#the chasing joy podcast

[bisexual-horror-fan]

"Cleaved In Twain." Danny Jonson/DBD Ghostface X AFAB! Reader.

SO it was Lottie or the amazing @lucifers-horror-harem birthday yesterday! And I wrote her a lovely little Danny fic, she has a more personalized version but you lovely people get a reader insert version to enjoy! I hope you all love it! Let's get into it!

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Rating. Explicit. Length. 3.2K. Danny Johnson/DBD Ghostface X AFAB! Reader. No Pronouns Specified. Warnings: Obsessive Danny. Stalking. Breaking And Entering. Voyeurism. Chase. Predator/Prey. Degradation. Dirty Talk. Fucked Up Praise. Rope Play. Restrained Punishment. Spanking. Reader. ManHandling. Knife Play. Threats Of Harm. Actual Harm. Blood Play. Spanking. Punishment. Vaginal Fingering. Vaginal Sex. Unprotected Sex. Dub-Con. Threat Of Death. Actual Death. Dead Dove Do Not Eat.

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Love is a funny thing isn’t it?

There are movies and tv shows, books and podcasts, and tons and tons of songs, stories and more about the subject spanning back as long as human history has, and part of that is because trying to capture that feeling and articulate it to others is difficult as hell. The person to person experience of it is so varied, the differences can be vast or minute but all of them are there and valid, and yet, even with all these clearly laid out examples of what the conceptual idea of “love” is, he is damn sure he has never experienced it in any of the ways people have claimed that they have.  

Danny doesn’t think he is capable of feeling it, not like he thinks he is missing out on anything, not when he has other things to fulfil him.

It isn’t like he doesn’t feel anything though, you make him feel some pretty big things, just ones that weren’t conventionally or typically appropriate. He got those intense feelings from a job well done, and from a victim well stalked and eventually skinned. He loved the thrill of being able to sneak around and view every sordid detail of a person’s life without them being the slightest bit aware of his existence. The getting to know you stage was always a total joy, finding all the little quirks that make a person unique, nailing down schedule, habits, before really going in, revealing himself and going in for the kill.

He has been watching you for, God, months. The window placement you have going on makes his job very easy.

You aren’t the only one he has been watching however, he normally has multiple irons in the fire while narrowing down who was worthy of his attention and who he really wanted to fuck with. You were interesting in how unassuming you were, the way you behaved at home, so quiet and looking so domestic, he couldn’t help how the thought got him so excited. He would get thoroughly amped up to choose a night, one that you would think is any other evening, and then come in and tear your whole life apart, end it, slash and cut until you are unrecognisable and that sad little life you called yours would be no more. Learning all he could about a life before he ended it made it all the sweeter. 

Months of build up and tonight is the night, boots laced, hood up and knife sheathed and he was ready for an evening of fun ahead. He’d planned his way in over a month ago, found the easiest way one afternoon when you were out of the house.

It was late, after midnight, he was inside and ready as he will ever be to strike, he doesn’t think he is a nervous guy, a little too prepared and confident to have that kind of petty thing holding him back. Nerves are what the person on the end of the knife feels, not the one brandishing it. 

Now, sometimes, no matter how much planning is put in, how much care is taken and how well he gets to know a victim, at times, they can be unpredictable. 

He didn’t count on you getting up to fetch a glass of water from the kitchen and you and he staring at each other from across the hall. Him about to go to your bedroom and you standing just outside your door, hand still on the knob. You were just slightly shocked to see the strange man, over six feet tall and clad in black and leather and a mask and holy shit what were you going to do?

A beat and then you did something he wasn’t counting on tonight, you ran.

He wasn’t planning on a chase, he was planning on tying you to your bed while you were still passed out, and just ripping into you, cutting you from- Well it doesn’t matter because right now you were fucking booking it and he wasn’t going to let a small deviation like this stop him from being able to salvage his night and your murder. 

As he started after you he thought it would be easy.

Ten minutes later when he still didn’t have a hold on you he thought otherwise, where the fuck did you learn to run like that? And that mouth of yours! You actually threw a few choice insults his way when you had locked yourself in the bathroom, he managed to get the door open but you still got around him, he wasn’t expecting any of this from meek little you and frankly it was pissing him off. 

Well, not just pissing him off, you catching him so off guard, being so different than he was anticipating, than what he thought he knew you to be, it was, annoyingly hot. 

He finally got you in the kitchen, cornered you, had you on the tiled floor on your back, his knees to your shoulders, holding you down firmly. Slight uptick in his breathing just as yours had from all the exertion, but now he’s got you. 

Eyes locked up on that ghostly white mask and true while you felt fear, there was another feeling brewing inside of you.

The struggle in you stopped in short order when he forced his knees down harder and you groaned, your head tipping back against the floor and he said with a strong point, “You,-” A shake of his head with a breathy laugh he said your name and then, “- are a hard one to get a hold of.”

He sighed, “I wasn’t counting on that.” 

A hard swallow and you asked, “How do you know my name?”

“That’s your biggest concern? Not how did the big scary man get into my house?” He asked and you had to give it up, he had a good fucking point. He spoke before you could, “I learned your name a while ago, been getting to know you, watching a while.” 

“Watching?” You asked and he hummed, he sounded amused as he pulled out the coiled rope he brought,, “I like to watch, what can I say? I know what I like.”

A creepy, stalker with a voyuer kink, you really lucked out, didn’t you? When it rains it pours.

He reached down, began to secure and tie your hands together, movements practised and confident, “I had the whole thing figured out but then you just had to give me the run around. Do you know how fucking annoying that shit is?”

He tightened the ropes and you winced at the bite of them into your wrists, he didn’t stop, his tone was sharp, venom practically dripping from every syllable, “I didn’t think you had it in you! I thought I had you all fucking figured out but you managed to really surprise me. But, funny thing about me that you’d have no way of knowing-”

He leaned down and said the last part, his mask almost an inch away from your face, “-I don’t like surprises.” 

He was angry, legitimately pissed off but still, very into this, he didn't want to let on to it, the last thing you needed was to know that small tidbit, he was hard as hell and as soon as you felt that it might just give it away. He pulled back, finished tying up your hands and he was still talking, “Who the fuck do you think you are that you think you can get away with acting like this? Fucking up MY night?”

“YOUR night?” You asked incredulously and he said, “Yes! My night! I’ve been planning this for you don’t even want to know how long and you are acting like a fucking brat and ruining this, your body, this body-”

He reached out, a leather glove clad hand reached out and gripped your throat, your whole body tensed under him, your breath caught and his other hand latched onto the blade’s handle. He unsheathed the blade and brought it down, “-is merely where I am putting my fucking knife, a vessel for my art and for my entertainment, it is not actually about you but what YOU, give to ME in this exchange.-” The knife was pressed right under your jaw as he squeezed your throat and he gritted out, “Stop being selfish and making your murder all about you.” 

He stopped, he was so focused on how angry he was, on verbally berating you that he was only just now focusing on your expression and more importantly how it had shifted. You were flush, pupils dilated, panting and you were squirming, thighs rubbing together and it struck him, he tested it. He squeezed your throat and your eyes rolled back with a moan and he laughed, “Holy shit you are into this!”

A very nervous laugh spilled out, you rushed to defend yourself, “Ha! What? No! God, no-”

He pressed the blade closer and you whine pitifully and he accuses, “You are!”  You try to protest more but he talked right over you, “Oh my fucking God, and here I thought I knew you! What else are you hiding from me, hmm? I’m gonna have to figure it out for myself because you are clearly no help.” 

He moved off of you and he let go of your throat, he started to manhandle you and paw at your body to manoeuvre you, he knew it hurt, he wasn’t being anything near gentle but you were loving it, leaning closer. He said it in this fascinating combination of delighted and mocking, “Freak, you are a total fucking mess.”

He sighed and when he looked up, seeing something that gave him an idea,  “You know, I’m still annoyed from before, I think you deserve some serious consequences.”

A questioning sound leaving you and his hand came down, a hard hit on your ass, a barely held back moan from you and he said, “Shut up, idiot.”

He got up and said firmly, “Stay slut.” 

Like you could go anywhere even if you wanted to when he forced you face down ass up with your wrists tied, you were exhausted from the chase earlier too so even if you were unencumbered and in a better pose, any chance at escape was nil. 

You heard him get something from off the kitchen counter and then he was back on his knees beside you, he put whatever he got down and then both hands were yanking your thin pyjama bottoms down over the curve of your ass. Another laugh rings out, his fingers hooked in your panties and he tugged, you feel his thumb rub over the crotch he had to practically peel off of you, “You’re fucking drenched-” He sing songed out the last part, reminding you again of the obvious, “-you love this.”

He was right. Your cheek was resting on your forearm, face burning with shame, you did fucking love this. How he chased you, talked to you, taunted you verbally and with his knife, spanking you, somehow he managed to tick all your boxes without even realising it at first. You feel the smooth leather of his glove on your ass after he let go of your panties, and another hard hit, another jolt of pain, “So! What else are you into?”

You keep your mouth shut and he tsk’d, “You could hardly shut up when I was chasing you and now you clam up. Shame. I guess I’ll have to figure it out all on my own…”

A pause, tension inside you builds and he says, “I did notice you seem to enjoy my knife, so I got to thinking, and it’s not always true but in the case I think that maybe bigger-”

You now know what he got from your counter. He stole the meat cleaver from your knife block and was now holding it in your line of vision, “-is better.”

A shiver ran through you before the whisper of, “Wha-what are you gonna do with that?”

He laughs, “You’ll find out soon enough.”

The cleaver is pulled back and true to his word you weren’t left in the dark for long about what he had planned with it. You feel a hand resting on your lower back, and then feel it, the large plane of ice cold steel meeting your bare ass cheek and you yelp in pain and shock. Another hit and then another and the pained sounds change, shift, and yep, you are into it and it is obvious and you are totally fucked. He is using the cleaver as a makeshift paddle to punish you, it was extremely painful, unrelenting, covered a ton of surface area in one hit, he was strong and could put a lot of power behind it too. 

“You’re dripping down your thigh.” You feel him wipe some of it up, “Maybe you have more potential than I thought, disgusting thing that you are, I wonder what else you’d be into.”

Another hit and a much bigger shock of pain to your system, the edge caught you when he pulled back, he cut the back of your thigh, right before the meat of your ass started and you hissed, a suck of your teeth as tears welled up, voice wavering, “Did you cut me?”

You asked it without thinking and he laughed, “Oops.” 

Another hit and you moaned, fingers curl, you wish you had something to hold onto and he didn’t fucking stop. The guy clearly had experience with knives, you are sure the cuts that he continues to give you are all on purpose, the pretending they were an accident was part of the bit. 

Between your legs, the backs of your thighs were a total fucking wreck, slick and sweat and blood, you were crying into your forearm’s sleeve and he hadn’t stopped with the creative insults, and you were loving every fucked up second of it. 

“How many hits was that?” He asked and you were still crying into damp fabric and he repeated himself, louder, “I asked you a question, whore.”

You were supposed to be counting this whole time? You sniffed, lifting your head slightly, “I-I wasn’t-I-”

“You didn’t keep count?” A hard hit, you cried out in pain and he admonished you further, “Fuck. You are totally useless.”  

He brought the cleaver down, hard, right next to your head, he cracked the tile in the process, the sound and action made you jump. “Awe, scared?”

Not wanting to piss him off further, you say, “Yes.”

His response was only one word but it’s all he needed. “Good.”  

Hands were back on you, “Look at all this.” His fingers trailed through the dripping blood he drew from you earlier, and then he managed to do something to surprise you, glove covered fingers dragged up through your folds and you gasped in shock. After so much pain the sudden rush of pleasure hit you like a ton of bricks and stole all the breath from your lungs. 

A moan crosses your lips as his fingers dropped back down, he rubbed your clit, the slickness of your blood acting as lube as he touched, you leaned back, closer to him and he said, “You’d never guess how depraved you are just by looking at you.” 

His digits slide back up, two fingers delve inside and he starts to finger your own blood into you, a loud moan tears out, your head falls forward as he hooks his fingers and finds that sweet spot inside that makes you gasp. He sounds very amused as he teases, “Too easy.” 

And you feel him press his hips forward and you feel how hard he is, “You feel what you’re doing to me by acting like such a little nympho? Taking all this with an arch and a moan, you are so fucked-”

He continued to rock his fingers inside of you, focusing on that same spot and you are taken by all of this, head nearly spinning from how tonight has gone, the lingering pain, the searing pleasure, weak, you felt very weak. Fingers fucking in and out, his thumb stroking tight circles around your clit making your writhe.

His fingers leave you rather unceremoniously and you whine, another hit on your already bruised ass and you sob, he spits out, “Stop bitching.” 

You hear his pants opening and then feel him press to you, hard and unbelievably hot. “Got any cute comments or complaints?”

A weak shake of your head and he asked, “You want it?”

You did, you nod with a bite of your bottom lip and he said, sickeningly saccharine, “Course you do.”

Thankfully he didn’t make you beg but he seemed pretty riled up too. His hips slam forward, making you take him all at once and you cry out against the floor, the sudden burn and stretch overtakes but there is no time to linger, his hips move, no time for you to adjust. 

“Fuckkk-you act like such a slut but you don’t feel like one.” His hands gripping your hips, he started to really take, fucking into you quicker, harder. It’s disgusting, filthy, you feel like it too, he was your stalker, he broke in here to kill you for Christ’s sake and you are getting fucked dumb by him and you were…

Living for it, loving it, of course you were. 

You have given up any pretence of pretending that you aren’t into it, not like you can hide it, he can feel you clenching on him, hear you moaning, feel you moving back onto him. “You are so stupid-”

You agree, unthinking, just concerned with the pleasure coursing through you, steadily building, the mix of it with the pain from every slam of his hips into your ass, aggravating the cuts, making them weep more blood was doing everything for you. “M’ so stupid-”

“You wanna know why?” He asked, another thrust punctuated with a moan and you bite, “Yea-yeah, God, yeah.”

“Because you think I’m still not gonna kill you-” 

You gasp, dragged ever closer to the edge and a loud moan is pulled from him, followed by a laugh, “Fuck! You just clenched THAT hard from the threat of death. It’s got me wondering something-”

He reached out, he picked up the cleaver and leans over, his chest to your back, his hand comes around, he holds the cleaver to your throat and he says, “I wonder how hard you’d squeeze me if I cut your fucking throat right now.”

He pressed harder and you couldn't stop it, eyes squeezed shut, you can barely hear it through the haze as your orgasm overtook, positive it might be the last thing you ever do, him taking you cumming as consent, he asks the obvious, your body has already sealed your fate, “You wanna find out?” 

Again, Danny doesn’t think love is for him, doesn’t think he can feel it. But swinging that cleaver with a little force, slashing into your throat, causing it to break open before you’ve come down from your orgasm. Blood pouring out over the blade, over his wrist and down onto the tile, your cunt still twitching and then seizing impossibly tight on his dick while he is buried balls deep, making him unable to pull out, is pretty fucking close to what he imagines love feels like for “normal people.”

Cumming in a victim at the moment of death is the ultimate high, he thinks he might just never top it. If you were still alive or conscious or able to hear him he’d thank you.

#BHF writing #Happy birthday Lottttie #Danny Johnson x reader #slasher x reader #Ghostface x reader #Enjoy the filth

[primordialsoundmeditation]

Truth bomb: there is no light without the darkness.

Picture an inky black night sky filled with stars. Now, those stars are always there, even when the sun is shining, but we are only able to see them because of the dark. It is indeed the dark that allows us to see the light.

Our life here on earth is filled with polarity - and we can’t have one without the other. If things were wonderful, easy and light all the time, then we wouldn’t have any sort of appreciation for it at all. It would actually be quite mundane and boring.

Allow yourself to embrace the good. Embrace the ease. Embrace the light. And then when the darkness cycles around, allow that as well. Its presence is here to be felt and experienced, just as is the light. Fully embracing everything in this worldly existence - the light, the dark, the joy, the pain, the laughter, the sadness, the grief, the peace - is what we are here to do. These are the building blocks of being human.

Constantly chasing the light and pushing away the dark only leads to more struggle showing up - what we resist persists. Living a fully embodied life means to embrace everything that shows up, even when it’s hard.

Oh, and by the way - did you know that I have a podcast called The Shadow & The Light? ☁️☀️☁️☀️☁️☀️☁️☀️☁️☀️☁️☀️

New episodes with me and Elizabeth D. Winkler LMFT Psychotherapist drop every Tuesday - click the link in my bio and subscribe for weekly inspiration!

Davidji

[paceypeternathanslawyer]

Hilarie: Haley was spicy this episode. Haley was having a great time. Were you having a great time for real life? Like what was going on? 

Joy: No, I was still in a cult so my life was pretty miserable.

Sophia: But you were like, "I was having fun at work on this day"

Joy: Yeah, I think that's the thing. This was the time when I was starting to personally like really numb and trapped  and didn't have any personal outlet and so when I would go to work, to be able to go to set and dive into a character and just escape and be Haley. It was a totally unhealthy form of escaping my life. 

Hilarie: You weren't drinking or doing drugs. You were playing Haley. 

Sophia: I'm also like, wait a second Joy, are you saying the relentlessness of our TV schedule taught you how to disassociate. But I will say, I wonder too if that's part of what's so palpable. This whole double date we watched Nathan and Haley and Chase and Mia on, the whole time, it's so obvious that you're having so much fun on set and when you're not having fun in your life and you get a really good play day on set. Cause look, most of the time a 16-17 hour day on set is great but it's work, but when you get a day when you really feel like you've gone to the circus or the carnival. I wonder if that's a little extra energy that we can feel.

💖💖 Drama Queens Podcast 💖💖

#one tree hill #one tree hill cast #drama queens #nathan and haley #nathan x haley #haley x nathan #naley #otp #hilarie burton #bethany joy lenz #sophia bush #haley james #haley james scott #haley scott #nathan scott #mia catalano #chase adams #oth edits #one tree hill edits #my gifs

[moonfruito]

Hey! I want to start jrwi, but idk where to begin. Any advice?

:D !!! oh the IMMENSE joy i felt receiving this ask !! i am about to ramble a little a lot - if anything does not make sense then feel free to ask more questions :))

the main campaign of just roll with it is riptide, a pirate campaign dmed by grizzly set in the world of mana, where the planet is nearly all water save for some scattered islands. the characters are gillion tidestrider, a triton paladin/sorcerer played by charlie slimecicle, chip, a human rogue played by bizly and jay ferin, a human ranger played by condifiction. there's a playlist with all the episodes on so it's pretty simple :)

i have found that my irl friends who have never watched dnd podcasts before have struggled to get past the first arc, around the ep11-14 mark, but i see from a peek at your bio that you're a critical role fan so you'll probably have no issue :) the earlier episodes are slower to start but they're still great! the quality does improve a lot as time goes, naturally.

there's also two prequel episodes for riptide which you don't need to watch, but they're worth noting if you want to go back to them after you catch up like i did, or you could watch them before if you want a bit of extra lore context.

that's probably all the information you need to get started, but i am going to give you some more information about the patreon campaigns as well - you don't have to pay attention to all this if you want to just keep it simple! i just feel like giving a full beginner's guide for no reason lmao

for all three of the campaigns i'm about to talk about, it is $5 a month - obviously not asking you to just jump right in and give them money but i do very highly recommend it if you find you enjoy this podcast!! it's a fairly low cost for a lot of great quality content.

prime defenders is the main patreon campaign, and it's a mutants and masterminds superhero campaign dmed by bizly. the characters are teenaged boys with superpowers, enlisted to help defend the world of prime. charlie plays william wisp, who has ghost powers, grizzly plays dakota cole, who has super strength and does martial arts, and condi plays vyncent sol, who's from another world and has people living inside his brain? i don't really know how to explain that one uhhh the first five episodes are available for free - won't link each because it'll clog up the post but here's the first one. decent place to start if you're considering getting the patreon, although similarly to riptide the beginning episodes are a little slower as they start around the same time.

this one i'd personally recommend watching after you finish the other campaigns, simply because it's the longest of the patreon campaigns, but it is very great! <33 it also has two prequel episodes which are for free - similarly not required watching but good fun nonetheless!

apotheosis is a fifteen episode-long mini-campaign where the players go around and kill all the gods, dmed by condi. peter sqloint is a human possessed by an archangel played by charlie, rumi is a changeling bard/warlock who is chasing visions played by grizzly and thanatos is a very intense and murderous war forged played by bizly. first episode is available for free, and it is essentially the compiled session zeroes of their individual characters.

this campaign is, in my personal opinion, the best place to start for patreon because of the shorter length and how easy and quick it is to get into. if this was not a patreon campaign i would recommend this as the best place to start jrwi, honestly, because the shorter length means everything's more packed in and faster-paced and it helps you get into the swing of things and get the satisfaction of watching through all of it, while also showcasing the potential of the episodes to come later in the longer campaigns.

blood in the bayou is a four episode-long call of cthulhu campaign set in galloway, louisiana in the 1980s, dmed by charlie, where three old friends reunite and discover their hometown's local horrors. kian stone, a big city rockstar, is played grizzly, timothy rand, a stoner still living with his parents, is played by bizly, and rolan deep, a lawyer, is played by condi. it is audio-only and has higher quality sound design and an original soundtrack. pretty different for the other campaigns but so well-made. good place to start with patreon as well! the first episode is available for free too <3

and that's all for the recent stuff! there were a couple other campaigns from years back that never got finished and never will get finished and some scattered oneshots but i hope that was all helpful in some way!! i hope you have a great time watching jrwi and that you'll fall in love with this podcast like i and many other people have! <33 really happy to see you interested - lot of love has been put into this show and each of the campaigns really are so good :) again, if you have any more questions then go ahead and ask!! i'm always happy to help :D

also if anyone wants to rb this for other potential jrwi watchers then feel free to ?? idk if anyone was considering that but y'know the recent influx of qsmp charlie fans might have some takers and the jrwi propaganda machine never stops

#jrwi #jrwi riptide #jrwi bitb #just roll with it #jrwi pd #jrwi prime defenders #jrwi blood in the bayou #blood in the bayou #prime defenders #my textpost #jrwi apotheosis #just roll with it apotheosis

[ms-scarletwings]

Been wanting to brain myself with a hamer over some completely nothingburger vague nebulous internet drama, as ya do, so I’m starting to become really radical about the grasspill lately.

I couldn’t force myself to just stay off of social media entirely even though I knew I was in a place mentally that warranted a break, so I promised myself and my friends that the next time I saw anything in my feeds that annoyed the shit out of me, I’d get dressed, walk straight outside and pick up that trash by the treeline that I’d occasionally been complaining about seeing outside my window for the last few days. Didn’t matter what website it came from, the rules were set.

What do you know it didn’t even take 12 hours before I hit another “anime forehead vein bulge” moment over some YouTube comment shit and instead of wasting my keyboard warrior breath I got shoes on, put a podcast into my headphones, and literally just picked up litter out of the stormwater section of my neighborhood until staying that angry finally started to seem ridiculous. I got two garbage bags full of styrofoam, plastic, etc out of the woods and I’m actually feeling pretty damn good about it and surprisingly, not regretful of focusing my limited time and energy on something other than doomscrolling or bickering with strangers on the interwebs about esoteric niche ass discourse. I even found four more cicada husks for my collection (super cool)

I’m so not regretful of that that it’s probably going to become a running policy of mine now that the weather’s getting better here. Dumb bullshit pisses me off too much, I’m grabbing my net and I’m gonna go look for critters and scavenger hunt down more styrofoam packing peanuts I might have missed by the creek. Hell, maybe I’ll bring the dog too if I feel like it. Ending point is only the reminder for a LOT of you on the interwebs to consider just, anything spontaneous and outside of the box that seems literally designed to keep you chained here by your anger instead of your joy. In any game where once you start to introspect, you find out that you are more the ball for algorithms and trolls to score points with than you are a player, sometimes the healthiest option is to play something else for a change. Come back when it does something for you, on your own terms, by your own choice. Chase health over harm. Feed passion over despair.

#touching grass #self care #mental health #hopium #little victories #doomscrolling #scarlet rants about things #scarlet talks about serious things #my pics

[ericmicael]

And the last two episodes of the “Frozen Podcast” were released... if they don't release Wolfgang's extras next week, that's the end.

11 – THE CONSEQUENCES AND THE SOLUTION

It starts among the soldiers where the soldier that I nicknamed “young soldier” says that he was there the day Sankerhus' ship sank and Mattias asks the man to become the new narrator of the podcast... The man is excited in the narration

Disa explains to the sisters what happened to the automatons and her experiment about trying to reproduce what happened when they freaked out when interacting with the spirits, and Kristoff talks about the accident involving the wooden planks that caused the machine to turn on.

As there were no magical elements at that moment in the port, the automatons ended up focusing on Elsa and her magic, but before attacking they had to calibrate and at that moment the people from Sankerhus appeared with Wolfgang's lanterns modified by Disa and which also ended up attracting the machines. Then the confusion begins with Mattias and his men trying to turn off the lanterns and the automatons chasing whoever had one, and they throw the lanterns away, ending up starting a fire

Elsa takes control of the situation, wanting to resolve the issue of automatons with her magic, Disa even tries to help, but the Snow Queen is cold towards her, ignoring her, wanting the woman not to get in the way anymore

But Anna, unlike her sister, supports Disa who wants the woman to help her with the fire using her science while the soldiers deal with the lanterns and evacuate the entire area

Mattias returns to be the main narrator

Disa, using her knowledge of science, wants to focus on the center of the fire to prevent it from spreading, but it is Kristoff who remembers Wolfgang's “fire extinguishers” and goes to his friend while they go to Elsa

And for the first time Disa doesn't have a plan, she just wants to stop them, the woman apologizes to Anna and the queen forgives her again, but says this is not the time for that now

Elsa fights the automatons. Disa tells Anna about a secret button on the machines that would expose her insides so it would be easier to hit and so the two go to help. Elsa finally has a conversation with Disa where the woman explains about the button that will reveal the automatons' weakness, and the Snow Queen reveals her regret at having judged Disa so early when all the other woman wanted was to help her own people. And at the end Disa says that maybe when this is all over they can have tea together and talk about queenly matters, Elsa agrees with the idea smiling to Disa's delight (almost a “then it's a date”)

And meanwhile the speedy Anna manages to press the button revealing the weaknesses of the automatons and Elsa fires her magic which finally enters the machines defeating them to the joy of the three women

But when everything seemed happy, one of the automatons ends up breaking free and attacking Elsa directly, but Disa pushes her, placing herself in front to receive the full force of the blow, to the despair of the two sisters and the anger of the soldiers, who are left with yet another cliffhanger

12 – THE SAGA ENDS, THE SAGA BEGINS

In the beginning it starts with Mattias trying to make the soldiers guess what happened to Disa

Disa ends up hurting herself so badly from the attack that she can't stand, but not seriously enough since Elsa was quick and finished off the machine before a tragedy happened

Elsa then leaves Disa in the care of Anna, who asks for a doctor and goes to the fire while Wolfgang arrives

In the present the young soldier seems quite frustrated that after so much drama and suspense Disa just suffered a cut that Mattias claims will be fully treated in a few days of rest. They wonder if after all this Disa received any punishment, but Mattias reinforces that Anna forgave her everything. And at that moment Wolfgang, the birds and Kristoff arrive along with Disa's automatons which, in Mattias' words, were used to build a canal in Sankerhus. Wolfgang praises Kristoff's quick action in the case of the fire in Arendelle and again he makes the proposal to make the blonde an industrialist and once again Anna's romantic partner refuses the offer

Wolfgang brought the last piece for the construction of the canal that will connect Sankerhus with the sea, and then Anna and Disa arrive near the machine that connects the canal. And as a surprise specially prepared by Anna to please Disa, Elsa appears to the delight of the Queen of Sankerhus (yes, this is not my invention). Elsa is very interested in Disa's machine that explains details of the process that will guide sea water to Sankerhus, and that with the earth used to make the canal it would fortify the kingdom to prevent it from suffering from floods... . But it is Anna, at Disa's request, who activates the machine and makes the water run

And to celebrate everything going well, Wolfgang decides to play some music and brings a giant instrument made from parts of automatons that had wheels and could be pushed around like a cart. Wolfgang plans to travel the world performing his music and opera with this instrument. He even tries to invite Mattias to join the band, but he refuses. The nephew of the Duke of Weselton abandoned his old life and titles to follow his dream of spreading the culture of music to the people

Although he is leaving, Wolfgang says he regularly visits Arendelle. The man and Disa agree that they can now put their skills and dreams to good use, which gives them the excitement to play a new opera with nine acts, but they stop him even though the music starts playing

Disa once again thanks Anna for the help she gave her in everything that happened after the Sankerhus flood, and her words that made her trust in her abilities which Anna claims to be Disa's “magic”, but she reinforces that the science is not magic for the three women to laugh. Then Disa and Elsa begin to argue about whether there aren't rules in magic that allow the Snow Queen to create fantastic things like an ice palace on top of a mountain, but the conversation between the three women is full of laughter and joy

#frozen 2 #frozen podcast #forces of nature #queen anna #kristoff #elsa #queen disa #lord wolfgang #mattias frozen

[citadelofswords]

i’ve started my annual relisten of interstitial season one and i feel like i have been neglecting my duties as your dashboard’s resident actual play podcast liker so here. have a recommendation post.

Why You Should Listen To Interstitial: A Crossover Driven Actual Play Podcast

first of all: what am i talking about? well, interstitial is a tabletop game written by riley hopkins inspired by kingdom hearts. in riley’s own words, it is “a tabletop RPG about our connections with other people, the power we draw from those connections, and traveling to different worlds.” it’s a powered by the apocalypse game so if you’re familiar with dungeon world, monster of the week, or masks, you’ll pick it up pretty quickly. (you can get it on riley’s website or on itch.io!)

but this post is not about the game. this is about interstitial the crossover driven actual play podcast, which began as a patreon reward for the got it memorized? kingdom hearts recap podcast.

interstitial has three seasons and several bonus arcs to its name. you don’t need to listen to all the seasons in order for the others to make sense, but i still recommend you do. here is what the seasons are like:

season one, the original patreon reward season, is directly inspired by and linked to kingdom hearts, featuring keyblades, nobodies, and the funniest version of organization xiii you’ve ever heard. i will not spoil you for the characters or worlds visited in this season; i will simply tell you to listen to the first ten minutes of character creation and say that that just about sets the standard for the rest of the show. (all properties contained in this season are specifically disney owned which, as we know, is a very VERY wide umbrella.) by the way i listened to season one the first time while knowing nothing about kingdom hearts and i still understood most of it so don’t worry about that.

the door to darkness specials are one-shot specials released between seasons one and two. here are some things that happen in them: shego from kim possible norts archie andrews (touch of evil), riley fails so many rolls that tony hawk fades from existence completely (reality and other falsehoods), wheels plays bright eyes from the total eclipse of the heart music video (lonely souls), and in the 2 fast 2 furious special the party has to prevent matt hardy and problem sleuth from being norted.

season two, subtitled authority, breaks away from the disney property mantle. the protagonists are rescued fragments of destroyed worlds who are being shuffled from world to world while their worlds are being rebuilt. well, that’s the original conceit, anyway. i want you to also listen to this season’s character creation episode, if nothing else, because it is the PERFECT example of how to do character introductions through a framing device. also, there is a cyborg version of john cena being chased down by his version of vince mcmahon who has transcended this mortal coil and is now a gas cloud.

season three, subtitled proximity, was a surprise release at the beginning of 2022. it’s the heist season; the characters are part of a crew set up to just rob some motherfuckers blind. that’s an oversimplification. i cannot stress enough that season three is perfect in every fucking way. if you thought pidge voltron should have been canonically nonbinary, if you like john wick, if you like having two characters both named miles in the same room, if you like the abba song “the winner takes it all” you will love this season. it is only BARELY edged out by season one in my personal rankings because season one is my comfort show but who knows. i might revisit my rankings on my next relisten.

if you think the things i vaguely alluded to were buckwild, all i can say is, you’ve got a big storm coming.

each season is about sixteen episodes a piece, and each episode is about an hour long, so it’s very easily digestible. the episodes are absolutely hilarious and poignant in turn, everyone is a joy to listen to both in and out of character, and you can tell they’re all just having an absolute blast.

you can find interstitial on your podcast app of choice: spotify, apple podcasts, etcetera. please listen to it. and maybe if you like it post about it a little bit!

(please note this post is not sponsored by or endorsed by interstitial or riley themself i just love this show and want to share it with people so here i am)

#interstitial ap #interstitial #i am holding you gently by the shoulders: please listen to interstitial

[spigobath]

i present you the original draft of my fic "Atlas (At Last)":

(YES im advertising again i just think gillion fans deserve to go insane sometimes. ill link under the drabble <3)

(spoilers for up to episode 82)

--

gillion was trapped. without the final conviction of the elders, without the support of his people and hidden from the goddess- He could no longer follow his destiny. He was in a stasis of being the chosen one and a prophetic screwup, stewing in his many failures and far too few successes.

but he was loved. gillion was born of love, of a gentle hand of shocking blue chasing away the careen of the storm. and now, gillion was reborn into that same love, hatching and growing and expanding until his breath rattled and his tongue dried up. it was a wordless experience of knowing flooding his veins, and when a rift spread into the ceiling of his containment, he reached and ripped and prodded and climbed- and he was free.

gillion was born of moonlight, storm, and sea. now, he was brought back as the destined one, released from his imprisonment, struck by lightning and bathed in rain and ocean spray and blood red moon and deep blue skies. he burst, from the seams of the pearl and of himself, and fell back into the sea.

heres the thing- gillion wasnt alone this time. jay had dealt with gaining the luxbris pearl, and took charge in gaining his freedom. she carried the burden of a searing promise, but her love for gillion powered through and she mustered it. and because gillion wasnt alone, jay wasnt alone, and chip held his stasis up to the heavens, tears and rain streaking down his jaw as waves sloshed against the row boat and lightning slapped the water. and when it struck- gillion was not the only thing brought back with red flashes and blue water and the lovely lunadayae and the gentle vividness of a new life.

no, because now gillion was inextricably destined to his co-coptains, he was bound and prophetically attached. because when we was born again, they were too, because they loved him and he wasnt alone this time.

(my final sin is hating you)

his first joy was meeting them.

--

#fanfic #gillion tidestrider #jrwi gillion #jay ferin #jrwi chip #albatrio #jrwi show #jrwi riptide #jrwi #jrwiblr #jrwi jay #ao3fic #drabble #fic wip #<- i finished it though #spoilers up to ep82

[storiesofsvu]

A Redemption Earned Ch 30

Heather Dunbar x reader

Pics of the new place they buy together. A nice 4bdr in Sth Chevy Chase nice & close to everyone else.

The next few weeks went by just as smoothly as the previous ones had, Lily hosted a couple of family dinner nights so the hosting wasn’t always on Heather or Rob, and this way Cody was able to show off quite literally everything he owned. He had a couple more sleepovers at Robs, and a few more nights over at either your or Heather’s place. Lily was pretty open and comfortable but was still a tiny bit hesitant about Heather being alone with Cody quite yet always making sure that you were around for the full visit or sleepover too. She said something to you in passing about listening to too many True Crime podcasts, letting it get to her head that something terrible was going to happen to Cody. You also knew she was still friends with some of her old circle, ones that knew the Dunbar’s, had known Jordan, and they were shocked that she was letting anything happen, so you weren’t totally surprised at her hesitance. You made sure to assure her that Heather knew it would take time, and that it was a big step, you added on that things were hectic at your houses right now anyway, it was just easier to go to Rob’s.

Things were even more hectic at your houses (multiple, now three) because you had been approved and gotten the house you and Heat had instantly fallen in love with once you saw in person. It had a unique exterior that you’d both been a little unsure of, but once inside you knew it was the perfect place for the two of you. You’d gotten the important stuff moved over and set up, your bedroom, Cody’s room, and the living room to start with. Some of the kitchen was still in boxes, the second guest room and home office were simply filled with boxes or completely bare, but at least Cody’s playhouse was set up in the backyard and ready for use. You were ever thankful for the movers who were set to come with the rest of your things over the next week and set up the last couple of rooms so you could fully settle into your new home, together.

It was early Friday morning, even a little too early. You’d barely had time for breakfast, grabbing a coffee to go, kissing Heather’s cheek before having to race off to the school. Between all the selling, buying, looking at houses, packing, and now the addition of a child in the house basically every weekend, you’d started to slack with some of your work. Which was not helped by the fact that report card season was fast approaching and you had tests to mark from God knows how long ago on top of making sure that you had the curriculum completed in time. You were at your desk, fresh cup of coffee next to you while you worked through a pile of tests, trying to ignore the yells and shrieks of joy from out on the playground as the kids came in for morning drop off. There was a knock at the door and you didn’t even bother to look up, knowing that basically everyone on staff was as overworked as you were.

“Yeah?”

“Do you have a minute?” Lily’s voice broke through your concentration and you glanced up, letting out a sigh.

“Yeah, course.”

“I uh… I’ve got a work thing today that starts around the normal pick up time and is set to go until about nine, which would be fine, but I just got a call from my regular sitter and she’s out sick, like, super sick.”

“Okay.”

“I know there’s some like, school policy that Cody wouldn’t be able to go home with you, but maybe if Heather could pick him up? I’ve already added her and Rob to the approved pick up list.”

“Yeah that’ll work.” You smiled over a very much needed sip of coffee, “oh… though, Rob’s in a conference this weekend, and I’m on bus duty this afternoon, followed by a staff meeting that probably won’t be done ‘til like, seven?”

“Oh that’s fine.” She waved you off and you raised a brow.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah.” She smiled, letting out a small laugh “it’s about time isn’t it? I mean, as long as she’s up for it of course.”

“I’m sure she is.” Your hand darted to your phone, quickly shooting off a text, “I don’t think she has any open cases right now and she’s been working mainly from home so she can keep unpacking. If she’s busy, at the very least she can pick him up and I can weasel my way out of that meeting and be with him til she’s done work.”

“Amazing. You guys really are lifesavers, I hope you know that.” She started to turn to leave,

“Hey!” She turned back at your voice, “it’s Friday, he’s got a set up at our place, why don’t you just take the night for yourself? Pick him up tomorrow?”

“Okay, you are officially my favourite of all of Cody’s teachers.” She grinned and you laughed, “thank you. I’ll text in the morning.”

“Sounds great!”

She was gone from your classroom with a small wave, darting back to the office to update who was picking Cody up before she made her way to work. On your end, your phone pinged with a reply from Heather, she was more than happy to pick Cody up and have some Mimi time including dinner and games. You assured her you’d be home in time for a slightly late dessert, and to not worry about leaving you dinner, you could just stop at a drive through on the way home. The bell rang and you silenced your phone, tucking it into a drawer of your desk and returned your attention to your job.

*

Heather made sure to stop and say a brief hi to you while she picked up Cody, surprised at how easy it was to get him off the playground. You assured both of them you’d pick up a fancy dessert on the way home and you could eat it on the couch while you watched a movie, and you’d try your best to be as fast as you could. She asked Cody what he wanted for dinner and he requested mini pizzas with dino nuggets on top a side of tater tots, and if he had to have a vegetable he wanted red peppers on the side. While she had the nuggets and the tots, they did have to make a pit stop at the grocery store for some mini frozen pizzas and a pepper. Heather was pleasantly surprised with how well Cody was behaved and credited Lily’s parenting skills, he kept to himself and didn’t have any sticky fingers leading in to unknown items in the cart when they got to the till. She did however see him eyeing a pack of double fudge stuffed cookies silently so she swiped a package, shooting him a quick wink that he beamed at as she added it to the cart.

They spent a bit of time hanging out in the living room when they first got home, Heather asking him how his week was and he rambled on about school, friends and a couple of playdates. She made sure to clean out his lunchbox so Lily wouldn’t be dealing with it on Saturday. Thanks to Rob being out of town, she had very reluctantly agreed to take Steve for the weekend so Cody had a blast burning off some energy playing t-ball and tag with him out in the backyard and climbing around on the play structure.

Heather wrangled them both inside, feeding Steve first in the hopes he wouldn’t beg too much while they made dinner. Cody did his best to help, pressing the buttons to preheat the oven, traying up the pizzas and nuggets and setting the timer, carefully assembling them when they were ready, even convincing Heather to at least have one slice of pizza with a nugget on top. She made a bargain that they had to eat in the dining room if she was trying his creations and he agreed, even helping her rinse dishes and fill the dishwasher afterwards. They played a few rounds of Snakes and Ladders before Cody asked if he could take Steve for a walk and since the dog needed to go anyways (and was old and small enough she knew it wouldn’t be an issue) Heather agreed.

By the time they got back, Steve was wiped, accepting a bone from Cody before curling up in his dog bed while the other two settled into the couch for a movie. Unsurprisingly, Cody picked Lion King once again, curling up on the couch next to Heather with a couple glasses of chocolate milk.

*

Wrapping things up had taken longer than you’d expected, and traffic ended up being torturous between the school and your house. Then the person buying your tv had been running late, so by the time you’d gotten home it was well past eight. You had your very late fast food dinner in one hand, your bag in the crook of your elbow and a tray of McFlurries in the other as you finally nudged your way in the front door. You could hear Lion King playing on the tv, letting out a huff of a laugh at Cody’s reliable movie choice as you dropped what you didn’t need by the door and kicked off your shoes.

When you rounded the bend into the living room you spotted Heather and Cody on the couch, though, not as you had expected, letting out a little laugh. Heather was propped up against the arm of the couch, out like a light, Cody perched in her lap, attention fully on the movie in front of him, barely noticing you entering the room. Crossing through the room you ducked to press a kiss to Heather’s forehead, Cody’s face finally swinging to face you as his expression lit up and you held a finger to your lips.

“Can we play the inside voices game and let Mimi sleep?” You asked, “she had a long week.”

“Mhmm.” He nodded, eyes widening at the tray of desserts in your hand.

You smiled, passing one off to him before you briefly disappeared into the kitchen to stash the other two in the freezer for later. It wasn’t long after that the movie ended, and Cody admitted it was actually the second time they’d watched it that night. You let out a little chuckle, asking if he was okay to get ready for bed and he bounded up the stairs with you at his heels, making sure his teeth were brushed before reading him a story. You made sure the night light was on in the guest room and wished him sweet dreams before you headed back downstairs.

You tidied up your own takeout mess, along with a couple of other things around the house, giving Steve a scratch behind the ears before you finally turned the tv off. You then perched on the edge of the couch, hand caressing at Heather’s cheek before you leant down to kiss her forehead.

“Hey…” you nudged her softly, “you don’t wanna sleep on the couch, trust me.” She let out a little grumble, her eyes fluttering open before they shot wide with panic, quickly sitting up.

“Oh god!”

“Hey,” you laughed, “don’t worry. I put Cody to bed, he’s upstairs, he was so enthralled with the movie he barely noticed me come in.” You leant toward her, pressing a soft kiss to her lips that she happily accepted, “kid wore you out, hey?”

“I guess so.” She chuckled, “despite it not being that busy at work I guess it was a draining week.”

“Why don’t you head up to bed?” You squeezed at her thigh, “I need a bit of wind down time, but I won’t be long.”

“Yeah.” She smiled, leaning in to kiss you, “thank you. I love you.”

“I love you more.”

“Not possible.”

**

You barely woke up the next morning when Heather did, as much as she had needed the early night the previous evening, you needed more of a sleep in today. So she pressed a kiss to the top of your head and slid out of the bedroom, quietly closing the door behind her to let you sleep. She wasn’t surprised to find Cody up already, sitting on the couch with SpongeBob on the tv, a juice box in his hands he’d snagged from the fridge. He was still a little sleepy himself, quietly curling into Heather’s side after she’d made coffee and settled on the couch beside him. It held a very nostalgic feeling for Heather, thinking of all those mornings when Rob would whisk Becca off on some adventure and she was left to just have some lazy tv time with Jordan. She couldn’t help but wrap an am around Cody and press a soft kiss to his head, ever thankful that her life had taken the turns it had to lead her right back where she needed.

It was probably an hour or two later when you awoke again, this time to Steve’s barking, though you quickly realized it was Steve’s ‘I’m included too’ barks, laughter and playful shrieks echoing up the stairs. You could hear a quiet playlist in the background, wafting through the house along with the smell of something from the kitchen, all you could really make out at this point was coffee, and something sweet. Reluctantly, you got out of bed, washing your face and brushing your teeth to signify to your brain it was time to start the day before you pocketed your phone and made your way downstairs.

The laughter and noise of Heather and Cody’s voices got louder the further down you got and you rounded the corner into the kitchen where your eyes widened at the sight in front of you.

“We’re making pancakes!” Cody squealed and you let out a tiny laugh, glancing towards Heather.

“I can see that…”

“Sorry sweetheart,” she winced slightly, “I hope we didn’t wake you.”

“It’s fine.” You laughed, moving further into the kitchen as you took in the crime scene.

Rather than just opt for some frozen Eggos, or even a pancake mix, it appeared the decision had been to make them completely from scratch. And to experiment with what could go in them and taste delicious, there were bowls of sprinkles, blueberries, chocolate chips, melted peanut butter, bananas, jars of jelly, chocolate and caramel sauces and of course maple syrup. The island was covered in flour, sugar, a few broken eggshells, drippings of pancake batter, though at least most of that was contained to the griddle. There was chocolate smeared across Cody’s face, and you didn’t even want to think about how sticky his hands were, or how much of a sugar high he was gonna get from this.

“Looks like breakfast is a bit of an adventure?” You asked and he nodded eagerly, carefully pressing M&M’s into a pancake on the griddle.

“I will clean this up myself, I promise.” Heather chuckled softly, leaning in to steal a kiss, her hand resting on your forearm and you let out a little grimace.

“You even realize how sticky you are?” You laughed, “glad you’re having fun…. God Heat it’s in your hair…” You sucked your thumb into your mouth and reached out to attempt to wipe away the chocolate on her temple but you were right, part of it was already stuck into her hair.

“I’ll admit things may have gotten a little out of hand.” She blushed and you chuckled.

“As long as you’re enjoying yourselves.” Smiling you moved passed her to fill up a mug of coffee and wash the sticky off your arm to avoid getting even more messy that fast.

“Ms. Y/n, I’m gonna try one with gummy worms next, you wanna share it?” Cody asked, looking up at you with eager eyes and you laughed over the rim of your coffee.

“How about… you make me a very special one with some blueberries?”

“Okay!” He scrambled over to the bowl of blueberries, bringing it back to beside the griddle as Heather ladled out some more batter onto it. Cody dumped probably far too many blueberries onto it, watching as it cooked until Heather helped him flip it over, praising him on a job well done when it didn’t go flying all over the place.

“Thank you very much.” You smiled, taking the plate from him to add a little bit of syrup before cutting it into pieces to eat. Honestly, it was pretty good, even if it was more blueberry than pancake. As it turned out, the gummy worm one was not good, and got added to the ‘nope’ pile of pancake filling to remember for next time. You’d just refilled your coffee when Cody turned to you again, having watched the way Heather had stolen a brief kiss,

“Ms. Y/n?”

“Yes?” You raised a brow.

“Are you also my gramma?”

You did your best not to scoff as Heather let out a snort of a laugh, trying to hold back more laughter as she glanced over to you and you shot her a glare.

“I…uh… I mean… not by blood. But I guess, I kind of am? But we can just stick with y/n, okay?”

“Okay.” He shrugged, picking up a few gummy worms from the non cooked bowl to much on before turning to Heat, “Mimi can we watch more SpongeBob?”

“Of course.” She smiled, “just wash your hands first.”

Cody leapt down from the stool and raced down the hall to the bathroom and you let out a little laugh,

“Well, thanks for making me a gramma.”

“You’ll get used to it.” She replied with a grin, leaning in to kiss you softly, “and I promise, I will clean the kitchen up after Lily picks him up, don’t you dare lift a finger.”

“Okay.” You let out a small laugh, turning to refill your coffee, “I’ve got some more marking I need to finish by Monday, you think you can handle it on your own?”

“Yes. And I wouldn’t complain if you happened to do it on the patio and kicked the ball around for Steve to burn off some energy?”

“I think that can definitely be arranged.”

**

Halfway through your day of marking and keeping Steve occupied you moved from the back yard to the front to attempt to keep somewhat in the sun. You’d finished a pile of math tests and moved onto book reports when you caught movement out of the corner of your eye, glancing up right as Steve practically launched toward Lily with a friendly bark and a happily wagging tail.

“Hey.” You greeted with a smile, stacking up what you were working on and gathering your things together.

“Hey.” She replied, “have to admit, kinda glad you were out front, the address was a little hard to see.”

“Oh shit, right.” You laughed, “this is your first time at the new place.” You whistled to Steve as you stood, nodding toward the house and he happily trotted along after you after a scratch from Lily, “come on in.”

“Oh it’s gorgeous.” She complimented as she followed you through the house, though she suddenly stalled in her tracks in the doorway to the kitchen, “oh.. oh god… I probably should’ve warned you he can be a bit of a tornado in the kitchen.”

“Don’t worry about it.” You shot her a grin, “I think Heat was responsible for more than half of it, and they had fun.”

“Mom!” Cody’s voice rang through the space and he happily jogged up to her, proudly presenting the macaroni art they’d been working on.

“Hey bud.”

“Quite the creative genius you’ve got here.” Heather commented and Lily laughed,

“Wild imagination for sure.”

Conversation began to flow easily, catching each other up on how the sleepover went and plans for the upcoming week. Lily complimented the house once again, prompting Cody to drag her off on the full tour and she winced once again at the state of the kitchen. Heather assured her the mess was mainly her fault and to not worry about it whatsoever and once Cody had collected his things, they were on their way.

Heather retreated to the dining room to first tidy up the macaroni art, making sure everything found its way to their proper homes before she finally turned to face the kitchen, catching you leaning against the door frame.

“You sure you don’t want help with this?”

“Yes.” She laughed, stepping toward you to press a gentle kiss onto your lips, “I’ll be fine, but maybe we should order takeout for dinner, you could take care of that in a bit?”

“Of course.” You smiled, watching the dreamy look in her eyes as she thought for a moment before turning, her eyes sweeping through the space, “what?” You asked softly.

“I... uh, nothing.” She waved you off, “it’s silly.”

“As silly as putting gummy worms in pancakes?” You raised a brow and she laughed.

“I guess not.” She sighed lightly, “I just, I’ve had more fun in these last couple of weeks getting to spend my days with Cody than in a long time.” She faltered suddenly, “except with you!”

“I know what you mean.” You laughed.

“It’s just nice knowing that we’re not forcing ourselves into his life, that it’s giving Lily some actual alone time, or grown up time, or whatever she wants to do with it time. There’s a lot of days that I wish we could give her even more than that.”

“Well, what’s stopping you?”

“Work, mainly.” She let out another little sigh, “but I haven’t felt that same passion about work that I used to in a long time.”

“When was your last actual case?” You asked and she paused to think.

“Before Jordan’s birthday….”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Which is why… God I can’t even believe I’m saying this, but these past couple of months I’ve been thinking more and more about retiring.”

“Seriously?” Your head tilted, “you were practically married to the job when I met you!” Heather let out a chuckle.

“I didn’t have any other way to spend my time. I hadn’t for a decade.” She shrugged, “I guess it’s kind of just making more sense now. When I first got back they wanted me to start up the firm and get it running smoothly, make sure the respected Dunbar name was attached to it and go from there. I honestly didn’t think I would be staying in Washington. I had zero plans to reach out to Becca or Rob, and never in a million years did I think they would be as willing to give me a second chance as they have…” as she trailed off you could see the slight misting in her eyes, “I was still wary about staying until I met you…”

“Heat…”

“I’m serious. It was never meant to be permanent, and the last thing I actually want to be doing is running a law firm full time without ever taking cases. But even then, I’ve lost a little bit of the passion for the legal field that I used to have. And I think I’d rather just spend time with you, Cody, the rest of my family, that’s the important stuff, right?”

“Sounds like you’ve had some time to really think this through?” You grinned, raising a brow in her direction and she chuckled softly, accepting the kiss you left on her lips.

“I have. After Lily let us in, I stopped taking cases on purpose, guess I wanted to see if I could do it or if it would drive me stir crazy.”

“And?”

“I would be more than happy if I never have to set foot in that firm again.”

“And it’s not like you have to worry about money.” You teased and she scoffed with an eye roll.

“I don’t.” She took a breath before glancing up at you, “what do you think?”

“I think…” you stepped toward her, looping your arms around her shoulders, “that if you want to be a stay at home gramma, that’s perfectly fine with me.” You grinned when she scowled at the use of the word ‘gramma’, but she still smiled, leaning in to kiss you again. “I mean it Heat, you should do what makes you happy, and I’m sure Lily would love having more hours where she can rely on you. You could go down to like, part time or something first, make sure they’ll stay afloat without you and then fully retire.”

“I’m sure they will but that’s probably the best idea.” She pressed a gentle kiss to your cheek, “thank you. Now, I’m sure you’ve still got marking to do, let me take care of this damn kitchen.”

“Good luck.” You teased, squeezing at her hand before you disappeared into the dining room.

________________ @ms-calhoun @naturalxselection @yesterdaysgone @hbkpop @giftedchildturns40 @anya-casablanca @svulife-rl  @swimmingstudentchaos891 @alexusonfire @jamiethetrans @red1culous @oliviaswifey @mysticfalls01 @cmmndrwidw @bumblebear30 @svushots @cerberus-spectre @emskisworld @ex-uallyactive @addictedtodinosaurs @imaginaryoperagloves @multifandomlesbianic @annegilletteslostwh0r3 @bookpillows @drduckthief @whimsicallymad @mmmmokdok @ladysc @momlifebehard @mmemalwa @holycrapraewth @poisonedcrownss @wannabe-fic-reader @when-wolves-howl @dead-of-niight @fighterkimburgess @lannister-slings-and-arrows @borg-queer @godard-muse  @itisdoctortoyousir @brooklynmhm @nobody-important1212 @emilyprentiss4life @httpjupiterbby

#heather dunbar #heather dunbar x reader #house of cards #a redemption earned

[nm137-blog1]

Justin as the DM for steeplechase has brought me so much joy. From the names of on-the-fly characters to the ongoing instrument buts, steeple chase has quickly become one of my most favorite actual play podcasts ever.

#taz steeplechase

[redsoapbox]

The Third and Final Volume of Have Yourself a Merry Indie Christmas is Released Tomorrow

So, I've reached the end of a rather wonderful journey. When I had the idea of curating a Christmas album, almost two years ago now, I didn't really have a specific project in mind at all. However, the best decision I took early on was to ban cover versions (I adore all the great Christmas classics, from Bing and Nat to Noddy and Elton) but anybody can round up a crappy cover version of an all-time classic. I wanted to see if there were undiscovered Christmas songs floating around in the ether that had simply never had a fair hearing, songs good enough to be future classics, at least within the genre of Indie music.

That meant a lot of back breaking and heart breaking (there are still moments when I full-on curse a record company for not consenting to the release of a track!) work along the way. I must have listened to every Indie Xmas compilation ever recorded - day after day spent trawling through Bandcamp, Discogs, label catalogues, you tube, Xmas podcasts and blogs.

On the subject of the latter, it was chancing upon the phenomenal Christmas Underground – We are the War on Christmas (Music) that allowed the fanciful vision I had of compiling the 'Best Indie Xmas Album Ever' to crystalize into a realistic proposition. I was discovering song after song there that I was falling in love with. These songs were from bands (mostly unknown to me) from all parts of America and all over Europe (Scandinavian Indie Xmas songs is a really flourishing sub-genre), it was incredibly exciting and lead to dozens of punch the air moments as, one by one, bands agreed to participate.

In addition to discovering new songs, I also set about tracking down bands that I admired and who I knew had an Xmas song in their back catalogue. I was lucky enough to get hold of songs from Dodgy, Girl Ray, White Town, bis, Pete Astor and many more. It was around this point that my idea for a 20-30 song album began to trend to the mammoth 108-track compilation that was released last Christmas. There were just so many unbelievable songs that I had to try and track down.

An example of the obsessive hole that I was digging for myself came when I read a write up on a Minneapolis band called GLOSS (who became Poshlost) before splitting up. Christmas Underground called their song 'Gifts Received' 'the best Joy Division/New Order Christmas song of all time! From the baseline, to the vocals, to the lyrics, GLOSS have hit the nail on the head when it comes to writing a dark, pulsing, disturbing Christmas song'. You can imagine, as someone whose favourite band is JoyDivision/New Order how much I wanted that song, because, unbelievably and against all the odds, it did sound like a Joy Division Christmas song. The band had long since split up though (the song dated back to 2015) and my bandcamp messages met with silence. In the end, I tracked down a band member on Facebook and received an immediate and favourable reply. That wild goose chase was repeated dozens of times through 2022.

Volumes I and II succeeded in raising £5,800 for Crisis, nearly treble the target I had set myself, having been played on BBC6 Music, BBC Scotland, Radio X and BBC Radio Wales (each volume was named Album Of The Week by Huw Stephens). In addition, the songs were played on "indie" stations around Europe and America (thanks to Sandra and Alice for constantly playing the albums on their shows from Berlin) but also in Canada, Hong Kong and Australia. Have Yourself a Merry Indie Christmas was also shorlisted as a (Welsh Origin) AOTY by Wales Arts Review.

The main aim accomplished then, but what of my personal ambition to compile an album that would be played at Christmas for years to come? Here is the verdict: A REMINDER OF THE INCREDIBLE REVIEWS FOR HAVE... (tumblr.com). I don't think there is anything else to touch it. For example, Rough Trade, as good an Indie label as there ever was, released a Christmas comp this year (some five or six tracks are on HYAMIC too), but it comes nowhere near the quality of any of the three volumes that constitute Have Yourself a Merry Indie Christmas.

Speaking of Volume III (you may have read the tracklist already at Have Yourself a Merry Indie Christmas Vol III: Line Up Reveal - Wales Arts Review), it matches the standard of its predecessors, featuring The Wedding Present, The Futureheads, Helen Love, Euros Childs and Buzzard Buzzard Buzzard.

The project closes then, having rounded up 143 distinctive, thrilling Christmas earworms into a three volume compilation that raises money for a cause which demands urgent support. This is the 21st Century and no one should be homeless in the United Kingdom. Thank you all for your generosity in helping others and for giving these forgotten songs a home too.

A track from Volume III "Xmas Trip" by Run On

You can purchase all three volumes here Music | Various Artists (bandcamp.com) If you do that on December 1st (after 8.ooam UK time) bandcamp waives its commission, raising more money for Crisis at Christmas.

#indie music #christmas music #xmas #Youtube

[kaportka]

✨ Never chase ✨

Manifesting is about attraction. What you want comes to you.

Step outside the energy of neediness. 

When you desperately want something, you are saying: "I don’t have it. I am lack”. So guess what will come to you? More lack.

Tune into the frequency of your desire. 

Start receiving instead of chasing. 

Become open to abundance and love.

Love yourself.

Celebrate yourself. 

Take care of your body. 

Nourish your body and soul. 

Create rituals that make you feel sexy and attractive.

Nourish your passion.

But don’t chase. 

When you feel confident, do you obsess? 

When you feel attractive, do you worry?

You are not missing anything. It is an illusion built up from your past assumptions and experiences. It is how your expectations have been created. You have learnt to live in that state of lack. 

When the idea of something that you want comes to your mind, acknowledge it. But don’t stay in the energy of desperation and neediness. 

Redirect your focus to yourself.

Instead of obsessing over somebody else, waiting for the text, or dreaming about approaching them, invest that energy in your interests, your profession, and your health. 

When you are constantly thinking about somebody else, you have no willpower to make healthy choices for yourself. Your energy goes to them. You want the energy inside you.

Close your eyes.

Imagine the relationship you want to attract.

What does it give you? How do you feel? Free? Independent? Ecstatic? Feel the butterflies in your stomach.

Feel the gratitude for waking up next to that person, knowing you will spend the rest of your life together. Invoke the feeling of joy, knowing you can conquer the world. 

After you open your eyes, maintain that feeling. It is an important part. Many people walk away from meditation and go back to the old state. The key is maintaining that new identity. 

You don’t pay attention to others, because you know you are in a fulfilled relationship. You don’t desperately scan the party, because you are satisfied. You came here to have fun. In neediness, there is no fun.  

Manifestation is easy. It is not a trying process. 

Whenever you feel the effort or resistance, step back.

Realign your focus. Stabilize your emotional state. Breathe. Do something that boosts your self-esteem: working out, reading, writing, recording YouTube videos, listening to podcasts, studying, going for a walk, or meditating. 

Stop pouring energy on other people and start pouring it back on yourself. 

What makes you enjoy life? 

Then do it. 

#loa #law of attraction #law of assumption #manifest #manifestation #manifestation technique #affirm #affirmations #motivational #inspirational #happiness #gratitude #selfcare #lifestyle #beautiful #mindset #mindfulness #inspiration #morning #goodmorning #self help #self improvement #self concept #self belief #mental health #anxiety #relationship #manifest sp

[talesfromtheswamplands]

Hey y’all - I’m really pumped for this week’s episode of Tales From the Swamplands. Is it because it’s groundbreaking? Or mysterious?? Or full of CHASES AND DANGER AND FIGHTS???

Perhaps... Or, maybe, because this week’s topic is...

Excitement!!!

There are plenty of things in life to be excited about - from the mundane to the death defying! But when your heart starts to race, it’s good to remember where that excitement is stemming from. Is it joy? Mania? Or unrelenting anxiety??? And furthermore, what’s to be done with said excitement? Ideally, something constructive, not destructive. But it’s as they say: We all make mistakes in the heat of passion!

As for this week’s Tale From the Swamplands?

We return for the fourth edition of Neil Silva, Private Eye!

After a confrontation with the ghosts of Neil's past (though not real ghosts - save that for Into the Mire), our favorite detecting duo finally has a lead in their investigation! But what answers will they find at the end of this harrowing journey? The truth? Justice? More office lobbies? One can only hope!

- B. Gaunt

Things are getting interesting in the world of Neil Silva! Where will they go next?

Let me know what you think, or if there’s any other corner of the Swamplands you’d like to hear more about in the future!

You can listen to the show here, on YouTube, Spotify, any podcast player, or the show’s website!

#theswamplands #tales from the swamplands #tftsl #narrative #radio show #noir #comedy #radio play #audio drama #podcast #detective #new episode #ya like jazz

[frizzle-tales]

The door clicked shut.

You are mine.

Why was her body feeling so… mellow? Her heart was beating a tad faster as an unknown warmth took over her body, waves of joy swarm through her chest as she tried to make sense of her feelings.

.. I don’t think I could ever stop myself from saving you.

Taehyung was being so… sweet. Jiyeon found herself wishing that he could be like this all the time, he made her feel so special, wanted.

The girl flinched when the sudden sound of the front door unlocking caught her attention. Didn’t Taehyung say that he was leaving? No, it had to be him, who else would have the keys?

However as his footsteps sounded on the stairway, Jiyeon quickly hid her face into the pillow, hoping that she could fool him into believing that she had fallen asleep.

Why was he even back so soon? Did he came to check on her to see if she was asleep? Jiyeon then heard the bedroom door open, followed by his voice and a quick uncuffing of the cuff.

“Huh?” Jiyeon sat up, confused, but she did as she was told, putting her arms in the coat and then letting him help her with the coat. “But…” She didn’t need to ask where they were going, Jiyeon was smart enough to figure out that he didn’t manage to leave and return so quickly from what he was needing to do, but why was she tagging along?

He wasn’t… going to bury her too, right?

Jiyeon followed Taehyung downstairs, but before she could even put on any shoes, she was swept off the ground and carried to the vehicle, and once they were in, the vehicle drove off, to who knows where.

The silence in the car was deafening; Jiyeon was at loss of words, understanding yet not understanding all the things that happened around her in rapid tempo.

“…May I turn on the radio?” Jiyeon quietly asked, and at his confirmation, she turned on the radio, turning the volume button to low as she listened to the song that softly hummed through the speaker.

All of this felt so surreal.

However, amidst the silence, a question popped up in her mind, and Jiyeon’s eyes shifted from outside the window, back to Taehyung, before she dared to ask him the question that was on her mind.

“How did you find me?” Jiyeon started, picking at her sleeve. “I mean… Did you just tune into the radio and…” She carefully thought of her next words, her gaze now glancing outside the window. “…you thought, those stories seem… familiar.” Jiyeon was so busy with coming to terms with her kidnapping, that she never took the proper time to process how all of this came to be. Thinking about it, she was nothing but a pawn in a chase of cat and mouse. “I never would’ve guessed that any of it was real...”

— 🎙️

“Come here.” Taehyung murmured before one arm found its way snaking around Jiyeon’s waist, the other under her knees. He scooped her feet out from under her, carrying her out the front door and into the passenger seat of his vechile.

Headlights illuminated the back roads, the only way the pair could avoid the mayor’s bullshit night patrol. “Go ahead.” Really without much thought, the man gave a green light to her request, checking the scene around them before turning down an unmarked road to the river.

“More or less.” Taehyung lightly chuckled at her question. She wasn’t exactly far from the truth. He did get a tip from Namjoon through the grapevine that officers were planning something, and when the oddly familiar stories popped up on some midnight podcast, it wasn’t hard to put two and two together. “Don’t be too hard on yourself, sweetheart. You were lied to, used as bait to catch me. Jesus—” He laughed again. “—They dished you to me on a silver platter.”

When rocks crushed beneath the tires, the killer came to a stop, shifting into park. He grabbed the bottle of water he brought along, twisting off the lid before handing it to her. “Drink.” With that, he got out.

Then, with a body stuffed with rocks thrown into the river, his exotic rug set ablaze behind them, he drove home.

Back inside, Taehyung resettled his little prisoner in the guest room, this time without the chain clamped around her ankle. It wasn’t like he needed to be too cautious given how her eyes could hardly stay open. But instead of joining her, he properly fixed up the mess in his bedroom, discarding the ruined sculpture, lifting the stain soaking into the floorboards. When he was done, he finally wandered back to his sleeping girl, plopping down on a chair that faced the bed.

5:38 a.m.

And yet, he still couldn’t sleep.

Not with all the static in his head.

He wasn’t an idiot. It was clear as day he felt something for this young woman. Something that went further than curiosity or infatuation. Why else wouldn’t she be dead already? Why else would he cave in the head of that boy just for touching her?

… Why would even the mere thought of her being looked at by someone else make his skin itch with bloodlust?

A sigh released from his chest. Leather squeaked under his weight as he leaned back, closing his eyes.

There wasn’t a single other person that made him feel this way, he knew that much.

Maybe Jiyeon was meant to be his.

… Maybe it was time to make her all the way his.

—

“What a spoiled little bird you are.” Taehyung taunted as he set a cup down on the coffee table. A soft clink of glass echoing through the room. Glancing over his shoulder, he studied the TV before returning his attention to the girl curled up on the sofa. “Are you enjoying your treat?”

She looked like such a pampered princess — although, a tired one at that.

Despite her mostly just seemingly groggy from the previous night, he still brought her some water and a cap full of vitamins.

Taehyung circled around the furniture, taking a seat in the empty spot beside her, the couch dipping under his weight. For a moment, he zoned into the scene on the TV screen, but soon enough he pull to look over at the young woman.

Her eyes.. They seemed to sparkle, shining with a warm honey glow. Maybe not to others, but to hun she looked adorable in a way, entranced by an old favourite film of hers. A grin tugged on his lips, but before they could part to speak, the doorbell chimed throughout the home.

It was here.

His special delivery.

The front door to his home opened to reveal his assistant, a box in one hand, fresh take out in the other. “Oh, Jiyeonnie.” After the brief interaction ended, and the door’s clock clicked, Taehyung called out. “Come here.” He patiently waited for her to make her way to him, and when she did, he held out the box. “Go put this on.” He nodded to upstairs. “Why not doll yourself up a little bit while you’re at it.”

His eyes followed her, and the pale blue boutique box she was carrying.

Inside of it?

A little black dress.

#🎙anon #serial killer!taehyung #yandere taehyung

[alastgoodnight]

"Remember to always say goodnight to the ones who love you, even if you don't think you need to. Everyone deserves a goodnight."

Indie RP blog for Naomi Joy Sato, reclusive podcaster and caretaker of a strange and lonely library. A study in grief, found family, telling stories and learning to be loved again, through the lens of 90's/2000's children's shows. Mun is over 21, but blog is SFW. Penned by Esme. Takes place during the summer of 2023. Scary things may happen, but this is not a horror blog.

Trigger warnings: Surrealist imagery, death of family/a child (in backstory), survivor's guilt, metaphorical body horror (mild), revisiting the same nightmare over and over and over again.

The Story So Far: The world is getting bigger.

Since getting her umbrella, Naomi has had a scare involving the ditch across the road. After seeing Rags dart across the street, she chased after him, believing a familiar red vehicle was oncoming. Instead of either being hit, however, she merely fell with Rags into the ditch, and had to retreat inside to manage the ensuing shock.

Naomi now believes that the red truck is not an invention of the library, but her own memory resurfacing whenever she looks at the road. This makes things difficult, as with the Big Chair's design on pause, she now has nowhere to work on but the outside of the house.

It's not all bad news, though, as a new friend has come to the Library! Arlo is a Sandman and shepherd, who herds the sheep you count to sleep. The fact that he has the head of a ram himself is apparently irrelevant. Calm, patient and understanding, Arlo seems to be a much-needed voice of reason for Naomi, a source of stability against her own thoughts.

With his arrival, however, a change has come to Lullaby Lane - the massive Slumber Hill now lingers behind the library, which was once only woods. This does not seem to be the last change the world has in store, and so Naomi will have to keep an eye out for what's next.

Current Library Residents:

Naomi Sato, the only human resident. She has agoraphobia, and needs an umbrella in order to feel comfortable going outside during the day.

Teddy, her goldfish stuffed animal. Not alive.

About 14 dust bunnies, including Buster and Wexel; Eenie, Meenie, Minie and Moe; and 'the class', a group of 8 dust bunnies always seen together.

Willa the Wallaphant, a felt elephant that resides in a series of tapestries decorating the library building.

Ragamonster/Rags: A quadrupedal puppet made of blue, green and yellow scraps and yarn, Ragamonster is the monster under Naomi's bed. Very large but easily frightened, Rags is as sweet as he is skittish, and prefers to be close to Naomi or under a small roof.

Arlo: The Sandman of Slumber Hill, Arlo is a ram puppet/costume who wears dark, glittering robes and bells on his horns. He acts as a voice of reason and comfort, and only appears at night, right before bedtime. He is always accompanied by his flock of sheep, which you can count to fall asleep.

The Flock: Arlo's sheepy, so sleepy. They hop fences.

Current Library Anomalies:

Blue Dreams: A series of dreams in which Naomi finds herself in an enclosed space filled with matte blue something. It has since evolved to depict a strange aquarium. See Three Goldfish and Closet Mirror for more.

Three Goldfish: A new addition to the Blue Dream phenomenon, these three goldfish come in varying sizes and are noted for their solid colors of Orange, Yellow and White. It is now obvious that these goldfish symbolize the memories of her father, mother and sister respectively.

Blue Umbrella: An umbrella of clear blue vinyl, decorated with big, matte white raindrops and clouds. It appears to have no magical qualities, but is an effective aide in helping Naomi go outside without experiencing vertigo, due to its distortion of the sky.

Newspaper: A changing, self-updating newspaper consisting mostly of blocks of ink. Currently legible are the following passages: "HOROSCOPE: YOU SHOULD PICK A BOUQUET FOR THEM", a panel that says "Weather prediction: Surely it will rain eventually?", and an announcement for "FIREFLY SHOW TONIGHT, FOLLOWED BY FIRST SHEEP COUNTING OF SEASON". It is apparent that whatever entity the library is, this is its best medium for communicating through words.

Closet Mirror: A full-length mirror at the end of the second floor's walk-in closet. It depicts a strange metal lump floating in front of Naomi's chest that leaks a matte blue liquid. A particularly intense sequence of blue dreams has led Naomi to realize this is a manifestation of her (emotional) heart, and its "blue love" will continue to flood and stain everything in her life until she understands what it's trying to tell her.

Roadside Ditch: A ditch across from the library and the road leading to it, blooming with white peace lilies, morning lilies, and red spider lilies. As it turns out, Lullaby Lane wanted to grow her some flowers for a bouquet. It continues to flourish.

The Red Shape: Naomi sometimes sees a red shape far down the road, obscured by distance and the wavering of hot air. Its most recent appearance caused her to fall into the ditch, for fear of it striking Ragamonster. She now believes this to be a figment of her own memory, rather than part of Lullaby Lane.

Letterbox: A magic letterbox which can teleport any written message put through its slot to its intended recipient. It sits on the desk upstairs. (If you want to send or get asks, this is a great medium for them!)

Blue Love Poem: A poem Naomi has been struggling to write. She is starting to understand what Blue Love means.

The Story: Not an anomaly. A story Naomi tells herself but has never finished. She can very easily get stuck saying one or two sentences over and over. This followed her to the Library.

Table of Contents:

Preproduction (Prologue) - (chrono)

Pilot Episode (Chapter 1) - (chrono)

Casting Call (Chapter 2) - (chrono)

Set Design (Chapter 3) - (chrono)

Prop Development (Chapter 4) - (chrono)

Costume Fittings (Chapter 5) - (chrono)

Naomi's Dream Log - (chrono)

#pinned post

[manysmallhands]

My Albums Of 2022 - Second Tier (pt. 1)

One of the problems that I had this year was that I heard about a half dozen albums in the first nine months of 2022, and was then inundated with new stuff from October onwards. This has meant that I’m aware of a lot more good albums that those that I’ve written about at length but I don’t know them well enough to have a lot to say on the subject. However, I think I can probably manage a round up of both the best new to me stuff, and a few that are great without quite being the best. Tumblr won’t let me put more than 10 links up in a post, so these will have to be split into two: this is January To June

February

Doe St’s slacker rock has plenty of obvious influences, with Pavement and fellow Aussies Chook Race both springing to mind. But their self titled debut was a great example of that thing in indie where someone takes the thing you think you’ve heard done to death and finds a way to make it feel fresh enough to go around again with. In this case, the tunes hit a perfect spot, the untrained harmonies have a lazy charm to them and the guitars have just the kind of scratchy restlessness that I like.

March

Aldous Harding’s forth LP “Warm Chris” was as warm and idiosyncratic as expected, but needed more effort than I was prepared to put in back in March. However, a few listens recently have brought its quality home to me: it’s earthier than 2019’s Designer but just as tuneful, and at its best when pursuing the stranger paths that seem to come to her so intuitively.

Denzel Curry branched out on Melt My Eyez, See Your Future, his most successful record to date, which veered between jazz based Robert Glasper collaborations and hard DnB beats with Slowthai, with plenty to go in-between. The whole thing pulled together in a way that was satisfying enough if slightly uneven, though Denzel's charm and punchy delivery were consistent features.

April

Pop-punk trio Joyride! returned after 6 years sounding exactly the same as they'd always done and, if Miracle Question didn’t quite reach the same heights of brilliance as their masterpiece Bodies Of Water, it followed a similar enough template in both style and quality to remind me why I love them all over again.

Sault released no less than five albums in 2022 (two of which were doubles) as well as an EP and a lengthy single and, to be honest, in the end I couldn't be arsed with it all. But there was plenty to admire if you could hold focus for long enough, with the choral soul crossover Air being the record I returned to the most, an album that combined elegance and joy with a genuine experimental flair. 

May

Black Star returned for the first time in over 20 years and released their album on a paid-for podcasting platform, in a move that I'm going to call dumb. But in spite of all that, No Fear Of Time turned out to be an absolute belter: Bey and Kweli brought some typically insightful politics to the project and the rhymes hit hard alongside Madlib’s disjointed and occasionally soulful beats. 

Warpaint shed some of their angst on the sun-kissed Radiate Like This album, working with a soulful, feminine vibe that made for perhaps the most listenable record they’ve ever released. While the lyrics at times left something to be desired, there was enough elegance and beauty to feel like it marked a welcome step forward.

June

Yaya Bey’s second album, Remember Your North Star was a surprisingly unusual proposition: while there was clearly a more straightforward neo-soul record hiding somewhere in its coattails, almost as big an accent was placed on ambient experiments as the introspective funk pop at its heart. Either way, North Star's sheer quality and unexpectedness made it one of the most intriguing and enjoyable albums that I heard this year.

Part two coming up when i can get it together. In the meantime, why not read some long-ass reviews of my ten favourite records of 2022!

#Doe St #Aldous Harding #Denzel Curry #Joyride! #Sault #Black Star #Warpaint #Yaya Bey #Albums Of The Year #Albums Of 2022 #Pop Music #Indie Rock #Hip-hop #Rap #Neo-Soul #Ambient #Neo-Classical