#i think for all his improvement he has a great voice for punk and they silenced him when they needed him most 💔💔💔

[literateleah]

crazy how this is maybe one of their best choruses from the first two albums and it’s a b side

[taigastyle]

Why am I seeing so many people convinced P**k is coming back and soon.. I’m not strong enough to go through it seriously… if ratings aren’t currently “doing well” and how is bringing back *that* one person a major win? Isn’t it kind of troublesome that ratings will improve because one person returns? I think that says a lot about the company is they’re propping up this person and giving them “quality” and not to the rest…

quick answer: because chris jericho tweeted that he had always loved working with @ punk so obviously everyone who were clowns and thought jericho was the only/main anti-punk voice in the locker room are celebrating thinking this means they've won!! he's back. and jericho is a goat and the best ever etc. the rest of my reply is beneath the read more because i got rambly and long winded

longer answer: the ratings aren't even doing that badly, january was really strong both for ratings and for in person ticket sales (their walk up tickets sales were really good) but one meh week and one bad week means the sky is falling and we have got to bring back in the hero cm punk because he is a ratings mega draw (which ignores the reality that the aew product had never been hotter in the june and especially july lead ups before punk even stepped foot in the company at the end of august, but again people don't really care about the real facts, it is simply that hurr durr purrnk is a draw).

now when hangman was champion the bad ratings were put on his head, but the good ticket sales/ppv numbers weren't accredited to him. which i think is unfair, as people were invested in the hangman and hangman/kenny story for all the years building up to the crowning moment of his win. and it was kind of thrown away in favor of guy who was having a goldberg run burying over talent he could leech off of (if that sounds familiar to say cody rhodes fans: hi!! how ya doin, welcome, hope you enjoy his mania moment). i genuinely think you can look at these bad ratings and see there's been a decline since mox lost the title. mjf is not over like he was, his character is stagnant, and his offensive promos aren't edgy they're just bad.

people think punk coming back will fix the ratings, but i genuinely don't think so. he was very protected when he was on tv, given the best spots so of course his numbers look good, but if you really look - and especially say the time he returned from injury - the numbers weren't great. punk talked about how he made that million dollar gate but they've done three of those without him, and a lot of the fans of aew from before punk showed up have said that the original feel of the company is gone and it is soulless. good wrestling alone cannot keep a company hot.

all that being said here's where we're at, pretty much every journalist is sniffing around it and afraid to say it outright but kenny omega's working on either injured time or a handshake agreement. aaa who had a fine working relationship with aew until wwe hopped in have said they're not working with aew anymore, but they'll work with kenny omega. the bucks contracts are up at the end of this year. hangman's contract is up this year. tony is at a cross road right now where he can pick the four guys he chose and made this company with, who the fans are invested with, who are younger and have proven they'll work through injuries and pandemics to make aew work. who have scouted and brought great talent in, who have invested into the company from day one, or a guy who has maybe a year, two years max left (if he doesn't get injured again) who was offered day one to be a part of everything and said nah and waited until everyone else had made it clear aew was successful and came in to rapturous applause and love and killed that good will throughout the fanbase and locker room as the months ticked by.

four vs one.

wwe have said they're not as aggressively pursuing jay white because they're focusing on a bigger talent, and i know everyone wants that to be ibushi, but it's gotta be Kenny or Hangman. ibushi would be a great book end to nab as well, but both kenny is the bigger name, kenny is who they wanted in 2018, who they were so sure they had that vince, trips, steph, and shane all came out and cut a promo smugly alluding to the fact they had them, only to be made to look like geeks over it. or page who is young can go in the ring/cut a promo and is so beloved he could be one hell of a top guy for them.

do i think punk will be back soon? idk maybe, they've set up a precedent about what he has to do to be welcomed back with thunder rosa. she stood before the locker room and apologized/owned up to all of the things she did that had hurt people and if you think phil brooks is capable of going mea culpa! then sure he's coming back.

do i think punk vs any elite match would happen? no. and i do think if punk comes back the elite will leave. do i think that in the long run this will be better for the aew numbers? not one bit! i personally won't start watching wwe again i watched it for years and not even a golden lovers reuinion could make me watch their product on a weekly basis again. it's bad, it's production is nauseating, and on a 'parasocial note' it would be incredibly disheartening to see guys that i respect and who have been consistent in calling out the fed and the fans of the fed go over there it's gonna be crushing.

would i keep watching aew? idk probably not. there are wrestlers i love within the company, but largely the stories they're telling right now, and their top champion (and their potential next tag champs) i actively dislike and don't enjoy. so there's not much impetus for me to keep watching a product for a couple wrestlers i like. again, i did that with wwe and it became insulting as a viewer to do that, and was in part what made me stop watching for years! so i think i would stop watching wrestling again and move on with my life. sucks, but i'm very into watching things i like and not giving my time to things i don't.

so all this to say there's no actual anything that says he's coming back, and the earliest he could be back is still a couple months away. but people love to work themselves over the winks and nudges some people who maybe know something might have maybe implied. but you're right bringing one guy back to save the show means you've fucked up the show, especially when it was pulling in over 1mil viewers before that guy came in. if you're fumbled the bag over making the show just about him once (and i think that is easy to say, no matter how good the matches were you cannot point to a guy he was in a feud with who was better off after losing to him! but i can point to a good few who were worse off.) at the expense of guys who are fan favorites (twitter and tumblr are a bubble, it's seen time and time again. remember when everyone hated britt baker and were tired of her and wanted her off their tv except she was still getting the loudest pops from crowd after crowd?) idk

it's bad all around, contract szn is always miserable but who knows where and what will happen. show to show my enjoyment for dynamiate & rampage remains about the same because i have fun watching it with friends/family and talking about it, but everything outside of those three hours i am just not having fun with wrestling unless it is fun i am making for myself. so i'd just say if you're in a similar boat as me then have fun! make your fun, i love doing my silly little edits that make me insane, and talking to friends about the hot guys who beat the piss out of each other. and if i don't have fun i solve that by muting it when mjf speaks <3

[adventuresinclientservice]

Can a junkie teach us anything about creativity?

My mornings begin with a visit to the garage, where I stream YouTube while doing a stint on our Life Fitness X-5 elliptical trainer.  

I finished watching Tom Petty – or maybe it was Sheryl Crow or possibly The Cranberries –when a cover of Lou Reed’s Velvet Underground song “Sweet Jane” gets an airing.  Who is this person singing, I wonder, and what about her band, which sounds amazing?)

The singer is Margo Timmins; the band The Cowboy Junkies.  Maybe my music aficionado friend Ken Ohlemeyer knows them, but to me the alien name suggests a dismissible, drug-addled punk-rock group; they are anything but.  I am sold, immediately becoming a convert to their iconoclastic, impossible-to categorize sound.  Every day I find myself scrolling through YouTube to watch their concerts, of which there are several.

Last week I watched a program called A Beautiful Noise, which featured the Junkies’ music interspersed with short commentary by Margo Timmins, who not only is the lead singer but also serves as the band’s voice.  Leading the group, however, is her guitarist/songwriter brother Michael (another brother, Pete, plays drums).

Near the program’s end, about 50 minutes in, Margo had this to say about Michael’s songwriting:

“… he has no ego; when he writes a song, that’s his expression and when he hands it to me, however I interpret it -- and I’m going to interpret it from a female perspective; that’s my first entry into a song --  it’s okay.   “He never sort of says, ‘Well you know that’s not what I meant; why are you doing it that way?’  It’s my song and he allows me to do it my way and that’s … I think that’s his greatest gift to me.  Because it must be hard sometimes when I take his songs and muck them all up [laughs] and it’s not what he intended.  But he realizes that’s my expression and he has his, which is the actual writing of it.”

I imagined what it would be like if copywriters, art directors, and creative directors approached their work the way Michael Timmins approaches songwriting, devoid of ego?  There’d be no arguments, ever, about the work. Wouldn’t that be great? 

It wouldn’t be great at all.  I want Creative people to own their work, to be invested in it, to believe in it and fight for it.

But by “fight,” I don’t mean a dispute should devolve into a cage death-match.  I don’t want it to choke off discussion and debate, or silence thoughtful, alternative points-of-view.  And I absolutely don’t want it to be so  defensive in  posture it alienates clients and undermines a hard-earned relationship with them.

Chapter 34 of the current edition of The Art of Client Service is called, “Respect What it Takes to do Great Creative.”  In it I point out that,

“While it takes emotional commitment to make creative work, it takes emotional detachment to make it better.”

Given how many absorbing, engaging songs he has written, I have no doubt about Michael Timmins’s level of creative commitment; it’s evident this guy is a serious artist, determined to perfect his craft.  His sister Margo is a singular, distinctive performer; their contract suggests she does not tamper with his writing, and he does not tamper with her singing.

But for those of us not engaged in writing or art directing, striving to make the work better, we need to remember our role as collaborators in the creative process is to “improve the work, not approve it.”

As for putting ego aside to know that buried in a comment is an insight that might make average work good and good work better, now that truly is a gift.

[millenialfanfictionaddiction]

Go Go Karasuno: An Old Rival (Pt 2 )

THIS FIC IS 18+

Warnings: swearing

Word Count: 7,000+

A few days had passed since the practice match. You hated to admit it, but you thought about Keishin often. 

He looked good.

Really REALLY good.

Like better than high school good.  He always looked nice but it was overshadowed by his complete desire to be an utter ass.

You sighed as you finished up a few emails to send off before you took your grandma to the hospital to visit your grandfather.

He was set to be discharged in a few days and then you would start the process of moving them to the elderly community. You had taken your grandmother to visit him daily as she would often have make him meals. He hated the hospital food. He said the flavor was lacking.

You had to laugh. The man had only ever eaten your grandmother's cooking since they married at a young age. He often complained or refused to eat any other food because it was never was good as his wife’s cooking. 

You had to agree. Your grandma was an amazing cook.

You arrive at the hospital with your grandma in toe. She says her hellos to the staff as they all reciprocate the greetings. Your grandma was a complete sweetheart. She was loved and adored by everyone. She always helped when and where she could, volunteering wherever she was needed. You're actually surprised your grandfather managed to charm his way in to her life.

Your grandfather was a rowdy old man. Literally the opposite of your grandmother. He could be bitter and always liked a good argument. He was never outright mean to people, just very outspoken and upfront. He was a lot to handle.

You exit the elevator carrying the box of food your grandma had prepared. She told you she was preparing a meal for your grandfather's roommate as well. She said the man was just as insatiable as your grandfather. You imagined they were quite the duo.

As you round the corner you start the head arguing. You eyes widen as you realize it's coming from your grandfather's room. 

 Your grandma just smiles as she shakes her head knocking lightly at the door.

"Yeah yeah" a voice shouts. 

 You both enter as you begin to observe the sight before you eyes.

Your grandfather and his roommate are watching volleyball on the small TV in their hospital room. Shouting at the apparent bad plays.

"Anyone could have hit that set with their eyes closed" your grandfather shouted "what is that spiker doing?"

"He's just a weakling like all the others" the other man shouted "that wouldn't be happening under my coaching."

You roll your eyes and smile. Man these two were made for each other.

Your grandma slowly starts to unpack and plate the food she made for both the men. They continue to watch the game as your grandma hands them the food.

"Dont worry dear I packed enough for everyone" she smiled as you observed all the food. The box was heavy that you carried in but you didn't think there was an entire week's worth of food there.

"By everyone did you mean the entire hospital gran" you giggle as she laughs.

"Oh Y/N" your grandfather says as he looks up from his meal for a second "this is my roommate. You might know his grandson. I think he went to school with him."

The other man grumbled "I apologize if you do know him, the weakling."

You smile as you chuckle "Well sir its nice to meet you, I'm Y/N"

The older man turns to you smiling "oh I know who you are sweetheart, I'm Ikkei Ukai"

WHAT DID HE SAY?

You were about to speak when a knock sounded.

"Yeah yeah, what is this grand central in Tokyo?" your grandfather huffed as the door opened.

"Just came to check on my fav-" Keishin spoke as he entered, shutting the door and turning around.

His eyes were met with yours. He gulped as the two older men and older lady looked at you both.

"Y/N, I didn't know you would be here" Keishin says as he lifts his head to the back of his head.

"I told you last week my roommate had a granddaughter your age" Ikkei spoke sharped tongue.

"Well you didn't mention here name!" Keishin glared at his grandfather.

“You didn’t ask” Ikkei huffed as he turned his attention back to the game as Keishin placed his hand over his face.

You giggle at the circumstances. 

This all had to be a joke right? No way this was coincidence!

"Ah Keishin it's so good to see you again" your grandmother says breaking the awkward silence "here have a plate"

"Oh you as well ma'am" he said bowing "thank you ma'am but I'll have to pass I’m just stopping by quick"

"Sit down you idiot the women made great food" your grandfather shouts at Keishin as you chuckle.

Your grandmother makes him a plate as he settles in by you at the spare table in the corner. Your grandmother sits beside your grandfather as he kisses her forehead. You smile as you watch them, all while Keishin watches you.

"Your grandfather and mine are one in the same" he says trying to break the silence.

"Ha ha yeah you can say that again" you say smiling as you eat.

"I honestly didn't know your grandfather was his roommate" he says.

"Well you probably wouldn't. They are my mothers parents so we don't share the same last name" you say looking down at your plate.

"You know, it was really great to see you play again Y/N" Keishin smiles at you.

You look up smiling back "Thank you. It was a lot of fun. You really have some great kids."

"Kageyama and Hinata couldn't stop talking about your sets. Kageyama said they were almost perfect" he said taking another bite

"Well I wouldn't say perfect. They can always use improvement" you say pushing your food around the plate.

"Give yourself more credit Y/N. You really are a great setter. I always thought so" Keishin says as he stares at you.

You laugh ironically "is that why you were always such an ass to me then?"

Keishin sighs "yeah I was an ass but it wasn't because you weren't good. I was stupid high school kid"

You sighed as you look to his smiling "I guess we've both changed a lot"

Keishin smiled softly at you as you take both plates and disguarded them in the bin.

"I'm going to step outside for a minute" you speak, kissing your grandma on the forehead.

"I'll come with you" Kishin says as you begin to walk outside

The silence is awkward. Neither of you know what to say to each other. It's like your years of high school rivalry has been reduced to this weird state of unknown.

"Look Y/N" keishin starts.

"Keishin" you interject "we both changed. It's ok. I'm not mad at you anymore."

That wasn't completely factual nor completely a lie.

You didn't hate Keishin.  In fact, thinking about it, you never really did. You admired the man but he annoyed you to no end. He was always better than you and you were jealous.

Keishin threw his cigarette as he walked towards you "Y/N I want to apologize."

You look at him with narrowed eyes "for what?"

"Well one for being a complete jerk back in high school" he proceeds.

"Jerk is an understatement but continue" you say smiling.

He laughs awkwardly "Listen Y/N can I at least make it up to you?"

You fold your arms "ok and how Keishin? It's not like we can go back in time and you can not mess up my serves" you spit as he looks towards the ground.

"Y/N please" Keishin says "my grandfather was right, I was a weakling back then. I was jealous of you. You had such talent and well, I enjoyed getting a rile from you. I know it was immature but it was the only way you'd talk to me."

“Wait what” you think as you try to process what he was saying

"I always admired you Y/N. You were a great captain and a fantastic setter. You worked so well all the players on your team. I honestly was a bit jealous" he continues as you state at him confused.

Keishin was jealous? Of you?

You say the only thing you can properly formulate "Well Keishin you sure had a hell of a way of showing it! You pissed me off, annoyed me to no end and now you tell me you were jealous?"

Keishin stares at your outburst.

"Keishin I apologize for yelling but it just seems unreal to me. I spent all of high school trying be as good as you and now your telling me you looked up to me? It just seems unreal" you say as you sit on the bench.

"Y/N" Keishin sits down in the other side of the bench "I know I was a complete jerk. I honestly didn't know it bothered you so much. I was a punk ass kid who was just trying to be someone. But I now realize I hurt someone who really meant a lot of me."

You look up from your hands to see Keishin with a soft smile on his face.

"Well this is awkward" you say as you stand up. You were never great with upfront feelings and awkward silences.

"Y/N please" Keishin says as you start to walk back to the room "Please just let me make it up to you. Let's have dinner. I promise. Just hear me out"

You sigh knowing the conversation was unavoidable. It wasn't that you didn't want to have dinner with Keishin, it's just that you still reeled from your past.

Maybe you were being petty and it seemed like Keishin had changed but were you really ready to admit that? Were you really ready to move on from a grudge you held for almost 10 years?

"Where" you sigh in defeat.

"Huh?" Keishin looks to you with question.

"Where and when" you look back at him with a less than eager face.

"How about Friday night? My families store?" Keishin shouts a little too enthusiastic.

You chuckle at his response "ok but I swear of you start shit I'm going to pelt a volleyball right at your forehead"

He laughs "there's the Y/N I remember"

You push him playfully as you both walk back into the hospital heading to your grandfather's room.

You enter the floor as you both hear loud shouting. You look at each other and take off running towards your grandfather's room. You bust open the door with Keishin on your heals as you see your grandfather on the floor and your grandmother holding her mouth.

"I'm fine I'm fine just got a bit worked up" he says.

Keishin moves to help your grandfather as you console your grandmother.

"Grandpa really? Getting worked up over volleyball?" You spit at him.

He glares at you "you're one to talk Y/N!"

Keishin’s eyes widen as you glare holes on your grandfather's head. He chuckles at your response.

"Oh Y/N it's about time you forgive the boy, it's been almost 10 years" your grandfather says

"Dont forgive him so easily Y/N" Ikkei interjects "make him work for it"

Keishin glares at his grandfather as he chuckles with your grandfather and they continue watching the game.

You and Keishin both sigh as you smile softly towards one another. 

You're night out with Keishin approaches faster than you hoped. Honestly you were really indifferent about the whole situation. You had to admit, Keishin had probably changed since high school. I mean the Keishin you knew would never coach a high school volleyball team.

Right?

[success-and-corruption]

Macabre Album Review

DEG's second album! Oh yeah!

Track 1: Deity

This first track is definitely very interesting. It starts with a sleigh bell and then quickly turns into ominous chanting of some sort. Very spooky but also very different from their previous work which shows how versatile these five musicians are. The chanting eventually stops and we're met with heavy guitars and bass with Shinya playing a steady beat and Kyo vocalizing with a woman’s voice eerily making sounds. It sounds like he's gasping for breath (see what I did there)? That section ends and a clean guitar is played for a few seconds before the song goes back to the heavy riff after the chanting but this time Kyo sings in Russian to the tune of Johannes Brahms' "Fifth Hungarian Dance." This song definitely feels very religious to me which I suppose fits because the case for Macabre has prayer (?) beads in it.

I think Deity showcases DEG’s experimental side and sets the foundation for the rest of the album and it shows that DEG took a very different turn and became a bit darker.

Track 2: Myaku

Is this track in 3/4? 4/4? 5/4? 6/4?

Yes to all of the above. In the booklet it's indicated that this song was written by DIR EN GREY so no individual member wrote it specifically but the band definitely had some fun with time signatures in this one. Myaku was released as a single which is a bit different from the album version but I'm not reviewing the single. This song definitely departs from their late 90s VK sound which in my opinion is a good thing as it showed that DEG wanted to become more serious musicians. Plus, this track has one of my favorite basslines but I never got around to learning how to play it. Myaku is a chaotic song but it fits very well with Macabre.

Track 3: Wake/Riyuu

My boy Die does it again. This song is one of my favorites on the album and despite it being written by a guitarist, Toshiya’s bass really drives this track but we can’t forget the soaring guitars in the beginning and in the chorus. Kyo’s vocals are also great. Fantastic rhythm, instruments that all work very well together, and Kyo’s clean vocals? What’s not to like? This song really gets me moving for some reason. Not nearly as chaotic as Myaku, but Wake/Riyuu provides a nice structure and a consistent time signature (4/4) which is good contrast in my opinion. 

Track 4: Egnirys Cimredopyh +) An Injection

Everyone probably knows this by now by  Egnirys Cimredopyh = hypodermic syringe backwards. Despite that, this song isn’t about intravenous drug use. Kyo references a “white powder” a lot in this song and in one part of the song he sings “I started to speak to the wall with my lower half” (of course he sings that in Japanese) so I think this song is about abusing a drug called kakuseizai and... ejaculating onto a wall? To my knowledge cocaine isn’t very popular in Japan and kakuseizai (roughly translated to “stimulant” in English) is a type of methamphetamine that is used to improve pleasure during sex. Anyway as the lyrics progress it’s clear that the person in the song is battling between his good and bad side. They’re aware that their drug use is stripping them of their sanity but can’t stop and eventually gives in and “kills” the good side. In regards to the musicality of the song, again I really like the bassline (probably because I play bass) but the solos in the song, both bass and guitar, are seriously lacking in substance for me. However the rest of the song is fun to move around to i.e. it has a nice rhythm. 

Track 5: Hydra

“I wanna be an anarchist”

“Dead born”

“Sid Vicious, suspicious”

What are those lyrics??? This song is another experimental one with electronic sounds throughout. It’s also fast-paced and has another chant near the end of the song that breaks it up nicely. Lyrically there’s not much I have to say but this song is definitely one of DEG’s most interesting sounding. I’m sorry that I don’t have more to say. 

Track 6: Hotarubi

Hotarubi... what a beautiful song. It was very clearly written by Shinya. This track is, in my opinion, one of DEG’s best ballads but I think it goes on for too long but that’s just a very minor complaint. The strings complement the rest of the instruments and the part from 2:40-3:42 is stunning, with a surprising violin solo and a woman breathily vocalizing. Everything in this song works so well together except for the loud buzzing halfway through and Hotarubi never fails to evoke an emotional response within me. If it weren’t too long for my liking I would listen to it on repeat. At a certain point I just get bored. Also I think this song would be better suited towards the end of the album where the songs become more melodic.

Track 7: 【KR】cube

I’m not sure what【KR】cube means but what a fun song. Toshiya starts it out with that funky bass that we all know and love and then it transforms into a fast-paced song with a very nice rhythm on the guitars and Kyo’s clean vocals come in which is always nice to hear. I like the speed and rhythm of this song as it offers a pleasant difference from Hotarubi which is a very slow song. The chorus is very catchy as well 

Kururi, furari, fuwari, kurari

Kururi, furari, fuwari, kurakurari

and so on. The music video is fun for this one. We love Hitman Die. 

Track 8: Berry

This song is easy to figure out from the beginning dialogue of an English girl apologizing but then promising to blow her parents’ head off like raspberry jam (spoiler: she does at the end of the song). This one has more of a punk vibe and it’s kind of a fun song. What I can say is that I’ve never heard a song that features parents yelling at a child as part of a breakdown. It’s a good song but in my opinion it doesn’t really fit with the Macabre sound.

Track 9: Macabre -Sanagi no Yume wa Ageha no Hane-  

WOW what a song this is. I believe that this eleven minute prog rock masterpiece was the first song I learned on the bass (go big or go home). I love Shinya’s drums in the beginning and as soon as the other instruments come in you just know you’re in for a journey. This song has a great composition with all of the instruments and vocal layers but I suppose I should get into the specifics. The beginning (after the drums) starts with guitars that, in my opinion, portray a certain sadness while the bass drives the the song. Kyo’s voice is great in this one and also portrays that same sadness. After the first two verses clean guitars come in which is a nice contrast from the beginning but this song truly comes alive during the instrumental breakdown where there’s a guitar playing a repeating riff while insects buzz and a church organ plays in the background. It then switches to Kaoru and Die playing the same notes but alternating between electric and acoustic guitars. The breakdown ends with a very beautiful solo and Kyo singing in a higher register and making slurping sounds which makes sense if you follow the lyrics. There’s a bass solo which is always nice to hear. 

I think I’ve written too much about this song so I’m going to go on to...

Track 10: Audrey

What exactly were they trying to accomplish here? Country rock? It doesn’t fit with the album and it doesn’t even fit with DEG’s sound in general. I never listen to this song so I don’t have much to say about it. 

Track 11: Rasetsukoku

This song fits much better with Macabre, but only marginally. It’s definitely more speed metal which at this point in DEG’s music career hasn’t really done. It’s fun to listen to but the composition is quite simple and it tends to be sort of repetitive. I do like the bass in the beginning but the guitars in this song are kind of boring to me.  Maybe I should give it more credit. 

Track 12: Zakuro

I have mixed feelings about this song. It’s very emotional but maybe too emotional. It starts out kind of slow but I like Kaoru and Die’s parts in the beginning because they harmonize very well. I think this song has one of the most beautiful guitar solos they’ve ever written and it conveys the sadness that is the central focus of this song. My problem with it (and it’s a minor one) is that it’s definitely better live. 

Track 13: Taiyou no Ao

Another favorite on this album. Once again there’s a great bassline and while the song itself sounds sort of like a pop song the lyrics are rather sad. The prominent bass complements the guitars and if Shinya wanted a workout routine he could play this song a few times and he would get pretty buff. Can you imagine a buff Shinya? Neither can I. It just seems like his drums never stop for almost the entire song. It’s a nice way to close the album because it contrasts with the very dark-sounding Deity and it leaves me feeling good, albeit a bit sad because of the lyrics.

So that’s it. Can you tell I got a bit tired near the end? All in all I give this album 7/10. It’s a great album but there are some real duds in my opinion but it’s not my least favorite by any stretch. I’ll be reviewing all ten albums so you’ll find out which one I like the least...

As always feel free to comment your thoughts! I would like to connect with my followers a bit more.

[bibliocratic]

jon/martin

part of a series of archive polycule oneshots pre-established tim/sasha, sasha/jon, martin/tim

Jon has changed his shirt four times now. Sasha’s bedroom is a lesson in disaster zones, a dumping ground of clothes and accessories and sprays and creams. Early on, she tried to avoid the proceedings as long as possible to give the man a bit of space, and so lurked in the living room, reading a magazine and ignoring the stomping, and cursing, and muttering and clattering from the bathroom and bedroom.

Now, an hour in, she’s been fully drafted into emotional and sartorial support, a rational battalion of one as Jon cycles intermittently and indecisively between outfits. Ten minutes to go before the taxi arrives, and he’s standing there shirtless, his arms folded and glaring in recrimination at the shirts rumpling on the bed.

“I liked the white one,” Sasha broaches cautiously.

Jon twists at his rings.

“It doesn’t go with the trousers,” he says.

Jon’s trousers are the one thing he has, finally, been able to narrow down, a punk-red choice that was half an hour in the making. Jon’s tried on the white shirt, red trousers combo twice now, and it definitely matches, and Sasha has definitely told him this already.

“Everything goes with white, Jon. Look, it’s good look! With the blue bowtie, it’s nice.”

“I look like I’m dressed up as the Union Jack,” Jon’s discontent has cycled back to snarking under his breath. “Or the Dutch flag. Or the French.”

Jon picks up another shirt, a fetching pale-yellow check pattern, before he puts it down in a huff.

Sasha’s phone dings.

05.35 Tim <3: How’s it going?

05.35 Sasha: We’ve narrowed it down to four shirts, so improvement!

How’s Martin?

05.36 Tim <3: Pacing.

He keeps brushing his teeth.

He looks nauseous.

05.36 Sasha: Should I change the booking?

05.36 Tim <3: Nah. They’ll pull themselves together.

“Jon,” Sasha says in the kindest possible way. “The taxi’s in ten. Choose one. Choose the white one. Martin would think you’d look good in a bin bag, come on.”

The reminder of the time clearly works its magic, and Jon hurriedly puts on the white shirt. Sasha helps him with the bowtie when it’s clear he’s going to be all butterfingers until he gets to the venue. He spritzes on some aftershave while she hunts him down some socks.

“There you are.” She smooths down some of the wrinkles. “Very handsome.”

“Should I wear cufflinks?”

“Best not, you’ll fiddle with them all night.”

“Hm. When’s the taxi?”

“Five minutes. You should get your shoes on.”

Jon has one shoe on and is hunting around for the second when he suddenly looks to Sasha.

“Should I have gotten him flowers?” A panicked look has gripped him. “People like flowers, don’t they, on a first date. Martin is definitely the sort of person who likes flowers, maybe I should – ”

“Jon,” Sasha interrupts his spiral. She comes in close and puts her hands on his hips. “Sweetheart, you’ve got this.” Her phone digs to signal the taxi’s arrived, and she smiles at Jon reassuringly. Jon’s smile is slightly more on-edge but he’s clearly trying. “Now, off with you and get yourself a nice fella.”

She kisses him for luck before shepherding him out of the house on the dot of quarter to.

Not ten minutes later, Tim’s invited himself over, spirits and mixers in a plastic bag, and they toast to their loved ones while crossing their fingers.

--

Jon insists on walking Martin back to his flat after their meal. Martin’s brolly is wide-limbed, a wind-battered shelter, and with Jon’s slightness and Martin’s height, both of them manage to crouch under its hold and remain mostly dry. Martin’s shoes are new, still sheened with their factory polish, and he hasn’t worn them in yet, so he’s clearly feeling the rub of them at his heel with the way he’s walking. Jon is regretting his choice of shirt, because while Martin complimented him and it made a pleased smile stutter onto his face, the fabric is thin, and the chill has started to freckle his body.

He stands a little closer to Martin as they walk. He thinks Martin notices. Hopes he does.

Jon won’t remember what they spoke of when Sasha asks him tomorrow. He’ll remember the flow and bubble of conversation, the easiness of it. He’ll remember that Martin talks with his hands, and more than once he forgets he’s gripping the umbrella and they get sprinkled with a liberal wash of rainwater. He’ll remember that he could make Martin smile just by doing poor impressions of people they both knew, and so he’d done it more than once just because he could.

On the step, neither of them know how to tie up their conversation, and Jon is realising that he doesn’t want the night to stop. That he wants tonight and tomorrow and the day after, that whatever way his life tends he wants Martin in it.

“I – er, guess this is good night then?” Martin says. His expression has taken up its old post of anxiety, and he’s looking everywhere but Jon’s eyes, his hands and body held respectfully back even under the umbrella.

Jon bridges the gap. Raising himself onto his tiptoes to angle himself better, pressing a kiss to Martin’s cheek.

“Good night, Martin,” Jon says, and his voice is smooth while the rest of him is not. Martin has gone the colour of sunrise and is looking wowed. “Or, um, I could come up? If you, er, if you wanted to keep talking, over tea or something?”

“I – um, is that – that’s a metaphor, right?” Martin asks. “I’d, don’t get me wrong, I’d like to keep – I’m having a great time, and um. The thing is Jon, if you came up, and I’d – I’d like that, but  it would really be just, just tea. I, um, I don’t? Not really. I was going to tell you if tonight went well, which it did – I-I mean at least I think it has – ”

“It’s not a metaphor,” Jon interrupts. He wants to take Martin’s hand, but one is still holding the umbrella and the other is wrapped around his flat keys. “It’s seems a good a time as any to tell you I don’t either.”

“Oh.”

“Indeed.”

Martin’s shy smile has crept back onto his face.

“Right. Right. So, would you like to come up?”

“Lead the way,” Jon says, and he follows Martin inside.

[tuiccim]

Terrigenisis (Part 3)

Pairing: Avengers X Inhuman!Reader

Words: 2916

Summary: Your life is torn apart after undergoing terrigenisis unwillingly your life is turned upside down when you are deemed too dangerous to return to civilian life. You are put with the Avengers team to train and rebuild your life.

Part 1  / Part 2 

 —————————————

Before you leave for training the next morning, FRIDAY asks you to meet Steve in the conference room. You walk in the room to see him going through some paperwork. 

“Hey. Good Morning.” You smile at him. 

“Morning.” He smiles back at you. “I’ve been working through your evaluation for field work. Can you sit with me for a few minutes?”

“Absolutely!” You are excited that he is working on some goals for you. You sit and he goes through each part of the eval. Technically, you’re field ready in every area except one. Firearms. Apparently, your aim has not improved enough according to Bucky. You are proficient enough with handguns, but using larger weapons throws your aim. 

"I'm sorry. We can't put you in the field, yet." Steve frowns.

"No, this is great, Steve. This is what I need to know. Now, I have a goal and I know an excellent teacher." You smile at Steve.  

"Bucky will keep working with you. He says your handgun skills are great. Your hand to hand is excellent. Just a matter of time, Doll. Uh, Agent, I mean, Y/N." Steve puts a hand on his face and takes a deep breath. 

You giggle. You can’t help yourself. “It’s okay, Steve.”

“I didn’t mean to call you doll.” Steve says.

“Really, Steve, it’s okay. I didn’t think anything of it.”

“Thanks.” Steve stands and you follow his lead. 

"Well, back to training, then." You smile.

"Right." He smiles back.

You give him a quick side hug and head to the training room.

 --

The team went on another mission and you were left alone on the compound again. As you are training with Redtail one day you really take notice of her sight. The colors and distance she perceives is incredible and so different from your own vision. You carry the information with you as you go through your routine. While in the range you make an incredible discovery and you can't wait to tell Steve and Bucky. 

The team returns and you are giddy with excitement. You temper yourself and make a huge dinner for everyone knowing how exhausted they are when they return from long missions like this one. That night as you head to your room after cleaning up the kitchen, you hear Bucky’s voice coming from Steve’s room. A low moan and the whisper of Steve’s name. You freeze in place when you realize what is going on between the two. You pull yourself out of your stupor and grope for your headphones as you continue to your room. It takes you a few minutes to truly wrap your mind around the relationship between the two men. You had absolutely no issue with their relationship, but it was obviously not common knowledge. Or at least not a topic of discussion among the team. 

It actually made you feel a little more comfortable. You firmly believed the two to be out of your league, but comments from Sam and Wanda had made you question if one or both had an attraction to you. It put into perspective, also, why Steve felt the need to clarify why he had called you doll the other day. He clearly did not want you reading anything into it. It was sweet really. The two falling in love with each other after being the only thing still tethering them to their pasts. You were happy for them. 

--

The next morning, the team immediately fell back into their routine. You were excited when Bucky entered the range and Steve followed with him as you had asked FRIDAY to request his presence. 

“Thank you for coming, Steve. I want to show you both something.” You smile at both. You had already set up for the demonstration you had planned and handed them each safety gear before you started shooting. Picking up one handgun you hold it in your dominant hand and shoot center mass. Without a break, you grab the second gun with your non-dominant hand and aim for headshots. You set both guns down and press the button to bring the target up for inspection. You look back and see both men’s brows furrowed as they stare at the target. Center mass is a perfect cluster of shots forming a small hole, as are the headshots. 

“How did you do that?” Bucky asks. 

“Now watch.” You pick up Bucky’s favorite gun that normally throws your aim considerably due to the sheer size and velocity of the weapon. Moving to the second target you shoot and again bring the target up to reveal a dead center grouping. 

“Doll! How did you do that?” Bucky says emphatically. 

You set the gun down and remove your safety gear. “I was working with Redtail the other day and I noticed how sharp her eyesight is. It got me to thinking if I could somehow use it to my advantage on the range when shooting. I spent the next couple of days trying to hone in on the distance sight when shooting and it just worked. It’s like I can see through her eyes even though I’m not warging. Can you imagine what this means? I think it’s just like my ability to comprehend vocal communication. I think I might be able to absorb their abilities. I don’t know if it was because of my long term exposure to her or what, but this could mean so many things if I could learn to do the same with other animals and senses. If I can hone my hearing and sense of smell it would make me even more useful.” Your words are tumbling out in your excitement. 

“Whoa, whoa. Hang on.” Steve rubs a hand over his face. 

“Did I say something wrong? Isn’t… isn’t this a good thing?” You ask nervously. 

“No, yes, no, ugh. Nothing’s wrong. Let’s just go over all of it again. Slowly.” Steve says. 

You start over from the beginning, explaining each step you took to get to your conclusion, and how it affected you. Bucky and Steve asked several questions and you answered as well as you could. When you're done you look between the two nervously. Their expressions gave nothing away. 

"I have to report this to Fury. We need to update your file and do some work with you to see if this skill is something you can adapt to well. Bucky, work with her with every gun. See if her aim crosses over for all of them."

"It does. Also, throwing knives and bow and arrow. I tried everything while you guys were on the mission. But, I'm happy to go through it all again." You say.

"Thorough.' Bucky smirks.

"I'm a planner." You wink at him and smile.

"Go through it all again with Bucky," Steve turns to Bucky, "and I want a full report after." 

Bucky nods and Steve turns to leave.

"Steve. One more thing. I found a dog I'd like to adopt. She's 3 years old and fully trained. I'll pay for her myself but I'd like to have her to work with." You fidget as Steve looks at you with raised eyebrows. 

"You really have been busy. I'll check into it." Steve says with an indulgent smile on his face. "Find me this afternoon and we'll talk."

"Okay, thanks." You turn to Bucky with a grin. "Ready when you are." You bounce on the balls of your feet with anticipation.

Bucky smiles as he starts pulling weapons.

--

"FRIDAY, where's Steve?" You ask that afternoon.

"Captain Rogers is in his room." FRIDAY responds.

"Is he alone?" You ask hesitantly.

"Yes." 

You knock on Steve's door a minute later and smile as he opens it. He's wearing a tight t-shirt and sweatpants making him look ready for a run. 

"Hey. Is now a good time?" You ask. 

"Sure. Are you okay if we talk in here?" He smiles and holds his door open for you. 

"Sure." You echo him as you walk in. 

He pulls out his desk chair for you and then sits on his bed. He looks at you and you look at him and there’s an awkward silence. Both of you waiting for the other to begin

“So, um, you said we’d talk?” You fidget. 

“Right. Tell me about the dog.” Steve says.

“Her name is Dizzy. She’s a three year old Belgian Malinois. Fully trained. I met her two days ago and she handled the warg very well. Highly intelligent. She’s perfect for training and a total sweetheart. What do you think?” 

“Dizzy?” Steve chuckles.

“Yeah. Her litter was named after characters from Starship Troopers. It’s a really campy space war movie.” You smile. 

“Haven’t seen it. I talked to Tony. He’s okay with the dog since it’s for training purposes. Get the rest of the team’s consent and we can give it a test run.” Steve says.

“Great. Thank you!” You jump up and give Steve a hug. 

“You’re welcome, Doll.” Steve says. “I mean…”

“Steve. Really, it’s fine. It’s cute actually.”

“You like being called doll?” He asks. 

“Yeah. It’s sweet.” You smile. “I’m not offended by it or anything.”

“I’m glad. You’re a sweetheart.” 

“So, are you.” You hug Steve’s waist again and head to the door. “I’ll see you later. I’m going to talk to everyone.”

“See ya later, Doll.” Steve chuckles.

You make the rounds to your teammates and receive consent from each of them. You are giddy with anticipation and call the owner to make arrangements to get Dizzy. As you're getting off the phone you hear a voice from behind, “Hey Doll.”

You turn to see Bucky. “Hey. Did Steve tell you to call me that?”

“He might have mentioned that you like it.” Bucky chuckles as he sits next to you on the couch. 

“It’s cute.” You smile. 

“You’re cute.” Bucky smiles back.

You laugh and nudge him with your shoulder. You feel much more free and easy with Steve and Bucky since learning of their relationship. You wish you could tell them you knew but you didn't want to force a confindance. “You two are goof troops.” 

“What does that mean?” 

“Silly and sweet.” You grin.

“Nah. He’s a punk and I’m a jerk.” Bucky says.

“You are not a jerk, Bucky! You are a sweetie!” You laugh. 

“Aww, thanks, Doll.” Bucky leans over and kisses your cheek. 

“See! So sweet!” You squish Bucky’s cheeks in your hands and then dissolve into giggles at the silly face he mugs.

“What are you two doing?” Natasha asks as she enters the common room with Wanda, Clint, and Vision on her heels. 

“Just being silly.” You say. “What are you guys up to?” You catch the glance and smirk exchanged between Nat, Wanda, and Clint and roll your eyes at them. 

“Just looking for some food.” Clint says.

“When are you not, Clint?” Natasha jokes. 

“When I’m watching your six.” Clint snarks.

“Wanda, I can pick up Dizzy tomorrow. Want to go with me?” You ask.

“I can’t! I’m sorry.” Wanda frowns. 

“No worries.” You say.

“I’ll go with you, Doll.” Bucky says. 

“It’s an hour drive.” You want him to know what he’s getting into. 

“I don’t mind.” Bucky smiles.

“Great! I’m leaving at 9.”

“I’ll be ready.” Bucky says and gets up to leave.

You join the others in the kitchen and chat for a while. 

“You and Bucky looked cozy.” Clint says.

“Don’t read anything into it.” You shake your head.

“I’m reading plenty.” Clint says. 

“Stop. He’s my mentor and friend.” You say.

“Yeah, you two seem really friendly.” Natasha says.

“Seriously, guys, it’s not like that. Stop.” You say quietly.

“Okay, okay. But don't dismiss it outright. You two would be good for each other.” Wanda winks at you. 

“Uuugh.” You close your eyes and bang your head on the counter. “I’ll see you guys later.” 

“You’ll definitely see Bucky later.” Clint whispers.

“I can hear you, Legolas!” You call back. 

“I meant for you to.” Clint whispers again, chuckling.

--

The next morning you and Bucky leave from the shooting range to get Dizzy. You are so excited you can barely contain yourself. 

"Why don't I drive, Doll?" Bucky says.

"Only if I get to pick the music." You smile.

"Just no more disco." Bucky grouses.

"Oh, come on, Buck. You don't want to 'Shake, shake, shake. Shake, shake, shake. Shake your booty'" You sing and dance around. 

"Maybe if you keep dancing." He winks.

"That's a little difficult in the car. How about some rock?" You say and Bucky nods.

"Are you gonna keep the name Dizzy?" Bucky asks.

"Yeah, I think it's cute. Plus I like the movie. It's hilarious."

"We'll have to put it on the list for movie night." 

The drive takes less than an hour with Bucky at the wheel. When you arrive the woman seems a bit wary of Bucky but she relaxes when she sees Dizzy's reaction. Dizzy immediately runs to you and then sniffs Bucky before practically jumping in his arms. You are laughing as Bucky kneels down to play with her. His wide smile and low voice with the dog is endearing. 

"Well, she certainly likes your boyfriend." The woman says. 

You chuckle at the woman's assumption but decide it's not worth the energy to explain. 

"I'm glad Dizzy likes me, too. Huh, girl?" He ruffles the dogs head before standing. Dizzy moves to stand at his side. 

You conclude business with the woman and leash Dizzy before heading to the car. Once inside, you turn to Bucky and laughingly say, "Did you steal my dog already?"

"What can I say? I have a way with women." Bucky chuckles. Dizzy tilts her head and lets out a little whine at the noise.

"Chill, girl, you'll see him around plenty." You reach back to pet her head. "You're gonna have lots of friends." You say.

"Have you had a dog before?" Bucky asks. 

"Charlie had a pit named Brutus. He was a big baby." 

"Where is he now?" Bucky asks.

"He crossed the rainbow bridge about six months before Charlie. We were just starting to talk about getting another dog." You look at your hands suddenly feeling the sadness and loss all over again. "Sorry." You say softly.

"It's okay, Doll."

"It just hits me sometimes that he's really gone."

"Grief is a process. You always feel the loss of those you love. He was a good guy, huh?"

"Yeah. He was. You and Steve remind me of him sometimes. He was an Army Ranger. Served three tours. Did I ever tell you that?"

"No." Bucky gives you a sideways glance.

"He had just discharged when I met him. Still adjusting to being back in civilian life. It took him awhile but he did it. He was brave and smart and really, really loving." Your voice breaks. 

Bucky reaches out and takes your hand. "I'm so sorry you lost him, Doll, but I'm glad he was good to you. You deserved that."

"Thanks, Bucky." You hold hands for the remainder of the trip and your melancholy slips away the closer you get to the compound. "Okay Dizzy, ready to see your new home and meet the rest of the family?" 

Dizzy's ears perk up and her tail wags. You and Bucky take her around the compound. Dizzy is very well-behaved and everyone seems to take a liking to her. When you introduce her to Steve she reacts in much the same way she did with Bucky. Practically rolling over for him. You are elated at how Dizzy and the team seem to immediately bond. 

That evening as you are bringing her back from a walk when you overhear Bucky in Steve's room, "Did you know he was an Army Ranger?"

"No. I don't remember her ever mentioning it." Steve says. "She was crying?"

"No, just sad." Bucky says. 

Dizzy obviously hears their voices too and swivels her head. "Wanna check in with the guys before bed, Dizzy?"

You knock on the door and smile when Steve opens it. "Hey. We heard you guys still up and Dizzy wanted to check in before bed."

“Hey Diz.” Steve pets the dogs head. “How, uh, how much did you hear?”

“Um, Bucky telling you Charlie was an Army Ranger. That was really it.” You shrug. 

“Can you hear me a lot?” Steve asks.

“I usually have my headphones or earplugs in. I try to be respectful of everyone’s privacy.” You say. 

“I know. I just forget how good your hearing is sometimes. You okay? This jerk didn’t upset you today?” Steve smirks as he gestures to Bucky. 

“Watch it, Punk.” Bucky grouses. 

“I’m fine. Like I told Bucky, it just hits me sometimes. I mean, I know Charlie’s gone. I’ve come to terms with that. It’s just sometimes… I’m sorry. You guys probably know better than anyone.”

“Doesn’t make it easier for you. If you ever need anything, we’re here for you.” Steve says. 

“Both of us.” Bucky says. 

“Thank you. I’m really glad to have you both as friends.” You smile. 

“Who’s a good girl?” You hear from Bucky a minute later.

“She is!” You smile at Bucky who is on the floor with Dizzy practically in his lap. Dizzy’s tongue lolls out of her mouth as Bucky scratches her ears. “Alright, Dizzy, let’s let the guys get some sleep. Come on, girl. Night guys.”

“Night, Doll.” Bucky says.

Part 4

“Sweet dreams.” Steve says.

Part 3 1/2 (A smutty Stucky Vignette)

Or go to

Permanent: @bubbabarnes @badassbaker @thefridgeismybestie @strangersstranger @cherthegoddess @drunkbucky @sherlocksmanwatson @cap-n-stuff

Masterlist

[mowu-moment]

i feel controversial & i care too much, so here's my des rocs complete tierlist

ranked list & reasoning (ish) under the cut

1. WAYNE: hoholy shit wayne. can hardly put into words how explosive this one is to me. the intro sets a Whole Mood before swiftly (& cleanly) smacking it down into an Absolute Banger and i don't use the term lightly. very hard not to scream along with it. only detriment is that wayne the person is kinda an ass in the mmc video but that's no qualm

2. POS: basically the same thing as wayne (oh both have great lyrics btw, this one more so), only gets points knocked for being 2 minutes long and having 30 seconds of that being intro & outro. go danny give us nothing

3. WHY WHY WHY: there's a theme among my top picks--they're all hard-hitting w/ killer guitar. the lyrics are absolute batshit in a good way, but the chorus is a lil flat & i feel like in general it just needed a touch more spice to score the top spot. or maybe it's just seniority & it'll have a coup a few months out idk

4. DEAD RINGER: similar killer guitar & lyrics but this one is Groovy as Hell. don't particularly like his singing in this one & it's too repetitive if i'm feeling grumpy but there's something so magic about after the bridge. top 10 songs to twirl a flag to

5. NOTHING PERSONAL: the minute long outro irks me & it's a little bit empty but plays into that well. groovy, great lyrics, the Sexiest Guitar Solo of the lot, the screaming's a minus but it does have an emotion there. not entirely sure what one but it's there.

6. LET ME LIVE / LET ME DIE: his first time being all over the goddamn place, history was made. amazing guitar, a little worse lyrics than 1-4 i'll admit, the intro Slays me both in a good and bad way. must be a joy to play live where he can just drag out that intro & bridge as long as feels right. at least i liked it in the digital concert like that. would actually kill me in a physical concert, imagine how much stomping gets going to that beat. bonus points for presumable cowbell

7. PIECES: for once not this high for the guitar & lyrics, they're both kinda basic. idk what's about this one but it just takes me to a separate dimension & i love it so much for that. really fills those earholes. also a bit of personal meaning, heard it for the first time on the day we moved into the house i'm currently split-custody-living in (is that tmi?) & the first music video of his i saw. man i love some spaghetti on the wall

8. SLO: basically the same as dead ringer, but knocked points for a kinda lame outro & the subject matter being a little less interesting to me. still lovely.

9. HANGING BY A THREAD: not my normal fare really & the way that the ends of the verses don't really fit in the pacing of them is bleh, but it's just so reminiscent of the songs my brother puts on whenever we hang out together that it just makes me all warm & fuzzy. it's also nicely put together which is something i'll have to start saying for. the later list.

10. SUICIDE ROMANTICS: this is where i start griping about head voice & higher pitches in general. don't like em so the pre-chorus is a lil annoying. also not my normal fare but it's tender & the ending is awe-striking. imo better live where he's loud on that last line before the final chorus. not enough to bump it up though. shoutouts to love and a smoking gun, i still am dying to hear that one

11. THE PAST HAS PASSED AWAY: my favorite lyrics out of the first 2 ep's. only thing wrong with it really is the bridge getting kinda repetitive. love that last chorus heehoo. same schpeel as the Banger Category

12. MMC: this one's lower than the rest of the Bangers for being pop punk which is something the radio has made me dislike, i guess. that trope with the guitar in the second half of the chorus just kills me so much. improves greatly during & after the bridge, love that lil ragtime piano. generally the same bit as before but i do love him doing something un-romance-related. yeah fuck the establishment!

13. THE DEVIL INSIDE: reminds me A Lot of the electronic-ish cassettes i've got from the early 90's but that's just me. this one will probably move up as i get more used to it, but only a little bit. the first part of the second verse makes me like. genuinely uncomfy? but the second part of it's fantastic. ending's ass though what happened to the instrumence. bonus points for using 'reverie' that's an SAT word (maybe). good singing but returning to the gripe at higher pitches, just a little bit though

14. THIS IS OUR LIFE: feels shockingly generic for a des rocs song tbh but there's nothing really wrong with that. adore the bridge. singing's alright. kinda miffed that he doesn't pronounce the 'f' in the second 'life' in the chorus, but it makes sense here. that sort of thing won't later so i'm bringing it up now. guitar's nothing spectacular but fits nicely into the song, probably one of the most cohesive of his (especially in recent history).

15. OUTTA MY MIND: really lives in the same space as slo and dead ringer do in my head (most likely the 'songs to twirl a flag to' zone), but this is by far the worst of the three for when i'm grumpy. just. Very repetitive. back to great lyrics here but it's kinda hard to pick them out (i've heard the song at least 100 times by now & i'm still missing a few lines). still groovin'

16. RUBY WITH THE SHARPEST LIES: what the fuck actually goes on in this song by the way? not the premise or whatever it's just. so all over the place. the verses are incredible but bringing in another vocalist just for one line kills me. bridge is really cool but that one part i don't remember where it is, the one that alternates basically nothing & an Electronic Piano Chord blaring at ya? ruins it. partially anyhow. also can someone tell the people on genius that it's 'carved it in my skin' not 'crawled down in my skin'

17. GIVE ME THE NIGHT: same repetitive issue as outta my mind but it's not groovy enough to save it, shame. feels like a trial run of all the wackshit stuff he's been doing recently, with the additional vocal bits at the end & the kinda weird lyrics. it still has a place in my heart don't get me wrong but it's just fallen in favor of stuff that Commits to banger or batshit (or actually pulls off both strongly, yyy). oh yeah nice guitar alright singing etc etc

18. USED TO THE DARKNESS: similar story to give me the night. i love it i do, but it's just lackluster nowadays. also remember that under-pronunciation thing i brought up in this is our life? this is where that comes back. rampant i tell you! that second verse he just doesn't finish the words & i hate it!

19. DON'T HURT ME: i honestly don't know why this one isn't in D. the chorus bit where he just cuts it short is irksome. the lyrics aren't anything special. i don't know what i like about it. but i can tell it does exactly what it set out to do if that makes sense. respect, respect. and using missile in an analogy, he's getting creative with the vocab

20. LIVING PROOF: kinda got a vendetta against this one i think? i don't know why i hate this one but i do. it's just kinda, blah. like the perfect sort of thing to nightcore up. sentiment's lovely & i do love the lyrics even if they aren't impressive but like. it bores me to an extent

21. TICK (LIVE): separating the version i heard in the digital concert just to give it some credit, this one was actually kinda nice. another one with a nice sentiment & what he was going for is great. no clue what the second part of the second verse has to do with any of this though. and it also begins our final group, the songs that just feel empty. like there's not nearly enough going on. this one's alright though i was just hoping the studio version would add some flair. you can see where that one is though.

22. IMAGINARY FRIENDS: also got a vendetta against pop. kinda hate the sentiment here (contrast!), the chorus just falls short of what the verses prime me for, head voice is rampant, and yet i still swing along to it. it's infectious props to him. love the outro though, monkey laugh and all.

23. MAYBE, I: another empty one, like it's a four-note progression what is that. love his singing in it, and the chorus parts do round it out, but like. eh? it doesn't even give me much to say.

24. BORN TO LOSE: another flop on the chorus! too smooth i say! and i absolutely Despise the pitch-shifting thing going on. not something i was expecting him to express so points there, lyrics are nothing fancy to my Literary Mind though. initially good singing but the chorus he's just sloppy over it. the instrumental is lovely but the vocals just throw it so hard into the bin which is a right shame. fuck that outro too i hate that gimmick

25. I KNOW: here's where the bad batshit comes in. singing is some of his worst imo, does the other-vocalist thing for that bridge, genre i'm not fond of, just a soup of Stuff I Don't Like. not one i'd kill someone over putting as #1 like i can see where it comes from but. mmmmmhhhh bad. cover does NOT help his case.

26. HVY MTL DRMR: empirically i should put this one higher. but the chorus flops so goddamn hard it deserves to be in the bottom of the barrel. the verses are lovely for what he was doing back then! but then just... nothing!

27. RABBIT HOLE: i was so excited for this name but it's just sad boi hours playlist curated by some corporation you hate. probably the most nothing of them all, genuinely where are the instruments. what happened. was this one just shoehorned in as the final track just to pump numbers up. and i swear he had some autotune or something which only makes his voice worse it's fantastic naturally. also that's not what a rabbit hole is! that's not the idiom! a rabbit hole is when you go on a wikipedia spiral from jennifer lopez to group theory! not when you just have a shitty night's sleep or whatever this is! i'm not just miffed i'm downright annoyed

28. TICK (STUDIO): what the fuck happened des. how did you release this. it sounds like a 3rd grader singing for the school talent show it's so out of rhythm. singing's honestly kinda bad & the instrumental has the same problems i talked about in the live version. the last chorus is fine, i guess, but no i don't forgive him for what he did to tick.

[crystal-moon-101]

Ben Gen 10 - Live Reaction Review

Right, so since I’ve finally got my hands on the new crossover episodes, and since my favourite show of all time is Generator Rex, I thought I’d watch it and write down things along the way. Mostly just reactions to things happening as they go, and then probably a simple review at the in another post of what I liked, didn’t like, and maybe what other ways this episode could have gone.

Spoilers! Kind of, for those who haven’t seen it yet! But onto the watching!

Should probably mention I haven’t seen a whole lot of the Reboot Ben 10. Not awful from what I’ve seen, some interesting and well-done aspect even, but certainly not my cup of tea. But I’m here for my boi Rex anyway so…

This is actually quite a cute theme song intro, not gonna lie

Ah, yes, a very American opening in a very American location.

Lol, of course they use Heatblast as the first alien in the episode, got the same voice actor as Rex, nice touch.

Evil...trees? Are these actually villains in the show?

Also, that little girl is precious.

Ben, are you trying to start a forest fire in the middle of the park?!

Ha, Gwen gets it!

Ah, yes, more American stuff.

“Don’t wreck the precious monuments” should have seen what you did to Mount Rushmore in your past, Ben.

Sup, Hex.

Music is evil, got it.

So Ben’s aliens are pretty famous already, at least being treated more like celebrities than monster sightings.

“Burn the flute!” A.K.A nearly burn Hex in the process.

And that’s why Ben never passed music class.

And why exactly do you want the world, Hex?

“Hopefully the last one of the summer” Don’t jinx it Max!

Time goes by so fast, doesn’t it Ben? Especially with aliens, villains and timetravel.

Max is secretly an EVO with that kind of growl.

Yes, because as we all know, villains will stop trying to take over the world once summer is over. They must hibernate for the winter.

Also, Max, did you steal those marshmallows?

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh…….Ben, you good there?....Did Hex do something to your brain?

Who thought this would be great to animate!?

We all have those existential crises and talk to smores.

Jesus, Rex, got ninja skills I see.

Some homeless kid and his monkey stole my food? Time to kick some ass!

My favourite alien, Canonballoon.

I’ve missed my boy and his chimp.

Awwwww they’re sharing! Also just….feel so bad for them already. Homeless and struggling for food, my poor boys.

So EVOs do exist here? Wonder how that will be explained.

Ben out here really trying to beat up some other kid, lol. What a great hero.

Bobo, you are great.

I feel like...Ben’s going through some issues.

Ah yaaaaaaaaaaa, bring on the EVO powers! BFS!

Look ma, no hands!

Rex 1, Ben 0

Ben really wants to commit murder or assault here, wow.

Overboard is the word I’d use, yes.

The life of a background character.

Nanites confirmed! And now they’re in the watch, that ain’t good.

Huh...not what I thought was gonna happen.

The little girl is still precious.

This would be fun to explain to Azmuth.

This ain’t good.

On the run from Providence I see.

Awww, poor Rex. Really doesn’t want to hurt anyone.

I can’t tell if these people are angry because of the DNA affect them, or they’re really just being angry in general.

See ya, Gwen and Max.

Interesting to see that the Providence aircraft looks straight out of the show.

Evening, Six.

Still a badass like normal.

He said Omega, he said the word!

Also, nice blame game there Ben. It’s not like you provoked Rex by, ya know, trying to crush him like a grape.

Um...Six...did you just….try to kill a kid? He didn’t know Ben had powers, that pillar could have easily crushed a normal human.

“This is how you try to convince me you’re not a threat?” Say the dude who just tried to murder a kid!!”

Oh no, he Naruto runs! 

Oh, hello Hex.

Also, what is Providence in this world? What are EVOs and Nanites in this world? None of this has been explained yet.

Ok, so that’s what Providence is...You’d think we would have seen them before based on all the aliens showing up who want to destroy the world.

EVO Generator....I wonder if that means that there aren’t very many EVOs, like maybe there is only a set group from the same lab, and Rex is considered the most dangerous because he can make EVOs.

Ben, do you even know what an EVO is?

Jeez, I know Six is like, the sixth deadliest man on the planet, but he just tackles alien Ben like it’s nothing. This guy should take on Vilgax.

Did he say nib libs?

My boi’s back!

I’m not liking this Six...very much not the character I’ve come to love. Who are you and what have you done with the real Six!

Lol, gotta make sure the kids at home know these aren’t real guns!

Using a net on one kid, and about to beat the crap out of the other, nice.

I do have to ask why Hex was picked to me the main villain, beyond whatever the hell Providence is doing. Why the magic dude and not a tech based villain? Someone who could be both interested in the watch and nanites.

What a covenant spell you have there, Hex.

Again, why do you want to take over the world?

“No, those are my aliens!” I think that’s the least of your concern there, Ben.

Bobo 1, Hex 0

Why is Bobo one of the best-written character’s here? Not that I hate Bobo, but just…

Lol, Rex did you just lay there, the entire time? What was that net made out of?

Ah, right. Let’s attack the children rather the magical manic who clearly stated he wanted to rule the world.

Those nets are fireproof apparently.

Ooof, ah….quite the sore spot there, Ben.

Just let me hug Rex, please…

Are there EVOs are are there not!?

I know this is supposed to connect with older fans, but most of this info would fly over the head of anyone who hasn’t watched Generator Rex. They act like everyone knows what EVOs and nanites are.

Still with the blame game are we, Ben?

Judging by that look, Rex’s parents are also dead in this world. Guess he’s not allowed nice things in this universe either.

That flashback was….so latching in the dramatic department. 

Now ya wanna help, Ben.

He’s so scared of himself, noooo!

Ya, but the different between you and him, Ben, is that he lost his parents, his home, got mutated, his memories became hazy, got locked up and called a monster, and now lives on the streets stealing smores. I think Rex has more of a reason to feel scared at being new with the hero business.

Bobo gets it.

Gotta love they added details on Gwen and Max’s alien forms to make them stick out from the rest. Don’t want to confuse anyone lol.

Thinking of a clever comeback on the spot is hard, not gonna lie.

Yes, Ben, drown him.

Again, with the American music, lol. It ruins the fight scene here.

What is this fight scene?

Original Providence agents would have died on screen rather than ditching the fight.

God, everyone’s made Rex feel like everything is his fault, poor guy.

Rock 1, Ben 0

This message and heartfelt moment falls flat, the build-up wasn’t there and it just...kind of happens. It lacks a lot of flavour and impact, and it doesn’t help with how most of these characters are written.

Old people jokes.

Now we shift the blame to Kevin.

Is Fourarms Gwen bigger? Because if so, nice touch, since we know female Tetramands are stronger/bigger than the men.

Ok, so attempted murder is fine when Six and Ben try to do it, but not Rex, got it.

Get in line Hex, you’re not the first who wants to ‘recruit’ Rex. You’ve got Providence, Van Kleiss, Quarry, Black Knight, that one band, and so on so fourth.

Why is this heartfelt moment suddenly happening now? This feels like it could have been placed back when Rex refused to fix the watch.

Ben…”I’ve already tried that!” Bruh, you tried beating him up, telling Six and Providence you saw him, basically acted like he wasn’t a good hero because he refuses to get over his trauma, and reached out your hand once because it benefited you....I get what they’re trying to do, but it just makes Ben look like a jerk. I get he’s ten, but still…

Just...slap him Bobo, please…

Why are we so nervous about Rex’s sword? Ben you have aliens that can burn, cut, smash and so on, and you barely care what you do. Remember how you nearly started that forest fire at the start?...

Yo, what!? What kind of logic is that, Providence? “Whelp, guess earth is screwed, might as well burn it”

Ya, remember that time when EVOs infected the whole world, and Providence decided to just burn everything down with lasers? 

Extendo blade.

Huh, so Six’s blades can break down Rex’s builds.

Salamander...don’t you mean...Skalamander?

One ship? What is Providence packing!?

Yasss, Punk Busters!

Rex is crying, how dare you!

Now we got Smack Hands, you’re in for it, Hex!

Ooooooooooooooonnnnn iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitttttttttttttttttttttt!

Ah yes, the sixth most beautiful man on the planet.

Again...what is with the nuking?

Magical cloth fixing, just what I need.

Pure chaos with my boy.

Cracking his neck made me cringe.

Also why the sudden change in heart, Six? This feels out of character for the character who is out of character.

Look, Rex, you’re either gonna fix the watch, or you’re gonna start the self destruct countdown. Everything is going to hell, so might as well take that 50/50.

And it worked!

Ah ya, about that missile.

See’s missile inbound “I can handle it!”

Iron Giant vibes around here.

Screw ruling the world, I’m gonna murder this one child!

My cat’s the same.

REX, DID YOU JUST KICK A MISSILE!?

So that’s his full name?

I think you need to work on those vacation days with your boss, Six.

You are not Six, I will never accept you.

So the episode starts with Rex being alone, homeless and being chased by Providence, and ends with him being alone, homeless and being chased by Providence. What was the improvement here? Self Confident?

Ben even just lets him go, doesn’t even offer him to stay with his family.

Rex deserves better.

Another heartfelt moment that just...falls flat…

“Always be family and be there for you, Ben” Until you go to college without telling him before hand

So!...That was the crossover. Not...amazing sadly. I didn’t have high hopes to begin with, and mostly was just happy enough to have Gen Rex be acknowledged. But this Crossover missed a lot of points, and fumbles quite a bit. It reminds me a lot of the Secret Saturdays Crossover and what was wrong there. But I’m tired and will do a break down/proper review another day, if people are keen for that. Thanks for reading this if you did, it was a rollercoster!

[neil-neil-orange-peel]

Can I send two characters?

- Vyvyan (TYO)

- Baldrick (any series of Blackadder!)

(I just feel it would be intriguing to see Baldrick-responses!)

Yeah! The more the merrier! 😊

Vyvyan Basterd

Sexuality headcanon ~ I agree with the general scumbag consensus that Vyv is bisexual look at me assigning everyone bisexuality, projecting much 😅. I think, much to his chagrin, his taste in guys is not his fellow punks. Instead, it's annoying, whiny prisses who spout bullshit, think they're special, are far too pretty for their own good, and evoke a strong desire for violence within him. On the other hand, he has a thing for blonde women. Blonde women who may or may not share his murderous tendancies.

OTP ~ To the shock of exactly no one, I'm going to say Rick. 😂 Rivyan is one of my favourite ships, I love how chaotic they are. Plus, from experience, their chemistry is great for fic writing. Rik and and Ade were the comedy duo so it just makes sense to me that their two characters slot together in various contexts - they were designed to work well together, comedically speaking.

BrOTP ~ Mike. Canon wise, it's been said many times that Vyvyan and Mike get on best out of the four and I think they'd easily have a laugh together.

NOTP ~ Romance wise, once again Mike. I'm just not really a massive Mivyan fan, to be honest. I'm not anti-Mivyan, of course not, but I do see them as more brotherly than anything else. I've said before that I think Vyvyan looks up to Mike a little and Mike sees him as a bit of a protégé, so I'm just not quite sure it works in a romantic sense without pulling both of their characters to the extreme ends of the relationship dynamic. At least for me. It you like it? Ship away! I'll happily reblog any Mivyan art/fic because we're all starved of content in this fandom. 😂

First headcanon that pops into my head ~ I've already mentioned my birthday headcanon on Tumblr before so I'll pick another. When he was 8, shortly before Christmas, Vyvyan's mother left their flat and never returned. Eventually - after a cold and hungry couple of weeks - he was found and spent the rest of his childhood and adolescence in a Hammersmith orphanage. The orphanage was hell but with guaranteed meals and a place to sleep, he gradually improved at school. Although hardly an obedient or well behaved pupil, Vyv was naturally book smart and did well academically when he tried, prompting him to make a decision in his teenage years to try to get into university. He saw it as his way out of hell. Happy stuff, innit?

Favourite line from this character ~ Hard! One of my favourites is: "I'm going to have a baby!" His voice when he says it is just brilliant. 😂

One way in which I relate to this character ~ Very random and not that deep but I've been doing that scrunch he does with his mouth - which I've been told a lot of punks do - since I was a kid, as my "funny face". 😂

Thing that gives me second hand embarrassment about this character ~ Y'know, I don't think there is anything. It's like Rik said, the audience sort of sides with Vyvyan and wants him to whack everyone and destroy everything. It's funny. I don't think you're supposed to read too deeply into Vyvyan - we all just do it because it's fun - so I'm not sure there's much to be embarrassed by.

Cinnamon roll or problematic fave? ~ Considering, in the words of Rik Mayall, he is "amoral" and that The Young Ones Wikipedia describes him as "psychopathic, sociopathic, sadistic and misanthropic"... I'm going to have to say problematic fave. 😂 Absolutely love him though, such an iconic character.

S. Baldrick

Sexuality headcanon ~ Oof gosh, deliberating Baldrick's sexuality. 😂 Can't say I've ever considered it. In all likelihood, he's straight. Unfortunately, the smell tends to put everyone off, irrespective of gender.

OTP ~ Blackadder... But it's not what you're thinking! There's nothing romantic or sexual going on, but wherever you go in history you will find a Blackadder and a Baldrick together. Their family lines are cursed to be together, I suppose. I remember reading someone (I think it was Mark Searby) describe the relationship between Adonis Cnut and Albumen of Believe Nothing as like the one between Blackadder and Baldrick, just without the mutual respect. I don't think that's quite right, because I don't think there is necessarily mutual respect between all iterations of Blackadder and Baldrick. I do think they are comfortable with one another, though. Blackadder will rant and vent to Baldrick, lowering the social facade he has up most of the time. They are not social equals, never that, but that's kind of the point. They are only truly equal at the end of s4, as they face death. So yeah: Blackadder and Baldrick are always together, always from vastly different sectors of society, and... Well, from what we see on-screen at least, I don't think either of them are ever closer to anyone else. Not properly close. They've been stuck together since 1485. 😂 It's a relationship that transcends the generations.

BrOTP ~ I couldn't put Blackadder for this as they're not "bros". It's not that sentimental. I'll say Percy in s1 and 2 (when Percy's not getting jealous over Blackadder paying Baldrick attention and not him) and George for s4. I can't quite say George for s3, since the implication that a peasant and the Prince Regent could be besties in a sitcom that deals so closely with the British class system through history feels a mite bit too ridiculous, even though it's a comedy. 😂

NOTP ~ Baldrick and dung. JUST SAY NO! Apart from that, I can't really think of a serious answer. 😂

First headcanon that pops into my head ~ It's not exactly original as I'm sure I've seen it elsewhere but I do have one concerning the gap between s1 and 2 and the first Baldrick's role in what happened.

After the deaths of the royal family, the Spanish Infanta announces that the night she and Prince Edmund made love she fell pregnant with a son. A bastard, yes, but still a figure Henry VII may have sought to... Deal with. This son would be about 7 now. The problem with this story is that the son is not Prince Edmund's because it was actually Baldrick in the bedroom, as viewers will recall. Only Baldrick and Percy are aware of this fact and Baldrick wants to get to his son before someone nastier does... Somehow. As well as this, a local maid is claiming her newborn is also the son of Prince Edmund, which means this baby is in danger too.

Through a series of events that may or may not be completely historically accurate and would certainly occur partly by chance, Baldrick becomes the sole protector of both children and the world is ignorant to the truth of their heritage. He raises them as though they were both his, but subconsciously lets the guilt he feels over Prince Edmund's death lead him to focus more on the education of Prince Edmund's son, to the detriment of his biological child. Ergo, the switcheroo of intellect between the two lines is struck.

By the time the two are grown, who is the biological father of who is plainly obvious, meaning the actual Blackadder can enter court life as if he is the Spanish Infanta's bastard. He is allowed to retain a semblance of nobility on the condition that he pledges loyalty to the Tudor dynasty and goes along with the rewritten version of history. He's on thin ice, but he's much more witty and charming than his father, which serves him well. His direct descendants will edge closer to the crown (see: s2). S1 Baldrick eventually dies, leaving his son in service to Blackadder... And the rest is history.

Favourite line from this character ~ God, there are too many. 😂 There's the obvious one, of course, but I also really love his one insult to Blackadder in s3: "Goodbye, you lazy, big-nosed, rubber-faced bastard."

One way in which I relate to this character ~ I've heard it said that, if there's any "hero" in Blackadder, it's Baldrick. Baldrick represents the common man, the millions of people resigned to history with no identity or voice. I'm working class and, although my lot is not really comparable to that of a 16th century peasant's, Baldrick still speaks for us. Well, he would, only he hasn't quite the vocabulary.

Thing that gives me second hand embarrassment about this character ~ It seems I'm going to struggle with this question for a lot of characters! I suppose watching Baldrick handling food in s3 and his nightmarish concoctions in s4 are shudder worthy.

Cinnamon roll or problematic fave? ~ A cinnamon roll!

Thanks for the ask!

[ladynox]

20 Questions - Writer’s Edition

Tagged by @kaydeefalls & @im-the-punk-who

How many works do you have on AO3? 15. I use to be a pretty profilic writer when I was a teenager (before AO3 thank fuck 😂) but I lost interest. Picked it up again somewhere in my 20s, only to lose interest or the drive or something again. Roswell's the first fandom I've written for in almost decade. Hopefully this time I'll be able to stick too it. Id' forgotten how much I enjoy writing. What’s your total AO3 word count? 233292. Most of that is from just the last year alone! Crazy! How many fandoms have you written for and what are they? Currently posted to AO3? Just three. Yu-Gi-Oh!, Captain America and Roswell New Mexico. If we're counting the stuff lost to long dead Yahoo groups or forgotten notebooks, or the stuff still on the internet because I can't remember my password but I will never own up to? Probably 8? With the addition of Gundam Wing, Sailor Moon, Digimon and Final Fantasy 7. There might have been more but I can't remember anymore. What are your top 5 fics by kudos? The 1-3 and 5 were co-written with @beautifulcheat 1. The Great New Mexico Fake-Off (Roswell, malexa, complete) Michael takes up baking after watching The Great British Bake Off and starts gifting his bakes to the people he loves. Mostly fluff and pining. 2. Milestones (Roswell, malexa, WIP) based after the series, in that nebulous well adjusted future we dream of for our favorite idiots. 😂 Maria, who has been living in a v poly relationship with Michael and Alex for years, realizes she's pregnant. Michael is ecstatic. Alex is conflicted, which dampers some of Maria's joy. Still a pretty fluffy and very domestic fic. This one's on hold because we're both busy with work, school and certification exams. So we only really have time for one, which is the following monster of a fic:

3. The Truth is Right Here (Roswell, malexa, WIP) X-Files/White Collar fusion where Michael is both Scully and Neal, and Maria and Alex are both Mulder and Peter. Yes you heard right. The alien is the skeptic. But the agents don't know he's an alien yet. hahah 4. Testing the Bonds (Captain America, Steve & Bucky) Bucky comes out to Steve during the war. 5. Petit Fours (Roswell, malexa, complete). Companion piece to Fake-Off. An assorted collection of text fics or short fics. Mostly about everyone else's reaction to how bad Michael is at keeping the secret that he's the one baking the cake. What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending? Hmmm looking over these fics, I realize that I don't really write angsty endings. I tend to like my angst with a happy ending, or a hopeful one. Whatever that might look like given the subject matter of the fic. So I guess the closet would be The Message (YGO, puppyshipping, complete). The fic starts after an incident of domestic violence. Jou is basically working through the horror/guilt he feels at what he's done. It's not a happy ending, but there's hope different decisions will be made. What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending? A New Year, A New Hope (Roswell, malex, complete) is entirely made up of marshmallows from start to finish, so likely that one. Fake-Off's also tooth rottingly sweet. Surprising no one I'm sure hahaha. I love happy endings so I write a lot of fics with those. Do you write crossovers? If so what is the craziest one you’ve written? Yes I do! I'm counting fusion fics as crossovers too. I *love* AUs in general. They're super fun. As for craziest.... well I've already mentioned Truth above, which is likely the craziest because of how ambitious it is. I both love and regret ever starting this monster. Have you ever received hate on a fic? Oh yeah definitely. hahaha One day people will figure out the back button. Do you write smut? If so what kind? Yeah but not a lot. I want to write more smut honestly but I have a hard time writing it. I don't have a problem with action scenes so it's all mental. Just start thinking it's gonna suck or it doesn't make sense or it's boring. Dumb brain, cockblocking me. Have you ever had a fic stolen? Not that I know of? Have you ever had a fic translated? Nope. Have you ever co-written a fic before? All the time. It's the best. Everything Kat and I write is just to amuse the other, makes writing so much fun. Also, she and I have opposite writing strengths and weakness so it really works out well. What’s your all time favorite ship? Er? I gotta choose just one? Seems kind of pointless to pit different fandoms against each other. What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will? I mean I have every intention of going back and finishing it but probably Six. A malex The Last of Us AU that I had a lot of grand ideas for but have lost all drive to finish. I do think that what's written can largely stand on its own as a 1 shot. One of these I'll go back edit it, give it a good "in conclusion" so to speak. XD What are your writing strengths? Hmm? Character voices/studies, I think. I like doing stream of consciousness a lot. What are your writing weaknesses? Everything. Kidding. Kidding. Probably smut and dialogue. Though I think I'm getting better at dialogue. Lately I've been getting the dialogue on paper before the descriptions. That use to not be the case! Yay! Improvement! What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic? Use it sparingly and carefully. Most of your readers are probably not going to be able to read that language. The last thing you want is to confuse or annoy your readers. What was the first fandom you wrote for? Gundam Wing 🤣 All of those fics are lost to time and I'm totally ok with that. What’s your favorite fic you’ve written? I am proud of everything I've posted to AO3. Um... @beautifulcheat, @maeglinthebold @jocarthage, @tasyfa and anyone else who wants to do it.

[demifiendrsa]

NEO: The World Ends with You details details Susukichi, Tsugumi, Fuya, Kanon, Motoi, Threads system, shops, more

■ The Reapers’ Game

The Reapers’ Game unfolds in the UG (Underground), a different dimension which bears a striking resemblance to the real world. The Players of the Game form teams and aim to complete missions set out by the Game Master, Shiba. The nature of these missions ranges from solving puzzles to defeating enemies known as Noise, and teams may even find themselves fighting their peers for control of the ‘Buya in citywide turf wars!

The Game lasts for seven days. It is said that the team who racks up the most points over the course of the week will have their wish granted—whatever it may be. The unlucky team who ends up in last, on the other hand, is forced to face erasure.

In the Reapers’ Game, it’s all for one and one for all. Will Rindo and the Wicked Twisters be able to band together and topple the other teams in this struggle for survival?

■ Team Battles

Turf Wars: Scramble Slams

One kind of mission assigned in the Reapers’ Game is the Scramble Slam, a citywide turf war that has teams vying for control of various areas around town. Erase all the orange Turf Noise or take down the rival team members in an area to claim that location as your own.

In Scramble Slams, the fun lies in not only gaining control of an area, but also in defeating swarms of enemies to earn even more Scramble Points and exchange them for even better rewards. Chain together battles with regular Noise to max out your point-earning potential!

■ Characters: Ruinbringers

Known as the “strongest team,” everything else about them is shrouded in mystery: The Ruinbringers!

Susukichi (voiced by Max Udell [ENG], Natsuki Hanae [JPN])

“You kids must be the newbies! Oooh, fresh outta the box, ain’t ya?”

A Player in the Reapers’ Game, and a member of the Ruinbringers. While his impressive physique gives off an intimidating air, Susukichi is actually a bit of a chatterbox, rambling in his surprisingly high voice. Like the discs in beloved Reversi, he views the world in black and white.

Tsugumi (voiced by Ciara Riley Wilson [ENG], Yuka Ozaki in [JPN])

“I can’t lose… I must fight.”

A Player in the Reapers’ Game. Although she is a member of the Ruinbringers, she barely interacts with others and does not talk to anyone. Contrary to her waify appearance, she possesses powerful psychic abilities and a perfect record against other Players. The stuffed animal she carries resembles the mascot of Gatto Nero, a new brand that’s all the rage in Shibuya—but her plush pal apparently predates the establishment of said brand.

■ Characters: Deep Rivers Society

A group of river enthusiasts whose game-plan is to survive by being cautious and steady-going: the Deep Rivers Society!

Fuya (voiced by Adam Gold [ENG], Yoshiki Nakajima [JPN])

“You can row, row, row all you want…but you won’t go gently down this stream!”

A Player in the Reapers’ Game who got sucked into the action while taking a stroll in search of Shibuya’s most exquisite culverts. Despite being the de facto leader of the Deep Rivers Society, he is quite cowardly and not one to normally take charge. However, his aversion to conflict is the reason he’s managed to avoid dropping out of the game so far, so his “flight-over-fight” approach has served him surprisingly well. He holds a store-bought map of the city in which he’s hand-marked his favorite culverts.

■ Characters: Variabeauties

The super-stylish team with a passion for fashion and a skilled negotiator at the helm: the Variabeauties!

Kanon (voiced by Xanthe Huynh [ENG], Sumire Uesaka [JPN])

“That may work on the other girls, but I’m a little sharper.”

A Player in the Reapers’ Game and the leader of the Variabeauties. Both kind and captivating, Kanon gives “Rindy” and his teammates a crash course in the rules of the Game. Her beauty also belies a cunning side that reveals itself when the situation warrants. What she lacks in impressive psychic powers, she more than makes up for in wisdom, which has helped her survive the Game thus far.

■ Characters: Purehearts

The social media-savvy team taking the game by storm and using their positive thinking as a weapon: the Purehearts!

Motoi (voiced by Nick Thurston [ENG], Wataru Komada [JPN])

“I’m prepared to help out, of course! The more people working together, the better the resultat.”

A Player in the Reapers’ Game and the leader of the Purehearts. His winning smile and poetic platitudes give off good vibes only, even though his superficiality and frequent use of “fancy” words can rub some people the wrong way. Nevertheless, his magnetic personality has proven quite attractive, amassing him a large number of followers.

■ System: Threads

Rindo and his teammates can increase their HP (Health Points), ATK (Attack) and DEF (Defence) by wearing threads. There are five categories of fashion items you can equip: headwear, tops, bottoms, footwear, and accessories.

In addition, threads have abilities that are useful in battle. If the character equipping an item has enough Style, its ability will be activated and its effect unleashed. Spruce up your fashion sense and unlock the true power of the threads!

—There are no restrictions when it comes to equipping threads, so you can make whichever character you like wear any fashion item. However, some abilities will only activate when the corresponding item is equipped by a specific character.

■ Shops

The city of Shibuya is dotted with a wide variety of shops. There are over 40 establishments to visit, with some selling threads and pins, some providing delicious food and drink, and some offering collectibles like CDs and books.

Each shop attendant is unique, and they reveal a little more of their personality with each visit. Stop by a shop often enough and you might even earn yourself some VIP perks!

—Look for SHOP icons to find places where you can shop and eat! You can also enjoy shopping at stores which exist in the real world such as Taiseido and Tower Records.

—Pay with the contactless payment system “ShibuPay.” Sell the pins you gain during battle to top up your balance.

■ Shops and Brands

The style of clothes and accessories in fashion shops changes with each brand. The number of products will increase as you progress through the story and meet various conditions, so be sure to pop into your favorite shops every now and then. A few of the game’s boutiques are featured below.

—There are over 270 types of fashion items. Assemble ensembles around your favorite brands!

Top o’ Topo

Cute and girly clothes that are popular with younger crowds. Has its main store in Harajuku and another branch in Shibuya.

Joli becot

A sexy yet stylish brand for women that also features some cool pieces for men. Sometimes called “JB” for short.

Tigre Punks

Long-standing punk fashion brand beloved throughout Shibuya. Their edgy designs are tough in many ways.

■ Restaurants

Another great thing about Shibuya is its wide selection of restaurants! Choose from a variety of dining options like guilty fast food pleasures, succulent meat dishes, healthy veggie soups, and parfaits packed with cream and fruit. Eating improves your basic stats and is essential for Rindo and his teammates’ growth. If you want to survive the Reapers’ Game, watch what you eat!

—There are over 90 types of food. Savor all the fine dishes Shibuya has to offer!

—Rindo and his teammates’ reactions during food scenes in the restaurants are also a treat. Their moods are different when they eat something they like versus when they eat something they don’t.

■ System: Remind

Fret’s unique psych: Remind!

Fret’s unique psych, Remind, jogs people’s memories and helps them to remember things they have forgotten.

A minigame will start when Remind is activated. Tilt the left and right sticks in the correct positions to reassemble the scattered memory. Put all the pieces in the right place to complete the reminder!

—Use Remind on a Reaper who has forgotten the mission he was supposed to give out.

■ Locations

Rindo and his teammates travel to all corners of the Shibuya area over the course of the Reapers’ Game. Revisit familiar spots from the previous game such as Tipsy Tose Hall, and discover new locations like Shibuya Stream and the iconic Takeshita Street.

■ Pins

Classical Cacophany

A pin that enables the use of “dart bombs,” which shoots arrows that explode after a short time. By shooting a certain number of arrows quickly, a large explosion will occur immediately.

ShoGun: Void

The “entanglement,” which generates a chain in a straight line that damages and restrains the enemies it touches, plays nice with other psychs.

The Great Volancic Escape

Set a timed explosive at your feet with the “Time Bomb” psych. Figure out when to detonate the bomb and follow up with an attack.

NEO: The World Ends with You will launch for PlayStation 4 and Switch on July 27, 2021 worldwide, followed by PC via the Epic Games Store in Summer 2021.

[bxllafanficc]

¡Skate/sing your hearts out! (Yuri Plisetsky x reader)

(part four)

Part one. Part two. Part three. Part five. Masterlist

Summary:After last year's cancellation of Figure Skating Grand Prix, Yuri Plisetsky finds himself unable to bring out his inner skater after a year of doing nothing but enjoy life like a regular teenager. That's when you enter the picture; We Are Voice Grand Awards's currently hottest competitive vocalist come first place two years in a row. Just like the other competitors of Grand Prix, it turns out that Victor and Yuuri faces the same issue. With an arrangement between Victor and Yakov, they agree to travel to Japan and hire you as a mutual coach for Yuri and Yuuri to help bring back the emotion into their performances like before, maybe even more intense than ever. Yuri however, who's never experienced issues with his coaches before, for some reason finds this one particularly difficult to coexist along with in their (reasonably) odd partnership. Warnings: none

*Your POV*

Your eyes scanned through the fully stocked room that came to be yours a couple of days ago. Fairly large and a great window where the sun came to welcome you each morning. Not even the blinds could stop it. Now it was fairly dark inside since the sun was about to go down. You reached for the light switch and scanned through all your products and belongings for things that you could possibly move somewhere else.

The grunt of the Russian skater behind you caused you to turn around. As you did, he stopped and returned your stare, as if waiting for you to announce something. There was a lot that you needed to clean up. If you had known that you'd be expecting a roommate, you'd already have done so. Guess Victor forgot to mention that too, eh?

The visible twitch in the corner of your left eye was impossible to force back. Just at the mere thought of unintentional (?) screwups of the one and only Victor Nikiforov. Now, just because he was your childhood friend, it didn't mean that he wouldn't receive a massive ass-whooping if he as much as repeated the same mistake three times the same day now the few remaining hours of the day. If only you could get that message through.

And, you kind of did. Just not to the man you intended. Yuri at the receiving end of your stare was just about to open his mouth to say something, what you assume, sour when he noticed the twitching of your eye. Surprisingly, it shut him up before he started. He kind of shielded himself behind one of his bags and eyed you carefully.

Shit, wrong Russian dude.

"Sorry, that was meant for Victor." You let out a sigh and helped him with one of his bags out in the hall. You got a simple nod from the boy just before you passed him in the doorway.

He's been acting all quiet and confused ever since you tended to his wounds. Was something you said unclear? Maybe you should make sure the two of you were on the same page. 'Later...' you thought.

Yuuri and Victor hurried to the entrance of your room with a couple of more bags.

"So what do you think about it, Yuri? Pretty special eh?" It was Yuuri who spoke up, probably just as an act of friendliness. Though, you could understand how a punk like Yuri might take it as teasing.

"I'm not staying here. There's- there is no way I'm sharing a room with another person. I should have my own room. Why can't Victor and (Y/n) share a room and I get my own?!"

Ah, there he is. You were starting to get worried that he might actually turn nice. Then you'd have to call an ambulance just to ease Yakov's mind if he ever found out.

"With that thief? Nuh-uh. He already owes me an entire bottle of lotion, a mascara and a lipgloss. And for some reason, my throwaway razors are gone too. I'm not endangering any more of my stuff to him!" You shot a glare at Victor but he intentionally pretended not to hear nor see you. Seriously?

"Just lock them up or something, I don't care. Maybe I should just sleep on the couch. Give me one reason why it's worth sharing this room with you."

You didn't really know why you felt so opposed to the thought of him sleeping on the couch. You should be relived that you wouldn't have to share room with The Russian punk. But you still mumbled the one sentence after taking a brief moment to carefully word out your reason.

"What did you say?"

"... I have a cat."

The silence following almost made you feel like the scene of these weird soap operas that streamed on tv once in a while. But you did have a cat. A beautiful sacred Birman with the eyes of an ocean. And you knew about Yuri's fascination with them. Victor mentioned it somewhere along the lines when discussing his arrival days ago. And if you had to give him one reason, then that would be the one. It's probably the only reason too.

"Where." It wasn't a question. It almost made you giggle but you kept a straight face. Victor who knew the reason behind your words, almost cracked under the pressure.

"He's probable sleeping under the blanket on my bed, as always-"

Yuri pushed Victor aside with a stern 'move' and headed for your bed. A little anxious, you followed him through the entrance, afraid that he would be like one of those crazy catpeople who never stopped bothering their cat. You worried because you were one of those people. But because your cat was rather clingy too and you always had a bunch of stuff to do daytime, it kind of evened out the contrast. Two crazy people were too much, you figured.

"Well, we'll go off now and let you two bond now. Don't forget that we're having afternoon tea in an hour!" And with that, Victor and Yuuri was out of the picture. For awhile.

A round uneven pile under you blanket made Yuri stop at the end of the bed. You stood beside him as he lifted the blanket, revealing the fuzzy ball that was your cat. Round eyes stared up at the both at you and the cat stretched it's back, making a 'u' position.

"His name is Magnolia. You'll have to apologize to him for interrupting his sleepy time though." You half expected Yuri to scoff at your statement, thinking you were taking the animal too seriously. But the baby voice he used to communicate with Magnolia next almost had you taking a step back.

"Hi, Magnolia... 'm sorry, pretty boy. You'll have to forgive me, I'm afraid." He kept on talking to the sleepy cat as he extended a hand for him to smell. Magnolia yawned and gave the hand a sniff before sitting up, eyes intensely staring into the boy's soul. You could tell by the hesitation of Yuri's petting hand that he really wanted the cat's approval. He cat kept staring him straight in the eyes which usually means bad. Though, the purring heard from his belly said the opposite. You finally relaxed a little. Magnolia is very picky with who gets to touch him and you were expecting a bite, honestly.

"He's always been so stare-y... I've figured that he only stare at people he like or something he finds very interesting." You crouched down beside Yuri and rested with your arms at the bedside.

"Like owner, like cat, I guess then. I feel like he has the exact same piercing gaze you gave me earlier." Yuri grinned smugly at you and turned back his attention to the ball of fur who stood up, stroking its back to your chin. A little heat rose to your cheeks and you hoped Magnolia covered it up well enough with his body. It was kind of true. And you couldn't really deny it. You always did watch things a little to intense. But just because you found people very interesting, always seeking to improve your understanding and emotional range at any given time. So you shrugged your shoulders and coughed a little when the cat made sure to get his butt all up in your face too. This habit, you had noticed, was a trait almost every cat held within them.

"You're going to object or what?" Yuri caught your attention again and Magnolia moved away from your face just in time. So he was expecting some kind of denial.

"You're not wrong... You've just got the wrong idea of it."

"What do you mean?"

"You should probably start getting yourself settled here. We only have one hour."

"You didn't answer me." Yuri's remark left unanswered as well as you stood up and threw a bag at him. A light 'oof' slipped through him as the heavy thing hit him right in the stomach.

"Hey!"

You grinned and opened another bag, pouring the internal onto the floor. Tons of clothes splattered on the floor. Everything in-between black training clothes to underwear and a pajamas with cat prints. A keychain with a chibi cat and a stuffed animal of a tiger fell out on the floor lastly on top of the pile. Yuri quickly made his way to the clothes and gathered them in his arms, trying to hide them away. It was worth taking an extra look at the blush staining his cheeks. You wondered if you'd just met a fellow catmerch fan as instense as you. No, this was far crazier than you! Especially as you recognized the keychain being a print of his own cat that you'd seen on a social media Yuri Plisetsky fanpage once.

"Y-you can't touch my stuff! Nor see it!" His voice was a good blend of anger and a thick stain of embarrassment.

Maybe it wasn't ideal poring someone else's belongings onto the floor. But you knew that look that Yuri bearded only moments ago. The cat had taken him as his loyal servant and Yuri wasn't intending to move until he had satisfied Magnolia's every need. If you let that happen, it would take the entire hour you had to clean up the room. And you clearly didn't have that time.

"Just hurry up and help me then if I'm not allowed to touch it!"

"Fine! And move your stupid clothes and stuff over to your half of the room!"

(A/N: Shoutout to my cat who gave me the entire butt-in-face idea through experience. I really owe you one, you little jerk<3 Also, what have you thought of the story so far? I bet you Victor has planned a familiar exercise for tomorrow's day of training. Just a little helping hand to get Yuri back into shape, y'know;))

[nightashes]

The Red Glint

A/N: This is for @anxiouslyfred as a part of the @sanderssidesgiftxchange. I hope you have had a wonderful holiday season!! 

Summary: An attempt to find Mothman leads to the trio (Roman, Remus, and Virgil) discovering something much much cooler.

warnings: none

writing masterlist - ao3 version

***

His boot sinks into the mud as he steps over the slick corpse of a fallen tree. Remus cackles behind him as he shoves Roman over the obstacle, causing his brother to fall face first onto the ground. The shriek the prep emits is enough to shatter glass. Virgil hisses at his friends as he clutches his ears in pain. 

“REMUS! Look what you’ve done to my shirt, you vandal! I just bought this.” The prep stands, throwing a handful of mud at his brother, who joyfully accepts the slinged debris as if it were a gift from the gods. 

“Don’t worry, Roman, the mud has really improved your looks.” Remus licks a drop of mud off his hand. 

Virgil smirks at the brothers’ bickering. He should have known it would come to this. “Ummm hey, guys.” He tries to catch their attention.

“Ugh. That is disgusting.” Roman watches his brother hum in delight at the taste. “You’re paying for my dry cleaning, heathen.”

“And what makes you think I’d do that?” Remus counters.

Roman takes a deep breath, preparing what Virgil assumes will be a rant worthy of Logan. The emo simply rolls his eyes in exasperated amusement. “Alright enough of this.”  He grabs Remus by the collar and propels him over the log. The punk lands heavily in the mud in a fashion similar to Roman. 

“There now you are even.” Virgil wipes his hands free of the mess. 

The twins stare at Virgil owlishly in surprise.

Then at each other.

A wicked grin spreads across both their faces.

They turn their gaze back upon Virgil.

Virgil gulps. He knows to fear the moments when the twins share a thought. 

They lung for the emo. His screams reverberate through the trees, sending a flock of crows flying into the air. Their dark calls echo through the forest. The devious laughter of the twin terrors intertwine with the bird call as they seize upon their friend and drag him down into the mud. Colliding into a pile of earth and laughter, they squirm under each others’ grasps. Virgil, lamenting the fate of his jacket, his beautiful black jacket, seizes upon handfuls of the gooey mess and slathers it into both of his friends’ hair. Roman pretends to faint in horror at the fate of his luscious locks. Remus latches onto the two, entrapping his twin and friend in his clinging grip. He rolls around, covering the trio in as much mud as possible. Shouts. Laughter. Virgil fighting against his jailer. Roman ranting. And Remus smushed between them with the biggest, toothiest grin imaginable.

Exhausted, they collapse against each other. Lying upon the forest floor, panting for breath. Soft giggles being shared between them.

Virgil watches the tops of the trees sway in the breeze. The clouds can be seen between the branches as they slowly move past. Roman hums in thought.

“Can we get up now?” Roman prompts.

Virgil nods in agreement. Squirming free of the tentacle-like grip of his friend, he extricates himself from the pile. Roman follows close behind him. The dramatic twin stares down at his ruined clothing and for once, he seems okay with it. Not particularly happy, but still okay. 

The chaotic gremlin stares up at them from the ground. “Vee Vee, how much further until we get to see Mothman?”

Virgil rolls his eyes. He is often rolling his eyes in the company of the twins, “First off, we don’t actually know if Mothman is out here. CrypticHunter66 only said that they saw two glowing red eyes. Could be Mothman. Could also be a million other things. Secondly, give me a moment.”

He pulls a map out of his back pocket. Turning it this way and that, Virgil studies the forest landmarks and the trail they have been following, “I think we are close. The bridge should be right up ahead.”

The bridge is no longer a bridge. It was once. Years ago it had allowed hikers and hunters of all types to cross over the frothing river. But age is a curse and the bridge has long been lacking in care. It has rotted and collapsed in on itself. Moss has grown upon it, disguising it’s true shape. It can no longer be called a bridge, just as the river can no longer be called a river. Both victims of the changing tides of time and now the bridge is but a pile of moss covered wood and the river is but a crevice of earth.

Roman jumps down into the ditch that was once a river, “Where is this monster? It’s time to do some slaying.”

“Not in that outfit.” Remus answers. 

Virgil is barely listening to the bickering brothers. He focuses on rereading the message sent to him by his online source. 

“Two glowing red eyes,” He mumbles to himself. “beneath the fallen bridge.”

Virgil scooches down into the dried-up river, trying his best not to fall.

Remus jumps. Yelling, “Roman, catch me!”

Roman does not catch him.

The bridge does not really seem like it would have enough space for a creature to hide beneath. Not unless Mothman was the size of a small animal. Virgil does not think that Mothman is the size of a small animal. Still, he turns on his phone’s flashlight and attempts to see into the depths of the rotted wood pile. 

A red glint shines back.

Oh crap. Mothman is a small mammal.

Virgil reaches his hand out towards the red glow. He stops himself. Pausing to think. Should he do this? Reaching out to a potential cryptid seems like a bad idea-

“Hey, emo-”

“AHHHHHH!” Virgil nearly jumps out of his skin. Slapping Remus, he continues to yell, “You scared the living crap out of me!”

“Oh sorry, anyways! Where’s Mothman?”

Roman pokes his head over Remus’s shoulder. “You found Mothman! I wanna see.” He attempts to shove past his brother.

“Guys, would you shut up! I actually did see something and if you two would be quiet for just one second in your lives so you don’t scare him away that would be great!”

“Ummm, but Virgil you are also screaming?” Roman counters.

“Shhhhh.” Virgil hisses. “Shut it and come here.”

Together, they turn back to the bridge. Virgil shines his light. The red glint twinkles. “Oh good, he’s still here.”

“Oh god, we’re about to meet Mothman.” Remus whispers excitedly. 

They creep closer, leaning in as far as they dare. 

“Do you see him?” Roman whispers.

“Not really. Just his eyes.” Virgil responds.

“I see them too. Can I grab him?” Remus bounces.

“With your bare hands?” Virgil questions as if he hadn’t been about to do the same thing.

“Then what do we do?” Roman ponders.

“I’m gonna grab him.” Remus reaches forward.

Virgil and Roman both shout no, rushing to stop their chaotic friend. But it is too late. Remus’s hand closes around the red glowing object. And then. The world explodes.

Red. 

Everything is red.

And bright. 

So very bright.

There are stars.

And trees. 

Virgil groans. His clothes are stiff. Why are his clothes so stiff?

“What happened?” A voice speaks beside him. It sounds like Roman.

That’s right he was with the twins. “Remus?” Virgil calls out, rolling onto his side, the leaves crinkle beneath him. 

“I’ve got Mothman.” The chaotic twin mumbles, waving his closed fist around in circles in the dark. Remus stares at his fist. “He’s rocks.”

Virgil squints into the night. When had it gotten so dark? He needs a light. His phone, where was his phone? His hands feel across the forest ground. The dried mud on his clothes cracking at his movements. 

“Has anyone seen my phone?”

“I’ve got mine.” Roman answers as a light illuminates their small group. 

Virgil uses it to search by as Roman helps Remus to stand, he seems more disoriented than them. He can hear them talking about whatever rock Remus has as he spies a shine of glass. His phone! It’s partially buried beneath some leaves but all in all it seems unharmed. He scoops it up just as he hears Roman shout. “We’re gonna be rich!”

“What’s going on?” Virgil rejoins the twins.

They’re bent over, looking at whatever Remus is holding in his hands. Roman waves him closer. “Virgil, don’t they look like rubies? I think they’re rubies!”

Sure enough in Remus’s hands sat three glistening red gems. Rubies? Maybe. Virgil didn’t exactly know much about geology. Either way, it sure wasn’t Mothman.

“Rubies. Not glowing red eyes.” Virgil mumbles as he reaches forward. Before his fingers can touch a gem, it flies out of Remus’s hand and smacks itself into his palm. Virgil grips the stone as he stares down at it in shock.

“Whoa.” Remus encapsulates all their thoughts into that one word… whoa.

“How is this possible?” Virgil questions aloud.

“Virgil, your eyes! They’re glowing red!” Roman exclaims. “The rocks, they must be magic!”

“That’s insane!” Virgil holds his hand up to his eyes. Sure enough a red glow illuminates his palm. His eyes are glowing!

Roman holds his own hand out, as if testing something. Without even a second to think, another one of the stones zooms into his hand! His own eyes begin to light up in the darkness. “This is so cool!” He bounces in excitement. His feet leaving the ground. Leaving the ground and not returning.

 “Whoa. Whoa!” He tilts around in midair. Windmilling his arms as he floats above the ground.

“You can fly! I wanna fly.” Remus whines. Looking down at the last stone remaining in his hand, he squeezes his fist tight around it. Gritting his teeth, he bends his knees and jumps. Launching himself into the air. His figure is propelled upwards. Zooming into the treetops and beyond as he is lost in shadows. He becomes nothing but a silhouette against the stars. His boisterous laughter is carried down to them. Calling out, urging them to join him in his flight.

Roman reaches out his hand to Virgil excitedly, “Come on. We’ve got to try this!”

Virgil gulps, “I don’t know. Heights aren’t really my favorite.” He answers, staring up at the twin soaring through the air.

Roman pauses at the apprehension. He calms himself and speaks simply. “If you don’t want to that’s okay. We can stay down here. But if you do want to give it a try, know that I’ve got you. I won’t let you fall.”

Remus flies past their heads. “Guys, I can see everything from up here! Wahoooooo!!!”

The emo tentatively places his hand into his friend’s. Roman gives him a slight squeeze as Virgil quirks a smile. “Ready?” Roman whispers.

Virgil nods his head. “I guess I just jump?”

“That seems to be the general idea.”

Virgil takes in a deep breath. And then he jumps. Rising into the air, he feels the gravity of the earth abandon his body as he lifts himself up higher and higher. Roman is holding his hand tightly, just as he said he would, rising beside him. They tug each other this way and that. Drifting between the tree branches, they weave their way up and above. Breaking out of the forest, they fly through the open air. Watching the trees pass below them. 

A cheer rises in his chest and breaks out of him as he holds his free hand up, stretching it out as if to touch the stars. It’s beautiful up here. Roman laughs beside him, pointing out his favorite constellations. Behind them a roar grows louder. Remus rushes past them, pushing himself to fly faster and faster. He loops through the sky and twists through the clouds. Diving and ducking in an aerial display of chaos and grace.

“We’re superheroes!” Roman cheers, smiling widely at his friend beside him. Their small duo is illuminated in a soft red glow shining from their eyes. They’re a rosy comet drifting across the sky. Not a falling star, but rising in laughter and joy.

“We’re superheroes.” Virgil echoes.

taglist: @stop-it-anxiety @hexatrash @ollyollyoxinfree @battlebunnyteardropsinthesun @leiasolo77 @arya-skywalker @alexxadontplaydespasito

[eleanorbloom]

[OH] When You’re Ready Ch. 05

Pairing: Bryce Lahela x f! MC (Eleanor Bloom) x Ethan Ramsey. 

Word Count: 4.7k

Warning: Adult language and fluff.

Summary: Bryce has decided to let go Eleanor because she’s in love with Ethan Ramsey. But a turn in her relationship with the attending might change Bryce's plans.

Taglist: @utterlyinevitable @binny1985​ @laiba-the-person​ @choicesficwriterscreations @shanzay44 @starrystarrytrouble​ 

Let me know if you wanna be added to the taglist! 

A/N: First of all I wanna thank  Donny for give me permission to use his photo for this chapter. Since I had this chapter in mind, I always wanted to post a photo with the Fenway Atrium Court at night, and it happened Donny was the only person who had photos of what I had exactly in mind, so thank you so much again!!

To my readers,  I invite you all to visit his Instagram account. His work is impressive. 

Thank you all for your kind words and support. I hope you enjoy this chapter. 

_____________

Chapter 5: Something About Us.

It might not be the right time

I might not be the right one

But there’s something about us I want to say

Cause there’s something between us anyway

After the night out at Improv Atrium, Bryce and Eleanor continued to hang out as much as their shifts allowed. Sometimes to try new music, new bars or simply to go to find some new adventures just as they used to before. 

Eleanor, so committed to getting her life back, accepted all the invitations he made her. She soon noticed that she was feeling in a better mood when she was around him and her daily mood had improved significantly.

That led Eleanor to start seeing him like she used to before. In fact, not like before, but completely different. She didn’t think of him as someone to have a casual fling with, a friend to have fun with and that was all. She was beginning to see him as the man she was attracted to and comfortable with. A man who no longer brightened her days by his humor, his flirtatious smile, or his self-confidence, but by the care, the time, and the good moments he was giving to her.

At first, she didn’t realize the changes in her, she thought she was just so happy to hang out with him like they used to, that she was glad their adventurous friendship was back; but one day, she found herself wishing she could see him and talk to him. Wishing she could see his smile and hear his voice.

One day, Eleanor was walking into the hospital with Jackie when someone caught and hugged them by the shoulders.

“How are two of my favorite medical interns?”

“I’ll be better if you take your ken doll arm off my shoulders, thank you.”

“Always so nice, Varma.”

“Of course, Lahela—Jackie winked at him, a smirk in her mouth—You should be thankful that I didn’t punch you in the face”

“What happened to you? Did you use stones instead of sugar with your coffee this morning, Jackie?”

“Sugar is for wimps; I drink my coffee black”

“That explains how psychopath you are sometimes”

“And you, why so happy, uh?”

“I’m always happy, Elle.”

“Yeah, but you’re annoyingly happier than other days."—Jackie insisted

“Actually, you have a minute, Elle?”

“Sure”

Jackie raised an eyebrow, looking at them suspiciously.

“I catch you later, Jackie”—Eleanor added, without noticing her cheeks had turned a little rosy.

"Take your time."—She joked as she continued walking towards the locker room.

“What is it?”

“Have any plans today?”

“Maybe go to have some drinks at Donahue’s, has been a rough week.”

“I’ve got something better”

“Like what?”

“A surprise. You up for a surprise?”

“Um, yeah? I guess so”

“I need some confidence, Elle!”

“Yes, I’m up for a surprise with Bryce Lahela!”

“That’s the spirit!”

They continued their way towards the locker room, lost in the conversation.

“Can you give me a clue about this surprise? Like, it’s music, it’s food, it’s some new game?”

“Well, maybe it’s the three of them.”

“You’re not helping, Bryce!”

“It’s a surprise, and I’ll keep my mouth shut until we are there.”

“Okay, I get it”—Eleanor answered, rolling her eyes—So, we meet at the atrium as usual?”

“Yes, as usual.”

“Okay”

Surprisingly, Bryce cupped her cheeks with both hands and gave her a short but loud kiss on the cheek.

“Have a nice day, beautiful, see ya.”

And then he went directly to his locker, but not before giving her the most charming smile she had ever seen on him. Eleanor stood in the doorway, flushed and astonished.

Jackie glanced towards her, still looking mischievous.

“What are you, fifteen?”

Eleanor ignored Jackie and went to her locker, her cheeks still reddened. She put on her scrubs, tied her hair into a braid, and with Jackie by her side headed to the Nurses’ Station to do the first morning rounds.

Although she was fully focused on her work, Eleanor couldn’t help but feel a little anxious about the end of her shift. The kiss Bryce gave her in the locker room attacked her from time to time, making her cheeks return to a rosy hue. In a way, she knew that was connected to the surprise Bryce had, because he never, in all these weeks, had been this affectionate to her. But she didn’t want to get any ideas or illusions about anything. 

"So…"—Jackie said to her, both taking a break in the Nurse Station. "Are you going to tell me what the meathead wanted with you or not? You’ve been acting weird since this morning.”

“Um … Nothing, just inviting me out, as usual.”

“Oh sure. As usual. What is gonna be today? Jazz? Trash punk? You’ll make yourself quite the music critic, uh?”

“Actually, I don’t know, he didn’t tell me.”

“A surprise date, damn. He’s getting serious.”

“Shut up, Jackie.”

“Oh, Eleanor, don’t tell me you haven’t noticed.”

She blushed.

“I have.”

“And?”

“And what?”

“Please, Eleanor, he has been stupid for you since day one, and the stupidest since he started to take you out once Ramsey left. Do you like him?”

“Um, I don’t know.”

“You cannot not know, it’s simple, yes or no. You have to know before it gets more serious.”

“I don’t know, Jackie. Maybe. It's… it’s not that I do NOT like him. But I don’t know if I like him… or like him enough. I’m confused.”

“Mmm well, I think that’s a start.”

“You think so?”

“Well, yeah. Of what I recall, he was never a possibility before. Just a hookup. And now…you don’t deny it.”

“I know, it’s just… I still have feelings for Ethan.”

“Yeah, I know, but you can’t close the door, Eleanor. Maybe he’s your way out.”

“But I don’t wanna use him. Not him that has always been too good with me.”

“I’m not saying you should use him. I’m just saying, give him a chance. If you don’t feel it, it’s okay, but you should give both a chance. To you, to… feel something good in your life after all the crap Ramsey put you though, and Lahela… because of all the effort he has put on you. Just a chance.”

“Well … I guess you’re right.”

“I’m always right Eleanor.”

“Thank you, Jackie. I never thought you would be so good at pep talk.”

“I’m not, but I’m tired of seeing Lahela cheering you like a fucking clown and you don’t seem to notice.”

“I have notice… I’m not that dumb… It’s just, just today I realized where this is really going. Or where he wants to go.”

“Oh, Jesus Christ, you’re so clueless sometimes.”

Eleanor gave her a shy smile.

“Eleanor, just … don’t close yourself to the possibility. If you realize later that he isn’t for you, that’s fine, but you can’t miss a chance because of someone who is thousands of miles away and hasn’t shown any concern for you since he left.”

She nodded and then saw her friend grab the charts from the table to start a new round with her patients; then took a breath and decided to do the same.

Eleanor spent the last three hours of her shift thinking about the last few weeks. She did have realized that Bryce was trying to cheer her up and get her out of her misery. But she had never realized that he had other intentions with her because he never suggested anything. Bryce was direct, flirtatious, and always went for what he wanted, without hesitation. Therefore, if Bryce had been flirting with her, Eleanor would’ve noticed. Instead, all she remembered was Bryce asking her out, going to concerts, talking about life, etc. When Eleanor was suddenly feeling a little bad, Bryce would persuade her into talking about her feelings and would guide her toward a way out or would just make her laugh to ease the demons inside her head.

“Eleanor, you’re doing it great.”—He would say when she was feeling down in the middle of the night—“Just look at you now! We are in the middle of a jazz music concert, surrounded by people who in a million years we would think we meet. You’re not in your room, crying, thinking about Ramsey, or eating ice cream, or drowning yourself with work. You have come a long way. Just look at your face! Even your face it’s different!”

“Well, yeah..”

“Enjoy your life, Elle, meet new people, live new experiences, find meaning in simple things like music, or a random night out in Boston. That’s what really matters.”

Eleanor was moved to realize how, once again, Bryce noticed things that not even herself noticed. Her progress in pain, her mood, etc. And that was because Bryce took the time to listen to her, to pay attention to her. Her friends did that too. Sienna and Elijah mostly, had been actively supporting and caring for her all this time. They had given her their space, but they also pushed her to share her feelings with them and they used to call her out when she was sinking again.

But with Bryce… it was different. 

Fifteen minutes to the end of her shift, Eleanor finished her rounds. Before another new case could be handed over to her, she went straight to the locker room to take a shower and change her clothes. Ever since their first night out with Bryce, Eleanor started to bring some nice clothes to get change in case he would invite her to another adventure. Fortunately, that day she was bringing a pretty cute outfit. 

She dressed in dark blue jeans, a white collared sleeveless blouse, and an emerald green jacket. Unlikely other nights out, that night she paid attention to her appearance. She fixed her hair and applied the basic makeup she had found in her backpack: A cupper tone eyeshadow that highlighted her brown eyes in a golden tone, a mascara that made her eyes look bigger, and a pink lipstick that gave her a jovial appearance.

As soon as she was ready, she went to the atrium to wait for Bryce. She sat down on a chair near the entry and started scrolling on her phone, looking for memes that made her laugh to ease her anxiety.

“Hey, sorry for the delay I had to talk to…"—Eleanor looked up and Bryce choked with his own his words.—A post-op… Woow”

“What?”

“You look incredible, Elle.”.

Eleanor blushed and smiled at him

“Thank you. You look great too. This color suits you.”—She replied gripping the collar of his pale pink silky shirt that made his skin look like sweet caramel.

“Shall we?”

“Absolutely”

“Are you going to tell me where are we going?”

“No, but I’ll tell you it’s a little different from where we usually go. I think you’ll like it. There, that’s our uber ride.”

He pointed out a car parked a few feet from the entrance.  

“Good night. Bryce?”—The driver greeted.

"The very same.”—He replied while both got in the car and greeted the driver.

“Do you have an alternative route?”

“No, use the one that the application gives you”

“Okay.”

After about ten minutes, the car stopped. As the got out of the car, they sauntered toward a square building, made of glass, beautifully lit and surrounded by green grass and trees. Eleanor searched for a name that would reveal where they were until she found it in the building next to the first one, which revealed: Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.

“A Museum? Wow, I never thought you were a Museum guy.”

“Well, I am. I mean, I’m not the type of guy who goes to museums weekly, but from time to time I like to go when I feel the adventure’s waiting for me there.”

“And you’re feeling the adventure is waiting for us in there?”

“Well, adventure is not what I have in mind for tonight, but I’m open to anything”

Eleanor couldn’t help but blush a little. Then, they made their way into the building.

“Is it common for museums to be open at this time of day?”

“No, just this museum, on this specific day.”

“What do you mean?”

“The third Thursday of the month, the Museum opens at night and people play music and put shows until late. They usually close at 9 pm, but for some reason, it will be open till 12 pm today.”

“Really? I had no idea. How exciting!!—She said clapping her hands, smiling like a little girl.—I like this already!

“I’m glad you liked it.”

Bryce showed his cellphone when they made it to the ticket booth.

“Wow, you had planned this with anticipation, uh?”

“A couple of days, yes. I’m not just spontaneity, you know?”

After their entrance was allowed, they continued their way towards the Fenway Court Palace, the museum itself. The Palace was the house of Isabella Stewart Gardner, an art collector whose Museum was called after her, and that was built to emulate a 15th Venetian Palace.

Every step they walked into the building felt like they were entering another world. There was no trace of Boston there. It was all Europe, China, and some America too, but the style and most of the art were foreign.  

They spent about two hours wandering around the four-floor construction, while the bands were playing, the exhibitions were showing, the tours being guided and the attendants were having a drink. A real party in an outstanding place.

Once the finished the third floor, Bryce decided to take her to the main floor so they could see the Fenway Atrium Court up close. The Courtyard was famous for the Mosaic of Medusa, which had been created in Rome before Christ, and was surrounded by an impressive array of shrubs, flowers, and botanical spices that made them forget, once again, they were in the middle of Boston. The tranquility and beauty of nature in those square feet transported them to another dimension, much more with the stars that covered the spring night.*

“Oh my god, this is … absolutely wonderful. It seems like it was taken from a fairy tale.”

Eleanor turned to him, a big smile on her face. But he had been looking at her all this time. The Fenway Courtyard was indeed beautiful, but her smile would always be the winner for him.

“May I have this dance, miss?”

In the distance, a jazz ballad was playing, coming from a band on the other side of the courtyard. They began to dance close together, cheek to cheek. Eleanor wrapped her arms around his neck while his were at her back; both with their eyes closed, feeling the music, the tranquility in the air, the laughter of the people. (A/N: I highly recommend you to hear this version of the song, since I wrote the scene with that one on my mind).

“When I fall in love it will be forever

Or I’ll never fall in love

In a restless world like this is

Love is ended before it’s begun

And too many moonlight kisses

Seem to cool in the warmth of the sun”

Eleanor hadn’t felt so calm in a long time. Her anxiety had dissipated and had been replaced by a feeling of amusement, peace and joy. There were no worries, fear, anguish. And it was all because of him.

“When I give my heart it will be completely

Or I’ll never give my heart

And the moment I can feel that you feel that way too

Is when I fall in love with you”

Suddenly, Eleanor slid her arms through his chest and wrapped them around Bryce’s back, hugging him. Bryce reacted a few moments later, a bit astonished, but returned the embrace with delight. He placed his hands to her waist and tightened the grip. For a brief moment, Eleanor wanted to cry for how beautiful that moment felt. She pulled away from him, her heart beating fast, and looked him straight in the eye. And at that moment, both were aware of how much desire was in them. But a pure desire. A longing he had never seen in Bryce. A longing Bryce had never seen in Eleanor toward him.

Bryce was an open book and Eleanor always knew when he wanted her. But now his longing was completely different. It was in a tender, protective, and amazed way, all at once, like he was discovering a treasure in front of him. And for Eleanor, it felt like she was seeing him for the first time, seeing how he really was, with all the feeling he had tried to hide in these past weeks. She was discovering a treasure too.

Her legs began to tremble, so she brought her hands to his cheeks, in the hopes of finding balance and the courage she needed for the next move. The touch of his skin was enough to find it. 

She leaned to him, and after observing each other mouths for a few moments, their lips fused. Hers brushed his delicately, carefully, feeling the warmth and sweetness little by little. Bryce encircled her more firmly around the waist, leaving her body completely flushed to his. Then he brought a hand to the back of his neck to tilt her head and deepened the kiss without losing the delicacy or sweetness of that moment. Their hearts were beating fast, eyes were seeing stars, their skin was melting as they opened their mouths to explore more of themselves; until they finally, after a long dance of lips and tongues, they returned to a slow, soft kiss, just to finish with a chaste kiss in their lips.

"Elle"—He sighed, pressing his forehead into hers, not hiding any astonishment in his voice.

An electric shock waved through her spine. She had always loved the fact that he was the only person in the world that called her Elle. That nickname felt unique for her. 

 Then he pulled away from her, his amber eyes looking into hers, creating electricity the moment they met. It seemed like he was looking right through her soul and made her feel an exquisite warmth and calmness inside her.

“Bryce…”—She whispered, her eyes sparkled with joy—"Don’t think I haven’t noticed everything you’ve done for me in this time."—She continued softly while caressing his cheek with the tip of her thumb, holding her eyes in his.

“What do you mean?”—He replied, feigning ignorance.

She shook her head

“I know you’ve been particularly focused on cheering me up, making me feel good…”

“Well yeah, it’s the least I would do to keep you from looking sad, Elle.”

“I know, but it has been much more than trying to get me out of my misery for a while. Although our nights out always have a friendly motive and you have never insinuated anything all this time, your eyes and your heart have spoken for themselves.

“And what have they said?”

“Well, in all this time, everything has been about me. How I feel, what I wanna do. You don’t flatter yourself when we are together, you don’t encourage any conversation that ends up bringing the focus to you. And it feels natural, it doesn’t feel… cynical or condescending of you. That’s a very great show of interest. I know that deep down it has been with ulterior motives.”

Bryce bit his lip, holding the gaze, implicitly accepting the accusations she was making. She smiled.

“Thanks, Bryce. This date has been beautiful.”

“Date?”

“You don’t have to pretend with me anymore. I know that when you talked about going out or hanging out, deep down in your mind you planned it as an undercover date.”

Bryce laughed.

“Wow. Not for nothing you were selected as Junior Fellow on the Diagnostics Team, were you? Very good observations.”

Bryce stroked her cheek.

“I hate to see you sad, Eleanor. That’s why I’ve been trying to make you feel good, to show you how you deserve to feel, how you deserve to be treated, because you don’t deserve anything that happened to you.”

"Bryce…"—Eleanor had never seen him so serious as now. He was genuinely reflecting how much he had been worried about her, how much her situation had pissed him off.

“Eleanor, you are a person with incredible kindness, devoted to your patients, colleagues, friends … You shouldn’t be treated they way Ramsey has done to you or left you wondering what you did wrong. Not even the excuse that your career is most important is justified, because there are much kinder and considered ways to put distance between you and without hurting you that much.”

“I know.”

“You know, when you told me we had to end what we had, I was okay with it, because I truly believed that Ramsey was gonna fight for you, because, God, in his place, I’d do everything to make you happy, I’d give you everything”—Bryce sighed, looked up at the sky and then to her, resolution in his eyes.—"But I can’t anymore, Eleanor, I can’t keep seeing you suffering because of someone who doesn’t value you, someone who isn’t even capable of sending you a fucking email to tell you that he’s okay.”

Eleanor looked away, hurt, sad, embarrassed. Hearing the reality from his mouth was a much-needed bucket of cold water.

“It’s true, it was a miserable attitude of him. But Bryce, listen to me. I appreciate everything you have done for me and …”

She couldn’t go on. She had to be careful with her words to not feel any regrets later. But actually, there was nothing else to think about, that moment was the confirmation of all the doubts that had been around her mind during the day, and, honestly, also for several days, since she sensed something was different with Bryce. The doubts weren’t really doubts. It was fear. Fear of making the same mistakes as with Ethan. Afraid of doing to Bryce what Ethan was doing to her. But Eleanor was no longer afraid.

“I feel things for you, Bryce"—She confessed—"Even more than I felt before we broke up,  but I still have Ethan in here” –She pointed to her heart—"And I don’t want to give you any false hopes. The last thing I want is to hurt you, and I don’t think I’d ever forgiven myself if I did.”

“I know, Eleanor, I know it’s not something that happens overnight, but I want you to know that I’m here for you, and I wanna show you what you deserve because I care about you, Elle"—Bryce suddenly shook his head, denying. —"More than that,  I’ll do it because I love you.”

Eleanor was agape. She’d managed to conclude that Bryce liked her, and well, everyone knew that. Sienna, Elijah, Jackie had noticed what Bryce was doing with her that last few weeks, but she never expected to hear those three words from Bryce. But they were sincere. His gaze, all his past behavior echoed what he had said. And that amazed her more. Although it also increased her fear of hurting him in all this path that they seemed to be starting together.

“I won’t pretend that I don’t feel what I actually feel. Would be contradictory of me to shut up something like that when I want to give you everything, and that starts from being honest with my feelings… And please, don’t feel scared. I’m not saying this to manipulate you. I just want you to know how I feel about you, but don’t feel forced to anything, okay?”

“Bryce, I …”

“Elle, I know you don’t feel the same, I know you’re in love with Ramsey, but I want you to give me the opportunity to show you everything you deserve. The love, care, support, and happiness… So when the day comes, you stop accepting crumbs from anybody and go for what you really want and deserve. It may not be with me, but with someone you love and that loves you back the same way. Even with Ramsey, if he wakes up.”

Eleanor was astounded. Bryce Lahela. The cocky, brilliant, and handsome surgical intern. The most self-confident person she knew. The man whose art of flirtation came so naturally to him, as if he carried it in his veins. That Bryce Lahela was playing all his cards even knowing that he might not be the winner, but someone else, including Ethan.

"Bryce… Are you serious?”

“I am, Eleanor. You have to figure it out for yourself. I don’t do it just to make you choose me, but to make you happy. And well, if it turns out that it’s me, obviously I’ll be the happiest man on this planet. But what I really want is you to figure this out.”

“Oh my God Bryce, I’d never have expected this.”

“I must admit that neither do I. I spent a long time trying to forget you, you know? But when I realized that I couldn’t… And that you were so sad, I decided to give myself a chance, give us a chance to be happy, to look for possibilities. And I believe together we may find a lot of happiness along the way, Elle. Also pain, but if we are together I think it will be easier to face what may come.”

Eleanor stared at him in the eyes, reading the sincerity in his expression. There were no hidden intentions, no jealousy, no insecurity, no manipulation. Only the genuine wish that she would experience in her own flesh what she deserved in a relationship.

“I’m speechless”—She murmured, stroking his silky hair softly.

Bryce grinned, caressing her cheek.

“You’re truly wonderful, Bryce.—She finally said—Among all the prejudices I had about you, one of them was that you had zero emotional intelligence. Even when you have been very understanding all this time. But this is different. This is so open-minded, so selfless. Is on another level.”

“That’s how love works, Elle. It’s selfless. And if I’m honest with you, I only found out this because of you. Before you, I never felt this way. I  want you more than anyone in my life, but what really matters to me is you to be happy, and I hope it’s with me.”

“I think I’m being happy with you right now… And I have been happy these past weeks too”—She replied, her cheeks flushed.

“I’m glad you feel this way—Suddenly, he chuckled—God, you’re so cute when you blush”

Her cheeks went crimson

“Ahh stop it!”

“Just look at you, so lovely”

They both laugh.

Eleanor then caressed his cheek, looking at him so tenderly. She couldn’t understand since when it was that easy to look at him this way, but she liked it.  She kissed him again.

“I don’t want to play with you, Bryce, but for some reason, I don’t want to leave your side, and … Maybe a part of me wants this to go on and grow until… Well, until you’re the one.”

His heart stopped. He’d have never expected that. Well, he didn’t even think this date would go that well, but he never expected Eleanor would be so open to the possibility to be together. It seemed like he was doing a good job after all.

“You really mean that?”

“I really do, Bryce.”

“Me too.”—He replied, stroking her hair.—But you have to know that if you feel things are changing, for better or for worse, you must tell me. If Ramsey returns and promises you heaven and earth and you want to try with him, just tell me. And if instead … Your love turns to me, well, of course, I want to know!”

“I will.”

There was still music in the air. Another jazz ballad. Bryce wrapped her in his arms and kissed his forehead.

“I love this, Bryce.—She whispered while melting in his embrace—“You really outdid yourself. This is perfect.”

“Just like you, Elle.

______

Chapter 6.

[psychcomposer]

Alright, I have too many feelings about a video game that’s going to come out in a month that I really just need to get out. It’s been over a decade and one of my favorite games, The World Ends With You, is finally getting a sequel. I’ve been brooding on the trailers for months, and I just finished the demo, so it is time to put down my capital T Thoughts on Neo: The World Ends With You.

As a warning, this will be entirely too long. But I’m not about to keep this bound up any longer.

TWEWY is my favorite title for the Nintendo DS. It is a JRPG starring Neku Sakuraba, an aggressively antisocial teen living in the Tokyo district of Shibuya. He is suddenly pulled into a test of survival called The Reaper’s Game, where he is forced to join forces with a partner in order to survive a week of lethal objectives in a sub-planar version of Shibuya. I love the story, its such an honest and interesting take on learning to get outside of your comfort zone. But more than that, it is a game that does so much to put a modern twist on every piece of your typical JRPG. You control two characters at once, Neku with the touch screen and his partner with the control pad, forcing you to split your attention and giving mechanic weight to the idea that Neku can’t survive alone. Armor and weapons are replaced with clothes and outfits, with a character’s ability to wear them restricted not by class but by a character’s bravery. The music list is filled with punk, alt-rock and hip-hop that are a stark contrast to the symphonic tracks of other titles. Battles aren’t random impediments, but fun diversions that sport a robust reward system that encourages players to push their limits.

But even more than that, the most modern thing I appreciate about TWEWY has to be the characters. Neku, Shiki, Beat, and Rhyme all feel like believable teens that grew up in the 2000′s. They bicker, clash, and banter like teens struggling to survive and make sense of their situation. One of my favorite little gimicks of the story is just how many nicknames there are for every character. Almost everyone has earned a few nicknames. One of my favorite examples is Sho Minamimoto. He’s a reaper with an obsession with math, often infusing his speech with mathematical jargon or expressions, and seems to enjoy erecting “art installations”, which most people can only decipher as towers of trash. Over the course of the story, he gets called Pi-face, the Grim Heaper, and another nickname I can’t even mention because of spoilers. It’s just... such a nice little human touch, these kids throwing crafted insults at a human enforcer of their doom that could almost certainly tear them apart.

I’m getting into this to try to give a sense of why I enjoy TWEWY so much, why it has such a unique place in my heart. Its a game I’ve 100% completed several times over, a task that’s no easy feat with the sheer amount of collectibles and post-game objectives. Unfortunately, for the last year or two, I’ve been kind of dreading this sequel.

Neo:TWEWY has been... a long time coming. Way back in 2007 they had a whole website counting down to some sort of announcement, with the music slowly building in intensity. I remember following it with bated breath, until it finally hit zero! And we got... An ios port of the game. Talk about a let-down. To be fair, apparently it is a solid port, even managing to re-work the old battle system, one that required a second screen to work properly, into one that only needed one. But what that really offered to someone like me was the hint of a sequel, a single image of a new character being shown. They kept flirting with the idea of bringing the series back. The main cast even featured in a Kingdom Hearts game, of all things, even if they didn’t really do a whole lot. But these acknowledgments grew sparser and sparser.

A few years ago, they released a switch port of the game. Not only that, it included an epilogue! They were finally getting a sequel rolling! Of course I bought that game, beat it yet again, and fought my way to the new content and the hint of the new story ahead.

It was... Well. I found it disappointing.

The gameplay was competent, even if it was clear that the epilogue itself really hadn’t had too much put into it. One new character,  new enemies just being reskins of old ones. It wasn’t meant to be dlc itself or anything, it was just there to herald a return to the series. That wasn’t what bugged me. What bugged me was the writing. It was heart-wrenching. It just didn’t feel right. It just felt flat compared to the story I’d enjoyed so many times. But what really killed my excitement was the new character, Coco.

Now, odd personality quirks are not too unusual among the ensemble of TWEWY. Pi-face is just one of the characters that is so infused with a particular theme that it shows in how they express themselves. It’s part of the charm of them, discovering the personalities that live in this dark underworld of Shibuya. But Coco... she talks like the most stereotypical young teenager possible. unironic lols, totez (yes, spelt exactly like that, in a speech format), OMG’s, and just, like, likes everywhere! It felt like someone who knew they needed to make a quirky character but had no idea how to write one well, and just made the most stereotypical caricature possible. I hated seeing that. It embodied every fear I had about the sequel being just a cynical project, pushed forward after so many years  by people who just didn’t understand what made the original great. That mild dread was so persistent that even the release of the first few trailers couldn’t really get me excited for the game. Neo:TWEWY was shifting into 3d from the original 2.5d, with all the problems that could cause. What I could see of the story felt so much more like a generic fantasy tale with some modern buildings than the story I had grown through my teenage years with. And, well... Just look the original Neku and the new one they showed off.

Look at this. Look at one of the most vibrant, eye-catching character designs on the market for any JRPG in history, one that manages to mix purple and orange with striking lights and darks. And then look at the teenager edgelord bullshit they did with him. It’s atrocious. I hate it. He’s just another guy in a black outfit and just too much fucking cool guy protagonist power to not have the story be about him at this point. And look, I know that there’s Story LoreTM, I know that there could be some twist that explains this, I know that him being such a denial of his old self could be the entire fucking point. But let me tell you, when I saw this, I felt years of shifting, misplaced unease coalesce into a hard lump of dread.

And... Even... So... I did the stupidest thing I could have possibly done and preordered the game anyway. Don’t look at me like that, nostalgia is a hell of a drug.

But you know what? The damnedest thing happened. They released a demo for the new game a month before its release. And I played it, and... I enjoyed it.

Did you see that coming? I certainly didn’t. Welcome to the roller coaster.

Right off the bat, the writing soothed a lot of the fears I had. It felt right at home, like being plopped between to teens exchanging banter. One of the first exchanges is Rindo and Fret, his best friend, trying to meet up. Fret wants Rindo to meet him at  someplace called Wunafo, an area Rindo is clueless about. After some annoyed texting, it turns out Fret is actually referring to 104, a local landmark of a building. Fret insists that its a stylish improvement on the name. Rindo only gives him some grief about it..

I’m not doing the scene justice, or I could just be really desperate for half-decent writing, but I can’t deny that it quickly put a smile on my face. I am almost sure I’ve had this conversation before in years past myself. And beyond that, this game boasts voice acting that brings out a ton of personality in the large cast they are introducing (besides Rindo, which is a shame because he’s the protagonist... hopefully he gets over his apathetic teenager shtick eventually). Not everything is voiced, but it conveys so much appeal and personality, and even when the character’s aren’t voiced there is a conversation screen that occasionally breaks out some stylish layouts to convey mood and temperment and clearly draw from the style that made the original game pop so much.

The battles, of course, have been completely revamped. TWEWY had you control two characters, one of which you could customize by equipping up to 6 different pins that all used different motions and unleashed different attacks. Now you control up to four characters, but each one can only use one pin. But even so, it feels very genuine to its roots. An effective build in TWEWY was usually one that let you stagger an opponent so you can unload a bunch of attacks on them, and in Neo:TWEWY the game actively pushes you to folllow up attacks with characters in succession. It would be easy for this to devolve into a mash-fest, but even with the little time I had with the game it introduced a wrinkle in that- an attack that unleashed a single powerful blow, but couldn’t just be unleashed at the end of the previous combo. It needed to be charged for a while, long enough for the combo timer to deplete. So now an effective combo requires thinking ahead, and even after that you’re paying attention to enemies to dodge out of the way when they strike back. It’s entirely possible this system will flop in the late game, but so far it is robust enough for me to think that it will be one that could make me look forward to battles.

The music hasn’t impressed me so far, besides the tracks that have made the transition from the original. But I remember those strange tracks needing some time before I appreciated them too.

Finally, the story has hooked me. I don’t think that needs much more explanation. I want to see more of these characters and see the changes that have been made to the world in what I assume is years after Neku’s game. And to address the elephant in the room, Neku has not made his appearance in what is available in the demo. Odds are I will probably hate whatever they do with him. But there is enough happening in the space around it that I’m interested in exploring, and a bruised apple can still taste sweet.

Almost all of this, of course, is mostly just saying that Neo:TWEWY is not doomed to fail. There is still plenty of room for things to go wrong later on. There are entire systems I haven’t really seen in game, like shops, pin evolution, clothing and food (Though it looks like they have changed the food system significantly, which I approve of). The things that unnerved me so much in the trickle of information after this game’s announcement could still be enough to turn this sour. But I’m smiling as I’m strapping myself in for this ride now, one I’ve waited quite a long time for. Whatever’s coming, I’m excited.