#optimistic yet unknown future

[thegayhimbo]

Stranger Things (2x09): “The Gate” Review

If you haven't yet, be sure to check out my other Stranger Things reviews:

Stranger Things Episode Reviews:

Season 1:

The Vanishing of Will Byers

The Weirdo on Maple Street

Holly Jolly

The Body

The Flea and the Acrobat

The Monster

The Bathtub

The Upside Down

Season 2:

MADMAX

Trick or Treat, Freak

The Pollywog

Will the Wise

Dig Dug

The Spy

The Lost Sister

The Mind Flayer

Stranger Things Play:

Stranger Things The First Shadow

If I were to pick an episode from the show that is the one, this is it. Not only is "The Gate" my favorite season finale, but it's also my favorite episode in the entire series (so far). Season 2 in general I rank as the best season because it had so many individual moments and arcs that I enjoyed, as well as the right combination of thrills, laughs, and heart to keep me entertained. I loved all 9 episodes, and I could rewatch everything from this season and never grow bored of it.

I stated in my review of “The Upside Down” that I was glad the show continued past season 1, that it didn’t become an anthology series a la American Horror Story or The Twilight Zone, and that they overruled doing a major time jump so they could keep the main cast. In addition to all that, another reason why I’ve never been on board with the “Stranger Things should have ended at season 1” crowd is because season 1 itself finished on a pretty bleak note. It wasn’t a downer ending, but it was the kind of ending that left a sense of dread, like things weren’t over and were about to get worse. El was presumed dead (doesn’t help that the Duffer Brothers originally planned to kill her off at the end of season 1), Will was throwing up slugs in the bathroom and hallucinating the Upside Down, the Gate was still opened (meaning more monsters would be able to come through and terrorize Hawkins), there was the fact that (regardless of what happened to Brenner) the Government covered up the deaths of multiple people while browbeating everyone else into silence, and most of the main characters were left with bitter regrets over how things went down (i.e. Barbara’s death, Hopper’s guilt over betraying El, Mike’s grief, Jonathan and Nancy not getting together, etc). You could argue this is similar in tone to the endings for John Carpenter’s Halloween, The Fog, and The Thing (all movies that served as inspiration for Stranger Things), but damn, talk about a depressing way to go out.

By contrast, while I wouldn’t say "The Gate" ends on a completely happy note, it’s framed in a more hopeful and cautiously optimistic way compared to “The Upside Down.” The titular Gate is finally closed, and even with the Mind Flayer hovering angrily over the school from the other side, there’s nothing it can do about the situation (for now). Hawkins Lab is permanently shut down, and government officials are held accountable for Barbara’s death. Relationships are culminated and kept, from romantic (Mike/El, Lucas/Max, Nancy/Jonathan) to friendships (Steve/Dustin) to even relationships where the people involved are just there for one another (Joyce/Hopper, Nancy/Dustin, etc). We get to see the character development of certain individuals (Steve, Lucas, Hopper, Max, El) come to fruition in this episode. Most of all, there’s a sense that these characters can finally move on with their lives.

Best way I can describe it is like how Terminator 2 (which was one of the movies that inspired season 2) wrapped things up: Unlike the first movie, which ended with Sarah's acceptance of a future war between humans and the machines, the second movie subverted that with the destruction of Cyberdyne Systems, the melting of the remaining terminators, and the end of Skynet as a threat. It’s not "happily ever after" (though there was an alternate ending filmed that was framed as such), but the final scene is nevertheless hopeful: It concludes with Sarah narrating how, despite the unknown future, she has the sense that things can improve for the better:

Likewise, that’s how I see this episode: It feels like a conclusion where aspects set up beforehand are paid off here, plot-threads are tied up, the main threat has been stopped, and even though the characters don’t know what the future holds for them, they at least know they can move forward despite their losses and everything that’s happened.

I don’t know how season 5 will play out (as of writing this). I always hope for the best, and I pray the Duffer Brothers end the show on a satisfying note. However, even if season 5 turns out to be a total dud, I can always come back to this episode and headcanon it as where the show truly ended. Like I said, season 2 is my favorite, and the one I enjoy rewatching more than the others.

Part 1: Steve’s Character Development

I still remember back in 2017 (way before I ever got involved with the fandom) the praise that was heaped on Steve following season 2’s conclusion. This wasn’t just limited to the internet. I was in college at the time, and I remember multiple people at my university were talking about Stranger Things in-between classes. Whenever the show was mentioned, Steve’s character development was always brought up positively. People were impressed with it. So was I. If you had told me when I first saw season 1 that Steve would grow to be my favorite character, I would have laughed. Some of my anger towards him had abated by the time I finished season 1, but I was still ambivalent about his presence on the show. I’m sure there are those who still hated him at the time, but I was more in the “Let’s see where his character goes from here” crowd like most people were. And it paid off in a huge way. He’s now beloved.

I know it’s been talked about to death how his character changed in the writing process, how he originally was supposed to be a jerk before he'd be killed off, how the Duffer Brothers liked Joe Keery and realized they could do more with Steve’s character beyond writing him as a one-dimensional bully, and how his friendship with Dustin was unplanned………………and to put it bluntly: I don’t care for fans who see this as a negative. Writing a story and characters is an ever-changing process, and Steve wasn’t the only character on this show who was retooled for the final product. Sometimes, changes are necessary to either make the story work, or because writers realize they can do more with a character beyond pigeonholing them into a stereotype. They could have easily kept Steve as a bully if they wanted to, but considering the plethora of other bullies on this show (Billy, Angela, Troy, Tommy, Carol, etc), I’m grateful they decided to do something new with Steve instead of being predictable. Plus, think of what we would have missed out on if Steve was absent from the show.

What works about Steve and how they handled his arc this season is it's both a logical and emotional progression from how things ended for him in season 1: Steve felt awful over how he acted towards Nancy and Jonathan (as anyone with a conscious would), went to apologize to Jonathan at his house, got pulled into a nightmare where he encountered the Demogorgon for the first time, was given the option to leave by Nancy but chose to come back to save both Nancy and Jonathan, and had his entire worldview shattered by the realization that another darker dimension filled to the brim with monsters existed next to theirs. So not only was Steve feeling immense guilt for his behavior towards Nancy and Jonathan, but any sense of safety and security was gone now that he knew what lurked on the other side (and could even climb through the walls to attack him at any given moment). The only people he could depend on now were the ones who also knew about the situation, and the only person he was close to at that point was Nancy. Furthermore, having that kind of traumatic experience (by which, I’m referring to a life-or-death situation), causes a major shift in perspective going forward. Suddenly, that which seemed important in the moment becomes immaterial in the grand scheme of things.

This is why I shake my head at fans who claim that Steve still gave a crap about popularity or getting one over Billy at this point. Putting aside how this was always a one-sided rivalry Billy instigated, and how Steve’s reactions to Billy’s prodding (including in this episode) have ranged from indifference to contempt, Steve’s experience with the Upside Down fundamentally changed him to the point that those aspects of high school he might have once cared about ring hollow to him now. He may have done a good job initially disassociating himself from the horrors by trying to act like everything was normal, but that wasn't going to last forever (just like Nancy couldn’t keep her grief over Barbara’s death buried any longer). In any case, it’s significant that Steve's establishing character moment in the first episode this season was him writing out college application essays for Nancy to go over while also discussing what their potential future looked like. His focus wasn’t on popularity, or what the crowd would think about him. The crown for King of Hawkins High School was worthless to Steve in the grand scheme of things, and most of his efforts this season were centered on trying (and failing) to keep his relationship with Nancy together.

It's not just about Steve still loving Nancy (even after their breakup). It's that she’s also the only stable factor in his life right now. When he loses her, it’s devastating not just because it means the end of their relationship and any future they had together, but also because he has no one left to hold onto, and he’s in free fall.

All of this makes his eventual friendship with Dustin not only important, but also cathartic. In addition to both characters having a crush on Nancy while also having dealt with the horrors of the Upside Down in the past, they’re able to listen to each other and understand one another. Steve sees Dustin struggling with finding ways to appeal to girls, gives Dustin the best advice he knows how to, and goes above and beyond to keep Dustin and his friends safe from the demodogs, as well as from Billy (even if Steve gets the shit beaten out of him by doing so). Dustin recognizes this compassionate side to Steve underneath his hardened exterior, and it’s a big reason why he advocates to the others to bring Steve along with them in the car: It isn’t just about needing Steve while they burn the tunnels; Dustin wasn’t going to leave an unconscious Steve with Billy in case Billy woke up and decided to attack Steve again. Dustin knows, for all of Steve’s grumbling, Steve would follow through on protecting them, not just because of the promise Steve made to Nancy, or how Steve stepped in on Lucas’s behalf when Billy attacked him, but also because Steve couldn’t live with himself if anything happened to them in the tunnels. Steve had several opportunities during the first two seasons to walk away from this, and he didn’t. Dustin knows he’s not going to now.

Just like with “Dig Dug,” this episode gives several nods to The Goonies. Not just with Dustin and D’Art paralleling Chunk and Sloth’s friendship from that movie, or even the kids exploring underground (with the difference being they’re intentionally distracting the Mind Flayer as opposed to looking for buried treasure), but also the comparisons that can be made between Steve and Brandon Walsh (Josh Brolin’s character): Both of them are older male athletes put in the position of looking after the kids on their adventures. Both are gruff, snarky, and reluctant to be on this adventure in the first place (and even try to stop the others from going at one point), but ultimately step up to the plate in keeping the kids safe to the best of their abilities. Difference is while Brandon is an older brother to Mikey (Sean Astin’s character), Steve acts more as an older brother figure to Dustin, Max, Lucas, and Mike. And while that movie ends with Brandon getting the girl (Andrea Carmichael), the same doesn’t happen with Steve and Nancy.

Honestly, I don’t mind they did a subversion to that. Steve’s character has evolved past having his motivations centered on Nancy. He’s a part of this group now, regardless of whether he’s in a relationship with her, and he recognizes that what’s going on right now is bigger than him or however their relationship ended. It’s why he’s out there looking for heaters and other supplies with Nancy for forcing the Mind Flayer out of Will. It’s also why he doesn't guilt-trip her for what happened, and even encourages Nancy to go with Jonathan. Aside from knowing that Nancy is in love with Jonathan, Steve recognizes he wasn’t a good boyfriend to her. Steve regrets that, but also sees Jonathan was able to be there for Nancy in a way that he wasn’t. Not just with everything that happened in season 1, but also how Jonathan went to bat for Nancy in taking down the Lab whereas Steve hesitated and didn’t. There’s also how, in the last episode, you can see Steve staring at Jonathan comforting an unconscious Will while Nancy was quietly there in that moment supporting Jonathan. Steve knew Nancy needed to be with Jonathan as they were taking Will to Hopper's cabin. Jonathan was not in a good place emotionally, and was at risk of losing Will, and he needed someone to hold on to in order to get through this. Nancy was that person, not just in being the one Jonathan could cling to while Joyce forced the Mind Flayer out of Will, but also as someone who didn’t have the same emotional attachment to the situation as Joyce and Jonathan did, and could act with a clear head and improvise when needed (like when she used the hot poker on Will to get him to stop strangling Joyce).

And no, I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that Steve was aware of Jonathan’s needs and emotional state in this moment. If we’re going by the interpretation some fans have thrown out there over how Jonathan lied to Nancy in “The Pollywog” about Steve asking him to take Nancy home from the Halloween Party, then (as I said in my review at the time), I’d imagine that Jonathan wasn’t just trying to spare Nancy’s feelings, but also extend some grace towards Steve since he likely knew Steve would feel bad about how he acted later.

And Steve did. The “I’m a shitty boyfriend” line isn’t just him being self-deprecating, but also trying to atone for that by letting Nancy go without her feeling guilty, ending things amicably between them, and helping to support Jonathan without being overt about it. Steve already felt awful about how he acted towards Jonathan in season 1 (which is why he showed up to his house to apologize to him despite not knowing Nancy was there at the time), and now he has another chance to fix that and extend the same grace towards Jonathan as Jonathan once did for him. It was still Nancy’s choice to go with Jonathan to Hopper’s cabin, but now she can go without feeling burdened by how things went down between her and Steve. Steve loves her and wants her to be happy in this moment. And if he must let her go, that’s what he’s going to do. It still means he’s going to support her and the rest of the group in whatever small ways he can. We even see that towards the end of this episode when he attends Barbara’s funeral with Nancy and Jonathan.

That’s some massive growth on his part compared to how self-absorbed he was in season 1.

It's also why I (and other fans) felt bad for him at the end. You can tell by his look from the car after he drops off Dustin that he really did want things to work between him and Nancy. However, he also knows Nancy deserves someone who can make her happy, even if it's not him.

The whole love triangle between Nancy, Jonathan, and Steve echoes the one between Duckie, Andie, and Blane from the 1986 movie Pretty in Pink. Both love triangles feature a girl (Nancy/Andie) choosing between an upper-class preppy guy (Steve/Blane) and an outsider (Jonathan/Duckie) who both have crushes on said girl. Pretty in Pink goes deeper into themes about classism and the wealth gap between students (which is a major factor in the problems Blane and Andie face during the movie) but Stranger Things also touched on those themes briefly with Nancy and Steve’s relationship and how it was judged by characters around them. Not just with how Barbara was a confidant to Nancy about her relationship with Steve similar to Andie and Iona, but also how the main antagonists from that movie (Steff and Benny) have the same contemptuous attitudes towards Andie and Blane as a couple as Tommy and Carol have in seasons 1-2 when they were belittling Nancy and Steve’s relationship. At first, both Steve and Blane put more stock into what their snotty friends think of their relationship, leading both characters to screw it up through their own insecurities and poor choices, which drives a wedge between them and the girl they love. However, both eventually realize the error of their ways, and just like with Blane, who finally gets fed up with Steff and Benny’s attitudes and cuts them off, Steve does the same thing with Tommy and Carol. Steve doesn’t end up with Nancy like Blane does with Andie, but he does channel Duckie’s growth towards the end of the movie where he encourages Nancy to be with Jonathan similar to Duckie recognizing Blane cares for Andie and pushing her to pursue a relationship with Blane.

Steve may not have finished this season with a romantic relationship (which Duckie was implied to have gotten at the end of the movie from the Kristy Swanson character, Duckette, who smiles at him during the dance), but he got a valuable friendship with Dustin in the process. He’s also a lot closer to the Party than he was at the end of season 1, and doesn’t feel as alone as he once did. His future is still uncertain to him, but he isn’t tied down by shallow notions of popularity or fears about how he’ll be judged by people at school. Being there for Dustin, and by extension the other members of the Party, is what he’s got going for him in the moment, and he’s content with that. He’d rather be there for people who care about him than gaining the approval of those who don’t.

On a last note, regarding Steve, I’m curious if Dustin told him after the Snow Ball that Nancy danced with him. Knowing Steve, I think he’d be proud for both of them: Dustin for getting the best girl of the evening (and a Junior in high school no less), and Nancy for her act of kindness.

Part 2: Max and Billy

Just like El hitting Angela with the roller-skate was a long time coming, so was Max finally standing up to Billy and making it clear she was done with his shit. It brings to mind the scene from The Shining when Jack Torrance (whom Billy was based on) threatens his wife, Wendy, after she sees his deranged manuscript, and she proceeds to knock him out with a baseball bat. Except in this case, Max drugged Billy, but never actually hit him with the spiked bat.

I know some fans bemoan that Steve lost badly to Billy during their fight. While there’s a part of me that wishes Steve had won, I’ve accepted the way this scene played out for two reasons: 1.) Steve would later get one over Billy in “The Battle of Starcourt” when he rammed the car he was driving into Billy’s car to save Nancy’s life, and 2.) From a narrative perspective, it needed to be Max who stood up to Billy. She is the one who put up with his abuse, and she was the one who finally reached her limit and drew a line in the sand. It never ceases to amaze me how many people in real life behave like Billy and Angela, and then get upset when the people they’ve been tormenting strike back in a way they can’t ignore. It’s like watching someone abuse a dog and then seeing them get upset when the dog eventually bites back.

It's significant that what finally drives Max to drug Billy and threaten him with the spiked bat is what Billy does to Steve. Like I said in previous reviews, and as revealed in the tie-in novel Runaway Max, the main factor behind Billy and Max moving to Hawkins in the first place was Billy breaking Nate’s arm back in San Diego and intimidating Max into silence, which permanently wrecked her friendship with Nate. What happened back then was traumatizing to Max, and she still carries regrets over wishing she'd done things differently (even though that situation wasn’t her fault). Now she’s in a similar scenario, except Steve has taken Nate’s place, and she knows Billy will go further with Steve than he did with Nate:

But even without the tie-in novel, or the backstory about Nate, there’s what's occurred on the show between Max and Steve: Despite just meeting, Steve willingly worked with Max, treated her just like any member of the Party under his charge, and protected her from the demodogs. Up until that point, Max never had anyone step in on her behalf, which made her feel like she had to weather horrible circumstances on her own. Then, in addition to Dustin and Lucas reaching out to Max, Steve steps in for her: First with the demodogs, and now with Billy when he threatened her and Lucas. They haven’t even known each other for 24 hours, and Steve is already acting like the protective big brother Max wishes Billy had been.

So when Max sees Billy viciously hurting Steve with no intention of stopping, she knows she needs to act. Not just because she’s scared of Steve either dying or getting permanent brain damage, but because Steve was there for her, and she intends to be there for him. She can’t fix what happened with Nate in the past, and she can't change the kind of person Billy is, but she can stop this current situation from escalating while also returning the compassion Steve showed her.

The sad thing about all this is it didn’t have to be this way. Runaway Max goes more in detail about this topic, but when Max first met Billy and Neil, she was initially excited at the idea of having an older step-brother. She wanted a sibling relationship with Billy, and it wasn’t from lack of trying either. Billy, however, already decided that he didn’t like Max, didn’t want anything to do with her or Susan, made zero effort to try and cultivate any positive relationship with Max, and was repeatedly nasty to her. She basically became the person he could take his rage out on while deliberately isolating Max from her friends. And this was BEFORE they ever moved to Hawkins.

This is a big reason I roll my eyes hard at Billy stans who claim Max wasn’t sympathetic towards Billy’s situation. She was. There’s even a scene from the book when she tried to intervene on Billy's behalf when Neil was whipping Billy with his belt. Billy was so ENRAGED with Max over this that it scared her away. Every single instance Max tried to reach out to Billy to have any kind of meaningful relationship with him, or even show compassion to him, Billy spat on it and repaid her with cruelty. He was VERY CLEAR in his actions and words that he resented having Max in his life. At best, he wanted nothing to do with her, and at worst, he used her as an emotional punching-bag.

And let’s be clear: Regardless of Billy’s circumstances, there was a choice here. He could have recognized the cruelty Neil inflicted on him for what it was, and not direct that towards Max. He could have been kind to Max. He could have worked to be the big brother she wanted. Instead, he showed zero empathy for her, or the fact that she was living under the same roof he was, and proceeded to do everything in his power to control her, abuse her, and isolate her. I’ve said before that Billy’s motivations can be best summed up as “I’m miserable, so everyone else gets to be miserable with me” and I meant that. If he was going to suffer, then by God, so would she. Same for anyone else unlucky enough to get in his way (like Lucas and Steve).

I talked about this in the last review, but I have no respect for people who want to pretend that Billy didn’t have any autonomy or agency with how he treated others. I especially find the view among Billy stans that, because of what he was going through with Neil, it somehow gave Billy carte blanche to be as vile towards everyone else as Neil was towards him, to be repugnant. There’s this extremely infantilizing perspective I’ve seen from certain fans over how Billy acts, as if Billy just can’t help but be cruel, abusive, racist, misogynistic, and bigoted, and how dare anyone call him out for his behavior, and how he needs to be swaddled and cuddled. From how they frame it in their heads: He just can’t help himself, and needs to let his emotions out somewhere, and why can’t people just be understanding of that and let him rage all over the place (even if that involves him purposefully hurting other people in the process). 😩🙄

It's already bad enough seeing people in real life engage in that kind of navel-gazing (especially when it comes to abusive men and all the asinine apologies made on their behalf) and seeing it here with Billy stans doesn’t make it any better. Those self-indulgent bullshit excuses can take a flying leap into an active volcano for all I care.

It doesn’t help that, aside from characters like Joyce, Jonathan, Will, and Max who’ve also suffered abuse and didn’t become abusers themselves, there’s El’s backstory from season 4: In addition to being stolen as a baby and losing the one friend she had at the Lab (Kali), she was repeatedly bullied and abused by the other special kids, was constantly dehumanized, and got groomed by two different sociopaths (Brenner and Vecna) who each had their own agendas. All of this happening before El was 9 years old. She had every excuse in the book to take Vecna up on his offer to break out of the Lab and begin a campaign of destruction and chaos, or even to kick the dead bodies of her “brothers and sisters” who’d abused her for so long. Instead, not only was she horrified and disgusted with Vecna, she fought him and banished Vecna to the Upside Down to stop him from hurting anyone else. Even with her circumstances and at her lowest, El still had empathy for others, and this is despite having no other emotional support around her and being surrounded by people who wanted to use and manipulate her.

Billy, on the other hand, has no empathy for people. He doesn’t care how his actions hurt others. This isn’t like he’s unable to understand that his behavior is wrong either. He knows. Just like with Angela though, he justifies his cruelty and runs with it. And if anyone is in his path while he’s on a rampage, well too bad, so sad. Internet user Lewis Lovhaug (Linkara) once said “There’s difference between having a sympathetic backstory and actually BEING sympathetic.” Given the number of abuse apologies I’ve seen on Billy’s behalf and the desperate attempts to make Billy’s behavior look endearing and justified when it isn’t, it’s pretty clear to me that fans cannot differentiate the former from the latter (or don't want to).

This is why I find it satisfying when Max finally gives Billy the ultimatum over how things will continue from this point forward. She’s done. She has tried everything else she could possibly think of to appeal to Billy, and it hasn’t worked. So she’s going to speak the language he understands. And boy does Billy get it.

There’s an irony in how Dacre Montgomery mentioned that Billy feared emasculation from Lucas and Steve, and while both characters get one over on Billy (Lucas by kicking Billy in the groin when he had Lucas pinned to the wall, and Steve getting a few punches against Billy thrown in), it’s Max who ends up emasculating Billy in the end.  

As the years have gone by and I’ve witnessed people who've used their emotions to purposefully annihilate anyone who crosses them, including repeatedly treating others as collateral damage to their rage while feeling a sense of self-righteous entitlement to act like this, I find Max’s story to be deeply relatable. I am past the point of giving the benefit of the doubt, especially after seeing so many people like this over the past few years who've refused to take any responsibility for their mean-spirited behavior, and are continuing to double-down when called out on it. It's to the point my sympathy has dried up, and I am hard-pressed to feel bad for them when they face harsh consequences later.

In any case, aside from stealing the keys to Billy’s car, Max driving them to the tunnels was hilarious, especially with Steve’s freak-out and the revelation she’d only driven once before in a parking lot (which Runaway Max reveals was at a Jack-In-The-Box). I also appreciated the shocked but impressed reactions from the boys over Max subduing Billy, and even Mike’s compliment of “Incredible!” to her once she drives them to Merrill’s Farm.

What I like is this wasn’t about Max proving anything to the other guys (even if she still wanted to be in the Party). It was about proving to herself that she was able to overcoming adversity, she was capable of more than she realized, and she didn’t have to be bound by others.

I should talk briefly about Karen and Billy’s meeting at the beginning of the episode since it factors into next season. I know the Duffer Brothers and Shawn Levy in Beyond Stranger Things joked about revisiting Karen and Billy as a thing in season 3………………….and I wished it had just stayed as a joke and never made it past the drawing board.

No Shawn, the world did not need this. 😒 I get the intention with the bubble bath, glass of wine, and the bodice ripper novel (Heart of Thunder by Johanna Lindsey, which was published in 1983) was to emphasize that Karen is in a loveless and unfulfilling relationship with Ted, and that her scenes with Billy were meant to parody the covers of those kinds of books. If it had just been a parody and stopped there, I would have just rolled my eyes and said “whatever.” It’s the fact they took this idea seriously and carried it over to season 3 that bothers me. I’ll talk more about that when I review the next episode.

As for Billy, the “charming persona” he puts on for Karen reminds me of the way Neil in Runaway Max charmed Susan into getting into a relationship with him. People like Billy and Neil are good at hiding the uglier aspects of their personality when they want to, which just makes my skin crawl since the audience knows how both guys have acted behind closed doors. That’s also including Billy's misogynistic comments about girls, and how he’s gone through relationships like tissue paper. All of this makes his interactions with Karen skeevy.

The one thing I agree with Billy on though: Nancy isn’t his type. She would NOT have put up with his behavior, and would have seen through his bullshit immediately.

Part 3: The Battle Against The Mind Flayer

One of the best aspects in this episode is how the visuals look AMAZING. The tunnels Steve leads the Party through are just as disgusting, twisted, and grotesque as they were when first introduced. Will’s exorcism and the piece of the Mind Flayer that escapes him is terrifying and ominous. Even the Gate itself looks unearthly yet strangely beautiful. Worlds Turned Upside Down has discussed how the Duffer Brothers put an emphasis on practical effects with the necessary CGI and green-screen for the scenes that needed it, and the result is it’s breathtaking to look at. It reminds me of the craft and care that went into The Lord of the Rings movies, and how those visuals still look impressive 20+ years later.

Speaking of The Lord of the Rings, both the books and the movies came to mind when I thought about how all three of these arcs (the tunnels, Will’s exorcism, the Gate) connected. Will’s deterioration under the Mind Flayer reminds me of Frodo succumbing to the influence of the Morgul Blade that the Witch King stabs him with, which slowly turns him into a wraith. In order to save both Will and Frodo, they have to be taken to a different location, which is Hopper’s Cabin (where the Mind Flayer can’t locate them) and Rivendell (where Sauron’s servants can’t reach Frodo). Just like how Arwen in the movies (but not in the books) and Elrond fend off the Ringwraiths and (in Elrond’s case) sweep them away before they cross the Fords of Bruinen, which saves Frodo from his fate, Joyce is the one who takes the initiative in burning the piece of the Mind Flayer out of Will (with help from Nancy and Jonathan). In both Frodo and Will’s case, they’re left scarred in some way. Frodo’s wound from the Witch King never truly heals while he's in Middle Earth, and Will still maintains his connection to the Mind Flayer despite its particles being forced out of him. Anytime Frodo is near the Ringwraiths, the wound acts up, similar to how Will feels the Mind Flayer’s presence whenever it’s active.

Likewise, the scene where Steve, Mike, Max, Lucas, and Dustin distract the Mind Flayer by burning the tunnels (causing it to send the demodogs to attack them) can be seen as a parallel to when Aragon, the rest of the Fellowship, and the forces of Rohan and Gondor arrive at the Black Gate to serve as a distraction for Sauron and his forces. Both groups act as a diversion in order to achieve the real goal: Frodo and Sam destroying the One Ring and ending Sauron’s reign of terror, and El and Hopper closing the Gate on the Mind Flayer. Just like with Sauron, by the time the Mind Flayer realized what was happening, it was way too late. The only difference is the Mind Flayer isn’t yet destroyed and still an active threat plotting its revenge from the Upside Down.

It makes me speculate on what the Mind Flayer’s “One Ring” is. As The First Shadow revealed, the Mind Flayer existed way before Henry/One/Vecna encountered it in the Upside Down, so only killing Vecna likely wouldn’t eliminate it as a threat. Maybe there’s some kind of “heart” or life support system in the Upside Down that needs to be destroyed for the Mind Flayer to truly die. But I digress.

With Will’s exorcism, while I’m glad the show paid homage to The Exorcist, and also invoked a little of The Evil Dead with how Deadites possessing humans from that series would act, I appreciate how this scene did its own thing. Major props to Noah Schnapp for making his violent convulsing look realistic (something Charlie Heaton praised him for in Worlds Turned Upside Down), as well as showing how animalistic and unhinged the piece of the Mind Flayer inside Will had become. That scene where Will violently chokes Joyce was scary. Considering that Bob was originally slated to die in episode 4 by Will’s hands, it makes me wonder if a possessed Will was going to choke Bob to death before the Duffer Brothers changed that.

During the scene where Joyce remembers Bob and proceeds to turn up the heat, I recalled a specific moment from The First Shadow between Joyce and Henry/One/Vecna in 1959. This was AFTER Henry had killed his mother and sister, and fled to Joyce’s play at the school (you can read more about that in my review) to persuade Patty to run away with him before Brenner found them. During a moment when the power had gone out and they were alone in the basement, Henry confronted Joyce, telling her that she was a good person while ominously warning her that the world would punish her for it and take away everything she held dear. There’s a dark irony in his words considering he’d the one responsible for most of the tragedies later in Joyce’s life, including Bob’s death and Will’s disappearance and possession. At that point in the play, Henry had surrendered to the malevolent influence of the Mind Flayer. I think he expected Joyce to be as breakable as he was, and that conversation was him projecting onto Joyce. Unfortunately, he underestimated Joyce, and failed to understand that Joyce always had an inner strength regardless of how hopeless things got. That ended up costing Henry/One/Vecna and the Mind Flayer, especially in this moment when Joyce saves Will.

I am curious if the piece of the Mind Flayer was intending to get back to the Gate once it was out of Will’s system, or if it intentionally hid itself in this world before the Gate closed. As we see in season 3, a piece of the Mind Flayer in its black particle form can still exist. Shutting the Gate doesn’t completely destroy it, and the Russians opening the Gate again simply revived that piece. It only seems to be when those particles are possessing someone else’s body (like its Meat Flayer form composed of all the bodies of the people and rodents it controlled) and the Gate closes on it that said particles appear to truly die. I don’t know if the Mind Flayer was aware of this, or if it was just a happy accident that the separate part of it got revived when the Russians opened the Gate again. Either way, it makes me wonder what knowledge the Mind Flayer had about how it could operate in this world, or if it knew that the Russians had already come to Hawkins with the intention of opening the Gate again, and it was simply bidding its time.

In any case, this was a heartwarming scene of the Byers family reunited and relieved after everything they’d been through:

I also enjoyed the later scene of Jonathan filming Will dancing with Joyce before they went to the Snow Ball. Sames goes for the picture of Superhero Bob Newby. That was a nice way to honor him.

The quest in the tunnels was amusing and thrilling, and reminded me of both The Goonies and the climax for Super 8 when Joe and Cary are underground searching for Alice (complete with using firecrackers as a distraction for the Alien in the tunnels similar to what Steve and the Party do by lighting the tunnels on fire). Dustin’s over-the-top reaction to getting sprayed with spores and the group’s annoyed responses were funny. Ditto for Steve’s “I’m in such deep shit” comment. The scene where Steve sets fire to the hub and then shouts at the others to run invoked the same energy from the Aliens movie when Ellen Ripley burns the Queen’s nest after she saves Newt and makes a beeline for the dropship.

Dustin’s reunion with D’Art in the tunnels was bittersweet. It was sweet that D’Art still had affection for Dustin (even if he was pissed about getting knocked into the basement) and didn’t attack them (even though the Mind Flayer was directing all demodogs to kill them). It was also sweet seeing Dustin get to be the hero briefly in distracting D’Art and saying goodbye to him (as confirmed in Beyond Stranger Things). The bitter part was that D’Art was slated to die since he was connected to the Mind Flayer. It’s still unclear if that’s a connection D’Art was born with, or if he somehow ended up possessed by the Mind Flayer's black particles (not that Dustin and the others would have had time to force those out of D’Art if that was the case), and I’m hoping that’s something season 5 clarifies on. I also wouldn’t mind seeing another arc centered on the difference between Demodogs, Demogorgons, and other Upside Down Monsters possessed by the Mind Flayer vs those that aren’t, and how the latter group would combat the Mind Flayer’s influence.

Regardless, RIP D’Art. In another life, you’d have made a loyal pet for Dustin, a deterrent for bullies, and had all the 3 Musketeers you’d want.

In regards to Mike’s role in this episode, I maintain he was well within his rights to be furious with Hopper over being deceived about El’s supposed death (even if Hopper had valid reasons for keeping him in the dark). Despite telling El at the beginning of this episode that he hadn’t given up on her, his conversation in the previous episode with Max about how the Mind Flayer took El implies he was starting to come to the belief she had perished. He held on to hope for as long as he could (helped by briefly seeing her through the window of his house after the Demogorgon’s defeat in season 1), but there was only so long before doubts were going to creep in. Mike being angry with Hopper, especially after an entire year of grief, depression and being misled, is understandable. I get where he's coming from.

Same goes for his plan to burn the hub in the tunnels despite Steve’s protests. I don’t doubt Steve’s intentions were to keep them safe (and he still goes along with Mike’s plan in the end), but Mike made the right call: The reason the others were able to succeed in driving the Mind Flayer out of Will and closing the Gate is BECAUSE of the pain they inflicted on the hive mind. The Mind Flayer was not thinking rationally being attacked on all fronts like that, and it paid the price as a result. 

Finally, there’s El and Hopper’s arc. Like Ronia The Robber’s Daughter where there’s a reconciliation between the titular character and her father, the same can be said for Hopper and El during their drive. Hopper recognizes he needed to have been honest with El from the beginning about a lot of things, like what really happened to her mother, or when she could leave, or even about his past. I forgot Hopper hadn’t told El about Sara before this episode. There’s a lot about Hopper’s past that he’s kept El in the dark about (the tie-in novel Darkness on the Edge of Town, which takes place after season 2, is about Hopper recounting to El what happened during his time in New York City back in the 70s), and how much of that is because he considers the information too personal to share with El vs how much is his reluctance to be emotionally vulnerable is up for interpretation. What is unambiguous though is how his depression has molded his worldview:

Sadly, that view doesn’t seem to have gone away by season 4 since he’s telling Enzo/Dmitri that he views himself as a curse on his loved ones. Speaking from my personal experience as someone who’s dealt with depression for years, and painfully understands the feelings of worthlessness and self-loathing that are pervasive on a daily basis, I understand where Hopper's headspace is. Even when you’re surrounded by friends and loved ones, there’s always the nagging fear that you’re a burden on them and life would be so much easier if you weren’t there. It’s hard work trying to find ways to deal with depression without feeling overwhelmed by hopelessness, but it is possible.

That’s probably why I’m a little more lenient with Hopper in this episode than most fans are (season 3 is a whole different issue). He is trying. He didn’t get it right with El, and to his credit, not only does he own up to that, but he tries to fix things with her to the best of his ability. First by not blaming her for leaving after his outburst, apologizing for how he acted beforehand, complimenting her new look (even if it’s a backhanded compliment of “MTV Punk”), and opening up to her about his shortcomings. He even succeeds in what he initially promised El from the beginning: To get a deal with Dr. Owens so that El can live a normal life and not be hunted by the Government. It helps that the circumstances have provided the right opportunity to make this kind of arrangement, and that Owens wasn’t going to refuse this favor since he’s a honest man and El was about to save them all.

To her credit, El recognizes she’s also done stupid stuff (including her regrets about running off in the first place), and wants to try and make this arrangement between them work as well. She recognizes Hopper is giving his best effort, and El finding out about Sara allows her to understand where Hopper is coming from regarding her safety. He’s never used or manipulated her like Brenner has, and he isn’t going to ever act that way with her either.

I know Becky gets mentioned briefly in this episode, and I’m curious how Hopper handled the message Becky left Flo about El and Kali. I’m guessing he either had to call Becky, or drive over to clear up the situation so that she wasn’t left worried about what happened to El. It also makes me wonder if El later told Hopper about Kali. She doesn’t in the car scene (only saying she never should have left), but it’s possible she did once they closed the Gate.

Speaking of Kali, even though she only appears in a brief flashback in this episode, I like that the Duffer Brothers demonstrated how her advice has elevated El’s powers. I mentioned in my review of “The Lost Sister” that Kali didn’t have anything to do with the Mind Flayer and she didn’t tie into what was going on in Hawkins, and I was speaking in relation to her arc over seeking vengeance, which wasn’t connected to the Upside Down or the Mind Flayer’s plans to infect Hawkins. However, the side-plot with her and El was important in helping El develop her abilities and finding an emotion (anger) that she could use to channel her powers effectively. Beyond Stranger Things discusses how Kali was meant to act as the Yoda to El’s Luke Skywalker, except Kali would be a darker version of Yoda in that her advice was coming from a place of revenge. In this scenario, I don’t think this is a bad thing because El’s anger was not only needed to close the Gate, but also to give El catharsis in dealing with the injustices wrought upon her as she was growing up. Kali was giving El the best advice she knew at the time. It’s why I referred to that conversation between Storm and Nightcrawler from X2: X-Men United: “Sometimes, anger can help you survive.” There is a fundamental truth in how anger can be a driving force to keep someone going. However, as we see in later seasons, it isn’t the only force, and there is another that’s equally as powerful: Love.

The trip to the Lab and confrontation with the Mind Flayer echoed some story elements from the video game Silent Hill 3. Both feature a teenage girl with a traumatic past being forced to confront the horrors of another world that they’re connected to.

El grew up bullied and abused by the other special kids, and manipulated by Brenner and Vecna to their own ends. She managed to defeat Vecna by banishing him to the Upside Down, but it caused a chain reaction that would later lead El to accidentally open a Gate and unleash the Upside Down on Hawkins.

In a similar vein, the protagonist of Silent Hill 3 is Heather Mason, the reincarnation of Alessa Gillespie and Cheryl Mason (the other half of Alessa’s soul). In the first Silent Hill game (which I talk about briefly in my review of “The Upside Down”), Alessa was born in the town of Silent Hill with supernatural abilities and also grew up bullied and abused by her classmates. She was also manipulated by the adults in her life, specifically her mother, Dahlia Gillespie. Both Dhalia and Brenner even shared the same abusive trait of locking Alessa and El in an isolated area if they displeased them. In Alessa’s case, she was used by her mother (who was a part of the religious cult called The Order) to birth their God and start the Apocalypse. During the ritual, Alessa body was burned badly and her soul ended up splitting, with one half becoming a new baby named Cheryl Mason, who would later be adopted by the protagonist of the first game, Harry Mason, and the other half of her soul residing in her burnt body, where her mother kept her in a state of excruciating pain. The result is the ritual was unsuccessful, and the events of the first game deal with Dahlia manipulating circumstances so that Harry and Cheryl come to Silent Hill. Cheryl is recombined with Alessa to give birth to their God, but Harry manages to defeat it, and a dying Alessa reincarnates into a new baby for Harry to take care of, who grows up 17 years later to be Heather.

In any case, aside from backstories involving abuse and exploitation, both El and Heather are forced to reckon with their pasts and return to the area where they once escaped: El from Hawkins Lab, and Heather from Silent Hill. Both are forced to take down a world-ending threat (The Order from Silent Hill, and the Mind Flayer in Stranger Things). Both end up losing a parent, which acts as a driving force for their actions (El finding Terry in a catatonic state, and the death of Heather's adoptive father, Harry). Both girls partner up with an older man (Hopper/Douglas) who lost their own child a long time ago (Hopper lost his daughter Sara, and Douglas lost his son), with the girls having similarities that remind these men of their own deceased kids. Even the car drive El and Hopper take to the Lab parallels the drive Douglas and Heather take to Silent Hill midway through the game:

And just like with El's fight underground against the Mind Flayer, Heather is forced to descend into a pit to fight the newly born God before it can wreck havoc.

I’ve mentioned before in previous reviews that the Silent Hill video games were a major inspiration for how the Duffer Brothers constructed the Upside Down. However, the parallels between El and Alessa/Heather’s arcs are hard not to notice, and the games dive into themes regarding trauma, abuse, human failings, and confronting the past that Stranger Things also explores in detail. Both Heather and El are forced to confront their pain, but they ultimately come out stronger from it, and even turn the tables on the forces (The Order, Hawkins Lab) that used them for their own ends.

There are shout-outs and nods to other video games and movies (some intentional, some not) that factored into the battle against the Mind Flayer in this episode.

First one that most fans will know is Aliens: El’s confrontation with the Mind Flayer mirrors Ripley’s fight with the Queen, which also involves the characters holding off the personal armies of these monsters. Even the Queen’s design has some similarities to the Mind Flayer's form:

Additionally, Jaws has also been cited in Worlds Turned Upside Down and Beyond Stranger Things for the encounters the characters have with the demodogs and the Mind Flayer. Bob’s death in the previous episode was a nod to Quint’s death at the hands of the shark. Likewise, El combating the Mind Flayer as its particles cross through the Gate was meant to parallel the same intensity as when Richard Dreyfuss’s character confronts the shark underwater from his shark-proof cage. In both cases, the characters survive, but barely.

There’s also the video game The Last of Us with the comparisons that can be made between the dynamic Joel and Ellie have to Hopper and El here. Just like Joel, who puts himself on the line to keep Ellie safe from the infected and other dangerous humans, Hopper acts in the same protective way with El by shooting the arriving demodogs so that El has time to close the Gate. Both work as a team, and have an established bond of trust that's developed during their adventure. In this episode, despite how shaky things have been between them, El and Hopper manage to rebuild the trust that was shattered several episodes ago, and it’s through them being willing to be vulnerable with one another. The game explores this as well with Joel and Ellie where, despite how rocky things start out between these two when they first meet, a familial bond is established similar to El and Hopper: Adopted daughter with adoptive father taking on the world.

Another inspiration comes from the horror series, Hellraiser. The Duffer Brothers have cited Clive Barker (creator of Hellraiser) as inspiration for how they designed the monsters of the Upside Down. Vecna himself was based off Pinhead from that series. For the Mind Flayer, while I don’t have direct confirmation on this, I wouldn’t be surprised if one of the beings from that series that helped inspire the Mind Flayer was Leviathan (AKA Lord of the Labyrinth):

I’ll be honest in admitting that my knowledge of the Hellraiser series is limited to the first two movies, but I know that Leviathan was a major character in Hellbound: Hellraiser 2, and was revealed to be the creator and ruler of the Cenobites (Pinhead, Chatterer, Butterball, etc). Similar to the Mind Flayer, it is the overarching Lord of its domain (which in this case is a dark, hellish, endless Labyrinth), and has a desire for control that manifests in enslaving others. It also has a low opinion of humanity, seeing them as chaotic beings that disrupt the order of its world, much like how the Mind Flayer views humans and despises the “unnatural structure” they enforce. Even Leviathan's transformation of the sociopathic Dr. Philip Channard into a Cenobite puppet (combined with a fleshy, phallic-like tentacle attached to his head) mirrors the relationship the Mind Flayer has with Vecna, where Vecna also acts as its puppet despite thinking he’s the one in control.

There’s also similar plot threats that Hellbound: Hellraiser 2 shares with the show: The main protagonists of that movie, Kristy Cotton and Tiffany, attempt to defeat Leviathan and the other Cenobites while closing the gate that’s opened between their world and Leviathan’s. There’s even the theme of Leviathan/The Mind Flayer’s control being shaken by those it tries to subjugate: In the movie, when Kristy reminds Pinhead and the other Cenobites present about their human origins before they became what they are now, they briefly shield the girls from the newly transformed Dr. Philip Channard (under the control of Leviathan), who punishes the Cenobites by slaughtering them before reverting them back to their human forms. In the show, D’Art rebels against the Mind Flayer’s control to allow Dustin and his group to pass, despite it costing his life. We will see this again in season 3 when a possessed Billy briefly wrestles back control and protects El from the Meat Flayer, resulting in it gruesomely killing Billy in retaliation.

Like I discussed in my review of “The Spy:” “The Mind Flayer’s entire existence is about control, and if it can’t control something, then that thing must die.”

Finally, while this isn’t a video game cited as inspiration, it did come to mind when analyzing Will’s arc and the Mind Flayer’s presence in season 2:

In 2000, there was a trilogy of video games released that acted as prequels to the 1999 found-footage horror film The Blair Witch Project. The first video game, Blair Witch Volume I: Rustin Parr, takes place in 1941 in Burkittsville, Maryland and deals with one of the historical events described in the movie: The kidnapping of 8 children and murder of 7 at the hands of a hermit named Rustin Parr, who took the kids to his isolated house and forced the lone survivor (Kyle Brody) to stand in a corner while he butchered the others. Rustin Parr was later arrested after confessing to what he did, claiming that he acted under the influence of the titular Blair Witch. The game itself follows a woman named Dr. Elspeth Holliday, an agent working for a secret government program called “Spook House” that investigates paranormal occurrences across the United States, as she travels to Burkittsville to discover what’s going on.

Despite the serious question of whether or not these games are canon to the Blair Witch series, the game itself is an intriguing survivor-horror experience, and features a story that adds its own spin to the Blair Witch mythology. As the game reveals, the real threat turns out not to be the eponymous Blair Witch, Elly Kedward (who was scapegoated for all the supernatural occurrences in the woods), but a demon from Native American lore named Hecaitomix. Said demon has established dominance in the area of Black Hills Forest, controls many of the supernatural shadow creatures Dr. Holliday encounters during the game, and holds the ability to twist and change the woods so that people unlucky enough to wander into them get lost (similar to what happens to the protagonists from the 1999 film).

The game also features ideas that I see parallels to in season 2 of Stranger Things: Will’s “Truesight” into the Upside Down vs the concept of “Givn-ur” (or sight) that Asgaya Gigagei (a Native American shaman living in Black Hills Forest) gifts to Dr. Holliday to allow her to see the evil that exists in the woods.

Additionally, the game also explores the theme of traveling to different dimensions, with the difference being the twana stick figures imbued with magic are what create paths to those dimensions.

With the various pathways, the woods in the game echo the haunted, twisted environment of the Upside Down (complete with its own monsters). There’s even a theme of how time works in the woods because of these paths:

While the show has been consistent on the idea that time in the Upside Down operates the same as time in Hawkins (i.e. Will missing for a week in the Upside Down = The same amount of time passing in Hawkins), the reasons for why the Upside Down froze in time on a specific day (November 6th 1983) are still left vague. The game (and even the 1999 movie) feature the protagonists ending up at Rustin Parr’s house, even though the house was burnt to the ground by the townsfolk after he butchered those kids. It’s still there, like it’s been frozen in time as well. The game leans towards the idea that different time periods converge with one another, enabling people from the past to interact with those in the present, or even people in the present to see snippets of the future. Despite the game taking place in 1941, Dr. Holliday manages to interact with a witch hunter from 1786 named Jonathan Prye, and she even briefly sees what happens to the protagonists from the 1999 horror film (whose venture into the woods took place in 1994) while at Rustin Parr’s house in the other dimension (though she doesn’t know who these people are, or that she’s looking into the future).

The reason I bring this up is that, while the show hasn’t gone into the idea of time loops, maybe it’s possible that (similar to how Rustin Parr’s house is “frozen” in a different dimension) there is a convergence of different time periods in the Upside Down, and that dimension as an exact replica of the world on November 6th, 1983 is simply one of them. Or maybe both the Upside Down and the Rustin Parr house are meant to be a captured moment in time, like a camera that takes a photograph, or even a video that lasts only for a certain amount of time, forever in a loop. There’s also the idea of different paths in the game leading to different worlds (one of which is a place Hecaitomix would be hard-pressed to escape from if he was ever transported there), which makes me wonder if they might introduce other dimensions beyond the Upside Down. Or if defeating the Mind Flayer would mean trapping it in a different realm beyond the Upside Down where it would be rendered powerless and unable to escape. But I digress.

Additionally, the game also features a similar plot thread where Kyle Brody (the remaining survivor of Rustin Parr’s massacre) is possessed and used as a tool by Hecaitomix, similar to the Mind Flayer using Will for its own ends. Dr. Holliday manages to drive out Hecaitomix from Kyle Brody via a magical twana, while Joyce uses heat to drive the Mind Flayer out of Will. Additionally, Hecaitomix’s true form (which is seen when Dr. Holliday rescues one of Hecaitomix’s victims, Bleeding Boy) has a similar dark form to the Mind Flayer.

One thing that's consistent with most of the media I've listed is how their plots combine a world-ending threat (or in the case of Jaws, a threat to Chief Brody's community on Amity Island) with the protagonist either facing down ugly truths from the past, or trauma they need to reckon with. It’s a major reason why the scene of El closing the Gate while recalling the hallucination of Brenner telling El she has a wound she needs to deal with strikes a powerful chord with me (and is one of my top 10 favorite moments from the show). There something empowering in that kind of arc, which invokes the idea that, no matter how scary or overwhelming something might seem, it can be overcome. And it doesn’t have to be done alone either. El may have closed the Gate, but the reason she got as far as she did was with help from Hopper and her friends. Same thing can be said for the other inspirations: The Lord of the Rings and its core theme of companionship with the Fellowship. Aliens with Ripley and the help she receives from the android Bishop and Colonial Marines like Hicks. Jaws with Chief Brody and the help he received from Matt Hooper and Quint. Hellbound: Hellraiser 2 and the partnership of Kristy and Tiffany in defeating Julia, Dr. Channard, and Leviathan. The Last of Us with Ellie and Joel working together. Dr. Holliday from Blair Witch Volume I: Rustin Parr gets as far as she does via help from her companion Stranger, the agents at “Spook House,” and Asgaya Gigagei. Same can also be said for Silent Hill 3 where Heather receives aid from trustworthy sources (Douglas) and those with their own agendas (Vincent). The kind of help varies, and each person gives their own unique contribution, but it helps the protagonist succeed in the end, and imparts an important life lesson: Sometimes, help is needed in overcoming difficult challenges, and there's nothing wrong with that. You don't have to be alone in your struggle.

Part 4: Snow Ball and Miscellaneous

While the fight against the Mind Flayer was the highlight of the episode, the last 14-15 minutes were also golden, and featured some truly memorable moments.

Murray camped outside Hawkins Lab and getting flipped off while cheerfully waving goodbye to military personnel was hilarious. Someday, I hope that will be the same reaction I have towards certain individuals in our Government when they're finally forced to face consequences after constantly abusing their power. If you’ve followed this blog, you know which individuals I’m referring to.

When the news was talking about how “several high-ranking members from the U.S. Department of Energy” admitted their involvement in the cover-up of Barbara, I was curious if one of those members was Brenner. I talked about this in my review of “The Upside Down,” but I was under the impression he’d fallen out of favor with the Government by the time season 4 rolled around, or at the very least had gotten some kind of punishment from his superiors for the shit-show that happened when El opened the Gate. Hopefully, this was another black mark on his diminished reputation. I’m assuming Owens was also forced to admit his role in this (it’s his voice on the tape Nancy made), but it doesn’t seem to have gotten him fired. That apparently occurred after the Russian invasion in season 3.

For those wondering what happened to the dead demodog that Dustin and Steve shoved into Joyce’s fridge, the tie-in comic “Winter Special” reveals that it turned into sludge overnight. I don’t know if this is canon on the show, but I don’t mind this explanation because it gives an answer to why there were never any dead demodog bodies found through-out Hawkins once the Gate closed (at least those that weren’t underground at the time). It also explains what likely became of the Meat Flayer’s body in season 3 when the Russian Gate was destroyed.

The scene with Hopper and Owens prior to the Snow Ball was amusing. I have an appreciation for the friendship and trust these two developed. It feels earned after everything they went through this season. I only wish we’d gotten to see more positive interactions between them, given the direction their characters go in later seasons. The moment where Dr. Owens offers his sandwich to Hopper (and Hopper later takes a bite) is a nod to the 1982 film Diner (which also starred Paul Reiser).

The movie is set in 1959 (same year in-universe when Henry Creel would kill his mother and sister) and deals with a group of older male friends who reunite in Baltimore for the wedding of one of their own (Eddie). The eponymous diner is the location where the guys hang out and banter. For the most part, aside from Eddie’s upcoming wedding (which is contingent on his fiancé passing a test regarding her knowledge of football) and Boogie being in dept, the movie for the most part just follows these guys on their misadventures as they figure out what they’re doing with their lives. It’s like what St. Elmo’s Fire tried (and failed) to be. It helps that the writing is better in this film compared to St. Elmo's Fire. The Duffer Brothers have cited Diner as a favorite of theirs (as well as one of the reason they cast Paul Reiser for Dr. Owens), and even credit the movie for paving the way for Seinfeld (which has been described as a show about nothing, similar to how they describe this movie being about nothing). While Diner isn’t my cup of tea, I can see how the group's dynamic from that movie is incorporated into the show, specifically with Mike, Will, Lucas, and Dustin. We see that banter at the beginning of the season when they’re at Palace Arcade, and we even see it in this episode when they’re joking about Dustin’s hair at the Snow Ball.

Speaking of which, I’m really happy they followed through on that plot-thread they set up in season 1 from that conversation between Mike and El. The Duffer Brothers admitted in Beyond Stranger Things that the Snow Ball was planned from the beginning of the season. Overall, it was worth it, and it looks visually stunning. Cinematographer Tim Ives mentioned that the Snow Ball was inspired by several John Hughes movies. The two that came to mind when I was watching were Pretty in Pink (Dustin’s hairstyle even mimics Duckie’s when he goes to the dance with Andie) and Sixteen Candles. Both movies feature a dance, but (and this is something the Snow Ball sequence excels at) they also explore themes about teenage insecurity and the fear of being rejected.

We see that play out with Dustin where he comes in confident (helped by encouragement from Steve), gets his self-esteem shattered when no one wants to dance with him (not helped by the reminder that Max chose Lucas), and is left feeling alone and sad. It reminds me of Sam’s (Molly Ringwald) situation in Sixteen Candles when, in addition to everyone forgetting her birthday and feeling unworthy of the attention of a jock she has a crush on named Jake, leaves humiliated during the dance to hide out in the auto-shop. Ted (Anthony Michael Hall), one of the geeks at the school who’d been making moves on her, finds Sam and talks privately with her. The scene itself is laced with comedy, and there’s also Ted’s motivations about wanting to win a bet with his other geek friends, but both him and Sam share a moment of authenticity, and he later does an act of kindness for her by encouraging Jake to date her.

On the other hand, the moment between Dustin and Nancy isn’t laced with comedy or ulterior motives (nor is it supposed to be), but it is genuine and filled with pathos. Not only does it call back to Dustin’s crush on Nancy in season 1, but it also features Nancy lifting Dustin up in a moment of affection (which is a major contrast to her shutting the door in his face from the first episode). Nancy’s undergone her own character development since season 1, brought out by hard experiences and losses, and it’s nice seeing her subtly acknowledge that to Dustin. Plus, given that she knows what it’s like to be humiliated, she wants to spare Dustin that. It’s rooted in compassion (same as Steve’s support of Dustin prior to the dance, showing his own character development). It's also rooted in wanting someone else to be happy, and letting them know things will improve. It invokes the spirit of early John Hughes movies, but it also calls back to the theme of these characters raising up one another in moments of loneliness, and giving each other a reason to continue moving forward.

We also see that with Joyce and Hopper later in the parking lot when they're smoking a cigarette (a call-back to the memory they shared from their school days in “Trick Or Treat, Freak”) and Hopper hugs Joyce, giving her reassurances about grief getting a little easier to bear each day. They’re both world-weary, but they’re doing what they can to make it through.

Finally, in regards to El, Mike, Will, Lucas, and Max, I’m glad they each got their moments at the Snow Ball. Will still gets called “Zombie Boy,” but at least it’s not in a mean-spirited way, and the girl he dances with seemed genuinely interested in him (and was the one who asked him to dance in the first place). I even chuckled when Mike had to gesture for Will to go with her as Will looked befuddled. The slow dances between Mike/El and Max/Lucas, along with their kisses, were a heartwarming way to end the season for their characters.

Part 5: Song Choices

In addition to being a well-written episode, some of my favorite 80s songs were played here. Most of these are ones I grew up listening to in high school, and hold a place in my heart.

First song heard in this episode is “The Way We Were” by Barbara Streisand. This plays when Karen is reading her novel in the tub while Ted is asleep on his chair, and Billy rings the Wheeler's doorbell to see if Max is there.

Since the song is playing while Karen is avoiding Ted (and yelling at him to get the door), I honestly question if either Karen or Ted have any positive memories with one another. I seriously doubt these two have ever shared a candle-lit bath together (not that I want to picture what that looks like). Their relationship in The First Shadow (which mostly consisted of snogging in school) wasn’t anything to brag about, and everything we’ve seen between Karen and Ted (as well as Nancy’s conversation with Jonathan in “The Flea and the Acrobat”) indicates this has been a loveless marriage from the beginning. With that in mind, the song comes across ironically when it’s describing “Misty water-colored memories, Of the way we were.” From Karen’s perspective, there aren’t any.

Next song is Donna Summer’s “I Do Believe (I Fell In Love).” This plays when Karen meets Billy at the door, and she later gives the address to the Byers house where she believes Max might be. This is also when Billy puts on the charming act, and Karen is smitten by it. 😒

Yeah………….just like with the previous song, I’m assuming this one was also meant to be ironic considering the context of the scene it’s placed in. These two might THINK they’re “fallin’ in love,” but everything about how this scene is framed (i.e. Billy eyeing Karen’s figure, and Karen staring at Billy’s ass as he leaves) can be summed up as LUST. That ain't the same as love.

Speaking of which, the next song is “Love is a Battlefield” by Pat Benatar. This plays when Steve drops off Dustin at the Snow Ball.

The song fits perfectly with Steve and Dustin, who’ve both had their experiences with heartbreak and recognize that “Love is a battlefield.” The song itself is referring to a couple who are working to keep their relationship together amid the trials and tribulations. In the context of this scene from the show, without the romantic undertones, the chorus conveys a sense of two people uplifting one another “We are strong. No one can tell us we’re wrong. Searching our hearts for so long. Both of us knowing: Love is a Battlefield.” Steve is hoping Dustin has a good experience at the dance despite his own pain over the end of his relationship with Nancy, His motivation for helping Dustin is rooted in altruism.

This leads to the next song that's heard once Dustin goes inside the school: “Twist of Fate” by Olivia Newton-John.

This song was introduced to me by this show. I have a CD of the soundtrack for the first two seasons in my car, and every time I listen to it, I love playing this specific song (sometimes repeatedly). It’s uplifting and inspires hope. Despite where the song is placed in this episode, I’ve always attributed it to specific scenes from the first two season finales. Some of the lyrics invoke the image of Will escaping both the Upside Down and the Mind Flayer’s possession of him (“This is a new beginning. I’m back in the land of the living.”), Mike and El’s reunion after being apart for nearly a year (“Two hearts that lost the beat will now resume”), as well as how the main characters have survived two horrific ordeals, almost as if guided by a higher power (“The gift of life extension by divine intervention. It's gotta be a strange twist of fate. Telling me that heaven can wait. Telling me to get it right this time.”). Sometimes, a twist of fate can be a blessing instead of a curse.

Next song is a personal favorite: “Time After Time” by Cyndi Lauper. This plays during the dance when Dustin is rejected by several girls, and is left heartbroken, only for Nancy to come and dance with him. It’s also plays when Will dances with the girl who asked him, as well as when Max and Lucas slow dance together.

This is one of the few songs I get emotional when listening to because it perfectly encapsulates the passage of time: Looking back at the past with nostalgia, with the hope that those you love will always be there for you regardless of where you are or what’s going on in your life. It’s the longing for someone to catch you when you feel alone and lost (“If you’re lost, you can look, and you will find me, time after time. If you fall, I will catch you, I will be waiting, time after time.”). It’s a perfect song of raw vulnerability. It also works beautifully in this scene. Nancy being there for Dustin. Lucas being there for Max (with the Snow Ball acting as one of the happy memories she would later use to evade Vecna in season 4). Hopper being there for Joyce. Mike being there for Will. Everyone in this group is catching the other when they fall or feel alone.

Finally, we have the song that’s not only associated with the Snow Ball, but also with Vecna and The Mind Flayer: “Every Breath You Take” by The Police.

Even when I listened to this in high school, I always picked up on the creepy tone and stalkerish vibes, despite knowing at the time this was mistaken for a love song by so many people. I enjoy listening to it because it has a haunting melody, and even with Sting’s interpretation of the song (which he described as “sinister” and meant to invoke the idea of Big Brother from George Orwell’s 1984), I could still see how people might interpret the lyrics in a romantic sense. The idea of someone watching over you can be a comfort or the creepiest thing on Earth, depending on who the person is.

I love how the show frames the song in both a romantic AND a sinister context (as the Duffer Brothers intended).

The song starts when El arrives at the Snow Ball and dances with Mike, with both being happy to be with each other again after a year of trauma and separation. (“Since you've gone I've been lost without a trace. I dream at night, I can only see your face. I look around but it's you I can't replace. I feel so cold and I long for your embrace.”) There's a sense of longing between both characters, and it’s understandable. El wanted to reach out to Mike the year she was in hiding, and Mike wanted to believe El was alive during that time. They finally get the relief they've sought all season by meeting again, and now they can feel safe in this moment. Same goes for Max and Lucas.

But then the camera cut away to the outside while the song continues to play until we’re in the Upside Down. Suddenly, the main chorus (“Every move you make, every step you take. I'll be watching you.”) take on a more menacing meaning when we see who’s hovering with rage on the other side:

“Oh can’t you see? You belong to me.”

Again, Sting based this song on the idea of Big Brother from George Orwell’s 1984, and what character embodies that more than the Mind Flayer in its desire for complete control, unquestionable submission, and the idea that you are always being watched?

Overall, this was a stellar episode that ranks #1 in my book. To finish this review, and to show my appreciation for Steve Harrington, these are a few collectibles from season 2 that are some of my favorites:

[diablonothing]

A Logical Love

Kento Nanami didn’t believe in distractions.

Life was a simple equation: work, eat, sleep, repeat. There was no need for unnecessary socializing, no point in engaging in fleeting conversations.

Yet, for some reason, he had stepped into this café that evening.

It was a rare moment of indulgence—he needed caffeine after a mind-numbing day at work. As he scanned the menu, a voice pulled him out of his thoughts.

“You look like you need something strong,” she said, leaning slightly over the counter.

Nanami looked up.

She was… cute. Not in an overbearing way. There was a certain ease to her presence, a quiet confidence that wasn’t overly cheerful nor dull—just comfortable.

“I recommend something sweet,” she continued, tapping the menu. “Sugar helps with stress.”

“I don’t like sweet things,” Nanami replied flatly.

She smirked. “That sounds like something a tired person would say.”

He sighed. “Just make whatever you think is best.”

She handed him a honey latte. He took a sip. Considered it. Nodded. “Acceptable.”

“That’s it? No details?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

“It is coffee. It serves its function,” he said.

She rolled her eyes. “High praise.”

As he turned to leave, she quickly called out, “Wait! Before you go, would you mind filling out a customer feedback & improvement form?”

Nanami arched a brow. “A form?”

She nodded, holding up a clipboard. “Company policy. Helps us improve.”

He took it. It was standard—service quality, drink satisfaction—but at the bottom, she had added something extra:

“Leave your number for future feedback discussions.”

Nanami exhaled slowly. Clever.

He could have ignored it. Could have walked away. But, for some reason, he wrote his number down.

She smiled as she took the form back. “I’ll send you a message if we need improvement ideas.”

He nodded and left, not thinking much of it.

That night, his phone buzzed.

Unknown Number: So, Mr. Coffee Critic, any additional thoughts on your drink?

Nanami stared at the message for a moment before responding.

Nanami: It was acceptable.

Unknown Number: You already said that. I need detailed feedback.

Nanami: Fine. The sweetness was well-balanced. The texture was smooth. Nothing to improve.

Unknown Number: Wow, you sound like a corporate food inspector.

Nanami: I am efficient with words.

Unknown Number: Efficient or just grumpy?

Nanami huffed. This was already more talking than he usually did outside of work. Yet… he didn’t mind it.

Over the next few days, their conversations continued. What started as coffee critiques evolved into something deeper.

Conversations Between a Logical Man and an Optimistic Dreamer

One night, she asked, “So, what do you do?”

“Finance.”

“Ah. A suit-wearing corporate drone. Explains why you look dead inside.”

Nanami nearly choked on his drink. Instead of irritation, he found himself… entertained.

She wasn’t afraid to tease him. Most people either avoided him or tiptoed around his bluntness. But she? She poked at him like it was second nature.

The next night, the conversation turned philosophical.

“Do you ever think about how ridiculous it is that people work themselves to death just to retire and finally start living when they’re old?” she mused.

Nanami leaned back, considering. “Most people don’t have a choice. Survival requires sacrifice.”

“But don’t you think it’s a flaw in the system? We trade our time—our only nonrenewable resource—for money. And for what? A comfortable death?”

He tapped his fingers against the desk. “You’re not wrong. But systems don’t change just because we acknowledge their flaws.”

“So you accept it?”

He thought for a moment. “No. I just refuse to waste my energy on things I can’t change.”

She sent a quick reply. “Spoken like a true corporate drone.”

Nanami smirked. “Spoken like a dreamer who thinks coffee and optimism can change the world.”

She sent a single emoji—a laughing face. Then, after a pause, a more thoughtful message.

“I just think… there has to be more to life than this.”

Nanami stared at her words for a long time.

For the first time in a while, he didn’t have an immediate answer.

The Shift

Their conversations continued. They talked about books, economics, the absurdity of corporate hierarchies. Some nights, they discussed the universe—black holes, time dilation, the possibility of alternate realities.

She had an unusual way of seeing the world—half cynical, half hopeful. A paradox, much like the honey latte she had insisted he drink.

“You pretend you don’t like sweet things, but you still keep drinking them,” she pointed out one night.

Nanami glanced at his cup. “I drink them because they’re… acceptable.”

“That’s the worst way to give a compliment.”

He almost smiled.

Then, out of nowhere, her texts started changing.

Mentions of other men. Subtle hints that she was talking to someone.

Nanami recognized it for what it was—a test. She wanted a reaction. Jealousy.

But he wasn’t a man who played games.

Then, one night, she created the perfect scenario.

“Hey, do you think relationships should start with a question?” she asked.

“Logically speaking, clarity is important.”

“So… ask me.”

Nanami hesitated. He knew what she was doing. He was too rational to fall for tricks like these.

And yet—despite himself—he asked.

“Do you want to start something real?”

For a moment, there was no response. Then, finally, she replied:

“No.”

Nanami didn’t flinch. He simply nodded to himself. “Understood.”

And just like that, he put his phone away. No regret, no lingering thoughts.

The next day, she sent a picture—her in a car with another man.

Nanami glanced at it, unimpressed.

“All the best,” he replied, then put his phone away and continued his morning routine.

Hours later, she called.

Nanami was busy. He ignored it.

When he finally called back, she sounded… different.

“The guy I went out with made a move on me. It was uncomfortable.”

Nanami listened as she spoke, calming her down in his usual, steady way.

After a pause, she asked softly, “Why didn’t you try again?”

His response was simple.

“Because you told me no.”

She exhaled. Then, after a long pause—

“…You should have tried again.”

Nanami exhaled, a rare, small smile forming.

“Then… I’ll ask again.”

“…Okay.”

“…Would you like to start something real?”

This time, she whispered, “Yes.”

And for the first time, Nanami allowed himself to feel something beyond logic.

[tj-dragonblade]

[Fluffbruary Fic] Andante Affettuoso

Fandom: The Sandman Pairing: Dreamling Rated: G Word Count: 1597 Tags: Fluffbruary, Fluffbruary 2025, future fic, introspection, confessions, first kiss

Notes: Andante: At a moderately slow tempo Affettuoso: With affection and tenderness Musical Accompaniment: Andante Affettuoso by Brian Crain ft YuJeong Lee

Fluffbruary 2025 prompts: Day 6: declaration | gregarious | duet Day 7: hand | curls | pattern Day 14: voice | swim | quaint Day 15: kettle | wonder | twist (We have skipped over day 13 so it can be pulled in with day 16)

Summary: Five years after their initial reunion, Dream has come to the New Inn on Valentine's Day with specific words in mind.

On AO3

It is pleasantly warm in the New Inn, cozy in their corner, exactly as it has been every winter for the last five years. Dream has grown accustomed to the routine of it, comfortable in the familiarity of sitting at this table with Hob, wine and conversation shared between them; it is a tradition they have built, one Dream should greatly mislike to be without.

This night, as always, the conversation flows more heavily from Hob. His voice is so very pleasant, mild and full of soft strength, warmly colored by his smile and robust with the life infusing his stories and Dream is. Mesmerized, more so than usual. He nearly feels drunk, and it is not the wine. Alcohol does not intoxicate him if he does not wish it; he has been drinking slowly regardless. It is Hob's presence, Hob's voice, Hob's easy joy in the time Dream spends with him, that have Dream feeling light, effervescent. Comfortable.

Happy.

It is a novel thing, still, to realize how fully content he is in such moments.

He would wish for it to continue indefinitely.

Hob is a natural storyteller, gifted in spinning his words; Dream has always enjoyed listening to him. Or. Not always, perhaps, but he had grown to recognize Hob's gift over their centennial meetings. And. Having rekindled their acquaintance after escaping his prison, having accepted Hob's original declaration of friendship at last, having altered the course of the story between them by returning mere months later, he has had opportunity to experience it far more frequently.

It is a blessing.

He had missed much, while locked in the basement of Fawney Rig. Reconnecting to the collective subconscious had backfilled the missing space, but it is Hob's stories that imbue it with texture, that color the finer details, that lend depth and perspective to the broad shapes of it. Hob has told him, with such enthusiasm, of all his favorite things about the past century. Things that Dream had seen the start of and things he had not. Photography. Electricity. Telephones. Moving pictures. Motor vehicles. Vaccinations. Refrigeration and grocery shops. Television. Space travel. The internet. The rapid advance of these technologies Hob speaks of still with bright-eyed awe befitting the man he'd been so many centuries prior, the unmitigated joy that a simple common peasant gets to see such wonders in the world—and the unspoken anticipation of what unknown wonders are yet to come.

The world had not been all brilliant advancements while Dream was held captive, of course, but Hob is unrelentingly optimistic. It is refreshing, where Dream himself so often tends toward dour and serious and. Expectant, of disaster, to be faced with a friend who is instead full of life and hope and enthusiasm for whatever the future may bring.

It is refreshing, to have a friend. Full stop.

Visiting with Hob has been a most welcome addition to Dream's existence, these past few years. He sometimes finds himself lamenting his earlier adherence to the once-a-century schedule; he might have been enjoying Hob's company far more often far sooner had he been open to it and the realization feels like something lost. But he does not think Hob would agree, were he to speak such thoughts aloud. He imagines Hob would laugh it off with that light and easy acceptance that Dream has come to treasure, would counter with his warm and welcoming smile that they've all the time in the world before them to make up for it.

Dream. Is very fond of Hob's smile.

He is. Very fond, of Hob.

He. Is more than fond of Hob, if he is to be entirely truthful with himself.

Which is, in part, his purpose in coming here on Valentine's Day specifically.

"There I go doing all the talking again!" Hob laughs, a light and merry sound, no self-deprecation in it at all. They both know the shape of their friendship; they both are content to let Hob shoulder the bulk of the conversational weight and Dream knows he is welcome to interject at any point. That Hob will eagerly listen to anything he might like to say. Hob's comments of this sort are a pause, an opening offered in case Dream feels like speaking in turn.

And tonight, he does.

"You are indeed. Exceptionally gregarious, Hob Gadling," he offers, with enough of a smile to ensure his words ought not be misconstrued as displeasure. "It is fortunate that I find it appealing."

Hob blinks, visibly taken off-guard by the statement. "O-oh?"

There is a faint touch of pink rising to his cheeks, if Dream is not mistaken.

This bodes well for Dream's intentions.

"Yes. Your stories give me succour, as your devotion has given me. Shelter, from the harshness of my own thoughts." He draws himself up, leans in the slightest bit, marginally closer to Hob. "I look forward to your company, Hob; to your stories, your smiles, your presence." He is watching Hob's face as he speaks, his words carefully considered for days on end leading to this moment; he is keen to see how they land.

The color in Hob's face does not abate.

It is very becoming.

"Have you any idea," he continues, reaching slowly across the corner of the table between them, delicately picking up Hob's hand, thrilling to the feel of Hob's skin against his, "how very rare it is that I. Anticipate. Anything? How infrequently, I have enjoyed anyone's company to the point of seeking them out?" He holds Hob's gaze, steady, intense. "I would have you know. How singular you are."

The sight of Hob Gadling rendered fully speechless is a novelty; Dream is quietly delighted by the way his mouth hangs half-open, the wide-eyed stare, the light flush still suffusing his face.

He is beautiful.

Dream is sufficiently confident that Hob will receive his words favorably; he would not have ventured to speak them in the first place were he not. Still, he must curb the tendrils of apprehension that twist through him, now that he has broached the subject. Should his careful overture be rejected—

But Hob, his Hob, does not disappoint.

"Dream. I." He cracks a smile, brief, awkward, but sincere and bright as the sun. "I-I'm honored. I. I look forward to our meetings too, to any time spent with you. More than I can say." His hand flexes minutely in Dream's hold. "I know—I know you have so, so many things that you must tend to, things far grander than my little misadventures in immortality, and it means so much that you spend any of your precious time on me. Seeing you is forever the highlight of my day."

Dream lets the warm flood of relief wash through him, the affirmation of his welcome, of Hob's regard. He folds his hand gently beneath Hob's, holding those slender sturdy fingers in a chivalrous grasp; he lifts his eyes to Hob's, helplessly drawn in. Here at their table he is sheltered from the buzz and press of humanity all around, each caught up in their own minutiae, oblivious to anything he might say to his Hob. It is safe, here in their corner, to express anything he likes.

"Hob Gadling. The time I treasure most is the time I spend with you. And. With your leave." He lifts Hob's hand, barely grazes his lips over Hob's knuckles, still holding his gaze. "I would court your attentions for something. More than friendship."

"Oh. Dream." Hob's pupils are blown wide, his voice breathless, and his face is alight with something far more transcendent than simple joy. "You're. Are you asking me out?"

It is. So mundane a phrase for something which feels entirely more momentous than such simple words allow. But. He is very certain that is precisely why Hob has said it.

"If we must employ the modern parlance. Yes."

"On Valentine's, no less?" Hob is grinning, shining with happiness and the barest hint of mischief, the lingering shadow of the rogue who'd boldly declared he simply wasn't going to die all those centuries ago.

Dream allows himself the tiniest smirk. "It seemed. A fitting opportunity. Traditional."

Hob gives a little scoff. "Traditional in the modern parlance, of course. I'm older than a great many of these customs."

"Of course."

"And you're older than all of them, heh. Significantly."

"Indeed."

"Well." Hob has made no attempt to withdraw his hand from Dream's; his eyes are shining with emotion and sincerity as his mirth fades. "Dream of the Endless, my old, dear friend. My oldest friend. My dearest friend. If you wish to be more, then I. I should like that very much."

Dream inclines his head, quiet joy curling at the corners of his mouth, unfurling within him like the fluttering wings of a fledgling dove. "Then. My heart, such as it is, is yours to claim."

The wonder in Hob's face is beautiful to behold, a perfect mirror to the wonder that he himself feels to know that he might have this. That he might be permitted such happiness.

"Dream," Hob says softly then, "please." His hand in Dream's curls gently, grasps in return, and he leans closer. "May I kiss you?"

Everything in Dream thrills to the idea, to the reverent way that Hob asks; he leans marginally more forward himself, draws Hob in with their joined hands.

"You may," he breathes, as if he is not aching for it himself, already tilting in, a handsbreadth from letting his lips touch Hob's.

And so, at last, Hob kisses him.

= Started: 2/5/25 Drafted: 2/14/25 Posted: 2/15/25

[sapphirestones09]

AAAAAAA FINALLY! I'm done playing @oneknightstand-if. As part of the celebration, here is Rosie's colored sketch (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧ Lol, this looks like an anime title card And thus! The Stats!

Blobbed: Yep (We are what now?)

Bold : 205 (Is this high lol?) Sweet : 46 Sassy : 159 Optimist : 76

Health : 85 Mark Status : Healed Merlin Healing : 2 Merlin Forced Healing : 0

Caution : 9 Will : 7 Cloudcuckoolanderness : 42 (Not enough, we gotta go full cray cray) Silent : 7 Curse Level : 4 Fear Level : 6 Corruption : -5 (Is this low enough?) Mute : false Mindcontrol : false

Downtime : Had Breakfast | Snarfed Sweets | Shower Accident |

Route : Went into Store & Fought | (What I gotta use the hunting knives as soon as possible in some way right?)

New Inventory : Hairdryer | Sweets | Shower Mat | Everclear Alcohol (Molotov! Molotov! Molotov!) They Know : false | It Sees : Masked | You Replied False Some stats are missing when I scroll from the past posts in the forum. Such as Crazy Theory, Crazy Theory Level, Pottymouth, Serenades, Interpretative Dance, and a deep dive into the Adrian and Merlin's relationship stats (I WANT TO SEE HOW MANY TIMES I FLIRTED GODAMMIT!). I wonder if I can access it (╥ω╥) About Rosie!

You are currently known as Rosaline (Rosie) Bane a seemingly normal female wildlife biologist. You have red eyes, very long flowing icy blond hair, and a short and petite figure clad in a red cape with an amaranth face mask. People tend to take particular notice of your hair. At first glance, people tend to find you not very intimidating.

You excel at sword fighting, gardening, and having a magnetic personality. Meanwhile, you've got a weakness for prescription medications and enclosed spaces, as well as having anger management issues.

You have an ear piercing. You also have a couple of scars along your neck and wrist.

A tragic accident that claimed your whole family lies in your past and the fate of your future remains murky with the apocalypse ever looming in the background. At least no one has suspected that you are actually a serial killer.

Your final words were "And now for a final word from our sponsor—"

Note! I didnt know I could play something as chaotic and as fun as this game provided me. Its super fun and enjoyable and yet amidst the chaos I loved the characters that was shown and grown to get attached to them to a degree. Both Merlin and Adrian are mysterious and enigmatic in their own ways that makes me look forward to the story and how it progresses towards their character. Also seeing Adrian being exasperated over Cloudcuckolander MC's antics tickles my funny bones more than I can admit. I admit I was reluctant to get into the game seeing as its such a huge one, but after playing all I can say is MOAR! I NEED MOAARRRR! AND PLEASE AUTHOR TELL ME HOW TO SUCCESSFULLY PASS THE STAT CHECK FOR MOONWALKING ON THE FENCING ROUTE! I NEED TO MOONWALK! I NEED THESE PEOPLE TO CLAP FOR ME! And please can we apologize to Adrian for punching him? (っ˘̩╭╮˘̩)っ I know in the grand scheme of things, Adrian forgives us already but we still wanna apologize (ಡ‸ಡ) And oh boy, I think Im gonna draw lots and lots of fanarts now... Skill Stats!

Personality Stats!

Can we still claim to be a newbie after Merlin's extensive lore dump on us? Relationship Stats!

Inventory!

Your ultimate weapon is unknown.

You are currently armed with... nothing, at least as far as you know.

Cold Steel SRK survival knife

You also have on hand...

E-phone 7XL

several small bottles of prescription medications

photo of your family

Killer McKiller Face's favorite stuffed animal (Rip our micro pig (ಥ﹏ಥ))

well-worn Bible (To ward off evil of course!)

mystical Magic 8-Ball (Another holy item! I sure hope it does not contain anything otherworldly that will potentially endanger us and others ha.ha.ha (→_→)

small herb garden of eclectic plants including a mutant Venus Flytrap (The only queen Rosie will ever potentially bow to!)

collection of various survival & hunting knives

small bag of iridescent pearls

bottle of 95% alcohol Everclear (Molotov! Molotov! Molotov ⸜(*ˊᗜˋ*)⸝)

slightly squished pastry (I KNOW MY PRIORITIES! AND ITS SWEETS!)

[paradiseinternet]

I Hate Tony Stark: Chapter Five

pairing: Tony Stark x Soulmate!Reader

word count: 4.0k

triggers: childhood trauma, poverty, age gap.

author's note: another chapter in the bag :)

Chapter Five: Your Future Isn't Mine, Yet They Intertwine

What part of “this is my future” did he not understand? Is he dense? The entire point of the initial meeting was to clarify to him that you did not want anything to do with him. You truly thought that you got the idea through his head, but maybe you were too optimistic.

He ignored your quiet reaction and instead decided to feign innocence, “Hey! You work here? What a coincidence.”

You continue to just stare at him as you realize his disguise isn’t actually all that great. All it took was for him to lift his head up and you figured out who he was. Something in the back of your mind knew an instance like this was likely. You thought about how he’ll track you down and go from there. That technology of his is way too advanced to not be used to his advantage. And what do you know, you were right; Tony Stark has successfully hunted you down.

“You know, now that we’re in the same room, I’ve been wanting to tell you something,” he continued, leaning his head on his propped-up arm. “I got to thinking. You’re right, it’s your future, do with it as you will. But as that monk Swami, or whatever his name was, said, ‘you are the creator of your own destiny’.”

He leaned back up and paused for dramatic effect, then motioned to the area around you, “And destiny has brought me to this café.”

That smile, the one he is giving you right now, looks very slapable. However, for reasons unknown to you, a warmth fills your heart. His face seems to challenge you, asking for you to come up with something that will make him leave. But after a few moments of dense silence, you drew a blank and could only think of entertaining his antics.

“Really? Not your incredibly advanced technology and a GPS?” You responded dryly.

His smile grew, pleased to be getting something other than rejection, “But a minor intervention.”

You scoffed, “You’re a nuisance.”

“I’m your nuisance,” he quickly clarified.

Tony Stark is most certainly a nuisance to you, but hopefully not a recurring one.

You sigh in defeat, desperate to find an end to this, “Then how do I get rid of you?”

“Let me see,” he pretended to think. “Mm, yeah no, you can’t. Well, I am leaving town in a couple days, would love for you to come with me.”

“That’s the opposite of getting rid of you, not happening,” you said while crossing your arms. At this point your pen and notepad have been placed back into your pouch.

“Thought I’d try.”

“Stop trying.”

His chuckle in reply was different, not simply holding the sound of amusement, but also with a hint frustration, “Wow, you definitely are a ray of sunshine.”

This man is confusing, and you feel yourself torn to two sides of a coin. One the one side, you wanted to curl up and get away from him, intimidated by his stature and the differences in lifestyle between the two of you. On the other hand, you want to yell at him then kick him out of the building. But something inside you prevents you from kicking him out. You reason with yourself that it’s in fear of the repercussions of kicking a customer out for no apparent reason, but you know this isn’t the case.

“Are you going to order something?” You ask as you start to lightly tap on the floor with your right foot.

The face he pulls makes you feel slightly nauseated as you realize that something you said he’s going to use to his advantage. And with your limited knowledge of the playboy, you have an idea as to what he will say.

“Are you on the menu?”

Yeah, that checks out.

You glare and say, “Order something or leave.”

That shit-eating grin doesn’t move a muscle, looking to demonstrate that he was very pleased with himself up to this point. And in a world with only one man, he’d be one cheeky fellow with original one-liners. But life is not a box of chocolates, instead it’s a blue sphere where roughly half of the population is male. Therefore, he is not original and certainly isn’t going to sway you anytime soon. Nothing he has, you want. One way or another he’s going to figure that out, and one way or another he’s then going to realize he has no leverage.

He doesn’t spare a glance at the menu in front of him, keeping his sunglass-covered eyes on you.

“A cappuccino will do nicely, with a pretty design on top,” he answers.

You roll your eyes and walk off to the bar to begin making the drink. Trish will now be serving him if you have anything to say about it. Anything to get him out of your line of sight.

“He’s all yours girlie,” you say while walking past to get to the coffee machine.

She released a delighted gasp of shock as she made a small ‘o’ with her lips, “The sugar daddy?”

“Oh yeah, work him,” you confirm. You’re not one for feeding into her mania, but if it’s to your advantage, you’ll pull every string you need to.

She grins deviously, thinking she’s about to get an early payday and maybe something more (knowing her age ceiling). He’s used to women falling into his lap, what is it to you if he has more?

Speaking of age caps, that’s another reason (although trivial) that you’re keeping your distance. He’s a bit too old for you. It doesn’t take much math to determine that he is about the same age as your dad if he were still alive. Your dad was 17 when you were born, so essentially, you’d be dating someone roughly the same age, and that’s weird. But Trish is 25, and although that isn’t much better, at least they’re kind of closer in age. Besides, Stark is used to young women running after him.

While the coffee was dripping, you were preparing the milk and adding air to get the correct amount of foam. When the espresso was finished, you then added the milk and began the design as it reached the top. Typically you’d do a heart because everyone adores hearts in art, but this is a case you don’t want to give the wrong message to. So, as an alternative, you did a leaf.

After placing the cup with coffee on the ceramic saucer, you handed it over to Trish to deliver. In response she gave an automated ‘thank you’ and made her way to the man of the hour. You, on the other hand, went to go check on the other few customers in the shop and wipe down a few tables.

You caught Trish giving you a look as she was walking back behind the counter; in response you started to make your way towards her. For a brief moment the two of you looked at each other, trying to decipher what the other was thinking. Afterwards Trish then began the brief exchange.

“I see why you passed,” she scoffed.

“Oh?” You wordlessly questioned.

She crossed her arms in exaggeration while snapping, “What a dick, didn’t even entertain the idea. He’s insisting on you.”

A long, drawn-out sigh left your lips as your head sank. You were hoping he’d just take the hint. This is turning from a dunce case to a stubborn nut. What can you do to make him change his mind?

Ah! You got an idea. An awful idea. You had a wonderful, awful idea.

What can be done to a man who’s stuck in his heart? Give him a reason to use his head.

You walk briskly back to the table, having no doubt that he wanted to take up all your time.

He must’ve heard your steps because he had something witty to say before you were even in his line of sight.

“Oh would you look at that, the newt got better,” he said while leaning on the back of the chair.

When you reached him at the end of the table, you couldn’t help the confused bloom on your face. You knew he was referring to something, but you weren’t sure what.

He noticed your look and returned it, equally confused except most likely for the opposite reason—why don’t you know what he’s referencing to?

Chuckling he asked, “What? Never watched Monty Python?”

“When did it come out?” You asked.

“1975 I think, but don’t quote me. I was five during the release but didn’t watch it until I was a teenager,” he answered while taking a drink from the cappuccino.

You hummed, “That makes sense, I wasn’t born until ’88.”

The drink he was taking quickly left his mouth as he started coughing.

Instantly you started patting his back while reached for the cluster of napkins on the other side of the table with your other hand. Then you worked on cleaning the new mess as Tony started to recuperate.

Coffee went everywhere, the table, the chair across from him, on him, but none on you thankfully. You had been trying your best to clean him up, ignoring the warmth in your heart with every dab you made. Then your heart went ablaze for a moment as he grabbed your wrist and pulled it away.

“I’m alright, I’m alright,” he chanted with a slightly hoarse voice.

You pulled your arm away, unwilling to continue with the fire burning your heart from the contact. It was unreal, surreal, something you couldn’t quite understand. You knew you received that effect from touching him, and it had to be because of the bond, but how can something you feel so detached from be so powerful?

Stuffing the slightly damp napkins in your apron pocket, you couldn’t help but ask, “What happened?”

He ignored you and opted to establish a clarification, “You said ’88 right? So you’re 22?”

His question confused you on several levels. For one, you can’t even remember how old you are some days, much less compute your age based on year within seconds. Secondly, he should know how old you are—at least you thought he would. He knows your name because he got a clear image of your face that dreadful night. Since he was able to obtain your name purely because he captures your features, he should know everything there is to know about you.

“Yeah?” You confirmed.

So why doesn’t he know your age?

“Holy shit,” he cursed via something between an airy chuckle and a sound of surprise. Thoughtlessly he had his hand in his hair running his fingers through the dark strands.

‘He doesn’t know how old I am?’ you pondered to yourself. If this was the case, then your plan to get him to use his head just got easier. Using the age gap as leverage to explain why the two of you are not a good match will work in your favor.

It took a solid minute of him staring into the wall before coming back to reality. “Well, I mean, fate works in mysterious ways,” he determined, but not sounding overly convinced with what he said.

Damn it.

Now was the time you had to interject, “I’m confused, you managed to get my name by doing a scan of my face. Did you not bother to look more into me?”

He looked at you quizzingly.

“A scan of your face? When did I have time to do that?” He smirked and tilted his head, intrigued to know what you believed.

You crossed your arms, “When we were arguing on the street the other night.”

“Ah, the same street that was as bright as the sun one moment then as dark as tar the next?”

Dumbass.

Of course he couldn’t get a picture of you, no picture would be distinguishable in that lighting. Trish had quite literally told you that the person who witnessed the conversation between you and Stark was unable to get a photo because of the lighting, how would he be able to either?

Scoffing, you snarkily asked, “Well, then how did you get my name?”

“I asked the receptionist who the room was under,” he shrugged nonchalantly. “She gave me a weird look, but honestly, totally worth it.”

You paused, narrowing your eyes. “Then how do you know where I work?”

He swirled the cappuccino in his hand, eyes glinting mischievously. “Oh, simple. I put your name into my servers, ran a facial recognition search, and voila. Found your face, found your work. But don’t worry, I didn’t go full stalker mode and read everything in your file.” He gave a casual shrug. “I like to stay informed, but where’s the fun in knowing everything? Getting to know your soulmate is supposed to be the adventure, right?”

You could feel the irritation bubble up at his antics, but Tony didn’t seem to notice. He didn’t use your face to find your name . . . but he did use your name to find your face. His casual, almost smug demeanor always made you want to scream sometimes.

“By the way, has anyone ever told you that your face does not match your age?” Grinning slyly, he leaned back in his chair. “I thought you were at least early 30s.”

The unadulterated rage that crossed your face was enough for him to give a quiet apology, realizing that it’s not exactly the kindest thing to tell a woman she looks older than she is. To be fair, you didn’t have much care in pertains to how old people thought you were. You understand that you’ve been through more struggles than the common person, so your features would likely reflect that. However, you prefer to hear those comments come from people you know, not from someone you loathe.

“You came here for a reason,” you began, done with being near him. “Could you get to it?”

What you didn’t expect was for him to look at you with a gaze that told a story you couldn’t understand. His eyes (which were already covered by the tinted glasses) are so dark they almost looked black, like a shark. The way the light reflected off of his irises explained the great feats he has achieved, and the fears he has had to face because of it. Something about the way he looked at you was almost like he was trying to memorize your face while he could, worried he might never see it again.

Then, with a small, thoughtful nod, Tony’s voice dropped to a level tone. “Like I said, I’m heading out soon. Got a whole other life in California waiting for me—responsibilities, the usual jazz.”

You nodded, understanding. Internally you were smiling, glad he was going to be a comforting distance away from you again. Although, the ache in your heart was deceiving your brain, trying to convince yourself otherwise.

“I get it,” he continued, drumming his fingers on the table. “You don’t want to come with me, I can’t say I blame you. But I’m not talking about some grand, epic love story here.” He gave you a sideways look, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Not all soulmates are meant to be romantic, you know. Sometimes, they’re just . . . really good-looking friends who have a lot to offer. Just saying."

Between a small smile and a look of annoyance, you’re not sure which one was showing up on your face. Something about his relaxed body language and light words made you want to bubble up and giggle like a teenager at his cunning way of flirting. The annoyance spoke true to your thoughts, however, as you wanted to grimace at his attempt to get familiar with you.

What to do, what to do. You had a feeling that (as to hold true from what he said earlier) if you rejected him again, he would just come back like a bad itch. Alternatively, if you were to give him a chance at “friendship” then he’d maybe be less persistent. If he got to know you as a person, then there is no doubt in your mind that he wouldn’t want to continue anything platonic, much less romantic. This absolute fact will be used to your gain as you carry out the plan to prove to him you are not a good match, starting with your lack-luster, antisocial personality. For, there isn’t a universe where the two of you are compatible. This universe, to put it simply, has made a mistake that you will take great joy in highlighting.

The nod you gave was subtle, but obvious enough to the gazing man before you. You could tell he understood because his cheeks rose as his lips took the form of a smile rather than a sly grin. This glimpse of a moment was short-lived as he once again regained the trademark smirk.

“Perfect, so I was thinking--.”

You promptly cut him off, not willing to completely give in to his charade. The thought of just allowing yourself to be friendly with your father’s executioner was not to be taken lightly; so, meticulous steps need to be planned for. Though, something else you need is time.

“If this is to happen, I need to lay down some ground rules,” your statement started off strong and hard as stone. However, what you are trying to convey is not as simple when said in words. You didn’t exactly think about what you wanted to say, considering you never planned to get to know him in the first place. “Those rules are to be determined in some time.”

He shifted in the chair, remaining leaned against the wooden backing. “As in, you don’t have a clue as to what you want.”

Your cheeks flushed from the embarrassment of not having a grasp over your own life, while simultaneously turning red in anger at his endless yapping. “I’ll have you know that I have a clear picture as to what I want, it’s just difficult to know what I don’t want—apart from you leaving me alone, that is.”

He feigned shock while putting a hand over where his heart (probably) is. “Oh, the betrayal. Fine, I’ll give you one day—but no more than that. I’m outta here in three, and I need at least a little time to figure out how to annoy you without getting a lecture.”

You rolled your eyes then nodded to solidify the agreement, “Then I will contact you in no more than 24 hours with my groundwork.”

At this point you thought the conversation was over, but his staring told you otherwise. The two of you spent at least a minute looking at each other. His expression confused you as to why he looked so pleased with himself.

“I’ll take it you won’t catch on,” he began to stand up from his seat. The cappuccino a memory lost in conversation. “How do you intend to contact me?”

The blush that barely disappeared from earlier reinstated itself at the realization.

“I . . . I don’t see how that’s my problem,” you stumbled. “You’re the one who wants all this to happen. You should be accommodating.”

He looked at you again with nothing other than mindless commentary hiding behind his pupils and lips pressed thin into a simper.

“If it pleases the court.”

Without so much of a hitch, he pulls a phone out of his jacket and selects a contact page for you to enter your information into. The exchange was as quick as you could make it—you having not bothered to enter anything extra apart from your number. Frankly, his phone was quite different from yours, it confused you a little bit when trying to adapt to the user interface. Although, if he noticed your struggling, he didn’t mention it.

Handing the phone back, you’re startled as he grasps your wrist instead and twists it to where your palm is facing the ceiling. That lingering warmth that you’ve been blatantly ignoring comes back ten-fold in such intensity that you begin to think you are suffering from heat stroke. Then, he leans down almost like he intended to kiss the palm of your hand for some obscure reason, only to stop and instead gaze longingly at the watch wrapped around your skin to prevent people from seeing his name. While still hunched over he mumbles something indistinguishable and grabs his phone with the very same hand that has your printed name. You can’t deny the little sparks of electricity that flowed through where he contacted you.             “Catch you later sweet cheeks,” he bids farewell after moving around you, taking a not-so-discrete peek at your ass, then walking out the door.

Barely a moment later you felt the phone in your right slack pocket vibrate from a new message—undoubtably that from the man who just left.

Currently, your mind is processing faster than that of a computer calculator. Nothing but ones and zeros flashing across the uncountable amounts of neurons that make up your brain. It would seem that after the somewhat-intense conversation with him, your mind had decided to short-circuit, only really focused on not-so-important details like if he paid for his coffee and how many hours you have left for your shift.

The second thought was easy to answer—the time is currently a quarter past ten, not nearly as late as you would’ve thought since the talk felt like an eternity. This means you have another ten hours and 45 minutes until you can clock out. That’s ten hours and 45 minutes that you have to keep busy while brainstorming what to text the waiting man. Tomorrow you’re working your regular 9-5 unlike the 12-hour shift you’re doing today. A coworker called out and you volunteered to wait around until the next person comes in—after all, what else can you fill your time with? The more money you make, the easier it is the pay rent this month. Especially since you spent a whole week to ‘celebrate’ your birthday.

As for the first thought, you finally got your body to move to check to see if he left any payment on the table. Yet, what you found made you recoil in shock. There, hidden under the cappuccino plate, were two folded 100-dollar bills.

You heard yourself audibly gasp, unable to believe what you were seeing. This certainly was enough to pay for the drink, but there must’ve been a mistake! The leftover change would be enough to cover your utilities for a month, maybe even with a few dollars extra to spare. It has to be an error, giving a tip of roughly $195 isn’t standard practice, nor is it normal. He must’ve put too much on accident.

‘He doesn’t know I’m poor, does he?’ you then thought.

No, that’s unlikely. He said it himself that he wants to get to know you personally, not just from reading a file.

Although . . . maybe he lied. Whether that is the case or not, you hate it when people know you’re poor. In passing you’ve observed that they look down on you, pity you. They try to censor themselves during conversation and activities to try and “save your feelings.” If this money isn’t a mistake and instead some extra funds to “donate” to his poor soulmate who works as a barista, then that bastard has another thing coming. He isn’t Robin Hood—he’s rich! The rich. As is, the richest man on Earth. One can’t steal from the rich and give to the poor if they are themself the rich person in question. There has to be a double entendre somewhere in that analogy.

With your mind made up, you pocketed the money after cleaning the table and then using the cash to pay for the coffee. The remaining amount will be given back to him when you see him next. Naturally you will be keeping a generous $20 tip for both your time and the headache along with giving half of it to your unfortunate coworker who was just trying to make a quick buck. Although $20 is more than you want to take, your spite cannot win against your inevitably resilient financial situation.

[strangequarked]

On Throwing One's Self Forward

this ramble was prompted by Time to Orbit: Unknown's ending, so yeah spoilers for that.

I enjoy, probably a more-than-normal amount, the feeling of acceleration. Breaking into a sprint, screaming down a hill on a bike, flooring the gas pedal, the roar of take-off thrust on a jet, I find all those not only exhilarating but comforting. Thus, I can't help but wonder what it must feel like to be in the Courageous, to be the Courageous as it engages its engines, screaming across the void to chase the stars. The beauty of it all...

and in general, I loved TTOU's ending. A story that was equal parts grim and joyful ends on an optimistic note and a very particular one at that. The Javelin Program was billed as a mission of hopeful exploration, of venturing into the unknown to discover what lies there, and the crew of the Courageous had finally made it come true. No more murders, no secret Antarctican project, no half-mad experimental AI. We saw the worst of humanity, but we also saw the best. Aspen's resilience, muscling through the void of space all on their own. Dinesh and Tal sticking a failing starship back together. The way everyone on the crew protected each other. Ultimately, we see that we are indeed capable of surmounting dire odds and that is cause for optimism all by itself. Even when everything is falling apart, it can yet be saved. What should have been can still be.

I am perhaps a hopeless optimist but what we see in ttou is my hope for the actual future. I dream of humanity working together to go further than ever before, of an Earth that is more vibrant than ever, of a well-taken-care-of people, of a deeper and broader knowledge of the universe. It is highly unlikely I will live to see our own Javelins set out across the stars, but I hope someone aboard one of them feels the same comfort in acceleration I do.

[mysticstarlightduck]

OC Picrew Tag!

I found this really cool Picrew and decided to make some of my OCs using it! I think you guys might like giving it a try as well, so I'm tagging a few people in this post (:

Here we go!

Rules: Use the provided Picrew to make one of your WIPs OCs, then provide a quick description of the character, and (optionally) a "funny/bad" version of a summary

SUPERNOVA INITIATIVE

Deimos Soll

About: An infamously silver-tongued assassin, sniper, and mercenary known for being unpredictable and always having hidden intentions, Deimos is Jack and Cassie's former crewmate and first childhood friend, turned rival, turned begrudging-friend-again. Deimos is the most successful and deadly sniper in the whole galaxy, feared even by the Junction at his full potential.

Badly/Funny Summarization: Essentially a young, alien, 'space opera' version of John Wick with extra angst and a very questionable moral compass

Lyorna Alyrii

About: A young and optimistic freedom fighter from a water folk of a faraway planet in the Khosmonian galaxies who believes in a freer future for her people and an end to the oppressive regime of the Junction. Focused and brilliant, Lyorna wants to uphold her father's legacy and bring peace to the galaxy. She becomes friends with Jack Tithus during his crew's mission on the Khosmonian galaxy and later on they become each other's love interest.

Bad Summarization: An overly optimistic, too-precious young adult who should be protected at all costs and has almost no plan for anything at any given moment in time and should not be left unsupervised.

Noctus

About: Though his full name is classified and unknown to the cast, his reputation precedes him. He is the single most successful special forces secret agent currently in the employ of the Junction - he has never failed a mission, never missed a target. And he always follows orders, always obeys the rules. However, is everything about him what it seems? A forgotten and suppressed part of his memory may prove that the system he fought so dearly to uphold may have actually made him into their perfect living weapon, and there may be many other lies yet to be uncovered

Bad Summarization: Twenty-something secret agent done with everything and everyone who only wanted to have a simple mission and ends up 'adopted' by the gang of misfits he was sent to supervise.

SONG OF THORNS

Tullieh Aerlys

About: The undefeated and steadfast commander of the Guardians, who protect the Mountain Elves' hidden kingdom and keep outsiders from discovering their land. Tullieh is a serious, no-nonsense young man to whom duty and honor mean everything, due to a personal grudge against humans, especially those who hunt mythical beings, he will do anything to honor his vow and keep his people - especially his younger siblings - from being found by outsiders, even if it means being ruthless and unforgiving to a questionable degree.

Bad Summarization: Traumatized ancient teenager who grew up way too fast and should never have been given a gun and a sword under any circumstances, but has both of those things and a lack of self-preservation instincts to make everything worse.

Renn Atrius

About: A foreign noble from beyond the royal lands, he was forced into the lifestyle of a thief from a young age, after being orphaned when his father, a Vampyr, was murdered for refusing to obey their neighboring kingdom's crown. Learning the art of disappearing into the night and taking valuables from the land that took everything from him and colonized his nation, Renn quickly became quite the nuisance for the King. But thankfully to his connection to raw blood magic, his slight vampiric abilities ensure no human soldier ever proves a real threat to him. He starts to fall in love with Roselyn, having become friends with her after trying to steal her coin purse (having mistaken her for a tourist from the capital).

Bad Summarization: Goth dhampyr way too reckless for his own good chooses to be a menace to the System while also refusing to deal with his very much unresolved childhood trauma.

Cadenza Narellie

About: A young faery noble, Cadenza is the only child of a once-powerful, now defamed, High House. After rumors about her father's supposed alliance with their nation's enemies, the human royals from the neighboring kingdom, their reputation came crashing down, and so did the bond they once shared, as her father grew mysteriously distant from her. Realizing something is seriously amiss, Cadenza takes it upon herself to investigate and find out the truth about what is truly happening, even if it gets her accused of treason herself.

Bad Summarization: Local faery with way too much time on her hands and no friends decides to dive into a conspiracy and is surprised when that decision has consequences.

Tagging (gently): @sleepy-night-child, @kaylinalexanderbooks, @smol-feralgremlin, @oh-no-another-idea, @littleladymab,

@winterandwords, @cowboybrunch, @eccaiia, @sarahlizziewrites, @illarian-rambling

@agirlandherquill, @anoelleart

@leave-her-a-tome, @writernopal, @anyablackwood, @unstablewifiaccess, @forthesanityofstorytellers

@i-can-even-burn-salad, @cakeinthevoid

@lassiesandiego, @thepeculiarbird, @clairelsonao3, @memento-morri-writes, @starlit-hopes-and-dreams and OPEN TAG

[buglaur]

The BOLD THE FACTS tag by @helenofsimblr

The Rules are simple! Tag people and name a character you want to know more about! If you want to let the person you tagged decide who to showcase, then don’t name a character and they can pick somebody. Easy! The person who is tagged will then bold the remarks below which apply to their character &, if they want to, include a picture with their reply!

thank you so muchh @rebouks @duusheen and @estah for tagging meee 💞💞 i'm gonna do it three times lol

Roxana MacMahon

[ PERSONAL]

$ Financial: wealthy (dad's money) / moderate / poor / in poverty ✚ Medical: fit / moderate / sickly / disabled / disadvantaged / non applicable ✪ Class or Caste: upper / middle / working / unsure / other ✔ Education: qualified / unqualified / studying / other (college dropout) ✖ Criminal Record: yes, for major crimes / yes, for minor crimes / no / has committed crimes, but not caught yet / yes, but charges were dismissed

[ FAMILY]

◒ Children: has 1 child (would be happy to have another in the future) / has no children / wants children ◑ Relationship with Family: close with sibling / not close with sibling(s) / has no siblings / sibling(s) is deceased ◔ Affiliation: orphaned / adopted / disowned / raised by birth parent / not applicable

[ TRAITS + TENDENCIES]

♦ extroverted / introverted / in between ♦ disorganized / organized / in between ♦ close minded / open-minded / in between ♦ calm / anxious / in between ♦ disagreeable / agreeable / in between ♦ cautious / reckless / in between ♦ patient / impatient / in between ♦ outspoken / reserved / in between ♦ leader / follower / in between ♦ empathetic / vicious bastard / in between ♦ optimistic / pessimistic / in between ♦ traditional / modern / in between ♦ hard-working / lazy / in between ♦ cultured / uncultured / in between / unknown ♦ loyal / disloyal / unknown ♦ faithful / unfaithful / unknown

[ BELIEFS]

★ Faith: monotheist / polytheist / atheist / agnostic ☆ Belief in Ghosts or Spirits: yes (is cyberbullied by late grandpa) / no / don’t know / don’t care ✮ Belief in an Afterlife: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care ✯ Belief in Reincarnation: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care ❃ Belief in Aliens: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care ✧ Religious: orthodox / liberal / in between / not religious ❀ Philosophical: yes / no

[ SEXUALITY & ROMANTIC INCLINATION ]

❤ Sexuality: heterosexual / homosexual / bisexual / asexual / pansexual ❥ Sex: sex repulsed / sex neutral / sex favorable / naive and clueless ♥ Romance: romance repulsed / romance neutral / romance favorable /naive and clueless / romance suspicious ❣ Sexually: adventurous / experienced / naive / inexperienced / curious ⚧ Potential Sexual Partners: male / female / agender / other / none / all ⚧ Potential Romantic Partners: male / female / agender / other / none / all

[ ABILITIES ]

☠ Combat Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none ≡ Literacy Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none ✍ Artistic Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none ✂ Technical Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

[ HABITS ]

☕ Drinking Alcohol: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / Alcoholic ☁ Smoking: tried it / trying to quit / quit / never / rarely / sometimes / frequently / Chain-smoker ✿ Recreational Drugs: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / addict ✌ Medicinal Drugs: never / no longer needs medication / some medication needed / frequently / to excess ☻ Unhealthy Food: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / binge eater $ Splurge Spending: never / sometimes / frequently / shopaholic ♣ Gambling: never / rarely / sometimes / frequently / compulsive gambler

Virgil Burdick

[ PERSONAL]

$ Financial: wealthy / moderate / poor / in poverty ✚ Medical: fit / moderate / sickly / disabled / disadvantaged / non applicable ✪ Class or Caste: upper / middle / working / unsure / other ✔ Education: qualified / unqualified / studying / other (college dropout) ✖ Criminal Record: yes, for major crimes / yes, for minor crimes / no / has committed crimes, but not caught yet / yes, but charges were dismissed

[ FAMILY]

◒ Children: has children / has no children / wants children ◑ Relationship with Family: close with sibling / not close with sibling(s) / has no siblings / sibling(s) is deceased ◔ Affiliation: orphaned / adopted / disowned / raised by birth parent / not applicable

[ TRAITS + TENDENCIES]

♦ extroverted / introverted / in between ♦ disorganized / organized / in between ♦ close minded / open-minded / in between ♦ calm / anxious / in between ♦ disagreeable / agreeable / in between ♦ cautious / reckless / in between ♦ patient / impatient / in between ♦ outspoken / reserved / in between ♦ leader / follower / in between ♦ empathetic / vicious bastard / in between ♦ optimistic / pessimistic / in between ♦ traditional / modern / in between ♦ hard-working / lazy / in between ♦ cultured / uncultured / in between / unknown ♦ loyal / disloyal / unknown ♦ faithful / unfaithful / unknown

[ BELIEFS]

★ Faith: monotheist / polytheist / atheist / agnostic ☆ Belief in Ghosts or Spirits: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care ✮ Belief in an Afterlife: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care ✯ Belief in Reincarnation: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care ❃ Belief in Aliens: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care ✧ Religious: orthodox / liberal / in between / not religious ❀ Philosophical: yes / no

[ SEXUALITY & ROMANTIC INCLINATION ]

❤ Sexuality: heterosexual / homosexual / bisexual / asexual / pansexual / ??? (he doesn't know) ❥ Sex: sex repulsed / sex neutral / sex favorable / naive and clueless ♥ Romance: romance repulsed / romance neutral / romance favorable /naive and clueless / romance suspicious ❣ Sexually: adventurous / experienced / naive / inexperienced / curious ⚧ Potential Sexual Partners: male / female / agender / other / none / all ⚧ Potential Romantic Partners: male / female / agender / other / none / all

[ ABILITIES ]

☠ Combat Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none ≡ Literacy Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none ✍ Artistic Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none ✂ Technical Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

[ HABITS ]

☕ Drinking Alcohol: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / Alcoholic ☁ Smoking: tried it (wasn't a fan) / trying to quit / quit / never / rarely / sometimes / frequently / Chain-smoker ✿ Recreational Drugs: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / addict ✌ Medicinal Drugs: never / no longer needs medication / some medication needed / frequently / to excess ☻ Unhealthy Food: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / binge eater $ Splurge Spending: never / sometimes / frequently / shopaholic ♣ Gambling: never / rarely / sometimes / frequently / compulsive gambler

Daithí Murray

[ PERSONAL]

$ Financial: wealthy / moderate / poor / in poverty ✚ Medical: fit / moderate / sickly / disabled / disadvantaged / non applicable ✪ Class or Caste: upper / middle / working / unsure / other ✔ Education: qualified (has a business degree) / unqualified / studying / other (college dropout) ✖ Criminal Record: yes, for major crimes / yes, for minor crimes / no / has committed crimes, but not caught yet / yes, but charges were dismissed

[ FAMILY]

◒ Children: has 1 child (doesn't want another) / has no children / wants children ◑ Relationship with Family: close with sibling(s) / not close with sibling(s) / has no siblings / sibling(s) is deceased ◔ Affiliation: orphaned / adopted / disowned / raised by birth parent / not applicable

[ TRAITS + TENDENCIES]

♦ extroverted / introverted / in between ♦ disorganized / organized / in between ♦ close minded / open-minded / in between ♦ calm / anxious / in between ♦ disagreeable / agreeable / in between ♦ cautious / reckless / in between ♦ patient / impatient / in between ♦ outspoken / reserved / in between ♦ leader / follower / in between ♦ empathetic / vicious bastard / in between ♦ optimistic / pessimistic / in between ♦ traditional / modern / in between ♦ hard-working / lazy / in between ♦ cultured / uncultured / in between / unknown ♦ loyal / disloyal / unknown ♦ faithful / unfaithful / unknown

[ BELIEFS]

★ Faith: monotheist / polytheist / atheist / agnostic ☆ Belief in Ghosts or Spirits: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care ✮ Belief in an Afterlife: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care ✯ Belief in Reincarnation: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care ❃ Belief in Aliens: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care ✧ Religious: orthodox / liberal / in between / not religious ❀ Philosophical: yes / no

[ SEXUALITY & ROMANTIC INCLINATION ]

❤ Sexuality: heterosexual / homosexual (realised this in his 30s) / bisexual / asexual / pansexual ❥ Sex: sex repulsed / sex neutral / sex favorable / naive and clueless ♥ Romance: romance repulsed / romance neutral / romance favorable / naive and clueless / romance suspicious ❣ Sexually: adventurous / experienced / naive / inexperienced / curious ⚧ Potential Sexual Partners: male / female / agender / other / none / all ⚧ Potential Romantic Partners: male / female / agender / other / none / all

[ ABILITIES ]

☠ Combat Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none ≡ Literacy Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none ✍ Artistic Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none ✂ Technical Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

[ HABITS ]

☕ Drinking Alcohol: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / Alcoholic ☁ Smoking: tried it / ""trying to quit"" / quit / never / rarely / sometimes / frequently / Chain-smoker ✿ Recreational Drugs: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / addict ✌ Medicinal Drugs: never / no longer needs medication / some medication needed / frequently / to excess ☻ Unhealthy Food: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / binge eater $ Splurge Spending: never / sometimes (never for himself though) / frequently / shopaholic ♣ Gambling: never / rarely / sometimes / frequently / compulsive gambler

sorry if i missed one i'm tired. thank you if you read all that <3<3 i haven't been around so idk who did this or who didn't so if you read all this i tag you!!! and you better do it 🫵

[sickofthistoxicshit]

I gotta say this fandom is starting to feel like my family gatherings,

Every time I bring a new dude to some event, they have already endgamed us and invisioned our future kids together.

Very funny in my eyes.

Tommy has just arrived, and though he is cute and funny and sexy, and tbh if I were a gay man, I'd climb him like a tree and refuse to come down.

But Buck literally just called himself an ally (sorry, still bursting out laughing every time I write it) Tommy is not in endgame position yet, he's just a get to know thy self to Buck at the moment.

Do I wish for them to have some hot ally sex? Absolutely!

Would I consider them endgame, I'm not optimistic.

I don't know if it will buddie or not, but as I've witnessed with some of my gay friends when they were newly minted out of the closet experience. The first venture into the unknown rarely becomes domestic bliss.

They all switched dozens (being gentle, lol) boyfriends before settling on the right partner. And they didn't have a nearly ten year Eddie in that corner closet. 👀

So Lou is great and all and I hope we keep him. But he feels like Lucy's Chris from The Rookie before she got together with Bradford.

(Sidenote, I loved Chris! He was so right for her. And I actually shipped Chenford, lol. It was bittersweet for me😅)

[idontplaytrack]

MY CHARMED ONE [10]

Capri Donahue x fem! reader

Warnings: coarse language

In which Capri and reader’s trip to San Francisco leads to a discovery (not) Final part!

‘My Charmed One’ masterlist here

“Capri, you’re our sister.”

“What is this? Some kind of sick joke? I don’t have siblings?”

“We can prove it.”

“Okay.” Capri nodded, her arms crossed, “So, prove it, Paige.”

“Your Mom’s name is Paulina. Your Dad’s name is Anthony.”

“Are you in on this?” Capri looked at you almost accusingly.

“Capri, why the fuck do you think that? You suggested that we came to San Francisco. I didn’t bring it up.” You retorted.

“Maybe we should all take some deep breaths and calm down.” The oldest Halliwell stood between you and Capri.

“Halliwell is your Mom’s maiden name.” Phoebe spoke up, reentering the living room with a thick photo album. “Look- there she is.”

“I can’t believe this. Of all people, we ran into you?”

“No, actually…we ran into you.”

“Fuck’s sake.” Capri grumbled, “What the hell is going on?”

“Capri, we’re witches.”

“We?”

“Do something.” Paige shrugs.

“Do what?”

“Anything. You have powers, right?”

Oh, shit.

You looked at a guy who introduced himself to be Leo. He only shrugged.

“Yeah.” Capri nodded, looking at the sisters, freaked out and confused. Then she flings a book off the side table with a flick of her fingers.

“Telekinesis.” Leo remarked. Then all three of them showed you and Capri their powers.

“How come I have— I still don’t get how I got it.”

“Halliwells all have powers.”

“I almost died from electrocution. I figured that somehow it stuck because well, I couldn’t move on. So what, actually— so based on what you all have been saying, I can’t be with a mortal?”

"Yeah, I mean..."

"No, no wait. Piper is human- Leo is what, a dead guy. How'd that work?" You interjected.

"This literally does not make any sense, How the hell did you know where we were—"

~~~~~

"Capri, wake up!" You nudged her, seeing her being so tense in her sleep. She gasps, eyes shooting open as she sat up. "I—" She panted, hugging you, "Oh, my God. I had a fucking dream that I had powers because I was a witch! A Halliwell."

"Capri, that show is fiction." You assured, "Maybe we should watch less of that now."

"Well, somehow with Alex calling me witch all the time, I think it's starting to stick. And haunt me in my sleep."

“You’re fine.”

“I’m a freak.”

“Capri…you’re alright. Ignore Alex.”

“What am I, then? Freak of nature? I mean, same thing, right?”

“Capri, you’re alright. I don’t care that you have powers. So what if you do? It’s actually been so helpful.”

“I know, baby. It’s just…scary to me that I’m now suddenly so different from other people. Why, why me? I don’t get it— Why didn’t it go away? y/n, no one else knows that I have powers: only your family and Alex do. I’m just scared of the day I randomly have to use my powers and other people see it. Who knows what they’ll do to me? Report me to the police? Burn me at the stake? The future, y/n. What do we do if we do stay together so long that we get married and want to start a family. How’s that going to work out? Am I able to carry the baby? Will they get my freakish powers?”

You pondered over her words, tears stinging in both your eyes and hers. Capri was right. The future had become a way bigger unknown. You’ve tried to be optimistic, and so did she. But that wouldn’t make your problems go away. What was the future going to be like? For you? For Capri? Your family? Currently-hypothetical kids? How was a seemingly small yet baffling change in circumstances going to change the course of your lives? But no, you couldn’t spiral. You couldn’t. For Capri’s sake.

As much as she was saying all of this is a state of anxiety, there were very much real concerns. That you two had to work through together.

She refused to go back to sleep, and despite several suggestions, she wasn’t interested in any of them- she chose to sit in the living room. Capri exited the room so quickly that it left you dumbfounded. And definitely so damn worried that you followed after her as soon as you snapped out of it. “I’ll be fine, y/n. Just give me a minute.” She looked up and saw you looking at her, snivelling.

“Okay.” You agreed quietly, retreating to your shared bedroom and sitting down in your side of the bed. Staring out the window, your head was thrown back against the headboard. The tears were getting caught in your throat, causing an immense amount of pain as you tried to hold that in.

It’s been obstacle after obstacle: from Capri’s near-death experience to her injury— everything in between knocked the two of you down. It was beginning to seem like a losing game. You tried to stay positive, and most days it worked. Everything was as fine as it could be, but these moments? Where Capri gets so stuck in her own head about her fears, anxieties and doubts about different things. You tried to help in any way you could, but sometimes you simply couldn’t intervene and had to let her cry it out or scream— anything. It broke your heart, but recovery was never linear. Reality was harsh. Life wasn’t a dream, otherwise nothing would be going wrong.

————

When you woke up again, the sun had risen and you were no longer sitting up like you were. You were laying down. You didn’t lay back down. The last thing you remembered doing was sitting in bed and staring out the window. Squinting in confusion, you shielded your eyes from the sun while you sat up. Looking over to your side, Capri was asleep. A sigh of relief escaped your lips as you carefully got out of bed to freshen up for the day. While you brushed your teeth, you looked at Capri while she slept soundly and wondered what time she got back into bed. Hoping that it wasn’t too long after she went out to sit in the living room.

After that, you went into the kitchen. She washed the dishes you left in the sink because you cut your finger making dinner. The dried up flowers in the vase were thrown out, the cute little message sticky note on the fridge was changed too.

‘for all the things my hands have held, the best by far, is you’

You scurried to get a sticky note from the stack kept on the coffee table and a pen, writing, ‘the fact that you are trying is a proof that you are strong’

You tiptoed into the bedroom and stuck it onto the bathroom mirror for Capri. Returning to the kitchen, your gaze lands on the note on the fridge again before you pulled the door open in order to get a couple of ingredients out. You were going to make Capri here favourite breakfast— french toast and a cup of cappuccino. You went over to the pantry to make sure she still had the coffee pods before you started making the food.

You and Capri also had the house to yourselves since her parents were out of town for the weekend. And it was always nice ‘playing house’ with her for the duration of it. The best thing of all, was the privacy. But hey, that has been the last thing on your mind since she got hurt so you’ve just been taking matters into your own hands lately. But of course, she didn’t need to know that — what you were doing in your own time, in your own room. God, you hope she didn’t know. Capri could just read your mind sometimes. Maybe you had a tell, you don’t know, but eh. It wasn’t anything to be ashamed of.

You did give her questions some thought. But it didn’t seem nearly as scary after the heightened emotions died down. And, even after you were done making breakfast, she still had not woke up yet. So you decided to go into the room and take a peek. Right as you were about to leave, you hear her stir in her sleep. You turned around again on your heel, seeing her eyes open up.

“Hi.” She says with a small smile.

“Good morning.” You responded with a smile too, “Breakfast is done. I’m gonna go lay the table, and I’m gonna let you go get freshened up whenever you’re ready.”

“Okay.” She nodded, cautiously flipping the blanket off her body and stepping off the bed. You gave her a side hug and pressed a kiss to her cheek, brushing your thumb across her knuckles.

Seeing her walk out from the bedroom and coming down the stairs, you pulled out a chair for her and waited. Without a word, she sits down and so do you.

“Thanks, babe.” She says while grabbing the fork, “I really, really appreciate it. For everything you’ve done for me, done with me. Everything. Thank you for not giving up on me.”

You stretched your hand out for her to hold, “You, Capri Donahue, are my charmed one. I can’t lose you— not again and I promise you, you will never lose me. I am so beyond lucky to have you in my life the way that I do, especially now. I literally owe you my life. You saved me and it was all thanks to your power. But it was still you, you chose to save me when you could’ve watched it happen. We wouldn’t be here without you.”

She squeezes your hand, the smile on her face growing bigger. “Charmed one, huh? I am pretty lucky, aren’t I? I lived, and I have you— the most beautiful person I’ve ever laid my eyes on, to call my girlfriend. My partner for life. But I’d like to believe that even when death eventually does do us part, we’ll still be together with each other through it all. I’m yours and you are mine…no matter what universe we’re in.”

————

🏷️ Tag list:

@ashecampos @auliisflower @cheesysoup-arlo @frogs00 @reneeswif3 @ludoesartnstuffs @pda128

[spacetimewithstuartgary]

Neutrinos weigh less than 0.45 electronvolts

Neutrinos are among the most enigmatic particles in the universe. They are omnipresent yet interact extremely rarely with matter. In cosmology, they influence the formation of large-scale galaxy structures, while in particle physics, their minuscule mass serves as an indicator of previously unknown physical processes. Precisely measuring the neutrino mass is therefore essential for a complete understanding of the fundamental laws of nature.

This is precisely where the KATRIN experiment with its international partners comes into play. KATRIN utilizes the beta decay of tritium, an unstable hydrogen isotope, to assess the mass of neutrinos. The energy distribution of the electrons resulting from the decay enables a direct kinematic determination of the neutrino mass. Achieving this requires highly advanced technical components: the 70-meter-long beamline houses one an intense tritium source, as well as a high-resolution spectrometer with a diameter of 10 meters. This cutting-edge technology allows for unprecedented precision in direct neutrino mass measurements.  

With the current data from the KATRIN experiment, an upper limit of 0.45 electron volt/c2 (corresponding to 8 x 10-37 kilograms) could be derived for the neutrino mass. Compared to the last results from 2022, the upper limit could thus be reduced by almost a factor of two.

Evaluation of the Data

The quality of the first datasets has steadily improved since the start of measurements in 2019. "For this result we have analyzed five measurement campaigns, totaling approximately 250 days of data collection from 2019 to 2021 – about a quarter of the total data expected from KATRIN," explains Kathrin Valerius (KIT), one of the two co-spokespersons of the experiment. Susanne Mertens (Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics (MPIK) and Technical University Munich (TUM)) adds: "With each campaign, we have gained new insights and further optimized the experimental conditions."

The evaluation of the extremely complex data posed an enormous challenge and required the highest level of precision from the international data analysis team. “The analysis of the KATRIN data is highly demanding, as an unprecedented level of accuracy is required,” emphasizes Alexey Lokhov (KIT), Co-Analysis Coordinator. Christoph Wiesinger (TUM/MPIK), Co-Analysis Coordinator, adds: “We need to employ state-of-the-art analysis methods, with artificial intelligence playing a crucial role.”  

Outlook for Future Measurements 

The researchers look optimistically to the future: “Our measurements of the neutrino mass will continue until the end of 2025. Through the continuous improvement of the experiment and analysis, as well as a larger data set, we expect an even higher sensitivity.” – and possibly groundbreaking new discoveries," says the KATRIN team. KATRIN already leads the global field of direct neutrino mass measurements and has surpassed the results of previous experiments by a factor of four with its initial data. The latest findings indicate that neutrinos are at least a million times lighter than electrons, the lightest electrically charged elementary particles. Explaining this enormous mass difference remains a fundamental challenge for theoretical particle physics.  

In addition to the precise measurement of the neutrino mass, KATRIN is already planning the next phase. Starting in 2026, a new detector system, TRISTAN, will be installed. This upgrade to the experiment will enable the search for sterile, a hypothetical particle, which interacts even more feebly than the known neutrinos. With a mass in the keV/c² range sterile neutrinos are a potential candidate for dark matter. Additionally, KATRIN++ will launch a research and development program aimed at designing concepts for a next-generation experiment capable of achieving even more precise direct neutrino mass measurements.  

IMAGE: Interior view of the KATRIN main spectrometer (image: M. Zacher / KATRIN Coll.)

[flappydragons]

Astralithia Leonidas Basic Information

Astralithia Leonidas

Basic Information

• Name: Astralithia Leonidas

• Voice Claim: Desdemona (Fallout 4) – Voiced by Claudia Christian • Tone: Lower, commanding, yet tired/done-with-everyone

• Occupation: Jedi Master, High Council Member, Jedi General during the Clone Wars

• Species: Unknown Anthropomorphic Draconian Creature (Force Manifestation of the Stars)

• Age: 35 (Physically) | Thousands of Years (Spiritually)

• Sex: Female

• Height: 10'7"

• Wingspan: 36'

• Weight: 489 lbs

• Build: Tall, lean yet powerful, draconian structure

Facial Features: • Long, slender snout• Sharp, defined features• Silvery-white eyes• White swirling constellation tattoos across face and body• Pointed, furred ears• Six curved horns (black to white ombre)• Serrated carnivorous teeth

Body & Markings: • Black, midnight blue, dark green, dark purple, and white scales

• Four large wings with swirling icy-blue, white star, nebula, and constellation patterns

• Long finned tail with patterns matching wings

• Bioluminescent constellation-like markings on body, wings, and tail

• White intricate star marking on forehead (Force Marking)

Clothing & Accessories: • Flowing black and blue embroidered robes with gold stars and nebulas• Black leather feet/talon wraps for support• Feather ear cuff (Owl feathers) on right ear• Black metal circlet helm with ivory star carvings• Black armor (Chest, back, shoulders, forearms)• Thick leather claw covers/nail caps (for protection and control)

Personality• Quiet, reserved, and highly observant• Seldom speaks, but is assertive when necessary• Tactical, strategic, and extremely soft-spoken• Deeply empathetic, yet maintains a commanding presence

Background & History • Discovered as a mysterious dragon youngling on the steps of the Jedi Temple, around one month old • Found and adopted by Jedi Master Plo Koon, who felt an intense, calming connection to her Force presence • Raised in the Jedi Temple alongside her Crèchemates, forming strong sibling-like bonds• Became Plo Koon’s Padawan at age 11. • Successfully passed her Trials, became a Jedi Knight, then later a Jedi Master.• Earned a seat on the High Council. • During the Clone Wars, the Jedi Order discovered she was not a natural-born being, but a Force Manifestation created to guide future Jedi. • Despite this revelation, her found family continued to love and accept her.

Relationships

Adoptive Family & Jedi Companions• Plo Koon (Adoptive Father)• Sha Koon (Adoptive Younger Sister/Cousin, Crèchemate)• Lissarkh (Adoptive Younger Sister, Crèchemate)• Agen Kolar (Adoptive Brother, Crèchemate)• Bultar Swan (Adoptive Younger Sister, Crèchemate)• Voolvif Monn (Adoptive Brother, Crèchemate)• Obi-Wan Kenobi (Close Friend, Adoptive Brother)• Anakin Skywalker (Adoptive Younger Brother)• Ahsoka Tano (Adoptive Younger Sister)

Jedi Friends & Allies• Kit Fisto, Eeth Koth, Fae Koon, Mace Windu, Shaak Ti, Depa Billaba, Master Tyvokka (Mentor)• Grandmaster Yoda, Jedi High Council Members (Friends/Acquaintances)

Other Allies• Padmé Amidala (Friend)• Bail Organa (Friend)

Clone Trooper Relations• 104th Battalion (Adoptive Brothers)• 501st Battalion (Brother Figures)• 272nd Battalion (Kit Fisto’s Battalion, Adoptive Brothers)• 212th Battalion (Friends)

Clone Battalion: 419th Astra Corps ("Celestial Berserkers") • Led by Clone Commander Polaris• Astralithia’s callsign: "Alpine Star"• Consists of 789 highly trained troopers

Padawan: Lark Kawa• Species: Dragon Hybrid• Age: 15• Personality: • Curious, optimistic, and slightly mischievous• Respectful to Astralithia and her Crèchemates• Nervous around clones but makes an effort to be friendly• Appearance: • Quadrupedal/Anthropomorphic hybrid with muscular limbs• Large, powerful feathered wings (black to gray gradient)• Piercing green eyes• Feline-reptilian face with sharp features•  Curved horns and spiky hair/fur• Black and gray primary colors, white and blue-gray scale-like splatter patterns• Long tail with a feathery fan• Dark scarf & simple brown Jedi robes

Jedi & Combat Abilities

Lightsaber• Weapon: Double-bladed lightsaber (White blades, purified Kyber crystals)• Hilt: Silver with Force-engraved white markings• Forms Mastered: • Form V: Shien & Djem So (Aggressive counterattacks, strength-based combat)• Form IV: Ataru (Highly acrobatic, fast-paced style)

Force Abilities• Force Healing• Advanced Telepathy• Illusions & Mental Manipulation• Deep, unique connection to the Force

Draconian & Force Manifestation Powers• Plasma Fire Breath (Hot white and blue flames)• Enhanced Strength & Speed• Sharp Claws & Jaws (Serrated teeth and onyx black talons)• Flight (Massive wingspan, extreme aerial mobility)• Keen Senses (Heightened awareness and perception)

Hobbies & Skills• Music: Cello Player• Crafting: Embroidery, Whittling/Carving, Windchime Making, Glass Blowing, Book Binding

[freelancearsonist]

Start from the beginning.

That winning smile takes over his face again as he pushes his sunglasses up to rest on the top of his head. “Excellent. I’ll get the paperwork emailed for you to sign. What’s your email address?”

You write it down on a paper napkin for him, with your name just to make things extra official.

“Oh, yeah,” he chuckles as he runs his thumb over the ink. “Guess I got a little over-excited, forgot that part. I’m Dieter Bravo.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Bravo.”

He makes a face at that. “Just Dieter.”

“Just Dieter,” you repeat with a warm smile.

With a glance down at his phone, he stands abruptly. “Shit, I’m late! I’ll email you the paperwork!”

And just like that, he’s gone.

There’s a bit of a whirlwind feel to the entire encounter. This entire situation is completely bizarre. And yet, as the kind little woman returns from the kitchen with your hot breakfast plate in hand, you can’t help being strangely optimistic about the opportunity.

You get the paperwork later that night, just as you’re getting ready for bed. Not from Dieter himself, but an actual HR company. It’s surprisingly official; an I-9 and direct deposit forms. Everything seems up to snuff, so you sign away all your information with only a little hesitance.

It still doesn’t seem entirely real–more like something you dreamed about a couple nights ago. You go about your days searching for a new job because as fun as it was to entertain Dieter Bravo,  the logical part of your brain tells you that you’re never going to hear from him again.

You realize with sudden clarity that you’re very much legitimately employed by Dieter Bravo when you wake up on Friday morning to a $2,700 check direct-deposited into your bank account.

Monday morning, you get a text.

Unknown number: I have a job in Kansas. Shouldn’t take more than a week. Pack a bag.

Unknown number: This is Dieter BTW. 😘

Unknown number: I meant 😁

Unknown number: Eh. Both IG.

An hour later, you’re picking him up from a sizable home in Sherman Oaks.

When he said that you would have to haul equipment, he really wasn’t kidding. He’s got bags and bags and bags full of only god knows what, and they barely fit in your little car. You wonder if he actually even uses half of this stuff, but you don’t ask.

“You should get a van or something,” you huff after the last one is precariously crammed into the backseat enough that you can slam the door shut. There’s going to be an avalanche when you open that door at your destination, but that’s future you’s problem.

He looks at you for a long moment, then smirks. “I knew I made the right decision hiring you.”

Surely the idea of having a van for this much equipment isn’t that much of a novel suggestion. It’s not even the smartest idea you’ve ever had, but his compliment makes your skin prickle with pride regardless.

It’s a long trip. Twenty hours of driving time, to be exact. Dieter has packed almost his body-weight in snacks and drinks, which makes the trip even longer because he has to stop at least once an hour for a bathroom break. It’s like taking a toddler to Disney World except he’s forty-five years old and you’re not going anywhere nearly as fun as Disney.

It turns out that you can get to know someone pretty well when you have nothing to do for twenty hours but talk. He tells you all about himself–growing up in Texas with three older siblings, his short and failing career as a stage actor in his early twenties, how he got into the paranormal business and made a stupid amount of money from it–and asks for your life story in return. He knows you better than most people do by the time night falls and he decides it’s time to stop at a decent-looking motel somewhere in the middle of Utah.

Neither of you are very good at packing cars, apparently, because both of your suitcases ended up buried beneath loads of equipment. 

“I’ll go get rooms,” Dieter says after eyeing the dangerously piled bags in the backseat. You would be annoyed at him for choosing the obviously easier job, but you actually kind of like the guy after talking nonstop for ten hours. 

You like him just a little bit less when you open the door and a cascade of falling bags nearly wipes you out. 

Somehow, you manage to dig your suitcases out and shove everything back into the car with no casualties. Dieter, however, comes out of the motel office with a look that says he didn’t have as much luck.

“There’s only a single room available,” he says sheepishly, eyes not quite meeting yours. He almost looks embarrassed.

You sigh heavily, because of course you would go through all this unloading effort for nothing. “Is there another hotel nearby?”

“Not for fifty miles, she said.”

You consider offering to drive further, then hesitate for a moment. You’ve already been cramped in close quarters for ten hours, what’s one night in a hotel room together? It’s clear already that your relationship with Dieter is not a typical boss/employee relationship. You might as well just get used to unconventional situations now.

“We’ll make it work.” You grab the bags and follow him over to the room while he fiddles with the key–and then he swings the door open for you, and you nearly drop the suitcases. There’s only one bed.

“I… I thought there’d be two beds,” you respond quietly to the questioning look he gives you over the rims of his sunglasses.

“I said it was a single room.”

You’re not sure why you thought he originally meant a singular room with two beds versus one room with a single bed. Wishful thinking, you suppose.

You try not to show your nerves as you set the suitcases down on the floor by the foot of the bed. At least there’s a small loveseat against the far wall. You’ll have to fold yourself in half, but it’ll work. It’s better than being all pressed up against your new, suspiciously attractive boss in a narrowly-double bed, at the very least.

He looks at you, then back at the full bed, then back at you. Apparently, he’s just now figuring out how awkward this situation is.

“I… I guess we’re sharing?” He murmurs, running a thick-fingered hand over his patchy beard. 

Choose your card carefully.

The Devil - “Yeah, why not?”

The Hierophant - “Actually, I’ll take the loveseat.”

[jd104]

Sibling Relationships in "Walking on a Star Unknown"

Like Segawa's other games, "Walking on a Star Unknown" is heavy on themes of trauma. Despite the relatively light tone of the game, the natives of Calpucca still haven't forgotten the Starling War, and spirits still linger in Yunerium and Fort Baobab, unable to move on due to their hate, fear, and anger. Some Calpuccans are still wary of aliens, like the king himself, Giera Toph.

Some traumas, however, are present on a smaller — yet no less significant — scale, such as the death of a parent. (Now that I think about it, where are all the parents in this game??) In this meta, I will examine the parallels between three sibling relationships, the way Segawa integrates trauma into them as a theme, and how the relationships present by the end of the game.

Spoilers ahead!

Eddie and Fukuro

First up, our main characters. Right off the bat, we can see that the two of them have a very healthy relationship: They address each other with terms of affection, complement each other's abilities and weaknesses, and have each other's backs no matter what. They're nearly inseparable throughout the main game, and in the bonus room, if you ask Eddie as Twelam whether he's lonely without Fukuro, he readily admits that, "to be honest," he is. The two even sleep and bathe together, which Twelam is shocked by.

The Owul siblings rarely get mad at each other, except for when Eddie apparently takes food from Fukuro. Overall, they exhibit secure attachment to their late mother (in whose memory they're travelling the cosmos) and each other. Attachment styles describe patterns of how a person interacts with their relationships, beginning in childhood and extending into adulthood; as adults, individuals with secure attachment:

Have trusting, lasting relationships

Tend to have good self-esteem

Share feelings with partners and friends

Seek out social support

(VeryWellMind)

Given the sheer amount of friends they make on Calpucca, their trust in one another, and their deep love for their mother, we can see that Eddie and Fukuro fulfil points 1 and 4. They rarely ever show self-doubt or low self-esteem and are always up for the challenge, demonstrating point 2. And the Owul siblings pretty freely express themselves to others even with Fukuro's naturally reserved nature, demonstrating point 3. The Owul siblings are a really healthy pair of siblings, which has undoubtedly helped them prop each other up after the loss of their mother. Thanks to the immense love and care they grew up with, they are happy, healthy kids who protect each other from harm and difficulty. Even when things happen to them that are frightful or disturbing (such as the hallucinations in Yunerium or Nuage), they don't appear to remain fazed after the event. One can only imagine the methods they have of cheering each other up if the other ever feels scared or down.

Rius and Toph

By contrast, Rius and Toph, the royals of Calpucca, have a somewhat tense relationship at the beginning of the game. Part of this may be the much larger age gap between them — Rius is 27 while Toph is 13, so there's nearly a generation between them — but as we learn with each passing day, the real issue is Toph's distrust of aliens. Rius, of course, is married to one.

Rius and Toph's relationship is, in my opinion, particularly fascinating due to the role trauma plays in it. Pretty much all of the hurt lands in Toph's court, which we'll discuss later on — but also, intergenerational trauma plays a big role in why they can't see eye to eye. Rius, an independent-minded, optimistic woman who self-admittedly lives for love, forfeits her royal privileges when she marries the alien Daios after he wins the Gourmate Cooking Tournament; in her opinion, it's high time they adopt a more progressive outlook, in part because she wants Toph to accept her and Daios for who they are. Toph, on the other hand, would have been taught as the future ruler of Calpucca what aliens had done to his people and his planet during the invasion of Megalopolis, and from what I understand, xenophobia has been a recurring theme with Calpucca's rulers, not just with Toph. With this history lesson firmly established, Rius eloping with Daios must have been a confirmation of the things he had learnt. "Aliens are dangerous. One has even stolen my sister!"

At the time Rius left, Toph would have also been eight — a tender age to be abandoned by an older sibling, one he obviously looks up to. As children, we are often ill-equipped to process everything we're feeling, and we see that in Toph, too. We see that he does feel abandoned, because he keeps muttering to himself that he wishes Rius would come back to live at the castle. He asks — borderline demands — this of her whenever they meet, and she draws a firm boundary every time: "I love you, but I can't lie to you or myself about what I want." Just like how his understanding of the past prevents Toph from showing goodwill towards aliens, Toph's desire for how things were before Rius left prevents him from seeing the potential of reconnecting with her in the present. It's not until the Owul siblings lend a hand that the situation is able to change, and Toph himself remarks on the nature of the Owuls' relationship several times, unable to help being reminded of his sister.

Happily, the two are able to reconcile by the end of the game due to a family crisis (and some cats) pulling them together, and we see the surest sign of progress between them in the Bonus Room: Rius and Daios have a daughter, the result of love between a royal and an alien, and "Unca Toph" is just as concerned for her well-being and future as he would be his sister's.

Guntram and Twelam

Where Fukuro and Eddie are close siblings, and Rius and Toph would be close if not for Toph's stubbornness and unwillingness to change, Guntram and Twelam are completely dysfunctional and probably always will be. These two are my favourite, as will soon become apparent, but just so you know, I have a personal hypothesis that Segawa designed these two to be foils to the Owul siblings. After all:

Both sibling pairs have incredibly similar designs to each other. (Rius and Toph too, but the resemblance is lessened by the age difference.)

Both sibling pairs are four years apart (Eddie and Fukuro: 17 and 13; Guntram and Twelam: 32 and 28).

Both have an older brother and a younger sister.

Eddie and Fukuro's main colour is red, while Guntram and Twelam's is green (complementary colours).

Both sibling pairs have recently lost a parent (the Owuls their mother, the Hamelins their father).

Eddie and Fukuro have a stable, securely attached sibling relationship, while Guntram and Twelam... don't.

Despite their many similarities (music as a career, love of children, taste in style/fashion, the same tendency to get lost in thought, deep loneliness), there's no sense of warmth or intimacy between the Hamelins at all. Where Eddie and Fukuro are inseparable, you meet the two of them conducting their own independent investigations on Day 2 in Sirene — they even view each other as competition! Though they live in the same house, they rarely occupy the same room, and they don't intersect much in their professional careers. Eddie's and Fukuro's differences make up for where the other is weak or not as skilled; Guntram and Twelam's differences are sources of tension, with Guntram thinking Twelam is too wild and impulsive and Twelam thinking Guntram is stuffy, timid, and gloomy. To really hammer it in, they live in the always-cold northern town of Eluta, where their parents' legacy haunts them.

And yet — one gets the sense that they do care about each other, if they can't exactly show it. Guntram nags Twelam, trying to look after her in his own way. When she has complaints about Guntram, Twelam will air them, but she's not so straightforward when she's concerned for him: "Oshino misses him," she'll say. Or she'll lash out in anger, threatening to burn down everything he cares for so that he can move on.

Because there is something for the two of them to move on from, an intergenerational trauma on a smaller scale than Toph and the Starling War: their relationship with, and the death of, their parents. After his wife's death, Guntram's father became punishing to the point that Guntram abandoned his own interests and dreams out of deference; he loves, fears, and respects his father, as even at 32 he's struggling to find a direction in life he can call his own. The siblings' mother died shortly after Twelam was born, meanwhile; she grew up emotionally neglected, with her brother being the main focus of their father's tutelage and no memory of the same warmth and kindness her brother remembers of Meryl. The two are not close because they were never taught to be; Guntram was pushed and pushed to become the best musician he could, while Twelam took off in her own direction and was praised for her assertiveness.

As you get closer to the Hamelin siblings, their arcs involve little of each other at all: Instead, Guntram realises his dream of putting on a children's concert, while Twelam is finally able to grasp the piece in her family history she always felt was missing (just like the music box was missing its key). Twelam is envious of the Owuls' closeness, while Guntram thinks far more about his father than his younger sister. There's potential for the Hamelin siblings to reconnect, but they don't by the end of their stories like Rius and Toph. Probably they'll have to really work at it to get anywhere, but the game doesn't give us, the audience, that guarantee. Their problems are larger than Fukuro or Eddie are capable of mending: They're so independent of one another that it's up to them to approach the beast on their own.

Conclusion

There are three main sibling relationships present in "Walking on a Star Unknown": the Owul siblings (Fukuro and Eddie), the royals (Rius and Toph), and the Hamelins (Guntram and Twelam). Of the three, Eddie and Fukuro are the closest and the most secure, able to work in tandem to address challenges and overcome obstacles. Rius and Toph are divided by their differing perspectives on aliens, largely based on Toph's personal feelings of abandonment and distrust in the aftermath of the Starling War, but Fukuro and Eddie are the final straw in his acceptance of them (and Rius's marriage to Daios). Finally, Guntram and Twelam have the most dysfunctional sibling relationship in the game, something that stems from the vastly different treatment they received from their father: Guntram was overly controlled, while Twelam was left to follow her whims.

While all three sibling pairs have experienced sadness and hardship, Eddie and Fukuro are so supportive of one another that their mother's legacy has been turned into something that brings joy to themselves and others, not pain; Rius and Toph can't see eye to eye until Toph is made to break out of his preexisting beliefs and see the error of his ways; and Guntram and Twelam, despite coming to understand themselves better over the course of the game, have only begun laying the groundwork for the improvement of their relationship. If there's anything the game tells us, though, it's that Eddie and Fukuro's relationship has had a positive influence on the other two — they may not have fixed everything overnight, but even three days is sufficient to make changes, one that will make a difference in the others' lives forever. Really, that's a theme that runs strong in all of the character routes in Walking On A Star Unknown: There's a sense that, however brief the contact, how far away they are in the universe, or how long it will be until they see each other again, Eddie and Fukuro lit up their friends' lives just as the Langturns did their paths through Calpucca. Because of their status as aliens and their strong familial bonds, they are able to show the others that there are other ways of being, other ways of seeing. In turn, the residents of Calpucca have indelibly left a mark on the Owuls, as well.

[elvenbeard]

BOLD the FACTS

RULES: BOLD what applies to your OC I was tagged by @wraithsoutlaws @pinkyjulien @chevvy-yates and @wistereia thank you so much!! :D

▞ ▟ PERSONAL ▙ ▚

Vince's life was always a rollercoaster and will continue to be one for the foreseeable future. He went from Charter Hill's rooftops to Kabuki's back alleys, from Arasaka's Counterintel department to a landfill... and then back to the top of Night City's seedy underworld and beyond. His parents probably didn't imagine he'd use his several-thousand-eddies-a-month education to one day run the city's most infamous bar and criminal hangout... and be fucking good at the job!

Financial: wealthy / moderate / poor / in poverty

Medical: fit / moderate / sickly / disabled / disadvantaged / non-applicable

Class or Caste: upper / middle / working / unsure / other

Education: qualified / unqualified / studying / other

Criminal Record*: yes, for major crimes / yes, for minor crimes / no / has committed crimes, but not caught yet / yes, but charges were dismissed

*but nothing has come of it so far because he either makes sure the records "disappear" or no one would dare to do something about the smaller stuff

▞ ▟ FAMILY ▙ ▚

An only child of two people that should have never become parents, Vince never had the healtiest rolemodels when it comes to family and marriage.

Children: had a child or children / has no children / wants children*

Relationship with Family: close with sibling(s) / not close with sibling(s) / has no siblings / sibling(s) is deceased

Affiliation: orphaned / abandoned / adopted / disowned** / raised by birth parent(s) / not applicable

*he is actually very good with children and he never fully excluded the idea from his life, a "maybe one day" scenario... but he's smart enough to know that with his current job and situation having kids would be the worst move imaginable - mostly for the hypothetical kids

**his father died when he was 13, and he has no idea what became of his mother, but they haven't been in contact for 7+ years and counting by 2077

▞ ▟ TRAITS & TENDENCIES ▙ ▚

One thing Vince learned from a young age is that showing your true emotions and intentions will get you nowhere but into trouble. His cold, calculating, corporate mask has become his protective armor that he only drops around people he'd trust with his life, that he knows will not use his vulnerability to their advantage. None of his behavior is an act - he is the bold and self-confident bastard the world has turned him into while he always fought to never fully lose his humanity.

♦ extroverted / introverted / in-between

♦ disorganized / organized / in-between

♦ close-minded / open-minded / in-between

♦ calm / anxious / in-between / highly contextual

♦ disagreeable / agreeable / in-between

♦ cautious / reckless / in-between / highly contextual

♦ patient / impatient / in-between

♦ outspoken / reserved / in-between / highly contextual

♦ leader / follower / in-between

♦ empathetic / vicious bastard / in-between

♦ optimistic / pessimistic / in-between

♦ traditional / modern / in-between

♦ hard-working / lazy / in-between

♦ cultured / uncultured / in-between / unknown

♦ loyal / disloyal / in-between / unknown

♦ faithful / unfaithful / in-between / unknown

(a lot here is "in-between" or "highly contextual" because he's always a bit torn between what he wants to show to others and what he wants. he's a professional killing machine and netrunner, but also an adrenaline junkie that sometimes dashes headfirst into a gig without properly thinking it through)

▞ ▟ BELIEFS ▙ ▚

There are no gods, but with a universe so vast it's unlikely that there's no other life out there - just no Techno-Necromants and the likes please...

Faith: monotheist / polytheist / atheist / agnostic

Belief in Ghosts or Spirits: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care / in a manner of speaking

Belief in an Afterlife: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care / in a manner of speaking

Belief in Reincarnation: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care / in a manner of speaking

Belief in Aliens: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care

Religious: orthodox / liberal / in between / not religious

Philosophical: yes / no / highly contextual

(Not really mentioned here but it fits the category: Vince does belief in fate to a certain degree, even though it goes against his usually rather logical approach to things. There were just too many coincidences in his life - happy and unlucky alike - for him to not believe in some kind of red string leading him somewhere. And that idea of "somewhere", a goal he's led to, whatever it may be, is what kept him going through his darkest moments.)

▞ ▟ SEXUALITY & ROMANCE ▙ ▚

When he was younger, Vince really struggled with his sexuality, negatively impacted by dysphoria. Later on sex almost became some kind of mechanical stress relief that he first had to connect an emotional aspect to, but that made it even better. He crushes hard and fast, but he doesn't love easily.

Sexuality: heterosexual / homosexual / bisexual / asexual / pansexual

Sex: sex-repulsed / sex neutral / sex favorable / naive and clueless

Romance: romance repulsed / romance neutral / romance favorable / naive and clueless / romance suspicious

Sexually: adventurous / experienced / naive / inexperienced / curious

Potential Sexual Partners*: male / female / agender / other / none / all

Potential Romantic Partners*: male / female / agender / other / none / all

*Vince had exactly one girlfriend once when they were both teenagers. And both agreed that nope, the other is not what they want after a very shortlived yet eye-opening relationship xD

▞ ▟ ABILITIES ▙ ▚

Excellent schooling and his training at Arasaka paid off. Yet, while he is alright with guns, he still prefers to remain in the background and shadows.

Combat Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor/ none

Literacy Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

Artistic Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

Technical Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

▞ ▟ HABITS ▙ ▚

Smoking is disgusting, Vince tried it but cannot see the appeal. Alcohol he actually doesn't mind, but it makes him very sick very quickly due to a genetic predisposition. During his last year with Arasaka he developed a drug addiction to cope with increasing stress and a traumatic incident. While he's going through phases of being completely clean for a few months at a time, it is a continuous battle and he's relapsed here and there.

Drinking Alcohol: never / special occasions / rarely / sometimes / frequently / alcoholic / former borderline alcoholic turned sober

Smoking: tried it / trying to quit / quit / never / rarely / sometimes / frequently / chain-smoker

Recreational Drugs: tried some / never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / addict

Medicinal Drugs: never / no longer needs medication / some medication needed* / frequently / to excess

Unhealthy Food: never / special occasions / rarely / sometimes** / frequently / binge eater

Splurge Spending: never / sometimes / frequently / shopaholic***

Gambling: never / rarely / sometimes / frequently / compulsive gamble

*most of it Relic-related

**more out of convenience or if things get stressful; he doesn't really like junk food or most street food that much

***he's not completely irresponsible with his money, but fashion, tech, and cars are biiiig weaknesses and all come with a certain price tag

▞ ▟ ▉ ▙ ▚ ▞ ▟ ▉ ▙ ▚▞ ▟ ▉ ▙ ▚▞ ▟ ▉ ▙ ▚▞ ▟ ▉ ▙ ▚

Thanks for reading, I know this was a very long one, but I really love these types of tag games and cannot stop myself from writing xD

Also played around a bit with some more colorful formatting (cause I love particularly what @pinkyjulien always does for his posts in terms of formatting *__* not sure yet if I'll keep it up exactly like this, but it was a fun exercise nonetheless! :D)

I'm tagging @cherryrockpops @peaches-n-screem @imaginarycyberpunk2023 @seeker-of-truth @dani-the-goblin @rindemption @brujebutch @swearingcactus @humberg aaaaaand you if you're reading this. Completely without pressure as always ofc!

Again, thanks for reading!

[defaultfelix]

Goodbye Strangers project update

After a somewhat lengthy hiatus from actively working on Goodbye Strangers, I've been regaining my connection with the project and its fictional world, and have decided to start working on the next site update in earnest. Which means, it's time for a general update on where things stand.

At some point last year, I started on a redesign of the site's central index and story pages, with the intention of making the content more organized and accessible. Though I had a general idea in mind for how I wanted to tackle this, it was a pretty daunting task – and coupled with health concerns, as well as various life events, and my own shyness towards sharing my work – at some point, I put the redesign aside, and took a hiatus from the website.

I've been gaining confidence in myself and my work however, and want to re-approach things in a way that aligns with my current focus and abilities. So, my intention is to start with the material that most clearly lays out the structure/metaphysics of the world/project, my own relationship with the work, as well as what I see as the "core" of the narrative (so, Default and Bracey's story threads in Space Madness, as well as details that flesh out their personalities and relationship to one another). I also want to use this as an opportunity to come out of my shell in terms of sharing work that is more vulnerable/personal, and/or more kinky/sexual; so, there will be new material that relates to myself (and how Goodbye Strangers relates to my understanding of reality), as well as new content that is NC-17/X-rated.

Once this "foundation" is established, I'll continue filling in the project/narrative by character/story thread, as I gradually integrate content from both the website's current incarnation, and previous content that has not yet been converted to the new code – such as The Known Unknowns, or the missing Module 2 entries. This will also give me a chance to organize and incorporate the extensive amounts of unfinished/unreleased content, which will be added to the site as the various sections are expanded.

Because this is something that that will take place in stages, not all of the material from the old site will be initially available. As such, the current version of the site will not be taken offline until all material has been incorporated into the new structure. At present, there is no timeline for this; as I am presently managing long-term physical and mental health conditions, I don't want to hold myself to an external schedule that causes needless stress. Nevertheless, I'm feeling optimistic about the project's future, and look forward to sharing new material.

Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions, or want to get involved in the process – and above all, thank you so much for supporting my work 💙