#[ this is literally written about maurice ]

[cannibalovers]

Hannibal song of the day : song no. 5

a bit about the song:

"Breezeblocks"(released in 2012) is song by alt-J, written by Thom Sonny Green, Gwilym Sainsbury, Gus Unger-Hamilton & Joe Newman(the whole group), most likely their most popular song. It starts off mellow and quiet guitar, interchanging between build ups and drops with synthesisers and a lot of deep bass, drums and other percussion instruments till the end of the song, which ends with an arrangement of overlapping vocals, like a choir. It fits genres like indie rock, indie pop, art rock and folktronica. The song itself tells a story of two lovers, where one of them wants to leave the relationship, feeling unsafe and unfulfilled but the other is obsessive and deranged and so in love that they don't let the other leave, the desire and love being so strong that they dare to hurt their lover and themselves just to make them stay. There can be another meaning to the song when taking the music video into the account(that the group themselves said is kind of different but managed to fit the vibe), which is filmed in reverse, presenting a narrative where a man kills a woman(maybe an ex or smth) who was most likely keeping his wife hostage. Since the chain of events is presented in reverse, it looks as if the man is the abusive lover trying to kill his wife, although by the end we find out he was actually defending his wife and killed the woman that kidnapped his wife, sending a message to not judge a book by its cover - don't assume and judge until you know the full story. It also references a book "Where the Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak, talking about a young boy who misbehaved badly at home and got scolded for it. His hostile and intense emotions sent him to an imaginary jungle with creatures called "The Wild Things". In this world, he feels appreciated and powerful as the wild things make him a king, but as soon as he realises the responsibilities a king has are hard, he wants to leave and go back home, to his loving mother who took care of him and coudl depend on, but the creatures don't want him to leave, threatening cannibalism (woah i wonder why I am writing this), saying "Oh, please don’t go! We’ll eat you whole! We love you so!". The band thought of it as a very powerful image and referenced these words in the song. In the end, the boy does manage to get away, unlike the lover of this song.

yeah sorry for the long intro to the song um. i've loved this song for years I swear I could listen to it forever so.

overall the song creates such a chilling mix between aggression and affection it's just so fucking insane and well. very hannigram. I think that was expected. Tbh i feel like it's prob known to fannibals, i made a post once asking ppl for song recommendations for hannibal and this song has shown up a few times and honestly? it fits them SO. WELL. especially when you think about the whole mizumono episode. The music video reminded me of mizumono a lot... so I'll be basing this on that episode a lot...

Pardon me for the pain i'm gonna provide today<3

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Verse 1

"She may contain the urge to run away But hold her down with soggy clothes and breezeblocks"

The girl doesn't want to be in the relationship with the man anymore, maybe recognizing that he is not in a good state of mind or she just believes they're not fit for each other anymore, whichever it is, she is contemplating getting out of the relationship, which she feels trapped in, or the man feels like he's scaring her away, hence her "running away"; He doesn't like this, being way too attached for her, he can't just let her run away after the comfort she brought him and the strong emotions he developed towards her, so he decided to weigh her down (literally) by drowning her with breezeblocks. Metaphorically, Breezeblocks are blocks used for building houses and are supposed to represent foundation here, so perhaps he has been making her stay by guilt tripping her about everything that they have built together and the fact that she can't just "leave behind" the trust, support, stability and safety that they have gained from each other - the foundation of their relationship. After she wasn't giving her idea of leaving up, he decided to actually weight her down with their foundation in forms of breezeblocks. In my eyes, the soggy clothes could also have a little bit of meaning, soggy clothes being quite uncomfortable and probably clinging to her(just like he does) - perhaps they're soggy from the times he was guilt tripping her, perhaps tears were shed and her clothes getting soggy just represent the manipulation and fakeness of them, or the severity of the situation and how long it has been going on and how this has affected her (made her feel heavy at heart and uncomfortable)

I think these lyrics summarise THE monologue in Mizumono and hannigram's plans quite perfectly. Will wanting to run away (from hannibal unfortunately...) and as Hannibal realised his plan of betrayal, reacted very aggressively by literally gutting him (sogging his clothes with blood ig) and breaking down the foundation they have built, more or so with words, but also the knife he uses. At this point I have no idea if its a linoleum knife (knife used for building, houses, rugs and FOUNDATIONS OF A BUILDING.) or a kerambit or smth else but I'll stick to the linoleum here(also check out this post about his choice for the knife, it drives me fucking insane) and say that this is how Hannibal tears down the foundation they have built together. Not only does he gut him, he talks to Will about how betrayed he feels that he was planning to leave him, after letting Will see him, after building this foundation of trust and support for each other. Hannibal was there, understanding Will and offering support and stability and he saw that Will could provide it for him back, which he chose to do only to get closer to him to betray him and take away his happiness (Will...) and stable, carefully crafted life he had. Will was something very important to Hannibal, a person that changed him and made him feel love for once, and then he lied about accepting him. He can't handle losing Will so he would make him stay and tear him down, hurt him, if that's what it would take.

"Cetirizine, your fever’s gripped me again Never kisses, all you ever send are fullstops (La la la la)"

Citrizine is a medicine used for fevers, suggesting the man is so obsessed with her that she makes him ill and stressed (overheated and overwhelmed and overthinking, hence the fever) and he needs medicine. She is constantly rejecting him, rejecting his affections and never giving any to him but instead stopping him, although it can also allude to texts, her not ending them with "xx" (kisses) but with full stops, being quite cold and distant with him.

well first, for the show it can allude to how Hannibal literally gave Will a fever and the amount of aspirin Will took cuz of that if we take this literally, but that mean the roles would have to switch so, instead in my eyes I think of how bothered and overwhelmed Will probably made Hannibal feel the more interested and obsessive he got over Will. I can't imagine how many times this man probably thought of him everyday and overthought stuff (jesus seriously hes obsessed) and how ill and diseased (although alive) Hannibal probably felt (maybe diseased and ill after he knew Will's plan...); the affections the girl is rejecting from her lover could represent how distant Will was with Hannibal at first.

"Do you know where the wild things go? They go along to take your honey (La la la la)"

This is a reference from the book "Where the Wild Things Are". The band suggested that the lyrics are about jealousy, the protagonist being jealous of other people who are catching his lovers attention instead of him, maybe this is a conversation between them about this concern, telling his lover that those people are bad and will use her and leave her(take away her honey); Maybe he's trying to convince her that he would never do that - although he technically is, eating away at whatever support and love(the honey) she has to offer for him.

I feel like this presents why Hannibal decided to isolate Will in the first place, taking away everything from him (or at least how he wants Will to see it, as we know that he was just trying to make his plan come true and return some of the things Will cared about so much). He saw everything that Will had interest in (Alana, Abigail, although he kept her for Will, Margot's child etc) as a threat to his plan of having Will all to himself and so he took them away - because he believed that they were both bad for Will but also because they were not in Hannibal's best interest. Also doesn't he like kill Will's wife in season 3 idk yet dont tell me

"Break down, now weep, build up breakfast Now let’s eat, my love, my love, love, love (La la la la)"

This probably references the many fights the couple had and protagonist's method of trying to make it up to her by trying to get back into a loving, normal routine, forgetting the fights, doing things such as letting her sleep it off and making a breakfast, starting the day over - The breakfast being his love for her. This is most likely to say that acts of service for her would be his love language and he would feel loved if she accepted his services, as well as offerings(his love) he makes for her.

for Hannibal:

do i like. have to explain this one

first of all lets be real cooking and making ppl commit accidental cannibalism is his love language (even better when they are aware of it and accept it knowingly so u dont have to make them commit accidental cannibalism to feel like u're normal for enjoying it and ure not a monster and God didn't punish u by making u eat ur own sister and enjoy it and that they accept and understand u for this and are def not doing it as a manipulation tactic to get u closer to them... that's not smth Will would do to Hannibal wdym)

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Chorus

"Muscle to muscle and toe to toe The fear has gripped me, but here I go My heart sinks as I jump up Your hand grips hand as my eyes shut And I, ah-ah-ah-ah"

The chorus seems to depict the the physical fight going between the two lovers. The protagonist doesn't seem to be in his right mind as he says that even though the fear tried to stop him, he has lost control and is now hurting his loved one (or himself) - His fear of rejection making him not handle this situation well and taking the last leap of faith to "save" the relationship by physically forcing her into it. The harm can either be to himself or her, maybe threatenening suicide and her gripping his hand to stop him, or him hitting her and her trying to deflect his hand with her own.

For Hannibal, it's literally,,gutting Will. Or any physical fight or holding each other at gun point or any murder attempt they had. In mizumono, Hannibal is visibly heartbroken by Will's decisions, maybe regretting the choices hes about to take. Maybe for once he felt some fear hurting another person, the person being Will, but he pushes through it, knowing it had to be done, to show Will how he made him feel. The physical contact in this chorus could represent the hug that they shared (the most heartbreaking hug in tv history). His feelings seem to contrast with the violence in that scene so much it makes me so fucking depressed

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Verse 2

"[...}She bruises, coughs, she splutters pistol shots Hold her down with soggy clothes and breezeblocks"

The words have a violent imagery to them, maybe to show the lover fighting back and still not agreeing to stay, maybe even trying to hurt him, her words feeling like pistol shots to him, or it could represent her drowning, trying to catch a breath. If that's what is happening, then he tries to remind himself of his point and to not help her, because she will run away - it's better to hold her down and make her stay.

Will's most common weapons is a gun or his hands and words, so i guess it fits his image quite well(not to mention the amounts of time he held Hannibal at gun point lol). These clearly never seemed to have affected Hannibal (until the last supper) and he continues through with his plan of taking everything away from Will, showing what he has lost by not staying by Hannibal's side.

"She’s morphine, queen of my vaccine My love, my love, love, love (La la la la)"

The protagonist compares her to morphine, a drug used to help with pain - clearly he is very dependent on her and uses her for emotional stability and support, losing that would make him insecure and breakdown, he can't lose her after the vulnerability he shared with her. This also fits with the expression "Love is a drug", which to him, her love is clearly like a drug, he has become obsessed, needing her love all the time, addicted to her, suggesting the intensity of emotions she makes him feel and just how obsessed he is - that's why he can't let her go.

The contrast between the dark, violent and destructive comparisons he makes of her, ignoring those destructive feelings and calling her his "love" really deepens the juxtaposition between aggression and affection the song potrays and shows just how blind the protagonist is.

I feel like this fits Hannibal's feelings about Will quite well, considering how obsessed he is with him, to the point of destruction and isolating him to have him all to himself (and also the fact that my man was CRYING after putting Will in prison, missing their therapy sessions. LIKE BITCH). He really puts Will high up on a pedestal, suggesting just how important and addictive Will is to him and how dependent he has become on Will after opening up to him, maybe even feeling like Will numbs his pain and loneliness of never being accepted for who he actually was.

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Verse 3

"[...]Germolene, disinfect the scene, my love, my love, love, love But please don't go, I love you so, my lovely"

This is the aftermath of the protagonist killing his lover. He realises that he killed her, getting an anticeptic(clearly unprepared for this and panicking, using some at-home antiseptic instead of something proper) to disinfect the scene off of his DNA. The realisation quickly hits him of what he has done, making him spiral into a breakdown as he realises that his actions didn't make her stay, they made her dead forever.

Hannibal clearly doesn't disinfect the scene in mizumono, he doesn't even wear his plastic suit or use the cloth that he always uses to not leave finger prints, there was no point in hiding anything anymore, Will helped FBI see through him, although we do see him "cleansing" himself off of the events by walking in the rain and trying to "comfort" Will, telling him to "wade into the quiet of the stream". I don't think these specific lyric apply to the situation much disinfection-wise, although it can represent Hannibal's state of mind, especially after realising everything he has done and the regret that came with it(does he feel guilty tho? i have no idea but the begging and love confessions in this line def represent his obsession and love for Will which left him very heartbroken after everything that was done)

also could represent Will........ him wanting to turn back, if he could only reverse time, undo the events so Abigail lives and everyone else lives..............ouch

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Refrain

"Please don't go, please don't go I love you so, I love you so Please don't go, please don't go I love you so, I love you so Please break my heart (Hey!) Please don't go, please don't go I love you so, I love you so Please don't go, please don't go I love you so, I love you so Please break my heart[...]"

the most beautiful part of the song in my opinion tbh. The layers, the build up, the overlapping vocals, it's all just so overwhelming and emotional and vulnerable.

the protagonist spirals, realising what he has done but not wanting it to be true, he's not ready yet to let go of his lover, slowly, he's losing self control and giving into his violent desires, he threatens cannibalism if she goes away(she can't really do anything my dude...) as he frantically confessse to her that he loves her. He just loves her so much and needs her so much, the desire is so strong that he will consume her if it means that she stays right beside him(or inside him), craving that impossible closeness, it's a way to forever remain with a loved one. This whole refrain is just so incredibly contradicting and depressing and desparate its insane

now, it's no secret that Hannibal doesn't want to let Will go and even consume him. He wants him to live but at the same time he wants to taste him, devour him. To love is to consume, but to consume is to devour and transform in reusable energy. He wants him as close as possible and for Will to accept his desires and give himself up, let him be his - but clearly that's not what Will wanted (yet).

...This one is so straightfoward especially considering Hannibal that I don't even know what to say really. The song itself just says it all perfectly.

in conclusion they are fucking insane for this and breezeblocks is the ultimate hannigram (specifically mizumono) song. 11/10

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additional notes:

was so excited for this one but i actually wrote less than i thought wow but maybe thats also cuz most of the song repeats. or im tired

idk if its cuz i literally dont know how to explain cannibalism as a metaphor of love or why but. at the same time the song just describes pretty well on its own

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my playlist

hope you enjoyed and thanks for reading<3

[symphonybracket]

YouTube links: Tchaikovsky 6, Rachmaninoff 2

Comments:

Rachmaninoff 2

Makes me feel like I'm in the movie Nemo (<- very good thing)

[Image via @iidsch]

Tchaikovsky 6

Everyone bangs on about the 4th movement but it's the 3rd movement that really hits

tchaik 6 is what i would listen to if i had an hour to live

the 5/4 movement of the tchaik lives rent free in my mind and i think about it every day

It’s beyond gorgeous. The melodies soar, the orchestra swells, and you just need to lie down for a while after listening to it. It’s Romanticism at its zenith. You want to weep and sigh, and it’s impossible to listen to it without literally feeling something.

Symphony No. 6, titled “Pathétique”, was Tchaikovsky’s final symphony. It is an intensely emotional piece, and to many scholars demonstrates the emotional turmoil that characterized much of Tchaikovsky’s life. He died about a week after its premiere, a fact which leads many scholars to debate about whether the content of the piece itself reflects the possibility that he may have committed suicide. The title itself is often translated to mean “impassioned suffering”, although this was most likely a later addition by Modest and not actually part of Tchaikovsky’s vision. Given these facts, many scholars interpret this piece to be about death and suffering. However, this piece can also be seen to represent life and all its contrasting moments. This interpretation is more holistic and inclusive of all of the moments captured in this piece, and also serves to break down the common narrative of Tchaikovsky as a tragic figure.

More comments about Tchaikovsky 6 below the cut (length warning):

Scholarship surrounding Tchaikovsky’s music tends to focus heavily on the ways his confliction over his homoerotic desires appears in his writing. However, his personal letters reveal a much more balanced understanding of himself that goes beyond the common narrative. In one letter written to Modest describing a new relationship with another man, he writes: “I awoke today with a feeling of unknown happiness and with a complete absence of that emotional sobriety that used to make me repent in the morning for having gone too far the day before.” Many of the letters he wrote regarding his relationships demonstrate no shame and no anguish beyond what can be expected of a man living in a homophobic society. It is important to take this information into account when listening to a piece such as this one that has been discussed so frequently, and to understand it beyond the turmoil and strife that it is seen to represent. Like many of Tchaikovsky’s works, this symphony displays a range of human emotions. It is not only representative of tragedy and “impassioned suffering”; it is a depiction of what it is like to live. It is also interesting to note that this piece is used as a signifier of queer desire in the novel "Maurice" by E.M. Forster, a novel also notable for its radical portrayal of a queer man who gets a happy ending. Much to think about there.

The first movement begins with a lone bassoon soloist playing a plaintive minor melody, which later comes back in the strings. As the movement progresses, it grows in intensity and texture. More instruments are added, and the music becomes more frantic, building and building towards the dramatic trumpet fanfare. Throughout this piece, Tchaikovsky continues to make significant use of contrasting dynamics and melodies, reflecting the emotions he hopes to convey through the music. Dramatic, tumultuous sections are interspersed with pastoral woodwind melodies, and the angry brass fanfares give way to a quiet ending.

The second movement is reminiscent of a waltz, and uses the strings and woodwinds more than the brass to achieve its floating melodies. The dynamics ebb and flow to build tension, but this movement never reaches the same levels of anguish that the previous movement does. Tchaikovsky makes use of pizzicato in the strings to convey a lighter, more cheerful mood, and features the upper woodwinds prominently. He also repeats themes frequently, giving the audience something familiar to listen out for as the movement progresses.

The third movement begins with frantic energy in the strings and woodwinds. As more instruments join the rush of music, the underlying eight note accompaniment does not let up, continuing the vivacious beginning through the whole movement. Instruments pass the melodies between each other and engage in conversations across the orchestra. Like the first movement, the brass play a prominent role in creating dramatic climaxes in the music, as well as supporting the march-like conclusion. Conductor Myung-Whun Chung describes the deceptively dramatic ending as, “one of the greatest, most thrilling, but most empty of victories in musical history,” observing that this movement has the energetic finality of a final movement. The reversal of having the true finale be a slower movement represents a shift away from the “Beethovian model of light over darkness” common in most other symphonies of this time period.

As mentioned before, ending on a movement with a slow tempo was a significant shift away from the standard of the time. This innovation inspired many other future composers to use the same technique, most notably Mahler in his Ninth Symphony. The quiet beginning builds up towards a chaotic rush of fast runs throughout the orchestra, only to stop abruptly and continue in halting, cautious bursts of melody. The movement continues with this cycle of rushing up to a climax and backing away as the movement progresses. Tchaikovsky highlights the horns in this movement, giving them both angry, blaring notes which cut through the string melodies and the flowing, lyrical lines that are passed throughout the orchestra. As the piece ends, the instruments fall away until all that is left are steady repeated notes in the basses, bringing this lament of a movement to an understated close.

[randomnameless]

To continue the woobified view of the Elites and my comparison of them to the Black Eagles :

Same for me regarding the BE, especially because they also literally fought Edelgard's troops in WC when you choose their house, and even if you don't, they definitely still would know that Edelgard dus nasty shits in WC.

The idea that media literacy is dead is quite fitting, because the idea that even rotten persons have loved ones/that having loved ones doesn't mean you're not rotten is a known thing, yet the Eagles and elites get a pass solely because "they genuinely believe in the cause" and "they love and care for each other"

Probably Fraldarius was as devoted to Nemesis as Ingrid to Dimitri, Lamine very well may have been as sassy as Dorothea, perhaps Goneril was as brave and endearing as Caspar, or Maurice was as loyal to his clan's interests as Petra to Brigid's happiness (through a strong bond to the Empire) but like the BE, they are butchers, who relished in the destruction of everything those against them hold dear, lap dogs and rabid curs of someone they definitely know have crushed innocents and scorn the very idea of peace except under their domination.

The only meaningful difference between Edelgard-following BE and the elites is that we can know more about the BE and we are forced to dislike cutting them down even as they refuse to let northern Fódlan alone.

Honestly I need a fanfiction where the BE are called out for that bullshit.

Yep!

That's the tone deaf feeling I got from Nopes, the Deers are hunting someone bcs their leader wants her dead for no reason, but Raph only comments on how hungry he is.

Uh, sure Raph, you're not the most thoughtful character in there, but come on? Some commentary or exposition on what you're doing? Hello KT? Can we have characters be challenged or even react to the events of screen instead of wondering what's for dinner/teatime?

No??

I wouldn't say it's an issue of media litteracy being dead, but more something in the lines of people being more and more "all or nothing" nowadays, without any nuance and conflating liking a character with the idea/image that might project on you : if I like ASOIAF's Cersei, I don't think everything she does is "justified", but modern fandom, I feel like some people would categorize you as a "good" or "bad" person based on the characters you like, and it's just... not what fandom is or was supposed to be imo, I'm here to nerd and gush about favourite characters, not write litteral essays about the Geneva Convention.

Corollary is what, imo, made the Fodlan fandom hell : some people really take "criticism" against a character personally - sure the way FE16 was written invites projection, but at the end of the day, making a Berning Fire Joke is, just, making a joke about a bunch of pixels, nothing more.

Back to the BEs, they can have a sense of camaraderie and genuinely support each other... as they tear apart "people because Supreme Leader told me to" and fight side by side with Bob the Carpented who was turned into Waldi the demonic beast.

Ferdie can skewer Flayn on her father's lance because she is "a creature that has plagued humanity for ages" even if they reached a C support before shit hit the fan - and still protect Mercedes and Bernie from their abusing Fathers. Does that make him a great guy? A nuanced guy?

I think the trope is called "even evil people have loved ones" or something like that?

I don't think so, but he is no random one note villain sycophant either - now, what is the more annoying with the Fodlan games is how this dichotomy is never called upon : everything is just a giant blob or Hresvelg Grey ("morally grey" but only applied to Supreme Leader) where no one really is angry at her, and all the "sacrifices" she's making are off-screen while the characters on-screen always moan about her "ReFoRmS" and "IdEaLs" without talking about the cost bar some milquetoast "but war bad". And no one, in the game, will ever throw this hypocrisy to their face - Gallant Ferdinand will dream about the Opera as he wipes off the blood of a young woman who just wanted to return to the only home she had.

Yay.

FWIW, some mutuals and I have nothing but pure lols about Doro's line in the non-CF routes being "we killed Ferdie professor :'(" because, hey, why should I care more about Ferdie than about random loldier 55 ? Rhea? Felix? Claude? Ignatz?

Maybe the Elites were really friends and became """"nice""" persons with time, to their families and loved ones ?

Does this magically erase what they did before? Will that "good" they did erase all the "wrongs" they have previously done? Will theyr forever escape the consequences of their actions?

In a game that depicts Flamey as a terrorist for 11 chapters only to drop that plot point by the window to moan, again, about her "IdEaLs", "consequences" are maybe something you can eat as a snack, or throw in a trashcan.

So following the rules of this verse, given how Supreme Leader never receives flak for her Flamey stunts, why should the Elites receive any for what they did? Look, Maurice calls Daphnel his friend, surely he is not that bad of a man? Well yeah, he might have seduced women and planted a lot of wild oats here'n'there, but he cares about his friends!

Jeritza likes ice creams and cats! Surely it's more important to paint him as a cat lover than to deal with all the consequences of his stunt as the Death Knight, kidnapping and implied rekting young woman while he was in GM, under Flamey's orders, right?

Calling it now, after eviscerating Seteth's older brother, Goneril might have melted in front of one of Rhea's kittens, and adopted the cat asap. Surely that makes Goneril a "good" character right? And forget the entire "genocided a bunch of hippies living isolated in their village" stuff?

I don't have fanfics recs where the BEs are called hypocrites, but I confess I don't read a lot of fanfics in the FE16 fandom because of all of the aforementioned issues.

[luminary-of-the-marz]

Hello! You have been chosen.

Give me your favorite lotf ship/character hcs.

Have a good day!

-❤️anon

Omgee yay I’ve been chosen!! :33

Okay here’s a list of some of my favorite hcs I have 😽😽😽

- Ralph had a pretty decent home life pre-island, but after the events of the island his parents struggled to deal with his mental health issues and end up being pretty neglectful and irritable with him

- Jack does not have a great home life (his father is an alcoholic and both his mom and dad are quite neglectful)

- Piggy had a good home life, but his aunt didn’t really know how to deal with him being bullied

- Both Simon’s parents worked a lot so he was pretty neglected at home

- Don’t have many specific home life hcs other than those but I don’t believe any of those kids had the greatest home lives pre-island

- Jack is bisexual and at first felt like the island allowed him to feel that way without it feeling sinful

- Jack had a crush on Ralph and vaguely tried to explain it to Ralph but when met with Ralph’s silence became very self conscious of his crush and began to feel that the island didn’t actually free him from feeling sinful (Ralph just got nervous and was struggling to come up with a good response 💔)

- Since nobody had a count of how many kids were on the plane some probably died in the actual crash and another kid or two that no one kept track of died on the island at one point

- Ralph has a younger sister

- Maurice has 4 siblings (an older brother and sister and 2 younger sisters), he’s the middle child

- Feel like most the other kids were only children (other than Samneric obviously), some of the littluns maybe had older siblings

- Jack can’t really ride a bike (I have literally no reason behind this other than I think it’s funny)

- Maurice has a cat that’s mean to everyone but him and that he gave a really dumb name

- Roger has a space interest, he doesn’t really talk about it much though

- Rip Simon you would’ve loved Mitski

- I think it’d be funny if one of the twins were color blind idk which twin and what type of color blindness but it’d be funny

- Jack probably bullied Simon into choir

- Simon is artistic, he likes to doodle in the sand, craft bracelets and stuff with flowers and vines, etc

- Simon feeds stray animals

- Roger is very good at cooking and has a system to how he does it

- Jack on the other hand would make a mess of your kitchen and then set it on fire allegedly by accident

- Simon likes to play with other people’s hair

I also have a couple hcs for how some of the boys’ teeth look written down as reference for when I’m drawing so I’m just gonna drop those too

- Ralph has a pretty straight top row of teeth (just a couple small gaps here and there), but has a really crooked bottom row of teeth

- Jack has really crooked teeth and accidentally knocked out one after some time on the island

- Simon has a gap between his two front teeth and also has really crooked teeth

- Roger has pretty straight teeth but they’re really sharp, chips some of them after some time on the island

- Piggy has crooked teeth mostly in the back of his mouth

Okay that’s all!! Thank you for the ask!! :DD

[stranger-chichka]

Mike is a character who we associate with the blue color the most, right? Also, blue is kinda associated with the Upside Down and Vecna because of that blue light we see there.

Blue is the basic color of mlm pride flag. It was created in 2019. And you know what? In russian slang голубой (which is translated as “blue”) means “gay" and it originates from the '60s.

Almost every outfit Mike wears in s4 is blue.

credits to @lesbianmindflayer from your fellow subscriber who try not to miss any video analysis! <3 Also, I feel you'll be quite excited about the following thing, which is the origin and usage of that slang in relation to the gaybirdgate too.

The phrase “fly, doves, fly” used to warn gay men in russia reminded me of the moment when Dustin navigates Murray in s3. “Fly right, Bald Eagle. Fly right.”

The phrase “fly, doves, fly” used to warn gay men in russia reminded me of the moment when Dustin navigates Murray in s3. “Fly right, Bald Eagle. Fly right.”

Mike is also associated with an eagle because of the poster he had in his basement and later gave to El.

Eagle is a symbol of America. America -> Mike. I don't want to go in-depth here, because that's the whole other thing, but I'm adding the links on Nintendo and Americantendo theory, which I wrote based on @nadia-zahra 's observations and my posts about Erica ("you can't spell America without Erica") for those who're interested what is the connection. BUT the gaybirdgate is not closed yet.

Nintendo theory;

Nintendo 2.0 (Americantendo);

@doriandrifting 's post, connected to that theory.

Erica will take Murray's place in s5;

Erica is level 14 in D&D;

Erica & the spaceship;

Erica & "I Want To Break Free" easter egg;

Erica & opening the door;

Erica & Tina's Apple Jack's party (+Murray's The Bald Eagle poster analysis);

The phrase голубая мечта (translated as "blue dream") caught my attention. The expression appeared under the influence of the famous play (with a very fairy-tale-like setting -> "It looks like a fairytale") "The Blue Bird" written by Maurice Maeterlinck in 1908. The blue bird is a symbol of happiness that has been in the home all along; the children simply have not recognized and valued it.

As we already know, dreams are one of the key themes and focus in ST, especially in season 4 with “Dream a Little Dream of Me”, but let’s not forget about “Never Ending Story.”

Not only has it a line "fly a fantasy," but "dream a dream, and what you see will be." What is Mike’s blue dream? Of what is he dreaming secretly? Or better say, of who? It’s a rhetorical question for bylers. But the GA will find out too, with the help of Vecna and his mirror (aka the visions he shows to his victims of who they really are). The answer is upon a rainbow. Literally.

In the picture of Mike's room I pinned above, you can also notice a heart with a heart, cloud, rainbow and something written on it.

"Rhymes that keep our secrets will unfold behind the clouds, and there upon a rainbow is the answer to a neverending story." "Without heart, we'd all fall apart." Will's words rhyme and Mike is Will's heart.

@angelwithnightmares 's guess is it may say If you can dream it, you can do it" (Walt Disney's quote) and doesn't it connect the dots? Taking into account @madwheelerz manifestation theory and how Mike (the writer and the DM) & Will (the artist) -- the duo with huge imagination manifested the events in ST because of their dreams nightmares feels very real to me.

PLUS, I'm tagging @there-was-a-hole-here-itsgonenow and adding links to her Disney’s Figment the dragon posts here and here, because HE IS IMAGINATION. We can spot him in the Bingham house below Suzie’s window. When we hear the birds are singing outside. Behind the yellow & blue curtain.

What made me do this post may you ask? Listening to Mike's playlist. There are two songs with the word “blue.”

#12: “Can’t Shake That Feeling” by Grum

#33: “Blue Monday” by New Order

And plenty of songs about the dreams too. I counted seven of them.

#7:

#13:

#15:

#17:

#25:

#27:

#47:

[anderperrylover]

DEAD POETS SOCIETY - MODERN AU HEAD CANONS

Charlie Dalton and Knox Overstreet - The Secret Swiftie - And the most obvious

He definitely listens to Taylor Swift on a daily basis - Prolly lives and breathes the 1989 era - Now as for the question of how he expresses that? He is either that really quiet one until Knox walks in on on him screaming But Daddy I love Him - He will not let him forget it

Knox is the MOST obvious TS fan amongst the poets - Loves Lover and has cried with Todd over The Manuscript and loml and YOYOK and Back to December and All too Well (10min) - Neil has not forgiven him for that one night when Todd came into their dorm, crying about how The Black Dog is Wolfstar coded (The Poets are so into ATYD and like the Marauders lore)

Knox Overstreet is drunk and cries over Chris while listening to Laufey

Being the hopeless romantic he grabs a bottle of something and puts Laufey on loop on Spotify and cries about Chris - Charlie and Cameron in the dorm have to either stuff their ears or actually go and manually shut of Spotify to stop him from crying. Knox proceeds to cry without Laufey and mumbles the lyrics to himself until he falls asleep

Todd Anderson lives for Hozier analysis - Loves The Oh Hellos and The Crane Wives

Todd Anderson is the biggest Hozier fan (DUH). He spent much of his free time sitting down and breaking apart Unreal/Unearth with his copy of the Inferno at his side. Neil and Todd go out to stargaze and they blast The Oh Hellos and The Crane Wives on shuffle and Sufjan Stevens

Meeks has destroyed everyone while playing Monopoly and Among Us

People underestimate him too much - well the joke it on them! He has made Cameron storm off and Todd huddle in a corner during Monopoly. Monopoly Monday is not exactly a thing - but when it is everyone rallies to pin him and Charlie together (who wins occasionally due to dumb luck)

He trolled everyone while playing Among Us and is the last to die.

Pitts collects vinyl records and/or CDs

He is definitely into The Smiths and The Beatles and Queen and he loves to collect records and CDs sometimes for aesthetics - But he is in charge of bringing the playlist to the party cause he is not going to overplay any artist (Knox overplayed love ballads and got together with Todd and cried over glasses of cheap wine). Has the most unpredictable music recommendations, but never disappoints.

Cameron vibes with period dramas

Cameron loves the good period dramas, and has read Austen, Tolstoy and E.M.Forester. Wants to be loved but isn't Knoxious desperate. He loves Downton Abbey and relates too much to Thomas and Mary for obvious reasons. Had a crush on Mr. Darcy at some point but now will not shut up about Alec Scudder from Maurice. Charlie had the brilliant idea of scaring him with a massive paper cut out of Colin Firth's Darcy. What ensued was a two hour manhunt for Charlie Dalton. Cameron still has the paper cut out and the poets have grown to appreciate its presence.

Neil loves Hamilton and Les Mis

That's it - he just does - Loves Lafayette and screams the lyrics of Helpless at any given time - Tried to fancast the poets as the cast - And tries to get everyone to sing One Day More (Knox is almost always Marius and is hella dramatic - Todd and Neil make up the Enjoltaire dynamic - Cameron likes Javert)

The Poets Love the Marauders

Charlie flexes the Sirius James energy but he's such a Regulus to Knox's James, who sees Chris as the literal Lily Evans (they are the folklore love triangle change my mind) . Neil and Todd (Wolfstar in a different font). Pitts and Meeks stan GRANT CHAPMAN and Cameron lives for the Black family line drama. They've all written fanfics or literal poetry about them.

Keating refuses to own a kindle

He loves physical copies of books too much - Cannot fathom the idea of owning a kindle

Charlie loves 80s coming of age films

It's his whole jazz - LOVES FERRIS BUELLER and can and will quote The Monologues in The Breakfast Club. Cried over Stand By Me, and has not recovered.

Neil and Pitts and Meeks love Fullmetal Alchemist

It was Christmas when they read volume 4 and none of them have physically recovered from it - IF YOU KNOW YOU KNOW - Todd and Charlie had to make hot chocolate and listen to their ramblings and deal with Knox at the same time (who was crying over Chris yet again)

Chris and Ginny and Todd and Pitts and Charlie are in a band together

Knox wants frontline tickets, and Charlie has the time of his life selling the those tickets to literally everyone else. Todd doesn't sing and refuses to and is the lead songwriter - Ginny is the lead drummer and Pitts plays the keys. Chris is the lead singer and Charlie plays the sax and some random instruments on the side. Neil is the supportive boyfriend and Meeks buys them drinks after, and Knox drinks and pours his heart out to Todd.

Their Hogwarts house results

The Gryffindors - Neil and Todd

The Borderline Slytherin + Gryffindor - Charlie

Nowhere man - Knox Overstreet

Ravenclaw - Meeks

The one true Hufflepuss - Pitts

The mish mash one - Richard Cameron

I had fun with this one

[divinesymmetry]

Pride Month list part 2: book edition

I read a lot (and I mean a lot) of queer books, especially during my YA phase ages 15-17, but here are a few that have particularly stood out to me, and why you should read them:

Maurice by E.M. Forster (published posthumously in 1971): everything you'd want from an early 20th century romance, except it's gay, and arguably the best piece of 20th century queer literature

On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong (2019): absolutely heartwrenching, will have you gasping for air in between sobs, and it's written by a poet so you KNOW the prose is amazing

Young Mungo by Douglas Stuart (2022): set in 1990s Glasgow, will absolutely rip your heart out and tear it to shreds

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo (2021): 1950s lesbian coming of age during the red scare, need I say more?

Don't Cry for Me by Daniel Black (2022): written in the form of letters, from a Black father to his gay son

Swimming in the Dark by Tomasz Jedrowski (2020): for some reason, no one seems to have read this, and they absolutely should have. will, once again, leave you in sobs (I am beginning to suspect I might cry easily)

My Government Means to Kill Me by Rasheed Newson (2022): another underhyped one, about race and sexuality during the AIDS crisis

Un Garçon d'Italie by Philippe Besson (2003): one of the narrators is literally a rotting corpse, that should be intriguing enough

A Single Man by Christopher Isherwood (1964), Confusion by Stefan Zweig (1927), Rubyfruit Jungle by Rita Mae Brown (1973) and Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin (1956) because, if you're like me, you're desparate to find queer literature from before the 1990s

Angels in America by Tony Kushner (1993), much quicker to read than to watch though, unfortunately, you do not have Andrew Garfield as Prior Walter in the written version

Ace of Spades by Faridah Abiké-Iyimidé (2021) starts with a quote from Get Out and that tells you everything you need to know

Ziggy, Stardust and Me by James Brandon (2019) is surprisingly rich for YA, exploring homosexuality in the 1970s, conversion therapy and Native American identity

Crush by Richard Siken (2005) if you're more into poetry, particularly the kind that will bring you physical and emotional pain

Dykes to Watch Out For by Alison Bechdel (1986) because you can't not read Alison Bechdel

The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun (2021), The Feeling of Falling in Love by Mason Deaver (2022), and She Drives Me Crazy by Kelly Quindlen (2021) are the perfect romcoms if you want to switch your brain off for a few hours (or emotionally recover from half of the other books on this list)

For the similar list I made about movies, click here

Happy Pride!🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈

[skylermadness]

Crystalline Conversion (Vandham TF/MC)

(Original Date of Upload: July 29, 2022)

Original Description:

Another story written based on a suggestion from my friend Nat! With today being the official release day of Xenoblade Chronicles 3, I wanted to write something to celebrate such an occasion. Especially in part because the Xenoblade series has been a favorite game series of mine for a little over half a year now. Picking a character to write TF for also wasn't that difficult. Vandham is probably my favorite character out of the entirety of the three games I have played so far (1, 2, and X), and that coupled with how much I liked this idea made writing a Vandham TF inevitable. Plus I feel like having the first written work of him have an intense, heavily descriptive story feels worthwhile for a guy like him. He's just a lovely character overall and I wish we could have gotten more of him. Cheers to Xenoblade Chronicles 3, and here's hoping Guernica has a better fate! This story is rated Mature for heavy mentions of a bulge.

   Inventory duty has never been Maurice's expertise, which is a little weird since he's owned this store for literal months now. But having to deal with making sure everything is still in place, which is hard when your store has no organization system. Coupled with the fact this store replaces the objects he sells almost instantly makes trying to handle this specific duty rather lengthy. Then there's adding in that he has zero idea where most of this comes from, usually having left that part of the job to the store's co-owner, it all gives him a feeling of literally knowing nothing about what he's managing.

   Nonetheless, it's still a part of his job, meaning he has to take time out of his week to assess store stock.

   The hirsute bear of a man walks out from in between two shelf rows, cracking his back as he grumbles about the annoyance of looking around the lower shelves. He then pulls up his notebook and a pen, proceeding to slowly check off various names (many of which already had checks beside them) while listing things off to himself.

   "A'ready tied scarf, Delbin; Police badge, the'ret'cally Chief Bogo; Small du'l swords, unknown owner, should probbly have Two check that out…"

   He continues to stand there muttering to himself while verifying object placement and registration. It was all the same as last week, and the week before, and the week before… With his last sale only occurring a small while ago (a month, not like he starts counting days now), this part of the job is just slowly getting more monotonous. Perhaps he should consider rebranding to a cosplay shop-

   Still talking to himself and writing, Maurice starts to walk between another row of shelves. He takes a couple uncaring steps forward, his focus not really on where he was going and what his feet were touching. However his focus is quickly broken once he feels his boot collide with something, followed by the sound of said something rolling across the floor. Lifting his head from the notebook, a brow raised in question, he closed the object and stared down at the ground.

   "The hell 's this…"

   It wasn't hard to find what his foot collided with. Mainly due to the dim, lifeless grey color of the item being a lot different than the deep brown of the wooden floors. But the item itself was a rather peculiar looking one…

   Maurice stepped over to it and bent down to pick it up. It was obviously a rock or crystal of some kind, and a rather large one since it was the size of his hand. It was cleanly cut too since it was almost entirely smooth save for a few crevices, but those were obviously in there for design. The way it was cut was also fairly complex for something it's size; twelve facets, four pentagonal-shaped ones coming to an upward vertex with four also coming to a downward vertex. The sides didn't come to pointed vertices, those being replaced with diamond-shaped facets instead. 

   His gaze wandered around the shelves, the shopkeeper wondering if this had fallen off either of them. But all the shelves seemed to be filled with the usual objects. He then momentarily disregarded the crystal and placed it on the edge of one of the shelf rows. He moved his focus back to his notebook as he started to run through it again, quicker this time as he was looking for if the object was logged.

   "Row four, row four, row four…" he was whispering to himself in an almost panicked state. "Ah! Row four, now les see here…"

   His eyes scanned the list of assorted objects, trying to find any mention of 'strange crystal' anywhere, but it was quickly turning out to be fruitless as this row seemed to lack any objects such as that. Not unless he missed it in previous inventories, but that seemed… like a slim possibility actually. But that's beside the point. 

   Closing the notebook, sighing in disappointment as he does so, he picks up the crystal again and stares at it curiously. Turning it around in his hand, feeling out the facets and poking the points. "Pecular bugger, ain't'cha…"

   It didn't even respond to that, which… interested him, to say the least.

   Owning a magic object store tends to come with learning many things. For Maurice, one of these things was magic detection and object call/response. A lot of times objects would respond to comments towards them by dimly glowing, or sparkling or something. This doesn't always occur though, as Maurice has recently found less savory and more accursed and vile objects (objects that shouldn't be sold typically) tend not to respond.

   But then comes detecting magic. Having been working here for some time, Maurice is usually able to tell the magical aura of something just by staring at it. Wizard intuitions and stuff. And everything in this store has a magic aura.

   Everything but the crystal he was holding.

   He continues to gawk at the lifeless object, trying to determine if his growing concerns were correct. "C'mon ya' weird thing, glow 'r somethin'." 

   But all the rock did was stay dark.

   "Mmmm, maybe this shop can summ'n dead 'r useless objecs."

   He was half expecting the crystal to react to being called useless, but it didn't. He didn't really want to think of it as useless, but considering the way it was (or well, wasn't) functioning, it was far from something he was able to feel comfortable selling. 

   Lowering the hand holding the crystal, he had to think of something to do. On one hand, potent magic could activate it, but he has no idea what this is or what that would do. That was the same reason he couldn't stick it in the so-called Shame Closet with all the vile relics either. He could maybe brew something up that'd completely disintegrate the thing…

   …Or he could just throw it out.

   There was some risk to it, but his reasoning hinged on the fact that this thing had no magic within it whatsoever. Even something dormant contains trace magic. So it would be a pretty fine resolution.

   Leaving the shelves and heading to the front of his store, he disregards his notebook on the counter and heads outside, crystal still in hand.

   The outside proves itself to be cold the moment he steps out, not really being the weather to just be wearing a polo shirt and ripped jeans. Nonetheless, he heads to the alleyway that parts the end of his store with that of another.

   Besides a few stray puddles, the alleyway was a pretty clean one. Likely because the small family-owned restaurant that neighbored him didn't want rats or something. Although it seemed the dumpster that laid beside the wall of said restaurant was left open. A perfect opportunity to chuck the crystal in it and forget about this!

   A silly thought did cross Maurice's mind though. Lifting his arm up and pulling it back, he had decided he would just throw it in there! 

   "God, what'm I thinkin'..."

   Well, he's already committed to it.

   "Grruhh-!" He growls out as he hurls the object.

   It ends up hitting the side of the dumpster, pretty loudly, and clattering on the ground. And Maurice could've sworn he heard a cat run further into the alley at the sound of the incident.

   "Aw heck. Nev'r been the mos' athletic," he says, slightly dejected. He shrugs it off though, deciding to leave the crystal on the ground and walk back to the store.

   What's the worst that could happen with an impotent object like that anyway?

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

   Even with a hoodie on, Nat found it to be pretty cold out here. The occasional gusts of wind did not help with that whatsoever.

   He was hoping taking a detour through the city's shopping district was going to end up shortening his walk home. It was somewhat working, but it was still somewhat tiresome since the block he was on still happened to be the largest block of the entire district. It did come with being mildly quiet though, not many people being around and all.

   He was roughly halfway down the block when his olfactory senses were assaulted by the smell of food, definitely thanks to the restaurant he was passing by. It was definitely doing its job at making him start feeling a little hungry, but not enough to really stop his walk home. 

   But once he passed by the restaurant, he found himself stopping. He had noticed a lengthy alleyway, but judging by what the other side looked like it looked to be a good place to try and cut his time through the block. Plus, thanks to the buildings in the way, he won't have to worry about the worsening cold that the wind doles out.

   Nat sauntered into the alley, relieved that it was less cold than the outer block seemed to be. The smell here was a little worse for wear though, likely due to the open dumpster that he was beginning to approach. He attempted to step aside from it, but his foot ended up snagging onto something that was just barely wedged beneath the dumpster.

   "SHIT-" was all he could yell out in reaction as he tripped over the object and fell onto the ground.

   Hands already sore from preventing him from face planting, he groaned as he steadily got up. While relieved that he didn't fall into the dangerously close puddle that was just a few centimeters from where he was, he was also curious as to what his foot caught onto.

   Curiosity turned to surprise once he turned around and looked at what was beneath the corner of the dumpster.

   Well, beneath isn't correct. It was too large to fit under it, but it was close enough to the dumpster that it could be a hazard. But what was most interesting about it was… everything, actually.

   Picking it up, Nat found that whatever this object was seemed to be a rock. Blackish grey in color, fairly large in his hand, extremely well cut, and being almost smooth on all facets. In all honesty it looked more like an extremely expensive gemstone, considering its size and cut.

   "Woah, you're pretty cool looking…" 

   While not sure what type of rock it was, it definitely looked to be a pretty neat object. He did wonder why it was so close to a dumpster, and if someone was just trying to throw it away, but why would anyone want to discard such a nice (and again, expensive looking) crystal like this?

   A thought then crossed his mind. "This would look great in my rock collection."

   Perhaps its size and look would be a little out of place, but it was hard to deny how awesome the prospect of having this thing in his collection would be. 

   He attempted to shove it into the pocket of his hoodie, having some trouble fitting the rather large thing in there, but he was able to force it in there after a few seconds. It's rather large size was kind of proven by the fact that one of the facets' shapes could be seen pushing into the pocket's fabric. Plus there was the new weight added thanks to it, but it wasn't all that heavy.

   Satisfied, Nat starts his walk back up again; excited to add this crystal to his collection once he gets home.

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

   Click!

   Light switch flicking on, the living room brightens as Nat fully enters it. He lets out a long, calm exhale, glad to finally be home. He takes a moment to consider what he wants to make for dinner, but his mind quickly segways once he remembers the rock he found. He was rather curious at how it'd compare to the rest of his collection.

   With his collection being in his bedroom, Nat forgos going to the kitchen and decides to head upstairs to his bedroom.

   Once there, he pulled the box containing his rock collection off from the one shelf he had in the room and placed the box down on his bed. Opening it revealed a menagerie of stones of assorted sizes, types, colorations, all collected over the course of multiple years.

   But as he starts to look down at his hoodie, he sees that something is… glowing in there. Well, not just something. It was obviously the rock…

   "What…?"

   He plunges his hand into his pocket and grasps onto the rock, the cold glassy stone now feeling warm to the touch. It takes another few moments to wrestle the thing out of the pocket, but once he does he starts to inspect it.

   The crystal is now a soft blue color, glowing warmly while releasing a soft humming noise. 

   He decided to cup it with both hands in order to hold it easier, continuously staring down at it in a worried curiosity.

   "What kind of rock are you…" he whispers. 

   As if it were reacting to his question the crystal releases two flashes of light while starting to hover for just a second, which ends up startling Nat into dropping it. 

   "What the hell-"

   Interrupted, the crystal tumbles to the ground and Nat takes a few steps back while blinking his eyes, having been momentarily blinded by the mysterious object. Once he was able to see again, he readjusted his glasses and looked down at the crystal in worry.

   Everything was getting increasingly complicated to grasp- "Did… did it just…"

   He wasn't able to finish his sentence, being cut off by another blast of intense, shining light that was practically spilling out of the crystal itself. Nat was quickly enveloped by the light, warmth filling his body momentarily as he started to feel something within him alter- like there was something more to this warmth than he was aware of.

   "Wh-what…"

   He barely had time to properly react, the man starting to feel an intense pressure wrack his entire body, with his back being the area experiencing the most of it.

   "NNNGHRH-"

   Breathing intensifying, he could feel his entire form begin to pulsate. The pressure that had rapidly built up within it squeezed at his bones, practically tugging at them as his body was being forced to lengthen and grow taller. His spine was quick to decompress, his legs working alongside it as they stretched out more. His arms were getting longer too to fit the new proportions. 

   Despite all of this he was only gaining a few inches of height, going from 5’7 to 6 feet in seconds. This merely resulted in his hoodie becoming a size smaller with the bottom reaching his waist while the sleeves revealed some wrist. Beneath it, his t-shirt began to show just a hint of stomach. The same applied to his pants, the legs inching a little further from his ankles as his changes steadily built up within him. 

   All while his body lengthened, it was at the same time beginning to gain bulk. Intense heat coursed throughout his entire form, a feeling almost akin to a heavy workout settling in his muscles. At the same time came an odd bubbling sensation in his torso and gut, which was steadily shifting into bloating. 

   "Hhhhoh… what's… happening…" he spoke out in between breaths. His breathing was quickening, and he could feel his heart beating up against his already pulsing chest. It was hard to focus on everything though, everything was constantly burning in him and it was overwhelming.

   Muscles continuously ached; pulsating, enlarging, and slowly filling out his t-shirt while at the same time starting to make its way to tightening the man's hoodie.

   The muscle growth was more exemplified in his arms. Pulsations we're coursing through the limbs, his hands constantly shifting size but always ending up larger than they once were. They constantly were packing on more meat, a heavy thickness filling them out while causing his fingers to enlarge and lengthen into thick sausages in comparison to what they were before. Then there were his palms, slowly hardening with a callous as each hand continued to stretch.

   Happening concurrently was the changes in his arms. He was still in a constant sensation of burning. His arms begin to bulge, clear definition settling within them. The hoodie rode above his wrists slightly as his forearms were increasing with mass. It went upwards more with each passing minute of enlargement, riding onwards more and more, revealing his thickening lower arms. As it started to reach his elbow, the sleeves steadily and cleanly filled out, in due because his previously non-existent biceps were beginning to swell. Triceps were increased too, defining his arm even further.

   Nat could only get a glimpse of his hand for a moment before another blast of light, pale blue this time, assaulted him. A sudden spasm coursed through his nerves as a result.

   "GRRRAAGH-" 

   He clenched both hands into fists, his arm muscles tightening as his entire body underwent another rapid pulsation. His height increased yet again, forcing his shirt to rise further up his body making the top end of his jeans and his belt visible. Everything else was effectively following the same pattern too; sleeves going further up his forearms, pants getting high enough to reveal a small portion of the crus of the leg, and the t-shirt he wore rising to show a bit more of his gut.

   His arms continued to bulk causing the tightness of his hoodie to increase more. Muscles constantly pulsated, his muscle mass getting more defined with each pulse. Noticeably ridges forming within the skin, a more visible sign of his newfound strength. The sleeves of his hoodie only got tighter as a result, moreso with his ballooning deltoids. His shoulders were following his arms, bulking out while stretching to become massive, broader.

   Nat let out a deep, shuddered exhale, his legs buckling slightly as the magnitude of the changes were getting much. "Gghhoh, s…so… hot… so heavy…"

   His breathing deepens more as his neck enters the beginning phases of its own internal changes, the diameter of it increasing more and slowly reaching the edges of the necks of his clothing. His voice was also beginning to crack, with hints of it already starting to grow deeper.

   His deeper breathing was fuelling the bloating within his chest and abdomen with, at first, subtle changes. His chest started barreling outwards, his torso beginning to broaden, small cleavage forming as his pectorals first started to grow. His midsection quivers, a churning in his stomach commencing as the area begins to get slightly pudgy. This then progresses further, gradually swelling more each moment. And with each breath he took, everything slowly advanced. Everything rippling and churning, his pecs and gut on their way to becoming bulkier and heavier, less subtle. It all just made his hoodie even more discomforting to wear.

   "Tight… aaaahhh…" was all he could say. He slowly lifted a large, heavy hand up to the zipper. His bulging deltoids made moving his shoulder around a hassle, the sleeves of his t-shirt already filling in while the sleeves of his hoodie were constricting movement. The next issue came with the size ratio between his meaty fingers and the small zipper, making catching it in between two fingers a problem. But once he was able to grasp it, he attempted to pull it down.

   Unfortunately, trying to unzip his hoodie was a strenuous experience. He could only get it down roughly an inch and a half before it started having trouble, the metallic object being stopped by his increasingly large pectorals. His torso was still within its phase of growth with his pecs becoming thick slabs of muscle. He could swear an indentation of the cleavage was already subtly forming in the gray fabric of his hoodie, but he was more focused on getting the zipper down.

   "C-come down!"

   By some Architectural grace, the zipper did as he commanded and got beyond the cleavage. It was also beginning to slide down itself, his hulking torso forcing the zipper down further. For a moment it looked like it was going to get caught in his swelling belly, but it managed to reach the halfway point and got pushed down the rest of the way by his stomach. 

   He momentarily stopped as he saw what was going on with his abdomen. While he could feel the same strength and muscle beneath it, it was obviously shrouded beneath a developing gut. Fat was accumulating quickly in his belly, churning and bubbling around it forcing it to balloon and push the t-shirt he was wearing further upwards. 

   All of this forced the slider to escape the bottom stop, the two halves of his hoodie now drifting to his sides. He knew he had to take action fast if he wanted this thing off before it ripped.

   Moving around was a laborious and slightly painful task for Nat. He attempted to shift his arms around, constantly taking steps in order to find a good spot in his room to stretch everything. He was constantly worried he'd end up ripping the thing, fighting against the fabric to pull his hands through. It took almost half a minute of wrestling around with the arm before he could successfully pull his hand into the hole and slide it out the sleeve. 

   Everything was getting hotter though. Hotter and heavier and harder and- "Uurgh, fuck-"

   Breathing quickened more, beads of sweat materializing on his forehead. His hands weakened momentarily, just, everything was getting harder to handle. But he forced himself to go forward, and while clutching onto the other sleeve he was able to pull the other arm out a little more easily. Once that was over he heaved the hoodie onto the ground before being blinded by another flash of light from the crystal and forced to feel another overwhelming feeling.

   "GGHHHRRAAHHHAH-"

   This feeling was still intense, still hot, but now it felt… different. It felt like a sense of power surging through him. 

   Another set of inches piled onto him as he went through yet another growth spurt, the bones in his back and legs (along with the rest of his body) lengthening for a third time since this all began. His chest packed on more bulk, swelling cleanly into his t-shirt as the hem of it rose up his belly. The cleavage of his pectorals started to faintly etch into the orange cotton, meanwhile his delts enlarged to fill out the shoulders.

   His belt was the next major thing to grow constricting, now under the pressure of his widening waist and constantly shifting girth. The belt tried it's best to hold everything in, his jeans doing the same as the zipper slowly was getting pushed down by an increasing mass within. The same could be applied to the rear of the pants, steadily filling out as each second passed.

   Having already gained several inches, Nat now roughly around 6ft 4, his pants had started becoming too short for him. His legs soon begin trembling as bulk starts to fill them out. Thighs steadily swelling, the muscles in them hardening and widening them out. His calves were bulking up as well, thick, heavy, pushing his jeans up even more than they were now. The denim soon started digging into his skin as his muscles were thick enough to further etch themselves into the legwear. Bulging, rippling throughout them, slowly but surely becoming visible from beneath them.

   A surge of energy hits his feet, forcing yet another wave of changes. His feet slowly began to stretch, toes curling as both feet grew a size larger, then another. His shoes were a bit cramped now, and his feet were still growing bigger and thicker. The toe caps were beginning to bulge with the indents of his toes while the rest of the footwear was looking like it was swollen. The straps that held them closed were undoing themselves under the force of his feet, slowly but surely losing the ability to contain them.

   Another strap on each shoe snapped as Nat took another few disorientated steps backwards, bumping into a dresser and knocking over a few things on top of it. Sweat crept down his face and arms, heat still coursing through his muscles as he was still getting an instant workout. His shirt was still getting tighter by the second, he could even feel some air hit his shoulders as a few rips started forming in the sleeves. The neck continued to constrain, the hem continued to ride up his belly. It was getting hard to think. His mind was muddling, either under the heat or the confusion of it all.

   "Aaa… aaaahhh- f-fuckin'... ain't feelin' to well…"

   He swallowed a forming lump in his throat. Was his voice different? It seemed deeper and accented but he… he can't seem to tell anything anymore. 

   "Sso hot…"

   He raised an arm to his forehead and wiped off some sweat. "I… I nneed to…" His eyes closed for a moment as he tried to come up with what he wanted to say. Everything was confusing, muddled, he wasn’t quite sure what was going on. There was an odd feeling of something… pressing, in his mind? 

   “Can’t… think straight…”

   His voice was cracking some more. Although it seemed to be for a while, but then again it’s getting hard to remember that stuff. And did it sound… foreign? And if so, which parts? A lingering sense, a feeling of unfamiliarity with himself was settling in Nat, but his mind holds for just a bit longer.

  Nat started to stumble around the room, steps heavy and shaky, towards the bed. His shoes continued to constrain, feet uncomfortable with each step forward. His pants strained against his legs, both limbs progressing in their own muscle gain. Walking itself was even strenuous, everything hot, tiresome, heavy and aching.

   His belt was unable to take the weight anymore and the buckle cleanly snapped, the rest of the leather staining before scuffing and tearing. A heat was filling his groin, the region working its way in swelling itself. The zipper of his jeans were already pulled down, button struggling to hold it together, but the growth in size forced it to break. The groin region was bulging in size, slowly falling out his pants as his briefs attempted to hold his meaty package together. 

   The back of his pants were undergoing a similar challenge. A fatal attempt to hold in his thickening glutes while his legs moved. They were already filled out, but a growing crevice was getting visible with each step. His butt was expanding and pushing out the seat of the jean's further, forcing them tighter. Even with pressure alleviated around the waist thanks to the open zipper, wearing these pants wasn't going to last long. This became clear once the seat of his pants couldn't handle containing his ass anymore and started to split open, revealing more of his underwear.

   The seams holding the denim together began splitting; a mixture of weight, leg movement, and sheer leg size finally pushing past their limitations. His thighs widened, quads and hamstrings bulging out in opposite directions and tearing his legwear apart at the sides. His knees were growing increasingly visible, holes emerging on that area of his jeans with each step. His calves forced the legs upwards more as muscle mass spilled out of them too. His legs were easily becoming the same muscularity as his arms: thick, heavy, massive, powerful. 

   Heat was still burning in them as they continued to swell and stretch, pulling apart his pants furthermore. Portions of them were already beyond what they got handle and were torn from the rest of the legwear, material now sloughing off his legs and showing more skin. The growing in his rear split the seat even more, aided by his wide hips to force the midline of the jeans to fully split apart and causing his bulge to descend slightly as a result. Eventually the muscle changes would halt, but what fragments of denim remained would cascade off his skin, slowly flowing down softly onto the ground. This revealed his legs to be wide, meaty, and muscular. With all the additional shifts and changes undergone, he'd also be settling at 6ft 8.

   His shoes were next, unable to hold any longer as his blunt, thick toes pushed out of the toe cap of the cloth. The straps that once held the shoes closed were all undone. The bridge of his foot pushed through the tongue of the shoe and shredded the top apart. Ankles bulged out, the overall size of his feet finally decimating his footwear. And while chunks of cloth drifted off his feet, all that was left intact were the soles, left behind in two simple steps. Air hit his feet, both massive with thick toes, wide soles, and an overall huge and chunky look.

   The hem of his t-shirt was over his belly at this point, stretched over his torso and filled to the brim with raw muscle. His thick tree trunk of a neck was pushing out the neck, a fissure slowly forming down the midline as a result of the strenuous task of holding everything in. Cleanly split holes were also budding across the fabric; more of his rippling pecs, massive delts, and broad back growing evermore visible by the second. The fabric stretches so thin over his massive arms, his bulging biceps, that it starts to tear and gradually succumb to the thickly-muscled limbs, steadily bursting up the shoulders. Soon, his shirt was expanded beyond what even itself could contain. Rips and gaps meshing together, more and more skin becoming visible, lines of fabric and string finally breaking against his hard muscles. Soon, bits of orange fabric fell off his body and onto the ground as well.

   Spilling out of it all was his body. A large, massive gut that possessed strength behind its fat. Slabs for pectorals, meaty and somewhat soft looking. Huge hands with thick sausages for fingers, connected to muscular arms that clearly show off a lot of strength.

   An X-shaped scar started to emerge between his eyes, the scar slowly making its way across his face as his mind hazes even further. The pressure in his mind continues to grow, like a feeling of something overpowering him mentally.

   “Grrugh, c…can’t think straight-”

   A pressure ached around his face as a new set of shifts rippled across it. His skull steadily growing in size; jawline crackling, sculpting out into something smooth and chiseled at first. His chin then bulges as it descends a little more with a crease fading into it. His skull structure starts to make its way into a blocky, rectangular shape; the softer features it once had smoothing out into a more rugged, mature look. Protrusions start to poke out the diagonals of his face; hard, rocky, pointed scales emerging from those areas.

   His eyes shut again as he tries to fight whatever is in his head, attempts to resist whatever is going on and tries to collect himself. “This… feeling… bloody ‘ell-”

   The scar grows larger as his face does. The tip of his nose blunts, the bridge of it widening while the nostrils flare larger. His ears begin to poke out the sides of his head a little more as their own tips elongate to a point, the soft cartilage stretching out and thinning while the insides grow slightly deeper as the result of their new shape. These changes result in his glasses hitching onto his face, frames unable to simply fall off as they are now locked into its widening form. 

   Foreign thoughts cascaded through Nat’s brain, things getting harder to focus on. Resisting growing more laborious. “N-No, I… m… must be hungover or somethin’-”

   More changes wrack his face in its constant growth. Eyebrows getting thicker, hairs on them becoming a stony grey. The scales start to bubble up and down the sides of his face hardening then. His eyes get slightly smaller, a grayish-brown settling into the deep green of his irises while his vision steadily improves. It doesn't take long until the glasses he's wearing breaks apart, temples breaking apart at the hinge as the rim falls onto the ground.

   Eyesight woozes a little, momentarily shifting from blurry to improving for a few seconds. “W-what is… fuck, must’ve had to much to drink at Vargel’s… makin’ my eyesight all weird-”

   Impossibility was settling into him, the feeling of being ‘Nat’ more fleeting as a new entity took over. Everything foreign, everything faint. Conflicting thoughts and emotions beginning to arise. 

   The nape of his neck tickles slightly as his hair starts to steadily lengthen. Follicles getting longer, the brown coloration of them fading away into silver as each second passed. An odd mix of styles start to formulate on his scalp as his hair continues to grow. The top frontmost portions arise and comb themselves, messy hairs melding into a neat formation as they continue to extend. A thick, pomp-like style is what develops in that area; tall, rounded, dense, and clean.

   Yellows and blues etch into the follicles of his sides, the remainder of the hair to the sides and back of his head slowly cascading downwards. Unlike the hair to his top, the hair to his back was messier. Although it maintained the same luscious thickness, ends were sticking out and curling upward, an unkempt mane of hair trickling down his neck and onto his back. Despite this, it looked nice, full, and somewhat fluffy. 

   Confused stumbling continued, him completely unaware that the crystal was rapidly pulsating again. Another flash of light spilled through the room, and the moment his peripherals caught onto it his head began to ache. Hands trembled as he pulled them to the sides of his head, gripping onto them as his mind truly started to twist in confusion.

   His neck throbs, the inner workings of it finally beginning to solidify his constant vocal changes. The vocal cords shift; growing, strengthening, widening, all to cement a new voice as his own. Previously, all it's been doing is cracking his voice, deepening it, giving him a slight accent, conflicting between his own and a different one. But now…

   "I… ahhh… c-can't… walk very… Uurgh…"

   With a final crack, his voice hardens. Deep, gruff, and containing a very noticeable accent; Urayan of course (what was he thinking, it's… Aus… huh)... But that couldn't be his voice, could it?

   "Should've gotten another… one of the mates- could've helped with… uugh, Architect-"

   He squeezes his head harder, a headache now bulging in his forehead.

   "Bloody- this ain't… grrrruhh…"

   A crisis of identity starts to truly bud within his mind. His own name was growing foreign to him as he was having trouble determining who he was. The past few minutes became a blur, come to think of it everything was a blur. He was having trouble recalling memories of his own, rather remembering foreign memories that… that he could've sworn were not his own. 

   Vague recollections of pounding down one or two drinks at the tavern in Garfront (how does he know that name, and… he's never drunk alcohol, has he?)

   Congratulating some of the other mercs on a job well done- especially since this was a rather big one! (mercenary work? No- that… can't…)

   "Didn't think I… had that much to drink, gotta train some rookies today after all…"

   A small thought questioning why he'd be training anyone crossed his mind, but at this point whatever was left of Nat is fading fast. More muddled memories of a long life settling into his mind, much of it even he didn't care to remember, especially that name- there's a reason he's gone with Vandham nowadays.

   …Vandham…

   "Can't… can't believe I got so drunk I… couldn't recall my name!"

   That thought made him laugh a little, the haze slowly but surely subsiding. It did have some stuff to leave behind, replacing previous skills with new ones. He could recall how to wield quite a few weapons like the back of his hand! He's usually had a preference for the larger ones though-

   There were also a couple fleeting thoughts. Some smaller stuff that had to be done himself that he should probably get to once he sobered up- mostly awkward paperwork regarding payments and other job requests. Not the most exciting parts, but it helped keep the mercs afloat. 

   "Gotta get yourself together, mate…"

   A trail of destroyed articles of clothing was left in the man's wake, and all of his stumbling around brought him next to his bed. Still dazed and confused (and believing himself to be hungover), he took a seat upon it to rest. Unfortunately, the bed was instantly proving unable to hold his weight and a sudden cacophony of creaks and snaps rang through the bedroom. There was a sudden drop of a few inches shortly after, his belly and bulge jiggling slightly as that happened.

   Massaging a side of his head, Vandham lets out a small laugh at that. "Heh, I'm… guessing this thing can't support a big mate like myself's weight, huh?"

   The pain was already starting to die down, although heat was still coursing through his body a little. Sweat continued to edge its way down his body. There was even a slight throbbing sensation in his crotch area, likely a reaction to his undersized briefs he was wearing at the moment…

   "Don' quite remember puttin' these on-"

   Come to think of it, he was starting to realize he can't exactly remember where he was right now either.

   He shifted around the mattress a little, a slight itching sensation now entering some of his body. A result of scars starting to etch their way onto it. Down his left pec, across the side of his upper left arm, a slash across his back, a cut on his neck. Old scars multiplying across his body, all signs of a new life engraving in him.

   He flinched for a moment as another flash of light entered his vision, although now it was oddly familiar. "What the hel-"

   He was cut off, his breath suddenly hitching momentarily as he felt a slight discomfort in his abdomen. Sizeable scar tissue formed; a large pool of collagen spilling across the midsection of his gut. It was deeper in coloration than the other scars, an indicator of it being recent, with a slight area started bubbling in the middle of the tissue. 

   The light shone brighter as a reaction to this, the crystal beginning to float above the ground. Light was spilling everywhere, flowing from the blue stone and enveloping everything. Blinding white only intensified, Vandham closing his eyes as that light encompassed the entire room and enveloped his form.

   Then it all stopped…

   Opening his eyes, he found the light was gone and the source… disappeared? 

   There was still a minor discomfort in his gut however. Vandham looked down at it to find a shard of a Core Crystal embedded in his abdomen, a large contracture scar stretching from where it was placed.

   "Still tryin' to get used to ya; huh, mate?"

   All the crystal did was pulsate. But then again, it always did that. 

   His eyes then caught onto a pair of glasses that were laying on the ground. Or well, fragmented remains.

   "Huh," he leaned down, bed creaking some more, and reached a hand down to pick it up. He was a little bemused by the fact that the rim looked so small compared to the fingers that pinched it.

   Holding it up to eye level, he raised a brow in curiosity. "Where'd these come from…"

   Inspecting the glasses put his mind in a slight moment of questioning, trying to rationalize who they were (momentarily fighting himself thinking they were his despite their size). It was enough to distract him from what was occurring on the ground.

   Small motes of light slowly arose from the shreds of clothing that were on the floor. The edges of each shred started to glow as something began settling amongst them all. 

   The remaining sole of the shoes curled into itself amongst the light, the tip rising while the division between the heel and the rest of the sole grew. The bits and pieces of cloth that once composed of the shoe then floated off the ground, slowly making their way towards the soles as they themselves underwent a menagerie of shifts.

   What would end up being the top cap and upper heel merged back together, the cap itself curling upwards as well while the front sharpened to a point. The former tongue of the shoe enlarged, becoming less of a tongue and more of a covering of some sort. The same applied to various other aspects; the pull tab, the arch bandages, the padding, strap guard, all of them were meshing and melding into various layers of some kind of different footwear. The straps had even merged into two separate pseudo-belts, meanwhile another chunk of shreds enlarged and transformed into two-layered knee pads.

   All of this ended up coming together into a pair of complexly made boots. Chunks of leather connecting, sewing and stitching together, a belt wrapping around the back of the heel while the knee pads were left discarded on the upwardly curved toe caps. Multiple shades of green then started to seep into what used to be plain black and white, the inner layers of these boots being darker while the outer shades were lighter. The knee pads also appeared to materialize a blue gem on the middle of each one, metal buckles hardening to the sides as the second pair of belts slink over to them.

   Then came what happened to the remainder of his scraps of clothing. Denim and cotton all floating and twisting, more greens started to etch into those as well as they began to undergo similar drastic changes.

   Instead of simply restitching and becoming the new forms equivalent of what they would've been, the remains all seemed to undergo their own thing. A few scraps were growing, shifting and squishing together as they became a pair of leather bracers. Another set twisted together, deepening to black and oozing outward into a pair of fingerless gloves. 

   Many shreds became plain and simplistic objects. Some lengthened out, metal forming on the ends as they became various sets of belts that'd go across the big man's body. There was one belt that was meant for the waist; hard denim becoming a leathery blue while oranges shifted tone to green, everything coming together into a lengthier belt with an oddly shaped buckle and shards of metal studded throughout it. Many remnants of clothing then bulked out into pouches of various sizes to adorn this new belt. And out of everything that came from the minor clothes shifts, there was a clump of remains that merged together into a large, hefty shoulder pauldron that looked to be more metallic than it was leather. Beside the pauldron bubbled an orange, rigid arm bracer.

   The largest changes came with the scraps that fused into more complex objects. There came some that enlarged into rectangular metallic plates, interlocking side by side with each other until they could circle an entire body. Raising from those plates was a set of belts that would give this armor piece an odd overalls look when worn. A strip of a thin, small and blue material emerged and draped downwards from the outside of each plate.

   What remained of the cotton and denim fragments floated and stitched with each other. Black was spreading across the article of clothing they were making, thick pillars of red appearing on the front of the legs and back of the legs. The new legwear was undergoing an increasingly large size change, getting bulkier and baggier for a few seconds before stopping. 

   Now littering the ground were multiple articles of clothing and armor, belts and pouches, two big boots and knee pads. The only thing that was off about them was the size: miniscule in comparison to the guy on the bed. Rather, they seemed to be the size of how they would fit his previous form. Small and thin, although maybe slightly larger than his body would have been.

   This was quickly rectified, however, as another bout of glowing outlined the attire. Everything started to enlarge again, bigger and heavier, better equipped to handle a thicker guy. The shifts in size were quickly packing everything together, pushing everything around and moving things further than their previous locations. It was rapidly looking to become a mountain of metal and leather.

   Vandham continued to eye the glasses for another few moments, thoughts still trying to grasp who exactly these were before, but was snapped out of it when he felt something press against his foot.

   "Hm. Ah well, they look broken anyway." He then decides to crush them in the palm of his hand. Quick, easy, like they were nothing. 

   He disregards the shrapnel on the ground, then turns his head to see what was touching his foot, which was shown to be one of his boots.

   Wait…

   Vandham looked down at himself again. His hardened pecs, his massive gut, his rippling arms and legs. Then there was that massive bulge in his undergarments…

   He scratched the side of his head. "Bloody hell am I doin' naked…"

   Leaning sideways to pick up the boot, the sound of another snap echoed throughout the bedroom before his position fell downwards yet again. The front legs of the bed screeched for a moment as they pushed forward, the frame having split in half beneath his weight. The mattress remained intact, but he could hear the strain of its springs beneath his rear.

   "Heh, I should probably get off this thing quick."

   Trying to clothe himself was a little confusing. Partially because his mind was still having trouble between familiar and unfamiliar actions, but he easily found himself falling into the rhythm of things. Why wouldn't he, he's done this every day of his life!

   The armor was always the most annoying part. Having to place it upright and step into it, then heaving it upwards by the straps before buckling everything. Moving it around to be comfortable. Then came slipping on the pauldron, strapping it onto his shoulder with a few of the belts and more shifting for comfortability.

   Vandham shifted around the pile of clothing for a few moments in search of his arm bracer, but he ended up finding his pants. Big, baggy, black and red, perfect fit for him really. A part of him wished there was a pair of properly sized underwear in this pile, but the thought of seeing his bulge bobble around a bit gave a part of him a strange sense of… euphoria? Self-indulgence? …Arousal? Whatever.

   Getting the pants on was easy, then he had to follow it up with the belt. Somehow his pouches also all got unfastened, and they were also surprisingly empty. 

   With his legwear on, he was able to locate the arm bracer along with the gloves and wrist bracers he wore. Putting those on were easy enough, leather tightly hugging his calloused wrists while more leather wrapped around his wrists. Then there were the belts that went around his wrists and arm. 

   The springs moaned as he took another seat on the mattress momentarily, shoving his feet into his boots and putting his knee pads over the already layered footwear and baggy pants. With some final adjustments, loosening any tight harnesses and tightening any too loose ones. His gaze was then brought to one last article of clothing on the ground.

   A grey hoodie.

   He got up from off the bed and walked over towards the oddly familiar object. Bending down and picking it up, he found that it was already pretty small for someone his size. And holding it out seemed to prove that by quite a bit. It looked to only be comparable to his torso and abdomen alone, and that was pushing it since it somehow seemed smaller than that. 

   There was a fleeting thought in his mind over the concept of wearing it. "Heheh, dunno what I'm thinking. I'm much too big to wear this!"

   He crumpled the hoodie up and decided to turn it around and throw it onto the mattress. As he did so, his attention was drawn to another object. A small box that was slowly sliding down the mattress. 

   Curious, Vandham took a step forward and looked into the box. It appeared to be filled with assorted rocks of various shapes, sizes, and colors. But it didn't really seem to be the most interesting thing in this room, especially if it lacked any Core Crystals to find. Honestly, most of this room was growing rather disinteresting. He wasn't sure where he was or why he was here, and the nagging familiarity of the place was getting to be slightly annoying.

   He started to piece together all the weirdness of the scenario. "The hell did I do last night…"

   Vandham was pulled out of his thoughts by a low rumble escaping his belly. Smiling, he patted the armor over the spot (particularly where the crystal was embedded in him). "Guess you're gettin' hungry, ey mate? Definitely be good fer us to get somethin' if I drank somethin' that strong~"

   The feeling of knowing this place did come in handy at least. He knew where the kitchen was, somehow. Getting there on the other hand…

   This house was not built for someone of his proportions, to say the least. At least back in Garfront everything was accommodated to larger sizes (usually because Blade size can be fairly unpredictable), so residing in it was without inconvenience. Here though, the doorways were thinner than his width, and the first attempt to try and exit what he assumed to be the bedroom was more than slightly annoying. Trying to make himself as small as possible in order to fit past a door frame was not a fun experience, especially since his armor still made him seem a little thicker laterally. Having that press up against your body (especially when you're still getting used to a Crystal embedded in you) is uncomfortable, to say the least.

   "With how much work this is already getting to be I'm hoping this place has some good Armu T-Bone Steak."

   Escaping that eventually led to a small walkway that he could just barely fit through. The top of his hair also seemed to graze the ceiling. There was also the fact that his steps made the floorboards of these creak sometimes.

   Going down the stairs was another uneasy trek. Railing forcing him to go sideways, feet too large to really fully fit on a step. The steps creaking rather loudly beneath his feet also did not make matters any better. Not even Uraya's cliffsides made him feel this uneasy. Luckily, he was able to get down fairly unscathed; save for that final step that seemed to just break as he got off. 

   With one final right turn he reached the doorway of what his mind told him was the kitchen. Getting through the doorway was just as much of a hassle as the last time, but it wasn't as hard since he knew how to handle this now… mostly.

   Just as expected, everything in the kitchen was small in comparison to him, but really his focus was now on the fridge. Squeezing in the space between the fridge and a table (which really just his rear bumping into the table and pushing it back some); Vandham foregone pulling the handle (knowing it to be too miniscule for his hand) and just went with pulling the door open from the side. Considering his strength, doing so was a success.

   Most of the food in here seemed to be random leftovers, assorted fruits, and various other foods that needed to be kept cold; all of which was in a clean three layer system.

   That was disrupted rather quickly once Vandham shoved his hand in there and started rummaging around. Rummaging meaning knocking things around, trying to pull some things out but having trouble doing so when everything is diminutive in comparison to you, and accidentally squishing one or two fruits. 

   "Architect, this thing is small…"

   Eventually, after about half a minute of messing up the fridge, Vandham was able to find something that would be of interest to him.

   It looked to be a slab of meat wrapped in foil. Likely already cooked, just needed to get it heated up. Unfortunately, it literally fits in the palm of one hand, so he didn't expect it to do too much filling.

   "Likely not Armu, but this'll do. This'll do…"

[starry-mist]

S4e12 thoughts:

This is my favourite episode of the season (and one of my top ten overall.) It's also the hardest one for me to watch. I had to watch it twice to really formulate my thoughts.

We have my favourite trope of Charlie and Sarah stuck/isolated somewhere. Avalon Island. Dreamy. Quiet. Remote.

I'll get some of the non-Charah details out of the way first.

Kevin Hanchard and Maurice Dean Wint play off each other so well. They really shine in their scenes together.

I hadn't seen Murdoch Mysteries yet at this point, so didn't know who Thomas Craig was but I enjoyed him greatly in this episode.

The script is solid. Taf Diallo I believe has only written two episodes so far and I've loved both.

I love the overall feel of this episode. Shoutout to the addition of the bagpipes to some of the show's usual musical themes, it really worked.

Rex and the sheep. Rex taking home the toy sheep. I headcanon that Sarah has one too.

Shoutout to the nod to Mayko Nguyen's seasickness with that "at least the boat ride wasn't so bad" line. (Note how we never see her on the boat itself.)

Same actor, different character: We last saw Paul Warford in s2 as the dead food scientist in Finger Foodie. Now we have Gordo. Long live Gordo.

Sadly I did not have a chance to visit Brigus South when I was in Newfoundland last summer. Will definitely have it on the list for a future visit. It looks gorgeous.

Okay, so, Charah time:

First of all, I remember the show's social accounts posting the almost-kiss scene as "a moment many of you have been waiting for," and um, NO, that was NOT the moment.

So, we have Sarah still keeping Michael at literal arms' length outside the bullpen when he wants to go in for a kiss. And Charlie sort of half-pretending he doesn't have his back up at the other man's presence outside the bullpen. Way to set the scene for some tension.

The almost-kiss. If there were ever a blatant sign that Charlie is Not Okay, it’s that scene. Dude has been cheated on. That he would even consider kissing Sarah who by all accounts is "happy" in her relationship...huge red flag.

Charlie can’t stop staring at Sarah's cheek the first time they interview the kid who was shot. The second time, Sarah can't stop touching her cheek/lip. Yeah, we get it, they're distracted by their "moment."

Sarah asking Charlie if he's considering getting a quiet place for him and Rex, and Charlie's "you have to grow old with someone"...Charlie, you do realize dogs don't live forever, right? But yeah I think we're supposed to take this as Charlie resigning himself to forever being alone...sigh.

Charlie, get your shit together.

So I've done a little research into Fogo Island and damn, a weekend away there would not come cheap. Hitting that plot point does sort of underscore the "maybe Sarah's thinking about taking things with Michael a bit more seriously" idea. But her bringing it up right after Charlie expresses his doubts about growing old with someone...there's a ton of subtext there. And in case we didn't quite catch it, Charlie then stops the golf cart thing they're driving and says his "there's no manual for this" line, echoing Sarah's earlier line about there being no manual for a relationship. This whole exchange is them talking about their feelings for each other without actually talking about their feelings for each other.

Red flags. Red flags everywhere.

Though how much did I need them to miss their boat and get stuck at the B&B? A girl can dream...

(Shoutout to wardrobe for putting them in matching sweaters, BTW.)

So at what point does Sarah decide that she needs to give things with Michael a real chance? I would say it's when Charlie talks about his house full of motorcycle parts, and they cut to her expression, and damn, is Mayko ever good at reacting. The last time (that we've seen on screen, so let's go with it) she was at his house was Dark Web. My logic goes with that being the reason she kind of pulls away by the end of the episode and goes off to see where things go with Michael. It's overly simplistic, but it works. I think she's also realising how very not okay Charlie is, and doesn't know how to express her concern, but that's a topic for later in the season.

Charlie, Sarah, really, get your collective shit together.

The ending scene crushes me every time, even though I know it's coming. The heartbreak, the lies they tell each other, the look on Charlie's face as he watches Sarah walk away.

Gah. I love it. It's so perfectly angsty.

Stellar episode, 10/10, will always have a special place in my heart.

[lumiereandcogsworth]

If there was ever a beauty and the beast 2 (which will never happen since emma retired i think 😭) what would you think the plot of that movie would be??

this may be a boring and/or hot take but gosh i sure hope there’s never a second film !!! i really hope so!!!! my reasoning, entirely, is that i’ve been building my own post-canon lore for literally seven years now. so if that second film isn’t written by me, it’s probably going to be incorrect <3 LMAO. that is, if it’s adam & belle centric! they’re my loves

you know what i’d totally be down for?? written Not By Me? like a prequel about some of the staff. like a lumiere & plumette backstory. or cogsworth !!! i have my own little headcanons about them but i wouldn’t be bothered if they got smashed by a different take. they are not my blorbos, i just appreciate them.

a prequel that i would also need to write of course is adam’s backstory, which is so incredibly detailed for me that i sometimes feel like a legit historian talking about a real historical monarchy sjdksjdk. or belle’s backstory even!! or!! YOU KNOW WHAT I NEED TO WRITE? maurice & maria’s love story. i knoooooow how it happens and i’ve written scenes but i need to Finish That and publish it on ao3. people need to know belle’s parents’ exquisite love story!!!!

anyway what was your question??? what would the plot be. ough i don’t know. i already plan on writing adam & belle’s children’s love stories (ala bridgerton, but less spicy) so we don’t need that from hollywood. ummmm. idk. honestly i love giving adam & belle just quiet domestic lives. although!!!!!!!!!! i did think of one crazy idea…. but i actually may write that some day so i don’t wanna share !!! i’ll just say it involves a major character death and needing agathe to resurrect them. but she’s a trickster and makes a deal that makes it difficult to achieve the resurrection. THAT’S all i’ll say there 🤭

obviously i’d love to see adam and belle married with children on the big screen but like i said, if they called their children Not the names i’ve had for seven years, i’d explode a little bit! so i mean if disney wants to hire me (and emma comes out of retirement) i will happily work with people to come up with a fun plot. i’m not a fun plot person unfortunately but i do know adam and belle (and maurice) better than anyone!

[sebastianravkin]

Fuck book banning 2024

30 Banned Books You Should Read (from Bored Teachers, linked below).

From picture books to classic literature, here we go. . . .

1. Where the Wild Things Are

By Maurice Sendak

Where the Wild Things Are is a childhood classic and Caldecott-winning picture book about a young boy named Max who sails to a far off land and becomes king of the wild things. While he is sent to his room for wreaking havoc in his wolf costume, Max returns from the land of his imagination to find a hot supper waiting for him.

Why it was banned: Supernatural elements and dark, disturbing imagery; psychologically damaging because a boy is sent to bed without supper.

2. In the Night Kitchen

By Maurice Sendak

A boy named Mickey is asleep in his bed when he’s suddenly transported into the Night Kitchen, a land where bakers obsessively bake the morning’s cake. At one point, Mickey falls into the batter. He loses his pajamas along the way and is depicted nude in a few spreads, until he escapes the kitchen in a plane made of bread and wakes up in his own bed.

Why it was banned: Nudity

3. Strega Nona

By Tomie DePaolo

Strega Nona leaves Big Anthony alone with her magic pasta pot, and soon Anthony unleashes a magic he cannot control. Luckily, Strega Nona – literally, Grandmother Witch – returns to sort out Big Anthony’s mess.

Why it was banned: Positive depictions of witchcraft

4. And Tango Makes Three

Written by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell and illustrated by Henry Cole

Based on a true story, And Tango Makes Three describes two male penguins named Roy and Silo, who are a bonded pair. A zookeeper gives them a motherless egg, and together the two penguins hatch and raise a chick named Tango.

Why it was banned: Positive depictions of same-sex family

5. Where the Sidewalk Ends

By Shel Silverstein

Shel Silverstein’s irreverent poetry and his signature artwork are practically modern classics. They are funny and an easy introduction to poetry for elementary school students – even my high school students still read these poems!

Why it was banned: Rebellious poems that undermine parental authority

6. Heather Has Two Mommies

Written by Leslea Newman and illustrated by Laura Cornell

Heather has two mommies, but she learns that families come in all shapes and sizes when she and her classmates draw pictures of their families and no two are the same.

Why it was banned: Same-sex parenting and homosexuality

7. I Am Jazz

Written by Jessica Herthel and Jazz Jennings and illustrated by Shelagh McNicholas

Jazz Jennings knew from a young age that she had a “girl’s brain in a boy’s body.” I Am Jazz chronicles Jazz’s story as a transgender individual.

Why it was banned: Depictions of a transgender child

8. The Family Book

By Todd Parr

The Family Book is a celebration of the different varieties that families come in – two parents, one parent, same-sex parents, grandparents, pets, and more. This book celebrates the differences that make us who we are.

Why it was banned: Depiction of same-sex families

9. Captain Underpants

By Dav Pilkey

Captain Underpants is a bestselling series of graphic novels for children about a superhero named Captain Underpants and his creators George and Harold.

Why it was banned: Offensive language, partial nudity, glorifying misbehavior by children

10. Walter the Farting Dog

Written by William Kotzwinkle and Glenn Murray and illustrated by Audrey Colman

Billy and Betty love their dog Walter in spite of his odorous problem, but Dad says they have to get rid of him. One night, burglars break in and Walter gets to save the day!

Why it was banned: Excessive use of the word ‘fart’

11. The Hate U Give

By Angie Thomas

Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter is the sole witness of the police shooting that kills her friend Khalil. She finds herself caught in a firestorm as Khalil’s story blows up into a national debate. The Hate U Give – THUG for short – has won just about every award a book can win.

Why it was banned: Inappropriate language and sexual situations

12. A Wrinkle in Time

By Madeleine L’Engle

In this book that won the Newbery award, Meg, her brother Charles Wallace, and her friend Calvin travel across the universe in search of her missing father, an astrophysicist. The book is a coming of age tale that is truly about a battle of good versus evil.

Why it was banned: Being too religious, not being religious enough, depictions of witchcraft and the supernatural

13. Perks of Being a Wallflower

By Stephen Chobsky

Charlie, the wallflower in the title, stars in this coming-of-age story as he tries to navigate the sometimes-tumultuous waters of adolescence. The book is raw and real.

Why it was banned: Language, homosexuality, scenes that sexually explicit, and depictions of drug and alcohol abuse

14. Looking for Alaska

By John Green

Protagonist Miles Halter leaves for boarding school and meets Alaska Young, a bold, tortured girl like he’s never met before, whose fate at the end of the story impacts Miles forever.

Why it was banned: Offensive language and sexually explicit descriptions

15. The Outsiders

By S.E. Hinton

The Outsiders is one of the iconic classic banned books. It tells the story of Ponyboy and his fellow “Greaser” brothers Darry and Sodapop. The greasers are at war with a rival gang called the “Socs,” and one day things go too far.

Why it was banned: Offensive language, depictions of drug use, gang violence

16. The Giver

By Lois Lowry

The Giver is the first in a series of often four banned books called The Giver Quartet. It depicts a dystopian world of conformity in which only one man retains all of society’s memories and emotions. Twelve-year-old Jonas is selected to become the next Receiver of Memory, and with this new assignment comes a world of realization that Jonas is hardly prepared to receive.

Why it was banned: Depictions of infanticide and euthanasia in a dystopian society

17. Speak

By Laurie Halse Anderson

Melinda starts her freshman year completely ostracized after she called the cops on a party that got out of hand during the summer. She shuts down, only finding a small respite in art class. Eventually, the reader learns that something happened at the party that changed the trajectory of Melinda’s life. Once her secret is out, she recovers her voice and learns to always speak up for herself.

Why it was banned: Profanity, sexually explicit content and depictions of drinking

18. Forever

By Judy Blume

Forever is a book about a committed high school couple deciding to have sex. Specifically, the teenager girl protagonist, Katherine, decides to lose her virginity to Michael. Eventually, their relationship fizzles, leaving Katherine contemplating the nature of love.

Why it was banned: Descriptions of sexual intercourse and discussions of birth control put this on the list of frequently banned books.

19. The Golden Compass

By Philip Pullman

This is the first in a fantasy trilogy for teens that is set in a world where humans each have animal familiars known as daemons. Protagonist Lyra, an orphan girl, is concerned about the mysterious disappearances of children in her town. When she learns the disappearances may be connected somehow to her scholarly uncle and a strange phenomenon known as Dust, she sets out to solve the mystery. 

Why it was banned: Promotion of atheism and denigration of Christianity

20. Cut

By Patricia McCormick

This short book is about Callie, a girl who cuts herself and is sent to a treatment facility, where she falls mute and refuses to participate in rehabilitation. It’s an intense and powerful read.

Why it was banned: Depictions of self-mutilation

21. The Glass Castle

By Jeanette Walls

The Glass Castle spent seven years on the bestseller list, which speaks to the power of this memoir. Walls writes about her upbringing in the hands of a brilliant father who turned destructive when drinking and a mother who didn’t want the responsibility of motherhood.

Why it was banned: Sexual situations, depictions of abuse and alcoholism

22. The Kite Runner

By Khaled Hosseini

A novel of searing power, The Kite Runner follows Amir, a man who was raised in Afghanistan and becomes a successful writer in the United States. The death of his childhood friend at the hands of the Taliban prompts Amir to return to the land of his childhood, where he must face the memories that haunt him.

Why it was banned: Sexual violence, religious viewpoint, offensive language

23. To Kill A Mockingbird

By Harper Lee

A classic taught in many schools today, To Kill A Mockingbird is a coming of age story set against a vicious trial in which a white woman falsely accuses a black man of rape in the deep South.

Why it was banned: Profanity, racial slurs, discussion of rape

24. The Catcher in the Rye

By J.D. Salinger

Holden Caulfield is, at sixteen, jaded by society, by adults, and by the world around him. He explores the bowels of New York City and its characters in a story that ultimately examines the loss of innocence required to grow up in this world.

Why it was banned: Profanity and sexual scenes

25. Beloved

By Toni Morrison

Beloved is an unflinching and important read that explores the atrocities of slavery from the perspective of Sethe, a woman who was once a slave and is now free, except for the memories of the hideous things she was forced to experience.

Why it was banned: Racial and sexual violence, infanticide, language

26. Slaughterhouse Five

By Kurt Vonnegut

Billy Pilgrim, a World War II prisoner becomes “unstuck” in time and relives scenes from his life over and over again. The theme Vonnegut develops centers around the depravity of war.

Why it was banned: Sexual situations, profane language, content deemed immoral and anti-Christian

27. Animal Farm

By George Orwell

Animal Farm is an allegory about the dangers of totalitarianism. In it, a cast of farm animals set out to great a utopia, but their dream becomes a nightmare when the subtle temptation of power becomes too much and tyranny reigns supreme.

Why it was banned: Political commentary that could encourage unrest

28. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

By Maya Angelou

Angelou writes a memoir about her indomitable spirit, from the loneliness she feels when her mother sends her to live with her grandmother to the experience of being raped as a child. She writes about how she found herself within the pages of books written by great authors, which led her to become one of America’s greatest poets.

Why it was banned: Offensive language and portrayals of child rape, racism, and violence

29. Of Mice and Men

By John Steinbeck

George travels with Lennie, a man with a heart of gold and the mind of a child. They look for work in depression era California, while dreaming of their own chance at the American Dream.

Why it was banned: Profanity, racial slurs, violence, depressing themes

30. The Handmaid’s Tale

By Margaret Atwood

This dystopian novel takes place in a post-democracy world ruled by hyper-religious totalitarian regime that has enslaves women and forces them to bear children.

Why it was banned: Sexual overtones

[northmelter]

Genuinely cannot stand the way Liu writes Northstar 99.999% of the time and it isn't even her fault. He has like.... maybe 5 good scenes in that whole run, and only 1 that I like outside of "it's funny", which I also have problems with (him calling himself "fabulous" during his serious, otherwise good speech is.... so dumb and OOC). Austen let him be an asshole, even if him being gay was too overplayed. But Liu overplayed the gay thing without knowing... anything about him. Even his name, seeing as it was written as "Jean-Claude" multiple times in the first issue he was in. Him being more sarcastic and less of an outright asshole for the whole run was more of a nail in the coffin too.

Idt she actually wanted him in her book, to be fair. I think Marvel wanted a gay marriage before DC did one (if you don't include Wildstorm's the Authority in 2001). Even tho atp Northstar and his boyfriend had barely been in anything together lmao.

More apparent when you look at the description for the issues leading up to it.

And I do like her as a writer, and I feel like Marvel just... forced him in her book, and she didn't know him at all lmao but suddenly had to include him for the sake of SOLELY igniting controversy and a news cycle. So she just kinda got a baseline and then just kinda started writing a generic gay superhero who's whole point was literally just to be gay and get gay married. Which means I can't even blame her and legit feel bad doing so. But also it's annoying and tbh it's more annoying since I normally love her stuff.

It's all so dumb and I can't stand that run because of it and it pisses me off that Marvel only lets him be the forefront of stuff literally just to piss off people who don't read comics only to throw him back into obscurity once they're done.

Anyway. She writes him so bland and inoffensive minus a few funny lines but it isn't even HER FAULT it is... so clearly Marvel's and also it sucks that his wedding had to be for controversy and not for actual character development or ANYTHING to do with the character and any relationships he could've had (Kyle was the first and only person he was actually shown with minus like... Maurice and Jaques from the 80s/90s if you wanna be subtextual. Lol.) are not nonexistent because now he's married.

His wedding wasn't about his character it was about his sexuality and gay marriage being a controversial topic and that sucksssssssss so much ass. Fuck Marvel

Midnighter and Apollo's wedding was also clearly in part for shock value, but that was 2001, so that's progressive enough shock value for it to get a pass.

Proposal was May 22nd, 2012. That story arc with that description that includes the proposal and wedding issues started March 27th, 2012. Billy and Teddy proposed March 6th, 2012. Why not go with them, the established couple who AREN'T messy and unlikable assholes like JP is if you HAVE to do it.

But him being messy and an asshole doesn't matter when the story isn't about him as a character but instead trying to make the news cycle.

Northstar's been in the real life news cycle twice but they still won't put him in anything. Awesome 👍

[symphonybracket]

YouTube links: Tchaikovsky 6, Mahler 1

Comments:

Mahler 1

cmon there's evil frere jacque in this symphony it's the best thing ever

The beginning is so beautiful… and very reminiscent of the Star Trek intro!

It's SO MUCH. The first two movements are gorgeous. Putting minor key "are you sleeping brother john" and then klezmer wedding music in the middle of it is the funniest thing anyone's ever done AND THEN CYMBAL CRASH an absolute deluge of sound and the most epic f***ing music ever (Wagner can go eat his socks). You have to love it.

Tchaikovsky 6

Everyone bangs on about the 4th movement but it's the 3rd movement that really hits

tchaik 6 is what i would listen to if i had an hour to live

the 5/4 movement of the tchaik lives rent free in my mind and i think about it every day

It’s beyond gorgeous. The melodies soar, the orchestra swells, and you just need to lie down for a while after listening to it. It’s Romanticism at its zenith. You want to weep and sigh, and it’s impossible to listen to it without literally feeling something.

Symphony No. 6, titled “Pathétique”, was Tchaikovsky’s final symphony. It is an intensely emotional piece, and to many scholars demonstrates the emotional turmoil that characterized much of Tchaikovsky’s life. He died about a week after its premiere, a fact which leads many scholars to debate about whether the content of the piece itself reflects the possibility that he may have committed suicide. The title itself is often translated to mean “impassioned suffering”, although this was most likely a later addition by Modest and not actually part of Tchaikovsky’s vision. Given these facts, many scholars interpret this piece to be about death and suffering. However, this piece can also be seen to represent life and all its contrasting moments. This interpretation is more holistic and inclusive of all of the moments captured in this piece, and also serves to break down the common narrative of Tchaikovsky as a tragic figure.

More comments about Tchaikovsky 6 below the cut (length warning):

Scholarship surrounding Tchaikovsky’s music tends to focus heavily on the ways his confliction over his homoerotic desires appears in his writing. However, his personal letters reveal a much more balanced understanding of himself that goes beyond the common narrative. In one letter written to Modest describing a new relationship with another man, he writes: “I awoke today with a feeling of unknown happiness and with a complete absence of that emotional sobriety that used to make me repent in the morning for having gone too far the day before.” Many of the letters he wrote regarding his relationships demonstrate no shame and no anguish beyond what can be expected of a man living in a homophobic society. It is important to take this information into account when listening to a piece such as this one that has been discussed so frequently, and to understand it beyond the turmoil and strife that it is seen to represent. Like many of Tchaikovsky’s works, this symphony displays a range of human emotions. It is not only representative of tragedy and “impassioned suffering”; it is a depiction of what it is like to live. It is also interesting to note that this piece is used as a signifier of queer desire in the novel "Maurice" by E.M. Forster, a novel also notable for its radical portrayal of a queer man who gets a happy ending. Much to think about there.

The first movement begins with a lone bassoon soloist playing a plaintive minor melody, which later comes back in the strings. As the movement progresses, it grows in intensity and texture. More instruments are added, and the music becomes more frantic, building and building towards the dramatic trumpet fanfare. Throughout this piece, Tchaikovsky continues to make significant use of contrasting dynamics and melodies, reflecting the emotions he hopes to convey through the music. Dramatic, tumultuous sections are interspersed with pastoral woodwind melodies, and the angry brass fanfares give way to a quiet ending.

The second movement is reminiscent of a waltz, and uses the strings and woodwinds more than the brass to achieve its floating melodies. The dynamics ebb and flow to build tension, but this movement never reaches the same levels of anguish that the previous movement does. Tchaikovsky makes use of pizzicato in the strings to convey a lighter, more cheerful mood, and features the upper woodwinds prominently. He also repeats themes frequently, giving the audience something familiar to listen out for as the movement progresses.

The third movement begins with frantic energy in the strings and woodwinds. As more instruments join the rush of music, the underlying eight note accompaniment does not let up, continuing the vivacious beginning through the whole movement. Instruments pass the melodies between each other and engage in conversations across the orchestra. Like the first movement, the brass play a prominent role in creating dramatic climaxes in the music, as well as supporting the march-like conclusion. Conductor Myung-Whun Chung describes the deceptively dramatic ending as, “one of the greatest, most thrilling, but most empty of victories in musical history,” observing that this movement has the energetic finality of a final movement. The reversal of having the true finale be a slower movement represents a shift away from the “Beethovian model of light over darkness” common in most other symphonies of this time period.

As mentioned before, ending on a movement with a slow tempo was a significant shift away from the standard of the time. This innovation inspired many other future composers to use the same technique, most notably Mahler in his Ninth Symphony. The quiet beginning builds up towards a chaotic rush of fast runs throughout the orchestra, only to stop abruptly and continue in halting, cautious bursts of melody. The movement continues with this cycle of rushing up to a climax and backing away as the movement progresses. Tchaikovsky highlights the horns in this movement, giving them both angry, blaring notes which cut through the string melodies and the flowing, lyrical lines that are passed throughout the orchestra. As the piece ends, the instruments fall away until all that is left are steady repeated notes in the basses, bringing this lament of a movement to an understated close.

[random-conspiracy]

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

I want to adress this concept in a deep way BUT 1) I have literally no time to waste and 2) I don't want to write right now, specially in english. My hsnds are so fucking cold and have been acting numb since the beggining of the day. But whatever. The topic is:

Irrational embellishments of a City.

Look, the group as we know it of the surrealist artists (Andre Breton + Gang) reported multiples experiments surrounding the possibilities of irrational knowledge. What would the mind express when there is no rational or concious effort that could change its outcome? Dreams were a fucking incredible area of studies for the surrealism group because it was the purest expression of irrational knowledge. Other techniques revolving around speed: Giving an answer or writing ideas as fast as you could was an accesible way to obtain information not contaminated by logical or rational thought.

NOW one of those games/experiments was giving answers to questions in that exact way. Sometime around objects, dates, etc. The one that I want to bring back to table is On certain possibilities for the irrational embellishments of a City, where they suggested changes and renovations for the monuments of Paris: The Arch of Triumph, the Justice Palace, the statue of Joan D'Arc, the Eiffel Tower, etc.

(REMIND ME TO ADD REFERENCES ABOUT THE WRITTEN REPORT OF THE GAME/EXPERIMENT)

Instructions: Every participant must answer the question regarding the architecture/urbanist changes to do in a certain monument. The players were Andre Breton, Paul Eluard, Arthur Harfaux, Maurice Henry, Benjamin Peret, Tristan Tzara, George Wenstein.

Doit-on conserver, déplacer, modifier, transformer ou supprimer : – 1. L’arc de Triomphe – 2. L’obélisque – 3. La Tour Eiffel – 4. La Tour Saint-Jacques – 5. La statue de Chappe – 6. La statue de Gambetta – 7. La statue de Jeanne-d’Arc (rue de Rivoli ) – 8. Paris pendant la guerre – 9. La Défense de Paris en 1870 – 10. La République (place de la République) – 11. La colonne Vendôme – 12. Le Sacré-Cœur – 13. Le Trocadéro – 14. Le Chevalier de la Barre – 15. Le Lion de Belfort – 16. L’Opéra – 17. Les Invalides – 18. Le Palais de Justice – 19. La Sainte-Chapelle – 20. Le Chabanais – 21. Notre-Dame – 22. La Nationale – 23. La statue de Panhard – 24. La statue d’Alfred de Musset – 25. La statue de Clémenceau – 26. Le Panthéon – 27. La statue d’Henri IV – 28. La statue de Victor Hugo (Palais-Royal) – 29. La statue de Louis XIV – 30. La gare de l’Est- – 31. La statue de Camille Desmoulins ?

(To concerve, displace, modify, transform or suppress)

THE FUCKING POINT: Is that the City is a maleable piece of shit. The city is the face of a society and a culture. The monuments and the streets can be read like lines in a hand, scars, moles.

The city shapes our undertanding of it, and we are the ones who shape it (usually). NOW, what happens when our monuments and buildings are changed? Think about protests and riots. Buildings in fire or demolished according to the way they represent a philosophy and philosophies are changed.

BUT BUT BUT BUT BUT, what happens when this change is irrational? What happens when the way we change the city is absurd, is nonsensical, is an anomaly?

Paul Éluard suggested "lay it (the Arch of Triumph) on its side and transform it into the most beautiful public urinal in France." Andre Breton suggested about Notre Dame cathedral: Replacing the towers with “immense oil and vinegar cruet, one bottle filled with blood, the other with sperm" and the cathedral itself into a “school for the sexual education of virgins.” He also suggested about the Tour Saint-Jacques (below) to demolish the surrounding houses and then prohibiting all access under penalty of death for one hundred years.

DO YOU THE POINT I'M TRYING GO MAKE HERE???

BUILDINGS ARE NOT INMUTABLE AS THOUGHTS. THEY CAN BE DESTROYED, THEY CAN BE TWISTED. We feel the oppresive and eternal presence of our monuments and towers, buildings, brindges, churches. But they can de changed and bended.

Let's make the Capitol a massive statue of balloons, the Palace Justice in Mexico a communitary pool. Let the Independe Angel statue in Mexico no longer be a roundabout, and allow the cars to go across it i any direction and take down the statue and run over it.

Let Nonsense be the apocaliptic monster that eats politics and religions, and faith and fear and rational blocks of concrete. Let it rot the chains and contaminate the walls, fuck the statues and eat the streets. Let architecture grow legs like moho and eoplod the featyres than never bringa back againts the one that atre chained and nevermore let them die aqnds eat and sleep and fuck ansd never o nevrenma ahwa am iI DON ITR NOR W AN D S;LEEP.

[wildechild3]

Maurice - Chapter 2

Warning: Maurice Spoilers (mostly for the book)

Named Characters Description:

Maurice- same age as chapter 1

Mrs. Hall- Maurice’s mother, very doting mother in this chapter

Ada Hall- oldest younger sister, adores Maurice to the point of “worshiping” him

Kitty Hall- youngest sister, likes Maurice but does not “worship” him in the same way Ada does, is described by Dr. Barry as having “hints of grit” in her. 

George- one of the servants hired by the Halls, he has left to “better himself” when Maurice comes home from school

Mr and Mrs. Howell- servants employed by the Halls, Mr. Howell is a coachman

Dr. Barry- old family friend, his favorite Hall is Kitty due to her slightly different personality from the rest of the Halls

Slight side note: Literally why has no one written fanfic about Kitty that isn’t focused around Maurice? Literally two chapters in and there’s already so much potential for her character??? There’s some Kitty/Violet fics on AO3, but all of them still have focus on Maurice (fair enough with him being the title character but still).

Points of Note:

The Halls are essentially the 1910’s version of your white nuclear suburban family. Like Forester goes through a lot of effort to insist how painfully average the Halls are. Kitty is the only one who stands out amongst them, but that isn’t much of an accomplishment considering how boring they’re described as. 

Maurice is compared to his father even more in this chapter. It comes up four times from three separate conversations (Mrs. Hall, Mr and Mrs Howell, and Dr. Barry). Once again, this is not in a ‘he���ll be a great success’ way; but in a ‘he’ll be just as plain and boring’ kind of way. 

George is arguably Maurice’s first childhood love. Though we get very little description of George, I’ve come to the conclusion that Alec and George are parallels. There’s something hauntingly similar between the two and as we go on with the summary I’ll go more in depth. 

Summary:

This chapter starts with Maurice coming home from school. He’s greeted by his sisters and mother who all dote on him and welcome him home. While walking the garden with his mother, he asks where George is. His mother ignores this at first to tell him,

    “Such a splendid report from Mr. Abrahams. He says you remind him of your poor father…” (Pg. 17)

After a bit more talking (mostly about vegetables) Maurice asks again about George. His mother lies to him and tells him that George had gotten too old and was given notice (basically laid off/fired) from Mr. Howell. She then changes subject to what they should do while Maurice is home and about how proud she is about him going to the same public school as his father.

    “(...) you see, your father was at his school too, and we are sending you to your father’s old public school too- Sunnington- in order that you may grow up like your dear father in every way.” (Pg. 17)

Maurice then begins to cry. When asked why by his mother, Maurice claims he doesn’t know why he’s crying. However, we can assume it’s probably because George is gone. Though when his sisters ask why Maurice is crying, his mother claims that he is tired and he agrees. After this he plays Halma with his sisters (a board game that’s kinda like checkers but a bit more complicated) and then runs out to Mr. Howell to ask about George. It’s here that he learns the truth.

According to Mr. Howell, George left on his accord to better himself (cough cough foreshadowing cough cough). Maurice then makes a rude and snobbish comment to Mr and Mrs. Howell and runs off in true shithead kid fashion. Once again, he’s compared to his father.

Dr. Barry and his wife stop by to join the Halls for dinner. He also sees the Halls as plain and somewhat boring but he’s nicer about it. This is where we get this interesting quote though,

    “Kitty he liked- she had hints of grit in her- but the girls were in bed, and he told his wife afterwards that Maurice ought to have been there too. ‘And stop there all his life. As he will. Like his father. What is the use of such people?’ ” (Pg. 19)

Basically saying, Maurice is as boring and unremarkable as his father he might as well just went to bed instead of joining the adults for their dinner. I think he also just called Maurice useless which is such a harsh thing to say about a fourteen year old like damn.

When Maurice does go to bed, we get a scene with him arranging the candle so the light doesn't cast shadows into the mirror. As mentioned in the previous chapter, young Maurice is scared of the dark. In this chapter we learn that it isn’t so much darkness as it is the odd shadows that are cast against the ceiling and walls by low light. 

In his fear of the dark he calls out for George (cough cough foreshadowing cough cough). Maurice questions his own actions (essentially: why should he care about some servant???) and then he falls asleep. 

River’s Extra Notes:

So when I read this chapter, all I really thought of George was that he was Maurice’s first crush. But as I was writing this review I had a little light bulb moment as I was looking over the chapter. George is Alec. Alec is foreshadowed from the very beginning and it drives me batshit insane. I didn’t make the connection the first or second time reading the book, but the third times’ the charm I guess. George and Alec are both working class men who move onto another job to better themselves. Maurice, in the darkness/in his darkest moments, calls out for them. Alec answers the call, George does not.

(Maybe I’m the last to figure this out and now I just look stupid lmao.)

Anyways, I wrote this instead of studying and now my brain will be going feral for the rest of the day. Feel free to tell me I’m wrong about anything honestly.

[realsorcerershit]

How the hell did you P-Rank P-2 so fast I suck balls at this game. I was able to P-Rank P-1 yet I literally had to turn on Major Assists just to get past that room with the Stalker.

Honest, genuine answer - I've put an obscene amount of time into this game. Something like 133.9 hours on steam right now. But - outside of that, there's a lot of like - little nitty gritty bits and pieces to it all, so if you want, I'll do a written guide under a read more? For anyone unaware - spoilers will be under the cut here. And, sorry if it's long - I have way too many thoughts about all of this, and do actually want to help as much as I can!

So - for reference, here, I actually have a video that I uploaded, which I'll use to reference? I'll try to refer to rooms as much as possible to be descriptive and whatnot, too! Video reference here. The name of the game here is threat analysis, and finding ways to keep yourself alive. What worked for me might not work for you, and vice versa.

Quad Cerberus: The name of the game for this room was speed. The upcoming Ferryman and Virtue spawn makes this one require you to go fast, so - I instantly open with a core eject + malicious railcannon nuke, dashing to avoid the damage as I shoot the nuke. This puts all of the Cerberus' to less than half HP, making projectile boosts and rocket usage the way to go to finish them all off. Then, it's all about setting up a quick sawcon trap to kill the Ferryman as soon as I can. For the double Virtues, I do my usual strat for virtue killing - shotgun swapping, punch with red arm, use whiplash to close the distance.

Double Sentry + Mindflayer 1 + Swordsmachine: For this fight - I took a look at what would be the most instantly lethal to me, in particular, for this fight. That would be the double Sentries in the back. Luckily, the Swordsmachine also spawns between them, so I go to the side where one of the Sentries spawn, charge up a slab revolver piercing shot, and follow it immediately up with a blue railcannon. From there, it's just cleaning up whatever's left. Sawcon to finish the Swordsmachine, too. If at any point, the ability to parry the Mindflayer's bullets shows up, take it. It's a free health and stamina refill. This applies all the way til the double idol room.

Hallway Cerberus + Double Streetcleaner: Once again, this is a case of threat analysis. The Cerberus needs to go first, immediately. I personally do a double railcoin setup to kill it fast - but if you can't pull that off, piercing slab revolver + blue railcannon + friendly fire damage from the Mindflayer should be enough. Finish off the streetcleaners last in any way possible, then move on.

Double Idol Mindflayer, Pack 1 (Sentry + 2x SM): Once again, the Sentry is your biggest threat due to lack of cover. However, you can just stun it with a revolver shot, and then set up saws to kill the Swordsmachines passively - keep moving to avoid the Sword swipes. This one's a lot harder to explain and just ends up looking messy no matter how you do it, and this one just takes practice.

Pack 2 (2x Virtue, 2x Maurice): My biggest enemy here, imo, are the virtues, just due to the beams they fire that stun you. So, whiplash to them with the shotgun out, and shotgun swap while punching with the red arm to kill em off quickly. Repeat the same strat for the Maurices, then break the statues.

2x Mindflayer: At last, the double mindflayers. My goal is to just - kinda also shotgun spam them. That said, if I can find the window to safely instakill one with the malicious railcannon (the timing is right as their homing bullets spawn - shoot with malicious railcannon and they instantly die) I'll take it. Don't worry about your health too much going into this - punching the idols will heal you.

2x Insurrectionist: Good lord this pack sucks for me. However, with the addition of the SRS Cannon, you can now stun one of them, which is really helpful. Make sure to set up a sawcon on them, and spam projectile boosts to keep them on fire. They take more damage while on fire, as it's a weakness. Outside of that, just continue to move, do not stop, and use the big railcannon when you can as well. I believe whiplashing the skull into them also sets them on fire, too? Don't quote me on that.

Spinning Blood Lake 1 (2x Virtue, 2x MF, 1x Sentry): This is another game of just stun the sentry first, then kill whatever leaves an opening. In the uploaded run, I snipe with blue railcannon, then use the shotgun on the virtues, re-stun the sentry with the revolver, then finish up and move on. THis one requires practice and is very open ended on how you solve it - don't be afraid to fall if you need to just get somewhere for health regen.

Spinning Blood Chamber 2 (2x Cerb, 2x Sentry, 1x MF): This room sucks and killed at least 20 runs for me. My strategy ended up being whiplashing to the Sentries to punch them off the cliff ASAP, whiplashing to the Maurice to kill THAT next, then just plinking at the Cerberus' from afar until they died. Again, it's open ended, but I think that's the most ideal threat priority.

Stalker room, wave 1 (4x Stray, 2x Swordsmachine, 1x Ferryman): The name of the game here is to continue moving, and do not STOP moving. I set up a Sawcon trap in the middle to get free plink damage on the Swordsmachines and the Ferryman, and ultimately ignore the Stray until it's convenient for me to kill them. The name of the game is to keep pulling the enemies away from the Stalker, so that they don't get sanded, so you can maintain health regeneration.

Stalker room, wave 2 (4x Sentry, 1x Idol, 1x Hideous Mass): The name of the game here is to time your dashes with the shots that you cannot cancel - and use the red fist religiously to cancel as many shots as you can in combination with the Whiplash. As long as you're moving rapidly, the Hideous Mass cannot hit you, and that's what's most important. Getting locked down by the tail claw is a total death sentence. Punching the tether, if you get stuck, with the red fist, does get rid of it, though.

Stalker room, wave 3 (3x Virtue, 4x Cerberus): Here, we really have the thing of nightmares. However, one thing becomes safe: The Idol protecting the Hideous Mass opens up, and that can be immediately punched if you're in danger of death for a free health refill. That said, I take to the sky immediately with the Whiplash, killing off the three Virtues with my usual method, shotgun swap, red fist punch. Then, while I'm in the air and falling down, I set up sawblades on the underbelly of the Hideous Mass (breaking the Idol was the first thing I did, also worth mentioning), letting those do passive damage to both it and the Cerberus'. Follow it all up with staying far away from the Cerberus' to give myself time to react to their attacks, punch the idol, kill the Stalker, and then FINALLY it's time for the PANOPTICON.

PANOPTICON: Not too much to talk about here. Just - immediately whiplash up to kill the eyes, use the pistol on the face that spawns, high speed circle strafe around the PANOPTICON while doing as much damage to it as possible. The big thing for this one is find a way to avoid its explosive lobbing that works for you, I'd say?

SISYPHUS PRIME: Here, I adopted a strat similar to how people P rank Minos Prime nowadays - sawcon setup during the cutscene. Use the pistol to break a single nail when possible. When you're ready, do a double/triple railcoin through him, and then continue to bait him into saws. I panicked a bit in the video, as you can see, when the coins didn't kill, but. That's the hardest part. Just find a high DPS route in your own way!

Holy shit this was so long. I'm so sorry. I do hope that this helps a lot, though! And don't beat yourself up about having to use major assists - these are some of the most fucked up enemy patterns that exist in the game, in conjunction with excessively difficult room design. Genuinely, it's tough. Even making it to this fight is a massive accomplishment.