#hi to our filipino followers XD

[maounosekai]

Gulatin mo sila. Magpost ka ng Tagalog :)) (Surprise them. Post in Tagalaog)

OG post is from a MatsuJun fanpage with shitpost caption in Tagalog and I immediately thought of a certain captain with the same talent. This also isn't the first time that I posted a BLEACH fancomic in Tagalog, but this is the first time that I did on Tumblr (I think?)

TN: Mashiro: What's your talent? Kensei: I easily get pissed off.

[celestiarambles]

You'll be Safe Here

trigger warning: suicide, overdose, hospitalization, psychiatric hospitals, mental disorders

hi so i know y'all are tired of me trying to defend angela... but here's another fic defending her once again xD

this is kind of like a part 2 of you can't catch me now in lars' pov and this was kind of requested by @dinamo123xpq, i had planned to write this a long time ago but i got busy and now here it is!

also whenever i listen to the filipino song you'll be safe here (the lyrics are in english) it also kind of reminds me of lars and angela (i'll reblog it with the spotify link later haha)

so yeah i hope you'll endure my yapping about this for at least a little longer HAHA

Summary: Lars wasn’t supposed to care about Angela anymore. Once the Bureau was over, his plan was to settle their divorce papers and stay in Australia with his daughters for good…

Until he gets an important call.

Also cross-posted on Ao3: You'll be Safe Here - celestiamirasol - Criminal Case (Video Game) [Archive of Our Own]

It has been a week ever since the Bureau had officially dismantled SOMBRA for good. They only had to process paperworks and forensic evidence for every law enforcement agency in the world, and everything would be over. 

Their purpose would be over.

”What are you planning to do after this, bro?” Jack asked his best friend. “I honestly don’t know, the Bureau’s been my whole life…”

Lars knew exactly what he was going to do. Local forensic laboratories in Australia were offering positions to him after they had heard of his work in the Bureau, but he wasn’t interested. Once he settled his divorce papers, he was going to find a simpler job, start anew with his daughters.

His daughters deserved a peaceful life, one without chaos or violence. One without betrayal. He wanted to close this chapter of his life so bad.

”Daddy, you’re still not coming back to Australia with us?” April innocently asked as he brought the triplets to the airport. Their nanny followed suit.

”I’m really sorry girls, but I’ll just settle something in the Bureau, and then I’ll stay with you for good.”

“Can we see mommy?” June shyly asked.

”June, mommy had already left us!” May’s response had broken Lars’ heart. He didn’t want to hear his kids ever say that, but it was for the best. So that they could all move on.

”Girls, I know this is hard for all of us…” Lars knelt down to meet their gaze, trying to hold back tears. “…but you might never see your mom again. It’s for your own safety. I’m sorry.”

”But daddy, Elsa also hurt Anna and almost froze the entire kingdom, and yet they forgive each other because they love each other!” June pleaded, referencing Frozen. “Do you… do you not love mommy anymore?”

“Our flight number is being called, girls.” The nanny took them. “We should go.”

Lars stood up, processing June’s question. “Take care, girls.”

Did he not love Angela anymore? Maybe. He had already accepted that she would never be the woman she once was. Thinking about her hurt him too much. He almost committed suicide because of her betrayal one time. He didn’t want to even make their marriage work for the girls, for it’ll just hurt them in the long run.

Love wasn’t supposed to hurt, it was supposed to be steady. Safe.

However when he returned back to the Bureau’s New York headquarters, why did his heart beat fast when a random number called him?

”Hello, are you Lars Douglas?”

“Yes, who’s speaking?”

“Hi this is from the NYC Health and Hospitals, you are listed as the emergency contact of Angela Douglas. We are calling to inform you that she has suffered from an overdose on benzodiazepine…”

He wasn’t supposed to care about her anymore. They were over. SOMBRA was over.

But why did he immediately run to the hospital so fast once he got the call?

He wished that this was some kind of sick joke, that it was all some kind of nightmare, but it was not. The broken pieces that he had struggled to fix for the past few months had crumbled all over again once the doctors told him that Angela had fallen into a coma due to her attempt, and they didn’t know if she would ever wake up.

Oh god, the girls. How can he explain this to his daughters? He last told them that they might never see her again… 

A sob bubbled up his throat as he entered the hospital room and found Angela unconscious and hooked to various monitors. He hated how he still held her hand, crying, mourning for her and the woman she once was. He wanted to be mad, yell at her for trying to leave him, to leave them like this…

But he looked around the dreary place. He was all alone. He was the one listed as her emergency contact. Minutes turned into hours, hours turned into the morning… nobody else came for her. Her parents were dead. Her SOMBRA comrades either were in jail, in therapy, or dead. The Bureau hates her for trying to kill them and for denouncing Dupont. He was the only one that came for her, and even he had plans to leave her too.

She had no one left. 

Thinking about it, it would be a truly somber end to one’s existence. What she did was wrong and he hated her for it. But once upon a time, he believed that she had a good heart, and it was one of the reasons why he fell in love with her. However, fate had been cruel to her and took away her parents from her at such a young age, causing her to fall into SOMBRA’s clutches.

If Lars had to choose, he would rather have her live a life with her parents instead of her meeting him.  Maybe then the world wouldn’t have tainted her perspective so bitterly. 

Once he got back to the Bureau, he immediately threw away the divorce papers and canceled the meeting with his lawyer. The more he thought about it, the more that he felt his every step to Marina’s office become heavier.

He recalled the time she first got arrested and when he confronted her for answers. She told him her parents died when she was eight. Even if she had told him that she had chosen this, that she chose to be loyal to SOMBRA… He wanted to be naive. Deep inside, he felt that she secretly didn’t want this. She was a recruit, just like the other kids that suffered at the hands of SOMBRA. She was also a victim of the harsh cycle of violence they perpetuated.

He hated how this had to happen in order for him to realize all of this.

“You want me to petition the court to release all the SOMBRA recruits and instead subject them to a stay at a psychiatric hospital, including Angela?” Marina clarified to the scientist, baffled. “I can probably understand the others, but she almost killed Jonah, she almost killed us, Lars… do you really want that?”

“I don’t believe she wanted to do that either…” Lars sighed.

”Maybe you’re just feeling this way because she had attempted. It’s valid to feel this way, but it’s not your fault. That was her choice to make -“

“I know it’s not my fault! It’s SOMBRA’s fault!” He didn’t mean to snap at Marina. He didn’t know why he was still defending her, but she deserved to have someone in her corner for once. Like how she did for him all this time. “She told me SOMBRA took her in when she was eight… Did you know that?! We’ve seen how it affected children like Sanjay and Mei many times! Why would she be any different?!”

”But -“ Marina looked at Lars like he was crazy. “I-I’ll… think about it, okay?”

He left Marina’s office, dejected. He knew her betrayal was hard on everyone, but sometimes it felt like he was the only one that cared. It was like everyone accepted that Angela was a horrible person and they couldn’t change that. 

Soon, weeks turned into a month, and finally they had finished all of the documents and forensic evidence to take down SOMBRA. The Bureau was over. However the more that time passed by, the less likely was the chance for Angela to wake up again.

All of them were celebrating, but Lars wasn’t in the mood to. While a part of him held onto the hope that maybe she was still alive, he couldn’t stop thinking about their last exchange. The harsh words he had last imparted to her, how he had told her that he never wanted to see her ever again…

They had a vow. ‘Til death do us part. But why did their parting words to each other stung more than death itself?

”Hey.” Carmen approached him along with Marina, holding a champagne glass. “I heard about what happened to Angela… I’m sorry.”

“Carmen and I were just talking about it, and… you’re right.” Marina met his gaze. “All of the recruits deserve a second shot at life. Including Angela.”

That night, he and the two women visited her once again. Even if forgiveness was still hard, they all vowed to give her a second chance at life. She deserved to live again.

Maybe he was just holding on to the idea of her. But deep down, he wanted to try to make that idea possible, even for a little.

Even though he promised to the triplets that he was going to go back home, he had to stay in New York for a little while longer, helping Marina with the petition. He didn’t want to leave Angela alone. He stayed with Jack for a while, even though the latter was opposed to his decision, thinking that she got what she deserved. But to him, it was not what she deserved. 

He visited her everyday, constantly leaving white, yellow, and blue tulips in her hospital room. He knew how much she loved tulips. It represented hope, rebirth, and life. He wanted to give life to her dreary hospital room. He wanted to wish all the best for her.

Jack tried to get him to move on. He tried convincing Lars to try dating apps, that there was more to life outside Angela. There was a point where he almost gave in, that maybe after all this time there was a chance that she didn’t love him anymore. But Lars didn’t feel like falling in love again if it wasn’t with her. 

However, he couldn’t stay forever. He had a promise to the triplets. But before he went back to Australia, he had to do something. 

Ever since her attempt, Lars had hired a private investigator to investigate her life in SOMBRA. He wanted to do everything he could to make sure Angela could go back to her normal life eventually. But according to the investigator, nothing in her life was ever normal.

Being more used to hot climates, he wasn’t used to the chilly breeze that greeted him in South Korea. He held a piece of paper in his hand, traipsing along the steps of Busan Correctional Facility.’

After some time, he sat inside a booth. In front of him was a woman, who was supposedly his in-law. Angela’s ‘mother’ who was part of SOMBRA. He knew he had to confront them at some point in his life.

”Oh, so you’re that guy that Angela decided to marry…”. Her lips pursed into an annoyed frown. “See, I knew that she made the wrong choice. At least with us, her future was secure. She was supposed to join a multi-million pharmaceutical company under us once she graduated, but no, she chose you. Ever since you came into her life, she has become a failure.”

“But you’re also forgetting that while we were married, she had become a renowned scientist with a Nobel Prize. And she did it all with her own talent and effort. Without you.” He didn’t like how her own supposed ‘mother’ put her down like that.

”Oh, but she lost it anyway because she became sloppy with the Bureau, no? I’ve been telling her father that he should’ve just killed her the moment she said she was going to marry you. She was never going to survive.”

”No, fuck you!” Lars wasn’t one to curse, but he couldn’t take it anymore. “It was because of you she became like this! If you didn’t force her to do things she didn’t want to do, then maybe she wouldn’t be in a coma right now! You didn’t care about her, you just wanted her for your own selfish gain!”

He spat out a bunch of other expletives at the woman. The guards had to pull him out because of his outburst. He sat outside the steps and cried.

 She told him that she disobeyed SOMBRA one time, and that one time was to marry him.

She fought for him. She fought to keep their family safe, away from the clutches of SOMBRA. From getting him out of that chimney when they first met, to saving him from his near death experience by finding the cure to the plague… All this time, she was fighting for him.

This time, he wanted to be the one to fight for her. 

While he had to go back to Australia for the triplets, he was overcome with joy when Marina called to tell him that the petition had passed. Angela could finally heal.

Eventually, he told the triplets the whole story about their mother’s situation. He had only explained bits of it to them during video calls. Now that he was finally with them, he was able to sit them down and tell them everything. 

“Is mommy going to die?” April asked, tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

”I don’t know, girls… it’s been a year, and I’ll be honest….”  He didn’t want to say it, but a part of him had to accept it so it won’t hurt much once it happened. “…her chances of waking up are slim.”

“I want to see her, daddy!” June cried. “I want to see mommy!”

“She already left us, June!” May was angry, but a part of her was hurt as well. “It’s… it’s been a long time…”

”Hey, girls, it’s alright to feel what you’re feeling right now. But no matter what happens to your mother, just know that she’s there, watching over all of us every step of the way, like a guardian angel.”

 He hugged his daughters as they all cried together. They had various shades of anger, hurt, and confusion written on their faces, but they still mourned.

Thankfully, things got better.

3 years later, Lars had gotten the news that Angela had finally woke up. He immediately requested for her transfer to a psychiatric hospital nearby in Australia so that he could visit her.

He also sought help, both for him and the triplets. The past few years had all taken a heavy toll on their mental health, and he wanted to make sure that they were all going to be okay. 

Once he had heard that Angela had finally been transferred, he wanted to see her, but the hospital didn’t allow him to. So as a coping mechanism, his therapist suggested for him to send letters for her to read. And so he did, even writing her various prose and random lyrics whenever he thought about her. He even put in random drawings and letters that the triplets made. Some were corny, some were profound, but he wanted to show her that she was loved.

A year later, he was finally allowed to visit her. Her therapist thought that this would be best for her healing. Their reunion was filled with a lot of tears, but deep in his heart he had forgiven her for everything. He accepted her for all that she was, the good and the bad.

“Hey.” He greeted her with a smile as she got discharged from the psychiatric hospital after 7 years, holding a bouquet of yellow tulips. “This is for you.”

“Y-you didn’t have to…” Angela blushed as she accepted the bouquet.

“No, I wanted to.” He pulled her closer as they walked over to their car. This time, he wasn’t going to let her go.

The first few minutes of the ride back home were silent, not until Angela spoke up. “Lars…”

”Hmm?”

”I truly am sorry for everything… and thank you for staying with me.” She looked away as she felt her eyes sting with tears.

Lars didn’t say anything until they had encountered a stoplight. His eyes may still be on the road, but his free hand crept to hers as he held it. “You don’t have to say sorry or thank you anymore. Just know that I’ll be here for you no matter what.”

Because as people change, love grows into a steady space, ready to withstand whatever the world throws at it. 

No matter what happens, love will always be steady. It will always be safe.

[onenettvchannel]

FLASH REPORT THIS MORNING: A Lone Bettor in California wins a record breaking Powerball Billionaire Jackpot of U$D2.040B (PHP119B) [#OneNETnewsEXCLUSIVE]

ALTADENA, CALIFORNIA -- The final record-breaking Powerball billionaire jackpot prize in the United States of America (U.S.A.) ends here in a local suburb of Altadena after he or she was recently bought a ticket, just before the store opens at 6am (November 8th, 2022 -- Pacific local time). A store owner reportedly sold a ticket at the Joe's Service Center in West Woodbury Road, the said suburb and a state of California.

This was just made history as the state lottery's first-ever billionaire after matching all 5 white numbers plus the red Powerball. Before that, there were a technical difficulties last Monday night (November 7th, 2022) due to one of the state's inability to deal with the huge amount of ticket sales data. Minnesota Lottery is the only culprit to delay the drawing for a single night and was slightly rigged for several hours per sales verification system to ruin the integrity of it as WCCO-TV's CBS 4: Minnesota reported.

Powerball officially rescheduled the next morning on Tuesday at 9:01am (Eastern local time) at a flagship lottery studios in Tallahassee, Florida, U.S.A. where the drawing takes place as pre-recorded in the early morning according to USA Mega. The final winning numbers are: 10-33-41-47-56 and the Powerball number is [10], while the Power Play multiplier concludes to 2x. An estimated jackpot prize as final to U$D2.040B (PHP119B).

KTTV-TV's FOX 11: Los Angeles was first reported and exclusively confirmed before lunchtime as the lottery officials in California receives an instant selling bonus of U$D1M (PHP58.330M) for selling the said winning ticket, leaving his or her lone bettor in California will soon come forward since the West Coast does not really allow to have it remain anonymous to claim the jackpot prize whether the lump sum of U$D997.6M after taxes (PHP58.2B) or annuity payments in full for 3 decades worth U$D68M (PHP3.966B) without any more explanation or questions asked.

Altadena store owner name Joseph Chahayed, who was owned and operated to Joe's Service Center for the past 20 years with a press release statement, "I would like to thank all the community (who) support me. I encourage you to buy a ticket from this station... You're going to be a winner too. I will share it with the family, with my kids, my grandchildren, I have 11 grandchildren, and I have to share with them". His original hometown formerly originated from Syria in the 1980s to seek a better life.

Joseph and his family worked hard to open and manage their own store as an immigrant themselves per KTLA-TV 5 reported.

Here in our country and some parts of the world with consolation prizes at 'theLotter', 2 Filipino individuals have hit the 3 or 4 numbers including Power Play multiplier. The following countries and prizes are: *Mexico, Brazil, Dominican Republic and the Philippines (1 simultaneous winners worth U$D100 [PHP5,833.00]) *India (1 solo winner worth U$D168.09 [PHP9,804.70]) *Brazil (1 solo winner worth U$D200 [PHP11,666.00]) *Oman (1 solo winner worth U$D207.88 [PHP12,125.64]) and *Philippines (1 solo individual winner worth U$D263.86 [PHP15,522.90])

The billionaire jackpot was the largest ever for Powerball and the largest in American lottery history. The overall odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are just 1 in 292.2 million. The ticket will now valid within a year or as later forfeited by early next Christmas in 2023.

The local win marks the first time the California Lottery has doled out a jackpot topping the said selling bonus amount to a single suburb winner.

SCREENGRAB COURTESY: KABC-TV's ABC 7: Los Angeles via FB LIVE Video

SPECIAL THANKS to Jackie Lynn Thomas for contributing a news report of Disney XD News (an affiliate organization for OneNETnews).

SOURCE: *https://www.facebook.com/100067759316841/posts/568733288352392 [Referenced FB LIVE Video from KABC-TV's ABC 7: Los Angeles] *https://www.lotterypost.com/news/343177 [Referenced News Article #1 from The Lottery Post] *https://www.exxon.com/en/find-station/mobil-altadena-ca-joesservicecenterllc-200313190 *https://youtube.com/watch?v=LOdhGnWieAU [Referenced YT Video from KABC-TV's ABC 7: Los Angeles] *https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/minnesotas-verification-system-caused-delay-in-2-04b-powerball-drawing/ [Referenced News Article #2 from WCCO-TV's CBS 4: Minnesota] *https://www.usamega.com/powerball/drawing/2022/11/7 [Referenced Lotto Results from USA Mega] *https://www.foxla.com/news/single-ticket-sold-in-california-wins-2-billion-powerball-jackpot [Referenced News Article #3 from KTTV-TV's FOX 11: Los Angeles] *https://ktla.com/news/local-news/winning-2-04-billion-powerball-ticket-sold-in-altadena/ [Referenced News Article #4 from KTLA-TV's CW 5] *https://www.calottery.com/faqs and *https://abc7.com/powerball-winner-los-angeles-county-winning-ticket/12430368/ [Referenced News Article #5f from KABC-TV's ABC 7: Los Angeles]

-- OneNETnews Team

[cleverclove]

Hey! So I was thinking of making a south asian oc, and I was wondering if there were any really bad stereotypes I need to avoid when designing them and looking up references? Sorry if this bothers you!

Oh hi anon! This is no problem, it doesn’t bother me :)

A South Asian OC, huh? Alright! I’ll do my best to try to cover as much as I can <3

So...I have a lot to say about this, forgive the long post 😅

1. Please, please, please, please, PLEASE don’t make their entire personality smart but socially awkward

I don’t even think I need to say it. Asians are tired of the stereotypes that Western culture has implemented on them. It has the awful implication that we are “the model minority,” which stems from a long history of racial bias and it’s basically the media’s way of saying “Hey! If Asians can follow our rules, so can all you other POC.” It’s not a good look on you and it’s not cute, for us or anyone else. And for South Asians especially, we barely even get represented at all. As a kid, I never saw a Filipina Disney heroine I could look up to, much less a good one. I’m not saying you can’t make them smart. I’m not saying you can’t make them a bit awkward. That’s what I am (I hope)! But I am other things too, things that aren’t that. My grades are not 100%. I’m artistic (I like to think lol). I can’t play instruments to save my life, but I love to sing! I’m happy-go-lucky. I want to be a good person, not just a good student. And my mom always told me, “Your grades don’t have to be the best. What matters is the contents of your heart, not just the contents of your brain.”

And speaking of parents...

2. NOT ALL SOUTH ASIAN PARENTS ARE TIGER PARENTS

I’ll be honest, I’d always be very hurt when overcoming tiger parents were a focal point in TV shows and movies. Take Tiffany Chen from Bunk’d. Her only personality trait was quite literally being intelligent and having a comically strict mother. I’m aware that some Asian parents can be like that, but I promise you, not all of them. I absolutely love my parents and they love me. They only want what’s best for me. They believe in therapy to help with my problems. They show affection to me at all times, not just when I please them. Good grades are encouraged, yes, but never to the point where I fear their retribution if I perform otherwise. They’re proud of me as I am, not as who I could be. I understand that this is possibly not the case for other Southern Asian folks, but for me at least, I think that the tiger parent stereotype is overused and not representing of all Asian parents. Including that as a plot point is not recommended in my eyes.

3. If they are native to whichever country you choose, remember that there is more to it than meets the eye.

I am of Filipino descent, and let me tell you right now, the Philippines is not just what you think it is. Yes, it’s a third-world country. There is poverty and suffering, not to mention a less than desirable president. I’m not going to try and deny that. The Philippines has a long way to go developmentally. But...isn’t there poverty and suffering in America too? Isn’t there a less than desirable president here too? Just like America, and other countries at that, we need to look at countries like the Philippines and see it in its entirety, not just at its worst. The Philippines is so culturally rich and its people are equally complex and beautiful. So please, don’t make their storyline centered around overcoming poverty and natural disasters. Show their culture, show the food. Or...at least show that you care legitimately about representing. We are not your sob story, we are human. Same goes for whichever other country you want to do, like India, Malaysia, or Indonesia. These countries are beautiful and wonderful in their own right, and while I’m not the one to ask about the specifics, I believe their cultures are meant to be represented reverently and with care. Do your research, and remember to listen to real-life Asians. You may have good intentions, but you are not immune to stereotyping either.

I’m gonna wrap it up here or I’ll be rambling for ages XD

Other South Asian friends, feel free to add your thoughts! I’m not good at explaining this at all 😭

Love ya anon, and happy researching!

[sweet-evie]

hehehe me again matagal na talaga akong may issue sa song because i really saw it as something that justifies cheating and sympathizes with cheaters as the lyrics for me says that the partner cheated and the one that is left is questioning herself/himself on why his/her partner left idk why most people see it as letting go of pain and surrendering it to God like is it the typical Filipino resilience 'we still smile despite of all the problems' when there is an emotional trauma that will forever exist and haunt the people that get cheated on and idk why our country are really suckers of hugots as proven by the hype of that song hehehehe well its not the only song of her that is problematic also that titibo tibo hype when that song is reinforcing the idea of being gay/lesbian can be cured haha 😅 sorry in advance for this i hope i don't look like i'm fighting you i really can't stop myself being and expressive 😅😅😅 btw i'm one of your followers i really love your cluclu ffs, love them all! 💕

Oh please don’t feel sorry for expressing your opinions. 😀🙂 Everyone is entitled to expressing themselves as long as everything is civil and decent. And that’s what we are doing -- conversing online as human beings are meant to do. xD

And on that note, I see where you’re coming from with this. 😁 If we put that song in the context of reality, yeah it sucks. 😅 The relationship described is nothing short of toxic and unhealthy -- to a certain degree.

and idk why our country are really suckers of hugots as proven by the hype of that song

🤷‍♀️ IDK either. xD 🤭 For some reason, a lot of people in this country love the idea of martyrdom -- especially in relationships (sometimes in toxic ones).

Not that there’s anything wrong with that. It’s a noble sentiment, by all means. But, as we all know, too much of something is unhealthy and that applies to emotional and mental states too. Being a martyr all the time can’t be healthy. It’s just destroying one’s self in the process, and to what end? If it’s for the greater good (like what Lelouch did), then that’s awesome 👍. But if someone’s just being a martyr for the sake of self-righteousness and to prove a point to another person who doesn’t give a crap about them and their well-being, then fuck that. 🤣🤣 To that person, I say, “Please know your self-worth.”

⬆️ I went on a weird tangent, and I’m sorry. XD

letting go of pain and surrendering it to God like is it the typical Filipino resilience 'we still smile despite of all the problems' when there is an emotional trauma that will forever exist and haunt the people that get cheated on

⬆️ Very true... But we have to admit, this ‘resilience’ that’s inherent in our culture & most of us can be pretty darn admirable in the best of times. It’s just a shame that there are people who will take that as leverage to abuse and manipulate someone else who possesses these traits.

For fiction, I like the song because it cooks up interesting ideas that involve a lot of CLuCLu. (🥴 Oh god, I really am hopeless shipping trash 😭)

I never really thought of the song that way, so thank you for bringing it up because it got me thinking. 😆😁

The good side I see in it, at least, is the theme of ‘forgiveness’ and ‘letting go.’ Like, if I put myself in that person’s shoes, I would definitely choose to let the unloving partner go too. Yeah, I would blame myself and ask questions that would put my self-worth into jeopardy. Yes, I will ask myself where I went wrong and when the descent of the relationship began. But at the same time, some part of me probably knows that it’s part of the healing process. Asking tough questions is inevitable in a relationship event like the one portrayed in Paubaya. 

But down the road, when I really think about it, it’s better to forgive and let it go rather than wallow in sorrow and bitterness for the rest of my life. (Although, there will be psychological scars, but that’s where resilience comes into play. We all learn to live with it until it’s bearable and we can---

i really can't stop myself being and expressive 😅😅😅 btw i'm one of your followers i really love your cluclu ffs, love them all! 💕

Don’t apologize for being expressive 😄 Because I love talking to people like this (online or otherwise). Thank you for reading my fanfics as well (as weird and all-over-the-place as they are most of the time) 😅. Seriously, thank you! 😍

[kairisu]

Hi! Once you get this SHARE 6 facts about yourself and send it to your 10 favorite followers! :)

Hehe thank you! The feeling is mutual ♥ ♥ ♥

Here we go:

1) I don’t really have a favorite color. It pretty much just depends on what I think looks nice on certain things.

2) I have a cute dog!

3) I tend to procrastinate ヽ(  ; ▽ ;   )ノ

4) Ever since I started college, I’ve been slowly losing my interest in drawing. Nowadays, I usually just doodle something whenever I take notes.

5) I first got into Sims because of The Sims DJ. I really loved that game! I used to write how I made my tracks on a notebook, just in case I might accidentally delete them xD

6) Aside from my mother-tongue, I know two other languages. One is Filipino (our national language) and the other is English. I tend to use English whenever I’m online and mother-tongue when I’m just chatting with people. Filipino is my weakness (´; ω ;｀)

[bentchcreates]

Beyond Light and Darkness (Part 1)

This is going to be a two-part blog feature because I want to write about the book as a reviewer, as well as the experiences I had as one of the authors of this wonderful work. Also, fair warning that this is gonna be a long-ass post because I am on a roll. Haha.

Before BLaD

Let’s start from the very beginning, just a brief intro, for context. LOL.

Kath Bute (https://www.wattpad.com/user/kathbute) is actually a group of writers on Wattpad that bonded over the community forums a few years ago, and decided to collaborate and release an anthology of stories we wanted to read.

I was actually the last Kabute to join the first anthology, Beyond Fate and the Stars. I don’t know much about the group before I joined; except that they were working on an anthology based on the 12 Chinese Zodiac (with an assigned emotion) and they were short of one writer to do the Ox. I was very new to Wattpad then and basically just happened to be active in a forum for Filipino Writers, so they asked if I wanted to contribute. And I did. It was one of the first few times people actually asked me to write a new story.

After a few weeks I came up with Seek the Ox, Find Happiness (https://www.wattpad.com/183607408-beyond-fate-and-the-stars-self-published-seek-the) and in the summer of 2016 we had a book! My very first printed book! It wasn’t until MIBF that year that I got to meet my Kabute friends in person for the first time but it didn’t feel weird at all, kindred spirits and all that. (@AlaraChan & @lunatrix)(http://bentchcreates.tumblr.com/post/151133454706/bentch-at-the-37th-manila-international-book-fair )

As originally planned, printing BFatS was solely for us to have a physical book with our names and stories on it, a dry run. And while we might’ve discussed eventually making it available for selling, logistics and other business matters were tougher to figure out once the book is done. (We’re still trying to figure out if this is possible. Hehe.) But we wanted to do it again, and we wanted to do more this time, so we decided to take another shot at a second anthology, with selling the book as part of the plan from the very beginning.

The Stories

We tried our hand at a little bit of indie publishing. We had reviews that helped us with things to improve. We learned a lot from the first take and we had a clearer vision on what we wanted to become of this. The instructions this time was almost similar to the previous one: write whatever genre you want but there will be assigned prompts to follow and a sub theme of light or darkness. Even the interpretation of these themes was free for the author to make his/her own. 

I got “A broken wristwatch, peppermints and a hug that goes too far” and in the ‘light’ subtheme. I had finished an NA romance manuscript by then and I got off easy. Others who got perky prompts and then a ‘dark’ subtheme were a little more challenged! Hah!  

*Artwork by Trix Luna. My story prompts are here. ;)*

It was quite fun to write. And in the weeks that we were planning this second anthology, my inbox were constantly filled with book ideas; as well as funny messages (and abs!) from friends that were miles away from me. We talked about the book, and then about our personal writing projects, and cheered on each other when the writing gets tough. The friendships I’ve made with this book has got to be the best payoff in this journey.

Anyway, we also decided to open the proverbial doors for two more stories – two new bloods so to speak – so in June 2016, we called for short story submissions for the anthology. Four official entries were screened in anonymity (there were 5 stories, but we later found out @RK Sanchez should’ve already been part of Book 1 so she got in) and it was what I would say was the most challenging part of this. As an old Kabute (heh) and judge, I had a hard time choosing only two over four wonderfully written stories. In the end, I had to choose those who have showed the prompts more creatively and whose stories have captured our hearts. We welcomed @Nigel Libranages and @Raine RIllera into the fold. :P

With the stories and authors completed, we set out to editing, and because we didn’t have a professional editor, nor the funds to actually hire one, we did it ourselves. Around 14 pairs of eyes went through all the stories and different people who wrote different genres offered advice and suggestions for the improvement of our stories. It was team-effort every step of the way.

*My review copy with all the original members’ stories after I was done with my first run through. heehee.*

Development Hell

Development hell or development limbo is media industry jargon for a project that remains in development (often moving between different crews, scripts, or studios) without progressing to completion. 

– Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Development_hell)

We were 14 authors whose writing were more passion projects than actual dayjobs so when each of us got a little busy in the real world, the book got lightly shoved in the backburners. Some authors weren’t able to finish their works and to this day, we’re still waiting for them to release them (*wink wink, fellow kabutes!*) Most of us had a lot on our plates, I for one had to uproot and move back in to my parent’s house, and completing a book seemed like a huge task to strike off our To Do list.

I also had fears. Being a writer who could sell his books had been a big dream of mine and when felt like I was so close to grasping it, I feared it wouldn’t be as amazing as I hyped it up to be. I had to process it for a while, to learn more things about the industry, and ultimately, about myself, before I could fully commit to taking the plunge. And when I felt I was almost ready, I did it. I can only speak for myself but knowing I wasn’t doing this on my own, that I had friends with me, achieving our shared goals together, helped quell those fears. I’m still afraid, I have to say, but it’s more manageable now that I’ve got all these lovely people behind me, as I to them.

It took a few more weeks before we got our fire back (some slots had to be refilled with new stories, we had to hold a small face to face meeting to iron out everything) and when we got to see the artworks for the cover and the genre divisions, the excitement was renewed. I almost missed the cover reveal but when we all saw it, we knew that beauty had to be shared to the world.

*BLaD F2F meeting with Bebe Kabute Irina Jean and the secret agents again! heehee!*

*BLaD Cover reveal (art by @RK Sanchez) and this pre-order promo graphic is by @Johanna Lee

At this point, Summer Feels had been launched and I got to be part of the promo team on social media so what I learned from that I pitched in. In no time, we had a solid contract, a promo schedule, a pre-order form, a slot at #FilipinoBookFriday; and a launch date. @Lunatrix and @AlaraChan were sending us updates on what the book would look like, printing schedules and all. I was so excited I have picked clothes to wear on the launch weeks before. Haha!

*#FilipinoBookFriday promo graphic. Hosted by me and @Johanna Lee 

BLaD Book Launch

What we called the book launch was just going to be a small author get together, a meet-up to see each other, collect our books and have a small meal together. I thought about working on an invitation, a graphic I could print out and stick to my journal later, when I found out Trix already made a Programme (so HYPED, I’m telling you!) and we had activities to really set off our baby to a great start.

On November 30th 2017, we met at the CBTL in Trinoma where we rearranged tables on one side of the café as if we got a reservation (We didn’t. They don’t so reservations. Or maybe not for an event as small as ours. hah). We chose that venue because it was sort of a midpoint for where the authors were coming from; Baguio was the farthest point from the North and Laguna in the South (Okay, if we count Australia as the farthest point in the South, then we’re screwed because the midpoint is probably in the middle of an ocean. XD).

We started with a short Kath Bute intro and welcome remarks from Ate Kabute; and then all authors got to introduce ourselves (we introverts get all weird introducing ourselves to people we’ve been talking to for months online!). We got gifts and goodie bags from our artist Kabutes; I even got to do an unrehearsed live-reading of The Time Banker! And then we got to the Q and A part where we got to know more about everyone else.

We also got to sign a ton of the first batch of the print books. Seeing the book for the first time is just totally amazing (the cover is more beautiful in person) and seeing stacks of it together before they are eventually distributed is even better. I took a lot of pictures of the beautiful books and forgot to take pics of the people, haha!

It was such a fun experience, and knowing it had been possible because of this dream we all had, that we were now making into a reality, is priceless. I got to write, I got new friends and now I got a new book! There was hardwork, and I know the others worked harder than I did, but we can all say it is worth it.

What’s Next?

I don’t know how to end this blog. Haha. I rambled on and on about recent history and yada, yada, blah, blah, blah, but now I don’t know what my parting message will be. Classic Bentch! Haha!

I guess I’ll leave you with a link to order our book because now I know you’re itching to get your hands on it: http://bit.ly/BLADBatch2 (Batch 2 is set for printing in January, so delivery dates might be late January-early February)

We’re processing an e-book version for international release so watch out! (Naks, ako yung in-charge dito, so good luck to me. Wahaha) And we’ve discussed the initial phases for Book 3! No further announcements, thank you! Haha!

I think it’s also better to end with a thank you to everyone who has made this possible.

My fellow BLaD authors, thank you for sharing your talents – writing and editing AND artistic skills – especially to Mama and Ate Kabute who started all of this and pushed us to bring our collective best to the world. To my other author friends, who showed support by cheering on us and buying our books!

And to God, because this is your design. Thank you.

 *next part will be my review of BLaD as a reader. It will be biased because, you know, I wrote the preface (not-so-humble-brag!) and is currently in charge of promotions, but it’s a GREAT anthology, 500%!  

[moonlightburr]

To clear up my allegations.

Hello there! You probably don’t even know me (ofc this Tumblr account is dead lmao.) But I’m called Burr. I play ROBLOX and this will be a ROBLOX related post. My ign is PrincessFionna2000 (changed to JenniBURR). I am making this post to clear up all my allegations created by a user named “Alovia”. First, I’ll start with how this all first started. I was playing a game on ROBLOX, a game called WCA (White Castle Academy) I am a host in the game and was only there to play and help the other hosts when they need me. Anyways, Alovia joined in hours later. I teleported her in the game because she was my friend and of course, I had to include her. Though I never liked being together with her anymore but I still had the guts to be nice to her. (She’s not really the Alovia I know anymore, she became a thot.) Anyways! She got named and stuff and noticed that I had admin commands in the game. I can safely assume that she thought I would help her and give her what she wanted because of it. She bullied the people in the game, criticized their clothing choices and annoyed me a lot of times even though I was dealing with things. Then after a while I left my friend and Alovia for a while because I had to do something else. When I teleported to my friend, they were in the lobby. Both of them reset. This time, I only teleported my friend in the game while I left her in the lobby. Minutes pass by and her friend came to join. Both of them obnoxiously spammed the command “!help”. I was annoyed so I never even responded to it. Anyways, I told a person who hated Alovia and then teleported that said person in the lobby to talk to them. Once again, I had to deal with something and teleported back to him. The first thing I saw when I teleported back was Alovia’s friend dressing up inappropriately followed by Alovia who was also dressing up inappropriately. After a few moments of listening to their rude words, I teleported the person back to the school and then teleported to my friend who needed my help leaving Alovia and her friend stuck in the lobby. Since I was already that pissed off, I told the person who was hosting to kick both of them and so he did. After a few minutes, she messaged me, I never got to see her full message but the only message I saw was “You didn’t help us.” She then unfriended me (I didn’t know she unfriended my boyfriend until I saw his account) after leaving that message. Then, I noticed that she unfriended me and my boyfriend, I messed up her group that she made me an admin of. I kicked all the members and left messages in the group wall leaving her the only member in the group. (She made the group private now.) After a few days, she messaged me on discord. At first, I didn’t respond to her pathetic messages, when she messaged me again, that’s where I took action. Sadly, she deleted her rude messages to make me look bad but don’t be fooled, she messaged me first. She trash-talked my boyfriend, talked shit about me, how she planned to frame my boyfriend’s friend because she wanted to be the only one ruling the empire and also told me to kill myself (this is already a classic but c’mon Alovia, be original). Here are the all the messages! I found the rest of the messages before she deleted it!  (Please read EDIT#2 below) #1: https://gyazo.com/e8c860fccdb5a6800223d76134da3c93 (NEW) #2: https://gyazo.com/c668063a203f02218bc524ac5e8e8eb8 #3: https://gyazo.com/c4388fb49d4a310e5e6db1123f4b8bcd #4: https://gyazo.com/bc92a59eeef769fe597f26f9ab304aed Now Alovia is denying that Malivous is her instead she’s her friend. THIS IS MY PROOF TO PROVE YOU AND MALVIOUS ARE THE SAME PERSON: https://gyazo.com/153db964fb7470ab3888764b6702e8db Alovia’s Discord name changed her name from Malvious, Milania Trump and lastly Milanya trumps!

**DO NOT BE FOOLED, ALOVIA CHANGED HER DISCORD NAME.**

Here’s the reason why I showed that screenshot:

Alovia is a Filipino. She can speak and understand that language. Therefore it’s easy to identify her. (I know a bit of information about her when we were still friends)

Now this was the next thing she did:

She joined the same game with her friend again but this time, she told everyone I scammed her for “15 dollars.” (I was in the game but I kept on getting kicked due to my internet being too slow but eventually left.) The thing was, my currency isn’t in dollars and to get a dollar using my currency I need to reach 50 php. My friend told me about it so I asked my friends to tell them to give proof that I scammed them after that I never heard of them again. Or so I thought.

Hours passed, she joined our discord server (WCA server) and still told everyone I scammed her, (there were people who believed her but I managed to prove to them that I didn’t scam at all.) and gave out fake evidence.

Here’s the “evidence” she provided :

https://imgur.com/a/AkfnJ

The thing here is, that isn’t me. To prove my point, i’ll show my evidence to prove that I am not the person who she was talking with (This was obviously badly scripted)

#1: https://gyazo.com/53f34dd8151b545ce4a3fd2a843d8fad

#2: https://gyazo.com/d712edc10c5a4c2df1536fe99514acf8

Now, I asked a person who knows me if he thinks that the person in the evidence she provided is me. He told me that he does not think that the person in the screenshot is me because he knows I’m not like that. She badly interpreted me which would not fool my friends or anyone who knows about me. If you know me that well, you would know that I am not a person who scams because of my own desires. You would also know that I do not frequently use emojis (I don’t like using the winky face emoji nor any emojis aside from the heart emoji.)

Now hear me out, a friend of mine helped me with this. The time she messaged “me” here doesn’t make sense. I left around 6:20 PM as stated by my friend and came back at 9:30 PM. But in the picture shown, it says that I messaged her around 8 PM. How would I do that if I left discord at 6:20 PM? The answer is simple, because the person in the screenshot is not me.

Now here’s her second evidence. The proof that in her audit log in her group “The Sister’s Convenant” that she “gave” me 2000 robux through that group.

https://imgur.com/a/8xk8Q

But the thing here is, I left the group a long time ago. I never came back because I didn’t like it. (I was forced to join her group.)

Now here’s my proof. (This isn’t edited, Alovia.)

https://gyazo.com/40be98ef73fdad4e7dd53c7e02217d3a

You can clearly see that only 2 groups gave me robux. This is because these groups commissioned me for art and paid me through their groups.

Now to make this fun, check the dates on her so-called evidences. It doesn’t add up, right? Why would she give “me” robux on 11/15 but I asked for it on 11/18! Oh no!

Sorry, Alovia. But this clearly proves that you are a liar and only accusing me of something I could never do. Also this only proves you using “inspect element” to edit the words. Now Alovia,SHOW THE TRUE UNEDITED AUDIT LOG! 

I’ll be waiting for it.

Now this is her most recent “evidence”. “My” discord tag.

I already gave out proof that I never talked to the person in the first place. And in the picture, it clearly says I blocked her. But why can I message her? Why can’t I see the messages she sent? It’s because it isnt me.

Here’s her “evidence” anyways.

https://imgur.com/a/9rwhH

Now let me show you show easy it is to fool people by editing that.

#1: https://gyazo.com/87f13055dea6f448932351ebc5458d44

#2: https://gyazo.com/48acb930d7fccceb74baea53f0c6c223

#3: https://gyazo.com/2f4200cb87c32462b78eef473a936d60

#4: https://gyazo.com/79fd558ab4dc423285cfecac21c8659d

#5: https://gyazo.com/88adbec5a9d8984a119629bbd8e48d25

I used paint so it’s not really believable, right? But at least I tried.

Anyways, I’ll update this post more as soon as she gives more of her fabricated evidences. 

Have fun trying, Alovia. You will never win. Go ahead, keep calling me a scammer. You’re only making yourself look bad. These fabricated evidences of yours will always find a way to be proven lies. Provide the real screenshots and the real discord tag of that said person. I’ll be waiting for it. Fufufufu~

(Also the bold tags, I got lazy putting bold tags on words lmao.)

--EDIT #1: Fixing my grammar. (Whoops that’s embarrasing.) --

--EDIT #2: Found the deleted messages. (I actually took a screenshot of it, sent it to my boyfriend and forgot about it, whoops xD) Since she still thinks my evidences are fake, I’ll ask my most trusted friend to open my account and provide screenshots. 

Sorry, Alovia but, Checkmate. It’s a game over for you.

Admit that you’re just a big fat liar who’s a lowlife. Stop sucking and riding dick and get educated you fucking thot. You need to learn a lesson.

--UPDATE : 11/21/17-- As of now, I won’t be responding to any of her claims and fake evidence anymore. This post has covered everything she accused me about. I don’t really wanna waste my time on a lowlife roblox thot who rides dick for money. Anyways, Alovia, just a message for you, stop being stubborn.

--END--

EDIT : 6/20/18 Found out she has been impersonating as me. Sad to know she doesnt have a life. I'm not gonna give you attention anymore so go back to sucking dicks you filthy disgusting obese rat. I hope you choke on dicks, tysm ♥

[rimalupin]

50 More Interesting Questions

Rules: fill this out and tag at least one person you’d like to know more about! Or just fill it out! Or don’t! Answer only some of them! Make up your own questions! “What kind of requirement is that”, you ask? A reasonable one! Who am I to tell you what to do? Anything goes!

Thank you for tagging me @theempresskaizer & @kakihoden! :D <3

1. What kind of food can’t you stand?: Anything fermented. Like, ew. Also brussel sprouts (Then again, I have yet find someone who can cook brussel sprouts “well.” :b)

2. If you could choose one minor inconvenience to never have to deal with again, what would you pick?: Public transit schedules. They’re so darn inconvenient (And yet I’m commuting for the remainder of my uni career. At least I’m saving money..?). -.-’

3. Have you got any useless talents?: I try to make use of my talents, so I’m gonna say no. :b

4. If you could be really really good at one thing, what would it be?: Taking (good & worthwhile) risks because I’m always so darn careful so I end up not trying new things sometimes.

5. Name a few people you think are extremely good-looking: ALL THE FRIENDS AND FAMILY I KNOW AND LOVE. <3 Oh, also Emma Watson, Gal Gadot, Shawn Mendes, Tom Holland, and all the other celebs I tend to fangirl about (I can’t name them all rn, haha sorry~. :P).

6. What was your favorite way to pass the time as a kid?: Singing all the Disney songs (Which I still do nowadays, haha~.). I would also read books, write my own stories, and act as if I was on a Disney Channel show (I was quite the Disney fangirl back in the day. xD)

7. What is something you’re proud of?: My friends who are just starting college/uni this year. Most of them are already setting up their dorms and getting ready for classes. They’re growing up so fast! :’)

8. What’s one character flaw in people that you just can’t tolerate?: Dishonesty. I don’t associate with phonies.

9. Do you consider yourself to be more of a leader or a follower?: I’m a bit of both. Then again, being a follower makes you a kind of leader: you essentially lead people to follow your leader, if that makes sense Okay I’ll shut up about leadership theory sorry y’all. :P

10. What kind of student are/were you?: The diligent one (but people often claim I’m the overachiever even tho I’m not always a straight A student lololol).

11. Butterfly effect question! Has there ever been a seemingly minor decision you’ve made (at the time) that ended up having a profound influence on your life?: Ohhhhh yes. This kind of thing has happened to me many times (In like the best ways possible, thankfully.).

12. Name your most irrational fear/aversion: Being alone/left out (Even though “I’m never really alone” ((Which I know I’m not. Hence the “irrational” part of this particular fear/aversion.)).)

13. Are there any fictional characters you find especially relatable?: Yup. Plenty of ‘em.

14. If you drink, what kind of drunk are you? Alternatively, what sort of person are you at parties?: I don’t drink... Yet. My Canadian friends are trying to get me to drink with them since I’m now legal in Canada but I’m scared heeeeeelp. :b I’m usually the wallflower if I don’t know anybody too well at a party. However, if I find people I’m comfortable hanging out with, I’ll stick with their squad throughout the event, talking, eating, dancing and taking pictures/SnapChats to our hearts’ desires~. ^-^

15. Do you fall in love easily? Or does it usually take a long time for you to trust someone?: Nope. I have to get to know the person before I “fall in love” with them, let alone having a crush on them. Which is why the biggest crushes I’ve had were on some of my closest friends. But I’ve never told them because I didn’t want to risk our friendships IDK I’M A NOOB WHEN IT COMES TO LOVEY-DOVEY THINGS. :b

16. Would you rather have one close friend or 100 casual friends?: One close friend. <3

17. Do you consider yourself to be more of a slob or a neat-freak?: Neat-freak. Definitely a neat-freak. xD

18. Describe a place (imaginary or real) that you would find incredibly cozy: 

Both of these locations are places where I’d have more than enough room to move or think. ^-^

Outdoors: Somewhere near the sea, where I could feel the sand on my toes, hear the waves splashing onto the shore, smell the ocean breeze, and watch the orange sunset glowing along the horizon.

Indoors: An empty practice room. Wooden floors, large mirrors in front of the room, dance barres along the side walls, a few windows displaying the outside world, and a speaker/stereo system perfect for blasting the music around the room.

19. Do you have kids? If not, do you want them someday?: No kids atm, but I love working with them! Yes, I’d like kids someday~.

20. What was your favorite book as a child?: I read many books as a wee child. But one book I can clearly remember is Stellaluna. It’s an adorable story about a bat who discovers who she truly is thanks to both her adoptive and biological families (The former being a family of birds and the latter being a family of bats.).

21. Name one thing you just don’t get what all the hype is about: Fidget spinners. I’m still seeing people freak out about those things. Didn’t the trend die a month or two ago?

22. Name one thing that you think is tragically underrated: Myspace. *evil laughs despite the fact that I never had a Myspace account* :P Sorry I couldn’t think of anything else bahaha~

23. If you had to be glued to a person for a month, real or fictional (who you have never met), who would you choose?: I mean, I’ve never met MYSME’s 707 IRL, so I’ll stick with him And we can visit his space station, haha~ ^-^

24. What’s something you’d like the chance to do someday?: Act in a theatrical production. I haven’t done theatre in a year and I already miss it. T.T

25. Do you typically speak your mind when you have a controversial opinion? Or do generally prefer to not rock the boat?: I’ll definitely speak my mind if I’m well-versed in the topic and if I’m passionate about it. If I want to present a controversial opinion, I have to be sure that I can articulate my POV eloquently and professionally. I’m also more than willing to listen to the other side, as long as they fully know what they’re talking about (Frankly, I will not take any B.S. if I suspect B.S.).

26. What’s the dumbest fad you’ve been caught up in?: I’m blanking... Yeah, IDK, but I’m pretty sure I got caught up in some kind of dumb fad back in middle school. *shivers b/c I don’t want to relive those years*

27. What’s something you thought was cool as a kid/adolescent, but now cringe at yourself for?: When I was younger (like elementary/middle school-age), I dreamed of becoming a singer. In order to accomplish that dream, I joined my school and church choirs: however, that turned out to be a pretty toxic experience since almost everyone I was singing with treated every single practice and performance as a singing competition. Like, c’mon you guys: we aren’t on Glee. -.-’

28. What’s a trait you consider to be very admirable?: Honesty: I admire people who are genuine and true.

29. Is there a particular kind of item people always tend to give you as gifts? (For instance, people always get you things with ducks on them because you like ducks, etc.): Books (people know I’m a huge bookworm), clothes (b/c I’m usually too lazy/don’t have time to shop for my own clothes, LOLOL), stuffed animals (I’m a child at heart and I love cuddly & cute things), sweets (especially chocolate).

30. Do you speak multiple languages? Which ones?: 

English is my mother tongue.

I apparently used to speak Tagalog fluently when I was very young, but then I stopped speaking that language once I started preschool; however, I’ve picked up some terms over the years, so I can sort of dissect my parents’ conversations w/ the other adults (”Yes, Mom, I knew that you were talking about my uni stuff with Tita *insert name here*.” :P), plus I’m going to take a Tagalog 101 class in Autumn Quarter, so I’ll (hopefully) learn how to say complete sentences instead of just the names of foods, holidays, and Filipino Folk Dances. xD

I learned Spanish throughout my high school career, so I’m okay in that department even though I haven’t practiced speaking/listening/writing in that language recently. I’m still fluent enough to help my sisters with their Spanish homework, so that’s something. :P

I tried learning some French, Japanese, and Korean through various language learning apps, but to no avail.  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

31. Would you rather live in the big city or the countryside?: Can I choose like a little town instead? Big city: the countryside would be MUCH too quiet for me (Plus I’d be much too tempted to run atop every hill Sound of Music style and start singing at the top of my lungs - which would probably annoy a lot of people, myself included. :P).

32. Has there ever been something you were certain you’d hate, but ended up loving?: Giles Christophe a.k.a my Midnight Cinderella bias. Ironic, huh? xD <3 Also Jumin Han from MYSME. :P

33. Do you mind being the center of attention, or do you prefer the spotlight to be on someone else?: I will hide from the spotlight like I’m a friggin vampire unless there’s a damn good reason for me to be under it.

34. Favorite holiday?: CHRISTMAS!!!

35. Are you a more go-with-the-flow type of person, or do you need to have things planned meticulously?: If I’m in charge of scheduling something, then I MUST have everything carefully planned. If I’m leaving the scheduling to someone else, then I’ll just go with the flow~.

36. Is there something you loved so much you wish you could forget it and experience it all over again? (A tv show, book, series–anything.): My first trip to Hawaii: I’d love to explore the islands and swim in its oceans again.

37. What hobbies do you have?: Reading, writing, singing, dancing, listening to music, playing the guitar or ukulele, checking social media (JKJK :P), drawing/arts & crafts (If I’m EXTREMELY bored), playing video games, watching TV/YouTube, exploring places both old and new Yeah, I do too many things, haha~

38. If you could have a superpower, but it was only mildly useful, what ability would you want to have?: “Mildly useful?” (O.o) I guess the ability to learn things VERY quickly - like, master an activity on the first try. I actually have a friend with that ability, which has allowed him to almost effortlessly master almost every sport he’s ever learned: he’s basically a superhuman and I admire and envy him for his “superpower.” :P <3

39. Something people are always surprised to learn about you: My age: people think that I’m much younger than I actually am, mostly because of my shorter-than-average height and my baby face. I’m basically an adult stuck in a teenager’s body. xD

40. Something that took you way too long to figure out: How to apply the Unit Circle to various math problems eff you precalculus and calculus never again ugggghhhhh.

41. Worst injury you’ve had?: My broken heart (JKJK, sort of. :P) I got burned by the metal tip of a very hot glue gun. Thanks to that, I have a tiny scar on my upper right arm.

42. Any morbid fascinations?: Does watching playthroughs of horror games through YouTube count?

43. Describe your sense of humor: Clever/witty, sarcastic, sassy. Oftentimes unintentional: jokes will usually come to me naturally through conversation. If we’re close, plenty of embarrassing stories, inside jokes, and horrible puns will be part of our daily doses of humor.

44. If you had to be born in another era/place, which would you choose?: I’d want to be born in Canada, mostly because I’ve got a lot of family living up there, plus I’d love to live in a place that isn’t completely messed up rn. #SorryNotSorryAmerica *crosses to the Canadian border like a badass*

45. Something you are irredeemably bad at: LOL, WHAT’S A SPORT? :b

46. Something that sucked but you’re glad you went through: Freshman year of high school. I first moved to my new home that year, so being the new kid sucked for a while, but I eventually made some friends and found more opportunities to grow as a person (through writing and theatre).

47. Would you rather have a really godawful ugly tattoo in a place that is only slightly inconvenient to conceal with clothing (upper arm, thigh, etc.), or the coolest, most beautiful tattoo ever in the middle of your face? (Neither tattoo can be removed or concealed with makeup, and the ugly tattoo will deeply offend anyone who sees it.): Ugly tat. At least I’d have a place to hide it. xD

48. Are you more of an optimist or a pessimist?: Realist. Leaning on the pessimist side. However, I do try to believe that things will get better, that there’ll be more bigger and better opportunities out there, etc. etc.

49. What would be the most flattering compliment someone could give you?: That I’m a hardworking and genuine person. Then again, I don’t do well compliments anyway: I’ll definitely blush and stutter and try to hide behind some kind of an object while complimenting you back. xD <3

50. Something you feel people often misunderstand about you: I’m often quiet and reserved when I’m meeting new people. Some may think I’m naturally calm and composed, others take it as slightly intimidating. But I’m just quiet because I’m awkward, plus I don’t usually start conversations. :b

Tagging: @princessofwysteria, @sukio-sakamaki, @allforthecrown, @o0w0o, @widzzicles, @rizosrojizos, and anyone who wants to do this! (I would’ve tagged more peeps, but I didn’t know if they had been tagged already. So please join in if you haven’t done this already~.). ^-^ <3

[lady-divine-writes]

Klaine fic - “Underneath the Magic” (Rated PG13)

Kurt, a tree demon, runs a magical, supernatural circus that, unfortunately, is in the red. Trying to come up with a way to keep them afloat, his right hand man ... uh, goblin ... convinces Kurt to hire some new acts. Kurt reluctantly agrees, as long as that new act isn't human.

Enter Blaine - the human conman who's about to try and change Kurt's mind. (10511 words)

So, this started life in a number of different ways. I wanted to write some stuff for @sunshineoptimismandangels, for her birthday, and at the time, I had started writing this as an original piece, inspired by @vampireisabitstrong's "Graveyard Book au" which I was also writing at the time. But after a while, I had to come to grips with the fact that I was writing Glee characters. The character of Puck, in particular, was inspired in part by sunshine's character of Felix from her amazing story Heartstone (whom she's reluctant to admit is a goblin, but I know better xD) Also, Kurt is a Spriggan, but I added hints of Kapre as a nod to Darren's Filipino heritage. I hope you all enjoy. Please let me know. And no, if you're curious, I wasn't smoking anything when I wrote this xD

For @sunshineoptimismandangels . I know I’m writing a ton of stuff for you but look! Something shiny!! <3

Read on AO3.

On the farthest outskirts of town.

Past the dead end streets and the no trespassing signs.

In a place with no light, artificial or otherwise. Where the full moon fails to penetrate.

In the center of a deep, dark forest.

In a clearing where no grass grows, no animals graze, no water flows.

Where the still air settles dry and musty, like the breath of death, and even the spirits of the wicked dare not tread.

The perfect place for a satanic ritual, to cast a spell …

… or perform a sacrifice.

Or hold a circus.

But not just any circus. Here there be no clowns, no acrobats, no elephants, no loud emcee dressed in a sparkly red coat and tall top hat.

Spriggan and Company’s Supernatural Circus - where the freaks control the show and the straights wind up in cages.

It is a commonly accepted belief in the earthen realm that the modern circus originated in the late 18th century, but Spriggan’s circus (and this particular Spriggan preferred to be called “Kurt”, derived from the Old High German Kuonrat and meaning wise counsel) has been around for far longer. For those few who know of Kurt and his past, it is rumored that he and his circus have performed for every type of creature that has ever walked the planet Earth – human, vampire, werewolf, cryptid, in every station imaginable from Neanderthal to Czar.

But that doesn’t necessarily mean that his circus is easy to come by.

One can find it only if they truly believe, if they possess a heart of darkness (of their own or in a box - either way works as long as it doesn’t leak), or if they can stare into the abyss and fear not what they may see. But if none of that applies to you personally, there are gigantic possessed road signs set up every few miles to help guide you on your journey. They flash in a dazzling array of colors, sing opera, and even dance the polka. They might scream at you if you ignore them for too long before you reach the turnpike, helpfully directing you back to the exit you accidentally missed because every person, demon, beast, warlock, and road sign in those parts knows that if you have gone this way, Kurt’s circus is the only place you intend on ending up.

Come one, come all! Don’t delay! Come now! the signs cry, luring pedestrians and motorists alike to behold the most spectacular feats of magic and wonderment ever known to man or Gorgon. (The older signs scream obscenities in cryptic forgotten languages, but you have to forgive them. After several centuries, there’s no changing their ways.)

And like all respectable circuses, this one takes place beneath a “Big Top”. The tent they use, however, is actually a bigger than big top, made of thick, heavy canvas woven by the gnarled hands of Stygian witches, with long, vertical stripes running from peak to the hem. The stripes are pink and white if you’re a Virgo, black and purple if you’re a Scorpio, green and gold if you’re a Taurus, and just plain red if you’re an Aries. If you happen to be a Capricorn, it’s something else entirely, like an antique greenhouse with fogged glass panes or an old abandoned inn whose lavish furnishings have faded with age.

Aquarians, however, don’t come here. It’s nothing personal (cough-cough). It just kind of is.

But regardless of its dreary and gothic portend, none of it is meant to hurt, frighten, or offend. It is all the work of a master trickster who has spent the long millennia offering unique entertainment open and accessible to beings of all ages, races, genders, sexual orientations, religions, political affiliations, etc. (except for Aquarians - refer back to the above), and promises to be vegan friendly, as well as gluten- and cruelty-free.

Behind the main tent, cloaked to mortal eyes, lies the encampment where the performers live during their time in the human realm, each tent enchanted to match the personality of its inhabitant – moss covered tombs for the vampires, veiled by an eternal darkness; bogs for the swamp monsters, shrouded with twisted, overgrown vines, their tepid waters slick with a layer of putrid algae; a stable for the unicorns, where inside an illusion of the forests of their world stretches, blue shimmering skies and silver lined clouds above, rolling green hills and fragrant wild flowers below, and filled with rabbits, eagles, deer, and all of the other animals they have sworn to protect (which unfortunately escape every so often and run amok, as evidenced by the Australian rabbit pandemic of the past 150 years).

Beyond those tents grows a thicket of trees not native to these woods – stunning mangoes, thorny acacias, dense bamboo, and brooding banyans. Travel through their maze and you might stumble across the ruins of an old plantation house, it’s once proud, whitewashed walls slowly being reclaimed by Mother Earth, devoured by the softly swelling ground beneath it. Follow the branches that break through its foundation, compelled to grow by the power within, and you will find him. Here, apart from the others, dwells the founder of this folly, the creator of this circus, the manager of this mélange.

In short, the guy in charge.

In the midst of this ruin, hidden by scores of overhanging branches, Kurt sits, red eyes glowing in the descending mists of twilight, fingers drumming his knees, deeply troubled as he counts and re-counts his take. A rap on the door doesn’t distract nor disturb him. He knew what was coming. He smelled him on the evening breeze, sensed his arrival in his bones. He felt his footsteps disturb the ground, and the trees surrounding him warned of his approach. In his heart, though he hopes for good news, Kurt already knows this intruder doesn’t bode well.

The door swings open, hinges creaking like the tortured gasps of a hanging man, and the foul thing walks in – long, hooked nose preceding him by about half a foot; hunched over as if pressed down upon by an invisible burden; favoring one leg while the other hits the boards beneath him with a resounding clunk, his slow march tapping out the foreboding cadence of a funeral dirge. His skin glows slightly in this absence of light, lending an eerie cast of unnatural grey to the room. Cracked, thin lips outline a mouth of yellowing, rectangular teeth, gapped in the center while the rest hang askew like dominoes forever falling. The creature smiles. It splits his face almost entirely in two. He’s dressed in the humblest of clothes – a shirt made of burlap that continuously irritates his skin, which sloughs from his shoulders and back in sheets and leaves a ghastly trail behind; and pants fashioned by the very same witches whose arthritic fingers stitched together the tents. His pants in particular are two sizes too loose at the waist, tied around his torso with a piece of rough twine; and three sizes too long at the legs so that the bulk of their length drags behind him, his feet sticking out of two ragged holes where everyday use has worn them through.

“My Lord,” the detestable creature rasps, hobbling toward the tree demon, who towers the approaching goblin even while reclining, “I bring to you the book of holding, ripe for your approval. Snoooort!” He sucks in through his nose what sounds like a century’s worth of phlegm, then bows his head in reverence as he offers Kurt the book.

Kurt stares at the ancient, leathery object, held aloft by an even more ancient, leathery creature. He sits up in his chair created by the twining tree roots of two mighty banyans, straightens to an even loftier height, and with a disapproval wrought by hundreds of years of monotony, rolls his flaming red eyes, and says, “Can’t you just call it a ledger, Puck? For crying out loud! You do this every … single … night!”

The goblin huffs and stands upright. He glares indignantly at his friend and Master, but to Kurt, it looks more like he’s pouting. “Where’s your flair for the dramatic, old man? Or your sense of humor?”

“It’s gone on vacation with the petty cash.” Kurt sighs, rubbing his pinched brow with woody fingers. “It’ll return when we clear a profit. So, how did we do?” Kurt extends sharp nails to take the smallish ledger from his goblin companion. “My cash box here’s a little light.”

“Not as good as you had hoped, I’m afraid.”

Kurt flips through the pages carefully to keep from slicing them to bits, mulling over the less-than-impressive numbers. “Hmm. How many performances do we have left in this realm?”

“Only three,” the goblin says regretfully. “Then we move on.”

“Ugh!” Kurt slams the book shut in his hand, squeezing so hard he nearly drives his fingers straight through it. “If we could only sneak five more in before the next full moon!”

“I don’t see how that’s possible. Not with the portal to our next destination opening soon. And it’s a good thing, too. The glamour shielding the meadow is already starting to peel … and it’s gettin’ kinda gross,” Puck remarks, recalling the trail of mushy magic he’d had to sidestep just to get to Kurt’s sanctuary. He’s pretty certain that, despite his best efforts, he still managed to drag the hems of his pants through it. There’s a stain that’s impossible to get out, and it’ll smell like raw eggs and rotting swordfish given enough time. He grimaces just thinking about it.

Kurt grimaces, too. Not at Puck’s mention of “peeling glamour”, but at the avalanche of skin flakes that tumble from the goblin’s body when he shivers. Kurt would never outright tell his friend this, but he’d much prefer stepping in a pool of mushy, decaying magic than another pile of desiccated goblin skin.

But back to the real issue …

They’d discussed this before. There’s no use repeating and rehashing it, and yet, every time they start this discussion, they both hope for a better outcome.

The definition of insanity, Einstein would say, which is exactly why Kurt doesn’t speak to him anymore, the insufferable old fool.

“I don’t see how, either,” Kurt admits. “I’d like to leave this plane without any red marks in our ledger, but it seems to be nothing but red lately.” Kurt peeks through the pages of the book one last time, looking for something that will prove him wrong, a page full of pluses instead of minuses that he had read incorrectly. When he doesn’t come across one, he raises a hopeful eyebrow at his shifty friend. “No chance you were balancing the books while eating your lunch again, and that’s blood on these pages in place of ink?”

“I wish,” Puck snorts. “But no. I’m using a ballpoint pen nowadays. You know that.”

“Yeah, I know that,” Kurt grumbles.

“We have to face facts. The crowds have been thinner lately,” Puck points out as if Kurt didn’t already know – as if the whole company, stressed out over incidentals day after day, hasn’t realized it. “Believe it or don’t, many humans are choosing to go see Cirque du Soleil over our vastly more phenomenal circus. Human acrobats are a bigger draw than supernatural ones, ironically.”

Kurt stands and paces the room. He’d noticed that also, how those human equivalents of tree frogs outperform his circus almost ten to one. Meanwhile, they have a pair of Siamese twins who can switch heads, but meh. That’s old hat compared to a woman who can spin inside a metal ring.

“There’s also the matter of us being stuck in this dreary ass meadow in the middle of nowhere,” Puck continues. “You might consider springing for a few weeks at the convention center - center of town, free advertising, lots of parking and bus access, a handicap ramp …” Kurt nods as Puck counts off the pros on his fingers, giving this option more thought than he had in decades. Kurt can be stubborn, set in his ways. He’s very much an “if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it” kind of demon. His decision to set up camp in meadows like this one wasn’t simply a matter of personal preference, or even safety for his performers. They could always camp in a remote location and teleport to their performance venue – that wasn’t the issue. It was about ambiance, the air of authenticity that holding their circus out in a spooky forest lent to their shtick. Kurt thought that that was one of the things that set them apart from other circuses. It made them special.

But apparently the definition of special had changed over the past three hundred years.

“Also … uh … you could start letting Aquarians in again,” Puck adds under his breath. “I hear they make up a good portion of the population.”

“You know how I feel about that, Puck,” Kurt grumps. “Inconsiderate little dung beetles, the lot of them.”

“Their money spends just like everyone else’s!”

“No Aquarians! That’s not negotiable!” Kurt declares, dropping a period on the end of the discussion.

“Anyway …” Puck sighs. Demons and their egos. There was no way around them. They were the experts at holding a grudge. And once they found one, they latched onto it tight and never let go. Puck knows he’s not going to win. He might as well let that one lie. Besides, he has other suggestions, ones that Kurt might object to more than the inclusion of Aquarians.

“You could always start smoking your magical pipe again. The one that attracts the humans’ attention? You can lure them here that way.”

Kurt curls his lip and pulls a face, one that would be more effective if, at the moment, he weren’t a giant tree. “You know the stigma that surrounds smoking in this century. These mortals are headstrong, more so than their 12th century ancestors, especially when it comes to their health. This mindset of “drugs evil, weed bad” kind of counteracts the effect of the smoke. And not just smoking either. Alcohol, gambling, it’s apparently all a no-no to them. These 21st century humans,” Kurt huffs, as if the mention of them put a bad taste in his mouth. “All they want to do is sip wheat grass, do yoga, and have heated arguments with strangers about something called smashing the patriarchy.” He digs the toe of his trunk-like foot into the dirt, mourning the end of an era. “They don’t know how to have fun anymore.”

Kurt actually used to enjoy coming to Earth a decade or so ago. It was one of the few places where he could indulge in a good, old-fashioned, PG13-rated vice without accidentally declaring war on an indigenous culture.

Not anymore.

“Well, you could at least try it with the pipe for our last three shows, couldn’t you?” Puck suggests, exasperation draining his crooked body. “Or maybe just closing night.”

Kurt shifts from foot to foot, negotiating with himself. He tries his best not to interfere with the humans anymore, not the way the Spriggan used to, which included putting them “under the influence”, causing them to do things against their will. Though, to be fair, refraining from using his pipe goes against his nature, bred from a morality that he’s acquired, not one he’s been taught.

Among Spriggan, Kurt’s the exception, not the rule.

It’s more of a guideline. He doesn’t have to break it. He could just bend it a little, for the holiday crowd, who will more than likely be drinking their heads off anyway. If he lures them to his circus, they’ll all be in one place, bound by protection spells. They won’t be driving while intoxicated. They’ll be safe. Kurt would be doing a public service.

And there he had it! Loopholes! They were amazing things!

“I guess I could do that,” he decides, feeling good about this decision. “I’ll break out the old pipe, smoke some green, and we’ll have a packed house once again.”

“Yeah,” Puck says, a bit uneasy with the direction he was about to take their conversation. Maybe he shouldn’t mention it. He should just let it drop. Kurt finally looked relaxed after the long, hard weeks of constant worry. The problem was that Kurt’s pipe only worked on humans. They were having similar difficulties gathering crowds in other realms they went to, and for a number of reasons. They didn’t just need Band-Aid solutions.

Something else needed to change.

Puck shifts his gaze to the ground, scratches his abnormally large ears with his abnormally longer fingers. “And … maybe … we might consider … um … hiring some new acts?”

Kurt turns on Puck so quickly, the goblin hears the demon’s torso crack, splintered bark breaking from his body and dropping to the earth.

“Puck!” Kurt roars. “We’ve discussed this! There’s nothing wrong with the acts! Bringing new ones on board isn’t the answer!”

“Kurt! We can’t keep slogging along with the old acts if they’re not bringing anybody in! I know you’ve gotten used to our little troupe the way it is. So have I! You know I have trust issues! It took about seven centuries before I could relate to any of them! What does a Pukwudgie have in common with a half-angel, half-dragonfly nomad princess? I’ll tell you what, Kurt! A big fat nothing, that’s what!”

“And yet you still managed to get her pregnant,” Kurt grumbles bitterly recalling the talented, silvery-voiced, platinum-haired enchantress they’d had to send back to her home realm because Puck couldn’t keep his fetid dick in his drooping trousers. Though, on the other hand, Princess Quinn slept with him, so Kurt had to question her life choices.

“But you have to think of the good of the show! You’re working our old acts to death! All of those performers out there that bust their butts every night? You owe them, Kurt! They don’t have to stick it out with us for another millennia. They could transport back to their own dimensions, every last one of them, and then where would we be?”

“I know, I know, you’re right,” Kurt agrees, knocking on his wooden head with wooden fists.

This was another argument they’d been having for longer than Puck could remember. The difference was that on this subject, they strenuously disagreed, to the point of a deadlock, and Kurt didn’t foresee things changing in this instance. Puck argued that they wouldn’t be getting rid of any of their old acts, so there was no reason to be so pigheaded about finding new blood. Kurt countered that their group worked best with the acts already in it. Getting more would be adding unnecessary stress and strain on their already thinly-stretched resources. As far as Kurt was concerned, his circus ran like a well-oiled machine. Adding new acts meant advertising, interviews, auditions, negotiations - things that Kurt couldn’t stand but which would fall on him since he was the owner and all.

On the other hand, it might be nice gong out of his way to meet new beings, for pleasure as well as for work. Bouncing back and forth for centuries has been the death of Kurt’s social life. He’s not looking to settle down or get married. He never wanted to have spawn. He doesn’t even want to date really. He just wants someone nice to go to dinner with every once in a while, tell Dark Age jokes to, share an offering with once in a while.

Not a human. Kurt has been very careful not to become attached to humans. Spriggan as a species can develop a sentimental skin where it comes to humans. If they find one that they consider an equitable match, either as a friend or more, Spriggan will follow that human for the rest of their days.

Ha! Kurt thinks. No, thank you.

But as for everything else, was that too much to ask?

He’s spent his entire existence making others happy – humans, deities, sirens, and banshees galore. Doesn’t he deserve a little happiness, too?

“Okay,” Kurt says, a crumb of reluctance clinging stubbornly to his acquiescence. “We’ll find some new blood. One act, but that’s all.”

It’d better be one hell of an act, he thinks. Kurt hadn’t come across anything in all the infinite realms of the universe that tickled his fancy, nothing that even came close to fitting the bill.

Who was he going to find that would make any sort of a difference in their lives?

“Great!” a cheerful, new voice intervenes. “That’s excellent news! I’d hoped you were hiring.”

Both demon and goblin fall gravely silent.

Kurt looks at Puck.

Puck looks at Kurt.

They turn a full circle, unable to see, at first, the man dressed in head to toe black, standing in the center of their meeting room. But when Kurt sets his red eyes on him, his surprise, which makes his eyes glow like hot coals, pins the man to his spot.

“What the …?” Kurt growls. “Who are you!? How did you get in here!?”

“It wasn’t easy, I’ll tell you that! I had to sneak past your guard at the front door,” the man admits proudly, as if he thinks thwarting their security would win him points.

Of course, considering the fact that their guard is a giant, two-headed, man-eating, spectral spider, it might …

Kurt appraises the man with an unimpressed demeanor. He knows enough about human aesthetic preferences to know that this man – with his tan, unblemished skin; his clean-shaven face; dark hair slicked back; and golden hazel eyes – is handsome by their standards. By demon standards, he would be considered more appetizing than most, and that’s a compliment. And yet, if Kurt had to choose between devouring this human and his usual offering of mangoes and papayas, he’d pick the fruit.

It’s at that moment that Kurt remembers he hasn’t had a decent offering in weeks.

Great. Now his stomach’s growling.

Kurt takes a subconscious breath in and catches a whiff of the man’s cologne – an appetizing blend of cinnamon, cardamom, black pepper, and hibiscus. Those happen to be four of Kurt’s favorite scents in the universe. They remind him of his childhood, of family and friends he knew growing up that have come and gone.

They remind him of his home, a place he hasn’t been to in forever no matter how many times he visits Earth. He can’t. It holds too many memories, and has too much narrow-minded prejudice to make setting up their circus there worth their time.

Damn. Now his stomach’s not only growling, it’s churning like a church fire.

When Kurt snuffs that fire out and shoves the ashes of that nostalgic b.s. aside, he smells power - low levels of it, not nearly enough that it should interest him.

But for some reason, it does interest him.

“Maybe.” Kurt puts his hands on his hips. “And you are …?”

“The name’s Kevin,” the man says, thrusting out an arm, hand open, ready to shake. “Kevin Fitzpatrick at your service, kind sir.”

Kurt looks at the hand presented to him, a blank expression on his face. Kurt doesn’t shake hands. He doesn’t touch other beings if he can help it. He has a thing about germs, especially human ones. It’s not a speciesism issue. It’s a preservation issue. Humans are notorious for their tendency towards self-destruction. Everything that they need to live a long and healthy life, they destroy – their air, their water, their animals, their planet, themselves.

Kurt tilts his head and quirks a brow. “That’s not your real name,” he says, ignoring the man’s hand altogether. For the moment, he’s guessing. It’s part of his mantra. He tries not to invade human minds when he doesn’t have to. They tend to be chaotic, cluttered, unnecessarily confusing, even among the exceptional ones. Humans as a whole don’t know how to think straight. They can’t seem to set their minds on one road and follow it, finish a single task before launching into the next. From all outward appearances – this man’s skin, hair, and eye color, his bushy eyebrows, his stature, average for adult males – he doesn’t seem like he should own such a name. But it’s the way his eyes dart left and right, imperceptible to humans but obvious to a demon, that truly gives him away.

The man’s smile loses some of its strength but none of its luster. He drops his hand to his side, feeling foolish for keeping it extended after several long seconds of Kurt refusing to shake it.

“No, it isn’t,” he admits, sounding like he genuinely wishes it were. “But I thought a traditional Irish name might go over better with you traveling folk.”

Kurt and Puck exchange a pointed look.

“That’s racist,” Kurt says.

“Says the demon. One who looks like a giant tree, I might add.” The man gestures down Kurt’s body with inexplicable confusion.

“Still racist,” Kurt insists.

“By the way, how do you do that?” the man asks. It’s not an offhanded question, which makes it a difficult one for Kurt to comprehend. This man is standing in the middle of a circus made up entirely of supernatural creatures and beings from other worlds. Why should what Kurt looks like be a concern to him?

And yet, it’s significant because it has always been a concern to Kurt. Spriggan traditionally are stocky, big-headed, and short – the ghosts of giants, but really only a shadow. Kurt, on the other hand, is lithe, fair, and tall (by comparison) – traits that set him apart from other Spriggan by a mile.

He’s his father’s son, but in looks, he belongs solely to his mother.

“How do I do what?” Kurt asks.

“Look like a tree. I thought Spriggan were supposed to look similar to men. Or like … woody Big Foot.”

“He compared you to a Sasquatch,” Puck sniggers. “What a noob.”

But Kurt lets the insult go.

He debates how much he wants to tell this human. Why Kurt looks the way he does isn’t exactly a secret, but it would still be sharing something that’s part of him, and to a human.

“I’m only half Spriggan,” he confesses, figuring there’s no real harm in letting that tidbit out. The man would probably learn it eventually. There isn’t a single monster in Kurt’s employ that can keep their mouth shut. “I’m High Faye on my mother’s side.”

“You don’t say?”

“A-ha. That’s where I get my magical abilities, my shapeshifting powers … and my short temper.”

The man smiles, pleased with this new information. “Coolness.”

“How do you know what Spriggan look like anyway?”

“I read,” the man says. “I use Google. Which leads me to my next question …”

“If you’re the one applying for a job, how come you’re asking all the questions?”

The man shrugs. “You don’t learn anything by not asking questions. Besides, you don’t have to answer.”

“Fair enough.”

“Why the disguise? I mean, why turn yourself into a tree?”

“Because without it, I’m invisible to the humans,” Kurt says. “And if humans can’t see me, that’s kind of bad for business. Besides, it’s part of the draw. We live in a time where the only way people would believe in a living, breathing tree demon is if they saw something that looked like … well this.” Kurt copies the man’s gesture, sweeping a hand down his body.

The man’s smile dips. “That sucks.”

“Yeah. It does.”

“And there aren’t any other Spriggan in your circus?”

“Nope,” Kurt says. “I’m the only one. To be honest, I haven’t seen one in ages.”

“Must be lonely,” the man decides.

It is, Kurt thinks. It’s not some huge revelation, just an acknowledgment of fact. But what he says is, “Meh. I’m never really alone, so, not so much.”

“Yeah, but there’s a difference between being lonely and being alone.”

That comment silences Kurt. He agrees entirely, even though he’d never thought of it that way. He often felt lonely, even in the center of a crowd. He thought he was weird that way.

He never thought anyone else felt the same.

“Hey! I've seen you!” Puck jumps back into the conversation, pointing at the man with a twisted, accusing finger. “You hang around the crowds. You loiter on our property and swindle for spare change outside our tents!”

“I like to think of it as co-op’ing.”

“And I think of it as dipping in to our profits!” the goblin hisses.

Kurt scowls. He didn’t know this about this man. How come he didn’t know? As a demon who tricks travelers, and who has been known to indulge in a game of poker now and again, Kurt can appreciate a good hustle … but not when it lightens his pockets! And just when he was beginning to not despise this guy.

Thank goodness for Puck. Admiring a human in any small measurement isn’t the kind of complication Kurt needs right now.

The goblin bares his teeth, Kurt grows another foot taller, and suddenly the man feels outnumbered.

“Okay, okay, I see your point,” he says, putting his hands up in defense of his life. He’s not sure how that would help him, exactly, but it’s worth a shot. “B-but, now I'm looking to give back. To help you guys out.”

“Looking to escape, more like it.” Kurt tuts. “Who did you piss off here, human? Hmmm? A local gang? Loan sharks? The police? I know your type. Do you have mafia after you? Because I don’t need that kind of trouble hanging around my circus. I’m not looking to defend anyone.”

“No! I’m not---wait …” The man stops when an absurd thought pops into his brain. “Aren’t Spriggan bodyguards? Fairy bodyguards? I mean, I assume that’s how your dad met your mom, isn’t it?”

“Assume nothing!” Kurt says, appalled at the man’s gall. “You’re not a fairy, and I’m not my father! Plus, that’s beside the point. I like to choose who I call enemy, thank you. I don’t need people I’ve never met mounting a vendetta against me. I don’t want that kind of heat on my tail. The mob has some pretty powerful demons working on their side ... and lawyers.”

The man looks at Kurt and Puck, wide-eyed. Something like a smile tickles the corners of his mouth, something he’s trying hard to suppress. He doesn’t end up smiling, but he does chuckle. “So, lawyers are worse than demons?”

“Yes!” Kurt and Puck answer together.

“Everybody knows that!” Puck says, aghast at the human’s ignorance. “How you can live among them and not know of their treachery is beyond me.”

The man continues to laugh, and Kurt shakes his head.

“This back and forth with you is exhausting me, human. I feel like there’s something you’re not telling us. You’re beating around the bush. Speak plainly!”

“But beating around the bush is something I happen to do exceptionally well,” the man says with a wink. Kurt detects the innuendo and rolls his eyes.

“It’s time to find out who you really are … and what you want.” Kurt strikes quickly, reaching for the man and wrapping slender fingers around his throat. Kurt squeezes slowly, till his twig-like appendages settle into the soft, delicate flesh around the man’s windpipe.

“Uh … wh-what … what are you doing?” the man squeaks, keeping his words to a minimum when it becomes harder for him to breath.

“I’m reading your mind, Kevin,” Kurt says, closing his red eyes.

“D-do you … have to … hold my neck … quite so tightly while you read my mind?” He grabs a hold of Kurt’s arm, but it might as well be made of stone, so rough and so thick, there’s no way to remove it.

“It keeps me calm,” Kurt says, grinding the words out one by one through locked lips. “Be grateful I’m not peeling the skin from you bones.”

“Oh,” the man says. Kurt feels him gulp nervously beneath his palm. “I see. Yes. Thank you for not doing … that.”

“Shh. I need to concentrate.” Kurt takes a deep, cleansing breath, and enters the man’s mind. It’s easier than Kurt remembers, but then again, the man’s not resisting. And that’s a good sign. People often resist when they’re trying to pull something over on you. Kurt sifts through the man’s thoughts to find his more recent memories – name, occupation, address, the basics - trying his best to ignore the ones that go out of their way to reach out to him, the sympathetic ones that long to be revisited, like memories of this man as a child, on vacation with his parents, throwing a ball to his brother, learning how to ride a bike with two wheels, learning how to cook with his great-aunt Teresa, playing video games with a friend that he seemed to hold dear, a friend that Kurt sees no more of after the man reaches thirteen. He stumbles across memories of a terrible fire, of their house burning down … of him burying his mother and his father … of his brother running away and never contacting him again … “Uh … y-your name is Blaine, but your parents called you Coqui?” Kurt asks. He releases his grip, his mighty wooden arm - a thick, unyielding branch - trembling as it returns to his side.

“That’s right,” the man says. His eyes leave Kurt’s face and follows his arm for a second before the conversation continues.

“It doesn’t bother you that you’re nicknamed after the sound a frog makes when it wants to have sex?” Kurt crosses his arms, hiding his trembling in the wrap of his limb around his body, and using that remark to will away the image of this man as a teenager, crying on his knees over a freshly covered grave, negotiating with whatever God he believes in for his parents to return.

“Why in the world would that bother me?” Blaine chuckles. “If you knew me better, that would actually explain a lot.”

“Do I want to know you better?” It seems like a ridiculous question seeing how much Kurt already knows about him. Stupid, unpredictable mindreading. He never could get it quite right. Of course, the fact of the matter is that Kurt, being even half High Faye, wasn’t a thing like his mother in anything other than looks.

Which is why his father raised him.

“You’re the mind reader. You tell me.”

“And you’re the human, so if you want me to let you join our group, you’re going to have to make a more compelling case for me hiring you.”

It shocks Kurt when he hears those words come out of his mouth. He was determined that, no matter what, no human would have a place here. But now here he was, considering this no talent human into inclusion in their troupe, and he had no idea why.

And still, the low level power simmers, humming in Kurt’s ears.

That has to be it. Wherever it’s coming from, that’s the thing that’s causing all of this.

He would ask Puck if he hears it, too, except Puck’s looking at him with the gaping maw of a dying salmon, equally as astonished at what Kurt proposed.

“Certainly,” Blaine says, elated. “Watch carefully.” He puts his hands up, holding them open so Kurt can see that there’s nothing in them. He flips his hands quickly, exposing them front and back. Kurt’s eyes bounce from his right hand to his left. When Kurt sees the right hand again, it’s holding a deck of cards. Blaine fans the cards with one hand. “Pick a card, any card.”

Kurt’s jaw drops.

“What?” Kurt can usually see things before they happen, but he didn’t see that coming. “No! Why?”

“I’m making my case. I’m proving to you that I can be a contributing member of your group. Consider it my audition.”

“I don’t have time for this,” Kurt mutters. He takes Blaine’s empty hand and holds it by the wrist, letting the man’s beating pulse speak to him. It was easier reading his mind at arm’s distance from his brain. That, and Kurt wasn’t convinced he could restrain himself from throttling this man. But Kurt can see from the smile on the man’s face that he’s getting the wrong idea. That wrong idea starts to blossom in Kurt’s mind the longer he holds his hand, and it makes him feel warm inside.

Oh, please, Kurt pleads. This can’t be happening.

Kurt immediately drops the man’s hand.

“Your father was a sorcerer?”

“Yup.” Blaine puffs up his chest as if he had taught the man everything he knew. “One of the finest.”

“And your mother, too.”

“Yes, sir. She was the more powerful of the two by a long shot.”

“Well, do you have any of their skills?” Kurt tries not to get ahead of himself, but he can’t quell his excitement, finally seeing a silver lining to this obnoxious human’s intrusion into his life.

“Oh, no!” Blaine laughs to Kurt’s dismay. “Good God, no! Not an inch! It’d be amazing if I did though! Think of it!”

Kurt had thought of it, for just a brief, glimmering second. But the more he thinks he knows what’s going on with this man, the more questions he has.

The easiest way to sort them out would be to go back into his mind for an extended stay.

But Kurt doesn’t want to. He doesn’t want to see the things his mind wants him to see.

“Okay,” Kurt begins again, feeling like pulling the man’s molars out of his skull would be easier than this. He asks his next question slowly, like he’s addressing a child. “What else do you do?”

“Just this.” Blaine folds up his fan of cards and shuffles them dramatically from hand to hand. “Sleight of hand.”

“You do card tricks,” Kurt mutters like a curse at a power higher than he. “Just card tricks,” he repeats, pulling a card from the pile. This couldn’t be it. With the lineage he’s boasting, this can’t be Blaine’s only talent. What did he do that he missed out on the magic lottery? Did he step on a brownie? Run over a druid with his car? Did he make-out with the wrong virgin sacrifice and get cursed?

Card tricks. That and his charm will maybe get him a cup of coffee.

Maybe.

“Hey. Why you hatin’ on card tricks? They put me through college.” His hands don’t stop moving as he speaks, shuffling his deck, the cards flying from his fingertips faster than Kurt can keep track of. That alone is impressive, but still …

Card tricks?

There has to be something Kurt’s missing.

“Here. Let me show you something.” Kurt takes Blaine by the shoulders and turns him around. With a blink of his red eyes, they’re out of the ruins and standing in the center of the big top, watching as performers bustle around, putting away props and striking equipment. They’ve teleported. They could have just walked. It wasn’t that far, not even as the human walks, but Kurt did it on purpose. The jump through time and space, even though no more than a skip compared to what they’ll be doing when they leave the realm of Earth, was supposed to give Blaine a taste of what dimensional travel would feel like. Most humans puke their guts out immediately after.

Blaine barely seems fazed.

Damn.

And to top it off, his hands have found their way up to Kurt’s, resting over his and holding on gently.

Kurt clears his throat. He removes one of his hands.

Only now that he has, he kind of wants to put it back.

Kurt points past Blaine to a man with radiant wings stretching out in both directions, measuring from tip to tip about the length of a Cessna. He stands ramrod straight and over seven feet, dismantling a large, titanium octagonal cage with a wave of his hands. “Do you see him?” Kurt asks. “He’s a descendent of the god Loki.”

“Ooo,” Blaine marvels, watching as he folds the cage into a small box that he puts in his pocket.

“Ooo is right. He can fracture sunlight and turn its rays into golden snakes. With a single blink of his eyes, he can make you believe that you’re your own mother and compel you to give yourself a spanking.”

Blaine chuckles, picturing himself wearing his mother’s thick, tiger eye framed glasses, her faded yellow housedress, her matching house slippers, and the pink foam curlers she rolled in her hair every night covered by a white hair net, bending himself over a chair and slapping his own bare ass while angrily yelling at himself in his mother’s tongue. It’s an image Kurt glimpses in Blaine’s eyes as the man laughs sadly to himself, and Kurt finds himself wanting to join him. He feels drawn to this man’s easygoing nature. Blaine seems slow to anger, difficult to offend … and impossible to frighten. His sticktoitiveness is admirable, if not misguided. Once he has his mind set on something, he’s not easy to discourage. Kurt will give him that. And Kurt has always found those traits attractive in most beings. A soul that can laugh at itself can weather most storms.

But again – human, and Kurt can’t get attached to a human. Not even one who’s proving to be as … well … what would the word for him be? Bearable as this one. Maybe Kurt could see himself sharing a veggie burger with him while they binge watched Netflix (once they find themselves in a dimension where they can pick up a signal) but that’s as far as he’d take it.

But wasn’t that what Kurt wanted in the first place?

No matter. This is neither the time nor the place for this dilemma. Kurt squares his knotty shoulders and continues.

“And the young lady in that tank?” Kurt takes Blaine by the shoulders and turns him again slightly. Only by, like, seventeen degrees. He won’t admit to himself that it’s an excuse to touch Blaine. No. He’s just trying to be clear with him. Get his point across. “She calls herself Brittany. She’s a river mermaid. I found her sunning herself on the banks of the Mississippi. She’s over three hundred years old.”

“Amazing,” Blaine breathes with the genuine awe of a child seeing a rainbow in the sky for the first time. “She doesn’t look a day over eighteen.”

“She can make rocks and boulders sing,” Kurt explains, trying to come up with anything else she can do that might impress him. “Rumor has it she used to whisper in the ear of Mark Twain as he traveled the river boats so, in essence, she’s the author of most of his more memorable stories.”

“Awesome.”

“Quite.”

Another blink and they return to the ruin of Kurt’s makeshift forest. As soon as the black night surrounds them, Kurt feels cold. There was so much under the big top for Blaine to see.

He teleported them back too soon.

And Blaine, not in the least bit affected by zipping through the fabric of reality, returns to his chipper self.

“Nevertheless,” Blaine says, turning to meet Kurt’s eyes, “can any of them do this?” Blaine tosses his deck in the air and starts juggling individual cards, catching them with his knuckles and then flipping them in the air again until they create a perfect arch. It’s rather intricate, and Kurt questions how a mortal who boasts no particular supernatural powers can accomplish it … but by his circus’s standards, it’s just cute.

“Probably. But here’s what you’re missing – they have power. You have none. And a lot of them aren’t as patient or as congenial as I am. If they get angry with you, or if you get in their way, they will kill you, or worse. They may imprison your soul, shrink your head while it’s still on your body, remove your brain and keep it in a jar.”

“Aww,” Blaine coos. “Are you worried about me?”

Kurt scoffs. “Not in the slightest.”

“Well, don’t be,” Blaine says, ignoring the demon’s last remark. “I can take care of myself.”

“I don’t see how. Tell me, human, what have you been doing with all of your 35 years on earth?”

“This!” Blaine holds up his deck and gives it a shake. “I’m an entertainer! A jester! A magician!” Kurt stares, waiting for the shoe to drop. He knows it’s coming. This man’s whole presentation has been nothing but dropping shoes.

And yet, it’s probably the most fun that Kurt’s known in years.

“But I work the register at a dry cleaners to pay the bills.”

“And there it is,” Kurt says, throwing his arms up in exasperation. “I’m surprised that I’m even surprised. So you have no circus or performance experience of any kind?”

“Yes, I have! I was an ale wench for six months at Medieval Times.”

“An ale … wench?” Puck chortles, wheezing when he pictures Blaine in a corset and a dress. Though, oddly enough, he has to admit, it’s not a bad look for him.

“Oh, and in high school, I was in The Wizard of Oz.”

“As what? A Flying Monkey?”

“No.” Blaine smirks. Then he snickers. “As one of the angry trees.”

Kurt feels his cheeks flush red but not out of anger, and that’s the part that makes him the most livid. “You’re ridiculous! Do you know that?”

“Well, you must like ridiculous.”

“And how do you figure that?”

“It’s been over an hour, and you’re still talking to me.”

“You’d never survive traveling with us,” Kurt says, stomping his feet and raising his voice, furious because, for a second, half a second, less than half so he won’t have to loathe himself for thinking of it, he began to ask himself - could it be that this time around, Kurt doesn’t follow his human love interest for the rest of his days on Earth?

Maybe he takes the love interest with him?

He hears the low hum of power again, tickling in his brain; he sees the barrage of memories that aren’t his; feels the warmth throughout his body that gathers in his stomach, trying to tell him something that he refuses, under pain of dismemberment or death, to supply any credence to.

There is absolutely no way, here or in hell, that he wants to have any attachment to this human! The man’s a hack! A con! A dime-a-dozen trickster out to make a quick buck at Kurt’s expense, and that’s all.

And Kurt’s first priority has to be to make him leave. He’s done entertaining these thoughts any longer. He was right to begin with. They don’t need to add new blood to the mix. New people only cause trouble. This proves it! They’ll figure something out. They’ll find another way. It’s a good plan. A sound plan.

So why does it make him feel emptier inside?

“We cross dimensional portals,” Kurt says in a stern voice. “Humans are soft. If it doesn’t make your blood boil, and if you don’t get torn limb from limb, it’ll turn your stomach inside out.”

Kurt stares at Blaine with an intensity that will turn the man into a candle if Kurt’s not careful. But somewhere in the man’s golden eyes, Kurt sees something click. He’s getting it. He’s finally getting it. He understands. This isn’t the place for him. He doesn’t belong there with him. With them.

With him.

Blaine lifts one shoulder. “That’s okay. I don’t get travel sick.”

Kurt slaps himself in the forehead with his palm.

“He has power,” Puck hisses in a whisper, having warmed to the idea of Blaine’s joining them over the course of the conversation.

Anyone who can get on Kurt’s nerves this badly might be worth keeping around.

“I can smell it. And I know you can smell it, Kurt. He has it in his background. Even if he can’t use it, it’s most likely in his blood. It might be enough to protect him.”

“What are you doing!? I don’t need you taking his side!”

“I’ll bring Dramamine,” Blaine adds. “Just in case. It’ll be good.”

Kurt laughs in vexation, knowing he’s losing this battle. Fine! Whatever! So what if the human comes with? It’s no skin off Kurt’s nose. He’ll just leave the dirty work to Puck, have him clean up the man’s guts when he implodes! Or mop him up when Loki’s great-great-great-great-grandnephew turns him into an oil slick. Or chase him down with a glass jar when Brittany transforms him into notes of music!

Or, Kurt could fit him with a protection spell. Something mild that might boost his power. Kurt hates to admit it, but this is workable.

The only problem is what it might do to him personally if the human stays.

“We pay minimum wage,” Kurt says, his methods of dissuading Blaine getting weaker and weaker.

“I’m fine with that. I was planning on cashing in my 401K anyway.”

“Wait, wait, wait … you work at a dry cleaners as a cashier and you have a 401K?” Puck gasps. “How in the world did you manage that?”

“I was a business minor in college.”

“You don’t say.”

“Yup. I set up a portfolio using eTrade online, diversified early, made a good call on some high risk investments …”

“Guys! We’re getting a little off topic, don’t you think?”

Blaine turns to Kurt. He stares deep into the demon’s eyes, as if he’s about to relate something profound, and says, “Ace of spades.”

Kurt jerks back. “What?”

“Your card.” Blaine points to the card skewered to the palm of Kurt’s hand. “It’s the ace of spades, am I right?”

Kurt looks at the card he’d forgotten he’d been holding, the one he’s been strangling this whole time. “How did you know that?”

“Your eyes give you away,” Blaine says with another of his infuriating winks. Kurt doesn’t like Blaine’s winks. They’re sly and disarming … and they make his stomach wriggle like a mass of earthworms struggling to rise through a thick puddle of mud. But Kurt finds himself grinning over the comment about his eyes until he remembers one thing.

His red eyes are reflective.

Which means Blaine’s just a con-man. A charming, handsome con-man.

But he’s a good one, there’s no denying that. He’s pretty much conned his way into Kurt’s circus, whether Kurt likes it or not. He’s conned Puck into taking his side, though that’s probably not as difficult a feat as Kurt is giving him credit for.

Conning his way into Kurt’s life - that Kurt doesn’t like. But Kurt will find a way around that. If Kurt could tame him up a little, Blaine might be of use to them.

If anything, he might be more qualified to balance their books than Puck, the neutered Pukwudgie.

“Look.” Blaine closes his eyes and exhales, rubbing a hand over his face as if he knows he’s running out of options. And on his face, Kurt catches a look that he’s seen on other humans a thousand times.

He’s even seen it on himself.

I just don’t want to be here. I just don’t want to be alone anymore.

That speaks to Kurt. Here it was, the truth behind the con.

I can’t stay here. There are too many memories here. I’m trying to live, I’m doing the best I can, but there’s nothing for me here anymore. If I have to stay here another week, another month, I won’t be able to take it. I’ll do something rash. Please. You have to take me with you. You have to let me in. I’m so lonely, and I just want a little bit of happiness. It’s been over twenty years. Don’t I deserve that?

Kurt nods at Blaine’s sentiment, the one in Blaine’s head, but that’s not what Blaine says.

What he says is this:

“You guys used to do well here on Earth because witches and warlocks and mermaids and unicorns and …” Blaine looks between Kurt and Puck. He makes a quick decision and points to Puck “… him … were the stuff of fantasies and legends. But now they’re the stuff of movies. Summer blockbusters by the dozens, coming out year after year like clockwork. With modern technology, computers and CGI, humans can create fantasy. Anything they want, even in their own homes. Kids more than half my age are becoming Internet famous with sci-fi movies they film in their basements and upload on YouTube. And that’s bad for you guys. Really bad for you. I’m not going to sugarcoat it. But where you guys are headed, won’t I be the thing of fantasy? The oddity? Won’t I be what draws a crowd, even if all I do are card tricks?” Kurt’s eyes are immediately drawn to the man’s hands, but miraculously, his ever-present deck of cards seems to have disappeared. In fact, dressed in a pocket-less black button down over a black tank top, skin tight jeans, and boat shoes on his feet with no socks, Kurt has no idea where that deck of cards even came from to begin with. The man shouldn’t even be able to wear underwear in those jeans. Where the hell is he hiding a deck of cards? “Maybe you guys can’t break even here, but why not get a head start wherever it is you’re going, and come back here with a better game plan?”

“And I assume that you are going to want to help us with that game plan?”

“It’d make sense, wouldn’t it? I mean, I know what the people here want. I have the inside scoop.”

“I also assume you’ll be expecting a cut,” Puck grouses.

“Not a cut,” Blaine says, that exhausted look evaporating with the arrival of a single, effervescent smile. “An opportunity.”

Kurt’s eyelids narrow. “What opportunity?”

Blaine turns his attention Kurt’s way, and Kurt notices the way Blaine’s eyes light up when he looks at him, the way his face seems to shine when he aims his smile at him.

“Well, now, that remains to be seen.”

Kurt sighs. He doesn’t know what to make of that comment, how to feel about it, but he moves on nonetheless. “Listen,” he says, already regretting what he’s about to say. But Blaine has a point. In other dimensions, he would be the oddity. That might be worth something. “I don’t know that you’ll fit in here, but you can come with. I’ll give you a trial run, so you can figure out if this is really the future you want. And if it’s not, we’ll drop you back off the next time we’re nearby.”

“You have the power to see the future, don’t you?” Blaine says.

“Sometimes,” Kurt replies, though seeing as he hasn’t been able to predict anything that’s happened so far, he might have to scratch that one off of his list of abilities.

“Well, what do you see in mine?”

“Me changing my mind if you don’t get your ass out of here.”

Blaine smiles his megawatt smile, bouncing on the balls of his feet like a golden retriever puppy. “You mean it?”

Kurt’s head tells him to say no. Regardless of if this is a workable idea, it’s still not an advisable one. Bringing a human through time and space may have consequences. But it’s not Blaine’s brilliant con that made Kurt’s mind up for him. It’s not even the warmth that’s been bubbling in Kurt’s heart since Blaine arrived.

It’s that one sentence Blaine uttered without saying a word.

I just want a little bit of happiness.

Kurt has dedicated his life to bringing happiness to others. That’s what his circus has been about. He didn’t create it for wealth or fame. He’s been sidetracked a little bit lately trying to keep their heads afloat, but not out of greed. Out of responsibility. But if he overlooks this man and his gifts simply because he’s human, Kurt will be a hypocrite to the ninth degree.

Besides, maybe helping this man find his happiness will help every one of them in the long run.

Even Kurt.

He’ll have to set the wheels in motion and see how this plays out.

“Yeah, I mean it.” Kurt shrinks a few feet to meet the man’s height. “Go home and pack up your things. Get your affairs in order and say your goodbyes. In a couple of days, we’ll be leaving this dimension, and I don’t know for sure when we’ll be back. Does that sound okay with you? Does it sound like something you can do?”

Kurt holds his breath while he waits for Blaine to answer, not because he’s afraid that Blaine will say yes, but because he’s suddenly afraid that Blaine might say no.

“Yes!” Blaine claps his hands. “Yes! I can! That’s no problem! Absolutely no problem, I …” Blaine rambles as he backs out of the room, planning out loud “I’ll pack up my things, I’ll say my goodbyes, I’ll cash in my accounts, I’ll … thank you!” He rushes over to Puck. He takes the goblin’s sticky hand and pumps it hard. “Thank you! Thank you so much!”

“Don’t thank me, young man,” Puck says, extricating his hand from Blaine’s grasp as if he were shedding himself of a slimier than normal banana slug. “Thank the demon. He’s the one who’ll be vouching for you from now on, so I suggest you don’t mess up.”

“Of course not! Of course I won’t!” Blaine launches himself at Kurt. Kurt reaches for his hand, but Blaine throws his arms around his waist instead, hugging him with all his might. “Thank you,” Blaine says, softer than a whisper. “You won’t regret this.”

“Make sure that I don’t.” Kurt can’t bring himself to hug the man. Not just yet. Not with those painful memories laying siege to Blaine’s mind. So Kurt pats him on the back instead. “Remember that if you piss me off in any way, peeling the skin from your bones is still an option.”

“I’ll remember.” Blaine detaches himself quickly and, with a wave at Kurt and Puck, races from the ruin, presumably heading home to collect his things and bid a fond adieu to his life.

He’ll be back. Kurt knows.

He doesn’t need to be psychic to see it.

“You like him,” Puck sneers, following Kurt’s eyes as the demon watches the human go.

Kurt clicks his tongue with disgust. “No, I don’t.”

“Yes, you do.”

“Don’t be ri---” He’s about to say ridiculous, but he remembers what Blaine said about liking ridiculous. He won’t prove him right. He refuses to use that word “… stupid.”

“A-ha,” Puck says, insulted. He takes one look at Kurt and his eyes grow wide, becoming the size of saucers, outdoing his nose for the most outlandish feature on his face. “Kurt! You---you’re budding!”

Kurt’s face scrunches. “What?”

“Look for yourself! You’re actually growing leaves! And flowers! Gah!” The goblin exclaims in disgust. “Is that … an apple?”

Kurt twists his torso in an attempt to get a better look. He spots his reflection in the filth-covered windows a short distance away and sneers. “It happens,” he says, trying to bat it off his body with his fingers. “It’s almost spring.”

“Don’t give me that!” Puck groans, swiping away Kurt’s excuses with his hand. “You’re wearing a disguise! One that you control! That apple is all you, buddy!”

“Well, what was that with you talking shop with him? About his portfolio?” Kurt counters. “You were practically drooling! It was pathetic!”

“Don’t talk pathetic with me. I’m not the one sprouting fruit. And I’m not fanboying! I’m trying to keep us in the black, Kurt! Remember? I’m not too proud to admit that that young man might know a little more than me in that regard.”

“Stop trying to be hip, Puck. It doesn’t suit you,” Kurt sniffs. “Having a blog on Tumblr doesn’t make you relevant.” Kurt plants his hands on his hips and goes back to pacing, trying to come to grips with these changes, what he did - inviting a human to travel with them, making him part of the troupe.

Possibly flirting with him, and how that made him feel.

How it felt to give in to his nature after so long.

He taps his fingers on his hip as he marks off the many, many mistakes he made in the past two hours. When his finger hits something – or more to the point, the absence of something - he can’t help the grin blossoming on his face among a small patch of moss and a cluster of bluebells. And if a small robin’s nest sprouts somewhere in the vicinity of the new growth behind his left ear, complete with momma bird and a clutch of pale blue eggs, well, he won’t be the one to point it out.

He doesn’t have to. Puck sees it and shakes his head. “So, tell me this, Kurt - if you don’t like him, then why are you blooming? What’s with the smiling? I haven’t seen you this giddy since The Great Emu War.”

Kurt chuckles before he answers, patting down his body once to be doubly sure. He’s been using magic to change his appearance, giving himself a façade that aligns with what the humans believe a “tree demon” should look like. It covers up his vaguely human form, including the clothes he wears (which is a shame because he happens to have amazing fashion sense). It had to have been when Blaine hugged him. Kurt had been caught off his guard. It had happened so quickly, he didn’t even notice.

The sly bastard.

Blaine must have been looking for Kurt’s stone. Of course, he was. Blaine, with even a Google knowledge of Spriggan would know that Kurt might have one. Many a Spriggan does - a beautiful, snow white keepsake - and the Spriggan who loses his is required to grant wishes to the person who finds it. Blaine must have felt it. It’s difficult to miss once you put your hand on it.

Kurt can imagine what Blaine would have wished for if he’d taken it.

But for some reason, he didn’t. The most precious of Kurt’s possessions, and Blaine left it behind.

There is obviously more to this man than meets the eyes.

But that doesn’t mean he left empty handed.

In that same pocket was something else, which has now gone missing, and Kurt smirks thinking about it.

“He stole my wallet.”

[jaroslavlewis]

Hi there! Here are my numbers to you for the DC question list: 1, 11, 20, 29!

HI! Sorry this took a while. I got pretty preoccupied with stuff. Anyway..

1.How did you get into Detective Conan, and what was your first case?

Okay so I got into Detective Conan because here in the Philippines, they air animated series in the morning and when I was in the 5th Grade, my younger brother who was then, in the first grade always watches those series before going to school. Anyway, there are these rival  networks called ABSCBN and GMA, both of them air cartoons and animated series in the morning for kids. My family always watches shows aired by ABSCBN, but on mornings after we watch the Filipino-dubbed Naruto on ABS, we switch the channel to GMA so my brother gets to watch Detective Conan. At first, I wasn’t really into it. LOL coz 1. How is DC supposed to be for kids? They freakin show animated corpses! 2. Why are their ears so freakin round and big? Like if you put them together they’d be like as big as their heads. 3. Who’s this sassy/weird lost child? How is he allowed to touch those dead people? Isn’t he scared? 4. I was so confused since I didn’t get to watch from the beginning and only got to watch a few episodes aired by the network. Anyway, my brother and our housekeeper explained to me the deets of how Conan is actually a shrunken 17-year-old detective named Shinichi and all the basic shit I need to follow the story. My first case was the Sports Club Murder Case, but the case that really got me hooked in the series was The Diplomat Murder Case coz things were pretty intense there with Heiji’s first appearance and Shinichi’s first comeback since he shrunk as Conan. It was also the ep in which I first saw Shinichi and that was then that I decided that I needed to watch from the first episode. LOL. Getting into this fandom was one hell of a roller coaster ride.

11. Which character do you least and/or most identify with?

I honestly think Kazuha. I already wrote some of the reasons in my post last DCWeek2017. Anyway, during her first appearances in the manga/anime, Kazuha has already evidently shown her fierce attitude. At first she may come across as childish and ill-tempered, well she kind of is.(LOL Like me. hahaha ) But really she’s a total passionate person. Kazuha’s very persistent with things she believes in and with people important to her. I’d like to think that I’m like that especially when it comes to my passion for arts and writing. Hihihi. Also yeah, like Kazuha, I have feelings for my guy friend. (I said this in my DC Week Post). To provide further detail, my guy friend, unlike Heiji, isn’t a childhood friend but a college friend. Hahaha And yeah. He’s an aspiring writer (like me) not a detective like Heiji. And unlike Heiji who reciprocates Kazuha’s feelings, this guy doesn’t coz he has a girlfriend. And very much like Kazuha, I haven’t confessed to this guy, but unlike her, I don’t have anymore plans to tell the guy what I feel. (I think.) hahaha

20. Which recurring character do you wish would get more screen time? 

There are a lot. But if I have to choose only a few, I wish the BO and the FBI people coz there’s always progress and action when they’re around. :D

29. If you could ask Gosho Aoyama one question, what would it be?

Hmmm This is hard because I have a long list of questions to ask him. XD This also includes, why does Ran have a triangle on her head? XD LOLJK. But if I have to ask just one, I think it would be, “What inspired you do childhood friends-turned-lovers stories in DCMK?” It’s just that I’m such a sucker for childhood friends-turned-lovers stories and I honestly want to know what spark that in him and what he thinks about those type of love stories.

[sonofsuperman-archive]

My URL? (for the thing!)

SEND A URL AND I WILL ANSWER THE FOLLOWING || Always Accepting (slowly feeling bad for spamming dash with this)

Do I Follow Them?: Yeppp

Why Did I Follow Them?: Cause this sounded interesting and holy hell this storyline murdered my soul to pieces

Do We Role Play?: Not yet… soon though…. mwahahahaha >:D :PP

Do I Want To Role Play With Them: Yes please!!! Give me it!!

An AU Idea For Our Muses: No idea but you made me want to give Jon that kind of verse, the whole tortured by a villain, but I think a lot of people would maim me if I go that direction xD I’d say the Siren verse would look great, especially with Jon being adopted by Ivy. Though, having Earth-3 Jon, aka Ultraboy, partnering up with him sounds cool too… aka both creepy grinning kids with a cruel streak and wanting the destruction of everything. 

A Song For Our Muses: *dies in the corner* no more… I don’t want this… stop… I like have zero songs unless I pick a filipino or japanese one so nope.

Do I Ship Our Muses?: I’d dig it. I wouldn’t mind trying, it’ll make me develop Jon into a 3 dimensional character more and give me ideas of his choices. Plus research too. Also, the idea of one of them being corrupted by the other sounds interesting. ((I just like seeing how Jon would be if this or that happens, plus all my psych research being used is funnn))

What I Think About The Mun: I haven’t seen your ooc posts! afjkalghagh or I don’t know if I’ve seen them. I feel bad but I usually treat every rp blog as someone different unless I know that the same mun holds those blogs ((I’ve accidentally thought that two blogs were being held by the same person…. never again!!))

Overall Opinion: I’M SLEEPY RIGHT NOW BUT IM SO FREAKING EXCITED FOR THIS AFJHAGHG AND YES ON THE WHOLE BATMAN BRINGS HIM IN, IN AN ATTEMPT TO GET HIM BACK.

Blog Rate: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 (me and my color scheme criticisms, right?? I just, can’t see the green links since its thin, if ya can bolden it  a bit that would be great. Nice colouring and I love you for the big posts)

[thefoodjunkies-blog1]

BLOG #2 CAAMFEST- Chee & T (caution SPOILERS!!!)

Well it was just another day down by 24th street, walking the street with my buddy on our way to see this film offered at CAAMFEST. And i just have to say *sigh*.... IT WAS FRIGGIN DOPE !!! DA BEES KNEES !!! FENOMINAL!!! but I’m gettin carried away so here’s the scoop :D

What am I talkin about?-

The film I watched was called CHEE & T which revolved around two characters ... Chee and T. This film had a cast and crew primarily made of east asian background which I found to be rather interesting. Based around the local areas of Palo Alto, we find these two characters tasked with being their uncles personal “henchman” so to speak. Though it sound kinda bleak, trust me guys it is indeed a comedy through and through. Having been tasked with well, a task so easy a monkey can do it, we see the duo struggle , and we as the audience got to tag along on the ride.

What was so DOPE about the film?-

Not only was the film most if not all a east asian cast, the film touched on archetypes that even HOLLYWOOD would view as worthwhile. Some of those type casts, if you can even call them that in this film, were that of the redemption story. While Chee & T reiterate the words “we’re just losers” and implement a few “loan shark-esque” ways of handling situations; the audience inevitably see them look after each other , despite the failures they present. Furthermore , what I found to be intrinsic to the whole story line was the beginning task of the film the uncle asked them to complete. The task was to get their younger cousin ready for his very own engagement party. That was the beginning to the havoc that proceeded it with bad trips, awesome quips, and a new kinda high, the boomerang XD. Yet that was not the part of intrinsic value to me. The film touched and continued along the dialogue of homosexuality in the east asian community...yep I’m sorry for the big spoiler, the importuned premise; the younger cousin is actual gay and the uncle is trying to hide or brush it under the rug. This was a profound moment that I enjoyed seeing because it was no longer a slapstick night out before marriage, it was rebellion to the society the younger cousin had to conform to and mask himself ; to be “normal” in his family’s eyes. That being said let me tell ya the weddin didn’t go down well. So yeah the film and the way it was made was great.10 out of 10; 11 out of 10 with rice :/

Can I relate to this film?-

Nope not really. Well despite being filipino-american I can surmise what they were trying to get at with this film. After the showing the director along with a few of the cast and crew went up on the stage and talked about their film. They prided themselves on having an all “brown” cast as they said and I’m with them on that account. It was bordering on a HOLLYWOOD film, meaning that it could actually match up to the films manufactured by big blockbuster companies. It followed structure that could be followed by any person devoid of their ethnicity and it was an overly funny film. 

 Some other notes...-

Guys the ambiance was nice. I mean that was the first time I have ever been in a theatre of that sort. That screen along with the audio and acoustics was all worthwhile in and of itself. Also the rating for the film going from 1 to 5 was interesting because I have never had to rate a film based on how it is and how every scene made. And of course I gave them five out of five, they deserve it.

[softbunnywonho]

It has been 12 years since I have not visited philippines (country i was born in) and I had the opportunity to visit for 2 weeks. Let me tell you how I truly felt about my experienced (WARNING: I complain and whine a lot so pls dont read if u cant handle that xD) :

Once I landed in Phil, i expect that our luggage would probably go missing or broken because I heard how the people there handle luggages etc, no discipline at all. I went  to grab our luggages, well 2 of them broke, the wheels of my luggage came off and my mothers luggage handle broke, I was literally pissed off the moment I saw it. I even had “fragile” stickers on mine, wtf. I should have cling wrapped my luggage before arriving in Phil tbh, but anyway!! after that my cousins came to pick us up at the airport... ohh didnt i mention it was soooo hot and humid there.

The traffic was insane, even though Im not the person driving, I was stressed out and irritated xD, It took us nearly 2 hours to get to my cousins house, if theres no traffic it would probably only take us 10-15mins.! Melbournes traffic is also insane although at least people here follow rules and the flow of traffic is manageable. BUT the positive side, I get to chat with my cousins and rest in the car for a bit after a long flight.

we stayed at my cousins house for only few hours before we travel by bus to my hometown that is “Baguio city”, I look forward on it the most mainly because the weather there is perfect =D plus I get to see more greens and finally going to meet our relatives. after 5 hours we landed in my hometown and we had to live in a condo??. Got to meet my uncle and his sister from texas and my auntie!! The condo was okay, though im grateful at least we have some safe place to live in! I had the opportunity to roam around! esp the mall!! boooy do I miss the mall and food there!!

I feel like my body couldnt handle the pollution/change of environment! eventhough the weather is nice, its really polluted, I hated it, my nose was blocked all the damn time i was there, so i had to put on my mask on to protect my nose and half my face at least. People even thought im Korean because of how I look/dress xDD one thing I did not appreciate was that people literally look at you as if theres something on your face or something, I was actually feeling insecure because of how many people look at you from head to toe. xD im like damn please let me live! I also remember I was in the JEEP having my mask on  and this Person kept looking at me like ??? do you mind, then i had to put my mask down to talk to my mother and this person was laughing?? I know Im ugly but pls dont make it obvious! LOL anyway, Can you tell i got culture shock!! I know ive lived there for 15years but after 12 years... it does seem like a new country to me, Im so used to living in a place where people mind their own business and doesnt care about your existence. BUT I know for sure Filipino people are the most hospitable and hard working people I know.

We visited 100 islands for the first time, via motorboat and I had the blast tbh! I enjoyed it so much and get to appreciate the nature. I love everything about it and It reminded me that I should be grateful of the things I have!!~ though I make mistakes, have a lot of flaws and not the most perfect person to exist on this planet but I feel like I have to live a life to the fullest no matter how bad it is. To love yourself and others and to understand how to care for a person you cherish and love the most!! I have more things to improve on and I hope to be a better person than yesterday.

anyway, my uncle and auntie had their 30th wedding anniversary which was amazing and emotional ;;; I really am a softy, everything makes me cry ;; so i cried during their exchange of vows and everything ;; I also get to meet my cousins!! esp my 2 most fave ones whom I look after when they were a baby and now they are grown up :’) they were even surprised to see me T_T so I gave them a huge hug!! I met all my little nephews and nieces which was nice though I know it can be awkward meeting the first time finding out im their auntie (LOL) :D met another nephew when we were living in Manila whom introduced me to fate grand order which reminded me of GO! I also get to taste HALO HALO (famous dessert in phil) which i love!! I also went shopping until I had to take out money from my bank because i noticed I was running out of cash. and ahh, me, mother and my little brother spent time together at a park. I think thats about it for now! I know I complain a lot, but I did enjoy my stay and rest!! If i have to be honest, I’d rather travel to other countries and not go back to Phil again. At least I get to experienced how its like over there and met my relatives once again. :)

[marulikestea]

Indochina Trip - Siem Reap, Cambodia

EXIT FROM THAILAND

For our next stop in our great Indochina tour, we were suppose to ride a bus that would take us directly to the heart of Siem Reap, Cambodia. If you haven't read the first part of our adventure, you can click the link here.

(or just scroll down to find the post).

So anyway, in order to stick with our schedule, we left our hotel at an early hour to arrive at the bus terminal to buy our passage for our next destination. I thought all was well since we got there in time, but then again, the universe was kind of getting bored that day and decided to make things interesting by finding targets and then screwing their lives up.

And it so happened that the targets it found where us.

Well fuck.

When we got to the transaction window, the lady behind the glass informed us that all the buses that would travel straight to Seim Reap have already been fully booked and/or have left already. What's worst was, the next bus was scheduled for tomorrow.

Hearing that piece of revelation felt like a bucket of ice cold water being poured down on our backs. I could still remember my inner brain shouting "fuck fuck, paano na?! Sira na trip natin!" in a panicked tone as the three of us just stared blankly at each other. Looking forlorn about our trip's impending demise, the lady we just talked to, prolly sensing our collective negative energies of doom, then suggested another alternative for us. We could still book a bus today that would take us to Cambodia, but only up to the border; and a wee bit hours later than the one we originally planned to ride.

Having no other better this only alternative, we took it in a heartbeat and paid 9 USD to reach Popeit.  

So while waiting for a few hours for our bus ride, we bought some breakfast and take-out lunch (since the travel would be several hours long) at 7-Eleven within the terminal premises.

My 7 Eleven breakfast while waiting for our bus.

I swear, Thailand is lucky for having such awesome variety of food selection at 7-Eleven. Why can't our country be the same? >.<

Anywho, we also converted some cash at a nearby money exchanger and watched a TV show that I could have sworn I've already seen once upon a time in Arirang channel to kill time.

When our bus finally arrived, all the passengers including us lined up outside and got on the transportation vehicle.

Our experience during our travel to the border was... quite ear-shattering to say at least. Because a few chairs behind from where we were seated, was a non-stop crying baby in high pitch voice as he/she was being cradled and hushed by the poor parents who were already getting a lot of looks from other passengers.

From what I've observed from the small family, the baby looked like it had a fever and was feeling very uncomfortable, thus its screeching. Throughout the journey, my mind was torn between sympathy for their predicament and downright annoyance because of the hassle and their insistence of making the trip despite their child's condition.

The only silver lining during the the ride was the complimentary snack box it provided, as well as the single stop over we had for bathroom breaks and whatnot.

By late afternoon, we've reached the Popeit, the border of Cambodia.

POPEIT

At the border

If there is one thing I've learned from crossing the border of one country to another, it's this: IT'S A PAIN IN THE ASS!

Kinda like lining up at the airport after getting out of the plane, there are certain procedures required before you can safely say "Hello Cambodia!". Of course, I'm quite grateful for the fact that we didn't need a visa for this country (which meant lesser steps involved), but the process of lining up to have our passports verified at the checkpoint is very cumbersome.

Or maybe because we were late than our expected time of arrival that I was this cranky and biased.

Anyway, after walking around, lining up, almost getting lost and tricked in the process, and also answering an interview for their tourism purposes, we were able to safely enter the country.

Since we were already halfway to our main destination, the next problem at hand now was how to reach Siem Reap. According to one of the locals there in-charge of transporting tourists there from Popeit, we had the choice of either 1.) getting a taxi for an exorbitant fee or 2.) Getting on the bus for a much cheaper price.

So we ended up settling for the bus option... which happened to house some rather smelly foreigners. I thought that one stinky foreigner was bad enough, but a bunch of them grouped together in a single closed space within sniffing range... ah.

I'm so amazed at myself for still being alive back then.

Going back, we noticed that most of the seats were already occupied when we entered the bus. Not wanting to separate by seating in different locations, we pushed on towards the back, which had a lot of room for us and our bags...

...Except for this Russian couple who occupied the whole damn row all by themselves.

How you ask?

Well, just imagine a hot-looking Russian babe sprawled in all its long-legged-glory on all seats like Cleopatra, but instead of fruits and pillows lying around her, were their trash and food wrappers scattered about. Oh and her ugly boyfriend serving her as her lap pillow.

So much for that god-given beauty if your manners and demeanor are like that.

Anyway, we did the good 'ol passive-aggressive approach by staring at them and mentally telepathing to their faces how a hindrance and a pain in the ass they are and blah blah... you get what I mean. Thankfully enough, they got the hint and the girl reluctantly (I think she even rolled her eyes) got into a proper sitting position and freed the chairs for us to sit on.

Finally!

Them smelleyicious crowd~

When the bus was full, we set out to our destination. While en route, a Cambodian representative who was with us on the bus stood at front and talked about their culture and what to expect in the country. After it was over, there was a temporary buzz of chatter from the foreigners who wanted to get acquainted and whatnot. As hours passed, the noise had finally died down as the sun disappeared into the night.

At around 8 or 9pm, we had a short stop in the middle of the road to eat dinner. What's great about this country, according to the local who talked at the bus earlier, is that Cambodia accepts all types of currency (from peso, to baht to dollar etc) as payment for anything. So there was no problem with regards to exchanging money or buying stuff. With that said, I paid 2.5 USD for my dinner, and peacefully ate with my companions. When we were done, we went ahead and returned back to the bus. Since everyone else was busy eating and mingling outside, the three of us enjoyed our solitude together. We even vented our previous frustrations by shouting in Filipino how smelly they were, lol. Talk about releasing stress!

Anyway, when our break was finally over and all the passengers have been accounted for, we resumed the rest of the trip and continued to our Siem Reap drop off point.

SEIM REAP

I couldn't remember what time we arrived, but as we got out of the bus, several tuktuks were already camped there, ready to sell their services to us foreigners. There, we met and hired our tuktuk driver named "Met" who agreed to tour us to Angkor Wat the following day (for 7 USD, can’t remember if each or as total). He also got us to our designated hotel, before leaving and reminding us of our early call time tomorrow.

BLOSSOMING ROMDUOL LODGE  

We spent several minutes at the lobby area of our hotel paying the rest of the fee (16.6 USD from each of us), as well as also booking a night bus that would get us to Pnom Penh. We initially wanted to book Mekong bus (which is one of the most decent buses for tourist travel), but unfortunately, it was already fully booked. So upon recommendation of our hotel, we got a b-rate night bus worth 13 USD... which, little did we know, proved to be the second WORST DECISION we've ever made throughout our indochina trip. But that's a story for another post.

Recharging ourselves for awhile.

When we got the keys to our room, we unpacked our stuff and had a short reprieve from the hectic travel. 

Anyway, despite our fucked up schedule due to the delay, we still had time that evening.  I wanted to at least accomplish some stuff that was written on our itinerary that day, so I urged Arlyn and Denise to go out for a walk at Pub Street, which was supposed to be a walking distance from our location. 

PUB STREET

Similar to Khao San Road in Bangkok, the buzzing streets of pub street  is a place for backpackers and other tourists alike who’d like to enjoy Cambodia’s night life. From the local bars to food establishments and even doctor fish massages, there's so many things to see and experience in this area of Siem Reap.

Night Life - Pub Street.

We've strolled the area for a good while and found how large the area was. Luckily, we stumbled into the souvenir stores that were all lined up together and was able to bought some (1 USD for 4-5 magnets) for back home.

I also bought a local painting for 5 USD, woot! It was very hard to choose from among the stack because everything looked so good. But in the end, I settled for this one.

I chose this because... TREES! XD <3

When it was already late, we went back to our hotel to sleep for our early morning schedule at Angkor Wat (should be there before sunrise!)

ANGKOR WAT

When it was already late, we went back to our hotel to sleep for our early morning schedule at Angkor Wat (should be there before sunrise!)

At dawn, we woke up and prepared ourselves grogilly as we took our complimentary breakfast as a takeout from the lobby and met up with our tuktuk driver at the front of our hotel. 

As we silently rode through the street of Siem Reap, cold breeze enveloped us on the way to angkor wat.

God, I wished I could have brought a shawl with me. Brr!

We were the first to arrive to the ticket booth. While waiting for it to open, we ate our breakfast, which was a rather thick bread with spread. Not a spectacular breakfast but it was enough to fill our stomachs. Arlyn had the unfortunate experience of breaking her tooth while biting to her bread in the process. I felt sorry for her, but I can't deny how hilarious it was, lol! Both denise and I laughed, since we're such true friends, hahahaha.

Anyway, a lot of tourists came trickling by after that and once the booth was open, we got our pictures taken and paid an entrance fee of 20 USD for our pass to the heritage site. We went back to the tuktuk and rode further inside, to the entrance site where the iconic sunrise photo spot of Angkor Wat is shot.

My  angkor wat pass valid for 1 day

Before parting with Met once we arrived, he told us where to to find him once we came back from our sightseeing. We then followed the other walking tourists further inside. While treading through the darkness, several Cambodian locals came by, introducing themselves with codenames. The ones who I remembered in particular were James Bond and Harry Potter, lol. Basically, they spoke to us, telling us where the best location to take sunrise photos and then sweet-talking us afterwards into visiting their food tent after sunrise for breakfast or even a sip of warm coffee or chocolate.

Talk about mad PR skills eh?

So anyway, we found a good spot for us to standby and waited several more hours for the sun to rise, as well as the gates inside Angkor Wat to open.

My best attempt of photographing Angkor Wat’s sunrise.

The many tourists who awaited the same sunrise as us.

When it was already after sunrise, we then entered the temple and followed the rest of the crowd.

Angkor Wat is the ruins of what was once the magnificent civilization of the Khmer Empire. Being one of the UNESCO Heritage sites of the world, this archaeological park is a must see for tourists in Siem Reap, Cambodia.Angkor Wat is a very big complex that contains several temples, including the famous Bayon, Preah Khan and Ta Prohm.There are two sets of tours available for this place. The small circuit tour, which comprises the inner area of the place; and the big circuit tour, which includes the outside temples located at the outer perimeter of the park.

Inscriptions. I wonder what it says. 

Detailed carvings.

At first glance, it may look small...

But it’s noooooot. D: I wonder for what purpose this area was used for.

Inside, there were monks situated in a certain area where they would tie a red string on your arm while chanting. Of course, during that time, we had no idea what it was for but nevertheless we wanted to experience it so we went ahead and got one for ourselves. Later on, I overheard a tour guide explaining that the rest string bracelets were Buddhist bracelets that symbolized several things, like good karma and whatnot.

To be honest, I felt kinda fuzzy inside when the monk tied one on me. I dunno if its the incense or the red string's fragrant odor, but I want to believe that the monk invoked some sort of prayer of good luck to me. Hopefully. :<

My red string.

Angkor Wat towers

Monkey!

After exploring around the big temple, we went back near the entrance to have breakfast at Harry Potter’s tent. While eating, local children would come to us to sell their merchandise. I was even amazed when some of them could even speak in Filipino! But sadly, we already bought our souvenirs last night so we weren't able to buy from them.

My order: Pancake with fruits for breakfast 

Once we've finished eating, we returned to our tuktuk driver to get us to Bayon inside Angkor Thom 

  BAYON

Built a hundred years after Angkor Wat, the Bayon Temple is located at the center of the city of Angkor Thom. It apparently represents the intersection of heaven and earth.

A beautiful view of Bayon Temple.

Just outside Bayon, there's a row of elephants that can be ridden for a fee (around 20-30 USD, from what I can remember). Denise and I contemplated on riding the elephants , but Arlyn was not feeling it (boo!) so we opted out. We just took a picture as souvenir. #sob  

Efeluuuuuunttttttzzz~ <3

- Spent a lot of time just exploring the area

Statue of some sort of guardian.

Intricate bas-relief that tells a story of long time ago.

More intricate wall carvings

Several piled up stones that almost look like small monuments.

I wonder how this place was like several hundred years ago...

While taking in the scenery from the top while taking pictures and maneuvering away from other tourists, we saw some Cambodians wearing traditional attire for souvenir photos. Of course, since it is a business after all, they would cover up their faces and hide themselves whenever other tourists (such as myself) try to take a picture of them for free.

Native Cambodians in traditional garb.

A perfect shot of smiling statues.

A statue with red lips and green shade.

After exhausting a good number of hours in this place, we decided to proceed to the next destination: Ta Prohm.

Before leaving the tuktuk, we gave Met 1 USD so he can buy himself some lunch while waiting for us.

We then went inside the premises, where unique melodic sounds of Cambodian musicians playing could be heard.

TA PROHM

Aside from being a famous spot due to the Tomb Raider movie using it as a filming location, this Buddhist-temple-turned-jungle has been reclaimed by Mother Nature, with several large tree roots of fig, banyan and kapok trees hugging the walls of this ethereal structure.

This place reminds me of temple run, don’t you think?

Nearing the entrance... I think. *Follows the other tourists* 

TREEEEESSSS, OMG OMG!

MOAARRR TREEESSSS

A comparative photo of how puny a human is next to the tree’s roots.

Look how majestic it is! X3

The iconic hidden statue, embraced by nature’s roots.

Looks like a crocodile of sorts, don’t you think?

Columns near the exit.

After touring the area, we went outside and bought a fresh cold coconut drink at a nearby shack. I remember Denise making a blunder here when she said "buko" instead of coconut when she bought hers, lol. The seller got all confused at Denise's request and she quickly realized her mistake and corrected it to coconut. We had a good laugh from it afterwards.

I swear, drinking cold buko while sitting after a day's long walk under the heat of the sun is the best feeling ever!

I wish I could say the same thing for our ears, because a moment later, a group of female foreigners came by and tried playing this string intsrument being sold in the shack... which made our ears bleed. Sadly, after all the disturbance they brought to us and the seller, they didn't bought the damn instrument in the end.

Those wretched bitches. DX

BANTEAY KDEI

We took a short break here from all the walking we’ve been doing since morning. While relaxing, Denise took the time to take some pictures of us three. After we’ve rested, we went back to exploring the area.

What’s nice about this place compared to the ones we’ve been to is that there weren’t much tourists here to ruin the view. We almost had all the place to ourselves, which is a luxury. 

According to my research,  Baneay Kdei, also known as "A Citadel of Chambers" and "Citadel of Cells", is a rather mysterious temple due to the fact that there are no records found as to why this place was built. Despite name’s meaning, the temple didn’t necessarily functioned as an actual cell. 

The monks appeared just as I took this shot, making their colorful robes the perfect accent in the photo. *_*

I wonder what the center structure’s for...

Are these what they call Asparas (heavenly nymphs) perhaps?

Our next destination was suppose to be the Citadel of Women, but unfortunately there was a misunderstanding with our tuktuk driver Met. Apparently, the trip there does not cover the initial fee he had offered during our transaction so if we wanted to push through, we would pay an extra sum of money. And since it was a bit far from where we currently are, it was of course expensive. We understand where he's getting at, but we felt kinda cheated because it wasn't explained from the beginning. It certainly left a bad taste fos us. So instead, we went to Prasat Kravan, so as not to waste our time here.

PRASAT KRAVAN

The last destination on our small circuit tour. This temple was dedicated to Vishnu, with Bas-reliefs of her image adorning its brick walls.

The back.

The actual front. That’s me near the entrance steps btw, lol.

The goddess Vishnu.

When it was almost dusk, we went back and had our last tuktuk ride with Met back to the hotel,where we paid him in full amount.

At night, we went for another trip again back to Pub Street for dinner. On the way, we were egging and teasing Arlyn to try the happy pizza near our hotel, Lol. BTW, happy pizza is famous in this area for having marijuana as part of the food's ingredients or toppings.  

Rejected multiple times with regards to the happy pizza idea, we ended up at one of the restaurants in Pub street and had a  12USD (4USD each) worth of dinner.

We then went back to our place and made preparations again for our next stop: Phnom Penh.

I say, our trip her to Siem Reap has been my favorite so far, with all the architectural ruins and whatnot. There had been some minor issues with regards to miscommunication with our tuktuk driver and other locations we haven’t explored, but ultimately, this experience has made me want to return to this place in the future. Hopefully this time, with Ian, and with more days to spare. 

Also, another thing I’ve learned from this trip is that next time, I’ll bring a sunblock and my own water bottle for drinking.

*looks at Arlyn’s collection of empty water bottles*

Yep. :/ 

[bentchcreates]

Promdi Heart by #romanceclass Goddesses (heehee)

This came in a wonderful time as I had been having bad bouts of homesickness and what better way to travel the Philippines on a budget than to read stories set in them!

While I consider all six authors to be #romanceclass superstars, two of them I’ve had the chance to read only for the first time in this anthology collection. Because the stories are short (I want them all to be longerrrr!), I’ll be reviewing the stories on their own first, and then the whole collection after. Here we go!

1.       Only the Beginning – C.P. Santi

I love the use of Visayan words in the narration and dialogue. (probably because this this the only Filipino dialect I can understand aside from the national language! XD)

As with other CPSanti books, the inclusion of architectural details/jargon is wonderfully done, it doesn’t take away from the romance.

Alon is my spirit animal! Especially that part where he tells Andi, “Dai, don’t you think it’s a sign?”

Scooter-riding MC + Dimpled LI = <3

Text/Chat parts (plus THAT joke! XD). I was a bit wary when a chapter started doing this because it’s too “youth-speak” for me (not that I’m that old!), and past experiences with this type of story-telling tended to get too corny and cringe-y for me. This, however, was okay for me, especially when Martin started the knock-knock joke (to which, I imagined Andi rolling her eyes as she replied) and ended with Andi’s own joke! It made both of them more endearing to me.

This quote: “Happiness is a choice. Happiness is something that doesn’t just happen. It’s something that you grab on to with both hands.” I forget this sometimes, and this is probably why I need to read romance often, so I’m reminded that I have a choice.

2.       Letters to a Boy – Ines Bautista-Yao

90’s old-school snail mail got me so bad! It inspired me to send mail to friends I still knew addresses of.

This story perfectly reflected how relationships could work despite the constraints of space and time. And I’m talking about both Tin-tin and Annette’s friendship and Tin-tin and Nicolas’ romance. ;)

Horseback riding is <3!

Parents! I will forever love characters that take care of their parents!

Biggest turn-on for me is this story’s depiction of MC’s affection’s unrequited beginnings but when the tide turns, Tin-tin doesn’t foolishly fall head-on to the man he’d been pining for. She makes him work for it, and work for it he does!

Tin-tin and Nicolas’ years-long slow-burn love story set the solid foundation for the HEA towards the end!

P.S. the mention of Carrie, the white girl, inadvertently reminded me of that totally unrelated other girl who burned her entire school gym and killed hundreds of people when she was bathed in pig’s blood. Ehe.

3.       Drummer Boy – Chris Mariano

Tall, muscly musicians are my weakness. Argh

The brother’s bestfriend trope is not that unfamiliar to me, but this took me on a wild ride especially at that part where the big brother actually landed a deserving punch to his best friend somewhere along the way.

I love that Reina is a woman of agency, not just in what she wants her guy to be/to do, but in all aspects of her life, as well. She acknowledges how uncomfortable her relationship with Ben might be for her Kuya, but she doesn’t let that get in the way of what her heart is telling her.

I live for the grand gesture in this one!

Chris’ descriptions of all the festivities cemented Ati-Atihan on my list of “Things to Experience Before I turn 40”!

4.       One Certain Day – Jay E. Tria

Very relatable and nostalgic for me because our family’s big on All Saints’/All Souls’ Day celebrations. It never turned as romantic as this, though. Sayang. Heehee.

I also relate to finding old classmates recently and noting how everyone looks different, yet not-so-different, at the same time.

I love that bit about naming children ‘as if with a purpose’

‘Kiligs’ everytime Son comes back to Hagonoy, especially that part where he hands Alice an unfinished song! Eeeeee!

I also love that Alice took charge of her destiny at some point. No more waiting for the guy who’s taking forever to make a move, my god.

There is heartbreak somewhere in here, but it’s done in a mature and realistic way, and it doesn’t ruin anything for me. It makes it even more special, tbh.

5.       Once Upon A Bully – Georgette S. Gonzales

Homecoming stories are near and dear my heart, especially since I’ve been away from home for too long!

Hunky-dunky LI! <3

The Vigan experience here is special because the characters reminisce the Vigan they grew up in and the Vigan now. It perfectly captured one’s love for home that many of us take for granted.

Bridgette’s “the more you hate…” trope is on point!

Bagnettttttttttt!!!!!

6.       Back to the Stars – Agay Llanera

Another homecoming story! YASS!

The scene where Wency’s mother mentions “biskwit” tugged several heartstrings for me. I always feel for remembering the places you grew up in, but I feel MOAR for the people you grew up with!

Wency is sweet AF! His full name is funny to me, but the meaning behind it, and his sisters’ names, makes it extra special.

Leah’s changed attitude after being a City Girl for so long is dealt with realistically. It’s not a bad thing for me, it’s normal. But a sort of redemption in the end made me super happt for her. :)

I ship Leah + Wency so harddd! I mean, Leah Gurl, andami mong choices! Haha!

So there, my review for the individual stories. Hehe. For the whole anthology, my only request is for the authors to expand these stories! I’m very invested in all the characters at this point and I don’t want to part with them just yet! Haha!

Congrats, ladies! And thank you for doing this. My love for the Philippines had been reinforced with these stories and I hope other readers would find our wonderful side of the world as romantic as it is. :)

5 of 5 Stars.

Blurb:

Take a quick tour of the Philippines with six hometown love stories. Visit Jimenez, Misamis Occidental where a priest might just set you up with a man whose dimples are to die for. Visit Silay, Negros Occidental and get on a horse alongside hunky, hazel-eyed Negrense royalty. Visit Kalibo, Aklan and find yourself in the arms of a cute drummer boy who just happens to be your kuya's BFF. Visit Hagonoy, Bulacan and spend All Saint's Day next to a distracting boy who promises to write you a song. Visit Vigan, Ilocos Sur and meet the hot man you used to bully when he was a shy, scrawny boy. Visit Pundaquit, Zambales and find love in a bronzed fisherman whose eyes hold depths you'll want to explore.

Buy Links:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Promdi-Heart-Hometown-Love-Stories-ebook/dp/B06XY73Q4T/

Print Book Order Form (PH Only): http://bit.ly/promdiheartbook

About the Authors:

C. P. Santi is a Filipina author based in Tokyo, Japan. She is a wife to an engineer / indie songwriter and a full-time mom to two energetic boys. She loves cooking and baking, and enjoys feeding people, gorging on chocolate, watching J-doramas, belting it out in the karaoke box, and running around the house playing tickle tag. She also loves dreaming up stories about the people she meets.

In another life, she is also an architect and academic.

Ines Bautista-Yao is the former editor-in-chief of Candy and K-Zone magazines and a former high school and college English and Literature teacher. She is also a wife and mom and blogs about the many challenges and joys of motherhood at theeverydayprojectblog.com. She also posts story spirals on her author blog: http://theeverydayprojectblog.com/inesbautistayao-author/ You can find her on Instagram and Twitter: @inesbyao, through email: writeme@inesbyao.com, her website: inesbautistayao.com, or Facebook: www.facebook.com/inesbautistayao

Cover (Story) Girl is Chris Mariano's first published romance work, but her speculative fiction and poetry have appeared in Fully Booked's Philippine Graphic/Fiction Awards Prose Anthology, Philippine Speculative Fiction Volume 7, TAYO Literary Magazine, and Ideomancer. When she's not writing, she supports Eskritoryo Pilipinas, an organization that encourages kids to appreciate Filipino literature and culture. She divides her time between Manila and Aklan.

Jay E. Tria is inspired by daydreams, celebrity crushes, a childhood fascination of Japanese drama and manga, and an incessant itch to travel. She writes contemporary young adult and new adult romance. Sometimes, paranormal fantasy too. Visit her website www.jayetria.com. Email: jayetria@gmail.com Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Wattpad: jayetria

Georgette S. Gonzales began writing novels as romance author Edith Joaquin of My Special Valentine Tagalog (Filipino) Romance pocketbooks, published by Bookware Publishing Corp. She started writing in English and self-pubbing works in the middle of 2015. Gette works best at night, is also an editor, a public/media relations consultant, loves to cook pasta dishes and to eat caramel cake.

Agay Llanera is a freelance writer for television and video, and a published writer of children's books based in Manila, Philippines. Get in touch with her through the following: http://agayisagirl.blogspot.com https://www.facebook.com/AgayLlanera https://twitter.com/agayskee