#now somehow we're here i'm??? baffled??????

[byanyan]

????????????

[in-class-daydreams]

Imagine first meeting ex-husband Gojo on a clear spring day at Tsuruoka City Jail.

The year was 2001. Young Satoru found himself on a train with his retainer making an extended trip many prefectures away. His retainer flipped through a folder.

"Someone's been exorcising curses in Yamagata prefecture. Must've caused a large ruckus for the local law enforcement to get to them first," they said.

Gojo was expecting someone older and/or rougher. Instead he was met with a beat up looking girl around his age in a dark holding cell. While his retainer went off to speak with an officer, Gojo peered at you and said, "Wow. You look like crap."

He doesn't need the six-eyes to easily dodge the shoe you huck his way. "Why don't you come in here and say that, you Inuyasha wannabe??" you shout.

Gojo touches his hair. "This is my natural hair color," he insists.

"Oh." You nod. "That's pretty cool." You walk up close to the bars and sit down. Gojo follows suit.

"I'm Satoru. What's your name?"

~

Imagine young Gojo being absolutely baffled at the verdict from the Higher-Ups that you're slated to be executed.

"She didn't do anything wrong! Isn't exorcising curses what we're supposed to do?" Gojo asked his retainer.

"The girl is a liability to jujutsu society, Satoru," his retainer explained patiently. "She consumes cursed energy from others. It's dangerous."

"So we should just have her be on our side," Gojo responds, only for his retainer to chuckle and pat him on the head.

It's at this young age that Satoru learns just how much leverage he has in society. When he puts his foot down and demands that the "Nure-onna" be spared and placed into the Gojo Clan's care to be his sparring partner, the demand is somehow granted. There's no way she could get close enough to someone with the six-eyes to drink his cursed energy, so he's the optimal partner for her.

~

Imagine young Gojo being fascinated by you.

"You're crazy for dragging me around with you," you tell him.

The two of you are in a field on the Gojo Clan grounds.

"You want me to let them execute you?" he asks, stretching out his legs.

"I could drain you of your cursed energy right here, right now."

"Do it, then. I wanna see. Just don't drink it all," he says. Gojo sits cross-legged in the grass and waits.

You eye him warily, wondering if there's servants waiting in the trees to jump on you for attacking their precious heir. Deciding that you'd just hold him hostage if they did, you kneel beside him and produce your water jug. He stops you when you make your first hand gesture.

"Hang on, explain it to me while you do it," he insists. You roll your eyes but oblige.

"Okay, well, I need at least about a liter of water." You gesture and the liquid flows out of the jug to form long water snakes that wrap around Gojo and squeeze.

"Do you hold everyone this loose?" he asks half-playfully.

You click your tongue at him and tighten his bonds until he lets out a soft grunt. "And then, I just..." You awkwardly tilt your head this way and that. "Normally I bite the neck, but I don't know if your clan would like that."

"Does it hurt?"

"I dunno."

"Will it leave a mark?"

"I dunno, Gojo, I've never tried it on a human!"

Gojo nods resolutely. "Fine. Bite my neck. I trust you."

You gape at the statement until he says, "Hurry up!" and you lean in and bite down where his neck and shoulder meet. You drink maybe a tablespoon's worth of cursed energy before pulling back and letting the snakes fall away. It does, in fact, leave a mark.

"So? What'd that do?" Gojo asks.

"I have more cursed energy for myself now."

"Show me."

You lift your hands with a flourish and all the water - from the dew on the grass to the nearby pond to the excess in the air - gathers and forms one giant writhing snake that slithers through the grass and settles around the two of you. Gojo watches the beast in wonder, eyes gleaming. He tears his eyes away to look at you.

"Pretty cool," he says.

"Yeah. Pretty cool."

~

Thank you so much for reading!

Click [here] for more of Sen being mean to his dad | Ask stuff about Sen and the fam [here]

[hollowed-theory-hall]

Normally, I post theories on this blog, and what I usually do is solve plot holes, but I'm currently rereading Deathly Hallows, and I honestly forgot how stupid some decisions there are. So, I'm compiling some of them here to maybe theorize and solve these plot holes later. But for now, I'm baffled.

1. I just reached the part where they started camping in the woods, and Harry just started being hungry, and I don't think I can adequately describe how dumb that is. Like, I can get wanting to stay hidden and stuff, but why not call Kreacher?

I mean, Harry showed in HBP he can just call Kreacher to him:

But the question was, how to call him? What did you do? Quietly, tentatively, Harry spoke into the darkness. “Kreacher?” There was a very loud crack, and the sounds of scuffling and squeaks filled the silent room.

(HBP, 419)

Why not call Kreacher and tell him to bring food to the tent? He's a house-elf, so he could apparate through their wards with no problem. They could've had Kreacher's cooking still, I just don't get it.

2. They didn't actually need to leave Grimmauld Place at all. The book explains it like this:

“Harry, I think he can. I—I forced him to let go with a Revulsion Jinx, but I’d already taken him inside the Fidelius Charm’s protection. Since Dumbledore died, we’re Secret-Keepers, so I’ve given him the secret, haven’t I?” There was no pretending; Harry was sure she was right. It was a serious blow. If Yaxley could now get inside the house, there was no way that they could return. Even now, he could be bringing other Death Eaters in there by Apparition.

(DH, 271)

But Yaxley wouldn't be a Secret Keeper, he couldn't bring other Death Eaters inside. This isn't how the magic works.

After Dumbledore dies, everyone he told the secret to becomes the Secret Keeper. Hermione is a Secret Keeper. She can reveal the secret to Yaxley by appparating him, but that doesn't turn Yaxley into a Secret Keeeper. It's just one Death Eater who knows how to get in that Harry and Co can kidnap, obliviate, or kill if they're really stressed about it. Yaxley couldn't bring anyone else inside regardless of how much he wanted to. He isn't a Secret Keeper, so all the other Death Eaters would've had to wait outside and watch the place the house should be in like they did up to this point.

And sure, Snape is a Secret Keeper but considering he somehow lied his way out of telling them the secret, even though we see Death Eaters stationed outside Grimmauld Place, I think it's safe to say, he wouldn't tell even after Yaxley knew and potentially returned with this information. I mean, the fact the Death Eaters are watching outside Grimmauld Place tells us Snape didn't tell them, and it should tell Harry, Ron, and Hermione Snape didn't betray the secret, as otherwise, the Death Eaters would've just broken in to search for them.

3. If we're talking of the Fidelius Charm and Secret Keepers, I don't get why Bill and Arthur Weasley have to be their own Secret Keepers. Why create this plot hole so late in the game? I mean, up until book 7, I didn't question why James and Lily had to have a third party as their Secret Keeper. It was just how the spell worked. Well, not anymore.

So, now I have to wonder why they were convinced they needed someone else, someone outside the house? Perhaps it was out of paranoia? So that if something happened to them anyway there'd be someone outside who could bring help?

4. And don't even get me started on the Battle of the Seven Potters. I mean, apparition or side-along apparition are completely viable methods of transportation, so why brooms? Wtf?

I mean, the Order makes this same ludicrous decision in OotP, when they transport Harry from the Dursleys to Grimmauld Place on brooms, so at least they're consistent in their stupidity.

Like, I could make an excuse for the use of brooms if they're trying to evade the Trace. According to how I believe the Trace works, the Trace wouldn't pick up on a broom the same way it didn't pick up on the flying Ford Angelica. It's an item already enchanted, magic isn't being cast, so it doesn't pick on it. So, while the Trace would pick up on apparition, it won't pick up on broom flight.

The problem with this is that in OotP we see the Order cast magic inside the Dursleys' house, making any chance of avoiding the Trace moot:

“Don’t be stupid, it’ll be much quicker if I — pack!” cried Tonks, waving her wand in a long, sweeping movement over the floor. Books, clothes, telescope, and scales all soared into the air and flew pell-mell into the trunk.

(OotP, 53)

And in DH, Harry is already 17, and the Trace shouldn't be a problem for him, so this excuse doesn't really hold water...

I'm sure I'll remember more as I continue reading, but these are the ones that really bother me now. Rant over (at least until I find a hopefully not super contrived way to make all this make sense in-universe).

[nikibogwater]

Everybody sit down and strap in, 'cause I have a doozy of a tale to share.

I've had anxiety for literally as long as I can remember. I've had periods of my life where it was so intense it became legitimately life-threatening (don't worry I promise this is going somewhere funny). And this was really bizarre because I have zero childhood trauma. Like, my family life is so idyllic it's almost comical. Therapists would do abuse screenings on me and look utterly baffled when I told them everything was fine at home. They'd interrogate my parents just to make sure I wasn't lying. I have one friend who I'm fairly sure believed I was just severely gaslighting myself when I said my family was great, school wasn't too stressful, and I've never lived in a dangerous neighborhood or experienced poverty.

Anyways, despite no one being able to figure out where my disorder was coming from, my doctors were able to help me manage the symptoms so that I would like, not die, and actually be able to finish high school. Which was awesome. Now fast forward to late 2021. My big sister (who has also had intense anxiety her whole life which no one could figure out why) is finishing up her doctorate and getting her physical therapist's license. Somehow, during all her studying and schooling, she finds out about this thing called Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, which explains literally everything that was going on with us. EDS is a connective tissue disorder that kinda fudges up your body in a whole bunch of little ways, including dysautonomia (episodes of very fast heart-rate that kick your body into fight-or-flight mode), and hypermobility (unusual flexibility). It's a spectrum disorder, so the severity of symptoms vary from person to person, but we definitely checked almost every box on the diagnostic list. My sister went to see a specialist, and yep, she was diagnosed EDS positive. She immediately calls my mom and goes "I know what's wrong with Niki" (thanks, sis, that's real encouraging lol). Initially we're like "okay Katie, that's nice" because honestly this kind of sounds like jumping at shadows, but I go in to see the specialist anyways just to make sure.

One consultation and diagnosis later, and suddenly my entire life makes perfect sense.

Now we get to the funny part. See, the diagnosis stuff happened in early 2022. So by the time late 2023 comes around and we're looking for a new dog (I promise this is relevant), we've been riding that chronic illness diagnosis for a while. Once again, my sister, ever the proactive one, decides she's going to help us get a new dog. She scours the adoption website, sends us photos of the cutest dogs available, and helps us make a decision. This is how we got Beverly, who has been an unstoppable force of chaos in our lives ever since we signed the papers (but she's also really cute so she can get away with it). Now on top of being a very excitable and anxious pupper, Beverly's got a weird little gimp in her hindquarters, which makes her sit all splayed-out and funny-looking, and while it doesn't seem to be causing her pain, we take her to a vet to get it checked out. Vet finds absolutely nothing. X-rays are taken and examined. Still nothing. At this point, they go "well, we could try a CT scan of her brain, which would run about $5,000, and maybe we could find something--" but my parents are already packing this dog into the car like "well that is a HARD nope." So we decide, look, Beverly seems happy and healthy, and those gimpy legs don't seem to bother her, so we'll just leave it be until it becomes clearer what's wrong with her because we do NOT have a cool $5,000 to throw around here.

Readers more astute than my family and I will likely have already figured out where this is going.

This morning, my mom is looking at Beverly sitting in her funny sprawled-out way, and something in her brain goes "wait...weird physical symptoms with no tracible cause that vets can see..." She does a bit of googling. Can dogs have EDS/Hypermobility? Yes. Yes they can. And the listed symptoms describe Beverly to a T.

So not only is my sister the one to finally figure out what's wrong with me, she also unknowingly got us a dog who has the exact same chronic condition as us. Meanwhile my poor dad, who is the only Normal Person in our house, is coming to terms with the fact that he is apparently just fated to always love chronically ill people and animals, and there's absolutely nothing he can do about it.

[kanmom51]

Like Crazy - new insights

*This is a reposting of my latest reblog due to issues with that specific post.

***This has been sitting in my drafts since April 2023!!!

This is the post I reblogged and the basis to my own post.

Yep. I had some of a post written way back in April 2023, but the pieces just didn't come all together for me.

After Muse's release and specifically after the BTB yesterday where JM discussed Who, Muse and the lyrics, we also saw the change made to Who's lyrics from "you" to "she" things started to clear up for me. But then, a friend also shared a picture of the original lyrics of Like Crazy, which were subsequently altered before recording. We discussed these changes and I now feel that this is it! This is the missing piece to my post.

I mostly left what I wrote over a year ago in tact, adding the missing pieces to this puzzle that makes this post with what I feel is a little more insight into Like crazy.

Needless to say, these are my opinions, how I see the lyrics, the ones that made the cut and the ones that stayed in JM's lyrics journal.

So, let's get started:

Here I was thinking I'm the only one who was seeing this...

I do hope I'm reading this right, before going off motormouth about something that maybe isn't what is being said, but to hell with it, this is something I've been thinking too and I'm just gonna come out and say it.

We're all over 18 here right?

This is a subject we can talk about?

The more I listen to this song, the more I think it to be true too.

First of all, before starting off, I want to link this ask:

**Shock and awe... "she" wasn't part of the original lyrics for Like Crazy . Colour me surprised to learn the same is true with Who (even though JM didn't actually write the song himself). Oh, and if we are on that subject already, how not surprising to see the process of writing the song with John Billion, who happens to be one of the writers of SNTY as well (me sitting here thinking of several words and references that could have been somehow suggested and inserted into the song. No idea who (nah, I'm telling lies, I know exactly who). How shocking (NOT) to see that the artist actually had input with the song lyrics of which he is not credited in writing.

Again, the depth of the song, the layers to the song and the multiple interpretations too.

JM told us this song is about him struggling. He told us he was going through a period where he was drinking too much. He was finding fulfillment in ways other than performing, as performing is part of him, he is a performer, someone who needs the stage to express himself. The stage is where he is at peace, the stage being a piece of him that he was missing.

We saw his outburst of emotions in the first day of MOTS ON:E (that was my first experience of BTS and he literally broke my heart - and later seeing him being mocked for it infuriated me).

This was October 2020, around 6 months into the pandemic. The uncertainty. This is their first online performance and from there until Muster another 9 months go by. We know from Festa 2022 that the pandemic screwed up all of their plans. The uncertainty, working on and releasing BE and then Butter and PTD everything leading up to the PTD online concert, a year after MOTS ON:E. For those that performing is their life, standing in front of an audience and giving it their all, it's a hard pill to swallow. The unknown, if they will ever get back to perform on stage in front of a live audience, when this is who they are, their essence, it can be unbearable. JM wasn't the only performer to go through this. It's just that he shared this with us. He showed us his pain and vulnerability and was mocked for it by many. Shame on them!!!

So, again, JM told us with Like Crazy, that he was filling in that hole. Alcohol was mentioned by him specifically. But listening to the song, I think it's quite clear that sex was a very big part of it as well. Looking for that rush, that high. It's clear as day, for me anyway, in the lyrics.

(I think we could last forever I'm afraid that everything will disappear Just trust me)

[Verse 1] She's saying Baby, don't think about it There's not a bad thing here tonight Baby, you can leave it Stay with me until today

[Verse 2] Watch me go Wet me all night (Away) And morning too Don't come if you're drunk

In this loud music It fades me It's a drama-like story I'm get used to it Have you come far to find me that you used to know? Yeah, I know You know, I know (Ooh)

[Chorus] I'd rather be Lost in the lights Lost in the lights I'm outta my mind It holds to the end of this night Every night You spin me up high The moon that embraces you Let me have a taste

[Post-Chorus] Give me a good ride (Oh, I'm fallin', I'm fallin', I'm fallin') It's gon' be a good night (Oh, I'm fallin') Forever you and I

[Interlude] Mmm-hmm Yeah, hey Mmm-hmm Ooh-woah Mmm-hmm Mmm-hmm (Forever, you and I)

[Verse 3] Me reflects in the mirror I'm going crazy without hesitation I'm feelin' so alive, wasting time

I'd rather be Lost in the lights Lost in the lights I'm outta my mind It holds to the end of this night Every night You spin me up high The moon that embraces you Let me have a taste

[Post-Chorus] Give me a good ride (Oh, I'm fallin', I'm fallin', I'm fallin') It's gon' be a good night (Oh, I'm fallin') Forever you and I

[Outro] This will break me This is gonna break me (Break me) No, don’t you wake me (Wake me) I wanna stay in this dream, don't save me Don't you try to save me (Save me) I need a way we (Way we) I need a way we can dream on (On, on, on)

Those are the lyrics he recorded.

But you see, there were changes made to the lyrics he was working on originally, and we got to see some of them.

This specifically:

Reading this draft and the final ones there are a few things that just fall into place for me (and I'd think for anyone that reads them), loud and clear:

First of all, obviously JM is singing about drinking too much alcohol. If the final lyrics hinted to losing himself in alcohol, the draft lyrics are ever so clear regarding that point.

Second of all, the sex. I think JM was pretty straight forward using the wording he was using. "Give me a good ride" can be other things, if you twist it around to try and explain it away, but bottom line, those lines within the context of the lines in the draft, like "just go turn off the light, you and me..." not to mention the whole chorus, to me the reference is obvious.

Next, I talked about the many references to JK in this song in this post:

This is all also relevant when it comes to my next point being the fact that to me it's clear that JM wrote this song referencing a special someone with whom he shares a high level of intimacy. A special someone that was there by his side when JM was struggling. A special someone that was struggling seeing JM going through everything he was.

To that person JM wrote (in the draft): "oh baby don't you cry, just wanna see your smile..."

These lines, they were too much. Too obvious. Too intimate. And they were left out probably because of just that.

So JM went with other lines. A little less obvious perhaps, and yet still very telling. The finale of the song:

No, don’t you wake me (Wake me) I wanna stay in this dream, don't save me Don't you try to save me (Save me) I need a way we (Way we) I need a way we can dream on (On, on, on)

Now, you could claim that the song is about an inner struggle. JM struggling with himself, talking to himself, and yes, that could very much be part of the message JM, the king of layering, is going for. But see, that's exactly the point. JM is the king of layering, of having several meanings and messages within his lyrics and creations. And this is not different. There is no mistaking the reference to another person, not JM himself, in the lyrics. The way he uses the "you" in the lyrics, at times could pass as you being the alcohol, at times the you being himself in the mirror, but at times it's clearly a third party he is talking to. Especially in that finale to the song, that someone that wants to lift him out of that stupor he is in, to wake him up, to save him, when he is unwilling, not ready to accept that help just yet (same person he asks not to cry, knowing that he is making them sad). There are also the clear JK references in this song. The "you are me I am you" being the loudest of them all.

But JM being JM, he showed us in his own way what this song was about, opening up and allowing us to see his drafts.

And then he gave us Letter. Hidden, and private and intimate. Addressed not to us, but to that person that was always there by his side, that person he addresses in Like Crazy telling him "forever you and I". Now, in Letter, being in a better, healthier place, he can repeat the sentiment of them together forever. A sentiment JK had mentioned in the past (omg, that was so very awkward).

And now using lines like : "I sincerely hope we are forever" and "But don’t forget that we’re always together"...

The lyrics, the sentiments, the drafted lyrics that never made it, like the use of "Dangshin", I have talked about it all. Letter was for JK. Period.

When seeing Like Crazy again, the lyrics, the struggle, the person by his side, the intimacy, and Letter, I'm kind of thinking that not only is Letter a love ode to JK. That is stating the obvious. But it's also JM's acknowledgement and thank you to that person that stood by his side in his most difficult of times.

JK.

Bottom line:

Like crazy is about JM struggling and self medicating with alcohol and sex.

It's personal about himself, his struggles, but also includes a person that is there by his side, one he is highly intimate with, one who is there with him together. That person is there, spending the nights with him, in that escape world JM created for himself. Sad seeing JM struggle, trying to find a way to help JM out of that pit but being unable to do so, staying by JM's side all the same.

We know who that person is.

Same person he addresses Letter to.

[crusty-chronicles]

Airheaded S/O Headcannons #9: Hiei (Yu Yu Hakusho)

He wants you dead at first

But that's just because he's a bit standoffish

You'd waltzed in right as he had Yusuke suspended in his clutches at a warehouse.

"Yusuke, you left your calc homework on your desk, you ditz!"

And then you looked up and saw the three eyed demon and your friend.

And he was a little shocked that a human had found his hideout, even with his manipulated spirit energy.

"Kinda in the middle of something here," the greasy haired boy responded.

"Well cut that out for a second. I've got places to be."

Like you weren't just witnessing him about to be killed

It was so baffling how you just completely dismissed the situation, that Hiei's powers actually faltered and let the detective get away.

What the actual hell????

"Get out of here, now!" Yusuke warned.

And you'd just frowned

"Dude, it's not that deep. Why are you even here?"

Now was Hiei's chance to attack

But when he disappeared and quickly reappeared behind with his sword raised, you just caught the blade and glared at him

"Can you back off, I'm trying to talk to my friend."

You shooed him away like a pest.

And that was the moment he decided he wanted you dead.

A strong believer in survival of the fittest

And what the hell, because you had not a single working brain cell but were somehow stronger than him????

Kuwabara is your best friend and the two of you combined are stupid²

And it's horrible because there's only so much stupidity Hiei can take.

During the time he's still conforming after being caught, he spends most of it in the human world scouting you out for any weaknesses.

He still holds a grudge from the first time you met

But he's so damn surprised to find out that you're a walking hazard

How does one leave the stove, microwave, and oven on?

How does one forget that they're all on at the same time????

It would be so easy to let your own recklessness kill you

But his damn pride won't let that happen because he wants to be the one that defeats you

So, you wake up from your nap to see all your appliances turned off

Which is surprising because you vaguely remember cooking something before you feel asleep.

You do earn his respect eventually

It's when Yusuke is tasked with defeating the Saint Beasts

All of you were struggling to keep the roof up from collapsing

Yusuke had suggested Hiei be the one to pull the lever because he was the fastest.

And you'd said something then. Something that made him not want to kill you anymore.

"I might be able to hold the whole thing by myself. You all have to be really fast though."

"Are you crazy?!? There's no way we're gonna leave you behind. We're in this together or not at all," the oaf had protested.

You gave a dopey smile and released all your spirit energy at once, lifting the ceiling with all your might and alleviating the pressure from all the others.

"You scared, Kuwabara? People die everyday. What's one more?"

Hiei had never moved as fast as he did when he pulled that lever down.

You were a fool for risking your life over the others.

A fool for wasting your power on the weak.

But you weren't scared of death, of dying for your morals

And that had his respect.

Hiei does not baby you and finds great amusement in your failures

After all, you're not his responsibility

You accidentally got captured by a demon?

Good luck to whatever idiot thought they'd last more than a minute in the same room as you

You swallowed a poisonous plant Kurama was growing because you were hungry?

That's what you get for giving into your human whims

You threw a punch at an enemy that missed and hit Yusuke instead?

You should've hit him harder

Uses your naivety to his advantage

The tape with Yukina?

You'd told him without much thought about the situation

Only for Hiei to drag you towards where she was being held captive.

"Ooh, where are we going?"

"Just quiet down and follow me, human."

It's because you can sense spirit energy a little better than he can.

That and if he's spotted, he can just pass it off as you dragging him along to see Kuwabara.

Surprisingly, you're quiet and don't make a sound that gets the two of you caught.

And maybe he's a little grateful you don't question him about it.

You don't question why he wants to save this girl you've never heard of up until a few days ago.

You just go along with it because 'We're friends.'

You're so stupid for trusting him that easily when he wanted so badly to kill you not long ago

So unbelievably stupid for following around a demon just cuz

You had a fool's heart, that was for sure.

You were a trustworthy ally during the Dark Tournament, a strong warrior during the battle with Sensui, and a true fighter during the demon tournament.

It's the last event that he realizes he values you a little more than he should.

He had just barely beaten Mukuro and was set to fight you next.

The thing was, Hiei could barley stand with his injuries, while you hadn't broken a sweat.

This was the one fight he looked forward to the most, besides the one he wanted with the spirit detective.

But there was this look on your face

An uncomfortable yet sorrowful look.

Why weren't you as excited as he was?

He shrugged the feeling off as the announcer told them to begin.

His sword was long destroyed, so he resorted to basic combat skills instead.

He lunged, fist clenched to hit, but you just dodged with that same look

He tried again and the result was the same

You didn't even try to block his attacks, just moved out of the way.

Like he was beneath you to even try.

He recognized the look now

It was pity

And that infuriated him.

"Why won't you fight back!" A kick aimed for your side.

"You think you're so-called friendship matters here? Your emotions mean nothing. Not in here. So quit acting like a fool and fight!" A punch aimed at your throat.

You stopped it this time, but didn't attack him back.

You were making a fool out of him.

And before he could berate you again, you spoke.

"I don't care if we're friends or not. Either way, the fight still isn't fair."

And that had temporarily halted his anger.

"What do I gain from beating someone so injured, they can't stand up? What do you gain from fighting when you have no power? Think about it."

You didn't want to fight because you wouldn't enjoy it?

It wouldn't be a win for you

"It's not fair to either of us if we fight like this. We'd never get to find out who's really stronger."

Hiei was the fool.

He'd lashed out at Mukuro for letting her feelings get in the way and here he was, doing the same.

Letting his pride get in the way of rational thought

He'd been the one to get upset that you weren't fighting him as an equal, when the condition he was in clearly said otherwise.

"I know you don't want to lose the tournament, so I quit. But I want you to heal up and get stronger. Don't die because next time I see you, I'll kick your ass the way you want. Got it?"

Don't die

You and that oaf shared the same moral code.

But something about it being you made him tolerate it.

"...I surrender. I'm in no shape to continue. Y/n, you better not hold back next time."

Much to the dismay of the audience, the two of you walked back together. The outcome of the match: no winner.

There was something for him to look forward to now. A new goal.

He'd surpass you and then Yusuke.

Following the events of the demon tournament, he's a little softer towards you.

You and that stupid human heart of yours had him observing you from the trees.

He was unused to the heaviness he felt seeing you visit Yukina and making her laugh.

He couldn't understand the warmth consuming his face when you would fight a stray demon and win.

He didn't know why he used his Jagan to see you while he was in demon world.

But he did know he didn't like seeing you and the idiot duo hanging off of each other, cackling at something one of them said.

Don't count on him acting on his feelings.

He would never tell you.

But his actions towards you are more than enough to let the others know you're his.

He calls you fool(derogatory) and if he's feeling sweet, just by your name.

Jealousy is a big one.

Hiei's never had something special he's been allowed to keep.

So if you're spending a little too much time with Kuwabara, don't be surprised to see him at your window the next day.

He'll deny to his dying breath that he came all the way from demon world just to see you.

He'll also deny leaving some of his own clothing or even his sword at your house just so it smells more like him than it does your (just as stupid) best friend.

Hiei leaves for months at a time and without fail, will always come back the day after you went crying to Kurama that you think he's died.

(Thanks to his Jagan that is. There isn't a day he doesn't check up on you so he's bound to know when you miss him.)

Kurama is his best friend, but that doesn't stop Hiei from getting upset when he comes to get you and sees you sound asleep on the fox's bed.

You just smell so much like the other demon now, it pisses him off.

"Keep your scent off my human."

And Kurama finds immense joy in his childish anger.

"Maybe if you would physically see them more, they wouldn't come by so often."

And Hiei's grumbling as he picks you up, still dead asleep, to bring you back to the home that would restore his own scent back on you.

The time spent when you wake up is for sparring.

He can't find it in him anymore to fight you for real

But that doesn't mean he won't enjoy the false matches you have with each other.

He refuses to take you with him to demon world.

You have a life here

And though it's tempting to take you where you wouldn't be very far away from him, he knows you wouldn't be happy away from everyone else.

So, the one and only thing he does that hints at his feelings for you is give you the makeshift necklace made from hiruiseki stone. His to be exact.

"Take it."

"Why?" Your small little brain was struggling to figure out why he would want you to have it.

"It represents a promise. A promise that I'll be back for you no matter what. So take care of it for me, human."

NEXT UP: Kurapika Kurta

MASTERLIST

An: Yall sorry it took so long, i deadass got sick last week.

[ayanominitrash]

ᴵ'ˡˡ ᴸᵉᵗ ʸᵒᵘ (ˢʰᵒᵏᵒ ᴵᵉⁱʳⁱ ˣ ʳᵉᵃᵈᵉʳ)

a.k.a The Satoru To My Suguru I first posted this on Ao3 here.

"What are we going to tell the boys?" "We don't have to tell those idiots. I think they'll pick it up somehow." "Do they even know that girls can like girls?" "We'll find out." Where the reader is a manager, Shoko is Shoko. And they were together. Until the reader decides to be something else.

₊˚ ♡

When y/n first entered Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical College, she was set to be an auxiliary manager instead of a sorcerer. She hadn't expected to be anything else but that, and she also didn't expect to be the girlfriend of the one and only brunette beauty - Shoko Ieiri.

Her short girlfriend who was always kind and laid back, was a bit of a stuttering mess when she uttered her short confession filled with cigarette smoke. They were seated side by side on a stone bench behind the open track field. It was at sunset and they were sharing a cancer stick with a slight chill in the air. 

"I -I like you."

"Hmmm?!" Y/n abruptly whips her head to stare at her best friend wide-eyed. "W-well, of course, you do. You wouldn't spend all this time with me after all if you didn't."

"I don't mean it t-that way." She looks away, the red in her cheeks is evident.

"Then. . .what do you mean?"

"Are you going to make me say it?"

The other girl nervously chuckles while tugging at the collar of her managerial suit. "Ah, this seems a bit sudden."

"It isn't." Shoko looks at her with a serious face. " I was pretty sure I left signs... .L-like, when I open the door for you when you and I enter rooms together."

Another chuckle, "B-but, anyone could do that without meaning anything, so I wouldn't have a clue."

"It doesn't matter. Do you want to be my girlfriend or not?" There was a feigned irritation in her voice but her companion can tell that it wasn't genuine and she was just nervous by the way her fingers trembled while she put out the cigar against their slabbed seat.

Shoko knows that she was putting a big risk in their friendship by confessing, but she was done playing cat and mouse. She was done trying to guess if there were some hidden meanings behind the actions of the intelligent, and cute girl beside her. If her heart beats faster like hers every time their fingers brush against each other. Or when they share an indirect kiss every time they share a cigarette stick or a blunt. Shoko was getting scared of how attached she's been getting to Y/n because they were always together, since their other classmates, Satoru and Suguru were always the ones out on missions, always leaving Shoko behind. But ever since Y/came along, she hasn't. It was like she found her own Satoru to her Suguru, as cheesy as that sounds. She tried to fight that naturally, but she's done doing that too. She'd rather claim her as her own before anyone can even have the chance. So she can't be alone anymore.

"You know, ever since I laid my eyes on you, I've always thought you were really pretty."

The brunette flinches at her words and gave her a surprised look. Y/n gingerly took Shoko's hand in hers, locking their fingers together.

"I always thought you were cool, witty, and strong."

"I don't even fight though." She finds herself blushing at her words and at the fact that they were holding hands, a thing she never thought they'd do after confession.

"Everyone knows being able to heal someone else is a rare and a very strong ability." Y/n places her other hand on top of Shoko's. "I'd be honored to be your girlfriend."

They stare at each other with small smiles and red faces, before Shoko quickly pulls her hand away from her. "Isn't it a little taboo for two girls to like each other?"

"You're just now thinking that after we've just confessed and become official?"

" Who said we're official? I didn't even get any flowers."

Her companion scoffs, completely baffled. "I'm not the one who confessed first!"

"So annoying." Shoko playfully covers her ears with her hands, maintaining a poker face.

"Hey! You're so out of your element - come here."

Y/n tackles the brunette, wrapping her arms around her now lover, and putting all of her weight until they eventually fall from their seat to the soft trimmed grass.

They both lay there and giggle for a moment and admire the orange hues the sunset was providing in the sky when suddenly y/n bumps Shoko on the shoulder with her elbow.

"What are we going to tell the boys?"

"We don't have to tell those idiots. I think they'll pick it up somehow."

"Do they even know that girls can like girls?"

"We'll find out."

₊˚ ♡

Y/n and Shoko were inseparable. During their homeroom class with Sensei Yaga, they'd purposely show up earlier than the rest so they can save their seat next to each other because their taller classmates love to steal their seats just for shits and giggles. They would walk the hallway holding hands, they would feed each other during lunch, and they'd cheer for each other during General P.E. The others don't seem to bother it, probably because they thought it was a normal friendship between the two since they choose not to kiss in public. But behind closed doors, that's another steamy story.

As an auxiliary manager, today was one of the many days where y/n has to accompany Sorcerers that need to travel by group to faraway areas. Shoko was excited to hear that she was assigned to accompany them for today's mission. She just has to join this one.

"This mission is pretty light that we have the green light to bring Shoko." Y/n starts, staring into the ledger she was holding.

They stand in front of the black vehicle that the auxiliary managers drive the Sorcerers in. Standing next to her girlfriend was her Sensei who was probably there to oversee the mission and how y/n executes this.

"The code word for 'boring'" Satoru says beside Shoko, using his fingers for the air quotes.

"Be nice, Satoru." Suguru lightly pats the back of his hand against the taller boy's chest. "I bought candies that you like that we can snack on during the ride." 

"Goodie!" With that, he immediately pipes up and enters the car. 

"W-wait, I didn't even explain the mission yet." 

Suguru only shrugs before sliding into the car. Shoko stays while she crosses her arms, an apologetic look on her face. Y/n can't help but tighten her grip on her wooden ledger while she seethes in anger. This was finally her time to impress Shoko with her being a manager. And that stupid tall stick tree was ruining it all for her. Suguru was no help either.

Her Sensei chimes "You can go ahead and discuss it on the way. Or at the site even. I doubt those two punks would listen."

"Yes, Sensei," Y/n says begrudgingly before walking over to the front of the vehicle to get into the driver's seat.

It was a quiet 1-hour drive, save for a bit of the boys' usual banter, Shoko occasionally chiming in with them. In the rearview mirror, y/n can see how her girlfriend is biting into her thumb, a habit she has when she's itching for a smoke. 

Once on the site, you discuss with much dexterity about the mission's details: a few low-grade curses on the loose in an abandoned apartment building. 1 or 2 trapped civilians, may be dead or alive. Exorcise the curses and bring back survivors if any. Shoko Ieiri is to attend to immediate medical aid if necessary.

With that, the young manager gets ready to cast the barrier while the trio trudges forward into the building. While the barrier forms, Satoru nods to himself as if in approval, while Suguru emits a low whistle at the sight. Shoko can only show a small smile and stare back at her girlfriend before the curtain can fully block the view.

It's been a few minutes since the trio entered and it has been relatively quiet. Y/n and her Sensei were sitting down at the curb where their car was parked when the older teacher gasped while he was reading the ledger.

"Y/n!" He growled, causing the young manager to abruptly stand up from her seat.

"Yes, Sensei?!" 

"What is the meaning of this?" His hands were shaking when he shoves the ledger to face her way so she can read it. "This is -"

"Special grade! They're going to die!"

"How could you let something like this happen?"

"I-I swear, Sensei! I wouldn't have let this pass me!"

"And yet here we are. This mission was only meant for the fourth year, now Ieiri is in there!"

"Sensei, I even read it out loud earlier -"

"Enough from you. I'll call for backup."

 What happened, y/n could not tell. She knew herself to be meticulous especially when it comes to the documentation part. She even recalls that she read the ledger out loud and it was indeed the correct one for the trio. Now her girlfriend was in there. The two boys were of course the strongest but even this mission was too risky for them.

"Sorry Sensei, I'm going in there."

"Stop spewing shit! Stay put here and - hey!"

While y/n removed her tie, she ran up to the barrier to break into the apartment building. 

"It's suicide! You're just a manager, idiot!"

"Sorry, sensei, my girlfriend's in there!"

"GIRLFRIEND?!!"

Shoko was smoking a cigarette on the third floor of the building. She sat on one of the tables in an apartment in silence, sometimes looking at her nails if she wasn't staring blankly at the wall. It was silent, save for a few ruckuses the boys were causing somewhere on the upper floors.

Suddenly, the door flies wide open and Shoko freezes.

What is y/n doing in here?

"What are you doing in here?!" She vocalized her thoughts.

The other panting and sweating, wastes no time to run up to her and grab her by the wrist, and whisks her away to run through the halls.

"What's going on? Where are you taking me and - you shouldn't be in here?!"

"Shoko, I don't know how, but the location got messed up."

"What do you mean? You're meticulous as ever!"

"I know! But - we have to get you out of here."

As they run down the stairs, Shoko sees that the past spirits they'd left on their way to the upper floor had been exorcised. There were middle-class spirits and Shoko notes that it was impressive that a manager such as y/n was even able to exorcise them. Her companion leading her abruptly halts once they reach the second floor, causing the shorter girl to bump against her back. 

Then, it happened.

The ceiling bursts open with the black blob of a special grade spirit, along with Satoru and Suguru falling with it. When they collide to the floor, it starts to give out and both girls yell, y/n wrapping her arms around Shoko to protect her, ready to cushion her fall. The floor finally gives, and all of them fall to the ground.

"What are you doing in here?!" Suguru yells at the two girls. "Hurry and leave!"

"Low-grade curses my ass, y/n!" Satoru yells, pointing a finger her way, his glasses long gone.

"I'll explain later. Right now, we have to exorcise the curse."

"We?!" Her classmates simultaneously yelled.

Y/n takes out what looks like a wooden straw and a few pellets from the inside of her suit. She takes one look back at Shoko with a look of determination, before darting up to the special grade spirit in a blink of an eye. She was as if almost as fast as Satoru.

Almost.

All of them were in shock by her movements, even the special grade curse itself was caught off guard when she landed against the side of the blob, only to jump back away and puff the sharp objects to its body.

The blob didn't flinch, but then.

Boom!

Explosions from where it was went off and Satoru and Suguru had to shield themselves from the debris. It was then they snapped out of their stupor and jumped into the battle.

Can you believe it? The strongest sorcerers and an auxiliary manager. . .exorcised a special grade demon?

Back at their high school, y/n approaches Shoko at one of the wooden benches in front of the main entrance, where a few cherry blossoms littered the yard.

"Hey. . ." The manager starts as she approaches Shoko.

"Hey, there. You feeling better?" 

"Yeah, thanks to you."

"Of course. It's my job."

"Speaking of," she pauses so she can sit down beside the shorter girl. "The locations of the mission got switched because there was a curse playing on the paper."

"What?"

"I know right?"

"Wouldn't have Satoru caught that?"

"We think it manifested itself as soon as you guys entered the building. If Satoru did catch it, he probably didn't think it was a big deal."

"Hmm."

They sit together in silence for a moment before Shoko speaks again 

"I take that doesn't mean you're expelled?"

"Ehr, no."

"That's a relief -"

"Quite the opposite."

"What do you mean?"

The young manager turns her body to face Shoko, giving her a serious look. She takes the brunette beauty's hands in hers before speaking.

"Shoko, you know I love you, right?"

"W-what?!" A bright red streak. "What are you going on about. . .of course I do, stupid." 

Shoko looks away before saying the next part. "I love you too." Y/n cups Shoko's cheek gently and urges her to look back at her eyes. "I want you to know that I'm here for you no matter what."

"Why are you saying this all of a sudden? You said it yourself that you're not expelled so - "

"Shoko, they want me to become a sorcerer."

It was like time stood still for the couple. They stare into each other's eyes in the quiet. Only the bellows of the wind and the rustle of the cherry blossoms could be heard.

"Oh" was all the brunette can say.

Meeting Y/n was like a dream to Shoko. She was no longer alone whenever the two boys were on missions. It used to be so boring with her and her own Sensei going over medical discussions on their own. But ever since then, y/n was always there waiting by the vending machines. And if she was going overtime with her managerial work, Shoko would wait for her to come home late into the night and they'd eat dinner together. At least then, they were only apart for a few hours. But, if y/n became a sorcerer. . .sometimes, there'd be missions that would take days, weeks, and even months to execute. 

Can Shoko handle that?

"Are you mad at that?" "Why on earth would I be mad?" Shoko says, carefully removing her hands from her partner's grip. "Are you going to take it? I mean, I thought you held some prejudice against being a sorcerer."

"I don't know." Y/n looks down at her hands. "I never wanted to be a sorcerer because that's how my parents left me. But, when I fought today and they even told me that I was strong... .it makes me want to see how far can I go."

Shoko casts her eyes down, but a small smile plays on her lips.

"I see, then that's your answer then."

"Then, what does that mean between us?"

"Hmm?" Shoko smacks her on the shoulder, to which the other girl rubs the spot. "Why are you worrying? The only thing that's going to change is that I'll be inclined to make your food for you to bring on missions."

"You're not bothered. . . by that?"

"I'd hate it if I'd have to be the one holding you back. If you want to do it, I support you."

One would think that y/n would be relieved or happy, instead, she surprised Shoko by pouting and crossing her arms.

"What? Did I say something wrong?"

"I thought you'd be more upset that you won't get to see me that often anymore. But now I'm thinking you just want to get rid of me!"

Shoko scoffs. "What are you? A kid? You're too old for me to coddle you."

Y/n suddenly stands up to walk away but Shoko grabs her by the wrist and pulls her back down.

"H-hey, what are you going on about - "

Shoko stops talking when she sees the childish face her partner has. Her lips were still in the same pout but it was shaking, trying her best to hold back her tears but it was already running down her face in streams. Her brows furrowed seriously and her gaze fixated on the floor.

The brunette stops teasing her at that moment and opts to hold her girlfriend's hand in silence instead. 

"I -I don't want to be f-far away from y-you. . ."

". . .I know. "

₊˚ ♡

A few years later, Shoko sat down on the wooden benches at the entrance of Jujutsu High near the cherry blossoms. She was careful not to stain her white doctor's coat all the while making sure her long hair didn't hit her face. Her fingers dig into her coat's front pocket to fish out her reliable stress relievers: a pack of cigarettes and her lighter. 

"I thought you quit smoking."

She looks up and sees her tall friend, Satoru towering over her. Beside him was the raven-haired Suguru, both in their teachers' uniforms. 

"Not quite, right Suguru?"

The man in question widens his eyes and glares at her, only for it to be gone the second Satoru whips his head at him. Despite his bandage blindfold, one can feel his judgemental stare.

"You two still go on smoke breaks?! Why am I getting left out?!"

"There he goes again." Suguru rubs the back of his neck.

"The world doesn't revolve around you, idiot. You're busy teaching so naturally there are times we hang out without you. Grow up."

Satoru feigns hurt, putting a large hand over his chest. "Ieiri, that's the meanest thing you've said to me."

"Shoko!"

The three of them turn their heads to the owner of the voice, to find y/n, skipping her way over to them with a big smile on their face. When she finally caught up to them, it was evident that she had just been in quite a battle on her last mission. Her long dark sleeve jujutsu uniform was all covered in dirt with a few tears here and there. Her face was a bit dirty as well. 

"Welcome back," Shoko mutters with a small smile before putting her cig back to her lips. 

The sorcerer puts her hands behind her back and sways in place, beaming at her girlfriends. The two men look at each other and then back at the girls. 

Satoru was the one to speak. "What? Don't be shy. No hugs? No lover's reunion?"

"Y/n has been gone for two days," Suguru adds. "Y/n, is she even treating you right? I'm always available to fill the spot."

With this, the brunette kicks Suguru's shin by instinct, causing him to yelp and hold his leg, jumping in place.

"My pretty Shoko is wearing a white coat and we don't want to get it dirty," Y/n says, to which Satoru and Suguru scoff at the cheesiness.

"My pretty Shoko" Satoru coos while twirling. "Oh, my fabulous Shokomoookoo." 

Ieiri was rubbing her temples in annoyance but there was an amused smile on her nonetheless.

"How about a kiss then?" Suguru suggests and pushes the young sorcerer towards Shoko, almost bumping foreheads.

"Oh, hey." The brunette blushes and puffs smoke to her lover's face.

"Hey. . ." A read streak paints the sorcerer's face as well, then leans in for a kiss on the lips.

"Ahhww, isn't it sweet? A lover's reunion. Suguru, I'm jealous. Come here."

Satoru was making kissy faces at him before Suguru stopped him from getting closer with an extended hand. 

The couple could only giggle at them.

˖⁺‧₊˚ ♡ ˚₊‧⁺˖˖⁺‧₊˚ ♡ ˚₊‧⁺˖˖⁺‧₊˚ ♡ ˚₊‧⁺˖˖⁺‧₊˚ ♡ ˚₊‧⁺˖˖⁺‧₊˚ ♡ ˚₊‧⁺˖˖⁺‧₊˚ ♡ ˚₊‧⁺˖˖⁺‧₊˚ ♡ ˚₊‧⁺˖

(❀❛ ֊ ❛„)♡ reblogs and comments are appreciated//do not repost my work anywhere // more from my drafts soon - shoko's so underrated

[realcube]

˖°.𓆩♡𓆪 .°˖ CHARACTER GENERATOR for @yvr-miko

𓆩♡𓆪 part of my lovers level — 3k follower event

𓆩♡𓆪 chosen trope: idiots in love

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ YOUR CHARACTER IS...

NEITO MONOMA

at the cafe your favourite cafe, you had both placed your orders and the staff said they would bring it out to your table once it's ready. so for now, you both sat together at a table by the window, with idly looking outside while monoma prattled on about his annoying co-workers at the hero agency he was working at.

"they don't listen and are all completely uncoordinated. if i was in charge i'd have fired them ag— are you even listening to me?!" he roars, noticing that you're not making eye-contact and instead staring vacantly out the window.

you glance at him, then turn your whole head to face him, "of course."

momoma's eye widen, anticipating that you'd be harshly snapped back to reality and he'd get to tease you for zoning out. but he was proven wrong, and stammers, "o— oh.. good! because what i'm saying is important."

"sound like you are just complaining about your co-workers." you correct, very matter-of-factly.

but he simply nods with a smug smirk and says, "that's right! anyway, as i was saying, if i were in charge i'd have fired them ages ago and—"

as if a sign that the universe didn't want to hear him moan anymore, a cafe worker approaches your table and places your order on the table. "a cappuccino and croissant." they say, putting it down in front of monoma. "a soy milk latte and brownie." and they put your order down on the table too, but upon hearing this, monoma instantly looks at you.

seeing your brows knit together in frustration confirms his initial notion that they got your order wrong, so he pipes up, "excuse me, she asked for oat milk, not soy."

you raise your eyebrows, not expecting monoma to involve himself (though you should've, because he always very quick to stand up for you). "it's fine, i do—" you try to interject.

but the worker replies faster, picking up your latte with wide eyes, "oh, i'm so sorry, i mixed up your drink with another order. let me go get yours." they scurry away back to the kitchen.

you look to monoma, who is taking a sip of his drink. "you didn't have to do that; it wasn't a big deal." you say, so muted you were basically talking to yourself, but somehow he could still hear you.

"you deserve to have the drink you paid for." monoma replies plainly.

"but you paid for it."

"oh, yeah." monoma nods through a mouthful of food, then swallows before he says, "you deserve to have the drink i paid for."

you snicker a little, and just as you do so, the worker returns with a different drink for you, "here you go, one latte with oat milk. sorry again about the confusion." they smile apologetically towards both of you, "let me know if you need anything else. enjoy the rest of your date." with that, they dart of back to the kitchen.

while you are left flustered by their word choice, monoma gestures to your drink with a skeptical expression, "you should take a sip to make sure they got it right." but when his eyes shift from your drink onto your face and he sees how baffled you look, he asks, "are you okay?"

"yeah, sorry. i was just a bit taken back that the worker thought we are on a date." you chuckle awkwardly.

"right? how idiotic." he scoffs and rolls his eyes, while you take a sip of your drink and hum in agreement.

"that's a bit harsh. i wouldn't call them an idiot but it's strange they'd assume that we're together when we don't act like a couple at all. i wonder if they just think every pair of friends th—"

"honey, you've got froth on your lip." momoma points out with a slight snicker, and despite the contemptuous way he may act around other, you can tell that he isn't trying to mock you or anything like that, and he's simply telling you out of respect.

"ah, alright." just as you are about to look for a napkin, he picks up the one that came with his croissant and interupts by saying,

"let me get it." he insists, leaning across the table as he uses the paper to carefully wipe the froth off your lip. "there we go." he declares proudly as he sits back down.

you smile gently at him, "thank you." you sing, cheeks heating up slightly at the caring act.

"it's nothing, sweetie."

you blink, averting your gaze as you desperately try to change the subject, "what was i talking about, again?"

"the worker mistaking us as a couple."

"oh, right!" you gasp slightly at the reminder, "yeah, that's so silly. why would they think that?" you idle, about to take a bite of your brownie.

monoma shrugs, "i have no idea."

for @yvr-miko: i was considering giving you katsuki but i think cafe/hiking dates match with monoma more. anyway this was very sweet to write, idiots in love is sm fun 😭

[droughtofapathy]

"Welcome to the Theatre": Diary of a Broadway Baby

The Great Gatsby

April 27, 2024 | Broadway | Broadway Theatre | Evening | Musical | Original | 2H 30M

All the sparkly costumes and grandiose set pieces can't disguise this show's intellectually and musically filthy core. With a creative team that seems to have missed the entire point of Fitzgerald's book, Bad Gatsby is a Vegas spectacle best suited to theme parks and audiences bereft of critical thought. I have no loyalty to the source material. As a lesbian, I didn't much care for the book and its protagonist who seems disinterested in women, and spent pages waxing poetry about the male physique. But even I know it's a classic brimming with intellectual nuance, while this production is anything but. The relationship between Gatsby and Nick is now only ever a passing acquaintance, rather than the very foundation. The show's aggressive heterosexuality sees Nick and Jordan (a forcibly-feminized, pick-me girlboss type) romping about as Gatsby and Daisy, somehow even duller than the book (and how was that ever possible?) sing power ballads at and about each other that say nothing, and move the plot even less.

This adaptation of the beloved classic novel gleefully excises any and all purpose. Nick's idolization and homoerotic love for Gatsby drives the book's narrative. Here, he's doing basically nothing. My kingdom for a dramaturg who seems to actually like and understand the book, rather than someone who just wants to capitalize on it being newly public-domain. Why, oh why, do people keep adapting classics they clearly do not like? I don't like Gatsby, so I'd never bother to write a musical adaptation of it.

And speaking of music, it's ill-suited to both the period and the story. Everything is all contemporary pop ballad, and as someone who doesn't care about or know much of Jeremy Jordan, it's not working. Perhaps it's my blatant lesbianism and pretentious disregard for the allure of youth, but he's never seemed overly remarkable. He's a white male tenor. There are fifteen-thousand who look and sound just like him. But from the constant shrieking up in the mezzanine, you'd have thought the Beatles had come back for a one-night-only reunion. Thankfully, in my front side-orchestra section, I was surrounded by older patrons who politely clapped and refrained from any such screaming. Also, Jeremy Jordan's accent is all over the place, and I can't imagine why.

The shallow production that sits in the (possibly cursed, at this point) Broadway Theatre, has been robbed of its social commentary, its purpose, its depth. The characters are caricatures, the subtext is spelled out on a chalkboard (A song entitled "The Green Light"???) and is in some fascinating way, a meta commentary in and of itself. A massive budget allows for not one, but two working cars to drive around on stage. The glitz and glam blinded the creatives to anything...creative.

And don't even get me started on the baffling decision to cast a Mexican-Asian woman as Daisy, the quintessential image of white privilege. What are we saying by having Eva Noblezada in that role? It's such a thankless role that it's not like her talents are being utilized. And her character is so weak and dull, even more so than the book itself. And she's out here doing a hit-and-run, and yet we're just gonna...gloss right over that, I guess? And Nick's disgusted by Jordan saying they shouldn't tell the police what they know, but then immediately goes to plead with Gatsby to get out of town? Having done no work in the show to justify this loyalty, it's just inconsistency.

Also, and now I'm just jumping around to things I didn't like, the scene where Gatsby gets shot is staged so that Wilson is pointing and shooting that gun right at the front right orchestra section. And staring down the barrel of a gun is not what I want to be doing on a Saturday evening at 10:30 p.m. He shoots that thing twice while pointed at the audience, and no thanks.

Anyway, the Florence Welch Gatsby is at the ART now, so let's hope that one actually understands the damn book.

Verdict: Someone Put This Dumpster Fire Out

A Note on Ratings

[caramel1mochi]

ぐちゃ ! (Splat!) [Yoru x F! Reader] [3]

Out of everyone I've written about, Yoru is hands down the HARDEST. Somehow harder than Chamber??

He's just so solitary, I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel to make them realistically interact. I'm straight up cursing myself for liking this guy HE'S SO MENTALLY TAXING.

Now that that's out of the way, we're back! Here's another 7k long post for you guys!

❤ฺ·。

Yoru x F! Reader

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 4.5 / Part 5 / Part 6

Genre: Fluff

Synopsis: Hapless doesn't even begin to describe you. With your life flipped upside down within the span of a day; you're left to rely on your best friend Tala to help you pick up the pieces and build the new one forced upon you. And this 'luck' seems to have caught the attention of one of her friends.

。+❤ฺ·。❤ฺ·。+❤ฺ· +❤·。❤ฺ·。+❤ฺ·

You hadn’t eaten in almost fifteen hours. And though you didn’t realise it at the time, your stomach made sure you knew it, and rudely awoke you from your slumber as a harsh reminder of your mistake. With a deep angry sigh, you laid on your back and lamented this stupid body.

First, it accepts a foreign solid object into its nervous system and allows it to make non reversible and destructible changes, enough to classify you as a threat. Now it has the gall to ask for food?

…

Maybe you weren’t all there yet.

You looked to your right to notice a fuzzy ball of blue pressed up against a dull pillow of grey, your blurry vision slowly adjusting to the strands that stuck out. Right, it was Neon. And you weren’t selfish enough to wake her up to get you food.

And so, with major reluctance, like a bear waking up from hibernation, you were forced to move and nourish yourself.

❤ฺ·。

Thankfully, the kitchen was empty.

You walked through the common room earlier. It was empty as well, but there was this odd sensation of a pair of eyes watching you. Like it was some omnipresent, supernatural being. Fused into the environment. And you made the obvious choice of getting the hell out of there.

You were already cursed, you weren’t about to tamper with the spirits and anger them.

With a deep sigh, you turned to the fridge and ignored the pretty sight in front of you. Nearly as golden as yesterday, but because the sun had only begun to rise, the hue was much calmer.

Maybe, now that you had free time, you’d finally get around to cooking yourself breakfast that wasn’t tea and whatever thing you had lying around from the night before. With only one arm to work with, it sounded like a strenuous task to take on.

You looked around, finding all kinds of food. For a moment, it baffled you. Indian food, Australian food, American, eastern asian, african, everything. Even some of the fruit and vegetables left you confused, not when you barely stepped foot outside of your own culture.

But most importantly; were you even allowed to touch this food? None of it was yours, even the raw stuff. Huh, maybe this is why your mother really didn’t want you to move out.

Speaking of your mum, you should probably get to contacting your parents.

Then, you heard someone clear their throat behind you, making you jump and look back. But relief instantly filled you at the sight of Yoru. And this, he caught on to, raising an eyebrow.

“Oh. It’s you.”

“Morning…”

He stretched his arm between you and the fridge and moved you away until you were at a comfortable distance, before finally accessing the sanctuary of food. All without touching you. For a moment, you couldn’t tell whether this was impressive or not. 

Did he just hate people or you specifically?

“I’m surprised you showed up after yesterday.”

You shrunk, watching him diligently observe the shelves. Probably for his own plate of food.

“I was hoping everyone was asleep, and, uh… Guess I was wrong, huh?”

You awkwardly chuckled, but Yoru didn’t react.

“I’d bury myself if I were you,” he slammed the door of the fridge and blankly met your gaze, “no offence.”

Then, he walked off, boiling some water as he set the plate on the counter. Not a hint of amicability in any word that left his mouth. You watched him in silence for a moment, before crossing your arms and sighing.

“Thanks, that helps.”

“I’m just being honest.”

Being honest, huh? Yeah. Sounds like a thin veil to insult you.

Once he stepped away and set his food on the table, you quickly took this chance to wash your own cup, preparing to make yourself tea. You really didn’t want to talk to him (or anyone), not when he was as welcoming as a feral cat. But again, this is the same guy who helped you quit your job. Actions speak louder than words, right?

"Neon told us about you yesterday."

"She didn't say anything bad, did she? I'll kill her, if so!"

He silently approached and poured himself tea, before walking off to his table.

"You think you're cursed?"

You sighed in relief, before taking the kettle into your own hand.

"It's not obvious? It's only been two days and everything bad that could happen, happened."

"How?"

You set down your hot cup with a loud clunk, glancing at him from behind. Now, Yoru was sitting on one of the circular tables. Chopsticks and bowl of food in hand, leaning back on his chair, he didn’t share your passion for the situation whatsoever.

"You're kidding, right? Look around! I destroyed the roof in the training room in front of Harbour and that green haired one, Viper and Neon suddenly switched and hated the nectar they liked before, and you watched me get yelled at by my boss. Now, you're here!"

His eyes darted towards yours.

"What?"

"I– I mean, I wanted to be alone, but you showed up. Nothing against you!"

…

He looked away.

"Sounds tough."

Yoru turned his gaze away and lifted a piece of broccoli, daintily biting it. Seeing this, and with no other choice, you took your cup of scalding hot tea and approached his table.

"Also, they figured out what that thing is."

"What thing?"

"The nectar. Fade saw it. It's liquified fear."

You held the back of your chair, staring at him in silence.

"What?"

"Yeah. You just reminded Viper of her biggest mistake. Why do you think she looked so mad?"

With an awkward chuckle, you sat down, mortification flooding every inch of you. From his vacant expression and monotone voice, it didn’t sound like he was mocking you for your mistake, either. Just letting you know, because, why not?

"You're kidding, right?"

"No."

You clutched your temple with a deep sigh, mumbling a few words in Tagalog under your breath. You just reminded Viper of her biggest mistake, he said. The same woman studying your hand and helping you out. Not only her, but also Harbour and Neon. Now it made sense why she mentioned something about an abundance of electricity, and why Harbour was so quick to leave the scene after Viper asked him to describe the sample.

Yoru simply sat in front of you, swallowing a piece of flavourful salmon before he spoke up once more.

"What're you gonna do?"

"I... I don't know. I guess I– I'll wait for Harbour until we get this under control."

"You'll wait for Harbour?"

"Yeah... Not like I have any other choice. But it's all so much to learn..."

"Tch. Like what?"

"Everything! I have to learn how to use a gun, position myself, communicate, use my bracelet, and that's not even scratching the surface! I saw what Brimstone wrote in his email earlier!"

You met his gaze angrily, but he didn’t seem bothered.

"Oh, yeah. That. If you’re so clueless, then stop just letting things happen. Say something."

He picked up a small portion of white rice and ate it, watching confusion take over you. What kind of suggestion was that? You thought.

"How?"

"Tell him you want to practise taking control of your bracelet first."

"I can't do that! How would I even tell him?"

"‘Harbour, I want to take things slow. Help me with my bracelet first, then the guns.'"

He took a few edamame beans, biting down with a shrug.

"It's not that hard."

You shook your head and crossed your arms.

He wasn’t joking, was he?

"What if he says no?"

"He won't."

"What makes you so sure?"

"I know him."

"What if Viper or Brimstone say no?!"

"They don't have a say in this."

"But then I'd be delaying things!"

"Gekko's been training for a month and he's still in the same place as you."

He met your gaze and pointed at you with his chopsticks, a piece of salmon in between.

“The one with the green hair.”

Then, he took a bite. All while holding in the urge to call you spineless. Not so soon.

It took you a moment to think of anything else to say. Everything that left your mouth was shut down instantaneously, and you weren’t even given a moment to elaborate on it given how cut and dry his answers were. How would you even talk with someone like him? He practically took all of the answers and laid them out in front of you. Clear as the sun.

And you had customer service skills.

"Are you making up stuff to make it look like you're right, or are you really being truthful?"

"Are you calling me a liar, lady?"

He snapped, and you were taken aback by this sudden bout of aggression.

"Okay! Okay, I'll– I'll try it. I'll tell him. But if he says no, it's on you!"

He rolled his eyes and ate a small piece of cucumber.

"Whatever."

You stared at him for a few seconds, completely forgetting the hunger you felt. How were you meant to deal with someone like this?

In terms of conversation, Yoru was rude. Very rude. But in terms of actions, he was helping you to an exponential degree. Giving you a clear-cut answer to everything, and not giving you a chance to feed into your anxiety. As outlandish as this thought sounded, you couldn’t help but ask yourself.

Was Yoru being… nice?

"Are you usually like this?"

He raised an eyebrow.

"You're so weird. You look like you can’t stand me, but you're helping me out. Is there something going on? Did Neon tell you anything yesterday?"

"I wanted to train yesterday. But I couldn't."

He stirred his fluffy rice.

"I don't want you to ruin any other place I frequent."

"And... you're doing that by helping me?"

"Yeah."

…

Is that it? Nothing else, no hidden motives? He just didn’t want you to get in his way, and somehow went about it in the most unexpected way possible. Had you known, you would’ve expected him to cuss you out and call it a day.

And nobody has an issue with this…?

Yoru really was a walking oxymoron, wasn’t he? And you couldn't help but be even more curious about him, finally taking the cup of tea into your hand.

"Thanks, I guess."

He threw you a quick hum of acknowledgement.

❤ฺ·。

Boarding the same vehicle you first arrived in, you were taken far, far away to a remote island made up of a single valley that stretched out until the ocean halted its path. You hopped out of the vehicle into a field of grass and nervously looked around, checking for any sign of fauna. And it's not like it was difficult either. There were absolutely no mountains in sight. Aside from a few insects, naught was found.

Harbour jumped out behind you, taking a deep breath with a wide smile on his face, as if you didn't just destroy a portion of the base yesterday.

"Look at this place, it's perfect, waiting to be squashed! How's your arm, friend?"

You awkwardly smiled, meeting his gaze. He held two guns in each hand, and just this sight made you nervous for what's to come.

"The drug's wearing off..."

"Good, good, we can take it step by step, then. Let's get started with the scans Viper handed me, first. Can you hold this for me?"

And as if he was giving you a piece of candy, he held out his hand, a Ghost in his grip waiting to be grabbed by you. You cleared your throat and slowly took it with your right hand, your fingers wrapping around the grip. One wrong move, and both of you could be squashed. Damn you for wearing the bracelet on your main hand, right?

You stared at the gun while he took out a suitcase, processing the fact that it was a real weapon. Forget the bracelet, just pulling the trigger could cause injury, or death. Should you be holding something like this?

"So, uh, Harbour, I was thinking, and..."

You swallowed, meeting his gaze whilst he fumbled with the open bag, now set on the ground. He waited for you to continue, but the words just wouldn't come out.

"What is it?"

"I think we should–"

How hard was it just to tell him?!

"I think we should focus on my hand first!"

...

Harbour stood up and raised an eyebrow, papers in hand. Their contents were obscured on account of the angle he held them in.

"You've never used a gun before?"

"Uh, no?"

He shrugged, holding out his hand once more.

"That's fair. Give me that back, and we'll get to it when you're ready."

You blinked, staring at him in shock.

Wow, he listened! So, Yoru was right, huh? Maybe the people here aren't as rigid as the ones back home...

Immediately, you shook your head and handed him his gun back, pushing those thoughts out of your head. Don't think about it, else your luck will be jinxed and you'd probably squash the VLT/R by accident.

"So, what's that?"

"This, my friend, are your X-rays. Left and right arm. See this?"

He placed both papers right next to each other on the ground. With the calm winds that barely managed to sway a strand of hair on your heads, it was safe to say they wouldn't be blown away any time soon. Now, you could see clearly the difference between your left and right arm.

"These extra lines here are your brand new nerves; made and connected to the stem. Some sensory, some motor. Mostly motor. Do you know what that means?"

You stared at him with a forced smile, non-verbally telling him you hated these pauses. The suspension killed you. Literally, if you moved one finger.

"Okay, okay, it means that you'll be able to voluntarily control parts of your bracelet. Like a muscle."

You tilted your head with a more natural smile. 'Bracelet' and 'like a muscle' sounded so wrong together.

"What?"

"How do you move this arm?"

He pointed at your left arm. And you lifted your elbow in confusion, rotating your hand repeatedly.

"I, uh, I just move it, I guess?"

"Exactly, and how do you move parts of the bracelet?"

...

"Just like you would with a muscle! You just have to find out where, and the search begins here."

He pointed at your right wrist on the paper where most of the extra nerves lay. Like roots, they spread out viciously across your entire arm towards your shoulder, before the picture was cut off. You could barely understand what he meant on account of your clouded frame of mind, but it was worth a try, right?

You turned towards the empty field and held out your right hand, working to move every possible muscle.

"You have to forgive me, I'm not really a biology guy."

"Could've fooled me. What are you into, then?"

"History! Everything history. Name anything, and there's an astronomically high chance I know about it."

You winced once you moved the wrong muscle, quickly relaxing your hand once more. It felt like a finger was shoved deep between the bones of your wrist, before pulling away. Was that it?

"Fun... And what about this place? You're sure this island has no animals I'll inevitably kill?"

"Oh no, no chance. There used to be a chemical weapons plant on this island many years ago, and the fumes from that killed all of the wildlife. Nothing to worry about."

Nothing to worry about? He sounded unnaturally upbeat as he explained this, like a professor at a university who was too happy about his job. No wonder he was the coach, he was just so pleasant to be around even while discussing macabre topics.

"What country was it?"

"That I don't remember, but I know it was around when World War One took place." 

Good, good. So, nothing else was dying at your hand. Fumbling around with your fingers for a few seconds as you both chatted, you didn't find any 'nerve points', so to speak. All you did was tense the muscles on your wrist, arch your fingers and loosen them.

“So, you have an artefact, I have this thing, is there anyone else like us?”

“Well, Astra is one of us, but her whole arm is made of gold. Last she told me, it had something to do with a pond, but not much else was said.”

You perked up at this, looking at him from the corner of your eye.

“She has a golden arm? That sounds so much cooler.”

You took the two X-rays and set them side by side. Comparing both arms, you noted down where the prevalent nerves were and worked to gain control over them. Progress has been naught so far, so you might as well, right?

“Wait til’ you see what’s under the gold. I won't tell you, though!”

“Lame! So, anyone else?”

“Let me think… Oh, Yoru has his samurai mask that he painted over.”

He said the last part between gritted teeth. And with a giggle that interrupted him, you silenced yourself and waited for him to continue his sentence.

…

“...And?”

He shrugged, confused at your expectant look.

“I don’t know. Guy keeps to himself, I can't get more than two words out of him.”

“Oh… Wait, aren’t you the coach around here?”

Why was he so okay with one of his subordinates being so conceited, then? With you, sure. You were a newbie. But him?

“He’s like that with everyone. You should see how Brimstone gets when they talk, it’s like getting blood out of a stone!” he stifled his chuckle, “I have to step in sometimes, but it’s hilarious to watch.”

“And you guys are okay with it?”

“Ehh, well, yes. It’s not really the end of the world. Besides, he makes up for it.”

How could he possibly make up for it? Being rude is– well, it’s being rude, there’s no way to–

Then, a shadow emerged above both of you. But before it could strike, you immediately loosened the point, and it fused back into the air like nothing happened.

"Wait, wait– I think I found it!"

It felt like you could somehow, instead of moving a whole set of muscles, you could move them individually. Even the ones buried deep within, shifting towards the bracelet. You tensed one muscle once more. And there, you could see the shadow form. But when the pressure was kept steady, so was the silhouette, and it stood still like a cloud looming over both of you.

"This is amazing!"

You cried out in joy, Harbour smiling.

"Congratulations! So, think you can move that away? I'd like to live another day, please."

"Oh, right– right, yeah, sorry."

You awkwardly giggled, and worked on moving the silhouette far away to a safe distance. Harbour promptly walked to your right, his arms crossed. His sarcasm was just too much for you.

"No worries. Now, with only a few more days of practise, you'll be squashing the invaders like they're flies on command! Exciting, don’t you think?"

You shared his joy for a moment, before meeting his gaze with a certain amount of concern.

"You're joking, right?"

"...Sure. Now, back to work!"

You sighed, bringing up your hand with your fingers stretched apart. 

This is gonna be a long day.

❤ฺ·。

You’d been training for a while, and now that they deemed it fit, after three days in the protocol, you were finally able to meet Neon’s friends. And by ‘they’, it was just everyone other than the administration. To them, meeting you took more priority than giving you a name, a room, and trying to understand your abilities properly.

“I can’t wait for you to meet everyone! If Raze wasn’t so tired, she’d definitely be throwing you a party right now.”

You sighed, barely able to keep your own eyelids up, let alone your entire body to walk down the never ending hallway.

“I’m not in the mood for parties, Tal– uh, Neon.”

“And that’s where you’re lucky! Congratulations! Maybe things are turning around for you.”

You couldn’t help but laugh, her joy simply too contagious. Maybe they were.

“I know, you can tell how excited I am.”

You lifted your hand, nectar oozing off of it like your arm had a bath all out of its own volition. With your powers now seemingly under control, the dosage Viper gave you this time around was much less potent. And thanks to this, you were able to produce whatever cursed perfume the bracelet can make.

“Can I, uh, have some tissues?”

“Sure, here.”

“Yo, what’s that smell?”

The doorway stood merely a few metres away from you. And even at such distance, you could still hear one of the guys announce. And unfortunately for you, that voice was dreadfully familiar. You stopped, catching Neon’s attention.

“Uh oh, that sounds like…”

“Oh, that’s Gekko. He’s chill, don’t worry.”

“Gekko? The one with the green hair? He’s the one who saw me destroy the roof with Harbour!”

Neon rolled her eyes and grabbed your left wrist, pulling you towards her.

“Hoy, relax, Y/N. They’ve probably forgotten about it by now, you know how fast things happen around here?”

Not fast enough, apparently. Gekko was still in training, if Yoru was correct.

“Okay, but promise you’ll be there.”

“I’m not going anywhere! Now, let’s get you some tissues before this smell kills me.”

Judging by that sentence, the hallway probably started to stink of adobo, enough to send her into a delirious state of hunger, and… enough to catch the attention of the ones in the cafeteria, unfortunately.

You walked through the doorway, eyes rapidly darting to every table. Contrasting the empty sight you’d gotten used to, now, the cafeteria was stuffed with people split into their respective friend groups. Everyone wearing their own bright sets of colours, it was like a congregation of pretty butterflies. Even Harbour sat with others you couldn’t recognise, and…

Yoru.

Amongst all of them, he stuck out. Really stuck out.

Thank god, you thought. The mere sight of Yoru made you feel at ease, despite his incredibly unfriendly expression as he watched his friends chat. And by the looks of things, he contributed absolutely nothing to the conversation, either.

Neon wasn’t lying when she said there’s plenty of them, huh?

“Here,”

Neon called out, handing you a few tissues to wipe your hand with. But before you could thank her, you were promptly interrupted by an enthusiastic voice from the table the Japanese sat at.

“Neon, over here!”

One of the women called out, excitedly waving her hand to catch the attention of both of you. And unfortunately for you, she was one of the ones you’d never seen before. Her, and everyone who sat around her.

“That’s Raze,"

“That’s her name?”

“Trust me, Y/N, you’re the odd one out, here. Anyway, come on!”

You rolled your eyes and followed, wiping your hand in the process. And just by touching a single finger, half of the tissue had already gotten soaked with the liquid, and the smell unfortunately spread even further.

Just approaching the table, you could feel the eyes of everyone on you, a smile lifting each and every one of their lips. Despite their amiable expressions, it still made you nervous to be thrust into the spotlight so quickly. All, but the one who needn’t be named, at this point. The one with the white hair immediately perked up, excited by your very presence.

“Hey! You’re the new one, right? Where were you the whole time?!”

You smiled awkwardly and sat down right next to her, only now noticing that each of them were actually eating food. Mostly empty plates and plastic wrappings around them, of course, but it was a surprise, nonetheless.

“I was, uh, getting examined and… you know, training, and stuff.”

“Psh, I mean, we all train, but I’ve never seen someone train so hard we never see them. Not even Yoru! This must be serious, yeah?”

You raised an eyebrow, staring at her in confusion. Wasn’t a portion of the building destroyed because of you literally the day before? That wasn’t to mention the news stories that spread around after your hand was imprinted on that hill. Huh, maybe Neon was right about things going fast around here. 

Pun not intended.

“Neon told us all about you, yesterday! Is it true you have a shapeshifting bracelet? Is it tech? Can I see it?!”

Another perked up, clearly excited. And despite her incredibly harsh german accent, you somehow managed to dig out the words.

It took you a moment to even comprehend what she said, before slowly lifting your right hand and revealing said bracelet. The wet tissues were held in a way that wouldn’t obscure what they were observing. Clearly, she was disappointed that it wasn’t tech and instead a plant.

But before anyone could actually make a comment, Gekko coughed and cleared his throat, covering the lower half of his face with a hand.

“Yo, seriously, anyone smell that?”

“Smell what? All I smell is Raze.”

Killjoy said, and you were immediately perplexed at what she meant.

“Tch. No wonder Gekko can’t breathe, then.”

Yoru scoffed, earning a playful eye-roll from Raze.

“Come on! My bombs don’t smell that bad. Sure, sometimes they’re suffocating, but nothing that would hurt, you know?”

“Hoy, don’t get your hopes up. It’s just the stuff from her hand. It’s like, nectar, or something.”

Neon pointed at your hand and unintentionally guided all of their eyes towards you all over again. With an awkward chuckle, you tossed the wet tissues on the table, working to shift their attention to it instead.

“The smell’s in, uh, this thing.”

Gekko grabbed one tissue and smelled it, coughing and promptly tossing it away.

“Okay– bad idea, bad idea.”

Jett took it, stuffing it into her nose and taking the biggest sniff ever. Unlike Gekko, who successfully suffocated himself, she was instead met with a heavenly aroma.

“Mmmm, it smells like a fresh spring breeze after a hard day’s work! My favourite!”

“Ugh, this feels like that mission with Viper all over again!”

You quickly nudged Neon’s, bringing yourself closer to her in order to not be heard.

“Is he okay?!”

“Yeah! He just has asthma, don’t worry about it.”

Neon looked back to her friends as they chatted, before her eyes widened in realisation.

“Uh– wait, now that I think about it, you probably shouldn’t be working with him–”

Then, a loud, familiar and enthusiastic voice interrupted the conversation; all of you looking up to see Harbour standing behind Killjoy and Raze; giving you a clear vision of him. Of course, despite everything that happened, the sight of him inspired dread more than anything else.

“Y/N, ready to get back to training?”

…

You weakly smiled, the words ‘I’m exhausted and I want to spend all day in bed, please,’ lodged in your throat.

It had been almost six hours of pure vigorous training on that island, and you’d only had a thirty minute break. But you’d just asked Harbour to take it slow, and with that entire time you could’ve spent learning how to use a gun; you instead used up all of it on learning how to use your hand. So, how could you say no?

And so, despite your heavy eye-lids and inability to hold your head up, you nodded, and pulled all of your weight to stand.

Then, another familiar voice interrupted this conversation.

“You guys trained all day. How does a break sound?”

Yoru said, twisting the spiked bracelet he wore. Eyes locked on it, he didn't acknowledge your existence.

“A break? Yeah, I could use one right now, actually. As long as Y/N’s up for it.”

Uh oh.

“Great! It sounds, uh, sounds great! I– I can do that.”

“Good, I’ll see you tonight, then. Astra! How about that one book you recommended?”

Harbour promptly walked off, a dark-skinned woman wearing purple and gold attire immediately following along. You stared at Yoru for a few seconds, but the moment you opened your mouth was also the moment he stood up and walked off, earning an angry look from Raze.

“Come on, we just sat down!”

“Bathroom. Sorry.”

With a single turn, Yoru disappeared thanks to the doorway that did him a favour and concealed all of him. And this time, you really weren't sure what to think about him. But one thing you were sure of;

with his quickness and convenient timing, Yoru absolutely didn’t leave for the bathroom.

❤ฺ·。

It had been a few days since that whole debacle took place. And in those few days, though you were training, you still spent time with Neon’s friends and even clicked with a select few of them as things settled. You had your own room, you were assigned a proper name, and your bracelet’s capabilities were narrowed down in a comprehensible list. However, despite all of this, you never thanked Yoru for what he’d done.

Whenever you’d see him, it would be like seeing a wild cicada; it would only last a few seconds before he’d walk off. Minus the noise that cicadas make, of course. Which is partly why you’re so excited to have finally caught him in the training range, alone, rapidly shooting down a bunch of bots. And with only one bullet used for each one, his aim was dangerously accurate.

Not that it concerned you, right now.

“Hey, Yoru!”

“Hey.”

He greeted back. So quietly, you nearly didn’t catch it since it was drowned out by the echoes of the bullets, combined with the bots heads’ loudly breaking with each shot. Yoru straightened his back and met your gaze, easing his grip on the Vandal. However, using its muzzle, he pointed at your bracelet.

“That hand under control?”

You eagerly nodded, and he went back to shooting, ready to disregard you.

“Great.”

“Hey, also, thanks for helping me out again, I don’t think things would’ve been as smooth if you didn’t step in.”

Just by the way he furrowed his brow, you could tell he wasn’t exactly pleased with this. The moment of silence was interrupted with a loud gunshot, another bot falling to the ground.

“Sure, whatever you say.”

He took another shot in silence, leaving you confused. And though you waited for him to bring up whatever bothered him and continue his sentence, as expected; naught was said.

“Uh… what? Did I say something wrong?”

“No. I just don’t think you took my advice.”

“Why not? I did what you told me to do, and we focused on my hand first.”

Yoru fired one final shot, another bot collapsing. Then, he took out the empty magazine and met your gaze.

“I told you not to let everyone walk all over you, A/N. I told you to speak.”

You were perplexed even further. Was he not listening to what you were saying, or just intentionally ignored it to make it look like he has a point to prove?

“I did! I told Harbour to take it slow, just like you said!”

“And you were ready to get back to training right after that.”

Almost instantly, you were left with your counter-argument lodged in your throat. As much as you wanted to defend yourself, he had a point there. You were exhausted, couldn’t even focus on a simple conversation, but you didn’t say anything. And thus, didn’t take his advice… or whatever he said. But this wasn’t an overnight change, you thought. You couldn’t just switch like that.

You crossed your arms, growing irritated.

“So? Look, you helped me, and I’m saying thanks. It’s not that big of a deal.”

“Tch. Whatever.”

…

What the hell is this guy’s problem?! You clenched your fists, barely able to keep yourself from raising your voice. And with his mildly irked expression that didn’t change throughout this entire conversation; you were all the more annoyed.

“Are you in the mood to fight, or something?”

“No, but I’m not going to brownnose you like everyone else, lady. I’m telling you what nobody else can.”

Your eyes widened, and you saw red. Who does he think he is?!

“You’re not a hero for insulting me, Yoru! If you have something to say, then say it!”

You pointed at him condescendingly as you spoke, treating him the same way he treated you; less. With how vast and large the training room was, your increasingly loud voice began to echo. A massive contrast to how calm and monotone he was.

Surprisingly enough, pointing at him seemed to have evoked a reaction other than ‘mildly irritated’, and Yoru now shared your anger. You asked for the truth, and god knows you’d get it.

“Fine. Being around you pisses me off, A/N. this ‘unlucky’ gimmick you won’t shut up about is just a scapegoat.”

“What’re you trying to say?”

“For god's sake, I’m saying you’re spineless!”

He snapped, and you stared at him in shock. It took you a few seconds to even find the right words to say.

“Spineless? What the hell is wrong with you?! You’re acting like I wanted all of this to happen to me!”

“Get the hell over it. Things happen to all of us, but we're not moaning nonstop about it.”

His voice returned to its normal pitch, to your surprise. In fact, it was a bit quieter, and he spoke through gritted teeth. You hadn’t noticed that Yoru pulled out another magazine and inserted it into the Vandal, angling his body back to the bots. And with that, he took his time to aim, prepared to shoot.

“Prove me wrong. Frankly, I’m doing you a favour by telling you all of this.”

At this point, you couldn’t think properly from how much you wanted to squash him then and there. Prove him wrong, he said? Fine. Why be peaceful when he was sniffing out a fight like a starving rat in the dark?

You slammed your hand against the big red button to your right. And with a loud and prolonged ding, training was halted, and he was forced to focus all of his attention on you.

“Okay, you’ve had your piece, but it’s only fair I also have mine, right?”

Yoru gently set his Vandal down on the counter in front of you and begrudgingly met your gaze, crossing his arms. He wasn’t amused.

“I don’t care how high and mighty you think you are, but I’m not gonna let a corny egomaniac like you talk to me like that!” You pointed at his chest as you spoke. But gradually, with each word, you resorted to poking him in a patronising manner. “Just because you stand around all mysteriously and stay quiet all the time doesn’t mean you’re better than me, you stupid son of a b–”

A red ball immediately shot out of your bracelet, swiftly dodged by Yoru.

And with a loud splat, it slammed against the wall, slowly sliding towards the ground as clear fluids seeped out of it like an incredibly wet towel. You both stared at it for a few seconds, sharing each others’ astonishment. 

But it wasn’t until he met your gaze, donning an incredibly smug expression he absolutely did not try to hide. Without words, you knew he was mocking you.

“Bravo. Or whatever Chamber says.”

He placed both hands in his pockets and walked off behind you towards the doorway, leaving you in your own little bubble of terror to process. That little bomb you shot out saved you from having to crawl to Sage with a broken finger, he thought. That’s for sure. But for once, he’d keep his mouth shut and say something more appropriate.

“If you’re smart, you’d think about what I said.”

His footsteps faded away with each passing second you spent scrutinising the ‘bomb’.

Slowly, you walked towards it, taking in its appearance. And it didn’t look like a traditional bomb, even by the standards of your alien bracelet. Was it even a bomb?

It lay in a pile of clear liquid produced by it. And if your assumptions were correct, it was the same nectar that would emit scent. Like a rat king, each green section of this unfamiliar plant connected at the centre and formed a demented yet pretty circle of red and green, nectar oozing off of each tentacle.

What the hell kind of demonic flower is this…?

However, even though you were observing something you’d never seen in your life produced by you, you still couldn’t help but think about that a-hole. Psh. Not unlucky, he said. Just spineless. You asked for your life to be completely lost by accepting the gift from Manuel, right?

You sighed, furious. Whatever. The important thing is; you just discovered something new. And you needed to find out where the trigger was to shoot out those… er, bomb things.

You observed the slew of plants for the next few minutes, probably hours, all of your attention completely locked on it. But you still didn’t touch it out of fear. So much so, you didn’t notice that there was a figure staring at you from behind as it stood next to the doorway in silence.

Until he cleared his throat.

You jumped and looked back, but the apology got stuck in your throat once you saw an ominous figure enveloped in darkness, a purple hood concealing the person’s pitch black features. Of course, that wasn’t to mention the three cyan slits where its face should be, facing you like a predator in a dark, dark forest.

“A/N, right?”

…

“I’m Omen.”

It clicked.

He’s Omen?! You’ve heard his name dropped a few times, even saw it written on the scoreboard while training, but he– You immediately cleared your throat, standing up properly and awkwardly positioning yourself to cover the plant.

“Omen! I heard about you. You’re…” you looked him up and down, nervously smiling, “you look, uh, unique…?”

“I get that a lot.”

You noticed the slits in his face expand horizontally. Subtle, but in the darkness, it was hard to not notice. Was that supposed to be his way of smiling…?

“I heard yelling in here from the other room. Are you okay?”

Ugh. 

You crossed your arms, frustrated all over again.

“You were in the common room?”

“Of course, by the fireplace. I always sit there.”

…

“Oh, really? Sorry…” 

You immediately felt guilty at the fact you’d bothered him enough to have forced him up to check on you. And with how quiet that area was at this time of day, it must’ve been extra irritating to listen to.

He stepped out of the shadows and moved towards you; a black vapour emitted from his hood before disappearing into the air. And though this was terrifying since it was a literal ghost walking towards you, the way he moved somehow looked… zen. Each step gentle, letting out as little noise as possible.

He had the same aura as Sage, but stronger. Tranquil and peaceful. The exact opposite as to how you felt currently.

Then, he stopped next to you, allowing the light above to shine upon whatever features there were. And still, you couldn’t really see what he was really made of, outside of the clothes, armour and bandages that covered him.

He pointed to what you were supposed to be hiding.

“What’s this?”

Your eyes widened, flushing.

“That’s– that’s uh, you know, it’s a funny story, actually…”

“Oh, it’s new?”

He knelt down and poked the plant, immediately making you panic.

“Wait, uh, Omen, I don’t think you should–”

The red tentacles stuck on the stem promptly wrapped around his finger, holding onto it for dear life. Effectively, his finger was stuck, and the nectar spread on it made it much easier to trap him.

Uh oh.

“Hm…”

Omen tried to pull away, but even you could tell he struggled. Somehow, now, the main stem of it merged itself onto the metal ground as if it sprouted from it moments prior. And with this sturdy support; it successfully kept the wraith in place.

“It has a death grip. It could trap whoever steps in it.”

And just like that, the black mist that formed his finger disintegrated into nothing, allowing him to easily escape its grasp. Within the next second, he gathered a small amount of his shadows to ‘regrow’ the lost limb, standing up and meeting your gaze.

Right, you forgot that you were talking to a GHOST. Normal stuff, right? How silly of you to forget.

“Now we figured out what kind of plant your bracelet is made of.”

You perked up at this.

“Really?”

“This is sundew. Carnivorous, last I heard. You should tell Viper about this.”

Ugh, Viper? Right now? The thought of asking Viper about this absolutely left your mind the moment it entered. You just weren’t in the mood to take up her time with something unimportant like this. Who knows, she could be–

Wait, but doesn’t that mean Yoru was right?

You immediately shook your head. Whatever, that jerk has no place in your mind. Or anywhere near you, for that matter.

“I– I think I'll ask her about it later. She has a mission going on and stuff, I don’t want to bother her.”

He stared at you. And with only the slits to go off of, you had no idea what was going through his mind. Then, he tilted his head.

“Are you certain? This seems… important. Does she make you uncomfortable?”

You smiled and waved him off, slightly blushing.

“Omen! She’s the last person who would make me uncomfortable. I already bothered you enough with all the yelling, I promise I’ll deal with it on my own, okay? Don’t worry about it.”

He stared at you for a few seconds, before nodding. Though, with the awkward motion of it, he seemed incredibly unconvinced.

“If you say so. But, just to make sure, does this have to do with Yoru?”

…

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I’ve seen you talk to him for a few mornings when you first arrived here. You two seem to click together.”

That was him?!

“Yeah, click together, sure…”

Should you tell Omen about the argument? But it would be weird, wouldn’t it? It would be awkward to admit you got in an argument on your first week… Especially with Yoru. And everyone here seems to make excuses for how crass he was, for some reason. Why would anyone tolerate this type of behaviour? Especially Viper.

You sighed, awkwardly scratching at your bracelet.

“I’ll– I’ll try to get this under control, probably with Harbour. Thanks for the talk, and stuff. See you later!”

You called out, immediately marching towards the exit and disappearing before another word could be exchanged. Omen was left alone in the training range, and god knows you felt bad.

[bleeding-star-heart]

Sebastian in Faerun, pt 3

Inspired by @bluerose5 's little series of posts- I take zero credit for the crossover.

Part 1 Part 2

After collecting Shadowheart, the gang set up camp for the night. Gale: So, I'm curious, Sebastian. Are you learned in magic at all? Sebastian: *jaw drops in horror* What?!!! Maker, no! Gale: *frowns deep in scholarly thought* Ah, yes, I figured as much. In our fight with the goblins you didn't seem to have much control over your magic; you seemed to cast spells by accident. Sebastian: *panics in knowledge of Circle mages and templars* I'm not an apostate, I swear by Andraste I'm not an apostate! Lae'zel, Shadowheart, and Astarion turn to stare at Sebastian, utterly baffled by this turn of events. Lae'zel: *confused in Githyanki* Who is...An-dra-stay? Astarion: *scowls* Ignore him; nothing he says makes sense. He's obviously not from around here. Shadowheart: *with a smug grin on her face* Just like you, Lae'zel! Although not really; Sebastian has manners. Gale: *wincing as he extends a hand towards Sebastian* Easy. It's all right. There's...no shame in being a sorcerer- Sebastian: *grimacing as he curls into a fetal position* I'm not a sorcerer, I'm not a mage, I'm not an apostate! I am a good and loyal brother of the Chantry. I have never had any magic whatsoever, and neither has anyone in my family's long and storied history. Lae'zel: *rolls her eyes* Ch'k. Enough with this whining. We all saw- Sebastian: *hyperventilating* What you saw was a mistake, a fluke. It must have been someone else casting spells- Astarion: *checking his fingernails* No, I'm pretty sure it was you. Sebastian: *leaps to his feet, hands held up defensively* Alright, yes. You may have seen me do magic, somehow. I...I don't know how, but the important thing is, I am not a maleficar. I've never done any magic before today, and I promise, I will never do any again. There is no need to call the Templars- The looming specter of Anders appears in Sebastian's mind, taunting him. Everyone stares at Sebastian, dumbfounded. Sebastian: *babbling maniacally* And besides, how would you even call them in this wilderness? We're miles away from any civilization-well, there is Zevlor! I suppose he could lock me up in a cell somewhere-not that you need to! Again, I am not a maleficar! Shadowheart: *tilts her head sideways* I think he's worried we're going to imprison him for something. Astarion: Please, if anyone was going to imprison him, it would have been those druids. Sebastian: *lets out a laugh of disbelief* Are you for-? Do you not realize- *gestures dramatically at Gale* Unlike Gale, I am not part of the Circle of Magi! *unanimous, visible confusion* Gale: *voice flat* What? Sebastian: *indignant* That's right! I have never, not once, been a part of any Circle of Magi in my entire life. That wasn't a problem before, but it is now that I have magic. And if that gets out, I will be arrested on the spot! *frowns* Probably the only reason I haven't been is because Zevlor has enough trouble with those apostates in the grove. Doesn't want to upset them more than they already are. Gale: *sputtering in horror* You think Zevlor would imprison you just for having magic?

Sebastian: *eyes wide with horror and confusion* You think he wouldn't?

[nofomogirl]

Metatron's manipulation step by step

Part 4: Putting on a human face

Part 1 - where I discuss the significance of the coffee.

Part 2 - where I take a look back at season 1

Part 3 - from Metatron's arrival on Earth to sending the Archangels away

Okay, so after we've discussed how Metatron set the stage, it's finally time to have a look at how he interacts with Aziraphale.

Obviously, Aziraphale's initial attitude is not friendly. He's very guarded and doesn't want to talk at all.

His exact words are "I don't believe there's anything left to be said. I've made my position quite clear."

Sure, it's not said in the most assertive way possible, but what taints it is simple nervousness, not indecisiveness of any kind. Aziraphale genuinely means it. Whatever he said and did in season 1 was not something that happened in the spur of the moment and was regretted later. I haven't seen anything in season 2 that would hint at Aziraphale being in any way unhappy with his little retirement or missing his attachment to Heaven.

I'm absolutely sure he was ready to stand his ground.

So what does Metatron hit him with?

"Yeah, well, I brought you a coffee from the shop."

It's a deceivingly simple two-layered trick.

The first layer is a classic foot-in-the-door technique, where you see pushing your agenda doesn't work, so instead you temporarily drop the subject and simply don't allow the interaction to end in the hope that given enough time the other person might lower their guard down or otherwise become more open, and then you will present your case again.

As a matter of fact, Crowley used the exact same strategy in season 1 episode 1, when he was trying to convince Aziraphale to try and stop the Armageddon.

"We've only got 11 years, and then it's all over. We have to work together." "No." "It's the end of the world we're talking about. It's not some little temptation I've asked you to cover for me while you're up in Edinburgh for a festival. You can't say no" "No." "We can do something. I have an idea." "No! I am not interested." "Well, let's have lunch."

Of course, lunch with Crowley was something far more appealing for Aziraphale than a coffee offered by Metatron (not to mention he didn't actually want Armageddon). Still, he is far too polite, far too caring about the proper etiquette, to simply tell someone who had brought him a drink to piss off.

But what really makes it work is the second layer - confusion.

The gesture is so unexpected, Aziraphale completely loses his footing. His love of Earthly food and beverages was something other angels could never understand. It made him an anomaly, in the worst sense possible - something gross and unnatural. And here the great Metatron not only tolerates it when Aziraphale chooses to indulge, but he himself offers!

He's so baffled, he needs to make sure. "Shall I...?" he asks uncertainly rising the cup in question. And only after Metatron confirms "Drink it? Of course" does he take a sip.

Now, the next line is quite interesting:

"I've ingested things in my time, you know."

Metatron very efficiently shows how he's different from other angels and may have more in common with Aziraphale than the Principality might suspect. He humanizes himself. Maybe not in the most literal sense within the lore of Good Omens, but he does. Not only is he okay with Aziraphale's unusual interests, he understands the appeal.

But he's actually doing something truly devious here. Yes, it is validation, but somehow it's dismissal at the same time. The in my time combined with the creepy tone in which the line is delivered, gave me strong "it's okay, it's just a phase" vibes. Made me think of all the situations a small-minded person belittled someone's passion by saying it's fine to have a hobby and they also had hobbies when they were younger but you can't make a career out of it. Or that some place is fun to visit but one cannot seriously consider moving there. Or that it's normal to experiment when you're young, who didn't experiment, but then you grow up and enter straight marriage...

Metatron offers Aziraphale a coffee and says it's fine to indulge but he doesn't have a drink for himself. Because he only went for it "in his time".

So yes, Metatron is demonstrating he understands Aziraphale, just like I've written earlier. But at the same time, he's already subtly signaling it's time to let go and grow up and be a proper angel.

But for now, Aziraphale only sees the good things, like he so often does.

And it works.

Metatron once more insists they need to talk, and this time Aziraphale isn't as ready to turn him down. He doesn't outright accept, but he is not certain what to do anymore.

He turns to Crowley. And Crowley, unfortunately, doesn't see the danger at all and encourages Aziraphale to go.

And Aziraphale leaves.

And I'll end here.

Continued in: Part 5: The offer ("canonical" version)

[wildishmazz]

i’ve been dying to hear your thoughts on the starlight express revival have you been is it worth it what do you think about the changes they made

Well... they did exactly the one thing I said would make the least sense(made Greaseball female despite the fact that Greaseball, of all characters, depends on being incapable of understanding what it's like on the wrong side of any flavour of systemic oppression), removed pretty much any sense of character(which at least means female Greseball doesn't stick out too much as a baffling decision among all the others), and telling the story seems to have been shunted to the very bottom of the pile of priorities, several places below "cover everything with holographic glitter" and pretty much on par with "adjust the keys of the songs to accommodate the fact that there are now altos and sopranos playing roles originally written for tenors and basses".

Introducing the concept of hydrogen power is a great idea(stars are made of hydrogen! Being powered by hydrogen is harnessing the power of the stars! What could be more appropriate for the Starlight Express??), but it's pretty much been plonked down with a shrug and an "I dunno, someone else figure out how to incorporate it into the text, I'm off for lunch.". There's a truck carrying around apparently unwanted hydrogen cells for... some reason? who is largely derided by all and sundry for... some reason? but is then able to couple up with Rusty to give him a power boost... somehow?

Many of the secondary and tertiary characters have been rejigged and renamed(the other competitors are no longer National Engines, which I can get behind, the stereotypes were always risky), including amalgamating Flat Top and CB into a new hybrid Slick Oil who is just vaguely antagonistic and rude until "Wide Smile". This falls narratively flat, because we already disliked Slick - there's no sense of betrayal or horror at the revelation that such a Nice Guy(tm) has revealed himself to be a gleeful mass murderer, just a confirmation that an unpleasant individual is, indeed, nasty. The other Freight(Porter and Lumber - Porter after Cole, Stilgoe is still at hand) join in with Slick in sabotaging Rusty, then sing "Right Place, Right Time" at him, claiming that they've been cheated too. Which um. My dudes. That was you.

An effort is clearly being made to be progressive with gender, but it doesn't look like it's coming from a place of any deep understanding. Casting an enby as Electra - great! But all their understudies are cis men. Removing early noughties Pussycat Dolls-inspired slut-drop anthem "Whole Lotta Locomotion" - great! But replacing it with an obvious rewrite of "Rolling Stock: reprise" rather than simply revert to the unobjectionable "A Lotta Locomotion"? Why would you do that?Give the coaches a badass new "We've had it up to here with this bullshit, and we're not taking it any more!" song - great! But rather than that replacing the "you're worth so much more than you think you are, now play mind games until you get your toxic ex back" song that gave Buffy and Ashley a chance to shine in the old show, where it would be appropriate in the plot, it's used as an introduction and there is no song for Belle and Tassita(as they now are) to show off in. It also randomly includes a snippet of "Tyre Tracks and Broken Hearts" which I assume is meant as a loving tribute to Jim Steinman, but unfortunately is such a distinctive and compelling melody that it sticks out like a sore thumb that it's never heard again. Mixing up the genders of the coaches by adding a boy - great! But now you can't use "coach" interchangeably with "woman" to make any sort of wider point, and that hasn't been carried through the rest of the show.

The cast are uniformly brilliant. I don't like the fact that Greaseball is being played by a woman, but by god, when Al Knott is on that stage it belongs to her and she has the range to flip around the octaves of material that resists being sung by her like a goddamn vocal acrobat. I don't like Control being in among the toy train characters(purely personal preference, I accept it as making a precedented amount of sense - they're now emphasising the fact that it all takes place in a child's dream, and if Clara can dance with the Nutcracker and Alice can talk to the Queen of Hearts, it's consistent for Control to be able to hand Dinah a box of tissues), but the girl I saw was an exceptionally good young performer, and legit looked like she was Momma's daughter. Rusty is 17. Seven-bloody-teen. And he's rivaling the first Rusty I fell in love with, who was 19(I was 13 I swear it's not weird). The way he holds a note while gliding down what looks like a 30 degree ramp alone distinguishes him. I have never seen a Dinah with better comedic chops. "UNCOUPLED" had me in stitches.

The costumes are disappointing. Like I said, they're very shiny. Everything is holographic, Greaseball is even lenticular. But there is little to no characterisation in the costumes - there are precious few details that tell you anything about who they are, they're just shiny blocky shapes. If you look really hard, maybe you can say that Dinah still has some tablecloth, and Wrench has spanner sets sticking out of her arms and legs as wings, and Electra has lightning strike balloons stored in a backpack. They look absolutely ridiculous, but they do imply electricity. Coming from the same designer as the costumes in Six, this is not only disappointing but surprising - I would have sworn that the Six queens were directly inspired by Starlight Express, they look like Tudor-inspired OC coach fan creations, but apparently Gabriella Slade had never even seen John Napier's designs before being asked to come up with something different. I assume she was under some severe limitations wrt not replicating anything that was his copyright, beyond basic features like safety pads and the skates themselves. I don't think the concept of using the costumes to convey the characters was copyrighted, though.

The beginning includes the "When the night is darkest" lullaby and I swear I nearly cried.

The "Starlight Sequence" is gorgeous. I don't know if it's been transposed into a different key to sit where both Momma and Rusty can sing it comfortably or if one of them just has that wide a range, but the horrific clunking great key changes mid-phrase that made the song physically painful to listen to in 2018 are not there. And the starfield that lights up for "I am the Starlight" is a kaleidoscope of pastel multicolour points sitting just above your head and all around the auditorium - that moment is properly magical.

Bloody, bloody "I Do" is still fucking there. It has still not undergone a second draft since it debuted in 2012.

There's a lot of dialogue/recit that's been inserted between songs, and it all kinda sounds like devised theatre that was initially improvised by people who were running out of ideas. Somehow it gives it the impression of being an amdram show with an inexplicably huge budget at some moments.

It is excellently performed, the music is still good, it is visually exciting. If you want to see some very talented young people performing familiar songs in a visual spectacle and you don't care about whether or not it makes any sense, it's very enjoyable.

[that-blue-vault-dweller]

You know seeing the reactions to my last ask reminded me of another legendary encounter I had that made me feel like a badass. I had just finished exploring a ruin in the glowing sea and walked outside only to see a legendary matriarch death claw come out of nowhere and slap me hard. Scared the hell out of me and almost killed me but fortunately I had a piece of legendary armor that slowed down time when I took too much damage and the weapon I had equipped at the moment was the knife you get from that mine with the cult vision in it. My reaction was to swing at one arm which ended up breaking it, swing at the other twice and it broke while dodging attacks, swung at one leg broke it, jumped over the tail and ham strung the second leg, which caused it to finally mutate but didn't heal the broken limbs.

As a result by the time the slowdown wore off I had a legendary deathclaw matriarch lying on the ground unable to do anything but growl and snap at me and occasionally whimper which I didn't even know they could do. It was one of my most badass moments in over 400 hours of gameplay. And for some reason my companion (cannot remember which one I had) took almost 2 minutes to come out of the ruin that I had been in before the fight started. No idea why or what took them so long. Still I would love to see how you would write them reacting to coming out of the building and seeing that sight and the explanation for what happened. I'm certain it'll be very entertaining

Dang, you've had some serious encounters on this game 😂 Sounds freaking awesome, though 💙💛 I need to get on the game and fight some more stuff soon 😂

But here's your reaction! Thank you so much for the request! 😊 For the sake of explaining the companions' absence, we're going to say that they got lost down in the ruins.

Cait - Comes out and is honestly quite freaked out despite her attempts to remain composed. However, she's not doing a very good job of looking composed... Once she figures out what happened, that F!Sole is okay, and she more fully soaks in the creature lying there, she is rather impressed but is quickly irritated at her friend for putting herself in harm's way like that instead of getting down into the ruins and waiting for Cait to come and help.

Piper - Is almost rendered speechless. She had heard the thing from inside the ruins and she had been desperately panicking and trying to find her way out because she was terrified Blue was going to be hurt. When she finally escaped to find the Deathclaw completely crippled and nearly dead at her Blue's feet with Blue not too hurt, she could hardly believe her eyes. When Blue shoots it and finishes it off, she finally finds her ability to speak and inquires about the story, asking for every detail she can as she prepares to make a whole article about how the heroic vault-dweller accomplished this incredible feat.

Curie - Somehow had missed the whole thing so when she comes out of the ruins, she is utterly baffled at the creature's presence in the first place. She had somehow not heard it, but she was now utterly shocked at how her protector had taken the creature on. Once she understands that F!Sole is not gravely injured, she then requests that the creature be put down so that it does not have to suffer any longer with its current condition.

MacCready - Comes out of the ruins with his gun at the ready, looking through the scope, scared to death he's going to see an angry Deathclaw coming at him. To his surprise, however, he quickly realizes what happened, and as F!Sole is explaining it to him, blasting a bullet through the creature's head, he honestly has no idea what to think. He's just standing there in utter shock, unable to say anything for a little while.

Deacon - Is standing with his mouth hanging open. Out of all of the things that he has seen in this job, this definitely tops the list for most insane. He almost thinks she is lying for a few minutes as she tells the story, her somehow managing to beat even his own frivolous tales, but the results speak for themselves. He can't believe his eyes, and when she finally puts it down, he has decided that she has to tell Glory this one because she'll never believe it coming from him.

Codsworth - Is shocked, but is more concerned with Mum's safety than anything. He is not overly fazed by things like this when they're not a threat any longer, and he is more worried about whether she is critically injured. When he finds out that she is not and he tells her the story, he compliments her formidability and then asks that they take care of the poor beast so that it can die peacefully and without much more pain.

Hancock - Just lets out a loud curse as soon as he sees it, staring for a few moments as he listens to the story that F!Sole tells him about how she pulled this off. He is shocked at the fact she made it through that, but he honestly admires her even more now. He does urge her to go ahead and kill it off, though, since it is the humane thing to do.

Danse - Is rather panicked, but does a good job of hiding it except for the Surprised Eyebrows™. After getting the story, he commends F!Sole on a job well done but tells her that she should have waited on his backup before taking on something like this. He also tells her to go ahead and finish it off because while it is a monstrosity, it deserves to die quickly. He is mostly just trying to disguise the fact that he almost crapped his power armor.

Preston - Comes out of the ruins yelling for his general, terrified that he had lost yet another one with the sounds of the Deathclaw that he had heard from where he had been lost. As soon as she tells the story and shoots the Deathclaw, finishing it off, he is just reeling but definitely has the biggest heart-eyes ever. That's the best general and the most heroic person he has ever seen.

Valentine - Is rather surprised, but does not handle it with as much shock as the rest. All he's really worried about is F!Sole and as she excitedly tells him her story of how she pulled this off, he realizes she's fine. As soon as he does, he tells her to finish the creature off, and once she does, he takes a little more time to actually respond to the entire thing.

X6-88 - Actually is worried about F!Sole despite his outward appearance. However, as soon as he sees the thing on the ground and hears her story behind how it happened, he offers one of his very few and far-between, almost nonexistent smiles. He expresses that he greatly admires her abilities in combat, the smile still hanging on despite the fact that he ordinarily shows hardly any emotion at all.

Dogmeat - Is extremely concerned about his owner and when he gets out of the ruins, he is happy to see that she is okay. The big, mean lizard is still alive, though, so he growls and snaps at it until she hits it with her fire stick. She offers him an affectionate scratch behind the ears and he feels much better.

Strong - Is actually angry that she did not wait for him to find his way out of the ruins before almost killing the creature. He finishes it off for her and after a few moments of fussing about her being a tiny human and expressing his strange sense of worry in his own manner, he begrudgingly says that tiny human is very strong even if she isn't a Super Mutant.

[karmas-chameleon]

Actual photo of me looking up slang to write this:

I sat at my desk poring over a document that was, surprisingly, related to my nominal duties as Manfred's assistant. It was a transcript of one of his conversations with a witness in his latest case.

At least, that was what he told me it was. It read to me like the ramblings of a madman, with jumbles of words and things that were most decidedly not words, or not ones that I'd ever encountered before. It was the mysterious and indecipherable language of the youth, apparently, and it was handed to me to translate. Unfortunately, even as a comparatively young person, I could come up with nothing.

“...So, uh,” I finally managed, after staring at the paper for what felt like an hour. “I think I've got something here. Is the state of Ohio involved in this case somehow? Because, um, that's about the only thing I can make out.”

“We're in California, Miss Martin,” Manfred grumbled. “And I've already checked, not a single person relevant to the case has anything to do with Ohio. No one born in the state, no one who formerly lived there, nothing. It's a dead end, just like all the other gibberish on there. Damnable youths and their,” he waved a hand in frustration, “what was it he kept saying? Skippity something?”

“Skibidi,” I said reluctantly, feeling a sour taste in my mouth from it. “I’ve heard that word before.”

“It's not a word.”

“Yeah, I…can't argue with you on that. Couldn't even tell you what it's supposed to mean. But…” I stared back down at the puzzling paper and rubbed my forehead. “Even if we do translate this, what's the point of it all? You'd just have to hope the judge trusts the translation you give him. I'm not sure there's an official authority on kids’ slang, after all.”

I heard Manfred humming thoughtfully, and looked back up to see him grinning. “You're quite right, Miss Martin. If something as simple as a testimony relies on the witness, and my explanation of their words, and the judge understanding mine, I'm sure we can cut someone out.” 

He stood from his desk and retrieved the transcript, taking it back with him. I wasn't sure what exactly he had planned, but I knew he was far more qualified than me to take care of this case.

Come the day of the trial, I'd see it myself.

---

“The prosecution calls its next witness! Brian Rotenberg!”

I watched from the gallery as a child took the stand, evidently the one whose words I’d failed to comprehend. He couldn't have been much older than ten. 

“Witness,” Manfred began, “you were present at Gourd Lake on the night of the incident, yes?”

“Frfr no cap,” the child replied.

It was just as incomprehensible as the transcript. The judge was understandably baffled, but Manfred interjected quickly to explain.

“Your Honor, this witness is a…special case. Try as I might, I couldn't quite coax any plain English out of the boy. But I've done my fair share of research, and I'm confident that I can accurately explain the meaning of his words. What he's just said means ‘yes’.”

“Is that so?” The judge looked on with wide eyes at both the witness and prosecution. “Well, I suppose that'll have to-”

“Objection!” the defense shouted. “Your Honor, you can't just hand over control of a key witness’s words to the prosecution! Who knows what he'll claim the child is saying?”

Manfred smirked at his foe. “Oh? Are you going to ask for an interpreter? It'll take quite some time to find a child-to-English translator, I'd wager. And I wish you luck with ensuring that their words are both accurate and impartial.

“Th-that’s…I…” the defense attorney's feeble protests faded out, and he looked to the judge. “I withdraw my objection, Your Honor.”

“Very well.” The judge nodded to Manfred.

“Now witness, describe what you saw on that night.”

“Saw some simp tryna rizz up a gyatt irl, looked sus af. Bro straight up unalived her and I thought I was cooked til he ghosted.”

Manfred nodded along at him, then looked back to the judge when he was done babbling. “Now, that's definitive proof if I've ever heard it. The witness just described the defendant exactly.”

“This boomer's cappin, on God,” the boy interjected.

“Yes, he's just told me he's very much in agreement with the prosecution.” A pointed glare was shot in the witness's direction, to which he merely shrugged. “Now, does the defense have anything to say to that?”

“I…how am I supposed to…” the defense attorney below me muttered, appearing miserable even from behind. “No, I…I guess not.”

“Excellent,” Manfred smirked. “Now, get this witness out of here so we can wrap the trial up. I'm sure he's got important schoolwork to ignore.”

The boy was ushered out of the courtroom, but not before uttering something else I didn't understand and throwing an obscene gesture in Manfred's direction.

I wasn't entirely sure if my boyfriend had accurately translated his words, but I'd known that the verdict was assured from the start. Manfred had planned for every eventuality; even if there was no witness, he'd have enough evidence to back up the defendant’s guilt. This merely sped things along.

There was likely some word to describe his work that people younger than me used, but I settled for the one I knew: perfect.

[magnoliaroad]

Luxe Living Kitchen + Family Room

Hello friends! At long last, I am ready to publish two playscenes from my Petz 5 makeover project. The Luxe Kitchen and Luxe Living playscenes are now available for download. Be sure to check out my blog post below for a behind-the-scenes look at my creation process.

OVERALL AESTHETIC

In making these overhauls, I was going for a luxury living aesthetic featuring gold accents, neutral beiges, and a touch of rococo. Understandably, this may not be everyone's aesthetic! I have ideas for future themes such as cottage core/witch core, dark academia, Barbie, etc. Now that I have done the ground work of making a reusable PSD template of this playscene, making future variations will be much easier because I can quickly swap out the wallpaper, flooring, rug, etc.

KITCHEN

I don't have a lot of notes on the kitchen remodel as it was a relatively straight forward recolor. The window backyard backdrop was replaced with my remodeled version. I added a tile backsplash for a touch of realism. Various components like the sink and its handles were recolored to gold to go with the luxury living theme. The ugly curtains, orange floor, wallpaper, and yellow fridge are all replaced with a more toned-down, neutral look.

I spent the most amount of time cleaning up the curtain and the window sprites as these were poorly done in the original. If you look closely, you can see several pixel defects that never got cleaned up.

BEFORE / AFTER

FAMILY ROOM

Making over the family room was quite the project as it involved editing several animation sprites. Here are my notes on the different parts of the room.

RUG

I know that the rug's perspective is not 100% correct but when I tried to adjust it to better match the perspective of the room, the results were actually worse. Somehow, the "correct" perspective ruined the "cozy, intimate" ambience of the room. It's a little hard to explain but I hope this design choice isn't too immersion-breaking for most people.

FIREPLACE

The boring old red brick was replaced with something a bit more contemporary. Where the brick texture meets the golden grate, I had to edit the edge so that there is a mortar gap. I also edited the fireplace sprites to remove some ugly pixel halos that the original assets had.

MOUSE HOLES

I replaced the default mousehole covers with golden doors to match the Luxury Living theme because I thought our little mice friends deserved an upgrade too! Tremendous thanks to Reflet from the Petz Hacking and Modding discord for helping me figure out how to do this. If you're making a non-overwrite hexed family room, then changing the mouse holes requires an extra step in a hex editor - it isn't enough to just swap out the sprites in Tinker. If you would like to learn how to do this yourself for your own playscene creations, Reflet's solution is posted in the Petz Hacking and Modding discord.

WINDOW + WEATHER EFFECTS

Oh my glob this was a whole project in itself. I swapped out the outdated backyard backdrop with my remodeled versions. But this presented a problem. Replacing the window backdrop meant that I couldn't use the animated rain and snow sprites that came with the original family room. These weather effects were pre-rendered against the old backdrop, making them incompatible with my replacement backdrop. So this meant that I had to craft my own rain and snow effects from scratch, frame by frame. *eye twitch* But if we're being honest, the original weather effects weren't that great looking anyway. The rain is so faint and barely visible and the snow animation left much to be desired.

Moreover, it always bugged me to no end that the original weather animations do not extend to the bottom of the window. Whenever the window is open, there is a noticeable gap where the rain or snow animation abruptly ends. I'm baffled on how this passed quality control testing (or if was there any).

I corrected this in my version of the weather animation by adjusting the size of the animation to extend to the bottom of the window and then fixing the X and Y positioning coordinates of all the frames in Tinker so that the animation was seated in the right spot. (I used the selection tool in photoshop to measure that the window sprite needed to be seated 858 pixels along the X axis from the left, and 56 pixels down the y axis from the top). Additionally, the original window has this odd 2-3 pixel gap at the top of the window which I fixed in my version so that the window properly extends up to the curtain rod.

Unfortunately, I had to remove the window shine from my window frame recolors. For some reason when you import the images into Tinker, Tinker recolors partial transparency to black and ruins it. If anyone discovers a solution to this problem, please do let me know!

I managed to create the rain animation by using an old video effects software called Particle Illusion. I tweaked a pre-existing rain preset and then recorded my screen using Screen-to-Gif to capture the animation, making sure that the screen capture matched the exact pixel dimensions of the window.

I extracted the exact number of frames I needed, made it transparent, and created a layer mask on the left side of the canvas to account for curtain, which clips into the window slightly.

Then I exported these frames as individual pngs and then imported them into Tinker. Thank goodness for photoshop actions and batch editing for performing repeated actions, or else I would have lost my mind.

The snow animation was much more challenging because I couldn't find a good video effect animation I liked - and even if I did, making the animation loop flawlessly would have been nearly impossible. So I hand-made my own using an old school 2D animation technique known as "parallax scrolling". Basically how it works is that I created 3 "conveyor belt" layers of snowflakes, each with a seamless repeating pattern. These three conveyor belt layers would each move independently of each other at a different pace. Conveyor belt 1 would move down slowly at a pace of 1 pixel per frame. Conveyor belt 2 would move down a little faster at a pace of 2 pixels per frame, and conveyor belt 3 would move down the fastest at a rate of 5 pixels per frame. The multiple layers of snowflakes give off the illusion of depth, making it look like some snowflakes are farther away.

In order for this animation to loop seamlessly, I had to calculate (yes, super serious complex petz math) the dimensions of these conveyor belt layers to correspond with the pace at which they would be falling. If conveyor belt 1 was falling at a rate of 1 pixel per frame, my repeating snowflake pattern needed to be about 30 pixels tall because there were 30 frames. The fastest conveyor belt, conveyor belt 3, had to be a pattern that was 150 pixels tall because it would be moving at a pace of 5 pixels per frame over the course of 30 frames so 30 x 5 = 150 pixels.

Once I made these three separate patterns I copied and pasted them downward to make the "conveyor belts" that would move down the window over the lifespan of the animation.

To animate this, I would make a new frame and then I would move layer 1 down 1 pixels, layer 2 down 2 pixels and layer 3 down 5 pixels. Then I created another frame and repeated this again and again until I hit 30 frames. If I messed up anywhere (which I did), I would have to redo the entire animation. It took some experimenting to finally get it all looking correct and looping properly.

I decided to enhance the snow animation further by addressing a longstanding issue with Petz 5's weather effects. It always bothered me that it could be snowing in the game, yet the scenery remained unchanged to reflect the seasons. To improve this, I overlaid my completed snow animation onto the winter version of my backyard backdrop. Now, whenever it snows in the window, the scenery actually shifts to a wintery backdrop. I mean that would just make sense right? It speaks to the sloppy/rushed development for Petz 5 that they didn't make it this way from the get go. If a solo amateur like myself could do it in one weekend, I don't know why a team of developers couldn't. (If I am allowed to humbly toot my own horn for a moment and say so.)

BEFORE / AFTER

If you've made it this far, thank you for reading this! I hope this journal proves to be useful and inspiring for future petz content creators who may want to get into custom content creation and retro game modding. It's been such a therapeutic pet project and I'm looking forward to making more playscenes in the future. The next playscenes on the release radar will hopefully be my 4 seasons backyards. I am still finalizing those and hope to release those as soon as life allows. Thank you for patiently waiting, real life is hectic!

To download the Luxe Kitchen and Luxe Living playscenes, jump over to my main page at Magnolia Road - the download link is under Resources > Playscenes.