#When does project runway start

[ficsloverblog]

hiiii just wanted to say i’m obsessed with ur writing, especially ur weems fics. i’m so excited that ur writing for more characters and i was wondering if i could maybe request a lisa cuddy fic? something w like a teacher’s pet kinda vibe (fluff or smut, totally up to u). i swear it’s sooo hard to find good cuddy content no pressure at all tho, just thought i’d ask in case it sparks something fun in that brilliant brain of urs ❤️❤️❤️

Cuddy’s Favourite

Lisa Cuddy x fem!intern!reader

A/N: Thank you for your kind words AND your request. Massive crush on Lisa Cuddy (and half of the other House MD characters…). Hope you’ll enjoy!

You learned quickly that hospitals have their own ecosystems. There’s medicine, and then there’s everything else: hierarchy, politics, gossip. You keep your head down, do the work, try not to give anyone a reason to talk. But it doesn’t matter, they talk anyway. Especially about you.

You hear it in passing, soft laughter behind turned backs, clipped conversations that trail off the moment you enter the room.

Teacher’s pet, they say. Cuddy’s intern. Favourite little shadow.

You don’t flinch anymore. You’ve heard worse. Besides, it’s not like they’re wrong.

She doesn’t exactly hide it.

Lisa Cuddy is demanding. Unforgiving. A perfectionist with a wardrobe better suited for a runway than a hospital, and a gaze sharp enough to cut through steel. No one intimidates you the way she does. No one draws you in, either.

You’re not supposed to play favourites in medicine.

But Cuddy does. And you're hers.

It’s unspoken, never acknowledged aloud, never scrawled into the margins of evaluations. But you’re not stupid. You know what it looks like when she singles you out during rounds, calls you into her office to discuss consults other interns weren’t even allowed to touch, leans in a little too close when she hands back your charts.

You also know you’d chase her approval even if she never looked at you twice.

The truth is, you like being watched. Not by everyone. Just her.

You like it when she finds you in the middle of a shift and corrects your posture with nothing but a look. When she pauses after you answer a question, just long enough to make you wonder if you impressed her, or disappointed her. You like the quiet weight of her expectations on your shoulders.

She never praises you in front of others. But in her office, when the door is closed and the lights are low, sometimes she lets a little warmth into her voice. Sometimes she says your name like she’s thinking about something she shouldn’t.

You never let yourself imagine what.

House is the worst about it.

He never calls you by name. Just golden girl, Cuddy’s favourite, or his personal favourite: obedient intern number one.

You’ve tried ignoring him. Tried answering him in monosyllables. Nothing works. He pokes at you like a bruise he knows won’t heal.

“She’s got you house-trained already,” he tells you once in the elevator. “Cute.”

You grip the file in your hand tighter.

“She’s your boss too,” you reply, too tired to play his game today.

“Oh, sure. But you—” He eyes you with mock awe. “You practically purr when she says good job.”

You say nothing.

“Hey, I’m not judging,” he adds, shrugging.“Everyone wants Mommy’s approval. You just work harder for it.”

He steps off at diagnostics, but not before tossing a grin over his shoulder. “Be careful, though. Pets get put down when they start biting.”

You don’t respond. But the words sit with you longer than you’d like.

The pager buzzes at 6:43 p.m.

Come by my office. – Cuddy

You stare at the message a second longer than necessary, then tuck the device into your coat pocket and head toward administration. It’s later than usual. Most of the hospital is already winding down but her light is still on when you get there. Her office door is slightly ajar, like she knew you’d come quickly.

You knock lightly.

“Come in.”

Her voice always sounds different in the evening. Less clipped. Warmer. Or maybe that’s just projection. You’ve been told more than once that you see what you want to see.

She’s seated behind her desk, blazer slung over the back of her chair, sleeves rolled to the elbows. The top two buttons of her blouse are undone. Her posture is as precise as ever, but there’s something relaxed about her, an end-of-the-day looseness that makes her look a little less untouchable.

She glances up at you with a faint smile. “You’re still here.”

“You paged me.”

“Didn’t think you’d still be around this late.”

You shrug. “I don’t mind the hours.”

“You shouldn’t say that out loud. I’ll start assigning you more.”

“Wouldn’t be the first time.”

She lets out a quiet laugh, low and throaty. “Fair enough.”

She gestures to the chair in front of her desk. “Sit.”

You do. She slides a file across the desk toward you. Your intake notes from the morning.

“I wanted to talk about this,” she says. “The patient with the arrhythmia.”

You nod. “Did I miss something?”

“No. You were thorough. Very thorough.” She pauses. “Almost suspiciously so.”

You blink. “Suspiciously?”

“Your note-taking is bordering on romantic obsession.”

You open your mouth, then close it again.

She tilts her head. “Don’t look so alarmed. I’m complimenting you. In my own way.”

“I guess I just… I try to be careful.”

“You try to be perfect,” she corrects. “You think if you do everything flawlessly, I won’t find anything to criticize.”

You shift slightly in your seat, cheeks heating. “Is that a bad thing?”

“No. But it’s not sustainable.”

You nod slowly, fingers tightening around the armrest.

She watches you, eyes narrowing slightly, like she’s testing a theory.

“You don’t like being wrong,” she says.

“Does anyone?”

“You take it personally. Like I’m disappointed in you.”

You say nothing.

“I’m not,” she adds, softer now. “But I think you’re scared of that.”

You finally meet her eyes. “Maybe.”

A pause. Her gaze lingers. “You know people talk about you.”

You nod. “I know.”

She folds her hands on the desk. “Does it bother you?”

“Sometimes.”

“They say you’re my favourite.”

“I’m aware.”

“Are you?”

You hesitate. “Am I what?”

“My favourite.”

The air between you changes. Tightens.

You’re not sure how to answer. You want to say yes. You want to ask her why it matters. You want to ask her what she’d do if you said something you weren’t supposed to.

But all you say is: “That depends.”

“On what?”

“Whether it’s a compliment or a warning.”

That makes her smile—an actual smile, not the tight-lipped one she uses in meetings. Something slower. Fonder. Dangerous.

“Maybe both,” she murmurs.

You don’t realize you’re holding your breath until she rises from her chair. She walks around the desk and perches on the edge of it, closer to you now. She folds her arms across her chest, watching you like she’s trying to decide what you’ll do next.

“I know you want to impress me,” she says. “That’s not a bad thing. But don’t confuse ambition with submission.”

Your mouth goes dry.

“I’m not trying to submit,” you say, barely louder than a whisper.

“No?” Her voice dips. “Could’ve fooled me.”

There’s a pause, long and heavy, the kind of silence that crackles with possibility.

Then, mercifully, she shifts the tone again.

“You’re a good intern,” she says, a bit more professionally now. “Focused. Detail-oriented. A little obsessive, maybe, but I can work with that.”

You let out a breath. “Thank you.”

She leans back slightly, one leg crossed over the other. “Tell me something.”

You glance up.

“Do you actually like the work,” she asks, “or do you just like when I notice you doing it well?”

You freeze.

“That’s—” You stop. “I don’t know how to answer that.”

“Honestly.”

You take a breath. “I think… I like both.”

She studies you again, eyes tracing your face.

“That’s honest,” she says quietly. “And dangerous.”

Your pulse stutters.

“I’m not trying to cross any lines,” you say.

“I know,” she replies. “Neither am I.”

But neither of you moves.

For a moment, it feels like the whole world narrows down to the space between your chair and her knees. A few feet. A lifetime. Her gaze is steady, unflinching. You get the sense she could look right through you if she wanted.

She doesn’t. She sees you, and that’s almost worse.

“Get some sleep,” she says, standing again. “You’ve earned it.”

You nod, rising carefully.

At the door, you glance back.

“If I ever did want to be your favourite,” you say, soft and sure, “would that be a bad thing?”

She lifts a brow. “You already are.”

And then, before you can reply, she’s turning back toward her desk.

You step out into the corridor, heart thundering in your ears.

They can whisper all they want. You don’t care.

Because you are, without a doubt, Cuddy’s favourite.

[raviosrupees]

My parent rates LU Link's based on first impressions

[warning foul language, mention of alcohol, and my parents very negative impression of Wars !!! note this is my parents impression based off of the LU concept sketches + descriptions. a lot of em aren't accurate]

TIME

Very God of War, Kratos. PTSD Link.

when all the others are hanging out he's in the cups. He fought the moon? Sounds about right. Everyone else is talking and goofing off and he's got the thousand yard stare.

No one talks about how he cant get a full nights sleep. Please let him nap. Maybe let the owl take a nap too.

*stares at him for a very long time, before taking a sip of mimosa*

TWILIGHT

blond hiccup [httyd] very viking. Humble? Hiccup. Animal whisperer? Does he have a dragon? he turns in to a wolf? good for hiccup. getting over a complicated relationship? ...... h-

OH HE HAS GOATS? I love goats! Love this guy.

WARRIORS

Ah, douchy paladin! Yeah he's got the hip flex, he knows he's the shit. Very prideful? Of course you are. Leader type? Women problems? Not surprised. [said they most wanted to punch this one]

"This one writes himself. On Reddit forums"

FOUR [their 3rd fav]

"eeny meeny hippy genie" They've got the weird flowy scarf hat, they're super tiny! Dwarf.. chaos gremlin-- No that's a changeling! I don't think that's actually a Link, I think they faked their way in. Not that I blame them, its a pretty cool crew to be a part of. Spy for the fae realm.

WILD

5th grade school photo link. He's really excited for his first day of school and has a planner for all of his classes.

Good at navigation? Kudos for being a good boy scout.

Her 2nd favorite.

WILD

"Legolas Link" he likes to run on snow, flip his hair back + forth and shit talk dwarves [changeling doesn't like that]

"takes any questioning of his princess too personally? Why are they questioning his princess in the first place? *squints* Why is he so upset? Feel like maybe we need some codependency therapy-

IDENTITY CRISIS DUE TO MEMORY LOSS???? oh no, there we go, the therapy- INSECURE? THE ONLY ONE THAT FAILED? Dude, I think douchy paladin needs to take him to therapy-, maybe it'll convince him to get some too.

Proceeds to go into a rant about his sheikah tech being called weird magic: "Why are they calling his magic weird? That's rude ! They need to have more open minds, no wonder he's insecure! He just needs to feel confident and supported in his new environment and they're not being very supportive right now!"

*orders another mimosa*

LEGEND [their favorite]

"We've got stoner wizard link..." "Which one?" "He's wearing red, and like a fancy staff with a ball at the end for walloping on people who say he's not a real wizard" He just smacks em and says duh yes I am, but usually he doesn't bother with it bc he's too chill.

He's the Millenial of the linked universe. "Chooses not to be a leader type? 'Nope, Im good, just here for a paycheck not a promotion. Some PTO would be nice. Another adventure? He'd rather start a commune"

"Seems unaffected by his adventures?" Uhh he is though. He's just delusional about it now.

HYRULE

Classic link [true] silent generation, nobody acknowledges him. "just happy to be included," mistaken as a hobbit.

"He's actually a traveler, never stays in one place" "Ah so post adventure Bilbo baggins, who wants to see mountains again."

*starts singing "the road goes ever on and on"*

SKY

Foppy link. Fabulous haircut, cape swooped over one shoulder with the gorgeous coloring, contrasting belt-- he knows color schemes way too well, he could be in project runway.

"Not the leader type? Sure he's too busy worrying about fabric swatches. Views the master sword as a blessing? Yeah, I bet he does."

Very confidently decided his Zelda is a beard.

[yeoldenews]

hello! i was wondering if you (or any blogs you think might know?) had any resources for edwardian fashion, more precisely edwardian teen fashion? i'm writing a story centering on two edwardian ghosts and would like help on their style of speech as well if you can't help on the fashion aspects. thank you!

In my opinion, if you want to be able to portray the authentic feel of a time period, there is nothing better than diving head first into primary sources.

Whenever I start any large research/writing project that’s centered on a particular year, I usually spend at least a couple of days just immersing myself in the era.

We live in an extraordinary age when it comes to primary source research (especially for the early 20th century) - there are literally millions of period newspapers/books/magazines/films/recordings floating around online.

Find out what books were popular and check them out! Read the newspaper! Listen to popular music! Watch silent movies or newsreels!

For teenagers, school yearbooks are a particularly great source to get an idea of how young people spoke, their senses of humor, common slang, casual fashion, as well as the daily routines and general vibes of the time period. Most universities have their yearbooks digitized and available online and can be pretty easily found on google (try searching: [year] [location if desired] yearbook digital collections).

As for fashion - there are so many great fashion history tumblrs, that it’s pretty hard to go wrong if you just explore the “Edwardian” or “1900s” tag a bit. One thing to keep in mind though - most dresses that end up in museums were owned by very, very rich individuals. So, though a great place to start, scrolling through blogs full of museum pieces to learn about fashion history is roughly the equivalent of learning about modern fashion by only watching Chanel runway shows.

By the Edwardian era most young people were wearing pretty much the same thing as adults by the age of 14/15. You were, however, starting to see the very beginning of what would become the modern “juniors’ section” - usually termed “Misses’” for girls and “young men’s” or “collegiate” for boys. Here are a few examples of this can be seen in period catalogs from 1912, 1911 (starting on page 21) and 1908. 

It’s also important to keep in mind that fashion changed much, much more quickly than it does now. A woman in 1906 and a woman in 1911 would have noticeably different styles and silhouettes. I'd recommend scrolling through some fashion plates (going to shout out chic-a-gigot here who has a great collection of French fashion plates organized by decade and year) to get a basic handle on how the silhouette changed year by year.

In my past life I was fashion history specialist for high-end auctions, so I could go on in A LOT more detail about this subject, but I'm going to end it here before this gets too long.

[natsuslover]

jjk characters in an american high school ⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

notes— american high school stereotyping is fun to do. i did one of them for blue lock and it was enjoyable to write so i’m doing one for jjk as a coping mechanism :)

ft. yuji itadori, megumi fushiguro, nobara kugisaki, maki zenin, yuta okkotsu, toge inumaki

content: headcanons yay!

yuji itadori

definitely that one kid that speaks exclusively in brainrot humor

he’s barely passing all his classes (Cs get degrees mindset)

has a backpack for formalities sake bc the only thing that’s in there is his lunch and maybe a few paper handouts

skips class ALL THE TIME only to hang out with megumi or nobara in their class instead lmao

i feel like he would either be on the baseball or soccer team and he would be extremely good at them too

dodgeball goat, definitely gets internally pissed off if he loses a game

his teachers have a love/hate relationship with him (they hate him bc he doesn’t gaf about their class but they love him bc its yuji cmon)

the coaches tho they LOVE him

not in any ap classes so he makes fun of all his friends as they’re struggling during exam season

that one kid that somehow knows everyone and daps up his friends in the halls during passing period

just at school for the vibes basically

megumi fushiguro

ap god, bros literally in every ap class he could possibly be in

his studying routine is so fine-tuned he can study as minimally as possible and still max all his classes

100% attendance, u can never catch this dude lacking even if he’s sick or smth

he definitely has extra pencils in his bag for borrowing purposes bc he knows yuji never has any

he’s not super organized like color coded folders or anything, but he knows where everything is in his backpack and is always prepared in case the teacher asks for a paper from 2 months ago

he’s studious but like minimally if that makes sense

like he’s def top 6% but gets just as annoyed as the next person when some idiot tells the teacher they haven’t checked the homework yet

his favorite subject would be history idk why and he participates in the history fair fs

usually sits in the back of class and hates group projects

has his black sony wh 1000xm4 headphones on at all times

nobara kugisaki

her school fits go HARD every single day bc she literally thinks of the halls as her runway

has a bunch of cute stationary bc she likes how they look (not that she ever uses them bc what is note taking?)

she’s always on her phone during class, and if she’s not she’s yapping to her friends

“NOBARA STFU” is said by her teachers at least 5 times per class

whenever yuji comes to her class (everyday lol) she tells him all the new tea and gives him updates on the old

skips class sometimes to take mirror selfies in the bathroom

refuses to eat the school lunch bc that shit is disgusting

is fueled purely by celsius/redbull during exam season

is in a few ap classes and doesn’t really study but still manages to do fine on everything

gets to first period late almost everyday bc she takes too long getting ready in the morning

has beef with her english teacher and argues for higher essay grades like it’s her goddamn life’s mission

maki zenin

she’s the girl who defends everyone against bullies even if she doesn’t know them

like if there’s a fight in the hallway u just know she either started it or she’s ending it

teachers love her tho bc she’s incredibly smart and always does well on exams and assignments and everything in general

even tho she’s pretty studious she’s definitely gotten detention a few times for getting into fights

she’s a small top big pants girl for life and sometimes gets dress coded but doesn’t care enough to change

i feel like she also skips class sometimes just to sit in the library and listen to music when she doesn’t feel like doing shit

she’s the designated driver when her, nobara, and the rest of the gang go off campus during lunch

she’s an ap calc bc prodigy fs (got a 5 on the exam and it was light work)

president of like unicef and nhs and all those other clubs that don’t actually do anything but look super good on college apps

has answers to the tests and quizzes but never uses them

definitely on the track team or smth and the coach loves her bc she’s super athletic

yuta okkotsu

a teacher’s pet but not one of the annoying ones bc he doesn’t TRY to be a teacher’s pet ykwim

a lot of girls have crushes on him bc he’s cute and has a cute personality and somewhat mysterious-ish

he hangs out in the library with maki during his free/release periods bc he knows she often skips in there

has one wired earbud in his ear at all times and prob listens to dayglow or smth

bro is an ap lit WARRIOR like he’s so good at writing essays and genuinely enjoys reading the books too

his favorite required read was frankenstein bc the monster reminded him of rika

he’s not a big fan of group work but he enjoys doing partner work bc he finds it easier to talk to and get along with oner person at a time

overall he’s pretty organized when it comes to school work but his note-taking/speed handwriting is just scribbles

he doesn’t think he has a lot of friends but irl all the kids in his classes love him

uses 0.3 lead mechanical pencils instead of the usual 0.5 idk why it just seems fitting

the type of person who would snack on goldfish in the middle of class

toge inumaki

he wore a mask for a year after everyone stopped wearing them until he realized he looked stupid and stopped

doesn’t take any ap classes besides ap bio and he only takes that bc biology is his favorite subject

idk why but he gives president of the environmental club vibes

sits in the back and plays games on his phone all the time during class

but the teachers don’t care enough to say anything bc he always does fine on tests and stuff

doesn’t talk much during class discussions but when he does it’s always meaningful

his biggest nightmare is a socratic seminar bro hates those things more than anything

also has his airpods in 24/7 bc he doesn’t like listening to ppl talk and if someone asks if he heard he can use “music” as an excuse

thinks the school lunch is fine especially on fish sticks day but goes with maki bc she takes them all out anyway

has calc with yuta and both of them struggle together and end up asking maki for help

an AVID tiktok user like ong he’s always mindlessly scrolling through the app

part 2 coming with gojo, geto, shoko, utahime, nanami, and toji soon bc these are so fun to write omg! also u guys should request stuff bc im running low on ideas 💀

[zmediaoutlet]

inspired by your tags on the smith and wesson gif set. would love to hear your thoughts on how dean being deanna change 'its a terrible life'

aha, delights in visuals ensue for one thing -- happy wincest wednesday and let's imagine Deanna Smith in management. 😍

Here are those tags tho --

#here's the thing #if there were a same-sex person in the elevator with me #even if they were talking about weird dreams #i would not assume they wanted to fuck me #perhaps that's a blindness on my part; nevertheless #dean on the other hand-- #spn #smith/wesson

...and, well, if Deanna Smith is standing in the elevator in her pencil skirt and her heels and her hair styled just so, and this gigantic IT guy looks at her too-intense and says I have these weird dreams, she is going to assume exactly what Dean Smith assumes, and for her it is an entirely different ballgame. She's management and she's pretty sure he won't -- do anything. But he keeps looking at her and he's hot even if he's using a very stupid pick-up line and she might go icy-cold with her voice but there's a flush starting somewhere under the pencil skirt and when she gets home she will have a very cold glass of chardonnay before she chastises herself for cheating on the diet and goes to spin class.

A few people have written super sexy manager Deanna and like, of course she'll end up fucking the giant hot IT guy -- like, sure, of course that's true, why wouldn't it be -- but I also think it's interesting to for once not go straight to incestuous fucking (! i know!) and instead think, again, about what Dean Smith tells us about Dean Winchester, and therefore what Deanna Smith tells us about her own counterpart. If it's okay let's just take my Deanna as read because i'm right because it'll be faster -- but when Zachariah lifts her out of that hospital bed and heals all her damage from what Alastair did, and gives her a softer better life, and puts her in her natural role of middle management (some authority, but still answering to higher powers), and gives her a job she can settle into...

I can still see the Prius and the juice cleanse and the Project Runway and the NPR and the just-so business attire (Ann Taylor, Nordstrom), and the fitting perfectly into the role given to her because that's what Dean always does. It just so happens that for Dean this was an emasculated metrosexual joke, and for Deanna this is a moderately empowering elevation to some actual respect. Deanna has a pretty-but-not-ostentatious mani/pedi and she's very, very good at her job, and she knows how to handle men because at Stanford in her engineering management classes they always thought she was too pretty to be smart, and the nice thing is that she's smart and pretty and knows how to use both of those things to get what she wants. When Mr. Adler comes to her office she smiles at him just so and her silky shell under her blazer gaps juuuust enough to be enticing but not unprofessional. She deals with her reports firmly but empathetically. She will, indeed, get that VP job in a few years. Or would, if this life were real.

When Mr Adler becomes Zachariah and the world goes from bright to mud, Deanna gasps and says ugh, I'm starving, and Zachariah tells her that her sense of dissatisfaction is because she's born to be a hunter, not some office drone, and Zachariah tells her she has a greater purpose -- that's all true. But Deanna didn't hate the mani/pedis, or the gossiping over a coffee break, or even the salads. She was parted from Sam and that was awful (although, bringing it back to w.w., her pussy might be aching from the pounding she got over the desk after that ghost hunt last night, and that's something they'll have to talk about either soon or never) -- but more than that it was a glimpse of the person she could've been if hunting hadn't landed in her lap. Deanna Smith was bored maybe, but not unhappy. The responsibility is always handed to Dean like it's some kind of glorious purpose, but fresh off hell and being a torturer and her brother slipping away into some demon bitch's arms instead of hers -- the Ann Taylor and the salads might be preferable.

[coricoping]

CATS: The Jellicle Ball Summary

Sourced from my (admittedly imperfect) memory. I love this production, and this is an abridged summary of my memory of the events of the show. Specific/detailed character thoughts will be saved for their own posts, same with thematic deep dives. If there is any character/theme/question y'all want my thoughts on first, I can move them to the top of my queue of thoughts. That being said: on with the show!

Tumblr decided to post early, so this is just Act 1. I will add Act 2 as a reblog when I finish it

Pre-Show

The set for this show is really well done. Talked to one of the workers during intermission, and the whole thing (seating, stage, and all) is completely modular and movable. Floor levels are also all adjustable. It really inclines itself to audience interaction, both with the runway structure and the individual tables at the cabaret level seats.

Junior Labeija handles the pre-show announcements (put your phones away once you've googled me, cheer your heart out, don't film, etc)

Overture

Hearing this live for the first time made me cry

The DJ's introduction is great, he has a collection of queer and black artists' vinyls that he pulls out, followed by a Cats vinyl filled with glitter

The eyes (projected up onto the back wall/window panel) have the white cat solo animated inside of them

Shadow outline of a dancer (I think Primo/Tumble on the night I saw) starting out w/ ears and a tail doing classic Cats-style choreo blending into a removal of the ears/tail and a shift to ballroom choreo

Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats

Did the thing I love for this song where there are clear and well-timed spotlights on every cat as they sing their line, w/ everyone else in darkness

Cast appears throughout the audience (Tugger was behind me at his start, I think) before gathering into the area around the stage

Get onto stage for the Mystical Divinity section

The group catwalk is absolutely gorgeous, this show has great choreo

The Naming of Cats

The perfection of this song for a queer viewing of Cats cannot be overstated, and will likely be its own post eventually

Munk as an MC leading this number is lovely to me

"Man over there" is given to Macavity, as the first clear indication to his altered role in this version

There are spotlights on every cat whose name gets said in the song, not just Bombalurina, which makes me happy

White Cat Solo

Gets its own segment because Baby is that good. She is dance captain for this show and you can see why

The white outfit here is gorgeous, kinda sad she changes out of it later

Pink lighting is doing good work making this section feel ethereal

Was way closer to the vibes of the original than I was expecting from a vogue choreo. There were a couple moves I saw as clear references to the original

Invitation

Emcee Munk continues to be amazing, the rhythm of this was very satisfying

"COME OUT tonight"

They bring in guest judges to sit until Old Deut arrives

Gumbie Cat

Jenny is a tired single mother of three kids who cannot for the life of them get organized

Puerto Rican drag queen Jennyanydots has my heart, as does her stylist

The "sits and sits and sits" line here is not used to imply that Jenny is lazy, it is very explicitly saying that she has a lot of sex (as acted out jokingly by her choreo)

Cassandra is adorable here, both while dancing and after she realizes she's won

Category Is: Virgin Vogue. A category for people in their first year of doing vogue (or similar). Won by Cassandra of House Dots, other competitors are Tumblebrutus of House Dots, Electra 007, and someone I am currently forgetting

The Rum Tum Tugger

I think I've made my love for this setup for Tugger clear before, and will continue to do so in the future, so this is gonna be little moments I liked/noticed

There are some line/blocking switch ups. Bomba gets the "terrible bore" line (said reclined on the stage as Tugger leans over her) along with her standard. Victoria is the girl flirting with Tugger on his "No" drop

Tugger flirts with everyone here. His competition, the other cats, the audience, etc.

Everyone but Misto, who is off to the side mocking his riffs

Sillabub is the one to faint during the ending bit

Category Is: Realness. Ability to pass as a (in this case) a cishet man in a variety of categories (pretty boy, thug, schoolboy, executive, etc). Won by Tugger, other competitors are Tumblebrutus and Mungojerrie

Grizzabella the Glamour Cat

I really like the interpretation of the Jellicles' relationship with Grizz in this show. They aren't angry at her, more...distressed? It seems like her being around is making everyone worried both about her and for her, so they react differently

Munk tries to give her money, she refuses

She comes in holding a trophy that is clearly old, showing that her glory days were a while ago. She also looks like she's likely been homeless.

Demeter's voice is gorgeous here, and she looks really conflicted about Grizz

There is a Demelurina vibe to this whole show, which I started noticing here

I have a lot of thoughts on Grizz and her relationships with the Jellicles here, which will probably be a post pretty soon after this one.

Grizz tries and fails to convince the judges to allow her to compete, and is far more determined/steely in this first appearance than usual.

Sillabub. Making them a giant Grizzabella fan was such a good choice. This is one of the most sweet and genuine through-lines of the musical. They're so genuinely remorseful and excited to see Grizz, but still back off when Demeter warns them.

Bustopher Jones

I know I gave Jenny my heart earlier, but it's been stolen. Nonbinary Bustopher Jones as played by Nora Schell is, I think, the ideal Bustopher. This is what this character was meant to be, for me

Oh gods the costumes. Tugger has a sparkly leopard print jockstrap. Bustopher has a full bustier situation covered in a bedazzled Union Jack. Mistoffelees and Demeter both have lovely sheer situations going on. This is amazing, and I've been informed is even better if you're bi

Nora Shell has pipes, y'all. Their voice is so strong and clear

This number has almost no true choreography, it's just the competitors showing off how hot they are (posing, strutting, stripping, grabbing their asses and shaking them at the judges, etc)

The amount of offense Tugger takes to losing is hilarious to me

Category Is: Body. Usually divided into Femme Queen and Butch Queen, but competed as an Open-to-All for this show. How good does your body look, and how well can you show it off? Won by Bustopher Jones, other competitors are Tugger, Demeter, and Mistoffelees.

Macavity Scare 1

Flashing lights and sirens

Demeter is so done with this. I have rarely heard a clearer "bitch really?" tone than I did in her calling Macavity's name here

Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer

Making them come from Jersey is amazing, top tier choice paired with some amazing accent work

Costumes are again amazing, Mungoteazer have a lime green/neon pink color scheme going on here

They spend a long time behind some changing racks, and I spent that whole time watching Munk as he got more and more annoyed with every passing second

I really love the dancing in this song, they get very up in each other's faces

Y'all, they steal the trophy when they lose. It's perfect

Category Is: Tag Team Performance. Vogue performance done as a pair. Won by Victoria and Tumblebrutus, stolen by Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer.

Old Deuteronomy

Munkustrap: a professional, on his shit, announcing his House Father right

Tugger: unprepared, eating a snack, oh god why is he giving me the mic

I love the setup for the duet here, Tugger is so surprised to be picked and is both nervous and honored. They sing into the same mic y'all

Andre De Shields, what more do I need to say?

His presence, his voice, the note he held for a solid 30 seconds, he deserves that throne

Jellicle Ball

Macavity again! In his dressing gown, with his bags of stolen stuff, looking like a deer in headlights when the spotlight catches him

The dancing continues to be absolutely gorgeous

Grizzabella is up on an audience balcony for this number looking tragic

The Jellicle Moon is a disco ball and it brought me so much joy

Munk has a killer egyptian look, including full-size wings

There are giant complicated cat face wigs and a giant hat made of hair

Category Is: Bizarre. Fashion category judged on the quality and strangeness of the outfit. Munkustrap was the only competitor, and Old Deut chopped him

Category Is: Hair. Not a category I actually know, but clearly in this show is judging based on the size, design, and quality of wigs. Won by the House of Dots, as sole competitors

Probably other categories I didn't notice clearly enough to remember

Memory

Grizzabella comes on and everyone walks off annoyed, except for Old Deut who comes and hides behind a riser. He's right in front of me, so I'm watching this number over his shoulder

Grizz recreating her dance moves is painful for my heart, as usual

Tempress has a gorgeous voice

Sillabub re-enters and looks so starstruck, then runs off again

Comes back with a sparkly dress to offer to Grizz

Grizz sees the dress, starts crying, and runs away. She grabs her coat, but leaves her scarf

We go to intermission on the image of Sillabub holding the scarf to their face and crying

[themonotonysyndrome]

Wajid Headcanons

(Random assorted headcanons for future fics and infos to flesh him out as a character. Sure the title of 'Dominating Boss' is sexy but c'mon, there's more to this man than his immaculate wardrobe!)

Of Arabic descent hence the name. His family is one of the few that can trace their lineage back to Pre-Cataclysm.

Speaking of which, his surname is 'Al-Basir (البصير): The Perceptive. Fitting since his family is a bunch of vicious opportunists who would do anything to improve their station and status. Even marrying their son into a noble family.

But upon marrying, he takes on Shula's surname as per one of the requests from his father-in-law. The golden plaque on his office desk is written: 'Wajid Sinclar, CEO of Modas'.

As a CEO, it's not enough to be able to keep up with him. No, you must be on his wavelength for he demands nothing but maximum efficiency if you're working with him.

Holds himself to a high standard when it comes to his work and unfortunately, he throws that same standard to his employees as well. This makes him both an excellent and poor CEO.

He doesn't mix business with morality. He sees the latter as something that will hold him back from making difficult decisions or reaping questionable rewards.

Control is everything to him as it brings a semblance of comfort and security. Whatever plans he makes must follow exactly how he wants it or his temper starts showing.

Can't stand romance movies or books. He finds them fanciful and a waste of time.

He is the eldest and has two little sisters who are arranged to be married into good prospects and wealth just like him.

While he doesn't see eye to eye with his parents, he's close to his sisters. They often call each other or send letters.

His favourite colour is actually yellow but for the sake of maintaining his appearance as an untouchable boss, his wardrobe mainly consists of the colours white, black, brown and grey.

He meets every requirement to appear on the runway but prefers to control the show from behind the scenes.

He does boxing every Thursday night and his workout regiment is pretty all-rounded. While he's not as muscular as Castin or Warren, he has a pretty toned body.

His hobbies are boxing and high-stake poker where money won't be on the table. No, instead, it's favours for he only plays against influential people that could benefit him and Modas. Best believe that he will cheat just to add more thrill.

Used to be a part-time chef whenever his sisters are on their period because they tend to be picky and would ask him for all sorts of dishes.

Just like Castin, he has a habit of falling into tunnel vision whenever he gives his all to a project. His scheme with the VP is a ticking time bomb that he just isn't aware of. He's also ignorant of how his constant hovering around you looks to other people.

Prefers wine rather than whisky.

Takes his coffee black with no cream or sugar. Because of course, he does.

His ideal Saturday evening is sketching away couture designs in his office with music playing in the background with a glass of his favourite wine.

Collects rare watches as trophies as every piece symbolises a personal milestone in his life. He recently bought himself a new one though he would never admit that it's a celebratory piece for having you as his partner-in-crime.

Hates dealing with paparazzi but he's damn good at playing them for a fool. He'll put on an award-winning smile and charm them with what they want to hear but his words are nothing more than misdirections or empty gossips. Nothing concrete about Modas or his personal life.

In total, he has five safe houses that he personally designed with a team of architects. The one where you're staying is his pride and joy.

He's not a good horse rider and would prefer to have a chauffeur around to transport him.

At first, he thinks that the Baroness and Castin's arranged marriage and how happy they are is nothing more than a PR stunt. After meeting them, he starts to resent his own arranged marriage with Shula and hates how his parents used him as if he's no better than the livestock that was bartered.

Good at sewing. He often patched up his sisters' plushies back when they were kids.

He stopped wearing his wedding band when Shula lost hers and she replaced it with a bigger, shinier diamond that she made him buy for her.

Unlike Shula who is a well-known socialite and can always be seen attending some kind of high society party, he is an introvert who would rather spend his rare free time resting at home (if Shula isn't around) or take his dogs on a walk.

In a Modern AU, he would be driving an Audi. Powerful, requires steering precision, and it's petroleum-fueled because he's a busy man and he needs to refill his car quickly.

His favourite food is lamb mandi.

He can't stand any raw food so sushi and tartare? Immediately loses his appetite. If there's a raw octopus on the table with its tentacles still wiggling? He would quickly excuse himself, lol.

Has a pair of large, black, purebred Dobermans he keeps as pets and serves as guard dogs. Their names are Zahir and Zehn. He personally trained and disciplined them and each proudly wears an expensive collar. He's that kind of pet owner, yes.

In private, he listens to dark jazz. Expect something slow and sensual to play in the background as he unwinds after a long day of work and lavishs his dogs with toys and attention.

(Random assorted headcanons that focus on Wajid as the Male Lead of his series, as well as his relationship with his Listener, VP.) (Be warned, some are 18+)

He is dominating in every way. He would have you walk in front of him so he can gently rest his palm behind your back to ensure that no one is gonna accidentally trip you from behind. He will hold the mirror up for you if you need to fix your lipstick. He will grab your hand if you're going to the wrong meeting room. Hell, he will grab your chin and make you accept his praise if you dare to say that your makeup isn't perfect.

Has a low sexual libido but when he's in the mood, he can go for more than five rounds. He only slept with Shula once and the stress gained from his position as CEO dimmed his sexual appetite. Until you came into his life, of course.

He will always open the carriage order for you if the coachman doesn't. He also expects you to take his hand as he helps you descend.

He's frightfully attentive. Forget about having secrets because he will pry it from you one way or another. He makes it his personal business to always know where you are, who you are with, what you ate, your medical history, and your likes and dislikes. He would keep this information to himself and surprise you with what you need before you even realise it.

While not full-on into BDSM, his kinks lean on the heavier aside. Ropes, handcuffs, blindfolds and dominating plays are what he prefers.

Posessive to hell and back. What’s his is his. He doesn’t share, doesn’t tolerate rivals, and expects absolute loyalty. Funny enough, he fears becoming too attached—because love makes him vulnerable, and vulnerability can be exploited. It also doesn't help that he can't control you.

He's also fiercely protective. If it's up to him, he would shield you from the world. Will not hesitate to destroy those who threaten his VP.

Can be jealous whenever you so much as talk to someone he doesn't know. By the way, his jealousy doesn't just target the opposite sex. He's aware that women are a threat as well.

Although he craves control, a part of him enjoys it whenever you defy him or shout in his face. He likes it whenever you push his button, testing his patience, knowing full well that it gives him the right to punish you.

We know that he likes VP on her knees and her hair down but he also likes it if you do so in a tight pencil skirt.

While he has trouble showing his vulnerable side, his actions speak louder than words. He's intensely devoted and will shower you with lavish and secret gifts.

He likes flaunting his wealth and power by treating you like the only girl in the world.

Has a habit of watching you through reflections, in shadows and stolen moments. He would memorise every detail about you - expressions, habits and postures. So much so that whenever he sketches a design, your image will be his model.

Not the kind to whisper sweet nothings into your ear but he will steal you away to some private island without warning. You would wear custom couture that he personally designed and tailored while he attends to your every need, in or out of the bedroom.

Obsessed with your scent. Any perfume you would wear would immediately be imprinted in his mind and he would instinctively seek them out whenever you pass by.

He's a service top and god help you if you're spiteful and refuse to cum when his head is in between your legs.

Obsessed with hearing you scream his name while your hands are pinned down in bed. He likes hearing you say it like a prayer.

He'll leave you hickeys for days and he'll make sure it'll be on the most visible parts of your body that makeup can't hide. Though he likes biting your ears and lavishing his tongue on them to soothe any pain.

King of dirty talks. His voice can go low and dark as he whispers in your ear, offering you filthy promises and compliments if you can be a good girl for Daddy.

Likes it when you ride him and he would make sure you're looking at him in the eyes as you chase your orgasm.

Punishment varies from him silently watching you getting fucked by one of those sex machines or vibrators (with him holding the remote) or edging you until you're a sobbing mess. It depends on just how badly you disobeyed him.

He would always make sure you slept first so he could hold you in his arms and stroke your hair which he loves so much. Best believe you're not getting out of his embrace anytime soon. He will pull back into the bed if you somehow manage to wiggle free.

Aftercare is silent but worshipful. He will gently clean you up, make sure you're hydrated and offer you some light snacks or meals to replenish your energy. He would also massage you to loosen any sore wrists or ankles. If you don't want to talk that's fine. At least let him be your servant for the night.

He's a neat freak but if he doesn't see your personal belongings messing up his place then he'll be annoyed. In fact, he'll annoy you because he likes seeing traces of you and your warmth around the house.

He'll be so smug if you colour-coordinate your outfits to match him, even if it's unintentional on your part. Every praise that highlights how well you two work together as a team will inflate his ego.

This man will slip out a few 'habibti' in bed when he's truly lost in your pussy.

Despite his sharp words, he relishes taking care of you. He will scold you for your lack of self-care while he washes your hair, moisturises your body, clips your nails, makes sure you will always have clothes with your preferred texture, fingers you 'till you cum at least twice orders for his dogs to keep you company while he cooks you a full meal.

[pocima]

2024 albums I recommend catching up on ⋆✴︎˚｡⋆° 📹

In other words, a shamefully long overdue list of my top 10+2 albums of 2024

Welcome to my long overdue list of albums I’ve been adoring last year! It’s the second rendition of my yearly project reviews, and I’m so grateful to be in a circle of bloggers who are as passionate for music and musical projects as I am for over 2 years now. The competition in this list is truly tough because 2024 has been a year where incredible full-length projects were dropping left and right from countless names in the music industry, and I still feel bad about ranking some names lower in the list. A good amount of artists were breaking their years-long hiatuses as well as if they were all given a deadline until 2025, and that felt surreal to witness. Considering the abundance of good full albums specifically, as you noticed, the list will cover my personal top 12 rather than last year’s 10! Additionally, I chose to separate them from my favorite EPs this time around, and an EP ranking will be dropping soon! 💋 Side note: two of the entries are accompanies with audio files instead of the usual videos because of Tumblr’s 10 video per post limit, soz.

⑫ Heráldica - Saramalacara

I wanna start this off by shouting out my sweet tasteful mutual @a-moth-to-the-light, because my Heráldica and Saramalacara discoveries all started with this HUMO audio post. When I first pressed play, I was surely hearing something, but I didn’t exactly predict it would all lead to Saramalacara playing a huge part in defining my summer and fall, and being my top artist on my YouTube Music recap. I was introduced to a very trance and hardstyle influenced headbopper right off the bat, and soon I would be transported to Sara’s very own Heráldica world. The surreal drum & bass INTRO_ greets us, and we stroll through Más Feliz’s breakbeats, .tumblr and 10percs’ electropop dancefloors, Sola’s dramatic cries, XQSI, Tokio Hotel and Diamantes&Kalashnikov’s thumping trap highways and the emo rock anthem tu droga at the departure. I kept the album on repeat, not even intentionally, partly because the tracklist was all pure earworms, but more so because Sara excels at the craft of worldbuilding with music and sound. Her EPs prior and now her debut album feel exactly like portals, straight out of a video game. The visuals support the gloomy, hazy vibe the album gives on its own, and the end result is a distinctive era much needed in the current emo/digicore pop-rap scene.

Favorite tracks: HUMO, Tokio Hotel and .tumblr.

⑪ Access All Areas - FLO

Moving on to another debut album, one that I’ve been so eagerly anticipating since discovering FLO when they dropped their first single Cardboard Box in 2022. For years I’d been hoping for them to flourish as artists and get all the love and success they deserve because they’re such talents, especially vocally, and their EPs and singles had been just wonderful, and there was just no way their big and mighty first LP would be a letdown. FLO’s contemporary R&B princesses status, their consistency and versatility are fully set in stone with Access All Areas. Harmonies and runs top-notch off the bat with the intro and smooth, sax driven title track AAA. In My Bag, How Does It Feel?, IWH2BMX and Nocturnal are instant confidence boosters all in their different ways and sounds. (The Bree Runway feature on Nocturnal in AAA: Unlocked? Now THAT’S what I’m talking about.) Soft and On & On reveal their more sultry sides with gentle, serenading vocals, while they stand on business and let go of the untrustworthy on Caught Up and Shoulda Woulda Coulda, which is my personal favorite genre of FLO songs. They dabble in some Miami bass with Check, Detroit drill with Get It Till I’m Gone and surprisingly nice pop-rock (I typically find it ear-grating so REALLY surprisingly) with the empowering final track, I’m Just A Girl. The production quality, again, the VOCALS, the arrangements, the group chemistry, the charisma, the energy, everything sets the bar higher for pop and R&B stars, but truthfully it’s unsurprising since that’s exactly what you’d expect from the FLO girls.

Favorite tracks: Shoulda Woulda Coulda (track review here), Caught Up, Get It Till I’m Gone and Nocturnal.

⑩ DOGMA - LSDXOXO

2024 was THE year of underground club bangers and electronic music with a gritty twist, as seen with many projects gaining plenty of attention and artists following suit, and it would only make sense to get to the top 10 of my list with the iconic producer and DJ LSDXOXO’s debut album. LSDXOXO is primarily known for his upbeat, sharp sound, notably on his Dedicated 2 Disrespect and Delusions of Grandeur EPs, however, Dogma takes a bold turn, with the pulsating club beats making way for the guitar topped reggaeton of 4LUVN, the alternative R&B worlds of Blinded and Bloodlust, the dark electropop thrill of Black Light, the synth-focused trap instrumentals of Girls Girls Girls and Ghost, the breakbeats of Witching Hour and Superstar and softer vocals and raps observed on all of the tracks. I knew this direction would be smoothly, beautifully executed since Bloodlust’s single release, and with the continuation of the rollout, I knew the album’s sound would be what I needed in September. The production remains incredibly in-depth and the atmosphere of the project is irresistibly alluring. Overall, this was definitely one of the top projects that defined fall 2024 for me and surely one that proved LSDXOXO’s versatility and successful experimentation. Special shoutout to Kelela for elevating Girls Girls Girls and Ghost with her background vocals, you know I love small but impactful details.

Favorite tracks: Black Light (track review here), Bloodlust and Girls Girls Girls.

⑨ Chupetones - Meth Math

Another solid debut album that has stayed heavily on rotation multiple times throughout 2024, this time by the alternative neoperreo collective Meth Math, previously having captured my attention with their feature on Isabella Lovestory’s Tacon, and later with their Pompi and m♡rtal EPs. Prior to the announcement of the album, I’m gonna be honest and say that its lead single (and later album opener) Mantis did not pull me in like the rest of their discography did, but despite a slightly rough start, the dramatic, hypnotizing second single Myspace brought me back immediately, and forget being seated, I was glued onto my chair with Cyberia (still the catchiest song on the album in my opinion) and later with Axila. Meth Math introduce new genre influences that fit the band’s style like a glove to their catalogue, such as happy hardcore with Cyberia, trip-hop with Capullo and witch house with Axila and Pócima (yup, the source of my username). On occasions they mix said genres, like they did with the familiar reggaeton and the less familiar witch house in Abducida. Every aspect about the project is impressionable, from the echoing sound design to the visual direction of both the music videos and perfectly eccentric cybercore album photography. I can confirm I will be paying attention to Meth Math’s future work moving on forward as I constantly need some electronic, gloomy reggaeton in my life.

Favorite tracks: Pócima (duh) and Cyberia (track review here).

⑧ Tidal Memory Exo - Iglooghost

You guys witness me frequently posting about music I fall in love with instantly, giving immediate reactions right upon discovery, but I’ve also mentioned that most of the time, my all-time favorites end up being bodies of work that creep up on me slowly. This was the exact case with electronic musician Iglooghost’s Tidal Memory Exo and his discography in general. I knew of his remixes and a couple songs here and there previously, I saved Nemat0de right on the first listen, and just casually kept coming back to the rest of the album, and realized I fell in love with it more and more, and not so unexpectedly. Ever since his come-up, he’s been delivering some of the sickest, glitchiest, most maximalist sound design and absolutely otherworldly mixing. That’s not the only proof he’s an electronic music mogul either, he proves it by the flawless incorporations of breakcore (Alloy Flea), 2-step/garage (flux•Cocoon), drill (Pulse Angel and Dewdrop Signal), along with gothic influences akin to Gesaffelstein’s Gamma (Coral Mimic) and orchestral moments giving that “calm after the storm” feel (Dewdrop Signal). Another element that makes the album this cohesive and put together is the storytelling, present in all of his past projects but especially prominent in this one sonically and visually. The inspiration for the Tidal Memory Exo-verse comes from his time squatting in a garage of a UK seaside town, and the concept is based on apocalyptic, sci-fi themes, and here are some articles that can frankly give a lot more insight on the lore than I can. Tidal Memory Exo is a universe I’d recommend to all IDM fans, or anyone who’s looking for intricate sounds and top-notch quality dopamine.

Favorite tracks: Nemat0de, flux•Cocoon and Coral Mimic.

⑦ G-SPOT - STARKIDS

Speaking of dopamine, I’ve also mentioned that there’s arguably nobody that induces it in the music game like the Japanese hyperpop band STARKIDS do. It’s been forever since I full-on geeked out over a group like this. I’m very often in need of some loud underground EDM in my life, and they’ve played a huge part in me falling further in love with the J-hyperpop scene. They’re the ultimate masters of unapologetic, maxed out, extremely well-produced fun music. Even when it comes in the form of singles (okay so for the 1000th time I will emphasize that Pop is the 2020s’ Like a G6), their music is mind-blowingly captivating and entertaining, but an entire album of pure unadulterated bangers 3 years after the last one? I’ve gotten scared and then pissed at their diabolical disbandment prank rollout (near decade long K-popper moment) but how could you not forgive them when the music is really THIS good? Unlike the previous projects mentioned in the list, they don't take entirely new directions, but instead effortlessly show how good they are at what they do, from their throbbing as always takes on happy hardcore and Eurobeat to the usual yet exciting hip-hop and trap roads, with hints of 2-step (BACK2BACK) and hardstyle (title track). The members’ flows never fail to hit like a sip of freezing soda, and while Espeon and Benxni are my MVPs in this aspect, all of them have their moments with their own addictive verses and choruses. Thematically, the album offers STARKIDS' constant preachings on embracing authenticity and living your life free of any judgement. Honestly, there's something people of all backgrounds and lifestyles can get out of these preachings. Whether you're the type to spend days and nights partying or choose to navigate stably through work or education, all you have to do is listen up, mentally hop on the band's wavelength and have fun to the fullest just like they do.

Favorite tracks: BACK2BACK (track review here), G-SPOT, Stay Back, TYOSTAR and Thailand BKK.

⑥ Where The Butterflies Go In The Rain - Raveena

After the intense, high tempo, electronic projects I've talked about in the list so far, it's time to make room for some therapeutic, lush R&B with another gorgeous project from Raveena. With her third studio album, she once again takes on roles she absolutely owns: a narrator, a fairy, a healer, an ethereal being. Let me start simply with how I felt while first listening to it on its release day: I remember taking a half-hour walk home, DMing the #1 Raveena fan @timetravellingkitty my thoughts as they formed, feeling just like a main character in a coming of age movie. You can easily observe that music puts me through countless emotions, that’s why I talk about it so much and in such detail, but again, the art of building entire worlds through albums is something that particularly earns my appreciation. You can guess the beauty of the production and sound straight from the title. From the Brandy inspired string-heavy Pluto and Lose My Focus; to her blending Western and South Asian influences on Every Color; the simple but moving soul tunes Lucky and Rise; the catchy dream pop bops Baby Mama, 16 Candles and Smile For Me; the guitar-only Kid and piano-only Little Bird and We Should Move Somewhere Beautiful; and the soothing, cinematic finale Water (and she KNOWS how to do a good key change). Not to forget the wholesome Afternoon Tea with the Auroras interlude, which begins with her grandmother reciting the Sikh mantra Ik Onkar and includes a conversation between the two, and that alone represents the rawness and emotion put into the album. The sweet vocals and harmonies, lullaby-like at times, are a key in maintaining this otherworldly-ness. Moving onto what the project means to Raveena herself: in her own words, she needed to return to comfort and stop weathering storms, just like how butterflies go into hiding in the rain due to their fragility. If you’re new to her, her spirituality, connection with herself and eloquence seep through every word, every melody she puts out. Whether the topics are sweet such as romance or personal growth and realizations, or rather painful such as grief, genocide or the opposition to women’s rights and humanity, it’s all tackled deeply, but with genuine hope. Genuineness is a quality I highlight consistently when discussing art, though it seems and feels like a bare minimum, and it’s what Raveena directly exudes. That’s something to find true comfort and consolation in.

Favorite tracks: Junebug (track review here) and Lose My Focus.

⑤ Still - Erika de Casier

Erika de Casier is still a wonderful player in the contemporary R&B game, with her added pinches of breakbeats, 2-step and synths straight out the 2000s all throughout her discography. While her debut album Essentials was pretty down-tempo and trip-hop focused, and sophomore Sensational introduced heavy garage influences, her third album amps up the 2000s aspect of her sound. Right after intro Right This Way, where Erika welcomes you to her very own party as a VIP comes first single Lucky, the adorable liquid drum and bass jam and a production highlight. (Peep two albums back to back having cute songs called Lucky!) Home Alone and ooh possess the epitome of that Y2K era cheekiness and sensuality, as well as the Timbaland-coded beats and samples. The Princess is debatably the most vulnerable Erika has gotten with her with her inner disagreements in relation to her life and future, accompanied by a guitar and soft chest singing. On ice, she brings out Tampa rap duo They Hate Change for their takes on verses about relationship bantering, and the chemistry of the three combined with the melodic high “ah, ah”s and chill instrumentation makes the track unbelievably smooth and itch scratching. Test It, Believe It and Anxious have simpler production that relies on the top-tier synths. Ex-Girlfriend with Shygirl is a collaboration I’ve been anticipating as a big fan of both, and it was surely executed even better than I could’ve imagined. It has that moody, confident flare that both pull off perfectly. Toxic seems like a slower, more soul-leaning ice, and lyrically it’s a drift from the romance of the first half of the album. My Day Off comes in with the pop/EDM hybrid era hip-hop vibe. You can even sing “shawty had them apple bottom jeans, boots with the furrrrr” to its tune, but you honestly won’t need to when its actual lyrics come in handy for classily flipping someone off with words. Toxic featuring Blood Orange, the post-breakup duet with a monologue and low-key harmonies, signals that we’re getting closer to the departure, and with the self-reflective, brink of tears-sounding Someone, we close off the party. To round up the album description, it combines R&B smoothness with electronic elements, both of which are perfect for my tastes. Moreover, it’s an album stripped of previous alter egos (such as Sensational’s Bianka) and is purely a reflection of Erika’s world and observations. Unsurprisingly, Still is a solid new member of Erika de Casier’s pristine, timeless, charming catalogue.

Favorite tracks: Ex-Girlfriend (track review here), ice, ooh and My Day Off.

④ GAMMA - Gesaffelstein

Techno father Gesaffelstein is a relatively secretive figure. His releases are typically long-anticipated, and come as surprises especially if you rely heavily on social media for your favorite artists’ updates. He uses YouTube and streaming services as announcement-only platforms, with the comments turned off, where the average viewers are all obliged to stay silent like an uninterrupted theater show. I only found out about his exclusive community website (to which you can just sign up for free), where you can actually access announcements and comment your thoughts when I was in the middle of writing this review. The Gamma teaser drop appeared on my YouTube suddenly, and I was blown away by the quality and excellence of the visuals alone. (Director Jordan Hemingway, you are so loved.) We were getting into an era of grandeur, the dark digital bleeding into the plasticized flesh, something I can’t even fully describe. Hard Dreams was released as the first single (in fact, I can’t exactly remember whether I saw the teaser or heard the song first), it’s an accurate introduction to what the era has to offer, similarly to and differently from Gesaffelstein’s previous albums. It has the classic cold, hard synths and dry kicks, but brings in gothic vocals from Yan Wagner and somewhat more vulnerability. The gothic influences especially show through with Digital Slaves and The Urge (yes, we had a little foreshadowing moment in the Tidal Memory Exo section), and 80s electronica á la Depeche Mode or Nine Inch Nails’ earlier music is heavily dabbled in with Your Share Of The Night and Hysteria. The Perfect feels like a reincarnated Aleph, louder and with vocals. Mania, Psycho and Tyranny are chaotic and fiery in their own ways, the first being fast and repetitive and almost hardstyle-like, the second abrasively maxing out the kick drums and the third relying on acids for a majestic, grim catwalk soundtrack. The serenading Lost Love and the minimal, reverse synth based outro Emet balances them out. Another difference between Gamma and its predecessors is the format, as in the track lengths; only Hard Dreams has a duration of longer than 3 minutes, but it adds up with how diverse the project is, though considerably more cohesive and story-based than Hyperion (with that being said no Hyperion slander allowed). What’s the most certain in my eyes, though, is that this album has the best visual direction of the year. The album trailer, especially, sets the standard insanely high for all other musicians and their concepts. The scenes are abstract and mystical, but so polished and precise, just like the album it backs. Gesaffelstein is rightfully known worldwide as a legendary producer, however, that doesn’t stop his art from consistently being elevated and exclusive.

Favorite track: Hard dreams.

⊛ Bonus review: RAVE:N, The Remixes

Raven was my favorite R&B album of 2023 with its quality in all areas, surreal feel, metaphors and depth; and it turned out to be a gift that kept on giving. I can’t name a remix album off the top of my head that I love more than this treasure box right here. This is a perfect example of how you reimagine and transform music, in particular a dance music inspired project. On this remix album we play around with ambient, trap, jungle, reggaeton, Eurodance, drill and more with a star-studded feature list. The whole thing is vastly different from what the original album gives, but in the best, most complementary way possible. The visuals were simple but very on point as well: the vignettes were filmed in Tokyo, from a capsule hotel to its nighttime streets to a bright green garden. Everything about this era was flawless and a beautiful sequel to the original Raven era.

Favorite tracks: Sorbet (LSDXOXO Remix) [track review here], Holier (JD. REID Remix feat. Shygirl) and Closure (Flexulant x BAMBII Remix feat. Rahrah Gabor & Brazy).

Honorable mentions:

Inferno - Moistbreezy (favorite track: La Dolce Vita): Feel genuinely bad for only placing this in the honorable mentions because it’s pure trance heaven, as well as the storyline and concept being so well-crafted. Bangers only in this house, Moistbreezy always outdoes herself.

Hunter - Rhea Raj (favorite track: Hush): Hopped onto this train fairly late, probably sometime in December, but if Rhea isn’t at least a cult favorite pop girl this year I’m giving up on pop music point blank. Such a fun debut project, just wish the tracks were a little longer, but aren’t Hush and Pray On It (which reminds me of my SOTY 🤭 keep reading to find out) the biggest jams ever?

epistolares - Akriila (favorite track: Popper): Akriila is certainly another one of my favorite artist discoveries of 2024. Great genre concoction of neoperreo, dream pop and liquid drum & bass going on in this album. The project’s defined, soft sound makes it looping material.

MEGAN: ACT II - Megan Thee Stallion (favorite track: Bourbon): Megan, you will always be famous. Act I was on rotation the entire summer but Act II came through even harder with the upgraded production, increased cohesion and new, fresh flows. Easily my favorite project from her. (Bourbon is the closest we’ve gotten so far to hearing her on a trip-hop beat, which I desperately need.)

Miniseries 2 - Sumin & Slom (favorite tracks: Why Why Why and I Think…): Another long-awaited by many album and the acclaimed duo’s return, this time taking a more acoustic, slow approach. Love how Sumin’s voice shines even more, and the way the album feels like a game main menu soundtrack but also very earthly.

And now, drumroll for the top 3!

③ For Your Consideration - Empress Of

Welcome to the story of falling love with my most played album of the year, and how it’s my favorite pop album of the year! I was first made familiar with Empress Of through her collaboration with Rina Sawayama, titled Kiss Me, in 2023. I REALLY started to pay attention to her when I saw a reel of her announcing the release of Preciosa with a snippet, and from that snippet alone nobody could convince me we weren’t heading towards the pop emergency of the entire year. I had no choice but to tune in immediately upon seeing Isabella Lovestory and Erika de Casier collaborator Nick León and experimental electronic producers Umru and Casey MQ were on the production team as well. And yeah, pop emergency at its finest. For Your Consideration is primarily an alternative pop and dance album, with strong house and vogue influences. Its core themes include immortalization, being a prize you have to reach for, being the centerpiece in a relationship and gaining dominance after long years of timidity. Numerous pop microtrends came and went in the 2020s and especially in 2024: While some pop stars are truthers of maximalism, whether it be EDM or theatrics, many (especially in K-pop and on the Internet) choose to move away from saturation, and lean into instantly recognizable drum patterns, gently mixed synths, less sharp choruses, overall more monotony (such as in UK garage, drum & bass, Jersey club) and less in-your-face. This “blur” can either create jams that you can’t get overwhelmed with or tired of, or a boring, predictable skip where you can tell what the producers were miserably going for. Empress Of’s record isn’t exactly a banging, loud, overly melodic one like what we left in the 2010s, but she delivers multi-layered work that really takes up space with elegance, confidence and assertiveness. She sings about different aspects of romance, her feelings and experiences over casual beatboxing and breathing and beats that make you put a pep in your step.

The record starts with its title track: the heavenly, passionate intro that lays down the concept of the album. Lorelei is a fan favorite to this day and for good reason: the angsty lyrics, the house beat backed by the vocal bits serving as synths, the harmonies make this song a good representative of the whole project. Preciosa’s chorus is what pulled me into the track and into the whole album before anything else, but the whole track is very memorable, danceable and embellished. Femenine, What Type Of Girl Am I? and Cura strongly lean towards house and vogue with whispery vocals, while Fácil and Sucia is where Umru’s trademark thumping bass and snares come in. Baby Boy and What’s Love are the finisher ballads, vocally pleasing and leaving a sweet aftertaste. My favorite characteristic of this pop masterpiece is probably how detail-oriented and satisfying the whole thing is, how Empress Of utilizes her vocals and transforms them into all sorts of instruments (I’ll elaborate on this further a bit later), the little Timbaland inspired “hah”s and the “tch”s, the harmonies, my brain processing how all of it comes together. In an era of music where so much is stripped down, and all the nostalgic elements being brought back are some of the easiest ones to replicate, it fills me up with joy to see maximalism of this kind being understood and slowly making a comeback in practice. “Satisfying” is truly the way to put it about For Your Consideration. Nothing unnecessarily over the top or unfitting, but no missing keys or details. So grateful that this album got me through the whole first half of the year, nothing could’ve set the tone better for me.

Favorite track: Fácil (track review here).

② Quantum Baby - Tinashe

Quantum Baby earning the silver medal didn’t come as a surprise to you if you’ve been hanging around this blog for a while, I’ve been an avid fan of Tinashe for years, and prequel BB/ANG3L took the #5 spot on my 2023 album awards. You already know by now that I’ve been WAITING for that sequel ever since Tinashe announced that BB/ANG3L was part of a trilogy, so rather than a personal timeline, it would make sense to skip over to witnessing the virality of lead single Nasty. It’s first teased on an Instagram livestream, us SweeTees start humming “is somebody gonna match my freak?”, the song is released, SweeTees keep humming, but we turn around and the whole World Wide Web is humming “is somebody gonna match my freak?” too? Brilliant freestyle-turned-sound bite aside, I’ve seen Nasty being described as combining the best of Tinashe’s older music and newer music, and that couldn’t be more true. The dark-leaning, relatively minimal production of her mixtapes, Nightride and Joyride eras meets the danceability and infectious bars of her 333 bops and BB/ANG3L track Needs. The rollout got followed up with the 2-step Getting No Sleep, possibly less plausible to the mainstream but something that real music enjoyers like me (:3) appreciated. It has that hypnotizing quality, drums and synths/pads wise, that I always immediately cling onto as you can clearly sense, and the topline wasn’t any less catchy either, so it didn’t take long for me to already fully indulge in the music the era had to bring us. When the album dropped and I got to listen to it, what I really appreciated is how experimental it was, how much was dabbled in without hesitation, without losing the plot or that Tinashe essence. No Simulation is the drum-free opener with a fire bass line right off the bat, with the heavenly harmonies more in the spotlight than ever, almost as if it belongs on Miniseries 2. Thirsty… Thirsty… save me crunchy trap song with beautiful, beautiful vocal moments… Red Flags doesn’t fall short on the beauty, it has that distorted synth line that strongly reminds me of Oklou’s work on Galore, which is a vibe I’ve wished I came across more frequently. Next up is the Jersey drill Cross That Line that kicks off with choir vocals and continues subtly too, and When I Get You Alone is an R&B/trap masterclass at the Tinashe School of Two Songs In One with both parts making you move like Homer Simpson in that one GIF. No Broke Boys is the Needs of this season, with its lyrics serving as daily affirmations, and the track later rightfully being pushed as a single. As I mentioned, the songs went in such different directions, in ways you can feel if you listen to the album and fully comprehend if you listen to Tinashe’s previous projects, and that alone felt so fresh and invigorating Quantum Baby instantly became one of my favorite projects from Tinashe and 2024.

With that being said, the aspect that made me more interested in and attached to this project is what it means to Tinashe herself. In BB/ANG3L, she consistently used water as a metaphor for reaching your own essence and getting purified, free from self-doubt, bind to the past and fakeness; and reflected said themes in her lyrics. Thematically, Tinashe follows similar themes in Quantum Baby as you may guess from the title, as in getting to your own core and coming across contradictions and intermediate states between strength and vulnerability in the process, akin to the Schrödinger’s quantum paradox, for example. Not only can we go on and on about how thought out album trilogies are so back and how important it is to map out your themes, concepts and creative direction well (which she evidently never fails to do), but I also wanna touch on how her self-discovery as an artist and person really shows in her craft. For decades, Tinashe has been a polymath from singing and dancing to producing in engineering, pioneering musical trends and influencing many, yet somehow the only repetitive thing about her music is her commitment to excellence. Whenever she drops an album or EP, it never entirely consists of sounds or visuals she’s done previously, everything new from her is refreshing and either causing a buzz (like Nasty or 2 On) or worthy of causing one, and it’s especially noticeable with Quantum Baby. 2024 treated Tinashe like the queen she is, she deserves her success and more, and I will be anticipating all the more to come.

Favorite track: Thirsty (track review here).

① Dennis - Sega Bodega

Finally, what the readers of this series have probably been anticipating: the review of my favorite album of 2024. To my mutuals, the top spot has been obvious long before I even knew the album was even in the works, simply because it was gonna be a Sega Bodega album, his third album. I’ve mentioned numerous times that Sega is my favorite producer of all time, though I don’t remember if I’ve ever elaborated on it. If I were to put it simply and with a pinch of humor, his brain fascinates me. The way his whole sound design speaks to me from the distorted keys to the reverberating drum patterns, his seamless incorporations of samples from the most random clips and sounds, his surreally gorgeous album and concept building, his artistry and loyalty to the distinctive and unseen before… all so entrancing to me. I’ve played the life of Romeo, Salvador, self*care EP, hell, even the in-between singles such as Arena! with Safety Trance and mimi (no, that’s not where my nickname comes from) or the classics such as Ess B EP and Nivea, his entire discography basically, so I was seated since, like, 2022. I’ve said this about countless projects, but I mean it with each and every single one of my neurons when I say this about Dennis, my already high expectations were blown. I’d like to share this excerpt from Sega’s PAPER Magazine interview (which I highly, highly suggest reading as well as these three articles) that precisely describes his three albums and his evolution:

Dennis continues his artistic development which has steadily moved skyward. Bodega's first album, the darkly intimate 2020 Salvador, was a brooding haunt through a dimly lit bedroom. On it, his deep voice beckoned the listener towards the heathenish. His follow-up, Romeo, seemed to fly out of the bedroom and perch itself on the top of a nearby building. The floaty, angelic project circled the sacred and profane as songs like Only Seeing God When I Come and Angel On My Shoulder merged the physical body with the transcendent. Dennis, though, seems to forgo the world as we know it for the one we experience in our dreams. A floaty, at times euphoric, at times nightmarish journey through the subconscious, Dennis is an exploration of surprising association, the kind of expansive logic that only makes sense in your dreams.

Yup, before we get into my rambles about the songs themselves, let’s discuss the collective consciousness theory and “sleep” as a literary theme, because looking into Sega Bodega discussing this and doing research on the topic alone is something that staggered me entirely and pushed me to think and process a lot of my outlooks and feelings on life. Dennis was titled partially in the sake of two unrelated comic debuts titled Dennis the Menace in the US and UK. This ties into “collective consciousness”, which claims all of our brains are pumped the same information while we sleep, causing uncanny “coincidences”, if we can even call them such. Dissociation and the sleep cycle are core components of the album’s world, which is reflected in hypnosis inducing intro Coma Dennis, its alarm-like follow up Adulter8 and somniloquy samples by Rick Farin in Dirt and Humiliation Doesn’t Leave a Mark.

Now onto the sonics, as mentioned, Adulter8 hits you like an alarm with its distorted 8-bit melody, possibly even causing a headache for some, but as the song progresses, you can’t help but get lost in the echo-y background chords. Next is Elk Skin, third (technically fourth) single from the album rollout, which starts off with a trap beat and transitions into a combo of reggaeton and acoustic guitar, is the most pop-like the album gets, but remains incredibly distorted and modified especially on the vocals provided by Cecile Believe. Kepko was released in 2022 and remains one of Sega’s personal favorites and “most fun he’s ever had making music” to this day, comprised of reversed and chopped up vocals and fast, repeated drum loops, and the atmospheric, warped feel deems it perfectly fitting for the album. Dirt is calming post the chaos of the predecessor two tracks, leaning towards hazy progressive trance and 2-step. I reviewed Deer Teeth instead of Set Me Free, I’m an Animal in my winter 2024 favorite singles review, and I still feel like I did it injustice, because it came to me at a time in my life when I needed something comforting and freeing in its darkness, and the track didn’t fall short, maybe because of its minimal echoing guitar-heavy production, maybe because of its lyricism. True, the final single, is a stunning maze of various sounds with three key changes and a beautiful chorus by KUKII fka Lafawndah. With every key changes, the song steps into a higher ground, becoming more and more celestial and incorporating choir vocals. Tears & Sighs is a rather cold and unwelcoming goodbye, with the abrupt guitar intro flowing into softer but bleak chords and Sega’s voice pitched deeper than ever singing “Heaven stays on burning but that’s none of your concern / You reduced my wings to bone ‘cause they were never yours to earn” and later “Said our goodbyes, these tears and sighs, who even are you anyway? / Don’t talk to me, don’t even look at me, I want to”. Humiliation Doesn’t Leave a Mark is a journey, it’s heavy on the violins and vocals, it has an astonishing beat drop and chorus, its vocals (featuring Kiss Facility bandmate Mayah Alkhateri) are whispery and minimal, and its instrumental interludes are mesmerizing. Coma Salv is the instrumental final, reminiscent to me of deep sleep and the music box loop I’d hear past 11 PM on the kids’ cartoon channel when I was a kid, tying the unconsciousness/subconscious theme together.

In this review, I’ve been reciting “world-building, world-building, world-building” like I’m trying to cast a spell to levitate an alien’s couch, but in my defense, I’ve been emphasizing it relentlessly because it’s been lacking in the music world overall, in an industry where musicians are plastering unrelated singles together, pushing barely-mixtapes as “albums” and putting no thought into what meaning and beauty the barely-mixtapes carry as a whole. Projects like the ones mentioned in this post give me hope for artists creating portals with their projects again. Sega Bodega and all of the ingenious artists I’ve praised here give me hope for the future of music. For the return of proper utilization of song lengths instead of cropping them all to 2 minutes out of convenience, for the collective courage to try the uncommon and lead instead of follow, for complex emotions and situations to be expanded on and shown not told. For albums, for art, for thought and for distinction. I don’t think I can grasp some musicians’ craftsmanship entirely due to my lack of technical knowledge on music theory, so I guess it’s natural for me to continue to be impressed, but on occasions you can be certain when someone is universally outstanding. Sega Bodega is a mastermind.

Favorite track: Adulter8 (track review here). Song of the year. Song of forever.

I wanna apologize to all potential readers for keeping you waiting this long, the post took me a lot of energy and mental capacity to make, and I always tell myself I’ll do a better job juggling it with my personal schedules, so I appreciate anyone that could be on the lookout for my writing. Thank you so much for reading and possibly enjoying the music I show love to, I see it as the way my mutuals here and I share our love and joy. May 2025 continue to be a year where full bodies are work are appreciated and put effort into creating and understanding.

[obey-me-disaster]

Runway Drama

A/N: This is another fanfic for Mammon's birthday ^-^

Besides some small Mammon x gn!MC, there are no ships. Mammon is the focus

Summary: A demon is trying to start drama with Mammon to get him in trouble

"None of you will guess what happened to me today!" Mammon said angrily as he took a seat next to MC.

"Judging by the sour expression on your face, I guess nothing good..." MC handed him the portion of food they had saved for him.

"Those jerks from my latest modeling gig just told me that I am no longer part of the subject." Playing with his food, Mammon continued. "No explanation, no nothing! When I got there, they just told me I was not needed anymore, and they basically kicked me out!"

"That's certainly weird..did you try to scam one of the demons in charge by chance?" Satan inquired.

"Since I've had this contract that paid well, I had no reason to think of a new scheme. Tho, with how these guys have treated me today, I should have done it!" Seemingly losing his appetite as he thought more about his situation, he pushed his plate aside. "Damn it, I really wasted a good opportunity to make money."

"Still, the fact you were basically kicked out of the project without as much of an explanation does raise some concerns..." Lucifer mused over what his younger brother had just said.

"I will just ask them for an explanation tomorrow, then! They can't just toss the Great Mammon aside like that!"

"I don't think you'll have to do this anymore. Look." Asmo handed his phone to Mammon before he could make any other comment.

"Seems like they replaced you with Zephar." Asmo said the demon's name in a huffy voice, clearly annoyed at having to think about that demon.

"You don't seem to like him that much.." Beel comments while stuffing his face with food again.

"Of course I wouldnt' like someone as unsightly as him! He is known to start drama with others in order to make himself look good, and not only that." Asmo snatches the phone away from Mammon, ignoring his brother's protests.

"He also stole some of my designs, claiming they were his!" Showing his brothers photos from one of Zephar's older modeling shows

"He is probably after Mammon now, trying to do something similar."

Yawning, Belphehor finally seems to be interested in the whole situation. "So what you're saying is that Zephar is trying to get Mammon to react in order to start drama?"

"He just has to ignore him, right? Sure, he lost this modeling gig, but by not reacting, he should get bored of Mammon and leave him alone." Levi suggested it without breaking his concentration from his game.

"If this guy went as far as to get the others to kick me out of this show, then I am sure he is not going to leave me alone." Mammon commented while playing with his fork, the food long forgotten, "It's not the first time I've worked with these kinds of demons, but they sure never get less annoying to deal with."

As the dinner went on, the demon brothers started to shit talk about Zephar, even after there was no more food for them to eat. It wasn't until the human chimed in that they shifted the topic of discussion.

"What if we plan something so he will leave Mammon alone for good? We might as well get some sort of revenge for Asmo too while we're at it." MC said after getting all of their attention. At the mention of getting back at Zephar, all of the demon brother's attention moved onto forming a plan for it.

After a week of planning and pulling some strings with the help of Diavolo and Lucifer their plan could finally start taking shape.

"Who would have thought we could make it in time with our plan so we could hold a runway show around the same time as Zephar?" Asmo said as he was taking Mammon's measurements.

"Still...we only have a few days to plan and make all the outfits, we will need to pull some serious all nighters" Levi added, rather nervously. He and Asmo were the only ones who really knew how to make outfits from scratch, while Mammon, MC and Belphegor could help only to a certain point.

"Just the fact that we've announced a runway show around the time of Zephar's show is enough to get that asshole all rilled up." Mammon assured his younger brother. "Especially with you as the star model and Asmo as the main designer... I am just worried he will try to start something," MC raised their concerns. Everyone was aware that by announcing a show in partnership with Majolish, they would garner a lot of attention, whether unwanted or not.

"Oh well, that'll be a bridge to cross when we get there. It's not like we didn't knew what we were getting into." Mammon commented, and with that everyone went back to doing their respective tasks.

"Everyone, I have some news related to Zephar." Satan hurriedly came into the room, getting everyone's attention. "An acquaintance told me that rumors about Mammon have started to spread around."

"What kind of rumors!?" Levi blurted out as he made his way to Satan along with the others.

"Apparently there is someone spreading rumors about how Mammon treated everyone badly at the last agency, and that's why he was kicked out. Some even said that he looked down on some of the other models. " The forth born seemed in deep thought as he explained everything. "While other demons don't really know where all of these rumors started from, I think we all know the source."

"Mammon may be a money hungry idiot that scams people, but he would not treat his coworkers badly!" Asmo started to rant loudly, putting any clothing material down so he wouldn't damage it during his angry rant.

"Geez, thanks for the compliment, if I can even call it that."

"Mammon, you look oddly calm for someone who is getting their reputation tarnished." Levi chimed in, seeing his older brother being unimpressed by the whole situation.

  "Well, it's not like I didn't expect that, especially after Zephar tried to confront me in person not too long ago." Mammon merely scratched his head while the others fell silent.

"He came at you in person? When? And why didn't you tell us sooner?" MC tried to make sense of whatever was going through Mammon's head.

"It was just some lame attempt at taunting me. He was most likely trying to anger me so he could use it against me later on but it didn't work, so he left quite upset."  Mammon continued recalling the whole thing like it was nothing. "It felt pretty good to see him getting all upset at his failed attempt."

"You really should have mentioned this earlier. Anyway, I already got in contact with some demons in order to keep these rumors as low as possible." Satan pinched the bridge of his nose in an attempt to not get even more angry at the whole situation.

"Aren't you worried that Zephar will act out even more now? If someone was coming at me that way, I would probably just dig a hole for me to die in!" Levi tried to argue, visibly shivering at the thought of being in a similar situation.

"Don't ya worry too much, it's not my first time dealing with such demons, I've got everything under control." Making his way back to continue working on the outfits, the second born turned towards the others. "We really should get back to finishing these if we want to put Zephar back in his place."

Everyone looked a bit shocked at how calm and serious Mammon was about the whole thing. Satan left the room while the others went back to making the outfits for the runway. Seeing Mammon be so sure of himself made the others have more faith in his plan.

° ° °

Designers, make-up and hair stylists, and their assistants were running back and forth, making sure all of the models were ready to go face the public.

The runway show was held in one of Majolish's biggest buildings, where multiple catwalks and stages were set up with some of the more elaborate set ups they had. Both longer runways and shorter ones were scattered symetrically around the building. Still, at the center of the room, there was the longest and most intricate of the stages, where the more eye catching clothing and accessories would be presented.

While a lot of models and designers of Majolish decided to take part in the show, Mammon and Asmo were still the most advertised out of all of them.

"Lord Asmodeus, I am surprised you're not one of the models participating in this event." One of the make-up artists that was making the final touches on Mammon's make-up said.

Well, you see, this is Mammon's show, and if I were to take part in it, I'm afraid everyone would pay attention to yours truly~" Asmo winked at the demon taking care of Mammon's makeup while ignoring the sour expression his older brother is giving him.

"He should really be more thankful to have such an amazing and generous younger brother such as me," Asmo explained, capturing the lesser demon's full attention and earning an eyeroll from Mammon.

Yeah, yeah, I'm so grateful for your help, oh dear younger brother of mine." While his voice was full of sarcasm, Asmo could tell that Mammon was genuinely grateful for all the help he had gotten from his brothers. The make-up artist didn't seem to catch the sarcasm in his voice and looked pleased with the second born's response.

In the midst of Mammon and Asmo's banter, the doors got thrown wide open, revealing a really paniked Levithan, who looked like he was on the verge of fainting.

"Asmo, Mammon, we have a problem!" Hurrying to sit next to them, he starts explaining what got him all panicked.

"A good part of the outfits are gone! To be more exact, the ones that Mammon was supposed to wear and Asmo created!"

While Asmo's eyes widened as some of Beel's plates, Mammon looked unbothered by the whole thing. "MC and Beel went to investigate the whole thing and try to catch any suspects, but we might not find everything by the time the runway starts." Levi finally finished explaining everything, looking just a little more relieved after telling his brothers about the situation.

While Leviathan was catching his breath, Mammon got up and made his way towards the door. "Mammon, wait! Where are you going? Now is not the time to run around during such a dire situation!" Asmo said annoyed at his older brother's seemingly uncaring demeanor.

"I've got something to check, so don't worry about me."

Neither of his younger brothers seemed convinced by his words, so he continued. "I've made a plan just for this situation. You two go start the show as planned, and when my turn comes, put on this video to play on one of the projectors." The greed demon throws a memory stick at Leviathan as he leaves the room.

Looking at one another, both Leviathan and Asmodeus still looked worried but decided to go ahead with the plan, after all, it was not every day they saw Mammon look so sure of himself and coolheaded.

The runway starts just as planned, with the models making their way first from the smaller stages first, and then gradually coming out to the bigger catwalks, drawing the crowd's attention towards the biggest catwalk, where Mammon was supposed to come from.

All of the lights pointed to where Mammon was supposed to come out from, but no one was there. The crowd seemed both surprised and annoyed at the lack of presence from the main star. Whispers started to spread around, some trying to make sense of the situation while others downright slandering the avatar of greed's name.

The whispering went on for a minute or so, and Levi was getting ready to set up the video he got from Mammon to be played until screams could be heard from the entrance. The doors flew open as a bunch of crows flew into the room, flying in all directions and scaring the guests.

As the crows started to sit in different parts of the room, the view cleared for all of the guests to see none other than Zephar, kneeling down in front of the main runway, trying to catch his breath. Both Beelzebub and MC were standing up on either side of him to make sure he would stay where he was.

"Everyone, I am sorry for the messy scene you had to witness." All eyes moved from Zephar to the main stage, where they could see Mammon walking down on it, in the outfit that Asmo created. "We had a situation with a clothing thief who tried to ruin our show." Mammon said as he was pointing towards the demon kneeling down on the floor.

"That's absurd! I was dragged by these damn birds and those brutes in the back!" Zephar shouted as he pointed towards Beelzebub and MC. "I would never lower my level so much to the point of stealing from another runway show!" He was visibly shaking with anger and wheezing for all the crowd to see. Guests started to talk among themselves as flashes of cameras were going off in the background.

"That's a bold claim you just made, especially considering that they're all just lies." Mammon's voice raised just a bit, not daring to let it slip just what kind of words he would like to tell Zephar. "Levi, play the video I gave you earlier."

Murmurs from the crowd could be heard, but once the video started to play everyone fell silent. The video not only showed Zephar clearly stealing the outfits and accessories but also all the attempts to get Mammon angry and even Zephar talking with some other demons about how he wants to ruin the show and put Mammon in a bad light. Everything, from the fake rumors to the nasty words and the plan to ruin the show, was caught on camera for everyone to see.

"What was the whole 'dragging you here by force around'? again" Asmo made his way next to Mammon, crouching down to look at Zephar. "What's with the look on your face? A model as popular as you shouldn't make such pathetic expressions."

Zephar tried to lash out at Asmo in a fit of anger, but before he could even reach the scene, Beelzebu dragged him down while MC put on some magic chains on him. He tried to free himself from them but that quickly stopped once they started to glow. MC got down to his level.

"If I were you, I would be careful; the more you move, the hotter they'll burn, and it would be such a shame to have burn marks on that body of yours. Unless the chains melt through your body before that." Standing up with a smug expression, they looked up at Mammon and winked at him as a sign for him to go on.

"As you can see, Zephar has been harassing me for quite a while, trying to ruin my reputation in the name of starting drama." Mammon spoke up to the public.

"Not only did he get me kicked out of my previous modeling gig but he also tried to ruin this whole show." Gesturing to his crows, he continued his explanation. "I used my crows to spy on him in order to get this whole thing on camera for all of you to see. I kind of hoped it wouldn't come to this, but it doesn't matter now."

Everyone looked at him in awe. The audience, because they just witnessed the whole thing, and his brothers, cause they didn't know Mammon could act so calm and collected, only MC had a smug smile on their face as they looked up at Mammon.

"We'll take it from here now." From the same doors that Zephar burst into the room, Satan , Belphehor and Lucifer make their way towards him.

"You've really got some guts, coming after my brothers like that." Lucifer looked down on him, smirking a little at the shameful state of the demon beneath him.

"We have also looked into some of your history, so the whole situation with Mammon that you've started isn't the whole thing you'll have to worry about." Satan explained as he motioned to Beelzebub to pick Zephar up.

"Man, can you get any more lame than you are already? I'm surprised you made it so far with how sloppy you were with hiding all of your stuff" Belphegor yawned while trying to mock him.

"Guess that's our cue to leave." Beel tightened his grip on Zephar. To everyone else, it looked like the sixth born was just having a more secure grip on the model, but in reality, he just did it in order to warn Zephar that he would eat him if he tried anything.

After Zephar was dragged away, Asmo got everyone's attention. "I am truly sorry for the delay of our runway. I hole you've enjoyed the show that we just put on but now is time to get back to the main show!"

Before making his way to the backstage area, Asmo turned towards Mammon with a big smile on his face. I can't believe we actually pulled that off, do you think the others are putting the fear of God into him right as we speak?"

Mammon, no longer being capable of hiding his grin replied. "I am sure they are doing so much worse than that"

[fablesrose]

Ch 13 - The Runway Job

Series Rewrite Masterlist 

Pairing: Eliot Spencer x Ford!Reader

Description: With Tara being a new crew member, they take to the runway at Fashion Week to get back at local sweatshop owners.

Words: 4562

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Before the next job we, minus Tara and Nate, video called Sophie.

“He says he’s cool with it, but you know how he is,” Hardison said. 

“And the way she introduced herself?” Parker said, “That was a smooth con.”

Eliot shook his head, “Yeah, but it didn’t exactly build trust.” 

I nodded along, agreeing with what they were saying, but I didn’t have much to add. To be honest, I still wasn’t sure how I felt about Tara and her being here. 

“Look,” Sophie said, “We didn’t get along when we first started… Eliot, how long did it take before you trusted me?”

I heard Eliot deliberately take in a breath.

“Eliot? You do trust me, don’t you?”

“That’s not the point, Sophie,” he deflected. “If Nate doesn’t like this chick, then it’s not gonna work.” I noticed that his southern accent slipped to be a bit thicker as he replied a bit flustered.

“Yeah, which is why you have to get him on board,” Sophie replied. “Look, you need a grifter. The last time one of you tried to grift,” she looked around and lowered her voice, “you wound up kidnapped by Russians.”

I cleared my throat and sent a pointed look towards Hardison. Eliot and Parker made their accusations more vocally. Hardison did not seem to appreciate it, but he deserved it. 

“Listen to me,” Sophie redirected, “Tara Cole is the best. I wouldn’t have sent her if I didn’t trust her, and I know you’re gonna love her, so… Just give her a chance.”

Eliot turned to Hardison, “She is hot.” 

“Very hot,” Hardison agreed. 

I waved my head in mild agreement, because she was, but rolled my eyes at their necessity to point it out. 

“Hot,” Parker said. We all gave her a look. That was not the expected response from her. She caught onto the tension quickly, “Cold? Why are we staring?”

Sophie moved on, “Yeah, I’m not saying to throw her at him, I’m just saying get him on board. He doesn’t always know what’s good for him, and if he does, he doesn’t do anything about it!” She was clearly getting frustrated, “He just lets it walk straight out the door, and…”

I nodded in agreement as she ranted. He did tend to do that. 

“Like… all the way to Europe?” Eliot asked with a swing in his voice. 

Sophie gave us a soft smile, “Just do it for me, alright? So I don’t have to worry about you.”

Nate and Tara walked in the door then, so Hardison and Eliot scampered away because we all knew damn well that we weren’t supposed to call Sophie. Parker and I stayed put for a moment longer.

“I just miss you,” Parker said. 

“And she’ll never be you,” I added before Sophie logged off with a soft smile, before Nate could see.

We then all sat down in the living room, Parker tossing the remote to Hardison, and Nate predictably standing in the front of the room. 

“Okay, run it.”

“Gloria and Russel Pan,” Hardison began. “Self made millionaires, they built their fortune off a company that produces cheap knock offs of the latest fashions.”

“The bargain bin has been pretty good to them, I’d say, with, you know, the nice car, giant house in the rich neighborhood, etcetera etcetera,” I added since I helped do a bit of research. “Gloria works in the factory making the designs. Russel is the business side of things, accounting, and works with the partners in China.”

“Okay, Gloria designs the clothes. Does she have any training?” Nate asked. 

“She did a correspondence course with a fashion school,” Hardison answered. “And she subscribes to all the magazines: Vogue, InStyle, Fashion & Style…”

“She submitted to Project Runway,” I said. 

“Last year?” Parker asked. 

“Last three years,” Hardison corrected. 

“Okay,” Nate said with finality, “That’s our way in. We’re gonna sell, Gloria Pan…” Nate pointed to Tara. 

“Her dream,” she answered. “Yeah, no, I get it.” She stood up to stand at the front of the room next to Nate, “I mean, the word ‘con’ comes from confidence, right? So we gotta build her confidence, make her think she’s the greatest designer in the world.”

“There you go,” Nate commented. 

“How?” Eliot asked gruffly. 

“How?” Nate paused, and smiled. “We need a Caprina.” Then he walked away in his usual fashion. 

“What does that mean?” Tara asked, watching as he walked away, “So he just says things and walks away?”

“Yeah…” Parker said.

“That’s something you’re gonna have to get used to, I’m afraid,” I mentioned. 

Tara looked at me, somewhat confused, “How did you turn out normal?”

I opened my mouth to answer, but wasn’t sure how to, so shut it again. Was that a compliment? A back handed one?

“She’s a survivor,” Eliot answered for me, with a smile.

Parker and Hardison stood and left, in a somewhat Nate fashion. Eliot stretched out a bit, placing his arms on the back of the couch, one of them behind me. Tara still looked confused about the whole situation, but left without another word. 

I turned to Eliot, “Thanks.”

He glanced at me, “No problem.” There was a beat of silence before he reached for the remote that Hardison had tossed on the couch. “Let’s see what games are on.”

“Ah, got a juice up on some manly stuff before all the fashion stuff for the job?” I laughed. 

“Please, I thought you liked sports,” he scoffed, “besides, like you’re into all the fashion stuff anyway.”

“I mean, sometimes,” I tried to defend.

He deliberately looked me up and down, “Uh huh, your clothes are probably between five to ten years old.”

“Ah ha!” I exclaimed as if I had caught him, “This t-shirt? Vintage.”

He laughed, “Uh huh, yeah, really proving your point there, sweetheart.”

I gave a playful ‘whatever’ to which he nudged me.

“Shut up and watch, they’re about to score.”

Later, we had to set up a little photo studio in the corner. Parker took pictures of Tara in some clearly fashion-y clothes and I photoshopped her onto a Fashion & Style magazine cover. I sent it over to Hardison to do the final formatting where he printed it off and actually made the physical magazine. It was a nice little assembly line. 

Parker then was able to strategically plant the magazine in the Pans’ house, setting up some cameras while she was there. We were able to watch as Gloria discovered Tara as Caprina to be the next big fashion designer through the magazine and the various voiceovers we added to celebrity news channels. 

Eliot and Tara went to set the hook and invite Gloria to Fashion Week. It was deemed successful, leading us to prepare for sneaking in ourselves. Parker, understandably, did not want to play dress-up, so she went in as a production assistant, slipping our passes and names on the guest list. She was also there to swipe anything, if need be. 

The rest of us dressed up to be fashion people, with Nate going particularly crazy with small round glasses, fingerless gloves, and a red fan. Hardison just went with a classic shirt and jacket that was deliberately untidy with some fur additions, and Tara with an all black ensemble. I used the occasion as an excuse to buy something a little nicer and a bit frilly. I normally couldn’t justify myself buying something like this, but I liked it and thought I would use it beyond just this job should the opportunity arise. 

I walked into fashion week next to Eliot who wore his hair down, glasses and a white shirt with plenty of accessories. I could tell his eyes were lingering on the models which didn’t bother me as much as I would have thought. I mean, who could blame him? I wasn’t sure why I was thinking about this anyway, it’s not like I wanted any attention anyway.

We set ourselves up next to a runway where some models were practicing their walks, Tara occasionally speaking up to ‘correct’ something. Eliot brought Gloria over and everyone was introduced. Hardison and I were fashion magazine editors and Nate was Caprina’s sponsor. Gloria handed over her designs for Hardison and I to look over.

“Oh no no no,” Nate cried after reading a text. 

“What what?” Tara asked. 

“My young designer who was going to be at the newcomer showcase at the end of fashion week, arrested!”

“Drugs in the car?” Hardison asked simply. 

“No, hooker in the hotel.”

“That is unfortunate,” I commented, looking over Hardison’s shoulder as he thumbed through Gloria’s portfolio. 

“He was to be my great discovery,” Nate lamented. “I don’t know what to do. What that boy could do with a buckle…”

I noticed Gloria perk up beside us. What a coincidence that every one of her designs incorporated heinous amounts of buckles.

Nate continued to have a meltdown of what in the world he was going to do while the rest of us quietly encouraged him to have Gloria take the spot. He finally agreed to see some of her other designs, so off Nate, Tara, and Eliot went to the factory with Gloria. Hardison decided to go back to the apartment at this point, back to run all the technical stuff. I decided to stick around Fashion Week for a bit, learning, wandering, just in case something came up. 

Everybody was running around rushing to make sure everything was perfect and in order for the upcoming shows. I quietly took note of what fashions I liked and disliked and which designer’s areas to avoid. I eventually found a quiet corner to people-watch, opening up the sketchbook I brought to finish the character. I absentmindedly doodled and sketched while also listening through comms to the others at Gloria’s office, trying to close the deal. That was until a PA walked up to me with a can of sparkling water.

“Here’s that drink you ordered,” he said, offering it to me. 

I shook my head, “Oh no, I didn’t order anything.”

“Well, take it anyway,” he insisted.

“You better get that to whoever actually ordered it, I personally don’t want to witness another meltdown,” I replied, shuddering as I remembered what some of the designers were doing in their stress. 

“What if I said that I lied and just wanted an excuse to talk to you?”

That stopped me. I looked at him curiously. He was wearing all black like the rest of the PAs, and relatively good looking. Nothing like the models walking around, but nothing to scoff at either. 

I hesitantly took the can from him, “Okay…”

“Does he need to be scared off?” Eliot asked through comms.

“Sorry,” the PA said, “that probably came off a bit strange.”

“Don’t worry about it,” I replied to both of them. “I’m a little surprised you’re not rushing around like everyone else.”

“There’s a little break with my responsibilities for a minute. I could say the same to you though.”

“Different priorities, I’m in between editorial appointments,” I replied easily, just keeping with my cover, “Not enough time to go anywhere though.”

He nodded. There was a beat before he said, “I, uh, like your look. And it doesn’t seem like you’re as pompous as most of the people walking around here. ”

I quickly straightened my clothes a little, “Oh, thank you. It’s a bit simple,” I said, referring to some of the other looks I saw walking around.

“And better than a lot of stuff here. Unfortunately for them-” he paused, listening to his headset. “Sorry, I’ve got to go.”

I checked the time, “No worries, I should go too. Thanks for this,” I said, raising the drink.

He nodded and smiled before running away to do whatever was needed. 

I smiled to myself, looking myself over. Maybe I did okay after all. Eliot took my spot at Fashion Week not long after. He came over after dropping the money off with Hardison. I was gathering my stuff to leave when he approached me. 

“Hey, everything okay?” I asked him once he arrived. 

“Yeah, it’s great,” he replied quickly. “That guy…” He trailed off as if fishing for info. 

“He was fine,” I assured.

“Good. Good,” he slid his hands in his pockets. “I did want to say, earlier, that you look nice.”

I smiled, not hiding the blush that rose to my cheeks, I was sure, but it could be attributed to the warm atmosphere with the stage lights and everyone running around. “Thanks, you look pretty good yourself.”

He raised his eyebrows and looked down at his outfit, “Really? I’m not sure about, uh… any of this… fashion stuff.”

“Could have fooled me,” I nudged him as I walked past him to leave, “and try not to flirt with too many models, okay?”

I heard as he stuttered a bit behind me, but didn’t actually answer.

I got back to Nate’s apartment around the same time everyone else did. Apparently Tara and Nate had a fight over how much money to squeeze out of the Pans’, a tension I could almost feel in the room. Nate demanded the earbud back from her right before he took Parker to follow up on a phone call Gloria left for Nate that abruptly cut off. They went to the Pans’ house, and Eliot was told to leave Fashion Week and check out the factory. He was not happy.

“What did I say about the models, Eliot?” I said. 

He sighed, “Just… whatever, I’m going.”

Hardison and I stayed at the apartment, checking where Gloria might have moved funds and her car GPS. 

Tara went to leave since she wasn’t doing anything here. 

“Hey,” I said before she walked out, “Sorry about Nate. He just likes to know all the factors and angles. He just doesn’t know you yet. Not that it’s an excuse.”

She just gave a nod at me before leaving. She had an unreadable expression which I didn’t think much about. 

Hardison started tracking the Pans’ car right when Nate and Parker arrived at their house. The car was pulling away when we heard an explosion on comms. It was loud enough that we determined it was the house since the car was still driving. 

Nate groaned, “Okay, what do we know?”

“Someone targeted the Pans,” Parker replied loudly. Their ears were probably ringing. 

“Yeah, I’m with you on that.”

“And the silver sedan that pulled out right before the explosion, it belongs to the Pans. I recognize it.”

“So, either they got away, or the people who did this got away in the Pans’ car, and the Pans didn’t. Uh, Hardison-”

“Already on it,” Hardison responded. “The Pans’ car just got on the I-95 heading south.”

“Okay, I need to see who’s in the car. Can you get me a visual?”

“Do I look like I have a helicopter?”

“A simple yes or no,” Nate said. 

“I might, might be able to get a photo of a traffic camera, but… I would have to time it just right based on the car’s rate of speed.”

“Listen to me, a car’s driving eighty miles an hour, how long does it take to get to a camera a mile away, seventh grade algebra, Hardison.”

Hardison rolled his eyes and looked at me.

“Yeah, I never got a break in math,” I replied. “But there’s multiple cameras right? You can get a couple chances?”

Hardison tilted his head side to side, somewhat agreeing with me. 

“The husband said they had partners,” Nate said softer.

“Forty-five seconds,” Parker responded.

“What?” Nate asked.

“That’s the answer, forty-five seconds.”

“Oh…”

While Hardison worked on getting the timing right, Eliot piped in from the factory. 

“Nate, I got bank statements here listing Sunbright Holdings as a joint account holder with the Pans’…” He trailed off. 

“Can you show me that?” Tara’s voice came through the comms.

“Oh, that’s where she went,” I said, mostly to myself. 

“What’s she doing there?” Nate asked. 

“Wait, tell Nate that I know these corporate ID prefix is from Shanghai!” She shouted through the comms, making them squeal. 

“They pick up,” Eliot said through gritted teeth, “you don’t have to yell!”

“Just tell him.”

I was working on my laptop that was linked with some of Hardison’s software where I pulled up the camera feed from the cameras we planted there. “Hey, I’ve got the camera feed before the explosion… There’s quite a few guys there, here, I’ll send it to you.”

“Who’s planting that bomb?” Nate asked. “Eliot, Tara, get out of there!”

I heard all four of them start to dash off before Eliot said, “Nate, I’ve got three guys here.”

I turned to Hardison to see if he knew what was going on and who we were dealing with, but he was focused on his own computer. 

“Armed with cleavers,” Eliot continued. “That’s the signature of The Triad.”

“The Triads, yeah, we’re a minute away,” Nate responded. 

“The Chinese Triads?” Parker asked.

“Yeah, they control the global counterfeit clothing market,” Nate explained. “Worth billions to them, even more than narcotics.” 

“So we didn’t take money from the Pans, we took money from these guys, is what I’m hearing,” I said.

“And the last person holding their cash, was Eliot,” Nate said. 

I listened to comms as Eliot tried to keep Tara safe, which she didn’t appreciate, but it sounded like they both took care of themselves. At least, I didn’t hear any painful noises from them. 

“Nate, I just got a shot of the Pans’ car,” Hardison said as he pulled it up on the big screen. “Gloria’s traveling solo. I guess Russell didn’t make it out, the poor bastard got blown to bits.”

“Yeah, Russell Pan handles the finances,” Nate said. “Did you do a full background check on Russell Pan?” He then instructed Parker to stay behind, to be the getaway car. 

“Of course we did,” Hardison assured. He listed all the documents and data we got on him to prove that he is Russell Pan. 

“Yeah, but did we make sure that Russell Pan isn’t anybody else as well?”

I looked at Hardison, to distinguish between the two. He sighed an ‘ah, hell,’ before pulling up facial recognition. I guess it was to not just search for names, because that could narrow the search too much, and miss something. 

When the facial recognition finished, I swore to myself.

“Guys, guys, I just got a hit on an Interpol database,” Hardison said. “Russell Pan’s face matches a Nicholas Chow, Chinese national, works for the Sun Yee On Triad, counterfeit clothing, blackmarket, he’s known for burying his enemies alive. This is a bad dude.”

I looked back at my computer, trying to think if there was anything else I could do to help when I watched the camera feed again. “Uh, one other thing,” I said as I watched, “I don’t think he’s dead.” Hardison looked over at my screen. “He was there when the bomb was planted, like, helping.”

“No kidding,” Nate said, presumably as or after he entered the factory where more members of the Triad were. He switched into his character’s accent when greeting everyone, and softly commented that they had guns. “The last time I saw you we were here for business meeting with your wife. Yah, this is all big misunderstanding?”

“That cow of a wife gave you something of mine,” Russell said. “Fifty thousand dollars U.S.”

“Yah, this was for a show,” Nate said, “This was business, eh.”

“Twenty years,” Russell said exasperatedly, “I carried her. I brought over the cheap labor from China, I supplied the Asian markets, all she had to do was copy the fashions. No, you sold the woman a ridiculous dream. So I had to get rid of her.”

“What a douchebag,” I said before I could stop myself. Hardison gave me a look. “You know, along with being a murderous criminal and all that.”

“Now, I’m responsible to my superiors for that money,” Russell continued, obviously not hearing my comment. “Where is it?”

“Guys, sit tight,” Hardison said, grabbing the bundle of money that Gloria gave us, “Tell Chow, or Pan–pot skillet– whatever his name is, that is money is on the way, it’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”

“Well, uh, we don’t have the money,” Nate said instead. “The money is gone, yah, we spent it on the vendors for Gloria’s show, yah.”

“Did you not hear what I just said?” Hardison then emphasized, “I’m on my way, with the money.”

“Yah, and there’s no reason to do anything, or go anywhere because, puh, the money is gone,” he repeated. 

“I think he heard you loud and clear,” I said to Hardison, not liking this situation any better than he did. “Nate, come on, what are you doing?”

Russell gave an order, in presumably Chinese, and Nate started to backtrack a little bit. 

“Listen to me one second before, what if I was able to give you something worth much more than the fifty thousand dollars, what if I was able to give you the designs for next fall’s collections today? Yah, that’s right. Get your factories turning out knockoffs way before the competition. This would be worth millions to you in additional revenue, millions!” 

I could tell Nate was thinking very hard to make this work, his accent wasn’t as thick as before, but luckily he was able to keep up the act as it seemed to catch Russell’s interest. 

“And how are you going to do this?”

“We have access to the Fashion Week, uh, shows. I mean, I can get you Julian to steal a major designer’s designs,” Nate offered up Eliot to steal it. 

“So, I let you go,” Russell seemed to laugh, “you run to the police, and I get nothing! No deal.”

I paced the floor as Nate tried to say something to save it when Tara offered herself as collateral, which Nate quickly refused. He tried to reason that he wouldn’t go to the police, we had no evidence, we couldn’t escape them anyway, etc etc. 

Unfortunately, Russell agreed to keep Tara anyway in exchange for the designs. He gave Nate one hour. 

“I’m telling you,” Tara said, “get him what he wants. It’s just fifty grand, huh? That’s what this is about, five oh, capish? Five oh.”

“Yah…” Nate said hesitantly, “Julien, let’s go, uh…”

Hardison and I waited until everyone got back, without Tara. 

“We could have just given Russell the money,” Hardison said. 

“If we had given him the money,” Nate replied, “we would have gone back to the client with nothing.”

“Cuz that’s what it’s about,” Eliot said, “a chance to run a con on the Triads on the fly. You put Tara’s life in danger to take down a bigger target.”

“Listen, it’s one thing for Florence and those other women to owe money to some local sweatshop. You want them in debt to the Triads the rest of their lives?” Nate asked. 

“You wouldn’t have left Sophie there,” Parker pointed out. 

“Listen, I know what I’m doing,” Nate insisted, “I got it under control, alright? We have less than an hour, we need some designer’s plans, we gotta get-”

“Hold on,” Hardison said as he typed on his computer. “Okay, there’s one show left today, Andre V has a hip hop couture line.”

“Great, perfect,” Nate pointed at Eliot, Parker, and I, “go get those plans.”

We didn’t have to be told twice as we dashed off, back to Fashion Week. Unfortunately for us, because of a ‘security breach’ earlier, we couldn’t get in without IDs. According to the chick at the security checkpoint, the only things getting through were models and clothes. Which led us to where we were now, arguing about clothes. 

Parker couldn’t get over the impracticality of them as a thief, but finally offered up a black piece of clothing with red-ish orange trim. 

“The A-line drape of the empire waist is nice, but the neckline is a little weak,” Eliot rattled off. “If you ask me,” he added once he caught Parker and I’s looks. 

“I thought you weren’t into all this fashion stuff,” I said. 

“Hey, I dated a lot of models. A lot of private fashion shows, if you know what I mean.”

“Yes, yes,” Parker said, continuing to flip through clothes. 

Eliot continued to give sexual innuendos that Parker and I rebuffed until we both walked away to a different rack when we couldn’t take anymore. I finally found something that fit some of her criteria enough to get her changed and backstage. 

“Why can’t you come too?” She asked as I rushed her through.

“Because I don’t have an ID and I think I would hinder you more than help, let me know if you need help and I can figure out a way in or make a distraction out here or something, now go!” I pushed her through to blend in with a couple other models heading where Parker needed to go. 

She was able to get the flash drive into the computer, but before all the files were uploaded, she got swept up into actually being a model. I helped conceal Eliot in a clothes rack to retrieve the drive as Parker was walking the runway, but not without an incident on her part. Luckily that didn’t stop us from being successful. 

We brought the drive to Nate and Hardison at the factory. Hardison took it and worked some magic, I was sure before handing it to Nate to give to Russell. Nate stepped out of the van and prepped himself before going in. 

“Hey,” Eliot stopped him, “if this thing starts going off the rails, don’t wait. Call us in.”

Nate nodded, “Chow is primed, I can handle him.”

“I’m not talking about him.”

“She’s a pro, she knows what to do,” Nate insisted before heading into the factory. 

I still had a nervous feeling in my gut despite his supposed confidence, but I seemed to always have that feeling at the tipping point of the con. I, of course, had nothing to worry about as Nate handed over the designs, Russell saw them, unknowingly sent Gloria’s design to all of his factories, courtesy of Hardison, and called the cops. The cops arrested Russell for being wanted by Interpol, also revealed courtesy of Hardison, and let Nate go once he showed them his Interpol badge.

“Okay, no earpiece,” Parker said to Tara, “How did you tell Nate you were gonna do the cop scam?”

Tara recalled when she told Nate that it was fifty grand, “five oh.”

“Five oh? Cops?” Eliot asked, “That was all it took?”

“Some people just know how to communicate,” Nate said. 

“I finally learned how to speak his language,” Tara said. “Cryptic clues, slogans, and code.”

We all shared a small laugh and smile that everything came out okay by communicating of all things. It all turned out for the best, our client got the money to help her parents come over to the States, the factory came under new supervision which was much better for all of its workers, and I think we could now work as a team. 

A/n: Reblogs and comments are welcome and encouraged! Thank you for reading!

Tags: @instantdinosaurtidalwave @kniselle @technikerin23 @kiwikitty13 @plasticbottleholder

[matan4il]

Do you think Mile remembers Apo from those earlier events?

Hi, Nonnie! Thank you for the ask. Buckle up, I have some thoughts and plenty of info (and pics).

When it was discovered Mileapo were both present at the 24 Jul 2013 event, I mentioned that Mile said there might have been more than one runway gig they did together, because in the Journey interview, he mentioned remembering Apo as walking ahead of him, not behind (*cough* Gee, I wonder what Mile was staring at that he still remembered looking at Apo from behind when doing this interview 8 years later). In the 10 Aug 2013 runway event, the clearer pic of Apo and the vid show him behind Mile, not ahead of him:

We never see Apo in front of Mile in either the 21 Feb 2013 event or the Jul 24 event vids.

But there's another pic showing Apo (in the checkered shirt to Mile's left in the pic below) behind Mile WHILE walking in the opposite direction. Which implies shortly before the pic was taken, Apo was walking ahead of Mile, got to the end of the runway, and turned around. So the pic itself still shows him behind Mile despite Apo having walked in front of him.

(this is based on the assumption Apo is indeed the guy in the checkered shirt. It seems to be him, but it's hard to 100% confirm)

Assuming that that's Apo, the event where Mile remembered Apo walking in front of him might have been the same one uncovered by the fans (10 Aug 2013). BUT it could be that that's not Apo, or that Mile does remember a separate event. If you ever have the chance to ask Mile a question, please let it be about this!

Either way, up until the 24 Jul 2013 event was unearthed a few days ago, Mile def was under the impression that the 10 Aug event was the first time they crossed paths, as he mentioned in a recent interview (remember that when he gave this answer, the only vid uncovered by fans was the one from the August event):

This seems to suggest that even if he remembered seeing Apo at other events, he might not remember which came first (meaning it could be that either the 21 Feb or Jul 24 events had a section where Apo walked in front of Mile that has not yet been uncovered, and that's what Mile recalls). Or maybe he remembers Apo walking ahead of him from modeling events that took place after the 10 Aug one.

In any case, here's an extra touch of destiny. In the recently uncovered 21 Feb 2013 vid, you can see Masu, Apo's friend, holding his hand at the start of the vid.

There was this separate project where they took 9 handsome guys, made them radio DJs, had them record a song together boyband style, had them do some fan events, and then at a certain point they expanded to 13 guys. Masu was one of the original nine, Mile was one of the four who got added on, it appears he was a part of this from Feb 2012 to Apr that year. Here they both are together at an event in Singapore, Masu's the third guy from the right, Mile's the fifth:

So at the Feb 2013 event, there's no guarantee Mile saw Masu, or that he came over to say hi, and even if Mile did, Apo might not have been by Masu's side at that particular moment (or Masu might have seen Mile and walked over to say hi without Apo). But doesn't it feel like destiny was TRYING its DAMN HARDEST to make sure Mile and Apo would cross paths in EVERY CONCEIVABLE WAY?

Damn, I had no idea when I started watching Kinnporsche the Series that this is what would lead to me being convinced fate is real. Thank you again for the ask and allowing me to simmer in madness. xoxox

(if you're looking for any of my other Kinnporsche/Mileapo posts, just click here)

And just for the hell of it, 'coz I don't think I'll include this in any other post, here's another pic of Mile from the 21 Feb 2013 event that did not make it into the vid:

[vixstarria]

✨Prepare for an unsolicited info dump✨

I was tagged by @herdarkestnightelegance - thanks!

Do you make your bed? Yes, always - I might leave other things lying around, but the bed is the no. 1 thing that always gets done - otherwise the bedroom looks too messy and irks me

Favorite number? I don't have a favourite number.

What’s your job? So... I work in a small law firm as the person who does everything but provide legal advice. Accounts, IT, HR, admin, random paralegal stuff - I'm your guy (gn). No one at work really knows exactly what it is I do, but they generally assume I'm always busy, which provides ample opportunity to shitpost on tumblr during work hours. E.g. right now. I love my job.

If you could go back to school would you? Absolutely not, I still have PTSD and recurring nightmares about school. I mean, I don't mind learning, per se, but I would strongly prefer it to be on my own terms, remote, and outside of a formal academic environment. And definitely not in the country I grew up and went to school in.

Can you parallel park? Strangely enough, yes. I do note that I do not have a license, however.

Do you think aliens are real? There has to be alien life of some kind out there, but it won't be little green men in blinking flying saucers. ...Although then again, hey, within the infinity of the universe, maybe there ARE little green men in saucers as well, somewhere, who knows?

Can you drive a manual car? Strictly within the confines of an empty parking lot - sure

What’s your guilty pleasure? Oh gosh, of what kind? Food - spicy ramen noodles with a bunch of stuff (mushrooms, egg, etc) thrown in. I love it, but I swear I immediately gain a kg any time I have a bowl. Music - early 2000's R&B, pop and nu metal. It's nostalgia, okay? Media - reality fashion shows that involve competitions, e.g. Project Runway, or ANTM. And cooking shows, but I don't feel guilty about those lol.

Tattoos? No, nothing's ever struck me as significant enough for me to want to have it on my skin permanently. If I had a weird scar I would cover it up with a tattoo, though.

Favorite color? Purple, especially lilac and lavender shades.

Favorite types of music? It fluctuates, but I've mostly been on an electronic / industrial binge lately.

Do you like puzzles? Puzzles often make me feel like an idiot, but if there is no timer, pressure or audience - sure. ...Or like, jigsaw puzzles? I fkn LOVE jigsaw puzzles.

Any phobias? Nope.

Favorite childhood sport? Bold of you to assume I participated in ANY sport as a child, much less had a favourite. Uh. Ice skating and rollerblading was fun, I guess. I sometimes contemplate getting rollerblades again, but then I also rather enjoy all my bones being intact. 🤔

Do you talk to yourself? All the time, although mostly in the form of muttered swears and various exclamations.

What movies do you adore? I'm going to pass on this one, or it might turn into a very long rant. To summarise: I like weird movies, horror and comedy horror. Some examples: Mulholland Drive, Eraserhead, Army of Darkness.

Coffee or tea? Both. Start the day with coffee, then drink tea for the remainder. I'm very particular with my coffee though - every morning begins with a little ritual of grinding whole beans and preparing it with a french press.

First thing you wanted to be growing up? One of my earliest memories is me wondering what I wanted to be when I grew up, and my little 4 or 5 year old brain thinking that my only options were teacher, doctor and cashier, for some reason, and being sad because I didn't want to be any of those. I don't think I ever wanted to be anything, as a child - I just wanted to read my books and play with my toys. In fact, I still feel that way. 😠

No pressure tagging (and sorry for any repeats): @spacebarbarianweird @thechaoticdruid @snowfolly @brabblesblog @confused-butter-toast @tragedybunny

[vasfasan]

"Strange Way of Life" - review by a gay fandom freak.

(Minor spoilers! Mentions of NSFW. Proceed with caution.)

Flat, uninteresting cinematography, shallow characters and superficial plot that isn't saved by the two A-lister leads – all these adjectives describe Pedro Almodovar's 2023 short film "Strange Way of Life". I remember seeing the buzz for this project back when it was still underway and being fairly excited. I had come in ready to be wow-ed, and came out extremely disappointed, if not pissed. Start with the logline, "After twenty-five years, Silva(Pedro Pascal) rides a horse across the desert to visit his friend, sheriff Jake(Ethan Hawke). They celebrate the meeting, but the next morning, Jake tells him that reason for his trip is not to go down the memory lane of their friendship."

For whatever reason, the marketing was scared to come out and say that this is a gay film, but it is, in the worst way possible, quite gay and kinda homophobic. It is less "a thoughtful queer narrative" and more "porny OC fic" that any self-respecting AO3 veteran would scroll past. Lingering shots of Pedro Pascal's backside aside (pardon the tautology), the actual plot is frustratingly predictable and almost feels like an excuse for a lovers' quarrel, not a story created with passion. Not something the director genuinely wanted to tell. As if Almodovar wanted just pure gay erotica, but forced in a weak and rushed conflict with a nonsensical conclusion nonetheless. Then the erotica itself got reduced, leaving a vaguely-sensual nothing of a film.

The leads' shared history or the way it affects their current dynamic, over 25 years of something(?) later, does not pull at any heartstrings, because it doesn't feel earned. One can get away with a simplistic plot, if enough character building is carefully constructed around it. In this film though, we mostly just get told exactly what the characters' problem is and how they feel about it through some very extended and cliche dialogue you would not be surprised to hear in telenovela reruns (interrupted by a passing "smelling-of-cum" obscenity here and there). With zero character complexity, the relationship follows a stereotype-y, lowkey racist and tired tropes, the grumpy internalized-homophobia white cop (top) x emotionally open latino criminal (bottom) dynamic feels offensive in 2023. Do better.

The chamber world of "Strange Way" does not feel real or tangible in any way, the fake-looking sets are populated by chiseled models in pristinely fresh Saint Laurent costumes, the grotesque wine celler scene being the most egregious example of this. These runway men cannot act, period. While Pascal and Hawke managed to instill at least an iota of chemistry and depth into the character dynamic, their younger counterparts don't measure up, sadly. It is like the creators were too scared to add any grime to the picture and went with watered-down slop instead, which goes both for look and story.

The precious time that could be dedicated to character work instead is being eaten up by lighting-speed runthrough of the plot events that are basically just there to justify the "Western" part of this Gay Western. For lack of a better word, they did not put the special sauce on those cowboys.

Pedro Almodovar referencing this Short Film as "The Brokeback Mountain how he wanted to make it" is frankly, absurd. This story has nothing to do with the 2005 movie. It doesn't set a precedent, doesn't have a message to speak of, doesn't tell a good story. Doesn't elicit emotion.

Simply consider of the gut-punch that is Ennis' childhood memory in regards to the reasons for his repressed nature, "Strange Way Of Life" has... nothing of the sort. Maybe, of course, I missed it in the endless expositional yap of Silva and Jake, because I have only seen the short film once and could not handle a rewatch. In conclusion, yeah this sucked. It didn't please me visually or narratively, wasn't even a worthy addition to the spank bank.

[karume-selfshipper]

April Fools: Kekkai Sensen Edition

Elizabeth

She has never participated in the holiday before and has no inclination to start now (she does know the origins of the holiday however and would be happy to explain it to you)

Though Leo did prank her with a sticky note on her back that read 'hug me' (which was found and removed by Steven and Klaus before anyone else could see it)

Klaus still offered a hug afterwards (Elizabeth would never turn down a Klaus hug)

Zapp however found a second easiest target (since Elizabeth just isn't expecting anyone to be as inconsiderate as to spread glitter and confetti across the office)

Poor Elizabeth had to be "rescued" by Zed, Leo, and Chain who went through a long list of pranks to get back at Zapp with

However Elizabeth was extremely reluctant to pull off any of them (because even if Steven were to intimidate Zapp into cleaning up, there's no guarantee that Zapp will clean it properly and leave more work for Gilbert)

She eventually agreed to a "double" prank where Zapp got covered in glitter and Elizabeth 'took forever' to figure out how to work a hand vacuum (she intentionally had it set to the lowest setting... though Zapp got nasty about it, insulting her potential as a house wife and saying Klaus got lucky he didn't rush the marriage... for which Elizabeth went ballistic and read him for filth before anyone else could step in)

Sapphina

One of her favorite holidays (toss between April Fool's and Halloween) and she's out to prank everyone... except Steven because she is a little afraid of Steven's wrath

She has pranked Klaus the same way every year she's been in Libra, giving him fake plants that he genuinely appreciates (though Sapphina feels guilty about it and sneakily replaces them with real plants a couple weeks later/before Klaus can notice)

She has told Chain there's something in her hair 3 times before Chain caught on, and similarly repeatedly tells Zed his pods look they aren't attached right (he keeps falling for it even though he's certain she's just messing with him... but what if she isn't this time)

Pranking Leo was almost too easy for Sapphina, she's faked him out by tapping his shoulder, pulled the "something on your shirt" nose flick, and tripped him so she could "save his life" by catching him

However Zapp got the worst of her pranks by far, as the main target of her pranks. From poppers to ice buckets to confetti and glitter to a plethora of sticky notes with varying mean things slapped across his back (she helped with the majority of clean up but Zapp never discovered the sticky notes until he was five drinks deep in a bar)

Technically she and Zapp were in a prank war, but Sapphina won by a mile

Izzy

She hasn't even noticed what day it is... she is more concerned with her current project because she's been asked to headline the next fashion runway event and she heard several rumors about top name fashion designers in attendance

She does NOT notice when Leo salts her coffee (it wasn't that bad) just giving him a confused look as he giggles

Izzy has her workshop set up in an unused closet (as usual because she uses a pocket dimension in case she's needed for a mission)

Zapp has been trying to prank her all day but to no avail (whether it was Steven or Klaus stopping him or Izzy's own non-interest in interacting with anyone)

Though he did eventually "get" her by spilling water on her project

Izzy went ballistic on impact, Leo instantly "confiscated" her parasol while Klaus held her back by the upper arms; waiting for her to calm down as she cussed Zapp out while kicking)

Lily

Chaos Gremlin Mode Unlocked

She loves this holiday and goes all out on pranking everyone at least once throughout the day

Leo is lowkey cowering in fear of what Lily has planned for the day

Steven got the lightest prank with Lily putting a travel coffee mug lid on his cup

She pranked Klaus so much with "could you open this for me please?" but she helped clean up the glitter and confetti so Steven doesn't get involved

Though she did dump three trays of ice cubes into Zed's tank, annoy Chain, Leo, and Zed with random statements about things being wrong with their outfits/hair/teeth, and almost convinced Gilbert his gloves were inside-out

However this was the day she would get plenty of revenge on Zapp for all the "rookie" and "pube-face" comments he'd lodged at her and Leo...

Lily went all out with buckets of water, fake snakes tied to his ankle/belt, confetti bombs, and eventually dropped a large ice cube down the back of his shirt which he had to dance around for nearly five minutes since his shirt is tucked into his pants

There was nothing Zapp, or anyone could do to prank her back in a meaningful way

[twinsunstars]

Thoughts on The Bad Batch Episode 15 - The Cavalry Has Arrived - A Discussion Post (PART 2)

LINK TO PART 1 OF DISCUSSION

(SPOILERS AHEAD IF YOU HAVE NOT SEE THE FINALE YET! all screencaps from www.cap-that.com! https://www.cap-that.com/starwars/the-bad-batch/315/)

Nala Se heads to the central lab, attempting to destroy her work to prevent the Empire from getting their hands on it. Little does she know, Rampart had picked up a blaster and aimed it at her head. He takes a look at the data, wanting to know everything about Project Necromancer.

Little does he know, Nala Se held a bomb, pressing the button to get it warmed up.

Echo and the clones reach the "training room", attacking the troopers inside. A heated battle ensues while Omega heads up to try and free Hunter, Wrecker, and Crosshair. She gets spotted by one of the CX troopers, getting caught just as Hemlock and Scorch return. Hemlock releases the poisonous gas he had used on Crosshair last season on the clones, causing them to faint.

Rampart is fascinated by the data about Project Necromancer and downloads it onto the datapad to take to the Emperor to regain his status. Nala Se is shot by Rampart, as the bomb lands near Rampart's feet and goes off, the lab getting blown to bit. Nala Se finally met her end, and so did Rampart.

Like many theories, I was expecting Rampart to potentially do a Kallus and become a Rebel, but guess it was never meant to be lol.

The Batch wake up, attacking the troopers. Hemlock uses binders to keep Omega with him, taking CX-2's ship controls from his arm and his blaster, heading off. I screamed when CX-2 was killed by Hunter in fear that it was Tech because of my delusional self, but turns out it's not. Hunter and Crosshair go off to find Omega.

Hemlock (with Scorch) takes Omega outside to escape, right when it starts pouring rain. CX-2's ship comes over after Hemlock turned it on, but its engines get shot as Crosshair and Hunter make their way onto the runway. Hemlock holds Omega close to him and stands near the railing, holding a blaster at her head to threaten them. Omega isn't afraid; she knows Hemlock won't kill her, and she trusts her brothers.

Hunter tells Crosshair to shoot the binders once the time is right, and Crosshair is scared to accidentally hit Omega. Omega gets the thin sharp tool she used a lot earlier secretly out of her sleeve, ready to make her move. Hunter and Crosshair wait for her, as Omega stabs Hemlock hard in his leg, causing him to break away from his grasp on Omega. Crosshair manages to shoot the binders to free Omega, and Hemlock gets shot a total of six times before falling off the railing, meeting his end.

They had did it. They won. Omega smiles at her brothers, relaxed. She sees Crosshair's missing hands, tears welling up in her eyes. She draws Crosshair in for a hug, as the three share a warm hug in the rain. The three head back, ready to go live freely.

Just as everyone had left, the Empire arrived. Tarkin lands on Mount Tantiss as the troopers examine the mess. Tarkin receives word that Hemlock and several troopers died in the attack, and no data from his project is left. Tarkin couldn't care less; he immediately shuts down Mount Tantiss and moves all of Hemlock's money for Project Necromancer to Project Stardust, funding the Death Star.

Back safely on Pabu, the clones relax, getting to eat many Pabu delicacies. The kids play around with Mox, Stak, and Deke, getting treats and Eva chases the moonyos. Echo and Emerie watch, and I love how pretty Emerie looks as always, especially without her glasses. I'm guessing she can always see without them, they were just glasses that allowed her to see specific things in them like a built-in screen. Emerie is happy the kids are enjoying themselves, and Echo gets ready to head to Pantora to help the other clones. He suggests that Emerie could come and help, and Emerie is willing to do anything to atone for her mistakes.

Hunter and Omega sit with Batcher under the tree, happy that everyone is safe. Omega worries for the kids and the clones, but Hunter tells her that everything will be okay and the kids will be returned safely eventually, and the clones can do whatever they want now. He tells her that they can be whatever they want, and Omega relaxes, falling asleep on Hunter's arm. Crosshair and Wrecker join, their journey of fighting finally over.

Years pass, and an adult Omega heads into the caves of Pabu, reaching her ship. Someone said older Omega looks like Tech, and now I'm crying. An older Hunter sits nearby with Batcher, and Omega smiles, knowing he would be here. Omega wants to join the Rebellion in their growing fight, and Hunter is afraid of letting her go, just wanting to keep her safe. Omega knows, and she's ready to go off on her own. The two share a close hug, and Hunter sends her off.

Omega is ready to set off on her own adventures after living safely on Pabu. She takes Gonky, Lula, and Tech's goggles with her, so that he can always be with her. She salutes to Hunter, flying off into space. Batcher whines, already missing her. Hunter knows she will be okay; she's their strong girl.

I know I've said this so many times in other posts, and I've never been a parent, but Omega is really like the daughter I watched grow up. She was so young and naive in the first season, and now she's grown up and ready to fight on her own. I get teary-eyed every time I look at how big she is now and when she leaves. I hope we can see more of rebel Omega.

I cried numerous times after I saw the finale that day, unable to stop myself from remembering the happy ending we got and my little Omega all grown up, and the fact that my favorite comfort show is really over now. I'm not going to lie, I was writing this and my eyes started balling out tears again, the piano notes in the credits playing in my head. I miss them so much. I really hope we can see Omega and the Batch again in future Star Wars media. For now, the Bad Batch has given us so many treasured memories, and it was really one hell of a ride.

[celinedioncardboardstandee]

Ramblings about my Sierra and just kinda world tour overall rewrite (but it's mostly Sierra). Buckle in, it's a long one.

So Sierra has always had a hard time connecting with people, she's never really knows why but it's been like this her entire life. Her mom always focused more on her Chris obsession than Sierra and her dad was never around so she grew self-sufficient early on. She also got into reality TV really early too (big brother. Survivor, project runway, ect.) I think her mom had her watch an old Chris show and it snowballed from there. She's been online for along as she could remember, bouncing around Fandoms until total drama. With total drama she became totally obsessed, doing what she already did in Canon (except the stalking). She managed to become friends with izzy early and she gave her content for her blog and she also managed to interview cody a couple times.

When she got on world tour she was so excited and she was even more excited when izzy switched her teams, Heather, Courtney, and Gwen were her favorite contestants and she already felt like she was friends with Cody. When it comes to the other contestants I think she got along with team victory, Owen, and Izzy for the most part (DJ, Bridget, and Leshawna were put off by her but friendly)<- same with Gwen and Cody till a certain point. She didn't really enteract with Tyler or Zeke, but Courtney, Noah (both like Cody, till a certain point) and Duncan where more hostile. Heather was complicated but I'll go into that in a different post, and she saw through Alejandro from moment one and was more proactive about it than she was in Canon but also they get to a point where they understand and empathize with eachother.

Going into some of them more, her and Harold had a short and sweet friendship (they play dnd together post-canon), she bonds with Lindsay through fashion (all those years of project runway came in handy) she takes Sierra shopping sometimes post-canon and wears anything Sierra makes her. She has what was mostly one-sided beef with Noah because of how elusive he was between seasons (he didn't tell izzy shit) but then Noah decided to be snarky asshole and crossed the line with her a good couple times while she doesn't fight back cuz she never fights back. When he comes back tho they and Heather form an anti-alejando alliance and their relationship gradually gets better. Courtney's Courtney but after paris she softens a little (instead of a breakdown surrounding Cody it's surrounding team amazon seeing her as a tool more than anything after pretending to be her friends) but they're not good until Greece, Sierra was there to listen to her more than anyone else and didn't put her game infront so by the final 4 court is rooting for her or alejandro. Finally Cody had major issues communicating boundaries and found Sierra as a nessecary annoyance until Paris where they (and heather) had an actual discussion about it, him and Sierra then got closer and closer each episode until London, when Noah crosses the line for a final time and Cody snaps at him, that's when him and Sierra become best friends. She managed to bargain with the crew to get her knitting stuff and made Cody a sweater for his birthday, he ends up getting eliminated in rapa nui so she gives it to him with the promise he won't open it till the next episode.

Everything else plays out like it does in cannon more-or-less, Noah instead of Cody, more humanizing alejandro stuff, heatherra, ect. (Also no more robot) her and alejandro are recovery buddies and also start a podcast after.

So yea this was long and mostly about dynamics more than anything but this has been rattleling around in my head for a while now