#mezzo bois

[swaps55]

Mezzo - 09 - Silent Shout

Pairing: mshenko | Rating: M Tags: Canon-typical violence, trauma, dealing with your problems poorly, body autonomy struggles   Summary: The twists and turns of ME2, through the eyes of everyone but Commander Shepard. Chapter Summary: Krogan, shackled AI, and collectors, oh my! AKA, I’m not sorry. Not even a little bit.   Thank you to @sinvraal for betaing!

Chapter 9: Silent Shout | Read on Ao3

24 November, 2185, Eagle Nebula, Imir System, Korlus Orbit, Normandy SR-2

“I’m fine.”

Karin bites her tongue as Shepard glares up at the ring of onlookers arguing quite vehemently to the contrary. He sits perched on a medical bed, waiting rather impatiently for her to verify the bone knitter has successfully mended the fractured shoulder, broken clavicle, and fractured ribs. She had to reprogram it twice to accommodate for the greater bone density Cerberus gifted him.

Of course, once that had been sorted she’d had to deal with the lacerations earned from an exploding YMIR mech. And yet the hardest part of it all wasn’t the treatment – it was keeping him still and on the table. She’s almost thankful for the presence of Taylor, Lawson, and Garrus. They hover around the biobed like a perimeter fence. She is very thankful, however, they didn’t invite the krogan currently stored in a tank down in the cargo hold.

Lawson likely doesn’t feel thankful. Poor thing is getting a master class in how difficult it is to converse with Shepard when he isn’t interested in listening.

“Shepard, if the implant is malfunctioning—”

“I said I’m fine.”

“You collapsed in the middle of a mission.” 

Karin almost pities her. Can’t be easy to learn your heroic medical marvel comes with as many vexations as he does heroic commendations.

Taylor scowls, opening his mouth, then shutting it again with an irritated shake of his head before taking a few steps away from the others. The questionable conclusion to the Korlus mission has done nothing to dissipate the thundercloud that had descended upon him after Lawson took his place on the ground team.

But right now, Taylor is not her concern. Shepard is.

Garrus hums from the spot he staked out beside Shepard’s bed, rather strategically between Shepard and the medbay door. “Call me crazy, but it might have to do with the spontaneous teleporting.”

The furrows in Lawson’s brow deepen. “People don’t teleport. That isn’t how biotics work.”

“Of course I didn’t teleport.”

“Then what happened?” Taylor asks, in the clipped tones of someone diligently removing the barbs from each word before they’re uttered.

Shepard rolls the freshly mended shoulder, grimacing and putting a hand to his ribs. “Let me worry about it.”

Hardly. Karin gets her scanner back out. Surely the ossification process on that last cycle had been sufficient. Then again, Shepard has always had an oddly low tolerance for bone knitters.

“You were the bullet,” Garrus says, a low rumble in his subvocals. They all turn to stare at him. His brow plates shift. “Look, I don’t know how any of it works. But I know how my gun works. Shepard didn’t fire a projectile. He didn’t make someone else a projectile. He was the projectile.”

For several seconds, the only sound in the room is the hum of the scanner. It chirps the results. Bone knitter cycle was indeed successful.  

Lawson turns back to Shepard, fingers to her chin, gears turning. “How?”  

“I said don’t worry about it.”

Read from the beginning | Read the rest on Ao3 | The Mezzo Playlist

#mshenko #kaidan alenko #mass effect #mezzo update #boy oh boy have i been waiting for this one

[llhg]

| day 6 Sulfus |

Im starting to think that comic design Sulfus is way easier to draw and keep consistent than show Sulfus .💀

But still they both have amazing style regardless.

Artbase credit to @/mellon_soup

#angel's friends #angels friends #ho dovuto fare un pisolino a cause della caffeina nel bel mezzo di questo disegno #afapril #raf and sulfus #im surprised I’m still posting each day #sulfus #angels friends april #raf #fanart #comic sulfus #indipendentemente dall’universo é un romantico senza speranza con bad boy vibes #MIO DIO SONO STANCO

[michan1907]

It’s been a while since the last time i drew Sou-chan :3

#idolish seven #Idolish7 #osaka sougo #neko #colorful #Mezzo #i7 #anime boy #anime fanart #game fanart #Fanart #digital art

[mtonino]

21° Molise Cinema 2023

Paesi in lungo - Concorso opere prime e seconde

In concorso:

Come pecore in mezzo ai lupi Regia: Lyda Patitucci Interpreti: Isabella Ragonese, Andrea Arcangeli, Carolina Michelangeli, Aleksander Gavranic, Clara Ponsot, Gabriele Portoghese, Imma Villa, Tommaso Ragno, 100’

Disco boy Regia: Giacomo Abbruzzese Interpreti: Franz Rogowski, Morr Ndiaye, Laetitia Ky, Leon Lucev, Matteo Olivetti, Robert Wieckiewicz, Mutamba Kalonji, Michal Balicki, 91’

La lunga corsa Regia: Andrea Magnani Interpreti: Adriano Tardiolo, Giovanni Calcagno, Nina Naboka, Barbora Bobulova, Gianluca Gobbi, Aylin Prandi, Stefano Cassetti, Maksim Kostyunin, 88’

Margini Regia: Niccolò Falsetti Interpreti: Francesco Turbanti, Emanuele Linfatti, Matteo Creatini, Silvia D'Amico, Nicola Rignanese, Paolo Cioni, Aurora Malianni, Valentina Carnelutti, 91’

Piano piano Regia: Nicola Prosatore Interpreti: Dominique Donnarumma, Giuseppe Pirozzi, Antonio De Matteo, Antonia Truppo, Giovanni Esposito, Lello Arena, Massimiliano Caiazzo, 84’

I pionieri Regia: Luca Scivoletto Interpreti: Mattia Bonaventura, Francesco Cilia, Danilo Di Vita, Matilde Sofia Fazio, Peppino Mazzotta, Lorenza Indovina, Eleonora Danco, Elvira Camarrone, Maurizio Bologna, Tim Daish, Claudio Bigagli, Beth Mc Creton, 86’

Fuori concorso:

Mixed by Erry Regia: Sydney Sibilia Luigi D'Oriano, Emanuele Palumbo, Giuseppe Arena, Francesco Di Leva, Greta Esposito, Cristiana Dell’Anna, Adriano Pantaleo, Chiara Celotto, Fabrizio Gifuni, Adriano Saleri, 110’.

#molise cinema #concorso #fuori concorso #2023 #come pecore in mezzo ai lupi #disco boy #la lunga corsa #margini #piano piano #i pionieri #mixed by erry #lyda patitucci #giacomo abbruzzese #andrea magnani #niccolò falsetti #nicola prosatore #luca scivoletto #sydney sibilia

[aeide-thea]

oh right i forgot the real reason i stopped listening to broadway clips was that i've got this whole enormous miserable knot in my chest abt having been too socially anxious to do anything with my once-upon-a-time-very-gorgeous voice once i got spat out of the safe little nest of my high school, and like, most of the time i forget that knot even exists, but when i listen to the sort of music i used to be part of making (proper opera but also showtunes) it's like. this whole fast-forward feelings journey thru 'oh right that didn't actually go away, it's still right there in my throat, just calcified' to 'oh okay we tugged the loose end and it's unraveling and actually it was keeping contained a whole rush of tears like aeolus' bag of winds in the odyssey…'

#like i decline 2 actually cry abt it but. sure am on the verge of it lmao. thick sore throat and all #i always forget that when i'm actually happy i sing to myself. it's been a long time since i did that #i mean also a big problem with voice was like. the gender thing #conveniently being a mezzo is ALSO a gender thing which did more work for me than i realized but #was listening to a jeremy jordan medley ft. on the street where you live from my fair lady and had a sudden flashback #to the year i was like 'what if i sang that for our musical theater showcase' and my voice teacher was like. noooo not a Boy Song 4 Girl U! #but i used to sing that to myself all the time. also‚ hilariously‚ the girl that i marry from annie get yr gun #which is just like. literally i still thought i was a straight girl tho. the sheer level of doublethink this required. #what was happening in my brain. #(i mean obviously what was happening in my brain was that like. i knew the limits of acceptability) #(and so i couldn't know anything else abt myself.) #(like i've said this before but i do strongly wonder what else my brain isn't allowing me to know bc i still live with my dad) #(which is like. SO dumb bc honestly i'm not sure there's anything i could do that he'd kick me out/disown me over) #(certainly not anything sexuality or even gender related idt) #(but it's like. i know where the discomfort line is and emotionally i just. can't bear to exile myself out beyond it!) #(even if my doing so might eventually shift the line out to where it embraced me again!) #(sometimes learning yr own deep unacceptability in childhood 4 adhd reasons) #(and also 'yr mother is so depressed nothing you do will ever please her. have fun trying tho!!' reasons) #(makes you just. totally incapable of deliberately rendering yrself less acceptable as an adult even when it would be good for you) #(anyway like. thinking back to the K in old home videos who was like. confident that they were an engaging delight) #(and like. what a charming jeremy jordan of a performer they could have made.) #(if only my whole upbringing hadn't then happened to me and crushed all the unacceptable self-expression out of me.) #anyway. shh don't look at me it's fine! it's all fine. 🫥🫥🫥 #formative #feelingsblogging

[come-see-our-show]

I saw an early screening of the Mean Girls movie last night, so here is a summary of my thoughts, comparing the movie musical to the Broadway musical, which I was lucky enough to see live in 2018!

Changed that I liked:

The usage of social media in the Broadway show made it very clear that it was written by adults who didn’t know much about Gen-Z. It was probably one of the worst parts of the show in my opinion. But Tina Fey must have done her research since 2018, because the way the movie uses TikTok, memes, vlogging, and FaceTime to push the story forward worked VERY well. I think there were some influencer cameos, but it didn’t feel they were included to show how “young and hip” they were, It actually added authenticity.

The diversity within the cast and changing last names to reflect the characters’ backgrounds (Karen Smith ➡️ Karen Shetty, Janis Sarkisian ➡️ Janis 'Imi'ike)

Cutting down “Meet the Plastics.” It’s a very exposition-heavy song and doesn’t need to be super long, even though the full version is quite catchy and fun.

All of the new jokes landed so well, probably because Tina Fey’s writing style is better suited for the screen as opposed to the stage.

This is more of a comparison of the musical vs. the original film, but a big change was The Plastics’ weaponized wokeness (which I talk about here).

The production design for most of the songs was very different. The stage musical has a lot of rock songs, which were changed to a pop sound for the movie. I personally prefer rock musicals, but it was a good way to give the movie a separate identity from its predecessor so it doesn’t risk becoming a carbon copy. It worked on some songs (“Someone Gets Hurt” and “World Burn”) but not on others (“A Cautionary Tale” and “Revenge Party”).

Cutting the joke about Regina’s ass being big. It was a very low-brow joke, which I’m not a fan of, and was just really immature. Thank God that was changed to her falling, which still shows her being embarrassed without her body being the joke.

Explicitly making Janis a lesbian! (It’s only implied in the stage show with “It’s not even true… I only have one butt”) And she goes to prom with a girl while Damien dances with a boy! ALSO THERE’S REJANIS LORE AND IT’S SO HEARTBREAKING I LOVE IT

megan thee stallion just… being there

Miss Norbury and Principal Duvall being a couple and owning a dog together!!!

As a low mezzo, I appreciated whoever decided to lower the key for “I’d Rather Be Me.” I felt very represented 🩷

Having Cady be raised in a single-parent household so it focuses in more on her relationship with her mom. Jenna Fischer was so motherly and sincere and brought a warmth to the movie. Their scene together near the end made me emotional (you’re never too old to ask your parent to stay with you until you fall asleep) (also this is my request to make jenna fischer my mom)

Changes that I didn’t like:

Cutting BOTH of Damian’s solos??? (SHE’S LEAVING!!!!!!!! JUST LIKE MY DAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

Cutting “More Is Better.” It wasn’t necessarily a memorable song, but it did give both Cady and Aaron more depth, both as separate characters and within their relationship.

While cutting some of the songs helped with pacing, cutting HALF of the score made me forget that it was a musical sometimes, which sucks because I really like musicals!!!

Other stuff:

The movie was marketed horribly. One of my friends didn’t even know it was gonna be a musical because there were no songs in the trailers 💀 (Also, this isn’t just a Mean Girls problem. The Color Purple also didn’t have any songs in the trailer. I didn’t even know Wonka was a musical until I saw it in theaters, so that was a bit of a shock.) If you’re producing a musical movie, maybe your focus groups should be musical fans, because that’s still a HUGE market.

Auliʻi Cravalho’s voice is STUNNING! She and Jaquel Spivey had great chemistry and their friendship felt so genuine!

The opening and ending transitions from the garage were everything to me

The EDITING

Angourie Rice is a great actor and fit Cady perfectly… except for her singing. Out of the entire cast she was easily the weakest in terms of vocals and it was pretty disappointing since she’s the LEAD. I could barely hear her in the new song “What Ifs” because of how quiet and breathy she was. I think it’s a better written song compared to “Roar” though.

Jon Hamm cameo!

Ashley Park cameo!

I cannot stress enough how funny this movie was. I was probably laughing louder than everyone else in the theatre.

I lost my shit during “Meet the Plastics” when Regina unzipped her jacket and Cady was staring at her boobs. She’s just like me fr 🏳️‍🌈

I know that Regina is a horrible person but I couldn’t find it in me to dislike her in the slightest. She just served too much cunt 😩

Christopher Briney is a good actor, but I don't think he was the right choice for Aaron Samuels. I would hate to ridicule anyone for their looks, but it still plays an important part in casting. Aaron is supposed to be a somewhat naive, wholesome, hot jock (and Regina has high standards, so he better be a fucking model). Briney is definitely a cutie, but gives off “smoldering badboy with a secret sensitive side” energy, which isn’t what Aaron should be.

The fantasy sequences (Stupid With Love, Revenge Party, October 3rd). I LOVE when movie musicals USE the medium to tell stories in a way that they can’t on a stage!!!

THE CHOREO!!! Everyone freezing then shaking in “Someone Get Hurt” AHHHH that entire number was HYPNOTIZING!!!!!!!!!!! My friend told me the choreographer’s name is Kyle Hanagami, so shout out to him. (also reneé rapp was so fucking hot while singing that oh my lord)

I will be calling my pimples “face breasts” from now on (avantika ilysm)

DAMIAN’S FRENCH COVER OF THE ICARLY THEME SONG 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

why was there a 0.5 camera shot of cady during revenge party 💀

“I’d Rather Be Me” was so much fun and I felt so fucking empowered. And the transition from the song to the bus was just *chef’s kiss*

“donut worry i am still your freend” 🥺

Lindsay Lohan cameo!!!!!!!!!

NOT ENOUGH RENEÉ RAPP 😭😭

Overall, the movie was not perfect, but the Broadway show already had plenty of flaws, so it’s understandably how that would affect the adaptation. I still a LOT of fun and would definitely see it again. Go stream Snow Angel by Reneé Rapp. i love women 🥰🥰🥰

#summer says stuff #mean girls #mean girls 2024 #mean girls musical #mean girls broadway #tina fey #karen shetty #janis 'imi'ike #regina george #rejanis #megan thee stallion #cady heron #jenna fischer #damien hubbard #aaron samuel’s #Auliʻi Cravalho #jaquel spivey #angourie rice #cadgina #christopher briney #reneé rapp #avantika

[sonsband]

we lost so much when EvoL disbanded and J.Da moved to mezzo

#she was chest voice scraping before the boys and what did we give her? nothing! and now she's on hiatus as a mezzo. a tragedy. #asking an alto to sing soprano even if she has the range is a crime

[pazzesco]

❣️♀️Beloved Woman

Cherokee Beloved Woman Nancy Ward

Nancy Ward, or Nan'yehi (nan yay hee), is the most famous Cherokee Beloved Woman. The role of Beloved Woman, Ghigau (Ghee gah oo), was the highest a Cherokee woman could aspire to. A Ghigau had a voice and vote in General Council, leadership of the Woman's Council, the honor of preparing and serving the ceremonial Black Drink, the duty of ambassador of peace-negotiator, and the right to save the life of a prisoner already condemned to execution.

The Native American Cherokee The word Cherokee is believed to have evolved from a Choctaw word meaning "Cave People." It was picked up and used by Europeans and eventually accepted and adopted by Cherokees. Traditionally, the people now known as Cherokee refer to themselves as aniyun-wiya, a name usually translated as "the Real People," sometimes "the Original People."

The Role of the Cherokee Woman The Cherokee were matrilineal with a complex society structure. Clan kinship followed the mother's side of the family. The children grew up in the mother's house, and it was the duty of an uncle on the mother's side to teach the boys how to hunt, fish, and perform certain tribal duties. The women owned the houses and their furnishings. Marriages were carefully negotiated, but if a woman decided to divorce her spouse, she simply placed his belongings outside the house. Cherokee women also worked hard. They cared for the children, cooked, tended the house, tanned skins, wove baskets, and cultivated the fields. Men helped with some household chores like sewing, but they spent most of their time hunting.

Women in the Cherokee society were equal to men. This privilege led an Irishman named Adair who traded with the Cherokee from 1736-1743 to accuse the Cherokee of having a "petticoat government."

Princess Tsianina Red Feather

Tsianina Red Feather was not a "Princess." The Cherokee never had princesses. This is a concept based on European folktales and has no reality in Cherokee history and culture. Beloved women and high ranking women in a clan were treated with such reverence, that Europeans assumed they were some type of royalty.

Red Feather was born Florence Tsianina Evans on December 13,1882 in Eufallia (Oklahoma Territory) to Creek and Cherokee parents. All her 9 siblings were musical, but she was the one who stood out.

At age 14, she went to Denver to be trained to sing. There, she met the composer Charles Cadman and began touring with him at 16. She became a mezzo soprano virtuoso. While touring the United States, Canada, Paris and London, she wore native dress, braided her hair and wore a headband she beaded herself.

In 1918, she and Cadman debuted "Shanewis" (The Robin Woman) at the Metropolitan Opera; the cast received 22 curtain calls. Cadman based the opera on Native American stories told by Redfeather. Although this opera had many firsts, it became the first contemporary opera to be performed for a 2nd season at the Met.

The Robin Woman: Shanewis, 1918 - an opera in one act and two scenes by American composer Charles Cadman and Tsianina Redfeather Blackstone. Cadman called the work an "American opera."

Photo is Miss Anna Trainor, who later became Mrs. Anna Bennett. She was only Cherokee on her mother's side, but because it was the woman's bloodlines that determined kinship, she was considered Cherokee.

The title Ghigau also translates to "War Woman," and Nan'yehi (Nancy Ward) earned the title by taking up her husband's gun when he was slain in a battle against the Creeks and leading her people to victory. Another War Woman, Cuhtahlatah, won honor during the American Revolutionary period by leading Cherokee warriors to victory after her husband fell. She later joined in a vigorous war dance carrying her tomahawk and gun.

It was important to the Cherokee that their losses be compensated with the same number of prisoners, scalps, or lives. Woman led in the execution of prisoners. It was their right and responsibility as mothers. Women had the right to claim prisoners as slaves, adopt them as kin, or condemn them to death "with the wave of a swan's wing."

In the Cherokee society your Clan was your family. Children belonged to the entire Clan, and when orphaned were simply taken into a different household. Marriage within the clan was strictly forbidden, or pain of death. Marriages were often short term, and there was no punishment for divorce or adultery. Cherokee women were free to marry traders, surveyors, and soldiers, as well as their own tribesmen.

7 Cherokee Clans - L to R: 1.Wolf Clan 2.Long Hair Clan 3.Red Tail Hawk Clan 4.Blue Holly Clan 5.Deer Clan 6.Paint Clan 7.Wild Potato Clan

Cherokee girls learned by example how to be warriors and healers. They learned to weave baskets, tell stories, trade, and dance. They became mothers and wives, and learned their heritage. The Cherokee learned to adapt, and the women were the core of the Cherokee.

Other indigenous nations were were matrilineal. Women of the six nations Iroquois confederacy (Haudenosaunee) had a political voice on this land for at least 1,000 years.

The male chiefs who are the representatives of their clan in the confederacy of the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca, and Tuscarora Nations are selected, held in office, and removed by women – the clan mothers. Founded on the shores of Onondaga Lake, this oldest continuing democracy in the world is based on a system of gender balance. The position of the chief is vested in the clan mother, who is the eyes and ears of the people, while the chief is her voice. Women were “the great power among the clan, as everywhere else,” Elizabeth Cady Stanton marveled. Lucretia Mott wrote about listening to “speeches of their chiefs, women as well as men” (clan mothers and chiefs) when she visited the Cattaraugus Seneca community during the summer of 1848 before Mott, with Stanton and Quaker friends, organized the Seneca Falls convention.

In other words, the Beloved and Haudenosaunee women influenced the Women's Suffrage Movement.

#original people #cherokee #native american #Beloved Woman #nancy ward #choctaw #Shanewis #clan #indigenous #women #katteuha #haudenosaunee woman #Iroquois confederacy #suffragette #women's suffrage #Elizabeth Cady Stanton #Lucretia Mott #Seneca Falls #clans #society #culture

[grntaire]

this line. it's both condescending and cautionary. AND it's not the first time their love has been described as young or immature.

this is.

in this scene, the swede is singing "voi che sapete", from mozart's opera the marriage of figaro (mozart hadn't even been born yet, lmao) not only is the text of this piece particularly poignant to ed and stede's love story, especially at this point in the story, but its performance practice is also inherently queer.

the aria is sung by the character cherubino, an adolescent boy who is experiencing love and feelings of attraction for the first time. the song is one that cherubino wrote himself for the countess, on whom he has a crush. he's then coaxed into singing for her by the character susanna, who accompanies him. here's a translation of the text:

Ladies, see if I have it in my heart. I'll tell you what I'm feeling, It's new for me, and I understand nothing. I have a feeling, full of desire, Which is by turns delightful and miserable. I freeze and then feel my soul go up in flames, Then in a moment I turn to ice. I'm searching for affection outside of myself, I don't know how to hold it, nor even what it is! I sigh and lament without wanting to, I twitter and tremble without knowing why, I find peace neither night nor day, But still I rather enjoy languishing this way. You who know what love is, Ladies, see if I have it in my heart.

but, since cherubino is an adolescent boy whose voice hasn't dropped yet, cherubino is always played by an adult mezzo-soprano. so in most cases (though very much not all), he's played by a woman in drag. (these roles are actually very common in opera, they're called pants/trousers roles!)

so like. it's an aria about feeling feelings you've never felt before, your body reacting in a way you've never felt before, and being both overwhelmed and exhilarated by the experience even though it feels like it's driving you mad. and also it's gay as fuck.

#it’s also the aria lizzie sings in pride & prejudice 1995 lol #the second mary said that line i was like oh sick more cherubino content #i played him in a workshop version my freshman year of college <3 #i am not a mezzo but we made it work #our flag means death #ofmd #music things #thoughts

[swaps55]

Mezzo - 04 - Peace in the Riot

Pairing: mshenko | Rating: M Tags: Canon-typical violence, trauma, dealing with your problems poorly, body autonomy struggles   Summary: The twists and turns of ME2, through the eyes of everyone but Commander Shepard. Chapter Summary: Shepard’s not dead and it’s everyone’s problem.    Thank you to @sinvraal for betaing!

Chapter 4: Peace in the Riot | Read on Ao3

30 October 2185, Omega Nebula, Sahrabarik System – Omega Approach, Normandy SR-2

Synthetic skin fibers. Skeletal-reinforcing bone weave. Muscle-perforating microfibers. Biomeimetic eyes with nanowire retinas. Biosynthetically fused spinal cord. The more Karin Chakwas learns about Shepard’s reconstruction, the more miraculous – and overwhelming – it becomes.

How did they do this?

Perhaps what distresses her most is the depth of repairs that had to be made. Lumbar burst fractures. Exposure to hard vacuum. Clinical brain death due to asphyxiation.

Shepard’s death hadn’t been slow, but it certainly had not been quick.

Knowing that his death had been all but certain the moment Moreau’s escape pod closed without him – that Alenko’s dedicated but fruitless search had indeed been in vain – somehow is not a comfort. Not when the Lazarus data makes it hard to deny the likelihood that he had lived long enough to know what his fate would be.

But the intel had been true. Cerberus had reneged his death.

She could study the Lazarus records alone for years. It will be studied for years, if she can get a copy of it into the right hands. But research is not why she’s here.

She thumbs through the drug pack stores with a furrowed brow. “EDI, who do I speak to about requisitions?”

“What is it you need, Doctor?”

A uniform without a Cerberus logo, for starters, and a manual on caring for a patient who’s come back from the dead.

“More glucagon drug packs and electrolyte tablets. This is hardly enough for one biotic, much less three.”

“I will see to it crewman Hawthorne is made aware.”

“Thank you. That’s most kind.”

“Is there anything else you require?”

“I’ll let you know.”

The fact that serving on a ship integrated with an AI is so far down the list of her troubles it doesn’t bear worrying about should bother her more than it does. But she does indeed have far more pressing concerns, chief among them, the person walking into her medbay.

“Commander,” she says warmly when the doors swish open and Shepard enters. “You came.”

He nods at her and takes a seat on one of the biobeds, trepidation on his face. “I said I would. And…I had some questions.”

The scarring on his face is the most visible sign of his resurrection. Looking beyond the fissures that glow a pale red, he is exactly as she remembers, with no trace of the two years she’s lived in the meantime. He isn’t the only one with questions. Some of hers she may never get the answer to.

“Ask away.”

Sam Shepard has always had the mind of a surgeon, knowing exactly where and when to cut to get what he wants, so she prepares herself for a question, or a barrage of questions, that puts her to the test. But instead of ask her anything he sits in silence, expression empty, curl in his back. The outline of one of the spinal clamps shows through his shirt.

She hands him a cotton swab to use on the inside of his cheek. Dutifully, he gives it back when he’s done, surely recognizing the reason behind it. There is belief in what she is seeing, and there is supporting it with irrefutable DNA evidence.

Once she plugs the sample in to be analyzed, she picks up the medical scanner and hums an old song her mother used to sing when she was a girl. She’d always found it soothing.

When she reaches the chorus a second time, he speaks up at last, voice soft.

“What happened?”

Read from the beginning | Read the rest on Ao3 | The Mezzo Playlist

#mass effect #mshenko #karin chakwas #kaidan alenko #mezzo!update #this chapter has one of my favorite scenes oh boy oh boy

[henrysglock]

Mother is God, In The Eyes of a Child

This has got to be my farthest-fetched theory, and its more of a collection of observations that weave together than an actual theory. However...there's something distinctly weird about all this.

It started here:

Max steps on spider egg sacs in Vecna's mind lair, and the babies spill out.

"If there's a spider, you're never gonna find it 'till it lays eggs and the babies spill out"

Then Vecna killing Patrick while looking distinctly like a spider on a web, a direct comparison to those black widows.

And I talked in the discord chat talking with Em for a while like. They. They wouldn't. Right? And I've been sitting here thinking about the last time I said "they wouldn't...right?" So here we go.

"Of course you have a mother. You couldn't really have been born without one."

But Mama is dead...

just like One doesn't exist.

And whoever you are, either you aren't home (which, you're "Terry's daughter" in Terry's home which was decorated for you in hopes that you'd come home 🤨)...or you aren't Terry's daughter.

but wait: Mr. Mom? Perfect!

Mr. Mom...which leads straight to the lab going haywire:

Because of the Mind Flayer, who we know is (most likely) a version of Edward.

And "sleepyhead" is a parent thing...but it's specifically a mom thing, and it comes from the guy who's likely Edward. Why are you, as a man, so distinctly mother?

And so I'm looking at all of his God coding:

And I'm looking at his talk of spiders, particularly black widows, being the gods of our world:

There's also this particular dialogue parallel with Carrie's mother:

As well as Black Widow "God of Our World" 001 and Henry "Sensitive (Gay) Child" Creel, framed this way in back to back shots.

One of them has the rainbow flag and the other's got the black widow spider, makes sense...right? (Sure. Except not really.)

He also has a ton of God coding in his music choices:

Except, when we look at the songs he alone or he and El are overlaid with...Akhnaten is functionally a mezzo-soprano. In the pieces we hear specifically, Akhnaten sings in the same range or higher than Nefertiti.

Which then gets me thinking about the Silent Hill parallels (that Em has talked about here), and specifically this one line of dialogue from Dahlia:

And the fact that every single black widow spider reference regarding Henward/Vecna/001 has been about female black widows, never male ones:

As well as a good portion of his rant being about:

- Being vaguely broken (what's wrong with him is never said) - His kinship with spiders (specifically the female black widows) - Society's oppressive made-up rules - Being forced to pretend (unspecificed as to what, exactly, he's pretending about...all we get is "a silly, terrible play") - Reproduction

Then the fact that Vecna kind of has a thing for showing up as mothers:

And on top of all that...the fact that Vecna somehow lost his dick along the way. Where did it go????????

There's also all the birthing and reproduction imagery that goes along with the UD, most blatantly in the scene where El crawls out of the same hole the Demogorgon came through:

As well as these movies from the ST4 Movie Board:

Ace Ventura Pet Detective: Finkle has a sex change to assume a new identity and seek vengeance.

Let The Right One In: Vampire girl who is really a boy being forced to live as a girl

Sleepaway Camp: Girl named Angela who is actually a boy named Peter being forced by his aunt to live as a girl after his twin sister (the real Angela) was killed in an accident. (Wibble knows more about this one than I do, but I'm staring at Peter Ballard and all of our Angela's parallels to the lab)

Splice: Female Human-Animal hybrid "dies" (is actually in a coma) and undergoes a spontaneous sex change to male and proceeds to go berserk.

Silence of the Lambs: Main villain is a blonde, wavy-haired cross-dressing serial killer.

And then with the parallels to Room (even if it isn't on the ST4 Movie Board):

Plus Will's Alan Turing poster and the castration stuff that goes along with that..and the "Henry" that shows up behind him:

What in the gender is going on here?

#martin brenner. what did you DO. #he wanted more. and soon...you were born. #henry creel #edward creel #henry/vecna/001 #edward/vecna/001 #st theory #stranger things theory #stranger things

[dresshistorynerd]

I had the idea of writing about some historical queer figures I find interesting and drawing them for this pride month as a little project of mine. I will see how many I'll have time to do, I have in mind at least four other historical people, but knowing myself, I'm not holding my breath for all of them. Julie d'Aubigny she been one of my favorite historical figures for years so I decided to start with her.

Historical Queer Figures - Julie d'Aubigny

Julie d'Aubigny, also known as Mademoiselle Maupin and La Maupin, was a French opera singer and fencer in the late 1600s. She was infamous for having sapphic relationships, being aggressive and dramatic, having androgynous presentation by occasionally dressing in men's clothing in public and being a fencer and duelist. Trans and genderqueer readings of her are very possible, but because none of the accounts of her (at least those I've read) suggests she ever used any other than feminine first names or terms or she/her pronouns about herself, I will use she/her pronouns when talking about her.

The French court absolutely loved to gossip and people were constantly making up libel about the people they didn't like, and Julie had a lot of enemies and was very controversial figure. During the 18th and 19th centuries she was written about a lot in these highly sensationalized Encyclopedias, where the rumors from her lifetime got increasingly wilder and sensational. She was accused for example of seducing noble women in court balls, burning down a convent and murder. There's not much primary sources left or available from her actual lifetime so distinguishing truth from fiction is not an easy task in her case. Kaz Rowe did great job in their youtube video about her to try to actually find out where the stories of her life comes from. They go through some great context too about the rumor industry in the French court at the time so I highly recommend checking it out.

CW: very brief mentions of child sexual abuse and self-harming

The Timeline of Most Concrete Events

Let's first go through the things that have at least a bit more backing than a rumor started 100 years after her death. Julie d'Aubigny was born between 1670 and 1673. Her father was Gaston d'Aubigny, the secretary of Louis of Lorraine, count d’Armagnac, who was Master of Horses to King Loius XIV, and her mother is unknown. She was probably brought to the Versailles court in 1682, where she got a full education including academic subjects, riding and fencing, usually only thought for boys. She was married off to a Sieur de Maupin (first name unknown) probably around 1687, when she would have been 14 to 17 years old. He apparently got a position from a southern province as a tax collector. The stories about her claim she remained in Paris, but I don't think there's evidence of this, though what we do know of her adult life does suggest she was estranged from her husband and lived apart from him. Nevertheless, she did end up in Marseilles, where she first appeared on stage in Marseilles Opéra between 1687 and 1690. She didn't have education in music, but her good looks and beautiful voice landed her the role.

Her first appearances in the Paris Opéra are listed to 1690, so that is probably when she had her debut there. She became a very talked about figure and she gained both friends and enemies in the opera and the court. She performed in the Paris Opéra for probably four years, after which she went to Brussels, Bavaria, where she performed with the Opéra du Quai au Foin at least during 1697 and early 1698, after which she returned to France to perform again with the Paris Opéra.

It was the period when her career peaked and she got a lot of leading female roles. Those roles in French opera were at the time soprano roles, but Julie's natural voice range was lower, contralto. (There's a whole thing where at the time she was described as mezzo-soprano, but the music historian consensus is that her range matches contralto in modern terms as opera was sang on lower cords across the board at the time. (I understand nothing about music theory so I just hope I managed to explain this correctly)) She excelled in secondary female roles of goddesses and warrior women. For the leading roles she had to sing on higher notes than was natural to her and the naive and dainty personalities of those roles clashed with her own personality. Some later retellings of her life claim she performed male roles for female singers (which was common practice, and these roles were often those of young boys), but all known records of her roles are female roles. In 1702 on the leading composers of the Paris Opéra, André Campra, wrote her a leading lady role in Tamcréde, which is often credited to have the first leading female role for contralto. But her perhaps most famous role was as Médée in Medus, which was considered to be a very difficult role. Apparently the original leading singer had fallen ill before the debut so Julie was quickly trained in her stead, but succeeded well and got a lot of praise for the role.

In 1703 Julie started an affair with Madame la Marquise de Florensac, who was said to have been the most beautiful woman in France. This is the affair of hers of which there's most evidence. De Florensac was married and had children, but she was also rumored to have many affairs. Julie lived quietly together with her for two years. They were described by a contemporary to have lived in perfect harmony, always spending time together and only appearing in public when necessarily. Julie deputed in her last role in 1705 and ended her career after De Floransac died of sudden fever. Nothing concrete is known about the rest of her life, not even how or when she died, but she is usually speculated to have died in 1707.

Parsing History from Fantasy

Chronologically the rumor that places earliest in her life was that she had "an affair" with count d’Armagnac (age 46 at the time), before she got married in the same year so as a 14 to 17 year old. There doesn't seem to be any actual evidence of this and even if that really happened, it wouldn't have been an affair, it would have been grooming and sexual violence. Related to it is the rumor that the count arranged her marriage and sent her husband away, but kept her in the court with him. Then she "got bored" of the count and ran away with an assistant sword-master, Séranne, to southern France. They got money by performing fencing matches in fairs and taverns while they were traveling till they got to Marseilles, where she first appeared in opera.

The stories of her in this period are generally written in a super nasty tone, and she (as supposed 14 yo) is written as the seductress and the adult men are written as the victims of her fiery temper and fitfulness. All these stories seem pretty unlikely though. The rumor about the count seems (unfortunately) most possible, but accounts from 18th and 19th century about these early events in her life don't seem to be based on any information from her lifetime. I find it most likely that the writers in 18th and 19th centuries were filling out the blanks we don't know from her life and painting her as this (in their eyes) degenerate seductress from an early age. An alternative possible explanation could have been that she indeed accompanied her husband to south, perhaps near Marseilles, where she then performed with the Marseilles Opéra. Many sources claim though that she performed with her maiden name there, which would be odd if she was living with her husband. I don't know where that claim comes originally, but it could be false of course. Although the generally proposed year of her marriage could also be false, which would explain why she at first performed with her maiden name, and later in Paris and always after that with her husband's name. That would not explain how she ended up going to Marseilles though.

The next and perhaps the most infamous and coolest story of her sets somewhere shortly before 1690. In that story she fell in love with a girl in Marseilles and the girls parents sent her to a convent to avoid a scandal. Julie went to the convent with the premise of wanting to become a novice. They tried to frame the girl's death by putting a dead nun's body into the girls bed and setting it on fire and then went on the run for couple of months. While on the run Julie was sentenced to death in absentia, but after returning to Paris and rekindling her relationship with count d'Armagnac, he got the king to pardon her. As amazing as this story is, it's very likely not true. It seems quite unlikely that the 15 to 19 year old Julie would have done that, but even more unlikely that she'd just get all her charges dropped and these crimes wouldn't have hindered at all her career, which hadn't even properly begun yet. The first surviving description of this incident comes from a letter of her contemporary court lady, Madame Dunoyer, who was basically an early gossip columnist and despised her. Her story doesn't mention Julie at all, but talks about a nun, who tried to frame her own death in a similar manner to escape with her male lover (which still sounds very unlikely story). The first surviving description that attaches that story to Julie, comes year after her death from the very suspect writings of a known liar, Cardinal Debois, who did personally know and hate Julie. He claimed that Dumenil, who was an actor in Paris Opéra the same time as Julie, related him the story, while also acknowledging he probably did it because he too hated her. So very likely not a true story, but possibly something that was rumored during her lifetime already.

In the stories of her, after escaping from the convent and before going to Paris, she traveled again in male attire and met Louis Joseph d'Albert de Luynes von Grimberghen, commonly known as count d'Albert. He was an interesting character in his own right, roughly her age, and like her, his real story is a little hard to parse from the legend (though in his case, he was a nobleman so there's also a lot of actual records of his life). In the story though, he thought she was a man, they had some disagreement, a fight broke out, she won, injured him and nursed him back to health. And then they had a brief affair before d'Albert went to war again. They were lifelong friends, so this is not entirely made up. It's entirely possible they had a brief affair (and according to many stories an on and off type of affair that was re-kindled at many points in their lives) and there was rumors about it even in her lifetime, but the story of this first meeting seems to lack validity.

Next in her stories she met Gabriel-Vincent Thévenard, who was another famous singer and her contemporary, either right before or right after she arrived in Paris. They became lovers and after Thévenard auditioned and got accepted into the Paris Opéra, he helped to get Julie accepted too. It is true that as far as we know, they both debuted in 1690. They were also said to have been life long friends and again it's possible they were lovers at some point, but the details of their meeting are difficult to know.

There are many stories about her antics of both of her times in the Paris Opéra. In those stories she fought duels, assaulted Dumenil with a cane, robbed Dumenil, had fights with men after they insulted her or another women or harassed other women, tried to kill herself after her love was not reciprocated, threatened to shoot a duchess in the head, threatened to slit Cardinal Debois' throat, bit Thévenard in the ear on stage and had affairs with men and women. According to Cardinal Debois the feud between Dumenil and Julie started because Dumenil was interested in her but she rejected him. The Cardinal was a liar but it does sound pretty believable. So if it's true and he spread in retaliation a lie that she burned down a convent, her beating him up or beating him up, stealing his valuables and returning them to him by humiliating him in front of other actors, would align well with everything else told about her personality. Maybe her retaliation wasn't exactly as in the stories, but if the other things about Dumenil were true, I'm sure she retaliated in some way. Same applies to her threatening the Cardinal's life. He wrote about it, but he was a liar, but, but because he was a liar who lied about her, it sounds like something she might do. Madame Dunoyer wrote about her threatening the Duchess of Luxembourg apparently because of jealousy over count d'Albert. The duchess was d'Albert's mistress at one point and apparently he even fought a duel over her in 1700. So there is some validity to this rumor, though the circumstances were perfect to fabricate that kind of rumor. I haven't found as much backing to other rumors, but many of them sound possible or at least maybe rooted in some reality and exaggerated.

The rumored explanation for why she left the Paris Opéra around 1694 was that she went into a court ball in men's clothing, kissed a woman on the dance floor and got challenge to a duel by three noblemen. They went outside and she won, but because dueling was illegal, she had to flee to Bavaria, and later when she returned, she was supposedly pardoned by the king again. In the more sensational versions of the story she killed the noblemen. This whole story is very unlikely. Even count d'Albert was imprisoned for engaging in an illegal duel (the one in 1700). He got eventually pardoned, but he was a nobleman and basically a war hero. The first surviving accounts of this story come much after her dead and it sounds more like a very exaggerated version of the other stories of her. There's many more plausible reason why she would have left to Bavaria. If her contemporaries descriptions of her behavior were even half true, those could have been scandal enough. Or if the rumors of her burning down a convent were circling that time already, that alone could have been damaging enough to her career that she thought it best to leave for a while.

In Bavaria, she's rumored to have another scandal. She supposedly became lover of the Max Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria, but she was too dramatic and after she stabbed herself with a real knife during a performance, the Elector decided she was too much, demanded her to leave Bavaria and gave her money for it. She supposedly threw the money to the feet of the messenger and left. The first surviving account of this story comes again from Madame Dunoyer, the details of which have changed, but were always quite exaggerated and unbelievable. Still the core events might be true, it's possible she was the Elector's lover for a while and it's also possible she stabbed herself on stage for real, being very dramatic as she was.

Was she queer?

There are enough accounts of her attraction and relationships with women from people who actually knew her, that I do find it very likely that she was sapphic. Cardinal Debois even implied she was exclusive interested in women or at least heavily preferred them, though other accounts by the people who knew her did talk about her attraction to men too. Her dressing in men's clothing is also mentioned enough times by her contemporaries that I do believe it. Because gender was so heavily tied to clothing and sexuality and fashion was less about what you wanted to wear and more about what you wanted others to think about you, I think she probably had some gender feelings. Even her aggressive and assertive behavior was very much seen as crossing gender boundaries. There's no more evidence of her feelings on gender than her androgynous presentation, so it's mostly speculation.

In conclusion, she was definitely a flavor of queer.

Julie circa 1700 in opera costume.

The most notable source I used:

Julie D'Aubigny: the 17th Century Sapphic Swordfighting Opera Singer, video by Kaz Rowe - I mentioned this before but it bears repeating

Research page by Jim Burrows - This was great since there's gathered multiple sources on le Maupin, historical and more recent, some of which are hard to access fully otherwise

Julie d'Aubigny: La Maupin and Early French Opera, LAPL blog post - It repeats most of the rumors of questionable origin about her as truth, but the sections about her career, which have more backing than just rumors, are really helpful

Mademoiselle De Maupin; Biographical sketches & anecdotes, The Dublin University Magazine - One of those questionable biographies of her from 1854, really only good as a source of what the rumors were after her death

Chevalier, Louis-Joseph, prince de Grimberghen, essay by Neil Jeffares - Biography of count d'Albert, which includes a lot of unsourced rumors about both le Maupin and d'Albert, but recounts his life events in great detail, and references to each claim show which parts are sourced well

#queer history #history #pride month #art #queer art #lgbtq history #sapphic art #digital art #portrait #historical art #historical queer figure #julie d'aubigny #julie de maupin

[rabbitenn]

Any boy(s) of your choice leaving a note for their s/o after having to leave them for work in the morning before they wake up? Your writing is so g o o d btw!

SAKURA MESSAGE.

Even if you’re not awake to remember his good morning kiss, he’ll make sure you feel him close when he’s away.

ft. Kujo Tenn, Osaka Sogo, Izumi Mitsuki, Nanase Riku, Tsunashi Ryunosuke x gn! reader.

cw/genre: pure fluff.

thank you so much for requesting, dear ! The idea you sent is super sweet <3 I’m so, so happy you like my writing omg, I hope you like the boys I picked for this and that I managed to execute this prompt according to what you had in mind, mwah !

♡ KUJO TENN

He awakes before sunrise.

His phone lights up from his bedside table, vibrating as it announces the start of his day.

Tenn is used to this schedule, so his current concern is to stop the alarm before it wakes the one sleeping next to him.

You. His lover.

As much as he’d claimed before that his lover are his fans, he knew you were the one he truly, fully, loved romantically.

And you knew it too. Your boyfriend made sure perfection tinted every display of affection he graced you with.

For all the smiles he offered on stage, you both knew his most genuine ones always happened when it was just you and him.

Like the one he gives you right now, even if you’re not awake to see it.

You’re laying on your side, facing him, one of your hands on top of the pillow he just left empty. Your chest rises and falls in tune with your breathing, your lips gently tilted upwards in a tranquil smile.

You look so… carefree right now, your scrunched up eyebrows when you were anxious or stressed, fully relaxed now.

With all the gentleness he can muster, Tenn brushes some stray locks away from your eyes, leaving the sweetest kiss to your forehead.

Then, he picks up a baby pink piece of paper from the block you have on your room’s vanity.

In neat handwriting, he scribbles:

“[Y/n], my love, good morning. As usual, I’ve left for work already, I hope you’re having sweet dreams as I see the sunrise.

I have this evening off, so I’ll be home early.

I love you.

— your Tenn.”

Carefully, he sets the rosy paper on your nightstand, next to the white cat plushie you once wanted to buy because it reminded you of Tenn, and the framed polaroids of you and him.

As much as he knows he has to give his 110% at work and to his fans, Tenn looks forward to coming home to you later.

With a last look your way, he quietly closes the room’s door.

He better hurry, the sun will rise soon.

♡ OSAKA SOGO

Osaka Sogo always does everything five minutes before the scheduled time.

That, of course, includes waking up.

On work days, however, the moment is always tinted in muted violet shades of melancholy: he wishes he could cuddle by your side for a little longer; get to see your pretty eyes when you wake up next to him; give you a proper good morning kiss.

But he knows you’re okay with things being like this.

“So, you finally have a life of your own, one that you fought for, dear… This is your path to make, so give it your all, and please rely on me or on your friends when you’re troubled.”

Those are the words you told him once, when he apologized for not spending more time with you once MEZZO started getting more work.

However, no matter how busy he was, Sogo always managed to reserve time for you. As if those minutes he saves to be early had been contained inside a pocket in time for you two to meet before the day ends.

He had spent the night at your place, despite knowing he would have to wake up earlier to make it in time for work.

As carefully as he can, your partner leaves your bed, neatly pulling the covers snug around you. Gently, he takes your hand, brushing his lips against the back of it with the delicacy of lavender blooms.

Using a page of a notebook he had on his bag, he writes:

“Dearest [Y/n],

By the time you wake up, I will already have left for practise with the rest of the group. I’m sorry I couldn’t stay longer, let’s go on a date on my next day off, yeah?

— Yours, Sogo.”

Tucking the note over the pillow he left empty (and made sure to fluff up previously), he turns off his alarm clock.

Still one minute left until it was supposed to go off.

Pocketing his phone and grabbing his bag, your boyfriend exits your apartment, a longing look in his hyacinth colored gaze when he glances towards your window once he’s outside.

He hopes he can be back next to you very soon.

♡ IZUMI MITSUKI

No matter how silent he tried to be, you always noticed when your boyfriend left the bed.

The sun may not be out yet, but the lack of Mitsuki’s warmth next to you was enough to rouse you from your peaceful dreams with him.

“Mitsu…” You mumble, yawning, sleep clinging to your lids, as you desperately try to keep them open.

He’s already sitting up on the edge of the bed, his back to you, vibrant orange strands a little messy.

Hearing you calling him, your lover turns around.

“[Y/n], lovey, it’s still early.” Mitsuki says softly, as he tucks you back into bed, his hand squeezing yours for an instant. “Rest for a little longer, okay?”

“But I want to cuddle you…” You pout, eyes already closing in exhaustion.

He chuckles, planting a fleeting kiss to your lips.

“Tonight, yeah? I’ll be back soon.”

“Promise me…” You trail off, unable to finish the sentence before exhaustion has already taken you into dreamland once more.

Mitsuki chuckles, whispering: “I promise, baby.” As he rushes towards your kitchen. Obviously he’s not leaving without making breakfast for you!

A bowl of your favorite fruits is arranged perfectly, as well as an assortment of pancakes with cute decorations, and a mug of steaming coffee.

Your boyfriend sets everything on the kitchen table. A quick glance at the clock lets him know you’ll have to wake up soon as well.

He leaves you a note:

“I hope you’ll like breakfast, my [Y/n] ♡

See you tonight, I promised, even though I’m not sure you heard >///<

— Loves you, Mitsuki.

As you take the first sip of a coffee that’s just perfect to your tastes, you clutch his penned words to your chest, smiling fondly at how precious your partner is.

Tonight can’t come soon enough.

♡ NANASE RIKU

There were not many places Riku could sleep at, due to his respiratory issues.

However, he always felt at ease at your house.

For obvious reasons, it would have been problematic for you to be spotted by the media showing up at his dorms at night.

So it was often that you two met at your place instead.

You kept it extra clean, putting away anything that could worsen your boyfriend’s condition.

Sometimes, IDOLiSH7’s center felt bad that you had to go out of your way for him, but you always assured him you didn’t mind, and that in fact, you were happy to do this for him.

“Riku…” You called him softly, a hand playing with his hair as you faced those puppy eyes of his. “I like doing this for you, okay? There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to help you achieve your dreams and keep you safe, so please, never feel bad, my dear.” You told him that time.

Your caring words cross the idol’s mind now as he wakes up, making sure not to disturb you. He feels a little sad he can’t say good morning to you personally, so he’ll leave you a note.

Turns out you already beat him to it, having gone to bed a bit later than him last night.

“Riku, take care today! Give it your all, but don’t exhaust too much, please.

Don’t forget your scarf, and remember to take your medicine.

Love you so much ♡

— [Y/n]”

He smiles, a warm feeling settling on his chest at how caring you always are.

He leaves a reply on the back:

“I’ll do my best today, for you, and I will take care!

I’ve already grabbed my scarf and taken my medicine.

I hope you have a good day, [Y/n], I’ll sing at my best for you ^-^

I love you too!

— Riku.

With a smile colored in you, Riku leaves to start his day, a boost of motivation at the thought of making you happy marking his every step.

♡ TSUNASHI RYUNOSUKE

To say you adored spending the night at TRIGGER’s residence would be an understatement.

Your boyfriend’s cooking, the comfy atmosphere with his friends, spending more time with him after busy shifts at work… It felt like sunbeams warming your back, the pleasant feeling enough to transport you into honeyed dreams.

And of course, his cuddles. As midnight ticked by and you found yourself protected in Ryu’s warm embrace, akin to a blanket of clouds at golden hour.

That made mornings all the more hard for you and for him, who couldn’t be by your side to greet you good morning.

He’ll leave you with a handwritten note, and the promise to make it home early tonight.

“To my beloved [Y/n],

I’m sorry I have to leave so early, I hope me and the boys are not making too much noise. I’ll be home early today, why don’t we make dinner together?

I’ll text you throughout the day.

— Ryu, who loves you so much.

Tucking the piece of paper by your bedside lamp, the idol tenderly kisses your cheek, his soft ambarine eyes full of affection as he says:

“Rest well, dearest.”

He exits the room.

Tenn and Gaku are already waiting for him outside, grinning knowingly at their friend’s lovestruck smile.

Oh, they are so going to tease him.

#idolish7 x reader #idolish7 imagines #idolish7 scenarios #idolish7 x you #idolish7 #ainana #kujo tenn x reader #kujo tenn #osaka sogo x reader #osaka sogo #izumi mitsuki x reader #izumi mitsuki #nanase riku x reader #nanase riku #tsunashi ryunosuke x reader #tsunashi ryunosuke #ainana x reader #idolish7 fluff #idolish seven #idolish7 hadcanons #anime x reader #anime imagines #anime fluff

[dreamy625]

Overture and beginners - chapter 1

In early 1979, a junior typist at GEC Traction meets a curly-haired apprentice from the machine shop

Words: 1260

Content: Mentions of casual drinking in this chapter

-----------------------------

Katie supposed she’d known Steve Clark for most of her life, though to be honest she hadn’t paid much attention to him at school. He’d been in the year above, and she’d only noticed him in the morass of spots and football boots that was fifth form boys because he was always hanging round the music rooms when she was there for choir practice. He’d had hair grown just past his collar, which was against the school rules, and she’d wondered how he got away with it. Linda, one of the more boy-crazy members of her class, had tried to cajole him into joining the choir, but he’d just shaken his head shyly and melted away into one of the practice rooms. 

A few months after she’d started as the most junior of junior typists at GEC Traction, she’d recognised him in the canteen. His hair was longer and curly now, but definitely the same boy. He was sitting with the other apprentices from the machine room, a rowdy bunch that she made careful efforts to avoid because they were known to leer and whistle at any female employee who had to venture onto the factory floor. This lad, she couldn’t remember his name just then, seemed to be on the edge of the group, smiling along but not really joining in with the banter. She watched him for a minute or so as the queue inched its way towards the serving hatch, before getting distracted by the choice of soup or cottage pie.

It was months later when she encountered him again, at The Wentworth just round the corner. She usually steered clear of the pubs near work on Friday evenings - they tended to get rowdy and it was mostly just an opportunity for the boys from the machine shop to try and cop off with the girls from the electrical workshop - but it was Maureen’s last day before she left to get married, so all the women from the office who didn’t need to rush back home to cook someone’s tea had come out to celebrate. Katie had planned on staying for just one drink before her date with Gary, but everyone was in a party mood, and some of the older ladies started telling salacious stories about the managers, and suddenly it was gone seven o’clock. She used the payphone in the corridor to call Gary’s house - he hadn’t come home yet, but she left an apologetic message with his mam, maybe slightly exaggerating how much of a friend Maureen was, and returned to the gathering guilt-free. 

By the time it was her turn to buy the next round, the pub had filled up and the throng around the bar was two-deep. She exchanged an eyeroll of fellow-feeling with the customer queuing next to her and then had a moment of recognition.

“You work at GEC, right?”

“Yeah, machine shop. You’re there too?”

“Yup, in the office. I type. Actually, I do more tea-making than typing.”

“Well that’s a useful skill for a Yorkshire lass,” said the young man, and cringed inwardly at such a dad-like comment.

“Actually, I think we might have gone to school together? Wisewood? You did music or something?”

Steve studied her face. “Oh yeah,” he said, nodding, “you do look familiar. You were in the choir?”

“Yup, mezzo-soprano, fourth from the left.”

“Do you still sing?”

“Only in the bath! Do you still play…” She realised she never noticed what he was actually doing in the music room.

“Guitar. A bit. ‘M in a band.” He almost mumbled the last part.

“Oh, cool. I’m sorry, I can’t remember your name?”

“Steve, Steve Clark. And you’re...?”

“Katherine. Well, Katie to everyone who’s not my parents.”

“Nice to meet you, or meet you again, Katie.” He held out his hand in a cramped elbow-up handshake, as they were still trapped in the press of people around the bar. “Are you here with…?” The question tailed off.

Katie gestured to her table, where it seemed another of the apprentices was trying to chat up Janet (120wpm shorthand and E-cup boobs, one or other of those impressive attributes making her an object of great fascination to the men in the factory). “With the girls from work. And it looks like they’ve made a new friend.”

“Oh that’s Charlie, loud but harmless.”

When they reached the front of the queue, Steve, ever the gentleman, let Katie go first. And when the drinks arrived, he offered to help carry them.

“What about your drinks?”

He flapped a hand dismissively. “They can wait. They’re all drunk enough anyway.” He turned towards the table but then looked back. “Do you play pool?”

“Yeah, badly. Why…”

“Badly’ll do.” A mischievous smile formed on his face as he headed to where the women were sitting.

Depositing the drinks, he leant in and whispered in Charlie’s ear. 

Charlie grinned at the suggestion. “We challenge you ladies to a game of pool - if you win, you get to go on a date with me!”

“That was not what I…” 

“And what happens if we lose?”

“You have to go on two dates with him!”

“Hey!” Charlie elbowed his mate in the stomach, but it didn't stop Steve from laughing.

Katie and Janet agreed to the challenge, if not the 'prize' and, with Caroline from Accounts chaperoning in case the boys got handsy (with four grown kids of her own, she had moved on to mothering all the unmarried girls in the office), they moved to the pool table in the corner.

Katie was, as she'd admitted, pretty terrible at pool. Steve was good, and the boys won the first game easily. As they were racking up for the rematch, Charlie suggested they mix it up, him with Janet, and Steve and Katie together. This was a transparent excuse for Charlie to try his best moves on his teammate, putting his arms around her to ‘help’ her line up her shot and somehow always needing to get to the side of the table that meant squeezing past her. Janet put up only token resistance, despite Caroline's disapproving stare. Katie found herself noticing how Steve’s awkwardness vanished when he was concentrating; there was something graceful in the way he moved around the table, and he smiled just as easily when he mis-hit and potted the white as when he made a tricky shot. His skill and Charlie's distraction meant they won the second game, with Steve claiming he was the overall champion, having been on both winning teams. He declined the 'prize' but, from the looks they were giving one another, it seemed like Janet would happily take his place.

"So, um…"

The question he was building up to was interrupted by a passing slap on the back from one of the other apprentices. "We're going for chips, you coming?"

With a glance at Katie he hesitated for a second before shyness got the better of him. "Err, okay, be there in a sec," he called. Turning back to Katie he asked, "I guess I'm off then. You alright getting home?"

"Yup, Caroline and I get the same bus so we'll go together."

"That's good… um… do you think you'll be here next Friday?"

"Oh, yeah, probably. I come in here a lot." (Massive lie.)

"Cool. So… maybe I'll see you then?"

"Sure." 

She smiled and his carefully nonchalant demeanour was torpedoed by a broad grin. He raised his hand in a half-wave as he turned and took quick steps to catch up with his mates. 

Chapter 2 >

#steve clark #steve clark fanfic #steve clark fanfiction #def leppard fanfic #def leppard fanfiction #overture and beginners fic

[sailorspica]

reijean hitchannie college band AU headcanons that may not lead to fic form but i feel strongly about because i did undergrad at a huge university with a prestigious music school where everyone was depressed + i've been giffing kids on the slope (2012) w reiner's seiyuu + the given akihiko/haruki reijean agenda:

all the warriors grew up playing classical music w/ varying degrees of parental pressure, for example mr leonhart is a violinist and annie's first and forever teacher so maybe she maims him here too (he's like jk simmons in whiplash); karina is into classical music as a status symbol

by contrast hitch and jean know how to have fun. hitch learned everything from youtube, jean's mom let him quit piano lessons as a kid so he came back to it on his own when he realized it was cool/thought it could get him girls (it doesn't) (inspo: nick cave)

annie (lead/rhythm guitar), hitch (vocals/rhythm guitar/octave pedal "bass"), jean (vocals/keys/bass), reiner (drums). reiner would do bass if he had sukuna arms

reijean meet in intro to audio engineering which counts as a science class for some reason, form the band after roping annie into their final recording project; annie's an undeclared part-time student who mostly works

first they try marco as rhythm guitarist but he is too jazzy and cannot wrap his mind around rock tone, annie is furious (low stakes version of trost; sounds derogatory but marco just looks like a jazz guy)

hitch is a business major who thinks music is a hobby, kinda yasu from nana energy. annie recruits her after overhearing her teaching/berating marlowe before he absolutely bombs an open mic night

hitch is an acoustic girlie (dark ukulele past) but annie and jean take her shopping and she picks a danelectro stock '59

annie plays a jaguar bc of her short fingers, she's some combo of lindsey jordan / luna li but also j mascis

reiner's favorite drummer is karen carpenter, deadass

hitch is the least disciplined which equal turns teaches them to relax but incites rage, annie and jean lock her in a room w reiner bc this bitch cannot count

everyone sings but especially hitch and jean, the vibe is michelle zauner and craig hendrix; i think they hype up the other two who are very self conscious

main songwriters are annie and jean, jean finds jazzy chords that hitch hates

annie was concertmaster of her arts magnet high school orchestra until mikasa showed up and the worst part is violin is mikasa's like, tertiary instrument; now they are ex-gf roommates

opera singer mikasa ruins lives, she is kissing kissing mezzo historia in boy drag (inverse girl armin) in uhhh idk la clemenza di tito

ymir is probably a drummer in a nu riot grrrl band, root of her frenemyship with reiner, also i think she's trying to steal annie and/or hitch

reiner is a cello performance major who became interested in rock percussion after hooking up w eren; eren's taste is incredibly lame, he likes like, dave grohl

eren and mikasa both did piano lessons as kids and she forces him to be her accompanist most of the time, but he and jean tag in and out ever since eren gave himself gamer's carpal tunnel before mikasa's first jury freshman year

jean is Not a music major but he makes money as music majors' accompanist; he could be studio art? or something "reasonable" (a la the MPs, business school hitch), like cybersecurity

annie and marcel = violin, pieck and bertie = viola, reiner and porco = cello

bertolt is living studio ghibli whisper of the heart in italy

for the first half of undergrad reiner lived with marcel in place of porco bc that little shit felt smothered by the galliards bUyINg a whole apartment for their boys, but when marcel graduated pocco moved in and uhhhhh evicted reiner, who thought he had saved enough to make it on his own by living rent free but uhhhhh karina stole it

uhhh pieck looks like my first gay crush (a violist opera singer) so let's say she's studying abroad

point is, reiner is isolated through no one's direct fault, really, besides pock; annie is his closest friend in town and she's such a tsundere about it. he lived on her and mikasa's couch for a week but will never return because it was too awkward even for his broke ass

#my aot fanfiction is: post-rumbling political criticism and/or pushing my hobbies onto blorbos #anyway #☽ music au #hitchannie #reijean #☽writing