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oohnotvery · 2 days

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Edges of the Night (Chapter 10)

Read here on AO3.

Someone’s gone missing in Glacier National Park, Scully tells herself. That’s why the helicopters are out. It’s the only possible explanation.

It couldn’t be—there’s no way—it can’t be that those helicopters are for them. No one’s tracking them anymore. Mulder ditched the ring back in Utah. It flew out of his hands and landed in six feet of snow. Right? Right?

“We can’t stay in this house,” Mulder mutters, dragging her by the shoulders to the front door.

She stumbles in the dark, her brain spinning. “Wait, wait, stop,” she says, laying a hand on his chest. His heart is racing. “Mulder, stop a minute.” She draws in a long breath, trying to collect her thoughts. “Why can’t we stay here? We won’t fare much better if we try to take the car out. They know what vehicle we’re driving. They’ll spot us the minute we get on the roads.”

Even though it’s dark, she can sense the moment Mulder pauses to consider it. For a time, everything goes still and silent. Even the beat of the helicopter blades grows quieter.

And then he starts pacing.

“We’re sitting ducks in this damn house, Scully,” he grumbles angrily. “No weapons, nowhere to run. They’ll find us. It might take a few days, but if they were able to track us to this area, they’re eventually going to figure out we’re in this cabin.”

She swallows hard, nodding in agreement. As he walks by her, he reaches out to squeeze her waist.

“So,” she says after a long minute, “I guess the ring wasn’t tracking us after all.” She rubs subconsciously at her empty ring finger.

Mulder doesn’t respond.

When she contemplates the fact that her engagement ring is gone forever because of Mulder’s mistaken assumptions, she feels a pang of regret. But other thoughts and feelings quickly overshadow the pain of that particular loss. Finding out that Alan was planted in her life; questioning whether his feelings for her were real; wondering what things will look like when she gets back to that life.

A keen sense of self-pity ripples through her as she recalls her life in California, how she believed she was happy, how she believed in her feelings for Alan. But as usual, being around Mulder has thoroughly disrupted her belief system.

She shakes her head to clear her mind. Now isn’t the time to think about these things.

As the minutes pass by, their tentative decision to stand their ground and hunker down in the house starts to seem less and less appealing. If they don’t run, they’ll almost certainly be found here. But if they do run, there’s a chance they’ll be caught sooner. Right?

“Can you please stop pacing?” she finally barks. “You’re making me nervous.”

He ignores her and she scowls irritably. He’s a caged lion, a ticking time bomb.

“Do you have any idea how they’ve found us again?” she asks after a few minutes, wringing her hands.

He grumbles a no.

She’s hesitant to even speak again, but she has to give voice to her thoughts. “Do you think—is it possible—” He glances at her through the darkness. “Did someone we know give us away?”

The caged lion goes deathly still.

“Frohike would die before doing that,” he breathes with conviction, and he sounds so sure of it, she nods too.

“Skinner?” she whispers hesitantly, hating herself even for the suggestion. But her logical mind demands she consider all the possibilities—no matter how unlikely.

“I don’t—” he sighs, his shoulders crumpling. “I don’t think he would give us up either.”

She purses her lips and nods. There’s a dark, chilling thought niggling at the back of her mind. It’s been there on and off during this entire escapade of theirs, but she’s vehemently refused to consider it, has continually denied it access to her conscious mind. Because if she takes it out and examines it, the results will feel devastating. Horrific. Life-altering.

With the distant beat of helicopter blades nearby, though, she really has no other choice but to face the unthinkable. She licks her lips unsteadily.

“Mulder,” she murmurs, and she feels his body turn to face hers. He must be able to hear the panic in her voice because he takes two steps into her, his hands falling to her waist. She tips her forehead to his chest and his hands travel up her spine to cup the back of her neck. She huffs a painful laugh. It’s like he already knows what she’s going to say. “Mulder, the chip . . . the chip in my neck.”

He swipes a tender finger across the raised bump above her spine. “It’s not that,” he says decidedly, and she instantly knows he’s already considered it too.

She scoffs, pulling away. “And how do you know that? They found us without the ring. Clearly it wasn’t that, so this is the next most logical explanation we have.”

He shakes his head vehemently. “It’s not your chip, Scully. It can’t be—”

“But what if it is?” she exclaims, pushing against his chest. “Mulder, we could be running forever and they’d still always find us!” She sucks in a lungful of air. “We need—we need to split up. You need to get away from me. If they catch me, so—so what? They’ll dangle me as bait for you, they wouldn’t hurt me as long as you’re still running—”

He grabs her wrists so hard she flinches. “No,” he growls. “That’s not happening. I’m not leaving you.”

“Then we cut the chip out of me,” she says confidently.

His hands dig more painfully into her skin and she cries out. “Mulder—”

He releases her with an apology on his tongue, crushing her head to his chest. “That is not an option, Scully. We’re not even sure if they’re using the chip to track us. Get that out of your mind, because I’m sure as hell not removing that chip from you. It saved your life.” She grabs at his shirt, bunching it up in her fists. “We can fight this, Scully. We can—we can keep running. We just have to stay one step ahead of them.”

She huffs exasperatedly. “We can’t run forever, Mulder. It’s only been a few days and we’re already—we’re exhausted, emotionally wrecked. We—this running—this isn’t a life. It’s barely even survival.”

“Bullshit,” he says, and she glances up from his chest. His eyes blaze with conviction through the darkness. “I’ve learned a lot these past nine months. Most importantly, that what I’ve been living isn’t a life. Not without you. It’s only a life if I get to spend it with you, Scully.”

Her mouth falls open, but before she can respond, he’s dipping his head down to press his lips to hers. She moans into his mouth and pushes her hands beneath his shirt. All her earlier uncertainty slips away. With time pressing in on them at every angle, she’s realizing that this may be her last chance to experience anything good. Forget Alan, forget fidelity, forget her life back in California. Those don’t exist, not in this space, not when there’s helicopters hunting them down and a chip in her neck and Mulder’s desperate confessions whispered against her lips.

He peels off her shirt and she yanks his off too, stretching on tiptoes to reach above his head. Her hands tremble as they touch smooth skin and firm muscle, and she wishes they could turn the lights on so she could look and feast.

His hands don’t hesitate to roam to her pants, releasing the zipper and shoving them down her legs. She shivers in the cold air and he draws her in, slipping his hands over her ass to pull her close. And then he’s hooking his hands under her thighs and lifting her off the ground, and she scrambles to link her arms around his shoulders and her legs around his waist.

He tilts his mouth to trail down her jaw and neck as he stumbles in the dark to find the couch. She laughs in surprise when they tumble onto the cushions together, her hands flying out to brace herself against his chest. In his lap, she lifts her hips and fumbles inelegantly at his jeans, breathless when he finally swats her hands away and does it himself. They shimmy his pants off together and then she’s sitting half-naked on his boxers, which leave no room for imagination. She can feel everything, and it’s delicious. She wraps her arms around his neck and grinds down into him, enjoying the way his head falls back against the couch at her movements.

She’s about to drag his head back up for another kiss when she feels it.

Right there, along the top of his spine.

A rough line of raised skin. It’s thin and small. Very small. Blink-and-you’ll-miss-it-small.

Small, thin, raised . . .

It’s a scar.

For the second time today, she freezes in his lap. And for the second time today, Mulder begs her not to stop.

“Please,” he whispers, and it’s so desperate that she can almost convince herself to keep going. Just put it out of your mind until you’ve done this one thing, she thinks. Just wait a little bit longer to unravel the true horrors of tonight. Let yourself enjoy him for just these next few moments.

“Mulder, stop,” her higher logic demands, and it’s authoritative enough that he immediately retracts his hands from her thighs.

“You okay?” he asks nervously, running his fingertips across her biceps. She still has her arms around his neck.

His featherlight touches distract her momentarily, and she again convinces herself that she could just keep going right now. With unwavering self-control, she drags her focus back to the more pressing issue.

“There’s something in your neck,” she says, and he too goes still.

“What?” he whispers incredulously. Slowly, his hand rises to meet hers, which is poking and prodding the top of his spine. Gently, she guides his finger over the place where she feels it, the very slight, very unremarkable protrusion right under his skin. An incision scar, just like hers.

He flies off the couch, sending her lurching to her feet. He grabs her hand and drags her towards the bathroom, where he shuts the door, turns on the lamp, and stuffs a towel in the door crack to block out the light.

They blink at each other for a long second, two sets of eyes dragging lustfully across half-naked bodies. God, he looks gorgeous. Tousled, muscular, clearly aroused.

They snap out of it and she motions for him to turn around. He stoops low and she stretches to her toes, fingers quickly finding the place on his neck.

Sure enough, there it is. A very small incision, just like hers.

“Oh my god,” she breathes, her hands falling away.

He turns around slowly, eyeing her meaningfully. “You’ve got to cut it out of me.”

She starts to nod, because that is the next logical step. Take out the tracker in his neck, then flee.

“Scully?” he says urgently, motioning for her to leave the room, probably to get her medical bag.

She shakes her head. “No, Mulder.”

His eyes widen. “What do you mean no? This is obviously what’s been tracking us this whole time—”

She holds up a hand to interrupt him. “Would you let me take it out of my neck?”

He scoffs. “Are you kidding? If it was just a—a tracking device? Of course I would. It’s tracking us, for Christ’s sake—”

“How do you know removing it won’t kill you? How do we know what it really is?” she says softly. “How do we know it’s not like mine?”

His expression falters. “It’s just a tracking device,” he repeats, but he sounds less sure of himself.

She shrugs. “We don’t know that. For all we know, it could—it could release some toxin into your body the moment you remove it. It could—it could be a slower-acting agent, like cancer, like what I was given—”

“We’re taking it out,” he says decisively, pushing past her to shove open the door.

Apparently, all thoughts of keeping the place dark have gone out the window. He rushes to the bedroom and grabs her medical kit, yanking it open and rifling through it until he produces a sharp tool. It’s the wrong one for this job, but she doesn’t bother correcting him.

He turns on her with a madman’s eyes. “You’re taking it out of me, Scully.”

“Let’s just think—”

“Stop,” he yells, thrusting the tool into her hands.

Her hand trembles in a way she’s not used to while holding surgical instruments, and she can see the conviction in his eyes.

“You’re taking that goddamn chip out of me or so help me God, Scully, I’ll—” he pauses, unable to continue his toothless threat.

She almost laughs at the absurdity of it. “It might kill you,” she argues quietly.

He reaches forward and squeezes her shoulders, his eyes burning into hers. “If that thing doesn’t kill me, they will, someway or somehow. Either way, I very well may die. But there’s another possibility, Scully, don’t you see?” His eyes crease wistfully. “There’s a chance it’s just a stupid tracking device, nothing more. And that gives us the chance to run, to get away from here.”

“But where do we go? The car—”

He shrugs. “Into the woods. Get lost in that national park.”

“But the bears,” she protests weakly.

He laughs and she sees hope rising in his gaze. This is really it, she realizes. This truly is their biggest chance for survival.

“I can’t lose you,” she whispers, not stopping to marvel at how quickly he’s once again become the only person she can’t live without.

He grimaces. “Take out the fucking chip, Scully.”

Mulder doesn’t burst into flames or ooze green jelly or die from a fast-releasing toxin. In fact, the chip removal is relatively unremarkable. He flinches at the initial cut and Scully hides her nerves by teasing him about his pain intolerance. And then she removes the little fucker from his neck.

“How long do you think you’ve had this in?” she asks as she cleans the wound.

He grits his teeth. “I was conscious the whole time I was in San Diego, even after they found me at the airport,” he muses. “So it must have been before that. I would have known they put something in me, right?”

She nods. “This incision is well-healed. I’d say it’s been months at least.”

He turns to face her and she tosses a cotton pad into the trash. His eyebrows crease. “At the hospital, then. When I was in the psych ward.”

She swallows, dropping his gaze. “They must have known, then,” she says.

He hums a question.

“They must have known that they wanted to continue using you. Destroying the files was never enough, not even from the very beginning. What they’ve always wanted—”

“Was me,” he interrupts, smoothing his hand across her waist. Her lips part at the warmth of his palm against her bare skin. He squeezes her hipbone and briefly, she remembers what they were about to do right before she discovered the tracker. She shivers. “They always planned for me to die in disgrace. So they stuck a chip in my neck in case I ever did anything they didn’t like, like follow you to San Diego, or run away with you to Utah. That way, they could always drag me back and bend me to their will.”

“And me?” she asks, cupping his elbow and drawing him closer. “Just a pawn to get you to cooperate?”

His eyes darken. “I’ve said it before. You’re my Achilles heel, Scully. Everyone knows it.”

She bites her lip, flushing. “Do you think they were ever really planning to ship me off to run more experiments? Or was that all bluff?”

He eyes her carefully but doesn’t answer.

“I haven’t forgotten, Mulder,” she says meaningfully. “You still owe me the contents of that letter.”

His eyes close briefly, and then he steps forward to press a kiss to her forehead. “Later,” he promises.

After dressing, they gather their modest supplies in a bag and then start arguing about the car. Mulder insists they risk driving; Scully fears it will be the death of them.

In the end, Mulder wins again, convincing her that if they don’t take the car, they’ll just inevitably end up lost, starving, and exposed to the elements smack-dab in the middle of grizzly territory. It’s the threat of bears that eventually convinces her.

It takes Mulder five tries before he manages to get the car up the hill without headlights on. The vehicle bump-bump-bumps over terrain it was never meant to climb and Scully clings to the dashboard with a dizzying lack of optimism.

Once they reach the road, though, they both heave a sigh of relief. They’ve agreed to avoid driving into the park—it will be manned by park rangers, who may or may not be keeping watch for two FBI agents on the run. Instead, they head west towards another set of mountains, the plan being to bunker down in northern Washington’s remote Cascade Range until they’ve determined whether they’re still being tracked. They still haven’t worked out a plan for getting basic supplies or accommodations; by now, their faces are probably plastered over every news outlet in every town. They can’t just walk right into a gas station or motel.

On the road, they are completely silent as they fly through dense forest, headlights still off. The driving is treacherous—a mixture of snow and ice still covers the roads and without light for guidance, Mulder is barely keeping them on the asphalt. Scully keeps looking in the rearview, waiting for the inevitable moment when a car flies up behind them, or a helicopter drops out of the sky. But nothing happens. Eventually, they pass a sign for a national forest and without hesitation, they pull off the main road to head deeper into the wilderness. It is nearing dawn when they decide to stop and hunker down in a vacant campground.

Mulder mumbles something about needing to get gas and Scully shoves that concern to the back of her brain. They’ll worry about filling the car later. Right now, they need rest.

She climbs into the back while Mulder reclines his seat as far as it’ll go. They make eye contact as the sun starts to rise, flooding their car with light.

He reaches back to take her hand and she loops her fingers loosely with his.

“If anything happens,” he tells her solemnly, “you run. Leave me. Get as far away from me as you can.”

She frowns. “Not gonna happen, Mulder.”

He cracks a wistful smile, squeezes her fingers, and leans back in his seat. She shuts her eyes, listens for the sound of helicopters. But the forest is silent, save for the singsong of birds and the hum of insects.

She sleeps.

Scully wakes with an unbelievable urge to pee. Groggy, disoriented, and crick-necked, she rises from the backseat. Mulder is sleeping peacefully, his arms crossed over his chest. She smiles fondly. He looks for all the world like the version of Mulder who spent every night falling asleep on his couch in front of the T.V. She resists the urge to reach over and push his hair off his forehead.

Instead, as quietly as she can, she opens the car door and sneaks outside, silently cursing the fierce chill in the air. She hunkers down behind a tree to relieve herself, eyes scanning the quiet morning for signs of trouble.

Sensing nothing out of the ordinary, she rises to her feet. Ten feet away, she sees Mulder stirring in the front seat. He glances in the backseat and startles at her absence, then flings open the door.

“Mulder!” she calls quietly, and his eyes race to find hers across the forest. She smiles as relief crosses his face.

Sunlight warms her skin and she is suddenly filled with an incredible sense of optimism. The tracking device is gone. They escaped the cabin without notice. They seem to have reconciled, mostly.

And perhaps most thrillingly, Mulder wants to get her naked.

She takes a step towards him.

There’s a pop, a distant echo.

Something strikes her shoulder so hard she falls backward, the breath forced from her lungs.

She opens her mouth to call for Mulder’s help, but the pain hits her. Fire—raging, burning, roaring fire—races down her body and she screams in agony.

She hears Mulder shout, distantly notices the sound of footsteps approaching, but all she really knows is extreme, acute, blinding pain.

Against her will, her eyes flutter closed, and she realizes she’s losing consciousness. Her screams turn weak, then faint, and then she can barely open her mouth at all.

Someone’s hands reach roughly under her armpits and she is momentarily comforted by the thought that Mulder is saving her. He knows how to treat gunshot wounds. This is a gunshot wound, right?

Wait—why the hell was she shot?

As she’s lifted to her feet, her eyes blink slowly open, and in that brief moment, she realizes that the arms around her don’t belong to Mulder.

Because he is writhing on the ground in front of her, two men wrestling to keep him pinned to the earth. His eyes are glued frantically to hers and she realizes, even through the agony, that this is it. They’ve been caught.

A sob escapes her throat and the person holding her tosses her violently over his shoulder. She cries weakly at the renewed pain, her eyes tearing away from Mulder’s.

She strains to hear his shouts, but her hearing is starting to fade. Her vision goes in and out. Her attacker jostles her on his shoulder and another wave of pain jolts down her body.

She faints.

#mulder x scully #the x files #dana scully #x files fanfic #msr fanfic #x files #fox mulder #msr #txf #xfiles fanfic

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skrunkly-baloongis · 2 years

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Four Bastards of the Yan-pocalypse play Animal Crossing: New Horizons:

Jack

John Doe

Alan

Ren/[Redacted]

Note: This is just my opinion and please dont take it seriously lol. Also, I wrote all of this while sleep deprived so if none of it makes sense, sorry lmfao ;w;

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Jack:

Favorite villager(s):

Would probably be Pietro or Goldie. Pietro due to the clown look and how cute he is, and Goldie because she's so sweet.

Favorite Activities:

I could easily see him as a very helpful person. Helping Guliver and Gulivarr, helping Harv with Reese and Cyrus, and easily befriending villagers left and right. He probably really likes the cooking mechanic of the game, as food is a universal love language. Extra points if you cook right along with him. Will probably cry if you gift him anything.

Favorite NPC's:

I'd say either Harv or Timmy and Tommy. Harv because of how sweet he is, and Timmy and Tommy because of how cute and endearing they are (just like you!)

________________________________________

John Doe:

Favorite Villager(s):

You probably saw this coming from a mile away, but Coco, Kiki, and Jitters. Coco because he likes her look, Kiki because she's black like his hair and she's pretty cool, and Jitters because...well...Just look at the dude lol

Favorite Things to do:

When it comes down to this, I honestly think Doe would be fine with whatever. I think he would like fishing and finding fossils just so he could run up to you and go "HEY LOOK AT THIS IT REMINDS ME OF YOUUUUUU" and it's legit an oarfish lmfao. He also probably wears a custom design sweater you made of his irl sweater in game.

Favorite NPC's:

I think he would like how cracked out Blathers looks. Just a nervous little mess of a man. I think he would like that. Either that or he'd really like Flick, specifically when Flick tries catching a bug and failing. (Then he can "Show this lizard boy how it's done").

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Alan

Favorite Villagers:

Lmfao roast me all you want but Apollo all the way baby. Apollo, Dobie, Fang and Fauna. Apollo, Dobie and Fang because he thinks they look cool and likes interracting with them, and Fauna because she reminds him of his Doe-Eyes!

Favorite Things to Do:

A legend at material gathering. Need some wood? Bro he's out the door with his little axe ready to swing for you. Fishing? This man has enough fucking fish to fill three museums. You have to beg him to stop. He likes watching you go about your business as you talk to villagers and do whatever. He especially likes it when you bring him small gifts! Whether it be a new axe, fishing rod, or (his most recent favorite) ungodly ammounts of freshly cooked soup, he will cherish it like no tomorrow and be sad if he has to empty his pockets due to lack of storage.

Favorite NPC's:

I could see him really liking Cyrus. Both work well with their hands and are pretty talented at it! I could also see him liking Brewster as well, just for his kinda chill vibes. Plus, getting coffee with you would make his day!

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Ren/[Redacted]

Favorite Villagers:

For Ren, I would say he would like Judy, Chelsea, and Merry. Honestly any cute villager! Especially ones that remind him of how cute he thinks you are! For [Redacted], Muffy, Kabuki and Lucky! [Redacted] has a stark difference from what Ren enjoys, opting for more darker and creepier villagers.

Favorite Things to Do:

Given his (both Ren/[Redacted]'s) hacker occupation, he really loves modding the game! Dont worry about your switch being bricked, he's got you covered. He'll add in things ranging from old villagers, to even new gameplay mechanics just to see what could happen. In regards to vanilla animal crossing, he really likes seeing what you're up to. He's the type to collect shells and flowers for you and leave them outside the house as gifts. Similar to Jack, he would probably melt through the floor if you left him something.

Favorite NPC's:

Flick would probably be one of his favorites. He's so cool! Just look at him! Another favorite would be Kicks because of how cute he looks, and because he can buy you stuff from him lol.

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milfjagger · 9 months

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okay so... give us the list of folk horror films that are good please. 🤲

ok this took a while but here we go! it ended up being more than 10 lol

the wicker man (1973) - the definitive british folk horror film. midsommar wants to be the wicker man soooo bad it's embarrassing

the blood on satan's claw (1971) - i haven't seen this one in a long time but it's a pretty chilling early 70s british film centring around a demonic cult in 18th century england

night of the demon (1957) - ok so you know the sample at the beginning of hounds of love by kate bush, where a voice says "it's in the trees! it's coming!" that's from this film!!!! just barely in the folk horror category but it's based on a story by m.r. james who is one of THE iconic folk horror writers so imo it counts

a warning to the curious (1972) - also based on a story by m.r. james, this was part of a long-running annual bbc series called 'a ghost story for christmas'. it's only about 30 minutes long and very dated but I think that gives it extra charm and even a bit of extra creepiness

the juniper tree (1990) - icelandic retelling of the grimm's fairy tale, starring björk and featuring an incredibly beautiful soundtrack

the company of wolves (1984) - based on the short stories of angela carter in her compilation 'the bloody chamber'. this is probably more fairytale horror than folk horror but i LOVE this film and if you like intense psychosexual overtones and incredible practical effects then you will too

the devil rides out (1968) - classic hammer horror with christopher lee so you know it's gonna be a banger

wake wood (2009) - probably the most underrated irish horror film of all time (and that's saying a lot bc there really aren't many). really scary film with the "came back but wrong" premise. watch this one

the hallow (2013) - another one from ireland. it's not amazing but including it bc i don't think i've ever seen another horror film fully embrace the idea that faeries are actually terrifying. practical effects are also cool as hell

kill list (2011) - i'll be honest with you I didn't understand half of what was happening in this film and it's been on my to-rewatch list for ages. it starts out as a cerebral cop drama and descends into absolute madness like it literally has to be seen to be believed

a field in england (2013) - probably the modern folk horror film that comes closest to what british directors were doing with the genre in the 70s. it's trippy, impenetrable and often kinda funny, i really recommend this one

pyewacket (2017) - offbeat canadian indie film that you will either find really creepy or really boring. i thought the ending in particular was incredibly chilling

the ritual (2017) - i feel like everyone has seen this film at this point but i had to recommend it anyway bc it blends folk horror with monster movie and it's super fucking terrifying. i also highly recommend the novel by adam neville which if anything is even scarier

the witch (2015) - again everyone has seen this and has an opinion but it's one of my favourite horror films of all time

pet sematary (1989) - the iconic stephen king classic that is still really scary to this day

pumpkinhead (1988) - another film that is super underrated imo. people who love the creature design in the ritual should remember the OG

men (2022) - controversial opinion perhaps but i think this film was actually kinda brilliant. if nothing else it is super twisted and horrifying

on my list of i haven't watched this yet but people say it's really good: penda's fen (1974), witchfinder general (1968), the lair of the white worm (1988) (i know i know i call myself a ken russell fan and i haven't even seen lair of the white worm)

a radio play: children of the stones on bbc radio 4 (available on spotify hee hee)

and a couple of books: fairy tale (1996) by alice thomas ellis, and the owl service (1967) by alan garner. the owl service is for kids but it really did a number on me aged 12 and it still holds up as a classic. I think there's an old bbc series but i haven't got round to watching it yet :)

#I hope you enjoy these !!! i really really love the genre i just wanted to share some of that love around :^)

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striderthefrog · 7 months

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Recently fionna and cake has made me start to make me think about infinity train again and I was meaning to rewatch it regardless so here's some season two analysis! (Side note if you've been enjoying fionna and cake recently please please check out infinity trai)

Season two of infinity train continues to show just how well infinity train writes people to not only feel like really living breathing people but also has characters that feel like they keep changing and growning long after their arc on screen ends.

In season two we have our primary protagonists Jessies and M.T. (who later goes by lake and I will be referring to as lake for the rest of this)

Lake is an anger prone denisate of the train who we now get to journey with after being introduced to them in season one. They are set on finding their own identity outside of being tulips reflection and are also continuesly being chased by their cars version of cops.

Jessie is the complete opposite, he's laid back and his flaw is that he never does things for himself he gives into peer pressure and is a people pleaser. (Which is ironic because he more metaforically similar to a reflection than lake who is literally a reflection)

And thus the conflict between our two protags is set. We see as lake and Jessie meet and at first are constantly clashing with their opposite personalities, bonding offer the deer alan dracula.

As the season progresses we see them start to get along as lake becomes more comfortable in their identity and Jessie starts to think for himself more and not give into peer pressure, both their arcs are very intertwined and we continue to see that as the season progresses.

In episode 7 "the mall car" we see Jessie face some of the largest peer pressure he has perhaps faced in his life as grace and the other members of the apex try to persuade him that passengers are the dominate members of the car and that he should sell out his friend lake. What most shows would use as a crucial character development point infinity train doesn't entirely.

Jessie is already most of the way through his arc, he's already almost entirely figured out his main problem so without thinking about it much (although there is a small moment of hesitation) he chooses lake and Alan dracula and tries to help save them from the apex. However in doing so his number reaches zero and we see lake unable to come with him.

This episode is masterclass in writing, in one ten mintue segment we see a massive ammount of set up for season three setting up it's main characters and what their arcs will be, give payoff for one of our protagonists arcs, and end on a chilling cliff hanger with lake being left behind to fend for themselves against the fleks.

The rest of the season focuses primarily on lake trying to escape the train and also figure what their identity as a person is.

We see them told by mace, the fleks. That they are only there as a stepping stone for others, that they don't have their own person hood and don't deserve it, lake decides they're getting a number anyways and will leave the train for good.

We see them kill mace in a disturbingly animated death scene more gruesome than even many tv-14 shows go for, and they're off to get their number only to discover that "the system" doesn't recognize them, it doesn't even refuse to give them a number the number just passes right through them as if they aren't there.

In a heart wrenching prefoance by Ashley Johnson as lake tears through the robots you hear them say "look at me! I am a person, I deserve a number" literally grabbing one of the robots faces and forcing it to look at them before crushujg it in their hands.

Lake wants to be seen as a person by the train, but the train doesn't acknowledge it.

Then we see everyone's favorite little happy-depressed orb oneone show up. Lake explains their situation to oneone but oneone won't hear any of it.

Lake is not a passenger and as such one one refuses to help them until we se that Jessie has shown back up to the train refusing to leave without them.

Oneone gets stuck in a feedback loop not knowing how to process the created paradox of a passengers problem needing a denisen to leave. (The binary system doesn't recognize the enby smh, yes we Stan trans lake allgory in this household)

Eventually lake realises that Jessies number can reflect onto their own letting both of them escape but not before alan dracula takes out maces partner sivee. (Rip gay buddy cop duo)

We see lake and Jessie in a beautiful shore of a lake. Jessies brother comes up and ask what lakes name is too which they look into their reflection in a lake finally seeing their own and not that of tulips and reply "lake".

Infinity train book two is about identity, finding your identity outside of others and also finding it with others. Jessie and lake perfectly compliment each other's arcs both finding and learning to make decisions for themselves and also who they are.

Anywhos please go watch infinity train it may have got cut short but what's there of it is phenomenal and worth the watch, plus it's super short so you have no excuse. Byyye

#infinity train #media analysis #tulip olsen #lake infinity train #jessie #fionna and cake #queer analysis #trans rights #lake is trans and you can't change my mind

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thejewishguyscompetiton · 1 year

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The Jewish Guys of All Time!

It's time to meet the competitors, as they have been selected! Polls probably won't be up till after next week as I have finals next week. Reminder that the competitors were selected based on nominations and they can be canonical, headcanon, or coded! Only 2-3 at most from a source and I decided to take some lesser known or talked about ones in the nominations! So now that thats all out of the way!!!

If you have any propaganda for this competition please tag this blog in it and/or use the tag #jewishguyscomp2023

Welcome the contestants!

Barney Guttman (Dead End Paranormal Park)

Cecil Gershwin Palmer (Welcome to Nightvale)

Peter B. Parker (Spiderverse)

Spock (Star Trek)

Moon Knight (Marvel)

Magneto (Marvel)

Benjamin Grimm (Marvel)

Billy Kaplan (Marvel)

Adam Birkholz (Omg Check Please!)

Alter Rosen (The City Beautiful)

Annie Edison (Community)

Isabella Garcia-Shapiro (Phineas and Ferb)

Grunkle Stan (Gravity Falls)

Jake Peralta (Brooklyn 99)

Kronk (The Emperor's New Groove)

Launchpad (Ducktales 2017)

Ragman (Rory Regan) (DC)

Nati (Srugim)

Nadia Vulvokov (Russian Doll)

Yanki (HaSodot)

Avram (The Frisco Kid)

Herschel (Wholly Moses)

Adam F. Goldberg (The Goldbergs)

Coyote Bergstein (Grace and Frankie)

Walter Sobchak (The Big Lebowski)

Eli Moskovitz (Cobra Kai)

Nick Ganz (Mighty Ducks Game Changers)

Worf (Star Trek)

Artie Nielsen (Warehouse 13)

Booster Gold (DC)

Brucie Kibbutz (Grand Theft Auto IV)

Buddy Sorrell (The Dick Van Dyke Show)

The Baudelaires (ASOUE)

Lemony Snicket (ASOUE)

Mabel and Dipper (Gravity Falls)

Harley Quinn (DC)

Jeremy Heere (Be More Chill)

Tegan Jovanka (Doctor Who)

Muscle Man (Regular Show)

Schmidt (New Girl)

Michael Moscowitz (Princess Diaries)

Spike Spiegel (Cowboy Bebop)

Sonic the Hedgehog (The Sonic Movie)

Toby Ziegler (The West Wing)

TK Strand (911 Lone Star)

Scanlan Shorthalt (Critical Role)

Patsy (Spamalot)

Nathaniel Kurtzberg (Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir)

Miriam Maisel (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel)

Mendel Weisenbachfeld (Falsettos)

KJ (Paper Girls)

Libby Stein-Torres (The Ghost and Molly Mcgee)

Noah Puckerman (Glee)

Motl (Fiddler on the Roof)

Otacon (Metal Gear Solid)

Mabel Rose (Diviners)

Isidore Latham (Chicago Med)

Fran Fine (The Nanny)

Jerry Seinfeld (Seinfeld)

Greg Focker (Meet the Parents)

Davey Jacobs (Newsies)

Dr. Alan Strauss (The Patient)

Tevye (Fiddler on the Roof)

Little Ash (When the Angels Left the Old Country)

ROUND ONE MASTERPOST

ROUND TWO MASTERPOST

#jewishguyscomp2023 #masterpost #polls #fandom polls #tumblr polls #so sorry this took so long!#jumblr #jewish #jewish tumblr

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murkyhazed · 11 days

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STARTER CALL! specify one of the following muses and i'll write a starter for you! as always mutuals only, and please specify your own muse if you're a multi too!

mary adler (gifted)

shannon mullins (the heat)

alan grant (jurassic franchise)

alexis murphy (jurassic franchise)

ellie sattler (jurassic franchise)

karen smith (mean girls)

regina george (mean girls)

aragorn (tolkien)

bilbo baggins (tolkien)

frodo baggins (tolkien)

gimli (tolkien)

gollum/smeagol (tolkien)

pippin took (tolkien)

tauriel (tolkien)

theoden (tolkien)

thorin oakenshield (tolkien)

bella swan (twilight)

carlisle cullen (twilight)

charlie swan (twilight)

evan buckley (9-1-1)

maddie buckley (9-1-1)

bobby nash (9-1-1)

melissa schemmenti (abbott elementary)

madame satan/lilith (chilling adventures of sabrina)

alice smith (riverdale)

betty cooper (riverdale)

cheryl blossom (riverdale)

gemma teller (sons of anarchy)

jane hopper (stranger things)

nancy wheeler (stranger things)

daryl dixon (the walking dead)

michonne hawthorne (the walking dead)

negan smith (the walking dead)

the guide (what we do in the shadows)

tess servopoulos (the last of us)

bobbi dougherty (zombie apoc/twd oc)

mateo perez (private investigator oc)

veronica sterling (gta v oc)

teeny bradbury (stranger things oc)

adelaine collins (the society oc)

charlotte jackson (twd oc)

#* &. starter call.

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ari-leah-arts · 1 year

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Engaging again because you seem really chill but out of curiosity why did you get attached to Severus? Any moments were you like ‘oh fuck ya this is the guy!! This is the man!!!’ Or was it a always liking kind of thing? A slow thing? For me it was in the third book and reading him scream and freak the fuck out and just even as a 13 year old feeling this profound sick knowledge that this kind of anger…. Wasn’t normal. It was such a scary sick kind of rage from a guy that was mostly restrained and it alarmed me. ‘This isn’t normal. Your not normal. There is something wrong with you. What happened to you’ ….. ‘haha! I like you now!!!’ Just god that moment a lot of those Severus rage moments in the book have literally always stuck with me many years later especially with how it’s described in a way that’s almost not even human. They describe it very very animal like in general. It was the main thing to really pull me in at first. Just wanting to see what the fuck was wrong with this guy.

Hello again! So, I think I was 8 when I saw the first HP movie on VHS on my dad's dinky little television. My favorite character changed around a lot through the first film and 2nd and 3rd favorites shuffled quite a bit further on.

Snape wasn't my favorite at first. Ron was. Then it moved to Draco cause I liked his name. I'm 8. Keep that in mind. Snape became my favorite after his little speech and he held his rightful place throughout the entire series. What drew me to Snape was his overall look, for 8-year-old me he was very pleasing to look at. The moment he opened his mouth my 8-year-old brain went "WHOA, that's a nice voice." I had never seen Alan Rickman before. The more Snape spoke and just did what he did I was very sure he would stay my favorite forever. I remember thinking "I hope I'm cool like him one day" The older I got the more I began to like him for the more deeper things. His conviction, his fears, all of it, and as a child I emulated him. Children mimic, they absorb things. At 28 years old, I can say I have him to thank for a few habits of mine and some hard-learned lessons that have benefited me in the long run. My favorite thing about him now? I love how he embraces that people don't like him and he doesn't bother trying to appease them. He takes that shit in stride. Good for him. TL;DR- Snape became my fave due to his voice when I was 8. As I grew up with him I loved him for his wit, his struggles, and that no matter how bad things got he still stood on his own two feet.

#pro snape #severus snape #professor snape #snape #answered ask #ask

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squiddokiddo · 11 months

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So I know you've seen this one before but I'm trying out a bit of writing and I wrote a snippet for this drawing and I want the fic and the art to be together. Criticism is welcome but please be gentle, this is my first posted fic.

Edit - I originally made the mistake of thinking Whitby was in Cornwall so that line has now been changed.

‧₊˚꒷︶꒷꒥꒷‧₊˚ ꒷︶꒷꒥꒷‧₊˚꒷︶꒷꒥꒷‧₊˚ ꒷︶꒷꒥꒷‧₊꒷︶꒷꒥꒷˚₊‧

"Carry me?"

–• Fandom: Thunderbirds, Thunderbirds are go • Genre: Fluff • Characters: Gordon Tracy, OC (Seasquirt Tracy) • Pairings: None • Warnings: None •–

• • • • •

Gordon had booked the day off to give himself and his so called apprentice a break, they'd both been training hard all week and had definitely earned a little down time. They'd taken a trip to Whitby, an old seaside town located in England, it definitely wasn't his first choice mind you but Lady Penelope had highly recommended the location for a relaxing day out.

Gordon and Squirt had had a chilled morning browsing little village shops and stopping for a light breakfast and coffee in one of the cafés, maybe filling a 12 year old with caffeine wasn't the best idea but it was Squirt's treat and no one was going to tell him off for letting the kid have a little fun, not Scott, not Virgil not anyone. Gosh his brothers could be so overbearing sometimes.

Currently they we're waiting for the sun to reach a high enough point to make the sea warm enough to swim in, in the meantime they'd both decided that sight seeing would be a good time killer, that and hopefully all the wandering around would use up that coffee energy. First stop the 199 steps.

They'd just arrived at the bottom where cobblestone streets turned into paved stairs, Gordon gripped the black painted railings and started his assent, one, two, three, four steps up when suddenly:

"Carry me?"

Gordon halted and peered over his shoulder at the source of the request standing a couple of steps below. Good god he'd wished they hadn't decided to ask this now.

"Aren't you a little old for that, Squirt?" He replied half smirking, turning around to face them.

"Scott carries Alan and he's 16." Squirt protested, jokingly pouting a little.

Squirt was right, there wasn't technically an age limit on being carried in the Tracy family, heck in their line of work it was common to need a little help to get around after exhausting themselves with missions.

"Yeah well Alan's a wimp." He chuckled "All that space flight is making his knees weak." Obviously not a true statement but since when did taking jabs at your siblings have to involve facts?

Squirt rolled their eyes biting back a laugh "Gords, you know that's not what I mean!!" They hopped a couple of steps up to meet their bro.

"I want a piggyback ride, wait no - uhh - a squiddyback!!" They exclaimed reaching their arms up "Please?"

Gordon laughed "Squirt I love you bub but I am not carrying you-" he paused to mentally count the steps "another 195 steps up the hill, come on you can't be that tired already."

He went to climb another step when Squirt grabbed the arm of his T-shirt.

"Pleeease."

Suddenly Gordon realised what this was about, it wasn't about not wanting to climb the steps or being tired or lazy, Squirt just wanted their big brother. Piggybacking was an expression of affection between the Tracy siblings and it hadn't really occurred to him that Squirt hadn't experienced that kind of love before becoming a part of their family.

He thought for a minute, it was a long trek up the hill but he could make an exception just this once. He sighed, turned away from his little sib and knelt down.

"Hop on."

The kid beamed and wasted no time in clambering onto the aquanaut's back, wriggling around and getting comfy as Gordon stood up and steadied himself under their weight.

"All set?" He asked.

"Aye aye, captain!!" They replied giving a little salute.

"Next stop, step 199!!"

• • • • •

#thunderbirds are go #thunderbirds #thunderfam #thunderbirds fanart #thunderbirds fanfiction #thunderfluff #gordon tracy #sea-squirt tracy #thunderbirds oc #squiddo's ocs #squiddo's fanfic #kidthunder's art #sfw interaction only

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i3utterflyeffect · 28 days

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What do you think of the stickman from the kickstarter video and hangman stick? They’re both stickmen that were only shown once for a short while, but I think they’re both interesting

kickstarter? i don't think i've seen those ones, you might have to give me the video for that one anon

but hangman stick. I don't even fucking know man the short is funny it's a one-off bit but also it has so many fucking implications?

SC was not a one-off occurrence, which either means c!alan has either accidentally brought sticks to life before or just found out they automatically become sentient in that moment (hard to tell since he is not emoting with his cursor)

sticks cannot die by hanging, or at least not hollowheads, because hangman is chill about this whole thing

they're also not in pain notably. they don't care. they don't care at all

c!alan. just. what the fuck? in general? why?

they either released hangman or deleted him. i don't THINK that c!alan would delete a stick again knowing they are not just killing machines but if he did that could deeply imply some shit about victim's whole thing oh god. i could go in depth but i won't for the purpose of not getting sidetracked

they look completely different from the other sticks despite being the same color as chosen and (previously) victim (less line weight, incomplete head)

once again: c!alan why are you playing hangman with them PLEASE choose something else. i know they probably raid your games but im fucking begging you

is hangman just part of that hang... thingy? i don't know what they're called.

FURTHERMORE if it is..... can you. can you erase something that's part of a stick????

i realize i never talked about that but this is something i never stop thinking about this and it deeply scares me.

could victim kill SC? i could also tangent here but i will elaborate upon request

just. what the fuck in general??? deeply spooked by that short

#tommy's stickmen tag #pitch posts #i don't know what the fuck happened there but everything about the hangman shorts makes me consider Things #I DON'T KNOW I JUST. ????????????????????????????????????#also permission granted to ask me about these tangents. please do im silently begging you #<-vampire autism

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hiramaris · 8 months

Text

Dusk til Dawn

Part 11

Summary: Following Episode 9. And spoilers for Episode 10.

Author’s note: As Episode 10 is just released I just want to say heads up for those who are not yet finished. Completing the game without spoilers really made a difference, and as much as possible I want everyone to experience that. And for those finished, I’ll gladly welcome you to my domain where MC took a different route.

Disclaimer: I do not own Duskwood or any of the related characters. Duskwood is created by and owned by Everbyte Studio. This fanfiction is intended for entertainment only. I am not making any profit from this story. All rights of the original Duskwood story belong to Everbyte Studio.

Warning: Mentions of blood, suicide, violence, pedophiles, drugs, gun, murder, sex offenders, kidnapping

"Well, shit," Jake's voice carried a curse, causing you to come to a sudden halt. Swearing wasn't something Jake typically did, so the profanity took you off guard and sent a chill down your spine.

"What's wrong?" you asked, your concern evident in your tone.

"We should be at a fork right now," Jake said, his frustration palpable. "At least, according to my maps."

You surveyed your surroundings, your flashlight illuminating the rocky walls. "I'm no cave expert, but, Jake," you remarked, "I'm pretty sure we've hit a dead end."

"I know," he admitted with a sigh. "Actually, we weren't supposed to encounter any forks until now. But I've realized early on that we've come across at least three junctions in the past ten minutes."

"Uhm," you said, your voice slow as you processed the situation. "So you're saying that the pathways we've been taking are different from what's on your map?"

"Yeah," Jake ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "But I thought it wouldn't be too much of an issue as long as we stuck to the general path I had planned out."

"Jake, please tell me that we at least stick to that path."

"We'll find out soon enough," Jake replied, his tone uncertain. "Come, let's go back a bit."

"How about we split up?" you suggested, following him as he led the way. Before you continued, you took a marbled stone and used it to smear some chalk marks on the wall, leaving a visible trail behind you. Just in case you get lost.

Jake gave you an incredulous look. "It's not safe, and you know tha—" he began to protest, but then his expression shifted. "Wait. I saw something." He motioned for you to follow him. "There's something here."

You perked up in attention, your senses heightened. You drew your weapon and held your flashlight tightly, ready for any potential threat. Quietly, you moved past Jake as he crouched by the wall, peering into what looked like a room.

"Well, shit." You found yourself echoing Jake's words from earlier as you stopped at a table covered with an overwhelming number of documents and files. "What the heck is all this?"

"There must be hundreds," Jake muttered beside you. "We have to take a look."

You shook your head, concern furrowing your brow. "I don't think we have the time. Let's gather as much as we can and keep moving."

"I'll take a quick look. Some of these seem important," he insisted, his eyes scanning the papers. "Maybe we'll find crucial information about our culprit, in case it wasn't Michael after all."

You sighed, "okay, but hurry up."

You stood guard for a few minutes, your focus divided between Jake and the vibrating phone in your pocket. With a quick glance, you saw Alan's caller ID flashing on the screen.

"Jake, it's Alan," you informed him. He gave you a brief thumbs-up before returning to his search through the files.

"Please excuse my late reply, Y/n," Alan's voice came through the phone, sounding slightly breathless. "I took your video straight to Bob Lindner from our Legal Department. He immediately recognized the Ironsplinter Mine."

Your eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Ironsplinter Mine," you echoed, the pieces of the puzzle beginning to fall into place.

"Bob is an avid mountaineer and cave enthusiast, and apparently there's not a single wall in this area that he doesn't know like the back of his hand," Alan continued, his voice carrying a sense of excitement. "According to him, there's even an old, secret entrance to the mine in Duskwood, and it takes the form of a hatch."

"Let me guess where that hatch is located," you tried to mask the smugness in your voice. "It's by the Grimrock waterfall, isn't it?"

"I suppose you were right about the waterfall earlier," Alan admitted with a hint of amusement. "You were just on the wrong floor."

"Very funny."

He chuckled softly. "Please excuse my little joke. I'm actually a little excited. You see," he paused, his breath audibly catching as his footsteps quickened in the background, "I am currently back on my way to the Grimrock."

Your eyes bulged. What the fuck?

Your heart skipped a beat. The realization hit you like a truck. The familiar background noise, his breathlessness – it was all too clear now. He's going back to Grimrock as you speak.

Shit! He can't find both of you here.

And Michael's waiting by the Grimrock! He's going to think you're bluffing.

If you asked him to go back, you'll give him even more reason to make you the suspect.

With a strained voice, you managed to choke out a "that's good to know" in response to his excited revelation.

"I knew you'd be interested." Alan's voice held a cheerful tone, but you could sense something more underneath. "And now, please excuse me." The distinct sound of a click reached your ears, unmistakably that of a gun being cocked. "It's time to clear up this case."

Your heart raced, panic rising within you. You had to think fast.

"Jake!" You hissed urgently, your voice barely above a whisper. "Change of plan!"

Jake shifted his attention to you as he heard the urgency in your tone. "What?" He questioned, his voice equally hushed. "What is it?"

"Alan knows about the Ironsplinter mine!" You rushed out the words, the gravity of the situation sinking in. "He knows about the secret hatch, too and he's on his way right now as we speak!"

He froze, his expression shifted to alarm. "That's not good."

"You should go." You said with a serious expression on your face. "He can't find you here no matter what."

Jake's eyes darted between you and the pile of documents before him. "Y/n..."

You closed the distance between you and Jake, your voice stern. "Jake, are you even listen—" You trailed off as your gaze followed his to the papers spread out before him. Your heart seemed to stop for a moment as recognition dawned upon you.

Jessy's face greeted you in the form of printed pictures. There are pictures of Lilly's, too, and Dan's... Cleo's... Thomas'... Richy's... Hannah's... and even Amy's...

—all these documents...

"These are the documents Jessy and Thomas had found in Michael Hanson's house," you whispered, your voice barely audible in the heavy air of the cave.

"We need to take these with us," Jake's voice broke through your concentration, his tone tense.

Your heart pounded as you quickly assessed the situation. Time was of the essence, and the walls of the mine seemed to close in around you. Jake needs to leave as soon as possible, and you have to stop Alan from entering the mine. The last thing you needed was for him to cross paths with Michael.

How the fuck will you deal with that? For the second time around, the fucking police meddled with your case once again. The only difference is this time, this isn't legally a case of yours to handle.

"We'll photograph them with our phones," you decided quickly, your mind racing to figure out a plan. "Let's gather everything up. Then, we'll split up from here. You take the evidence and go. I'll handle Michael and Alan."

Jake seemed to hesitate, his fingers moving quickly as he snapped pictures of the documents. "We can't afford to split," he argued.

"If Michael sees Alan," you explained, ensuring each document was captured in the photos, "he'll know I'm not coming."

As you finished photographing the last of the documents, you exchanged a determined look with Jake. With the evidence secured, you carefully gathered the papers and stashed them away.

"Jake, you need to go," you said, your voice low but filled with urgency. But he won't budge in his place. He stared deep and hard at the piece of paper he holds in front of him.

"Y/n," he muttered, his voice almost shaking. "I found the letter."

Your heart skipped a beat. "Amy's letter?"

He nodded slowly, his gaze troubled. Without hesitation, he handed you the letter, his eyes imploring you to read it.

Hannah,

I'm sorry for saying goodbye to you like this, but I can't go on. Not one step further.

I have succumbed to the pressure, and a long time ago.

Don't judge me too harshly for choosing this way out, but I can't forgive myself.

If I'm being too honest, I never allowed myself to forget. Because that would meant that I had stopped regretting.

I can feel his judging eyes upon me as he stands by the edge of the forest, so dark and silent.

He is nothing more than a shadow. But he does not disappear when I turn on the light.

Could he be nothing more than a manifestation of our guilt? Created and formed by our thoughts? Our eyes plays trick on us in the dark, but can the same be said about a tortured mind?

No matter how far we walk, we always end up with ourselves. My mother once said that. I never understood what she meant by it. But now I do.

I want you to try and find your peace. And I want you to know that you couldn't have changed anything.

And so, I hope that things will be different for you, and that you will find a way to be able to live with the past.

Make peace. With yourself.

So that, in the end, he may disappear.

Amy

You read the letter, the words sinking in as you processed the contents. "She..." Your voice caught in your throat, your grip on the paper almost too tight. "She took her own life... Michael didn't kill her."

"To be honest, I did not consider that she would commit suicide," Jake admitted, his voice heavy with the weight of the revelation. "Do you... do you understand why Amy did it?"

"The guilt must have been too much for her," you murmured, your heart aching as you pieced together the reasons. "Because of Jennifer's death... She just... She couldn't see any way out."

"Until now, we believed that it was only Hannah who saw the man without a face. But through her letter," Jake pointed at the paper you were holding, "we have now found out that Amy also saw the man by the edge of the forest."

"Wait." You frowned, confusion knitting your brows. "I thought the man without a face was just a figment of Hannah's imagination due to her guilt and depression. Amy was sure that's the case."

"However, he also showed himself to Amy, but much later than he did to Hannah," Jake explained. His voice was thoughtful, analytical. "What do you think? Was it a hallucination as well, or was it Michael?"

You stared at the letter in your hand, the words blurring as your mind raced. "Whichever is the truth, it's not too late for Hannah."

****

It took a lot of convincing to get Jake to agree to continue his planned route straight to Hannah and Richy while you made your way to Michael and Alan's whereabouts. Wherever they are.

You told him it's the safest option available as you're sure Michael is waiting near by the entrance at Grimrock where Alan is supposed to be heading. So essentially, he's not where Hannah and Richy are. Jake can save them while you distract the two. This is the only feasible plan you could think of that would be beneficial for everyone but you. But Jake doesn't have to know that. He's already against with the plan to begin with.

Thankfully, the path seemed straightforward from where you were, and there weren't significant forks that could confuse your way. You moved quickly but cautiously, your senses heightened for any signs of human activity. The echo of your footsteps reverberated through the narrow passageway, and you focused on maintaining steady breaths to mask the sound of your pounding heart.

Your training and instincts guided you, and you pushed forward, your grip on your weapon firm and your flashlight steady in your hand.

Minutes stretched on, and still no news from Jake or Alan. As you continued walking, the mine is starting to look like a labyrinth. Looking at your map, you realized you were getting close to the entrance near the Grimrock waterfall. This raised the likelihood of encountering either Alan or the man without a face.

With your gun drawn, you turned a corner and suddenly, a sharp clang echoed through the tunnel. The sound reverberated off the walls, making it difficult to discern its exact source. Your heart raced in your chest, and your instincts kicked into high gear. You steadied your breath, your every movement careful as you scanned the surroundings for any signs of danger.

In the stifling silence that followed, your senses were on high alert. You strained your ears, trying to detect even the faintest sound. The confined space of the mine played tricks on your perception, and you had to rely on your training to filter out the echoes and focus on what might be reality.

Your grip tightened on your weapon as you moved forward, step by cautious step. The tension in the air was palpable, and your mind raced through the possibilities.

Could it be Michael? Or was it something else entirely?

You couldn't really tell.

You continued walking, steps still deliberate. Your weapon was still held ready, your flashlight illuminating your path and scanning for any signs of movement. You were determined not to be caught off guard.

Another noise echoed in the tunnel.

You cursed softly. It is much more indecipherable than the first one and sounded much closer.

The grip on your weapon grew tighter as each excruciating second passed by, fingers itching close to the trigger. Your mind raced through possible scenarios as you prepared for whatever might come next. The darkness seemed to close in around you, amplifying your heightened state of alertness.

As you moved cautiously forward, your ears picked up on a faint sound to your right – almost indistinguishable footsteps. Your flashlight's beam flicked in that direction, and then your world seemed to halt.

"Hannah?!" The word escaped your lips in a mix of shock and relief.

She was there, standing frozen before you. Wide-eyed and trembling, she seemed just as startled as you were by the unexpected encounter. Your own heartbeat resonated in your ears, and you quickly lowered your weapon, realizing the fear etched on her face.

You took a step toward her, your voice gentle, "Hannah, you're safe now. I'm," you fumbled at your badge, showing your name you knew she'd be familiar with. "I'm Agent L/n."

A look of recognition flashed in her eyes. "Agent L/n..."

You took another step. "Yes. You contacted me a few weeks ago, remember?" She nodded, unconsciously shifting closer to you as she realized you are no threat. "I'm with your friends. I'm sorry I took so long."

You were not sure who closed the distance, but you find yourself with a whole handful of Hannah Donfort who finally broke down against your chest. Her body was trembling as she wrapped her arms around you, her sobs muffled against your shoulder. It was as if she was afraid to cause the slightest noise but for you, it sounded louder than ever. Your heart ached at the weight of her fear and distress, and you held her gently, providing the support she needed. It made your anger for the culprit burn in an unidentified rage.

"You came," she sobbed. "You... y-you have to save Richy!"

"I will," you responded quickly. "but first let's get you somewhere safe, okay? Can you walk?"

She nodded slowly, but her trembling legs betrayed her.

She can't.

"Okay... I'm going to carry you, Hannah. Will that be okay?" She nodded again, and that's all the confirmation you needed before you carefully lifted her into your arms. You didn't want to start touching her without permission after all that she went through. The last thing you want is to scare her more than she already is.

You got to admit, your circumstance right now with a woman in your arms and the culprit on the loose inside a narrow tunnel with passages that can rival a maze doesn't sound so promising right now. Though you managed to maintain your grip on your flashlight and weapon, it's going to be a challenge to fight Michael if he suddenly shows up.

Hopefully, he wouldn't.

****

A few minutes of silence passed as you navigated the tunnels, each step taking you closer to the exit. Hannah remained quiet in your arms, her trembling gradually subsiding.

You felt a familiar vibration against your back pocket and you quickly realized it was an incoming call. Assuming it was Jake or Alan, you pushed a button against your earbuds to answer the call.

"Hello," you greeted, your voice low and controlled.

"Chief," the voice on the other end responded, instantly sending a chill down your spine.

You came to a halt, and your heart seemed to skip a beat as you recognized the voice. Hannah must have felt you stiffen because she looked up at you with a questioning look.

Collecting yourself, you cleared your throat and replied as evenly as possible, "Agent Hartmann."

"Affirmative, Chief L/n. This is Agent Hartmann speaking."

Fuck, you're so screwed. This was a predicament you hadn't anticipated.

"Drop the formalities, Charlotte." You hissed quietly. "How did you get my number?" Because they shouldn't have. No. They can't. You made sure it was secured and untraceable.

"You aren't as slick as you thought you are, Chief," Charlotte responded, a hint of amusement in her tone. You could practically imagine her smirking. Charlotte is your right hand in your squad. Technically, you knew her almost like at the back of your hand. "You've gotten quite rusty, I must say."

You frowned, her words hitting a nerve. "Very funny. A year of suspension can do that to you," you sighed. This situation was spiraling in an unexpected direction. "What's the verdict?" you asked, bracing yourself for her response.

If word of your actions had spread to the entire FBI, your control over the situation was slipping through your fingers.

Charlotte's tone turned serious. "I'm not sure if the Director already knows but I'm certain the whole squad knows about your insubordination because we are the ones who found you. So, the possibility of the director not knowing about this is slim."

You cursed under your breath. This was worse than you thought.

"So, you're going to arrest me?" you challenged, your voice tinged with defiance. You felt Hannah's grip tighten on your shirt, her fear palpable.

"Our squad had promised to follow you, Chief, no matter which path you decided to walk," Charlotte stated firmly. "And we intend to keep that promise."

Your gaze softened considerably. Her loyalty caught you off guard.

"You shouldn't risk your job for me, Charlotte," you swallowed the lump in your throat. "I've got nothing to lose while you guys can lose everything."

"I think you're underestimating us," she chuckled before turning serious once again. "We are here to help."

Your eyebrows rose. "How so?"

"We found your culprit," she said simply. "Do you know any Ted Madruga?"

"Yes. He's the one in prison."

"You really did turn rusty, Chief." She said seriously. "The paper Miss Lilly Donfort had found from Miss Hannah Donfort's mail are all fraud."

"What?" you sound so confused. "What do you mean?"

Charlotte's next words shook the foundations of your investigation.

"We have gathered records from all prisons in the region, and there are no records of a man named Ted Madruga in any of them."

Your eyes widened, realization dawning. "You mean he's—"

A sharp stinging pain at the back of your head sent you to your knees, forcing your grip on Hannah to loosen. The world around you spun for a moment before darkness swallowed your vision, your consciousness slipping away. As the darkness closed in, Hannah's scream echoed in your ears.

"Chief? Chief! Goddamn it!" Charlotte's voice reverberated in your unconscious mind. "We're too late, Viktor. Step on the gas! Hurry!"

A low, eerie chuckle echoed in the tunnel as a figure emerged, slinging a bloodied baseball bat over their shoulder. A twisted smirk curled upon their lips as they fixed their gaze on Hannah, who was frozen in terror.

"No one's leaving the mine alive," their voice dripped with menace. "It's time to let everyone know the truth."

~~~~~~

A/n: Instant apologies for the cliffhanger. As I have said, I may not follow the game's ending. It's not that I'm not contented with the game's ending but rather I'd like to add some spice of my own.

Important: Also, I don't know if it's a problem on my end or not because I have uploaded the part 10 days ago but it seemed that my works aren't visible to anyone at all which led me to reupload it again just so it would be finally be visible to readers.

So, I would like to ask (if it's not too much to ask 🥺) if some of y'all can leave some comments, likes or even reblogs just to let me know my work is out there? It would mean a lot to me that my works will be able to reach my fellow readers as well. I also really appreciate feedbacks 😉

#duskwood #duskwood mc #duskwood jessy #duskwood jessy x mc #duskwood lilly #duskwood jake #duskwood dan #duskwood cleo #duskwood richy #duskwood hannah #duskwood thomas #duskwood everbyte #duskwood ep10 #duskwood fanfiction #jessy x mc

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lucifer-larrson · 2 months

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3rd Of December {Vance X Male Reader}

3/5

December, 4th Friday 5:01PM

Walking around town causing trouble was the best. And it made m/n happier then anything. To be next to vance doing something that made then both happy.

He could only hope that Vance was to, and he was sure when he would see the smile he grown to love over the years.

The smile that may be small was so much. The small light in his eyes, with the hint of happiness. His beautiful blue eyes, his lovely smile.

His daring nature, his boldness. How he was cold and violent. Yet loving and considerate. He was so many things. But that's what made him him. Its what made vance vance. Its what m/n loved, his whole being.

As the two walked around they stopped at a coffee shop. M/n paid for both with a knowing smirk. "One mint hot chocolate please." M/n said.

"Make that two." Vance said placing his order as well.

"Right away, 5$ sir." The cashier said as m/n gave her the money. Once they got there drinks they left. A chilling breeze blew and m/n shivered slightly bringing vance jacket closer.

Since he has gotten it he's always wore it. Vance hasn't said anything to make him not want to, or hint he wants it back so m/n hasn't given it back. And even if he did he would hate to.

"She's kinda cute, wonder if she's single." Vance said making m/n snap his head over.

Alice Fight. She was a beautiful girl, had practically every boy wrapped around her finger. And to m/n Vance's words now showed a terrible truth to him.

Vance was one of them.

Others girls no worries for m/n..but her. Sure m/n would say he's good looking but to her?

'I'm not even half as pretty.' He thought to himself. Watching vance watch her go by he could of let a cry there and then.

'She's got you memorized.' He thought. 'While i die..'with a heavy sigh he almost broke his cup and clanging his fists but stopped himself.

"I have to go home. MJ he uh..needs help with homework i promised." M/n said as he quickly walked off. Throwing his drink away he started to run his way home.

Slamming the door to his house open he saw William helping MJ with his homework, as he always did. M/n lied of course he never helped MJ with homework, 1 he didn't care. 2 William always did.

"Wheres danny?" He managed to say as he started to cry slightly.

"Kitchen" William said once looking up he looked shocked. "What happened?!" He said but m/n already ran off.

Into the kitchen he saw the familiar long tied up h/c hair of Danny. Running to him he hugged him tightly.

Always vance that did this. No one else could make him feel lile this. No one else could make him so vulnerable. So weak.

"Hey! Woah! M/n? What happened? Was it alan? I swear he's so immature." Danny mumbles the past part turning around.

Each brother hugging the other, danny took m/n to his room telling William to watch dinner cooking.

Meanwhile while vance watched his friend run off he had one thought in his mind that made him frown.

#tordwashere #lucifer #vancexmalereader #vance x reader #vancexreader #vance #vance hopper #xreader #x reader #x male reader

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mrjoeiconis-blog · 1 year

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From the Archive: BE MORE CHILL TRACK BY TRACK May 16, 2018: Hey, hi, hello. My name is Joe Iconis. I’m a writer and performer and, most notably, the person to blame for the music and lyrics of Be More Chill. I wrote the show, a musical adaptation of Ned Vizzini’s novel, with Joe Tracz and it premiered in a production at Two River Theater in New Jersey in 2015. A cast album was made and was enjoyed by the amount of people you’d expect to enjoy a cast album of a musical that played for six weeks in New Jersey. Then suddenly and without warning, after two years of release, people, in particular young people, discovered the show and became obsessed. One hundred million streams of our cast album later, the show made its Off-Broadway debut in summer 2018 at the Pershing Square Signature Center on 42nd Street, before transferring to Broadway!

Before we launch into the madness of a track by track breakdown of the Be More Chill OCR, let’s talk about the Be More Chill score itself, shall we?

The first thing that excited me about adapting Ned Vizzini’s gorgeous book into a musical was the opportunity to write about the issues teenagers face through a sci-fi lens. I’ve written plenty of teens before. I love that they wear their emotions on their sleeve but don’t always have the vocabulary to properly articulate those emotions. But here was an opportunity to not only delve into the minds of young people, but to tap into some of my favorite genre influences: monster movies of the 1950’s, Sci-Fi/Horror flicks of the 70’s and 80’s, and Teen Comedies of the 80’s and 90’s. In short: John Hughes (Sixteen Candles, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) meets John Carpenter (Halloween, The Thing.)

Be More Chill is a classic musical comedy in disguise. It reeks of technology and is filthy with moderns sounds, problems, references, etc. But make no mistake about it: The show is as traditional as they come. Well, sort of.

The songs themselves are total showtunes; it’s the orchestrations that place us firmly in the genre world.

As I’d write the tunes on piano, I’d dream about what they’d sound like when given the full 80’s sci-fi treatment, and Charlie Rosen’s orchestrations satisfied my darkest, quirkiest musical fantasies. We worked closely on the specific sounds of this score. Our holy grail (especially when it came to underscore) was John Carpenter film scores. John Carpenter has directed countless horror classics, but he’s also famous for writing his own film scores. He was an electronic music pioneer and his work is immediately recognizable.

Other sonic influences included Oingo Boingo, Bernard Herrmann, Weezer, Tangerine Dream, The Offspring, and contemporary musicians with a retro flair like Sky Ferreira, Kavinsky, and Johnny Jewel.

“Jeremy’s Theme” Written at Joe’s 16th Street Apartment 2012/Two River Theater Library, during rehearsals 2015 I’ve always thought of this as the music that would accompany the production logos in a horror movie. The “American International Pictures presents… A Roger Corman picture…” cards. It immediately places the audience in an unsettled place. Something bad is going to happen and that bad thing is going to be otherworldly.

We’re actually cramming a lot of information into 30 seconds. Up top you’re getting the beep-bop-boop of computer circuitry. It’s the technological equivalent of a scary thunder storm in a creature feature. Next, our first synth line arrives. Hello, synth. Nice to meet you. Won’t you please overstay your welcome for the next two and a half hours? I drove Charlie slightly crazy in regards to the specificity of keyboard sounds I was looking for as I desperately wanted to be faithful to the Carpenter/Alan Howarth collaborations that inspired much of the score.

The track culminates with The Squip theme, played gloriously on Theremin by Danny Jonokuchi. The Theremin is a vintage electronic instrument played by the Thereminist moving his hands through the air to control pitch and volume. That instrument was used most often in 1950s sci-fi movies like The Day The Earth Stood Still, usually to accompany the visual of an alien presence.

We’re one of the only musicals to ever use a Theremin in its orchestration. Be More Chill is a show about kids obsessed with all things outdated and unloved and the show itself is obsessed with all things outdated and unloved! How very! (Heathers reference.)

“More Than Survive” Written in Joe’s 16th Street Apartment, 2012 After our eerie mini-overture, the audience expects to be confronted by a demon or a triffid or worse. Instead, we jump cut to the shockingly mundane sight of an average high school kid staring at his computer in his undies. I’m proud that the first event in the musical is our leading man being caught with his pants down. It establishes Jeremy us a decidedly unheroic hero and also kick-starts a theme of pantlessness that continues throughout the entire show.

The “C-c-c-c’mon” motif was one I came up with early on in writing the song. I wanted a repeated phrase that expressed the frustration of wanting things to move at an accelerated speed, and one that could also sound like the chorus of a pop song. I love immediately subverting the expectation of what Jeremy’s waiting for to load—“Is it a major homework assignment? A college application?” Nope, it’s porn! That moment establishes the spirit of Be More Chill right off the bat. It also makes for awkward car rides when kids listen to the album in the car with their parents. Sorry, not sorry.

In the actual show there are even more mini-scenes between Jeremy and the people in his life. I wanted this whole opening to feel cinematic and sweeping and place Jeremy in the center of a world that is swirling around him. Kind of like the “Head Over Heels” sequence in Donnie Darko.

The first person who connects with Jeremy enough to actually earn sung musical material is Michael. Michael brings his own music with him because he’s confident and, quite literally, marches to the beat of his own drummer.

Will Connolly’s voice just kills me on the album. He sounds like the love child of Michael Jackson and Billie Jo Armstrong.

Notice the little synth line underneath the lockers scene with Chloe, Brooke, and Jenna. It’s a quote of “Rich Set a Fire.” The little synth line underneath the first part of Michael’s scene? “Michael in the Bathroom.” The guitar line in the second part? “The Pants Song.” That audience has subconsciously heard so many melodies from the show before the first number is even over! Underscore is sneaky.

It should be noted that “More Than Survive” was the first song I wrote for the show. After sending it to Joe Tracz, I sent it to Jennifer Ashley Tepper, who is now one of our producers of Be More ChillOff-Broadway. She wrote back:

“I tried to listen to the Be More Chill song, got 60 seconds in, and got furious at everyone for all of the noise/ questions/ distractions at work... so I'm gonna go download these on my phone and sit outside or hide in the bathroom to listen. BRB!!!”

Hiding in the bathroom. That’s so Be More Chill.

“I Love Play Rehearsal” Written in Joe’s 47th Street Apartment, 2013 After hearing so much about her in the opening, this is the first time we actually get to hear from Christine herself. Charlie and I wanted her song to sound different from the angular computerized vibe of the rest of the score. Enter recorders!

Everyone associates recorders with elementary school music class and/or Renaissance fairs. That felt correct for Christine, who is warm, strange, confident, free-spirited, and literally dresses like an authentic Renaissance Princess at the Halloween Party in Act II! So much of Stephanie Hsu’s performance informed the song itself—she’s a brilliant actor and a soulful singer and it’s impossible to not conjure up images of her live performance when listening to her on the album.

The placement of this song moved around a whole bunch during our writing process and the eureka moment was realizing that the song’s not literally about play rehearsal. It’s a song about passion and freedom. It’s not the typical way to be introduced to a leading lady in a musical, which makes it perfect for Christine and for Be More Chill, in general.

The original second song in the show was an internal duet for Jeremy and Christine called “Touching My Hand.” It was about Jeremy pining for Christine and Christine wondering if she should go on a date with Jake. There was some nice character material for Jeremy, but it gave us information we already knew and it made the show feel like some cute romantic comedy. It also felt antithetical to the character to have Christine’s first real song moment be about a guy. That’s not her and we needed to respect that.

Note that the original full title of this song was “Why I Love Play Rehearsal By Christine Canigula,” which is very fussy and precious and I loved it but it’s too cumbersome and I knew that someone would inevitably make me change it so I just did it myself. (RIP Fussy, Too-Long Title That Joe Loved.)

“The Squip Song” Written at Joe’s 16th Street Apartment, 2012 It begins as a retro-sounding “cool kid in a ’90s movie” rock song (with some Oingo Boingo horns added in for good measure) and then turns full blown sci-fi/horror fantasia. And it all goes down in a bathroom. There are a lot of bathrooms in this musical.

This song is the first time we hear the “It’s From Japan…” refrain, which repeats ten million times over the course of the show. Gerard Canonico is a powerhouse of the highest order and he turned this song from a serviceable musicalized scene into a show stopper. The optional octave up jump on the second “It’s From Japan” is all Canonico’s doing. We had to add the big ending (including a toilet flush on the final button) just because it was so clear people wanted to clap after Gerard finished doing his thing.

Props to Josh Plotner on the vocoder, yet another retro instrument that’s rarely used in theater orchestration. It’s what makes the weird digitized voice sound. People usually think that it’s a mic effect but it’s all done live! Old school, baby.

For those who care: Gerard’s pronunciation of the word “correctly” is a nod to The Shining’s scary bathroom encounter between Jack Torrence and Delbert Grady.

“Two-Player Game” Written at Joe’s 47th Street Apartment, 2013/Rewritten during rehearsals at Ripley Grier Studios, 2015 I enjoy writing songs where characters have to work through some major personal issue while doing an unrelated task. (Ahem, “The Answer.” Ahem, “Ammonia.”)

Here, the boys talk about self-worth and the desire to be somebody else while playing a video game. Of course, the video game is actually telegraphing the journey they are about to go on but to Michael and Jeremy it’s just another nothing-special hang sesh. When I wrote that little 8-Bit “Apocalypse of the Damned” theme that threads through the song, I was inspired by being a kid and plunking out the melodies to grandiose John Williams orchestral scores on my Casio.

The original version of this song was titled “Level Up” and it did a lot of what “Two-Player Game” does, just not as well. It also sounded exactly like a particular song by The Clash and once I realized how similar the two songs were, “Level Up”s days were numbered.

It should be noted that I am the world’s biggest stickler when it comes to rhyme. I’m super old-school in that I believe things either rhyme or they don’t; none of that “half rhyme” garbage. I think rhyme makes theatre songs easier to understand and actually heightens the dramatic intention of the lyric. Disgustingly, “Two-Player Game” contains an accidental fake rhyme. By the time I realized, it was too late to change the rhyme. Every time I hear it, I cringe, and you can pay me a million dollars but I won’t tell you what it is.

“The Squip Enters” The grand entrance of our antagonist: The Squip. It was important to our radiantly talented director Stephen Brackett that The Squip’s entrance feel larger than life. His staging of the moment was dazzling, and I needed to write a cue that rose to that occasion. The Squip enters to music that is tastelessly huge, appropriately so.

It should be noted that I wrote The Squip with Eric William Morris in mind and I’m so glad his iconic performance of the role is preserved forever and ever on the album.

“Be More Chill – Part 1” Written in Joe’s 47th Street Apartment, 2013 I had a lot of trouble figuring out the musical style of The Squip. First I went down a computer-y road, but that felt too in line with the sound of the rest of the show. Then I tried a sort of 1950’s Dick Dale Surf Rock take. (Mike Rosengarten’s nasty, relentless guitar line is a remnant of that version of the song.)

Eventually, I settled into what currently exists. There’s a timeless cool, laid-back quality to The Squip’s music. It’s approachable and sexy but never too scary or affronting. This is seduction music. The moments where the vocoder is adding the spooky digitized element the melody line (“don’t freak out and don’t resist…”) is where The Squip’s true colors are peeking through the façade just a little bit. By the time we get to “The Play” he’s given up on trying to seduce and is just trying to conquer, so his music sounds different.

The whole “Be More Chill” section is really just a classic “make-over montage” sequence (it’s even set at The Mall!) so I took some musical inspiration from make-over and training sequences as well. Think Karate Kid, Dirty Dancing, The Breakfast Club.

A lot of people are bothered by the harshness of the “everything about you makes me want to die” line. To me, that’s the whole point of the show. The tone may be comedic, but the characters in Be More Chill are actual teenagers struggling with actual problems. I don’t think being depressed or suicidal is a laughing matter, but I do think sometimes people feel like there is a voice inside their head telling them to hurt themselves. It would be insulting and untruthful to pretend that a kid like Jeremy wasn’t struggling with these thoughts.

The humor, the fantasy, and the harsh reality co-exist in every moment of the show. And, in my experience, in every moment in life. It’s about learning how to deal with it and knowing which of the many voices in your head you’re supposed to listen to. But we’re not at that particular song yet.

“Do You Wanna Ride?” Written in [memory temporarily scrambled] I have no memory of writing this mini-song, it just happened. It didn’t exist and then it did. Look, I made a spicy song about stopping for frozen yogurt where there never was a spicy song about stopping for frozen yogurt.

Lauren Marcus’s interpretation is a gift from the theatre gods and is a testimony to her brilliance as an actor, singer, comedian and all-around magic person. The yodel, the riff at the end, all Marcus. She’s the Goldie Hawn of musical theater.

“Be More Chill – Part 2” When I stumbled upon the idea of the “Everything about you is going to be wonderful” section, that’s when the song really clicked for me. After being berated for all the things he isn’t, Jeremy finally gets teased with the promise of unadulterated love and adoration. It’s the false promise of spam emails about penis enlargement pills or the aspirational Instagram accounts of the Kardashians. The idea of: “If you just do This, everything will be Perfect.” The musical equivalent of “Make America Great Again.” Cheerful, optimistic, secretly sinister. The writing and performance make me think that it’s a theme song for an awful 1980s sitcom that never existed in the first place. “Everybody Loves Squips!” maybe.

Props to Dan McMillan for aggressively hitting that gong at the end for a big finish.

“More Than Survive” (Reprise) Restart! The show essentially begins again and we fast forward through another day at school, this time with notes and instructions from Mr. Super Quantum Unit Intel Processor himself.

The chorus goes into a reggae feel for a few measures at one point. The idea there is that sometimes things are the same but feel a little different and you can’t quite put your finger on why. The familiar feels unsettling. Reggae is a style of music associated with Michael, so I like thinking that maybe Jeremy has Michael on his mind in that one instant before Squip wipes the slate clean.

“A Guy That I’d Kinda Be Into” Written in Ripley-Grier Studios 2015, during rehearsal This was the last song I wrote for the show. I wrote it very quickly on a rehearsal break after not being able to nail this moment for years. I love that Christine gets this unexpected jangly little rock song as her second big number.

Have you ever noticed how the female lead in musicals is often saddled with the most drag-ass songs? Part of my mission in musical theater is to never subject my female lead to an unmotivated obligatory ballad.

It should be noted that Christine ends both this tune and “I Love Play Rehearsal” with an unexpected non-rhyme. Christine is a character who subverts our expectations of her at every turn. Gosh, I like her.

“The Squip Lurks” I’m eternally grateful we got to include this taste of underscore on the album. I’ve heard rumors that this plays in theme parks during the Halloween season. That’s the highest honor I could ever receive.

The track name is a reference to “The Shape Lurks” cue from the Halloween soundtrack. And, yes, “Jeremy’s Theme” is also a nod to “Laurie’s Theme.”

“Upgrade” Written at a Two River Theater writing retreat, 2014 // Re-written at Ripley Grier Studios 2015, during rehearsal

The line “this is my favorite place behind the school” is one of Joe Tracz’s great creations, delivered incomparably by Ms. Marcus. I don’t know why I find it so funny but I laugh every time I hear it. I think it reveals so much about Brooke.

The notes of “Upgrade-upgrade-upgrade” in the first part of the song are the same notes as the pattern that begins “More Than Survive.” They are just a little scrambled up. The melody of “I already know what it’s like to be the loser” is the “Apocalypse of the Damned” theme song melody.

This song is notable as the first time the character of Jake sings in the show. Poor Jakey D. This is the only musical in history where the classically good-looking Prince Charming-type gets the least amount to sing. I still like the guy, though. It’s another testament to the brilliant Joe Tracz that a character like Jake, who could’ve been a one-dimensional asshole jock, is actually a kind, well-meaning popular kid. Dude can’t help that he’s pretty! Jake Boyd’s vocals are so sensitive and approachable and kind of remind me of Mr. Peanut Butter from Bojack Horseman.

The final chorus of the song is the same melody but we lose the swing and make it more of a driving rock. Damn. Things got not cute quick.

This song used to end with a long minor version of the “Na Na Na” theme from “More Than Survive.” It was very musically exciting and too long and did nothing to service the story and was cut.

“Halloween” Written at a Two River Theater writing retreat 2014 The Halloween Party is a mammoth sequence that begins Act II and I knew it needed its own theme song. I wanted to write a chorus that sounded like what it feels like to be shoved around in loud, hot, crowded room. The sort of song that would send anyone with social anxiety into a full-blown panic attack.

The Suburban Halloween Party is such a hallmark of the movies myself and my collaborators were inspired by and we endeavored to do those films justice and make the greatest Halloween party blowout sequence in musical theater history. Please note that when we wrote the show, there weren’t actually any other musicals with Halloween Party blowout sequences, so just by existing, we were automatically the greatest. Now we’ve got some competition. How fetch! (Mean Girlsreference.)

There’s an element of group awareness in the “Halloween” lyric. “Cuz a Halloween party’s a rad excuse to put your body through mad abuse.” That’s because we’re experiencing the party through Jeremy. This is his first big social event and as much as he’s trying to be part of it, he’s still on the outside. He’s got a detachment that allows for a bit of perspective.

The dance break was arranged by Broadway legend Rob Berman! He based the melody line on a part of “Halloween” that was subsequently cut. It’s the “who’s got the peach Schnapps?!” section. I often add it back in when I perform the song in concert.

Props to Amanda Ruzza’s propulsive bass line! Crank it up, crank it up!

“Do You Wanna Hang?” “Do You Wanna Ride?” strikes back! With new lyrics relating to Chloe’s Sexy Baby costume! Katie Carlson is yet another four-leaf clover in our incredible cast of musical theater misfits. Chloe is hilarious and monstrous without ever being a cartoon. She’s trying her best, just like everyone else, she just has… questionable taste. I’m so enamored with the way Katie does the final “Do you wanna stop?!” chorus. I think in that moment Chloe is trying so hard to be Britney Spears circa 1998. Which would almost work if she wasn’t literally dressed as an infant. There’s something charming and a little sad and completely hilarious about it to me.

We never actually address the fact that Chloe is dressed as a baby (well, a “sexy baby”) in the lyric. In two million years all that will be left of this world will be a fat cockroach, a copy of the Be More ChillOCR, and a few confused aliens wondering what she means by “get inside my diaper, boy.”

“Michael in the Bathroom” Written at Joe’s 43rd Street Apartment, 2014 Many times as a kid and even more times as an adult, I’ve fled to the bathroom to escape a social situation. It feels like one of those no-big-deal things that everyone does and those are the exact sort of scenarios I’m drawn to when writing musical theater.

I’ve always been partial to the “Best Friend” characters. I want to know more about them and never understand why they exist only in the context of the lead character. In every show I’ve written I’ve imagined that when a secondary character leaves the stage, they’re walking into another show where they’re the lead. “Michael in the Bathroom” is the moment when the ultimate sidekick is allowed to take center stage and be the star of someone else’s show. I hope it makes the audience think about all the other secondary characters in the show like Chloe or Rich. They’ve probably all had their own “Michael in the Bathroom” moments over the course of the show, we just don’t get to see them. Oh how I long to write “Jenna in Her Bedroom.” Or “Brooke in the Alley Next to Pinkberry.” Maybe for the sequel.

George Salazar’s performance of the song is magic. It’s one of those miracle moments when a song and a performer connect in a specific way. The music and lyrics are a road map, but there are so many people who make the journey of a song like this happen. It all came together through a collaboration between myself and Ned’s characters and Joe’s book and Stephen’s direction and Nathan Dame’s musical direction and Bobby Tilley’s costumes and every other element that goes in to making any moment of theater.

George is the first person to sing “Michael in the Bathroom” in the show itself, but while I was developing the score, the song was sung out of context by a few gents including Jason Tam, Seth Eliser, and Will Roland. They taught me much about the tune and I bow down to them.

I wrote the song in one sitting in 2014 and the content never changed, aside from the cutting of a short third verse right after the bridge. We cut it late in the rehearsal process in deference to the “too much of a good thing can be dangerous” rule of theater.

A few people have questioned my use of humor in songs that are otherwise quite serious. “Why do you have jokes in such a powerful song?” an uptight professor once asked. “Why is this hilarious showtune so stinking sad?” a late-nite comedian queried over drinks at McHale’s. The intersection of the comedy and the tragedy feels true to the human experience. The absurdity of having to work through things at the Worst Possible Moment is something I’ve experienced many times. Things are rarely all good or all bad but things are always messy. You find out you got into your dream school while you’re high at your racist grandfather’s funeral. You have to audition for a role on Stranger Things the same day that a mountain lion eats the family dog. (RIP Spot.) You have a panic attack while wearing a Halloween costume after fighting with your possessed best friend in the bathroom of High School Halloween Party. It’s all so forlorn and confusing and funny. To me at least.

Charlie and I worked closely getting the arrangement just right. We wanted it to ebb and flow and sound like a pop song at first, never giving away that it will eventually turn into this tour-de-force musical theatre mad scene. I like when orchestration is at odds with the content of a song and doesn’t immediately announce what the song is about.

After going on this monumentally poignant journey, Michael undercuts it all with a spot of sarcasm, carrying on the great tradition of musical theatre characters who don’t really mean it when they say “I’m so glad I came.” (Follies reference.) The whole thing ends with the most sardonic cha-cha-cha ever to button a number.

“The Smartphone Hour (Rich Set A Fire)” Written at Ripley-Grier Studios, 2014 Jenna Rolan finally gets her moment of glory, unexpectedly, as the star of a seven-minute dance number. Katie Ladner’s turn as Jenna is so specific and inventive. She deflects the casual barbs thrown at her because she is not letting anyone ruin the time she gets to shine.

I set out to write a song that dramatizes and activates the dangerous world that the Be More Chill characters exist in. We spend so much time with our kind, sensitive protagonists, it’s easy to forget the madness they are living in. It’s hard to be a teenager, especially today. It’s a menacing world where information travels at warp speed. As does gossip, rumors, insults, lies, etc. To me, “The Smartphone Hour” speaks to the ferociousness of modern teenagers and shines a light on the sort of environment that leads to bullying and depression and worse.

It’s also a splashy musical comedy dance number! I wanted it to feel overlong and unreasonably gargantuan. I thought for sure some smart theatre artist along the way would force me to cut this song. I decided I was going to fight for it. It may not cover a ton of story ground, but I felt that it was imperative to have the number in the show. It sets the audience up for the craziness that’s about to happen in Act II and lets us know that things have spun out of control—both in the story and in the show itself. I think subconsciously, the audience thinks: “A dance number about arson?! The rules of the show are changing! I hope nothing unexpected happens to the characters I love! They wouldn’t kill off Jeremy, would they? Well, if I’m watching a dance number about arson anything is possible! Oh no! #SaveJeremy!”

Luckily, I never had to fight for the song. As soon as Chase Brock got his hands on it, he made it longer, in deference to the “too much of a good thing can be wonderful” rule of theater. Rob Berman’s arrangement of the dance break sounds like a sleepover from hell on crack and Charlie’s smartphone sounds bear more than a striking resemblance to the sort of sounds normally associated with the sinister Squip. Gossip is Evil, kids.

I really feel like we made the best Michael Bennett number Michael Bennett never choreographed. The final shouted: “End!” was all Chase’s idea and I love it so much. It’s a moment that lives in the real estate between musical theater Cheese Ball and rock’n’roll Middle Finger. A neighborhood I often hang my hat in.

The notes of the phone buttons that are heard after “he told me cuz he’s my best friend” are, once again, the same notes as the “More Than Survive” intro figure. Just reversed this time.

The title is an obvious reference to “The Telephone Hour” from Bye Bye Birdie. “Rich…” is by no means a parody of that song, but I think they are spiritual cousins. It’s another example of Be More Chill having a foot in the past and a foot in the future.

“The Pitiful Children” Written at Joe’s 47th Street Apartment, 2013 / Joe’s 43rd Street Apartment, 2014–2015 / Ripley-Grier Studios and Two River Theater 2015, during rehearsals Oh, heavens, this song. The lyrics of this song changed a ton over the course of the rehearsal process and I never got it quite right. I love it on the album. It sounds like what would’ve happened if Marilyn Manson and Nine Inch Nails wrote Les Misérables. Alas, dramaturgically, I don’t think I did a great job of telling the story that Joe Tracz laid out. Don’t be surprised if this one gets fiddled with in anticipation of our forthcoming Be More Chill off-Broadway production.

The orchestration of this song is one of my favorites in the whole show. It pushes The Squip firmly into digitized-demon territory. He’s worrying less about seducing people in this number and he’s letting his true colors show. His true colors are cold, industrial, heavy, and militaristic. There’s no question that this Squip has his sights set on world domination.

I like using lyrics that work dramatically and stylistically. The Squip’s “beep-bop-boop” is literally him speaking in his native computerized tongue, but it also conjures up images of an old-fashioned crooner scatting. It’s connected to Jeremy’s “C-c-c-cmon” and the Ensemble’s “Hey hey hey” and all the rest of it.

“The Pants Song” Written at Joe’s Family’s house on Long Island, 2014 My experience writing this song is very much an example of the comic/tragic thing that I often love to write about.

I had tried to write a song for Jeremy’s Dad for the longest time and could never crack it. Joe Tracz said to me: “I just wish Jeremy’s Dad could have a song about the lesson he learns. That if you love somebody, you put your pants on for them.” Essentially, I am an idea thief. I immediately knew that sentence was a song, I just didn’t know how to write it. We were doing a developmental reading of the show and I was feeling the pressure. There was a date I needed to have the song in by and I had nothing. The day before I needed to have the song, I decided that after rehearsal I was going to have a drink with my best friend Jason SweetTooth Williams and then go home and write the song. And then my Grandma died. After a long illness, my grandmother Flora (RIP Flora) left this damned earth at the Iconis home on Long Island. I needed and wanted to be with my family. After doing all the things that you do when a loved one dies, I went downstairs to my family’s basement at 2 AM and wrote “The Pants Song” in one shot. Sometimes you have to write a song about two guys in their underpants on the night your beloved grandma dies.

Paul Whitty starts in such a forlorn, hurt place at the top of this song. I bet the audience thinks this is going to be a perfect-time-for-a-cigarette-break “sad dad” number and then it turns into a total bop. Much like the “We love everything about you…” section of “Be More Chill,” this was another song that I wanted to feel like a rockin’ version of the theme song from a 1980’s sitcom. Only difference is, the mythical sitcom that “We love everything about you…” comes from is phony and corporate and the “Pants Song” show is heartfelt and cool, Must See TV material.

There used to be a song for Jeremy’s Dad earlier in the show called “The No Pants Song,” where he extolled the virtues of not getting dressed. It was a sad, lazy waltz. The whole thing was one-joke, but I did love the final stanza:

ALL THE EXERTION OF PUTTING ON, THEN TAKING OFF JUST TO PUT BACK ON SEEMS TERRIBLY UNNECCESSARY TO ME WOULDN’T YOU SAY? I’M FINE WITH A Y-FRONT COVERING MY FRONT EVERY DAY

It should be noted that many of my musicals feature moments of pantslessness for male characters. This feels fitting as I am often pantsless when I write said musicals. Write what you know, Joe. (ReWrite reference.)

This is the only song in Be More Chill that features a big, in-your-face key change. I’m normally very discreet about my key changes, but a tasteless shift up a step for two men dancing in their undies feels earned.

The in-store music playing in the background of The Mall sequence is actually a Muzak version of “The Pants Song.” The moment I wrote the tune I knew it was destined to be the annoying music played on a loop in the atrium of a mall. The sort of irritating ear worm that slowly drives the employees of Payless and Sbarro’s mad.

“The Play” As a kid who spent hours listening to the big action-packed climaxes of the Sweeney Todd OCR, the Sunset Blvd. OCR, and the Carrie soundboard bootleg (thanks, 1996 Playbill Online message boards for making that one happen!), I’m so thrilled we got to include ours on the album. The underscore is straight-up cinematic, with all the themes of the past two hours crashing into each other like violent zombie bumper cars.

A few people have asked me if the cascading downward piano line in “The Play” is referencing “Suppertime” from Little Shop of Horrors. While the two riffs sound similar I was actually alluding to, you guessed it, John Carpenter film scores. The 5/4 time signature and downward modulation are dead giveaways. But I do agree that the line sounds not dissimilar to “Suppertime,” which is fine by me! Little Shop was my first musical and has clearly influenced me in countless ways as a writer, especially on Be More Chill.

The “Michael makes an entrance” line came late in the game and is a testament to the “sometimes the best thing a writer can do is just musicalize the stage direction” rule of theater.

One of my favorite bits of orchestral business is the twisted music box version of the “More Than Survive” chorus. Hella Danny Elfman. (Shout out to Rich’s Nightmare Before Christmas belt buckle! The 1990’s are alive and well and living inside my musical.)

The “Squip Death” section was hatched by Eric William Morris and myself in the basement dressing rooms of Two River Theater. It’s hard to make out, but as the Squip is destructing he’s speaking Japanese. The Japanese was translated by my bestie-since-fourth-grade Michael Ettannani. We’ve all got our Michaels.

“Voices In My Head” Written at a Two River Theater writing retreat, 2015

The point of Be More Chill is that we’re always going to have voices in our head, both good and bad, telling us what to do. The trick is to figure out which ones to listen to. The fear and doubt and anger and anxiety never really go away, but you can find a way to manage them. At one point in our process Joe Tracz articulated this by saying: “At the end of the show, there are still voices in his head, but the loudest one is Jeremy’s.” Yet again, I am a lowdown dirty idea thief. I stole Joe’s words and turned them into our finale.

Since the show begins and ends with ensemble numbers led by Jeremy, I thought this was a nice opportunity to chart our leading man’s growth. I wanted the vibe of the chorus to be different from “More Than Survive.” It’s more laidback, it’s more confident, it’s more playful. It’s more (ahem) chill. Even when the Ensemble kicks in with the “Na’s Na’s” from the beginning of the show, it’s less aggressive than it used to be. There’s harmony and everyone’s singing together instead of singing at each other.

It was important to all of the creators of the show that the triumph of our show not be that Jeremy gets with Christine. The personal triumph for him is that he’s able to deal with his “stuff” enough to have a normal-person conversation with her. I don’t know if Jeremy ends up with Christine after the events of Be More Chill. Maybe he does. Maybe he ends up with Michael. Maybe he ends up with no one. It really doesn’t matter. What matters is that he has figured out that his voice is one that is worthy of being listened to. And that allows him to get on with his life and move forward. All of the characters being together shouting “C’mon, let’s go!” is a triumph to me. They don’t know what’s next, but they’re going to go through it together. An army of Creeps, taking on the world hand in hand.

Robert Altman used to talk about how he never understood why movies ended with weddings. Why is the story over just because two people kiss? There are no real endings in life except, maybe, death. Musically, I didn’t want the show to end with a big held-out chord or with arms-around-each-other “it’s all gonna be alright!” sweetness. I wanted the very end to feel raucous and alive and like the music is tumbling toward something. Toward the future.

The joke of the ending is that even though the kids at Middleborough deactivated The Squip and prevented a total take-over, chances are good that all of the neighboring high schools have been completely taken over. No one is safe, all we can do is prepare ourselves as best we can. They may offer you fortune and fame. Love and money and instant acclaim. But whatever they offer you don’t feed the… Squips? Sorry, wrong show. Smiley face, lipstick, kitty paw.

#be more chill #jeremy heere #michael mell #michael in the bathroom #Joe iconis #george salazar #will roland #be more chill musical #Brooke lohst

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