#like ''oh shit... we finally get the resolution... to that... route... whatever it may be...''

[manofthepipis]

obvs i'm so so so excited about chapter 3 and 4

but i completely forgot snowgrave was a thing

what the hell is gonna happen there

[hobidreams]

november 1869.

to remember what has been lost; to protect what still remains.

pairing: joseon king!yoongi x reader genre: drama. words: 2.4k contains: descriptions of blood/death, a reckoning.

moonlit throne index. this is drabble 26. start from the beginning?

Before Queen Jeonghui’s tomb, you stand with hands bowed in reverence, mind laden with warm memories as sticks of incense burn above your fingertips.

“We all miss you, daebi-mama. I hope you are resting well,” you murmur, letting the smoke mingle with your breath in the air as you bow, deeply. “Happy birthday.”

A little ways away, the single guard that accompanies you is also offering his thoughts to the raised, grassy mound that the queen lies beneath. You’re glad it’s Myungho to come with you today. He’s a good man, one who allows you as much freedom as possible. He understands your need to escape sometimes. Nearby, the horses you rode here are grazing on the field, quietly snorting as their tails swish from side to side.

As you look upon the tomb, you wonder wistfully if mother has found the queen in the spirit world. If they’re playing the game of janggi they so loved in life, when both could find the rare time to continue their decade-long (friendly) rivalry while indulging in cups of strong, dark tea. The thought brings a smile to your face even as fresh tears fall at the remembrance.

In your peripheral vision, you see a swish of fabric, the sign of someone approaching. You give one last bow and slot your incense in the traditional tray, realizing it must be time to leave before it gets too cold and your limbs begin to freeze even under the layers of clothes. You must go back eventually, you know it, but that doesn’t make it easier.

But when you turn, the man that stands beside you wears royal robes — the scarlet fabric and golden dragons unmistakable.

“Jeonha?”

The king’s face holds only sorrow as he holds matching incense in his hands. Staring straight ahead, he bends into a bow, dipping his head repeatedly low, low, lower until he’s almost on the dying, waterlogged grass with it, the lit grey tips flickering in the wind as they are nearly doused from the force of his movements. He bites his lip hard, so hard he draws blood as he punishes his own legs with the bows but he doesn’t stop.

You watch him with emotion clinging to your throat, but you swallow the questions you want to ask as you swipe at your wet cheeks. Why are you here? Why did you change your mind? How are you? Are you okay? All these impertinent questions are for you, to satisfy your own curiosity, and that’s not what he needs right now.

Quietly, steadily, you wait until he has finally stuck in the incense in the memorial ash. You wait until he opens his eyes, red-rimmed as they are, and finds your gaze.

“I… decided at the last moment,” he murmurs. “You… were right. I had to see her.”

You nod. Think you understand everything else he means as well, even if he’s left it unspoken. “Me too.”

“She would have liked that you’re here.”

That simple sentence threatens another wave of nostalgia and longing. You let it pull you under. Sink yourself into it. The mourning, the grief. And the love. The love that was there. The love that still remains, the traces of it held in you both. Your fingers twitch with a sudden, daring want to take his hand. To meet your palms and find the warmth and the life pulse that beats so closely, so resolutely just beneath the surface despite all this pain and all this loss. If you could just reach out. If you could just take another risk…

“Jeonha, run!”

The scream comes from the hill behind you. You both whirl.

The head of the royal guard comes running over with his sword drawn. His teeth are grit, hair blown from the wind that sweeps through the grass, rippling. His blade is already stained with a color that makes your stomach lurch at the implication.

“Hoseok— What’s going on?” The king yells back.

“Rebels! An ambush. We don’t have enough men!”

These few seconds are all the warning you get.

An incredible roar of voices comes exploding up and then you see them. The thick crowd of men that come surging over the hill, fighting their way towards you. The unforgettable clatter of metal on metal desecrates this once-sacred ground. Your legs go soft as you panic, scrambling. You’re trying not to watch as guards and rebels alike are cut down, but the enemies are steadily advancing still. What should you do? Where should you go?

“Myungho, get the horses!” The king barks out. But one look at the steeds tells you that they’re frightened, rearing back as men descend upon them. They’re off, running away on instinct to preserve their own lives while damning yours.

“Jeonha, what are your orders?” Myungho’s grip on his weapon is tight.

“Go. Help Hoseok.”

“Yes, jeonha!”

But as the battle wears on, the dread in you only grows. The king’s men are skilled, but it seems there were only a few to begin with. They are overwhelmed by sheer numbers, yelling for jeonha to escape but he doesn’t move. You don’t know what to do. You are at a complete loss, standing beside him with fingers growing steadily numb. You have to do something. You— You can’t just let it end here, at the hands of these men bellowing with violence and anger and pain.

“Jeonha, w-we have to run,” you stutter, forcing yourself to move, tugging at the fabric of his robes. But when you look back at the opposite side, your only escape route, a throng of rebels come scattering across the grass. Cutting you off; rendering you helpless.

“Myungho, cover the rear!” Hoseok spits out as he takes down another three by himself, the quick whip of his blade reflecting a beam of sun. But even he, with two other guards in front, cannot hold all of them off, though there are less of the rebels now that remain standing.

Caught in the middle, you can only watch your allies strain and sweat. In your heart, you promise desperately that you heal them in the end, if only they will hold on now.

With an awful cry, one of the guards hits the ground and a rebel uses that chance. Breaks through the line of defense and charges right towards you both.

“Fuck the king!” He yells, his face smeared with dirt, his sword raised as his bare feet trip upon the grass but he just keeps coming somehow and you have no weapons and you have no shields but the very first instinct, the most primal one you have is to throw yourself in front of the king and take his pain for him and—

Hoseok dispatches the rebel from behind just as you move a single step forward.

“You…” The king’s voice is hoarse. His eyes are wide with shock as he stares at you, at what you just did. Then he’s shoving you aside and stooping to pick up the abandoned sword from the ground.

You realize what he means when he sweeps up his sleeves, adjusts his grip on the worn handle. “Wait, no, jeonha, you cannot—”

“Stay behind me.”

“I cannot allow you to—”

“Do not argue with me.”

Again, he leaves you with no choice but to watch his back.

Fear pounds away in your body like a thousand drums, thunder booming through the pulse of your clenched heart in your ears as the king takes a first brutal swing at an enemy. Somewhat out of practice against the towering man, he’s shoved back by the sheer force of the clash, feet skidding across the wet grass but he refuses to yield. Stubborn as he always is, he rushes in again only to be pushed back. Again.

The king tilts his blade, slices it quick only to have one sent right back at him, barely missing his shoulder by an inch. He doesn’t even flinch as he stands firm. Adapts in the moment and tries a new strategy, a new tactic that has him spinning, robes fluttering in the winter air as his shuddering breath comes out in a puff of white and ends in a fury of red. And again. And again until finally, finally, only the strongest of the rebels remain standing with the few allies you left, along with your brutal, bloodied king.

Before you, all the men are panting, open mouthed, every last one of them desperate for a victory that spells the doom of the other.

“Come on then,” the king goads, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand in a show of nonchalance even though he’s obviously fatigued. “Attack.”

“You little shit!”

This man is enormous, easily a head above the king and he’s strong, muscles bulging from his torn tunic as he thrusts the sword ahead with surprising speed. The quick rush of air slices through two layers of robes, splitting the dirtied fabric open as the king narrowly escapes without a new scar. But his return stab doesn’t meet a mark and he’s slow on the rebound, steps lost some of the agility he had at the start.

Please. Please, you beg to whatever god may be listening, don’t let him die. But that rebel seems to have an endless strength as he forces the king back, meets him blow for blow for blow and you are so worried, terrified you’re going to see his last moments like this. Like this you will have been with him until the end just like you once stupidly wished. You’re so caught up you don’t realize what’s going on behind you.

“Su-uinyeo-nim! Watch out!” Myungho’s voice cracks as he cries your name, but you turn too slow. Myungho’s on the ground and the rebel that beat him is sprinting towards you, savagery in his scowl, his crude axe already suspended in mid-swing, just a few more steps, just one more shove to land right across your heart and you, you who has never held a weapon before in her life, you who has lived to heal and mend instead of hurt, what can you do right now but die?

“No!”

The scream is hoarse, a furious sound matched with a rush of robes that whip past your own.

You peel open your eyes in time to watch the king take the axe blow meant for you with his left arm. Despite his bark of pain, he swings with his right in exchange and it’s enough. The rebel falls, his axe plummeting uselessly beside him. Then the king falters too, sword clattering down as he finally drops to his knees.

“Jeonha!” You scramble to him. “Oh god, oh god, jeonha, why did you do that— Jeonha, how could you do such a thing? Jeonha!” You part the stained robes, stomach churning at the raw sight of his sacrifice. “We need to fetch you help. You need medicine, oh god, oh god.” This is panic like you’ve never felt it before as you look around, as if some miracle could occur, as if it hasn’t already occurred by the fact that you’re both still alive.

To one side, Hoseok is alone, gasping hard with the enormous rebel lying prone beside him, evidently having finished him off. Myungho has a gash running down his side, but he’s crawling towards you both still with a hand pressed to his wound for pressure. There is no one else. You have to do this on your own. You have to calm the hell down.

Using the nearby sword, you force yourself to focus and stop shaking as you cut strips of the inner layer of your skirt. You have to save his arm even as nausea swims in your mind, nerves making you want to empty your stomach.

“Hah...” The king’s chest lurches as he struggles for air. His eyes are hazy but he manages to fix them on you, as if to ground himself. “You’re… safe?”

Nodding frantically, you start to wrap the cloth around him, willing your fingers not to slip. “I-It’s deep, jeonha. Your wound is so deep.” You’re quietly sobbing as you tie the makeshift bandage to stop the worst of the bleeding. How could he be thinking of you at a time like this? It must hurt excruciatingly so, yet he is still trying to be strong.

Beside you, Hoseok is carrying Myungho’s weight, using the extra cloth to help his ally with his limited medical training.

“…Hoseok.” The king sucks in another long breath. “They… Those rebels were peasants, weren’t they?”

“Yes, jeonha… I think they were.”

He accepts this knowledge silently as you finish your preliminary treatment, but lack the resources to do anything else. You stare at the fresh red seeping through the flimsy cloth and hope desperately that it will be enough for now, until one of you can return to the palace and gather reinforcements to take you home. Feeling your fingers stop, he immediately tries to move his arm but winces, bites his lip at the sudden jolt.

“Don’t move, please,” you instantly say.

The king huffs a long, exhausted sigh as he sinks into the ground. Lets the tension seep out of him, though likely not by choice. His dark eyes flicker to the tomb briefly before they slide closed, the scar ever slashed startlingly crimson across the right side. Despite his best attempts, he is still winded, depleted. Human, after all. After all of this.

You brush matted strands of light hair away from his forehead, and pat at the drops of sweat that linger and prove how hard he pushed himself to fight. He shifts into your touch like a stray animal, allowing you take care of him for once without argument until his breaths even some, settling only in your arms.

“It seems it’s been a long time,” he says softly after a moment, his eyes remaining shut.

“Since?”

“Since I’ve protected someone.”

Your pulse catches. Blood thrums through you as you whisper, “but you did.” Your voice is viscous with relief, and gratitude. “You did.”

Only now do you dare to reach for his hand, to lend him some of your strength, even though you have seen again just how much of it he already holds in himself.

Wrapped in your warmth, he squeezes back just the once. Lets you know he is here, he is here, he is here with you still.

a/n: because i could never forget the way he wielded that sword in the mv. so... how you feel about our king now?

[villa-kulla]

so I saw Avengers Endgame last night, and honestly.....

I actually frickin’ LOVED it haha, I haven’t genuinely enjoyed one of the Avengers ensemble movies that much since the first one. Granted I’m still very sleep-deprived and on a slightly giddy high from how much it exceeded my expectations haha, and once I’ve thought more about it I’m sure I’ll find things to nitpick. But for the time being, I’m still pretty much swooning.

FULL INCOHERENT THOUGHTS/REACTIONS TO SPECIFIC THINGS BELOW THE CUT, AND OFC, ***SPOILERS*****

ONCE AGAIN: ******SPOILERS********

these are just my rambling Emotions about different moments, ostensibly in the order they occurred in the movie, but actually in the order I remember them:

The opening scene: that moment when Clint turned away from his daughter, and then turned back to see just a few remaining ashes floating slowly where she’d been was beautifully shot. Also beautiful: the soft gasp that went around the theatre right when it happened haha

Killing Thanos within the first 10 minutes and breaking the expected formula and thereby thrusting the movie out into unknown waters? lmao WELL PLAYED, ENDGAME <3

Steve picking up Sam’s mantle and running a support group for survivors? flawless move. My heart couldn’t take it

Okay first thing I genuinely didn’t like: “fat Thor” as a punchline. It was so cringey. My friends and I were discussing how that actually COULD have been so great had they explored Thor’s breakdown and PTSD in a meaningful way, and I mean who wouldn’t adore thicc Thor? But instead we got comedic zooms on his beer belly, and yeah. Kudos to Hemsworth for being a gem and making it work but yeah. Nothing wrong with Thor going to seed physically as well as mentally, just wish it hadn’t been played for laughs is all

Tony basically ripping his heart out and putting it in Steve’s hand? I knew my Vintage™ Stony feels were going to resurface and oh boy did they ever haha

Honestly their whole dynamic in the movies works very well if you imagine that they had angsty hate sex that wasn’t actually hate sex at all, and there was the possibility of real feelings there, but for whatever reason they just couldn’t. quite. make. it. work.

That moment with Antman and Hulk’s fans was so genuinely awkward and I could not stop laughing. Paul Rudd is a gift

It only took them 7 years to realize that all fans ever wanted was the Avengers lounging around in hoodies and eating takeout, but it felt all the more earned for it haha

this is silly but it was nice to have a return to Nat’s red hair...sort of lol

TIME HEIST! TIME HEIST! TIME HEIST! TIME HEIST!!

^^^ That was around when I really started settling in like ‘oh this is gonna be good’

the only spoiler I was exposed to was the ‘Steve’s ass finally gets the recognition it deserves’ post, and did it ever

got as close as we’ll get to canonically bi steve rogers and imma take it haha. Checking out your own ass? Legends only (in fact in our post-movie debrief over drinks, our first toast was ‘here’s to bisexual disaster steve rogers’ he time heisted my heart all over again)

and honestly props to them for going the cute nostalgic route by revisiting all the old movies like that, and not trying to be overly ‘dark and gritty’ for the whole thing. It was lovely how they did it, and very appropriate

The ‘Come and get your love’ credits from GotG is like the only concrete thing I even remember from that movie lol, and I was so giddy when it resurfaced

I’ll be honest, I’m so over aliens and space lol, any time one of these movies goes to space I’m basically yawning instantly, I’M JUST NOT INTO IT FOR THESE MOVIES SORRY. So I’m glad the space stuff was kept to a minimum in this haha. The way they do alien civilizations just never really packs a punch for me, with the single exception of...

......NEBULA MY LOVE <3 She was always the most intriguing and raw of any of the characters in those movies for me. Karen Gillan gives her an amazing presence, so I was glad to see her get a good showcase in this one

Oh hi Robert Redford, I definitely wasn’t reading Butch and Sundance fan fiction on the bus to work 12 hours before this movie asdjhgf haha that was a fun surprise

“Hail Hydra” ajshgd FUCKING EPIC OH MY GOD. I couldn’t breathe. That was amazing.

On a much less lighthearted note.......Natasha. Oh god. I really didn’t think they were going to go there with any of the original six but they did. Natasha was my original fave at the tender of 18, I was completely in awe of how Scarlett portrayed her, immediately cut my hair and dyed it red in tribute haha, and claimed her as my OG fave. I adored her, and still adore her. And honestly, I would have been so much more upset about her fate if...it hadn’t been so completely right for her. As much as I hate to say it, what she did was very character-appropriate for her, and really brought her full circle. And sneaky/unexpected to the end omg. That’s my girl.  I’m a diehard Black Widow fan, and I think it’s safe to say she definitely wiped out the red in her ledger, if there ever was any left <3

.....that being said, really, no lingering zoom on a photo of her somewhere at the avengers compound? Nothing? The reaction immediately afterwards was well done, but it was kind of awks that it never came back with even a mention lol 

Loved the way they did the ‘Guys...I think it worked’ emphasized only by the sound of birdsong. This movie killed it with the quieter moments

And now for something absolutely not quiet:

STEVE!!!

CAUGHT!!!!

THOR’S!!!!

HAMMER!!!!

I HAVE NEVER HEARD A THEATRE COLLECTIVELY LOSE THEIR SHIT LIKE THAT IN MY LIFE

I may have screamed. So. fucking. aces.

Between ‘Hail Hydra’, ‘That is America’s ass’, and lifting the hammer, Steve really owned this movie didn’t he lol

that’s my boy <3

they may have turned steve’s last movie into an avengers movie, but man alive this avengers movie was pretty much steve’s show and he killed every second of it

I’m giddy just thinking about it 

And speaking of giddy, everyone’s return.....normally the big final climactic battle scene tends to pale in comparison to nimbler action sequences that happened earlier, but I said giddy and I meant it. They really pulled out all the crown-pleasing stops in it, and it was impossible to nitpick, I had the biggest fucking smile on my face the whole time

AND OH MAN THAT ONE LITTLE MOMENT WITH DR. STRANGE. HOLDING UP ONE FINGER. WHAT A MOMENT. INCREDIBLE. JAW-DROPPING. VISIONARY. TRANSCENDAENT. UPLIFTING. MY HEART SOARED.

Until......THAT MOMENT

“I am Iron Man”

TONY

Oh god

Everyone speculated it would happen, but I didn’t actually think it would. IDK MAYBE I’M JUST NAIVE LOL.

I was actually kind of numb there for a while and I stayed numb until....

“Your dad liked cheeseburgers too”

Yeah there was no recovering after that lol, I was basically a wreck until the end from that moment on

Man...Tony Stark actually died....

As powerful as it was, I don’t really think they had to go there in order to bring the pathos? Idk I have mixed feelings about that choice lol, his big moment was epic but you know what else is epic? Going back to your log cabin to live with your family in peace lol. Idk I’m still not sure how I feel about their choice with that, but maybe it just hasn’t fully hit me yet

Sam as the new Captain America?? A-fucking-men

And this brings us to the ending

the controversial ending which is already causing its own civil war based on what I’ve seen so far haha. And for what my two cents are worth....

I loved it. That was a bold move and I really have to give them props for choosing something risky and unexpected as a conclusion. 

That last shot was absolutely beautiful. The moment ‘It’s Been A Long, Long Time’ kicked in I think my breath caught. And that slow zoom in on the window to see Steve and Peggy dancing 11 years of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to a close, and sealing it with a kiss? Gorgeous.

I’m honestly choked up again just thinking about it lol.

And although it’s a small thing, no end credits sequence?? That’s what we call true closure lol, and I think that was what really hammered in the fact that it’s really all over, folks <3

Yes there were some nit-pickable things, some things that could have been better, or came too little too late, and I can’t even BEGIN to wrap my head around the time-travel implications in the conclusion (and I’m not sure we’re supposed to haha). But they took approximately 9000 storylines and characters and managed to represent them in what was actually a genuinely emotional, thoughtful, and entertaining movie that managed to smash the expected formula and the gently pick it back up again to piece together a satisfying, crowd-pleasing, and soaring resolution. Yeah a good deal of the emotional-payoff was already built in what with audiences bringing their own 10-year journeys with these movies to the theatre, and part of my excitement about this movie is definitely tied into the overall pop culture phenomenon itself. But as a movie it exceeded all my expectations, and I’m very satisfied. Thanks, Marvel. It’s been a good run <3

[liaroflesbos]

HxH and Continuing the Dark Continent Arc

So, in this awful unending hiatus of the hxh fandom, i thought i would make a post about how, from the beginning chapters that we have been given, it looks like the dc arc will shape up. I’m doing this a) because of obsessive curiosity and a need for a systematic understanding of unresolved plotlines and b) in case i or anyone else wants to write a dark continent fic that stays accurate to what canon suggests. because i know i could never write a dark continent filler fic without as good an understanding of the base text as possible to use as a jumping board. Fair warning, this is extensive and long-winded. I may go and add page references to everything at a later point.

First off, the event chunks that this seemingly massive arc will contain. So what we’ve had so far is the preparation for the launch, which will of course be discussed in greater detailed, but basically gets all the people and plotlines in place to climb on a ship towards the dark continent.

Then, we got the very beginning of the “journey to the new continent” section of this arc. I didn’t catch this until my like… third readthrough… but the HA is going to drop off all the passengers from Kakin on an island that is much closer to the normal hxh world than to the dark continent, including the princes. So this arc will contain the entirety of the Succession War, because the princes are leaving after this leg of the journey, and also include leaving the Human Territorial Waters to go to the “Untamed Waters,” which may be the introduction of some exciting magical creature things.

I’m fairly certain that we’ll get a chunk of the story happening on the New Continent, when they reach it. First of all, you have the logistical nightmare of all the people setting up camp. Then there’s the finishing touches to the Succession War and almost certainly the resolution to Kurapika’s struggle to get the eyes that the human monster Prince Tserriwhatever has collected (and god am I not obsessed with the theory that he has Pairo’s head in a jar, because I love Suffering). Then we have the possible escape of Beyond from the HA at this point. I’m having a very hard time finding the reference point I remember that implied Beyond would escape when reaching the new continent, but I did manage to reach that conclusion last time i read through. Will update with source when possible. They’ll also take this chance to change ships to one of Morel’s and guys, I am so. fucking. excited. that we’ll almost definitely have Morel and might have Knuckle and/or Shoot after this point. I loved this gang of overly sensitive hunters so much and I cannot wait to see them again.

The next stop that they make after the New Content is a relay point in the Untamed Waters between the New Continent and the Dark Waters. I don’t really know what’s going to happen here, except that we know that Knov will be helping in transferring people and goods. However, the manga does make special mention of this relay point, going as far to show us it on the map, so shit might go down there too.

After the relay point comes the border between the untamed waters, the normal realm of the hxh world, and the dark parts of the globe beginning with the dark waters. There is supposed to be some kind of Guardian here, so expect them to be having a very serious conversation with this Guardian--who I am so curious about. Apparently they’re like a separate species? I wanna know what they look like. Anyway, we’ll also have some time here devoted to Ging and Pariston’s crew going a way that has never been tread before, and so probably bypassing the normal guardian checkpoint that the HA’s will pass by. This is supposed to be even more dangerous than going the normal route, which already has an incredibly low survival rate.

And then we’re in the Dark Waters! After this point, we don’t have too much data on what will happen. However here’s what we know/is probable: first, there may be some battles/struggles against the beasts in the dark waters, which are also terrifying like the beasts on the dark continent. Then we will (finally!) get to the continent itself. They will clearly face all kinds of strange and deadly natural phenomena while out there. And they will try to find amazing things that can benefit mankind to bring back home with them. Also, we’d clearly expect tensions with Beyond’s group as both struggle to survive, to get the goods, and to return home. I’d say it would be a safe bet that Ging’s quest for Don Freecs will come up here. Otherwise, I have some thoughts on what might happen, but it’s hard to understand the shape events that far away in the story. Things like the struggle between the groups may be resolved before they actually get to the Dark Continent, or things like Kurapika’s hunt for the Red Eyes might not be fully resolved.

And then, maybe the journey home? They mention a detail or two about the return trip but I think the arc will be so long by this point that we skip it.

Alright!! So that was A Lot, but I am still not finished. I know, I know. I’m a Lot too, but I still want to go over all the plotlines that I think will be picked up by the end of the arc. Part of my thinks that most of these will be resolved because I do suspect that this will be the second to last arc. I think it’ll be another ten year arc like the Chimera Ant arc, but I think it may be one of the last, partially because it looks like a lot of these narrative threads could be tied up.

I think the biggest separate plot thread that will be tied into a neat little bow is the phantom troupe’s story. Okay, maybe not totally finished, but pretty damn close. I couldn’t find it on my last read through, but I’m pretty sure chrollo orders the whole phantom troupe on board. If not, then he definitely said that they would steal from the expedition, so the HA will have to contend with them trying to steal from whoever and whatever remains at the end. At the same time we have Hisoka looking to kill Spiders and fight a rematch against Chrollo, and Kurapika is playing a central role, so perhaps we’ll revisit revenge with a newly magicked Chrollo and a young Kalluto as troupe member. And, fuck, I certainly hope Togashi reveals why they left that Meteor City message at the site of the Kurta massacre.

It also seems likely that we’ll get a more full explanation of what happened with Netero’s expedition, and perhaps Beyond’s as well. I’m betting we’ll have something about the Ai and Zzigg Zoldyck, how it connects back to Alluka and Nanika, how it could’ve passed to this later generation and what exactly that means. And how much Ging knew about it. We also briefly met Linnet Audoble during the Election Arc as the oldest person in the association with a fierce devotion to Netero, and that may have been padding for a future role. And we got that suggestion of Netero’s connections with the Zoldyck’s during the CA arc, that I’m sure we all want more depth on.

I’ve been working on a theory that we’ll get the conclusion of Senritsu’s arc too. The music she listened to is normally translated as the Dark Sonata, I think, which has an obvious linguistic link to the Dark Continent and the Dark Waters. And she’s at least on the ship until the New Continent as one of Kurapika’s bodyguard spies. Maybe she’ll stay on after and complete her mission to destroy the Dark Sonata? Or at least learn more about it?

This is just a general thing I started wondering about: why exactly is Bisky one of the bodyguards? I got the sense that she requested to be one through Killua. What is she expecting--will she also go to the Dark Continent to find treasures? Couldn’t she do that without helping Kurapika on this? She’s obviously skilled enough to be heavily valued by the association.

We’ll clearly learn a lot about all the different Zodiacs, which I’m very excited about, especially for all the girls. And Saccho, who I don’t have a good grasp on yet but think I’ll like. And Botobai. And the sheep one--Ginta? And Mizai, of course! But I think there’s a special something in Kanzai, the tiger’s, backstory. Not only is he crazily stupid, but he mentions something about “after he woke up,” suggesting that he may have been Sleeping for a long while. Curious!

And then we have Beyond’s supposed team. Of course, we’re going to need to work out the Ging/Pariston rivalry some more, in some very interesting ways certainly. And then we’ll have Ging on Don Freecs. But otherwise, I can’t really make a guess as to what the individual stories will be for them--we don’t totally understand their relationships yet either. They all seem very cool though. Oh, and I almost forgot! It’s so interesting that Pariston’s temp hunters didn’t know about the Succession War--finally Pariston slips up, not the ultimate genius that we tend to think of him and Ging as, and sure to have big impacts on the balance between Beyond’s group and the more knowledgeable HA.

Oh, we’ve also got that undersecretary from the shadowy government agency--the travel bureau?--coming with us. Clearly he will leave his dorm at some point and come interact with the other characters--I wonder how his knowledge matches against Ging’s? With him comes the geopolitics of the newly minted v6.

There were also two mentions of the mafia so far, as related to this arc. I have no idea what they could have to do with this, but them plus Kurapika plus the Phantom Troupe makes me think that it’s a potential factor in this part of the story.

Within this first part of the arc, I think we’ll also see more of the Zodiacs trying to get a handle of the poorly planned denizens of the ship. Specifically, Mizai says that the medical teams are understaffed, so this  must mean something for Leorio. I just realized that it could be an attempt to put Leorio on a bus for a while.

Finally, as a diehard Leopika fan, I think Leorio and Kurapika’s relationship is going to develop significantly. It might not be a romantic relationship, but a relationship will happen. However, I believe in my heart that they’ll get together!!!

And for the arc after this one: I think we’ll return to help Gon figure out his Nen shit and to uncover the mystery of the missing hunters which was so important to the politics of the election arc. Well, since the missing hunters probably has something to do with Pariston, it may be resolved before then.

[pen-parker-blog]

Yeah this is the New Years Resolution I am most likely to fail. Every year I tell myself to read more books, every birthday and Christmas I ask people to buy me books, and thus the pile of tree spawn next to my bed grows higher and higher. I wake up and roll over each morning, to be reminded of what an uncultered swine I am, with all the books I own yet haven’t bothered to read. So the odds are somewhat stacked against me with this new years resolution. Maybe this is the year I will finally turn things around right..right?

So many books, so little time.

It’s not that I’m not a reader, I love reading. Ever since I was a child I loved reading, and I did get through a lot of books when I was a kid. Granted, aside from Harry Potter, most of those books were not read by choice, rather dictated to me by whatever the school/college/university curriculum was. Throughout education, we would dream of the days when we would be able to read books because we wanted to. Imagine it, a world where we get to read books because we want to, not because we have to. Then University comes to an end, and did I catch up on all the books I wanted to read? Did I bollocks. I borrowed a copy of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, from one of my friends in second year of Uni (2011), and I didn’t get round to reading it until last year (I did message said friend and asked if she wanted the book back, after I’d kept it unwittingly for 5 years, but she was fine with it). The problem is I don’t give myself the time to read. Once I come from home from work, I’m usually go to the gym, then come home and make food, I usually watch something on Netflix whilst eating, then I need to clean the kitchen but I can’t be arsed so I go on Facebook, then  I finally clean the kitchen, then I sort out food for work in the morning, then I get distracted by the Xbox One (I mean have you played Overwatch?), or I get distracted by whatever shit is spewed out onto Youtube, then I’m on Facebook again chatting with friends, then I realise I have no clothes for the morning, then I realise I need to clean the house, but then I realise it’s been an hour since  I played Overwatch, then I go on Youtube and then BAM! It’s 1am…Bugger.

Half the time, when I do find a quiet moment with nothing to do, I often take to the laptop to punch out some writing, be it scripts I am working on, or more recently blog posts. But then I find myself, as many writers do, stuck in a rut, struggling to come up with… them ideas on…how to write things…good.

You know what helps with that? Reading a God Damn book!

To be fair to myself, I did manage to get through some good books last year, although it was usually down to being placed in a situation where I literally had no other choice but to read. Last year I played the part of Toby in Amy’s View, at The Chesil Theatre. The character only appeared at the very end, which meant I had 1 and 3/4 acts worth of time to sit backstage, and in that time I managed to get through 3 books. The aforementioned The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time, David Owen’s Panther, and Hunter S Thompson’s Fear and Loathing in as Vegas. I also went away to Majorca for a week, and when you find yourself on long flights/coach trips, or just sat relaxing on the balcony/by the pool, it’s very easy to sit back and get lost in a great story. In Majorica I read both Room and The Girl on the Train, again two great books and both with movies that I really want to see. There was also a brief period of time, where I ended up having to commute from my parents house to work every day at the start of winter, and so the train journeys gave me the time to read The Shining, leant to me by a friend. I love Stephen King, and being able to read one of his most famous works, made the early-as-hell journey to work, in the freezing cold, all the more bearable. However, once I returned to my own home, with now a mere 10 minute walk to work in the mornings, The Shining remained untouched in my bag for a good few weeks, calling out to me: “Come read with us, Davey!” Luckily, to avoid keeping someone elses property for another half decade, I did manage to finish the book, but it took me far too long to do, especially considering how much I enjoyed reading it to start with.

The problem with me now is that I tend to only read, when there is literally nothing else to do. The only reason I started reading The Shining on the train was because the South West Train Wifi never quite made it to the carriage I was on, the only reason I started reading in the dressing room at the Chesil, was because I had slowly lost my mind and descended into madness, playing non stop Candy Crush during rehearsals. So I am vowing to make things right this year, and actually make the time to read more books in my own time. Like my previous Resolution Revolution post, I am hoping that posting it on here, revealing my shame for all the world to see, will help encourage me to do better in the literary arts (unless I delete this post and claim blissful ignorance).

Anyways, here are a list of books that I own, which I am vowing to read this year.

The Complete Sherlock Holmes: Volume 1 – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

This is a pretty big book, maybe I got intimidated by the size. I got this as a Secret Santa gift from my friend E.J years ago and I was psyched. I love Sherlock Holmes, so what better way to show my appreciation for this literary icon than actual reading some literature? This is only Volume 1, so hopefully I may move on to further volumes before the year is out.

The Familiar – Mark Z. Danielewski

Mark Z. Danielewski’s debut novel House of Leaves is one of my favourite books of all time – holy shit – if you haven’t read this book I urge you to do so (I mean ever re-read this year, it’s that good), so when my friend Leo who introduced me to said book informed me of his new novel, I was excited. Not only that, but this book was set to be the first in a 12 part series? Oh my God, this is going to be the greatest thing to happen since the world was made! And boy did I hate it. What made House of Leaves memorable was that you had 3 different narratives intertwining perfectly in one novel. So for his next novel, Danielewski decided to go down the Hollywood sequel route and crank everything up to eleventity-stupid. Now there were like a dozen different plots, subplots, narratives, writing styles, words written in a circle that you had to turn the book clockwise just to read a sentence. It was a mess and felt like a pale imitation of what made the first book so great. But, that’s just it, because his first book was so great, I am willing to give this book another chance. Who knows, this still could be the greatest thing ever. Let’s find out.

Autobiographies

I love reading autobiographies from professionals who work, or have worked, in the entertainment industry. Writers, actors, comedians, broadcasters, I love reading about their lives, careers and experiences all from the horse’s mouth (or hooves, seeing as it was typed not spoken). A few years back I brought Steve Coogan’s autobiography, and last Christmas my parents brought me John Cleese’s and Brian Blessed’s (Fun fact, it is impossible to read his autobiography and not imagine him screaming it with the force of 100 db). All of these people are icons of mine for many different reasons, and hopefully will be the first of many icons who’s lives I have the privilege of delving into.

Graphic Novels

I don’t care what you say, but these count as books, and yes I am saying this as a 25 year old man, but I am also saying this as a massive nerd. The first one is a gripping Captain America story that I got from my friends Dee & Tom last birthday, which I started reading, got instantly hooked, but then for some bizarre reason, stopped. I fear it got lost under the forest of books I told myself I would read last year.Now that I have moved that pile onto an actual bookcase, I intend to get right back into this novel, followed swiftly by Moon Knight, a well received gift from the pair last Christmas. Cannot wait.

No Exit and Three Other Plays

I’m an admirer of Jean Paul Sartre, so much so that my friend Louisa brought me the greatest mug in the world back in Christmas 2015.

I directed a production of No Exit back in University, so it only makes sense I actually read the other three plays that came with the script. Who know’s what that may lead to? Plus, as I tend to dabble in script writing, best way to improve on it is to study previous theatrical works again.

Hamlet: Poem Unlimited – Harold Bloom

I begged my friend Leo to lend me this book, Hamlet is one of my favourite plays and Harold Bloom’s study of the play was something I really wanted to read. That was again, quite a few years ago, and I still have it… and I need to finish it. Better get started.

Sonnets – William Shakespeare

My friend Louisa brought me this book a few years back. Seeing as I may end up reading one of them at her wedding next year, it makes sense to brush up on the old Shakes’ work doesn’t it?

  Books to help me write good better

As I said before, the best way to improve my writing is to actually sit down and read a book. So it makes sense to have some books dedicated to improving on this craft. I brought Rib Davis’ Writing Dialogue for Scripts last year at the BFI shop, and my friend Leo brought me Plot & Structure by James Scott Bell for Christmas 2016. Considering I am currently working on three short plays this month, am starting work on an episode of a Radio Drama for Blazing Caribou Studios, am taking on the 28 Plays Later Challenge next month (which I strongly recommend any other writers out there check out and sign up for here), have ideas for two books that I want to start writing – one of which I’ve started –  and I want to finish writing  a full length play this year, it makes sense that I surround myself with books like these.

  So that’s that for my Second New Years Resolution. Granted I’ve made this same resolution at the start of most years, but seeing how much time I’ve spent blabbing on about it on this blog, I’m hoping it will be enough motivation to actually go and uphold it this time around. Here’s to the great stories waiting for me, and the many more out there waiting to be told.

Dave

Be sure to check out my first New Years Resolution Post here, and keep your eyes peeled for my third and final one coming soon.

Resolution Revolution – Read More Books Yeah this is the New Years Resolution I am most likely to fail. Every year I tell myself to read more books, every birthday and Christmas I ask people to buy me books, and thus the pile of tree spawn next to my bed grows higher and higher.