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screechesincoherently · 2 years

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The Cop Out- Sam Kiszka

Part 12- Gifting

Masterlist

Synopsis: Y/n calls up a friend to help her buy a Christmas present for Sam, and finds herself in good company that night while she wraps.

Warnings: Swearing, Dad Jokes

Word Count: 4,196

In Collaboration With: @capturethechaos

By the time they had arrived back at Y/n’s apartment, both were drained, and very ready for a nap. Sam walked with her all the way to her apartment door, giving her a kiss on the forehead and letting her know that he would be back the next day to pick her up for Christmas Eve with his family.

“I can’t wait, I love you Dipshit.” She said, grinning at him.

“I love you more Giggles.” He said, giving her one last kiss before walking down the hallway towards the elevator.

Y/n watched him leave until he was out of sight, shutting her apartment door and finally letting out her excitement. She got a few steps into the entrance before she pulled out her phone and dialed a number she hadn’t in a while.

“Hey Y/n. Long time no text or call babe, how are you?” Mackenzie greeted.

“Holy— shit— Mackenzie—”

“What? Are you alright?” She asked, her voice becoming mildly panicked at Y/n’s tone.

“It finally happened!”

“What happened, you’re freaking me out.”

“It happened Kenzie, Sam and I finally got together!” Y/n borderline yelled, bouncing around on her toes.

“Hold on— I thought you two were already together. Danny was told by the twins that you have been dating in secret for a while now. He wasn’t too impressed having to hear it through anyone other than Sam.” She said.

“Oh— about that—”

Y/n walked around her apartment, aimlessly doing small chores as she explained the whole situation to Mackenzie.

“Okay, so why didn’t you just ask him out in the first place?”

“That is a great question. Short answer, I was a little bit scatterbrained?”

“Okay— and?”

“For whatever reason it was easier to ask him to fake date rather than real date.”

“Because you wouldn’t have to admit to anything.”

“Well… yeah.”

“So— You’re both pussies, that’s what I’m getting from this.” Mackenzie teased.

“You didn’t have to be so harsh about it, Kenz.” Y/n replied, her hand lifting to her chest.

“But am I wrong?” Mackenzie asked, chuckling as she spoke.

“Not in the slightest.” Y/n said, joining in the laughter.

“I’m glad it finally happened, for real this time. So is Danny. Sam can finally stop beating around the bush whenever he talks about you now.”

“It’s going to be so nice to not have to silently pine over him anymore.”

“As long as you don’t vocalize it twenty-four seven, I’m alright with listening to you gush over him.” Y/n could hear Mackenzie smile through the phone

“Good, cause I don’t think Ronnie will want me to gush about all the things he can do with his--”

“Yeah, alright I think I’ve heard enough for today.”

“Come on Kenz, you were no better when you and Danny started dating.”

The two were silent for a moment.

“Hey, do you wanna come shopping with me? I need to get Sam a Christmas present.” Y/n said as she sat at her computer beginning to look up ideas.

“Aw, you don’t know what to get your boyfriend? You’ve only known him for twelve years.”

“Okay Kenzie, what are you getting your boyfriend for Christmas?”

“I got him about fifty travel-sized bottles of his favorite shampoo and conditioner.”

“That will last him ten nights on the road, Kenz.”

“Well, it's better than him using hotel shampoo.”

God— why do so many websites say socks?

“Do you wanna help me or not?”

And cologne?

“Are you coming and picking me up?”

There’s consistently two suggestions— socks and cologne. That's it.

“As long as you’ll pay for coffee on our way back.”

“Deal.”

“I’ll be over in like, ten minutes. And tell Danny he’s not allowed to tag along unless he actually wants to help.”

“Sounds good, he was trying to convince me to help him make a third batch of cookies with him.”

Y/n stopped what she was doing, her brain taken over by confusion.

“A third batch?” She asked, staring at her phone.

“Don’t ask— I’ll see you soon.” Mackenzie said, followed by some garbled arguing with Danny before she hung up the phone.

Y/n grabbed her bag and phone before walking out of her apartment. It didn’t take long before her phone buzzed with a text.

Kenz: Hurry please lol.

She laughed and decided to take the stairs, running down as fast as she could without tripping.

The drive took less than ten minutes, and when she texted Mackenzie to let her know that she had arrived, she was out of the house in seconds. She nearly tripped on the greeting rug on her way out the door, her hands full with her phone, purse, and a container of what Y/n could only assume was some of those cookies Danny had been baking.

“Take the cookies. Please.” Mackenzie said as soon as she got into the car, throwing the container onto Y/n’s lap.

“How thoughtful of you–” Y/n laughed, taking the container and gently tossing it into the backseat.

“—So, how are you?” Y/n asked, looking over at Mackenzie with a grin.

Mackenzie looked back at her with an eyebrow raised, looking absolutely exhausted.

“I have been baking all day with Danny. I don’t know why he is so insistent on making so many cookies—”

“Have you ever asked him? Maybe it’s some sentimental shit or something. I can see him doing that.” Y/n tried to reason, pulling out of the driveway.

“I think he’s broken, he’s been making some sort of baked goods every— single— day.”

“Have you tried shutting him off and back on again?” Y/n joked, earning a snorty laugh from Mackenzie.

“— or resetting his hard drive?” She said, turning to Mackenzie with a wink.

“Actually, I have. Thank you.”

“Maybe he’s making them as a reward for a job well done then.”

“He’ll give all but fifteen away, and then complain because we don’t have any.. I’m not sure how that’s a reward for me.”

“That’s still fifteen cookies, not the worst thing.”

They reached the mall relatively quick. Pulling into a parking spot and walking into the building.

Their first stop was Target, walking around aimlessly, occasionally holding up random items to make each other laugh. The only things they walked out with were snacks— and socks.

Y/n really didn’t want to be that girlfriend that got her boyfriend socks for every holiday. So she and Kenzi made their way to the nearest jeweler. Y/n wasn’t paying as much attention, more just holding Mackenzie's hand letting her lead her around, so she didn’t notice Sam standing inside the very jeweler they were about to enter— but Mackenzie did.

Her and Sam locked eyes, and he panicked a bit, looking at Y/n like a deer in the headlights. Mackenzie chuckled, waving him off before turning to drag Y/n in another direction.

“Wait where are we going? I thought we were going to go in there.” Y/n said, looking ahead at her friend, but pointing to the shop behind them.

“I wanna make a pit stop at Yankee Candles. I think I found some candles online that I could get Jita and Ronnie.”

“Well I can tell you what Jita is getting already— well, more Jake, but it is technically for both of them.”

“Which is?” Kenzi said with raised eyebrows.

“Yeah, Sam bought Jake sex dice. It’s not going to be a great time when Jake decides to go after Sam in the middle of opening presents.”

“Do me a favor— film it and send it to me.”

“See, but I don’t want Jake to end up taking my phone and throwing it in the snow so that I don’t have any evidence. You know how he gets when he’s embarrassed.”

“That is a valid point. Have Karen record. Jake won’t take her phone.”

“Smart.” Y/n said.

The two walked into Yankee Candle, beginning the search for candles for Jita and Ronnie. As they sniffed through the endless supply of candles, Mackenzie got a text from Sam.

Sam: She didn’t see me, did she?

Mackenzie: I’m fairly certain she didn’t.

Sam: I need you to be fully certain

Mackenzie: Okay let me just ask her if she saw you at the jeweler’s or not

“Y/n, you didn’t by any chance see anything interesting in the window display at the jeweler did you?” She asked, looking at Y/n as she lifted a candle to her nose.

“Uh— no not really, didn’t get the chance to look before you turned us around.”

Kenzi went back to her phone to relay the message to Sam, and saw a frantic message from him.

Sam: No! That’s going to defeat the whole purpose if you ask her if she saw me!

Mackenzie: Sam, calm down. For one, it’s too late. Two, I didn’t tell her that you were there, so calm yourself. Three, no. She didn’t.

Sam: Okay… I guess

Mackenzie: Have you left yet? I think Y/n might pass out if she sniffs one more candle.

Sam: Please don’t let my girlfriend pass out

Mackenzie: You didn’t answer my question

Sam: Yes I’ve left… why?

Mackenzie: Cause I want to get Danny something from there for Christmas, but I can’t exactly take her with me if you’re in there

Sam: Just leave her with the candles

Sam: Wait, no. Don’t do that. That wouldn’t be a good idea.

Mackenzie chuckled at her phone, putting it back in her pocket and walking over to Y/n, who had made it to the end of the wall, and had a stack of candles in her basket.

“I think I found some that they’ll like.” She said, smiling at Mackenzie and lifting the basket to show her.

“All of these are just for Ronnie and Jita?”

“Is there a correct answer for that?”

“They’re going to use two. At most. Once a month. They don’t each need five.”

“Alright so, two for Jita, two for Ronnie, two for you, and four for me—”

“No. Absolutely not. Two candles for the girls and then we are getting you out of here.”

“No Mackenzie please, they all smell so good.” Y/n said, giving her friend the best puppy dog eyes she could muster.

Mackenzie just stared at Y/n unamused

“Fine.” She groaned, taking Y/n’s hand and dragging her to the register.

—

“Kenzi, I can’t believe you let me spend almost three hundred dollars on candles.” Y/n said, looking down at the big bag she was lugging along with her.

“Oh, no no. No. No.” Mackenzie said to her, turning to Y/n with her finger raised.

“Oh yeah— that’s right, you owe me for the candles that are being given to Jita and Ronnie. It was your idea to get them candles.”

“You are insane.”

“And you love me anyways.”

“Whatever. Didn’t you wanna go to the jeweler’s?”

“Yeah! Let’s go!” Y/n said, walking ahead of Mackenzie and pulling her along.

They walked into the store and immediately started to look through the necklaces.

“How ‘bout this one?” Y/n asked, pointing to a simple gold chain with a dainty bar hanging from it.

Mackenzie inspected the necklace, looking up at her friend, offering her a smile and nodding her head.

“Do you think he’s going to like it?”

“I think you could give him a piece of gum and he would treasure it for the rest of his life.”

Y/n rolled her eyes at Mackenzie’s comment, a smile forming on her own face. She asked the jeweler to get it out of the case for her, and immediately decided to get it. She could already envision the way it would sit on his torso.

And how it would dangle when he’s above me.

“You owe me coffee now Kenz.” Y/n said as they walked out of the jewelers.

“I think the last thing you need is coffee right now.”

“But that doesn’t mean I can’t have any.”

“I’m paying, you’re getting a hot chocolate.”

“Fine. But you owe me coffee later Kenz.”

“Put it on your wish list.”

—

The day went by agonizingly slow, Y/n more than eager to spend the holidays with the Kiszkas.

She sat on the floor of her bedroom, wrapping Sam’s gift. It turned out to be more of a challenge than she had expected solely because she wanted the wrapping to be perfect. She wanted the paper to be lined up wherever it overlapped so it looked seamless but that was easier said than done considering the small size of the jewelry box and the abstract pattern of the wrap.

Eventually, Y/n gave up with the patterns and went to her storage closet to grab a roll of plain brown wrapping paper deciding that she would add something extra to the appearance with some twine and decorative ribbon.

As she made her way back into her room, her phone dinged with a text notification.

Dipshit <3: Hey Giggles, quick question.

Y/n: Possible answer…

Dipshit <3: Do you want to have the regular dinner that everyone else is having tomorrow night, or do you want the vegetarian option?

Y/n: I’m okay with whatever is there for me Sammy. As long as I get to eat.

Dipshit <3: Mom wants to know if she has enough food for everyone, that’s why I’m asking.

Y/n: Your mom always has more than enough food anyways, your fridge is always filled with leftovers for weeks after every event you have.

Dipshit <3: Is that what you want me to tell her your answer is?

Y/n: Just tell her to not worry about me, I’ll be content with whatever is offered.

Y/n set her phone down to try to wrap Sam’s necklace for the fourth time. Once she had cut out a square big enough to cover up the whole present, her phone began to ring next to her.

Glancing over to her phone, she saw her contact picture she had set for Sam years ago fill up the screen.

She picked up the phone and held it out in front of her parallel to the floor, not registering that it had been a FaceTime call, and not a regular phone call.

“Ooh what’s that?” Sam asked, only being able to see the gift on the floor for a split second before Y/n realized that it wasn’t a regular phone call.

“Fuck!”

Sam laughed on the other end as she scrambled to move her phone so she could flip the camera without him being able to inspect the object on the floor.

“What’cha working on, babe?” Sam asked through a giant smile, while getting up from his bed.

“Christmas shit.” Y/n grumbled placing her phone on the floor, her front camera only capturing the corner of her face and her ceiling.

“I see you’re in the Christmas spirit. Good to hear.”

“Did you need something? Or did you just call to harass me about my current state?”

“I miss you, and wanted to chat while I prepped my dinner for tomorrow.” Sam walked through the house until he got to the kitchen.

“Well you could have warned me that you were going to FaceTime me though, Dipshit.”

Sam laughed as he propped his phone up against the cabinets so he could begin the task.

“I’m really enjoying the view of your ceiling, babe. Very nice, very plain.”

“Well I’m sorry I can’t wrap Christmas presents with only one hand so this is what you’re getting.” Y/n said as she began to fold the paper over the box, taping it in place.

“I can’t cook with one hand, but you can still see me.” He replied with jazz hands exaggerating his point, even though Y/n’s eyes were glued to her wrapping.

“What are you making?”

“Well, I am currently starting to work on some cheese and onion rolls.”

“Those sound like they’d be good.”

“So, whose present are you wrapping?” Sam asked as he heard her cutting the paper through the phone.

“None of your business.”

“Now I’m curious. Tell me.”

“Nope.”

Sam gasped before leaning over the counter to get closer to his phone.

“Is it mine?” He asked quietly with eyes wide, and a grin even wider.

“No.”

“You’re an awful liar. Did you know that?” His face filled the entirety of her phone screen, eyes squinting as if it would help him figure something out.

“So are you, babe.” Y/n said with a small laugh.

“Hurry up and finish wrapping my present so I can see you.”

“I’m going to take my time, thank you very much.” Y/n said, slightly leaning over the camera, now showing a third of her face.

As she went back to focusing on the present, she heard another voice come from the phone.

“Oooh, whose ceiling are you talking to?” Kelly asked, looking at his phone as he walked into the kitchen.

“Y/n’s. We’re having a very intriguing conversation at the moment.”

“Hello Y/n’s ceiling, how’s it hanging?”

“Oh my god.” Y/n said laughing through the phone at the joke.

“Why don’t you laugh at my jokes like that?” Sam asked, looking at his phone with an offended look on his face.

“You just can’t deliver dad jokes quite the way Kelly does.” Y/n said, calming down after her small laughing fit.

“I know a way we could change that.” Sam commented, completely disregarding the fact that he was in the kitchen with his father.

Y/n heard the sound of Kelly smacking Sam upside the head, and she began to laugh once again.

“Where did your manners go Samuel? You don’t talk to women like that.”

Sam gave a knowing look to the camera, a smirk on his face.

“I’m sorry.”

“Why is Sam sorry this time?” Josh asked, walking into the kitchen and picking a piece of cheese off of the cutting board in front of Sam.

“Hey, I was using that!”

“He forgot how to talk to girls appropriately.”

Josh tsked at his youngest brother, shaking his head.

“Y/n, just so you know, I could always treat you better.” Josh said with a wink, turning to walk past Sam to get to the fridge.

“I do have a knife in my hand Josh.” Sam said.

“Okay, I am not dealing with this, you two are old enough to duke it out on your own. Goodnight Y/n!”

“Goodnight Dad!” She said, making Sam turn to the camera with a grin.

“Josh, why is it taking you so long to grab me a yogurt?” Y/n heard Karen yell in the background of the call.

“Sam’s being a little shit to Y/n. I have to knock some sense into him.”

“Oh my god you guys. Leave me alone and let me cook please.

“Samuel Francis, what on earth are you saying to her?”

“I’m not saying anything!”

Karen made her way into the kitchen to interrogate Sam. At this point, they had all distracted Sam enough that Y/n could finish wrapping his gift to her liking. She cleaned up the mess from the three attempts and picked up her phone from the floor, making her way into the living room.

She sat on the ouch just in time for Karen to come into the frame.

“Hi momma K!” She said, catching Karen's attention.

“Hello Y/n! How are you honey?” She asked, ignoring her sons and walking over to the phone.

“I am wonderful, can’t wait to see everybody in person tomorrow.” She said, relaxing into the cushions of her couch.

“What did you want to eat tomorrow by the way Y/n?” Karen asked.

“I’m okay with whatever is there. I’ll have a little bit of everything.”

“Alright hon, I’m excited to see you tomorrow!” She said.

“I’m excited to see you too!” Y/n replied, watching as Karen turned and plucked the yogurt from Josh’s hand and walking out of the kitchen.

“You’re welcome!” Josh yelled to his mom throwing his hands up at the lack of manners.

Sam packed away the prepared food, placing it into the fridge before turning around to see Josh and Y/n making funny faces at each other.

“Alright Josh, can I have my girlfriend back now please?” He asked, leaning against the counter.

“I guess. I’ll see you tomorrow Y/n, love you.” Josh said, stepping back and walking out of the kitchen.

“Love you too Joshy.”

Sam picked up his phone, walking into the living room to get to the stairs.

“Josh told us you’re talking to Y/n, were you just gonna walk right past us without letting us say hi?” Ronnie said, leaning her head back over the back of her chair.

“You’ll be seeing her in less than twenty-four hours.” Sam said impatiently, wanting to get to his room.

“And? Let us see Y/n!” Jake said, throwing a pillow at his brother.

Sam rolled his eyes, turning his phone to show Y/n to his remaining two siblings.

“I can’t see her Sam, come closer.” Jake said, gesturing for Sam to move towards him.

Sam reluctantly followed the instruction, moving closer. Jake remained unsatisfied, shooting up from his seat and snatching the phone from Sam's hand.

“What the fuck you guys?”

“Sorry Sammy, figured she’d rather look at me than your ugly mug.” Jake said as he skittered away from the living room.

He only made it a few feet before his feet slid out from underneath him, Sam’s phone went flying as Jake’s body hit the hardwood floor with a thump.

“What the fuck just happened?” Y/n asked concerned laced within her laughter.

Sam walked over, stepping over his brother and grabbing his phone off of the floor.

“Jake tried to steal my phone, but apparently forgot that socks don’t get traction on hardwood.” Sam explained, looking down at his brother and turning his camera so that Y/n could see Jake sprawled out on the floor.

“Are you okay Jake?” She asked.

“Yeah, I think I’m just gonna sit here for a minute.”

“And wallow in self pity no doubt.” Sam quipped, causing Jake's head to whip around in his direction.

Jake squirmed, reaching for Sam’s feet, and Y/n watched as Sam bounced around, avoiding his brother's grasp.

“I don’t wallow Sam.”

“What would you call this then?” He asked, gesturing to his brother’s position on the floor.

“Alright, now you’re gonna get it.” Jake said, pushing himself off of the ground.

Sam took off in a sprint, running for the stairs. He made it about half way up before Jake grabbed his ankle, causing him to fall forward on the stairs and throw his phone a couple steps up.

Y/n could only see a black screen, but could hear the sounds of Jake and Sam bickering. She sat like that for a couple minutes, listening, before the phone was picked up again.

“Finally decide to act like a grown up Dipshit?” She asked, staring at her ceiling as she spoke.

“Try again.” She heard the melodic voice of Ronnie Kiszka coming through the speaker of her phone.

“Ronnie!” Y/n said, looking down at her phone with a wide grin.

“Hiya Y/n! Long time no see. How was the cabin?” Ronnie asked, leaning against the wall at the top of the stairs.

“Very romantic— nothing says Christmas getaway with my boyfriend like having my family consistently walk in on us doing god knows what.”

The sound of conversation made Sam and Jake stop moving, looking up at their sister holding the phone.

Jake let Sam out of his grasp, sitting on the step to catch his breath. Sam stood and walked to the top of the stairs. He stopped in front of his sister, holding out his hand and looking at her expectantly.

“Look at your man Y/n, so demanding. He won’t even ask politely for me to give him his phone back.” Ronnie said, turning the camera to show Sam’s pouting face.

“Oh yeah, he looks so demanding.” Y/n said, laughing mildly at the look on his face.

“Can I please get my phone back so that I can talk to my girlfriend alone?” Sam asked, making a little grabby motion with his hand.

“Alone you say? I don't know, how do you think mom would feel?” Ronnie teased, handing his phone back.

Sam made a mocking sound as he took the phone.

“Bye Y/n!” Ronnie and Jake yelled as Sam walked into his bedroom.

“It’s nice to know that they like me more than they like you.” Y/n said, trying her best to keep a straight face.

Sam shot a glare at his phone, making Y/n laugh.

“I love you.” She said in the gaps between her laughter.

He couldn't hold the stern expression long, his face softening as he listened to her laughter.

“I love you too.”

Taglist:

@gretavanwinkle

@gvfrry

@theweightofstardust

@jakekiszkasgiggle @@alwayssotiredbutneverofyou @chalametpwk

@cowboysamkiszka @katie-gvf

@sammykiszkasunusedshoes @thehippieelement

@welightthefire

@h-e-l-l-o-s

@lucidliving1205

@kaylal15

@miidnightcarlights @gretavanfleetwoodmacncheese

@gretavanhoney

@dannythedog @oopslashes @obetrolncocktails @samsdirtyfeet @godblessmarywanna @joshkiszkastea

@prettyxvenomx @basically-hayley @j3rboa

@fictional-duchess

#sam kiszka #sam kiszka x reader #sam kiszka imagine #sammy gvf #greta van fleet #greta van fleet imagine

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geekgirles · 3 years

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Your Heart

Chapter 4 -- Stalemate Word Count: 8284

READ ON AO3

Waking up to the sound of her parents’ latest invention going awry was something she was sure she was never going to get used to. Never mind that she’d have an entire life to get accustomed to it or her newfound respect for what her family did for a living.

As disciplined as Jasmine Fenton was, being awakened by an explosion was never going to be anything but annoying.

Sighing resignedly, Jazz yanked her covers aside and got up, ready to start a new day. After showering and getting dressed with a long-sleeved, white dress shirt, a black ribbon tied tightly around its collar; a matching black, a-line skirt over thin grey tights; a teal blazer over her shirt, and brown ankle boots (which went well with her brown leather shoulder bag); she first made her way down the stairs to her parents’ lab.

Absent-mindedly combing her pixie cut with her fingersーa decision she made after 18 years of rushed haircuts due to having been covered in some sort of unknown ectoplasmic goo after an invention explodedー, Jazz cut straight to the chase. “Let me guess, your latest invention just ‘malfunctioned’”, she air-quoted.

As she expected, Jack and Maddie were hunched over a metallic device that had definitely seen better days, if the smoke coming off of it was any indication...What she wasn’t expecting though, although she should have, was her dad’s answer. “Actually, that was just the Fenton Toaster. We were about to start the day with a healthy, ghost-kicking breakfast, when she failed on us.” Had she been sixteen again or literally any other person in the world, Jazz might’ve actually been taken aback by the fact that her dad was tearing up over a toaster. Then again, she was Jazz Fenton and this sort of thing from her dad was as common as him yelling obscenities about ghosts. “Oh, dear friend. We hardly knew ye!”

Rolling her eyes at his dad’s antics while her mum patted his shoulder in an effort to comfort him, Jazz muttered, “Dad, that toaster’s almost as old as Danny…” Who, by the way, was going to be ecstatic to learn the dreaded toast-drying machine from Hell had finally been vanquished.

Speaking of her little brother, “Where’s Danny, anyway?”

Again, to any other family in the USA but the Fentons, that question would have seemed stupid. Danny was a college student who lived at his university’s dorms with his best friend, so the chances of him being around his childhood home during the school year were pretty slim. And, again, they were the Fentons, and her little brother had been going back and forth from his dorm, to Fenton Works, to the Ghost Zone (not like their parents knew, or even needed to know, about that one…) since he first got into APU.

Maddie left her weeping husband’s side to pick a wrench up and start working on the toaster again ーpoor Danny; it seemed the evil, toast-drying machine from Hell was harder to get rid of than Vlad. “Sorry, sweetie. You missed him while you were doing your research. Your brother was here yesterday; he said he came Sunday night because he couldn’t find his dorms’ keys. But he’s back at college now.”

She suddenly stopped tinkering with the busted toaster’s inner workings, taking off her goggles from her face, a pensive expression plastered on her face. “Hm...I know Danny’s always been a little distracted, but he keeps losing his keys. At this rate he’s going to end up sleeping on the street just because he can’t get inside his own home!”

Recovering from his temporary loss of composure over the Fenton Toaster ー“I love you, guys, but it’s a miracle this family hasn’t been studied by professional psychiatrics already. Not like I didn’t give it my best shot…”, Jazz thought to herselfー, Jack was soon standing right beside his wife, towering over the pile of scrap metal with a matching pensive expression of his own.

That couldn’t be good.

“Now that you mention it, sweetcakes,” he said, “you’re right. Danny’s always losing stuff!”

“Right?” Maddie insisted. “Don’t you remember, back in his first year of high school, when his English teacher, Mr. Lancer, called you over because Danny’s pants kept falling several times just that week?”

“Uh...the memory’s a bit blurry, Hon, but I know what you mean.” In truth, Jack didn’t remember any of that. All he knew was that he suddenly found himself chaperoning a homecoming dance. If only there was a way to get your memories back like those keychains that you attached to your clothes… And then it hit him. “I know, Maddie! Why don’t we make one of those keychains that you attach to your clothes so you won’t lose them for Danny?”

His wife beamed at that. For all his scatterbrained-ness, Jack truly was a talented inventor with a creative mind. Just a fuzzy head. “Oh, that sounds marvelous, honey! I’m sure Danny will love that!” She exclaimed before quickly pecking him on the lips.

Unbeknownst to her parents, Jazz grimaced in worry at the idea. Back when she was sixteen, or any other day, really; she’d have been overjoyed at the idea of her ghost-hunting parents creating something that was absolutely non-ghost-related, but since said idea would make it more difficult for Danny to keep his secret from them...She was just glad she was in town to look over him. Trying to appear supportive rather than dismayed, Jazz chirped, “Yeah, great idea, Dad...What are you going to call it? The Fenton Keychain?”

“‘The Fenton Keychain?’” Jack parroted before scoffing. “Of course not, Jazzy-pants! I was thinking something more along the lines of, ‘The Fenton Fermoir’!” He announced, striking a dramatic pose.

The blue-eyed young woman started at that, taken aback. “Wait, ‘fermoir’? Isn’t that French?”

“Yes, it’s an adjective that means ‘that which closes.’”

Gaping at her dad, Jazz blinked. And blinked again. And blinked a third time for good luck. “...you know French?”

This time, it was her mother who answered her, laughing her question off. “Oh, yes. There’s more to us than just ghost-hunting, you know?” Then she and her husband laughed together at her own joke.

“Could’ve fooled me…” Jazz mumbled.

“What was that?”

“Nothing! Um...oh, right. So Danny’s not here today, huh?” Her parents shook their heads. “That’s a shame, I wanted to ask him how things were going with...um...with, you know, school and all that. Oh, well! I’m sure he’ll tell me some other time.”

Jack and Maddie exchanged a glance. Ever since Danny started going to high school, their kids often acted weird. At first, they blamed it on adolescence, making them want to make an identity for themselves outside of their parents’ influence but not knowing exactly who they truly were, either. But the fact that their eldest child was 23, their youngest 21, and they still acted like that sometimes was a bit concerning.

The wrench in her hand long forgotten, Maddie made her way to her daughter’s side. She draped an arm around her shoulders, not noticing that said arm was the one holding the aforementioned wrench and that she was unconsciously pointing at Jazz’s face with it. “Honey, is there something about Danny we should know about?”

Jazz panicked.

Yes.

Yes, there were so many things about Danny they should know about.

They should know their kid had gone through a terrible accident that changed his life forever at the tender age of fourteen. They should know he got ghost powers he spent agonising months trying to get control over. They should know he only ever wanted to protect innocents from ghosts and yet, he was labeled as a menace by the very same people he was trying to look after. They should know he’d not only been carrying the burden of being Amity Park’s unofficial protector since he was fourteen, but also became the king of an entire dimension and could count the people he could rely on with his hands. They should know he went through his very first serious heartbreak because the girl he liked hated his ghost half more than she liked him. They should know their college best friend was a fruitloop who wanted to kill Dad, take Mum from him, and either kill or adopt Danny; because, really, it all depended on the side of the bed Vlad woke up on.

They should know their only son was risking his life even more now because he’d made a deal with the Queen of the Witches of Amity Park who, judging by what Danny had told her, was the embodiment of a death sentence.

And he’d been carrying all those burdens and responsibilities, facing constant danger, making decisions not even full-fledged adults would find easy to make, and had been aimed at with ecto-blasters by his own parents since he was fourteen. Being Danny Phantom had stolen some of the best years of his life away from Danny Fenton.

And they had no idea of any of that.

But how could they, when Danny refused to tell them the truth?

Every time Danny faced a bigger threat than dealing with ghosts of the same caliber as the Box Ghost, Jazz tried convincing him to come clean to their parents. Because, what if they never saw him again after that battle? What would she tell them, then?

But Danny would not budge. And, Jazz remembered, she couldn’t blame him. With the entire town, barring a dedicated fan club, and a good chunk of the Ghost Zone against him, how could he risk losing one of the very few places he could call home? Just like she told him when he asked her why she never said anything about his secret, it was his secret. Only he could talk about it with Mum and Dad.

“Jazz, honey? Is everything alright?”

Her mother’s voice broke her out of her stupor. She must’ve spaced out for a while, for her parents were looking at her worriedly. Flushing sheepishly, she cleared her throat. “Yeah, I’m fine. Don’t worry. And don’t worry about Danny either. He just…” What was that excuse he told her he’d use if anyone started asking questions again? Oh, right. “He’s just busy working on a paper to help me with my own thesis, that’s all.”

Okay. So not only was it a lie, but it wasn’t exactly what Danny told her to say, either. Her little brother decided to respond saying he was suddenly very interested in the occult because he was writing a paper on a seminar he’d signed himself up for, but since she went back to Amity Park to study the witches there, it was still a good excuse.

Said excuse seemed to calm her parents down, before they fully registered her words and they seemed worried again. But, she knew, this time they were worried for her.

“Uh, Princess? Are you sure you want to focus that thesis of yours on...witches?” Jack asked warily, looking up from the remainers of the Fenton Toaster.

The redhead rolled her eyes in annoyance; there they went again. “Your father’s right, sweetie. While not necessarily a bad topic...erm...it’s not exactly the easiest one to research.” Her mother tried to discourage her gently. “For starters, most of the records we have are nothing but speculations and hearsay… I mean, the Salem witch trials were mostly based on unfounded accusations!”

How two of the world leading experts in ectology, who defended the existence of ghosts long before their theories were proven correct, could be so convinced there was no such thing as witches was beyond her. Arbitrary scepticism, much?

Jazz had to admit, she understood her family’s surprise when she opted to focus her thesis for her Cryptology class on the legendary women. A psychology undergraduate, a woman convinced of the infallible nature of the scientific method since birth, and an aspiring psychologist since she was sixteen, it was understandable that her decision to minor in Cryptology would come as a surprise to...well, everyone.

But protecting your half-ghost little brother from the shadows for the last seven years had a way of making you question everything you once thought you knew.

After all, if such a thing as ghosts weren’t only real but had an entire dimension for themselves, then who was to say such a thing as magic-wielding women couldn’t exist?

The moment Danny told her and Tucker he planned on asking them for help at the beginning of Fall only cemented her decision. It was a real pity Danny refused to disclose the supposed location of the Amity Park clan for her safety.

“Mum, Dad, I’ve told you already. It’s precisely because of all those myths that I want to study them. For all we know, all those potions that are always mentioned in folklore could just be really advanced medicine. Are we really going to turn our backs on the scientific community like that?”

“And that’s a great idea sweetie! But…” Maddie tried reasoning with her, but nothing came to mind. Awkwardly, she turned to her husband and whispered harshly, “Help me out here, will you?”

Jack didn’t need to be told twice. “What your mother’s trying to say, Jazz, is that, if there was evidence on the existence of witches, we’d already know. Don’t forget, your ancestor, John Fentonightingale, was a celebrated witch hunter during the time of the Salem trials. He was an admired and respected member of his village, but the only thing he ever did was send innocent people to be burned alive.

“When he eventually realised what he’d done, he spent the rest of his life lamenting his shortsightedness; rejecting the fame and glory his witch-hunting days had brought him. And even if he ultimately turned to ghost-huntingー”

“Goodbye, fame and respect.” Jazz mumbled.

“ーthe hole in his heart caused by his actions would never be filled again.” Jack finished his tale with a morose expression, hoping Jazz would understand what he was trying to say.

She didn’t. “Okay, that was a very moving story with a valuable lesson on the dangers of letting fear and paranoia overtake us. But what does it have to do with me?”

Still standing by her daughter’s side, Maddie tried comfortingly rubbing her arms with the hand that wasn’t holding the wrench. “We’re just trying to warn you not to jump to conclusions, because you might regret it.”

Okay, that was it. Her parents were in no position to warn her against jumping to conclusions; they lost that right the day she finally understood they’d been unknowingly talking about ripping their own son apart ‘molecule by molecule’ ーright in front of him. Jerking away from her mother’s touch, she put her hands on her hips as she sent them her most meaningful look.

“For the last time! I’m not going to try and, I don’t know, rally up the entire town against the witches! I just want to study them. You know, learn about their culture, about the origins of their abilities, about the differences between fact and fiction...” she shot them a pointed look as she stressed that last part. “I just want to understand them!”

“But you don’t even know if they exist!” Jack protested as she made it to the stairs.

Hearing her dad’s comment, she turned to face them once more. Oh, she knew they existed alright, that much Danny had been able to clue her in. What she didn’t know was where to find them. But she couldn’t tell them that. “Well, that certainly didn’t stop you from building a ghost portal to another dimension you weren’t even sure existed! And it sure as Heck won’t stop me!”

That last comment should be enough to get her parents off her back for at least a couple of days. But the conversation had put her in a bad mood, something that didn’t happen since she learned to appreciate her parents’ ghost-hunting abilities, or, when it was Danny who was being pursued by them, their lack thereof. Stomping out of the house and slamming the door closed behind her, Jazz angrily made her way to the usual starting point of her quest.

The Amity Park Public Library.

The large granite building was supposed to be completely white, but the decades since it was built had washed out the stones, making them look grey-ish instead. The several steps leading up to the entrance were flanked by two lead lion statues resting atop a block of stone each. The front of the building, on the other hand, was both decorated and supported by numerous columns, with two of them at either side of the wooden door.

Despite the impressive sight, what truly mattered lay behind its doors. Walking inside, Jazz let herself be washed over by the smell of ink and paper so characteristic of the library. Wherever she looked, hundreds of books stood proudly on their shelves, some of them so high up that the only way to reach them was with the help of stairs.

Scattered around the library were several tables and plastic chairs where the visitors could sit to read their latest acquisition or work on the projects that brought them to the library in the first place.

Breathing the scent in, Jazz walked over to the little counter located right at the entrance of the library, where the librarian would usually be working on her computer. Whenever she wasn’t out and about organising books, that is.

Jazz waved at her with a smile. After coming to the library to study for years, she was basically a regular by now. “Good morning, Wilhelmina!” Wincing at her unintentional high-pitched tone, she lowered her voice to barely a whisper. “How’s everything around here?”

Looking up from her computer, the pudgy woman smiled knowingly at Jazz before willing her chair to get closer to her. “Good morning, Jasmine. It’s been so long since I last saw you; when was it again, two days ago?” Wilhelmina joked as she leaned in closer to the redhead, intertwining her fingers as her elbows rested on her desk.

Jazz flushed slightly at the harmless jab. “What can I say? You won’t get rid of me so easily!”

“Don’t I know it…” There was something odd about the way the librarian said those words, but the redhead decided to let it go. It was probably nothing, either way.

“I wanted to ask you if you could recommend a book onー?”

“On witches?” The auburn-haired lady finished for her. Seeing the young woman’s embarrassed hint of red on her cheeks, she chuckled. “Oh, don’t be so surprised, my dear. You’ve been asking for the same thing for almost a month now! It’s just nice seeing someone retain some sort of interest for this old place and its books. Nowadays, most people just come here to surf the net for free.”

“Well, you won’t have to worry about me for a while, then! So, the books?”

Leaning back on her chair, Wilhelmina pointed to a faraway aisle. “Try the History section. I’m sure there’ll be a journal or something to help you with your paper.”

Jazz flashed her a charming grin, “Thanks, Wilhelmina. You’re the best!” As she turned her back on the librarian, Jazz failed to notice the dark grin that made its way to her face.

Once Jazz was out of earshot, Wilhelmina said, “Oh, you have no idea,” the twisted expression never leaving her face.

As she walked around the library’s endless halls, Jazz couldn’t help but be grateful for having Wilhelmina as the librarian. Any other person would have looked at her like she was crazy or a Satanist murderer in the making for researching the occult so much, but never Wilhelmina. The woman just smiled at her and tried helping her to the best of her abilities. If Jazz had been looking for information entirely on her own, she’d have stuck to a particular section of the library, but Wilhelmina was always recommending a broader search. And, Jazz couldn’t help but think, it was a smart choice. One never knew what they could find or learn if they listened to different experiences other than their own.

Standing in front of the shelf where the history books were, the aqua-eyed woman began scanning for something that might help her clear up the fog surrounding the group of witches Danny might be facing from now on. If she could just find out where their hideout was supposed to be… Not only would she be able to study them, but she might even convince them to ally themselves with her brother for good!

Ever since she was a teenager and found out about her brother’s secret, Jazz was determined to focus her thesis on the effects such circumstances could have on him. But as time went by, she came to understand that would be impossible. Writing a thesis on Danny’s very unique circumstances would be akin to exposing him, and she couldn’t do that to him.

Because he trusted her.

Danny’s number of enemies increased tenfold by the day, while his allies followed a much more stagnant rhythm. Goodness, he couldn’t even get his girlfriend to give up ghost hunting for him! She and Tucker were the only two people in all of Amity Park he could rely on.

And there was no way she’d ever betray that trust.

Which, sure, was a very meaningful proof of the love and bond between them, but still left Jazz without a topic for her thesis. So when Danny revealed his discoveries on the existence of witches, of all things, she was ecstatic.

The possibility of a magical species living in Amity Park was perfect on many levels. On the one hand, it would expand their knowledge of the paranormal, with the added bonus of finding potential alternatives for everyday problems. And on the other, it gave her the perfect excuse to stay close to Danny and make sure he was safe. With her in town, he wouldn’t have to make up excuses as to why he slept in Fenton Works when he already had a perfectly nice place to stay at APU. All he had to do was phase through her room to get to his.

And, most importantly, that way he had somebody else he could talk to about his double life. He was going to need it if he’d indeed managed to establish a truce between the spellbinding women and ghosts. From what he’d told them, those sorceresses were vile.

As she walked over a nearby table carrying a pile of books with both hands, Jazz couldn’t help but wonder how her little brother would handle the situation.

.............

Danny was not handling the situation well.

Although, it wasn’t necessarily his fault. Lady Arcana’s own unwillingness to cooperate was a key factor in their stalemate.

Even if they addressed each other formally and obvious jabs directed at their respective species were, thankfully, non-existent, the coldness between them that reigned during their first face-to-face interaction was now stronger than ever.

Just like the last time, he’d sent Skulker to escort the queen and her entourageーwhich still consisted of the same two witches; talk about confidence…ー through the Ghost Zone up until they arrived at his lair’s throne room. They still pretended they were both honoured to be in each other’s presence even though Danny was sure the Witch Queen wished she could just spit at him as much as he did.

And knowing Desiree, if she were near to grant her wish, a cascade of spit would rain down on him.

This time, however, Danny had ventured deeper inside his lair, with the witches close behind him. Figuring discussing over inter-dimensional safety in the middle of his throne room would be unwise, since one never knew who could be watching, he led his guests to the Council Room; where the Observants, Clockwork, and heーand occasionally Frostbite or any other ghost with a modicum of authorityーgathered to discuss political affairs regarding the Infinite Realms.

Admittedly, he wanted to slap himself for not thinking about it sooner.

Another thing that was different and he had failed to point out earlier was that, technically, the witches weren’t alone. No, there was nobody else besides the queen and her two...guards? ーcould he even call them guards?ー but they weren’t alone per se, either.

The bespectacled, strawberry blonde one had a pet owl perched on her shoulder. The bird, Danny had to admit, was beautiful. Its plumage was predominantly white and cream. The white feathers were more noticeable in its belly and heart-shaped face, with most of its body and the top of its head looking rather creamy. The owl’s black orbs seemed not only capable of seeing in the dark, but also deep inside your soul.

In other words, the girl’s pet was pretty, but creepy. And he had a feeling that would be a stable of these women.

The Asian teenager seemed to prefer reptiles, and, yes, he based his hypothesis entirely on the fact that the girl had a bearded dragon around her neck as if she was wearing a scarf. Danny couldn’t tell what was creepier; the lizard’s naturally spiky, scale-covered body and its little tongue licking its eyeball, or the way the witch scratched her pet’s chin and cooed at it when she thought nobody was paying attention to her.

“Well, it could be worse. She could buy herself a cat and name it after a married woman who will never love her back.” Danny had to physically restrain himself from shuddering at the thought.

But the weirdest thing, of course, had to be Lady Arcana’s own companion. Which, again, he was sure was going to be a stable between them. At first he didn't even see her carrying anything, her form obscured by her cloak, but the moment they entered the Council Room ーalone; Lady Arcana had stationed her witches to guard the doors, just as he did the same with two of Walker’s goonsーand she made herself comfortable (or as comfortable as she’d ever be in enemy territory), he spotted it.

Had she really brought a potted plant with her all the way from the portal to his lair? And, now that he took a closer look, was that a carnivorous plant?

Scratch whatever he said about the teenager and her lizard. The way the plant nuzzled her face or wrapped itself around her forearm as she gently stroked its stem was ten times creepier. Although, a part of him couldn’t help but think she and Undergrowth would get along swimmingly.

Two plant-loving psychos bonding with each other. Talk about a meet cute.

But never mind their questionable taste for pets. They’d been discussing for over an hour and they were still at the starting point. Time was money and this woman was going to make him go bankrupt if they kept going like this.

“Your Majesty, I understand the situation is quite...extraordinary, but I’m afraid we are still in need of a solution.” He tried for the umpteenth time that hour.

The woman before him just sniffed in displeasure. It was a good thing they were separated by a rather large, rectangular table, otherwise, he might have leaned forward and wrung her little neck out of sheer exasperation. “I am perfectly aware of the situation, King Phantom. But, as I have informed you already, there is not much I can do if I do not know the cause of the portals opening.”

But that was precisely why he needed her help! Getting frustrated, Danny let out through gritted teeth, “Which I believe is precisely the reason why I need you here in the first place, my Lady. You are supposed to be able to discover the reason behind it.”

“Well, supposedly, these portals are a natural occurrence of the Ghost Zone. How is it possible that you do not know how to take care of the problem on your own?” She countered, matter-of-factly, and Danny would have given about anything to get her to shut up and do something useful instead.

“Supposedly,” he echoed, “your people have the natural ability to surpass the laws that separate the Infinite Realms and Earth from each other, and hence, youーshouldーknowーhowーtoーcounterーit!” His voice raising in volume as he spoke, he made sure to punctuate that last part for emphasis.

Narrowing her violet eyes at him in disdainーhow could he have ever thought they were beautiful?!ー, Lady Arcana spat. “Supposedly, that bond was tattered after your kind’s betrayal.”

If it weren’t for the audacity of her statement, he would’ve recoiled at the gravity and resentment etched into her words. Narrowing his own eyes at her, he leaned forward. “Trust me, your Majesty, you would be wise to keep your mouth shut; you are in no position to talk about betrayals.”

As her scowl deepened, teeth borne at him in anger, a low growl could be heard emanating from her throat. But Danny was not going to be intimidated that easily. Returning the intensity of her gaze, the two kept eye contact, initiating a staring contest born from frustration and distrust.

Eventually, the Witch Queen averted her eyes, crossing her eyes in a huff as she leaned back on her chair. Her little plant reacted to her turmoil, for it hopped over to her ーwait, it hopped?!ーto get her attention. Noticing her weird-ass pet near her, the witch began to absent-mindedly caress its little, purple...head?

He was never eating a salad again in his life; he ought to let Tucker know he’d decided to join him in his carnivorous ways.

Leaning back against his own chair, Danny pinched the bridge of his nose, exhausted. They’d been at it for more than an hour and, rather than discuss a possible solution, all they’d done was argue. Sighing through his nose, he called out to her, an idea forming in his mind, “Hey.”

Taken aback by his sudden drop of formality, Sam looked over at him with a guarded expression. What was he up to? Rather than answering, she raised an interested eyebrow as a sign to go on.

Danny took that raised eyebrow and her silence as permission to continue. “How about we drop the honorifics and formality for a while, huh? I don’t know about you, but I’m a rather laid-back person and having to address someone as if I was meeting the Queen of England tends to stress me out. And that by extension makes me much more prone to get defensive.”

Sam bit back her reply that she was, in fact, as much of a queen as the Queen of England, and that he should treat her as such.

“And let’s be real; getting defensive with each other is going to get us nowhere, don’t you agree? Besides, I’m already stressed out as it is due to a matter regarding a black hole forming, so I bet I’m not the most agreeable guy to be around right now.”

“No, you aren’t”, Sam was actually surprised Phantom shared her beliefs about formality and social distance. But that didn’t mean she was going to lower her guard around him. And his last words took her completely by surprise. “...did you just say ‘black hole’?”

“That’s not something you should concern yourself with.” He dismissed the question immediately.

Squinting her lavender eyes at him, her suspicions of any ulterior motives never quite going away, Sam gave in. “What are you getting at?”

At least she was listening to him. He was willing to count that as progress. Danny raised his palms up in mock surrender. “I’m just saying, we don’t know for how long we’re gonna have to work together. So how about we’re at least casual with each other? Because, I don’t know about you, but all this higher register of speech is giving me a headache.”

As if to prove his point, Danny rose up in the air until he was comfortably floating about three feet high. As he leaned back, his arms crossed behind his head and one leg over the other, nothing would’ve wiped the smug look on his face as he looked down on the Queen of the Witches of Amity Park, her own jaw hanging low in awe.

Noticing the smugness radiating off of him in waves, the raven-haired girl forced her jaw shut. No way in Hell was she going to give him the satisfaction of amazing her. Even if she wasn’t going to say it aloud, Sam concurred with his point. Straightening her back, head held up high, she made sure to bruise his ego the same way he almost bruised hers. “Fine. Let’s drop the honorifics, I was tired of pretending I have any respect for you, anyway.”

Danny frowned at that. “Hey!”

“What? Do you seriously expect me to believe I’m not in immediate danger of being attacked by a ghost just for the mere fact of invading their turf? That you and your people actually respect mine?” Her voice was laced with cynicism as she scoffed. “Yeah, right.”

As much as Danny would’ve loved to contradict her, he knew he couldn’t. After all, he hadn’t just sent Skulker to escort them in fear they might get lost, the possibility of them being ambushed by vengeful ghosts was very real.

The raven-haired girl smiled triumphantly, knowing she had him right where she wanted him. “If it’s any consolation, if any of you so much as tried stepping foot, or ghostly tail, or whatever, into our territory, not a single one of us would hesitate to exorcise the Hell outta you.” Motioning to the door with her head, she added. “Susan in particular would have a blast.”

“Susan?”

“The teenager with the bearded dragon; Count Scalynton”

“‘Count Scalynton’?” Danny echoed in disbelief, before having to stifle a laugh with his gloved hand. Seeing the Witch Queen’s unamused stare, however, he sobered up. “And...uh...what about...the owl?”

“That’s Spooky.” Lady Arcana replied with a shrug of her shoulders.

“And your little friend?” He asked hesitantly, pointing at the potted plant comfortably perched on its owner’s lap, but making sure his finger didn’t get too close; in fear of getting it bitten off.

“Oh, this little guy?” Sam looked down at DeMilo with a fond smile. “His name’s DeMilo.”

“...are you serious?”

“You got a problem with that?”

“No! No, no. Of course not! DeMilo is...uh, a great name.” He quickly assured her, sheepishly. The last thing he needed was to invoke her wrath, again. Clearing his throat, Danny decided it’d be best to change topics. “So...No honorifics?”

“No honorifics.” Lady Arcana nodded from her chair.

“Right. So, instead of ‘your Majesty’, ‘my Lord’, or ‘King Phantom’, you can just call me ‘Phantom’ and Iー”

“You can just call me ‘Lady Arcana.’” The Witch Queen cut him off with a tone that left no room for discussion.

The white-haired young man slouched slightly at that. Just when he thought they were making progress, she closed herself off completely all over again. But he couldn’t afford displeasing her further, so he’d have to play by her rules...For now. “Right. Got it. So...about those portals?”

As he asked that, Phantom leaned forward to her, changing his position mid-air so his torso was facing now upside down but his head remained straight. As the Ghost King lowered his body so his forearms were atop the wooden table, an intrigued gaze directed at her, Sam deposited DeMilo on the table, her own hands resting on it. Locking eyes, they had each other’s undivided attention.

Understanding they were back to business, Sam sighed tiredly. “I wasn’t lying when I said I need to know the cause behind the portals’ strange behaviour. If this is something that can be solved through magic, then it is imperative that we know what’s causing it to figure out the best course of action to take. The wrong spell could lead to disastrous consequences.”

“Like?” Phantom raised an inquisitive eyebrow.

“Like sending the world to another dimension instead of closing a portal between dimensions.”

“I guess that makes sense. So how do we figure out the cause?”

“I can start by looking through this.” Sam offered as she, seemingly, got a book out of nowhere, Phantom’s eyes widening at the sight. The reddish-brown leathered book was the same one she used to open the portals to the Ghost Zone, which made it their safest bet for finding a solution. After all, if the book guarded almost forgotten knowledge on how to open inter-dimensional drifts, then it should have the answers to more mysteries, right?

...............

Outside the Council Room, on each side of the door, Stephanie and Susan were patiently waiting for their queen. Well, “patiently waiting” might have been an exaggeration. Stephanie was stiff as a board, while Susan looked like a furious guard dog, the murder in her eyes only cemented the picture.

Both witches’ emotional state could only be attributed to one thing.

Ghosts.

Or, to be more precise, the two police-dressed, green spirits they were forced to stand guard alongside because the Ghost King wasn’t about to be caught dead (pun not-intended) with three witches and no back-up.

As much as she hated it, Susan had to give the spook credit: he wasn’t nearly as stupid as she thought.

The teenager kept stroking the length of Count Scalynton’s body, currently sprawled alongside her arm, as she pondered different ways to escape the Ghost King’s lair and his ectoplasmic, door-floating, bloodcurdling realm in case things went awry.

Beside her, Stephanie was lovingly scratching Spooky’s beak in an attempt to calm herself down. Looking over at the ghost-guard assigned to her, she squeaked and promptly looked away when the spectre, having felt her gaze on him, landed his blood-red, pupiless eyes on her. Gulping loudly, she whispered to Susan. “Do you think her Majesty will be frequently meeting Phantom from now on?”

Susan whispered back with a sneer. “I hope not! Miss Wilhelmina was right when she warned me against these putrid, soulless drones. We can’t lower our guards, especially not now that the queen needs us.”

Discreetly pointing with her head, the Asian girl guided her partner’s gaze to her hips. Lifting her red hoodie almost unnoticeably, the strawberry blonde’s eyes widened at the sight; two crossed, leather bandoliers were filled to the brims with an assemblage of jars containing colourful liquids. Stephanie’s jaw almost fell open in shock; the 17-year-old girl was armed to the teeth with potions!

Realising they weren’t alone and the dangers in their secret stash being found out, Stephanie tried to appear nonchalant. Pretending to be talking in general, she added. “I just hope her Majesty is safe.”

Susan gave her a wry smile. “Oh, trust me. Her Majesty will be fine even without our help.”

...............

As she skimmed the pages of the spellbook in search of more information on the portals, Sam kept looking over at Phantom, praying he hadn’t noticed anything unusual.

As satisfying as it’d been seeing his bewildered face when she suddenly pulled the book off seemingly out of nowhere, the truth was she’d been carrying it with her under her skirt. But what she worried about was not him finding out about the book, but the other items her dress hid from plain sight.

Strapped around her thigh was a black holster filled with potions. Unlike the arsenal Sam knew Susan had brought with her, which consisted of several offensive and highly corrosive concoctions, the queen’s own collection consisted mostly of Blinding Bombs. As the name indicated, it was a type of potion whose main purpose was to distract the opponent long enough to retreat or come up with a plan. If things went south, all Sam had to do was smash the jar against the ground and cover her eyes, for a small explosion of light would ensue and temporarily blind the spirits, giving her and her girls enough time to escape.

As she leafed through the spellbook’s pages, she suddenly shivered, noticing a cold presence by her side sending shivers down her spine. What was even odder was the sudden smell of something she couldn’t quite put her finger on. Dumbfounded, she turned her face to the side and growled at the sight. Snapping the book closed and bringing it close to her chest, she snarled at Phantom. “What do you think you’re doing?”

Taken aback by her sudden movements, Danny blinked. “Um, trying to help you?”

He had to be kidding her. “Come again?”

“I...uh...I just thought I could help you look for answers.” He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “So I was trying to see if I could find anything useful in that book of yours.”

Oh, he definitely had to be kidding her. “No, thank you.” She turned him down, only thanking him out of politeness. She turned back to the book. “You’ll only drag us down, anyway.”

Danny was starting to get really frustrated with that all-knowing, condescending attitude of hers. Even his sister wasn’t as annoying despite her know-it-all tendencies. Hell, Skulker was easier to work with! Standing up in mid-air, using his leverage to stare her downーliterallyーhe folded his arms in front of his chest. “And how, pray tell, am I going to drag us down?”

He was surprised by the witch’s next action. Huffing loudly, she got up from her chair and shoved the book in his face quicker than he could blink. At first he had trouble registering what just happened (mostly because he was levitating a good three feet above her and she was still safely on the ground) until he took notice of the sparkly, purple mist surrounding theーfloatingーspellbook. He blinked in awe; so that’s how her magic looked like. Once the initial surprise had worn off, however, Danny had to admit, he was a little disappointed; he’d expected more than a floating book.

Looking over the tome, he saw Lady Arcana staring intently at him. Instead of anger as he expected, however, an amused, knowing expression adorned her features. He might’ve thought she looked pretty hadn’t it been for the wickedness of her smile.

“Read.” She instructed him.

Danny did as he was told...only to furrow his brow in confusion. What the…? Reading over the pages he couldn’t make sense of anything written on them. The inked markings splattered all over couldn’t even be considered hieroglyphics! Squinting at the offending piece of paper, he tried reading aloud. “Spiral...lightning bolt...spork?...What kind of sick mind came up with this?!”

Sam let out a hollow laugh. “You really think that if you were really able to read this book in the first place all by yourself, you’d even need to call for me?” She rolled her eyes at him, not knowing what to think; either this guy was messing with her head or he was an idiot. She motioned with her hand for the book to return to her “Limit yourself to keeping your subjects in line and let me handle this. Although, on second thought, I might actually be asking way too much of you.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” The green-eyed ghost didn’t like where this was going.

Still reading, Lady Arcana raised her palms up in mock surrender. “I’m just saying, for a ghost that’s supposed to be the undisputable ruler of an entire race after having defeated a tyrant, you sure have a lot of detractors defying your authority.”

“Oh, please! Like you know anything about my subjects or any possible detractors.” Was it true he was often fending off ghosts who didn’t care for his laws to stay clear of Amity Park? Saying he didn’t occasionally get his ass handed to him would be like saying his parents took kindly to people who disrespect their jumpsuits, but he didn’t have to tell her that.

“I know more than enough.” Sam countered.

“Oh, yeah? Name one ghost who doesn’t respect my rule and still causes trouble.” The halfa challenged. What was he trying to get out of this? At least ¾ of his enemies screamed their names and evil plots whenever they were freed from the Ghost Zone! In Ember’s case, she literally depended on people knowing and chanting her name.

“That poacher ghost of yours...what’s his name?”

A poacher ghost? Who the fuck was she talking aboー? “You mean Skulker?”

Sam perked up at that. “Yes, that one! He so obviously doesn’t respect your authority. I mean, he literally hunts you, the Ghost King, for sport almost every two weeks!”

An undignified sound escaped the halfa’s throat, but that was the last of his concerns at the moment. “Okay, first of all,” he started, raising one gloved finger, “he so totally respects my authority. Whenever I need help, he’s always willing to put the whole hunting-the-most-unique-specimen-ever aside for the greater good. And second,” he sent her a pointed look, floating closer to her. He revelled in the way she uncomfortably shrunk away from him; served her right, “Skulker’s not a poacher, he’s a hunter!”

“Does he have a permit or a hunting license?” Lady Arcana asked, not missing a beat.

That actually gave him pause. “Well...no, butー!”

“If a hunter hunts with no permit, then he’s a poacher!” Seriously, how dense could this dude be?

“You seem to be forgetting that Skulker is a resident of the Ghost Zone; my domain. Whatever laws are followed on Earth or among your kind, do not necessarily apply to us.”

“That outta shut her up,” he thought triumphantly.

“So you’re saying you’re okay with innocent creatures dying solely for the purpose of flattering one ghost’s ego?”

Well, apparently not. Danny spluttered at that. Who was this woman anyway, Jane Goodall?! “Whaー? No, of course not!” He vehemently denied before changing topics. This woman was about to get a taste of her own medicine. “But what’s with all these pointing fingers anyway?! I bet some of your ‘loyal’ witches also commit their own atrocities right under your nose.”

Oh, she was going to blast him into next Thursday for that! Standing up from her chair, Sam slammed her hands against the table (careful not to hurt or startle DeMilo, though). “For your information,” she snarled at the ghost before her, “the only huntress in my clan is Diana. And not only is she formidable, sheーalsoーhasーaーpermit!”

Fed up with the ridiculous conversation and the even more ridiculous woman, Danny slammed his own hands down on the table, even if he was floating. “Again with the permit! What’s with you and permits?! What are you, a cop?!”

“I’m a queen!” Sam all but roared. “So, yes, it is my job to ensure certain jobs are only trusted to people with permits!”

Danny was about to continue ranting, but he stopped himself. All this pointless fighting was only making them waste time, and they couldn’t afford that. He didn’t understand how she wasn’t already exhausted from all the arguing. Rubbing his face with his hands, he let himself fall back on his chair. “Let’s...let’s just keep on investigating. Forget I said anything.”

Sam was about to retort when she took notice of the white-haired ghost’s tired eyes, her own fatigue finally kicking in. Slumping her shoulders as she, too, fell back on her chair once again, she continued reading. “Yeah, sure. That’ll be for the best.”

They stayed in silence for a while after that. Lady Arcana reading intently, and Danny praying to all things above him that he’d be able to survive the day. Eventually, the Witch Queen broke the silence, slamming her book shut. His head snapping up at the sound, Danny dared to hope. “Any luck?”

The queen sighed. “I have good news and bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?”

His heart sank. “The bad news,” he moaned pitifully.

“Bad news is, there’s nothing in this book about what could possibly be causing the Ghost Zone to create more portals than usual. The most it has is the spell I use to get here, but that’s about it.”

Danny was convinced his heart was now lost somewhere along his knees. “And the good news?”

“This isn’t the only book that might have information on the Ghost Zone. When our people parted ways for good after you-know-what,” the look of resentment was back on her face and Danny didn’t know what to do; he should be the one feeling offended! “most of our knowledge was forgotten, but not lost.”

“Meaning?” He prompted her to finish her statement.

“Meaning, there’s still probably many more books on the topic.” She finished.

“Which means…” Danny began, only for the two of them to groan in dismay. As nice as it was that not everything was lost just because that particular book didn’t have the answers, having to look for another spellbook or grimoire meant they would have to keep meeting with each other. For Lady Arcana would never leave a precious heirloom belonging to her people out of her sight and in the Ghost Zone, and Danny couldn’t afford to take his eyes off of her in case she and her kind double-crossed them.

In other words, they were stuck with each other until further notice...He was starting to regret not being fully killed by the accident the day he got his powers.

#danny phantom #dp #dp fic #my fic #your heart #danny fenton #sam manson #jazz fenton #jack fenton #maddie fenton #oc #Amethyst Ocean #ghost king au #witch queen au #ghost king! danny #witch queen! sam #enemies to friends to lovers

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mostlysignssomeportents · 4 years

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Why I won't buy an Ipad: ten years later

Ten years ago, Apple released the Ipad. I was in a hotel room in Seattle, jetlagged and awake at 4AM while my wife and daughter slept.

I had been thinking about Apple's impending Ipad release and what a reversal it meant for everything I loved about tech: taking away your right to decide whose code you'd run -- even your right to change the battery! I wrote about my feelings and many people read it. It even rated a mention in Walter Isaacson's biography of Steve Jobs.

A decade later, the Ipad is ten years old and Apple has killed 20 state Right to Repair bills, in part to lock out third parties who might change you batteries for you.

I just reread that piece, and I still stand by it.

Why I won't buy an iPad (and think you shouldn't, either)

I've spent ten years now on Boing Boing, finding cool things that people have done and made and writing about them. Most of the really exciting stuff hasn't come from big corporations with enormous budgets, it's come from experimentalist amateurs. These people were able to make stuff and put it in the public's eye and even sell it without having to submit to the whims of a single company that had declared itself gatekeeper for your phone and other personal technology.

Danny O'Brien does a very good job of explaining why I'm completely uninterested in buying an iPad -- it really feels like the second coming of the CD-ROM "revolution" in which "content" people proclaimed that they were going to remake media by producing expensive (to make and to buy) products. I was a CD-ROM programmer at the start of my tech career, and I felt that excitement, too, and lived through it to see how wrong I was, how open platforms and experimental amateurs would eventually beat out the spendy, slick pros.

I remember the early days of the web -- and the last days of CD ROM -- when there was this mainstream consensus that the web and PCs were too durned geeky and difficult and unpredictable for "my mom" (it's amazing how many tech people have an incredibly low opinion of their mothers). If I had a share of AOL for every time someone told me that the web would die because AOL was so easy and the web was full of garbage, I'd have a lot of AOL shares.

And they wouldn't be worth much.

Incumbents made bad revolutionaries Relying on incumbents to produce your revolutions is not a good strategy. They're apt to take all the stuff that makes their products great and try to use technology to charge you extra for it, or prohibit it altogether.

I mean, look at that Marvel app (just look at it). I was a comic-book kid, and I'm a comic-book grownup, and the thing that made comics for me was sharing them. If there was ever a medium that relied on kids swapping their purchases around to build an audience, it was comics. And the used market for comics! It was -- and is -- huge, and vital. I can't even count how many times I've gone spelunking in the used comic-bins at a great and musty store to find back issues that I'd missed, or sample new titles on the cheap. (It's part of a multigenerational tradition in my family -- my mom's father used to take her and her sibs down to Dragon Lady Comics on Queen Street in Toronto every weekend to swap their old comics for credit and get new ones).

So what does Marvel do to "enhance" its comics? They take away the right to give, sell or loan your comics. What an improvement. Way to take the joyous, marvellous sharing and bonding experience of comic reading and turn it into a passive, lonely undertaking that isolates, rather than unites. Nice one, Misney.

Infantalizing hardware Then there's the device itself: clearly there's a lot of thoughtfulness and smarts that went into the design. But there's also a palpable contempt for the owner. I believe -- really believe -- in the stirring words of the Maker Manifesto: if you can't open it, you don't own it. Screws not glue. The original Apple ][+ came with schematics for the circuit boards, and birthed a generation of hardware and software hackers who upended the world for the better. If you wanted your kid to grow up to be a confident, entrepreneurial, and firmly in the camp that believes that you should forever be rearranging the world to make it better, you bought her an Apple ][+.

But with the iPad, it seems like Apple's model customer is that same stupid stereotype of a technophobic, timid, scatterbrained mother as appears in a billion renditions of "that's too complicated for my mom" (listen to the pundits extol the virtues of the iPad and time how long it takes for them to explain that here, finally, is something that isn't too complicated for their poor old mothers).

The model of interaction with the iPad is to be a "consumer," what William Gibson memorably described as "something the size of a baby hippo, the color of a week-old boiled potato, that lives by itself, in the dark, in a double-wide on the outskirts of Topeka. It's covered with eyes and it sweats constantly. The sweat runs into those eyes and makes them sting. It has no mouth... no genitals, and can only express its mute extremes of murderous rage and infantile desire by changing the channels on a universal remote."

The way you improve your iPad isn't to figure out how it works and making it better. The way you improve the iPad is to buy iApps. Buying an iPad for your kids isn't a means of jump-starting the realization that the world is yours to take apart and reassemble; it's a way of telling your offspring that even changing the batteries is something you have to leave to the professionals.

Dale Dougherty's piece on Hypercard and its influence on a generation of young hackers is a must-read on this. I got my start as a Hypercard programmer, and it was Hypercard's gentle and intuitive introduction to the idea of remaking the world that made me consider a career in computers.

Wal-Martization of the software channel And let's look at the iStore. For a company whose CEO professes a hatred of DRM, Apple sure has made DRM its alpha and omega. Having gotten into business with the two industries that most believe that you shouldn't be able to modify your hardware, load your own software on it, write software for it, override instructions given to it by the mothership (the entertainment industry and the phone companies), Apple has defined its business around these principles. It uses DRM to control what can run on your devices, which means that Apple's customers can't take their "iContent" with them to competing devices, and Apple developers can't sell on their own terms.

The iStore lock-in doesn't make life better for Apple's customers or Apple's developers. As an adult, I want to be able to choose whose stuff I buy and whom I trust to evaluate that stuff. I don't want my universe of apps constrained to the stuff that the Cupertino Politburo decides to allow for its platform. And as a copyright holder and creator, I don't want a single, Wal-Mart-like channel that controls access to my audience and dictates what is and is not acceptable material for me to create. The last time I posted about this, we got a string of apologies for Apple's abusive contractual terms for developers, but the best one was, "Did you think that access to a platform where you can make a fortune would come without strings attached?" I read it in Don Corleone's voice and it sounded just right. Of course I believe in a market where competition can take place without bending my knee to a company that has erected a drawbridge between me and my customers!

Journalism is looking for a daddy figure I think that the press has been all over the iPad because Apple puts on a good show, and because everyone in journalism-land is looking for a daddy figure who'll promise them that their audience will go back to paying for their stuff. The reason people have stopped paying for a lot of "content" isn't just that they can get it for free, though: it's that they can get lots of competing stuff for free, too. The open platform has allowed for an explosion of new material, some of it rough-hewn, some of it slick as the pros, most of it targetted more narrowly than the old media ever managed. Rupert Murdoch can rattle his saber all he likes about taking his content out of Google, but I say do it, Rupert. We'll miss your fraction of a fraction of a fraction of a percent of the Web so little that we'll hardly notice it, and we'll have no trouble finding material to fill the void.

Just like the gadget press is full of devices that gadget bloggers need (and that no one else cares about), the mainstream press is full of stories that affirm the internal media consensus. Yesterday's empires do something sacred and vital and most of all grown up, and that other adults will eventually come along to move us all away from the kids' playground that is the wild web, with its amateur content and lack of proprietary channels where exclusive deals can be made. We'll move back into the walled gardens that best return shareholder value to the investors who haven't updated their portfolios since before eTrade came online.

But the real economics of iPad publishing tell a different story: even a stellar iPad sales performance isn't going to do much to stanch the bleeding from traditional publishing. Wishful thinking and a nostalgia for the good old days of lockdown won't bring customers back through the door.

Gadgets come and gadgets go Gadgets come and gadgets go. The iPad you buy today will be e-waste in a year or two (less, if you decide not to pay to have the battery changed for you). The real issue isn't the capabilities of the piece of plastic you unwrap today, but the technical and social infrastructure that accompanies it.

If you want to live in the creative universe where anyone with a cool idea can make it and give it to you to run on your hardware, the iPad isn't for you.

If you want to live in the fair world where you get to keep (or give away) the stuff you buy, the iPad isn't for you.

If you want to write code for a platform where the only thing that determines whether you're going to succeed with it is whether your audience loves it, the iPad isn't for you.

https://boingboing.net/2020/01/27/nascent-boulangism.html

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morlock-holmes · 5 years

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@flakmaniak

Timmy Turner and Finn aren’t from ensemble casts though, right? I mean, there are recurring other characters, but they’re The Main Character, with one or two nonhuman sidekicks along for the ride.

Well, yes, but that’s kind of my point, actually.

Maybe I’ll just try writing out that essay...

Early on in the run of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, series creator Lauren Faust wrote out a short article for Ms. Magazine laying out her goals and intentions for the show. I think it’s a very interesting article, so much that I kind of want to quote the whole thing, but one thing Faust said that really stuck with me was,

There are lots of different ways to be a girl. You can be sweet and shy, or bold and physical. You can be silly and friendly, or reserved and studious. You can be strong and hard working, or artistic and beautiful.

I think the show is quite successful at that, depicting many different kinds of people, er, pastel ponies, with different strengths, weaknesses, and interests without denigrating any of them.

Faust also talks about being mostly completely alienated by the girls shows of her youth, which is interesting to me because I was extremely into at least a couple of girls shows. As a little boy, I was obsessed with the My Little Pony cartoon, and then, later, Sailor Moon.

Around the late 70s and early 80s, kids shows in the US kind of bifurcated, with shows becoming very explicitly “for girls” and “for boys”. This was especially true during the 80s, and this division wasn’t just about whether you had angular, primary color robots or soft pastel horses, the characters and story structures were very different as well.

I liked the boys shows, but I also liked some of the girls shows, because they addressed feelings and ideas I had that just weren’t going to be addressed in the boys shows. I especially liked the original My Little Pony series.

Now, the 80s version of My Little Pony has a lot of flaws. Particularly, the animation is terrible even by the standards of the 80s and the voice acting can be grating. But rewatching it, I still see what I liked as a kid, which was that it paid a lot of attention to motives and feelings. Like, here are some of the motivations for villains in the show:

I remember when my villainous boss used to be nice, so maybe if I stay with her I can keep her from causing too much trouble and help her go back to how she was.

I was kidnapped by a weird monster and he’s threatened to hurt my loved ones if I don’t do his evil bidding.

I made a deal for fame and fortune with a genie and now I know he eats souls but I’m afraid if I reject him I’ll go back to being poor.\

Our Queen stole a magic rock to revitalize our frozen country, and even though she’s overbearing I have to do right by my country.

These are fairly complex motivations for a kids show, especially when you compare them to, say, Transformers or Ninja Turtles. Shredder or Megatron are just bad because they’re bad, and so are most of their minions. Even if you have somebody like, I don’t know, Jetfire, the story there is that he discovers that his old friend Starscream is bad, at which point neither character has any further compunctions about blasting his old friend with laser guns.

Meanwhile, villains in My Little Pony would be conflicted, have divided loyalties, and be genuinely unsure what the right thing to do was. Even as a very small child, I thought that was more interesting and more honest then other shows were being.

Later, I had many of the same feelings about Sailor Moon. Hell, I still do. Even in the bowdlerized American version, I could still relate to Ami wondering if being a nerd meant she wasn’t properly into the things girls are “supposed” to be into and Usagi’s complete loathing of schoolwork and studies.

Even though these shows weren’t “for” me I really loved them, because the shows that were “for” me, the boys shows, never really expressed the kinds of ideas I’m talking about here. Like, especially during the early nineties, the answer to the question, “Does being a quiet, studious nerd make me less of a boy?” was, “Yes.”

I actually remember, as a child, constantly wishing I had been born a girl, not because I had some inner girl nature, but because girls (or so it seemed from outside) were allowed to be quiet, to be studious, to talk about feelings and to like predictability and calm. The idea of a boy wanting those things was largely foreign.

So... put a pin in that.

Okay, I want to describe a young boy to you.

He’s energetic, but a bit scatterbrained. He isn’t bookish at all; trying to sit still for long periods of time makes him antsy, and he’d rather be out in the world doing physical things than reading or thinking. In fact, he tends to act without thinking things through, and this gets him in trouble.

Despite being energetic and physical, he isn’t really into sports; he chafes under authority so teamwork isn’t always his strong suit, even though he cares deeply about his friends.

I would argue that I’ve just described pretty much every adolsecent male protagonist of every cartoon released over the last 15 years or so. Aang. Danny Phantom. Timmy Turner. Ben 10. Finn from Adventure Time. I’m sure more will come to mind later.

This character shows up again and again in boys cartoons, and he’s almost always depicted as the default, with other characters understood through their relationship to this default boy.

Okay, I’m going to get into representation politics, and specifically I’m about to criticize Adventure Time, so I think a disclaimer is in order. One of the problems with talking about representation is that you end up criticizing broad patterns, but the same people aren’t in charge of the whole media landscape, and any single instance of the pattern is probably actually extremely defensible.

So. Okay. I haven’t seen all of Adventure Time, but I’ve seen the first couple of seasons, and they are very well written, and I think Finn in particular is a very well observed character who is very true to life, and in order to change what I’m going to complain about you’d have to rework the show from the ground up. So it’s not that this is a terrible decision, but...

Okay, something that bothers me about early Adventure Time is that Princess Bubblegum is a science nerd only because Finn isn’t. Princess Bubblegum kind of represents, to Finn, the mysteries of adulthood and sexuality. She’s part of this mysterious world of women and adulthood that Finn longs for but hasn’t grown up enough, or had enough experience with, to really understand.

And so to hammer that home her personality and life are also full of things that Finn can’t understand... Like sitting still, and doing meticulous, complex experiments and researching in books.

It’s not that the show denigrates this, not at all, it’s just that it’s positioned as incomprehensible and distant from the audience stand-in character. The Boy doesn’t like to sit still and study, he likes to go on dangerous, physical adventures! And he certainly couldn’t ever prefer to sit still and study over going out and having a physical adventure. Doing that would be incomprehensible.

She’s well-written and I’m sure lots of kids relate to her, but fundamentally her nerdiness is portrayed as foreignness.

A lot of the shows I mentioned above aren’t even really ensembles, but those that kind of are, e.g. Avatar: The Last Airbender, or Ben 10 give The Boy special powers that differentiate him from the rest of the cast.

Go back to the early episodes of My Little Pony and Twilight Sparkle is kind of the viewpoint character; the framing device of the early episodes is letters she writes, but she doesn’t really have, like, one special power that the others don’t, and structurally she’s a tertiary character in a lot of episodes.

Contrast that to Aang, who is central to the story of Avatar, the Last Airbender. Like... you can have episodes that aren’t really about him but he has a special, important power that no other character does or can have, and the fate of the whole plot rests on his shoulders. Like, if the Avatar dies the natural order is upended and the Fire Nation almost certainly wins; you could kill off any other supporting cast member and then replace them without completely upending the world.

This is not to say that any of the shows I have called out are bad or harmful, but, to go way back, I remember being genuinely upset as a child not to see boy characters who had the feelings and struggles I did, and if anything, I think the situation might be slightly worse than when I was a kid. Go back to that Lauren Faust quote up there. How many cartoons feature a boy who is “Reserved and Studious”? Dexter’s Lab... Maybe Invader Zim... How many with a boy that is “Sweet and Shy”? Have you ever seen one about a boy who is “Artistic and beautiful?”

What about a show with all those boys portrayed as friends and equals, rather than one for you to relate to and a bunch of sidekicks and side characters?

Like, one of the only male, American cartoon characters who has ever made me go, “Yeah, that’s what it was like for me as a kid” is fucking Butters from South Park.

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pluckyredhead · 7 years

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I'm just wondering how you're feeling post-Defenders with all of the ships portrayed and the show's handling of them. I feel kinda scatterbrained myself lol. Were you happy with the writing of any specific pairings? Did any of them super disappoint you?

I’m mostly in the same place I was before, but let’s break it down, because I love lists, and writing 1000 words where 25 would do!

Matt/Foggy: NOT ENOUGH FOGGY IN THIS MINISERIES. Also, he was very mature and reasonable all the way through. I wanted a) more dramatic emotions and b) for him to give Matt a damn hug when Matt started crying. And honestly I don’t really understand how they got to where they are in that bar scene? Like, have they been talking? If not, why did Matt answer the phone in such a chill fashion? I wanted way more.

Matt/Karen: Still a total chemistry sinkhole, I don’t understand it, THEY ARE BOTH SO BEAUTIFUL, WHY ARE THEY SO NOTHING TOGETHER. Also I don’t understand why Karen is on Team No Daredevil when she was Daredevil’s #1 Fan for two years and is also a reckless lunatic a la Matt. I feel like she should be halfway between Foggy on Team No Daredevil and Elektra on Team Let’s Drop A Building On Ourselves For Love. (Also her failure to understand that part of him makes the inevitable rekindled romance even more baffling.) OH! And I could really do with 200% less speeches from ancillary characters telling Karen to accept Matt’s bad behavior as the price of love, Patricia.

Matt/Elektra: THESE DRAMATIC BABIES ARE IN LOOOOOOVE, they should probably stop hanging out but it’s so captivating. I ship it desperately while not wanting it to be endgame? IDK it’s weird.

Matt/Claire: Did they forget they knew each other???

Matt/Jessica: I don’t ship it but I would watch these two make fun of each other for a hundred years.

Matt/Luke: Everyone has a crush on Luke. #canon

Matt/Danny: haha no

Karen/Foggy: Is it bad that I kind of want them to have a Bad Idea Grief Hookup?

Jessica/Trish: They’re canonically dating, right? That’s what Trish’s “you’re dating that hot blind lawyer, right? THAT’S EXACTLY LIKE ME AND JESS” speech was about? A+, j’approve.

Jessica/Luke: UGH such good chemistry I want them to have a BABY.

Jessica/Danny: haha no

Luke/Claire: I ALSO WANT THEM TO HAVE A BABY. Trish/Jessica/Luke/Claire yes?

Luke/Misty: I was honestly never on board with this, it always felt gratuitous to me, but I love the friendship and mutual respect they’ve developed. I wish Misty got to do fun things though.

Misty/Claire: YES PLEASE

Luke/Danny: Okay but the scene where they’re eating the dumplings is the moment Danny realized he wasn’t straight. (He...probably should have realized that all those times he and Davos practiced kissing, but what are you gonna do?)

Danny/Colleen: haha no

Colleen/Claire: THIS IS STILL THE BEST IRON FIST SHIP, ACCEPT NO SUBSTITUTES

Misty/Colleen: Only just getting started but I am HERE. FOR. IT.

Matt/piano: OTP

Did I miss anyone?

#defenders #defenders spoilers #Anonymous

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leftnipsdoodles · 7 years

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almost got ‘em all! thanks everyone for asking! answers are below~

1. What age did you begin getting into art? Why did you get into it? hmmmmm im gonna try to answer this as interestingly as i can. so ive been drawing all my life and i think it was just bc a) there was always art supplies lying around and b) i just had so many things in my head and wanted a way to express them or just get them out. like when i played with my toys i was always completely quiet bc i was imagining everything in my head. sound/speech/words just weren’t as interesting to me as a way to put my thoughts out there as visuals were. also i rly liked ranma 1/2 and wanted to draw it.

4. Do you make merchandise? Favorite kind of merch to make? i don’t. i did think about making charms once, even if just for myself. you know, those cute, chibi-esque ones everybody makes? then i remembered i couldn’t draw sth cute if you put a gun to my head.

5. Who/what are your art inspirations? I listed some of my favorite artists the last time i answered questions like this so i guess this time i’ll go with the ‘what’ rather than the ‘who’. to me, the most inspiring thing are atmospheres. it could be a garbage container with 1000 stickers stuck and half-way teared down on it. the way the colors and rips in the stickers look and how it adds to the mood of the location. or sometimes it’s listening to a certain song at a certain time in a certain place that creates a unique mood and inspires you. but looking at art has never been an inspiration. so there’s that.

6. What is something (a technique, behaviorism, etc.) that you do with drawing that you think is unique to you?

ok but in seriousness, i don’t think there’s anything. any uniqueness comes from a lack of skill and knowledge so i don’t think it’s worth mentioning. like what do you even want me to say?? that i edit pictures i drew in clip studio in ms paint?? bc i do.

7. Describe your style. What would you change? neither here nor there. i feel like you can tell i’m a bit scatterbrained bc my drawings always look like they were done without any kind of direction lmao.. in general, i’d like to draw more realistically. i’d like to look at my own drawings and think ‘this pose looks rly natural, the way the clothes fit, the way the face looks, the perspective, the way this character interacts with the environment; it all looks right’. i’d also like to be able to use colors better but it’s hard when you struggle to name more than 3.

8. How do you get out of an art block? well, usually, I don’t. i’m pretty sure i’ve been in one for the past 3 years or so lmao (lamenting my anguish online) but i’ve been told that just working through it is the best way to go. just drawing. even if you hate everything. future you will thank you for it, bc you’ll probably be learning things while doing so, even if you can’t see it at that moment.

9. Does your style reflect who you are visually or your personality? both tbh. if you saw a pic of myself next to a drawing of proto danny you’d definitely see a resemblance in a way. (things like the clothes i draw him in are a given i think. ive probably drawn 90% of my wardrobe at this point) but my personality too. the things i spend more time on while drawing, the colors i choose, the mood in my drawings. that’s all a part of me. im pretty sure my oc tags are fairly accurate documentation of my mood swings and general attitude towards life throughout time lmao also, this thing i summed up in my tags a few years ago

10. What do you find easiest about drawing? getting the ideas for it

11. What do you find hardest about drawing? actually drawing said ideas. look, the moment i sketch the idea down it’s already 50% worse than i imagined it, then when i go to actually draw the thing it turns into sth so bad that i can’t even come up with a forced joke about the scenario. but anyway, lately the thing that scares me the most about drawing (and why i can hardly do it) is heads. heads heads heads. faces faces faces. i just cant do it man lmao

12. Is art part of your career or a hobby? What is your goal with art in life? my goal is to get a better hobby and to never have to return to drawing ever again. but that’s wishful thinking. i guess it’ll always stay my biggest hobby but i’d consider my life a failure if it ever turned into a career.

13. Advice to give to beginning artists? draw your ideas. never limit your creativity bc you don’t have the skill to express it to its full extent. a crappily drawn picture that conveys a cool idea or creates a cool atmosphere is just as good as an expertly crafted painting that has a lame subject. there’s a reason ppl admire the mona lisa but would rather read 90s manga than stare at that portrait all day. god. i guess motivational speaker is another career that’s out of the question lmao but you get what i mean!!

14. Advice to give to your artist peers?

also don’t take advice from me.

15. What have you drawn recently that you are proud of? ‘recent’ is relative, and so is ‘proud’, but i still rly like how this pic turned out. i just feel like it looks very decided, like i knew what i wanted to do and did it (i didn’t)

16. Show something you drew in the past that shows your improvement. 2017 - 2011

ahh tbh.. looking at this i don’t feel like i’ve improved a lot at all lmao..

17. Show something you drew in the past you’re still proud of. this pic might just be one of my favorites i’ve ever drawn. it’s still alright art-wise and it’s probably the most from-the-heart thing i’ve drawn so obviously, i have a soft spot for it lmao but i also just found this again and i still love it, even tho it’s ugly. also this bone which, infamously, is my crowning achievement

you know what i find funny rn? that it’s hard for me to decide which pic to choose for this question. i mean i went through my old art and cringed a LOT but there’s so many pics that im rly fond of, now that i’ve gained some distance to them. i wonder if it’ll be like that with the stuff i draw now, too.

19. Share a tutorial or reference that helped you. nothing concrete but i’ll mention ‘blind drawing’ again. it helped me get a different feel for the lines i’m drawing and, theoretically, would have made me better at drawing from life too

20. Plug time! Where else can followers find you? in the woods around 3am. don’t make eye contact.

#buff arms reply #no proofreading. also as always: good luck reading this on my blog theme lmfao #(highlight the text)#(then curse me under your breath)

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steenpaal · 5 years

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The 7D - Wikipedia

The 7D is an American children's animated television series produced by Disney Television Animation, which premiered on Disney XD on July 7, 2014. It is a re-imagining of the title characters from the 1937 film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs by Walt Disney Animation Studios, and their adventures prior to the introduction of Snow White.[1][4] The first season consisted of 24 episodes.[5] On December 2, 2014, the series was renewed for a second season.[6][7] On November 25, 2016, Disney XD announced that the series was cancelled after two seasons. The show aired its final episode on November 5, 2016.

The 7D defend the land of Jollywood from the magical villains Grim and Hildy Gloom, who attempt to dethrone Queen Delightful and rule Jollywood.[1] The Glooms attempt to steal magical gems from the 7D mine to aid in their efforts.[8]

Episodes

Characters

The 7D are a group of dwarves who protect Jollywood from the Glooms and other threats. They are the descendants of the dwarves that founded Jollywood. The members of the 7D are:

Bashful (voiced by Billy West)[1] – Bashful is shy and sweet. He harbors a crush on Queen Delightful and hides in embarrassment when he hears Queen Delightful's name.[9] West describes Bashful as a sweet character who tries to catch up to the others. He also likes that Bashful has another side to him.[10]

Doc (voiced by Bill Farmer)[1][11] – Doc comes up with various inventions to help the 7D on their missions and engineered the sky buckets transportation system for all of Jollywood.[9] Farmer has been the voice of Goofy, and also Sleepy in other Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs projects.[10] Farmer said that in making a new take on Doc, he pinches his voice and makes him a little scatterbrained.[12]

Dopey (vocal effects provided by Dee Bradley Baker)[1] – Dopey communicates with whistles, animal sounds, and visual gags. In an interview with Disney Examiner, Baker said that portraying Dopey was easier and allows for more freedom because he uses only animal sounds and whistles.[13]

Grumpy (voiced by Maurice LaMarche)[1] – Grumpy is the aggressive and short-tempered dwarf who wears a flower pot as his hat.[14] He likes to have cheese and likes to wrestle. He can't put up with noises, disgusting things, or injustice. In portraying Grumpy, LaMarche drew inspiration from his friend who is a stockbroker, as well as parts of Danny DeVito's character Louie De Palma from Taxi and Jason Alexander's character George Costanza from Seinfeld.[10][15] In "Gingersnaps and Grumpy Snaps" and "Finders Keepers," it is revealed that Grumpy has a pet goat named Giselle.

Happy (voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson)[1] – Happy is joyous and is known for breaking out into song, much to the dismay of Grumpy.[16] Richardson said that he drew inspiration from fellow voice actor Jim Cummings with a "country / New Orleans" voice where he is "always upbeat, always positive," and as "if someone just handed him a beer."[10] Ruegger said that Richardson was the first one of the seven to be cast, and that his voice set the tone for casting the others.[12]

Sleepy (voiced by Stephen Stanton)[1] – Sleepy is always tired. In an interview with Variety, Scott Menville said that Stephen Stanton came up with over fifty different ways to snore.[17]

Sneezy (voiced by Scott Menville)[1] – Sneezy has powerful sneezes and has a variety of allergies that causes him to sneeze.[18] In the episode "Welcome to the Neighborhood," he shows off his handkerchief collection.

The Glooms

Hildy Gloom (voiced by Kelly Osbourne)[19] – Hildy is a witch and Grim's wife. Hildy is Osbourne’s first major voiceover role;[12][20] Osbourne was asked after Disney had auditioned 300 girls. She said that she had not seen the character design, which was created before the auditions, until after she got the job. She describes Hildy as "bad with the best intentions" and calls her "my alter ego – my Sasha Fierce".[20][21]

Grim Gloom (voiced by Jess Harnell)[1] – Grim is a warlock and Hildy's husband. In "The Jollywood Jam", it is revealed that Grim's great-great-great-grandfather was a warlock who was defeated by the Founders of Jollywood. Harnell describes him as "a bad-at-being-bad guy". Regarding his role as a Disney villain, he said that "there's a fine line — especially in 7D, which is a broad comedy — because you don't want to scare little kids".[22] He said "Grim is so awesome because he's totally stupid but he's got a really good heart. He's actually not a bad guy, he's just trying to keep up with his wife, which I guess a lot of us can relate to".[12]

Jollywood characters

Queen Delightful (voiced by Leigh-Allyn Baker)[1] – Queen Delightful is the ditzy ruler of Jollywood. Whenever there is trouble, she goes into a tizzy where she spins around and acts like a police light and siren. She then summons the 7D by pulling a rope for the Bing-Bong Bell.

Lord Starchbottom (voiced by Paul Rugg)[1][23] – Lord Starchbottom is Queen Delightful's personal assistant who is often getting annoyed at the 7D's antics. In portraying Starchbottom, Rugg drew inspiration from Jerry Lewis, whom he and Ruegger both admire.[10]

Recurring characters

Magic Mirror (voiced by Whoopi Goldberg)[24] – The Magic Mirror serves Queen Delightful and resides in the castle's treasure room. In the episode "Mirror, Mirror", the Glooms steal the Magic Mirror from Queen Delightful and replace her with a wise-cracking Not-So-Magic Mirror. After the Magic Mirror was rescued by the 7D, she falls in love with the Not-So-Magic Mirror and dates him.[9]

Crystal Ball (voiced by Jay Leno)[24] – The Crystal Ball is an artifact the Glooms use to spy on Queen Delightful. The Crystal Ball also gives the Glooms some information that they seek. A running gag is that Crystal Ball would often tell jokes that are followed by a laugh track.

Sir Yipsalot (voiced by Bill Farmer)[11][25] – Sir Yipsalot is Queen Delightful's pet dog.[17][18] His favorite treat is pickles.[25]

Squire Peckington (voiced by Dee Bradley Baker)[25] – Squire Peckington is Queen Delightful's pet parrot who is seen perching in her crown.[18]

Snazzy Shazam (voiced by Leigh-Allyn Baker)[26] – Snazzy Shazam is a witch with blonde hair who was Hildy Gloom's rival in school. She frequently competes in the witch contests where Hildy feels like she needs to upstage her. In "Sleepytime", she had put a hundred people to sleep. In "Cat on a Hot Grim Roof," Snazzy brags about having a fashionable black cat. In "Hildyrella", she competes against Hilday in the Ultimate Supreme Sorceress Pageant.

Peaches – Peaches is a slow-moving warthog who pulls the Glooms' carriage.

Giselle (voiced by Dee Bradley Baker)[27] – Grumpy's pet goat. In "Finders Keepers", Giselle develops a friendly rivalry with Peaches.[28] In the episode "When Pigs Fly", it is revealed that Giselle's last name is Munchen.[29] In the episode "Whose Voice Is It Anyway", Giselle is said to have been raised by a bloodhound, and in turn raised Dopey.[30]

Production

The 7D was placed into production in June 2012 for the Disney Junior channel with characters redesigned by Noah Z. Jones.[24][31][32] In an interview with Indiewire, Gimeno said that the pilot episode was done in Flash, but the series was changed to traditional 2D which added production value as Flash was design heavy. The storyboards and pre-production were done at Disney. Animation was produced by Digital eMation in Korea and Toon City in the Philippines.[31] Ruegger also said that the 2D is also better suited for the show's style.[12]

The theme song and many of the in-episode songs are done by Parry Gripp. He describes the song as "in kind of a punk rock style...It's pretty fast and has guitars and the tone of my voice is a bit nasal and aggressive. But the music in the show really varies."[16] In an interview with Geek Mom, Gripp said that he was asked to pitch song ideas for various Disney shows, and that The 7D clicked with his style. He estimates he wrote about 120 songs for the first season, although many are very short and their styles vary. Composer Keith Horn does the orchestration in the show.[3]

Entertainment journalist Jim Hill has noted that some have related the voice ensemble to Marvel's Avengers since it features actors who have voiced in popular cartoon shows. He also noted how many of the crew have worked on Animaniacs, including Tom Ruegger, Sherri Stoner, Paul Rugg, Deanna Oliver, and Randy Rogel. Among the voice actors, LaMarche had voiced Brain, and Jess Harnell had voiced Wakko.[10] Voice director Kelly Ward said "God forbid if anything were to happen when they were all in one place because the voice-over industry would be dealt a crippling blow." The cast usually recorded in ensembles of two to four characters when possible, with Ruegger editing the timing afterwards for characters that recorded separately.[12]

Scott Menville, who voices Sneezy, said that the show takes place before Snow White was born so the Evil Queen from the film will not be there. He also said it is a contemporary take on the film as the characters are hip to the current generation and its pop culture references.[4] Jevon Phillips of Hero Complex also placed the series 30 years or so before Snow White. Ruegger said that the show's demographic differed from his previous works with Animaniacs and Pinky and the Brain; however, he was also encouraged by Disney Junior to expand the demographic to include parents.[33]

Broadcast

The 7D debuted on July 7, 2014 on Disney XD,[24] on the Disney Junior block on Disney Channel on December 26, and on the Disney Junior channel in 2015.[6] In Canada, the series began broadcast on July 13 on Disney XD.[34] It premiered on Disney Channel in Southeast Asia on September 7.[35] In Australia, Disney XD began broadcasting the series on December 1.[36]

On December 2, 2014, the series was renewed for a second season,[6] where Ruegger planned to make 39 half-hour episodes.[7] The season premiered on Disney XD on January 23, 2016. The season is slated to have guest stars Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne to play Hildy's parents, Fran Drescher, Amy Sedaris, Jim Belushi, Jay Mohr, George Takei and "Weird Al" Yankovic.[37] On April 25, 2016, co-executive producer Tom Warburton posted on his blog that the second season would be the series' final season and that the crew will be moving on to other projects.[38] The series finale aired on November 5, 2016.

Reception

The 7D premiere broadcast ranked number 2 overall among Disney XD’s animated original-series premieres for kids 2–11 and kids 6–11.[39]

Brian Lowry of Variety wrote poorly of the show, claiming that it has none of the charm of the source material, and that its plots "fall into a sort of No Kid's Land in terms of age groups".[40]Rob Owen wrote in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that the characters were blandly drawn, and that the show was just a chance to capitalize on the film.[41]

The 7D was selected by the Behind the Voice Actors staff for Best Vocal Ensemble in a New Television Series in 2015.[42]

Video games

In June 2014, Disney Publishing Worldwide released "The 7D Mine Train App", an endless-runner video game where the player chooses one of the redesigned 7D dwarfs as their game avatar to pilot a mine car through various levels of the mine, picking up gems. It is loosely associated with the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train attraction at Walt Disney World which opened in May 2014.[43][44]

Disney also released an online game on their Disney XD website called "The 7D Dwarf Track Builder" where players can assemble a mine track or sky bucket course according to the dwarfs' specifications.[45]

References

^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q "'The 7D' Report for July 7 Disney XD Premiere". Animation Magazine. April 25, 2014. Retrieved June 16, 2014. DisneyChannelPR (April 3, 2014). "Kelly Osbourne joins the cast of Disney's The 7D, a contemporary, comedic take on the seven dwarfs, premiering this summer" (Press release). Archived from the original on December 17, 2014.

^ "Keith Horn music in new Disney animated series". keithhorn.com. Retrieved January 25, 2016.

^ a b http://geekmom.com/2014/07/parry-gripp/

^ a b Yoshihara, Craig (June 19, 2014). "The Two Sides of Scott Menville: Dadding and Sneezing". Babble. Retrieved August 11, 2014.

^ Shea Fontana [@SheaFontana] (July 28, 2014). "Confirms: "season one is 24 half hours"" (Tweet). Retrieved September 10, 2014 – via Twitter.

^ a b c Kondolojy, Amanda (December 2, 2014). "'The 7D' Renewed for Second Season by Disney". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved December 2, 2014.

^ a b Ruegger, Tom (December 2, 2014). "Disney's "THE 7D" Renewed for 2nd Season". Cartooniacs.

^ Andreeva, Nellie (June 19, 2012). "Disney Jr Orders Seven Dwarfs Toon Series". Deadline. Retrieved June 16, 2014.

^ a b c "Mirror, Mirror / The Big Bash". The 7D. Episode 3.

^ a b c d e f Hill, Jim (July 7, 2014). "Disney Hopes That 7D 's Stellar Voice Cast Will Make Animation Fans Happy, Not Grumpy". Huffington Post. Retrieved August 8, 2014.

^ a b "Disney Legend, Bill Farmer talks about voicing Goofy and new Disney Junior series "The 7D"". mediamikes.com.

^ a b c d e f McLean, Thomas J. (July 18, 2014). "Little Stars, Big Voices". Animation Magazine.

^ Orenda, Tami (July 10, 2014). "Dee Bradley Baker Whistles While He Works as Dopey on "The 7D"". Disney Examiner. Storyteller Media. Archived from the original on August 12, 2014.

^ "The 7D – Sneezin' Season; The Delightful Diamond Mystery – Saturday, Sep 20, 2014 – Ark TV Transcript – Ark TV – Search what is being mentioned across national TV". ark.com.

^ Galas, Marjorie (February 18, 2014). ""The 7D" – New Voices And New Lives For The Seven Dwarves". Variety 411. Variety Media. Retrieved August 8, 2014.

^ a b Plasket, Kelli (July 7, 2014). "The Song of the 7D – TFK gets a sneak peak at Disney XD's new animated Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs prequel". Time for Kids.

^ a b Galas, Marjorie (February 18, 2014). "Voice Actors In Their Own Words: The Talent Behind "The 7D"". Variety 411. Variety Media. Retrieved August 8, 2014.

^ a b c The 7D. Episode 2.

^ Bacle, Ariana (April 3, 2014). "Kelly Osbourne joins Disney's 'The 7D' cast". Entertainment Weekly. Entertainment Weekly Inc. Retrieved June 16, 2014.

^ a b Logan, Michael (July 3, 2014). "Kelly Osbourne Turns Disney Villain in The 7D". TV Guide.

^ Walker, Jodi (April 3, 2014). "Kelly Osbourne joins Disney's 'The 7D' cast". The Family Room (EW.com). Entertainment Weekly and Time Inc. Retrieved August 7, 2014.

^ Kaplan, Don (July 5, 2014). "Disney's new series '7D' draws loosely on 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'". NY Daily News. Retrieved August 7, 2014.

^ "7D Characters". Disneyxd.disney.com. Retrieved June 16, 2014.

^ a b c d Kenneally, Tim (April 25, 2014). "Jay Leno, Whoopi Goldberg Join Cast of Disney's 'The 7D'". The Wrap. Retrieved June 16, 2014.

^ a b c The 7D. Episode 6.

^ "Cat on a Hot Grim Roof". The 7D. Episode 17b.

^ "Interviews". Dee Bradley Baker official website. Archived from the original on January 21, 2015. Retrieved January 21, 2015. Over at Disney Television, we're recording a second season of "The Seven D," (as dwarf "Dopey," parrot "Squire Peckington" and Giselle, the goat).

^ "Finders Keepers / The Queen's Quest". Disney XD Press. Retrieved January 25, 2016.

^ "When Pigs Fly". The 7d. Season 2. Episode 1a.

^ "Whose Voice Is It Anyway". The 7d. Season 2. Episode 5a.

^ a b Desowitz, Bill (July 1, 2014). "Immersed in Movies: Alfred Gimeno Talks Directing Disney's New '7D' Series". Animation Scoop. Indiewire.

^ Amidi, Amid (June 19, 2012). "Disney Redesigns The Seven Dwarfs For "7D"". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved January 25, 2016.

^ Phillips, Jevon (July 5, 2014). "'Animaniacs' creator tackles fairy tales with 'The 7D'". Hero Complex – Los Angeles Times.

^ Quiring, Tami (June 20, 2014). "New Animated Series The 7D Premieres On Disney XD This July 13th". Village Gamer. Retrieved December 2, 2014.

^ Goh, Melody (September 4, 2014). "Move aside, Snow White: It's time for 'The 7D' to shine". The Star. Malaysia.

^ DHiggins (December 1, 2014). "NEW THIS WEEK: The Flash, Jane the Virgin, The Walking Dead 2014 finale, Shark Week and more". Foxtel. Retrieved December 2, 2014.

^ Ge, Linda (December 17, 2015). "Ozzy, Sharon Osborne Join Disney XD's 'The 7D' (Exclusive)". The Wrap. Retrieved January 25, 2016.

^ Warburton, Mr (April 25, 2016). "warburtonlabs: It's a Wrap, 7D-Style". warburtonlabs.blogspot.com. Retrieved June 10, 2016.

^ Kondolojy, Amanda (July 17, 2014). "Disney's Animated Series 'The 7D' Launches Week-Long Event With Solid Ratings". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on September 7, 2014. Retrieved November 22, 2014.

^ Lowry, Brian (July 3, 2014). ""The 7D" TV Review on Disney Jr". Variety. Retrieved August 7, 2014.

^ Owen, Rob (July 7, 2014). "A new take on the Seven Dwarfs with '7D' on DisneyXD". Community Voices – Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. PG Publishing. Retrieved August 11, 2014.

^ Stephen Stanton [@Stephen_Stanton] (July 8, 2015). "Congratulations to everyone on Team #The7D for your @BTVA BEST VOCAL ENSEMBLE IN A NEW TELEVISION SERIES Award! :)" (Tweet). Retrieved August 13, 2015 – via Twitter.

^ Mauney, Matt (June 12, 2014). "Disney to release Seven Dwarfs-inspired app, TV show". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved June 16, 2014.

^ Calimlim, Aldrin (June 13, 2014). "Disney Launches The 7D Mine Train Game Based On 'The 7D' Animated TV Series". AppAdvice. Retrieved June 17, 2014.

^ Quiring, Tami (June 20, 2014). "New Animated Series The 7D Premieres On Disney XD This July 13th". Village Gamer.

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