters but this worked out so well it was hilarious.

All his life, Epel feels underestimated due to his fragile-looking appearance and stature. He spent his early adolescence running amok to prove himself a man but since meeting Vil, he’s learning to hold himself back.

But that doesn’t mean his situation has changed. There will always be one or two schoolmates that continue to demean him for his looks.

“You Pomefiore wimps are all the same. What, too afraid to get your makeup ruined?”

Oh, there is nothing Epel wants more than to give these jerks a piece of his mind, but nothing these guys can say would compare to what Vil would do if he starts a fight here so he chose to turn his cheek on their superficial comments.

Sadly, the offenders did not appreciate that as they started to grow red over being ignored and started raising their magic pens when…

“Ooff!” One of the grunts fell to his knees clutching his lower half, revealing you standing behind him with a look that could scare the campus ghosts.

“The hell is manly about picking on someone minding his own business?!” You seethed in fury as you glared at the wounded student and his friend helping him. “Epel has more manly qualities in his pinky than you do in your whole body, including that sad manhood” You sneered at the term, barely believing one could call any part of them “man”.

You stepped closer to the two male students, one of them covering his already injured equipment. With an air of barely contained wrath, you stomped your foot extremely close in front of the fallen student, right between his legs “Leave before I make sure that you two will be walking weird for the whole school year” Your eyes glinted with not a threat, but a promise.

With the two bullies running off, you looked to Epel. Gone was the fury in your eyes but rather concern.

He really shouldn’t be, but darn it if he wasn’t proud of you. He wanted to praise you so much for how amazing you were. He knows now that violence is not the best option but it sure makes you look cool.

If he were his younger self, he’d have been embarrassed that someone fought his battles for him but he knew you do it out of love and never because you didn’t think he couldn’t defend himself. He’s learning new forms of power, and your willingness to fight for him was another side to strength he didn’t have growing up.

Epel swore to continue growing up, to appreciate the strengths he found such as you, and to someday be strong enough to protect you forever.

“We can’t let Vil hear about this, but that was super cool! Ya sure spook ‘em good!”

Ace is a cheeky bast*rd. Sure, he knows when he should shut up but when push comes to shove, he’s not afraid to say how he really feels and doesn’t care how he can come across to others. Due to that attitude, he has made a few enemies that don't appreciate his words and like him, aren't afraid to tell him that.

“Who are you to say that about us? Acting like you’re better than us, get off that high horse of yours!”

Ace rolled his eyes over the student’s weak insult but did nothing. Something like this isn’t worth getting hurt over. The redhead was about to put on his fakest smile and ready to satiate the poor kid’s ego but suddenly a blurry figure breezed past him and straight at the student who started this commotion.

And the sound of something solid hitting flesh rang through the hallways

Loud gasps and curious whispers filled in as students saw that you landed a straight punch on the other student, who’s sitting stunned on the floor.

“If you didn’t do stupid sh*t, then maybe Ace doesn't have to call you out on it!”

Boy is smug af over you getting all feral and defending him like that. Watching someone he likes fight for him and getting angry on his behalf tickles his heart. How many guys can say his lover would beat someone up for him? Ace felt shivers down his spine seeing you all fiery and angry for his sake, yelling at the dumbfounded student how Ace doesn’t have to be nice to anyone who doesn’t deserve it.

“And at least Ace has a brain to think before doing something stupid unlike you morons! Talk sh*t, get hit!” Seeing you angrily compliment him is strangely attractive to the Heartslabyul freshman that he rather push to the back of his mind to ponder at a later date.

As your voice got louder as your fury burned, which Ace feared might catch the attention of a teacher or worse, his housewarden.

Always quick on his feet both metaphorically and physically, Ace used the chaotic situation to run in between the crowd and escape his enemies before a teacher ended up showing up just as he predicted. When the coast is clear, Ace will definitely tease you on your little feral child moment.

Great job, you really stroked this kid's ego

“You sure got scary all for lil ol’ me~ You love me that much, huh?”

Cater knows how some people see him, what they say about him but he doesn’t care since in the end he doesn’t affect him that much. Words from a couple of rando people means little to him.

It was an uneventful day, when he heard a couple of classmates whisper behind his back, words like “fake” and “clout-chaser” made purposely clear for anyone, including him, to hear.

“Talk about vibe killers” The laid-back senior thought, a sting of annoyance managing to build in his heart. It doesn’t crush him but still, having someone insult you never feels good.

He was planning to take the high road, pretend not to hear them and walk away when he heard a commotion from that direction. When Cater turned around, he nearly dropped his phone when he saw you…with your hands in a vice grip on one of the jeering student’s hair.

“Say that again, I dare you!” You screamed as you looked ready to turn the poor boy bald. “Show off that loser behavior so everyone can see!”

The student in your grasp was helpless and not even his friend could help him because any attempt made to you only made you tighten your grip on his locks.

“You don't know anything about Cater, how can you call him fake?! He’s considerate and always makes sure not to make anyone uncomfortable, unlike you motherfu-“

You couldn’t finish your sentence as smoke started filling the space, which sent everyone in the vicinity in a state of chaos thinking a fire had started. Surprised, you released the fool in your grasp and in that moment you felt someone pull you away from the smoky mess. In your angry confusion, you nearly restarted your assault when you recognized the familiar light ginger locks and charming green eyes through the fading smoke. It was Cater that pulled you away from the crowd before a teacher finally showed up and cleared the smoke spell he casted.

You nearly gave Cater a heart attack. The last thing he wants is for you to get in trouble or worse, have a target on your back due to your fiery temper. Secretly, he felt a sense of guilty pleasure knowing how fired up you get for someone like him, plus that wild side of you is scarily appealing to him.

Even if he prefers to hide things with a smile, he worries for your safety more than anything. He has a plethora of ways to get himself out of a bad situation so he hopes you could trust him a bit more.

He might not be able to stop you from getting into fights for his sake, but at least let him protect you when you do

“Hoo boy, that was a close one! You gotta trust me a little more, you know?~”

When Malleus saw you walking back to your dorm one late night, thunderous clouds quickly formed as he noticed bruising on your face and hands, obviously from a scuffle.

“Who is responsible for this?” Malleus spoke calmly but the dangerous strikes of lightning raining down in the far distance spoke volumes of his true emotions.

You shrugged your shoulders, trying to downplay your injuries as you explained that you got into a fight with a couple of students earlier that day. Malleus was curious but you looked tired and decided to let you rest for that night

Malleus heard later from Lilia that you suddenly tackled a bunch of students when you overheard them speaking ill of the dragon fae, saying how he only earned his housewarden title purely because of his powers and not due to skills or competence.

Ok, let’s make it clear. Anybody who dares to insult Malleus definitely has a death wish, with the exception of Leona. Being one of the most powerful mages of his time and having a loyal group of guards that isn’t afraid to take someone down, anyone with survival instincts would think twice before talking sh*t about the heir of Briar Village.

But this is true everywhere, there is always that tiny group of people that dare to speak nonsense, acting as though their actions won’t have consequences.

Hah, they thought.

The students who witnessed the fight recalled the sheer rage exuding from you as you continued to pummel on the target of your wrath. You were finally pulled away by a teacher and was sent to Crowley's office, which explained your late return.

“They don’t know anything! They don’t see how hard you’re trying to understand humans for the future of fae-human relations. The lessons and training you do to someday lead your kingdom, they know none of it. None at all!”

Malleus has Silver and especially Sebek who would yell at anyone that would even dare to breathe weirdly in Malleus’ presence, so naturally hearing that a fight broke out because someone supposedly disrespected him is a common story for him. But this was the first time he heard it was you who started the fight in his honor.

He brushed against your cheek, where your bruise was before he quickly healed it. He wondered if humans were all reckless when in love like you were. He should reprimand you, tell you that such violence is unnecessary as petty hate is nothing to him.

Although, supposed if he were in your position, he wasn’t sure if he wouldn’t do the same, perhaps even worse. Afterall, you were his precious treasure.

This man won’t care who started the fight, he’s smiting anyone for trying to harm you in any way (A red flag but a confusing one)

“I would prefer you avoid such conflicts in the future, my dear. Not for your sake, but for theirs if I learn of the fools who dare lay a hand on you”

#twisted wonderland #twst #disney twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland x reader #twst x reader #twst imagines #twisted wonderland imagines #twst scenarios #twisted wonderland headcanons #epel felmier #epel x reader #twst ace trappola #ace trappola x reader #twst ace x reader #cater diamond #cater x reader #malleus draconia #malleus x reader

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azspot · 3 days

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On social media, the writer Rick Perlstein has been discussing, with reference to his book Nixonland, the policing of unrest back then versus the policing of unrest now and pointing out that since 9/11, a riot-gear posture of emergency has become so ordinary that armed-up, militarized, SWAT-like equipment and attitude are common even in small towns where nothing much goes on in the way of crowd action: a militarized crowd-control vibe is simply what much of policing looks and feels like now. People taking issue with Perlstein’s history point to the many times in the ‘60’s when police and the military ran amok and/or harmed or even killed protestors, but I think that just underscores his point. Columbia (‘68), Chicago (‘68), and Kent State (‘70) are examples of uprisings where—the behavior of those cracking down aside—varying degrees of genuinely insurrectionary violence were really going on.

Students Protesting?

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seafoamreadings · 27 days

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week of april 7th, 2024

these are written predominantly for the *rising* signs but they are also intuitively "channeled" enough that they should work for any dominant energy you have! (try your sun if you don't know rising, or more advanced readers can try moon, anywhere you have a stellium, etc and see what works best for you!)

aries: the season of flux rages on. this week, though, features mars, your ruling planet, conjoining saturn. that can definitely feel like frustration or being restricted too much, but it's quite temporary and it's also really good for self-discipline/self-control if those things are needed or helpful. a meditation practice can be auspicious.

taurus: after the eclipse, a taurus moon does you a lot of good and jupiter and uranus continue to inch closer the the perfection of their conjunction in a couple of weeks. taureans aren't known to love change but admit it, you like a good surprise right? expect to be pleasantly delighted, even if some stuff goes a bit amok.

gemini: of course, the first order of business is the eclipse. but within a day or so, the effects start to calm down and you can focus on the antics of mercury, still retrograde, at the halfway point in that cycle meeting up with the sun. in some old forms of astrology this conjunction was quite feared but you are equipped with the knowledge that it makes you brilliantly powerful. sometimes it is scary to have knowledge! but it is also power, right?

cancerians: most people move on from the eclipse pretty quickly, in a day or so. not you, lunar one. you have it all week, maybe longer. the event, then the aftermath. but the moon then goes through taurus and your own sign, and those periods will be regenerative if you let them be.

leo: people often see solar golden you as the opposite of lunar silver cancer. it is not so. you are complements to each other. especially when it comes to lunar phases, which require both the sun and the moon to be involved! this eclipse, peaking tomorrow and fading through the week is no exception. do not expect yourself to be operating at full speed for some time! or, if you are operating at full speed, don't expect it to be simple or calm.

virgo: if you have a relationship you have perhaps tended to view in an overly romantic light, or a situation you have projected delusionally upon, saturn and mars will bring you back down to earth this week and they won't exactly be gentle about it. but before that you are still dealing with eclipse stuff and its aftermath. it's not the best time for you to be sharing. do hermit mode if you can.

libra: your day to day routines are a good place to be disciplined and structured this week, although not so rigidly that you break yourself. meanwhile your relationships will be much better off as flexible, even fluid, as possible. no expectations, not demands, just wait and see for a week or two.

scorpio: if you're doing eclipse season right you're very much just going with the flow, letting the chips fall where they may and trying to not freak out when you see where it all ends up, whether it's good or bad. meanwhile saturn being conjoined by mars in pisces can make you feel like you want something so bad you need it, but you're just being held back. consider it is divinity holding you back for your safety. you'll be let go of soon enough.

sagittarius: you may want to be anywhere but home right now. that's fine, all the aries energy suits you and going out and having fun. it is volatile from now through the end of the week, so still be careful, but do have fun! not everyone has the potential to thrive on chaos like you do.

capricorn: it's not that you don't feel the eclipse, you definitely do. but mars-saturn in pisces likely affects/interests you more. it is that hard work, work hard play hard, overcome any obstacle vibe. so scaling the eclipse that seems like everest to some is a cute little hike for you. take your time and enjoy the scenery.

aquarius: watch your budget. hopefully you have a budget... maybe this is a good time to make, revise, or reconsider yours. you don't have to be a miser, indeed generosity benefits you! but a little frugality really goes a long way at this time. if you can volunteer close to home it's a great idea to do so as well.

pisces: these eclipses certainly involve financial concerns and this week's later mars-saturn conjunction in your sign helps. this way you really know what's important, the worth and value of things, and of virtues like hard work, discipline, and labors of love.

#horoscopes #horoscope #weekly horoscopes #weekly horoscope #signs #zodiac #aries #taurus #gemini #cancer #leo #virgo #libra #scorpio #sagittarius #capricorn #aquarius #pisces

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adventure-showdown · 5 months

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What is your favourite Doctor Who story?

TOURNAMENT MASTERPOST

synopses and propaganda under the cut

A Death in the Family

Synopsis

"The future folds into the past. The homeless hero has fallen. Now begins the time of three tales: The Tale of the Herald. The Tale of the Hidden Woman. The Tale of the Final Speaker. When the last tale is told, all the lights shall fail. The world will end."

21st century London: Nobody No One, the extra-dimensional Word Lord, is again running amok. Only this time, he's unbeatable — and a terrible tragedy is about to unfold.

It is written.

Propaganda

Possibly the wildest and most wonderful plot of any audio, ever. The villain is none other than Nobody No-One, a Word Lord who has the power to rewrite the world using language itself. There’s wordplay, there are exploding duck ponds, there’s grief, there’s Ace being awesome, there’s Hex being sad, there’s the acceptance of one’s own inevitable death, there’s an infinite, living, eternal story where an entire planet’s dead go to live out their afterlife… The whole thing is a love letter to Doctor Who, and it’s as strange, sad, funny, and brilliant as the show gets. Also— spoilers!!— big spoilers— on top of all that, it’s Evelyn’s final story, and the final episode makes me weep every time. (@partiallithopseffect )

The Natural History of Fear

Synopsis

IT IS A CRIMINAL OFFENCE TO COPY OR ATTEMPT TO COPY ANY PERSONALITY OR MEMORY-RELATED ARTICLE SHOWN OR DISPLAYED IN THIS PUBLIC THEATRE, INCLUDING THIS WARNING. PUNISHMENT OR CONVICTION IS AN UNLIMITED REDUCTION OF AUTHORISED OVERTIME HOURS AND TOTAL PERSONALITY REVISION. YOU ARE NOT PERMITTED TO BRING ANY JUKEBOX OR RECORDING EQUIPMENT INTO THIS PUBLIC THEATRE. THIS WILL BE TREATED AS AN ATTEMPT TO BREACH COPYRIGHT. ANY PERSON DOING SO CAN BE EJECTED AND THE EDITOR MAY CONFISCATE SUCH ARTICLES. WE ASK THE PUBLIC TO BE VIGILANT AGAINST ANY SUCH ACTIVITY AND REPORT ANY MATTERS AROUSING SUSPICION TO THEIR LOCAL CONSCIENCE. THANK YOU.

Public Warning

Faction Against Character Theft

Propaganda

Paul McGann eats a rat .MP3 (anonymous)

#round 5

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ultfreakme · 3 months

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Freeing Palestine is India's fight

I've seen lots of posts about how Western countries and their populations should be concerned for stopping the genocide in Palestine but Indians are involved in this as well.

India has a HUGE Islamophobia problem, from the day India became what it is, this country exists the way it does through conflict regarding religious majorities and it is a problem we must acknowledge.

Collective punishment has often been carried out indiscriminately against Muslims in India- Muslim people's houses in Madhya Pradesh have been demolished without warning. This has also happened in Uttar Pradesh and in 2023, Haryana(300 businesses and homes). These were all normal innocent civilians who had proper legal paperwork showing their purchase and ownership of their home and land, but the police did not care. In many of these instances the police stood by and were involved in demolition and all of these were under BJP-majority and ruled areas. The recent Ram Mandir was built on the demolished land of Babri Masjid(it was built in the 14th century before India as it was even a THING, its destruction & demolition on the claim that it was Ram's birth place is unfair). Hate crimes against Muslims run amok and there are multiple cases of violence against Muslims in India.

PM Modi of the BJP party has been consistent in maintaining positive relations with Benjamin Netanyahu and the occupying force of Israel. A majority of the military equipment for India comes from Israel, and India has constantly been neutral in UN council meetings when decisions regarding Israel are brought up. A spyware called Pegasus, developed by the occupying force of Israel was used to surveil politicians, journalists, activists etc severely breaching right to privacy and threatening freedom of speech.

Worse; India has been using the Israeli strategy of colonizing Palestine with Kashmir. Jammu & Kashmir is a union territory which basically means they are allowed to function independently on most fronts but India has been seeking to integrate J&K into itself and has been extremely hostile to its Muslim citizens and are currently intensifying their occupation efforts. There have been consistent internet and communication blackouts since 2018 and it is STILL ongoing.

India invited Israeli officials to Kashmir to open 'Centers of Excellence' which are supposedly for agricultural innovation but everyone in J&K are concerned and see it as India taking an opportunity to intensify its occupation with Israeli help.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, several Kashmiris told Middle East Eye the Israeli agriculture hubs would deepen India's occupation in the region and accelerate its settler-colonial project. "Earlier, we would draw the parallels between Kashmir and Palestine or India's intimate alliance with Israel. But now they are bringing Israel to the Valley in the form of these institutions - which will be "agro-oriented" in name - but we all know that Israel will physically help India in Kashmir to turn it into a proper Palestine," a Kashmiri academic based in Istanbul told Middle East Eye.

In 2016 Coalition of Civil Society said there are more than 8000 'disappearances' of people in J&K. There are mass graves with over 2000 bodies being found with these unlawful activities being attributed to the Indian Security Forces. That's just scratching the surface of decades of violence and human rights violations enacted by India.

BJP is not shy about its ties to the RSS and promotes Hindutva(I've seen people citing the literal meaning of the word as evidence that it is harmless but the word is a label given to an embraced by extreme right-wing groups who are open about their Islamaphobia. Meaning of the word becomes pointless when actions speak otherwise).

India is an occupying force on J&K, it's suppressing Muslims, demonizing them and further marginalizing them in the name of 'Hinduism'. It buys from Israel and endorses them. As Indians, it is key that we do whatever we can to stop the genocide because we are unwittingly being used to fuel this and are being radicalized to hate on our neighbors, the people we share our land and history with.

Even outside of the ways in which the current government is shamelessly supporting Israel, India's history is rife with colonization. The British had occupied us, forced us into fighting each other, into prioritizing meaningless differences to suppress each other. We were once starved by occupying forces, violated, killed. Our land is also covered in blood shed by colonization.

What are we doing if we don't speak up? If we don't stop this? Do not follow the propaganda conflating extreme right-wing ideologies with the identity of being Indian. Don't buy into the idea that India is "for Hindus", we are so ridiculously diverse, there are 100s of languages and religions in this country.

Free Jammu & Kashmir, free Palestine, stop Islamophobia.

#palestine #free gaza #desiblr #desi tumblr #gaza strip #free palestine #islamphobia #I have no special patriotism for my country but if that's the identity i'm forced into i'm going to stand up for Palestine #I am aware that Kashmiri Hindus have also experienced multiple hate crimes and were forced out and it had been classified as ethnic cleansi #but the fact that happened should only fuel you more to STOP the occupation & violence against muslims in J&K #absolutely nothing justifies genocide- nothing

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artbyblastweave · 2 years

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Also consider this a chaser for a longer post I’m gonna do on how The Boys got better in the adaptation, but one thing I think was a really smart change is how the show is handling the prospect of supes in the military.

In the comic, The Supes are framed as Evil, but Incompetent. The fight over whether or not Vought is going to get Supes into the military was meant as a parallel to pork spending and the military Industrial complex run amok. Putting supes in the military was framed as bad, well, first because Vought is evil and shouldn’t get to make money, but on a practical level it’s treated as a silly idea. The supes are framed as fundamentally incompetent soldiers. They’re too brash, too used to getting their way, incredibly difficult to create in consistent numbers, even harder to standardize once you’ve created them due to radically different levels of durability, and fundamentally pretty easy to kill in a combat scenario if you go in prepared and keep your shit together. Until Homelander starts getting Coupy, the actual stakes of the fight are largely over whether Vought is going to get to ream the American Taxpayers with the superhuman equivalent of jets that don’t work and see no action. But the superhumans themselves are, fundamentally, a complete joke in terms of combat ability, and their actual attempt at full-scale rebellion is suppressed almost immediately by the conventional military.

And the issue is that this sort of created an “enemy-is-both-weak-and-strong” dynamic, where the story hates superheroes so goddamn much that they get simultaneously framed as both this incredibly corrosive societal cancer AND a bunch of complete morons who can get wiped out in an afternoon by a small detatchment of well-trained, well-equipped soldiers. The actual stakes are.... kinda all over the place, as a result.

In the show, The Supes are allowed to be both Evil AND competent. Homelander is actually smart instead of just mean and powerful, and It’s pretty clear that supes would be effective in the military, applied judiciously; Black Noir, Soldier Boy and even Homelander to an extent actually are capable of carrying out incredibly violent surgical strikes against whoever the hell they want. So instead, the threat is very clearly reframed as the military potentially having access to combat-viable superhumans who are capable of carrying out incredibly violent surgical strikes against whoever the hell they want. That gets to be a bad thing on its own merits instead of being bad because it’s a waste of money! And, furthermore, it’s also as if specific special-forces agents and black-ops murderers were given the same kind of inviolable, insufferable PR shielding that real world celebrities get for their bad behavior, except the “bad behavior” is, you know, the imperialist slaughter of hundreds or thousands! (In addition to, and not as a replacement for, regular celebrity bullshit!)

#the boys #the boys amazon #thoughts #meta #homelander #garth ennis #the boys comic

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les-pompiers118 · 28 days

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Illumination (a 9-1-1 ficlet)

A little Buck & Hen coda piece for episode 7x04. About 1.2K words, not rated. Contains major spoilers for "Buck, Bothered and Bewildered."

Also posted to AO3 here.

“Hey, what’s going on with you today?”

Hen’s voice startles Buck off the frame of the open roll-up door at the back of the equipment bay, where he was—what? Gathering his thoughts? More like letting them run amok, because there seems to be no getting them under control at the moment. Even the mindless task of polishing the engine had proved too much, and Buck just… needed a minute.

It’s been approximately eighteen hours since Tommy kissed him. Eighteen hours in which his whole damn perception of himself has been turned upside down and inside out. So there’s that. But there’s also been an embarrassing amount of losing himself in the memory of it, and imagining what it might be like to do it again. Maybe with Tommy’s broad chest pinning Buck against a wall… or those rough, competent hands on Buck’s skin somewhere… Or—

“Nothing,” Buck answers, a little too defensively, but of course Hen can tell he’s lying.

“You’ve been distracted all day, Buck.” She gives him an unimpressed look. “Are you and Eddie still not talking about how you tackled him during a friendly basketball game?”

“I didn’t tackle him! It was more like… a mid-air hip check.”

Hen huffs and shakes her head. “You can take the boy off the football team, but you can’t take football instincts out of the boy, I guess.”

“Hip checking is hockey, not football,” Buck corrects her. “And to answer your question, Eddie and I did talk about it and it’s fine. He knows I just, uh, let my emotions get away from me during the game. I apologized for it. We’re good.”

“Then what are you all in your head about? Last time you were like this, it was when you were secretly contemplating donating certain bodily fluids to a certain former roommate and his wife. They didn’t ask you to help with baby number two already, did they?”

“No! I’m just—”

Buck breaks off with a wince. God, he’s not sure if he’s ready to tell anyone yet. He’s definitely not ready to make some big, dramatic announcement when he’s still trying to wrap his head around this. Not that he’s waffling about what it meant—the head-to-toe thrill that went through him when Tommy’s mouth collided with his. Buck recognized that sensation right away, with all the certainty of someone who’d accidentally touched a live wire. He’s not a kid, for Christ’s sake.

Talking about it—out loud—though. That’s a different story.

On the other hand, this is Hen. Who better to unburden himself to than her? And then maybe he’ll be able to focus on what he’s supposed to be doing here, at work, and save his personal mess for after the shift ends.

“Okay,” he begins, pulling Hen gently by the arm out into the parking area. “Okay, but please don’t tell anyone. I mean, anyone. But especially not Chimney.”

“All right,” Hen says slowly. “What did you do?”

Buck takes a deep breath. “I kissed Tommy.”

“You what!?”

“Well, he kissed me, actually. He came over to clear the air, because he was afraid he was the cause of some bad blood between me and Eddie. You know, since they’ve been spending so much time together, and it was driving me… Uh, I’m not proud of that, either.” Buck runs his hand over his mouth and pushes on. “Then we were talking, and he said he’d teach me Muay Thai if I wanted, and then the next thing I knew, he was just… going for it.”

“Wow,” Hen says simply, and even though Buck can’t bring himself to look her in the face right now, he can tell she’s genuinely shocked. “Wow, I guess you really never can tell with some people. Not that Tommy and I were ever especially close, what with the way things were when I first arrived at the 118. Huh.”

Buck stops himself from telling her that this conversation is supposed to be about him, not Tommy. Honestly though, it hadn’t occurred to him until this moment to think about whether Tommy is out or not. That’s not cool, Buck chastises himself.

“Uh, yeah that’s probably another reason this should just stay between us for now. We didn’t really talk about whether it’s okay for me to tell people. About him.”

Hen raises her eyebrows. “But you did talk, didn’t you? He didn’t just run off or something?”

“We sort of talked? He asked me out on a date. Saturday night.”

“And you said…” Hen prompts.

“Yes,” Buck tells her, with a whooshing exhale and a grin. “I said yes.”

“Okay, then. Good. So what’s the problem?”

She’s looking at him with that mix of patience and exasperation that he knows too well. Like he’s being dense.

“The problem is that I’m thirty-two years old, Hen! It shouldn’t have been such a surprise to me that I—” Buck lowers his voice to a loud whisper. “That I’m into guys, too. Like, don’t most people just know? While they’re growing up?”

Hen reaches over to squeeze his arm. “Not necessarily. There are plenty of good reasons why some people don’t figure it out until they’re older. Sometimes much older than thirty-two, by the way. There aren’t any rules here, Buck. Everyone has their own path to get there. But… you are there, you think?”

“Oh, god. Yes.” Buck gives a small laugh, just lets it bubble out of him. It’s like opening a valve, releasing the pressure inside of him. “I’m one-hundred percent there. No doubt in my mind at all.”

“That’s wonderful. Even so, give yourself some time to process it, okay?”

“I will. But, uh, how long does processing take?” Buck asks helplessly. “I feel like I’m back in that hurricane. There are about fifty different emotions hitting me from all directions right now, and it’s kind of hard to function.”

“That’s just the nature of the beast, I’m afraid. It’s a scary thing, having that big revelation about yourself and figuring out what it means for your life.”

“I’m not scared. More like… in a daze. Every time I think about it, it knocks me back again. And then I think about tomorrow night and I start to get all jittery. Nervous. Cause I’ve never done this and I have no idea how to go about making a guy like me.”

“He already likes you, if he asked you out, right?” Hen says. “So focus on that. Anything else?”

Buck considers it, tries to loosen the tangle of feelings that’s filling up the whole of him right now and lay them out in an orderly way. Hen doesn’t rush him.

“It’s just a lot,” he says eventually, giving up on putting it into words, “and I kinda wish I could switch off my brain for a while.”

“I’m sure. Trust me, all those messy, upsetting emotions will settle down, and then you’re gonna feel really good about it.”

“Oh, I already do,” Buck reassures her. “I mean, I did last night even, right after it happened. And now, still. Just kind of… illuminated on the inside. That sounds weird, doesn’t it?”

Hen shakes her head, then puts her arms over his shoulders and jerks him into a tight hug. Buck returns it gratefully, glad to find an anchor in this crazy day, at last. When Hen speaks again, close to his ear, her voice is uncharacteristically wobbly.

“That’s the joy, Buck,” she says. “That’s the joy of it. And that’s what makes the struggle all worthwhile.”

#911 abc #911 ficlet #7x04 coda #evan buckley #hen wilson

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elvisalltheway101 · 5 months

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•Perfect American Family•

Summary: The Colonel tries to host a family friendly interview, wanting to capture the Presleys as the “Perfect American Family.” It becomes utter chaos, from boyish ugly shorts, to a broken little piggy toe.

Major notes: Reader and Elvis have made a family of 3. Children of the dear couple are Aaron Jesse, Rosemary, and Jackson (pronounced “jag-sin” tho) Aaron is 15, Rosemary is 13, and Jackson’s 11

Warnings: the colonel, ugly clothes, stereotypical American family through the colonel’s eyes, yelling, throwing things, running amok, and injury to a baby toe.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

“What’s wrong with our image now?” Y/N raised her brows and look up at the colonel, back at Elvis.

“Oh nothing, nothing, nothing! It’s absolutely extravagant! But I just want America to see how extravagant your family is. Mr Presley?” Colonel puffed his words out in a quick, puff of smoke, then turning to Elvis for a little help.

Elvis nods and glances over at Y/N, “Yeah hun, we just sit on down, talk a little, and show how wonderful You, the babes, and I are. It’s all there is.” He smiles a warm reassuring one and walks over to the colonel, squeezing his shoulder.

“Exactly, all that America needs to know is that you are a perfect, normal, human family.” The colonel nods, waving his fat hand about, that wedges a thick cigarette between.

Elvis laughs and nods over to him, putting up his hands reassuringly, “trust me, we are a perfectly normal family. What else would we be.” He snickers and looks over at me, and I just shrug and hum, “mhm.”

“Oh, and they’ll be coming over here.” Th e colonel perks up over his shoulder. I raise a brow and clear my throat. “Oh? A-and what should we wear?” I ask in genuine curiosity and confusion.

The colonel nods and pats Elvis’ shoulder, “my boy, tell your woman there is nothing to hover over about. I have that all planned out. Just be ready for tomorrow. I’ll take care of everything.” With that, the colonel disappears into thin air just as the vampire he is.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Before you know it, you are all propped onto the living room couch with sour faces that cannot be mistaken. Youre standing behind the couch with Elvis, with Aaron and Rosemary sitting on top of. Everyone all seems pissed, waiting and steaming. You’re wearing a tacky pink skirt that goes to your ankles, and a white apron tied tightly behind, with your hair pinned up, also being assigned to hold a spatula. Aaron huffs in his red jersey and game uniform, holding a foot ball in his arms with his hair slicked back too neatly for his own damn liking, looking like some know-it-all-jock. Rosemary, seems pretty flattered, wearing a blue dress with white gloves and her hair in her shoulders, curled neatly. Let’s not forget Mr. Presley behind you, huffing and puffing with the ridiculous outfit chosen out. He stands besides you wearing a black suit, his hair tucked tightly and neatly under a dressy hat. But then again, where’s Jackson?

Finally the camera people walk in, along with the colonel. While the interviewers seat themselves and prop up their equipment, Colonel walks over with a huge and impressed smile, holding his arms out. “My, my, I couldn’t even recognize any of you. ‘Specially Aaron.” Colonel grins, and Aaron frowns up.

“Colonel, My damn family and I don’t wear this on a daily basis. What are you tryna put us up for? A-a damn doll set or sumthin? It looks like I’m going to a funeral while my family looks like they’re dolls to a toy set!” Elvis huffs out, and you and the kids know definitely to set back.

“Elvis, calm down. I am only trying to promote the “Presleys” as America’s idol family is all” The colonel speaks out in a rush. Elvis snaps back and shakes his head, “we look like crackies off the damn streets!-“ The colonel immediately claps his hands and ignores Elvis’ complaints, finding a new subject to escape to. “Uh, Where’s your boy Jackson? The camera’s are to roll, and if I recall correctly, I remember you had two sons.” The colonel tries to laugh off, but closes his lips and looks to the camera people.

“Aaron, grab your brother please. It is not time for any nonsense.” You whisper down to your eldest son who immediately gets up and runs upstairs to grab him. While that, the interview starts. A couple hello’s and small basic questions pass, Elvis answering with a frustrated and embarrassed tone but keeping piloted.

Then you hear the rumbling and tumbling, Elvis pays no mind, just wanting to get this over with while Rosemary and you look to the stairs. Jackson running around, shrieking while Aaron tries to catch up.

“Mama! Daddy! Look at these shorts! I am not wearing this!” Jackson screams about, Aaron rolls his eyes and seats back with us. While Rosemary and I shake our heads and whisper yell, “Jackson, sit your behind down!”

“No! Look at this!” Jackson makes a mess anywhere he goes, then running in front of the cameras. Elvis takes action and yells, “Jackson sit your ass down!” Elvis and Jackson then go about, taking turns complaining about their clothes and screaming at eachother. The cameras only watch with smirks and snickers, while Rosemary rushes to yours side and tries to smile and save the day.

“How about let’s make some all American-pie?” She smiles a crooked-smile, and I nod along. Then Jackson steps on a reporter’s baby toe, gasps and screams only adding to the chaos and noise. The colonel only watches with wide eyes and fleets the scene, his cane wobbly in hand.

You groan and hug Rosemary to your side, watching Elvis tug at his suit and scold at Jackson, while Aaron stomps and throws a near tantrum like a little boy.

This will be a huge mess to clean

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Author’s note: Imma be honest, this was rushed…and I’m not proud. It looked way better in my head (like most of my works do) oh goodness. But I just wanted to get this blurb out. I’m trying to clean my drafts before Christmas 💀

#elvis #elvis presley #good god #i cannot #this is too rushed #I’m crying man😭💀

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wangxianficrecs · 6 months

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💙 flowers from ash by hauntedotamatone

💙 flowers from ash

by hauntedotamatone (@hauntotamatone)

E, WIP, 27k, Wangxian

Part of WLW Wangxian Week 2022

Summary: “There is the matter of a certain individual.” “That Wei Ying from YunmengJiang.” A protracted Sunshot campaign spanning six years ends in a victory hardly worth the cost. With the former Five Great Sects whittled down to three, two of which have been devastated, the Jin Sect seeks to hang itself up in the place of the sun. The first step in their climb to power is to get the woman who killed Wen Ruohan from within his own palace well out of the way. Lan Zhan is not someone who schemes, but she cannot allow Wei Ying to meet such a fate. That she has loved her since they were fifteen is secondary. Kay's comments: This story is so incredibly soft in its grief. Like. The hurt/comfort of it. It never fails to hit. I am so weak for it. And WLW Wangxian too? Lar never misses. In which, everything in regards to the Sunshot Campaign went worse and in some ways better? Hard to say, but Wei Wuxian ended up a prisoner of the Jin Sect and Lan Wangji, who is the effective sect leader of the Lans, manages to scheme her to be handed over to the Lans instead. What follows is dealing with grief, healing and so much tender hurt/comfort. Excerpt: “Well she can’t simply be allowed to run amok!” The mask slips. The primary lust of his, that clawing greed for any power he does not possess, rears its ugly head. It’s a pity that he had not been so concerned with Wen Ruohan and his sons, their nearly infinite wealth and unrestrained power. It is not fear, as so many others will surrender to, she doesn’t believe that Jin Guangshan has ever been properly scared, and one person can do very little to move against him now. GusuLan teaches its disciples not to deceive. Thus, her words must be chosen carefully. She does not lie, not exactly. “I do not mean to leave her on her own.” This is true, she will not abandon her. “GusuLan is experienced in the liberation of resentful spirits and well equipped to contain them.” This is also true, though its relevance to the conversation actually taking place here is debatable. It is a necessary misdirection, but Wen Qing’s glare grows harsher and the timid looking young man behind her wavers between the verge of tears and the verge of violence. “Our healers would take responsibility for her care and supervision.” His brow twitches. There is no sound argument to make against GusuLan handling this, none that will not drag his true motives into the light However, she knows that he is only irritated, not cornered. Even if his motives were exposed, Lan Zhan does not think that there would be anything more than a token protest, if any objection at all. Never mind that Wei Ying had been well liked amongst their peers and that many of the young masters of their generation had admired her. How cheap their admiration had turned out to be in the end, for those that remain to sit here and say absolutely nothing.

pov lan wangji, rule 63, female lan wangji/female wei wuxian, canon divergence, post-sunshot campaign, captivity, hurt/comfort, grief/mourning, recovery, bathing/washing, past character death, sect leader lan wangji, sharing a bed, lan wangji/ wei wuxian get a happy ending, getting together, touch-starved wei wuxian, misogyny, genius wei wuxian

~*~

(Please REBLOG as a signal boost for this hard-working author if you like – or think others might like – this story.)

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dontmeantobepoliticalbut · 1 year

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Earlier this month, a train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, triggering a massive fire and forcing everyone within a 1-mile radius of the crash to evacuate. To avoid a potential explosion, officials conducted a controlled detonation of five tankers three days later, sending carcinogenic vinyl chloride into the air. Two days later, residents of the 4,500-person village were told they could safely return home. Many questioned the safety of the air and water supply.

Since then, reporting has made clear that this environmental disaster was less a freak accident than a predictable outcome of lax safety measures and capitalist greed. Here’s what you need to know about the Norfolk Southern rail company.

NORFOLK SOUTHERN CHOSE NOT TO UPGRADE ITS TRAINS’ “CIVIL WAR-ERA” BRAKES.

A report in The Lever notes that the train that crashed in East Palestine was not equipped with Electronically Controlled Pneumatic brakes—fully electric brakes that experts say could have reduced the severity of the crash. Although Norfolk Southern once touted its use of ECP brakes, it lobbied against requiring them on trains carrying hazardous materials. An Obama-era rule required that HHFTs have ECP brakes, but the Trump administration overturned this rule.

NORFOLK SOUTHERN WORKERS DON’T GET PAID SICK TIME.

Remember when the Senate voted to avert a rail strike and deny workers sick leave? Norfolk Southern workers were among those affected. When investors encouraged Norfolk Southern to offer paid sick leave, the company said, OK, we won’t furlough people as often. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT.) has since demanded that rail companies offer workers at least seven days of paid sick leave.

RAIL COMPANIES REFUSE TO HIRE ENOUGH WORKERS.

Unions say that the rail industry’s use of furloughs to reduce the workforce stretches staff too thin. As Timothy Noah wrote in the New Republic, the 141-car train that crashed in East Palestine carried just two crew members and one trainee:

"On February 10, Anya Litvak of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that security camera footage 20 miles short of where the derailment occurred showed a rail car axle that appeared to be on fire. Why this information was not transmitted quickly to the train crew remains unknown, but it seems likely that the answer has something to do with the number of people who were in a position to sound the alarm."

NORFOLK SOUTHERN HAS SPENT BILLIONS ON STOCK BUYBACKS.

Norfolk Southern made $4.8 billion in operating profit in 2022, More Perfect Union reported, and paid shareholders $4.7 billion in stock buybacks and dividends.

As my colleague Hannah Levintova explained last year:

"A buyback is when companies purchase shares of their own company from investors, driving up the value of the remaining stock because there are fewer shares circulating. Buybacks are taxed at the lower capital gains rate, which maxes out at 20% for the wealthiest households. But for those investors who don’t sell their shares back to the company, there’s no tax—even though the value of their holdings has increased. Until that investor sells the asset, their wealth will grow tax-free. And thanks in part to a tax code loophole that enables the wealthy to pass shares on to their heirs, who can then skip paying capital gains taxes on them altogether, buybacks play a role in building untaxed generational wealth."

THE TRAIN THAT CAUSED THE CLOUD OF SMOKE OVER EAST PALESTINE WAS NOT CATEGORIZED AS A “HIGH-HAZARD FLAMMABLE TRAIN.”

Thanks to pressure from industry lobbyists, the “high-hazard flammable train” categorization applies only to trains carrying a narrow set of materials, like crude oil, The Lever also reported. That designation would have required that the train follow specific speed and braking restrictions.

DESPITE MAKING BILLIONS IN PROFIT, NORFOLK SOUTHERN INITIALLY OFFERED JUST $25,000 TO EAST PALESTINE.

Norfolk Southern managed to scrape together $25,000 for the town that’s been doused in toxic chemicals. People who fled their homes under fear of death can claim $1,000 per person per household. Since then, the company has announced increases in charity.

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thekingofgear · 3 months

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'Wall of Eyes' Film and Zine Gear Updates

On January 18, The Smile and Paul Thomas Anderson’s Wall of Eyes film collection was premiered at the Prince Charles Cinema in Leicester Square, London. The first piece in the collection is a silent film showing the band recording Wall of Eyes at Abbey Road. We initially see the band playing and talking in the live room at Studio 2, but as it progresses we also see them giving direction (and reacting amusingly) to the London Contemporary Orchestra (a slight surprise as Jonny usually record strings at Air Studio’s Lyndhurst hall).

As you might expect, most of the instruments and gear used by the band is similar to what they brought on the road. In an interview with Lauren Laverne for the BBC, Thom mentioned that the songs were mostly written very quickly, some on tour and some in studio. “Especially with Tom [Skinner], he’s super quick… so we could have an idea, and suddenly it's off the ground within like half an hour, and we started getting into this habit of like — take three was like ‘that’s it, move on.’” So it makes sense that the band would use much of the same equipment as on tour, if only to speed up the recording process.

However, there were a couple of surprises in the silent film. One shot showed Jonny with an Eventide H9 pedal floating beside his pedalboard. Previously, only Thom had used the H9, and Thom used it as a vocal effect. Another shot showed Thom playing his black 1963 Fender Jazzmaster. Thom’s old big-box Electro-Harmonix Holy Grail could also be seen beside his pedalboard, though it wasn’t plugged in.

The Wall of Eyes Zine

In addition to watching the film by PTA, attendees could also purchase a “zine” full of photos taken by Sam Petts-Davies during the recording of the new album. The zine is printed on newsprint, reminiscent of Radiohead’s Universal Sigh and The King of Limbs newspapers. The zine mostly shows the same gear seen in Sam's previous photos of the session, and some of the photos were previously shared on social media. But there are still plenty of new details to take in!

Jonny with Thom/Nigel's worn sunburst Fender Telecaster Standard. You might mistake it for Jonny's Tele Plus given the wear on the "horn" of the guitar, but the pickups and the white binding show that it's the Tele Standard that Thom first played for AMOK touring in 2013 (it was still very worn back then).

In one photo, we can see Thom playing a Martin acoustic, perhaps from the recording of the single Wall of Eyes. Another photo shows a be-speckled Jonny on a couch with Thom/Nigel's worn sunburst Fender Telecaster Standard. But before you assume Jonny has abandoned his Les Paul, he can be seen playing his (plugged in) natural finish Les Paul Standard in the studio's control room in another photo. Jonny is also seen with the Les Paul in photos from the live room at his home studio (the grey-blue painted room from which the Smile have previously shared rehearsal footage and photos).

This photo by Sam shows Jonny with his natural finish Les Paul Standard in the control room at Abbey Road Studio 2. It's very similar, but not identical, to the photo included in the zine. This photo was posted on the band's twitter on Oct 9, 2023, but it was most likely taken in March 2023, and only posted in October to help publicize the band's fall 2023 tour. If you want to look around the control room, a 360º view is available on 360cities.net, but it appears the room has been renovated slightly since that was taken.

A wide view of the live room at Abbey Road Studio 2, taken partway up the stairway to the control room. Some particularly notable bits of gear include the Prophet 5 REV4 between Thom and Jonny's stations (presumably for shared access) and the Elektron Analog Rytm (partly blocked by Thom's head) on top of the Rhodes electric piano.

One of the largest photos in the zine, spanning two pages, shows a nearly full view of the live room of Studio 2. On the left, we can see an impressive array of synths resting on top of the grand piano, including Thom's Moog Matriarch and one of Jonny's Oberheim SEM Pro synths. Clearly the band prefer the sound of upright pianos for this project. While the grand is used as a synth table, there are two mic'd uprights just behind Thom's area. Jonny Sequential Prophet 5 REV4 is also visible on a stand between Thom and Jonny's stations, suggesting it's getting a lot of shared use. On tour, Jonny used his Studiologic MIDI pedals to play synth lines on the Prophet, and the synth can be heard layered with strings on the new studio recordings. The MIDI pedals aren't visible in studio photos, so presumably Jonny decided to play those parts by hand for the studio recordings.

Thom is seem sitting at the Rhodes piano, playing a guitar or bass. On too of the Rhodes he has a sheet of (presumably) lyrics, and also his Elektron Octatrack (which Thom previously used on the album recordings for ANIMA) Elektron Analog Rytm drum machine (which he used heavily on Tomorrow's Modern Boxes and (at least on tour for) Anima). Behind him, his phone is visible resting on top of his favorite amp for the past seventeen-ish years: a fawn JMI Vox AC30/6 from 1962 (the pre-Top Boost version).

Tom Skinner is seen playing in one of the two isolation booths for drums. Another isolation booth is set up in Jonny's section, but instead of Jonny it's Robert Stillman recording in it (at least, one can only assume Stillman based on the saxophone horn visible through the booth's window). Jonny himself appears to be sitting hunched over near the couch and coffee table — it's unclear if he's playing an instrument, or perhaps manipulating a Max patch on his laptop.

Stillman is visible recording saxophone and clarinet in other photos from Studio 2 as well. He's credited for clarinet on Read the Room, and for clarinet and saxophone on Friend of a Friend, Pete Wareham, who previously played with Skinner's past band Sons Of Kemet, is seen recording flute in another photo from Studio 2. Wareham is credited for flute on Teleharmonic and Read The Room.

This photo of Tom Skinner in Studio 2, previously posted on the Smile's twitter page, was also included in the zine. It appears to have been taken during setup: the isolation booth isn't fully set up yet, and a ladder can be seen on the right.

Another photo (above) shows Thom's guitar and bass pedalboard. The first row of pedals (closest to him) are all favorites from the past few Smile tours (check his pedalboards page for more info). On the second row, EarthQuaker Devices Sunn O))) Life pedal has been squeezed between his EQD Afterneath and his Telenordia Kompressor. There's also an array of (unconnected) overdrive and fuzz pedals resting on the riser at the top of his board (we saw many of the same pedals arrayed there in a previous photo from the session).

In that photo, we also see Thom playing his modified 1960s Gibson EB0 bass guitar through an Ampeg B-15 Portaflex combo amplifier. The EB0's original single coil pickup is replaced by a Kent Armstrong Tele Dual Rail pickup (thanks to Makoto for pointing this out) on a custom plate, presumably a mod by a previous owner. Jonny is a big fan of the Ampeg Portaflex, having used a 2000s Portaflex B15R for sessions with Radiohead and Shye Ben Tzur, and also for the Smile’s debut live stream from the 2021 Glastonbury festival. The original 1960s Ampeg Portaflex was favored as a recording amp by American bassists like James Jamerson and Donald “Duck” Dunn — both notable influences on Jonny’s brother Colin.

It's interesting to note that none of Jonny's ondes Martenot are visible in the photos from Abbey Road. On tour, it's understandable that Jonny doesn't play the monophonic Ondes, because he almost always needs to play many notes at a time to fill out the rhythm section on the Smile's songs. But the the bridge/coda of the Wall of Eyes single prominently features Ondes Martenot (though it's often layered with strings). Perhaps Jonny overdubbed those parts at his home studio, or at another studio during mixing.

This photo of Thom in the control room of an unknown studio was posted on the band's twitter account on August 30, 2023 (photo by @sampettsdavies). It's definitely not from the control room in Abbey Road Studio 2. Perhaps it's the mysterious "StudioFour" in London, which is listed as the mixing location in the album's liner notes.

This photo of Jonny on stage during a soundcheck with The Smile is also included in the zine. It was posted on the band's twitter account on Sep 5, 2023 (photo by @sampettsdavies). It, like the photo set posted 4 days earlier, is probably from the band's July 2023 tour.

#The Smile #Wall of Eyes #Jonny Greenwood #Thom Yorke #Tom Skinner #Robert Stillman #Friend of a Friend #Read the Room #Teleharmonic

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dirtyoldmanhole · 7 months

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fuck it, have a decently long slowburn excerpt, this was morbidly fun to write.

Xander confronts Gunter on his relationship with Corrin, set right about "Black Flame" in Revelation.

unedited.

Discipline was even more crucial in these knife-edged days when former enemies and bloodied soldiers were spending every waking hour in close quarters; the old knight had no illusions that many of them had fought on the same battlefield on opposite sides, and that the whole camp could erupt into seething tensions over old grudges or quarrels at any day.

Such matters, he debated, might’ve just become a non-issue with the arrival of the last Nohrian royal.

Crown Prince Xander—young black diamond and star of the Nohrian kingdom—was a powerfully built figure, especially on horseback where he preferred to lead the ever-shifting tides of warfare from. At twenty-nine tender years, he was in his prime and a lion that boasted the reverence of the army and the grudging respect of the mages guild for his matchless prowess in the battlefield.

Xander was also Garon’s favoured sword to use to bring miscreants into line, an association that the old knight had never forgotten since the days of the Concubine Wars.

The very same blonde princling had been pacing outside the healer’s tent for him, strangely enough, and glanced up with recognition when Gunter strode out. He was thankful that his nose was not bloodied as an embarrassment, small mercies, though the old knight was sure his luck would run out soon.

As if reading his mind, fate obliged.

"Sir Gunter, a word in private, if you will."

“Of course, your majesty.”

Trailing respectfully a step behind and to the side in the customary position, the old knight followed the prince further into the twisty dark recesses of the volcanic rocks that made the canyon, beyond earshot of the watchguards who were long since distracted to even care about their conversation. Everyone was either paying attention to the circus amok in the camp or too uneasy by the Bottomless Canyon’s endless gloom to care about two figures slipping away.

Gunter would have to lay into the watchguards for their slip, after this conversation.

“I would have your thoughts on Princess Corrin.” Xander’s expression was smooth and polished. Too smooth. “I have reports that you have spent considerable time with her as of late.”

The trap was carefully worded, carefully deniable. And yet, Gunter was all too aware of court politics to see the naked dagger ensheathed in the other hand, behind the open hand. It was fitting that this prideful lion would be the one of the royal siblings to come with this particular threat at hand.

Gunter had known the court would make its opinion on their relations clear, at some point.

“Milady Corrin is a natural leader and well equipped to lead this force.” Gunter replied back with forced neutrality. “She has bridged tensions that will benefit Nohr and its citizens immensely in the coming years.”

Xander gave a pitying smile. “With all due respect, sir knight, I am referring to more personal time.”

Gunter stayed silent, waiting. The prince was not done, and it would not do to interrupt the inevitable dressing-down that came from the highest ranks. He grimly considered with the darkest humour it was a warped honour that somebody no less than the crown prince would consider the dalliances of such an elderly knight worthy of his time.

"Girls like her are... flighty." The worst part was he could tell by the Prince’s pitying expression he meant the words as a kindness. Xander fiddled with the cuff of his white riding glove, a half smirk playing on his face in an obvious attempt at the unsavoury male bonding that went on behind doors. "You do know silly chits like that. Fancies, whims of fantasy, such adorable little crushes. Wonderful when they're young flowers, simply wonderful to remember such beauties exist."

Gunter tasted blood intermingled with raw hatred on his tongue as the Nohrian prince continued, oblivious. "In time these girls will bloom, and they too have their own purpose with proper marriages as according to our esteemed tradition. And that one is simply too..." There was a gleam in Xander's eye as the crown prince licked his lips, such a predatory gleam the old knight had to suppress a powerful urge to rip the royal's throat out on the spot with his gauntlets. "Simply too unique, as a true flower among many such blossoms in Nohr to be picked so willy-nilly. Her future will be just so."

To be wasted on someone like you, was the clear threat. A desiccated ghost of a commoner that didn't deserve a single touch of hers.

If you only knew, prince. It was hard to resist the contemptuous sneer. If Xander had been any other Nohrian man, honour stipulated that the old knight would strike him down on the spot.

You truly are one of Garon's own, crown prince. A fitting legacy for him.

'I'm disappointed in you, Gunter. Nohr will not be kind to the choices made here." It was the only glance that Xander deigned to meet his with. And still, the old knight stood with his gaze burning into the cliff wall slightly to the right, his jaw flexing with cold fury. There was nothing the old knight could fucking act on except take the barbs on the chin with stoicism of a stone statue. Any such open defiance would be the certain death of his lover’s strained little alliance.

In that moment, It was the only thread of reason that restrained his hand from acts of cold murder, and regicide.

"My lady Corrin will make her own decisions, as she has always done." Gunter replied flatly, an abyss of malice flavouring every syllable. And I will ensure that to my last breath, scion of Nohr and blight upon this world.

Xander looked askance, almost looking boredly disappointed at the reminder.

"So she will."

"Is there anything more, my lord?"

The prince didn't even meet his eyes now, fluttering a hand in clear disdain. "No, I suppose that will be it. Dismissed."

Your delicate little flower has bloomed under my hand, so strong and beautiful that you come running to her feet like a bitch in heat, Gunter ached to hiss in his ear as the old knight stiffly stalked past the crown prince. You, my tender royal, are ensnared in her garden now, in ways you are eternally blind to—that same garden I have tended for decades—and your grave will be buried there, at her feet.

At her feet and mine.

But he stayed silent.

For Corrin, for his love, for her plans, for his plans—Gunter stayed silent, and fervently begged to any god or devil that would listen that his revenge would taste as profoundly sweet as he had fantasised for decades.

#gunter slowburn liveblog

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satoshi-mochida · 6 months

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Lies of P – balance patch announced, first DLC teased

Gematsu Source

Publisher Neowiz and developer Round8 Studio will release a balance patch for Soulslike action RPG Lies of P in November, the companies announced in a video letter from director Jiwon Choi. Additionally, the companies debuted the first concept artwork for the upcoming downloadable content.

Get the details below.

The video, hosted by game director Jiwon Choi, catches players up on the state of Lies of P since its official launch on September 19 and what to expect from the game in the near future including a sneak peek at the first downloadable content as well as details on the release of the official game soundtrack, and more. After thanking fans for helping Lies of P surpass one million units sold in the first month, Choi goes on to discuss the upcoming balance patch for the game. Expected to arrive in November, the update brings significant changes to weapon and character balance, as well as quality-of-life changes to ease the difficulty in the early stages of the game. To show the developers’ gratitude, players will also receive a new outfit, along with a new feature to equip glasses and hats separately for even greater freedom in character customization. As another treat for players, Choi provides a short preview of the upcoming game content for Lies of P through never-before-seen sketches that tease a small portion of the content that will be available in the first downloadable content.

More information, including the complete patch notes and details on the new downloadable content, will be available soon. Inspired by the familiar story of Pinocchio, Lies of P is an action Soulslike game set in the dark, Belle Epoque-inspired city of Krat. Once a beautiful city, Krat has become a living nightmare as deadly puppets run amok and a plague sweeps the land. Play as a puppet who must fight his way through the city on his unrelenting journey to find Geppetto and finally become human. Lies of P presents an elegant world filled with tension, deep combat and character customization systems, and a gripping story with interesting narrative choices where the more lies told, the more human P becomes. Just remember: in a world filled with lies, no one can be trusted…

Lies of P is available now for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC via Steam and Microsoft Store, and Mac via Mac App Store, as well as via Xbox Game Pass.

Watch the full Director’s Letter below.

Director's Letter

English

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Korean

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#Lies of P #Pinnochio #Round8 Studio #Neowiz #Soulslike #Gematsu #Youtube

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