#electronic warrants

[madtomedgar]

5 states including kentucky (!!) voted to protect abortion access. 3 states did away with slavery (prison labor) as punishment for a crime. 3 states made massive commitments to affordable housing. illinois made collective bargaining a protected right. 2 more states legalized weed. connecticut is moving towards early voting. alabama removed racist language from the state constitution and is investing in statewide public broadband internet. california massively expanded funding for arts and music programs in public schools. colorado raised on the wealthiest in order to provide universal free school lunch to students. georgia may no longer pay cops who are suspended on a felony indictment. massachusetts massively expanded funding for public education and infrastructure, massively expanded dental insurance, and will allow residents to get a drivers license or state id regardless of immigration status. montana will now require a search warrant for access to electronic data. nebraska will increase its minimum wage to $15. new mexico will massively improve and expand senior facilities, public libraries, higher ed, special public schools, and tribal schools, residential utilities (water, internet, electricity). new york is putting 4.2 billion towards climate change mitigation. rhode island is increasing funding for public education and environmental protection. south dakota expanded medicaid.

[moody-alcoholic]

Uninvited Guest

Summary: 2.2k words. Ghoap x Reader, throuple. Reader is female (she/her), army nurse, non descript physical features, names used: Ashe

CW: Unconscious person, mentions of drugging someone repetitively.

Previous parts - masterlist - next part

It's a little shorter but enjoy <3

19:25

Price was still talking over the plan when they made it to the house. Ghost knew they were only here for one thing; the documents Soap found. It’s the evidence they need but Ghost knows it’s a long shot. He looks over at Soap, he’s smiling, of course he is, Ghost almost wants to roll his eyes.

The van pulls up to the front doors. He can see Chloe’s mother and father as well as extended family talking with officers. There’s a man with a suit tapping things on a tablet, Price said they’d called their lawyers. Everyone gets out the van as Price walks over to who Ghost assumes is the man in-charge of the whole raid.

“Found anything?” Price asks. 

“Seized some electronics as per the order. Nothing unusual though. They have sports rifles and shotguns, licences check out.” The officer says.

“Soap take Ghost to the room you saw strip the place.” Price says turning to them to give orders. 

“Gaz stick with me, we’ll search the ground floor.” Ghost doesn’t wait turning towards to house with Soap on his heals. It’s just how he likes it, as long as Soap is nearby it’s one less thing to worry about. Ghost watches as the eyes of the family follow him and Soap into the house. There are people missing, most notably Jack, Ghost knows from the briefing he’s not deployed. He could be anywhere, they haven’t exactly been keeping an eye on him.

After the incident in Syria he was sent back to the UK, his father-in-law covered for him which was to be expected. Then he went quiet, the theory was he was being told to lay low. A shiver ran up Ghost’s spine, there was something wrong with this picture. Ghost tried to ignore it letting Soap pass him to lead him into the house.

“Excuse me!” Someone calls forcing Ghost and Soap to stop in their tracks and turn around. The man Ghost assumed was the lawyer is walking towards them. 

“Excuse me but you don’t look like police.” He says. 

“Well spotted.” Soap says coming to stand next to Ghost. 

“Well I don’t see anywere on this warrant that you’re allowed access here.” He says showing a piece of paper to Ghost who is mostly ignoring it, not that he would understand the legal jargon anyway. 

“Problem boys?” Price says stepping up behind Ghost. 

“He says we’re not to be here.” Soap says.

“Here.” Price says handing him a piece of paper. 

“MI5? Hold on a second. Don’t enter the property until I have verified this.” The man says taking his phone out and turning to walk away. Ghost turns to Price. 

“Hurry up then, I want to get out of here as quick as possible.” Price says turning to walk back over to the officers and Gaz. Ghost watches the lawyer with his back now turned  on the phone, then walks into the building.   

“Up this way LT.” Soap calls heading for the stairs. Ghost follows him making it up to the first floor. Soap leads Ghost into an office. The place is a mess, shredded paper and books flung everywhere. 

“Shite.” Soap says. 

“Someone's had fun.” Ghost says. Soap walks over to the desk, he’s trying to open the drawers but they’re locked. He looks up at Ghost. 

“Price, we’ve made it but the place has been ransacked.” Ghost says into his radio as Soap starts looking through the pieces of paper that never made it through the shredder. 

“There’s nothing useful here.” He says shoving some papers off the desk. Ghost can hear the annoyance in his voice. 

“What about the drawers can you get them open?” Ghost asks looking round the room. All the walls are covered in floor to ceiling bookshelves. What parts of the room missing shelves are covered in expensive art. 

“Na, they’re locked.” Soap says trying to rattle them to see if they’re just stuck. Ghost comes around to see the papers, he can’t make out what the shredded ones are but there have been pictures, and folders, all sorts of things have been through the shredder not just papers. 

“Got anything we can open it with?” Ghost asks. 

“Yeah but shouldn’t we ask them if they have a key first?” Soap asks. 

“Price we’ve got locked drawers up here, any chance we can get a key? Maybe some officers to secure evidence?” Ghost wait’s for Price’s response as he walks over looking at the books pulled off the shelves. He notices the wood looks different and presses down on it. 

“Soap come look at this.” Ghost says as the wall gives way under his hand and it opens a secret compartment. It’s empty but that explains the books on the floor. 

“Shite there could be loads of them.” Soap says looking round the room. There is commotion in the hallways as Ghost hears the lawyer and other people making their way up to the room. 

“I told you to wait downstairs until we’d verified your paperwork!” The lawyer snaps. Ghost looks over at him, he can see the mother behind talking to a police officer. Gaz pushes his way through into the room. 

“They don’t have a key.” Gaz says handing Soap a crowbar. Ghost watches as the officers try to keep them out the room.

“You better not be destroying that desk it’s an antique!” The mother calls in horror as she watches Soap go over. 

“Give us a key then.” Soap says. Ghost looks at him, he looks serious eyeing them down as he waits for a response. 

“They can’t do this you can’t destroy property!” The lawyer shouts. Soap looks up at Ghost as he moves round to the desk stopping as he pushes the crowbar into place. Ghost nods. Fuck the bureaucracy this could be their only chance.     

  ——————————  

21:00

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Mark asks Jack from the back of the car. Jack doesn’t say anything right away looking at the address written on the paper for the millionth time. This is not a good idea it’s a terrible idea, it could get them thrown in prison or worse killed. He has to do this though prove to his father he can fix the fuck up he’s caused.

“You scared?” Jack asks turning to look at Mark in the back seat. 

“No, just.” Mark looks away shaking his head.

“Spit it out!” Jack snaps. 

“We’re going up against trained SAS soldiers.” Marks says. 

“You are a trained SAS soldier, and besides we’re getting her not them.” Jack says turning back to look out the front window. 

“Why is she so important anyway? She’s just fucking them.” Brian says scoffing. 

“She’s not just fucking them Brian! You should have seen how hard they fought to get her out of Syria. They went to people even my father couldn’t stop.” Jack says looking back at Brian driving the car. 

“What so we’re holding her for ransom? What if they don’t care?” Harry, Marks brother asks.

“They’ll care.” Jake says confidently. 

“Four SAS soldiers versus the 4 of us. I don’t like our odds.” Mark says under his breath. 

“Pull the car over.” Jack says.

“Sorry?” Brian asks looking at him.

“Pull the fucking car over!” Jack shouts. Brian turns on the hazard lights pulling into the hard-sholder of the main road. Jack gets out the car as soon as it’s stopped going round to Marks door.

“Out now!” He snaps. Mark looks annoyed but he undoes his seat-belt slipping out. As soon as his feet touch the ground Jack pushes him round the back of the car slamming the door. 

“If you don’t want to be involved then fuck off. Go back home to dad with your tail tucked between your legs and explain how you plan on fixing this fuck up.” Jack shouts.

“It’s not my job to fix your fuck ups!” Mark shouts back. 

“No but you and Harry are the ones who let her go at the funeral! They managed to snoop around enough to find out about the sales in Syria and Urzikstan! Do you understand how big of a leak that is?!” Jack shouts.

“She would have never even been in the house if you hadn’t killed Chloe!” Mark shouts back.

“You told me she was going to tell, I didn’t have a choice.” Jack says defensively. 

“She was still my sister.” Mark said taking a step up to Jack.

“She was a liability.” Jack responds. “I wasn’t even here I was stuck in Syria preoccupied with trying to get valuable intel.” 

“Yeah right sorry busy torturing innocent army medics.” Mark says pushing Jacks chest so there is distance between them. 

“Do you know how many fucking strings dad had to pull to make sure you didn’t get dishonourably discharged for that? 141 wanted your neck bad, and you still insist on going after them like they’re the only fucking counter intelligence unit on the face of the earth.” Mike says. 

“They’re the only one we need to be worried about and now they have proof, they’re at the house right now confirming that proof. The only option we have is to get a bargaining chip. She is the best bargaining chip!” Jack says jamming his finger in Marks face. Mark shakes his head.

“And if it doesn’t work?” 

“Then we kill her either way we hurt them, she’s gone and we come up with another plan.” Jack says. 

“I thought the whole point of this was to get back the intel they’ve stolen?” Mark says.

“As soon as my father finds out which CIA agent is helping them we won’t need to worry about that. Besides we destroyed anything useful it will take the MET months to piece it together.” Jack says. 

“Now are you fucking done with your little spat? Because we need to get her before they’re done at the house.” Mark sighs, shaking his head.

“Fine fuck it, walk home.” Jack says throwing his arms up and turning back to the car.

“Wait Jack.” Mark says striding up to him and putting his hand on Jacks shoulder. “We’re family we fix our own fuck ups.” 

“Yeah, unus pro omnibus.” Jack says looking into his brothers eyes.

“omnes pro uno.” Mark replies smiling.

  ——————————  

22:00

Ghost was stood at the door with Price watching the officers finish bagging up the last of the scraps of paper for evidence. 

“They knew we were coming.” Ghost says, his arms crossed as he watches Soap tap on the walls. 

“Yeah, we knew it would be like that though.” Price said. 

“Think they’ll be enough evidence here to convict them?” 

“Don’t know, we won’t know for a while biased on how well they tried to destroy everything.” Price says sighing. Ghost watches as Soap pulls another panel out from the book cases looking inside. Nothing again, this was a waste of time, they’d done a good job scrubbing everything.

Gaz and Soap had been meticulously searching the book cases for hours. All the evidence had been taken. The mother had passed out from stress and the lawyer insisted an ambulance be called, recording everything. It had been a long night. Ghost just wanted to get back to the safehouse. Before his mind could wander Price patted him on the shoulder. 

“Tell them to finish up I’ll go chat with the chief then we’ll get out of here. Not much more we can do till the paperwork as gone through.” Price said. Ghost nodded, walking over to Soap.

“Don’t think we’re going to find anything.” Soap says as he reaches him. 

“No, Price said let’s pack it up, head back.” Ghost says, he sees Soap smile. That makes him happy, he always loves seeing his smile. Ghost tells Gaz the same thing as he finishes checking behind the last bookshelf. It’s empty, the police wrap up too checking the room one more time before taking their leave.

Ghost follows Soap and Gaz out closing the door to the office as he leaves. It’s a shame they couldn’t find anything, but in a few weeks they would know. The MET was going to literally have to put this case together to get the proof but it would happen. And with Laswell’s help they’ll be able to track their movements even better. 

“What do you think that means?” Soap asks shoving his phone in Ghost’s face. They’ve barely even made it out the house. Ghost stops, squinting at the text. It’s a jumbled mess of auto corrected words. A second text just saying 4-5 armed. 

“Price!” Ghost shouts interrupting, him talking to the police chief.

“Call the house!” He says walking over to him dragging Soap along. Price looks confused for a second excusing himself and taking out his phone. 

“What?” He asks when Ghost reaches them, he shows him the phone. 

“Could mean anything,” he says his eyes digging into Ghost. Ghost can see the doubt in his face. This is bad. Price hangs up the phone calling again. Ghost holds his breath squeezing Soaps wrist. He watches Price as the line continues to ring. It keeps ringing, Price brings the phone down then looks up at Ghost.

“We need to move now!” Ghost calls dragging Soap to the car. 

“Try calling her.” Ghost orders Soap as Gaz and Price follow. He just nods trying to hide the fear in his face. This is really bad. 

  ——————————  

22:20

“Found her phone.” Mark says handing it to Jack. He rushes over to you using your bound thumb to unlock it. 

“Shit, she’s warned them we need to leave!” He shouts moving back into the kitchen looking at the gear. They’ve already kitted up and have helped themselves to more weapons for the potential fight ahead.  

“Is she still out?” Mark asks looking back to you being tied to a chair. 

“We’ve got chloroform to keep her out till we need her.” Jack explains, looking back over at Harry and Brian still trying to tie you to a chair.

“Did you not hear me she’s told them we’re here we need to move! Get her in the car.” Jack orders them, they nod pulling at the restraints.

“Where do you want to go?” Mark asks.

“How about the house in Harrow it’s still empty right?” Jack asks.

“Yeah, it’s a bit of a drive though.” Marks says.

“That’s fine the longer we have the better. Plus we can fall back to Kensington if we need to.” Jack says watching Mark nod. 

“Bring her phone, turn it off till we need it but keep it close. We’ll use it to contact them.” Jack says. The house phone ringing makes them jump. Jack walks over to it deciding whether or not to pick it up. He could play all his card right now and tell them they’re holding you for ransom. Or he could wait until they’re in a better situation to make demands. 

“Don’t, we need as much time as we can get.” Mark says. Jack nods his fingers hovering over the phone.

“Okay lets move now! I want wheels up in 10!” Jack says heading for the back door.

“Mark help us get her in the boot.” Harry says as him Brian drag you by your arms out the door. Jack drives, with Mark next to him. They look at each other. They’re in too deep now. Mark nods at him, he’s doing this to prove he can do this. He’s better then what his dad thinks. He has a kid and a wife, he has people he needs to provide for. He can’t lose this job, he can’t fuck his family over like this. He remembers the plan grounding himself, and drives off. 

  ——————————  

Next

Latin translates to 'all for one and one for all'

[the-hottest-band-tournament]

Round 7 of The Hottest 80s Bands Tournament

Queen

Defeated opponents: Green Day, Earth, Wind & Fire, The Psychedelic Furs, R.E.M., Duran Duran, INXS

Formed in: 1970

Genres: rock, glam-rock, hard rock, pop-rock, pop, disco

Lineup: Freddie Mercury- vocals 

Brian May- guitar 

John Deacon- bass 

Roger Taylor- drums 

Albums from the 80s: 

The Game (1980)

Hot Space (1982)

Flash Gordon (1982)

The Works (1984)

A Kind Of Magic (1986)

The Miracle (1989)

Propaganda: “HAVE YOU SEEEEN THEMMMM???? these men never lost their looks as they aged. smoking hot 20 somethings to smoking hot 40 somethings. in their own words, "we was glam" and "we were all stunning". all four had impeccable style choices 99% of the time, from leather jackets and wraps to monochrome to undone blazers and ties to brightly coloured /everything/. Deacon changed his hair style every few years and even in just tshirts and booty shorts, never missed. Roger had a sleazy mullet and sunglasses for what felt like forever, hot Persian dad, did not miss. Brian forgot how to fully button shirts. bell bottoms. same hair for 50 years. no misses. even after Freddie got sick and started wearing makeup and had to grow a beard to cover up, MAN NEVER FUCKIN MISSED. he was beautiful to the day he died. and thats not even touching on the leather daddy look from the early 80s.king shit. we love wrinkles and laugh lines in this gd house. if they don't sweep I’m blowing this whole website up we was glam”

“a few years back i was obsessed with these guys and i would find it hard to not have a crush on all of them. in the 80s especially Brian was GORGEOUS.. BEAUTIFUL”

Depeche Mode 

Defeated opponents: Anthrax, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, The Kinks, Wham!, Joy Division, Warrant

Formed in: 1980

Genres: Synth-pop, electronic rock, new wave, dark wave, alternative rock

Lineup: Dave Gahan - vocals

Martin Gore - guitar and keyboard

Alan Wilder - drums and keyboard

Andy Fletcher - bass

Albums from the 80s: 

Speak & Spell (1981)

 A Broken Frame (1982)

Construction Time Again (1983)

Some Great Reward (1984)

Black Celebration (1986)

Music for the Masses (1987)

Propaganda: The music. The LOOKS. The voice. (The sexual tension?) And they’re still going strong. My colleague saw them in the UK when they were only starting out and said they were so nervous. I find the juxtaposition of the confidence of their sound (not to mention the black leather) and that anecdote really endearing.

idk how much this counts as propaganda but I feel like it's very important to acknowledge that Depeche Mode specifically makes kinky synth for bisexual sluts. Like that's it, that's the band. They even managed to make their cover of "(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66" sound like it's about selling ass on the interstate. Slutty legends.

Visual propaganda for Queen:

Visual propaganda for Depeche Mode:

[enchantedanimal]

Introducing the M-V Headgear Technology System.

A Federation workers' muzzle and visor concept/headcanon (featuring Fred).

More information can be found within the following document.

A Federation Handguide to the M-V Headgear Technology System (MVHTS)

The "M-V Headgear Technology System" is made up of two main components: "Muzzles" and "Visors".

Muzzles were implemented as a safety measure. Due to incidents in the past, muzzles started to be used to prevent cases of biting. Some more common cases involved circumstances of a sudden "Polar Bear Syndrome" instance or an agitated worker. Since muzzles were introduced, cases rapidly declined and ceased to exist, and thus it became the standard and requirement for all federation workers to wear them in their daily lives to prevent any future incidents or casualties.

Visors are important in assisting workers. A transparent electronic screen on the inside allows for an overlay to be applied in real time of what they see. This allows the user to get general identifying information, statuses, and Federation notes such as warrants or warnings when looking at residents, coworkers, threats, enemies, or the environment. This also helps with training new members, as the screen shows names of individuals as well as tasks. Physically, a thick uv resistent lens provides protection from hazards, stray particles, and the sun.

When muzzles are used in combination to the visor, this allows an additional barrier of separation between the workers and the residents. Both equipment hides any indication of emotional expression by the user and prevents unnecessary relations with others, especially island residents. This is intended for physical, emotional, and mental protection of employees, as well as keeping professionalism.

Removing the M-V Headgear Technology System

If the headgear needs to be taken off, employees can enter a break room. Upon entering, a sensor in the doorway allows the locking mechanism in the back to be unlocked. The lock can then be opened, and the headgear can be removed. An attempt to leave without the gear fassened or locked will alert a superior.

Note: in recent events of employing residents (such as W0039 or "Foolish"), all workers should be more cautious of their surroundings before removing their MVHTS, even if in a break room. It's recommended that no headgear should be removed if any resident is within the building or area.

In case of emergency without easy access to a break room, users should squeeze both top and bottom buttons located on the back lock in unison for a few seconds, allowing the straps be unlocked and the device to be removed. However this method should ONLY be used in absolute emergencies. When unlocked, the headset itself will make a loud beeping noise and notify a superior.

Employees seen without their M-V headgear outside of a break room that do not have the proper clearance should be reported immediately. It should also be reported if a resident sees an employee without their headgear. Attempts to avoid being around residents while not wearing a visor, especially a muzzle, should be made at all costs as it is strictly against the rules.

While these components are highly sturdy, should any of them become heavily damaged, you should notify your nearest supervisor immediately. A temporary backup should be provided as soon as possible.

Other MVHTS Details

- In regards to WA01, aka the Census Bureau, or "Cucurucho", their muzzle is different from the others due to it's modification. A voice mod and speakers are built into it, allowing for communication with residents and fellow workers. It's also fitted with a smile design (":]") to appear more friendly and recognizable when speaking to residents. Cucurucho is the only worker to not have a visor. Do not make any reference to the appearance of their eyes in front of them.

- The only other speaking worker currently around, WS01 or "Elena", also has a muzzle fitted with a speaker and voice mod. However unlike him, she does wear a visor.

- All muzzle and visor designs are usually very fairly to each other, but as they are specially made, some are different shapes mostly depending on the form of the users face. However requests for sharper/rounder headgear are considered and can be made.

- All M-V systems of Federation workers are primarily white/light grey.

- Only the front-most "mouth" mesh is flexible enough for a straw or liquid to permiate it, allowing for drinks on the job.

- Mesh designs can vary, especially depending on the rank of the employee.

- Each lock on the back is fitted with a dim light. The color of the light differs depending on the employee/rank. For example, WC construction workers have primarily orange or yellow lights, WB workers assigned to guarding and authority have white lights, and WA workers, such as WA02, have a blue light. The higher the rank, the more likely that they may have a more unique color. Elena has a pink light and Cucurucho is an exception as they do not have a light on theirs. Lights are never red as that is reserved for indicating that the headset is unlocked or unfastened. If any workers' lights not amitting light, they should be advised immediately or be reported to a supervisor.

[aaknopf]

Martyr!, the poet Kaveh Akbar’s propulsive debut novel, tells the tale of Cyrus Shams, the son of a lost mother (victim of a 1988 U. S. Naval snafu in the Persian Gulf that killed 290 people on a commercial airliner) and the long-suffering father who emigrated to Fort Wayne, IN with his baby boy. We meet Cyrus as a student of poetry at Keady University and a reformed addict. In this excerpt, he’s at the local open mic with his friends; we also share one of the poems from Cyrus’s bookofmartyrs.docx, helpfully supplied by Akbar, the poet behind the fictional poet.

. .

The Naples Tuesday night open mic had become a mainstay of Cyrus and Zee’s friendship. It was a small affair, not much to distinguish it from the myriad other open mics happening elsewhere in the country—except this was their open mic, their organic community of beautiful weirdos—old hippies singing Pete Seeger, trans kids rapping about liberation, passionate spoken-word performances by nurses and teenagers and teachers and cooks. As with any campus open mic, there was the occasional frat dude coming to play sets of smirky acoustic rap covers and overearnest breakup narratives. But even they were welcome, and mostly it felt like a safe little oasis of amongness in the relative desert of their Indiana college town, a healthy way to spend the time they were no longer using to get drunk or high.   Naturally, Naples didn’t have its own sound equipment, so Zee would usually show up fifteen minutes early with his beat-up Yamaha PA to set up for Sad James, who hosted every week. Sad James was called this to distinguish him from DJ James, a guy who cycled nightly through the campus bars. DJ James was not a particularly interesting artist, but he was well-known enough in the campus community to warrant Sad James’s nominative prefix, which began as a joke but somehow stuck, and to which Sad James had grown accustomed with good humor, even occasionally doing small shows under the name. Sad James was a quiet white guy, long blond hair framing his lightly stubbled face, who played intensely solemn electronic songs, punctuated by sparse circuit-bent blips and bloops, and over time at Keady, he had become one of Zee and Cyrus’s most resilient and trusted friends.   On this night, Cyrus had read a poem early, an older experimental piece from a series where he’d been assigning words to each digit 0–9, then using an Excel document to generate a lyric out of those words as the digits appeared in the Fibonacci sequence: “lips sweat teeth lips spread teeth lips drip deep deep sweat skin,” etc. It was bad, but he loved reading them out loud, the rhythms and repeti­tions and weird little riffs that emerged. Sad James did an older piece where the lyrics “burning with the human stain / she dries up, dust in the rain” were repeated and modulated over molten beeps from an old circuit-bent Game Boy. Zee—a drummer in his free time who idolized J Dilla and John Bonham and Max Roach and Zach Hill in equal measure—hadn’t brought anything of his own to perform that evening, but did have a little bongo to help accompany any acoustic acts who wanted it.   On the patio listening to Cyrus talk about his new project, Zee said, “I could see it being a bunch of different poems in the voices of all your different historical martyr obsessions?” Then to Sad James, Zee added, “Cyrus has been plastering our apartment with these big black-and-white printouts of all their terrifying faces. Bobby Sands in our kitchen, Joan of Arc in our hallway.”   Sad James made his eyes get big.   “I just like having them present,” Cyrus said, slumping into his chair. He didn’t add that he’d been reading about them in the library, his mystic martyrs, that he’d taped a great grid of their grayscale printed faces above his bed, half believing it would work like those tapes that promised to teach you Spanish while you slept, that some­how their lived wisdoms would pass into him as he dreamt. Among the Tank Man, Bobby Sands, Falconetti as Joan of Arc, Cyrus had a picture of his parents’ wedding day. His mother, seated in a sleeved white dress, smiling tightly at the camera while his father, in a tacky gray tux, sat grinning next to her holding her hand. Above their heads, a group of attendees held an ornate white sheet. It was the only picture of his mother he had. Next to his mother, his father beamed, bright in a way that made it seem he was radiating the light himself.   Zee went on: “So you could write a poem where Joan of Arc is like, ‘Wow, this fire is so hot’ or whatever. And then a poem where Hussain is like, ‘Wow, sucks that I wouldn’t kneel.’ You know what I mean?”   Cyrus laughed.   “I tried some of that! But see, that’s where it gets corny. What could I possibly say about the martyrdom of Hussain or Joan of Arc or whoever that hasn’t already been said? Or that’s worth saying?”   Sad James asked who Hussain was and Zee quickly explained the trial in the desert, Hussain’s refusing to kneel and being killed for it.   “You know, Hussain’s head is supposedly still buried in Cairo?” Zee said, smiling. “Cairo, which is in which country again?”   Cyrus rolled his eyes at his friend, who was, as Cyrus liked to remind him when he got too greatest-ancient-civilization-on-earth about things, only half Egyptian.   “Damn,” Sad James said. “I would’ve just kneeled and crossed my fingers behind my back. Who am I trying to impress? Later I could call take-backsies. I’d just say I tripped and landed on my knees or something.”   The three friends laughed. Justine, an open mic regular whose Blonde on Blonde–era pea-coat-and-harmonica-rack Bob Dylan act was a mainstay of the open mic, came outside to ask Zee for a cigarette. He obliged her with an American Spirit Yellow, which she lit around the corner as she began speaking into her cell phone.   In moments like these Cyrus still sometimes felt like asking to bum one too—he’d been a pack-and-a-half-a-day smoker before he got sober, and continued his habit even after he’d kicked everything else. “Quit things in the order they’re killing you,” his sponsor, Gabe, told him once. After a year clean he turned his attention to cigarettes, which he finally managed to kick completely by tapering: from one and a half packs a day to a pack to half a pack to five cigarettes and so on until he was just smoking a single cigarette every few days and then, none at all. He could probably get away with bumming the occasional cigarette now and again, but in his mind he was saving that for something momentous: his final moments lying in the grass dying from a gunshot wound, or walking in slow motion away from a burning building.   “So what are you thinking then? A novel? Or like . . . a poetic mar­tyr field guide?” asked Zee.   “I’m really not sure yet. But my whole life I’ve thought about my mom on that flight, how meaningless her death was. Truly literally like, meaningless. Without meaning. The difference between 290 dead and 289. It’s actuarial. Not even tragic, you know? So was she a martyr? There has to be a definition of the word that can accom­modate her. That’s what I’m after.”

More on this book and author:

Learn more about Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar.

Browse Kaveh Akbar's poetry collections and follow Kaveh on Instagram @kavehakbar.kavehakbar.

Visit our Tumblr to peruse poems, audio recordings, and broadsides in the Knopf poem-a-day series.

To share the poem-a-day experience with friends, pass along this link.

[shootingmorningstar]

Anon, I am so sorry .ᐟ I accidentally posted your request wayyyyy too early and had to delete it .ᐟ That being said, thank you so much .ᐟ My favorite part of writing is getting to see it resonate with others, so comments like these really make my day. Anyways, let me just say that I love this rq. You're right, that's such a funny scenario.

⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀⠀Alastor With a Vee!Reader .ᐟ

You hadn't expected to climb the ranks at Voxtek. Really, you hadn't. You started off as nothing more than one of the many assistants Vox seems to get off by yelling at. Just another spineless sinner that would probably end up selling their soul to one of the three overlords, more than likely your boss.

That is exactly how your friendship with Alastor started out, actually. It wasn't too often you got a day off -- there isn't exactly any form of worker protection in hell -- so you were delighted to be able to take a stroll through Pentagram City. Maybe you could buy a new dress, or even stop by Rosie's Emporium .ᐣ Any hopes you'd had of a nice peaceful day were dashed, however, by your boss' face lighting up your cellphone.

Ugh, he was calling you .ᐣ Really, on your one day off .ᐣ Nevermind, of course he was. It seems you signed away your right to any peace the moment you became an employee under the VoxTek name.

Answering it with a simple ❛ how can I help you, sir .ᐣ ❜ had resulted in a frustrated yell so loud it resembled the high pitched screech two electronic devices echoed when forced near each other. He wasted no time in telling you a report you hadn't even written was absolute garbage and that you needed to come in and fix it now.

Or, at least, that's what you assume he was going to say. He'd gotten no farther than ❛ in ❜ before a shadow crept up on your phone, promptly ending the call.

Confused, you spin around to see Alastor. The Radio Demon, one of the most powerful sinners to ever be sent to Hell . . . . had ended your phone call .ᐣ

Now you were even more confused. You knew both Alastor and Vox despised each other -- that much had been made clear a little bit after the second to last extermination with your bosses power play becoming a duet.. battle .ᐣ

That much was public information but why in Hell's name would he ever interfere with a phone call .ᐣ He hated modern technology. You're spared from your confusion, though, when a staticky voice crackles to life in front of you. ❛ Why on Earth would you ever allow him to speak to you in that manner, dear .ᐣ ❜

From that day forward you began to see Alastor more and more, each time with a new piece of advice he had to offer you on dealing with such a terrible boss. It was absolutely orchestrated on Alastor's part, but either you didn't realize or just couldn't bring yourself to care. What you absolutely realize, though is that Alastor's advice is working. Each little bit of information he gives you dives a little bit deeper on how to deal with Vox -- how to actually have a backbone against his outrageous demands.

Fearing one day that you might push back just a little too hard and be met with the lethal force of an angry Overlord, Alastor gives you a tiny, what appears to be hand carved wooden radio. Your fear is warranted and he knows it -- you wouldn't be the first VoxTek employee to end as nothing more than a written off casualty. The idea is simple ; speak the demon's name into his namesake if any of the Vee's put you in danger and he would come to your aid.

The little trinket acts as a security blanket. From that day forward you tell Vox what you think of his ideas and where exactly he can shove the piles of paperwork he didn't feel like doing and rather pushed to you.

And Vox is impressed. You can't speak to him the way you do without being Velvette or Valentino. He doesn't know whether you're spunky or foolish, but he decides he doesn't care which. He also decides you're wasted as a secretary. In no time you're rising the ranks, going from secretarial supervisor, managing the entire office, all the way to Vox's personal assistant, making yourself known as VoxTek's rising star.

As his assistant, you find yourself attending meetings with the other Vee's often -- and to your surprise, they like you. Especially Velvette. Enough to demand Vox to share.

That's how you became a member of one of the most feared groups in Hell, the newest Vee, their underdog assistant. You take on responsibilities from all three of them, keeping them running smoothly.

All the while you're finding time to go out with Alastor for tea and a stroll through Cannibal Town. He usually despises physical contact, so you can't seem to understand why he wrapped his arm around your waist as you walked .ᐣ

What you hadn't seen was the sinner with their phone out, camera pointed at you and ready to snap a shot of Hell's newest Vee hanging out with their sworn enemy. The picture explodes on social media before Vox can get it under control, and before he knows it it's being reposted to Sinstagram twice for every one he deletes. He's outraged, calling you and demanding an answer. Alastor has long thought of this, though -- so as the two of you planned, he pretends to walk away, leaving the view of the cameras Vox is undoubtedly watching you on before using his magic to cut them off.

It's then you explain that you'd befriended the Radio Demon 'for the Vee's' in hopes of 'gaining intel to sabotage him and his Hotel.' It's a lie, but it appeals to Vox's sense of hatred for Alastor enough to slip by undetected. The idea of finding out his enemies secrets thrills him, actually.

Continuing your friendship has never been easier. Occasionally, you'll ask Alastor an overly intrusive question, he'll reply with a falsehood and you both try not to snicker as you try to act like you're trying to go behind his back to report the answer to Vox.

To be honest . . . Velvette and Valentino don't really seem to care half as much about Alastor as Vox does. They're very interested in the power felling him would bring them and so your fake spy mission does please them, but seeing you beside him didn't really send them into a frenzy like it does Vox. Velvette makes a comment about you trying to get him to change -- ❛ seriously, I know the cunt's all about avoiding cameras, but has he got to avoid mirrors, too .ᐣ that cane went out of style before radio .ᐟ ❜ and that's the end of it.

Alastor had intended you to serve as a tool against the Vee's from the very start, but I think he genuinely does enjoy your company. Sure, most of his motivations are self driven and semi-sociopathic at times, but he isn't incapable of making genuine bonds. His friendship with Rosie seems to be strong, and he's at the least fond of Mimzy and Niffty.

It surprises him regardless. He doesn't even have to be sneaky about his true intentions to you -- you know what he wants and gladly comply all the while enjoying his company. I imagine he enjoys having someone to dish into all of the Vee's shortcomings with, too.

The way I personally interpret this dynamic is platonic, but if it were to step into romantic territory, Alastor would need to be the one to approach it. He has little to no romantic desires or attraction, so I think any sort of confession would be a major turn-off from him. He wouldn't react well to others feelings being pushed onto him. However, if he were to bring it up, you're plenty patient enough to wait while he figures things out. You dealt with Vox's verbal abuse for years, this is lightwork in comparison.

Platonic or romantic doesn't matter, what does is the excitement you get when Alastor picks you up from work at VoxTek HQ and the amusement you share when you hear the sound of a monitor shattering from Vox's office.

If you were ever to be found out and stripped of your title, you have an ally and friend in Alastor, and that's by far the most meaningful thing to come from your work.

Hi, hi .ᐟ Another post out. I've been thinking on this rq ever since I got it and I think this is a good way to both show how evil and manipulative Alastor can be while also having fun. Alastor is a character that is so hard, at least to me, to keep in character while doing x r.eaders. I hope this sits well with any Alastor stans reading this .ᐟ

As always, let me know what you think .ᐟ Hearing back from you guys keeps me writing. Enjoy ♡ .ᐟ

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Matt Keeley at NCRM:

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton threatened to sue two large, Democratic-leaning counties should they proceed with their plan to mail voter registration forms to eligible voters who are currently unregistered. Bexar and Harris counties have proposed using third-party vendors to mail the forms. Though the plan is to only send them to people who are eligible to be registered, Paxton said that the forms could fall in the hands of those who are ineligible to vote, which would “encourage” them to register illegally, according to KSAT-TV. “At worst, it may induce the commission of a crime by encourage individuals who are ineligible to vote to provide false information on the form,” Paxton said, according to KENS-TV. “Either way, it is illegal, and if you move forward with this proposal, I will use all available legal means to stop you.”

Bexar and Harris counties both have high Latino populations, with nearly 20% of all Texan Latinos living in Harris County, according to The Hill. Paxton has faced accusations of specifically trying to suppress the Latino vote. Following raids on the homes of Latino voting activists, the League of United Latin American Citizens called for an inquiry into alleged civil rights violations, according to USA Today. At least six LULAC volunteers had their homes raided by police, and had voter registration materials seized, along with phones, computers and other electronic devices, USA Today reported. Paxton said the search warrants were “part of an ongoing election integrity investigation” into “allegations of election fraud and vote harvesting that occurred during the 2022 elections.” LULAC says one of the people raided was Lidia Martinez, an 87-year-old member of the organization. On August 20, her home was raided, and she was interrogated for hours, according to LULAC. There is no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the 2022 elections in Texas or elsewhere in the United States. Paxton’s most recent probe, despite the raids, has led to no charges thus far, according to the Texas Tribune.

Texas AG Ken Paxton (R) is a jackboot fascist disgrace to the Lone Star State and America.

[crowandmousewritingco]

Strange Creature

Pairing: Ezra x trans!reader

Words: 3k

Rating: M (18+ so much smut is happening) No use of Y/N, reader has had top surgery, body worship (reader receiving), reader calls Ezra "sir," pet names, soft dom!Ezra, praise, unprotected sex (wrap it up guys!) oral (Ezra receiving), gender affirmation (reader's genitalia is referred to as: cock, hole), creampie, aftercare.

Summary: After feeling discourage from several bad club experiences, your best friend convinces you to try again which leads to catch the attention of a stranger.

Author: Mod Mouse

Notes: This is an 18+ work so minors DNI. If you continue past the "Keep Reading," just know what you are getting into. This one was actually really fun to write. Ezra is slowly becoming one of my favorites to write.

Bars were never your thing. They were always too loud and the drinks were always too expensive. Nor did you even have the confidence to go home with anyone. Not that you ever got the chance. Straight bars always meant way too much explaining, and gay bars seemed to never warrant any attraction. 

Though luckily for you your best friend was a persuasive being and convinced you to give the local gay bar another try. You were hesitant at first, but when they gave you money for a drink, you had to say yes.

So there you were leaning against the bar while a fast electronic song played in the background. You were nursing an overpriced Moscow Mule and watching the writhing crowd before you. Everyone seemed to have found their fling for the night, and you sighed feeling like you should call it an early night. 

You took another sip and surveyed the crowd one more time just by some miracle someone had finally noticed you. When no one caught your eye, you let out the breath you were holding and were about to throw back the rest of your drink when you heard a voice say, “And what is a fine creature like yourself doing in such a watering hole?” You jumped and turned to a stranger who approached you while you were deep in thought. 

“Oh um you just taking in the sights,” You reply jestering to the dance floor. 

He turned his attention to the crowd. “Oh the writhing mass of bodies? I don’t blame you. The tribulations of the mating dance is a hard one to master.” 

You chuckled. This man had a unique way of speaking, but he was right. “You can say that again. Apparently I missed the class on flirting because I’ve never gotten far.” 

He raised his eyebrows and leaned against the bar next to you. “You jest. A man of your caliber must be fending off sutors left and right.” 

“Well as much as I hate to tell you, you would be wrong,” You sighed and took the final sip of your drink, setting the cup back on the counter. 

“Their optical lobe must be malformed to not see how handsome you are if you don’t mind me being so forward.” 

You blushed at his words. “That’s quite the compliment for someone you just met.”

He chuckled, “Well I mean every word.” He stood up and held out his hand for you. “Name’s Ezra.” You shook his hand and introduced yourself. Ezra smiled, “Another wonderful aspect about you.” 

You bit your lip and blushed. “So what brings you here to this establishment?” 

Ezra sighed and sat down on one of the bar stools. “Well I did have a date, but they seemed to have found a better option.” 

“That’s their own damn fault.” You frowned. 

Ezra looked over at you. “Do tell,” 

You turned to face him leaning your arm against the bar. “You’re interesting. Definitely different from others I’ve tried to flirt with before.” 

“Different how?” 

You snort “Well you haven’t left yet.” 

“True but that doesn’t seem like a high bar to pass.” 

You sighed “I haven’t told you my secret yet.” 

“Secrets are quite exciting,” He tilts his head. 

“Well I hope you weren’t expecting the whole package.”

Ezra furrowed his brow “What do you mean?” 

You paused and looked out at the crowd. All the people seemed to be different from you and you had to keep yourself from tearing up. “I’m not like them.” 

Ezra turned to look at the crowd, and then back at you. “You’re straight?” 

You chuckled sadly and turned to face him again. “No, quite the opposite. I’m very gay just not the right gay for them.” 

“Darlin’ you are talking in rhymes and riddles.” 

“What I’m trying to say is that well I’m trans,” You confessed and turned away from him hoping to not see the disappointment that’s there everytime you tell someone. 

The silence was loud despite the pulsing music. You felt fingers on your chin pulling your attention back to Ezra. His face was softer than you were expecting. “Have people really stopped acquainting themselves with you when they discover the true essence of your soul?” 

You bit your lip and nodded “You would be surprised with how many men care if I have a real cock or not.” You chuckle darkly. 

“I can understand where the gloom on your soul rests.” He smiled softly. Ezra gazed into your eyes. “It’s a tragedy they don’t see the beauty in you.” 

“You’re just saying that to get in my pants.” You roll your eyes gently. 

“No jesting here.” You were silent and Ezra gently stroked his thumb over your chin. “How about I show you just how handsome you really are.” 

“I would like that a lot,” You blushed. 

Ezra smiled and reached into his pocket and pulled out some bills tossing them on the counter. He takes your hand and carefully leads you out of the noisy environment. He hailed a taxi for you and he opened the door for you when it arrived. You blushed at his gentleness and you slid into the seats. Ezra sat next to you, closing the door behind him. The driver drove off and Ezra gently took his hand in yours rubbing his thumb over your knuckles. 

~~~~~~~~~~~

Ezra’s apartment was a maximalist wonderland. Dark green walls were covered in oddities and strange but beautiful objects. Bookshelves were lined with special additions and decorated pages. You wondered how so many random objects fit together so well. 

“This is stunning.” You whispered, taking it all in. 

“Thank you I try hard to curate a space where I feel comfortable residing in,” Ezra commented. 

“I’ve always wanted to live like this,” You said softly. 

“Would you like to see more?” He asked, gesturing to the hallway. You turned and nodded. Ezra gently took your hand and led you to the bedroom. It was just as beautiful as the living room with the same touch of coordinated chaos. 

“How about you lay down on that bed for me,” Ezra purred, closing the door behind him though he didn’t take his eyes off of your form. His predatory eyes scanned your body up and down taking off your clothes with his eyes. 

You blushed trying not to feel self conscious. Not many men of his stature would even bat an eye at you, but he was the one who approached you earlier. You maintained your eye contact that you subconsciously fidgeted with the hem of your shirt. 

Ever observant Ezra didn’t miss this subtle movement. “Now what has my birdie so nervous?” 

“I-I’m just not used to this sort of thing?” You confess.

He slowly approached and cupped your face in his palm stroking it with the pad of his thumb. “Remember you are in control of this torrid event. If something doesn’t satisfy you or gives you even a modicum of distress in the handsome head of yours, you tell me right away. Pleasure is an enjoyment not an assignment.” 

You bit your lip and looked up at him. You softly nodded your head. Ezra gently kisses your head. “I know words are hard for you at the moment, but I need to hear a verbal agreement birdie. Do you want me to take you like you deserve?” He asked in a voice already laced with need. 

Your eyes bore into his and you whisper, “Yes Sir.” 

Ezra chuckled and moved his hand to grip your chin gently running his thumb over your plump lip. “Sir? Well ain’t that a symphony to my ears. Then we must keep this concerto going. How about you take off what you are comfortable with, sweetheart.” 

“Y-Yes sir,” You replied and stood up to obey his command. Ezra moved to the bed and sat down for a better view of the show. You stood between his legs to make sure he could see everything as you slowly unbutton your shirt starting from the bottom. Your fingers gradually unbutton each clasp exposing more and more of your body. 

Ezra kept a predatory eye on you taking in your handsome form. “Such a handsome man in front of me right now,” He licked his lips as you took off your shirt. His hands hover over your hips and he looks up at you waiting for permission. You nodded and he gently caressed your sides. 

“Mmmmmm,” He hummed and gently kissed your soft stomach. Your eyes fluttered as his soft touches made butterflies flutter in your core. Ezra kissed his way up your torso and planted a soft kiss on the top of your scars. He pulls back to look up at you and gently caresses the scar tissue with his thumbs. “The marks of a warrior.” He whispered and continued worshiping your chest. 

Your breath caught in your throat and you felt tears welling up in your eyes. Not out of sadness, but this was the first time anyone had said such words to you. 

Ezra looked and stood up gently cupping your cheeks pulling your gaze to his hazel eyes. “You are a magnificent creature who deserves pleasure and devotion just as any other cis person.” 

You smiled and placed your hand on his. “Thank you,” 

Ezra kissed your forehead and placed his forehead against yours. “Of course birdie.” 

You let yourself stay pressed against Ezra for a bit just enjoying the company of these new acquaintances. “Can I give you head?” You asked softly. 

Ezra blinked a few times and smiled, “Well how am I to say no to such a nicely requested wish.” He sat back down on the bed and gently pulled you forward. You got on your knees in front of him and Ezra pulled his pants down his hard cock springing up. 

You hummed at the size and you felt yourself growing harder. Gently you grasped his dick to steady it and lapped at the head testing the waters. You gazed up at Ezra and he tangled his fingers in your hair giving you a soft command. You took a deep breath and slowly took him into your mouth hollowing out your cheeks as he slid down your throat. Tears formed in your eyes but you loved the feeling. 

Ezra moaned and gripped your hair a bit tighter. “You have a heavenly mouth birdie. Those others are missing out.” You moan at your words and slowly bobbed your head up and down. You kept a steady pace making sure your tongue swirled around the veins and head. Ezra moaned as you took him over and over again. 

“You have a talented tongue,” He panted, tangling his fingers in your hair. “Every lick is a divine, gem.” 

You looked up at him through your eyelashes making sure he seems just how good he’s making you feel. A soft tear ran down your cheek and Ezra gently wiped it away. The gesture gave you some courage and you started to speed up your motions. You wanted all of him and you wanted it now. The taste of precum spurred you on even more and your licks became more frantic. 

“Slow down a bit there birdie,” He coos as he gently pulls your head back off of his cock. You pant silva dribbling down your chin. He looked down at your lust filled eyes with his own equally darkened eyes. “If you keep that pace up you're gonna make me spill. Between the two of us I much rather see my seed spill from that pretty hole of yours.”

You whimpered softly and nodded. “I want you deep inside of my hole Sir.”

“Then inside you it shall be,” He moaned as he helped you to your feet. One hand ran up and down your leg while the other unbuckled your pants. Gently he pulled them and your underwear down to the floor and you stepped out of them. Ezra groaned at the sight of you. You were glistening and so hard already. 

“I’ve had delicacies at many fine restaurants over the course of my life, but I have a feeling your cock will be the most divine out of all of them.” He praised spreading your legs with his hand. Gently he palmed his hand against you and you moaned. His hand was big enough where he could rub your cock and tease your hole with his finger. 

“Oh fuck Ezra,” You moaned as you ground you hips against his hand. 

“Does my touch alone make you see stars, my gem?” He asked, smirking delighted at your reaction. 

You nod as he dives a finger into you moving his whole hand as he made sure you were feeling everything he was giving you. Even this simple movement was making you come undone and god did you want so much more of him. “Please Sir.” You moaned. 

“Mmmmm what would you like, birdie?” He asked, not taking his eyes off of your cock. 

“Please I want you to fuck me,” You moaned and Ezra slips in another finger making you gasp. You steady yourself with your hands on your shoulder as you feel him loosen you up. 

“Just a bit longer, gem. I wanna make sure that your hole can adequately take me.” He replied gently, kissing your stomach as he thrusted his fingers into you faster. You moaned and wrapped your arms around his head leaning over compassing his head with your torso. 

“That’s it birdie good boy,” He purred as he felt you clench against your fingers. After a few more thrusts he pulled his fingers out of you. You whimpered, missing the feeling. You unfurled your body and looked down at him pouting. But that pout quickly changed to a moan when Ezra began to lick his wet fingers. He hummed as he took in your sweet flavor. “I was right. That was better than any expensive dessert any chef could make.” 

You blushed at his praise. “Thank you sir.” Once he was finished with his sweet treat, he stood up from the bed switching positions with you. “Now how would my good boy like to be taken tonight. You’ve been so good for me tonight, you get to choose how your hole will be filled.” 

You bit your lip taking some time to think about how you would like Ezra to take you. Finally you met his gaze and stated, “I wanna see your face when you cum inside me.” 

Ezra groaned at your reply. “And I want to see your expression as my cum leaks out of you. Now on the bed birdie,” He softly commanded and you were quick to obey. 

You laid down on your back and spread your legs eager for Ezra to be in between them. Ezra quickly followed suit, kneeling between your thighs. Gently he slid his hands under your thighs and pulled your hips to meet his. Keeping one hand on your hip, he took the other hand and guided his cock up and down your slit moaning at the feeling of his cock touching yours. You whimpered softly when he finally rubbed the head against your hole. As gently as he could, he slipped inside of you with a moan. 

You weren’t much better. He felt so nice inside you filling you just the way you needed. Soon you felt his hips press against yours as he bottomed out. Ezra leaned down to kiss you, giving you time to adjust to his cock. He murmured sweet encouragements making you clench around him with just his words. 

Finally you gave him a small nod indicating you were ready for him to move. Ezra pressed his forehead against yours as he slowly thrusted into you. With each movement you moaned feeling every inch of him pull out and quickly thrust back inside of your hole. 

“Fuck Ezra just like that,” You moaned as he brushed a particularly sensitive part inside you. 

“You feel amazing, just oh so perfect,” Ezra blubbered as if he couldn’t keep his praise inside of him. He continued his thrusting and his praise making the familiar coil of pleasure build in your belly. 

“Ezra please sir I’m getting close,” You moaned into his neck as your hands tangled in his hair lightly pulling it as your orgasm was quickly approaching. 

“Then cum for me my handsome gem. Show me how good I feel inside you,” He commanded as he twitched inside of you. A few more thrusts on your sensitive spots made you clench hard and your legs shook as the band in your stomach snapped and you came hard around his cock. Your legs closed around him keeping him inside you. That was the last straw Ezra needed and just like he had promised he came deep inside you with a grunt. You felt his cum fill you up and drip on the sheets below you. 

The two of you stayed connected as you both came down from your high. Ezra gently kissed you to ground him back to this planet. He finally pulled out of you and you whimpered at the touch of overstimulation. Ezra kissed your forehead gently, shushing you as he went to the bathroom to grab a washcloth. Careful of your sensitive bit, he cleaned you up making sure to kiss you as he did so. You smiled tiredly, thankful for the tenderness that Ezra was giving you. Once he was finished he took the washcloth back to the bathroom and quickly returned to your side. He slid in beside you and quickly wrapped you in his arms.

You purred as the warmth his grasp gave you. The two of you were quiet for a while before Ezra spoke, “You really are a handsome fellow.” 

You sat up a little and gently cupped his cheek in your hand. “Thank you. You really don’t know how much tonight meant to me.” You trace your finger down his chest. 

“I’m glad my love could help you gem.” Ezra smiled and kissed your cheek. “If you are so inclined, I wouldn’t mind finding you in my bed again sooner rather than later.” 

You blushed and smiled softly. “I would very much like that as well.” 

Ezra returned your smile and you kissed him gently into the night. Maybe nightclubs were your thing after all.

```````

Pedro Character Taglist

@littlemisspascal @burntheedges @carusolikey

[cybertron-after-dark]

More questionable tfa headcanons

-Bumblebee and Bulkhead do impressions of Optimus behind his back. Bulkhead actually feels kinda bad about it but that does not stop him. Prowl is not immune to joining in. OP still hasn't caught them.

-Optimus really wants to adopt a dog once he's positive he could adequately take care of one. He loves the idea of keeping a big grey one and naming him Silverbolt, after Silverbolt Major from the great war. It just feels right.

-Starscream will never admit to listening to the dumb sound patterns humans call music, but in private he's a swiftie, and he WILL sing shake it off if nobody's watching.

-Lugnut bakes in his off time, and he keeps trying to spoil Megatron with little treats, as his grand and glorious master deserves little gifts and tributes whenever Lugnut can give them. Sadly, Megatron doesn't actually have much of a sweet tooth so most of Lugnut's edible gifts get passed off to someone else.

-you know that bit in the Allspark almanac where Lugnut is bitching about earth sports and the Tigatron stadium? He has such strong feelings because Blitzwing loves that shit and keeps trying to rope Lugnut into playing. For Blitzwing, it reminds him of his gladiator days, it's a way to have fun and reminisce without killing someone. For Lugnut, it can't compare, it's kinda just a watered down, wussified version of real gladiatorial combat.

-upon discovering ytps, both bumblebee and bulkhead trained their voice synthesizers to be able to mimic the edited sounds. Sometimes they'll use it in the middle of a fight as a sort of secret code so the cons can't pick up on what they're planning to counter it. Optimus has mixed feelings. He doesn't understand what the hell they're saying like 90% of the time, and he recognizes this isn't proper military strategy, but he can't argue with the results. At least they're sort of taking the fights seriously?

-Blitzwing and Blackarachnia fucking hate each other but Megatron frowns upon infighting, so instead of constant violence, they've sort of settled on an escalating cold war of inconveniences and irritants. Neither of them can throw a punch, or set anything up that would result in actual injury, but immobilizing via ice or webs is fine, provided it doesn't affect tactical matters. Blitzwing constantly freezes the locks on BA's door, BA spikes Blitzwing's energon with cyber venom, pretty much anything that could qualify as day ruining. The worst was when Blitzwing covered BA with electronic paint and turned her into a walking rainbow all day.

-prowl wants to volunteer at animal shelters but he's a bit too big to fit in most of the buildings

-both shockwave and starscream are horrible liars but Megatron is terrible at picking up when someone's lying, so starscream's scheming went unnoticed for years and shockwave was sent in as a spy with full confidence that he wouldn't blow his cover.

-ratchet and optimus have been teaching Sari bits of cybertronian. Optimus teaches her the more formal aspects of the language, given there's a high chance she'll be interacting with Ultra Magnus, the guilds domesticus, and other high ranking autobots that warrant a more formal address. Ratchet (Mr "don't call me sir, I work for a living") teaches her more day to day, informal cybertronian. And swears. He teaches her pretty much all the swears.

-when Sari moved in, Optimus learned to cook so she wouldn't have to live off fast food from the burger bot. Which was hell for the big guy because why in primus's name is human fuel so complicated? He used to think sugar was pretty much an energon equivalent, cut and dry. He was wrong. He was so wrong. OP usually has Sari help him out because he cant exactly taste it to make sure it's, you know, actually edible.

-Prowl loves animals and the natural parts of earth with all his spark, but man are some parts of it brutal. When he learned what a parasitoid wasp was he couldn't sleep for days.

-bulkhead actually wants to go to a human art college once the war's over. Maybe not full time but he definitely wants to pick up some classes and learn what he can. Once he gets good enough, he wants to bring that knowledge back to Cybertron and see what other bots do with it.

-Optimus has a collection of skeezy romance novels. The equivalent on Cybertron is kind of an obscure rarity, only really sold in the seediest of places, so he couldn't really believe how easy it was to find smut like that on Earth. The intrinsic human fleshiness of the book characters always weirds him out just a bit, but not enough to ruin it for him. It's not really the pornographic aspect he's interested in, after all, it's the romantic aspect. He keeps his digital stash double encrypted in his datatrax, because he knows if anyone found it (cough cough bumblebee cough) he'd never hear the end of it.

-giving Blitzwing internet access was a mistake. Now he knows what memes are and random has been making that every other decepticon's problem since he found out. Megatron has to constantly guess whether what would normally be a standard Blitzwing non sequitur is actually a setup for Megatron to get laughed at by the entire human internet. He's fallen for updog, he's fallen for Ligma, he will NOT be caught slipping again.

-while he was undercover, once a week, shockwave would call Megatron and complain over a few barrels of oil about what kind of stupid slag his pompous idiot crankshaft coworkers would pull. One of the few autobot names Megatron could remember was Sentinel Prime, solely from the long list of transgressions Shockwave has drunkenly recounted.

-Soundwave hates most humans but he's decided that a few specific bands whose music he likes will be spared when the revolution comes, inferior as they may be.

-Prowl sends jazz earth music sometimes. It's pretty much blown Jazz's mind because most of the music on Cybertron is propaganda songs. He's not really used to songs about things other than war heroes, or even songs with no words at all. Just music for its own sake.

-Sentinel Prime's only friend is Cliffjumper and Cliffjumper only hangs out with him for brown nosing sycophantic reasons, not because he actually likes the guy.

-Ultra Magnus knows he's a corrupt bastard. He doesn't lose sleep over it, as long as his public image is good.

[darkmaga-retard]

The extensive criminal record, strange writings and unusual foreign travel of former President Donald Trump’s second would-be assassin raise more questions than answers. However, U.S. intelligence agencies may already have some answers. 

Jeffrey Veltri, special agent in charge of the FBI's Miami Field Office, at a press conference in South Florida told reporters that the Department of Justice National Security Division was working closely with the local U.S. Attorney's Office to investigate the assassination attempt. 

"In the last 24 hours, the FBI and our partners have been dedicated to investigating the incident and utilizing all available resources," he said. "These efforts have included our investigative team and the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida, in conjunction with DOJ National Security Division, are actively working hand in hand to pursue and subsequently execute search warrants." 

The division role is to ensure coordination among prosecutors, law enforcement and the intelligence community, according to its mission statement. 

One former FBI agent said he would be “shocked” if the person charged in connection with the incident, Ryan Wesley Routh, was not already on the radar of U.S. intelligence agencies, specifically if his electronic devices had not been monitored prior to the assassination attempt Sunday. 

[daddysfangirls-dc]

The Arrangement

Ch 4 - Family Portrait

Damian Wayne x OC!Female

Prev | Next

Bruce was not pleased with Damian. He was upset with the knowledge that the girl had fled the city and angry when his son refused to disclose any more information about the girl. He hadn't spoken of her since that night in the cave. Although the others did try to get him to talk about her, they were unsuccessful. Eventually, most gave up. Bruce and Tim were still on his case. He was benched for a while, and he was pretty sure all his electronics were tagged and being spied on. All his gear had new trackers built in as well.

It didn't matter. Syn and Damian communicated via letters through Alfred. No one was aware of Alfred meeting Syn or the letters. This went on constant vigilantes and secret letters for several months. 

-

"Why didn't you tell us?" Dick asked as he stole one of Damian's fries. "Why didn't you tell us you had a fiance?" Damian sighed deeply. Dick felt bad for asking as he watched Damian slump forward, then quickly tense up, squaring his shoulder in defense.

" She is from my time with the League. I knew none of you would approve. "

"were you going to hide her forever?"

"no, she's my fiance. I would have still married her once I came of age. The likelihood of you all being involved would have been...less."

That hurt. Damian was more than likely prepared to have a life without them or support. He didn't believe anyone would support him more in his relationship, and he didn't think they cared. " I'm sorry"

"You've done nothing to warrant the need for an apology."

"You don't feel comfortable telling us about your fiance-"

"I'm not uncomfortable. I just know you all well enough to know all the possible outcomes. And I don't want her involved. She's already dealing with one side of my family, the murderous, egotistic, dominant, delusional side. She doesn't need to get involved with the egotistical, obsessive, dominant, unrestricted side." his appetite was gone. His food was now a distraction for him to pick out. " She already has to deal with her family and my maternal family. I don't want her to... I want her to have peace. "

"you really care about her?"

"She's my fucking fiance." the duh tone and deadpan expression was too much. Dick bit back his laugh; a chuckle slipped through.

"Apparently," he said, "Will we get a chance to meet her ?"

"Can you guarantee everyone will be on their best behavior?"

"No"

"Then not likely."

-

Syn took a deep breath before she took off quickly and skillfully, jumping over the estate's wall and running across the lawn. She laid low and stuck to the shadows, avoiding the security system. Opting against the door, she found an unlocked window on the first floor—how convenient! She slipped into the manor. The manor was empty; everyone was gone for their nightly activities. Signal was included as he had been following a lead since this morning.

She walked the halls slowly, stopping occasionally to look at hanging photos and paintings. She stopped in front of a painting, a family portrait. Two older gentlemen, four young men, and one girl. Everyone had very similar features. The oldest three guys and a girl had eyes with varying shades of blue. And the youngest, her love, was a beautiful shade of green. Despite knowing everything about everyone in the painting, most were strangers she never met. She had only known Alfred and Damian. 

"We'll be commissioning another soon." Alfred had seen her on the security cameras. After Disabling them before approaching. " Adding Duke"

"Why wasn't he in this one?" This painting was a few years ago, and Duke was part of the family then. 

"He was still new at the time and still grieving his parent's situation. He still had hope they'd get better."

"And now?"

"Bruce is not his father, but he is his family." 

Duke eventually accepted his parents' situation and its hopelessness. He knew the likelihood of getting his parents back was minimal and simply took what he could from them in his visits. He had accepted and was grateful this was his new family. 

"You like it," Syn said as she started walking down the hall, looking at photos. " Having a full house. So many grandbabies."

"The manor has never been so full," he smiled. " You have yet to tell me why you're here," he said bring the focus to more important matters. Like her sudden appearances after months. 

"I'd like to meet my future in-laws. Or at least get more information on them." 

"And you can't learn from them in a more appropriate setting." 

"If they are anything like Damian, No."

Alfred sighed. She was right. It would be a long while before she got behind the masks. Introductions were integrations. Greetings were intimations. Acts of affection were subtle pat-downs. No one in this family was normal. 

"Alright, I'll try the normal way. These photos have given me enough information to understand the dynamics of the main household." Syn said, hoping to please Alfred. Maybe the family would get some semi-normal or could at least act like it. Duke wasn't fooling anyone anymore. 

"How about dinner this Saturday?"

"I'll ask Damian. He's not aware of my presence yet."

"Understood." Comotion could be heard on his coms

"I'll show myself out. Goodnight, Alfred."

"Goodnight, Miss Syn"

-

Syn lay still. As she listened to the door open, she pulled her dagger to her chest and evened her breathing. Ready to jump. Ready to fight. "Why was I not made aware of your arrival?" the tension left her body. Relaxing her grip on her dagger and putting it back under her pillow. She took a moment before slowly sitting up and opening her eyes. Damian stood at the foot of her bed, arms crossed in his Gotham Academy uniform: Dark trousers, white button-up, blazer, and tie, all neat and tidy like she expected him to be. 

"You look good," he just glared. " How was school?" he just glared some more. She sighed.

"I knew you would have said no if I asked or waited for some elaborate plan."

"My apologies for wanting us to be prepared."

"Will we ever be prepared?" she asked. " For your family, will we ever be prepared?" Damian sighed he saqt on the edge of the bed she moved to sit next to him. 

"No...They're unpredictable imbeciles."

"We should start with proper introductions and go from there. AT least try for a bit of normalization. Alfred would appreciate it."

She was right. They couldn't continue their relationship without his family's involvement. They needed some kind of introduction, at least to make his family more aware of her, as she was going to stick around. He'd make sure of it. 

Damian took a deep breath, standing and straightening his blazer. " Alfred has informed you of Saturday dinner?"

"Yes, he has."

"I'll arrive on Saturday afternoon to help you dress and prep."

Syn jumped out of bed and followed him towards the kitchen. She found a bag of takeout on the counter he unpacked it as she sat down. "How was school?" she asked her earlier question.

"full of imbeciles" he was going to leave it at that. I do not particularly like the place. 

"I've never been."

At moments like these, Damian was reminded that despite growing up side by side for nearly a decade, he was still more privileged than she'd ever been. He had more titles, more rights, more teachers, he made more normal, more people that actually cared, more friends. He had simple things like pets, family outings(that didn't involve killing), school, and big things like forgiveness. Things she'd never be given.

He could tell her a little about school. And he did. 

[heymeowmao]

2024.08.13 - https://weibo.com/l/wblive/p/show/1022:2321325067017437970567

LYN: Long time no see, long time. Wait for me a sec- I want to turn on the AC. It’s a little warm. LYN: Long time no see. It’s been quite some time since I last streamed. I happened upon a video today- they were saying that I- hold on, let me adjust the sound settings- I haven’t streamed for 46 days? Or something? I heard you calling me, so I couldn’t resist. LYN: There’s a saying, isn’t there? “If missing you had a sound…” I heard that friend- they were howling. It’s been forty-some days since I’ve streamed, so they couldn’t stand it any longer. So here I am. I’ve got to get my month’s quota down quickly. LYN: Let me welcome you in again.

C: I almost stopped being your fan. LYN: Is that warranted? It was only a few days, and you want to stop being my fan? If you’re going to be like that, then let me be arrogant as well: Do you need me to call you a car? If you do, contact my studio and they’ll give you 10RMB for the car service. Goodbye.

C: Lao-da, do you know how loudly I cried? LYN: It’s 9pm, be quiet and don’t disturb your neighbors. I’m only streaming, it’s not like I died. Why are you crying? C: I missed you so much I had insomnia for the past 46 days. LYN: ??? Your sleep schedule is probably not that great to begin with. Try to get some more regular exercise. Adjust your body’s circadian rhythm and it will help with your sleep. Don’t blame your lack of sleep on me. There are so many recorded livestreams, if you have time you should just watch those. You can pretend they’re “live” streams. How can you blame your poor sleep on me??

C: What’s up with the hair down the middle? LYN: It’s for ~the look~. I really can’t talk about anything too fashionable with you. It’s the look. Can’t you see that my top has all these shiny sequins? That’s so I can look cool. And you dare to ask me why I have hair down the middle?? It’s fashionable! C: You’ve been wearing a hat to stream for so many times now. LYN: It’s like this- most of the time I had a whole day of filming earlier in the day and I come straight home to stream. Because I have to apply the wig, it makes my hair really flat. Because if you want to apply the wig, your natural hair needs to be combed very smoothly, and to get clean edges they will use lots of hair wax/gel. By the time I get home my hair is flat and full of wax, so there’s no shape or style. I can only cover it. If I wear a hat, I won’t have to wash my hair. I don’t wash my hair, because if I do then I also have to remove my makeup. … If I wash and remove my makeup, when I start streaming you won’t recognize me anymore. It’s like Painted Skin- you’ll discover a new person underneath. So because I don’t want to remove my makeup, I don’t wash my hair either. Please be understanding and let me wear a hat. I look warm/gentle, don’t I? 

C: The weather is so hot but you’re wearing long sleeves. Are you not hot? LYN: There is an electronic in this world, it’s called an “air conditioner.” LYN: You always see this, though. For example- all artists. Think about Hengdian- these days it’s been around 40C. When I look at the weather forecast, it says that the real-time temperature is 40C. Let me tell you- it definitely isn’t only 40C. When you open your phone there’s a weather app, and it will tell you the temperature of the day/time. It might be telling you it’s 39C right now, but it’s not. I don’t know why they can’t report that it’s hotter. Are they afraid of scaring me to death? C: They’re afraid to scare you to death. LYN: Like for artists- and for me who is currently filming- it’s currently 40C in Hengdian. Often, we’ll have to act out scenes when it’s “snowing.” Sometimes it’s at night, but even then it’s 30-35C. And it needs to snow. We have to pretend it’s cold, while wearing a big fur coat. “Wow, how cold. 35C…” There’s just no helping it- because it’s our job. I’ve gotten used to it, for the most part. It’s the same for female artists- in the winter they have to attend awards ceremonies and similar events but no matter how cold it is, they’ll wear a gown. It’s a show of respect towards the event or sponsoring platform. Likewise, I’m wearing long sleeves in my house right now as a show of respect to you. Of course, I hope there is mutual respect here.

C: What’s drama snow made out of? LYN: Usually there are two- three types. What happens if we want snow in the drama when the actual season doesn’t allow for it? There are three things. The first- it’s not actively snowing, but we can place it on the ground. So, for scenes where you see the “snow” has already fallen and gathered on the ground. But we can’t have it fall because this stuff it’s toxic if it enters the eyes/mouth. It can’t all, but we can put it on the floor. Someone told me once, what it was, but I can’t say. It’s not bubbles/foam… more like salt? I don’t know what it is. [instant snow polymer (sodium polyacrylate)] You put this type on the floor. If it can fall from the sky, it’s one of two types. C: Styrofoam. LYN: No, we don’t usually use that. Because once it gets on you, it’s all over. LYN: It’s more like what you would use to wash with- shower gel. Like when you blow on and scatter a mound of bubbles. That’s the first kind- shower gel. They make a thick foam of bubbles and then blow it with the wind machine. The second kind is- C: Made with dandruff. LYN: 去你的! LYN: The second kind is made with sticky rice- it’s kind of like rice paper? They’ll shred it and then blow it through the air; it looks like snow. Why do I think it’s made with sticky rice? Because one time it fell on my lips and I ate it. I didn’t swallow it- I may look dumb, but I’m not ACTUALLY- but I tried to push it out of my mouth and I discovered that it was sticky. They told me it was made with sticky rice, and that it was ok- I wouldn’t die from it.

------- 

LYN: A while ago I went to record for Our Songs, and I’m sure you’re enjoying watching it. I sang… a few songs. - /plays the video for 恋爱画板 and sings along/ LYN: Honestly, friends, I had to sing this with quite a pinched tone. From a performance perspective, it’s not a particularly difficult song or very high key. But the difficulty for me was that I had to use a pinched tone. Normally when I sing, you all know the type of song that I suit- /starts singing 就在江湖之上/- they’re all this type of song. But for this song, I couldn’t just- /sings it powerfully/. That’s not good. So I had to “pinch”- /sings cutely/. There was just no helping it. How else was I supposed to sing it? I had to match the mood of the song. LYN: I had fun filming these couple of episodes, as they’re all people I’m more familiar with. So I felt a lot more reassured during the recording process. I was happy. C: Are you going later, too? LYN: WMDG? I think I’ll go? But I don’t know- I’ll have to see if I have time. I think there’s some sort of finale that I will attend. If I’m remembering correctly, I should be going to it.

C: What’s Music Fate Plan (音乐缘计划) like? LYN: /rolls his eyes around his head to show he’s thinking of what to say/ LYN: I went and recorded… half. It should be four episodes total. I went to be a guest member, for four episodes. But I only recorded for half. You’ll probably see it later. I had fun because I was with people I know. Honestly, I know fewer people as an actor; since I was a singer to start with, I have more singer friends. In my group chats, sometimes they will ask me, “Do you know this actor?” and give a name. I reply, “... Who is it? What do they do?” They tell me what that person has acted in, and I… still don’t know them. Most of the time I’ve heard their name before, but I don’t know them. But as for singers, I think I’m not bad. Let’s not tak about whether I’m close with them or not, but for the most part I know them all. At the very least, I’ve worked with them before. [t/n: not sure, but I think this is in reference specifically to the Music Fate Plan singers?] LYN: I was quite happy to go, but I don’t know- it gave me the feeling that the longer I recorded, the more afraid I got. The longer it went, the more terror I felt. Because I’m a person who likes to joke, but during recording I discovered something. The terror I felt made me think to myself, “Is this okay?? Is it alright to talk to each other like this?? When this show airs, would we not all be cursed to death by the viewers? We must all be crazy.” I can’t believe we said some things we did without filtering it through our brains first. I don’t know! I don’t know what they’ll put on air. It’s possible that if we went overboard, they would cut it out when editing. The more I recorded, the more afraid I got. I would ask the person next to me- Zhou Shen- “Isn’t this a program that airs on tv? Jiangsu Satellite TV, right?” If it were just shown online, it could be more lenient. But this is an official television broadcast. “Are we allowed to do it this way??” I’m not afraid- because I would never say anything terribly bad about others- but just because we played it big with some of the jokes we were making. It’s only because we’re close with each other, so we feel comfortable enough to make these types of jokes. But I can’t help but wonder if it’s… allowable? If it airs just like that I’m sure we’ll be cursed to death by the netizens. I think we were a little bit too much in our natural states.

LYN: Am I trending? Don’t try to trick me! I’m… not worthy. I don’t think I have what it takes to be trending. You’re not lying to me, are you? -- 我不配 (I’m Not Worthy Enough) by Jay Chou LYN: Let me take a look. LYN: 19! 🙂 C: Ning-ge, you’re at 20. LYN: … I was just at 19 but sang a little and now I’m at 20? I can feel your rejection of my music. /sigh/ Fine. I won’t sing. I just won’t sing, ok?

LYN: You can check out Music Fate Plan. I should have gone to record… episodes 7, 8, 9, 10? 4 episodes. I was abe to choose some songs that I liked, and will be performing them on stage.

C: Ning-ge, why are you wearing a hat when you’re home. LYN: I already explained when I started the stream. You probably just came in. When I stop streaming, you can go watch the playback. There’s about 5 minutes where I explain why I’m wearing a hat. If you really want to know why, I can use a short two-word explanation. “Cold Body. (体寒)” “Please understand.”

LYN: I’m quite familiar with the Music Fate Plan guests. What can I say… let me go in order: - Liu Duanduan- We’ve worked together before; we shot a drama together. He was… my brother? …Right. He wasmy brother. So I’ve worked with him before. - Shan Yichun- I’ve met her on WMDG before, and we did a song together. We also released a song for Honor of Kings. It counts as having worked with her before, so we’re close. - Zhou Shen- We’ve been in a lot of variety shows together including one season on WMDG and KSTLB. He’s a close friend. - Xue Zhiqian- I often see him, always on music programs. - Xiao Gui (Wang Linkai)- We’ve also worked together before. I think people enjoyed our collaboration (on WMDG). (烟花易冷) - Zhou Bicang- Actually we… also recorded WMDG together. Why is it that now that I’m thinking about it, it’s the same group of people doing music variety shows?? The group of us have all been on WMDG. I’ve worked with her before, and once for a New Year’s event we sang together. - Huangzi Hongfan- this is a new friend that I’ve met. He’s quite a good kid. LYN: We had fun recording. Because we all know each other, so it was a relaxed mood and we were able to speak without reserve.

-----

C: Ning-ge, people say you’re an Introvert. LYN: You must not be on the internet very much, because I can see that when some people type comments, they don’t have the “super fan” tag stuck to the back of their user ID. Some IDs are made up of a string of English numbers and letters, too. But I don’t quite know what it means- what’s an I-person and an E-person? I-people are more… “i”? Lol, nonsense. I-people are more... introverted? They don’t like to talk much or make friends, and pretty much keep to themselves. E-people are (extroverts)- people who go anywhere and can get along well, make friends, and have fun. LYN: Actually, a lot of people think that I am an E. “I saw online that Ning-ge accompanies people for drinks.” “He must be good at networking, and can talk himself into projects smoothly.” “He looks so social.” You might think I’m that way, but in reality I… really don’t talk at all. I’m very “i”, and I don’t like gatherings. But right now I’m streaming, so I have to get myself into a “performing state” and stream for you. If I were to be this crazy in my personal life then I’d really be insane. C: Aren’t you pretending to be cool and composed? LYN: I’m not pretending to be cool and composed, I just think that most things aren’t my concern. I’ll keep my distance.

C: Your coworkers say that when you sing Rang Jiu you drink wine. LYN: /lol/ Huh?? Who said that? Who’s spreading these rumors?? After I drink I can neither sing nor act. If I drink, my voice turns hoarse. So I can’t sing. LYN: Also- who’s going around drinking first, then singing? You should really be careful- Do you think this is a KTV?? You could go with your friends to a KTV, eat guazi, pistachios, duck tongues and have a few beers, sure. When you sing after that you’ll probably be thinking you’re the best, and you’re one of the Four Great Heavenly Kings. It feels like you’re singing amazingly. But singing happily and singing for singers, for recordings- is two different things. If you’re recording, you have to be very detailed, and record very many times. It’s not like performing live- that’s actually okay. But in a studio you have to be really detailed and focused. There’s no way I would drink a little before I sing Rang Jiu. Woud it make me appear more carefree?? -- 让酒 (Let the Wine) LYN: This is water! Don’t really think that I’m consuming alcohol. This is pure water.

C: I want to watch your concert. LYN: You have a chance.

LYN: This song is also very good. I wasn’t able to recommend it to you because around that time I hadn’t streamed.  -- 作者 (Author) - Interlaced Scenes OST

C: Trending topic is #32 now. LYN: It’s okay. With my level of status and fame, being on the list in the first place is already a great blessing to me. Be it #32 or #89, it’s all good.

LYN: This song from 颜心记 (Follow Your Heart) is also very nice. - /pulls up the wrong song from the OST/ LYN: Oh- it’s called 心悠悠 (Longing Heart). Hold on… - /tries to pull it up but can’t find it (?) so switches track/ LYN: I have to find it and I don’t want to type anymore.

LYN: There’s also another song I sang recently, for A Lonely Hero’s Journey - 孤舟. It’s a good watch, and features one of my good friends. Xiao Zeng-tongxue (Little Student Zeng). If you have the time you can check it out. I really did watch it. A little. I found the time to watch some.

-----

C: How long do you usually stream for? LYN: I find the time to stream a little, and I’ll only do it for 10 minutes. I finish up in 10-20 minutes. Because I don’t really know how to do a livestream. Normally, I’m not someone who is very good at communicating, so I’ll stream for 10-20 minutes and then leave. So when I stop streaming you should… rest early. 

C: Did ZSX give you money yet? LYN: It’s not worth it! I don’t need money for EVERYTHING. I also sang a song for the OST, so- do I really need to say more?

LYN: There are some friends here who keep bringing up the names of other artists, and asking me for my opinion of them. The thing is- what right do I have to judge others?? That’s the first thing. Secondly- I have no right! Even if I say something good, what right do I have to comment? I don’t. LYN: It’s actually really easy to reply to these types of comments, though. If they ask me about anyone I can say, “They’re very nice. Such a good person! Really, not bad.” That’s normal, isn’t it? They ARE all quite good. C: Lao-da, what do you think about Liu Yuning? LYN: Oh, him? You know, I really can say a lot about him. I think that Liu Yuning is just... average. Yeah. Average.

C: Ning-ge, do you have any dramas that will air soon? LYN: Um…. /laughs at himself/ It looks like I’m crazy. LYN: I don’t know. C: The system has a bug? LYN: There’s no bug. There’s a bug in ME. Sorry. LYN: I don’t know. Honestly. As an actor, it’s really hard for us to say when our own dramas will air. The platform doesn’t even know most of the time, let alone the actors. A lot of dramas are released on the fly- they’ll air without any promotion.

LYN: TXJ- you know the drama, I acted as Zuo Bufan- that drama already aired, and I hadn’t finished the recording for the OST yet. Usually I’ll sing an OST for the dramas that I’ve acted in. But it was released so suddenly that I hadn’t yet found the time to record the OST yet! After a week of airing, I finally finished the song and then it was added in. It was really that rough. There wasn’t any promotion prior to the drama airing. C: TXJ was a good drama. LYN: Really, it wasn’t bad. TXJ is a genre that I quite like. When you’re watching it, you’ll feel like it’s different than most other dramas. It might not be a mainstream drama, like most people are into these days. That’s not the style. But… I thought it was an enjoyable watch. If you have the time, you can go check it out.

C: The voice-acting for Cicada Girl is done, right? LYN: Voice-acting is done. I don’t think I’ll be singing for it, though. The demos they gave me… didn’t really suit me. So I won’t be singing, but voice-acting is all done. It’s real-time sound, so I only had to make-up for some parts. Honestly, I don’t have very many scenes in it, either. The whole drama is 24 episodes, so I don’t have many scenes. I forgot how many, but not more than 200. C: I like how you look as Xiao Bei. LYN: It’s just short hair, isn’t it. At the time I was putting on wigs to stream. I’ve also not had much experience shooting moden dramas, so- /doesn’t finish the thought/

C: When will SJYM wrap? LYN: Mid-September or so? I still have less than a month left. C: What are your plans for after wrap? LYN: After drama wrap I’ll… what’s it to you? Why do you have to ask about everything? Don’t ask. LY: After wrap I’ll stay home and idle. No- I have a bunch to do. On the music side, there are many things that I have yet to record. I tend to just do things when I think about them. I was thinking before that I would create an EP of collaborations. I had collected a bunch of songs, but I haven’t even released my album yet and I’m thinking about releasing this EP. I need to find people to collab with, and also work on my album.

LYN: I was planning to go to an awards ceremony, but they require you to report what song you’ll be performing at the event ahead of time. And what a coincidence that it’s been five years after my debut- that’s right, isn’t it? Has it been 6 or 5 years? Six years? Ok, well- It’s been six years since my debut, so wouldn’t it be meaningful if I sang 讲真的? -- 讲真的 LYN: I was thinking, if I sang this song, wouldn’t it be particularly meaningful? I can say,” Look at me then- I was just someone who sang songs at the side of a road. And now I can sing them on this stage.” I don’t know. That’s what I was thinking of doing, but I didn’t end up doing it. I switched the song. But I’ll find an opportunity later to rearrange this song and perform it on a stage.

LYN: (about Fall in Love) At the time this song was supposed to be the first one on my new album. But now it’s been three years since I released it. I was thinking this could be the first song on my second album, and I sang it at the Jiangsu New Year’s event. Then later that same year, I would release the rest of the album. And then? I didn’t release anything else. LYN: I was thinking this was the year to finally release the album, but I don’t know. I just feel like it’s about time and I should do everything it takes to release it. As long as I return to Beijing and record the last few songs, everything will be ready. But because Fall in Love was released so long ago, it is no longer considered part of the album, but as a regular single instead. I can start releasing the rest of it. I’ll send it out of nowhere, straight to your front door.

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LYN: There are a lot of new people watching my stream today- have you only started liking me recently? Huh? I haven’t been on anything lately, why would you start liking me now? It’s unbelievable.  C: Centipede fan. LYN: 蜈蚣粉 (wúgōng fěn = centipede fan)? I’ve heard of 酸辣粉 (suānlà fěn = hot and sour noodle). I’ve heard of 螺螄粉 (luósī fěn = river snail noodles). What is an “wúgōng fěn”?? Is it some place’s specialty dish? /laughs/ I’m kidding. I know what you’re talking about. The leaked video about the centipede, right? LYN: Honestly, that was nothing and didn’t have much to do with me. It’s all thanks to the far away paparazzi. I didn’t grab it, it was just a coincidence that I maybe happened to brush against it and knock it off her skirt. This was no main hero saving the fair maiden situation. I just happened to be able to knock it off. Don’t push that on me and make me out to be a hero. I’m not. - LYN: It was a pretty interesting day. LYT and I were filming up on the rooftop. It was a pretty complicated scene, overall. And then after a while, about ten minutes into the scene, I started hearing shouts from across the way. /unintelligible screaming/ But from that far away, the only thing I could make out was “Li Yitong”! That was the only thing I could hear. I was joking with her too, saying, “Hey! Your fans are out to support you. You’re too amazing. You even have fans hiding out in the mountains to support you. Thanks for letting me “fly” (be in the photos) with you.” I was thinking, “There are fans who would hide out in the mountains just to provide support?? That’s amazing.” But then I saw them start to point. I was looking around, thinking we had unknowing bared ourselves? But we didn’t- everything was covered. I hadn’t seen it yet. I had no idea what was going on. Then, from the video you saw what happened.  - LYN: It was so strange! I’m sure of one thing- after everything, when we knew it was a big centipede- I had told her, “The events of this night are worthy of more than one hot topic. We’re going to have at least one.” Just like I predicted, the next morning there was a trending topic at #1. That bug’s size was just too great. The length was worth it. The more amazing thing is that I’m sure one day many friends will watch this drama, and when you see that scene you will say, “This is it! The centipede scene!” I’m sure that’s all the comments will be talking about. C: Does the centipede get any screentime? LYN: I don’t think we recorded it. LYN: The centipede that day reached the height of its popularity.

LYN: Someone asked me earlier when I expect my new dramas to air, and I really don’t know. Honestly, I also don’t have anything in stock. All of the previous drama that I’ve filmed for- the ones where I have fewer scenes- have all finished airing already. I’m not sure when the rest will air. I haven’t even done the voice-acting for a lot of them yet. So I don’t know when they’ll air, but we’ll just wait.

C: Lao-da, I’m almost celebrating my birthday. LYN: ? What does that mean- “almost”? Is it coming soon or is it today? LYN: To everyone who is celebrating their birthday today- I wish you a Happy Birthday.

C: Ning-ge, will you act as a dominating CEO? I think your breathy croak is not bad. LYN: What breathy croak? I can’t tell if you’re trying to compliment me or imply something else.

- /Talking about some art that a fan had made? A mosaic? I don’t get the reference, but Ning-ge thinks it’s romantic./ - /I also don’t know what they talk about next. Something about putting on/taking off his clothes?/ C: Ning-ge, when you say it like that it sounds shameful. LYN: Isn’t it, though?? What are you girls thinking about all the time? You got happy even seeing a mosaic??

C: Do you die at the end of SJYM? LYN: … Uh… This is… /gulps/. I can’t spoil it. You’ll know if you watch it! Who knows if I’ll die or not??

C: Lao-da, will there be a music festival 4.0? LYN: Of course, as long as I have the time. This drama had been difficult to shoot. I don’t know why, but I feel especially tired. Oh- uh, of course, I am not complaining. I’m not trying to say that my work is tiring- there’s none of that. Acting as a profession is not a tiring thing. I’m just trying to say that personally, because I am in bad health- I either have the chills or diarrhea- because I am a weak person, that I find shooting this drama is tiring. I feel tired because am in bad health, not because the work is hard. I’m getting older and can’t hold out anymore. /coughs/

------ break #1 - /laughs at the video of himself he put up/ LYN: I’ve just discovered that maybe I used to be a lunatic. 

LYN: I was scrolling across weibo today and I saw something. My friend Yizhe, went to CMBF, right? Wang Yizhe. I think their first public performances are done already. If I’m not seeing incorrectly, I think he’s ranked last. LYN: Brother… LYN: If you (are eliminated)- Please don’t blame gege. I didn’t do it on purpose. I was just joking. I didn’t REALLY shoot the support video for you that way. That’s also not was I was thinking in my heart. LYN: You have to take care of yourself! Jiayou! Next time you’re working on a song, could you ask me? You have this friend who does music, don’t you. I’m considered a singer. You can ask me- not that I’m trying to tell you how to do things, but we can communicate and think about a good way to execute your performance. I can provide some ideas. Don’t just try to do it quietly and on your own. Don’t do it by yourself. LYN: I have two friends on this show- one was Fang Yilun, and he left after one round. This one is called Wang Yizhe and I’m really afraid that he’s going to fold after one round too. I’m afraid for these two friends. Yilun really did leave after one round the last time. Next time when you’re choosing the song you can talk to me about it. I can break it down for you.

LYN: I watched your stage! I watched your performance of 问风. I watched it. Let me tell you, you can’t change the song like that! /laughs/ You could have asked me!! Oh wait- what if I know the person who rearranged it? No- I was joking! That performance was amazing! But the voting is really unpredictable. The song is great, and the arrangement was the best! Amazing! Luxurious! Friends- let’s appreciate this performance of 问风 together. You can experience it. Listen to this- -- /analyzes Yizhe’s perf of 问风 on CMBF/ - /thinks the adlibbing was unnecessary and surprised himself by guessing the direction the melody would flow, lol/ - /turns into a drummer/ LYN: That’s it?!

LYN: This is… let me check who the arranger was, first. Ok, well. If it were me, I wouldn’t- I would probably also do it sort of like this. I feel like the arrangement was great. - /tries to get his “thumbs up” filter to work/ LYN: Overall, the song is not bad. LYN: /to WYZ/ But the next time you’re choosing a song, you can communicate with me. I might not be the most professional out of all the people you know, but I can brainstorm with you. - /plays the song again/ LYN: See? It’s really got me. I can’t help but want to hear it again. LYN: Just- If it had entered into the chorus (without the adlibbing), that would have been really satisfying. Keep the momentum going. But I know that they probably had a time limit of at least 1m30s- a performance within 100 seconds at least. His performance was 1m25s, so 95 (85) seconds. Relatively short. So you could have cut the adlib, and just come back to it at the end instead. That would have been enough. If it were me, that’s how I would have done it.

-----

LYN: The other day someone told me that this song 当遇见你 (The Moment I Met You) is coming back around again. - /goes around thanking people for using his songs, and tells his fans to do the same instead of trying to start fights because of it./

C: Lao-da, how much longer will you stream for? I’m going to sleep. LYN: What time is it? 10:40p. Okay. If you’re sleepy, then go to sleep. You don’t need to tell me. Just listen to a song before you go. - /plays a loud/raucous song to wake people up/ LYN: I’ll stream for a little while longer before I stop. It won’t be too late since I’ve got to get an early start tomorrow morning. If you want to sleep first, then go ahead. C: You don’t have any secrets to tell? LYN: I can’t use the jokes I make in my stream every time! If you’re wondering why this friend would ask this, it’s because the last time someone wanted to leave to go sleep, I said, “You go to sleep. Now I’m going to tell the biggest secret in the entertainment industry. If you’re not here, you won’t be able to hear it.” I hooked them, so they didn’t want to go to sleep anymore. But this time, if they want to sleep I should just let them. It’s a Tuesday. Last time was a Saturday or Sunday, I don’t remember. But on a Tuesday people have work or school the next morning, so let’s not disrupt their sleep. Right? Rest well.

C: Are you still working out? LYN: No. I gave up. There was a day I felt I was getting fat and thought about losing weight, but after a whole day of filming I’m tired and don’t really have the energy to work out. So I thought I would try to control my eating, so I was on a diet for about 20 days. Now I’ve lost about… from my heaviest (most recently) until now, I’ve lost about almost 10, maybe 9kg.

C: Ning-ge, I lost my dog. Could I borrow Daimi for two days? LYN: You must be crazy. You can’t borrow her.

C: Ning-ge, can you recreate Hei Xiazi’s look? LYN: There’s nothing really special about his look. Rather- not that there’s not anything special, but it’s not difficult to do like a guzhuang look would be. Xiazi is just shades and some unkempt hair, and a leather jacket. Cargo pants. Gloves. That’s about it. C: Hurry. Change. LYN: What do you think I am? You think you can just change my clothes: “This hat isnt good. Take it off. The hair color doesn’t work. Lets dye it pink. Add glasses!” Is that what you mean? You’re thinking of me as an Yuning-nuan nuan? After picking on my profession, now you’re starting to micro-manage my look? You’re playing with me?? - /puts on some shades/ LYN: Wow~ /laughs/ This one doesn’t work. The shape isn’t right.

C: Can’t I use technology? [t/n: ??] LYN: That’s what I was trying to say earlier!! If you’re playing that game that lets you change the avatar’s clothing, you still buy the outfits with real money or by buying the lottery tickets. I’m letting you watch my stream for free, and you want me to change clothes too? LYN: I used to change, remember? I changed into the baby cabbage shirt. I changed into a green/yellow shirt, and as soon as people saw me they started telling me, “Ning-ge, you kind of look like a cabbage.” It was demoralizing, because I had just bought that shirt. It was a few thousand dollars. I was planning to wear it on a variety show, but then you all started snidely remarking that it made me look like a cabbage. I never touched that shirt again. My studio found it one day and asked if I wanted to wear it and I told them, “No! Get rid of it. Give it to my makeup artist. I never want to see this cabbage shirt again in my life. I will also never EAT cabbage again.” C: It’s not worth it. LYN: /villain laugh/ How is it not worth it?? It’s very worth it. You don’t know how much pain that experience gave me. For the first time I felt like I was very “菜” (cai = poor/weak). - C: Raffle it. LYN: I won’t be. /sigh/ Friends, what can I say? My fans, honestly, are very much different from everyone else’s fans. My fans are slightly more mature- they’re not particularly agitated. But for example, sometimes I buy these beads and after I buy them I don’t like them as much anymore. After you buy something, you might see something that’s even better and then not want the one you already have. I was thinking I would take one strand and separate it into three, then raffle them. I had really thought about it before, because I didn’t particularly like them and it wasn’t worth it to sell them to other people. But the thing about raffling that makes me worried is that the people who are not able to win a bracelet would then become disappointed in me. They’d get angry. LYN: Before, there was the vinyl. I forget how many copies there were- 8,000? And I said, “If you can’t get one, it’s okay.” It was a limited number- only 8,000. Then, because they were unable to attain a copy, some people stopped being my fan. The reason was because they weren’t able to get one of my vinyls, were unhappy, so they stopped being my fan. C: 8170. LYN: Yeah, 8,000 copies. C: The master skill of the jianghu- “quit being a fan and trash everything on their way out”. LYN: No, this fan didn’t trash things on their way out, they were just too expectant to get a vinyl. Later I saw that scalpers were also selling them. They didn’t have the number, but I think you could still buy them. C: Ning-ge, if someone did “quit being a fan and trash everything on their way out”, what would you do? LYN: I can’t find the words. I’m speechless.

C: Ning-ge, I’ve been admitted into high school! LYN: Congrats! LYN: You’ve been ADMITTED into high school? Oh- it must be a better-off school. I don’t know too much about it. You didn’t provide context. If you had said, “Ning-ge, I’ve been admitted to the best high school in my area”, then I would be happy for you. But I… went to a technical school. I learned how to be a cook. After middle school I went directly into a technical high school to learn how to be a cook. - LYN: But the other day I saw someone say something quite apt. They said, “Just because LYN has learned to be a cook, doesn’t mean you can throw all your pies at him and have him heat them and just wait to eat.”I thought about it and suddenly realized that yeah, they have a point. There used to be all sorts of dramas that would announce “Female Lead: ABC, Male Lead: Liu Yuning.” As soon as those three syllables popped up (LYN) people would start to furiously curse me out. “Is he worthy?!” “Why him??” Sometimes when I saw that happening I would sit there dazed. Then I would ask my studio- “Did I receive this script?” And they tell me, “We’ve never heard of it. D:” So what can I do? Get yelled at for nothing! LYN: It’s like this- first, they throw out a “Liu Yuning”- treat me as a skillet. Heat me up to 3000° and then throw the pie (the drama) on me. The want me to heat it for them. Then, they’ll say, “Oh, the male lead ISN’T Liu Yuning.” So people respond, “Oh, thank goodness. That’s fine, then.” They’re playing this trick! They’ve done this to me before. C: Ning-ge, it’s called a “dian bing ceng” LYN: “Dian bing dang”! Am I the cook, or are you the cook?! We’re different. We’re not talking about the same thing~

LYN: What’s happening- what are you people trying to sell under my weibo livestream?? Friends- please be aware- never buy anything claiming to sell you illegal videos on weibo. I won’t get into specifics, but PLEASE don’t. Other than female viewers, I’m sure there are many male viewers in my stream. If you see an advertisement on weibo claiming to sell you a video of something that you might be interested in, it’s a scam. They’ll use this method to steal your personal information to do some bad things. LYN: For example, if they claim to sell you a bunch of videos on a USB, you’ll open it and find Journey to the West instead. Or the Calabash Brothers. Tom & Jerry, etc. Just wait and see. That’s the first thing. The second thing is, there might be a lot of you in the stream who aren’t my fan. You might see, especially on weibo, people claiming to sell concert tickets. These types of scammers are common. I have a friend who was tricked. - /explains the whole process of how a scammer would set up the bait, get your info, then steal your money/ LYN: As soon as they’re done scamming you, they’ll block you. You won’t be able to find them again, nor will you be able to get your money back. LYN: If there’s one thing to remember: never give anyone online ANY of your personal information. C: I don’t have money. LYN: If you don’t HAVE money, then they wouldn’t be able to scam you, because you wouldn’t be looking to buy concert tickets (you can’t afford) in the first place. If you don’t have money, you won’t be tricked. C: I don’t have a bank card. LYN: You won’t be tricked either. It’s funny that you even put that out there. No money, no bank card. Why are you telling me this? If you don’t have money, then they’ll use your personal info to apply for a loan. XD

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C: Ning-ge, how do I hide my phone in high school? LYN: /laughs/ Huh?? Do you think I’m an AI, or what? You’re asking me just anything now?? LYN: You’re in school, but they don’t allow phones, so how should you hide yours? Well, most people hide it- How would I know?? I JUST told you that I attended a technical school. I didn’t go to high school. First off- I want to tell you that I don’t know how you should hide it, because I never attended high school. Forget about cell phones, I had to bring knives to school! We went to school with two knives in our backpack. Do you think phones would have been a problem? They weren’t. Two knives, a box of carving knives, pointed knives, u-shaped, v-shaped- I carried knives to school with me. If you ask me about how to hide a phone, I really don’t know. Secondly, if you’re going to school what do you need your phone for? You should be focused on learning. Don’t bring your phone. Just play at home. C: Ning-ge, you carry more knives to work than [character]. LYN: No! I was learning how to bea cook. It’s reasonable that I had to carry knives. C: What about the pot? LYN: When we went to school we had to carry the knives, but we didn’t have to carry the pot. The school has pots. We (the students) didn’t need to carry them. LYN: Also when we were first starting school, they wanted us to buy our knives- the very long kind. /measures with his hands/ The blade was this long, and the hilt was here. This knife is called a “sanhulu”. It was a very thick and heavy knife, because when we’re training with it, we had to strengthen our wrists. C: You really had to buy your own knives? LYN: Yeah, if you’re learning of course you’ll buy your own knives.  - LYN: But! I know as we’re learning we had to carry our knives everywhere, but it’s not like any of us would have had the guts to take them out. It’s not like we were walking around with knives in our hands- that’s illegal. They had to be in the backpack and we could only take them out at school. Also- to that friend who asked if we had to carry our pots to school, no- /sarcastic/ I carried a tank of propane with me. I carried two tanks of propane, in case I’d be cooking and there’d be no more fire. I’d go to school with two  knives in my backpack, a chopping board on my head, and two propane tanks. I look like Iron Man.

C: Ning-ge, praise me. I am 170 in my whole prefecture. LYN: Amazing. Jiayou. I’m sure you’ll be a pillar of the nation in the future. Learn well. Improve every day.

C: Ning-ge, did you do military education? LYN: Yeah, we did. Why not? A technical school is also an official school. It’s just that you learned math and language, so you can go anywhere without fear. While we carried two knives, and also could go anywhere without fear. It’s the same. The content we learned was different, but they are both official schools.

C: Did you have homework? LYN: Yes, of course. For example, if you learned carving in the morning- we had a lot of different courses: batters, frying, carving, knife skills, theory- safety and sanitation. Those are all the things we had to learn. So for example if we learned how to carve flowers in the daytime, we would go home and practice to turn something in the next day. It’s not something we can apply a formula to and calculate an answer for. It takes practice, so you’d buy a whole sack of radishes home to practice on. After ten or twenty times, you’ve finally got a complete on that you could turn it in. We would often have carving competitions, too. At the time, I held second place for my cohort. But that was only one time.

C: Wasting food. LYN: If you’re going to say it like that- you’ve lost the point. First of all, I think “wasting food” is a little bit exaggerated. Secondly, after I finished carving the radishes, we took the bits and to make soup. Are you trying to say that letting me eat it was a waste of food? LYN: We weren’t carving and throwing away the pieces. It’s not as if I was in the middle of the street and letting the shavings drop to the ground before returning home. Think about it- would a well-off family let their kid go learn to be a cook? Of course we weren’t well off, so when I finished carving we would dice the leftovers and make fried radish balls or radish dumplings. I would never throw it away and my grandparents would beat me to death if I tried. It wasn’t a waste of food. But if you think letting me eat it was a waste, that’s true. Because I eat a lot.

------

C: Ning-ge, if I’m under the sun a lot during the day, how can I not get tan? LYN: If you have any methods, you can tell me too. I also get tan. No one can avoid the sun. A huge sun at 40C is like… an oven. It’s an oven.

C: OMG! A living Ning-ge! LYN: ?__? What do you mean a “living” Ning-ge?

C: Ning-ge, will you stream on 8/17? LYN: I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to, so that’s why I’m streaming in advance. 8/17 is a meaningful day for us. It’s a holiday for my fans. I was thinking of streaming but I don’t know if I’ll be able to. That’s why I came today, just in case.

C: I want to watch The Truth S3! Will you still record for it? LYN: Probably. We just finished this year, so next year… we’ll probably start shooting in Q1. Variety shows are separated into quarters- Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4. I think we will record a S3, because this year the ratings were pretty decent. I don’t want to self-praise and say we did very well, but I think we did decently at least. With all things, if there’s an interest then there’s a higher chance of continuation.

C: Ning-ge, your “cold body” (体寒) is trending. LYN: My “cold body” is trending?? I was only making a joke. Don’t tell me there are a bunch of doctors and TCM practitioners lining up to check on me our of curiosity? They’d like to cure me? For a cold body, I suppose they’d put danggui (female ginseng) and goji berries in a tub and tell me to soak my feet in it? To restabilize my body temperature? Are the people who made this trending studying traditional medicine? You’ve made me a case, and won’t stop until you’ve cured me? Such is the responsibility of a healer. C: Ning-ge, stick out your tongue and let me see it. LYN: I… will not let you see it. I don’t want you to actually see something if I show you. What if I really am weak and you can prove it? How do you expect me to continue on in this business? What if I’m actually sick and I don’t know it? Even if you can see that I tend to get diarrhea, that would be bad if the news got out.

C: The middle hair is really so distracting. LYN: You’ve seen it all night already. But my studio even sent me a message telling me to move it, because they say it makes me look crosseyed. - /glares into the camera/ LYN: Even my studio is on me about it. - /moves the hair to the side/ C: This looks much more comfortable. LYN: Yeah, but don’t you think this makes me look a lot more naive/foolish? - /starts referencing a douyin: Hello, I have a hoodie. I want to ask online, if I wear it, does it make me look loyal. Like a big-eared dwarf?/ LYN: Who do I look so loyal after moving my bangs? LYN: This won’t do. I still need to make it look decent. /moves it a little/ Okay. This does not make me look as loyal.

LYN: I’ll stream for a little longer. I need to wrap up before 12a today because tomorrow I’m in hair and makeup at 6:30a. That means I have to wake up before 6a. So I’ll stop streaming, wash my face, sleep for five hours, then get back to work. Okay? I’ll stop streaming at around 12a. But first I’ll use the restroom.

------ break #2 

C: Ning-ge, the clothes that you wore the last stream have all been sold out. LYN: Oh, the T-Shirt? The fox one? (Nick Wilde, Zootopia)

LYN: !! There are still people spamming, “Ning-ge, stick out your tongue for me to see.” You must be sick! I don’t need your services! Thank you, Doctor!! Doctor, please rest early! C: Ning-ge, what should I do if I have rhinitis? LYN: Why don’t you get in contact with that person from earlier, who wanted me to stick my tongue out? They’re a doctor. They can check you out. See if they can cure your rhinitis for you, or tell you what type of medicine to use. Go ahead and direct message each other, I won’t be needing their services. LYN: Look at this, friends! It may look like you’re in my livestream, but actually this is just a huge public discussion board. Just now, there was a patient and doctor who were able to connect with each other because of it. I am just a platform. It’s possible that just by streaming today, we have cured someone who is suffering from rhinitis. Let’s congratulate this friend. 

C: /announcing that they got admitted into college/ LYN: Congratulations. You’re amazing.

C: Ning-ge, do celebrities drink water. LYN: You must be sick! I can’t stand you being weird like this. What “celebrity” am I? Friends, I’m just an internet celebrity. (网红 // internet famous) LYN: Everything has to drink water. Even horses and cows drink water.

LYN: Before, when I first debuted, people would fall over themselves cursing me out. “LYN, what “singer” are you? You’re just internet famous.” The fans at the time- the ones who have been with me from the start- felt bad for me and would rebuke. “LYN is not internet famous, because he has never accepted business proposals or done influencer marketing.” They would try to prove me worthy. “LYN has this song, we welcome you to listen to it.” etc. My fans would try to back me up. But now when I hear the words “internet famous”, I think that it’s a really funny thing. My friends probably aren’t as sensitive about it anymore. To me, it’s just an… an experience that I won’t deny having had. Right now I’m streaming- so what does that make me? A lot of celebrities have also started streaming- what are they? C: 轻舟已过万重山. (starts quoting Li Bai; describes the poet’s pleasure of going through all hardships and entering a smooth journey) (x) LYN: It’s not that serious! Its just that a lot of the time- - /trying to set up for an ~emotional~ moment, but is having trouble finding the track/ LYN: Where did it go? Where is it?! - /found it/ LYN: ~ Honestly, most times it’s like this- In your life you will encounter many moments that you think you cannot overcome. You’ll feel like you’re suffering, conflicted, and helpless. But in truth you’ll discover that when it all passes, it was nothing. ~ LYN: I’ll need to download this bgm to somewhere easily accessible, so I can find it faster the next time. Ok. I’ll open it quickly the next time.

C: Blogger, I would like to hear 寻一个你 (Looking for You). LYN: They called me “Blogger”! /laughs/ Oh- wei-BO, so “blogger”. I understand. Of course, I count as a blogger. So... if you want to hear 寻一个你, then I suggest you go on a music platform like QQ and search for it. You may listen to it then. Ok, Netizen? If you call me a Blogger, then I can only call you a passionate Netizen.

C: I got into the best university in Lanzhou. LYN: That’s great! Wow. I’m jealous. Good luck. Do well in school.

C: Ning-ge, in KSTLB which snack tasted the best. LYN: I can’t remember the brand anymore. Also, we don’t have any business collaboration, so I won’t be recommending anything. When they find me to work with me, at that time I will fiercely recommend their products to you. The problem now is that if I recommend them… there’s no collaboration. Forget it. Also, it wasn’t the best thing I ever ate- it was okay. I was just hungry after a day of shooting.

C: Give me a hint when the next time you’ll stream will be. LYN: I don’t know when the next time I can stream is. There’s really no saying. Sometimes if I wrap up with work early, I’ll come to stream. But other times if I wrap early I’ll go to record songs or do some other work. But know that as long as I don’t have something else to do, I will come to stream.

LYN: Our Director Guo is here? Guo Hu? Welcome. [SJYM Director] LYN: We’re almost done with shooting SJYM and it was really great working together. I’m sure that you all are looking forward to and will like this drama. I’m really looking forward to it.

C: Ge, is your English good? LYN: My English? It’s great. Amazing. Really. My old friends all know that my English is great. I can communicate with a native speaker with no problems. Absolutely none. Because I… don’t talk to any. I don’t want to talk to them. But I was the English class representative in my school. We were all learning to be cooks, but in my class my English was the best. Everything you’re typing in the comments, I can for the most part understand. Things like, “Marry Me” and “Kiss Me”. How shallow. LYN: Look at the English you’re typing- it’s also just so-so! “Baby” and “Can you kiss me?” It’s all this type of comment! Can’t you say anything more high class and professional?? Give me a challenge. Don’t just come here and “Honey, honey”- /starts singing/ - who wouldn’t be able to understand that? LYN: What is “go to sleep with me”? You want me to go die with you?? I won’t be going, thanks. “Sleep” is a state of sleeping, right? But once it reaches a certain extent, it can become “dead”. So “go to “die” with me”- thanks, but I won’t be. - LYN: Don’t type anything too long because… the comments move too fast for me to read it all. LYN: “I will only…” what? Some of you are also typing in Korean. 😐/sigh/ Korean… I know! -- If You LYN: See, I can. I know a little of everything.

C: Speak some Korean. LYN: What do you know!? Come on, someone who knows Korean, come rate me. What do you mean “speak some Korean”? You must be kidding me. Friends, let me play the original track. I’ll sing, then you can hear if I sing it exactly the same- then you’ll know. LYN: This English reads, “G-Dragon/P.K/Dee.P” [t/n: he’s actually doing really well… for the parts he can keep up with XD] LYN: That’s about enough. Isn’t it (his Korean) good, though? Someone asked, “Speak some Korean” but I sing exactly the same, so how can I be “plastic” (fake)? At the very least I’m made of carved glass, which is pretty amazing. C: You were just matching the shape of the words. LYN: /whines/ That’s not it! - /tries without the backing and sings terribly XD/

C: Taiwanese Minnan. LYN: For this, I have to break out the song- LYN: For any Minnan friends in the stream, I request that you please leave and come back after five minutes. Please leave, and after five minutes I will give you a call to let you know to come back. Now all that’s left is people who can’t understand Minnan. -- 无言花 (Silent Flower)  LYN: That’s about enough.

-- 爱拼才会赢 (Fight to Win) LYN: Maybe another Cantonese song, and that’s about it. If it’s Cantonese, then I have to take out the one I’m best at and most familiar with. My Cantonese is pretty perfect. Very standard. Let’s start with a slow song. -- 月半小夜曲 (Half Moon Serenade) LYN: Okay, let’s not play around anymore. I should sing a song well to end the stream. This is a Cantonese song that I like very much. Man yof you have already heard me sing it before. But my favorite- no, I can’t say that. It’s a song I really like. -- 无赖 (Rascal)

LYN: I’d like to thank you for tuning in to my stream tonight. Thank you for your support and for keeping me company tonight. It was great to have you, and I hope you had fun. Let’s meet again in the next stream. Goodnight everyone!

[taigasrandomshit]

i don't know how to explain this, but a Very Bad Thing Happened.

the door knocked about 8:30 in the morning. cops. lots of cops. and a search warrant. and three vans from the state police digital forensics lab. they tore my apartment up and took every piece of electronics they found.

someone was on our wifi downloading very illegal things, and now my sons and i are on the line for it.

there were like twenty cops. they all had GUNS. some had TWO GUNS. and they all had BACKUP AMMO. and i don't know about you, but cops swarming my house carrying deadly weapons scares the shit out of me.

when i figure out who is responsible, i will have a strong reaction.

i have a long receipt for everything they took, which i MAY or MAY NOT receive back. IF i get everything back, it won't be for at least four (4) months. after they run all the analysis and whatnot.

items taken included all cell phones, laptops, desktops, and any thumb drives they happened to find laying around. they even took two old huge cpu's i had buried in the closet. so i'm in a fucking situation right now. this is only being sent via an old laptop of my sister's.

they didn't let me save any phone numbers or appointments from my phone, so there's some people who are going to think i died or something. i can't access my email, bc none of the passwords i remember actually work, and where is my recovery link sent to? MY PHONE. i can't recover passwords on some other sites, bc they are sent to MY EMAIL, which i can't recover, bc i need MY PHONE.

and they were all so fucking polite. this is just another day for them. they appreciated me not screaming and making a scene. i appreciated they didn't beat the shit out of me and steal my cash.

i could rant on forever, i may never be not angry again, and i feel the most violated i have ever felt in my 44 years on this plane of existence.

ALSO IF YOU TAKE AWAY ONE THING FROM THIS PLEASE CHANGE YOUR WIFI PASSWORD REGULARLY.

[the-hottest-band-tournament]

Round Six of The Hottest 80s Band Tournament

Warrant

Defeated opponents: Yes, Spadau Ballet, Sepultura, Metallica

Formed in: 1984

Genres: Hard Rock, Hair Metal 

Lineup: Jani Lane- vocals and acoustic guitar

Joey Allen- guitar

Erik Turner- guitar

Steven Sweet- drums

Jerry Dixon- bass

Albums from the 80s: 

Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich (1989)

Propaganda: The Cherry Pie music video. That’s it, that’s my answer

Depeche Mode 

Defeated opponents: Anthrax, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, The Kinks, Wham!, Joy Division

Formed in: 1980

Genres: Synth-pop, electronic rock, new wave, dark wave, alternative rock

Lineup: Dave Gahan - vocals

Martin Gore - guitar and keyboard

Alan Wilder - drums and keyboard

Andy Fletcher - bass

Albums from the 80s: 

Speak & Spell (1981)

 A Broken Frame (1982)

Construction Time Again (1983)

Some Great Reward (1984)

Black Celebration (1986)

Music for the Masses (1987)

Propaganda: The music. The LOOKS. The voice. (The sexual tension?) And they’re still going strong. My colleague saw them in the UK when they were only starting out and said they were so nervous. I find the juxtaposition of the confidence of their sound (not to mention the black leather) and that anecdote really endearing.

idk how much this counts as propaganda but I feel like it's very important to acknowledge that Depeche Mode specifically makes kinky synth for bisexual sluts. Like that's it, that's the band. They even managed to make their cover of "(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66" sound like it's about selling ass on the interstate. Slutty legends.

Visual propaganda for Warrant:

Visual propaganda for Depeche Mode:

Edit: yes I realize that I spelt Depeche Mode wrong

[beesmygod]

hmmm. was olga more "respectable" than maxine, for lack of a better word? we know she was the head of the coven, but would that mean respect from people outside of magic practitioners? or because of the way the world is set, there is not really a sharp divide between people that meddle with magic and spirits and people who dont? im asking bc i find the theme of legacy super interesting when it comes up (do people think that maxine is dragging the gottwin name through the mud? or do they shrug their shoulders bc who gives a damn about what an exterminator does and doesnt do?)

this is a good question and warranted a good answer, sorry for the delay.

there are a couple things at play here:

the position of "town witch"/coven leader was once significantly more prestigious than it is today. what used to be a position as essential as the fire or police chief has been worn away by technological advancements; her position was essentially replaced with extermination as a global business model after the rise of the cheap, electronic anti-ghost devices. maxine inherited a defunct position and failing business.

the divide between those who practice magic and those who don't is, funnily enough, the same as my view on why people make art and others don't: they don't enjoy doing the process. its messy, its complicated, it takes a long time, doesn't have guaranteed results, and it involves dead things in one way or another. sometimes it's just easier to call someone to do the process for you when you can't be bothered to work on your pronunciation of magic words. in this way, a witch is sort of like a plumber or a mural artist. explicitly for hire to do something you don't want to deal with yourself because it might be out of your skill range/take too long to learn the skills. so olga's reputation did suffer a little bit from the irrational public assessment of extermination as a "messy" business.

there's also an unfortunate stain on the gottwin name that maxine inherited long before her grandmother died: her father ran away from home in his teens because he and olga fought viciously and publicly. no one heard anything else about him until he died, and it was a surprise to everyone (including olga) that maxine even existed at all. so the rumor mill started churning: what did olga do that upset her son so badly? by the time olga died, people seemed to understand that the family was cracked beyond repair; behaviors that were more acceptable in the decades before the events of the comic were looked at in hindsight as painful and cruel. and since maxine, public nuisance, was the end result of olga's work it's hard for the public not to lay the blame at her feet.

so, maxine is caught in a sort of weird nostalgic hell where people can simultaneously tut-tut her for not being enough like her grandmother or for being too much like her. lol. this was a ramble but i hope it was interesting. im folding most of this into the comic but a lot of it i just try to keep in my brain when writing and thinking about them both.

ive been thinking more and more about olga as we approach parts where we're be flashing back to maxine's childhood and approach the next (final?) book. "books" are the huge overarching storylines as opposed to individual chapters, so there's still a lot of AGS to go. i want to explore character motivations so much i just need the power and energy to do so again.

[politijohn]

2022 Election Wins

Maryland and Missouri legalized marijuana

Montana banned law enforcement from accessing electronic data and communications w/o warrant

Vermont, Oregon, and Tennessee banned slavery

Illinois codified the right to form unions and collectively bargain

Nebraska will raise its min. wage from $9/hr to $15/hr

Connecticut approved a proposal to allow in-person early voting

D.C. approved proposal to raise min. wage for tipped workers to same level as non-tipped workers

Colorado approved universal free meals to all school children

Massachusetts passed a “millionaire tax”

Michigan, California, and Vermont approved a constitutional right to abortion. Kentucky rejected amendment that would have declared NO right to an abortion

Progress will prevail