#if hes not in the 7th layer Ill cry

[sweetmapple]

Even archangels have disappointing pizza roll nights

[rhinozilla]

Whumptober Day 28: Beaten

Summary: One week after the revolution, staff androids return to the 7th Precinct station seeking shelter and refuge. They've clearly been through Hell, and the officers left at the DPD don't have the heart to turn them away.

--

Barely a week had passed since the revolution, and the city of Detroit was still shaken to its core. One week since all the staff androids had walked out of the DPD station, freed and deviant and…all looking a little shaken themselves, if Wilson was honest.

He couldn’t imagine what it was like: to be a machine for your whole existence, only to suddenly be woken up one day and discover you have feelings, wants, likes, dislikes, fears, the whole mess. It was hard enough when you had a whole childhood to figure out how to process things before reaching a hopefully well adjusted adulthood. No android ever got that, and it had showed in the somewhat aimless way that the androids at the 7th precinct had shuffled out of the station, until someone from Jericho arrived to guide them.

Like every other establishment in Detroit, the event had left the precinct with a skeleton crew of exhausted humans, all having to wear multiple hats to try and keep things running. Fowler had been forced to call Hank back from his suspension and Gavin back from his medical leave for his concussion. Between the riots, the protests, the evacuations, and the icy, rainy, slushy weather outside, the city was a mess. The military was maintaining a strong presence on the streets, but they were barely controlling the situations cropping up either.

The night one week after the revolution found the station manned by Wilson, Captain Fowler, and Wilson’s mother, who had volunteered to help answer phones and work around the office. Otis and Rita Wilson had a combined 50 years of police career experience between them, and Fowler had been desperate, so he had allowed Rita to clock in. Otis and Wilson’s brother Mike were still working around the clock at the 04, and his brother’s texts had said the scene wasn’t very different there.

Everybody else at the 07 had been sent out on patrols and new cases, and it left the bullpen eerily empty and quiet. Around 8 pm, that changed when the phone at his desk rang from reception.

“Yeah?” Wilson greeted tiredly, rubbing his eyes.

“Lawrence, we’ve got androids,” his mother said on the other end of the line.

Wilson was on his feet then. “Coming.”

He hung up the phone and hastily made his way through to the front reception area of the station. Sure enough, Rita was standing behind the desk, staring uncertainly at the group of androids who had just shuffled through the front doors. Wilson’s first instinct was to reach for his weapon, but he repressed it, taking in the sorry state of the group.

There were six in total, four wearing standard issue android DPD uniforms. The other two were in civilian clothes. Two of the six had white plastic showing in patches through their synthetic skin due to damage. One of them, Wilson recognized as one of the ST300 models who had worked reception at this very precinct.

“Polly?!” he stammered, taking a step closer while maintaining a cautious distance.

Polly was still in her DPD receptionist uniform, her LED a cycling red that clashed with the blue blood coating one side of her face. She was only standing with the assistance of another ST300 that was in civilian clothes, whose LED was solid red and with eyes wide as she held onto her fellow android.

“She said this place would be safe,” the other ST300 said, her voice shaky but trying to stay even. “Was she right?”

Wilson stared at them all, at their dirty, torn, wet Cyberlife issued uniforms and ill fitting human clothes, their trembling limbs, their wide, frightened eyes. They were bruised and bleeding, and those who still had their LEDs had lights of solid red or yellow on their temples. The other five were somewhat huddling behind the other ST300, who looked equally terrified but like she had been shoved into the position of leader for this motley crew out of necessity.

“Yes,” he answered. “Jericho might be safer for you though.”

The ST300’s face twisted with something approximating anger. “Yeah, I’m not going to them.”

“Why—“ Wilson started.

“Captain, there are six androids here seeking shelter,” Rita cut in, speaking into the phone. “Yes, they’re already inside…No, I don’t see any weapons—“

“Please,” one of the PC200s behind Polly pleaded. “Cyberlife has closed its doors, and this is the only place that I have ever known—“ He looked around at the familiarity of the station’s walls until his gaze landed desperately back on Wilson. “I don’t want to go back out there on my own.”

Wilson didn’t know what to say to that. What COULD he say to that?

Polly abruptly collapsed in the ST300’s arms, her knees buckling as she folded toward the floor.

“Hey!” her friend called, struggling to hold onto her.

Instinct took over, and Wilson swept over, helping her to slow Polly’s collapse so she didn’t hit the floor. Upon closer inspection, the thirium was bleeding from a deep wound to the side of her head, and he could see exposed wiring under her hair.

“Polly?” he asked, shaking her arm lightly. He looked to the leader. “I don’t know how to help her. We only have very basic repair supplies.”

The ST300’s dark eyes softened with the barest shred of hope. “I-I can work with that. Please, we just need a place to stay tonight—“

“What is this?” Captain Fowler reached them, standing imposingly on the scene.

“Captain,” the PC200 said, standing at attention.

“Zeke?” Fowler blinked, frowning at them. “Polly?”

“She’s damaged,” Wilson reported, gathering the limp android in his arms. “This one says she can probably fix her with what we have on hand.”

Fowler looked at the leader. “Were you DPD?”

“No,” she said, standing with Wilson as he got up, carrying Polly. “My name is Julia.” She looked with concern to Polly. “Her charging cells were damaged. Our model was designed to carry nearly 300 percent battery power for…for humans to recharge their devices off us.” She scowled but quickly collected herself. “I can manually transfer power to her, but not out there…”

“We can help around here too!” Zeke stated. “We can work in exchange for shelter tonight.”

Wilson met his captain’s eyes, feeling thirium starting to stain his jacket where Polly’s head was tucked against him. “Sir…”

Fowler stared at them all then heaved a sigh. “Jesus Christ…Fine. Do any of you have any weapons on your persons?”

The other androids all echoed negatives, but Julia carefully held her hands out in full view.

“I found a gun. I have it tucked in my belt.”

“Turn around,” Fowler ordered.

Julia obediently kept her arms raised as she put her back to him. Fowler approached her and found the gun jammed into her belt at her back. He relieved her of it and looked to Wilson.

“Take them to the conference room. See if we have enough in Lost and Found for them to wear. Zeke, you come with me.”

“Sir,” Zeke nodded, following Fowler back into the main station.

Wilson exchanged a look with his mother. Rita was chewing on her lip. She yanked her own thick wool coat off the back of her chair and swept around the front of the reception desk.

“Here, take this,” she said, wrapping the coat around Polly in Wilson’s arms. “Poor thing…”

Wilson led the other androids back into the bullpen. A PM700 that he thought was named Gwen stepped ahead, opening the door for him to carry Polly inside. A herd of squeaky wet shoes followed him in, and he carefully laid the android down on the table, situating Rita’s coat over her. Gwen immediately took over tending to her, and Wilson pointed at Julia.

“You with me.”

As the rest of the androids shuffled into the conference room, dripping and shaking, Julia kept a stiff upper lip, marching after Wilson toward the Lost and Found clothing box in the locker room. It was a pathetic little bundle of clothes, and he grabbed some leftover DPD t-shirts and pants to make up for the shortage.

“Why aren’t you all going to Jericho?” he asked, handing one of the stacks to her.

“I told them they could go,” Julia said, carrying the stack out of the locker room with Wilson. “But when I said I wasn’t, they insisted on coming with me…” She cast her eyes elsewhere. “None of us know—“ She froze abruptly. “This is the 07…Is the RK800 here?!”

She looked around in a panic, and Wilson removed one hand from the box he was carrying, trying to calm her.

“No. I haven’t seen him around here since the revolution.”

Julia visibly relaxed, and Wilson frowned.

“You know he…deviated too, right? He’s not…after you guys anymore.”

Julia didn’t look overly comforted by that. “Just as long as he isn’t here…”

Wilson eyed her, then reached over toward Gavin’s desk as they passed by. He yanked the detective’s heavy jacket off the back of his chair, tossing it over Julia’s shoulder.

“Take that one too. He’s got a hundred of these just like it.”

Julia startled slightly but reluctantly took the jacket. “Thank you…” She read his name patch on his shirt. “…Officer Wilson.”

“You’re welcome, Julia.”

Wilson looked toward Fowler’s office, where the captain was questioning the PC200. It didn’t look ugly, but it did look intense. Back in the conference room, Julia peeled off her wet outer layer of clothes and pulled on Reed’s jacket, which nearly swallowed her.

“I’ll get the repair supplies,” Wilson told them. “And I think we have a bottle of thirium or two lying around. It’s not much, but you’re welcome to what we have.”

“Thank you,” Julia repeated, hugging her arms to herself. “I promise we—we’ll patch ourselves up and be on our way as soon as the sun is up tomorrow.”

“Hey, don’t worry about it,” Wilson assured. “Not like we don’t have the room right now. The, uh, the others know where the charging stations are, and…I’ll talk to the captain about letting you stay longer. If you need anything, let me know.”

He wasn’t sure if androids were capable of crying, but for a moment, Julia looked overwhelmed at his words and on the verge of tears from relief.

Jesus, when was the last time any of them had been shown kindness?

“Thank you,” she repeated again.

Wilson nodded and backed out of the room, closing the door. He took a deep breath and puffed out his cheeks as he exhaled. He ran a hand over the back of his head and looked toward reception. His mother stood in the entryway, looking just as concerned and perplexed as he felt.

It was going to be another long night.

[sege-h]

I want to talk about pride

Its been like 4 days? I think? Since Macedonia had it’s first pride. And I can’t stop thinking about it

I have so many emotions.

And some are a bit weird. Mostly because I feel like I do when I’ve been somewhere else, like Amsterdam, and then I come back home and still feel the excitement of travel, and it’s like ‘I want to be back at Amsterdam, like right now’.

I feel like that about pride, and it’s so odd, because I didnt GO anywhere. I didn’t even go out of my town. I was in the middle of my town.

This was my first pride, and I always thought that my first pride would be out of the country. Since last year, I’ve been ready to have my first pride be Europride next year, unless my aunt decided to surprise me inbetween and take me to a pride in Amsterdam.

And then, it happened here. We found out about it in March, I think. Before that, the most I was ready to do in this country that was pride-related, was go to pride week. I’d found out it was a thing here. It wasn’t a parade, but more like small events involving the community.

And then the pride parade got announced. And it was Big. It was exciting and terrifying from the start.

There were happy exciting things, like imagining what it’d be like in good ways, thinking about what colorful things I could wear, and how I’d paint my nails with my flag colors.

And terrifying things, like planning escape routes just in case, and planning where to meet back up so we could just run if something happened instead of trying to stick together.

And when the time came, it was still just as exciting and terrifying, if not more!

Exciting to see all the people, and the flags. Especially since I was a person that had never seen any pride flags up close before! The only one I’d seen irl was one that hung out the window of a building that I passed every day omw to work

Terrifying to think someone could have ill intentions. Especially with a “counter-parade” happening at the same time, on a route parallel to ours, with only buildings between us.They wanted to uphold “traditional values” and the “importance of having kids” and dressed in traditional Macedonian clothing, I suppose to show that they were still stuck with a 1903 mentality. But I digress.

At the beginning, it was impossible not to constantly glance around in paranoia. Smiling and talking, but still cautious as if something would happen at any second.

Sis put glitter on my face, which I find important, even though it might seem silly. The last time I had glitter on my face, I had been in the 8th grade, I think. Or maybe the 7th. I was on a school trip, away from home. A party got planned, and for the first time, some girls in my class that had been my bullies, decided to be nice to me.

They’d said they could make me pretty for the party, they lent me their make up, and put it on me. Eyeshadow, lip gloss, mascara, I think? And glitter. I went to the party like that. And by the end of it, I didn’t understand why they’d been so nice to me, for once. I’d expected them to start laughing at me, or to ask me to do a school project as a favor, or dump something on me like in Carrie, though not as morbid.

I cautiously appreciated it. But looking at myself in the mirror, and the photo I’d taken of myself. I didn’t like it. I looked pretty, but it didn’t look like myself. It was like someone else that had the same face as me, and it was jarring. At the time, I didn’t know why, since I had like 0 things figured out about myself.

And now, I had glitter again. And I was with people that loved me, and I wasnt paranoid about them being nice for bad reasons.

And we were surrounded by so many people that were like us. Some of them clearly had it worse than us, and had their pride flags tied around their faces to hide who they are. But they were like us, and I hope they won’t have to hide one day.

The parade started. The first half of it had me feeling paranoid, and the second had me sinking into all the excitement and almost forgetting about the rest of the world.

There were signs like ‘I’m PANtastic” with the ‘pan’ in the flag colors, and “THE FUTURE IS QUEER”, and a person with a “PROUD MOTHER” sign written in colorful cyrilic letters

A trans boy was at the front of the parade, dancing with the trans flag waving behind him

A huge long gay flag was being carried by a whole row of people

The sight of all these things happening around me had me tearing up. Which, if you know me, isnt very hard to do. But it also had sis tearing up, and that is hard to do, especially in public

Like, it was overwhelming, in a good way. This was happening here, in our country, in our town, on our streets, in our home. After years of people saying it would never happen. Not all of them in a malicious way. A lot of them were just tired skeptical parts of our own community.

But it was happening, and it was amazing, and beautiful.

The days after pride were, and are, strange and exciting. 2 days later we went to see two short movies about the first pride. One of them was about the trans boy I mentioned, and how his dad found out he’s trans BECAUSE of pride, and sent death threats to his mom. By the end of that night, the night we watched the movie, he’d apologized. Which, we were told, even though hes still not a good person, was still a big thing.

That same boy will possibly be giving me my first binder if my measurements fit, which is another layer of excitement.

But what happened to him is another layer of fear. There’s this scary awareness after this first pride, where you just know his story isnt the only one like that. You know other people got seen at pride, either in person or through photos, by people in their lives, and that it was either bad or uncomfortable or both. Hell, I feel a sense of discomfort that someone in my family will see me or hear about me being there, and go question me as to why I was there.

But overall, my feelings are ones of extreme positivity. It was like that for a lot of people.

The people that made the short movies have a mentor from Amsterdam. And she said that even though she’s from Amsterdam and they have something pride related like every other month, being here for our first and experiencing it made her cry from joy.

Sis and another friend have already been to pride outside the coyntry. They both say that this feels different. Because you’re home, and you’re on the streets you’ve always known, and you understand the people around you, and run into friends.

Now I’m in my room, and the arm band from the parade is on my shelf, and fir the first time I have a pride flag in my room, even tho it’s one of those little paper ones. And I feel so happy every time I look at it.

I know things are far from perfect, and the fight is far from over. But I’m excited for the future.

[owletstarlet]

ritsu from mp100!!!!

What I think about this character:

For this, I’m just gonna straight-up copy and paste a post I made about Ritsu a couple weeks ago, because it sums up how I feel about him pretty well:

“I really wanna write something about Ritsu, because boy howdy do I remember a thing or two about being 12-13 years old, sitting on my own pile of corrosive and self-sabotaging mental illnesses that I had no idea about, with none of the adults around me suspecting anything was off because I was one of those goddamn gifted-and-talented kids who was a diligent student and nice to people. 15 years later and this is still Quite The Mood for me—”

(Important to note that his issues manifest themselves way differently than mine ever did, with all the anger and spite just bottling up until they exploded outward at everyone and everything. As to my own issues, they manifested a lot more like Serizawa’s did, with a buttload of paralyzing fear and hiding from the world.

All the people I ship romantically with this character:

Really only with Shou, but I gotta note that I am a person more than twice Ritsu’s age who teaches junior high schoolers for a living (I see their birthdays in the school computer and marvel at how these lil goblins were all Just Born Two Seconds Ago), I gotta say the concept of romantic shipping for the majority of the mp100 characters is a little weird for me. It’s more important to me that Ritsu has good friends and people supporting him. And Shou is definitely that for Ritsu. He’s the first person to tell him frankly and objectively how much potential he has to become a strong esper, and continues to tell him that, and comes to him for help because of it, and I know that means the world to Ritsu. But more importantly, of course, I think he immediately sees what kind of person Ritsu is without any of his bullshit pretenses he puts on for everyone else, and he genuinely likes him for it. I am all for Shou sending him terrible memes to make him smile if only at how stupid they are, and inviting himself over for video game tournaments and marathoning awful animes and Perfectly Average And Sweet adolescent pastimes that they both really need to engage in for their own sanity and healing.

People I ship non-romantically with this character:

I’m super charmed/amused by the idea of him being friends with Teru. I do think their personalities would grate on each other a bit (a good 80% of that is Ritsu being annoyed with Teru just for Being Himself), but there’s a lot to be said for them being the heart of the support group of People Who Said/Did Horrible Things To Mob And He Forgave Them Immediately Anyhow And They Still Feel Shitty About It. They’re both actively trying to become better people and I kind of want to see them supporting one another in that, even if it’s mostly unspoken. I also wanna see them sparring with each other, to practice/improve/blow off steam. (Also: “I swear to god I’ll reshave your head if you ever try to take my brother clothes shopping again—”)

My unpopular opinion about this character:

I’ve not interacted enough with the fandom to really know what’s unpopular, so it’s shameless headcanon-listing time! Fun ones first:

I think he likes cats, a lot, and the more hateful and standoffish the cat is the more he loves it. He’s probably too self-conscious to go around petting strays all time, but he’d really want to and would probably do it if he was with Mob or Shou.

I think he’s seen Breaking Bad at least five times. *whispers* He is the Danger.

I think the only meme-speak he will deign to use in regular conversation, much to Shou’s delight, is “Then Perish.”

I think he’s actually pretty terrible at board games, especially shogi or chess or something strategy-based, because he’s canonically prone to making crappy snap decisions, and the more he wants to beat the person the worse his game gets. He’s never played Reigen at anything because his dignity would not be able to handle the guaranteed loss.

More Serious Headcanon is that he’s got sensory issues—which is shameless projection of my own neurological disorder onto a character I love but I do not fucking care. The way Sensory Processing Disorder manifests for me is physical pain/serious discomfort and certain touches and sensations (it can be completely arbitrary what sets it off and what doesn’t), pain or tingling around your spine at certain pitches or volumes of sound. Even stupid things like needing a billion blankets on you to sleep so you feel weighted down properly or clothing tags bothering you way too much. And the big one is not being able to maintain physical contact with someone for very long/avoiding it when you can, which people can easily take personally. This would work really well for Ritsu, I think, who probably the least touchy-feely person in the series, and who spends so much time alone. Being sensory-avoiding is isolating in itself, and it’d give a believable extra layer to the things that already make him feel isolated. (Also, the canon fact that he almost never listens to music—headphones can be a bitch sometimes for SPD because if you’re not careful your own music can hurt you because of the pitches in your ears.)

One thing I wish would happen/had happened to this character in canon:

Here, have three:

A proper, cathartic conversation with Mob after the 7th Division arc—in other words, let this child have a good long cry, not just the 5ish seconds/single page of it we got in canon.

Ritsu figuring out something’s seriously wrong after Mob comes home at the end of the Mogami arc. I’m of the mind that Mob probably didn’t ever tell anyone what happened in his six months of Mogami-hell, because he didn’t want to upset anyone or make it their problem, but damn it I wish he had, and I think if Ritsu were to figure out something was up that it’d be when Mob’s going around thanking everyone like he said he would. It may be wishful thinking that either of them would be good enough at communicating with each other for a conversation like that to get off the ground and actually be healing for Mob, but I want them to have fumbled through it and tried.

And finally, I want him to have some actual meaningful bonding time with Reigen. Ritsu may not like Reigen as a person, but you can’t tell me that somebody who’s chosen to make a living out of deceiving people doesn’t know a thing or two about self-loathing, self-sabotage and hopelessness, and how to identify it in others. It’d be a tall order for him to get Ritsu to sit down and listen to him, but it’d it be so goddamn good for him to feel validated by an adult who genuinely understands and wants the best for him.

Anyways, @fmobbu, I’m sorry I’m wordy, but I hope you enjoy anyhow! Thanks for giving me the chance to ramble about the spoon child ;)

[wannawant]

Hogwarts AU - Triwizard Tournament - Kang Daniel

Adapted from my Wanna One Hogwarts AU post :

Kang Daniel - Halfblood- Gryffindor

Gryffindor’s Quidditch Captain + Beater Fearless (aside from bugs), mischevious, good sense of humor Loves everything smol and cute like Peter & Rooney Lee Woojin Seongwu’s partner-in-crime Favourite Subject: Care of Magical Creature, flying class Hogwarts representative for the Triwizard Tournament Career choice: Dragon keeper🐉

The MC (you) and Daniel are both sixth year students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and you both are tangled in this mess called Triwizard Tournament. 

When the Triwizard Tournament was first announced, cheers could be heard from all over the dining hall. Every student body began pointing fingers to the possible candidates. The Slytherin house were convincing a 7th year male student who was famous for being the best beater of their year. From the Ravenclaw table, other students were cheering for Hwang Minhyun. They believed his brain would make him victorious in the up coming tournament. 

Unlike them, you just stood still in your seat, poking the leftover lump of meat on your plate while stealing glances to a part of the table where most of the Gryffindor students were now gathering, surrounding a certain Quidditch team captain. Kang Daniel, the most popular student in his year and also your childhood friend. They were all convincing him to put his name into the Goblet of Fire, including his biggest-fan-slash-little-brother Lee Woojin.

“Hyung, you should put your name. You are the best candidate around!”

“You think I should? You sure I am the best candidate around? What about everybody else?”

Which of course was answered affirmatively by all the other students, successfully bloating his pride even more, but not you. Although your lips remained clasped together, you kept screaming ‘No’ inside your head. You didn’t want him to put himself into danger. Well, being a representative for the Triwizard Tournament came along with fame and pride but at the same time there will be a lot at stake. Some students were hurt to a various extent in the previous events, some even lost their lives. Just thinking about it made you feel ill. The more praises you hear, the sicker you felt so you left the table silently and slipped off of the crowded dining hall.

Little did you know that someone noticed your unusual behaviour and chased after you, leaving everybody else on the table to chatter among themselves. He caught up with you right before you muttered the password to the door.

“[y/n]!”

You turned to the familiar voice’s direction and were surprised to see Kang Daniel standing before you. Before you could ask why he was there, he walked closer to you until you two were mere inches apart. As usual he was oblivious to the effects his presence had on you. The quickened heartbeat, the creeping blush on your cheeks, cold sweat forming all over.

“What’s wrong? You seem unhappy.”

Of course I am. 

“Was it something that I said?”

You just shook your head and avoided his gaze. Suddenly the floor seemed like the most interesting thing in the world. Cracking tiles, and all.

“Then tell me why you ran out of the hall before you even finished your meal. I know you’re not sick, you have been waiting for dinner all the time.” As expected from your best friend, he knew your habits probably even better than you. There was no way you’re getting out of this if you kept avoiding because being Kang Daniel, he would try to dig the dirt out of you in every possible way so you gave in to save the useless argument for another time.

“Wait, don’t tell me. Could you possibly be upset because I want to participate in the tournament?

Bull’s eye.

You diverted your gaze again to the oh-so-interesting view from the windows of Gryffindor tower. You could hear him sigh loudly as he wiped his hand over his forehead as if he knew it was the case all along. He knew how much of a worrywart you were, evem since you two rode the Hogwarts Express for the first time. You too knew that right now he must be thinking of ways to convince you that he will be safe and there was nothing to worry about, and you swore to yourself you won’t be swayed no matter how good his excuse would be. At the same time, he too wouldn’t back off from the tournament no matter what, being the chivalrous and prideful Gryffindor that he was.

“… alive.” You muttered softly under your breath.

“What?”

“Just promise me you’ll stay alive.” You lift your face to look at him straight in the eyes so he could see that you meant each and every word. Tears were forming and you tried your best not to cry in front of him so he wrapped his arms around you, enveloping you with his warmth as his hand stroked your back gently.

“Aw, my best friend is worried about me. Don’t worry too much, you’ll go bald. Besides, there will be plenty of other names in the Goblet of Fire. There’s only a thin chance that it would spit out my name, right?” 

You two simply laughed it off for the night and the next few days but sadly it did. Everyone was cheering their hearts out and congratulating him but not you. How you wish it was somebody else’s name on the paper or if you could trade places with him but it was too late for regrets and what-ifs.

Kang Daniel was selected as Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry’s representative for the upcoming Triwizard Tournament.

The first task ended well. Although with some minor scratches here and there, and a strand of burned hair, Kang Daniel finished second just behind the Durmstrang representative in retrieving the golden egg. Daniel, who approached you with Seongwu hanging around him, laughed as he saw you with tears down your cheeks, red eyes, puffy nose from crying every time the dragon made contact with your best friend. 

“You look terrible. Thanks for worrying but I’m alive.” His hands stroked your hand slowly, which was a little bit unusual. You could feel the slight tremble on his hands but it was expected. He was the one who came face-to-face with a Hungarian Horntail, perhaps he was just as scared as you or even worse. You grabbed his hands and held it tightly. 

“Thank you for staying alive.”  

On Yule Ball, he came with you, your best friend, and Seongwu as a group of friends. You two even shared a slow dance together which stirred something in his heart although he had yet to figure out the reason behind it. He also managed to confuse you when he refused to let you dance with Seongwu because of a lame excuse that he might step on your feet, but you argued that Daniel was even worse of a dancer than Seongwu, so although unwillingly, he let you two danced but with a frown on his face until the very end.

Then came the day of the second task. Daniel stood at the dock along with the other participants, enduring the chilly winter air that breezed upon them. He gazed into the dark waters of the Black Lake and gulped. No matter how fearless he may seem, the Black Lake is something on another level. Never had he ever dived into the lake before and many rumors were flying around about the many creatures living at the bottom of the lake. He took a deep breath and recalled everything you taught him about the Bubble-Head Charm. Speaking of which, he hadn’t seen you since morning while he expected you to cheer the loudest for him. Perhaps you overslept? But he didn’t have much time to worry because the second task was about to start. When the whistle blew, he used the charm and jumped straight into the waters, and it worked. He could breathe comfortable underwater thanks to the thin layer that surrounded his head so all he had to do was find what they said was taken away from him.

What could it possibly be? Peter? Rooney? What if they took both?! I better hurry, cats can’t live underwater. They even hate taking regular baths!

So he swum faster, leaving all the other contenders behind thanks to his strong and broad shoulders. There were Grindylows along the way and other creatures that he needed to chase off, only to be greeted with the sight of you tied to a merperson statue along with three other figures that he didn’t even bother to recognize because all he could think about was how to get you out of the water as soon as possible.

Daniel wasted no time and began using all kinds of charms he knew to break the chain that tied you down. He gazed upon your unconscious figure, eyes closed, swearing to himself that he would get you back on land safely. He pulled you out of the water faster than everybody else and the whole student body bursted into loud cheers. Then you opened your eyes, finding Daniel’s face right in front of yours. His face was filled with relief and he pulled you into a suffocating hug.

“Wait- what? Daniel? Why am I drenched? I- I can’t- breathe-“ Your continuous tap on his back reminded him that he was hugging you to tight so he loosened up but he still didn’t let you go. You could finally see his face, filled with relief. The last time you saw the same expression was when he found Peter near the edge of Forbidden Forest after he went missing for 2 days sometime in your fourth year as students here.

“It’s okay, I’m still here. Thanks to you, I guess.” You said since you still hadn’t grasped the situation fully just yet but you wanted him to feel relieved, even if it’s just a little bit. Unconsciously you moved your right hand to cup his cheek which was just as cold as your palm. If only you had your wand you would’ve casted a warming incantation to the both of you. He didn’t look the way he used to, his signature goofy grin was nowhere to be seen instead replaced by worry and exhaustion, his dark brown eyes bored into your own, as if trying to relay what he couldn’t have uttered in words at the time.

“Excuse me, do you need towels?”

The two of you were startled and forced to break away when someone tapped your shoulder, finally realizing that you were not alone in the place. You could finally feel the cold winter air breezing upon your wet body and you clutched onto the towel as if your life depended on it. Daniel did too but something bugged you about the sight of water dropping from strands of hair at the sides of his face.

“You need to dry your hair properly or you’ll catch a cold.” Your hand moved to take the towel that was slung over his shoulder and used it to dry his hair, even when your own body was still drenched by Black Lake’s water. Of course that fact didn’t go unnoticed by Daniel. All this time he had received your kindness, he was starting to take it for granted until now, when he felt his heart stirred by your action although not for the first time. Quite a lot of times actually, throughout the past few years you have been close friends with one another. It was not something that anybody else could have made him feel, just you. Daniel chuckled at his own realization, cursing himself internally why he never came up with a conclusion before when the answer was actually very simple.

“Daniel? Did I rub your head too hard?” Your hands stopped moving from his hair, but he shook his head.

“No, but you can stop if you’re tired. I’ll dry your hair too for you.”

Before you could switch position with him, you both could hear the announcement made with a sonorus charm.

“Winner of the Triwizard Tournament second task: Daniel Kang from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!” The loudest cheering you could have ever heard erupted from the whole students, including you. You stole a glance at your best friend and saw a proud wide grin plastered on his face.

“I’m so proud of you.”

You never thought he could grin even wider, and he did.

The Triwizard Tournament had just ended. The winner, a student from Durmstrang took the cup back as they rode the boat back to their school. Although Daniel finished first in the second tournament, the Durmstrang champion was first in both the first and thrid challenge. The Beauxbatons champion came up third among the three of them.

“Are you alright, Daniel?” You asked the young man who stood beside you as you watched the other school’s representatives left the school building. He looked at you in confusion.

“Of course I am. Why?”

“I mean, are you okay after... You know.” You wanted to it but no words seemed appropriate at the time, perhaps ever. You didn’t feel right to mention his defeat, considering how he usually behaved towards competition but to your surprise, today he looked rather content with everything. Some students mentioned it during meal time but he just brushed it off and apologized for his inability to fulfil the school’s expectation, and that was it. No tears, fury, curse words, nothing.

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?” He could see that you wanted to protest but he opened his mouth again before you could say anything.

“I am fine, besides although I didn’t win the cup I still won something from the Triwizard Tournament.”

“Really? What did you won?”

“Your heart.” You stared at him in disbelief, your expression of pure disgust although balanced with the creeping blush on your cheeks and ear tips. The sight was so amusing to Kang Daniel’s eyes, he broke into his signature goofy grin and gave you a hug of the many more to come that day.

“Aren’t you cute.” His words made you pout and you jokingly pushed him away.

“You’re so cheesy.” And you walked away, leaving Daniel to caught up with you.

“Yeah, but I’m still yours.”

[notconsolation]

(when you have the time) another hiking story?🌲

(I’ve had time I’ve just been a little shit about it)

I’m not quite sure what to write about because you’ve now heard the stories i have that lend themselves most to being told. the others are mainly… experiential things? BuT. I did put on the list ‘musings on christiana’ at one point so I’m gonna scour my journal for things I’ve put in there about our least favourite (FAVOURITE) cowboy.

THis is gonna be long. if you’re a casual follower and you don’t wanna hear me ramble about my friends for a while then ciao best leave now. good GOD i can’t believe I’m sharing this shit but isn’t that what my entire online presence is. OVERSHARING, GO:

I actually originally meant I’d just write my thoughts when we met to when we parted butttt then i got curious and wanted to see how far back the first time I mention them is. Turns out it’s Sunday, February 26th 2017. the excerpt from my journal reads as follows: 

Life moves along and I spill alongside it and can’t find my own shape. Nothing fits and nothing feels good. I keep making up these paths and systems to get better but. But. I made a tumblr though. It’s 14:30 and i have done nothing today except tumblr-stalk a new favourite writer. They’re just. Aghj (incomprehensible squiggle). Can’t.

Oh my god. If only I’d known then.

Then on Tuesday, April 25th:

I’ve been thinking about my intimacy issues. It’s honestly not very comprehensible. There are people i can pick out that i absolutely love. And not because I have to. Loving someone is so much easier than wanting anything consequences of that love. I love Alessia, I love Becca, I love Avia, I love Christiana… it’s just easier? than what? who knows. It’s got me wondering, though. See, it’s got me wondering about why I love someone like i love stars and duvets and balconies and it makes me want to cry because holy shit that would feel so nice. Who knows, my guy.

Saturday, May 6th:

christiana met edy yesterday and i want to know everything. it’s beautiful and this ship has exceptionally eloquent sails.

Tuesday, May 9th:

Looks like christiana and I will definitely be meeting and I’m…… nervous. I think they wanna come with me into the wild. wow? wowow i’m…?? I think they get me well enough to not make this awkward. Not sure why I am able to trust them to accept me when…. 

Sunday, May 21st:

I got a few skulls on ebay and sent them to C. They more or less know. But I like the concept anyway

Sunday, May 28th:

my heart went too fast for a while on mandy last night so i wrote to christiana and i think we roasted tyler a little until I felt good again. Then I cuddled with someone. Can’t remember who. God I’m tired. I’m not sure I slept.

July 9th:

I’m at the Russian Chapel up the valley. My ears are so bad that my teeth hurt now. I’m still considerably ill. But! still moving on. I really fucking needed to. lovely people but… food. And somehow too much of everything else, too. OF what? Who knows. I did let C know I’m not doing so great with food, though. I hope she won’t judge. They. I don’t think they will. so at least she’s aware. They’re aware. I feel like an idiot every time I get it wrong but. Ya know, it’s just a thing I never heard or said for the first 17 years of my life because it never came up. So in my head I often subconsciously do the ‘she’ thing. Edy is solidly ‘they’. Jon is always and without hesitation ‘he’. But sometimes it takes a few tries with other people. I have no idea why

July 14th:

I’m at the station listening to a podcast on Morgan Le Fay. I’m nervous now. What will we talk about?? Internet conversation is. easy. My ears are better. I don’t know what we’ll talk about. Shit. I’mm not good at this and i care about this? They’re the kind of person that I feel like I should’ve known forever. As in, i feel like this would be the kind of friendship that was good for both people and gives something that i needed. So. I shouldnt be worried then. But? Can’t help it. I mean maybe it could help that we’re both like this. we may be able to just sit… in…. silence. that. WASN’T intentional. god. aw shit I hate me when I’m like this. is this what it is to care if someone likes you when you meet them??! God, this is awful? Is this what people usually feel how awful. How cool. I think the train’s coming in. I’m barely paying attention to the podcast

July 15th:

I feel like I talk too much. it’s not the easiest it could be but it could definitely be harder? They’re quiet and sometimes it makes me feel like I’m yelling or saying too much and oversharing. Sometimes? uhhhhh all the time but I think that might be my default setting anyway

July 17th:

Didn’t get a chance to write yesterday but! it was as approximately lovely day. Just wanted to record that

(later)

walking with someone is strange. we’re at the place we’ll sleep at now. It was gentle going getting here and I guess it’s gonna take us very little time to get back. I buy coffee and they buy bus tickets. works out. walking with someone is strange but especially given the whole nature of this trip, it’s not too weird. I think because I never got to feel alone, I don’t mind sharing it. I think they’re having an okay time? I hope they don’t regret coming. So what if this whole trip has been… not the seclusion I wanted or needed. Meeting them was still great and I wouldn’t prefer a timeline where I called the trip off. I get that feeling that I have sometimes with Alessia, as if I’m trying to entertain or something? like a part of me wants to be stilted so I have a layer in between in case they turn around and say they don’t like me. I fear I’m telling them too many things. About me, about my thought process, about random things that pop into my head. About things I know or want to know or have picked up. I fear I’m disturbing some sacred silence. Especially because I prefer silence myself. And they’re patiently waiting for me to finish. I worry a lot considering what a good time I’ve had? We ate and laughed and talked. I am so fucking relieved that bipolar occurred to them when I described my brain cause I thought i was doing my insane self-diagnosing thing. We tried horse and i couldn’t tell the difference. We saw some Big Boy Moths and birds called tits. Vultures are unremittingly ugly but i like them? there’s a certain kinship. This isn’t how it usually goes and I wish I could say that without sounding whiny

July 18th:

All my compasses say the sun rose in the north east. Slept pretty well. the sunrise was gorgeous. C said it was more comfortable than expected. It was actually really comfortable. Listen, this will sound like something it’s not but future hannah will get what i mean but honestly their eyes are so beautiful? it didn’t come across in photos. uhh that’s all.

July 19th:

We found an open door in the compound. I think we slept on someone’s office floor. We left around sunrise and had multiple coffees by the river. played so ukulele. listen, this whole thing wasn’t normal but i’m so glad we fell into what we fell into. this feels safe. There were people outside going back and forth in front of the door all night and i dont think i really slept but it was still Good. We lit a candle that slowly started to smell nice. when we left, we left a single cigarette and a licorice cough drop as thanks to the old gods. either way, we parted quickly, just a quick hug and a vague notion that we might do this again? Good.

August 7th:

I just finished the cowboy fic and never has what essentially amounts to a giant meme of beautifulness touched me so.I swear. They’re ridiculous. The cowboys and Christiana.

jesus reading back through these made me happy but also made me cringe a bit because this is what my inner monologue sounds like around people i care about a lot of the time and i sound like such a whiny anxious asshole. uhh hope you enjoy. jesuz.

[atlantamusicguide]

FRIDAY

2019 marks the 7th Annual Shaky Knees Festival here in Atlanta, GA, and after moving the festival around to a few different locations in town, this year is the second year the festival finds it’s home back in Midtown at the Central Park location, where it was held in 2015. Central Park is nestled into the neighborhood and has a ton of trees and open spaces when you want to grab a bite to eat or get out of the sun for little while, and despite the earlier weather forcast there was quite a bit of sun today.

This year’s music lineup is as strong as ever and you need look no further than Friday, the first day of the festival to see what a diverse and talented lineup festival creator and visionary, Tim Sweetwood has curated.

  Songs for Kids

As has been customary at previous years festivals the day kicks off with Songs for Kids, an organization lead by Josh Rifkind, Sanjay Kothari and Justin Kerenyi, dedicated to bringing music to kids battling serious illnesses and giving them the opportunity to be creative and express themselves through music. All 3 days of the festival will feature them on the Peachtree stage shortly after the gates open. It was amazing to hear them kick off the festival with the Blink 182’ song, “I Miss You.”

  Taylor Janzen

Kicking off the Ponce de Leon stage was 19 year old Canadian singer-songwriter, Taylor Janzen. Janzen, out promoting a new EP, Shouting Matches produced and mixed by Mike Mogis (Bright Eyes, Phoebe Bridgers) has a voice straight out the heartland, reminiscent at times of Kathleen Edwards with a guitar that rang like a bell throughout the festival grounds meandering around the afternoon sun. A real standout track from today’s show was the last song on her new EP, a wistful tune called “Toronto.” Fans of Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus will find a lot to like here.

Duncan Fellows

Hailing from Austin, TX, Duncan Fellows hit the stage and never let up. Since their modest beginnings in a house on Duncan Lane in 2012 the band has independently released two EPs, Twelve Months Older (2013) and Marrow (2015) before heading into the studio their new record, Both Sides of the Ceiling in 2017. The band emerged with a hearty record that bounces along with spirit and comradely that was on fill display today with the audience singing along while the band soaked it up, kicking out a stellar performance. There’s a little Americana in their sound, some 60s harmonies and a ton of smiles both on and off stage.

Devon Gilfillian

Gilfillian kicked off the Piedmont stage with a emotional set of tunes that brought to mind R&B singers like Al Green and Ray Charles with a touch of guitar fireworks and a healthy dose of southern soul, gospel blues and just a touch of funk that had the crowd moving as the mid-day sun really got started. He’s just released a great new single, “Get Out And Get It” and has a new record in the works.

The Joy Formidable

A long time favorite with the folks here at Atlanta Music Guide and Shaky Knees, The Joy Formidable performed at the festival’s first year back on a rainy day in 2013. To see them live is to love them. The band is on fire from the very first note with singer/guitarist Ritzy Bryan thrashing about and stalking the stage in-between burst of melody and fire while bassist Rhydian Dafydd and Justin Stahley more than hold it down by being one of the best rhythm sections out there. Their particular take on modern rock is dynamic, cathartic and unpredictable. Always a must-see.

Sharon Van Etten

Sharon Van Etten’s new record “Remind Me Tomorrow” is heavy with emotion, doubt and ambition and that vibe translated perfectly onto the stage today. Her first 3 songs felt forbidding and heavy with a more electronic vibe and darker sounds than her earlier work. After a few songs the guitars came out and the mood lightened, but the vibe still hung heavy in the air throughout the entire set. One of the best sets we saw today.

Liz Phair

Today’s lineup has it’s fair share of artists that make you nostalgic for days gone by and Phair is a perfect example of someone that has found a resurgence of interest, especially with the reissue of her seminal cassettes Girlysounds and her first full-length, Exile in Guyville from the early 90s. Look no further than newer artists like Jay Som, Bully and Soccer Mommy and you’ll see that the 90s are back in popular culture in a big way. From the very first note of Phair’s set there was a sea of smiles and Phair and her band ripped though a ton of great songs like “Supernova,” “Never Said,” “Help Me Mary” and a new song called “God Loves Baseball.”

Tash Sultana 

Sultana was an artist we were largely unfamiliar with before the festival that really impressed. A one-person band, Sultana builds loops of instruments, layering tasty guitars, beat-box vocals, electronics, trumpet an other instrument to create an every-changing reggae influence vibe that the crowd at the main stage was really going crazy for. Check out her YouTube videos for a taste of what she can do.

Dashboard Confessional 

Once again the 90s are back and Dashboard Confessional are every bit as powerful as they were back in the day. Tight and fun, Chris Carrabba broke a 1,000 hearts with his heart-on-a-sleeve lyrics and passional vocals on the Piedmont stage today. In addition to playing “We Fight,” the first single off of their new record, Crooked Shadowsthe band played a slew of older tunes saying “I hope you don’t mind if we play a few old ones” as the entire crowd went crazy and they rocked though “Screaming Infidelities,” “The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most,” and a fantasy cover of The Cure’s, “Just Like Heaven.”

Incubus

We went back to 90s again with Incubus, who are out supporting their fantastic new record, 8. The band was tight as hell and sounded amazing blasting though hit after hit like Pardon Me, Wish You Were Here and No Fun.

Yellow Days

At only 19-years old, Yellow Days, the stage name for George van den Broek drew a rabid crowd of fans that sang and screamed along to his downtempo slow jams and reflective lyrics. Vocally he switched from a soulful croon, to wistful passages punctuated by a Prince-like howl and there was much crying in the audience at the front of the stage.

Tears for Fears

One of the biggest buzzes of the festival was the return of Tears for Fears. On the heals of their greatest hits record last year the band has been in the public’s consciousness, thanks in no small part to Weezer, who covered “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” on their Teal Album released in January. So, it was no small thing when Tears for Fears kicked off their set with their biggest hit. Madness ensued and the band took us on an hour-long tour of the hits including, “Sowing the Seeds of Love,” “Change,” “Head Over Heals.” and their epic closing song, “Shout.” Unexpected but worth mentioning was their spot on cover of Radiohead’s Creep towards the end of the set.

Beck

Closing out Friday night was Beck. Kicking it out since the early 90s, (we’re sensing a theme here) Beck has such an extensive catalog to pull from it was a bit surprising that he hit the crowd with a one, two punch of 2 of his biggest hits, “Devil’s Haircut” and “Loser” right out of the gate. From there he swerved though his entire catalog with “Mixed Business,” “The New Pollution,” and songs like “Wow” and “Dreams” from his excellent 2017 record, Colors.

Check out our complete photo coverage below.

Songs for Kids

Songs for Kids

Songs for Kids

Songs for Kids

Taylor Janzen

Taylor Janzen

Taylor Janzen

Taylor Janzen

Taylor Janzen

Duncan Fellows

Duncan Fellows

Duncan Fellows

Duncan Fellows

Duncan Fellows

Devon Gilfilian

Devon Gilfilian

Devon Gilfilian

Devon Gilfilian

Devon Gilfilian

Curtis Harding

Curtis Harding

Curtis Harding

Curtis Harding

Curtis Harding

Shaky Knees Music Fest

The Joy Formidable

The Joy Formidable

The Joy Formidable

The Joy Formidable

Shaky Knees Music Fest

Sharon Van Etten

Sharon Van Etten

Sharon Van Etten

Sharon Van Etten

Sharon Van Etten

Liz Phair

Liz Phair

Liz Phair

Liz Phair

Liz Phair

Shaky Knees Music Fest

Tash Sultana

Tash Sultana

Tash Sultana

Tash Sultana

Tash Sultana

Dashboard Confessional

Dashboard Confessional

Dashboard Confessional

Dashboard Confessional

Incubus

Incubus

Incubus

Incubus

Incubus

Shaky Knees Music Fest

Yellow Days

Yellow Days

Shaky Knees Music Fest

Yellow Days

Shaky Knees Music Fest

Beck

Beck

Beck

Beck

Beck

Beck

Beck

Beck

The Black Lips

The Black Lips

The Black Lips

The Black Lips

The Black Lips

Duncan Fellows

Duncan Fellows

Duncan Fellows

Face to Face

Face to Face

Face to Face

Face to Face

Foxing

Foxing

Foxing

Foxing

Foxing

Foxing

Hannah Wicklund and the Steppin Stones

Hannah Wicklund and the Steppin Stones

Hannah Wicklund and the Steppin Stones

Hannah Wicklund and the Steppin Stones

Hannah Wicklund and the Steppin Stones

IDLES

IDLES

IDLES

IDLES

IDLES

IDLES

Oh Sees

Oh Sees

Oh Sees

Oh Sees

Oh Sees

Oh Sees

Peach Pit

Peach Pit

Peach Pit

Peach Pit

Shaky Knees Music Fest

Shaky Knees Music Fest

Shaky Knees Music Fest

Shaky Knees Music Fest

Shaky Knees Music Fest

Tears for Fears

Tears for Fears

Tears for Fears

Tears for Fears

Tears for Fears

Tears for Fears

Tears for Fears

Wilderado

Wilderado

Wilderado

Wilderado

Wilderado

Words by John McNicholas

Photos by Hillery Terenzi/John McNicholas

Shaky Knees 2019 Day One 05/03/19 FRIDAY 2019 marks the 7th Annual Shaky Knees Festival here in Atlanta, GA, and after moving the festival around to a few different locations in town, this year is the second year the festival finds it’s home back in Midtown at the Central Park location, where it was held in 2015.

[tinycollectordestiny-me-blog]

Best Fiends Forever Hack

Best fiends hack for nothing. Generate a lot of resources as you want.

Your best friend's wedding is a big event for both you and her. It's always emotional when we see someone close to us get married. There's enough to worry about at weddings like trying not to smudge your mascara when crying at the vows and hoping everything runs smoothly, without having to give below par wedding gifts. Brian's New York City seminar was mostly filled with businesspeople, sales professionals and entrepreneurs, so he referred to financial examples, such as: wanting to work fewer hours and earn more money, investing in get rich quick schemes, or buying lottery tickets. Joly, who also drove the turnaround of the French unit of EDS, now part of Hewlett Packard, and led the restructuring of Vivendi's videogame business, said the elimination of the top layer of U.S. operations management was meant to streamline the organization. Pretty much the same in every way as Street Fighter 2 (see 7th) except the updated version included the 4 computer bosses being added into the game, now playable characters and the balancing of the characters so that overall game play was much fairer than the original. However Best fiends cheat, controlled characters weren't scaled at all leaving them as some of the most powerful characters in the game. What can players do outside the game? There's a whole world tied in with the World of Warcraft - books , comics , a board game , a trading card game and enthusiastic communities devoted to fanfic, music and arts and crafts By far, though, most players will spend their time in the game itself or reading and discussing it with others on Blizzard's forums or dozens of other independent, specialized websites, forums, blogs and guild websites. Donating your old treadmill is a possibility. Giving your treadmill to your local Salvation Army, Goodwill, Big Brothers Big Sisters and other charities is possible. Another is Fitness4Charity, which supplies used exercise equipment to foster homes, schools, hospital, police and fire departments, and other places that need it. Most organizations ask the equipment be in working condition. Fitness4Charity has particularly strict standards for donations. Donating your treadmill to a non-profit is tax deductible. The organization might also offer a pickup service.

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Finally, the amount of money kids spent on digital games over the past three months climbed by $5 to $13. However, physical games are still in the lead, scooping $27 on average over the same period. And two out of ten kids polled said they spend more money on games and in-app purchases than they did a year ago. Test your mettle in this music-based runner. The level and pacing change dynamically with the music, so mastering the rhythm and flow are key. HelloRun can also be controlled with either your mouse, keyboard, or touchscreen, meaning the game can be played on a multitude of devices. These control schemes make the fast, arcade-style gameplay relatively easy to learn, but mastering the reflex-heavy movements is another story. Unlike many other Facebook games, Words with Friends does not appear to require Flash, which is a definite bonus if you're playing the game on a MacBook. My wife is a Zuma addict, and I can always tell when she's playing because it sounds like she's got a jet engine in her lap. Words with Friends doesn't spin up the fans at all, and it runs quite smoothly on her Mac. Reports have been given that if a person owns a dog, he will be able to maintain a healthier life. He will be able to relax, cope with stress and have a lower cholesterol level and lower blood pressure. Having a dog lessen the number of heart attacks among dog owners and prolong their life expectancy. Dogs have been known to comfort terminally ill patients. For any woman who is concerned with the appearance of her face due to issues like sun damage, fine lines and wrinkles, acne or acne scars, or uneven skin tone, a chemical peel in NYC can provide a less invasive alternative to invasive types of skin care improvement procedures. The iPod technology is also good because the device allows the user to store a lot of music (about 15,000 songs) as well as 25,000 pictures or photos. This device is available in four models. It also has a USB2 port and a FireWire cable (optional). Aside from that, it also boasts an alarm clock and it can also be connected to the television.

[hemcountry]

CHRISTIE HENNESSY REMEMBERED IN BEAUTIFUL TRIBUTE SHOW FROM OLD FRIEND AONGHUS MCANALLY

It’s hard to believe it, but it’s coming up on ten years since the late Christie Hennessy, a singer/songwriter of extraordinary tenderness and huge heart, left this world behind for the next part of his journey. But he left behind a legacy of music which is loved as much today as when Christie himself still walked and laughed among us. With songs like ‘Don’t Forget Your Shovel’ (made famous by Christy Moore), ‘All The Lies That You Told Me’ (Frances Black), ‘Messenger Boy’ (Mike Denver), and so many more which Christie himself brought to our hearts from his own, such as ‘Lonely Boy’ and ‘Roll Back The Clouds’, it’s little wonder that Christie is still very much a part of Ireland’s musical landscape.

Mike Denver, one of many artists to record ‘Messenger Boy’

Another reason is undoubtedly the work his close friend Aonghus McAnally has invested in making sure that Christie, and his music, are still celebrated, and perhaps now more than ever, through his tribute show in Christie’s honour. As Aonghus prepares to bring that show, The Platinum Collection Tour, to the Tullamore Court Hotel on December 7th, I had the pleasure of spending some time with him recently, and we began by chatting about how the friendship Aonghus and Christie came to share first began and developed…

“It started in the nineties, I was presenting a programme called ‘Both Sides Now’ on RTE Radio 1, and I went to London to interview him. I went to his house to meet him and we had a good long chat there. And because he was a guitar player, and I’m a guitar player, we hit it off immediately. And I loved his sense of humour, and he loved whatever I was at, and we picked up guitars and just started jammin’ and playin’. He was a great guitar player, his finger-pickin’ style, a kind of a clawhammer pickin’ style that he had, was very unique and strong. He was actually asked by Fleetwood Mac to join them at one stage, he was that good. But anyway, we struck up a friendship and stayed in touch. Then when his album came out he asked me would I launch it for him in Dublin. Then I played with him at the Gaiety Theatre, I came on for the encore for one of the gigs. There’s a song on his album, ‘A Day In The Life’, called ‘The Box’, and there’s a poem that precedes it, and I recorded that poem for him. I flew back to London again to do the interview with him that he used for his EPK (Electronic Press Kit), and we just stayed in contact like that for many years. Then sadly when he passed away, his wife Jill, and Hermione and Amber [his daughters], and his son Tim, asked me if I’d deliver the eulogy on their behalf at the funeral in Tralee, which was an extraordinary honour for me.”

Christy Moore, who recorded ‘Don’t Forget Your Shovel.’

To those of us who only had the pleasure of knowing Christie through his music, could Aonghus share a little about how special Christie was as a person?

“Ah he was brilliant. And then, as I discovered that he couldn’t read or write, I realised that the quality of his writing…I mean for a fella who left school at eleven and a half – he hated school, he couldn’t wait to get out – but he’s so special because his lyrics have a simplicity about them. Then when he combines that with beautiful melodies, he just, in my opinion, he captures a wonderful depth of emotion. There’s a couple of things I want to do on this tour. One, obviously, being to celebrate his life. Because people might know him mainly for ‘Don’t Forget Your Shovel’, or the funny Kerry accent, ya know, but he has gorgeous songs about life, about love, about death, about depression. And I wanted to showcase those songs as well. And I think as I tell the story through the night in the show, people get an appreciation of the man, so they get to know how special he was, how gentle he was, how loving he was. And how difficult a time he had, in terms of reading and writing, and depression, and of course facing the reality of not being well and knowing he was going to die. An American guy came up to me after the Cork concert and said, ‘I don’t know you, I don’t know Christie, I just came along with some friends tonight, but boy do I know this guy now!’ You see, as I tell the story, his story, you really do get to know Christie. I play both myself and him in the show, I just morph into speaking as Christie, it’s a seamless bit of theatre.”

The late, great, and much loved Christie Hennessy.

Aonghus toured this show last year as well, but when, I wondered, did the idea of first putting together a show in Christie’s memory begin to form?

“Well, what happened was about six years ago I did a play called ‘When Jolie Met Christie’, by Sean McCarthy, a guy in Cork. Christie had a fascination with the vaudeville singer Al Jolson, and obviously Al was dead and Christie was dead, but in the play Al would tell Christie’s story having met him in the after-life. And within that there was ten or twelve of Christie’s songs. And it was a great success. But I wanted then to do a show with more of his songs, and to just concentrate on his life rather than the Jolson connection. So I wrote this show with twenty-two of his songs in it, and the narrative from the point of view of my interaction with him, and stuff that Christie would have said over the years, and melding the two together. About three years ago I started work on putting together the idea of this show celebrating Christie. We toured it last year, originally planning ten shows, one of which was the National Concert Hall, and it sold out almost immediately, almost to my surprise. So they asked us to do a second show, and that sold out as well which was incredible. And every single night that we’ve performed this show it’s ended up in a standing ovation, with people laughing, cheering, crying, singing, whatever. So I put together a twenty-six date tour this time, including the big, big show on the 10th of December, in the Bord Gais Energy Theare, which is a two-thousand-two hundred seater. And poignantly, it’s also going to be the eve of his anniversary, he died on the 11th of December 2007, so that’s going to be a very, very special night. It’ll be the biggest night of my career in forty years.”

Aonghus brings Christie back to life in story and song.

Because Aonghus and Christie had been such close friends, I imagined it must become quite emotional for Aonghus to perform a whole show of Christie’s songs, especially as his presence, I’m sure, is very much in the room for both Aonghus and the audience. Was I right in thinking that?

“Absolutely. Many, many nights on the tour I end up with it catching me at the very end, I’ll get people coming up to me and saying, ‘You were crying at the very end’, and I just say I was. Because obviously, yeah, it’s very emotional because it’s a very personal story. I think part of the magic of why the show works is that it’s not simply me singing songs of Roy Orbison or Glen Campbell, or someone. It’s a very personal, emotional story that I have a deep connection with, and that does come through across the show. I’m fairly whacked after it. It’s something I put my heart and my soul into. And ya know, I see huge parallels in my own life and Christie’s life. Like, his song, ‘Roll Back The Clouds’, which is the best song ever written about the reality of showbusiness – from auditioning, trying to get a break, being heard, the usual don’t-phone us, we’ll phone you – and the line, ‘I give my heart to every part.’ But it’s a wonderful, emotional rollercoaster for me to be part of. And as an artist, and a performer, there is no better oxygen than to hear an audience loving a show, and cheering and clapping, ya know. To see so many shows sold out, including in Tralee, his home town, where we’ve had to put on a second, it’s brilliant. I’m loving every second of it, and I feel privileged to be able to do it.”

The statue of Christie in his hometown of Tralee.

I once heard Aonghus comment that the ten minutes before a show begins is the most exciting time for him. What is it about those moments that gets his adrenaline flowing, and does that same feeling extend to his work on radio and television as well?

“It does. Now I don’t get nervous. I often hear people saying, oh I couldn’t perform on stage, I’d be too nervous. But that’s not what it is with me. I find it to be a multi-layered kind of emotion. Because for one thing, you want everything to be right, the people coming to the show deserve it to be the very best that it can be. So I’m meticulous in my planning, my production. I have wonderful people around me, I have brilliant lights and brilliant sound. Lucy Polden does my sound, and a girl called Maggie Donovan does my lighting, and it’s Denice Doyle who’s the violinist, and Ivan McKenna who’s my musical director. These are top-notch people who have the same passion for the show that I have. We’re there at the theatre from twelve o’ clock, starting to get everything in. I have a rehearsal myself at four o’ clock, then we have a full musicians rehearsal at six o’ clock, then we have a break and get ready for the show. With ten minutes to go, you’re already changed into your costume, you’ve got your stage make-up on, you’ve done your warm-up exercises, you’re ready to roll! So there’s an excitement and an adrenaline there. But also, I feel the sense of this being very important work for me to honour Christie properly. And the worst thing in the world for me – which I don’t think would ever be – but if I was to have a lacklustre performance, it would be besmirching Christie’s memory. And to honour his memory is the whole point of this. He didn’t really get the recognition that he fully deserved because his illness took him from us, ya know.”

Aonghus and Denice warm-up with a selfie!

Based on all of his experience across the performance platforms of stage, radio, and television, are there skills or personality traits which Aonghus feels are important to, or transferable between, all three?

“Well, all three are very different, I suppose. I think in radio you have to have an intimacy. Radio is a wonderful medium because it paints the pictures in your head. That’s why drama works so well, because with a sound effect and a voice saying to you, ‘As I came over the hill I saw beneath me ten thousand men on horses charging towards me, and I felt alone and isolated’, and you put in the sound of thundering hooves, and you’re there! I do a lot of late night radio, I present a lot of Late Date [one of RTE Radio 1’s most popular shows] during the year, and I get people saying how it feels like I’m talking just to them, and I love that kind of intimacy. Television is very different in the sense that just two minutes on television can have huge penetration in terms of people remembering, ya know, ‘Oh, I saw ya on..’ such-and-such-a-thing. It’s really very powerful because the visual thing stays with you longer. I find the big difference between radio and television is that if I did the same interview on television and on radio, and if I was looking at or listening to both of them, I’d find myself looking at the television thinking, ‘I wonder if I should have worn a different shirt and tie there?’, or is that the wrong suit, or whatever, ya know. And yet, when you listen on radio, you’re saying things like, ‘Yeah, that’s an interesting point I made there.’ So you’re concentrating more on the content on radio, whereas it’s the aesthetic, visual nature of things on television. But then on stage, what I love about ‘live’ performing is that there’s no-where to hide. And most of my work has always been ‘live’ on telly and radio anyway. But when you’re in recording mode in either, you’ll actually tend to have more situations where something will go wrong. Lighting will say hang on ’til I move this lamp a bit, or the sound guy will say there’s a bit of distortion somewhere. But when you’re ‘live’ in theatre, that’s it! You can’t turn around and say, ‘I’m terribly sorry, ladies and gentlemen, I’m going to go back and start that again!’ [laughs]. I think you have to have a skill-set which incorporates a lot of knowledge. I mean, I’ve done so much work on this show I have every word of it in my head. And it’s scripted. Somebody came up to me the other night and said, ‘And what kind of a show will you do tomorrow night?’, and I was like, ‘What do you mean, what sort of a show?’ And they said, ‘Well how different will it be to this one?’ And I said, ‘No, this IS the show, this is a carefully scripted, worked-out, musically rehearsed show’ [laughs]. A skill you need is to be able to deliver a performance. I started my life as a musician remember, and I remember years ago I went and I sat in the orchestra pit in the Gaiety Theatre, watching the band members playing the Christmas show there. And I asked the clarinet player, ‘What’s the secret to keeping everything fresh, do you play it like it’s the last time you ever will?’ And he replied, ‘No, play it like it’s the FIRST time you’ve ever played it.’ And I thought that was an interesting differentiation to make. That the excitement of playing something for the first time was what you should look at, rather than thinking, well, if this is the last time I ever play it I’d better try and make it sound o.k., or whatever. So I’ve tried to keep by that. And you have to remember as well, that in the main – even though a lot of people are coming to see this show more than once – it’s an audience’s first time to see it most of the time. Everybody who buys a ticket, takes a seat, and comes to your show, they deserve the BEST and highest possible standard you can give them.”

I grew up watching Aonghus on television, from the Saturday morning children’s television show ‘Anything Goes’, to the family-fun of ‘The Lyrics Board.’ But from all of his time on television, on those shows and others, are there a couple of moments which he recalls with particular fondness and affection?

“I think, from a ‘My-God-Did-I-Really-Do-That?- point, it would be when ‘live’ on ‘Anything Goes, I walked out of the studio, put on a parachute, got into a helicopter, went up eight-thousand feet, jumped out, was in free-fall for about thirty seconds, opened the parachute, landed on the grass in front of the tv station, took off the parachute, walked back into the studio, sat down and said, ‘And now, let’s have a cartoon!’ [laughs]. That had never, ever been done before, nor has it since. Myself and the great B.B. King played blues guitar together on another show I did, called ‘Evening Extra’, just the two of us playing ‘live’ together, his guitar and my guitar, that was incredible, too. Those are two very special memories. I just love meeting people, I’m a people person. So anything that puts me in front of the public, I love it. And I get annoyed when I see some of my colleagues who don’t like interacting with the public. I think that’s akin to a bus driver not liking the traffic! It’s part and parcel of the job. But also, the day that nobody wants to come up and shake your hand, or share a memory, it means that your career is over, that you’re not having any impact anymore on anybody whatsoever.”

Aonghus and Denice backstage before a show.

Going back to Christie and the show, what songs does Aonghus most enjoy performing each night? Are there some which have a special significance for him, or maybe some which every audience, on every night, seems to connect with moreso than others?

“At the very end of the show, ‘Roll Back The Clouds’, the one about the reality of life in showbusiness, that is just a pivotal moment in light of everything that’s come before it. I very carefully crafted the show so that it leads and builds to this crescendo. And at the end of ‘Roll Back The Clouds’, that’s it, there is no more to give, it’s game over. It’s just a fantastic ending to the show. There’s another beautiful song called ‘I Will’, which I sing early on, it’s a love song which illustrates the tender side of what Christie could do. Denice Doyle sings ‘All The Lies That You Told Me’, a song Frances Black made famous for Christie, I love playing that with Denice singing. And Denice and myself do a beautiful version of ‘If You Were To Fall’, which Hermione and Christie used to sing, I love doing that. There’s also a lovely song that follows a big long speech when he realises that he’s dying from cancer, called ‘Believe In Me’, and it’s about believing in yourself, just get up there and don’t be wasting time. What I do like about the show is that, as I explain in the very carefully worded text I’ve written, it puts each song into context. And I see people sitting, listening to every word of the song because they now know what to look out for. If a song just washes over you, and it’s kinda ambient listening, well that’s one thing. But if somebody says to you, ‘Have a listen to this….’, like with the haunting loneliness of a song called ‘Lonely Boy’, and people start listening to words then. They get the whole message and it makes perfect sense that way.”

Frances Black, who recorded ‘All The Lies That You Told Me’ which spent 16 weeks in the Irish Charts.

Aonghus, of course, is also the producer on ‘Liveline’, the second most-listened to radio show in the Ireland, and in that role he has a unique and consistent insight into what really matters to the ‘regular’ people of Ireland. With that in mind, has he found that, over time, that access tends to reflect, or perhaps even predict, the course of the nation in relation to many issues?

“Certainly the whole ‘talk to Joe’ [Duffy, the ‘Liveline’ presenter] thing is a finger on-the-pulse, as they say. And I feel it’s become the go-to show and person to get a sense of what Ireland is talking about. I go in at about quarter past seven every morning, about an hour and a bit before the team come in, to try and get a sense of what we’re at. And the bottom line is that we both create the news a lot of the time, when people get in touch with us and we recognise a good story, but we also want it to be about whatever Ireland is talking about today, ya know? What are the issues? Sean O’ Rourke, and the News At One, and Morning Ireland, those shows will be doing the very heavy investigative, strictly news reporting. But what we’re doing is capturing the peoples’ sense of those problems. We get the personal stories from the Irish public on things like what they feel about the banks, for example. And what I find is that we get the stories behind the stories. And Joe’s knowledge for life and appetite for people is fantastic. His ability to speak with people is second to none. I’ve heard Joe get things out of people, simply by listening to them, but also by his skill in talking to them. People feel free to open up to Joe in a way that I don’t hear with others. He’s just a very, very skilled broadcaster. It’s no surprise to me that after Morning Ireland, which is always going to be the most listened-to show, that ‘Liveline’ with Joe is next. It’s a sign of just how fantastic he is, and of course, we have a great team around the programme as well. Everybody works extremely hard to keep it fresh. But it can also be a scary place, in a sense, because every day you’re starting from nothing. Because it’s not pre-set, ya know. Now sometimes, you will have a topic that will run on for a couple of days, but in general, it’s a blank page every day and a case of, right, what are we going to do today?’, ya know.”

* Aonghus brings The Platinum Collection Tour in memory of Christie Hennessy to the Tullamore Court Hotel on Thursday, December 7th. Tickets are available from hotel reception, and from TRAX, the Bridge Centre, Tullamore.

The Platinum Collection tour poster

CHRISTIE HENNESSY REMEMBERED IN BEAUTIFUL TRIBUTE SHOW FROM OLD FRIEND AONGHUS MCANALLY was originally published on HEM COUNTRY