#and then it could have led to her passing the torch (or stone if u will) down to paya to take her place and help link and co

[its--ali]

Hm. HM.

[dherzogblog]

songs/20

Happy Holidays Everyone! I started making these yearly playlists in 2001 as an attempt to connect with friends in the wake of 911. It was just before the dawn of ITunes, and way before social media. We were not in touch like we are today. I burned dozens of individual cd’s one at a time, printed up customized jewel case covers and snail mailed them all out. It was an annual month-long labor of love. Over the past few years, streaming music has made it much easier and faster to compile and distribute, and frankly much more fun. I still look forward to putting the playlist and blog together and sharing it with all of you. Particularly this year as it gives me a chance to connect with so many friends I haven’t seen in quite some time. It was a tremendously challenging year for all of us. I was grateful to have had my family here in LA the entire time, we remain healthy and well. The west coast Herzogs know just how lucky we have been. The next year will not be without its own challenges, but I'm hopeful we are able to move past this pandemic and the exhausting events of the past 4. More than that, I look forward to seeing each and every one of you in 2021. Until then, be safe, be well, and be good to one another. Enjoy the music.

ox peace, dh

Los Angeles CA. December 2020

Khruangbin - Time (You And I) Don’t ask me to pronounce the name of this eclectic trio from Texas, but this dubby disco tune had me returning to its chilled out groove often during the last few decidedly “un-chill” months. Dreamy and funky, the groove takes me back to NYC’s early 80′s club scene and Ze Records releases from the likes of Kid Creole and Coati Mundi.

Anderson .Paak- Lockdown Scenes from the front, June 2020

.

Bill Withers (1938-2020)- Use Me The legendary Bill Withers left the playing field at the top of his game in the early 80′s, hardly heard from again. And while he didn't pass from Covid, his healing pop hymn Lean On Me seemed to be everywhere as people found music to help them cope with the challenges of the pandemic. Withers left behind a legendary and enduring group of hit songs that moved easily from soul to folk to pop, not to mention the subtle rolling funk of this one.

Black Pumas- Fire Strong debut from an unlikely Austin duo that garnerd both buzz and grammy nods. The critics are calling it “psychedelic soul”. Not quite sure that nails it, but like the artists coming up next, they’re carving out new ground while drawing inspiration from classic sources.

Gabe Lee- Babylon

Marcus King- Wildflowers and Wine

Charley Crockett- Welcome to Hard Times

Three artists that are literally changing the face of Country and Americana music. Soulful, authentic and diverse, reaching back for inspiration but always looking forward. If you like this sort of stuff they are all worth checking out. Each album is filled with quality songs.

Low Cut Connie_ Private Lives Philly’s Low Cut Connie are back at it with a double album that plays like the soundtrack to a boozy night at your favorite bar. Sweaty, funky and not a little bit messy. If Peter Wolf and Bruce had a kid it would be this blue eyed soul boy. Adam Weiner grew up in the shadow of the Jersey shore and can't help but have a bit of that E Street hustle.

Willie Nile- New York at Night One of New York’s beloved adopted  son’s dropped this love letter right into the jaws of a battered metropolis driven to its knees by the pandemic. It was heartbreaking to listen as the “city that never sleeps” came to a full stop. Somehow I still found myself coming back to it, imagining night’s ahead, when NYC is back on its feet and I’m roaming its streets. Looking for music, a beer, or maybe just a slice, and fueled by the irreplaceable energy and promise of the greatest city on earth.

The Long Ryders- Down to The Well Americana pioneers the Long Ryders reunited last year for a surprisingly solid album. This single sounds like it could have been recorded during their 80′s heyday featuring their trademark Byrds like jangle and harmonies, but the lyrics mark this song as unmistakably 2020.

The Speedways- Kisses Are History UK power pop outfit reach back to the the 60′s on this sweet slice of retro pop perfection.

Billie Joe Armstrong- That Thing You Do

In the early days of the pandemic we had all our kids (+ a significant other) at our house for a few months. It worked out great and we were luckier than most. The biggest issue was keeping enough food, weed and wine around.  There were some great nights with amazing meals, followed by gathering around the TV together. We re-watched The Sopranos, binged Billy On The Street, and revisited some of our favorite movies. One night we went back to a old family favorite, Tom Hanks’ underrated love letter to the one hit wonders of the post Beatles era, That Thing You Do!  I’ve seen the movie several times and it never fails to please. A true feel good film and a perfect Kodak snapshot capturing a simpler time in American pop culture. 

While we watch the unlikely chart topper’s The Oneders  fizzle as fast as they rose to fame, its not really the point. The movie is really an old fashioned love story. Playing like a perfect hit song you can listen to over and over, full of both hooks and heart. I always thought the title track, written by Fountains Of Wayne leader Adam Schlesinger  (who we lost to Covid), brilliantly captured the British Invasion sound every group wanted after The Beatles stormed America. Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong must agree. During the pandemic he cut an album’s worth of cool covers including a faithful version of this one.

Gerard Way (W/Judith Hill - Here Comes the End A tale of discovering music in 2020:  Heard this on a Netflix trailer for the series The Umbrella Factory. Turns out it is performed by Gerard Way (My Chemical Romance) who also writes the comic book the series is based on. (got all that?) He’s joined on this searing garage/psych rave up by the talented and versatile Judith Hill doing her best Merry Clayton.

Hinds- Spanish Bombs I’ve been following this Madrid based, all female outfit of punky garage rockers for a few years now. I think they are pretty great. This track, recorded for a Joe Strummer tribute bursts with an unbridled joy the stone faced and politically minded Clash could never muster. I bet Joe would love it though

The Secret Sisters- Hand Over My Heart Have enjoyed their harmonies for some time now. This one gives me vague Wilson Phillips vibes and I don’t really mind. 

Tame Impala- Breathe Deeper I know I’m supposed to like this guy, all the cool kids do, I’ve even seen the band at Coachella. Over the years very little of the music has stuck to me, but the pandemic offered a bit more free time to dig into this funky dubby, chilled out jam, and it stuck with me. Not to mention that 2020 was all about deep breaths.

Ledisi (feat.Corey Henry)- What Kind of Love Is That Ledisi is back with some slinky, sultry R&B and jazzy vocals

Dinner Party- FreezeTag An R&B/Jazz collective featuring Terrace Martin, Robert Glasper, 9th Wonder and Kamasi Washington use sweet soul on heartbreaking and all too familiar tale..

Toots and The Maytals- Time Tough  I’ve written an awful lot about my love for Reggae over the years. Right after Bob Marley kicked the door down for me, Toots showed me around the house. Ska, rock steady, and roots. He was true reggae royalty and sadly we lost him to Covid, just after he released what would be his last album. Check my Toots tribute blog and playlist.

Mungo’s Hi Fi- The Beat Goes SKA! These clever UK roots reggae collective never fail to surprise. This kitschy Sonny & Cher cover managed to make me smile every time I heard it. No mean feat in 2020

Stone Foundation (feat. Durand Jones)- Hold on To Love Frequent collaborators with Paul Weller  (he appears on a track on the album), Stone Foundation are back with another batch of their UK soul revival stylings. This one features Durand Jones ( of Durand Jones & The Indications) on vocals and some great reggae style horns at the top.

The Pretenders- You Can’t Hurt A Fool Can’t resist a good torch song, especially sung by the smokey voiced Chrissie Hynde. Was kind of shocked at how many good songs were on this album.

Shelby Lynne_ Don’t Even Believe in Love Sultry country soul and one of her strongest albums in awhile.

Jaime Wyatt- Neon Cross Outlaw country has a new bad girl. And in case you didn’t think she was serious, she enlisted producer Shooter Jennings (and his mom Jessi Colter on one track) to help make her point. 

Daniel Donato- Justice 25 year old guitar prodigy call his music “cosmic country”.  Ok, now I’m listening. You should be too.

The Jayhawks- This Forgotten Town 30 plus + after their debut this Twin Cities alt country group led by founding member Gary Louris continue to deliver. They find their inner Neil Young on this one.

Lucero- Time To Go Home God I wish I was in a bar right now listening to this, even if I might be crying in my beer.

John Prine (1946 -2020)- Lake Marie We lost so many this year, but this one really stung. A true American songwriting treasure, who was still making great music against all odds right up to his untimely passing. His songs are known for their simplicity, and economy of words. but this one goes against the grain. I’m still not exactly certain what it’s about. Sorrowful and haunting, yet somehow uplifting and redemptive. I heard him perform it live here in Los Angeles a just over a year ago and it has stuck in my head ever since. There is surely a place in heaven for the great John Prine.  He sang about it on his final studio album in 2018. Ironically it became the last song on his last record.

Thanks for making it this far....

***Play the entire songs/20 Spotify playlist HERE!***

[crystallized-iron]

Promised Love Chapter Thirty-Five

Masterlist

Word spread through the mansion like fire, the servants all working in silence as they mourned Sarah’s passing. The sun began to rise again at dawn, but there was no morning cheer, no smiles, no good natured chatter.

Bucky still held onto Steve’s hand, his husband having finally fallen asleep beside his mother’s bed. After locking up Aldrich, he had been informed that the woman that always reminded him to call her ‘mother’ had lost her fight, and he had found Steve here alone with her. He didn’t know where Tony was. He wanted to look for him because they should be together now, but he couldn’t leave Steve like that. Even now, his husband’s cheeks were stained with fallen tears.

Finally allowing himself to sit on the floor, Bucky stretched out his aching legs, making sure to keep Steve’s hand in his. There was no way he could leave on a mission now. The Commandos would either have to wait, or James would need to take command, and he knew that James distrusted Natasha, but she was a valuable guide, even if a bit quick to kill. Bucky didn’t like it either, but what else could they do? Go in completely blind?

With a heavy sigh, Bucky wondered what they were going to do.

***** ***** *****

The usually neglected dungeon downstairs was lit by a single torch near Aldrich’s cell, illuminating the cold stone floor and the cobwebs outside of the darkest corners. Aldrich avoided them, staying against the bars so he could at least see when, or even if, anyone came down.

He had a visitor sooner than he expected, and instead of Steve or Bucky, it was the young Tony Stark, electroshock weapon in hand. Aldrich eyed him cautiously but made no move, unsure of the other’s motives.

“You work for Pierce…” Tony stated, his voice low as he aimed the weapon at the other’s face.

“Not for long…” Aldrich admitted.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean the man is old,” Aldrich explained. “He may think he’ll live forever, but it’s a fool’s dream.”

“And after he’s gone, what did you plan to do? Continue kidnapping children? Forcing them into murder?”

“That’s not something I do.” Aldrich moved off the bars, turning to face Tony properly. “I’m more behind the scenes.”

“Wouldn’t training them be considered ‘behind the scenes’?” Tony questioned, finger itching to pull the trigger.

“Maybe,” Aldrich said with a shrug. “But I’m further in the back than that. I can tell you that their trainer is a former mass murderer himself, though. Of course Pierce would hire the best. How else can he promise such a good job, right?”

“Keep rambling and I’ll electrocute your face,” Tony threatened.

“Do you really have it in you?” Aldrich taunted. “You’re too nice for that, right?”

“Shut up.”

“Maybe that’s why you don’t know anything about what’s going on. You’re far too innocent to be with those two.”

“I’m warning you…”

Aldrich grinned, watching how Tony’s hand shook. “You won’t do anything to me.”

He hated it. Tony hated how true the man’s statement was. Even after everything that had been happening, to have one of those monsters right in front of him where he could actually do something, and yet… he couldn’t.

Tony lowered his arm, only to hear Aldrich’s laughter, so with a quick aim to the man’s body, Tony did pull the trigger, the electricity shooting out and shocking Aldrich. The man yelped and leapt away from the bars. Dropping his arm to his side once more, Tony gave him a glare and then left, going back up the stairs.

He felt exhausted.

Walking through the hall, he stopped when someone touched his arm, glancing at them. “Pepper…”

“Hey,” she said. “I saw you coming from… Are you okay?”

“Yeah. Yeah… I thought you went to bed.”

“I had, but… with everyone talking about Lady Rogers…” Pepper shook her head while she bit her lip. “I can’t believe she’s gone…”

“Neither can I…” Tony whispered. He handed the weapon to her. When she gave him a questioning look, he replied, “Hold onto it. In case there’s anyone else around here that can’t be trusted, I want you to be safe. Please.”

“Okay… Thank you, sir.”

“Please don’t call me sir, it’s Tony.”

“Of course, thank you, Tony,” she corrected, a small smile on her lips. “Are you going to your husbands now?”

“No. Actually, I have a question for you.”

“What is it?”

“Do you know where the Howling Commandos were going next?” he questioned her.

“No, I don’t, they don’t tell me stuff like that.”

“I know,” came a voice from nearby.

Tony looked and saw Peggy in her evening gown. “No time to dress, Miss Carter?”

“Steve has seen me in less,” she countered, approaching the two. “Besides, I am not the one you would be interested in.”

“Fair point…”

“Now why do you want to know where the Commandos were going?” she inquired.

“In case I know the target,” he explained. “Maybe I can give some advice, maybe I can find something about them in my father’s old records…”

Peggy thought it over, unsure if it was a good idea, but at the same time being Steve and Bucky’s spouse, she felt he did have a right to know, even if the two told him just about nothing about anything. “Alright,” she told him, “his name is Ivan Vanko, son of Anton Vanko. Anton worked with Howard, once upon a time.”

“So my father knew him…”

“Howard cut ties when he learned Anton was doing deals with Pierce,” Peggy said. “Your father would never knowingly work with someone that had connections to that man.”

“You know a lot about him… Howard, I mean,” Tony observed. “I have a feeling I don’t want to know why.”

“Some things are better to not know about,” she murmured.

“So where would one find Ivan Vanko?”

“I think he’s just outside one of the nearby cities, but I don’t know which one.”

Tony gave it a moment of thought. “I have an idea then, thank you, Miss Carter; have a good evening, Pepper.” He turned and began walking away from the women.

“Wait, Tony, what are you planning?” Pepper wanted to know as they caught up to him.

“Nothing dangerous,” he sighed. “I was going to head to my room and find my trunk, look for a map maybe, get prepared so that I can actually help them when they’re ready to head out again.”

“Is that really it?” Peggy wondered.

“Yes, that’s really it,” he assured her.

The women looked at each other, deciding to believe him. “In that case, go to your husbands first?” Pepper suggested.

“I’ll go there after I get things ready. I promise.”

“Alright. They need you, you know.”

“Thank you.”

As they finally let Tony go, he went to the staircase that led to the bedrooms, climbing up. At the top, he peeked over at the shut door to his husbands’ bedroom where Dummy was staying with U’s remains on their bed. He didn’t want to see them right now, stepping into the bedroom that had been his before he decided to move into theirs. He saw the trunk on the floor, but went right past it and to the window instead, opening it. The cool morning air breathed against his face and he opened the window wider, enough for him to fit. He never thought he would need to do something like this since he was young and trying to avoid his father, but he felt this was necessary, and he climbed out the window, slowly making his way down to the ground below.

Once his feet hit the grass, he hurried off the property, getting to the street without issue. Hailing a carriage, he got inside and finally looked back at the home he was leaving. His heart ached over disappearing on them at such a horrible time, but it had to be done.

*** ~ *** ~ *** ~ *** ~ ***

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[castlehead]

beauty seems to be really funny most of the time and i like dat.

this idea that sends pop definitions of beauty running for the hills makes for some

quality distance, if only one step back.

what if i had any idea who i was but could see into everybody else

phone home cheeky cosmic touch m8 gonna think this is too easy

yeah but not let’s feel this way without before examining ourselves

for anything fake about it first parting from the idea that there wasnt anyway

and then parting cuz that knows so much

that part of me knows so much abt what do you call it extreme fear of maudlin

i run naked thru the grass singing abt yesteryear

                        ...There’s a move in social situations I like to call, “around the sun” whereby you wait for the game to end to play music, or wait patiently for one plan of another to say its peace so you can say yours. I like to take it to a more extreme level and say, turn down the fuckin tv, I want to listen to a thing I find beautiful.

SONG ONE : like the earth

1. Sit back and dream of clouded metaphors Reveal the schemes that we devised Back in the day, when ur hands were small And the WORLD splayed out colorfully Before our eyes

(chorus)

Take ur thronging bussloads of the living dead Take all the lifetimes of a million busy heads Ur sly intellectuals that laugh in the dome The only place, the only place is in the peaceful tones Of singing birds perched on ascending wires, like notes

2. Caught u up past three, sitting on the porch I woke up from a dream that I immediately forgot That seems to happen a lot, especially if previously I torched a dutch and passed the fuck out But from the ether of my dreams I heard, from the scope of reality I heard you shout

(chorus)

3. The sun and the moon both live in a box And the box is a square made out of lead And the square lies motionless in ur head Like a body on the rocks

Watch the hour tuck away into an evening A day nestled in afternoon light From the beginning In ur mind that made all minds the same The twilight creeping across ur paper brain And I can only burn and burn and burn

And I can turn round like the EARTH And I can be a sphere like the EARTH And I can stitch up the nations With fear, like the EARTH

(chorus)

                        ...people who call it a false flag just don’t wanna think it’s their own who bomb, if it can’t be a towelhead.

SONG TEW : the rainbow

The sinister rainbow blinks over the clover And the dawn is a monster in my brain I'll take a picture before this song is over And I’ll fix u in a wheel to keep me sane

Don’t break out the gin for the old lady creepers Smoke until the blur makes ur head float around I live in hades, burn my tongue on the heater When I lick this heaven ill taste yur sound

(chorus)

What Im saying isnt deep What Im stealing isnt cheap But I know that if i play it loud and long That this song in my head will instead Form a beat

Like a stranger in the rain Slowly driving me insane There's a fork in the road And I dont know whether Or when, all this shit will come together In the end

2. I got a stupid friend who lives in a pause He takes life from the tiger’s jaws, and prays

That life begins again, after it is over And the rainbow shines like a dream, in a daze

Ill take u thru the eye of the needle Ill breathe a testament to ur false gods Ill tell the truth, and contaminate the evil And zap u like a lightning rod

(chorus)

3. Dont you know that the rainbow is the world? Dont you know that the news is already told? Im gettin too old to be unfurled Im seein the rainbow in my mind Im waking up for the daily grind Im singing useless things for useful people The rainbow is not evil, its kind Dont u know that the color kings rattle like a marble In a tin can? And the rainbow eats the darkness like a mother Without a son? Dont u know that u can never be a man? And the rainbow drags across the empty land And the rainbow drags across the empty land

(chorus) (chorus)

                        ...the only division is classical and romantic. all else is contributory to these two. postmodern, modern, no. romantic. it all follows the romantic objective. one is ruled by the time at which it occurred, and the other is ruled by the mechanism of breaking from any present time.

SONG THREE : an ending that promises to begin again

1. A legend sleeps in yur head somewhere You take yur trembling hands And grope for mine, like a bum for spare Change... You cant explain

This strange perdition that engulfs Yur position in the sane... And the trouble of the pulse That leads a broken synapse Up into my eccentric brain... Theres a clot in my neck And the ruins of time Keep me from being able to find A comfortable spot to rest

(chorus)

Im stuck in erasure--a constant exposure To the elements still provides me with eyes To see bad karma writhing in my spleen And I wonder if ill dream While the whole WORLD is awake Will I be the manufactured figure, Will I be fake?

Or will I take these petty abstractions And roll them up into a ball And put them in my pocket Just to feel the reason stall In my throat... Is life a puzzle, or a joke?

2. The life you led one sunny afternoon Is the life you never led again... I can appreciate the reasons For why you did not blend Like a chameleon in the room But cant discern the seasons Of the moon

Yur whispers prosper, loud Like a passionate apostle And the lords are proud of ur Painting on the wall... That skritter of an evening gone Is enough to scatter colors When the sky finally falls, And the lords are like the brothers Of what lorded over them... Take these idols and shatter them... The racket in my brain is loud And does not end And does not end And does not end, even when the jig is up Cuz ive gotten fucked by time: Its an ending that promises To begin again

(chorus)

                        ...Nobody starts an Apollonian, and only those are Dionysian who have the capacity for restraint needed to confer the Apollonian chariot, tho some die without a revision of the vision etc. some die restraintless

SONG FOUR : chauncey ames and the case of jenny preston

1. Chauncey loved the flowers Chauncey loved the trees Chauncey smelled the wind And knew that he was free

Chauncey took a cab home Chauncey felt the air flow Thru the window He paid the driver extra Just for keeping him From being alone... Back, once again To the place that he had left Long ago

In fact, it had been years and years and years Since the man had seen walls Not fortified in concrete... In fact, it had been years and years and years Since this man had put to rest That lying cheat

(chorus)

Chauncey was a killer That was his disease Got off on manslaughter: Fingerprints on a pair keys Got him twelve years For offing someone's daughter Even tho she was eighty three Cuz no matter how old u are Everyone Is a daughter or son To someone

2. Now he's out, but he has his fears... Maybe people will not like him For his past It is unclear Even after all the facts Had been presented... Whether Jenny Preston Was murdered, or just had a bad fall Onto a bed of broken glass They found her in the hall At the head of the stairs, flat on her wrinkled ass

(chorus)

Chauncey was a man of few words But in the end he was unheard His eyes were petrified In delirium His arms shook As he held the gun He took aim On the good book Instead of his brains just to prove a point His neck is craned His eyes like coins That shine their milky matter On the barrel of a luger

(Chorus)

                        ...doubt any of y'all would live up to the wit/confidence/sardonicism y'all judiciously sculpt for hours on the book of face.

SONG FYVE: my summer home

1. This is food for thought Write it down in chalk: The chimney puffs From the fire in the fireplace And erupts in a black plume And with luck The old man Balances a spoon On his nose He sits inside a room As the room grows Smoking from a pipe While its raining outside And the light Is waning, slowly waning, outside

My fingers and my toes Are numb to the bone And I will have my wish To swim with all the fish In the sea of my mind In time ill find A little spot in the country Somewhere peaceful and secluded Ill save up all my money And hope im not deluded And hope that I can find a place Thats nice, a lush spot For a good price

(Chorus) Do you feel that I feel you? Do you feel that you feel me? The time is right to live again To let the atoms wiggle In our spherical galaxy That seems to have no real end But the one that we assume Is reality, and soon We'll eat up all the doom

2. Concentrate upon a single understanding Dont let the sisters on the throne Rage in the dome And find out that this trip Needs more planning to exist

The sky is silver and the universe is green Ill show you things in this world That you have never seen Things that have been waiting So long to be unfurled Things for boys and things for girls Without an explanation Ill bring the nation together And hold it by a tether Show you things for boys And things for girls

(Chorus)

                        ...for example i would never be able to muster the cognitive stones to say all of this, in order, amongst the company of people, even friends

SONG SIX : notion

#1 im in the middle of this phrase Stuck between the lines Bless these simple chains I'll see what I can find In my simple mind To lead to some way out The drip, drip drip of water From the trippy rusty spout Keeps me awake I'll explain that to ur daughter The world is fake The world is miles away:

Chorus: Put a notion on the river And see it travel downsteam Suspended on liquid creature dreams I sweated thru the fever And, between the middle of this phrase Passed all my days in solitude And grew weaker, as the days Passed on in solitude

You can call me daft You can say im frozen In technicolor time That im stranded on an island In the middle of the ocean But I dont have the spine To wiggle thru the shaft And give you back This simple notion

#2 I gots a paper boat Lofting on the water It travels down ur purple throat And dissolves in the water

I set a fire just to see if it could think And I questioned the venom Just to see if it could blink Nonsense on the edge Of the bullshit day Chillin on the ledge, you shape the clay And drive the screws on down And drive the screws on down

I thought of you, thought of you And I felt like a clown

(chorus)

#3 I crawl out, I crawl out I crawl out of bed I walk down the hall To turn the notion into thread And whisper rumors to the dead Sometimes I try to talk And my voice drops Sometimes the vague paralysis Defies analysis And you are left sitting on a chair In a yellow room That is a technicolor tomb Without a door, confined and spare, I crawl, I crawl I crawl out of bed And walk down the hall And fall and fall and fall Into the creation of sound Until I hit the ground And everything is mother night And the imperfections in yur eye Spangle in the strange notion of the twilight

(chorus) (chorus)

                         ...the broad concept of subjectivity has as much to do with a detailed exegesis of one tenet of it as death itself with the specific way we die

SONG SEVEN : collected and connected

You're a sharp one You're a dumb one You got nobody But the people in yur head

And everybody is connected But you aint connected to them Yur a ghost, on the interim While the fringes die out You live them out To the last splinter Until it is winter And the trees are all white with snow And the blue wind blows

Yu spend twenty minutes Feeling for the lightswitch In a room made out of figments That you shovel into a ditch And bury, along with all yur Dangerous ambitions And as you drive away, you feel The religion Of yur memories corrupt u And yu reel

CHORUS. Cuz everyones connected Everyones collected Into the same intangible organism That lives life in the schism Of ur teeth I watch ur lips move And cannot hear u speak I pick up on the clues and watch the pressure leak Until all of it is used And nothing much is left To be abused

Everyones connected by a string That trembles across the space Of every living thing The fractions of my face illuminate in the light I shake when i sing I am a yellow kite Mangled in a tree Forgotten by the breeze I am a thing, wafting in the breeze But I have begun again, my friend, Just by following the string Follow, follow the string

#2 Two days ago the WORLD was made of angles I opened my eyes to the lost ways And came upon a shallow swale The brush and branches tangled And the rays of the sun, barely Coming thru the jail Of the scary fray

Dont you think that yur fellow men Would like to lend a hand? And dont you think That this desert you have crossed Only gets u more lost Until u arrive at the brink Of the sahara, and find A single, solitary house Where a mumbling old man Is confined

(CHORUS) (CHORUS)

i always dress nice when i have no place to go. otherwise i look like a sweaty coked up hobo. its my chic, paranoid hobo chic. my comportment u say? quirky to the acquaintance, somewhat sad to the friend, an endearing mix of both with a dash of worry to the best friend, and an embarrassment to the significant other. im usually the life of the party bc i bring drugs so people are forced to tolerate my horror of a personality.

rejection is a rare and beautiful flower my time is spent tending it my life wants it to be a gift i water the flower it sits next to my bed it is next to a lamp littered under the lamp are dead ladybugs ladybugs are all over my house but if i am not meant i am not meant and i cast my line of poetry here trying to figure out if it was meant to be there wonder exactly why what is innumerable can be rare and think of lots of things

[hikikomori-kuma]

On a Summer Camp

Day 4: Summer Camp

I’m posting my day 4 on buffer day! As always, sucky title. 

Alfred hated summer camps.

He really did but his mom would always sign him up every summer break. This summer though, he'd been off the hook but when the sink faucet fell off when the teenager touched it. He tried stuffing the rushing water with toilet paper but still, it ended up being a pool of water on the bathroom floor. It was all a coincidence that led from one disaster to another and that was his mom's ultimatum.

He bawled, he cried, he even pleaded to his mother that he don't want to go to the summer camp but all his stuff was packed.

Now, he's seated on the back of the bus while the other teenagers sang to some camping song. Their head coach sang along with them. Alfred just huffed. Two weeks is not a long time right? He knew the drill, he'd been in a summer camp for many years now. Nothing will be new, right?

He hugged his small satchel bag as he looked outside at the trees they pass by.

The head coach told them that they will be settling to the new camp. A few good miles away from the old camp. She explained what's new and improved but Alfred felt like nothing will change with all of it.

It started as usual, introductions, rules and settling to their cabin. Alfred share the small cabin with five other teenagers. He got the top bunker near a wide window.

"My name is Feliciano." A teenager with a lollipop introduced himself to Alfred. He's a bubbly teenager with brown hair, hazel eyes and a feisty twin brother. He offered the lollipop to Alfred to which the other muttered a 'thanks'. "That's my twin brother, Lovino." He  pointed to the fuming teenager from the other end of the cabin.

Feliciano introduced the other people in the room. He learned of Francis, Antonio and Gilbert which were older than him and they just met each other on the bus but now they act like they are best buddies. They're cool and friendly but Alfred still felt left behind.

He met another teenager from the neighboring cabin. Ivan. He's a big teenager with weird smile and even weirder strength. They would always yell nonsense to each other over their windows and even compete on the camp's activities.

It's fun to say at least. They had team activities, they gather around the campfire and roast marshmallows and they share stories. Their little group's been roasting some mallows by the fire when Lovino asked for a different kind of story and Francis started it.

He started telling ghost stories.

It started with Francis. He told a story that he heard from the head coaches that they probably heard from the nearby locals. He told about the abandoned house from the opposite side of the camp site. On how it looked like house but the garden looked well-maintained. He made weird noises and startle everyone who get caught up to his narration. Then it passed on to the circle. Each one of them sharing a story, even Ivan has something to tell! Why did it become cold here? He felt himself shiver but stupid Ivan just had to point it out.

"I'm not scared." Alfred glared at Ivan.

"Oh really?" The other just smiled at him, his marshmallow melting over the camp fire.

"Yes!" That came out hurriedly but Alfred did not care, he just have to defend his side. He's really not scared.

"Then why are your hands shaking?" Ivan pointed with his stick, the mallow on it dropped onto the ground. Alfred jolted, looking at his hands. The other teenagers on the circle looking at him now.

"I-It's just cold!" The defended. The others did not look convinced.

"Even though, it's summer?" That sounded so smug! They're in the forest, right? With trees all around them, it could get cold. He looked at Ivan, looking for a flaw.

"I get cold easily besides you wear scarf." He puffed his chest.

"I like to keep this on but you're still shaking~" Ivan sing sang as he saw Alfred start to sweat. He smirked a bit more.

"'M not!" Alfred dropped his stick, not lacking of a mallow on its tip.

"Then, I dare you!" Ivan's eyes glinted over the fire's light. He stood up and the other looked at him with awe.

"Bring it on!"Alfred felt overpowered and stood up too. The teenagers around them made an audible 'ohhh' with Gilbert snickering at them.

It's late night now but Alfred did not change to his pajamas. The Vargas twins could not fight the sleepiness but Francis, Antonio and Gilbert stay awake to keep an eye on Alfred. They offered Alfred some company but Alfred has to toughen to Ivan's challenge.

He heard a knock on his window and saw Ivan from the outside. He nodded and brought a flashlight. Outside, the fire was put off and the only light were the torches staked to the ground. Ivan instructed him to go to the opposite side of the camp and pick him a rose from the ruin's garden.

He just nodded, not showing that he's afraid in front of Ivan and went inside the forest. He clicked open his flashlight and followed the trail ahead.

Did he mention where he's going? Did you remember Francis' story about that ruin from the opposite side of the camp? That's where he's going. Alone.

He's walking a clear path, no branched on the way and the trail path keeps going forward. Alfred's been a fan of astronomy and he would enjoy a night view of the skies if he were in a different situation.

It felt like forever until he reached the house. It's seated on a bit of a higher ground than their camp. The house was well, house. The structure was made of stone and it likely fell down due to old age. He inspected the place for a while, a few times looking back at some rustled leaves to see no one around. He went on the back where an arched branch served as an entrance to the garden.

It's what Francis had told them. The garden is in full bloom. The trees green and the flowers vibrant as ever. In the middle of the garden was were the roses are planted, it looked well kept and the flowers so red. Alfred walked near it. The lack of artificial lighting made the roses glow in the moonlight. It almost looked ethereal.

He was about to pick one when someone spoke beside him.

"What are you doing here?" Startled, Alfred dropped his flashlight on the ground, his hands kept his balance by gripping on a something steady and another placed above his chest. He trailed his eyes to where the light's been focused on. He'd been expecting a ghost or even a head coach when he saw a person.

Alfred inspected the other, he looks like the same age as him. Has wild blond hair, recognizable pair of brown and green eyes but that's not the only thing that made the other different. He's wearing strange clothes and he's holding a lit candle.

He must have been staring for awhile because the stranger's been asking again. "Stranger, what are you doing here?" He looked unimpressed.

Instead of answering, Alfred asked "W-who are you?" He now stood properly.

"Who are you?" He said not moving while holding the candle in one hand.

"I'm one of those who came from the summer camp." He picked up his flashlight.

"A what?" The stranger frowned as he tried to comprehend what Alfred has said.

"Summer camp?" He raised an eyebrow but he turned and looked at the roses. "I'm just gonna pick one of these and I'll be out of her-"

"No!" A hand stopped him from reaching the nearest flower. He looked to see the other near him, the candle still balanced to his hold. Seriously, how does this boy do that?

"It's just a flower, dude. There are plenty out there." But his hand was not released. He tried tugging his hand but the other won't bulge.

"O-okay! I won't pick, just let go of my hand." He flew back and so was his flashlight. It made a cracking noise and his light was gone. Leaving him with the natural night light and the stranger's candlelight.

"If you're just here to destroy my flowers, I advise you to leave. Immediately." He calmly said but it was acidic. He looked - glared at Alfred like he would totally wreck havoc to this garden. He stilled for a while.

"Calm down, dude!" He raised his hands in defence. "I won't do anything to your flowers if you don't want to."

"Go back to where you came from." The other said, turning his back to Alfred.

"W-wait!" That stopped the other from leaving. "Are you seriously leaving me h-here?" His voice Cracked at the end.

"You came here alone, right? I believe you can get back by your own." He really did considered leaving Alfred here ll alone and in the dark.

"Yes! When I still have my flashlight and now I can barely see anything other than your face because of that candle!" He walked to the other and tug at his arm. "You will be my guide back! It's half your fault that light's gone so you're talking me back!"

"U-unhand me right now!" He tried to keep up with Alfred's fast pace. "It's hardly my fault that you went by your own here!" His candle swaying at their movements.

"I don't have a light and you have that weird candle. You will walk me back. End of the story!" They're now entering the woods where they walked the straight path.

It's been quiet for a few moments when the boy asked. "Are you not letting go of my arm?" He looked at his arm.

"No." Alfred mumbled as he kept his eyes forward.

"You are afraid of the dark, aren't you?" His voice carried amusement to which Alfred scoffed.

"Are you not?" He frowned as he kept close to the other.

"I'm used to it by now." He smiled a little. "You're still not telling me who you are."

"If you tell me your name, then I'll tell you mine."

"It's Arthur." He said his name lovingly.

"Mine's Alfred." He smiled at the other. "Nice meeting you."

Arthur just smiled as they walked down the path. Sounds of the night field the forest. A few flapping of wings, sounds of bugs and a few rustling on the bushes.

"Um, I'm sorry for trying to pick on your roses." He rubbed his arms.

"It's quite alright now. Just refrain from doing such thing again." Arthur looked ahead.

"Does that mean that I get to go there again?" That would be cool!

"Do you intend to go back?" Arthur looked at him, his green eyes looked shock.

"Well- yeah, the place's cool. I haven't really seen it and the garden's cool too!" He explained.

"No picking at my garden!" The other snapped to which Alfred laughed.

"Of course! Of course! Besides, you're there to watch me!" Arthur seemed to look flustered. The light from his candle swinging.

"H-how can you be so sure that I'll be there? Aren't you scared of this place?" He scoffed.

"Then I'm gonna pick your flowers!" Arthur looked insulted.

"How dare you!" He moved away from Alfred.

"I-I'm just kidding!" He went next to Arthur after to be left out in the dark.

"You better be!" He did not sound convinced but he nodded his head. Alfred just laughed.

Alfred forgotten what they talked about but at the end, he reached the camp. He turned around and when he did, he saw no one. He carefully sneaked inside his cabin and went under his sheets.

"Where were you last night?" Ivan asked as he bring his food on their table.

"I went to out for your dare?" He seemed confuse.

"You did not come back and the head coach even caught me outside my cabin." He glared at Alfred.

"I did!" He whispered.

"Really? Where was your evidence? The rose, hmm?"

"I didn't pick any."

"I knew it, you did not go." Ivan looked smug.

"I did! It's just Arthur did not want to."

"Arthur?"

"Yeah, the guy from the house."

"But Alfred, there's no one who lives there." Goosebumps ran through Alfred's skin.

Yes, he hated summer camps.

[coreshorts]

The Trial of Gale

After her completion of the Trial of Flame, Hali had to take some time to rest and regain the strength of which the desert robbed her. For a day, she rested in the Forgotten Springs, tended to by a young woman of the U tribe. Eventually, however, the divining crystal that had brought her all this way pointed to the west, and hard.

She knew well what lay to the west: Vylbrand. The thought of returning to her home of the last near-decade was enticing, and the thought of escaping the desert was practically invigorating in and of itself. Gathering her strength, she began her trek back to Ul’dah when she awoke at sundown.

Her arrival in Limsa Lominsa the morning after was not one with bright, sunny shores and glittering waves, but the cold embrace of a rainy day, the sea murky and the wind whipping about restlessly. It brought a smile to Hali’s face, nonetheless. The cold was her ally, the darkness her friend, and the smell of the rain and briny seawater mixed was one that brought her no end of comfort.

Upon checking her crystal again, it pulled her to toward Bloodshore - Costa del Sol. It was not a place she frequented in this kind of weather, but she hardly paid it mind. This was business, not a beachside party under the moon as she had once or twice attended. No, this was a mission, a trial, and once she could scarce afford to fail. She hopped the next ferry from the port city and soon arrived on the rain-slick piers of Costa del Sol.

The crystal led her up along the cliffs of Bloodshore, and eventually, she spied her quarry perched atop the lighthouse as she gazed across the landscape from one of the cliffs above the shore. By the time she made it to the top of the Lighthouse, she was fairly winded, but kept her composure as she recovered, and waited for the man in blue to speak. The rain seemed to have passed some time ago, and his foreign garb was totally dry.

“The Gale will-” he began to speak, but he was interrupted as he was overcome by a sudden wave of what Hali identified as the same soul-wrenching pain she’d experienced. He doubled over, growling in pain, and Hali reached out her hand. It wouldn’t do if he fell. She would get no answers this way, and she feared that letting the man die would be tantamount to failing her trial.

“Pray take my hand. Step away from the edge until you’ve recovered,” she said, cautiously holding it out. The man took her hand, stepping down from his perch and it was clear to her that he was fighting something terrible inside of him.

“The... Gale will... test you...” he rasped, still struggling, but determined to continue on in the face of his hardship. She knew that kind of determination, and almost empathised with it. Though she wasn’t sure of his own reasoning, she knew that she, at least, could not bear failure when her mind was set on something. Perhaps these mysterious men were the same, their own willpower mirroring her own, making her more sure than ever that this was her path.

The storm above them churned as he raised his hand, a glint in it, though Hali could not tell what caused it. She scarce had time to wonder, as a raging cry, like that of a massive hawk, broke the howl of the winds around them. A griffon, nearly too large to fit atop the lighthouse’s spire, landed in front of them, its beak snapping and claws thrashing. The man at Hali’s side recovered enough to defend himself, and the miqo’te took shelter behind the steel spire in the centre, dipping out behind the ladder from time to time to harry the beast with Ruinbolts.

The bolts had become natural to her, like an extension. With each, she needed only use her grimoire as a focus, drawing upon its presence, less so than the inscriptions she kept now, and with bolt after bolt, thunder rolled and feathers flew.

The griffon was angered by the war of attrition she waged, however, and soon took wing, the aether about it blazing and swirling as it circled the toward at impossible speed, drawing on the brewing storm around them to begin forming a tornado about the lighthouse. The fire snuffed out in the winds, and it grew so powerful that, eventually, even the stone and steel complained, grinding and groaning.

The man beside her drew upon a familiar magic, and with the sound of shifting stone, he disappeared without a trace as he invoked the Burrow spell she had so recently learned. Nodding to herself, she followed his lead and sheltered herself from the wind. 

Where she hid within the stone, she could feel the grinding, the movement, and, above all else, the whirling aether of the magically-spawned tornado outside. The only way, she surmised, to counter such a terrific force was to apply an equal and opposite one, and so, from her hiding place, she began to draw on the aether of the storm, taking it into herself. As she did, her concentration on maintaining her Burrow spell waned, and she slowly rose to the surface.

Once most emerged, she began. The aether within her threatened to tear her very soul to shreds. There was just so much, and so volatile with the rage of the spell so far out of her league, and she screamed in pain and exertion both as she worked to turn the violent winds backward. Despite her hardship, and despite the wailing of the Beast within her, she began to make headway, the winds weakening enough that she was safe atop the lighthouse for the time being.

Eventually, the tornado around the lighthouse was countered, and the griffon knocked off-balance, toppled from its course in the sky. It righted itself quickly, however, and attempted to flee, wounded and knowing full well that it had been bested. If it fled, however... would Hali fail? Much as she thought the beast had learned its lesson, it had to be slain.

Though it was a stretch, she drew upon another spell familiar to her and sought to invoke a Tether to the potent aetherial force within and around the griffon, trying to draw it back, pulling it hard toward the steel spikes around the  lighthouse’s edge. It was maddening, however; the beast struggled and, though it was unable to flee, she could draw it no closer.

Aid came in the form of a different spell from beside her as the man from before emerged from the stone and shot what looked like the simulacrum of a tongue, made entirely out of aether, from his face, yanking the creature back hard, and yelling, “Finish it! Now!”

Obliging, Hali released her own spell. Once the griffon struggled above the spike, she relied on the spell she had first learned: Bombardment. With a mighty gale force, she leapt for the sky, coming down atop the griffon, hands grasping at it to drive it down, and with a spray of gore, the beast was slain, the steel spike driven through it just in time for one of the other men to arrive and witness its death.

Hali leapt from the griffon’s corpse, but did so rather clumsily, her back impacting the steel of the lighthouse’s torch, and causing her to stumble and fall when she landed. She got up in time to see the other man look to the first curiously, then nod to her, as if fully cognisant of what would come next.

The feeling of euphoria returned, but this time, it was fleeting, and the next moment, she felt it slipping from her grasp, leaving a feeling gut-wrenching emptiness and failure. The pain of the process and the emptiness, like that of an addict given her fix, only for it to be slapped from her hand, caused her to crumple to the ground, curling into a ball and breaking into bitter tears.

“Why?” she cried, the man moving to stand over her, “What did I do wrong? I... I shouldn’t have failed, should I? I... it all went... it worked, though... but it... why?!”

Impassively, the man gazed down on her, speaking plain, “Though you passed the trial, the beast is too much. The Vessel must be strengthened.”

“How?”

“The next trial is that of Stone,” was all he said in response before he vanished. 

The other, however, did not. For some time, he remained, as if there was something more to say. Instead, he just stared at Hali as she slowly recovered, pushing herself up and brushing herself off. When she met his gaze, he hesitated, then vanished, as well, leaving the young woman with a feeling of curiosity and suspicion to complement the horrible emptiness.

Tired and not willing to answer questions the Maelstrom may have when they arrived, she clambered up to the edge of the tower and, turning her back to it, let herself fall backward. As she fell, she invoked the Burrow spell again, and, as though it were water, the ground beneath her drew her in as would water to a diver, and she drifted silently, unseen and unheard, toward Costa del Sol once more. Something in her stirred at what she’d done though. If it were not for the spell, she would have splattered across the rocks. Something deep within her made her wish for it, made her crave that death.

She pushed it aside, however, annoyed that such a thing would occur to her. The thoughts were not her own, and she couldn’t fathom why she would do such a thing. Her blossoming confidence in her magic, now that she had found it, was the only reason she made such a showy, dangerous move. Death was not on her mind, nor should it have been on the mind of anything else within her.

Eventually, she emerged from the earth by Costa del Sol, heading back up the ferry to take the next ferry to Aleport. From Aleport, she made the all-too-familiar walk to Swiftperch, her boots trudging through the mud, an Adlo bubble keeping her dry from the now-pouring rain, the smell of which served to soothe her senses as she smoked the remaining half of a moko cigarette. Her room at the inn was still hers for another week yet, and it was there she would recover for the next day or two.

But why had this been beyond her grasp? Was she still too weak? There had to be a way to become stronger...

[couptale-creator]

Couptale chapter 2

What doesn’t kill you

   The fall had been long and full of the stress of hitting the bottom at any moment. The fact that the long vertical tunnel was completely pitch black didn’t help either, it felt almost as if Frisk had been simply floating in absolute void except for the air rushing past her. Then, almost as soon as it hard started she felt herself crash into the ground right before she passed out. Time passed, as time always has and soon enough Frisk’s eyes fluttered open, her heat pounding against her chest, looking around at the slightly brighter room she was now in, the walls were made of some kind of purple brick, a bright torch sitting just on the wall opposite to her. She moved slightly only to notice that she had landed on top of some piled up mattresses with flowers growing through the cracks in them. Frisk herself felt alright although she couldn’t ignore a small stinging on her back, she reached an arm around and touched her back, pulling it back to her front before growing pale.

“O-oh god, I’m bleeding.” She muttered under breath, now that she had realised the stinging was starting to grow, the sickly warm blood dripping down the inside of her dress jacket, getting the back of it soaked. Frisk slowly slung her two legs over the side of the mattress, letting out a cry of pain as more blood seeped from the wound, she looked back and saw that she had landed on what looked like quite a sharp spring. She turned back to her front and sliding off the mattresses, hitting the ground with a resounding thud staying upright for less than a second before crumpling down to the ground. She let out a small choked sob, barely able to writhe on the ground in pain, she closed her eyes and started to take deep breaths in and out opening them back up. The ground had a nice coolness to it although it was covered in small rocks and pebbles that were painful to lay on.

 “Come on, come on Frisk, you need, to get up!” She spoke to herself, pushing up off the floor a foot taking the place of one of her hands before her second foot did the same. She stumbled forwards and leaned on the wall, the torch above her was warm, comfortable so in this almost freezing brick room. Feeling along the wall with her hands she felt the small lines where each brick, or stone, it really could be either, was placed besides the next. There was something comfortable about it, being able to rub her hands against the smooth stone, being able to firmly feel something real and tangible in front of her. This small moment barely lasted though as the pain of the stab wound in her back grew, she turned around to lean her back against the wall quickly looking around and noticing a doorway into another room. With one hand on the wall she slide herself against it, moving in the direction of the doorway in what felt like an eternity she had finally made it to the doorway, stumbling through into the near darkness. One foot in front of the other Frisk made her way to the center of the room, a small patch of grass was exposed to the rest of the room. She could barely keep herself upright, fighting against the wound that felt like it was sapping her strength, she fell to a knee on the patch of grass before falling onto her side, it felt like the darkness was closing in all around her. Her eyes were starting to flicker closed and nearly did before she heard the tapping of soft feet on the ground and looking to where the sound came from she caught sight of a lady walking towards her through the darkness. Frisk listened intently as the footsteps sped up, the lady standing above her, every one of her instincts was telling her to summon up the strength to run but no matter what she did there was just no energy for Frisk to pull.

 “My child, how did you get hurt this badly?” The woman pressed a hand against Frisk’s open wound and after a small groan of pain from Frisk the wound started to heal almost like it was being sped up incredibly quick. Soon enough the wound had completely closed, Frisk’s breathing having gotten heavy and rushed, the healing taking her by complete surprise.

 “My child, are you quite alright? Anything else in pain? My name is Toriel, Queen of the monster’s here.” Toriel said, it was clear now that the healing magic had taken quite a lot out of her, it was clear enough in her voice. Frisk managed a small nod to her, sprawling out on the small patch of grass, she needed to rest and in this condition trying to go anywhere wouldn’t be a smart idea, Toriel knew this, looking around quickly before letting out a sigh she would need to let Frisk rest. The rest itself was quite uneventful, she had slept like a rock and even if something bad did happen she probably would have slept right through it but after a time Frisk’s eyes fluttered open, Toriel sitting next to her, facing the doorway out of the room. She shifted lightly on the ground managing to get Toriel’s attention who quickly helped her up off of the floor.

 “My child, can you speak? Can you walk? We must get moving soon.” She spoke with urgency, it was very secure in the Ruins but she was still worried that a member of a certain group of monsters might enter in and find them.

 “Ugh, uh, y-yeah, a-are you, a monster?” Frisk asked in a confused voice, just now looking up at Toriel’s face, it was kind and motherly along with being covered in thick white fur. Now that she was more aware she took in the clothes Toriel was wearing, a long flowing dress with a skirt that seemed to be all one, they seemed to be a light purple with yellow a yellow flower pattern. Either Frisk was seeing things or all those stories about the monsters were true… and they wouldn’t be happy to find a human down in their prison.

 “Yes my child, now hurry, we need to get you somewhere safe for humans, please follow me.” Toriel made her way over to the doorway and Frisk followed quickly, if this place wasn’t safe she wasn’t sure where they were going that was going to be any safer. There wasn’t much she could do though so she followed behind Toriel as she left the room into another more well lit room, a stack of pressure plates along with a lever and floor spikes sat in the corner of the room but besides that there wasn’t much. Though some spots of the floor seemed to have much newer stone compared to the floor around it, Toriel ignored the room and simply walked into the next one so Frisk followed behind without much thought. The next room wasn’t much more eventful, there were a few shallow water moats that narrowed the way you walked through, some holes in the walls along with some spikes and levers piled in the corner of the room. Toriel continued to lead Frisk through room after empty room, each one seeming to have had some construction done on it, with new looking patches of floor and removed switches and levers and similar objects like that. Until they came upon a home with a large tree out front of it, the house itself looking quite fortified with a door that had quite the complex locking mechanism and windows that had been replaced in favor of metal panels. Toriel led the way, stepping up to the door with little hesitation like she had done this many times before, Frisk however noticed something in front of the tree a small spark of some yellow looking star. She approached it, perplexed and reached out a hand into the thing and as her fingers brushed against the yellow floating star everything went black, suffocatingly so except for two floating options in front of her. Save and load, load was slightly darkened though and blacked out not being a viable option to choose at the time, Frisk quickly pressed her hand against the save button, a sound chiming out around her before the world popped back in with no warnings.

 “Whoa, is that… do I have some kind of magic?” Frisk wondered out loud to herself before she heard Toriel clear her throat from over where she was standing and not wanting to delay their travels any longer she quickly moved to join her and enter into the house looking structure.

 “This may look like a house child but right now it is being used as a checkpoint to keep people from entering in and out of the ruins as they please.” A bit of clamour over a room or two to the left drew the queen’s attention, a small fireball forming in her hand she wasn’t sure if the monster here was a guard or not.

 “Queen? Is that you? You have your fun with a romp around the Ruins?” A deep voice yelled out from that side of the building, making Frisk flinch at the unexpectedness of it, it reminded her of a growling dog for some reason that escaped her.

 “Yes, Dogamy, I’ve found a human in the ruins, they’ve just fallen and I must return to the palace soon, I was hoping that you could escort the human to Sans’s house, they’ll be safe there for a while.” There came only silence from the neighboring room before heavy footsteps started moving over towards them and through the doorway came what looked like a dog in a large suit of armour, carrying a hefty axe.

 “Of course queen, hurry back to the palace and I’ll take care of the human.” Toriel nodded and turned to Frisk, kneeling down and giving her a small hug, she wasn’t sure how to react but hugged back, Toriel clearly cared about her safety. She then stood up, grabbing a winter coat hanging up on a coat rack standing close by to the door, it ran almost all the way down to the bottom of her skirt and had a puffy sort of fur around the neck. She then turned to the stairs just a bit further in the room, Toriel walked down them gently, not making much noise if any, leaving Dogamy and Frisk alone. Frisk’s mouth went dry at being left alone with the very menacing and large armored dog that could easily kill her with a single swing of their axe.

 “U-um, so, who’s Sans?” Frisk asked nervously, as she did Dogamy turned back into the other room before coming back walking down the stairs with a look of annoyance on his face.

 “A poor hungover excuse for a sentry.” He said unhappily, motioning for Frisk to follow them down the stairs, which she did without asking anymore questions, Dogamy sounded like they weren’t friends with him. They made their way through a long hallway with few twists and turns that led to a large purple stone door with giant deadbolts that looked like they would be near impossible for a human to move. The door wasn’t locked with the deadbolts and so with just a small push by the large armored dog the doors swung open with ease. They passed through a nearly pitch black room, lit by only a torch or two before passing through a doorway, Dogamy pushing open the doors as brightness hit Frisk in the face like a brick wall. She was blinded for a few moments, stumbling forwards, her legs sinking in freezing snow, sending a shiver up her spine, she stopped so she could let her eyes adjust. She looked around confused for a moment, it looked like they were in an open forest with… Snow, which was strange considering that they were underground, it really shouldn’t have been possible. Dogamy helped Frisk up from having her legs sunken down into the snow before walking forwards, sinking down as well but trudging through like he was used to it. She hurried behind him as the large doors closed on their own, it was snowing lightly, it was quite beautiful to look around and see it. Trudging through the snow was tiring but it went by fast enough, they passed over a gap in the ground with a small wooden walkway that creaked and groaned as they passed over it. Afterwards they came to a small clearing with a plain sentry station sitting In the far corner of the clearing, Frisk looked up at Dogamy before looking back down, thinking up something to talk about.

 “Do, you have something against this, Sans?” She asked up at him and he let out a small growl, his pace picking up leaving Frisk to need to hurry up to keep up with him.

 “Just that he’s a drunken fool that should’ve been expelled from being a sentry a long time ago.” He growled out, they passed through large stretches of snowy landscape that was mostly barren, every now and then a random monster would catch sight of them and quickly move away to where they wouldn’t be seen, they didn’t need to get involved with anything concerning humans. They continued on through the paths, passing over a large rope bridge that left Frisk hoping that it wouldn’t collapse with the both of them on it, from there she could see out over nothing but pure untamed forest, it reminded her of when she was climbing up the mountain to get here. She wasn’t expecting to find what she did though, an actual civilisation of monsters that seemed to be mostly if not completely friendly, or at least that’s all she’s seen so far. After the rope bridge they approached a sign welcoming them to a town called Snowdin apparently, it was nice and seemed fairly welcoming to Frisk, but she was starting to get cold and was hoping they’d get to Sans’s home soon.

 “Alright, we’re almost there.” Dogamy had barely spoken during the entire walk out to the town, hearing him speak so suddenly startled her. A few monsters were roaming around the town, avoiding the two like they had some sort of plague, eventually they crossed the town, passing by a library and a store as well as what looked like a motel. Dogamy pulled up the welcome mat in front of the house, retrieving the key and unlocking the door, letting Frisk step in.

 “Listen, kid, around here, things aren’t so good for fallen humans, alright? I just want you to know, if you need to do some bad things to make it out of a tough situation, nobody’s gonna judge you, alright? Good.” Before Frisk could even respond he closed the door, leaving her stuck inside the house, she let out a sigh, looking around the room.

 “Rude… Alright, I guess I should poke around and try to find this ‘Sans’ guy.”