#when you do the art and you actually execute whats in your heaD CHEFS KISS

[yourcoolfriendwithallthecandy]

Crowe Week Day 7 - A Day In The Life of Crowe.

Again this happens in my Magic and Miracles modern AU universe. I can’t help it, it’s my favorite universe (because canon sucked at least for Crowe) And yes, LIbertus’ first time watching his son on his own, he totally gave Riot a gotee and a temporary arm tatoo and dressed him like he belonged in a biker gang. Crowe was actually greatly amused and thought it was HILARIOUS. And isn’t Riot JUST THE CUTEST?! And Raven totally rides a little skateboard attached to the stroler. (*cough future skater girl *cough*) So @crowedeservesbetter and @the-immortal-marshal enjoy and hopefully this is a fitting end to my prompts for Crowe week and all of you have hopefully enjoyed all this happily ever after I’ve envisioned for our girl Crowe. 

Crowe Week- Day 7 - An Average Day- Magic and Miracles modern AU.

Crowe woke up to sound of her alarm and got out of bed and got ready and got dressed and then got her daughter up and got her ready for preschool as Riot still slept soundly in his crib next to the bed. Both Riot and Libertus snoring away for a few extra minutes.  

“So what specials do you have today?” Crowe asked her daughter as she made her daughter a quick breakfast as Libertus did Raven’s hair for school, braiding her silken chocolate tresses to perfection. Libertus was one of those dads to throw himself into fatherhood so completely and gleefully that when he had found out there were having a girl- he went to cosmetology classes to learn how to fix his daughter’s hair and even practiced on Crowe and wigs through all of Crowe’s pregnancy and “invested” in all kinds of hair accessories and for the first year or so of Raven’s life, she did not leave the house without a bow or a flower or something in her hair or wrapped around her head, often the bows and flowers were just as big as Raven’s head but they were so cute.

Raven was, by all accounts, a smaller version of her mother looks wise who was still just as tough and tomboyish as her mother combined with an ease and gregariousness of her father and while Libertus did like to dress his daughter up in the cutest outfits, he completely understood that she was a child- a very active one and would play just as hard as any other kid, boy or girl alike and was bound to get dirty eventually. Crowe simply learned to buy her daughter’s clothes second hand so that when tears and rips and stains would happen, it would be ok. They were just clothes but that Raven would only get one childhood and both of her parents were firm believers in that she would live hers to the fullest but still would look cute doing it.

“Art.” Raven answered her mother as Crowe nodded and mentally prepared to see her daughter wearing paint or clay or something when her daughter came from school. ‘If she’s not wearing it, she didn’t have fun doing it.’ Libertus always grinned when he would help try to get the stains out of his daughters clothes when he would help with the laundry.

“There.” Libertus said as he finished off her braids as Raven ate her Eggo waffles and bacon and scrambled eggs with cheddar cheese.

“Thanks Daddy.” Raven chirped in between mouthfuls.

“You’re welcome Baby,” Libertus cooed as he leaned down and kissed her cheek affectionately as Raven pressed her cheek into her father’s kiss as she smiled brightly before he sat down and got himself some breakfast too while Riot still stayed asleep in the sling strapped to his father’s chest because otherwise Libertus just didn’t like to put his children down. Crowe had playfully teased Libertus that Raven wouldn’t learn how to crawl or walk because Libertus held them nearly constantly when she herself wasn’t holding them. But in truth Crowe was just so tickled and happy that Libertus was as doting as he was and it was nice to have so much help.  

“You got about seven minutes before the bus comes,” Crowe reminded her daughter before she sat down to eat some breakfast real quick herself, downing her coffee.

About five minutes later Raven had slipped her shoes on and a light jacket and her backpack as Crowe walked her daughter out to the bus stop in front of her house as all the other kids were either now lined up too or if they were too young to go to school yet, were on their morning walks and jogs with their moms down the side walk along the street as Crowe talked with her friends and made plans for this and that and play dates for Raven and Riot and dinner that evening.

The school bus came and Raven got on the bus followed by all the other school age kids on the street before Crowe went back inside just in time to see Riot wake up and demand breakfast himself before Libertus changed his diaper and Crowe took him off of Libertus’ hands so he could put the breakfast dishes in the dishwasher for her as Crowe relaxed on the couch as she nursed Riot and rest a little herself before Libertus brought her another cup of coffee and a cherry cheese danish.

“Thank you,” Crowe smiled gratefully as she took his offerings and dug in as she went over her calendar next to her to make sure she remembered all that she needed to do for the day.

Go to both restaurants to make sure the bars at both places were stocked and had all that they needed and to talk to her managers about the bartenders and brain storm for drink specials and make sure they had all the wines in stock and beers on tap as Libertus sat next to her and did the same thing in his, making sure that he coordinated with Nyx to make sure they ordered enough produce and would check with the local farmers they worked with for the produce to see what was in season right now because zuccinni blossoms should be coming up in the next few days and to make sure they talked to the ranchers to make sure the livestock they were going to be butchering were going to be good to go and ready to be picked up on time by the end of the week and to make sure it got into the aging rooms on time and order more silverware and all the thousand and one things to keep track of when you co-owned not just one restaurant but two with your best friend and your wife and having both restaurants being local farm to table was very intense and extensive but worth it because he knew for a fact that everyone involved benefited. Libertus and Nyx were the executive chefs and Crowe handled the bar side of the businesses and Libertus and Nyx were still into their “experimenting” stage and encouraged their sous chefs to do the same and gave credit on the menu where credit was due meaning that if a sous chef invented a dish and it was great, it got put on the menu and the sous chef’s name got mentioned and it got accredited to them. Which was huge in the food world.

“Rae and Selena are hosting another dinner at their house tonight, told them we’d make it. They’re doing pizzas in their pizza ovens and Riot has his six month check up Friday.” Crowe mentioned to Libertus as she looked past her busy day and onto the rest of the week.

“Cool. What time is Riot’s appointment?” Libertus asked.

“At 10.” Crowe answered.

“Ok, I’ll be there, I should be done dropping off the hogs by then.” Libertus nodded as he added that to his own schedule while eating the other cherry cheese danish and drinking his own coffee that was practically half cream and sugar while Crowe liked her coffee black.

Occasionally Libertus looked over at his nursing son with a fond smile. Riot was the spitting image of Libertus but with Crowe’s big brown eyes and was just a ham. Riot was big and heavy, with fat rolls like the Michilan Man and a very happy baby, active too and developmentally ahead of the curve and off the charts but proportional which was what mattered. Riot came out of the womb able to be put on his belly and lift his head up and the nurses were astounded that he could do that and had been ahead of the curve ever since and was getting dangerously close to figuring out how to crawl and was a voracious eater and Crowe was adamant that Riot nurse and only nurse exclusively for the first 9 months and would very, very gradually be weaned until he was two and then they would try for kid number three, they wanted their kids to be somewhat evenly spaced to be 2-3 or even 2-4 years apart. Crowe was adamant that she didn’t want Irish twins and Libertus was ok with that. His parents as well as hers were just happy to get some grandkids.

Once Riot was done nursing and got dressed Crowe and Libertus made their rounds to both restaurants. Making sure both had what they needed to run smoothly and to check with their accountant to make sure they were still in the black. Once both restaurants got their own Michelin Stars, which that process was a harrowing experience, but once they got it, it was smooth sailing. Very rarely did their restaurants get a bad review and if it did, it was usually from people looking to get a free meal at a fancy restaurant rather than the food or the service being bad and those problems were relatively easy to fix, and that was fixed via a black list of known shitty people to do that and with those, Crowe kept a bad bitch of a manager staffed who had no problems telling “difficult” customers to fuck themselves. They had chefs come straight out of CIA to cook for them so Nyx and Libertus really only worked the shifts they wanted to and got much more time to spend with their growing families because otherwise the restaurants seemed to run themselves, all they had to do was pick up paychecks because all those who had invested money into it had been paid back already, including themselves. And their restaurants were doing so good that they could afford to pay their waiters and waitresses a living wage including tips so that even they strived to do their absolute best at all times which in turn meant the service at the restaurants became unparalleled so that they could afford extra staff like dedicated drink servers who got a percentage of the tips from the tables they waited on and in turn they got to ask higher prices for their food which was still of excellent quality and still generous in portion size.  

Once at the first restaurant, Raven Noir, Riot was once again passed around by all the staff which were like a second family and kissed and loved on and his chubby cheeks pinched and his belly tickled because he had the best laugh as Libertus went ahead and made them a quick and very delicious lunch for himself and his wife, eating a new creation they were still testing out before they would put it on the menu and they got it eat it in their favorite table in the whole restaurant before it opened for lunch, Riot once again, nursing because he was hungry again, Crowe didn’t even bother putting on a nursing cover.

“I like it with the buttered olive oil best. We need to get this on the menu sooner than later.” Crowe noted to Libertus who nodded as he slurped up his noodles and once they were done they left for Wolf Blanc, the sister restaurant that was more geared towards Mediterranean and Spanish flavors with French twists, lots of tapas and more little dishes inspired by tapas in Spain and Latin America that was a huge hit and practically a runaway success. That wasn’t to say you couldn’t eat a five course meal here because you totally could and it would be magnificent just even more pricey than it was at Raven Noir.

“You know we should have a third restaurant.” Nyx told them as they sat in the kitchen, snacking on even more food as Nyx held Riot and played with him, missing his own son Nyx Jr. at home who was a year older than Riot and missing when Nyx Jr was this age and just happy to be held because Nyx Jr was just always trying to run everywhere and climb on everything right now. Nyx and Luna had thought that they had baby proofed their house but Nyx Jr made them realize that they hadn’t done it enough and that Nyx Jr was creative with all the ways he could get out of and around baby proofing. Raven Noir felt very much like Libertus’ and Crowe’s baby of a restaurant, because hell it had Raven’s name in the name itself whereas Wolf Blanc was very much Nyx’s and Lunafreya’s baby of a restaurant and Nyx did most of his cooking and hours here, all the colors, cool whites and Mediterranean blues as opposed to the blacks and red of Raven Noir.

“Oh?” LIb asked with a surprised blink.

“Yeah, we need to do like an Asian fusion restaurant, we need to have like a dim sum place but with like, some Kobe beef or live seafood like the kind that had all the fish tanks where you pick out what you want from the tanks like they have in Tokyo or like traditional rice noodles and dumplings, like real ramen and stuff, hell throw in a sushi bar but like, a really, really good one, like the kind that we had back in New York. Because it’s not like we won’t get the staff to make it authentic, hell the staff we have now we could pull from the other two places to make it really authentic. Not to be racist- but we need to branch out of “white people food” because it needs to be just as elevated as the other two.” Nyx insisted before he bit off the crispy bit of octopus tentacle and chewed it thoughtfully. “Because the last thing this city needs is another French place or another Italian place or other kind of European or even an English Pub. We got two good restaurants, both with their Michelin Stars, we could afford to take the risk and take the chance with this. And we already have Noir and Blanc, we need a Gray to round it out, I’m thinking Gray and purple, but like a gray purple to accent the red of Noir and the blues here.” Nyx urged as Lib and Crowe both looked at each other and found themselves nodding in agreement to that.

“Cause Lord knows we spend a fortune and a half on takeout right now because Luna’s after the perfect rice noodles.” Nyx explained since Luna was pregnant with their twin daughters Phillipa and Harper, who they named immediately after finding out she was pregnant with girls only a couple of weeks ago and Luna had an insatiable appetite for all things Chinese food, Japanese food, Vietnamese food and Taiwanese food and every kind of restaurant that served those had Nyx and Luna memorized because Luna’s quest for rice noodles but without MSG was damn near legendary because even now he was getting noodle lessons and dim sum lessons and all things dumpling lessons from his sous chefs that were of Asian decent and was spending another small fortune in duck eggs to make duck egg noodles for her too because apparently the eggs from the chickens in their own back yard wasn’t quite cutting it anymore and Nyx was getting close to his wit’s end trying to make his wife and her insatiable eating habits get sated. At least when she was pregnant with Nyx Jr. all she craved was a steady supply of watermelon and berries and that was a piece of cake compared to this.

After a quick stop at home to get Raven off the bus from preschool the four of them went out to the farms and ranches, Raven gleefully playing in the mud and caught a garden snake and a toad but surprisingly didn’t get bit or peed on and when she released them, she went over to the pens and was petting the sheep, goats, pigs, chickens and even got to hold a few baby chicks which she thought was the coolest thing ever and promptly begged and pleaded to get chicks for their house too like ‘Aunt Luna’ and Luna practically had a flock that she gave all the excess eggs to her friends which doubled as her neighbors. Luna did have the cutest chicken coop ever and kept that coop meticulously clean so that it didn’t smell and Selena came over and got the special litter that Luna kept in the chicken coop and cleaned out and added to the compost heap that was part sawdust/ hay and mulch to add to her own composting heap to grow her own garden at home.

Raven even got to pet some horses before she and Crowe got to go on a quick horseback ride together out in the fields and pastures to pick out cows they wanted to be butchered, Raven on her own tiny little miniature horse that was her size as Crowe kept a watchful eye on her as she held the lead rope to the little horse with the other cows as Riot was once again in the carrier strapped to his dad’s chest as Libertus rode out into the pastures too as Riot thought riding a horse with his dad was the greatest thing ever and shrieked and kicked and giggled with glee.

Once they were done there, they headed back home to get cleaned up before they walked down the street to Ravus and Selena’s house, all the kids being put in “kiddie land” in Selena’s back yard that had all kinds of small playground equipment and a little bouncy house and tons of toys for toddlers and little kids and a padded and shaded pen for the babies as they could practice crawling around with all kinds of toys in it for them too as all the adults got something to drink, either from the super wide selection of beer or the sangria bar that rivaled the sangria bar at Raven Noir as all the guys took turn making all these different kinds of pizza from the ‘make your own pizza bar’ next to the authentic wood fire pizza oven in Rae’s back yard adjoined to their patio as Nyx continued to talk about his new restaurant idea as Luna was all for it as she ate her own pizza with a side of pho.

After dinner was a quick jump in Ravus’ and Selena’s pool that seemed to have just as many small floatation devices with babies in them as there was adults as the toddlers had arm floaties on and practiced swimming. Most of the adults just watched in resignation as Tredd of all people seemed to lead the way in teaching the tykes how to swim because just watching the transformation of Mr. Reckless Danger transform into Mr. Safety because he of all people at the fire department got tasked with going to all the schools and teaching fire safety and all the kids, Raven especially just fucking flocked to him and he was ‘Uncle Tredd’ or even ‘Uncle Teddy’ as in teddy bear to all of them, it was actually really hilarious and entertaining to watch. Tredd was Raven’s favorite person besides her own parents and it was because of Raven that Tredd even considered having kids because she was the first baby he had ever fallen in love with and thought was cute, all kids before her were little messy monsters but Raven, Raven had him wrapped around her fingers. ‘How dare you guys have a baby girl as cute as this baby girl, what gave you guys the right to have this little angel?’ Tredd had accused them teasingly after he got to hold her for the first time.

When all the kids wore themselves out, the kids got to have one big bath together- getting washed and scrubbed and cleaned up, most of the mothers just swapping clothes to get them dressed again before all the families went their separate ways and went back home, carting off sleeping kids as they walked home and once the kids were put in bed then the parents got to have a couple of hours of peace and quiet and couple time.

And by couple time- lots of sex and right now Libertus had Crowe straddling him as he sat in the bench in their shower as the hot water cascaded over both of them and let Crowe set the pace and rode her husband with enthusiasm as Libertus suckled on her breasts as he kneaded her ass and hips and clung to her back and stroked her clit with practiced ease. Their own moaning and keens being dampened by the flow of water and the glass of the shower so as not to wake up their little ones.

When they were both sated and thoroughly clean did they get into bed themselves.

“Do you think the gray thing will work?” Crowe whispered to Lib as she cuddled into his side and rested her head on his chest.

“I hope so, Nyx has a point, we could totally do an Asian fusion thing because those cuisines get overlooked and underappreciated and seriously undervalued, I also know that I had to learn how to make the perfect oatmeal raisin cookies and peanut butter cookies when you were pregnant with Riot just like I had to learn how to make bubblegum cotton candy ice cream with Raven so I see where he’s coming from with that too. I think once Luna gives birth to those girls and those cravings subside a little we’ll really look at it and see if it’s something we should do or if it was one of those ‘heat of the pregger craving moments’ things. But I like the idea, I think it would be fun.” Libertus mused.  “What do you think?” Libertus asked thoughtfully.

“I like it actually, Saki isn’t something I’m not all that familiar with and I think it would be fun to play with it, I’m just seeing a full bar length mirror with cherry blossoms painted on it but the cherry blossoms being a really pretty half pastel pink half pastel lilac purple with rows of Sake and those really cool cocktails they do in Tokyo and get like at least 10-20 kinds of tea or even make all the different cocktails play on words with all the different kinds of tea and make them alcoholic, give long island ice tea a run for it’s money. There is no way we could do farm to table with it though, not 100% anyway. All those places rely on getting their fish flown in from Japan and we would have to too. Very few people around here could afford Kobe beef, I think we’d do better if we did Australian Wagu or something like that.  But the sushi bar, like a new age slash contemporary sushi bar with fun twists on the familiar instead of the same old same old would work.” Crowe mused as she felt her eyelids get heavier and heavier.

“Well, we can talk about it tomorrow. Good night Baby, I love you.” Libertus cooed sleepily as he kissed the crown of her head and squeezed her tight and grinned when he felt her smile and squeeze back before they fell asleep.

#croweweek2019 #crowe week 2019 #crowe week day 7 #Crowe/Libertus #Crowe altius #Crowe Ostium #actually #at least in my book she is #enjoy

[yn6k]

hi shine! i wanted to know your thoughts about the book of us: gravity album? any personal favorites? least favorites?

sorry this is so late! i wanted to take my time to answer it because i do have a lot of thoughtsTM hahaha more (like a LOT more) under the cut :) 

so on first listen of the album, or honestly even just from the album spoiler haha, my ears instantly focused in on cover and how to love! so i’ll probably have the most to say about those songs + time of our life since ive listened to them the most!!for me: love how its in compound meter! always love me a good 12/8 or 6/8 or whatever it is haha its felt in three basically lskj i dont have a lot to say about this song? i think the focus is more on the lyrics? but musically i cant really identify anything that really sticks out to me alkdj like typical poprock i really dont know what to say maybe theres more interesting things going on underneath that im terrible at picking out (like in the chord progressions) fav part is def the prechorus^^time of our life: its so weird talking about this now bc ive gotten so used to the song that lkj some of what im saying (like the changes i would have done) feels /wrong/ but ahaha still here are some of my thoughts^^ FIRST OF ALL WONPILS PIANO SOLO >>>>> i just really love listening to it and i think an underrated part of his solo is the i think synth drums underneath them and how it creates this driving motion for the song and so like even tho the song starts kind of bare we can go straight into that hype instrumental intro instead of like having only his solo be the intro and going straight into the more mellower verse or smth along those lines? hahaha i think on first listen the first thing that stood out to me was how the chorus sounded like an extension of the verse?  like the chorus wasnt very obvious and im not sure why in terms of like chord progression music theory, but in terms of instrumentation i think one of the reasons is because that driving quarter note drum thing we get in the chorus only resolves in the second half of the chorus instead of sometime in the first half of it. so it almost gives off this sense that we might be building up to something greater but we arent? really like all of this energy from the drums piling up for seemingly no reason and also the effect that it has on really accentuating the opening lines of the chorus dissipates imo the longer that drum rhythm plays out. like the whole “a page of beautiful youth” part that opens the chorus is mostly all quarter notes and i love how we have the quarter notes within the actual drum line to back that up but then two things after that happen: 1) we get i guess a reiteration of the opening melody in the chorus with the “let’s write it together” which i feel like having the drumming driving with those same quarter notes underneath it makes the intro of the chorus feel a bit less special and memorable? and 2) and after that line plays out, the melody becomes a bit more loose in in terms of its rhythm (the ‘i want to fill it with our memories’ part) the melody doesnt have those same impactful quarter notes anymore, but u still have the drum playing it so its kind of? like a why? at that point like i personally feel it takes away from the support it gives to the earlier melody that was obviously more driving quarter notes. i kind of wish that driving forward motion in the drumline was resolved within the third measure of the chorus with like a singular drum hit into the release (like going from here to something like here but with a drum hit in between as a transition or smth? hard to explain lks i actually had a made a video a while back kind of experimenting with the sound but idk how to upload it to here) but!! i am a fan of having those driving quarter notes coming out of the bridge i love the usage of it there and would not change a thing! i think it fits because we are actually building up to that release in the instrumental, it feels a lot different than the chorus which just feels like it drags on for a bit too long. but i would also would have liked if we had a bit of an instrumental pause or something like right after sungjin says ‘dont worry about a thing’ like after that ‘ma’ a brief pause or like even the omission of the downbeat that the drum is giving like /something/ missing before we get back into him singing ‘leave everything to me’ idk i feel like that change would have been interesting and way to build up tension again in a way?? anyways to circle back to my original point about the chorus feeling like an extension of the verse..i lowkey feel like maybe day6 felt that a bit too? laksdj and thats why we got that drum intermission bw the end of the prechorus and the start of the chorus but thats just a theory idk how true it is like honestly to me it felt slightly out of place and kind of a random transition? i dunno i could be wronghere are some misc. things not in too much detail since i think talking about one song has already gotten too long alksdj but sungjins part in the prechorus i think could have been sung a bit /gentler/ than his usual throaty approach for day6 songs idk. love the vocal layering in the chorus! maybe my headphones are terrible and maybe im biased (a bit of both or neither who knows) but laksdj i kinda wish youngks bass part was a tad bit louder he has some cool parts that often get overshadowed by the electric guitars + vocals i think (like here! the sound is so tiny in the studio i wish they had brought it out a bit more because when it is brought out it like here sounds gorgeous…that sound actually might be a bit overpowering actually haha but some happy balance bw those two). also totally random but i love the way jae says ‘한 페이지’ its just satisfying to listen to like he slurs the words a bit? whereas sungjin in his part is more staccato and lkj i think i prefer the legato connection of the words to the staccato one. also thank god they brought back the piano solo for the bridge laksjhow to love: SHE!! was a favorite/look out for since the album spoiler and she did not disappoint. wonpil said it was motown influenced? love that for them;; the chord progressions are funky and fun to listen out for! love how we get a bit of instrumental differences between the first and second reiteration of the first part of the verse?  (the introduction of this electric guitar kind of in ur left ear if ur wearing head phones thats not there initially but then also this part in the electric guitar in the right ear which isnt there also again in the first reiteration just to keep it different and not redundant! i love the prechorus, introduction of strings for chorus stellar (but im strings biased) but its just so fun to follow how its similar and different to the vocal melody also whats a day6 song without some sort of chanting! love how the rhythm in the melody follows the drum part into the chorus all three times that it happens! the bridge is funky love it haha and also just love how at the end they switch up the ‘cause im ready’ and have sungjin jae and wonpil each sing one of those and then have youngk end with the ‘ooooh’ i thought that was adorable. ok keeping it short thats all i’ll saywanna go back: not to be a svt stan but holiday is that you? hahah jkjk its just a similar genre its like holiday meets maroon 5 haha i actually enjoy a lot of the song the chord progressions in the verses are interesting but also the prechorus is really pretty sounding but lakjd i honestly wish the tempo was just a little bit faster in the chorus i feel like its dragging a bit its hard for me personally to stay engaged with the song because of the murky feeling i personally get from the chorus. also the transition into the second verse is kinda ?? idk ahahaha but yeah main thing is just i wish the tempo was even just the tiniest bit faster for the chorus specifically i feel like verses are fine but just the chorus could have afforded to been a bit faster…but maybe this is just a personal experience cover: this is my personal favorite from the album! musically i just love the sound of the chord progressions in the verses? also the chorus! she! the vocal melody how it goes down but then u hear that piano in the background go up *chefs kiss* art! and i love the changes in the instrumental they introduced for the second verse! they added the bass i believe as well as another electric guitar part that isnt that muted plucking thing that we got in the first verse! AND THEN THE BRIDGE!!!!!!! THAT!!! IS!! A!! BRIDGE!!!! its so stunning and incredibly climatic and beautifully executed!!! i believe thats the first time the drums proper actually come in can you believe it (there are percussion sounds before but i think its a tambourine + a shaker/maraca? essentially not the drumset);; the tension that just the introduction of drums really brings to the piece ahhh and also the chord progressions really take u for a ride the first time u hear it and u dont know what to expect;; and then we get out of the chorus with ‘because im weak and not cool’ as a deviance from the earlier lyrics of ‘my weak and not cool side’ then DRUMTRIPLET!!!!! LAST CHORUS!! MORE DRUM TRIPLETS!! so wonderful the pOWER really the whole song is a huge crescendo ?? kind of influenced by the fact that they keep layering instruments which i absolutely LOVE like its beautiful haha but then the last chorus is just the quickest decrescendo ever as a way to fade out from the song but now with all the instruments (love how the last line really like enforces its importance and lyrical difference from the earlier ‘in the end i was seen’ by having that drum just punch it into u with every hit of the bass drum haha) also like how its not a true circular ending (but it kinda is) like there are instrumental and lyrical differences from the start and the end one thing i kind of wished they experimented with was like maybe mixing up some members voices in the chorus? like i tried a youngpil one myself haha where wonpil sings this part, then youngk, wonpil, youngk (again i hve a video for this but idunno how to upload to this ask) but its not like the song to me suffered from having singular member choruses i just thought it might be kinda cool haha anywhos im biased i love this song and laksj didnt even go into the lyrics rip anyways moving onbest part: i think its really cute that they composed this to be specifically be enjoyed in concert! i really like the best paaaaaaaaa aaaart like that swoop they do and the layering of the vocals i also think its super cool how some of the instrumental drop out towards the end of the chorus but alskj another ‘wanna go back’ transition into the second verse are they experimenting with this transition or smth?? but it just feels like inserted bc they couldnt think of a better way to transition into second verse which?? just kind of awkward akjl idk but maybe they have a reason for it i dont know! but yeah haha again musically im not really sure what to say kinda like for me it just feels like standard pop rock which isnt a bad thing just a /thing/ ahaha 

#anon #replies #long post #like very very veryyy long post #im so sorry its so long ahh #and again super sorry that im very late! i know u asked a while ago;;

[babblingblondegenius]

Future Ficlet: All You Need is Love...and Coffee

Wow, tonight’s episode was brutal.  Between the painful Olicity separation in present time and the lack of Olicity in the dark future of the flash-forwards, we aren’t seeing any of the happy right now.  There seems to be no hope. Our heroes’ sacrifices were all in vain.  Basically, everything sucks.

As kismet would have it, a couple of weeks ago, I shared a fun little head canon with @allimariexf and @hope-for-olicity and they both encouraged me to ‘write the thing.’  I’ve had a terrible case of writer’s block for quite some time (meaning I have a gazillion story ideas and a ton of WIPs that are unfinished).  I expected this one to end up dormant in my drafts as well.  But after tonight’s episode, I felt the need to finish it because we (and Olicity, of course) deserve a little hope and happy.  Set two years in the future, the premise of this little fluffy ficlet is that Felicity needs an assistant but she has particular criteria ;)  

This should have been the easy part.  

After months of enticing investors, obtaining the proper licenses and permits, all the legal mumbo jumbo, and locating the perfect office space, hiring an executive assistant is going to be the breaking point where she finally loses her sanity.  

Which completely defeats the purpose of trying to find someone to help her in the first place.

She has been doing fine on her own, thriving actually, since she decided it was time to recommence building a tech company from the ground up, sans Curtis this time.   This venture, for better or worse, will be all hers.  Her vision.  Her name. Her legacy.

Despite her initial apprehension at that thought, she has a clarity and confidence in her mission and goals that has propelled her forward at a pace she couldn’t have imagined.  So far, choosing which of her many prototypes she wanted to launch first has been her biggest challenge.

Until now.  

She had narrowed down the stack of over 100 applications to the eight most qualified for the position, and began the interview process at 7:00 this morning.  

The first one had been punctual, neat, and lacking any sort of personality whatsoever.  

The second one arrived twenty minutes late and then interrupted Felicity mid-interview to take a non-emergency personal call on her cell phone.

The third one tapped her super long artificial nails on the edge of Felicity’s desk the entire time and included ‘loud typer’ when asked how her current co-workers would describe her.

The fourth one was a chaotic whirlwind who overshared details of his personal life on every single question.

Maybe he just had too much caffeine in his system. Or maybe she doesn’t have enough.

Coffee.  She needs coffee.  Her next interviewee isn’t scheduled to come in for another hour, so she takes the reprieve to just lay her head down on her desk for a moment in order to gather up the energy she needs to make the trek down the block for her caffeine fix.

“One vanilla soy latte, extra sugar, extra cinnamon, extra whip cream.”  

Oh yes.  That’s exactly what she wants.  Why she is thinking it in Oliver’s voice, she doesn’t know.  Her coffee daydream is so vivid, she can even smell the soothing notes of vanilla with hints of sweet cinnamon spice wafting through the air. Mmmmmmmm.

“Felicity….honey, are you okay?”  Oliver’s voice again.  She slowly lifts her head and sees her husband standing on the other side of her desk, holding a large cup emblazoned with the logo of her favorite java joint and her name scrawled across it in black marker.

“I am now,” she practically purrs as he hands over her treasured treat.  After taking a deep inhale and a long swallow, she blissfully smiles at him.  “It’s perfect.  You’re perfect.”  Suddenly jumping up out of her chair, she shares the revelation brought on by the jolt of caffeine in her system. “Oh!  I have a great idea!  You should apply to be my EA.”  

Oliver chuffs out a laugh.  “Because I brought you coffee?  Your standards must be pretty low.”  

“Worried you couldn’t cut it, Mr. Queen?” she asks, arching an eyebrow in challenge.

“I think my time served as Mayor proves otherwise,” he retorts with an air of gravitas but mimics her gesture, silently letting her know that he enjoys her teasing him and is willing to play along.  

She shakes her head.  “Nope, not helpful.  You couldn’t even get me a break on my taxes when you were the mayor.  What are your current qualifications?”

He ponders the inquiry for a moment before responding proudly, “I’m the head chef at Chez Queen.”

She rolls her eyes at Oliver’s corny moniker for their kitchen but gives him an encouraging smile.  “Oh yeah, I’ve eaten there a few times.  The food is magnificent.  But do you have any business experience?”

His expression goes from proud to smug.  “As a matter of fact, I do.  I was formerly the CEO of Queen Consolidated.”

She takes another swig of coffee and checks an incoming text on her cell phone before reminding him, “I happen to have first-hand knowledge you wouldn’t have made it a week without your super smart and highly efficient EA.”   

“That’s true,” he concedes with a grin, “though on the downside, she only brought me coffee one time.  One”, he repeats, taking her coffee and phone and setting them off to the side. Placing his palms flat on the edge of her desk, he leans in closer, a visible twinkle in his vivid blue eyes.   “I think she actually broke our coffeemaker.  Violently,” he teases in a conspiratorial whisper.

Mirroring her husband, she leans in over the desk until their noses are almost touching.  “A little violence doesn’t scare you, does it, Mr. Queen?”  She allows her gaze to run down the length of his torso, visibly appreciating the definition of his biceps that his jacket cannot conceal. “You look like you could handle yourself just fine.”

“I like to stay in shape.”  He feigns modesty but she knows her husband and can recognize that look in his eyes. “Some cardio, free weights, martial arts, salmon ladder…”

“That’s so hot” she blurts out, temporarily slipping out of character as her brain produces an amazing visual of sweaty and shirtless Oliver making his way up the salmon ladder.  Will there ever be a day when that doesn’t turn her on?  Probably not, and judging from the self-satisfied smirk on his face, he mentioned it on purpose just to get that very reaction out of her.   Determined to get back on track, she rephrases, “I mean, that sounds interesting.”  She decides a change of topic would be helpful to give her an advantage in their little game.  “Computer skills?”

She immediately regrets that question when Oliver gives her a feral smile that makes her weak in the knees.  Lowering his voice to the same octave he uses when he is dressed in green leather, he divulges, “I’ve hacked a federal prison network.”

Guh, game over.  In all her years with Oliver, that is the sexiest thing he has ever said. She quickly makes her way around the desk and invades his personal space. “Seems like you’re a man of many talents,” she coos appreciatively, latching onto his arm and nuzzling her face into the sleeve of his jacket to breathe in the scent that is uniquely Oliver.

“My wife taught me a thing or two,” he boasts, turning so they are face-to-face and he can wrap his arms around her.  

Her hands instinctively move from his arm to his chest, resting over his heart.  “She must be an amazing woman.”

Oliver nods in agreement, his nose nuzzling hers. “She is.  She’s the best.”

“I know you’re just saying that to get husband points and its working,” she acknowledges affectionately, her hand caressing the stubble on his jaw.   He tilts his head into her palm like a contented cat and she takes the opportunity to kiss him like she wanted to since she saw him in front of her desk, whether it was five minutes ago with coffee or nine years ago with a bullet-ridden laptop.  

Oliver moans and deepens the kiss, the fervent strokes of his tongue making her long for more.  “Okay, you’re hired,” she pants, breaking the kiss when her need for air temporarily overcomes her need for Oliver.  “Smoak Tech is a start-up so your health care package consists of me patching you up if you are injured and I’m sure we can work out some type of compensation for your time and skills,” provocatively shifting her body against his and feeling his obvious interest through his jeans and her skirt.  Two soft kisses and one firm rotation of his hips later, she is internally debating the sturdiness of her desk and whether they have time for her to show him exactly what she means by ‘compensation’ before her next appointment shows up.

“That’s a very tempting offer, Ms. Smoak” he murmurs into her hair as his hand travels down her back and immediately finds its usual place on the curve of her shapely ass, pulling her impossibly closer, “but I’m afraid my current employer really needs me right now and I just can’t bear to leave her,” his free hand gesturing to the stroller where their daughter slumbers peacefully.

Felicity sighs, pure happiness filling her heart and clearing her mind as she rests her head on her husband’s chest to gaze lovingly at the chubby-cheeked, perfect amalgamation of her and Oliver they brought into the world just four short months ago.   “Sounds like she has you wrapped around her little finger.”  

Oliver rests his chin on the top of her head and she can hear the love and contentment in his voice when he whispers in her hair, “From the very first moment I met her.  She takes after her mother that way.”

A/N:  Thank you for reading!  I hope this helped to soothe the sting of all the angst.  Queen family feels FTW.  William was not in this fic because at that time of day, he should be in school and also I didn’t want to traumatize him any further with Olicity’s blatant flirty flirt.  The poor kid has seen enough already lol.  

Huge thanks and virtual hugs to @allimariexf and @hope-for-olicity for all the fun conversations and being all around wonderful :)

Oliver’s ‘current employer’ ;)

#this was really short #but i finished it #i'll take that as a win #olicity fluff #olicity ficlet #olicity future fic #my fic

[muffinsnotebook]

Mac n Cheese Pt. 2

crossposted on ao3.  

pt. 1 pt. 3

[screams: FINALLY!!!]

Chapter 2: Cupcakes and Kimchi

When Kim Seokjin had graduated from culinary school at the top of his class, complete with recommendations from the chef he’d trained under at the restaurant (and a spot at said restaurant), Namjoon, then his best friend (and secretly long-time crush), had given him this high quality, absolutely beautiful, 7-piece knife set made of carbon stainless steel alloy for his graduation gift.

On their first anniversary as a couple, Namjoon gifts him a leather knife carrier bag for it. The next day, they receive an email congratulating them on their first Michelin star.

Seokjin makes sure to maintain them properly, puts them in a polished cherry wood block, placed by the corner next to the small hook where he hangs his aprons - one in pastel pink, one in chocolate brown. After he’d gotten back from the hospital and put the boys to sleep, he’d taken them all out of the leather bag and cleaned them meticulously, storing them back in the wooden block.

With all the stress and grief he's had to grappled with for the past few days, adding on the fact that he now has a three-week leave (for the first time since…never), he inevitably forgets about them being of easy access on his granite counter.

Until he stumbles into the kitchen to see Taehyung wielding about his extra sharp, high-carbon stainless steel 8 inch chef’s knife on top of the kitchen island.

“Ban…KAI!” The seven year old yells, swinging the knife about with two hands. Seokjin promptly gets a heart attack.

“Kim Taehyung, what are you doing?!” He whisper-yells, just barely remembering he’d just put Jeongguk to sleep for the afternoon.

Taehyung turns to him, then grins excitedly, brandishing the chef knife like a samurai. “I’m a reaper from BLEACH! This is my ban…KAI!” He swings again in a wide downward arc.

“Taehyungie, that’s not a toy; that’s a real knife - you could hurt yourself with that.” Seokjin says slowly, carefully making his way to the younger boy. “Can you please give that back? You didn’t even ask permission from me if you could borrow it.”

The elder inwardly congratulated himself for sounding steady and calm despite feeling a nanometer away from fainting. Predictably, the young boy pouts as he lowers his arms, and reluctantly allows Seokjin to take it from his grasp.

“Will you please get down from the kitchen island before you trip and hit your head?” Seokjin pleads as he puts back his knife in the block, and hefts the heavy wood up onto a cabinet, far from their reach.

Taehyung complies with a disappointed whine. “Uncle Jin is no fun at all.” He pouts, then stomps off into the living room.

And Seokjin is indignant, because excuse you, I am a ton of fun! and because yah! That’s the second time you’ve insulted me, Kim Taehyung!

“Excuse you? I am so very much full of fun!” He hollers after the boy. “Like, tons of fun! You simply don’t appreciate my sense of humor!”

“No thanks, Uncle Jin, I like your food better.” Taehyung replies as he wraps his arms around Jimin instead, who’s watching some cartoon on the TV. The compliment to his cooking is rather backhanded, and Seokjin isn’t mollified one bit.

“You don’t believe me? You haven’t even heard me tell you a joke! I’ll have you know, that I know plenty of jokes! In fact, my handsome face is a--“

“Joke!”

“AH kkamjjagiya!” Seokjin whirls around, on the brink of a heart attack once more, because Jeongguk - whom he could’ve sworn he’d just put to sleep - is sitting on the couch, wide awake, and repeating “joke! joke!” gleefully.

Jimin and Taehyung burst into raucous laughter. Seokjin glowers to no avail, as Jeongguk only laughs along with his brothers.

"I can't decide who was funnier - Ggukie or Uncle Jin!" Taehyung gasps, tears leaking from his eyes. Okay that's a bit too much now, Seokjin thinks sulkily.

Jimin proves him wrong. "Both?"

It’s the first time Kim Seokjin considers that he may have just adopted the three most savage children in the entire world. He considers it for a moment - just a tiny moment.

After all, children change, don’t they? Surely, surely, they’ll come around and love him too much to slay him like this…? Aren't they even too young to slay people like this...?

“See? I am a lot of fun - I just made you laugh, didn’t I?” Seokjin tries to brush it off - because they’re children, and their laughter has been scarce and far too precious these past few weeks.

Jimin shakes his head. “Uh-uh. That wasn’t you - that was Jeonggukie’s joke! Uncle Jin was just the butt of the joke.”

Savages. Savages, the lot of them.

.

.

.

“So how have the kids been, hyung?” Hoseok’s cheerful voice filters in through the receiver with a slight crackle. Seokjin heaves a tired sigh, as he slumps on his couch.

“Ah, it’s been tiring! It’s like they never run out of energy!” Seokjin whines halfheartedly. “They’re sleeping now - thank god, I thought they’d never sleep. Taehyungie and Ggukie wouldn’t stop jumping all over the bed - I was so scared one of them was going to fall off and hit their heads!”

“These kids sound fun,” Hoseok laughs.

“It’s not funny!” Seokjin huffs. “Taehyung even managed to get a hold of my chef knife and started swinging it around on top of the kitchen island! I swear to god, I’m going to have a heart attack one of these days. Wait - I think I see a gray hair on my head.”

“So dramatic, hyung,” Hoseok replies, still laughing. Jerk - not even a hint of sympathy. “You’re not even that old - heck, you’re not even 30!”

And Seokjin isn’t. Seokjin is twenty-six, fairly young for an executive chef, and part owner, of a restaurant on the outskirts of Cheongdam, and in all honesty, is pretty much a child at heart still. He’s been a maknae for most of his life, having been born late in the year among his peers; and even with his dongsaengs, he’s never been fussy beyond honorifics and basic courtesy - partly because the dongsaengs he’s close with are pretty much set with their own lives, and don’t often ask him for advice, so much as a listening ear.

Obviously, his newest dongsaengs - his nephews! - will require more care and attention than a bunch of self sufficient young adults. Seokjin isn’t confident he can actually pull off being a decent hyung, let alone a responsible guardian to toddlers.

But a quitter is the last thing Seokjin is. And when the going gets tough, he toughens himself up even more.

They called him a disgusting faggot when he came out, and then later on again, for falling head over heels for Namjoon. But Seokjin looks in the mirror every day, and sees a handsome face staring back - which, he believes only gets more handsome when juxtaposed beside Namjoon’s dimpled smile. So be it if he's a faggot; he’s pretty sure he’s one of the most handsome faggots in the whole of fucking Asia, if not the whole world - the modeling gigs that kept coming even after he officially quit are testament to his attractiveness.

They called him a failure for dropping a business degree in favor of culinary arts. Seokjin had worked his ass off in culinary school, shamelessly asking the kind chefs at the Gangnam restaurant he worked at for cooking tips. Now his restaurant is the talk of the town; and they’re on the running for their second Michelin Star - if the food inspectors haven’t dropped by already.

Namjoon had told him he’s the type who blooms the most in adversity. Seokjin may not know a thing about child rearing, but he’ll be damned if he didn’t become the best uncle-hyung-parent-guardian for Jimin, Taehyung and Jeongguk.

He’ll be patient, and kind, and fun, and wise, and loving, like the perfect hyung-uncle there ever could be.

…It’s easier said than done, however.

In fact, it’s infinitely difficult to even spell patience when Jeongguk sitting on the hardwood floor of the living room, drawing colorful flowers and stars on the back of his white. leather. couch.

Using permanent. neon colored. pens.

“Kim Jeongguk!” He shrieks, his ears, and neck hot with anger. The four year old jumps, dropping his colored pens as he turns to Seokjin with huge, dark eyes, getting shinier and shinier with unshed tears, lips wobbling and hands trembling.

Uh oh.

The hot rage that had filled him not even three seconds ago evaporates just as fast, replaced with heavy stabs of guilt. Goddammit, he didn’t even do anything wrong! A juvenile part of Seokjin wants to stomp and pout, because his beautiful, white leather couch, and Jeongguk was the one in the wrong!

Instead, Seokjin sinks to a crouch, tugging Jeongguk gently but firmly in front of him.

He takes a deep calming breath through his nose, and scrunches his face into the stern, calm mask he wears in front of new kitchen staff. It takes everything in him to maintain it for more than a few seconds when big, fat teardrops trickle down Jeongguk’s cheeks.

“Jeonggukie, the couch is where people sit. It’s not meant for drawing on flowers and stars. We don’t draw or paint on couches, okay?” And in a perfect world, Jeongguk would nod at his words, and apologize, and Seokjin would give him a kiss on the cheek, and they’d go on with their lives peacefully.

But it is not a perfect world, and instead, Jeongguk only begins to wail loudly, summoning his older brothers into the room.

“What’s wrong?” Taehyung asks, stopping just shy of the Scene of the CrimeTM, looking between his uncle and his younger brother. Jeongguk, spotting his hyungs, ducks beneath Seokjin’s grasp and runs to Jimin, wailing, “hyungie!”

“What’s wrong, Ggukie?” Jimin asks, his short arms wrapping protectively around his younger brother. He shoots an accusatory look at his uncle, and Seokjin thinks he would’ve found the whole concept of it cute, if he weren’t the (very wrongfully accused!) receiver of it. As it is, Jimin’s look makes Seokjin feel as though he’s Mother Gothel incarnate.

“I was just telling Jeonggukie that the couch isn’t for drawing on,” Seokjin says defensively. “Drawings and paintings are best on paper, so we can put them in frames and hang them on the walls for everyone to see!”

He calls Jeongguk to look at him, who only does so with a little coaxing from Jimin. “Ggukie, next time you want to draw, just ask me for paper, okay? I’m not asking you to stop drawing, but I just want you to do it on the right materials. Furniture is not one of them.”

“…mm’kay,” Jeongguk eventually nods, pout still in place.

“That goes for all of you, okay?” Seokjin says, looking pointedly at Taehyung, who had grabbed the yellow marker to fill in the wriggly star shape Jeongguk had drawn. He straightens up with a start, immediately stuffing the pen behind his back.

“Yes Uncle Jin, I promise!” He grins, glances at his work, then adds, “I won’t do it again next time.”

Seokjin stares at him unimpressed, then sighs in defeat. “Right, so before this whole thing happened, I was about to ask you guys to help me decorate some cupcakes in the kitchen--“

“Cupcakes!?!” The three boys look at each other wide-eyed and mouths agape. Seokjin blinks, and they’re gone, shoving past each other as they race into the kitchen.

“Hey, wait for me! And don’t touch anything yet!”

Of course, by the time he gets there, the warning is too late, and the kids are already half covered in the blue-green icing he’d prepared while they had been napping. The three are kneeling on the barstools on the kitchen island, frosting each other’s hands and face.

“I see you found the buttercream,” Seokjin says wryly. Taehyung promptly aims the half-filled piping bag at his face and squeezes.

Seokjin tries to yell indignantly but only ends up with a mouthful of buttercream frosting. He hears Jeongguk cackling heartily - the sound is positively evil and contagious for such a cute child. Jimin swipes his thumb at his cheek to taste.

“What do you think? Tasty?” Seokjin asks, swiping at the blob on Jimin’s nose to do the same.

“It’s delicious!”

“Dewishoos!” Jeongguk echoes again with a giggle, sucking at the frosting on his knuckles.

“Good,” Seokjin takes out another piping bag - full of pink frosting, this time - from the fridge, pulling the tray of warm, freshly baked cupcakes closer to them. “Now, how about we actually put the frosting on the cupcakes?”

.

.

.

Despite Seokjin’s efforts, none of the frosting actually gets on any of the cupcakes.

“It’s cute,” Namjoon says as he takes in the photo on Seokjin’s phone. He’d come over straight from closing up the restaurant. “So cute.”

In the photo, Jeongguk is sat between his hyungs, cheeks stuffed to bursting, with crumbs of cupcake and frosting and sprinkles - yes, they’d found the sprinkles, too - smeared across his forehead and cheeks, and even some on his hair. Taehyung is on his left, triumphantly holding up the deflated piping bag, covered with even more frosting and sprinkles. Jimin is on the right, smiling close-lipped, with just a hint of the dimples below his eyes peeking through, holding on to a half eaten cupcake (his fifth, that time).

The kitchen island in front of them lies in a colorful carnage - blue-green and pink buttercream frosting everywhere, piles of rainbow sprinkles here and there (a small mound of red ones in front of Jeongguk), and cupcake bits and crumbs everywhere else.

The rest of the kitchen, and his phone notwithstanding. Seokjin, however, thinks getting buttercream all over his phone screen is worth capturing the ‘kodak moment’.

“Yes, well, the mess isn’t so cute.” Seokjin replies dryly, though his expression remains soft. Namjoon chuckles with a sympathetic smile, moving to knead at the knot of muscle on Seokjin’s shoulder. Like magic, the elder sags under his hand, letting out a drawn out sigh.

“Want me to help you clean up?” Because it really isn’t a matter of need, so much as whether Seokjin actually wants Namjoon in his kitchen. Even Namjoon wouldn’t let himself in his own kitchen for anything more than pouring hot water in his instant ramyeon.

Seokjin hums, debating the pros and cons of letting Namjoon into his kitchen.

“I can stick to rags and gathering the trash,” Namjoon offers and Seokjin acquiesces. It’ll take him hours to clean up everything by himself, and the kids have worn him out for the day. It’s late at night, and Seokjin’s just managed to clean up the rest of the apartment after cleaning up and putting the kids to sleep. To say that he’s exhausted is a huge understatement.

“Yes, please.”

Despite handling most of the logistics and other managerial paperwork involved in running a restaurant, Namjoon knows his way around the kitchen - “his way around” being mostly how-to-clean (The Namjoon EditionTM) and what-can-be-cleaned (The Namjoon 2nd EditionTM) and where-stuff-are (What To Avoid, The Namjoon Special EditionTM). It’s the only reason he gets allowed in the kitchen.

Quietly, the two make their way into the kitchen, and Namjoon whistles at the absolute wreck lying in wait. A part of him is in disbelief that Seokjin had actually allowed this much chaos into his hallowed space. Much like the counter in the photo, the rest of the kitchen is smeared with frosting and sprinkles, with puffs of flour and splotches of batter mixed in.

It looks like a giant cupcake bomb exploded in the kitchen.

Namjoon remembers the genuine smiles on the kids’ face from the photo, and doesn't ask pointless questions.

“How are the kids?” He asks instead as he takes the rag Seokjin hands him and begins wiping down the island.

“I think Jeongguk is the least affected - but then again, he’s still pretty young.” Seokjin replies as he washes the utensils. “I’m worried about Jimin the most - he gets pretty quiet most of the time, and I always catch him dazed or lost in thought…” Seokjin trails off, then sighs.

“I just want them to not be so sad anymore, but,” He cuts himself off, biting his lips as he scrubs furiously at the imaginary stain in his mixing bowl.

“But you’re still sad about it, too,” Namjoon continues for him in a quiet voice. He watches in mute sympathy when Seokjin’s shoulders slump, his hands dropping the bowl to grip on the edge of the sink instead.

His sobs are but quiet sniffles, shoulders quivering as even then he tries to stifle them. Namjoon silently wraps himself around him - careful not to catch his own soapy hands on Seokjin’s shirt - and tucks his chin over Seokjin’s shoulder.

Seokjin doesn’t cry louder or harder, nor does he stop. But he lets his back rest against the warmth of Namjoon’s chest, quietly accepts his comfort, his support, trusting him to catch the pieces of himself he can’t hold on his own.

“I miss him,” Seokjin confesses painfully, “I miss him so bad, Joonie.”

Namjoon recalls only about less than a handful of other instances when Seokjin has fallen apart like this, when Namjoon has to be there to catch the tiny shards that manage to escape the elder’s tight grasp. When Namjoon has to be the one to whisper the words of positivity and comfort that otherwise fell from Seokjin’s lips on a daily basis.

Namjoon is usually the one who falls apart more often, the one who goes to Seokjin, to let his hyung gather the pieces of himself after he’s ripped himself apart from thinking too much, from scrutinizing his own reflection to the point of self-loathing.

Even before they began dating, they had already been each other’s rock. Perhaps it’s precisely because they’ve glued the shattered pieces of themselves, both on their own, and for each other, that they can do it now with practiced ease, with lesser words, with lesser reservations. Perhaps in the process, they’ve kept tiny pieces of each other, mistakenly glued it to their own, that they now match more seamlessly, complement each other nigh effortlessly.

Yoongi had always grouched about the long time they’ve spent dancing around each other, cautiously treading, moving back and forth in their relationship before finally getting together. And sometimes, Namjoon, who overthinks too much even for two people, agrees, falls into a minor slump, allows the what-ifs to trickle in. But Seokjin, who gazes fixedly on brighter horizons, reassures, cajoles him back, saying, “Wine and cheese and kimchi, Namjoon; time only makes us better.”

Time the magician, the best cook especially in Korean cuisine, transforms, changes, often for the better, when tempered just right. Like traditional kimchi, prepared with care and attention, then left for Time to work its magic, to bring forth something to fill the stomach, to warm the heart. Like a time capsule leaving only the best parts to keep the memories aged but richer, more precious.

Seokjin remembers being young and feeling neglected by parents too immersed in the future, too detached from home. Remembers seeing a TV drama of a mother making kimchi with the rest of the family. Remembers his brother and their housekeeper - an old widow who loved them like grandchildren - making kimchi with him, traditional clay urn and all, on the kitchen floor, and burying it in garden. Remembers his own impatient fingers swiping at the leftover spicy paste, dipping scraps of cabbage and tasting, wrinkling his nose. “Doesn’t taste right.”

His brother had laughed, flicking his forehead lightly. Their housekeeper, affectionately called halmeoni, had clicked her tongue. “That’s because Time hasn’t done her part yet. The last ingredient is something only Time, the greatest cook there is, to do it’s magic. Only Time can make everything better.”

Only Time can make everything better. Can untangle webs and knots that choke the present, and even the past. Can heal, can soothe.

Eventually, they move again, go back to cleaning the sticky creams and pasty smears. Seokjin allows his mind to empty, allows himself to surrender to the peace that the mundane routine of cleaning provides. He paces himself slow and steady, never mind the lingering tears that slip and stray still.

Eventually, the kitchen is once more spotless, with less hazardous materials lying about within easy reach of tiny fingers. Some of his nicer, more fragile porcelain are stored in the upper cupboards, replaced for the sturdier plastics and child-friendly ceramics.

Namjoon lugs over the bag of fruits he’d brought from the restaurant, places it in the colorful bowl Seokjin set out on the island. Seokjin brings out a small glass jar of kimchi from the fridge and two chopsticks. Namjoon (very carefully) takes out the wine and two wineglasses, and (even more carefully) sets them on the table next to the kimchi.

It’s midnight, and the rest of the apartment is dark and silent, the world outside, muted and far away. In the kitchen, Seokjin and Namjoon eat kimchi and drink wine together, sharing memories of Seokjin’s brother.

Company, to ease the flow of Time.

.

Alone, Jimin curls up by the window, searching for the second star on the left, on top of the moon. But there is no moon tonight. And little Jimin aches, feeling left behind once more.

Taehyung breathes quietly, the space beside him where Jimin had been, too cold for sleep, and the hollow in his chest icy in the night.

Jeongguk dreams of colors and warmth, whispers, "eomma, appa," in the silent room.

-end of chapter 2-

- Miss March Muffin 

#mac n cheese #chapter 2 #cupcakes and kimchi #chef! kim seokjin #jung hoseok #kid! kim taehyung #kid! park jimin #kid! jeon jungkook #restaurant manager! kim namjoon #namjin #hurt/comfort #fluff and humor #bts fanfic #fanfic

[rainbowravioli]

Do you have any fanfic recommendation especially with Yuri!!! ON ICE and Voltron? I think you have a good taste because your meta analyses are always a great read. Aside from art, do you also write fics? Sorry for the many asks. Thank you!

Awwwww you flatter me anon! I never really wrote fics. Well ok, not entirely true, I wrote some pieces for friends in the past. I’m really really insecure over the idea of writing in something that’s not my native language. I still mess up English a lot. You know anxiety and all that.

Don’t apologise for sending asks, I’m always happy to get them. I’m sorry I took a while to reply, but I was compiling a list and I don’t have an ao3 account so tracking down fic I previously read is a bit difficult! 

About Voltron fics. Since I don’t engage with the general fandom much and stay in my safe corner, most of what I have to rec is Sheith. I don’t know if you ship Sheith, so here’s my non-sheith recs (if you do though, feel free to come back and ask for my recs on that)

Give Them Shelter by BossToaster (ChaoticReactions)

Have some freakin’ gen fluff, you goddamn animals. In response to Day 15 of legendarydesvender’s Inktober

The paladins explore the castle and do adorable some team bonding.

Making the Rounds by Kiaxet

When Shiro has trouble dealing with his past with the Galra, he heads to engineering for company. Pidge and Hunk…aren’t quite sure what to do when he just…hovers. (Cuddles. Cuddles forever.)

Very sweet and amazingly in-character “team looks after Shiro” piece.

the fear of falling by amillionsmiles

Keith can pull off a downward spiral. It’s the kind of maneuver he does in his sleep.

Brilliant character study and backstory exploration of Keith. 

i miss you sideways daily by amillionsmiles

“I know how it is,” she sighs fondly, snatching up the empty plastic bags from the table and throwing them in the trash as they exit the cafeteria. “The three of you just zoom off to your own little world sometimes.”

“As long as we come back, right, Mom?” Katie teases, already thinking of next year, when she’ll don the orange and white uniform as well.

Her mom smiles, rising on her toes to kiss Matt’s cheek, pinching Katie’s side with her other hand.

“As long as you come back.”

(or: Katie and Pidge and her family. Before, after, and from now on.)

Outstanding, well paced, super emotional character study! The incorporation of science and technology in the story is brilliant. 

Your Princess Is In Another Castle by VelkynKarma

Part of the paladin’s mission is to spread peace and diplomacy. Allura has trained for years to be exceptional at it, in all situations.

A perfect demonstration of the importance of Allura’s role (with bonus importance of Shiro’s political role as the Black Paladin) and how utterly amazing she is.

Fragile Atlas by Pie Badger

Stranded on an unknown planet, Shiro struggles with the ramifications of Zarkon being able to take control of the Black Lion.

Shiro and Black talking and bonding over shared pain.

As for Yuri on Ice, I had a previous rec list here (x). Here’s more, under the cut because it gets really long

Complete

Like a Fairytale - lucycamui

In which Prince Victor gets swept off his feet at a royal banquet and will go to any length to find his ‘Cinderella’ Yuuri.(And Phichit is the fairy godmother who has no idea what he’s doing).

“The crown prince of the Nikiforov kingdom, infatuated with a mystery pastry chef he’s only just met. This is exactly the kind of scandalous love story my life has been missing… So, what’s he look like? What exactly is Prince Victor’s type?”

“…Sweet.”

“Well, he does make pastries.“

This is super sweet, adorable fluff! Lovely, smooth, whimsical writing style that really had me feeling like I was reading a fairytale. The whole thing just melted my heart. It’s also really funny.

Beside the Dancing Sea - lily_winterwood

He’s finally here in this lovely and quiet little beach cottage, and the rest of the year seems to stretch out infinitely before him. Time will pass, though, and it will pass faster than he realises, but in the meantime he will stop worrying about writer’s block and deadlines and not even having the foggiest clue what his next novel’s going to be about, and live.New York Times-bestselling author Viktor Nikiforov arrives in the sleepy seaside town of Torvill Cove to cure his writer’s block. After encountering local wallflower Yuuri Katsuki at a party, he discovers that this mysterious dark-haired man has a couple secrets up his sleeve.And Viktor will be damned if he doesn’t find out just what those secrets are.

This fic emotionally drained me and ruined my sleeping schedule. I adore it! It just has all these elements that I love so I may be biased, but I really feel like the writing is beautiful and evocative and the take of the mythology is very unique and heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time and the whole story and character arcs are just really well-crafted. I wish this fic was an actual original novel so that I could buy and keep in my shelf forever.

Wanted: Skating Lessons - slightlied

Hi. I am Victor and I need to learn how to skate before Saturday. My parents have been paying for me to get skating lessons every week for the last fifteen years but I never actually attended any of the lessons and I spent the money on marble busts instead. Now they want me to perform to ‘Stammi Vicino’ at their wedding anniversary on Saturday.

If you can teach me, be here at Ice Castle tomorrow at 7:27am with an extra pair of skates. I am a fast learner (well, at least my dog Makkachin is–it took me only two weeks to teach him how to roll over) so I am pretty sure I will pick it up quickly. In return, I can teach you how to say some pick-up lines in Russian or tell you some facts about my love life. Whichever you prefer. Not both, though.

Yours sincerely, Victor

PS. I’m a size 8

—

Or, Yuuri answers an ad he sees on Ice Castle’s community board.

This is adorable and really funny.

Twenty-Five Hours by 0lizzybennet0

In which Yuuri spends a 25 hour flight next to Victor Nikiforov, skating legend, and feels it might simultaneously be the best and worst thing that has ever happened to him.

This fic messed with my heart beautifully. But I must warn, this is angst based on a misunderstanding/Yuuri deciding to be a big liar and taking the lie too far, so it’s certainly not for everyone since I know it’s a trope that a lot of people really dislike. That said, this has probably one of my favourite portrayals of the Victor/Yurio relationship I’ve ever read.

Here And Human by TreacherousGnome

aka ‘Viktor is a baby when he’s tired and Yuuri can’t *believe* that doesn’t bother him more’

This fic includes several things I’m weak to - filling the gaps in between episodes we didn’t get to see, Yuuri dealing with his growing feelings, mentions of the banquet that Yuuri doesn’t get, and literal sleeping together.

not gold like in your dreams by ebenroot

“Victor, you could have let some psychopath into your apartment.”

“Oh come on, he’s not a psychopath,” Victor chides. Christophe makes a gesture with his hand that says ‘are you seriously this naïve or are you drunk at work again?’.

“Victor, you don’t know that. You don’t know anything about him. Whose name am I going to give to the police or face I’m going to describe to the sketch artist when they find your body chopped up like Hannibal Lecter’s side dish?”

–

in which Victor and Yuuri are roommates and Yuuri has a secret

This is the Penelope AU we deserve! Even though I knew the movie, this fic still kept me on the edge of my seat and messed with my emotions and had me both cheering and bursting into tears. Great pacing, great writing style. I love it enough that I’m willing to overlook that this is a villain!JJ fic.

The Tsesarevich lives! by mtothedestiel

An Anastasia AU. Victor is an orphan with no name, no family, and no memory of a time before he was ten years old. Could he really be the missing Nikiforov heir? An adventure across Europe with two conmen will lead him to the answer.

I mean, entertaining the idea of an Anastasia AU for YoI is not hard if you’re a fan of both, but I always had reservations on how to execute it properly. This fic more than succeeded! It knows where to be faithful to the original and where to deviate, fixes a lot of the problems I had with the movie and even adds actual historical context and addresses the issues that come with it.

Unworthy by heartsdesire456

5 Times Victor Overheard People Saying Yuuri Wasn't Good Enough For Him and 1 Time Someone Told Him Yuuri Was Too Good For Him

My favourite fix-it fic for the finale, with Yuuri being a very accurate insecure mess, the world accurately doubting Victor’s intentions, Yuuri’s friends being amazing, Victor being smitten and Yuuri winning gold. I’m still amazed this was written before the finale because it has this one piece of dialogue that echoes it, except it’s much better. 

improbable by themorninglark

The first words Phichit Chulanont says to Seung Gil in over a year are, “You literally have only one photo on your Instagram.

This is probably my favourite characterisation of Seung Gil I’ve ever read and the whole thing is both funny and adorable.

if love is king, who wears the crown by Crollalanza

“Second is seen as nothing,” Christophe had derided.

“But that moment you glide onto the ice, that hush of the audience, and that expectation, isn’t that worth something?”

“You speak as if you know. You used to skate?”

Past tense. It still stung, even if it was expected.

Minako knows exactly what it’s like to be at the top of your game, and she remembers the descent just as clearly.

Chris feels and Minako feels and just…my heart aches for both of them.

Ongoing

The Rules For Lovers by ADreamingSongbird

Prince Yuuri Katsuki has a duty to his country, above all else (his desires, his dreams, and his happiness included), and he knows this alliance will help to ensure the safety of his people. That’s the only reason he accepts Prince Nikiforov’s hand in marriage. The pleasant surprise, of course, is the part where they fall in love along the way. The unpleasant one, well…

That’s a long story.

Suffer with me. In the best way possible. The writing is beautiful, the relationship build is so well paced, the setting is great with its mix of modern day, alternate history, magic and technology, even the OCs are brilliant. This fic is amazing, but god does it stress me out with its cliffhangers and the plot and political intrigue and suffering! I’m holding on to that “angst with a happy ending” tag to keep me going.

My Hero, Yuuri by Abarero

At the age of 23, Yuuri Katsuki is certain he’s just a dime-a-dozen hero that will never make a difference. Little does he know that the moment his path crosses with legendary hero, Victor Nikiforov, both of their lives will begin to change for the better.

A perfect combination of two things I love - Yuri on Ice and My Hero Academia. It mashes the two universes brilliantly, managing to keep tie-ins and references to both while still being very much it’s own (amazing) thing. It has made me laugh out loud and warmed my heart and manages to keep surprising me.

Trade Your Heroes For Ghosts by Naamah_Beherit

Having endured what was probably the worst day of his life followed by a night he does not remember, Yuuri wakes up with a hangover of the century and a desperate plea for the world to forget about his existence. Alas, the world has other plans.

So does a certain Russian skater.

Canon divergence where Yuuri and Victor keep contact immediately after the banquet and Yuuri is made aware that the banquet happened. This is beautifully written. It flows so nicely, especially the dialogue. The characterisation of both Yuuri and Victor makes my heart ache in the best possible way. I’m so eager to see where this one will take me!

empty spaces between stars by astudyinrose

Victor gets just as drunk as Yuuri at the Sochi Banquet, and they disappear together after the dance-offs. They wake up the morning after with rings on their fingers, and pictures of them kissing after getting married the night before are all over the tabloids… but neither of them remembers a thing. They decide to stay married for a while for the sake of Victor’s sponsorships, and in exchange, Victor coaches Yuuri through nationals…

Do you like fake relationships, slow burn and mutual pining? Do you like going through an emotional rollercoaster of one minute melting over how adorable and romantic a moment is to screaming at your screen in frustration the next? Then this fic is the one for you!

The Power of Love by kiaronna

“The two Japanese singles medalists make a beautiful pair! Here, at the 2009 Tokyo GPF, we have the start of this power couple’s reign!”Yuuko and Yuuri dominate the singles skating competition as Japan’s power couple—except they aren’t a couple, and when their old skating idol stumbles into their personal life, everything rapidly goes downhill.

A fic that includes Yuuko and focuses on her friendship with Yuuri is already a fic after my own heart. This is Victuuri, and although it’s dipped in the angst you would expect from massive miscommunication and assumptions (and the fabulous game of “how hard can Yuuri’s anxiety misread a situation” which kills me every time), it’s still so sweet and heartwarming. Though the angst destroys me. But my favourite part of this fic is the friendship. Not just between Yuuri and Yuuko, but also between Detroit trio once Phichit comes into the picture. It’s deep, loving friendship portrayed really well.

Fatum ad Momentum by maydei

These are the moments that were lost in the rush for the Gold, and the things that were built within them. A re-evaluation of everything, from day one, the real day one. From, “Be my coach, Victor!!” And how trust, friendship, and love were built from there. Through Victor’s eyes, the story unfolds—the journey and experience of knowing Yuuri.

Really lovely Victor, really interesting take on his POV and the series’ missing moments, and the Victor in Hasetsu scenes my heart has been craving. Just, the whole fic really warms my heart and it’s an absolute joy to read.

#Anonymous #replies #yuri on ice #voltron #fic recs #long post

[technitoon-blog]

The Amazing Realm of the Wedding Cake

dort s koněm In present day globe there are just so a lot of different options and alternatives offered to us. We can get a hold of men and women by standard cellphone, intelligent telephone, normal mobile telephone, electronic mail, or regular mail. If we want to get somewhere we can generate a car or truck, experience a bicycle, get a bus, or stroll along. Supplied all the several choices offered to us these days, it can be only normal that this assortment must work its way into one particular of our most cherished and honored traditions...that of the wedding cake. Picking the taste of the cake and the colour of the icing is just finding commenced with the procedure. You will also need to have to get some time to opt for the best wedding ceremony cake topper for your unique cake. In this post we will be checking out the realm of the wedding cake. We will be offering some qualifications details on the tradition, and ultimately operating on up to the assortment course of action of the ideal topper for that very unique wedding day cake. The marriage ceremony cake is generally proudly and strategically placed for the duration of the marriage ceremony reception. Generally towering way up into the heavens, it can compete with the bride as the "centre of focus" on her major working day. This tasty function of art establishes a focal position that the other facets of the reception can revolve close to. For these who desire a flare for the spectacular, the wedding cake can be wheeled into the home at the conclude of the reception, supplying a "grand entrance" for everyone to see. To numerous individuals this grand entrance will maybe cause memories of the bride who walked down the aisle earlier in the day. For Starters The wedding cake has progressed about the a long time. Commencing off as a easy image of fertility, it has transformed by itself into an creative tradition that can have numerous various artistic interpretations. For a lot of historic peoples wheat was a image of fertility and a bountiful harvest. The Historic Romans used to toss grains of wheat at the bride and groom to "desire fertility" to the new few in the course of their wedding day. This custom made sooner or later progressed into bringing little cakes produced from wheat to the wedding day banquet itself. People would then crumble this cake about the head of the bride to want the pleased pair "several youngsters". The friends would then try to eat the fallen crumbs as a image of sharing in the couple's good fortune. Quite a few consider that this "crumbling of the cake" in excess of the bride's head might have progressed into another wedding day working day tradition? Do you know what it is? In get to protect the hapless bride from the wheat shower that is to arrive, bridesmaids draped a fabric more than her head before the "crumbling tradition" took spot. A lot of believe that this uncomplicated cloth advanced into the marriage veil of currently. Welcome The Middle Ages For the duration of the Center Ages buns or sweet rolls had changed the first wheat cakes, but it was even now very customary for guests to carry these tasty treats to the marriage. Put in a enormous pile in between the bride and groom, if the delighted pair was capable to kiss in excess of this massive stack of wheat, it was considered that they would be blessed with numerous children. It is generally believed that the following move in the evolution of the standard cake was executed by a French pastry chef throughout the seventeenth century. Throughout a vacation to London he occurred to notice this "cake piling" ceremony. Upon his return to France he dusted the stack of buns with sugar, and thereby "cemented" them with each other into one particular delicious artwork kind. This was to become the initial rendition of the tiered and frosted marriage cake, and a forerunner as to what was to occur in the yrs forward. The Classic Style Are you familiar with the common type of the modern working day marriage ceremony cake? You know, the 1 with the distinct style and design of more compact tiers as the cake builds vertically? It is believed that this design was influenced by the spire of the 14th century Saint Bride's church in London. How's that for a little bit of trivia for you? Victorian England has brought us numerous of today's valued wedding ceremony traditions. For example, Queen Victoria herself is explained to have had a cake that weighed in at 300 lbs. As confectioners and bakers became much more daring and skillful, their creations grew to become even far more daring and elaborate. When England's Princess Elizabeth and Prince Phillip were married back again in 1947, their marriage ceremony cake weighed in at a whopping five hundred lbs, and was nine toes tall. The Model of Currently In modern globe the elaborate marriage cake is no extended reserved for the loaded and renowned. Just about every pair can share in the custom of having a wedding cake additional to their major day. The wedding day cake professionals of modern world have taken their art to towering heights (pardon the pun). Extended gone are people bland times when you were being constrained to a white cake with white frosting. Although a white cake will probably always be the most popular owing to its conventional indicating, today's pair is constrained only by the restrictions of their creativeness (and price range) when it will come to their wedding cake. Why White? White is absolutely the shade of a wedding ceremony, but did you know that there is an additional motive why the white is the customary colour of a wedding day cake? Again in Victorian periods the finer substances of a wedding cake ended up scarce and challenging to occur by. If the cake had a white icing, this unveiled the truth that only the finest and most expensive white sugar was staying applied. Brown sugar was significantly far more typical, and for that reason a lot much less expensive. So, the more white the cake, the richer the people. Be Sure To Prepare Ahead Do not depart your unique wedding day cake right up until the previous minute. This is a single of the most critical issues that you can keep in mind. No matter whether you choose the baker down the road, a proficient family member, or a pastry chef who specializes in these tasty masterpieces, if you plan very well in advance you will be capable to manage whatever obstacles may possibly occur your way. Some bakers call for only a bare minimum observe, while quite a few bakers are booked considerably in advance. It really is a disgrace to have that perfect cake of your dreams be "cancelled" because of to the fact you are unable to allocate a baker's time. What is that you say? You have no thought who will be baking your wedding cake? If you do not have a particular baker in brain, you have a bit of research in advance of you. Shop all over and get some very good suggestions from relatives and close friends. Browse the yellow web pages and the net as they are equally worthwhile informational methods. If you come about to be surfing the internet you will see that quite a few bakers right now are publishing pics of some of their masterpieces. As a kind of masterpiece cake gallery, they showcase what they are capable of making. This will jog your imagination as to what you would like your possess wedding day cake to look like. Do not Neglect Your Spending budget Be confident to think about your spending budget prior to you allow your imagination get the greater of you. You want your marriage ceremony working day to be one particular of celebration, not the working day that you started your journey into financial disaster. Several folks are astonished at the value of a wedding ceremony cake. Maintain in head that you are inquiring an artisan to generate a masterpiece for you, and this can often be reflected in the selling price that he/she will be charging. The expense of labor is frequently the biggest cost in the creation of a wedding day cake but preserve in brain the uncomplicated truth that fondant is far more high-priced than buttercream. Have you believed about staging your masterpiece? This comes up coming. Be certain to take the wedding ceremony cake stand into thought for the duration of your preparing period. Even though some cakes can be merely positioned on flat boards that will not be witnessed by the normal public, other individuals are elaborately shown on gorgeous stands for everybody to see. Maintain in brain the simple actuality that genuine measurement of the cake table ought to be in proportion to the genuine dimension of your cake. A table that is way too modest will make the cake look way also big, even though a desk that is far too huge will make it appear like a very small cupcake. And just before we neglect, your cake table will need a lovely covering to compliment its strategic site at the wedding reception. Oh, really don't forget about the cake knife and cake server. There wants to be a position on the table for these two products as effectively.

[disregardbitches-blog1]

The Superb Realm of the Marriage ceremony Cake

dětské dorty In today's earth there are just so many various alternatives and selections available to us. We can get a maintain of men and women by conventional phone, smart mobile phone, typical cell telephone, email, or common mail. If we want to get somewhere we can travel a auto, journey a bicycle, just take a bus, or stroll together. Supplied all the different choices available to us nowadays, it is only natural that this wide variety need to function its way into a single of our most cherished and honored traditions...that of the wedding day cake. Deciding on the flavor of the cake and the color of the icing is just getting began with the procedure. You will also need to take some time to pick the very best wedding day cake topper for your particular cake. In this article we will be discovering the realm of the marriage ceremony cake. We will be providing some background information on the custom, and ultimately operating on up to the selection procedure of the great topper for that really specific wedding ceremony cake. The marriage ceremony cake is frequently proudly and strategically put during the wedding day reception. Usually towering way up into the heavens, it can compete with the bride as the "centre of focus" on her huge day. This delicious perform of artwork establishes a focal stage that the other facets of the reception can revolve around. For all those who choose a flare for the spectacular, the marriage cake can be wheeled into the space at the conclude of the reception, providing a "grand entrance" for absolutely everyone to see. To many persons this grand entrance will perhaps set off reminiscences of the bride who walked down the aisle earlier in the day. For Starters The marriage ceremony cake has evolved in excess of the yrs. Commencing off as a simple image of fertility, it has remodeled itself into an inventive tradition that can have several diverse artistic interpretations. For several historical peoples wheat was a image of fertility and a bountiful harvest. The Historical Romans utilized to throw grains of wheat at the bride and groom to "would like fertility" to the new couple for the duration of their marriage ceremony. This tailor made at some point progressed into bringing very little cakes manufactured from wheat to the marriage ceremony banquet by itself. Folks would then crumble this cake more than the head of the bride to desire the satisfied couple "many youngsters". The guests would then try to eat the fallen crumbs as a symbol of sharing in the couple's good fortune. Several assume that this "crumbling of the cake" about the bride's head may possibly have advanced into yet another marriage day tradition? Do you know what it is? In order to defend the hapless bride from the wheat shower that is to arrive, bridesmaids draped a cloth above her head prior to the "crumbling tradition" took position. Several imagine that this basic fabric progressed into the wedding veil of currently. Welcome The Middle Ages Throughout the Middle Ages buns or sweet rolls had replaced the unique wheat cakes, but it was however really customary for visitors to provide these delicious treats to the wedding. Placed in a massive pile amongst the bride and groom, if the pleased few was in a position to kiss about this large stack of wheat, it was believed that they would be blessed with several young children. It is frequently considered that the subsequent stage in the evolution of the conventional cake was executed by a French pastry chef through the seventeenth century. Through a trip to London he occurred to observe this "cake piling" ceremony. Upon his return to France he dusted the stack of buns with sugar, and thereby "cemented" them collectively into one particular tasty art variety. This was to turn out to be the first rendition of the tiered and frosted marriage ceremony cake, and a forerunner as to what was to come in the several years in advance. The Basic Style Are you common with the classic model of the modern day working day wedding ceremony cake? You know, the one with the exclusive design and style of scaled-down tiers as the cake builds vertically? It is thought that this model was encouraged by the spire of the 14th century Saint Bride's church in London. How's that for a bit of trivia for you? Victorian England has introduced us numerous of present day valued marriage traditions. For example, Queen Victoria herself is stated to have had a cake that weighed in at three hundred lbs. As confectioners and bakers grew to become additional daring and skillful, their creations grew to become even far more daring and elaborate. When England's Princess Elizabeth and Prince Phillip ended up married again in 1947, their wedding day cake weighed in at a whopping 500 lbs, and was nine toes tall. The Model of These days In present-day globe the elaborate marriage cake is no longer reserved for the loaded and popular. Each and every couple can share in the tradition of acquiring a wedding ceremony cake additional to their massive working day. The wedding ceremony cake experts of today's globe have taken their artwork to towering heights (pardon the pun). Prolonged long gone are those bland days when you ended up constrained to a white cake with white frosting. Despite the fact that a white cake will most likely always be the most popular because of to its classic indicating, today's few is constrained only by the limits of their imagination (and budget) when it comes to their wedding ceremony cake. Why White? White is definitely the color of a wedding ceremony, but did you know that there is one more motive why the white is the customary colour of a marriage ceremony cake? Back in Victorian times the finer elements of a wedding cake had been scarce and challenging to occur by. If the cake experienced a white icing, this revealed the truth that only the finest and most costly white sugar was currently being utilized. Brown sugar was significantly much more prevalent, and therefore substantially less high-priced. So, the much more white the cake, the richer the persons. Be Certain To Plan Forward Never leave your specific marriage cake until finally the last moment. This is a single of the most crucial items that you can bear in mind. Regardless of whether you decide on the baker down the highway, a proficient relatives member, or a pastry chef who specializes in these delicious masterpieces, if you strategy well in advance you will be capable to take care of whatever hurdles may possibly come your way. Some bakers demand only a least detect, while quite a few bakers are booked much in advance. It truly is a disgrace to have that best cake of your dreams be "cancelled" owing to the actuality you cannot allocate a baker's time. What's that you say? You have no notion who will be baking your wedding day cake? If you will not have a specific baker in head, you have a bit of homework in advance of you. Shop close to and get some great recommendations from household and buddies. Search the yellow web pages and the web as they are each worthwhile informational sources. If you happen to be surfing the world wide web you will see that quite a few bakers currently are publishing photos of some of their masterpieces. As a sort of masterpiece cake gallery, they showcase what they are capable of manufacturing. This will jog your imagination as to what you would like your individual wedding ceremony cake to appear like. Will not Overlook Your Funds Be positive to take into account your budget ahead of you let your creativity get the better of you. You want your wedding day day to be one particular of celebration, not the working day that you commenced your journey into financial disaster. Quite a few persons are shocked at the expense of a wedding cake. Preserve in thoughts that you are inquiring an artisan to create a masterpiece for you, and this can generally be reflected in the cost that he/she will be charging. The charge of labor is typically the biggest expenditure in the creation of a wedding ceremony cake but maintain in thoughts the straightforward simple fact that fondant is a lot more high-priced than buttercream. Have you considered about staging your masterpiece? This arrives following. Be confident to consider the marriage ceremony cake stand into thought for the duration of your setting up phase. When some cakes can be basically put on flat boards that will not be viewed by the general community, other people are elaborately displayed on lovely stands for every person to see. Maintain in mind the uncomplicated actuality that real dimension of the cake table must be in proportion to the precise dimensions of your cake. A table that is as well little will make the cake seem way also massive, although a table that is far too substantial will make it appear like a little cupcake. And before we forget, your cake table will will need a stunning covering to compliment its strategic site at the wedding day reception. Oh, don't fail to remember the cake knife and cake server. There desires to be a place on the table for these two products as very well.

[sweetdevotedsoul-blog]

The Amazing Realm of the Marriage Cake

dorty In today's world there are just so a lot of various options and choices obtainable to us. We can get a keep of persons by standard cell phone, clever phone, typical mobile telephone, email, or typical mail. If we want to get somewhere we can push a automobile, ride a bicycle, consider a bus, or stroll alongside. Supplied all the several alternatives offered to us these days, it's only natural that this range ought to work its way into just one of our most cherished and honored traditions...that of the wedding day cake. Picking out the flavor of the cake and the coloration of the icing is just receiving commenced with the approach. You will also will need to acquire some time to pick the very best wedding cake topper for your exclusive cake. In this post we will be discovering the realm of the marriage cake. We will be offering some background facts on the custom, and sooner or later performing on up to the assortment procedure of the excellent topper for that quite specific marriage ceremony cake. The marriage ceremony cake is generally proudly and strategically positioned during the wedding day reception. Usually towering way up into the heavens, it can contend with the bride as the "middle of consideration" on her large working day. This scrumptious work of artwork establishes a focal stage that the other facets of the reception can revolve around. For people who choose a flare for the remarkable, the marriage cake can be wheeled into the room at the end of the reception, delivering a "grand entrance" for absolutely everyone to see. To several persons this grand entrance will most likely cause recollections of the bride who walked down the aisle previously in the day. For Starters The wedding cake has evolved more than the a long time. Starting off off as a simple image of fertility, it has transformed itself into an inventive tradition that can have numerous distinct inventive interpretations. For several historic peoples wheat was a symbol of fertility and a bountiful harvest. The Historical Romans employed to throw grains of wheat at the bride and groom to "desire fertility" to the new few throughout their marriage. This tailor made finally evolved into bringing tiny cakes produced from wheat to the wedding day banquet itself. People would then crumble this cake in excess of the head of the bride to want the happy pair "a lot of kids". The attendees would then try to eat the fallen crumbs as a symbol of sharing in the couple's excellent fortune. Several believe that this "crumbling of the cake" over the bride's head may possibly have progressed into one more wedding ceremony day tradition? Do you know what it is? In purchase to shield the hapless bride from the wheat shower that is to occur, bridesmaids draped a fabric above her head before the "crumbling tradition" took location. Numerous feel that this straightforward fabric evolved into the marriage veil of today. Welcome The Center Ages Through the Center Ages buns or sweet rolls had changed the unique wheat cakes, but it was even now very customary for guests to carry these tasty treats to the marriage. Put in a big pile in between the bride and groom, if the happy pair was equipped to kiss in excess of this huge stack of wheat, it was thought that they would be blessed with several little ones. It is commonly thought that the upcoming action in the evolution of the regular cake was executed by a French pastry chef for the duration of the 17th century. In the course of a journey to London he took place to notice this "cake piling" ceremony. On his return to France he dusted the stack of buns with sugar, and therefore "cemented" them collectively into 1 tasty art sort. This was to become the 1st rendition of the tiered and frosted wedding day cake, and a forerunner as to what was to appear in the several years forward. The Basic Type Are you acquainted with the vintage type of the present day day wedding ceremony cake? You know, the a single with the exclusive design and style of lesser tiers as the cake builds vertically? It is considered that this product was encouraged by the spire of the 14th century Saint Bride's church in London. How's that for a bit of trivia for you? Victorian England has introduced us a lot of of today's valued wedding ceremony traditions. For example, Queen Victoria herself is claimed to have had a cake that weighed in at 300 lbs. As confectioners and bakers grew to become far more daring and skillful, their creations turned even a lot more daring and elaborate. When England's Princess Elizabeth and Prince Phillip had been married back again in 1947, their marriage ceremony cake weighed in at a whopping 500 lbs, and was 9 ft tall. The Edition of Today In today's planet the elaborate marriage ceremony cake is no longer reserved for the loaded and famous. Just about every few can share in the custom of getting a marriage cake included to their huge day. The wedding day cake experts of present-day earth have taken their art to towering heights (pardon the pun). Lengthy gone are individuals bland times when you had been confined to a white cake with white frosting. Even though a white cake will almost certainly generally be the most well-liked because of to its classic that means, present day few is restricted only by the boundaries of their imagination (and finances) when it comes to their marriage cake. Why White? 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[pleasedontbelame]

Medium Bloody Well

Published in · Talent Implied 2016 Author · Pablo Tognetti Editor · Aaron Chapman

Public holiday. Australia Day. I still don’t know what it means. Maybe they’re celebrating the day they gained independence from Great Britain. Maybe they’re celebrating being part of the Commonwealth or maybe they’re celebrating not having that ugly, foggy British weather. Something like that. A public holiday that doesn’t allow us to breathe properly. The heat making love to the humidity and vice versa. A second hand orgy. Every tiny movement makes me sweat. Not moving makes me sweat as well. The seven-minute walk from the tram to the restaurant becomes an agitating adventure.

        Today I have a big section to take care of. Two round tables of seven people, two standard tables of four people and two big tables of eight people each. An impossible section on a busy night for one human being but it’s lunchtime and we don’t expect so many guests. Maybe eating Italian isn’t the most patriotic way to spend Australia Day.

Slowly the guests start building an imaginary line next to the entrance. Punctual and here punctual means arriving before your booking. In my South American homeland punctuality is a word that tends to be more lax and senseless. Arriving late isn’t a sin.

I pretend I’m busy while waiting for our part-time model/hostess to seat guests at one of my tables. I check the stations where we keep side plates, wine glasses, entrée and main cutlery, dessert and minuscule teaspoons, Tabasco, share plates and everything else we need to reset tables in a wink. I know they’re in order. Checked them ten minutes ago but I do anyway because pretending you’re busy is always a wise strategy. Always.

        Before feeling useless I decide to help a friend with a demanding table. Not because I want employee of the month, just because a gorgeous brunette has caught my attention. Unexpectedly five Asians march to one of my round tables. Maybe a family. One of them acts and looks like the big brother and the other three are around fourteen years old. Undefined sexualities. I welcome them and they choose how and where they’re going to sit. Every table always has a leader. Mark my words. As a waiter, I need to identify that leader as soon as possible because they’ll be the key figure, the sensei. The big brother assumes the role quickly pointing at the menu. The family beside him absorbed by the Milky Way and its gravitational emptiness.

Usually Asian people tend to share plates. That means all the different dishes are displayed in the centre of the table. ‘As it comes,’ they say. And they don’t mind using those side plates for their meals. They grab a bit from here and a bit from there. Everything is going to end up on those unpleasant, tiny plates. A plate that will become art by the end of the meal. They tend to eat everything at the same time: pizza, pasta, salads, sides, desserts. They don’t divide the meal into sections or give a shit about the concepts of entrée, mains or desserts. It’s all part of the moment where they fight fiercely to put food on their tiny plates. I only need three moments of interaction with Asian tables. Tap their order into the system. Run the food. Print the bill. Ciao. All while smiling occasionally.

Cucina Vivo doesn’t want to be Hungry Jack’s. That’s why guests wait for their orders. To wait, such a lovely and charming concept but not everyone can embrace the idea. Waiting gives my Asian family time to connect with each other. Time to interact and feel alive. Time they use to check their phones, getting lost in those shallow screens. Five humans. Five phones. Each of them trapped in their own galaxy, for endless minutes. Makes me feel uncomfortable even though I’m not sitting there. At times they shyly stare because they want to know how long the food is going to take. They expect me to understand that silent look. Want me to approach the table and say the food is coming. And it’s always coming. I’ve learnt never to give any kind of specification about time. Never measure time unless you want to end up going wild and punching a guest. If you do, guests will constantly watch their watches. We don’t want that. Always guarantee the food is coming or being plated. No one is actually going to check if you’re lying or not. In this particular case I don’t approach the table to give them a meal status. Asians tend to be patient and in general don’t complain. I let them be.

While pouring the red sparkling Moscato bottle I realise one of the underage kids is not actually underage. All the food starts to appear at the same time. One pizza margherita, one pizza cicca, two spaghetti carbonara, one gnocchi, one fettuccine bolognese, one cape grim, one Caesar salad and one arugula e pere salad. I glimpse arms moving from one place to another. Deep silences. Mystical concentration. No smiles. Side plates full of food suddenly empty and then full again. And again. Different aromas fighting to be the protagonist. Art. Louvre. Bill please. ‘Would you like a copy?’ Ciao and one final lesson, apparently the word tip doesn’t have a fucking translation.

Worst-case scenario working at an Italian restaurant is taking care of Italian guests. It doesn’t matter which city they come from, which latitude and longitude, they’re going to stab your patience to death. Maybe, as an Argentinian, I can identify with that sort of annoying attitude. Most of the time we don’t realise we’re tiring customers. Sometimes we’re rude and impolite, even when we’re asking for salt and pepper.

        The first thing I learnt from Italians is that the menu is an item without any sort of value. Or sense. Or utility. The menu’s existence is ephemeral simply because Italians are going to ask for something that hasn’t been printed on it. A printed menu means the executive chef went through infinite alternatives before having the final version in his hands. Endless hours of trial and error blending different ingredients, recipes and always keeping in mind the restaurant celebrates Mediterranean cuisine. All effort is put on hold with Italians.

‘Pablo, the chefs are Italian right?’ Roberto, the head of the table asks me while sipping his white pussy wine – this is why he abandoned Rome. Classic question. I pretend to pay attention. My eyes wander around my section. Busy night at the restaurant and Roberto is having dinner with a stunning sculptural blonde. I don’t dare ask if she’s his wife, lover or escort.

‘Of course they’re Italian my friend.’ The truth is not all of them have the same passport. Just a few are Italian. My answer aims to comfort him. Roberto and his sex worker are going to have the pizza of the day, the four smelliest cheeses I’m able to sell. It would be wonderful if Italians could comprehend that Cucina Vivo is a restaurant and not their grandma’s house. That house where you just open the cupboard and find whatever you’re looking for. If you need parmigiano from a small fishing town with a picturesque sea view, it’s going to be in that cupboard. If you need black olives which rested in a gloomy humid corner for nine years, they’re going to be in that cupboard too. And if you need more rainy-season Vietnamese chilli, you’re also going to find it in the bloody cupboard but you’re not going to find grandma’s cupboard in every single restaurant you decide to visit. The food offerings are limited. A concept Italians don’t understand. Or maybe they don’t care at all. Everything involves technical specifications with them.

I like when food becomes an important issue. I love food and consider myself a non-professional critic. Most of the time I just want Italians to understand they’re not architects. They’re not designing the next mansion for a Saudi Arabian sultan. They’re just having a meal, in a restaurant, on the Gold Coast. If the mozzarella is not buffalo mozzarella, I can assure you that you’ll survive. The planet will continue in its regular rotational and translational motion. You’re not taking a blind walk through a minefield. You’re just trying to eat a bloody pizza. Roberto seems to be loving his pizza but he complains about some burned spots and because it’s not as ‘foggy’ as it should be. Two objections is a humble victory.

        Italians are emotional and definitely cool. Certainly not all of them. But their loud voices and excessive body language make me feel at home. When they figure out I’m Argentinian we’re going to talk about football, Maradona, Messi and who the best football player in recent history is. Sometimes they just cross themselves, look up to the sky and thank me for Maradona, ‘the hand of God’ and the fact of his existence.

        By the way, there’s one similitude Italians and Asians share, they’re not familiar with the tip. Roberto thanks me for my service and gives me a friendly hug. I kiss the blonde girl in slow motion and walk them to the entrance. My manager gives me a wink and screams in Italian, ‘Gorgeous ass!’ I laugh. Roberto turns back. I pretend to look confused resetting the table.

One of the things I miss from my land, with all my heart, is what we call merienda. I still can’t find an exact translation. It could mean snack, night tea or picnic. But neither represents the real concept. Basically it’s a light meal between five and seven in the afternoon where we have coffee with croissants. If you’re brave enough you’ll have that croissant with ham and melted cheese. Or maybe fresh orange juice with some sort of recently baked pastry. Or a hot chocolate with churros con dulce de leche, similar to the Spanish churro but filled with extra sweet condensed milk.

That’s why we have dinner around ten. All of us familiar with the merienda lifestyle now feel as though something is missing in our existence. Now I understand why guests arrive so early to have dinner at Cucina Vivo. Simply because they’re starving by seven. Merienda doesn’t exist and dinner is the replacement. During the week our kitchen closes at nine and just the pizza oven remains open till ten. I always hear the chef complaining and cursing.

One night, the lady with the hat is the last guest to walk into the restaurant. I wouldn’t say the lady with the hat is actually wearing a hat. I would say she’s wearing a beret, Parisian style. The lady with the beret smiles and contemplates her surroundings. She grabs the menu with total confidence. Most of the time guests drown in the menu, holding it as they would a quantum mechanics book. Quite funny and stupid at the same time. But that’s not the case with the lady with the beret. She closes the menu and waits. I slowly walk to the table. Before opening my mouth, she glances at my name badge and asks, ‘Pablo, which red wine do you recommend?’

I feel like giving her a standing ovation. I remain silent and rush to the bartender Diego, asking him to pour me a sample of Peppoli. My favourite Italian red wine from the Chianti region. Viscous. Spicy. Opaque. Tastes like wet dirt. An excellent blend with pasta or steak. After the first sip the lady with the beret salutes me asking for a bottle. Now I own her trust and dinner and bill. I tap into the system. Antipasto and calamari fritti for entrée. Filetto di manzo and polpette di pollo for mains. Tiramisu to share for dessert.

       The lady is married. Both work in the development of new hotels around the world. In other words they’ve lived in France, Belgium, Peru, Vietnam and Kenya, among other countries I can’t remember. Sixteen years ago the lady with the beret adopted a baby in the Philippines. That grown up baby is now sitting next to her fighting with the calamari.

Listening to these kinds of life stories is music to my ears. Good music. I’m not talking about Taylor Swift or Beyoncé. I’m talking about a John Coltrane, an Albert King, a Jim Morrison.

        Sometimes I believe I have a good eye. Sounds raw but I really feel that way. Once I read Malcolm Gladwell’s book Blink, a wise American writer with an afro who invites us to trust more in our first impressions. Since childhood we’re told a completely different story. But after reading that book I felt more confident listening to my first impressions. To my feelings. Especially when I meet a person for the first time and maybe the last. I feel the woman with the beret is special. Actually she is. While pushing the last bite into her mouth, she moans and theatrically grabs her daughter’s shoulder pretending she needs medical attention.

The night slowly fades away and I’m hanging out at the bar. Just chilling next to a stunning vintage coffee machine. I make eye contact with the lady, her right hand giving me the international sign for an espresso.

‘Diego, a short black from the house please. Strong.’

The tiramisu appears from the kitchen and goes straight to the table. With a surprising timing the espresso is ready too. She gives me the scuba diving sign for ok.

‘What’re your plans after Australia?’ She has assumed I’m not staying. Accurate.

After a long pause, I fire back, ‘Japan is waiting for me.’

She steals my notepad and pen. ‘Come back in ten minutes,’ she both whispers and commands staring at the small canvas. She unleashes the ink.

      The lady with the beret and her daughter are one of the last tables in the restaurant. They seem to enjoy each other’s company. They enjoy food. They enjoy being there. They enjoy without end. When I clear their table I find a juicy tip inside my notepad and handwritten in the bottom “The only people for me are the mad ones. Be mad.”