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An Interview With Lucifer
Part Three of A New Series
Question One: How do your friends describe you in a word?
Cranky.
Question Two: Who would you want to be stuck with on an island?
If I was limited to just one person, then MC. If there were multiple people, I'd add Mammon and Barbatos.
Question Three: What are you hiding now?
Treats from Cerberus. Not because he isn't a good dog, but because he's found their original hiding place and has been digging into them constantly, and the treats I give Cerberus are rather expensive, so I can't exactly afford to buy them every day and ensure that other stuff gets paid for.
Question Four: Do you prefer mountains or beaches?
It depends on my mood. If I don't want anyone to find me, then definitely mountains, but if I'm feeling a bit romantic, then I'd hit the beach.
Question Five: What is your hidden talent?
I can juggle. And I don't mean that in the metaphorical sense--although I can do that too--but in the literal sense, like a circus clown. It's one of the ways I relieve stress, because I can just shut my brain off and focus on keeping the objects I'm juggling up in the air.
Question Six: What makes you laugh?
You'll get a satisfied chuckle out of me whenever someone I dislike gets what they deserve, but if you want to hear a true, unrestrained laugh, either get me drunk on Demonus or put me in a room with MC when they're in a good mood.
Question Seven: If you were a thing, what would you be?
A metronome.
Question Eight: If you have no GPS, how would you find your destination?
I'd print out directions. (But what if you were unable to do that?) Then I'd ask the locals where I need to go. I may be the Avatar of Pride, but that doesn't mean I'm not willing to admit when I'm lost. (someone yells out, "that's a lie, and you know it!") And if all else fails, then I'll get to my destination through sheer determination.
Question Nine: Describe your three best qualities.
Apparently I'm patient, kind, and loving. (Why do you phrase it like that?) Because I wouldn't necessarily call myself any of those things, but I trust that the person who did wouldn't lie to me about such things. (And who might that person be?) MC.
Question Ten: Would you consider yourself a cool person?
I'm going to lean towards no. I'm far from being a trendy person. Just ask any of my brothers. (What about MC?) You'll have to ask them. I know they like spending time with me, but I honestly don't know why. Usually I'm busy with paperwork, and it's not like that's terribly interesting.
Question Eleven: What is a skill you want to master?
Baking.
Question Twelve: What would you do first if you won a human world jackpot?
Pay off any debts MC may have.
Question Thirteen: What one aspect of the human world would you change if you could?
I'd make it legal to punish animal and child abusers by inflicting the same types of torture onto them as they did on their victims. (That's rather serious, Lucifer.) So is abusing those that are unable to understand why their supposed family is hurting them.
Question Fourteen: What is your preferred card or board game?
Let's just say that I'm not allowed to play any tabletop fantasy games unless I can ensure that all of my work is complete. (Why's that?) You've met Levi, yes? (I have.) Now, imagine me behaving like him, and you'll have your answer.
Question Fifteen: What is your current favorite app on your phone?
Don't make fun of me, but there's this app where you can send messages to people and it shows up on their phone in a cartoony heart. (Are you talking about the viral Candy Heart app?) ...yes. (That's actually quite sweet.) It was MC's idea, and I initially did downloaded it just to amuse them, but I've come to enjoy using it as time has gone on.
Question Sixteen: Would you go to space if you could?
I'm content with merely looking at pictures of space.
Question Seventeen: What kind of museum or exhibit do you prefer?
I like learning about the history of different objects. Looking at their evolution fascinates me.
Question Eighteen: What kind of humor do you prefer?
I'll throw you a curve ball: I enjoy a nice pun from time to time, even if it would be classified as a "dad joke".
Question Nineteen: Do you prefer driving a car, a motorcycle, or a bicycle?
Oh, a motorcycle, by far.
Question Twenty: When was the last time you climbed a tree?
This is going to really show my age, but the last time I climbed a tree was when I was a young angel. *pauses* Thinking about it is making me want to do it now. Being up in the branches is quite peaceful.
Question Twenty-One: What is your strangest habit?
There are times where the only way I'm able to fall asleep is to hang upside-down like a bat.
Question Twenty-Two: What is your weirdest fantasy?
I'll give you an oddly specific one: if I'm ever able to retire, I'd like to buy a farm somewhere in the human world countryside and raise livestock and plant fruits and vegetables with MC. (You've brought them up several times in this interview.) You could say that I have a soft spot for them. (Or that you love them.) Well, obviously. They're a wonderful person to be around. I'd like to spend the rest of my life with them if I could. (You mean, their life.) Listen, I don't choose my words lightly. What I say is what I mean, one hundred percent.
Question Twenty-Three: Here's something a bit more light-hearted: would you rather fight a shark or wrestle a lion?
The lion. I can't swim nearly as well as Levi can.
Question Twenty-Four: How do you want the world to end?
By my hand.
Question Twenty-Five: Would you like to be shorter or taller?
I like my height just the way it is. (What if you had to choose one or the other?) Then I suppose taller. I don't feel I'd be able to intimidate people as well if I was shorter.
Question Twenty-Six: Who is the annoying person you want to get rid of in your life?
I don't necessarily want to get rid of anyone, but I'd like to seriously alter the behaviors of Solomon and Mephistopheles.
Question Twenty-Seven: Which artist and/or song dominates your human world music playlist?
I'll give you both: Metallica and "Adore You" by Harry Styles.
Question Twenty-Eight: If you had to go to prison, what would be the reason?
Treason.
Question Twenty-Nine: What is the most critical trait you seek in a friend?
They have to be able to keep secrets.
Taglist: @lost-in-time-wanderer, @fuzztacular, @dianedancer18, @sweetbrier2908, @flare-love, @completelyshatteredbrokenmschf, @thunderlightning351, @l3v1chan, @anxious-chick, @5mary5, @expressionless-fr
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Kni-Kni Lullaby Part 1
Had they all listened to Kirby... they would've figured it what it was... They will soon enough... (to be continued)
Kirby just wanted his lullaby from his papa~
Meta Knight has an incredible singing voice but is extremely shy about it (he doesn't think his voice is that good) and Kirby wants nothing less than his papa's singing voice.
(Lore/ backstory)
Dragato and Meta Knight were captured during the siege of N.M.E's Labe (which I will explain later because of spoilers), and Team Halberd had to go and save MK. The rescue was led by non-other Sir Arthur... needless to say, they all came in clutch.
To make a long story short, Jerca & Garlude were sent out to scout ahead for Meta Knight. They found him within an inch of his life... with him cradling the tiniest baby in his arms... they instantly knew, "We need to protect this baby..."
However, they're not out of the woods yet: while escaping, they spot none other than... SIR UTHER?! He was slinking around the containment unit where Kirby was... They knew something was up, so they hid away with Meta Knight's cape.
~Dialouge
Sir Uther: Keep quiet! I don't want anyone to know I'm here...
Uther's Subordinate: They're all in the outer building... Sir Uther, why didn't you inform Sir Arthur that you were coming-
Sir Uther: BECAUSE I DON'T NEED THAT USELESS BLOODY FOOL TO INTERFERE SAVE ANOTHER MISTAKE OF NATURE!...
Sir Uther: (Makes a horrific reveal-and intentions for Kirby)
And the trio finds out something... something they shouldn't have...Something awful. All three were frozen in horror... and at that moment, Kirby was clutching onto Meta Knight for dear life. As if he knew of Uther's dangerous intention. Swiftly, Sir Uther leaves in search of Kirby...
In response to this:
Jerca: AW, HELL NAW... NOT THIS BABY!
Garlude: Oh that MOTHERF*CKER...
MK: We go... we have to go now... we have to hide him..."
When the trio finally returns to the safety of their ship, Meta Knight reveals the newest little member of their family to the rest of the team, hiding away under his cape... (they all fell in love with Kirby instantly and swore to protect him)
That was 3 weeks ago~
Since then Meta Knight has been on recovery leave, and the higher-ups (Sir Uther) wanted to interview (integrate) him on his capture and what he had possibly found.
~
In MK's thoughts POV: (Nothing, just an astral baby that I plan to keep hidden from you & your filthy hands... You f*cking piece of- )
~
So while Meta Knight was at this B.S. interview, the crew thought wanted give MK a break tonight with Kirby, and everything was going great... that is until bedtime rolled around.
Putting Kirby to sleep was always a daunting task: he would cry non-stop and refused to sleep. Until Meta Knight would come in to soothe him... and whisk him away in private ... making him the only one able to put him to sleep.
Kirby always favored Meta Knight, so no one really questioned it... Jecra, however, was the only one starting to notice the pattern...
The crew managed to distract him (from the fact MK wasn't there) by playing with him and feeding him (they lost half the fridge), but when Kirby realized Meta Knight wasn't going to be the one to put him to bed... he lost it! He runs to find Meta Knight.
Kirby just wanted his lullaby from his papa~ He just has high standards for nap time and for good reason...
Meta Knight has an incredible singing voice but is extremely shy about it (he doesn't think his voice is that good) and Kirby wants nothing less than his papa's singing voice.
This is a good time to introduce two members of M.K's crew:
Sir Perry (Peridot Fleur De Lis) Non binary - They/ them
-The youngest & precious been of the group
-former thief/ indentured servant
-forced to join the GSA, family and sold them to pay off their debt
Sir Avery (Avery Lohengrin) Female - She/ her
-She is basically like Pearl from Steven Universe, but a more laid-back version
-peacekeeper/ mother hen of the team
-choose to join the GSA to run away from an arranged marriage
I have more on them later...
Garlude and Sir Gregory (another crew member I named) will be making an appearance in part 2, as well as a maskless Jecra (a little tease for now~)
There's also a reason why Meta Knight is so in-tuned with Kirby... I tried to hint at it while Meta Knight was holding Kirby... but that will be revealed later in the comic.
Look forward to it!
#kirby#meta knight#metadad#kbasw#kirby anime#kirby right back at ya#jecra#hoshi no kaabii#knuckle joe's father#sir perry#sir Avery#krbay#sir uther#kirby oc
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Devlog #125
Hi-ho, Wudge here! Gosh! I missed last week's update.
Happy holidays from Herotome!!
I haven't drawn anything this year-- oh but hmm, I could do a quick edit, here -
Tadah! For anyone who hasn't already seen it, we got those 50 reblogs to make Warden shirtless! A pure version without the christmas lights went up yesterday, just scroll down my blog a bit or check out the #ro: warden hashtag.
I'm pleased with how much mileage I'm already getting from this picture, ha.
Anyway.
Seems like I'm gonna be focused on writing new scenes and drawing expressions for a while. They're some of the more tedious tasks for me, so I'll certainly be looking for every opportunity to do other things on the side - like coding.
Today I've decided that the LI sprites should have their eyebrows on a separate layer from the rest of their face, to offer me the greatest amount of variety in creating new expressions - and I've come up with a naming system for it, too!
I'm looking forward to implementing this. Eyebrow shapes have much, much less variety compared to mouth shapes, so I might even finish drawing every possible eyebrow for every LI sometime soon. I've already gotten a strong start with Warden and Mia's eyebrows.
Speaking of, I did turn in more expressions over on Ko-Fi!
Tadah!! Thank you again to everyone who has donated so far!
I'm realizing that in the set dedicated to Dia, Warden and Mia have the same mouth shape on the upper right side... A fascinating subconscious decision on my part.
Outside of art, I did write... once. Er, it went pretty okay. I'm usually the biggest hater of my first drafts.
I think my goal is gonna be to show off the abilities of all the characters as equally as I can; Warden and Jade have had their time to shine (during the job fair and flying MC home, respectively), and I think MC, Griffin, and Mia are gonna be queued up next.
I'll put the rest under a cut for potential spoilers and further rambling - as always, if you don't see the cut, make sure to check out my blog directly!
I have a good idea of what I wanna do with Griffin (it may or may not involve obliterating your rent debt, and I may or may not have written about that in the first-draft-I-don't-hate).
I've been thinking that this scene would involve a change of clothes btw, and did some fashion concepts for Griffin that I also don't hate;
I'm not super sure what I'm gonna do for Mia's eventual ~special show-off scene~, but I'm sure it will come to me.
For MC, I want to show off her relationship with the city, and showcase how qualified she is for the job in a low-key way. I recently discussed with a friend how Men in Black is a huge source of inspiration for me... Y'all know the scene where Will Smith has his interview and did things differently from all the other candidates?? I kinda wanna capture that vibe...!
And ah... I think that's about it, Herotome-wise.
Wudge-wise, honesty hour - I've had ssssome mild health concerns this year.
I don't want to go into detail; I want to say it's been like... nothing life threatening, thankfully, but a lot of small physical inconveniences that pile up and make it harder to concentrate.
I did rest a lot last week so no worries. <3 It's just that parts of my body have been weird and annoying, and I think it's helpful to acknowledge that the flesh prison can be a weird and annoying place. But I value it! And I'm doing my best to take care of it. Health comes first, etc, etc.
With this new year, I hope you guys take care of yourselves as best as you can, too. The person who's most qualified to take care of you is you!!!
Stay safe and keep warm,
Wudge.
#interactive fiction#oelvn#otome game#visual novel#english otome#indie game#otome#vn dev#vn development#amareteabreak#amare game#digital art#herotome update#ro: warden#ro: griffin
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OC Interview Tag!
Thanks for the tag, @agirlandherquill (here)!!!
I'll go with Sam Delaways from Enchanted Illusions for this one, because I want to talk more about him and because I think you guys will really like this character! (:
Are you named after anyone?
"Nah. At least not that I know of, that is. I like my name just fine either way, though I don't think my parents put that much thought into it."
When was the last time you cried?
"Pretty recently, but why do you wanna know? (chuckles mischievously) You little rascal. I'm not telling ya that."
Do you have kids?
"No, but I take care of my little brothers - I'm all they've got since neither of our parents are around anymore. They're little kids, so one could say I'm raising 'em. Or at least that I'm trying my best to."
Do you use sarcasm a lot?
"Only when I'm trying to be funny - or when I really wanna annoy Augustus (laughs). That uptight necromancer needs to get a sense of humor and quick, haha. I never use sarcasm to be rude, though, there ain't no need for that - unless someone really deserves it. In that case, I can make an exception."
What is the first thing you notice about people?
"If they're dangerous in some way or another - and if they are, I try to find out ways to avoid gettin' in their way. I also try to notice if they're confident or shy, if they're arrogant or humble if they're temperamental or calm - these things can tell me a lot about whom I'm interacting with."
What's your eye color?
"Dark grey, I think."
Scary movies or happy endings?
"I tend to prefer stories with happy endings, though I like my fair share of scary stories, on occasion. Depends on my mood, mostly. I don't have much time to spend reading anymore, though I like to, and I ain't ever gone to the local theaters to see any of the plays and operas, but I hear they're awesome."
Any special talents?
"I'm not sure, haha. I think I'm quite good at climbing things, and I can hold my own in a fistfight if I need to - but I hate having to. I'm good at navigating the city and using my surroundings to get around faster, and I can build things pretty quickly. Otherwise, I know how to do a lot of stuff, but I dunno if they'd be considered 'special talents' - shoe-shining, fixin' boats, selling newspapers and matchsticks, that sort of stuff. It's what has kept us alive so far - cause the factory sure ain't paying me enough for that."
Where were you born?
"I was born in the outskirts of Ansburke. Y'know, the capital city of our land, and all that. But we moved to Strystead after our parents died - more factories willing to hire a nonmagical teenage street rat, you see. I dunno if it was a good plan in the long run, but it's too late to be thinking about that though."
Do you have any pets?
"Nah, can't really afford to right now. But if I could I would love to have lots of dogs, because they're adorable! Maybe one day I will."
What sports do you play?
"I'm not really the sporty kind. Seems like a waste of perfectly good time and energy for me. I've seen some rich folks playing a game called cricket, I think - and it looks very fun, I'd like to try it one day! I also know how to ride a horse, and I know people consider horseback riding as a sport, but it isn't something I do that regularly so I don't think it counts."
How tall are you?
"I think I'm average height, compared to my friends."
What was your favourite subject in school?
"Never went to school, but I think I would have liked history or magic classes, those seemed fun!"
What is your dream job?
"Ain't got time for dreams in Strystead - dreams don't pay your debts, neither can dreams put food on your plate at the end of the day. Learned that the hard way a long time ago. Currently my 'dream' - if you could call it that - is to pay my debts and get the heck back to Ansburke before these factories finish breaking my spirit too, but unfortunately, I don't think I'm gonna be able to do that any time soon. Eh, that's life though."
Tagging (gently, no pressure):@steh-lar-uh-nuhs @late-to-the-fandom, @eccaiia @willtheweaver @littleladymab @cabbojage @lassiesandiego @little-peril-stories @oh-no-another-idea @thepeculiarbird @rickie-the-storyteller @crowandmoonwriting @steh-lar-uh-nuhs @gummybugg @forthesanityofstorytellers @doublegoblin @aalinaaaaaa @starlit-hopes-and-dreams @elshells @clairelsonao3 @anyablackwood @tabswrites @illarian-rambling @kaylinalexanderbooks and OPEN TAG
#writers on tumblr#writers#writeblr#writing#writerblr#my characters#character writing#my wips#my writing#wip enchanted illusions
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Top Biden Aide Knows Tanked Joe's 2024 Re-election Effort...And It's Not Obama
Joe Biden’s presidency is no more. It was four years of failure and chaos. It was also an exercise in inflated egos—Biden thinks he’s one of the most accomplished presidents in history but can’t list anything when asked in interviews. When your go-to talking point for policies that helped America’s middle class is a bill that made it easier to break up monopolies, you’ve done nothing.
No one cares that when credit card debt has exploded to historic highs and inflation remains unacceptable, eating away at working families. As the dust settles from the melee that forced the president to exit the race, one senior aide knows who’s to blame, and it’s not Barack Obama. Though the former president did play a part in drumming up the pressure on his former vice president (via NY Post):
A top adviser to President Biden is “absolutely” blaming House Speaker emerita Nancy Pelosi for tanking his re-election campaign — and accusing Democratic donors of ignoring the will of their party’s primary voters in swapping him out for Vice President Kamala Harris. Anita Dunn, a White House senior adviser on communications who has since departed for a Harris super PAC, inveighed against Biden’s doubters in Congress and elsewhere in her first interview since the 81-year-old president dropped out of the 2024 race. “You know, clearly there were leaders of the party who decided to go ahead and go very public. And that gave permission to other people to go public,” Dunn told Politico of the growing chorus of Democrats calling on Biden to abandon his run after his debate flop June 27. Asked whether she was referring to “senators and House members” as well as “when Nancy Pelosi goes on TV twice when things feel like they’re dying down and reopens the debate,” Dunn shot back, “Absolutely.”
Pelosi and Biden haven’t spoken in weeks—is anyone shocked?
Biden’s huffy and slurred farewell address was a mini-State of the Union where the lame-duck president listed things he planned to accomplish. None of them will get done this deep in an election cycle and a House Republican majority. The president made the case for a second term—the country didn’t want it. It’s why he quit; he was veering quickly toward a 1980-style defeat. His June 27 debate with Donald Trump was a disaster, an election-killing event that led to the Democratic Party rebellion that became too widespread to quell.
The president is said to have especially sour feelings toward Obama, who he felt was the true puppet master; maybe he was. Obama certainly was aware of the damning op-ed penned by George Clooney, which increased the pressure on Biden to quit. The former president didn’t order the hit piece but didn’t do anything to dissuade the Hollywood star from sending it to The New York Times.
If Biden had hit grand slams in the three interviews post-debate on ABC, NBC, and BET, he might still be the 2024 Democratic candidate. Instead, they were middling trainwrecks, with the BET interview being especially brutal, forgetting the name of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who Biden referred to as the “black man.” Then, his Nevada trip, where he caught COVID and possibly had a mini-stroke or transient ischemic attack, put the final nail in the coffin. The president had also met with his top money man, Jeffrey Katzenberg, who said the fundraising operation was bleeding to death.
Pelosi has maintained she wasn’t behind the effort to force out Biden, saying she never called anyone. Every reporter who has covered the former House speaker knows that’s a lie. Frankly, I think Pelosi, Obama, and Schumer formed a triumvirate in this effort to dump Joe. You know this already. It only exposes how weak this presidency was since this office is supposed to squash uprisings like this, given the built-in institutional power and advantages. It goes back to Pelosi’s trashing of Biden’s political operation. When she saw they could easily be outflanked—she pounced:
“I’ve never been that impressed with his political operation,” she told The New Yorker in an interview published Thursday. “They won the White House. Bravo. But my concern was: this ain’t happening, and we have to make a decision for this to happen. The President has to make the decision for that to happen.” […] While Pelosi privately voiced concerns to Biden about the dire polling of June and July which suggested a widening battleground map, she has only just begun to publicly reflect on her view that the Biden campaign was not in a winning position. The San Francisco Democrat was still hesitant to admit playing a singular role in the push to bring Biden down. “I really wanted him to make a decision for a better campaign, because they were not facing the fact of what was happening,” Pelosi said after praising Biden’s accomplishments. “We couldn’t see it go down the drain, because Trump was going to be president and then he was going to take the House. Imagine! Imagine how that would be! Well, we don’t have to imagine. We saw.”
She’s ruthless, always has been, despite her moments where she blows up at the media.
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Fiction: Another Job Interview
In an overcrowded bus, Robi’s demeanour stands out. Anxiety appears to swallow him up. The fine arts graduate is on his way to take his eighth job interview that year after being rejected by uncountable employers in the last thirteen years. He gets off the bus when it stops in front of a private office building, and heads towards its open gate. As he’s about to enter the premises, he feels lightheaded because his blood sugar level starts going down.
Three well-dressed men, standing at the gate, approach him. One of them asks Robi, “Here for an interview?” A shaky Robi nods. “Well, you must pay us a thousand rupees to be able to get in,” says another. Robi rummages through his backpack, takes out a small bottle of sugar cubes and chugs the sugar down with water. “Young man, are you listening to us? Pay us the thousand rupees and we’ll be out of your way,” says the third stranger. Regaining his vigour, Robi begins to explain to the men, “You have no idea how desperately I need this job. I am stone broke and in debt to a couple of relatives who funded my medical expenses five years ago. I don’t have any siblings to help me with anything. I beg you, let me go...” But the men remain unmoved by his story. They tell him to give them the money or forget about the interview. Robi phones his friend who reluctantly sends the men money through an internet banking website. Robi is then let in for the interview. The receptionist at the office directs him upstairs to the boss’ chamber where the interview has been scheduled to take place. The boss, a lady in her early fifties who reeks of unimaginable wealth, welcomes him and asks him to close the door behind him. There is no one else present in that spacious room besides her and Robi.
“You don’t seem nervous,” says the lady with a grin.
“No. I have been through this many times before. May I sit?”
“Yes, you may.”
She then takes two minutes to examine Robi’s physical appearance as he sits there in front of her, observing an awkward silence. “I have brought some of my best works with me today. Do you want to see them?”
She only smiles which Robi takes as a yes. He places before her his weighty file of traditional paintings done by him over the years and some photographs of his sculptures.
She clumsily runs through those pictures and asks Robi, “What makes you think that I will be impressed by your drawings when I have talented digital artists producing attractive illustrations anytime I need?”
“Well… I believe digital art cannot ever replace traditional art’s aesthetic value. I think you agree with me on this because in your job advertisement you had specifically asked for traditional artists to apply. You definitely can’t find my kind of efficiency in a purely digital artist.”
“Your answer’s not too bad. For your information, I am an award-winning digital artist who just hasn’t found the inspiration to create new artwork in a while… Anyway, I was wondering how much you know about my magazine to be willing to work for it.”
“I read that this magazine was started over twenty years ago, and ... it has been quite successful so far in producing meaningful articles and pictures that a lot of people care about.”
“Three years ago, one of our former female employees posted on her social media accounts that she had faced sexism here. Were you aware of that?”
“No. I wasn’t.”
“You should have been. It is important to research into the place and people you are willing to associate yourself with. But, now that you know, what do you think of it?”
“I… I think… I don’t know about her experiences here. But, if hired, I will do my best to… to make sure that my behaviour or conduct never becomes the reason for anyone’s unhappiness in the workplace.”
“I like you. I do.”
“Thank you, ma’am! All I need is an opportunity to prove how valuable I can be to your company.”
“Mr. Robi De, why don’t we go through the details of the responsibilities I’d like you to have here?”
“Oh… you have no idea how much I have been looking forward to this!” Robi's eyes glisten with surprise and delight.
For the next two hours, the boss slowly explains to him the duties of an illustrator in her company and enlightens him on its history.
Half an hour before lunch break, she tells a hopeful Robi, “I doubt you will be able to perform all these tasks and become an indispensable employee. You need to come to me after you have gained more work experiences elsewhere.”
“No, ma’am, you have to believe in me... Just give me a chance to show you how much…”
“Look, young man, you have only worked as a freelance artist so far. You have no idea how things are done in a big workplace like ours. I cannot let anything … anything go wrong here. How much do you know about the corporate culture anyway?”
“This position I have applied for is supposed to be an entry-level one requiring minimum work experience… Did you… did you expect a newbie to know it all?”
“This room has only one door through which we enter and exit, and it’s right behind you. Thank you for being here. I hope you succeed someday.”
"Why did you waste so much of my time just to tell me all about this damned place? Why didn’t you reject me earlier? I could have gone home to my sick old parents who need me often! I have left them alone with a new caregiver to come here for this interview, and now after tricking me into keeping you company for three hours, you’re telling me I am not needed here!”
The lady exhibits a calm indifference during Robi’s rampage before heading out for lunch. Robi remains in her room for over an hour until she returns.
“I don’t pay people for keeping me company,” she says upon seeing the resolute man standing at her desk fifteen minutes past the lunch break.
“How much more do you need? Do I have to bribe you for this job?” asks a desperate Robi, fighting his frustrations.
The lady sits down in her chair quietly, sips water from her bottle, and gently wipes her lips with a handkerchief. “What do you mean?” she asks carelessly.
“Weren’t the men who made me shell out a thousand bucks earlier yours?”
“I have no idea about what you’re saying, young man. Listen, you need to leave before you get yourself into trouble.”
“Oh yeah? What are you going to do?” Robi, furious, inches closer to her.
“The chief minister’s nephew is a dear friend of mine. All I need to tell him is that you tried to rape me in my own office because I refused to hire you.”
Upon hearing those words, Robi instantly breaks into a cold sweat and his heart rate rises. He can’t utter another word. Struggling to breathe, Robi grabs his phone from his pocket to dial some number in vain. The boss, still comfortable in her cushioned chair, watches him drop unconscious on the carpet in front of her.
Then she thoughtfully opens Microsoft Paint on her iPad. Using only her fingers, she attempts to draw the still man to perfection.
Copyright ©️ Briksha 2021
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What's The Actual Reason Why "Heavyweight" and "Stolen" Were Canceled
Spotify announced that it was canceling two popular -- and high-quality -- podcasts -- Heavyweight and Stolen. Both podcasts have sizable audiences and are critically acclaimed.
Simultaneously, Spotify announced that it was laying off 1,500 employees despite its rosy and profitable third quarter numbers.
Here's the horrendous part -- even above that of people losing their jobs. THE STOCK PRICE OF SPOTIFY JUMPED UP SIX PERCENT ON THOSE TWO PIECES OF NEWS.
My first reaction is to scream WTF Spotify, but since I'm not a Spotify stockholder, it would be like yelling into a hurricane wind.
My analytical brain has now reestablished control, and I can now assess these Spotify moves more rationally.
Seriously, Spotify. WTF.
Okay, I'm ready to move on.
First, the utter disregard for Spotify's customers (the faithful listeners) appears to be a business move that could blow back on them. You don't believe me? Check out a TV streamer like Max, where head bean counter and filthy rich CEO David Zaslav has canceled completed films like Batgirl, canceled TV shows, eviscerated the Turner Classic Movies (TCM) network and removed legacy content, all to pay down debt and boost the stock price. Max has paid for those betrayals with increased churn. When you do stuff like that, you get the customers you deserve. Those ready to bolt to your competitor at a moment's notice. You have to show loyalty to get loyalty.
Second, content creators will be wary in the future of working with a company like Spotify. After all, Heavyweight and Stolen were not struggling podcasts or hurting for listeners. In fact, Stolen won a Peabody Award, and a Pulitzer Prize. So, for podcasters, the message is clear: Even if your podcast is successful on our network, our stock price comes first above all else.
Third, who has paid for Spotify's irrational exuberance when they overpaid for podcast networks, podcast talent, and overbuilt a podcast infrastructure that, in no way, matched existing customer demand?
The answer: Listeners, who were promised podcast nirvana, and employees, who were hired to feed this monster of unrealistic expectations. Did investors balk when Spotify bungee jumped into podcasting without checking its safety harness?
And it's not just Spotify. Vox is one of my favorite, less-evil networks, but recently it canceled Into It with Sam Sanders. Now, Sanders is one of the best podcast hosts in the industry, which he demonstrated in his 12 years at NPR.
How is it that a pro like Sam Sanders lost his job when Spotify's Joe Rogan can use his podcast to release climate disinformation with the so-called “Adam and Eve” theory — which spuriously claims Earth’s magnetic fields will shift and cause catastrophic effects across the planet?
Vox also owns SB Nation, which covers major sports in written and audio formats. Here's one of its recent headlines: "NHL interview interrupted by loud fart, and no one could ignore it."
And Vox somehow can't afford to keep Sam Sanders. Follow Vox's logic. Fart stories = clickbait = more customers = more ads = more revenue = more profits = higher stock price. Ta-Da.
Finally, isn't anyone else disturbed that these announcements of layoffs always mean a bump in the stock price. What stockholder / entity is rewarding this behavior? Pension funds? Institutional investors? Batshit crazy and narcissistic billionaires? What sadists are cheering when 1,500 people lose their jobs at Spotify? Now, they can afford a second home in Aspen and that helicopter pad for their daughter, who just got into an Ivy League University after Daddy made a large donation.
I recall in 2019 speaking with someone touting the rising Dow and saying that his vote for president was entirely reliant on how the Chief Executive drives up the value of his 401k nest egg.
Later that year, he was laid off because his company closed the plant he had worked out for 20 years so that they could use more money for a stock buyback to -- you guessed it -- drive up its stock price. So, my question to that person would be: Is it worth getting a bump in your 401k when you lose your job and the security it brings you and your family?
Back to podcasting. Sure, podcasting has seen its boom cycle burst and the inevitable disagreeable consequences that result. There are always innocent victims in a flamed-out boom cycle. It's like a star going supernova. There's a bright light, then a gigantic explosion. In the case of podcasting, it's shrinkage and not the kind on a Seinfeld episode. No, it's the human kind -- jobs, lives, aspirations.
Yet, are Heavyweight, Stolen, Sam Sanders, WNYC, NPR and others victims of the balloon bursting? Or is it that these organizations are simply chasing a higher stock price? Greater profits? Or worse? Putting out the lowest-cost product (podcasts) and getting the biggest return in profitability and stock price?
Will podcast networks become the Dollar General of podcasting? Lower production costs, low-cost unknown talent, barely passable sound production quality, ads every three minutes, and shows that tackle nothing more complex than strategies for silently farting in public.
Right now, all I can say is, "I'm thankful for the thousands of indie podcasters that keep up the level of excellence in podcasting driven by the love of the format, not because of a quarterly dividend."
Thank you, Amanda B.(6 Degrees Of Cats), Sarah Reinhardt and Louise Browne (Adoption: The Making Of Me), Evan Stern (Vanishing Postcards), Matt Gilhooly (The Life Shift), Jennica Sadhwani (Multispective), Jenn Trepeck (Salad With A Side Of Fries), Joe Casabona (Podcast Workflows), Frank Bailey, Chris Saunders (Nerdpreneur), Margo Donohue, Sonia Mansfield (What A Creep), and Arielle Nissenblatt (Feedback With EarBuds).
These people are the soul of podcasting. Daniel Ek of Spotify is certainly no "heavyweight" and he has "stolen" the delight many listeners receive when listening to high-quality, entertaining podcasts.
So, I end where I began. WTF Spotify?
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FORGOT - MY - FAVORITE - ALSO - DISNEY+ - FILM
‘PROM - PACT’ - ‘SARG’ - KNOWING - I’M - AGE 58
HE - WAS - THINKING - FAKE - ID - TOLD - HIM MY
MOM - AGE 24 - PASSED - TOKYO - JAPANESE
7 MONTH - BABY - LESS - THAN - 1 - MONTH WITH
HER - WEIRDO - WON’T - ALLOW - ANYONE - 2 YES
EVEN - SAY - ‘AHA’ - TOTALLY - INCREDIBLE SMILES
HE - GOT - AWAY - WITH - MURDERING - HIS - WIFE
WD 40 OIL - GATORADE - US - AIR FORCE
AIR - JUMP - NO - PARACHUTES
HE - WAS - NEVER - IMPRESSED - WITH - TOM CRUISE
CHRISTIAN - SCIENCE
‘TOP - GUN’ - USA - AIR FORCE
HE - DIDN’T - WEAR - LONG - SLEEVE - SHIRT DANCED
SO - AGAIN - VIDEO - ‘NOT - IMPRESSIVE’ - BORING
MOVES - VULGAR - NO - GERMS - FR - PRACTICING
POSSIBLE - WILL - HAPPEN - ‘PENETRATION’
ILLEGAL - PROSTITUTES
HE - HAD - NO - IDEA - INTERVIEW - REQUIRED
RECRUITER - HELPED - HER - GET - 2 - PRINCETON
ALSO - OVER - 300 YRS - OLD - YOUNGER - THAN
HARVARD - ALSO - OVER - 300 YRS
USA - AGE 246
BLK - MALES - SMELT - SHOWERED - BODY - SLEPT
WHERE - I - SLEPT - UNDER - BRIDGE - NEAR
LANDMARK - MIAMI - RIVER - REAL - UGLY - UGLY
INCREDIBLE - WINDS
SO - SOLUTION - HE - PUTTING - HIS - STINKY
MAT - PILLOW - SO - RESERVED - WELL - ALL - OF
SUDDEN - HE - STOPPED - HE - VOLUNTEERED
WEIRDO - WANTED - 2 - KICK - GOES - 2 - WATER
ENJOYING - ‘FLORIDA - STATE - ID’ - $27
CONVENIENCE - FEE - $2 - ONLINE - (WHO - EVER
HEARD) - APPARENTLY - ME - I - FORGOT - DID THE
ACCOUNT - LONG - AGO - HAVE - NO - MEMORY TOO
HE - SAID - GETTING - AFTER - TIME - CHANGE
NOVEMBER - FALL - BEHIND - 1 HR - GAINED
SLEEPING - NEAR - HE - THOUGHT
‘COMMON - WIFE’
NOT - BIGAMY - OR - POLYGAMY
SHACKED - SHACKING - SHAGGING
SAME - RESIDENCE - A - CERTAIN - TIME - BY - USA
LAW - ‘COMMON’ - MEANS - IMMORAL - UNMARRIED
FORMER - PRESIDENT - GEORGE CLINTON - NO
BIO - KIDS - LEGALLY - WED - BUT - SOMEONE IS
A - VIRGIN - OF - COURSE - THEY - JUST MARRIED
‘COMMON - WIFE’ - NAKED - PENETRATED - BLOW
JOB - THEY - SHOWERED - TOGETHER OR - DON’T
A - COMMON - PERSON - AMERICANS
IMMORAL
‘A - COMMON - WIFE’ - WHAT’s - IMPORTANT
UNITED STATES - HAS - FULL - PRIVILEGES - AS THE
MARRIED - WIFE - WITH - NO - CHILDREN - AT LEAST
VIRGIN - SILLIES
VIRGINS - LEGALLY - WED
A - COMMON - ‘IMMORAL’ - WIFE - IS - NOT A VIRGIN
18 AND OLDER - OR - WILL - BECOME
SHE - GETS - 50% - OF - HIS - INCOME - MONEY
EVERYTHING - CAN - B - CASHED
IS - DESIGNER - SOCKS - 50 OF - SO - LOTS OF
MONEY - WON - LOTTERY - $1 MILLION - SHE
GETS - $500,000 - TAX - EXEMPT - OF - MANY
STUFF - SHE’s - NOT - 1ST - 2ND - 3RD COUSIN
ILLEGAL - COMMON - WIFE - NOT - ALLOWED
WEDDING - OR - MARRIAGE - AS - THOSE XO
COUSINS - IN - USA
SO - HE - BOUGHT - SONY - SMART TV
$2,500 - SHE - CAN - GET - CASH - HALF
ALSO - TAX - EXEMPT
COMMON - WIVES - MANY - DON’T - KNOW
50% - OF - MONEY - CLOTHES - BOUGHT
BELONG - 2 - HER - TAX FREE
HIS - SOLUTION - SHE - GENTLY - TOLD 2
WELL - ‘OVER - NOW’ - SHE - CAN LEAVE
HIS - HOUSE - NO - DATING - EITHER SO
MEANS - HE - WON - LOTTERY - AGAIN
NOT - DATING - $1 MILLION - NOW YES
FINALLY - ALL - HIS - AND - TAX - FREE
BASICALLY - WHY - ARE - U - CELEBRATING
U - CAN - STAY - IN - HOTEL - DON’T - NEED
2 - PUT - IN - MOUTH - AMERICAN - HOT DOG
HIS - ID - YOUR - HOTEL - STAY - CORONAVIRUS
RECIPIENTS - THOSE - WHO - DON’T - SHOWER
NO - BATHING - MIAMI - POLICE - LAWS - HOW 2
SUCCEED - AND - KILLING - YOUR - HEARTS
LITTERALLY - $35,000 - KIDNEY - BLADDER
$9,000 EACH - WHAT - IS - SO - HARD 2 HEAL
MOON - UNDER - STILL - AUTOPSY - NOT - SHARED
‘BROKEN - SPIRIT’ - SO - HARD - 2 - HEAL - THE YES
LIVING - DEAD - MOON - 31ST - KOREAN - STAR
FLORIDA - HANDCUFFS - THOSE - WHO - WANT - TO
KILL - THEMSELVES - ILLEGAL - BAKER - ACT - STAY
28 DAYS - INTEAD - OF - LESS - THAN - 3 - MENTAL
INSTITUTIONS - GUINNEA - PIGS - PUNISHMENT 4
NOT - PAYING - TAXES - BAKER - ACT - INTRODUCED
BY - FLORIDA - PROM - WEDDING - DATES - MIAMI
POLICE - FINANCIAL - AID - HATE - SUICIDES
AMOUNT - OWED - DEATH - AMOUNT - OWED - WAIVED
PHILIPPINES - FAMILY - FRIENDS - PAY - THEIR DEBTS
PARENTS - WHY - THEY - MOVE
BIBLE - ‘PARENTS - TAKE - CARE - OF - THEIR
CHILDREN - NOT - VICE VERSA - KIDS TAKING
CARE - OF - PARENTS’
MIAMI - POLICE - HANDCUFFS - THOSE - WHO
WANT - 2 - KILL - THEMSELVES - BECAUSE THEY
WANT - 2 - STOP - PAYING - TAXES - BY - DEATH
MIAMI - POLICE - WANTS - 2 - SHOOT - THEM 4
PUNISHMENT - ANCIENT - EGYPT - CREATED
TAXES - JULIUS CAESAR - STABBED - TWICE
BY - EACH - MALE - POLITICIAN - 24X STABBING
JUST - WON - A - TERRIBLE - BATTLE - WHY
WASN’T - HE - ARMED - GAINED - ENEMIES
SUICIDE - MEANS - LESS - TAXES - RECEIVED
LOWER - PAY - EVENTUALLY - POLICE - HOW
MUCH - MONEY - 2 - RECEIVE
‘SARGE’ - PUBLIC - NUISANCE - FELONY -
HUGE - SNORING - SMOKES - CIGARETTES - FOR
HARMS - WHO - SURROUNDS - HIM - MORE - BLK
FEMALES - FRATERNAL - TWINS - AFFECTS THE
FUTURE - BABIES - SOON - BORN - LOW WEIGHT
BABY - BORN - BODY - PARTS - EVERYWHERE
BORN - NOT - BREATHING - SARGE - SMILES
HE - HAS - NO - KIDS
ABILIFY - OVER - 250 LBS - AS - FEMALES
WHEN - MALES - TAKE - LONG - HE - GETS - BLINDER
FEMALES - ALSO - HE - PRODUCES - 100% - BLIND AS
GIRL - BABY - AMERICAN - PSYCHIATRICAL - MEDS AS
THEY - BECOME - SUPER - STRONG - WHEN - FATTY
BEAT - ME - UP - AS - 215 LBS - SHE - WAS - REALLY
RAPING - ME - LIKE - LESBIAN - SHORT - HAIR WAS
RAPING - KATE - SO - SHE - KILLED - HERSELF - AS
SHE - OVERDOSED - WITH - HEROINE - BUT - SHE
DID - SINCE - A - YOUNG - GIRL - ALSO - SOLD AND
USED - BY - OLDER - SISTER - THE - OLDIE - STILL
IN - PRISON - POSSESSION - AND - ILLEGAL USAGE
KATE - BORN - MARILYN MONROE’s - BIRTHDAY
LIKE - ME - SAME - HEIGHT - AS - MARILYN - 5′5 FT
SAME - AGE - RANGE - SLEEPY - RIGHT - NOW
BOTH - SUICIDES - IN - THEIR - THIRTIES
SMOKING - THREW - NEAR - HIM - THROW - FINISHED
CIGARETTE - WHERE - I - SLEEP - BLK - MALE - WITH
PULLS - LUGGAGE - BOTH - MEN - DECREASED - THE
IN - BETWEEN - WHERE - THE - BLIND - SLEEP
LESS - THAN - 6 FT - WIDTH - CORONAVIRUS
AS - THEY - HAVE - SMELLY - FEVER
AS OVER - 200,000 - ENGLISH - DEAD - FROM
FEVER - LIKE - SHAKESPEARE - POCAHANTES - AGE 21
SHE - WAS - PLANNING - SMOKING - THROWING - ON MY
5 INCH - AIR MAT - THEN - WEARING - EYE - MASK - BUT
SHE’s - BLIND - ILLEGAL - 2 - SUBJECT - BLIND - 2 - BE
YES - FORCED - BY - MIAMI - POLICE - 2 - SEE - SUN
8TH - AMENDMENT
CRUEL - AND - UNUSUAL - PUNISHMENT - INFLICTED
CAN - KILL - THE - BLIND - SUN - EXPOSURE - ESPECIALLY
ON - THE - EYES - GOD - SAID - THEY - SEE - HEAVEN - AS
THEIR - FIRST - SIGHT - WHICH - IS - BETTER - GOD LEADS
THE - BLIND - WHERE - THEY - SHOULD - GO - ALWAYS
A - STRAIGHT - LINE
CHINA - FIRST - HORSES - 4 - WHEELCHAIR - AND THE
BLIND - 2 - BRING - THEM - HOME - MUCH - BETTER AS
I - SUGGEST HORSE - LANE - 4 - KIDS - BLIND - THOSE
WHO - CAN’T - WALK - HORSES - CAN - LIKE - KNEEL 2
AMERICANS - THROW - USED - CIGARETTES - ON THE
BLIND - ‘U - CAN - SMELL - 2 - BURN - THEIR CLOTHES’
MIAMI - POLICE - CHECKING - EYES - WHY - THEIR
BLIND - STEALING - THEIR - CASH - AND - COINS 2
TO - GIVE - AND - PUT - THEIR - WEE WEE - BODY
PART - IN - THEIR - MOUTHS - USA - AGE 246
DEMOCRATIC - PARTY - DEMOCRATS
DE - MEANS - 2 - DESTROY - WHAT - NEEDS - 2 B
DESTROYED - NEARBY - REAL - NEAR - OR THERE
DEMOCRAT - PARTY - 2 - DESTROY - WHAT’s - EVIL
SOCIAL - SECURITY - $914 - LESS - THAN - RENT
2 - PROSTITUTE - THE - BLIND - SO - APT - IS YES
POSSIBLE - AMERICANS
CHINA - BEST - HORSES - THEIR - HORSE - LANE
2 - BRING - KIDS - CAN’T - WALK - AND - BLIND - 2
WHERE - THEY - WILL - B - SAFER - HORSES - TO
PROTECT - THEMSELVES - 2 - LIVE - LONG - SO
CAN - DO - MORE - 4 - THESE - CUTIES - ALSO
VERY - DISABLED - MANY - BLINDS - HAVE EYES
SO - THEY - DON’T - LOOK - BLIND - HOW - CAN
THEY - SHOOT - PERVERT - WANTING - 2 - STEAL
THEIR - MONEY - AND - TOUCH - THEIR - BREASTS
CHINA - HORSE - LANE - AS - THOSE - HORSES WILL
KICK - GO - THROUGH - CAN - BASH - THEM - 4 OUR
GOD - WILL - TRAIN - MALE - HORSES - ONLY - HOW
TO - PROTECT - THESE - PEOPLE - MIAMI - POLICE
HAITI - MALES - ALSO - LIVE - 4 - HOW - 2 - STAB AND
STAB - THE - BLIND - HOW - THEY - WANT - THEIR
BODIES - LIKE - URINATING - WHY - ARE - WOMEN
WORTH - LOOKING - AT - BIBLE - ‘FOR - THE LOVE
OF - MONEY - WHICH - WE - HAVE - IS - THE ROOT
OF - ALL - EVIL’ - SLEEP NUMBER - BEDS - U - PUT
SNORER - ON - PILLOWS - INCREASE - NUMBER
SARGE - VETERAN - US - ARMY - NEEDS - FOUR
PILLOWS - 2 - STOP - HIS - SNORING - 4 YEARS
REQURED - WHY - 2 - HELP - SNORERS - TRUE
TEACHING - THEM - HOW - 2 - KILL - KILL - AND
HOW - 2 B - THIN - SO - I - SLEPT - NEAR - THE
FRATERNAL - FEMALE - TWINS - EXPLAINED 2
BORN - FIRST - LYING - SAME - WAY - HORIZONTAL
LIKE - THE - YACHTS - WHERE - THEY - ARE WE’RE
PARALLEL - RECEIVING - STRONGEST - WINDS FOR
THE - COLD - KILLS - GERMS - BACTERIA - NOW - I’M
HEALTHIEST - THAN - SLEEPS - NEAR - WALL - TOLD
HER - HELEN - IF - SHE - SLEPT - SHOWED - HER
THEN - HEALTHIER - 4 - HER - 2ND - TWIN - BORN
NEXT - DAY - IS - SABRINA - (’TEEN - WITCH’)
WIND - BLEW - MY - PILLOW - SO - LIKE - SPORTS
CAR - ONE - PILLOW - THEN - NEXT - ONE PILLOW
NOT - ON - TOP - OF -
AREA = LENGTH - X - WIDTH
FINALLY - SLEPT - 4:25A - ALARM - 4:30A - NEWEST
ALARM - THEN - 6A - BREAKFAST - DIDN’T - COME
BUT - AT - LEAST - AWAKE
BACK - 2 - 5 FT - WIDTH - 7 FT - LENGTH - NEXT TO
LISA - SIDE - DOOR - POP - UP - TENT - LIKE - MIAMI
FIRE - AND - RESCUE - RED - TRUCKS
15 LBS - FOLDABLE - BRINGING - INSIDE - ON NEW
ROSS - DRESS - 4 - LESS - RUG - 14 INCHES ABOVE
COLD - APPROACHING - SPECIAL - OVER - $19 - YES
SLEEPING - BAG - ABOVE - IKEA - FAUX - FUR PLUSH
PILLOW - COVER - OVER - $14 - AND - 20 X 20 PILLOW
NICELY - $7 - SO - JUST - ONE - EXCITING - EASY - IN
EASY - OUT - I - START - AT - 4A - 500 LB - CARRIER 2
BRING - 2 - BOX VAULT - SELF - STORAGE
WHY - NOT
WELCOME - SUSHI
24 HRS - ACCESS
$26.61 - MORE - MONTHLY - TAX - DEDUCTIBLE
OVER - $150
WAS - INCREASED - 2 - $125.67 - SAID - LIKE
WELCOME - SUSHI
ACCESS - GRANTED
NOT - ACCESS - DENIED - EVEN WHILE PAID IN FULL
I - FORGOT - WHAT - IT - SAYS - BELOW
ASTERISK - NUMBERS - POUND - KEY
WHY - NOT - 2 - NUMBERS - THEN - REVERSE
BIBLE - ‘LEADERS - NOT - FOLLOWERS - OF - NATIONS’
LARGE - POPULATIONS
THEN - LATER - TAP - FASTER - OPEN - BUT - SAFEST
IN - ELEVATOR - TAP - AND - CIRCLE - RED - AUTO PUTS
FLOOR - NUMBER - THAT - FAST
HISPANICS - BLACKS - WANT - OUR - NAILS - 2 - TOUCH
ELEVATOR - NUMBERS - BOX VAULT - HAS - THEIR OWN
MONETORY - FINES - 4 - LOITERING - ILLEGAL
OVER - $100 - REMOVED - FR - CARD - LISTED
14TH - AMENDMENT - NO - STATE - CAN - MAKE - CREATE
LAW - THAT - CAN - HINDER - CITIZENS - PRIVILEGES
BLAH BLAH
SARGE - WASN’T - AT - ANY - LOT - I - THINK - OR - 36
2 - BAGS - I - WAS - TOLD - JUST - ONE
BIBLE - ‘4 - MY - SHAME - A - DOUBLE - PORTION - IN
THE - LAND’ - MEANING - $500 BILLION - X 2 - TAX PAID
A - GREAT - DOUBLE - PORTION
JESUS - SAID - ‘THE - PEACE - THAT - PASSES - ALL
UNDERSTANDING’ - ‘HIS - JOY - HE - GIVES - 2 - US
‘NO - MAN’ - CAN - TAKE - ‘NO - NON-VIRGIN - YES
FEMALE - CAN - TAKE - Q TIP - 4 - COVID-19 - NEXT
2 - HIM - AFTER - CIGARETTE - LOITERED
SLEEP - NEXT - 2 - HIS - BROWN - MUCOUS
OR - INSIDE - NOSE - CLEANSED - WHY - MEN
DON’T - HAVE - VAGINAL - AREAS - THEY YES
MIGHT - DRINK - THIS - COULD - B - POISON 2
BIBLE - ‘MEN - SHOULD - MARRY’
DIDN’T - SAY - ‘WOMEN - SHOULD - DO THAT’
PREGNANCY - BY - FEMALES - NOT - MEN - PREGNANT
ADOPT - ADOPT - ADOPT - EASY - FUN - SO - LOVELY 2
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A Sunday, for Audio Dramas, perchance?
It's been a while since I did an Audio Drama Sunday post, mostly because it's been a long time since I've been able to have an Audio Drama Sunday. Recently, Sundays have become my running days. Because my headphones aren't wraparounds, I have to wear a beanie or headband or something to keep them from bouncing out somewhere on miles 5 or 10 or whatever in between. However, because of the oppressive frontera heat recently, wearing anything on my head is a no go, so no headphones, no audio dramas, nothing but the sinister whisperings of my own subconscious thought bubbling and boiling to the surface to trouble and toil. I wore a beanie today and well, the run didn't go well. But I did get some audio drama so it's not a total loss (and it was 5 miles so it's not like it was nothing).
So, without further ado...
Hello from the Hallowoods - I'm on a HftHw relisten, well just starting over really, and I'm on episode 3: Books. It's fun to listen to all these little bits and pieces as individual stories before they start getting woven together into larger narratives. Quite rewarding!
A Game of One's Own - Maddy Searle dances on the line between TTRPG actual play and audio drama perfectly. They belong in both realms and there's not a lot of podcasts I think can actually do that. The first two episodes, Mountaintop Isolation, are very reminiscent of Until Dawn, with the same chance of death and dismemberment and horror. There's an equal amount of gameplay mechanics and roleplay that are both immersive and engaging. It momentarily helped me forget I was running up and down a hill in 90-degree weather at 9 in the morning.
Re:Dracula - Finally, finally, finally, I'm able to listen to this super popular series. Not sure why it took me so long to start, but I will blame so many audio dramas out there and so little time for me to actually listen to all the things I want. It's kind of like a TBR pile. You can never read all the books you want, you can never listen to all the audio drams you want. I listened to the bonus episode first, the "Vampire Hunter" interview and I have to say, I'm impressed with how immersive it is and how deep the worldbuilding is. Love it!
Totalus Jeffianus - a history podcast built on a huge in-joke from another history podcast. How the hell could that work? Well the history of the Jeffs of Rome is something people want, they've already had 10 episodes so far so that should tell you something. The first episode's audio is a bit janky and a bit quiet but I'm hoping that will improve as the episodes come out. Low quality audio at the start of a podcast is very nearly a history podcast must.
66B - This is an audio drama that makes my Bearchive brain go a bit crazy. It's a podcast almost no one has heard of in this "modern" era of podcasting (at least I never see it on recommendation lists), and the first three episodes are missing. I want, no no no, I NEED to know more about this podcast. The audio is a bit janky in places that makes me wince a bit and I have no idea who anyone is. Two girls, at least one is a witch (or mage), there's a landlady, and a demon who lives there but doesn't pay rent and is helpful(ish)? They live in a haunted flat that seems like a power nexus? It feels similar to shows like Saffron and Perri, Haunted House Flippers, and the Aletheian Society, maybe they were an unconscious inspiration? Who knows. Speaking of, if anyone, anyone knows where I can find the first three episodes, I would be in your debt, the Bearchives needs this show and it needs the first three episodes!
#Audio Drama Recommendations#Audio Drama Sunday#Bearchives#Hello from the Hallowoods#Re:Dracula#A Game of One's Own#Maddy Searle#William W Wellman#Missing Episodes#Sci Fi#Horror#Horror Comedy#History#Absurdist history#audio issues
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By Elizabeth A. Harris, Lauren Hirsch and Benjamin Mullin
Paramount said on Monday it had reached a deal to sell Simon & Schuster, one of the biggest and most prestigious publishing houses in the United States, to the private-equity firm KKR, in a major changing of the guard in the books business.
The deal, for $1.62 billion, will put control of the cultural touchstone behind authors like Stephen King and Bob Woodward in the hands of a financial buyer with an expanding presence in the publishing industry.
While private equity investors have had a significant footprint in the book business — different firms have owned literary agencies, publishing houses and the retailer Barnes & Noble — the acquisition of one of the largest publishers in the country vastly increases the hold of financial interests in the business.
“I think I speak on behalf of the entire management team when I say we are thrilled with the result,” Jon Karp, chief executive of Simon & Schuster, said in an interview. “They plan to invest in us and make us even greater than we already are. What more could a publishing company want?”
Mr. Karp will stay on as chief executive after the deal closes.
Richard Sarnoff, an adviser to KKR on its media deals, is a familiar name to many in the publishing industry and his involvement is encouraging, said several publishing executives on Monday. Mr. Sarnoff has held multiple positions at Bertelsmann, the company that owns Penguin Random House, and served as chairman of the Association of American Publishers, a trade group.
In letters to Simon & Schuster’s staff members and authors, Mr. Karp said that he had known Mr. Sarnoff for two decades, and that he “understands the nuances of the book business as well as anyone I know.”
Also involved is Ted Oberwager, who leads KKR’s gaming, media, entertainment and sports group. Mr. Oberwager is on the board of RBMedia, an audiobook company, and Skydance Media, which teamed up with Paramount Pictures on “Top Gun: Maverick,” a Tom Cruise action drama that generated more than $1 billion.
Since Simon & Schuster was first put up for sale in 2020, many in the publishing industry have fretted over where the company might land. The publisher, which will celebrate its 100th anniversary next year, has had more than seven owners in its history.
A sale to another publisher would mean the new management would understand the book business. But it would also mean further consolidation in the industry, with potentially fewer players available to bid on big books, and the chance of layoffs as redundant jobs were eliminated. It could also raise regulatory scrutiny: Paramount’s first attempt to sell Simon & Schuster, to Penguin Random House, was derailed by government antitrust concerns.
Acquisition by a private equity firm, on the other hand, presents its own risks. The ruthless side of that business was immortalized in a 1989 book, “Barbarians at the Gate,” which detailed KKR’s acquisition of Nabisco and the burden the deal’s debt left on the company.
Gustavo Schwed, a management professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business, said the sale would allow KKR to invest in a business that was no longer viewed as core by its seller. But, like any private equity deal, the amount of debt KKR uses to finance the acquisition will help determine the publisher’s financial constraints.
“Sometimes, despite your best intentions, things crash and burn — and the more leverage you use, the more risk there is of that happening,” Mr. Schwed said.
KKR did not outline its financing plans on Monday. LionTree Advisors and Shearman & Sterling advised Paramount on the deal.
As part of the deal, Simon & Schuster employees will receive an ownership stake in the company, part of a program KKR developed to improve engagement among those who work in the companies it buys. The private equity firm used this model with RBMedia, which KKR acquired in 2018.
That bet paid off: KKR agreed to sell RBMedia last month to another investment firm for a substantially higher price. KKR said that under its ownership RBMedia doubled the size of its audiobook catalog, from over 31,000 to over 66,000 audiobooks.
Since employees had an ownership stake in the company, when RBMedia was sold, those who worked there earned a cash payout from the sale worth up to two times their salary, KKR said.
In addition to RBMedia, KKR has also invested in another company in the book world: Overdrive, a digital reading platform used in libraries and schools.
Pete Stavros, a co-head of global private equity at KKR, said in an interview that the deal would give Simon & Schuster employees the chance at achieving “a life-impacting amount of wealth.”
Mr. Stavros and Mr. Sarnoff said they saw opportunities for the publisher in international expansion and in audiobooks, a significant point of growth for the industry at large. Mr. Sarnoff said he didn’t expect the deal to have any impact on Simon & Schuster authors.
The road to Monday’s announcement has been long and bumpy.
After Paramount (then called ViacomCBS) reached an agreement to sell Simon & Schuster to Penguin Random House, the country’s largest book publisher, for $2.18 billion, the Biden administration challenged the sale in court. A judge sided with the government last year.
Rather than appeal, Paramount decided to put Simon & Schuster back on the market, obligating Penguin Random House to pay a $200 million termination fee for its trouble, on top of millions in legal costs.
Since the first deal crumbled, Simon & Schuster has performed well and remained an attractive purchase. In the first quarter of 2023, its sales rose to $258 million, up 19 percent from the prior year. Results at other major publishers, by contrast, were disappointing during that period.
Though KKR’s offer for the publisher is less than what Penguin Random House had agreed to pay, the difference in the price is partially offset by the termination fee paid to Paramount and earnings from the publisher. But KKR is an attractive buyer, in part, because it’s unlikely to raise red flags with regulators.
“Paramount doesn’t want to traipse through another deal that goes bust,” said Erik Gordon, a professor at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business. “It wants to sell the business without more surprises.”
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By Elizabeth A. Harris, Lauren Hirsch and Benjamin Mullin
Paramount said on Monday it had reached a deal to sell Simon & Schuster, one of the biggest and most prestigious publishing houses in the United States, to the private-equity firm KKR, in a major changing of the guard in the books business.
The deal, for $1.62 billion, will put control of the cultural touchstone behind authors like Stephen King and Bob Woodward in the hands of a financial buyer with an expanding presence in the publishing industry.
While private equity investors have had a significant footprint in the book business — different firms have owned literary agencies, publishing houses and the retailer Barnes & Noble — the acquisition of one of the largest publishers in the country vastly increases the hold of financial interests in the business.
“I think I speak on behalf of the entire management team when I say we are thrilled with the result,” Jon Karp, chief executive of Simon & Schuster, said in an interview. “They plan to invest in us and make us even greater than we already are. What more could a publishing company want?”
Mr. Karp will stay on as chief executive after the deal closes.
Richard Sarnoff, an adviser to KKR on its media deals, is a familiar name to many in the publishing industry and his involvement is encouraging, said several publishing executives on Monday. Mr. Sarnoff has held multiple positions at Bertelsmann, the company that owns Penguin Random House, and served as chairman of the Association of American Publishers, a trade group.
In letters to Simon & Schuster’s staff members and authors, Mr. Karp said that he had known Mr. Sarnoff for two decades, and that he “understands the nuances of the book business as well as anyone I know.”
Also involved is Ted Oberwager, who leads KKR’s gaming, media, entertainment and sports group. Mr. Oberwager is on the board of RBMedia, an audiobook company, and Skydance Media, which teamed up with Paramount Pictures on “Top Gun: Maverick,” a Tom Cruise action drama that generated more than $1 billion.
Since Simon & Schuster was first put up for sale in 2020, many in the publishing industry have fretted over where the company might land. The publisher, which will celebrate its 100th anniversary next year, has had more than seven owners in its history.
A sale to another publisher would mean the new management would understand the book business. But it would also mean further consolidation in the industry, with potentially fewer players available to bid on big books, and the chance of layoffs as redundant jobs were eliminated. It could also raise regulatory scrutiny: Paramount’s first attempt to sell Simon & Schuster, to Penguin Random House, was derailed by government antitrust concerns.
Acquisition by a private equity firm, on the other hand, presents its own risks. The ruthless side of that business was immortalized in a 1989 book, “Barbarians at the Gate,” which detailed KKR’s acquisition of Nabisco and the burden the deal’s debt left on the company.
Gustavo Schwed, a management professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business, said the sale would allow KKR to invest in a business that was no longer viewed as core by its seller. But, like any private equity deal, the amount of debt KKR uses to finance the acquisition will help determine the publisher’s financial constraints.
“Sometimes, despite your best intentions, things crash and burn — and the more leverage you use, the more risk there is of that happening,” Mr. Schwed said.
KKR did not outline its financing plans on Monday. LionTree Advisors and Shearman & Sterling advised Paramount on the deal.
As part of the deal, Simon & Schuster employees will receive an ownership stake in the company, part of a program KKR developed to improve engagement among those who work in the companies it buys. The private equity firm used this model with RBMedia, which KKR acquired in 2018.
That bet paid off: KKR agreed to sell RBMedia last month to another investment firm for a substantially higher price. KKR said that under its ownership RBMedia doubled the size of its audiobook catalog, from over 31,000 to over 66,000 audiobooks.
Since employees had an ownership stake in the company, when RBMedia was sold, those who worked there earned a cash payout from the sale worth up to two times their salary, KKR said.
In addition to RBMedia, KKR has also invested in another company in the book world: Overdrive, a digital reading platform used in libraries and schools.
Pete Stavros, a co-head of global private equity at KKR, said in an interview that the deal would give Simon & Schuster employees the chance at achieving “a life-impacting amount of wealth.”
Mr. Stavros and Mr. Sarnoff said they saw opportunities for the publisher in international expansion and in audiobooks, a significant point of growth for the industry at large. Mr. Sarnoff said he didn’t expect the deal to have any impact on Simon & Schuster authors.
The road to Monday’s announcement has been long and bumpy.
After Paramount (then called ViacomCBS) reached an agreement to sell Simon & Schuster to Penguin Random House, the country’s largest book publisher, for $2.18 billion, the Biden administration challenged the sale in court. A judge sided with the government last year.
Rather than appeal, Paramount decided to put Simon & Schuster back on the market, obligating Penguin Random House to pay a $200 million termination fee for its trouble, on top of millions in legal costs.
Since the first deal crumbled, Simon & Schuster has performed well and remained an attractive purchase. In the first quarter of 2023, its sales rose to $258 million, up 19 percent from the prior year. Results at other major publishers, by contrast, were disappointing during that period.
Though KKR’s offer for the publisher is less than what Penguin Random House had agreed to pay, the difference in the price is partially offset by the termination fee paid to Paramount and earnings from the publisher. But KKR is an attractive buyer, in part, because it’s unlikely to raise red flags with regulators.
“Paramount doesn’t want to traipse through another deal that goes bust,” said Erik Gordon, a professor at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business. “It wants to sell the business without more surprises.”
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I talked about how I hate the age change in regards to Jyn before, but even disregarding that, I don’t understand how they thought this was consistent with his character in Rogue One? so he’s 31 in the movie, 26 in Andor. the same man who was apparently in the fight since he was six? the same man who blows up on Jyn about not having the luxury of a choice? didn’t even join the rebellion until he was like 27? it just doesn’t compute and is such a disservice to Cassian. literally what is the reason for making him older, it’s completely pointless and only cheapens his character in Rogue One.
I was pretty open to a lot of changes because I think it’s a well-written and enjoyable show, but I hate that it’s at the expense of Cassian’s characterization and I’m frankly reaching my limit for suspension of disbelief
fuck what Andor says, he was born in 26 BBY
#im electing to ignore it but im also gonna be mad a little#i just feel like they said he was 21 during promotions? but i can’t find it anymore#if anyone has an interview where they say that i will be in your debt forever#but anyway i don't get the point#why do you need it to be pre clone wars so badly#it doesn't change anything it's not an important plot point#there was no reason for this#and it doesn't ruin cassian or rebelcaptain for me#what it does ruin is the show#(also apparently peezos was really pills so there's that too)#this isn't you cassian look at me this isn't you!!#shut up sissi#andor spoilers#andor negativity#for anyone needing to filter it#don't come at me saying i need to be patient because i have been and the age change seems pretty final now#so please just#let me be angry
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Behind a table at the far end with various secretaries about him sat his Sufficiency, the governor of the Lone Islands. Gumpas was a bilious looking man with hair that had once been red and was now mostly grey. He glanced up as the strangers entered and then looked down at his papers saying automatically, "No interviews without appointments except between nine and ten p.m. on second Saturdays."
Caspian nodded to Bern and then stood aside. Bern and Drinian took a step forward and each seized one end of the table. They lifted it, and flung it on one side of the hall where it rolled over, scattering a cascade of letters, dossiers, ink-pots, pens, sealing-wax and docu- ments. Then, not roughly but as firmly as if their hands were pincers of steel, they plucked Gumpas out of his chair and deposited him, facing it, about four feet away. Caspian at once sat down in the chair and laid his naked sword across his knees.
"My Lord," said he, fixing his eyes on Gumpas, "you have not given us quite the welcome we expected. We are the King of Narnia."
"Nothing about it in the correspondence," said the governor. "Nothing in the minutes. We have not been notified of any such thing. All irregular. Happy to consider any applications — "
"And we are come to inquire into your Sufficiency's conduct of your office," continued Caspian. "There are two points especially on which I require an explanation. Firstly I find no record that the tribute due from these Islands to the crown of Narnia has been received for about a hundred and fifty years."
"That would be a question to raise at the Council next month," said Gumpas. "If anyone moves that a commission of inquiry be set up to report on the financial history of the islands at the first meeting next year, why then..."
"I also find it very clearly written in our laws," Caspian went on, "that if the tribute is not delivered the whole debt has to be paid by the governor of the Lone Islands out of his private purse."
At this Gumpas began to pay real attention. "Oh, that's quite out of the question," he said. "It is an economic impossibility — er — your Majesty must be joking."
Inside, he was wondering if there were any way of getting rid of these unwelcome visitors. Had he known that Caspian had only one ship and one ship's company with him, he would have spoken soft words for the moment, and hoped to have them all surrounded and killed during the night. But he had seen a ship of war sail down the straits yesterday and seen it signalling, as he supposed, to its consorts. He had not then known it was the king's ship for there was not wind enough to spread the flag out and make the golden lion visible, so he had waited further developments. Now he imagined that Caspian had a whole fleet at Bernstead. It would never have occurred to Gumpas that anyone would walk into Narrowhaven to take the islands with less than fifty men; it was certainly not at all the kind of thing he could imagine doing himself.
"Secondly," said Caspian, "I want to know why you have permitted this abominable and unnatural traffic in slaves to grow up here, contrary to the ancient custom and usage of our dominions."
"Necessary, unavoidable," said his Sufficiency. "An essential part of the economic development of the islands, I assure you. Our present burst of prosperity depends on it."
"What need have you of slaves?"
"For export, your Majesty. Sell 'em to Calormen mostly; and we have other markets. We are a great centre of the trade."
"In other words," said Caspian, "you don't need them. Tell me what purpose they serve except to put money into the pockets of such as Pug?"
"Your Majesty's tender years," said Gumpas, with what was meant to be a fatherly smile, "hardly make it possible that you should under- stand the economic problem involved. I have statistics, I have graphs, I have — "
"Tender as my years may be," said Caspian, "I believe I understand the slave trade from within quite as well as your Sufficiency. And I do not see that it brings into the islands meat or bread or beer or wine or timber or cabbages or books or instruments of music or horses or armour or anything else worth having. But whether it does or not, it must be stopped."
"But that would be putting the clock back," gasped the governor. "Have you no idea of progress, of development?"
"I have seen them both in an egg," said Caspian. "We call it Going Bad in Narnia. This trade must stop."
"I can take no responsibility for any such measure," said Gumpas.
"Very well, then," answered Caspian, "we relieve you of your office. My Lord Bern, come here." And before Gumpas quite realised what was happening, Bern was kneeling with his hands between the King's hands and taking the oath to govern the Lone Islands in accordance with the old customs, rights, usages and laws of Narnia. And Caspian said, "I think we have had enough of governors," and made Bern a Duke, the Duke of the Lone Islands.
"As for you, my Lord," he said to Gumpas, "I forgive you your debt for the tribute. But before noon to-morrow you and yours must be out of the castle, which is now the Duke's residence."
"Look here, this is all very well," said one of Gumpas's secretaries, "but suppose all you gentlemen stop play-acting and we do a little business. The question before us really is — "
"The question is," said the Duke, "whether you and the rest of the rabble will leave without a flogging or with one. You may choose which you prefer."
This is so fucking funny. Why don’t they ever include this in the films?
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Okay, but (sorry for my english) I just really love modern hc where they perform as the band No Name during their school festival (their identities are already known and that people know they belong to one of the most famous group in the school /with nanaba and erwin/).
Levi’s the face of the group and almost half of the fans have him as their bias but they really thinks he’s asexual or bi or even gay since they never knew anyone who had been his girlfriend and he doesn’t seem to be that person to be involved in any romance.
But then he surprises everyone when during their performance, he just grabs hange’s ponytail and kissed her deeply.
And people were just like—oh, shit, wait, what.... levi just—kissed his friend....his....friend.....Hange....the Hange
Then the crowd went wilder and even Levi’s fans just gasped with excitement because—damn that’s hot!
Even Hange herself were surprised but she couldn’t do anything since levi’s grip was too strong, lost in his own world as he ravishes her with kisses as if he doesn’t give a shit about everyone watching them
she doesn’t even know how long it lasted.
Then there’s Erwin in the crowd, capturing every moment with a camera because he’s the only one who wasn’t surprised about this
Stop the presses!
“Breaking news! Levi Ackerman frontman of No Name is having an illicit love affair!”
“It’s not breaking news if everyone already knows...” Porco rolls his eyes. Connie groans. Great. Now Porco is in his shot. The school’s journalism club is essentially him and Sasha with her phone’s camera. They do not have the skill nor the budget to edit him out.
“Who’s he dating then?” Sasha shoots back.
“Heard it’s a girl from another school.” Porco shrugs.
“Heard he’s gay...” Reiner offers.
“You just want him to be gay...” There’s sniggering and Reiner wants to punch Porco, but he’s a man of discipline, so no violence before breakfast.
“It’s just a rumour! He isn’t dating anyone! Levi’s too cool to date.” Eren says, gagging at the mention of the word. A literal child.
“Who would wanna date him?” Mikasa scoffs.
“Everyone in the school apart from you, Mikasa...” Petra says, “he’s dreamy...”
Connie urges the discussion on, Sasha capturing all of this. This is the best content they’ve gotten all week. “Come on! There are no bad answers!”
“Maybe he’s dating a fan?” Bertholdt says.
“Maybe he’s dating Hanji... They do seem rather close?” Pieck says, and the silence and scowls are intended to shame her. Connie looks at the aluminium foil on Pieck’s head. Right. The Signs movie screening organised by the conspiracy society is today.
“No bad answers except that one...” Connie says.
—
“You’re the talk of the town again...” Mike says, “they were discussing you on the school’s YouTube channel.”
Levi tsks. He doesn’t know why Mike bothers with that crap. It’s a pretty high quality production... he had justified, but there’s nothing high quality about Sasha’s shaky hands and Connie’s head covering half the frame. Everyone knows Mike enjoys the gossip, and there’s no one that enjoys it more. Except maybe Erwin.
“Do tell! Who is the enigmatic Levi Ackerman dating?” Erwin teases. He knows he’s not getting anything out of tight-lipped Levi. But it’s still worth a shot. Also worth seeing how annoyed he can get. Plus it’s not like they don’t already know.
If the canteen hadn’t been so goddamn full, Levi would’ve relocated long ago. Then again, his lunch groups hasn’t changed since his first day at school. The routine works.
“I’m sure you boys would be the first to know...” Nanaba chuckles. She had been the first to know and frankly. Levi’s inability to confess has been getting stifling. The only thing that really breaks the conversation though? Hanji tripping and landing face first on the table, lucky for her Levi moves her tray out of the way, saving her lunch, “watch it four eyes!”
“What did I miss?” Hanji asks, eyes already gleaming at the possibility of new knowledge.
“We were just talking about Levi’s illicit love affair.” Mike says. This is getting interesting.
“Awww Levi! You didn’t tell your ol’ pal Hanji that you were seeing someone?”
The rest of them exchange looks. God she’s so goddamn oblivious.
“Eat. We’ve got band practice before class.” Levi says, fingers already working to peel Hanji’s orange for her.
Nanaba winces. So goddamn oblivious.
—
“So we enter school today and Sasha what do we see?”
“Merch!” Sasha pops in front of the screen and does jazz hands with Connie.
“In the lead up to the big No Name concert, everyone’s donning their best No Name merch! First, let’s speak to the best in the game, Armin Arlert.”
Armin fidgets awkwardly, “ahaha I’m just a fan who just happens to make high quality merch.” Modest for someone earning big bucks from his enterprise.
“Ah... And you have competition this year!” Connie says into the microphone, which is really just rolled up newspaper.
“Well... The quality of my work speaks for itself...” Armin smiles sheepishly at the camera, but there’s something insidious in his eyes. Armin has to admit having sole monopoly over No Name merchandising in school has gone a little stale. Surely a little competition will spice things up.
“So Zeke, care to tell us more about your entry into the merchandise game?” Connie asks the bearded boy. Who has a full grown beard at their age? Connie makes a mental note to insert “sells bootleg merch” in the little panel that runs below Zeke’s interview. The whole school is also pretty sure Zeke had been behind the whole oregano debacle last year- someone had been passing oregano off as weed and selling it to the younglings.
“What’s there to say? Mine’s cheaper.” Zeke winks.
“So, satisfied customer. Why did you choose to buy Armin’s merch over Zeke’s?” Connie asks.
Pieck glances down at her Hanji shirt, “Armin got Hanji’s nose right.” She smiles.
In the background Armin and Eren are yelling at one another.
“How could you Eren! I thought we were best friends!” Armin says. Maybe the competition spiced things up a little too much.
“It was cheaper Armin! So much cheaper!”
Eren is wearing the ugliest shirt in school so, is it really worth it though?
—
“We are absolutely not blowing our budget on a confetti canon!”
“But Levi!” Hanji whines, “you already rejected so many of my ideas...”
“May I remind you that your previous ideas include a guillotine on stage, you repelling from the ceiling-“
“A tiger...” Mike adds and Hanji shoots him a look, traitor...
“It was two tigers...” she mutters under her breath. “Aww Levi you never let me do anything fun!” She pouts and Mike watches as Levi’s resolve slips an inch. There’s nothing more disgusting than the weakness of a man in love. Mike rolls his eyes. He had told Erwin if he wanted in on the action, he should join their band. There’s just so much to see that Mike has honestly had his fill. Or maybe he’s just saying it. Damn Nanaba was right, he enjoys this more than he’d care to admit.
“If you shut up through the next five songs, I’ll buy you dinner.”
“What about me?” Mike huffs.
“Deal!” Hanji shouts triumphantly, “and if you let me sing the chorus with you on this next song at the concert I’ll buy you dessert!”
“Almost as if I’m invisible...” Mike mutters.
“Fine... Deal... If you can hit the notes that is...”
“Ohhhh snap!” Mike says, and Levi turns to him for a high five. Mike smashes a beat on his drums. Hanji deadpans.
Ba dum fuckin tiss indeed.
—
“So it’s two days before the festival and the big No Name concert. Today, we’ve got a special treat for you. Roving reporter Jean Kirschtein will find out more about Levi’s love affair, straight from the horse’s mouth!”
Jean shoots Connie a dirty look. But the pun had not been intended. Connie mouths a quick apology before continuing, “but first, a word with the people closest to him-“ Connie nudges Jean towards the general direction of Erwin, Nanaba and Mike. Remember you owe me Jean! Connie whispers harshly when he senses his friend’s hesitation, now go!
Jean groans once more. God his reputation was going to take a hit. He’s vice captain of the soccer team for God’s sake. He doesn’t need this.
“Erwin Smith! A word? Uh... Thoughts on the rumours surrounding Levi Ackerman’s love life?” Jean asks. “Erwin Smith, football captain, history club president, student council treasurer, overall overachiever, and Levi Ackerman’s friend” appears on the screen. They all know if anyone’s likely to spill, it’s going to be Erwin.
Erwin’s eyes light up, he’s finally going on the channel he watches religiously with Mike. There’s so much he can contribute, so much gossip to share, so much insight. Maybe they would even invite him as a panelist on their show. The sheer power! He looks at Nanaba and she frowns at him and shakes her head. Ah damn it! He knows she’ll tear into him if he divulges too much.
“That’s strictly on a need to know basis.” Erwin grins.
“Well... Can you give us anything at all?” Jean asks. Please for the love of god he needs to pay Connie back somehow for setting him up on that date with Mikasa. God is generous but he can easily take it all away.
“We have good, solid guesses, but other than that... No... We can’t confirm anything...” Erwin answers, but not before glancing at Nanaba. She’s nodding. Good, that’s a good answer. Ambiguous enough to keep people wanting. Erwin is relieved. Jean isn’t however, he’s now certain that his debt is going to be rolled along a tab he will soon never be able to pay.
“Oh and the history society’s having quiz night next week, be there or be square!” Erwin plugs.
“Nerd!” Nile yells from across the hallway and Mike chortles.
It doesn’t take Jean long to find Hanji, after all she’s president of the biology club, so why wouldn’t she be in a lab elbow deep in a vat of something Jean doesn’t want to know the name of. It’s her kingdom with a whopping total of four subjects.
“Hanji Zoë, I’m here to ask for the latest on Levi Ackerman’s love life-“
Hanji Zoë- the school’s resident oddball, the genius herself, in the flesh, eating a checkerboard cookie. She looks up at him and there are crumbs on her face.
“Oh! Hi Jean!” Hanji looks up momentarily, “that’s easy, Levi’s in love with me.” She winks at Jean and chuckles. Jean’s jaw drops, surely she’s kidding. Hanji’s known for that after all- her quick wit and dismal personal hygiene. He chuckles awkwardly. “Yeah... Okay...”
“See you at the concert?” She beams at him and he replies enthusiastically. Is she kidding? Everyone’s gonna be there. But Jean remains strategic, he leaves right before she gets the chance to talk his ear off about joining her club again. “Shoot... There goes another one...” she says under her breath as he exits the lab.
Jean bumps into Levi when he’s leaving the lab, odd, what’s Levi doing here, no matter, Jean has a job to do.
“Levi Ackerman! Care to comment on the recent rumours surrounding your-“
“No.” Levi interjects and heads off.
Jean flips the camera so he’s in it, “well, that’s the scoop. Back to you Connie and Sasha.”
—
“It’s the day of the festival! But really the whole school is buzzing with anticipation for the No Name concert!” Connie announces into his makeshift mic.
“Will there be another accident on-stage this time? Will Levi Ackerman reveal more on his secret romance? Is there even a secret romance to begin with? More importantly, will Porco Galliard finally pay for his own food at the festival?”
“Hey!” Porco whips his head around to glare at Connie, “did Reiner get you to say that?”
Connie shrugs, “we’ll find out after these messages...”
The concert is a blast, from a spectacular entrance (choreographed, no doubt, by one Hanji Zoë), to Mike’s drum solo, to Levi’s vocal riffs. But there’s an anticipation of another sort- will Levi Ackerman finally address the rumours of his love affair?
“My Levi-Hanji senses are tingling Nanaba...” Erwin says mid-concert. As the self-proclaimed expert on school gossip, there’s no gossip sweeter than that which surrounds his two best friends. Nanaba thinks it’s an overstatement of his abilities.
But Nanaba feels it too- the electricity in the air, “i think it’s finally happening!” She says, nothing short of a vision.
Levi announces the last song for the night, and he makes his way over to Hanji during the last chorus.
HUH?
Sasha’s cameras are rolling. She holds her breath, for what she doesn’t know, but she feels it coming, call it director’s intuition if you will.
Hanji looks at Levi and beams past the bandages over their eyes, now upgraded to a material they can actually see through, ever since that one accident with Hanji trying to execute a stage dive completely blind. It’s not fun explaining to the ER nurse how you managed to fracture your arm in so many locations.
Hanji’s expression changes to one of confusion when Levi closes the distance between them. This isn’t part of any plan. Her lips part in a gasp. The crowd falls silence, breath collectively held in anticipation. It’s happening. The most significant and exciting moment of their young lives.
What in the name of Maria, Rose, and Sheena!
Levi grabs Hanji by her ponytail and crashes his lips into hers. She forgets how to function, her guitar now hanging limp and forgotten. But her arms find their way around Levi’s neck. It’s just Mike on the drums now, roaring with laughter.
“Hell yes!” Mike exclaims and it’s captured by one of the mics, joined by Nanaba and Erwin at exactly the same time. There’s a flash from Erwin’s phone, there, immortalised in a photo forever. He knows it’ll come in handy one day. For blackmail or for a future wedding montage. Either is fine.
What just happened?
Connie’s jaw is hanging.
“Levi Ackerman and... and... Hanji Zoë?” Connie says, more for his own benefit than for his audience. Because this is Hanji they’re talking about? The Hanji Zoë? Resident evil genius, overall weirdo, oddly magnetic and popular amongst both the boys and the girls, Levi’s childhood friend Hanji Zoë? The answer had been staring them right in the face! Levi at the biology labs, Levi glowering at her, the bickering, the chemistry on and off stage.
Connie whips his head over to Pieck, and she winks at him, told you so!
“I don’t believe it! Stop the presses! Levi Ackerman, frontman of No Name, in love with the brilliant, the magnetic, the one and only... Hanji Zoë!”
Hanji is kissing Levi back with fervour, until they’re both blushing and giddy, the music long forgotten, and when everyone is done gawking, the crowd erupts in violent cheering. Who would’ve thought emotionally constipated Levi, Levi whose private life has been kept a secret for so long, safe from the prying hands of the school press and his loyal fans, would choose to make an announcement like this. What a night! What a spectacle!
“I guess that’s all for tonight folks, and what a fantastic and surprising evening it has been!” Connie laughs, “I’m Connie Springer, and you heard it here first!”
The confetti canon goes off. And Hanji watches with uninhibited joy as confetti rains down on the stage.
“So... Tigers next time?” Hanji says, unwrapping the bandages from her face, her eyes glazed over and more beautiful than anything Levi has ever seen. He scoffs, pressing another kiss to her lips for posterity.
“Don’t push it...”
(A/N: prompt so good I had to write a mini fic! Thank you anon💖💖💖)
#yes it me pretending the manga and its spoilers don’t exist#thank you anon💖#anon#inbox#Drabble#levihan#levihan fanfic#Levi x hange#Hanji Zoë#hange zoe#Levi Ackerman#mine#shingeki no kyojin
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Accidently Married | Tom Hiddleston x OFC | Chapter 4 | You should worry about the people you care about. I mean, I worry about you all the time.
A/N: Tom makes certain comments about an ex (who is unnamed). It is a fictional girlfriend, take from it what you will. Keep your hate to yourself.
SERIES MASTERLIST HERE
Pairing: Tom Hiddleston x OFC (Molly Bishop)
Summary: Tom is stuck in a news cycle from hell; Molly is stuck in the dead end job of bartending with a pile of student and credit debt. Tom has an idea to solve all their problems. Get married, get the paparazzi off his back, divorce after a year and Tom pays off Molly’s debts. Tom has everything figured out, that is until he sees Molly as more than a just a friend and so does someone else. In this vying for affections who will win, the handsome Brit or the boy from Boston?
This Chapter: Molly is making friends and life is settling into a routine until Molly gets sick and Tom takes care of her.
Warnings: fake marriage, smut (vaginal sex), mentions of: child abuse/neglect, foster care, substance abuse, cheating.
TAGLIST IS OPEN! PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF YOU WANT TO BE TAGGED! THANK YOU FOR READING!
–
Molly left that afternoon with two new numbers in her phone and a lunch date for next week.
“Can’t believe you are having lunch with my mother and sister without me.” Tom pouted on the way back.
“Once they heard I wasn’t working and didn’t know anyone, they insisted. Was I supposed to say no?”
“You could have scheduled it when I could come.”
“But you are so busy. And talented.” She poked his side.
“I’m driving here, darling.”
“Sorry, but just one question…” They pulled up to a red light.”
“What?”
“Are you ticklish?” she attacked his side and Tom squirmed and giggled.
“You will be the death of me.” He panted as Molly stopped when the light was green.
“Note to self. Tom is very ticklish.”
“No, no notes to self. That is something you can promptly forget.”
Molly batted her eyelashes. “But real husbands and wives would know these things about each other. We have to pull this off for an entire year, right?”
“Fine, but expect revenge.” Tom wagged a finger at Molly.
“I’ll sleep with one eye open.”
-
Over the next several weeks, Tom and Molly fell in a routine. The marriage certificate came in the mail and they applied for a family visa for Molly to stay there.
“I didn’t think you would want to become a citizen.”
Molly smirked. “No, not right now.”
A new debit card came in for Molly.
“With great power…” Tom handed it over.
“Yeah, yeah, Loki.” she tucked into her wallet. “I am burdened with glorious purpose. To keep you well fed.”
Molly had a standing date with Emma every two weeks, much to Tom’s consternation. They continued running together in the mornings. Tom, more often than not, ended it with a kiss.
“This is becoming quite the nasty habit, Mr. Hiddleston.” she commented one morning.
“Then stop me, Mrs. Hiddleston.” He pecked her lips again.
Molly blushed. “You just love what they are saying about us in the papers.” She pushed Tom away and towards the door.
“I will admit the good news is definitely a perk. Plus, you are such lovely company.” He went to hug her, but she pushed him away.
“You are all sweaty, Tom. Take a shower and I will make breakfast.”
“French toast?” he asked hopefully.
“You ate the last of the bread yesterday.”
“Pancakes?”
“I think I can swing pancakes, if…” She held up a finger. “You also eat a side of fruit.”
“Deal.” Tom headed towards his room wearing a huge grin.
Molly shook her head as she grabbed a mixing bowl out. “Lunatic.”
-
One morning, Molly wasn’t awake when Tom got up to run. She almost always beat Tom up, sipping a cup of tea in the living room, reading a magazine or one of the books from his shelf. There was a small stack building on a side table of the ones she finished reading. But that morning, no half-drunk cup of tea perched precariously on the coffee table. No crossword puzzle half done in pen.
Tom peaked into Molly’s bedroom. The covers, in colors of navy and grey, just like his, pulled up tight around her. There were a few prints of classic travel posters on the wall.
“Molly, darling.” He called out. Usually that was all it took to roust Molly from her sleep and get her going for the day. Today, nothing. Tom stepped into the room. He felt like an intruder in his own home.
“It’s time for our run, love.” He said a bit louder this time.
Molly rolled over, groaning and coughing. Tom’s brow furrowed. He didn’t like the sound of that cough. Tom sat down on the edge of the bed and rocked Molly gently by the shoulder.
“Are you feeling okay, darling?” He hoped it was just allergies or waking up in the morning. But then she woke up.
“Uggh, Tom?” Molly croaked out before rolling onto her back. She was pale. So much more pale than usual. She coughed again, covering her mouth.
“It’s me, Molly. Are you feeling alright?” He repeated. “That’s some cough.”
“I’m fine, fine. It’s just,” She waved him off and pushed up to sitting, only to fall back onto the pillows. “oh, that’s not good.”
Tom placed the back of his hand to her forehead and replaced it with his lips, checking her temperature. She was running hot.
“You have a fever. I’m making you an appointment to see the doctor.” He stood, but Molly caught his wrist. Her palm clammy against Tom’s skin.
“No! It’s just a cold. Go on your run. I’ll be fine. I just need some sleep.” She insisted.
“Are you sure? It’s no trouble.”
“Go. I’ll be fine.”
Tom leaned down and kissed her very warm forehead. “I’ll keep it short. Go back to sleep.”
Molly nodded and rolled over. Tom tucked the covers around her and headed out. He barely made it to the end of the street before he returned home. It confirmed his fears when he stepped back inside and heard Molly coughing. Tom grabbed the phone and searched for a number and called it.
“Yes, Urgent Care? Do you have any appointments today? Name? Molly Hiddleston. Thank you.”
-
Tom helped Molly get dressed, averting his eyes when appropriate. Her entire body burned under his fingertips, but Tom noticed her shivering. She stumbled to the car where she slept the entire ride over to urgent care. Tom did his best to fill out the paperwork.
“What do you put for family history?”
“Nothing. Unless there is a place for mental illness, then check that. That’s all I know about. Mom didn’t chat much.” Molly muttered, leaning heavily against Tom. “Meth does that…” Her brow furrowed and she coughed again.
“Shh, darling.” Tom soothed her. “Only happy thoughts.”
Molly hummed and smiled. “Happy thoughts.” More coughing.
It took twenty minutes before they called Molly back. They didn’t let Tom back with her. He alternated between sitting with a bouncing knee, pretending to read on his phone and pacing the waiting room, making the other people nervous. After forty-five minutes, before Molly returned with several papers in her hand. She coughed again.
“Upper respiratory infection,” cough. “Along with a sinus infection and a viral infection.”
Tom smiled. “Triple threat. Let’s get you home.”
Molly’s hand, holding the papers, flopped up. “I have prescriptions and they want to see me again in two weeks. To make sure I don’t get pneumonia.”
Tom’s eyes widened. “That’s a possibility?”
Molly nodded. “It’s all in here.”
Tom took all the papers, skimming them, including a script for antibiotics as well as a cough suppressant. It all sounded grim. “Let’s get you to bed and I will take care of getting these filled.”
Molly coughed and nodded. “Thank you.”
She fell back asleep in the car. Tom carried into the house, not having the heart to wake her up again, and settled her into his bed, which was bigger, more comfortable and the bathroom was right there. Once she was settled and asleep, he headed off to the pharmacy. While waiting in line, Tom dialed Luke.
“Luke, is there anything absolutely pressing in the schedule for the next three days?” he asked after Luke picked up.
“Nothing I can’t reschedule, why?”
“Molly’s ill.” He bit his lips and sighed. “The doctors are afraid it might turn into pneumonia. And I…”
“Consider your schedule cleared until Monday. And tell her I hope she feels better soon.”
“Thanks, Luke. I’m worried about her.”
“That’s because you love her, Tom. You should worry about the people you care about. I mean, I worry about you all the time.” Luke chuckled.
Tom paused at Luke’s words but pushed it away. Of course he cared for Molly. That has the tendency to happen when you live with a person for nearly three months. Especially someone as congenial as Molly. Congenial wasn’t the word. Lovely. Molly was lovely. He laughed it off. “I worry about you too, Luke. I got to go.”
“Take care of her. Bye, Tom.”
After picking you the medicine, Tom popped into the grocery store and picked up some soup, drinks, and Molly’s favorite cookies. When he got back, she was still asleep. And still coughing. He put away the groceries and then checked on her.
“Darling, I’m back with the medicine. Time to take it.” He helped her sit up, Molly groaning the entire time. She swallowed the pill with a sip of water, gagging.
“That’s awful!” she coughed.
“Now the cough medicine.” Tom poured out the cough syrup and handed it over to Molly. She hesitated, sniffing it first. “Take the medicine and get a biscuit.” He held up a package of cookies.
“They’re cookies. I thought I ate the last of them.” she moaned, downing the cough syrup. Her face contorted. Tom smiled and handed her two cookies. “Good girl. Now rest. I’ll check on you in a few hours.”
“Don’t you have work?” Molly muttered as she laid back down. Tom pulled the covers over her, putting the cookies on the nightstand. “You had… interviews… or something…”
“My schedule is clear through the weekend. I am at your disposal.” Tom rubbed Molly’s back, and she purred.
“You don’t need to do that.” She half-heartedly complained, dozing off.
“And leave you to fend for yourself? What kind of husband would I be? It was no trouble. Now sleep, darling.”
“Mmm… kay.”
-
Tom busied himself with absolutely nothing. He flitted from reading a book to watching a TV show to peeking into the bedroom. At one point, when Molly was particularly quiet, he seriously contemplated putting a mirror under her nose to just make sure he was still breathing. He managed to get her to eat half a bowl of soup.
“You need to eat, love.” he scolded.
Molly coughed and croaked. “Says the man who considers chocolate a food group.”
“Look at that, some humour.” Tom smiled. “Eat please.”
“Yes, sir.” She slurped the soup off the spoon before falling back asleep.
Tom, worried, did the unthinkable. He called his mum for advice.
“She’s coughing. A lot. And all she does is sleep.” Tom ran his hands through his hair.
“Is she eating, love?” Diana asked. Tom could feel the smile across the phone.
“A bit, but not as much as usual. I brought her soup.”
“Soup is good. And she is taking her medicine?”
Tom nodded. “I set a timer.”
“Of course you did. And the fever?”
Tom blinked. “What about her fever?”
“Has it broken?”
“I don’t—”
“Tom!” Molly’s bedraggled voice called out.
“I gotta go. She needs me.” Tom hung up the phone and sprinted to the room.
“Molly! What is it?” He noted she was shivering.
“I’m cold.” she chattered. Tom grabbed the blanket at the foot of his bed.
“Is that better?” He tucked it under Molly’s chin. Tom touched her forehead. Hot.
“Much.”
“I’ll let you rest.” He patted her shoulder and stood. Molly reached out for him.
“Stay.” She coughed. “At least until I fall asleep. Please lie down. Just five minutes.”
Tom’s heart broke in that moment for Molly. That confident woman he grew so fond of seemed so small in that moment.
“Of course, I’ll stay. Anything for you.” Tom crawled on top of the covers next to Molly. He laced his fingers in hers. He heard her exhaled, and he exhaled too.
“Sleep well, darling.” But Molly had already fallen asleep. Tom soon followed.
-
Molly woke the next morning in sweat soaked pajamas and on top of drenched sheets. She still coughed, but her fever was gone. As she blinked her eyes open, Molly realized she wasn’t in her bed, but Tom’s. And Tom was there too. Asleep next to her, fully dressed, holding her hand. She had vague memories of Tom bringing her soup and her asking him to stay. And some very not safe for work dreams.
“Fever dreams.” she muttered. “Tom…” Molly rocked his shoulder.
“Huh?” Tom sat up. “I guess I was more tired than I thought.”
“It’s hard to be a nurse. I think your sheets may need washing.” she smiled.
Tom pressed his lips to her forehead. “No fever.” His spirits lifted.
“It must have broken last night.”
“Feeling better?” he asked.
“Yes.”
Tom noticed their hands still laced together. He let go and stood up. He made a poor attempt at smoothing out his sleep wrinkled clothes. “Up to move to the couch? And maybe some movies?”
“I would like that.” She slowly sat up and got out of bed. “But first a shower.”
Tom frowned. “First medicine, then shower.”
“Nurse Ratched.” Tom didn’t smile or budge. Molly sighed. “Fine, medicine, the shower.”
Tom grabbed the bottles and dispensed the medicine, which she took still gagging. “And a biscuit.” He handed her a cookie.
“Cookie.” She popped it into her mouth and headed off to her room and Tom went to his own bathroom.
-
Once they were both showered and dressed, Tom popped his sheets into the laundry and made a makeshift bed on the couch for Molly.
“You pick the movie.” she offered. “That way if I fall asleep, you won’t be bored.”
Tom picked The Jungle Book. “One of my favorites as a child. I still watch it when I feel under the weather.”
“I don’t think I have seen it.”
Tom’s mouth fell open. “That is a travesty.”
Molly shrugged her shoulders. “You know, group homes, foster care…”
Tom stopped. “Well, we are going to watch this right now and you can listen to the vocal genius that is George Sanders as Shere Khan.”
“More of a vocal genius than you?” Molly raised an eyebrow while she settled onto the couch.
Tom blushed. “A man-cub, how delightful.” He purred deep in his chest, sending shivers through Molly.
By the end of the movie, Molly’s head was in Tom’s lap and his hand in hers. They watched Disney movies for the rest of day, alternating picking the title. Tom made sure she took her meds on time and ate more than just cookies.
“I will eat a meal if you do.” Molly chided.
They both ate soup and Tom also ate a sandwich. It was late when they finished up Robin Hood. Molly stretched and sat up.
“I should go to bed.”
“I can put the sheets back on the bed.” Tom moved, but she stopped him, squeezing his hand.
“My bed. But I will keep the door open so you can spy on me.” She smirked. “I can’t take your bed again.”
“It’s fine if you did. I don’t mind sharing.”
“I know but…” She glanced away. “We should keep our own space. To keep things from getting complicated.”
Tom nodded. “Right. No complications here.” he lied to her and to himself.
Molly hugged Tom tight. “Thank you for everything, Tom.”
“My pleasure.”
She coughed a bit as she headed off to her room. Tom turned off the TV and cleaned the dishes before going to bed himself. He spent most of the night tossing and turning.
#tom hiddleston#tom hiddleston fanfiction#tom hiddleston fanfic#tom hiddleston imagine#tom hiddleston fluff#tom hiddleston x ofc#accidently married
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Day 9, 1/2 of the A/PI Heritage Month featured authors interview! Please welcome to the stage... Bubs!
Bubs, author of To The Whistling Winds
A/PI Heritage Month Featured Author
You’re a pretty normal young adult living in the 21st century: you have exceeding amounts of student loan debt, a housemate, and a job that pays just above minimum wage. You didn’t exactly dream of being a tour guide for the historical Chester Theme Park, but you’ve grown used to your every day life.
You thought you knew the park better than anyone, but as the friendly surface begins to crack and unexplainable events begin happening, you’ll need help dealing with the vengeful Fae, who seem to have a bone to pick with you in particular. Fortunately—or maybe unfortunately—there seem to be a Covey of fae seekers that might be inclined to help you…
(INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT UNDER THE CUT)
Q1: First of all, introduce us to your project! What is it about?
Hi! My interactive fiction game is called “To the Whistling Winds,” and it’s a magical realism mystery set in modern day. The player plays as a tour guide at a Southern Californian theme park, where strange events have begun occurring.The plot and lore of the story draws from folktales about the Fae, as well as the general air of conspiracy and mystery revolving around liminal spaces such as theme parks.
Q2: If it’s not too spoilery, what are you most excited about your project?
I’m really proud of my cast of characters and the stories they each have. Each of the non-playable characters that the player can choose to bond with have their own dynamics and inner turmoil unrelated to the player, and I really am excited to explore them. Furthermore, there are some twists and more dramatic scenes I’m excited to write,especially considering that the earlier chapters thus far have been pretty slice-of-life.
Q3: What inspired the current project you’re working on?
Theme parks and spaces designed specifically for amusement, especially certain ones that have been around for a while and have established their own brands, really have their own modern folk stories told about them. There’s a common thread between the kinds of stories told about theme parks that were once told about space such as open fields or mysterious meadows, and I really wanted to explore it!The idea of nostalgia and a “perfect memory” is also really interesting to me. So much of the appeal of theme parks has to do with reliving the past or recapturing a certain feeling, and Fae folktales often feature listless protagonists who are aspiring after exactly that.
Q4: Do you pull from your own identity for inspiration? How has that been reflected in your work?
I think being Asian-American has definitely influenced my story, from the player character to the general setting. For example, character customization is really important to me, and I’m careful that the MC doesn’t have a set ethnicity. It’s not uncommon for IF games to have a racially-neutral MC, but then go back and say something about their parents having blue eyes, or them having specifically celebrated something like Easter, so I try to be mindful about that. I also have a lot of fun writing my cast, many of whom come from different backgrounds! There are two romanceable characters that are Asian: Clémence Choi (who’s Korean with French nationality), and Alejandro Flores, who’s Filipino. Additionally, the player character’s roommate, Julia Reddiar, is Indian-American.
Being Asian is a pivotal part of Clémence and Alejandro’s respective backstories - they more than their ethnicities of course, but that doesn't mean it doesn’t have an impact on their life. Alejandro’s an aspiring actor, and part of the reason he struggles to find work is because roles for white actors are just easier to come by. Clémence has spent a lot of her life wanting to fit into just one box - Korean or French. I was also mindful of a lot of stereotypes relating to Asian romantic interests while writing their romantic routes: such as how Asian women are often exoticized and hypersexualized, while Asian men are desexualized and brushed off as unattractive. That's not to say that either of the characters are me, or that I only relate to the Asian characters! I actually think the character I most relate to is Bridget Sweeney, who’s white Irish,but is very creative and restless in a way I can really identify with.
Q5: What’s been your experience so far? With writing,with the if community...
The community has been really great! I think I’ve been relatively lucky in my interactions with my fellow authors and players: most people I've met have been really nice and helpful. Talking to them always motivates and inspires me. Some real life events have gotten in the way of more steady writing, but I’m hoping to update the public demo again soon!
Q6: Do you have any future projects in the works?
Honestly, something I’m debating is just moving TTWW from ChoiceScript to Twine, but that’s mostly hypothetical right now. I’m not the kind of person who multi-tasks well, so I wouldn’t start another interactive fiction until TTWW is done, but I’d love to write a classic murder mystery on a train.
Q7: Finally, what piece of advice would you give to fellow authors?
Nothing’s helped me more than the website MyNoise (not sponsored, LOL). I love listening to different soundscapes to get me into the mind of my character, whether it be a mysterious forest or a busy tourist destination. It really helps!
#if: events#Happy Asian and Pacific Islander month!!#Asian/pacific islander month 2021#a/pi month#a/pi month 2021#aapiheritagemonth#aapi month#interactive fiction#authors of color
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