#I haven’t seen such a creative group of people in such a long time

[observethewalrus]

I think the thing that feels the worst right now is the fear that this fandom will fade away like so many others once their shows stopped. I would’ve felt the same even if we’d gotten all three seasons. And don’t get me wrong, people are always gonna drift away and move on to other things, that’s just life (and it already happened after s1)

But I’m seeing so many writers and artists here and on twitter all like “the apocalypse couldn’t stop me from writing/drawing/talking about these pirates” and it’s like, I love all of you so damn much. I’m not very talkative and I don’t interact with people here much but I haven’t had this much fun in a fandom in years. I know we’re going to lose people, but I’ll be eternally grateful to everyone who was here and everyone who keeps this ship afloat 🏴‍☠️

[kotias]

Ineffable Rockstars

Time to properly become creatively feral about the Ineffable Rockstars project with @vavoom-sorted-art, @searchingforakeythatdoesntexist , @daneecastle, @moonyinpisces and Stitcherydoo!

Summary of the story: human!AU, Crowley and Aziraphale are rockstars in their respective groups, Celestial Harmonies and Hell's Rebuke. Word is out that those two groups have bad history together, and therefore the two of them, while shamelessly talking to each other any festival they get to meet at, do have to be careful about being seen together by their own bands.

Summary of this excerpt: Aziraphale explains the story of the two bands to Crowley, who has arrived after everything went down and was kept in the dark by his mates.

Lyrics: written for the purpose of this fic.

Word count of the excerpt: 872 words

Excerpt:

Crowley sat down next to Aziraphale, whose eyes laid probably a second too long on those long fingers, on this chest showing so proudly from behind his open shirt- He coughed and drank a large gulp from the flute, clutching at the glass like a lifeline.

“It’s- it’s alright. Are you feeling comfortable? How was the concert?”

“Hah, acting like I didn’t see you in the audience, are ya?” Crowley asked with a smirk, and Aziraphale looked away, feeling the heat building up on his face.

“Well, we do need to keep it silent, don’t we?” he answered nonetheless with a coy smile, sipping on his drink.

“Why, though? It’s completely beyond me; Bee recruited me right after the split between Celestial Harmonies and Hell’s Rebuke, but there’s always been… you know, a feeling that it didn’t happen for no reason.”

“They haven’t explained it to you?” Crowley shook his head, and Aziraphale sighed. “No wonder you’re lost. Well, to put it simply… Hell’s Rebuke’s members were part of Celestial Harmonies, a few years ago.”

“Yes, I know that-”

“Let me talk, please; I would like to make sure we work with the same information.”

As he began explaining the official history of the two bands, he was cut by a thunder of clapping as the concert was coming to an end, and he and his counterpart felt compelled to stand up and join the applause.

When you reached Summer,

You lost sight of the star lights,

Questions died in your throat,

Cursing a future that is naught

And the night falling upon you

Left you laying awake with open eyes.

After two encore songs and enough clapping to make their hands and wrists sore, Crowley and Aziraphale walked towards another scene and stayed in relative distance, ensuring that they would hear each other. “So, you were saying, Hell’s Rebuke and Celestial Harmonies.”

“Ah! Yes; so, this is fairly public knowledge.” Crowley nodded impatiently. “At least, it is not something that we are actively hiding, neither of the two groups; somebody who knows how to Google us would be able to find this information.” Aziraphale frowned, crossing his arms. “Honestly, that is why it concerns me a little that you have not been informed of this; it is a fairly common question that people are trying out on us, asking about the other group to see how we react. Anyways-”

The vendors just a few metres from them had started cooking a few crepes, and Crowley did not miss the eyes darting towards them. “Want some? C’me on, it’s my treat,” he insisted as Aziraphale’s eyebrows raised -and it was obvious that he wasn’t going to refuse such an offer.

“Well, if you insist,” he answered, the corners of his lips curling up and his eyelashes fluttering; Crowley’s heart missed a beat, his fingers pressed against his flute, and he barely managed to keep a groan from reaching out of his mouth.

“You do have to tell me more, though; ‘specially if you think my ignorance could bite me in the ass.”

“Yes, of course.” Aziraphale’s voice dropped as they reached the line, keeping it to the level of a private conversation. “Bee and Gabriel were… an item.”

“Oh, excellent start. If that’s only the beginning, I might have to stock up on popcorn with that crepe of yours.”

“Heh, well, it might be one of the more interesting aspects of this entire story, so do not keep your expectations too high.”

“No, no, don't kill my hopes, now. Go on, tell me everything, I’m sure it will be full of riveting details, Bee’s never been good at keeping things tidy anyways.”

Aziraphale groaned. “Oh, you should see Gabriel when he gets involved… Ah- one crepe with sugar, thank you,” he said with a bright smile to the vendor. “Alright, so- long story short, the band was originally founded by the two of them; excellent musicians those two are, and the band did have quite the promising future before it. We started having a fairly good reputation.”

“Black coffee and a serving of fries. The name’s been around for a while now, that’s right- I remember seeing it ten years ago on some festival announcements in my city. Cash, thanks.”

“We have, yes. We were very local for a long while, but…”

“What changed?”

“Gabriel and the others were wishing to go professional; Bee and who are now Hell’s Rebuke were not willing to do that.”

“Ah, I see. Well, they didn't change much in that aspect,” Crowley mumbled sourly, extending his arms to grab the crepe and coffee. He gave the dessert over, then took his serving of fries, and they left the vendor’s stand. “Wait, where did you stand? You stayed with Celestial Harmonies, after all.”

“Hm, well…”

That did not sound like somebody who was fully happy to have stayed, Crowley thought, and he crept closer to Aziraphale, nudging him with his elbow. “Come on, spill the beans! Honestly, I’m looking to go in that direction, if there’s anything I should be aware of…”

“Being professional was, and still is, something that I hold dear,” Aziraphale explained, his slow speech feeling heavy, like he was choosing every word carefully.

[soulrph]

" 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐎𝐔𝐃𝐄𝐒𝐓 𝐒𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄 "  𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐓𝐒.

a wonderfully patient and creative nonnie asked for a list of prompts based on interactions between two good friends in the aftermath of a trauma that happens to one of them, and i’m nothing if not a sucker for angst and deeply emotional connections! so here we go! i’m hoping these will be up to the nonnie’s expectations! have a wonderful day, my lovelies, and DO NOT ADD TO THIS LIST !!

“ i really hate seeing you like this... “

“ why don’t we hang out tonight? like we used to, you know? order in cheap take-out, watch crappy movies, go for a walk... whatever you want, right? “

“ please say something... anything. even if it’s telling me to shut up and leave you alone... just say something. “

“ i really miss you, you know. “

“ i’m here. you got that? i don’t care if you never say anything to me ever again. i don’t care. i’m not going away, and i’m not going to stop being here for you, no matter how long you glare at me or ignore me or pretend that you’re okay. because i know you’re not. i know. “

“ talk to me. i don’t care what we talk about. it doesn’t have to be anything big. we don’t need to talk about whatever happened to you, not unless you want to. i just... just talk to me, will you? “

“ you know, i talk to a lot of people every single day. i hear all their voices telling me all kinds of stuff; i hear it all. and the only voice i really wanna listen to is yours, you know? even when you’re driving me crazy. so come on. please... just drive me crazy again? “

“ ...seriously? no come-back? no witty retort? no... sarcastic shot at me? come on, i... i know we never ask these things, but, honestly, i’m worried about you. what’s going on? “

“ penny for your thoughts? hell. a dollar? ten? fifty? my whole life-savings? damn, at this rate i’d give away everything i own just to hear your voice again. “

“ this is like, the ninth voicemail i’ve left, and i know you hate voicemails, so i’m thinking this might be the one that pisses you off enough to pick up the phone and talk to me. because despite the number of times i’ve told you to shut up, i’m actually begging you to say something, now. weird how things work out, isn’t it? anyway. pick up your freaking phone, moron. please. “

“ will you please talk to me? please? “

“ i have exhausted every single topic that i can think of to get you to open your mouth and say something to me. all of them. you leave me no choice... how are you? “

“ listen, we’re all really worried about you. okay? and we wanna help you, but we don’t know how. so how about you write us a note, or something? maybe just, open the door, huh? i just wanna know that you’re okay. “

“ you’re not alone, you know. you’ve got people who love you. who care about you. you’ve got me. and i’m not going anywhere. “

“ look, i don’t know what happened to you. and i don’t need you to tell me, okay? i don’t... i just want you to know that i’m here. i got you. no matter what. and if you need some space, then... then i can leave. just tell me what you need, okay? “

“ i don’t need you to say anything. you don’t even need to open the door. i’m just gonna slide this paper under the door, okay? you tell me what you want for dinner, and i’ll bring it up. “

“ i’m sending you on a list of therapists and group support meetings in the area, okay? you don’t have to go, but... promise me you’ll take a look at the list, right? “

“ listen, i know you gave me a copy of your key for emergencies, and this feels like an emergency, but... if the silent treatment is part of you trying to get some space, then i don’t wanna intrude. you know? so just text me if that’s what this is, and i’ll leave you alone. “

“ i know, i know. you asked me to leave you alone. but that was two weeks ago, okay? and i haven’t heard from you. you aren’t answering my texts, you aren’t even reading them. nobody’s seen or heard from you, and... and now i just want to know that you’re okay. so please, open your door, and let me make sure that you’re safe, will you? “

[lives-in-midgard]

We Were Happy

(Musician AU Part 4)

Pairing: Steve Rogers x reader

Summary: You and Steve experience some happy moments together but there are also some bad decisions made.

Word Count: 1970

A/N: Hey everyone! This is part 4 of my Steve musician AU! I really hope you like it even though I'm a little bit sorry for the ending! The divider is made by @firefly-graphics.

Part 3 | Part 4

Masterlist | Musician AU

It’s been almost two weeks since the pictures of you and Steve appeared on the internet. At first, you were both worried that it would affect your dating life, but that wasn’t really the case. Steve made a post on his Instagram. A picture of the two of you from behind, in the caption he simply added “My Love” and a heart emoji. Some people were being rude, others were supportive and happy to see Steve happy. You were both happy that there were more good comments than rude ones. Bucky, Sam and Clint have also been very supportive of you both. They were always very happy to see you and enjoyed your company. Even if Steve was a little distracted at times because of you. That’s why you decided not to come to all rehearsals, even though you had time. You didn’t want to be the reason why they wouldn’t be as good as they always were.

On this day it is going to be the festival in Coney Island. You were at your apartment and decided to meet Steve there. You were sitting on your couch writing something on a piece of paper when you heard a knock on your door. You got up, headed for the door when you realized that you forgot to hide what you had just written on the paper. But it will only be Yelena picking you up for the festival, so it’s alright. When you told her about it, she immediately wanted to come with you. You opened the door and greeted her with a hug.

“Are you ready to leave?” She asked.

“I just have to get my bag.” You said and walked to your room. You quickly found the bag you wanted to choose and walked back into the living room. When you opened the door, you saw Yelena sitting on the couch, looking at what you had written earlier. You quickly walked over and took it from her hands.

“Hey, I wasn’t finished.” Yelena said and you placed the paper under some magazines that were lying there.

“This is a new one, right?” You nodded and Yelena smiled.

“Does Steve know that you write songs?” Yelena asked and you sat down beside her. You started writing songs almost a year ago. Sometimes it takes you a while to finish one, and sometimes it is really easy. You really enjoy writing songs and doing something creative in your free time. You never thought of performing them, not only because you think you’re not a good singer, but also because you’re afraid of singing in front of an audience. You haven’t told Steve about your hobby yet because you were afraid of his reaction and if he would like your songs.

“No, I haven’t yet.” You confessed and Yelena shook her head.

“You should definitely tell him. I think Steve would really like your songs.” Maybe he would, but you were still afraid about his reaction. After a while you decided to drive to the festival. Yelena drove, so you could drive home with Steve later. When you arrived at the festival, you looked for the stage where they would perform. When you both found the stage, there were already a few people standing in front of it. You came closer and decided to wait there. After a while the place became more and more crowded. You looked at your phone and sent a message to Steve.

“Good luck, Stevie.” It only took a few seconds to get a message back.

“Thank you, sweetheart. Can’t wait to see you later.” You smiled and couldn’t wait to see them live again. It’s been so long since you’ve seen the band live, and now it feels so different. Instead of just a small group of people, there was now a large group of fans there. And when the band came out, they were shouting and screaming. They held up posters they had made and had big smiles on their faces. As they walked out, Steve immediately looked for you. When he saw you, he began to smile, and you smiled back. You heard Yelena chuckle next to you, and you began to blush. You watched them perform and listened to their songs. It was such a good feeling to dance and sing a to their songs again.

After the Midnight Rockers sang their final song, they waved goodbye to the fans and Steve blew you a kiss. When someone behind you screamed, you and Yelena had to laugh because this kiss was clearly for you. While the other people were still standing in front of the stage, you and Yelena made your way away from the stage. Steve texted you that he wants to meet you at the Wonder Weel. When you and Yelena arrived there, Steve wasn’t there yet. So, you waited for a while. After a few minutes you saw Steve and the others walking towards you. You ran over to Steve, and you hugged each other. After you pulled away from the hug Steve gave you a gentle kiss. While you two were having a moment Yelena greeted the others.

“You were amazing.” You said and looked at the band.

“Thanks, sweetheart.” Steve said and the others also thanked you. Then you all went on a few rides together until Yelena had to go to work. After a while there were only you and Steve left, so you decided to go to the Wonder Weel. It was very romantic because it was already getting dark outside. You had a really great time there with Steve and talked about some of the memories you both shared there. You also took some photos of him and some fans, they were really kind to you. When it got cold, Steve gave you his jacket and you walked to his car. He drove to his house, and you had a chilly evening together.

The next day there were some pictures of the two of you circulating on the internet again, but you didn’t really care. You enjoyed your time there with Steve and that’s all that mattered.

You weren’t much in your apartment over the next few days. You only went to work and then Steve picked you up and you spend some time together at his home or sometimes Bucky, Sam or even Clint came over. You watched movies, cooked together, he played songs on the piano and sometimes you went for walks together.

But this day was a little different than usually. You were currently reading a book, and Steve was sitting next to you trying to write a song. You looked over at him a few times and could see that he was struggling. You wanted to ask if you should help him or tell him that you write songs, but you weren’t sure if you should. After a while he groaned and put everything on the desk. You looked over at him and Steve really looked frustrated. You put the book down and decided to help him.

“I have an idea.” You suddenly said.

“An idea for what sweetheart?” Steve asked and reached for your hand.

“To help you find inspiration.” You said and he began to smile. You stood up from the couch and walked to the door. You put your shoes on and saw that Steve was still in the living room.

“Come on, let’s go.” You screamed and he giggled. He walked over to you, leaned in and kissed you. Once you were in the car, you turned on some music and drove off, not really knowing where you were driving. You drove around having fun singing with Steve by your side, and you ended up stopping at a beautiful place and watching the sun go down.

Before you drove back to Steve’s house, you drove to your apartment to get something. While you quickly went to your room, Steve made himself comfortable on your couch. When you came back, you saw him reading your new song. When he heard your footsteps, Steve looked up.

“What’s that sweetheart?” You completely forgot that you left it in the living room before you went to the festival a few days ago.

“Oh, umm. It’s …. it’s a song I …wrote.” You stumbled nervously. Steve stood up, placed it on the table and walked closer to you.

“You wrote this?” Steve asked with a smile.

“Yeah, I know it’s not that good but yes, I wrote it.” You were still nervous, but when Steve took your hand, your nervousness disappeared.

“What are you talking about, that’s so good y/n.”

“Really?” You asked and Steve chuckled.

“Yeah, I love it.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Steve asked.

“I don’t know. I guess I was scared of your reaction.”

“You don’t have to be scared of me you know that, right? And this song is really amazing.”

“Thank you, honey.” You said and you kissed each other.

“Why don’t you publish it? You don’t have to sing yourself if you don’t want to.” Steve asked after a while.

“I don’t know if I want that yet.” You said and Steve was really understanding about that.

A week has passed since Steve saw your song. You just came home from work and looked at your phone for the first time since you started working. You checked Instagram and when you saw the new post of the official page from the Midnight Rockers you were confused because Steve didn’t tell you anything about this. There was a new post saying that there is a new song going to be out tonight. When you saw what the song is called, you were shocked because it was called the same as the song you recently wrote and Steve saw.

Did he really take your song without asking you??

You had to call him. You wanted to dial his number when suddenly there was a knock on your door. When you opened it, there was Steve standing right in front of you.

“Steve what is this?” You asked and showed him your phone. There wasn’t time for a hello or a hug, you needed to know if this is really your song.

“I can explain it, I really can.”

“So, it really is my song?” You said full of anger but also sadness. Steve made a few steps closer to you, but you made two steps back. A sad expression was to see on his face.

“Yeah, it’s…it’s yours.” He finally admitted and you had to look away.

“But I can explain it.” He continued.

“You don’t have to explain anything to me. Please just go. I need some time to think.”

“But- “Steve began.

“No but, you just took my song without asking me. I even told you that I don’t want my songs to be published right now and you said that it’s okay. And now you did this. You …. You stole it” You almost shouted at him, and you could see how hurt he was.

“I’m just really disappointed in you Steve.”

“I’m so sorry, sweetheart.”

“Please don’t call me this. Please just go Steve.” You said and could feel that you were going to start crying soon.

“Please, leave my apartment now.”

“Okay.” Steve mumbled and walked out of your door. When he closed it, you immediately began to cry.

You could see in his eyes how you hurt him with your words. But Steve knew that you didn’t want other people to hear your songs yet and said it would be okay but then he just took it for his band. You couldn’t believe that Steve would ever do something like that. If he had asked you if he could use it, you might have said yes.

Taglist:

@jamneuromain | @magnificentsaladllama | @armystay89 | @marvelogic | @rogersbarber | @eviebuggg | @nicoline1998enilocin | @nekoannie-chan | @kandis-mom | @sergeantbarnessdoll

[blueeyedwriter]

Mistletoe - Armin Arlert AU

Summary : The whole friend group has a Christmas party to celebrate the most wonderful time of the year…who knew at this party, you’d also have the most wonderful kiss of the year with your best friend?

Notes : sorry everyone I DISAPPEARED for like…a month? Literally no creative energy flowing through me BUT i did want to make a short Armin AU fic because i love Armin and quite honestly would love to kiss him under the mistletoe too. Remember you can send requests to me!! Enjoy!! ❤️💚

—————

You were consumed by Christmas lights, loud music, and spiked eggnog as you were dancing your way throughout Eren and Mikasa’s house for their annual Christmas party. Ever since they got engaged and moved in together, the Holiday parties were hosted at theirs because it was most convenient for all the friends to fit under one roof. Everyone loved coming to their house for a party, because they were also conveniently the most festive hosts. They always had enough food, alcohol, and holiday spirit for twice the amount of people who came.

Your eyes scanned the room as you were trying to locate your best friend, Armin. You, Armin, Eren, and Mikasa have been a friend group since before you could remember. It was never awkward tagging along with Eren and Mikasa, because you had Armin. And not in the romantic sense, unfortunately, but it never ever felt like you were third wheeling because Armin made sure you had additional company too.

“Where could he possibly be?” You grumbled, turning the corner into the kitchen and finally spotting his bright blonde head of hair. Next to him, his long time crush Annie stood giggling and holding her drink in one hand, while twirling her hair in another. You rolled your eyes and decided maybe, it wasn’t a good idea to intervene whatever moment they might be having.

But, Armin spotted you before you could turn away, “Y/N!” You could hear the alcohol slipping off his tongue, and it made you softly smile because Armin rarely drank or allowed himself to have fun, “come over here!”

You didn’t want to, but you knew Armin would be upset if you didn’t, so you awkwardly made your way over to him and Annie. Annie smiled widely as you approached, not upset by the halt in their private conversation, which eased a weight off your shoulders.

“My girl,” Armin smiled as he threw an arm over your shoulder and pulled you close to him, “I feel like I haven’t seen you at all tonight!”

You chuckled as you tried to release his hold, but half his body weight was now on you, so you just let him have this moment of contact, “hey Armin, is Annie over here just letting you pound drinks one after another?”

Armin and Annie both laughed, and you softly groaned because that wasn’t you trying to be funny, you were just trying to tease them.

“I’ve been a good boy!” Armin protested, burping mid sentence, “I’ve only had about four beers…”

Annie interrupted, “and you’re on your second spiked eggnog now!”

Armin gasped, “Annie! You weren’t supposed to expose me like that!”

His grip around you tightened, and you couldn’t tell if it was from the alcohol, or his nerves. You supported him as best as you could, noticing his cheeks were turning a light pink. Definitely because Annie made him nervous, and a small piece of you wished it was you making him blush like that.

You loved Armin, and never wanted to cross any boundaries. He’s liked Annie ever since he realized what romantic feelings were, so you pushed any minor ones you had for him away, just wanting your friend to be happy. It was the least he deserved, after girls seemed to repeatedly reject him left and right. You never understood, because Armin was handsome in the innocent and royal type of way. He reminded you of a soft prince, who would never do anyone wrong. Not on purpose, at least. He never ever did you wrong.

Annie’s gaze diverted and her eyes widened, your head turning to see what, or who, she was looking at.

“It’s Reiner! I’m gonna go catch up with him,” now her cheeks were a light shade of pink, “I’ll see you guys later?”

You nodded sadly for your friend, but then realized he didn’t seem all too badly concerned by Annie leaving his side for Reiner’s attention. “Absolutely!” He said, a big smile beaming on his face, “talk to you later Annie!”

As Annie walked away, you nudged Armin with your shoulder, “you idiot! Why’d you let her walk off like that?”

Armin smiled lightly, looking down at you, “I wanna spend time with my girl who makes me feel like I’m always at the sea.”

You couldn’t help but roll your eyes at the cringey, yet sweet, compliment he gave you. It was effortless with him, but you never took anything from it because it’s how you and Armin have always been. Flirty, but strictly platonic.

“Alright you drunk boy,” you started to lead Armin out of the kitchen and towards the living room so you could rejoin your group of friends, “let’s go see where Eren and Mikasa are.”

Armin followed your lead but gasped loudly once you got into the hallway that leads into the living space. You had no idea why he gasped, and then abruptly stopped, until your gaze followed his towards the ceiling.

And hanging right down from it, was mistletoe. Of course Eren and Mikasa had mistletoe in their house. And of course, you and Armin were now under it.

“Y/N!” He exclaimed, “look! We have to!”

“Armin,” you started, allowing him to move so he was standing in front of you. He placed his hands by your waist, and the shift of energy in the room caught you by surprise once his hands touched a part of your body they never have before.

“Pleeeeaase Y/N? It’s just an innocent kiss! I’m drunk, make a drunk man happy!” He was practically begging now, and you sighed. You knew he meant it not in the way you would, but you just had to bury those feelings deep down again to make him happy, even if it makes you hurt on the inside. Like he said, you just wanted to make drunk, and later sober, Armin happy.

“Fine!” You caved, “but just one quick peck. Don’t want people to think I’m dating you!”

Armin smiled from ear to ear, and he quickly connected your lips with no hesitation. It was sudden, and you expected him to just pull right back after they came together for that second, but then he pulled your waist closer to his. He trailed one hand up your back as the other stayed placed on your hips, until his hand was in your hair and your lips were parting slightly for more. Your hands flew to wrap around his neck, as you felt his tongue swipe your teeth. You slowly opened your mouth more, allowing his tongue to start wrestling yours. Breaths were heavier now. Hearts were racing faster. You could have sworn you heard a soft whimper once you pulled away for some air, unable to contain yourself.

Armin continued to look down at you, until he went back in, this time only placing a quick peck to your lips before pulling away again.

“You,” Armin started, “are the sea. I could get lost swimming in you. Why haven’t you let me do that before?”

“I-I,” you were so flustered. You had no idea Armin could possibly feel the same way towards you. And to compare you to his favorite place, the sea?! “I just…I thought you wanted Annie for the longest time. We’re just friends, or I thought that’s all you wanted to be.”

Armin softly smiled as he brushed your cheek with his hand, tucking some hair behind your ear. It felt surreal how just a few minutes could change an entire dynamic, one that was in place for so long. But, this was a nice shift. One you have been waiting quite some time for.

“Yes, you’re my best friend,” Armin started, “but I have wanted to kiss my best friend for a little while now too.”

You chuckled softly and gave Armin a playful shove, as he grabbed your wrists and pulled you close to him again.

“Hey, Y/N and Arm-“ you heard someone, Eren, start to say as they turned into the hallway. Your eyes widened as you locked eyes with him, and he definitely understood what was happening before him.

“Oh, finally! Thank God for mistletoe!” Eren shrieked, turning back around, “Mikasa! They finally kissed!”

You and Armin started bursting out laughing from your friend’s reaction, your eyes meeting his, and his lips already coming down for another romantic kiss under the mistletoe.

It was a very Merry Christmas indeed.

[in-my-feels-probably]

hi! can you do an alden x reader relating to the whisperers? i give you creative liberty for the rest! thank you if you do it 🤍

Together

Request: hi! can you do an alden x reader relating to the whisperers? i give you creative liberty for the rest! thank you if you do it 

Hi! I’m so sorry this took so long to get out, thank you for being patient. Thank you for the request. This is my first time writing for The Walking Dead, and for Alden. Just a forewarning, I haven’t watched the episodes I’m referring to in a long time and the story is a little fuzzy, so I’m sorry if it's a little inaccurate or confusing.

I was a little unsure about what to write about since you gave me creative liberty, but I hope you like the outcome. I don't love the outcome, but I didn’t want to make you wait any longer. If this isn’t what you were looking for, I’m happy to rewrite this, or accept another request. Just let me know, and I hope you enjoy it!

(Warnings: swearing, mentions of death, panic, angst, let me know if i missed anything)

—

The past few day’s events had been exhausting, to say the least. 

Mary, a Whisperer who had turned to your cause, warned your group of Alpha and the Whisperer’s plans to attack. It would result in catastrophe if left unhandled, so the group strategically scattered, planning the best course of action to fight back.

Hilltop had been evacuated a few days before, including Adam, the adoptive son of Tammy and Earl, and Mary’s nephew. Alden left the same day as the children, having other jobs needed for him to attend to. You chose to stay and fight, promising Alden you’d find him when it was all over.

Mary was right. Alpha’s attack hit the group with full force. She had led the horde straight to your gates, setting them on fire. You escaped on foot alone, unable to find anyone before you were forced to leave. There was nothing worth salvaging to return to.

Alden, Mary, and Kelly had met up together at some point, with Alden in custody of Adam, unbeknownst to you. You didn't know, at least until later, that Alden had become the sole caregiver to Adam. Earl was bit trying to protect the kids, and he died, according to Judith. Earl left Adam for Alden to take care of. Mary sacrificed herself to lead a horde of walkers away who had come after her, Alden, Kelly, and Adam. She died a hero, saving their lives. Beta found her, killing her before she could escape. 

With nowhere to go, you went to Alexandria, hoping that was where everyone else had turned to after the dust of the attack had settled. You knew you were right when you made it to the gates, being let in and greeted by a multitude of people. But not the one you were looking for.

You said your hello’s, eventually finding Kelly in the crowd. 

“Kelly! Have you seen Alden?”

She nodded, pointing down the street to the house at the end of the block. “He was with Judith last time I saw him. He didn’t look too good.”

“What do you mean?” You asked in confusion, worry setting in on your face. “Is he hurt?”

“No. Just a little shook up, I think. We had a rough time on the road.”

You listened in horror as she explained what happened in the time since you were separated, and all that happened to Mary. 

You placed a comforting hand on Kelly’s arm, giving it a squeeze. “I’m so sorry you had to see all of that. I’m glad you were with him, thank you for looking out for him.”

She smiled, patting your hand. “It was no trouble. He handled it well.”

She turned to find her friends, but you stopped her, brows furrowed. “Wait, sorry. Why is he with Judith?”

“Michonne isn’t coming back. I think Judith and RJ are going to stay with Daryl for a while, at least until they come up with a plan.”

You felt your heart sink at her words, making a mental note to find Judith and RJ later to make sure they were alright. Kelly continued, only growing the pit that had settled itself in your stomach.

“Judith said Alden and you could stay at the house while she isn’t there, since he’s got nowhere to go yet. I know we’ll all probably have to evacuate here in a few days, but it’s the solution for now, I guess.”

“That’s sweet of her,” you said, smiling at the thought of Judith’s kindness. “So you saw him at the house, then?”

“Yeah. But Y/N, I’d be careful. Earl didn’t make it out there.”

You felt sick to your stomach hearing about the death of Earl, knowing how close he was with Alden.

You brought a hand to your mouth, jaw going slack. “But what about Adam?”

“Judith said Earl told her that he wanted Alden to take Adam. Apparently Earl thought he was the best one for the job. Judith found Alden and told him, and he went into the house. I haven’t seen him come out since.”

You brought your fingers to the bridge of your nose, wincing. “Alright. I better go check on him. Thanks for telling me.”

“Come get me if you need me,” she said, patting your shoulder before turning back to her friends.

You took a deep breath, calming yourself, before hurrying down the street. You didn’t knock, letting yourself in. You tried to ignore the eerie feeling you got stepping through the door, knowing all who lived there were either dead or gone, except for Judith and RJ. 

You went straight for the guest room of the house, knowing it had been converted into a nursery after RJ was born. You pushed open the door, only to find Adam in his crib, and Alden, sitting on the floor with his head in his hands. 

You frowned at the sight, stepping in front of him, offering your hands. Your voice was soft. “Alden? Hey, baby.”

Alden looked up at the sound of your voice, quickly grabbing your hands as you helped pull him up, before he threw his arms around your waist. He pulled you tightly into him, hiding his face in the crook of your neck. You wrapped your arms around his neck, gently swaying him back and forth.

“Hard couple of days, huh?”

“Hey,” he murmured into your shoulder, sighing in relief. “God, now I feel like I can finally breathe.”

His voice was small. Cracked. It broke your heart. Adam started to stir in his crib, letting out a wail. Alden visibly flinched, letting out a pained groan. He let you go, heading to pick Adam up, but you grabbed his arm, gently holding him back. 

“Sit down, love,” you said, reaching into the crib. “I’ve got him.”

Alden nodded, backing up to the wall, slowly sliding down it. You placed Adam on your hip, gently bouncing him while you cradled him to you. Alden faintly smiled at the sight, feeling himself ease, if only for a moment.

“You look good with him.”

You tried not to hear the undertones of worry in his voice, knowing he was thinking to himself, how the hell are we supposed to take care of a baby? How can we do it alone? There isn’t even enough time to grieve Earl.

You weakly smiled, softly cooing at Adam, whose cries had ceased. “That’s all him. He’s so cute, I don’t even have to do any work.”

Alden smiled, although it didn’t quite meet his eyes. You sighed, placing Adam back down in his crib, before easing yourself down the wall to sit next to him. You pulled his hand into your lap, intertwining your fingers. He absentmindedly rubbed his thumb in circles along the backside of your hand, looking at you with tired eyes.

“We’ll make it work,” you said, trying your best to make the both of you believe it. “It’ll be fine…we’ll be fine.”

Alden nodded, resting his chin on your shoulder. “I know.”

You sat in silence for a moment, relishing in the peace. But you could feel the tension in the room, knowing there were some unsaid words, waiting to be freed. Yet, you couldn’t look him in the eye and ask. 

Instead, you turned your head, letting it rest against his. “I’m sorry about Earl. I’m sorry I wasn’t there with you–”

“It’s not your fault,” he cut you off, squeezing your hand. “You know that.”

“I do. But still,” you nodded, and there was a pause. “Do you want to talk about it? Kelly filled me in a little, but I want you to talk about it, too. You need the release.”

He sighed, moving to press the heels of his palms to his eyes. You stayed quiet, rubbing a comforting hand along his back.

“You know, after Enid…I just shut down. I said some things I shouldn’t have said to Lydia, even though it’s not her fault where she comes from. Lord knows how true that is, considering how we were on opposite sides when we met.”

You flinched at Enid’s name. Neither of you had been able to fully process her death, or truly move on. Your mutual grief is what had brought you together. You both knew Enid would have wanted you to be happy with her gone. It took you both a while to accept that.

“I’m glad you were with the Saviors,” you said, truthfully. “I don’t care what side you were on. We’ve all done shit we’re not proud of. And, you didn’t do Negan’s bidding. But even if you had, it would have been to survive. Lydia did the same. You were hurt, after Enid…Lydia understands that, I promise you.”

His jaw clenched, and he kept his eyes on the floor.

“Still. Maggie changed my life, letting us stay at Hilltop. I would never have met you if it wasn’t for her. And yet, here I was, being a complete dick to Mary. Judging her on where she came from, as if taking a chance on me isn’t what your people did. She just wanted to help. She wanted to see her nephew.”

His voice broke as he spoke, and he stood, violently wiping under his eyes. 

“I fucking hate them. I can’t help it. But Mary…God, I should have done something.”

Your gaze softened on him, and you stood, pulling his hands away from his face. You wiped under his eyes, much more gently than he had been doing, before holding him still by his shoulders. 

“There was nothing you could have done, Alden. Nothing. She made her own choice, and I’ll be grateful to her every day for it.”

Alden shook his head, but you cupped his jaw, holding him still.

“Hey, listen to me. Listen to me. I’m grateful to her, and I’m grateful to Earl. You and Adam came home because of them,” you said, speaking firmly. “And not just you, but Kelly, too. And all those children. They got to come home because of them. Judith came home. That makes their sacrifice worth it, doesn’t it? They didn’t die for nothing.”

You went over to the crib, picking Adam up again. You gently passed him to Alden, making him focus on you both. Alden softened, looking at Adam with teary eyes.

“He was worth it, wasn’t he?”

Alden let out a heavy sigh, nodding. You nodded with him, setting one hand on his arm, resting the other on Adam’s back. 

“I think it was. We’re all alive, we’re all ok. We’re home. I couldn’t ask for much better. It’s gonna be alright, Alden. We’ll make sure of it, and we’ll do it together, alright?”

He nodded again, leaning over to press a kiss on the top of your head. You leaned into his side, and you both took deep breaths, trying to keep yourself calm. Finally, he broke the silence, his voice firm and full of reassurance. 

“Together.”

—

A/N - Hi! Sorry this is a little short. I feel like I could have done better if I came up with something better for the plot, but that’s my bad. Anyways, thank you again for the request. Hopefully this is alright, let me know what you think!

[theeflowerofcarnage]

15 questions for 15 mutuals

ty for the tag 💕  @literalite and @gunthermunch

Are you named after anyone? nope

when was the last time you cried? i chose not to remember 

do you have kids? No I’m baby 👼

do you use sarcasm a lot? When it suits me

what sports do you play/have you played? swimming, waterpolo (ew), body surfing, soccer, kayaking, hiking, though nowadays its just really long walks 

what's the first thing you notice about other people? hm sense of disposition i guess, like if they’re shy or extroverted 

eye color? big brown baby cow eyes 

scary movies or happy endings? scary movies 

Any special talents? I feel I have a really good eye for aesthetics, or at least that’s what many people have told me

where were you born? LA

what are your hobbies? astrology, photography n simblr i guess 

do you have any pets? 4 cats, a bunny, & 4 lovebirds

how tall are you? 5′2

fave subject in school? hm AP lit and world religions, and in college i liked anthropology and philosophy classes 

dream job? Hmmmmmm i haven’t thought much about it but I have a vague idea, that I’d like to work with a large group of people on a creative project like in fashion design or on a movie I just think it be nice to make something really beautiful that would be seen by millions of people

I tag! @orphyd @acuar-io @simandy @servoism @fangs-trait @ttartarus @red-simulation @veone @omgkayplays @stinkrascal @woohooincoffin @voidcreek @tau1tvec @mattodore @magbay feel free to ignore if u want ❤️❤️❤️

[danielslaw]

POWER RANGERS COLOR ALIGNMENT

make note i only used the colors of the original MMPR  seasons (red, blue, black, yellow, pink and the options green and white). based on both of my posts with CK characters (TEENS) (ADULTS)

RED: usually, in PR lore, red is team leader. while this fits miguel to a tee, it might not johnny, but CK is about johnny’s journey to become a leader. most seasons of PR have someone who is impulsive and rash, maybe selfish who grows into a team leader, which is johnny’s arc. both miguel and johnny are brave, dedicated, high-spirited, stubborn, sometimes too impulsive or irrational, passionate. they also the characters who have the most growth from beggining to end as the shows dedicate reds a lot of time.

BLUE:  blue rangers are often two things; one butt heads with reds for leadership or ideas, and/or second in command. they are loyal, focused and a source of conscience, they are experimental and they are highly adaptable. both daniel and hawk had shown to adapt easily to different styles and had grown to be second in command of their respective teams. while miguel and hawk never butted heads per say, they did had a fall out when they alligned in different dojos. and daniel and johnny, we all know the deal. blues are also some of the characters who have the greatest spiritial growth.

BLACK: black is mysterious. while in our concept black is associated with void, darkness, in power rangers, black rangers are often those who dare to be different, cool, confident,  determinated, and well, masculine in the traditional way. mike barnes fits all of those bills, specially the barnes we meet in season 5. and he is still mysterious, because we haven’t seen him in a long time. they might not get the credit they deserve but PR has some famous black rangers who stand up by their uniqueness and growth (zack, adam muah.)

YELLOW:  yellow rangers are often both cheery, the stand out, smart, creative, and the ones to motivate the team when they are down. they represent sometimes the struggle to go from one side to the other and mantain their strength, sometimes they might struggle with their place in a team. amanda and tory are both that, which is why amanda took such kindship to tory in s4. amanda is a motivator, in the dealership and in season five. tory is smart, creative and a stand out, but struggles with her place in the world. 

PINK: we associate pink with feminism. it’s beyond that, as we have rangers who are more bold and less feminine in the traditional sense (muah jen from time force). but pink rangers represent sweetness and sensitivity, kindship, loyalty too, due to their more feminine nature, they might struggle with a place in a group of fighters but they chose to fight their fights in less conventional ways. pinks are also voices of reason to their teams. guidence nature. both kumiko and sam had shown to be that to many people as well being fierce warriors each in unique ways, kumiko was ready to fight chozen in tkk2 and defend daniel and sam is all of the above.

WHITE: sometimes as sixth rangers. last resort, a wild card at times, a complementary force to make the team stronger when in time of need. chozen is exactly that. it’s a color of freedom and liberation. in canon the first time we saw a white ranger was the unique transformation of tommy from green to white, from a color associated with the evil side to white, a light. first time we see chozen in CK he had gone through his own green-white arc, a path of honor and to defend those. white rangers are unique as there isn’t many as the sixth ranger varies in color by team. but they are always there to make the team grow which chozen does.

GREEN: like white rangers, they are often the sixth ranger. more often than not, specially in the example of the first green ranger, tommy oliver, they are powerhouss of characters, both in strength and in audience grip. robby is both, we have seen him as one of the best fighters from the kids side. sometimes second in command of their teams like in MMPR, they go through tremendous hardhips to earn their spot as part of the team. tommy had his evil green arc before he became part of the team and robby had his s3-s4 arc as cobra kai before he became miyagi-do again and became to redeem like tommy did.

i could honestly write so much more, and i guess, if i had to add more colors to other muses, demetri might be blue too or maybe purple. but i was going with the original color alignment.

anyways, thank you for coming to my ted talk, hope i didn’t bore you.

[enneamage]

I was reading your post about RPF and was hoping that you could explain to me why so many people like to write it. I would go so far as to say I am repelled by it and don't understand the appeal whatsoever. tbh I don't even like fan fiction for what I think is the same reason: it isn't canon. It seems presumptive of any individual that has nothing to do with a creative project to contribute to it as if it is part of the original. It is even worse if we are talking about something that is irl. Why is it not enough to create a fictional work with all of the same traits that the writer believes the fiction or irl subjects have, and then just change the names? If the content is good enough, it doesn't have to be propped up on irl people in order to get readers.

Oh nelly here we go.

Whenever people ask about RPF fic I’m used to trying to use what footholds they do have in fan culture to direct them to why people write these kinds of taboo extremes, but you seem to be pretty squarely affirmational in a sea of transformational people, so this is going to start right from zero.  

I wouldn’t choose an RPF fandom to be babies first fandom justifying experience because of how deep in the pocket it is compared to some other transformational fandoms, so starting there is hard. If you’ve never had the experience of being exposed to something and wanting more of something, or different from something, or had your imagination wander off with what you’ve just seen, a lot of what transformational fandom does in general will seem baffling, let alone rpf spaces.

Basic Transformational Fandom

Transformational fandoms tend to kick off in media that provides a fun sandbox or (even when it’s good) leaves a little bit more to be desired. From there, the people left wanting start to group up and create markets for the creation of fanwork, and eventually someone puts hand to keyboard to make something. People sometimes think that transformational fandom is recent but the truth is that Fanficiton Fanzines stretch back well beyond the creation of the internet, people have been craving transformational content and art for a long time, and are very stubborn when it comes to finding each other to do it.  

Speaking from personal experience, even though fandoms often reliably form around media, I haven’t participated in the fandom for every piece of media I’ve consumed, so I know what it’s like to be interested and disinterested in the fandoms around what I watch/read/ect. There’s been times where I was very into a fandom in a traditional “I want as much of this as possible and also X and Y to smooch” way, times when I was kind of put off by what a given fandom was doing so I took the pass, and times when I was more interested in what the fandom was putting out than the actual content itself. It can take some shopping around to find a spot where what a market has lines up with what appeals to you.

So there’s… a bit of a leap between the usual premise of transformational fandom and rpf spaces. My understanding of the people who pipeline from regular fiction to RPF is they develop the instincts in one context and then they just retain and use that capacity when they switch to another. That sounds a bit slippery-slope but I mean that they just don’t have to start from scratch if they came through more traditional and less taboo fandoms. People still tend to draw the line because RPF is still mostly taboo (the fact that this fandom has such a large, open presence of it is wild to me, I’m really not used to it but such is the fine line of Minecraft roleplay) but some people find it easier to cross because of their background.

The Fantasy Market

There’s something of a midway between fic and conversation that doesn’t get covered as much even though it feels like the missing link between regular idle fantasising and RPF. People tend to want peer-to-peer contact with other people who share the same interests as them, and exchanging ideas or scenarios surrounding those interests is a go-to for that.

The line between trying to find the truth vs feeling out an appealing scenario brings be back around again to my imago post, so if people wanted to collect their “parasocial relationships are the devil” ticket here’s an easy one. You may have seen these kinds of posts around—“[name] would like a teddy bear. He would pretend he didn’t at first but eventually he would become the type of guy to get all the way out of bed if it fell on the floor in the middle of the night to go get it.” It’s not fic, but it’s a longform hypothetical that someone would post to their peers, maybe to get a full on conversation going about how much milage [name] would get out of a stuffed animal. From there they get to feel closer to their fellow fans, and also feel like they understand a bit more about the person they’re all interested in, since pattern finding is a big part of human cognition in general and it's fun to do it together.

On the hormonal end of the spectrum, thirstposting is a deceptively complicated art, somewhere between personal venting and posting for the people around them to resonate with. I know people mostly like to act like thirst tweets are always embarrassing and unwelcome, but honestly having a brother in arms in Times Of Great Thirst usually bonds a community pretty tightly.  

Self-inserts and X readers have never been my thing, but they’re an important link in the evolutionary chain of how we get from one person daydreaming to a whole community of readers and writers. There’s a market for good ideas about a certain person or situation even if they aren’t fleshed out, but a few steps in you start looking at content that looks more like fiction. A good offshoot of this step that people don’t often talk about or understand in these terms were the original POV tiktoks and concept/Imagine blogs. The people love a good scenario, and environments where some of the best imaginations are grinding out content to fuel your daydream can be great for that.  

I think that the people who didn’t enter through ‘regular’ transformational fandom probably found their way through this door instead. Fantasy tweet becomes thirst tweet becomes thread fic becomes wattpad, graduates to ao3 maybe, whoops we’re reading novels now.

The Reader / Writer Market

I use the word ‘market’ a little differently than some others might when talking about this stuff. A while ago I started poking around Economic Anthropology in a very amateurish way, because that was the first place I came across an idea that managed to line up with the majority of my fandom experience, the idea that ‘economics’ are the dynamics of human exchange based on wants and needs, not just the study of money and assets. Money only covers a fraction of the number of exchanges that happen in life, non-monetary economy is what I find really interesting, and what I relate to parts of fandom as. Think of the strangely elaborate systems that seem to reliably pop up when people want something, I have seen amazingly complex fandom coordination from young teenagers as long as the desire and the drives were there. Economics gets a lot more saucy once you start to relate to it as a study of human desire and how those desires get met.

The people want what the people want, and in fandom they often want more of the thing they’ve invested in. It’s often not enough, or even very appealing at all, to write something “original” or removed from the scene when the party is in the scene itself. Some people probably give it a go, but truth be told they often don’t get seen as often as work with the built-in audience that a fandom has/is. The goal probably isn’t even to be seen by a lot of people, but to show stuff to the people who would be most interested in that stuff, even if there’s only five people who are invested. People get content, author gets validation and engagement, it’s a little loop that’s a lot harder to get to in the cold world of original publishing. Most people don’t really want to become career writers anyway, they want to see their favorite boys smooch in the form of the kind of stories they read, which are likely already fic.

Footnote about old lit on transformational vs affirmative: A lot of the old conversation is gendered in ways that I understand, because they absolutely mattered / do matter, but modern fandoms like the MLP fandom are shaking up that binary. Men do take part in transformational fandom, just not as often as women on the whole.

[vendetta-if]

Love love love your project oh my god! I am so excited to get to see more of the world and these characters including our jerk mom! Plus I love the powers you decided to give the mc. So two questions.

First how did you decide on the characters powers? Was it something that came natural/randomly or was that sort of planned and relevant to the plot?

Second what are your favorite IF projects?

Ooh interesting question 🧐 Some of the characters’ powers come more naturally than the others, especially those whose powers kinda related to their personalities.

Like Ash’s pyrokinesis, it’s directly inspired and correlated to their temper and impulsiveness, and Rin’s precognition to their more calculated and pragmatic personality (plus their precog really help them in leading the Aikawa branch on Elysium City; they mostly are able to stay a few steps ahead of the rivals and the law enforcements, combined with their sharp mind). Yvette’s powers of Illusions and Empathy also tie in nicely to her vain personality too, imo.

Others I require more thoughts on, especially Skylar. I struggled quite a bit in finding the suitable powers for them. Their powers definitely don’t really correlate to their personality. I want them to still exude that classic superhero vibe but at the same time, I don’t want them to have those classic and bland powers we associate with the most classic superheroes of all, Superman. So, sadly, no laser eyes for them 😔 In the end, I think Density Control is a pretty unique and versatile superpower for them and I also end up giving them the classic Flight ability to further enhance that classic vibe 😆

Others’ like Luka’s teleportation and Viktor’s power replication just honestly come out of nowhere and I can’t think any specific reasons on why I chose those in particular 😂 Also, if you guys are wondering, Cara’s ability is Doppelgänger (physically copying other people’s forms), it also required a bit more thought and kinda planned for the plot.

As for MC’s gravikinesis and umbrakinesis, it’s mostly because I personally love them and I personally like the freedom and creativity in the ways these powers can be utilized 😁

As for my favorite IF projects, there are so much 😩 I basically created a whole google doc just to keep track of all of them! If you guys are interested, I can certainly create a more curated list later on!

Since this is already a very long post, I’ll just put one IF that I personally love and has been playing on repeat but haven’t seen it talked much in the Tumblr IF community: “The Operative: Fires of Revolution” by @theoperativeif

If you guys like to play an MC who’s broken and traumatized but also is still a badass, then this is the perfect story for you! And readers who love to play ruthless MCs will definitely love it too! Here’s the link to the demo. You can also check out the IF’s Forum page here (you might need to enter the adult group for the forum to see the page).

[declanowo]

31 Days of Horror - Day 12 - Martyrs

12/10/23 

I begin most mornings at the moment by spinning the wheel to see which film I will watch - I like to know when I should start the film, for example, if I land on a three hour long movie, I won’t start it at midnight. Today when I first landed on Martyrs, I respun the wheel. After everything I had heard about this film, I felt that it wasn’t the best day to watch it, as before I had a family dinner out which I knew would leave me exhausted, therefore, something easier and lighter would be far nicer. 

After landing on another film I wanted to watch, Blood Rage, which was exactly the type of movie I was hoping for, I thought about the free time I had today as a result of looking after my friend's cat, who is bound to my bedroom, and therefore, I am too. After sitting on it for a while, I decided to watch both! And I am glad I did :) 

Martyrs is a French film directed by Pascal Laugier. The plot is ever changing as it unfolds, and has been hailed as one of the scariest horror movies ever. I see that perspective, although it feels like a weird and impossible thing to award a film. I believe I have also seen Sinister called the scariest movie ever during a long survey, which I bring up because of how different these films are! I’m curious whether people find Sinister scary solely for the jumpscares, which are amazing, or also the plot too? I think it is primarily the jumpscares, which mirrors Martyrs, which I think people find so scary because of how visceral and gross the gore is. It paired nicely with Blood Rage, which has super fun and bloody kills, whereas this film has very bloody and disgusting kills. I find the way a film can frame kills super interesting, based on how the effects are done, how long it lingers etc… Usually, slashers have creative deaths where you don’t linger on the action, they aren’t drawn out or too gross to imagine, but they’re fun to watch, and can still make you wince. There is not a single death in Martyrs that is fun.

I want to start by discussing the way the films acts work - they are incredibly divisive amongst the reviews I have read, and weirdly enough that is the most common criticism, as opposed to the fiendish gore that Saw is often criticised for! Anyway, the film's acts feel unpredictable as far as where the story goes, but I would argue the film never loses its tone, nor its purpose! The first act is a home invasion style film, where we follow a family that appears sweet and innocent as their house is broken into, and they are subsequently killed. For starters, this is such a fun juxtaposition to the grim cold open, showing our protagonist as a child, escaping from the abusive group we learn more about later in the movie. We go from that gritty exposition, to a timeskip which shows us a happy family, to a sudden series of murders. Watching the parents die, you begin to understand their innocence may not be whole, yet as we watch Lucie kill the families two children, the sequence is long, uncomfortable and deeply dark, yet unlike a film such as Cannibal Holocaust, which I will say I haven’t seen, this doesn’t feel like gore for gores sake. It was born in the New Extremity era of filmmaking, which was especially popular in France, and that shines through. My bottom line is that the gore doesn’t feel unnecessary here, it’s uncomfortable, but it is purposeful. 

Quickly, I will mention that while many people liken this film to being a part of the New Extremity Wave of films, it lacks many key features of these films. The most glaring, is the absence of any sexual violence or messaging, the former I was relieved to find out, and only watched the film after researching if there was any. Ultimately, the film does retain some features from this wave, such as having a female lead, as well as centering around women as a whole, alongside the theme of spectatorship. Okay so after writing all this, I read an article that says the director in fact denounces the likening of the film to the wave of filmmaking, but I will leave it in as a result of the constant comparisons. He instead discussed this film being about a world that rotted a long time ago, which I think is a perfect explanation of the film. 

Returning to the first act, we also are introduced to our protagonist, Anna, played by Morjana Alaoui. Both our leads (for this act) are excellent, showing a contrasting conflict as they deal with revenge, and who they want to be. Their relationship is also deeply interesting to me, given how little we see of it. As of yet, I haven’t been able to decide whether they are friends or lovers, Lucie is dismissive of their kiss early on, while a later phone call from Anna’s mother indicates that they are together. Either Way, I think they work well off of eachother, and have very interesting differing views. 

My final thoughts on this act are left with the visions Lucie has, which are grotesque and excellent, some real fun imagery of the corpse that follows her around, attempting to kill her, and I didn’t find Anna’s dismissal of this lifelong plague Lucie has had to live with to be too bad, although thinking about it more kind of bugs me - like why not just believe she is seeing this?! 

In the second act, we follow the two as they inhabit the house over night, and as Lucie deals with the vision returning. I really enjoy this section of the film, just watching them live while disputing what is best to do. Sure, it feels somewhat strange as to how lax they are about not leaving the house, but I don’t mind too much! The attempted clean up and realisation that the matriarch of the family is still alive is terrifying, as she sees a glimmer of hope, before Lucie snuffs out her life. Truly, it is dark, and the film offers no more signs of hope for anyone, as Lucie wrestles with her demon, until eventually, we watch her slit her own throat.

Despite how dark this film is, I never felt bad while watching it, which a film like Human Centipede did make me feel. Once again, intent is the key point for me! Martyrs is exposing you to a dark and twisted world, and while we don’t yet understand quite what the meaning of all this is, it does have one. In contrast, The Human Centipede seeks only to shock you, it is designed to make you feel uncomfortable, and nothing more, which isn’t my kind of film at all!

The third act follows the reveal of the torturous group, but not before one of the most spine curdling sequences! Inside the house, we find a basement, where a person is being kept. Their body is withered, but the more frightening aspect is that she has a metal clasp nailed into her eyes. Gross. After this, the group’s goal is revealed, their scale is vast and all the more terrifying! Having the film open up more works nicely in its favour, the horror is amplified when we understand that they are attempting to create a Martyr, a person who can see beyond death through torture. Knowing that they started over fifteen years ago, makes this even more chilling as we are left imagining how many people have been placed into this system. 

For me, the three act structure works perfectly, each one offers us something new and different, yet they all flow together perfectly. I think of it similarly to 28 Days Later, where we switch locations and tones three distinct times, which aids in the character's development, and the scale of the scenario.

Before moving onto a more general overview, I want to mention the ending, which delivers on everything I had hoped it would. The montage of Anna growing stronger, repeating the words of Lucie in her head is deeply moving and powerful; the eventual conclusion to the film is hideously dark, and I love it.

Martyrs is a weird film, it’s one that isn’t created to make you happy or fulfil you - some of the time I was clueless as to what I was being told, yet it was sharing something, and I like it for that. 

After watching the film I went to my family dinner, the tables surrounding us were filled to the brim with old people! All I could think about while I was there was the ending to the movie, as all the elderly people await their martyr that will never deliver her vision. I already know this one will latch onto me, in the short time since watching it, I can already feel its effects shiver down my spine. 

7/10

[floatingcatacombs]

Bro Your Taste....

12 Days of Aniblogging 2023, Day 5

Watching the Elitist Anime Superbowl play out earlier this year on Tumblr reawakened something in me. Seeing Evangelion lose to Mononoke like that in round two felt downright heretical. But why? I started but never finished NGE and I haven’t even seen Mononoke, so I shouldn’t have a dog in the fight. And yet, there’s an unspoken yet established hierarchy in my brain that tells me that Eva is better than Mononoke. These polls were a bit of a wake-up call for me that this isn't actually a common framework or approach anymore! So I thought it might be worthwhile to give an account of what anime elitism meant, and means, to me.

tldr (from KC Green's anime club)

Rather than going through all the shows in the bracket, it may be more useful to start by identifying which internet communities skew elitist in the first place. I started watching anime in the early 2010s, so Usenet and early forums and email discussion groups are lost on me. But I did my time on 4chan, for better or for worse. /a/ is perhaps the textbook example of an elitist community, and I would say that they’re responsible for establishing most of the modern weeb canon. The anime blogosphere, though diminished these days, is also a tastemaker, especially when you start seeking out “hidden gems” to make your taste seem cooler and more unique. I originally considered making Floating Catacombs a WordPress blog to try and link up with some of these folks, but ultimately determined that the baked-in audience of Tumblr would better serve my purposes (and they’re owned by the same damn guy now anyways). Lastly, as those previous communities declined, patchwork groups of elitists began to form on Twitter, where many still reside to this day arguing and ass-kissing amongst one another.

Elitism is, in part, an acknowledgement that the vast majority of anime is dogshit. Just look at any given season and count up the isekai shlock, blatant wish fulfillment high school romances, and mediocre shounens ripping off other mediocre shounens. At least 75% of anime is stuff you’d have to pay me to watch. Of course, this isn't unique to anime, being just as true of live-action TV. The difference is that prestige television doesn't have to compare itself to soap operas or reality TV, whereas anime is still commonly treated as a genre in of itself rather than as a medium. As long as that’s the case, anime elitism will always have a place, as a way to say “oh I like anime but not like that” so your taste doesn’t automatically get lumped in with the most low-quality and/or sexually dubious shows of the time.

And obviously, elitism can just as easily be framed as a reaction against the masses. There’s liking Mushishi for the sake of liking Mushishi, and there’s liking Mushishi because its serenity and thoughtfulness reflect well upon you for being able to appreciate it, unlike those dirty Redditors and MyAnimeList denizens who need fanservice in everything they watch. Unfortunately, this means elitists have a tendency to elevate some truly pretentious stuff that looks cool but just isn’t very compelling or deep under the surface. Ergo Proxy is my personal go-to example of this– how it beat out Stand Alone Complex in that Tumblr poll is a mystery to me. I’d argue that Lain is also overrated in this way, but I don’t want to hurt all the sad neurodivergent extremely online women who probably make up my entire audience.  

One thing I've noticed is that elitist communities don’t make a ton of art or fanfic or other creative works. For them, the primary way to participate in fandom is to argue over whether or not a show was good, or if a given part of a show was good (waifu wars, etc). This makes the output of these sites fairly ephemeral (in particular, imageboards automatically delete threads to make room for new ones), but it also means that people will constantly repeat themselves and get in the same arguments to make themselves persistently heard. We’re still arguing about Evangelion 25 years later, after all! After using shows as a cudgel against other shows for a long enough time, you can start to form a hierarchy of notable anime in ways that you can’t really with Tumblr or Reddit or any other community that largely hops from show to show as they come out.

The canon for anime elitism is mostly contained to the late 90s and 2000s, and I think there’s a few reasons for that. As I brought up in the Patlabor post, the 80s are something of a dark age for broadcast anime, while the 90s contain some of the last beautiful breaths of cel animation. The 2000s were when 4chan had an outsized presence online, so it makes sense that a lot of shows deemed elitist come from the era where their taste was king. By the mid-2010’s, after GamerGate, moot’s departure, and the blatant fascism on every board, 4chan’s cultural clout had effectively zeroed out.

There’s also the blunt argument that simply fewer cool artsy anime get made these days. Ping Pong is one of the last truly “elitist” shows I can point to, and that was nearly a decade ago. Due to the overlapping issues of anime overproduction, poor working conditions, and production committees seeking ever-safer investments, a lot of the stuff that comes out these days has a very workmanlike quality to it, competent but never targeting excellence.

OHHH YEAHHHHH

But my final reason for the decline of elitism is a wholly good one – more people are appreciating the good stuff these days! Watching anime has somehow become a normal hobby for the teens that grew up after me, no longer something that needs to be hidden and consigned to small school anime clubs. While battle shounen still reigns supreme, it’s probably leagues better than the comparable stuff from 10 or 20 years ago (though still pretty damn misogynist most of the time). More importantly, new fans and old-guard elitists actually agree on the good stuff! Works like Mob Psycho 100 and Trigun Stampede were huge hits and bridged the gap between these groups through their quality and style, and in Trigun’s case by re-adapting a classic. The breakthrough success of Bocchi the Rock demonstrates that people can vibe with more experimental animation now, and it doesn’t have to be relegated to its own sphere outside of the anime mainstream. And Oshi no Ko has a difficult “dude trust me” pitch but successfully synthesized the pretentious and the mass-market in terms of both its audience and its themes. (I would guess. I haven’t actually seen Oshi no Ko either. An important, unspoken part of anime elitism is lying about half the stuff you’ve seen and just going with the flow on how people around you felt about it). Combining an old-school 90’s-2000s feel with insane pacing and fights, Chainsaw Man similarly captured a wide audience. Even if people have qualms with the overall quality of the adaptation, that one episode shot like a movie won me over. It’s good that some of the most popular anime can be artsy as well, and if that’s what ultimately does elitism in, it will be a happy ending. May poptimism save us all.

In the meantime, elitism lives on in the manga world, where smug assholes can talk about how they liked a series before it got adapted. Manga is very popular these days, but that's mainly driven by people diving into the source material for anime that they enjoyed. This leaves fundamentally unadaptable manga as the last bastion of elitism, which makes sense when you consider how people talk about Berserk.

I’ll leave you with some rapid-fire hot takes of mine.

Steel Ball Run is not that good and its ranking on MyAnimeList as the second best manga of all time is nonsense. It will receive more proper crit in a few years once the inevitable David Production adaptation shines a light on its more troublesome bits.

After rewatching it this year, I can say with clarity that Everyone Is Sleeping On Concrete Revolutio

Goodnight Punpun kind of sucks! Might just be me.

As far as beloved 90’s psychological anime goes, 4chan and Reddit historically love Eva, while Tumblr overwhelmingly went for Utena in that poll. This whole thing smacks of gender.

The Gundam fandom historically has something of a reputation for misogyny, so it’s really funny and good that my exposure has instead been almost entirely trans women on tumblr. We will inherit the mecha genre.

Actually, screw manga, there is only one vector for anime elitism now, and it’s Thunderbolt Fantasy. You gotta get in on Gen Urobuchi’s Wild Puppet Show.

[conhivemindcent]

I’ve always found the oddest thing to focus on in practically anything I enjoy, and in Taskmaster, it’s the team tasks and how they’re grouped together. (This is solely based on UK Taskmaster, so do be warned)

Also this is long-winded as shit so fair warning (hence the cutoff):

The main how-to grouping wise is age. Seasons 1, 2 (partially), 4, 9 and 12 (allegedly) are all grouped generationally. Just as common and infinitely more boring is not having a fun theme, as seen is Seasons 5, 6, 14 and all the COVID seasons. (Although the non-COVID series do get some bonuses, I’ll explain below)

The only other theme they’ve repeated afaik are for two seasons apiece. The first is a familial connection that isn’t actually family, found in Season 2 and Season 3. The second is a battle of the sexes, found in both Season 7 and Season 13 (and in one team task in series 9 and 10) (additional note: the full sexes teams are both some of the most popular seasons, purely coincidental but it’s fun to note).

Additional notes:

Season 2 had a team based on age (the 30-Somethings, comprising of 2 30somethings and a 40something (although there was an age gap of less than 10 years between the oldest and youngest participant on the team)). The other team is far more creatively named imo - Father and Son, comprising of Richard Osman and Jon Richardson. Smart move.

Season 3 is grouped based on physical traits - The Beards (Al Murray, Paul Chowdhry and Dave Gorman all have beards) and The Siblings (Rob Becket and Sara Pascoe don’t actually seem to be related, they just both have blonde hair and lack a beard). Honestly one of the more clever team themes.

Both Seasons 5 and 6 have team names made up by the team themselves (fun fact, both are the duo team). Season 5 has Wumar, a portmanteau of the surnames of Nish Kumar and Mark Watson, whereas Season 6 has Team Funk, made up by Russell Howard for his team (himself and Alice Levine, who didn’t seem as thrilled but went along with it. And I’m glad she did, it’s my favourite team name in the entire series).

Season 8 has a fun theme, and probably my favourite of the themes. The Actors vs The Fun Guys. Basically people more well-known for acting vs people more well-known for comedy. I’m using more well-known cause iirc Joe Thomas does stand-up? Idk I don’t really watch stand-up stuff.

Series 9 had a live team task with new teams that were assigned based on gender. Otherwise, the teams were sorted by age. I also think it’s the only time a team task has had a different team to the norm.

Series 10-12 all seem to have themes of “yeah this was just easiest to schedule”. The exception is the team tasks in series 10 following Hippo, where they paired everyone up according to genders. At least they tried justifying it in series 12 with the whole “generational gap” thing… that got shut down immediately by the team of two. And then they tried again iirc, with the 2-man group being the “smart quiz show people” which didn’t get shut down but sure didn’t get anywhere.

Series 14 also seems to have the theme of “your schedules align” but someone somewhere noted that the team of 3 have 4-letter first names whereas the team of 2 have 5-letter first names. Probably not why they were sorted together but a neat coincidence nonetheless.

All the specials had no teams whatsoever, and I haven’t seen any of Series 15 so no clue on the teams or their theming. I’m going for the theme of “your schedules align, have fun :)”, based on recent trends.

[thenightling]

Wednesday review

I just got done watching Wednesday on Netflix, the new Addams Family Spin-off and I have to say ...That was the best thing I’ve seen Tim Burton do in at least a decade.   That was excellent. 

Mild spoilers below and a bit of speculation of what may come later.

Wednesday is a spin-off of the very long-lived Addams family franchise.  She is the daughter of a very Gothic, spooky, yet extremely loving, accepting, and surprisingly functional family.

I am aware of what unfortunately happened to the Wednesday fan series with a similar premise but this was unique enough that I don’t think it quite ripped off the fan series that was forced to shut down.  This was a bit like Nancy Drew or Enola Holmes meets Monster High.

The premise is this. Wednesday is sent to a boarding school called “Nevermore” that is specifically for outcasts.  Children with psychic powers, magical abilities, or are some breed of monster.   The main cliques are Fangs = vampires, furs = werewolves, Scales = Sirens (Mermaids with hypnotic powers), and Stoners = Gorgons.   Other creatures turn up such as a Jekyll and Hyde.  Wednesday is a seer and potential witch. This is actually a call back to the original Addams Family where Morticia sometimes used a crystal ball and Grandmama would curse people.

 It makes me wonder what Gomez counts as since Morticia’s line are seers (psychics) and witches.  

Wednesday finds herself having to solve a who-done-it and also learn to socialize with her new peer group.   Ordinary, non-magical folk are called Normies, while the monsters and magical people are called Outcasts, collectively. 

The head of the school is a shapeshifter named Mrs. Weems, played Gwendoline Christine- who most recently was Lucifer in Netflix’s adaptation of The Sandman. 

There are so many things I love about this show. Back in my teenage years I was a big Tim Burton fan but I haven’t really liked much of his recent projects.  This was the best thing I’ve seen by Tim Burton in a long, long time.  

It’s very atmospheric and visually creative with a classic, Gothic ambiance, one of the original appeals of Tim Burton. The visual of the Hyde monster is very Burton-esque and I absolutely love the intro music by Danny Elfman.  

When you watch the Wednesday intro you realize we were cheated out of an intro for Netflix’s The Sandman since Neil Gaiman had been told by Netflix that no one watches the title sequences or cares about them anymore and yet here we have a gorgeous intro done by Tim Burton and Danny Elfman.

Going into watching this I thought I would be disappointed because of Tim Burton’s parental issues, that he might butcher certain characters. I was particularly worried about the depiction of Morticia Addams but no.  She was portrayed surprisingly well.

There’s also a teaser for season 2.  

Small note: I did notice the school has a character named Coach Vlad played by a Native Romanian using his natural accent.  Let’s see.  School with actual vampires in it...  A Romanian who knows how to sword fight (teaches fencing) named Vlad, in a school that is about 1/4 vampires.  Yeah...  You’re Count Dracula, aren’t you? A Romanian Vlad in a show or movie with vampires in it is NEVER a coincidence.  I see what you did there, Tim.   He’s Dracula.  You can’t fool me.  Dracula is in the public domain and both Dracula and The Addams Family have interacted with Scooby Doo so it’s long-established that they exist in the same continuity.  

It’s also very clear that these vampires work on Dracula rules.  Dracula, in the original Bram Stoker novel, could walk about by day. He just couldn’t shapeshift by day.  And he was weaker by day.  This is how the vampires are walking about in the daylight and are just wearing sunglasses.  They’re following Dracula rules.  

Yeah, I’m pretty certain that Coach Vlad is Count Vlad Dracula.   

Tim Burton likes Dracula and Frankenstein. And can’t resist referencing them whenever possible, much like Guillermo Del Toro and Frankenstein.  Also when the ancient Baddie gets resurrected in this, the loyal servant that had him resurrected kisses his ring on his out stretched hand. I believe this is a deliberate nod to the Hammer horror movie Dracula ‘72 AD.  Tim Burton loves Hammer Horror.  He even used Hammer’s trademark “Kensington Gore” (bright red edible stage blood) in his 1999 movie, Sleepy Hollow.

  Anyway, I really liked this show.   There are some cynical comments about it but I liked it.  It felt like a more-mature version of Monster High with a fairly decent (though slightly predictable) Who-done-it.  I figured out the monster was a Hyde and who the Hyde was by episode 2. The rest of it wasn’t as easy to deduce but that part I figured out right away and the obvious fact that Tyler’s mother had been an Outcast.

  It’s a shame they killed off Gwendoline Christie’s character, Mrs. Weems in the final episode.  I hope they find a way to bring her back somehow.  Perhaps a twin sister, or some resurrection. Maybe she could be a ghost. Ghosts aren’t outside the realm of possibility in this show.  

I was very pleased that this was not released in October as a typical “Halloween-y” drop.   I like to see Gothic stuff in the “Off season.”  You have no idea how hungry people like me get for good Gothic content outside of the Halloween season.   

There were so many nice references to previous incarnations of The Addams Family.  The Title “Addams Family Reunion” is name dropped.  That’s the seldom talked about third Addams Family movie of the 90s that was released direct to video.  The double snaps to enter the chamber of the Nightshade Society.  (The finger snapping is from the original 1960s Addams Family TV show theme song).  Gomez looks like the original Charles Addams comic illustrations.  The line “You’re Kooky” “I prefer spooky” is another reference to the 1960s theme song for The Addams Family. “You rang?” was Lurch’s recurring line in the original TV series.  Wednesday’s behavior in Pilgrim World was a direct not to the Thanksgiving pageant from Addams Family Values.  (Why was a summer camp doing a Thanksgiving pageant in that movie anyway?)

There were so many loving homages and Easter Eggs.  I really enjoyed Wednesday.   After seeing The Invitation and now this, it’s good to see old fashioned Gothic content making a comeback without cynical deconstruction attached to it.   

 I genuinely really loved this show.  

[horselessheadperson]

In february of 2021, I was absolutely decked by burnout. At the time, I was working a pretty high-powered sales job. We had to share our sales results continuously in a WhatsApp group chat - I still panic when I see WhatsApp green on a cellphone monitor. Our boss was relatively strict about keeping to working hours and taking breaks, which was good - and necessary, since she was fighting rising absenteeism - but we were always in competition, always pushing, always using an absolutely absurd amount of emoji every time we sold x amount of post its, or - as was all the rage at the time - wildly overpriced surgical masks for workplace use. We were never told why they were overpriced, we made up a reason on the spot depending on who we were talking to. We were, however, taught sales techniques to “convince” struggling local companies. (Since then, I’ve learnt a lot about burnout being caused by your work not aligning with your values. This phenomenon would explain why only 12 weeks on this job was enough to do me in.)

It absolutely destroyed me. The first sign was crying before and after work. Eventually I dropped my hours. Then I quit. This was not at all popular - I was a very talented salesperson, exceeding my quota every day. I don’t have any particular passion for stationary. But it turns out I’m very good at selling it.

For a long time, I refused to admit I was really suffering. I’m still working on acceptance every day. I thought if I could just figure out why this happened, why I was too exhausted to eat three or even one square meal a day, I could just fix it. I’ve always been told I seemed smart, so I thought I should be able to work through this myself. I couldn’t, I still can’t, and it took me until recently to be OK with this. If you’re struggling with this: it’s normal that it’s hard. People are social animals. I consider myself a borderline recluse, and I still need help every day. Even if it’s just to be near someone else.

Anyway, to cut a very long story short: I’ve only been getting in touch with what I actually want and need very recently. A few months ago, I had gender-affirming surgery, which I haven’t kept a secret. It’s been life changing and I wish that kind of relief on everyone. It opened the door to recovery for me, even though I realise I’m still a long way out. As I’ve been able to get in touch more with what I actually want and enjoy I realised that social media just isn’t all that. Every time I want to do something creative, make something, write, think about something - the thought pops up: “what would be the best time to post about this?” 

I have an absolutely negligible amount of followers and posts - just some people I know - and I already notice this has become a part of my daily life. I can’t imagine what it’s like for people who make a living off this. I’ve seen @alexi_lifts inspiring post about quitting social media for a month, and I have been following more inspiring accounts lately and cutting out the ones that were depressing, unrealistic, or just uncomfortable. I think social media can be a force for good, on an individual and a collectivist level, but I think this is in spite of what it is and not because of it. So this isn’t a “quitting socials” type post. Just thoughts. I’ll be posting once a month with some things I actually feel inspired and motivated by, instead of snippets throughout the day whenever I can manage - which isn’t often, and always somehow followed by a vague sense of guilt at not posting more. I want to be more mindful about what I make and share, instead of trying to market something while I’m still very much in active recovery. That said - I hope everyone has a lovely, peaceful day, enjoying the first fall storms. See you soon.

[evermorehqs]

CATCHING MY BREATH, STARING OUT AN OPEN WINDOW 

Hannah Lennon is based on Honey Lemon from Big Hero 6. She is a 25 year old human, art student, and uses she/her pronouns. She has no powers. Hannah is portrayed by Georgie Flores and she is open. 

CATCHING MY DEATH, AND I COULDN’T BE SURE

Hannah was born with a brilliant mind and whatever she put it to, she could achieve. Baking, fashion design, dancing, language, art, there was nothing out of her reach with a little practice and dedication. She was a brilliant student, a creative person and everyone that met her loved her. Being good at everything had its downfalls, though. When it came time to decide what she wanted to do with her life, Hannah was at a loss. She had far too many passions to pursue them all, so she applied to multiple schools, and when she was offered a spot in all of them, she had to think long and hard on her decision. She begged her parents for advice, but they insisted it was her future and she had to follow her own heart. The San Fransokyo Institute of Technology won by a hair, but she soon found it was the best decision she could have made; if not for the career, the people. Hannah immediately clicked with an amazing group of friends, and college turned out to be the best years of her life... then the worst. It was a tragedy no one could’ve seen coming. Losing Tadashi hit them all hard. He was the one who had brought everyone together, he was the glue. Life for the first twenty four years had been fun and easy. Carefree. Hannah had never been in a position to deal with true heartbreak or such a personal loss... or survivor’s guilt. She couldn’t let herself mourn properly, she wasn’t quite sure how. She held onto her smile, forced as it may be, even when they were all thrown into Evermore. She put herself into art school and tried her best to bottle her feelings up and be there for her friends; especially Hiro. Watching him shut everyone out broke her heart all over again. Someone had to look out for him, and whether he wanted her to or not, she was not going to give up on him. It was the only thing she could do for Tadashi now. 

I HAD A FEELING SO PECULIAR

❀ Nani Pelekai: She knows loss. Nani is such a kind, strong person, but Hannah can see it in her face. She goes to the restaurant she works at often and always requests her, wishing she could ask how she deals with it. ❀ Ramone Marin: He’s so friendly, and Hannah admires his talent. She’s been working with him on making the perfect memorial tattoo for Tadashi, but they haven’t been able to quite perfect it yet. ❀ Bonnie Anderson: Hannah goes by the museum for inspiration, and she hasn’t been once without the younger girl working. She’s starting to think Bonnie lives there, but she’s not complaining! She always has a unique point of view on art, and Hannah adores her.

THAT THIS PAIN WOULD BE FOR EVERMORE