#galaxy edge review

[yukipri]

Galaxy's Edge Foodstuffs & Drinkstuffs Reviews!

So last month, I was able to finally visit Black Spire Outpost, aka Batuu, aka Galaxy's Edge, aka Star Wars Land @ Disneyland!

This is a roundup of photos + reviews of all the themed foods & beverages that mum and I enjoyed during our trip.

Note that I visited Batuu West, in Disneyland California. Florida may have slightly different menus, and I know that menus change seasonally too! My visit was in January, 2023.

The rest of the photos + reviews under the cut!

Oga's Cantina

In the early morning on the very first day, we stopped by Oga's! We got some non-alcoholic drinks + some small eats to start the day off.

Non-Alcoholic drinks:

Memory's foggy, but I *think* the drinks are: 

Blurrgfire: Minute Maid® Lemonade, Pomegranate Juice, and Habanero-Lime

Review: Mildly zingy? but otherwise a pleasant juice drink.

Black Spire Brew: Cold Brew Joffrey's Coffee®, Honey, Falernum, Passion Fruit, and Citrus

Review: Probably the most questionable drink we had, but glad we tried it! The coffee + citrus gave it a sorta...sour? taste? and I'm not sure how I felt about that in my coffee! But it was certainly unique.

Blue Bantha: Blue Milk served chilled with Bantha-inspired Brown Butter Chocolate Chip and Coconut Cookie

Review: Realizing now we didn't get the cookie, sad ;_; It was ok, but idk it felt like it tasted a lot better from the Milk Stand! It was also kinda room temperature, though we *were* in the very first early morning round of people. Overall didn't stand out too much, but wasn't bad either!

Jabba Juice: Simply Orange® with Pineapple, Kiwi, Cantaloupe, and Blueberry Flavor-filled Boba

Review: A slightly mixed-juice but mostly orange juice with some blue popping boba! Was good in a normal, could probably make it at home sorta way.

Food stuffs:

Five-blossom Bread: Warm Pretzel Knot with Hawaiian Black Sea Salt, served with Calabrian Cheese Sauce

Review: It was super warm 'n toasty, surprisingly filling! It was a pretty normal pretzel and the sauce was a pretty normal slightly spicy cheese sauce, but it was still delicious!

Spiced Wroshyr Pods: Seasoned Edamame, Sliced Cucumbers, spicy Citrus-Gochujang Dip

Review: Ngl, these were just straight up plain edamame ^ ^;;; BUT the sauce was really good, preferred it to the pretzel sauce even!

I had another reservation at Oga's on a different night, and this time we tried some alcohol. Now, tbh I am not a huge fan of alcohol; I can drink it, but I just don't really like the flavor, and have never gotten drunk (nor do I really want to), and all it makes me feel is the vague urge to pee. But, I felt obligated to try something alcoholic at the cantina, so here's what I *think* we got!

Jedi Mind Trick (alcoholic): Ketel One Botanical Grapefruit and Rose Vodka, John D. Taylor's Velvet Falernum, Bols Blue Curaçao, White Grape Juice, Lime Juice, and Grapefruit Bitters

Review: It was defs sweet? Fruity? But alas, Alcohol taste was strong for me ;_;

Hyperdrive (Punch It!) (Non-alcoholic): Powerade® Mountain Berry Blast, White Cranberry Juice, Black Cherry Purée, and Sprite®

Review: Got one non-alcoholic drink, and ngl it was definitely my fav drink out of the 3 ^ ^; Unfortunately don't remember much of it, other than that I was using it to cleanse the alcohol flavor...

Fuzzy Tauntaun: Cîroc Peach Vodka, Bols Peach Schnapps, and Simply Orange® topped with Tangerine, Pure Cane Sugar, "Buzz Button Tingling" Foam

Review: This was the most recommended drink by people we spoke to + blogs I read, so I figured hey let's try it. Other people have described the foam as "tingly," but tbh...neither mum nor I really felt it? It was very foam for sure, messy, hard to get at the drink without getting foam all over your face. Taste was pretty mild (+ alcohol, LMAO).

In conclusion: Kazu, u know u don't like alcohol, plus it's expensive. Let's just stick to non-alcohol next time and save our credits, yeah? ^ ^;

Docking Bay 7

I LOVED Docking Bay 7! It was surprisingly spacious, and perhaps because we went when it wasn't too busy, but there was never any trouble getting seating. With mobile pickup food was ready almost instantaneous, and the whole interior had such an awesome aesthetic with tons of cool design details!

Trandoshan-style Pasta with Braised Bantha: Chile-braised Beef, Buttered Garlic Cavatelli, Seasonal Vegetables, Zesty Avocado Sauce, Balsamic Glaze

Review: This is the green-lookin' dish! I LOVED this one, so much I went and got it again on a different day. It's pasta, which I'm naturally biased towards, but also a lotta meat and veggies too, and pleasantly spiced. It felt like a Good Food, while also being unique and interesting enough it felt sorta Star Wars, I really enjoyed it!

Endorian Fried Chicken Tip-Yip: Crispy Chicken, Roasted Vegetable Potato Mash with Green Gravy

Review: Also good! But tasted a lot more "normal." It's a nice piece o' chickin floating in a ton of mashed potato gravy. Warm and filling, but didn't really feel as themed.

Drinks!

Moof Juice: Simply Fruit Punch®, Simply Orange® with Pineapple, Chipotle-Pineapple

Review: Another pleasant fruit juice! Gosh there are so many fruit juice mixes here! Not complaining bc I love them. Don't really remember too much about this other than "sweet."

Phattro: Gold Peak® Unsweetened Tea, Minute Maid® Lemonade, Desert Pear

Review: Another mixed juice drink, mum and I could only tell it apart from Moof Juice bc this one was mildly less sweet, more tea. Both were good!

Cold Brew Black Caf: Cold Brew Coffee topped with Sweet Cream Cheese and Chocolate Puffs

Review: I actually really enjoyed this one!! Much more than the questionable coffee at Oga's. It's got literal cereal floating on top! One thing that we found was that it wasn't as sweet or well mixed right after picking it up (no duh), but if you wait for the cream cheese and cocoa puffs dust to trickle down (or just mix it), it's a lot sweeter and so much yummier!

Also from the Docking Bay:

Vintian Mineral Mousse: Banana Brûlée-centered Dark Chocolate Mousse, Strawberry Mousse, Vanilla Chantilly, Chocolate Crumble, Cherry Garnish

Review: THIS THING. Y'all, if I had to pick just one food item to recommend from all of Galaxy's Edge, it would be this. Wasn't really sure what it was at first, and almost didn't order because I'm not a huge fan of banana flavor, but I'm SO glad that we did. Each of the blobs is a different flavored mousse, the banana being the largest, and i *think* the blue was Vanilla, pink strawberry, though those may be flipped. They each had a sorta shell like covering with soft mouse inside. They all tasted incredibly fancy and delicate, like very expensive patisserie quality, and each blob was so distinctive so you never got bored. I even liked the banana one, though I preferred the other two. The best way to eat is to take a spoonfull, and then scoop through the crumble to pick up as much of it as possible. The added crunch makes it even better!

Overall, this not only tasted phenomenal, but it had gorgeous and distinctively "Star Wars" visual presentation, and overall was so unique!

Moving on,

Milk Stand + Ronto Roasters

While the Milk Stand and Ronto Roasters are completely different shops and aren't even close, I picked up drinks from the Milk Stand for breakfast on our second day, so reviewing them together!

Blue Milk: Plant-based blend of Coconut and Rice Milk with alluring fruity characteristics

Review: The Iconic Drink. I hear that people have mixed opinions about this, but I actually really liked it—and it also tasted SUPER familiar. If any of you have had ramune before, the Japanese soda drink in a funky glass bottle that you can find at most Asian markets, it tasted SUPER similar. Perhaps part of me is biased bc my Japanese ass associates blue = ramune, but really, if someone made a ramune slush and maybe added a wee bit more citrus, this would be it. I also happen to love ramune, and slushes, so of course this was a win! If you want to taste ramune to see what Blue Milk tastes like (at least in my own humble opinion, backed by mum), make sure to pick up the "original" flavor! Overall this was super chilled and refreshing, I loved it!

Green Milk: Plant-based blend of Coconut and Rice Milk with zippy citrus and tropical characteristics

Review: I read some reviews that this was nasty, but I didn't think so, it was also pleasant. There was a bit of a strange, possibly slightly medicinal aftertaste, and it was also "milkier" than the blue so it felt less refreshing. Of the two, I definitely prefer blue, but enjoyed my cup of the green too!

Ronto Morning Wrap: Scrambled Eggs, Grilled Pork Sausage, Shredded Cheddar, Peppercorn Sauce, wrapped in Pita

Review: A very yummy wrap from Ronto's, only available in the morning! I felt like of the 3 wraps, this one was the richest, with a lotta cheese, egg, sausage. It was filling and super good! I wouldn't say that the food item itself felt particularly unique, but Ronto's has a super cool setup, so just being able to eat in the vicinity puts you into the universe.

Evening on a different day, we tried the other wraps!

Ronto Wrap: Roasted Pork, Grilled Pork Sausage, Peppercorn Sauce, tangy Slaw, wrapped in Pita

Review: The classic. I was expecting to like this one the most, and while it didn't disappoint, the others were actually so good they all sorta evened out? For being the meat option, it had a lotta veggies and didn't feel unhealthy, at least compared to my usual diet LMAO. I liked this a lot, and like the morning wrap, it was very tasty in a normal food sorta way!

Ronto-less Garden Wrap: Plant-based Sausage, spicy Kimchi Slaw, sweet Pickled Cucumber, Plant-based Gochujang Spread, wrapped in Pita

Review: Usually not a huge fan of fake meat, but this vegetarian option was actually really good! Of the 3, I think I might have even liked the flavoring best? It had a bit of zing to it, possibly due to the kimchi. Either way, I'm glad I was able to split these with mum!

Hard to say which of the wraps I liked most, I think I liked all of them around the same! None of them stuck out as Exceptional, but they were all good!

Drinks from Ronto:

Tatooine Sunset: Gold Peak® Unsweetened Tea, Minute Maid® Lemonade with Melon and Blueberry

Review: Yet another pleasant fruity drink! Don't remember much about it, other than that I liked it, and it once leaned mildly less sweet than the other one ^ ^;

Meiloorun Juice: Pineapple Juice, Minute Maid® Lemonade, with Blueberry, Cranberry Juice, Lemon Juice, and Desert Pear

Review: THIS ONE. If I had to choose ONE fruit juice out of the tons I had, this one is my favorite. I want to say that "Meiloorun" in the name isn't biasing me (it may be), but no really, this one was genuinely so good. It felt denser? than the others, really citrusy but the flavors were really well mixed so it tasted like an all-new fruit, exactly what I'd expect a Meiloorun to be like! I chugged two of these lmao.

Got this on the final day, also from Ronto:

Destran Ice Cap: Sprite®, Orange-Tangerine Syrup, topped with Sweet Cream Cheese

Review: Wasn't sure about the whole "cream cheese in soda," but I'm glad I tried this because I actually really liked it! The cream cheese added a pleasant, well, creaminess to the orange soda of the rest of it, giving it a sort of ice cream float-like feel without the ice cream. Would defs get again!

Lastly,

Kat Saka's Kettle

Picked this up on the last day!

Outpost Mix: colorful blend of seasonal flavors (blend of Caramel and Chocolate-glazed Popcorn)

Review: Honestly just a pleasant popcorn mix! It was good, flavor wasn't too strong, pretty mild. Was a nice easily consumable crunchy snack. It says caramel + chocolate, but tbh I mostly just tasted "mildly sweet." I was hoping for the brightly colored purple/red mix that at least looks a bit unique, but perhaps that's for a different season? Either way, yeah, I enjoyed this but didn't feel it was particularly special ^ ^;

~~

Aaaaand that's my review! I didn't quite eat *everything* at Galaxy's Edge, but I tried a darn good majority.

Overall, the vast majority of food/drink was super darn good and well worth the money! Some was more unique than others, but the quality was consistently high throughout. I did not eat outside of Galaxy's Edge my entire trip and felt very satisfied with that!

My standout favorites were: the pasta & mousse dessert from Docking Bay 7, blue milk from the Milk Stand, and Meiloorun juice from Ronto's!

I also got all 3 of the thermal detonator-shaped water bottles, but well, the flavor inside was just your regular Coke, Diet Coke, and Sprite. Still cool souvenirs!

But yes, in general, just so many fruit juices haha. Luckily I do love fruit juices, and also I'm glad that all of the bathrooms in Batuu were both clean, spacious, *never* had lines, and were also super cool-looking. Because given the amount of sugar water I was chugging, yeah. I visited them a lot!

While there's a good variety of food on Batuu and I think they did a great job with the menu, there were a few things that I hope they expand on in the future.

First, while there were some options for folks with dietary restrictions, they were extremely limited. Unsurprising, as most of the food shops already have an extremely limited menu with single digit menu items total. But it would still be nice to see these menus be expanded in the future, or possibly adding additional shops so that something, somewhere might work.

Next, I felt myself wishing for more take-home souvenir-type food. Liked boxed cookies, chocolates, y'know? Sure, you could technically take home the popcorn, but it's just in a brown bag. I'm genuinely shocked they didn't have Grogu's blue macaron cookies, I'm sure those would sell insanely well. Mouse-man, u listening?

Again, I know a lot of food menu items are seasonal/limited, so I hope I can visit again when things have switched around!

If you've been to Batuu, what were your favorite things to taste there?? Any hot items I missed?

Anyway, I hope you found this review to be interesting! Thanks for reading!!

[voidlightcomix]

Feast Your Eyes: Fandom Cookbook Recipe Review #7

Blue Noodles And Sweet Failure - Star Wars Ultimate Cookbook + Galaxy’s Edge Cookbook

Tonight's menu: sourced from Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge + Star Wars Ultimate Cookbooks

Main Dish: Gormaanda’s Glowblue Noodles, pg 103 of Galaxy’s Edge Cookbook

Side Dish: Hanava Pods, pg 185 of Star Wars Ultimate Cookbook

Dessert (not pictured): Aleen Firefly, pg 125 of Star Wars Ultimate Cookbook

Full review under the cut!

Aurum Leuci’s Log:

[Begin recording.] I just left the outpost. There was a chef in the tavern that let me help make a send-off dinner, and it turned out pretty good. I’m off through the multiverse again, towards one of the locations I ended up in on accident when the portals were miscalibrated. Not much else to report. Wait for my next transmission. Aurum Leuci out. [End log.]

Please see this post for my full review scale!

Main Dish: Gormaanda’s Glowblue Noodles

RATING:

Difficulty: 5/5

Ingredients: 5/5

Immersion: 5/5

Time: 5/5

End Result: 4/5

TOTAL RATING: 24/25

This was a fun recipe, and I was excited to do it since I finally got the butterfly pea tea bags for the colorant (no gel food coloring here!) When I eventually make it again I think I’ll probably use a thicker noodle, since the angel hair rice noodles were a little rough to work with, and the cookbook’s image resembles a soba noodle rather than such a thin noodle. The original recipe called for mozzarella balls (which I couldn’t find a vegan alternative for) so we just compensated with a couple extra tomatoes. It was delicious and alien and exotic, and at the same time incredibly homey and comfortable.

Side Dish: Hanava Pods

RATING:

Difficulty: 4/5

Ingredients: 4/5

Immersion: 3/5

Time: 5/5

End Result: 5/5

TOTAL RATING: 22/25

Not much to say about these; the recipe is a little overcomplicated (don’t boil your frozen edamame, just put them in the microwave). But aside from that, they were pretty well seasoned and tasty. The ichimi togarashi (japanese hot pepper flakes) was super, super spicy! So definitely wash your hands thoroughly after eating these.

This really only loses points for telling you to boil frozen edamame, and also for just being… edamame. They aren’t terribly immersive. But they are tasty!

Dessert: Aleen Firefly (mocktail)

RATING:

Difficulty: 1/5

Ingredients: 5/5

Immersion: 5/5

Time: 1/5

End Result: 0/5

TOTAL RATING: 12/25

If you look at the picture of today’s dinner, you’ll notice that there is no mocktail. Did I just forget to photograph it? Was it labeled wrong? What’s up with that?

Well, friends… I was very excited about this recipe. It was essentially a soda with pineapple juice and little jello cubes at the bottom. Unfortunately, I made the mistake of trusting the cookbook in its explanation of how to prepare jello. (Don’t do this.) By the time dinner rolled around, the jello had only sort of set and had just kind of turned into… pretty sludge?

Anyway, after trying to put it together as a cohesive drink, I realized that I wasn’t going to get anywhere close to the cookbook’s version (which looked very cool and pretty), so I decided to just try a sip of it. Even if it had been visually successful, I wasn’t a huge fan of the taste, so this recipe ties Pandora’s Shoreline Salad for lowest rating thus far. At least this one didn’t clog my sink!

Tune in this Friday (6/28/24) for another fandom cookbook review!

[jonberry555]

Star Wars Galaxy's Edge: A Crash of Fate by Zoraida Córdova Review

I've Read Star Wars Galaxy's Edge: A Crash of Fate by Zoraida Córdova. Two childhood friends Izzy (Izal Garsea) and Jules (Julen Rakab) are reunited in Black Spire Outpost on Batuu after thirteen years apart and feel there is something more than two friends reuniting. This is my Full Review!

[lightsabergirl]

got em! (and two blades)

so my thoughts so far, it being the next day

first thoughts:

out of the box, the shoto wouldn't display color on the blade at all, but it did have sound, luckily I did bring fresh batteries to the park and switched them out, that fixed it just fine.

hilts:

they're absolutely gorgeous, very accurate, a little big for my hands, definitely made for grown man hands which I find ironic lol, hopefully it's just because of the electronics inside (ignoring the fact that other brands have them in a slimmer style)

i can still spin them a bit, I love the way they sound, it's not too loud which is perfect for my taste. The ignition and swinging sounds are satisfying but the smooth swing kinda just decides when it wants to work

blades:

I got the 34 inch blade and the 24 inch blade and 34 inch is ridiculously long for me, I had no clue it was that big, and the 24 was perfect for my size

the 34 inch blade started to malfunction, sometimes the color just stops displaying but the shorter one works perfectly, I'm in love

the scrolling effect is smooth enough for me but I'm more used to baselit sabers so take it with a grain of salt

I'm gonna try to get a replacement blade so I'll update on that for sure but so farrrr

final thoughts:

sabers: 8/10, a little chunky, a little easy to scratch, the smooth swings is way off.

blades: 5/10 you can see the led placement inside the blade and the larger one just stopped working and was way too long for a main blade.

i would recommend, id just get two shoto sized blades (even though it's not accurate, it's just better that way) and I want to have it clear

they're beautiful, I adore them 💙💚

[saber-life]

Even Piell Lightsaber (Tatooine Sabers)

[skitskatdacat63]

This is ultra specific but: I feel salty now bcs I just read a bunch of phone reviews and they're like "thank god Samsung is moving away from curved screens" NO! CURVED SCREENS ARE BEAUTIFUL AND SEXY 😭😭😭😭

[roguerebels]

The High Republic: Quest for Planet X Review!

Ancient navigation! Family bonds! Challenging beliefs! Batuu! And finding purpose, duty, and identity! Check out Sal's review of The High Republic: Quest for Planet X! #TheHighRepublic #StarWarsBooks

“I’m where the Force wills me to be.”Rooper Nitani Pathfinder Dass Leffbrook, Jedi Rooper Nitani, and prospector Sky Graf set out to win the Hyperspace Chase and be the first to map the way to the mysterious Planet X. But hyperspace prospectors might not be the only ones seeking the same goals… Tessa Gratton takes us on an adventure through a galaxy that will surprise our heroes at every turn…

[scififanpl-blog]

"Legionnaire" by Jason Anspach and Nick Cole

Legionnaire book cover “Legionnaire” is an exciting and action-packed science fiction novel by Jason Anspach and Nick Cole. Set in a distant future where humanity has colonized the galaxy, the story follows the adventures of a group of soldiers known as the Galactic Legion as they fight to protect the galaxy from a variety of threats. The main character, Captain Chase Williams, is a skilled and…

[inthekitchenwithmatt]

Disney Hollywood Studios Galaxy's Edge Review Is it Worth It?

[astoundingbeyondbelief]

Kaiju Week in Review (January 21-27, 2024)

Godzilla Minus One made awards show history in both Japan and the U.S. this week. Its Oscar nomination for best Visual Effects is the first of the series (Godzilla [1998], Godzilla [2014] and Godzilla vs. Kong were previously shortlisted) and the first for any Japanese film. Small wonder Takashi Yamazaki, Kiyoko Shibuya, and their team went berserk when the nomination was announced. The other nominees are The Creator, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Napoleon, and Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One. According to IndieWire, The Creator has the edge, but Minus One could very well win. And while it naturally made less headlines in the Anglosphere, Minus One also picked up a whopping 12 Japan Academy Film Prize nominations, exceeding Shin Godzilla's 10.

Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color is now in North American theaters. I was intrigued enough to make it my fourth theatrical viewing of this movie, but in the end it did basically strike me as a gimmick. Godzilla Minus One was shot digitally with sets designed for color, so making it actually look like a film from the 40s was always going to be an uphill battle. Even with the regrade, there wasn’t a ton of contrast in most shots, and some of the scenes taking place at night were quite hard to see. Still, apart from the Odo Island massacre, I found the Godzilla scenes as gripping as ever.

Thanks to Minus Color, Minus One made $2.6 million this weekend, crawling back into the box office top 10. Its total in the U.S. and Canada now stands at $55 million, third among all foreign-language films released in the U.S.

Brush of the God, Keizo Murase's directorial debut after a lifetime in movies, is finally complete. It'll play at the Osaka Asian Film Festival in March (link contains more images), and hopefully travel overseas very soon. Murase will also receive an Association Special Award at the Japan Academy Film Prize.

Clover Press shipped out copies of Godzilla & Kong: The Cinematic Storyboard Art of Richard Bennett to Kickstarter backers, myself included. It's an excellent art book, and there are plenty of deleted and altered scenes mixed in with more familiar sequences. Believe it or not, Bennett drew the panel above for Kong: Skull Island—they considered having James Conrad (Tom Hiddleston) flash back to an encounter with King Ghidorah in Vietnam. Not sure how that would've worked, as Ghidorah is generally not one to lie low for a few decades, but it's the first I've ever heard of it being considered. I'm hoping to post some more scans soon. Here's the order link.

Minecraft social media accounts teased a crossover with the Monsterverse, in what's likely to be the most high-profile of the Godzilla x Kong video game collaborations. The Mobzilla mod was created over 10 years ago, so this is long overdue.

The big toy news this week was Titanic Creations revealing the digital sculpt for its Yongary figure. This guy's had even less figures than Gorgo - I can only think of one, and very few of them were made - so expect massive demand. New Godzilla toys were also on display at London Toy Fair, both at the Playmates booth and among the plushies made by an unknown company.

[voidlightcomix]

Feast Your Eyes: Fandom Cookbook Recipe Review #6

Topato, Top-ah-to - Galaxy’s Edge: The Official Black Spire Outpost Cookbook

Tonight's menu: sourced from Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge: The Official Black Spire Outpost Cookbook

Main Dish: Topato Soup, pg 73

Side Dish: Parwan Nutricakes, pg 109

Dessert: Kat’s Kettle Corn, pg 43

Full review under the cut!

Aurum Leuci’s Log:

[Begin recording. The sounds of a lively tavern— live music, people talking and shouting, various kitchen noises— are audible in the background.] Hello! We made it safe. Just sat down for a couple of drinks while my pals are refueling their ship. They’re headed off someplace else, and I’m thinking I might stay on Batuu for awhile. It’s a little bit run down, like every secluded desert space outpost, but the people here really know how to cook. I promise this isn’t just a space vacation. See, I’ll even send over some photos of what we had to eat! It’s research! … and maybe a little bit of a space vacation. But I’m still sending you my reports! Chef Leuci out. [End log.]

Please see this post for my full review scale!

Main Dish: Topato Soup

RATING:

Difficulty: 5/5

Ingredients: 5/5

Immersion: 5/5

Time: 5/5

End Result: 4.5/5

TOTAL RATING: 24.5/25

This was delicious, and a really interesting take on a creamy soup. (And I got to use my immersion blender, hee hee.) I found the use of green salsa interesting, and while I used mild salsa (my mom can’t take any spice, unfortunately) I would have loved for it to be a little spicier, since I think that’s part of the recipe’s intent. Regardless, it was super easy, the ingredients were able to be found in any grocery store, and the inclusion of the alien chef’s backstory for where he got the recipe (it was part of what made him want to become a chef) really sold it for being a humble yet flavorful soup. It only loses 0.5 of a point because it didn’t turn out looking as creamy as the picture. Definitely going to make it again, sometime in the winter.

Side Dish: Parwan Nutricakes

RATING:

Difficulty: 4/5

Ingredients: 5/5

Immersion: 5/5

Time: 5/5

End Result: 4/5

TOTAL RATING: 23/25

I was really excited for these. Admittedly, they turned out to disappoint me a little bit, but I think they were still pretty good overall. They seemed in their photo to be like… mini falafel cakes? Which I was very excited about. Unfortunately, mine didn’t seem to really want to puff up, which I can really only blame on my egg substitute, or the recipe. Regardless, they were delicious, and the recipe actually made more than it said it would. I thought they’d be much bigger, but their tiny size made them perfect for pairing with the Topato soup and they were great for dipping.

Side Dish: Kat’s Kettle Corn

RATING:

Difficulty: 4.8/5

Ingredients: 5/5

Immersion: 5/5

Time: 5/5

End Result: 5/5

TOTAL RATING: 24.8/25

You know, I thought this recipe seemed kind of silly to include in a Star Wars cookbook, especially a theme park cookbook. I mean, it’s just kettle corn. Right? WRONG! I’m not sure how it’s presented in the actual park, since I haven’t been to Galaxy’s Edge, but the justification for having a kettle corn stand in this weird little outpost on a desert planet is that they grow the grain themselves and keep their spice blends secret. Which is a very fun justification, I think! The kettle corn called for garam masala, which really popped flavor-wise (and it smelled amazing). It only gets points off for being hard to clean up— if you’re not careful, the sugar on the bottom of the pot will burn and stick to the pot. Otherwise, it’s delicious. Now we have a metric ton of popcorn kernels, so I’ll definitely make some more soon.

Tune in next Wednesday (6/26/24) for another fandom cookbook review!

[jonberry555]

Spoiler Free Review - Star Wars Galaxy's Edge: A Crash of Fate by Zoraida Córdova

I've Read Star Wars Galaxy's Edge: A Crash of Fate by Zoraida Córdova. Two childhood friends Izzy (Izal Garsea) and Jules (Julen Rakab) are reunited in Black Spire Outpost on Batuu after thirteen years apart and feel there is something more than two friends reuniting. This is my Spoiler Free Review!

[momoliee]

Here Is Why You Should Read Priest’s Modern Danmeis :

As much as i love priest’s period novels, i absolutely adore her more recent, modern novels even more. You can tell that her writing style has completely changed as she grew and gained more experience, giving an edge to her work. I definitely believe her modern books NEED to be as popular as her wuxia ones cause COME ON?

(i’ve written in depth reviews on my page for each title i mention)

First, my absolute all time favorite, one of my top 3, Mo Du :

I’ve read this series a total of two times so far, and I’m about to read it a third time cause it’s just that good. And here’s the thing, i almost NEVER reread or rewatch stuff ok.

Fei Du is one of the most complex characters that i’ve encountered in my reading experience, with the worst type of mental trauma that i could come across. His relationship with Luo Wenzhou is one of the most enjoyable and perhaps, priest’s best written romance. Theyre both equally flirtatious, equally bold, their back and forth bickering is full of sexual tension and their progression from enemies to lovers is IMPECCABLE.

And the plot? PHENOMENAL. The BEST mystery and thriller detective series that I’ve ever encountered, with each book having it’s own individual mystery, and no two mysteries are similar. From child trafficking to serial killers to drug dens and even terrorism….you name it. Each arc is well crafted, and by the end, you’ll truly be able to sigh in satisfaction. For priest to be able ro make you enjoy both the romance and the plot equally…shes a genius. a 27/10.

Trigger warnings: this book discusses heavy topics such as pedophilia, rape, drug abuse, suicide, self harm, and a lot of similar topics

Next: Can Ci Pin:

Her most underrated work and i cant even begin to understand why. I mean yes it takes place in outer space in a futuristic society where people live for around 200 years across the span of 8 galaxies (not there are no aliens, but there are concepts such as ais and robots) but like….you’ve all read sha po lang with its steampunk theme and you all KNOW just how good priest is at world building. Dare i say, priest is the best danmei author when it comes to world building.

Yes, this is perhaps her slowest and longest piece of work and i get why so many would get bored after the second book. But here’s the thing, ccp has one of the most complicated worlds and plot. the plot is actually one of the most confusing and heavy plots that i’ve encountered. so in order for the story not to fall apart, it was very necessary for priest to spend the first two novels and half world building as well as slowly laying out a proper foundation for the plot. That way, when she starts speeding up the pace, you are basically a pro who doesn’t need to backtrack, reread or double check anything. By the time i was done with the third novel, i felt like i knew everything about space politics, wars between galaxies, Ai and microchips, and everything in between. And that’s saying something cause im an IDIOT when it comes books and shows politics ok.

In this series, priest has seriously invested into every single side character, even those who’ve been dead since before the series even started. With extensive backstories, each and every single character grows on you as much as the main pair if not more, and you fall in love with the found family priest created as well as all the characters who are only talked about in flashbacks and past tense. Another favorite part about this series.

Now the main characters and the romance….chefs kiss. Lu Bixing has one of the BEST character arcs that i’ve come across. He starts off as this bright sunshine boy, goes through hell, becomes this depressed cynical man then finds his way back to his old self again all in the span of the novel itself. Being able to go through the pain with him then watch him heal, makes you very attached to this baby. Li Jingheng my all time cold prince biggest crush ok i love him. Their romance was SOO entertaining cause EVERYONE was rooting for them and everyone played matchmaker and wingman with them it was HILARIOUS. The comedy was top notch, the second hand embarrassment was real, but it made the reading experience feel much more organic idk i just enjoyed myself so much and laughed so hard. 20/10

Trigger warnings: human trafficking and experimentation, self harm and suicide

Third : Lie Huo Jiao Chou

Xuan Ji’s wings of flame are the highlight of the series ok. Almost every single scene has him whipping his wings out just to show off and his boyfriend eats it up everytime ok.

I absolutely love the amnesiac plot line where two past lovers meet again and yet are unable to recognize each other. Yet, slowly, as they spend more and more time together and one of them starts regaining his memories, the pining and longing begins. And oh does Xuan Ji YEARNS in the most beautiful way possible. And once they BOTH regain their memories in full, the angst is just the cherry on top. Being unable to resist each other yet still trying to pull away, the tension, trying to hold back…delicious.

The plot is so easy to keep up with and enjoy too. Both the story taking place 3,000 years ago and the one in present time are equally entertaining, where we see scenes of war and tomb raiding and investigations and a little bit of magic too. The visuals are fantastic, and the contrast between the two parallel settings is new and refreshing as a concept. 8/10

Trigger warning: main characters experience severe child abuse and neglect

Fourth : Guardian

Guardian is the most popular out of priest’s modern novels so i dont feel the need to say much.

Guardian discusses heavy topics such as death and what’s beyond. With an element of mystery where an investigation team search after where dead souls are being stolen to or why some souls are being sucked out of living people, the premises has an element of horror and goth that gives it this edge. Coolest ghost story around.

The main cast is also a hilarious bunch, and you sort of grow attached to the entire office especially a fat black talking cat. 7/10

Trigger warning: death and murder

I hope this is enough to convince you all to check out more and more of pipi’s work. Yes, sha po lang, lord 7, faraway wanderers and fuyao sect are amazing…but if you haven’t read priest’s modern work then yall are missing out ok. that’s it for now xxx

[saber-life]

Ultimate Works TS - Reva, Third Sister Lightsaber Video Review - watch now 🔥

[badbatchposts]

Quiet Corners of the Galaxy, Ch. 22

Fic Teaser: While on a routine mission for Cid, the Bad Batch encounter a woman fleeing from the Empire. Crosshair suspects her seemingly free-spirited, nomadic existence is actually a cover for something else, but struggles to keep his attraction toward her in check as their personalities and ideals clash.

Relevant tags/content warnings: Crosshair/Original Female Character, Slow Burn, Enemies to Lovers, Periodic Smut, Canon-Typical Violence, Alcohol Use, 18+/Explicit

Read the full fic so far on AO3

Read previous chapters on Tumblr: Ch. 1 l Ch. 2 l Ch. 3 l Ch. 4 l Ch. 5 l Ch. 6 l Ch. 7 l Ch. 8 l Ch. 9 l Ch. 10 l Ch. 11 l Ch. 12 l Ch. 13 l Ch. 14 l Ch. 15 l Ch. 16 l Ch. 17 l Ch. 18 l Ch. 19 l Ch. 20 l Ch. 21

Chapter 22 summary: Things finally boil over between Dara and Crosshair at the beginning of a joint mission for Rex.

Special content warnings for this chapter: unprotected PIV sex; fingering; oral sex (m and f giving and receiving); dom/sub undertones; dirty talk; hate sex

They landed the Marauder at the edge of a forest as the suns were beginning to set, the royal blues of the foliage deepening to purples and then blacks as the shadows lengthened. The nights were long and cool on Xagalus, and they set to work making camp immediately.

After much discussion between Dara and Rex, they had identified a joint mission where both groups had a vested interest, and it was decided that Dara would join the Batch in undertaking it. Tomorrow they would divide into teams before first light to scout out the area and begin their search.

It was obvious that Omega was happy to be back amongst her family, and the men were equally happy to have her with them again. She ran and skipped from brother to brother, chatting constantly as each engaged her in their activities: gathering wood, making a fire, unpacking supplies, reviewing mission intel, preparing food. They were finishing dinner, all gathered around the fire, when her incessant curiosity finally drew her to Dara, who was sitting a little apart from the squad.

Dara’s interactions with the others, while cordial, had remained somewhat tense in the days since her deception had come to light. At times they all settled back into a steady rhythm, one which—if not exactly easy—was at least familiar, resembling the one they had established in earlier weeks. In other moments—particularly when Crosshair was around—the resentment and distrust felt more palpable, and were almost impossible to ignore.

Omega’s charms, however, were hard to resist, and the young girl felt certain that this solitary woman was just a friend she had yet to make.

“What are you doing?” she asked enthusiastically. Dara had already completed the painstaking ritual of preparing her tea and was carving something with one of her knives, shaving away thin, delicate strips of wood as a shape began to form beneath her dexterous fingers.

“Making something.” She passed her tea to Omega, who sipped at the straw, wriggling her little nose in distaste at the bitter beverage before peering more closely at the object in Dara’s hand.

“It looks… familiar,” Omega replied. Dara passed the tea along to Hunter, who shared it in turn among the group, an activity they had all—with the exception of Crosshair—now joined in many times.

“You may have seen something like it before,” Dara narrated as she continued carving. “I was living on Dantooine a while back, working on a sap farm. When I wasn’t working, I spent a lot of time walking, looking at the Bilba trees. One night, both the moons were out. I heard a noise in the trees around the next bend in the path. Then, all of a sudden, I heard a long…low…howl.”

Dara paused for dramatic effect; Omega’s eyes were sparkling in the firelight, enraptured.

The woman continued, “Before I could do anything, out jumped a large, terrifying creature, covered in fur, with horns, and big sharp teeth. I could hear more of the beasts stalking me through the shadows, the light of the moons reflecting only their eyes. But then I heard little excited yipping sounds, and out came…a group of tiny puppies.”

Omega was grinning happily, and Dara gave her a small smile back.

“It was a Kath Hound pack with a litter,” she continued. “When the pups reach a certain age, the mothers all go back out to hunt. The males stay behind and protect the young together. They can be fierce as anything; there’s not a lot of Kath Hounds around anymore, so every one is precious. I wanted more than anything to go check out the curious things, but I also knew better than to disrupt a family protecting their kids. So I high-tailed it out of there. And luckily, they let me.”

Satisfied with her carving, Dara leaned back and brought it into the light, revealing a horned Kath Hound with a puppy pressed tightly against its side. She handed it to Omega.

“For you. I’m sorry I kept your brothers away from you for so long. I didn’t know.”

Judging by Omega’s delight at the trinket, all was forgiven, at least on the child’s part. The girl excitedly leapt up to show her new possession to Wrecker. After a moment of hesitation, Hunter nodded toward Dara approvingly.

Of course, not every member of the squad was so easy to win over. Omega had barely left her side when Dara heard a hiss from Crosshair, who until that moment appeared to have been completely ignoring her.

“You’re sure you didn’t go ahead and spy on them for a while, maybe report back the location of the den to a few poachers?”

“I’m sure if you had been there, you would have just killed them yourself.” Dara stood and stalked off into the shadows of the trees.

Echo sighed. He thought this had gone on long enough. “Crosshair. I know you two have never exactly gotten along, but everything’s out in the open now. Dara’s on our side. We need to learn to work together here. None of us stand a chance against the Empire if everyone who could fight back is too busy fighting among ourselves.”

Crosshair was still seething. “Tell her that.” He shouldered his weapon, yanked on his helmet, and left as well, his dark armor disappearing in the gloom.

Omega looked troubled. “Should we go after them?” she wondered.

Hunter furrowed his brow. “Just…leave them be, and let them try to work it out.”

Crosshair picked his way among the trees easily, his enhanced eyesight helping him avoid branches and roots as he searched for Dara. He had spent the last few days on base avoiding her, barely throwing a glance her way.

It had not helped him put aside the memories of their last one-on-one encounter: the snarl on her face as she held the knife to his throat. The derision in her gaze when she looked at him. The pain in her voice. Her body pressed against his.

The time away from her had revealed one thing: he still wanted her desperately. He wanted to possess every bit of her, to have her drop to her knees in front of him, to hold her down as he entered her. He wanted to fuck the despair out of her voice and pity out of her eyes and replace them with something else. He wanted to grasp her by the throat and hear her beg for him before making her whine with pleasure.

There was a part of him that also wanted to shoot her.

When he finally caught sight of her, Dara’s profile was outlined against a pleasing blue glow. She was gazing across a bioluminescent river, which Tech had pointed out as they were landing. She leaned against a tree, worrying a flat stone in one hand. He stopped to watch her, a silent shadow, as she skipped it into the water.

Dara tossed three more stones before she finally spoke.

“You can come out. I know you’re there.”

Crosshair sidled up to her, removing his helmet. “How’d you know?”

She didn’t look at him. “I can always tell when you’re watching me.”

His eyes narrowed in the dim blue glow. “Since when?”

She shrugged. “I had a feeling, since the beginning. But I didn’t realize I should look up until I saw you climbing trees on Caameris.”

“Well can you blame us, for not trusting you?” Crosshair deflected testily. He shouldn’t have been so surprised, but he was furious nonetheless, thinking of how, yet again, she had been a step ahead of him—letting him see her like that, but still always, always in control.

Dara finally turned to face him, eyes glinting. “I never said I did,” she snapped.

Then again—Crosshair had had her on the verge of losing control before. He could do it again. He already had her halfway there.

He scoffed. “Of course not. You’d never blame the poor, stupid clone troopers who took you in. You wanted to trust us. It just didn’t stop you from reporting our every move back to Saw, did it?”

“What do you want me to do, Crosshair?” Dara spat back. “At what point was I supposed to tell you? That’s the job. If I went around confessing to every person who was friendly to me that I was a rebel spy I would be dead!”

The sniper advanced on her, sneering. “Tell me this,” he drawled. “Would you have told Hunter or Howzer, once you’d managed to sleep with them? Or were you only doing that for more information?”

Their faces were only centimeters apart, Dara glaring defiantly up at him. “Let’s get one thing straight,” she hissed, jabbing him roughly in his chestplate. “That’s not in my job description. When a mission requires sex for intel, I pay a professional. But if you hadn’t ruined it, I would’ve given both of them the ride of their fucking lives, and it would’ve been because I kriffing wanted to!”

“You…” Crosshair tried to spit words out—a retort, an insult—but he couldn’t. His voice was strangled by equal parts ferocity and need. Dropping his helmet, he reached out with both hands, cupping Dara’s face and pressing his mouth against hers roughly. Her lips moved just as forcefully back as he parted them with his tongue and pushed her up against the tree, reveling in how his armor trapped her under him even as he was overcome by the desperate urge to feel her body against his own.

Her fingers, as if responding to his very thoughts, began shedding his shoulder pads, vambraces, and chest plate, and he growled into her mouth with pleasure before trailing his lips and teeth along her jaw, her neck, her ears, moving his hands possessively to grasp at every one of her curves in turn.

It was only once she’d managed to bare Crosshair’s torso completely, sliding off the upper half of his blacks, that she started to bite back.

He tried but failed to prevent the sharp inhale of breath as he felt Dara’s teeth sink into his shoulder. The sound inspired her to continue, her mouth roughly testing whatever skin she could access, though her progress was interrupted as he shimmied her shirt over her head. In the pale blue glow of the river, he saw her tattoo clearly for the first time: four moons, evenly spaced along her rib cage just below her breast band, surrounded by a smattering of stars.

His slender fingers made their way down to her ass, lifting her up with both hands while pinning her even more tightly against the tree so that she had no choice but to wrap her legs around his waist for stability. She responded by raking her fingernails down his back; he let out a long hiss as he fought to keep hold of his self-control, then thrust against her, his codpiece making contact through her pants with the sensitive bundle of nerves at her center.

A needy moan escaped Dara’s throat against her will even as she tried to choke it back. Crosshair was already hard, but the sound made his cock press even more painfully against his armor. He wanted to fuck her senseless.

It was a challenge to keep his fingers steady as he removed her binder, freeing her breasts; he worried that his trembling would reveal his desperation. He kissed his way aggressively down her chest, shifting to cup one of her breasts in his hand while he tongued the nipple of the other, alternating lips and teeth. He heard another moan and nearly cursed when he realized it was his own. Her softness beneath him, the subject of his nightly imaginings since the day they’d met, was shredding at his self-control.

This encounter, like all those that had been steadily leading up to it, was a battleground for them both. Over the previous weeks they had been circling, sizing one another up, testing each other’s defenses. Unable to deny any longer the desire that kept driving them together, each of them was now stubbornly determined to gain control over the situation, to be the one that reduced the other to a whining, dribbling mess. Dara knew that he wanted her frantically, and that if she could only hold on a little longer, keep her own desperation in check, then victory would be hers.

She wanted to make him beg.

So Dara took advantage of the moan to go on the offensive, kissing and sucking along his neck up to his ear as she held his face tightly to her chest, scratching her fingertips along his scalp. Then she allowed her hands to drift south again along the firm muscles of his sides, stroking some of his many scars, before teasing her fingers along the v-shaped crease that led toward his groin.

“Do you want me, Crosshair?” she purred into his ear.

Crosshair forced himself to suppress whatever noise was trying to make its way out of his throat at her enticing tone, deftly unwrapping her legs from around his waist, resettling her on solid ground, and turning her to face away from him. He needed to regain some composure. He did want her, there was no denying that; but she was not in charge here.

He clutched her tightly from behind, one hand wrapping around her throat with a controlled, gentle pressure while the other slipped past the waistband of her pants.

“Burk’yc… Cyar’ika…” Crosshair’s voice was a deadly whisper. Dara suppressed a shiver as he began to stroke gently along the sides of her soaking cunt, his long fingers igniting a persistent warmth deep within her. “You’re dripping with need. This has gone on long enough. Tell me you’ll be mine, and I’ll reward you so well. Be good for me.”

“That’s not happening.” She reached behind her and began fumbling with his cod piece, making clear exactly what it was she was refusing: she wanted his cock, but she would not be good.

Crosshair raised her arms and gathered both of her wrists up in one hand, holding them tightly against the tree while he went back to his ministrations with the other, patiently stroking up and down along her wet folds, studiously avoiding the one spot she desperately wanted him to touch. He was certain he could outlast her.

“Yes,” he purred. “Submit to me. You want so badly to let go. Just let me take care of you.”

Dara, panting, only shifted her hips back and forth in response, rubbing her ass against his armor and bucking to move his hand closer to her clit, which was crying out badly for attention. Crosshair felt his eyes roll back in his head for a moment at this expression of her desire, grateful she was facing away so that she missed what it was doing to him.

“Be a good girl, and you’ll get everything you want,” he insisted, his breath against her ear. He traced his tongue along her piercings, tasting metal.

“Fuck you,” Dara panted out. His body pressed against hers, the menacing edge to his voice, the strength of the hand that held her wrists immobilized—it was making every fiber in her body burn with need. It was only her stubborn, defiant nature that kept her from whimpering and dropping to her knees to give him whatever he demanded. She had accepted, finally, that she wanted him, as loathe she was to admit it—but she would not let him win this.

Crosshair tutted, then used a knee to part Dara’s legs wider before deftly sliding one long finger all the way inside her. She cried out with pleasure, unable to contain herself, as he curled the finger, finding his target with all of his usual precision.

“So needy, mesh’la. You don’t understand what I can give you, how good I can make you feel. You just have to let me.”

He smiled wickedly against her neck as he heard her moan, then inserted a second finger. Dara was suddenly no longer thinking of winning, no longer thinking of anything besides the feel of Crosshair’s fingers inside her as he sent wave after wave of pleasure coursing through her veins, her muscles tightening around his digits. His thumb made its way to her clit, tracing deliberate circles that filled her with heat, rising higher and higher until she was sure she would—

“Tell me you’re mine, cyare.” Crosshair slowed his movements, keeping her right on the edge of her orgasm, waiting to hear the words.

He had gotten close, but he had underestimated her. Dara snarled and shoved a shoulder back into his chest, catching him off-guard enough to wriggle out of his grasp and push him to the ground. She was straddling his legs before he could even react, tonguing and biting along the lithe muscles of his abdomen as she detached his codpiece and the armor along his thighs. Too consumed with want and turned on by her feral enthusiasm to resist, he allowed her to progress until she had stripped his lower half bare, her eyes greedily taking in the slight curve of his erection before her mouth began teasing along his legs and pelvis.

Crosshair didn’t think he’d ever been this hard in his life. She made eye contact with him before licking a long, deliberate, delectable stripe along the underside of his cock, and he couldn’t suppress a groan as she worked her tongue over the head before taking his length without hesitation into her warm mouth. He knew exactly what she was doing as he felt himself make contact with the back of her throat, but for the moment he couldn’t bring himself to care that she was taking control, too overcome by the delicious sensation. How many nights in recent weeks had he lain awake, thinking of her tongue on him, her dark eyes shining up from between his legs just like this? He had lost count.

One of her hands ran her fingernails up and down his thigh, the other stroking his shaft in time as her head bobbed up and down steadily, drawing him deeper and deeper into her throat. She let out a small moan, the sound vibrating against his length, and he knew she was doing it on purpose to drive him crazy, as if the sight of his cock finally between her lips wasn’t enough. It took every ounce of his self-control, cultivated through a lifetime of soldierly discipline, to thread his fingers through her hair and tug her off.

Crosshair flipped them over, his strength and skill giving him the advantage as he pinned Dara down beneath him. He kissed her deeply, invading her mouth with his tongue, his fingers still tangled in her hair, before pulling the rest of her clothing off, exposing her beautiful cunt to the cool night air. He had to suppress a groan at the sight. With delight and a carefully bit-off moan, he nuzzled the dark hair coating her mound, realizing it must have been black everywhere before it turned silver—something he had found himself wondering often, late at night, alone in his bunk. He wrapped his arms around her thighs and wasted no time in spreading her legs, pressing his tongue flat against her clit and overwhelming her almost immediately as he began lapping and suckling at her with dedication.

She was the most delicious thing he had ever tasted, a tangy sweetness he couldn’t get enough of. He could die happy down here, between her legs.

She wriggled, trying to reduce the all-consuming sensation, but he reached one hand out to her belly to hold her in place. He could feel the puckered skin of one of her scars under his fingertips and let his other hand wander to pinch at her nipple. His tongue teased dedicated circles around her clit, and she was whimpering now—the most beautiful sound he had ever heard.

“Crosshair,” Dara managed to whine, her voice breathy.

Kriff. Finally, his name on her lips. It was all he could do to prevent himself from taking her right then.

“Yes, mesh’la?” he asked patiently, between careful, ruinous licks.

“It’s too much. I can’t.” Her eyes were screwed up tightly, one hand clawing at his short gray locks and the other scrabbling at the dirt.

The sniper smiled darkly, certain of his imminent victory over her self-control, nose still buried in her pussy. He nudged it patiently against her clit, eliciting a full-body shudder.

“Of course you can, burk’yc. Tell me you’re mine. Beg me for it and I’ll let you cum.”

“Fuck me,” she demanded.

Crosshair slowed down. Dara’s whimpers lessened as he eased off of her sopping wet cunt, slid his way up to her face, and pressed his lips against hers. She could taste the pleasant tang of her arousal in his mouth, feel his hard cock pressing against her thigh, and it made her moan again.

“That’s not what I asked for,” Crosshair growled.

Snarling, Dara kissed him back hard, biting his lower lip until they both tasted blood. The pain pushed Crosshair over the edge, his patience suddenly vanishing. He simply couldn’t hold himself back any longer, finally thrusting his cock inside of her roughly, forgetting all of his plans to win her submission as he was overcome by wrath and need. She cried out in pleasure, equally overwhelmed as he filled her completely, finally feeling him everywhere after so many nights trying to banish the thought from her imagination.

Their pace was impatient, urgent, as they fucked messily into one another, their hips meeting almost violently at the apex of each thrust. No longer concerned with making the other beg or moan, knowing that there was no victory to be had for either of them now, Crosshair and Dara raced their way to the edge, cries and pants and growls and grunts echoing through the forest and across the nearby river. Just as Dara could feel her climax slam into her like a rogue wave and spread in concentric rings of intensity outward from her belly to her fingertips, Crosshair let out one final strangled groan at the sensation of her contracting around him. Pure pleasure overtook him as he felt his hot cum fill her, and his thrusts petered slowly to a stop.

All was still. They panted and slowly released one another, Dara’s nails etching crescent-shaped marks in Crosshair’s back, his fingers leaving behind bruises on her hip and shoulder. He rested his head against her breast for a moment, whispering a string of curses too quietly for her to hear. She rubbed one hand along his back, the other absentmindedly stroking the smattering of short gray hair atop his head.

The unexpected moment of tenderness was brief before Dara nudged at him. Crosshair pulled out, rolled over, and watched her thoughtfully, searching his scattered armor for a toothpick to press between his lips as she got up and waded waist deep into the nearby river. He could trace the outline of every one of her curves against the blue phosphorescence, could see her nipples harden further and skin raise goosebumps at the cool temperature. She rinsed everywhere, washing away dirt, sweat, saliva, the smell of him, before floating lazily on her back for a moment.

He felt like he could watch her all night. He hadn’t gotten exactly what he’d wanted, but what he had gotten had been quite good: the sex, yes, but more than that, the fury. The need. The breaking down of her self-possession. Now, she even looked almost peaceful, like a solid fuck had done her some good.

Dara exited the water, lounging on a large, flat stone by the riverbed and letting herself drip dry. The air was cool; she was shivering a little as she closed her eyes.

She’d left her poncho behind, and Crosshair didn’t have anything to warm her with. They’d have to go back to the fire.

“Burk’yc, it’s too cold to stay out here,” he told her. “Get dressed.”

“No.”

It was a measured statement; Dara’s anger had dissipated, but she was making clear that whatever had just passed between them hadn’t fundamentally changed anything, hadn’t bridged the distance that set them apart in any way.

She infuriated him. She’d decided to keep being a stubborn brat, even after all that.

The sniper started dressing, snapping the pieces of his armor back into place and retrieving his rifle. She didn’t move, eyes still closed, breathing slowly and regularly.

“What do you think you’re doing?” he demanded. “You can’t fall asleep out here.”

Dara turned toward him. He could see the mockery in her eyes by the glow of the river. “Oh, were you expecting to cuddle afterward?”

Crosshair considered, for a moment, throwing her over his shoulder just like that, carrying her back to camp, nude and covered in his marks, tying her up in the cargo hold and having his way with her for the rest of the night, until she forgot every word in every language she knew other than his name.

“Fine. Have it your way,” he spat out instead. He spun on his heels and marched off, leaving her behind.

The others were still lounging by the dying embers of the fire when he came stalking back. Wordless, he entered the Marauder; they could see him pacing back and forth past the hatch in a silent fury as he shed his gear before he finally threw himself down on his bunk, out of sight.

Omega was worried. She had noticed his split lip and the scratches and bruises along his neck.

“Was he…bleeding? Were they fighting?” The men murmured noncommittally, avoiding looking at her.

A few minutes later, Dara came huffing back as well, walking gingerly. She entered the Marauder and made her way to her hammock in the cargo hold, closing the door after her.

“She was hurt too. I think they did fight,” Omega insisted.

Wrecker looked mischievous. “Who do you think won?” He chuckled a little, nudging Tech.

“I don’t think either of them did.” Tech looked at the other men knowingly, while Hunter snickered. Echo avoided catching anyone’s eye, looking mortified.

“What do you mean?” Omega asked. She wasn’t going to let it go.

“Uh…I don’t think they were exactly fighting,” Wrecker hinted.

Omega remained adamant. “Well, then what were they doing?”

“Well, I think it’s time to turn in,” Echo said, a little too loudly.

“Me too!” Wrecker leapt up, and the pair extricated themselves as quickly as possible. Omega turned to Hunter expectantly.

“I’ll…tell you when you’re older,” he answered, shifting uncomfortably.

Omega rolled her eyes and looked at Tech instead. He seemed thoughtful, beginning with an educational tone, “Well, sometimes when two adult humans—or another combination of sentients, depending on the species—experience strong feelings of attraction—”

“Tech!” Hunter interrupted.

The bespectacled clone was unperturbed. “I assure you, I will provide an entirely scientific explanation,” he reassured his brother.

Hunter sighed. “Better you than me.” He left Tech and Omega to it, words like “pheromones,” “hormones,” and “intercourse” drifting behind him as he climbed up the ramp to the Marauder.

He hoped that Tech made sure to tell her it wasn’t always that violent.

The air onboard the ship was almost oppressively tense for Hunter’s enhanced senses. He sniffed; the smell of sex still radiated off of Crosshair, less so off of Dara. He could even detect the sour scent of their foul moods—not the most typical of post-coital emotions, but those two weren’t exactly the most typical of people, so he wasn’t exactly surprised. Dara’s breathing and heartbeat were becoming gentle and regular, but he could tell that Crosshair was still wide awake, gnawing on a toothpick while laying back, hands behind his head.

Hunter approached him and crossed his arms, looking down at him from the edge of his bunk. “Is this going to be a problem?”

Crosshair wasn’t in the mood for a lecture. “Piss off.”

The Sergeant, used to his attitude, was undeterred. “Listen. We’re all relying on each other, and we can’t afford to be so distracted that we put the mission in jeopardy. Whatever this is, just keep your feelings in check.”

“This isn’t about feelings,” Crosshair scoffed.

Hunter, rolling his eyes, knew better than to push him. “Fine. Then just try thinking with your head instead of your dick for a while. If you can’t manage that, then stay away from her.” With that, he left Crosshair to stew.

It was a long time before the sniper drifted off to sleep. When it finally came for him, he was thinking of Dara’s soft whimpers and the warmth of her thighs against his ears.

Next chapter

Tag list: @stardusthuntress @skellymom @megmegalodondon @somewhere-on-kamino @morerandombullshit @zahmaddog

Thanks again to @cloneflo99 for the amazing banner!!!

Author's note: Okay I posted the chapter early because I was so excited for SMUT!!! Remember, kids, don't model your sex life after fiction. This is not a particularly healthy dynamic, get consent, use protection, etc., etc. Let me know what you think in the reblogs, please!

[universitysunflowers]

It took me 5 days but I finally finished Jenny's review

I find it completely fascinating how one person can spend four hours putting all of my thoughts and feelings about disney into actual words. She not only justified my already declining opinion of the company, but also expanded my knowledge of the complete buffoonery that is happening over there.

There was so much to unpack and while I think the cost vs quality difference is the main thing, I agree with other people that those little fire closets of shame should have been looked at a little more closely? maybe? aren't there standards for that sort of thing? Idk it both amuses and concerns me everytime I think of five people trying to fit in that little porta potty sized room while the building burns down around them. It's probably a good thing the attraction closed down before there was any real emergency to be dealt with.

She's 100% right about galaxy's edge; the one time I went to disney the best thing I got out of it was some cool Batu photos and a stuffed porg (he wears a santa hat). That was pretty much it.

I would absolutely read a fanfic about Amethia Tope and Skippy, they deserved better. Skippy with the little water dish was the highpoint of the video - which just goes to show how bad the rest of her experience actually was (props to the cast member tho that was adorable).

My overall final thoughts consist of nothing but the singular question "does disney have any idea what's going on?"