#and I think he really was trying to save lana from the same fate

[judethebrood]

When Paris said "If we had a daughter, I'd watch and could not save her. The emotional torture, from the head of your high table. She'd do what you taught her, she'd meet the same cruel fate".

When Hozier said "When my time comes around, lay me gently in the cold dark earth. No grave can hold my body down. I'll crawl home to her".

When Florence said "Then bow your head in the house of God. Little girl, who do you think you are? You think you need it, you think you want love. You wouldn't want it if you knew what it was".

When Lana said "Is it me, was I wrong to have trusted you? Did I see what I wanted, what wasn't true? Was I wrong to go on like a little fool? It's amazing what women in love will do".

When Marina said "Started in the strangest way. Didn't see it coming, swept up in your hurricane. Wouldn't give it up for nothing. Now I'm all caught up in the highs and the lows. It's a shock to my system. I don't wanna run away so I stay. My head gets messy when I try to hide the things I love about you in my mind. I don't really know a lot about love".

When Morrisey said "And if a double-decker bus crashes into us, to die by your side is such a heavenly way to die. And if a ten ton truck kills the both of us, to die by your side, well, the pleasure, the privilege is mine".

When Stevie and Lindsey said "Love somebody save their soul. Tie them to your heaven erase their hell. Love their lifestyle if you feel it. Don't try to change them you never will. Sunflowers and your face fascinate me. You go into the dusty pink day. I come a calling unto you, but you run. You're the winner. Long distance winner. You're the winner. Long distance winner".

When Kate said "And if I only could, I'd make a deal with God, and I'd get him to swap our places. Be runnin' up that road. Be runnin' up that hill. Be runnin' up that building. Say, if I only could".

When Joni said "The last time I saw Richard was Detroit in 68. And he told me, "All romantics meet the same fate. Some day, cynical and drunk and boring. Someone in some dark cafe" "You laugh", he said, "You think you're immune? Go look at your eyes, they're full of moon. You like roses and kisses and pretty men to tell you all those pretty lies, pretty lies. When you gonna realise they're only pretty lies? Only pretty lies, just pretty lies".

When Bob said "She said, "Where ya been?" I said, "No place special" She said, "You look different." I said, "Well, I guess" She said, "You been gone." I said, "That's only natural" She said, "You gonna stay?" I said, "If you want me to, yes".

When Mitski said "You're growing tired of me. You love me so hard and I still can't sleep. You're growing tired of me, and all the things I don't talk about. Sorry, I don't want your touch. It's not that I don't want you. Sorry, I can't take your touch. It's just that I fell in love with a war. Nobody told me it ended. And it left a pearl in my head, and I roll it around every night. Just to watch it glow. Every night, baby, that's where I go".

When Glass animals said "Bye bye baby blue. I wish you could see the wicked truth. Caught up in a rush, it's killing you. Screaming at the sun, you blow into. Curled up in a grip when we were us. Fingers in a fist like you might run. I settle for a ghost I never knew. Superparadise I held on to, but I settle for a ghost".

When the Killers said "They say the devil's water, it ain't so sweet. You don't have to drink right now, but you can dip your feet, every once in a little while. You sit there in your heartache, waiting on some beautiful boy to. To save you from your old ways. You play forgiveness. Watch it now, here he comes. He doesn't look a thing like Jesus, but he talks like a gentlemen, like you imagined when you were young. When you were young".

When Radiohead said "You are the sun and moon and stars are you. And I could never run away from you. You try at working out chaotic things. And why should I believe myself, not you? It's like the world is gonna end so soon. And why should I believe myself? You, me and everything, caught in the fire. I can see me drowning, caught in the fire. You, me and everything, caught in the fireI can see me drowning, caught in the fire".

Yeah. That.

#Song lyrics #Song quotes #Fav bands #Fav singers #Paris paloma #Hozier #Florence + the machine #Lana del rey #Marina and the diamonds #The smiths #Fleetwood mac #Kate bush #Joni mitchell #Bob dylan #Mitski #Glass animals #The killers #Raidohead #Music #music is my life

[avatarskywalker78]

AO3 Masterpost

even if we can’t find heaven (i’ll walk through hell with you) - Part 1 of The Shieldmaiden Saga, focusing on Steph Taylor - Eddie’s childhood best friend - as she gains powers from the particle accelerator, and soon finds out she’s not the only one, gaining new friends...and discovering that the accelerator was flawed.

love, you’re not alone (cause I’m gonna stand by you) - Part 2 of The Shieldmaiden Saga and a direct sequel to the above, with Steph Taylor continuing to gather friends, help metas, and build a case against Wells as another meta starts making a name for himself in Central City.

to save the world (with a friend by my side) - Longfic for SyFy’s Krypton, where Adam Strange and his friend Ashley Tanner travel back in time to save Krypton. Currently has 8/11 chapters.

flufftober 2021 - A series of (mostly) short fics I wrote for flufftober 2021, complete at 31 stories.

emerald legacy - An AU spanning from Arrow’s S1 finale, where Oliver was the one who died saving Laurel, not Tommy. In the midst of dealing with Oliver’s death, plus the revelation that Thea’s his sister, Tommy decides to take up Oliver’s mantle. Currently has 2 parts.

of legacies and lies - Alex Thompson, Jack Thompson’s granddaughter, goes on the run after the SHIELDRA reveal, and has to deal with the fact that her entire career in SHIELD has been a lie. Meanwhile Jack and Sarah - his wife - are making sure she’s going to get a fair trial when she reaches the US.

a god’s reflection - Loki’s POV after his initial imprisonment post-Avengers as he thinks about his actions, and regrets that he’ll never really have a chance to make amends because he’ll likely be imprisoned for the rest of his life.

when one door closes (another opens) - On Earth-4 in the 22nd Century, Brianna Thawne (Eddie’s distant descendant and her generation’s Cobalt Blue) takes Sara Lance up on her offer to join the Legends.

now we have (the freedom to choose) - an AU of Legends’ S1 finale. Kendra isn’t the only one dealing with destiny, but Carter too - and since he’s the one who always remembers first, it’s unlikely he’s ever had much chance to be with other people like Kendra has. Featuring a more self-aware Carter and a heart to heart with Sara Lance.

you’ve always been (a part of me) - A Seg/Adam fic set 40 years after Krypton’s S2 finale, where they’ve been together almost as long - and Seg is hit with the realization that he’ll eventually outlive Adam.

speak (and i’ll listen) - a short MonWinn fic set in an AU of Supergirl S2 (the AU being that they’re together, and not Mon and Kara). Winn stresses over not being able to stop Music Meister. Mon does his best to comfort him.

to new beginnings - A Westhallen short fic written for Polyam Shpping Day #14, set in an alternate season 2 and featuring the three of them discussing New Year’s resolutions.

brothers (lost and found) - the first part of Cobalt Blue and The Flash, where Barry Allen and Malcolm Thawne have been best friends for six years, with Barry essentially taking on the role of big brother due to Malcolm’s estrangement from his own brother. When Malcolm gets struck by lightning while trying (and failing) to prevent Barry from suffering the same fate, he wakes up five months later with speedster powers, and unbeknownst to him this changes everything.

doubt (and the bonds of love) -  Another short MonWinn fic, set in an alternate S3 where Mon-El never left Earth. Mon-El has become distant all of a sudden and Winn is determined to find out why.

to live and rise (and hope again) - longfic about Eliana Kent, Clark and Lana’s daughter from an alternate universe, as she experiences a massive power boost, becomes a hero, and joins the DEO, while still dealing with her family’s loss and having to work with two of their counterparts.

the future (is ours) - a short Thallen fic, set in a AU where Iris is the Flash, Eobard got defeated without any casulties, and Barry and Eddie are dating - Eddie second guessing his relationship with Barry after Eobard’s manipulations.

right here (is where i’m meant to be) - A lazy morning Segdam fic set post-canon.

Cobra Kai Mini Rewrites - a series of unnconnected oneshots that are rewrites on certain scenes in the show that annoyed me. Complete at 18 stories.

bad boy (no more) - my collection of Mike Barnes redemption fics, which are all standalone, but have the consistent elements of Mike’s wife Leah and his three children, Sarah, Elaine, and Alex. Currently has 5 stories.

flufftober 2022 - my collection of stories for this year’s flufftober spanning various fandoms. Complete at 21 stories.

the truth (long overdue) - a Spider-Man 2 fix-it fic where Peter actually explains things to Harry instead of rushing off and leaving him alone, and this changes everything.

looking for america (coming through your schools) - the first part of the Nicky Connors, Cobra Adjacent series, which focuses on Nicky Connor’s friendship with the OG Cobras, particulary Johnny. This fic is set on New Year’s Eve 1983, with the six of them reflecting on the year past and being hopeful about 1984.

#AO3 Masterpost #Thirsty Thursday #Arrowverse #MCU #Miyagi-verse #Spider-Man 2 #flufftober 2021 #flufftober2022

[do-notfolow]

My thoughts on Midnights after the first day of listening

I listened to the album 3 times before gathering my thoughts. First, when it came out. I wanted to immediately write my thoughts like I always do, but, honestly, I couldn't process this album. I listened to it again while making breakfast and came to the conclusion this album is perfect to listen to on full volume while moving around and dancing. I finally managed to rank it on the third listen while taking a stroll. It's so different than anything she's ever done, I don't why I'm so shocked by it.

Anyway, here are my thoughts on every track:

1. Lavender Haze

I love that the opening line is "meet me midnight." same vibes as Lover ending "you gotta step into the daylight and let it go" My first thought when hearing it was that it sounds like a Bleachers song (and I'm here for it). On the second listen, I realized this song is very fun to dance to. I get why people said it reminds them of I Think He Knows.

2. Maroon

Taylor showing off her storytelling skills again. No one knows how to paint a mental picture like she does. Really love the way her voice kind of dips in the chorus. My goal for next year would be to sing the chorus without losing my breath. I have more thoughts on this song and I hope to maybe analyse it more and dedicate an entire post to it.

3. Anti Hero

I get why it's the lead single. This is a fantastic song, time to add it to my depression playlist. "When my depression works the graveyard shift, all of the people I've ghosted stand there in the room" WHO WRITES THAT. I have no idea what the second verse means, but I love the chorus and the bridge is hilarious.

4. Snow On The Beach

Sounds very christmas-y. Kind of disappointed that Lana's only doing vocals. It's a grower. I realized on the third listen it's such a Pynch song.

5. You're On Your Own, Kid

THE BRIDGE??? "I hosted parties and starved my body like I'd be saved by a perfect kiss" screaming, crying, throwing up. Top 3 songs in the album.

6. Midnight Rain

I like the lyrics in the chorus but I don't really like that deep, computer-like voice. The rest of the song is great. "He was sunshine, I was midnight rain" love this!

7. Question...?

OUT OF THE WOODS. Okay, I really like this one. I like the story, I like the beat. "Aaand riiiiiighttttt but toniiiiiight." The clapping 💀. I hope she performs it on tour, I think it'll be very fun.

8. Vigliante Shit

"Draw the cat eye, sharp enough to kill a man" what an opening line. She sounds so sexy, god.

9. Bejeweled

Very shiny song. The way she says "baby love"... oh, God. Really love how she goes from "I'm the worst person on earth" to "I will fucking destory your life" to "I'm the hottest thing around" mood tbh.

10. Labryinth

Her voice!!!!!! Kind of obsessed with the way she sings "oh no, I'm falling in love again" her voice is so soothing. "You know how much I hate that everybody just expects me to bounce back just like that" ok, this hurts.

11. Karma

LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS!! "Karma is a cat purring on my lap 'cause it loves me" most Taylor lyric I've ever heard. The karma is the happiness she found despite the world trying to tear her down and I'm here for it.

12. Sweet Nothing

I wish I knew what it's like to be loved. I like the opening. "They said the end is near" -> "Hush, I know they said the end is near"

13. Mastermind

"What if I told you I'm a mastermind" we knew that, Taylor. This is the opposite of invisible string. "Fate brought us together 🥰🥰....actually, it didn't. I planned it all with my (very) sexy mind 😈😄" The bridge hurts.

@taylorswift @taylornation

#taylor swift #midnights

[inkperch]

Linked Universe Zeldas:

My takes on LU style- Zelda’s. Note: I don’t really follow Linked Universe, and I don’t like a lot of their takes on the Links, so uh, don’t assume these Zelda’s dealt with the LU versions of the Links.

SS: goes by Hylia, she jokingly suggests it when they’re picking nicknames, and everyone else just pauses for a second then realises who exactly she is and freaks the fuck out, so it kinda sticks as a combination of an in-joke and just... well, she’s Hylia reborn, can’t argue with that! The others are all low-key taken aback by how not-leadery she is, she tends to be the most hands-off when it comes to planning because well- she just guards the triforce, Link is the one who earned all 3 pieces and used it’s full power. Meanwhile her descendants picked up Wisdom sometime in the intervening centuries, so she’s pretty happy to leave the plans to them and stick to being a mediator. Third most likely Zelda to pick a fight she can’t win, most likely to win despite that.

Minish Cap: goes by Shortie, bc these beanpoles tried that with Tetra and she threatened to stab them, but Minish just found it hilarious so it stuck. Surprisingly quick to pick up how to fight, occasionally gets the other Zelda’s into trouble by running off, but they usually agree with her that whatever caught her eye was actually pretty worth it, because deep down they’re all massive nerds, no matter how functional they appear. Also tends to randomly grab gifts for the other Zeldas.

Four Swords: just goes by Four, jokes about how much her Hero(es) would be annoyed by that. Usually the first to notice encroaching danger, and always the first to investigate it. At first the more combat-experienced Zelda’s were Concerned(tm) that she is the one sticking herself into unknown dangers, until she pointed out that A) she is considerably less likely to get herself caught unless Sheik wants to go, bc she knows she has less leeway to get caught than they are and B) they won’t be down a fighter for the rescue if she’s the one who gets caught, which they reluctantly concede.

OoT: goes by Regrets, which like, the other Zelda’s just hear her bitterly pick as soon as the topic comes up and immediately decide they aren’t touching that emotional baggage. It’s an mix of Child and Adult timeline Zelda, which kinda fucks her up when she thinks about it- especially seeing as she remebers both Ganondorf breaking free and killing one of the Seven Sages in the child timeline, and what became of the Hero of Time... who she remembers clinging to the thought he got to have the childhood he rightfully should’ve in the Adult Timeline, as the waves climbed up over Hyrule to seal the awakened and unchallenged Ganondorf. So yeah, she tries not to. She also remembers the start of the Defeat Timeline, where she was too late to save the Hero and was forced to lead the exhausted and scattered remains of her people to war to kill the Demon King.

Wind Waker: literally just Tetra, she also is the first to look at the less murder-happy Zeldas and give them a knife. She’s currently working on getting them all up to basic pirate crew levels of fighting without magic, just in case, and she’s constantly pestering the fight-y Zelda’s to a spar. Regrets goes along because she’s had three slightly different Zelda’s merged in her head so her skills are a little rusty, Hylia likes to do it just because people keep forgetting she learned to fight at the same school Link did, and their responses when she reminds them are funny to her. Tetra is picked up from after establishing New Hyrule, and she looks up to Hylia more than she’s willing to admit, often going to her for advice on the whole ‘founding a nation in peaceful cohabitation with the locals’ thing. Second most likely to start a fight she can’t win.

Spirit Tracks: goes by Ghost, refuses to explain the joke to any of the others and thinks she’s hilarious for it. She is, but she doesn’t need the ego stoke. They find out about the ghost thing when she accidently astral projects in her sleep at one point and wakes up to them freaking out over her corpse, which is implied to happen often. Tetra notices that she’s really really weird to train as a fighter, because she already fights pretty well but she also fights like she’s a giant fuck-off suit of armour with a sword as big as she is. She finds it amazing to get to meet Tetra, and is constantly asking her if various stories she heard as a child are actually true or if her mother just made them up or exaggerated. They were not, and Ghost thinks Tetra is the coolest person on the planet for it.

Twilight Princess: goes by Twilight, out of tribute to Midna’s nickname for her. Absolutely misses Midna, respects Regrets more than Regrets thinks she should, but she still angsts a lot about how she just surrendered to the unkillable army its implied she’s the only one who could even see properly who could turn them all into ghos- ahem. I may or may not have opinions about people thinking it’s the wrong decision from out of universe. But yeah, she absolutely angsts about it, and really looks up to Tetra and Regrets bc at least they acted, she just sat in her tower and waited for the hero she knew would be coming. Saying that though, she indulged Tetra’s pestering to fite exactly once (1), and promptly kicked her ass and went back to her book. Because really, what else was she going to do with all that free time while Link was fishing to win a Heart Container and she couldn’t leave her room? Ganondorf had to get the idea to have her use a sword somewhere.

FSA: Even among Zelda's, she stands out for how friendly she is- more than once she brought a ‘new friend’ back to camp who’d been trying to kill them seconds earlier. This got her the nickname Torch, because she shines light into even the darkest of creatures- although, Hylia would like it if she never interacted with any of the mini-Imprisoned from HW ever again please and thank you, that was a step too far for exotic pets.

(I’ll do a followup post for the Defeat Timeline, it has a lot of the older games I haven’t played and need to familiarise myself with the characters in, and it’s already getting late)

Hyrule Warriors: goes by Sheik, was unironically ready to fight her ancestor for the name, but Regrets doesn’t really care. Speaking of regrets, upon learning that Regrets did the exact same disguise in the Adult timeline, Sheik immediately wants to go stab Cia (and maybe Lana too) for letting her think she was getting away with the disguise when Cia had literally seen the exact same trick just one timeline over. (post post-game definitive edition, so Cia has her redemption arc) She also was never meant to be the bearer of the Triforce of Wisdom, and views it as a burden- without Cia’s interference, the Triforce of Wisdom and it’s visions would’ve been passively sitting in the royal vaults instead of etched into her hand, but fate got confused when the Triforce had been split, but the one who should inherit Wisdom was much better suited to Courage. This leads to a bit of a disconnect sometimes, where fate has changed her into a suitable host for the Triforce of Wisdom, but she just kinda isn’t one. She’s also a MASSIVE nerd (I saw those TP references in Linkle’s Twilight stage Nintendo! She literally started dropping random history quotes after almost dying, the nerd) so she’s constantly fangirling over all her famous ancestors, because if anyone had managed to hear legends from all 3 timelines, it would be HW Zelda. The most likely to pick a fight she can’t win, she literally only pretends to be functional and have impulse control when they’re in her Hyrule and her people can see her.

BOTW:

Both BoTW Zeldas avoid each other like the plague because yeah, that’s a physical manifestation of my failures. They’re not consolidated like OoT was for bonus angst- because just merging them would show her there’s a happier timeline where all of her friends survived and Hyrule didn’t fall and crumble to ruins while she and Link took a 100 year nap.

AoC: goes by Terrako, because why the hell not. Has Terrako with her, which gets confusing, but he’s an adorable Eggy Boi, and basically team mascot. Is using her Master Cycle+Sheikah Slate movesets, bc she tried to use her Goddess bow moveset and reality just kinda glitched bc there were two Zelda’s using the exact same power, and they both agreed to never try that again. 

BoTW: goes by Architect, because that’s what she spends half her time doing these days. Regularly nerds out with Sheik. Low-key dying inside from self-worth issues rearing up again now that she’s hanging out with all these legendary queens, but tries not to let it show and keep with a positive attitude, too mixed results.

#legend of zelda #linked universe #zelda #spirit tracks

[rainofaugustsith]

SWTOR and Companion Death

So. Some thoughts about companion deaths in SWTOR in general.

I'm not a fan.

SPOILERS FOR KOTFE ONWARD.

I do know the name of the franchise is Star WARS, and people die in wars. It would probably be extremely unrealistic if we had a scenario where our characters spent literally 17 years of their lives (and counting...well, 12 if we don't count carbonite) fighting and nobody around them died.

However, in SWTOR I think that most of the deaths could been avoided. I don't think they benefit the story. I think that all they really do, in the end, is deprive the audience of a lot of interesting characters. 

I do think there are occasions when a player's character may wish to reject or kill a companion, but I also feel that there are ways to write so that it is an exception, and not commonplace.

And we have not even gotten to the NPC deaths. It has been a bloodbath for years with SWTOR and the writers show no signs of stopping it. Nathema - the body count from Nathema has taken almost twenty NPCs out of the main story. Onslaught? Yeah. Many more. It's become more unusual for an NPC to actually survive for the duration than to have a kill option.

I feel there are better ways to write than to take a Game of Thrones approach and kill everyone. When you eliminate everyone's beloved characters, and you leave the player with nothing more than a rotating cast of strangers, it's quite difficult to get into the story after a while.

Going through the companion deaths from KOTFE to Iokath:

Tanno Vik: The voiceover artist who played Tanno Vik died several years ago, and apparently the devs decided not to make the character recruitable in KOTFE because of that. I can understand this one. It seems that Tanno may die regardless of your choices, too. If you spare him during your meeting, he may not have survived the attack on Asylum, especially if the PC chose to use Valkorion's power.

HK-55: Yes, we get it, you wanted to show everyone that Arcann is a big old monster. The "thrown into carbonite," "slaughtering the Scions" “subjugating both the Republic and Empire” and "ruling as a harsh dictator" plot points didn't get it across quite enough. Dramatic. Yes. And they do bring HK-55 back

My objection to this death is not that they did it - because it actually does fit, even if it's a little extreme - is that they didn't make HK-55's return available to all in the actual main story of the game. I can understand making Shroud of Memory a bonus, because it's cute and funny but doesn't tie super directly into the main plot. But Arma Rasa? I think that should have been for everyone. Yes, I know you can buy it now - and I did - but I still think it should have been main story. If it were, we could have enjoyed HK-55's commentary in the rest of KOTFE and KOTET.

Kaliyo Djannis, Aric Jorgan: Fan service. But it makes no fucking sense. What exactly are you killing them for? They didn't listen, after they tried to compensate and salvage a mission that had gone south? They were left in the lurch because your PC was mission critical and went on a hallucinogenic hiking trip and didn't show up? There's literally nothing you can do to make the mission go right. It always fails, no matter who is in charge or what you tell them to do.

In Kaliyo's case, I really question why the devs thought that she, of all people, would be the character that most players would just love to spend an entire chapter with in one-on-one quality time in KOTFE. I think her kill option was a response to that - "yes, we forced you to play a chapter with this character but look, you can let her go now." Or perhaps it was a response to the frustration some players had with not being able to kill or reject her in the class story.

I think the class story could have sustained a branch where Kaliyo was asked to leave after the Wheezer incident. I think it's reasonable that a player's Agent may not have wanted to continue associating with her at that point. There were four other characters who could have taken her dialogue in the class story missions. But to do it years later? Eh.

In Aric's case, I have no idea what they were thinking. I've never had the feeling he's a character that is widely disliked. They needed to give an option to kill someone along with Kaliyo. I don't know. But it's weird and doesn't make sense IMHO.

Senya: So she's saved her boy. We get it. But considering that Senya also spent several chapters insisting that her children needed to be brought to justice, and was fully willing to engage Vaylin in combat if not kill her - the change of heart was confusing. I think Senya's fate was attached to Arcann's simply to give Arcann greater odds of survival. It seems that people like Senya even if they don't like Arcann. If the two had been separated, I really think less people would have saved Arcann.

Koth: Fan service. Nothing but fucking fan service. I'm sure it had nothing to do with Koth being a LGBTQ+ Black man who actually protested the player's actions and didn't let them off the hook. No, nothing to worry about here with that. That;s sarcasm in case I need to clarify. If things get to the point where Koth has left, your character literally works with him to save the ship and then can kill him while Lana stands there and watches and not a single person protests. After Koth has hijacked the ship and planted a bomb on it. The ship he adores. I can’t even. They could have done so much with this character and they just...did this instead. And then chose to completely ignore him even if he remained in the player's story. I still am salty, years later, that he didn't even get a cameo in the Nathema story. It's not as though the Gravestone's fate would have bothered him at all, amirite?

SCORPIO: One of the few kill options that actually might be justifiable, but the larger question is why she was trusted so much to begin with. And why the game feels it's light side to let her merge with a planet that keeps a necropolis of billions of organics it has slaughtered as research subjects.

Arcann: I feel Arcann should be handled and considered separately because he was not established first as a companion. He was framed and written as an adversary for all of KOTFE. But here we are forced to choose between "let Arcann live and become your new BFF who takes over Lana and Theron's place of trust with no punishment for his crimes" or "kill him on live television! I'm sure I'll be an Instagram Influencer now! Follow me at AllianceCommanderOdesssen uwu!"

Vette; Torian: Completely unnecessary. You have an Alliance that is so large that fighters are literally on the cliffs and in the trees helping you as you progress through the chapter. The Gravestone's taken to the skies. And yet nobody is available to swing by Torian or Vette's position to help them. You and Lana/Theron or Senya/Arcann are literally THE ONLY PEOPLE EVER who can do that. Oh, and the super-smart Hutt scientist in charge of your Research and Development team has given Vette an assault cannon for this huge battle against strong, skilled forces, despite the fact she's only operated an assault cannon...once? For a few minutes? *thumbs up, Oggurobb!*

I feel this was simply done to try to evoke emotion and to erase any sympathy the player may have had for Vaylin, since it immediately follows the Nathema sanitarium visit.

If they really felt the need to go with this, I feel they could have tied it to player actions earlier in the game. Did you do a lot of Alliance Alerts? Did you raise the Specialists' influence above 10? Did you do some of those veteran Star Fortresses and pick up a few extra companions? Then maybe you have enough extra personnel to save both. Quinn: More fan service, served up for those who would have liked to kill or reject Quinn all those years ago in the class story.

Just like Kaliyo - and Skadge, and Tanno Vik - I think the class story could have gone on without him if the Sith Warrior had been allowed to reject him after the Quinncident. I would have rejected him at that point. The writing in the class story could have sustained it. They could have given the healer role to one of the others. And then you'd get a branch where if Quinn was present, he'd show up on Iokath. If not, it would be someone else from the Sith class story, like one of the many Moffs the Warrior meets. Maybe the dude from Ilum, since he doesn't die. Or Hesker.

Theron: Now, here's the issue. The story sets up a scenario where asking Theron to leave because you no longer trust him is understandable. But I plead the case that it never should have gotten to that point. The entire betrayal story was completely unnecessary. Theron NEEDED to go undercover like that? He had a secret language he and Lana developed and just never used it to tip everyone off? He thought frying the Commander on Iokath or throwing her out the train window would be fun? After working so hard for peace, he literally sparked the next galactic war by tipping off everyone about Iokath and manipulating them all into going there so they could learn lots of fun new ways to kill each other?

Come. On. It doesn't make sense. Even in a spy game, I don't think Theron would have really thought that prodding the Empire and Republic to war with each other and the Alliance would have been worth it.

I feel like they could have done so many other things with the Order of Zildrog, and even had the same flashpoints, without making Theron appear to betray the Alliance. 

DS Jaesa: *sigh* So she saw the Commander on the Holonet, never thought of coming to Odessen and instead went to Iokath to slaughter Alliance troops. Oh, and threaten to kill Lana, who may be the player’s partner. Again, it sets up a scenario where it makes sense that a player might kill her, but why was that even necessary? The scenario itself doesn't make sense. If you have Master Ranos, she says that Jaesa was spotted hunting for artifacts, I think? Maybe just maybe they could have worked with that?

Xalek: You're killing Xalek for...um...terrorizing miners...and...yeah. Okay. Dude was in the class story for about five minutes so I don't think anyone knows what is going on here.

Broonmark: Yes, he's basically a cold-blooded killer. But he's going after this Wookiee senator because he's allying with the Republic? Or getting some Talz to be allies? The Talz already seem to be aligned Republic. He's a bit late to that party. Why is it that I don't think Broonmark would be into politics or watching the news and would not care about this?

Rusk: Um, yeah, Bey'wan, about that guy you wanted me to recruit, he's, um, dead. Because I decided to sell him out to a Black Sun gang leader. Don't be mad?

Skadge: One of the few kill options I think most could agree is...not that bad. Your mission with Rusk is to kill him. He was an adversary in the game. My headcanon for my bounty hunters is that he never gets on the ship after Belsavis. There’s no way they would have ever brought him along. Another case of correcting something from the class story?

#swtor #swtor critical #rain plays swtor

[hithelleth]

First Lines Of Your Last 20 Fics!

Rules: List the first lines of your last 20 stories (if you have less than 20, just list them all!). See if there are any patterns. Choose your favourite opening line. Then tag 10 of your favourite authors!

I was tagged by @eveningspirit, thank you! I always like to walk down the memory lane of my writing exploits, they are a nice confidence boos. :)

The Ice King and the Star Boy (The 100 | Bellamy/Roan | E) (aka the monsterfic, as you know it ;))

Banishment.

Impasse (Revolution | CM2 | E)

Charlie finds Bass stretched all lion-like on the king-size bed, studying reports, when she enters the tent.

(Filling) Empty Spaces (Revolution | Jeremy/Charlie | NR)

Charlie was just going to drop off the files Miles had forgotten again, but Jeremy waves her inside as he opens the door.

Only Human (The 100 | various characters | G)

“You’re presenting a puzzle to Rani and Lana.”

Lost (Yellowstone | Jamie Dutton | G)

The plaque on the wall is like a signpost. So, of course he goes to Beth. Because he doesn’t know what to do, whether to accept Rainwater’s – a good man, Perry said, and Jamie might be naïve, but he is not that naïve to think that if everyone plays dirty Rainwater is an exception – patronage or not.

Homework (Station 19 | Vicley | G)

Homework: Write a 100 words about your family or about what you want to be when you grow up.

Now Is Not the End (Station 19 | Vicley | T)

Vic waits with baited breath for that moment she is not ready for. Waits. Waits…

Thoughts on the Future Pasts (Timeless | Nicholas Keynes/Emma Whitmore| T)

The future is... confusing.

Dominoes Falling (TVD/TO | Elena/Elijah/Klaus | NR)

It turns out sometimes late is worse than never.

Close Encounters (Revolution | Charlie/Bass | E)

Bass gets to work well after midnight when the hotel at last falls silent, the partying vacationers having tired themselves out and the early-rising business people not yet up. He is done cleaning the pools before dawn and he sits down in a shaded corner, enjoying the peace and quiet of those last dark cool minutes that offer reprieve from the summer heat.

Reasons to Fight (The 100 | Clarke/Roan | NR)

Roan comes round to something tugging at his hand, constricting his movement. Panic surges in his mind for a moment before he pushes it down and starts cataloguing his surroundings with the methodical precision he learnt as a boy.

Prompts Exist to Be Filled (Revolution, prompt collection, various)

She was a good woman – Jeremy sensed that, although he knew her life had been – perhaps still was – intertwined with Bass’ and Miles’, which also meant that it was fucked up, because those two managed to fuck up everything they touched and he only needed to look in the mirror to find an example; yet, whatever it was up with her and Bass and Miles and however fucked up it was, Jeremy saw her effect on Bass whose eyes lost the glint of craziness and paranoia the moment she appeared: Bass suddenly seemed the man Jeremy met fifteen years ago – the Bass with a sense of shame for his blatant lie and a remnant of naïveté that used to drive him to do the right thing, a man redirected to the path he had lost.

Alien Encounters, Changing Fates, Business as Usual (Killjoys, Revolution, Supernatural | various characters | NR)

After what seems like ages, the turbulence ends with one final jolt that rattles every single bone in their bodies, a clear signal that they have landed – somewhere.

It’s Us Who Own the Apocalypse (Revolution | various pairings | NR)

2030

For the umpteenth time in her life, Rachel regrets getting involved with the goddamn DOD – and for the umpteenth time as well, she acknowledges that she would have done it again if it meant saving Danny – when she almost stumbles into her office from yet another meeting in which she had to fight tooth-and-nail against the bastards trying to use her work for their nefarious purposes.

Convalescence (Quantico | Clayton Haas | NR)

Clayton flinches when he hears the door being unlocked. He always flinches when someone is at the door, although he knows the chance of anyone finding him here is miniscule. The shame at his own cowardice makes him nauseous for a moment; he didn’t use to be one to succumb to fears, but he supposes a near-death experience would do this to a man.

When the Night Breaks (The 100 | Bellamy/Roan | E)

“I’m sorry about your arm.”

The Princess and the Pirates (Revolution | various characters | T)

“Sail out. My brother Miles is out there at sea. He’ll help you.”

Each of Us Is Broken, Always and Forever (The Originals | Elijah/Rebekah/Klaus | E)

“Good evening.”

Hollow (The 100 | Bellarke | NR)

He hadn’t realised it would be like missing a limb. Like in those stories he had heard on the Ark long ago, of a person’s left hand trying to scratch the right one that is no longer there, of phantom pain where there used to be a body part.

There’s a War… but All I See Is You and Me (Agents of Shield | Bakshimmons | E)

It is a stupid thing to wish, but if he were able to stop the time, he would freeze them in those minutes when Jemma giggles between kisses before collapsing on the bed and pulling him down with her.

***

Oh, this took me to 2015 and that shitshow we do not mention, although am sorry I haven't finished this particular fic (but I won't. Nope, nope. Because I'd have to rewatch S2 for that and no, no, no. No. Yes, that's how many no-s it deserves.)

Thank you for the tag, ES, it was nice remembering things I did well, if I say so myself!

It took me so long because on the day you tagged me I started writing it right away and then tumblr decided that e and l are not acceptable letters - I got scared my keyboard was dying, but nope, it worked just fine when typing in word or even into a search line on another tab in the same browser, but tumblr just wouldn't 'take' them.

Also, I remember doing something similar before but with only 10 fics and I could've copy-pasted that and just add the next ten, but do you think I remembered it before I'd already painstakingly did 10 fics? Of course not.

And then, as I think you saw I was too scatter-brained for anything.

Why I'm even explaining this? I think it's the lack of contact with like actual normal humans and this is the closest, so I over do it. Oh, well, if I've already put in the effort to type it all. ;)

Oh, right, patterns: I tend to really vary in style? Though maybe shorter openings are more frequent than more wordy ones.

And my favourite are those from Hollow, Dominoes Falling, and Convalescence. Which one is yours?

Tagging (if it helps you feel better, otherwise, feel free to ignore): @bea2me, @jadedbirch, @abedsmessedupmeta, @stargazerdaisy, @vesperass-anuna and IDK who ever is still writing, oh @blue-charlotte and anyone else who wants to do it! :)

#writing meme #tag meme #this is also an excellent opportunity for self-brag #;) #eveninspirit

[karolinevassalor]

Opinion about HameFura

Oh, here we’re guys and girls. This LN/anime makes my little heart skip and stole it right away. Good parody for the normal otome games and their adaptations but also kind, cute and funny.  Catarina high amount of dense its also funny (but some extent can be too much) and the funniest thing, she try avoid her bad fate and not realised she ALREADY did it. 

Every main character regardless of gender head over heels for her and if there a 0,000000001% chance she got exiled, everyone goes after her, and live another place together, happy. Remember (little spoiler whom not read the LN, be careful)

- Geordo/Jared/Geralt/srylywhatyourname love her so much he not afraid to use his rank and power to punish the peoples whom want to hurt her. But the same time he ready to annul his right for the throne to save her. Some people among the readers not really like his “clingy, possessive” behavior, but hey he is her fiancee whom freaked out how she make almost everyone fell in love around her. So, thats probably normal.

- Keith, even they’re siblings (No, not sweet home alabama - style) at young age he realised he love her, but not as a sister. His love is so strong he want to separate her from the Prince, but he probably step aside right away if Catarina find a happiness in Geordo’s side.

- Same with Nicol. He loves the queen of dense so much, for that level he able to cast aside his own happines for Catarinas. But i think if prince Geordo make just one wrong move (which is higly impossible), he ready to get her.

- Alan. Oh, my boy. There the another dense in distress. Even he have another fiancee, he love Catarina for years, he just nor realised (more like mistake it for good friendship), and the Geordo/Mary/Keith trio also keep him to this. They dont want another competition.

- Sirius/Raphael not exactly love her like the other guys, but he also catched by her turmole power of kindness and he want to be at her side and protect her at any cost.

- Rufus/Sora is the kinkiest among the suitors. He probably got a reverse Stockholm-snydrome or something how he get attracted to her. And when he think, yeah be bedded another womans before, he never feel love or any attachent towards them, just only for Catarina. And he want to fu-i mean he want make her his in a well-know-way, but similar to Geordo, he get cockblocked. (Thanks Lana :3)

And for the Girls

- Mary is the female version of prince Geordo. Kind with actions and words, but very territorial and she already planned to escape with Catarina and settle down somewhere. And she frequently sabotaged her own fiancee to realise his feeling for our dense heroine.

- Sophia is the most formal (and cute :3), she like Nicol she make another one hapinness before hers (her brother’s, to be precise) and try to get every chance to make them together.

- Maria is also the sweet, cute heroine demoted to faithful good friend and also want nothing more in her life to live a nice, quiet place along with her love, which is obviusly Catarina. 

I dunno who will win her heart, but i pick Catarina with her fiancee so~ yeah, i cant wait for to read the rest of it.

#hamefura #otome game no hametsu flag shika nai akuyaku reijou ni tensei shiteshimatta #anime #manga #light novel #reverse harem #katarina claes #geordo stuart #alan stuart #mary hunt #sophia ascal #maria campbell #nicole ascart #sirius diekes #Rufus #Sora #Lana #ship #catarina geordo

[omgyouatetheprincess]

Janus’ Playlist

AHH JANUS' PLAYLIST LETS GOO

Not that anyone asked for my opinions

Okay so I'd like to start by saying that Thomas, Joan and Talyn did an amazing job on this playlist because every song fits Janus so perfectly.

Here are some of my thoughts on the songs and some interpretations I came up with or found on the internet.

Trigger Warnings - abortion. Mocking of religion.

Black Hole Sun - okay at first I was like 'wow this is really smooth and nice and the vocals are so sweet.' Then I heard the lyrics. "In disguises no one knows,

Hides the face, lies the snake". It's such a Deceit song and I imagine him dancing to it (with or without a partner).

Black Hole Sun by Scott Bradlee's Postmodern Jukebox, Haley Reinhart

It Seemed That Better Way - holy heck, can I point out that this song is such a bop? Leonard Cohen has such a soothing voice and it reminds me of Patrick Page (aha Hadestown) and if Janus wasn't played by Thomas, I could imagine this as his voice. The song is about not knowing what the truth is and what to believe, and has religious meanings which could be countering Patton and his Catholic beliefs.

It Seemed The Better Way by Leonard Cohen

Anywhere - I feel like Patton would hate this because the first line is "It's a beautiful world if you've been lied to by parents and priests". Anywhere describes how the world isn't a beautiful as it may seem, and that people lie to make you see it.

Anywhere by The Scarring Party

Talking At The Same Time - it is immediately dark and that everything seems fake and a... Lie. A lot of Deceit's songs are about the truth or that everything is a lie and I have to give massive kudos to Thomas, Joan and Talyn because they did an excellent job portraying Janus through his music taste. The song describes how everyone talks at the same time, and what I interpret that as is that everyone says the same thing over and over. It's hard to explain so I'll let you make your own interpretations of it.

Talking At The Same Time by Tom Waits

all the good girls go to hell - I'm not going to lie (ha) but I don't like Billie Eyelash, but I'll see past the artist. My first thought when I saw the song without hearing it is that it's a good choice and Janus probably loves Billie Eilish. Spotify has meanings of songs so I'm going to go off there: "This song is in the perspective of the Devil / no matter how good you are, desperate measures will eventually break you / turn you into bad." I feel like Deceit would sing this around the house. This song is twisting Christian symbolism and the lyrics can be interpreted as Eilish praising people who go to hell as it's better than being morally good. (Also, just switch Peter with Patton)

all the bad girls go to hell by Billie Eilish

Denial - KDJIEKAKSNDENIAL? In Putting Others First, Janus is referred to as Denial and now this song? Everyone start clapping for Thomas and his team. Anyway, the song discusses themes of conflict within a relationship, and the denial and insecurity of being in a relationship near it’s end (source: Genius). Also, Roceit vibes?

Denial by The Vaccines

Trust In Me - first of all, heck yeah! I predicted this song to be on his playlist because it's a slimy snake song from Disney? Hello this is Thomas? I think it's a great song and Johansson's voice is angelic. Kaa is manipulating and hypnotizing Mowgli, and if Deceit could do the same you can bet your bottom dollar he would sing this. We love our not-evil snake boi.

Trust In Me by Scarlett Johansson

Razzle Dazzle - Janus singing this with Roman? Yes please? Okay so I get that this is a villian song, and I love that, but imagine Deceit in a shiny sequenced dress? I also haven't seen Chicago yet so I'm going off what I've heard - this song describes how it is too easy to put on a show and make the audience happy. Basically, acting is just professional lying. The line "Though you are stiffer than a girder they'll let you get away with murder" is so clever (no spoilers but he had it coming)

Razzle Dazzle by Richard Gere

[SLIGHT HADESTOWN SPOILERS]

When The Chips Are Down - I hecking love Hadestown so you can bet I squealed when I saw this song. This song is sung by the fates, who are portrayed at untrustworthy. The title of this song is derived from the idiom “when the chips are down”, meaning “when a very serious and difficult situation arises”. Eurydice is in potentially one of the most serious and difficult situations she could be in: her life is at stake. After Hades invites Eurydice to come with him to Hadestown, the Fates appear and encourage her to consider his offer. They tell her that she should look after herself now that she is starving and the “chips are down”. (Source: Genius). In my own words, the fates are convincing (or manipulating if you will) a poor helpless girl to put herself first and save herself. It also mentions how if you be good to get into heaven,you get a knife in the back.

Go listen to Hadestown, it's an incredible soundtrack.

When The Chips Are Down by Anaïs Mitchell, The Haden Triplets

[TW! Abortion]

Mandy Goes to Med School - okay so this song is about abortion, so we'll have to go off context. Mandy (or Amanda Palmer) has to pay for Medical School by giving abortions in an alleyway with a coat hanger, so I interpret this as having to do shady stuff to get what you want. I think him and Remus would enjoy this song together. I'd also like to note that Logan had a song by Amanda Palmer in his playlist... That isn't relevant but I wanted to note that.

Mandy Goes to Med School by The Dresden Dolls

I Put A Spell On You - 50SOG vibes? I really like this song, it has a nice rhythm and the lyrics are so creepy. This gives me vibes of Deceit cornering/pining another side/love interest because if our baby boy wants to be happy, he should. This is similar to Trust In Me because it talks about enchanting someone to get what you want. "I don't care if you don't want me, I'm yours right now." Chills. Janus singing this song would complete my life.

Also the singer calls the love interest daddy but we ain't shaming

I Put A Spell On You by Nina Simone

Evil Night Together - well the title has evil in it so... Perfect for our Evil Snake Boi. This song gives me huge Demus/Receit vibes because it's basically like "let's go on a date in the creepiest place."

What if we drank a drink in the torture chambers... Haha jk ...unless 🥺

Evil Night Together by Jill Tracy

Don't Tell Mama - another musical song? Roman would be impressed. This song is about an English singer, who's mother thinks she's in a convent (a nun), when really she's in a German s3x club. You can really tell why it would be so bad if her secret got out.

Don't Tell Mama by John Kander, Joel Grey, Jill Hawarth, Cabaret Ensemble, Harold Hastings

You're A Cad - definition of a cad: a man who behaves dishonourably, especially towards a woman... This song has a nice beat and gives me TikTok vibes, but it also gives me Moceit vibes (I say vibes too much) because the singer is saying "you're a villain, a cad, a rascal... But I'm like a fish on a hook for you and I still want you." Also, she has a sweet tooth?

You're A Cad by the bird and the bee

As Far As I Can See - all aboard the angst train, CHOO-CHOO "As far as I can see, nobody loves me. As far as I can tell, nobody loves you either" this song gives me such Roceit vibes because the meaning is pretty simple: if nobody loves Janus, then he'll take everyone down with him. I knew there would be that one song that tries to make me cry for our poor baby.

As Far As I Can See by Phantogram

Criminal - first of all, the cover is beautiful. Apple describes the song as “a description of feeling bad for getting something so easily by using your sexuality.” She also told in an interview: "One of my friends said to me, “Oh yeah, of course you aren’t writing.” So I was like, “The next time you see me, I’m gonna have a new song.” I wrote “Criminal” in 45 minutes when everyone else went to lunch because I had to have a hit. I can force myself to do the work, but only if someone is right up behind me." Which is the level of pettiness I see in Deceit and I am here for it. The context of the song is seduction and manipulation, so Janus using his sexuality to manipulate the other Sides is a cursed thought.

Criminal by Fiona Apple

Change - if any of them listened to Lana Del Rey, I sort of expected it to be Virgil. Change shows how Del Rey has matured, and I feel like it also portrays Janus' ability to adapt. "Change is a powerful thing... I'll be able to be honest..." Does this mean he's trying to change? Will we get more character development? LIGHT SIDE JANUS?

Change by Lana Del Rey

Devil In The Details - this song is about trusting the wrong person and taking advantage of something. "I am the first one I deceive if I can make myself believe the rest is easy.". More angst, yay.

Devil In The Details by Bright Eyes

Come Little Children - if you had a My Little Pony phase, you probably know this song. Come Little Children, also known as "Sarah's Theme" and "Garden of Magic," is a song sung by Sarah Sanderson in the film, Hocus Pocus to hypnotize children to lure them. Manipulation: a common theme.

Come Little Children by Erutan

Into The Unknown - I was really shocked to see this song until I realized, no, it wasn't the same iconic theme from Frozen 2. This short song is from Over The Garden Wall, a show Thomas watches but I have not. "If dreams can't come true, then why not pretend?" The show plays heavily on the battle between dreams and reality (source: Genius). The way I see this, Janus is convincing the Light Sides to do something, or specifically Roman to make his dreams come true through selfish means.

Into The Unknown by The Blasting Company

This playlist is one of the best because every song had me saying “Janus would so sing this". If you have any thoughts, feel free to comment!

As always, take it easy guys gals and non-binary pals peace out

#janus sanders #side tracks #spotify #playlist #deceit #thomas sanders #sanders sides #snake #black hole sun #it seemed the better way #talking at the same time #all the good girls go to hell #billie eilish #denial #trust in me #disney #razzle dazzle #chicago #musical #hadestown #when the chips are down #mandy goes to med school #i put a spell on you #don't tell mama #cabaret #you're a cad #criminal #dukeceit #moceit #roceit

[eabhaalynn]

My 11 Songs of the Decade (because 10 would be boring and is overdone.)

Cigarette Daydreams – Cage the Elephant

The song… This is the closing song of Cage the Elephant’s 2013 album, Melophobia, and the third single released from this album. It describes the pain of someone’s search for their own identity through the musings of a parted lover.

For me… To this day, this is the song I cry to. This always has been me and my friend Iona’s song. It will forever be inseparable from the Ulster Museum and Botanic Gardens in Belfast, from rainy summer’s days and rants about our seemingly massive problems with GCSEs and girls from school. When she went abroad for her gap year, I couldn’t bear to listen to it. It’s another one of these songs that manages to articulate what it feels like to be young and thinking too much.

Key lyric…If we can find a reason, a reason to change Looking for the answer If you can find a reason, a reason to stay Standing in the pouring rain

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvVJ0v6Vta8

Ribs – Lorde

The song… This is a deep house influenced electronica song that discusses Lorde’s stress over ageing. It was released on her debut album, Pure Heroine, in 2013. It begins ambiently and builds to become increasingly more frantic as the song progresses.

For me… Despite being released when I was a young teenager, this song was written when Lorde was sixteen or seventeen. It articulates exactly what it feels like to be that age, at that stage of life. I’m quite sure teenagers across the globe can relate to that. This song has been the soundtrack of my teenage years, the imagery is both relatable and accessible. Listening now, it gives me a sense of nostalgia, a yearning to be back where I was a year, or two or three years ago. Even now, it is the sound of being alone in a crowd. It is musically perfect, and a piece of exceptional songwriting.

Key lyric…This dream isn't feeling sweet We're reeling through the midnight streets And I've never felt more alone It feels so scary, getting old

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qaeoz_7cyE

Sign of the Times – Harry Styles

The song…  This is Harry Style’s debut single as a solo artist. It was released in early 2017 and appears on his self-titled debut album. It is a power ballad with eclectic influences from genres such as soft rock, indie rock, glam rock and psychedelic soul. It features Styles’ vocals alongside choral harmonies throughout. It is essentially about avoiding emotion during times of grief and hardship.

For me…This is the song of me leaving school (for the first time). Listening to it now coughs up all the feelings of relief, and yet uncertainty. Excitement, but also nerves. Summer 2017 was a turning point for me. I had had a terrible couple of years over my GCSEs, and overall, my second school was a far better place for me to be than my first one ever was. At the time though, I didn’t know this. Sure, how could I? This song helped me figure out my feelings, and make sense of feeling happy when I really didn’t know what I should have felt at all.

Key lyric…We don't talk enough, we should open up Before it's all too much Will we ever learn? We've been here before It's just what we know

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qN4ooNx77u0

Ride – Lana Del Rey

The song… This song comes from Lana Del Rey’s third EP, Paradise, released in 2012. It served as the first single of this re-release. It is a ballad that includes, among other themes, parental problems, loneliness and alcohol misuse. Del Rey sings over a string drenched, piano driven melody.

For me… This is the song of every summer. It has never been an exceptionally happy song for me, but it is the embodiment of what it is to feel young and alive, if a little bit tired. The glamour of it, alongside the acknowledgement that everything isn’t perfect, but that they will be okay if you just go with the flow, was exactly what I needed at the time it was released. The blissful uncertainty of the summers of being 14 and 15, partnered with the irrelevance of the future, is exactly what this song will always be about for me.

Key lyric… Been trying hard not to get into trouble But I, I've got a war in my mind I just ride, just ride

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Py_-3di1yx0

Don’t Delete the Kisses – Wolf Alice

The song… This is the second single from Wolf Alice’s second album, Visions of a Life. It is characterised as dream pop, synth pop, shoegaze and indie rock. Frontwoman Rowsell referred to it as “one of those, you know, ‘head out the window on a long drive’ kind of tunes.’

For me… If ‘ribs’ is the sound of being seventeen, then surely this is the sound of falling in love. This song is the ultimate love song. I am absolutely convinced of it. It is greater than any one person as it is simply the sound of the feeling. I am very lucky that I actually was falling in love for the first time at the time this was released. I will always be indebted to Ellie Rowsell for being there to tell me in plain English how I was feeling. This song has defined every ‘lovey dovey’ mood I have been in for the last two and a half years. I’m sure most people of my age feel the same. It was written for the era we are living in and it is perfectly suited to it.

Key lyric…I see the signs of a lifetime, you 'til I die

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqxE-zppu30

Motion Sickness – Phoebe Bridgers

The song… This is the third single from Phoebe Bridger’s 2017 Debut album ‘Stranger in the Alps.’ It describes “being in love with someone who is super mean to you… like conflicted feelings.” Bridger’s stated to radio station KCRW that the song was written about fellow musician Ryan Adams.

For me… Admittedly, I discovered this song late in the decade. But it’s a song about feelings. Like, really hard feelings. This decade, and especially the latter half of it, threw up a lot of feelings, about a lot of things. I suppose this is fairly standard for most people approaching the end of their teenage years. It’s angsty, without being too bothered about anything. It’s raw and honest; articulating everything I’ve felt about everyone at one stage or another, and I’m equally, I’m sure it articulates enough people’s feelings about me.

Key lyric… You said when you met me you were bored And you, you were in a band when I was born

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sfYpolGCu8

A & E – Brand New Friend

The song… This illustrates the rise and fall of a relationship, and in doing so highlights the more melancholic acoustic side of Northern Irish indie pop group Brand New Friend. It was initially released in 2016 as the closing song of their debut EP, American Wives, but was remastered and re-released on their 2017 album Seatbelts for Airplanes.

For me… This is the song of the medicine application. Bearing in mind I know this band, and know that there is a well-developed meaning to the song that has nothing to do with me, this is the song that I have listened to, and seen live, countless times from the day I decided I wanted to be a doctor to the day I got into medical school and beyond. It is a rare and beautiful connection to have to a song like this, and one for which I am forever going to be grateful. Now, I can’t hear the song live without bawling my wee eyes out. I have come so far, and the band have too, and the song has been with us every step of the way. That truly means the world to me.

Key lyric… She wants to be a paramedic / Wants to save a strangers life / Now she wants to hold my hand / Does she know she’s saving mine?

https://open.spotify.com/track/5RmOfF1s5zW2B942H9OGXT?si=hsauA8iXQN6mXQnL8s0fBw

Brazil – Declan McKenna

The song… McKenna initially self-released this song in December 2014. It is critical of FIFA, of their awarding of the 2014 World Cup to Brazil without addressing the deep rooted and extensive poverty affecting the Nations people. It gained widespread media attention throughout the FIFA corruption scandal, before featuring on his debut album, ‘What do you think about the Car?’ in July 2017. It is an indie rock song that is driven by guitars and synths.

For me… This song was the sound of 2016 and 2017. It was released a while before this but I was fairly late jumping on the bandwagon. It’s a political song, speaking of the injustices behind FIFA and their 2014 World Cup in Brazil. As an angry little leftist, I have always appreciated this. I can only appreciate it more knowing that Declan McKenna himself was only fourteen when he wrote it. For me the song has many happy memories attached to it, from the long summer walks from my house to the nearest village to see my friends who were working as sailing instructors, to attending a tiny gig of Declan McKenna’s in the Oh Yeah Centre in Belfast and being about 6 feet from his face while he was 6 feet from the cusp of fame.

Key lyric…Because you've had your chances, yeah you've had enough I'm gonna burn your house down to spread peace and love

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duHjQ3BE6D8

Robbers – The 1975

The song… This is the sixth single from the 1975’s self-titled debut album. It was released as a single in May 2014. The song’s concept follows an ill-fated robbery, and was inspired in part by the 1993 film ‘True Romance.’ It is essentially about a relationship in which the partners are too focused on each other to notice the destruction they are each causing.

For me… This song is fairly definitive of my teenage years as a whole. The narrative of a toxic relationship that the writer could not, or would not leave, was one that I always managed to connect to, across all aspects of my life as a young teenager, encountering uncomfortable situations within school and with different people and groups of friends. Matty Healy was (and honestly still is) one of the biggest crushes I’ve ever had. I’ve now heard this song live three different times, at three completely different phases of my life. It is a song with so much meaning, and yet one that has grown and evolved with me throughout the decade.

Key lyric… Now everybody's dead And they're driving past my old school And he's got his gun, he's got his suit on She says, 'Babe, you look so cool'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iyy3YOpxL2k

Get Well Soon – Ariana Grande

The song… This is the final song on Grande’s 2017 album ‘Sweetener,’ it is a soul ballad with layered vocals, and is inspired by Grande’s personal anxiety and trauma following the May 2017 terrorist attack following her concert in Manchester. In memory of the 22 victims of this attack, there is a 40 second moment of silence at the end of the song.

For me… I am, and have been, a very anxious person for a very long time. This is something I have never really hid away from, but also never felt up to talking openly about. This song manages to describe the feelings associated with anxiety in a way I have never heard any mainstream musician attempt before. Ariana’s concert which was attacked in May 2017, that which inspired this song, immediately followed her concert that my father and sister had attended, and so the whole song and sequence of events is and always has been very close to home for me.

Key lyric…I'm too much in my head, did you notice? (Girl, what’s wrong with you? Come back down)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXU4P6j3TNY

She’s Thunderstorms – Arctic Monkeys

The song… This is the first song from the fourth studio album by arctic monkeys; Suck it and See, released in 2011. It originated when Alex Turner was looking for a new way of complimenting someone. It begins with an Eastern inspired riff and is fairly heavily guitar led, characteristic of this period in the Arctic Monkey’s discography

For me… I’d be lying if I said this isn’t one of my favourite songs of all time. I chose it for this list because it is my favourite song by the arctic monkeys, who are my favourite band. Its subject, Alexa Chung, basically leads the life I wish I had. Even more so at the time this song was written than now. I remember being twelve or thirteen and just wanting someone to write something like this for me. The sheer detail of the lyrics is beautiful and so captivating, they played a huge part in helping me find my love for music in an accessible way. I loved, and still do love, the relationship they had. I feel like it translated so well into his music, and into the popular culture that shaped my teenage years exceptionally well.  

Key lyric…Here is your host, sounds as if she's pretty close When the heat starts growing horns She's thunderstorms

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQSQnHh4rPE

#music #songs #arctic monkeys #ariana grande #the 1975 #lana del rey #phoebe bridgers #lorde #declan mckenna #brandnewfriend #cage the elephant #wolf alice #harry styles

[medea10]

Medea’s Anime/Game Superlative of 2019

Well it’s that time of the year where I look back on the animes I’ve watched and the games I played with this outdated meme quiz from 10 years ago. But I still do it for the fun of it! As usual, it doesn’t matter what year the anime or game came out. If I messed with it this year, it counts for the honors. So if it came out two years ago (which feels like forever ago), it counts. Let’s get at it!

First Fandom of 2019: The Promised Neverland

Episode 1! That’s all you need to watch to officially get hooked to this series. I jumped on this title at the beginning of the year not knowing what to expect due to Aniplex and Crunchyroll whoring this particular anime months prior. But once I saw the first episode, I was immediately hooked. It shook me to my core to watch one of the most graphic scenes to come from this year. I was captivated by Emma, Norman, and Ray’s plans in order to escape their doomed fate of becoming food for creepy demons. Each episode, I was at the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen next. Is Gilda in cahoots with Sister Krone? Will Don learn the truth about what really happened to Connie in episode 1? Can Ray be trusted? IS NORMAN STILL ALIVE?! Come on, I’m like really far ahead in the manga. I want to see Norman and Emma together again. I’m so happy this series is getting a second season in 2020.

Favorite Main Character of 2019: Haru from My Roommate is a Cat

It was a close call this year for main characters and normally I don’t shoot for main characters. This year I will admit that I fell in love with Chika from Kaguya-sama. Plus, I still love me some Lana from Pokemon Sun/Moon! And I finally started part III of Jojo’s, so Grandpa Joestar is just the awesome OH MY GOD that I need. However, they all lose out to a cat! Yeah, just like that one year where I picked Nyanko-sensei as my favorite main character, I’m doing it again.

I know Haru can’t actually talk back to her human, but the audience can hear what she’s really saying and it’s absolutely amusing. She was funny when she thought the word “Haru” meant food. She’s so adorable when she’s playing with whatever catches her eye. She’s got quite the personality (almost tsundere even). But I gotta admire Haru too. Before she was adopted, Haru was on the street trying her best to look out for her younger siblings. Even giving them more food scraps when she would go hungry herself. After Haru was adopted by Subaru, she eventually warmed up to him as “her human”. It was a learning experience for both as Haru didn’t know how to react to having a human care for her and Subaru has never taken care of a cat before. But Haru is a loyal kitty who loves her human. Hell, she ran away from home because she feared her human collapsed somewhere. Haru’s the greatest!

Favorite Villain of 2019:

…

…Dear God, give me the strength to pull through this one.

Princess Malty “Myne, Bitch, Whore” Melromarc (The Rising of the Shield Hero)

No, this is not me insulting her. These are all her official names. Really! In many of the animes I watched this year, the villains were pretty hit-and-miss with me. I’m in the middle of watching the elven uprise with Black Clover and didn’t want to talk about that this year. Fairy Tail’s villains are just okay. And I didn’t watch Frieza this year! So let’s talk about the ONE villain who even out-trump’s the actual villain to the series.

It only took one episode for an entire fandom to turn on one single character. A single lie that figuratively speaking threw our main protagonist Naofumi under the bus, kicked him in the nuts, shanked him, robbed him, and thrown him off a cliff. Myne did so much throughout this series. She lied about being raped. She abused her power to get what she wanted. She set up someone to fail constantly. She attempted murder on her own sister (several times) just to keep her status as first in line to the throne. And she cheats so she gets her way! It was so sickening to watch this vile woman for more than just one episode. When you created a character who was so disgusting and revolting as a secondary villain, you did something right! It’s like with Shou Tucker and Father from Full Metal Alchemist. Ask any anime fan and they’ll definitely remember Tucker over Father. Myne is this anime’s Shou Tucker! And I have to give her some credit, she is now one memorable villain. And aren’t villains usually supposed to be despised? I, Naofumi, most characters in Shield Hero after episode 21, and all of the internet can come together in agreement to say, we hate Malty, Myne, Bitch, Whore.

Final insult on the matter, she’s a cunt!

Favorite Video Game Character(s) of 2019: Piers & Marnie (Pokemon: Sword and Shield)

I knew point blank that Marnie was going to be my favorite rival in this game. I knew I was going to enjoy the antics of her yell squad (a.k.a. Team Yell) too. But I never expected to meet her brother and enjoy him too. Like in more recent games, Pokemon has given your character a total of three rivals to look out for. And while Hop is just the British version of Hau and Bede is just…a fuck-face, Marnie was someone who marched to the beat of her own drum. She recognizes a powerful foe and has a level of respect for her rival. She has her own fanbase, but isn’t totally arrogant about it. Plus, she doesn’t mind helping you out and giving an extra boost in battle. Plus that smile scene is just too adorable for words. And then there’s Piers!

First of all, I just love the design of this guy. What did I say when I first laid eyes on him? It’s like if David Bowie, Marilyn Manson, and Sid Vicious threw up on a pentagram crafted from Hot Topic gear and this dude emerges! And much like his sister, he marches to the beat of his own drum. That’s why he’s the only gym leader in Galar that doesn’t use the Dynamax method. I would have been satisfied if I only got to see him once or twice in the game. But I was blessed when Piers came to my aid to take down the Marco Cosmos thugs AND take on all the rogue Dynamax pokemon in the post-game. I’m impressed! Out of all the people they picked to help the protagonist and Hop in this adventure, it was Piers. I am ever so happy by this. I am so heavily invested in this guy that I’m already thinking of fic ideas involving him.

Favorite Game of 2019: Pokemon Masters

As much as I really do love Pokemon Sword and Shield, I gotta give it to the mobile game this year. This game not only made one of my reoccurring dreams come true, but gave it something no other Pokemon game has been able to do in over twenty years. HUMAN VOICES! The trainers, they speak! AND YOU CAN CHANGE BETWEEN ENGLISH AND JAPANESE! Do you have any idea how much of a win this is for me! I know they’ll never have Tracey Sketchit in the game, but this still rocks my world. Do you know how much I love hearing Mamoru Miyano play a dickish bad guy? Do you know how badly I need to hear Daisuke Ono on a day-to-day basis? I’m a voice queen!

I know I don’t usually like to give praise to freemium games for the mobile phones, but this game is quite nice. I mean, yeah, you really do have to save up your gems in order to (hopefully) get the 5-star trainer that’s currently advertised and the urge of wanting to open up your wallet to actually purchase gems is tantalizing. Not as fucked as Fate/Grand Order, but you get my meaning. Unlike a lot of the freemium games, this one doesn’t limit you so much to play (unless you spend fake or real money in the game). You can super train all you want and not lose stamina! Plus, I like these special sync moves between trainer and pokemon. And there’s just something about seeing all of these different trainers from all these regions together and interacting with each other. Despite never seeing a lot of this in the anime, manga, or previous games.

Favorite Het Couple of 2019: Retsuko x Haida (Aggretsuko)

In one of my baby accomplishments this year, I stopped being a tight-wad and splurged on a Netflix account. Right around the same time it becomes unpopular. Hahaha! Why does this always happen to me?

Throughout the series, we’ve watched Retsuko take chances with a lot of guys including a charming polar bear, a red panda with the brain of a pot plant, and the world’s handsomest donkey. But Retsuko has friend-zoned her workmate Haida the whole time. Meanwhile, I and pretty much like 90% of the fanbase ship the fuck out of this. Rightfully so! Haida has been admiring her from afar for so long. He tries his best to be supportive of her in the office and elsewhere. He was even nice enough to run back to the office to try and help Retsuko with the last-minute paperwork thrown at her on Christmas Eve. Hell, we watched him at his best in the season two finale helping to corner Tadano. And even though she turned him down at the end of season one, I still hold out that there’s hope. I mean, it was right after a break-up, so it was kind of the right call for Retsuko to not go out with Haida. Season three could give us this ship in the end. I know Retsuko doesn’t see Haida as boyfriend material as of now, but I have a feeling it can change.

Favorite Yuri Couple of 2019: Atsuko “Akko” Kagari x Amanda O’Neill (Little Witch Academia)

That’s right, Akko and Amanda. This is the one Yuri ship I’m leaning on more than all the other ones. I know she wasn’t involved in the infamous love-bee episode, but that still didn’t stop me from making dirty jokes whenever these two girls were together for an episode. And that’s what makes it better! Akko and Amanda’s relationship wasn’t tampered with because of a love bee, what they have is real! Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating. But whenever I see them together doing something in an episode, I can totally see them as something more. Then again, my mind is warped.

Besides, this is as close to a yuri couple as I got this year. I can’t mention the one second we got of Ymir x Historia from Attack on Titan. Yayoi and Shion didn’t get much in Psycho Pass 3. And it’s leaps and bounds better than that OTHER anime I watched with two girls. Happy Sugar Life? More like a big pile of nope!

Favorite Yaoi Couple of 2019: Mafuyu Satou x Ritsuka Uenoyama (Given)

You knew it was coming! I was rooting for these two boys since they met in episode one. And even though I had to hold it back a bit when I learned of Mafuyu’s grieving, I still hoped that one day, these two boys would defy the odds and become the sweetest couple of 2019. Was I correct? While it wasn’t as full-blown gay as Yuri on Ice, it still gave us so much.

As I mentioned, Mafuyu was in a relationship prior to meeting Uenoyama. And this one ended in heartbreak as Mafuyu’s lover dies. But meeting Uenoyama, Mafuyu was able to smile again and got to play the instrument his previous lover left behind. Mafuyu was able to shake off the sad shackles of the past and start life anew. Now is this feeling mutual? Of course! Uenoyama dealt with the worry of “will he, won’t he” and by the end of the series, the audience seems pretty satisfied with the outcome and hope for the best of these sweet boys.

Fandom That You Didn’t Expect To Get Into: Domestic Girlfriend

2019 has given me surprise amounts of incest! This year alone I wound up watching several surprise incest anime plots including Kiss x Sis, Marmalade Boy, and Eromanga Sensei. And those of you who are not on the up-take, surprise incest is primarily a love plot involving your step-sibling. But there was just something about Domestic Girlfriend that I just couldn’t shake. I couldn’t believe I binge-watched this entire series. I couldn’t believe I picked up the manga immediately after the finale. I couldn’t believe…that I didn’t despise this anime! Yeah, usually anything with even a whiff of incest, I throw in the trash and put a bullet through its head. This one, I did not.

Simple story! Boy named Natsuo fucks a random girl and also has a crush on his teacher. Natsuo’s father tells him he’s getting remarried. Then, BIG BOMBSHELL, the random girl that got fucked and his teacher are now going to be his step-sisters. Concept alone was just fifty shades of messed up. I mean, who the heck do you root for in this situation? Throughout the 12 episodes I went back and forth either rooting for Rui or Hina. And for episode, I rooted for Miu, the cute literary girl. I was so intrigued that I had to dig through the manga for more answers. But I enjoyed this trashy soap opera! I doubt it’ll get a sequel, but it was…fun for the most part. Too hot for television fun! And if that makes me trash, well call me Forky because...

Yeah, I can admit that freely now.

Fandom That Made An Unexpected Comeback: Fruits Basket

*squeals* I never thought this would come back into my life. One of my all-time favorite animes was returning with a reboot. AND IT WAS GLORIOUS! Oh sure, the first half of this series was literally a shot-for-shot remake of the original Studio Deen anime. But even that was enough to make me love every frame of it. Fruits Basket was just one of those animes that grabs you with the intriguing tale of a cursed family that changes into members of the zodiac. Then they take you on a fun ride with silly moments like Kyo and Yuki fighting each other or Ayame telling his ridiculous stories or Hatsuharu flashing some guy his junk. But then this series takes you on a detour of the most heart-wrenching stories involving heartbreak, bullying, gangs, abandonment, and hiding your true self.

This show re-introduced us to the many colorful and complex characters that exist. From the ultra-flaymboyant Ayame to the complex Ritsu! Many of these characters have severe baggage coming and going and you just wish the best for them. And seeing Tohru reach out to just about everyone in her own way, to tell them she’s there for them and she accepts them all for who they are, it just gets to you. 18 years was too long to keep this gem away from us. Welcome back Fruits Basket, we missed you.

Fandom That Inspired the Most Crack: Zombieland Saga

I know it came out last year, but I got the opportunity to finally watch it this year. And it was every bit of crazy as people told me it would be. Who would have thought mashing zombies and idol shows together would be a good idea?

Seriously! You’ve got Mamoru Miyano voicing the craziest character to date, who’s a necromancer who brings back seven girls from the dead. Puts special makeup on them to fool unsuspecting audience members! All to bring life back to the Saga prefecture. Add another layer to the WTF cake, these dead girls are all from different times including 2008, 1997, the showa period in the 1980’s…you even have one from the freakin’ 19th century! But that’s not all! These girls end up becoming an idol group singing different kinds of genres. One episode they’re head-banging to metal rock and the next IT’S A FRIGGIN’ 8 MILE RAP-BATTLE! And then you have this one girl named Yamada Tae. She doesn’t speak and usually makes weird noises throughout the entire series, but we don’t care! We freakin’ love her! And even with the oddball girl, she’s not the craziest character on here. Who needs a Best Girl category when you know the best girl is just going to be the crazy dude in the shades!

I’m absolutely cereal on this! Kotaro Tatsumi STOLE this show for his own! With his crazy antics, constant shouting random phrases every five seconds, and eccentric behavior, this made for one of the most entertaining animes I’ve ever watched.

Last Fandom of 2019: Pokemon: Sun & Moon/2019

I know I spent the greater part of Sun/Moon bashing several aspects of the series. But Sun/Moon was gradually getting better compared to its slow start. This year we’ve got some extreme character growth from some of Ash’s friends and even pokemon. I was amazed to watch episodes featuring Lana, Mallow, and even Sophocles growing. Lana up against Kyogre, Mallow’s thank you to her deceased mother, and Sophocles mastering Z-moves, all of these were great! Add to that, a Pokemon League that showed all of us up after 20 years of disbelief of Ash ever winning a competition. Where HE WON THE FUCKING COMPETITION! With the exception of one of the matches, this Pokemon League is definitely one for the history books for Ash. From his epic dog fight with Gladion, to the six-on-six with his mentor, to taking down a massive Ultra Beast, to taking on an island deity! All leading up to one of the most beautiful goodbyes and finale! Seriously, I screamed balls when I saw a pregnant Professor Burnet.

And my high continues with the new continuation of Pokemon 2019 (yeah, still the name). First of all, praise Arceus the animation has improved! Secondly, I am fully digging Ash and Gou traveling together. In answer to your question, yes I’m already shipping the hell out of them. Third, having these boys travel all around the pokemon world has given me so much hope in the world. The boys are going to be traveling the pokemon world revisitng old places including Hoenn, Sinnoh, and Kalos. I know I was disappointed in Ash not soley traveling to Galar and having Pikachu wear a Sherlock Holmes hat, but this I can’t cast to the side.

…

And yes, I support Ash x Gou like a beast!

#the promised neverland #my roommate is a cat #the rising of the shield hero #malty melromarc #piers #marnie #pokemon sword and shield #pokemon masters #aggretsuko #retusko #Haida #little witch academia #atsuko kagari #amanda o'neill #Given #ritsuka uenoyama #mafuyu satou #domestic girlfriend #zombieland saga #Fruits Basket #pokemon

[stringsxfate]

* ✶ 「 lana condor, 24, female & she/her 」 welcome to the mortal realm, MIRANDA TIEN— though, the fates whisper that they could only be ARIADNE reincarnated. it seems in this life they’re instead known for being a BAKER. what a downgrade. nevertheless, mortality can be confusing, so it’s understandable they can be COURAGEOUS and TRUSTING, but also INSECURE and DESTRUCTIVE ; maybe that’s why they remind people of DRIVERS LICENCE by OLIVIA RODRIGO ? but not all history is washed away by time — just as the poets say, they still remind others of HALF SMILES WITH EYES FULL OF TEARS, MESSY KITCHENS FULL OF LAUGHTER, LATE NIGHT DRUNK TALKS IN BATHROOMS WITH STRANGERS. hopefully this life treats them a little better.

hello all i am back with new child, she’s a bit of a mess and doesn’t know what any of her emotions and feelings are but she’s working on it. and until then she makes a really good cupcake and loaf of bread.

tw: parental death, alcohol mentions

about / socials

Miranda liked to break her life down into sections. There was the before and and there was the during and there was the after. Everyone tells her she’s in the after now, that she’s made it through the hardest part, but it still feels like she’s in the middle, stuck in a never ending loop with only glimpses of the after. 

before 

Miranda was born to Hien and Aida Tien, the youngest of four, she discovered very early in life that there was very little she couldn’t get away with. All high expectations were placed on her elder sister and brothers meaning Miranda had freedom to make as many mistakes as she wanted and run a little wild. Not that she did, but the option was always there, which was nice to know. When she looks back on her childhood it’s with warmth and joy. Family dinners where they would all laugh and her brother helping her with maths homework and long afternoons in the back kitchen decorating cakes with her dad. Her childhood is tinged in yellow and smells faintly like baking bread and spices and sounds like easy laughter in country songs. 

during 

The diagnosis came two weeks after her sixteenth birthday. It’s sudden and unexpected and throws their family into chaos. Miranda feels her life slowly start to revolve around her dad's doctor's appointment and rushing to the bakery after school to help out. She does it willingly, gladly, happy to help in any way she can, to take a little of the stress off her parents' sagging shoulders and her siblings' stressed backs. 

She meets him when she’s seventeen and he’s twenty. Justin, who’s older and drives his dad's old car that he’d painted new and gives her flowers he’s stolen from neighbours gardens and showers her with pretty words that make her blush. He walks - staunters, really - into her life when she needs him most, when she needs someone most. Sweeps her off her feet and takes her on wild adventures through the city and convinces her to sneak out of her house late at night. When she’s with him, Miranda forgets all about hospital beds and medication littering their kitchen table and how her dad isn’t getting better. She tells him she loves him as they’re curled together on the back seat of his car and she believes him when he says it back. Kisses his collarbone and lets him kiss down her neck, saves every whispered compliment in her mind. 

Her dad's illness isn’t short and it isn’t pretty. Twenty rolls by with a shakily decorated cake and balloons in her favourite colours and everyone avoiding asking about college. She spends her little party holding Justin's hand and laughing with her dad and trying to memorise every little detail. He doesn’t see her turn twenty-one. 

He breaks up with her two days before the funeral. In a text. It’s a text she’ll always remember. Because it was two lines and he hadn’t even been bothered to fully type out the word ‘you’.

 ‘Can’t do this anymore. ur just too much right now and i dnt sign up for it.’ 

Very little makes sense in her life for the next few months. She wakes up, she gets dressed, she goes to the bakery, she mixes batter and decorates cakes, she hugs her mom and smiles with her sister, she goes home and sleeps. Trapped in a loop of the same things over and over and until it finally hits her what’s happened. 

Miranda doesn’t really remember turning twenty-one. She knows her friends take her out and tap glasses together as they do shots and her mom smiles at her fondly as she stumbles through the door later that night. Because all she can think about is how Justin had talked about how they’d spend her twentyfirst, all the plans and places they’d go, how he’d been excited, so she’d been excited. And how she’d spent most of it alone and that somehow, the pain of missing her dad had been overshadowed by someone else. It’s the first time she lets herself hate Justin and start to realise that all the pretty words and whispered promises hadn’t been true. 

after

Now she’s twenty-three and crawling her way out of the during with her nails still. She overhears her friends whispering worries about how she seems like a bystander to her own life. It knocks her back, hits her in the heart as she realises how true it is. So she starts to make an effort again. Starts to pick up the fallen bricks of her life and tries to rebuild. 

She starts with taking a more active role in the bakery, allowing her mom a chance to step back a little, to take more time for herself. It gives her something to focus on and pour her energy into and it’s just an added bonus that she finds the sounds of stand mixers soothing. Miranda’s first major change in the bakery was clearing out the space they’d used for storage, knocking down a wall and giving the place a small sitting area, effectively making it a cafe. 

She starts going out with her friends again, starts conversations first and brings up possible plans. She agrees to be set up on a date, and when it doesn’t go terribly she lets herself start looking to the future again. 

tl;dr : in summary, she had a very lovely childhood with two lovely parents and the regular amount of sibling drama. her dad got sick, she meets justin, her dad gets sicker, justin makes her feel special, her dad dies, justin ends it. it takes her nearly three years to realise that she never really dealt with her dad dying or her grief because of it, so now she’s in therapy and taken over running the family bakery by turning it into a lil cute cafe too. 

( miranda is very easy to get along with and will honestly talk to anyone because girl is way to trusting for her own good which is why she’s just gonna keep getting her heartbroken. she wants to see the best in people and will ignore all the red flags that pop up along the way, despite people's warnings. she’s actually really got her shit together when it comes to the business and networking and stuff, she’s just a hopeless mess when it comes to her emotions. )

headcanons / facts

she’s shockingly good at finding her way through mazes – hedge, corn or just drawn ones – she can find her way through in record time. whenever people ask her how she does it (if she’s cheating somehow), she simply shrugs and says ‘i just get a feeling about which way to go, so i go that way’. the same logic applies to detangling wires, especially headphones and messed up balls of wool. most of the time she doesn’t even realise she’s untangling something until it’s done and someones looking at her weird.

her parents bought their bakery when they first moved to the city and named it laurel leaf because the first time they met was when aida accidentally threw a laurel wreath at hien’s face. for the holidays the family always tried to decorate with laurel wreaths when they could, after hien died aida couldn’t face doing it for a long time. now that miranda has taken over the day to day running of the place she’s hung up a permanent laurel wreath above the door. 

because baking is basically her job she’s taken up knitting and running for hobbies. there’s a basket on the counter at the bakery of all the many, many hats she’s knitted free for anyone to take. she really hates running, but also knows it’s probably going to be good for her in the long run (ha!) so she just complains to whole time to her friends via text whenever she goes.

wanted connections 

#theikosintro #( intro. )

[rozsapalota]

The Most Random Questions About Your Muse.

*Copy and paste. Do not reblog*

Name: Gábor Szilvás.

1. Do they believe in true love? Absolutely. His attention span is generally rather short and he will drift from one infatuation to another, however when he loves he always does so truly, and has never been dishonest about his feelings. He holds some terribly poetic ideas about love, any kind of love be it platonic or romantic; and if he feels it, if he really feels affection for someone, then that is all he needs to know it is true.

2. Do they believe that their life has meaning? In a personal and emotional sense, most definitely. Not in the grand scheme of things. He values the simplicity of there being no greater meaning, no real divine plan other than for this world to be here, and for us to have the means to experience it. He really doesn’t regard himself as important, and would be quite honestly overwhelmed if he were. Probably in line to some extent with Lestat’s Savage Garden ramblings.

3. What first impression do they give when they first meet someone? He looks and feels quite frail, gentle. Long-limbed, fresh-faced, a graceful and sensitive youth of alluring innocence and girlish beauty. Now more than ever he might appear a bit removed from time, perhaps due to his choice of clothing which often reflects his own era in one way or another. He is very well-mannered and soft-spoken, carries himself like a noble and most certainly gives the vibe of old money, silver spoon in his mouth.

4. Do they believe in Heaven/Hell? By default, yes, or at least he used to. For a long time now he’s been thinking that there might be nothing, and he doesn’t really know what to make of it. You tend to contemplate death a lot, when you’re a vampire.

5. FIVE things that irritate them:

   1 )  low quality materials    2 )  poorly translated poetry    3 )  rudeness    4 )  any form of animal cruelty    5 )  out of tune instruments

6. First Kiss? He used to have the cutest crush on one of his older sister's friends back when he was maybe 7, and it was painfully obvious to everyone who spent any amount of time around the two. He couldn’t look her in the eye for longer than a couple seconds, and so of course when they all played charades and later on truth or dare, he was immediately dared to give her a kiss. Fortunately she was endeared or else he wouldn’t have had the courage, and she came to cradle his face in her hands and give him a kiss herself.

7. What do they find funny that other’s usually don’t? Hungarian puns can be too hard to explain sometimes ( say “Nagy Árpi” quickly and repeatedly, and don’t ask why he’s struggling to hold his laughter ). Blame Lotti for having taught him that.

8. Biggest Regret? That he was so naive as to fully trust his sire. That he never thought or had the nerve to press for answers before the irreversible took place.

9. THREE words that best describe them:

   1 )  graceful    2 )  affectionate    3 )  gullible

10. Their most attractive feature. It would have to be either his eyes, or his hands. There is at times a truly disarming expressiveness to his gaze, those long lashes of his, the colour an uncertain middle ground between light hazel and green. The eyes really are a mirror to his soul.

11. The feature that they find most attractive? It’s still the eyes. They’re one of the first traits he notices and nothing works him up quite like intense eye-contact.

12. Favorite Song Lyric: He’s more into instrumentals honestly.

13. Best advice they’ve ever received: “Do not become so perverted that you would disobey your own nature. Therein lies the path to ruin.” ( you know who you are, mystery advisor. )

14. Worst advice they’ve ever received: Nothing deep or meaningful here, but he was once told that eggs would make a great ingredient for a homemade hair mask. And they are. Except he went to rinse with warm water and somehow it never occurred to him the egg would begin to cook as a consequence. Sometimes I swear there's only white noise in his head.

15. What makes them cry? It really doesn’t take a lot to make this boy cry. Try raising your voice at him and you’ll see what I mean, generally however he will get emotional over anything from films to poetry, music, sad pet adoption or life insurance commercials on TV.

16. Hardest decision they ever had to make? Permanently leaving his family home. He’d killed a stable boy the night after his birth to darkness, entirely without meaning to or really knowing what he was doing. A maid would soon share the same fate. He realised at once, of course, that staying was out of the question; but that never made the decision any easier.

17. What makes them fond of someone? Kindness, kindness has its way of ensnaring him without fail. Joie de vivre, rather like his dear Lotti, hearty and contagious laughter. Generosity, honesty. Just being nice to him or having a sense of humour. Believe me when I tell you it is very easy to get him to like you.

18. Do they believe in forgiveness? He most certainly does, though he struggles even now, to some extent, to really understand or forgive his maker.

19. Biggest TURN ON. A dominant partner, that’s what does it for him. He has a very strong preference for men in this department and likes nothing more than being courted, the spicy back-and-forth of flirting where you can sense an underlying intent. He likes to play coy after all, and baby if you’re charming and a little bit intimidating, he might as well do anything you ask him to.

20. Biggest TURN OFF. Bad manners, rudeness, callousness. Ostentatious vulgarity in general.

21. Any fetishes/kinks? Power imbalance probably tops the list. Being someone’s submissive, being told what to do. A bit of hair pulling / biting / manhandling when it gets intense, but nothing extreme. Orgasm denial / edging is another big one, and also lots and lots of praise. Otherwise he’s reasonably vanilla, except maybe for blood sharing on occasion?

22. Do they have a perception of God? Vaguely so. He was raised Christian, but he is one only at surface level. Nobody in his family was a devout believer and the existence of God was rather passively accepted as the conventional truth. He doesn’t question it, and yet religion has never plagued him or caused him any great turmoil, as it was not a very significant part of his life save for the obligatory Sunday masses. If he were to pick a label he would probably call himself something of a deist.

23. A memory from their childhood that shaped them. He was a very pampered child growing up, always complimented left and right for being pretty as his sisters, often mistaken for a girl himself. It’s a dreamy place of his past to revisit, and he’s still young for a vampire; the memories feel fresh to him, recent to his preternatural mind. He remembers well the evenings of those long gone times when the house was alive and full of music, his mother putting on her pearl earrings before the mirror of her bedroom wall. He remembers leaning against the wooden balcony railing when he wanted to trace constellations, long before they’d ever left for Budapest. He remembers hearing the wolves there, and feeling safe where he stood.

24. Birthday and zodiac sign: October 1st, he’s a Libra.

25. Do they agree with said zodiac sign? He thinks zodiacs are a lot of fun and does relate to many of the traits associated with his sign, but he refuses to believe that he is superficial. :(

26. What is ONE thing that they wish they could change about themselves? He’s pretty comfortable in his skin, as well as comfortable with his own personality. That said, he would tone down the sensitivity if he could, he genuinely cannot participate in an argument without being on the verge of tears.

27. A dream that they have never told anyone. He won’t tell this to anyone because he realises how pathetic it is of him, a product of his heartbreak. It makes him feel miserable to even think about it. He just wishes there could have been some way to be happy alongside his maker, some way to have made him realise that bringing him into this immortality would ruin everything, everything they had. Maybe what he truly needs in order to forgive, is an apology.

28. Do they believe in fate? Not really, but there’s definitely a romantic appeal to the idea.

29. Favourite season: Spring.

30. FIVE favourite singers/bands/performers: Chopin, Tchaikovsky, Liszt, and more recently ABBA and Lana del Rey.

TAGGED BY: @desanctii ( thank you ! ) TAGGING: once you see this I’m sorry but you’re it, no takebacks

#;;hc

[naldoreth]

So, top three songs that remind you of Elin & Legolas? ❤️

Thanks for the ask! I love it. So, first of all, a bit of explanation as to wtf Elin & Legolas is for those of you who don’t know. I’m writing a very lengthy, very slowburn fic Legolas x human OFC - yes, it’s got everything, it’s got “girl falls in Middle Earth”, it’s got “Tenth Walker”, it’s got dwarven culture and slowbuild and a lot of mutual pinning. So for this fic I have a Spotify playlist with, as of today, 40 songs on it that remind me of Elin and her relationship with Legolas, her journey through Middle Earth and her searching for home. But now, to the question in case: my top three songs for these two lovebirds. I have considered things carefully and, right now -this could change in the future as I expand the playlist- these are my fave songs, and I’ll explain WHY cause we’re here for the rant. 1. Young and beautiful - Lana del Rey Will you still love me When I’m no longer young and beautiful? Will you still love me When I’ve got nothing but my aching soul? I know you will, I know you will I know that you will Will you still love me when I’m no longer beautiful? Dear lord, when I get to heaven Please let me bring my man When he comes tell me that you’ll let him in Father tell me if you can All that grace, all that body All that face, makes me wanna party He’s my sun, he makes me shine like diamonds So, I know this one is the most obvious for an elven/human couple, but it just fits so well. I can totally see Elin asking herself these same questions, having so many doubts about engaging in a relationship with Legolas ‘cause she knows she is gonna age and die in front of his eyes and he will remain young, beautiful… and heartbroken. The verse where she’s addressing God I think is specially heartbreaking, because in Tolkien legendarium elven and human souls don’t go to the same place. Elin and Legolas will never have the comfort of knowing that they will see each other again. In case you don’t know, the elvish fëa, their soul, goes to the Halls of Mandos when an elf dies and it rests there until the soul is healed and ready to be reborn. Then the elf will be born again (the canon differs between being reborn as a child that will gain their memories with time or just come back as the elf as they were before). Elves really don’t die unless they choose not to leave the Hall of Mandos or, in rare cases such as Arwen or Luthien, trade their inmortality completely. But it’s different with humans. Humans in Middle Earth die just as we do, and nobody knows where do their souls go or if they go somewhere. That is something only Eru Illúvatar knows and not even Mandos or any of the Valar have any clue. That is the Gift of Men. And Legolas and Elin are very aware of this. They know that the brief time of Elin’s life is ALL they have, and it breaks my heart just imagining Elin praying to Eru to let her be with him one more time, after her death. ‘Cause she forsook her time and her home to save Middle Earth and be with him, and she knows that she’ll die and that will leave a hole in Legolas’ heart taht will never heal. (I’ve made myself really sad writing this and I HAVE to add that since mortal people on Valinor do die, there will come a day when Legolas will also lose Gimli and I’m note sure that the poor thing will be able to recover. I can totally see Legolas choosing to die in Valinor and just staying in the Halls of Mandos, never returning to his hröa, his body, until the Dagor Dagorath, the Battle of all Battles. Imma gonna cry for a bit now, brb). 2. Home – Phillip Phillips Hold on, to me as we go As we roll down this unfamiliar road And although this wave is stringing us along Just know you're not alone 'Cause I'm going to make this place your home This second song is more about the theme of the whole fic than just their relationship, but I see it as Legolas talking to Elin. Elin comes from our world, but she doesn’t really leave anything behind – anything but her uncle and her job. She’s always lived in the same house, even after her parents passed away, and she’s always been kind of a loner. She’s got friends, sure, but she kind of lives her life just passing by, not really taking risks or doing the things she really longs for. She loves her home, but when she was younger she dreamt of living in the city. She just never left when her parents died, cause the house was all she had left from them. She loves to travel and dreamt of seeing the whole world, but then she was an orphan and had to manage college and work at the same time, so she chose to study from home. She just accepted what life threw at her and never tried to fight her fate. She complied, and was contented. But then she was pushed into Middle Earth, on a journey she didn’t want to take, and everything changed for her. She had no home. She had no way of knowing if she could ever go back to her world. Where does she really fit in Middle Earth? Where does she really fit in her life? Her disappearence barely had any effect on her time. Where is home for her? So, throughout the story she will struggle with these questions, this searching for belonging, and to her surprise she will find it in Legolas. His hand will be the hand showing her home, and he will try his best to make her feel like she belongs. Cause she does. 3. Stand by you – Rachel Platten. Even if we're breaking down, we can find a way to break through Even if we can't find heaven, I'll walk through hell with you Love, you're not alone, 'cause I'm gonna stand by you Even if we can't find heaven, I'm gonna stand by you Even if we can't find heaven, I'll walk through hell with you Love, you're not alone, 'cause I'm gonna stand by you Yeah, you're all I never knew I needed And the heart, sometimes it's unclear why it's beating And love, if your wings are broken We can brave through those emotions too 'Cause I'm gonna stand by you Oh, truth, I guess truth is what you believe in And faith, I think faith is helping to reason No, no, no, love, if your wings are broken Borrow mine so yours can open too 'Cause I'm gonna stand by you This last song kind of comprises the themes I’ve talked about in the others: death and belonging. It can be seen from both points of view, though I usually imagine is Elin who sings it (maybe ‘cause the singer is a woman). The War of the Ring is the hell they have to brave through and leaves them tired, broken and hurt – but they’re are gonna be there for each other, even when they know that, at the end of everything, Heaven is not something they can reach. They will power through the war, fight alongside one another, be each other wings and hands and eyes and, when it all ends, that’s all they will have left. Each other. Elin knows there’s no Valinor for her. Legolas knows it too. But their love will be their Heaven, if nothing else can be. They will stand by each other through hell, through heaven, through life and through death. If you're still reading after this long AF post and would like to check the playlist, here's a link! And, in case the fic caught someone's attention, here it is. This looong post talks about things that hasn't happened yet - but it's a Tenth Walker Legolas x OFC fic, so you could see them coming! Also, the fic is written in Spanish, sorry folks! Although I'm not completely against the idea of translating it to English someday, if there's demand.

#lordbhreanna #lord of the rings #legolas #legolas x oc #el señor de los anillos #fic #desde aquí hasta mi hogar #upon the hearth the fire is red #elin priddy #playlist #meta #omg this post is long #im sorry #i just cant shut up about these two

[pfenniged]

I want to get started in on classic films: are there any you personally recommend?

Hey, thanks for asking! <3

So from your ask I took you wanted a recommendation of classic films that may be my personal favourites. So I’m going to go with the ones that I personally are current loving and finding the most ‘rewatchable’/ have saved on my computer, as well as ones that I do think everyone should watch/ are fantastic, but tend to be the ones I don’t reach for as often. 

This obviously does not include all the classic films that you can find online in ‘Best of’ Lists (although there obviously is some overlap), but I also tended to do straight up ‘films.’ Classic musicals are another thing entirely, so if you want my suggestions on them, just drop me another line.

My current favourite Classic Hollywood films tend to be along the film noir genre or thrillers/ murder mysteries. In case you didn’t know, film noir is defined as the following:

Film noir (/nwɑːr/; French: [film nwaʁ]) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American film noir. Film noir of this era is associated with a low-key, black-and-white visual style that has roots in German Expressionist cinematography. Many of the prototypical stories and much of the attitude of classic noir derive from the hardboiled school of crime fiction that emerged in the United States during the Great Depression.

This means in terms of ‘horror’ genre movies, I tend to avoid gore/slashers (which were not a thing back in the day, but I felt I needed to emphasise that) I only watch horror movies that don’t rely on cheap jump scares, tricks, and tend to have good psychological motivations, because as Alfred Hitchcock said, the original master of horror, the mind is scarier than anything you can create otherwise.

My Current Favourites:

The Ghost and Mrs. Muir: A widower in the early twentieth century falls in love with the former inhabitant of the house she bought, who happens to be a crotchety old sea captain played by Rex Harrison, king of crotchety old crotchety characters. The film plays out as he tries to emancipate her from her ex-husband’s overbearing family, and get her to ironically accept more of life from beyond the grave. (Literally, I’m not a big romance movie person, but this is the only romance movie I will accept in my life because it involves a ghost and has other elements/ not just is total schmalz).

Alfred Hitchcock’s Rope: Two gays commit a murder and host a dinner party over it. Based on the Leopold and Loeb murders of the 1920s (Look them up if you don’t know about them; absolutely mental), the film is coded as hell (because 1940s), but is also homoerotic as fuck, acknowledged as homoerotic by everyone who worked on it, one of the main actors was gay, and it involves Jimmy Stewart being dropped in as a dinner party guest and eventually trying to solve the crime. It’s probably honestly my favourite Alfred Hitchcock, because it’s a quick watch, it takes place inside the entirely same space the entire movie (but never feels like it), and is the perfect example of a murder mystery).

The Postman Always Rings Twice: The quintessential film noir, featuring Lana Turner’s amazing outfits and honestly, a really well-rounded performance by her. I only saw this recently for the first time, and if you don’t know, Lana Turner was considered the ‘blonde bombshell’ of her time, and not much in the acting department (By word of mouth). So going into the film, I assumed she’d be a terrible actress: but she was honestly really fantastic, created a nuanced performance out of the often one-note femme fetale characters given to women in film noir, and you honestly understand her motivations and character, however flawed. I’m now a fan and am searching out more of her work.

Double Indemnity: Another film noir I saw recently, and fell in love with Barbara Stanwyck’s acting and her in general. In real life, she was an adorable bisexual; in film, and this film in particular, she’s a fantastic actress, and I’m searching out more of her work now, even into her sixties and seventies, where she did some fantastic performances in series on TV into the seventies and eighties (This monologue of her being an old woman and having a crush on a young man is both heartbreaking, pitiful, and understandable, and it’s so well acted. It gives you just a taste of her acting talent, and how hard she worked to create a well-rounded character). This is probably my favourite film noir overall, definitely because of Barbara Stanwyck and her crazy wig. xD

The Twilight Zone [Original TV Show Run]: I know this is a TV show, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention it. I love The Twilight Zone, and none of the later revamps have come close to touching it, and the effect it’s had on pop culture cinema. Some of the more ‘creative’ episodes (I.E: The awful ones with cowboys or aliens), I tend to skip, but The Twilight Zone is at its greatest when its creator Rod Serling is able to narrate about problems we all struggle with, and create a twist to really punch home if scenarios were different. Some of my favourites off the top of my head would be ‘Last Stop at Willoughby’ and ‘Nothing in the Dark,’ which are criminally underrated episodes. There’s also a great resource in this AV Club website, which literally reviews each and every plot of the original run and gives it a letter grade. I’m still not fully through the original run (because there’s 150 episodes, yikes), but I’ve watched at least half of the episodes, if not more. Plus it’s where, once you’ve watched more Classic Hollywood material/TV, you’ll begin to recognise a ton of character actors/early up and comers in the episodes, like random!William Shatner (twice), and Baby!Robert Redford (Who’s fucking adorable and I love him so much in his episode).

Twelve Angry Men: Twelve very different men are brought together on a jury to decide the fate of a young vaguely ethnic man. It’s a classic and I swear it should be shown in every school. It’s one of my favourite movies of all time, point stop, and honestly, as a J.D. graduate and someone who just needs to complete their admissions program now to become a lawyer, this is ‘my’ law-based movie (Most people are To Kill a Mockingbird, which by this point, trust me, is cliched to hear other lawyers talk about, even though it’s another fantastic movie you should watch). Even if I can’t turn off my lawyer brain at one point where something happens and I’m like THAT’S A MISTRIAL XD, it’s still one of the best films I’ve ever seen, and I rewatch it at least every two months.

Some of my Other Recommendations (That I don’t rewatch often but still are fantastic):

All About Eve (BETTE DAVIS)

Rebel Without a Cause (JAMES DEAN)

A Streetcar Named Desire (MARLON BRANDO BEFORE HE WAS CRAZY)

On the Waterfront (SEE ABOVE)

Cool Hand Luke (PAUL NEWMAN)

Sunset Boulevard

Psycho (Hitchcock)

Vertigo (Hitchcock)

Leave Her to Heaven (Gene Tierney and her fabulous wardrobe)

Hope that gives you some ideas to start with! If you need any other help, let me know! <3

#classic hollywood #classic film

[blueandgoldoffice]

any good soulmate fics? i’ve read a few but i love them x

Soulmates are my JAM, friend. There are lots and lots and lots of good ones. Make sure you read and review. Happy Reading! Thanks! ❤ Jandy

This is a gigantic list - so it’s going under a Keep Reading Tag. Enjoy!

@bughead4days​ has written several: Black and White -  Tattoo  - Bruises - I Feel You -  Mind Reader - Necklace - Half Tattoo - TiMer

Your Eyes Look Like Coming Home (series) by @lana-luthor​ (2 fics - T)

Summary: People spend their whole lives waiting until the day they can see the world in color; the day they finally meet their soulmate. Sometimes it takes years, decades, nearly lifetimes until you meet that one special person. Unless, of course, you’re Betty Cooper and Jughead Jones who have both seen the world in color since they met each other when they were two years old. Everyone always says that they’re so lucky to have met when they were so young, that they have their whole lives to be together and in love. There’s just one teeny tiny problem. Betty and Jughead hate each other.

I’m half doomed (you’re semi-sweet) (series) by @juggydunes​​ (2 fics - T)

Summary: “Every person has two dates on their wrist. One is when they die and the other is when they find their soulmate. What happens if both dates are the same?”

What Does Shakespeare Know by @typing123​ (3 fics - T)

 Part One | Part Two | Part Three

Summary: AU where you can hear the songs your soulmate listens to.

Call Me A Safe Bet  by @anactualcaseofthetruth​ (14/? - M)

Summary: “Even though scientists are still quite baffled after multiple millennia of medical and technological advances of exactly how the soulmarks work, there has been enough research and study that we now know when and how to expect them… There has yet to be one soulmate coupling occur before the female has experienced a menstrual cycle and the male to begin producing sperm. In short, soulmarks have never appeared before entering puberty…There are many, many more cases in which two people have insisted they are soulmates only to not mark with one another. All in all, only about 3% of couplings are correct in predicting they are soulmates before marks form.”

  ***Betty Cooper is four years old when she meets Jughead Jones. She knows he is her soulmate, he’s not so sure.***

if i told you who i am (can i call you baby?) by @thetaoofbetty​ (10/10 - M)

Summary: Gasping, Jughead Jones sits up in his bed, blindly reaching for his phone, trying to silence the blaring alarm that had jolted him out of his dream. Frustrated and running a hand through his hair, he turns off his alarm, flopping back on his bed with his arms behind his head as he stares at the ceiling and exhaling slowly. He knew the possibility of the dreams would start after he turned eighteen but he’d never thought they’d be starting on the morning of his birthday. Great, he thinks, gritting his teeth, I already hate my birthday and now I’m getting prophetic dreams about my soulmate, a girl I’ve never met and may never find. Or, in other words, Jughead knows he’s got a soulmate and he’s going to do whatever it takes to find her and win her heart.

Meet Me In the Sky by @curlsandcrown (2/? M)

Summary: Betty and Jughead meet on a flight as seat partners heading to a convention but it turns out they’ll have a life changing discovery instead of just a trip to Australia.

Crowns and Ponytails by @alexintheskyy (2/2 - G)

Summary: Soulmate: your other half, the one who inspires you to be the best version of yourself and embraces all of your flaws just the same. The one person you can’t live without that you will carry with you forever. But how does one know who their soulmate is and how can you know for sure? Luckily, there are soulmarks. Little ever-evolving hints appearing on one’s body at random times, disappearing and being replaced by new every once in a while. If you follow your hints correctly and fall in love with the right person, your soulmate’s name will appear on your body and remain there permanently. Betty Cooper was determined to follow each of her soulmark hints down the correct roads and that, one day, those roads would lead to the boy next door. Jughead Jones, the boy from the wrong side of the tracks, definitely thinks that fate has made a mistake in pairing him with the perfect girl next door.

What a Catch by @bugggghead (2/2 - NR)

Summary: Veronica pushes Betty to put herself out there, so when a cute stranger spills coffee on her, she agrees to a date. Little did she know, that fateful decision would change the course of her life.

Black Light by @darknessaroundus (1/1 - G)

Summary: William H. Baylor invented the black light in 1932. At the time he wasn’t sure what purpose it would serve. He speculated that it might help authenticate paintings, but beyond that he wasn’t sure.

It Doesn't have to be a Scary Situation by @typing123 (1/1 - T)

Summary: In a world where the first thought your soulmate thinks about you is written on your skin on your fifteenth birthday...Betty Cooper freaks out.

Colors of the Heart by This_is_my_canoe (1/1 - G)  

Summary: “I love you, Betty Cooper.” The words are whispered like a prayer, and Betty feels them warm her skin. She thinks back on all the times he was there for her, even when she pushed him away, even when she was in love with Archie. So, she replies. “I think I love you too.” And that’s enough, at least for now.  or “Colors represent the people that mean the most to you. Betty recollects on how she found hers, and how she eventually admits to loving Jughead.”

*Note - this one is just a giant block of text - but it’s really great. Give it a try. It’s really great.

Skin to Skin by @burgerheadjones (12/? - T)

Summary: Jughead Jones doesn’t know how the crimson crescents ended up on his palms.Betty Cooper is clueless when it comes to the messages on her arms. Soulmate AU where all the little marks and injuries belonging to Betty and Jughead start finding themselves on each other’s skin.

The Girl From the Journal by @juggieheadcoopers (6/?)

Summary:Jughead Jones has been writing about a girl he has never met before, but when he leaves his journal at his favorite coffee shop one day, an unsuspecting young woman finds it without knowing that the stranger who wrote it was actually writing about her

I Found You (chapter 3) by  Jodygoroar (1/1)

Her by BabyAce is a great story that plays on the part of the trope that has a phrase your soulmate says to you tattooed on your body. It’s really great. More like a Jughead stream of consciousness.

The Exception Not the Rule by pressdbtwnpages (1/1 - G)

Summary: Betty Cooper doesn't believe in soulmates.

Crescent Palmed Girl by @tory-b (1/1 - M)

Summary:Betty Cooper is a nurse at a Psychiatric Hospital. Jughead Jones is one of her patients. He disappears without a word and she ends up with the journal he's been writing to his soulmate.

eyes wide open by @aswellingstorm (1/1 - T)

Summary: “when you can’t sleep, your soul mate can’t either. so the next time you’re laying awake, know that somewhere, someone else is laying awake too.” an au where once you turn 17, you can’t get a wink of sleep unless you’re with your soulmate. the system is pretty flawed, so jughead jones is adamant that there’s no way on earth he’s lucky enough to have betty cooper as his soulmate.

simmer down and pucker up by @santiagone (2/2 - T)

Summary: “Betty,” Jughead interrupts. His voice is lower now, and the resignation might even be scarier than the yelling. “We’re not soulmates. We can't.” And therein lies the crux of the problem.

Just Like Broken Glass by @aswellingstorm (3/3 - M)

Summary: Soulmate AU (inspired by silentpeaches): Where you have the name of your soulmate can appear on your body randomly, at any point in your life. Jughead Jones swears he doesn’t have a soulmate and Betty Cooper for the life of her, cannot think of a single person in her life named “Forsythe”.

Written on My Arm by @typing123 (1/1 - G)

Summary: The first words his soulmate are ever going to say have been scrawled on his arm since the moment he was born. He's had practically his entire life to prepare. And he's still blown out of the water.

save that heart for me by @elizabethbettscooper  (1/1 - G)

Summary: But Betty’s mark is small, black and white on her wrist, just over the thin skin where her pulse thrums. It looks like an old, circular typewriter key, and the letter in the middle is a lowercase ‘j’. She isn’t actually sure how she feels about soulmates, but she’s pretty fond of the mark. She imagines it probably belongs to someone bookish, someone who will understand her. Actually, she knows exactly who she thinks it belongs to, but it doesn’t matter.

You're Ingrained In My Skin by @curlsandcrown (1/1 - T)

Summary: In the middle of a major war, Betty meets a pilot who will change her life forever.

Behind The Mask by @futureheartswithbooks (34/40 - M)

Summary:  Starting Sixth Year was meant to be the same as starting any other year a part from the apprehensive of discovering your soul mate, but with the disappearance of Jason Blossom looming overhead, this year would not be like any other. Yet, for Betty Cooper, she also had the complication of sifting through the lies of Archie Andrews and attempting to work out just what was going on between her and Jughead Jones, the Serpent Prince.

Snakes and Crowns by @cooperandjonesinc (13/13 - E)

Summary: Betty Cooper just can't seem to fit in at Southside High. It's run down, everyone seems to hate her just on principle, and the people who are running the Red and Black don't want her help at all. To make matters worse her recently divorced mother is trying to find her 'soulmate' by going to conventions and touching as many hands as possible. Betty doesn't even believe in soulmates anyway. Just because some people's nervous systems happen to sync up when they touch for the first time doesn't mean they're soulmates destined to fall in love. Right?

When the Moon hits your Eye by @typing123 (1/1 - G)

Summary: Betty and Jughead find out they're soulmates when they're five years old.

#bughead #bughead fanfiction #genre: soulmates #genre: au

[crqstalite]

SHADOW OF THE SITH. Ch. 4.

NAJI_RISHI.

"Do we stop her?" Nadia whispers under her breath, concern written all over her face and wrapping both women in an anxious blanket, as the two can feel every death the Wrath had caused as a ripple through the force. It's terrifying, as they'd only just begun their trip on the island and already there was fire after fire to put out, trying to get slaves off the island, and also babysitting their new comrade, "We were here to save people, not kill them."

"She's...surprisingly not killing everything in sight. She's being methodical about who she kills, the slavers." Naji admits, careful not to let her robes drag in the bloody path her new...ally is leaving on the ground. Another shot fired, and another body falls to the ground with a hard, lifeless thump. This time murdered by her companion, who smiles wickedly behind his rifle, "We should be lucky it's not us and the slaves she's chosen as her targets."

"I'll...try and remember that..."

An unsure frown passes her face, crinkling her young face in a way that makes Naji's insides cold, before they catch up with the woman. A fire burns beneath her eyes, kicking a body away with the tip of her durasteel boot. Smears of alien and human blood alike decorate her uncovered torso, stains on her porcelain white skin. Another slaver writhers on the ground in pain, still just barely alive and attempting to shimmy away, and with a flick of her wrist, his neck bends at a horrifying angle. A loud snap is audible just as it happens, and Naji is quick to try and cover Nadia's eyes, but the sound of a pained whimper is still audible.

The woman has the nerve to chuckle at her padawan's expense, the light of her red kyber crystal resheathed in her lightsaber's hilt, and she turns over her shoulder. Her face is surprisingly free of scars (for a Sith, she's still extremely pale, even on the god-forsaken jungle planet. Naji would've thought the woman would've seen some sun at the very least), except for one that runs along her neck that she can see from the neckpiece, and blonde strands of hair hang down in front of her face, her surprisingly cerulean eyes with flecks of gold near the pupils staring back out from the curtain of hair, "Afraid of a little blood?"

"Do you have to kill everything that moves?" Naji asks, hardening her voice to seem more assertive. She'd let the Wrath take the reins for most of the mission on Rishi (something about the native species made her deathly ill, so any choice that the Wrath made she'd have to accept until they made it out of the Cove's denser places, or at least until Lana had time to find her something to counteract the allergies), but she wouldn't let the continued violence be detrimental to their mission, "We're here to free people, not kill them."

"I thought this is what you squishy-hearted Jedi liked. These slavers tortured others who couldn't protect themselves, and now they've met their deserving end." The Wrath quips in response, rolling one of her sabers over her wrist as she uses a teasing voice deserving of a reprimanded child, "Am I not serving your petty Code?"

"No." Naji grumbles, crossing her arms as the Wrath shrugs. She even had the nerve to comment on her Code, which didn't improve her opinion of the woman. This wasn't justice, or anything even near what the Jedi followed. Mass murder wasn't their way, "No it doesn't."

"Oh, and what would?" She narrows her eyes into yellow slits, angry or even possibly annoyed by her, "You killed the Colonel on Rakata Prime, didn't you? Wasn't that for justice as well? An arbitrary decision, don't you believe?"

Naji nearly flares at the notion. The death of the colonel hadn't been intentional, if she could let him live, she would've. Whether he was a traitor or not, he should've lived, even if only for questioning. The blood that dripped from her hands, she still hadn't fully forgiven herself for. What Theron got into trouble for that she had done, what should've been hers to shoulder. Something she should've admitted to the Council. Even if she had lost her position, the emotional loss was worse, having the two go into hiding, "That wasn't justice." She whispers.

It was self-defense.

Her chest pangs just at the thought. He'd shot her square in the chest, and had she not had enough adrenaline coursing through her veins, she wouldn't have been able to pull herself up and stab him through to keep him from getting another one off. Felix had carried her back, believing the worst, and after the trek through the rest of the planet, Naji was already sure she wouldn't make it. The scar was still raised and rather angry, even after the years past.

Just looking at the wound made her sick. Still visible just above her bra and below, it had been an ugly burn from a blaster especially, but the high powered rifle Darok carried, especially at such short distance, had made an already horrible wound worse. She was in and out of consciousness after being in a kolto tank for half a week, and struggled to breathe for months afterwards. Reminding her of the fight that had caused it didn't bode well for the warrior.

"Bah, apologies m'lord but the sun's going down. 'Fraid if we stay much longer they'll regroup and make this mission a lot harder on us." The gruff voice of the soldier snaps her out of her thoughts, and Nadia puts a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "You think they're organized enough to have snipers?"

A lingering look from the Sith before she turns to her companion, "With how easy they fall, I doubt it Pierce. But if we must, it wouldn't hurt to kill a few more while we wait for the Jedi to finish."

As if it's only their responsibility to free the slaves. As if she's only along for the ride and they're inconviencing her. She can see quite a few more slave cages just over the ridge, and she deflates her rigid spine once the Wrath is gone. Out of sight, sadly not out of mind. Running a hand through her hair, she turns over her shoulder to look at Nadia properly, "I apologize, this isn't the way our missions were supposed to go. I didn't believe the bloodshed would be so heavy."

"You're doing your best, master. You've never directed me wrong before, and you aren't now. This isn't your fault." Nadia says, her blue eyes twinkling in the setting sun. Her white hair is pulled up, severely away from her face, a delicate but sturdy braided bun atop her head. She's so much older than she was when Naji had first met the girl, but the same childish innocence remains sometimes. Not today, it seemed. She seems worried for her master, her training robes traded for armored pieces requisitioned from the Temple. So much has changed, so quickly.

For the millionth time in her life, Naji's afraid of what will come next. Revan -yes, Revan- was rising again, a cult in his name running around and committing dangerous missions left and right. It was supposed to be a simple happily ever after, especially after the mending of the Rift Alliance and continued hunt for remaining Children, but even she could sense the cloud of danger hanging over the Republic when she entered the operations room that fateful day. Nothing would ever be the same again, and she was afraid that would warrant a loss of everyone that become important to her.

She wouldn't let anyone take the crew of the Polaris from her, not if she didn't die first.

"I suppose there isn't much we can do about the Wrath..." Nadia trails off, rolling her eyes, "Are all Sith like her? Bloodthirsty with no regard for other people?"

"You'd be best asking a real Sith." Naji responds, trying to smile, "The slaves are safe for the moment, but I think they'd be happier on a transport, don't you believe?"

-

It's late into the night when the four return to the hidden alleyway, Pierce (as she's learned the bulky soldier's name), makes notes with the Wrath of places to enjoy the night instead of sleeping (she's beginning to think the Wrath is really involved with him and is playing Theron like a chindinkalu), and her nose is beginning to itch again. She's afraid Theron and Lana are gone before she hears the tinkling laughter of a woman. The Wrath has a hand on one of her sabers and Pierce picks up his rifle before Naji puts up a hand to stop in front of them with a tired and entirely distrustful look on her face.

"Theron, Lana?" Naji asks, peaking inside before their procession makes themselves known, "I apologize for being out so late, but the mission's been complete. There are quite a few former slaves safely returned to freedom tonight." She says proudly, a tight smile on her face once they're aware of their presence. Theron is leaning against a holoprojector while Lana is standing nearby, ready to debrief them on their progress. Albeit, both of them are smiling as if sharing an inside joke, but it's good to see them after such a long day.

"And plenty of their dead captors to go along with it." The Wrath interjects, making her presence rather loud as she pushes through Nadia and Naji, a smirk on her face and a well-hidden look of horror on Theron's face as he registers just what her triumphant declaration means, "A successful mission after all."

"We'll..go with that." The SIS agent responds, turning his attention from her to Naji (almost hopefully), "Chatter's picked up though, whatever you two did caused a major stir among the Nova Blades."

"I'm glad." Naji says, nodding as she turns to the Sith woman standing nearby, "Then we'll be able to finish up with the Blades soon then?"

"Not exactly." Lana responds, "Though we are growing closer to attacking the Aggressor soon. It's late, and it's been a long day. Better we finish this debrief in the morning, when all of us are of right mind. Agreed?"

"I'd second that!" Nadia pipes up, a tired smile on her face. Lana seems taken aback for a moment (Nadia isn't typically shy, but this has been the first word she's exchanged with anyone but Naji while here), before a softer smile replaces her surprise, "Maybe we can finally head back to the Polaris?" She asks hopefully.

"I suppose finding some food off-planet wouldn't be horrible. I'll call Zenith and have him join me tomorrow, so you can relax and find something, okay?" She asks, once the Wrath strikes up another conversation with Theron, effectively distracting her. She presses a light kiss to her forehead, Nadia giggling and then sighing in relief as Naji floods their force bond with happiness. She's tired, exhausted even, and a few nights away from Rishi would take care of the problem and get her back into high spirits, "Don't do anything stupid while I'm away, understood?"

Nadia nods happily, before questioning, "Aren't you coming back with me?"

She throws a look over her shoulder before frowning, "I need to be on-planet in case something happens and they need me. Give my regards to everyone, yes?"

"Felix is going to be disappointed." Nadia says, nearly naggingly, "Why don't you bring him out instead of Zenith?"

"I don't want Felix hurt anymore than he already is, and Zenith is going absolutely stir-crazy without any other missions to pass the time. You know how he gets." She and Nadia laugh good-naturedly, knowing the sniper rather well. "I do hope Bisauur doesn't miss him too much."

"It's his birthday soon, you know. She's going to want to spend it with him, even if she doesn't directly say anything." Naji has to hold back from rolling her eyes, her padawan (recently turned Sage) was exceptionally horrible at hiding her feelings for the sniper, and it was painfully obvious at times. No one made jokes about it, but because she took the Code so seriously (though she had to explain multiple times that it was still okay she was married to Felix), she acted as if her advances were simply friendly instead of having romantic intentions behind them.

"I would take Qyzen, but he's out on a hunt right now. And Tharan, well you know he's up to something in the cargo bay. I'd rather he not bring whatever chemicals he's collected here." Naji gives her a look that says 'I'm your master and that's final' before lightly embracing the girl, "I'll see you soon. Sleep and eat well, and be careful on your way out."

Nadia offers her one last smile and wave before heading out of the safehouse, and she can sense Lana approaching, "Barsen'thor."

"Beniko." She says softly, as not to make the woman presume she had any malicious intent, "I am genuinely glad you and Theron are alright. I do apologize for what happened all those years ago."

"Why would you apologize?" Lana asks, almost dumbfounded, "What happened on Rakata Prime wouldn't have been easily prevented as it was. I understand what you did, and I wouldn't blame you for...well this." She says, waving a hand around to the dark but still humid safehouse, "If anything, you and the Wrath did us a favor by doing so. Arkous and Darok were dispatched before they could turn anyone else or do any more damage inside their respective factions. In essence, that was a win."

"I still...I still feel just a tad horrible about you both. Having to uproot your lives because of something I and the Wrath did?" Naji knows she's delving into topics she shouldn't be discussing with a Sith lord, but the boundaries seem to have already fallen. Lana may have been Sith, but they were also allies for the time being. It didn't mean she wasn't still extremely uneasy about it.

"It was unfortunate, yes. But Jakarro and C2-D4 didn't have family. They weren't leaving anyone, not anyone we knew about. Theron...well I figure you can assume better about him than I can, and as for myself..." she trails off, the conversation inherently finished. They didn't have anyone to leave behind, "We let you both continue living your lives because you were much higher up in the ranks of both factions than we were, you were more productive in the long run. You both had crews to go back to who depended on you for your ship and to survive. In the Wrath's case, she has family on Dromound Kaas who would be suspicious if she suddenly went missing. I'm sure you have your connections as well."

"It was more theoretically plausible and safer if you both were out of commission rather than us." Naji finishes, wringing out her hands, "It doesn't make me feel much better if I'm being honest."

"I didn't say it had to." It has a rougher bite than she thought it would, that's the cold hard truth of what happened, as whether it made her feel good wasn't supposed to be Lana's concern. The woman pauses, sighing, "Though it is nice to operating with someone other than Theron and Jakarro again. It gets a little stuffy with just men."

"I can imagine." Naji smiles, and they share a laugh, before she queues up another answer, "Nadia. That's my padawan's name. I sensed your curiousity earlier, though you hide it extremely well."

Yet again, Lana is taken aback, surprised by her observant nature. "She's pleasant to be around, smart, crafty. She likes you. You've met Lieutenant Iresso, he accompanied me on Rakata Prime." Like always, she almost says my husband as she always introduces him, before figuring Lana doesn't need to know just yet, "You'll meet Zenith tomorrow I suppose, he's a strong personality, and it takes quite a bit to get used to, believe me." As soon as the words are out of her mouth, she wonders if she should tell her that Zenith may not work well with her or the Wrath. Stars, that's even worse, they'd be working rather closely with the Wrath, and it was hard to hide she was staunchly Imperial.

"If you're concerned about his alliance with us, I'm sure there's something Theron could say to keep her here while you and him work alone." A shiver runs up her spine, it's rather spooky that if Naji isn't actively thinking about it, others have an easy time reading her. Not even her mind, just her. Her force signature is easy to decipher, which she should probably put a better lock on.

"No, If I lie to Zenith, what kind of person would I be?" Naji asks, "He'll work with both of us, begrudgingly if anything."

"If you say so." Lana says, residing to accept and drop the conversation, "You didn't return with her?"

Naji shrugs lightly, "I'll stay here for the time being, but believe me, as soon as you give me a break you won't see me for weeks."

#swtor #star wars the old republic #swtor oc #oc #original character #naji iresso #mivonie iresso #mivonie cadera #mivonie wryen #theron shan #lana beniko #female sith warrior #female jedi consular #female sith warrior/theron shan #mellena shan #mellena cadera #mellena wryen #tri'ama amarillis-quinn #darth tri'ama amarillis-quinn #darth amarillis-quinn #swtor fanfiction #shadow of the sith #nadia grell #lieutenant pierce