#i really really love damage so here is my tribute

[crepesuzette2023]

I know this is a broad question, but if you had to pick, what is the most angsty Mclennon fic you’ve read so far ? You have some amazing recommendations and I’m looking to hurt my own feelings lol

Hi st-john!

Thank you for the ask! This made me think about some of my angsty forever-faves in general, sorted from subtle to savage. (Under the cut.)

If you want to skip straight (do we use this word around here?!) to the fics I personally find the most angsty: they're at the bottom of this post. I also included some dark/angsty stories here, but I didn't want to repeat any recommendations.

Your ask helped me understand what it is I find the most angst-filled in mclennon, so thank you for that. I was surprised to see so many canon-adjacent stories on my list, and I think it shows that, to me, the most potent angst doesn't come from outside threat but from their minds, as evidenced by events that actually happened. The two of them being scared of (and turned on by) the big fat x they mark on their shared psychosexual map is one of the most attractive aspects of mclennon for me—followed by the two of them taking x for granted, and being permanently damaged once they realize they lost it forever. I also like stories that show their mutual resentment, even as they're into each other (sometimes literally). Anyway, under the cut are some of my favorite angsty fics in three handy categories:

1.) Carry That Weight/Love is Strange: Their relationship is deep and doomed and addictive. These stories are all set during the Beatle-years. I'M GONNA HAUNT YOU (sexysadie): 1968. John and Paul talk about women, but really, they talk about each other. A brief story about longing in the absence of hope. WALKING CLOSE AT HAND (harmonising): John and Paul as pair of broken mirrors, haunted by death in all things. Their love as beautiful magic-turned-curse. LET ME ROLL IT (@downtothe-lastdrop): The 1968 NYC Apple Launch Divorcemoon from Paul's POV. Lively and detailed, and drenched in what it must feel like to drown in unspoken words. I THINK OF THINGS WE DID (J_deandra_j): 1965. John and Paul fuck in Austria during the filming of Help! There is something intangibly upsetting about this story: anger and frustration; lust and sex with little room for softness—but it's so good and real and raw while it lasts. This one is impossible to forget! John POV. HOW YOU WERE DIVERTED (candle_beck): Paul handles John. This is about sex as one of the things that is "just them"—an urgent and rough emergency intervention. 2.) Tributes to the Canonical Breakup. To me, the break-up is an angst-filled nightmare. Not to mention the looming day of John's murder. I love stories that explore the break-up and its aftermath with compassion. And, as painful as it is, I especially love stories that make me feel that the love was there, always (even though it wasn't enough). THROW THE WINE (@savageandwise). This one is such a classic I imagine everyone must have read it, but I can't not mention it. It was one of the first fics I read—arrow through me, and such. The more painful it gets, the more it slows down. That takes courage. YOU'RE A DREAM LOVER (@dailyhowl). John and Paul share dreams and love each other in their dreams—gloriously so—but in the end, the dream is over. The most brutal aspect of this one is seeing Paul in the end, alone. I STILL MISS SOMEONE & CLOSE THE DOOR LIGHTLY WHEN YOU GO (RosalindBeatrice). Paul and John become lovers in the 70's, but their encounters are few and far between—and in the end, darkness falls. But there's also the mercy of honesty, tears, and, yes: sex. Beautifully melancholy story about the vast distance between bright stars. ONE NIGHT IN BANGKOK (@backbenttulips). Apologies to the writer in case my "angsty" reading of this one misses the mark! Above all, this is a hot hot hot story about John and Paul hooking up in Bangkok and fucking every which way, remembering the past and seizing the present. But it's also a story about a relationship that no longer exists: their musical partnership. They destroyed the one place where their love had a home. Now, faraway hotel rooms will have to do—and there are no goodbyes or plans for a next time. (I must repeat how hot this is though.)

3.) "A day may come when the courage of Men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day."—Except it's exactly this day. Deep pain and sadness: the break-up is final; no one was saved. [Writers mentioned here: this is meant as a compliment. All of these stories are so good. It's not for nothing that I was never able to forget some lines from these stories, even though I read them very early on.]

HEAR ME, MY LOVER by @savageandwise. (Unfinished, but feels finished.) At the time the Beatles break up, Paul attempts to kill himself. He lives, but much else is destroyed. No one is wrong or right—their love and fracturing cut all possible ways. I read this as a literal translation of what the loss of the band (and John) meant for Paul, for a while.

FOUR LAST SONGS by @celebratorypenguin. This AU (four parts) explores what would have happened to the Beatles if John hadn't been the one to die first. Sentences from this one still live in my brain. The story is both sweeping and deep, and covers the POV of all four Beatles. Its truly an alternate history of the band, and it's very sad. But so, so beautiful, too.

Bonus Materials: John and Paul never became John&Paul. Everyone comes at this differently, but to me, the idea of them meeting, and falling in love, and turning away from it, is as angst-filled as the worst of the the break-up. That's why I think these two are among the best, most courageous, but also most angst-filled, of all mclennon fics: ALL THE BOYS ARE SINGING LOVE SONGS. (@dailyhowl): Paul settles down with Dot and they start a family. He and John meet again, and the spark is still there, but after a night together, the fear of starting over is greater. This magnificently written story fucked me up, and I've yet to pick up the courage to read it a second time. To quote the writer: this is a story about "the angst of living in the prison of society-approved masculinity." Yes. "Happy ending seekers need not apply." That is fair. As a happy ending seeker, I comfort my tender shipper's heart with the exhilarating fact that the real John and Paul did, in fact, become lovers become famous with the Beatles and formed a close musical partnership. THERE ARE ALWAYS FLOWERS (tarenas). This is a story I mentioned in my overall favorites post, and it's not, strictly speaking, all angst (to quote the writer: "this is about being sad and middle-aged, but it's also about being so happy and middle-aged!") It's not even J/P: it's mostly Paul/George, and their relationship is beautiful and real. Still, as a reader I was aching for the other life that could have been, and that is woven through the events of this story with incredible artistry: the Beatles, which everyone misses without knowing why. The great love between John and Paul that ended when John chose someone else. This is the magic of RPF: reality is the shadow event included for free. (Unfinished, with have all four n on-Beatles POV's. So far: George and Ringo.)

[atelierlili]

It's time take you back to the past

to play the shitty games that suck ass.

Some besties wanted a list of Everlark fics recs where Katniss and/or Peeta are blasted to the past/alternate universe to relive the events of the games to fix it, so here we are!

Time Is Never Found Again...Or Is It? (113,000 + words) by blahblahblah1703

Katniss, after talking to Snow in his rose garden, finds herself somehow back in her childhood home. She has seven months until she enters the arena for the 74th annual Hunger Games, along with the love of her life, who when she last saw him, was still struggling not to kill her, just perfect.

The pre-game everlark that happens here is 🤌. This is part one of a larger series. The sequel (which is wonderful as well) can be found here. This is the series that got me into this rabbit hole.

Afterburn ( 104,000+ words) by BlueMaple

Katniss Everdeen-Mellark goes to the woods surrounding New Appalachia, a.k.a the former District Twelve, on the morning of the fiftieth anniversary of the final Reaping of the Hunger Games. There, she is literally waylaid by her own past, and wakes in the past, six weeks before Primrose was first Reaped. Alone, grieving, terrified, and without a clue on how she got there (and then), she realizes that it will be impossible for her- on every level- to simply live through events as they transpired in her personal future. With no way to return her to that future, she is nevertheless determined to get back to her own party - hopefully with a lot less damage and fewer crucial casualties along the way.

This is apart of the All Sorrows Less series, which is still being updated. It's filled with wonderful side characters, mindblowing twists, a baby I will kill people for and GILF Katniss, what more can I say?

Second Burn ( 127,000+ words) by carnationhes

Katniss wonders if things could be different if she got a second chance. And then she gets one. This morning she wakes up back in District 12 after Peeta's warning of the bombing on Thirteen.

Have you read Second burn? Why haven't you read it yet? You should read it. It's amazing. Literally makes my brain chemistry tingle. I think this is most accurate depiction of a Katniss being blasted to the past with no meta explanation why. It's sooo soo soo good. I'm on my knees please read it and please read the sequel Ignite as well. This series is so underated please.

over and over (lost again) (13,000+ words) by TeaBrigadier

I died in the Hunger Games. It isn’t even the first time it’s happened. I’ve died in the Hunger Games five times now

This is a very self contained time loop where Katniss continuously relieves the first games until she gets it right. I know it doesn't really fit the theme, but this one makes my feel happy feelings and i wanted to recommend something that's isn't so long so I'm adding it anyway. Deathloops are fun!

Ongoing:

Catching sparks (19k words) (Last update 26 Feb 2024) by Silver_Cleo

The time when 23 year old Katniss and Peeta get transported from their home in what had once been Victor's Village of District 12, and into the bodies of their much younger selves, who have just woken up from exiting the arena of the 74th Hunger Games.

Here Katniss and Peeta get traveled to the past to the point where they just win their games. It's a great WIP. I love Everlark working together and being cute + humanizing the 74th tributes and their family <3

I'm probably missing a few, but these are my favourite ones so far. As much as I love the trope, I know it's a monster to take on from a writing standpoint so props to the writers!

I hope you enjoy them <3 There's nothing I love more than shining a light on amazing fics new and old. If you have recs of your own, please send them my way. I love this trope so much haha

@bbrooklynbabe @nightlocked-in @waywardangel-wilds

[evesaintyves]

trick or treat 👻🎃❤️

thank you @whinlatter 💕

you get a snippet of my shitty first draft of the Beasts tribute fic i started. for non-whinlatters, Beasts is her absolutely astonishing Ginny & the Weasley family fic that follows her postwar seventh year at Hogwarts, intertwined with glimpses of her development as a child & teenager, and there's a brief mention of a care facility where recipients of the Dementor's kiss live out the rest of their lives. Highly recommend this fic - it's just such a rich portrayal of the whole Weasley family, the fraught rebuilding process after the war, and Ginny's emotional & intellectual life.

tw: illness, death, and very unpleasant hospital stuff

this idea of what happens to people after they've been kissed by a dementor really spoke to me for a few reasons - i couldn't help but think about some of the things i've seen in my professional life. i work in a healthcare specialty i can't really name without potentially doxing myself (it's a small world) and early in my career i occasionally participated in testing to determine death by neurologic criteria - essentially, flat lines on an eeg, which is a really terrible thing to see if you know what you're looking at. it's a difficult thing to even comprehend, especially for a parent - that a child who was splashing in the pool a few hours ago, now seemingly asleep, will not wake up, is damaged so profoundly that they they will never take another unassisted breath. i also regularly worked with people who were incarcerated in the state prison system. it taught me a lot about - let's keep it short and just say inhumanity: in the american healthcare system and especially where it intersects with the criminal justice system, and, unfortunately, in some of my colleagues and the way they cared for their incarcerated patients.

in my current role i work with a lot of patients who just aren't going to get better, who are entirely dependent on caregivers to keep them alive and maintain their quality of life. and it is - i hope you'll understand when i say this i say it as someone who is devoted and privileged to do it - often difficult and demoralizing work. for families and for staff.

my youngest sister was one of these people: she suffered a hemorrhage in infancy which resulted in serious damage to her brain. she never spoke, walked, fed or bathed herself. it was difficult to know what she understood, perceived, felt, wanted. she was a beautiful, calm, sweet-natured child who was easy to love; not every family in our position is so fortunate. it was also easy for us to project on her an interior life that may or may not have really been there, which was a great comfort to my mother. but her daily care needs were enormous, taxing, frustrating, and her inevitable deterioration and death were devastating to witness.

obviously i don't really want to equate people with brain injuries and whatever other special needs with people in the hp universe who no longer have souls - that's part of the reason i've struggled with this fic. there are a lot of potentially-unanswerable questions about the humanity and interiority of victims of soul-removal in this fictional context, but i think the only responsible practice for a clinician working with such patients would be to assume that they still feel, experience, and need what any other person who cannot care for themselves would. including not just nutrition, hygiene, etc. but also company and touch and positive regard. and that whatever crime, even atrocity, they might have committed is irrelevant to my duty to them as a caregiver. but that is easier to say than to do, consistently, every day, at home or in a medical facility, and i know from experience that it won't always happen that way.

anyway, if for some reason you have read this far, here's an excerpt from the story, complete with first-draft placeholders where i decided to rethink some dumb on-the-nose character names, lol. it needs to be rewritten from scratch, honestly. it's set at the end of GoF, when Madame Pomfrey is tasked with removing the house-elf Winky from Barty Crouch, Jr.'s side after he has received the kiss, and I've decided for the purposes of this silly little fic that she has experience in the care facility where he'll end up.

working title is My Beautiful Dead Friends.

Minerva saw the whole horrible thing and it was all over her face, what it had done to her. Poppy has never seen it happen, and neither had [supervisor], which seemed to irritate him; he'd read about it in books. The soul emits a colourless glow as it exits, he said, visible for an instant before it is consumed. For some time in the eighteenth century the Kiss was performed in public, on a platform raised above Diagon Alley. People would bring their children. There were woodcuts depicting the moment, dementors in swirling curlicues, the bound hands and dark mouth of the convicted, and the soul, represented as a star or sometimes a tiny naked man, caught in the moment of transit. It was striking how carefully, how delicately, the little soul was etched, with lines of light coming off it. Even the soul of a murderer, a beautiful shining thing. Minerva had marched Barty to the infirmary dozens of times in his schooldays. Sometimes because Horace wasn't fond of the long walk, nor of standing up to his own students, but often because it was one of her Gryffindors who'd done it to him. He was there all the time, hexed, cursed, punched in the face. It seemed, at first, simply the lot of the delicate-featured son of the head of law enforcement to be regularly trounced. He gave at least as good as he got and sometimes there'd be an entire queue of students behind him covered in boils, missing or extra limbs, pinching their nostrils to stop the bats from flapping out. Barty might chuckle through a mouth of blood while she saw to him, or he might writhe and moan as if in agony; Poppy had a suspicion that it depended on whether there was a Hogmeade weekend or an exam coming up. It wasn't only the usual interhouse skirmishes with Barty—Once, he limped to the hospital wing on his own, so badly beaten she had to put him out for a while and repair his perforated intestines with dozens of tiny movements of the tip of her wand. When he came to, she asked him what had happened, who had done this. He grinned at her with half his teeth gone. "Jusht the cosht of doing businesh, Madame," he said. Bubbles of red on his lips as he spoke. She found out later from Filius that he'd scammed a bunch of Ravenclaws into a sort of pyramid scheme, buying and reselling junk from Zonko's to each other. She was sure he didn't need the money: his robes were clasped with real-silver fasteners in the shapes of snakes. His mother came to take him home for the weekend after that one. He pressed the side of his face into the bosom of her robes and sobbed pitifully while Poppy left them to it behind a screen. On his way out the door, later, he waved to her, like, see you soon! Now he looks content, drowsy, like he's just had a meal. It was always hard to square the faces of the Kissed with what they'd done. Barty could almost be his seventh-year self, resting in the lull of a potion—though he might have already been a murderer by then, she realised. His hands, which had once aimed waves of pain so brutal they'd evicted poor Alice and Frank Longbottom from their own minds, are laced together at rest on his stomach. His thumbnail picks occasionally at the wand-callus on his forefinger. Some unlucky trainee healer will be alarmed by that one day. The Kissed do those little things. Their eyes follow you, sometimes, across the room. They smack their lips when they swallow the bubblemint-flavoured nutrition potion. They sit up in bed. "Look—he's doing it—I've told you—" Llanzo's mother had once cried, summoning the whole staff to come and see. She was tickling Llanzo's ribs with her fingers, and his lips had pulled back, his chest was jerking with spasms of laughter, no sound but a sort of clicking in his throat. "It's a reflex," [supervisor] told her. Llanzo's younger brother slumped in his bedside chair and stared sourly at his mother. She got angry, understandably, and shouted a bit before storming out.

"A rat will make a rhythmic sound if you tickle its belly," [supervisor] told Poppy in private. "You can call it laughter, if you like."

Llanzo was the only one who ever got visitors. He'd been accused of leading a nine-year-old witch away from her parents at Gray's beach and leaving her face-down, strangled, in the shallow mud of the Thames. His mother had given an alibi, which wasn't enough to keep him from being arrested, and he'd been shipped off to Azkaban to be held pending trial. As they'd approached the jagged rocks of the island he'd broken his bonds somehow and heaved himself over the side of the boat. Escape, suicide, or just some motiveless panic, it wasn't clear, but when they'd caught him and hauled him onshore the Dementors had fallen on him at once. He was seventeen, on his summer holidays. Lying in bed on the ward a year later he still looked like a child. Poppy wasn't sentimental, as a rule, but at the end of shift after those visits she'd sometimes have to have a little cry in the car park before she apparated home. "If you ask me I think she's on to something," Catherine told her once, in low tones, eyes on [supervisor]'s office door. "I've seen things. The way they look up at you. You can leave them on the pot for an hour, they won't do a thing, then as soon as they're back on the bed, haven't even had time to get a nappy out—" she made a squelching sound in her cheek. "Pure spite, I swear."

His mother came back the following week, brother in tow, and sat with him reading from Quidditch Through the Ages, turning the book to show him the moving illustrations. Sometimes his gaze moved to land on them and sometimes it didn't. "He was a Chaser," she told Catherine, who'd come to give him a bath. "Fast as anything. His Dad and I were both hopeless on a broom, but he's—" She swallowed hard. Llanzo was smiling faintly, as he often did when he got his bath. His breath came in soft vocal sounds that were almost sighs. "—he's my superstar," she finished. When they left, she made his brother say goodbye to him. Poppy was scrubbing up at the bedside sink to do his skin integrity assessment. Llanzo's brother gripped his hand, and leaned down as if to kiss him on the cheek. "Fucking die," he whispered, lips almost touching Llanzo's motionless face.

[kald-dal-art]

we would love to hear more about your thg victor headcanons if you would like to share them :)

CAN I? Well here you go headcanons about the prev victors in the victor alliance (+ some of the careers as well)

Cashmere was pretty certain she was gonna get reaped for the 75th games so she begged that Gloss did not volunteer for the games to "protect" her. Did not matter because he got reaped along side her

Enobaria hates meat. Is pretty much a vegetarian in her private life, really only eat meat for the camera and the public eye

Beetee miscalculated how many tributes were left so he was in genuine shock when the trumpets played after he electrocuted the remaining tributes

Beetee also have the record for the most kills done at once in the games

Wiress adopted a cat after her victory, and have gotten more over the years.

She also pulled a similar stunt as Beetee, but she ended up getting electrocuted herself which left some pretty bad brain damage

Mags is the most successful mentor in the games and have the most tributes she mentoring ended up being future victors

She has lost a son and two grandchildren to the games.

Finnick's mom got killed after he refused the Capitol's request the first time, which is why he got extra close to Mags afterwards.

This one is from the movies but love that Finnick has a necklace that Annie made for him so he always have a part of her with him in the Capitol 🥺

I like to think the Morphlings names are Maureen and Cassius, they call each other Reen and Cass :)

Maureen was Cassius mentor during his game which is why they won using similar technique with camouflage. Difference was that Maureen would make traps and Cassius would sneak up on people. when it came to their kills.

They have made a lot of paintings over the years, they usually give them to each other or the other victors in 6 as gifts.

Johanna cuts her own hair, she does not trust anyone else to do it

Johanna was the oldest one of her siblings

Blight got a bad case of Hemophobia (fear of blood) after his game which is why he freaked out in the blood rain

Blight still works at the lumber industry after his victory, just to get some semblance of normality after his games.

Woof was Cecelia's mentor during her game and they were super close after her victory. Her kids basically see him as grandpa figure

Cecelia named her kids after her allies in the games

Woof was a beast during his games, killing some of the other tributes through brute force. He was nicknamed the Mad Dog by the capitol afterwards

Seeder was the only victor in the 75th game that did not have any direct kill in her previous game (and Peeta I guess if you don't count the district 8 girl and/or Foxface)

Chaff and Haymitch have kissed at least once. Were they sober or drunk when they did no one knows

Chaff volunteered for his old mentor. He already knew about the plan to break of the arena and thought he had a better chance at surviving until that happens. (it still breaks my heart how close Chaff was to make it)

[valveorangebox]

RVB 19 SPOILERS

My thoughts on the season

The treatment of Washington in this season is disgusting to me personally. Not just because I’m a Washington fan but because it just feels like they’re always shitting on him being “mentally ill” and brain damaged. Having him being talking to an entire hallucination of doc is so disrespectful to both characters. It’s just out of left field and unsatisfying.

Everything felt rushed. Carolina and Tex should’ve had at least one exchange. That’s her fucking mom!!! They had beef!!! And now they’re just working together?

They did things they thought would be cool. And it was! But that’s all it was. I wanted these characters to be happy at the end and I suppose that was too much to ask.

I wanted to every character to get a good ending. But like. No one did? Except Tex ig. She got her boy failure and to die. G-d Speed to her.

Things I liked:

ONE WAS THERE!!!!!!

I also really loved caboose here.

The Monty tribute during the cliff fight scene did make me nearly cry. I miss Monty so much it’s unreal. As someone who was obsessed with rwby when I was younger it hurts in a strange way.

[tailsbeth-writes]

Thanks for tagging me @duchessdepolignaca03! So this is my first one of these actually, thanks to timezones it wasn't Wednesday when I got tagged but nonetheless here we go.

So I don't have WIP excerpts right now, I'm a 'gonna write a fic to post straight after' kind of gal (this will change with a long project next year though) so instead I thought I'd post some bits from my fanfic idea dump plus some og fiction WIPs.

-The Prince & He (Working Title - coming 2024)

The Prince & Me AU for Red White & Royal Blue. Alex is at UT and Henry decides to study in America, he tells his family it's to find himself but really it's so he can get away from his overbearing royal responsibilities. (Looking for betas for this btw!)

Potential RWRB fic ideas:

-it's Alex & Bea who have cakegate and after damage control, the queen thinks they should start a courtship... Alex & Henry have other ideas though (want to explore gendered differences, the damage control would be so different with Bea and I think I'd like to make her asexual & explore that within a structure of tradition)

-5+1: times that Alex was clearly being hit on by a dude but was completely oblivious & Henry is obviously the one (🥹)

- Potential song fic - Wasia Project: U Deserve - Nothing But Thieves: Do You Love Me Yet? - Liz Lawrence: I'd Rather

Original Fiction: Decompose

Near future London has been segregated by means of a new medical test, each sector representing a level of productivity. After going through the kitted out MRI machine, twin Harry Thorpe is wrongly moved from his comfortable life in the highly skilled sector where technology rules and excellence is expected, to the unskilled sector which seems stuck in the past but with much more variety.

Between alien customs and new romances with classmates, he discovers his own power hungry mum is trying to bring in the One Child Policy and that is only the beginning of her plans. Harry and a group of rebel social workers and civil servants might be the only thing that can stop her.

This is my first novel, it's young adult sci-fi, focuses on equality, chronic illness & disabilities, diversity, government corruption, found family, rebellion. It's got a diverse cast led by Harry, who is a soft pansexual bookworm with a sweet tooth. I'm currently editing & looking for beta readers for the next draft.

When You Get The Chance

My next book project is still very early days but it's a very queer holiday romance.

Coral 'Corey' Henderson is on holiday in Majorca for 2 weeks, her sister missed the start of the holiday leaving her alone. Enter Alice Ortiz, a member of an Abba tribute act performing at the hotel.

All of Abba Nice Day are queer, Corey is a ginger plus size Scottish lesbian event planner, Alice is a bisexual Geordie (half Spanish) who loves singing but also wants to go to uni to study politics. This book will explore family dynamics, dementia, biphobia, body image, protesting & finding your purpose. I'll do a call out for betas when we get to it!

Congrats if you made it through all this! I'm tagging @cl4r3m0nt @heybuddy-drabbles @candyspandemonium @firenati0n @nontoxic-writes & whoever else wants to do this! Tag me, I'm always looking for writer pals 🥰

(20/12/2023)

[grizzlyofthesea]

My FNAF Movie Experience

I was so excited to see the FNAF movie on opening night. I had my mom with me, we had our snacks, and of course, my costume:

I'd been waiting for this for over 8 years. The hype was real--and not just for me. I only saw one other person in full costume (dressed as Afton), but plenty of others brought their plushies and wore their best merch.

Did the movie live up to this massive anticipation?

For me, yes. It has flaws, but as a tribute to the FNAF fanbase, I adore it.

LOTS OF SPOILERS BELOW. PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK.

There were so many nods to the fandom. Here are the ones I can remember off the top of my head:

Dream Theory appearing as a book Mike reads

Chica's Magic Rainbow being the mascot/logo of an ice cream place at the mall

The Balloon Boy jumpscares. Annoying (but surprisingly effective) every time, just like the real BB.

Afton (as Steve) over the phone telling Mike, "See you on the flipside," referencing the "Phone Guy is Purple Guy" theory

Sparky/Fetch appearing as a spare suit

CoryxKenshin making a cameo as the taxi driver (My theater FREAKED OUT at this.)

Matpat making a cameo as the waiter at the diner, even saying his famous line, "But hey, that's just a theory." (Again, the audience was very pleased.)

The aforementioned diner being called Sparky's

TLT's FNAF song playing during the end credits

The animatronics were, of course, stunning. I mean, it's the Jim Henson company. Of course they were going to be awesome. (Oh, and Bonnie gets a plaid tie instead of just plain red. Adorable.) The actors inside the costumes did really well, too, mimicking their slow, deliberate, robotic movements. Except Foxy. He wasn't played by a suit actor at all, probably because of his skinny legs. So for that, massive props to the puppeteers. Oh, and his little "dum diddly dum" song? Kellen Goff sings it here. Amazing work from Mr. Goff as always.

I know some people were disappointed by the lack of on-screen gore, but honestly, I like how the violence was handled. FNAF has always been relatively blood-free, so it's only fitting. And honestly? That silhouette of Freddy biting Max in half was chilling, and I think it wouldn't have been nearly as good if we had seen it in full.

The horror as a whole was on the tame side, but it was still enough to spook my mom. Take that for what you will.

The Balloon Boy jumpscares were hilarious. So was Mr. Cupcake. The fact that Mr. Cupcake was the biggest threat out of the main animatronics was kind of awesome. Goofy? Heck yeah. But it's so silly that, at least for me, it loops back to being awesome.

Mike and Abby had an adorable sibling dynamic, and I am SO GLAD that Vanessa didn't end up as a love interest for Mike. Mike communicating with the children's spirits and taking damage from them through his dreams isn't something I expected, but I found it interesting. The Golden Freddy kid being the de facto leader of the missing children (and a manipulative little troll) was very fitting, too.

Art, specifically children's drawings, was a notable focus of the movie; the drawings seemed to symbolize communication, imagination, and escapism. I thought this was a creative way to incorporate the children's drawings that we've seen in the background since the first FNAF game.

Matthew Lillard as William Afton/Spring Bonnie/Springtrap doesn't get enough screentime, but he absolutely kills it when he's in the spotlight. I just wish there was more of him. Same goes for the animatronics.

Overall, while this isn't a perfect film, I love it so, so much. I can't wait to see what the future holds in terms of sequels, too; at the very end of the credits, "My Grandfather's Clock" plays, and a Speak 'n' Spell spells out "C O M E F I N D M E." FNAF 2 and the Puppet are at the very least being teased!

[whitchygaythem]

Pred teases prey, prey gets spooped, pred immediately goes into damage control mode. ✨Boom✨, there’s ur prompt bud.

I think I went too light on the damage control thing, but thank you for the great prompt!!

Mavis stretched, relaxing with her hands behind her head, flipping her shark- patterned tail lazily as she warmed her dark skin in the sun. Their eyes were closed as they began to nod off in the warm summer sun. 

"Mav! Mavis wake up! I'm down here!"

Mavis glanced down to see a human jumping up and down on the beach, waving her skinny arms for Mavis's attention, her long twin braids almost touching the sand.

"Hello Blair." Mavis sunk deeper into the bay, resting her head on her arms on the sand. Blair immediately scrambled up Mavis's arm, plopping herself down on Mavis's elbow. "Have you brought me tribute again?" Blair laughed, then smothered it. 

"If you mean food then sorry, but no. My roommate was getting on my ass about all the herring in the fridge" Blair twirled one of her braids in her small thin fingers. "Sorry Mav, I'll try to bring something else next time. Mavis glared at Blair. 

"Don't worry about making up for this time, I know someone who can fill in." Mavis growled softly to illustrate her point. Blair patted her on the nose.

"Ah yes, you're so very scary and big. I'm so terrified of you." Mavis would have loved to hear the pleading, but something told her blair was being "sarcastic". That felt even worse. Mavis's name used to strike fear into the hearts of mer-kind. She was the terror of the bays, the Devourer of tuna, pick any title. They all showed how feared she was. Then this little… Blair came to her a few months ago for a science project, A PROJECT! Mavis had lost too much respect during her break. She sat up as well as she could while still keeping her tail in the water. Blair tumbled off her arm and onto the sand. She yelled quickly as Mavis's hands thudded down on either side of her, with Mavis herself leaning into her, pressing her face against Blair's shaking body.

"Hehe, Mav, I get it… you can be really scary sometimes… now back up an- and let me g- UGH-'' Mavis cut her off with a full body lick, pushing Blair into the sand.  She lifted Blair up, she was pinched between her pointer finger and thumb. Mavis stretched her jaw, opening her mouth wider and wider until she felt a sucking pop and Blair's eyes went wide. Yes, this is what she wanted, to be treated with fear! And respect! She dropped Blair onto her outstretched tongue. Blair slid right down, and Mavis swallowed quickly, greedy for the weight of prey in her gut. She sighed and laid back down, just like she did before Blair showed up. It was perfect. Just like old times.

…

…

Something was wrong. The pleading, the crying, it didn't fill her with pride like before. Mavis shut her eyes again, trying to ignore Blair's cries and the voice of regret in her mind. But once Blair stopped fighting, and barely shifted, Something dropped in Mavis.

"Tribute- Blair. Are you alright?"

"No. And you know that. So just leave me alone and let me die."

"Blair-"

"No. Leave me alone."

Mavis huffed "Blair, you are safe. I swallowed you for my storage stomach, not for food. You are not food."

Blair was quiet, so Mavis kept talking.

"I meant to - no, I should have told you it was safe instead of trying to scare you. I-im soory"

"... I'm not bringing you anything next time, understand? And ask first before you do anything like this."

"Understood."

"....... could you swallow my backpack? I have an essay due…"

[moorishflower]

hi, sorry for crashing in here every once in a while, would you share some of your writing process with us? I don't know how you manage to consistently put out god tier writing so regularly and would like to know if it's not too much trouble?

my dear my darling you can crash through these walls whenever you want just absolutely rip through 'em <3

So I always find it a little bit funny when the topic of writing process comes up because I really don't consider myself to have one, or rather, not a particularly VIABLE one

But the process goes kind of like this:

Have idea (idea is usually had while lying in bed trying to sleep, or while in the shower, or sometimes as the result of a prompt from my personal server or from an ask here)

Go to work the next day and absolutely SLAM KEYBOARD during my breaks. I have ADD and I am not medicated for it because I am largely well-functioning and I've previously had some uhhhh unfortunate side effects from Adderall, but one of the results of that is that I write fastest and best when I'm under pressure to do so. A manufactured time limit is the easiest way to trigger this, so I have a little bluetooth keyboard that I can connect to my phone, and in my spare time at work I write. I usually do like. 2,000 words this way? Sometimes more sometimes less.

It is important to note here that I used to do metadata entry for a living, a job which required me to have an insanely high wpm type speed, so at my fastest I was clocking somewhere around 89 to 92wpm with like a 75% accuracy. I am at this point probably typing 70-75wpm with a significantly higher accuracy (have not measured in a while, so this is a rough guess). What this means is that I type fast and hard and have broken keyboards, so I can and do fuckin SLAM words out, in very short periods of time.

When I get home, mostly what I want to do is write? It gives me a lot of joy to do so, and so at home I usually work on smaller projects, or answering prompts or asks. In between I play Pokemon or read or play with my cats (I got Pokemon Violet, and Shroodle is my one true love).

So kinda the unfortunate thing for me is that my writing and my reading brain are connected by some mysterious psychic link, so it's hard for me to switch back and forth between them. It means I don't have a lot of attention to give to other fic when I'm caught by an idea, which SUCKS ASS because everyone is writing a TON of really cool and good stuff. I suspect i will go through a hibernation phase at some point and catch up on like a year of fic in 1 month l o l

As for the quality of my writing I don't have a lot to say for that! I have a bachelor's in English and World Literature, which might contribute to just. Basic understanding of the flow of stories. But I mostly don't do editing, I've never taken classes on writing outside of what I took in college, and honestly I think any quality of my writing is more of a tribute to all the fantastic things I've read. I tend to absorb little bits and pieces of other writing styles as I go, so there are concepts and turns of phrase buried in my subconscious going back 20 years to when I first started reading fic. basically I turned imposter syndrome into my identity! (j/k j/k)

idk my friend judging the quality of my own writing is difficult, but if it resonates with other people, if it gives you feelings, if it makes you laugh or makes you horny or makes you think, that's all I can ever really ask. I have to try not to think about it much beyond that because i try to keep aware of my self esteem issues and hyperfixating on whether people "like" me is a problem, sometimes! though thankfully one I am often aware of, and can take steps to mitigate.

so like, the short answer to your question i guess is: have a cool job, regularly give yourself wrist damage, be feral about words. and write. just keep writing. the more you write, the easier it gets, the faster it gets, and the better the words feel!

[ryttu3k]

The 2022 playlist, favourite albums, and thoughts on Pink Floyd!

Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Fanfare for the Common Man

Hot Chocolate - Every 1's a Winner

The Whitlams - Cambridge Three

The Whitlams - Man About A Dog

The Whitlams - Sancho In Love

Florence + the Machine - King

Florence + the Machine - My Love

Florence + the Machine - Daffodil

Zdob și Zdub and Frații Advahov - Trenulețul

Sweet - Ballroom Blitz

Pink Floyd - Echoes

Electric Light Orchestra - Eldorado Overture & Can't Get It Out Of My Head

Pink Floyd - Shine On You Crazy Diamond

Pink Floyd - Sheep

Queen - Face It Alone

Pink Floyd - Comfortably Numb

Måneskin - La Fine

Favourite album releases: The Whitlams - Sancho; Florence + the Machine - Dance Fever

Favourite old albums: Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here; Animals

...Godspeed You! Black Emperor did have a 'new' album release when their very first album came out. It, um, was not good, haha. Another new release, single this time, Face It Alone by Queen, which was recorded for The Miracle but never released at the time. Gives me definite emotions. For Måneskin, three singles, Supermodel, The Loneliest, and La Fine. Supermodel is a bop, The Loneliest is absolute angst, but none hit me like La Fine did. New album out in a month!

But really, this year has belonged to Pink Floyd, much how last year belonged to Måneskin (as a new favourite), and GY!BE and Queen (listening to their whole discography). More similar to GY!BE, in that I heard both Lift Your Skinny Fists and Dark Side Of The Moon at roughly the same time and they both instantly rocketed to the top of my 'favourite albums of all time' list.

Here are some thoughts!

Rating all the albums, and notable favourites/now in my regular rotation:

The Dark Side of the Moon: 9.5/10 (all of it it's flawless. But if I have to pick, Brain Damage/Eclipse, Us & Them, Time, The Great Gig in the Sky, and Breathe (In The Air). Yes I realise that’s more than half the album)

Wish You Were Here: 9/10 (Shine On You Crazy Diamond, Welcome To The Machine)

Animals: 9/10 (Sheep, Dogs)

Meddle: 8.5/10 (Echoes, One Of These Days)

The Wall: 8.5/10 (Comfortably Numb, Hey You)

The Endless River: 8.5/10 (all of it as a unit tbh)

A Momentary Lapse of Reason: 8.5/10 (Signs of Life, Sorrow, Yet Another Movie)

The Division Bell: 8.5/10 (Cluster One, High Hopes)

Ummagumma (live section): 8.5/10

A Saucerful of Secrets: 8/10 (Let There Be More Light)

Obscured By Clouds: 7.5/10 (Obscured By Clouds)

The Final Cut: 7.5/10

The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn: 7/10

More: 7/10 (Cymbaline)

Atom Heart Mother: 6.5/10

Ummagumma (studio section): 5.5/10

Top five tracks in approximate order: Shine On You Crazy Diamond, all of Dark Side of the Moon, Comfortably Numb, Echoes, Sheep.

(Also watched the Pulse concert, no thoughts only brain keyboardsmash, and listened to the orchestrated Us & Them tribute thing. Next on the list is Delicate Sound of Thunder, Waters’ The Wall, and the Echoes album.)

So like. As a general rule, not quite as high ratings as something like GY!BE, which I all rated super high (although in fairness, Pink Floyd has a lot more albums). It also feels kind of odd rating, say, The Wall 9/10, but I only regularly listen to Comfortably Numb (and The Wall part 2, which is the only track I had heard prior to listening). I guess because the whole thing works as a singular unit? I'm not sure, honestly.

Definitely most attached to the 70s era, almost straight through (starting from Meddle in 1971, Atom Heart Mother didn't super grab me). Which makes sense! The first album, the one that got me into them, was Dark Side of the Moon, so it was that classic 70s prog rock sound I was most drawn to. The earlier stuff is still... I guess developing towards that? I was listening chronologically, and Echoes, from Meddle, was the first time I really went, "...oh yeah, that is absolutely the Pink Floyd of DSotM."

I did really enjoy Division Bell, although there were definite 'this was made in the 90s' moments, and The Endless River tends to get panned but I actually super enjoyed it. Kind of gave me a Songs of Distant Earth-era Mike Oldfield vibe (that's not an insult, I love Mike Oldfield). Actually, yeah, the later Gilmour-led stuff did hit the spot, more than the earlier content and Final Cut did.

Been a rad experience, and they're absolutely getting added to 'favourite band' status (along with GY!BE, Florence + the Machine, Queen, Måneskin, and the Whitlams. What is my music taste? We just don't know).

And now to listen to Wish You Were Here for the zillionth time because Shine On You Crazy Diamond owns my entire soul <3

[sailorstarr-chan4]

My Heart Torn Asunder - a Vampire Knight fic

Posted also: ff.net and AO3 Words: 1,945 Rated: K+ Genre: Romance (background) & Angst Setting: Yuki-centric, the beginning of volume 11, a year after the manga's main events.

This isn't really a fic so much as a rambling train of thought, but I suppose it's also a tribute to Yuki's complicated feelings. Poor babygirl gets way too much shit from the fandom...

Note: Please do NOT comment with hate towards any characters or ships! I am drawing from canon here, and tried to be as fair as possible to Yuki's feelings for both Kaname and Zero, even with a slight emphasis on Zero/Yuki. The point is that Yuki loves and wants them BOTH, and this is her grieving that. That is all.

~~~

Time moved more slowly in a room with no windows. The daily calendar on her desk was the only indicator of how many days, weeks, months have passed. And yet, even as the ripped off calendar’s pages began to inch closer and closer to the first anniversary since she moved in here, Yuki could hardly believe it. It felt like she had only arrived yesterday... but also that she had been inside for an eternity. 

Perhaps, she often pondered, whenever she would eventually step outside, the world would have already turned to dust. She would have outlived humanity’s place on this planet, outlived life itself. All her old friends, their countless descendants... gone. All of her vampire allies withered away. 

Only her left. And Kaname. And the few other Purebloods left. 

When she thought of it that way, immortality sounded awfully lonely. She couldn’t imagine how any mortal could envy such a wasted existence.

But then, things always seemed bleak while being trapped inside for her first year returned to a vampiric state. 

It was for her own safety. 

She knew. Of course, she knew. 

She was still a baby by vampire standards, and the lingering damage caused by her late, mad Uncle Rido would mark her as an exquisite meal for other vampires out there. 

But sometimes, Yuki wondered if it was quite necessary to lock her up. In a room with no windows. The place she was born in and lived in during her original vampire life. 

After all, she was older now. She could have an escort or something. She’d rather be guarded while walking outside in the fresh air than be all alone inside, with the only company from Aido and Ruka for lessons, and they only visited a few days per week, and Kaname, of course, for feeding and bedtime. 

She wondered if goldfish were better off than her; at least, they had a glimpse of the outside world. 

Yes, she had access to the rest of the mansion, technically, but she was nearly always encouraged to stay in her room. Besides, it wasn’t like she had any chance of seeing the outside world anyway: all the windows were boarded up. 

Left alone for hours on end, Yuki’s feelings and thoughts festered in ways she never knew was possible during her decade-long human life. Resentment, anger, bitterness, even hatred; these were emotions she never actively felt as a human girl. Not that humans never felt that way, of course, but rather, the circumstances of her life, the kind people surrounding her, ensured that the wool remained firmly over her eyes. 

Sometimes she wondered if this sudden engulfment of negative emotions was part of the sin of being a vampire, or the sins she unwittingly committed as a human coming back to haunt her. 

And of course, by those sins, she meant Zero. 

Zero... 

How ironic. Living as a human, it was Kaname’s name that sent her heart pounding away painfully, with an intensity that was both desperate longing and utter despair. 

Living as a vampire, it was Zero’s name that caused this reaction now. 

Lying on the floor, staring up at the ceiling’s pattern that she had memorized long ago, day after day, Yuki allowed herself to indulge in memories. It was wrong, of course, considering she was living under Kaname’s roof, as Kaname’s betrothed and lover, but the slow hours that trickled away day by day were driving her mad. And besides, it wasn’t like thinking about Zero wasn’t punishment enough. 

Her indulgence was also her pain. How fitting for a vampire. 

Like drinking blood, draining the life from another body, it was a pleasure and an agony that was irresistible. 

She loved thinking about Zero and loathed it at the same time. 

She longed for those innocent days while also grateful to be unveiled at last. 

She even dared to fantasize, trapped alone in that windowless room, of how things might have been. If Zero and her were actual lovers, if only for a brief time, if he had been her first, if she had taken the steps to push their attraction to a deeper level... 

Sometimes, she even dared to wonder where she’d be right now if she did not choose to stay with Kaname... 

But every time those thoughts dared to whisper in the back of her mind, Yuki shook herself out of them. 

No. No. No, she would not allow regret to haunt her. 

Let the sins of human-Yuki punish vampire-Yuki for the pain she caused both men. But she would never, ever regret her decision... 

I will not regret my choice... 

Whenever those words crept up in her mind, Yuki would gasp sharply, clutching her chest as she curled up in a ball in a vain attempt to get rid of the pain. But she only endured it, endured the agony of her foolish, naïve human actions coming back to beat herself bloody. 

The most forbidden memory of her human life always betrayed her.  

Shortly after Zero had awakened to his vampire senses, human-Yuki had committed a forbidden act. The most taboo of all human-vampire relations. She had offered her blood to him. 

After that, it became their dirty little secret, one that only a few knew of by intuition (Kaname, Headmaster Cross, Hanabusa Aido, and Yagari-sensei). She gave her blood to Zero countless times, and every time it hurt her, frightened her, but also secretly pleased her. 

She had been helping him, giving him a thread of hope to survive and retain his sanity, because Zero mattered to her. 

But then she awakened herself as a vampire. She got her original memories back. 

And suddenly, her perceived kindness became a cruelty. 

She tried lying to herself and to Zero, claiming that offering her blood was for herself, and perhaps, in a twisted way, it was. After all, if helping Zero meant clearing her conscience, that was inherently selfish, right? 

And yet.... and yet.... 

Now that the thirst for blood had entered her own veins, Yuki was faced with a terrible, frightening realization. 

No matter how many times she fed off Kaname, no matter how much she desired his blood, it was not enough. 

It was never remotely enough. 

Her body craved Zero’s blood. 

Just as her heart craved for his--- 

No!

But no matter how much she fought it, no matter how she beat herself to an emotional pulp, that desire never faded. It was sickening, really, that her genuine terror of vampires and blood during her human years, would be the very thing she was, the very essence of her existence. 

And yet, her fears had never stopped her from giving herself to Zero. Nor did it stop her from longing for Kaname. 

Fate was too cruel. 

Her human life hurt Kaname, just as her vampire life hurt Zero. 

It was not fair. 

It was not fair!

Even her most treacherous thought of “what if she chose Zero?” didn’t give her a happier alternative. On one hand, Zero would have probably granted her more freedom. She’d probably help him hunt Level-E vampires, they’d go shopping together, and even drink each other's blood. It would be like old times, only vampiric all the way. 

On the other hand, she’d probably still be agonizing over the desire to drink Kaname’s blood. And the crushing guilt over leaving him to face eternity alone. 

Neither one would satisfy. Only both. Forever both. 

But of course, that was impossible, and indescribably cruel to ask for. 

The windowless room seemed to rob Yuki of her tears. She had cried, on that last day at the Academy, and later when they returned to this place. First, it had been over losing Zero. Next, it was the pain of Kaname’s cruelty and truth behind his motives over the last decade. 

And that had been the last time she had any tears in her eyes. 

But that did not put a stopper on the pain. On the contrary, the lack of a release only intensified it, and Yuki would wonder if she would ever break the dam and how many tears she would shed. 

But still, no tears would come to free her. 

And when the agony over her heart would quiet down, the miserable questions of her own immortality would arise again. 

She would sometimes hallucinate, watching her “other self” be consumed by oozing blood as “she” reached out to her, begging to be freed of her sins. Pleading to be allowed to die naturally like everyone else. 

Longevity was one thing; all vampires possessed it. Immortality was absolutely terrifying. 

And yet, it was her destiny. And either she would face the countless years of the world with Kaname until they were all alone on a dead planet, or she would be killed by a Hunter. 

Or she would end her own life, like her mother. 

None of these prospects were welcoming. She’d rather wither away on a deathbed and embrace Death as an old woman than face any of those terrible, sad choices. 

Strange how immortality removed the fear of death so readily and made it sound so wonderful in exchange. 

Yuki wondered if she would feel so morbid if she had remained a vampire this whole time. It would be her “normal,” therefore it wouldn’t hurt as much, right? 

But if she had remained, Uncle Rido would have killed her ten years ago. She would never have even tasted eternity’s touch. Her mother’s sacrifice gave her a chance to live longer, and through the eyes of an innocent lamb. 

Now she had returned to the lion’s den having only known gentle pastures for ten years, now surrounded by blood and carcasses and the stench of death coming from her own body. 

She changed so much, despite becoming her “true” self, and that scared her most of all. 

And yet…. 

“Just stay the way you are…”

Kaname’s words from when she was still an ignorant human came back to her. Kaname had known her true nature, her past, their relationship that was put on hold while her memories were at bay, but he still encouraged her to be herself. 

It was something she truly loved and cherished about Kaname, that he remained so devoted to her, even after ten lonely years of watching her from afar. 

But who was “Yuki?” 

“The Yuki you knew is gone because the Vampire Yuki devoured her…” 

Sometimes she wondered if she had really said those words to Zero, or to herself. 

And sometimes she wondered if Zero believed those words. 

That kiss he gave her before they parted ways said otherwise… 

An overwhelming thirst would always consume her then. She would seek out Kaname (or he would come to her), and she would devour his blood, willing it to crush her foolish hopes, to smother her memories. 

Perhaps it would have been better if she never met Zero. If she had lived out her human years, blissfully unaware of a hunter-turned-vampire boy, until it was time to reawaken as her vampire self. 

Perhaps it also would have been better if she had never known Kaname when her memory and identity was erased. If he had kept his distance and never left her on a snowy field, but rather placed her directly in the hands of Headmaster Cross. 

And yet… and yet… 

Yuki would have rather died tomorrow than live a hundred years as human, or eternity as a Pureblood vampire, than never knowing her two beloved men. 

Even if she didn’t deserve them. 

Even if she chose to live with one and constantly long for the other. 

Even with her heart torn asunder. 

[bookgeekgrrl]

My media this week (8-14 Jan 2023)

📚 STUFF I READ 📚

🥰Neverwhere (London Below #1) (Neil Gaiman, author & narrator) - listened to the (very excellent) BBC audio drama of this a few years ago but it'd probably been 20 years since I actually read it. doing a mini book club with a bff!

🥰 This symmetry is not without meaning (aesc, pearl_o) - (pt 4 of TLBT series) 63K, cherik age difference AU, just another great story of them working out their relationship (plus some very good sex)

🥰 Flight Risk (Ayes, itskleo) - steddie rock star/bodyguard AU, fun characterizations, really enjoyed!

🥰 'Lucky Lives' Omegaverse (Tsuki) - 210K, original fic, 4-part series, interconnected dystopian omegaverse romances - very likeable characters with some great worldbuilding details; I would happily read more stories in this universe. I read this in like 2 days. Sometimes the heart wants what it wants!!!

💖💖 +208K of shorter fic so shout out to these I really loved 💖💖

The Code (randomizer) - Galaxy Quest: 3.5K - Yuletide 2022; a love letter/meta message to fandom in general

NYC Health Code, Article 161.19 (monicawoe) - Venom, MCU: Venom meets All Caps, 5.2K - allCaps meet Venom and more importantly, VENOM'S CHICKENS

I Got You Babe (monicawoe) - Venom, 3.5K - how Venom got its Sonny & Chery

you can take the heart from your chest to use as a compass when you are lost (fragilecapric0rn) - Stranger Things: Steddie, 29K - craigslist missed connections AU with all the found family at thanksgiving in a cabin

a slow morning (wearing_tearing) - Stranger Things: Steddie, 325 - basically a 325 word ode to Steve Harrington's chest hair and I AM HERE FOR IT

Pursued by Bear (Zenaidamacrouras1) - MCU: shrinkyclinks, 19K - shrinkyclinks, UFC & Shakespeare convention fic with lots of quotes and queer theory! (yes, inspired by that tweet)

📺 STUFF I WATCHED 📺

Uncoupled - s1, e3-8

Knives Out (with commentary)

Big Eden

🎧 PODCASTS 🎧

ICYMI Plus - The Untalented Mr. Ripley

Desert Island Discs - Cate Blanchett, actor

Off Menu - Ep 120: Miriam Margolyes

Off Menu - Ep 76: Claudia Winkleman

Happy Sad Confused - Ke Huy Quan

The Atlas Obscura Podcast - Chicago Bridge Houses

Switched on Pop - Too Fast? We’re Curious: The sped-up remix phenomenon

Happy Sad Confused - Neil Gaiman, Vol. II

Shedunnit Book Club - The Advertising Adventures of Dorothy L. Sayers

Vibe Check - The House of Cards Is Gonna Crumble

ICYMI Plus - Who Is Alix Earle And Why Are People Mad at Her?

The Atlas Obscura Podcast - The Mail Rail

99% Invisible #520 - Mini-Stories: Volume 16

Weather Geeks - Lightning In Lake-Effect Snow

Films To Be Buried With with Brett Goldstein - Fern Brady

Into It - Harry & 'M3GAN' (Plus: What's Taylor Garron Into?)

The Atlas Obscura Podcast - Berkeley South Asian Radical History Walking Tour

Renegades: Born in the USA - Race in the United States

Of Mice And Men And Monsters - Ch. 0: Prologue

Of Mice And Men And Monsters - Ch. 1: Frankenstein - Part 1

Off Menu - Ep 92: Sue Perkins

Renegades: Born in the USA - American Music

Renegades: Born in the USA - Traveling the U.S. & Finding Home

You Must Remember This - Porno Chic and The Brief Heyday of X Ratings (Erotic 80s Part 1)

It's Been a Minute - What's worse than heat damage? Hair discrimination

Off Menu - Ep 109: Nicola Coughlan

ICYMI Plus - RuPaul’s Drag Race Has Finally Logged On

Hit Parade Plus - Thinking About Tomorrow Edition

You Must Remember This - 1979: Bo Derek and 10 (Erotic 80s Part 2)

🎶 MUSIC 🎶

If I Were A Carpenter [Various artists] {1994}

The Duran Duran Tribute Album [Various artists] {1997}

Duran Duran [Duran Duran] {1981}

Rio [Duran Duran] {1982}

Seven And The Ragged Tiger [Duran Duran] {1983}

Notorious [Duran Duran] {1986}

Big Thing [Duran Duran] {1988}

Liberty [Duran Duran] {1990}

Duran Duran (The Wedding Album) [Duran Duran] {1993}

Thank You [Duran Duran] {1995}

Medazzaland [Duran Duran] {1997}

Pop Trash [Duran Duran] {2000}

Astronaut [Duran Duran] {2004}

Red Carpet Massacre [Duran Duran] {2007}

All You Need Is Now [Duran Duran] {2011}

Paper Gods [Duran Duran] {2015}

FUTURE PAST [Duran Duran] {2021}

A3

Doo Wop

The Roots of Rock & Roll

[petruchio]

hi i'm back! first of all i hope ur move is going well (or went well)! i just finished catching fire 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫 &. where to begin?? & where could i ever end? the part with the interviews where so many of the tributes are trying to deliver a certain message & then katniss & her dress have a spectacular moment of heavy-handed symbolism & then brilliant, darling peeta who i love so so much simply drops the line "if it weren't for the baby" & all the tributes join hands in a show of solidarity right before the cameras cut……. i was holding my head in my hands while reading that part. & there's so much more i could talk about! this book was a devastating Whirlwind. i feel like katniss is easily driven by her emotions (even though she doesn't like to think too much about them) & is desperate & fearful most of the time (& who could blame her!) & doesn't always think very far ahead, but she becomes more grounded & sure of her purpose when she is reminded of her love for & connection to others. i love that that's what ultimately motivates her rebellion. her anger is justified & useful, but it doesn't drive her as consistently as her love. it's a nice message, i think. but i've also only just read the book & it's past midnight & maybe i should sit on it a while before trying to analyze it haha. anyway thanks for your open inbox. i'd apologize for the wall of text but i hope you enjoy it :) oh! one more thing to mention! katniss & peeta's moment on the beach with the line "i realize only one person will be damaged beyond repair if peeta dies. me" well that damaged ME beyond repair! & i loved it. can you tell i've become attached to them. also i wish cinna could have escaped it all unscathed because i loved him very much as well but i knew he couldn't :( ok that's it i'm forcing my hands away from the keyboard now i promise!

AAAAAAAAAAH i love this ask so much <3 i feel like everyone deserves to have a really good thg meltdown at some point because it’s just THE ultimate series of all time.

there’s so much to unpack here but tbh you laid it out very well i barely have anything to contribute other than YES!! i think “her anger is justified but doesn’t drive her to act as much as love does” is such a beautiful and succinct analysis of katniss like that is lovely and i feel like you’ve managed to just cut right to the heart of her character in that single sentence and all i can say is just YES!!!!!!!!

and i KNOWWW katniss and peeta are literally everything. like i feel like every single time i think about them i just go insane because they are the world to me. like i completely understand becoming overly attached to them because how could you not. every single one of their moments together has set the STANDARD for romance for me. nothing can top it. “nobody really needs me” “i do. i need you” like why does anyone even try writing romance anymore when that exists

[laina]

can i start orca blogging on here. it will make me less depressed. i’m going to seaworld san antonio next weekend and it’s my first time at any of the parks and it will be my first time seeing orcas in person and i am so FUCKING excited

i absolutely hate seaworld BUT i have fallen so far in love with their orcas it’s insane. i love them so much. i want to go see wild ones really soon but there’s only a couple places in the US that u can see them & i missed their peak season this year :(

anyway i know all the whales’ names & life stories & relative ages (i know their age orders at each park at least) and i know the stories of some of the ones who have died. seaworld isn’t allowed to import or breed orcas anymore so the 18 that remain in their parks, plus one female in miami, are hopefully the last captive orcas EVER in the united states. (the one in miami is the oldest captive orca in the world i think /: she’s in her 50s) they’re fucking incredible animals and they don’t belong in captivity, especially not the shitty little tanks at seaworld.

i had to wrangle with the notion of giving my money and patronage to an entity that i morally oppose in every way, but like. the shitty thing is that realistically, even if seaworld shut down tomorrow, there’s nowhere else that’s currently equipped to house & care for such large and complex animals. i know there’s a group building a sea pen sanctuary in BC, but it’s not complete and not large enough for all the whales in captivity. so like even though seaworld blows and does a bad job caring for their orcas, at this point the damage is done and my ticket dollars won’t do a fuckin thing either way. and ik it’s silly but i kind of want to be able to bear witness & pay tribute to the whales as someone who fully recognizes the evil they endure. like idk maybe they’ll see me and somehow know that i know they don’t belong there. i know this is stupid and i don’t care.

but like. when i go to texas i’ll see takara, who is the daughter of kasatka who was a very dominant female & roughed up her trainers several times in her life (queen) & i’ll see two of tilikum’s (the one from blackfish! killed 3 people! big baby!!!!!!) male descendants & then two of the youngest captive babies who are 11 and 9 years old i think.

this has helped me calm down very much so i think i will engage in more orcaposting. sorry in advance the whales r my friends

[ownedbyladymary]

Writing this post because i'm fed up and so damned annoyed but all the sly people that message me asking money!!! I'm here for chatting exchanging opinions and new ideas for fucking and know new people for play virtual GRATIS,OK? UNDERSTAND? TELLING GRATIS AND NO MERCENARY in horny and exciting sex and fetish/bdsm plays but that, after know them and they know me well,if for all we this is ok, after meet us,can be real play! I'm openminded and respect all, i like Girls,Gurls,Women,Ladyboys,Ladies,Sissies,Mistresses,Bimbos, Goddesses,Femboys,Queens,Mommies,Trans,Trav,Shemales, Princesses,Whores,Sluts,Femmes Fatale,Executrix,Bitches, Dominatrix,Females,Maids,Lesbians,Couples,Masters,Guys,Bisex,Gays,Men, Males,Boys! I'm open for new experiences and for experiment new practices,i like sex very much with women and also with all the genders but only in active role,no in passive,i like fucking, no to be fucked in my asshole like a female,i like my male gender and don't like to be a female,like i respect all You,please all You respect me don't ask me Sissy,Slut and with other female name,thank You! I like very much also fetish/bdsm in sub/masochist role but in old school way:like a male slave! I like crawl at feet and kiss,lick,caress and worship them if are naked or weared with stocking,high heels shoes,sandals and boots also overknees,kneel down kissing hands naked or weared with gloves,to be punish,dominated,tortured and humiliated,love,obey,worship,serve and revere,leather,latex,rubber, satin and nylon sexy lingerie,stocking with garter belt suspender, gloves,boots,high heels,smoking fetish with or without holder but no human ashtray, spitting,golden shower also if i'm not crazy for this, trampling,handcuffs,collar with leash,slapping,whipping,flogging, caning,paddling,scratching,all the roleplays in sub role,also incest play with mommy,mommy dom,aunt,sister,daughter,mother in law,grandmother and other,i like also gunplay where the Lady shoot me unload all the mag of Her pistol in my belly,with a softair or other toy,no really of course! No other like dangerous play that can kill or give permanent damages,that can sign permanent my skin,no scat,vomiting,blood and clinical play and most important,no feminilization,don't wish become a Sissy, wish only fucking Them,no cocks,strapons or dildos in my asshole! I like the Mistresses very much but no if dominate in this new way wishing sissies slaves,if wishing me like Yours slave i enjoy for this but only like a male slave,i'll never be and never wish become a Sissy, like i respect all,please also You respect me don't ask me Sissy, Slut or other,because i'm happy in my male gender i like so much to be a masculine bull gifted with 20 cm. cock and no wish change, thank for understand this! Other,i'm here for play GRATIS,NO PAYING! I DON'T SEND TRIBUTES,NOTHING TRIBUTE, DON'T LIKE FINDOM,MONEY MISTRESSES,MERCENARIES AND ALL SEX WORKERS OR SLY PEOPLE THAT WANT FRAUD OTHER PEOPLE,I'M NOT SILLY OR STUPID,YOU LOST YOURS TIME WITH ME,I'M NO CROCKED,NO HUNCHBACK,NO CRIPPLE,NO UNLUCKY BUT CUTE AND HAVE IN MY REAL LIFE A LOT OF WOMEN FOR FUCKING,SOMEONE IS ALSO MISTRESS AND A PAIR PLAY ALSO AT GUNFETISH,MY PREFERITED PRACTICE, TOGETHER ME. I DON'T NEED TO PAY FOR FUCKING UNDERSTAND? ALL THE PEOPLE THAT WANT ASK ME MONEY OR TRIBUTE KEEP AWAY TO ME,STAY AT YOURS HOME AND GO WORKING IF WANT MONEY! ALL THE OTHERS THAT MESSAGE,CHAT OR WANT PLAY WITH ME ,FOR ENJOY AND NO FOR MONEY,ARE WELCOME! i'm here because seeking someone for to play chatting satisfying my 3 preferited fetishes: a Woman or Trans or a Couple or Other,chatting telling that like smoking while shooting me,wearing the black leather gloves. The most exciting thing for me is fucking with a partner that smoking, wearing the gloves,shooting me enjoying all excited,unloading all the mag in my belly while i cumming having the orgasm. Send my regards to all

[sci-fiworlds]

A Sci Fi Worlds Interview with Richard Freeman

Richard Thomas: Welcome back! Thanks for agreeing to do part II of this special two-part text interview. Part I for Room 101 got a lot of great feedback so I'm sure the BoA readers will be looking forward to this one.

Richard Thomas: Here here!

The two most successful monsters have to be the Daleks and Cybermen. What are some of your favorite stories featuring them and did you get goose bumbs like me when they finally faced off in Doomsday?

Richard Freeman: I always thought the Daleks were better than the Cybermen. Cybermen have no emotions and hence cannot be evil. Daleks are all that is worst about humanity boiled down into its most intense form. This with their totally inhuman form and tank like invulnerability make them very frightening. A Dalek kills for spite not logic. The best Cyberman story I think was the recent Rise of the Cybermen / Age of Steel. They finally looked like they could actually do some damage for once, rather than just looking like men in silver suits. Once again, of course, the woefully poor Star Trek ripped off another Doctor Who monster with their pathetic looking Borg. The Cybermen have been around since 1966 and would kick the Borg's collective arse! I loved Army of Ghosts / Doomsday. The return of the Daleks at the end of the first episode is my favorite cliffhanger in the show's history. The fight was a forgone conclusion though. We all knew who would win in a Dalek / Cyberman punch up. The bitchy banter between them was great!

Richard Thomas: One of the best remembered monsters of the black and white era has to be the Yeti robots of the Great Intelligence. Later in the series, the Loch Ness monster appeared in Terror of the Zygons. Personally I think this is great because it gets the young viewers interested in these topics, but as a cryptozoologist what are your thoughts on mixing fact with fiction?

Richard Freeman: Doctor Who, and the Jon Pertwee years in particular were my inspiration to become a cryptozoologist. The show was my first real exposure to monsters. I don't mind mixing fact with fiction as long as it is stated that it is fiction. I don't like 'mockumentories' that try to pass themselves off as real investigations. There have been a couple of really bad Loch Ness programs. One built up the idea of the monster as a prehistoric marine reptile then tried to make itself look clever by saying how such a creature could not live in Loch Ness. Ergo the program's message was that the monster, if it existed, had to be a plesiosaur. Plesiosaurs could not live in Loch Ness so there was no such thing as the Loch Ness Monster. This is bollocks. Nobody who has seriously studied the phenomena thinks the monster is a plesiosaur. The smart money is on some kind of huge fish possibly a giant eel.

As for mystery apes, I think the orang-pendek of Sumatra will be found first as its jungle habitat shrinks. These small, upright apes will often enter semi-cultivated areas near to villages. The mighty Yeti, in the vastness of its remote mountain forests, will probably escape discovery for quite some time.

As for a setting there could be many choices. I could base it around the Chinese legend of the Ying-lung, a winged dragon who killed the Chinese god of war (distorted memories of the battle with the Time lords). Or I could set it in modern day Japan as a tribute to the Godzilla films. Huge dragons rampage through Tokyo and create thought form servants that recall the yokai (ghosts and monsters of Japanese legend) such as the kappa, tengu, mouryo, oni, yunki-onna and so on. Or I could set it in rural England where a Wicker Man style cult worshiping a slumbering dragon plan to awaken it.

Richard Thomas: Two monsters rumored to be returning sometime soon are the Silurians and their aquatic cousins the Sea Devils, the original reptilian rulers of planet Earth. If you were writing their return story what would you do?

Richard Freeman: I would have the Tardis land in what the Doctor thinks is modern day London only to find that it is a tropical jungle full of dinosaurs. The Sea Devils and Silurians now rule the Earth and are doing a better job of it than humans!

Richard Thomas: While on the topic of Doctor Who's Earth Reptiles, what are your thoughts on Mac Tonnies' controversial cryptoterrestrial hypothesis?

Richard Freeman: I had never heard of the guy before you mentioned him. I have never bought the extraterrestrial hypothesis. The so-called 'aliens' are generally too humanoid looking to have evolved on another biosphere. If 'alien' encounters are objective events (and that's a big if) I think the creatures are coming through time or dimensions rather than from outer space. There seems to be a strange analogue with fairy lore as well.

Richard Thomas: That's probably the most likely scenario but I wouldn't rule out the idea that Mars might have been colonized by an advanced civilization millions of years ago. Kind of like the backstory to the Pyramids of Mars. Why not remind our readers again about your upcoming books and stuff.

Richard Freeman: I have two books out now, Dragons; More than a Myth? from CFZ Press and Explore Dragons from Heart of Albion. My new book The Great Yokai Encyclopedia; an A to Z of Japanese Monsters will be out later this year from CFZ Press. You can follow my cryptozoological expeditions at www.cfz.org.uk

Richard Thomas: Thanks mate, hope we can do this again sometime.

READ RICHARD THOMAS'S SCI-FI WORLDS COLUMN FOR BINNALL OF AMERICA