#for the record 100 tears is not a good film at all- but if you like indie small budget horror film with insane gore and bad acting

[5eraphim]

Just saw your post on book titles and oh my lord does 'there will be a soft rain' sound like just about the most heart wrenching and simultaneously gentle story title I've ever heard. I would pick up a book for that title alone.

Also, super curious as to which title on there you 'stole' and maybe where you got it from? Because all of them were beautiful titles and if any of them were from a fanfic then I really wanna go read it!

what if i told you i stole the title 100 tears from a 2007 revenge clownsploitation NC-17 american hyper-gore indie film. what then.

(ask is about this random compilation of fic titles i will likely never get around to using.)

[jmdbjk]

Episode 4: Disconnected

Beyond the Star, produced by HYBE Media Studio

Namjoon gives a brief recap of their rise from debut, through the struggles of the next few releases and then they take off with Wings, Fire, Blood Sweat & Tears, Fake Love, and Idol and all their accolades and awards.

They open this episode with behind scenes from filming the ON MV at Los Angeles' Sepulveda Dam. It was hot that day.

[did you say something Jimin? ahem... anyway]

Regarding the previous years to this point in time, Namjoon says he may not have made the best choices all the time but he believes he made the best choices he could at the time. Yoongi says they compacted 20 years into 7 years at the expense of their physical well-being.

Namjoon says he tried to prove himself to the world but now sees that what he's left with are the choices he wanted to make at the time with all his effort and he learned a lot from them.

Jungkook says he lived a life fit for himself, that if he had forced himself to do something that didn't suit him, it would not have been good. He did what he wanted to do and experienced a lot. All decisions he made for himself and which helped him grow.

In other words, they chose to work hard and run full speed ahead and we know that led to an almost burnout situation.

Namjoon states the lyrics of the song ON are what they mean: they've been through it and are on the other side, they made it to the other side together. Bring the pain, bring it on, it will only make us stronger.

It is heartbreaking to hear them talk about how much work they put into the MOTS tour, how involved they were with equipment and production decisions. Yoongi said it had been a while since they'd been this excited about preparing for concerts.

Things were planned that we never knew about. A large-scale gala for TV promotions?

And then the news early 2020. Jimin was asking if there was any chance the concert would ever go ahead as planned...

During the two years or so of the pandemic, each member dealt with the social distancing, self-quarantining, loneliness and lack of live performances in their own ways. They did a lot of nothing during this time. The footage shown here was not of them during the first months of the pandemic. There were no cameras set up during that time. They used footage from times when they COULD film safely to help represent how they were during isolation. Looks like Hobi and Jungkook in the hotel suite after the Grammy Awards and footage of Jimin in his apartment in late 2021, etc.

There were long periods of time when everyone, including you and me were asked or required to abstain from going outside, to isolate away from others, to not socialize with more than 5 or 10 people at a time, even with our families.

Bang PD reflects that BTS were at the peak of their careers, they lived to perform, and had to overcome the feelings of helplessness and that's how he believes they've grown as humans.

So they innovated...they produced the first online ticketed concert: Bang Bang Con. Over 750,000 viewers watched.

It was reported on the news that BTS was once again changing the industry.

And then on August 21, 2020, they released a song to enjoy with the fans:

If The Most Beautiful Moment in Life was the turning point, Dynamite was literally the explosion that shot them into the stratosphere.

Dynamite broke records of every kind: on Youtube the MV set a new record of over 3 million peak viewers during its premiere, almost doubling the previous record, and set a new all-time record for the biggest music video premiere on the platform and the most viewed YouTube video in the first 24 hours, earning 101.1 million views and setting three new Guinness World Records.

In the U.S., Dynamite debuted a #1 on the BBHot100, and is BTS' first #1 single in the US. The song became both the longest-running number one on the Digital Songs chart by a Korean artist and the longest-charting song by a Korean artist on the Hot 100, when it spent its 18th non-consecutive week at #1 the Digital Song sales chart and 32 weeks on the Hot 100, three of those weeks at #1.

Hobi said it was overwhelming that their sincerity had reached all parts of the world. Jin said it was a song to simply enjoy with fans.

Bang PD said he knew what this would mean for their future and what a positive impact it was.

Yoongi said they did the song in the hopes of giving everyone strength during the trying times of the pandemic. Namjoon says because of the situation (the pandemic) they lost so much (cancellation of the MOTS tour) so during that time, the strength of music and performances were their way to give comfort and support to the fans.

With the ongoing pandemic, they had to adapt. In October 2020, they produced Map of the Soul ON:E ... two online concerts that had a record-breaking 993,000 paid viewers from a total of 191 regions across the globe. It was performed at the Olympics Gymnastics Arena. It was elaborately produced. It was expensive. Lots of man-hours went into it.

They said they enjoyed doing it, they worked hard but it was a challenge because the missing element was a live audience... Army was missing. It would never replace a live concert's energy but they were still thankful they could even do it to begin with. It would be another year before BTS was in front of a live audience again.

Overnight on Nov. 24, 2020 they gathered in front of the television in their dorm to watch the 63rd Grammy Awards nomination announcements. Only four of them were there: Jimin, Namjoon, Jungkook and Tae. I had heard the others had schedules the next day and needed to sleep.

They had never known how the Grammy nominations were announced, this was their first experience and when BTS was announced you could feel their astonishment through the screen. The first Korean artist to ever be nominated.

During the Grammy Award broadcast (done remotely), they also performed their own song, Dynamite.

Alas, they did not win but they'd made so much history and broke so many records in 2020, the year of deep lows and the highest highs.

They felt motivated, knowing they still had room for success and had something to strive for.

They were proud to show the world that there are singers like them from Korea and that Army and BTS exist.

[shinestarhwaa]

I voted for the Idol! Au, I really love those, I actually prefer Yunho Or Seonghwa for this AU!!! I don't really know why but Yunho gives such idolbf! Vibes-

Don't You Worry || J. YH.

Idol boyfriend Yunho incoming!!!

Genre: Fluff

Pairing: Idol bf!yunho x fem reader

Word count: 646

Warnings/tags:

@anyamaris @a-soft-hornytiny @veronicasawyerschainsaw @whatudowhennooneseesyou @star1117-archives @wooyoungmybelovedhusband

Let me know if you wanna be on my taglist❣️

ENJOY!

''Don't you worry, darling, it's all gonna be okay!'' Yunho said cheerfully as he dried your tears.

You hadn't mastered the choreo to your comeback yet, while you were supposed to start filming your music video in two weeks.

You were a big KPOP solo star, breaking records and selling millions of albums around the world. You debuted just two years ago, but the industry had started to love you for your talent and silly moments that your fans made compilations of.

Your debut hit 100 million view in the first month alone, which made your entertainment realize how much potential you actually had, preparing for a comeback right after your first promotions.

Now you were going to release your fourth mini album, and you prepared for it a lot. But after a performance on a festival you had hurt your ankle and knee after you fell from a step while getting off the stage. You were still recovering and getting therapy, but you were practicing hard to get the choreo to your new song right.

That's why Yunho, your boyfriend of six months offered to help you out. He was an amazing performer himself and he usually knew just how to motivatie you.

Today, the two of you were sat on the cold floor of the practice room, trying to get the footwork just right. But your ankle was acting up a lot today, and you sat down, tears filling your eyes.

''Don't cry honey,'' he said as he saw tears roll down your cheeks. ''There's nothing to be afraid of... or sad about... You can do this! We'll make it work. Even if it doesn't work, maybe we can postpone your comeback, hm?''

''My fans are waiting, Yunie, I can't let them down, I have to do this,'' you sobbed. He dried your cheeks gently.

''Don't you worry, darling, it's all gonna be okay!'' Yunho said cheerfully as he dried your tears. He helped you get up again and held your hands. ''We'll do it together,'' he smiled.

No one but the members and the KQ boss and managers knew about your relationship. It hadn't been that long yet, and you didn't want a dating scandal so soon in your relationship. You and Yunho were good at hiding so far, only being together whenever you were inside your dorms or practice rooms.

You and the Ateez members always had a close bond, and when you and Yunho got trapped in an elevator one night, things started happening between you two.

It was impossible for you to imagine a life without him, as he was your light, the sun to your moon. You wish you could scream it from the rooftops, that he was your one and only love. You wished you could tell your fans all about his kindness.

But it wasn't time yet, and it might be a while before you are ready to share the world. You tried being careful, not be too close to him in public when you stood with Ateez. You made sure to stand between different members so if anyone created rumors, it could be denied that it wasn't them.

The media loved speculating on you though, as the only female artist under KQ entertainment you've had dating rumors with nearly every artist and trainee, constantly getting slutshamed while you've never been with anyone other than your Yunho.

It was tiring sometimes, but Yunho always knew how to help you back up, make you gain confidence.

For your new album you even wrote a love song about him. You love singing it to him over the phone before you two go to bed.

Yunho made sure to come to your shoots and performances when he could, either wearing disguise or coming with several Ateez members.

He was incredibly supportive of you and you couldn't thank him enough for being the best person in your life. You loved him dearly.

''Now come on, let's get movin'!''

[lovesongbracket]

Reminder: Vote based on the song, not the artist or specific recording! The tracks referenced are the original artist, aside from a few rare cases where a cover is the most widely known.

Lyrics, videos, info, and notable covers under the cut. (Spotify playlist available in pinned post)

Everytime We Touch

Written By: Stuart MacKillop, Peter Risavy & Maggie Reilly

Artist: Cascada

Released: 2005

The hit single by Eurodance group Cascada, “Everytime We Touch” was released in the United States on August 16, 2005, reaching number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and remaining on the charts for twenty-five weeks in territories around the world. It was also certified platinum in the US. It was written, composed, and produced by the band's DJs, Manian and Yanou; however, the only writing/composing credits were given to Maggie Reilly, Stuart Mackilliop, and Peter Risavy, as the song borrows its chorus from Maggie Reilly’s 1992 single of the same name.

[Verse 1] I still hear your voice when you sleep next to me I still feel your touch in my dream (In my dream) Forgive me, my weakness, but I don't know why Without you, it's hard to survive [Chorus] 'Cause every time we touch, I get this feeling And every time we kiss, I swear I could fly Can't you feel my heart beat fast? I want this to last Need you by my side 'Cause every time we touch, I feel the static And every time we kiss, I reach for the sky Can't you hear my heart beat so? I can't let you go Want you in my life [Instrumental Post-Chorus] [Verse 2] Your arms are my castle, your heart is my sky They wipe away tears that I cry (That I cry) The good and the bad times, we've been through them all You make me rise when I fall [Chorus] 'Cause every time we touch, I get this feeling And every time we kiss, I swear I could fly Can't you feel my heart beat fast? I want this to last Need you by my side 'Cause every time we touch, I feel the static And every time we kiss, I reach for the sky Can't you hear my heart beat so? I can't let you go Want you in my life [Instrumental Post-Chorus] [Outro] 'Cause every time we touch, I get this feeling And every time we kiss, I swear I could fly Can't you feel my heart beat fast? I want this to last Need you by my side

Iris

Written By: John Rzeznik

Artist: The Goo Goo Dolls

Released: 1998

“Iris” was written for the 1998 film City of Angels starring Nicolas Cage. John Rzeznik explained: “When I wrote it, I was thinking about the situation of the Nicolas Cage character in the movie. This guy is completely willing to give up his own immortality, just to be able to feel something very human. And I think, ‘Wow! What an amazing thing it must be like to love someone so much that you give up everything to be with them.’ That’s a pretty heavy thought.” “Iris” eventually became one of the Goo Goo Dolls' biggest and most recognizable hits, eclipsing the movie it was written for.

[Verse 1] And I'd give up forever to touch you 'Cause I know that you feel me somehow You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be And I don't wanna go home right now [Verse 2] And all I can taste is this moment And all I can breathe is your life And sooner or later, it's over I just don't wanna miss you tonight [Chorus] And I don't want the world to see me 'Cause I don't think that they'd understand When everything's made to be broken I just want you to know who I am [Instrumental] [Verse 3] And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming Or the moment of truth in your lies When everything feels like the movies Yeah, you bleed just to know you're alive [Chorus] And I don't want the world to see me 'Cause I don't think that they'd understand When everything's made to be broken I just want you to know who I am [Instrumental Break] [Chorus] And I don't want the world to see me 'Cause I don't think that they'd understand When everything's made to be broken I just want you to know who I am [Chorus] And I don't want the world to see me 'Cause I don't think that they'd understand When everything's made to be broken I just want you to know who I am [Outro] I just want you to know who I am I just want you to know who I am I just want you to know who I am

[denimbex1986]

'Review at a glance *****

So it’s goodbye David Tennant again, and over to you Ncuti Gatwa! Except, no! The big twist in this twistiest of episodes – one that may well be the best hour of Who ever – is that the three-episode reprise of Tennant’s Doctor is not quite the end for him at all.

What seemed to be simply a canny way for Russell T Davies to bring some goodwill back to the Whouniverse, using a Tennant as a drum-roll for Ncuti Gatwa’s new reign, was not merely that, not just cynicism: it was a chance to crowd please a crowd in need of a damn good pleasing.

What a rare delight to watch prime time Saturday night TV delivered with such aplomb. This short run has echoed Marvel’s accomplishment with the Avengers films, matching drama with humour, and never taking itself too seriously even as it brings you to tears.

The Giggle topped it all off with a genuinely brilliant and thrillingly unpredictable episode that started off as a fun satire for all the family before turning into a Carnival of Horrors, by way of a murderous Spice Girls set piece by the lead villain that would make the Joker frown in envy. This was pop culture hitting some kind of high-on-itself high.

Last week the Doctor and Donna landed back in present day London to find Wilf waiting (sadly Davies revealed on a post this week that Bernard Cribbins died before he could film any more scenes so he does not appear in this episode). He told them humans had turned on each other and were fighting in the street and the world was basically ending.

Turns out that back in the day, 1925 in Soho to be precise, when John Logie Baird invented the TV, the first image he recorded was the head of a ventriloquist’s dummy (actually true, Stooky Bill, was his name, and yes Stooky was as spooky looking in real life; what was Baird thinking? Sick man, with all due respect).

A dummy which happened to be a magical evil puppet that was sold to him by a German-accented, racist Toymaker (played by a sensational Neil Patrick Harris having the time of his life here). And the image has sat hidden within every screen since then, not just TVs but phones too.

Back to ‘Today’, where Bonnie Langford is back as Melanie Bush after her companion stints with Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy (incidentally, I wonder how many near-misses they had in Who writing rooms over the years, with character names veering close to Bond-esque smut) to help out because a satellite launched by South Korea has made the world 100% online – “For the first time in history everyone has access to a screen,” the Doctor frets, and our skinny hero does do a lot of fretting here – which triggered the hidden puppet into doing an evil laugh, that in turn sent everyone’s brains crazy.

Pilots are landing wherever they want, people are fighting for their right of way on the road, insulting the infirm and different, seeking angry justice for the mildest of questioning, and everyone is basically turning into a conspiracy theory loon. It’s described as so: “Basically, every single person on earth now thinks they’re right and everyone else is wrong.” Sound familiar?

OK, yes the first half is a very bludgeoning satire of social media-infused life today, which includes a red-faced buffoonish Prime Minister addressing the nation by saying, “Why should I care about you?” But as I keep saying, Doctor Who is family viewing and making sure the kids get it without making the adults groan is a line which Davies navigates masterfully here.

Assessing the imploding world, the Doctor rants about “humans hating each other,” suggesting the “anger and lies and righteousness,” was always there waiting to take over. Tennant has always channeled rage in his Doctor but here he gives it his full ‘den of thieves’ moment, and orders the UNIT agents to shoot the Korean satellite out of the sky, since all of the world leaders have gone crazy too. The Doctor making decisions on behalf of the earth? Treating it as his kingdom? It feels like he’s overstepped a mark and he knows it.

Anyway, while humanity is on a precipice the Doctor and Donna take a trip back to Frith Street in 1925 to confront The Toymaker.

Cue a sequence of surrealist delight reminiscent of classic carnivalesque horrors like Dead of Night and Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice in which Harris revels like Gambit meets Dr Strange meets the Joker. The scary puppets that attack Donna hit some great old notes, bringing flashbacks to Trainspotting and Poltergeist.

The climax comes with the Toymaker dealing out death to ‘Spice Up Your Life’, and bringing an end to Tennant, who almost seems relieved by it.

This proves to be one of the most moving narratives related to the Doctor. Donna took him to one side earlier and said that when she saw inside his mind, “You’re busy every minute of the day… it’s like you’re staggering along… is that why your old face came back? Because you’re wearing yourself out.”

That skinniness that has been joked about throughout the specials is recast as evidence of a man coming undone, not taking care of himself, consumed by self-loathing as he’s haunted by his past failures. “I’m always so certain,” The Doctor cries in full tortured Tennant mode, “Take away the toys and what am I now? Lost and broken.” (“You big idiot,” Donna retorts).

So when the Toymaker takes his life, the Doctor almost want it. Except, he’s not given it. He doesn’t die and regenerate into Gatwa, rather he splits in two. Two Doctors! He’s Tennant and Gatwa. One can remain on earth with Donna, while the new Doctor is free to roam the universe on the new Disney funding.

I loved this explanation for Tennant’s return, the haunted figure that he became post-Rose and post-Donna taken to the logical extreme, his mental health disintegrating after too much death and loss and destruction.

Doctor Who has always been about loss. Companions leaving people on earth behind or never having them at all (like Melanie Bush), the loss of time, loss of life. The Doctor is a kind of charismatic god of life, taking on death always, trying to save everyone, everywhere, all at once. Exhaustion was coming…

But so was regeneration – or rather bi-regeneration, which is a first for Doctor Who, and is portrayed as rehab: to save himself, he has to become a new person entirely. He splits in two! Tennant is still here, but so is Gatwa’s Doctor. And lo, parents across the land are spared the tears of a million children.

Gatwa is immediately a new kind of Doctor, not falling apart – “thin as a pin and running on fumes” he observes – but so sure of himself that he gives Tennant a hug and a kiss, the younger man like a father, and when Tennant says, “You can’t save everyone,” he replies, “Why not?”

It sets up Gatwa’s new Doctor deliciously as a capable, flamboyant, winner, a very ‘out’ figure who will continue to annoy the anti-wokies/anti-BBC/anti-vaxxers/anti-youths but who will deliver the thrills. The Errol Flynn moustache he sports can be no accident, given how swashbuckling the trailer of the Christmas Day episode is.

Will Tennant keep a presence in the Whoniverse? Not sure if the new guy is going to need him…'

[septembersghost]

Some Swifties definitely have superiority complex it's so annoying. I can't praise a single artist without them going "oh but Taylor wrote much better","Taylor did it first","he is not as good as Taylor". I know she is awesome but she is definitely not some goddess and just because I like her doesn't mean I can't like anyone else. Some people think being a fan of her is like monogamous relationship.you can only love her and if you're a fan of her you have to hate everyone else. They make 100 page essay about how Taylor is better than x y z . Again there are good ones too but annoying ones are loud

i genuinely blame stan twitter for the vast majority of this, and the equal/opposite reaction of the intense amount of scrutiny and hatred she gets (i still see the most vile things directed at taylor, and i'll never forget that viral tweet from an ariana stan wishing death on andrea when taylor broke one of her streaming records. i think they got suspended for that. stan twitter is not normal, it's cesspool mentality), so it's like naturally fans get defensive and want to stand up for her - which is totally understandable within reason! if you want to praise her artistry or present facts about her songwriting/career/person or talk about how much she means to you, that's great and fair, i certainly do that right here, proudly, daily! what bothers me is attacking other people, or acting like vicious attacks against her give us the right to be bullies to others. there are clearly some stans who think the only way to show their love or loyalty is by being toxic and that's just the antithesis of the point. not to mention grossly hypocritical.

comparisons are ridiculous anyway - only taylor is taylor! only gaga is gaga! only beyonce is beyonce! only harry is harry! why are we participating in the culture of tearing other artists down to prop our favorite up when they're distinct and unique and all have the space to coexist? taylor, after every struggle she's been through, would be troubled by that behavior, but there's not a thing she can do about it, and it's the same for every intense fanbase. (harries can be shockingly cruel for a fanbase whose artist's motto is treat people with kindness. little monsters do this, the beyhive does this, crj's fans were intensely doing this in october, it's depressing but in every group of fans there will be some of them posting horrible things that you wouldn't conceive of saying in any setting). it's why artists really can't address that, and why, as social media has become more insidious, every single one of them has had to pull away altogether. taylor is special and extraordinary, that doesn't mean no one else is! and she doesn't want to be seen that way, she doesn't want to be put up on that pedestal, it's damaging and dehumanizing and terrifying to be made into a goddess. (thinking about a line from two of my favorite films...i don't want to be worshipped, i want to be loved...you've got to find grace for someone's mistakes and humanity, or what's the point?).

anyway i think a lot of the community is really lovely and warm, i adore all my swiftie mutuals and followers on here, you guys have made this such a fun place for me, but you're right, unfortunately in every group the very annoying, mean, negative people are loud, and their loudness makes them seem more numerous than they are, which gives them a power trip.

subjectively her music means more to me than i could ever say and has literally saved my life on more than one occasion, so i'm not going to pretend i don't care particularly about her and her art, but it doesn't diminish the depth of love i have for many other artists too. it kind of makes me think of that idea that saying "i love you" often somehow reduces instead of underscores its power, like love is a finite resource and we can only put it in one place. that's not true, though! love is inexhaustible and increases and grows the more we love and the more we learn, and every form of it is different and valuable, and that maybe especially applies to art because it's such a pure and personal kind of love. nobody's ever going to love a song or a painting or a book or a character in the same way you do, because it's unique to what we've felt, how we interpret it. that's like. a miracle! it really is. and instead of using that to fester in the weird negativity of the internet, we should be using it to encourage exploration and a blossoming of that love and understanding of how everyone cherishes different things in different ways and how beautiful that is!

[extragalaxtic-cosmos]

10, 16, 17, 32, 40

10 - Would you say you’re an emotional person?

That’s a good question. With quite a complex answer. Yes but No or maybe Yes? to be honest I’m not 100% sure.

I’m a pretty calm and happy person…. And that generally is how I am most of the. I think it takes a lot for me to personally get emotional… I have a point… if I hit that point… then yes I do. I have had a couple of people tell me that I’m difficult to read. And recently to.. last week in fact… although It had been a little more obvious lately so they picked up on it.

I very rarely properly cry… I have the emotion of crying and the physical part of crying but tears wise, they are not as common. I don’t know why… if I actually cry… I think that means I’ve been hit really hard. If I properly cry infront of you or make it known I’m trying to stop myself from crying…. you’re one of the most important and trusted people to me.

But on the other hand…. I feel a lot of emotion in my heart…. If someone I care about is struggling, sad etc I will physically feel hurt by just knowing it…. I will want to do literally anything to help…

And in sad, happy random scenes in films or tv shows or videos I’ll just randomly have explosions of emotions…. And yes videos on tiktok etc where people are like “well now I’m crying” yes… they effect me to.

I like to think I can pick up on a lot of other peoples emotions to.

So….. I think my answer is Yes but maybe No? I don’t know. I will only ever explain in further detail to people I trust and in private.

16 - If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

Hmmmmmm….. gahhhhh I don’t know. There is a lot I’d like to change about myself. Having a normal body maybe? more attractive 😅

And the other side…. Maybe slightly less stubborn? (I am working in that though).

17 - Name 3 things that make you happy.

Animals always make me happy. I love them so muchhhhhhhh.

Someone.

I am actually happy when I just go and explorer. Whether it’s just drive around, pick a location and go (with a couple of requirements) or just simply looking round old houses or towns etc. doing it with someone else makes me even happier to.

32 - How many tabs do you have open right now?

HA well I use to be known for tab hoarding…. I had a name for it in my last job… so that’s funny that it has been brought up 😆

Well not many actually 😎😎 let me check

Ah…. Hmmm maybe not as good as I thought? ….. 45…. 💀 it’s is however more than half less than my current record 😎😎 maybe even 3x less…. If I remember correctly at one point?

40 - Any bad habits?

Many bad habits….. I am incredibly lazy….. can be stubborn at times…. I may not tidy up struggle after me all the time (working in that though)… to sarcastic?…. My diet is awful alot of the time…. Probably should clean things more often than I do…. But I am on my own atm 😅 I don’t check my grammar or spelling…. I need to get better at not forgetting things

[eazy-group]

Ultrarunner Andrew Glaze Shares Dinner Miles and Hard-Earned Smiles

New Post has been published on https://eazycamping.net/ultrarunner-andrew-glaze-shares-dinner-miles-and-hard-earned-smiles/

Ultrarunner Andrew Glaze Shares Dinner Miles and Hard-Earned Smiles

A few months ago, Andrew Glaze would say “dinner miles” as a joke when he ran at night. The way it went was he would feed his body and his legs. It was a playful way to excuse himself and go for a run. 

Then, he started saying it on social media. In videos on his Instagram and TikTok channels, he used it as a sort of catchphrase followed by: “I’m feeding my legs miles because my legs are hungry.” Soon after, “dinner miles” started trending among his more than 465,000 followers.  

People from all over the world started sending him videos tagged “dinner miles” as well as “breakfast miles” and sometimes “brunch miles.” It generated so much buzz that he launched the Dinner Miles Club on the running app Strava. In just a few weeks, it gained more than 1,600 members. 

Dinner Miles might sound like a run-of-the-mill social media strategy, but unlike influencers, Glaze doesn’t make money from his posts. In an interview with Outdoors.com, the 45-year-old ultrarunner explained that he kind of rejects the idea of getting paid for his content.  

“There’s a little bit of punk rock still in me where I’m ‘F corporations.’ I’m not a NASCAR. You’re not gonna put your little label on me. You can’t buy me,” he said. “I definitely have a little bit of that on the inside.”

The Ultrarunner

Andrew Glaze holds up his race bib ahead of the Rocky Raccoon 100 miler near Huntsville, Alabama in February 2023. Source: Andrew Glaze

Glaze started running at age 24 as a way to deal with anxiety and depression, which he said was the result of an unhealthy lifestyle and inactivity. Then, about 10 years ago, he signed up for a 24-hour tough mudder. 

“I was like, ‘I’m gonna be running really far in 24 hours so I better train for that.’ And so the way I trained for it was running a couple of 50Ks, which is 31 miles, and that’s sort of like the rabbit hole of getting into ultras,” he said. 

While he found the tough mudder to be hard on his body — he didn’t want to blow out a knee or shoulder — he liked the endurance challenge, so he decided to stick with running. And he pretty much hasn’t stopped since.

However, he has a lot more responsibility today. He’s a firefighter and a captain in his department, a husband, and a father of three, so he runs for the same reasons he started and more. As a runner, he covers nearly 8,000 miles a year, competes in ultras all over the country, and he regularly films his activities. 

In most of his videos, he’s running with his phone in his hand, taking a dip into an ice bath, or sitting in a sauna — his “daily reminder to do hard things” — but almost every week, he posts about a major event like a long run or race. One of his most recent adventures was a wild one. 

The Coco Canyons 350

On April 28, Glaze finished the Canyon Endurance Race in the California foothills of the Sierra Nevada range in just under 28 hours. Running a 100-mile race is good enough for most people for the week, but a couple of days later, Glaze headed over to run the Cocodona 250. As the name implies, it’s a 250-mile race from Black Canyon City to Flagstaff, Arizona. 

He said he wanted to run 350 miles in less than a week to challenge himself, and challenge himself he did. Over four days, 12 hours, 22 minutes, and 58 seconds, he pushed his body to emotional and physical extremes. While he started and finished with a smile, he also cried tears of joy, hallucinated objects emerging from the ground, and at times struggled to stay awake while running. 

Why push himself to these extremes? Glaze is an ultrarunner, and that’s what ultrarunners do. They endure the pain and discomfort that come with running extremely long distances. It’s about the journey, not the destination. But why record these vulnerable moments and post them on the internet for all to see?

The Vlogging Runner

While it may seem like his running and vlogging go hand-in-hand, Glaze said his motivations come from different places. He runs not just because it’s therapeutic but also because he loves it. With a three-year running streak of covering more than 100 miles per week, it’s fair to say he has an obsession. 

What keeps Glaze making content, though, is the same reason he launched the Dinner Miles Club: it’s his way of inspiring others to run. “If people are running and thinking of me and putting that energy out in the world, I feel like I’m successful in my endeavor of why I’m doing all this,” he said.

Andrew Glaze at the top of Mount Langley in the Sierra Nevada in August 2022. Source: Andrew Glaze

However, another explanation for his vlogging is that it’s simply easy to do thanks to platforms like Instagram and TikTok. If you look back to his early videos, some nine years on YouTube, you can tell he added some production value, but they’re not as personal. If you ask him what changed, he’ll say the platforms. 

“I think I kind of like tripped into this whole thing because I’ve always made videos but they never went viral. But now that there’s a new format that makes videos so much easier to make and upload, I’m just able to reach a lot more people.”

He explained with Instagram’s Reels and TikTok, he can make a video in five or 10 minutes and post it with just his phone and his videos will get millions of views. If he wanted the same results on Youtube, he’d need to invest more time and money into equipment. 

“It’s funny because I’ve always sort of made videos of my races and stuff, but back in the day, it wasn’t quite as easy to do. I’d videotape myself, but then I didn’t really have the proper software to edit it or do anything,” he said. “None of that was really easy to do back then.”

The Glazeruns Channel

At the end of the day, Glaze runs and makes content because it makes him feel good. He records the joy that he gets out of running, but he doesn’t shy away from the challenges involved with the sport. He relates to his audience, sharing his successes, failures, goals, and gear list. It’s as if it’s in his nature. 

“I like to make (videos) because I want to be helping people,” he said. “I got into the fire service because I truly wanted to help people. I’m a paramedic and I’ve been on teams that have saved a lot of lives, and it’s very rewarding to do something like that, and likewise with the social media.”

Glaze explained he gets messages every day from people he inspired to start running and they’ve inspired someone else to start running. 

“I’m not trying to make money. I’m just like trying to push good into the world because there’s so much negativity and there’s so much bad in the world right now,” he said. 

“If I could just make the smallest amount of difference before I die, then I’ll feel like I can die happy,” he concludes. “As cliché as that sounds, I really truly believe that in the deepest part of my soul.”

Source

[3nh4]

%txt’s kinks% (gn!reader)

warnings: breeding, petplay, dacryphilia, somnophilia, weapon play, sadism, plushiefucking ment lol

soobin

<3 into (consensually) forced breeding & petplay. horny lil bunny boy just can’t keep it in his pants!! fucks you recklessly like a pup in heat and gets so embarrassed when he inevitably cums too quickly without permission because you just feel too good. “s-soobinie can’t hold it in, master. i’m sorry!”

<3 ranked 1# nations best service top. likes to be tied up so he’s entirely helpless to you using him however you want. even when he’s overstimulated, his legs are shaking, and tears start to stream down his face, he’s powerless to pull out

<3 the prettiest blubbering, crying mess ever btw. it’s a rare occurrence if he cums without any tears

<3 somno fiend. (with prior consent ofc!!!) he loves to play with his master while they’re asleep. it makes him feel dirty, like it’s something he’ll be punished for. it gives him a yucky feeling in his stomach— the same feeling that coincidentally makes him harder than a rock

yeonjun

<3 i cant imagine a switchier switch bro

<3 controversial but i feel like he’s mostly vanilla. like he’s into the powerplay of domming/subbing for his partner but isn’t into harder kinks

<3 LOVES to be praised and give praise. call him a good boy and he’ll be putty in your hands

<3 on the other hand, when he gives praise it’s always kind of backhanded. patronizing but 100% affectionate at the same time. “aww i didn’t think you’d be able to take it all, baby. i’m so proud.”

<3 likes to film you two together to watch later. just having the camera rolling makes it so much more thrilling bcs of the risk factor. loves to send & receive dirty vids as well when y’all can’t see each other in person

beomgyu

<3 little sadist fuck

<3 brattiest dom alive. gets off on making fun of you in the meanest ways possible. “that’s gonna make you cum? woww...”

<3 “maybe you’d be allowed to touch me if you weren’t a fucking idiot who can’t even follow simple rules.”

<3 on the giving end of all sorts of sensory play: temperature play using wax, candles, & ice, blindfolds + ear plugs. revels in being able to make you feel powerless and afraid

<3 speaking of, he’d like to use weapons too. whether that’s by grazing a knife along your soft skin without breaking the flesh, or holding a (plastic) gun to the underside of your chin as he fucks you

taehyun

<3 he’s so vanilla i’m sorry .......

<3 his kink is being in love w you <3333 /j lol

<3 no but really, if anyone truly “makes love” it’s him. he’s so passionate & caring. he spends the whole time whispering in your ear how beautiful you are and how lucky he is to have you

<3 he’d like to record you guys too but just the audio so he can listen to your moans whenever he wants

<3 kinkiest kink he has is a strength kink. loves that he can throw you around or lift you up like you’re nothing. will totally use this to his advantage and hoist you up onto his shoulders so he can eat you out

kai

<3 goodest boy ... he just wants to be praised. tell him he’s doing good, that he’s cute, he’ll blush up a storm

<3 into petplay but like rlly soft .. like collars & lil ear headbands & tail plugs & belly rubs

<3 legally i am obligated to say he’s a plushiefucker. i will not elaborate

<3 he gets off on giving you pleasure. stares a little too hard at your contorted face, could cum just listening to you moan under him

<3 and maybe this is out of left field but he likes when you’re a little rough with him too. he’s not very experienced, and anything you do is going to make him go red in the face, but something about being smacked a lil bit makes his tummy tingle

[egalitarian-tomboy]

Natsu's Romantic Feelings for Lucy in Dragon Cry

First off, before I hear anyone say it: Hiro Mashima went on record saying that this movie is canon & it's connected to the final chapter of Fairy Tail. (Before the 100 Year Quest series) So all the things we see happen in this film is part of the Fairy Tail timeline of events. OK we good? Now let's dive in.

We know that this movie has to take place sometime after the battle with Zeref in the mini time-skip before the end of the main series. Since Natsu almost transforms into a dragon with the added power of his demon blood and his response after he's called a demon by the enemy.

So at this point in the romance between Natsu and Lucy, we see in the film how flirtatious he can be with her during the scene with Plue and how well he pays attention to her when he shows her the stars after she had said she wanted to see them. Even at this point in the story, he's becoming a lot more attentive to her emotional and mental wellbeing.

He's protective, but he trusts in her abilities as a Celestial Wizard and allows her to split up from him even if he wanted to protect her during this whole battle.

When Lucy's tear falls into Natsu's mouth as she cries over him, we see his memory of Lucy is clearly more intimate than his memories of his other friends in the guildhall. Lucy isn't wearing her normal clothes, she looks like she's wearing a similar outfit to the one she wore during the infamous hinted NaLu date in one of the ending songs:

Of course her hair is up in pigtails and she's wearing earrings, but the overall vibe is exactly the same. Natsu and Lucy alone together, without Happy, on a date. Even though I don't personally think either of them called it that, I'm pretty sure if it was meant to feature Happy as well, it would've shown Happy flying next to Lucy at the very least. But it didn't. It was just the two of them together. So in a filter like this, it screams romantic date.

So at some point before the final chapter, Natsu and Lucy spent some alone time together as a couple even if neither of them called it a date.

Then at the final scene, where we see the original team Natsu together, I'd like to point out the way Natsu has his arm around Lucy:

You can't tell me that the way Natsu holds Lucy to him isn't similar to how a Boyfriend holds his Girlfriend to him when they're alone together. Even me and my ex-boyfriend cuddled like this when we were at events because I did the exact same thing as Lucy here and held his wrist like that. So the level of comfort between them is already enough to be labeled romantic. Oh yeah, and just because he says they're "Like a family" that doesn't mean he doesn't see Lucy in a romantic way. Because "Like a family" could mean something like:

Natsu - Dad (Husband) Lucy - Mom (Wife) Happy - Son (Child)

So I gotta say, without shoving it into the forefront, Mashima really gave us some more NaLu moments that showcased how their relationship has changed from strangers to friends to something beyond friendship but not officially lovers.

Which is fine because we're getting that built up romantic tension in the 100 year quest series in every arc so far. So we know that Mashima still wants to show us how their relationship will officially start as Boyfriend / Girlfriend or even...as Husband and Wife. *Crosses Fingers*

So to wrap up this post let me say: Natsu's love for Lucy in Dragon Cry can easily be described as a Boyfriend who loves his Girlfriend or as a Fiancé who loves his wife to-be. It's romantic, it's playful, and it's warm. So I'm personally looking forward to the day where we can look back on all these moments and say "What a love story."

[evermetnotforgotten]

Is Whump A Body Genre?

This is a short essay on body genres and whump, that will discuss whether the latter could be considered one of the former. It's one of a series of topics I hope to be writing about (though with my track record of finishing projects… let’s see how we go). All of these essays I hope will serve as the basis for discussion—I’m interested to know what you, as whump writers, artists and readers, think. Let’s sink our teeth into this.

A body genre is a genre of film that has an effect on the bodies of audience members, and often features displays of bodies in great detail. This is not to be confused with body horror, which is a specific subgenre of horror featuring bodily mutations or distortions. The three types of films that are commonly identified alongside one another as body genres are horror, pornography, and melodramas. I know that aligning whump with horror and pornography could be a controversial take to some, but bear with me: ‘Though this be madness, yet there is method in ’t.’

The term body genre was coined by film scholar Carol J. Clover in the essay "Her Body, Himself: Gender in the Slasher Film" (1987). She explains it like this:

It is a rare Hollywood film that does not devote a passage or two-a car chase, a sex scene-to the emotional/physical excitement of the audience. But horror and pornography are the only two genres specifically devoted to the arousal of bodily sensation. They exist solely to horrify and stimulate, not always respectively, and their ability to do so is the sole measure of their success: they "prove themselves upon our pulses."

It’s an incredibly interesting essay, and while I don’t agree with 100% of what it says (runs a little too psychoanalytic for my tastes), it does make some great points on trends in these genres, and the complex performances of gender in slasher films. But what I want to focus on is that definition: body genres focus on creating bodily sensation in their audiences. In the case of the horror genre, it’s fear, dread, perhaps screaming if it’s a really good flick; in the case of porn, it’s sexual arousal. While there are lots of specific scenes in movies created to be exciting to the audience—a shootout in an old saloon, bullets flying, glass shattering—films that fall in these two genres are entirely based on how they elicit particular bodily sensations. In fact, their very success is measured by it. “Did you see ‘Horror Movie Title’? It was terrifying! My heart was pounding the entire time!”

The definition is also somewhat twofold: not only do body genres create bodily sensation in the audience, but they also feature displays of human bodies in detail—at least compared to movies in other genres. Film scholar Linda Williams would later suggest, in the essay “Film Bodies: Gender, Genre and Excess” (1991), that melodrama could also be added alongside horror and pornography as one of the body genres. Melodrama here is defined as films which are particularly notorious for reducing their audiences, historically women, to tears—the “tear-jerker”. Just as violence and terror is shown in excess in horror films, and people in the throes of orgasmic ecstasy are shown in porn, melodrama features tears and weeping in a similar way. Williams also argues that there is a particular lack of control shared by the bodies on the screen (because they are in a state of extreme terror, intense pleasure, or overwhelming grief) and the audience experiencing these mimicked sensations, often doing so unconsciously.

So what’s your point, Dot? Well, here’s the pitch.

Whump is a body genre because whump works revolve around bodies, in particular bodies being hurt, experiencing sickness, or in states of strong (often negative) emotion.

In whump writing, things like sensations of pain, illness or psychological distress are often described in excess, and in extreme detail. And we love it! It’s often the entire point of the work. Whump artworks show in visual format the bruises, the tears, the expressions of pain or fear or hopelessness. Whump gifsets highlight the particular moment our whumpee gets slammed with a baseball bat, or crumples at the bottom of that set of stairs. The bodies in whump works are often also patched up too, with stitches or bandages. For many, witnessing the bodies being repaired is just as good as them being hurt in the first place. And sometimes they’re nonhuman bodies, too—monster whump, merwhump, winged creature whump etc. are all sizeable sub-genres.

Whump is a body genre because it focuses on creating bodily sensations in its audience.

Of course here I’m talking about whumperflies, or the ‘stomach-flip’ or ‘butterflies’ sensation experienced by many whumpers when they read whump works. But I’m also talking about other emotions similar to the ones experienced by audiences in other genres—the heart-pangs of viewing someone falling to their knees with grief, or the fear or dread (or excitement) when realising the poor whumpee is about to get hurt even more. It’s not so much that whump works can or do elicit these sensations or emotions, but that they are often created specifically in order to elicit them, and, somewhat more controversially, their success is often measured by their ability to do so. “Have you watched this scene/seen this gifset/read this story? It gave me intense whumperflies!”

There are several limitations in this argument. The first is that the other mentioned body genres are primarily film genres, or at least they’re discussed in the context of film works, while whump as we know it here is a multimedia genre consisting of written, visual, or composite work. How does this affect our hypothesis? I’m not certain, but it does bear mentioning.

The second is that horror films, pornography and melodramas have historically featured female bodies, at least as the more prominently displayed in excess. Whump works, as has been identified a number of times, primarily feature male-identified bodies. Why this is is a hotly debated topic, and whether or not this could affect whump being defined as a body genre bears investigating.

Some of the other limitations could be—'is whump really a genre at all?' Or 'can whumperflies be aligned with feelings of fear, arousal, sadness, or are those things already provoked by whump works in and of themselves, and whumperflies a separate phenomenon?' As well as more I’m sure, but those might be topics for a future post, and this is already longer than I'd wanted it to be!

For now, let me know what you think. Is whump a body genre?

[mcheang]

Bad vibes

I have no idea what this is....

With all of Lila’s bragging, is it any wonder her class tries to avoid her. She always has to top up whatever accomplishment they’ve done and make them feel small

Lila notices that the class seems to have nothing to want to do with her. She suspects Marinette and asks if they believe that she is a liar.

The rest assure her that is not the case

Lila: then why is everyone avoiding me?

Alix: because you won’t stop bragging. You keep butting into others’ spotlight and won’t give the rest of us our time to shine.

Lila gasped, fake tears on her face. “I just wanted to say I could introduce you to my friends in the fields you are interested in.”

Mylène: don’t take this the wrong way Lila. But that only needs one sentence. We don’t need (or want) to hear your whole story

Lila apologized and promised to never outshine others again. Her phrasing was a lot more tactful.

This didn’t feed Lila’s need for attention. So if she cannot outshine others, she can just find more audience.

And true, other students were interested about this well-connected girl. It seemed like she was friends with every celebrity they were interested in.

Unfortunately, the students had better things to do than spend their free time listening to Lila talk. After the first or second time, each eventually moved on.

Rumors spread that Lila was the girl who knew every celebrity and that she didn’t mind telling gossip about them.

Giselle loved all kinds of gossip but even she got tired of Lila’s non-stop blather.

Giselle: is it alright if you write a blog about all your adventures? Because reading would be a lot faster.

Actually, why didn’t Lila think of that before?

She started her own blog: Lila’s Life that included photoshopped selfies of her with celebrities, fake links to her charity drives, and (for once) genuine accounts of different cultures

Giselle thoroughly enjoyed the gossip and told her sister about it.

Giselle’s sister frowned. It’s a fanciful blog but where’s the plot?

Giselle: she’s not some YA heroine, sis. This is her real life.

Giselle’s sister snorted. Yeah right. Haven’t you been fooled enough by accounts pretending to be celebrities? How can you believe such nonsense?

Giselle: why is it so hard to believe? Lila’s from the akuma class. They may be akumatized a lot but they do have connections.

Giselle’s sister: yeah, but this blog is just unbelievable. You’re telling me that some diplomat’s daughter is friends with over 100 celebrities? I bet that model Adrien doesn’t even know that many personally. And he also travels for work, mind you. He is much more likely to meet celebrities than a diplomat’s daughter.

Giselle frowned. True...

Giselle’s sister: and if she’s really friends with celebrities, then why don’t their official accounts follow hers, let alone follow this blog?

Giselle: ...

Giselle’s sister: don’t be so naive, little sis. I’m saying this for your own good.

But Giselle was still curious, if Lila wasn’t special, then why was she in the akuma class?

Giselle asked Marinette herself.

Marinette: please stop calling us the akuma class, we’re not all well-connected. Other classes have plenty of students with connections

Giselle: Adrien and Chloé are children of well known public figures. You design for Jagged Stone. Kitty Section performed on TV. Nathaniel has his own comic series. Nino is a working DJ. Alya is known for her blog. Need I say more? Everyone in your class is known for something.

Marinette: maybe Lila is a future actress.

Giselle: then why isn’t she in the drama club?

Actually that was a really good question.

Marinette even went to Lila to ask why she didn’t join the drama club since she is so good at acting and wants to be famous. It was a truce moment.

Lila: you think I don’t know I would ace every audition? I was the star of every drama club I joined. But that’s all. My mother would never consider the idea of letting me tryout for real film roles or theatre productions. We would not be able to stay in the area for that long.

Marinette: but from what I heard, your mother is barely at home. Why can’t she let you stay in a country by yourself?

Lila: because I’m still too young for that. And why bother getting lead role admiration when I get more gratifying ones with my lies.

Marinette: except your audience is tired of the whole “Me, Myself and I” routine.

Lila shrugged: I have back up plans (aka donation scams)

Marinette was trying to see some good in Lila. “Did you ever audition for small films.”

Lila: I go big or go home.

Marinette: Alya’s blog isn’t exactly what I would call big...

Lila shrugged. “It still received a lot of attention. Besides, I’ve seen the others act. For the record, you sound wooden when you were about to kiss Adrien.”

Marinette bristled and tried to rein in her temper. “Why not audition for Nino’s upcoming film project? Isn’t it better to be famous for something you actually did than to be popular over lies that will eventually get discovered”

Lila: I was going to anyway.

Marinette: and by the way, aren’t you worried about haters when your lies are exposed?

Lila: celebrities have haters too. It doesn’t bother me. I’ll be gone by then. Your plan to get me to stop lying isn’t going to work. So I would quit now if I were you.

Marinette sighed. She tried.

Lila did attempt her donation scam thing, only by now Giselle had spread the word that Lila was possibly a liar. It also didn’t help that she went to her blog and realized the donation link was a scam.

Lila blamed Marinette for it but the class pointed out that her endless tales were just getting too ridiculous to be believable.

[nonasuch]

Today I listened to the Rent cast album for the first time in... a number of years, and it sure does hit differently now that I’m an adult and not an extremely sheltered suburban tween.

(the first time I heard any of the songs was at Jewish sleepaway camp in the Poconos. yes, really. we sang it on hikes. the girl who actually owned the cast album was in a different bunk, so I exclusively heard the ‘as sung by 12-14 year old girls’ version until I got home. yes, the lyrics were bowdlerized)

anyway! some notes:

Mark’s mom is still very funny and her voicemail is, perhaps, the most realistic thing in this musical.

I was definitely well into my 20s before I noticed that a Tom Collins is also a cocktail? whoops

wow but Benny looks different to me that he did when I was younger. like. the things his friends are mad at him for are Very Different from the things he does that are actually bad?

actually let me break this down.

Things Benny’s Friends Are Mad At Him For:

leaving them behind to marry a bougie lady

gentrification

‘stealing’ Mimi from Roger

Things Benny Does That Are Genuinely Bad:

cheats on his wife with a 19-year-old HIV+ heroin addict

okay, yeah, gentrification, I’ll grant you that

Things Benny Does That Are Good, Actually:

lets his friends live in the building he owns rent-free for a year

pays for Mimi’s rehab

left what must have been an absolute nightmare of a living situation, to marry a bougie lady

seriously can you imagine what that apartment was like

an unheated squat occupied by Benny, Mark, Roger, Collins, and Maureen? nope, no thank you

also Roger has only been clean for six months at the start of the musical, so he was still a full-blown heroin addict when Benny left

actually I would bet that the sequence of events went: April kills herself (IN THEIR BATHROOM) -> Roger spirals even further -> Benny gets the fuck out of there

and tbh good for him

anyway

I don’t love that they make the same “Maureen is a lesbian now, lol” joke twice in the space of like five minutes

the timeline of “Maureen dumps Mark, keeps him as her production manager for a month, then replaces him two days before her show” is... bad. Mark, you have a noodle for a spine.

Joanne’s parents’ voicemail: also still funny. “and wear a bra!” is perfect.

btw Joanne and Mark are both clearly slumming so idk why it’s only bad when Benny does it

hey it’s actually very fucked up that Angel killed Benny’s dog???

not sure when I first noticed this, but Mark, Roger and Collins all use he/him pronouns for Angel, and Mimi, Joanne and Maureen use she/her. huh.

“I’ll Cover You” is still extremely good.

Collins and Joanne are the only adults in this musical.

“Over the Moon” is a perfect parody of bad performance art, so props for that

oh good, “La Vie Boheme” still slaps

I have a lot more sympathy for the Life Cafe waitstaff than I used to, though

btw please envision 13-year-old me, on a hike in the Pennsylvania woods, with 20 other 13-year-olds who are all word-perfect on “La Vie Boheme” but definitely don’t know what a dildo is and kind of mumble their way through the swears.

god I loved “Take Me Or Leave Me” so much as a kid but WOW Maureen would be a nightmare to date IRL

tbh everyone except Collins and Angel should just like. be single for a while. take some time to work on themselves.

you know what, my decision to skip “Contact” on most play-throughs was both correct and, in retrospect, a Big Ace Mood

unsurprisingly, the reprise of “I’ll Cover You” still makes me tear up.

“What You Own” isn’t bad, as such, but it does make me roll my eyes at both Mark and Roger. Especially Mark. my dude, you have by far the fewest problems of any of your friends, and you need to take it down a notch.

the little moment where Mark corrects “Muffy” to “Alison” is really interesting to me? the implication is that they know her well enough now to feel bad about the nickname. I choose to believe that Alison is actually way too good for Benny and his friends all come to recognize that.

aw, Roger. “Your Eyes” is very heartfelt. it’s not good, but it’s heartfelt.

I still like the finale a lot, but boy, these kids have a LOT of problems, huh.

hm apparently I have extensive opinions about what would happen to the characters over the next 25 years.

okay just right off the bat: I doubt that Mimi lives more than a year. sorry! but her odds are Not Good

I would like to think that Roger makes it a little longer than Mimi -- at least long enough to record an album

does Benny bankroll the album and get him a record deal, out of guilt? probably.

does Roger, when he dies, leave the IP and royalties to Mark anyway? also probably

his album reaches a Jeff Buckleyesque level of posthumous cult fame, which is nice for him

sometimes he is featured in listicles about 12 Artists Who Recorded Their Last Albums As They Died

assuming Alison doesn’t leave his dumb ass, I would like to think that Benny chills the fuck out and learns some empathy once they have kids

regrettably, he probably does manage to become a dot-com billionaire

Joanne is 100% married and living in DC by today, and she and her wife both work on the Hill. I can guarantee that they send their kids to either Sidwell Friends or the Maret School. maybe Duke Ellington for high school

Maureen has joined a cult at least once and has almost no contact with her friends from her New York days 

I bet she’s the only one who actually lives in the Southwest now

she goes to Burning Man every year without fail

Mark has never made a commercially successful film

he still lives in New York, though

mostly because the royalties from Roger’s lone album let him buy into a co-op before he could get priced out of Manhattan

some of his old footage has made its way into various documentaries, most recently on Netflix

in his free time he volunteers at an after-school program where he teaches filmmaking to at-risk youth

they keep trying to get him on tik-tok but he doesn’t understand what that is

Collins is happy, healthy, gainfully employed in meaningful work, and in love.

FIN

[meltwonu]

| 🍒 CH-CH-CHERRY BOMB! 🍒 |     [CHAPTER 𝟙𝟛]

pairing; dom!seungcheol x camgirl!reader

this chapter’s notes; camshow, breeding kink, sir!kink, pet play(kitten), v small amt of anal play, dirty talk!!! HAPPY FRIDAY THE 𝟙𝟛TH! 😗💕 Here we are with ch 13 on Friday the 13th, I didn't even realize it but man my ✨brain✨just planned that out so perfectly LOL 💕 I just wanna apologize for any grammatic/spelling errors in this one and it’s a bit shorter... I tried to proofread this all day but I'm also watching unus annus’s livestream at the same time and my peabrain cannot multitask but I TRIED!! let it be known 😩😭 Anyway, I hope ya’ll have a great weekend, stay hydrated and safe! Enjoy~! 🍒 

chapters; 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 - 11 - 12 - 13 - ?

alphagyu97: oh fuck oh fuck

alphagyu97 has donated $100

hoshi_tiger_xx: oh??? Cute lil kitten ears????

A moan floats past your lips as you sit in Seungcheol’s lap; his cock already snug inside of you before you’d even turned the camera on. “Ah, ye--yeah, we thought we’d, mmh, try--try something n-new…”

Seungcheol smirks although neither you nor the camera catch it as he holds you still. Much like before, he’d started working you up before you got on camera and this time he’d asked you to sink down onto his cock and wait patiently until it was time to begin; neither of you saying a word or moving an inch as he peppered kisses along your shoulders and neck.  “Why don’t you show them your cute ‘lil tail, kitten? It’s getting squished between our bodies...”

universe_WZ: yes yes yes

tangerine_kwan: show us your cute tail princess

therealchan99: thank u for the pics btw i scream abt them every 30 minutes

therealchan99 has donated $50

You reach a shaky hand behind your back for the fluffy material as you show it off to the camera to the best of your ability; making sure to not move it around too much or else you knew you’d cum too soon. “I, ah, it’s--it’s keeping me s-so full…” He makes you answer a few more comments as you sit on his cock; blunt nails digging into the skin of your waist when he feels you trying to get him to move.

artist8hao: so so so pretty baby

kitty_junjun: cute little kitty

kitty_junjun: should come and play sometime ;)

xcaliburDK has donated $75

The way Seungcheol has you in his lap is a little uncomfortable for you and he quickly takes notice of the way you start to squirm more and more with each comment or question you reply to. “Kitten, it looks like you hit your donation minimum already. Should we start?” He coos.

You can only nod in return as you squint your eyes to check the laptop screen to see how you were doing. “Ngh, p-please… I--I’m so f-full I can’t wait any l-longer…” Whining, you clench around his cock and the toy as he chuckles lightly behind you. He’d purposely asked if the two of you could sit further back on the bed and further from the camera and laptop and you’d raised an eyebrow but agreed.

“Sorry, the angle’s not going to be very good for this but you’ll understand why.” Seungcheol comments.

The laptop screen is full of questioning comments and donations that beg Seungcheol to hurry up and fuck you.

His grip on your waist tightens a little before he’s slowly lifting you off of his cock and you let out a disappointed noise when he’s completely pulled out. “Nooo~ I w-want--”

“Ah, ah, I know what you want, kitten. But you need to get on your hands and knees for me. Facing the camera.”

Oooh, that’s why he wanted space.

You nod frantically as you easily get comfortable on your hands and knees in front of the camera and laptop; fluffy tail resting against your spine as the bell on your collar jingles.

alphagyu97: oh god please breed her

angelhan: yes god please

Seungcheol kneels behind you; already easing his cock back into your tight pussy as you mewl straight into the camera. “Our cute little kitten is already squeezing my cock so tight…”

You feel his fingertips on your skin before he’s reaching for the fluffy tail and he gives it a small tug as you whine and whimper in return.

“No, no pl--please, sir, I’ll cum if, ah, you p-play with my--my tail!”

Your eyes clamp shut just as Seungcheol starts to play with the anal plug; tugging on it and moving it slightly in order to get you to squirm a little more before he gives you want you wanted. He smirks at your back as he hears the sound of donations and comments flooding the screen in rapid succession.

“Oh? But they seem to like when I play with you like this.” You clench around Seungcheol and the toy, small cries on your lips when your sensitive body already wants to give in to the pleasure. “So fuckin’ pretty with your cute tail and ears and your pretty ‘lil collar on.”

chwenon: shes gonna cum so fast lol

gentleman_josh95: i kno, u can already tell she wants to

hoshi_tiger_xx has donated $50

xcaliburDK has donated $50

sleepy_wonu: look at her cute fuckin face while she tries to not cum haha

Seungcheol draws his hips back slightly before slowly thrusting into you from behind; fingertips still playing with the tail as he moves it around in tandem with his slow thrusts. “Oh kitten, you’re so fuckin’ wet for me, baby~” You can only moan back in response as you resist the urge to meet his slow movements with your own, much quicker ones.

“Ah, s-sir, please…”

tangerine_kwan: so cute when she's whiningggg

angelhan: dont give into her so easily~ make her work for it ;)

kitty_junjun: aww but shes so cute like this

Your fingertips dig into the bed sheets and you peel your eyes open as you attempt to read off the comments flying across the screen. “Mmh, ‘m so full… and sir won’t s-stop playing, ah, with my--my tail…” You can see Seungcheol’s form behind you on the screen, hips slowly moving as he plays with the tail.

You slowly find yourself moving with him and meeting his thrusts; chasing your pleasure as Seungcheol seemingly takes his time.

“Ngh, s-sir, can I c-cum?”

Seungcheol grins at your back, suddenly picking up the pace as he finally leaves the anal plug alone. “I don’t know, can you? Why don’t you ask them?” You blink your hazy eyes at the camera before flitting towards the comments section of your camshow.

“P-please tell s-sir to, mmh, let m-me cum…” You beg; unintentionally sending the comments section and donations into a flurry of yes’s and no’s.

artist8hao: let her cum but dont let it be the only time

alphagyu97: aww princess dont forget he still needs to breed your cute lil cunt

universe_WZ: she can cum but she still needs to be a good girl and let sir get what he wants

“Mmh, of--of course I, ah, w-want sir to b-breed my pussy… I, hah, want his--his cum i-inside of m-me…” You start working your hips back as you meet Seungcheol’s pace that speeds up at your words and the two of you fall into a rhythm as he works to get you off first. His hands grip your waist as he angles his thrusts to tap your g-spot and you mewl and whine in response; careful to not accidentally call Seungcheol’s name in the midst of the moment.

“Fuh--fuck, sir, ‘m g-gonna cum… please…”

“Cum whenever you want, kitten.”

You nod shakily; head falling forward as you let yourself get lost in the pleasure.

Your eyes flutter shut as various thoughts flood your mind. The main one being how seamlessly Seungcheol fit into your camshows and how much easier it was to film with him than you ever anticipated. The two of you easily forgot that the camera was even rolling most of the time, whether it was live or pre-recorded for your channel and now that he was always with you, it was hard to imagine filming without him.

“Ah, kitten, your cute ‘lil cunt is, ah, sucking me in deeper… You must really want my cum, huh?”

His words bring you out of your thoughts as you bite your lip. “Mmhmm, I w-want sir to c-cum, hah,  inside my p-pussy and b-breed me… wanna be, ngh, filled with your---your cum…”

“Why don’t we cum together then, hmm? Bet you wanna feel my cock throbbing in your cute ‘lil cunt, huh, kitten?”

The warmth blooms inside of you as you nod; cheeks hot as you peer straight into the camera. You readjust slightly, the bell on your collar tinkling as the set of cat ears on your head slip slightly. “Y-yes, sir… Please cum w-with me…”

Seungcheol doubles his pace and you quickly feel one of his hands leaving your body as he wraps his hand around the fluffy tail again. He starts to move it around again, slightly tugging on it as you cry out. “Ah, s-sir!”

chwenon has donated $75

angelhan has donated $50

universe_WZ has donated $100

artist8hao has donated $75

“Fuh--fuck, sir, please! P-please breed me, please, ah, c-cum inside m-my little cunt and--and fill m-me up with your c-cum!”

Tears blur your vision as you’re quickly thrown over the edge and into an orgasm; ears ringing when your entire body goes rigid. Seungcheol finds it harder and harder to thrust into you as your walls flutter around his cock and he soon finds himself cumming with you too; cock throbbing as he unloads all of him cum inside you. “Oh, fuck, kitten…” He moans; eyes rolling to the back of his head as he lets the pleasure wash over himself as well.

The sound of donations and comments drown out your soft cries and Seungcheol’s deep groans and you’re almost positive that you’d made at least a couple thousand off of tonight’s show.

alphagyu97: holy shit look at her face, fuck

kitty_junjun: is she crying?

hoshi_tiger_xx: damn, shes so drunk on cock shes crying

therealchan99: aww poor kitten~

You let out a stuttered breath as your body starts to relax; soft sniffles following right after. “Ngh… sir…”

Seungcheol smiles softly when he hears the way your voice trembles and he’s gentle to slide his cock from inside your cunt; groaning when his cum immediately drips down onto the sheets from how much he’d cum inside you.

“Ah, kitten, what a waste. How am I supposed to breed your ‘lil cunt if you’re letting my cum spill out of you already?”

You lick your lips and despite the tiredness, a new wave of arousal pours over your body at the thought of Seungcheol cumming inside of you a second time. You shake your hips; foggy eyes staring straight into the camera.

“You’re just going to, ah, cum inside me again… and let e-everyone watch...”

The next morning, Seungcheol drives you over to the diner to start your first real day at work and you feel downright nervous once the car stops. You’d gotten so used to camming and being alone that this new foray into normalcy was making you think twice, even just momentarily.

“You gonna be okay?” He turns to you, concern obvious on his face when your eyes meet his. “I can always take you straight home or take you back to the roller rink with me if you d--”

“No! No, I wanna do this... I know we made a lot of money off of the show last night but... But I think this’ll be good for me. Both of us working so we can afford rent ‘n stuff!” 

“We should like a married couple.” Seungcheol jokes. 

Your cheeks burn hot at his comment as you bite your lip. “Ehehe~” 

Seungcheol grins at you, hands still on the steering wheel. “Just let me know if you need anything, okay? I always have my phone on me anyway, Namjoon doesn’t really care.” 

The two of you share a laugh as you slowly reach for the door handle. 

“I will, I promise!” 

“I still do not get why you want to work here.” 

Jun laughs, hands on his hips as he watches you adjust the short dress uniform you’d put on, moments before. 

“It’s just... something to keep me occupied, is all.” Smoothing down your uniform, you do a small spin for Jun who nods back in approval. “And I wanna make friends! Aren’t we friends?” 

Jun’s eyes twinkle with playfulness as he gestures you over to the front of the diner. “Of course we are! Which by the way...” He pauses, looking over the relatively full diner to make sure nobody caught your conversation. “Is... Seungcheol-hyung okay with y’know... You working here and me... Being one of your viewers leaving comments ‘n stuff?” 

A genuine look of concern crosses his features as he waits for you to respond. 

You puff your cheeks as you think, “I think so? I mean he hasn’t...” Memories of Seungcheol saying he’d kick Jun’s ass immediately flood your mind as you laugh nervously. 

“Y-yeah, he didn’t say a word!” 

After two hours, you decide to take your 15 minute break; waving to Jun before you head towards the employee backroom to grab your phone. 

You check your notifications, surprise on your face when you see Seungcheol’s already messaged you a few times. 

cheollie ✨: have a good day!

cheollie ✨: u okay over there, baby?

cheollie ✨: dont feel pressured to answer asap lol 

You laugh under your breath, typing up a response as you take a seat in the break room.

‘It’s been going okay! I’m taking a short break right now tho!’

Shockingly, Seungcheol response only after a few seconds.

cheollie ✨: oh, thats good! I take it no issues?

‘Nope! my feet kinda hurt tho lol’

He asks you a few more questions; one about Jun keeping his distance, to which you shake your head and laugh. 

cheollie ✨: you never showed me your uniform btw 😏

You let out a noise of realization, fingertips already swiping through your phone to get to your photos as you send him one that you’d taken earlier. 

‘How's it look? 🥺’

It goes quiet for a couple minutes and you half-wonder if Seungcheol got in trouble for having his phone out. 

‘Cheol, u ok?’

cheollie ✨: is it bad I'm already thinking about lifting that cute little skirt up 

cheollie ✨: fucking you nice and hard with your panties just pushed to the side

cheollie ✨: fuck, and making you go back to work with your pussy filled with my cum 

A shiver rolls down your spine at his words; gulping as you check the time for how much you had left before you had to get back out onto the floor. 

‘what if I bend over and someone sees my panties all wet n soaked thru with ur cum...’

cheollie ✨: then they’d know you’re mine. 

cheollie ✨: I mean most of your viewers already know that 

cheollie ✨: but I want everyone to know, yknow?

cheollie ✨: god the way I wanna fuck you on the hood of my car

cheollie ✨: your cute little whines while you try to keep quiet 

You let out a shaky, quiet moan; thighs rubbing together when you notice you only have about three more minutes before your break was up. 

‘Cheol... I have to get back to work 😭 how could you get me horny before I have to get back...’ 

You pout your lips at your phone screen as you wait for his response.

cheollie ✨: 😈 

cheollie ✨: I have an idea 

cheollie ✨: for later 

cheollie ✨: I hope you can wear your uniform home 

cheollie ✨: see u in a few hours baby 

[dramaqueeenamby]

Waves: Quarantine

A/N: It's been way too long since I've done something for the Wavesverse, and I apologize deeply. I have a few requests related to this series to complete, but I couldn't knock this idea.

Words: 4K

Warnings: None

Tags: @babe-im-bi @notacamelthatsmywife @missyperle @queenoftheworldisdead @tashawar @valkryienymph @letsshamelessqueen-m @hello-therree @mani-lifes @liquorlaughslove @toni9 @koko-michelle @theequeenofcurses @taylortheeshowpony

Waves

Summer placed her phone inside of the mount and made sure that it was secured before she sat back in her bed, getting comfortable with the mass of pillows supporting her back, and smiling tentatively. “Hi, guys.”

Summer!

Someone tell me this isn’t a joke???? Please???

She lives!

Sis, blink twice if you need help.

Summer rolled her eyes. “Ya’ll better stop. I know it’s been a minute since I’ve hopped on live, but it hasn’t been that damn long.”

Summer continued to read the comments where more than a few people pointed out she hadn’t gone live on Instagram in over three months. Her mouth dropped. “Ya’ll lying. It has not been almost six months, has it?” She placed her hand over her mouth when people started dropping dates in the comments. “Okay, I stand corrected. Damn, I’m sorry, guys.”

Don’t be sorry, bestie. Do better!

Damn, ya’ll are so entitled. Celebrities have lives too.

What life? We all been in quarantine.

Rich people quarantine be different from us poor folks, I guess.

“So that’s actually one of the things I wanted to talk about.” Summer cleared her throat. “And I’m going to try really hard to make sure I word what I want to say as clear and as effective as I can, but I know this is still going to end up as a salacious headline. So, it is what it is.”

Oooh, Summer about to drop some tea.

I don’t see her wedding ring, ya’ll…..

I’m scared omg.

Watch this be nothing but a role announcement.

She shrugged and took a deep breath. “Okay, so a few days ago, I did the Buss It challenge, after being harassed by Sanda. And can I just say that filming was a challenge in and of itself? Not necessarily the movements but preparing? I’ve got two kids, twins, who are like the Tasmanian devil. I was literally up at 3 something in the morning trying to record it because my wild children won’t let me be great.” She chuckled. “Kids are something else.”

Summer truly jumped through hoops and was a damn near acrobat trying to figure out when she could not only get herself done up but actually record the challenge. Being the perfectionist that she was didn’t help, but the fact that she couldn’t recall the last time she’d put on makeup and dressed up was a whole other fiasco.

Quarantine definitely brought out her bum side.

“All of that aside, I truly was satisfied and happy with the final product when I posted it. In hindsight, I should have just left it that, but I wake up every day and choose chaos, so I decided to read the comments.” She blew out a breath. “One of the most frequent comments and really, insults, I’ve received my whole career. Primarily, since I was cast as Storm, revolves around how I look. I.e., my weight. I’ve been called fat, obese, out of shape, and so many other things.”

It was 100% true. The minute Marvel announced that she’d been chosen to play Storm, the racists came all out of the woodworks. She was too short, too chubby, too dark, too black. And Summer didn’t care, not a bit.

“Even,—and I’ll tell you guys this, when I first started my SS training, that’s what I call it, SS for Storm Shape, there was a—person who worked for Marvel at the time who came to visit me while I was training.” She smiled thinking back on that day. She could still recall it so clearly. “He basically was pissed because to him, I still looked the same, fat and out of shape.” She adjusted her top and shifted in her bed. “That same day, I deadlifted and bench-pressed over 200lbs” She paused for effect. “What I need for people to stop doing is stop fucking projecting—and I’m going to cuss in this, so if you don’t like it, oh well. I work for Disney, but I’m a grown ass woman, and I’m going to say what I want.”

I am screaming. Summer said we getting alll the tea today!

So, it’s wrong to point out that someone is physically unhealthy now, cool?

The problem is that no one wants to see a fat superhero. It’s not realistic.

^^^^ Tell me you have a small dick without actually telling me you have a small dick.

“I saw Lizzo, whom I adore, post a Tik Tok where she basically said that she workouts to have the body she wants not what ya’ll want, and honestly? Same. She said that her body type is no one’s fucking business, and that’s so true. Ya’ll love to hop on this internet and pick apart people you don’t even know and criticize bodies you don’t even have to live in and move around with. And for what?” She shook her head, slamming her fist into her open palm as she spoke. She was fully invested now. “I know we in quarantine, but damn, pick another hobby cause being a bully is not it, sweetie.”

I really needed to hear this today.

Using Lizzo as a point of reference makes everything you’re saying null and void. Lizzo is clearly overweight and at risk for diabetes, heart disease, just to name a few…..

I been saying this! You can’t look at a person and say they’re unhealthy.

Bodies come in so many forms, and all are beautiful.

“Now, I bring all this up because a lot of people were commenting on my Buss It challenge and pointing out the fact that I’ve gained weight, and guess fucking what? I have, and you know what else?” She leaned over to whisper while covering her mouth with her hands for focused effect. “I don’t care.”

Summer laughed and shook her head. “As others have pointed out as well, yes, we have a gym in our house. I 1000% acknowledge the fact that having the resources that I do as a celebrity and someone who has money puts me in a different category. Hell, my husband has a whole fitness app. I recognize that. If I wanted to keep up with my workouts, emphasis on wanted, I could have. I own up to that, but I just didn’t feel like it, and that’s okay. What’s not okay is to send and leave mean messages calling me all kinds of names.”

Summer had thick skin. She always had. Growing up with her family, who always ensured to feed her self esteem and make sure she knew that she was beautiful, definitely paid off. It was just a combination of quarantine and not having a lot of opportunities to keep herself busy with work that had her feeling some type of way.

“And that’s something else I wanted to bring up.” She blew out another breath and tried to gather her emotions. This was the subject she was almost certain she’d grow teary eyed discussing. “I love my husband to death. My children are everything. Christopher’s family is like my own, but— I haven’t seen my family, like my mom, grandma, brothers, etc in almost a year.” She paused, dwelling on that. Almost an entire year since she’d been able to physically hug and interact with the people who made her who she was. “And I’ve always made it clear how much I fucking love my family. I live in Australia. I can’t do a drive by with grandma so I and my kids can at least see her on the doorstep.” She quieted again, eyes darting off as she quietly cursed. “I’m trying really hard not to cry right now.”

Please don’t cry, bestie.

This is the side of quarantine that people don’t talk about enough.

Has this woman never heard of FaceTime????

I feel her pain. I live in Europe, and my family is in the states. This quarantine has been brutal.

My grandma died from COVID, and I couldn’t even go to the funeral. Summer is bringing up a good point.

“Damn,” Summer chuckled bitterly and wiped at the tears that fell. “I’m okay, I promise. I just bring this up because quarantine has also been very hard for me in that aspect. At certain points, I’ve been down, I’ve been in my head a lot, and I just was not, for the most part, in a space where I felt like I had to keep up my fitness regimen. And that’s okay. I put my mental wellbeing ahead of making sure my body is socially acceptable. Sue me.”

I really appreciate her honesty.

Summer never goes beyond surface level in interviews, so seeing her this vulnerable is really surprising.

Are we supposed to feel bad for her? She’s rich. She can afford whatever help she needed.

These comments are not passing the vibe check.

Ya’ll are all mental health advocates, but when a black woman is opening up about her struggle, it’s discarded?

“And let me make this clear too, I have an amazing husband who is so patient and so kind. He’s one of the best people I can go to when my anxiety hits, so I don’t want this to come across as me complaining that I’ve been alone. I have him and our children. I just miss the rest of my family. That’s all.” She dried her eyes and started to read the comments, unsurprised by the mixed reaction. She expected as such and was unaffected. At least until she saw one comment.

@ChrisEvans: ❤️❤️❤️

“Evans!” Summer wasn’t expecting to see his name pop up. It’d been such a task convincing him to join IG, let alone teaching him how to operate it. “Let’s go live.”

Not my husband and wife in my head about to go live!!!!

Imagine being able to call Chris Evans your best friend

I still say they smashed idc

It’s Christopher Jamal Evans hopping on this live for me.

^^^ I’m so sick of y’all with that shit.

“Let me try to add him,” Summer spoke to herself, scrolling through the comments to find his so she could request him. “Alright, I requested him. Let’s see if he answers.”

She wondered if she should have sent him a text asking if he was available when he appeared on her screen, effectively splitting it with her on the top and him on the bottom.

“Punk.”

“Kid.”

Summer smiled and greeted, “Hi, best friend.”

He chuckled. “How you doing, Summer?”

“Clearly not as good as the people watching,” she chimed. Summer saw nothing but heart eyes and hearts in the comments. “These people really love you. You truly are a manipulative bastard. He’s an asshole, guys.”

“Don’t be jealous, Summer. It’s so unbecoming of you.”

“You can go to hell.”

“Language,” he playfully reprimanded. “Where are the kids?”

“At preschool. Things are finally starting to open back up over here. Thank God.” She clasped her hands together. “Y’all, please wear masks. Don’t be Karen’s.”

Chris laughed, grabbing his chest. “We’re getting there, Summer.”

“The lies you tell,” she countered. “Don’t A Starting Point, me. Ya’ll are far from getting there, and I’m tired of it. I wanna see my family.”

He sighed. “I know, but how are you feeling today?”

“I got rid of the kids, so that’s definitely a weight lifted,” she answered honestly, laughing when she saw judgmental comments in the chat. “Listen, if you’re a parent, you know where I’m coming from. You love your kids, but my god, sometimes you just need some space.”

“As soon as this all blows over, I told you to send em’ by me for a couple of weeks.”

“Best friend, I already purchased their tickets.” He laughed. “As soon as I get the green light, they are all yours. Feel free to keep them.”

“You guys see how she is?” He pointed to Summer, leaning and squinting to read what was being said. “I do love kids, especially the twins, they’re amazing.”

“He is really really great with them, guys,” Summer added. “One thing about Evans, he’s patient as hell and really, just a big kid. Why do you think him and Christopher get along so well? 40 going on 4.”

“I resent that.”

“Is it a lie though?”

He hesitated. “No.” They both laughed.

I’m loving the dynamic between these two so much.

Is it just me or are they flirting with each other…..

Ain’t nothing inappropriate about this conversation. Ya’ll are reaching…

Ya’ll remember that blind item that came out years ago alleging Chris (Evans) was the biological father of the twins? Hmm…..

^^^^^This kind of bullshit is the reason we’re in a global pandemic.

As always, Summer and Evans ignored any foolery that was being dropped in the comments when she caught a comment that didn’t contain some ridiculous rumor.

“Yes, it is true that Evans and Christopher weren’t allowed to do press together anymore. Ya’ll, they literally could not stay serious for more than a minute. I felt so bad for the poor interviewers.”

“Hey, we were not that bad,” Evans protested, his Boston accent more prominent.

She gasped. “You guys were terrible, Evans, and you know it. I was so mad when they put me with ya’ll those few times. I could barely hear the interviewers over your laughing and stupid commentary that literally no one asked for.”

“We did not.”

“There’s deadass video proof, Evans.”

“Fake news.”

She opened her mouth but caught herself. “I was about to say something.”

He laughed and asked, “Do you remember how we all got drunk before the Infinity War premiere?”

“No, ya’ll got drunk. I was big and pregnant, remember?”

“No,” he dismissed. “You were drinking with us.”

“Evans, how was I drinking when I was pregnant?” She challenged and reminded. “I got drunk with ya’ll for the Endgame premiere, not Infinity War.”

“That’s right,” he remembered and chuckled. “You think we’ll get in trouble for saying this?”

She shrugged with one shoulder. “You’re dead, Christopher never gets in trouble for anything, and I do what I want. I think we’re good.”

Kevin Feige watching this live right now like 🥴🥴🥴🥴

I never realized how arrogant she is……

LMAO. Not the whole cast showing up drunk to the biggest premiere of their lives.

Chris Evans is too damn fine to be approaching 40 and still single.

Their friendship is so goals omg

@ChrisHemsworth: Snitches

Summer’s jaw dropped as she caught the last comment, swiping up to click the name and make sure that she was reading correctly. “Christopher, what the hell are you doing on my live?”

Evans brows furrowed. “Hemmy is here? Shouldn’t he be working?”

“That’s what I want to know,” Summer supplied. “And how long have you been watching?”

@ChrisHemsworth: Long enough.

She smiled nervously and looked off to the side. “I feel weird now. I don’t like when he watches my lives.”

“Aren’t you guys married?”

“Aren’t you supposed to be shutting the fuck up?”

Evans lifted his hands in a defensive manner. “Touchy subject, I see.” They shared another laugh as he cleared his throat. “Why don’t you add him now? I’m supposed to be helping Scott cook.”

“My favorite Evans,” she gushed and furrowed her brows. “You, cooking? Since when?”

“Get out of here.” He waved her off and reminded. “I’m not the one who constantly causes near fires when in the kitchen.”

“So, you really just putting all my business out there like that?”

“Summer, it’s not secret to anyone that you can’t cook for shit.”

“Wow, it really be your own best friends.”

He chuckled. “Love you, kid.”

“Love you too, punk,” she blew a kiss. “I’ll text ya’ later.”

“Alright.” He smiled for the camera. “Thanks for having me everyone.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” she said jokingly. Evans and Summer said goodbye one last time before he left the live. She blew out a breath and ran her hand through her hair. “Baby, comment something so I can add you. It’s too many comments to wade through.”

Summer adjusted her phone and checked the time on the clock on the wall. It’d been a while since the kids were away at school, and she didn’t want to get so caught up that she was late picking them up.

@ChrisHemsworth: I can’t. I’m too drunk.

Summer released a mixture of a laugh and a snort reading his comment. “You are so damn petty.” She clicked his name and adjusted her outfit while waiting for him to answer. She almost cursed when it seemed like he wasn’t going to join, only for her to smile when his face appeared on her screen.

“Hi,” she greeted in a soft voice with a small smile.

“Hello, Sandcastle.”

“Did you just—I swear to god, it’s always something with you.” Summer rubbed her temples and shook her head. Christopher smiled in response. “Why aren’t you working?”

“I am.”

“You are?”

“Yes.”

“If you’re working, how are you talking to me?” She asked, sassily.

“Umm, a little thing called multitasking, ever heard of it?”

“Wow. You are an asshole.”

“That’s mean.”

“You’re mean.”

“Christopher, you are literally a child.”

“Does a child have muscles like this?” He flexed, and Summer stilled. Christopher stayed in ridiculous shape, but this was another level. He’d never been this massive, and she wasn’t too proud to admit that. Just not aloud.

She faked a yawn. “Am I supposed to be impressed?”

They really just be roasting each other all the time, and I’m here for it.

Summer must be legally blind because this man is stupid fine tf

It’s gotta be steroids. That’s not natural.

^^^^^He’s the god of thunder.

Summer rolled her eyes at the typical nature of the comments. These were the reasons she limited her time on social media and especially stayed away from reading the comments. Her attention was redirected to the top of her phone. It was a text from Christopher asking her to call him.

“But we’re—oh, I get it.” She realized he wanted to talk to her, not her and her tens of millions of followers. “Alright, guys, I’m gonna get off here so I can talk to my husband, alone.”

“She just doesn’t want to share me with you all, that’s all.”

“Don’t even start, Christopher,” she lectured while he laughed and got serious, for a minute tops.

“Hope you all are taking care and staying safe,” he spoke honestly. “And we’ll talk to you soon.”

Summer waved and smile. “Bye, guys. Remember to be kind.” Summer offered a final smile before ending the live. Closing up the app, she moved to open FaceTime and called up Christopher. He answered almost immediately. “You know I hate when you watch my Lives. Now, how much did you see?”

“Enough to know you’re coming to see me tonight.”

She laughed aloud. “Funny.”

“I’m serious, Summer.” Focusing on him, she realized that there was no humor in his voice nor his expression. Summer also noticed that he didn’t have the Thor wig on yet, which was probably why he was able to go live with her. He was waiting to get into hair and makeup. “Leave the kids with Liam. It’s not like he’s doing anything.”

“Christopher!”

“What? Is he not a professional unemployed bastard.”

Summer’s smile remained as she shook her head. “You are so mean.”

“I’ll handle the flight arrangements. You, my beautiful wife, just make sure you get on the jet so I can handle you.”

“Christopher, you’re working. People with everyday jobs don’t just up and show up to their spouses workplace because they miss them or need a break from the kids. That’s how folks get fired.”

Christopher started to move around, walking somewhere, she realized. “What are you doing?”

“Hey, Tike.”

Summer’s eyes widened slightly. “Christoper!”

“Sup, man?” Taika asked casually, as Summer laughed again. Taika Waititi was such a character.

“You mind if Summer comes up for a few days?”

“Sure, man,” he replied almost right away. “Bring the kids and chickens too.”

“I am not bringing those damn chickens,” she immediately protested.

Christopher made a sound. “Ha, so you are coming!”

“I didn’t say that.”

Taika joined Christopher so that he was in camera. “Hey, Summer, why don’t you come on join? You can have a cameo. Chickens, too.”

She rubbed her temples. Taika’s and Chris’s friendship would never not make sense to her. They were cut from the same cloth. “One, hey. Two, I was already in Ragnarok. I’m good on the cameos. Three, what is with ya’ll and those creepy looking chickens?”

“Whoa, creepy? What did the chickens ever do?”

“Exist,” Summer answered dryly. She still hadn’t forgiven Evans and Christopher for convincing her to let the kids keep those damn things. Her home was becoming more and more of a farm with each animal that joined the household.

“Tough crowd, that one, ehh?”

“Always,” Christopher agreed.

“I can hear you both,” she reminded and groaned loudly. Summer would love to spend a few days away from the kids. Chris would be working, yes, but she’d at least get some time for herself. Even better, alone adult time with her husband. That had also been a bit tricky during quarantine because of her rambunctious twins. Still, she disliked using her status as a celebrity to gain things, and this would definitely be a case of using status for pull. “I don’t know….”

Deep in her thoughts, she hadn’t realized that Chris had walked away and returned to wherever he was prior to finding Taika, most likely his trailer.

“What if you only stayed a night?” Chris tried to bargain. “The flight is only an hour and a half. That will give you more than enough time to come here, let me fix you dinner, run you a nice bath, maybe get in the good ole’ horizontal tango—”

“You know I hate when you call it that,” she reminded quietly, admitting. “That does sound nice, though.”

“Or, I can come to you—“

“Absolutely not. Christopher, you’re already doing so much back and forth as it is.” One of the good things to come out of quarantine, to Summer at least, was that it forced many people to take a much needed break. Her husband was one of those people. Christopher had been working nonstop since she met him. Project after project, film after film, many of them Marvel films, which put a whole other layer of difficulty what with the strenuous physical requirements. Even now as he shot Thor 4, he was in the best shape he’d ever been, muscles nearly tearing the cotton of his clothes. He looked amazing, but it was what they couldn’t see that she was starting to grow a little concerned over. Christopher wasn’t as young as he once was. He had to slow down, eventually.

Summer realized this would be a perfect chance to have a conversation about just that with him, which all but led her to her final decision.

“Alright,” she conceded, finger up as she made her demands. “Three days, and I stay at the house while you shoot. We may be returning to normal, but we’re still in a pandemic. I won’t go around anyone except you.”

“So I get you all to myself? Hardly consider that a stipulation.”

“And…we talk.”

“After the horizontal tango—“

“I swear to God, if you don’t stop calling it that—“

“What was that, sweetheart? I wasn’t listening.” She saw that he had paused the screen, causing Summer to remember that she hadn’t even consulted with the babysitter. “Making flight arrangements for you.”

“Shit, let me text Liam and make sure he’s available.”

“He gets reception in the box?”

“Christopher! For the last time, your brother is not living in a box.”

“Do you know that for certain?”

“Goodbye, Christopher,” she prepared to end the call before smiling softly. “I love you, Christopher, and thank you.”

He winked. “I’ll always do anything for you, Summer. Anything.” A beat. “Don’t forget to leave the clothes. You won’t need them.”

“Christopher!”

[mythologymondays]

It’s that time again, the time where we all gleefully sit down on the nearest mound and regale ourselves with totally normal Welsh tales of magical women and horses and enchanted bags, because that’s just how the Mabinogion is. Fun sources and FACTS beneath the cut, as always.

Press J on your keyboard if you hate stories about Medieval etiquette, liminality, and magic mounds.

The Prince and the Horse Girl: a temporally disconnected romance for the ages

So, the last we heard of Pwyll, he had successfully cockblocked himself into becoming best friends with Arawn, the Lord of the Underworld, which sounds like a pretty average Friday night in Cardiff, let me tell you. Anyway, Pwyll at this point is just kind of riding high on the fame that being best pals with Arawn brings, and he’s showing his friendship bracelet to everyone he meets and saying stuff like “yeah, it’s great to have the Lord of the Underworld Arawn-ed whenever I need him,” and everyone just sort of rolls their eyes good-naturedly and thinks about death.

One day, Pwyll is at his court at Arbeth, which is one of his most important courts. There’s a huge feast in front of him and all of his courtly pals are there, just chewing the fat. Pwyll tears off the leg of another whole roast pig, probably his eighth of the session, and he’s about to bite into it when he realises that everyone sat around the table is staring at him, so he puts down the pig leg really gingerly and says, “do I have hog spleen around my mouth or something?” and one of his courtly crew, who doesn’t get a name in the original text and so will henceforth be known as Brad, says, “no, my lord, but you do have practically an entire herd of pigs in your stomach, so maybe it’s time for a walk?”

Pwyll blinks at him and he’s like, “I don’t really see why I would want to go for a walk in the yucky outside when I could be sitting here and savouring delicious morsels of tenderly roasted flesh,” and Brad shrugs and says, “well, I read an article about nutrition in this scientific journal last week, and apparently it’s not actually that good for you to just eat constantly and never go outside ever,” and Pwyll is like, “no, but it’s super fun,” and Brad sighs and he’s like, “look, I wasn’t going to tell you this, just in case you got too excited, but there’s actually a mound outside,” and then Pwyll’s eyes go as wide as dinner plates and he cries, “a mound? Seriously? You’re not just fucking with me to get me to go outside?” and Brad is like, “no, there’s seriously a genuine, 100% organic mound outside, and it’s only a short walk away,” and so Pwyll pushes his chair out from under the table and he’s all, “lead the way, pal, I can’t believe you didn’t tell me sooner that there was a fucking rad mound outside, you know how much I love mounds.”

So, they all traipse outside on horseback, and lo and behold, Brad wasn’t lying. There really is an absolutely incredible mound outside, all earthy and hilly, and… look. I’ll level with you. It’s hard to get excited about a mound, but Pwyll manages it. I have no idea how. God knows I’ve tried. But anyway, he leads his merry band of lads up to the top of the mound, and they’re all about to sit down when Brad puts out a hand and stops Pwyll from doing so. Pwyll is like, “dude, stop crushing my vibe, I’m about to become sedentary on this sediment,” and Brad just shakes his head and he’s like, “bro, I need to tell you something about the mound, because I may have undersold it.”

Pwyll is obviously in complete disbelief at this point, just like, “mate, there’s no way you undersold it. It can’t get any cooler than this. It just can’t. Have you seen it?” and Brad is like, “yes, it’s a really interesting geological formation, and the topography also makes it look a bit like a butt, which is obviously super rad, but I didn’t tell you that it’s also a magic mound, because if a nobleman sits on it, one of two things will happen: either he’ll see something absolutely fantastic, like the original The Mummy film starring Brendan Fraser or a cool dog, or he’ll get maimed and mortally wounded. It’s 50/50, to be honest with you.” 

Pwyll just blinks at him, and he’s like, “dude, those are two very different things, but you know, I really can’t pass up the opportunity to see a cool dog,” and Brad says, “I need you to know that the dog was just a random example, I make no canine promises here, I can’t stress that enough,” and Pwyll just shrugs and scoffs, “whatever, dude. Anyway, if I do get totally maimed, I’ve got my posse here, and you’ll do first aid on me, won’t you?” and Brad just sort of nods nervously, because they haven’t even invented antiseptic in Medieval Wales and all their bandages are just, like, old socks drenched in ale, and they don’t have St John Ambulance to teach them all first aid because there isn’t even a J in the Welsh alphabet, and then Pwyll grits his teeth and sits down.

Almost immediately, this brilliant white horse just zooms past them, and Pwyll is like, “oh, that’s fucking sick, my dudes! I thought a dog would be cool, but a horse? Are you kidding me? It doesn’t get much better than this! Equestrian displays are my jam!” and then Brad rolls his eyes and he’s like, “my lord, did you not notice that there was a phenomenally sexy and almost certainly magic lady in gold riding that horse?” and Pwyll is like, “honestly, no, I was kind of distracted by the fetlocks, but now you come to mention it, she’s pretty attractive, I guess. Hey, do you think I could catch up with her and ask her where she got her cool horse?” 

So he gets back on his horse and he tries to catch up with the lady, but even though Pwyll’s horse was sold to him as being the fastest ride on four legs, he can’t even come close to her. He walks back to his lads, his metaphorical tail between his actual legs, and he’s like, “dudes, we’re going to formulate a plan tonight,” and then a random guy in the posse is like, “oh cool, I brought Sharpies,” and they go back to Arbeth Court and spend literally all night just drawing diagrams and equations on a tapestry of England, because that’s probably the best use for it.

The next day, they put their plan in action. Pwyll gets his youngest, fittest lad, plops him on his biggest, muscliest horse, the one that’s like an equine version of that man in Game of Thrones who keeps breaking weightlifting records and is almost definitely earmarked to play Atlas in some big budget Greek myth film, and sends him after the lady. But still, no matter how fast they ride, she’s always one step ahead of them. At one point, they almost catch up with her, but when Pwyll reaches out to stroke her silky blonde hair in a totally normal and cool way, she pulls forward again and he just fucking eats dust. It’s humiliating. 

And this goes on for three days, because princes don’t have, like, hobbies in Medieval Wales, or apparently any princely duties that would make galavanting after a magic horse woman for half a week kind of inconvenient for the general populace, and gradually, Pwyll’s men all bow out one by one, probably because they’ve all developed an absolutely stonking case of piles from being on horseback for three days solid, and then Pwyll is alone in his romantic and also literal pursuit. 

Exhausted, starving and probably desperate for the loo at this point, Pwyll throws his head back and howls, “what the fuck is going on on this day? I’ve tried everything! I’m absolutely stumped. I don’t know what to do about this. I’ve considered it from every possible angle. I chased her, and that didn’t work. I got my wingman to chase her, and that didn’t work. Those are my only two options in the entire world. I just don’t know what else I can do. It’s completely fucking futile, I wish I’d just seen a dog instead,” and then a flash of inspiration comes to him, and he just calls out to the woman, “erm, could you maybe just, like, stop?” and, like a miracle, she does.

When he catches up to her, she glares at him, and says, “I’ve literally been waiting three whole days for you to just ask me to stop, why did it take you so long?” and Pwyll is like, “I sort of thought that it was implied, to be honest with you, what with all the chasing and me crying loudly about my unending solitude and the futility of love,” and she shrugs and says, “well, if we’re to be marred, we really have to work on our communication,” and Pwyll is like, “wait, what, who said anything about marriage?” and she just rolls her eyes, like, “look, I’m a sexy Medieval maiden and you’re a prince with some land and gendered expectations, so of course we’re going to get married,” and he’s like, “well, if we marry, that means I get to ride your horse whenever I want, right?” and she nods, like, “yes, that’s definitely the primary appeal of marriage.” 

But just as he’s about to get down on one knee, she looks at him again, and says, “I should just tell you something super quick, in the name of true love and Medieval marriage etiquette,” and he’s like, “what, your name?” and she says, “no, not that, although it’s Rhiannon, but mostly I’m thinking of the fact that you actually have to wait a whole year to propose to me, because I’m almost engaged to someone else, who I hate, and I need to sort that all out first.” 

Pwyll frowns and says, “hang on, is this going to be another one of those weird magic things where I have to wait a whole year and then conveniently murder someone in a previously determined location?” and she’s like, “what the fuck, no, there’s not going to be any murder at all, just a lavish engagement feast and some nuptials and probably some awkward standing around with the in-laws to-be,” and he’s like, “so why do we have to wait a year?” and she just waves her arms around and says, “temporally disconnected Otherworld shit, my love, I don’t make the rules. Just come to the court of Hyfaidd Hen in exactly a year, and we’ll do the whole ball and chain thing. It’ll be great.” 

So he agrees, because of course he does, and the next thing he knows, it’s a year later, and he goes to Hyfaidd Hen and Rhiannon’s there in this beautiful McQueen wedding dress, looking all Kate Middleton but without the colonial royal associations, and there’s an absolutely exquisite feast laid out, with a whole array of delicious Medieval food, like unseasoned meat pies and room-temperature ale that looks like piss, and Pwyll just thinks to himself how cool it all is, but he also secretly harbours a lingering regret for the previous year, where he was forced after a blunder of etiquette to kill a random man in a duel, and although he feels bad about it, a part of him longs for the decadent adventures of his bachelorhood, when murder was more than just a six letter word. 

They’re all just kind of milling about on the dancefloor, listening to the bards spit some absolute club classics like Y Gododdin by Aneurin, which really gets the toes tapping, when this random dude with a chiseled jawline and a playful glint in his eye comes up to Pwyll and extends his hand for Pwyll to shake. Pwyll, who is completely head over heels for manners and etiquette, shakes the man’s hand, and says, “hello, new friend! What can I do for you?” and Rhiannon elbows him in the side, and hisses, “be careful, fiancé dearest, don’t let him tangle you up in a web of etiquette from which there is no escape,” and Pwyll waves her off, saying, “my sweet darling, I am a prince of Wales; manners are my middle name,” and he turns back to the man. 

The man grins at him, and he says, “I’ve come to ask a favour of you, Pwyll, prince of Wales,” and Pwyll, still enamoured by this man’s manners, is struck by an overwhelming desire to just do whatever this perfectly polite man wants, so he spreads his arms wide in a benevolent gesture, conveniently using it as an excuse to set down his glass of lukewarm piss ale on a nearby shelf, and says, “literally anything you want, my friend, I’ll give you!” and then the stranger’s grin turns into a smirk and he says, “by your word?” and Pwyll is like, “fuck yeah, man, by all of my words, as God and all these noble guests are my witness!” and the stranger is like, “sick bro, I want to marry Rhiannon, and I also want your wedding feast.” 

And Pwyll has no idea what to say to that, because he just promised this man anything he wanted, so he decides that maybe silence is his best bet here, and the man grins at him, and stalks off, knowing that there’s literally nothing that Pwyll can do now except reconsider all of his life choices up to this point.

When the man has left, Rhiannon groans, “you phenomenal dick, that man was Gwawl and he’s the complete bag of dicks that my parents tried to marry me off to, and you just got me affianced to him!” and Pwyll just grits his teeth and hisses, “well, dear, you might have told me that before I told him I’d do whatever he wanted,” and Rhiannon sighs and says, “you’re right, but look, we can work through this. Here’s the plan. Firstly, we’ll tell him that he can’t have the feast, because it’s not yours to give, but mine, and we’ll prepare him an equal feast instead. Then, we’ll tell him that he can marry me a year from today, but here’s the thing - on the day of the wedding, you’ll secretly turn up in disguise with a very tiny magic bag and you’ll ask him, very reasonably, for just enough food to fill the bag. He’ll obviously say yes, because even he can’t turn down something that reasonable, but the bag will be enchanted to never be filled, so you’ll just take all the food, until he asks you how he can help you fill the bag, and you tell him that a fine nobleman has to step on it to seal it, and then he’ll step on it, and then you jump on him and pull the bag over his head and tie him up in the bag and hang it from a rafter, and then you’ll blow your hunting horn to summon your posse of lads and you’ll all beat him to a bloody, pulpy death in the bag.”

Pwyll just blinks at her, and says, “sweetheart, love of my life, light of my existence, did you perchance dream up that oddly specific plan a while ago, because if not, then your imagination terrifies me,” and this small, maniacal grin plays on her lips, and she says, “darling, you know how you asked me last year if you’d have to wait a whole year and then conveniently murder someone in a previously determined location, and I told you no?” and he’s like, “yes, I do remember that,” and she says, “well, ask me again,” and so he says, “babe, do I have to wait a whole year and then conveniently murder someone in a previously determined location?” and she’s like, “yes, sweetheart, but I’ve got it in the bag,” and then they high five each other and do a vengeful murder jig for like ten minutes.

And of course, a year later, they do it all over again, this time with a tiny enchanted bag and a goddamn point to prove, but that’s a story for another time.

My other retellings can be found here, and my Mythology Mondays Facebook page is here. My book is here. Yay.

I’m going to level with you: I typed out a whole bunch of super cool academic stuff and then my turdwallet of a laptop crashed and deleted all of it, and I honestly want to perish very slightly at the prospect of typing it all out again, but in a nutshell:

Some people think that Rhiannon was a horse goddess who was undeified by the Christian dudes who wrote down the pagan Welsh myths all those years later. While the Christian dudes did almost certainly sanitise the source material, we just don’t have any real proof of what they left out. The main argument for Rhiannon being a horse goddess is that she’s a woman and there was, erm, a horse. Not the most compelling argument. Some people also think she may be a cognate to the Gallic horse goddess, Epona, but this is basically extrapolated from the fact that they’re both female and somehow linked to horses, which I don’t think would fly in a court of law.

If you’re wondering why Pwyll didn’t just tell Gwawl to fuck off, it’s because he’s bound, as a nobleman, by a very strict code of honour and morals. By giving Gwawl his word, even before he knew what he was agreeing to, Pwyll made a binding promise. If he goes back on his word, Gwawl is well within his rights to challenge the fuck out of him.

Welsh myth and the Otherworld is super interesting. The Otherworld was generally believed to only be accessible at certain times and via certain places, called ‘liminal spaces’, such as bogs, bodies of water, and caves. Liminal spaces are essentially a sort of sacred space which exists in the in between, where the boundaries between worlds are porous and can be crossed, provided certain ritual conditions are met. The mound in this particular narrative is likely a portal to the Otherworld, which explains why Pwyll was able to access the magical realm of Rhiannon through it. The Otherworld, although not explicitly an Underworld, does have links with death and the afterlife, as do mounds, so that strengthens the connection. Bet you never knew mounds were so fucking cool.

Primary sources:

Davies, Sioned (2007) The Mabinogion, New York: Oxford University Press

Secondary sources:

Goldwasser, Michele (1994) What Drives the Mabinogi? Proceedings of the Harvard Celtic Colloquium, 14, 49-57

Linkletter, Michael (2001) Magical Realism and the “Mabinogi”: an Exercise in Methodology, Proceedings of the Harvard Celtic Colloquium, 21, 51-63

Wachsler, Arthur (1975) The Elaborate Ruse: A Motif of Deception in Early Celtic Historical Variants of the Journey to the Other World, Journal of the Folklore Institute, 12(1) 29-46