#it's...it's only been a week since i rewatched at world's end HELP ME

[lit-in-thy-heart]

me, for the past week:

[ID: the Adam Driver 'every day I wake up' meme from Marriage Story. The text is edited to read 'every day I wake up and think of more Pirates of the Caribbean/BBC Merlin parallels'. End ID.]

[vroomvroomcircuit]

Drive all Night

(A/N): This is inspired by the song "Call your mom" by Noah Kahan.

Summary: Max is worried about the sudden shift in his best friends behavior. But he is willing to drive all night to get to the root of the problem.

Pairing: Max Verstappen x fem!reader (little childhood friends to lovers on the side with angst/hurt to comfort)

Warnings: Association to Max's shitty childhood, reader has depression/a depressive episode, implicit mentions of suicide, listen to the song and you get the vibe

Wordcount: 2.4k

🏎Masterlist🏎 ________________________

Max Verstappen is not a big worrier. Actually, he is no worrier at all.

When there is something to worry about, he just changes it. If he can’t change it, it’s out of his area of responsibility, so he doesn’t have to worry about it.

Thinking like that helped him focus through great challenges. But his mindset wasn’t the only motivator. Through all his highest highs and lowest lows, his best friend has been right next to him, either cheering him on or being the shoulder to cry on he just needed.

(Y/N) and him befriended each other in kindergarten, having felt this unexplainable pull to each other. Ever since playing with Legos together for the first time they had been inseparable if they could help it.

Of course, as they got older and Max’s career in karting took off and (Y/N) had to focus more on school, they started to shift to calling and texting more than relying on in person talking. But that didn’t stop them staying best friends. One might even argue that through their 24/7 updates to each other, they grew even closer.

Meeting in person in their adulthood had become increasingly easier. Sometime (Y/N) travels with Max to several races back to back, being blessed with a remote working job.

The young man starts to suspect something isn’t going smoothly during one of their daily face time calls with her being in her dark bedroom and him in a hotel room halfway across the world. “But enough of how annoying these marketing things are. What did you do today? Except for work of course.” Max just finished another yapping season about the last challenge the social media teams had him participate in.

(Y/N) just shrugs her shoulders while focusing on a loose thread in her shirt. “Nothing much. I reread pride and prejudice.” Max halts a bit in his rummaging through his suitcase, being on the look out for his charger. “I thought you had plans for lunch with a friend? And didn’t you read through that book last week already? You do know that no matter how often you read it, the ending will stay the same.” He jokes a bit.

While still not shifting her gaze towards the phone screen, (Y/N) answers in mumbles. “I canceled on her. I really felt icky today, but we will try to set up another meet up some time next week or so.”

At first Max doesn’t think of it as much. Everyone feels not like socializing every one in a while. But then something else changes. The frequency of their calls and texts.

“...here we can do- Max? Are you even listening to me?” Max gets caught off guard by that question. GP was going over some points with him before starting FP2. “Oh, uhm, sorry GP. Gimme three seconds, I just want to reply to (Y/N). It seems like she didn’t have a great day and I just want to make sure she’ll be alright until I’m out of the car.”

This makes his race engineer raise his eyebrows. “Oh, what happened?” “I don’t know. But she is rewatching one of her comfort shows for the third time in two weeks.” He blinks at the Dutchman. “And in what way is that concerning?”

Okay, voicing his worrisome thoughts out loud like that makes Max realize that the signs are not too obvious for outsiders. But he is talking about his best friend. The person that always makes sure that he won’t go without his needed amount of sleep. The same person he had been having phone calls that resulted in four out of the last seven nights with him getting not more than 5 hours of sleep, if that at all.

For an outsider it doesn’t seem bad for (Y/N) to reread the same books and rewatch the same shows over and over again. Or having her best friend, the person she became emotionally most dependent on, talk with her through her nights.

But for Max, it raises red flags. It hits his alarm bells, ringing out loud that something is majorly wrong. He can’t put his finger on it, not just yet. He is still looking for a way to get her to tell him what is bothering her.

There is a certain uneasiness to Max during that entire race weekend. He is just itching to seat his ass on a plane on his way back to his (Y/N), a friend that he might harbor more than just platonic feelings for. A person that had his back all the time.

To the person he loves the most, that is also struggling the most right now.

He wants to be able to pay her back for all the times she stuck through his darkest times.

But something in him is scared that he isn’t able to get to her in time. “Didn’t you want to go out with a colleague of yours for drinks last night?” Max asks into the phone while speed walking through the airport. Ever since leaving his hotel room on this fine Monday morning, he has been on a phone call with (Y/N).

A sigh greets his ears. “I wanted to, but I didn’t feel like dressing up or sharing a space with a bunch of strangers. I just ordered some food in and watched your race.”

There is another red flag. (Y/N) maybe was never a big socializer to begin with, but she liked going out every now and then. But for a couple of weeks now the only thing Max gets to hear about plans is that she canceled them.

Listening to her just cutting contact with the outside world like that, it doesn’t only worry him. It’s not even scary. It terrifies him.

The two of them continue talking the whole plane ride until (Y/N) falls asleep. Even then Max doesn’t hang up. He still lets the call continue, not wanting her to wake up and feel alone. She doesn’t deserve to feel alone.

No one does. But especially not her.

When he was in karting, some kids gave him grief for winning most of the time. It was difficult for little Max to understand. So do people not want him to win?

It became more confusing to him since some people around him wanted him to win desperately. It hurt him, not understanding the difference of who wanted his best and who wanted to see him fail.

He felt isolated from his peers, especially those who should understand under what pressure he was, because they must feel the same. Right?

During these days, where he rather stopped driving in circles in a very fast manner and just continued playing football, (Y/N) was his only footing. She talked him out of ending his career in motorsport. She painted a picture of his future in the prettiest colors with her words. She gave him something to look forward during these trying times.

And when it got harder before it got easier, she held his hand and reminded him that she will always stay by his side.

Now it’s Max’s turn to show her that he will always stay by her side.

He opens the door to her apartment slowly, trying to make the least noise possible.

Every room is shrouded in what must feel to her like a never ending darkness. The blinds are drawn in front of every window, hindering the tiniest bit of sunlight to filter through. Even to Max it feels like the despair that is in the air will never stop. It is all consuming.

He tiptoes towards her bedroom. There she lays, illuminated by the low light of his phone screen. Curled up tight under a bunch of blankets and between a mountain of pillows and stuffed animals.

The MV lion, the first one that has ever been produced, the original prototype before giving the go for mass production, is held tightly and close to her chest. It pulls on his heartstrings, seeing the comfort it must have brought her while he was absent.

Max kneels down at the head of the bed, gently shaking her awake. “Schatje, come on. Wake up. We got a day of new adventures just in front of us outside the door.”

It’s something they started to say in elementary school. They once read a book in class with the premise that every day is the start to a new adventure. You just have to welcome it in. Back then, when inviting something unknown in your life was considered exciting, not scary or life changing.

“The adventures can wait a day longer.” She mumbles and turns around, trying to shake his hand on her shoulder off. But Max is having none of it.

“The darkness is fooling you. Every light that has been turned off can be turned on.” He gets up and opens the blinds. Sunlight floods the room, and even at the messiest state the young man has seen his best friend, she still is the most beautiful woman on earth to him

(Y/N) lets out a noise of unpleasantness. “Please Max, I can’t deal with it today.”  “No, you will. We are going to deal with it, whatever this it is, together.” He marches over to her dresser and produces a clean set of clothes out of thin air. That is what it looks like to her in this mess at least.

“You are going to shower. After that we will take a drive with no destination.” His words are final and in a tone that makes the young woman drag her limbs and body out of the bed and trudge towards the bathroom, even when the unwillingness is evident by her groaning.

Hearing the shower is Max’s cue to sit down and take a deep breath. He doesn’t know what he expected, but seeing the light of life missing in (Y/N)’s eyes isn’t on that list. It feels like a punch to his gut, witnessing her wither away without knowing from what.

It doesn’t take long and they both sit in the car. A drive without destination is exactly what it says. Just Max driving with (Y/N) sitting in the passenger seat. Usually they used these trips to catch up, to talk about everything and nothing. To voice big philosophical thoughts and dumb brain farts. They started this tradition, that usually includes some sort of fast food, when Max got his drivers license.

But sitting in complete silence for five minutes straight. That is something new.

“You know,” Max breaks it after another seven minutes. “Not talking about it won’t make the problem go away. It also doesn’t hinder it in its existence. Instead it will just get heavier and heavier until you break under the weight.” His dry tone isn’t something she anticipated.

(Y/N) looks out the window, seeing the colorful sunset for the first time in weeks. It’s easy to forget the beauty of the world when your inside thoughts feel like a graveyard. “I don’t want to worry you.”

That admission nearly has the Dutchman emergency breaking in the middle of a street through the fields. “So you play cat and mouse with your feelings because you don’t want to worry me?” (Y/N) nods.

Max lets out a laugh. “So what exactly makes you think that me witnessing you just becoming a shell of who you once were won’t worry me?”

She shrugs. (Y/N) didn’t expect him to catch that something feels wrong in her.

“Schatje. I will always worry about you, You are too important to me to not worry about you. Seeing you wither away in yourself, it made me scared going out on these tracks, sitting down in the car, and wondering if you still breathe while I’m driving another mile. Not knowing what you feel, that worries me more than the truth. Because then we can work on getting you better together. But when you don’t let me in, I can’t help and feel like by just standing and witnessing without intervening that I’m at fault for anything that happens to you. It hurts more seeing you hurting than knowing what you hurt from.”

She turns towards Max, mustering his side profile. She hasn’t thought about how her actions are perceived by her surroundings. (Y/N) just fell into that hole of darkness unexpectedly. While sitting at the bottom of that somber pit, she thought that trying to reach out for help would mean another person gets pulled into it.

If there was one person she doesn’t want sitting next to her in that dark hole, then it is Max. She harbors too much love and affection for him to want him to suffer the same fate as her. So not talking about her darkest thoughts seemed like the best way of keeping him far away from the hole.

But it just drew him in closer.

(Y/N) finally sees what he saw the whole time.

“You know, it’s hard to explain what happened. It takes time to really understand what goes on in me right now.” Max puts a reassuring hand on her leg. “We have all night to talk about it. Help me help you. Let us find a strategy to get you better. May it be medication, meditation, punching me or falling in love with someone. I need you to find a reason to stay with me, physically and mentally.”

She puts a hand over hers and looks Max in the eye for the first time since he arrived. “I already fell in love.”

He doesn’t need to hear more.

Max keeps his promise. He drives through the night, holding (Y/N) to the best of his ability while she cries, curses and explains.

By that not everything is picture perfect again. But it’s the first step. The first one to a future they both want to share with each other. For now and ever, that is enough motivation for (Y/N) to keep going, to continue turning every light on that was off.

[anastasiabowe]

𝙅𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙈𝙚 — It's just Nanami and Yuji against the world.

note: I was rewatching JJK since my Crunchyroll subscription ended 2 years ago, and it's ON NETFLIX and I totally forgot about the relationship Nanami and Yuji had (and I personally think Nanami is a father figure but I digress) so I HAD to share this lol. Also Yuji is a baby :p

𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙒𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨: Nothing!

Nanami never asked to be a dad. To be honest, the idea always scared him. He hated the thought of changing diapers, buying formula, buying clothes every other month, etc! He hated the drool, the smells, the noises babies made, but when he had the blessing to meet 6 month year old Yuji, none of that mattered anymore. He knew he wanted to care for him.

The first few weeks were TOUGH. Nanami knew he didn't have the nurturing mother capability, and knew he also didn't know what to do. Yuji cried all the time and he didn't know why, his diaper would be changed, he just ate, he just woke up from a 3 hour nap (probably more than he needed) and yet he would cry.

Countless nights Nanami laid awake listening to the heart wrenching yet annoying cries of Yuji. He knew Yuji was taken care of yet he didn't know what else could have been bothering him. So the very next day, Nanami took him to the doctors only to find out Yuji was teething. He kept crying because he was in discomfort, so Nanami hit the first once upon a child he could find and found toys and other gadgets to help Yuji, and they worked! Nani got a good 8 solid hours of sleep until a new problem arose.

Yuji got sick. Yes, Yuji got the common cold yet nanami felt like it was yellow fever. Every cough, sneeze, hiccup, Nanami panicked.

"Achoo!" Yuji sneezed and Nanami dashed from the kitchen straight to the living room (which isn't very far). Nanami scanned the poor boy's slightly reddened face from him coughing and sneezing. Nanami felt up the boy's poor head for the, God knows how many times. Nanami brought his hand to his chest to feel how Yuji breathed which was thankfully normal. Yuji only laughed into a cough at how silly his daddy was acting.

"Dada funny!" He clapped his hands.

Nanami felt his heart flutter at his little boy, and he didn't feel too worried about him after his little check up. Nanami felt so happy seeing his little Yuji happy and couldn't contain the tears brimming his eyes. Yuji only looked up at him in confusion but then quickly got caught by Gracie's Corner which he was preoccupied with before his dad's check up.

Nanami soon embraced the single dad look. He'd go on runs with Yuji bundled up in his stroller, he would show Yuji off to his friends whenever they hung out at his house, and everyone fell in love with Yuji. His contagious smile, cute little salmon hair, wide eyes, there wasn't a single person who could look at the little cinnamon roll and not smile. Nanami also became the world's #1 dad. Nanami would be the first person any of the mothers at the daycare would go to for baby advice because nanami was basically the encyclopedia of babies. Want to know what foods are best to feed babies who just began to eat real food, hell give you recipes and affordable but healthy and nutritional brands.

There wasn't a single thing that could have separated Yuji from Nanami, except you, but that's not important in this part of the story. Yuji was Nanami's reason to go to his lame ass job and deal with his boss. Yuji was Nanami's breath and heart. Nanami couldn't even imagine himself without the little kid. And the older Yuji got the more Nanami became happier. Nanami was a whole new man because of Yuji, and honestly, no one complained.

Even though Nanami wished he had a s/o to help raise Yuji, he knew Yuji didn't care. As long as Nanami had Yuji and Yuji had Nanami, nothing would stop them from being happy. It was really Nanami and Yuji against the world. And what Nanami liked to tell Yuji a lot:

"It's just you and me against the world."

[flutishly]

The lull before the storm - revisiting the days before Hero's birthday, a decade later

Note: This post contains spoilers for Nothing Much to Do.

I'll admit, I haven't been keeping up with the NMTDaily in recent weeks. I'll watch the videos a couple weeks late, in chunks. It feels entirely unlike how I watched NMTD when it was originally released (obsessively, as the episodes came out; I never used subscriptions, so I'd check the channels directly pretty much every day), but entirely reflective of where my life is today, a decade later.

I'll be away this weekend, leading into the 10-year anniversary of Hero's 16th birthday and the radio silence that followed. I'll probably write more about the actual videos when the time comes (hey, remember when I spent hours micro-analyzing a tiny video only for the full-length scene to emerge within that same day? I should be embarrassed by that than I am), but for now I find myself thinking about how the tension ramps up and how the story of Much Ado About Nothing and NMTD's interpretation feels different in 2024 than it did in 2014.

There's a lot that at the time I feel I was less forgiving of, interestingly. Maybe it's because I'm older, but I find myself feeling sorrier for the boys this time around. Claudio's anxiety and self-consciousness feels more... forward. Pedro's need to people-please and "lead". Ben's intense need to be liked and appreciated. Ironically, even as their behavior seems even more "inappropriate" today, I can't help but feel that there's something about it that I better understand today.

Hero herself somehow feels more mature. There's something about watching with the retrospect of a decade that makes the coming punch hurt all the more. It's been long enough since my last rewatch that I'd forgotten so many smaller details, like the way the girls have their sleepover or the fact that Hero has her own charming relationship with the camera independently of Beatrice. (I'm not sure why I'd forgotten these moments specifically, but it's interesting! I suppose it has something to do with the fact that I always clicked with Bea more as a character, but in this rewatch I feel like I'm finally seeing the version of Hero that many of my friends from the NMTD era always saw.)

Hero seems more mature and Bea seems more childish. Ten years ago, Bea was just a few years younger than me; she was immature, but not so different from where I was in life. Now, both Bea and Hero feel like teenagers and I'm very much not a young adult anymore. I look at both of them and think how fragile they are, how much they're taking on themselves at such a young age (independence is wonderful, but do they have the love and support of a good adult mentor?). I think of Bea's discomfort talking about Ben and her fear of being hurt. I think of Hero's open love and trust. I think of how both will soon be heartbroken by the same event, in very different ways.

Hero's birthday is one of those plot points in the world of literary webseries. It's iconic for a reason. And I know that as things "unfold" this weekend (and are only revealed next week), I'm watching it from a very different place than a decade ago and with a completely different mindset. But I suspect that the sadness and anger I felt then will not be completely obliterated. I suspect that I'll still have a moment of anguish for Hero, for Bea, for shattered dreams and the end of innocence.

----

One final aside: I truly love the writing on NMTD. Time and again, I'm impressed by just how richly the characters are drawn, by what a beautiful job The Candlewasters did in translating a classic text and making it feel so very real. I feel so lucky to have experienced this show as it was released in 2014 and yet again lucky to watch it now.

[konigenblobbity]

It Wasn’t my Fault [Part 2]

Javier Peña x F!Reader

Warnings: Angst to Fluff, reference to cheating, sad Javi

—> [Part 1]

Summary: After you walked out on Peña, you tried to organize your thoughts, figure out your next move. While he did what he could in order to get you to talk to him again. After three weeks you finally decide to meet with him and talk about your relationship… he can only hope it wasn’t to end it.

A/n: Decided to give Javi a happy ending :)

It’s been three weeks since you left Javier crying on the floor of your, then, shared apartment. You were staying at a friend’s place, whose been endlessly kind, giving you all the attention and care you need. Allowing you the time to recover while simultaneously reassuring you that you’ll be okay.

You were restless most nights, having gotten too used to falling asleep tangled up in Javier’s arms. Whenever that thought enters your mind you can’t help but cry. Curling up on your bed, hiding under your cover as your cries turned to sobs, draining every ounce of energy out of you until you finally fell asleep.

Javier was the same. That night, it took him an hour to get up off the floor, it finally sinking in just how badly he messed up. At first he obeyed and didn’t message you, it was after the first week that he finally caved and sent you a message apologizing profusely for what he did. From that day on he sent you a message each night, hoping each time that you’d finally respond.

He needed to do something, whatever he could to remind you that he still loved you endlessly. The first night he messages, you were drowning your sorrows in a tub of ice cream and rewatching your favorite show.

When your phone buzzed and you saw his message you immediately burst into tears. No matter how hard you fought the urge, you couldn’t ignore him… bawling more when you read it. From them on, whenever your phone buzzed you’d jump for it. Reading it immediately, but never replying, his hope growing when he saw that you read them. Knowing you weren’t fully ignoring him.

Javi 💋: I miss you Hermosa. I know you told me not to text you, but I just cant stop myself. I can’t stop myself from reading all our old messages, looking through all our photos together, walking around our apartment and being flooded with memories. Please don’t give up on me… on us.

Javi 💋: I should’ve pushed her away when she approached me. I shouldn’t have drank as much as I did, I should’ve done SOMETHING to stop myself from doing what I did. I can’t imagine how much that hurt you… seeing me at that bar. I messed up. And I can’t even begin to explain how sorry I am.

Javi 💋: You know you’re my entire world right? You’re everything to me! I can’t lose you. Please Princessa, I feel like I’m going insane the more time I’m away from you… I need you back in my arms.

Javi 💋: I know you’re reading these messages Hermosa… Just tell me what I need to do, I’ll do anything to get you back. Just please don’t shut me out… please.

And it went on like that for two weeks. You had a lot of time to reflect on what happened, think about how to approach your, now, fragile relationship. You love Javier, that was never a question, but you just didn’t know if you could trust him anymore. If you could ever trust him again.

But… you’re finally ready to talk to him, face to face. You take a deep breath, staring down at your phone where his contact was open. You press the call button and move your phone to your ear. You look over to your friend who was smiling reassuringly, having helped you in making this step.

The phone barely rings once before Javier picks up, his voice clearly raspy but his excitement clear. “HERMOSA! Oh thank god i tho-“ you cut him off, staying stern “We need to talk Javi. Meet me at the Cafe, I’ll be there in an hour” you make sure not to let your voice waiver. The sound of his voice making your heart sing.

Your words sent a shiver through Javier, your tone, and what you were implying had his heart beating faster. If he analyzed it any more he might’ve had a heart attack. His only semblance of hope was you calling him ‘Javi’, that had to mean something… right?. “Okay. I’ll be there.” He then heard the line click on the other end.

Leaping off the couch he went to take a shower, knowing that he hasn’t been looking his best since you’ve left. He had a lot to do before he left, shave, find some decent clothes that weren’t stained, try to find some way to get the smell of whiskey and cigarettes off his tongue… the more things he thought of, the more he rushed, last thing he wanted was to be late.

You enter the cafe exactly an hour after your call, looking around and immediately spotting Javier. He was sat in a very familiar spot. This cafe being the one right near your shared apartment, where you had spent most mornings together, sharing a coffee, holding hands, as each of you focused on your own work.

You take a deep breath, noticing how his hands were in fists, pressed against his forehead, his leg bouncing nervously under the table, he already ordered a coffee and you notice one sitting in front of him as well. You can’t help but smile softly knowing that it was for you.

You walk over and as Javier notices you from the corner of his eyes he looks up at you and immediately shoots up out of his seat. “Hermosa…” he couldn’t keep himself from smiling at the sight of you, his eyes welling up slightly as if he was about to cry. His bottom lip quivered and he opened his arms going to hug you.

You place a hand on his chest, stopping him in his tracks. “Sit down Peña… please” you could see his smile drop and he felt his heart drop. He nodded slowly and sat back down, his leg bouncing more as that fear comes back, the idea of losing you having him more anxious then any case he’s ever worked.

You walk over to your chair, sitting down before reaching to the cup in front of you. “First, I need you to listen Javi… then you can say what you want” you look into his eyes, noticing how his own are completely fixated on you. He nodded his head, willing to do anything you asked just to get to stay here with you another minute.

“What I saw that night… I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forget. Or get that image out of my mind.” You take a sip from your drink, noticing how Javier fights the urge to say something, but silences himself remembering what you said. You go to continue but pause when you notice how your coffee was exactly how you liked it. A soft smile graces your lips and you put it back down.

“But I love you Javier. I love you more than anything and anyone. So I am willing to give you another chance” at those words you watched as Javier’s face lights up, he opens his mouth but you bring up a hand, silencing him with the gesture. “However… you need to win back my trust. Seeing you cheating on me… and the idea of what would’ve happened if I hadn’t walked in, it keeps me from fully trusting you”

He can only nod at your words, completely enamored in you, listening intently and waiting for your permission to speak. “Until I’m ready to trust you again, we need to step back. Go back to dating. Not being boyfriend and girlfriend, but just dating” you spoke sternly, there was no room for argument, it was a ‘take it or leave it’ deal.

When you pause he takes that as his sign to speak. “I understand that completely Princessa… I can’t put into words how sorry I am. She meant nothing, I was stupid for doing what I did and in those three weeks I couldn’t hold you… fucking hell, I have never wished to go back in time as much as I did then. I love you endlessly, and I am going to prove it to you. I swear” He reaches his hands forward, placing them in the center of the table, watching you intently, waiting to see if you’ll accept his touch.

You take in a long breath and give him a soft smile. You reach your hands across the table and take his hands in yours. At that simple gesture he can’t help but let out a soft exhale, grinning wildly and grasping your hands tightly. He clenched his eyes shut, clearly trying to hold back tears, overjoyed at the fact that you were giving him another chance, an opportunity to redeem himself.

“God I don’t deserve you… you’re my entire world, my guiding light. I’ll do whatever it takes to get your trust back, even if it takes months of dating, of small coffee dates, or walks in the parks, or gifting you flowers on special occasions… I’ll do anything if it means I get more time with you.” He continues to ramble and you feel tears come to your eyes, slowly cascading down your searing cheeks.

Every word he spoke was from his heart, there was no hesitation, he was completely sincere, by the way his head leaned down against the table it was clear he was willing to burn the whole world for you. And if the table wasn’t there… you were sure he’d be on his knees, praising you for allowing him a chance he doesn’t deserve.

“What I did… it was unacceptable, even if you forgive me one day, I never will. I hurt you… something I swore I’d never do. I’m sorry… I’m so fucking sorry. God Hermosa I-“ he didn’t stop talking, people began to turn their heads, spotting Javier practically praying to you as if you were a deity.

You grip his hands tighter before interrupting him. “Javi I understand… it’s alright. We’ll move forward, see whether this relationship can last. Give it another shot hm? But we have to do it together” he lifts his head and looks at you, his eyes red and streaks of tears visible on his cheeks.

“Together…” he repeated and smiled at you. After a while, you both stood up, but not yet leaving. Simply standing there for a moment, gazing into each others eyes. Then suddenly, with a soft sob, Javier couldn’t help himself and pulled you towards him. Wrapping his arms around your waist tightly, holding you close as if you would fade away if he let go.

“I love you so much Hermosa. I missed you so much. I don’t deserve an Angel like you in my life, but I won’t waste this chance, I promise you, I will give you the whole world just to see you trust me again”

[rubyfoxfyre]

What did you base Alastors Nox Magia off of? Why type of magic is it and where did you get the ideas for a good ass fanfic?

Thank you for the question!

The answer is sort of a long story that I suppose begins with my first exposure to Hazbin Hotel in general, during a particularly doomed D&D campaign where my character basically acted exactly like Charlie did in the pilot:

Granted, Fianna is not anything like Charlie at all, but the DM found it funny enough to send me the gif above and then everyone got distracted for about 5 minutes while they started meming.

The next day I watched the show and was completely hooked!

I started looking into the Wiki to get a greater understanding of the world shown, read the comics (like all 20 pages hahaha), and listened to Addict while working on prompts for Charlastor Week 2022, taking a break from my regular manuscript I'd been working on for a few years (stay tuned for updates soon on that one!). I had about a month so I decided to try my hand at smaller short stories, since some of the authors I idolize are so good at short fiction, and conveying strong emotions in just a few thousand words.

I watched and rewatched the Pilot, studying the characterizations there as well as thinking about funny and unexpected scenarios the characters could get into while dealing with the concept of redemption and how to make it work (needless to say that the fact that they already had it happen was... unexpected. I have thoughts on that but will put a pin in that for now to avoid getting too distracted from your question!).

I can't remember which rewatch it was that I picked up on an interesting exchange between Charlie and Alastor that turned into a whole mess that would consume me to this day:

She tries to put a limitation on his ability to do too much, and I wondered if that could lead to a sort of interesting power-play between them (because in the end this is the part of their relationship that is fundamentally interesting - they're both powerful people with opposing moralities, having to work together to acheive a common goal). Basically, because Charlie's not precise with her language, she ends up basically not controlling Alastor at all. Which works out in its way, because she hides from her deeper wellspring of power with the aid of a gentle persona.

I liked the idea of something deeper between them and within themselves - and with them being opposing forces, I wanted to work with the idea of Alastor being associated with "night" and "dark", versus Charlie being associated with "sunlight" and "rainbows".

Shadow and Flame, only a bit less Lord of the Rings and a bit more sexy.

Nox Magia , the "night" magic, follows basic arcane principles that I've picked up on through the long and involved process of being a massive nerd and reading a lot of stuff.

For writing magic, I like looking at basic logic structures and hovering somewhere between harder and softer magic. My other manuscript that is premiering this year will be discussing some differing types of magic systems as well, if you enjoy reading Riddle and my other works, I hope you enjoy those as well!

But as for the story itself, it wasn't meant to be a story about a man falling in love... it's the story of a man being dragged into love, kicking and screaming about it. 🦌🌈

To Alastor the Hotel is about control, and his experience there is just a game not to be taken too seriously. Charlie is also about control, or rather, trying to find a way to control without breaking everything with her terrible strength.

Alastor embraces his strength, while she hides from it, and he finds that contradictory instinct in her interesting, so he comes up with the idea of a game to teach her some magic that might help her. But as with all magic, intent governs everything (even when you don't realize), and the spells he's teaching are telling a particular kind of story - you can preview what's happening in the chapter titles that have the runes' names! 🍷

❤️ Thanks so much for reading! ❤️

[lizardlicks]

Nine People You'd Like To Get To Know Better

I was tagged by @blu3berrydraws, @erisenyo, and @paramouradrift lol thanks guys!

Relation Status: Married to my best friend and high school sweetheart

Favorite Color: green. any green. give me a green I will show you how beautiful it is

Sweet/Spicy/Savory: Sweet tooth is currently satisfied. Spicy is just kind of a bonus. I think savory is looking good rn.

Three ships: Zukka is the obvious current answer, but I am a habitual multishipper by nature, so here are three ships that I very much enjoy which might not be on your radars!

First is @ablueeyedarcher's fault: How/Piandao. The SS CapyPanda. Are they minor characters who only show up for two or three episodes a piece? Yes. Do I care? No. Let them smooch.

Number two is Jee/Bato. Look. Jee is a tired gay man, He has served his time. Let him get out there and get the good dick. He's not a home wrecker though, he's not gonna get between whatever Bato has going on with Hakoda... unless maybe they invited him to get between them more literally.

Third is Zuko/Kuei. I know the the post canon comics pitted these two sad bitches against each other but listen, here me out. They're both young, inexperienced leaders dropped head first into navigating attempting to deescalate their countries post a century of hostilities with minimal helpful guidance, and they were also both used and betrayed by the father figures they we supposed to trust and rely on. What if when left alone, face to face, they bonded over venting their similar frustrations? What if that bonding turned into an unlikely friendship? What if that friendship tripped and rolled down a rocky hill of something more and they ended up in a secret affair between the heads of two of the world's most powerful states? What if it all came crashing in on them, but they couldn't untangle their very real feelings from their duty as leaders? What then?

First ever ship: Oh snap this is reaching back into Ye Old memory banks here. If I'm being totally honest I think it was the pink and green (later white, much later all the rest of the damn colors) rangers from the original run of the American version of Power Rangers. The internet didn't exist as we know it today so it was just a group of a half-dozen 7-9 year olds G O S S I P I N G on the playground between rounds of pretending to be actual velociraptors.

Last Song:

(Two Steps From Hell is my go-to writing times tune everything out music)

Last Film: Technically it was me and the rest of the adults post Thanksgiving diner keeping a running background commentary going on the worldbuilding choices in the Paw Patrol Movie that the little kids insisted on watching. Real answer, the last movie I sat down to watch with intention was Across the Spiderverse.

Last thing I Googled: solar chistmas lights. My coworker was complaining that her only outdoor outlet shares a load with an indoor one (which?? rude!) and her partner wouldn't let her put up more Christmas lights. I had to show her. The way her face lit up as she IMMEDIATELY zoomed to Amazon and started filling her cart. Apologies to her poor family and neighbors, but I definitely made her week and possibly her entire New Year.

Currently Reading: Hey did you know that @erisenyo is already releasing stuff for zukki week because she is. you should definitely go read that.

Currently Watching: Rewatching Blue Eye Samurai while spouse watches it for the first time. He's been big into old samurai and wuxia films since I can remember so I'm just sitting here anticipating his reactions to every easter egg and trope call back they've stuffed into this show and also spotting things I missed on the first round.

Currently Consuming: Peppermint mocha and a cheese, egg and sausage tornado. Don't question me.

Currently Craving: My cozy bed. Also a nice big bowl of curry.

Currently Working On: The next chapter of Learn to Carry Love. I'm so so so close to the finish aaargh!

Current Obsession(s): *Gestures at my blog*

And with that I'm gonna taaaaaaag @ablueeyedarcher @rainbowbarnacle @paintsplattere @allgremlinart @saccharineomens @thepioden @siggymcpissyface @curlicuecal and @yandereleorio! No obligation of course, just for a fun time if you wanna :D

[dark-roleplay-finder]

{🥀🕊️} tldr about me; 24f she/her, novella multi-page writer, fantasy / zombie apocalypse / historical fiction, mxm & mxf and doubles-friendly, nsfw and dead dove friendly but will discuss limits and triggers, eastern time zone, plotting and worldbuilding heavy, discord pinterest and spotify are my best friends!

tldr looking for; heavily literate 18+ long-term rp partner, a lover of fantasy (fae, demons, dragons, chosen ones and dark lords, etc) or open to supernatural historical fiction or dark zombie-centric apocalyptic threads. replies preferably at minimum once a week, and please no ghosting–i am very understanding of real life and burnout so if we need breaks thats okay! discord + pinterest friendly, and must vibe ooc! romance is required, as well as being okay with lgbtq+ characters, dark themes, and nsfw content.

read below for more details if this sounds like your cup of tea~

hi friends, i’m 24f she/her, looking for someone similar in age (18+ required, absolutely no minors, preferably 20+) who loves fantasy, monsters, romance, and loooong lengthy replies. i’ve been writing for the past 15+ years with dreams of one day being published, and have been roleplaying for the past 10+ years, though i’ve been on an extended hiatus. i’m recently quit my job (living in EST) so my schedule is pretty open to start writing together! Even though i have a lot of new free time, i do have a partner and responsibilities, and am also aware of burnout, real life, and mental health so never be afraid to pull the breaks for a few days, weeks, or months if we need to but please communicate that. i almost exclusively write medieval high fantasy, but also enjoy historical fiction (absolutely nothing modern ie. 1930's onward) and lately have been into zombie apocalypses as i’m rewatching twd. i only work with originals, ocxoc, but am open to playing with a canon universe as long as we make it our own! i’m mainly looking for mxm and mxf romance since that’s what i have the most experience with, but i am lgbtq+ friendly. i prefer a partner who is open to writing a wide range of characters, not just female ocs or “submissive” types, just to ensure we keep the threads fresh for both of us. i’m more than happy to double and work on multiple threads as well. i like a heavy emphasis on troubled characters with real flaws, trauma, and their subsequent development, exploring interesting relationship dynamics both healthy and toxic, and extensive worldbuilding + magic systems. customized discord servers, fanart, headcanons, drawn maps of our worlds, couples playlists, pinterest boards–you name it, i love it and am here for it.

concepts in mind; while i don’t have any set plots, characters, or worlds (i generally enjoy figuring this out organically with my partner) there are some things that i like to write and cliches i love to see. Anything with fae, monsters, demons and witches, interesting takes on vampires + werewolves, i’m here for! i love fairytale retellings and mythology, and playing with religious motifs and inspiration (think paradise lost). themes of rebellion, war-torn kingdoms, corrupt monarchies, prophecies, racing against the clock to defeat eldritch world-ending monsters, dark overlords, magic always has a price, everyone is living on borrowed time just to name a few. when it comes to romance tropes, you can never go wrong with enemies to lovers, soulmates, forbidden romance, arranged/forced marriage, hidden identity, the hero falls for the villain. i foam at the mouth for soft ocs that snap and go feral, not a god’s chosen but a god’s cursed, the found family out of a band of ragtag misfits, complex villains who are actual people, i could literally go on for hours.

other tidbits; i don’t write canon characters or with fandoms, but i do enjoy my fair share of shows, books, and video games! i'm open to taking inspiration from any of them, so i’ll list a few if it helps give a better idea of what i’m into and possible interests we might share–

shows/movies: game of thrones + house of the dragon, outlander, the walking dead, pride and prejudice, stranger things, lotr, twilight

books: a court of thorns and roses + throne of glass, six of crows + shadow and bone, the night circus, and many more

games: animal crossing, legend of zelda, the sims, dragon age, stardew valley, the last of us

contact; if you are interested in any of this, like this post and i'll message you or comment with your discord username and i'll add you

Like this post and the asker will reach out!

[findyourrp]

{🥀🕊️} tldr about me; 24f she/her, novella multi-page writer, fantasy / zombie apocalypse / historical fiction, mxm & mxf and doubles-friendly, nsfw and dead dove friendly but will discuss limits and triggers, eastern time zone, plotting and worldbuilding heavy, discord pinterest and spotify are my best friends.

tldr looking for; heavily literate 18+ long-term rp partner, a lover of fantasy (fae, demons, dragons, chosen ones and dark lords, etc) or open to supernatural historical fiction or dark zombie-centric apocalyptic threads. replies preferably at minimum once a week, and please no ghosting–i am very understanding of real life and burnout so if we need breaks thats okay! discord + pinterest friendly, and must vibe ooc! romance is required, as well as being okay with lgbtq+ characters, dark themes, and nsfw content.

read below for more details if this sounds like your cup of tea~

hi friends, i’m 24f she/her, looking for someone similar in age (18+ required, absolutely no minors, preferably 20+) who loves fantasy, monsters, romance, and loooong lengthy replies. i’ve been writing for the past 15+ years with dreams of one day being published, and have been roleplaying for the past 10+ years, though i’ve been on an extended hiatus. i’m recently quit my job (living in EST) so my schedule is pretty open to start writing together! Even though i have a lot of new free time, i do have a partner and responsibilities, and am also aware of burnout, real life, and mental health so never be afraid to pull the breaks for a few days, weeks, or months if we need to but please communicate that. i almost exclusively write medieval high fantasy, but also enjoy historical fiction (absolutely nothing modern ie. 1930's onward) and lately have been into zombie apocalypses as i’m rewatching twd. i only work with originals, ocxoc, but am open to playing with a canon universe as long as we make it our own! i’m mainly looking for mxm and mxf romance since that’s what i have the most experience with, but i am lgbtq+ friendly. i prefer a partner who is open to writing a wide range of characters, not just female ocs or “submissive” types, just to ensure we keep the threads fresh for both of us. i’m more than happy to double and work on multiple threads as well. i like a heavy emphasis on troubled characters with real flaws, trauma, and their subsequent development, exploring interesting relationship dynamics both healthy and toxic, and extensive worldbuilding + magic systems. customized discord servers, fanart, headcanons, drawn maps of our worlds, couples playlists, pinterest boards–you name it, i love it and am here for it.

concepts in mind; while i don’t have any set plots, characters, or worlds (i generally enjoy figuring this out organically with my partner) there are some things that i like to write and cliches i love to see. Anything with fae, monsters, demons and witches, interesting takes on vampires + werewolves, i’m here for! i love fairytale retellings and mythology, and playing with religious motifs and inspiration (think paradise lost). themes of rebellion, war-torn kingdoms, corrupt monarchies, prophecies, racing against the clock to defeat eldritch world-ending monsters, dark overlords, magic always has a price, everyone is living on borrowed time just to name a few. when it comes to romance tropes, you can never go wrong with enemies to lovers, soulmates, forbidden romance, arranged/forced marriage, hidden identity, the hero falls for the villain. i foam at the mouth for soft ocs that snap and go feral, not a god’s chosen but a god’s cursed, the found family out of a band of ragtag misfits, complex villains who are actual people, i could literally go on for hours.

other tidbits; i do not write canon characters or with fandoms, but i do enjoy my fair share of shows, books, and video games! i'm open to taking inspiration from any of them, so i’ll list a few if it helps give a better idea of what i’m into and possible interests we might share–

shows/movies: game of thrones + house of the dragon, outlander, the walking dead, pride and prejudice, stranger things, lotr, twilight

books: a court of thorns and roses + throne of glass, six of crows + shadow and bone, the night circus, and many more

games: animal crossing, legend of zelda, the sims, dragon age, stardew valley, the last of us

contact; if you are interested in any of this, like this post and i'll message you or comment with your discord username and i'll add you

.

[actuallylorelaigilmore]

Tagged by: Fave of faves @bethanyactually--and usually I save every post I'm tagged in to (at least theoretically) do later, but since I actually have returned to watching and listening to things lately, I'm gonna do this one right now.

Last song: Like You Do by Josh Ramsay. And Christian Kane's cover of Fast Car, both of which were recced to me by Leander, who knew I should hear them. But also, while I haven't listened to any of it since Tuesday, I woke up with the Daisy Jones and The Six soundtrack playing in my head...just like it has been ever since I originally started watching the series. Today it's mostly been The River featuring Simone, Regret Me, and More Fun To Miss. I know enough of the lyrics now for the soundtrack to be my constant mental radio as I go about my day.

Currently watching: Nancy Drew S2 (I'm 4 episodes in and enjoying it a lot), Schmigadoon S2 (I've seen half of it and it's still fantastic and I'm bummed I only have 3 episodes to go) and today I'm about to start my Good Omens rewatch so I can head into the new season full of S1 feels. Because my best friend is literally the best, I'm also partly through a DJATS rewatch with Leander seeing it for the first time--making that my favorite thing I am watching right now.

Currently reading: Nightwork by Nora Roberts (I'm about halfway through it and have been borrowing it from @actuallylukedanes forever and I feel very bad about that! I will finish it! I'm also partly through How to Raise an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi, also on loan from Leander. And before that, I was (and remain) partway through literally 20 other ebooks of all kinds--most recently Zero Fail: The Rise and Fall of the Secret Service by Carol Leonnig. There's a ton of great nonfiction that I already have on my tablet and know I'll enjoy cuz I'm that kind of geek...I just rarely read anymore because reading time is time I'm not spending with my millions of other hobbies.

Current obsession: As referenced above, Daisy Jones and The Six, which I am so so happy Leander is watching with me--both helping me get it out of my system a little and letting me indulge even more in my love of it. After we watched it on Wednesday, I was able to listen to something that wasn't the soundtrack for the first time, so I just may be able to dial this obsession down to manageable levels at some point. But GUYS IT'S SO GOOD. I want to gif it as soon as I get back to Photoshop and I kind of want to read the book, when I didn't before. I just want to burrow into the world and live there, and I haven't felt that way in quite a while, about anything. (It's made it harder to engage with other things, which is why I originally was going to add Ted Lasso's completed final season to my week along with Nancy Drew and Schmigadoon, but ended up not doing so because my head and heart are full of DJATS right now. But I missed this feeling, too, so I'm happy to be in love again.)

No-pressure tagging: @actuallylukedanes, @jicklet, @jakeperalta, @beturass, @hondagirll, @mythologicalmango, @dollsome-does-tumblr, @anextrapart, @sentichefuoripiove, @robbiedaymonds and anybody else who wants to do this.

[rafasbiscuits]

Tagged by @schumi-nadal and @fisherkings thank u for tagging me guys it's always an honour, love youuu😘😘

Rules: post 10 of your favorite comfort mfovies then tag 10 people.

1. X Men movie series. Definitely, absolutely, undoubtedly, comfort movie. X Men. I remember watching the prequels with my brother as a kid when it's only the two of us at home. It's not just a comfort movie it's literally a fricking nostalgia for me. Then continued watching the whole timeline when I had my own computer.

2. STAR WARS MOVIES!!! Been a fan since I was a literal toddler and grew up with this. All sorts of nostalgia will come rushing to me and I will immediately feel hugged everytime I listen to the theme and just, see a familiar character. hey I don't know any lore cause I don't watch the cartoons but I watch enough to know what's going on🤷

3. Mean Girls. Yes, I watch Mean Girls on repeat everytime I eat lunch, it helps me eat cause I get distracted by all the drama going on, it's not nostalgic or anything cause I first watched it like two years ago but it is definitely a favourite and an absolute comfort movie.

4. Any Ghibli movies, I mean cmon, Ghibli!!! All my childhood anime movies are made from Ghibli. I love every single one of themm

5. Any Barbie movies (especially the Mariposa one, and the Princess Academy one and OMG THE MERMAID ONE!!) wait the mermaid one definitely needs its own like thing but I'm just putting it here. THE MERMAID BARBIE IS SO ICONIC I LOVE THAT MOVIE SO SO MUCH omg I have to rewatch

6. Twilight Series. Don't- actually. yes. I don't care anymore, I will not keep denying the fact that I LOVE this movie. It's part of my childhood and this movie really gave me alot of memories, I always watch the series whenever I'm sad or stressed about school..which is, all the time.

7. GOTG trilogy. Ugh, I mean I'm a Marvel fan in general (but I lean more to X Men), but Guardians Of The Galaxy will always be special to me. And the trilogy ended this year too and lemme tell you i CRIED. I remember begging my brother to lend me his USB so I can watch the first movie, and I did (took me a few weeks) and then BAM! Found comfort characters, all their songs became my comfort songs and immediately became a comfort movie, seriously the whole movie feels like home to me, god I love them.

8. Brokeback Mountain. I don't need to say anything about this, explains alot already.

9. Interstellar. Loved that movie to the CORE. watched it on the cinema and this movie made me fall in love with Nolan.

10. mmm I can't think of anything anymore but uhhh 2001: A Space Oddysey. Love it forever and always, the beginning of time and all that, loved the book it's one of my favourite books. And then the movie was just out of this world (literally) soundtrack? Top. Acting? Absolutely fantastic. Cinematography? yES. Perfection. I have an interest in the topic which is why I just feel so happy when I rewatch it..

Tagging...uhhh: @yoellglia @swaggypsyduck @tam-is-blogging @thefrootloopman @hubillusion @jcferrero @bluespring864 @raulsevyn @soronya @janesurlife (I'd love to tag all of you, yes the one who is reading this, but it says 10, I love you all very much tho😘)

[cozymochi]

🌻 <3

@oddberryshortcake and I like to watch random crap in hopes of finding a surprise banger, OR just because. I was usin’ my parents Disney+ so why not (btw Strange World is pretty cool). For a while, we watched Sofia the First because “ayo if i was little i know kid me would’ve been into that shit” and we were right. Banger songs, Cedric is a great scrunkly with a ton of Ls. Gr8.

But thAT’S NOT THE TOPIC. IM GONNA BE TALKING ABOUT ELENA OF AVALOR. THE PEAK FICTION SISTER SERIES that hasn’t left my fuckin mind since we watched it alongside our Sofia run. Elena is what you get after you graduate from Sofia. We finished it weeks ago yet we still go back and rewatch eps.

HELLO MY QUEeN. I have been actively holding back talking about it (THAT and i haven’t had the time in the first place). And the weird thing is, people are aware of Elena’s existence — but have also never actually watched her series? Or at least I never see anyone mention anything beyond surface level. WHICH IS NOT FAIR that shit bangs I gotta tell somebody!! So why not tell my platform of people who would not look at this!! 💀 but this is MY nasty blog on YOUR dash

So!! Here’s an informal 10 paragraph long (mostly spoiler-free) premise synopsis copy and pasted from when I bombarded someone on discord about it [I SAY MOSTLY BECAUSE ONE CHARACTER IS A WALKING SPOILER I cant avoid this, thank god it’s one of the first things learned]

… But I gotta begin with Sofia the First 🤡— I PROMISE IT’S RELEVANT. Gotta talk HER premise first-

Sofia is some regular villager whose mom marries the King of her country Enchancia. She was a girl in the village doin’ alright, but then became a princess overnight. Her new stepfather gives her the Amulet of Avalor, an artifact that was passed down for decades in his family. THE TWIST? It sEcRetly has magic!! (Note: Sofia is the only person who knows it’s magical.) The magic gives her the power to talk to animals, and basically whatever the plot dictates. But the amulet is also cursed.

After a series of unimportant events irrelevant to Elena, and one single important one— Sofia finds a magic book that has a wizard called Alacazar in it, and he tells her that a princess has been trapped inside her Amulet for 41 years, and essentially has been trying to escape. Sofia is apparently the only person who can help her. This leads her and her family to going to Avalor and figure this shit out.

And she does.

This is where Sofia’s relevance more or less ends until further notice.

….

[41 YEARS AGO]

Once upon a time there was a kingdom named Avalor, and there was a princess named Elena. She lived with her parents the king and queen, little sister Isabel, Abuela, Abuelo and her cousin Esteban.

On her 15th birthday, her mom the Queen gave her the Amulet of Avalor as a gift.

Then a nondescript amount of time later, an evil sorceress named Shuriki invaded Avalor and murders her parents in front of her, and starts taking over. Elena tried to personally stop her, only for Shuruki to try killing her too. Shuriki’s assassination attempt fails because Elena’s magic amulet protected her by pulling her inside of it. Elena is fully sentient in her stupor.

After witnessing that happen, the then Royal wizard Alacazar takes action and seals her grandparents and Isabel a magic painting to keep them alive.

The royal family is officially deposed and Shuriki is becomes dictator of Avalor for the next 41 years. Meanwhile the only surviving family member, Esteban, works in servitude for her. (IMPORTANT GUY. REMEMBER HIM)

Meanwhile, Alacazar travels the world with the Amulet of Avalar to find someone who can free Elena (because the amulets power to too strong and godlike). He eventually gets too old to go on, and seals himself away in a magic book to keep himself alive, while the Amulet itself somehow ends up exactly where it needs to. (The specifics of how it ended up with Sofia’s stepfather’s family are unclear, but it becomes an heirloom of sorts)

And we circle back to Sofia, who finds out the Amulet has Elena in it thanks to Alacazar’s spirit telling her in the first place after she finds his book.

[INHALE]

Sofia goes to Avalor, blah blah, she frees Elena, they depose of the dictator, free her family, and alls well that ends well.

Elena lets Sofia keep the amulet because she’s seen enough of that fucking thing.

The end

OR IS IT??? All of this (sans Sofia) is recapped in the first episode of Elena. The actual pilot episode that goes into all that junk is in Season 3 of Sofia the First as a 3-episode long special. YA DON’T REALLY NEED context on Sofia to see that, BUT!! It’s nice anyway. (Tho episode 0, imo, absolutely should be seen first for prime context. Also the beta-designs and mild jank will be less jarring)

One last teeny tiny thing. Too important but it’s part of the premise literally dropped in the pilot.

Esteban is the reason why Shuriki invaded Avalor in the first place. And he is indirectly responsible for the deaths of his aunt and uncle.

When he learns that Elena and the rest of the family are alive and Shuriki gets defeated, however, he does not bring this up. Claiming he had no choice but to serve her in order to survive. This is knowledge the audience is given while the family remains unaware.

As a result of being the only one not magically sealed away in that 41 year long reign, Esteban is the only person who aged at all. Everyone else is the exact same age they were when they were first put in stasis. This is relevant.

This is a show for 6 year olds.

Okay that’s unfair, it’s for anyone.

I left out a lot of smaller details (that are very relevant), like the spirit guide fox thing, Alacazar’s grandson Mateo being someone to help Sofia— junk like that. But for broad strokes THIS is the important stuff.

THERE’S A LOT IM OBSESSED WITH- the character animation is genuinely really good. Like, hello?? And it actually gets better as it goes on. They got all kinds of stuff to look at in the background. The designs? Peak. Gabe means the world to me. Songs? Bangers. THE OVERARCHING NARRATIVE?? They actually GOT 3 seasons to build and finish so I— 🤧🤧. There’s a body count in this show. Elena kills somebody, this is not a joke. I love Elena, I love her friends, I love her family, fuck. I love the worldbuilding I LOVE anything that utilizes mesoamerica in it’s lore, fuck.

I think about it more than I should.

And this bitch.

THIS BITCH—- I could go on about this bitch all day. Genuinely went from despising him at first to shooting up to my favorite by the end of the series, I’m going to combust, I should have liveblogged my first viewing. That’s my one regret. It probably would have been very funny

When you graduate from Cedric to Esteban.

AnYway this REALLY GOT OFF TRACK. The entire show is serialized from start to finish so barreling through it was both good idea and a bad one— bad, because I miss it. …So if you have 20 minutes to kill feel free to… peep the first episode. (Note this ain’t the Sofia special backdoor pilot, but it rams through what it needs to) ….if u wanna … 👉👈

and If YOU HAVE MORE TIME TO kill on your parents subscription then both the actual pilot (via Sofia) and the whole series are on disney+ … or im sure one can find other ways 🏴‍☠️…

THAT THEME SONG BUSSIN BUSSIN ON GOD.

Anyway that’s not nearly all I have to say about it there’s so much but at this point i’m just being really weird!!!! 🤡🤡🤡

[orphicpoieses]

A giant tag game response...

In the last several weeks, I've been tagged by multiple people for tag games, including some games even multiple times. So, instead of just creating a post for each and every tag I got, I decided to go deeply insane by creating one giant post in which I will answer each and every one.

For all of this, I am tagging: @enchantress-of-words @mirrorthoughts @leafamaranth @blind-the-winds @writingpotato07 @writingbyricochet @j-1173 @midnight-and-his-melodiverse @eli-writes-sometimes @lockejhaven @365runesofwriting @thetruearchmagos @yourfriendlywriter @moonlitinks

Wish me luck.

Okay, so first, let's start with the game I got the most tags for: Heads Up, Seven Up. I've been tagged by @primroseprime2019 (not quite as Heads Up, Seven Up, but Seven Snippets, Seven People), @mariahwritesstuff, @thetruearchmagos and @howlingbreeze. Thanks to you all for tagging me 💕

Since I got the tag, I nearly wrote 30k words on my current project. Sadly, I cannot share any lines with you, so here is an older snippet of mine and I hope, you forgive me for being so mysterious with my WIPs...

This belongs to a snippet for Celestials. I have this one in my drafts for about three to four months now, unsure, if I should continue. So, please, leave some feedback, if you want to read on or not! It would really help me out!💕

His strides were long as he ran down the hallway to the stairwell. "I said you should go away!", Conan growled behind him, but he ignored the archdemon, who followed him angrily. Their voices were already echoing through the door of Asra's apartment and before she could get up from the couch, there was a vigorous knock on the wood. "Asra!" His soft voice got through to her and brought back memories that she actually wanted to forget. Tears welled up in her eyes and even though no one saw her, she hastily turned away. "Get out of here!", Conan growled again and for a moment it seemed as if the two uninvited visitors were at each other's throats. Asra hastily wiped away the tears and stood up. If he didn't listen to Conan, then to her if she was about to send him away.

Next is 10 Songs, 10 People, tagged by @darthenra. Shuffle your music and share the first ten songs.

Looking Back by Satoshi Takebe

We're in the club now by Michael Giacchino

Shine my shoes by Robbie Williams

We are the people by Empire of the Sun

Dream Glow by BTS & Charli XCX

Unbroken by Arealie Brighton

Mayweather by Maître Gims

Mehr Davon by Tim Benzko

Destruction by TSFH

Steel on Steel by Jeremy Soule

Also from @darthenra, the Four Main Character tag. Describe four characters in your WIP that are not your protagonist.

Sadly, I cannot answer this, since my project is a mystery.

The next game is Get to know me, tagged by @eli-writes-sometimes.

3 Ships: I only got one and that's Crowley X Aziraphale.

Last Song: Heat Waves by Glass Animals

Last Movie: A Pale Blue Eye (Rewatch, because it is so good!)

Currently Consuming: The series Designated Survivor.

Currently Craving: Summertime vibes, beach waves and surf lessons

And last but not least: The OC Songs Tag by @writingbyricochet 💕

I will not name the OCs (yes, multiple!), but here are 5 songs with a that make me feel very close to them and just have the right vibes. Usually, I resonate with the complete lyrics, but because this would otherwise end in a much much longer post that I want to, I just give a snippet of the lyrics. Just google the songs, if you are interested in the soundtrack in my head 😁

Open Your Eyes - UNSECRET & Alaina Cross

Open your eyes Now is the time All that you know is changing Open your eyes Into the light There is a world that's waiting

I know where your secrets hide - Klergy feat. Katie Garfield

Bite your lip Taste your lies I write your name in circles Strike the fear Where the dark lies Where you are, your sins will follow Shadows come into the light I know where your secrets hide

Heat Waves - Glass Animals

I just wonder what you're dreaming of When you sleep and smile so comfortable I just wish that I could give you that That look that's perfectly unsad Sometimes, all I think about is you Late nights in the middle of June Heat Waves been faking me out Can't make you happier now

Would I lie to you - Nico Santos

Shadow in the dark, shadow in the dark I know what you've been through Trouble in your heart, trouble in your heart Where no one's ever been to I know you've been hurt before Don't want you to hurt no more Let me get to you

Dirty Hands (Gone Mad) - Kendra Dantes

Look in my eyes, they lie Went to hell a couple of times Can't say I don't try, I tried Now there's nowhere left to hide Now it's done, I'm undone Everything that I've become Let me show you my darkness It's dark, yeah

And that's it! All the tags I recently got, collected in one post!

If you read everything, let me thank you with my whole heart. It means a lot to me. I also appreciate likes, comments and reblogs and don't forget to tell me your opinion on the Orphic Daydreams and wether or not I should continue them.

Giving you all a nice hug and see you in the next giant post 💕🌈

[im-no-jedi]

I’ve been pondering why writing has gotten so difficult for me over the past few months, and I think I can break it down into several factors at this point

the first (and potentially biggest reason) is definitely burnout. or I guess betrayal. idk what term to use. but TBB season 2 literally stomped out the drive and passion I previously had while writing MLWTBB. not only did I become consumed with new ideas from all the new content, but Plan 99 straight up crushed me to the point where it’s been hard to return to the series in general. I used to rewatch an episode of the show at least once or twice a week. I rewatched the first season at least 7-8 times. the show was my entire life, literally. and now… I can honestly say, I haven’t rewatched most of season 2. outside of the first five episodes, “Retrieval”, and “Pabu”, I haven’t rewatched any other episodes. I’ve rewatched certain scenes for gif purposes, but that’s it. quite sad, really. I’m disappointed in myself 😞

another reason is loss of a proofreader for my stories. not gonna get into it, but there's currently only (1) person in the entire world who I trust to proofread my work, and they basically wanted a break from the position. and that hurt me more than I thought it would. I had someone regularly reading my stories and giving me feedback, which I needed. not because I had a ton of errors (although sometimes that's true LOL), but because I had a regular reader. someone who was frequently commenting and discussing my stories with me. and I sorely need that. as far as I know, I don't have any regular readers. I've discussed elements of my stories with other friends but... it's not the same. it's like infodumping about a TV show to someone who's never seen it. sure, I'm getting the info out, but when the other person has seen the content too, it's a much more satisfying feeling. I very much desire both validation and interaction in regard to my stories. I've gotten a few nice comments on some of my work before, but... nothing regular. I don't have any "fans" or anything like that. and... it genuinely sucks 💔

which leads me into my next point. which is something I used to tell myself, and I need to start telling myself again. at the end of the day, nobody will ever be as big of a fan of my stories as myself. I originally wrote MLWTBB for me and me exclusively. I literally only started sharing it publicly because Skylar asked LOL. it's easily become one of the highest achievements of my life, and it's nowhere near finished yet. I realized I started becoming more self-conscious about how I write since posting the series publicly, and I can see it in how I currently write compared to back then. that needs to stop. I'm never gonna get anything finished with that mentality. so I seriously need to adjust my mentality about it. I need to go back to August 2021 when I first started writing it and tell myself "idc if anyone else in the world sees this, I'm writing this story for me". so while I strongly desire (and in some cases, need) the engagement and validation from others... nobody else's opinion matters more than my own. and I too often forget that...

so how do I fix all this? well, the last point is pretty self-explanatory. the solution for that is simply to just write. doesn't matter if the quality is "good enough", I just need to get these dadgum stories out of my head and into concrete words. I think that'll help with the first point as well. writing out more of my interpretations of the characters I hold so dear should help deter from any negative thoughts about the current state of the canon (and hold me off until season 3 comes LOL). as for the middle point, I don't think there's much I can do about that, at least when it comes to MLWTBB. however, I've been planning on opening writing requests for literally weeks now, and I think now might be the time to actually do it. that way, I can at least get that feeling of validation for my writing that I so desperately desire.

one other point I think I need to address is entirely on my part, and it's in relation to the engagement factor. I fully acknowledge that more often than not, engagement on fiction is a two-way street. several of my friends and followers are writers themselves, and I see all the content they put out. but to be perfectly honest, I'm more of a writer than a reader. I'm extremely picky about all the content I consume, which means I don't often have the capacity to engage with fanfiction, no matter who's written it. heck, Ham's had a story I've been meaning to read for months now, and I just haven't ever been able to bring myself to doing it. it's nothing personal!! whoever the author is has literally nothing to do with whether or not I engage with something!! I just honestly, really and truly, am not much of a reader. I enjoy rereading my own stuff... and that's about it. although, I've been gifted stories before, and OMG I treasure those so much. but I think that's because those stories were written for me, as a gift, and all gifts are precious to me. so I guess I need to accept the fact that I probably won't get much engagement on my work simply because I don't engage with others. and that's ok. I'm not hurting anyone by doing this (although if this is a problem for you, please let me know, I don't wanna unintentionally insult or hurt anyone 🥺). and maybe someday, I'll actually get the bug up my butt to finally read the things I promised to read haha

so! all this to say, an attempt will be made to relight the writing spark within me so I can continue my beloved MLWTBB and potentially write some fun stuff for the people who request something from me. I've actually already written a thing for a friend as a test for my upcoming requests, and I can't wait to share that one 😁

writers block be damned!! I'm going to write and continue to write until my brain stops functioning. deal with it, Palpatine 😤

[theredpharaoah]

Rewatching, and I kinda feel bad for Jasper. I’m on “We Are Grounders” Part 2, and Jasper’s proven himself many times by now - within the episode even. Them constantly having no confidence in him - even when he delivers - wasn’t helping to make him better. On another note, it is impossible to miss the graveyard of plot lines literally everywhere. What was JR doing? You can literally so many avenues he meant to go, and then decided not to pursue at the last second. It just ended, but this is definitely a show that needs a reboot. He just kept fumbling the story. Even The Primes in Season 6 - that was good. He should’ve did something with them instead of going to Bardo. And then season 7 rips literally everything in prior seasons to shreds. If every Grounder had nightblood, then how did it become rare? Fighting for commander wouldn’t have done shit cuz everyone who was on the ground needed NB - they would’ve had to kill everyone. Also, it’s a gene therapy not like an epigentic trait that was switched on. There’s no way they would’ve selected against it at that scale in only 100 years. Opposite of that, there’s no way The Ark ppl would’ve been able to adapt to solar radiation like that in only 100 years. I also think the degradation of knowledge for the Grounders didn’t make a lot of sense. Those people were just like the people on the Ark - there had to have been physicists and doctors and whatnot amongst the rich and famous in that Bunker(we saw there was). All of that just disappeared? Mt Weather just discovered a 21st century bone marrow transplant when Skaikru arrived? They couldn’t have done that to the Grounders 100 years before? Let’s not forget the characters. Octavia and Clarke were the only ones who he really developed. The rest were just going in circles. Bringing kids in the way they did was not smart. Especially since Madi was just there after season 5. No real purpose at all. Expanding the world was good, but the way he did it wasn’t. ALLIE was a mistake I fear. We should’ve stuck to the Lord of The Flies sorta thing, and The Mountain Men should’ve been more than one season. It would’ve been cool if there was like a conglomerate of Mountain Men - multiple bunkers like that working together. Everyone in the main group at least should’ve became a warrior. Clarke becoming someone’s second as a peace offering could’ve been cool - Lexa would’ve been the only one she could be second too without making Skaikru look weak though. Her, Luna, or the Flamekeepers. Bellamy and Clarke’s friend dynamic was great, but watching S1 back - they should’ve been together. Lincoln really didn’t have to die. Finn was definitely not the one in the group who would’ve ended up doing what he did. Monty and Jasper should’ve been a couple. That could’ve been how Jasper got out of his depression over the girl he only knew for two weeks. Wells really didn’t have to die. We saw Bellamy fucking everyone - I feel like we should’ve seen him with some boys too. The future they built seemed like no one cared about sexuality - which to me means damn near everyone should be fluid. Heteronormativity as a societal expectation plays a much larger role than people think. I think it’s telling that the Female leads were bi, yet only two side characters were gay(3 if we count Miller’s first bf). Grounder religion and spirituality should’ve been explored way more too. I’ve got many more comments and ideas, but know that I will be a major player on the eventual Reboot. This was a really new take on an apocalypse and while it was good it could’ve been done better.

[iguessitsjustme]

My Top 10 Non-BL Asian Dramas

Believe it or not, I do watch my fair number of Asian dramas that are not BL. I just tend to binge them instead of watching week to week so I typically don’t post about them. So here is a list of my top 10 favorites that no one asked for.

(Since this is a list of non-BL shows, I did not include bromances like Devil Judge, Guardian, or Ghost Doctor on this list or it would be a very different list)

10. The King’s Avatar - Netflix - I did not know that I could like a show about esports until I watched this show. There are some things that I wasn’t particularly a fan of, but I mostly loved it. There was no romance to be seen. Just a bunch of people battling it out in video games and the drama actually had me on the edge of my seat.

9. Tale of the Nine-Tailed - Viki - I did not care for the romance in the story one bit which is unfortunate since it’s a large part of the show, BUT despite the romance not being to my taste, I still loved the characters. And of course I loved Lee Rang. I don’t care if he was evil and almost helped bring about the end of the world, he deserved better and I’m still mad at the ending he got.

8. Love O2O - Netflix - This show is probably the most out of place on this list but it is probably my favorite het romance. Bonus censored BL in there which I wish they could have gone more in depth with, but they did what they could. I love Xiao Nai and Weiwei’s relationship. They constantly communicate with each other and she was never once made out to be dumb because he was supposed to be the smart, perfect one. One of my favorite scenes is actually his friends hacking the school’s system to show the dumb gossip mill her report card because she is just as smart. The friendships are great too. The only thing I don’t like is that Erxi deserved way better than Cao Guang. He sucked the entire show and didn’t get any better. Erxi was only ever adorable and I will fight every single person that called her ugly.

7. While You Were Sleeping - Viki - This whole show was just an experience. And it was such an interesting concept. I love that the love triangle never even mattered but I hope Han Woo Tak finds someone one day because damn if he wasn’t the best character. Also this show made me very glad that I don’t have prophetic dreams. The romance definitely plays a huge part in this, so if you don’t like het romances than it’s not for you. But both characters are so cute and chaotic and a tiny bit unhinged and I would definitely recommend it. Plus the little found family they develop is wonderful.

6. The Gifted - Youtube - This is another show with such an interesting concept. I love the whole show a lot. It feels hard to talk about without spoiling everything, but I do need it stated that Wave is my favorite character. He was my favorite from the beginning all the way until the end. He’s the best, the smartest, and if you know me, you know I love the asshole characters. But a very specific brand of asshole and he fits it.

5. My Name - Netflix - This show is...fucked up. But I loved it. Especially the end. Sometimes, I just want to see a woman go on a one-woman rampage and murder everyone and everything. Anyway, pissing her off, then training her to fight, then extra special pissing her off might not have been the best move. This show is graphic and extremely dark. Do not watch this show unless you are 100% sure you can handle it and handle the violence.

4. The Uncanny Counter - I love a good fantasy element in my shows. I love that his hair went crazy for some reason. I love a disabled character, even though that went away when he got his powers. (minor spoiler) I love that when he loses his powers, and he’s disabled again, I love that he doesn’t forget how to fight. I love the found family and how they protect each other. I love eccentric billionaire man who is also a superhero. I just loved everything about this show tbh. Might be time for a rewatch.

3. Tomorrow - Netflix - This show just finished recently and I loved it. It also deals with heavier topics and it’s definitely not for everyone. This show is about a grim reaper trying to stop people from committing suicide so keep that in mind before going in. She is blunt and brutal but she says the things that people need to hear. And there are times when this show is very, horrifically sad. It almost made me cry (which if you know me, is impressive). Bonus for this show is that the main character, Joon Woong was also in Click You Heart which is weirdly how I became friends with one of my best friends in the world. Also, I don’t know how alone I am in this but I 100% ship Joon Woong with Ryung Goo. Those two love each other in their weird little way and no one will convince me otherwise.

2. Law School - Netflix - This show reminded me a lot of Devil Judge actually. Minus the bromance. But it’s got corrupt politicians, and one man who is facing it all. The music in this show is phenomenal and the characters are fantastic. There’s definitely a mystery over who murdered the teacher and the fact that their teacher is using himself and the fact that he is the number one suspect in order to teach his students is fantastic. I love how hardworking Kang Sol A is. They told us from the beginning that she had less natural intelligence than her peers. But she worked so hard and she cared so much and I love that the smartest student went out of his way to help her. And he was so proud every time she figured something out. Anyway if you liked Devil Judge, you would probably like this show as well.

1. Vincenzo - Netflix - This show is definitely not made for everyone but it was made more me. It was the exact right balance of absurd, chaotic humor and dark, gritty violence. The villains of the show think they’re so much smarter than they actually are and sometimes I just want to watch a show where the protagonist is constantly winning. Plus I may or may not be a little in love with Cha Young. If you ever want to talk about this show, I am literally always willing to talk about it nonstop. I can talk your ears off.

Let me tell you, choosing just 10 shows was so hard. I love so many. And across so many different genres. Most of the shows on this list ended up being Korean dramas, cause honestly, those tend to have the most violence and I love a good violent show.