#elias’s design is so funny to me because he looks so Normal

[gillionspookstrider]

the magnus archives :) !!

[firephoenix23]

So I know a lot of the pilots of Disney shows have been going around but someone sent me the pilot of what slugterra was going to be and I thought I would talk about it because it is interesting. First off it’s really short only about 3 minutes but basically it’s Eli or Elias Stone chasing what looks to be Dr. Blakk with Pronto or Pinto as he is called in the short

I want to apologize in advance some of these photos are not the best quality but I did what I had to. First off Slugterra was not originally called that it was called Subterrainea which thank god they changed it that is kind of a mouth full and it was a lot more western than sci-fi western we get later. Like even the blasters look like guns.

But let’s address the elephant in the room, why does Eli looks so ugly in this show 😂😂 and so much younger too. I feel like in the current show they make Eli look younger by making everyone around him look jacked as fuck even though all the younger male models look buff as well. But in this show he literally looks like a middle schooler. And I guess Trixie is like his friend from school who is the only one who knows about his adventures to Subterrainea. We don’t know if she goes with him or not but she at least knows. But thank god they changed Eli’s color scheme to blue, orange, white, and black. He’s a little better to look at than green, red, and pale yellow. I do wonder why all the changes though. I’m going to be wondering that the whole time

Which is the other thing I want to address is that Eli or well ELIAS and BEATRIX go to SCHOOL! We don’t know if Elias is like the protector or just goes down for the lols but we do know that he is trying to juggle this secret double life of going to school like a normal kid but also protecting the secret of Subterrainea like wow NEVER heard that premise for a kid show before 😒

That’s why I’m glad they cut out the surface all together but kept the secret part. I think it makes more of an impact in slugterra especially since it’s like who knows what. Also it just makes more sense. Like what kid would escape the world of slugterra travel 100 miles up just to go to middle school. Like nah fam couldn’t be me. Also I don’t actually know if they are in middle school but come on look at them.

Pinto is literally just Pronto even down to the voice acting. I like that they had the comic relief character down first before the main character. Also funny note did you know that Pronto in canon has a twin brother named Pinto. In ROTE Will Shane says like oh I’ve met you before and Pronto says no you’ve met my identical twin brother Pinto. I just think it’s funny that it’s a little nod to his pilot name

Uh Dr. Blakk kinda looks the same except for the hat and the mecha beast. It didn’t look like he was using ghouls just regular slugs so I’m not sure what Elias is chasing him down for. Elias shows Beatrix that he got a slug from him and then she touches it and the school lights go out which brings in SOOO many questions. Like is the surface electricity powered by slug energy???

I was gonna mention the slugs next but they are relatively the same except design wise. They look a lot more stylized and detailed than in the show which makes sense gotta save money where you can. Be honestly I’m glad they changed them some of them are kinda ugly like the joker looking one.

There are so many other things like why did they change Eli’s last name, why did they give him a white wolf mecha instead of the white horse (probably because it looks cooler not gonna lie), why is Elias Stone so ugly 😂😂 so many questions. But I think it’s just cool what slugterra could have been. It gives me such nostalgia for the late 2000s/early 2010s DisneyXD shows like Randy Cunningham, Kick Buttowski, Max Steel. Like all the EdGy boy cartoons that I somehow ended up watching as a little girl 😅

I mean I just looked and season wise and success wise Slugterra stomps them all. I mean which show has its own Roku channel the one and only Slugterra baby! 😂 But anyway I’m glad they made the changes that they did.

[sasa-gay-yo]

Just Us (Chapter Eleven: Break Up)

← Chapter Ten

“A little higher, yes, right there! Now to the left, put the nail right below that truss. Perfect! I’ll hand you the sign.” I reached down and picked up the newly polished piece of wood with the cafe’s name on it in a fresh coat of paint for the year-end opening. 

Flynn’s 

Jonas took it in his hands and hung it up on the new wooden post. This time, it would hang off over the street so that people could see where we were. Before, the sign was nailed next to the door and was now fading drastically. While I kept the old sign there for memories, the new sign was a fresh red color and had been sealed by the carpenter to make sure it lasted longer than the last one. It was something I had meant to do for years, but never got around to it. Now that I was just sitting and making bread for the refugees, I had time to design the shape and font I wanted. The sign was a light wooden rectangle with dark, red cursive lettering and had another small circular sign with a cup of tea attached to it, indicating we were a café. 

“It looks nice, Eva. You picked a good wood to contrast the letters,” Ben marveled up at it as Jonas came down from his ladder. Whenever I had added or changed something about the café, I asked Ben his thoughts about it, seeing he was the only one, second to me, who cared the most about it. When I went to him saying I was buying a new sign, he rejoiced. 

Jonas shoved his hands in his pockets and looked up at it too. He couldn’t grasp why this was such a monumental change to Ben and I who had to fight Mr. Flynn to even make a sign in the first place. There weren’t many visitors to Trost when he had built the café, but when we came along, things were changing and he hated it. The first time Catrin gave out fresh squeezed juice, he grumbled about it for weeks saying a café should just have bread and coffee. It was funny, but if we left Mr. Flynn alone with his precious café, he would have ran it into the ground.

“You think he hates it?” I looked up to Ben and he nodded and mirrored Jonas’s stance. There was almost some undertone of weirdness being friends with Jonas because when he hit puberty, he morphed into a younger version of Ben. It was also a bit awkward that the mirror image of my brother still had feelings for me. Maybe that was one of the reasons I didn’t see Jonas as someone other than my best friend or another brother. They looked too similar.

“Most definitely. The old man is rolling in his grave right now. I wouldn’t be surprised if a strong winter wind knocked it down.” We stood there for a few, marveling at the sign as the sun went down. Jonas was the first one to whine it was too cold and we took that as a sign to go back into the café. I still had to clean up and get ready for opening tomorrow. Ben and Jonas had promised to help me run the café tomorrow to hold off the rush of people coming. 

When I took out an add in the paper to announce my holiday hours, people had flocked to my door, there to confirm if the newspaper was right. When I told them I was, in fact, opening back for year-end only, people were already trying to put in orders. I think the people of Trost wanted normal back, and my café would give them some of it. 

“So the Garrison just dropped you like that? Without any warning?” Jonas swept some dirt into the dust pan. 

“It wasn’t like, out of the blue. I knew it was coming. They have nothing to give me for pay and I demanded pay. I would have done it for a few more weeks as well, just for the refugee’s sake, but with the allotted flour for year-end, I just couldn’t continue without them giving me their stores. I wish they did it a little after year-end though so I could have brought pastries to the refugees. Maybe next year will be a better harvest.” Ben looked up from the book he was reading and moved his feet so Jonas could sweep under them. Jonas mumbled something under his breath about his father not doing anything, but he left it unnoticed. 

“Could you just show up with some things? Maybe you could make enough to give the children?” Ben had also worked closely with the refugees, trying to help outsource jobs and employment opportunities for them when people still trusted them. By now, no one would take in refugees for work. 

“No, they aren’t letting any outsiders into the stockyards now. That might be another reason I can’t make bread anymore. I have no idea why they’re doing that, and I hope it’s not another isolation policy because Trost citizens are complaining again. I even asked a person in the Garrison who likes me, and he said he couldn’t say.” Jonas, again, grumbled something under his breath, probably about the refugees, and I threw a rag at his head. 

“Hey!” 

“You are almost thirty years old and have no regard for other human lives. Tch!” He threw the rag back at me a little harder and glared. Ben just looked on, smirking at the two kids he was used to bickering back and forth. Ben had said the first day he introduced Jonas to me, he knew we’d be best friends and perfect enemies.

“Well, we always seem to forget that two refugees attacked you and that our food supply is little to none because we have to give half of it to them. It’s not just Trost either, Aunt Catrin told us that Stohess is also struggling with the weight of a whole district. We’ll be starved by next spring, the titans won’t even want to eat us!” I put down my rag and just sighed, glaring at him as he swept quickly, wanting to get out of the café. Jonas had broken up with his third girlfriend of the year and he wasn’t in the mood to have a heated argument session with the girl that was still pushing him away. That was the reason she had broken up with him: he still had feelings for me. I was afraid to bring up Levi to him because of this, but I wanted to tell him. Everyday, I would get more and more uncomfortable lying to him.

“I’m sure the titans don’t want to eat you anyways, Jonas.” He stopped sweeping, glaring at the ground. Uh oh. 

“I guess no one wants me then.” It was Ben’s turn to widen his eyes at his son’s sadness. He had spent a few minutes lecturing Jonas about how long it took Ben to find Analee, but it didn’t help soothe his sadness. In all honesty, Analee was Ben’s first girlfriend and he got her pregnant before they were even married and both eighteen. He wasn’t the right person to give his son advice and neither was I. We both agreed to just forget Jonas said that and move on with whatever we were doing. 

“Well, you two, I’m going to get back home. Your sister was adamant I help her build that new desk before tomorrow. I’ll be here tomorrow at opening, Eva, like old times. Don’t come back late Jonas, or you’ll wake up your mother.” I smiled up him, casting away the mood Jonas put me in, and waved to my brother. Ben and I were the closest, probably because of our locations too, and I always felt calm when he was around me. He was the most like Mr. Flynn. Jonas was such the opposite, and I’d always wondered how Ben had made him.

When he left and the bell stopped ringing above the door, Jonas and I just let the silence consume us. At this point, he wasn’t even sweeping up dirt, but he didn’t want to talk to me in the bad mood he was in. Did she really have to break up with him when I was about to spend every day of the next week with him? It had nothing to do with his feelings for me, but everything to do with the awful mood he’d be in. Last break up, I had to pull him from the bar at least three times, waste a pale of water to sober him up, and he fell asleep completely on top of me, cutting off my breathing. I had told Levi about this and he threatened to break off his fingers in letter form, even if it was back when we were eighteen. Levi gave Jonas no chances.

“How many people do you think will be here tomorrow?” He broke the silence first and I was glad he’d changed the subject. I could talk to a regulars Jonas.

“I couldn’t say. I’ve had at least thirty come to the café in the past week asking. I don’t think there will be a lot of people at the tables, but most will be coming in and out.” He nodded and set the broom down, sitting with it. He’d probably swept the floors twice, but I guess the extra cleaning won’t hurt. 

“My dad’s been on my ass about learning how to work at the café. Something about character building…” Sounds like Ben. Well, sounds like Mr. Flynn, but same person. 

“I wouldn’t mind the extra help. Elias can’t really count money reliably enough to let me bake while he runs orders. I let him just take things in and out of the oven and to customers. Sometimes, I’ll even let him use the mixer. Elias is getting that vital character development. I’ve also thought about giving him this job when he gets old enough so he doesn’t have to work under his father.” I jumped back up on the counter and forgot I had just cleaned it. I���ll do it more tomorrow. 

“I hated this place as a kid. Grandpa always forced us to clean if we were staying with him and Duran tried to always beat me up for no reason. When I was old enough to get my own job, I was ready to leave it behind. Funny to think the kid likes it here. I guess since you’re basically his older sister, it’s probably a you and dad situation.” Jonas and his younger sister were forced to come help at the café since Mr. Flynn was getting older. Duran would always run off somewhere and I stayed and baked, so Mr. Flynn needed some others to do the dishes and lift heavy boxes. Jonas stayed because I stayed. The café work at least helped Jonas prepare for delivery work at Reeve’s. 

“I loved this place, still do, but you know that already. It wouldn’t be mine if I didn’t like it.” He rolled his eyes, knowing how much I stupidly fell in love with the bakery at one point. It was during secondary school when Mr. Flynn’s lessons of life actually go through to me. I was finally getting out of the Underground depression and having a purpose fueled me. The bakery was something I did every day, almost every hour, and sometimes neglected my school work to do it. I had finally found something that was mine and I wasn’t going to let any amount of slacking take it away from me. 

“Do you think you’ll stay here forever? I mean, like Grandpa did. Pass it on to your kids and what not.” I nodded, looking out at the hanging sign in a crack of the front window blind. 

“There’s nowhere else I want to really go. I have everything I need here in Trost and I can go visit the other districts when I want. Plus, we’ve already lost four places I can go, so it’s slim pickings for retail locations. If I somehow don’t end up having kids and Elias takes my offer, I’ll give it to him probably. ” He hummed in agreement and leaned back in his chair, tilting the front legs of the floor. This reminded me of when we were in school and Mr. Flynn would make us close up for him when he wanted to sleep early. We’d clean and then sit here talking for hours about anything. I’d force Jonas to help me with math homework and sometimes pay him to do it. After Jonas got a job, it would be just me closing. It’s been a long time since this ex-tradition has occurred, so it was mildly comforting. We sat like that for a while, just staring somewhere in the café, probably thinking about when we were young.

Mr. Flynn acted like he hated us, but I knew a day never went by when he didn’t smile down at us and was thankful we were there. Jonas, Duran, and I were a lot to handle sometimes, but it was just the joys of youth. I would pay to go back them, too. Just to be able to tell myself that I needed to remember times like this, because when I was older, it would all change. I would be alone in the café.

“You know, Dad wants us to get together. He said it’s the thing that makes the most sense.” I sighed. There goes the comforting feeling that we’d just developed. Goddamn it, if he didn’t have to mention that, I would have had a great night, even a drink or two to celebrate opening. Now, his attitude changed and he suddenly wanted to talk about feelings. Didn’t you just get broken up with?

Ben had even taken me aside after Wall Maria fell and mentioned to me what he thought was right. Humanity’s time seemed to be fleeting and it wouldn’t be fun to die without a family. I fended him off, not telling him that I was not alone and very much in a relationship, but he would still leave hints here and there. Today was one of those days talking about keeping the café in the family and remembering the times when little kids ran around the tables. He’d even start telling us stories of how him and Analee would take care of the café as it’s first employees and how they fell in love. He was hoping the same thing would happen to Jonas, and that’s why he was forcing him to work here now. That was probably the only thing Ben and Jonas agreed on. 

“He’s mentioned it to me a few times. I’ve always told him no, but I guess when he gets his mind set on something you can’t tell him to lay off of it.” I looked warily at Jonas, trying to gage where this conversation was going. Why does it always have to be around year-end when he tries to pull all of this stuff? Wasn’t he just crying about his girlfriend breaking up with him yesterday? Now he’s talking about how bad Ben wants us to get married? 

“You know what I think about it. If you gave me a chance then may-” I cut him off before he could dig himself into a deeper hole. How could I tell him he wasn’t the one for me without telling him about Levi? While Levi and I weren’t nearly as serious as our time together would allow, his letters have shown me no reason to think we’d be ending our relationship soon. I was busy with bread and the café, he was busy with training, and at the end of the day we would sit down and write letters to each other, looking out at the same moon over Trost. It wasn’t the best situation, but it wasn’t one that was so hard I’d give into Jonas’s easy way. 

“Jonas, you also know my opinion. You’re like my brother or my cousin. We were raised together and you look almost exactly like Ben. I don’t need to keep listing out reasons to hurt your feelings more.” He sighed, looking up at the ceiling. 

“I know, but it’s just… Actually, I don’t know what it is. Never being able to advance your relationship with someone you have feelings for? Always getting into relationships you know will end because you don’t really like the girl? Maybe, I’m just tired of doing that.” 

“You’ll find someone, Jonas. You just aren’t looking in the right places. What was the girl’s name? Nana? Nora? Whatever it was she was annoying and self-centered.” I laid back on the counter looking up at the ceiling. I wasn’t going to be able to cheer him up like this forever because it’s always at the expense of me not liking him. He makes me feel like all of these breakups are my fault.

“She wasn’t you.” There it is. The direction we were going to. 

“You need to stop thinking about me, Jonas. What do you need me to say or do so that you move on from me?” I put my arm over my eyes, trying to stop the headache that I knew was about to come soon. I guess he was holding this in for a few months since he was dating that girl. It started with an N, I know that for a fact.

“No clue, Ev, but when I find it, I’ll tell you. If knowing that you’re in love with the Captain of the Scouts doesn’t deter me, I don’t know what will.” My eyes snapped open. 

“If knowing what?!” What the hell does he know? There’s a very serious possibility that he was sneaking around and found the letters in my desk. Maybe he saw Erwin’s letter carrier handing me the envelope? It didn’t make sense that he would know from Levi and I’s actions because he was pretty cold to me when Jonas was around. We’d taken most of the precautions we needed to. It had to just be his hunch… but his hunch was right. 

“I heard you that one night when he was bandaging you. There was just… something didn’t sit right with me when I was leaving. I sat there outside of the café listening to you two for what felt like hours. That confirmed it for me, but I still can’t believe it until it comes out of your own mouth. I guess I’m not good enough for you, Eva, but how could you fall for a Scout? I didn’t think you were that stupid.” The anger enveloped me as he said that, but I knew what he was saying was from deep down inside. If he knew this long, his heart beat with anger at every and any mention of the Scouts. His unexplained hatred for their presence in the last few months now made sense. Every time he saw a Scout he was reminded that even though they die young, are never around, and go on suicide missions, I’d rather pick that over him.

Laying there on that counter with Jonas’s eyes on me… it made me uncomfortable. Every layer of privacy and secrecy was shed in front of him now knowing that he knew for that long. That means he must have noticed the letters. Noticed how I always cleaned Levi’s table twice and had peppermint tea stocked even when the café was closed. He might have even heard me crying at night over how much I just wanted to see Levi again when he’d crashed on my couch… and every time I did that, he wanted it to be him. 

I couldn’t deny our relationship and try to make him feel better about himself. He knew and had heard everything we had said to each other that night. I’d have to face this feeling head on and I didn’t want to. I just didn’t want to tell Jonas that it will never be him. It was better to have him in limbo and still have my friend then to break his heart completely and never see him again. Jonas was my first friend and is my best friend. He was there the first day I was above ground. He was there for me when Samias broke my heart. He knows almost everything about me, but here I was about to lose him over something I couldn’t control. I wasn’t going to give up Levi so that Jonas would feel better. 

That probably hurt him even more though; me lying to him about Levi. 

“How much are you going to hate me after I tell you everything?” I was hesitant to tell him anything. I know deep down he wanted to know all about Levi and I. He wanted to see where his shortcomings were and judge Levi’s actions and intent. He wanted to be able to reach deep down and find some string of hope in one of Levi’s downfalls. However, this emotion he’s had was pent up for months.

“I’m never going to hate you, Ev. That’s the problem.” I let the tears fall then and curled up into a ball on the counter top. This wasn’t the Jonas I liked talking to. This was the Jonas that made you feel every emotion he was going through too so that you gave him pity. You wanted to love Jonas because you didn’t want to see your best friend hurting like this. It was my fault that he was hurting and I couldn’t fix it. I couldn’t do what he wanted me to.

I knew he was in pain when he didn’t move to comfort me like he usually does. Whenever I would cry, he would always be next to me, a soothing hand on my back. I would never shy away from it before, but looking at the situation now, I wish I would have created that distance. It was good that he didn’t do that because it would have made the situation worse. We just sat there and I tried to mute my cries with my arm. It wasn’t working. 

“One day he’s going to die, Eva. If he doesn’t leave you before that.” Now he was trying to hurt me directly. Maybe he thought if he broke me enough, I’d go to him and not Levi. 

I didn’t answer him as I was too busy choking on my tears. 

“He won’t marry you. He won’t give you kids. He can’t give you anything you want in the future if he knows someday he won’t have one.” I wanted to beg him to stop. He doesn’t think at night, when all I have are the thoughts to pull me out of loneliness, I don’t think about all of this? Will I be happy with just Levi or will I want more and he can’t provide that? Can I not be up to his standards? After Hange mentioned kids, I thought about how horrible it would be for them to live in a world like this. We’re fighting to stay alive and to eat, and their father would be gone for months on end. I didn’t want to think about the future and Jonas was forcing me to. All the negative emotions I tried to push back in these past months were coming to the surface with every word. 

“Does he really like you or are you there just to fulfill his fantasy of a relationship? What man leaves the woman he loves alone for six months?” I clenched my jaw hard. His words started to stab too deep.

“Shut up.” It was soft and muffled by the sounds of my tears, but he heard it. He was waiting for my response. He wanted to see if I agreed or not; to see if he broke me enough. 

“Eva, I know you know what I’m saying is the truth.  It’s best to stop this game of pretend before it’s too late.” 

Pretend. 

I pull my hands into fists and shot up on the counter. I was angry again now. He didn’t get to call my relationship a game. Whatever feelings of loneliness or sadness that Jonas wanted to make me feel had left instantly as he mentioned playing pretend. 

“You are the one who’s playing pretend! Pretending that I’ll come around and pick you. Jonas, if I wanted you, it wouldn’t have taken over ten years to realize it!” This time his face contorted into some type of negative emotion. His plan didn’t work. I didn’t cave like I normally do. 

“You’re pressuring me into something that I don’t want to do all because you don’t like that Levi makes you feel inferior. He’s stronger, smarter, and now he’s taken your girl from you. You know why? Look at this,” I gestured to him with both of my hands, “Levi has never talked to me at me like this. He would never call me stupid or try and insult me enough to change my mind. You’re right, I haven’t seen him for six months, but in that time he’s written more sincere words than you have ever said to me. I don’t care what Levi does and doesn’t give me, and I know you won’t be able to give me what I want either. Not like this!” I threw my left hand to my side and took the silence to catch my breath. 

“Eva.” It was angry and heavy. He wasn’t ready for me to come back at him like that. He never thought I could talk to him like he talks to me. 

“I have supported you through everything you have done. The countless girlfriends, the times when you were kicked out of your house, when you didn’t have a job; I was the one who comforted you and took you in. Now, I make a decision that hurts your feelings and you can’t live with it? You have to degrade me for who I choose to date, only because it’s not you?!” He stood up too, the chair flying back and hitting the floor. He stood almost a foot above me, but I wasn't backing down. 

“You will never understa-” 

“You’re right, Jonas. I will never love you the way that you love me, and I will never understand how you treat someone you love like this.”

It was tonight. I had always thought about when this would end. When Jonas and I would stop playing pretend. When I would stop pretending not to see how he looks at me across the café. When I would stop pretending that my best friend didn’t only have feelings for me and wouldn’t choose anyone else. When I would stop pretending I didn’t have to hurt him like this one day. Tonight was the night this friendship ended because he couldn’t pretend we were just friends anymore. 

“How long have you been with him?” The air had quieted and so did his voice. His face was now a mixture of anger and sadness, and he turned his eyes to look at the ground. I didn’t know what he wanted me to say when answering the question, but I was done hiding it from him. Even if it hurt him, he had to know. He had to stop playing pretend and be snapped into the reality he lived in. 

“Around Spring Equinox till now.” His fist clenched harder. 

“So you missed Spring Equinox with us to be with him?” I thought about this moment the day I didn’t show up. He never asked me where I was when he saw me and he must have assumed I just didn’t want to go out then. I’d even told Levi that I was going to be in a weird situation if Jonas asked me where I was and he helped me make a plan. A plan to lie to him. I guess that plan just flew out the window. 

“He was injured and I was taking care of him. I wasn’t going to leave him,” I let the last line out, underlaid with some remorse. I was angry with what he was saying and how he was coming at me, but I was at fault too. I should have told him sooner or at least tried to distance myself. 

“I don’t think I’m going to be in tomorrow, Eva.” He said, still not looking up at me. This was the softest he had even been. I think now he knew he couldn’t sway me towards him. He was giving up.

“Jonas-”

“No,” he held his hand up, finally looking at me with the faint gleam of tears in his eyes, “I’m going to be sick tomorrow and maybe the next day. So, don’t come looking for me.” He turned his back and I had to stop my hand from reaching out and touching his shoulder. I was angry at him, but unlike him I didn’t see this as a reason to end our friendship. It was coming, yes, but it didn’t have to end here. We’d change something. We’d adapt. He was acting like he’d completely given up that. 

“Jonas, you’re still my best friend.” He stopped at the door and straightened up. He was stiff and lifeless when he answered. It was fake and he was hiding his true emotion. If he turned around, what expression would I see on his face? 

“I know.” 

The door opened and closed, the bells ringing twice above it. With the windows closed, I couldn’t see if we walked away and I didn’t go up to the door in fear of him just sitting on the stoop. I didn’t want to hear his tears. Jonas rarely cried and I didn’t want to know that I was the person who did it to him. 

I turned to look at the clock at the back wall. It was nearly one. 

Anger. At him. At myself. Sadness. For him. For losing my best friend in some shape or form. Regret. For not telling him any sooner. But, if I told him, wouldn’t the situation still end up like this? He would yell at me, I would cry, and he would tell me how irrational it was to love someone like Levi. A fantasy he called it. It set the seed of doubt in my head. Levi hadn’t loved or liked before as far as I knew, not to the capacity we’ve set up. Was he really just using this as a test run? 

I put my towel down on the table and decided I didn’t want to be in the café anymore. I wanted to be in my bed, two blankets over me, thinking over and over again the conversation I had with Jonas. Where did I go wrong? When? I wouldn’t sleep tonight and I would be sluggish in the morning when Ben came. Ben was smart, too. He would probably connect the dots between Jonas’s absence and my attitude, but at least he never questioned. 

Walking up the back stairs, I tried to listen to see if Jonas was still there. Maybe something would pull me to go back to him and try to talk it out. I don’t think this issue can be talked over though. It was going to be the way it was. As of now, it was Levi and I, not Jonas and I. It would take Jonas months to turn around or feel like talking to me. It may not go back to normal. 

That thought stopped me on the last wooden step. What would I do if Jonas and I never went back to normal? He was a big part of my day and of my life. Every holiday, every arithmetic question I couldn’t answer, every broken heart; I was with him. It made so much sense to be with him permanently, but that’s not how life wanted it to be. If I was to be with Jonas, I was sure, it would have happened already. I would have feelings for him to the same degree he has for me. 

Maybe we shouldn’t go back to normal as that normal was fake. Pretend. Would it hurt Jonas more to act that way, knowing that Levi was one step ahead of him in every regard? Or, would it be better for him to keep distance and ignore me so he won’t have to deal with the pain he feels every time he’s around me now?

I shook my head and walked in. This was for me to think about, slightly drunk, and in two hours. 

“Here, for you.” Levi handed me a single flower as we sat in the meadow. He had found it on the ground next to where we were sitting and I laughed a little at the gesture before putting it on my ear. He looked at it too and smiled faintly, going back to look at the Scout HQ that was quite a distance away. No one would see us on our way back to Trost. 

I told Levi that I wanted to stop and sit since it was such a nice day. The spring was bringing warm winds to our area, and the whole time I had been with him we were inside his dimly lit office. We were far away enough from Trost and the HQ to be alone and outside. I thought of Jonas and the Equinox today. Where would he be sitting out here? 

“Thank you, Captain.” He laid back, still wincing a little at the pain in his ribs. The horse ride was a bit too much for him to handle, and we had to walk our horses out here to the open meadow. No doubt he would bear the pain to get me to the gates of Trost before we parted. Maybe I would convince him to walk so we had more time together. 

“After this expedition, I would like to start.” I looked over to him, putting a piece of the Scout’s cracker ration in my mouth. Did he have some hobby? 

“Start what?”

“Trying to be yours. I have no experience being in a relationship with someone, therefore, when I can give you my full attention, I will do that. I’ve never made you food. I will do that first.” It made my heart strangely warm, him always announcing his intentions. Maybe he felt that they needed to be approved. He was so apprehensive about anything, and he was not used to being wrong. In this uncharted territory, he needed to make sure he was right before he executed anything. So, I nodded. 

“I’m not picky when it comes to food.” Once he got his confirmation, he went to stand up. I just looked up at him as he did it. 

“Yes?” He put out his hand for me to take it. I just stared up at him again, smiling. I’d tease him a bit more because he was leaving soon. 

“So does that mean we’re really dating?” He rolled his eyes and his hand dropped. The nice gesture went away. 

“Did I not make it clear before? I said I required monogamy.” I shook my head, no.

“You have to ask me. You can’t just command me into a relationship with you.” He cocked up an eyebrow. 

“Ask? Why do I need to ask you when you already know?” I rolled my eyes at him and took another bite of the cracker. 

“We aren’t dating until you ask me to be your girlfriend.” He scoffed. 

“Girlfriend is a word for teenagers. We are almost thirty.” 

“Ask me.” 

“No.” 

“You have to.”

“No, I don’t.” I huffed and turned my head to the other side, faking anger. I knew he probably wasn’t going to do it anyways, and I didn’t really care, but it would be fun to hear. 

“Ask me or I’ll just sit here all day,” I said, folding my arms. There was no protest, or huff of annoyance. He was probably standing there with the same pose I had, just waiting for me to get this idea out of my head.

Huff. Huff. Huff. 

“Don’t tell me you-” I turned and screamed, scrambling to get away from what was to my right. It stood there, his body broken in it’s mouth. His eyes were stained with blood, and were looking at me, begging me to do something, anything. 

The titan crunched down once more on Levi’s body, and only a puff of air came out of his mouth. Not a cry for help. His body went limp, eyes wide staring into my soul. 

Help. Help. Help. 

I shot up, holding my head. My body was shaking and I was afraid to open my eyes. The bustle of customers could be heard below and I knew I had fallen asleep late in the morning and overslept till now. Ben would be holding the customers down fine, and I needed the extra minutes to calm myself down. 

Was that dream an omen? Was he dead? 

It left a bad taste in my mouth that I couldn’t shake, so I got up to get water. I needed to get this taste out of my mouth. Once I drank the water, I leaned over the sink and it came right back up. The shaking of my body stopped after I’d thrown up, but the feeling in my stomach was still there. Maybe I was just hungover. I had a whole bottle of wine while thinking my life away last night. Usually I was fine, but the emotions tied to the amount of alcohol I had could be making my stomach twist and turn. 

Setting the cup down, I quickly went to put on clothes and try to put something on my face to cover the dark circles. The clock was at ten, and I knew that soon Ben would hear my footsteps upstairs using his years of training his ears to identify the creaks of this building and yell up at me to come down. If Jonas really wasn’t here, he was having to remember how to make various coffee drinks himself. 

One day he’s going to die, Eva.

I help my stomach again, trying to position myself over the bathroom sink and not get the face powder all over the floor. When nothing came up, I tried to push that thought out of my mind and finish covering the dark circles under my eyes. To a trained eye, aka Ben, you could easily see through the layer of powder. Hopefully, it will last all work day so I won’t get comments on my tiredness. Those were my least favorite. 

“Eva!” It was muffled by the floorboards, but with one quick look in the mirror, I went to walk to the door. 

Does he really like you or are you there just to fulfill his fantasy of a relationship? 

Stopping on the stairs, I leaned over the railing, hoping that if I did vomit again, it would be away from a window so the customers didn’t notice a projectile falling from the sky. I’d have to get another drink of water before I started or else this hangover was going to kill me. 

I pushed the back door open, taking a look at the plastic one that separated me from the café. People were in there, sitting, talking, and buying pastries. I could hear them and it scared me. My first day open, and I’m in this condition? That wasn’t going to be the best look for business. I was also scared because this was the first customer rush I had in months. It was like my first day running the shop all over again. 

This time my stomach bubbled up with nerves and before I could turn back outside, Ben opened the door peeking in at me. He definitely saw the condition I was in, and had to take a double take. Now, the dots started to connect in his head. Did Jonas look like this to when Ben tried to wake him up only to discover he was “sick”? 

“There’s a line of people out here waiting to be served and to talk to you. I suggest you hurry out, yeah?” I just stared at him and nodded once, tying the matching apron around my middle. 

“Yeah.” Even my voice was shaking. He closed the door again and I picked up a random cup, filling it with water from the sink, and downing it in a few seconds. I coughed once, hoping it would help my throat, and despite my stomach, I walked out into the main café. 

“Eva!” 

“Miss Eva, it’s been so long!” The crowd of people at the counter greeted with smiles, and I did my best to give one back. It was comforting, their words, but my stomach still felt like shit. So did my head. And my arms. And legs. Either way, I willed myself to the crowd that was blocking my view into the café. Ben had done a good job curbing them because he didn’t know how to make a latte. 

“It’s a good thing you’re here, Eva. Ben’s a little rusty.” I smiled to the man who’s order I had memorized, but not his name, and took the personal cup he had in his hands. Ben tended the money while I turned my back to make the drinks. 

“I’ll pass, you make, pass back?” I turned over my shoulder to nod at him and this new angle made me catch a view of the table. The Wings of Freedom were draped over the chair and he was leaning back with the new addition of a book in his hand. There was no cup in front of him, nor was he staring out at the window anymore. 

Six months. 

My stomach churned again and before I could answer Ben, I had to run into the back, past the plastic door, open the regular door, and throw up in front of the trash can where the stray dogs like to eat our scraps.

I’d have to pass it off and I took another big gulp of water before picking up some random milk jug to bring it up. I hoped I didn’t wipe off the face powder that took ten minutes to apply. When I walked back in, people seemed shocked I had run so fast into the back, but once they saw the milk jug, they settled back down. Ben didn’t let it get past him that I’d set the new milk jug next to a completely full one on the table and went to work. 

We went back and forth for what felt like hours. He’d collect the money, write the order on a piece of paper, I’d make it, and he’d go set it down on their table or give it for them to go. We didn’t talk at all while I did it, and I only engaged with other customers. When I looked at him, he never looked back, just down at the book. When I looked at him… my stomach churned, but with a different feeling now that I was pretty sure all the alcohol was in my sink or by the trash in the back. I wanted him to look at me, or to come hug me, but he was Captain Levi right now. 

My dream. What was my dream about? He was here and he was alive, so it couldn’t have been an omen. Was it triggered by my fight with Jonas? Levi dying? It was a simple memory, but it had morphed into something graphic and depressing. He’d asked me to be his girlfriend, reluctantly, but why didn’t my dream get to that part? Why did it cut it off there? I just tried to mock it up as another drunken dream, ones I used to have often, and maybe a few times in the past months, but something wouldn’t let me mark it as that. 

“Eva!” I turned at the little boy’s call and saw all three of them at the counter. I was zoning out so much. Elias, June, and their father were there and I smiled at them, starting their orders. Elias and June: steamed apple juice. Their father: a cup of coffee, no cream, two sugars. 

“Where’s the boy? I thought Jonas said he was working today.” I froze up at their father’s question and I saw Ben glance back at me before answering.

“He felt really sick this morning and could barely get out of bed when I tried to wake him up. He slept at our house last night and came back really late, so he might have been out and drank himself sick,” he tsk-ed his son, but I knew that his message was really meant for me, “Dark circles, a bad attitude, and his face was all red. I’m glad he didn’t show up today.” I turned to them, handing the two steamed apple juices. Before I could turn back around, they started a conversation with me. I could barely focus on it with Ben’s gaze boring holes into me. 

“Eva, Mr. Chapel said I could start on my own books now! Isn’t that exciting?!” I smiled down at her and nodded. In the place in my brain that could still process a little emotion this afternoon, I was happy for her. 

“That’s amazing, June. I have some books upstairs that need to be rebound.” Ben had given their father his coffee and he was now pulling the kids to go. He probably had some cult stuff to do and just wanted to stop by for his morning cup like he normally does.

“Eva, do you need help on year-end? Like last year? With Jonas?” Elias’s face begged up at me to say yes. He wanted to know if we would do something like last year. With no festival, it would be hard to entertain them… and with no Jonas… 

“I don’t know about it his year, Elias.” His face dropped and he was pulled away by his father before he could ask why. I saw June looking disappointed as well as they walked out the door. When Ben turned to greet the next customer, I felt another pair of eyes on me. I looked up at him and felt my heart flip as we locked eyes. His were filled with concern and I knew he’d heard the exchange Elias and I just had. I had always taken the kids in for year-end, so why not now? 

The day went like that. My stomach never settled down, and I could barely keep up the energy of the people coming in and out to talk. Ben would mostly fill that job, but whenever the customer wanted to talk to me directly, I stared at the back wall, mustering a smile, and turned to act. I was glad that I’d decided to close earlier than usual so I wouldn’t have to go through a dinner rush either. My mind was tired from thinking over and over again about last night and the dream I had, that I could barely handle any more stimulus. 

Levi had sat there all day, reading through the book at least twice. I could feel his eyes on me throughout the day, but if I looked back into his eyes, my dream would play over again and my stomach would fight with me. He must have noticed, but he never approached me. Ben and the wave of people coming in and out must have stopped him, or he was waiting for me to go over and serve him tea. It was sitting right on top of the coffee filter box, ready to be made, but I could never pull myself to do it. I wanted to go over and talk to him, but with the amount of people here, I would be talking to Captain Levi. I decided to wait until close, knowing he would stay, so I could talk to the real him after months of waiting. The dream made my stomach feel awful, but the idea of having Levi back to me again made the butterflies stir too. 

“Alright, what’s up with the two of you?” Ben put the small bag of flour back up on the stock rack as I mopped the flour on the back room’s floor. It was closing, and I insisted that he could leave the cleaning to me, but I knew from the second I walked in to the café, he was ready to corner me and ask questions. I still feigned innocence.

“Two of whom?” He huffed and wiped off excess flour on the apron I left him. It didn’t help my case that I couldn’t look him in the eyes when I answered. I didn’t want to stare into Jonas’s eyes. 

“Jonas comes to our house drunk, red face, and mumbling things under his breath. He almost broke Analee’s favorite vase trying to take his shoes off. I thought it was a bit weird because he’d have to come back from your place, but maybe you two decided to do something. I didn’t care. Then, I drag his dead body weight onto the couch and he tells me he can’t come to the café tomorrow and starts crying. I mark it up to him being drunk off his ass. Come today, and you’re not up early like you usually are. I guess I thought you’d be as drunk as Jonas, and gave you a few hours. You come down here, looking pale as a ghost, go throw up outside by the trash can,” He pointed his thumb to the back door, “and anytime someone mentions Jonas, your face goes pale over and over again. You probably drank at least thirty glasses of water today… I really don't want you to answer this question, but I have to ask it. He’s my son, sure, but you’re also my little sister… also weird to say, but you know what I’m trying to get to…” Ben didn’t want to have to finish his statement and trailed off, trying to get me to fill in the blank. Did he think we… ? I pulled my face into a look of disgust, but still didn’t look at his face. 

“Are you trying to ask if he and I had-” He frantically waved his hands at me.

“Please, please, please. Spare me. I realized I don’t want the answer to that question anymore right as it came out of you mou-” I stopped him there. 

“We fought. That’s what happened.” He dropped his hands and let out a big sigh of relief. He was happy we only fought, because he could deal with that. He’d been dealing with that for years already. Mediator Ben was about to come out. 

“Thank gods. What did you fight about this time? Both of you look very upset.” He leaned against a random table, and I had stopped sweeping at this point. I didn’t want to tell Ben, but there was just something about him that made the words flow out. He’s always been like that, regardless of the situation. Comfortable to talk to about any and everything. When I first got my monthly cycle, I went to him and not Catrin, who was the obvious choice. Then later in life, Jonas started to take the same position in my life that Ben had. That made me feel worse again, losing him over something I had to be selfish with. If Jonas felt he couldn’t let go of whatever it was, I would permanently lose him. 

“I think this is the final time, Ben.” He sighed, probably not knowing what that meant. If I told him what the fight was really about, he would have to learn about Levi and I. I shifted my gaze to the plastic door separating us from the main café. Was he still sitting in his chair, waiting for us to kick him out? Waiting for me to lead him up the stairs to my apartment? 

“Did he bring up marriage again? When we were walking to meet up with you, I had mentioned something about it and he seemed to get quiet. Usually, he denies anything like that would happen.” So it was mentioned previously, that’s why it was on his mind. When Ben mentioned it to him, did his mind go to Levi and I?

“Yes,” I whispered, and set the mop against the wall. I was ready to spill all of my feelings to Ben like I always do. 

“Then, is it that man out there?” He pointed at the door and this time I looked him in the eyes. It was like admitting everything to Jonas all over again and it made my stomach twist and turn. I knew Ben’s opinions on the matter, too, so it was worse having to go against his wishes. 

“Yes,” I whispered again, waiting to see a streak of disappointment in his eyes that never came. He just sighed again and walked over to me, putting a hand on my back. 

“He was the first customer today and seemed annoyed that I was standing there instead of you. I was the one who gave him the book. I told him he’d have to wait a few hours to see you, and then another few to get to talk to you after lunch. I’m not going to pretend I didn’t see the way he kept looking at you either.” I clasped my hands together, looking at them. It made me a little less sad that he could see Levi’s emotions as well. Ben didn’t think it was fake like Jonas did. 

“I had a bad dream last night, too… and a few too many drinks. I’m just so… I don’t want to lose Jonas. This felt like it was it, Ben.” I put a hand over my heart and rubbed my collar bone with one finger. Ben shook his head ‘no’ and patted my back. 

“The kid can be moody, but he’ll come around. It may take him a bit longer than usual, but you two are best friends. He’ll just have to deal with the fact that it’s going to really stay like that now. I guess I didn’t help either, talking about you two the way I did.” I shook my head, making sure Ben didn’t take the blame away from me. 

“No, I did this. I didn’t tell him about… I didn’t distance myself from him and-” 

“Do you really think that if you tried to distance yourself from Jo, it would’ve worked? He once came home from secondary begging me to ask the teacher to transfer him to your class. He can’t be away from you for too long, no matter what emotions he has tied to it.” I laughed once at that comment, remembering the day Jonas randomly showed up at a desk next to mine. I reached up to wipe a tear off of my cheek. 

“I still feel awful. It’s my fault I made him feel like this.” Ben rolled his eyes. 

“I’m going to go home and he’s going to have this same conversation with me. You both fight like cats and dogs, and then feel bad that you said anything in the first place. He could have broken your arm and you’d still feel like it was your fault.”

“Yeah.” Ben did make me feel a little better, but I still couldn’t shake the feeling of regret. We sat for a few more minutes as I calmed down and my stomach hurt a little less. 

“Now, that boy out there. He’s the Captain of the Scouts, but I have to threaten him. I know he’s still sitting out there, if you just let me-” 

“Ben.”

“I’m serious. I was close to going over and telling him to stop looking at you. It’s annoying. Like that one kid you dated in the past.” It was my turn to roll my eyes at him. 

“Ben, I’m twenty seven.” Before I could protest more, he lunged at the door to open it. 

“Hey, you.” I quickly raced out of the back room, watching Ben walk his way over to Levi who had grabbed a rag and was cleaning the tops of the tables. 

“Ben-” Levi turned to give me a confused look as to why the giant man was walking towards him. They’ve probably only spoken two sentences to each other and now Levi was going to get reprimanded by Ben. 

“You’re dating my sister, correct?” Levi’s eyes widened a little bit, not expecting Ben to come right out with it. He probably also didn’t expect Ben to know anything, but with how obvious Levi had acted today, it wasn’t a surprise. Ben picked up on things probably to the same degree Levi did. 

“U-u-uh, we are?” He did the same thing I’d done to Erwin, and when he looked over at me again, confusion painting his face, I just nodded once, “Y-yes. We are…” A faint tint of blush painted his pale face. Mine was probably the same way. This was the first time he had admitted that out loud to someone from my world. 

“If you hurt her, I’ll beat you up. Her last boyfriend, he couldn’t walk for two days after Jonas and I jumped him.” He pointed his finger at Levi who didn’t seem that concerned about the threat. Ben was also lying, because he wouldn’t lay a hand on anyone. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Ben swat at a fly, let alone a human. 

“My intentions are not to hurt her.” Ben took off his apron and slammed it down on the table Levi had just finished cleaning. Flour dust went everywhere. This was quite the show he was putting on. Levi, however, didn’t know he was playing with him. He was trying to keep his face as neutral as possible, because he didn’t want to, in some way, offend Ben and make him angrier, but he was also getting annoyed with the man’s display. If Ben was to come at him, would he be permitted to slam him on the ground, or would that just make this whole situation worse? Levi didn’t want to beat up my brother, which was nice. 

“What are your intentions then?” Levi was not going to like expressing his feelings aloud to a stranger, so I saved him from Ben who I knew was trying his hardest not to laugh. 

“Ben, just let him go. I have to clean more and you’re keeping me from dinner.” I think Ben was also glad I gave him an out because I heard that Analee was making porridge for dinner and that was Ben’s favorite. 

Ben walked a bit forward, using his height to tower over Levi. This time, Levi’s face hardened. If I did get Ben away from Levi, Ben might end up on the ground. 

“Next time, Captain.” Ben retreated back and grabbed his jacket, turning to me with a smile. 

“Have a nice night, Ev! I assume I won’t need to come tomorrow?” He glanced over at Levi who was now extremely confused at Ben’s 180 degree flip. 

“No, I think I can handle myself tomorrow. Thanks Ben!” He raised his hand up and waved once, exiting the café. There was a moment of silence as the ringing of the door bells finally stopped and Levi turned to me, that expression still on his face. 

“W-wha..?” I smiled at the door, not disregarding the butterflies that came to my stomach now that I was finally alone with Levi for the first time in six months. 

“That’s Ben, my brother.” His face dropped to his regular look and nodded. 

“I can tell.” I huffed and grabbed Ben’s apron, hanging it up behind the counter. I decided to clean the counter and wait to see what Levi was going to do. Heaven knew I wanted to run up into his arms, but again, the vow I took held me back. 

To my surprise, he moved to behind the counter after cleaning the flour from the last table. He put the rag down on the back table and stood there, staring at me for a bit. I just disregarded his stare and kept cleaning the counter and glass case which was ridden with Ben’s handprints from the amount of times he leaned on it. 

“I’m going to hug you.” I left out a huff of laughter and didn’t move, signaling that he could do what he wanted. 

“I told you, you don’t have to say it alo-” His arms went around my waist, chest touching my back, and his head nuzzled into my neck. I also melted right there and then. Who taught him how to hug like this? I used my free hand to reach up and play with his hair, leaning my cheek onto the top of his head. 

“Hi,” I said, breathing in his scent. It’s been so long, the shirt he gave me had lost its smell, so it was nice to have it back. It was also nice that he had given me such an intimate display of affection after how long he’d been away. It told me that he missed me as much as his letters would insinuate. Maybe even equal as much as I missed him. 

He lifted himself up, leaving one arm wrapped around my waist. 

“I thought I’d personally deliver this letter to you,” he handed me the envelope with my name written on it. 

“Do you come with the letter?” I turned to face him and blushed at our closeness. He looked down at me slightly, examining my face. I’d cried the face powder off in the back, so my dark circles were at full force.

“You haven’t been taking care of yourself again.” It was low and had a tinge of disappointment in it. I looked up at him, examining his face. Tired. Large dark circles. Nothing out of the ordinary, but I could still yell at him for it. 

“I can say the same for you, Captain.” I reached up and put my hand on his cheek like the last night we had together. I figured that wouldn’t be off limits and I felt his face heat up a little before pulling back to lean against the back table across from me. He had hit his daily cap for affection and needed to cool off. 

“Erwin gave me the rest of the month off. So, I guessed that the best place to stay was here. He also told me to go see you after my work was done, and then proceeded to give me one more month’s worth of work.” He crossed his arms, his face pulling into one of annoyance for Erwin’s actions. 

“I did ask him to give you more breaks, but he didn’t promise me anything.” His eyes narrowed at the mention of our meeting. 

“Don’t think you three can keep it a secret about what you talked about. I told them I’d get you to tell me.” I smirked back up at him. 

“They aren’t telling you what we said?” 

“No details. I just know they asked you about us and to support the Scouts, and you accepted. I know that they left out everything important and Hange always laughs when I try to get her to tell me.” I guess I’d have to keep up this secret promise with Hange and Erwin. 

“Well, if they aren’t telling you, then I guess I can’t either, Levi. It was a confidential meeting, you know how that goes.” He shot off the table, pushing my stomach into the one I was cleaning. His arms were on either side of me, trapping me against the wood. My heart beat shot up at this sudden, aggressive touch, and I almost jumped as I felt his breath on the right side on my neck. This was the first time he had done something like this. Intimidating, aggressive, and very exciting. My heart wasn’t the only thing that fluttered when he whispered into my ear. 

“I have ways of getting you to tell me, Eva.” He lingered there for a few moments before pushing away and going back to rest on the table. I had to take at least ten breaths to calm myself down, and my face was still definitely the color of a cherry. That was the first time Levi had done something so… hot. One moment, he was pushing back because he was getting uncomfortable with the affection, and another he was shoving me up against the counter, making my brain race a million miles a second with the things I was imagining. The ways to get me to talk. Levi wasn’t like that was he? Did he have experience with that? He did live in the Underground and was extremely good looking, I’m sure he had girls at his feet at some point. It made me curious about his life in the Underground again… and what or who he did there. 

“I-I’m… done cleaning. We can go up to the up, upstairs.” He didn’t even hesitate and slung his cape around his shoulders, following me to the front to lock the café. 

We walked upstairs without saying anything, Levi walking a few steps behind me. He had retrieved a bag from the side of the alleyway and my eyes widened. I didn’t think he’d be staying here the whole rest of the month. That was almost three weeks. I remembered how dirty I had left it this morning and the empty bottle of wine next to my bed. 

Once we got inside, he set his bag on the couch and took off his boots and cape, hanging it up. I was a bit upset he didn’t take off the ODM gear straps, because now that he had done that little act downstairs, my mind was thinking about them. I had felt the buckle of the one on his chest dig into my back ever so lightly. 

“Did you really forget what I looked like? Stop staring at me.” He mumbled it, but it made me blush a bit and stare at the ground. Did he know what I was thinking about him? How did he get so bold in the last few minutes? 

“Can I shower? The ride here was long, and I sat in the back of the cart on some dirty hay.” 

“O-oh. Yes, you can. It’s that door right there, but you knew that already didn’t you. Sorry.” He smiled and laughed once, digging through his bag for his shower supplies. I just watched him as he did it, staring at the mundane task and letting my mind run wild. I don’t think he’s ever taken a shower here before. 

Without saying anything else, he walked into the bathroom and closed the door. I instantly let out a breath of frustration, but the room did cool down after he left. 

“He’s bold when being like that, but he’s still afraid of sleeping next to me?” I shook those thoughts out of my head and blinked when the bathroom door opened a little bit, the light shining through my dark apartment. 

“I forgot soap for my body, do you have any?” He yelled out. 

“Uh, there should be some in the cabinet below the sink. It’s Jonas’s.” I heard the cabinet open, along with a little grumble about ‘Why is he in your shower?’ before I heard them close again. 

“I don’t see it.” I did not want to go into that tiny bathroom and show him, but I knew that’s where this was going to end if I sent him on a hunt. I’d just let him use mine. 

“There’s a bottle in the shower. It’s glass and has pink liquid in it? You can use mine. I hope you don’t mind rose.” I heard the shower curtain rip back and a tiny laugh. 

“There’s about twelve bottles with pink liquid in them, Eva.” That was simply false. All of my shampoos, conditioners, and soaps were different colors. He wanted me to come in there and show him. I started walking slowly to the door. 

“It should be on the second shelf.” 

“Just come here and show me, I don’t have the patience.” There it was, and I was already halfway to the bathroom anyways. Ignoring my heart, I opened the door. 

“It should be in…” My eyes widened as he leaned against the sink, giving me access to walk to the shower as the room was only meant for one person at a time. My eyes widened as he leaned against the sink shirtless. I instantly flushed and something churned in the pit of my stomach. I glanced for one more second, and pushed on after seeing his smirk. I shoved myself up against the other wall, so there was no way for me to touch him as I walked past to the open shower. There the soap was and it was even labeled. I gripped hard around the bottle, turning to shove it into his hands. I tried so, so hard to only look at his face. When I glanced down at his chest again and back up, his smirk got deeper. It made me angry, but it also made me want to look even more. 

His body was completely toned and looked like it had no ounce fat on it. He was completely lean like I predicted in our last encounter in a bathroom. Every single possible muscle was defined in a sleek way that was easy for him to hide this… this Adonis of a figure beneath a regular shirt. His waist was probably smaller than mine and shoulders broad from carrying the heavy ODM gear on them for years, but I didn’t try to get another look at it as I walked past him, pressing up against the wall again. 

“I told you I’d let you see it when I got back,” he said jokingly as he set the bottle down on the sink. My face was burning and I didn’t dare turn around to look at him again as much as I wanted to. I had a free pass to look at him all I wanted if I took it, but I was too embarrassed right now. This combined with what happened downstairs wanted to make me scream. How long had he thought of doing this? The first time he’s seen me in six months and this is what he planned. 

“I-I’ll make food!” I half yelled, getting out of the small bathroom that was heating up to a hundred degrees. I could hear him laugh a little bit before closing the door behind me. The air outside was so much cooler, it gave me goosebumps and I stood out there for a bit, waiting to hear the shower turn on. When it did, I went to the kitchen and instantly sat in front of the open ice box trying to cool down my face. 

“Why are you like this, Eva? It’s not like you haven’t seen a shirtless man before. You’ve seen more than one and you’re never like this.” I hit my cheeks over and over again, trying to get them to cool down. No man I’ve been with before could go from sulky and hesitant one minute to making a heat pool in the depths of my stomach in thirty seconds. 

The shower stopped and I closed the fridge quickly, taking out eggs to act like I was using them. I had no clue what I was going to make to eat and I’d spent ten minutes staring at an open fridge. 

When he walked out, I almost broke the egg in my hand. He walked over to his bag on the couch, searching for clothes. The heat that I’d gotten rid of came back, and I finally turned away from the indecent sight. Just a towel?! 

“Sorry, I forgot to grab another pair of clothes.”

Chapter Twelve →

Chapter Masterlist

[kiruuuuu]

Thank you both for the prompt, first anon and second anon ♥♥ If anyone missed it or has an atrocious short term memory, these came in as a reaction to this post and to @spacecreatorart‘s marvellous art here! Please enjoy :) (Rating G, fluff/humour, ~1.8k words)

.

“- effects are hardly anything groundbreaking, the CGI isn’t actually that well done but the film is fun enough”, Mute finishes yet another of his annoyingly informative rants. Whenever they watch anything together, he somehow manages to conjure up facts about it out of thin air – Rook has tested this ability on various occasions and even drunk, Mute is a fountain of fun facts about any series or film in existence. Normally Rook doesn’t mind listening to him spewing knowledge as he’s curious by nature, but today is… a little different.

“I have to pee”, Rook announces.

“Can you get some more popcorn on the way?”, Glaz replies before turning back to Mute. “I liked the premise but it wasn’t really that scary, I saw it as more of a comedy.”

Rook is glued to his spot on the armchair. The other three are lounging about, Twitch sipping her ginger ale while spread out on the beanbag chair and Mute and Glaz lazing on two different ends of the couch, all of them relaxed, visibly having enjoyed the film and looking forward to watching more. Rook still isn’t moving. It’s only eight, they started early because some of them are planning to go out for drinks later, Rook definitely not among them, and yet he’s frozen and his knees are weak and just thinking about the long way to the toilets makes him nervous.

“Oh, we can watch the original to the Ring or the Grudge next”, Twitch suggests with sparkling eyes, “I’ve seen both and they’re great.”

“Ask Ghost Boy over here whether that’s alright with him.” Mute points in Rook’s direction and the two other pairs of eyes follow the indication. He must be very pale because Twitch’s expression immediately grows concerned.

“Julien, is everything alright?”

“Splendid”, he lies through his teeth and forces a smile, “does, uh, does anyone else need to use the bathroom? Maybe?”

Mute is the first to start laughing. “Are you – are you fucking serious? You’re too scared to go alone?”

“Listen”, he begins but realises soon that there’s no coming back from this since Mute hit the nail on the head, the long hallways freak him out and the flickering lights and all the doors and he’s not going to go alone, he’d rather piss in a bottle than wander through the corridors when the base is this deserted already and fine, he’ll let his friends mock him if only it means he won’t have to venture out all on his lonesome.

“You’re adorable”, Glaz says with a grin. “We haven’t even started with the really scary ones.”

“Are you afraid of the ghosts haunting this place?” Mute raises a meaningful eyebrow. “Hm? Just imagine how many people must’ve gone through training here at Hereford only to end up dying in the field, being executed or just bludgeoned to death, dropped in a pit and forgotten. And what about the ones who died here? You’ve heard the stories from Mike.”

“This isn’t funny”, he murmurs but Mute quite obviously disagrees as he’s wearing a sickeningly gleeful expression now.

“Maybe they shuffle through the halls when we’re not here, looking for meaning in their undead life, rotting and festering corpses, the combat gear falling off of them in pieces – and they can still fight, you know, probably have more experience than we do, so if they see you and if they’re hungry, you’d better run – and they’re always hungry.”

“And maybe”, Glaz adds, “they’re clowns.”

Rook rolls his eyes and refuses to admit that the prospect of hearing dragging feet while stumbling about in the darkness is now not only going to strike fear into his heart but also make him run away screaming. “You guys suck. The only stupid clowns in this building are you.”

Even Twitch is joining in now, stabbing Rook in the back: “All I got from this was two zombies eating a clown, asking each other ‘does this taste funny to you?’.”

“Hey, I’m not making fun of your weird phobias either”, Rook pouts and earns a collective snort.

“You superglued a rubber spider to my hand while I wasn’t looking”, Twitch reminds him with a sour smile.

“You hung up a bunch of fake snakes in my room”, Glaz contributes.

“And you always make me order on the phone.”

“To be fair”, the Russian addresses Mute with a chuckle, “hearing you switch from your usual snarky self to a stuttering teenager as soon as someone answers is pretty entertaining.”

“I’ll go with you, Julien”, Twitch butts in before a fight can break out on the sofa. “I can get the popcorn and you don’t have to die of fright. Alright?” He just nods meekly and pulls her up on her feet before they step into the hallway. “At least you’ll have Elias keeping you company later, right? So you don’t even have to be alone.”

She’s right and it’s the only reason why Rook agreed to watching scary films on Halloween of all days – if it’s on his mind, he sees shadows flitting about everywhere, feels someone’s gaze in his back yet never catches anyone looking at him, has the odd sensation of being followed. It even goes so far as for his brain to make up noises, like the one he just heard at the end of the… wait a second. “What was that?!”

Twitch frowns and stops walking when she notices her companion is petrified, both unwilling and unable to take even one more step. The corridor is long, some of the doors ajar and the lights relatively low which is why Rook has no idea how she can look this calm. “I don’t know. Something. Come on.”

He’s shaking his head insistently, jumps when there’s a different noise now, coming from directly behind them. Slowly, he turns around, catches a glimpse of movement and then all of a sudden, someone – or rather something – steps out into the long corridor, moaning and moving decidedly inhumanly, and all that Rook sees is a mouth full of needle-like teeth, blood-spattered clothes and fucking clown make-up.

The very first thing he does is scream in panic and has no brain capacity left to realise just how high pitched it is; the second thing is starting to run. He turns tail and books it, ready to outrun this monster, escape this fucking building and run to the SAS living quarters because he’ll be safe there. Instead, he collides full force with Twitch, making her scream, and together they tumble to the floor in a heap of flailing limbs and panic. He tries not to let this deter him from getting away, begins crawling blindly and only then the laughter and the soft words register.

“Julien, Julien, please. It’s me. It’s okay. What are you doing?”

At first he can’t place the voice because there’s no logical scenario in which this person should be here, but when he peeks over his shoulder, the nightmarish, grinning mouth has disappeared and given way to a wide smile which can only be Blitz. Next to him, Twitch groans and slaps at him in dismay. “If you reacted this way on a mission, we’d probably all die. Get off me!”

Even a few seconds later, after the frightening apparition who really turns out to be none other than Blitz has helped them back up, Rook is still struggling to slow down his breathing and his pumping heart. Fortunately, Twitch doesn’t seem eager to gloat and instead takes pity on him, excuses herself for the sake of popcorn and leaves him alone with his lover. Who is grinning like a fox. “Shut up”, Rook snaps at him, “that was not okay.”

“I’m so sorry, I really didn’t mean to startle you”, Blitz replies softly, peels off one of his gloves and cards a soothing hand through the young man’s hair. “But I’ve been working hard on this outfit and wanted it to be a surprise for you – Dom told me you love the design of scary clowns, so I did my best. How do you like it?”

That fucking - “I hate it. I hate everything about it. I absolutely despise clowns, mon cœur, and had you asked literally anyone else, they would’ve told you. Don’t ever do this again, goddammit, my knees are still weak.”

“Oh. I didn’t know that.” Blitz actually looks sheepish and disappointed and yet Rook wants nothing more than to tear off every single part of his costume.

“Why do you have this anyway? Why did you think this was a good idea?”

“I love Halloween”, he replies timidly and okay, at this point Rook really can’t be upset at him anymore. With a sigh, he pushes his lover back into the room he came from – Blitz’ own room, so Rook really could’ve guessed who it was – and makes out with him for a while, both to cheer him up and to calm himself down. Regardless, the outfit doesn’t get any less terrifying, not even if he stares at it for a while.

“Alright, but I don’t”, he grumbles and snuggles up to his German who gladly uses the opportunity to lightly massage his back and pull him closer, clearly intent on making it up to him. “But it’s not your fault. I’m fine as long as you don’t leave me.”

“Well”, says Blitz and his tone of voice indicates nothing good, “I was planning on going out with the others dressed like this in about an hour. But you can join us and I’ll hold your hand the entire evening, if you like.”

Rook is about to give him the puppy dog eyes and whine about being scared when he’s alone (which wouldn’t even be a lie) but halts all thoughts upon hearing voices. Very familiar voices. He twists out of the hug, puts a finger to his lips and motions for Blitz to pull his balaclava back on. Blitz complies, grinning, obviously aware of Rook’s spontaneous plan, and they exchange a series of gestures, nudges and waggling eyebrows as they wait for the two people to come closer.

As soon as Blitz throws himself through the doorway with a truly frightful snarl, Rook peeks out after him so he doesn’t miss anything. He catches the momentary surprise on both Montagne’s and Bandit’s faces, the two previously deep in conversation, yet whereas Montagne’s expression remains slightly shocked, Bandit’s turns to genuine horror – he lets out a terrified shriek which somehow ends up even higher pitched than Rook’s but instead of running away, he jumps into Montagne’s arms without hesitation. The gentle giant catches him competently, holding him bridal style as Bandit keeps screaming and at this point, Rook barely manages to hold back his laughter.

So much for appreciating clown designs, he thinks. Maybe Halloween wasn’t so bad after all. And maybe he should go out for drinks after all because he bets everyone is dying to hear just how heroic Bandit acts in the face of danger.

[altimys]

Winter 2018 anime reviews

Hello, hello. This is a follow-up post to my initial impressions post. I’ll detail how my perception of the animes changed over the season.

Also note that I will not review Violet Evergarden since I’m way too far behind on it. I’ll finish it sometime in the next season once I’m free.

Dropped Animes

The ones that were unbearable.

Citrus

3/10

Like mentioned in the post from the beginning of the season, it just had this unrealistic, trope-driven, incest (but not really) story. Mostly style and little substance, but not even my style. Well, do take this with a grain of salt. I didn’t even finish the first episode.

Pop Team Epic

7/10

I definitely appreciate the experimental and sarcastic nature of this anime. But it wasn’t really worth spending an extra 15 minutes to watch the same thing a second time, especially since I didn’t find all the skits funny. I probably would’ve watched it if they were broken into seven minute segments.

Sanrio Boys

5/10

Too cheesy. Thanks for the “be yourself” message, but I’m not really interested in bishounens parading this every episode. The protagonist’s broken relationship with their grandmother as a sad backstory made me facepalm very hard. If you had advertised this to me about 6 years ago, I may have gobbled it up, but nowadays it’s not my taste.

Darling in the Franxx

5/10

I didn’t pick it back up, and I didn’t really see anything major from twitter or tumblr, except for gifs of the pink haired girl being with her sexy-cute charm. Y’know, the kind of charm where she’s designed to be appealing in a sexy, vampiric way, but she’s doing something cute like licking her fingers after eating a slice of meat or something. Normally I’d not mind this so much, but remembering how typical the protag was, it definitely gave off the manic pixie dream girl vibes. Art and animation I saw was great though! Unfortunately.

Osomatsu-san

5/10

Skits really fell flat this season. I knew that S2 would lose some drive after the stunt they pulled for the finale of S1, but a lot of skits were utter nonsense. I enjoyed the ones where they experimented with the complexities of each character’s personalities (i.e. Choromatsu and Ichimatsu’s awkward interactions), but it was like wading through a swamp to get a chuckle. I watched most of the season then dropped it, since it wasn’t really worth spending time not having fun.

Mediocre Anime

I don’t know why I watched these but I did.

Garo Vanishing Line

3/10

The story was killing me so much in the end that I would multitask when watching it, and I’m not a natural multitasker. It was just bad writing. Nothing really made sense, and it was quite predictable. Like Sword’s sister came out of nowhere (after she died for Sword’s sad backstory) and was suddenly had HACKER SKILLZ. And I was almost positive that in S1, Sophie’s brother was taken away from her by force, not him wanting to join the El Dorado project. Whatever, does it even matter? The best thing of the season was probably Luke getting a haircut and ditching that awful trenchcoat. Do not recommend.

Touken Ranbu Hanamaru

6/10

Guilty pleasure of the season. Still managed to enjoy the nonsense, with the musicals, and these bishounen and moeblobs being one-dimensional. I did appreciate some of the character interactions and the references to Katsugeki Touken Ranbu, but with these kinds of animes, I really can’t say it’s quality. It’s meant to be aimed at a certain audience, and knowing that I am part of this audience makes it enjoyable to watch. Wouldn’t recommend unless you really like bishounenified swords.

Ms. Koizumi Loves Ramen Noodles

6/10

I previously wrote that I was interested in seeing the stalker girl’s infatuation with Koizumi-san turn into a relationship. Of course it didn’t happen. Yuri? In your dreams. I do applaud this anime for going in depth into the ramen culture and making me hungry every week. There were some hardcore facts about ramen’s origins and experimental ramen. You could tell that they did a lot of research (or were sponsored well). I ate an average of 1.5 packs of instant ramen each week, partly thanks to Koizumi-san. How can I not eat noodles after watching it? Not really any substance to this anime unless you like hearing about ramen facts and watching anime girls foodgasm.

Average Anime

These I could recommend with disclaimers and not feel bad about it.

Junji Ito Collection

6/10

Like with most animes with short stories, there’s a handful of good and bad stories. Since the source material is pretty good, there’s more interesting stories than not. There are definitely some that are ridiculously stupid, but if you are in search of horror anime, this is one you should watch. I wouldn’t say it’s equivalent to Yami Shibai, but it’s good. The animation can’t match the signature entrancing horror that Junji Ito creates, but it’s a decent adaptation. One minor quip I have is that they reuse voice actors in each skit. Might be a budget issue, might be something else. It’s not a big deal, but mostly noticeable to me because Hoshiyan’s voice is too recognizable for me. lol. Oh yeah, the short story with the oil was absolutely disgusting. I enjoyed being grossed out.

Gakuen Babysitters

6/10

It’s like a shoujo but with toddlers. Cute interactions, likable characters. Of course, it’s a light-hearted story, so I guess I shouldn’t expect too much out of it. The comedy bits are well-written, and the art style is absolutely adorable. Great casual watch if you want to feel fluffy without the bullshit of shoujo romances.

Laid Back Camp

7/10

As the title suggests, it’s a pretty laid-back anime. I love the different personalities of the female cast. They shone quite well through the segments of texting. The way that they texted felt friendly, and I felt that I was part of this silly chat group. Also enjoyed learning a lot about camping supplies (and the little pinecones that squealed were so cute). Makes me consider wanting to go solo-hiking or camping to be able to enjoy nature. I’m really glad it covered winter camping, because that’s something that most people never consider, so you get to see the different equipment, activities, and benefits. Recommend if you want something chill with a well-written cast, but not a character-driven story line.

Hakata Tonkotsu Ramens

7/10

Surprisingly, I liked it quite a bit. I was actually expecting this one to tank, because it had a predominantly male lineup, was about assassins, and had a crossdresser. Sounded like someone picked things they thought would appeal to the general public and made an anime of it. Thankfully, I was wrong. Hakata Tonkotsu Ramens is actually based off a light novel series, which really shows through the thought-out plot and layered characters. I wouldn’t say it’s as crazy as Durarara!!, but some of the twists are quite interesting. I also really enjoy the diverse cast and their interactions: Lin Xianming, pseudonym for a Taiwanese assassin who also happens to crossdress; Banba Zenji, a playful, seemingly idiotic detective with a deck of tricks up his sleeves. There’s also a canonically gay character, an ex, a child, a hacker (with an interesting backstory), and more. And these characters make mistakes, get injuries, and have flaws. I’m hoping for a second season, because watching this was quite nice each week.

Karakai Jozu no Takagi-san

7/10

If you wanted fluff with actual romance, here’s the one for the season! There’s also quite a bit of comedy added. I did feel sorry for the protag Nishikata for falling victim to Takagi’s pranks every time, but I always looked forward to what she was going to do, and how it would fluster him. I think the romantic buildup was well-paced throughout the season. Kudos to whoever paced it, because they danced around with my feelings like an expert, giving me enough of a taste to feel the flutters of romance in my stomach, but not enough to make Nishikata and Takagi an item. Some of the skits were directed very well, with surprisingly effective cinematography (see the rain and umbrella skit). The ending was really cute, and I’m pretty encouraged to read the manga to get more content.

Mahou Tsukai no Yome

7/10

Nothing really jumped out at me. I feel like the actions of the characters didn’t follow a logic to it that made me understand the character better. Nothing really sparked an interested in wanting to cheer the characters on. I really felt passive in watching events happen to Chise and Elias, and the ending wasn’t particularly spectacular either. I think it’s a decent one to pass the time, but I could not get invested in the plot or characters.

Koi wa Ameagari no You Ni

8/10

This anime certainly isn’t for everyone’s tastes, but I think I really appreciated the latter half of the series more than the first half. The surface-level summary is about the age-gap romance, but once I was able to hear Kondo’s internal thoughts, especially about being older, the nostalgia of youth, and trying to pick a passion back up, I started enjoying it a lot more. I especially loved the scenes when he would banter with his college friend Chihiro. The only downside of the latter half of the episodes was the awkward tension between Akira and her friend. Her friend would just yell at her, and Akira would take it, and then not really consider it. And somehow it’s resolved. Well, other than that, I did like the characters and ending a lot.

Kokkoku

8/10

I rather enjoyed the setup and the unknown mechanisms of the system. The enemy really had the advantage in intellect and strength, and it was interesting watching how the characters tried to get around that. The last three episodes were a little flat, and the plot armor (kind of) and last bit of exposition was almost unnecessary, but it was there to give us a happy ending, which I did appreciate. Love the grandpa. I’d say this anime did a pretty decent job at the action and strategy, and the ending wasn’t blowing my mind, but I do really commend it on the setup.

Exceptional Anime

Worth your time.

A Place Further Than the Universe

8/10

Drama about girls aiming to go to Antarctica. Strong female cast, with a pretty believable depiction of average high school girls and how they might react and pursue their dreams. The voice acting was pretty spectacular for this show, especially during the second to last episode. ;) I think this anime is very real with what it’s like with concepts we usually don’t think of: having ambitions, lacking ambitions, making friends, losing friends, finding closure. It was rewarding to walk with the girls in every step of their journey. Animation quality was pretty awesome too. I also cried a bit at the end. I didn’t think I would enjoy an anime about high school girls going to Antarctica, but hey, I loved it.

Hakumei to Mikochi

8/10

It’s a slice-of-life about a pair of thumb-sized forest dwellers. Hakumei, the more adventurous of the two, works as a handyman and has a determined attitude. She’s still a very considerate person and is full of compassion and a heart to help others. Mikochi is a bit more reserved and particular. She’s famous for her cooking and has a passion for textiles and clothing. Both characters compliment each other well, and it’s cute seeing them bustle about their daily lives. You also get to see into the lives of other characters they meet, and it feels an established world with all it’s quirks and culture. The general feel of this anime is relaxed and storybook-like, similar to the same kind of vibe I get from Ghibli movies. I honestly thought this was a children’s anime during the first episode. It could be, but I enjoyed it a lot.

[cianmars]

dragon queen kid(s) and go!

Ooo thank you! (I promise that I’m getting to writing the prompts you sent to me the other day too)

Obviously they have Henry

And Lily

Name: Ophelia (Lea)(17)

Gender: Female

General Appearance: She took after her mother’s in having a good sense of style, she’s usually ahead of the curve in fashion. She normally wears her hair long and straight (all the better for dramatic hair flips). 

Personality: She’s fiercely protective of her family, she doesn't seem very welcoming to most people but if you get to know her she’s funny in a rather sarcastic way, she’s fiercely loyal. She also really cares for those more vulnerable. 

Special Talents: She has magic like her mothers. 

Who they like better:  She and Regina are very alike so she gets along marginally better with her. 

Who they take after more: She takes after both of them pretty much equally  

Personal Head canon: She wants to be a fashion designer 

Face Claim: Sofia Carson

Then when their kids were all grown up they were surprised with a set of triplets (because of magic of some form) 

Name: Benjamin (Ben) (4)

Gender: male 

General Appearance: Like the rest of his siblings and Regina he has dark hair, he doesn't really care about what he wears so doesn't really want to have much input in his day to day outfits (though would probably wear fancy dress all the time if he could)

Personality: He’s very cheeky, constantly getting into trouble but manages to get out of it straight away, he has endless amounts of energy

Special Talents: Like the rest of the triplets he can turn into a little baby dragon

Who they like better: He likes Regina’s cooking but he tends to be closer to Mal 

Who they take after more: Regina 

Personal Head canon: When he grows up his mothers direct his energies into sport, he also really likes tinkering and taking things apart... he wasn't really too good at putting them back together again though 

Face Claim: Elias Janssen 

Name: Lila (4)

Gender: Female

General Appearance: She has blonde hair and is normally in dresses, she dresses similarly to her identical sister.

Personality: She’s quiet and shy, she didn't make many friends in her first school, but when she got to high school she really started branching out. She’s rather into books. 

Special Talents:  Like the rest of the triplets she can turn into a little baby dragon

Who they like better: Mal.

Who they take after more: Mal in looks, Regina in personality 

Personal Head canon: When she gets to the age of 10 she turns into a complete tomboy and becomes rather close to Ben and Lily

Face Claim: Mia Allan

Name: Ella (4)

Gender: Female

General Appearance: Blonde hair, practically like a tiny Mal clone.

Personality: She’s like Mal in personality too, and like her older sister she’s fiercely loyal. She’s very girly.

Special Talents: Like the rest of the triplets she can turn into a little baby dragon

Who they like better: She’s fascinated by Regina’s magic and tends to follow her around.

Who they take after more: She’s like a Mal clone, its scary how alike they are sometimes. 

Personal Head canon: She gets along really well with Henry’s daughter who teaches her some of her dancing.

Face Claim: Ella Allan

Send me a pairing for their kid(s)

[wrestlingisfake]

Elimination Chamber preview

Roman Reigns vs. John Cena vs. Braun Strowman vs. Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor vs. The Miz vs. Elias - This match will be held within the elimination chamber, a large cage composed of heavy chains stretched across a steel frame surrounding the ringside area.  The winner will challenge Brock Lesnar for the universal championship at Wrestlemania XXXIV.

Normally this is a timed gauntlet elimination match, where two wrestlers start and everyone else enters at five minute intervals. Eliminations can occur at any time by pinfall or submission, but the match can’t end until everyone has entered.  The last participant who is not eliminated is the winner.  The chamber structure comes into play in that everyone is locked inside until they are eliminated; everybody but the two starters are locked inside four “pods” until they are allowed to enter the match.  That assumes there’ll be six participants, but this time we have seven, and WWE has not explained how that will affect the rules.

The order of entry is notionally random, and revealed only during the course of the match.  Occasionally, though, the order is affected by matches held before the show; in this case, Elias gets to enter last while the Miz is forced to start.  Theoretically, it’s possible for many eliminations to occur before the last person even enters, which would be a gigantic advantage, although I can’t remember it ever really helping that much.

Rollins is probably going to be the sentimental favorite.  Originally he wasn’t supposed to be in this match, and was slated for something with Jason Jordan at Mania, but Jordan needed neck surgery.  So Rollins made an impassioned plea about how he doesn’t want to miss Wrestlemania again (like he did in 2016), and now we have seven guys in the match.  Then the 2/19 Raw featured all seven men in a gauntlet match, and Rollins wrestled for over an hour to beat both Cena and Reigns.  That doesn’t mean Seth is going to win here, but I expect a lot of people will be disappointed if he doesn’t.

Balor is probably the best choice for a dark horse.  Miz and Strowman are expected to face each other at Mania, so I’d look for Braun to do some crazy power moves, get fucked over by Miz, and then chase Miz out of the building.  You’d think Cena should be a favorite, but they seem to be doing a thing where he’s increasingly concerned that he won’t even get a Mania match, and the best way to advance that story would be an unexpectedly bad loss.  As for Elias, I will personally be surprised if he does anything but bring his chair and guitar into the chamber and do his shtick.

It’s been widely believed for nearly a year that Roman Reigns is facing Lesnar at Wrestlemania, so this match would seem to be a formality.  On the other hand, there have times when the build to a Reigns title win (or a long title reign) appeared “inevitable” and then suddenly collapsed.  A swerve where Reigns loses here (and perhaps has to get added to the Lesnar match for a three-way) is at least possible. But not very likely.

Alexa Bliss vs. Sasha Banks vs. Bayley vs. Mickie James vs. Sonya Deville vs. Mandy Rose - Bliss is defending the Raw women’s championship in the first-ever women’s elimination chamber match.  The winner is expected to be the defending champion at Wrestlemania.  The big angles in this one are that Banks and Bayley have been friends but may not be able to get along; James and Bliss have been enemies but may be able to get along; and Rose and Deville are members of the same stable and are expected to get along.

The problem with chamber matches where a title is at stake is that they always fall flat with me.  Either the champion defies the odds and retains, which makes me think “well what was the point of that?” or somebody that is not and will not be feuding with the champion wins the belt, which makes me think “well that was totally random.”  In this case I can’t shake the feeling that this match is designed to make you think Bliss is finally going to get her comeuppance, and then she’ll find a way to win anyway and smirk at everybody.  And its like, that’s wrestling for you, and it’s not a bad idea.  But it doesn’t excite me, and I feel like it’s going to cause a lot of grumbling Monday morning.

Asuka vs. Nia Jax - Asuka won the Royal Rumble to earn her choice of a title match against either the Raw or Smackdown women’s champion at Wrestlemania, but she hasn’t declared her intentions yet.  Raw general manager Kurt Angle decided that if Jax wins this match, Jax will be in the Raw women’s championship match at Mania no matter what Asuka decides to do.

So the winner of the women’s chamber match could end up in a three-way against both Asuka and Jax.  Or Asuka could win this match and choose to challenge the Smackdown women’s champion, so that there would be no top challenger for the Raw title.  At least, that’s how I understand it.  WWE hasn’t been very clear about any of this.

It wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world for Jax to break Asuka’s winning streak now, to get it over with, and then you’ve got two pretty good world-beaters instead of one god-tier world-beater.  But I don’t expect that to happen.  Asuka wins, and we get a whole year of people whining about something expect Ronda Rousey to potentially do someday.

Matt Hardy vs. Bray Wyatt - OK, so in 2016 Matt developed this “Broken Matt Hardy” gimmick in TNA, and at one point he and Bray Wyatt were bickering on Twitter about whether it was a knockoff of Wyatt’s “folksy gibberish” gimmick.  Then when Matt left TNA was an ownership dispute so he couldn’t use it when he returned to WWE last year.  Then for months he kept teasing that he’d almost worked out the legal issues to bring the character back.  And finally, after losing a match to Bray, Matt “snapped” and became “Woken Matt Hardy,” and it looked like everyone was going to get the crazy stupid high-concept feud they always wanted.  Of course, that was November 27, the only pay-per-view action we’ve seen with these two has been a couple of minutes in the Royal Rumble.

So far the “Woken Matt Hardy” gimmick has been a letdown.  To put this into perspective, Broken Matt was boxing kangaroos and baptizing people in his lake of reincarnation and filming mini-movies with his aerial assault robots. Woken Matt just laughs and says “yaaasss” a lot.  If WWE is serious about doing this shit right, you’d figure they’re rolling it out slowly, to get to the real wacky stuff around Wrestlemania.  But that assumes WWE was ever serious about doing this shit right, whereas I always assumed WWE just wanted to keep other promotions from doing it.  Either way, I think this match will only be a place-setter for some more high-profile rematch later.  So both guys are going to be saving these best kooky weirdness for later.  Bray should probably win to set up motivation for Matt to step up his game.

Cesaro & Sheamus vs. Titus O’Neil & Apollo - Titus Worldwide beat Shesaro in a non-title match, so now they’re challenging for the Raw tag team championship.  On paper I can’t see a title change happening, but Sheamus has got some serious neck issues and WWE desperately needs to liven up the tag division so he and Cesaro don’t have to carry so much of the load.  I’m always pulling for Titus and Apollo, but experience suggests I shouldn’t get my hopes up.

Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson vs. Bo Dallas & Curtis Axel - This is set for the pre-show.  Curiously, Gallows was just saying that the Young Bucks owe it to themselves to come to WWE someday, because it’s “a worldwide platform and you can’t beat that.  Which is funny because I think Gallows and Anderson are at least as good as the Bucks, but here they are stuck in the pre-show because creative has nothing for them, while the Bucks are key figures in the big Kenny Omega vs. Cody Rhodes saga.  Point is, Luke and Karl are horribly underutilized and I kind of wish they would get the hell out of this company.  At least they have a 100% chance of wining this match, so there’s that.

[wrestlinghasmelike-blog]

Monday Night Raw December 4th, 2017 Review

Hello everyone! I apologize for being absent these past few weeks. I was house-sitting again and had no connection and I wasn’t able to catch Smackdown or NXT throughout the week. I’m hoping this week that I can post on every show, but my plans are always changing. Buuuut, I’m here for Raw tonight, and I’m excited to keep this blog going!\

Please feel free to leave me some feedback on how you think these reviews are going! Do you like them? Do you not? Let me know! Please also share these with your friends or reblog this so your Tumblr friends can see! Thanks so much! 

Opening segment- Kurt, Jordan, and Reigns

I think it was a smart move to start the show with Kurt. Usually, shows in LA are good ones and have a lot of star power mixed in. What I immediately don’t understand, is why is Kurt announcing the challenger for the IC title match if it’s designed to be an open challenge? That was the assumption that I was under, anyway. Aaaaannnd here comes Jason Jordan, who is very clearly not the favorite anywhere he goes. This crowd really did not like him, and they made it known that they did not wanna see Roman fight him for the IC title. The thing I will say that I like about Jordan, is that he’s very good at showing emotion, either when he’s on the mic or when he’s having a match. That is something that other wrestlers need to work on, and I think Jordan is ahead of the pack when it comes to that. Roman came out shortly after this, and again we had a mixed reaction from the crowd. Are people starting to warm up to Roman as the IC Champ? I appreciate Roman as “the fighting champ” because it’s something that’s been missing from Raw in a long time. The most recent title change we’ve seen is the tag titles, and it feels like those are the ones that change the most. Roman said he wanted Joe to fight him tonight, but again, if it’s an open challenge, then why is it being announced? Roman’s reaction to Joe’s music was great, and it was very “oh shit not this guy”. And everyone loves Joe it’s great! This was an awkward transition to get Jordan v. Roman, but does this mean Roman will be fighting twice tonight?

Jason Jordan vs. Roman Reigns

This was an okay match, certainly better than I expected, but still an okay match. I liked that Joe was watching at the top of the ramp and didn’t interfere until the end of the match. I could really feel Roman’s anger through the screen, which I appreciate, and the way he threw Jordan head-first into the barricade and the stairs was a good way to show that. In the beginning, there was a lot of fighting happening outside of the ring, which made sense if Roman was fighting twice in the night and didn’t wanna have him take too many bumps, but this turned into a legit match! Jordan is a powerhouse for sure, and I like that he can hold his own against Roman and carry him across the ring multiple times, and catch him mid-air. Roman had a nice big boot and was on the offence again, but then Jordan came in with a nice dropkick to knock Reigns down again. This match had three commercial breaks and I think it got more time than it deserved, but it had a semi-good finish, and a pretty good northern lights suplex from Jordan WITH a sell for his knee. Roman picked up the win, and of course, Joe attacked him and let Roman know that he was next in line. Again, this match got more time than it deserved, but I think that this showed me Jason’s ability up against someone like Roman, who impressed me for the second week in a row.

Paige vs. Sasha Banks

Okay, this match had a lot of problems, to be honest. There were some pretty big flubs, unfortunately. Myself and the crowd included were hyped to see Paige back in the WWE ring after more than a year, and she really hasn’t lost a step! From beginning to end, however, this match had problems. First of all, Sasha had a really shitty looking Lou Thesz press, and I wish the women’s division would scrap that move entirely because it is such a “Diva’s” move. We had Michael Cole being a dick on commentary to the women, especially Alexa, who barely got a word in it seemed like. The match was lacking the energy it needed all throughout. The sunset flip powerbomb that tried to happen but ended with Sasha falling from the top rope right on her neck was the huge turn in the match where everything was being flubbed. Paige either slipped or just didn’t have her footing, but Sasha was totally unprotected on the whole spot. I liked that this match was longer than normal! It deserved to have the time it did, but I wish we saw more. Paige won, and the other members of Absolution attacked Sasha. How predictable.

Cruiserweight Fatal Four Way

WOW! THIS WAS THE SECOND WEEK IN A ROW THAT THIS DIVISION HAS BLOWN ME AWAY! This was a fantastic match! It had good spots, great mind-blowing moments, and fantastic wrestling all throughout! I didn’t know that Gulak doesn’t wear kneepads in the ring; it’s very awkward. Ali and Alexander had a lot of great sequences in this match, and they were the ones who really made this match as great as it was. Ali had that springboard Spanish fly from the ropes and everyone was into it! The commercial break hit and I was so disappointed that I had to wait for this match to continue. There were a couple of moments where I couldn’t process what happened but I was so amazed and glued to the screen and I couldn’t comprehend what happened. Gulak ended up as the winner, which was kind of like, “oh okay sure” since there were so many great moments in the match that he wasn’t part of, but congrats to him! I hope the Cruiserweights can impress me for a third week in a row!

Elias, Braun Strowman and Kane

Ok, is anyone surprised at what happened here? I didn’t expect Braun to go against Elias because I jumped when his music cut, but this little bit was a waste of time. It was an even bigger waste when Kane didn’t even show up, but he cut a pre-filmed promo. Nothing more disappointing than that. 

Asuka vs. Alicia Fox

Ugh, I wish Asuka was in a real storyline right now because she deserves that. This wasn’t much of a match, but it was great to have Alicia get some air, but she got beat up by Absolution, which was very predictable. I hope both of these women get a decent storyline soon.

Finn Balor vs. Bo Dallas

DOES ANYONE ELSE NOTICE HOW HAPPY AND SMILEY FINN IS TONIGHT WOWZA THAT'S A BOY AND A HALF! He looked so happy walking through the backstage and throughout his entire entrance! He has a good spot in the show tonight and I’m so happy about that. I actually didn’t know that this was a thing? The one thing I really like about Bo is his selling ability. He’s so funny when he overexaggerates his moves. To be perfectly honest with you, this match did not have a lot of high moments. It was mostly Bo on the offensive and Finn getting held down...again. I do have one problem with Finn, and this is something I noticed when he was in Japan too, but he always gives away the next move with his eyes. Bo had him in the armbar, and Finn was selling it and struggling, but then he looked at something, and I immediately knew something was about to change, and it did. I’m glad Finn got the W here of course, but more because he’s been getting beat down this past couple of weeks by Joe and Kane. Hopefully, this turns the momentum for him around for my boy and leads to something big for him.

Tag Team Title Match: The Bar vs. Rollins/Ambrose

Ok, after this run, I really hope that someone else gets a shot at the titles. That would be nice, right? This match started off with Dean, and it was just so low energy and not exciting at all, but then Seth came in and it really picked up! They went into the commercial break with no hype whatsoever, which is unfortunate for a title match. After the commercial break wasn’t that much better. A big boot by Cesaro keeps Dean away from the match, and at this point, it’s hard to find the exciting parts of this match, so I just want someone to get the pin and call it quits for this feud already. I will say that all of these competitors have given their all in these matches and PPV matches over the past few months and I thank them for that. Dean does bring the energy up when he gets tagged back in, but it dies so fast for me. This doesn’t feel like a title match, it feels like a regular match. Seth and Sheamus had a nice false finish with the Falcon Arrow, but I feel like nothing is happening. The crowd is into it at least, which is great. A DQ win is shitty, but thank god. Oh wait Kurt is out?? It’s restarting the match?? Lol does the show still have time? OH SAMOA JOE! I DID NOT EXPECT THAT! Oh, but I expected Roman to come out at some point. Oh, The Bar still won. Alright. Thanks for saving the match Joe! Let’s get new challengers for the titles now please!

I thought this Raw was not on the same level as I thought last week’s show was at, but I still had fun watching it. I think the Cruiserweights get my match of the night vote! That was still awesome and mind-blowing. I’m glad Finn was here of course! 

I promise I will try harder to post again this week for Smackdown and NXT, and I’m hoping I can get those out! Thanks, and stay tuned!

-Casey

[mafreemantle]

Meeting Esther Mahlangu

For Apartamento Magazine

She may be a celebrated international artist whose work has been exhibited alongside the likes of Warhol, Hockney and Raucschenberg, but Esther Mahlangu remains relatively obscure in her own country. It’s hard to find South Africans who know her well. It’s almost as hard to find Mahlangu herself, living as she does in the tiny rural community of Weltevreden - old Afrikaans for ‘satisfied’ - in the KwaMhlanga region of Mpumaplanga, three hours drive from Johannesburg.

And it is there Mahlangu may have stayed her whole life, painting traditional Ndebele designs on the houses of her village, like her mother and her mother’s mother had done for decades, had a group of French art curators not stumbled across her village in the late eighties. That chance encounter led to an exhibition at the Pompidou in Paris, which in turn caught the eye of the curators of the BMW Art Car series and since then, Mahlangu, who turns 76 in November, has been to places she and her family scarcely knew existed. In the relatively tiny Ndebele community, it is no small matter for someone to have travelled as far as Johannesburg; to have gone abroad is almost miraculous. She herself refers to these various foreign destinations as being ‘Over the seas’, while outside her home a sign reads: ‘Ndebele Art School for Children: Done by Esther Mahlangu. THE 1st LADY TO VISIT OVER SEA.’

Mahlangu was born in 1935 on a farm near Middelburg, in the Mpumalanga Province, not half an hour from where I find her, dressed as always in traditional Ndebele clothing, this crisp, stark winter morning. She was the first of nine children. Her mother, and her mother’s mother, were simple traditional women who decorated their houses as a matter of custom. When Esther was 10 years old, she was taught to paint. Mahlangu’s work has been widely described as ‘traditional contemporary’ and certainly her more modern take on ancient Ndebele art - brighter colours, shapes derived from more modern objects such as her trademark razor blade or itjhefana - fits that description. She has also been mentioned alongside abstract geometric contemporary artists Sol Lewitt and even Damien Hirst, both of whom have experimented with bold, colourful and often huge geometric works. Not that Mahlangu knows, or cares, who these other artists are.

We sit for the interview over lunch of roast potatoes, chicken, mashed butternut, spinach, rice, beans in a rich gravy and a French salad, served dutifully by family at the guest house. Later, she will proudly lead me around the complex, pointing out recent renovations - five new rooms in a modern hut built in the traditional Ndebele fashion; circular, thick-walled, covered with a thatch roof. The small bedrooms have curved walls and bright beds with almost luminous linen that might be garish if it didn’t somehow fit perfectly. There are bright purple couches laminated in plastic covers, frilly pink duvet covers and, of course, Ndebele designs are festooned on the walls, teapots, mugs and just about everything with a paintable surface. It is at once an utterly strange and charming guesthouse, unlike anything I have ever seen and without question the only one of its kind.

Outside, a young boy is painting the exterior with painstaking attention, dabbing small green brushstrokes inside a triangular space. The first of many clues that beyond the accolades and the plaudits and the international fame, Mahlangu is most concerned with doing what her mother and her mother’s mother did before her: taking Ndebele art into the next generation.

Apartamento: I found it very strange while researching your work that you are very famous around the world but far less so at home, despite your various awards, international shows and so on. How do you feel about this?

Esther Mahlangu: It’s not so good. People do know me here, but not very well. I think people should know me here.

In a foreword for your 2003 retrospective at the Irma Stern Museum in Cape Town, Harvard Professor Kyle D Kaufmann referred to your show at the prestigious Documenta 9 festival as further evidence of this strange anonymity at home. He wrote, “Perhaps it is because the others, including William Kentridge and Marlene Dumas, are closer to the tastes of those who curate and collect contemporary South African art. Perhaps it is because  Ms Mahlangu’s work is too ‘African’.” What do you make of that?

Too African? I don’t know. For whatever some reason Ndebele art here is just not as appreciated as it is overseas. But what can I say about that, really? It is how it is.

Do you remember your first attempts at painting?

When I started, my mother and her grandmother were not happy with my painting at all! When they used to go for lunch I would go to where they were painting and paint as well. I thought I'd done something beautiful, but when they came back they said, ‘Esther, what have you made here!' So they said I should not begin by painting the front of the house - I should start at the back! Over there where people couldn't see, they said. So I painted and painted and painted and when they came to look they said, 'No this is not right...make it dead!’ But after a short while they began to like it and after a long time they said, 'Ok, you can come to the front now'.”

It would have been the 1940s when you started, and being in a rural town I’m interested in what sort of materials you were using at the time?

We used what we could find, what my family had been using for a long time before me. We weren't painting with paint, you understand, it was earth; white earth, red earth, black earth, whatever we could find around the farm. We would mix it with water and wet cow dung. We used to make brushes with chicken feathers and stronger ones brush with baboon hair. I still use the chicken feather brushes today but the cow dung has been replaced. It helped to bind everything. It made the paint stronger. But if it rains heavily or hails, the paint will wash away.  When I was growing up, we used to paint in winter - there was a lot of competition among the different villages around who was doing the best work - but then in the rainy summer months all the work would wash away and we’d paint again in the winter. That's why these days we use normal paint, so it lasts longer.

When did you first start experimenting with these bright colours and trademark shapes, like the razor blade - or ‘itjhefana’ - you have made your own?

I remember seeing colourful paints in the nearby town Middelburg when we used to visit. I thought - I want to use those colours, and soon I was able to get hold of some. My mother and grandmother didn’t like the new colours at all when I started, because it wasn’t traditional in their eyes, after a while they started to like it. The shapes are all taken from actual things, like lamps or boiled sweets or, yes, razor blades.

Your line is almost perfectly straight, as was that of the student painting the outside of the guest house when I arrived. Yet I’ve heard you have never used any form of ruler, tape or any aids whatsoever.

Yes, I’ve always used a free hand; that is the Ndebele way. That’s why it can take a lot of time to complete some of these bigger jobs I’ve been asked to do, like painting he entire front of a first floor office block in Japan. It was my second big job after Pompidou, and I had actually turned it down at first because I told them didn’t offer enough money (laughs). But when they saw how much work went into it they ended up paying me more than I had asked for.

Your breakthrough came when you were into your fifties, when the researchers from the Pompidou invited you to exhibit in France. That was truly a life-changing few weeks in your life. Could you tell me the story?

I remember it very clearly. There was a man who came from France, who came to take pictures. After that, when I was at the Botshobelo Museum, I heard from them to say that my work had been chosen from a whole list of other art. To me this was 'Number One'! They came back and asked for me at the museum, they said, 'We are looking for Esther'. I said, 'That's me'. You?, they said. Yes, me! They showed me a photo they had taken and I said, 'That one, that's my house!' So they said I should go overseas to France to paint. I said ok. Then I asked, where is France?!'

They told me it was overseas. I asked, 'With what am I going to get there?!'. With an aeroplane, they said. I said how long will I be in the aeroplane? They said if you leave today you will be there tomorrow. I stood dead still and said, 'No! I can't say yes or no. I must go home and ask what they say.'  So I went home and told my family. They said, 'No mama, you surely heard them wrong. I told them I didn't know who I was going with. My son Elias said, ‘I will come with you’. I said ok. I hadn't told the people at the museum yet, I wanted to talk to my family. When I told my bosses that they want me to to overseas, they said 'Who does?. I said there's some people from France here who took some pictures of my house and these French people want me to go and paint. They said 'No Esther are you mad!' I said no I'm not mad I speak the truth!

They asked if I had been given anything, a piece of paper or anything. I told them I did. So I brought out the piece of paper and gave it to them. But nobody could understand it because it was written in French! That was funny. So they said, ok, we're going to take this piece of paper to the big office in Middelburg and we'll show them. The Middelburg office sent it somewhere else because nobody could speak French there either. But days later they told me, Esther, you're right, it's true, they want you to go and you must go. I said I don't know who I'm going with but they said I had to go alone. So the time arrived, they came to fetch me at home and took me to the airport. They told me we we're going on a Sunday but came on a Saturday. My grandchild wasn't here, he was in Pretoria. So I told them I can't go because my grandchild isn't here. They said no Esther, we're going, we'll pick him up on the way. We didn't pick him up and when we got the the airport I told them we had to go back home and check if he's come home. We went to his house, and they said he'd gone to my house. They said, It's time to go! I said I'm not going if he doesn't come with. I'm waiting for Elias! They said, we must go today, they will bring Elias the next week. I said alright.

So they told me, ‘Where the aeroplane stops, you must get off. When you see the people walking off you must follow them out the door. Then you'll see someone there to pick you up.’ When I got out in France I saw the people who had come to pick me up signaling for me to come over. But I told them no, I'm waiting for my mielie-meal! (Mielie meal is a traditional Ndebele staple, made from corn). I brought a whole lot of mielie meal because they said there wouldn't be any in France.

I was wearing the traditional Ndebele clothes. So I went off to the place. They showed me which house I was going to paint - a house that had been built exactly like my house, except without a thatch roof. I couldn’t believe it. On Monday Elias was still not there, but they said they were getting him on Tuesday. I said I'm coming with. He will see my clothes and know where to go! They said don't worry. When he came back Pierre told me he couldn't get Elias. I said, 'PIERRE!  told you! But then Elias came round the corner…we laughed so much.

So, when I arrived I was preparing to paint, buying the colours and so on. I realised that I needed cow dung, so I told Pierre - go and fetch me some! He said, 'In Paris?'. So he went off looking for some and came back with some dung. I said no Pierre, this is horse dung! But I said ok, I can use it, and I started on my house. The day came, it was a big party, and afterwards they said to me - you must go to Bordeaux to paint a caravan. I said ok, and I went. Then I was invited to Japan.

Since then you have travelled all over the world. Do you remember the places you loved the most, and the people you most loved meeting?

Let’s see. I’ve been to Lisbon, Nantes, Livorno, Belgium, Lyon, Amsterdam, Italy, Spain, America, Washington DC, New York, California, Charleston, Pennsylvania, Pittsburg, Atlanta, South Carolina, New Jersey, New Orleans, Texas. And Germany and Switzerland. And Brazil. And Australia. All the countries I've been to, people loved me very much. They smile, they laugh. They were very happy to see me, because they wondered, ‘How do you sleep wearing this stuff?' 'How do you eat?' 'How do you wash?'. I tell them I wash nicely! I don't take them off. I walk with them, sleep with them, take showers with them, because this is the Ndebele wedding ring. The rings around your neck your parents give you; those around around the ankles your husband gives you. There are some inconveniences - when I go through airport security I always set the machine off! (laughs) When the machine goes off they always ask me to take the rings off before I walk through and I say No I can't take them off!

You have been to so  many beautiful cities. I wonder, have you ever been tempted to live elsewhere?

No, no, no. I can go to all these places, but I must come back. I must come home. My place is South Africa. My children are here, my grandchildren are here. This is where I was born, this is  my home. I can't leave.

You must have met many famous people along the way, famous artists in particular?

I have met so many famous people, but I can't remember them. (laughs)

I notice you have pictures of Nelson Mandela (his successor) Thabo Mbeki and a few other dignitaries on your walls. Have you met them?

Yes, I’ve met Madiba, and Mbeki and Jacob Zuma. The other two I met overseas, but Madiba was the only one to have visited me at the Ndebele Royal Kraal. It was a long while ago but that was special.

Seaking of politics, it could be said that your work has in recent decades taken on a more political significance. In his book ‘A Portrait with Keys’, local writer Ivan Vladislavic remembers the moment Ndebele painting became a fad in Johannesburg in the wake of the Art Car. He wrote “It was a striking symbolic moment in the invention of the new South Africa, a supposedly traditional, indigenous culture laying claim to one of the most desirable products our consumer society had to offer, smoothly wrapping this contemporary symbol of status, wealth and sophisticated style in its colours...It suited the early nineties perfectly: Africa was coming to the suburbs in the nicest possible way.” How political is your work?

I wouldn’t know what to say to that. I stay out of politics. I paint because I love it. It stretches my heart wide, and when I’m doing it I am very very happy.

Photo: Nico Krijno