#god I am getting off track as shit why do I have to base so much of my hcs on even more worldbuilding hcs fhdjdhj

[banamine-bananime]

AITA for trying to save my friend and keep the rest of my asshole friends safe from their bad decisions?

I (M26) just went through this real shitty breakup. So basically, my ex C (M lmao man fuck if i know his age idek if knows it. or has one i guess) has this god-fucking-awful habit of deciding to solve every problem by dying about it and/or fucking off without so much as a word to the people unfortunate enough to give a shit about him, except maybe his sister (unhelpful for the rest of us because she also inherited the "fucking off without a word" gene. man fuck this whole family for making me care about them. whatever). Also, killing himself inside peoples brains thats like a whole hobby for him. like okay either ghost us OR kill yourself in front of us altering the trajectory of our lives forever PICK ONE like a NORMAL person.

Okay wait im not explaining this well. So years ago C and W (M37 now) were partners but C was, uh, in a really bad place mentally (S is telling me this is more diplomatic to say than "crazy af") and that situationship ended as badly as a situationship can end. I mean W's told me he pretty much had his sense of identity as someone separate from C totally destroyed by that for a while, which like, in hindsight its kinda an accidental dick move that our team made him take C's legal identity, but in our defense a) the fuck were we supposed to know?, b) tbf he really did need it not to go back to prison, c) it's not like C was using his identity, on account of the fucking off and effectively-dying-as-a-solution habits, and d) i mean. i gotta admit it's also pretty funny in a really fucked way.

aw shit derailed on a tangent again

recently its just like, we just get so focused on one thing its hard to remember anything else, you know?

S is so good at getting us back on track though. thank god because you would not believe the number of irons weve got in the fire to keep track of, its ridiculous. (i love making my partner be the planner in the relationship lol. highly recommend being a passenger princess in the body sometimes. fuck massages, i'm telling you THIS is what you need after a long day getting shit DONE and taking care of everyone else's messes)

So I met C 6 years ago, right out of basic, when we were privates stationed at the same base. middle of nowhere. shit, this is gonna be hard to explain, just realized i should use different names for C to keep them straight. I knew "A" and W knew "E", i didnt meet E until years later. theyre alters and also the same guy but also not the same guy. dont worry about it if you dont get it bc ive dated both of them and i dont think i do. my life is stupid.

Bunch of bullshit happened, A ghosted (lol. you'd be high-fiving me if you knew him) and then found a problem to solve by dying. you get it by now.

Then i meet E, E encounters a problem and tries to die about it round one (i guess round two, after exploding in W <- LOL. you should be high-fiving me right now), E's sister drags him back to the land of the living, E ghosts, W and i start dating, W tries to martyr himself and disappears because i guess E rubbed off on him (dude i am on a fucking roll. you should be high-fiving me out of pity for my glamorously miserable soap-opera life if nothing else. homophobic not to), our team gets W back, E strolls back like he has no idea why im mad at him, we fight about it, makeup-makeouts about it, and E tries to die about it round two: in my brain boogaloo.

So thats how S and i meet. oops, guess i never introduced S? Feels weird to have to introduce ourself twice, people dont really meet us separately anymore LOL. S (M, ageless) is also C's alter, my partner in life and badassery and brain and body. and obviously freaky sex stuff, that goes without saying but i'm saying it anyway to brag. the swish swish to my stabbing people who really deserve it. Not really interested in your opinion on our relationship, it's not what i'm asking about. we're aware its not conventional, because we're not fucking braindead. Im so sick of all the "oooohhhhh this isn't healthy", "he's a male manipulator and youre codependent i know bc i learned psychology from tiktoks by girls with green hair", "why are you wearing your ex-boyfriend's armor colors while wearing his dead ex-boyfriend's armor while dating and sharing a brain with your dead mutual ex's alter", "have you considered going to therapy instead of a quest against death itself" blah blah blah. If youre so bored you need to judge our life then just get your own 🙄🙄🙄

we've been really on that sigma grindset the last few weeks. S has got our sleep optimized down to a tight triphasic 3.46 hours and we're minmaxing the fuck out of the rest of every day. Biohacked to shit over here. too much to do, so we have to make there be enough of our time to do it. who else is gonna? my teammates? the REDS? we're half batman half babysitter to a gaggle of idiots who can barely be trusted to wipe their own asses, let alone fight their own battles and make decisions like "wah wah wah A is dead let's just give up and cry about it or whatever".

Don't even get me started on W. Oh youre all about character-building wake up and grind self-improvement and taking leadership until we're making decisions you dont like, i guess. WHATEVER. this is why we dont listen to you.

its hard, okay. like, you cant understand the sheer fucking stress were under trying to keep all our plans going smoothly while keeping these guys safe while they're basically actively trying to unravel every carefully-laid thread and also strangle themselves in them. im probably going prematurely grey and also losing some time. its hard to remember when we need to hold back and use the kiddy gloves. i really didnt want to come to holding - uh, we'll call him MC (M25) - by the throat, passed-out. he's like a brother to me, been through thick and fucking thin together, so yeah, i feel really bad about that, my bad, we were the asshole there, but like, maybe stop throwing yourself in the way? like run out into the road you're gonna get hit by a truck no matter how hard they slam the brakes. mfw the conses quence. but im NOT asking about that. everyone's been on our dick about "please god stop doing all of this" and abandoning A and trying to break us up way before that, and THAT'S what im asking about

Anyways tl;dr are we the asshole for getting shit done when it takes methods that all our monday morning quarterback friends dont like

_____

OP has offered the following explanation for why they think they might be the asshole:

it really was a dick move to dangle my teammate's limp body in a chokehold even though it was basically an accident and also not even directly relevant to the question

OP has offered the following explanation for why they think they might not be the asshole:

okay but we're right

#red vs blue #rvb restoration #lavernius tucker

[harringtonstilinski]

It’s A Date - Steve Harrington (Smut)

Author: @harringtonstilinski​ Characters: Steve Harrington x Henderson!Reader Word Count: 3,530 Warnings: ST4 spoilers, fluff, little bit of angst  Smut: car sex between m+f, mutual masturbation Requested: Nope. Based off a prompt from this list A/N: Hi, friends! Of course, my first Steve Harrington fic is a smut piece, haha! This contains spoilers for S4, so if you haven’t watched it already, pls do not read. If you have any requests for our mom of 6, my askbox is open for requests. I might overuse the gif below because hotdamn🥵!!! Anyways, I hope you like this little piece! If you do, please do not hesitate to reblog and give some feedback, whether it be in the reblogs, comments, or my inbox. As always, read at your own risk and enjoy 😊

“Dusty! Hurry up, you’re gonna be late!” 

Do you know how many times a week I hear that? Five. Five days a week! All because my brother is still in his room, doing God knows what!

Upon hearing Mom’s voice calling his name again, I pulled the covers off my body and got out of bed. Opening my bedroom door, I glared at Dustin’s. I walked over to it and opened it up. “If you don’t hurry the hell up, I’m gonna drag you out of here by your hair. Got that, dipshit?”

“Okay, okay,” he said, getting up from his desk chair. “I was talking to Suzie.” 

Confused, I asked, “Why?”

“None of your business. Besides, aren’t you late for work?”

Facial expression going serious, I asked, “What time is it?” before going back to my room to look at my clock. “Shit! Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit. Keith is gonna kill me.”

I quickly changed my shirt and brushed my hair out. Since I had a phone in my room, I called up Family Video. As it rang, I searched for my jeans that I thought were on the floor. They ended up being on my vanity chair. 

“Family Video.”

“Steve? Holy shit, thank you for answering.”

“Y/N? Aren’t you supposed to be here by now?”

Resting the phone between my ear and shoulder, I pulled my shorts down and began putting my jeans on. “That’s why I’m calling. I apparently overslept and somebody was supposed to come pick me up.”

“I was? Damn, I forgot. I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. Cover for me until I get there?”

“What should I tell Keith?”

“Lost track of time running an errand?” I heard Dustin’s voice and got another idea… well, excuse. “I had to wait for Dustin ‘cause Mom needed me to take him to school. It’s also a perfect excuse for me to use the car today.”

“Has anyone seen Y/N?” I heard Keith asked.

“I’m on the phone with her now. She has to wait for her little brother so that she can take him to school.”

Silence. I stopped zipping and buttoning my jeans to hear what else Keith had to say. After a few more seconds of silence, I whispered, “Am I in the clear?”

“Not in the slightest,” Keith answered. “If you’re late again, you’re fired.”

“R-roger that.” I hung up after that, quickly zipping and buttoning my jeans before grabbing my vest with my name tag attached. I went to the kitchen, seeing Mom standing at the sink. “Can I borrow the car?”

“What for?”

Looking around to find the clock I knew was there, I spotted Dustin about to walk out the door. Quickly turning my head back to my mom, I said, “Dustin asked me to take him to school.”

“No, I didn't,” said boy responded, confused.

“Last night, you did.”

“Before you two start up, yes, you can borrow the car,” Mom said.

“Thank you,” I said, kissing her cheek. “I love you! I’ll be safe!” Walking towards Dustin, I said, “Your ass owes me.”

~~~

10:30AM. Only 30 minutes late for work. It took me all of 15 mins to get Dustin to school and myself to work. Did I go over the speed limit? Maybe. Was I driving like I didn’t care about the speed limit? Maybe. I mean, I didn’t get pulled over or anything, so I’m good!

Once I walked in the video store, I was met by Keith at the front counter. “You’re late.”

“Yes, I’m aware. Thank you. We’ve already established this,” I answered. I walked around the counter and straight to the back to set my stuff down and clock in. Once that was done, I immediately got to work on putting away the tapes people had returned.

“And then Vickie laughed,” I heard Robin say. I peaked out from one of the aisles to listen in on her conversation with Steve. “And it wasn’t like a cheap, fake laugh, either. It was like…”

I moved out of the aisle, knowing that she had to be at the basketball game the night before. “It was genuine, right?” 

She looked at me and smiled a little. “Yeah. It was.”

“I remember when I used to make someone laugh genuinely,” I said, looking in Steve’s direction.

Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. Steve and I dated for about a year. We got together the night he fought the demodogs, and then we broke up right before I was supposed to leave for school. Yes, my feelings are still there. Are they still there for him? I’m not sure. Anyway.

I went back to putting the movies back up, and before I knew it, about 15 minutes had gone by. Sitting down behind the front counter, I watched the movie that was playing; Doctor Zhivago. Don’t ask. Robin put it on. A body sat down next to me.

“Ya’know, if I’m utterly and totally right, I would say that Steve still has mad feelings for you.”

I looked over Robin, giving her a face of… well, curiosity. I looked back at the tv, crossing my arms. “Yeah, I’m not so sure.”

“Hey, guys, check this out,” Steve said, turning the tv behind the counter on.

Robin and I both moved to the front of the counter; Robin sitting in a chair, me sitting on the counter, and Steve standing. I was in the middle. What was on the television disturbed me; a teenager from Hawkins High was killed. 

My first thought was, “Dustin.” I hadn’t realized that I said his name aloud until I felt an arm around me, the hand attached rubbing my left arm up and down.

“I’m sure he’s fine,” Steve said.

“Better be,” I said, tearfully. “Or else I’m gonna revive him and kill him myself.” Hearing the front door open, I quickly gathered myself, but was shocked when I heard a voice say, “Hey, Steve.”

I turned around so fast, I thought I gave myself whiplash. “Oh, thank fuck.”

“You see this?” Steve asked.

“How many phones do you have?” Dustin asked, Max right on his tail.

“Someone was murdered.”

“How many phones do you have?” Dustin enunciated.

“Two, why?”

“Actually, we have three,” I said. Robin, Steve, Dustin and Max all four looked at me, but my eyes landed on Steve’s. Shrugging, I said, “If you wanna count Keith’s, it makes three.”

“Three works,” Max said.

“Guys, what’s going on? Does it pertain to the person was murdered?”

Taking off his backpack, Dustin said, “Y/N/N, move.”

Moving, I asked, “What fo–” Interrupting me, Dustin slid his bag across the counter, causing Steve and I to shout, “What are you–?”

“My pile,” Robin complained.

Dustin slid across the front counter, knocking over the tapes Steve stacked, causing him to shout, “No, no, no! My tapes! Dude!”

I had moved as soon as I knew what my brother was doing when he slid his bag and then his body across the counter. I walked up to him as he sat down at the computer. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

“Setting up base camp,” Dustin said.

“Base camp? Dusty, you can’t do that. This is my place of work.” I looked behind me at the back of the store. “If Keith finds out you’re back here, I’m dead.”

“You won’t,” Steve said.

I looked at him, asking, “What?”

“He left after you got here,” Robin said. “While you were in the back.”

Sighing, I said, “I’m gonna kill him.” Looking back at Dustin, I asked, “Why do you even need the computer?”

“Eddie’s friend’s phone numbers,” Dustin said.

“Your new best friend you think is cooler ‘cause he plays your nerdy game?” Steve asked.

“If you stop complaining about Eddie, I’ll go on a date with you,” I said, looking at Steve.

I turned back around to watch my brother, seeing him writing down names and numbers. Groaning loudly, I walk to the front of the counter to help Robin finish picking up. 

“You want me to strangle him or should I let you do those honors?” Steve said.

“Take turns,” Robin said.

“Oooh, good idea,” I smiled, looking back and forth between the two.

“Fill them in, please,” Dustin said.

“Fill us in on what?” Robin asked.

I looked at Max, who looked like she didn’t want to say anything, but told us anyway.

~~~

Apparently, Eddie had killed Chrissy Cunningham, and how he’s on the run from the cops… or at least that’s what I got out of it. 

“So, he killed her or something else killed her?” I asked.

“I’m thinking something else,” Max said.

While Robin, Max and Dustin called Eddie’s friends, we ended up getting a few customers in the store, to whom Steve and I both attended to. As I walked past him and a female customer, I overheard him try to explain Doctor Zhivago to the poor girl, who stated she had a boyfriend.

After I was done with my customer, I noticed that Steve had walked this girl to the door and stood there as she got in her car and drove off.

“Stop gawking,” I said. He pulled himself back in the store after saying the GD word. Looking at me, he gave me those eyes that I knew was him beating himself up on the inside. I took a step closer to him, almost chest to chest. “Hey, listen. If you can go the rest of our shift without complaining about Eddie or beating yourself up mentally, I’ll go on a date with you. Tonight.”

“Where?” he asked.

“Lover’s Lake. Pick me up at 9. I’ll be sitting on the trunk of my mom’s car.”

“It’s a date.”

“I might have a lead,” Max said, interrupting our moment. She started explaining something, but all I heard was one name; Reefer Rick.

“Wait a sec, I know him,” I said, walking to the counter.

“You do?” they all asked.

“Yeah. I used to buy weed from him back when I was a sophomore. I know where he lives.”

~~~

Robin, Max and Dustin gave the plan of going to see Reefer Rick as soon as possible. So, the five of us went to see him, only for him to not be at home. We found Eddie, though, in the boat house, hiding in a boat.

He explained what happened with Chrissy after we convinced him to tell us. As he was explaining what happened with her bones and how they were snapping, I shivered and turned my head to the side with my eyes closed.

I jumped when I felt an arm around me again. The arm belonging to Steve. I did what I always did when he did that; curled into him the best I could.

“You all think I’m crazy, right?” Eddie asked.

I looked over at him, sniffling, “No. We don’t think you’re crazy at all.”

“Don’t bullshit me, Y/N! I know how this sounds.”

“We’re not bullshitting you. We believe you.”

“Look,” Dustin said. “What I’m about to tell you might be a little… difficult to take. You know how people say Hawkins is… cursed? They’re not way off.”

Sniffing again, I said, “There’s another world. A world hidden beneath Hawkins, and sometimes it bleeds into ours.” “Like ghosts and shit?” Eddie asked.

“There are some things worse than ghosts,” Max said.

“There’s monsters in this other world,” Dustin said. “We thought they were gone.”

“But they’ve come back before,” I said.

“That’s why we needed to find you.”

“If they’re back again,” Max said. “We need to know.”

“That night,” Robin said. “Did you see anything?”

“Dark particles, maybe?” 

Eddie shook his head before Dustin explained, “They would almost look like dust, swirling dust.”

“Or snow,” I said.

“No, there was nothing you could see or touch,” Eddie said. “I tried to wake her. She couldn’t move. It was like she… she was in a trance or something.”

“Or under a spell,” Dustin said. 

“A curse.”

“Vecna’s Curse.”

Rubbing my arm again, Steve asked the group, “Who’s Vecna?”

“An undead creature of great power,” Dustin answered.

“A spellcaster,” Eddie said.

“A dark wizard.”

~~~

After taking Max and Robin home, Steve took me and Dustin home… well, mainly Dustin since it was already about 9pm. When he got out of the car, Dustin asked, “Aren’t you coming?”

“Tell mom not to wait up,” I said. “There’s a conversation that needs to happen.” I looked over at Steve for a second before looking at the sky, lightning striking.

“Make it fast.”

Steve drove off towards Lover’s Lake, the silence in the car deafening. “Hey, listen,” he said. “What happened between us–”

“Can we pause this conversation until we get there?” I asked. He sighed and went back to not saying anything. I watched as the rain started to come down, lightly before it gradually got heavier.

I looked out at the lake as soon as Steve put his car in park. After a few seconds of silence, I said, “I don’t know why I did it.” Looking down at my lap, I tried to will the tears back. “I was either scared you’d cheat on me or that I’d cheat on you. Truth is…” I sniffled. “I never stopped caring about you, thinking about you, or… loving you.”

I looked at him, seeing his eyes already on me. “I wouldn’t have.”

“I know, I know, I just– I had that small fear. And no, it wasn’t because I didn’t trust you because I did and still do. It was me and my stupid brain.” I couldn’t hold the tears back as I said, “I’m so sorry, Steve.”

He cradled me the best he could with us being in the car. “Hey, it’s okay. I understood then and I understand now.” I looked up at him the best I could as he looked down at me. “I still love you, too.”

Without thinking, I leaned up and kissed him, feeling him kiss me back. A simple kiss turned into a make out session which turned into me climbing into his lap after he pulled the seat back.

Detaching his lips from mine, he smiled a little, saying, “Bring back memories?”

I took my shirt off and nodded, but I said, “Shut up and kiss me.” 

We quickly locked lips again before I helped him take off his shirt. His lips went for my neck as my hands went to the back of his head, gently balling up his hair in my fists. He found my sweet spot, which made me moan.

“God, I’ve missed that sound,” he said.

“Steve,” I breathed.

“Yeah?” 

“Shut up, please.” I hadn’t realized that he unhooked my bra and pulled it off my breasts a little until I felt the flesh of his hands on the flesh of my breasts. “Steve, do something.”

I put my arms down, feeling my bra straps fall down before I felt Steve’s hands on my back, pulling me straight. I moaned loudly as I felt his lips wrap around my nipple, him hardening the bud.

Pulling away from my breast with a small pop, Steve said, “There’s my girl,” before moving on to the other one, eliciting another moan from me.

I felt his bulge on my core, so I reached down once he pulled away from my breast again and palmed him through his jeans, making him groan. After doing that for a moment, I looked down at his button and popped it, unzipping his jeans right after. 

Without him even saying anything, I got up on my knees as best as I could so that he could slide his jeans down his thighs. Before I could reach into his boxers, he said, “Do you remember where I keep them?”

I nodded, turning my head to the glove box and reaching the best I could to open it and retrieve a condom. Steve and I were both a panting mess, our breathing heavy. I turned back to him, holding the packet up and smiling. “Are we really about to do this?”

He nodded while smiling before taking the packet out of my hand. “Yup.”

I chuckled before I looked down at his package, reaching for it. I looked at him and asked with my eyes if he was totally sure, to which he nodded just slightly. 

It’s not like Steve and I never had sex before because we have. We just haven’t had sex in about seven months, so I just wanted to be sure with him before we went any further.

Reaching into his boxers, I wrapped my hand around his hardened length, pumping slowly a few times to get the blood flowing even more. Before long, I started pumping faster, finding a rhythm. 

Steve moaned, letting me know he was liking what I was doing. Not realizing that he popped the button on my jeans and unzipped them, I moaned as well when I felt his finger enter my core. Mutual masturbation, I guess.

“Mmmm, baby, baby, baby,” Steve said. “You keep going, I’m gonna cum right all over your hand.”

I stopped, putting my hands on his face to pull him in for a deep kiss. He pulled his hand from my panties before I felt him tap the outside of my thighs. I got up on my knees again before he broke the kiss.

“Sit over there,” he said, breathing heavily.

I did as he asked and sat in the passenger seat to finish undressing, him doing the same. “Do you have a blanket in the back?”

“Always,” he smiled.

I watched as he rolled the condom down his length after taking it from the packet. He grabbed my hand and helped me back over, but not before I hit my head on the roof of the car. “Ow, fuck!”

He chuckled while holding my head, kissing where I hit it. “Are you okay?”

I chuckled as well, looking up at him. “Yeah, I’ll be fine.”

After calming down, I looked down and grabbed his hardened cock, giving him those eyes once more. He nodded again, so I carefully lined him up with my entrance and slowly slid down, moaning all the way. 

“Fuck, I forgot how big you are,” I breathed.

“You know you love it,” he said.

“I do,” I said. “I do.” After adjusting for a moment, I started bouncing… or what bouncing I could do considering we were in his car.

Steve and I were still breathing heavily, moans coming out of my mouth left and right. I felt his hands on my hips, his own meeting mine.

“Wait, wait, wait,” I breathed, stopping my movements. “If you’re wanting to do that, we should lay the seat back. It feels awkward.”

He thought about it for a second before nodding and saying, “You’re right.” He laid the seat back and told me to stay on my knees before we started up again; me bouncing and him thrusting up into me.

With my hair in front of my face and my mouth open, I moaned with every thrust Steve made.

“You’re so beautiful,” he grunted. “So goddamn beautiful.”

“Oh, my god,” I breathed. “I’m gonna cum. I’m gonna cum, I’m gonna cum, I’m gonna–” With one more thrust into me, I came all over Steve’s protected cock. Leaning forward, I caught myself with my hands on the top corners of the seat. 

With his hands on my hips, I looked down at Steve, seeing him eye our bodies meeting, sweat forming on his brow. “Almost there,” he grunted.

“Ahhh, fuck,” I moaned loudly.

With one final, “Fuck!” from Steve, he stopped all movements, grunting while his hips jerked, letting me know he had came.

We didn’t move from our positions, just sitting there trying to catch our breaths. After a couple of minutes of being completely still, I moved my hand from the seat to Steve’s cheek, bringing our lips together.

When we pulled apart, we rested our foreheads against each other. I had my eyes closed, so I couldn’t tell if his was open or not.

“I love you,” I whispered.

“I love you, too,” he whispered back. “But, uhm, can you move? I’m getting soft.”

I laughed at his statement, nodding my head. I moved to the backseat, hoping he would pick up what I was laying down. Grabbing the blanket, I wrapped it around myself, noticing that Steve was pulling his boxers and jeans back up.

“Y/N/N?” he asked.

“Back here, dorkwad.”

He turned his head and smiled when our eyes met. He looked at my clothes before handing them back to me, silently telling me to get dressed, and after doing so, he climbed in the back with me, laying down in the seat first before I laid on top of him.

He sighed, rubbing his hands up and down my back. “I’ve missed this.”

“Me, too,” I smiled. “Next time we do this, though, at least take me to dinner first.”

He chuckled before saying, “It’s a date.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N 2:  hi, friends! i hope did steve harrington justice! i’ve been wanting to write for him since season 3 came out but just didn’t have major inspiration until now! but let me know what you thought! again, please do not hesitate to reblog and give some feedback, whether it be in the reblogs, comments, or my inbox.

~~~

Forever / Everything Taglist: @stiles-o-dylan24​​ @stixnstripesworld​​ @fandom-princess-forevermore​​ @quanticobae​​ @mischiefandi​​ @kellyashcroft​​ @lauren-novak​​​

Steve Harrington Taglist: none yet!

If you’re tagged and didn’t want to be, please let me know.

~~~

*Please don’t post my writing anywhere else without my consent. The author of this work will always and forever be @stilinskiparker​.

All characters, story lines, and plot aside from y/n and her storyline & plot, are all of the work of The Duffer Brothers. 

*These works contain material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited.

No part of these works may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author / publisher.

Posted on June 3, 2022

#steve harrington x reader #steve harrington x y/n #steve harrington smut #steve harrington #stranger things #joe keery x reader #joe keery x y/n #joe keery smut #steve harrington x henderson!reader

[mischiefmaker615]

Die For You

Rating: R

Summary: True feelings are revealed and intentions are brought forward…

Requested by: @Laer111ee (wattpad)

Note: One shot based off the song "Die For You" by The Weekend. i used some of the lyrics and changed them very slightly so they sounded more like how Loki would say it. maybe one or two Pinterest quotes too Lol

‘’you are so annoying-‘’

‘’am i?’’ not a question.

‘’yes!’’

‘’stop lying.’’ That smirk.

You resisted the urge to kick Loki from under the table as you both sat across from each other, not giving two shits whether you were in a nice restaurant or not. This wasn’t a date after all.. just a place that finally gave you business considering no one wanted the destroyer of New York entering their building.

‘’I’m not lying-‘’

‘’then why did you agree to dine in a place like this?’’ Loki quizzed, casually sat back in his chair without a care or concern in the world, regardless that his presence practically evacuated the whole room. He had both his hands resting on the white tablecloth beside his place while the candles illuminated his stupid, handsome face. Yet what irritated you more was that he seemed to try to get answers out of you, and for what??

‘’..someone had to keep an eye on you.’’ You explain, doing your best to use your poker face as your fork poked at the rest of your food, having the urge to keep your hands busy for no damn reason while your leg bounced under the table. After all, no one was at the tower and you were starving. Fury would kill you if he found out you left the god of mischief unsupervised.

‘’that’s not it darling. any one of those places, even here, could have let you take your food back home with you and I.’’ his amused look said it all as his eyes seemed to scan you up and down, almost lustfully. ‘’I would suspect that all this one on ne time lately was because perhaps you were developing a fondness towards me..’’ he teased and you stuck a finger out to interrupt him.

‘’don’t. don’t think that all this,’’ you motioned around you. ‘’was something more than just two friends sharing a meal in a nice change of environment-‘’

‘’so we’re friends?’’

You snatched your fork and raised your hand to chuck it at him but the second he stood from the table, hands remaining flat on the table cloth with a deadly look in his eyes, stopped you in your tracks. You both starred at each other, not moving a muscle but with each passing second, his expression got harder and harder to read, making you lower your hand and place the fork back on the table. This action seemed to add a slight gentleness to his features and even his shoulders lowered from his defensive stance.

‘’..besides.. you hate Midgardians-‘’

‘’incorrect darling.’’ He said gently, his tone almost scary calm as he seemed to be studying your features with a purpose, it almost made you squirm in your seat. He then lifted his eyes to indicate the rest of the room that pretended to be minding their own business before looking back at you. ‘’ I could hurt them. i could kill all of them, but not you. if it was up to me, you’d never see a drop of your own blood again.’’

The sudden statement was scary and.. well, it made you look up at him with nothing but wonder as your hands lowered to your lap, fingers fiddling in a nervous state as he gazed upon you with honesty, not giving a damn if he was still standing.

‘’..you don’t mean that Loki-‘’

‘’you know what I’m thinking love, I see it in your eyes.’’

Just that comment alone made your eyes glance away, suddenly aware that he was trying to read you, and dare you say it.. he wasn’t incorrect. As handsome as he was, he was so.. annoying. Mischievous is more like it, it was just him. there was not a single moments peace without a sarcastic comment, a flirtatious tease, the subtle pet names, the fact that he wished to be in your presence regardless even though he claimed to not be bothered by anyone.. all this shit and yet why did you.. love it.

‘’and you hate that you want me.’’

Your eyes snapped back up to him, almost as if someone poured cold water on you as you stare at him in shock. Your mouth didn’t produce words, nothing that indicated that what he was saying wasn’t true. your fingers dug into your palms as your heart began to remind you just how fast it was capable of beating.

‘’Loki- I can’t..’’

‘’you are scared to be alone?’’ he asked, his voice quiet but words clear as day as if he were right next to you as you sighed.

‘’I’m.. I’ve been hurt before.. i- why the hell am I telling you this??” not a question.

You stand and grab your purse, putting down a bill where they could keep the change before you take a step to the side to leave but he’s already in front of you, causing you to stop short where your hand supports yourself on the table behind.

‘’I’m sorry Y/N, but I know that your worth it. I can’t just walk away.. you’re different. Yes this is all sudden.. but it’s getting a bit to difficult to go on without at least telling you the truth..’’ Loki said, his voice gentle as you look up at him with hesitation, suddenly aware of just how tall he really is. ‘’..i would die for you..’’

Your lips parted, a breath in to speak but no sound came out. Even the room itself seemed to be silent where the only things in existence at the moment was just you and him. better yet, you were suddenly aware of the slight pool between your legs and the butterfly feeling in your chest and stomach returned; a feeling you’ve always tried to ignore day in and day out whenever you were around him- oh god! You.. wanted him..

By now he had slowly raised a hand and placed it against your cheek, your body thinking it would have flinched or tensed but you were the most relaxed you had ever been in a long time. Maybe a bit shy, your crude and sarcastic demeanor no longer there to protect you as your eyes looked vulnerable into his knowing ones.

“its hard to communicate the feelings I hold darling, but tonight I’m going to let you know..’’ his hand traveled down to take hold of yours, his grip gentle but prepared on leading the way as his eyes flashed a bright green for a split second. ‘’tell me my dear, when is a monster no longer a monster?’’

By now the only sound you could hear was his sultry voice and your own heartbeat and your hand impulsively gripped his as your body screamed at you. Your jeans and t shirt suddenly felt tight around you as you took a deep breath and let him pull you forward.

‘’.. when you love it.’’

It was almost as if time moved in slow motion, how ironically that the tower was still abandoned and the darkness of the night enveloped you along with every emotion you were feeling at that moment. But no thoughts. No words. Just eyes. Breathing. Feeling. You. And him.

His hands gripped yours in a gentle embrace, having kissed your knuckles the entire time he was walking forward while it had you stepping back. Upon feeling the bed behind you against your calves, he helped you sit down before releasing your hands as you looked up at him in awe and lustful wonder.

‘’I want you Y/N.. I know I am not worthy of it darling, but tonight let me let you feel bliss, forget about all pain, suffering.. you are not alone my love, and never will be again..’’ his voice was a promise, almost a whisper as his nose gently nuzzled your own in a playful matter while his hands flattened against your sides and glided down to grip the ends of your shirt.

Your breath hitched but for all the damn reasons, you trusted him. you let him. you want him. and so you followed his lead, raising your arms above your head as he pulled your shirt up, all motions slow as if to savor every waking second before the shirt was history behind you.

The sudden remembrance of going commando that day hit you and saw Loki’s eyes take in your breasts as if you were a feast to behold.

‘’ohhh darling.. you are as beautiful as I imagined..’’ he breathed as he kneeled down on one knee before you, between your legs to stay closer while his fingertips glided along the sides of your breasts.

Your body shivered by the new temperature and by his teasing touch that glided against your skin before he finally flattened his palms on your mounds, gripping and kneading them.

‘’absolutely gorgeous..’’ he whispered as he massaged them both, thumbs teasing your nipples while your back arched so your chest was pressed more into his hold. He took this opportunity to lean forward and take one of your globes in his mouth, sucking and flicking his tongue deliciously.

The pleasure made you shiver as your fists gripped the sheets beside you, feeling the pleasure grow between your legs and felt the need to press your thighs together- being stopped by Loki as he looked back up at you with a smirk.

‘’don’t pretend like you hate this.’’

‘’this is.. I feel..’’ you breath, having a hard time finding your words as he merely smirked and crawled up your body, causing you to lean back on your elbows as he loomed over you.

‘’despite the quarrels that happen between you and I amongst these walls, I’ve admired you the day I set my eyes on you. Your fire and sass, that mouth of yours spurred my words on to keep them coming just to trigger your spirit. I wanted your fight, your eyes show more truth in them when you are fired up than when you are trying to avoid me and stay quiet; and I know that you feel the same.’’ He told you, his eyes almost piercing yours as if daring for you to lie to him and you felt his fingers play with your jean’s button and zipper.

‘’i.. I didn’t enjoy our fights I just- it was the only reason for me to even be around you without being a stuttering mess..’’ you say quietly and you heard him chuckle, feeling your cheeks heat up.

‘’so you are shy around me darling? So your sass is merely a mask while you find yourself unable to speak to me. I think I’d like to see you squirm and stutter instead then.’’ He teased, his eyes admiring your shy honesty and gripped your jeans, slowly pulling them off to reveal your silk panties. By this reveal, he was faster at moving your pants off and it flew behind him before he rested his hands at your ankles. ‘’I should have been honest with you sooner love.. I myself was in denial with my own feelings. Me, of all to fall for a mortal. I’d hate to admit that I see what my brother was talking about..’’

You didn’t know if you should be insulted but his traveling hands was more than enough distraction as they glided up the back of your calves while his lips pressed delicate kisses against your knees. His phantom strength made it clear you wouldn’t be able to close your legs now if you wanted too.

‘’.. I don’t believe it..’’ you whisper and he merely hummed against your skin.

‘’which part darling? I assure you everything I’ve told you so far is more than true.’’

‘’that you’d die for me. Many people just say that to be.. romantic-‘’

He tilted his head up at you, briefly resting his chin against your leg. ‘’I came to this world to conquer it. that is all. That is all I wanted, and more. Upon setting my eyes upon you.. something shifted. For a brief moment, my entire focus moved to something else.. you. I moved on with my plan.. which is why I failed in the end. I believe that you were my distraction, and my main goal. I’d give up the crown if it meant you wouldn’t be beside it with me..’’ he whispered, all the while his piercing blue eyes gazed into your own as if in them themselves would hold proof.

By his words, you couldn’t find your own. You bit your lip, wanting to hold back a moan as his lips continued now to the inside of your thigh and a hand moved to tangle in his hair. ‘’Loki…’’ you breathed, trying your best to form proper sentences. ‘’I’ve wanted nothing in my life this bad but you.. despite it all, I find myself able to trust you, before and now..’’ the light grip in his hair made him look up but briefly. ‘’you are not a monster.’’ You told him, your words serious and your eyes lustful as you promised him his previous statement at dinner was all but true.

‘’..then love me..’’ he whispered, now realizing his fingers had hooked onto your panties before he yanked them down and it joined the rest of your clothes behind him.

Upon his eyes settling, you saw a predator, a man starved and hungry as his muscles tensed and he kneeled completely before he set a gentle hand on your chest, pushing you down to lay on your back before he raised your legs to rest on his shoulders. Your fingers gripped the sheets hard as he dove in, licking a strip all the way up before pressing his lips against your cunt and pushed his tongue through your folds.

His grip on your thighs slightly tightened, he moaned at how you tasted, made you shiver as the vibration seemed to hit right through your core. His tongue stroked deeply up and down repeatedly before he used the tip to flick and swirl your clit. Your limbs began to shake, your breathing becoming a bit hard as if you needed to concentrate to take in a breath. Your back arched as he began sucking at your clit, now and again moving to tongue fuck you as he made his movement slow and fast, taking turns as if to tease you.

The butterfly feeling returned to your chest, stomach and began making your pussy throb as you moaned, your fingers tangled in his hair and it made him growl, his mouth moving faster as if he needed to drink you that very second. His grip made it clear he wasn’t going to let you go and your thighs made it clear they weren’t for him either as you tried not to crush his head as they pressed together. His nails dragged lightly against your thighs as he lapped your cunt and you felt yourself nearly falling off the edge to the pleasure abys.

‘’I’m.. I’m..-‘’ your breath hitched as your back arched, eyes squeezed shut as did your thighs as you threw your head back and came, moaning out his name, “LOKI!..’’ drinking in your orgasm as he moaned into your pussy, taking every last drop as your body began to shake, your eyes fluttering and cunt convulsing before he began slowing your movements.

It wasn’t until he was sure you were down from your high before he raised his head, kissing your thighs and up your body before he finally pressed his lips against your own. Your arms wrapped around his neck as he gently rested his body against yours, fitting as perfect as a glove while you felt him relax, kisses being pressed against your neck as you relaxed with him.

The way you both laid together, your eyes opened as you felt his erection being pressed against you and your eyes widened by the mere size of it. he made no move though, no suggestion and the way he took his lip against your skin, his smile and the joy in his eyes showed he was in no hurry for himself, if at all. A smile came to your lips and you cupped his cheeks, him kissing the inside of your hand with that opportunity before looking at you for what you needed. You flashed him a teasing look,

‘’.. how about I love that monster next?’’

Shoot a request :) any ideas! i've done this style twice now:

Boyfriend by Dove Cameron

Die For You by The Weekend

#loki smut #loki x reader smut #loki fluff #loki fanfic #loki odinson #loki x reader #loki god of mischief #lokifluff #loki laufeyson #loki

[inmyminditsreal]

Hello

Can you do a request where the reader is held captive and Spencer has to save her? You can decide if they are already a couple or not.

Thanks

Hey!! Yes of course!! What i wrote is kinda dark but hope you enjoy!

Fem!reader x spencer reid

Summary: reader gets kidnapped and tortured while Spencer and the team have to save her.

Word count: 1.3k

Warnings: Blades/cutting skin, torture.

It was a normal case. Well, not ‘normal’ but as you go along as an agent, you get more suited to the terror. The case you’re working on started out simple. Guy kidnaps and tortures girls for fun. It's eerie and just the thought makes your skin crawl. You went out on a hunch without telling anyone. Now, you’re in this man's basement after being knocked out in combat. You wake up. 

You look around, and you notice that you’re tied to a chair, in the middle of a cold, dark basement with strange drawings on the walls.

“Where the fuck am I?!” You snarl into the dark basement.

You hear a high pitched child-like voice say from behind you, 

“Just where I want you to be my love~.”

It was horrifying. You feel a shiver run down your spine as you feel the cold press of a blade on the base of your neck.

“I bet all your friends are looking for you, hmm agent? I bet they care about you so much.” It taunts.

You stumble across the courage to say, “They’re fast.”

It laughs while carefully caressing the knife over your face, lurking over you like a leech. You wait in agony as it teases you with the tip of the blade. 

Finally, walking in front of you. You see that it's a man, a full-grown man. Disheveled and disgusting. He has brown shaggy hair that hangs in greasy loops over his face. His skin looks rough and scarred. His eyes are staring maniacally into yours. Just by looking at him, you get the feeling you get when you see something you weren’t supposed to. He didn’t look right or sound right.

“What? You don’t like what you see?” he pouts while kneeling in front of you. You can’t shake the dread you feel hearing his voice. It’s so young. So child-like and sort of off. You don’t say a word. His face contorts into a smile.

“Well, soon enough you will.” 

He walks over to the corner and returns with a camera. He sets it up facing you. He turns it on. Waving at the camera with a wide infantile grin, he walks over to you.

The BAU

“I don't know what to do! Did anybody get any information about where she was going?” Penelope urged. Everyone was crowded in her office, scanning the monitors for any information that would lead to you. Spencer was the first to speak while he was pacing around the room,

“No- why didn’t she tell any of us! She should’ve known to tell us. God, why didn't she think!"

He sounds angry to the normal person, but to the rest of the team they know he’s desperately worried.

“Wait! Did you check his laptop? Like everything on it, what he was doing, stuff like that.” Spencer rushes over and questions Garcia. 

She quickly chimes back, “Obviously! Wait- oh my god. There was a page I didn’t open. You know how his parents told us he used to stream online? Maybe he still does.” 

Everyone is now huddled against Penelope.

“Oh my god.” Emily mutters. He was streaming. You were on the stream, sitting in a dimly lit basement with drawings of animals and candy all over the walls. A tall man standing behind you combing your hair, with a knife.

“Oh my god that piece of shit. Penelope can you track this? Please. Do it. Now.” Spencer hisses. He’s never normally like this. But with you in danger, something about him is feral. 

Penelope gets a little startled at his harsh tone but nevertheless stabs back with, 

“On it. Looking looking looking…..Got it! 2734 linktin ave.”

Spencer almost runs out the door. The team follows behind him but his urgency alarms them all slightly. 

Basement

You suddenly start to cry. You keep telling yourself that the team is coming and that they’ll find you. But you can’t lie that you’re losing hope. Fast. The man sets out some surgical tools on the floor and leans into your face. With a box cutter in hand, he grabs your wrist with a fierce grip and starts slowly dragging the knife into your hand, leaving you writhing in pain. You try your best not to show any emotion, hoping that maybe he’d stop. But to no avail. With a scoop of his finger, he takes your blood and asks you one simple question, “What do you wanna be?”

You wail, “What do you mean?!! What do you want!?”

“Hmm… I guess i'll decide for you!” he smiles and begins to dig his fingers into your wound, takes out the blood and begins to draw on your face, slowly with excruciatingly careful strokes he drips the warm blood over your skin. You shutter and cry when suddenly he screams,

“STOP CRYING! You stupid BITCH! YOU’RE RUINING MY MASTERPIECE!”

You wail in pain as he digs the knife into your hand, drawing agonizing lines once, another time, and another. Each time drawing more and more on your face and down your neck. He begins to pull on your lips, mimicking a smile- then quickly pulling them down into a frown. All while smiling.

The BAU

Spencer was pushing on the gas, speeding to get to you. In his mind, he kept thinking of your smile, your kind eyes, and all the things he loves about you. He hasn’t told you that he loves you yet, and he started to regret that decision as your absence progressed. He swerves into the man's driveway and immediately gets out running into the house. The door is locked. With a steady kick to the door, it swung sporadically open. He starts stalking inside, gun drawn. The team quickly rushes in behind him.

“Wait reid!” Derek insists. 

Spencer isn’t phased and opens every single door until he finds the basement. The basement door which was once locked, now lay battered and broken clinging to its hinges. The team quickly hurry down the steps yelling, “FBI DROP YOUR WEAPON AND PUT YOUR HANDS UP!”

The man quickly holds the knife up to your neck, taunting the team with his threat.

“Don’t you dare touch her. Put your hands up and drop the knife. Now.” Spencer snaps at the man. The man laughs, and then, in an instant, a gunshot rings throughout your ears. You feel the grip on your neck start to falter, and you hear the man's body thump on the cold ground behind you. The team's eyes beam towards Spencer and his gun. 

Spencer and Emily quickly undo your restraints, and as you try to get up, your legs wobble and Spencer catches you in his arms. 

“You’re safe now, let's get you to the doctor.” 

“Wait- let me see my face-.” 

Spencer nods and lifts you up, taking you to a mirror. You look in the mirror, horrified. You finally understand what the man meant by ’what do you want to be’. He was doing face paint. There were long thin lines that resembled grotesque clown lips and nose, eye liner, blush, and detailed lines. How could he have done this? With blood and a blade. It was brutal. You begin to sob at your reflection.

Up in the driveway you’re greeted by paramedics who cater to your wounds and sit you down in the ambulance. Once you’re all patched up, Spencer walks over to you, wrapping you in a blanket and sitting beside you.

“I’m so sorry.” He mutters.

Due to the loss of blood which was getting fixed by the iv in your arm, you felt hazy.

“It-’ts okay.” you mumble.

“you're safe.” 

“mhm-mm” You hum while leaning your head down on his shoulder. You were too tired to understand any of his words.

“I love you. And I'm sorry I didn't tell you before.”

“M-mn yea.” you mumble.

You weren’t completely sure what was going on, and Spencer picked up on that. He decided he would tell you when you could actually form a sentence. Even though you felt horrible, Spencers arms wrapped around you replaced your dread with warmth, and that you could understand.

#criminal minds #spencer reid #bau #fem!reader x spencer reid #spencer reid imagine #spencer reid one shot #spencerreid #spencer reid angst #spencer reid fic #baureader

[solaneceae]

float like a feather, sting like sharp talons

Philza drops by Étoiles' brand new dojo for a friendly sparring session, and ends up getting quite a lot more. Namely existential dread, the thrill of a good hunt, and the comfort of shared trust. @apthotiosis this is a commissioned fic! read on ao3

He whistles, eyes lingering along the thick, wooden support beams and rice paper walls surrounding him. It’s a surprising sight, tucked away in a corner of what he can only describe as a mess of a base, mostly empty, the walls still a rough (and frankly ugly) mix of dirt and cobblestone that hasn’t been cleared out even after six months. “So. That is your dojo.”

Étoiles nods at his side, a big stupid grin on his face. “Do you like it, Phil?” he asks, eager as a pup as little Pomme zooms around the cave in an improv game of tag with Tallulah — ever mindful of how her lag (sorry, asthma) sometimes stalls her in her tracks. He glances at them fondly, silly, eggs, babies. “I do,” he hums, because it is pretty. Especially if you ignore the rest of the cave outside because God, it’s fugly as shit and Étoiles knows it. The plant hybrid smiles, all teeth and gums, and squints with star-filled eyes that always seem to glow despite not working like they used to. Phil still doesn’t get why what was originally a completely harmless veggie plant has evolved to bear such predatory teeth, but he can’t say it doesn’t suit his friend. “He likes it! Let’s gooo, big win for me, big win. I can die happy now.”

“Oh my god, stop. Kristin’s married, you know.”

Étoiles gives him a mock-shove that is more of a real one, because Étoiles never holds back, especially not with Phil. “Oh! Oh, so I can’t be nice to Lady Death? I can’t just visit her because she’s cool and she likes me also? I am married to the grind, Phil, you know me!”

Phil shakes his head, exasperated and fond. “You’re a nerd is what you are. Did you know she calls you her tech support?” Étoiles makes a confused noise. Tallulah peeps in the background, mimicked by Pomme, a chorus of play and yesyes, because all the eggs have picked up on that one by now. (Mimicry is a powerful thing, and the eggs are highly social creatures who thrive on it.)

Phil elaborates, circling the build to assess its structure better. “Because of the sweeping edge bug thing, and Richas’ cancelled death last week. You find the kinks and loopholes in death mechanics better than anyone she knows.”

Étoile beams at that. “That’s so cool. I’m Death tech support!”

“You certainly are. Do you think it’s because you picked Death? In the entity rooms?”

The green-skinned man shrugs, then gasps and takes off running after Pomme to stop her from setting up waterframes everywhere to display obscure anime edits for Tallulah because her internet, her lag Pomme, you’re going to make her void! Phil glances at them (safe, no danger, good) then back at the dojo, running his palm down a beam to feel its grain. It’s smooth, recently stripped of its bark. “Huh,” he says.

He doesn’t understand why his friend chose to build this underground when dojos are usually suited for wind-swept plains or mysterious forests. Then again, Étoiles has never been much for coherent aesthetics. That, and he probably thought it would be more mysterious to hide it under the ground, knowing him. “It’s. Well, very dojo-like,” he walks through dark support beams and onto clean, recently-oiled planks, coming to poke at one of the wooden sticks idly rotating above an altar to send it spinning in the opposite direction. Étoiles trots back to him with an egg under each arm (Play, dad, Pomme warbles. Play, silly, Tallulah beeps from within her cracked shell.) and lets out a guttural noise, visibly bothered by the sticks being out of sync, and it makes Phil snort. Silly. Silly. “Did you build it all by yourself?”

“Yeeaaaah.”

“You’re lying.”

A dramatic gasp. The warrior puts both eggs down to throw his hands in the air. “I’m not lying! Pomme, ma légende, dis-lui.”

Bomp. [me and richas did it. papa helped, very much :DDD]

Étoiles comes to brush his fingers against the red sign, letting the device tucked into his ear translate the written words into spoken ones. He whines, puts a hand over his heart as his ears droop. “Ahhh, trahison. Disgrâce. Tu m’détestes en fait Pomme, c’est ça ? You want me to dig down to bedrock and die forever? Or it’s because I can’t see, so you think I’m shit?”

Bomp. [papa…] Bomp. [t’a pas besoin d’être aveugle pour avoir des goûts douteux en déco :X]

“Okay, okay. I go die in fire then, goodnight.” Then Étoiles pours lava into the cobble floor and stands in it with a huge smile. His body catches on fire immediately, skin quickly shrivelling up and blackening under the heat. Pomme peeps at him loudly and hits him with her scythe, then douses him in water and healing potions — which immediately prompts Étoiles into sparring mode, laughing and hyping his egg up with a string of ‘oh she knows, she knows the play’ and ‘strafing, comboing, keep at it’ as his body heals up. Philza watches the display for a few seconds before getting bored, choosing to walk past the layer of light wood circling the dojo to take a look inside.

It’s even prettier than the outside, with all the paper lanterns and little fountains and bamboo shoots. His geta clack against the wood, then go silent on the woven straw flooring at the center. “Why’re all the posters in Japanese?” he remarks when his friend comes back from his little mock-tantrum with his daughter in tow, squinting at a crude montage explaining the belts system. Philza can gather that it’s based on how much HP the dojo master has left after a duel, because Étoiles has been yapping about making a dojo with that exact system for months now. (Is that a jar of mayo at the top? The hell?) Guess the eggs returning has been the push in motivation he needed to actually commit to that build, despite his insistence that he is very much a builder now, thank you very much, look at all the wool I have.

Étoiles perks up, grins in a way that lets Phil know he’s about to do a bit. “Oh, you don’t know? You don’t know that I’m literally Japanese, Philza?” he chirps, picking up one of the sticks on display before running circles around the other man, poking at his legs playfully. His boots are off, Phil notices. “Speaking of! Shoes off Phil, come on, come on!”

“You literally told me you grew in a field, mate,” Phil laughs, airy and wheezy and light as he evades the attacks. “The little legume who could! In rural France! Where does Japan come into play here?”

“Aaaah, Philza, Philza,” the warrior shakes his head, hitting the other on the shoulder to push him back out and onto the cold cobble floor. “Shoes off I said, it’s a rule. I don’t want shit on my tatami, I already had to clean it up sooo many times with the whole server fucking around in it yesterday. And Japan lives in my warrior’s soul. It’s all that matters.”

“F’course it does,” Phil complies regardless, shimming out of his geta before walking to the little shoe rack in the corner to tuck them inside. “There. Happy?”

“Very. Also, trivia time, culture time: did you know that cucumbers aren’t legumes? They are fruits, Phil! And vegetables don’t actually exist, they’re all either fruits or roots or leaves or flowers...”

Phil stares at him. “...You don’t get to stand there and tell me my avocados are fruits, Étoiles. What the fuck.”

“Umm, they are berries, actually—”

“Oh fuck off and come kill me already.”

“With pleasure, my bro.”

 

Armors come off next, quickly magicked back into inventories. Phil walks up to the altars to pick up his own stick (unenchanted, as plain as it gets) and spots Étoiles off to the side, rolling up his sleeve to check on his insulin levels before rolling it back down. “We eat one gapple each, yes? My sugar is low,” he explains as they both get into position on both ends of the tatami.

“Sounds good. You got yours?”

Étoiles laughs, summoning a golden fruit from his inventory and spinning it over his finger like the insufferable showoff he is. “Always. Autofeed off Phil, no cheating.”

“Alright, you little shit,” Phil summons his own gapple and bites into it with purpose, feeling the warm tingle of magic-saturation in his stomach as the rest of the apple vanishes into thin air with a few golden sparkles. He turns to the eggs, settled on top of diamond blocks they’ve just placed. “Tallulah, do a countdown for us please?”

Signs are placed, one by one, as Pomme hypes them up with Megalovania, perfectly timed with the Pigstep now blasting out of a music box. Bomp, three. Bomp, two. Bomp, one…

Bomp. [GO PAPA PHIL :D]

Étoiles shoots off towards him as soon as the letters show up on the wood, jumping up and swinging his stick down for a crit. Phil dashes to the side, the blow just grazing his shoulder. “Nice cock, Phil!” Étoiles gasps, all sharp teeth and waggling eyebrows, and it takes the avian back enough for the other to get a few hits in. “Motherfucker!” Phil laughs, breaking the combo and pushing the cucumber back with a few crits of his own, adrenaline starting to flood his brain and paint the world in sharp edges and colors. “You little shit! Stop doing that!”

“Do what, Philza? I’m just bantering, just chilling.”

Étoiles’ combat style hasn’t changed despite the blindness, Phil finds — he’s insanely precise and quick on his feet, which is a problem. He decides he won’t be able to outrun or out-speed him, so he elects to block most of his strikes with his own stick instead, relying more on instinct than observation. “He’s blocking, he’s blocking,” the warrior’s voice chants through the flurry of swings and the clack of wood against wood. “Strafing, strafing, he’s the best, he’s the GOAT. Hit me, Phil! Don’t just defend, hit me!”

And dammit, Phil tries pretty hard — but Étoiles is insane and he’s just a little too fast even without speedbridging, just a little too smart with his feints. Phil goes down after two minutes, the last hit clocking him across the temple and sending him to the (thankfully a little soft) floor, ears ringing and white stars dancing across his darkening vision. He wonders if it’s a little like how Étoiles sees the world now. Probably not. “Four hearts, Phil,” Étoiles announces, laying his hands on Phil’s side — the pain fades, the world comes back into focus, and his brain rattles with the doom-doom of revival. He hears fireworks going off, probably Pomme’s. “That’s good, very good. That’s a brown belt! I think you can kill me soon, easy. Again?” the cucumber chirps, offering his hand, and Phil thinks that if Étoiles had his tail it would probably be wagging right now.

He groans in agreement, grasps his friend’s hand and is pulled back on his feet. “Yes. Again.”

Round two goes similarly. “Again.” So does round three. “One more.” After his fourth consequential victory, Étoiles looks pensive, and Phil is getting a tad frustrated — he’s muted his comm for this, as he often does, but he can usher a guess at what Global chat looks like, spammed with his half-death messages and maybe a brief bout of concern from whoever else is online at the moment. “Fuck, man,” he rubs at his neck where a particularly vicious strike has left the skin an angry red, molted with purple. He’ll feel that in the morning, if he doesn’t get a respawn. “I don’t think I can do it. No black belt for me.”

“No, no, you can,” Étoiles insists, circling him — dull, greyed out eyes scanning for something. “I think…”

“Looking for something, king? How’s nebula-me looking?”

“Like the GOAT, you know that. But since you ask, you’re more blue today. With some red.”

“Cool. Wish I could see like you do, for a day.”

“You don’t. It’s pretty, but annoying. It’s harder to make out details inside the, ah…” he mumbles something in barely-legible French. “Je sais pas comment on dit. Les contours. The lines at the limits of a drawing.”

“Outlines?”

“Yes. I see the outlines well, but everything inside is messy. To me everything is just, shapes. And the bigger a thing is, the harder it is for me to understand it. Eggs are easy, because they are small and simple. People are harder.” He waves towards Phil. “Like, I can’t know if you’re smiling or frowning, I have to listen to how your voice sounds.”

“Huh. That’s interesting.”

Étoiles hums, stops at his side. Cocks his head like an attentive dog. “Ah. You should take your backpack off, Phil. It’s slowing you down.”

Oh. Philza shifts, hesitant. “I wear it all the time, it doesn’t nerf me that much.”

“No, I think it can make a difference. Let’s try it?”

Mh. He hadn’t planned on doing this today. Showing his kids had felt right, natural. Showing Fit had required a few deep breaths, but not much else. Étoiles… is a trickier case.

He does want to show him — the french warrior is one of his most trusted friends, and someone he knows he can rely on in a pinch. The guy is loyal to a fault, always looking at Phil like all it would take for him to lay down his life before him was a single word. It’s a bit scary, in a way, and always makes his hindbrain buzz pleasantly. But Phil held things like mutual trust in high regard, and Étoiles had broken that on the first day of Purgatory.

They had talked since then, and it’s clear to Phil now that it had been an honest mistake, a temporary lapse in judgement. Plus, it’s not as if Phil hadn’t lost his own mind within the first twenty-four hours in that red hellscape. Still, even though he has forgiven Étoiles, the cracks don’t feel completely healed just yet. “I don’t know, mate,” he pulls at one of the straps of his backpack self-consciously, feeling its weight pressing his wings tightly against his back. “I can’t get you under four hearts, I doubt taking it off will give me that much more.”

“Phil. Phiiiiil. Trust me?”

Tall order, Phil almost jokes, but refrains. “I do trust you.”

“Then trust what I’m saying. I know my shit, you’re being slowed down, you can’t spin as fast or jump as high with this thing, it’s basic physics. I want you to have all the chance on your side.”

Philza purses his lips, glances to where Tallulah sits off to the side. She jumps to her little feet and places down a sign, while Pomme rummages through her backpack next to her. He can’t help but coo when the bright ‘<3’ shows up in stark white against the magenta wood. “Right. Okay.”

Étoiles can’t see, not normally. So maybe he won’t be able to make them out, bound tightly against his back as they are. And if he does, then that is fine. No need to make a fuss of it. So Philza walks up to Tallulah and drops the black pack next to her, giving her a little headpat in passing. “Watch over that for me, okay?” he smiles at her, and she peeps at him with purpose, jumping on top of it and doing the egg equivalent of puffing up her chest. Pomme is in her own red backpack now, little legs kicking the air as she reaches as deep as she can. silly, egg, baby, egg, he croons. “I’ll be right back. Got a green ass to kick.”

 

“He is back,” Étoiles whoops when he steps onto the tatami. “Oh, he is ready, so ready. Are you full hearts?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. We go on three, one, two, th—”

Phil takes off at the first syllable, and oh, yeah, the lack of weight on his back means he can lean forward more without gravity winning, and that means he reaches Étoiles right as he reaches the end of his three. He thrusts his stick forward, the blunt tip digging itself right into the other’s abdomen with enough force to make him stumble back, winded and sputtering. “Argh—”

Phil doesn’t let him recover, getting a few good hits in before his opponent parries and attempts an upward swing that he barely evades by sending his body backwards, dangerously far. The weapon grazes his chin, and his wings try to open to regain balance but they’re still bound against him. “Shit—” he steps back quickly, arms pinwheeling, and it looks a little silly but it works, and he does not crash onto his back like an idiot.

Étoiles stares at him from the other side, breathing hard, eyes wide, a palm against his diaphragm. Then he smiles. “Oh. Ohohooo. Okay, now we’re talking. Let’s go.”

Moving more freely doesn’t make the fight easier, not by a long shot, because Étoiles adapts quickly — but it does make it more fun, and that’s already an improvement in Phil’s eyes. He gets less crits in, because jumping up leaves him too exposed to revenge strikes, but he gets more light hits in between sidesteps and mad dashes. “He is so fast!” Étoiles cheers, ducking to dodge a vicious strike to the head. “Oh, he is so good, go Phil go!”

Run, dodge, strike, strafe, dash. Every muscle in Phil’s body strains to keep up as he pushes it past its limits, arm aching from the repeated shocks against the stick, but he barely feels it thanks to the adrenaline flooding his system. A hit to the back of his knee makes him stumble, but he recovers into a roll and trips Étoiles with his stick in retaliation. The cucumber groans, scrambles to get up, and Phil sees an opening right there on his foes’ unprotected throat. He zeroes in on it, takes the first step, raises his weapon and—

 

There’s a jagged shape in his peripheral vision.

 

He falters. Tries not to look at it, tries to keep his eyes on target, target that’s about to get back up, quick, quick, do it. 

 

There’s a purple shape in his peripheral vision.

 

He fails. Sharp angles and eerie glow, that shade he’s come to dread. The amethyst crystals hum out their ethereal song, taunting him. He doesn’t see Étoiles anymore, and his world is drowning in high-pitched static.

 

Purple. Purple everywhere. The room is too dark, too dark, darker yet darker.

Time slows down. No. The edges of his vision are fraying, dark tendrils creeping in. He feels himself falter, adrenaline making way for cortisol and making his hindbrain, no, fly, fly, run, nonono. He’s losing his footing, his grip around the stick growing slack, palms getting clammy. No, no, not now, please. His breathing picks up, faster than it’s been at any point of this duel. The amethysts glow an eerie violet, jagged shapes growing out of the thick, wooden beams around him, and he swears the room has gotten even darker. “Tallu—” He doesn’t make it to the end of the name, because then something smacks him in the back with unrestrained force.

Right on his left ulnare, the wingbone left exposed with no fat or muscle to cushion the blow.

Pain explodes throughout his left wing, the shock propagating all the way into his back and making him yell out, a gasp-screech that is very not human. Tallulah peeps loudly somewhere at the edge of his awareness, papa, no, bad! as he falls to his hands and knees, panic spiking, bad, bad, hurts, getoutgetout—

“Oh merde! Phil, ça va ?” He hears glass breaking, smells melon and gunpowder and something both earthy and spicy — Nether wart. Étoiles is healing him, putting a stop to their duel, and the realisation drags him out of that weird fugue state. “You never made that sound before, I think it’s bad. Are you okay?”

“Amethyst,” the older man growls between clenched teeth, letting the potion effects refill his health bar — fuck. Pain signals were always limited during PvP, but this had somehow broken through the server’s capping function. Étoiles makes a noise of incomprehension, his hands just hovering over Phil’s shoulder, not quite touching. “What?” he says, and Phil hears the patter of little feet rapidly coming closer. Pomme and Lullah.

“Please, just... Can you see the amethyst?”

He doesn’t know why he’s asking, of course his friend can’t see it, because that shit isn’t real. Or at least not to anyone but him. Through the haze he can feel Tallulah’s warm shell bump against his arm, hear her little worried chitters. He doesn’t trust himself to tell her he’s fine.

But then, Étoiles raises an eyebrow and turns his head towards the wall, blinks. A frustrated noise. “Euuuh Pomme, je t’adore hein, mais ça va pas trop avec le reste en fait. Tu peux les retirer steuplait ?” Pomme crouches, one-two, then summons a pickaxe and walks towards the crystals, and proceeds to casually break all of them.

Oh. Her backpack, all her rummaging. She’d been trying to decorate the dojo while they were busy sparring. 

Philza lets out an uneven breath, runs a hand through his hair — his forehead is damp with cold sweat, and it sucks. Okay. Okay. Real, then. Just a really, really bad coincidence. Bad timing. Bad everything. He lets out a breath, the tight coil in his chest slowly loosening. “I’m sorry Pomme,” he gives the little egg a smile that he hopes to the Gods isn’t shaky. “Got distracted by the shiny, you know how it goes. Crow brain go brrrrr.”

Pomme falls dramatically on the floor at that, places a red sign that reads [sorry ;_;] “You’re good, you’re good, don’t worry.” Tallulah places a flower next to Pomme, bomp, [RIP manzanita]. Phil chuckles at their antics, heartbeat slowing down to a more normal pace. Jesus Christ. “You like shiny things, Phil?” Étoiles asks. “Did not know that.” He looks around, scans the dojo for any stray shine. “Mmmh. All good, I think. Sorry about Pomme, she likes amethyst stuff.” Then, quieter, “I think it reminds her of Baghera. She has an amethyst farm in her castle.”

Oh. Phil glances at Pomme, who thankfully seems fully absorbed in a sign-based conversation with Tallulah. “That makes sense. She must miss her a lot.”

(Dad, are you proud of me? I just killed a silverfish.)

“Can I see your wings, Phil?”

And, there it is. The other shoe. Phil lets out a heavy sigh, wincing when the movement makes his joint twinge in lingering pain — he’s pretty sure nothing’s actually broken or sprained, at least not any worse than before, but it still hurts. “So you saw them.”

“No no, I can’t. But I know they are there, somewhere. I’m sorry I hit them, I can’t tell where they are if you don’t have them out. Told you it was annoying.”

Ah. That makes more sense. He doubts Étoiles would voluntarily target them. Still… “How do you know about them? And, why?

“Philza, you need to understand something. And the thing is, I’m really dumb. I want to see them because maybe I can help, if I hurt them. I fix.”

“No you’re not, stop that. And you didn’t do any permanent damage, you’re fine.”

“No, wait. I’m stupid with lore, but I have eyes and ears. Jaiden showed she had wings, pretty sure Baghera has some but she hides them, I assumed you were the same.” Ah. Fair enough. Phil hasn’t been as subtle lately, and the crow jokes could only go for so long before people started to pick up on how literal they were. “Also, Kristin told me.”

Wait, what. “Wait, what?”

“Ye ye. First day of Purgatory, I died a lot.  She said she wanted to exchange fofoca, so I told her about things, and she told me about you because she likes me. Did you know, I asked her if I could get wings too? It made her laugh. I guess tech support is not a high enough position to get flying benefits, sad times for me.”

Mother fucker. It’s hard to be upset when everything that spews out of Étoiles’ chattermouth is so consistently funny. “Well. I would’ve told you sooner than later, anyway. S’fine.”

“So you let me help.”

“Fine, fine. I’ll let you take a look, if that’ll make you feel better about it.”

“Let’s goooo, we got trust. Sit down please?”

Phil snorts and complies. He spots Tallulah running back towards him to climb onto his lap with a quiet warbe. good? Phil warbles back, good, yesyes, and rests his chin on top of his egg’s soft locks of hair. He hears Pomme hitting her dad behind him. “Ouais Pomme ?” Bomp, a short silence. “Badboy est là ? Ah ouaaais. Il veut encore t’exploiter pour ses boutons de l’enfer là ? POV, tu aides le fou du QSMP avec son escape game pour pas qu’il te tue.” More hits, Pomme’s little click-chirps. Étoiles laughs. “Okay, okay, t’inquiètes. Va l’aider, moi et Phil on va parler de trucs chiants de toute façon. Je te vois plus tard ?” The sound of a warpstone going off. “Saluuut.”

“Is Pomme leaving?”

“Yeah, she wants to build stuff with Badboy.”

“Oh god. Please tell me it’s not another find-the-button map.”

“Yeah. I’m gonna spend ten hours finding those fucking things again soon, let’s gooooo. So your wings, who else knows? I bet Fit knows. And your eggs.” Tallulah nods in Phil’s hold.

Étoiles’ lack of big reaction feels nice, but he supposes he should have expected it — the guy never makes a big deal out of anything. Except when it’s about banned materials. Or the Nether. And finding buttons, new trigger unlocked. “Add in pretty much everyone in the original Bolas, king,” he huffs as Étoiles settles behind him. His unseen presence makes a brief shiver of danger, danger go up Phil’s spine. It’s fine. It’s fine, he soothes himself, idly rubbing at the scar at the center of his chest through his robe. “I lost my shit with them around. Stopped caring as much. They saw them on day one.”

“Isn’t that a good thing? Half the people on this shit island are like, creatures. Not humans. Nobody cares. I’m literally a fruit, Phil.”

Phil chokes on his own spit. “Jesus Christ, you have no idea how funny what you just said was.” Tallulah chirps and wiggles in his hold, places a sign. [*side-eyes u*] it says, and that’s somehow even funnier than if she had actual eyes to side-eye people with instead of the blank expanse of her brown-spotted shell.

Étoiles blinks. He cocks his head to the side, in that specific way he does whenever he’s listening to what he calls the ‘voices of the stars’. (Something akin to his crows, from what the older man has been able to gather.) “Oooh. Oh, is it a gay joke Phil? That doesn’t work man, we are on Gay Island, everyone is gay here, or they don’t date at all. And you are incorrect, because I am in the second group, héhé.”

“Didn’t Antoine call you his boyfriend once?”

“He calls me a lot of things.” Étoiles shrugs. ”He’s also an asshole and my DJ partner and my friend and I love him very much, but no, it’s not like that. And I am married to dark metal and dungeons anyway. Now I’m going to unbind your wings and move them around, okay?”

“Mh. Go for it, king.”

To his credit, Étoiles is methodic in his approach — unknotting the binds and carefully tracing the upper edges of his left wing while the other spreads out with difficulty, a few black feathers coming loose. Étoiles lets out a surprised oh, gently grabs the other to help it unfurl, and Phil feels him poking at the bottom of his regrowing primaries — right where the white ones, usually hidden beneath the outer layer unless he spreads them wide, grow in diamond-like spots. “I know this pattern, right there. You have Elytrian code too, Phil? I thought it was just crow.”

“Ah, so Kristin didn’t tell you everything then.”

“No. And she didn’t like, out you, you know. She only told me because she knew I knew, she only confirmed it. People with wings have like, a way they move? I can’t explain it, I just see it.”

“Body language expert Étoiles, ey? Have you known a lot of avians before?”

Étoiles stays quiet for a second. When he speaks again, he sounds perplexed. “Huh. I don’t know. I guess I knew Baghera? Memory stuff, it’s annoying.”

Phil frowns. Right. “You told me a little about your childhood, though. The village, the farmers?”

“Yeah, that’s a thing that came back quickly after the crash. But everything after that, I don’t remember.”

“Man, fuck this island. I’m sorry.”

Étoiles hums. His fingers start combing through his bottom feathers, lingering among the white ones. “I think. I think I went to the End before, Phil.” His voice has gone softer, airy, like he’s not quite anchored in the present. “I think… maybe, I’ve seen Elytrians before.”

“You have?”

“Mmh. I think I killed one. Yeah. And I took its elytra. It was a good fight.”

The revelation doesn’t shock him — Elytrian hunting is a common activity for those who reach the End, and elytras are a highly sought-after item in most worlds. (Philza would know.) “Were you a hunter? Before the island.”

“I don’t think so. I don’t like hunters.” And Phil can’t see Étoile’s face from his position on the floor, but his words are dripping with contempt. “Hunting for yourself is one thing. Making money off it, it feels wrong. And they don’t even fight, they make traps. I don’t like that. If you’re too shit at fighting to win fairly against something, you don’t deserve the loot. Bâtards de merde.”

And Phil laughs, because this he understands. “Ever the honorable warrior, aren’t you Étoiles.”

“Dude, I have so much honor. I told you, I’m literally Japanese.”

“Right.”

“And like I said, I am your arms. I am your sword, Philza Minecraft.”

Phil’s wings fluff up slightly, a croon of ownership-claim threatening to spill out of his chest. Mine. “Étoiles…”

“I am, it’s not a bad thing! Purgatory sucked. I didn’t like it. But it was better at the end, when you were telling me what to do. Who to kill for you.”

Phil croons, leaning back into Étoiles’ careful hands. “I see. You never called me dad though.”

“Fuck that!” Étoiles laughs, bark-like and airy. “That cult leader shit was weird. You’re Philza.” And there’s a quality to the way he says it, something that feels both casual and reverent. “First of his name, GOAT of PvP, Avoider of Lore, greatest man alive—”

“Woah there—”

“—husband and Angel of Lady Death, and father of dragon eggs. You’re not my dad. Why everyone has daddy issues on this shit island?”

Phil snorts. “I don’t know, mate. But I won’t judge. I think it’s fine if seeing me as a father figure brought them comfort. It was literally hell out there.”

Étoiles hums. “Maybe. Also, you didn’t answer my question.” Phil lets out a confused huh. “Earlier, when I asked why you were hiding that you had wings.”

…Shit. Curse Étoiles’ one-track mind, his deflection tactic had been foiled. “It’s not— shit like prejudice I was afraid of, Étoiles,” he admits, quiet and somber. The other man stops his ministrations, fingers dug deep in his primary coverts. “I know this island is a goddamn circus show. Mousey screams she’s a demon to whoever will listen and nobody gives two shits, I don’t know why Bad even bothers pretending he’s not. That’s not the problem. It’s just…” He sighs. ”The Federation has eyes everywhere, man. I feel like if I show them off too much, they’ll fuck them up again. Maybe even worse than last time.”

Étoiles is silent. His motions resume, slower, more careful and deliberate. “The first time, you say,” he eventually hums. There’s something dangerous in his voice. “So it’s because of them, that they are like this? Your wings.”

“Pretty much. Woke up on the train, boom, clipped. No more flying for me. I don’t know why they didn’t do the same to Jaiden, she said she didn’t want to fly, or didn’t know how? I can’t remember too well, but maybe that’s why. Less of a threat. Honestly, I’m just glad they didn’t do it to her. She’s family now.” Even though her loyalties are a point of concern, he couldn’t help it. She is Bolas, she is flock. And he had held her as she screamed out the temporary loss of her shiny blue wings, that first night in Purgatory. “No avian deserves that shit.”

“You don’t either, Phil.”

“I know that.”

“I’m just saying it because you have the voice! The one you use when you think bad things.”

A wry smile. “How dare you call yourself dumb, man. How fucking dare you.”

“It’s what I do! I kill things, I see people’s true souls, and I shit on myself.”

They stay quiet after that. Étoiles stretches out his wings, flexing the joints one at a time, muttering quick apologies when Phil hisses a little too loud. “Sorry, sorry.”

“You’re good. Keep going.” So he does, until Phil no longer feels the pins and needles of blood flooding back into his wings, until the joints no longer feel like rusted cogs. He even gets a little preening in, dislodging matted down and crooked secondaries, and it feels nice. Tallulah is dozing off in his hold, warm and safe. His egg, his baby, his hatchling. “Thanks mate,” Phil hums, a little out of it by the end, hindbrain thrumming pleasantly. Flock, good, yesyes. “You’ve done that before, I can tell.”

“If I have, I don’t remember. Okay, now stand— sorry Tallulah, were you sleeping? Sorry, your dad has to stand so we can see. Yes, nice. Now try them.”

Phil chitters quietly, furling and unfurling his wings experimentally — the constant pain is still there, but minimal, very bearable, and they do feel less stuffy. Lighter. “It actually does, yeah.” Tallulah does a little dance at his side, twirling and playing a few cheery notes on her flute. “Good job, seriously.”

“No probleeeem, Phil, my bro. Last round?”

This guy, I swear. “I’m a little tired,” Phil groans, cracking his neck as he stands, stretches his wings out as far as he can — it still aches, but feels miles better. “But okay. I’m going to put Tallulah to bed real quick, she’s eepy.” Tallulah nods in confirmation, takes out her warpstone right as her papa does. “Then let’s fight, one more time. After that I’m going home and conking the fuck out.”

Étoiles makes a sound that probably means something like ‘holy shit say less king’. “Okay!”

Five minutes later, and he’s warping back to Étoiles’ cave like a man on a mission. And in a way, he is. “Welcome back, worthy challenger,” the cucumber greets him, crossed-legged in the middle of the dojo, and Phil snorts because the music box is blasting Smash Bros music now. “You’re such a fucking nerd, oh my God.”

“It gives me strength, Phil. It’s my final form.” Étoiles gets up, stick already in hand, bouncing on his heels with anticipation. “Autofeed still off?”

“Yup. How’s your sugar?” Étoiles checks his monitor quickly, gives a thumbs up. “Good. No holding back?”

“I never hold back, Phil. Let’s go.”

There is no countdown this time — both opponents slip into quiet assessment, circling each other slowly, slowly. Étoiles does a strange head-tilt, ears flicking to track Phil’s footsteps, the sounds of feathers ruffling. Phil’s eyes do not stray from him, hardened and focused, picking up on the change in the air. Étoiles wants him to go all out. So he will. And he has a plan.

(The bigger a thing is, the harder it is for me to understand it.)

Time to put that to the test, then.

Étoiles charges first this time, quick-footed, swerving at random moments to keep himself a hard-to-track target. Phil almost bursts into incredulous laughter because holy shit, he’s Naruto-running, what the fuck— but manages to keep his focus, waiting until the very last moment to thrust his wings downward with enough force to send him soaring abovehis opponent. Then, right as his feet touch the tatami and right as Étoiles screeches to a stop to spin back towards him

he spreads his wings

wide, wider

casting huge shadows on the four walls of the dojo

and lets his powers roll off of him like a dark mist, sparking with magic and wither-decay.

(The bigger a thing is, the harder it is for me to understand it.)

It’s a gamble, a costly one that saps his Feds-capped magic like crazy — but it pays off, because Étoiles staggers back, confusion etched across his features. His head subtly snaps in all directions, like he doesn’t know where to look, his ears swivelling to try and pinpoint him. Bingo. Phil has made his nebula-self big, toobig for Étoiles, rendering the warrior effectively blind. Well, double-blind.

Phil doesn’t wait for the other to find a counter to this, curls his wings forward then snaps them back — they launch him forward at breakneck speed and create a gust of wind that makes the paper lanterns swing on their hooks, and then Phil is slamming into Étoiles like a literal hurricane.

The plant hybrid gasps, fingers slackening from the sheer strength of the impact — his weapon slips out of his grasp to clatter against the ground and roll out of bounds. His body describes a perfect curve and hits the wooden floor with a loud thud. He barely has the time to blink the dizziness away before something presses against the side of his neck, and he freezes completely. “Gotcha,” Phil preens, looming above him. The end of his stick is right against Étoiles’ pulse point, the threat crystal clear, and he’s a writhing mass of burning stars and cosmic fury.

The energy rolling off of him washes over Étoiles in waves, makes his skin tingle, and he recognizes it as withering. Withering coming from Philza himself, whose outlines are impossible to pinpoint, lost in the cloud of magic and giant Angel wings.

...Okay, this is sick as hell, Étoiles thinks, and he can feel somethingwithin him grow, a presence rejoicing in the back of his mind. Ink bleeds into his eyes, then under it, twin lines of darkness going down his cheeks and neck. (Flashes of a white spiral on a dark expanse, of whispers and stolen Time.) He feels cold, but he feels good about it, and he’s not scared at all — this is fine, more than fine. Withering is harmless for Death-touched things. Things like him and Phil. He laughs, loud and ecstatic, this is fun, so fun! “Aaah. Clever bird, clever Phil, I like. Okay.”

Then something wraps around Phil’s ankle and pulls it forward, breaking his balance and making him hit the ground ass-first with a startled caw. He grits his teeth, shoots a glare towards his leg to see—

—blinks at the sight of a green vine wrapped around his ankle. His eyes trace along its length. He’s seen this before, but only once, months ago. Right after harvesting a freshly-regrown Étoiles out of the ground, a week after his Code-related demise. “Oh,” Philza says, and Étoiles smirks in return.

His tail is long, as long as he is tall, and covered in large, healthy green leaves. It swishes against the tatami in a serpentine motion, the leaves rustling quietly, and Phil notices a half-star-shaped kink at the end of it. It’s... well, it’s pretty adorable actually, but something tells him Étoiles wouldn’t like that descriptor. “You kept it,” he says instead, fight-darkened eyes sparkling with something like kinship-euphoria. “You grew it out.”

“I did, I listened to you. I keep it wrapped around my waist, it works.”

“Told you it could come in handy.”

“You did. You’re always right about things, Philza.” Étoiles steps into a fighting stance, hands curled into fists, tail lashing left and right like a whip. Phil understands, lets out a quiet chuckle as he sends his own weapon flying out of the arena. So they’re doing it this way, huh. More than fine with him. “Nothing’s off the table then,” he hums, hands curling like claws at his sides, sharpening talons glinting ominously in the light of paper lanterns. His friend hums approvingly, and it’s all Phil needs to pounce.

They no longer try to evade, instead crashing into each other to cause as much damage as quickly as possible. Étoiles throws a jab, Phil retaliates with a smack of his wing to destabilise the other before slashing at his chest, tearing at his shirt and drawing the first blood. Because yes, Étoiles bleeds, deep cuts marring his dark green skin, chlorophyll sticking to Phil’s hands. Étoiles hisses, gets behind him and wraps his tail around Phil’s throat to choke him. Phil gasps, coughs, briefly flails before smacking the other with his wings until the tail goes slack. Phil rips it off him and whirls around to pull at it sharply — Étoiles falls, but not before grabbing onto Phil’s robes to pull him down with him.

Things get messy after that — a flurry of feathers and leaves and punches and kicks, one that clocks Phil in the jaw and makes him taste blood, one at the side of his head that makes him see stars. He hisses, screeches, swipes, again and again, and Étoiles blocks some of them with his arms, arms that gain more and more tiger-stripe cuts, but many go through and eat at his health, heart after heart. The warrior retaliates with a headbutt that makes the Angel’s world darken for a second, burning blood getting into his eyes and half-blinding him. Maybe it’s more fair this way, not that it slows him down at all.

They punch, claw, snap their teeth at each other like rabid dogs — chipping at each other’s health with no care, no limits. Dark red and greenish white smear against the straw tatami, but that’s fine, that’s okay, they are playing, they are having fun, and Philza feels alive, alive, alive!

(The whole time, Étoiles never touches his wings. Which goes against the whole ‘nothing off the table’ thing, yet Philza is grateful for it. He’s also grateful none of the eggs are here to see this.)

Philza has no idea how long this lasts, lost in the thrill of a fight the likes of which he hasn’t experienced in decades. But eventually the doom of someone getting downed makes every muscle in his body lock up, and he’s still standing. Or, kneeling over Étoiles with his talons right above his jugular, the other hand pinning the warrior’s hands above his head to keep him from hitting back. Semantics.

Étoiles has gone limp, heaving, his body a canvas of bruises and bloody cuts. “I win,” Phil realizes, wings quivering, all fluffed up in a show of victory. “I… won.”

“Well played, well played,” his warrior wheezes out in response, and Phil’s never seen anyone so happy about getting their shit kicked. Except maybe one person. But he won, Phil won, Étoiles is down and he himself still has… yes, two hearts to spare. He has won. They can stop. Right here. Right now.

But then. Étoiles, stupid and crazy and wonderful Étoiles, tilts his head back to offer him his throat, his binary-scarred face twisted in a feral grin. Philza gasps and leans back a little, eyes wide “Take your win, my bro,” he chirps, happy as can be, tail thumping against the tatami like an overpet cat. Tap, tap, tap, the countdown to his demise if Phil doesn’t up him soon. “Do it. You won’t. No balls, no bolas.”

And those words are the last push Phil needs for his Elytrian code to take over. He bares his teeth, eyes darkening to a pitch black that eats up his entire sclera, until the white of Étoiles’ teeth gets reflected back at him — not that he can see it. 

Phil’s wings spread out behind him, huge and dark and awe-inspiring even in their frayed state, and the withering aura that exudes from them paints Étoiles’ eternal night in bursts of star-speckled purples and reds and blues.

It’s beautiful. And it’s terrifying. Étoiles is about to get killed by an Angel of Death, and he’s never been so goddamn scared and excited in his life.

 

Phil feels insane. He’s going feral, going sicko mode, or whatever other colloquialism that means his mind is drowning in the thrill of hunt, hunt, prey, yesyes. He doesn’t think he’s ever seen Étoiles scared before, but there’s no mistaking those too-wide eyes, that subtle tremor in his friend’s wrists as Phil’s hand tightens around them. He can smell it too, like cut grass left to decay in the hot sun, and it’s making the End’s superpredator in him go zoomies inside his skull.

He growls, low and bone-deep and dangerous, his talons pushing harder against the paling, sweat-damp skin of Étoiles’ neck. prey? flock. prey. prey? kill, eat, yesyes. Étoiles isn’t human, but he has something close to a heart, and he bleeds like one — greenish white chlorophyll that smells strong and tastes awful, bitter.

(Phil knows that, because Purgatory happened. More specifically, Bolas happened, gas masks and ritual sacrifices and fresh blood always lingering at the corner of their mouths. He misses his flock — misses all the ones that are still gone, carving cookie-cutter negative shapes in his heart — everything else about that hellscape, not so much anymore. Maybe he’s healing, just a little.)

 

His talons are just a hair away from perforating Étoiles’ jugular, so close to making not-quite-blood pour out like a fountain. But then he freezes, going silent, because the part of him that is still sane recognizes that this is a terrible idea.

It’s a terrible idea because Étoiles is bad at knowing when to stop, bad at spotting the line between what challenges him and what hurts him. And Philza understands that this, this is a bad. The cucumber hybrid is a creature of instants — fugue moments, rash decisions, the kind you would look back on later and go oh, yeah, that was dumb and maybe not worth it. Hence Philza has to be the responsible one, has to ignore his base instincts screeching at him to hunt, kill, kill, lest this ends badly. Like Étoiles getting mauled to death by what is supposed to be his most trusted friend. Again. (They don’t talk about that time. Just like they don’t talk about Étoiles’ betrayal, neither want to reminisce over Phil’s teeth tearing his throat out in the middle of a Hunger disaster. Not-so-fun fact: Étoiles doesn’t taste like cucumber at all.)

“Enabler,” the avian warbles, talons slowly lifting off the hollow of Étoiles’ throat. “M’not killing you.” And Étoiles, like the little shit that he is, has the gallto pout at him. “Why not?”

“Because then I’ll have to regrow your ass in my potato field for a week, you twat.” Also I think it’s not good for you, and my sanity is at an all-time low so I don’t need cold-blooded murder to push me over the edge, he adds in petto.

Étoiles blinks. Huffs out a laugh, something a little unhinged, but also a little relieved. “Ah, yeah! I forgot, because I respawned normally in Purgatory. Okay, you win.” The warrior’s smile softens to something more like him,  and just like that, the tension vanishes, the buzz of fear and aggression replaced by something light and playful. Étoiles baps his hands against his chest, grabbing at his robe to tug him down into a hug.

And Philza’s hindbrain floods the rest of him with happy, happy, yesyes, because Étoiles isn’t really a touchy-feely person and neither is Phil, but this feels right. “GGs,” the crow says back, warbling and chirping like crazy, the black in his eyes receding. yesyes, mine, mine, yesyes, yesyes! And to his surprise, Étoiles responds, not with a crude imitation of his own bird sounds, but with something… different. And Phil’s not sure any word in his vocab could ever describe it accurately — but something deep within him knows that if starlight was a sound, this would certainly be it. “Oh, oh, he is so good. The GOAT, the actual GOAT, best man on the planet Philza Minecraft,” Étoiles mock-sobs against him. “He wakes up in the morning casually being the best, and he takes care of two eggs and says fuck to the president’s office from the wall, and he finally beats me. My legend, Felipe, Felipe!”

Phil shakes from the force of his hilarity — a regular occurrence whenever he hangs around his favourite pickle man for long enough. silly, he warbles between fits of belly-aching, hiccup-inducing laughter, and he leans down to nuzzle against his friend’s mess of dark green hair (leaves?). silly. silly. flock. “I do see Forever wave at me from his office sometimes,” he hums, once he’s calmed down enough to speak again. “He makes kissy faces at me through the glass, so I flip him off.”

Étoiles hums in acceptance, finally pushes Phil back to shimmy out from under him with a small héhé to lay on his back, starfish-style. Phil rolls onto his own back, and they both stare at the interlacing wooden beams of the dojo roof for a little while, basking in the fuzz of a fading adrenaline rush.

(Phil hasn’t seen his favourite Brazilian as much lately. Silly, sun, friend-protector. He probably has his hands full, what with returning to his political duties after so long. Still, Philza worries — he thinks of black tar clinging to sun-kissed skin and tired sienna eyes, above a smile that just doesn’t shine as bright as it used to.) “I kinda like it, though. It’s like our good morning. Never tell him I said that.”

“I wooooon’t, I promise.”

“Thank you. For the fights.” Philza closes his eyes. He is here, he is real, everything about this moment is so real. It’s comforting, a balm on his fraying psyche. “It was fun.”

“It was so fun. Please fight with me again like this sometime, no sticks, yes? You have to come back so I give you your black belt anyway.”

“Maybe. We’ll see.”

“I can hear you smiling, Phil. You want to, I knowww.”

“M’not smiling at all, dumbass.”

Étoiles does that high-pitched hum of his that means he’s not buying it, reaches towards his friend — his leader, his wielder, his death-touched Angel. Cool fingers, untouched by code, playfully trace over each of Philza’s features, feeling out the dimples and the crow’s feet at the corner of his eyes — pun very much intended. “You’re so bad at lying, Philza,” he sing-songs, playful and content. “I know you too well. Maybe I can’t see you, but I can see you.”

And goddammit, Philza actually does feel seen in this moment, anxieties melting away for now. How does he do it. How does this reckless, thrill-seeking cucumber man with a limited (albeit pretty good, and improving) grasp on English so consistently drop the most gut-punching lines in this entire server. Étoiles is something else. “...Yeah. I see you too, mate,” Phil breathes out, and the rough texture of the tatami is starting to dig criss-cross patterns into his back, but he wants to stay like this. Just a little longer.

 

(Philza is damaged goods. But so is Étoiles, and so is everyone he knows. But maybe they can both pretend, for a little while.)

#qsmp #qsmp fic #fanfic #philza #étoiles #codebreakers #commission

[superb-icarus]

"Your BIG Purchase is on the Way!"

A modern AU based on the prompt "Your BIG Purchase is on the Way!"

Also, I literally wrote this three years ago, but is it doing any justice sitting in my notes?? No. Not my greatest (three years ago!) but whatever. Who cares! Enjoy!

read part two here!

--

“Hey Remus, would you like to see that new movie in theaters tonight?” I asked. Remus put down the book he was reading and looked at me. 

“What movie is it?” He inquired. I shrugged.

“Some sci-fi movie,” Remus placed a bookmark in his book, and placed the book down on the coffee table in front of the couch. “It’s not terrible, from what the reviews are saying. And if you don’t like it, we can always leave before it finishes.” I suggest. 

“Alright, I’ll order the tickets online.” Remus pushed my feet that were currently on his lap off, and stood up. He walked over to the kitchen counter to grab his phone, presumingly ordering the tickets off of there. “Is 6:30 okay?” He asked. I nodded. 

“Done. I’m going to get my jacket and wallet,” he came over and gave me his phone. “Do you want to get the tickets pulled up?”

“Sure.” He walked away to our room, and I was left with his phone in my hands. I quickly opened the mail app to find the email with the tickets. They weren’t there yet, so I refreshed and refreshed until the email popped up. But then, something stopped me in my tracks. A few emails down read

Your BIG Purchase is on the way!

My eyebrows furrowed. What the hell could Remus have bought, I wondered. He’s not the one to order an Xbox or something that expensive without telling me. Biting my lip, I opened it up and my eyes widened.

Congratulations Remus! Here is the current standing of your order from:

Aurora’s Gleam

483 Washington Blvd

-Standard Order-

4560435 AMETHYST RING $900

4560457 SIZE J

Your order is estimated to arrive in 3-4 weeks!

The phone dropped from my hand before I could finish the email. Oh my god. Oh my GOD. Remus bought a ring?? Oh my god, he bought a ring, what am I gonna-

“Hey sweetheart, are you- hey, what’s wrong?” Remus stopped buttoning his jacket and came rushing over to me. He dropped to his knees, grabbing my arm, and I frowned at him.

“Remus…is there any reason you gave me your phone?”

“Only to pull up the tickets. Why, is something wrong?” This time his eyebrows furrowed. 

“Remus have you happened to buy anything recently that you wouldn’t want me seeing?” His eyes went wide.

“Oh shit.” He rubbed his chin.

“Oh shit is right,” I responded. Then I grinned. “I’m so excited!!” Remus’ shoulders visibly sagged. 

“Oh my god I ruined it for you. I’m so sorry, I had this elaborate plan-“ I shushed him.

“Just because I know about the ring doesn’t mean I have to know everything!” I raised an eyebrow. He smiled sheepishly. 

“Yea, I guess not. I am sorry though, I wasn’t even thinking.” Then he full on grinned. “I’m excited too though.”

“Now you can’t keep me waiting since I know. Ohhh it’s gonna look so good!” I stick my hand out and examine it, ringless, imagining the ring he bought. Remus chuckles.

“C’mon, we’re gonna miss the movie.” I sit up and give him a shit-eating grin. 

“I’m literally not going to be able to shut up about this.” He sighs and smiles.

"There are worst things we could be talking about, I guess."

#remus #remus lupin #remus lupin x reader #remus lupin imagine #young!remus lupin x reader #the marauders #marauders x reader #marauders imagine #superbwrites! #harry potter imagines #harry potter #modern au #fluff #marauders fluff #remus lupin fluff #remus lupin x you #remus x reader #superb!edited

[hit-song-showdown]

My favorite songs of 2023

I am putting together my favorite songs released in 2023. I started off doing a project where I listened to as many new albums as I could (and recording my findings in a spreadsheet), but that project tapered off around June when my move + school year started. But even though I wasn't able to listen to every album that came out, I still came out of 2023 with some of my favorite musical projects of all time. Also as another disclaimer: I am not a professional music writer.

I am also limiting this list to 1 song per album/project.

1. Scaring the Hoes by JPEGMafia and Danny Brown. I wish I could go back and experience again what happened to my brain when I first heard this track so I could properly convey it with text. When I first saw this project was announced, I knew it would take over my life. When I heard this track before the album was released, I knew I would have to form some kind of religion around it. The reason why I'm limiting this list to one track per album is because Scaring the Hoes has 14 tracks so I wouldn't be able to fit them all (other songs I would have given the number 1 spot include Burfict!, Shut Yo Bitch Ass Up/Muddy Waters, God Loves You, and Kingdom Hearts Key). But the title track is the perfect introduction. It's less of a single and more of a thesis statement for the entire project. The production throughout this album is incredible, but STH hits different. The rhythmic, almost menacing handclaps (fun fact: those aren't handclaps--that's the sound my asscheeks make when this song comes on) and the horn sample which I can only describe as Blood Money era Tom Waitsian, it is by far my favorite beat of 2023. Combined with Danny and JPEG's charisma and the way they bounce back and forth, this song is a shot of adrenaline straight to the heart. Also I saw them live and that experience elevated a 10/10 to a 20/10 for me.

2. Prof. Aronnax' Descent into the Vast Oceans by Ahab. I started seriously listening to German nautical funeral doom metal band, Ahab around early 2022 so this was the first new release I got to experience. Even though I loved what I heard previously, nothing could have prepared me for this. The opening track is everything I want from a doom metal song. It starts out with a frantic onslaught of screaming and inhuman growls before mellowing out into a serene instrumental before the mournful vocals kick in. It really feels like the initial shock of your body slamming into the water, then having to slowly drift among the waves as your muscles give out and you're taken deeper into the depths. That's what I like about doom metal: it's music to decay to. This track (and by extension this album) hooked me from a story-telling perspective right away, which shouldn't be a surprise as it was based on Jules Verne's Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. The story presented in this album intrigued me so much that I had to read the book for myself. Then I read it again. Then I read two different translations. Now I'm working on a visual novel adaptation. I know metrics for album rankings are subjective, so I'm willing to give an album an extra bump if it gets me to read a 19th century novel at least five times in less than two months and learn Python coding. (Other tracks I would have included: the album is at its strongest as a single listening experience, but I especially enjoyed Mobilis in Mobili and Ægri Somnia).

3. What A Man by Debby Friday. This is a track off of Nigerian-Canadian electronic musician Debby Friday's first album Good Luck and holy shit, what a debut. This is such a well-formed project I can't believe it. I was already enjoying the album throughout the first few tracks. It brought me back to listening to 2000s club music and thinking "wow I wish I got invited to parties." But then I got to What A Man and the world screeched to a halt. I think I was posting on my main blog at the time, so anyone unfortunate enough to follow me had a chance to see my incoherent screeching in real time. This track is incredible. Debby's warm and sultry voice, the spacey production, THE ELECTRIC GUITAR? The first time the guitar kicks in, that's just a teaser for what ended up being one of my favorite music moments of the year. The electric guitar feels like an oncoming storm and Debby is standing strong before it, taking on the wind and rain as her voice becomes louder and almost yearning. Then the song builds with Debby yelling to the high heavens as the guitars wail around her before fading back down into the low bass and rhythmic breathing motif found throughout the album. This track is an experience, and the music video is gorgeous too (the picture I chose for the banner is from the video itself) and the fact that it has less than 20K views hurts me. (Other tracks I would have included: I Got It, So Hard To Tell, Let U Down)

4. Bite Back by Algiers (ft. billy woods and Backxwash). Speaking of songs that build... This is the sixth track off of Algiers' album, Shook and by this point I was already feeling pretty good about the release. I was already prepared to put the opening track, Everybody Shatter on my top 20, but when Bite Back kicked in, something changed. Here's a recreation of my initial reaction: "this sounds pretty good, I like the way this intro...is that billy woods??") Just to be transparent: billy woods' involvement would have been enough to give this an automatic top slot for me, but it helps that his verse is fantastic. His flow is slower than the introductory verse, but that only makes his lyrics stand out more. From the opening lines "One hand wash the other, they both wash the face / Centrifugal force and inertia keep everything in its place / Slowly, spinning in space, speeding, lead foot on the brakes" I knew I was in for something special. One thing I really appreciate about this track is the production. billy woods has a very steady flow with an almost menacing quality to it depending on the subject matter of the lyrics, and the beat shifts during his verse to reflect that. It sounds like it could be a billy woods beat, but it doesn't sound like one of his beats was carelessly shoved into an Algiers song. It's like the beat ebbs and flows with the artists involved. The production gets gradually more intense as billy picks up more ferocity in his delivery. A detail I really like is when billy says "claws rattling, delicate as roaches' wings," the percussion on the backing track picks up an almost rattling quality, but it doesn't sound corny or too obvious. Then billy continues, the backing track picking up even more intensity until it feels like each noise is blasting at full power...and then the tension releases and settles down with Algiers frontman, Franklin James Fisher, delivering the second verse. His delivery contrasts wonderfully with billy woods' too, with his faster, almost whispered vocals allowing the track to pick up momentum again after the previous release of tension. This track knows when to breathe and it's fantastic. But it also knows when to take the air from your lungs as Fisher goes all out with the vocals in the hook and third verse, reinstating what an absolute powerhouse vocalist he is. And just when the track is at its peak ferocity, in comes Backxwash with the steel chair! If billy and Fisher were allowing the beat to gradually shift under their performances, Backxwash grabs the song by the throat and makes it do whatever she wants. Her verse then trades off into Fisher delivering the outro, operating at full power in his delivery. This song is so well-crafted and none of the artists feel out of place. (Other tracks I would have included: Everybody Shatter, A Good Man, Irreversible Damage)

5. Billions by Caroline Polachek. As of writing this, I haven't been keeping up with other people's year end lists, but I know this album is going to make everyone else's. So I feel a bit intimidated to talk about it, but I will try. The production on this album is so good my brain can't even comprehend how it was crafted. I've seen it described as "maximalist," but that doesn't fully capture how well this album knows when to pull back and let the tracks breathe. Billions is one of the more sparse tracks compared to some of the others, but that only makes each production decision stand out more. The second time Caroline says "give me the closure," you hear a little musical sting in the background (probably some kind of synth, but at first listen I thought it was an electric guitar) which didn't show up after the first time that lyric was sung. It's that attention to detail and letting the production build on itself that makes this project incredible. And it goes without saying that Caroline is an outstanding vocalist. She sounds like a siren. It's ridiculous. (Other tracks I would have included: Welcome to My Island, I Believe, Hopedrunk Everasking)

6. The Black Seminole by Lil Yachty. Opening track off of Lil Yachty's psychedelic rock album, Let's Start Here, and what an opening track on a fantastic project. It should be clear by this point that I love songs that build, and holy shit does this song build. I first listened to this album while I was on a plane, and this track synced up with my takeoff. So while the plane was lifting off the ground and I was being pressed against my seat, Lil Yachty gave the final line before the electric guitars and the female vocalist kicked in, both wailing with equal ferocity. Top 10 music experiences of the year, but even going back to listen to that same track when I'm not on an airplane delivered the same euphoric experience. (Other tracks I would have included: Drive Me Crazy, Should I B, We Saw the Sun)

7. Xena by Skrillex and Nai Barghouti. I debated whether to put this song or Hydrate on the list, but Xena was the first track that made me fall in love with this album. With vocals by Palestinian singer, Nai Barghouti, Skrillex delivers an absolutely outstanding dubstep track. Like Billions, it's the kind of music production that makes me have to step back and fully appreciate the craft. The song is incredible at building intensity, but he also knows when to pull back to let the tension build again. And Barghouti isn't just a feature--she is the heartbeat of this song. Her voice melds with the production so well, but in a way that sounds like she's commanding it. My absolute favorite part of the song is when she starts singing in her lower register as the production turns to more naturalistic instruments. Sometimes I see electronic producers robbing their singers of their voices for the sake of cohesive production, but that isn't the case here. Nai Barghouti's voice is crisp, unique, and perfect. It's a fantastic melding of producer and vocalist that makes way more sense than it should. (Other tracks I would have included: Hydrate, Rumble, Ratata)

8. Babylon by Bus by billy woods and Kenny Segal. I already talked about billy woods, but he was a feature so this still counts. Everything I already said about billy woods' skills applies here as well, especially now that he has full control over the track. billy's flow sounds both effortless, and that he knows the perfect word to use for each line. And he uses interesting words. "Glistening waterbug on clean counter / Plague mask, gave the place a cursory glower / He ran away, I gave chase but gave up and sat on his gate for hours" I love this series of bars. He is a storyteller. And then, the beat pauses after billy's first verse, with low menacing notes, a clattering of naturalistic metallic percussion, and then the switch up??? Seriously the way the beat ramps up for SkrapKnel's verses takes the song to another level. The way the Curly Castro and PremRock pass the mic back and forth to each other is outstanding. This doesn't feel like a guest verse; this is a fully realized project. The shamelessness is even more apparent when billy takes the mic again for the final verse, but now with more ferocity in his delivery as if he's building off of the energy created by SkrapKnel. This song is masterful. "I take care of these words, Munchausen by proxy / Somehow beat the tox screen / God save the queen, but that train doesn't stop here anymore" (Other tracks I would have included: FaceTime, Year Zero, Soft Landing)

9. Drain You Empty by Cannibal Corpse. I listened to this album right around midterms and I needed it. But this was the song I kept coming back to. For one, it's fun. Obviously: it's Cannibal Corpse. But I love the way the song opens with a full minute of just blasting you before the drums, riffs, and screams really kick in. Good god the drumming on this album is so good. I absolutely love Corpsegrinder's delivery on this track. The way he shifts from bellowing growls to shrieks, the way he speeds up his delivery to match the pace of the drums, it's so good. I'm sorry I don't have a better analysis. It's fun. (Other tracks I would have included: Chaos Horrific, Overlords of Violence, Blood Blind)

10. Crossing Guard by Model/Actriz. This is a song that made me wish I went to gay clubs more. Yes, it's a killer dance song, but what draws me in is how chaotic the production is. It starts out slow and quiet, then bam! The production starts screeching at you in a glorious onslaught of noise, held together with a fantastic bassline. I love the vocalist too. He can be monotone and subtle, but he also knows how to raise his voice to match the ferocity of the production. I listened to this song countless times last year (often while crossing the street and trying not to get hit by cars), and the line "Like Germanotta, Stefani / Pull the weight from under me" will be stuck in my head forever. (Other tracks I would have included: Donkey Show, Amaranth)

#music #2023 music #jpegmafia #danny brown #ahab #ahab band #debby friday #algiers band #caroline polachek #lil yachty #skrillex #nai barghouti #billy woods #backxwash #kenny segal #cannibal corpse #model/actriz

[rocketturtle4]

The Sign and it's Magic and some WILD arse theories

This is not meta this is me cataloguing my brains current tracking of The Sign and it's magic - plus some wild ass theories I AM SO EXCITED (I also know nothing about the mythology/stories on which any of this is loosely based) (If anyone has done or does meta on this, particularly the magic stuff I am SUPER curious but not the best at scrolling tumblr rn so feel free to tag me)

Okay SO

So green eyed stabby boy got green eyed RIGHT AFTER Phayas necklace broke off so it's reasonable to conclude these thins are connected

He ?wasn't a willing vessel, did the Mors essence somehow sneak in with the purpose of killing Phaya

Then we had Tharn use magic while grasping HIS necklace (his necklace which I have NOT been paying enough attention to)

Phaya burned green eyed Mor (revealing his green eyes) AFTER the necklace got put back on, but I am PRETTY SURE Phaya has touched him before then, so that suggests something happened to awaken his powers, presumably the same thing that awakened Tharns (what is that thing? Stress? Proximity? Time?)

@plantsarepeopletoo pointed out we had water dream for Tharn and FIRE dream for Phaya which is FASCINATING especially with the reveal of the giant (?fire?) bird at the end of the ep that is presumably Phaya

Question

Has the necklace been suppressing their powers? - things changed when Phaya's got broken and then Tharn ripped his off to throw that punches

Random Thoughts

Okay so we have been repeatedly told that Tharn did very bad things in his past life and the Karma of that means he should have died as a child, and is still constantly in danger (and maybe even his parents paid the partial price with their deaths...).

We know Green Eyes is possessive of him and currently the doctor, and presumably has always been the doctor and presumably knows who Tharn was. (Abbot seems to know this?)

Tharn is a ?water spirit, I know nothing. Seems to be not disimilar from a siren who lures men to their deaths

We had the cop dead in the second ep (I think) in the ocean, still not clear if suicide but that Phaya investigated and was then lured out to sea - siren links

Green Eyes is the water dragon

and then Phaya is a fire bird? pheonix?

(OH MY GOD THE WINGS, THE TATOO, THE FOESHADOWING AHHHH)

Wild Ass Theories

OKAY SO lets assume Past Tharn and Past Doctor are both water spirits/gods, they were bound together in some way (married? or the mythological inter-being equivelent?).

Past Tharn lured men to their deaths (siren thoughts, linked to the man who died and the fact that Phaya got lured out into the ocean - also might explain the bad karma)

Past Tharn lures in Fire spirit bird who is injured, something something something they fall in love.

Green eyes isn't okay with this for a multitude of reasons shit goes down and ?everyone dies

Details unknown, looks like we're getting backstory next ep

BUT

We do know that Past!Phaya is also someone past!Tharn wronged right? so maybe past!tharn betrayed his love in the end, and that is how they died... or maybe past!Tharn killed himself after his love died as a result of Tharns betrayal...Maybe even swearing that in his next life he would give his own life before letting him die again (thereby explaining the focus of the visions)

Did green eyes die at all then or has he been living on, waiting for his love (Tharn) to reincarnate?

Phaya seems to be getting at least some memories back, more than Tharn so far. Phaya remembers him as a siren and now he remembers his past self too at least a little. Of course this is a dream, it may well be only half remembered when he wakes.

Other Thoughts

Of course this show also has a whole crime thriller thing which I am loving and I have thoughts and questions about that too, but they're mostly magic related... (why the vision of Tharns dad at THAT moment? was the truck vision of his dad, cause the show seemed to imply it was though his visions are normally future. Although he also saw that girl die which was in the past and seemed to be about proximity and perhaps the strength of her emotions idk. So what about that proximity triggered the vision)

I think that's emptied my brain, thankfully, GOSH I LOVE THIS SHOW

#The Sign #The Sign The Series #Incoherant ramblings of a fantasy nerd #rturts is wondering

[corie-is-writing]

↳ ❝ [S Y N P O S I S] ¡! ❞

Y/n L/n, a simple minded reader, is one of the biggest fans of a popular web novel, Twisted wonderland. In their shock after finding out it has ended, they froze in the middle of a busy street and got hit by a truck.

Dizzy and confused, they have awoken in a coffin in the world they adore so much, and must use their knowledge to survive and stop the boys from overblotting.

A/n: I just realized the first paragraph disappeared omfg

2nd a/n: two paragraphs from the story were missing wtf

↳ ❝ [M A S T E R L I S T] ¡! ❞

↳ ❝ [WELCOME TO THE VILLAINS WORLD] ¡! ❞

˗ˏˋ How'd I get here? ´ˎ˗

Walking through the busy streets, you stop at a red light in the sidewalk. Scrolling through the webnovel on your phone while waiting for the lights to turn green.

You had just finished playing the latest episode on the game version of your favorite novel, [Twisted Wonderland.]

Originally a webnovel, adapted into a physical copy and game, it is a story where a teen named Yuuya ends up into a twisted version of wonderland, where he befriends a beast and characters that are based off of disney villains and attend a magical school called Night Raven College.

With the new friends he has made, they fight against troubled students who have overblotted, which is basically the magic version of a mental breakdown.

The latest episode of the game drove you to tears, Idia's voice actor did such a good job, but damn, it took you hours to defeat his overblot form and Ortho! But the ending made you so excited to finally finish the novel and see what happens next.

You sighed, reaching the last piece of paragraph just as the light turns green. You begin walking, excited to finish the chapter and read the next.

Out the corner of your eye, you see a short text in bold, one that made you stop you in your tracks and widen your eyes.

"Author's note: Will be on hiatus until furthur notice!"

"What."

What indeed, there's no way you cried a whole night catching up with the novel just for it to suddenly to be on hiatus?!

The author doesn't even explain why?! You groan, 'Alright, calm down! there must be a good explanation!' Of course, they must.

maybe they're burnt out from helping with the physical copies and the games, afterall, they're the artist as well! Maybe they're health isn't doing well, or there is some personal problems they'd rather not share.

In your thoughts you fail to notice the angered drivers beeping, waiting for you to finally move, as well as the sudden shouts and cries as the pedestrians and drivers turn to see a truck driving so reckelssly.

"God damn it! work you little shit!" The driver yells, steering the wheel and hitting the breaks, yet to no avail.

As you're about to move, you snap your head to the sounds of loud beepings, just to be met with a truck inches away from your face.

"Eh?"

𓆩♡𓆪

You awake to the sound of loud shuffling and a headache, your whole body is sore. "Is it morning already..?" You whisper.

You try to stretch yet your arms stay bent, you blink, realizing you're confined in a small space.

The panic settles it, your breath quickens as you look around the dark space. 'What..did I get kidnapped..?' You think.

You squeeze your eyes shut, trying to remember what you saw or did last. You recall walking through the busy streets, reading chapter 6 of twisted wonderland that has recently been published.

And the truck.

The truck that was so close to you, you could smell the mud and oil it has been through, feel the heat emitting from it, blinded by it's headlights, and the touch of the rough metallic texture as it meets your skin.

You could still feel the aftermath of the quick collision between you and the truck.

You're whole body was now screaming in agony as you recall that awful memory, were you..dead?

'No way..how am I thinking and moving if I'm dead?' You shake off that thought, did you survive? maybe everyone thought you died and decided to bury you already.

You are snapped out of your thoughts as the shuffling grows louder, you listen in, able to hear a voice.

"Crap, people are coming.. gotta get a uniform while..grrr!" You are startled as you hear the raspy voice belonging to someone, who was that? were you actually kidnapped? and why did he growl?!

"Tch, this lid is too heavy.. time for my secret move!" You hear the mysterious voice take a deep breath, suddenly, blue fire surrounds your view and melts the lock of the enclosure you were trapped in.

Tripping out of the place ('Is that..a floating coffin?' You question yourself) you widen your eyes in surprise as you look around the place and fire. "B-blue fire?!"

"Ok,ok. gotta get.." You turn to the source of the voice, he looks up at you as well, shocked. "WHAA- WHY ARE YOU AWAKE!?"

You can't believe what you're seeing, a blue eyed talking tanuki looking cat with fiery blue flames in his hears, paired with his grey fur and white fluff around his neck and the raspy annoying voice of his..this can't be..!

'Grim?!' On the ground, you sit there motionless with your jaw hanging low, how the fuck-

"What are you looking at like that!" He snaps you out of your thoughts, this wasn't in the game or novel..well, maybe because of you?

'Holy shit does this mean I'm Yuu now?!' You feel giddy and excited, smiling. Were you finally going to be the heroic main character you've always dreamed of being?

"what's with the smile? Well, whatever. Hey, human! Gimme those clothes already! otherwise.." Grim's eyes sharpen as he smirks, his claws out. "I'll burn ya!"

You shiver, and immediately get up from the floor, booking it quickly. 'There's no time for questions, y/n, survival first!' You think.

You run through the large halls, not wasting time to take in every detail (unfortunately for you). Grim chases behind closely.

You end up lost in a dead end, a place full of books. 'In the story, Yuu gets lost in the library while running from Grim, is this it?'

You don't have time to answer your own questions as Grim runs in, laughing. "Did you really you'd get away from me, dumb human?!" He yells, it wasn't really a question.

"Hand over those clothes before I-" He doesn't get to finish his words before he is suddenly tied by a rope. "BWAAH! What's with this rope?!"

Grim struggles to move out the ropes and tried to bite into it, before turning to the culprit that caused this. You can't contain your excitement. 'The sussy deadbeat dad is here!'

"It is no mere rope, it is the lash of love!" A masked man in a suit announces. "Ah! found you at last, you're the new student, no?" He says, looking at you.

"This won't do, you mustn't leave the gates or take untamed familiars with you!" The man lightly scolds, Grim doesn't seem all too happy to be called a familiar.

"Let me go! who you callin' familiar?!" he yells, wiggling around in the rope. Crowley just shakes his head, ignoring him.

"That's what all rebellious beasts say.." He sighs, grabbing him and shutting his mouth. "It's quite rare for a student to open the gate on their own.. Uuugh, how impatient must you be?" He turns to you, you just look at him with a smile, he seems a little taken back by that.

"Hurry on now! the ceremony has already started." Crowley says and begins to make his way to the hall of mirrors, you follow closely behind, shaking of excitement slightly.

'O.M.G! Headmaster Crowley is right in front if me?! how is this possible..!' It seems all the excitement by being isekaied into your favorite game and novel has made you forget about your hatred for Crowley.

The whole time you were walking to the hall of mirrors, Grim was staring at you, wondering why you had such a strange look on your face.

𓆩♡𓆪

The walk to the hall of mirrors was longer than it was in the novel or game, possibly because there are no skips in this world. Not to mention– the halls seem longer and the school in general is a lot bigger than on screen or how it was described in the novel.

You take in every little detail, looking around the place in excitement. You never would have guessed you would end up in the story you loved the most.

The three of you (Grim included) finally reach the hall of mirrors, you here a muffled voice, yet clear enough to understand.

"Did he get a stomachace?" At that, Crowley barges in through the doors.

"No, I have not!" His voice echoes through the dark halls, catching the attention of the students and even startling some.

The background students, surprisingly, all look very different, despite the game not caring much and reusing the same models for them.

The ones you recognize the most, however, are the ones that get your heartbeat going and your smile grow wider, the main characters of the book and game!

"Ah, he's here." A red haired boy acknowledges. Crowley steps forward with you in tow, Grim still being carried around like a bag.

"I cannot believe you all, we were missing a student so I went to fetch them." He explains before turning to you, "You're the only one without an assigned dormitory, I shall watch over your familiar, so step up to the dark mirror." Crowley instructs.

You walk up to the mirror, it seems a lot more scarier and realistic than you remember.

"State thy name." It says, the voice booming loud. You think for a moment, wondering if you should tell your name or no, but decided to tell your real name anyway.

"Y/n." You simply say, leaving out your last name.

"The shape of thy soul is..unknown."

"Come again?" Crowley asks, tilting his head slightly.

"I sense not a spark of magic in this one." Says the mirror before continuing. "The color, the shape, all nothing, therefore, there are no dorms suited for them.

It was silent for what seemed like an eternity, then came the waves of whispers amongst the students, confusion apparent on their faces and voices.

You definitely don't remember the mirror's words hurting this much, nor the feeling of anxiety and fear rushing through you as you notice all eyes are on you.

"The ebony carriage has never picked up a magicless student." Crowley finally speaks, "Since a hundred years, there was never a problem in the student selection..so why now?!" His words do nothing to soothe your anxious state.

At that, Grim breaks free from the headmaster's hold, ripping the rope apart and smirking mischievously. "Then I'll take their place!" he says.

"Stay right there raccoon!" yells the headmaster, yet his words does not effect the wild beast, whose flames seem to grow bigger at every second.

"Unlike that magicless human– I can actually do magic! Let me in the school now! I'll prove it to ya!" Grim says confidently, taking a deep breath in.

Riddle, alarmed, immediately yells to the other students. "Get down, quick!"

"Nnnah!!!" Grim exhales, fire comes out of his mouth, catching the venue on fire. You quickly move out of the way, grabbing a careless student along with you.

"Phew, that was close.. Thanks!" The student says, his voices catches you off guard.

'Is that-' You don't have much time to think as Grim continues to burn down the school.

The headmaster yells out for someone to catch that beast, while two students have a light banter, another set of students go out to catch the running Grim.

'Oh gee, this is gonna take a while.' You sigh.

𓆩♡𓆪

"OFF WITH YOUR HEAD!" Yells the red head, with his words came a heart shaped collar around the silly beast.

"NYGAAH! What's with this collar!?" Said beast yells, his blue eyes widening as he looks down at the collar.

"Laws of the Queen of Hearts: Number 23 "One shall never bring a cat to a festival." You being a cat breaks the rules, I shall escort you out at once." Riddle says.

"I'm not a cat! I'll burn this collar and.." Grim's confusion grows as he realizes he is unable to use his magic. "Huh?! Why can't I use my magic?!"

Riddle huffs, "You won't be using any magic until I remove the collar, you'll be just like an ordinary house cat." He mocked.

"What?! I'm not some pet!" The beast yells, his scowl growing wider.

Riddle smirks as he picks up Grim. "Don't worry, I'd never keep a cat like you." He sneers, "I'll take it off once you're thrown out." His words don't reassure the beast.

Azul begins to speak up. "Wow, as wonderful as ever. Any and all magic get's sealed by your unique magic, Riddle." He gives an unneeded explanation towards no one in particular.

"I must simply have..Ahem! I mean, I wouldn't have that cast on me." He finishes.

Back to you, the Headmaster walks up to you. "You must do something about this! this is your familiar afterall! you must discipli-"

You quickly cut him off. "He's not mine." You say, furrowing your brows slightly.

"Eh? It's not yours?" Crowley asks, takened back.

"Nope, never seen him." You simply say, lying through your teeth. 'Technically not in person..'

"You haven't?" He coughs. "Anyway, let's get it out the school at any rate. I won't turn you into stew, for I am gracious! Someone, help please." You don't wanna know what he meant by turning Grim into stew.

"Gyaaa! Let me go! I'm going.. I'm going to become the best mage!" His cries do not phase the students and headmaster as he gets thrown out, though it does shake your heart slightly.

'Oh well, he'll come back anyway.' You think, cheering yourself up.

Soon, at the headmaster's command, all the students follow their respective dormleaders to their dorm.

"Then, Y/n." Crowley turns to you, "I'm terribly sorry about this but, we must have you leave the school." He says.

"Those without any magic cannot be allowed to attend here." He explains, "Not to worry– the dark mirror will send you to where you've come from." He reassures.

"Just enter the gate and imagine your home clearly." He instructs and you do so.

"Oh, dark mirror! Guide this one back to the place where they belong!" The headmaster commands, and was responded with silence.

He tilts his head before trying again. "Once more. Oh dark mirror! guide thi-"

"It is nowhere." Says the dark mirror nonchalant, a smile tugs at your lips, yet you refrain from making any odd faces.

"Eh?" The headmaster seems confused.

The dark mirror begins to explain. "The place they belong is nowhere in this world..it does not exist."

"What did you say?! That is unbelievable!" Crowley shouts, before calming down. "Well, the unbelievable seems to be the theme today.."

The dark mirror just stays silent.

The headmaster turns to you. "This is the first time this happened since I've become the headmaster, where exactly do you come from?" He asks.

You answer him, telling him your hometown.

"I've never heard of this place. I have a general understanding of where all the students came from, but I've never even heard of that name." Crowley says. "Let's go do some research in the library. He suggests.

You follow after him out the venue, and to the library you go.

𓆩♡𓆪

Just as suspected, there was nothing in the library that even mentioned your hometown.

"Are you truly from where you say? You aren't hiding the truth, are you?" You just shake your head no.

"Looking at all this, you may have somehow been brought here from another planet..or another world." He suggests, you've already figured that out long ago.

"Do you have anything that can verify your identity? a drivers license or even a slipper?" Crowley asks, you rummage through your pockets.

"Nope, nothing on me." You answer, a bit disappointed. You could've checked your phone and told your friend everything that happened whether they believe it or not, or reread the story to prepare for whatever happens.

Well, you doubt the reception here will work, and you're pretty sure you've got every little detail of the story memorized in your head.

"This is concerning, I can't just let a magicless person stay at my school. However, as an educator. I can't toss a penniless teenager who has no means of contacting their guardians out on the street." He stays silent for a bit before smiling and saying his catchphrase. "For I am so gracious!"

Crowley thinks for a moment before speaking up again. "I know! There is an unused building on campus. It was once a dormitory in the past, if you can clean in up, you should be able to at least sleep there." He suggests, you get excited again. You can to live in the rusty, old, rat filled, dusty, disgusting, moldy, broken ramshackle dorm?! in your favorite novel?! amazing!

"For the time being, I shall allow you to stay there!" The headmaster interrupts your train of thoughts, "Then I will look for a way to return you home."

He rambles on for a bit on how gracious and amazing he is before leading you to the dirty dorm.

And there it is, the ramshackle dorm in all it's glory. You really hope this isn't some vivid dream.

"What a glorious place!" You say, with a hint of sarcasm in your tone.

"Right right, please come inside." The headmaster says, not picking up on your tone of voice and leads you inside.

The inside is worse, with speckles of dust flying everywhere, torn couches, and dirty floors. But you love it anyway.

"Staying here will at least keep you out of the rain." Crowley states. "I'm going to do more research, make yourself at home and please do not wander around the campus!" He warns before leaving you in the dark dorm.

You sigh, looking around the place. The game and novel doesn't show it, but the dust really does look like snow.

You walk to the window, gently pressing the palm of your hand against the glass.

Peeping through the stained glass, you see rain coming down, it's drops hit the ground with a splash you can hear through the barrier, and the wind howls loudly through the night.

You can see the campus nearby, and the lanterns glowing, lightening the cold and dark paths of ramshackle to the campus.

You feel the cool breeze come through the cracks of the walls, making you shiver slightly. "Why was I excited about this.." You mutter quietly.

It felt a little lonely as you sat down on the couch, still watching the rain. But the loud screech of a familiar beast was there to keep you company.

"Hyiii!! It's really coming down!" You turn, almost breaking your neck with how fast you snapped your head. Eyes widened as you look at the raccoon like beast.

"Gyahahaha! You shoud see the stupid look on your face!" Grim laughs, "It's like a bat being attacked by a water gun!" He snickers through his comparison.

"Sneaking back into the school again is easy-peasy for me, no sweat!" Grim brags. "If you think getting kicked out is gonna make me give up on getting in, you've got another thing coming!"

You stay quiet for a bit, sitting back down in the couch in a more comfortable position, bring your knees to your chest and allowing your head to rest on them. "Why do you wanna be in this school so badly?" You ask.

"That's simple!" Grim huffs as he begins to explain, "I'm a genius who is destined to become a great wizard! I've been waiting for the ebony carriage to pick me up..but.." The mood turns bitter and somber as Grim looks down in disappointment.

"But..hmph! the dark mirror has no eye for talent. So that's why I came here myself!" He speaks again, his moment of weakness quickly replaced by his cheerfull and haughty act.

"Not letting me in would be a loss for the world. Humans just don't get it." As Grim finishes his explanation, a rain drops through the cracks of the ceiling an onto his ears, making him flinch and screech.

"Nyaa! So cold! The ceiling is leaking!" He shivers, more water drips down again. "Fgyaaa! it keeps coming! my signature fire ears are gonna go out at this rate!"

You look at the ceiling calmly, and get up from your position. "I'm gonna look for buckets." You state.

Grim looks at you confusingly. "Why not use magic?" He asks curiously, before his eyes widen in realization and smirking smugly. "Oh! that's right, you can't use magic~" He taunts, laughing.

You just scoff at his weak attempt to piss you off and leave the room.

Walking through the foyer, you shiver slightly from the cold. Your socks dirty from the dusty floor and almost slip at one point from the small puddle caused by the leak.

The dark and broken halls of ramshackle makes you quiver, your heart quickens as you hear a noise. Before you can take another step, white cartoony figures appear before you.

"Hihihi..hihihi.." Their chuckles echoe loudly, you widen your eyes in surprise and fear.

"We haven't had a guest in such a long time.. I'm itching for some actiong! hihihihi....."

You calm as you realize who they are, the three ghosts of ramshackle! They were creepy at first, but you warmed up to them as the game and novel progressed.

You do have to fight them though, that's a shame. But it was easy in the game so..

'Oh..'

You don't know how to fight in real life..

'Oh crap.'

#twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland x reader #twst fanfic #twst grim #twst mc #twst yuu #twst reader insert #twst crowley #twst riddle #twst azul #twst kalim #riddle rosehearts #azul ashengrotto #kalim al asim

[kay-i-guess]

snow on the beach | Percy Jackson

𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 | Percy Jackson x gn!Reader

𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 | Swearing, a monster

𝐬𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬 | an unlikely meeting results in something fucking beautiful

𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫’𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞 | based on this request <3 

𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭 | 1.4k ish

Holly shit I need to clear my head. I hear our apartment door slam behind me as I rush down the stairs. My head was reeling, why was this happening and why am I the only one who can see it? I feel their cool air hit my face and I just start walking not sure where I'm going. I'm brought back into my thoughts at the sound of a car horn. I stop and look around I know where I am just a few blocks from my family apartment. I rub my arms to keep myself warm even though it's still early winter it's a cold day and my fleece isn't doing much to keep the brisk wind out. 

I bite my lip as I try to get my thoughts together. Not going to lie to myself my entire life has been pretty wacky. But the last year has been something else. Today was the typing point, the tv was on with the news of some massive fire, but I could have sworn in the crowd amongst the smoke I saw 3 massive dogs, and not like mastiff size like a rhino size with glowing red eyes. When I pointed them out my family all thought I was joking and I played it off like that but the truth was I've been seeing things like that on and off for months now. I know what I saw but no one else can see it and it infuriates me.

I scan my eyes wildly for some answer as if one would be on the streets of new york. 

Fuck it, if no one else can see them then ill just have to pretend to be like them, I've been doing it my whole life just because now I have to add giant scary dogs to the list doesn't mean I can have a giant life crisis. 

I turn to head back but I stop in my tracks just a few meters away was one of them staring right at me. Okay, maybe the pretending could start when I was safe inside my home. I turn the corner and start running I can hear the pounding of its feet, or maybe that's my heart I turn to check if it's behind me but suddenly I slam into something. I tumble onto the sidewalk and I feel burning pain on one side of my body.

“Oh my gods I’m so sorry are you okay” I hear a voice say 

“Im alive if that's what you're asking” I push my body up so I can see who is talking, and my eyes widen as I see what he's holding “fuck dude is it even legal to have that!” I scramble away from the buy with the might I add very deadly weapon” 

“I think so?” his eyes widen as if releasing something “Wait you can see it” 

I wince as I stand up “You mean the fucking sword in your hand? yeah. I can see it” I scan my injuries “Dude these are my favourite pants!” where my knee and leg hit the ground there was a giant tear

“You’re more worried about your pants than the gash in your leg?” he says jokingly 

“Skin will heal my pants will not” I eye him “Who are you anyway and why were you surprised I could see your sword?”    

“Oh um this might sound weird but do you ever see anything” Taking in my bewildered expression he tries to explain “Like weird things and other people cont see them or see something else” 

 My eyes widen in shock my brain is telling me to run as far as I can but for some reason, I blurt out “Like the monster dogs?”

He seemed to be thinking then his eyes lit up “Yes! The ones with red eyes?” 

“That's what I was running from dude! There's one a few blocks around the corner!”

“Oh! Why didn't you say so?” his eyes snapped from me to the corner of the street and back to me “Meet me here tomorrow at noon okay?” 

“Sure?” I’m confused, my head is spinning and the pain from my fall is starting to kick in 

“I'll answer all your questions I promise but right now go somewhere safe. Now!”

 I do just that as I sprint away taking a different route to my home.    

Later that night I was lying in my bed my thoughts spiralling.

Who was the (quite attractive) guy?

Why can he see the same stuff as I can?

Why can I see it?

I groan as I roll over in bed, I can't deal with this right now. Even though I would see him in a few hours it felt like I would have to wait a lifetime. 

✭✭✭

I tap my foot as my eyes dart around the street, I had gotten there early due to my nerves. I gnaw on my lip. What if he died? I would never know, and I would never get answers. 

I glance around again and this time I spot the sea-green eyes I was looking for, I smile out of relief and almost break into a grin as he smiles back from across the street. I can't help it this guy is seriously cute. 

“Oh thank god I had thought you had died” I grab his arm pulling him towards a coffee shop to get out of the cold air.

“Awwww missed me already?” he teases as I push the door open and step inside.

“Don't flatter yourself, you owe me answers.”

We slip into a booth in the back where no one would hear us. 

“So?” I ask 

“So what?” he asked cluelessly

I roll my eyes “Well I know nothing about you except you can see stuff like me, a name would be helpful for starters”

“Percy Jackson at your service, and you are?” he extends his hand 

“Y/N L/N, a pleasure to meet you” I shake his hand and giggle slightly at the formalness of it.

Percy explains about the gods and monsters and how it was all real in our world, then about how he was a demigod and went to a camp with all of them.

I nod slowly “Okay” I can hear my voice shake slightly and I take a deep breath “Cool, cool, cool monsters and Greek gods I can get my head around 

Percy tilts his head slightly scanning my face “You seem to be taking this well”

I laugh lightly “If I'm doing well I hate to see others, but yeah after what I've seen in my life it's not hard to put a reason behind it, even if the reason is slightly mind-blowing” I joke

Percy smiles but then scans my face again,

“What?” I ask he furrows his eyebrows “You keep looking at me like you're trying to figure something out.” I explain 

He sighs “I'm just trying to figure out if you're a half-blood”

 I cut him off “Like you?” 

“Yeah like me, but if you were we should have found you already,” his face told me it was a long story for another day “This might sound weird but do you have both of your parents?”

I laugh thinking he's joking but I stop when I see no humour in his face “I do yea” I tense I don't like where this conversation was going 

“Then you probably like my mom, she is completely mortal but can see through the mist”

“The what? Like fog?” my head was spinning 

“No, like a magical veil”

I shake my head “Can we talk about something else for a minute I think my head is going to explode,” 

“Of course, I remember when I first learned about all this.”

I smile gratefully “Tell me about your friends, from this camp place”

He tells me all about Tyson Grover Annabeth and Jason, it's obvious how much he cares about this place. We're both smiling and laughing, it was the happiest I felt in a while. His smile was contagious.

 After not long enough I look out the window and realized it was getting late 

“I should go, my dad is waiting for me” I sigh

“Oh okay,” he sounds as disappointed as I felt “Can I walk you back?”

The question takes me by surprise 

“Only if you want of course-”

 I cut him off “I would like that”

We grab our coats and I start leading the way.

Too quickly I stop at our apartment complex 

“So this is goodbye?” I ask 

“For now” he smiles reassuringly  

“Oh fuck it” I mumble and lean forward to kiss him on the cheek 

His eyes widen and a smile grows on his face “You missed” he jokes 

My nervousness melts into happiness “I guess il have to try again”

I pull his head down to meet mine, before our lips meet I whisper “I kinda have a crush on you Percy Jackson”

“Me too” and with that he closes the gap between us.

As we pull apart I can feel the coolness on my exposed skin, I look up and gasp

“It's snowing!” 

Our eyes meet and time feels frozen for a second, I'm afraid to speak too scared of ruining the perfect moment. It's like snow on the beach unlikely but fucking stunning.

#percy jackson x reader #percy jackon and the olympians #percy pjo #pjo #riordan books #request

[killthefuhkinglights]

[page transcription below]

Apparently Frank Iero Is Not Okay.

For the ultimate test of My Chemical Romance's seemingly inescapable ubiquity, stay tuned to MySpace pages and message boards everywhere. When XØ- the debut from MCR guitarist Frank Iero's hardcore-punk side project LeATHERMOUTH- reaches the masses, you'll surely start seeing a gazillion comments from teenage girls raving, "OMG! Frank is sooooo hot! I love LeATHERMOUTH!" Were this record the product of just about anyone not involved with MCR, you could safely wager that most of said fans would run away from XØ as fast as humanly possible with their fingers wedged in their ears.

LeATHERMOUTH, who officially consist only of Iero on vocals and Rob Hughes on guitar, specialize in a particularly punishing form of hardcore that combines sludgy doom metal and harsh grindcore, topped off by Iero's ferocious screams and often twisted, eye-brow raising lyrics. Speed and fury are the name of the game here, and thus none of the album's 10 tracks break the three-minute mark (the disc's total running time is just over 21 minutes). While LeATHERMOUTH certainly aren't reinventing the wheel, songs with names like "I Am Going To Kill The President Of The United States Of America" and "Your Friends Are Full Of Shit" are far from dull. XØ's sheer brutality and shock value alone make the record the complete anti-My Chem experience, a perfect soundtrack for driving around with a corpse stashed in your trunk. (EPITAPH, epitaph.com) Brendan Manley

In-Store Session WIth Vocalist Frank Iero

LeATHERMOUTH are your forum to vent. What's got you so angry?

Just everyday life, and things that affect us that people want to pretend doesn't exist: feelings of isolation and depression, and the way the world is going. There are other things too: "Catch Me If You Can" is based on the letters written by Jack the Ripper. It's basically about cutting up girls, which is always fun. [Laughs] A lot of the songs seem to be about killing girls.

What's the story behind "5th Period Massacre"?

Kids are killing each other in school, and people are very quick to condemn the entertainment industry, or the parents or the kids themselves, who must be "off." I'm not saying those aren't some of the reasons, but no one talks about the little fucking prick who calls the kid a "faggot" or beats him up every day, so he sees no way out other than going home and getting his father's gun.

How about "Sunsets Are For Muggings"?

It's about going to see my psychiatrist. Every appointment I had was at night, around sunset. It's about taking all the pills to make yourself better, yet never feeling normal, and knowing that everything you're saying is going in one ear and out the other. I've definitely had to deal with mental illness in my family; that's a very personal thing that I deal with on a daily basis. "Sunsets" is my way of saying that no one is looking out for you but yourself, and you have to consider that no one fucking cares.

Will teenage girls who are into My Chem be horrified?

That's the funny part. "Catch Me If You Can" for example, has some pretty harsh lyrics about women. The last half of the song says, "A gift from God doing the Devil's crimes/I'll set shit right one whore at a time." Watching a good handful of little girls singing that line with you is a little weird, and really fucking funny. The things that make me laugh are things that are horrendously awful, [like] people falling down or getting attacked by animals. If I can have girls singing back about cutting themselves up or setting themselves on fire, that's pretty much a good show.

Some people will say, "My Chem is huge. What's this guy's problem?"

There are a million things I can say are great about my life, and a million things that really fucking suck. I can't explain why I have a problem with depression or anxiety; I don't know, and nobody can tell me why, either. I just do what I can to stay sane on a daily basis, and [LeATHERMOUTH] are one of those things that help me, getting it all out on a record, and playing shows. The first tour we did was really refreshing, exhausting and cathartic, and I wasn't pissed off anymore. Now that I've been home for a while, all that hate has built up again, and I think I need to do a couple more shows. [BM]

Alternative Press, In-Store Session interview with Frank Iero on LeTHERMOUTH's album XØ

#frank iero #leathermouth #xø #interview #what the fuck is wrong with him <3 #i think i need to sit down #frank we need to talk #iero are you listening to me #edit to the tags: tay you’re absolutely correct #as usual AP is pretty disrespectful to the artist and is talking about it as though it’s some nasty little creation /neg #why is this you’re characterization of teen afab fans? #the last two lines of the interview lead in have me seeing red #how is leathermouth anti my chem #how can you be that insensitive to the music multiple artists and fans as an interviewer for a music mag #riddle me that #cause i’m not fucking getting it

[empty-blog-for-lurking]

What happenes if/when allura shiro and lance meet in the shrödinger reality au? Theres do many ways this meeting could go wrong..........

Also shiro having a brother in this au is such an interesting plot point.. Shiro is slowly descending into madness by his memories halucinations and stuffing severed limbs into potted plants pots and kuro is like 'im so glad my brother has a new hobby:) hes been so passionate about gardening recently! I wonder what fertilizer is he using to make them grow this well.. also why is the floor do slippery nowadays'

and the answer turns out to be maybe-propably-not-real severed body parts

The way i see it (and i am basing this on vibes), that they didnt even notice or remembered. The way Lance's Thing works is that he 1) goes usually unnoticed, like pebbles on a road 2) even if you notice him, or talk to him, or he talks to you as long as you are not the one he's targetting (which rarely ever happens) they dont usually 'recognize' him. It is like how some animals dont recognize their own reflection, maybe some people would feel off about him, some people would be curious about him and some people would be able to notice and remember him (like that one doctor) but ultimately they wont be able to pinpoint what exactly is wrong just a constant feeling of wrongness. 3) they usually wont remember him. They might feel like they are forgetting something, or something is missing but usually they will forget about him.

However again the pebbles on road metaphor applies here. If you dont notice him, you just dont notice him, if you had one passing glance, you'll forget about him instantly, if you noticed him, talked to him, examined him, you are more likely to notice some details meaning you would realize that Something is Wrong, meaning you will remember him for a bit longer.

Which is how i feel Lance's first meeting with Shiro and Allura is going to go. They wont notice him, or recognize him, or remember him. I imagine there's some serial killer case both Allura and Shiro got dragged into with Allura was a witness (she was trying to understand wth us going on and trying to understand this world and oh shit that person just attacked someone) and Shiro kinda being a suspect cause he's being odd according to his friends, and Lance who has decided that he can do a better detective job than the cops (and he's 100% right) and also he thinks said serial killer is the one who 'killed' him. They do meet Lance and because they do remember or have dreamt Lance from their vld timeline, they are able to notice something is off about that guy, but they lose track of him and they kinda forget about him but do keep getting this nagging feeling that they forgot something important

Allura and Shiro do not get along at first. Allura who remembers Everything is like "Shiro? Shiro! Shiro it is you!! It's me Allura!! Oh thank voltron and guardian i found you this world is so strange and a total fake" and Shiro who has been trying to suppress his dreams for past few months is like- "Who tf are you??? I dont know who are you or what this voltron is but please stay away from me" (<=lying). And like Allura who was so desperate to have traces of her old life back, started to pretty much like trying to reach out to him (aka pester him). Eventually Allura is able to convince him that, yeah she indeed is both girl in his dreams but also real and Real af, and while he does Not believe her, he is also just so tired of the paranormal bs he is dealing with and if this Weird stalker lady can help him than on god he's taking that help.

And yep (in my mind his brother is Kuron) and while he doesnt show it, he is Very worried about Shiro. He reasons that he is just coping with his accident and dealing with loss of his arm and dream job and the Trauma™ (and technically he isnt wrong) but he can also tell this is something beyond That. However he has decided that he'll give Shiro space, let him come to him on his own, be supportive and strong and smiley for him. But yeah he's glad that Shiro is getting into a new hobbies, even if he is too into it sometimes.

#stolen identity au #empty answers #It'll take a While and a Lot of detective work to like bring them all together #But yeah #Need to work on the timeline #And the plot #And like everything #Anyway #thanks for asking!!!!!

[aprillikesthings]

YOOOOO IT'S MY WEEKEND and I have eaten dinner and it is time for MORE SHE-RA

yayyyy

OH GOD we're getting into the really good shit btw

if I manage not to do a marathon of these it'll be a gd miracle

Usual reminder: this is a REwatch and there's spoilers ahoy, I make a lot of bad jokes, I reference other cartoons

s4 ep10 fractures

okay before we get started

ahahah

I've given in. I'm gonna cosplay Catra. >_< wish me luck, I'm aiming for some kinda loosely post-canon thing, in part because there's no hiding my age at this point, except via like, photoshop pfft

side note the place I was looking at that makes custom fangs based on dental impressions is usually a month and change out, and the con I want to wear this to is in mid-April. *GROAN*

I have tried the cheap ones they don't stay on D:

OKAY

Dialogue is Double Trouble. Why are you even in the room??

oh it's a truth-telling spell lol

(it didn't work)

LOLOL the disbelief in Double Trouble's voice. "Can she do that?"

oh my GOD (yes it's Double Trouble)

but their Adora looks like Johnny Bravo aaahaha

Double Trouble does blow a raspberry at Shadow Weaver, tho, so they're forgiven

Adora explains the Heart of Etheria Project

Shadow Weaver: oooh we can use this to our advantage Me: okay Boromir but NO

nO

Adora's about to blow a fuse, but I would be, too! Like what part of "the planet could explode" is fucking difficult

Meanwhile, Catra is watching porn video feeds of places the Horde has taken

and thinks she spots someone!!!

(she hasn't, and she makes a sad little face when she realizes)

yeah she's being a bitch but also her deranged little face is great

OR EVERYONE COULD DIE. THERE'S ALSO THAT.

YAYYYY

does anyone else remember the old video "what your fave she-ra ship says about you"? this was made just after s4 actually. anyway I'm remembering it because it includes the line "you just want good things for Scorpia. and really, who wouldn't?"

Daci and I, for a while, couldn't stop quoting the ContraPoints clip used early on to reference "The inherent eroticism of the sea."

"MMmmm yeah. Don't you wanna just...get in there?"

It's a really funny video (I am called out SEVERAL TIMES) and the channel did a bunch of similar videos for other shows.

(also looking at the home page of the channel, she's a she now!!!! HELL YEAH)

Anyway everyone is surprised to see Scorpia :D

And their initial reaction is Not Good D:

the poor thing accidentally stuns Perfuma (...oh god that'S HILARIOUS knowing later stuff)

well that stops Adora in her tracks

back in the Fright Zone, Catra thinks she hears Scorpia's laugh and again is visibly relieved before realizing she's wrong

babygirl you need some rest (and so do your soldiers), you are getting paranoid and hearing things

so what, you're going to torture the rest of the soldiers who haven't left????

(I understand why she does the things she does but I still want to shake some sense into her)

JUST GET SOME GD SLEEP

she tries to call Double Trouble, but they don't answer

I want to give her a hug. But also shake some sense into her.

Another one to add to my "cartoon bondage" collection, as one does. But Perfuma is clearly a little smitten, though: she smiles as she walks away and makes a flower grow in the vines, awwwww

okay oh my GOD okay Scorpia's dialogue is KILLING ME i am CACKLING

"Wow...Yeah, but just-- Shadow Weaver. And at Bright Moon. Everything is making so much sense about why Catra's been acting the way she has."

Adora goes wide-eyed at Catra's name, Shadow Weaver looks at her, and then Adora looks away, pissed off.

like I was saying: SMITTEN

Anyway Scorpia explains why she wants to go find/save Entrapta, who's on Beast Island, and:

bahaha

they relate various stories about the horrors of Beast Island and Shadow Weaver insists they're nicer than the actual place, it's starting to sound like some bad joke about Etheria's version of Australia

I mean also you should go get her because she shouldn't be stuck there but okay

They all decide to go to Beast Island to rescue Entrapta but Glimmer is having NONE of it

Glimmer: "Adora, have you ever heard of anyone coming back from Beast Island? Do you even know where it is?"

I mean, good points, but

aaaugh

Bow: "There's an unstable mass of magic in the middle of the planet. Everyone's at risk unless we can get Entrapta to shut it down."

OKay I'm not typing up the whole damn episode you can read the transcript if you really want to, lol they argue about this for a bit longer, Glimmer even recommends they ask Light Hope how to use it even though that's a terrible idea, Glimmer tries to appeal to Bow but Bow is on Adora's side on this one

oh honey, no

She tries to order Bow and Adora to stay in the castle and not leave

Scorpia's "prison cell" is a very nice spare room. Perfuma brings her a salad and Scorpia doesn't recognize it as food immediately, the poor thing has only ever had ration bars.

Frosta: "It's not a sleepover!!! Perfuma: ":D I'll get pillows, brb!"

But then Frosta asks about her pincers with genuine interest and makes ones for herself out of ice...and Scorpia starts to cry

;_;

;_;

GO. TO. BED. oh my god

I RAN OUT OF IMAGES fhghgh okay gonna reblog

#april rewatches spop #fractures #Youtube

[ransomnote]

RANSOMNOTE'S TOP 10 ALBUMS OF 2023

this year was, despite everything, an incredible year for music. i haven't had a top 10 AOTY list this stacked since i started making lists. this is my comprehensive list of albums from this year i think everyone should listen to. there are some well known picks on here as well as some more obscure choices that nevertheless blew my face clean off.

10. Voir Dire - Earl Sweatshirt, The Alchemist

earl sweatshirt has never once disappointed me honestly. the production combined with the lyrics and the way this album flows is comforting yet confrontational and everything i've come to expect from ES. my only critique is that i wish there was more variety with regards to the speed of the songs themselves. that being said, the hypnotic nature of the sound can hold its own.

rate: 8/10

fave track: mancala (feat. vince staples)

9. PUNK TACTICS - Joey Valence & Brae

this album is hard to describe as anything other than really fucking fun. like have you ever seen, watched, or listened to a piece of art and felt in your soul that the people who made is had the time of their lives making it? that's punk tactics. these two bring the sound of 80s-90s east coast alt hip hop into 2023 in a way that doesn't feel like they're just rehashing the sound of beastie boys. i can't wait to see what else comes out of these two. that being said, i worry that a few of the samples utilizing memes popular between january-august 2023 are going to date this album.

rate: 8.3/10

fave track: STARTAFIGHT

8. everything is alive - Slowdive

so. with a track record like theirs, there was no way slowdive was going to put out something bad. and i was right! they didn't! though i still prefer their 90s albums a bit more probably solely based on nostalgia, this album is a fascinating and beautiful translation of their signature slowcore style into 2023. these musicians and their sound have evolved so much, and this album is a reflection of that growth. for critiques, i would say i don't find myself revisiting this album as much as i do slowdive's other work, and i'm not sure why. maybe its just me.

rate: 8.4/10

fave track: the slab

7. HELLMODE - Jeff Rosenstock

jeff rosenstock is known for exploring different genres, from punk to folk to metal to indie rock to ska. this album does that in a way i've never heard from him before. this album switches genres not just between songs, but mid-song sometimes. it keeps you on your toes for sure, but manages to sound cohesive and like it belongs together. to put it lightly, it's great. i was really worried with how he was going to follow up no dream/ska dream, and those fears have been effectively proven wrong. the only thing i would really change about this album is the track order, but that's so nitpicky i don't feel like getting into it.

rate: 8.6/10

fave track: LIKED U BETTER

6. SCARING THE HOES - JPEGMAFIA, Danny Brown

before i say anything else: peggy and danny brown hip hop duo of the year. i am not debating that with anyone. ok now we can start. oh my god this album. it's not exactly controversial to say that 2023 was one of the best years for experimental and alternative rap and hip hop on record, and i think this album shows all of that. the best part of this album in my opinion (though almost every aspect of it is a standout) is the sampling. i have never in my life heard sampling innovated like this. these two have turned what was already an art form into something almost like a sport. i don't have a critique as much as i have advice: develop this. don't let it stagnate here. these two are on the cusp of genre revolutionizing shit.

rate: 8.8/10

fave track: garbage pale kids

5. Appearance - peopling

i feel like i have to explain this album. have you ever played electric guitar or any instrument that gets run through an amp and heard it pick up radio waves traveling through the air while plugged in? this album does that intentionally. which. ok let me pick the pieces of my skull off the floor. this album makes me feel like i'm listening to ghosts talking, and in a way, i am. i don't know what to critique about it because i've never heard anything like it in my life. please go listen to this.

rate: 9/10

fave track: cRIPpLinG dEBt PArTy

4. Javelin - Sufjan Stevens

this is such an instant classic sufjan stevens album. i love it. i don't have a lot to say beyond that because i feel like you could take any sufjan stevens album, pick out what's so great about it, and copy and paste that for every album of his. that being said, it's not stale. there's a distinct fairytale sound that's distinct from the ethereal sound of earlier projects that gets combined with a healthy dose of warranted cynicism given how rough this year has been for stevens. go cry to this.

rate: 9.3/10

fave track: tie between shit talk and javelin (to have and to hold)

3. This Is Why - Paramore

after after laughter in 2017, my only question for paramore was "how are they going to top this?" the band certainly took their sweet time answering that question, but with what we got, i can't complain. hayley williams is, as always, a complete powerhouse, but that didn't need to be said. you can tell how much new wave, specifically the likes of talking heads, influenced the artistic direction of this album. it's a new sound for paramore, a band that refuses to stagnate it seems, and i can't get enough of it. i don't yearn for old paramore the same way i yearn for, say, old fall out boy or old green day because their new stuff is just. better. i don't want to hear a scene veteran yap about how nostalgia is what keeps the bills paid ever again.

rate: 9.4/10

fave track: you first

2. Fat Chance - Mr. Phylzzz

i had never heard of this band before my friend trixie and i made the last minute decision to see them live opening for the melvins and boris. their set consisted mainly of songs off this album, and what a fucking set it was. i enjoyed them more than both the acts that followed. this duo has an intense stage presence on par with groups like mcr and death grips, and that translates into their music even when it's not live. this is 2023 post-hardcore punk perfection that makes you feel like you're being chased by dogs. with guns. gundogs. seriously, if i put you on to one band with this post, i hope its them.

rate: 9.7/10

fave track: tie between dirty hands and insisting

1. Census Designated - Jane Remover

coming out of nowhere with the steel chair at the end of october, this album makes me feel things that i can't classify as normal. i will never be normal about this album. ever. it's cemented itself as not just my album of the year, but as one of my favorite albums of all time. the pushing of her already so solid hyperpop sound into grunge territory is. i can't describe it as anything other than insane. this album demands your attention while simultaneously making a point to demand nothing. it's as contemporary and 2023 as it gets, and yet i think it's going to age beautifully. this is, without a doubt in my mind, the best album of 2023. listen to it before i lose my mind.

rate: 10/10

fave track: fling

well! that wraps it up! i'm going into 2024 with my standards set high. let me know if you think i snubbed or overlooked anyone! when the world is the most turbulent, the greatest art gets made. heres to a more peaceful 2024 and free that motherfucking palestine <3

#music #aoty #new years

[wrecking]

how is it already january 31st. ok anyways uh fun month musically tbh! been listening to a looooot of yeule and a bunch of random older stuff clicked with me finally, gonna ramble about them under the cut

allie x - girl with no face (pre-release singles)

tbh gwnf made sense to me instantly and owht was incredible on first listen, but black eye took MONTHS to grow on me. at least i'm obsessed with now, prepare to see this on the list all year

ariana grande - yes, and? (single)

i am basic and like house music. i think the dissonance on the chorus lines scratches my brain in a way not a lot else does currently, it's just kinda listenable in a fun way and that's all it needed to be imo. that one line is kinda funny with how underperformed it is tho

dua lipa - houdini - extended edit (single)

this has just been slowly taking over my brain ngl, hooks on hooks and they're all very fun to just sing to yourself while you're doing random things

tinashe - bb/ang3l

talk to me nice SWEEPS okay but also tightrope, needs, treason... honestly the whole fucking ep okay it's all good

paramore - this is why

tbh this gets on here almost exclusively off me watching the live debut performance of running out of time. her vocals are so good and that song in particular has been my jam this month ok, also you first is so good both as their song and as remi wolf's

adrianne lenker - songs

several alters were vibing with this this month and tbh good for them. her next solo album is probably gonna take over my life when it releases so hey

paramore - after laughter

dash really liked this one, i've been really clicking with rose-colored boy finally. i find this is why to be the better listen overall, but god this thing is still really good

confidence man - tilt

weird pick but i've kinda come back around into being obsessed with this again! subdued but quirky dance, it's not as immediately catchy or bold as their debut, but i really like it for what it is

yeule - softscars

this was the centerpiece of the month, well tbh all of yeule's discography could be. their stuff is so good but in particular like poison arrow, a song i'll get to later when i talk abt glitch princess, and cyber meat and 4ui12 have been just ruling this month for me. this album's groaning metallic soundscapes have just been so cathartic as of late. i'm a stan now

looks away somewhat shamefully - 1989 (taylor's version)

i don't even have an excuse for this one ok i just like this album, i have for like fucking 7 years at this point and i like the vault tracks and the less i have to think about the discourse surrounding Her As A Person the better.

charli xcx - crash

this kinda snuck back up on me this month? finally decided to revisit it after a long long time away, and it's held up incredibly well! much like hold the girl by rina sawayama, an artist is not merely worth based on how much they pander to rym nerds. the hooks, delivery, and production on this are so fucking good idgaf

100 gecs - 1000 gecs

this really has held up so well ok. 10k also rly good but this and the unreleased stuff has been scratching a particular itch for me this month. literally every song (except stupid horse i THINK which is fine bc i was obsessed with it before now) has been the subject of a small obsession of mine this month it's so good

olivia rodrigo - guts

this album keeps holding up and keeps being relevant to me personally. girl please put the deluxe tracks on streaming already for me

pinkpantheress - heaven knows

this album is SO fucking good hoooooly shit. i thought her first project was just ok but this is an ALBUM. ophelia, feel complete, mosquito, the aisle, hell that ENTIRE first 4 track run, i feel like i'm forgetting more but like just that alone... god...

rajie - heart to heart

my city pop hidden gem, this thing is so flawless even still. it's me it's you is still peak hooks. there are a couple other japanese titles i don't wanna go copy paste but like they are also just some of the most timeless melodies i've ever heard. this and timely by anri are the 2 city pop releases i keep on full rotation constantly now

yeule - glitch princess

don't be so hard on your own beauty. that's literally it. i don't want to talk about it because it's personal but i've been streaming it like my life depends on it. means the fucking world to me

cafune - love songs for the end

this just refuses to let go of my attention? 5 songs, probably just "generic pop" to most people, yet perspective and unchained memory REFUSE to leave me alone. the amount of times i've just ended up mumbling out that "honestly i think about-" and end up singing the entire thing to myself is unreal. shockingly effective hook

lady gaga - the fame monster (deluxe)

felt like revisiting this and it's still kind of just a big pop bible. my spotify has been playing teeth way too much but other than that, no song really manages to wear itself out. i guess maybe paper gangsta but that one's so silly how could you hate it

florence and the machine - how big, how blue, how beautiful

random pick but i'm standing by it. have come to the conclusion this and hah are her best records, and i maintain that. this one in particular tho is just stunningly good

kacy hill - is it selfish if we talk about me again?

alice really liked this, and i've also been streaming frog rinse a fuckton bc god that vocal effect is so unique yet so good

laura les - haunted (single)

probably the 2nd most defining thing in january besides yeule, this single has been just The thing i listen to all the damn time. her unreleaseds are so good too (walls are closing in?!?!>?!?>!>??!! RELEASE IT)

maude latour - 001

random pick again but this ep is so good, it's her best imo despite not appearing to have "that high highs." something about the aesthetics of each song here and how they're basically all good bops holds them up so well

hiroshi yoshimura - music for nine post cards

this and green are records that mercedes has been streaming like no tomorrow cuz they're so chill, but this one is definitely my lesser favorite? better cover but i care a lot more abt the songs on green except for blink, which is mesmerizing

100 gecs - unreleased

literally all of them but especially ratatouille and the thos moser remix. they need to just put out an unreleased record idgaf they have too many good songs sitting on youtube

hiroshi yoshimura - green

i got a gorgeous vinyl copy of this, and i've just been thinking a lot about this album. also peak reading music, ambient sweep

-----

ok so unrelated ik i said i'd do stats for 2023 in this post back in december but you know what... i don't feel like it. just know it was like big thief dragon, ethel preachers daughter, and maggie rogers surrender top 3 charters of all time so far. let's see how this year treats all of them!

#d #m

[duhragonball]

Dragon Ball GT 38

✨GT stands for Gastrointestinal Torture✨

✨Is this episode worse than “The Roaming Lake”?✨

Yes, this episode is automatically worse than “The Roaming Lake”, because this is the one where Goten and Trunks are about to fuse and Goku tells them not to.

  This is the dumbest thing this show has ever done.  Goten and Trunks haven’t done shit-all this entire series.  Everyone just wanted to see Adult Gotenks, and this piece-of-crap anime refused to deliver.  Well, you know what, Dragon Ball GT?  We don’t need your broken promises anymore!   This is the 21st century!  And we have Dragon Ball Heroes. 

Look at this.  Look at this.  GT Gotenks.  You love to see it.

  Am I overreacting?  I don’t think I am.  They put Gotenks in Battle of Gods, Dragon Ball Super and DBS Super Hero.  He didn’t even do that much in any of those shows, but they still put him in there because the people love Gotenks, and they just like to see how he’s doin’. 

But not GT!  Noooooo.  The people making GT heard fans asking “Please sir, might you favor us with a crumb of Gotenks?” and they were like “Bleah, bleah!  No Gotenks for anyone!  Bleah!”

“The Roaming Lake” is a lot of things.  Stupid, yes.  Boring, certainly.  But it’s not a liar.  Nam was trying to get water for his village and dammit, they got some water.

  We all know the REAL Goku wouldn’t turn down some Gotenks action.  He’s the one who taught Goten and Trunks how to do it. He would have been like, “Yeah, boys, do some fusion, this is gonna kick ass!”  And then SSJ3 Gotenks would have busted out Stardust Breaker and one-shotted Baby.  Then Vegeta would have woken up and said “No, I can’t be satisfied with this victory, not until Kakarot and I fuse so we can face our sons in awesome fusion battle, men-to-men.”  And then it would have been Gotenks vs. Gogeta in a heartwarming father-son match on Planet Vegeta. 

✨ “Good” “Ideas”, Poorly Executed✨

All right, let me back up and provide some context for this travesty. 

So Baby and Goku were both knocked out last episode, but Baby got a reviving dose of Blutz waves from Bulma, while Goku is running on fumes.  Kibitoshin is arranging support for him, but they aren’t ready yet.  So Baby starts teeing of on Goku, because, hey, it’s a free shot. It’s like when you have Goten and Trunks in your anime, and you know you could just have them fuse into Gotenks whenever you want.  Why would you hold back?  Sorry, I’m getting off-track.

Anyway, Pan rushes into defend her grandfather, and it’s a pretty heroic scene, but Kozo Morishita said Pan can’t have a hero moment, so Baby just smacks her down again.  You know, they really should have turned Pan Super Saiyan, if only to justify her getting clobbered by Baby without getting seriously hurt.   It’s just such an obvious thing to do, like having Gotenks in your show... Oh, I’m doing it again, aren’t I?

So Baby moves into finish off Pan, because apparently he can trade blows with a Super Saiyan 4, but he needs multiple tries to kill a base-form Saiyan child.  Then Goku tries to hold him at bay, but Baby knows he’s helpless, so he just keeps going, until...

Trunks shows up to make the save.  Cool!  I don’t know why his ki blast could stop Baby, but SSJ4 Goku’s couldn’t, but at least he got here in time.   Trunks turns Super Saiyan, and tries to fight Baby by himself, but he gets nowhere.  This uppercut he delivers looks cool, but it doesn’t actually hurt Baby at all.

  Baby then tells Trunks that he’s currently inhabiting Vegeta’s body, which is weird because I thought Trunks already knew this.  I mean, it’s kind of unclear whether people remember what they did while they were under Baby’s control, but Trunks found out about Baby possessing Vegeta before he got Tuffleized.  Where else would Baby have gotten a Super Saiyan Oozaru to ride around in?

Then Goten, Gohan, and Kibitoshin arrive and rescue Trunks, and they all regroup to discuss their strategy.  And this is where Goten and Trunks propose fusion, but Goku insists that it won’t work, even if they all attack at once.  So what should they do, then?

Well, this, basically.  Goku wants the boys to turn Super Saiyan and give him their power.  This will restore him to full strength, and since he’s a Super Saiyan 4, he’ll have what it takes to defeat Baby once and for all. 

All right, so let me deconstruct this idea, because I hate it so, so, much.

  I don’t claim to understand power scaling.  But I’ve never been able to comprehend how characters pooling their power into one teammate is better than just fighting together as a group.  I had the same grip with the Broly movie, which is probably where this episode got the idea from, although we also see a similar trick used in the Lord Slug movie, and Baby used it a few episodes back when he had these same guys working for him.

The idea seems to be that Super Saiyan 4 Goku can somehow use that power more effectively than the others can individually, but I have a hard time buying that.  Maybe there’s some sort of stacking effect, where Goku can get more out of the same amount of ki energy.  Hey, you know what else has a stacking effect?  Fusion.

So even if this is the best play, wouldn’t it make a lot of sense for Goten and Trunks to fuse, and then stand around Goku and give him Super Saiyan power?  At least that way, if Baby tried to stop them, Gotenks would be in a better position to run interference. 

Also, why is Kibitoshin just standing around watching this?  He has healing powers, even if the Elder Kai claimed that they wouldn’t be sufficient to restore Goku’s strength.  So why doesn’t he put that to the test?  Even if he can only get Goku a quarter of the way to where he needs to be, that’s still better than nothing. 

Or even if Kibitoshin knows that wouldn’t work, why didn’t he grab some senzu beans on the way here?  Or he could have brought Dende along and they could have both healed Goku in some sort of kinky three-way healing session. 

I’ll admit that I’m splitting hairs here.  It’s just a cartoon, and it really doesn’t matter how they get Goku across the finish line, but it really makes me nutty how Toei seemed to go out of their way to arrange this bullshit. Like, there’s so many other options on the table, many of them involving Super Saiyan Pan and Adult GT Gotenks, but instead they went with this:

STANDING AROUND.  That’s the big technique we’re going to use to beat the bad guy.  Just standing around in the open, hoping he doesn’t kill us.

And Baby is actually surprisingly accommodating.  Sure, he tries to kill them before they can re-energize Goku, but he was sporting enough to stand perfectly still while they talked about it. Eventually he attacks, but Goku distracts him with a Solar Flare, and then, when Baby tries to attack again, he doubles over in pain.  What happened to him?  Well he came down with a case of...

✨Positivity Page✨

Uub! Yeah, Baby thought he had defeated Uub before, when he turned Uub’s own candy beam back on him, but when he picked up the chocolate Uub and ate it, he made a fatal mistake.  Uub was counting on getting swallowed, and he figured he could do more damage to Baby from the inside.  Pretty clever!

Although, it kind of makes you wonder why he waited so long to make his move.  Uub got swallowed way back in Episode 33.  He can apparently change back into a human at will, but why didn’t he attack earlier?  If he’d done this before, when Baby was taking potshots at the Earth, he and Goku probably could have won this thing already.

Then again, it doesn’t work for very long, and Baby manages to spit Uub out, so maybe it was never good for more than a momentary distraction.  Baby finally manages to attack the Saiyan contingent, and for a moment it looks like he won.  Horrified that Pan has been killed, Mr. Satan dares Baby to kill him too, but then...

Goku reveals that he and Pan are fine.  Everything worked, and he’s back to full strength.  Maybe he’s stronger than he was when he first transformed, actually, since he had taken quite a beating before that.   Anyway, Baby’s back to square one. 

Goku declares that it’s time “we both got serious.”  Past time, if you asked me.  This whole fight has been one big boondoggle.  It’s not even that long, but it sucks so much ass that it feels like it’s taken forever.

✨The Blade Braxton Memorial Haiku*✨

No time for Gotenks?

Bite your tongue, sir. He beat

Hitler, didn’t he?

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