#i think what irks me about a lot of pop history is that people act like they're uncovering some secret truth when actually the truth was

[fitzrove]

the duality of writing about an event and at the same time wanting to bite everyone else writing about the same event in pop history books and sensationalizing news articles that only exist for clicks/money/clout

[okayto]

Mini-Review: Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions!

I’m so glad @littlestartopaz​ recommended this to me, because it was SO GOOD.

Yuta wants to start high school afresh: new school far from home, new classmates who don’t know he spent middle school acting out the fantasy of being the mysterious and magic “Dark Flame Master,” new him. But one of his classmates has delusions of her own, and after she accidentally discovers his embarrassing past, Yuta is unwillingly drawn into her life and a growing circle of friends with their own quirks.

The “chunibyo” of the title basically means “8th grade syndrome;” a phase in middle school where some kids inhabit and act out their own fantasy stories, positing themselves as dark magicians, magical girls, and other wielders of magical powers.

I had avoided this for a while, until it was specifically recommended to me, because honestly, it sounds embarrassing, right? It sounds like it’s gonna be an embarrassing manic pixie dream girl scenario. But what it actually contains is the story of how a mixed bag of students--some actively chunibyo, others not--become friends and develop very endearing close relationships, while arguing and frustrating each other because that’s what friends do.

Now, the idea of being the star of what’s essentially your own fantasy-action anime is embarrassing, but what’s notable is that the show doesn’t really hold the chunibyo characters up for mockery. Sure we might laugh at them, but hey--it’s funny to watch friends be silly together. And most viewers, just like some of the characters who have moved on from their chunibyo phases, probably easily understand the mix of soul-wrenching embarrassment and (mild?) fond sentiment that comes with remembering our middle school selves.

But let’s be real: the reactions the two former chunibyo students, Yuta and Shinka have to being reminded of middle school, are #RELATABLE

Rikka, our title chunibyo, in particular uses her fantasy in part to cope with grief, coming from an extended family that (without getting spoilery) didn’t help a young girl to deal with a very hard and life-changing time. Now that she’s in high school, her older sister blackmails Yuta (using an a voice recording of one of his chunibyo speeches) into helping deal with Rikka and things (like the cat she wants to adopt) that pop up.

One thing the show is very good at, though, is not making a single thing the reason behind a character’s chunibyo. One may have started their fantasy inspired by another person, or prompted by an event, but it’s also (while active) part of their personal narrative that influences how they spent their free time, how they see the world and keep blogs or diaries, etc.

But at the same time, they’re still teenagers, and their inner view of themselves...doesn’t always translate skills.

I said the show is primarily about friendship. A lot of that friendship is between Yuta and Rikka, but they accumulate a little group, mainly through Rikka’s attempt to start a magic club. Recruit 1: Kumin, a polite, quiet senpai with no chunibyo history or aspirations.

Kumin starts off seeming like a background character, but by the second season it’s clear she’s not just there for jokes about how she’ll take a nap anywhere. She’s perceptive, and genuinely enjoys watching the others act out their scenarios.

Compared to the other characters who are boisterous in their chunibyo activities (Rikka, Deko, Satone), or vociferously trying not to get drawn in to chunibyo activities (Yuta, Shinka), Kumin is happy to watch and offer encouragement, but she’s also willing to participate if a chunibyo scenario calls for a group.

Incidentally, the show does a really interesting thing where occasionally, we’ll be drawn “inside” the chunibyo world, seeing what Rikka/Deko/whoever see: a fantasy land, big magical weapons, anime-grade magical attacks. Occasionally we’ll also see what this “really” looks like--a couple people running around waving umbrellas at each other--but often we only get the fantasy version. It’s clear that Rikka and co. are legitimately on some level engaging in a shared imagination, and the times when a reluctant character (particularly Yuta or Shinka) willing steps in to the shared illusion are genuinely sweet.

Speaking of, Shinka (aka Morisummer) became one of my favorite characters. Like Yuta, she was chunibyo (”Morisummer the magician”); like Yuta, she chose a high school where she didn’t know anyone expressly so she could reinvent herself as a normal teen. And like Yuta, she’s getting dragged kicking and screaming into chunibyo again.

It would’ve been so easy to make her a bad character. She’s pretty, puts a lot of effort into being popular and likable at school, trying to keep up a good teen girl image, despite being fairly sarcastic at her core. And as loathe as she is to admit it, she likes her friends (even if she won’t admit they’re friends, even if half of them are actively chunibyo, even if she says she’s only hanging around so she can make sure all traces of chunibyo-Morisummer are erased from the internet).

Shinka gets drawn in to the group through Rikka’s apparently only pre-existing friend: Deko, a fellow chunibyo who follows Rikka (or “Eye of the Wicked Lord Shingan”) as her master, and is extremely devoted to the great magician Morisummer. So devoted, in fact, that she has several physical copies of Morisummer’s book containing all her wisdom...aka Shinka-Morisummer’s blog, which Shinka has tried to erase all trace of.

Needless to say, the two don’t seem to get along great.

Deko’s dedication to chunibyo and Morisummer irks Shinka; Shinka’s claim to be Morisummer irks Deko, who refuses to believe the great magician could ever be this sarcastic, mundane girl. Deko’s refusal irks Shinka, bringing out the sarcasm and bluntness Shinka tries to hide from the school at large.

Obviously, they actually become close friends, but heaven help you if you actually say so.

The entire series is an exploration of relationships, and Yuta’s developing closeness with Rikka (hey, we knew it was going to happen) is also sweet. He’s a genuinely likable boy, embarrassed by the vestiges of his former self he sees in Rikka, but often willing to meet her on her level, and both of them also learn/reaffirm the importance of doing things their way, and keeping both of them comfortable, rather than acting a certain way or performing specific acts just because their classmates think their relationship status mandates it.

Speaking of classmates--and I know this is getting long but I CAN’T HELP IT, I LIKED SO MANY ASPECTS OF THIS SERIES--the characters aren’t ridiculed at school. Sure, some people think they’re weird, but there’s no shunning, no arc involving teasing or bullies. Rikka’s often content as a loner, but when she attempts to join in a social circle, she’s welcomed. Shinka’s obsessed with reinventing herself and appearing normal and seems to think that otherwise she’ll be cast out, but multiple characters mention that others at the school notice how she behaves (oddly, on occasion) and there are no social repercussions. Truly nice for a show that has characters spending quite a lot of time in school.

Verdict

English dub? Yes, and it’s got strong performances. Rikka’s voice actor in particular does a fantastic job capturing the difference between chunibyo!Rikka’s confidence and command, and regular!Rikka’s, well, normal awkward teenageness. (Plus, I also found her lower-than animegirl-average voice enjoyable.) (Double plus, I honestly think her English voice is better than her original Japanese voice at showing the difference between her emotions and chunibyo/reality.) Deko’s VA is fantastic showing the enthusiasm of the 9th grader (and what enthusiasm, Deko is like the Energizer Bunny), and Shinka’s VA manages to show her alternating annoyance, cheerfully sweet ideal self, and organizized leader voices.

Visuals: Fine, and I really liked the chunibyo designs for each character’s chunibyo phase. The contrast between chunibyo-vision (giant magic weapons; mysterious lights, fantasy landscapes) and reality (an umbrella or soup ladle; a strip of lights taped to the floor; a local park) was really well done.

Worth watching? Yessss. It’s very manageable--two 12-episode seasons--and while each season contains its own arc (you could stop after the first one, but why), together they make an excellent story. Heck, I think the second season is equal to, if not better than, the first, because the friend group is well-established and even more fun to watch.

Where to watch (USA, as of October 2020): Netflix (dub, sub); Crunchyroll (sub), HIDIVE (sub & dub, plus OVAs and film)

Click my “reviews” tag below or search “mini review” on my blog to find more!

[sweetiepie08]

RebelZ Chapter 6

Invader Zim fanfic

While analyzing Zim’s PAK for weaknesses, Tak discovers strange coding that sends her on a search for answers. The clues lead her to uncover a conspiracy that governs all of Irken society. When the truth sends her on the run, she has no choice but to return to the one place the Tallest would never willingly go: Urth.

Meanwhile, Dib has noticed odd changes in Zim’s behavior. Has the invader simply grown bored of his mission over the last few years, or is there something more interesting going on?

People who asked to be tagged: @incorrect-invader-zim , @messinwitheddie, @reblogstupids, @cate-r-gunn, @agentpinerulesall​

If anyone else would like to be added to the tag list feel free to message me. Also, if you’re on the tag list and you changed your name, please just let me know.

Chapter 1. Chapter 2. Chapter 3. Chapter 4. Chapter 5. Chapter 6. Chapter 7.  Chapter 8.  Chapter 9. Chapter 10.

[-]

Dib flipped through the streaming services, looking for something to watch. The documentary had ended, pizza had been eaten, and Gaz had gone upstairs to fix some emergency with one of her online gaming groups. He knew he had surveillance tapes waiting for him on his desk, (or worse, college applications) but he wasn’t ready to check up on them just yet. He was actually enjoying some downtime for once, and he didn’t want it to end.

Then, he heard the all-too-familiar sounds of an alien spaceship landing outside.

Nope, he thought as he hit play on whatever show he landed on. Didn’t matter what, so long as he could pretend he couldn’t hear what was going on in his driveway.

Some muffled arguing came from the front door, followed by the bell ringing. Dib turned up the volume. Not getting out of this chair.

Loud pounding began, accompanied by cries of “Dib-human! Open this door!” Dib turned the volume up as loud as it would go as the pounding continued.

“Jesus Christ, Dib!” Gaz shouted from upstairs. “Just answer the door!”

“Fine!” Dib shut off the tv and stalked to the front door. When he opened it, he found two Irken idiots.

Zim and Tak hung off each other and drank from plastic bottles while their robot pets bolted right in and made themselves at home. “Hey, you grew into your head,” Tak said, lazily pointing her claw at him.

“You know, Dib, there’s a lot of reasons to hate your planet,” Zim slurred, letting himself in. “You keep chihuahuas as pets, some of you refuse to inoculate against deadly diseases, and that Game of Thrones finale was garbage! But at least you don’t need identification to buy gingzor, and that almost makes up for it.” Zim punctuated his short rant by taking a long swig from his bottle.

“And look,” Tak said, pulling a box of ginger snaps out of a plastic shopping bag, “they had edibles.”

“Are you guys drunk? What is this?” Dib grabbed the bottle out of Zim’s hands. He checked the label, gave it a sniff, and took a small taste. Yup, it was exactly what the label said it was. “This is just ginger ale.”

“Eee-yup,” Zim said, swiping his bottle back. “Your light brews aren’t as potent as the ones we’ve got on Irk, but it gets the job done.”

“Wait, are you guys seriously telling me your species gets drunk off ginger?”

“Why?” Tak asked, shoving a cookie in her mouth. “What do humans consume when they want to forget the futility of existence?”

“Uh, alcohol, usually.”

The two Irkens locked eyes, then burst into laughter. “Seriously?” Tak squealed, wiping a tear from her eye. “That’s an antiseptic.”

“Humans really are stupid,” Zim agreed.

“Not that kind,” Dib grumbled, knowing he would be ignored. Then he felt his temper boil. “What are you two doing in my house?!”

“Oh yeah,” the two brushed past him and hopped on the couch like they owned the place. “We need to crash here for a while,” Zim explained. He turned on the tv, got blasted by an old episode of The Office, then turned the volume down.

“Why?”

“We uncovered a conspiracy behind the Irken empire and our government tried to kill us.”

“I discovered,” Tak corrected. “They just caught you harboring me.”

“Eh, details.”

“The point is,” Tak went on, “we’re both marked as traitors and we need to lay low for a while.”

Dib could have sworn his ears perked like a dog’s. An intergalactic conspiracy? There was a story here so juicy he could almost taste it. Still, as he watched the earth’s total Irken population spill ginger ale on the couch and grind crumbs into the cushions, the only question on his mind was, “why here?”

“Need your lab,” Zim tossed off as if it should have been obvious.

“So? Why don’t you go back to your base and use your own lab?”

“Can’t.” Zim took a teal cube out of his pocket and tossed it in Dib’s direction.

Dib caught it and brought it up to his eye to inspect. “What’s this?”

“My base.”

“Your whole base is in this?” Dib strained his eyes, looking at the cube. “What’s going on? How did this even happen?”

“How far back in Irken history do you want to go?” Tak asked, popping open a bottle.

“Wait, you mean you’re actually going to tell me?”

She gave a non-committal shrug. “Eh…”

“Hold on, wait right there.” Dib zipped upstairs to his room, grabbed a notebook, pen, and recorder, then zipped back down. He grabbed a chair, hit record, and poised his pen. “Let’s start at the beginning.”

[-]

Dib scribbled furiously, trying to keep up with Tak’s slurred ramblings. Zim interjected occasionally to add something or explain an Irken concept, but it was clear exactly who the conspiracy hunter was.

“So, anyway, that’s when I realized this parasite has been controlling our entire society for generations and, you know, it’s just a real buzzkill to find out you’re basically living food.”

“I see,” Dib said, making a note to ask about this library planet later (maybe get coordinates?). “And this parasite has been masquerading as the Control Brains.”

“Not ‘masquerading’ exactly,” she explained. “They always were the Control Brains.”

“And, just to make sure I got this, the Control brains are what, again?”

Before they could answer, he heard a loud “eh-he-eh-hm.” He looked over to see Gaz standing in the kitchen doorway. When he met her eyes, she curled one finger, ominously beckoning him over. “Uh, one second, guys.” He put down his pen and followed Gaz into the kitchen.

“Make this quick, Gaz,” he said, peaking back into the living room. “These two are giving me everything.”

“Okay then,” she said, her voice displaying her irritation. “Just answer me this: why are there two destructive aliens drinking like civil war amputee patients on our couch?”

“Revealing their government’s secrets, that’s what,” he answered with unbridled glee. “Turns out, ginger gets them drunk and when they’re drunk, they have no filter. They’ve been rambling on and on about their creepy big-brother-like society for an hour now. Look at all these notes.” He shoved the notebook in Gaz’s face and flipped furiously through the pages. “As long as I keep them drunk and happy, they’ll keep talking. Which reminds me…” He took out his wallet, grabbed a bill, and handed it to Gaz. “Go to the store and buy them out of ginger ale. We can’t let them sober up.”

“Five bucks?” Gaz said, wrinkling her nose. “I assume you’re planning on reimbursing me for the grocery bill later.”

“This isn’t about money, Gaz.”

“Then dig a little deeper, Scrooge. I know your part-time at Dad’s lab pays more than this.”

“And you make plenty off of your twitch gaming streams,” Dib argued. “Come on, this is about furthering human knowledge.”

Gaz raised her eyebrow in her ‘you’ve got to be kidding’ way. “You’re offering me $5 to drop everything, go to the store, and buy out their entire supply of ginger ale without reimbursing me for the bill.”

“Uh…yes?”

She scoffed. “Get a pulse.”

Dib pinched the bridge of his nose and rubbed the corners of his eyes. Was she seriously arguing with him about money at a time like this? “Look, what if I give you an acknowledgement when I publish this baby? Like, say, in the forward?”

“You mean the part no one reads?”

“Uh…”

Gaz let out an exasperated huff and looked into the living room at the two Irkens. “So, they’ll really ramble on and on if you stuff them full of ginger, huh? About anything?”

“Yeah, pretty much. We managed to stay on topic so far. I mean, Zim did go on a tangent about the Game of Thrones finale, but we got back on track.”

Gaz smiled. “Did he, now? About what?”

“Something about Westeros crumbling as soon as the credits rolled. I don’t know. You watched that show, not me.”

“Hmm…” Gaz murmured, looking pointedly at Zim. Oh no, she was thinking… Worse! She was plotting!

“Gaz? What are you doing?”

She threw him a wicked smirk and sauntered into the living room. “Hey, Zim!” she called, clear as a bell. “That Game of Thrones finale sucked, right?”

“Don’t even get me started, Dib-sister!” Zim called back, slapping his hand on the couch. “Zim has never seen such a staggering drop in quality!”

Dib dropped his face into his hands. Was it too late to offer a twenty?”

[-]

“I guarantee Dorne and the Iron Islands rebelled as soon as they stepped out of the Dragon Pit.” Zim said, splashing ginger ale on the couch with every gesture. “I’ll bet they only voted ‘yes’ on Bran because this would be the easiest reign to overthrow.”

“Exactly!” Gaz said, slapping the arm of her chair. “Dany promised Yara independence two seasons ago. There’s no way she’s just going to watch him hand his sister a kingdom and not demand what’s owed to her.”

Dib twisted the notebook in his hands as he listened to them rant. They’d been at this since Gaz brought up the subject.

“And what was with them acting like Dany was in the wrong for executing Varys?” Zim added. “He tried to assassinate her!”

“As if Jon didn’t execute a child a few seasons ago for the same thing. And it was obvious that kid was coerced into it by the higher-ranking Night’s Watch men.” Gaz said. “You’ll notice Dany didn’t execute the child Varys manipulated into poisoning her. And he only thought she was ‘mad’ because she stopped listening to his shitty advice.”

“Their ‘advice’ lost her the Dornish forces, the Iron Fleet, and Highgarden’s armies,” Zim agreed.

“Plus another dragon and her best friend. And when she goes into mourning, he’s all ‘Welp, she’s clearly gone mad. Time to put her down like Old Yeller.’ Oh! And what was with Tyrion’s ‘everywhere she goes, evil men die’ speech? Like that’s a bad thing? Yeah, I know. That’s why I liked her.”

“You know wat she should have done?” Zim said. “She should have flown her three dragons to the Red Keep like she wanted to do last season. She could have taken the city with fewer casualties.”

Gaz nodded in agreement. “Maybe even no casualties if King’s Landing surrenders immediately.”

“Then she’d have all three dragons and all the armies in the Seven Kingdoms to fight the White Walkers with!” Zim added.

“Yeah, then maybe there’d be enough time to make the army of the dead live up to the hype! Nice Long Night. Lasted about six hours.”

“What is this show?” Tak asked. “I want to watch.”

“Enough!” Dib burst, jumping out of his seat. “Enough Game of Thrones! If you want to keep complaining, go on the internet and do it! Now can we please get back to you two spilling the secrets of your evil intergalactic empire!”

“There are no more secrets, human,” Tak snapped. “We’ve told all. The only other information I could find is on this.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a square, plastic information drive. “But this technology is too outdated to decode. So, unless you have access to an ancient computer…”

Dib took the square and held it up to his eyes. “This just looks like a floppy disc.”

“Really, Dib-beast?” Zim scoffed. “Your planet’s technology is antiquated, but it’s not that archaic.”

“Actually, that’s pretty outdated for us too,” Gaz said, “but our dad’s got a computer graveyard in the attic. Maybe we can get one of those to work.”

Tak regarded the disc suspiciously. “You’re serious? You think you might be able to get it to work.”

“It could be possible,” Dib answered, eyeballing the disc. It looked about the right size and shape. It may at least fit into the disc drive. “It wouldn’t be the first time we’ve gotten Irken and Earth technology to work together. It’s worth a shot.”

[-]

After about an hour and a few trips to the attic, they found an old monitor and hard drive they managed to turn on. As the computer booted up, they compared the Irken disc drive to a standard floppy disc. Dib was right. They seemed to match up.

“You really think this has a shot?” Tak asked again. She looked skeptical they whole time the were getting set up, but as the computer whirred to life, Dib thought he could detect a hint of hope in her voice.

“It could,” Gaz answered. “If the magnetic polarity is the same as we use on earth, the computer might be able to read the disc.”

Dib nodded along. While he was good with technology, his area of expertise was more on the engineering side. Gaz was the one with an affinity for coding.

Once the computer was ready, they popped in the drive. They all gathered around the monitor and held their breath. A buffering window popped up on the screen and they let out a collective gasp.

After a few minutes, the picture went black and green Irken text scrolled up across the screen, accompanied by, what sounded to Dib, like a series of chirps, clicks, and hisses. “Um, is it supposed to be making that-”

Tak and Zim threw a sharp hiss in his direction, then went back to staring intently at the screen. When Dib quieted and listened harder, he realized the sounds came from an organic voice and had a deliberate pattern. Holy shit, it’s reading the text! This is their language!

The voice stopped and the screen froze on another set of Irken symbols.

“Oh, my…” Zim choked out, eyes still glued to the screen. “We’ve got to write that down!”

“MiMi,” Tak commanded, “my tablet.”

“Wait, what was that?” Dib asked as he watched the two aliens scramble to scribble down the symbols on the screen. “Was that guy speaking Irken? What did they say?”

“Yes,” Zim answered. “And those are coordinates to the next place we need to go.”

“You mean, I need to go,” Tak cut in. “I’m the one who uncovered the conspiracy, remember?”

Zim scowled and stomped up to her, getting in her face. “You made this my problem when you crashed at my house, drank all my gingzor, and got my base cubified.”

“Why would I ever team up with you?” she shot back.

“I’m every bit as Irken as you are,” Zim argued. “I deserve answers as much as you.”

“Will someone please tell me what that thing said?” Dib shouted. The two stopped their bickering long enough to cast him an icy stare.

“Well,” Dib growled impatiently. If these two thought they were going to force their way into his home, spill ginger ale on his couch, tell him about an intergalactic conspiracy, and not let him in on the details, they had another thing coming.

“This doesn’t concern you, human,” Zim snapped.

“You two waltzed in here expecting me to hide you form your creepy totalitarian government and let you use my lab. Unless you want me to throw you out on your ass…”

“Fine, fine,” Tak said, waving an arm dismissively. “That voice claimed to be Krislotch. He confirmed that he left the clues that lead me to discover the truth about the Control Brains. He also claims more information is waiting on a planet at those coordinates. I must go there next if I want to solve this mystery.”

“We must go there,” Zim but in.

“This is my conspiracy, Zim,” Tak growled, turning back to him. “If there are more answered waiting on that planet, I will be the one to find them.”

“Oh yeah?” he said with a smirk. “How you gonna get there? I’m the only one with a working ship.”

“Dib’s got a ship,” Gaz chimed in. She turned to Tak. “Actually, I think it’s your ship.”

“You!” Before Dib could say anything, Tak had already jumped on the coffee table and grabbed his collar. “You have my ship?!”

“Uhh…”

“Take me to her!”

[-]

“wha-wha…WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!”

They group stood in the garage and stared at the collection of barely-held-together parts, also known as Tak’s ship. Dib had to admit, his last few forays into space hadn’t exactly been smooth sailing.

“It doesn’t look like this all the time,” he tried explaining. “I’ve gotten it to work. But, you know, sometimes things happen… and when they happen, I have to convince the ship to let me fix it again.”

“And why is she blue?”

“Um… I like blue?”

“Stupid human!” Tak spat, rushing up to her ship. “You have no idea what you’ve been toying with!”

“Fine,” Dib grumbled under his breath. “Only repaired it multiple times of the last six years but whatever…”

“Ship,” Tak commanded, laying a hand on the ship’s windshield. “Respond.”

“Biosignature detected,” the ship said as it began to light up. “You are Tak.”

“Yes, yes, ship! It’s me!” she cried. Dib could almost swear there were tears in her eyes.

“Hmpf, what took you so long?”

Tak looked taken aback. “I was, uh, had a lot going on, you know? Schemes and such?”

“And you never once thought to check in on your ship?”

“When I have to eject, I thought I’d lost you forever,” Tak explained, pressing both hands on the windshield. “I never wanted to leave you behind, but I’m here now. I can take you back.”

“Hey, wait a minute…” Dib protested. He started forward, but Gaz pulled him back.

“It’s her ship, dummy.”

“And how exactly did you get here?” Ship went on.

Tak hesitated. “Well, I…”

“I knew it,” Ship huffed. “You have a new ship now, don’t you?”

“It’s not like that,” Tak insisted. “Yes, I needed a new ship to get around, but I swear, it was a simple matter of transport. That ship means nothing to me. I would trade every other ship in the universe for you.”

The ship went quiet, as if thinking it over. Dib found himself oddly captivated, like when he’d accidently get sucked into his grandmother’s soap operas. He quickly shook himself out of it. This is ridiculous. She’s talking to a ship.

“I don’t know what to believe,” Ship finally said.

“I promise, Ship, I will fix you myself and, after that, I will never even look at another ship again.” She gently caressed its side and the engines purred.

“I will allow you to repair me, for now. After that, perhaps I can allow you to pilot me again, in time.”

Tak smiled and continued to pet her ship while it continued to purr. The scene was almost sweet until Zim decided to break it up.

“Well, well, well,” Zim said, a smug smile on his face, “looks like I’m the only one here with an operational ship.”

Tak only hissed in response.

“So, I guess I’ll be taking those coordinates and be on my way,” he continued, “unless someone wants to grovel for the chance to accompany me.”

Tak stomped up to Zim and unleashed a cavalcade of Irken at him. Dib wasn’t sure what she said, but if cricket/bat/snake could cuss someone out, he imagined it’d sound something like that.

“Okay,” Zim squeaked out, looking up at Tak who now towered over him. “I suppose I could let you come, but only because you asked so nicely.”

“I’m coming too,” Dib declared.

Tak and Zim both turned to him with questioning looks on their faces. “Uh, what?” Zim said.

“I’m coming. I want to see what’s on that planet, too.”

“This doesn’t concern you, human,” Tak spat.

“Excuse me? Who’s house are you two crashing at? Who’s ancient computer did you use to get those coordinates? And who’s been keeping your ship running while you’ve been got?”

“We don’t need-” Zim started, but Dib cut him off.

“Yes you do,” he shot back. “You need my lab to get your base working again. You said so yourself. And Tak, you need my garage and my tools if you’re going to fix your ship. If you want to stay here and use my equipment, to fix your stuff, you need to let me in on the conspiracy.”

The two Irkens looked at each other intently, as if holding a telepathic conversation. Dib briefly wondered if they could communicate semi-telepathically, or at least through pheromones. They did have antenna after all.

Finally, they broke their stare down and turned back to Dib. “Fine, the Dib can come,” Zim conceded.

Dib felt a jolt of excitement jump through his body. “Yeah, Gaz and I-”

“Nope,” Gaz said, turning on her heals and heading back inside.

Okay, so no Gaz. Aw well, he could at least count on her to cover for him while he’s gone. “I will get my space travel equipment and be ready to leave within the hour.”

“Yeah, fine, whatever,” Zim said, and he and Tak headed back inside as well. Dib went further into the garage and began preparing the things he’s need for the trip.

“You’re seriously going to let him come along?” Tak asked as they walked away.

“Eh,” Zim said with a shrug. “If the Dib-worm wants to come to a dead planet where total species-wide genocide took place, let him.”

Dib let the helmet he’d been holding clang to the floor. “Wait, what?”

[yamithediaperdork]

Trick or Stink: a pokemon story

It was a dark gloomy night.. well OK not really. the sun was setting sky and the cloud cover was next to nothing, at least in Virdian city. children were getting their costumes on and getting ready to trick or treat, while the pokemart and Pokemon center rushed to get a haunted house (with different levels for different ages) ready. Walking towards the haunted house to help, was two trainers from Pallet town. One was dressed in a tuxedo and had on some make up, to make him look palish.. and had some red on his chin and some fake fangs in. He was the champion of the region, and so far the longest reigning one.. Red. he was smiling big time and chuckling now and then as he looked at his companion The former champion, with the shortest reign in history, was huffing and waddling just behind red. Blue was dressed like a oversized toddler/baby. he was in a black diaper shirt, blue jean shortalls..with a pacifier hanging around his neck. and worse, oh so much worse.. was the three thick diapers between his legs, giving him a waddle and making it so every now and then when they hit a rough spot.. Blue had to take red's hand. "I want you to make it god damn clear to everyone this costume was your god damn idea." blue huffed for the fifth time. "yeah yeah.. No one would ever think that a crybaby like you would dress up like one." "NOTA CRYBABY!" Blue yelled and glared, bottom lip sticking out in adorable pout. "right right, I'll make sure to tell anyone who asks you lost a bet." red snickered, wishing he'd grabbed a camera. "think of the plus side of this.. this volunteer work is gonna look GREAT on your application to become gym leader." Red said. "nggggh.. only reason I'm doing it..HEY! STOP STARING!" Blue huffed then yelled. they were coming up towards town now and three boys, dressed in legendary bird themed costumes had stopped and stared, giggling. "Awww the big baby is grumpy!" 'Moltres' called out. "Maybe he needs a ba-ba!" 'Zapdos' added. "or a diapie change." 'Articuno' snickered. "That's it!" Blue huffed and went to reach for a pokeball, he was gonna unleash some gyarados fury on them..then recalled that red had taken his Pokemon from him. "look, with your temper you're gonna do something stupid..I'll hold onto your mon for you." Red had said before they left. "Like hell you will!" "Attacking trainers will not help you get that gym job." "Nggggh.." So now as he went to reach behind his back for the pokeball..it just looked like he was patting his butt. needless to say the bird boys giggled like MAD at that and ran off. "Give me a pokeball..I'm gonna-" "Do nothing and hurray up and get to the haunted house. we need to refresh our costume then find out what we're doing." Red said. "Yeah yeah.. Maybe they'll have a costume change for me..I doubt a baby will be very scary," "I dunno, if you end up needing a diapie change.." Red snickered and held his nose. "HEY! I'm NOT freaking doing THAT! bet or no god damn bet!!" "Ok ok, don't wet your huggies!" "Effing jerkass little.." blue grumbled and huffed for the rest of the walk to the house, blissfully unaware of the looks and giggles they were getting. There was two Jenny's helping set up the last few props,one was dressed like a jenny, and the other was dressed like a growlithe. a Joy was dragging out a playpen towards the front,dressed like a Jenny, when they looked and giggled. "Hey you two! about time you got here!" The first jenny said. "Oh wow..I didn't think he'd.." the second one started. "Eeeee! Blue you look ADORABLE!" Gushed the Joy, dashing over and hugging him, while blue blushed and squirmed. And then looked at the playpen. "...Red...how did they know they needed a playpen?" He asked, ice in his voice. "Well uh..we had to make sure no ones costumes clashed with each others you know." Red said, looking a little sheepish. "HOW many people knew I was gonna be.." Blue trailed off as he looked at one of the posters advertising the event.. and noticed it had his head superimposed on a toddlers..advertising the former champion as a big cry baby for the event. "...WHAT THE HELL IS THAT!?" "Uh, Red, I thought you said he knew we were-" Jenny started up as Red waved his hands, trying to shush her. "You set me up from the beginning and You..I.. Gah! two fingers, to all y'all! I'm out!" Huffed blue, flipping off all of them and he turned around to leave. "Thats disappointing..and here I was going to sponsor your application." joy tsked. Blue stopped, looking over his shoulder. "What?" "Well if you were willing to humiliate yourself so much for the entertainment of the trainers around here, then you'd make a GREAT gym leader!" She said in a sing song voice. "But..I.." blue whimpered and turned around.. and the girls had to bite their touge to keep from going d'aww. "ngggh..fine.. Whatever.. what do I hafa do?" He said finally. they worked fast to get everything just right, to get the other volunteers in key settings to be nice and scary for the second floor, and kinda cute but maybe scary for the basement. Blue was posted at the entrances, and was put in the playpen (something that really irked him but he was doing it for the gym) and had loads of flashlights in the playpen with him..and some baby toys if he got bored. (And boy, when they had added those had he gotten huffy again!) Red was at the exit, to collect flashlights and wish everyone a good night. getting ready to open, red ruffled blue's hair. "OK, ready for this? remember if it gets to be too much or you need a you know what, holler for me, i brought extras." red said. "Your a right prick even when trying to be nice, you know that right?" Opened for business (the fee was a mere 10 yen) two groups came in. the first was filled with maybe first graders, some of them looked younger then others. But they ALL got a good giggle out of seeing blue. "Look look! he's totally in diapies!" "Hahaha i don't need diapies anymore right mommy?" "oh gosh he's so kewt!" all this and more and as blue handed out the flashlights to the little kids. one or two mommies giggled and tried to remind the kids it was just a costume, then the jenny in the growlithe costume lead them down stairs. the older kids came in and of course the bird boys were there..this time with cameras (though blue manged to semi hide his face) Lots of head pats and condescending talk, and Blue was bright red in the face and almost on the verge of tears. A ace trainer, there with his little sister, saw this and barked for them to ease up on the poor guy..then poped blue's pacifier in his mouth and smirked as blue nursed on it. "Remember me? I was one of the guys you thrashed on victory road..who'd the loser now?" he whispered and laughed. blue just suckled and whimpered and the other Jenny took the group away. Left alone, Blue suckled and tried to clam down.. it was over for a lil while at least, though he could see anther group gathering outside. Trying to put his mind on something else he day dreamed about being a gym leader and making sure to crush anyone who'd try and challenge him.. not noticing as he picked up a gyarados stuffie and was semi playing with it. Then the first shriek was heard and blue jumped up to his feet, pacifier popping out of his mouth and he looked around wildly. 'oh..right...haunted hou-' he started to think and then there was anther shriek, followed by a deep and evil sounding laugh Blue yelped and lost his foot, plopping down on his bed and then scuching up his face in confusion. Why was his crotch suddenly warm? Reaching down he poked his crotch, and felt the squish.. and turned crimson. HE HAD WET HIMSELF! Thankfully there wasn't a tell tale smell or any visible sign (aside from the diapers ballooning out a little and Blue squirmed. There was more screams now and more evil noises and blue whimpered a little, squirming and squishing as he grabbed the gyarados.. just for.. something to toss if he needed to.. or so he told himself as he held it close. Watching from his pokegear app, Red smirked at what a little crybaby blue was acting like and was pretty sure he was a soggy butt already. he almost went to go and check but then the two levels were done and he had to collect flashlights. "Wow that was super fun!" "Jesus I'm gonna have nightmares for a week!" "Never coming back again..except maybe to see the baby.." "Heh, doubt the baby will be here next year.." As the last of the kids walked away red gathered up the flashlights in a bin, and got ready to come around. Blush meanwhile was being gushed over what a cute baby he was, and just how into his role he had gotten. The evil noises had stopped before he'd started to cry but his eyes were still a little watery and there was a drool line down his chin from nursing on his pacifier too hard. The first group was the nice ones..the second one.. was barely any kids at all, but the more advanced trainers who he regiozed as people he'd trampled on route to the elite four. "What a little BABY!" "Ahahahah this is a good look for him!" "Look at how thick his diapers are, he must be a super soaker!" "I can't believe I lost to such a big diaper dork!" Still in a fragile state, their insults HURT and blue whimpered even as he handed out the last of his flashlights, lisping around his paci. "Dun be so mean!" Naturally, this didn't have the desired effect. the group took off and blue was left upset and huffing. 3 minutes after the groups had gone red showed up and smiled. "Hey buddy, how you holding up?" "Ah 'ate dis!" Blue yelled around the pacifier, tears threatening to spill down his cheeks. "Heyy it's ok.. it';s just for a few more hours..come on, if you wanna be a Pokemon master you need some thick skin right?" Red coo'ed. dumping the flashlights in and handing blue the gyarados stuffie.. with the big baby clutched at and held to his chest. "I..I guess." "Now come on.. would the future gym leader break down over some teasing?" red asked, helping blue stand up in the play pen and rubbing his back. "N-No.." Blue said and let the paci drop out of his mouth, and rubbed his arm over his eyes. "S-Sowwy.." "It's ok.. do you want a diaper change while there's no one here?" Red asked. "I don't need a diaper change." blue said far too fast. "Are you sure?" Red asked. "It's ok if you do.." "Nope! I told you, I'm not using the diapers." Blue huffed. "Alright alright. I need to get back to my post anyways.. if you need me.." "I know O know." Blue said and rolled his eyes, getting some of his cockiness back. With that, red smirked and left, waving bye. And about 30 seconds later the screaming started again. Only this time..it wasn't piss that came out of him. Blue was barely aware of what he was doing as he went from standing in the playpen to squatting..then the muffled fart told him everything. 'NO!' As if it had a mind of it's own his bowels decided to unload and he could feel the smelly logs slide out into the waiting diaper, pressing against the bulk and the shortall's and spreading over his cheeks. 'NO!!' Loud gross farts came out of him, almost rapid fire and it almost drowned out the horror noises.. but this was a horror all it's own for poor blue. 'Please god no no no noooo!' The mess was still going but the back of the diaper was loaded, so it went the only place it could, ozzing to the front of the diaper as tears ran down Blue's cheeks. The snaps on the shortalls couldn't hold up and burst open.. his diapers puffing out and stained brown. As if the smell alone wouldn't give away what had happened. As he finished..doing..THAT.. he looked up. the next group was ready to come in. Red had of course watched the whole thing happen, and was grinning from ear to ear. Blue's mess wasn't as fear based as he might think it was, as his pacifier had been loaded with laxative powder. Still he had to draw his attention away to take the flashlights back and wish everyone a happy Halloween..and by the time he was done it was too late to stop the next group from coming in and too late to give blue a diaper change. The smell was thick in the air and parts of each group left, unable to handle it while others were giggling that blue was SUCH a big stinky baby. The poor trainer couldn't even hand the flashlights out.. he was on his knees, sucking on his paci and hugging the stuffie close. No attempt to hide his face as the older kids took pictures and parents just reached in and grabbed flashlights for those who were too little. The jenny's saw what had happened of course but had to do their tour. one of them manged to let one of the monster volunteers know to run up and tell red what had happened...and that Blue could have his break early. Of course as the groups came out one little boy, trying to be helpful tugged on red's cape. "uh, scue me mister, but the big baby up front needs a diapie change and wots of cuddles." There was no more lil kids so blue just numbly accepted it when the growlthine dressed jenny gently helped him out of the playpen, rubbing his back and trying to cheer him up. "A-at least you didn't have a blow out right?" she asked sweatdroping. Somehow this didn't make Blue feel better. Blue stood there, waiting on Red. Once Red was there he could get changed and go home and pretend this all never happened. Red did come up and instantly put a hand to his nose. "Phew! somebody used gunk shot huh?" he teased and blue whimpered. "Hey, it's OK..come on, give me your hand and we'll get you all cleaned up OK buddy?" red said. blue huffed, and slapped away the offered hand. sure he was a big kid in a massively messy diaper but he could walk on his own god damn it! And he took three steps then slipped and landed on his butt, squishing the mess and making the smell 20 times worst. Blue blacked out after that, but apparently (according to sources) he had started to wail and then act like a lil toddler for the rest of the night. After getting his diapers changed he asked 'dada' (Red) to take him home and of course the Jenny's and Joy let them. Red had tried to take blue to his house but blue didn't wanna be left with a icky girl and sobbed that daddy didn't love him..so red had brought him home with him. His mom dug out reds old crib and the big baby had spent the night in it. When he woke up the next morning he was back to his old self and refused to wear any more diapers or baby outfits. He just wanted to go out and train and wait for his application to go though. Unfortunately his little stint as a big baby had been well documented and blue was out for maybe half a hour before returning to town, red faced from all the teasing, and claiming someone had used a starmie to spray the front of his pants. (Of course a starmie's water gun doesn't usually smell like piss, but red let it slide.) As the days past by, Blue was having more accidents (by the 10th one he gave up trying to say it was a water gun attack) and begrudgingly started to wear some pull up style protection.. that never seemed quite up to the task. By the end of the week he was back in diapers, but was managing to NOT go poopie in them. (Though this was in part due to red having him sit on a potty for 10 minutes every hour and half to try and poopie.) Finally the day came when Blue was summoned by the council for their decision, and they had asked Red to come along too for some reason. Blue figured it was they were annoyed he was neglecting his duties as champion. "Blue, we'll address you first. while you have indeed shown you'll go to great lengths to help out the town.. your antics are not becoming of a gym leader. What would the other regions think if they saw we had a diaper messing big baby as one of our leaders?" the head of the council asked, and Blue's jaw droped. "That..that was just.. you can't judge me just on one nights-" He started. "Your wearing a diaper now. " "I-I am not!" "There's a hold in the back of your shorts. That said, we DO still need a gym leader for virdian.. and Red, you're part in this fiasco with Blue is known as well." Blue whimpered and turned to Joy and the Jenny's, who looked apologetic and shrugged. All that shame..all of it..for nothing,..for.. "We'd like you to step down as champion..and assume the role of gym leader till such time as we believe we can find a suitable replacement." the head started but was interrupted but a loud sob. Red looked and Blue had plopped on his butt, and was bawling, a hand rubbing a eye. "It's not fairrrrr!" "Oh for the love of, Thats it, we'll be revoking your license blue!" The head snapped, and Blue sobbed harder, audibly soaking his diapers. "No you won't!" Red snapped, and he walked over, helping blue up and blue hugged him tight, burying his face in reds shoulder as red rubbed his back. "Excuse me?" "If you want me to step down as champion then I will, but I won't accept the gym leader position and further more I'll reveal just why the last gym leader left,.. I know he was head of team rocket and you want that kept from the press..Or..I can take the position..and blue here will be one of my gym trainers." "You want this big..BABY..to battle at your gym." "Yes. Now thats the deal, take it or leave it." four days later and the earth gym was reopened..however this time it had a odd gimmick.. it was almost like a oversized nursery. despite it's babish appearance, it still housed some strong trainers. In fact the leader himself was rarely challenged.. because the trainer in front of him while dressed in thick diapers and a t-shirt on hot days, and overalls otherwise else, was still strong as heck. There was also a small rumor going around that anyone who manged to face the leader and lost.. had a waddle to their step when they left...

[heroacademiaimagines]

Angst Alphabet: All Might/Yagi Toshinori

(I didn’t V + W for reasons don’t look at me)

A – Adjourn: How would they handle a break-up?

Toshinori has a tendency to just… ignore it. It means he never deals with the unresolved feelings, he never full confronts what happens and why it happened, and it also means it haunts him for a long time. He doesn’t just let anyone into his life, you have to be special to have stolen his heart in the first place, but it doesn’t mean he doesn’t act foolish. With how famous he is, and how much he throws himself into his hero work, it means it’s not difficult for him to find ways to distract himself, though the feelings always catch up with him when he’s trying to sleep at night.

B – Blunders: If they could redo a moment of their past, would they?

He would likely choose to redo a lot of things, but the thing he wished he did the most was spend more time with you. He was so busy being the number one hero that he’d put you on a backburner, almost treated you like an afterthought, and used the excuse of ‘That’s just how a hero’s life is!’. With how fleeting his career seemed to be with his injury now, it seemed foolish to have treated you so poorly, when you would still be around while he was no longer a hero. He realizes how selfish that sounds, but it’s not as though his feelings for you hadn’t been genuine, he just didn’t have a chance to think until the whirlwind of the Symbol of Peace was over.

C – Calamity: If you happened to die in an accident would they blame themselves?

Even if there was no viable way for him to save you, for him to help you, he would only ever be able to think of the what-ifs. What if he had been with you that day? What if he had spent more time with you? The guilt alone could send him into an early grave, and these feelings are amplified if it’s after his injury has stopped him from changing into All Might; he knew he couldn’t do anything in this state, and that made it worse. If he was there he would’ve had to helplessly watch you die, because there was truly nothing he could do anymore.

D – Demise: How would they deal with death?

There’s nothing on this planet that would make him feel more useless than you dying, whether it be because of a disease or a villain. He shoulders the responsibility of your well-being despite your insistence that he shouldn’t; you know he’s protective and it’s natural instinct to want to keep you safe, but there were things in life that happened that he couldn’t control. This is a fact he’s aware of, but hates accepting, as he always defied the expectations of those around him.

E – Evaluation: What if someone were to expose their past?

Toshinori is well-aware that there are people always sniffing into his past, but there’s not much to find there relationship wise. He’d had a few flings here and there, but most of those people were tight-lipped enough to never mention it. It’s not like the world would be likely to believe them anyway, but he found most were willing to keep any secret they knew about him; he would be more worried about the secret for One For All coming out than his dating history.

F – Force: What would burden them to the crux of a breakdown?

Your kidnapping at the hands of All For One would likely be a huge stressor for him, knowing that you would be shown no mercy, especially due to being connected by him. There’s not a moment of sleep, of any type of rest, until you’re safely out of his hands and back in All Might’s. You can confidently say you’d never seen him cry, but he might if you return unharmed, or at least alive, from his greatest enemy.

G – Ground: Which part of themselves do they see as dangerous?

His ambition, especially when he was younger, was a dangerous thing, but more to himself than others. He wanted to be a great hero, he was almost a natural at it, but it easily put him into potentially fatal positions where only pure luck helped him get out alive (while also saving the people he’d set out to help). He can remember a handful of moments where he truly thought it might be the end for him, wondering if he’d still dive in against all odds knowing he might die (he would).

H – Hatred: Who or what do they truly despise?

All For One is likely the only thing that pops into Toshinori’s mind when he’s asked about the word hatred. He knows he dislikes villainy, which is why he became a hero in the first place, but to hold actual contempt for the villains he fights… he mostly feels sorry for them, and sees locking them away as for their own good, but there’s moments where he wonders about what truly drives them to hurt people the way they do (it’s not something he could ever wrap his head around).

I – Insulted: What would irk them the most?

People being disrespectful to the people he loves, villains hurting his innocent students, there are a surprisingly numerous amount of things that can get on his nerves. He doesn’t often show this irritation unless he’s been pushed far enough, but he’s been blessed with great patience and the ability to brush most insulting things off, so it’s unlikely the side of him that would bare his teeth would appear.

J – Justice: Would they ever murder for revenge?

Considering it’s been something he’s avoided his whole career, no matter how tough the villain, he likely would never take another life. Even if he did so accidentally, no matter how much that person deserved it, it would mark itself as a huge regret on his part and he would never be able to look at himself again.

K – Kidnapped: What if you were abducted? What courses of action would they take?

Toshinori tries to keep your identity as secret as possible along with his own, because he knows the great amount of danger that you’re in just by being with him. He feels guilty when he learns of your kidnapping, and full of fear, but he’s still a hero and he’ll do anything he can to get you back. There’s no way that All Might allows them to save you without him there to personally grab you, to personally see that you’re okay the minute you’re found, as he was never the type to sit back and wait for others to handle things. After you’re rescued, there’s no chance of you being out of his sight for at least the next 48 hours.

L – Longing: How much time would it take their hearts to mend after you died? Would they still long for you?

He’d already longed, pined, for you for so long, even while you were still alive, that it’s almost natural those feelings continue after your death; it’s like some form of torture, something he thinks he deserves, especially if your death was a premature one. His heart never truly mends, there was a piece of it that always belonged to you and it felt almost sacrilegious to let another in where you once were. No other romantic relationship seems to fit just right, none make him feel the same way you did, and unfortunately, he knows that he likely won’t feel like he did for you for another person again. He’s okay with it, of course, as there are other things in life he has to focus on, but it is still a great loss.

M – Money: Would you two have financial problems?

Being the number one hero in the world, for a long time, with his own agency, meant it was very unlikely you’d have any money problems. You yourself probably didn’t have to work at all, as most people who knew that you were involved with All Might in some way, shape, or form, would give you things for free, otherwise, he’d attempt to pay for it himself (like if you wanted to go back to school).

N – Naught: How would they react knowing they have lost everything?

It wouldn’t be the first time he’s felt that way, and it wouldn’t be the last, but there’s nothing that can stop him from marching forward. There was always something more to reach for, something more to aspire to, and even if it felt like the world was crashing down around him, he knew it wasn’t in his nature to simply give in and let things be.

O – Overwrought: What memories of their past causes them to be anxious?

Asking you out for the first time was quite an event, he knew you wouldn’t say no but at the same time, you’d never bowed down or acted especially enthused to have him around like his fans did (it’s why he fell for you in the first place). He can remember a handful of times where you’d gotten injured and needed to go to a hospital, and since he wasn’t physically there, he had been anxiously waiting a phone call to see if you were alright. The one that fills him with the most anxiety is probably when he had to confess the condition he was in, and he put it off for so long, he only made himself more anxious as he realized he’s lying to your face and you’d be even angrier when you finally did know.

P – Pessimistic: Do they rub salt in wounds?

Not generally. Toshinori is very forgiving, and he doesn’t like to continue fights longer than they need to be. He’s not the type to make snippy or petty comments if you say/do something that reminds him of what you were arguing about, more willing to let bygones be bygones and move on. He doesn’t forget what was said, or what the fight was about, but he’s not the argumentative type.

Q – Quake: What could frighten them so terribly they couldn’t recuperate?

Seeing you mangled, beyond repair, knowing you were tortured every moment until your very last breath… The image would be ingrained in his brain, every time he closed his eyes he’d see your dead ones staring back, cold, dead lips moving and asking why he couldn’t save you, why he wasn’t the hero he always swore to you he was. It haunts him, the rest of his life, and though he continues with his work, he doesn’t know if he’ll ever have a peaceful nights sleep again.

R – Rogue: What if they were evil?

If All Might were evil, it would likely be game over for most of the world. He would be able to do as he pleased, but of course, it’s no fun if it’s all that easy; he’ll be sure to play as many games as he can with the pro-heroes, leading them into a false sense of security, letting them think that he can be cornered when it’s simply a trap to kill them all at once.

S – Shaft: How do they vent?

Toshinori used to think screaming into a pillow was an effective way to vent out his feelings, or just ignoring them and hoping they faded away with time, but he quickly realizes that it’s inefficient. Having someone like you to confide in makes his chest feel warm, having someone he can truly trust, who sees him as a human being and not just a hero, is exactly what he needs. He would also need someone willing to offer him advice, or be willing to tell him he’s acting like a fool.

T – Tenderness: What emotion do they want to hide?

Toshinori tends to hide most negative emotions that he feels. He doesn’t want to let you know that he’s sad, that he’s heartbroken, that he’s feeling guilty, so he bundles them all inside into a tightly woven ball and tosses it away. He doesn’t think it’s right for you to worry about him the same way he worries about you, since he’s a hero and all, and this line of thinking can easily put a damper on the relationship (or even ruin it altogether, as you’re giving all parts of yourself and he’s hand selecting what he gives to you).

U – Untrustworthy: What could you do to make them lose their trust in you?

Leaking sensitive information about him to the media, cheating on him while you were together, betraying the heroes and becoming a villain… there’s only a few things that could truly push him to the point of no return, where he feels like he no longer knows you at all. For certain things, there might be a way for you to earn back his trust, but if you were to ever turn evil or hurt other innocent human beings, he would never be able to look at you the same way again.

X – X-Ray: Can they tell if you’re lying?

Toshinori trusts you greatly, so he wouldn’t be looking for signs of lying, though if he’s with you in the first place it’s likely because you’re an honest person to begin with. If you were a really bad liar he would be able to tell, and if it was simply a white lie or something he deemed harmless, he would just pretend he believed you or moved on.

Y – You: What memory of you hurts them every time they recall it?

Toshinori can remember the first time he broke your heart very well. He’d gotten caught up in criminal work on an important anniversary, and he’d had every intention of making it there he just… forgot. The next morning when he checked your phone, there were no texts to be seen, and he immediately realized why that was; when he sees you in person you tell him it was fine, but you’re teary-eyed and can’t look at him, and he hates it more than anything. If he’s going to miss a date, he lets you know ahead of time, and always has a good plan for the next day to make it up to you.

Z – Zigzag: Are they often pulled in different directions by their heart and brain?

Every day of his life, he feels like. Though his heart and soul is always put into his hero work, there are parts of his heart that want nothing more than to be with you. He wants to be home with you, cuddled together on the couch or in bed, whispering sweet nothings in your ear, there were so many domestic things that he craved to do that he just didn’t have time for.

[massmurdera]

Super fun list/idea I look forward to. I love end-of-year lists and even end of decade lists and checking to see what I missed or completely forgot about.

Some stuff I didn’t like, am lukewarm about. But most is right on and worth checking out.

Glad they added: the Bodega Boys soundboard (Desus and Mero). Some segments on Desus and Mero this year were the funniest things I watched...Ryen Russillo’s ‘Worst Year ever’ segment. Forgot about that one. Relatable.

Things I’d add to the list... Limited series that are really good (in order): When They See Us (particularly Jharrell Jerome’); Unbelievable; Chernobyl; the Loudest Voice; Mrs Fletcher

Late add: ‘Don’t Fuck with Cats: the Hunt for the Internet Cat Killer’ Still need to check out: ‘Fosse/Verdon’; ‘Looking for Alaska’; ‘Good Omens’

Late Night: ‘Desus and Mero’-kind of mentioned with the Bodega Boys soundboard. Some segments were the hardest I’ve laughed this year. Maybe the ad for the South Carolina sheriff was the best moment? And the hilarious game show moment with Jimmy Fallon/Charlize Theron and the Taylor Swift ‘long back’ moment that got them death threats from Swift fans.

Without fail, I introduce anybody to Desus and Mero or even just Mero’s laugh-and they will enjoy it. They are so naturally funny/likable and got great chemistry/riffing.

TV Series: ‘Sex Education’. Some ‘Derry Girls’. Moments: Sydney Sweeney’s boobies on ‘Euphoria’. That show is pretty ridiculous/dumb at times and basically feels like a hysterically paranoid made-up nightmare of what high school is like. But it has good female performances you can’t look away from. The dudes? not so much. Documentaries (no order): ‘the Ted Bundy Tapes’, ‘Finding Neverland’ (Michael Jackson sexual abuse of kids); ‘I Love You Now Die’ (local in Massachusetts with inducing someone to commit suicide case), ‘‘‘the Inventor’ (Theranos) ‘American Factory’; ‘Knocking Down the House’ (AOC)

Enjoyed a lot of these to varying degrees. Heard the Maradona doc was good.

Comedy Specials:  -Bill Burr-’Paper Tiger’-favorite stand-up comic. Particularly his bit 54 minutes in. I still think he’s left out his best bits 3 specials in a row now (the anti respecting the troops makes sense as to why he left it out/didn’t land in London and why) -Gary Gulman-’the Great Depresh’-doc didn’t totally work for me, but there’s some great moments from a comic I’ve always liked/didn’t know what he was going through. -Dave Chappelle -got a lot of flack, but it was still funny. -Mike Birbiglia-’the New One’-comic from my town (Shrewsbury MA). He does ready-made Broadway/Off-Broadway one-man acts (not so much comedy specials). He’s not a favorite comic in that I don’t think he’s as naturally or consistently funny as a lot of the guys I like on podcasts; that’s not his forte. But if he has an act, he’ll deliver and usually get better with it. -Anthony Jeselnik-’Fire in the Maternity Ward’ Comedy album -Joe DeRosa-’I Go To Atlanta All the Time’ -may not pop into my head as a favorite comic, but he reliably releases some of my favorite comedy albums.

Podcasts -’the Dollop’: ‘Ronald Reagan part 1 & 2′ with Patton Oswalt. Lot of episodes are hit-or-miss, but when it’s on? It’s damn good/funny/unbelievable. I wish they had a comedy production studios for Dollop movies/TV/shorts.

I listen to an ungodly amount of podcasts, but I can’t think of standout moments/episodes beyond the above one. I think Frotcast will release a Best of the year oepisode soon and it might deliver.

Internet moments -the short/angry Bagel Boss guy losing his shit (and other videos of the guy being a douche) -Megan McCain being dunked on. Probably ‘You were at my wedding denise’ was the highlight but it was never-ending from an all-time dumb person/faildaughter of a shitty politician. You could probably also add other shitty Republicans/conservative thinkers. Getting shit on online and losing the culture wars forever and always is the least/best we can do in these shit times. They will never have that and it irks them no matter how much they say it doesn’t. That’s history and being on the wrong side. SNL -Adam Sandler’s SNL comeback/tribute to Chris Farley. He did it on his really good Netflix comedy special but was more touching here and a genuine moment.

SNL mostly sucks and I hate-watch it. Has a collection of funny people but they fail to do anything with it.

Need to check out: Uncut Gems; Little Women; Star Wars; end of ‘Legion’ (4 episodes behind/wasn't enjoying the last season and a half. The final ‘Mr Robot’. episode on Sunday. 1 episode into ‘the Witcher’ and so far it’s pretty stupid and Henry Cavill’s voice is unintentionally funny. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MY PERSONAL FAVES.... TV: Succession/Fleabag/Watchmen DISAPPOINTING ALL-TIME GREAT END: Game of Thrones GREAT: When They See Us; Unbelievable; Chernobyl VERY GOOD/HIGH HIGHS: Barry; Brockmire; Derry Girls; Euphoria; Pen15; Sex Education FAVORITE SHOWS I LOVE BUT NOT TOTALLY STANDOUT SEASONS: Big Mouth; Rick and Morty; Veep OKAY: Dark; Russian Doll HALF-WATCH/MEH: All-American; Emergence; Jack Ryan; Living With Yourself; the Mandalorian; Stumptown; True Detective; Warrior NOT GOOD BUT I WATCH: Shameless ONCE GREAT NOW MIGHT NEED TO END: GLOW; Killing Eve; Luther; Stranger Things NOT VERY GOOD/ENDED: Big Little Lies; Silicon Valley GAVE UP ON: Riverdale

STILL NEED TO CHECK OUT/CATCH UP BUT ARE GOOD/QUALITY: Bosch; Broad City; Brooklyn 99; Catastrophe; Expanse; Good Place; It’s Always Sunny; Letterkenny; Other Two; Ramy; Schitt’s Creek MOVIE:  TOP TIER FAVORITES: 1) Once Upon a Time in Hollywood 2) Uncut Gems SECOND TIER FAVES: 3) Little Women 4) Knives Out 5) Midsommer 6) Parasite 7) Marriage Story THIRD TIER: 8) John Wick III 9) the Irishman 10) Us 11) Shazam! UNDERRATED: 12) Ready or Not

ABSOLUTE FAVORITE DOCS: the two Fyre Festival docs; American Factory SOLID: Breaking Bad: El Camino; Dolemite is My Name; Longshot; the Two Popes OKAY: the Amazing Jonathan; Avengers: Endgame; Spiderman: Far From Home; Fighting With My Family; Hustlers; Knocking Down the House LOW EXPECTATIONS HIGH REWARD BUT TOTALLY DUMB: 6 Underground; Between Two Ferns: the Movie NOT TOTALLY MY THING BUT IMPRESSIVE: Ad Astra; High Flying Bird HALF-WATCH RENTAL: Always Be My Maybe; Good Boys; Hobbes & Shaw; the Report DISAPPOINTING: Toy Story 4; Triple Frontier DIDN’T LIKE/OVERHYPED: Booksmart; the Farewell; Under the Silver Lake BAD: the Laundromat; Let It Snow; Noel

HAVE YET TO SEE: Apollo 11; Art of Self-Defense; Beach Bum; Ford v Ferrari; Honey Boy; It 2; the Lighthouse; Rocketman; the Souvenir; Star Wars; Transit

LIVE SHOW: Brian Fallon at City Winery solo acoustic. Was 75% banter from a dude filled with nerves. Felt like a funny ‘Unplugged’ with pretty sad songs inbetween.

Comics Come Home was good (Robert Kelly; Bill Burr, John Mulaney, Pete Holmes, etc) MUSIC-Menzingers Late Pass: Spanish Love Songs

[knjredwluv]

Red. [1]

Red (n.)

Red could signify the color of love, passion, determination, and strength. Red could also signify blood, fire, war, desire and energy. Red is an emotionally intense color.

Title: Red

Words: 4.7k

AU: Yandere/Obssessive relationship 

Characters: Jungkook x Reader. Hoseok x Reader. OT7.

Warnings: 17+ explicit language, angst!angst!angst!, slight implications of smut, some fluff and soft moments (super fucking sappy), noona kink (if you squint reaaaaally hard), yandere/obsessive relationship (this isnt a healthy relationship and i dont promote any of this), mentions of killing, hallucinations, has very descriptive angst!!

Summary: “After the things that happened, you decided to start anew. Everything was how you thought it would be; it was simple but perfect–until you saw your name on a black envelope. Out of curiosity, you opened it; and now, you wish you didn’t.”

LIST FOR RED

CHAPTER 1

You held your phone to your ear using your shoulder. You huffed as you tried to multi-task being on the phone, walking to class and carrying a shoulder bag, laptop, books and a cup of coffee in your arms. “Can you please just do it? I have to head back to Jimin’s because he left his wallet.”

“____, as much as I love you, I will not go to your brother’s house without you. You know the look he gives me for being with you already– and you want me to go there to drop off your boxes for you.” You chuckled as he rambled and emphasized on the task you requested him to do.

“Babe, that’s just how he looks at everyone, okay? And plus, you’re bigger than him. I remember having a man for a boyfriend not a baby.” you giggle as you teased him.

“For fucks sake, ____, Your brother is a fucking cop. He looks like he hates me and he is a licensed official who can put me behind bars for, I don’t know, laughing at you when you do some stupid shit” You laugh at this because you know you’re one hell of a klutz.

“I’ll give you a blowjob if you do it” You whispered into the phone, nonchalantly. As expected, there is a small pause until you heard a groan.

“Fine, I’ll do it. You owe me big time, baby girl.”

You ended the call and texted your brother saying that Jungkook is heading over to drop off your things for your parents.

—

Bro

[12:34] Y/N: yoon

[12:34] Y/N: Jk is heading over there to bring my stuff

[12:35] Y/N: u home right?

[12:37] Bro: Nah

[12:37] Bro: not home work called but Mina is home she shuld be awake

[12:38] Y/N: Mkay ill tell him

[12:40] Bro: 👍🏻

—

Jeon♡

[12:45] Y/N: Hes not home but Mina is

[12:47] Jeon♡: Ok yessssss

[12:47] Jeon♡: but im still expecting something 👀

[12:47] Y/N: fck outta here jeon and do what u gotta do

[12:47] Jeon♡: Damn ok live u

[12:47] Jeon♡: love*** ♥️♥️

[12:48] Y/N: 🥰 love you 2

—

You shoved your phone in your bag and walked to the library. The weather was really nice. it complimented how you were dressed up for today.

Thank God, it was just for today.

Your Art Club meeting is really gonna screw you up. You really hope you ace this meeting since you stayed up all night making the power point. You’re also drowning yourself in caffeine and hoping it doesn’t spill on your new blouse. The branded shirt costed you more than your monthly grocery; and it’s not like you find it a hassle to be stylish but it’s definitely something different. It’s way different than the go-to vans and a pair of jeans with the Uni’s hoodie. Oh how you wished that’s what you were wearing right now.

After the meeting, you walked up the steps and opened the door to the University’s library. You were greeted by Namjoon, who was on his way out.

“Hey, ____. What brings you here? It isn’t Thursday today, is it?” He asked you casually while checking his Gold Casio watch. Namjoon is used to your frequent visits to the library. After working in the library for 4 out of 5 years of his Uni life, he’s accustomed to seeing you on the same desk, at the second floor, by the window. Sometimes, you’re caught doing homework, checking out Literature books or books of Art History, or probably just reading a comic book or webtoon that Jungkook told you about.

“Oh no, It’s Tuesday but I just needed to catch up with some work” accidentally bumping your elbow to the door causing you to almost drop your books but luckily, Namjoon’s instincts were fast. You quietly thanked him. “I got math to do”

“Well then,” He turned and waved “Ms. Ryu is expecting me. Good luck with math”

“Alrightie, see ya”

You walked to your usual spot and placed your laptop on the desk. You opened it and typed in the password. You grinned at the screensaver.

Oh god, it never fails to make you smile.

It was a screenshotted picture of Jungkook with ice cream of his face on your second date. It was a funny memory if you recall what happened.

“Stopppp, you’re going too hard. I might fly up” You said giggling and holding on the seesaw like it meant your life depended on it. Technically, it kind of did.

“Okay okay, i’m sorry” he said laughing at how you looked.

Both of you continued using the seesaw while casually talking about nonsense like what if aliens came and decided to rule Earth or if there was a zombie apocalypse, what you would do.

“Now that I think about it, I would find it weird that there’s two grown adults using a seesaw and eating ice cream– BUT CUTE” saying it with emphasis.

“Your right, it’s not something you see everyday” He shrugged and laughed and went back to lick his ice cream.

“Yeah, you don’t see muscle pig tatted good looking e-boy eating ice cream while using a seesaw, everyday” You teasingly said.

“What was that?” He said looking at you. You knew that he heard because his ears were starting to turn red but it didn’t stop his lips altering to a smile hearing the compliment. It was probably even boosting his ego hearing that the girl he likes called him good looking. He knew that and he always, mentally, thanked his parents and the Man above for mixing his genes well.

“Huh?” biting your lip, smiling and trying not to laugh “Oh nothing” shaking your head. You took out your phone to take a snapchat video of him holding onto the seesaw with his ice cream cone on the other hand.

He urged you to repeat it, not because of what you said, but because of how the blush crept up your face as you said it. He noticed how red your cheeks has gotten and how you adorable it is to see you this flustered.

“Say it” he whined, exaggerating the act knowing that he was being recorded. He bounced a little hard on the seesaw which caused you to jump a little. He smirked at your shocked look.

“Hmm, You wanna play that game huh?” Still taking a video, you playfully copied what he did to you which caused him to jump a little forward and the ice cream on his hand, now on the ground. His chin and mouth covered in with the dessert and his black shirt having evidence of the incident.  

“Awwww Jungkook, I’m sorry” You cooed and pouting at him. You couldn’t help but giggle at the sight in front of you as you walked towards him, zooming into his face. He had a fake pout and a slight smile. Putting your phone at the back of your pocket, you took the napkin from around your cone and started to wipe his chin.

“I’m so sowwyyy”

He stared at you mischievously. You glanced into his eyes and continued to wipe his chin. He pulled your wrist down and held the sides of your face and gave you a peck on the lips. You gasp at the sudden kiss but also the feeling of the sticky sugar treat around your mouth.

“It’s okay, now we’re even” He said laughing at you, with the little pout on your face.

You smile at the memory. It reminds you how lucky you got when meeting Jungkook because not only is he caring, smart and loving, he can also be a dickhead who doesn’t take people’s shit. The duality, right? But hey, with the exception of your brother, Yoongi. He kind of isn’t ashamed to admit to you that your brother is quite intimidating and, sometimes, scare him. You’re pretty sure your brother also enjoys seeing Jungkook shit his pants whenever he sees him. His career choice, of being a police officer just adds up to the thrill of it. Although, Jungkook could be a bit younger than you, it doesn’t stop Yoongi from being protective of you. But that’s only if he is judging based on façade. Besides, he’s known Jungkook for long enough to know that he’s a keeper.

The loud sound of a book falling by the computer area brought you back to reality. You sighed and took out your math handout and begin on working out the problems.

“Now back to this shit.” You muttered. You didn’t mind doing your assignments and homework but what really irked you is that your professor never collects it. It was just the usual. He gives out assignments, expects you to do them and then pop quiz at the end of the month.

Taking a break, you leaned back into the chair and took a sip of the ice coffee you brought. You looked around while stretching and cracked your joints. It sent you a wave of relief throughout your body after solving, for God knows how long, algebra equations. You checked your phone and realized you’ve been sitting down, doing your work for 47 mins.

You stared out the window enjoying the scenery of the field and the school’s garden. What caught your eye is a group walking to the parking lot, but in this group you saw someone who thought would be familiar. You tilted your head trying to identify this person. It made you move closer to the window and you sat there with your chin on your hand, squinting your eyes for better focus. It was as if you were burning holes into this person’s back. Ironically, It was like he felt the heat behind him and he turned around. He turned around to face who could be his friends. Seeing his face, it sent chills down your spine. Blinking and shaking your head, thinking that you could be hallucinating or day-dreaming. You looked up again and couldn’t make out who they were because their friends were blocking the one who you wanted to see. Your mind became blank once again and you looked at your ice coffee.

“I really shouldn’t be drinking you, you’re starting to make me see things” you thought.

You thought that it could be the coffee. It’s already your 4th cup for the day. Although, at this rate, you don’t know if your body is immune to it because you still feel sluggish as you did this morning. You hold your head with both hands, elbows on the table, feeling a slight headache. It’s like feeling all your brain cells dying because of the caffeine overdose. You decided to shake it off and continue doing your work.

You were startled when the chair in front of you and beside you was pulled open and there sat Jimin and Taehyung. Your hands placed on your chest, you swore you that you just let out a loud shriek causing people to look at your direction.

“What the fu– don’t just randomly do that you shitheads” You whisper-yelled. You try to recover from the sudden appearance of the playful couple.

“We saw you here, hope you don’t mind we come and join you on your little study sesh”

“Not at all” You said “Oh yeah, here,” You searched in your bag for the thick leather wallet and handed it to him “Good thing you came”

"Thought you would be in class?” You asked while he shoves his wallet at the back of his pocket

“Well we finished early, Mr. Xing said he’s gonna call off for the day”

“Yeah, Poor man, been coughing all day and couldn’t sound out a syllable”

“What’s up, ____. Looking like you were shitting bricks before we gave you reason to shit bricks. What is that?” He came closer to check the assignment I was doing and to his dismay, it was math.

“Oou, well, that explains, but you good?”

“Yeah, head hurts and was thinking ‘bout some things” you mumbled.

“Well, you gotta stop overthinking, it gives you wrinkles. ‘N you know what they say about wrinkles~ they’re a sign of old age~”

“Wow, Thanks Tae” You rolled your eyes, chuckling at the two. You stayed in the library with Jimin and Taehyung talking and doing assignments and projects.

Now, you are found in Jimin’s car, releasing stress by singing your souls out to 2000s R&B. You insisted that you walk but, of course, he didn’t take no for an answer.

You were born in Daegu but your family moved to Seoul when you and Yoongi were very young. A few years ago, you decided to move in with your brother and his wife. Despite being born in the area, you felt out of place until you met Jimin and Taehyung. They were your the first set of friends that you met when you moved to Daegu. It was an easy friendship because not only that they attended DAU, Daegu Arts University, you three have the same Art History class. You’re not gonna lie but you might have had the slightest crush on Jimin during first year of Uni–that was until you find out the two were together. Hey, it didn’t hurt though, the two were like soulmates.

Checking your phone, you saw time was only 4:27 PM. You sighed realizing that you’ll have the apartment to yourself until Jungkook comes home, from his shift at the tattoo parlour, later tonight.

He was already working there when you met him. He moved away from Busan to pursue his dream in music. He asked his parents if he could move to Daegu and attend DAU. Of course, it took a toll on his parents but they let him do what he wanted. The best thing they could do was support their son on his dream; He aced a job at a tattoo parlour and he has little shows at the bars downtown, all while he was studying. He realized that it gave him satisfaction and he, secretly, took a break from school–which now, it led to him being a full-time worker at the well-known tattoo parlour. He finds that it’s nothing different if he would have finished; seeing that he didn’t need to be a college graduate to get his job. Despite those circumstances, his creativity and love for Art and Music gets him paid; and that’s what matters to him and you–that he’s happy.

“Alright,” You shut the door and tapped on the trunk “thanks boys, see you tomorrow?”

“Yeah, bye, _____. Sleep well tonight, You look too sleep deprived”

“I will, drive safe, text me when you’re home”

You walked up the stairs and reached your apartment. You entered the code of the door’s lock and the door makes sound, signaling you that the doors open. You entered, taking off your shoes and hanging your coat on the coat rack. Walking towards the living room, you put your bag on the ground next to the counter which separates the living room and kitchen. Plopping down on the couch, you sighed in relief of the feeling being home and laying at the soft surface. You focused on listening to the humming of the air conditioner and then you felt your eyelids becoming heavy with every tick of the clock.  

You were awoken by the smell of food and it made you realize how hungry you were; smelling the food definitely made your stomach growl that you felt the strong vibrations. You sat up and looked around and adjusted your vision to the light. You turned around and saw Jungkook’s back. You stood up and quickly stretched and walked towards him. As you approached him, he turned around and noticed your sleepy figure about to engulf him, which was intended to be a back hug.

“Hi sleepy” He says. He placed the spoon and tupperware on the counter, hugged you back in return and left a kiss on your temple. You hummed and just hugged him tighter. Inhaling his scent of body soap and aftershave.

“Mina gave me some food when I went over there; She said you should try it and gave us a lot of it” You hummed in response.

“What is it?” Your voice husky from sleeping

“It’s a chicken stew. C’mon, get ready we’ll have dinner in a few, I’m already making rice”

“I wanna stay like this still” Your hold became tighter and he just rubbed your back. Your hunger was replaced by the feeling of ease and comfort in his embrace. You moved your face from his chest and faced him with your eyes closed and smiled at him.

“Don’t forget your little promise, baby.” He said while placing kisses all over your face. His hands sliding up and down your back and moved to grope your ass, giving it a little slap. Your eyes opened and fake disappointment washed over you.

“I really thought it was going to be a sweet moment, Jeon. You really had-” He cut you with a peck on the lips.“-to say that.” He chuckled.

“C’mon, Noona, I can be really sweet.” You rolled your eyes at him.

“Oh my god, you’re really fucking lucky I’m a sub or else, i would have-” You cut yourself off and you smirked at him.

“Hm, feisty now, isn’t she?” You remove yourself from him and grab a cup to drink a glass of water.

“I’m sorry, JK. I’m exhausted today. I promise, on date night, okay?”

“Something happened today? I saw how busted you look on the couch when I came home– didn’t wanna wake you until I finished heating up the food” Now it was his turn to hug you first. He sat on the stool and pulled you by your shirt and wrapped his arms around your waist. He stared at you with his doe eyes until you finished drinking and placing the glass on the counter.

“Just a club meeting but I didn’t sleep last night. I had to finish the powerpoint and afterwards, I went to the library to finish off somethin’. Jimin and Tae was with me though, no worries. They dropped me home too so.” You sighed and look at him.

“That was the meeting you were talking about right? How was it? How’d it go?” He asked

“Remember the man I told you about?” He hummed in response “Well, he seemed really impressed with my presentation and the art display we made and he spoke about visiting again,” You began playing with the long strands of his fluffy, wavy hair “He said that he’ll think about doing a workshop, all expenses paid, for learning art techniques and maybe even visiting the national museum”

“I’m proud of you, ____. I know you worked hard for that. You know, being the Co-President of the Art Club.” He gushes as he rubbed circle with his thumb on your waist.

“Oh my– stop, let me get changed” You tapped his chest and leaned forward to peck his nose. 

You walked out the kitchen and headed to the bedroom and stripped to your underwear. You grabbed a towel heading to the bathroom for a quick shower. You gargled with some mouthwash and change into some boy shorts and Jungkook’s oversized sweatshirt.  

---------

“____, the table’s ready!”

“Coming, coming!”

You skipped to the kitchen and sat on the high stool opposite of Jungkook’s. You both ate dinner and shoving the last chunk of carrot into your mouth, you stacked the dishes and placed them in the sink.

“Are you scheduled to play tonight?” You asked turned your head to him as you washed the utensils.

“Yeah, Hyung said to meet at the subway. I’ll probably head out at around 30 35 mins from now?” He said questioningly, turning to look at the wall clock. It was currently 7:50 PM.

“Yup, in 30 mins or so– oh and please don’t wait up for me again. Am not sure when I’m coming but I’ll come home before it hits 1, okay?” He informs you while he removes his top and heads to the bathroom.

A little story of Jungkook and Seokjin’s relationship, Seokjin is Jungkook’s good friend who helped him move to Daegu. Jungkook and Seokjin were pretty much like roommates before you came into the picture. Besides being roommates, the pair were performers at the local bar.

That’s also how you met Jungkook. You saw him and Seokjin performing a ballad when you were with your group of friends. Eunbi, your close friend and also Seokjin’s girlfriend, introduced you to them that same night. You thought he was very attractive–like duh, who wouldn’t? You both talked and got to know some things about each other and it led to both of you exchanging numbers, texting often, meeting up for coffee or lunch. Several months later, that’s when he decided to ask you to make it official. You would visit their apartment often; it can be whenever they practiced ballads and their self-composed songs or you guys decide to have a movie night with Seokjin and Eunbi. For others, it may sound like the relationship was rushed for deciding to live together 1 year and 3 months into the relationship. It didn’t feel wrong though–as cliche as it sounds. You felt that this new start was something just like you imagined it would be.

You were snapped out of your thoughts when Jungkook bent down to grab his bag that was next to you and to kiss your forehead.

“I’m heading out.” He slings the big black backpack on and walked towards the door. He stood by the front of the door struggling to put on his sneakers. “Sleep early my love” he sang stretching out each syllable. You giggled at the soft curse he did when he nearly stumbled over the slippers behind him.

“Take care,” You turned your head to look at him and to surprise you noticed his outfit.  “Oh my.. Please tell me you have a light shirt in your bag. You really gotta stop wearing all black. It’s too dark outside kook. Trust me, I’ll really buy you some twinkle toes” You said worriedly, remembering the incident that almost happened a few days ago. Stupid driver + Late night + Boyfriend in dark clothing + Walking = Not a good combination.

“Don’t worry, _____. Look, I got the shoes with the light reflectors. It’s not twinkle toes but it’s something” He smugly said with hands on his hips. You couldn’t help but laugh at him.

“Okay, love you, text me if anything. Go sleep early for real, it’s an order”

“Love you too” You said sending him a flying kiss, to which he pretended to catch and smack on his cheek before he closed the door.

You decided to get ready for bed. You turned off the lights in the living room, kitchen and the mini hallway. You walked in the bathroom to do your skin care and brush your teeth. You walked in the bedroom while using your phone, checking for updates on your social media. Peeling the covers open, you laid down and tucked yourself in. You set an early alarm for the next day and put your phone down. You stared at the wall, deep in thought. You were reminded of the familiar face you saw when you were at the library. Yes, it’s been almost roughly 5 years but sometimes you can’t help but remember the painful memories. It was still vivid to you. You rubbed your face with your hands.

“I can’t believe you would do something like that. Do you not trust me?”

“___, What the fuck are you talking about? I trust you! Why are yo-” You scoffed.

“What do you mean, what the fuck I’m talking about, you know damn well what the fuck I’m talking about.” You turned to face him.

“____.” He calmly looks at you and held your arm but you pulled away.

“Why the fuck would you send threats to my classmate? I told you we were just doing a project and it’s not like we were alone… I don’t even know him that well for you to accuse me of something”

“I didn’t even accuse you of anything, ___. Stop saying shit right now.” He rolled his eyes and turned away from you. You looked at him is disbelief.

“So texting someone like ‘hey, im ___’s boyfriend, and i need you to back tf away from her. I see the way you look at her’ blah blah blah and ‘if not, i know where you live and i swear ill torture tf outta you’ is not a threat? You’re already accusing me and someone else for doing something we didn’t do” He noticed your rage and turned around and walked towards you.

“___, It’s not like that, i prom-” You cut him off

“And you pulled a knife on him…” You say softly.

“W-what? H-how… What are you saying right now, ___. You sound stupid” There was a pregnant pause until you couldn’t hold back a hiccup. Your tears running down your face.

“I saw you. In the parking lot. After you dropped me off, I was gonna run after you when I saw that I left my bottle behind and there you were…” You looked up at him with glossy eyes

“There was my fucking boyfriend with a knife on my classma–” You jokingly said, with enthusiasm, as you turned around waving your arms towards your boyfriend as if you were talking to an audience. You nervously chuckled at the situation. You were in disbelief that you couldn’t even finish your sentence. You choked back the sob.  

That night was when you realized your boyfriend was fucking crazy. He was out of his mind. It was just like what those movies would talk about when the lead character has a girlfriend and she’s literally crazy; doing anything to get his attention. Except it was the opposite, it was him and definitely not you. What scares you the most is that, it happened, not twice, but more than 5 times. It’s not like how the movie depicts it to be anymore. It’s reality and much more scarier than that. He doesn’t know but you know he’s the one who stares at you from across the room of where you sat. You know, that he’s the reason why some people don’t talk to you the way they used to. It was all because of him your life started to feel like a living hell.

You shook the memories away. You checked your phone. 9:39 PM.

“That’s the past” You muttered to yourself.

“That’s way in the past, ___. You’re here now, Almost 5 years. You’re just hallucinating this again” You sighed. You reached to the nightstand and drank some water. You opened the voice recording app on your phone and clicked on the file that Jungkook made.

He knows about your story. He knows about everything. He knows why you moved and why you decided to change your life; and you loved how supportive he was of it. You can’t stress enough how thankful you are to be with someone like Jungkook.

File: a_lullaby_for_my_someone.mp3

“Hi, _____” His clear voice filling the quiet room “,I know you aren’t sleeping right now–and that explains why you turned to this recording, Ha. Anyways, That’s why I made this very special lullaby for you. Here’s my rendition to our song…”

And that’s when he started strumming the guitar.

Put your head on my shoulder

Hold me in your arms, baby

You placed your phone on his side of the bed and hugged a pillow. Finally adjusting your sleeping position, you closed your eyes and your previous thoughts were pushed aside as you focus on your boyfriend’s singing

Squeeze me oh so tight

Show me that you love me too

Your breathing becoming slower and free from panic

Put your lips next to mine, dear

Won’t you kiss me once, baby

Just a kiss goodnight, maybe

You and I will fall in love

[snushthings]

Pomegranates

Pairing: Thomas Jefferson x Reader Warning(s): Thomas is a dick, high school, (mild bullying maybe can you call it that?), fluff Word Count: 2,286

A/N: @scrabblesense loves pomegranates and i was eating some the other day and was inspired by this so here it is its so long-

_____________

History was never a favorite of yours. It was your first class after lunch, and you had begun to look forward to the end of it. Not because of the subject (History was secretly a favorite of yours), or the teacher. No, you probably would enjoy the class if it wasn’t for one curly haired bastard. Thomas Jefferson seemed to have made it his personal vow to annoy you in any way possible. He sat behind you, his long legs taking up the space next to your desk. He would tap your chair and act like he hadn’t. He’d borrow a pencil and never return it. He’d answer questions you had raised your hand for. Hell, on the first day, Thomas even took your name tag place card you had made. He irked you to pieces. Lately, however, he’s been bringing pomegranates to lunch. His lunch lasted through both the actual lunch, and- unfortunately for you- History class. He’d noisily suck on the seeds from behind you, and flick them at your back. You probably wouldn't of noticed if some of the stray seeds hadn’t landed on your papers. Not wanting to make a scene in class, you ignored him the best you could.

It was proving to be hard, as Thomas continuously brought pomegranates every fucking day. Weeks went by where you’d end your day picking the impossibly tiny seeds from your (h/c) hair and mentally cursing out Thomas. It was bad enough to have to deal with him in one class, but suddenly, he appeared in the rest of your 7 classes. And he sat near you at lunch, now. You couldn’t escape from him! Thankfully, his friend Jemmy (you weren’t sure if that was a nickname or his actual name, but you didn't care) was in three of your now shared classes. He accompanied Thomas to lunch, but did nothing to stop his friend from pestering you.

Things got worse when he decided to start spitting the seeds at you. It was the straw that broke the camel's back, and you screamed at him for the first time.

“Can you fucking stop already?!”

Your face was red and everyone in the lunchroom turned to face you. You felt the familiar burn of embarrassment creep up your neck, but you stared Thomas down. He smirked back at you and you almost hit him. An administrator came to escort you away, and you went willingly. In your eyes, you were innocent. Thomas was the one guilty. You spent the rest of your lunch in the office, while Thomas finished up his lunch.

“Isn’t she somethin’, Jemmy?” Thomas mused, toying with the cup of uneaten seeds. He rested his chin on the back of his hand and stared in the direction of where you had left with the admin.

“It’s James.” His friend, James, corrected before he coughed into his napkin. “And I really think you should stop, Thomas. She seemed really upset.” Thomas waved him away before popping a few more seeds into his mouth and sucking them free of their juice. He spit them out on his tray before rising and tossing his garbage in the trash. James followed, saying nothing as Thomas went on and on about you. 

When he reached his History class, James left and Thomas took his seat behind you. He smiled as you shot him and angry glare. “Hey.” You snorted and turned back to your papers. Thomas rolled his eyes and brought his cup of seeds out. He popped a few into his mouth and chewed on them for a bit before he spit them at the back of your head. You snapped around and glared at him. “What will it take for you to stop, Jefferson?” You hissed at him through clenched teeth, staring into his dark eyes with a burning fire. “Go on a date with me, (Y/N).” He said, bluntly. You reeled back a bit at that, staring at him with wide eyes. “You’re kidding. You’ve got to be kidding me, Thomas.” He chuckled, shaking his head. “One date and I’ll stop, honest. My momma didn’t raise no liar.” His southern drawl made a comeback as he spoke, leaning forward in his chair to look you in the eye. You stared back skeptically, furrowing your brows as you thought over his question. “Fine. One date. If you don’t stop spitting those god awful seeds at me, I will hit you.” Thomas smiled in triumph, leaning back in his chair. He left you alone for the rest of the class, but grabbed your sleeve. You let the rest of the class filter out before you let Thomas tug you into the hall. You swatted his hand away once you were alone, and looked at him pointedly. “I’ll pick you up at your place. 7. Alright?” Thomas leaned down towards you, and you instinctively leaned away. You wrinkled your nose before pushing him back two steps. “How about we compromise and meet there. I’m not just going to give you my address for one date.” You stare back up at him, daring him to ask for your address again. You crossed your arms around your books and set your jaw. Thomas thought about your question, chewing on his lip as he did. He sidestepped to lean against the lockers, and mirrored your crossed arms. “Fine. Meet me at Red Lobster at 7. Don’t be late, babydoll.” Thomas grinned as he waved at you before pushing himself off the lockers and catching up with James, who had been quietly watching from afar. You sighed, and adjusted your backpack before heading home for the day. You had always gotten the vibe that Thomas never half-assed anything when it came to his looks, and you definitely didn’t want to show up and look under dressed. Your mother gave you a skeptical look when you said you’d be going out that night. She said nothing when you briefly appeared in the living room to grab your phone, just warning you to stay safe. You rolled your eyes before slipping on your jacket and grabbing your phone. You climbed into your beat up old Ford, and headed towards your doom. ________________ You arrived with two minutes to spare, half expecting Thomas to be late.  He wasn’t. He was waiting outside in the worst suit you’ve ever seen. It was a tacky shade of magenta, and it seemed to be made of velvet. He was leaning on a cane as he waited, and you debated driving away. It was too late for that option, as he had seen you and waved at you. You wrinkled your nose back at him as you parked; securing your car as you climbed out. After hearing the reassuring chirp, you begrudgingly made your way over to Thomas. He greeted you with another shit-eating grin. “Miss (Y/N).” Thomas smirked and took your hand; kissing your knuckles. You resisted the urge to pull your hand away, and offered him an extremely forced smile. He took your hand and looped it through his arm. You almost laughed at this; What year did he think it was? 1776? Thomas led you inside, and you were ushered by the hostess to a quiet booth in the back. You marveled at how fast you were seated, considering how many people had been waiting. “What did you do, bribe the waitress?” You slipped into your seat with a chuckle, setting your purse aside. You mentally cursed yourself for not removing your various charms and key chains beforehand. You looked so out of place with your Overwatch buttons decorating your purse strap. “Of course not, darlin’. I’ve had this reserved for a week now.” Thomas chuckled and opened his menu. You were caught off guard by this statement; staring at the mass of curls ahead of you. You picked up your own menu and hid the pink dusting your cheeks. He’d been planning this all week? Thomas cleared his throat as a waiter came to your table. You lowered your menu enough so you could look at the waiter unobstructed. “Can I get your drink orders?” You glanced at the menu, deciding to stick with water. Thomas ordered a pepsi, and you rolled your eyes. “Are we ready to order?” Thomas glanced at you, and you nodded. “Yes. I’m gonna have the Wood-Grilled Lobster.” He folded up his menu and handed it to the waiter, who turned to you. “And for you, Ma’am?” “I’ll have the Maple-Glazed chicken.” You offered the waiter a smile as you also folded and handed him your menu. He smiled back and disappeared after saying he’ll be right out with your drinks. After he was gone, Thomas turned his attention to you. You toyed with the fork on your right, refusing to meet his eyes. He cleared his throat, and leaned forward a bit. You were forced to finally look him in the eye. “C’mon, (Y/N). Don’t be so hostile, love.” You snorted, shaking your head. “I didn’t even want to come here, Jefferson. I only came because you promised to stop spitting pomegranate seeds at me.” You stared him in the eye, a small smirk playing on your lips. “But if this is what it take to get you to stop, I guess I have no choice.” Thomas frowned a bit, rolling his eyes. “Call me Thomas.” You ignored his request, taking a sip of the water when it was placed in front of you by the waiter. There was a moment of awkward silence, and Thomas spoke again. “Look. I guess I should apologize for what I did to you.” Thomas scratched the back of his neck, like this form of apology was foreign to him. You scoffed. “(Y/N). It was childish of me. I’m sorry.” You sipped your water quietly, watching the ice shift around your straw. “Can we start over? I promise I’m a great guy after you get to know me. Just ask Jemmy. Er- James.” “..... Fine.” You gave in with a sigh, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear. Thomas beamed, extending his hand in a mock first meeting. “Hi, I’m Thomas Jefferson.” You eyed his hand for a moment before extending your own. “(Y/N) (L/N).” The rest of the evening went rather well. As it turned out, Thomas really was a good guy. And even more surprising, you both had a lot in common. You felt bad for being so rude to him earlier, and had apologized halfway through your meal. By the time you were finished, you and Thomas were laughing together. As you wrapped up your meal and headed out, Thomas took your hand; and you would’ve been caught blushing if your face wasn’t already red from laughing so much. As you stepped out of the restaurant, you were greeted with the frigid September air. You instantly regretted wearing the thin blue dress, but your thoughts were dismissed when Thomas dropped his ugly suit jacket on your shoulders. “Thanks...” You chirped as he escorted you to your car. The jacket was warm, and you pulled it tighter around you. Thomas had let go of your hand and opted instead to wrap an arm around your shoulder. “You’re welcome, Darlin’.”

You smiled, unlocking your car as you reached it. You turned to face Thomas, who let go of your shoulders and stuck his hands in his pockets; his tacky cane tucked under his arm. “You know... I actually had fun tonight, Thomas...” You chuckled and looked at your shoes. Thomas also chuckled, lifting your chin. “I’m glad, Princess. We must do this again sometime.” Thomas grinned, and it made you smile. A genuine smile. “Yeah.. We must.”  You stretched up on your toes to press a quick kiss on Thomas’ cheek; your cheeks darkening in a deep blush. Thomas looked stunned, and his fingertips came up to brush against where you’d kissed him. He turned to look at you with a smile on his face. “See you Monday?” You asked, opening your car door and sitting in your seat; holding his suit jacket out. “See you Monday.” He replied, pushing your hand aside and closing the door. You blinked at the magenta fabric draped over your arm. You smiled as Thomas waved before returning to his own car. You giggled as you set aside the suit jacket and headed home. Thomas Jefferson was really something. ______________ You hummed as you set the table. Your husband would be home in a few minutes, and you always wanted to make sure he ate well. Your children had helped pick ingredients at the store that afternoon, and you were pleased with the turnout. Tater-tot casserole, your mother’s homemade Mac-n-cheese, mashed potatoes, and a various assortment of fruits. One of them being Pomegranates. You smiled at the bowl of seeds, remembering the times you had hated Thomas for his fondness for the fruit.    “(Y/N)? I’m home, sugarcube!” You perked up as you heard the door open and your husband’s southern drawl echoed through your house. “I’m in here, honey!” You answered, meeting him halfway with a hug and a kiss. “Smells so good, honey. What’s for supper?” Thomas smiled eagerly, having grown accustomed to your cooking. “Well, the kids wanted Tater-tot casserole, so we’re having that. I also made my mother’s mac-n-cheese, because I know how much you love that.” You hummed as you wrapped your arm around Thomas’ waist as you both walked into the dining room. “Mashed potatoes and some fruits. Pineapple, Oranges, Strawberries, and...” You laughed. “Pomegranates.” Thomas laughed before pulling you close and kissing you hard. “Pomegranates, did you say? Thought you hated those damn things.”

[klinejack]

clarz

replied to your post

“hi divvy! i know you are MAD right now, so don't answer this until you...”

thanks so much for answering this! tbh i love the fact that you're religious and that you clearly love it so much. i went to a very catholic college, so that kind of thoughtful and deep connection with religion and tradition is important to me, and i love seeing it in other people. it's an important part of who you are! and part of the reason i asked is because you mentioned disliking the performance thing in your initial post, and i really connect with that. when i was growing up, the church i went to was pretty plain and traditional (despite very liberal politics and interpretations of scripture.) most of the other people i knew who went to church were evangelical and/or southern baptist, and i always disliked that their churches had like, full rock bands at services, and poppy contemporary melodies to "hymns." i understand that they're trying to make church fun, but it always made me suspicious and felt disingenuous.                  i don't think religious services should be a chore, certainly, but i also don't think that they should be "fun" in that way. that's not the purpose of religion. i don't think religion should become more like entertainment or performance, because it's supposed to be a space that's completely different from the rest of the world. it makes it feel less holy to me. so i definitely relate to how you feel there. also, how did you end up feeling about the service in the moment? (and i'd love to hear about the ma'apilim sometime)                                            

SORRY I DIDN’T ANSWER THESE BEFORE CUZ I REALLY WANTED TO BUT PROCRASTINATION IS MY MIDDLE NAME (jk it’s tzviya but try saying that ten times fast. or just one time. slow.)

HERE WE GO:

1- i love finding other people who feel close to their religion, no matter what it is. i remember in teacher’s college i just naturally gravitated to the only catholic girls in my classes i guess simply because i enjoyed talking to them? we weren’t there learning to teach religion, but i’m always fascinated by what other people feel about it. i’ve found myself thinking on more than one occasion that i feel more comfortable with people who have that side to themselves, like me, rather than people who don’t interact/think about/believe in any of that kinda stuff. (im being purposefully vague because it’s a huge generalization, but nonetheless true-ish for me, i often find myself sharing much more common ground with palestinian muslims, for example, than a french canadian montrealer). i guess especially because religion is not something i consider a defining trait of mine, and im just in constant evolution with respect to that. judaism is so much more than just a belief in god or a practice of the rituals and commandments.

2- how fascinating to find someone in my age bracket who feels the same way about music in prayer. my problem has always been that i LOVE music, and its so personal and emotional that i DO see it fitting seamlessly with prayer but... it’s the setting that has always bothered me. it just never felt right for me in a synagogue. like you said, it’s just a different space. i don’t know about church and ‘making it fun’ but i definitely can imagine plenty of religions use music to draw in otherwise disinterested people who find prayer “boring” or pointless. music is awesome! i just wish people could feel the music in their soul as a separate entity from external music, like from an instrument. idk i guess i just really love singing XD and i wish it wasn’t always a performance or a competition of voices, because i think prayer should be personal. even if it’s between a community, its still voices connecting to each other. i’m reminded of Hannah’s prayer, in the book of Samuel (the prophet- his mother), she’s at the temple on one of the annual pilgrimages with her family and she’s depressed because she doesn’t have any children and her husband’s other wife just keeps popping out babies left and right. so she goes to be alone somewhere in the temple, and she’s weeping and praying to god for a child. Eli, the high priest, comes in and sees her shaking and moving her lips real fast so he goes, “hey, you shouldn’t be drinking in here” and she’s like “im not drunk, i’m praying”. so that’s the first place we read about a person actually praying, and not out loud. this was like a huge revelation to the priest cuz clearly he’d never seen that before, and now the tradition has become to pray like hannah. (as an aside, if u ever see the propaganda videos made by the nazis, they use footage of synagogues to show how loony tunes those jews are with their muttering and their rocking back and forth). cuz like, prayer is supposed to be out loud? ahaha anyway i forgot where i was going with this but... oh ya, okay, so prayer didn’t really exist (as we know it, in judaism- and therefore christianity/islam/western monotheism) until that point- it was all about the sacrifices. and the temple ritual was replete with music and instruments like the shofar, timbrels, lutes, blabla other ancient instruments. but since then, we’ve been meant to use our voices alone. so says tradition, i guess.

3- so i did go to services on yom kippur (kol nidre) but not at my shul. i went with my sister to the chabad house near my parents, and it was....not great. but it was compounded by a lot of factors- i got a wicked cold the day or two before, so my nose was running a marathon and i was coughing like a 90yr old with emphysema. i got my period that morning so i was on an extra steep emotional rollercoaster that i just somehow could barely control. so we sat on the other side of the mechitzah (the separation barrier between men and women), the rabbi/cantor stood at the head in the middle so we could all see, and we all prayed out loud, no hush on the women’s side or anything (pretty typical from what i remember of camp/school prayer services). but of course the tunes were not quite what i’m used to, and there was a bit of annoying stuff that just irks me as a perfectionist (like they use a lot of yiddish pronunciation of the hebrew words, injecting a bunch of oy oy oys and ahoyhoyhoys in random places, in fact i leaned over to my sister at one point and was like ‘did ned flanders write this nigun (tune)?’), but altogether i guess it was better than watching an orchestra perform the prayer? idk it was pretty bad, on an emotional level, but not in hindsight. im very good at ruining things for myself through sheer stubbornness. i must have embarrassed my sister just by existing next to her, poor girl, she really wanted me to like it. i’m glad it’s over, and hopefully by next year ill be back in nyc or some other city so i wont have to worry about it.

4- MA’APILIM!!!!! okay so this was my absolute favoritest thing as a kid and i can’t wait to describe it to you. one night in camp, every summer, the counselors and cits would wake us up at like 3am by barging into our cabins chanting (screaming, really) “MA’APILIM, MA’APILIM BEH-MASSAD, BEH-MASSAD. MATCHIL HALAYLA MATCHIL HALAYLA BEH-MASSAD, BEH-MASSAD.” which translates to : “ma’apilim at massad (the name of my camp) starts tonight.” i’m singing it in my head as i type XD. so they’d be screaming and we’d be tumbling bleary eyed out of bed to grab our socks and sweatshirts and run over to the flagpole (keep in mind i was 8 when i first experienced this, and we’ve had kids as young as 6 at camp). once we had all gathered in line with our bunkmates, the counselors and cits put on a little “skit”.

basically they acted like they were nazis and jews, and did a little skit of some basic bad holocaust stuff (don’t ask me to remember the exact details we’re talkin at least 20 years since i last did this) to scare the pants off of us. kids would always cry already at this point from the shouting. we’d all kinda follow into this “play” (sorry idk what else to call it), and marched over to the gym where we watched a fake hanging on the stage. they literally. hanged someone. in front of us. a fake noose, of course, duh, i remember my counselor showing it to me, but traumatizing to say the least (i still remember the name of the counselor they “hanged”- not sure this ever happened more than once but ill never forget it).

then we’d all hustle down to the waterfront, again “playing” the role of holocaust victims/survivors after these little “skits” had sort of put us in the headspace, and we play along, imagining we’d just experienced these things and were now running from it. it was terrifying and exhilarating as a small child, and an even more unbelievably emotional thrill ride as i got older and became pseudo-obsessed with holocaust lit and facts in general in my life (it never did go away but everything changes with age). ANYWAYS so down at the waterfront we got a speech from another counselor playing a member of the haganah (the main jewish defense force in palestine leading up to independence, which ben gurion later turned into the IDF). sidebar for a little history: in the 40s the yishuv (jewish agency) and the haganah began a mission called aliyah bet, “the second immigration,” an illegal smuggling operation to bring refugees from the holocaust into palestine under the noses of the british, since almost all countries in the world had barred their doors to jewish immigration from europe (a high level member of the canadian government is famously recorded as having answered, when asked how many jews they should let in, that “none is too many”). volunteer seamen from the US and canada and other countries crossed the ocean on cargo ships hastily refurbished to fit hundreds of people, picking up thousands of refugees in europe to smuggle them onto the beaches of haifa and tel aviv. paul newman has a lovely half nekid scene of this in the movie Exodus when he jumps off the ship in the middle of the night and swims up onto the beach- one of my fave movies ever and pretty much the story of aliyah bet (albeit with tremendous hollywood embellishment and only mild accuracy). these refugees who became illegal immigrants (caught or not) were known as “ma’apilim”- the root of the word is to “climb” or to “rise up”, and is found in the bible referring to the israelites who were still eager to enter the land even after the negative report of the spies.

okay so basically this was the idea. we were “playing” these illegal immigrants who had just escaped the holocaust, and were now facing another threat in the form of the british who were doing their best to keep them out of palestine. k so we’re down at the waterfront. all the kids get divided into small groups of about 10 or so, with one or two counselors at the helm to be our “haganah operatives” and guides to the end. what end, you say? so the camp is spread out into 2 areas, the main camp where the younger kids cabins were, and the dining hall and the gym and the waterfront, etc. then there’s a road in the middle of the camp, and beyond it a hill leading up to the senior cabins and some sports fields at the top. the goal was for each group to make it through camp to the top of the hill without getting caught by the “british,” played by the cits who were roaming around camp.

idk if i have to describe camp further for people who don’t know the concept, but basically we’re all in the middle of the damn woods with nothing around us for miles except the lake and the camps on the other side of it or down the road. ill never forget my first ma’apilim (tbh most of my description is from then, which is why its so fuzzy cuz these memories are 20+ years old), i was so lucky to get the tripper as our group leader (the tripper is the “nature dude” in camp, the survivalist ;). he immediately led us underneath the gym (which of course was just insane to my small mind... UNDER the gym??) to plan our route and give us instructions. we organized a roll call and signals, we practiced walking in a single file line silently and dropping to the ground on his signal. we smeared dirt on our faces for camo in the woods. it was *mason voice* intense. k so then as you can guess, we snuck our way up the hill through the woods. sometimes we’d encounter other groups, once in awhile i remember getting caught by a cit, and they’d take all or some of us to the “jail” on the basketball court” where we’d have to wait for a jailbreak (idk how that worked but it did, i remember it happening but not in any detail). a famous prison break that DID happen was at acre prison in 1947 when the irgun (another paramilitary jewish group) blew up the prison and broke out 28 of their members and 214 arab prisoners. if im not mistaken they briefly refer to it in exodus by recreating a prison break. exciting times. ANYWAYS fuck im such a tangential bitch sorry XD, by the end of the night we’d all make it to the top- “jerusalem”- and we’d have hot chocolate and say morning prayers as the sun rose over the hill. 

i feel like my description is a little lacking, but hopefully u get the basic picture. ma’apilim wasn;t even the heaviest part of camp- that was tisha b’av- the fast day when we commemorate the destruction of the temple and every other traumatic destructive event the jewish people have gone thru. that night they’d prepare the camp with candles in sand filled paper bags lining all the paths. after dinner we’d walk with our bunks on the path and watch little skits in different parts of camp- scenes from these moments in jewish history, like the holocaust, pogroms in europe, the spanish inquisition, terror attacks in israel, etc. after walking the path we’d all convene back at the waterfront, where they’d set out a small reconstructed “temple” on a makeshift raft in the lake, and a banner on the beach that said “yizkor”- remember. then they’d light both on fire and we’d sit and watch them burn while singing appropriately somber songs like eli eli, by hannah senesz. after that we’d go back to the gym and lie on the floor in small groups huddled around candles. we’d listen as some people chanted the book of eicha (lamentations), and would slowly fall asleep (depending on our age, of course). anyone that was still up after that was over got to stay in the gym if they wanted to watch exodus- a 4 hour movie. the next day we’d fast all day (only those who wanted- 13 y/o +) and treated it basically like shabbat- no regular activities.

MAN did i get some wild shit imprinted on me from camp!! but i don’t regret one second. i only wish other people could have the experience i did, but i dont even know if they still do that there. they probably do, but this old lady has no excuses to step foot in a summer camp anymore :(

as a completely coincidental aside and not at all as a self promo, idk if u knew this but i’ve been working on a documentary for over a year now and this whole thing is a major part of the plot. i interviewed a lady who was a passenger on the exodus, and about 4 or 5 people who were volunteers from montreal/new york/new jersey/toronto that picked up and smuggled the refugees. the stories are incredible. i just hope the rest of the world will get to hear it from their mouths one day. all we need is 100k to finish the film XD