#also the terrible version of Another Place doesn't have the line either

[micechicken]

Eyes by Bastille

This is every use of the word "Eye" and variations in Bastille songs (and covers + Dan's solo work). I may be missing something but I tried my best.

It uses variations of the songs too, but not ALL of them cause that's just much lol. Ironically the song with a music video with a lot of eyes (Blame) doesn't have the word, but I used the picture of eyes from it lol. Naturally the easiest one to compile was Weight of Living Pt. I and the hardest was Starry Eyed with 12 😭

Here they are in order of apperence:

Poet 4x Family Ties 4x Haunt 1x Haunt (Dan's version) 1x Weight of Living Pt. I 8x The Draw 2x What Would you Do? 1x Skulls 1x Run for Trouble 1x Eight Hours 2x Pompeii 6x Irreverence 1x Starry Eyed 12x Bite Down 1x Thelma and Louise 4x Back to the Future 2x Give me the Future 1x Those Nights 2x Joy 1x Laura Palmer 1x Good Lesson 1x Basement 2x Drop it like it's Royal Mashup 1x Fake It 2x Good Grief 1x I don't want to miss a thing / It's the End of the world as we know it 3x Send Them Off! 1x Thinkin Ahead 1x Two Evils 1x Warmth 1x Would I Lie to You? 7x Falling 1x Forever Ever 1x Pompeii MMXXIII 6x Free 1x Love Don't Live Here 1x Requiem for Blue Jeans 1x Sweet Pompeii 3x Killing Me Softly with His Song 1x Beating Heart (Laura Palmer Demo) 1x Laura Palmer Simlish Version (Sims 3 Supernatural) 1x

[leikeliscomet]

We Failed the First Black Doctor (Part 2)

After the high of Fugitive of the Judoon ended, the fandom waited for her next appearance. In The Timeless Children, Fugitive appears to help Thirteen. The version we see is of her however actually isn’t her in the flesh, it’s a projection in the Matrix or a hallucination in Thirteen’s mind. Either way, she gives our main character her ‘you can do it’ speech before Thirteen makes her great escape. And that's it. The big showdown was between Thirteen, Dhawan!Master and surprisingly Ko Sharmus who’d give his life to save our main cast making him MVP of the episode. Having Fugitive save the day could’ve given her character a greater role but killing off our First Black Doctor without any explanation of who she was yet definitely would’ve been a terrible idea, so maybe saving her for the Matrix would've been okay. But her backstory was still in a vague place. Whilst the Brendan flashbacks gave us this context and pulled us into the mystery further, wouldn't it have made sense to show us Fugitive in those scenes? We knew she was the Doctor so we could’ve easily put two and two together. Even the Timeless Child reveal itself came across as disappointing to most of the fandom. Technical things aside, making Fugitive the Timeless Child also could've been a way to fully flesh her out and give her more to do in the finale. Running away from Division after they’d kidnapped and experimented on her, taking the form of the Doctor to blend in and help others also exploited like her and being highly skilled in combat for her own protection could've made for some great storytelling and yet…. nothing. Normally in RTD stories the mid-season informs the finale. Dalek showed us a dalek and in the finale… we got Daleks. The Cybermen from Pete’s World returned for Army of Ghosts/Doomsday. The Family of Blood/Human Nature fob returned for Utopia and gave us a three-part finale. The missing planets throughout series 4 would lead us to another major Dalek return in The Stolen earth/Journey’s End. So to copy RTD Who’s format to introduce Fugitive, but not follow through in the finale was very strange and disappointing. With that in mind, I waited for her hopeful return in series 13.

The next time we saw The Fugitive was in Once, Upon Time. The new fam have found themselves trapped in their own timestreams and Thirteen gets a flashback of her past. In there, she sees her reflection and that reflection belongs to the Fugitive. The entire sequence is essentially a Fugitive-era episode. Swarm and Azure were her villains. Karvanista represented by Dan, Lee likely represented by Vinder and likely Gat represented by Yaz were her TARDIS team. Fugitive has a more militaristic approach due to her control by Division but also delivers a decent speech before capturing the Ravagers. She has a calm and controlled presence same as before giving her an interesting dynamic with them. Chaos defeated by order. Once, Upon Time gives us a glimpse of what a Fugitive Doctor episode is or at least could be… and still couldn't commit to it. Thirteen and Fugitive constantly flick back and forth between each other and impressive VFX aside, this was completely unnecessary. We know Fugitive and Thirteen are the same person and that they're both the doctor and yet the episode doesn’t trust the audience enough to let us see the scene carry on without her. The filming of Flux was affected by the pandemic and this is given as the main reason for the flickering but it’s a poor excuse that doesn't hold up. If Jo Martin filmed a fully completed socially distanced take of the Doctor’s lines why did we need Whittaker’s layered over it? Just show us the Martin cut! Again, once Fugitive’s purpose of helping Thirteen was fulfilled, she was gone and the fam moved on. The main Flux storyline continued without her presence. Similarly to Timeless Children, we were teased with a Fugitive appearance that still sidelined her to a cameo role.

In her final appearance, the Fugitive comes back for Power of the Doctor. She’s a hologram… again. Her main role is to save Thirteen… again. She tricks the Cybermen into shooting each other and helps Yaz, giving her one last iconic moment but again, she exists to serve Thirteen's narrative and not her own. A smaller but still interesting part of the scene was her remark about the Master being a ‘rubbish schoolboy’, breadcrumbing us about Fugitive's backstory and her relationships with other characters but this is another question that remains unanswered. Some fans hoped this left a door open for an RTD2 appearance but as Fugitive is a Chibnall character, RTD has no obligation to bring her back so yet again, her fate is still in limbo. There’s some hope as RTD has shown interest in the storyline and has picked it up in a way for the new era but until Jo Martin is on screen again nothing has been confirmed as of yet. The Fugitive Doctor will return instead in a Big Finish audio announced in April 2022. The audio isn’t coming out until 2025.

--

Every doctor, especially in nuwho, goes on a journey; an arc designed and crafted for them which ends with their character changed by the time we reach their regeneration. War accepted the consequences of his actions but realised he didn’t have to fight alone. Despite having a single appearance, Day of the Doctor gave his character a purpose, a conflict and resolution perfectly wrapping his incarnation up within 1 hour. The future was something to embrace, not fear. Nine was the oncoming storm, haunted by the destruction of Gallifrey who eventually opened up to companionship again and finally forgave himself. Ten was the self-destructive hero, whose brilliance and intellect would fuel his ego to great heights eventually causing his downfall. Eleven was the imaginary best friend, an old soul in a young body, with darker tendencies who brought a sadness to the character. Twelve was the lecturer, having very philosophical and internal struggles eventually giving his life not out of grand gesture but simply out of kindness. Thirteen, regardless of what you thought of her writing, had her own narrative journey. The lonely woman who fell to earth not knowing her origin but letting it go because she gained a found family instead. But for the Fugitive, who cares? Why should Chibnall bother to give a Black woman’s incarnation a purpose? Wants and needs? Conflicts? A drive? Motivation? Why even bother giving her a placement in the main lineup? Why bother giving your Black characters depth when it's just easier for fans to just say ‘No way there’s racism here, look a Black doctor!’ with no regard, care of concern for how she was treated? Even when you look at how Black characters are written and perceived, it's clear fandoms aren’t willing or ready to take on board nuanced representations of Black characters. Both Thirteen and the fandom were shocked by Fugitive’s gun use, some claiming it reinforced stereotypes of the angry, violent Black woman but actually she subverts it. The Fugitive’s gun was a red herring to trick the Judoon and Gat. She wasn’t going to use it, she just needed them to think she would. This was no different to Eleven threatening to blow up the Dalek’s ship with a jammy dodger. The violence Fugitive used was in self-defence, not out of malice. Her telling Thirteen to shut up was because she threatened the plan by revealing they were both doctors, not just because she was angry for no reason. It’s ironic and also worrying that after portrayal, after portrayal, after portrayal of morally grey nuwho doctors each using violence as the last resort, each angry at rightful injustices, each holding a darkness within, that the incarnation that didn’t claim any lives is the most violent because they exist in a dark skin Black woman’s body. The ‘lack’ in the representation of marginalised people is an issue that's prominent in Chibnall Who. The Fugitive Doctor is a Black woman. The gender-blind approach to Thirteen’s writing already raised a few concerns but for the experiences of Black women specifically, our Blackness isn’t something that can be ignored or represented ‘subtly’. From the long history and list of tropes used to represent us, from the outrage and anger in fandoms towards Black characters and castings, this lived experience has to be acknowledged. Even in the Doctor Who fandom, Martha Jones was the first Black woman to be a companion and she was hated. RTD and co. acknowledging Martha’s Blackness could've helped protect Freema Agyeman from the rampant racism in the fandom. So why would casting a Black woman as the lead this time, specifically a dark skin woman, be approached any differently? In a diverse and ‘progressive’ show why is race ignored? 

When Jodie Whittaker was announced as the first female Doctor she got tribute videos from young girls that congratulated her, went on Children in Need, spoke about representation in interviews and went on the runway. When Michelle Gomez was cast as the first female master, the uniqueness of casting a woman as the Master for the first time was spoken about on Doctor Who’s YouTube channel. When Jo Martin was cast as the first Black woman to play the doctor, the BBC did nothing. The Black cosplayers shouted out were done by Jo Martin alone on her Instagram. The events where those cosplay group photos took place were organised by Black fans and other fans of colour just like they had always been (shoutouts to Black TARDIS and Team #TARBIS at Gally1). This issue goes beyond Chibnall and is about representation in TV/Film itself. If creative teams can’t be bothered to support Black characters, creators or our stories then I won’t accept the breadcrumbs. I’m becoming less impressed with simply having a Black companion or doctor there but how. If they want credit for representing Black characters then simply, they need to do the damn work. I am tired of the Doctor Who fandom giving Chris Chibnall, Steven Moffat and Russell T Davies credit for Black representation they didn’t create and for work they haven't done. Give me a Black character in Who whose arc doesn’t revolve around a white one, who doesn’t go through extreme trauma with no catharsis and isn’t just ‘there’ and then I’ll give full credit where it's due. Only then will I start handing out gold stars for lanes of Black representation being paved. Only then will I start singing praises of anti-racism and allyship. Until then, I’m no longer accepting breadcrumbs as a full meal.

<- Part 1

Part 3 ->

[deep-hearts-core]

2005 - semifinal

originally posted 7/21/20

Austria It's cute at best. I like the girl singer's voice here, and I love the traditional Alpine folk music that's being used as a base for this. Not a particularly strong number though. Seemed like maybe the singers were off-beat during the chorus? Or maybe the instrumental was just poorly assembled. Either is possible. Lithuania Little By Little doesn't suck. The styling here is fucking awful - Laura's outfit, hair, and makeup made it difficult for me to watch her. Her voice is also not a favorite of mine; while she doesn't have a bad voice, she was on key and all that, it just felt like rough going, like she wasn't particularly well trained. The song itself is actually pretty good though. Portugal That fucking sucked. People voted for this? I'm sorry, I just can't believe that. The vocals here were TERRIBLE, bad enough that I can't even comment on the quality of the song because I cannot for the life of me parse out a vocal line. I don't know if they were having problems with their mics or what, but every other word they sang was missing. The staging was equally terrible. It was hella unsynchronized and just made the stage look crowded.

Moldova  I can't tell if this song is supposed to be, like, absurdist or something. Moldova is always weird and so of course their debut is one of the weirdest of them all... the melody is catchy but aspects of the staging confuse me (what is the lead singer wearing? Is that traditional Moldovan dress or... something else? And why is the grandmother figure in a literal rocking chair for much of the song?) and there are a couple of racist lines in the lyrics, so, well. It's one of those things that's alright to listen to, as long as you don't listen too hard. Latvia This is one of the only songs I knew from this year going in - I really enjoy the studio version of this. I found myself kind of underwhelmed by the live, though. It's a very soft, chill song and I like the straightforward way they staged this, but the vocals here weren't awesome. The guy on the lower harmony was a little flat sometimes and there were instances where the harmonies were weird or one of them was significantly louder than the other. Monaco It's very nice! Classic Eurovision here. Lise has a nice voice and, although that dress was rather loud, for the most part she had pretty good styling too. I don't understand how this placed so low? I mean, I know this style of the song is jury bait in the era of no juries, but second-to-last is just upsetting. Israel Not that different from Monaco's entry in some senses... even with the loud dress! While this is a nice enough song, I feel like the background singers were definitely carrying Shiri through much of it, especially in the choruses. In the first verse she keeps falling a little short of the notes.

Belarus I like the costume concept that's going on here. The song is okay, it's very generic and for-the-time. My main problem is Angelica's vocals. They just. They don't sound right. There's a few notes she doesn't hit and a few places where her timbre just goes really brassy in a way that I don't like. Netherlands A solid, standard ballad! Glennis has a strong voice for most of this, the staging is simple - maybe a bit overly so, but not too badly - and the song is pretty good too. Like with Monaco, this one is very much styled for older Eurovision, which means that it didn't do well in 2005, which didn't quite have the nostalgia for moving ballads that the contest does today. Iceland I love All Out Of Luck, but I do not love this. Selma herself is an awesome performer with a good voice, but the song is all over the place - the chorus and the first verse, for example, feel very different, and the transition is slippery. I also can't quite comprehend what exactly it is that Selma's wearing but it does not look good on her, and I don't think it could look good on anyone.

Belgium Another one harkening back to the olden days of Eurovision. Nuno has a strong voice and the song has a really nice build to it - unfortunately, there's absolutely nothing happening in the staging, which sends the song way down in my opinion. Simple staging is okay sometimes but this? This was just lazy. Estonia Mostly, this song suffers for how young it is. Vocals are eh, song is trying too hard to be hype, but that could have been overcome with the right group and the right staging. Here, though, with the chunky bead strings and the bedazzled tee shirts, these girls look like the teenagers they are. I can't find a birth year source on most of the girls, but Laura for example would have been sixteen or seventeen for this performance, and it REALLY shows. Norway [heavy sigh] ah yes, it's glam rock again. This song is oddly familiar? Like it definitely sounds like something I would have heard on the radio growing up, which is a little disconcerting because I definitely did not listen to this song as a child. Like it came out in the right time frame, but I'm American, so like. Anyways. The song itself is... not bad? But I do take issue with the styling, maybe even more issue than I did with Sweden 2007. And lastly, can I just say. That band name? Not the vibes. Romania The first verse of this is very good, but once the chorus kicks in it becomes actually very generic. In the musical sense, that is. Luminita has a good voice and she seems to be a good performer, too, but in all honesty I can't focus on it. Her styling here was TERRIBLE and the set design was just as bad. The barrels being yellow just made me think of toxic waste or something.

Hungary Whoa, this one is pretty good! I like the rhythmic element to this song and also the folk dancing. Styling here is nice too. My only issue is with the singer's voice? It's not bad but it's awfully forward and nasal. Finland It's alright. I kind of vibe with it, actually. It's very dated but Geir has a nice voice and it's just... it's very chill. North Macedonia This feels more dated than the rest of them, somehow. Maybe it's the styling. Either way, the song is actually pretty enjoyable. The "la la lejla" hook is catchy and I also really love the bridge. Andorra An overall poor showing. It's not, like, terrible but the only impression it leaves is "oh wow, they are... wearing leaves, it looks like". Good vocals I guess.

Switzerland I am not super enthusiastic about this one. It is, solidly, Alright. I like the lead singer and the way this was set up, but I'm not sold on the song itself. The transition between verse and chorus is weird. Croatia I'm kind of bored by this one? I think part of it is that we've just reached That Point in the semifinal because of how many songs there are, but also, like. There's nothing super stunning about this, full stop. It's not even bad it's just unimpressive. Bulgaria I don't like jazz and this is no exception. We're gonna leave it at that. Ireland This is kind of fun, actually. I like the Irish dancing at the bridge and the chorus is pretty catchy. I don't know why these two were billed as "Donna and Joe" when it was really just Donna carrying the song... not that I mind that, I like her voice and presence. Joe, however, seemed incredibly awkward onstage, so that's one of my main complaints with this performance.

Slovenia The song itself is miles better than his 2017 entry. Stop is actually interesting. Things happen. There is rock guitar. In terms of presentation, actually, it's worse. In my 2017 ranking, I mentioned feeling conflicted because the staging was REALLY GOOD but the song sucked and Omar is a terrible person? Yeah, not so here. Omar looks like he has no idea what he's doing. He isn't even looking at the camera half the time. Denmark It's good! Jakob has a voice that I really like, and while the song isn't that impressive, it's fun and it's catchy and I can already tell that I'll be able to remember this really well. The staging is really cute too! Poland This one feels really hectic. Not entirely bad but there's a lot going on and it just moves at this frenetic pace. I do like the Polish musical influences though - I prefer this to My Slowianie lol!

My personal qualifiers Hungary Latvia Denmark Ireland Monaco Netherlands Norway Moldova Israel North Macedonia Miscellaneous thoughts I think this whole "Pavlo and Masha argue about how to start the semifinal" was funny, but I also felt like it was leading up to Ruslana performing, and then that didn't happen, so. Some disappointment there. Yeah, overall I'm not a big fan of these hosts so far. It's not even about their English, they just seem really awkward with each other and they don't have a funny script.

[2030kamenriders]

That previous reblog has me thinking. It's not completely related though, so I'm putting this in its own post.

Some people don't seem to be good at remembering the way people change over time. And I don't mean in the sense that they act like you are still the way you were before (although that can also be frustrating). I mean that they either think you changed at a different time than you actually did, or because of a different thing from what actually changed you. Or they act like you were always your current self (which might sound good, but it's also frustrating).

The main personal example I have is with how and when I express frustration or anger. I feel like, as a kid, there were times when I would get really angry, and it's always led to things getting worse (...usually something breaking). So over the years, I tried to work on minimizing it.

And at first glance, I think it worked? People keep describing me as a person who doesn't get angry. Except now, if I do get mildly frustrated, everyone around me seems to act like I've completely lost my marbles. And it feels terrible. Because I don't want to get angry around people I care about, but I can't humanly stop myself from getting frustrated at stuff forever. And it's confusing, because I'm not sure if I'm drawing the line at the right place.

Another branch to this whole thing is being an oldest sibling (and an oldest cousin on one side). I'd like to think that I tried my best to be a good kid, to make things easier on everyone around me. But then grown-ups look at my younger siblings and cousins and keep comparing them to me, saying stuff like "why can't you be like 2030?"

And when you add that to the misremembering thing I was talking about, you get situations where a grown-up tells one of my younger siblings "why don't you act like 2030 did when they were your age?" And then the grown-up starts describing behaviours that I didn't grow into until I was older—much older, in some cases.

I'm having trouble wording this properly, but it's just frustrating. Because for some reason it almost always ends with someone telling another person "why are you like this right now?" while comparing them to a non-existent version of a person.

[maleyanderecafe]

Invite Me In (Visual Novel)

Created by: squidcolas

Genre: Horror/Romance

Riding on the #yanjam game, this demo is pretty short, but it does set up a good atmosphere. I actually quite like the design of Devyn (that's not much of a surprise since I'm more into softer boys, ahaha), and while there isn't much of yandere actions as of yet, I'm sure there will be much more as the game develops.

The story starts out with the MC walking home from the store, having bought some milk when they see someone in the grass, presumably hurt. Scared, he tells the MC that someone attacked him and that his arms seem to be hurt, though not broken. After learning that his name is Devyn, we try to bring him towards the bench so that he doesn't feel as dizzy. As we try to leave, Devyn pulls on us, telling us we left our milk where we were before. After running back and getting it, we find that Devyn has started to bleed out even more. He explains to the MC that a stalker had been following him and attacked him. When the MC suggests to bring him to a hospital or a police station, Devyn refuses, stating that the stalker might find him if they go to either of those places. He convinces the MC that he just needs some medical supplies to patch himself up and we end up inviting him to our house.

There's not actually much going on in this demo, but I would like to note some of Devyn's yandere like behaviors. The first one that comes to mind is pretty simple, that he ends up complimenting our name even before we tell him. He tries to talk it off as if he made a mistake, though it is obvious that he does know the MC's name before hand. Another would be after we help Devyn stand up and attempt to leave, Devyn suddenly gets woozy and we have to bring him to the bench. I think this coupled with the fact that his arms suddenly started bleeding even more after we leave him to retrieve our milk means that he's probably either somehow faking it (which I doubt since he's kinda bleeding) or he inflicted the damage on himself so that the MC would feel concern for him. It also makes sense with a couple of other small details like the fact that he suddenly becomes "lighter" when the MC helps bring him to their house or "heavier" when he has to be brought to the bench. This is just my speculation though since we don't actually see how much blood he loses until we leave for a bit. There are a couple of lines that indicate yandere behavior (specifically the one where he states that " I bet there's someone who would do anything for you."), but what I'm most curious about is the stalker that Devyn mentions hurt him. To be honest, I don't think I believe him, and I think that this will be foreshadowing for the MC. For one, we know that Devyn does know the MC's name and seems to be humbled to just be in their presence (or at least, feels like he doesn't deserve it), and considering that Devyn seems to be set up to be the yandere in this game (with the title being Invite Me In, it seems like we've made a terrible decision, haha). If it is the case that Devyn has an actual stalker, I'm curious to see what would happen between the three characters, like perhaps Devyn has some trauma that gets projected on to the MC or maybe Devyn has to protect the MC from the stalker through violent means. There's a lot of ways the game can go.

It seems that there will be around 7 endings in the full version, so I'm curious to see what will happen!

[maplecornia]

chapter 9

𝔴𝔬𝔯𝔡 𝔠𝔬𝔲𝔫𝔱: 2.61K

𝔤𝔢𝔫𝔯𝔢: romance | slice of life | fluff | angst | bts x female!reader | ot7

𝔰𝔲𝔪𝔪𝔞𝔯𝔶: You watched them from the sidelines ever since you were a young teenage girl. Now you’re grown up, they’ve returned after 2 long years and everything has changed. What happens when you pull back the mask and find the darkness within? What happens when you see that they’re broken?

𝔞/𝔫: this chapter makes me laugh, especially the scene with Jojo and Namjoon.

𝔴𝔞𝔯𝔫𝔦𝔫𝔤𝔰: cliffhangers | angst | fluff | slight mentions of self hatred | depression | mental health illness | self harm | occurs in the year 2024 | set in a timeline where BTS went to the military together | slight language

tags:@kookaine |@fangirl125reader |@kookiebbyxx |@taradevonne

You’ve been waiting for an hour.

Tilting your head back, you sigh, extremely bored.

You've tried everything you could think of to bypass the time. Reading, writing, watching YouTube, then switching over to Netflix, even attempting to doze in the slightly uncomfortable waiting room chair.

None of them have worked.

Currently, you're doodling in your sketchbook, but no concrete idea comes to mind for the sketch. Leaving you with tiny flowers, faces, and body parts on the page as though it were a practice sheet.

Peering over the sketchbook, you scan the room for any sign of life, but as the day has dragged on, so has the crowd.

You don't see any sign of Kim Namjoon anywhere, and the receptionist hasn't called you over ever since you turned in the forms she gave you. Uninterested, your eyes glazing over, you pull out your phone, peering at the time.

12:30 pm.

Heaving a sigh, you tilt your head back, the music playing through your GalaxyBuds. Yet it does no good to lift your spirits.

You suppose it's only fair, you made him wait, now it's his turn.

Setting your phone down once more, you purse your lips, as your gaze falls on a flower swaying in the wind outside.

It's the only flower you can see amongst the bush. It stands almost forlornly in the midst of multiple of its fellow brethren withered around it. Still, it stands strong, unwilling to fall victim to the harsh weather outside.

A thought crossing your mind, you turn to your sketchbook, quickly turning the page and beginning a vigorous sketch before you lose your idea.

Unbeknownst to you, as you progress halfway through the sketch, Kim Namjoon bursts into the lobby, looking out of breath and flustered.

He wears a bright white T-shirt, one with a small black Nike emblem across his left pectoral muscle. It hangs sort of loose around his neck, his collarbone visible as cooling sweat causes him to glisten like a bright star.

It's not as noticeable, considering that he wears a thick black sweatshirt zipped down around his shoulders. It's simple, with thin white stripes running down the sleeves and white soft underlining to it.

The black sweats he wears seem to fit with the outfit, the same white stripes running down each pant leg. Each piece of clothing has a Nike emblem on it and pairs well with the white Nike AirForces he wears on his feet.

They’re simple but rich clothes and bring to mind the same clothes Jungkook was wearing before.

The cooling sweat on his skin and the way his hair falls a bit messily underneath his cap could lead to the presumption that they were doing a major dance practice before all of this.

No matter the case, he didn't expect the meeting to take this long, and he feels terrible for making you wait, despite everything. As he looks for any sign of you, he doesn't find any.

Worried that you have already left, he knocks on the front desk, gathering the attention of the receptionist that helped you earlier. Kim Jojo raises her head, and as she catches sight of RM, her eyes widen just the slightest bit, but not enough for him to notice.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Namjoon, what can I--”

“Yes, yes hello.” Namjoon interrupts her, too panicked to care about formalities.

He wants to catch you before you get tired of waiting and leave. First impressions are everything to him, and if he has a bad one…Shaking the worry away, he leans forward over the counter separating the receptionist from him and she flinches away at the sudden closeness.

RM either doesn't notice or doesn't care, but either way, he meets her with an intent stare, every word uttered from his lips urgent and careful.

“Has anyone by the name of Lin Yen come in?” The receptionist opens her mouth to respond but before she can say anything, he holds up a finger.

A thought having crossed his mind, he reaches into his back pocket, bringing out his phone. He tries to bring up the picture of you while Jojo stands there, half in shock, half in annoyance. As soon as he finds it, he lets out a little victory shout, one that startles her.

Grinning, he presents it to her, and she peers at a strange picture of you. After she looks at it, Jojo pulls back, her brows crinkling in confusion.

“She looks like this. If she came in, could you please tell me? I've been waiting since 8:00 this morning to meet her.” Jojo sighs, trying to gain her composure before responding.

“Mr. Namjoon--” she begins, but Namjoon interrupts once more.

“She’s my new assistant, you see, and I need to begin her training today. She needs to know the ropes before our busy season comes back around.” He explains, pulling the phone back and trying to pocket it once more.

Instead, he ends up knocking over a container filled with an assortment of pens and pencils. Surprised, he fumbles to pick it up but ends up spilling it all over the floor. Cursing under his breath, he reaches down to pick up some pencils that have fallen.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Jojo picks up the container, righting it on the counter with a loud thud. Startled, RM glances up at her eyes wide, and she smiles sweetly.

“Please, just leave it.” She says between her teeth. He shrugs, almost reluctantly standing. She sighs in relief, carefully putting the pens and pencils back in their place.

“Now...Mr. Namjoon, please listen--” once more, she cannot finish, Namjoon unable to shut up to save his life.

“I’m sorry, but if you need any more information on her I could--”

“Kim Namjoon!” This time it's Jojo's turn to interrupt him, her patience finally wearing thin.

RM instantly falls silent, a bit surprised at the outburst.

Jojo takes a steadying breath before continuing.

“Now, the person you are talking about has already come in. I told her you were in a meeting and had her wait in the waiting room for you to return.” At the information, RM turns to the waiting room where he catches sight of you for the first time in real life.

He notices you vigorously sketching out your idea. Smiling, he can't help but smile at the familiarities he finds in you. You look exactly like the picture Jaejin sent, despite how weird it was.

“I had expected to receive a notice of your return, so I could send her to you, but now that you're here….” Namjoon turns away from you and flashes his contagious smile at Jojo who is once more taken aback.

“Thank you,” Namjoon says with gratitude, reaching across the desk and holding her hand as he bows before turning away.

Jojo, watching him go, turns beet red before collapsing behind the desk in exhaustion. Another fellow receptionist cries out with alarm before tending to her in concern.

You, once more, having no awareness of the events happening around you, continue to sketch. Having finished the rough sketch you begin to define every line, detail, and curve. As you work, you bite the inside of your cheek, sometimes licking your lips in your trance of concentration.

When you're lost in your mind of imagination and creativity, nothing from the outside world can distract you.

And yes, that also includes a very tall, very real version of Kim Namjoon striding towards you.

You don't look up as he comes within a few feet in front of you. You don't even notice as he bends to your eye level, trying to catch your attention. It doesn't break your concentration, even as you reach for an eraser, lightly humming to the music playing in your ears. He smiles, almost laughing at your concentration before he covers his mouth, trying to be quiet so that you don't notice he’s there.

Trying to tease you, he carefully (as much as he’s able) sits down next to you. He was planning on pulling out one of your GalaxyBuds and surprising you, but as he catches a glimpse of your work, he’s stopped cold.

It's breathtaking.

You have created an awestruck image of a woman, on her knees. She wails out in agony as she sits amongst a pile of ash, flecks of it falling around her as though there's a fire burning nearby.

However, that’s not what catches Namjoon’s eye.

Amongst the ash, if anyone looks closely, they'll be able to see that there are small, scattered remains of bones hidden.

She sits amongst them, wailing, the look on her face one of pure anguish and sorrow as the ash from the fading bones stains her skin and her dress.

As though she has lost everyone she’s held, dear.

RM can't seem to look away, entranced by the grotesque beauty of the image and the talent of the artist.

He admires the way you set it up, the way you created the girl imperfectly, but still real. Because after all, who in real life is perfect? As he watches your pencil move expertly across the page, he can't help but think that with each stroke, the creation grows more and more lifelike.

As though she were truly crying out in the pain her heart brings. As though she were alive and breathing.

Almost against his wishes, his hand reaches out to touch the paper, if only to make sure that the actual sketch is truly a mere fabrication of pencil and paper.

As his fingers graze the parchment, that is when you snap out of your concentration.

Eyes widening, you jolt up straight, immediately turning to look at your side.

As soon as your eyes meet Namjoon’s, his hand flinches off the paper. He lets out a soft gasp as he flinches away, surprised by your sudden attention.

Just like with Jungkook, you're frozen in place.

Unable to move.

Unable to function.

Unable to speak.

And just like Jungkook, Namjoon is the same way.

But for a different reason.

He was caught in the act, and he doesn't know what to do.

Your eyes hold him in a sort of bind.

For a moment he forgets what he was doing there, he forgets what his purpose is, for a moment he even forgets why you are there.

For a split second, it's just you and him in a pocket in space.

Your eyes holding his, his eyes holding yours.

Kim Namjoon.

The leader of BTS. The first member of the group you have grown to love. Talented, handsome, a practical genius, he is just as mature and intimidating as you expected him to be.

Despite how close the two of you are sitting, he still seems larger than life, and for a moment, you wonder if he’s even real.

He doesn't seem like it after all.

His skin seems too real, too perfect. His hair is too soft, too smooth. His eyes are too warm and too brown.

Almost exactly like the milky chocolate brown you’ve seen so often in so many photos, except for one thing.

As you stare into them, you can see life so clearly alight in them. How they reveal so many emotions at the same time. There are so many that it's almost impossible to read them at all. Serene and peaceful, they are poets' eyes.

So emotional, yet so mysterious and secretive at the same time.

Dreamboat eyes.

“Kim Namjoon?” you whisper, almost unsure if it's him or not.

As you do, his face makes that mixed expression between confusion and amusement as he chuckles softly, looking away and breaking the connection. Holding his hand up to his mouth, he nods, clearing his throat, but not saying anything for a moment.

“Yes, that's who I am, and you must be...Lin Yen?” your heart jumps at the fact that he knows your name.

Speechless, all you can do is nod mutely as he utters another adorable chuckle, one that always seems to remind you of Goofy.

“Jaejin didn't tell me you were an artist.” As soon as he says that, you notice that your sketchbook is still open, and showcasing your imperfect, unready sketch.

Panicking, you fumble to get it closed. Blushing, you hug it tightly to your chest, as though it could erase the fact that he just got a sneak peek into your very soul.

“What's wrong? It was good!” RM asks, worried.

Biting your bottom lip in trepidation, you shake your head, hiding your face.

“Don't lie….” you mumble.

You know it wasn't close to being done, and it wasn't nearly as perfect as it could have been. You're quite disappointed in it at the moment. You feel as though it was too rushed due to the many ideas pouring out from your brain at the exact moment.

As you take an ashamed peek at Namjoon, you find him staring at you, a slight smile playing on his lips.

“What's wrong, are you okay?” he asks, tilting his head as though you were a shy child. You smirk, playing along and nodding very slowly before he continues.

“I see. You should know, however, that you are very talented.” At the compliment, you snort in disbelief, shoving the sketchbook and pencils back safely in your satchel.

“Please.” You sigh. “I know I'm no Picasso, and certainly not talented.”

Finished with packing your art supplies, you are reminded of the reason you are here. A blush of shame appearing on your cheeks, you turn to Namjoon, a bit guiltily.

“And I’m also not known as the bird to rise before the worm.” RM seems a bit confused before you stand and bow to him in apology.

“I am so sorry for being late today. You see I….”

Remembering the receptionist's words from before, you decide to keep the reason to yourself.

“....I have nothing to say for myself. I'm sincerely sorry.”

“Please, there’s no need for that,” Namjoon responds, standing himself and tapping you on the shoulder.

At the touch, you stand straight, only to find an extremely tall man standing before you, looking more intimidating than before. Heart beating fast you gulp, stepping back a bit.

Luckily, he doesn't notice your act of distance and just smiles at you before continuing.

“After all, I was late as well, so let's call it even, huh?”

You smirk and nod, thankful that he’s not too angry about it, but it doesn't completely erase your guilt.

“But now that you mention it….” Namjoon starts and intrigued, you glance up to see him back up a bit as well.

Confused, you raise an eyebrow before he holds out his hand to you.

“My name is Kim Namjoon, I’ll be your boss during your time here. First and foremost, welcome to BigHit entertainment, I hope you enjoy your time working here with us.” He introduces himself, warmly.

Catching on, you take his hand, shaking it gently, and trying to ignore the fact that yours is much more like a child's compared to his.

“Hello, Mr. Namjoon! It's a pleasure to finally meet you, my name is Lin Yen and I look forward to working with you!” you respond, returning his grin with one of your own.

After you're finished introducing yourself, he releases your hand and steps back, taking your satchel in his hands and handing it to you.

“Well, Ms. Lin, are you ready to begin?” He asks, and you accept the offer, hiking the satchel on your shoulder before looking up at him in expectation.

“Where do we start?”

𝔫𝔬𝔱𝔢: first day at work is finally starting, yall excited? eheheehehe get ready for some namjooon and yen moments to come

chapter 10 here

check the Infinite Stars masterlist for more chapters

check my BTS masterlist for other BTS content

check out my masterlist for other kpop fanfics

[fionacreates]

10, 22, 27, 28, 36 listen I just want ANSWERS also pick a question yourself, for fun 😘

10. Has a piece of writing ever “haunted” you? Has your own writing haunted you? What does that mean to you?

Yes. When I read something contemporary set, either non fiction, or fictionised versions of true scenarios that show me what it's like to live a life that's not my own, they can really stick in my head because these are people's lives.

Don't get me wrong I get sad when I'm reading a fantasy story and someone dies or whatever the emotional cadances are. But when you read something like Monday's Not Coming by Tiffany D Jackson, or Nothing to Envy they stay with you. (As they should.)

I also read A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes, and The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker. Both these books reframe The Illiad and Trojan mythology through the eyes of the women. They are contemporary books, so they definately have a contemporary point to make, but as a woman myself who very much grew up enjoying hero tales, this reminds us starkly of what it really meant to be anything other than a god or a hero in these tales and every time I read anything of the Illiad retelling variety, especially when they very much dismiss the women in the stories (as the originals did) I can't help but be reminded of the other stories hidden behind the heroes. Even if it's all a lot more fictional than my first examples.

22. How organized are you with your writing? Describe to me your organization method, if it exists. What tools do you use? Notebooks? Binders? Apps? The Cloud?

I do my initial writings entirely by hand. When I went through Art School with drawing I'm very much used to using a sketchbook as a place to play and screw up. I enjoy the process of writing with a nice pen in a nice book. I number my pages and index at the front what in development stories are on what pages. I then index my story outlines with "you can find the script for this part on page XX"

I have one book just for Ladies of the Knight (it's my second) and another for all the in development projects.

When a notebook is done it is labeled and put on a shelf with my other stuff so I can go back to them.

THEN when I've played and rewritten things as often as need by, I sit down at a computer and type it up into a script template I made in google docs (and then copy and paste it to a word doc and save it like 5 places!) and do my final edits.

27. Who is the most stressful character you’ve ever written? Why?

Aethelburg. She plays the position of the antagonist, and it would be so easy to let her slip into just being the petty rich pretty girl. And while I want people to see her that way at first, that's not actually what she is, but she walks a fine line.

28. Who is the most delightful character you’ve ever written? Why?

Literally delightful is George. Because she has no shame about what she wants or being so enthusiastic. As someone who spent a lot of their teen years afraid of what people thought of my dreams, to write someone so open with their desires, and how hard they're working to get them, is very freeing.

A spiteful delight is Serafina. She comes from a place close to my own brain, but she doesn't stop herself being mean or blunt whereas I definately care more about not offending my friends and family. It's also very freeing to let her be a blunt asshole.

34. (A question picked myself) Thoughts on the Oxford comma, Go:

I don't know what this is.

I make comics.

Prose is weird and terrifying.

What is a comma and why is it from Oxford?

36. They say to Write What You Know. Setting aside for a moment the fact that this is terrible advice…what do you Know?

Ah see I think this is excellent advice but very misinterprited.

My characters all come from pieces of my own personality that I fragment out and build upon. So I KNOW them all and how they might react, even if I don't know what it is to be an elite athlete, or to ride a horse, or live in the medieval fantasy world I built.

Writing what you know is not just writing an autobiography about a comics creator in their mid 30s living in the UK, it's knowing that when I was 15 I wish I'd been less afraid, so what if I made a character that did that.

You can create something as vastly different from your own experiences as you think you can get, but if you can't find the connection of why that's interesting to you (and thus probably your readers) it's going to seem hollow and fake.

And for what you don't know. Research.

[petrichorpetals]

So from the evidence I've collected, I'm very sure my Yeosang came here from another timeline/world theory is correct.

This mostly stems from what we learned from fever part 3 and the deja vu mv but honestly the Yeosang being sus about this had already been foreshadowed in his diary entry of fever part 2. (You'll have to forgive my terrible pictures I have fever part 3 in front of me and I'm too lazy to grab fever part 2 to take better pics)

Basically our setup to this was how at the end of the diary film we switched dimensions into the world of fireworks which I'm fairly sure is called Strictland. Everyone basically says how much the new world feels like their old one but different. The first time I read this I wasn't sure what he meant by "Everyone says this is a new world but somehow, I'm familiar with the scenery here. " line and just took it at face value to be metaphor. But given his repetition of staring down the camera to say "I remember" in Deja Vu, it would make a lot more sense if we take it quite literally too mean I remember this place because I'm from here. There's also a lot of talk about the word world in "wanting to escape the world I've lived in, the world I've been trapped in" as well as "the friends who have willingly invited me to their world". Basically the tldr of the matter is that yeosang escaped from the world of Fireworks into the world of school!Ateez using a chromer that breaks. (IMO we see this exact moment where it breaks at the end of Deja Vu) I say it's likely a chromer since Yeosang shows an at least approximate knowledge of what would happen if he breaks one when he breaks the one the black pirates/halateez gave to hongjoong while the android guardian/white mask holds him hostage.

Yeosang seems to have an approximate knowledge here of what would happen if the Chromer broke, to the point where he doesn't even call it the Chromer when he's thinking about what they know about the object, he specifically calls it a sandglass when any other mention of it has been the Chromer.

There's also the matter of him going out of the way of saying "My friends would not have been all scattered if I had not met them at first". This could very well be talking about where they lost Yeosang and scattered in the hallway but given his wording of at first, I'm putting this as evidence that Yeosang was a newcomer to their world when he got here with the chromer and wasn't a part of their friend group originally.

This theory gets backed up by the ending bit of Not Too Late playing at the end of Deja Vu and if you do a quick look into the lyrics, Not Too Late comes across very much as the beginning of school Ateez where they're all lamenting about being lonely before they all get together to make friends.

Except for two things.

One of which is Wooyoung and Yeosang talking about not being able to get out or escape (Which lines up for Yeosang if he's trapped in this new timeline and adds some interesting implications for Wooyoung I'll get into on a post about him later).

The second of which is Mingi's part. Mingi brings up killing and saving, both things that happen and we see happening during Inception and Thanxx in Fever Part 1 when Hongjoong keeps resetting the timeline using the chromer. There's two implications here: one, Mingi is aware of the timeline resetting (something that I already suspected but is now confirmed) and two, while this might seem like a song from the very beginning of school Ateez, Mingi gives us the added context that it is very much not. (It's also interesting that Yeosang's the one that pulled out Mingi's headphones to make him past attention to the world around him in diary film but like Wooyoung, I'll get into Mingi later in another post)

Since we're assumedly several timeline cycles in, why is this song playing over Yeosang breaking the Chromer? I posit that instead of this being the moment where Yeosang breaks the Chromer while escaping the white Android, this is instead either the moment Yeosang crash lands into school Ateez's world via his own "sandglass" for the first time or this still is that moment, but due to time shenanigans, the Yeosang that escaped just so happens to have escaped back to when he first got to their world making him trapped not only in school Ateez's world, but in an endless cycle of breaking the Chromer to get there in the first place.

We see that Yeosang doesn't go back to their original world and warehouse with them afterwards. Likely because he wasn't a part of their world to begin with to return back with them.

There's other bits of evidence that say that Yeosang with the broken Chromer at the end of Deja Vu is going to school Ateez like the hand that reached for Yeosang had a sleeve similar to their school uniform in Inception.

(Interestingly enough, Yeosang has an emblem that isn't like anyone else's on his uniform and Wooyoung has several emblems. Not necessarily relevant to my current point but food for thought.)

I'm not one of those people that obsess over hands, so idk whose hand that is exactly, but I do have suspicions.

If we're looking at the rings and at how one hand kind of mirrors the other, we can come to the conclusion that it might be the same person. We can go so far as to think that maybe, that hand might even belong to another version of Yeosang. Potentially even the hala!Yeosang that we catch a glimpse of in the diary film giving Hongjoong the chromer. (Side note: I only just realized that it was actually hala!yeosang that gave hongjoong the chromer and not hala!hongjoong like I thought going in. Yeosang really does just have a longstanding history with the Chromer huh.)

Edit: it's now basically been confirmed by the making of deja vu mv that the hand is Hongjoong's so basically depicting the moment Hongjoong reached out for yeosang when the timelines reset. I still standby the rest of my theory. Here's the screenshot I grabbed off the alternate hand angle in the mv making video:

For me personally, a lot of things start to click into place when we consider the possibility that Yeosang is actually from another world. Even his like a bird in a cage stuff makes sense when viewed in this light. He has the freedom of song and dance that he didn't have in Strictland, which banned any form of music or dance thinking it would lead to human emotion, but is stuck in this new world with no other option but to potentially repeat the cycle of when he got here.

[starstrucklovetragedy]

Hey guys! So even though I mostly post Voltage USA related content on the blog, I also did/do play some of Voltage Japan games as well. Though I don't really anymore considering that it mostly consists of men and also lis these days are either predictable or boring sooooo.... But if there was one franchise in the Voltage Japan that I love to play, it's the Liar games! The game are basically calling out fake assholes and finding the "right" person and the stand out in these games is usually the MCs cause their not the usual MCs that voltage puts out. So I'm gonna talk about them from worst to best. Some people might get mad while some might agree but anyway let's get it

Also Spoiler Warning so if you want to play Liar yourself.... don't read this

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

3.

Compared to the other two MCs on this list, SS MC feels so boring to say the least and might I say.....kind of dumb. Like the whole purpose of this game is to get suspicious and gather clues from other people but sometimes she gets suspicious over the most stupidest things, like in the last chapter of the game she keeps thinking Shotaro is lying to her cause he kept touching his nose which is supposably a sign that someone is lying when A. a day ago she literally watched a commercial about allergy medicine and she said herself that it was allergy season so you would think that he has allergies and B. Unless you were like a terrible liar then you wouldn't touch your nose that much if you're lying. Also in the 7th chapters, she thought her friends were trying to steal Shotaro/Sosuke from her when she literally isn't going out with either one of them at the time and she didn't know who she liked again at the time, like wtf. Also another thing is that unlike the other two MCs who have jobs and that's why they have money to get shit, this mc was born into a wealthy family so her relatability is already done by a lot, I don't want to read about how every night she can go partying with friends with loads of money while I can't even bye movie tickets. P.s. Her and Shotaro become endgame in the story and they are literally one of the most unbelievable couples in the liar series, especially on her part.

2. Now people might get mad at me for this placement but

Yeah ok so let's talk about the positives first: she's pretty, she's knows how to stand her ground and fight back, and she at least has a job so that's cool......now for the negatives and the main one is that she's a hypocritical bitch. Like idk if I'm the only one who thinks this but I just don't like her. She consistently judges other based on their appearances even if their a nice person and I kind of lowkey think she's homophobic considering her reaction to Johnny whenever she meets him (Johnny best character btw) same with the SS mc. And she swears that she's like the most perfect person ever when she's lying about her life and lifestyle to her other suitors in order to get her perfect man ugh... Two examples of her being a complete hypocrite is in the 7th chapter she accuses Kazuki of being an addict, with her only major evidence being that he's tired alot and white power she found, and turns he's not an addict at all but he infact has a heart condition that if he doesn't take his medicine he will likely die. And does she apologize for accusing him for being an addict....nope that would be too nice of her, she instead just says she feels bad she accused him and just leaves....with no apology.....wtf. Another example is actually in the squeal of Itaru's story where she finds that he actually knew her since childhood and he has loved her all this time (not sure why, he needs to get better taste) and decided to change for her because she actually called him ugly before in said childhood when he did confess to her and then she has the audacity to call him a complete liar afterwards and that she can't believe he deceived her WHEN SHE IS LITERALLY DOING THE SAME THING YOU FUCKING HYPOCRITICAL ASSHOLE... I'm not going to ramble anymore so just to recap, I do not like this bitch but she's certainly more interesting then the SS MC (Itaru, you deserve better then this fucking bitch and I hope in whatever universe you can find someone better)

And for 1.

Yes! This is my favorite mc and probably the best mc (at least in the English version) in the liar series! First of all, she can actually take care of herself and knows how actually take stuff seriously and be professional about it. Even if she doesn't like somebody she's know she can't flip out over them because it wouldn't be the right time or place to do so, especially in an office setting. I also actually like how they handled her and her ex-boyfriend's (Taichi) plot line as she doesn't really forgive him but she knows that he's at least sorry and feeling guilty about cheating on her with her fucking bitch of a friend, and that they can put it aside and go their separate ways (unlike the other stories in the series) it's the same with the people she exposed, besides some people who left because she either didn't want them for things that were either gross or unforgivable, she remains mature with them and knows that even though that they can't be trusted, she works with because well they still have the job but also they're trying to be better. I also think she has some of the best relationships with the characters, especially with Keisuke, who is her endgame in work and love. God I love their relationship, like it's start off with Keisuke being kind of cold to her but it eventually turns into a relationship filled with respect and even minor teasing with one another, plus he's legit the only one in the cast of characters who actually went to her apartment in the liar storyline and got to be more comfortable with her, god I love them both. Anyway the OD MC is one of the best MCs in the series and I absolutely love her. Bonus points to her having a cute-ass cat.

[thegoldielocks28]

45. "Do I even wanna know?" for Tala and Mathilda (because I'm interested in seeing your version of their friendship when she's with or moving towards being with Spencer) Or if that line doesn't work, either of the others will do as long as it has those two :)

Title: Do I even want to know? Pairing: Sergei Petrov and Mathilda Alster romantically, Yuriy Ivanov and Mathilda Alster platonically. Notice: Written from Yuriy´s point of view. Mostly. Also, I haven't yet read the new manga so some of my headcanons for him might be off, aged or not canon. Also, I kept writing and adding to this for ages, and feel it's a bit of a mess. Hopefully, it shows some emotion that I meant for it to show. Not sure if I will post this anywhere else hm...

Yuriy has mastered the art of ignoring others' eyes on him. Easily walking by as if he's clueless of their attention on him. Even if the fact that they were staring was something he noticed before the person themselves knew their eyes were trailing him.

Observant as he is.

During Yuriy´s early childhood, he’d get looks of hatred and disgust as he lived, or barely survived, in the streets. Wearing old and tattered clothes, pale skin almost grey because of malnutrition, and blue eyes desperately searching for help as passerbys continued to choose not to see him. At times, the hatred in strangers´ eyes was better than being ignored. When they pretended not to see the misery Yuriy was in he ended up feeling like he was already dead.

Soon, Yuriy learned of another kind of fear. The fear that came from those who were threatened by his skill in the bey dish, fear because of the harsh fates waiting for them if they lost to him in the days of the Abbey. Once that first child lost terribly to Yuriy, and was never seen again, his peers started to respect him. Respect born from fear.

As Yuriy and his brothers were manipulated and tricked to threaten the safety of the world, he was looked on as both a hero and a monster. A hero who´d give Russia the top spot in Beyblade again.And as something a little less than human, perhaps closer to a cyborg, leading the world towards its demise while being seemingly void of much emotion. Perhaps only rivaled by how power hungry Kai had gotten together with Black Dranzer. Or even by Boris after that match against Rei. Boris had been Balkov´s triumph card. The man is still recovering from the lack of love he got from a young age, and to learn to handle his growing emotions just as his rage.

Today the world knows how all of it ended, and who to thank for their safety and freedom: the Bladebreakers.

After the Demolition Boys´ loss, people started to look at them with yet a new set of eyes. The eyes of those who viewed them as victims of manipulation, of harsh childhoods. Often with pity. It never suited Yuriy. Being a victim. Rather, he aimed for them to be seen as young, free and brave men redeeming themselves and growing into something better. Growing into the people they want to be now when they have a real shot at it.

Survivors.

Today, Yuriy is well trained in observing strangers and deciding whether or not they´re sincere when approaching his team. If they truly want to get to know them, or if they want something from them. Regretfully the Russians often decide it's safer to assume people are out to hurt them than blindly letting strangers into their lives.

It´s a snowy and cold day in Moscow, Russia. The air is crisp, cold and dry. Chilling to the bone. A good winter's day, with a clear blue sky telling of an even colder night ahead. Probably with stars. The streets are busy with people. Families, couples, children playing around. At a corner of a smaller street a coffee shop recently opened, carrying a foreign brand of coffee to Russia.

To the untrained eye Yuriy´s pale face appears indifferent as he thanks the young woman accompanying him for holding the door open. He's carrying some of the things they bought today. Books. Clothes. Some new toys for his pet dog. However, even if he might look like he'd rather be somewhere else, his eyes tell of a new kind of warmth as he looks at his female companion. An attentiveness few earn from him.

Yuriy´s presence has stirred people to life it seems. Staff greets him with almost spooked expressions and “Hi!”s. They must be newly hired, since the shop has just been around for a few weeks. It instantly sours his mood, as he much prefers workers to treat him like any other customer. From that point Yuriy makes sure it seems like he pays little attention to the people around them, but only after he shows his appreciation with a slight nod of his head. There´s this middle ground he has found as of late. Looking strangers in the eye as they gawk at him while fighting nerves. Some are his fans, and they pay a bit of his paycheck through watching his matches. Supporting him and his family. No matter how Yuriy looks at it, his fans matter, they all do in beyblading. Not all of them are stalkers, or want to hurt him or those closest to him. Even if it is hard to remember that sometimes.

The woman with him takes the lead to a small two-seater table at the back corner of the shop. Fairly isolated, yet with a view towards the street outside. She's always considerate like that. Sitting down with his back against the wall and a good view over the coffee shop, Yuriy´s eyes settle at the woman in front of him. The scent of sweet fruits washes over him. Nothing too overpowering. She takes off her coat, observant eyes darting around the place as she too notices the eyes on them. Unlike Yuriy, she can’t hide her discomfort. Yuriy has already deemed the room safe. The usual quick sweep of the eyes he does every time he arrives somewhere, especially somewhere new. Checking where the exits are, if there’s anyone suspicious around. Old habits are hard to break, and this one he won't try to: it has saved him before. Yuriy lets out a soft sigh as he allows himself to relax in his chair. Body grows heavier as he sinks into his seat. Knees falling apart ever so slightly. The only threat in this room seems to be awed struck fans, and those he can handle. At least well enough to make his friend enjoy their short coffee break.

Although Yuriy appears relaxed, his body language erects a barrier between his safe bubble with his friend and the people around them. Nothing about Yuriy is inviting. He leaves no room for strangers to think it's suitable for a quick chat or to ask about a signature: his focus is on his company. The girl in front of him tries to hide the fact that the attention from strangers gets to her, and Yuriy can´t help but imagine what the fans around them think as they see how she squirms in her seat. How they draw the wrong conclusions. The Russian offers her a hint of a smile in an attempt at making her feel more comfortable. If her attention is on him, Yuriy knows she´ll be able to relax and enjoy herself as well.

Ever since his brother started dating her, no one has seemed to want to accept their relationship for what it is. At first, not even Yuriy. The girl in the chair across from Yuriy is called Mathilda Alster. A young woman with a petite frame, big eyes and soft short pink hair. She is still red in the cheeks from the cold outside. Mathilda holds the hot cocoa she ordered tightly in both of her hands as if her fingers would turn into ice if she didn’t. That, or, it´s another sign of her nerves. Yuriy frowns slightly at the sight. Mathilda has been with them in Russia for over a week, and it seems like even the thick clothes he and his brothers helped her get doesn’t keep her warm enough out in the dry cold. It's the major reason why the two of them ended up shopping for clothes together.

Mathilda can't continue to wear her boyfriend´s shirts and hoodies once she gets cold. It works at their home, but not out and about, as most clothes that's supposed to end by the hips reach her mid-thighs or lower. Every borrowed t-shirt ends up a dress.

And Yuriy can't have her get sick.

”...I don’t really go to these kinds of places often, so it’s making them excited.” Yuriy says flatly, talking about the other people who keep stealing glances at them.

The fans are watching from a respectable distance so far, luckily. Yuriy is a very well-known face in Russia but he doesn't doubt people have realized just who is with him. The red haired man crosses a leg over the other and sips at his coffee, adding a bit of milk after a moment as he finds it just a bit too bitter for his liking. Something his teammates surely would judge him for. They always have their coffee black, black as their souls, as Boris says. A part of Yuriy regrets going to a crowded coffee shop during daytime. He loves coffee, but he´d normally have gotten it on the go or brewed it himself at home. However, Mathilda wanted to go for a snack after they were done with what they needed to do in town... so here they are. Not like Yuriy could deny her that when she looked so hopeful, so eager to spend just a little bit of more time together. Without really demanding anything but some of his time and company.

Before they set out this morning Mathilda had told Yuriy she'd keep him company, and that she had something she wanted to tell him. A secret. It made Yuriy curious. Mathilda might be someone who’d never tell someone else´s secret but she wouldn’t be able to hide that she is in fact, hiding something.

”So, you said earlier that there was something on your mind.” Yuriy asks at last.

Usually, the two of them have these kinds of conversations back at home. During Mathilda´s stays with them it has become a habit to gather around the kitchen table, having tea or coffee with something sweet and just talk. Even if she could just lock herself up in his brother's room and spend all the time with him, Mathilda put effort into getting to know all of them better. Never once voicing she thought their lifestyles were odd, but asking if she could help out with meals and chores while she lived with them. After a few days, they realized that all of them had breakfast, lunch and dinner together at the same hours a day. Even if their work, school, or individual practises were scheduled differently. Mathilda had observed, and made a good schedule that´d suit their hectic life-style. Before that, it had mainly been Sergei and Yuriy who were responsible for any home cooked meal. This change resulted in Yuriy and Mathilda growing closer, spending more time together, and learning each other's habits and likes and dislikes.

Today Mathilda was a little bit too eager to help Yuriy with his errands. She seemed almost anxious to get away from the three other men as she spoke with him in a low voice in the hallway. Asking if she could come with. Mathilda would often be content staying back reading when her boyfriend was at his part time job, or hanging out with whoever was at home, but Yuriy didn´t mind that she wanted his company. He has come to enjoy hers, and found the way she seemed to want to rely on him quite endearing.

However, he's certain whatever she's trying so hard to keep a secret has something to do with her boyfriend. It had left him feeling a bit uneasy for a while, as he's concerned it´d be something negative. Yuriy might not be able to admit it yet but he would miss her if Mathilda ever broke up with his friend. His thoughts straying to if it would work staying in touch even if it happened.

Mathilda´s cheeks end up getting a bit redder at Yuriy´s question. Her embarrassment and shyness is always refreshing, especially since it has never stopped her from doing what she wants in the end.

Leaning his chin in the palm of his hand, Yuriy leans forward over the table. Elbow resting just at the edge. ”Do I … really want to know?” Yuriy asks at last, the corner of his lips turning upward in a smirk.

Judging by Mathilda´s expression this won't be about a break up.

Even if Yuriy´d consider Mathilda to be something like an addition to his family by now, it wasn't always that way. It was something that happened gradually over time, until she was included with no questions asked.

Yuriy had learned to be observant from a very young age. It didn’t take long for the captain of the Russian team to notice that someone was getting uncomfortably close to the tight, sturdy and often very solid barrier of safety he had erected around his team. The intruder was that of a young woman, a woman he knew almost nothing about, during a beyblade tournament where their teams were rivals. Every team was the enemy in a sense.

Yuriy´s eyes soon followed Mathilda every time she was around, looking for any signs of ill intent while a small lump of anxiety grew in his chest. That lump grew in size as he realized she had been around for much longer than he had known. Rude as he sometimes can be, he genuinely decided it must have been because of her lack of presence that he at first didn’t take notice of her. She was always in the background, quiet and didn't take up much space. Not an opponent he´d have to worry about in the dish, but if he was going to be fair, his focus had been on other players.

Eventually he was informed about her, and that they had actually been in the same tournament once before. Alongside the fact that her team had too been victims of greedy and manipulative adults.

As Yuriy continued to observe Mathilda, he noted yet again that Mathilda was neither tall nor had a strong build. Her body, and eyes, showed her emotions as if she was an open book for everyone to read. He also realized that Mathilda was always observing too. Always conscious, self-conscious. With a build like that, and emotions so easy to read, Yuriy concluded that Mathilda wouldn´t become a threat to them physically. Whatever she threw at them in the dish or outside of it they'd know ahead of time and be able to counter. Yet, soon, he also realized that she might come too close in a completely different way than he expected.

Mathilda had her eyes set on Sergei.

With a risk to sound egocentric, Yuriy thought of how there have been people in the past who had tried to befriend, for example Sergei or Ian, with hopes of getting let into the Russians´ circle for their own personal gain or to even end up in his or Boris´ bed. Ian has always been the teammate most strangers assumed to be the easiest one to get close to. Often getting played in return as Ian has through bad experiences learned how people wanted to use him. All it took was for the short man to get excited over a friendship only to realize he wasn't the one the person was really there for. Others thought Sergei could be their key in. For some reason, many interpreted his silence for lack of depth, and assumed he´d accept almost any positive attention shown his way. They often realized their mistake when the usually gentle giant showed signs of irritation, and they realized just how intimidating the oldest and tallest member of the team could be.

It took Yuriy a while to realize that Mathilda was having a thing for Sergei. Even if her skin grew red with embarrassment, her voice cracking, she kept on approaching his brother with small conversations. Eyes were bright with delight as Sergei eventually started to return her greetings. Answered her questions, even if he seemed a bit put off balance by the attention and the fact that the girl didn´t stop approaching him.

Yuriy trusted Sergei to shoot her down if he felt she was overstepping, and he forced himself to let it go, only for him to see the two together more often. The lump of anxiety in his chest grew larger. Now, would this tiny girl, who sometimes stuttered out of nerves, be that cunning, to get close to Sergei with a false promise of.... affections... to later hurt him? Hurt their team? Yuriy didn´t want to take any chances. Yuriy knew Sergei had his walls up just like himself. He might seem approachable, at least the most approachable one out of his other teammates, just for the person trying to strike up a conversation feel like they're facing a cold brick wall. However, Yuriy could tell that Sergei´s walls were starting to crack around Mathilda.

Soon Sergei allowed her into his space, closer than any other stranger, and would expect Mathilda to be around. His steel blue eyes searched for her when she wasn't there when he expected her to be. How the quick meetings in the shared kitchen area of their hotel floor turned into longer and longer conversations over tea and coffee.

At one point Yuriy had felt Mathilda´s Captain Miguel´s eyes on him from across the dining area as they had both observed the same thing, and Yuriy felt annoyed. For once not so much over that Sergei and Mathilda were getting closer, but because of how cautious Miguel´s eyes had been. As if he was telling Yuriy to make sure his team behaved.

It didn't take long for Mathilda´s name to leave Sergei´s mouth around his team. It had made them grow quiet, because it had been rare for any of them to have plans with others outside of their small circle. Boris was the first one to break the silence as he made a crude joke about Sergei´s and Mathilda´s difference in size and that Sergei should be careful not to crush her. Boris deserved the death stare Sergei gave him after that.

Yuriy kept fighting his unease, believing that Sergei knew what he was doing, while also getting ready to act if things got out of hand.

The first time Mathilda ate with them she was very nervous, Yuriy could tell, the whole world could tell, but she still sat there with them and tried. Tried to keep up with conversations even if Boris was rude, and spoke mostly in Russian in a childish way to exclude her. Something Yuriy wouldn´t accept, as he instead used the lunch to talk to her. Gently poke her to see if there was any ill intent, testing the waters.

What in the end convinced Yuriy Mathilda was safe and good for his brother was the way she reacted to Sergei getting hurt. It was a minor injury: Sergei had stepped badly during practise and damaged his ankle. Leaving him with a swollen foot and a bad limp he tried to cover as well as he could among strangers. Somehow Mathilda saw through his pretense and realized he was hurt. The usually quiet girl had stopped Sergei as he and Boris were walking past her in the hallway. Voice a bit high-pitched as she asked about Sergei´s limp, and grew almost pushy as Boris told her it was nothing. As he told her to back off.

Mathilda had spent that evening sitting by Sergei’s feet cooling the swelling of his injury with ice and cold water. Yuriy had only realized this when he returned from a meeting with the BBA. The worry he saw on her face wasn’t an act. The challenge in her eyes as she looked at him and his team while staying by Sergei’s side, daring them to ask her to leave, was her true feelings.

Yuriy´s eyes narrow a fraction. He swirls the tablespoon in his now half-empty coffee cup, and tilts his head to the side while taking in Mathilda's sincere expression. Her face tells him that whatever secret she is hiding her nerves is from excitement and not out of anxiety.

“Our one year anniversary is coming up.” Mathilda starts slowly, her cheeks seeming to get even redder as she tries to word her thoughts as she wants them. “And I'm… trying to decide what I can do for him in celebration.”

Yuriy´s expression softens slightly, his concern fading. “...A year already?” He asks, feeling calm again. The thought that something between Sergei and Mathilda had turned bad had made him feel strangely uneasy. The man mentally sighs at himself. Focus returning to the current conversation and not what he dreads of the future. It feels like he met Mathilda just yesterday, at the same time as he feels as if they have known each other for several years already.

Anniversaries. Yuriy hasn´t thought much about it, but have they ever celebrated things like that, him and his family? They do keep track of a few dates, when things changed for the better for them. Boris is usually the one bringing out the alcohol. They always made sure to celebrate each other's birthdays as well. Celebrating they´re still getting older, living. Being free. Sergei was the first of them to get into a serious relationship. This is all new.

“Sergei probably won't expect anything…” Yuriy trails off slightly. “You have a good shot at surprising him, Mathilda.”

Mathilda has been patient and gentle as she guides Sergei through his first relationship. Yuriy thinks Sergei might not be Mathilda´s first love, but her first in many other ways, and they could experience it together at their own pace.

Sergei rarely wants something for himself, or expects others to do things for him. Emotions that Yuriy has seen grow since he started seeing Mathilda, as the man too learned he wanted her attention in different ways. Sergei had gone from only making sure others were alright to having someone, outside of family, who’d get worried sick about him. Who he would fight wars to keep happy and safe.

Mathilda smiles at Yuriy´s answer, and she seems pleased about what he just told her even if it didn't solve her problem of what to get Sergei in the end. Yuriy wonders what she has planned for her boyfriend. Warmth grows in him as he knows that Sergei now has more dates to remember and celebrate. Just like he too has a reason to spoil yet another person, Mathilda, when he wants to.

“I thought of… kidnapping him for a day, taking him to our favorite places, eat his favorite foods… “ Mathilda speaks, excited. “And-- … “ “You want us to be… somewhere else that day?” Yuriy asks with a slight smirk. The smirk is quite natural as he´ s amused imagining how Mathilda would ´kidnap´ Sergei.

“N-no!” Mathilda exclaims, understanding what her friend means. If they want some more privacy, just for them. “Well, it would be nice but--… “

“I'm sure I can get Boris and Ian out of the house for one evening…” Yuriy continues to playfully tease her.

A low buzz in Yuriy´s pocket makes him reach down for his phone, looking at the screen for just a moment.“Sergei´s off work, he's coming to pick us up on the way home.” Yuriy is thankful as he would rather not get on the public transport again today.

Mathilda nods, clearly thinking time must have passed quickly today, as she too checks her phone. Red cheeks slowly return to a normal shade as her embarrassment fades. Mathilda had neglected her phone simply because she was focused on Yuriy today, and there's an unread message from Sergei there waiting for her. The blonde Russian must have texted Yuriy too, due to the lack of reply on Mathilda´s part.

Just like Yuriy calls Mathilda when he can't get a hold of Sergei.

“I'll go and buy something for the others!” Mathilda says, getting her wallet before walking away. Blue eyes watches her as she checks out the display of different treats. Yuriy can already see Ian grinning at the gesture, and Boris not reacting much but whatever Mathilda gets for him will get eaten before next morning. For once, Yuriy isn´t the first one to notice Sergei. Instead his eyes follow how Mathilda rushes over to him, bag of sweets in hand. Taking in how Sergei´s tall and stiff frame softens as he leans down towards her: listening attentively to whatever she's saying. Yuriy gets up from his seat and pulls on his coat slowly, unable to look away at the sight. They look happy. It warms him, from inside out. He gets Mathilda´s things for her before he moves towards the couple. A long exhale through the nose.

Not everyone is out to hurt them.

[zalrb]

tv rewatch: gg edition episode 12

so i actually did this review last night but then tumblr was tumblr so the page refreshed for no reason and deleted everything i wrote and i just closed the tab and went to bed because i was so irritated, so let’s see what happens now.

if they were being realistic they'd be doing some lines at this pool party.

also no school key is looking like that, i don't care how fancy the school is.

chuck looks like such a douche, lmao.

blair, you are yelling about chuck blackmailing you and avoiding nate in public space where nate is at, what is this teen wolf?

hmm, so chuck and blair only had sex the one time then? because he keeps mentioning the limo, he doesn't say that they've been having sex, but 'you lost your virginity to me' unless the show is just harping on blair's virginity and her being 'soiled' for nate, which is terrible but would not be surprising.

omg vanessa, GO. AWAY. how are you going to tell rufus to stop telling him to play guitar in his OWN house? did she annoy me this much in real time? lmao.

i like how they know the address to their school, i didn't know the address to any of my schools, i didn't know the address of any of my workplaces either until recently. one time at an old job a customer called and asked what the address to the store was and i was like uh let me check and i asked the other cashiers and no one knew. we just knew when to get off the bus.

the hit on the head is SO DRAMATIC.

also nate swimming over to show he's the good guy, that was a long swim, there was no one else closer?

what i do like about this episode is that it shows the kind of antics that serena would do pre-boarding school so we get another glimpse of what she'd do pre-dan, even though she isn't acting like the old serena there.

LMAO a TEN THOUSAND word essay? that's basically 35 pages on how they got to the party.

"look, blair, i know you have your sights set on yale." lol the details they remember about each other.

"she kissed you?? well, like, was she like ... into it?" lol, chuck.

lol chuck is the one doing something shady here but nate's delivery about how it's worth it to suffer for blair is so cringe, you sound like a douche, nate.

rufus be like SNITCH.

"but not enough to turn the g5 around" this whole class divide thing between rufus and lily, lily has her OWN money though, it's not like she's relying on bart to maintain a certain lifestyle, she can do that on her own.

blair should've just kicked vanessa out of her house, like vanessa doesn't actually have the right to be there?

"no, she needs that grant money..." LMAO, blair's face at that line is HILARIOUS.

idk why this came to me but blair and serena remind me of another version of leslie and ann.

"you wait here, i'll find us a quiet place to work." or he can just go with you? why would he need to wait? OH I KNOW, SO HE CAN HAVE THAT CONFRONTATION WITH CHUCK!

"poor little humphrey dumpty." lmao, chuck and dan do have fun scenes together though.

"i brought you this. it's a love letter." why hand it to her? it'd be more romantic if you mailed it or at least left it with the concierge. oh nate.

alsooooooooo dan is right. and dan being like i'm from a different world, on a partial scholarship and you have privileges i don't doesn't make him abusive to serena.

"actually, this is my footage" but she told you you couldn't film her, vanessa.

"from what i can see, you always seem to be towing the line of mediocrity, nathaniel" LMAO IT'S TRUE THO. i also love her implication that nate is too simple to do something as simple as break into the school.

even if vanessa was looking for a local arts grant to pay her rent, she'd still need to have blair sign a release especially since blair is a minor.

i rate vanessa for taking chuck's money and giving him a blank tape tho.

also the one genuine clue that dan could be gossip girl is when he calls vanessa 'v' in the episode before, if they did subtle shit like that throughout and also didn't make it impossible for dan to be gossip girl it would've worked.

showing lily's boredom with her current life was well-done.

"why didn't you tell me right away?" "because i didn't want you to judge me." "aren't we already beyond that?" no, dan, you're judging her right now, LOL.

"wait, thats why you were suspended? you told the headmistress that [the key] was yours because you thought it was mine? that's the most romantic thing anyone has ever done for me." really? more romantic than a boy who blackmails you and taunts you because he likes you so much and doesn't know how to articulate his feelings so he makes your life miserable?? -- trolls that was a joke

"i love you." "please, you and i just can't happen right now." "why not?" "i don't want to be with you." "good catching up." i know this was supposed to be heartbreaking but that exchange is HILARIOUS.

you know, i've said this before with lily, that the show doesn't frame her as the type of bad mom they want her to be and this is an example of that, there's dialogue about how she essentially puts her love life before her family and they do a good job of dialogue and action in the episode before when she says i want us to go somewhere just the three of us and serena says whenever you do that, you just want us to meet your next husband and she's right but the fact that lily won't follow her heart and be with rufus because of Serena’s high school relationship with dan doesn't show growth for lily at choosing her family first because we didn't see when she didn't, it just shows that she does take serena's needs seriously, she's just sarcastic when she does it.

"your file reads more like a rap sheet, you cut more sophomore classes than you attended, cheated on tests, talked back to teachers" i mean that's it? there isn't even any getting high on campus or showing up to class drunk?

"now this transaction is finished and i'm free to return to disliking you!"

vanessa came out on top this episode, she got free rent for a year and ten thousand dollars.

every time i see chuck i think of when eps said they thought ed westwick looked like a serial killer and they didn't know what to do with him at first.

lily is funny though, she could also just not marry bart.

ugh chaucer.

their study date is cute tho.

xoxo zalrb.

[cherries11]

Bonus - WitW cut scenes and notes

So, as with most writers, I have a lot of cut scenes. Writing the The Woman in the Woods, my word count on cut scenes has reached 20k. Although that's probably inaccurate 'coz I ended up putting some of it back in, either parts of it or whole paragraphs. But for Chapter 12, there were two scenes that almost made it to the final version.

If you haven't read my fanfic and plan to, please don't read this because this spoils not only part 1 but part 2 as well. Here's the link in case you're interested.

Oh, and to those who plan to re-read the whole thing, you might notice minor changes. Some are corrections, some are lines I accidentally deleted or realize later on that I've forgotten to put in...

...such as why Sasha was holding out on moving in with Saul (they agreed not to do anything rash for six months).

Scene 1 - Right after they kiss

Because Saul's still not well (very, very low blood), he gets lightheaded and takes a second.

“Just breathe,” Sasha said.

“I have to tell you something.” His head leaning on the couch, he tilted his face toward her. “And you have to remember that I’m convalescing right now.”

The smile on her face disappeared. “What?”

He took another deep breath and blew it out through his mouth. “I… saw you naked.”

She smirked at that. “Yeah, right.”

“I did.”

She then frowned. “How could you have—” and then she gasped. “You were awake!”

“I didn’t see a lot. Just calves, and legs,” he was quick to point out. “And ass—but very, very briefly.”

Her jaw was still on the floor, unwilling to pick it up.

“Should I have not told you?”

It seemed she didn’t hear. “If you were awake, then you were aware that I dropped blood in your mouth.”

“I thought it was a dream.” She didn’t look convinced.

“How briefly, really, did you see?” Maybe he didn’t answer fast enough that she slapped his arm and repeated louder, “How briefly?”

He muttered an ouch even though it didn’t hurt. “Like a second. Half a second!”

Sky then comes in the house and calls for "Maja". After Sasha responds with "Out here" this happens.

Then to him, she tilted her head. “A second, huh. Well, we can make it longer the next time.”

He was beaming at her when Sky emerged from the backdoor, who was visibly surprised at finding him there.

I ended up taking this scene out because, when I re-read it, it dragged the scene--the kiss was already a happy ending, though I really wanted to address her getting naked and Saul seeing that.

Scene 2 (Epilogue) - Farah's visit

One of the ideas I have for ending the story was for Sasha to say something like, "I think I'll open a school" (for witches). So the first draft of the epilogue begins with her jittery because she's about to give a two-hour lecture (which should culminate with her having confidence enough to maybe open a school). But as I was writing that, I realized that she's right to be jittery because she's declaring herself a blood witch, and the scope of what that would mean, standing there and doing that, I had to rethink because I was hoping the epilogue was just 1k and should just be light and fluffy. So, I thought it might be better if the lecture was just an idea she contemplates doing. Scene below is when Farah visits.

“What is it about? Should I be concerned?” Saul asked.

“No,” the fairy said, though she seemed to reconsider. Then, “No, I don’t think so.”

Saul frowned at her, just as Sasha came down.

“Oh, hi Farah,” she said while slinging on her backpack.

“I’m glad I caught you,” she eyed Saul, silently indicating that it was a private conversation. But he was unwilling to leave.

“Saul,” Sasha said, giving him a nudge to the ribs. “Come on, hun.”

The two women then sat on the living room while Saul made himself scarce by the kitchen, doing his best to overhear the conversation.

“I just have an idea I wanna run by you,” Farah began. “What do you think about giving a lecture, just two hours or longer if you like, about red witches.”

Sasha didn't expect this at all. Hearing this turned something inside of her dead cold with fear, just the idea of standing in front of a roomful of strangers and declaring that she was a blood witch. The last time she did that, her kind was wiped out.

Maybe reading where her thoughts went, Farah said, “You don’t have to say that you’re one. We can just say that you’re an expert on the subject. You’ve studied it all your life, their ways, their customs."

She was already shaking her head, seeing how this would be taken—what were her credentials? Her history? When the students go home, would they tell their parents about the “expert” who spoke so personally about these witches, and would they then hound the school for this lecturer? Also, what would it do to the school?

“I think it’s a bad idea, Farah.”

“I think it’s important that our students get informed as much as they could, especially about subjects where the common knowledge is just utterly wrong.”

Sasha blew out a nervous breath. Her hands had gone clammy and it was because this was the very thing that made doing it so tempting. But the repercussions attached to it, was it worth it? Would Alfea even be able to stand it? What if it destroyed the school?

She looked at the kitchen and, almost immediately, caught Saul’s eye. He had heard everything.

“Just think about it,” Farah placed a hand on top of hers.

She looked at it and just nodded.

“I do have a question,” she said just as Farah retreated her hand. “Have you found out what Rosalind meant? When she said my kind endanger this world?”

But the woman only shook her head.

When she left, Saul was back in the living room with Sasha still sitting on the couch.

“You should do it.”

Sasha chewed her lips and looked up at him, but didn’t say anything.

Then in the airport, the scene is the same as in the final version, but as they say goodbye, Saul mentions the lecture again and she just says she'll think about it. I stopped there, had a break, and was about to write the closing paragraphs but it just didn't sit well with me. I thought that even if it's something that's left hanging, something that a reader could decide on, the story still doesn't end with my original plan of her wanting to open a witch school. Also, even if it's left hanging, story-wise, the logical conclusion is that she does it because that's the brave thing to do. But doing it could legitimately put her in jeopardy and might actually destroy Alfea (I could imagine angry parents complaining about it, which includes royalty, and shutting down the school). It's an epilogue, and even if I'm not covering that part of the story, I didn't want it to be the last thing a reader thinks about.

So, I ended up cutting it all out and changing the purpose of Farah's visit. I thought it worked out much better because the epilogue should just focus on Saul and Sasha, and also hint that Saul has a better, more honest relationship with Sky.

Notes

I tend to not write any of my ideas down (I do that by writing the story already). But whenever I have a problem with a story, instead of using a digital notepad, I actually use pen and paper and write all of the questions I need answered and put in all answers I could think of (and why that won't work). I was doing that today for this other thing I'm writing (it's not a fanfic, sadly, but my main character is based off RJC), and found my notes from writing Part 2 of WitW. Since I'm making this post, thought it would be fun to include it too.

These were made after writing Ch 6. Yes, my handwriting is terrible. I think only I can read them. But if you're able to read them, then you must be a nurse (to those who aren't, nurses' handwriting aren't bad, but they read doctor's notes all the time). I was at this for a couple of hours. I think ch 7, 8, 9 are on point to what I ended up writing. Some changes in Ch 10, but epilogue is totally different.

tagging @astrid-v​, and thought you might be interested reading this too @kingunder221b​

[watching-pictures-move]

Put On Your Raincoats #24 | Midnight Heat (Watkins, 1983)

This review contains spoilers.

Roger Watkins' Midnight Heat opens with slow motion shots of Times Square in the winter. It's a drab, dismal sight, and the ominous music that plays over the footage sets the tone. A caption flashes onscreen. "Sex can become a weapon." It's a quote credited to Henry Miller. (Upon further Googling I suspect this might not be a real quote, but the movie had me fooled at the time.) We see Jamie Gillis, alone in a high rise apartment, looking contemplatively out the window. He receives a call about a job, which he accepts, albeit a little indignantly. There's a POV shot going down a corridor, bathed in atmospheric blue lighting, with occasional glimpses of a man in an office reading a newspaper. Gillis comes in through the door and pulls out of a gun. Freeze frame. The title flashes on the screen while a thunderous gunshot noise erupts on the soundtrack.

With these opening moments, Watkins introduces a level of violence and accompanying dread that hangs over the rest of the movie, wherein Gillis hides out in a seedy hotel, meditating over what led him to this moment. You see, Gillis is a hitman, and in his own image a pretty good one, but not one immune to making bad decisions. One of these bad decisions would be sleeping with the boss's wife. (In true mafia fashion, when the boss catches him, he plants a kiss firmly on his lips. "I'll be seeing you in the streets") Another bad decision would be porking the boss' daughter (with whom he was casually discussing T.S. Eliot) and then making a mid-coital phone call to let the boss know. But the OG of these bad decisions was what got him into his line of work in the first place, taking an ill-advised job after blowing a sizable amount of money at the track. You see, like the name of a certain Charles Bronson film series, Gillis both wishes death upon others (as part of his work) and has a death wish himself. "The more dangerous something is, the more we forget about everything else. Danger motivates people. Otherwise why bother."

But Gillis doesn't do this thinking all by himself. He has the company of a hooker, who perhaps is moved by Gillis, having encountered this form of professional violence in her personal life. And while there are genre expectations to be met, Gillis seems more interested in her company over anything else, perhaps to fill a void in his own life. They eventually reach a meeting of minds, even if it isn't terribly comforting to either one.

"You're afraid of dying aren't you."

"I haven't learned very much but I have learned on thing. Only someone in constant terror of of annihilation can experience life as it was meant to be experienced."

"And you're one of those men."

"Yes."

Watkins directed this the same year as Corruption, with which this shares Gillis in the starring role, cinematography by Larry Revene and a similarly fatalistic tone. I enjoyed the other movie quite a bit more, but I must admit at least some of that is due to the technical disparity of the versions I watched for each one. That one was on a snazzy Vinegar Syndrome Blu-ray, this one was on a blurry video-sourced transfer. In the other film, Revene does very precise things with underlighting and other techniques to create an oppressively chilly tone. Here I could grasp the impact of certain lighting and framing choices, but the low quality video image had a flattening effect on any precise flourishes present in the work. (One unintentional boon however was the way the dilapidated grey walls of the hotel room looked almost like fog thanks to the blurry transfer.) Even worse was the fact that the audio was just a bit out of sync, meaning that Watkins' more aggressive editing choices (switching between classical and porno-funk as he cuts between the street scenes and the sex) were thoroughly undermined.

Putting aside viewing conditions, I do think the other film is structured more engagingly so that the dread builds, although this one's inertia seems intentional, with the final moments driving home the purgatorial nature of the story. I think the other movie also bounces Gillis more effectively off of other characters (in particular, an almost demonic Bobby Astyr), whereas he only really has one person to play off here (Champagne, who I believe only has a few other credits, and whose IMDb page helpfully notes is not the same person as Phil Prince regular Cheri Champagne), although I did find her to be an intriguing screen presence. As for the sex scenes, Watkins had been frustrated that the ones in his earlier movies, which he delegated to producer Dave Darby, were too enjoyable for the raincoat brigade (despite making some very good films in the genre, he apparently didn't like it very much). I believe at this point (and certainly in Corruption), he'd taken over directing these scenes himself, although the effect is less consistent overall compared to the other movie. The flashback scenes are what I'd call conventionally enjoyable, despite the attempts to subvert them with cross-cutting, but the ones in the present are more potent, framed to have an isolating effect on the performers so that the sense of fatalism overrides any erotic impact. As for the climactic image, with Gillis' face contorted mid-thrust while the frame is flooded with red lighting, I appreciate the intention more than the end result. Anyway, I liked this less than the other films I've seen from Watkins and would like to see it in a better copy eventually, but it still has plenty of the qualities I enjoy about Watkins' work and is worth checking out if the idea of a hardcore mood piece tickles your fancy. And at less than seventy minutes, you can't lose.

[bangtancentricsblog]

part of the Smoke Clouds Series 

{adj.} (of a person or their behavior) unconventional and slightly strange

weird neighbor taehyung x grumpy mc

This is my second ever fic for Taehyung, it’s narrative heavy and comes in at around 2.8k and it’s the most I’ve written in a while! It was inspired by Stanley and Sydney’s relationship in Netflix’s ‘I Am Not Okay with This’. It’s unedited and has recreational drug use, Tae smokes weed, Mc has trouble making friends. Features weed dealer Jungkook, I wish I was as witty as I think I am and maybe this would’ve been funnier please let me know what you think! Let me know if I forgot to mention something.

Taehyung was weird, or maybe he was just a happy guy. Either way he made it his sole purpose to annoy you, well at least that’s what you thought. You’d moved into this neighborhood some two years ago, you hadn’t greeted anyone or even bother to introduce yourself. No, you weren’t the ‘I’m new in town and I made cookies’ kind of neighbor. That was the kind of shit people did when they wanted friends in their neighbors, but not you. No you weren’t that nice and you didn’t in fact care if you were friends with the neighbors. Hell you’d be happy if they never spoke to you, except for the fact that Taehyung had happily walked down the road and introduced himself to you. Again he was weird, long locks just hanging in his face as he smiled the weirdest box smile you’d ever seen. He’d been the one to bake something for you as a welcome gift, he didn’t even bat an eye as you said you didn’t want it. He’d only smiled and turned on his heel once again welcoming you to the neighborhood. It’d taken a moment, hands clutching the pyrex filled with cookies to realize he was sans shoes. He was weird. 

It had taken four months, that's right four of him running up to you whenever he’d see you down the street, mud caked to the soles of his feet as he took the shopping bags from you and carried them the rest of the way for him to worm his way into a friendship. It took him no time at all to ask if you wanted to get high with him, something that you had always turned your nose up at but had agreed bringing the snacks from the convenience store with you. The first time you smoke with him he shotguns it to ease you into it, it’s also the start of when you two casually kiss even if not for the benefit of sharing the high. His lips were soft and he was handsome if you took the time to really look and you did when you were high. Through him you meet his dealer, a boy by the name of Jungkook who lives a block from the convenience store you frequent when you're high. Taehyung takes to holding you around the waist when your mind is cloudy from the weed giggles slipping past usually cemented lips. He tells you that you smile more after you’ve smoked, a scowl settling on your lips while you’re still sober. It isn't something you like to think about especially since he’s just your friend. 

He was always smiling you note, even when you would angrily rant about how stupid he was for not wearing shoes when he got sick. He’d choked on his laugh, coughing as he told you how much he loved the feel of nature through his toes. You go to parties together, the people you meet are nice enough but none of them like you. Except for Jungkook with his bambi eyes and bunny smile who takes to holding your hand and dragging you around when Taehyung is busy with other people. You’re not jealous, because why would you be? You aren't his girlfriend and he has more friends than just you, he shouldn't have to sacrifice his fun to make sure you're enjoying yourself. Jungkook asks you if you want to smoke with him and you say yes, you’re taking a slow drag from the blunt when another person comes up and asks for a hit. You hand it over narrowing your eyes at the girl who’s standing beside you, she’s pretty dark head of hair shining in the moonlight her eyes twinkling with mirth as she meets your gaze. She introduces herself as Lisa, a friend of Jungkooks and you smile softly, she's nice enough she makes you laugh but you don’t see yourself becoming her friend. 

He’s wearing shoes the day he asks you why you hate people. He doesn’t ask to be mean and you don’t think he really cares all that much, he’s just curious. You’re brows furrow lips pressed in a firm line, quite honestly you don't want to tell him why. He doesn’t need to know and it’s been almost 8 months of your friendship so you don't want to see him change because of you. So you don't say anything and instead change the topic to Jungkook who you saw at the convenience store buying a large slushie and scowling at the microwave. He doesn’t ask again just laughs as he tells you how the other boy has been feuding with the thing since he was a kid. He shares some of his own childhood stories and they’re funny so you laugh but there’s no real humor to it. You two smoke later that day making out as you’re perched in his lap. The fuzziness of your brain lulling any of the thoughts that has managed to surface from your earlier conversation. 

You’ve been ‘friends’ nearly a year when you hurt his feelings. He didn't push really, never brought up why you hated people again. So you don’t really know why you reacted the way you did, he’d been standing in his yard (sans shoes but that was normal now) hands tucked into his pockets as Lisa giggled up at him. He smiled down at her that soft dopey smile he wore whenever he was higher than a kite. The one you had thought was reserved only for you, but maybe he was just that kind of guy. Sure you kissed and smoked together but nothing else has happened. He didn't call you his girlfriend and you didn't call him your boyfriend, you went to parties together sure but nothing happened. It was a stagnant, comfortable place, one that you had happily kept near and dear. One that you didn't think would ever be something you’d have to give up. You see him turn smile so wide as he catches sight of you and leaves Lisa to come join you down the road. You’ve come from the doctors today, and even though he doesn't know it's hard to not want to be mean to him. 

You hadn’t meant it, the words that had come from you burned like acid on your tongue. The look of utter hurt that crossed his features as you spat the nastiest things at him made you want to crumble. You’d managed to take all the things you liked about him and twist them into the most horrible things you could possibly think of. His smile had fallen eyes shining with tears as he looked at his feet suddenly shy and then nodded his head once before bolting away from you. Lisa had scowled at you as she walked past, shoulder checking you and calling you an asshole. You couldn’t have agreed more, so you continued your walk to your house mind rampant with thoughts of a weird boy with a box smile. 

It's been almost a month since you’ve last spoken to Taehyung, not that you would want to either if you were in his position. He avoids you as best as he can, you’ve seen him just up the road when you come from a late night walk to the convenience store. He looks tired, not much like himself, or at least the version of himself you know. You don’t go out much anymore either, Jungkook glares at you when he sees you and you understand. It’s not much but Jungkook was the only person that you actually liked and considered a friend besides Taehyung. It's considerably harder to get through the day, especially when you used to spend it smoking with Taehyung and Jungkook won't sell you any weed now that he also isn't speaking to you. All in all you miss your friends, the ones you made here in this new town that was supposed to be a new start. The sun is shining through the blinds in your living room as you lay on the couch the tv on but nothing catches your attention. The newest season of Castlevania plays and it's one of Netflix’s best animated shows yet, or at least to you it was. You had planned to watch it with Taehyung since you both shared an open admiration for Richard Armitage and his role as Trevor Belmont. You’re on episode eight which means you spent the entire time staring blankly at the screen none of what has happened enough to distract you from how badly you had fucked everything up. 

The pyrex from all those months ago sat on your kitchen table empty and clean ready to be returned but seemingly forgotten. You missed him, missed his dopey smile, his deep chuckle, the soft way he kissed you, the slow drawl to his voice when he was higher than a fucking kite. You missed Taehyung and you wanted to go back to how it was before you had burned down that bridge of friendship and maybe something else. You rose slowly, ass now firmly planted on the couch cushion as your hands rubbed at your jean clad legs. It took you a couple of minutes, well more like a few months but you’d come to a shocking conclusion. Taehyung, the same guy who almost never wore shoes, the one who smoked as much as he laughed. Taehyung whose boxy smile was the highlight of your day, who held you tenderly and kissed you softly. Taehyung who had introduced you to Jungkook, who loved animals and drank too much coke. Taehyung who you had been rude to upon introduction, but had baked you cookies anyways was quite possibly the best thing to happen to you your entire life, and you now had come to realize you were completely in love with. The same Taehyung who probably hated you, the one who you made cry and all because you had seen him smile at someone else. God you were the worst, you wanted to cry just thinking about all the mean things you had said. Maybe you could make it up to him somehow, maybe you could bake him something and show him how sorry you are and how much you miss him. 

Two hours later you’re pulling a less than appealing cake from your oven. It seemed simple enough on the box, so why the hell does it look like this. It's at this very moment that you realize that you are a terrible baker, and an even worse human.

“Oh god what the fuck.” you mutter hands on the counter as you wonder if he’ll like it. You suck it up and hope for the best, the worst that can happen is you fuck it up and he tell you he never wants to see you again. Guys like big gestures, right? To be honest you’re not entirely sure but you hope he does. You’re nervous as you wipe your hands on your jeans and make your way down the road to his house. Halfway there you stop turning back only to keep moving towards his house, its nerve wracking. Never had you had feelings like this for someone and never had you fucked up this bad. You’re standing in front of his door the paint looking just as it had almost a month ago. Except here and now he’s not standing there smiling down at you and inviting you in for your daily smoke session. It feels like forever just standing here now that you managed to sift through your thoughts and came to the conclusion that you had feelings for him. Yet you know nothing will change if you don't gather enough strength to make your limbs move and knock. 

A sound comes making your eyes grow wide as you realize that you’ve just knocked and are currently still knocking on his door. All the blood rushes from your face when you realize maybe now isn't the best time to try and reconcile with him. The sun is setting quickly and you haven't had enough time to prepare what you want to say to him. Your heart beats in your chest hard enough that you hope it bruises something, maybe then you’ll have time to thoroughly think this through. You’re ready to book it hands gripping tightly onto the pyrex container to make sure it doesn’t fall and break as you run for it, only you can’t run because the door opens. The light is low with Frank Sinatra floating softly through the air, your eyes are wide as they take in Taehyung. He's not smiling for one but his hair is longer curling at the ends and hanging in his face. He's wearing a black button up tucked into a very tight very appealing pair of black jeans, the top two buttons of his shirt are undone flashing that bit of caramel skin you loved seeing. 

He’s dressed like he went into the office today whereas he usually works from home and suddenly you feel all the more ready to flee. Though you see a glimmer of curiosity flicker through his gaze and that's what keeps you planted where you are. He quirks a brow and it's now that you notice the two of you have been standing awkwardly staring at one another. You clear your throat first before you thrust the pyrex container towards him and ducking your head. 

“I made this for you.” you breath the words so quietly you aren’t sure he even heard you. The container leaves your hands and you hear the lid come off followed by a distressed sound. You’ve taken to gnawing on your lip as you try to formulate other words. 

“What is this exactly?” 

“Devil's food cake, sorry if it tastes like shit its from a box.” 

“Oh,” he says sounding mildly confused and maybe because the half charred half undercooked treat is terrible. You still cant comprehend how the hell you managed to fuck it up like that “wow you are so bad at this.”and you perk up slightly because you can just barely make out a sliver of mirth in his tone. 

“I, I wanted to um, I uh, well…”you sputter trying your hardest to form a proper sentence. Though you notice you sound more like a bumbling babbling baboon. You meet his stare hoping that he knows, that he can tell what you’re trying to say. He has beautiful eyes you note, still trying to make your feelings known. He just waits patiently a small smile lining his lips the longer you stand trying to come up with the words to tell him. He watches as you gesture with your hands, opening and closing your mouth multiple times as your features slowly grow more and more frustrated. You’re huffing now scowl growing the longer you take to form words that will hopefully get your feelings across. Nothing comes, and you’re just about ready to cry and leave. Tears shine in your eyes blurring your vision a sob crawling its way up your throat in an attempt to flee. It doesn’t come however as Taehyung's warm palms cup your cheeks thumbs swiping just under your eyes and catching the tears that clung to your lashes. The pyrex container is out of sight as he leans forward pressing his lips to yours in a kiss. 

It's soft, softer than when you first kissed and softer than all the others after that. He slants his lips slightly kissing you with just the press of your lips and nothing more. It frees the butterflies in your tummy, and your hands come up to grasp onto his belt loops. Anything really that will reassure you that this is real, that he is here and he is real. He pulls away eyes meeting yours once more, “I’m sorry,” you say and he smiles pressing his forehead to yours “i didn't mean any of what i said. I want you to know that.” 

“I know, and it's okay.”

“It's not, I’m sorry. I never want to hurt you like that.” you whisper now tears filling your eyes again. 

“I know, and i already forgave you.”

“I like you.” you blurt wishing you had waited. His eyes crinkle as his box smile kisses his lips, he pulls away hand turned up in an offering for you to take. 

“Do you want to come in and smoke?” You take his hand nodding and walking in behind him. Your perched on his lap two hours later arms wrapped around his neck mind blissfully fuzzy from the weed. His lips are soft, and he’s just as beautiful as you remember, his arms are around your waist holding you close as you take your time kissing him. He groans every now and then when you take to nipping at the skin of his neck, eyes hazy with that far away he gets. You’ve pulled away from his neck taking in a blooming blemish that’ll be vibrant come morning when he says, “I like you too.” mouth already quirked in a smirk when he sees your eyes shine as you pull him into another kiss that's too much tongue and teeth but perfect.

✧✧✧✧✧✧

taglist:

 @boymeetsweevil look I did something and even if it’s unedited I really like it!

[ask-ivory]

RWBY Random Rant #2!

What villain is the best? (Cinder vs Roman)

Second rant everyone! This one may be a bit longer than the first, so if you don't have time but find this interesting, then I suggest reading this later. If you have infinite time on your hands and your board, then this might help depending on your interests. So let's jump into today's rant!

So, the world of Remnant is a big place. There, you'll find friendly people, weird people, mean people, and people who are just flat out crazy. But today, we're looking at a certain group of people: Villains. Now before we jump in to the blender of craziness, this post is an analysis that can be used for predictions and plot lines. I may be wrong, but I'm writing this off of what I know.

Anyways... Let's start with the basic question, What IS a villain? A villain (or for the more technical term: antagonist) is a character who is trying to stop the hero (or protagonist) from accomplishing his or her goal. Either this, or they're trying to get something and the hero is trying to stop them because what the villain wants is wrong. This is the loosest definition, so you can imagine that this goes way deeper than you think.

There are some things that you need to ask and have answered before you confirm who is the villain in a story. Some of which includes the following:

Who is this guy? (Basic background)

Why is he or she interested in this scenario? (Could this benefit to their cause?)

Why are they doing this? (If so, then why?)

So if we take this and try and apply it to the "villain" we can tell if this is a VILLAIN. Another important thing to note is the quality of the character. What sort of events cause the villain to act like this, and why?

Well, when we're talking RWBY, then villains come in different shapes and sizes. Some villains are immature, and others have experienced enough pain and defeat to know exactly what will work to achieve their goal and/or stop the hero. Then you have the peeps in the middle who aren't as overwhelming as the big baddie, but have enough common sense to know what's going on, what needs to be done, and why they're doing it.

So I'mma gonna start at the bottom of the rainbow and work my way up to the best colors. I'll also be rating these characters on a scale of one to ten. I won't do everyone. Let's start with the entire fandom's LEAST favorite character.

Cinder Fall

Stars: 0/10

Now if I was a writer for the show, I think the most interesting thing that could happen to Cinder is if she just dropped dead. That's how bad she. Literally. Now, what makes her so disgusting? There are two answers.

She did horrible things. Like hacking the communication towers (With help from Watts, of course), making the people at the Vytal Festival Tournament doubt the leaders of Vale, and, to top it off, KILLED Pyrrah and Ozpin.

But these are the actions a normal villain would do, so what really makes her Terrible? The second answer has the reason.

2. She's a poorly written character with a lack of depth are perception.

I have no idea what made the writers want to make Cinder a hated character, but whatever did worked really well. Honestly, it's like Roosterteeth did the opposite of what Disney did to Cinderella. But when I say she lacks depth, I mean there is nothing that makes her character any good. She's also one of the biggest mysteries in the show, and I don't mean that in a good way. Here are some of the questions that I often ask about her:

Why does she want power?

Does she want to rule the world?

Why does she wear an outfit that's guaranteed to help her freeze to death?

Does she want to kill Salem?

Why doesn't she learn from her mistakes?

WHY THE HECK DOES SHE EVEN EXIST?!?!?!

Well, after some examination, I found out something shocking. She is just a plot device. She may talk and act evil, but in reality, she's just there so that the characters have something to worry about. She has nothing that makes her good, or relatable. To add to that, she's like the Grimm, all she does is attack and kill and if she loses, she DOESN'T reflect on her actions, and she DOESN'T try to fix her mistakes. She just goes back into the fight with the same strategy as before. If the main protagonists studied Cinder's basic movement, then they would be able to take her down, no doubt.

Can Cinder be saved? The answer is no. I bet that, judging from the road she's going down, her strategy will be her ultimate end.

Hazel Rainheart

(I may have spelled his name wrong. Sorry.😁)

Stars: 2/10 ☆☆

Now Hazel is a bit more interesting. Unlike Cinder, he has a reason he's on the side he is now, but like everyone, he has his flaws. He lets his anger get the better of him, and he's quick to judge. But the real reason why he's not so good is because of his reasoning. His sister died on a training mission because SHE chose to become a huntress. But Hazel takes all of his anger out on Oscar and Ozpin just because he (Ozpin) was the headmaster of Beacon, and let her into the school in the first place.

And I gotta say, this reasoning is understandable, but it's still dumb.

But there is something that makes Hazel a huge threat to the heros: his semblance of pain nullification. This gives him the ability to block out pain. And I kinda get where it comes from.

When his sister died, he was broken. She was probably the only family Hazel had, and when she was killed, he wanted to block out the emptiness, the grief, the pain. Thus his semblance was unlocked and he could no longer feel pain. This ability is probably how his aura charges up so quickly. If pain can block aura from charging, then he has the tools to be a force to be reckoned with. The only downside is that just because he can't feel pain doesn't mean that he's not hurt.

Can Hazel be saved? Maybe. But if he goes on a redemption arch, then he will probably die. But that doesn't mean that he's a lost cause. There's still plenty of things that can be added to Hazel's character to make it better. But at the present, he could be better.

Adam Taurus

Stars 2/10 ☆☆

This character is relatively horrible. In fact, he's worse than Hazel!

But the thing is, he's like Hazel in a special way: he has a tragic past. Certain events that wreck a kid's childhood can scar them for life. Adam was discriminated for his faunus traits, and this set him on a path of revenge that would be his bitter end.

He was a threat, but small compared to the real one. His semblance made him very dangerous, but it also makes sense. To be more specific, his semblance is, what I like to call, absorption of impact (or for the EruptionFang version, moon slice). This gives him the ability to absorb any damage done by the enemy into his blade, then release it back at a more powerful rate. This can cause devastating damage to both the enemy and the environment. As for why he had this semblance is pretty basic once you think about it.

Adam desired to get back at those who mistreated him. He wanted them to feel his pain, but a lot more extreme. He wanted them to feel what he felt, but worse.

Adam had a lot of potential, but, well when you get stabbed in the back, it's not easy to get back at your enemies. Over all in terms of writing, the thing that would've made him better was a better understanding of what he went through.

Tyrian Callows

Stars 4/10 ☆☆☆☆

If Adam wasn't crazy enough for you, then Tyrian's your go to guy.

I think that Tyrian is insane enough to join Salem, but has enough sense to know how to kill. He's kinda tough to figure out, but thanks to some much needed information in Volume 7, we now know a bit about Tyrian's past.

Tyrian was a mad man killer on the continent of Anima but was captured. He was then rescued by Salem and her Grimm. Since he's mad he owed his life to her ever since.

He's mad, so there's no bad excuse. And to add to that, he is flat down dangerous. His semblance is the ability to cut through aura, making him a hard to beat.

Can Tyrian be saved? Not really. The only way to kill him is for someone to fall victim to him while another strikes the killing blow.

Doctor Aurthor Watts

Stars: 5/10 ☆☆☆☆☆

Alright. Here we go!

Watts is very interesting. That's saying alot. Now that we have more information on him, it's easier to see why he wants to screwer Ironwood.

He was an Atlasian scientist who went against Pietro in the effort to make something great for Atlas. While Watts helped write the Atlas security code, Pietro found that the best inspiration is found inside. That was were Penny was created. Watts was disgraced and faked his death. Then Salem found him and he joined her group to get both revenge on Ironwood and respect from Atlas. Though he is clearly unaware of what Salem's true plans are.

He is a wiz when it comes to technology. Besides that, I believe he has some experience with combat. His semblance could have something to do with technology, but we're still figuring that out.

Can Watts be saved? Writing wise, maybe we can get more details about Watts in the final episodes. He's not a lost cause when it comes being a more interesting villain.

Story wise though? He's a dead man.

Salem

Stars: 6/10 ☆☆☆☆☆☆

Yes, I didn't save her for until the end.😼

Now from the writer's point of view, Salem's backstory has been completely fleshed out. It's pretty complicated so I won't go into details. But from that alone, Salem's actons make sense. As a prisoner of life, she yearns to be free. She wants to die. And she believes that the only way to do this is to divide humanity and summon the gods in there darkest hour. Then the gods destroy the world and Salem is free. She doesn't care about the people she is hurting. She hates humanity and wants to destroy everything. But above all, she wants to get permanent revenge on her ex Ozma (or Ozpin or Oscar). She wants him to die and stay dead when millennia ago she made great sacrifices to try bringing him back from the dead.

Now she has nothing to show for it except endless years of war, hatred, and suffering. There is some relation that one can have with Salem. If anyone who is reading this tried to do something for someone you cared about, but got nothing to show for it in return, then that's what Salem would be feeling. And this has caused her to spiral into madness. She is the purest definition of crazy.

Can Salem be saved? It depends at this point. Story wise, most likely not.

Emerald and Mercury!

Stars for them both 7/10 ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

These two are going to be paired in honor of their beloved ship: Emercury.

Both characters have tragic pasts, so that gives them some common ground, but both are looking for something different. Emerald is looking for love, the one thing that she never had in her entire life. Mercury is looking for a purpose in life, a way to make himself Worthy of greatness. He claims that Cinder recruiting him was just destiny.

Both of these peeps are incredibly good at what they do. Both can fight better than the members of team CFVY.

Emerald's semblance is Perception manipulation, which makes perfect sense in her case. In a very special case, her semblance is similar to Adam's. She wants others to see what she sees, Emerald wants people to see how alone she is, and just how much she needs family. Her semblance is an incarnation of her desire. And she uses it to make people see what she wants them to see.

Mercury's semblance is currently unknown at this time. But we do know that his semblance was stolen by his father. After killing him, Mercury probably got his semblance back, but lives under the illusion that it's still gone.

Mercury grew up in an abusive household, under the guard of a murderer. He was tortured everyday by his father.

Emerald grew up on the streets.

Basically, these characters are well written, and both have great potential as well. There's even some hope of a redemption Arch for these two, and possibly some romance.

Can Emerald and Mercury be saved? Writing wise, yes. More trauma and info can definitely help. Story wise? Hopefully, yes.

Roman Torchwick

Stars: 9/10 ☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆

Time for the classics!

This charming young schemer has been the first character in the actual show. Fans everywhere love him, and will often mark him as the best villain. Honestly, I have nothing against it. But for the sake of this post, let's break down this lovely character and examine his awesomeness.

Roman's origin is currently unknown, but maybe we'll get some light cast on it with Neo's backstory as well. Many believe that he is somehow connected to Brunswick Farms, and it's still a possibility that has yet to be ruled out.

Roman is a good fighter and a master mind behind the underground crime rings of Vale. By himself, he is a relatively good fighter. Though his semblance has yet to be determined, he has his own Roman candle.

Another aspect of this character that won the hearts of fans is his charming personality. I mean, who can blame him? Though his death was sudden, and unfair, his handsome face will live on in the hearts of many.

Neo Politan

Stars: 10/10⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The star of the show, folks!

Neo made her big enterence in Volume 2 episode 4 Painting the Town, and ever since has been one of the most popular characters in the entire show. If you break down Neo's character based on what we know, then it's actually really interesting. Let's scoop ice cream!

Neo's backstory is unknown, but we're hoping to have some light shed on the subject. Based off of the song "One Thing", we can tell that Neo's backstory is tragic in some way. She lost everything except for Roman. And she is willing to fight to protect Roman from the death. How do I know?

Her semblance is called illusions by many, but Unicorn of War calls it Mirrors, which I think is the most accurate. Her semblance gives her the ability to reflect her opponent's attacks upon themselves, and she can change her appearance right down to her hair and eye color.

What does any of this have to do with protecting Roman? She will use Any means necessary to protect what little she has left, and to her, that one thing is enough. She Will change her identity as many times as possible, and she often gets away with it. But she is so fierce in protecting that during a fight, any pain that the enemy can dish out to her dumdum would make her determined to kick her opponent's butt. She would give them a taste of their own medicine and literally reflect their attacks upon themselves.

She is a reflection of protection. And like that reflection she represents, she says not a word, but shows people how exactly they can hurt the one she loves.

After Roman's death, Neo Politan is determined to reflect her loves justice upon the true enemies. If you can't face yourself, then you can't face Neo.

So, there you have it, villains everywhere.

Be sure to reblog if you found this interesting!

If you have questions, then ask away!😁

[whatissleepeven]

Okay, but -

I stan Caster Cú with the Alter Archer from Singularity F in Fate/Grand Order. I stan a lot of things, actually, but this one...

THIS ONE...

JUST -

HEAR ME OUT -

Caster! Cú: *Watching the other Servants interact at Chaldea*

Caster! Cú: *Zeroing in on Lancer! Cú and EMIYA's conversations*

Caster! Cú: ...Some things never change, do they?

He misses his own boi, his own version of Archer, and feels isolated from everyone else as a result. Then again, he's a more mature version of Cú, so he's also a reserved person. This is where he differs to his Lancer counterpart, who symbolizes Cú's battle-filled and glory days with Gaé Bolg by his side. Caster! Cú is very much a realist, but he has no trouble setting aside his own values if that's what it takes to help someone grow as a person. Likewise, if he feels that someone's out of line, he would lay down the cold truth before attempting to comfort them in his own way. Going back to the chat above, Caster would be jealous of Lancer's and Archer's dynamics because he doesn't have his Archer to do anything with. They understood each other on a deeper level than he thought was possible, and they were (to an extent) comrades.

(All in all, Caster just misses his boi)

Moving on -

Gudako: Hey, Caster, I noticed that you've been a little distant lately, so I went ahead and -

Caster! Cú, sighing: What did you do this time, Master?

Gudako, nervous: I, uh -

Alter! EMIYA: ... *Steps around the corner and sees Caster, eyes widening*

Caster! Cú, whispering with his eyes wide in shock: ...Archer...?

What if Caster blamed himself for not doing enough for EMIYA during the Grail War, and wasn't as unbothered as he seemed? In any timeline, Cú and EMIYA are rivals, but they have such a great dynamic that it's hard NOT to ship them together. The Singularity Version could leave them both with lingering regrets, which would push their rivalry to develop into something...more. And with Gudako acting as a wingwoman, Caster finally gets to see his Archer again and is...

So...

SOFT

LIKE -

Caster now just...lights up whenever he sees Alter! EMIYA because he's someone who went through the same terrible Grail War with him, traded blows with him, maybe even fought a common foe together before Archer became corrupted. Archer, in turn, is just...so relieved to see that Caster's alright, and that he didn't get corrupted, because while he himself is and has some disturbing thoughts he still has some humanity left, some semblance of his last self before becoming corrupted. Since they come from the same Holy Grail War, it was only natural for him to stick close to Caster.

And here's another head canon!

Caster! Cú: Is there anywhere particular in Chaldea you want to see, Archer?

Alter! EMIYA: ...Anywhere's fine. Be there, too.

Caster! Cú:

So my next head canon is that Alter! EMIYA has been learning how to use his vocal chords again with Fate/Stay Night UBW! EMIYA just so he could talk to Caster again. Granted, he can't talk for long yet, but the first time he does to Caster the other is just...so...floored that he kinda forgets how to speak himself. All Alter really wants is to spend time with Caster, so he's fine going anywhere with him. (He doesn't realize this is love yet until much, much later, when Fate/Stay Night UBW! EMIYA has to point it out to him.)

And their outings...oh my god -

They're at quiet places. Caster does most of the talking, which is a little unusual for him but he's fine with that, because he knows that Alter! EMIYA is listening. He's always listening to his thoughts, his ideas, and even to his offhanded comments.

And when Caster falls silent...

The serenity of the quiet surrounding them isn't even overpowering. Nothing is awkward about it, either; it's gentle and supportive, amicable. It's common for other Servants to almost (key word almost) walk in on their quiet moments, but they quickly turn in the other direction to let them have their peace.

There's no bickering between them, no insults, no fights...

Just quiet acknowledgement and understanding.

Caster! Cú: Say, Archer...Thanks for this.

Alter! EMIYA: ...Same for you.

- And this is where I end this before it gets to be too long, but I hope you guys enjoyed my head canon(s)! Sorry about the formatting, too...

If you want to discuss this more, I'm open to talk at any time!