#anyway time to go practice muppet kissing i gUess

[gocrazyahhahgostupidahjssjjaah]

why is muppet kissing so hard to draw-

[luveline]

hi!!! congrats on 31k babe🧡 could i get 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐲 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐬 with dad!eddie and roan, where r buys roan lots of stuff for halloween because she can't decide on a costume and eddie's just wildly in love with his girls? ty

join luveline's halloween party

tysm!!!! roan and eddie forever ♡ dad!eddie x fem!reader

You ignore Eddie when you get home. Sometimes (rarely, so rarely) you choose to visit him first where he's making dinner after work. But today, as you usually do, you choose Roan. He can't even be mad.

"Roan, my princess," you greet, voice deeply entrenched with love. "Give me a kiss before I die of no kisses."

He listens to Roan standing up on the sofa and the sound of you picking her up over the back of it. Her voice, scratchy with Friday night tired, rings all the way to the kitchen.

"Hi, mommy."

"Hello," you say. He doesn't have to guess what the next sound is, your kisses landing over both her tiny cheeks.

Her calling you mommy is getting to a more often than not stage and still, still, it makes his heart soar. He knows your heart does the same. He's hugged you and placated you enough times now to now how much it means to you.

I just love her and I can't believe it, you'd said once.

"Roanie," you say, your voice growing louder as you walk into the hall. There's a sound of rustling plastic. "I know you said you don't know what you want to be for Halloween, so I went to the costume store on my lunch break and I have some stuff for you look at."

His daughter cheers at the good news and the two of you appear in the kitchen doorway, both of his girls looking super tired because it's the end of the week.

"Hi, gorgeous," he greets, saccharine sweet.

You kiss Roan's cheeks again. "Dad's talking to you."

"While she's super duper gorgeous," he starts in parentese though Roan's a little too old for it — she melts shyly anyway — and ends more serious, "I was talking to you."

You receive his rough kiss to the top of your cheek with a smile as melty as his daughter's, practically leaning into his lips.

"Hi, handsome," you say.

"Super duper handsome," Roan says, obviously feeling the love.

He kisses her cheek though he'd already spent ten minutes after school cajoled into a sleepy cuddle, which he can't wait to tell you about. (See: rub it in your face.)

You set Roan down in a chair by the kitchen table and peel open the bag. Eddie leans against the counter next to the stove so he can watch while he keeps an eye on dinner as you pull out lots of things, too many things.

There's a princess costume first and foremost. Roan has more princess dresses than she knows what to do with, especially the pricy one you'd gifted her when she first moved in, and it's pale compared to the rest of your options: a pumpkin costume, a black cat, kermit from the muppets.

Then there's the add-ons. "I got this gross fake blood stuff, and I got zombie make up, and bandages if you want to be a mummy. And if you don't like any of it we can go back in the morning and have a look around, don't worry, I can't take back what you don't want. Or we can keep everything and make you a crazy monster of things. Ooh! I saw, like, a red wig and if daddy says it's okay I bet we could make you some shells and you could be Ariel."

You keep going, you chat and babble and somewhere between it all your hands end up in Roan's hair, petting it away from your face as you go.

Eddie knows it isn't easy to go all out. Working long hours every day, coming home to more things you wouldn't have done before. He's had a lot longer to get used to how little time he has, and he wouldn't blame you if you slacked on certain things. He's guilty of slacking all the time. Being a parent is hard. Sometimes McDonald's is worth it for the ten minute silence.

But you rarely slack, you do things he hasn't asked you to do often, and he always takes it for what it is — love. Sick, cheesy, puts-hallmark-movies-to-shame, love. For him and his girl.

Roan makes Eddie literally as proud as she can when she smiles up at you and says, "Thank you," in her serious little voice.

"You're welcome!" you say with a laugh, throwing a look over your shoulder at him that's just as proud. Get a look at what you made, Munson.

"Roan, you're gonna have to let me kiss her for at least the next ten minutes," Eddie says severely.

"Ew, no!"

"Five?"

Roan hums. "Mm, maybe less?"

"Two?"

Roan nods and climbs off of her chair. She changes her mind a couple of seconds into her journey and turns to run upto the table, grabbing as many halloween things out of the bag as she can carry before she leaves. A trail of bits and bobs like breadcrums fall behind her.

"What did I do?" you ask, giddy as Eddie snakes his finger through your belt loop and tugs you into his chest.

"Just lemme kiss you," he pleads. There isn't time to explain the details.

You beam and grab his face in both of your loving hands.

He barely gets a minute of kisses when Roan starts shouting for someone to help her. "I'm stuck in the pumk-min!"

"She's stuck in the pumk-min," you repeat adoringly.

"I heard."

-

more eddie and roan

[if-found-return-to-gusu]

Happy Birthday to Me Pt. 3

And then I got crushed in the biggest bear hug I think I’ve ever had. Pretty sure my feet left the ground for a moment. 

Nie Huaisang’s brother Mingjue, who has now insisted I call him DaGe (Which I will do because I do, in fact, despite the apparently common public opinion that states otherwise, value my life), had engulfed me in his enormous arms. 

I returned the hug with a bit of awkward patting. Good to know he likes me I guess? Haha. 

And then Lan Xichen hugged me. I gotta say. His arms are thinner than DaGe’s, but just as strong I’d wager. He didn’t crush me but it felt like he probably could. Is that a Lan thing? Are all the Lans super strong???? 

(I’m thinking yes because Lan Yi seemed equally capable of squishing me like a tube of toothpaste if she wanted to when she hugged me later). 

Then I got a double hug from the girls. MianMian even kissed my cheek 

I even got a hug from Wen Qing! Without any pokes or jabs! I think Wen Ning convinced her to be nice. Hah. 

It wasn’t until Gamby pulled me into her arms that the emotions really really started to get to me. It started so hesitant at first, but then she held me so firm. Is that what it’s like to be hugged by a mother? Is… Is that…. Oh.

She told me she couldn’t believe she got to spend my birthday with me again. Did we before? We must have. With Mom and Dad. I wish I could remember. I wish I could remember anything. 

But with that hug. The smell of her. So familiar. Like a dream I’d forgotten. The feel of her arms so tight around me. It was so warm.

It was all I could do to keep myself from breaking down entirely.

I was saved by the kids. A-Ling and A-Yuan had yet to stop chanting surprise at me (their dedication was impressive) and the pair of them had decided to each claim one of my legs. It gave me something else to think of and a reason to end the hug, even if part of me wished I could stay in that hug forever. I decided that was enough for sentimentality for that moment and started stomping around with my newly acquired ankle weights.

“Rawrrr Rawrrr!! I will stomp this whole town down!!” he growled to the delight of my nephews. Our gleeful game was soon interrupted by a giant peacock. 

Shijie’s husband looked… well more resigned than anything, holding little A-Lian like a buffer between us.

Obviously I scooped that little angel up immediately. She’s quite lucky she looks more like her mom. Gotta say.

“My gift to you,” he said with what was, I’m sure, as much dignity as he could muster, “Is to be nice to you until 10:30 PM.”

Oh okay. Very slick. 

So you see, just after he and Shijie got married, I was forced to attend one of his glittering golden birthday parties. Now he may be a major pain in the ass, but he’s Shijie’s pain in the ass. So for her sake I decided that I would be nice and give him an actual present for one. 

But what do you give a Jin? They have literally everything! But, with my never ending pool of wisdom and grace, I thought of the perfect present. 

I told him that I would be nice until 10PM. When asked why only til 10, I answered with the truth. “I’m not sure I could last longer than that.”

That little brat decided to one up me by a whole half hour. That jerk. 

Well I’m not one to waste opportunities. So I did the worst thing I could think of at the time and gave him a biiiiig huuuuug. (he is BONY. Don’t know how Shijie can stand it. But whatever. She’s happy so I’m happy I guess.) ((Made sure not to crush my favorite niece though, don’t worry. ))

My ankle weights decided finally that it wasn’t fun to cling to my pants if I wasn’t gonna be a monster anymore. Jin Ling transferred his sticky fingers to his father’s pants instead. The look Jin Zixuan saves just for his children. We may never be best friends, but I have to admit that man loves his family.  You can see it in his face every time he looks at his children or my shijie. He adores the lot of them. And he’ll adore the new baby when it comes too. 

He actually restructured a large part of his business when he married Shijie. Made it so he didn’t have to live and die at work. He’s practically a house husband now. Dotes on the three of them.

Credit where credit is due, my dude. Credit where credit is due. 

And I KNOW it made a huge mess with his dad and everyone. Ended up giving a lot of power to his half brother.  Never seemed to regret it though. And I’ve never seen a man so devoted to his family before. 

Anyway. 

So he may not be completely useless, but still rather not spend all my birthday chit-chatting with him. So I went off to find Lan Zhan instead. I bounced little A-Lian for a bit as I looked. I handed A-Lian to Shijie as I passed because the two were making eyes at each other and I’d never deny either of them anything. (A-Lian buried her face into Shijie right away it was so cuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuute). Besides I needed my arms free. 

I kept that bounce in my step as I trotted up to Lan Zhan and pulled him into a hug. 

I’d wasted so much time trying NOT to hug him. I wasn’t about to waste any more than I had to from now on. 

Probably held on tighter than was strictly necessary but whatever. It’s my birthday. I hug who I want and everyone gets to deal! 

Besides, I needed a sec to collect myself again. When did I get to be this high-strung?

“So this is why you were on your phone all the time these past couple weeks?” I asked when I trusted my voice to come out not sounding like a muppet. 

He did that adorable little yes hum he does that always makes me feel warm inside. 

How does he do that????? All he has to do is HUM and I’m on cloud 9?????? That shouldn’t be allowed. 

As I contemplated this, suddenly I heard a little demon cough behind me. Damn it , SangSang. I was in my own little world and you ruined it ;3;.

“I don’t know what to say!” I said after letting go of Lan Zhan, hoping my face wasn’t as red as it felt. “I was not expecting all this but.. Thank you!”

Be gracious, Wei Ying. When people do nice things say thank you not sorry.

I’m trying to learn. X_X

Then the little demon spoke again. (Yes, YOU SangSang. Don’t deny what you are.)

“Leave the speeches for after the gifts! Now we PARTY!”

Can’t argue with that logic. Heh. 

[tippitv]

Recap: “Ouroboros” 14-14

Hey everyone! In an effort to get the recap out in a timely fashion, I'm trying something new. I'm doing it live-blog style and adding gifs already available on Tumblr as I format it for posting. Making pics with captions and photoshopping is super slow and laborious on my ancient computer. Just that part of the recaps usually takes 8-10 hours to do. In a recap that has a LOT of graphics, it might take 12.

THEN!

Ooh I've apparently missed more episodes than I realized. Veronica Cartwright, who's one of my favorite character actresses ever, brought Jack back to life. 

But with like... dire consequences, as per yoozh.

NOW!

Raton, New Mexico. Hey I've been there! I was driving to Colorado when I was 19 and we hit Raton riiiiight before we had to start driving up a narrow mountain road... when an ice storm hit... and I, a Texan who'd never driven over so much as an ice cube, thought I was going to kill us all.

Anyway it's nice to see an episode start somewhere in the Southwest for a change of pace.

This music is super cute. Someone let me know what it is? Also, I don't know who this guy is but he knows how to chop vegetables. I like him already! Oh... oh wait. There's a dead man on his kitchen island and the knife guy is harvesting his organs for dinner. Sorry, my dude, but I only have room in my heart for one cannibal

Oh he's got some lizard eyes on him, too. That's also a deal breaker. Somehow his repto-vision allows him to sense that the Winchesters are coming for him, so he grabs his pet snake Felix and sneaks away.

The episode is titled "Ouroboros," and I can't see that word without thinking of the episode of Red Dwarf where the people found the cardboard box with Lister in it. They misread the word as "Our Rob, or Ross." Shout out to the handful people following me who know what I'm talking about.

The Winchesters show up. Oh hey Castiel and Jack are with them, too! Snake Boy didn't see that. "Oh no," Cas says, despairing at the scene in the kitchen. I know. A wasted pasta dinner! Also a dead body.

Sam and Dean are frustrated that they've failed to catch this guy yet again. How is anyone not barfing at the smell of fried human liver? Have they become inured to it because of all the flaming hunter funerals? That's probably it.

"My money's on witchcraft," Dean grumbles. Rowena walks up behind him like

Oh ho ho why's she so flirtatious with Castiel? What did I miss there? Well he seems as confused as I am, and less titillated. Maybe nothing happened and she's just someone with eyes who happens to see how cute he is.

Everyone wonders why the victim, like all the other victims, appears not to have fought back. I mean, there's a lot of nihilism these days. Maybe it's a case of "fuck it, if this guy doesn't kill me the climate change will." Jack finds a freshly shed snake skin on the floor.

They wonder if the victim had pet snakes but think he doesn't seem the type. Like, I know a stay-at-home suburban mom with multiple snakes so I don't think there's just one type of herp enthusiast. Jack starts coughing and everyone's like

Jack assures them he's not dying again but he probably is.

Rowena notices there's a blackish powder around the victim's lips. The others tell her the other victims had something similar but they ignored it so that Dean and Rowena could look back and forth at each other with their best So Done faces.

As funny as the exchange is, I do so hate plot-necessitated dumbness. There's no way they wouldn't have looked into the black powder on all the victims' faces.

Sam and Rowena do some research in the motel de la nuit, which has a fabulous Missoni-inspired wallpaper. Man I wouldn't mind having some of that! Anyway, she's curious about Jack being not-dead and Dean keeping an archangel locked up in his head somehow. Sam doesn't want to talk about it.

Meanwhile, Jack's in the bathroom having one of those Moulin Rouge coughing fits. Has anyone thought of like... getting the kid some Robitussin? He uses a small amount of power to heal his cough. I think Veronica Cartwright warned against this in the previouslies.  

Dean's growing a mite weary and still thinks their inevitable option is going to be the magic coffin. Cas's face goes

Castiel tiredly explains what the word "liturgical" means when Jack and Dean give him confused looks. I mean I guess Jack might not know, but Dean should sure as heck know.

When they get back to the motel, Rowena says they're dealing with a Gorgon. "Like Medusa!" Dean pipes up. Oh I bet this leads to a Clash of the Titans jok---and there it is. They blah blah blah about how eating human eyes allows a Gorgon to see the future and evade capture. "So even if we use your tracking spell, he'll know," Cas says. Why do they assume it's a man when the Gorgons have always been depicted as shes?

So Snake Boy approaches a guy outside a truck stop and asks for help. "I'd find a way to pay you back." He turns the flirting up about ten notches and the trucker shiftily tells him to get inside. They kiss and the trucker is slowly paralyzed. Oh noooo I have a dozen things to say about queer villainy and victimization but I'm live blogging so remind me to come back to it.

Cas's hair is high as hell today. Remember there was this whole plot a while back about how Heaven is running out of power because there are so few angels? Maybe he's powering Heaven with his hair.

Noah, that's apparently the Gorgon's name, has left a note on the body for Dean. "I see you standing alone reading this note," NUH UH he's standing with Cas. He warns Dean to stop chasing him. "Why doesn't he mention me?" Cas asks. Right?? "Maybe you're not his type," Dean says. Cas rolls his eyes upward but the low-hanging fruit is practically on the ground.

After a confab with Sam and Rowena, they work out a plan for Cas and Jack to go after Noah since they seem to be invisible to him. They just need some anti-venom in case the Gorgon tries to poison them. Or just tell them not to kiss the guy? Maybe they don't know kissing is how he

OH MY FUCKING GOD ROWENA TURNS JACK INTO A VERY TINY DOG AND RUSHES HIM TO THE VET WITH SAM AND HE LOOKS LIKE A MUPPET

Jack the dog gets a thermometer up the butt... Then the vet or tech or whoever she is just... leaves him on the exam table unattended. That's not remotely what happens at clinics but whatever. As soon as Jack is alone, he turns back into a person with all his clothes on. I don't know why that seems more unrealistic to me than him turning into a dog, period.

He finds the anti-venom, makes a joke about his poor butt, and then Sam and Rowena have a conversation in the parking lot about how he was brought back to life. Then the vet runs out and confronts them!

Just kidding, they talk as long as they want without ever being discovered.

Noah's got his latest victim tied up somewhere. He says he finds more men to eat because women are more cautious. True dat. He kept the guy alive long enough to blah blah for a while but now he gives him a smooch on the cheek to paralyze him.

Rowena casts a locator spell... Why wouldn't Noah be able to see her and know something is up? Only the angelic ones are invisible to him. Oh my word Castiel kicks open the door VERY forcefully and I'm like

But wait... first he knocked. Why did he knock first? You know what let's just move on. Castiel goes and de-venomizes the latest victim. For some reason nobody's cutting off Noah's head yet so he just goes on talking. Something about a snake and some chicken eggs. Even Castiel is like, "Why are you telling this story??" And Noah, looking at Jack, goes, "Because I can't tell if he's the chicken or the snake."

Fisticuffs attempt to ensue! Lolol it's briefly a slap fight. Noah kisses Cas on the cheek. This is the most unrealistic part of this episode. Why would you kiss some rando trucker on the mouth and not this guy.

Hm there's still 15 minutes left. For some reason, the anti-venom doesn't work on Cas, so Jack has to use some of his powers. Maybe you should have tried giving him more of it first but whatever.

LOL they drive all the way from New Mexico to Kansas with unconscious Dean and rush him into the med bay. It's at least an eight hour drive! Maggie's like, "I'll get some ice!" It's been at least eight hours! Why didn't they just bring him to a regular hospital?? Nothing supernatural happened to him! He got his head wanged!

Jack is pretty upset about the prospect of Dean dying but Cas seems... philosophical about it. Maybe he knows they got renewed for season 15 and isn't too worried.

Oh Dean's awake and everything's fine! Just kidding he's on a rampage knocking everything over. Someone tell Maggie to forget the ice. He's in a rage because he "let his guard down" and now Michael has left. I mean... you were knocked out by a plot contrivance, my dude. Don't be too hard on yourself.

Oh shiiiit Michael's gone and killed everyone in the bunker. Not any of the main characters, obviously, but everyone else. Oh double shiiiiiit he's got Rowena as a vessel now. Wait. Why would she have said yes to him?

Ah...Michael paid her a little visit in her mind and said he'd kill everyone she cares about. She's loath to admit it but she does care for these people. Well, the main characters, at least.

Oh my gosh I love Ruth Connell. This is my fave version of Michael yet. Too bad it won't last!

Jack decides to use his powers to save everyone even if it means dying! Except he doesn't die because it's only March. He forces Michael out of Rowena, then sucks down the evacuated grace like

Everything goes quiet. Everyone's like... wtf? what?? the fuck??? They wait on pins and needles to see what happened to Jack. Jack's like, "I'm me again!" with the glowing flame eyes and the shadow wings. The music makes this seem very ominous. Maybe it means he doesn't have a soul anymore. Either way he seems very powerful again so good luck getting a rectal thermometer into him now.

Wait... why was this episode called Ouroboros when it was an entirely different snake thing? Ohhh maybe it was Jack eating/using his own powers to help himself? Let's say it's that.

If you enjoyed this recap, and are able, please drop something into my virtual tip jar here: https://www.paypal.me/tippiblevins  Henry the Hound and I could use grocery/vet money so anything is appreciated, including reblogs!

Thank you for reading!

[xxwinterchillxx]

Halloween Dance and Some Unfortunate Events

Summary:

Levi is willing to go all the way to get Eren to go with him to the Halloween Dance. But things get complicated since Levi cannot show any sign of intelligence around the German hottie. However, he isn’t taking no for an answer.

Rating - Teen and Up Audiences

Categories - M/M

Relationships - Levi/Eren, background relationships, Moblit/Hanji, Armin/Erwin, Krista|Historia/Ymir

Chapters - 4/?

Read below cut or read on AO3

Chapter 4: Yeah, let’s go somewhere

Erwin offered to drive me to Eren’s as Armin had invited him along too. I am not usually a people person in general but as we neared the Jaegers’ house, I grew more anxious that I won’t have anyone to talk to. I don’t want Eren to see me as complete and total loser who has no friends. It’s a pity Hanji didn’t get invited.

Erwin drove as slow as hell. My throat felt dry and I felt the world spinning. This is bad. My costume sucks. It’s all Mobilt’s fault really. When I complained to Hanji that I would be lonely at the party, he said, “No you won’t.” I was about to thank him when he continued, “cause your costume’s a total conversation starter.”

Yeah, fuck you too, Moblit, you asswipe.

Hopefully I’ll maybe get to talk about it with Eren. Maybe.

 “Hey Levi,” Erwin chipped from the driver seat. “Don’t be nervous, everything will be okay.”

I kind of felt like an idiot to have a meat-head like Erwin tell me to calm down. But he was right so I thanked him anyway.

“Erwin?”

“Yes?”

“What do you think about my costume?” I looked into the rear-view mirror to meet his eyes.

He looked back, smiled and then reassigned his vision to the road, “Awesome! I really like the Pink Panther.”

 Ah, shit.

 ~~oOo~~

 As soon as we reached, Armin came rushing up and kissed Erwin on the cheek. The latter reciprocated by literally eating the other’s mouth. I would have made an obnoxious puke sound but my breath was taken away by the sight before me.

The Jaegers were not just rich. They were filthy nasty downright rich.

“That is his house?” I said on impulse. I regretted saying it the moment it rolled off my tongue.

Armin laughed, “Of course not. That’s just one of their 5 houses. I know, impressive right?”

I was about to nod when Erwin said, “The only thing impressive tonight is you, sexy.”

And here comes the puke noise.

  As I entered the house, I could literally feel social anxiety leaking into my body. Erwin and Armin were outside doing… whatever they’re doing, I don’t wanna know. So I was left all alone, like a rabbit in a predator party. Oh shut up, I’m good at analogy.

The neon lightings and the bass beats and all those sweaty twerking people made me remember why I stayed home during weekends. I could see 2 or 3 girls who wore a rabbit costume too. Except they were more revealing. Much much more revealing. The noise was so loud I couldn’t even hear myself groan. It was a nightmare. In fact, the house was so crowded I couldn’t even see the walls.

In the midst of all those ‘sexy’ people, I felt out of place. I wanted to go home but then again I also wanted a glimpse of the Jaeger booty. So I stayed and waddled through the room to the food thingies, taking care not to let any strange fluids get on my pink onesie. However, when I reached the tables and saw what was going on, I decided the food wasn’t exactly sanitary.

“Levi? Is that you?” I thought I heard someone calling my name but it was so hard to hear anything besides the noisy music. But when I turned back, I saw Krista.

“Levi!”

Why is she talking to me?

“….Krista.”

She was wearing an angel get-up with small white wings and a sparkly pearl mini dress with white heels. What irked me off the most was that she did look angelic. Ugh, she is so pretty.

“Oh my god, you’re, like, so cute!”

I was about to walk away when she started talking, “Let me guess. Let me guess-”

I guess I didn’t want a repeat of Erwin’s Pink Panther so I mumbled, “It’s a rabbit.”

“Aw, you look cute as a button and you’re pink!”

I didn’t know how to reply to that as I just frowned and looked at her in silent rudeness. I wanted to make it clear to her that I can’t stand her. She just grinned back really bright and said, “Hey, come on. Let’s go meet Eren. I’ve just arrived as well.”

To be honest, I didn’t want her to accompany me when I talk to him. She looked like a heavenly being while I looked like a Walmart muppet. Maybe Moblit was right. Maybe I do have low self-esteem around her. After my unwelcome but enlightening realization, I decided maybe I should just go home.

“Pass. I’m leavin-”

“Eren!!”

All that loud noise and the yelling and the all those grinding gradually faded into that background when I saw him. Him, looking like a tanned Greek God amidst the undistinguished unimportant faces of the chaotic masses. Time came to a still as he smiled at me.

His dark blue police uniform clutched around his torso like it was made for him. He wore sexy combat boots and topped the whole look off with a police cap. And he was so goddamn tall and so… manly.

In the painfully slow motion in my head, he raised his hand and waved at me. So I waved back, taking care to smile the smile I practiced in front of my mirror for god knows how long. In the corner of my eye, I could see someone waving as well.

Still in the slow motion, I turned my head to find Krista waving at Eren. Then time returned to normal as I saw my cop running up to her and raising her. Krista yelped girlishly in surprise, giggling.

I don’t know whether he didn’t see me or just ignored me but after watching him chat so freely with Krista, stroking her hair and whatnot, I didn’t feel like staying any longer.

I know he isn’t mine. I know he isn’t my boyfriend. But still, I felt so hurt. Some people just have it all, don’t they? Popularity, wealth, beauty, stealing other people’s crushes… It’s kind of unfair that I have to compete with someone like Krista.

I turned back and walked towards the front door. I got reminded why I should just keep Eren at a crush-distance. If I didn’t try to be near him, I wouldn’t have seen that nightmarish scene at all. My eyes felt heavy and wet-ish but I felt angrier rather than being sad.

However, as soon as I got within a foot to the door, some people came rushing in. I got shoved into the person behind me; I groaned painfully in return. I could feel the person holding me.

“L-Levi? You’re here?” said a masculine voice.

I rubbed off my eyes quickly, not bothering to look at the person, “Fuck off.” I tried to shrug his hands off.

When he didn’t let me go, I was about to let out a long string of rainbow words then I saw his face. A familiar rugged cop with combat boots.

“E… Ere-?” I could feel a million thoughts rushing through my head, most of them just screaming ‘you told him to fuck off!!!!’

And if I was jealous of the way he treated Krista, it was utter shit compared to how he treated me. He still held me in his arms and in order to hear him amongst the music, he pulled us close. I could feel my face burning and my heart pounding heavily.

He first looked at me and screamed, “LEVI, YOU LOOK SO DAMN CUTEE!!!!”

It almost tore my ear off. I replied, “I can hear you fine.”

“WHHAAAATTT??”

That brainless hottie pulled us even closer. But I don’t think he did it so that he could hear me. He patted my head and felt the rabbit ears with both of his hands, mumbling to himself, “They’re so soft! And pink!”

Then he looked down on my face and smiled lovingly. I almost squealed like a little girl. Only then did I realise I was doing my dazed crazed smile so immediately, I put on my practiced smile.

“It’s so loud in here.”

I nodded shyly in response. My heart was pounding faster than light and I could only pray that he didn’t feel it from how close he held us together. I couldn’t even look at him properly, and kept tugging my hood lower and lower. Even my fingertips were blushing pink.

“Let’s go somewhere quiet.”

He didn’t wait for my response as he grabbed my wrist and led the way, pushing past the people.

I thought we would go upstairs or something. You know, to do…. Uh, something. But oh no, Eren was way too pure for that.

As we stepped out into the garden, I felt a chilly wind run up my spine and for once, I felt thankful for my full-body costume. He closed the door behind us and now, there was only the echoic remnants of a pounding music.

He gestured me to follow suit as he sat down on a protruding ledge. I sat beside him, still staring into his majestic eyes. First, he asked, “Are you cold?”

Honestly, I wanted to scream yes so that he could do some romantic shit like hugging me, for instance. But it was pretty clear that I was comfortable and warm like a human burrito. So I almost said no. But I think I took too long to answer cause Eren’s voice sounded first,

“Well, I am.”

And he hugged me, putting one arm around me and his other hand holding my own. I often break out in nervous cold sweat, so I bit my lip, trying to suck in all my sweat (if that’s even possible).

“Listen, Levi, I want to ask you something.”

When I didn’t reply, he continued, “I know we don’t talk a lot. You’re, like, really quiet.”

Then he laughed a little, “I don’t know if you’ve noticed but we have a lot of classes together and… I kinda always try to sit near you.”

Holy fuck, yes, Eren, I do. I do. Marry me.

“I’ve actually had a crush on you since I first saw you.” He paused for a bit and then rambled on, “My friends thought I was nuts. They said that I would never have a chance with someone like you.”

Someone like me? Someone like me? EREN JAEGER HAS A CRUSH ON ME, EREN JAE-

Then, he turned to me and stared longingly. He frowned and glared at me deeply, his emerald eyes looked so serious. I almost felt pregnant.

“Levi, please date me.”

<<First | <Previous | Next>

[mysunfreckle]

Three’s Harmony

J/B/M, fluffy hurt/comfort, ~1.4k

Cw: getting shit for being poly (off-screen)

For the poly anon from a while ago, if you’re still around, I hope I did this justice <3

Joly can hear the music blasting inside their apartment as soon as he approaches the front door and – parties notwithstanding – that is rather unusual. It’s not that it’s too late for loud music, it’s just that both Bossuet and Musichetta are usually more on the preserve-your-ears end of the spectrum. Something Joly has certainly has had a hand in. He resists the urge to plug his ears as he walks through to the living room and stops in the doorway, surprised. Musichetta is dancing.

Normally there’s hardly a sight Joly appreciates more and she is still a vision, barefoot and with her hair flying wildly as she shakes her head. But her feet thump angrily on the living room carpet and her eyes are squeezed shut as if she’s shutting out the world as well.

“Chetta?”

Joly is sure his voice can hardly have reached her through the music, but Musichetta still spins round and opens her eyes. Joly is not surprised that they are red, but it still gives him a stab to the chest.

“Ay, sorry honey,” she calls out, hastily walking over to the stereo to turn the music down.

“That’s okay,” he smiles, crossing the room towards her. He wants to ask what happened and he will, but…not now. “May I have this dance?” he asks extra formally, turning the volume back up again just a little.

Musichetta’s smile manages to shine through the obvious strain on her face. “Why thank you, Sir,” she says, grabbing his hand. She pulls him close and Joly immediately wraps an arm around her waist, trying to pour all his concern and comfort into touch and movement. He hates it when Chetta is upset. She doesn’t get sad easily, and he can tell there is hurt behind the angry frustration in her eyes. But she’s not someone that bottles up either. When she’s ready, if she wants to, she’ll talk about it. Right now she doesn’t need to talk though, she needs to dance. So Joly dances with her.

There is no way he can keep up with her though, not for long anyway. Luckily Musichetta soon willingly changes from angry rock music to musical numbers to loudly sing along with. She’s looking better already and by the time their dancing has turned to swaying, she mutters:

“I ran into an old fr- someone from school today.”

Joly recognizes that tone of voice. The weariness. The near-defeated hurt buried under layers disappointment and defiance. “Ah,” he says softly, drawing his arms a little closer around her.

Musichetta leans towards him until she can rest her forehead against his. “We hadn’t seen each other in ages. She asked how I was and I—” She cuts herself off and makes a disgusted sound. “I wasn’t even going to say anything, but we always got along so well. Back at school I mean. I was just…gushing I guess. Telling her how happy we were…” All the warmth drains from Musichetta’s voice for a moment. “She wasn’t happy for us.”

Joly nods. He doesn’t need to ask for details. It’s no good to have any of those judgements or accusations repeated. All three of them have heard it all before, but it always stings more when it’s someone you actually care about.

Musichetta pulls away just enough to look at him and gives him a wry, tired smile. “I shouldn’t be disappointed anymore… I just—”

“She used to be a friend,” Joly hums.

She sighs and shakes her head.

Joly knows there’s nothing he can say she hasn’t told herself already, so instead he pulls her towards the couch. They fall down on it side by side, the music downgraded to background noise as they do their best to curl up into a ball together.

Usually when there’s silence between them it’s warm and comfortable, but right now Joly can practically hear Musichetta’s thoughts in the background. “Chetta…” he hums. “Don’t…”

“I know, you’re right,” she groans, letting her head drop down so it rests against his shoulder.

Joly strokes through her by now very messy hair and tries to think of something good to say. Something cheerful and distracting. Of course he suddenly can’t think of a single thing, so he presses a kiss to her forehead instead. Apparently that is also acceptable, because Musichetta hums softly and sinks deeper into his embrace.

“I wish Boss was here,” Joly mutters into her hair. He would know something good to talk about. He always does.

They both glance up at the clock.

“He’ll still be stuck in class,” Musichetta sighs.

“Blondeau’s class though,” Joly points out. Ten to one that Bossuet is on his phone already.

Musichetta hesitates, but sits up a little and pulls out her phone. Joly leans his chin on her shoulder and watches her type out a message. Bossuet answers immediately, asking what happened. Musichetta’s shoulders tense up ever so slightly while she condenses her feelings into text and Joly leans into her a little more, nuzzling against her temple when she hits send. She smiles and turns her head to press a soft kiss on his lips. They both watch her screen, waiting.

There is a considerable pause before Bossuet starts typing again and Joly knows why. Bossuet’s good humour is nigh impossible to spoil, but upsetting Chetta will do it. When his answer comes, it’s neither of the two options Joly expected though (extremely cleverly expressed anger or gratuitous affection), it makes very little sense at all.

Boss: Some people like to go through their life single

Musichetta makes a soft noise of confusion and Joly looks at the screen with puzzled curiosity. Bossuet is still typing so there’s obviously more.

Boss: Aw that wouldn’t suit us at all

Musichetta blinks, still confused, but something is beginning to stir in Joly’s memory. “Wait,” he says slowly. “Isn’t that—”

Boss: Why sing a melody as a soliloquy? When it’s more fun to be har-mo-ni-zing!

Musichetta lets out a snorting laugh and Joly breaks out in a grin. They really should have guessed.

Boss: People they say we are, crazy the way we are That we won't even discuss!

“Honestly,” Chetta gulps, her voice flooded with warmth and Joly laughs.

Boss: Cause what we got they can't smother We'd trade our life for no other

Boss: They've only got one another

Boss: But we got US

Joly can practically see Bossuet mouthing the words at his phone from behind his law books and he can’t stop smiling. Musichetta is shaking with tired laughter against him and they really should all three be tangled up on the couch right now, but this is just good enough.

Chetta: Did you just quote muppets at us

Boss: I will quote muppets at you at all times in all places

Boss: Because I love you

Boss: And you deserve the best

Joly’s cheeks are starting to hurt. Musichetta looks at him and the strain on her face has faded to something distant. “Our boyfriend is a dork, Joly,” she says, not quite managing to keep a wobble of emotion out of her voice.

“The best dork,” Joly agrees proudly.

Musichetta laughs, her genuine, out loud laugh that is life to Joly whenever he hears it, and she tips her head back, letting him snag her phone.

Chetta: You made Chetta laugh <3

Boss: <3 <3 <3

Boss: Good. Twenty more minutes and I’m there

Even through the warm glow in his chest Joly feels a little pang of worry.

Chetta: Bike safely though!

Musichetta makes an urgent sound looking at her screen and takes her phone back.

Chetta: We mean it, don’t rush in traffic

Boss: I won’t, promise x

Chetta: xxx

Musichetta breathes out a smiling sigh and lets her phone slide out of her hand and onto the couch cushions. Joly wraps both his arms firmly around her again and coaxes her until she’s lying with her head on his chest. That takes some manoeuvring considering the height difference, but it’s an art they have long since perfected. Practice makes perfect after all and they have had countless hours of it.

“I love you,” Musichetta mutters into his shirt. “So much.”

“All the muchness,” Joly hums back and he smiles, because Bossuet is right. None of them would trade places with anyone. Not for anything. Ever. This is far too good to give up.

[I made it this far into the fandom without forcing my adoration for the Muppets on you all, but it was only a matter of time. Here is the song, in case you’re interested. I wish there was a less silly, more musically pleasing version of this song, but then again…Miss Piggy.]

[Writing more in-depth about poly relationships is something I’m still working on, if any of you have feedback please feel free to speak your mind <3]

[adotblog]

Brave Part 18-Finale.

Pairing: LMM x Reader

Warnings: None!

Words: Who knows.

Notes: Alright this is it. My one-shot smut turned into an 18-Part monster and now it’s done! Don’t worry, there’ll be a new Lin x Reader next week-I’m sort of addicted. Thank you to everyone who read even just one part.

“I guess I’m joining Amazon Prime”, you joke grimly as lin holds the door open for you. “Eeesh, sorry about that.”, he apologises. Your Christmas shopping had been cut short because of a stream or selfie-needing fans. It was just getting to the stage where you couldn’t walk 10 feet without Lin getting stopped. “It’s not your fault, I’ll figure it out”, you say. “At least we both got our secret Santa presents for Fake Christmas tomorrow”. “Yup, and I already got your gift last month”, Lin says smugly. “Last month?! That is waaaay organised”, you say. “Just, saw a thing and thought of you”, he says. You touch the necklace nestled at your throat, the last “saw this and thought of you” gift he’s gotten you. He catches you doing it and you both smile.

“Well you’ve a good record with those things”, you say with a wink. “Alright what’s left to do before tomorrow?”, Lin asks. “Prep vegetables, wrap secret Santa presents. Figure out where the Cards Against Humanity got stashed”, you groan. “Ok well it’s 4, how ‘bout we prep the veg now, with Muppets Christmas Carol on, then eat take out?”, he suggests. “Yes! And we’ll look for the game tomorrow-no one is coming until 3 anyway”, you say. Lin holds out his fist for a bump and starts pulling potatoes and veggies out of the fridge. “I don’t have to stuff a turkey, right?”, he asks suddenly, anxiously. “No”, you laugh “it’s a pre done thingy you just bang in the oven for an hour”. “Thank god.”.

—————————————————

An hour later, still chopping and now wondering why you’d ever suggest having 7 people over for Christmas lunch, you belt out all the film’s songs to help ease the tedium. “After all there’s only one more sleep til Christmas!”, you practically screech and Lin giggles at your enthusiasm (or hysteria? Who can tell?). “Ok this is the one bit I don’t like about Christmas.”, you admit, flopping back on the couch dramatically. Lin chuckles and coaxes you back to work. “Come along, it’ll be worth it tomorrow when everyone loses their shit over your roast potatoes.”, he says. Grumbling, you resume and the two of you work away, pausing to cry about Tiny Tim and to sing the finale.

By 6, it’s all done and in the fridge. You wrap the secret Santa presents and place them under the tree and finally order your take out. “There’s only one thing left to do”, Lin declares. “What’s that?”. “Play Christmas songs and dance around the kitchen with a glass of mulled wine.”. You practically swoon at the suggestion after the long day, however “we’d need mulled wine for that”, you point out helpfully. Lin opens the kitchen cabinet nearest him with the flourish of a gameshow’s Glamourous Assistant. Inside is a bottle of mulled wine. “I fucking love you”, you deadpan.

“Picked it up at the airport”, he says smugly as he opens it. “The airport?! You’re flying around on secret business and you remember to get that? You are really super-prepared, it’s making me feel inadequate and nervous”, you joke. “Oh, you have no idea”, he grins. “Whaaat? What does that mean? What’ve you done?”, you ask suspiciously. “Patience, baby”, he mocks, recalling your utterance of that phrase earlier today. You actually blush at the memory, but you still want to know what he’s prepared. “Liiiiin”, you whine. Just then the door buzzes “Oops, gotta get that!”, he says as he practically skips away.

He returns proffering the Thai food you ordered. You keep the mulled wine for later since it’s a weird match for your curry. As you sit at opposite ends of the counter to eat, you wonder what present he’s got you. You’ve been so busy this last week that you haven’t had time for it to sink in that Christmas is actually here. You’ve not had chance to get excited yet, so when he’d mentioned his gift for you it just made the penny drop.

“Lin?”. “Yeah”, he replies through a mouthful of noodles. “It’s Christmas tomorrow!”, you grin. He laughs and puts down his fork. “You’re gonna get me up REAL early, aren’t ya?”, he groans. “What’s an acceptable time to get you up?”, you ask. Lin takes one look at your excited face and says “Whenever you want, love”. Your reply is just an excited squeal and he grins as he shakes his head. “Oh boy”.

You stick your tongue out at him and ask “Isn’t my enthusiasm...endearing?”. And he’s laughing again. “Alright but seriously I have a special breakfast planned, it’s a French toast bake thing that is gonna blow your mind.”, you tell him. “Then presents?”, he asks. “Then presents. What do you want to do after that?”. Lin looks slightly amused. “Oh once you’ve had your present you’ll just want to jump me, so I wouldn’t plan too much”, he deadpans. He ducks the newspaper you aim at his head.

——————————————————

By the time you finish your food it’s kind of been a long day, so you settle in front of the Peanuts special with the mulled wine and just enjoy being snuggled up together, Lin’s arm around your shoulder, your hand resting on his thigh. Occasionally he turns his head to leave a kiss at your temple. When the special finishes, he gets out his phone and knocks out a few Peanuts tweets and announces that it’s time to hit the sack so Santa can do his stuff.

“I just gotta make the breakfast thing, you go”, you say. “Alright, my love-see you in a bit”, he says and leaves you with a spiced-wine kiss.

You prep the breakfast and leave it in the fridge and then put the last couple of touches to your gifts. When you climb into bed beside him, he’s already fast asleep. You spoon him and whisper that you love him as you feel yourself drifting off.

——————————————————

You wake randomly in the night to find Lin gone from your side. You squint at the clock: 2:36. You know he’ll be in his study, writing down the thing that just can’t wait. You roll over and fall asleep long before he returns to your side.

——————————————————

You were half kidding about what an acceptable waking time was but apparently your body took you seriously as you wake just after 6. You creep off to the guest room to take a shower so as not to wake Lin. You pull on a soft red knit dress and curl your hair while the oven pre-heats. Once you’ve put the French toast in, it’s a much more reasonable hour. You set off a playlist of carols in the living room and go to wake your boyfriend.

You climb onto the bed and lean over to kiss him. “Merry Fake Christmas, gorgeous”, you say as he turns over to face you with a sleepy smile. Rubbing his eyes and sitting up, he says “Merry Fake Christmas to you too”. When his eyes focus he takes in your dress and gives an appreciative “Woah.”. You grin in return and tell him to get dressed while you serve up breakfast.

You’re just placing the plates on the counter when he comes into the kitchen. He’s wearing a Zelda Christmas sweater and his hair is down. He looks ridiculously cute. You tell him so. He comes over to hug you and kisses you so softly, over and over. “I love you.”, he says. “And I love you. So much”, you answer.

And so you sit down to your French toast bake, bopping in your chairs to the Christmas songs in the background. When La Vie Bohème comes on Lin grins at you. “What? Rent the movie is a Christmas movie, therefore this is a Christmas song”, you shrug defensively. “No argument from me!”, he laughs. “This is delicious by the way.”, he indicates the French toast. “Mmhmm, no argument from me!”, you laugh. You clink orange juice glasses and toast to Fake Christmasses, French toast and Rent. Then the music changes and Lin freezes. “Y/N...”, he starts, on the verge of giggles. You raise an eyebrow. “Is this...the Gremlins score?!” he asks. “CHRISTMAS MOVIE.”, you insist. “Yup, sure, sure.”, he agrees hurriedly and between laughs.

Lin sinks the rest of his orange juice. “Wanna do gifts?”, he asks, already knowing the answer. You’re out of your seat before he finishes, practically throwing the dishes into the dishwasher and then grabbing his hand and pulling him to the tree, where you’ve left his gifts. There’s just a little envelope for you, you notice.

“You first”, you say, holding out a gift bag. Lin bounces excitedly as he opens the bag up. “Oh myyyyy”, he says when he opens the box of rocky road you made him. “This smells amazing!”, he says. “Well It has a secret ingredient...honey whiskey!”, you explain. “Damn! That’s genius!”.

He puts the box on the counter, then hands you the envelope. He has a mischievous look on his face as you open it. You eye him suspiciously and pull out a piece of paper with Lin’s scrawly handwriting on it. “Welcome to your Christmas TREASURE HUNT!”, you read aloud. “Oh Lin that’s awesome! Wait, when did you do this?”, you ask. “Oh, about 2am”, he laughs. “That’s where you went! Ok first clue, first clue!!”. Now you’re the one bouncing as you read “In the morning you’ll hear me whistle and toot, as you decide: Earl Grey or fruit?”.

It only takes you a second or two. “The tea kettle!! Is that where the next clue is?!”, you squeak. Lin grins at your enthusiasm “Go look!”, he urges. You run over to the stove and lift the lid off the kettle. Another envelope is inside and you grab it before running back to Lin. You give him a kiss and declare this is already the best present you’ve had. “Open the envelope, then!”, he says. Inside is...a takeout menu and a map of the park across the road, along with the next clue. You look up at Lin, confused. “All will be revealed!”, he says mysteriously.

You hand him his next present which he squishes and tries to rattle. It does not rattle. “Hmmm, feels like a book, think it’s a book”, he decides, weighing it in his hands. He rips off the wrapping paper to find a grey box (admittedly book-sized). Black letters in the bottom corner spell LMM. He looks confused and pulls the lid off the box. “Y/N...”, he whispers as he places the box on the table. He lifts out a single leaf of the notepaper inside. It is headed by a skyline illustration, with the George Washington Bridge front and centre. A bold font states “From the desk of Lin-Manuel Miranda”.

“This is stunning, I can’t believe this-you had this made?”, he asks as he reaches for your hand, still looking at the paper. “Yup, there’s a specialist printer in Inwood.”, you confirm. “Who knew?!” Lin exclaims. “There’s a watermark...”, you prompt. Lin drops your hand to hold the paper up to the light and read the watermark. In a circle it says “Made in Wash. Hts”. Lin has a tear in his eye as he carefully places the paper back in its box. He pulls you into his arms and says “That is truly special, thank you so much!”. “You’re welcome. A great writer should have great tools.”, you say. He squeezes you tight and then tells you to read your next clue.

“How we gonna pay last year’s...” you read aloud and then run to the bookcase in the bedroom. Lin follows behind, and leans against the doorway, hands in his pockets. He watches as you scan the shelves and then triumphantly hold up the Rent libretto. You shake it upside down and an envelope falls out. You open it and take out a bus timetable and a subway map. “Lin are you buying me shares in the bus company? Is the subway map a Heights reference?”, you ask, more confused than after the last clue!

He just grins at you. “Hmmmm. Alright, you get another present before I read the clue, right?”, you say as you usher him back to the living room. Once in front of the tree again, you point to an envelope you had nestled into the branches last night. Lin lifts it out joking that he hopes you haven’t also done a treasure hunt. You laugh and shake your head no as he opens the envelope. He finds a calendar page for February and reads out what’s written across the last weekend “Lin and Q’s writing retreat”. He spins round to you, surprise on his face “You booked the house for me and Quiara?”, he asks. “Yeah, you missed out last time and I loved spending that time with you but you didn’t get much writing done”, you wink. “I just want you to know that I’ll do whatever you need to help you get stuff done”.

“You’re a dream”, he says with a smile. “I can’t wait to tell Quiara!”. “Uhh she already knows actually-I had to check her schedule-sorry”, you explain. “No, not at all! Psssh and you were all pretending you weren’t organised!”., he says with a nudge to your shoulder. “Oh you have no idea how last minute some of this was!”, you admit.

“Read your next clue”, Lin says. “We had our first fight, but we’re over it, please-go check the place where you threw back my keys”. Yikes. “Uh Lin, why would you want to remind me of our first fight?”, you laugh nervously. “Just go with it.”, he says reassuringly. “Where’d you throw my keys back at me?”. You cross the room “I didn’t THROW them, I just put them here”, you take an envelope and package from the potted plant. “I know but that didn’t scan!”, Lin laughs. You roll your eyes as you open the package. It’s a set of notecards and envelopes, made by an artist whose work you both saw in a little gallery nearby a few weeks ago. “Oh Lin they’re beautiful, thank you!”, you walk back to him to place a kiss on his cheek. “You’re welcome. That dude is super talented, isn’t he?”, he says.

You hesitate. “I’m not sure how to give you your final gift”, you cringe. “What do you mean?”, Lin asks, intrigued. “We might need to go out...”, you say vaguely. “Okaaaay...maybe you should read your next clue...”, Lin says. You open the envelope. “I hope no-one steals this next gift, go outside, turn around with your back to the ‘lift’”. You grin at the use of the word lift instead of elevator and head for the door. At the last second you grab a package from the table and take it with you. Lin follows you out of the apartment with his keys and phone. He closes the door behind you as you spin around so that your back is to the elevator and stare at Lin’s door. “Ummm”, you murmur. You look around the doorframe, and then it clicks-the console table. You open the drawer and there’s an envelope and a small rectangular box in there.

You walk to the stairs so you can sit to open the gift. You unwrap to see a distinctive blue box. Tiffany. You glance up at Lin, who rubs his hands together. “This is the saw it and thought of me?”, you ask. “Mayyyyyyybe”, he responds with a smile as he sits down next to you. You lift the lid off the box and find a silver keychain with a little charm on the end-a book, open, with delicate page details on it. You take it out of the box “Lin this is beautiful, and it’s so me...”, you stop as you see “Love, Lin” is engraved on the back. You place a hand over your heart. “Thank you, so much. I don’t know what to say!”.

Lin smiles and takes your hand. “You said it’s you and I know you meant because you love to read, but it’s more than that-you’re my open book-no poker face.”. You laugh at that. “I’m sorry I reminded you of our first fight but I kinda *wanted* to draw attention to it, because here’s the thing: we fought because I was trying to move us forward and you’d been holding back because you’d been hurt before. In the diner you said to me that you were normally a really open book, that you didn’t keep anyone guessing about your feelings. Ever since that day, you’ve opened up more and more to me-I don’t mean just by talking, but by making yourself vulnerable. You put it all on the line, to make this work. That took a lot of guts and I just kinda wanted to acknowledge that.”

“Lin, that’s so lovely.”

“And look, I also have to acknowledge that in letting me in like that...well I nearly screwed that all up with that kiss, and I couldn’t be more sorry. I’ll never do that again. So I guess I want to say that I’ll always be an open book too.”

You squeeze Lin’s hand. “I know you will. I...”, you pause. “You know what? This would be the perfect time to give you your last gift-it kinda says what I want to say”. “Ok. But can you read your last clue first, that miiiight dictate where we go...” he says. You open the envelope.

“After one of our dates: ‘She loves me’ I excitedly tell Kail, ‘Great musical but terrible movie” he says -You’ve Got...” you leap to your feet. “Mail! I disagree, it’s a fine version of the story!”, you say as you start to run down the stairs. You hear Lin follow behind you.

You run down to the row of mailboxes in the lobby and stand in front of Lin’s. Oh boy, this is a little spooky. You turn around as he catches you up. “I want you to open your last gift.”, you say. “Yeah? What about the location thing?”, Lin asks. “Uhhh that’s the thing...I was just gonna bring you here too...just open it.”, you ramble. “You were gonna bring me to the lobby? Ok”, he laughs and takes the package as you hold it out. He unwraps a small box and as he lifts the lid he pulls back a couple of layers of tissue paper. He puts the box down on the table and lifts out the tiny brass nameplate. He swallows hard then reads out “‘Miranda/Y/L/N’...honey, what is this?”, he asks gently. You straighten up, take a deep breath.

“Its a nameplate for a mailbox. With both our names on. See, I really have been trying to let go of the fears and insecurities I had and I’m not scared any more. Im not scared of us. And so I was wondering...that is, this is my way of asking...do you maybe want to live together?”, you explain. Lin just stares at you. “I just, I know when we first got together, I was holding back. I really was. But over these last few months, you’ve broken down my defences. You’ve shown me so much love and respect and it’s changed how I feel. I love you so much. I can no longer imagine my life without you in it.”. Lin still hasn’t spoken. What’s wrong? “And anyways, I’m always here so...”, you trail off feebly.

There’s a pause. And then Lin lets out a tiny laugh. Not the reaction you were hoping for! “Lin! What the...?”, you cry. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry”, he says and squeezes your shoulders. “It’s just...your last clue”, he points. “You’ve Got Mail?”, you repeat. “Open the mailbox, Y/N”, Lin says softly. You turn the key and inside is a sheaf of paperwork. Lin lists off the gifts he’s already given you by ticking them off on his fingers. “Local bus timetable, subway map and takeout menu. New keyring. Notecards so you can let people know you’ve moved....”. He pauses and points to the word at the top of the paperwork you’re holding.

“Lease.”

Oh. OH. This is the lease for his apartment. “With both our names on”, you repeat.

“I got these drawn up, to officially ask you to move in. Not just in a ‘Oh you might as well stay’ kinda way. I’m ready for us to be moving on, adding you to the lease, it’s a big commitment. But I love you and I know it’s right.”. He pauses and takes in your smile. “But you beat me too it! Jeez!”.

He leans over to kiss you and you smile against his lips. “I can’t believe we got each other the same gift!”, you say. “Well”, he laughs. “I mean if we ever needed proof we were on the same page...!”. You shake your head in disbelief.

“I wondered at one point if you’d ever want to take the plunge, really”, Lin says. “and I went back and forth on the whole gift thing, wondering if it was too much, too soon.”.

You shake your head. “No, not too much and not too soon. Couple months ago this really would have scared me. Before you brought me out of myself and built my confidence and just... loved me in that amazing Lin Miranda way that you do”, you say. He smiles in response and you hug him close, then kiss him. Your lips move against his, soft and familiar. When you stop, you say “You haven’t just told me, you’ve shown me, that you think I’m worth loving, that we were worth gambling on. I guess what I’m trying to say, Lin, is that you made me feel...brave”.

[mexcine2]

               “More Fun Than a Puppy!” (Mickey Mouse Hand Puppets, 1949) 

Although I was once a child, I don’t have children of my own and I don’t associate with anyone who does. [That sounds as if I’m deliberately avoiding people with young children, which is not entirely true.] So I don’t know what “kids today” do for recreation.  Play video games?  Watch DVDs and television?  Go down to the old fishin’ hole with their pals?  Stage scorpion vs. ant fights?  I assume young children still play in groups, until they reach the age when they get a phone and start texting, says the grumpy old man (P.S.--get off my lawn).   So I guess it’s vaguely possible that kids still put on puppet shows and other amateur theatricals for and with their peers.

Today’s object of scrutiny is an advertisement for the“Amazing New Mickey Mouse Hand Puppets,” back in the day (1949) when children had to make their own fun, darn it.  Television was in its commercial infancy, “first” computer ENIAC had only recently been completed and—at 50 tons—was too large to be carried around in one’s pocket to play Fruit Ninja, and child labour laws had stripped kids (in the USA at least) of the opportunity to put in 12-hour days in factories, so they had a lot of free time that needed to be consumed.  Hey kids, let’s put on a show!

As has been mentioned before, the advertisements in comic books of the late 1940s and 1950s are not always appropriate for what one would perceive to be the intended audience of the publication.  This advertisement, seemingly aimed at children, appeared in the December 1949 issue of Romantic Confessions, a comic book whose readership was probably largely female and almost certainly teen-aged and above.  There are only 3 ads in the whole issue (the inside front and back covers, and the back cover): for the Mickey Mouse puppets, the “Dornol treatment” for acne, and a photo enlargement service.  On the other hand, perhaps the thinking was that adults (or older siblings) would purchase the puppets for children of the appropriate age to enjoy them.

[As an aside, Romantic Confessions was also where the “Giant Movie Cartoon Toy” ad appeared, discussed here.  It’s interesting to note that in less than a year, Romantic Confessions went from 3 pages of ads to 10.] 

There are many aspects of this advertisement worthy of comment. It’s loaded with art and text, requiring a considerable investment of time and effort on the part of potential buyers.  You’ve got to read a lot to learn about this product, but that’s only fair when you’re being asked to spend $1.95 per puppet (equivalent in “buying power” to $19.51 today). That’s alright, more content for us to snark on!

Let’s start with the art, shall we?  There are two basic visual components of this ad, the products themselves, and a comic-strip narrative.  The strip artwork appears to be by the same person who drew the famous “Shoots Like a Real Gun” ad, while the drawings of the puppet heads resemble those in another Rubber-for-Molds ad. In particular, the “Idiot” puppet is identical to the “Idiot” mask.  (As noted in the earlier article, this character somewhat resembles Alfred E. Newman and/or George W. Bush.)

The puppets themselves don’t look particularly interesting. Mickey Mouse is adequately represented, but Minnie has a glazed expression on her face. Thumper (from the film Bambi) is a grotesque cartoon rabbit, deliberately not resembling Bugs Bunny, while Donald Duck is not especially on-model (his head is too smooth, he’s missing his iconic cap, and his beak doesn’t look right).  And then there’s “Idiot,” that famous Disney character...?

In case you were wondering, these puppets “are the same type used on television.  Measuring almost 14 inches high, with a head the size of an orange...Extra thin, natural (not synthetic) rubber...hand painted in lifelike* colors.”  

*[In another part of the ad, the puppets are referred to as “flesh-colored”—I suppose that means mouse­-flesh, duck-flesh, and rabbit­-flesh, in addition to Idiot’s human-flesh?]

The comic strip narrative tells the story of Jimmy’s journey from social outcast to the envy of his peers in only three panels.  Jimmy reads an ad (just like this one) in a comic book (just like this one—spooky!) and learns he can “get puppets that really move!”  Not like those puppets that...don’t move?  Those are called “dolls,” Jimmy.  His little sister Babushka approves.

Some time later, “Jimmy’s Puppet Show” is a sensation, despite the outrageous ticket price of two cents.  Let’s see, he spent $3.90 on the two puppets we see, plus something for the sign, so he needs to sell approximately 200 tickets to turn a profit.  Good luck kid! But it seems he’s on to something—or the children in the audience are truly starved for entertainment—because there is “applause” for his puppet show which is “better than a movie!” (but is it better than...a Disney cartoon?)  We don’t get much detail about the content of the show, although in the scene depicted, Minnie appears to be demurely waiting for Mickey to kiss her, which he seems to be enthusiastically about to do.

“After the Show,” Jimmy is beseiged by admirers, one of whom offers to buy the Mickey puppet, claiming (rather obscurely) “It’s more fun than a puppy!”  Jimmy refuses to sell, realising that “the puppets have made Jimmy the most popular kid on the block,” and once he no longer has his puppets, he’ll return to his previous grim and friendless existence, hated and shunned by all.

There are also two pieces of artwork for those unclear on the concept of what a “puppet” is: you “slip them on like a glove and wiggle your fingers...Slip puppet over hand.  Move fingers.  He obeys every command...Come to Life When You Move Your Fingers.”  OK, I think I’ve got it.  Put hand inside puppet, move fingers.  Is that right?  I don’t want to miss a step even though you claim it’s “Easy as A-B-C.”  To be fair, it’s possible the copywriter wanted to distinguish these hand puppets from marionettes, and in fact the text emphasizes “No strings, nothing to break, wind or get out of order.”

The ad text reinforces the 3 basic themes introduced in the art: (a) these things are amazing; (b) they are easy to use; ( c ) they will change your life for the better.

How amazing are they?  “They laugh, cry and move like real!” Yeah, no they don’t.  These “Television Type Puppets”** can “’Talk’, Laugh, Practically Live” (notice “talk” is in quotes even in the ad copy).  “He laughs, moves, almost becomes alive at the slightest wiggle of your fingers.”  “Looks and acts so alive it’s uncanny.”  In fact, we advise you to securely lock up these puppets at night, to avoid...accidents, if you know what I mean.  Haven’t you ever seen those horror movies?  “Completely safe,” the ad reads.  Hmm...why did they feel compelled to say that?

**[Perhaps the most famous TV puppets were the Muppets (and the Sesame Street gang), Shari Lewis’s Lamb Chop, Howdy Doody, et al., but puppets were ubiquitous on television—local and network--from its earliest days.  Early television programs utilised puppets because they were cheap and simple entertainment: the “costumes,” sets, and so on were miniature, multiple “characters” could be interpreted by one or two people, and these factors allowed shows to create a fictional world (or bring fictional characters into the “real” world) for much less than live-action or animation.]

Alright, I agree these puppets are pretty amazing.  But aren’t they difficult to operate?  I didn’t major in theatre arts at university, after all.  Actually, “it’s easy to put on a puppet show in your home!”  “Just by moving your fingers, he will smile, laugh, cry, hide his head, put fingers in mouth, etc...Slips on and off hand in a jiffy. Even a child can work instantly. No experience necessary.”  “Over 1000 Different Movements!”  (Sorry, complete list of movements not available.) For those who are still insecure about their abilities, purchasers also receive “secret revealing pamphlets on ‘How to Become a Ventriloquist’ and ‘How to Put on a Puppet Show.’”   If there ever was something that deserved to be called “idiot-proof,” this product is it!

But wait, didn’t you mention something about these puppets changing my life?  Why yes I did, very observant of you.  If you put on puppet shows, you’ll “Cause a Sensation at the Next Party...Your Friends Will Scream with Delight and Amazement!”  [Unlike the last party, where you demonstrated how to slaughter & disembowel a hog. Your friends screamed all right, but probably not in Delight and Amazement.]  You’ll be “the most popular kid on the block,” if you don’t count Jonathan, Jordan, Joey, Donnie or Danny.

And don’t think your options are limited to backyard puppet shows only!  These puppets are “Ideal for shows or to carry in pocket or purse.”  Stuck in traffic? Waiting for a doctor’s appointment?  Killing time in a holding cell until your bail bondsman shows up?  Stuck with a  boring blind date?  Whip out your puppet and play with it!  “Pays for itself in fun and laughs first time used.”

Don’t think a hand puppet can make your life better?  Just watch Mel Gibson in The Beaver (2011).  I never saw the end, but I assume it worked out well for him. (hint: it sort of didn’t) 

Thanks Rubber-for-Molds!  I didn’t want that puppy anyway!