#it'd be like going back to my roots lmao

[babyboiboyega]

Gekko Headcanons #1 : The Cookout

Pairing: Mateo De la Fuente/Gekko x Black!Gn!reader Headcanon: Taking Mateo to a family cookout would include... Content: fluff, profanity Word Count: 2.6k Author's Note: its been toooo long since I've written something, and of course my newest hyperfixation is the thing that gets me to write again LMAO gotta love it y'know? I am very new to the world of Valorant and this character, so please...if any of this seems ooc, kindly let me know. I'm still learning about him, I'm still feeling him out, but I just enjoy the character so much already. I also enjoyed writing this, so I hope y'all enjoy! <3 Tag list: @liyaawrites (aka, the person responsible for this obsession!!)

I wanna start off by saying that the second you mention taking Mateo to meet your family, the boy is geeked out of his mind. Maybe it's in passing during a conversation, or maybe you consciously bring up the topic once you feel it's the right time; either way, it’s met with wide, brown eyes that sparkle in excitement, and thick lips that part on an immediate agreement. Not only does an agreement follow, but he also immediately starts to ask what he should bring. What kind of get-together is it? Does he need to know anything beforehand? How does he need to dress, because he’ll be damned if he shows up underdressed when meeting the family of the person he loves. He only stops worrying when you tell him exactly what the function is – a cookout – and what he’s expected to bring – some dish that your mom/grandmother/auntie or other family member is requesting. And once those questions are answered, he goes straight to worrying about making sure it’s up to their standards. You have no idea why, but your family gives you and him the job of bringing the macaroni (and not any store-bought macaroni- they’ll know the difference). When he learns that it has to be homemade and that its a staple in the entire cookout, he instantly looks up recipes while thinking back to the ones his ma or abuela would use, wanting to put his own spin on it while also wanting to make a good first impression. It gets to the point where you find him up late one night, his phone’s screen illuminating his features from where he lays beside you. He’d turn his phone to you sheepishly, apologizing for the bright light and displaying a page called “how not to make macaroni and cheese” or something along those lines with a sheepish smile.

“Think they’ll like this one?” “Teo…baby…it’s 3 am.” “...you’re right, I should look for another one-”

The days leading up to the cookout are spent with him constantly going on about how excited he is to meet your family – specifically the cousins you’re the closest to and have mentioned before. In response, you warn him that your family can be…a bit much, specifically when someone brings their partner around. They have a tendency to ask too many questions, get a little too comfortable joking around, and are just all around loud and obnoxious sometimes…and he’d only reassure you with a knowing smirk and a raised eyebrow that not only is his family the same, but he’s so used to being around large families as his used to have get togethers all the time. He’s dealt with it before, and it'd be worth it to deal with it again if it meant he got to meet your folks. Despite the sentiments, you still warn him – especially of that aunt who always likes to make smart-ass comments and loves calling others out despite having her own problems in her life, to which he lets you know that he’s dealt with one of those and he’ll make sure that y’all are far away from that aunt at all times. He would offer to keep you dancing all night just so you had an excuse to not talk to that person, which would only lead to a conversation involving line dances. 

Despite Mateo's affinity for the punk/skater aesthetic, I’d like to think that his Hispanic roots have resulted in him having a good sense of rhythm. I also like to think that he listens to a lot of music in his spare time, fostering an appreciation for different genres. With that being said, I think our boy could keep up with the line dances. When you offer to teach him a few just for fun, he’d be excited as hell, his lips curling into a full-blown smile as he’d watch you turn the music on and scroll through the first ‘cookout line dance’ playlist you find. When you find a suitable one and try to teach him, he’d be playful about the entire thing, claiming that he needs you to do it a few times although you know its just so he can see you dance, his eyes lingering heavily on your hips as you do so. And when you finally get him to join you, you realize that he may not have the steps down, but he’s got enough swag and rhythm to keep up and look like he knows what he’s doing, which is enough. 

“One more time, princesa- I promise. I’ll get it this time.” “You’re just looking at my ass, Mateo-” “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” (with a shit eating grin on his face)

Now…when it gets to the day of the cookout, you two would be up pretty early, going to get the supplies to make the macaroni before starting on it at home. He’d want to help so badly, but he’d also have no problem getting your input on it – after all, it is your family and you know how they usually like their macaroni. But he’d also insist on doing most of it himself which would result in about a few hours of him moving around the kitchen with a focused look on his face. His focus is only broken by you checking in on him, it instantly changing to a cocky, yet playful, smirk as he would nod to the pan that’s in the oven. 

“How’s it goin, baby?” “Look at that masterpiece and tell me how it’s goin, mi carino. You see that golden brown on the top, you smell that delicious, scrumptious, decadent-” “Aaaalright, that’s enough-”

You know I have to mention the process of picking out outfits. I absolutely believe that Mateo would not only be down for, but would love being one of those couples that wears complimenting outfits. Not matching completely, but maybe having one article of clothing that’s the same color or maybe even wearing the same accessories. You two have too much personality and style to limit yourselves to wearing the exact same thing when going out, so he would love to wear complimenting outfits. He’d always make sure to pick colors that you enjoy wearing despite thinking that you look beautiful in every color. 

“What about green?” “Oh…well…you know I don’t exactly look the best in green, baby.” “I wholeheartedly disagree, but we can look for something else, mi amor. No problem-”

I think that he’d be so invested in making sure y’all look good that he’d kind of forget about the macaroni that's in the oven. You can’t even blame him, because you’d be able to see the excitement radiating off of him as he gets ready, so you’d just gently, but amusedly, remind him. 

“Teo.” “Yeah?” “Your macaroni-” “Mierda- my macaroni-!”

His attention would instantly switch to the macaroni, so much so that he’d still be standing in the kitchen, his eyes on the oven when you walk in fully dressed with Wingman trailing behind you, Mateo’s shirt in his beak as he chirps and trills. You wouldn’t be able to understand him, but you don’t really have to to understand the comedic radivore’s noises. You’d only be able to nod and agree with the little guy as you both watch Mateo hurriedly throw on his shirt before taking out the macaroni. 

Now…lets get to the cookout itself. He’d hear the music and chatter immediately after stepping out of the car and would just look at you with a smile and excited eyes, offering to take the dish with one hand and your hand with the other. You’d be able to see that recognition in his eyes, the myriad of sounds that signify a family fellowship being ever so familiar to him. Homeboy would walk in the door with a wide and inviting smile, greeting people politely while also showing that he can be rather extroverted when he wants to be. Of course, he gets the typical ‘this must be yo lil friend’ from your family members, but he takes it in stride. But while taking it all in stride, he’d also make sure to kiss your cheek, your forehead, hold your hand, wrap an arm around your waist– anything to show that the words ‘lil friend’ are just a title your family members have given him, and that the truth is he’s yours. 

He’d show the macaroni to the family member(s) in charge of the food, watching with baited breath as they take the foil off of the top, their eyes looking at the golden-brown cheese on top before looking up at you two with a smile. 

“Oooh, this looks good, Y/N.” “Actually, Mateo made it. I just helped him when he needed it; it was all him.”

He’d absolutely be geeked when they turn to him with an impressed look, their smile widening as they set it on the table with the rest of the food. And if you thought he had a big head when being told that it looked good, it’s nothing compared to when the first family member comes up and tells him that it tasted good. Chile, you’d never hear the end of it…though you don’t want to. It’d be endearing and sweet that he takes so much pride in making something your family enjoys. And when it comes to him actually eating the food prepared, he would not hold his appreciation back. There’d be a lot of ‘who made this’, followed by just as many ‘dios mio’s as he can dish out. The same goes for the dessert portion, especially the homemade pound cakes from your family members. Yeah, he’d have no problem asking for a to-go box; one for food, and one for dessert. 

Throughout the duration of the cookout, he’d find himself constantly in conversation with someone from your family, whether it be because he had been pulled into a conversation, or whether it was because someone approached him with the intent of asking questions. Either way, Mateo would be game for any question asked, usually answering with an air of confidence, friendliness, and humor that made others love him instantly. When asked questions about you two’s relationship, he’d be quick and incredibly willing to answer, his eyes glancing at you adoringly as he does so with a smile on his face. It’d get to a point where you would have to ‘rescue’ him from more questions, citing that you wanted to dance just to get him away from your family member(s). And he’d happily let you pull him away, however, not before promising the uncles gathered around a table that he’d play spades with them the next round. 

At some point in the night, you’d lose him for a few minutes, coming back to his empty seat after fixing a plate of dessert for both of you, and after scouring the yard, hoping that he hasn’t gotten himself into a less than pleasant conversation, you finally find him. Except he isn’t in a conversation- not with an adult, anyway. No, he’s seated in the yard, not too far at all from the kids table, smiling widely as the kids from your family gather around him. Their hands reach for and gently run over his hair, the dyed shapes and colors instantly catching their attention as they speak over each other, asking him questions.

“Why’d you do that to your hair?” “Did it hurt? Why’d you pick spots?” “My mama says people who dye their hair like that don’t want a job.” “Can I do that to my hair?”

You’d only be able to watch in fondness for a few minutes as he struggles to answer their questions, his facial expression showing exactly how much he enjoyed being the center of attention for the kids. It would get to a point where he’d look up at you with an expression that screamed for help despite the smile still on his face, and you wouldn’t hesitate in rescuing him. You’d never seen Mateo around kids before now, but going off of the vibes and interactions you’d see, it’d be easy to come to the conclusion that he’s pretty okay with kids. Because of his chill demeanor, not only is he seen as ‘cool’ to the youngins, but he’s also easy to interact with. It would certainly help that he’s got a little crew of adorable creatures who are intelligent enough to interact carefully with the kids. There’d be peels of laughter and excited chatter as Wingman does a trick when prompted by Mateo. There’d also be a time where Wingman turns to Mateo, chirping quickly and constantly looking back at the kids…and after a short conversation between the two, he’d probably smile, nodding his head towards the kids with a ‘have fun, be careful’. That’d be the only thing Wingman needs to hear before turning and joining the group of kids in their activities, the laughter being a constant noise as long as the creature is interacting with them. 

When it gets to the end of the night and people start filtering out of the yard, he’d check in with you, asking you if you’re tired or if you still want to hang around with a look of understanding for whatever answer you give. It's only when you smile tiredly and sheepishly at him that he’d nod with a smile, telling you that maybe it's time to go. It wouldn’t be long before you two have a bag with your to-go boxes in them, making your rounds with your family members and saying goodnight. He’d leave Wingman to play with the remaining kids until it’d be time to go, waving him over once you two are ready to leave. (You can’t help but feel like you two have your own little family, and the earlier sight of him interacting with the kids certainly adds fuel to that thought). 

The ride home would be spent going over certain conversations and interactions that had happened during the night, showing just how attentive Mateo had been the entire night. You’d also learn of some of the conversations he’d had when you weren’t around…and he’d instantly wave away your apologies for the nature of those conversations, an easygoing and amused smile on his face as he does so.

“Please tell me she did not say that to you- I’m so sorry, love-” “No need to say sorry. It was pretty funny, so its okay, mi cielito. So…you tried to turn the speed all the way up on the treadmill, yeah?” “Yeah, that’s enough of that-”

To put it simply: Mateo would be ecstatic that he not only got to spend an entire day with you and your family, but that he got to see how you interact with your family. It’s truly nothing like seeing the love of your life in their safe space with people they trust. He could’ve sat and watched you speak to cousins, aunties, uncles, whoever else and would’ve been completely satisfied. He’d go to bed thinking about the glow you had on your face as you spoke to family members you’d missed, and how he’d heard and seen you genuinely laugh with cousins when recounting old stories, and how you and your family connected over food, music, and fellowship...and yeah, he’d have to admit to himself in the middle of the night, while holding you close, that he couldn’t wait to have that with you in the future.

A/N: I hope that was fun to read, it was certainly fun to write! Once again, this is my first time writing for this character that I just found out about like...two weeks ago, y'all...be patient with me while I'm learning. BUT I'm gonna really try to write more this summer because I definitely won't have time to in the fall, so keep an eye out!

[phoenixcatch7]

Just finished oracle of ages!!! Good game, good game. I have Thoughts.

I actually really enjoyed the story and characters! I figured going into the oracle games that it'd be a simple, cliché story, not much nuance or depth, and with Seasons that's basically what I got: din gets fridged in a crystal at the start of the game -> go get her -> you need a set of maguffins to do so -> fight big monster.

Admittedly it was the first game, which meant less story, but even if I hadn't linked (heh) the games for extra end game content Ages just did so much more.

Unlike din, naryu has someone else willing to help her. Ralph (the twinkiest twink to ever twink) was a young man who was her devoted friend (there was a weird crush triangle thing going on with him, Link and naryu, I always felt like I was missing subtext) and, spoilers for a 20yo game?? I guess?

He was the dethroned descendant of the ancient queen Ami. His family definitely still have big money though. He was pretty clearly supposed to be a comic relief character with a twist, but I ended up really liking him! He was over enthusiastic and over confident, but not unintelligent, a decent swordsman (I think) who was incredibly loyal to his friends and held some deep rooted responsibility for the people his family used to rule. Kind, determined, good with kids and people in general, he was terrified but willing to sacrifice his very existence to save the people.

The world building was also great! I don't think I've ever played a zelda game without gorons, but hylians were in short supply. To be expected outside of hyrule, I guess? Anyway, there were also lizard people on an island (tokay!) whose entire deal was.. A bit outdated? Rude, brazen and aggressive to outsiders, they lived in crude huts, worshipped things they didn't quite understand and were generally the old Hollywood stereotype of an isolated jungle tribe.

There was also, like, zora racism? There's a zora village underwater, and one of them was like 'us sea zora are nothing like those river zora 😒' which handily solved both my question of if the river/ocean zora divide was canon or fanon and the relationships between the two. Are they even the same species?? It just makes the rito even weirder but hey lmao. In all honesty I was pretty sick of the river zora at that point too, I swear there were two of them popping up in every screen that had even a sliver of water deeper than the knees and they CONSTANTLY shot fireballs istg they were such a pain. They were literally everywhere and so hard to kill.

On the plus side mermaid suit ^u^!! A dungeon item (the mermaids cave), the item had a desc like 'the skin of the mythical beast' which raised SO many more questions than it answered. The zora were delighted to see a young mermaid! The use of 'maid' implied either a) the zora all thought link was a girl and he didn't correct them (eyo genderqueer androgeny) b) the zora don't subscribe to gender the way humans do (eyo genderqueer androgeny) or c) all fish people look like mermaids regardless of their specific gender (eyo genderqueer androgeny). It literally could have been all three who knows. Maybe one day we'll actually meet a mermaid in zelda.

Also, there's a mini game in Seasons, which I played first, the subrosian dance. It's a pretty popular part of their culture, it's got music, it's got professional dancers. In Ages, you find the gorons doing the exact same dance! Rosa, a subrosian performer you meet in Seasons, is also there, saying her people's dance is better (tbf it is), but if you go to the past you'll find the gorons actually invented the dance first, as part of their love of games and entertainment, and you can talk to two subrosians who are talking about bringing the dance home! It's so interesting to see little details like this, where the travelling subrosians visited their fellow cave dweller lava eating people centuries ago, brought it back home where it exploded in popularity and centuries later became refined as a whole folk dance with spinning and everything, with the people forgetting where it came from, where the gorons keep their dance exactly the same (having to do a rhythm game without rhythm is hard).

Actually, there was so much political fantasy drama going on in the past?? Like, you've got the childless queen taking care of her people, a budding village and a few more settlements across the kingdom. Early in her reign she tried to build a tower to act as a beacon to her fiancé lost at sea, which is a romance story all on its own, but it was cut short (maybe because of funding?). Centuries in the future, it's just ruins. You've got people living on an ACTIVE VOLCANO starting a symmetry cult around a artifact called 'tuni nut' which, presumably, stabilises the volcano? And it's entirely cut off from the outside world. The goron elder is crushed under rocks and their economy is failing. The zora king got poisoned and he's about to die without an heir because a witch turned the fairy queen into an octorock, but the man in charge of the only cure refuses to hand it over until someone passes his tests.

Most of it is solved relatively easily by link and a copious amount of time travel, but the thing with the ruling queen only gets worse. When the evil witch invades the kingdom, she possesses the oracle of ages, naryu (who's a little implied to be the Actual Creation Goddess Naryu reincarnated) and travels back to the past to bring about an age of despair in the present. She does this by slipping into the royal court and befriending the queen as a serving girl, rising up the ranks to become her closest advisor and corrupting her (pretty sure mind control magic is used a li'l). She convinces her to restart the black tower project, pouring all of her and the towns resources into it - forcibly conscripting every able bodied worker and working them to the bone, all while monsters start to circle the tower. With all the fear and resentment, it quickly becomes a beacon of dark energy, a perfect focal point to perform black magics.

Link (and Ralph) end up in the past and get hauled in front of the queen, with possessed naryu at her side, who basically jeers at them and ensures the queen won't listen to their untrustworthy lies. The townsfolk are getting increasingly stressed as their village fills with rubble and their men are worked to the point of collapse. Armed guards start to appear to keep the workers under control. Eventually, Ralph uncovers a hole in the guard rotation, and he and link sneak into the palace through a secret entrance Ralph oh so casually knows about. Link and naryu fight, but with stupendous timing the queen walks in to see naryu collapsed on the floor, Link standing over her with a sword. She calls for the guards, but before anyone can react, the witch, banished form her first vessel, leaps into the queen herself instead. Ralph shoves past the arriving guards and into naryus arms, while link moves in from of them. The queen orders the guards to attack, but naryu, reawakened, pulls them back to the present in the nick of time. In the present, the black tower is magically growing, reaching higher and higher into the sky, terrifying the people of the city.

Then! Ralph, who at this point is suspiciously invested now his actual goal is completed and naryu is safe, vows to go back into time again, away from naryu, to live under the now evil queen and bring protection and comfort to the villagers as a direct act of resistance, because the witch is feeding on their sorrow to power an unknown ritual (link knows. Link, canonically, has told nobody). So this teen in fancy robes and cape goes back to the oppressed, poverty stricken town under the thumb if someone who wants him dead and lives there for weeks if not months dedicating himself to supporting the village and bringing people's hopes and spirits back up, presumably while living out of someone else's wooden hut. In the middle of a literal depression inducing miasma that's sapping everyone's joy and will to live.

That just. Takes insane strength of character. That's a feat of pure, distilled, compassion as anarchy.

Link's off bouncing between past and present doing dungeons and solving easier issues through either sword or magic item, but Ralph is out here doing the long hard slog for little reward.

Link finally returns to the black tower completed, affecting even the people of the present, and, preparations complete, rushes to the past. Ralph is nowhere be seen. Talking to the villagers reveals several have a crush on him, but an old man saw him running for the tower, sword drawn. There's a man pacing by the entrance, who saw the kid run in, tried to stop him. He said Ralph said that he no longer cared what happened to him. That the man realised that Ralph had quietly succumbed to the same curse of despair they all were under. Link fights his way up to the top of the tower, where Ralph confronts the evil queen, sword at her heart, but every step she takes into it, he steps back. The witch laughs. She asks him if he's really willing to write himself out of existence - being the queens descendant, and all. Ralph leaps back, into links chest. He's shaking and stuttering, but he lunges, and is knocked out in one blow. The queen now asks link the same question: is he willing to erase Ralph? If he strikes her, kills her, the queen will die, childless, and he will never live. She leaves, and link rushes to Ralph. He's awake but unresponsive, defeated. With a heavy heart, Link leaves him to chase the queen. It's naryu who finds him, brings him out of the tower.

When the witch is defeated, the curse is lifted, and Ralph is once more energetic and kind. He's a little quieter now, though, sticking close to naryu. For all he was a loud and headstrong kid, I gotta say I was very impressed.

He would have made a good king.

[apollos-boyfriend]

what's a festa junina if you don't mind my asking?

i don't mind at all!!!! i love sharing stuff about brazil <3

okay SO. festa junina directly translates to "june party", and are sometimes also referred to as "festas de são juão" (saint john's parties) because we're in brazil and everything has to be related back to religion somehow LMAO. they are festivities that take place in, obv, the entire month of june, although some can last up until like, late august because by god do brazilians love a good party. traditionally, they're held to celebrate the harvest season, rain, and marriage (*cough* which is why it'd be great to celebrate it now with the spiderbit wedding on the horizon *cough*). it's brazil's second-biggest festival, second only to carnival ofc, and has very rural roots in its celebration style due to largely being a harvest/farming based celebration!

so!! festa juninas are typically held in wide open areas and absolutely COVERED in colorful decorations. largely banners, as shown above, but there are also different tents/stalls full of food, games, and other stuff for people to enjoy!! festa junina is kind of heralded as the best time for food/snacks bc it's FULL of sweets and other treats that aren't that common to find en-masse during other times of the year. as shown above, it's also super common for HUGE campfires to be lit (fogueiras) for ppl to dance around and stuff :]

due to being so heavily inspired by/created in rural areas, the standard dress code is very much of a stereotypical rural farmer (called caipira in portuguese!). the standard is for men to adorn straw hats, flannels, and working boots/pants, while women wear their hair in ribboned braids, dot freckles on their faces, and wear rustic dresses on top of it all! the dresses can be EXTREMELY over the top sometimes to the point of camp and i fucking love them so much. genuinely some of my favorite memories are shopping for dresses for festa junina.

as i said, games are a BIG part of it too! a lot of festa juninas are hosted by schools so they need stuff to entertain the kids, but honestly, as a grown adult i still will go to them in a heartbeat. they're largely the typical festival games of ring toss, three-legged races, etc, but i cannot put into words the certain Charm of them. like. by the time festa junina starts it's at least sundown, if not fully night, so all the stands are lit up by the yellow-orange glows of shitty lanterns/fairy lights and. ough. that is my heaven. (fun fact, me and my cousin once won like, a dozen goldfish from one of these. good times.)

and last, but certainly not least, i GOTTA talk about the dancing!!! we call it quadrilha, and it's kind of like square dancing, i guess? it's a very silly and over-the-top dance that's The biggest even of the night. the dance follows the story of a wedding ceremony (rehearsal? i can't recall) which again would be PERFECT for the current events on the smp.

and yeah!! there's a lot of other stuff and they can vary from region to region (i'd love for other brazilians to share things i may have missed :Oc) but overall they're just a HUGE event in brazil and for brazilian communities that really just unite everyone in one huge night (or nights) of partying!!

[madrone33]

Listened to the Circe Saga last night! (I'm in the superior timezone, 15 hours before the americans lol /j) Absolutely incredible, did not disappoint!

Here's the notes I hastily typed out during and afterwards lol:

Puppeteer:

The plucked guitar in that melody, thinking of Polites fr fr

Eurylochus sounds less autotune than in the snippet. Musta been compression.

Fuck i can't believe i'm actually listnening to it!!!

The time skip is wind I think?

"Inside we heaard a voiiice!" SO GOOD! SO SMOOTH! I LOVE IT!

Those deep strings tho- oof so good!

"What." HAHA add it to the count XD

CIRCE! It's fucking Circe!!!! Her little riff on "Go ahead and rest where-ver you liiiike!"

The party music is really cool

Her voice at "This is the price" is angelic!

Huh. The party music comes back in the Eury and Ody second verse, but it's weirdly off beat.

Second vese is a bit different from the old snippet. Ody is less... soft sounding?

Ok time to write down the overlapping lyrics.

Yeah I still don't really understand Circe's lines rip

Also, Ody's final line is strangely not emphasised a lot? It's easy to miss behind Circe.

Wouldn't You Like:

Hermes giggles are so mischievous lmao

Ody is shocked and awed at seeing his Great-Grandfather while Hermes is just there for the lols

OOOF YES! The fucking amazing bass in the first chorus!!

The rising and descending harp!

"She can TURN you into an a-ni-mal!" I'm smiling so hard rn, it's HERMES

Here in the root of this flower! So smooooth

That high note on "bEING of your cre-A-tion!" Hell yes!

Not how I imagined that Holy Moly part ngl. Thought it'd pause for a beat to let the joke sink in with Ody's "Ah." being very dry, but whatever, it works, I'm sure I'll get used to it!

Also the beat transition to the end chorus reminds me of Micheal Jackson? Or- wait. Did I just get rick rolled??

The end chorus with all the harmonising vocals and the chorus and Ody' high riffs!! It's so damn GROOVEY

Ody sounds so happy and grateful awww

Pffft Hermes that's cold bro. So blase and teasing. Also yeah, lowkey King George vibes lol.

Done For:

The ELECTIC GUITAR!!

Ody is so sassy passive agressive lmao

The LFOs!!

The chimera roar snarl is very cool!

Ody is one cocky snarky mf

Circe is bitching and sassing and sounds so done with Hermes and Ody both lmao

The HARMONIES ON THE LAST CHORUS!!!

The LFOs and electric guitar mixing!

The sound effects of the BOSS BATTLE! The heavy thuds of footsteps and the snarls. Also that's one sharp sounding sword

There Are Other Ways:

The waltzy sounding strings are so pretty!

Que the key change! And more fantastic overlapping hamonising vocals!

The... hand- drum thing? Took me off guard, still not sure if I like it.

The abrupt "I CANT." YOU TELL HER ODY!! Bro I was so tense without know how he was gonna get out of that.

Not the Penelope stringssss!! *adoring sigh* The Penelope strings... It's so fucking cool how you can just immediately tell exactly who he's thinking about.

"She's my everything... My Penelope..." AHHHHH

Just now realising that Ody tells Circe "Back at home my wife awaits for me" and Circe respects that and helps him, while him telling Calypso that Penelope's his wife doesn't deter her in the slightest. Yeah.

"12 long years" Timeline lore? Write that down write that down!

God of Tides is such a cool epithet

The "Circe" and "mercy" rhyme took me off guard in the best of ways.

And then he hits me with the breathy high "let us puppets leeeave" like bro COME ON

Nylon strings my beloved!

CIRCE IS HELPING!!!

The deep piano drop at "Problem is, this prophet is DEAD" lmao

The return of the LFOs lesss goooo!!!!

Ody sounds so baffled and hopeful and excited like SAME BRO

"There are many ways of persuasion" as in, he managed to pursuade her in a way she didn't expect!!

"Maybe showing one act of kindness, leads to kinder souls down the road..." HOLY FUCK! HOLY FUCK! Circe's on the mercy end of the ruthlessness scale?? Also took it to mean if she shows him mercy, maybe he won't turn and become like those strangers that dealt a heavy loss to her nymphs.

"I have been in love once before" 👀 Circe lore??

"Maybe one day the world will need a puppeteer no more..." When I realised where this was going! The END FUCKING RIFF IT'S FROM THAT CLIP! THE HIGH NOTES I LOVE IT!!!!

Odysseus and Circe friendship is real!!

OMFG THE CIRCE SAGA'S OVER WHAT????

I love it! The Circe Saga is out, and it's amazing! Thank you Jorge and Talya and Troy and Armando, and everyone else who worked on this amazing project to show us this incredible music, thank you so so much! You should all be proud!

[werepuppy-steve]

20 questions for writers

tagged by @devondespresso !!

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

38! i've been trying to upload more tumblr ficlets, so hopefully it'll be double that by the end of the year!

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

69,777

3. What fandoms do you write for?

stranger things, currently! but i've also written for naruto, bnha, and a few others

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

starry eyed love

the magic that we'll feel is worth the lifetime

capital p

constant, pleasure

misty taste of moonshine

(not that im not grateful but these have been my top 5 for the past two years, can we give some love to my other fics please 😭)

5. Do you respond to comments?

yes! it takes me a little bit, but i will respond!

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

i dont think i have one? happy endings only in this house <3 but if i have to choose, strawberry wine probably has the most bittersweet ending

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

probably all of them lmao. like i said, happy endings only here.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

thankfully no!

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

i've only seriously started writing it last year, but yes! mainly pwp ft transmasc steve, but i hope i can get the courage/motivation to write longer stories that contain smut but aren't smut focused.

10. Do you write crossovers?

not currently

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

i don't think so? i hope people would let me know if someone did

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

yes! i think it was on my previous ao3, but i can't remember which language it was translated in. portuguese, i think?

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

no but i think it'd be fun!

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

currently it's steddie, but if you ask me to go back to my roots, it's sasunaru

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you will?

all of them 😭 but i don't want to say that i'll never finish them. i might rework them into something different if the inspiration strikes me.

16. What are your writing strengths?

uuuuuhhhhhhhh. warm fuzzies? is that a correct answer?

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

the part where you actually write the story

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

english is my only language, so it'd be a little difficult

19. First fandom you wrote for?

naruto

20. Favorite fic you've written?

when i think of favorite, i automatically think of magic, but my second favorite is probably she put her love down soft and sweet, just bc it's my first big proper smut fic and i worked really hard on it. but really all my fics are my favorite bc i put so much love and time into them <3

idk how many people you're supposed to tag for this ajfhajfjjs

@flowercrowngods @corrodedbisexual @steves-strapcollection @steddie-island @steviewashere

@thefreakandthehair @steddieas-shegoes @hotluncheddie @sidekick-hero @cuoredimuschio

[mokeonn]

Transmascs simply acknowledging that they face problems transfems don't tend to face as often aren't claiming misandry as a systemic force against all men exists, they are just acknowledging how their gender affects the form discrimination takes. 'Man' is not a default, ungendered state, and being a man does not lead to default, ungendered bigotry. This applies to homophobia, racism, ableism, etc and absolutely applies to transphobia. It'd be nice for men in all marginalized groups to be able to describe those intersections, without people deliberately taking the most bad faith interpretations of the terminology on a purely semantic level, regardless of what the terminology is or what it's describing.

As someone who once held the perspective you do, I believe you yourself would benefit from acknowledging your experiences as they are and unlearning the mental gymnastics and thought-terminating cliches required to degender your clearly gendered experiences as a trans man.

I'm gonna be 100% honest with you, men are not an oppressed group. A lot of men are oppressed, yes, but not because they're men. This was like, feminism 101. Men benefit from the patriarchy. Society was built around the idea that (white) men are superior. Man is not a default, but we live in a gendered society that treats it as such.

I am oppressed because I'm trans, because I'm autistic, because I'm mentally ill, because I'm disabled...

but not because I'm a man.

Have I been the subject of anti transmasc transphobia? Yeah. Of course. Obviously. But let's me explicitly clear here:

It's not because I'm a man, it's because I'm trans. The root of the specific bigotry I go through is transphobia. It's not "misandry", it's because I'm trans! The disgust I get for being a trans man is because I'm a trans man, not because I'm a trans man.

I'm sorry Anon but I'm not going to change my mind on this. I've been out as trans for over a decade now, and any disdain I get is not from my manhood, but because of my transness. Many men deal with bigotry and systemic oppression, but not because they're men. Every example I see trans man say is "transandrophobia" is based in transphobia, not misandry.

Like, I thought we all knew this??? Trans women face very specific oppression because they're trans, women, and trans women?? That's why the term transmisogyny exists? To describe the very specific oppression trans women face? Why would I use a term that involves the word Misandry in some way, a term we have lambasted for years now for good reason, when I can just say that what I deal with is transphobia? Because that's what it is. Transphobia. When I think back on the last 10 years of being openly trans, the bigotry I faced was because I was trans.

Use whatever labels you want I guess, I can't stop you, but I am gonna judge you for using misandry unironically lmao. Like yeah sometimes people are specifically transphobic towards trans men but it's because they hate us for being trans, not men, lmao.

Also, In my experience the guys who try to make these labels that are just repackaged versions of misandry are just like... generally unpleasant people to be around and they tend to not really interact with the larger trans community outside of other transmascs. They're pretty uninformed about the community im gonna be real with you. Like it really gives me the vibes of 15 year old MRAs who say men are oppressed because the patriarcy also hurts them. Like yeah, the patriarchy hurts everyone, but it specifically targets women. Just because you were caught in the crossfire, doesn't mean you were a target.

TL;DR: nah i've done a lot of thinking on it and it's just transphobia. And I'm okay with just describing it as transphobia. It doesn't need to be more. It doesn't "need to intersect with being a man", it's just transphobia. I'm okay with just calling it that. I've already reflected on my experiences and it's not a "thought terminating cliche" to say it's just transphobia.

I also repeated myself a lot bc I drank a cup of coffee before I had breakfast so I'm probably incoherent lmaooooo

[ishgard]

iris & zinnia for the botanical prompts!

[from @/icehearts, and sorry for the angst lmao]

Oh that's fine I love angst thank you so much >3 Answering for Ahru and I'll put them under a cut because 1. length and 2. spoilers! All the way through EW.

iris :   if your muse could convey one last message to someone they have lost or left behind ,   what would it be ?  

~Snippets from Letters to the Lifestream~

To Venat: I feel like you know everything already, but if I don't say it I think it'll fester in my lungs. I hated you. Resented you, feared you. I didn't understand you at all. Not until it was too late. I'm so sorry. Thank you for never holding it against me. Thank you for loving me and believing in me. I love you too, so, so much.

To Wilred: I don't know if it means much, but I am so, so proud of you. You may not realize it but you gave me hope and inspiration - to be a better person, too. (there are smudges here, and the lines are scribbled in a more shaky hand) I wish you could see Ala Mhigo now, free and thriving. I'm so sorry I couldn't save you.

To Haurchefant: It's been so long, since I would walk into your quarters and unravel my trials and tales to you. My quill faltered over the paper for so long, remembering how easy it used to be. I never had to pretend, never had to be more than exactly who I was. Thank you. For that, and everything else you gave me. A home, a family, a life. You know, it's not an easy thing, to live after someone dies for you. It's actually really, really hard. But you always believed in me, didn't you? Thank you for that, too. Also, just one more thing. I wish I'd said it then, but I was too foolish to figure it out. I love you. I love you. I love you.

To Emet-Selch: I imagine writing you like this is just going to annoy you. But if anyone actually found these letters it'd be you, I'm sure. Are you having a good rest? The birds are singing, children play, and the star continues to thrive. But what I really want to say is that I miss you. In ways my 'feeble mind' can't fathom but my soul feels keenly. I look forward to meeting you again one day, and annoying you in the next life too.

To Zenos: You godsdamned fool. Why couldn't you listen for once? If you come back again I... Well, I won't kill you again, but I'll do you one worse. I'll make you live. Really live. Oh, you're going to hate it. You're going to love it. (at the bottom of the page, written small) You will come back, won't you?

(on the back of the page, scribbled at a slant in a faster, angry scrawl) You saved me. I hate that you did. But it makes sense that you did, in our special way. I know only you would truly understand it. But here's the thing you won't understand: I love you for it.

zinnia :   how has the loss of fallen comrades and/or loved ones affected your muse ?   has it taught them anything or given them any new perspectives ?

Ho boy. I'm gonna break this down per character (a few, not all). Gonna put the rest under a cut!

Haurchefant: Bad. To summarize, her mindset basically became "I have to keep going for him, I have to keep going for everyone who is still alive, I have to be everywhere, always, and not ever, ever let this happen again, I can't let anyone else die for me." This was a mindset already seeded by the attack on the Waking Sands and the Bloody Banquet, but really took vicious root with Haurchefant's death. She ran herself ragged until basically post-Stormblood.

I want to say she did gain good things from it too in the long run but that's more her own healing done over a long period of time. She did also realize after he died that she loved him (big oofies), which would be the seed that gradually opened her heart and steadied her spirit in the long run (though also reliant on A Lot of Other Stuff).

Zenos: As far as growth-through-others goes, I feel like Hau and Zenos are two sides of the same coin for Ahru. The two little consciences on her shoulders. Wounds Haurchefant left in her spirit Zenos carved on her flesh to bleed out. I wrote this thing post-SB that I think gives at least some impression:

A kindred beast wrapped in war and bitter despair. A cutting pain that leaves her gasping, bleeding - alive. Human. She remembers in the struggle what it feels like to drown, to barely stay afloat, and then, against all odds, to survive. It is the bricks and mortar of who she is, reconstructed in a terrible dance for the heavens to gaze upon. As her teeth bite down on supple flesh, and blood spills down her throat, she is once more the victor. Once more, alone. 

So yeah, Zenos was absolutely her mirror, and losing him (both times) hit terribly hard despite all the damage he did. But she also realized exactly what made them different; all of the love and companionship she had in her life, deep roots that made the whole world her beloved home.

She also greatly embraced the idea of 'being a monster', at first in a kind of rabid way, on the heels of that mindset mentioned in the Haurchefant section, though gradually more in the sense of 'being a monster isn't such a bad thing': She's powerful and strong and can protect her friends.

Venat: Ahru had so many suspicions about Hydaelyn for so long, and then to have them sorta-kinda 'confirmed' by Emet-Selch? Well, it was more complicated than just giving her the rights to be like "Aha! I knew it!" Because that truth of course came with a lot more information, that made everything a lot more complicated.

I think a lot about meeting her on the boat, how once upon a time Ahru would have chosen the option about 'no longer being able to trust Hydaelyn' - because she never really did. But instead, by this point, she felt so much more compelled and asked 'why show yourself now?' Ahru has always been deeply curious (almost not even a strong enough word) about the Ascians and what drives them, about Zodiark and Hydaelyn.

So then to meet her, to share her stories, to learn the truth behind her blessings, changed everything for her. To learn how similar they were, how deep their connections ran. To learn that this Goddess has been standing firm, waiting for her, just. How soul-shaking it was. She had such little faith in Hydaelyn, and Hydaelyn had so much in her.

There's a lot of other complicated feelings between Ahru and her mother, Ahnia, when compared to the sort of warmth and acceptance she realized Venat gave her. Basically, in the course of Endwalker, she gained a sort-of-mother figure who was then taken away from her and it's a really complicated sort of grief she's dealing with there. It isn't, however as debilitating or damaging a grief as some others, for the most part. Rather, she feels more strong and resolute, renewed of purpose.

There's a common theme in a lot of Ahru's loss, of realizing too late what should have been cherished. And that isn't always her fault, either! she's had to realize. But if there's one thing it's all taught her it's to really hold those she loves close, to keep an open heart, and cherish every encounter.

[millies-theme]

epho stillness roots alternate ?

stillness: How does your OC act while still? Are they fidgety? Do they have any common gestures or tics? Does their clothing affect how they hold themselves while at rest? Epho isn't much of a fidgeted in public- she generally doesn't want to be noticed, so she'll just stand ominously in the corner lol The one exception is her tail, she flicks it often like a lil goat haha at home she'll fiddle with her knifes or her hair though! (or rings if she's wearing them, and Millie's hair if it'll let her, which isn't often) She dresses pretty casually and comfortably, so it doesn't get in the way often haha.

roots: Is your OC's look inspired by any specific style of clothing or fashion trend? What are the roots and/or inspiration for their look?

Usually when i'm drawing Epho in outfits that aren't referenced from something else (like the barbie outfit haha) i gravitate towards like.... casual workout gear? sweatpants and tanktops and the like. I don't remember what exactly originally inspired Epho's 1st design, but her redesign is based on that and a few other things;

namely - i like horns and big women.

plus one other thing i won't be mentioning bc its a specific character i had a crush on as a teen and it'd be embarrassing to admit <3

alternate: What would your OC's alternate universe look be? If they're a fantasy character, what's their modern look? If they're sci-fi, what's their fantasy look? What AU would you want to see your OC in, and how would they dress themself? Bonus: Prompt an AU!

honestly i don't really have a whole lot of AU's for Epho. she just exists in my brain to kiss and in her one little story with millie kshdkshd eta 8/22/2024 OKAY this has sat in my drafts for soooooo long i am so sorry pheel this question has held me by the back of my shirt for so long hshdjsd I didn't wanna just leave it at "well there aren't an au's!" but i wasn't really in a mindset to just make one, so this has just. gone unanswered .w. however! last month i started playing PMD and on a whim named my partner pokemon Epho, and so now there's one AU for her lmao XD she's a torchic and she and millie go around helping people (mostly fixing things) :> I know this isn't exactly what the OG question is asking, but this has sat her for months so im calling it close enough XD

[welcome-to-clouds-cuckooland]

about my story, "ryan: sins of the father"!

this is a story about a boy named ryan, finally facing the crimes of his father. for so long he idolized his father, saw him as perfection, but slowly that image will unravel. along the way, he'll unravel himself, as well. can ryan ever forgive himself? can ryan ever be a good person? can ryan be a good brother? can ryan be a good lover? let's find out!

note: this is a multi-fandom fic, where characters will be from and travel to various movies/shows/games. the main characters are undertale aus/headcanons; ryan himself and his brother are sans and papyrus aus respectively, and their father is gaster. they're not meant to be entirely accurate (i mean, for one, it's unlikely that canon sans and papyrus are fallen humans at all.), they've always just been my own interpretations of the characters. with heavy projection. with that in mind, i should also state that this has been in the works since 2015-2016 or so, so it's pretty self-indulgent and cringe but i like it that way!!! i've projected too heavily onto this and i'm constantly brainrotting it so i can't just abandon it!!!

the star of the show, my behated /neg, it's ryan gallagher! the 23 year old manfailure, whose personality i would describe but it's almost 7,000 words long what the fuck ryan!!!! (writing him was a pain holy shit) but to sum it up he's a little messed up lying bitchface (explodes him with my mind) i will insult him a lot but i also projected onto him extremely heavily so idk if that says a lot about me or not. um. it's a semi-joke and it's been long-running that i hate him (i have extremely strong feelings about him /neg) but it's (mostly) not really serious. this guy needs therapy but he's terribly in denial and he is committed to destroying himself and all of his relationships before that happens 🙄 like just stop lying lmao (i am a hypocrite) his backstory is not written yet because. i'm fucking terrified of how long that's going to take and how long it's going to be because i'm planning for all of the stuff that felix and wiley's backstories missed (they're kind of written from their perspective but also not because third person??? idk man) and holy shit. if you thought his personality was bad. or if you thought it wasn't as bad as the trigger warnings made it seem. they're mostly for the backstory. as a sans au he fucking lost it and killed frisk, but that exploded his timeline so he panicked and absorbed the souls, and he's here now ig do not go to his toyhouse i am begging

aaaaa it's him!!!!! felix gallagher!!!! the bestest ever <333 i love him sm /p this is ryan's younger brother, 22 years old and loving life!!! he's optimistic, loves to help, and totally doesn't have any sort of anxieties rooted from his brother manipulating his life!!! (he does) he seems quite confident and independent, but he feels like ryan's babying can undermine his individuality. at the same time, he doesn't like to think such things of his brother, surely ryan knows what's best for him? as a papyrus au, he befriended flowey and gained the courage to fight back against frisk and absorb the seven souls to fix his glitched timeline, but that backfired, so here he is now! felix toyhouse :]

aislinn gallagher, felix and ryan's mother, dearly missed ;-; she may be gone, but her absence has left a void in many a heart, and her short-lived presence in the gallaghers' lives has affected them deeply. visit her in the garden?

this is wiley gallagher, he's 43 years old and i might joke about how much ryan is a terrible person but i'm serious when i say this man is literally AWFUL. like. i'm not kidding. he has not a single redeeming quality and not in the "haha silly" kind of way i mean. i hope literally nobody likes him because actually. what the fuck. i wrote him to be an irredeemable disgusting piece of shit and he's staying that way. there are sympathetic aspects to his story because otherwise it'd be a bit boring y'know but like. straight up. he's not a good person. he's the villain for a reason lmao uhhhh ramble aside he's a scientist who hates his sons and wants to reach the edge of scientific possibility, whether or not that destroys the universe he doesn't really care (great guy). he just wants to be the smartest dick to have ever lived, and hold all of the scientific knowledge ever or something like that. egotistical with an overinflated sense of what he's capable of. writing his backstory actually made me sick like /srs i took "gaster is associated with the devil" and ran with it i'd advise only to go to his toyhouse to send him hate.

so r:sotf was originally not even a multifandom story, it was just an undertale multiverse story, which is why there's such a focus on undertale characters. so here's chara, flowey/asriel, and frisk dreemurr, and the other fallen children (noah, icarus, and madeline)!!! i've never liked how the fandom interprets chara personally, like the whole "chara is an evil demon child" or "chara is abusive and hateful" like. this is a ten year old. what the fuck. like yeah most of the ut fandom especially back then were children but why do children hate children lmao anyway. chara and flowey have issues to work out but they're getting through it!!! i believe in them. read more about my interpretations of chara, flowey/asriel, and frisk on deviantart (since i can't upload them to toyhouse)!!!

meet ginger clair and jacinta bardales, two rivals who are some of the first people that ryan meets once his (dead) timeline kicks him out!! the girlypop and gamer goth girl hate each other oh no :[ the 19 and 20 year olds have a bit of a history with each other and ryan's getting caught between the crossfire ginger is glittery pink mr beast and jacinta is matpat if he was a goth lesbian (i'm so sorry) i'm very normal about women here's pink toyhouse and purple toyhouse yeah

this isn't hello kitty, it's oisin kelly, silly!!! i saw hello kitty goth fashion once and knew that i needed to make an oc that was just. that. and here he is!! ryan meets the 22 year old in the world after ginger and jacinta's, where he also finds felix and flowey. oisin is hiding them from the government!!! yippee! oisin likes baking and cake decorating, and sees a lot of potential in ryan (i don't see it but you do you) and bow's trying to support him which is nice :] not worth it though me when hello kitty on toyhouse????

yes that is the ok ko character base, because edward chen is an ok ko oc!!!! (ok ko is such a silly show you should watch it NOW!!!!) his hero name is multi-magician and this 23 year old is very chill, maybe even stoned. (you know those characters where they're ambiguously high. yeah) yes ryan and felix go to the ok ko universe and there they meet edward who is very cool and just wants to make sure these two sillies don't hurt themselves. (particularly ryan because he's very concerning holy shit) the scar on his face he got from climbing a fence and subsequently falling. he tells a different story every time and he thinks it's cool and funny edward toyhouse be upon ye

last but not least!!! here we have elara samson, from the world of the spectacular spider-man. she's the 18 year old vigilante, who thinks spidey is immature and naive, and they're quite jaded and vengeful in general. sometimes they're on the same side as spidey, sometimes she's against him! just depends on the job. elara toyhouse moment

that's all, folks!! as i said in the beginning of this post, this has been in the works for like. what. 8 years now??? time is such a fucked concept wtf :[ and it's still being worked on!!! can you believe it??? but this is definitely the story i'm most passionate about, and i'm excited to finally be posting about it!! i'd love to see what you guys think :0

[petrichoraline]

SLEEPOVER SATURDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🥳🥳🥳

what are your top 5 japanese BLs?

tell me about a fond memory or your comfort food (or both!!!!!)

[I LOVE YOUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

[LOVE YOU TOO MY SWEETESTTTTT💗💞💕💖💓💗]

these are suchh good questions omg okay

i suck at ranking things and don't enjoy it one bit because i don't do faves, im too fluid in my tastes and can't ever pick criteria but! let's try in no particular order

1. Kieta Hatsukoi

i think im in the habit of dropping things from my fave lists as time goes by and especially if they're well beloved by other people like "okay then I'll focus on this less talked about thing, my bby seems to be getting enough attention"; how and why I work that way im not sure but I do and by that logic kieta hatsukoi should not be on my list but it's an honorary member - I've watched it twice (with maybe a bit of skipping which is still a lot cause I don't really do rewatches) and I've read most of the manga. it's just so..easy to like, for a lack of a better phrase. it's inoffensive and suited to be a comfort piece of media in whichever form you decide to enjoy it (and it'd make an amazing anime, i guarantee people would be all over it)

the live adaptation also takes the events of the manga and mixes them around big time but it still makes sense and it keeps you a bit more on your toes when consuming the other version, whether you watch the show or read the manga first

it's also a show I've recommended passionately and I successfully made my then new acquaintance watch which I'm a bit smug about lmao

sweet characters, supportive friends, funny, light and warm 💖

2. The End of the World With You

*indescribable screeches*

this showwww, i dont know if i can call it a fave since i havent once come back to it, i dont feel the need to go watch compilations of my guys or anything and i acknowledge there were some elements i found a bit lacking but! it's amazing. idc, this show gave me proper complex relationship where i still end up rooting for a couple of people who were toxic towards each other and did nootttt know how to handle a relationship; the dynamic is compelling, the premise is interesting enough, there are heavy scenes and plot points but it is embedded with hope

it also helped me bond a bit with a mutual i like <3

i just am thankful for it existing out there in the world, it served fucked up relationship (that i root for wholeheartedly), sexy times, found family, amazing acting and it didnt have most of the chaos an apocalyptic piece would usually be dealing with

3. BL Drama no Shuen ni Narimashita: Crank Up Hen

listen. we're getting some pretty good jbls this year but i said this will be jbl of the year and i still think it's a solid nominee.

the romance is tooth-achingly sweet. the leads are adorable. the acting is perfect and manages to deliver the comedy very well. it's cute, it's fun, it knows exactly what it wants to achieve and works with its timeframe to do it. the side characters do not affect the plot negatively, the hurdles the couple needs to overcome do not feel excessive. if you happen to yell at them for being silly, it's lovingly. also we got more chemistry than i expected! and it was really good. it also set up an example for ''japanese actors working on bls'' (found the things like shooting promos and the portrayed bts process really fun) so now watching 25 ji Ajisaka de i can't help but think of this show

4. Utsukushii Kare

my relationship with this show suffers from the "enough people love it" thing as well, i think i rewatched it or skipped through the first season? and i enjoyed the second one as well but honestly it feels not only as if enough people love it but that they love it and get it way better than i do. i didnt watch the movie out of fear of having to say bye to my guys but i also feel more disconnected from it now. im sure its still a gem of a movie and im so so happy we got two seasons and a movie, the show and the cast deserve it!!

there is just so much beauty in their yearning for each other and the misunderstandings, the downright stupid decisions they make..they all just work in making this a neat story of love that blooms from something different, from worship and the desire to be seen and to be held and to be possesed. they're wild, i love them

5. Kinou Nani Tabeta?

this show i watched years before i got into bl and i didn't even know it was a bl when i started it lol, i was like "ohhh, theyre a couple? cool"

i rewatched the first season, watched the special and the movie, started the second season and kinda got stuck there, again with hte "i dont want to let them go"..and now ive lost momentum and ive got basically a whole season ahead (i started it when it was airing 😭)

these two love each other so much and support each other in every way that matters, my heart melts at every sweet gesture and even though the show portrays some real struggles they have to deal with, its still a very funny and light show. the best word to describe it would be "charming" - you see this couple's everyday life, you see how they came to be and what challenges they face, how they overcome them and you're left with no doubt in your mind they will grow old together, well loved and taken care of

now I wanted ti turn this into a top 10 but I felt like I was being disingenuous cause I can't overcome my need to talk about underrated shows rather than pick my faves..I can't make a faves list without turning it into a diverse recommendation list so I'll just. stop here.

favourite food.. faves again.. hahah

a fond memory involving food.. preparing food the whole day before my birthday (maybe my seventeenth?) - sushi, spring rolls, i think I made dessert too? and then having picnic with my friends who were all in awe and praising me. I felt very appreciated and truly celebrated and it was a fun party 💖

[theafrochick]

my red flag is I'll wake up and be hurtled into a silly goofy mood so i write shit like this to cope. I like the idea of putting this in the long fic im deluding myself into thinking I'm going to write but for now have a snippet i guess since it'd feel weird posting this on ao3? idk.

we love stolas having a mental breakdown. and we also love asmodeus being along for the ride cus Asmodeus playing bob the builder with Stolas would fulfill all my needs in life actually.

something something projection and copium

Anyway

Pairing is: stolas & asmodeus. hurt/comfort

Word count: 2,741

I got sick of writing this lmao ignore the ending.

“What else is this supposed to be about then? I don’t know why we keep doing this when you found somebody else’s dick to hop on.”

“W-what on earth are you talking about?” Anxiety stabbed into you as you hug your grimoire to your chest. This was supposed to be a conversation. This was supposed to fix everything and instead if was devolving faster than you could have dreamed.

“Don’t play dumb Stolas, you and Asmodeus are plastered across every tabloid this side of hell. At least have the balls to admit that you’re just keeping me around as a side piece.”

“No, no, Blitzy it’s not like that. We’re friends! I’m doing him a favor, I would never do something like that. What do you take me for?” Blitz takes a step back when you try to approach him, an unfamiliar look of disdain crossing his features. A knot settles in your chest as you felt yourself shrink before him.

You knew you were a hypocrite for wanting him to believe that you wouldn’t cheat considering your relationship was a product of an affair, but you assumed his jealousy would be resolved when he realized Asmodeus was in a very committed relationship of his own. Clearly that wasn’t enough but you weren’t sure what else you could do for him. It felt like it didn’t matter at the end of the day. You had done for this him but he would never believe you if you actually said that. Or it’d somehow add more fuel to this never ending fire.

“I don’t see what kind of favor you needed him that involves you needing to hang all over him. If its about that stupid necklace you gave me so you wouldn’t have to see me anymore then consider the hint taken. You didn’t have to whore yourself out to get away from me.”

“I didn’t- I’m not- Please just listen to me, I only gave you that because-” You try to approach again. Blitz takes several steps back, folding his arms over his chest. Whatever faint connection you had to him snapped in that moment. The fact that there wasn’t anything to try and fix hit you like a truck and you the desire to cling to the vast nothing you had been given evaporated. You didn’t want to fight anymore. You were so tired of it. You suck in a breath, forcing yourself to straighten. Forcing yourself to not reach for him again even though a small part of you still wanted to. “Fine. If that’s how you feel then we can consider this the conclusion of any business we might have with one another. This 14th or any other are yours for the taking.”

You suck in another breath, then turn and take the stairs back into your house at a measured pace. In the resulting silence, filled by the bubbling of the fountain in the courtyard, you hoped that he wouldn’t actually let you walk away. But then the van door opened and closed. You opened the door to the foyer. The engine starts and fades just as quickly. You close the door, the click of the latch echoing through your head.

You’re fine. It’s okay. This is okay.

You feebly tried to placate yourself as you made your way through the house to put your grimoire away. If you didn’t it’d leave room for everything else to take root and even if you were pathetic, you refused to cry yourself to sleep on the entryway floor. This wasn’t the first time you just had to keep it together for a little while. What a handful of minutes compared to the other countless hours you had spent hiding from yourself.

But the grimoire never made it back to its place, because you were used to not having it. Because you had put a new book in its place. Because that book didn’t even fit well in your organization scheme but the blank space hurt to look at when you missed Blitz. Because you could handle the slight annoyance that it was in the wrong spot than look at that hole. Because if you moved that book to put your grimoire away then you’d have to find a new place for the wrong book. Because you didn’t have a place for it in the first place. Because then you’d end up reorganizing the mountain of books you had. Because after all that nothing would be the same. Because then you’d have to change. Because then you’d have to clean yourself. Because then you’d probably have to eat something. Because then you’d have to go to bed. Because then you’d have to wake up and grapple with the fact that you were as alone as you had felt your whole life.

Your knees give out and you curl into yourself. Between the sobs racking your body and the waves of anxiety that kept crashing over you you could barely breathe. Why is it always my fault?

How much more were you expected to give? You buried everything you wanted to the sake of others. You worried yourself sick. You overthought everything. You tarnished your birthright. You threw away whatever reputation you had t hat wasn’t trampled on by Stella. You couldn’t dig any deeper. There wasn’t any place you could hide from yourself anymore. You had nothing left and nothing to show for it. How was it still your fault that things ended up this way?

The vague burning sensation in your skin left behind from the feathers you hadn’t meant to rip out wasn’t enough to keep you grounded. And then more intentionally thinking that might leave you with something to grab onto as your magic misfired and bled into the room. Ichor seeped out of walls and pooled on the floor around you. The sound of cracking stone could scare be heard about the sound of your heart pounding in your aching chest. You’re making a mess, pull yourself together. This is unbecoming.

Normally a few sobering thoughts were enough for you to reign it in. To get some semblance of a grip on yourself and put yourself back together.

Not now. What was the point? You could stay there for as long as you wanted because nobody would care enough to come check on you. You could destroy the whole mansion and the only person who’d have to deal with it was you. This could just be another thing to add to the long list of things you couldn’t do right. Can’t be a prince. Can’t be a husband. Can’t be a father. Can’t be a boyfriend. Can’t be a boyfriend. Can’t take care of yourself. Can’t be left alone.

You squeeze your eyes shut, feeling your nails graze your skin before everything went silent.

“What the fuck...?”

You blink back into consciousness, cold from the ichor that had soaked into your clothes. Your head hurt, and your vision blurred. The tightness in your chest had subsided enough that you could at least breathe again. Maybe. Fresh anxiety wormed it’s way into you as Asmodeus cautiously pads over to you.

“Stolas, are you alright? What happened?”

You shove yourself into a sitting position, black spots dancing in your vision. A nervous laugh escapes you as you clap your hands together. “Oh, I was just...working on a spell.” Another nervous laugh. You set your soaked grimoire on the window seat, praying it was still legible. You could barely convince yourself that was an excuse let alone Asmodeus. Not when he was privy to everything that was going on and didn’t know how to let anything go. Not when you had unintentionally placed him in the middle of all of this.

“Wanna run that one by me again?” Asmodeus crouches in front of you, his head cocked earnestly to the side as he studies you.

“Just practicing…” You couldn’t bear to look at him as you forced the words out. Your stomach churned and your throat clenched. You weren’t sure if you were going to throw up or start crying again. Or both. “I’m fine, really. Do tell why you’re here.”

Asmodeus exhales sharply, resting his hand on the side of your face. He works his fingertips through your feathers to graze his claws against your skin. A tremor runs through you as the heat from his palm seeps into you. He always did run hot.

You fought the urge to sink into him, tension settling in your back as you sat a little straighter. “Really, I’ve just been out of practice so I thought it’d be good to reacquaint myself with some of the spells in the back of the book only I got distracted and it backfired a little. Nothing I can’t handle, I’m sure I did worse when I was younger. Haven’t we all?”

You weren’t sure what you were going on about as the room groaned and shifted around you. But saying nothing of any real substance was easier than sitting there in silence, trying not to look at him. This display was shameful, even if it was supposed to be private. Nothing was ever private. One way or another others always managed to wiggle their way in. If you said you fine eventually you’d mean it again and then things could go back to normal.

The chandelier gives from the added weight of the petrification and rips itself free of the ceiling. Asmodeus starts, whipping his head around to look at the pile of stone and plaster sitting on the floor. “Stolas…” He edges closer to you, cupping your face with his hands. “Don’t lie to me. It’s one thing if you want to be alone to work through whatever the fuck this is, but nobody who knows you and has half a brain would believe you’re fine right now.” He chose his words carefully, his drawl being the only thing that stopped an actual pause from forming.

You wring your hands together in your lap. For a moment you were a child being scolded for getting upset and all you could do was bear it. What good would admitting to anything do? If you did then it’d make this more real than it already was. So this was just another thing you could do. Pretend. Not anymore. You had felt the mask slipping for some time now but you never thought the day would come where you actually couldn’t put it back on. “It’d be a waste for you to worry about me when this whole thing is my fault.”

“I have a very hard time believing that.”

You shrug helplessly, pulling your face from his hands. “It always is… Things never should have gotten this far. I don’t know what I was thinking. I wasn’t that’s the problem. I never think. None of this ever would have happened if I just did what I was supposed to, but I never do. I can’t do anything right.” You suck in a breath, batting his hands away when he reaches for you. “Sorry, that was rather uncalled for. You should just go.”

“Do you mean that?”

Of course not.

You wipe your face on your sleeve, undoubtedly smearing black on the side of your face. “It’s for the best.”

You tense when Asmodeus pulls you into his lap. You couldn’t manage to protest as he wraps himself around you. “It’ll be okay, Stolas, you’ll make it through this.”

For a moment you could breathe. Your mind goes blank for an instant before everything comes rushing back to the surface again. It hurt, and you were certain that you wouldn’t be okay. You had never been okay. How were you supposed to start now?

“There, there, let it all out.”

You whimper softly, burying your face in Asmodeus neck while he gently rocks you. You always liked how unnaturally warm he was. When given the chance it was hard not to drift to his side whether it was warranted or not. The sickly sweet smell that clung to him usually assaulted your senses and relaxed you but now it just mingled with your shame and made you too acutely aware of the situation you were presently in.

Getting a handle on yourself felt more a priority than working through whatever this was supposed to be. You needed out of this. You needed Asmodeus to feel like he had gotten what he wanted so he could continue on. You couldn’t get used to this. You couldn’t start to depend on him. He wasn’t yours to need. Nobody was. You were too old to be throwing a tantrum because you couldn’t get what you wanted. That’s what this boiled down to wasn’t it? Once again you expected too much. It was your own fault for getting your hopes up. How could you end up surprised you were here? This had been coming for months and you should have accepted this then. You should have taken the inevitable with grace. Especially when you left him with everything he wanted. He’d never think about you again while you stupidly clung to things that only ever mattered to you.

Was that it? Was everyone always placating you because it was easier than dealing with this? Maybe you were unreasonable. Asmodeus was only here because you hadn’t said the right things. If you were a little stronger you’d be cleaning. And you’d move that stupid book someplace else. Or throw it away because you didn’t even need it, it was just the first one you saw. What was it even called? To think you fell apart over something that normally didn’t occupy an ounce of head space. I’m hopeless.

You blink a few times, abruptly all too aware of your body pressed against Asmodeus’. Of his steady breathing. Of his heart thudding in his chest. You had enough sense to be embarrassed without a twinge of anxiety so you had to confront the fact that you had to actually start picking up the pieces of whatever Blitz had broken inside of you countless times. There probably wasn’t even anything left at this point, but trying was really your only option when Asmodeus certainly wasn’t going to let you go back to tearing yourself and your house apart.

For now, you were mostly tired, and if you stayed like this any longer the idea of sleeping on his chest would have been tempting. Though this raised the question of you needing to get out of this and you were no closer to a solution than when the question was first posed. “Uhm...Asmodeus?”

“Yes, Stolas?” Asmodeus shifts you a little higher, nuzzling your neck.

“You may put me down, if you want.”

Asmodeus studies you for a moment. While the scrutiny still made you uncomfortable, it wasn’t nearly as unbearable as before. He seemed satisfied that you weren’t still spiraling out of control and eased you back onto the floor. You brace yourself on his shoulder and stand, a headache forming at your temples. “Why don’t you come stay with me tonight?”

“No, no I couldn’t possibly do that. It’s alright. This is a big place. There are other beds.”

Asmodeus hauls himself off the floor, momentarily distracted by the puddle off ooze he had put his hand in. “I also have other beds. Ones that aren’t covered in freaky black jizz. Besides, you need a bath and I know you aren’t going to take one. You’re probably not even going to change either and that look on your face says it all.” Asmodeus cuts you off, “girl you need to get a grip. I’m all for spending all day in bed, but at least do it in a clean one.”

You sigh, not really having the energy to argue with him. “I really wouldn’t want to put you out.”

“I have servants for a reason, only people you’re putting out are on payroll. Though word of advice,” he snaps his fingers, opening a portal into a very pink bathroom, “don’t let Froggy make your breakfast. He’ll do it because he knows you’re too nice to say no, and I think you’ve suffered enough for one week.”

“I’m not-” The protest died on your lips as you stepped into the bright light. You were already missing your room before the portal had closed. “Fizzarolli thinks I’m nice?”

“How could anybody think otherwise?”

[sandsoftide]

Ooooo I love your responses! I personally prefer numbers just because it’s easier for me to remember but I do respect noxcrew’s decision to make the event less sweaty lol. I realised after I sent the ask you had a post about missing buildmart (the beloved).

The question about players like Sapnap came as the reddit had a small discussion on if he would return. Most people agree that there’s no reason for why he can’t play unlike certain people (cough cough Punz) but if he does return that’s a different question. He doesn’t have many close friends who play regularly, he hasn’t been playing minecraft since Punz and George were called out and it’s well known that Sapnap is hard to put into a team. He can’t be PG, he only wants to play with some friends and Scott himself said that Sapnap is hard to put into a team because of said reasons. But I wanted to see an opinion outside of reddit lol.

Anyway more questions:

1, what do you think the new game is?

2, how do you feel about people claiming that the event is better because lots of ex dsmp members aren’t playing as much? Not counting the ones who were called out for horrible things, just former dsmp members not playing Eg, Philza, Tommyinnit, Foolish (Which is a wild take as Hbomb and CPK are ex-dsmp players and 3/4 of blue this mcc were so…)

3, what’s better, the new or old parkour warrior?

4, do you think someone in modern mcc could break Techno’s coin record?

5, the most difficult question yet, because Joel was playing mcc before becoming a hermit, should Hbomb have to play with Joel again to add him to his hermit list or do we add Joel to H’s hermit list without them playing together again?

That's a fair point about numbers, but for me I actually feel like most of the mccs in the late 20s/30s sort of blend together for me? although that could just be how season 3 was

Yeah, those are all also good reasons why he wouldn't. I could see trying to bring him back for like, hype/views, but I hadn't thought about how many of his viable teammates have quit the event LMAO. Probably for the best with the way noxcrew is trying to make things less competitive anyways. If nothing else I will miss having someone to root against, I guess

New questions :D thanks!!

for 1) i have absolutely NO idea. I REALLY hope its a team game, a redstone game would be fun but there's no way they actually would do that so. eh. Maybe something with players on different tracks going through a puzzle course, kind of like that one grid runners room with the pistons? Seems like minecarts are involved, anyways. I'd love to hear any theories you have!

2) People are saying that? that's dumb, lmao. I'm glad to see dt leave, but beyond them? Most of the dsmp crew were great sports and I think one of the best parts of mcc was getting to see different communities interact! I mean, a lot of them are moving past mc as a whole and mcc *has* been running for a very long time now, so I don't blame them for leaving, but I am sad to see them go. Although making room for newcomers is great too, and I love the variety of players we're seeing already for s4

3) new 100% old pkw SUCKED. it wasn't even fun to watch the good players, honestly. I hate old pkw but new pkw is actually really enjoyable! Lot more strategy, a lot more room for players to not feel like deadweight. still not my favorite game but it is honestly one of my favorite movement games

4) I mean, it's theoretically possible, but I don't think it'll ever happen. I mean it's been ages since someone's even broken 4k. I also just don't think we'll see a game lineup with the most high-scoring games, it'd make for a pretty unbalanced roster with basically no team games and that's no fun! but 4k maybe, especially if sg ever returns and the new game is point heavy.

5) woah, heavy hitter. I hadn't thought of that... I wanna say it should count. joel's always been so hermit adjacent anyways, so actually I'm checking now and they haven't teamed since SEASON 1???? No it doesn't count. solely because they should team again

[goldendevilsivy]

ngl I'm very excited to see where the third game of ietyd goes (if we get one).

I had a concept in my mind for my idea of a potential sequel that I'd hopefully write into existence by way of fanfic, but it'd take a lot of time to make it as great as I want it to be.

the concept is as follows (n there's a lot of it) -

agent phoenix is taken by zoraxis agents, who use them as a patient zero for their newest invention: a time machine. the agent realizes their intentions to go back and try their best to fix history, and perhaps even go back to the agent’s birth to nip the problem at the root. they're sent in and become incorrigably stuck jumping across time periods. in hopes to recieve help, the agent does everything in their power to send notes and messages to handler all the way in the future. letters, slight edits in historical paintings, anything that they think could reach the handler before they disappear back-to-the-future style.

an idea I'm open to playing around with is john juniper surviving and (with utmost reluctance from handler) joining the agency. I think it could be possible to have him be able to recognize what's different about certain paintings and works. in my original idea, I was going to have the handler return to the field with new implants, and his supervisor would act again as his handler. I also love the concept of agent phoenix giving out tips that'll assist people in the future in exchange for places to hold onto their letters. (you ever see good omens? yknow how agnes nutter gave prophecies or whatnot to the people with her box so that they'd deliver it at the exact place and time? like that!)

it'd probably switch perspectives every now and again so that the reader could understand the struggle of phoenix attempting to communicate to the future while being constantly thrown back and forth through time (which is jarring, makes em puke the first two times, but they get used to it). they can't even be sure that anything they're doing is reaching handler. I wanna portray that really well. but the reader would also need to see the fruits of phoenix's work by seeing the handler decode their messages all the way in the present.

I suppose phoenix would mostly communicate their situation and whatever they could potentially decipher from the few moments they spent concious within zoraxis's labs, such as location, intention, and details of the machine.

another idea that just came to me while writing this is phoenix becoming a renowned artist and poet, hiding messages in their works for the handler to find in the future. so much to think about! so much to ponder! and a whole lot of research I will probably have to do in order to be semi-historically accurate. hopefully I'll get around to writing this sometime LMAO

[ellavaday]

Hello this is late but real life has been kicking my ass, luckily it's a long weekend and after basically sleeping for 2 whole days I'm mostly back to life so that means finishing the dres2 ep2 ref post before ep3 comes out lol. There's quite a few puns this episode which means I'm back on translator duty

When they're getting back to the workroom and Chanel in confessionals says that Chuchi was too high and mighty she makes a pun with being 'too high in her platform (shoes)' which are synonym of Canarian drag.

Speaking of Chuchi I feel like the Canarian girlies have it incredibly hard in this show tbh. They are used to perform in what basically amounts to stadiums 3 times the size of any tv filming set and they have to travel by plane which means the huge things they use have to be scaled down not only for tv but for transportation constraints and their style adapted to a different format altogether which is hard to translate well (yes i resent the Javis for how they've judged Chuchi by comparing her to Sethlas and I am not at all sorry people have ripped them a new one on Spanish gay Twitter bc of that)

When Pakita is in the confessionals (while they're dedragging) the subs say 'let's go for it there's nothing to lose' she actually says leña al mono que es de goma (a bit more like 'lets put more wood on this fire')

When they're back in the workroom and Chuchi says she wants to say thank you to Maria Edilia, she says it in a (not particularly good) LatAm accent

Pinkchadora makes a few puns about Maria Edilia being amazing/a heavy hitter and her weight

It's a crime nobody has mentioned Pakita amongst the sexiest but I digress ofc Chanel and Kelly think the other one is cute lmao. In the confessionals Chanel says 'a mi me gusta dejarme llevar' (i like to go with the flow) 'pero Kelly no mete ficha' (meter ficha is to flirt/shoot ones shot/ but literally it'd mean to put a coin in a machine) 'es que es una tragaperras' (she's a slot machine, so she's basically calling Kelly a bit of a slut... And probably also calling her too much of a bottom for her)

I love how everyone sucks at geography lmao when Chanel gets her flag she says 'oh two strips!' and Supremme answers 'you could also call it two lines: it kinda plays a joke on how you'd say two strips [of cocaine].

When Supremme is explaining the maxi challenge (a dance battle to Spain's Eurovision song of last year) she says they're calling it instead of SloMo (the name of the song) Me Eslomo (I'm breaking my back) not 'in slow-motion' like the subtitles say, it's also a joke used in the Gran Hotel de Las Reinas when Paca La Piraña does her number and it's literally all. over. this. episode. Literally everyone says this pun so much. Why not translate it? (even if you can't rhythm it like in Spanish)

The Muertas Haris group name is a pun on Mata Hari (the Spy) but also bc Matar means to kill in Spanish ((irregular verb, being dead is estar muerto/a)) and like Vania says a reference to the Eurovision song of the same name

After Carmelo (the choreographer) tell Clover and Pakita they have to perform a dance solo Pakita says it's a big weight/pressure but that she's used to it. It's a joke about sex lol but not like a very "in your face" joke. Spanish humor is very slut shamey (specially towards women) and Pakita likes to do it too but gender swapped, she talks a lot about how she'd sleep with your dad but clearly she's not the slut in the joke, it's your dad. Yes. Yours. Specifically.

Pitita says her and her team are more magazine vedettes than lola indigo. Lola Indigo is a pop singer and I'm not entirely sure magazine vedette is used in English like it would in Spanish. A vedette is a female burlesque performer (in which a lot of Spanish drag has it's roots on and from which it borrows a lot of lingo to this day), a magazine vedette is more of a chorus girl.

When they're getting ready for the maxi challenge they talk about tener pluma. Pluma (lit. Feather) is how we call someone that is very visibly gay. I hate hate that they left it as a literal translation bc it doesn't make an ounce of sense of in English bc the closest equivalent would be being limp-wristed or effeminate, but in English those are things you are not things you have (Unless ofc you want to go with having an affectation)

When Supremme is introducing the judges. Supremme makes a reference to Algo Pequeñito, Un Bloody Mary por favor y Quédate Conmigo (spanish entries to Eurovision from different years). Ana makes a reference to Gwendolyn by Julio Iglesias (bc of her look). Calvo says Supremme looks like an After Eight.

The guest judge is Soraya, who represented Spain for Eurovision in 2009 (and spoilers the song used in the lipsync is the same song she sang for Eurovision)

When Pink Chadora is in confessionals talking about the sandwich she had on stage it's ofc not a literal translation but this girl talks at the speed of light so I can't even be mad. It's just the pun number 35 of lomo (ham) / eslomo (breaking my back) / SloMo of this episode

And that's it.

This has been said before online but this challenge seemed to be... Designed for failure in my opinion. Making two of them lead and have the rest as back up dancers and not giving them each a chance to shine means everyone is either complacent expecting the two leads to do most of the work (and cave under the pressure which is exactly what happened to Pakita, listen there aren't enough words to say how much I worried the second Pitita said Pakita was going to do a flamenco version of Eurovision Chanel jfc) or to try to overstage the others in a way that doesn't make much sense. Also why the hell were both teams on the stage at the same time?? Anyway. If you've read this thank you 😊 hopefully I won't take this long again for the episode that comes out tomorrow lol

[flamingbluepanda]

i'm on public transport, so i can't be blamed for my thoughts-

today's nosho brain rot is mickey and ian visiting ukraine for some reason (it's probably ian having some sort of "you gotta know your roots" schtick going, they've already been to ireland), and ian being mad at mickey for some reason (he probably exclaimed how easy it'd be to steal shit in the shops), just exclaiming a very exasperated "mikhailo" and suddenly mickey is knee deep into some ukrainian grandma talking him down in ukrainian and he's unable to stop her.

He suddenly flashes back to being small and his mom exasperatedly chewing his ass out in Ukrainian, he feels like hes supposed to go to his room now, thanks a lot Ian.

That, or, to Ian's great surprise, he sheepishly apologizes in ukranian- not great, he's clearly out of practice, but he knows enough- and the grandmother immediately is like "oh!! You are so cute I want to pinch your cheeks" and spends the rest of the train ride asking him about his family history (I don't know much) and who his grandmother is (she died when I was 13, but she used to send me new shoes whenever I needed them) and how cute he is (thanks) and if he's going to marry a nice ukranian girl, her granddaughter is single and about his age (I'm already married) and how nice his husband is (thanks again)

Either way, Mickey is throughly chastened and maybe invited to dinner with her granddaughter lmao.

[the1975attheirverybest]

I've had this intrigue about the oxygen mask/tank for a while. My grandparents used/use oxygen for health issues and we need a humidifying bottle so the oxygen can work but I've never seen that when Matty uses oxygen, maybe it's part of the 'bit'? (For reference this is the tank my grandpa used to use)

About the episode being in full color, remember that Episode 3 had parts in full color (the fort 🦋) so I'd make sense that episode 4 would be in full color. You can notice the contrast from ATVB being in Black and White maybe representing Truman's persona, a 'void' consuming you to SATVB being in full color and "outside", maybe trying to be yourself (Matty's name tag) (?)

I still think the primo could've been apart and maybe atpoaim 4 could've explored more about the concept of the fort and Matty's struggles with being earnest. But as you said, we don't know if Matty changed his mind. I was wondering about something he said yesterday about the episode being America's promo, would we get a different promo for each continent or it'd be the same for everyone?

I almost forgot, America was the first place where ATVB started and it's going to be the first place where SATVB will start, so maybe that's the "going back to the roots" theory? Matty going back to the begging to replace Truman Black?

This is my take on this situation haha, maybe I'm thinking too much about it because I didn't get enough sleep haha

I don’t think you’re thinking too much! I feel like with anything the 1975 does, think about it a lot is kind of thr point hahaha.

I do like your idea for each leg of the tour having its own video! Maybe they all complete a narrative or say something when put together. Or like depending on which order you put them in.

And yeah the US is where ATVB began! I wonder if SATVB is gonna have, like. A lab themed set in the same way that ATVB had a house? Though it would mean that Matty can’t climb on a roof for ILA hahahha.

I don’t know man!!! Everything this band does is a mystery lmao. We’ll just have to wait and see what episode 5 brings. Maybe it will clarify things. But it might just add more questions.