#Where I'll get to go the the American girl store for the first time

[the-halfling-prince]

Are you normal or did the movie Song of the Sea make you autistic about lighthouses

[meraki-yao]

RWRB Quotes that speak to me on this really fucking shitty day

Hey, have I told you lately that you're brave? I still remember what you said to that little girl in the hospital about Luke Skywalker:"He's proof that it doesn't matter where you come from or who your family is." Sweetheart, you're proof too.

It is, indeed, bullshit. It's all I can do not to pack a bag and be gone forever. Perhaps I could live in your room like a recluse. You could have food sent up for me, and I'll be lurking in disguise in a shadowy corner when you answer the door. It'll all be very dreadfully Jane Eyre

I'm afraid, though, I'm stuck here. Gran keeps asking Mum when I'm going to enlist, and did I know Philip had already served a year by the time he was my age. I do need to figure out what I'm going to do, because I'm certainly closing in on the end of what's an acceptable amount of time for a gap year. Please do keep me in your- what is it American politicians say?-thoughts and prayers

It drives me nuts sometimes that you don't get to have more say in your life. When I picture you happy, I see you with your own apartment somewhere outside of the palace and a desk where you can write anthologies of queer history. And I'm there, using up your shampoo and making you come to the grocery store with me and waking up in the same damn time zone with you every morning.

Have you ever had something go so horribly, horribly, unbelievably badly that you'd like to be loaded into a cannon and jettisoned into the merciless black maw of outer space?

I wonder sometimes what is the point of me, or anything. I should have just packed a bag like I said. I could be in your bed, languishing away until I perish, fat and sexually conquered, snuffed out in the spring of my youth. Here lies Prince Henry of Wales. He died as he lived: avoiding plans and sucking cock.

Specifically, we were discussing enlistment, Philip and Shaan and I, and I told Philip I'd rather not follow the traditional path and that I hardly think I'd be useful to anyone in the military. He asked why I was so intent on disrespecting the traditions of the men of this family, and I truly think I dissociated straight (ha) out of the conversation, because I opened my blasted mouth and said, "Because I'm not like the rest of the men of this family, beginning with the fact that I am very deeply gay, Philip."

Once Shaan managed to dislodge him from the chandelier, Philip had quite a few words for me, some of which were "confused or misguided" and "ensuring the perpetuity of the bloodline" and "respecting the legacy." Honestly, I don't recall much of it. Essentially, I gathered that he was not surprised to discover I am not the heterosexual heir I'm supposed to be, but rather surprised that I do not intend to keep pretending to be the heterosexual heir I'm supposed to be.

Sometimes I imagine moving to New York to take over launching Pez's youth shelter there. Just leaving. Not coming back. Maybe burning something down on the way out. It would be nice.

9. How hard you try

10. How hard you've always tried.

11. How determined you are to keep trying.

give yourself away sometimes, sweetheart. there's so much of you.

They all turn to look at him, and Alex feels a wave of something so much bigger than himself sweep over him, like when he was a child standing bowlegged in the Gulf of Mexico, rip-tide sucking at his feet. A sound escapes his throat uninvited, something that he barely even recognizes, and June has him first, then the rest of them, arms and arms and hands and hands, pulling him close and touching his face and moving him until he's on the floor, the goddamn terrible hideous antique rug that he hates, sitting on the floor and staring at the rug and the threads of the rug and hearing the Gulf rushing in his ears and thinking distantly that he's having a panic attack, and that's why he can't breathe, but he's just staring at the rug and he's having a panic attack and knowing why his lungs won't work doesn't make them work again.

He's faintly aware of being shifted into his room, to his bed, which is still covered in the godforsaken fucking newspapers, and someone guides him onto it, and he sits down and tries very, very hard to make a list in his head.

One.

One.

One

Once upon a time, there was a young Prince, who was born in a castle. And there had never been a prince quite like him: he was born with his heart on the outside of his body.

Whereas the other princes and noble children could withstand the slings and arrows of childhood, the Prince felt everything acutely. Everything seemed to touch and threaten his unprotected heart.

Oh for Christ sake Alex, for once! I wish you could see me for who I am and not who you want me to be! Sometimes, I don't think you know me at all!

I wasn't raised by a loving, supportive family like you were!

Nothing will ever happen to you.

I don't want your protection, I want your support.

[1eos]

May I have some lovely book recommendations on this day <3 😁😁 I'm trying to read more this next year

you sure can!!!!! i'll list my fave reads of the past few years:

convenience store woman by sayaka murata -one of my fave books of all timeeeeee. its basically about a woman who just doesnt fit in into 'normal' society and even tho she's happy ppl feel like she shouldnt be bc she's not progressing w everyone else. if you've been the weird girl ever this book will

ring shout - p djeli clark. a historical fiction novel where the kkk are like demons and theres this organization of black hunters. its action packed but what makes it so amazing is the emotional growth of the characters :') an all time fave

the vanishing half - brit bennett. another AMAZING historical fiction book. its abt family lines....and colorism and twins and what it means to be white passing and privilege and generational trauma. it honestly has toni morrison core vibes where there's a lot of pain but thru love all is healed!

there's no such thing as an easy job by kikuko tsumura. a bit of an eclectic read. this woman takes on different jobs and they each give her grief in a new way. very relatable esp if you hate your job 😭

the vegetarian by han kang. THEE GOAT. i will recc this book until the day i DIE. and even then. its technically a horror story abt the fallout after a woman has a dream/vision and decides to stop eating meat but its sooo much deeper than that. its such a great look at how, as a woman, everything abt you is subject to critique down to what you eat

parasite eve. thee classic scifi horror the video game was inspired by! think frankenstein but there's a love story underneath. but also you question if it was love at all bc what if the mitochrondria inside of us are just manipulating everything we do? i loved it! writing style is a bit clinical but idc

my sister the serial killer by oyinkan braithwaite...i read this one in a single day it was THAT GOOD. sister is a serial killer and the fucking implications and fucked up shit that comes from lookism and family expectations and misogyny tbh. love it~

annihilation by jeff vandermeer. the first in a series but you can just read the first one. its sooooooooooooooooooo good. its a scifi book about this mysterious barrier off the coast that's slowly expanding and inside nature is reclaiming its space and most everyone that enters the barrier never returns.....another quick read bc it will have you HOOKED

yellowface by r f kuang. i don't usually enjoy satire but r f kuang really TOOK IT THERE. this is the most infuriating book you'll ever read but in the best way. this white author w an inferiority complex objectifies her friend that she secretly hates and then steals her friend's book. only thing is the friend is proudly asian and her book is abt specific cultural history so the white girl does diet yellowface and is just a massive bitch

beloved by toni morrison. how do you sum up beloved? i cannot sum up beloved. if i had to sum up beloved i would say 'love is a haunting but not every haunting is love and the only thing that can clear a haunting is love'

in the dream house by carmen maria machado. god probably the best prose i've read all year. a really beautiful but bittersweet autobiographical novel about a bisexual woman's experience with a fucked up abusive relationship and how subtle abuse can be. heavy subject matter but handled soooo beautifully.

the only good indians by stephen graham jones. WHEW. this is a horror......and this book will take you for a fucking ride i'll tell you that. its abt a group of native american men who were childhood friends and due to one mistake they're all haunted by...something that wants to get revenge on them. this book had me going 'DID THAT JUST HAPPEN?' multiple times

[ofcoming4th]

I'm doing this far too much lately. Saying goodbye to a friend I never met.

The man in the striped shirt is Shane MacGowan, first lead singer and songwriter for The Pogues - the first Irish punk band anyone had heard of widely in the USA.

He died today, November 30,at the age of 65. With Shane if you didn't know him the first things you might think is, " Oh he passed pretty young" . If you did it was, "Wow he made it that long?"

Shane was a towering talent, a junkie, a poet and often a complete bastard. His own band had to put him out because of his drug problem and general arsehole behavior - supposedly he said, "What took ya so long?"

In the early 80's there were rumbles in the music magazines about a band who went by Pogue Mahone ( which my mom used to yell at people who cut her off in traffic). They had to change it to just The Pogues because too many people knew the same phrase and they could not get any television spots or be on MTV.

Elvis Costello was a fan and helped produce their first widely played USA album "Rum, Sodomy, and the Lash" in 1985. I was in my punk/proto New Wave phase at the time and was able to get someone to drive me to the nearest large city in order to buy the LP in a ratty little store next to a CBGB wanna be bar. I'll admit that the title was the big selling point for my immature self and I had no idea what to expect (as Mr. Joel said, you can't get the sound from the pages of a magazine, even if that magazine was CREAM).

The 5th track was "A Pair of Brown Eyes" and Shane's plaintive not quite on key voice caught me as he mourned the cost of death and hate while staying intensely human. On Side 2 was "Dirty Old Town" by Ewan MacColl. For an Irish American kid from a dying mill town who didn't even have a word for her sexuality the lyrics and Shane's voice put words to my experience even an ocean away from the trauma and violence of Ireland in the 80's. "Dreamed a dream by the old canal. I kissed my girl by the factory wall... " that was me, a bumbling scared girl in a tiny canal and mill town hiding to kiss a girl because it just made more sense even if I knew it would make life even harder.

And that album has never left my possession, changing formats but bringing me back to who I once was when I owned that first LP. Nostalgia is sweet when you know you will never have to be that self in that situation ever again. But good music is good music.

I kept up with Shane through the wild swings of his career and life . Though I don't think his post Pogues music was ever up to the level of those albums - "Red Roses for Me" to "Hell's Ditch" set the standard and pointed the way for bands like Dropkick Murphy's and Flogging Molly with the blending of Irish traditional influence and modern storytelling.

And he made it to 65,changing music, writing the song "Fairytale of New York" ( will somebody explain to me why this is considered a Christmas song staple? Has anyone besides me actually listened to the real lyrics which require cutting on broadcast radio? Just because Christmas is mentioned several times doesn't make this a happy Christmas song!)

I'll stop clutching my pearls and get back on track.

I needed to write this to just get my feelings out . Shane and the other members of the Pogues were the soundtrack to a vital part of my life where I found love, lost it, and found that love had never really gone , I just needed to get my self in good enough shape to accept it.

Thank you Shane, you magnificent, miserable , romantic, drunken junkie of a poet and music maker. Your voice is always in my memories of a muggy summer evening by an abandoned paper mill in Nowhere , New York.

If you haven't heard anything by Shane besides "Fairytale" go now and give a listen to " Rum, Sodomy, and the Lash" and its follow up "If I Should Fall From Grace with God".. You will see that even punk Irish bands during the IRA's height - with all the anger, sorrow and joy that life means, can make you want to get up and dance.

[theinstagrahame]

More amazing games this last couple of months! Mostly from crowd funds, but with a couple of birthday gifts and the first installment of Zine Club in the mix!!

Here's a breakdown with some "why I wanted to check 'em out" hype!

DCC - Sailors on a Starless Sea: I recently got a copy of Dungeon Crawl Classics, and asked folks in the Plus One Exp Discord for recommendations, because I'd seen a few of 'em talk about DCC. This had at least two people recommend it! So, I'll be skimming it.

Emerald Templars: I was initially intrigued because of the South American creators and focus of the game, and can't wait to explore it further. The art and the overall quality of the book look great, and I definitely love seeing Fantasy stuff that's not Euro-centric.

Lichoma: Billed as a "meatpunk" game, I really needed to know what that meant. It's a dark, violent and interesting game with some neat mechanics (at least per the stream I watched).

Convictor Drive: This hit crowdfunders around the same time as the Dark Souls 5e came out, and I think while the Cowboy Bebop RPG was crowdfunding. So I was on a kick of really wanting to see more Japanese games get translated and brought stateside, which this was. It's an exosuit procedural super-detective kind of game, which intrigued me, even beyond the JP angle.

Overisles, Inspirisles, and the Shaping Deck: This one I'd been aware of for a while, having gotten Overisles in a Bundle years ago. It's an RPG that uses American or British Sign Language as part of the mechanics. It's supposed to help you learn ASL or BSL, and I've always been curious about those languages. The books are gorgeous, and they came with a pin and 2 really beautiful booksmarks

The Wizards & the Wastes: Big fan of Snow's work in general, but what got me (aside from the Howl's Moving Castle touchstone) was the ability to use art you already own (books, poems, music) as a focus for your character's magical abilities. It's a really gorgeous book and I've been wanting to bring it to a table. I also really love the mechanic where you bring someone from outside the game in to solve disputes.

Crush Depth Apparition: Spooky submarine horror is a good concept on its own, but I was also excited because it just looked so stylish. Plus, another thing through Snow's store, so I was into it.

Girl by Moonlight: Sailor Moon but make it Forged in the Dark. I'm in! Partner and I have been watching the original Sailor Moon. I've been playing and enjoying Beam Saber, and I kind of love the way FitD games deal with character growth.

Wreck this Deck: The pitch is: You trap demons in a deck of cards, and actually mark the cards as you go, creating a neat artifact of play as you go. So after a few plays, you have this really ominous deck of cards, some of which are super messed up or even missing. It's a rad idea, and I'm looking forward to messing up a $3 Bicycle deck.

Guys in Chairs/Spin The Bottle: This is part of the Zine Club shipment for the month, but I'm also a big fan of Dillin's work. I heard them play Guys in Chairs on Party of One, and it's a great game.

1978 - The Night They Came Home (and a Trick-or-Treat bag with rollable tables because why not): I backed this before I ever saw Halloween, but having gotten into those movies this past spooky season, I'm really into this. 2-player game where one of you is the killer, and the other is the person trying to run.

Fox Curio's Floating Bookshop: This looks beautiful, pastoral, and I love a good spiral binding. It's a journaling RPG about someone who runs a bookshop that floats up and down the river. It's super cute and I love it.

Nasty, Brutish, and Long: Friends at the Table put me in a revolutionary action mood, but I also really like the work that Not Writing Games puts out. Also been on a bit of a FitD kick lately (as previously established). I'm also going to pass by making jokes about the name.

The Corrupted: The other half of the Zine Club shipment for the month. I've heard extremely good things about this, and zombie horror is a fantastic genre in general. So I'm hype to dig in.

Hark! Says the Frog Magus: When this was first announced, I was bummed because I'd just lost my job and wasn't sure I'd be able to justify a purchase. So, a friend preordered it as a birthday gift (same friend later got me a different gift because they're a monster). Sin's work in general is rad, and this is adorable but also a great adventure, so I needed it.

I will take a second to highlight these two!

They came from the Plus One EXP Zine Club, and the sticker did too! And it's such a rad thing. A monthly subscription that brings some zines to my door, supports indie creators, and keeps the lights on for a community I care about. All Wins all the time.

I also received the expansion for Return to Dark Tower. I haven't really played Covenant yet, but I'm excited to try it out, because it adds some rad new models and some cool new classes, and a whole bunch of new skulls for the Tower.

[nysocboy]

The Feast of the Seven Fishes: Most of the tropes I hate, but I liked it anyway.

 The Feast of the Seven Fishes just dropped on Netflix.  All I know is that it's a Christmas movie starring Skyler Gisondo, so the likelihood of gay characters or even subtexts is minimal.  I'm going to watch anyway

Scene 1: Beautiful establishing shots of a mining town in West Virginia, winter 1983.  Tony (Skyler Gisondo) is painting by the river and gazing at his acceptance letter from a prestigious art school.  Angelo (Andrew Schultz, left) and his penis, "Mr. Boner,: stop by to tell him about a party with girls desperate to have sex with any guy who asks.  "Nope."

Well, how about coming along on his date?  There will be extremely horny girls there, too. "Nope."  If I didn't know from the plot synopsis that he has two girlfriends, I'd have pegged Tony as gay.

Scene 2: Back in his shabby working-class home, Pap tries to get Tony drunk on homemade hooch. We cut to a super-elegant mansion, where a super-elegant rich girl named Beth yells at her even-richer  boyfriend Prentice (Allen Williamson, left) for backing out of his promise to spend Christmas with the family.  He's going skiing with his friends instead. Prentice, baby, the first rule of relationships -- never leave them alone at Christmas. They'll be with someone else by Boxing Day.

Mom is upset: "You'll never land a rich husband with that attitude!  Like all men, he prefers the company of other men."  So all men are gay?  Beth wants a husband who will spend time with her.  That's what gay bffs are for, girlfriend.

Scene 3: Beth hanging out with her Italian-American friend, complaining about this whole "get a rich husband" thing.  They smoke pot.  Meanwhile, Tony's Uncles Carmine and Frankie (Ray Arbruzzo) are stocking up on booze, when they see Tony's ex, Katie, throwing herself at a truck driver.  They discuss her boobs for several minutes before getting around to complaining about her post-breakup downward spiral.

Cut to Juke (Josh Helman, left) telling his buds about the Feast of the Seven Fishes, although they obviously already know.  He stops to complain about not having a girlfriend, which is especially tough at Christmas. Foreshadowing -- ten to one he gets with Katie.

Scene 4: Rich-girl Beth and her friend,  incredibly high, stare at the menu at a hot dog restaurant, trying to decide what to order.  How about hot dogs?  They discuss going to a party tonight, but all of the parties are full of girls desperate to have sex with any boy who asks, so they'll get groped and prodded all the time. "Well, maybe I'll do a little groping," the friend jokes.  Ok, this is a lesbian.

Nope. "I've been dating this guy and his penis." Wait -- her boyfriends are  "Come along on my date tonight" Angelo and Mr. Boner. And they have this cousin: "Cute, nice, smart..."  A gay guy would immediately ask "How big is his cock?"  Maybe Rich-girl Beth could dump her Christmas-hating boyfriend for Tony? Or at least seduce him and then dump him on New Year's Day? 

Scene 5: At his parents' grocery store, Tony yells at Vince (Cameron Rostami) for being late. They argue and fight until Dad breaks them up and yells at Tony for being too hard on the kid. So, baby brother?  They discuss his future running the family business.  Uh-oh, Tony hasn't told the folks about art school!   

 Cut to Vince walking home.  His Uncles, who were buying booze and discussing Katie's boobs  earlier, give him a ride. See how intricately everybody is interconnected?

They arrive at Tony's house in time for dinner.  Dad yells at them for not bringing any "v.o."  "Well, you didn't ask for any."  "It's Christmas -- we always get v.o."  The family so far consists of Dad, Mom, Grandma, two uncles, Vince, Juke, Tony, Angelo, and his penis.

Meanwhile,  Tony, Cousin Angelo, his penis, and the friend (Sarah) are on their way to pick up Rich-girl Beth.  They discuss the horrors of Catholic school, with those sadistic nuns, and then wonder why Beth would be into an Italian.  "Is she getting extra credit in anthropology class."

How about that? I'm out of space.  You know what's going to happen, right?  Tony and Beth, Juke and Katie, the end.

Beefcake: None.  But no half-naked girls either, not even at the strip club where Katie works (we just see the back entrance).

Other Sights: Beautiful exteriors and a lot of food cooking, mostly the seven kinds of seafood traditionally eaten on Christmas Eve.

Gay Representation:  No, except for an occasional line that could be taken as suggestive.  No homophobia either, except for an occasional "fruit."

Plot: Minimal conflict: Grandma doesn't like Beth because she thinks all Protestant girls are prostitutes, Beth's mom and boyfriend try to get her back, Tony breaks the news of art school.  Very predictable, to the point of being clunky. Of course Tony-Beth and Juke-Katie become couples. 

My Grade: This movie has most of the tropes I hate: "small towns are superior to cities," "family is everything," "girls are the meaning of life," and "gay people do not exist."  But I still liked it.  B-

There are some butts and dicks on the NSFW version of this review.

[yotome]

Chevalier's MC be like

(For those who aren't familiar with American cars, this is a Chevrolet Corvette. In other words … it's a Chevy. I am SO sorry. I could not resist the pun.)

I don't know if Chevalier will ever rise to a "favorite" of mine (if I had a nickel for every time he laughed dismissively, I'd be able to buy myself some fancy coffee), but I've come to the conclusion that it's actually his MC that drives me up the metaphorical wall. SPOILERRSSSS AHEAD if anyone still cares about that.

As a reader from North America, there's some amount of "otomeness" that I just accept, right? Oh, look, MC doesn't want to be affectionate in public, MC is innocent and adorable, MC is easy to read, etc. But when Chev's MC embraces that otome heroine stereotype hardcore, it gets way harder to handle.

I DESPERATELY wanted MC to challenge Chevalier far more than she does, whether that's in conversation or in action. The route would have been substantially stronger had she the ability to do so. Without being challenged either intellectually or situationally, Chevalier is both bored and boring. Since she can't mount an effective challenge to him, she's reduced to another plot mechanism to show him off - while simultaneously being incapable of doing just that. Because her understanding of him starts out at such a basic level ("It's a man … it's a beast … it's … a Chevalier!") and she rarely engages in challenging dialog with him beyond "DON'T KILL OMG", we have no means of learning about his character's depth. We just imagine it's there, because it must be. We get "I'll talk to them first because killing makes her sad", but we don't get any of the juicy thinking that underlies such changes.

She has some moments where she gets close (a.k.a. the ball and "aren't you being a little mean"), but when you're talking "love starved socially isolated man who has convinced himself that he is able to separate himself from his humanity and oh is also a killing machine", you've gotta be able to punch above your weight class. Calling him "mean" and holding onto his cloak ain't gonna cut it.

She also tends to nope herself out about everything under the sun. Nope, he's not a beast, he's a person. Nope, I was wrong, he's a beast. Nope, I don't want to see him, but nope again because actually, I do. I want to see him, but really nope, I don't. GIRL. Get it TOGETHER.

Because it's otome, we're supposed to assume that this is a fairytale "one true love" for them both and they'll be together forever. Honestly, the way she's written, I find this incredibly hard to believe. Maybe it's because I'm a jaded old fart, but it reads to me like he fell in love with her more because of a.) simple proximity, b.) emotional inexperience, and c.) lack of competition. Who else is he going to fall in love with, honestly? It's so otome, the guy never had a choice.

Though I wasn't a huge fan of the year of separation in the dramatic ending (thank you for stepping in and settling that BS, Clavis), I much preferred the dramatic ending overall. She got to run her own store, going so far as to establish a new booklending industry in Rhodolite. She got to be the source of her own success for once. The romantic ending, on the other hand, has Chevalier himself handing her an appointment for "palace librarian." She is the beneficiary of his gift rather than independently successful.

[ghostlyhamburger]

Husband Watches Miraculous: NY Special

[does this one have an actual name idk]

OK this is definitely after season 3 because of the box.

Why did they do a Marvel version of the theme? you can't tell me that's not inspired by Marvel.

Okay so they store the powerups inside the thing?

They really tried to go all out with the updated animations didn't they?

Her hair is actually black this time! it looks really good.

Okay that's the first thing that I saw that's super out of character.

Some of these things are textured really well but some are just not. Look you can see texture on her clothes, on the bricks, on the ground, and then BRIGHT GREEN TRASH CAN. It just makes no sense.

This is gonna be a long hour.

Why did they increase Marinette's bust size?

What the fuck was with the way that beard was moving? It's like they didn't want to move the anchor point on the bottom. They anchored it to his shirt is how they modeled it.

Why do they keep changing Marinette's hair color? Why is it darker in the school lighting?

I think I know why this seems so hard to place in the timeline. Its production seems to start at the beginning of season 3 but they definitely got the bible. So they just didn't see all the development Marinette had in getting over her obsession with Adrien over the season.

This whole little bit about Marinette's obsession doesn't need to be here if you've seen the series. Its purpose is only for those who haven't seen the series, which is unneeded because who's gonna watch just for this? It's not a movie. if I skipped the next fifteen seconds nothing would be missed.

When has New York ever been considered romantic? I guess if they watch a lot of American Hallmark movies? But New York is dirtier and dingier than Paris.

They actually made Gabriel look good in this. Like I get how he's supposed to be a silver fox type. He's got a bit too much Justin Bieber face for me, but the hair works for him. I can see how he'd become a celebrity in Paris.

"I'll be keeping an eye on him." If Adrien was a sentimonster under his control, he wouldn't need to keep an eye on him. He could just keep track of him with the miraculous. Like, Mayura was able to track Feast.

Also why is Nathalie in the bed? didn't they fix the peacock? Oh wait she was still super weak and life force isn't easy to regenerate once it's been drained like that.

Oh they've got best girl here.

I think I already see where the entire plot of this special is going. She's gonna be upset at Chat because he's not gonna be there when a sentimonster attacks and she's gonna be upset and debate giving up her miraculous because that's been the theme of the episodes lately and the American heroes are going to somehow be bitches.

[We're only 10 minutes in.]

Gorilla doesn't like planes.

All right so it's not going to work because it's not a sentimonster alert.

How is the eagle going to help you beat Ladybug and Chat?

Marinette, just know when to stop talking, please.

Again, a nice little moment that would be really good.

5 seconds on the plane and she's basically assaulted someone.

Nice use of symmetry and mirroring each other.

Marinette is not having a good day.

Why did they give her such an ass in that shot?

That's actually a pretty good moment.

No. Alya no.

I do like how they call out their weird animation quirks of like. Marinette arms. It's fun.

A convict with a jet engine?

So normal magical and villain type things exist already.

Okay that is just Superman. That's just Superman outfit and Superman theme.

Another thing I don't like is all the infodump. There's a better way they could've introduced Uncanny Valley than Alya's random exposition. She was answering the question of the audience without being prompted to. And it throws me off.

"It's time to show these American heroes how French heroes do it!" NO. NO.

He's not a superhero. That was his entire bit. Also what's he gonna do, endanger everyone by opening up the emergency hatch? You have no superpowers, you have no gadgets, what possibly are you going to do here?

As an introduction, I like this.

It's like they wanted three teachers, one to be nice, one to be crazy, one to be strict, and then they shoved two of them into one character. It doesn't work.

Hot Dog Dan? So he's ... a hot dog vendor?

All right, the dancing is a cute little callback.

Okay I like the new animation style, the very American comic book. but can no one just leave Marinette and Adrien alone? Let them just be awkward together!

Can we get to the catastrophic failure that will lead into the less lovey-dovey shit?

So they're trying to say Lafayette was a holder?

Is that one of the self driving Tsurugi cars?

Wait we've seen the akuma butterflies phase. Why is there no consistency in the rules?

"There's artifacts left by people who unveiled the statue" So there's a miracle box there, right?

Solitude is just Mr. Pigeon!

Doc Ock. Huh. With replication abilities.

Door powers are actually pretty cool.

Now it's finally getting good! Can always count on Hawkmoth to interfere in the right way.

So why is Hawkmoth going after the sabre when the claw thing is very clearly the Miraculous?

Ahh. That's why.

They're still being quite efficient even though they're pissed at each other.

[Aeon is cataclysmed] You have a miracle bomb! It can literally reset people!

That is the smart decision. They don't know each other's identities. Also the American heroes don't have the authority to do that!

I dunno I feel like the reset should have gone through to the other area. When villains have changed in the middle of the episode the reset still works. And when there was the copycat Ladybug she used that one's lucky charm to do a reset bomb. So I call bullshit on that. Also I don't think Paris is still destroyed when we come back to it. So...

"If Uncanny Valley hadn't been a robot I would've caused irreparable harm." Except people have literally died, disintegrated into nothing, converted into energy, and brought back with no issues. So no, it's not irreparable harm. And this is so heavy handed!

The emotional flip flopping here is not great.

[hearing Liiri's ability] That's an incredibly busted ability. Her power is literally limit break.

Why are they having this argument right next to the French students? That just seems stupid.

Let's just steal a bike! oh, safety first

"Adrien I love you" Okay that's just cruel to the people who were watching this.

Yep that's actually what I was expecting.

WHY ARE THERE SO MANY GUNS? Oh right America.

I really like Jess and Aeon's characterization.

Okay I like the skateboard.

This should've just been a movie. It would've been better with time to do all the stuff going on.

Okay that's a neat little trick.

Why does this one hour episode have more musical types than the entirety of the game that came out?

[Ladybug hugs Chat] Okay that was a really cute moment.

Oh is he just gonna launch nukes at everything?

Trading cards, really?

Yeah see Paris is repaired already

"At least let me see what's inside the safe!" It's a miracle box. it's gotta be, right?

I like [Eagle's] outfit.

Was she gonna toss a piano at a pigeon? [Haven't you wanted to do that?] Yeah...

To the sun? To the sun.

Throwing things to the sun is also a Superman reference.

Why do you need more Miraculous? You only need two, and they're not going to help you, you don't have anyone to give them to!

Paris was not like that when they were visiting.

Okay. This should've just been a three part special episode. It tried to shove so much in so little timeframe and over half the thing was just pointless grandstanding about the stupid will they won't they. And I bet that while people loved that Adrien I love you moment, he couldn't fucking hear it and that's the only thing we're gonna get 'cause fuck these producers.

If the pacing was the same throughout, it would've been really good, but it came out of nowhere to the point where they turned up the speed of people speaking to fit it in. A lot of things got super rushed through and I really wanted to see more of it but I know I'm never going to because the producer of Zag sucks!

[swashbucklery]

i used to run cross country on the road where they filmed the bus scsene that buffy takes to leave sunnydale, before a chunk of the road fell into the ocean (pretty sure they also used it to film the end scene of DEBS) and I used to think about how Buffy was THERE. but your tags about the use of full of grace and that scene and the vibes — it’s been years since I thought about it but it all came rushing back. just. SO good.

There was something so - like, when that show was airing I was a few years younger than Buffy's canonical age, so in a lot of ways she felt like my cool older sister. I remember being like, I'm sure once I'm sixteen I'll also be mature enough to fight demons etc etc.

And now that I'm a grownup, I can look back at the show and both see its problems and see it's strengths. I can also look back at the extra layers that kid-me could not have picked up on - the way that in hindsight, sixteen is so young and one of the horrors of the show is the way that this girl, who is in many ways a kid and actually keeps saying please let me be a kid, is responsible for the entire world. The ways that translates into a metaphor (unintentional, let's not give Mr. W any credit here) for the ways in which girls are socialized and the ways that high-achieving, "strong," "smart" girls are still squeezed through the mold of misogyny and expected to be so much more than just to be enough.

Season 2 was the year I started watching the show and so it'll always be the season that Hits for me because it was the year I really started to get long-form TV and fall in love with characters in the medium. Buffy was my first fandom and the arc, at the time, of Angel turning and then Buffy having to put aside her heartbreak and fix it was. I don't know if it was actually something that hadn't been done before but in terms of what I could access on TV in my world, it was the pinnacle of the art form. I remember writing quotes from Passions in my teenage diary and being like Wow This Show Is So Deep, I Know How To Appreciate Art Now.

This was also, you have to understand/remember, pre-streaming anything. This was the year I learned how to use the record function on my family's VHS player so that I could watch the episodes without waiting for them to play in reruns. This was pre-Napster. If there was a moving song on a show you had to track down the artist, hope they had a CD out, get a ride to the mall to go to your local HMV and then buy the physical disc. This was also the era when there wasn't necessarily 100% crossover pop-cuture wise; if an American artist was Big it made it to Canadian stores but there were a lot of California indie bands that you just couldn't listen to if you didn't live in the US. Sarah McLachlan is Canadian and "Full of Grace" is the last track on Surfacing, which was an album everyone had at the time because "Building A Mystery" and "Adia" were huge on the radio that year. So it was also like - being able to sit with those feelings because I could actually access that song and listen to it again, you know?

[onewholivesinloops]

thoughts on Jayden possibly ALSO liking Miyao, independently of Meow? A lot of their interactions, even from before Jayden knew about Meow, read a little bit homoerotic to me. He's bi, he's fallen for both siblings, he's a mess

Anon, who gave you permission to drop facts?

I've said this before but it's not even homoerotic subtext. It's literally text, but that's all of Ciconia with the queer themes (love the trend of when they cry getting progressively more queer with each new entry).

I could pull up so many screenshots where they're obviously being anything but straight but I'd have so much trouble choosing between them because there are way too many.

But yeah, Jayden definitely gives the vibes of an oblivious bisexual who thinks he's straight. I get the impression that he genuinely thinks his feelings for Miyao are purely platonic when the things he says all the time clearly say otherwise? I could be wrong and he's actually more self-aware than he lets on. I'm still not sure what to make of that after credits scene of him but it's definitely hinting at something and a deeper involvement with everything.

I'll admit I was a little bit apprehensive about the prospect of them having something romantic going on at first because of the way Jayden immediately started treating Miyao like a girl right after he found out about Meow's existence.

This was tricky and could've easily ended up being messy especially with Miyao being heavily trans coded, but I was pleasantly surprised with how it was handled?

Jayden in general turned out to be way more endearing than I expected. He's a well-meaning neurotypical cisgender guy trying to understand the neurodivergence and gender issues the other characters struggle with. He deeply cares for his friends and he has a genuine desire to educate himself on things that matter for them and improve as a person, and even when he ends up sticking his foot in his mouth, he's not trying to be a douche or offend anyone on purpose, but he's trying his best to learn from the mistakes he's making so it can lead him into a better understanding of the people and the world around him.

It's really funny when he acts like an absolute dumbass then apologizes and asks how he should do better then immediately messes up again though. Makes me feel an exasperation mixed with fondness but definitely more of the latter. The fact that he's American also makes it so much funnier.

I think his presence genuinely makes me really happy too. This is bordering on more personal territory, but as a queer person who had terrible experiences growing up with people in real life not even bothering to try to understand her, I feel like this is an important message to have. It's possible for anyone, even the most privileged, to educate themselves on this type of stuff and accommodate neurodivergent and queer people. They might mess up occasionally but what matters is that they're trying and they'll get it right eventually if they listen to those around them who are trying to help push them in the right direction. Just seeing that play out means a lot.

I know I'm not ready for whatever Ryukishi has in store for the whole Miyao/Meow and Jayden thing in future phases but I know it's probably going to break my heart and I can't wait!

Anyway, it made me happy when he did his best to listen to Miyao and actually respected his boundaries! He may be an idiot, but he's an idiot who supports trans rights!

Top 10 Ciconia moments is Jayden saying trans rights btw:

[coopermorrow]

Hi! Please, could I request a story about Kit Walker from American Horror Story x female reader where they comfort each other through something bad inside the asylum? Thank you.

Of course you can! Sorry it's so short. I also replaced Grace with Y/N in this scene since adding her to it instead would almost ruin the scene in my opinion.

COMFORT - KIT WALKER X READER

Characters: Kit Walker x Fem!Reader

Warnings: none, Lana not liking Kit

Contains: slight cursing

It was yet another day in Briarcliff Manor where things did not go how Y/N had hoped. Everyday she'd hoped that someone would finally realize that she was falsely accused, just like her newfound friend Kit Walker. Y/N had met Kit shortly after he'd arrived himself. She'd been thrown into the common room much like he was on his first day and he was immediately at her side to pick her up. The two had sat on one of the couches in the back and talked with each other until it was time to return to their cells. That was months ago and now I guess you could say they were the best of friends.

One thing the two had in common was that Sister Jude loved to punish them, whether it be for something small like cursing at her or for something bigger such as getting into a scuffle with another patient. They'd never had punishments together, always separate.

Today was different though.

Y/N was with Lana and Kit when they tried their escape. Y/N had planned this escape with Lana but she wasn't going to leave without her best friend. Lana didn't want to accept that. She wouldn't be responsible for letting a maniac out. So she screamed. Kit tried to get her to stop but it was no use. The guards had already heard her.

The next morning the two caught were ushered into Sister Jude's office where she waited with Lana by her side. Y/N's heart was pounding in fear of the punishment she was in store for today. She'd never done anything remotely this bad and her previous punishments were always horrible. How bad would this one be?

Kit seemed to notice his best friend's distress and nudged her with his shoulder. 'It'll be okay,' he mouthed to her. Y/N nodded though she didn't know how much she believed his statement.

The two were brought out of their short and silent conversation by Sister Jude who had 'tsk'ed at the two patients in hospital gowns.

"You two have been in here plenty of times to know what would happen if you tried to escape yet you did it anyway. So I think you should get a little more than usual." She slightly smacked the riding crop against her palm. "I think 50 each should be good. Don't you , Miss Lana Banana?"

Lana looked between Sister Jude and the two bent over the desk, bare bottoms hanging out for all to see. Just as Sister Jude was about to land the first smack of the crop against Y/N's behind, Kit nudged her.

"Get up. Come on, get up." He helped nudge the girl up and off the desk with his shoulder as they were both handcuffed behind their backs. "Y/N doesn't deserve any punishment, Sister Jude. It was my idea, not her's. I'll take her punishment."

Y/N looked at her best friend in shock. Why would he say something like that? It wasn't either of their ideas!

Sister Jude looked between Kit and Y/N as Lana just stood off to the side avoiding any and all eye contact. "Very well. Back into position, Mr. Walker. You know how this goes."

As Kit received the punishment, Y/N couldn't help but look away and flinch at every smack that was heard. A few tears almost escaped her eyes as she heard her best friend in distress. It felt like forever before the punishment was over but when it was everyone in the room seemed to feel relieved. The three patients were led back to the common room where Y/N helped Kit waddle over to their designated couch and Lana split off to sit at a table and smoke a cigarette.

As soon as Kit was sat comfortably on the couch Y/N smacked his arm. "Why would you do that?! You idiot!"

Kit flinched away from his best friend's fists of fury and chuckled. "Better me than you. Besides, it ain't too bad. Plus when we try to escape next time she won't think it was us."

Y/N's eyes widened. "Next time?! Kit, if we get caught again we could very much well die!"

"We're not gonna die, Y/N/N. I'll be there to save ya."

Y/N folded her arms across her chest and grumbled lowly. "I still don't think it was worth it this time. I don't like seeing you hurt, Kit."

Kit lifted his arm up around Y/N's shoulders and brought her in for a side hug. "I already told ya it's alright. I'll be healed up in no time. Having you here helps." Y/N smiled at Kit's words and hugged him back. "I'm always okay when you're here and I hope you feel the same way. I'm always gonna protect you, Y/N/N. Especially if it means me getting hurt over you."

Here it is! I hope you liked it. I'm not too well with writing dialogue and it was kind of hard to come up with a scenario from scratch so I chose one from the show.

[into-the-center-of-things]

Part 2/2 of Day 2:

I refilled my water bottle with the same stupid method. . .

Maybe I'll just buy bottled water next time idk.

Anyways I took a nap until we arrived in Raton NM around 4:30pm, which would be our last stop before we entered Colorado.

This is the stop where the Boy Scout backpackers got off to begin their excursion...and got replaced by a new swarm finishing their own. I think Raton is close-ish to the Grand Canyon? Hence to it being a backpacker stop. Not much else to say here.

***

About an hour later, we arrived in Trinidad CO, where a lot of the Amish got off (and more got on). This is also where I parted with the Amish couple who got on with me at Union Station in Los Angeles—the husband came up to me and wished me safe travels, explaining that their daughter was having seizures due to pregnancy and since she lived in Colorado they were going to get off here (this explained the usage of the flip phone—it was out of necessity as well as worry about their daughter's wellbeing). I wished them best of luck.

From that point, Z approached me again and asked me what my favorite poetic forms were, and I shared with her the villanelle and it launched into a discussion about form and Z reciting the different poems she knew off the top her head. She had some really poignant remarks to make about word stresses being different from Greek to English, and was wondering about the musicality of older languages like Egyptian but I was so out of my expertise I didn't have much to say. I know form on a practical usage level but as a historical artifact of language and translation—there really is a lot an MFA cannot teach you!

***

We had a brief stop in La Junta to stretch our legs. I tried to wave and get the attention of the blue haired girl from yesterday but she didnt seem to notice me. Instead Z and I met with the girl who sat across the row from us, who I shall call A.

When we got back to our seats I asked if A ws hungry and shared a yam with her among some other things. A and I talked through the rest of Colorado and into Kansas—she grew up on the outskirts of in a little town outside of Albuquerque and was visiting her e-boyfriend she met through mutual friends for the very first time in Chicago IL. This conversation made me realize the vast differences in American experiences. She recalls dirt roads, her high school (she went to a classical high school or something, I want to look into this later) mostly being a handful of trailers parked along the highway until they could afford a school building. Her home is a large trailer (she used a specific phrase—destination trailer perhaps?) and she pays rent to her parents and works at a Chinese restaurant for 14 dollars an hour between school semesters with her media classes. She wants to learn more Chinese phrases because of this, since the restaurant she works at is a small family restaurant and she wants to work with the employees better. She has never really been to a large natural body of water and I told her about California beaches. She has never lived in a place with public transit and I told her about LA transit in the most detail I could. She said that 900 was too expensive for a studio and that 3.70 a gallon was too expensive for gas and I shared with her the avergae studio price im LA (1.5-2k) and gas price (4.50-5.20 per gallon). We discussed our love for thrifting and browsing antique stores. We kept pointing out the farmhouses we were passing and wondering about the lives of their inhabitants. I don't know if this is making sense but I am realizing how just two states differentiate in life experience. She really had the small town middle America experience. It's making me feel weirdly emotional. God I love humanity. I love female solidarity.

Anyways quiet hours started early because we jumped to Central time...A and I watched a crazy storm of lightning we spotted across the Kansas plains. I caught a video of it.

**[video to come]**

It's late and we are rolling through Kansas. A eagerly pointed out to me the meager gas prices at Dodge City—a feeble 2.90 a gallon! I want to stay awake until Kansas City but I don't know if I can stay awake throughout the night. I know they are going to sit someone next to me and I hope its someone my age again but I doubt I'll get lucky twice. We'll see.

[missspringthyme]

March 17th, 2024

Today was a fantastic day!

I woke up later than I wanted, but early enough to get the bread finished on time. I hung out in the living room while I went through cycles of letting the dough rest and kneading it, I love making bread and everyone loves focaccia. In the end, I made double the amount I planned on because we had to snag a baking tin from upstairs and the only one they had was huge. No one complained in the end though.

But that's how I spent most of the day, tending my bread, playing games on my tablet, listening to music and occasionally cleaning. Not a bad sunday. Eventually, the rest of the dinner was made (focaccia with rosemary and cherry tomatoes, vegetable quiche, chai spiced cookies, stracciatella ice cream, strawberries, and fresh whipped cream) and we all sat down to eat. Along with everyone in the apartment (minus turkish girl since she has been in Turkey for weeks because of a visa thing) Spanish girl joined us after coming back for a trip today. This is her first real time leaving Spain and she's using it to go to as many places as she can, this time it was Vienna and Prague. She asked me to go ice skating with her in Cologne so we'll have to figure that out eventually as well.

I don't know how to say this without sounding mean, but this is my journal so I'm allowed to be honest. I can tell she had a lot of years where she felt unattractive or undesirable, and now she's some male attention. She's doing the classic thing of pendulum swinging from one end of the self esteem spectrum to the other, which is a fantastic feeling, but it keeps taking me off guard. She does it in a way where she gives herself a huge compliment and then makes you affirm it. I don't know, it's not a bad thing but I just scramble for a second every time she does it.

My sister also called to ask when I would be going to the US this summer and for how long. I ended up giving her advice that she said was "actually helpful" so I'll count that as a win. I also realized that she would be able to store her things at my apartment if she wanted since my lease ends after her semester starts, I'll see if she goes for it though.

We had wine with our meal, and I had essentially a quarter of a cup to taste it. It was pretty nice, especially as I don't really like wine. Spanish girl did tease us for picking screw cap bottles though. We had really good conversations, especially because TCA went on a date in Cologne yesterday that went well. We grilled him for information, and then everyone wanted to see his hinge profile. I did a masterclass job on his profile, especially considering the only thing he could tell me he wanted was cars. First picture is a nice looking, but simple photo of him (that I took). Second is a photo of him where he looks really cool and you can tell he's tall (that I took). Third photo of him it's a candid action shot of him cooking (that I took). Fourth photo is a picture of him, me, and authentic Australian holding up art work we did at a workshop (I did not take this photo). Fifth photo (?) is a video of him ice skating and giving a thumbs up to the camera (which I took). Sixth photo is of him snuggling my blow up crocodile on the couch (which I took). This is supplemented by a voice recording of him telling a story, only one mention of his love of F1, and a 2 truths and a lie. All together, his profile shows that he has friends, hobbies, is tall, does fun things, cooks, is snuggly, and most importantly, is Australian. His profile has been raking in the babes. Spanish girl said his profile made him feel like he was written by a woman and told me I did an incredible job. Maybe I should start a side hustle.

After dinner, we played werewolf and that was the cherry on top. I was the narrator everytime except for 2 rounds which was fine by me. My favorite thing in the world is knowing everything and watching it all go down. German-american repeatedly accused authentic Australian despite him never being the werewolf. At one point she said "I know he's innocent, I just want him dead". Watching everyone's reactions to the different roles was the best thing in the world, and I hope we get to play again with just slightly more people. After we introduced the role of the doctor, games were a little more interesting and lasted just a little bit longer.

All of this, however, meant that by the time I got a chance to call T it was already pretty late. I could tell he was frustrated and it made the call a little tense. I tried to lighten things up, and it worked a bit. I also stayed on the call a lot longer than I really should have just so he could feel like the call was as long as he would want it to be. In the end though it wasn't terrible, and it was nice to see him all snuggled up.

[organic-guacamole]

uh yeah so I wasn't planning on watching the episode until the weekend but my sister woke up super early and started like dancing or swinging from the ceiling fan or something and it woke me up so now I will bring back the guac episode text blocks :')

Hsmtmts: Season 3: Episode 1 Reaction

"And love is an open door. Did I just make that up? It's pretty good."

First new line of the show and I'm smiling like an idiot. So turns out I'm not actually over this show🥸

DAD JOKES ARE LIFE. I will be taking notes as EJ continues to speak.

big red's got work? all the time? why? can't he take two weeks off to enjoy the summer with friends? he's like 16? huh??

and Sebbie's gotta milk so this is how we explain their absence 🧍🏽‍♀️

oh so Ricky is with Lily after all? icky licky.

Carlos switching his glasses for sunglasses made me laugh a bit too much. maybe I should pull my sister down from the ceiling and go back to sleep...

wait wait wait

I'm not American and I haven't paid much attention to the details yet but like, Utah and California are close, but close enough that these kids' parents let them drive by themselves across states? ISNT CARLOS LIKE CANONICALLY 16? is this normal? I'm sorry

EJ being the son of Cash Caswell 4 and a half minutes into the season. why do rich people need more than 1 home? also yes Gina. she knew about the 2nd home so I'm assuming she's at least seen it (unless EJ just casually mentions his other houses but to me he seems like the kinda guy to forget he has more houses than the average person and just never talk about it) so yeah slay girlie pop marry rich! life is about the material things! go queen!

"you come to camp shallow lake and you leave and someone else" oh no. foreshadowing.

yeah I miss seb too.

the whole phone confiscation thing is awful to me. not because I'm addicted or anything, just that, that's my property and they're storing it in a bucket with other people's nasty phones in a dark room somewhere and idk what's happening to it? no thanks I'll leave it home.

oh I completely forgot the intro song thing *insert harsh whistle*

RICHIE EWE WEQEQ WS

this is funny though. don't mind my disgusted expression as I watch this scene, I'm rather enjoying seeing Ricky turn into a text to speech reader.

the more Lily talks the more I fear for Ricky's life.

Caribbean cruise? uhhh I live in the Caribbean 😥😥😥 imagine just chilling and you see miss Jenn running around buying souvenirs.

also. MR BOWEN? GIRL BENJAMIN MAZZARA IS RIGHT THERE. HE CONFESSED TO YOU AT THE END OF LAST SEASON. THIS WOMAN-

so it's confirmed that this is the same camp that Nini and EJ met at😃

I love Ashlyn. no context needed.

Why is she still with Howie again?

the non-wildcats in the corner. Are they credited as non-wildcats on IMDb?

as Ms Jenn is talking about sparks, remember when she and Mr Mazzara started a fire at the school and just...ran away? why don't we talk about this?

I wrote an alternate 2x12 fanfic where Ricky knows about the harness already so I genuinely thought they all knew already... anyways, yay Tim for bringing back this plotpoint!

Carlos being horrified by these random dudes throwing things is exactly what I expected from this season. that and Ricky coming to his senses but we can't always get what we want.

Jet is hot but we knew this already. anyways gimme the enemies to lovers with Ricky please, with a bunch of angst with happy ending, all that jazz. gimme the flavour🤌🏽🤌🏽

the way lily's body language is... reminds me of an episode of 911 where this girl murdered her boyfriend on valentine's day because he wanted to leave the date... she literally looked so much like how Lily looks rn... RUN RICHARD

isn't she like 14? like canon... I have a lot of questions for her parents mainly.

so he really just has big red's car this whole time? he's having his mv moment so I'll overlook it. we all need our main character moment at some point. but actually. it's a literal music video in the middle of the episode.

wait have we seen Kourtney and Carlos interactions yet? please someone tell me if we have or have not because this is my favourite. also let's discuss Kourtney's rainbow belt 😁

what kind of life changing 2 week camp is this? why are they all acting like all new people will be brainwashed and their lives will flip upside down by the time it's over

emo boy Jet meets emo boy Ricky they un-emotify together or something idk

"if you fall in no one will hear your screams" "don't go too far into the woods or you'll be gone for good" still not convinced this isn't a murder mystery season.

...

you telling me

Disney plus exists

in the universe of a show

on Disney plus

...

anyways so is this how EJ becomes director-

damn so he's really second choice for this too👩🏽‍🦯

RICKy? how does this even happen? don't they have to pay for this camp? how did he get so far in and portwell are the first people he sees? I'm so confused 😭

[17caratssi]

Wonwoo! Will you stay

Jeon Wonwoo! A short series pt one | two | three | four Being rejected for the first time doesn't put you off. In fact, your interest in him grows bigger.

You don't remember what happens after you blurt that offering out to Wonwoo. But for sure, Wonwoo rejects you on the spot.

"If you think I was joking, nope. I was serious and it's probably the most serious question I've ever asked in my life,"

"Yeah, sure. The answer is still no. Let me tell you something,"

Your eyes sparkle with hope. Is he going to say that he's not ready yet, and if I work harder, maybe he'll reconsider?

Wonwoo thought he would never have to tell anyone this, but this may be the best.

"I give no shit about anything and being here in this school just makes me sick. I want to quickly graduate so that I can die in peace,"

"And also, I have no plan to be nice to girls who approach me." he finishes what he wanted to say. It sounds cruel, and even some of it isn't what he intended to say, but he just wants to put an end to her.

If she's smart, she would be clear of it.

But you don't care the things Wonwoo spouts. You like him, and your eyes are on him.

"Okay then! I'll try my hardest to charm you," you squeeze your hand in determination. You don't waver from his intense stare and add, "You know, this is my first time confessing to a guy and this is also my first time getting rejected but I'm pretty sure I can make you my boyfriend. I can wait, yes. Even it takes me 10 years, as long as I like you, I will pursue!"

Wonwoo shrugs and turns away. He's not certain of you, and your word kind of stir him a little. In 18 years of life, you are the first person to talk to him in this way and disregard whatever he said.

Since young, Wonwoo limits himself to talking. He pays a lot of attention to his words to avoid unnecessary emotions. However, today, he finally meets his contender.

"My warning remains valid,"

"Alright!"

After school, Wonwoo packs his bag and leaves the class immediately.

Wonwoo has to do part-time for his family. Initially, he wanted to turn down the scholarship, but his mother secretly accepted the offer. All she wants for Wonwoo to continue school and not bury his youth with responsibilities.

With the other five siblings, he couldn't possibly let his old mother do all the work. Therefore, he applies for the empty cashier position nearby his rented house just three kilometres from the school. His part-time job requires him to arrive fast, and since he hasn't gotten his bicycle, Wonwoo has to run to the convenience store.

You followed him from behind, but he is sure fast! You panted all the way to the elevator as you watch him uses the stairs and speeds away.

"Y/N!" Yuran, your childhood best friend, calls your name.

Yuran is the one that introduces you to this school when she was informed that you will return to Korea. She is a year older, and she treats you like a sister since you are the only child. You always love to be around here, and now that you two are in the same school, you will have a friend to rely on.

You wave at her as she jogs toward you.

"How's the first day?"

You contemplate. You are not familiar with Korea, and it seems the people here are so different to Americans. You scratch your head.

"So far, good." You opt for a lie and only remember about Wonwoo. "Oh! My seatmate is handsome," you brag.

"That's all you can think of?" She nudges your arm lightly.

Frankly, 80% of the time, you just admire him.

You realize that his side profile is wonderfully sculpted; the sharp jawline and the distance between his forehead and eyebrows are just right.

You are going to appreciate this beautiful human being while you are alive.

"Yuran-eonnie, come to my house this Saturday," you link your arm around Yuran's, and in an excited voice, you add, "My family is hosting a house-warming party. It's not grand so we invite only close friends. Therefore, you must come!"

Yuran giggles and pat your arm.

"Of course I would come! I miss your mom a lot. Will she cook?"

"HAHA! My dad won't let her cook anymore so we might as well order for the food,"

"Ugh, your dad is still so overprotective. Their love never dies, huh?"

You sigh at the thought of your parents' affection. It's admirable but tiring for me. It's like they feed me dog food every day!"

The two of you burst out laughing. The chat goes on until you come to the gate. Yuran left first, and you wait for your dad to pick you up.

"How's school?"

You beam at your dad and answer truthfully. "Great! I might get a boyfriend soon, though- Why are you laughing?" you whine.

"Nothing, I just hope to meet my son-in-law. I can't wait to lecture him,"

"Dad!!?"

"What? I must tell him that my daughter is the most precious human being and he is obligated to love you for the rest of his life if he wants to marry you!"

"Like how you love mom?"

"Yeah, of course. He better be overflowing with love for you or else,"

You smile. Your dad is always overreacting when it comes to this topic. He has very high expectations of the boys you mention to him, and it scares you since Wonwoo doesn't reciprocate your feeling just yet.

As the car passes the buildings, you recognize Wonwoo, who's running to his destination. You grin and pull your dad's hand.

"Dad, please stop the car!"

The tires screech to halt, and in a blink, you already come out of the car and reach Wonwoo. He pants and is in confusion as to how you manage to chase him. Then, he realizes.

"What do you want?"

You scan him and wipe the beads of perspiration on his face. You flash a happy smile before saying.

"Where's your driver?"

Wonwoo, for a second, almost couldn't identify the person. He is baffled. "W-what?"

"Oh! Jump in, I'll send you home,"

Wonwoo is taken aback. What do you mean by 'Where's your car?' but before he gets to ask you, he's being pulled by force. Plunge into the backseat, Wonwoo's awareness heightens in the presence of someone in the driver seat.

"Where are you going? My dad can drive you there,"

In fact, you're the only person in the car that's jubilant. Your dad is sceptical to Wonwoo, and the same goes for the latter.

"I can walk,"

You quickly stop him from opening the door. "Dad, we can send him to his place, right?"

Your dad looks at the rear-view mirror and hesitates. He eventually gives in and replies.

"Yes, dear," his sight swifts to Wonwoo. "Boy, tell me where you're going?"

Wonwoo grunts lowly and tells the two the direction. Since he isn't going back home and doesn't want anyone to know he's working part-time, he lies.

You keep talking to Wonwoo despite getting no answer. He closes his eyes and clears his mind.

Once arrive, you follow him out.

"I'll excuse you this time because your father is watching. I won't tolerate your behaviour next time!"

The atmosphere at that moment is calm and clear. Though cars are passing by, they make no sound. Hence, you can definitely understand what he meant.

"Don't go running about in the noon, you'll get sick! See you tomorrow at school!"

As a girl, you totally get the meaning of Wonwoo's words. He cuts through your heart with his harsh warning, and you endure it.

Maybe this is my karma since I always leave the people around me. These few foul words from the person I like aren't that bad. I'm willing to be on the receiving end.

You enter the car with your lips stretch to your ears. To avoid getting questioned by your father of Wonwoo's identity, you avert the attention.

"Dad, thank you for taking me in,"

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

I've created a schedule for this series- every Wednesday and Saturday, but it also depends on the chapter availability. Since I'm on my semester break, I have more time to write it unless I have writer's block. I accept requests for drabbles, one shot and anything you want me to write ;)

If you like this story, you might as well check out the others here !

[mrs-cavill-wife]

Safe And Happy (One Shot)

Pairing: Henry Cavill x Female Reader (Barbara)

Warning: Language. Fluff. Minor Injury. Zombie Apocalypse. Gun shot. Persecution. Please, say if I miss something.

Author's Note: My second fanfic, YAY! Henry is not a celebrity in this fanfic. Duh! It's a zombie apocalypse so it's kinda obvious but I wanted to say it anyway. Hope you guys enjoy it and reblog if you do. I'm all ears to feedback!

Tag List: @lexyvaldez26 @thereisa8ella @natura1phenomenon @mrsavery @number1chonie @themanfromu @littlefreya @legendarywizarddetective @lovingbearherringhairdo @zealoushound @deangal-101 @everydaymultifandom @summersong69 @jgtfvhsg @tellingyouastory @sillyrabbit81 @nuggsmum @pussyverson @oh-for-fic-sake @foodieforthoughts @fanficlover91 @r-t-doll @its--fandom--darling @poledancingdinos @hlkwrites @rmtndew

Summary: The world is a dangerous place now, but in the arms of the man she loves, she always finds security.

Barbara's P.O.V

Shit. I miss when the world used to be good. It was never perfect but no doubt it were way better than now.

An zombie apocalypse, who could have imagined that this could actually happen? Who knew that one day I would be armed, with a "beautiful" wound on my leg, hiding in an abandoned store, running away from a horde of about fifty zombies, crazy and thirsty for some human flesh.

I got hurt entering here, there was a piece of wood that grazed my leg, but luckily I had some bandage on the bag, I tied it to my leg to stop the blood. I looked at my leg and sighed, frustrated with myself.

"What the fuck dressing did you do, huh? My man is going to be pissed"

I live with my boyfriend, well husband, wasn't exactly official but we are together, he's amazing with dressings, but of course, I never pay attention when he tried to explain it to me. I'm hiding, trying to calm my breathing and think of a new plan, I don't know if I'll be able to run with my leg like that, but I think partially, it's really my fault. I'm often on those situations, I have my skills but I might not be the best, I still remember when I meet my boyfriend, on this type of shit cliche situation, today I don't complain for being dumb back there..

We met a year ago, I was running away.. again. I remember going into a dead end street, my gun had only two bullets left, I managed to kill some of those brain eaters, but I had about ten still behind me. I was already out of breath and couldn't think of anything else.

It was all very fast, suddenly my hero appeared, super skilled, I can't say where he came from but he managed to cut the heads of some of them, cut one in half, he stopped in front of me and fired with a super powerful machine gun, spilling a little blood and a disgusting substance on both of us.

"Hey are you alright, princess?"

He spoke to me after all those butchers fell dead. I was in shock but in seconds, I regained consciousness and was able to notice the man in front of me.

Broad back, fair skin, incredibly neat curly hair, a sharp jawline that could cut my soul, kissable lips.. a beautiful ax, a weapons in the waistband and at least two powerful shotguns in the back. The sun was setting and the light reflected in his eyes. The brightest blue eyes I had ever seen. There was a small brown part in one of them, I had heard about cases of heterochromia, but it was the first time that I saw it right in front of me.

"Your eyes are so beautiful.."

He laughed softly and a little shy. The sweetest laugh I've heard. Oh God, he's so wonderful, I think I died and went to heaven and that angel came to receive me. Maybe I'm not too unlucky after all.. wait, what did I just said? Oh fuck, what a good way of cause a first impression. First you almost die then act like a dumb ass needy teen. I rolled my eyes realizing what I done and he touched my arm.

"Thank you, you're beautiful too.. but are you hurt? What are you doing all by yourself?"

I nodded looking down and blushing red like a tomato.

"Huh I'm fine. I was searching for a place to stay. I heard on radio there was a small group of survivors around here. I'm always alone, so I decided to look for it but I obviously didn't payed attention on the munition I had before risking my butt."

He giggled and soft touched my cheek, wiping away some of the dirty. Gosh, I'm not going to handle and he's not making it easy..

"So it's your lucky day, pretty girl. I am from that group of survivors. They always told me to go round and look for possible new survivors."

I looked at him frowning.

"Now it's my time to ask. All by yourself? Why?"

And he smirked, looking like a made a silly question. Your hot bastard.

"I'm a prepared person. Not bragging but I always check my munition"

Touchee. I crossed my arms looking at him, trying to keep my posture but I was really melting inside.

We heard a loud noise, making us concerned. He grabbed my hand and started walking.

"It doesn't seem far, we must walk. Let's go"

"Where are you taking me? I.. I don't even know your name?"

I stopped moving and he stopped looking a little mad then he sighed.

"I will take you to our shelter. I saved you, you can trust me. We both need a bath and some rest.. and I'm Henry."

He said smiling and I nodded starting to walk by his side.

That day, he took me to the survivors. There were at least four people, some couples and children, all of whom welcomed me very well. But despite that, I thought about leaving the next day, I was always alone and until then, it was how I wanted to be and I would be like this today, if Henry hadn't insisted that I stay. I said I would stay for some days but during that, he convinced me to stay for more weeks and when I realized, we were closer than ever. Actually, those days made me found love. One of the guys of the shelter was a priest before the world was destroyed, Henry and I decided to get married and so it happened. Simple but a beautiful ceremony.

After a few years, we both decided to leave, maybe it was not a smart idea in the current situation, but we were certain of it, so we did. It was difficult, at first from hiding to hiding, sleeping on uncomfortable places, sometimes without enough food for both, we almost died a few times but together, yes, we were unbeatable. But finally, we got a place, safe enough to call home.

Henry's P.O.V

One hour left. I trust her, she's a little clumsy but my girl knows what to do, I taught her some tricks when we met but still, my heart is desperate. Today I received a radio message, it was Stuart, a partner, we have known each other since I was part of a group of survivors, he provided us with food, ammunition and weapons from time to time, even now that I am no longer part of the group, he's a great friend. I always went to get it, alone, I didn't want to risk seeing my Barbara hurt. But today, Stuart said he couldn't come, because of some injuries, so I would have to go, but Barbara decided that her chance to do it this time.

"Barbara.. baby, you don't have to.."

I remember I said trying don't sound like I was doubting her capacities.

"Well on my mind, I do need. You always do that, I feel useless, I'm no princess in danger, i can do that"

I got closer touching her back while she packed her bag with "travel" supplies. She looked at me, touched my face and smiled. I love this smile.

"I'll be alright, I know that area is dangerous but you know I know the way and I had a good survivor teacher"

She said and wrapped her arms around my neck and I hugged her feeling defeated. She never had to say much to convince me of anything. I know she was feeling bad about me doing the hard work and I think she deserves a chance. I need to show I really trust her.

"I will be counting the seconds.."

I sighed and she smiled widely packing my lips many times. She grabbed her bag, her gun and went through the door but before leaving she looked at me one last time.

"I love you"

We both said at same time, making our hearts beat at same rhythm.

She gonna be alright, I know.. at least I hope.

Barbara's P.O.V

I heard a small noise that made me wake up. I dozed off for a while when I expected the horde to calm down and preferably leave. I got up and checked outside by one of the windows. Empty. Thank God. My leg didn't hurt so much anymore, but the fact that the street was clean was a relief to m. I wouldn't have to run, just be careful.

I opened my bag and ate a chocolate bar. Stuart wasn't lying when he said that had good things this time, I got things I hadn't ete in years. I left the store quickly after eating and started walking my way back home.

I was almost closer, I smiled seeing my home. Finally, safe house. when I got on the home's street, had three zombies, between me and my house. Great.

I tried to carefully pass behind them, I was almost there, but again, I didn't pay enough attention, I tripped over something and fell to the floor, over my injured leg, I couldn't contain the scream. They heard and were already walking towards me. F U C K M E.

I looked at my house. It's not so far, I can do it. I ran, fast as I could, my leg was hurting a lot, the bandage already red with my blood but I did it. I could climb the special secret passage through the wall and done. I layed in the grass for a second trying to recover my breath, closing my eyes, finally feeling safe then something fell on top of me. I got scared until I could open my eyes. A beast. A fluffy beast.

"Hey Kal, you scared me baby"

I hugged the big black and white American Akita. It's mine and Henry's dog, our loyal companion, our dog son. We found him on our away to find a new safe place, he were a little injured on the front paws. Of course we felt in love with him and took care of him, we had to keep him and we did.

I petted him a little more before getting up.

"Alright, mommy needs a good break now. Promise to play later. Where's daddy? He had a heart attack?"

Oh he will when see my situation. I walked to inside our house and pulled the food supplies on the kitchen. I was focused until I hear the shower on bathroom upstairs. I smiled.

"What a good way of relax, huh?"

I walked upstairs, taking off my clothes though the way. When I opened the bathrooms door, I was fully naked. Oh that vision. My man, all naked.. that furry defined abs, those strong muscles.. that round booty.. and that big veiny dick, shit, even soft he's huge.. I'm so freaking lucky.

I licked my lips and tried to close the door softly but i ended up making noises.

"Thought I had told you need to be stealthy"

When I turned around, he was looking at me, with those gorgeous eyes that left me speachless since first time. Then he's face changed to worried and I realized he were looking at my wounded leg.

"Barbara, what the fuck just happened?"

I rolled my eyes then got into the shower with him. Before he could say something, I kissed him softly. He kissed me back of some type of way that I could feel how worried he were. Was a intense kiss, our tongues battling against each other, oxygen wasn't this necessary for us at this point. He quickly grabbed me tight and gave me a little boost then I had my legs wrapped around his waist. We ended our kisses with soft pecks and smiles. I looked at him. He had one hand around my back and another softly rubbing closer my wound.

"Hey are you alright, princess?"

I smiled way more with his soft voice and nodded.

"Yes, now I'm safe and happy"