#joint live intermission

[moralesmilesanhour]

if you believe in me - 04.2

summary: a very brief intermission. between aaron and his father, miles wonders who he takes after more. wc: 1.5k a/n: this chapter is me trying to get back into the swing of things before the next major plot point (!!!) so this might feel a little slower and more introspective. thanks for reading! (reblog with ur favorite comic or manga if u want idk) taglist: @shuna-boin @aloraangelix @vhstown @sillykirb @proudgojofucker @weirdducky17 @milesandcorysupermacy prev. next

BOOM!

Miles hits the ground shoulder-first with a dull thud, the storage building bursting into flames behind him.

I’m gonna feel that one later, he thinks as he rolls to his feet and back into a sprint. But Oscorp’s gonna feel it, too.

With a leap and a shot of his grappling hook, it’s not long before he’s back on the sidewalk, with Aaron waiting around the corner. The older man has completely retired the Prowler suit now.

“Not bad for your first solo run,” he nods. “Could still be a lil’ quicker, but you’ll pick it up.”

Miles twists the joints of his metal claws. The steel is still shiny and new, save for a bit of soot from the explosion. The purple glow disappears as they power down with a quiet whir and detach to reveal the human flesh underneath. They work like a charm so far.

It’s been two weeks, but he hasn’t gotten to use them - Aaron has yet to send him on a mission where he’d have to. He wants to ask his uncle about it, ask why he let him do all that welding and tinkering if the claws were just for show. But Miles knows that if he does, the man’s brows would furrow and he’d get a stern speech about not getting too eager about that sort of thing. And he’d be right. 

So, like every other night, Miles says nothing but “thanks”.

“And what’s this one about?” 

You pointed at a comic sitting on the far side of Miles’ bed. On the cover stood a man wearing what looked like some imagined version of an “African” headdress. He was shirtless and dressed in nothing but shorts and brightly-colored boots, like the costume of a wrestler. The upper half of his face was obscured by a mask with white eyes tied around his head. The flat colors and dark lines make it look old, likely from the 80s or early 90s. Above the man on the cover was the title in bold graphic font: Anansi.

“You don’t know ‘Anansi’?” Miles asked with wide eyes before shaking his head. “Nah, we gotta fix that.”

He threw what he was reading aside, hovering his hand over the pile of comics until he located the very first issue. 

“So Anansi is like, this spider that gets turned into a human who has the abilities of a spider. Y’know, climbing up walls and shit.”

“Does he shoot webs out of his ass?”

“That’s not how that works, and no. Anyway, he’s got spider powers and he beats the bad guys by being a trickster instead of just brute force.”

You took the comic from him and began leafing through the worn pages, frankly more interested in the art than the plot. The sharp lines and crosshatching remind you of Miles’ sketches. You turned to Miles and held it up once you were finished looking at it.

“Can I borrow it?” 

There’s a shadow of uncertainty that crosses his face for a moment as you await his answer. 

“Mmm…I dunno. I’ve had that thing since I was ten. You gonna be careful with it?”

You place a hand over your heart. 

“Promise.”

He snorts, “Don’t make promises you can’t keep. I’ll let you have it for a week, sound good?”

“Good.”

Miles remembers that he’s supposed to ask for his comic back on the way home, the two metal claws tucked safely into his backpack.

He sneaks a glance at his uncle, and tries to copy his stride when he walks. It looks easy, but there’s a rhythm to it. Miles keeps his gaze low, but his steps lively. The key is not to show the sweat, as they say. All of one’s effort goes into making it look like there’s no effort at all. 

Aaron looks over at his nephew, and chuckles.

“Remind me of your old man when you walk like that,” he says. 

Miles grins good-naturedly. Guess the sweat shows. But it’s fine, for now.

“What’s that mean?”

“When we was young, we used to watch the older kids walk out the corner store and try to copy ‘em. The way your pops did it…”

The man’s shoulders shook with laughter at the memory.

“He kinda looked like, like he was marching almost. Just stomping down that sidewalk!”

Aaron began to demonstrate, making his steps quicker and heavier.

“I look like that?” 

Miles wrinkled his nose and began to tone down his swaying.

“Exactly like that. Shit’s kinda amazing, really. Genetics.”

“I don’t think that’s how genetics work.”

“Oh yeah?” Aaron raised an eyebrow. “Then how come I got you stealing like my pops and me, and in my colors?”

Miles laughed, “But this is good stealing!”

“You got a point there.”

Aaron lifted his gaze upward towards the skyline. The moon was out in full tonight.

“Did y’all make good money, at least?”

“Sure did. Sometimes it was the only money that came in, that’s why we ain’t stop.”

There’s a beat of silence. Miles pats his left pocket to make sure the wad of cash is still there, and wonders if his uncle had to do the same thing, or if he kept it in a fanny pack or briefcase.

“So what made you finally give it up?”

“Oh, that one’s easy. Jeff did it for your mom. Hard to keep secrets with a baby on the way.”

Miles tried to picture a younger version of his father – less facial hair, no eye bags, better eyesight, probably – looking a pregnant Rio in the eye as she broke the news. He looks into her gentle face and…yes, there. Right there is when he decides it’s over. 

Even without the whole parenting thing, it probably killed him inside to have to lie to her every night about where he’s been. Miles gets it.

“What about you?”

Aaron shrugged.

“Couldn’t leave my nephew hanging.”

He had knocked on Miles’ door after a few weeks of radio silence and found the kid lying in bed, surrounded by dirty clothes and snack wrappers. The room smelt of stale sweat, the clothes piled up on the floor impossible to get through, so Aaron elected to stand just outside.

Miles looked up, and suddenly the man understood what had Rio so frantic on the phone. 

The boy’s gaze was…vacant. Like he was looking through him, at something far off in the distance. There were no words comforting enough to turn the lights back on behind those eyes. So Aaron had done the next best thing:

“Go wash up, we goin’ out.”

Miles doesn’t remember it that way. He hardly remembers anything from that period of time between the funeral and his uncle barging into his room. Just a long stretch of gray, and then the door cracks open, then he’s in the shower realizing how long his hair’s gotten, and soon he’s dodging the punching bag in Aaron’s apartment, carrying crates back and forth and maybe blowing some up on occasion. 

He knows in his head that he’s doing this to hurt the pockets of invisible men hiding in their glass skyscrapers and high-rise offices, and he’s as angry at them for sucking the life out of his neighborhood as he’s always been. 

But it had started with the door, cracked open just enough for his uncle’s face to poke through. Otherwise, Miles might’ve been content to lie there and become one with his mattress as he missed another week of school.

He wonders if his father went on those runs because he, too, looked into his future and hadn’t the slightest idea as to what he was looking at. 

Miles’ thoughts are interrupted when his phone buzzes in his pocket. You have his Anansi issue.

“So this is all you do in your free time, then? Comics and robots?”

Miles has his nose in another shounen manga.

“Is that a bad thing?”

You remember the helmet, and the parts set in neat little rows. And the tarp in Uncle Aaron’s car.

“Not for the most part. More interesting than what I do.”

Miles finally looks up, and squints. “What do you do in your free time?”

“I braid hair,” you reply with a bit of pride. “Pretty good at it, too.”

“Mm-hm, that’s what they all say before they fuck yo’ shit up,” he jokes, earning an issue of Jujutsu Kaisen to the face.

“Ow!”

“Shut up, with them fuzzy ass braids.”

Miles gasped dramatically. “You said they looked nice!”

“Looked. Past-tense.”

“Chill on me, my mom didn’t have time to re-do ‘em this week.”

Seeing an opportunity, your eyes lit up.

“Ooh, let me–”

“No.”

Miles narrowed his eyes at you.

“Aw, come on! You have so much hair, it could be fun! And you said you’d let me.”

You reached out to touch one of Miles’ overgrown braids but ended up swiping the air as he dodged your hand.

“I said ‘maybe’, and now the answer is no. You’re gonna ‘have fun’ in my hair? Like you ‘had fun’ with my t-shirt? I know you stole it, by the way.”

“I up-cycled it.”

“Cutting a shirt in half is not up-cycling, and you’re not touching my head.”

“You're so mean.”

[luminarot]

@ultesc said: “It’s getting crowded. Here, hold my hand.”

Colored lights cast the room in hazy hues not unlike the ones Patrick likes to live in, floating through some stranger's house with an easy grin and a joint in his pocket. Lazy Texas heat has left his shirt loose a few extra buttons, sweat sticking the patterned fabric to his back even with the cool blessings of indoor air conditioning — but it hasn't stopped him yet, lingering close to Julie as some new crowd drifts on by, bumping shoulders as he offers the drink he's nabbed her from the kitchen. Even a seasoned veteran could use a drink in this heat.

Really, the party's only just getting started; there's still pleasant fuzz humming out of the cabinet in the corner, an intermission between each vinyl's switch, a chance to rest and call out requests when he's not laughing with Julie or trying to dance. They hadn't arrived early by any means, but the sudden influx of people marks a noticeable shift in the night's activity. ( After all, every evening’s promise needs a beginning. )

There's also some promise in an outstretched hand, which Patrick takes without hesitation. Julie barely even has to ask before he's weaving calloused fingers in hers. "There. Now you won't lose me," he says, grinning all the while. His head tips to the side, warm hues shining in a teasing glint as he leans in to ask the age-old question: "What's the game plan, California?"

[kariohki]

Trip report of the five lives I went to on my last trip to Japan--wait this is starting the same as the last post...ah well. This trip was only a weekender btw!

BanG Dream! 12th☆LIVE DAY 1 : Poppin'Party 「Welcome to Poppin'Land」 (11/3, Tokyo Garden Theater) Arrived late missing two songs thanks to an extra long flight due to volcanic ash (never did figure out exactly which volcano was going off). First time seeing all of Popipa perform as only 3 at most came to CharaExpo back in the day. It was...fine? It was very much a Popipa live. The framing device of the theme park and each song being matched to an attraction was cute, but it sort of made the setlist feel scattered. Three of their newest songs were performed, and the rest of the setlist generally skewed older with many that hadn't been performed in two years like 1000-kai Urunda Sora and CiRCLING. At least there was Time Lapse, but no Teardrops. The Yumenokessho POPY (the AI singing program based on the Kasumi voice) section fit the last and seemed generally disliked. Glad to mark the group off of my list, but it also showed why they're not a live priority for me. A joint live between them and MyGO!!!!! was announced, which I'd had a gut feeling was going to happen soon.

tipToe. 「homeroom mini-Halloween Special-」 (11/4, Shibuya Chelsea Hotel) A short and sweet mini live from the one chika idol group I actively follow. Was very happy to be able to fit this in to attend one more live before the group's graduation and final live next June. Small setlist, only recognized one song but that's just due to only really listening to one album. My oshi Rinchan remembered me from my Twitter replies :)

BanG Dream! 12th☆LIVE DAY 2 : MyGO!!!!! 「ちいさな一瞬」 (11/4, Tokyo Garden Theater) The franchise's second newest group and the one getting the most push, hot off the heels of their sleeper hit anime. I believe this was the first of the three lives to sell out its seats. My first time seeing this group as I wholly ignored their first year of existence due to the seiyuu being unknown, and didn't go to their 5th oneman live. The first part of the live, they were behind a projection screen that had the lyrics and MVs playing on it, a throwback to their "hidden" days I believe? I was very glad Noroshi was their opener as that is my second or third least favorite song in all of Bandori, so they got the pain (literally, the song hurts my head) out of the way quickly. Silhouette Dance is a whole banger and a half and I was full body swaying at the chorus. There was an intermission with these repetitive walking sounds that also annoyed me, but it led into a reenactment of the middle-end part of the anime with Ningen ni Naritai Uta, the full leadup to and including Utakotoba, and Melody. Shiori was appropriately done as the only acoustic song. No Haruhikage, which one other audience member riffed on after lights came back on by yelling "なんで春日影やったないの!?" (Why didn't you play Haruhikage!?). They had a Zepp tour leading up to the Popipa joint live announced, looking forward(?) to seeing if ticket sales stay strong for them.

Shoujo☆Kageki Revue Starlight Band Live "Starry Session" revival (11/5, Makuhari Messe Event Hall) First Starlight live I've attended, this was a live that was supposed to take place in 2020 but was canceled/delayed until now. The theme along with having a live backing band was a selection of the songs performed were chosen and sorted by a draft meeting stream, also done three years ago. The draft songs were split by day and holy hell I'm glad that day 2 was the one I was able to attend because all of my favorites from the list (which honestly I didn't even know going into it) were performed. The entire draft section going from Otte Owarete Sirius, GANG STAR, then Onikurenai Nin Emaki, and ending on Gyoshite Gyoshaza was amazing (the songs not listed were also good, just not my favorites). And of course all the surrounding songs that were repeated between the days were surprisingly majority songs I knew as I've only watched the anime. At a couple points the cast walked up the aisles and the start of the encore had them on mini stages in the middle cross aisle. so I got a good view of some of the seiyuu. A very recommended live to watch if you want quality Kukugumi.

BanG Dream! 12th☆LIVE DAY 3 : RAISE A SUILEN 「REVEAL」 (11/5, Tokyo Garden Theater) As expected, the majority of the setlist was dedicated to the new REVELATION mini-album, with all five songs being performed in full and in album order with other things in between. Other than -N-E-M-E-S-I-S- (released earlier this year), the setlist skewed to older songs - literally their first eight releases, then the middle-era (ha) SOUL SOLDER and JUST THE WAY I AM. The album order is roughly how I'd rank the songs from favorite to least favorite as well, though STRAY CERBERUS is at the bottom for me. Two other notable things were the costume switch at the second intermission to their original character outfits, and Raychell once again doing "men! women! others! everyone!" for the crowd responses - major props that it wasn't a one off from last live. Overall not as good of a live as EXCLAMATION HIGHLAND or Heaven and Earth setlist wise but...BUT... The most important part was I was front row center. So I had a perfect view of everyone and everything And Tsumutsumu came all the way down front stage for JUST THE WAY I AM and perched on a stool right in front of me. So this live was god tier just based on that. A two-day oneman live in June was announced after the end, which I was iffy on attending (trying to get to a Roselia live next year) but then they announced that 10 songs would be fan chosen by survey so there's a chance for some underperformed stuff and now I'm committed to fit it in.

And that was my stupid YOLO weekender. Next Japan trip is...well, definitely end of May for D4DJ XROSS BEAT. Maybe before then for Roselia?

[yuki-boshi]

Kuro no Kiseki II Crimson Sin - Intermission 1 Summary

Table of Contents:

Prologue

Intermission 1

Chapter 1 Side A

Chapter 1 Side B

Chapter 2 Side A

Chapter 2 Side B

Intermission 2

Chapter 3 Part 1

Chapter 3 Part 2

Chapter 3 Part 3

Finale

Agnes introduces herself to Swin and Nadia as Van’s assistant, who comes once every two weeks. Nadia comments that Agnes looked cute in her Aramis High school uniform, but her current clothes are even cuter. Swin comments that it’s a style that is easy to move in and doesn’t stand out too much while still being identifiably unique and that it suits her as an assistant to Van’s office.

They jokingly say that Agnes is the poster girl of the office to combat Elaine who has that look of elegance that the media likes. Nadia is able to deduce who Agnes really is from several factors with how Rene treats Agnes compared to Elaine and thinks that she can’t just be an ordinary schoolgirl. Nadia also comments she ate Van’s pudding in the fridge as vengeance, but Swin says she has no filter and just says random things.

Nadia and Swin met Van two years prior to Kuro 2.

Kilika calls asking for a request to Van saying that it’s a joint between CID and Marduk. Van is then contacted by Risette’s replacement. Mirabelle Aalton. She explains the Fairy Garden Castle, Marchen Garden. Through Xipha and Orbal network, the first virtual real space and anyone can see each other at any point any time anywhere. And it was hijacked by an unknown group.

Van is tasked to get into the Marchen Garden, but he can’t connect with his Xipha so he asks Mare who does it for him. They enter the Garden with Swin and Nadia being brought along as they were still actually in the Office, just out of sight hiding.

While in the Garden, Swin and Nadia reveal their past to Agnes and thank Van for dealing with the remaining Garden members which they should’ve done themselves years ago. Rene joins the world, and together they clear the first boss but Van realizes the job isn’t done because the Garden has a lot of floors.

After logging out, the group discusses Almata where it’s revealed that offscreen, Swin and Nadia lived in Creil Village for a month after Hajimari’s Babel Incident. The group discover something called the “Almata’s Inheritance”. The Genesis responds but Van tells Agnes she needs to focus on her school festival that’s upcoming in April.

[ryuukia]

[Translation] Tsukiuta Character Song 3rd Season Mini Drama CD - Joint Live Intermission: Hajime and Shun’s MC corner

I’ve never thought I’d work again on audio after Shun’s “Just do it!” mini drama but it looks like I was wrong. This CD is a bonus CD, which you get for buying both Hajime’s and Shun’s CDs. This is not the only one, in fact there are 6 such CDs per total, one for each release set, as well as a group CD if you buy them all. I have them but I won’t be working on them

If you’re curious how the CD actually looks like, here’s the board surface.

Special thanks to @clearui for proofreading as usual, but also to @ryota-kunstranslations for helping me word some things. I can’t trust my audio skills RIP

Please don’t repost/reuse my translations! Likes and reblogs are appreciated. I also recommend listening to the CD while reading this~

Hajime: Thank you for your cheers. Then, I'll say it once again. Welcome today, to Gravi and Procella’s Joint Live. I’m Six Gravity’s leader, Mutsuki Hajime.

Shun: Ya, everybody. Greetings~ I’m Procellarum’s leader, Shimotsuki Shun. I’m happy to meet everyone like this~ Have you enjoyed Hajime’s and my solo, together with the live parts up to this point?

-fans cheer more-

Shun: -chuckles- Energetic, aren’t you? Thank you~! Hajime, did you hear that? Their cheers are amazing.

Hajime: Aah, that’s right. Thank you, everyone. The solo parts started with Kakeru and Rui, continuing until the last performances, with the two of us ending them. Until this point, all 12 of us had been performing a lot, so everyone must be really tired by now, but you all sure still have some power (stamina.)

Shun: Even though they are princesses at glance.

Hajime: Shun. Not only princesses, but it looks like there are also some men.

Shun: Where, where~? Ah, it’s true. Hello~

Hajime: Haa, they’re waving their light sticks. Did you have fun? -more cheers- Thank you.

Shun: I’m happy to receive support from the ladies, but I’m also happy to receive some from males.

Hajime: That’s right. It’s a good thing we were able to create something that everyone could enjoy regardless of gender or age.

Shun: You sure are confident that you won’t bore them. In the end, we are 12 people, which is a large number of people, lined up with a variety of characters. E-hem~

Hajime: You’re really saying that? But, well, you’re right. Watching the solo parts one after another, I was certainly reminded once again that we’re a lot of people.

Shun: We had a break in the middle though. Nevertheless, each person sings 2 songs so when we have 12 people, that means 24 songs in total. There were various songs, but also talks too.

Hajime: Shun. Since we are the last ones, shall we make this talk corner accordingly and review the entire live a bit?

Shun: Ah, that’s nice! Let’s do that! Oh, everyone in the audience! Your cheerings were fully transmitted to us up on the stage, so since I was thinking we all must be tired, we could also enjoy ourselves while taking a proper break.

Hajime: That’s right. From here on, Shun and I are in relax mode too. We’ll be taking it easy.

Shun: Indeed. Relax, everyone! Relax. That’s right. Just like you’d be in my arms. Relax your whole body and slac-

Hajime: Since I’m thinking to talk relaxedly, please sit down as you please. ...Don’t push yourselves, okay?

-fans cheer again-

Shun: Hajime, that was cool! -gets smacked- ouch

Hajime: Well, then… Talk corner, start!

[03:13]

Hajime: Now. Well, Shun, I’m counting on you.

Shun: Ye~s, leave it to me, Hajime. Since this is the man-to-man talk with Hajime I’ve wished for so long, of course I’ll be willing to do it.

Hajime: You sure are excited.

Shun: You wouldn’t like it if lives aren’t exciting, right?

Hajime: Well, that’s true.

Shun: Hmpf hmpf hmpf. Well, and also Hajime, you looked like you were in a good mood during the live, more like you looked excited back there.

Hajime: Aah, I’ve heard that a lot. Well, it’s true that I was enjoying it, but...

Shun: That means it has been clearly delivered. You smiled and talked more than usual, and then the sight of you having fun, fluttering your long coat while dancing surprised everyone. It looked like fun that it made us have a hard time trying not to smile too much, but I thought “Here he comes, oh God, thank you!!” when you showed that excitement.

Hajime: ….... I won’t do it anymore.

Shun: Eh, do it! You don’t have to mind those~. It’s a good thing that someone as composed as Hajime can honestly have fun. Isn’t that right, everyone?

Hajime: Don’t get them involved.

Shun: Hahaha. Just like that, this stage has lots of energy to get involved with us.

Hajime: You summed that up so smoothly

Shun: I’m a leader in a sense.

Hajime: Yes, yes. By the way, since it’s only the two of us, I couldn’t imagine how the talk would advance, but the atmosphere turned out to be friendly.

Shun: You couldn’t imagine?

Hajime: I usually have a lot of jobs with you as a set, though talking openly was never part of the main.

Shun: Indeed. We had mainly photo shootings and interviews. There were occasionally a few talk corners, though somehow we were trapped in the flow and got dragged by others.

Hajime: None were in real time.

Shun: Certainly.

[05:22]

Hajime: Well, it might be refreshing for the audience listening to us, even I also feel a bit at lost trying to grasp the situation.

Shun: If Hajime himself feels like that, then the worrywarts, Kai and Haru, would be worrying and fidgeting if they were on the stage like this.

Hajime: Rather than those two, I’d like to have Kakeru and Koi here.

Shun: They're the Gravi members in charge of MCs, right? There’s a rumor that those two can do one stage with only them being there as MCs.

Hajime: They probably could. In Procella’s case, I can picture Iku and You being in charge with this kind of corner, though...

Shun: Exactly. Those two seem to be in charge of the tsukkomi, and it looks that they will talk back and throw tantrums confidently.

Hajime: In charge of the tsukkomi…. Then I suppose that would make the other Procella members the airhead types? Hm… I see.

Shun: I feel like you are pitying me while staring at me. I may say that, but Hajime sometimes also plays the role of the natural airhead, and you’re probably nearer to us.

Hajime: There’s no such thing

Shun: In the backstage, Haru, Arata, and Koi are furiously shaking their heads though.

Hajime: You all better remember this afterwards

[06:58]

Shun: My, my. Well, for now, shall we return to this live’s initial topic?

Hajime: You’re right. 

Hajime: Kakeru and Rui had the opening roles. Kakeru’s song has an upbeat tempo, exciting your entire being, so it was easy for him to hook up the audience while singing I guess?

Shun: Rui also managed to liven up the atmosphere well. Usually it feels like he’s saving his energy, but he also shows confidence on the stage. Once he’s on the stage, a switch inside him is turned on. He’s very good at exciting everyone.

Hajime: The call-res (call and response) were also great. He shouted “I want to hear everyone’s voices” and “let me hear them”.

Shun: How about trying it out next time, Hajime? Rather than responses, I think you would hear squeals instead though.

Hajime: What’s that? I think you can do it more naturally than me.

Shun: Is that so? Alright, let’s challenge ourselves next time. 

Shun: Next up are our caretakers, Kai and Haru’s turns.

Hajime: One of the topics was that this time, the two songs from their repertoire have gaps between each other. I thought Haru would attack with an up-tempo this time, but his second song is completely the opposite of that.

Shun: Kai, too. He has a combination between beast-mode and a ballad with profound subtleties. It was definitely a stage of differences in singing.

Hajime: Right? After those, it was Arata’s and You’s turns. Arata is the type who usually does things at his own pace, but if he has to decide on something he thinks a lot before taking a decision, so his shift is interesting. He said he wanted to play the guitar himself, and, personally, I’m looking forward to that.

Shun: -whispers- Now that’s going to raise up Arata’s hurdle. Good luck~. 

Shun: Speaking of things to look forward to, I checked the evolution of You’s dance. Since he practiced a lot, he’s getting better and better.

Hajime: Indeed. He gives off a lot of enthusiasm when he dances, so that’s to be expected.

Shun: But if we keep talking about such things, he’s going to get angry at us later backstage. He wants to shows everyone only his cool side after all.

Hajime: It sounds like him.

Shun: Yoru and Aoi. You could say they made all the people in this room feel at peace? But they also made the audience go pit-a-pat.

Hajime: They’re calming in various ways. I feel like sooner or later I will want to see an up-tempo dance from the two of them. When you get down to it, they seem to dance pretty.

Shun: Yes, this will sure raise Aoi’s and Yoru’s hurdles.

Hajime: …… I don’t mean that.

Shun: Of course they would worry when the King has expectations on them. Ah, you two, I also look forward to that!

Hajime: I could feel animousity coming from the backstage monitor though.

Shun: Hahaha. As a leader, I can give them tasks, you know?

Hajime: The last ones are Koi and Iku. Personally, I think the two of them are the most fit to be idols.

Shun: Oh, is that so?

Hajime: Yeah. They have the power to cheer people up. I usually think I want to be like that, but it’s difficult to do it consciously. The two of them are the types who can do that naturally.

Shun: You’re right. Their songs too are cheerful, full of spirit, and give off a lively feeling. When they requested to be put at the end, it felt like they were saying ‘Leave it to us!’.

Hajime: That’s right.

Hajime: Then, the last ones are you and I.

Shun: Ah, that’s nice!

Hajime: Hm?

Shun: I mean the way ‘you and I’ sounds is nice.

Hajime: Haha, yes yes. All 12 members and everyone in the audience ran through this until the end.

Shun: We really did it. It was very fun.

Hajime: It was, right?

Shun: Since we’re the last performers, we’re close to finishing all the things scheduled for this live, but just because the performances are over, it doesn’t mean everything is over.

Hajime: Yeah. Shun

Shun: -chuckle- Hajime

Hajime: All of you! It’s still too early to get tired!

Shun: Everyone, let’s run through this until the very end together! The last unit song! Let’s do it with all the power!

Hajime: Let me hear your voices!

Shun: I want to hear your voice!

Hajime: It’s our turn! Let’s fire things up, Six Gravity!

Shun: Everyone from Procellarum! Now, come!

Hajime & Shun: Let’s start!

[kiridarling]

𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐘 𝐈𝐍 𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐒

izuku midoriya | ft. ceo!au + praise + exhibitionism + breaking and entering + body worship + f!reader + more! minors dni.

— 3.8k words

“When I saw you this evening, in that ballgown, I knew I just had to have you. But I can't be a gentleman for much longer, as much as I'd like to."

You’ve always hated Chopin.

“L’œuf mimosa, Madame?”

After turning down the poor waiter whose arms quiver under the weight of the plates, you turn back to your red wine and people-watching. The ballroom is full of golds and reds, the amber lighting illuminating the intricately decorated walls. And you sit in the middle of it all—you and your 147 billion net-worth, with a ball gown that’s caught at least half the aristocratic asshole’s attention, not that they were very loyal to their wives in the first place.

You're not here for their attention, though. You’re strictly here for business—and frankly, you want to do nothing more than sock these fat business moguls in their chubby faces until their teeth fall out and demand they pay their taxes. But, seeing as you’re the only woman here who isn’t a gold-digging wife, you bite your tongue.

You’ve always dreaded black tie events, but as you’ve said, duty calls.

A whine filters through the speakers, followed by two amplified taps and a clear of a throat. The murmur down as the auction's owner takes the center of the stage, stilling in front of the next piece of art—hidden behind a black veil—before adjusting the tie to his business suit.

“I’m glad that you all could be with us tonight. I have both a great privilege and honor to host this event,” he announces, bulbous head already growing damp under the heat of the stage lights. “Now that we're almost at the end, I'm sure you won't be disappointed. Saving the best for last, as one does."

He includes a casual wave to his comment and the audience erupts in a flurry of chuckles, though not for long. As he walks over to the piece, hand raised and ready to reveal, silence seizes the room by the neck.

"Well. Shall we?”

The audience balances on the edges of their seats, with millions of wide eyes and thrumming chests in anticipation. A smooth flick of a hand and the black sheet is removed, and there sits the only piece you’ve had your eyes on all night. She’s even more beautiful up close.

“El Bacio, The Kiss. Francesco Hayez, 1859.”

The grip around your glass tightens. The brilliant blue from the woman’s dress in the oil painting may as well burn your eyes, and the surrounding murmurs peak with your interest. You know it's yours without question, though—you can outbid almost anyone in this room. Anyone that matters, anyway.

“This is the original version, originally commissioned by Count Alfonso Maria Visconti of Saliceto. It was donated to the Pinacoteca di Brera in 1886 and went missing in 1937. Starting at ten million.”

You try not to scowl. The fucker jacked up the price by two million.

“Twelve million,” the man says as he recognizes whoever lifted a hand. You sit tight, your hands throbbing in your lap for the right moment as you survey the room for anyone who could possibly pose a threat. You find none.

The bidding continues. The price elevates from twelve million to fifteen to thirty to fifty. You raise a hand, finally, fingers splayed wide and confident to signify a five.

“Fifty-five million.”

The room falls silent; you try not to smile. You know for a fact no one wants this painting more than you do, and you’re determined to have it.

“No one else?”

His eyes scan the room but no one makes a motion. It’s yours.

Until there’s movement from your peripheral.

“Sixty million!”

You eye whoever had the audacity to raise their hand, only to be met with a rather peculiar sight—a man, roughly your age, with slicked-back green hair and a hand twice the size of yours, lifted lazily in the air.

With a huff, you find yourself thrusting another five into the air.

“Sixty-five millio—Seventy million!”

You know that green-haired (probably) trust fund baby has got to be doing this for fun because the poorly hidden smirk hidden behind the hand he rests his chin on is more than obvious.

You dislike him already, immediately categorizing him with the rest—another sleazeball.

“Seventy-five million!”

“Eighty million!”

“One hundred million!”

In your defense, you were getting frustrated.

Either way, the green-haired stranger backs off with a nonchalant shrug, and it makes you burn this discontent. The business mogul-turned-auctioneer steps off the stage for another twenty-minute intermission and folks turn to one another for conversation. You sigh, simply satisfied that you’ve gotten what you came for.

You find yourself faintly puzzled by the boy with the green hair, and you're sure it's solely due to his age. Frankly, you've been the only one under thirty in the Top 100 Richest People since you achieved such a feat, and the fact that you haven't heard of him is...puzzling. But it doesn't matter. Clearly, he’s just another fellow looking to put another pretty thing in his foyer—you doubt he knows a thing about art, and definitely not an appreciation for it. You find solace in the fact that it's the new addition to your precious art collection instead, and will be owned and taken care of by someone who actually enjoys it.

“Good evening.”

You jump. Wrapped up in all of your inner turmoil (complemented by inner bragging, naturally) you fail to notice the greenette cross the expanse of the ballroom and make himself comfortable in the open seat next to you, despite your lack of approval.

“Hello,” you say, unsure of why he's here. He offers a hand to shake, Rolex glinting under the golden lighting.

“Izuku Midoriya,” he introduces, and you suppose shaking his hand won’t hurt.

“Your name?” He snorts, raising a cocky eyebrow. You scowl.

“Does it matter?”

“Not particularly.” Izuku rests his forearms on the table as his evergreen eyes rake your figure up and down. “But if you prefer to remain nameless, be my guest.”

“[Y/N].”

“Hmm?”

“My name,” you clarify. “It’s [Y/N].”

You’re not exactly sure what possessed you to tell him your name so easily. Maybe the fact that most already know who you are, and the fact that this man—this stranger—doesn’t know who you are, irks you a bit.

Okay. It irks you a lot.

“Well, Miss [Y/N],” Izuku tilts his head sideways. “I think that’s a very pretty name.”

Your body betrays you with a light gasp. Stupid thing.

“Well. I’m bored,” Izuku announces childishly, relaxing against the chair. “Lets go somewhere.”

You roll your eyes at his asserted dominance—in no way does he expect you to go with him, does he? You raise an eyebrow.

“No.”

Izuku clicks his tongue as if it were a buzzer, and more importantly, as if you were wrong. “Why?”

That has you scoffing. “I don’t know you.”

Izuku’s eyes flash with a challenge and it’s gone just as quickly. He leans forwards, crowding your personal space yet again.

“I told you my name, no?”

“You did,” you say, crossing your arms over your chest and straightening your back. You feel too small. “But I know nothing about you.“

“Well,” Izuku places an inquisitive finger on his lips, and it’s almost mocking, the way he takes a moment to think about it. “My name is Izuku Midoriya. I like...katsudon and hero movies. I’m here because I have too much time and money on my hands, and I’m, most importantly, bored.”

Your eyes narrow. “What do you do for a living?”

Izuku’s lip curls, and it’s downright sinister, “I'll tell you if you come with me."

You roll your eyes, and he takes both your hands in his. You don’t pull away, but you don’t reciprocate it either.

“Where?”

Izuku shrugs, “Wherever the wind takes us.”

Your stomach growls loudly, interrupting your fairly intimate conversation and dying your cheeks pink. Izuku raises an eyebrow.

“I heard they’re feeding us escargo for dinner.”

“Ugh,” you sigh, shoulder sagging. “Looks like I’m not eating, then.”

But there’s a glint in his eyes, and you’d be lying if you said there wasn’t one in your own. There's an ebb in the discourse, a beat, before Izuku's nodding towards the exit.

“Fast food?”

Wendy’s hits different during a Parisian midnight.

“—and so I had to be like: No Kacchan, you can’t hotwire his car to blow just because your food was, and I quote, lukewarm.”

You snicker behind a fist, digging your fancy heels into the grimy cement sidewalk, Wendy’s frostee in hand. Izuku hasn’t let go of your hand since you two left the fast-food joint, and for some reason, you haven’t pulled away.

"Violence seems to be a reoccurring theme with your friend," you say, laughing when Izuku nods in agreement, eyes stuck on the full moon hanging high in the air.

"You remind me of him, actually."

You raise an eyebrow, unable to see the correlation at all, "Because I'm a loud and angry and I like to blow things up."

"Or, because you're strong—independent. The type of woman to make men turn tail and run, you know?" Izuku turns to you with a lopsided grin.

You hum, averting your eyes to the moon. It's a stupid question, one that's all too loaded yet empty at the same time, and you hate that you hesitate to ask it.

"Why haven't you ran, then?"

"Easy." Izuku lets a smooth shrug roll off his shoulders, "I like strong women."

He continues to pull you to an undisclosed destination, the two of you stumbling through the heart of Paris with his suit jacket around your goosebump-ridden shoulders. People stare, but for the first time in forever, you find that you don't care much.

Finally, you two reach Izuku's "big reveal." You gaze at the magnificently lit french building in confusion, the golden under lights contrasting both of your beings against the navy blue sky.

"The Louvre?"

"Mhm," Izuku says, and he looks more than giddy. "Have you been?"

"Once," your voice is weary and you're sure he senses it, his grip tightening around your own. "For a fundraiser...but it's midnight Izuku, ho—"

But he's already tugging you to the right, dipping between columns and arches until you reach the back of the building. Izuku turns to you and whispers:

"Watch this."

It's hard to tell what he did exactly, especially with no light—it's just a bunch of jingles and ticks. Though, the moment you can't escape the sense that this is beyond sketchy, a lock clicks, and a door whines open.

"Hurry. And take your heels off," Izuku whispers, tilting his head towards the entrance. You hear the crunch of a leaf and see the beginning of a white flashlight curl around the building and fuck, this place has to be crawling with security guards, doesn't it?

"Don't tell me what to do," you grumble...as you take off your shoes. (Because you were going to do it anyway.) You enter and he closes the door behind the two of you, submerging you both in complete darkness.

"Security's only on the outside," Izuku grins. "They don't expect us to get inside, so as long as we're quiet, it should be fine."

"Until we have to get back out again," you say, huffing. Your heart pounds from the adrenaline because frankly, you've never been one for adventures, and breaking into a historical french museum is miles out of your comfort zone. "Seriously, did you think this through at all? What happens when we get caught?"

Izuku sighs, turning to you with a pout before grabbing your free hand again. "Women worry too much. C'mon—I wanna explore."

"You—let go, you misogynistic assho—"

You're cut off by a finger to your lips. Izuku bends down so he’s looking at you straight on, eyes dark as he sternly whispers, "Do you want us to get caught?"

It's not the prospect of getting caught that makes you falter, though—it's the way his stare pins you in place, voice swollen with that air of dominance you claim to hate. You have to tighten your grip on your heels to ensure they don't hit the ground.

"Now," Izuku‘s strangely childish manner returns, tugging your hand once your panicked whisper-yelling ceases, "Shall we?"

You roll your eyes, but your bare feet patter against the cold Louvre tile anyway. And you've got to say, the museum is much nicer when it isn't crawling with people.

"Mona Lisa's forehead is bigger than I thought," Izuku observes with a finger on his lip. He's on the wrong side of the railing, his nose close to kissing the glass protecting the piece. You snort, dropping your head to pinch the bridge. He turns to give you a weird look.

"What?"

"Nothing, just," you shake your head, the cool wood of the railing digging into your forearms. "Did you actually want that painting?"

Izuku frowns. "Which one?"

"El Bacio."

"Mm," the greenette hums as he thinks, blinking to the corner of the room."I suppose. You seemed like you wanted it more, though."

You roll your eyes, "So you cap at eighty million?"

Izuku shrugs, hopping the railing. Seems like he's finally done insulting poor Lisa, "I capped when you started to sweat."

You huff, but stomping instead of walking isn't so intimidating when you're barefoot. "I wasn't sweating."

You see a hidden smirk on Izuku's face once you catch up to him, and it's frustrating and insulting, to say the least. Both of you proceed down a hall of statues. "You're much easier to read than you think, Miss [Y/N]."

"And you're not as perceptive as you think, Mister Midoriya."

Izuku chuckles at that, shaking his head. "Well played, Miss [Y/N]. Well played."

You're not sure why your chest swells, but it does, and it takes both you and your limited lung capacity off guard. But you don't have much time to sort it out—Izuku's grabbing your hand again, and redirecting your attention to the last statue in the hall. You recognize it and frown.

“Cupid and Psyche?”

The silver moonlight pours in through the window, spilling down Cupid’s tipped wings and the softest points of the Psyche’s curves. Izuku hums in confirmation, hands sliding to encompass your hips as his chin hooks on your shoulder.

"Well done, Miss [Y/N]."

His voice deepens—it's coarse and heady, and gets your blood rushing in a way breaking and entering never could have.

"Amore e Psiche, Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss. Antonio Canova, 1793."

You fail to understand why this statue stood out to him compared to all the others, but the circles Izuku’s thumb presses into your hips signifies that you’ll find out soon.

"Cupid represents desire, and Psyche, the human soul," Izuku says, running his hands up your sides. "Together, they make the perfect union."

Dipping his nose into your neck, Izuku inhales, and the hands around your waist tighten, if the smallest bit. "Psyche was the prettiest woman in the world; so pretty she rivaled Venus' beauty with her own. It didn't matter if it broke rules—Cupid knew he had to have her."

The gentle nudge of a neck evolves into a set of butterfly kisses, tracing the column of your neck until his mouth reaches your ear. A hand slides to gently cup your breast, and the other to your thigh.

"Miss [Y/N], when I saw you this evening, in that ballgown, I knew I just had to have you. But I can't be a gentleman for much longer, as much as I'd like to." Izuku groans into your neck, hips gently grinding forwards. "So, it's up to you what we do next—I could drop you off at your home to probably never see you again, or...”

Izuku shifts, and you can feel his hardening cock against your back. “I can bend you over right here. Your choice.”

You hesitate, determined to think this through—but Izuku's wandering hands and rutting hips prove to be too much of a distraction.

"Fine," is all you say, before whirling around, grabbing the greenette by his dress shirt, and slamming your lips onto his.

Izuku kisses back with a grin—like he knew you were going to say yes—and places his hands around your waist yet again, backing you up against the marble statue.

"Sit on the platform," he breathes into your mouth. You frown.

"Like, the platform to the statue? Caus—"

"Yes on the statue, now sit," Izuku demands, but he doesn't give you much room to protest, forcing you onto the marble platform. Hiking your dress to your waist, Izuku's calloused palms slide up your inner thighs, spreading them apart to make room for himself in between. He pauses.

"No panties?"

You flush red—from the exposure or the comment, you aren't sure—but you huff in defiance nevertheless, determined to stand your ground and keep some of your dignity. (Though you're positive Izuku can feel you shaking already.)

"I'm wearing a dress," you defend weakly.

Izuku hums behind a bitten lip, lying a heavy thumb on your clit. It's enough pressure to make your thighs tense but not much else, until it flicks downwards.

"I wanna taste you," Izuku growls with dilated pupils once he finally tears his gaze from your exposed body. "Can I?"

Heat surges through your veins, and you let him pry your thighs apart as you respond with an unsteady, "Yeah—yeah, that's fine."

Izuku's chest rumbles with a growl as he closes in on your pussy, hands gripping underneath your thighs. You whimper when he trails butterfly kisses down your inner legs, the grip you have around the skirt of your dress tightening.

"So pretty," Izuku groans, chuckling when you shiver as he flattens his tongue against your slit, "My Goddess."

With that he dives in, almost sending you toppling with the force. The moonlight dyes his green locks a navy blue, and you can't resist seizing them into a fist when he pushes a finger in.

"Feel good, Gorgeous?" Izuku says with a knowing smirk on his sinfully glossed lips. Another digit enters and it has your toes curling as you nod. “Shit, you’re tight.”

Izuku spits on your pussy and it’s downright dirty, before looks at you under forest green eyelashes, the other hand finally letting go of your thigh in favor for pulling at the top of your dress.

“Izuku, wha—“

“I wanna see your tits,” he huffs. You’d laugh at his enthusiasm if you weren’t so aroused, and you find your hands joining in the flurry. The moment they’re free, Izuku’s mouth latches onto your breast in an instant.

“F-Fuck, ‘Zuku—“

“You sound so good when you moan my name, sweetheart,” Izuku groans, and you jolt as he tweaks a bud.

“Say it again.”

He pinches your nipple and clit at the same time, and it has your legs kicking as you squeal his name again.

The Izuku growls and it's nothing but feral, and another yelp of his name has him pulling you to your feet to the point where your noses almost touch. Aggravated from being so close before the greenette ripped his fingers away has you scowling.

"Wha—"

"Can I fuck you?" His breath ghosts your lips. You hide your shock by a roll of your eyes.

"Do you always ask stupid questions?"

Izuku hums in contemplation before grabbing you harshly by the jaw, to the point where your cheeks squish into your eyes and your lips pucker. "Say it, Bunny."

"I just sa—"

"Say 'I want you to fuck me, Izuku,'" he says with a cruel snarl. "’Hard.’"

Your eyes dart from his heavy gaze to the statue, and you can't help but feel more fragile than glass. "I litera—"

"Say it, brat."

"I—" you try but nothing comes out, and you blame that darkened stare of his, "I w-want you to fuck me. Izuku."

Izuku inhales sharply, the fingers cradling your face tightening before he speaks again.

"Good girl."

He spins you so your hands lay on the statue's base, yanking your hips back and flipping your dress so your bare ass is exposed to the cool air.

Izuku's palms caress your behind, kneading both globes before he pulls you against his bare cock. (When he took off his pants is beyond you.) He slaps his cock against your clit until you huff in frustration, turning around to shoot him an angry glare.

"Today, Izuku."

The greenette blinks out of his absorbed gaze on your behind in favor of glowering you down. You waver under his glare despite your best efforts.

His cock kisses your entrance and then all of it is in you at once, and his size is enough to make your inner thighs ache from the stretch. You bite your lip in an attempt to muffle a moan, but that crashes and burns fairly quickly.

"O-Oh shi—"

"You said today, didn't you?" Izuku rasps, before pulling out and stuffing you full at a quick and steady pace. Your hands scramble for proper purchase against the statue—without breaking it, for gods sake—but the harder he fucks you into it, the harder it is to stay upright. "Quiet, baby. We're not supposed to be here, remember?"

You nod frantically, teeth digging into your bottom lip. The thought of getting caught, you, of all people, while being railed against a marble statue—

Izuku moans in your ear, a hand moving between your thighs to rub at your clit. "Oh, you tightened when I said that—you like the idea of getting caught, Bunny?"

You respond with a choked moan, thighs quivering with an impending orgasm. Izuku groans as you tighten around him again, but they quickly turn into shushes.

"Bu—"

"I-I know," your voice cracks and it's absolutely pathetic. "But I can't—"

Izuku's hand wraps around your mouth to the point where his fingertips just barely brush your ears. You whine, eyes fluttering as the new grip adjusts the angle ever so slightly, and pushes him so much deeper.

"You're gonna kill me," Izuku says, wheezing out a laugh. "I—fuck Bunny, I'm close."

You whimper behind his hand and nod as if to say me too, and you're sure Izuku understands from the way he groans before he speeds up in all aspects. "Good. G-Good—cum for me baby, I know you can—"

Your toes curl into the marble floor as the coil in your gut snaps, knocking the wind out of you and sending you thrashing in Izuku's arms. You hear the greenette curse and shudder behind you, stuttering hips slowing to an eventual stop. Both of you stand there for a moment, comfortable interrupting the silence with nothing but your heaving breaths.

"You okay?"

You chuckle. It's dry and scratchy, and your lip throbs from biting it so hard, but it isn’t...aggravating, per-se. "You sound worse than me."

Izuku laughs at that, though it waters down as he pulls out with a hiss. "I don't think worse is the correct adjective here, Miss [Y/N].”

You snort. Back to “Miss [Y/N]” it is, then.

Your ears catch the distinct wail of ever-increasing sirens, but you don't think much of it until the side of Izuku's face starts flashing blue and red. Both you and the greenette falter, sharing a look.

"Police! Hands in the air!"

i wrote this while watching a hysterectomy in physio aah (also yes, the french police speak in english leave me alone skjdhfgk) — sun

[jenniferstolzer]

If you were in charge of being a costume design for Disney’s beauty and the beast revival on broadway how would you bring life to the characters (especially the enchanted objects) what ideas could you used?

What an interesting thought experiment! I first saw Beauty and the Beast as a child at the Muny in St. Louis and even back then I really adored the costuming of the enchanted objects. They were my favorite characters in the movie and Lumiere’s look especially really spoke to my own costuming/design aesthetic.  

In general I adore the philosophy going on here. These people are human in an in-between stage of becoming objects with the implication that it’s happening gradually (almost naturally) over the course of many years and taken over each person almost like a parasite. For example, each character still looks like they’re wearing the uniform of their station, but the curse has latched onto those garments and claimed them as their own. More than that, it’s eaten through to the flesh and stolen from each character at least one function of their physical bodies -- Lumiere has lost use of his hands, Mrs. Potts has lost one arm. Cogsworth can no longer bend at the waist, etc. With the exception of poor Chip who is now just a head (holy god) they are still able to live their lives in the palace largely as they had been but with the constant daily reminder of what the Curse is doing to them.  Let’s take Lumiere for example (and this is where I’ll delve into what I would do and how my personal aesthetic is tickled by these designs) 

I have a deep attraction to the inherent horror of the human body being consumed and transformed by something foreign (cough @threadcaster cough cough) So I would take on the Beauty and the Beast costuming in a more horror direction. First thing, I’d give the curse itself a bit of a motive. The Lumiere example:

Look at this man. Like how perfect is this look? He’s the Matre’d, he’s the evening’s entertainment, he’s the first face a guest would see at a palace gala and you can tell. He’s becoming a candelabra for that reason as well, he’s the host who focuses attention and draws people in. I love the gold accents on hsi coat and shoes have started to encroach on him... take more than what they’re owed, invade what makes him “him.” The hands and head candles are the obvious part but his buttons are claiming real-estate, the embroidered details on his coat are gaining ground in the war to subdue him. He probably didn’t even notice at first that the gold thread of his cuffs were bleeding, that his rings and charms had fused to his skin, that his wig was getting waxy... the curse is impeding him and changing him the same way age steals your functions a little bit at a time.

We come back from intermission and it’s progressed even further. The filigree ahs climbed all the way up his coat and bridged the gap from his shoes to his breeches. The cuffes have dripped and pooled onto his shoulder to show how much he’s kept his arms in the “candelabra” position, likely without even realizing it. It can now influence how he moves, how he behaves, how he works. They’re becoming one entity... trading bite for bite the flesh of the man for the metal of the object. Like that’s great visual storytelling! And this isn’t even the most dramatic second act transformation of this character. In the version I saw as a child, he was practically a Starlight Express character in act 2. If I remember correctly I think he even had his legs locked together. What a Cronenbergian horror show we’re witnessing here? 

And if it were up to me... I’d take it one further. The act 1 look is spot on, I’d change very little, but the act 2 look I’d take in a very dark direction. See diagram below

Obviously the actor would still have a face, bear with me. 

So Act 1 Lumiere is largely unchangd. I’d add a high collar of gold to give the illustion of restriction while staying flexible enough to let the actor “Be Our Guest” without discomfort. The gold encroachments would be a mix of fabric, paint, and flexible appliance for 3D elements. The spot at his sash especially would have a hard portion with some projection so that the audience could see that it was supposed to be metal. I’d continue the gold like veins down his arms and up his pants, extending from actual buttons, buckles, or cuff designs to give the infection a point of origin. When we hit Act 2 we’ve hit “The Thing” territory with this. The metal elements are now choking his joints and restricting him (while being made of a thick fabric or light rubber or something that allows for a wide range of movement that the actor’s body language would make look more restrictive. I don’t want to give the actor a claustrophobic panic attack in this thing) I’d remove hints of his ankles and skin, painting his face to look like his flesh has become wax and cover his eyebrows or paint them gold if that doesn’t read well from the balcony. Bits of the blue (or whatever color his Act 1 costume is) will peek through at slashes where the gold is thinnest, but the gold would overall take on a very organic almost viney look to imply growth as the man is being surounded and consumed by the curse.

The other objects would get similar treatment with Cogsworth becoming wooden, Mrs. Potts becoming porcelain with cracks at her shoulders and elbows, the imagination flourishes. But basically I hope that answers the question. It was a fun thought experiment and got really long >< It stirred up my creative juices so thanks very much for asking!

PS if you’re curious about Threadcaster (my fantasy novel about curses that slowly turn innocent children into earth, wind, water, or fire and the girl with magic string who takes a journey to stop this) it’s still on Covid sale over on amazon. 

[silver-wield]

Just had a quick thought since the devs are saying yet again that the game is staying the same, but some people counter with "the final battle" as proof it's all new. That and they say Zack lives, but actually, we've only seen him live up to the point he dies and not beyond it. The intermission scene has no timeline to it to give it context, so there's no proof it's after the last stand.

Anyway, because of people going on about the last battle I had a think.

Chapter 17 the group fights Jenova dreamweaver, who's a new part of Jenova for Remake. This part makes people hallucinate, as we saw in the battle when she changed the field.

She changed the field. Important thing to remember.

Sephiroth who appears at the end of the highway is only something that looks like Sephiroth and is visible to everyone. It's not a black cloak, but everyone can see it. Jenova manipulates people's perceptions, which is how Sephiroth appeared in the drum and not the black cloak it actually was. Now, we know Jenova is escaping the Shinra building, so it's possible that Sephiroth is Jenova with some extra bells and whistles from absorbing a bunch of whispers that we see escape later when Cloud attacks Sephiroth at the end of the battle.

The place where everyone goes is outside of the planet. It's a singularity. It could very well be a joint hallucination caused by Jenova. We see Cloud deep dive into his subconscious to find Sephiroth at the end, since that's what happened at the end of OG. Cloud goes deep into his subconscious where Sephiroth is hiding and defeats him for good.

So, this is a place that doesn't really exist, meaning everything that happens here doesn't really happen. Jenova could have set up a group delusion using the whispers that reveal what's going to happen when they escape from the giant arbiter.

And we can see here that the whispers can't actually be defeated. They just disappear when they're done.

So that big epic battle could be nothing more than a giant fake out by Jenova designed to make everyone think they can change fate, so they go on the journey and do all the OG stuff with the black materia.

[glorious-goob]

Can I Sit Next to You Girl? [Rin Matsuoka x F! Reader]

I have a deep, ungodly love for AC/DC and who better to represent classic, Australian rock than Rin?? (Also doesn't take place at the Odeon but instead at a grunge lil’ dive bar : ) )

Warnings: Mentions of alcohol and implied sex 

Parings: Rin x F! Reader

Length: 610 [Another kind of short one but like I honestly love how this came out wow]

Song: Can I Sit Next to You Girl by AC/DC

I met this girl for the first time on Saturday night, 

Standing in the queue at the Odeon alright

Rin felt your presence before he even saw you, his eyes lingering around the lobby of the smoky bar. He caught your eyes and let a wicked, toothy grin split across his face. He seemed to vanish for a moment until he was at your side, fingers lightly running over your back, “And what is a lovely lady such as yourself doing all alone in a place like this?” He looked in your eyes with a piercing gaze and smirked slightly. 

“Oh I’m waiting on a date, he should have been here by now.” You said softly, a gentle smile grazing your blushed cheeks. “I’m y/n, what about you?” You took a seat at the bar, ordering a cosmopolitain for yourself. 

Rin grinned and leaned on the bar next you you, “I’m Rin... Rin Matsuoka.” He ordered a scotch for himself and stood, looking down at you, “Can I sit next to you girl? Can I? Sit next to you?” He gently rolled his tongue over his bottom lip and once he was given the go ahead, took a seat on the stool beside you. “So, why would a little thing like you want to go on a date in this joint? The live isn't even that good.” He pointed to the band taking their intermission up on the stage. “Come on, I’m sure there’s a-”

“Y/n! There you are, who.. who is this man?” The man you were supposed to be on a date with approached the bar, surprise and shock all over his face. He tried to get to you to come with him and leave the bar but Rin instantly turned around in his seat, a cocky look on his face, his glass of scotch held in his hand. 

“Can’t you see the lady is with a real man right now? Once who doesn't wear Khaki’s on a date to a dive bar? Get lost buddy.” He looked over at the grin on your face as the man left and he leaned over to you, “Don't look so enthralled by me, its too cute on you.” He downed the rest of his drink and ordered another, taking a sip.

After laughing and talking for what seemed like hours, Rin looked at his phone and then to you, “Well... y/n. Its a little late... come on, let me take you home.” His hands found your waist and his lips gently rested against your shoulder, “Let me.. kiss your ear..” He pressed a soft kiss to your neck and stood, taking your hand as you rushed from the bar and out to his car. He gently rested your back against the car and he looked down at you, “This is only if you want it, y’know. You can tell me no and I’ll tell you to give me your number and to get home safe... maybe I’d drop you off myself to make sure.” 

You softly kissed him and held onto the front of his shirt, pulling him closer, “I’m sure about this, Rin. I’m sure about you.” You grinned and ran your fingers through his long burgundy hair. “Don't keep me waiting forever.”

He smirked at you and kissed your cheek, “You took the words right out of my mouth.” He opened the car door for you and helped you in. The drive back to his apartment was full of giggles, touches, and Rin’s filthy promises to make you his in every way he could think of. 

“Don't even worry about it, y/n, you’re going to be pampered tonight.”

A/N: Please don't mind my slight Meat Loaf reference in there but You Took The Words Right Out Of My Mouth is such a good song, give it a listen. (Maybe I’ll have to write something based off it! <3

[passoverprograms1]

Florida Lodging for Passover Programs

The Passover Programs are celebrated at Easter that joins us all together in observance of the story of the Passover and its story of the Jewish people's migration to Egypt and the Land of Israel. Thousands of families from across the globe gather at the start of the ninth month to remember the generations that experienced the migrations and the history of the Passover. A large gathering takes place at Mombasa for Passover. The organizers of the Passover Programs hope that this year the celebrations will be bigger and more effective to draw more visitors to the region. With the world becoming a smaller place it is essential to increase awareness and spread Passover Awareness. The Passover programs aim to do just that by creating awareness about the historical Passover through programs and activities.

The Passover Programs have been organizing amazing Passover vacations every year for many years now. Each year the celebration gets bigger and more vibrant in its scope. This year will be no different as we will see exciting Passover themed events worldwide to get our feet wet on this amazing Passover. The first event will see thousands of families gather to celebrate the beginning of the Passover with activities, fun, family games and the beautiful smell of Seder meals. The organizers of the Passover programs hope that next year's Passover celebrations will attract even more guests and participants. They will also be working towards creating even more vibrant and creative Passover programs and organizing exciting activities to ensure that next year's Passover is even bigger and more memorable.

The Passover programs have many ways of ensuring that the participants have a great time. The organizers are working on ensuring that the participants enjoy their holidays and the atmosphere of the celebrations will be quite different from previous years. For example, previous Passover celebrations were quite drab in their hymns and liturgical observances. The new concepts for Passover programs and activities include using more vibrant and creative ways of celebrating. The kashrut observance will not be ignored either.

The Passover celebrations in Florida will be taking place in the synagogue of Migdala Habad in Saint Petersburg. The shiva festival which usually takes place during the first two days of the Passover holiday commemorates the death of Jesus. The entire city and the neighboring cities of St. Petersburg and Winter Springs are awash with multitudes of people, mostly Jews, as they gather to observe the special religious ceremony. Those that are fasting to mourn the death of their loved ones will not be able to fast until after the first morning of Passover. The special seder meal which follows has some of the most delicious Passover food you can imagine.

The Passover programs in Florida also follow a religious program format with specific prayers and musical selections being given by a professional Passover florist. At some Passover dinner theaters around the state will offer Passover movies and even offer a Passover musical intermission where the songs are chosen by a live band from the audience. Migdalia Habad is especially popular as a place for Passover meals. Those that are not strictly orthodox will find there are many Passover restaurants and food joints serving up their traditional Passover fares like egg yolks, cakes, sausages and much more.

The second week of Passover programs in Florida will feature the story of Joseph, who was sold into slavery to a Midianite merchant. When the boy was returned to his home he became a strong leader in the people and saved many lives. His success led to the establishment of the kingdom of Israel. This is the story that is most often depicted on Passover mats and on all other related products. In the latter years, the city of Jerusalem was destroyed in a great plague and many Jews would emigrate to the United States to avoid suffering the same fate.

In preparation for the Passover holiday, shoppers should look for a traditional shiva gown or be sure to use the same clothes as those attending the shiva party as it is more acceptable. For those living in or around Florida looking for a place to shop for Passover supplies, there are several good places to go. Some companies specialize in Passover gifts, Passover decorations and accessories as well as Passover clothing and accessories. There are also several Jewish communities that conduct their own special Passover programs and events in Florida.

There are many Passover gifts shops in Florida offering Passover jewelry, handmade Passover items, carpets, etc. The ideal place to shop for Passover gifts would be on the internet where you can find much more variety and prices than you would at any local retail outlet. If you are looking for a great way to get in touch with other Jewish families in or around Florida who celebrate Passover you could join up with some of the many online Passover chat groups and forums available. By visiting these forums you will be able to meet a diverse group of Passover enthusiasts who would love to share all their Passover activities.

[dragons-bones]

FFXIV Write Entry #26: Lunch Dates

Prompt: when pigs fly | Master Post | On AO3

Head empty for so long, forced this out while missing my absolutely favorite ramen joint in all of Boston. I would kill a man for a bowl of tonkotsu as big as my head right now.

--

“Oh my gods where is she.”

Alakhai held up the fore, middle fingers, and thumb of her right hand, holding them straight, and then snapped those three digits closed in a locking motion. Then she immediately followed it up with a derisive flick of her two fingers.

Rereha raised both of her hands and flicked back twice with a sneer.

“Ladies,” Heron said without looking up from her book.

Alakhai rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, and Rereha sighed dramatically, bracing herself on her palms and leaning back on the bench, kicking her legs.

“Sorry I’m late!”

All three women looked up to see Synnove jogging towards them from the direction of the aetheryte plaza, wearing the halter top, rough canvas work pants, and heavy boots she would throw on before one of her gathering expeditions for crystals or ore or gems. Her sledgehammer and pick were slung over her shoulder, and Tyr trotted next to her, converted saddlebags slung over his back stuffed full of material.

Alakhai shuffled over on the bench and Synnove slid in next to her, setting her tools down on the ground and then leaning over to help Tyr out of the saddlebags and shoving them with a chime of crystals under the table. Tyr hopped onto the stool, carefully settling his tails around himself so they wouldn’t be stepped on by a waitress or other patron, and boofed happily when Heron reached over to scratch his neck.

Rereha pushed herself upright, hands raised in the air. “All right, we can eat!” she sang out, doing a happy dance in her seat.

One of the waitresses, Tatsu, came over and she smiled and bowed to them. “The usual, ladies?” she said.

“Yes, please!” they said in chorus.

Tatsu turned to Tyr. “And for you?”

The carbuncle made a deep burbling noise as he thought, ears flicking back and forth, before he finally mrowed. The katsudon, please! And some miso soup on the side?

“Of course,” the waitress said with another bow. As she rose, she made her way towards the ramen stall, calling out in rapidfire Hingan.

The group of friends settled in to wait with a round of gossip. Synnove had spent the morning out in the hills of Onokoro, collecting elemental crystals for a test back at the Guild, plus searching for spinels for another experiment. “Not carbuncle summoning,” she said with a wave of her hand, “but testing for suitably for industrial use of some sort. Any of the nicer specimens, of course, we’ll cut ourselves and sell to go into the Guild coffers.”

Alakhai would be teleporting to the Doman Enclave later for a promised sparring match with Yugiri. “Need to brush up on some of the traditional shinobi bladework versus the rogues’ style,” she murmured, sipping at her tea. Heron, meanwhile, had finished a short bodyguard contract for a Hannish merchant the previous night and was indulging in some sightseeing and shopping in Kugane before heading home. And Rereha was attending a complete, full day performance of a kabuki play entitled Kanadehon Chushingura (Rereha sounded it out carefully in the measured way of forcing the Echo not to translate it) at the Mujikoza.

“Of course, since half the audience are foreigners, there’s a two-bell intermission so everyone can get lunch,” Rere chirped.

“Hence your impatience for Synnove to arrive,” Heron drawled.

“Listen, I need at least three bowls of the good stuff to get me through the rest of this show, they don’t let you snack during the performance.”

At that moment, Tatsu returned with one of her sisters in tow, both of them carrying large trays. They set them on the edge of the table as the group cheered, and then began passing out the steaming bowls of ramen.

“Large tonkotsu with extra noodles, pork belly, egg, bamboo shoots, and seaweed,” the waitress said cheerfully as she set that one in front of Rereha.

“Aw, yeeeeaaaaaah.”

“Large tonkotsu with extra noodles, pork belly, egg, steamed fish cake, and bean sprouts.”

Alakhai grinned, the limbal rings around her irises glinting.

“Large tonkotsu with extra noodles, pork belly, egg, seaweed, corn, and butter.”

“I know I’m a heathen foreigner and I thank you and grandmother for indulging me,” Synnove gushed, rubbing her hands together as her bowl was placed in front of her.

Tatsu laughed. “You are not the first foreigner to ask for unusual toppings, and Grandmother enjoys expanding her palate! And for Heron, large tonkotsu with extra noodles, pork belly, chicken, extra egg, and bamboo shoots.”

Heron sighed happily and took a deep, appreciative sniff of her bowl.

“And last but certainly not least, for Master Tyr, the katsudon, miso soup—and four soft-boiled eggs, halved.”

Tyr boofed in delight, his feet tappity-tapping happily on his stool. Oh, thank you, Tatsu!

Each of the dishes had a generous sprinkling of green onion on top—extra for both Heron and Tyr—and Tatsu and her sister passed out chopsticks, soup spoons, napkins, and jars of condiments: hot sauce, plum sauce, tonkatsu sauce, and minced garlic. The waitresses bowed. “Please enjoy!” they chorused, and went to help another customer.

Tyr had been given a wide, shallow bowl for his katsudon to make it easier for him to have a mouthful of all three of the rice, fried cutlet, and eggs at once, and he chewed with a table rattling purr. Synnove poured a serving of the tonkatsu sauce on half his katsudon, and Tyr burbled his thanks, alternating bites of non-sauce with sauce covered lunch, sips of miso, and halves of egg.

The two-leggers dug in with equal gusto as the carbuncle; Rereha added enough hot sauce to her ramen that the broth turned a violent red—“I can enjoy bowls two and three plain, I gotta blow my brains out first!”—and almost immediately started sweating with the first bite of noodle and pork belly she shoved into her mouth. Alakhai went heavy on the minced garlic, and loaded up her spoon with broth and egg and sprouts, slurping it up with a pleased hum. Heron enjoyed her ramen without anything for her initial few bites, savoring noodles and broth and toppings all, before adding a dash of the plum sauce and a bit of minced garlic. Synnove went without any of the condiments for this serving, instead letting her pat of butter melt and muddle into the broth and expertly using her chopsticks to pop her egg into her mouth, following it with a slurp of broth.

They ate in silence, focused on the good food, working at a fast, methodical pace—the joys of working their arses off for a living was needing to keep their energy levels up—until, as one, they all lifted up their bowls and slurped the remaining broth until the vessels were empty. At that point, Tatsu arrived with fresh servings and took away the used dishes. For round two, their pace was much more leisurely, and they began to chat once more.

“Do you think if we give her one of those fancy spinels, Grandma Tsuru will finally share the secret of her magical broth?” Rereha said around a mouthful of noodles.

Her friends all snorted.

“That woman is unbribable,” Alakhai said.

“And you are in the unfortunate situation of not being a blood relative,” said Synnove, drizzling more tonkatsu sauce onto Tyr’s fresh serving of katsudon.

“Also, it means we keep giving her our business and gil,” Heron said with a snicker.

Rereha huffed and turned around, shouting towards where the old woman who made the best ramen in Kugane sat chopping green onions, “Hey, Grandma Tsuru! When will you give me your tonkotsu recipe?”

“When you can go one day without a smartass comment!” Grandma Tsuru hollered back.

“Oh, godsdamnit.”

Synnove, Heron, and Alakhai all began cackling as Rereha sulkily slurped more noodles.

[thefloatingstone]

you can't just NOT tell us what caligula did

Oh ho ho ho HO!!!

*cracks knuckles*

My dear sweet innocent anon…

Here’s an incomplete list of things the real Caligula did (because the movie made some of it up… but a lot of it not…). I’m writing it as a basic list because writing it out in detail might actually kill me. It also doesn’t help that since Rome destroyed most of the evidence of Caligula’s reign we have very little documentation on Caligula apart from a few sources, and many of the finer details are argued on whether they’re true or not.

Caligula was Roman Emperor from 37AD to 41AD (You will notice that is only 4 years. During these four years he;

Possibly killed his adoptive grandfather Tibirius to become emperor (we are not sure but there was some suspicion)

Nullified Tibirius’ own grandson from Tibirius’ will on the grounds of insanity.

The first 7 months of him as emperor were actually very good so not much to report there. He was popular and made moves to make himself popular with both the people and the military After falling ill (or possibly poisoned) all of this changed

he started to kill off or exile those who were close to him or anyone he saw as a threatfor any reason

He started to kill or have people executed who said anything negative about his appearance

had his cousin and adopted son Tiberius Gemellus executed, enraging his and Caligula’s joint grandmother who then either committed suicide or was also killed by Caligula

He had his father-in-law Marcus Junius Silanus and his brother-in-law Marcus Lepidus executed as well (again. For little to no reason.)

His uncle Claudius was spared only because Caligula preferred to keep him as a laughing stock.

Is said to have had an incestuous relationship with his favourite sister Julia Drusilla. (Drusilla died at age 38 from a fever)

had his other two sisters, Livilla and Agrippina the Younger, exiled. Caligula was supposedly having an incestuous relationship with both of them as well

Started executing people without trials

Forced the Praetorian prefect, Macro, to commit suicide

Spent so much of Rome’s money on his own extravagance that Rome fell into financial crisis

began falsely accusing, fining and even killing individuals for the purpose of seizing their estates to spend on himself

Started taxing lawsuits, weddings, and prostitution

Started auctioning the lives of Gladiators during shows

Wills that left items to Tiberius were reinterpreted to leave the items instead to Caligula to further his spending on himself

in the first year of Caligula’s reign, he squandered 2.7 billion sesterces that Tiberius had amassed

grain imports were disrupted because Caligula re-purposed grain boats for a pontoon bridge, resulting in a famine

Ok I’m gonna have to elaborate on this because this is some insane shit and this was where the crazy REALLY starts getting out of control. More so than incest and executing people for no reason;

In 39, Caligula performed a spectacular stunt by ordering a temporary floating bridge to be built using ships as pontoons, stretching for over two miles from the resort of Baiae to the neighbouring port of Puteoli. Caligula, who could not swim, then proceeded to ride his favourite horse Incitatus across, wearing the breastplate of Alexander the Great. This act was in defiance of a prediction by Tiberius’s soothsayer Thrasyllus of Mendes that Caligula had “no more chance of becoming emperor than of riding a horse across the Bay of Baiae”.

(imagine being that full of spite and THAT big of a Chad)

anyway, moving on;

He also had 2 insanely large ships constructed to himself during this same time. During the famine and financial crisis.

Decided numerous senators were not trustworthy and had them executed

Forced the senators he did not execute to weight on him and run beside his chariot to humiliate them

marched his troops to the northern shoreline of Gaul as a prelude to the invasion of Britain but then ordered them to collect seashells, which he called the spoils of the conquered ocean.

Declared war on Poseidon and marched his troops to the beach where he ordered them to throw their spears and stab the water

began appearing in public dressed as various gods such as Hercules, Mercury, Venus and Apollo.(Imagine if Trump started showing up in public dressed as Jesus Christ)

began referring to himself as a god when meeting with politicians 

Had himself be referred to as “Jupiter” in several public documents

had 3 temples built where people could worship HIM

Had a different temple which was dedicated to gods be dedicated to him instead. (Imagine if Trump said the Notre Dame is now a place to worship him instead)

would present himself as a god to the public 

had the heads removed from various statues of gods located across Rome and replaced them with his own.

was represented as a sun god on Egyptian coins 

took things a step further and had those in Rome, including senators, worship him as a tangible, living god. 

ordered the erection of a statue of himself in the Jewish Temple of Jerusalem

The Temple of Jerusalem was then transformed into a temple for Caligula, and it was called the Temple of Illustrious Gaius the New Jupiter. 

Slept with other mens’ wives and bragged about it publicly

Would kill people for mere amusement

Once, at some games he was attending, he was said to have ordered his guards to throw an entire section of the audience into the arena during the intermission to be eaten by the animals because there were no prisoners to be used and he was bored

Prostituted his sisters out to other men

Would send troops on nonsensical missions apparently for his own amusement just to waste their time

Turned his palace into a brothel

Planned or at least promised to make his horse Incitatus into a consulate in the senate

DID actually appoint his horse as a priest

Built his horse its own house and a carved marble manger to eat out of

Planned to move to Egypt to be worshipped as a living god

Displayed his 4th wife Milonia Caesonianaked to his friends on several occasions

Taxed the Roman people when his daughter was born to fund her education and dowry

there’s this little extract from Suetonius which idk how to put in a bullet point

“after the birth of his daughter, complaining of his poverty, and the burdens to which he was subjected, not only as an emperor, but a father, he made a general collection for her maintenance and fortune. He likewise gave public notice, that he would receive new-year’s gifts on the calends of January following; and accordingly stood in the vestibule of his house, to clutch the presents which people of all ranks threw down before him by handfuls and lapfuls. At last, being seized with an invincible desire of feeling money, taking off his slippers, he repeatedly walked over great heaps of gold coin spread upon the spacious floor, and then laying himself down, rolled his whole body in gold over and over again.”

Caligula was assassinated in 41AD at the age of 28 by getting repeatedly stabbed.

Here are some direct quotes from him;

Would that the Roman people had but one neck!

Let them hate me, so long as they fear me

I have the right to do anything to anybody

Having punished one person for another, by mistaking his name, he said, “he deserved it just as much.”

And this which is not a quote by the real person but from the film, and despite it not being a real quote I think it’s excellent stuff

I have existed from the morning of the world and I shall exist until the last star falls from the night. Although I have taken the form of Gaius Caligula, I am all men as I am no man, and therefore I am a god.

(feel free to correct any mistakes on my facts in this post by reblogging but do me a favor and don’t @ me in my inbox about how stupid I am for saying x or y.)

consider ☕️Buying me a Ko-fi ☕️

[chronicallyfrankie]

So I’ve seen Starkid Homecoming and Black Friday live so here are a few of my fav memories

Homecoming-

I dislocated three major joints during intermission and ended up relocating my knee on the floor in front of Nick Lang

Dylan Saunders waved at my friends and I when he walked down the aisle during “welcooooooome all of you”

Nick respondes to my peace signs when we saw him after the show

I cried a lot

Black Friday-

There are a lot more of these

I was in both my knee braces and Corey Lubowich would watch me go up and down the stairs and looked like he was debating whether or not to say anything

I waved at Nick from my seat and he looked away, did a double take, and waved back

Kendall is a total sweetie

She was the first one out to stagedoor

When someone complimented her bag she sounded really proud saying it was from her acting school “Curt’s my teacher!!!”

When I asked her to sign my program she said of course!!! and was really excited

Corey Dorris was next

I wore the galaxy hat he was always posting about and he said “hey it’s my favourite hat” and I was Not Ready for human interaction so I responded with “hahahahaha yeahhhhh” and it was awkward

He’s also really tall

I forget the exact order of people from here

James Tolbert is like really nice!!!

I asked him if he wanted to keep one of my markers (I had like four) and he said “if I take it you’ll never get it back” and didn’t take it even though I kept insisting

I told him my brother’s name is James and he said “your brother’s cool. I’ve never met him but I can tell. He’s cool.”

Literally everyone borrowed my markers and Jon dig through his bag to see if he had one AFTER signing my program

I’ll get to him later

I complimented Jeff on how chaotic the show was and he laughed and said “thanks that’s what I was going for!”

He’s also left handed and yes I said that and yes it was awkward

He’s also really short. Like, I was wearing shoes that made me MAYBE 5’5” and he was like two inches taller than me

I missed Dylan so I went up to him when he was away from the massive group and almost passed out since it was basically one on one

Then when I asked him to sign my program this random dude said “of course- oh him!!” and everyone laughed

When my mom and I were leaving I got random dudes signature

Dylan was really interested in what I had to say and kept asking my questions while I was literally SWAYING almost on the go round

I keep thinking about how bad I would’ve felt if I really had passed out at his feet

Okay it’s time to talk about Jon

So I have no perception of time so I thought I had talked to him for 10 minutes but it ended up being around 40

I told Jon I dislocated my knee during Homecoming and he thought I meant Black Friday and got really concerned so I ended up telling him the whole story

I’ll explain in another post if y’all want

He was really sad as I was explaining how much Starkid helped me through all the doctors appointments and stuff and I was like it’s okay!!!!

As I was explaining the diagnoses I have he interrupted me accidentally and IMMEDIATELY apologized

So whenever I’m sad I send him a picture of my dog but he never sees it

So I showed him a picture of my dog at the stagedoor and he said if I posted it and tagged him he would like it

He did and then POSTED IT ON HIS STORY and yes I screamed a little

At one point after we had introduced ourselves I thought he forgot my name which lead to my favourite interaction ever:

Jon: (talking, then) uhhhh

Me: Frankie

Him: (literally EXTENDING HIS HAND) Jon- no I know, I forgot what I was going to say!

So that’s all I got right now I’ll probably remember more or if there’s anything you want me to be more specific about ask and I’ll see!!!

[lucindarobinsonvevo]

This week, a record made and released by close collaborators Eerie, Indiana and Heart on a Chain received a re-release with a deluxe edition to celebrate its 20th birthday 

Though the front cover of Marshall’s Theory of Believably, the joint album by bands Eerie, Indiana and Heart on a Chain names only those two bands, the project was a collaboration between all the members of the Indiana seven. The Indiana Seven were a close group of collaborators who had a close working relationship in the 90s, creating iconic tracks and albums. The cover, which depicts a lone man in a ghost costume was shot by Sara Sue, an artist/photographer who shot most of the Eerie, Indiana’s album covers, and a track labeled ‘we gave this track to Tod’ features the enigmatic artist known as Tod, who also helped on the band’s delayed record Broken Record. The album art is different from the works of both bands, with Eerie, Indiana frequently having a sort of DIY feel to their photoshoots and Heart on a Chain tending to the more abstract kind. These particular photos (remastered for the deluxe edition) depict various band members in the dessert wearing a sheet over their heads with large black eye holes. The cover is Holmes, peering from behind a large unlit bonfire at the viewer. The title is written in the handwriting of Janet Donner, who also features as the figure on the CD itself. Teller features on the back of the album, and the back page of the liner notes, waving goodbye. Inside the liner, there are images of X, with Monroe being absent, apparently due to having a broken leg at the time of the shoot following an incident at a waterpark.

The album features twelve tracks, with many of them focusing on the idea of cryptids and other mysterious entities to make up the metaphors of the song. On the idea for the Album, Donner said: We wanted to talk about love as we knew it. This broad, mysterious concept that so many people in their twenties make love out to be.” On what she thinks of love now, Donner then remarked: Love is being glad the world hasn’t ended yet. I’ll leave you to make of that what you will. On the album, both X and Teller have cited the other as an inspiration behind the tracks, which will not come as a surprise to anyone who frequently listens to Eerie, Indiana as the pairs sometimes tumultuous relationship is often at the center of the most controversial and interesting projects done by the band. But this album is, more than anything else, a happy one. 

The first single released from this album was the track ‘Sometimes I Almost Miss You’ in the one-two punch style of Eerie, Indiana the track is titled like a break-up but is a love song. Over an energetic guitar track and drum machine, Monroe sings about the heart transplant she’d had some years before and how she believes that she can still feel the donor even though he’s (according to the lyrics) long gone and sweetly resting. The track is careful to avoid any religious implications, instead suggesting that the donor (who has since been identified as Devon Wilde) instead rests inside her chest. With X on the guitar and Holmes on the drum machine and (of all things) the triangle, Teller is free to singe verses from the perspective of the heart donor, viewing the world from inside Monroe’s chest while Donner provides very beautiful backing harmonies. The overall mood of the track is one of quiet love and happiness, as well as gratefulness to the young boy who gave her the second chance. Those familiar with the work of Heart on a Chain know that the transplant features heavily in their songs and it’s no surprise to see it here. 

The second track released in the work was ‘Me and My Jackalope’ and fueled rumors about a relationship between Teller and his bandmate, Dash X. At the time, both were closeted at the request of the label to avoid scandal. “Being in the closest literally almost killed me.” Teller would reflect later, interviewing for a project he did, releasing tracks for an LGBT themed album in the 2000s.”The funny thing is, I don’t think anyone who listened to us gave a damn. We’d go on stage, and we used to stand so close our knuckles were almost touching getting up in each other’s face and people would just go crazy.” Me and My Jackalope is, as you may have guessed, a song about impossible love. A love that the singer, in this case, mostly Teller, keeps hidden under his bed, only bringing it out to play when he’s alone. It’s a slow, sad track with Teller crooning to his animal “If they saw you, then they’d send you away.” Both Holmes and Monroe are credited as writers on the track, with the usual Eerie, Indiana flavor of complicated guitar playing set aside in favor of Donner and a violin and Holmes playing an assortment of other instruments. 

The third and final promotional single was meant to be Skylines, which lyrics from are also featured on the inside booklet of the album however at the last minute it was swapped out to the Meatloaf cover in the center of the album, Midnight at the Lost and Found due to ‘label meddling’ after it was decided they needed another upbeat track after Me and my Jackalope. The track is nothing special, a seemingly typical Eerie, Indiana cover. Eerie, Indiana frequently covered Meatloaf and Jim Stienman tracks, hoping to work with one or the other someday. Sadly, this collaboration never came to be. But it’s a fun song, much like the original version from the 1983 album by Meatloaf. Somewhat of a deep cut by today’s standards, but it’s fun. Which I think was probably the mission statement of this album if Dash X is to be believed (Yes, that’s his stage name, no I do not know his real name). ‘We were a bunch of 20 something friends given a studio and a year or two to do whatever we wanted. So we did whatever we wanted, which was being weird.’ 

Skylines and it’s reprise is a group effort, with every member of the group joining in with the writing process to produce something that could have gone astray but managed to come together into something coherent. Skylines covers the re-treaded ground of many bands, it’s a song set about missing people while on tour. Set against New York’s bright, iconic skyline the track is mostly led by Donner as she wonders what her lover is doing right now. Her lover, played by Teller wonders about if his lover will stay in New York, swept up by the bright skylines, and pleading for them to simply be theirs. The track has backing vocals from all of the members involved, including Holmes who mostly shies away from singing parts. ‘It’s not that I don’t love to sing.” He explains, “I’m just not very good at it. Marshall was always the singer, I’m much happier playing the drums, or a cello or something.” 

The final track on the album, clocking in at nine minutes, is Cryptids (I Still Believe in You and Me). This track shows off the impressive guitar skills of Teller and X, this time paired with the violin playing from Donner who shows she can keep up with the boys by playing speedy, intense sections with precision. This Dash X penned track also has extensive work by Holmes on the drums and a solo from a very jazz saxophone in the third act. Ultimately, the song doesn’t quite come together, feeling disjointed and a little over-complicated. But...Maybe that’s how it’s meant to feel. Dash was never brought into Eerie, Indiana as a writer, he was brought on to foil with Marshall on stage and because he was the only person the label could find that could play the punishingly difficult riffs Teller produces. On his Instagram speaking about pride X has suggested that a lot of his music was changed during production because it was too overtly about men, while Donner and Teller both proficiently changed pronouns in there songs, or stuck to calling their love interests you. 

The album has three tracks that feel like filler, the intermission track which is not unusual on the cinematic, large scale Eerie, Indiana albums, a seemingly ‘story’ track called ‘Lost in Time’ which is a piece of Holmes poetry performed by Donner and an odd little track called ‘We Gave This One To Tod’ While the enigmatic Tod was often credited on Eerie, Indiana albums and opened for them at live shows he never quite reached the level of recognition his peers did. However, seeing the bizarre and experimental nature of his work, and his goth and punk leanings I think it’s safe to assume he was happier underground than his friends were blinded by the lights of showbiz. This piece features heavy synths and a drum machine. It doesn’t hit for me, but perhaps for a fan of Tod, it could be a holy grail. 

On this version of the album, known as the deluxe edition, we’re given three additional tracks. A demo version of Elvis and the Mothman, which is lyrically the same slowed all the way down with the shouting chorus replaced with a mouth against the mic crooner style. The released, upbeat anthem style track is a far better fit for the album. Baba Yaga in Heels is a Heart on a Chain only track, perhaps why it was discarded. It features a techno style dance beat, with the lyrics being about a night out with Baba Yaga, a Banshee, and a harpy. Ultimately, the lyrics are not that impactful but they don’t need to be. The final listed track is a cover of Meatloaf’s Bat out of Hell, which lyrically and sonically is almost identical to the original. 

Overall, what Marshall’s theory of Believability tries to do is ambitious. It’s an album between two experiential groups of friends trying to make something that they enjoy. But it’s not the best work of either group, which is a shame because it could have been something very special if they were given a little more time to work out some of the kinks and if they pruned some of the tracks that are superfluous to the story of the album. I’m happy to have a copy in my collection, but honestly, I’d rather listen to something the group produced independently anyway. 

[aww-writing-no]

Irony:

Surprising nobody that knows them, Clint and Matt meet in a dumpster. 

When Matt finds out Clint is mostly deaf, he sends him a music appreciation CD boxed set. Tony has a lot of things to say about people who still buy CDs, but Clint just sends Matt one of those giant illustrated books of renaissance art. 

It becomes something of a competition after that. Clint gets a meditation soundscape cassette tape that he’s not entirely sure where Matt managed purchase, and Matt gets a paint by numbers kit of a happy looking cow wearing a flower garland. Clint gets a white noise maker, and Matt gets an Avengers novelty night light. Matt doesn’t tell Clint how much Foggy loves the night light, and Clint doesn’t tell Matt how calm Lucky is after he starts using the white noise maker. 

They step it up when Matt buys a pair of tickets to the symphony and drags Clint along. Clint gets a Groupon for paint night, and Matt ends up sticking the paintbrush in his wine glass by accident.

So does Clint. 

Clint takes Matt to the new photography exhibition at MoMA and the two of them get burgers after and laugh hysterically over the reactions of the other patrons when they noticed the blind guy “looking” at the artwork. 

Matt takes Clint to a poetry slam. “I don’t get this,” Clint whispers to Matt halfway through. “Neither do I,” Matt responds. They end up leaving at intermission to get ice cream sandwiches from the food truck on the corner. 

A few months later, a rumor gets out that Hawkeye is dating a blind lawyer from Hell’s Kitchen. Clint frames the article in a garish purple frame and gifts it to Matt. The next time he comes over, it’s mounted on the wall in the living room. It clashes horribly with the rest of the decor. 

The next month Matt sends Clint a podcast about infidelity among the Avengers that includes a bit about Hawkeye cheating on his lawyer boyfriend with the vigilante called Daredevil. Clint saves it to his phone before sending it to Nat. Apparently she’s cheating on Steve with Bruce, Clint, and Bucky. 

The first time Clint tells Matt he loves him, he does it in a “get well” card he picks up after Matt has an altercation with a bunch of street thugs that ends particularly poorly. “You know they make cards in braille,” Matt tells him, running his hands over the flat paper. “Where’s the fun in that?” Clint asks.

The first time Matt tells Clint he loves him, he whispers it in his ear over breakfast before Clint’s put his hearing aids in for the day. “Hand over the coffee,” Clint tells him, reaching a sleepy hand towards the coffee pot. 

They’ve having dinner at their favorite pizza joint when Matt notices a spike in Clint’s heart rate. When Clint kneels on the floor, pulling a small box out of his pocket with sweaty hands, Matt’s does too. 

“Did you lose something?” Matt asks, sliding off his chair to pat the floor under the table. “I don’t see anything.” 

Clint snorts, reaching over to hold Matt’s hand in his. “No, but I think I found something.” He puts the now-open ring box in Matt’s hand and scoots closer. “Will you marry me, Matt Murdock?” 

Matt touches the ring with a shaking finger. “Of course I will, Clint Barton.” 

When Clint slips the ring on his finger, Matt holds his hand up to his face. “It’s beautiful.” 

Clint laughs, leaning over to plant a kiss on his cheek. “You’re an idiot, but I love you.” 

[incorrectly-quoted-queers]

Drunk Punch Love: INTERMISSION ARCHANGEL

Pairing: FemShep and Garrus Vakarian (Shakarian)

Rating: PG-13 (with some tossed F-bombs)

Summary: Their awkward, badass journey through saving the galaxy and accidentally falling in love

INTERMISSION ARCHANGEL: The End.

Shepard had been dead 232 days.

Garrus had been going over their new security measures when the apartment's front door pinged. It wasn't a sound he heard often, since all the crew had their own codes to the back door. But the Via siblings were new, and Butler's wife did sometimes stop by, so he figured it was just one of them.

What he didn't expect was a female turian with blue markings to have her arms crossed, looking at him like he just committed a crime. Before he could react, the glare faded and she smiled at him. Garrus' head still wasn't fully straight when she pulled him into her arms.

It only clicked together that this wasn't some damn fever dream when she started talking. "Happy birthday, baby brother!"

Oh. It was that day.

"I'd ask if I surprised you, but I already know I did." The second he shut his door behind him, closing off his vigilante world from his family, that damned brain of hers caught on and she peered at him. "I know you wouldn't have anything planned for your birthday, so what are you hiding?"

If it was his father, he could lie and say a woman and the man would happily walk away from the shut door, uninterested. But Solana was a different beast. She was curious, intrusive, and interested in damn near anything. It would be hard to keep her out of his apartment, lined with guns, gear, and a krogan casing the joint.

Also, she definitely would give him shit for his undecorated bedroom and that was a blast from the past he never wanted to deal with again.

So, his best shot was to go truth adjacent. "There was a break-in on my block. I have a consultant in there retrofitting my place with more security."

"You caring about your own well-being and safety is... new, but I won't complain." Solana snorted and shook her head at him, in her normal well-meaning but condescending way. "Only you would schedule a security consultation on your birthday. Were you going to do anything at all?"

Garrus leaned against his door and tried not to look too pissed off, because Solana knew the answer to that and was really just trying to push his buttons. Sure, that would be a stretch for anyone else, but his big sister? He knew how she operated. Probe for intel and then use that intel to make whatever point she was making infallible. He stuck with, "You know the answer to that."

"Doesn't the fact I know the answer to that speak volumes to the issue at hand?" Dammit. And he thought he said something neutral. Before he could spike back, she added, "It's been three years, Garrus, you're not dancing on mother's grave just because you dare to enjoy your birthday."

Now that one was a funny answer. "Really Sol? That's easy for you to say when she didn't die on yours."

"I've never liked the guilt games you and father play. Just yesterday he was messaging me about how it's his fault you react poorly to death and rebel. But do either of you do anything with that guilt? Because that's progress I'd like to see." Garrus almost laughed, because the one thing close to progress was also the one thing he really didn't want her to see. "Life happens. Death happens. Now, if I remember correctly, I begged for a sibling. So if not for yourself, let's celebrate the happiest day of my four year old life, meeting my little brother."

He wanted to stay mad and indignant, maybe even scare her off. But dammit, he cared too much about Solana for that. Groaning, he pushed off the door and conceded. "Fine, let's go get some food and see a flick or something. You did come all this way to see me."

"You're right, I did, so thank you for appreciating it." She walked forward first and he took the opportunity to cover his tracks. With a flick of his wrist he typed out a quick message to Jawth and Sidonis, asking them to hide the guns and clean up the place before he got back; that his sister came for a surprise visit.

They agreed without asking a single question. Which was good, because he'd rather off himself than tell those assholes what day it was.

Now the real landmine was keeping Solana from looking too deeply into the Archangel rumors. If that caught her interest, he was sure she could figure it out. He didn't expect her to snitch to their father, who would objectively hate what he was doing, but he also didn't know how she'd react.

Garrus just wanted his sister to remain his annoying, inordinately supportive sister. He didn't want that to get complicated.

Somehow, he managed to dodge all Archangel talk the entire time. His most impressive save was pretending to choke on something to be louder than and scare off a guy at the cafe who wouldn't stop talking about his crew and their latest hit. Solana definitely didn't need to hear about "That blue-ass sniper turian."

That was more than enough to get her curious.

When they got to his apartment door, he almost breathed a sigh of relief. They'd made it, all the way back to his place, and she still didn't know. She could spend the night here and then he could send her back off to her life on Palaven, no harm no foul.

But for all his attempts, he'd forgotten one small, terrible little factor.

Sidonis knew who he was, and that man had a lot of contacts.

The second the metal panels slid open, every single one of his team was there, grinning like mad, with a garrish looking cake stuffed with candles. And right in front of his sister, the fuckers yelled, "Happy birthday, Archangel."

There were a lot of times with Shepard he wished to kill a man, but this time, he wanted to kill nine.

Solana just glared at him with a knowing smirk. "I fucking knew you were hiding something!"

Garrus grabbed her arm and took her outside, where all his idiot team wasn't watching. He started talking, fast. "Sol, I-"

"If you say you're sorry, I'll know you're lying." She shook her head. "So you're the infamous merc-killer? Honestly, I should've known. It was probably just wishful thinking." He was too overwhelmed to know what to say to that, but luckily Sol was happy to fill in the blanks. "I won't tell father. He would hate you for doing this. Just don't keep secrets from me, okay? I love you."

"I can give you that."

"Good. Now, why don't we enjoy your party that your team set up?" Before she walked through the door, she squeezed his arm and frowned. A classic Sol look of distaste; last time he saw it, it was when a co-worker of hers tried to ask her on a date because "she had to say yes to someone eventually". If Solana was less composed, he was sure she would've punched him. "I'm not eating that cake, though."

"Don't worry. I would have told you not to."

/

Shepard had been dead 365 days.

All he could see were her eyes. Soft green, always laughing at something. Until she wasn't. But wherever things were good, she was laughing, and hard. Garrus couldn't quite get his head straight, but he hoped he said something funny. More than likely, what actually happened was that he did something awkward and dumb, but that was almost just as good.

When he started scanning the room, he realized they were by one of the observation windows on the Normandy. Despite all the chaos in their lives, they'd taken a moment to look at the stars. He always liked it here. Why'd he never bring her here?

Even when she stopped laughing, she kept smiling. Like she always did after a long day, she pulled her hair out of that tight bun thing and kept on shaking it with her fingers. Sometimes he wondered what it felt like, and not like when he accidently touched it during movie night. Like how she was doing, hands all in.

But it was safe to say that was a bit more than a CO and an ex C-sec officer should be doing.

He wasn't quite sure what he was saying, or why he was saying it, but he told her, "When I look at the stars, I think of you." Garrus wasn't really sure when he got all bold. Maybe it was this haziness he was feeling.

Shepard raised one of her hairy eyebrows at him. "We live in space. On a spaceship. We see stars almost constantly."

Garrus took a step closer to her, sometimes wondering how she got anywhere with how oblivious she could be. And god knows he normally wasn't this smooth but this time, right here, he said what he wanted to. "Exactly my point."

Blinking, it took her a few seconds to register what he said, and she even turned to look up at him. But when their eyes did meet? Hers softened like for once, she finally got it. Her cheeks even did that little blush thing when she was embarrassed. "Oh."

With that look, was like all of his normal discomfort came rushing back, all those feelings that always told him not to say stupid shit like that. He shouldn't have said that, right? All those things she said she felt were byproducts of a lonely, drunk night where he got too close and she was alone enough to get stuck on it. She didn't like it, she couldn't, and it was weird, he was ruining the whole friendship thing... "Shepard, forget I said that-"

But then, she did that human thing they always saw in movies. She got on her toes and pressed her lips against his. It was weird, soft skin against his plates, but it was her skin, and that was what mattered.

Maybe he hadn't ruined everything.

Shepard said, "I won't forget-"

Everything seemed so right, but just then the wall blew open and Shepard was being sucked out into space. Again. He tried to grab onto her arms, legs, anything to keep her there. No matter what he reached for, she slipped through his goddamn fingers.

When he woke up, his body was shaking and he wrapped his arms around his legs. He hated to admit this wasn't the first time he had a dream like that, one where Shepard wasn't gone.

Garrus had tried so hard to keep her at bay. One year later, but she was always still there.

As long as he could help it, though, his nightmares would be the only place she had left to live. Elsewhere, he had work to do. And as much as he felt for her, pined for her, his life didn't have place for stubborn, Russian spectres.

Garrus had a station to protect.

/

Shepard had been dead for 728 days.

He never should've left the apartment. Garrus figured his team could cover the last of the security measures while he helped Sidonis. It should've been easy.

But when he got there, Sidonis never showed up. And when he got back, there was blood everywhere.

He trusted Sidonis, from the first day he met him. The damned turian seemed honest about wanting to save people. But here they were, and Lantar fucked them.

They were all going to die here, weren't they?

Most everyone was down already. Their corpses were strewn all over the place, their faces locked in horror or dull emptiness. The only ones left alive were Ryel, Gibbon, and Butler.

But from the looks of it, Butler didn't have much longer.

He yelled at the crippled leftovers of his team and asked, "How's it looking?"

Gibbon answered, "Understandably terrible. We have a vantage point, but they have many waves of mercs."

Ryel added, "This balcony view is not as pretty with bullets and brains flying everywhere."

Before he could respond, Butler grabbed Garrus' arm. His abdomen was covered in blood and he could see his stomach lining. The guy normally wore gray pants, but they looked like they'd been dyed red. "I'm not gonna make it, huh?"

"Butler-"

"Nah, I know." He coughed. Garrus couldn't lie to him. "As much as I'd like to go screaming out Nalah's name, I want to hear about something that doesn't break my heart. Tell me about your Russian girl, Garrus. And for real this time."

For all the times Garrus shoved her away, maybe Butler was right. If he was going to die, he'd rather hear about her one last time. He said to the other two, "Hold the line and be careful."

Then, he sat down next to Butler and held his hand. After all this time, nearly two years, he just started talking about Shepard like she really was. "Her name was Anya. She was competitive to a fault and loved saying quotes while she watched movies. She loved to dance, but just by herself. She was a brave leader, but what mattered more was that she was... She was a beautiful, squishy human."

"A human? Never woulda guessed." He knew he already told Butler she was human, but it wasn't really the time to contradict him. Blood loss never helped make the brain a stronger machine.

Instead, Garrus just kept talking, his grip on Butler's hand getting tighter as the memories and feelings wound around his chest. "Me neither, but from all your stories, you didn't sound like you expected to fall in love with an Asari either."

"You're right. I didn't. Tell me more?"

"She was a classic soldier, until she wasn't. An infiltrator class, great with a pistol, terrifying, even. But sometimes she'd walk into debriefings with sweatpants and her hair a mess, swearing about something the pilot did to her toothpaste. And I wondered how that person was the same one that inspired a whole ship, every day. But she did."

"And?" Butler looked at him knowingly, deliberately.

Today, Garrus let the dying man win. "And you were right, Butler. I loved her."

With one final smirk, his hand fell.

When Butler stopped breathing, Garrus picked up his gun, got behind cover like Ryel and Gibbon, and started shooting.

If he was going to go down, he was gonna go down fighting. And this time, he wouldn't stop thinking about her. This time, if he was gonna die, she'd be the last thing on his mind.

No matter where he went, he was stuck with her. Forever.

///

After a little interlude into Garrus' two years without Shepard, we can finally start getting Anya awake and moving in his direction. I am SO ready.

I read on tumblr a couple weeks ago that apparently a lot of people write their own version of 4 things: their first meeting, the rocket-to-the-face, the night before the suicide mission, and "this is the best spot on the citadel.

I know it's stupid, but I honestly feel kinda proud that I ignored their first meeting entirely. And also that my suicide mission night will be VERY different. Is it a stupid thing to be proud of? Yes, but at my core I'm kinda a trash hipster and I can feel pride and shame in that.

Anyway, thank you so much for reading! And extra thanks to my lovely patrons:

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