#flute trap beat

[qualityisthekey]

New beats GO SUBSCRIBE [free] hard chill flute trap drill type beat instrumental legacy | prod. by quality key

[liminal-space-lesbian]

BG3 Ladies x Bard Tav headcanons

Request: For request, can you write some about a bard tav and the female companions thank you have a nice day!

Thank you so much for this request, I just wanna apologize in advance and say I’ve never played a bard and know next to nothing about them, so if this is dreadful I fully apologize 😭

Karlach:

Karlach is your number one supporter. She ADORES when you play your lute in the evenings by the fire, it lulls her into a calm sense of security. She admires how you can play something so gentle and comforting, and then at the Tiefling party you strummed an enthusiastic tune.

She definitely dances along to your music, and sometimes if you sing she’ll join in. She’s not a great singer but she makes up for it with her enthusiasm. The time she doesn’t spend boisterously laughing or dancing her breath away, she sings along happily.

She’s so protective of you, oh my word. Any time you’re in a battle, she’s more than confident you can hold your own, but also you’re so precious to her that she tries her very best to keep you out of harms way. However, sometimes she hangs back to watch you viciously mock an enemy. “Yeah, you tell ‘em soldier!” She’ll shout encouragingly as she pulls her great axe from the corpse of an enemy. She also finds it impossibly hot when you mock an enemy.

Shadowheart:

Shadowheart is such a sucker for when you play her a ballad on your lyre. She will lounge back with a glass of wine and listen contentedly as you play. You may or may not have sang her a love song once, and she was quite literally swooning.

When you play a more energetic tune, she claps along and taps her foot to the beat. She’s not much for dancing, since she’s worried she’ll embarrass herself. If you beg enough she’ll give you a little jig though. Only if you’re alone though.

Other than your musical inclinations, she’s extremely impressed with how you charm people so easily. “Well look at you, you practically have them begging at your feet already.” And she’s not wrong, a sweet smile and a bat of your lashes and you get your way. She’s susceptible to your charms as well, don’t get me wrong. She just finds it incredibly endearing to watch you get your way.

Lae’zel:

Lae’zel complains that your drumming is incredibly annoying and pointless, but you catch her nodding her head to the beat more than once. If you’re charming enough you can get her to admit your music is… bearable.

When you set a marching beat during your travels, against her better judgment she will tramp along to the tempo you’ve set. During battle she is rather impressed by your skills Though she finds your ability to befriend anyone silly, she can’t deny its effectiveness.

Oh, and when you sing to her? She’s a goner. She will pretend to ignore you, but when you stop singing she’ll turn her head to glare at you. “Chk, tired already?” She’ll taunt, only settling back down when you continue.

Dame Aylin:

Aylin adores when you play your flute for her. She could listen to you play for hours, simply watching you adoringly. Every once and a while she’ll request a specific song, and absolutely sing your praises when you deliver.

Sometimes she asks you to sing for her, so she can fall asleep. She does have trouble sleeping sometimes, since her dreams are filled with memories of being trapped in shadow fell :( but you always are there to soothe her with a song.

Aylin always keeps you out of harms way in combat, even though you can hold your own. You’re too preschools for her to risk, so she makes sure you stay swell away from combat. She does appreciate your help when you boost her and your companions abilities with a warding spell. She is rather proud of your arcane abilities.

“Darling, aren’t you just the sweetest. Whatever would I do without you?” She always showers you with kisses after a battle, making sure to show her appreciation for you <3

Isobel Thorm:

Isobel loves watching you play your violin. She thinks it’s incredible how you so gracefully sway about, your fingers forming chords smoothly as your other hand draws the bow across the strings. It’s all skill, and she can see that.

When you play something more upbeat, she’s the first to be standing and supporting you, dancing the night away and cheering you on. She’ll also encourage your companions to dance as well, she wants to share the joy she feels by your music.

She also loves watching you fight, your nearly effortless grace in which you charm and smite enemies is something she greatly admires. “You impress me more every day, lovely.” She’ll call across the battlefield as you stand amongst a group of charmed enemies. You flash her a thumbs up in response, continuing your spell casting.

A/n

Sorry if these are kinda bad but I’m writing this in bed after working all day so 😀

[heraxic]

re8 as classical music

badly explained cause its 2am and i dont know musical terms.

Btw if anyone has any notes or other songs that would fit them id love to see it-

Ethan: Tchaikovsky - Marche Slave

Slow start, Ethan is unknowingly ensnared in a trap. As he realizes the danger Rose (and himself) are in the song becomes tragic and determined. Fastpaced strings, frantic beats —like prey escaping from predator— keeps escalating into something more and more insurmountable. A hopeful jingle is heard as Ethan finds out he can still save his daughter. A heroic theme plays as he overcomes the horrors despite it all (a sense of control over the situation is marked by highpitched anxious flutes superimposed by a deep stable horn). Then comes the first faceoff with Miranda who taunts him and Ethan’s tragic hero theme comes to a grinding halt as his heart gets pulled out of his chest. The drums pick up again and the little soldier is off to his final battle.

Mia: Claude Debussy - Clair De Lune

Sadly the real Mia doesn’t appear much. In the Winters home, Ethan writes that Mia doesn’t want to talk about what they went through in Louisiana, which leaves him with a lot of questions unanswered. In the flashback where she desperately tries reaching out saying ‘𝘺𝘰𝘶 matter’, she still can’t help keeping secrets- maybe out of fear that Ethan wouldn’t let it go (being extremely persistent) and they’d never return to normal. The song is heartbreaking and sad as she struggles coming to terms with the guilt and grief over what she’s done and what the one she loves went through because of it. On a last somber note, her child, who takes after her father both in looks and unresolved powers, is all she has left.

Rose: Saint-Saëns - Le Cygne

A little girl whos only ever known unconditional, all encompassing love. Even before her birth, it was known that her life would be full of uncertainty. Though stolen away for possessing powers she’s not even aware of yet, she continues to live and provide a beacon of hope for her family.

Chris: Richard Wagner - Ride of the Valkyries

Comes in the dead of night and rains hell on the Winters home. In his eyes, he’s doing the right thing, but has made himself the villain to the one he was trying to protect (victorious trumpets superimposed by high fearful strings). The transport gets intercepted by Miranda and the music falls. Once Chris finally explains himself to Ethan they’re allowed a brief bit of victory (steadier horn) as their combined efforts take down Miranda’s last line of defense (Heisenberg). In the end, Chris has to live with the victory of taking down the megamycete, the guilt and grief over Ethan’s death/sacrifice, and the troubling news from BSAA. A tainted victory.

Alcina: Tchaikovsky - Swan Lake

Appears first as a noble elegant socialite. She’s at the height of her power, owns a castle and three daughters and believes herself to be Miranda’s favorite. It’s business as usual, calm serene music. Suddenly an outsider has made his way into her home, killing her daughters one by one. She reaches out to Miranda, who only cares about the stupid ceremony, and realizes everything she knew was a lie. Anger and frustration builds. The music deepens, falls and rises again as she transforms, tries taking revenge on Ethan and fails, having lost everything in one evening.

Bela, Cassandra, Daniela: Rimsky Korsakov - Flight of the Bumblebee

Self explanatory. Hurried, manic and playful.

Donna: Tchaikovsky - Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy

Entrancing but with eerie insidious undertones. Fitting for the childlike dollmaker and her little porcelain friends. Ends with a fast and chilling theme for the twisted game of hide and seek

Moreau: Edvard Grieg - Hall of the Mountain King

Quiet, lumbering and slow. Ethan takes the Rose flask back easily; threatened with losing Mother Miranda it very quickly escalates as panic sets in and Moreau throws everything he has at him. The music swells and ends with a bang.

Karl: Aram Khachaturian - Masquerade Suite

A bold start. Right from the beginning he exudes arrogance, charisma and danger. He plays nice in front of Miranda with a waltz that picks up in intensity when putting Ethan through his first gauntlet. Then the tone gets deeper and quieter for a moment, as he plots in secret; it’s finally time to set his plan in action. It’s a race to the finish line as Ethan tears through the other lords, unknowingly playing right into Miranda’s plan. Realizing he could be a particularly useful asset/ally, Heisenberg puts him through the second gauntlet. The music is sadistically playful as he tests his will and endurance. Upon failing to recruit Ethan, the music picks up for the third gauntlet and ends with a bang, as Karl dies at the hands of Miranda.

Duke: Georges Bizet - Votre Toast

A friendly face unfitting in a place such as this. The upbeat and energetic theme sticks out like a sore thumb among the others. Whimsy and grandiosity acts as a brilliant facade for his enigmatic true nature. Though the jolly merchant schtick may be a lie, he always delivers on service.

Miranda: Sergei Prokofiev - Dance of the Knights

https://youtu.be/bBsKplb2E6Q?si=jnSpMO-bIhEcjJzb

Immediately imposes a sense of authority and dread. The dark theme plays over and over as she performs the same cruel experiments expecting different results, though it only succeeds in remowing her further from humanity. She imagines a world of pure bliss in acquiring her child, which at this point is as illusory as chasing the holy grail since she’s never satisfied. When she hears of Rose she schemes her way into the Winters home, elated to find the perfect vessel after a century of searching. She steals the child away, leaving behind a trail of destruction that finally catches up to her.

[ninjakk]

The song within WWX's heart

Hearing LWJ softly singing Wangxian for the first time, back when they were trapped in the Xuanwu of Slaughter's cave, left a profound impression on WWX. Even if he was slipping in and out of consciousness at the time, it still affected him deeply. On a subconscious level, this melody means so much to WWX and the way MXTX weaves this delicately throughout the plot is just perfection.

The first time we see WWX play Wangxian he is using a hastily improvised bamboo flute, while on Dafan Mountain. This is prior to WWX or indeed the reader (on a first read) being aware of its name or the significance it holds.

To stifle it, Wei WuXian calmed his feelings and assuredly played another melody. The melody had drifted over his mind naturally. It was relaxed and tranquil, contrasting with the bizarre and ear-piercing one from before

Chapter 10 ExR translations

WWX calms his emotions and tires to relax. Trying to think of something happy, something soothing, that will quell WNs killing intent. Which is when this tune naturally comes to his mind. Hearing the song instantly pacifies WN and he begins to follow WWX.

Just prior to this, WWXs emotions were incredibly high and very raw. Only a few days ago, he was forcefully resurrected into a stranger's body. He's had an altercation with JC and inadvertently upset his beloved late shijie's son. Then he bumps into the man he's been subconsciously pining for since they were teenagers. With his mind stirring up painful memories from his past life, it's so poignant that this is the song that resurfaces in his subconscious. As something that makes him feel safe and secure.

After the above, it's not* until the Xuanwu of Slaughter cave arc that we are finally unofficially introduced to Wangxian. In this chapter LWJ showcases his beautiful singing voice to a very drowsy WWX, who is slipping in and out of consciousness. We later find out that this is the aptly named Wangxian, a love song that LWJ has composed especially for WWX.

It had originally been an offhand remark. He was chatting with Lan WangJi to pass the time and didn’t at all expect him to agree. Yet, after a few moments of silence, a low yet mild voice echoed softly through the hollow cave. Lan WangJi really did begin to sing. Wei WuXian closed his eyes, turned around, and spread out his limbs, “It sounds nice.” He asked, “What’s it called?” Lan WangJi seemed to murmur something. Wei WuXian opened his eyes, “What was it called again?”

Chapter 55

MXTX doesn't give us much in terms of a description of the melody at this point, probably in an attempt to keep most of the readers guessing a little longer with regards to how LWJ knew it was WWX back on Dafan Mountain. But we can see WWX appreciates the tune and seems quite content with everything at that very moment. Over the past few days, since beating the legendary beast, WWX has been running a fever. LWJ has been diligently looking after him, passing him spiritual energy and keeping a fire lit in order to keep him warm - which WWX obviously appreciates. There is also a very sweet moment where he questions if LWJ had been allowing him to lie on his lap while he was drowsy. It's a very tender scene and marks a definite turning point in their relationship - especially on LWJ's behalf.

The next time we see WWX play Wangxian, is back in his second life - where he's very much starting to accept his feelings for LWJ. The feelings he's had since they were young are flooding to the surface and he's blissfully content just being around the other. They are on their way to the very place he died years ago, but he's so drunk on the way he is feeling about LWJ, he doesn't care at all. He feels incredibly safe and happy with him - which is when he inadvertently plays their love song once more.

He even had the spirit to enjoy the fields under the moonlight, pulling out the bamboo flute at his waist. As natural as ever, he played a tune. The flute had a limpid timbre. Lan WangJi’s footsteps hesitated slightly as Wei WuXian felt something inside of him suddenly light up.

Chapter 66

Just prior to the above scene, WWX is feeling loved, cared for and so happy his heart won't stop fluttering! He's remembering his parents, the love they had for each other and for him. All of these lovely images filling his head and beautiful feelings flooding his heart. Just as he is so happy and content, a melody comes drifting in his mind and he plays it on the flute under the moonlight once again.

It comes so naturally to him, because this is how he felt when he heard it originally. He felt happy, even though he was stuck in a cave and suffering from a fever - which is quite telling about how he must feel at LP at times! He felt cared for. He felt quite content rolling around on someone's LWJ's lap, while his head was tenderly stroked. He was lulled back to an unconscious state, hearing LWJ sing this melody to him as he felt all of these sweet emotions. He felt these so strongly, that the tune imprinted on his heart, and in turn his memory for all these years. A song can be a powerful thing, especially when associated with strong emotions.

WWX finally remembers where he has heard the tune before and is absolutely ecstatic to learn that LWJ not only composed the melody, but he is the only one to have heard it.

To me, there is definitely a strong chance that WWX also plays Wangxian during the Phoenix Mountain arc. This is probably more apparent on a re-read, once you are more familiar with the description of Wangxian later in the novel.

He held up Chenqing and blew into it, fingers shifting. The clear sound of the flute rushed into the sky as though it was a bird, lingering as it echoed through the mountain.

Chapter 69

WWX has just been flirting with LWJ, throwing flowers at him and trying to attract his attention. So it's safe to assume LWJ is on his mind, even if he is currently participating in a competition. Taking up a comfy spot on a low hanging branch of a tree, he basks in the sunlight feeling relaxed and comfortable. He is about to calm the fierce corpses and ghosts, summoning them to surrender in the Jiang sect's name. As such, he plays a soothing song on Chenqing that is clear, melodious and soared like birds in the sky. To me, at least on a re-read, it is quite obvious WWX is playing Wangxian here. As we are given more descriptions of the tune later in the novel, it all pieces together quite nicely.

WWX playing Wangxian at this moment in time also adds to why LWJ simply lost control and kissed him not long after he played on his flute. WWX had inadvertently played their love song! The very song LWJ had composed just for him! Not to mention the teasing and flirting WWX subject him to earlier on as well. Of course I'm not condoning LWJ's actions, but considering his character, it's no wonder he lost control and forcibly kissed WWX after all of this. Especially if he heard the almost teasing tune of his love song being played on a flute in the distance.

The last time we see Wangxian being played is of course at the end of the novel, when we finally learn what the melody is called.

Swaying left and right atop the donkey, Wei WuXian took the flute from his waist and placed it by his lips. The limpid notes flew across the sky like birds. Lan WangJi halted and listened quietly. It was the song he sang for Wei WuXian when they were stuck in the Xuanwu cave. It was also the song that Wei WuXian just so happened to have played at Dafan Mountain, the song that enabled Lan WangJi to confirm his identity.

Chapter 113

We can see the melody is described as limpid (or clear) in tone and the song evokes images of birds flying in the sky. This description is very similar to the quotes referenced above, which I think is very much intentional. If WWX did play Wangxian to calm the entities down on Phoenix Mountain, as he did with WN at the beginning of the novel, how sweet is it that he uses this song to soothe the poor souls that are in turmoil and full of resentment.

I think there is quite a lot of subtext hinting that WWX playing Wangxian at the beginning of the novel is far from a happy accident. That it is in fact something he has done since hearing the tune all those years ago. It even states in the novel, he plays the tune "as natural as ever", which could be interpreted as he's played this tune many, many times in the past - during both of his lives.

*Honourable mention:

Another scene that could possibly include WWX playing Wangxian once again, is during the chapter when we first meet DrunkJi.

Stopping at a desolated area, Wei WuXian took out his flute by his waist, placed it by his lips, and played a melody. After this, he waited silently.

Chapter 30

Obviously we don't have enough of a description here to tell if WWX just played Wangxian to summon WN. But it would add to the reason why an inebriated LWJ reacts in such a jealous way towards WN when he appears on the scene. Especially as he seems particularly annoyed at WWX playing his flute for WN. Granted, it might just be because he drunkenly stumbled upon WWX and WN together when he woke up from his intoxicated catnap. With LWJ still feeling the sting from WWX unwittingly playing their exclusive love song to another man back on Dafan Mountain. Awkward...

But it could also be LWJ being roused from his drunken slumber to the tantalising sound of a flute playing their song.

I totally headcanon WWX humming the melody throughout his first life. Soothing an upset A-Yuan with this lovely tune. Harvesting radishes while he sings to himself quietly. Tinkering with his inventions in the cave, while whistling the melody and hearing it reverberate all around him. The Wen remnants and the crazy Yiling Laozu cultists camping out at the base of the mountain with their little banner, would even swear they could hear a calming song softly echo around the burial mounds in the middle of the night at times.

There's just no way he didn't hum or play Wangxian after her heard it drifting in and out of consciousness. Especially as he can remember it so clearly in his second life, whenever he's really happy or needs to calm down.

In fact, I really wouldn't be surprised if LWJ hummed Wangxian to WWX while passing him spiritual energy when they were hiding in a cave after escaping Nightless City.

It also makes me wonder if WWX used this melody to calm the entities in the Burial Mounds back when he was trapped there. Every time we have seen WWX use a tune to calm corpses, it's (possibly) been this tune. It's not too much of a jump to assume he used it in the Burial Mounds to suppress the resentful energy at the time. It was probably very much fresh in his memory still at this point - only a month or so since he first heard the tune.

How beautiful would it be if the song that LWJ composed out of love for WWX is what essentially helped calm the resentful entities and save his soulmate's life while he was trapped in a literal hell on earth.

[notroosterbradshaw]

Office Christmas Party

We all know the Office Christmas Party season is in full effect. You: office manager. Bob: your admin. A Chris Beck (The Martian) self-repost from - ha - 2016, now an ode to Lt. BCG’s himself, Bob Floyd. A short, fluffy AU. 1.5k.

“Hot date?” you joked, sidling up to your administrative assistant as his long, slender fingers drifted across the screen of his phone, sitting on top of the desk of his workspace. He looked up with a shy smile, pocketing his phone and raising his champagne in the plastic glass instead. “I see boss lady forked out for the fancy crystalware this year,” you murmured to yourself, disappointed while he couldn’t resist scoffing and he offered you a glass of your own that he’d been saving.

“There wasn’t room in the budget,” he reminded you, nudging his glasses up his nose. “Not after the cuts made last financial year. Don’t beat yourself up. There’s free booze, who’s to argue with that?”

“It would have been nice to leave the office. Have a nice meal,” you continued before sighing, taking heed that your employees were at least enjoying themselves at that moment. Bob wriggled the glass again, hoping to distract you. “Thank you,” you gratefully accepted it. At least it was the good stuff, you realised, relaxing into the taste. “Merry Christmas, Bob.”

“Merry Christmas, boss,” he nodded solemnly as you both took a sip. “Don’t dock my pay for this because I know you respect honesty above all else and I would hate for it to backfire on me, but that jumper will definitely win the ‘ugly sweater’ comp later tonight,” he joked quietly, his amused smile wide and stony blue eyes twinkling mischievously.

“Ballsy,” you commented with a snicker. “You’re right. That is a good way to dock your pay.”

He laughed heartedly. “I’m sorry. I take it back,” he raised his glass in mock surrender.

“My boyfriend actually got it for me last Christmas as a gag gift, he knew I’d hate it but he’s taking me to dinner later tonight so I’m going to wear this, just in spite of him,” you said as Bob chuckled, lightly shaking his head. “I am glad I got an occasion to wear it. You know, really get something out of it and make him regret it.”

“What a horrible guy. You should dump him if this is the kind of thing he gifts you,” he took another sip of his champagne nervously as you raised an eyebrow at him before you giggled quietly at his gall.

“Maybe so,” you joked back to put him at ease. You both took in the scene around you. Your co-workers milling around with their champagne flutes jovially; the white and colourful Christmas lights strung across workstations and flashing brightly; the mail boy trotting around to lay kisses on the cheeks of all under the guise of the mistletoe he was holding; tinsel being used as scarves and selfies, selfies, selfies galore of happy employees – you were relieved to see everyone so pleased even if it was such an underwhelming celebration. “I saw that you extended our morning meeting time tomorrow,” you whispered.

Bob nodded, pushing back his long dirty blonde hair, nervously. “If you don’t mind?”

“Of course not, as long as I have the time on the other side.”

“You’re not booked back-to-back,” he confirmed. “It won’t take the time I’ve allocated.”

“No problem. Off the record?” you began as he gave you his attention and straightened to his full height.

“Off the record,” he cleared his throat. “I will be putting in my resignation.”

You nodded, trying to hide your disappointment. You were aware this was coming. Robert Floyd was far too intelligent to be trapped as your assistant for the rest of your careers and you’d heard through the grapevine that he had passed up a few jobs to stay where he was, which was a little upsetting. You didn’t want to hold him back and you certainly did not want him to feel obligated to stay. You dragged him in for a meeting a few months earlier to remind him that his potential was being wasted, regardless of what he thought his obligation was to you. You had a few contacts with other companies that could develop him further than you offered though he blatantly refused – he wanted to do things his way and without your influence which you respected immensely. “I’m devastated but I knew this was coming. I appreciate you staying with me as long as you have, Bob.”

“I’ve really enjoyed working with you. And I should thank you for giving me such a good reference. They mentioned that they called you already.”

“Really, it’s no problem. We sound like a mutual admiration society,” you scoffed, sipping your champagne.

Bob finally laughed, bringing a dimple to his handsome features. “True, we’re much too jaded for that.”

“Exactly,” you agreed as Mariah Carey blasted through the office and half the employees started happily/drunkenly screaming the lyrics to All I Want for Christmas is You. “When do I lose you?”

“MISTLETOE!” the mail boy bellowed, dangling the piece of red and green plastic above your heads as you and Bob looked at each other, alarmed.

“Ahh, no,” you spoke up immediately. “No, no. Not happening. Please be advised I am Mr Floyd’s manager.”

“I’m her subordinate,” Bob reiterated. “I don’t think we need to remind you of the ramifications of those actions,” Bob pointed out thoughtfully to the young man who was now ashen. Bob smacked his arm in that traditional bro-style – you were thankful to Bob for taking charge in the only way dudes can for each other.

“Fuck,” he muttered as you bit back a giggle at his language – this was not going well for him. “I’m so sorry – ” he tried as you shook your head, trying to hide your grin.

“It’s okay, just drop the mistletoe and move along,” you hinted.

“Yes, boss,” he said, before slinking away, mortified. You both laughed quietly.

“His intentions were good,” Bob told you as you nodded.

“So?” you gave Bob your attention again.

“Start of next year,” he confirmed. “I’ll finish the year out, but my notice is two weeks then I’m taking a few days to take my girlfriend away for Christmas.”

You sighed but forced a smile. “Well, congratulations, Bob. You deserve it. I wish the company wasn’t losing you, but you’ll thrive wherever you go,” you raised your glass as he did the same and took a sip. “Well, I’m going to head out. I don’t want to stay and cramp everyone’s style with the boss being here.”

“No,” Bob insisted. “Stay. Everyone wants you to take us out to a bar with your corporate card later,” he teased as you grinned.

“No, no,” you put the plastic flute on the desk before you. “I don’t want to have to haul anyone in and grant warnings on Monday. And if I didn’t see it, it didn’t happen,” you said decisively.

Bob nodded. “Fair,” he agreed.

You stood up and removed the Santa hat on your head before affixing it to Bob’s. “Ahh, lovely. Really brings out the blue in your eyes,” you said as the globe at the end flicked on and off dimly. “Make sure they don’t burn this place to the ground, huh?”

He chuckled quietly, dropping his eyes. “I’ll try.”

“Enjoy your night, Bob,” you told him and headed to your office to organise yourself and make a discreet exit. You closed the office door, the sounds of the joy of the season quietening. Fixing your hair, you gave your make-up a light touch-up and spritzed on your partner’s favourite perfume. Jacket on, rugged up in your snuggly scarf and bag you’re your shoulder, you gave yourself another quick once over in preparation for your date before you re-opened the door and the wall of Christmas sound hit you again.

Spying Bob standing tall among a gaggle of other admin, you knew he had a bit of a reputation around the office as a heartthrob, in that sweet nerd way, you supposed. Of course, you knew, it wasn’t lost on you how handsome he was. How sweet and friendly – but you caught yourself before getting swept up in those thoughts about him.

You gave him a small smile and wink before ducking through people and snuck out to the elevator. You waited until it arrived and stepped in eagerly, relishing in the Christmas muzik and found your phone, seeing the influx of missed work calls and texts, one text standing out and piquing your interest the most.

Bobby Floyd: I know I’m an asshole for getting you that jumper last Christmas but I love that you’re wearing it just for me right now. I’ll prefer it on the floor with the rest of our clothes when I get my hands on you later tonight. I love you, I will meet you at the restaurant soon, lover xoxo

You smiled openly, happy in the privacy of the elevator. It had been a strange year, hiding your relationship from your co-workers. You were so sad that Bob had landed the job of his dreams and that you wouldn’t be working together anymore. He’d told you all about the job, and you were just thrilled for him, but not seeing his cheeky grin outside your office every day would be… different. Maybe a little sad. You’d just have to contend with it at home instead. But he deserved this, and you would celebrate with him as he deserved and for the season later.

A/N: the tag list no longer exists. To keep up to date, give @notroosterbradshaw-library a follow x

[blueraineshadows]

Dark Betrayals Part Thirteen

Sebastian 🔺️F!MC 🔺️ Ominis

It's time for MC and Daisy to leave, Sebastian has revenge on his mind, and Ominis must make a final farewell. Chapter Master List

Triggers: violence, panic attacks, murder, death

Chapter Thirteen - The Last Dance

The delicate strains of violins filled the hall, a cultured backdrop to the low murmur of voices, as the Wizarding World's finest pure bloods and supporters mingled and sipped from fancy fluted glasses. Dressed in their finest dress robes and observing immaculate etiquette, MC eyed them with mild disgust. These distinguished ladies and gentlemen appeared to be cultured and polite, but underneath, they were no different than the most basic savage in the street. She had seen most of these simpering guests attending the duels down in the tunnels, their faces flushed, and voices baying for blood as spells cut through the space.

Marvolo was in his element, chatting with guests and ensuring everyone had a full glass, his smile smug and cold. He couldn't help showing MC off to his fellow cohorts. His star duelist, who was currently sitting at the penultimate slot on the league table, and his future sister in law.

His eyes gleamed as he took her arm and presented her to those he was rubbing shoulders with. "This time next week, MC will be my champion," he boasted. He eyed them slyly. "You may want to start placing your bets now."

MC forced a smile onto her face, nodding and agreeing whilst knowing full well that those bets were pointless. This time next week, she would be long gone from here. The pretence was starting to make her jaw ache from forcing the smiles, and she was glad to be returned to Ominis and his much gentler touch and presence.

Ominis greeted the guests with handshakes and polite nods of his head, accepting their congratulations and introducing MC to these so-called family friends. She could see the strain around his eyes and mouth and held his arm tightly, hoping to ease his worries with quiet murmurs of support near his ear. It was the closest they had been to each other in days, and she felt the sting of sadness as she realised it would be the last time they would be together.

Mr and Mrs Gaunt looked almost regal in their fine robes, Mrs Gaunt wearing a glittering tiara in her hair and an elaborate locket around her neck with the Slytherin 'S' set into it. An heirloom by all accounts. MC found it rather over the top for her own taste and just smiled politely when it came time to shake hands and listen to their approval of the marriage.

Finally alone with Ominis, MC sighed and wished she could lean her head against him, a weariness washing over her, and she stroked a hand absently over her stomach. Ominis slipped his watch from his pocket and tapped the face with his wand, nodding. "It's just after 9," he said. "Two hours."

"Would you like to sit down and rest for a bit?" MC asked.

Ominis shook his head. "I'd rather not." He tilted his head, thinking. "Would you like to dance?"

MC looked up at him, her heart skipping a little beat. As tired as she felt, how could she say no to that? "I would love to."

Ominis led her out onto the dance floor with ease and took her in his arms, his hands placed respectably on her body as they began to sway to the sounds of the band. There were other couples dancing around them, but MC paid them no mind. She merely watched Ominis.

He was flawless, meeting each step and guiding her through the dance, his wand still in hand to aid him with both of their fingers entwined around it.

"I truly am sorry, Ominis. For everything that has happened," MC said quietly. "I never wanted to hurt you, and it pains me that I have. I know you may never forgive me, but just know, I wish you happiness."

"I just hope you find whatever it is that you are looking for," he replied. "Promise me you won't waste this chance, MC. Don't get caught up in darkness and end up trapped by someone else like Marvolo. Make the most of the fresh start to do something that fulfils you."

MC felt her throat tighten with emotion, his words ringing through her mind and coming up against the truth, the future that was growing inside her belly. It wasn't just herself she had to think of now. "I will do my best, Ominis," she said.

They twirled, the full skirt of her black gown flaring out. She squeezed his hand, her lips trembling a little. "I shall miss you," she said truthfully.

"Not now, MC," he whispered. "Not yet."

She swallowed back her tears and felt the gentle caress of his hand at her back.

"For now, we just dance," he said. "Goodbye comes later."

....*....

Two lackeys stood in the corridor near Marvolo's office, slouching and chatting, their eyes widening, and both of them straightening up as Sebastian strode towards them. Appearing as Marvolo, he kept his cold smirk in place and narrowed his eyes at them.

"Did Sallow drop the gold off this evening?" He asked icily.

The lackey that Sebastian had made sure to greet as himself earlier nodded. "Yes, sir. Saw him myself. He was here about 7, I reckon."

Sebastian gave a curt nod. "Good," he said. He ushered them both into the office and closed the door. The two lackeys gave each other curious looks as Marvolo/Sebastian moved to open the safe.

"I need you to do something for me," Sebastian said. He took out the bags of gold and started piling them on the desk. "I can't hang around, I need to get back to my brother's engagement party. So, I will get to the point. Go and track down those lackeys that are double agents, you know, Benny Cripps' little spies."

The lackey's looked at each other. "Whatcha want them for?"

Sebastian gave them his best stern glare. "I want you to kill them."

They both gaped, watching as Sebastian began to stuff all the gold into the enchanted pocket of his robe, making it obvious that he was taking it all, every last bag of Benny Cripps' money. He put his hand in and took out some coins, and handed them out to both lackeys. They took them uncertainly.

"Hunt those spies down and kill them," he ordered.

"But...er...won't that start a turf war, sir?" One of them asked nervously.

Sebastian smirked. "And?"

"Benny don't take no prisoners, Marvolo, you know that," the other one said.

"Neither do I," Sebastian said coldly. "Are you questioning your orders?"

Both lackeys immediately shook their heads. "No, sir, of course not. When do we do it?"

Sebastian tucked away the last of the gold and smiled. "Around 11pm should be about right. Oh, and don't mention this to Sallow. He is too loyal to Cripps. His card is marked lads, and he is mine for the taking. Understand?"

The lackeys both nod again, and Sebastian dismissed them. A quick glance at the clock told him he had an hour to change back into himself and then go and fetch Daisy.

With a turf war breaking out between Benny's gang and Marvolo's, that should keep them busy for a while. Sebastian patted his pocket smugly as he made his way back to the room where he had stashed his clothes. With this amount of gold, MC and Daisy would be able to start a proper new life with a bag for himself for his troubles. And with the seed planted that Marvolo was going to take him out, his disappearance would be assumed as him being dead. Sebastian almost chuckled to himself. Marvolo was obsessed with gold and power, and this would hit him right where it would hurt.

Those lackeys would blab about Marvolo stealing that gold. They were all two faced and out for themselves. Once Benny Cripps heard that Marvolo had swiped the gold and started taking out his spies, then there really would be trouble. Sebastian was glad he would be long gone by the time the proverbial hits the fan.

....*....

As the minutes ticked towards 11pm, Ominis felt his restlessness grow, his fingers fiddling with his wand. MC kept putting reassuring hands on him, but every one of her touches merely reminded him that she was going within the hour. He needed to hold it together.

Finally, he took her arm and led her out onto the paved terrace at the back of the hall, the night air chill on his face. "Time to go, MC," he said.

He had picked up the tones of sadness in her voice tonight, her soft words as they had danced making his heart ache. He would miss her too, terribly, but wasn't sure he could find the words to express it.

"Then let's go," she murmured. She held on tight to his arm and he could feel her trembling. He focused his mind, and with a crack, they vanished from the terrace.

....*....

The street was dark, the shadows long and smothered by swirling smog as Sebastian hurried along, Daisy clutching his hand. She was dressed in the most modest gown he had ever seen her in, her pretty little face void of excessive makeup, her hair neatly pinned. He had wrapped her in a dark cloak all the same, though, the fabric dragging along behind her small frame. He was worried she might trip and fall, and he kept a tight grip on her tiny hand.

He felt sick. His stomach was churning with nerves, but also, the transition back into himself had left him exhausted and drained. He'd had to take a minute, using one of Garreth's restoring potions to get him back on his feet.

Sebastian paused a moment, pulling Daisy into an alley to let them both catch their breaths. He pulled out his wand and muttered the locator charm. The deep tug pulled at him, and he closed his eyes, savouring the feel of it. MC was still wearing the necklace, and then, the tug shifted sharply, pulling in a different direction. He opened his eyes. Her and Ominis had left the party.

"We need to get moving," he whispered. "I can Apparate us. It will be faster."

Daisy grimaced. "I aint no good with that vanishing crap you lot pull. It makes me proper sick."

Sebastian smirked. "Yes, it's not the most pleasant feeling, but it gets you places fast. We need to get out of here, Daisy. MC is waiting for us."

Daisy looked up at him. "She loves you, you know," she said. "I hope you got a plan in that pretty head of yours for tracking us down after all this."

Sebastian lifted his eyebrows in surprise. "Can't bear the thought of not seeing me again, Daisy?" He teased.

She smirked and slapped his arm. "Just make sure you find us," she said. Her face grew serious. "MC is going to need you, whether she will admit it or not."

Sebastian frowned. "What do you mean?"

Daisy shook her head and took hold of his arm. "Never mind," she said quickly. "Come on then, handsome. Vanish us the fuck out of here before I change my mind."

....*....

The area of King's Cross in London was no longer the genteel and affluent area that it once was. The lovely houses there had made way for industry and the railway over recent decades, the industrial boom hitting the hardest on those who dwelled in the city.

Now, the area was factories and small dwellings for the workers of such industry, and for those who worked the railway. Amongst the few remaining larger houses was one of the last properties remaining to the Gaunt family in the city.

Ominis stood in the main living space, what little furniture remained draped in sheets, while MC changed out of her dress and into more comfortable travelling attire. He pulled his pocket watch out and tapped it with his wand. Ten minutes past the hour.

"Where the devil is Sebastian with Daisy?" He hissed. "It's taking too long."

He heard MC's sturdy boots as she stepped across the room. "I'm sure he will be here any moment," she assured. But he could hear the nerves in her voice. "I hope whatever he had planned to do hasn't gone wrong."

The whipping crack of someone Apparating in came from outside the door, and Ominis turned his head. "Maybe that's him," he said. He reached out to catch MC by the arm as she moved towards the door. "Check before you open it. Just in case."

Nerves were making his breath shake as MC stepped slowly towards the window. While this house was rarely used, Marvolo had eyes everywhere, and he didn't want to linger here too long. Sebastian would start the fake trail at King's Cross Station, while the girls would take the Floo to Southampton docks. Everything would be alright if they stuck to the plan, he assured himself.

MC confirmed it was indeed Sebastian and hurried to open the door. The clatter of feet signalled their arrival, and Ominis held up his wand, the shadowy outline of Sebastian and Daisy coming into the room.

"What took you so long?" He snipped.

"Sorry, that's my fault," Daisy said. "I ain't keen on that vanishing trick."

Ominis well remembered after their trip to his family home with her. He turned to Sebastian. "Well, did you pull off your secret deed?"

"It's all kicking off as we speak," Sebastian said. Ominis could hear the grin in his tone and frowned.

"What did you do?" MC asked.

Sebastian's shadow shifted and he began to pull something out of his robes. "Open up your bag, MC," he said. "I've got a gift for you."

MC and Daisy both gasped, and MC swore softly. "Are you crazy?" She hissed. Ominis heard the slap of an arm and Sebastian's grunt. "Marvolo is going to kill you!"

"What is it? What has he done?"

Ominis felt a wave of dread as Sebastian filled them in on his little trick. Marvolo was going to be incandescent with rage over this. Ominis put a hand to his forehead, exasperation at Sebastian's tendency for chaos making his head ache. "You do realise that I have to stay behind with my brother, don't you? Are you completely mad?"

Sebastian shifted closer, the familiar waft of cinnamon and citrus reaching his nose, and Sebastian took his hand, placing a heavy cloth bag into it.

"This bag is for you, old friend," Sebastian said. "You don't have to stay behind. Use it however you wish to, but I would rather you used it to get out of your family's clutches as well. You deserve happiness as much as MC does."

Ominis went rigid, stunned at this gesture. He should hate Sebastian for having such a hold on the heart of the woman he loved, for being nothing but an absolute pain in his neck, and for causing so much disruption and darkness. But it seemed he couldn't, because just when he thought he had washed his hands of Sebastian for good, he would pop up with this kind of gesture, with words that showed the love and generosity behind the chaos.

Ominis swallowed thickly and nodded, taking the bag of stolen gold from Sebastian. It felt heavy in his hands, and not just from the coin. "I will think on it," he said stiffly. "Thank you."

The sound of MC's tears reached his ears. A gentle hand touched his arm. "Do it, Ominis. Get away from them, live how you want to."

Tears burned the backs of his eyes. "We shouldn't linger. It's time, MC. You need to say your goodbyes."

He grunted as she threw her arms around him, squeezing him tightly. As much as he wished to hang on to his control, he couldn't, burying his face into her hair and holding her just as tightly. There were no words that could explain the ache in his chest, the pain of her leaving, and he just held her against him, savouring the softness and her scent.

As she pulled back from him she pressed the engagement ring into his hand. "Save this for someone worthy of you, Ominis," she whispered. "I mean it. I wish you happiness."

He opened his mouth to speak, to tell her that he doubted there could ever be anyone else, when the front door blasted inwards. Splinters of wood bounced around the room accompanied by Daisy's scream.

"Well isn't this a touching little scene," Marvolo said strolling in. "Hello, little brother."

....*....

They had been so close. Freedom was but one Floo trip away, but this bastard just couldn't leave them alone. MC felt fury twisting up her insides as she held her wand up towards Marvolo Gaunt, who stood there in his fine black robes, a cold smile on his handsome face.

Behind him stood one of his lackeys, a scruffy, thin faced rat of a man, who quickly darted forwards to grab hold of Daisy. Daisy whimpered, her eyes darting from Marvolo to MC as they faced each other down.

Slowly, Marvolo slipped out his own wand and held it up towards her. MC chuckled, the sound not humorous in the slightest. "Are you going to face me in a duel, Marvolo?" She taunted. She narrowed her eyes at him, hating him with everything she was. "I'll fucking kill you."

He shook his head, lips twisted in a mockery of a smile. His eyes darted to one side, where Sebastian was also standing with his wand held up. "Oh look, it's lover boy, coming to the defence of his little darling," Marvolo taunted. "I wouldn't. Do it, Ed, hurt her."

A scream sounded from behind MC, and she spun, eyes wide. The lackey had hit Daisy with a spell, not Crucio, but one that had her rigid and screaming. MC lifted her wand, but two things happened at once.

Marvolo cast towards a distracted Sebastian, who was flung backwards into the wall, thick coiling ropes that looked like snakes wrapping around him and binding him tightly, his body trapped against the faded wall. His wand clattered down onto the floor, and his face twisted with rage.

The second thing was a spell cast by Ominis, a strong stunning spell that hit the lackey in the face, sending him sprawling backwards over a sheet covered table. Daisy staggered and landed on the floor, sobbing. Ominis was with her in two strides, bending to help her up.

"Oh, for goodness sake, Ominis," Marvolo growled. "Why the fuck did you do that? She's nothing but a dirty, Muggle whore."

MC shook with fury and turned her wand back on Marvolo, casting a curse towards him that he blocked with surprising ease. He side stepped, assuming a duelling stance.

"I will fight if you want me to," he goaded. "But I am much more interested in finding out what is going on here. Ominis, dear brother, you purchased two tickets for a ship recently. The question is, who for? Which two of you four are making a run for it? Don't tell me it's the secret lovers? You wouldn't help them run, would you little brother?"

"Don't tell him anything," Sebastian said, struggling against his bindings.

Marvolo shot a basic cast Sebastian's way, making him grunt and go rigid. MC cast again, a Diffindo that Marvolo deflected, and it sent deep gashes through a settee in the far corner. He cast back towards MC, a flurry of spells lighting the space between them as they circled each other in the room.

"It's over Marvolo," MC said. "I'm done doing your bidding. My debt is paid."

He chuckled. "I dont think so."

MC cast again, dodging and blocking, surprised at how good he was. Then he shot another cheap cast towards Sebastian, and this time, he screamed. MC flinched, distracted, and then she was hit, thrown backwards onto the floor with a thud and a roll.

Daisy shouted, tearing herself from Ominis' grip where he had been holding her at the far side of the room. She hurried towards MC. "No, stop!" She cried. "The baby!"

MC froze, her eyes flying up to Daisy in shock. The room fell silent, the laboured breaths coming from her own mouth sounding far too loud to her own ears. Daisy cringed, her eyes full of apology. MC knew why she had done it. Daisy was protective of the baby, determined that it would get a good life with people who loved it, her own loss a hole that would never be filled.

But she had just announced it to the three men MC had been desperate to keep it from.

"What baby?" Marvolo demanded coldly.

MC couldn't move, half sitting up, leaning on her hands, her gaze flying to Ominis who was holding his wand up towards her, face utterly pale. Her eyes then turned to Sebastian, who was staring at her, eyes wide.

Daisy glared up at Marvolo, her eyes blazing with hatred. "She's pregnant," she snapped.

Marvolo stared at Ominis. "Is this true, Ominis? You told me you were on a potion."

MC felt tears slipping from her eyes as she looked at Ominis. He was shaking his head, his brow furrowed. "I...I do take a potion," he said. His voice was strained. "I never stopped taking it."

"I'm sorry," MC whispered.

Daisy got up and stood in front of her, hands on her hips. "No, you don't apologise, MC," she said firmly. "Not for this."

Marvolo turned his furious gaze towards Sebastian, who had gone limp, staring at MC in disbelief. She met his gaze, begging with her eyes for him to understand.

"You!!!" Marvolo yelled. "You did this!"

Marvolo lifted his wand, the curse bellowed from his lips with wicked intent. "Crucio!"

Both MC and Daisy screamed, MC scrambling up to her feet, grabbing for her wand. But Daisy, brave, selfless Daisy. She jumped forward and placed herself between Sebastian and Marvolo.

"No!" MC screamed.

The curse hit Daisy full pelt in the chest, the blinding red light filling the room along with the ear shattering sound of her scream.

MC stood frozen, transfixed, as Daisy convulsed under the blast of that curse. Her eyes were rolling back as that horrifying scream split the air. MC was taken back to the night when Marvolo had taken her, and they had witnessed Marvolo torturing his lackey. She was sent back even further to a darkened chamber below Hogwarts, and Sebastian casting the very same curse on her to get them out.

"No," MC said. She shook her head in denial at what she was witnessing. Daisy was not magical, she had no strength for this, it was too much and Marvolo's intent was vicious. MC shouted louder.

Of course nobody could hear her. Sebastian was shouting, Ominis was shouting, and Daisy kept on screaming, even as the blood began to trickle from her mouth as she collapsed to the floor.

It was a matter of seconds but they seemed to stretch and stretch until time had no meaning.

Marvolo released the curse, breathing hard, and MC moved to aim, murder in her heart. Her ancient magic began to surge and flicker. She vaguely heard Ominis calling her name, but it faded out into the background. She would tell him she was sorry, but she wouldn't mean it. Marvolo needed to die.

But she wasn't quick enough. Marvolo uttered the devastating words in a cold, calm voice, and a flash of green filled the room.

"Avada Kedavra."

Daisy was silenced. Her body went still, no more convulsions as she lay there, staring at nothing.

A blast of red shot past MC's shoulder and hit Marvolo, a swift Bombarda that sent him slamming into the wall with a sickening crack. He slid to the floor in a heap, and MC could still hear Daisy's scream ringing in her ears despite the quietness that now filled the room.

....*....

Sebastian stopped fighting against the bonds, shock filling him. How had this all gone so terribly wrong? He stared down at Daisy's lifeless body, the green light, and the muttered curse, triggering dangerous flashbacks from that night in the catacombs all those years ago.

Sweat beaded on his brow as his chest tightened and fluttered with panic, a roaring sound in his ears, and he fought to get air in his lungs. Memories swamped over him, and he fought back the vomit that was threatening to push up his throat. He looked up at the ceiling, his eyes registering the cracks in the plaster, but his mind was reeling as he tried to get a hold of himself.

He heard Ominis speaking, the familiar voice grounding him a little as he sucked in deep breaths.

"No, no," MC muttered. "Not Daisy. No!"

Sebastian looked back into the room, his eyes focusing on MC as she dropped to her knees before Daisy. She reached out a hand that shook, and she carefully brushed strands of hair from Daisy's white face. Trickles of blood ran from Daisy's mouth and nose, her eyes were red too, and Sebastian was sure that the killing curse had been a mercy.

Daisy was a Muggle. She was small, and she would have had no chance against the violence with which Marvolo had cast that curse. Her insides were probably ruined, and that alone would have given her a slow, painful death.

A death that had been meant for him.

His chest tightened even more at the look of horror and denial on MC's face. The pain in her eyes was shattering. Daisy had died trying to protect him. He felt tears well up and he blinked them furiously back.

MC began to moan, a distressed sound that turned into shaking sobs, her hands pressed to her face as she rocked with her grief. Ominis winced and moved towards her, his hands hovering as though to hold her, but he pulled back. Sebastian cleared his throat, his own arms aching to hold MC.

"Ominis," he croaked. "Get me down."

Ominis turned, wand out. He hovered it over where Sebastian stood and then muttered a few words, a charm spiralling out from his wand that released Sebastian's bonds. Sebastian shook himself and bent to snatch up his own wand, the sound of MC's crying filling the room.

Sebastian stared at Marvolo on the floor, a cold fury gathering in his stomach. His fingers flexed around the handle of his wand as he ran through a myriad of black curses in his mind. He could make that man suffer, make him wish he had never laid eyes on Sebastian or MC.

"You need to leave," Ominis said. He grabbed hold of Sebastian's arm. "Get her out of here, now."

Sebastian gave him a dazed look and pushed his fingers through his hair. His dark thoughts slunk back into the corner of his mind, and he turned to gaze at MC. "Give her a minute," he muttered.

MC was bent over, her arms wrapped around Daisy's limp form, sobbing. He swallowed thickly, his thoughts returning to the day when he heard that Anne had died.

So much death.

"We may not have many minutes to spare," Ominis said. "Marvolo could come round any moment, and who's to say he hadn't sent for back up that could arrive without warning."

Ominis had a point. Sebastian tried to focus and looked up at Ominis. "Where shall I take her?"

Ominis shoved his hand into his robes and pulled out an envelope. He held it out, and Sebastian took it. "Two tickets to America, the ship sails tomorrow from Southampton. Go with MC, take her away from here and...please, look after her. Take care of her and your baby."

Sebastian gulped, his eyes flying back towards MC. Bloody hell, yes, the baby!

"I had no idea," he said shaking his head. "She didn't say a word."

"That doesn't matter now. All that matters is that you both are leaving here, now!"

Sebastian shoved the envelope in his pocket and moved towards MC. He put his hand on her shoulder. "MC, we have to go," he said gently.

She shook her head. "I can't leave her," she gasped.

Ominis bent down to her and reached out, his hands gentle as they sought out her face. He cupped it, his thumbs brushing away her tears with tender strokes. "Listen to me, MC," he said. "You and Sebastian must go. I will take care of Daisy. I will see to it that she is properly buried and cared for. But, you need to run as planned. Sebastian will go with you."

She gulped looking up at him, and Sebastian fought back more tears at the look on her face. "But the false trail..."

"I will cover your tracks." Ominis winced. "Something I should have offered to do all along, I suppose, but it matters not. Go and live, MC. You and Sebastian. Promise me."

She nodded. "I promise."

"Good girl," Ominis said.

Sebastian and Ominis stood. MC pressed a kiss to Daisy's head, laying her carefully down on the floor, and then stood with them. Ominis pressed her into Sebastian's arms. "Go," he insisted.

Sebastian held MC close and felt his stomach twist with loss as he gazed at his old friend. Once they had left, he would be all alone and facing the wrath of Marvolo. He reached out, grabbing Ominis by the shoulder. "Come with us," he blurted.

He had no idea where this was coming from, and it sounded crazy to his own ears. Ominis gaped and then pulled back shaking his head.

"No, I shall stay. I will cover your tracks and see to Daisy," he said. Then he hesitated. "Perhaps send word once you are safe. But don't put names on it. I would like to know you are alright."

Sebastian frowned, his gaze dropping to Marvolo on the floor. "What about your brother?"

"Let me worry about that," Ominis said. "You two worry about getting to safety. I...I shall bid you farewell."

MC gripped the front of Sebastian's robes, her head leaning against his chest, eyes shining with tears as she looked at Ominis. Sebastian held her tightly.

"Goodbye, Ominis," she whispered.

Sebastian took a breath and gave Ominis one last long look. "Goodbye, old friend."

Sebastian squeezed his eyes shut, thought of the nearest Floo point, and Disapparated.

....*....

After the crack of Disapparation, Ominis released the breath he had been holding, and allowed a moment of silence to fill him up.

They were gone. Sebastian and MC were gone.

He fought back the wave of sadness and grit his teeth. There was still work to do.

Lifting his wand, he scanned the room in search of his evil brother and spotted him laying on the floor. He stepped a little closer and lowered his wand down towards Marvolo's head.

As a boy he had been forced to perform terrible acts to prove his worth to the family. This brother had coaxed him, bullied him, tortured him and belittled him his whole life. There was no love lost between them, and yet as Ominis stood there wand out, he still could not bring himself to destroy Marvolo.

This man had committed heinous acts, had hurt those that Ominis cared for, and murdered that poor girl in cold blood right before them. Marvolo knew about the baby. He knew Sebastian and M were running, and once he found out that the gold was all gone, his rage would explode.

Marvolo must never remember what occurred in this room. Needs must. Ominis focused his mind and aimed with purpose. "Obliviate!"

He then turned to repair the room, ridding it of evidence of them being there, before pausing by poor Daisy.

The bravery of this Muggle girl amazed him. To stand before Marvolo like that and then jump in front of the curse was beyond pure nerve. It was love. Pure and simple.

Ominis now needed to repay that sacrifice, and he knew just how to do it. He bent to scoop Daisy up into his arms, such a tiny thing she was, a tiny thing with a big heart.

....*....

The ocean breeze tugged at her braided hair, and she lifted her face to feel the little sprinkles of salty sea spray on her cheeks. The sky above was purest blue, no smog, and no city filth clinging to her skin. Just fresh sea air, the constant thrum of the ships' huge engines below their feet, and a strong chest at her back.

MC leant her head back against Sebastian, her hand sliding along his arm to press against the back of his hand that was settled firmly over her stomach. Less than a few hours had passed before his natural protectiveness had extended to the life growing inside of her. If he was near her, and to be honest, he hadn't left her side, his hand was on her stomach. After the initial shock, Sebastian was already in love with his child.

MC felt safe. But her heart ached for Daisy. The loss of her was a hollow cavern in her chest that kept threatening to consume her. She could only hope and trust that Ominis was alright and had taken care of things back in London.

They had been at sea for four days now. It wouldn't be long before they docked in New York. Nerves fluttered in her belly, and she held Sebastian a little tighter. He kissed her temple and leant his head against hers, his hand caressing her stomach.

"We will be alright, I promise," he murmured.

MC nodded and turned to look up at him. The ocean breeze tugged at his unruly brown hair, and the sunlight had brought out the freckles across his nose. His face was harder these days, leaner, but she could still see glimpses of the boy behind the shadows in his eyes. They both carried shadows and dark burdens, but when she was with him, they didn't seem so heavy.

She smoothed her hands up his chest, sliding them around his neck before pressing a kiss to his mouth. "I'm glad I have you with me," she said softly.

Sebastian smirked, his fingers brushing against the silver heart charm on the necklace he had given her. "It was never in doubt," he said. "I promised I wouldn't let you slip away from me, MC, and I intend to keep that promise."

Hope flared in her heart, a flicker of flame that she dared to cherish. "Forever?"

Sebastian's smile was soft. "Forever."

This isn't quite over yet!! One more chapter to come 😁💜 To be continued...

[lotrmusical]

here it is: the Big Wheel of Things People Love About Watermill Lord of the Rings!

spin here

optional: use what you get as a creative prompt for fanworks to celebrate the anniversary of the production! (full info here)

a couple stats from sorting the responses, just for fun:

louis/frodo is the most commonly mentioned, followed by nuwan/sam, aaron/aragorn and folarin/gimli.

a full 10% of responses mention the characters' physical affection: hugging, holding, reaching for each other, etc. this is truly the world's claspiest musical

louis and nuwan are tied for the most quoted line deliveries, followed by tom

everyone really loves the ent noises and falling leaves in the fangorn scene. (5 separate mentions)

full list of responses & credit below the cut 🍃

@cicelythereaper:

The Ents being represented by the sound of wood striking wood in the walls

The actor-musician setup - the way everyone is musical and telling a story!

Galadriel standing within her giant wreath - which turns into a sort of Ring of fire when she's considering going darkside

The choreography of Flight to the Ford

Frodo and Gollum's parallel body language

Folarin's performance in Moria

Saruman. Everything about Saruman

Aragorn's habit of clasping people's heads

@mischieffoal:

Matt Bugg's Gollum thirst traps

Lobelia

Evil flute magic

I want the ring/risk to be mine alone

Day May End

The breath like choreo at the first "lorien laure"

clutching our heads in his hands

Mrs. Bracegirdle

Samfrosie 5ever

GIRL PIPPIN

"our lives are woven together yours and mine"

aoife's voice

sioned's extremely eldritch elf queen

brown sam and black rosie!!!!!

yazdan's just really hot

extreme divorced energy saruman/gandalf

that bit in the council of elrond where Legolas speaks just as the turntable has put him directly facing the audience

Boromir's death and wake

Boromir's ghost/Faramir

Aragorn/Arwen, they do it SO WELL

@nowandforalways:

The new arrangement on specifically Frodo's verse of Now And For Always

"SAM LOVES ROSIE SAM LOVES ROSIE"

The way that PDukes says the words "a far, green country"

Frodo constantly slinging his arm around Sam's shoulders

Plum cake

Bilbo kissing Frodo's hands

Ensemble hobbits reaching their hands out to Frodo when Sam helps him up before Wonder

Hobbit hug after Gandalf falls in Moria

"Heyday" stupid-foot-tap-jump-thing

The change in Gollum's voice after Frodo calls him "Smeagol"

Sparkly elven cloaks

The way Arwen holds her arms

Stab Wound Continuity™️

Shelob puppet

PDukes standing behind Theodenothor looking so SAD

Arwen & Aragorn's matching arm movements during Lasto i lamath

The "beat drop" in Lothlorien (when they start singing in Quenya lol)

"Master Elrond, WHY there is a dwarf here I do NOT know"

The lighting during Song of Hope (reprise)

The Black Speech being projected on the back wall when Gandalf takes it out of the fire in Bag End

Frodo mostly hanging back at his own birthday party and then immediately getting SO INTO IT when the dancing starts

Frodo fully forgetting his pack at the start of The Road Goes On and Sam grabbing it for him

Louis' voice

Frodo directing the other hobbits and encouraging the Breelanders during The Cat And The Moon

The red waistcoat with Louis' dark hair and eyes

How physically affectionate Frodo is with the people he loves

TIRED AND COLD

Frodo grabbing Smeagol's arm to counter-balance as Smeagol falls into Mount Doom

Louis being the resident freak in all of the cast interviews

Frodo being on the lower harmony for the first time in the whole show when he joins Sam singing at the Gray Havens

@eelfleece:

BIG! SPIDER! PUPPET!

little small leaves floating down in the ent scene and the soft Boom Boom accompanying them

anonymous:

It drove my sibling's wife insane for several months. Sometimes the most important thing about a production is how much it means to people you care about.

the actor-musicianship

the intimacy of the theatre

the cast themselves

the strong south-asian inspiration in the music and choreo

It felt like such a genuine production. No big stage or huge light shows, just actors having fun and delivering one hell of a performance. The smaller venue helped with that a lot

The pre show where Bilbo walked among the crowd greeting people and chatting with them as if they too were hobbits.

I walked from Newbury station to the theatre so getting there and seeing that the outside of the theatre was decorated as well was such a good way to arrive there after an hour of walking

All of the actors being the ones who play pretty much all of the music as well made me have so much more respect for the amazing cast

The parts where actors played outside of the stage like gollum climbing the decor or Aragorn (I think) suddenly being on the balcony.

The leaves falling when the ents are in the scene made it so much more immersive

The costumes made for the production were amazing. Each one suited the character well

I saw the actress who played pippin smiling throughout the entire show. She was having genuine fun and that made it so much more authentic to me

I am Astonished that they managed to fit all the three books into one musical.

I just really hope this musical will someday return to the watermill theatre as it was the best performance I have ever seen. Nothing will top this

the way louis maskell says "mr gandalf - please" with a laugh in his voice as he kneels next to sam to "protect" him from being turned into anything unnatural

the final show where sam scurried behind frodo during "don't let him turn me into anything… UNNATURAL" so frodo just knelt with his hands out in front of him like "Mr Gandalf… please"

Legolas! and! Gimli! forehead! touch! and! head! clasp! during wonder after talking about seeing the caves and the forests together

Louis Maskell's wiggles

Yazdan's northern accent for Legolas

the Look TM and intonation on Frodo's "…goodbye, Sam" before they do the foot tapping as Sam heads off to the Ivy Bush with Rosie

looks like /you've/ got ALL the company you need

oh yes! lots of FRUIT around here

Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli doing different rituals whilst kneeling over Boromir's body

Aarongorn's ritual gesture - hand to head, chest and lips

boromir: 'and defeated him!!' elrond: '…...yes. 🙄'

'don't adventures ever have an end?' bilbo's heartbreaking tone

circle of light holding gandalf captive in isengard

the pattern from the moria doors also used on gimli's costumes

NAZGUL PUPPETS. horse skull my beloved

the blue cloths rippling down from the ceiling for flight to the ford

amelia's high harmony in road goes on

council of elrond turntable and curved benches blocking that effortlessly puts everyone where they need to be to keep the scene moving, clear, dynamic

'go forth in hope that the small may succeed where the great could not' tom's tone and gentleness with frodo making me cry every time

STAR OF EARENDIL A CAPPELLA MOMENT. CHILLS FOREVER

all the times merry, pippin and sam support frodo and help him along, emotionally and physically

EVERYONE MIRRORING SAM AND REACHING OUT THEIR HANDS TO FRODO BEFORE WONDER

nuwan's beautiful floral guitar strap

sioned's galadriel becoming increasingly terrifying, her distant gaze and lilting intonation

matt bugg gollum upside down moments

the audience helping to rebuild the shire for the epilogue

the big white sail for frodo to exit behind one final time, and his last look back as he goes

all the people playing instruments but ESPECIALLY elliot getting so so energetic and hype during song of hope reprise

'w-w-what she means is… how about a song?' and the other hobbits immediately dying inside

FOLARIN'S LAMENT FOR MORIA and his bowing to the surroundings before he starts and the depth and reverence and awe he brings!!

CHARLOTTE GRAYSON ROSIE 'i've been expecting you since the spring!!' making me cry every time

aarongorn's gentleness and reluctance to come out, and the way he sits during the council trying to fade into the background while everyone's talking about the lost sword

bridget and reece's cartwheel/lift choreo in cat and the moon!

the lights in the big tree by the outside stage

'that's often how it is in a forest, pip' geraint's hilarious delivery, and him and amelia clearly having the MOST fun together

The ensemble acting as an extension of Sam! He represents the people ✊

The way Aragorn falls to his knees after Song of Hope (Duet)

The nazgul lighting

Incorporating the environmentalist message from the book with the wildflower packets, the orcs' industrial look, and the emphasis on rebuilding at the end

The ensemble narration :)

The sense of loss that clouds the production, as it tells of the end of an era and doesn't quite finish where it started (same place but so much is missing) (again with the rebuilding theme)

Rosie Cotton

Creative use of the physical space in the house!

The ents being represented by Noises

Being a major adaptation willing to mess around with gender! I hope this starts a trend of more genderfuckery in Tolkien adaptations

the detail of the set and costume design!! e.g the pattern on gimli's costume matching the moria floor pattern

Folarin's Lament for Moria - absolutely incredible voice, was swept away

The hobbits hurriedly putting their waistcoats on and rolling up their shirtsleeves as they transition from Mount Doom to Gondor

Yazdan's wide eyed wonder and smile as he sings Lorien

Sam's quiet, muttered "no Frodo" when Frodo says "goodbye Sam" during the final (I love to have my heart smashed into a thousand pieces)

Charlotte as Rosie - so joyful and sweet and strong and A++++ fiddling

whoever's job it was to stick their hand through a hole in the ceiling and drop leaves one by one while the ents were talking

Nuwan's Sam and Louis' Frodo, how tender and in love they were

HANDS

Tiny weirdo powerhouse Georgia Louise Galadriel!! Best Galadriel performance ever.

Boromir and Sioned-Elf’s mesmerising interaction at Lothlorien

Legolas and Gimli's arm clasp / forehead touch during Wonder

Bilbo’s birthday party in the garden and getting to wish him a happy birthday

Frodo’s expression when Elrond gives him his blessing

Elf hand choreography and hand speak!!

Literally everything about Nuwan and Louis in Now and for Always

Sassy Elrond/Saruman

Aaron’s soft boi Aragorn. I stan a gentle king.

Nuwan's Sam being decisive and protective with Frodo and taking no sh*it. "Lots of fruit around here!" comes to mind.

[okaioh]

Kai I need Phil content to make up for the fact he didn’t get kidnapped brutally by the Ender King, do you have any good headcanons of Death Family + Rose

ough there's too many but lemme see what I can cook up

(putting it under the cut because its kinda long LMAO)

whenever in Rose's garden the hummingbirds always flock to Chayanne - and maybe its because of the ingredients he has in his backpacks or maybe its because he's always carrying a rose that Tallulah has given him, I like to think its because hummingbirds symbolize devotion and love - who else is devoted to protecting his family and who else shows constant love to his sister and dad like Chayanne <3

Another one about Chayanne, which is kinda based around this one post I saw (by panxramic on twt), but theres something about Rose's sanctuary in which the little warrior feels absolute calm and peace - something that he doesn't get often, and because of that peace he finds himself regularly taking naps around the place

^^there'll be times where Phil's sleeping and Tallulah and Chay were hanging out and at one point Tallulah's like ?? where did Chayanne go ?? and she looks all over the place for him, a bit panicked at first, until she goes to the Sanctuary and finds him laying in a patch of grass - snoring softly with a bunch of hummingbirds flying around him (she totally takes a picture of him and uses it as a way to tease him relentlessly)

the first few nights of sleeping at the Sanctuary, Tallulah found herself waking up to flowers in her hair - at first she's like "weird it must have fallen onto my head or something" but then it keeps happening every morning she wakes up

it'll be different flowers in her hair every morning - at first its roses (without the stem and thorns of course) nestled in her hair, then tulip petals, then cherry blossom petals and so on, its just a little thing to show that Rose is constantly watching over them even if she doesn't send any messages

Tallulah also discovered that when she plays music in the sanctuary, a bunch of birds always appear and start singing along with her - some will sit on top of her head and chirp along with her flute and theres some that'll hop in front of her almost on beat with her music

Phil has never slept better than the first nights when he slept with his kids in the sanctuary

there's something that just lets him know that nothing can come and hurt them with Rose watching over them

I like to think that phil's an early riser so to his kids its very rare that they actually wake up before him since he's already up and tending to the farms and everything

so the first few mornings in Rose's sanctuary, tallulah and chayanne got scared thinking their dad was sick because he slept in all morning till the afternoon - phil even thought he was coming down with something until he realized he's never felt more awake than when he did, and thats when his kids noticed how bright his eyes looked and how his eye bags seemed to be almost gone after a couple days

Missa is rarely on (except today) but that doesn't exclude him from Rose's protection - right as he comes back he can feel this sort of warm presence with him and I feel like at first he'll be like ":0 its phil's love for me-" something cheesy or whatever

and then he starts to notice little things whenever he does something - let's say hes building and he isn't paying attention to his surroundings and there's a skeleton about to shoot him, and without him even noticing it - it suddenly burns up and disintegrates into dust just like that

and ofc Missa carries on like nothing happened - and theres instances just like that that always happens when he doesn't notice... if he's about to walk off a cliff and hurt himself- nope, there's water at the bottom now and hes safe. If there's a mob coming at him and about to kill him- nope, it somehow gets trapped in a hole and Missa carries on his day freely

I would add more for Missa but i don't know what to add ueueue

but yeah :D add more if you want LMAO these are some of what I've come up with

[janaknandini-singh999]

Manmeet headcanons coz yes

( @ezs-diary thanks to you now I can't stop thinking about Girl Krishna™ trope)

She's a punjabi kudi who's literally Geet's twin (OFC?) and has all the iconic romcom movies and dialogues memorized. Despite her bubbly, chaotic side she has a strange calming charm to her when she doesn't even need her sweet honey words to draw people in. Og srk fangirl, loves all genres of music, especially upbeat and lyricals, adores animals, fav season: spring.

Radhya: likes ghazals, lofi music, meera ke bhajan, secretly watches romantic movies (especially tragedies) and cries in her room, Manmeet finds her and Radhya would expect that she'd laugh at her but she'd just kiss her tears away, Radhya would push her away at that but secretly blush so hard, she lives in Manmeet's colony who secretly follows her everywhere, especially on shopping (even for the grocery) "WHAT are YOU doing here?" Radhya takes her to the side on the street, whispering urgently.

"Wouldn't you like me by your side always? Am I not good company?? :(" Manmeet with puppy eyes and sniffs "Ok.. if you don't want me then I will go-"

Radhya catches her wrist, looks away, then at her and sighs "It's- it's not that. It's just-"

Manmeet smiles, twisting her trapped wrist softly and wrapping its fingers around Radhya's and asks in the most innocent voice "Then what is it? Just say it hehe!"

Radhya groans, looks away and scratches her neck "Fine, you're fine."

Manmeet blinks her eyes "I couldn't hear that.. what?"

"I DO LIKE YOU."

Manmeet jumps and shrieks. Radhya going red and holding her down "Shh, what ARE YOU DOING NOW? Everyone will look at you, fool."

"LET THEM! LET THE WORLD KNOW YOU LOVE ME WOOHOOO!," Manmeet gets out of her hold "I am a fool but I'm a fool for YOUUU."

Radhya facepalms, secretly smiling.

At night, Manmeet slips by to kiss her goodnight and Radhya would be tired. She yawns and Manmeet grins "Long day?", coming to her while rubbing something in her palms "Champi time!"

Radhya would get her head and shoulder massaged and yawn again.

"You should sleep."

"Yes, I'm exhausted but I'm unable to fall asleep for some reason." Radhya grumbles and then looks over at Manmeet, smiling faintly "Kuch sunaa do?"

Manmeet beams "KYU NAHI-" clearing her throat. Suddenly, Radhya would settle herself on Manmeet's lap and close her eyes - making Manmeet blush this time before continuing. She'd hum at first building a light, dreamy tune and it'd take everything for Radhya not to dance even though the rhythm was so slow so she'd instead tap her fingers against Manmeet's thighs along with the tune, making Manmeet's breath catch and making it difficult to even begin singing now so she'd take out her flute and start playing it. Within a minute, Radhya stills into a rhythmic composure, her head buried deep and face completely hidden away in Manmeet's lap, snoring lightly. Manmeet smiles at that and kisses her forehead, pulling up the blankets on her and turning off the lights

With Vaidarbhi: loves art and poetry, analyzes controversial cinema and drama and is a sucker for old school romance, comfort movie is Shahid and Amrita's Vivah, writes secret love letters to Manmeet but delivers it herself by saying

"My brother sent this for you."

Manmeet smiles, nodding and opening it "I confess I do have an effect on people but I'm not sure your brother is one of them."

Vaidarbhi nods back, looking at the ground, turning around to leave.

"Vaidu!" Manmeet calls out

Vaidarbhi's heart skips a beat as she turns around in an instant

"Just wanna say that.. never be afraid of anything, sweetheart. I'm always with you." Manmeet winks

On the day she was getting forcibly married, her heart echoed back these words of the love of her life to her and she wrote a final love letter, revealing her true identity at last.

On the mandap just as she was taking the last phera, someone whistles loudly and calles out her name. Vaidarbhi immediately recognizes the voice and makes a run for it. Suddenly, the groom stands up and horror etches itself on Vaidarbhi. But he tears down his disguise to reveal Halveer, Manmeet's brother. "GO! I'LL TAKE CARE OF THEM." as he plunges into the crowd going wild around them.

Manmeet revs the engine of her bike as Vaidarbhi jumps on the seat behind her, crying happily and clutching her waist tightly from behind.

With Parth: he loves sports, Shreya Ghoshal and old Bollywood, meets with Manmeet regularly in the gym.

"Nice to see you here! But Mann.. you don't gym?" Parth shakes his head, his hair wet with sweat swaying in the process

"I come here for you, handsome." Manmeet whispers in his ears and giggles, knocking Parth out of his senses and freezing him as usual.

She pulls his cheeks aggressively and tightens her grip on his shoulder, trickling her hand downwards and squeezing his biceps. "Do pushups."

Parth is merely able to nod and takes his position. Suddenly, Manmeet jumps on him, almost breaking his bone.

"AAAOOOWW" he screams

"Now do it!" Manmeet says as if nothing happened

Parth smiles, suddenly forgetting all about his pain and does as he's ordered. He starts off and keeps on doing it on super speed like a machine. After dizziness strikes through, Manmeet steps up wobbling and smiles nervously, patting his head "Good boy!"

[bndair]

musical and/or existential!

nine types of intelligence meme. // accepting

musical   ⸺   the capacity to discern pitch, rhythm, timbre, and tone. recognizing, creating, reproducing, and reflecting on music, hearing sounds others may miss.

honestly , the boy probably sits at about 40-50% on a sliding scale of innate musical intelligence. he has some , but he has to work at it. he loves music and is a good dancer ( when he wants to be ) , but the instruments he can play are exclusively of air nomad origin. understandably many air nomad instruments are woodwinds and most have been lost to time. he's only been able to find two air nomad instruments : an airbender's flute ( aka pan flute. found by air acolytes ) and a dungchen ( found in a fire nation trap laid to catch/kill air nomads ). luckily , the flute was always his best instrument and the dungchen is primarily a ceremonial instrument rather than something you'd pick up for an entertaining tune.

the only songs he knows are things he was taught. he has a pretty good memory so he can recall other tunes , but it takes a lot of trial and error for aang to figure out how to play them on the flute. he's practically the opposite of those people who can play a song after hearing it once or make one up on the spot. he knows the mechanics of playing certain instruments , but music theory generally escapes him. the monks tried to teach him , but ... well , aang was never a very studious pupil and it just never clicked for him. to be fair , gyatso always spiriting him away for fun and games didn't help either.

he has good hearing and he has rhythm but those come from being an airbender and the years of training he's had more than any true musical intelligence. he can hear the intricacies of a song and appreciate the complexity. he can bob his head along or dance to the beat well enough to help others keep tempo. he couldn't go much deeper then that on the technical / music theory side of it though. anything he plays that hasn't been formally taught is something that just come from his soul , ya know ? there's no planning , no composing , just feelings turned to sound. sometimes it's good. sometimes it's not.

aang is also not a singer. he can chant like no ones business , but true singing ? it's not a particularly pleasant experience for the listeners. he's not the worst , but his singing is usually best described as enthusiastic , loud , and pitchy. ( does he get better with time ? i don't know. we'll have to see. could go either way )

his own perceived lack of innate musical intelligence leads to a very deep appreciation and admiration for those that do possess such skills. it doesn't take much to impress him tbh. can you play the simplest of tunes ? he's all ears. singing too ? enamored. he knows how difficult music can be and anyone who makes it ( and makes it look easy ? ) has him with hearts in his eyes. he's a sucker for a musical performance of any kind and will make time to attend those events if at all possible. he'll often say that these appearances are due to his obligations as the avatar , but that's only about 30% of the reason.

music is something that reminds him of the past , of traveling to the different nations for festivals , of parties with friends , of air nomad celebrations and ceremonies. he has so many memories tied to music that certain songs have evoked very emotional reactions for aang. it's bittersweet , but he wouldn't trade it for the world. he sees these songs ( and music as a whole ) as a bridge through time , something that can and will live on to connect generations of people. and that's beautiful.

p.s. i'm gonna do the existential one too. i have another ask in my inbox for that one so it's coming. soon.

[twistedsoulmusic]

Although it’s no longer a surprise, we can’t help but be impressed that the array of sounds coming from our speakers is the work of one man. Whether it’s the soulful notes of a saxophone, the enchanting melody of a flute, the mighty blare of a trumpet, the harmonious chords from keys, or the rhythmic beats of drums – every sound is birthed from the prodigious hands of Gustav Horneij. It’s a superb album that subtly changes the OPE recipe, but the music remains deep with a touch of the spiritual, never falling into the trap of excessive noodling.

[junkzsillystuff]

Evil fucking Wolf fact Drabble #1

Wolf CAN infact determine the aura of a person by sniffing or smelling them. When wolf is unsure which aura a person has, it’ll smell longer. Basically, think this, wolfs abilities are based all on emotion and controlling them. Wolf could make someone angry by playing their flute, which could possibly make the person stronger but more inaccurate or clumsy in a way.

Its all about cards and how Wolf uses them. Perhaps they could get you to come over to the evil side by feeding off your envy of your teammates. By “feeding” off emotions, Wolf can manifest attacks. (Ex: Spikes, vines, lava) Wolf can’t exactly feed off of positive (/determined) emotions, which is why they tend to intimidate their prey. Wolf feeds better off of fear because it pumps more adrenaline into their veins, furthering the power of the key.

Negative or sad auras that are angry, bitter or distressed are harder for wolf to process. Therefore, they’d have to sniff a person longer to capture the emotion. While wolf can use emotions like grief (for attack), it’s against their (tiny) morals to do so. However, all other emotions are free game. Feeling angry? Wolf will use that anger against you. Feeling jealous? Wolf will ALSO use that against you too.

Wolfs not some overpowered god though, you can beat Wolf by scaring them. While Wolf feeds off of others fear, their own fear activates their flight or fight (Wolfs body will always chose flight) If you scare wolf enough they’ll start dodging instead of attacking (looking for a way to escape the fight) You could theoretically use this to your advantage and lure wolf right into a trap.

Wolfs smart but still a wolf at the end of the day.

[sword-dad-fukuzawa]

childe: is murdering hilichurls

Scaramouche:

Shun rests his chin on his knees and sets the tune of the killing and dying below him to a hyoshigi beat and starts tapping his feet in the steps of a kabuki dance. If he closes his eyes, he can picture the lush set of The Mirror Lion, and his legs find the footwork for the two-fan peony dance. Archons, it’s been so long since he’s done kabuki. Decades. Centuries, even. What had Niwa said, when he brought young Kabukimono to the theater for the first time? 

“They make such beautiful things out of nothing but their bodies. All the trappings and ceremonies are beautiful too, of course, but in the end it’s the dancer and the music…”

The sound of a bowstring releasing—the twang of the shamisen. The cry of a hilichurl—the full-throated sound of a flute. The thump of bodies—the clapper keeping time. So similar to the sword dances he was fond of, once, but different. He’s still cheating with little air cushions so he doesn’t fall out of the sky. 

[thesinglesjukebox]

LE SSERAFIM - "EASY"

Maybe enable Hard Mode next time...?

[5.83]

TA Inskeep: A snap music breakdown and a mightily bass-heavy track are two things I didn't expect from one of K-pop's hottest girl groups; LE SSERAFIM really are making it look easy here (sorry). "Easy" just glides along, so smooth. [7]

Kayla Beardslee: For a song about making it look easy, there isn’t much about the topline of this song that sounds like it requires work in the first place. LE SSERAFIM are at their best when they’re going hard over a beat that requires the utmost commitment, but this is just a bland rip of dated hip-hop trends with a recorder loop that makes me want to scratch my ears out. RIP fall 2022 TSJ, you would have loved “Antifragile.” [3]

Leah Isobel: "Easy" doesn't feel quite so resolutely its own thing the way that "Antifragile" and "Eve, Psyche, and the Bluebeard's Wife" did; it's basically a Tinashe song. I love Tinashe! [7]

Michael Hong: On "Good Bones," another of the group's fascinating intros, that final line sounds earned: "easy, crazy, hot, I can make it." Maybe it's not really, maybe these words they spit and scream are profound only to themselves, better answered with a shrug and a "well, yeah." But as they motor through the amped-up instrumental, they sell it: "in the end, we all die / half of our life will be suffering," Kazuha mutters. The drums are aching and the guitar roars back at her, but it's this bite that makes it so fascinating, the hint of weakness and vulnerability that makes the group's confidence act feel appropriate. On "Easy," LE SSERAFIM's rough edges are sanded down as they huff and puff over the dry instrumental, the titular word wheezed out with the autotuned-backing sounding like a necessary support. The anxious rush that made "Good Bones" feel so astounding is absent as LE SSERAFIM sound like dolls here, their confidence a blankly feigned act. [2]

Will Rivitz: If "making it look easy" is doing at-home Positions karaoke sprawled on your couch while your friends ignore you to scroll Insta, then sure, I guess. [3]

Katherine St. Asaph: Pleasant! Also situated exactly on the edge of sounding dated -- as in, I genuinely cannot tell whether it does or not. [6]

Ian Mathers: I'm not sure what's actually making that flute-like loop you hear at the beginning (and throughout); maybe it's a specific instrument I'm not familiar with, but it sounds to me like a wonky recorder and partly as a result of that it's very charming. It brings a fittingly casual air to a song about making it look easy, like surely you can pull off this kind of vibe with just about any kind of materials? I'm not even sure what does or does not qualify as "trap" anymore (if I ever knew) but surely if this does it's one of the least outwardly aggressive expressions of the form. Kinda works, honestly. [7]

Taylor Alatorre: I don't know if it was intentional that nearly all of the casually badass "I run this shit"-type lyrics are sung in English, while the admissions of imperfection and struggle are, from the non-Korean audience's perspective, hidden behind a language barrier. But with Le Sserafim, a group that takes such pride in their meticulously crafted identity that they sing their own name twice on a 5-song EP, nothing seems to be unintentional. Having built their brand upon anthems of disruption and defiance, "EASY" serves as a well-timed reprieve from all the noise, a chance to sprawl themselves out over a melodic trap beat, count their checks, and survey all they've conquered. They resist any temptations toward showiness that might upend the carefully composed balance, confident that a line like "rip it up like ballet" will make its genius known even if it isn't shouted from the rafters. [8]

Daniel Montesinos-Donaghy: As another example of LE SSERAFIM's inspira-pop, "Easy" is initially underwhelming with a light trap beat and flute riff: it sounds lightweight following singles like "Eve, Psyche & The Bluebeard’s Wife." That's also the strength of the song -- "Easy" sounds easy but not tossed-off, proving their point. It's confident. It's not their best, but it works. [7]

Nortey Dowuona: Amanda Ibanez you will always be famous with the Technicians. [9]

Jacob Sujin Kuppermann: Not the best sleek K-pop dance track named "Easy" out there but a perfectly fine substitute in a pinch. LE SSERAFIM have been more interesting than this on every one of their prior singles, but the cool, cipher-like nature of "Easy" suits them oddly well -- against a trap beat generic enough that I wondered if it were a sample of something from Atlanta circa 2017, the five of them muster a poise that they lacked on some of their earlier work. It's solid enough, but the closer you examine it the less there is to truly love here. [6]

Alfred Soto: Too easy. [5]

[Read, comment and vote on The Singles Jukebox]

[totallyboatless]

FINE i'll make a post about how many Jenny Owen Youngs songs fit the Six of Crows characters GOD

Born to Lose - Kaz. So very Kaz. Somewhere in night a man is standing by with a deal you won't be able to refuse. It's about deals with the devil (choose how you'd like to feel pain: is Pekka the devil or Kaz?), being slowly eaten inside by guilt over mistakes, fear of losing people you love. A line about having a bad leg. It's got it all! Last Person - God so very how Jesper and Wylan would flirt and pick each other up in a bar the first night they meet. Light, fun, full of energy, but with an air of "this could be so much deeper if we let ourselves feel it." About someone approaching another person who feels like they don't belong or connect with the people around them and is like "live fast die young let's go bang!." This line cinches it all together: So quit worrying where they'll fall if you should roll the dice, why don't come home with me tonight.

So Long - WHO'S👏🏻READY👏🏻TO👏🏻GET👏🏻SAD👏🏻. I go back and forth with this being better for Wylan, Kaz, or Inej, but tend to land on Wylan for one line in particular: No one can put you back how you were then / chemicals must react, it's a certain. A song about feeling lonely, trapped, and discarded.

Coyote - So very Nina and Matthias, and honestly a perfect song to go on any "enemies to lovers" playlist. A song about being like "I'm disgusted by you - wait no come back god I want to jump your bones - no wait I hate you - wait come back." There's no one I can think of that I can stand less than you / Don't you want to touch my hands before you go? I think I'm confused.

Your Apartment - Inej about Kaz. About wanting to love someone and be the person to help them grow, but that person being closed off. And how when that happens, you're like "I'm begging you to give me something, anything, and I'll stay." I want to be the girl that makes you try to do the thing you haven't done / oh why is it so hard to stay in love / I just want to be good enough for you. Lyrics are sad AF but it's a jam! Porchrail - Back to Jesper who keeps things a little more upbeat! Lot of mentions of fidgeting, having a short attention span, and feeling sick over Feelings. A "I'm having a crisis about Wylan" song. I've got a span of attention as long as my teeth / Every urge I let sway me turns tragically brief / There's nothing more attractive than that one thing you just can't have / I got every intention to loosen my tie / I got full motivation to make this one mine

What Beats Within - LET'S👏🏻KEEP👏🏻GETTING👏🏻SAD👏🏻. Back to Wylan - featuring flute and the fear that comes with letting yourself be chosen because you don't feel good enough. I like to think the first verse is referring to the night he and Jesper meet, and the second verse is the night when he officially becomes a Crow after Kaz uses his bombs to blow up the Crow Club. You come to find me a mess at your door / arms under elbows as I hit the floor / I meant to tell you just what I've done / How can you choose me when I've just begun? / Don't know what I'll be when morning comes. Also additional line because my god it has so many "my parent doesn't want me" angst: I'm not what you planted, I'm just what grew.

Already Gone - Kaz about Inej. Thinking about someone you adore and respect in a way that feels too big and bright, and so you do the whole "I don't know how to keep you, so it's okay if you need to leave" thing even if you know that will cause you immense pain. God there's just so much in this one: Did I overstay? You're tugging your sleeves / You said what they say: that I'm a disease. AND That girl is full of fever / I'll give you anything but go if you need to / how can I keep you / Now you're already gone. AND THE FUCKING BRIDGE It's now or it's never / You get left holding feathers LIKE ARE YOU KIDDING ME GOD Clean Break - a Matthias inner monologue about trying to cut Nina out of his heart, but it's like an amputation. Super angsty, it's got an edgy feel. Also has some double meaning lyrics like Don't bother with the table we can do it on the floor / God knows I am sure which refers to the amputation but my god that line has a hot undertone. Feature lyric: If I come to and still feel you creeping in my skin / It's back I lie under the knife and start over again / can't abide no phantom limbs

Fuck Was I - KEEP👏🏻FEASTING👏🏻ON👏🏻SADNESS👏🏻. Kaz and Inej about each other. If you don't think you've heard a Jenny Owen Youngs song, you've probably heard this one. All about letting yourself feel hope about someone and then getting hurt and being like "yep, well, I should have known that was going to happen. Skillet on the stove, it's such a temptation / Maybe I'll be the lucky one that doesn't get burnt / What the fuck was I thinking? O, God - MORE👏🏻WYLAYN👏🏻SAD👏🏻BOY👏🏻TIME👏🏻 I just adore him. His internal monologue when he leaves Jesper after their first night together. I can't stay I won't stay for things left unseen / I can stay I won't stay I know you're a dream / A sweet, sweet dream. Ugh god and also the line I've seen a hundred backs but never one return - it's what Wylan is used to, and you can't be left if you leave first.

Little Bird - Pick your favorite Crow to have Feelings about. Take those hollow bones / Use them well, use them right / Let them carry you / Through the darkness of the night

ARE YOU HAPPY NOW, BRAIN? Fucking hell.

[osidius-el-enfatico]

god I had forgotten how fucking much I love Saurom. they got one of the most romantic songs I know. it's about a muse in love with a spirit that she can't be with because she's trapped with some dude. it's got a blast beat drum, a lyrical singer as the muse, a transverse flute, and shitty guitar arpeggios.

tailor made for me that shit