#regardless of my theories I'm not gonna look down on you for it

[dynjay]

Hey, I read the tags on a post and was wondering... what artifacts make Lily and PV's dynamic toxic? If it's about the love potion/love letter there is no confirmation that was something either of them did... there are a lot of artifacts in the museum that are just like. General stuff from the magic school before it fell-- most of the artifacts related to Lily and PV and the ancients specifically are in the history section.

For those of you who don't really care about Cookie Run Kingdom, have a Read More bc this might be a little lengthy lol

(also, purelily shippers, you guys might wanna avoid reading this one)

So I wanna preface this with a few things:

1.) I haven't finished everything the game has to offer yet! I went through the Tower of Sweet Chaos' story, but I'm actually stuck on Raspberry Cookie in 11-27, so depending on what happens, my opinion could change and I could just look like a fool here lmao

2.) In those tags, current dynamic = Pure Vanilla and Dark Enchantress (who's also White Lily)'s dynamic I don't dislike the purelily ship or look down on anyone who does. I actually really fascinated by their history, haha. But personally, my heart's not set on shipping them in their current state because uhh... as far as I know, Dark Enchantress is currently trying to kill Pure Vanilla atm.

That said, lemme spill some of my thoughts on the relics here bc I've actually been wanting to talk about them since I discovered them:

You're right in that there's no concrete evidence that these relics were theirs. No one knows for sure except the writers themselves. But on the flipside, there's also a concerning amount of detail that suggests it being a very real possibility that I haven't seen debunked yet.

One of the biggest concerns is how the Nameless Transcript is within this set of relics. It's titled as "Nameless", but it's strongly hinted that it's White Lily's, which makes you wonder if this set of relics is partially themed after her.

The other relic within the set that's also worth noting is the Lost Portrait. It's not as big of a concern as the Nameless Transcript, but it does solidify that at least several items in this set are themed after White Lily, since this specific portrait was a pivotal item in her backstory.

That aside, let's talk about the relics in question themselves, because those two have some interesting things going on as well.

Starting with Someone's Love Letter, this relic honestly feels like a direct parallel to Pure Vanilla's letter.

Thematically, this makes sense; the set of relics this letter's in is clearly themed after Pure Vanilla while the Love Letter's relic set is hinted to be themed after White Lily, and romantically or not, these two really loved each other at one point in their lives, friends or otherwise. But the thing is, Pure Vanilla always had a strong sense of morals, so it's highly doubtful he wrote the love letter, themes aside.

White Lily, on the other hand, was always shown to have good intentions, but highly questionable morals. She doesn't mind violating any rule she has to to get what she wants, as long as the end justifies the means (i.e sneaking into several forbidden areas of the academy, suggesting taking a piece of the 1st headmaster's soul, etc.).

But the idea of her making a love potion just to get Pure Vanilla's affection sounds way too sinister for White Lily, because despite all the damages she's caused, her intentions are still shown to be good-natured. Also, Devsis makes a conscious effort to make sure the relics match whatever subject they want to associate it with, and the love potion's aesthetic is vastly different from White Lily's design.

But remember that White Lily is also Dark Enchantress. The Tower of Sweet Chaos' story showed that Dark Enchantress isn't just White Lily possessed, brainwashed, or anything like that. She IS Dark Enchantress. Once she was out of the oven, she made a conscious decision to be who she wanted to be, which means the side of her that's Dark Enchantress has always existed within her, even back when she was White Lily. And what does Dark Enchantress look like?

Colors: Check Heart theme: Check (staff) Love theme: Check (Dark "Enchantress")

If this is all true, does it paint a real ugly picture regarding White Lily and Pure Vanilla's relationship? Yeah. Do I actually believe White Lily would actually do something like this though? Also yes. Depending on what the reason is and given her past actions, I don't think it'd be above her at this point.

I will say though; her motivations are usually well-intended, so it doesn't feel right to assume she'd do something like this out of pure whim. I don't know what that motivation is, but I'd like to believe that White Lily wouldn't do this anything like this without a good reason. My personal theory is that she either bought or made the potion herself, but not for sinister reasons.

Of course, I could be wrong about everything and those relics could really belong to some rando cookies lol. But when I say I can't bring myself to ship them much, this is kinda why :')

[dnpbeats]

more phagenda theories ft. analysis of dan's story bc i am painfully unemployed

hi besties it's me again. i'm reaching the point of waiting for the announcement where it's like that tweet about the plate of corn in encanto. i decided to go back and watch dan and phil's first videos to see what frames they used to see if it would reveal anything intersting and well... it kinda does, but also this theory falls apart a bit towards the end so. take this with a grain of salt this is just for fun i'm just yapping it's not meant to be that serious etc etc

so starting with phil's video blog, i believe the frame is from about 0:41 or at least very very close to there (based on the position of phil's paper):

(side note but i don't wanna get too off track: 2 seconds after this is when phil's curtain blows which like obviously is from wind but maybe in another universe it's some kinda sci-fi fantasy spirit ghost thing idk)

this section of the video is when phil is reading off a question from his linguistics exam. we know from "teaching dan to speak" that if youtube hadn't worked out and phil actually used his degree, he was gonna be a forensic linguist. okay so now, what frame is used from hello internet? this one isn't quite as easy to pin down but my best approximation is at 0:37, or at least somewhere soon after that (going off of dan's placement in front of the door):

this is the section of the video immediately after dan gets done saying some "really good friends" he's made recently persuaded him to "give it [making videos] a shot" which like, we all know means phil. when i say immediately i mean he finishes saying that at 0:36

i just personally find this intersting because like. for phil's video why pick a frame of him reading an exam when you could've gone with the thumbnail or him looking at the camera or something? with dan, i at first thought it was the very beginning of hello internet, but it's definitely not based on the way he comes into frame. instead it's right after he says that phil persuaded him to make videos... so this brings me to the ripple effect/alternate universe idea a lot of people have been throwing around. what if they chose phil reading his linguistics exam bc they are going to explore a universe where he becomes a forensic linguist? and of course, if he didn't do that, then dan wouldn't have made his video, because the part where phil persuades him to give it a shot never happened (this is where we get into dinok territory). ok so how does this fit with the other two shots we can see? (i'm not including something we want to tell you bc it would be impossible to know exactly where in the video that shot is from, and ofc i can't include the mystery one 💔)

(warning this is where this starts to fall apart lmao) now obviously the one from gtpwtw is from the yoga section:

how does this fit in with the alternate universe/choices theory? well, this particular moment is right when dan is asking phil "top or bottom," which obviously in the moment is a joke and it's a really inconsequential question. however, it is a question nonetheless, with two possible outcomes 👀

for saying goodbye forever... i quite literally have nothing, the shot they chose has nothing going on it's just them standing there as priest sean walks in at about 0:35 💀💀

anyway yeah, assuming they consciously chose what shots of videos to include, it might give more validity to the multiverse idea, regardless of what medium they present it in! ofc this could also all mean nothing and i am just grasping at straws (10x more likely) i just thought it was intersting :)

[miimo96]

Thoughts on TBHK Chapter 114

Looks like we're finally Diving into the Relationship between these 2 , Ngl seeing a relationship between the 2 most "Fake" Characters in the series is Really gonna be interesting, especially with the New timeline and stuff, I wonder if people's theories on the whole comparison to Sumire's life and the minamoto clan will be correct.

GOD I Hate on How SMUG this character Is, how you just gonna start off the chapter like that Knowing on How Akane will React!? Also between this and How Akane is treated most of the Series, the Man is a walking L

This tells us so much about the 2 and how they see each other, he initially Didn't even think twice about aoi, immediately getting down to business and figuring What changed In the timeline, only using the "aoi as his Finance" excuse to get under Akane's skin, he sees her as Nothing more than something to play with Akane's emotions with, however aoi is doing what she Does best, Putting on an act and playing along, He knows that Aoi would initially not even take his hand, and brush him off slightly, as she does not see him that way, however aoi is playing along and Does grab his hand, which uneases him, because what if She does see him that way Now?

Going from what I said earlier it's pretty clear that aoi's Just playing the part and is not really into Teru, and teru Knows this by confirming saying "he'll send it to Akane" to which Aoi shakes her head, it's lovely indication to show that even in this New timeline, she Still very Deeply cares about Akane, and doesn't want him to see her with Another man

Teru and Aoi are like the couples you'd see in movies, the type of "Perfect" Couple you'd expect (The most popular boy Dates the most popular girl) it's the perfect type of Relationship for these 2 characters, a fake romance fit for Fake people

Ya know I don't think Teru's ever been "hit" before, aside from the beatdown hakubo gave Him and Akane, teru's the type of character that's Never been "humbled" like he's never received a Proper smack to Reality; Yashiro won't do it because She has a soft spot for him, plus He's Handsome, Kou has too much respect for his older brother and aspires to be like him, Akane is completely terrified of teru and would probably Die if he tried, So Aoi being the 1 to do it is pretty fitting like saying "I don't care if you're my upper clansmen, part of the minamoto clan, or completely handsome, You ever try some shit like that again and I WILL END YOU"

Upon Re-reading the chapter I love the reaction here, he's Relieved of the fact that She DOES NOT have a crush for him, meaning that she still does care about Akane in someway and He's happy to hear that, aside from all the teasing and bullying he does He Still does care about Akane and his feelings and does NOT want to hurt him.^^

Looks like people's theories on the 2 being in Relationship as a result of the Sumire incident/ sacrificial bloodline was Correct, also the fact the Seven wonders don't exist is really interesting, I wonder if it has anything to do with Tsukasa being the only apparition for Now, which is weird because aside from No.5, Yako should be a wonder regardless the timeline

I can't tell if this Akane or teru, probably Akane but it's Nice that she still has feelings for him, also Aoi having 2 sisters is a Surprise to me, so far i don't think we've ever seen or known about them till this point, also her mom seems to be more important than we think, hmmmm 🤔

Ngl this hurt me a bit, that line "So that's the type of world we're in" really sums up the Pain in this timeline, and you gotta wonder if he really wants to do this anymore, It really hurts me and that's saying something considering I'm a Huge Teru hater and because Now I'm curious of how Kou will react act due the SCENE in The Red house arc

This are 2nd look at Kou's mom ever since the red house arc, aside from the Tear jerking moment we've Never seen the 2s relationship and how they must've acted before her passing so it's really Heartbreaking to see it here finally and I kinda wonder if kou will eventually find out the Truth and Be against putting things back to Normal, this arc may be a lot like the picture perfect arc just Cranked to 11, also can someone tell me what this Says in the background, I cant read Japanese and my translator isn't working

I Love the Dynamic between these 2, at 1st I was a little worried that the call Kou got about a missing student was about Mitsuba, thinking that mitsuba probably dying or something happening to him was a Canon event and that this is all ment to happen eventually, Thank GOD it isn't, Also I love the face mitsuba gives him here, just a little "I Love f@#king with my Boyfriend" face, Also I Guess this confirms that Hanako is still alive in this timeline, meaning the Man we saw in the last Chapter Definitely was Hanako, I wonder if we'll see him run into yashiro soon^^

[seenoversundown]

Amongst The Stars: Chapter Two

Josh x Quinn (Nonbinary OC)

Warnings: Borderline emotionally abusive partners (I personally feel like it veers into that territory, some may not. I wanted to warn for it regardless), Hobby Lobby, Queer flower language, using alcohol to drown your sorrows (don't!!).

Word Count: 4.2k

Summary: Josh has always loved love, and he's finally found it. Buuuut, he can't exactly tell anyone. Join him as he navigates the ins and outs of his sweet, secret romance.

Author's Note: Told you all it was going to be a Twins Week, so here’s another Josh :) I hope you enjoy!

We’re Going To Be Friends - The White Stripes  “Tonight, I’ll dream while I'm in bed When silly thoughts go through my head  About the bugs and alphabet  And when I wake tomorrow, I’ll bet  That you and I will walk together again Oh, I can tell that we are gonna be friends.” 

The Past

I let my fingers trail up and down the shelves as I walk through the aisles of Hobby Lobby. I hate coming in here, homophobic ass store. I’m looking for a few sets of Cray-Pas Junior Artist oil pastels for my elementary school-aged art class. We’re working on a color theory project, and I love how oil pastels come across so bright. 

I’m sure the kids will love that, too. 

As I turn the corner to head down another aisle, I almost run smack dab into a worker’s back. I let out a high-pitched squeak as I narrowly avoided hitting them.  “Oh! I am so sorry. I didn't realize anyone was down here.”  I look at the person I almost bowled over, lightly admiring the curly mop of hair they're sporting as their arms reach up to place an item back on the top shelf.  “You’re completely fine!” 

I notice a small, fine-line tattoo peeking out from under their short-sleeved shirt on the back of their bicep.  It looks to be a bouquet of sorts.  Green carnations. Are they an Oscar Wilde fan?  Sprigs of lavender. Surely, they know the connotations.  Pansies. Oh, they absolutely know what they're doing. 

“That's a pretty sick tattoo,” I toss out, realizing I've been far too quiet.  They finally turn around and look at me, eyes roving over my person, calculating their next move.  I can't blame them if those tattoos mean what I think they do; it's always a bit of a gamble revealing that information about yourself. 

They bring their hand up to the tuft of hair resting on their chin, eyes darting away from me as they decide.  “Thank you!”  Okay, not so open.  “Does it have any kind of meaning?” I know I shouldn't press, but I have to know.  “Oh,” they pause, calculating again, “just that I would be known as a… horticultural lad… if this was the 1920s.”  I let out a booming laugh.  I don't know what explanation I expected, but it definitely wasn't that.  “Join the club, brother.” 

I watch his shoulders sag in relief, and his previously closed-off features morph into the biggest grin I’ve ever seen. Does he have 67 teeth in his head? How is his smile so big?  

“I’m Quinn. They/Them. Big Queer.”  “I’m Josh. He/Him. Same,” he shoves his hand out to shake mine.  I bat his hand away.  “Oh no, Josh. I think we’re gonna be friends. I don't shake hands with friends,” I say, dragging him into a loose side hug. 

I feel him tighten up against me before he melts into it.  Fair enough, I am being a little weirdo, but it felt right to hug him. I release him after a moment, and he lets out a small chuckle. 

“I’ve seen you here before, but I try to avoid harassing customers,” he chuckles, “Though, I wish I had said something earlier. You seem… interesting.” I watch his eyes trail over my carefully curated outfit: a beat-up, cut-off Bob Seger shirt expertly French-tucked into my baggy green corduroy pants, tied together with my trusty Doc Martens loafers. “You know, my brothers and I have a bit of a thing with Old Bobby Boy, but that’s a story for another time.”

I quirk a brow and let out a chuckle.  He talks a mile a minute; I feel like I’m getting whiplash. 

“I’d love to hear it sometime,” I ran a hand through my messy hair. “Perhaps you will, my dear. Perhaps you will,” he fixes me with another megawatt smile before barreling right back into conversation.  “But no, yeah. I see you here all the time. You’re kind of hard to miss.” Is he flirting with me? “I mean, you know. It’s just, like recognizes like. And in a town this small, you kinda—“ he cuts himself off and rubs a hand down his face, “I’ll stop talking. I can be a bit of a rambler.”  Not flirting. 

I let out a bewildered laugh. 

He's made me laugh more in the last 10 minutes than I have in months. 

“That’s fine by me,” I wave off his little self-conscious comment, “sometimes I forget to talk at all. We can balance each other out.” “Balancing each other out? I like the sound of that,” he tosses a wink at me, and I feel my cheeks heat up.  Am I really so attention-starved that a wink is making me blush?  “Oh, hush.” 

“Mmmm. No, I don't think I will.” 

We lull into a comfortable silence as he begins slowly restocking the shelves in front of him.  I watch him for a few moments, noting how his biceps stretch as he reaches out.  Why is my mouth suddenly dry?  I also notice how his back muscles, hidden and unassuming under his plain white tee shirt, ripple as he leans up on his tiptoes to stock something on a shelf just out of his reach.  God bless it.  I’m so caught up in him that I don't even notice when he turns to look at me, catching me staring.  He ducks his head and tries to hide his giggle. 

“So, Quinn,” he starts, “Tell me a little bit about yourself.” I smile for a moment, trying to decide how to proceed. Craig hates it when I talk about work. Will Josh be the same? Should I keep this as impersonal as possible so I don’t pre-run him off? Wait, why am I even worried about pre-running him off?

I pull myself out of my thoughts, ultimately deciding to be honest. “Well, I’m in school to be a teacher – art – which is why you see me in here all the time,” I brace for him to interrupt with how boring or useless my chosen career path is, but he doesn’t. His eyes light up. “Teaching, molding young minds, is such a noble profession.”

I crack a small smile but quickly proceed with my typical minimizing. “Oh please, Josh. I am teaching kids how to scribble. It’s not like I’m saving lives.” “You don’t know that,” he pauses, shaking his head, “art saves people, whether directly or indirectly, and I won’t let you minimize the work you do. Not around me. I don’t know who in your life made you feel like you have to, but cut that shit out.” I stare at him in awe. “That look you’re giving me tells me that there actually is someone who tells you your career isn’t important,” his eyes roll back dramatically, “Anytime you need a reminder that they’re wrong, you know where to find me.” I suck my lower lip between my teeth, considering how to respond. I don’t miss how Josh’s gaze slides down and locks on the spot where my teeth meet my lip. I definitely don't miss his subtle swallow as I, perhaps a bit intentionally, roll my lip between my teeth. “I’ll keep that in mind, Josh.”

I slowly start to turn from him, suddenly uncomfortable with the level of unintentional validation a complete stranger is giving me. 

“I better grab my oil pastels and scoot,” I say, pointing to the next aisle over. “My partner is in the car, and I’m sure he’s about three seconds away from coming in here and dragging me out.” An indecipherable look flashes across his face at the mention of Craig. “He’d really come in here mad because you took too long?” “He’s done worse for less…”  Josh winces at that, and I hope I haven’t scared him.  “ANY WAY,” I borderline shout, “he’s a great dude; he’s just impatient. So, I’m gonna head out. It was lovely to meet you, Josh. I can’t wait until our paths cross again.”

I raise two fingers to my forehead and give Josh a mini salute, then walk to the next aisle to get my supplies. 

Wow, I can’t wait to talk to him again. I think we’ll be good friends so long as Craig doesn't ask too many questions.

“Took you long enough,” Craig huffs as I open the driver's side door. “It was super busy, I’m sorry.”  “There’s like three cars in the parking lot. So, let’s try that again.” Fuck. I should have considered that before.  “Yeah, you’re right, babe,” I try to bite back my annoyance, “I actually got caught up talking to a worker.”  Craig raises an eyebrow, basically begging me to continue. “His name is Josh,” I say with a finality that hopefully gets the point across that I’m not open to discussing it.  “Oh, his name is Josh?”  “Yep,” I say, popping the P.

Craig seems to take the hint and quiets down as I connect my phone to the Bluetooth in my car, shuffling my music library. The intro to “Feather” by Sabrina Carpenter pumps through the speakers as we drive out of the parking lot.  Craig huffs in the passenger seat, turning to look out the window. 

“Since you ran your errand and dragged me along, do you think we could stop a few places for me?” A few places? I have work to do. I can’t just chauffeur him around. I let out a small sigh, looking either way before turning right at the stop sign at the front of the shopping complex. I plaster on a small, fake smile and look over at Craig.  “Of course we can, babe…”  He turns to look at me, a sneer on his face.  “But…”  “But,” I internally roll my eyes, “I do have work to do. So I don't want to be out all day.”  “Well, you should have thought about that before dragging me out with you.”  I ignore him, breathing deeply and letting Sabrina Carpenter fill my brain as we drive down the road.

I feel so much lighter, like a feather, with you out my life. 

“Can you change this song?”  “I like this song..”  “Well, I hate hearing Pop bitches whine about vapid shit.” Oooh, Vapid, big word. I let out a laugh. 

“What?”  “Nothing,” I chuckle again, changing the song, realizing that this battle is not worth fighting.  We lapse into silence again, and I nearly allow my muscle memory to drive us back to our apartment.  “Gamestop,” Craig blurts out, seemingly realizing at the exact moment that I am thiiiiiiis close to turning onto our street.  “Excuse me?”  “Gamestop, I want to stop there. I have a few things I want to look at.” He was an asshole about my job because he wanted to go to Gamestop. Okay. “Sure, Craig,” I bite back my anger, “We can stop at Gamestop before we go home.” “And the flea market.” The flea market? He really does only see me as his chauffeur. Cool, cool, cool.  “Anything you want, babe,” I swipe one hand down my face in annoyance, turning my blinker on and merging into the right lane so I could get on the exit for the highway. 

Of course, he wants to go to GameStop—a 12-minute drive to a different city. Is he punishing me for getting caught up with Josh? Craig may be an idiot, but he is smart enough to spite me when he wants to. This wild goose chase when he knows I have work to do has no other explanation. 

I’m not entirely sure when our relationship began to feel like work, but it’s been this way for months.

We moved to Portland shortly after my best friend Willa and I graduated from SCAD. I would follow Willa to the ends of this earth, so we ended up in Maine. 

It’s perfect for my photography career, Quincy: nature, kitschy little shops, small-town vibes with a big personality. 

How could I tell her no when she was so excited? So, the day after graduation, we packed up our cars and began the 17-hour road trip. 

Craig originally wasn't going to come. When Willa and I decided to move up here, we had a massive blowout fight that led to us breaking up for a while. But, the week before we were set to leave, Craig came crawling back to my door, flowers in hand, and begged me to take him back. He promised that he would change and wanted me to follow my dreams. He promised me that he wanted to be a part of my dreams. I agreed, and he hopped in the car with me. 

On days like today, when Craig is in one of his moods, I am transported back to the conversation Willa and I had in our dorm room the night I took him back. 

I can't help but wonder if she was right. 

“I love you so much, Quinn,” it was strange for her to use my given name, “but what happens when we move to Portland and you meet the actual love of your life?”  “What do you mean? I love Craig.”  “He’s a borderline serial killer who still gets an allowance from his mother.”  “He’s just going through a tough time. He’s going to change, Wills,” I said with such conviction. “Mmmm.. His moodiness is becoming increasingly common, and I don't want you to miss something good because you're shackled to your college boyfriend.”  “I know you don't love Craig, but he’s good to me most of the time,” I sigh, “every relationship has issues.”  “I know that, but the issues in your relationship are becoming more common. I don't want you to get hurt. Or to be stuck in a situation that isn't working.”  “I won't be stuck! If it doesn't work out, I’ll leave him.”  “Quincy, you can't even call the pharmacy to fill your prescriptions. You expect me to believe you’ll be able to confront him if and when the time comes?” I didn't miss the way she said and instead of or.  “That came out harsh,” she reaches out and pats my arm, “I'm not trying to be mean. I’m just worried about you.”  “I know, Wills. You're fine. I’ll think about it a bit more before making a decision.” 

I pull myself out of my thoughts just in time to pull into the Gamestop parking lot. 

“You coming in or staying out here?” Craig asks, opening his door before I even have the car in park.  “I’ll come in,” I reply, shutting my car off and opening the door. 

I have no desire to be alone with my thoughts right now. They're going down a dangerous path. 

I trail behind Craig as he enters the shop, tossing a quick smile and waving to the worker behind the counter.

“What are you looking for, babe?”  “I need a new game and controller,” he brushes me off.  “A controller? You just got one a few weeks ago.”  “Well,” he says, bringing his hand to the back of his neck, “I broke it.” I roll my eyes. That explains the mysterious crash that woke me up at 2 a.m.  “How?”  “I don't know, Quinn.” He rolls his eyes. “I got mad.” 

These bursts of rage are happening with increasing frequency. Just like Willa said. 

“Can you find a better way to take your anger out? These controllers are like $70,” I push.  “Sure, I’ll get right on that,” he raises his voice, “like what does that even mean? How do you want me to do that?” 

My eyes shoot over to the cashier, who is suddenly very interested in the dirt under their nails. 

“Craig,” I start softly, trying to calm him down, “I'm sorry. Forget I said anything.”  “Yeah, well,” he looks me dead in the eyes, “that's not hard to do when nothing you say matters, anyway.” 

Okay, ouch. 

Tears prick my eyes, and I level him with a glare and walk outside, determined not to let him see me cry.  Why is he being this way? He's always had a little bit of an attitude, but he is typically sweet in public. 

I unlock my car door, placing a hand on my chest to calm my breathing. Calm it down, Quinn—no need to have a panic attack over a dumb boy. 

I open the car door and sit in the driver's seat, leaning against the steering wheel. I suck a deep breath into my lungs, holding it for three seconds before releasing it. I repeat that action until I no longer feel like my heart will thump out of my chest.  What could I have done to him to put him in this mood? 

Now that I’m not on the verge of a panic attack, I replay the day in my head. 

We got up this morning, and I made him breakfast.  Did I burn his eggs? Did I undercook them? 

I left him alone for a while to play video games.  Should I have stayed with him? 

We got up and went to Hobby Lobby. He specifically asked to stay in the car.  Should I have pushed him to come in with me? Should I have been quicker? 

And here we are now.  What happened? 

My mind flicks back to Hobby Lobby, and I remember how mad Craig seemed about me speaking to Josh. I can't say I regret it. Speaking with Josh was the highlight of my entire week. It was so lovely to speak with another human and not worry about walking on eggshells. It was nice to talk with someone and have a genuine smile on my face.  I really can't remember the last time I had that with Craig.  That's so sad, Quinn. 

Craig distracts my line of thought by opening the passenger seat and throwing his Gamestop bag into the back seat. I lift my head from the steering wheel to look at him. “What’s your problem?” He asks, fixing me with a cool stare.  What's my problem? I hold back a bitter laugh.  “I don't have a problem, Craig.”  “Well, you sure booked it out of the store,” he pulls his vape out of his pocket and takes a puff, “it was kind of embarrassing.”  Me leaving was embarrassing, but you making me tear up wasn't? Oh okay.  “I’m sorry,” I start, “I had a headache come on out of nowhere and needed some air.” A Craig-sized headache. I was angry earlier, but now I’m defeated.  “Well...” I see his eyes light up with whatever he’s about to say next. “If you aren't feeling well, I can drop you off at home so you don't have to stay out with me while I run errands.”  “That sounds great,” I breathe out in genuine relief.  I can't imagine trying to spend the rest of the afternoon with him while he’s in this mood.  “Sure thing, babe.” 

I note that he looks almost relieved that I agreed so quickly. 

I don't have time to unpack all that. 

As I drive back to the apartment, I try to put everything out of my mind. 

—————————————————————————

“Bye, babe,” I press a reluctant kiss to Craig’s lips as he walks past me to get into the driver's seat.  “I’ll see you in a little bit,” he responds with hardly another look in my direction. 

I try not to take his (lack of) response to heart and make my way up the stairs to our apartment, unlocking the door and booting it open with my foot. I drop my well-loved (see: filthy and paint-stained) canvas messenger bag on the floor in the foyer and toss myself face-down on the couch.  “AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH,” I scream into my pile of throw pillows before flopping over on my back. 

I pull out my phone and click on the messaging app, selecting my chat with Willa.  I'm sure Willa would loooooove to tell me how shitty Craig is. 

Me: Hellooooooo, Wilson.  Wilson: QUINNY Wilson: Wait  Wilson: You’re using full punctuation Wilson: What’s wrong 

I let out a laugh; Willa has always been so good at reading me. 

Wilson: What did Greg do Me: 🙂 Me: How much time do you have 

I begin typing out a TL;DR message explaining the situation when I'm interrupted by a Facetime call from the woman herself. I tap the answer button quicker than I've ever tapped anything else in my life. 

“QUINNDOLYN!!!” Willa squawks, her face coming into view.“WILSON!”  I take in her appearance, her brown bob appropriately disheveled, just as it always is.  

“You better spill right now.”  I move my phone into my left hand, swiping my right hand through my hair.  “Let me collect my thoughts,” I laugh, “I wasn't exactly expecting an immediate phone call.”  “Well, that's on you. You know I'm far too nosy to wait for your little fingers to tap it all out.”  “Touche. You are quite annoying when you want to be.” 

I giggle as she sneers at me, sticking out her tongue like a kid on a playground. 

“Anyway. How do you want it? Do you need every detail of my day or just the Craig parts?”  “Oh, babe,” she rolls her eyes. “I would live inside your walls if I could. I need the details of your whole life.”  I snicker at her, then launch into the story of my day. I spare details around Josh, referring to him as Stock Boy, though I see her eyebrow quirk up a few times at the information that I do decide to divulge. I want to keep him to myself a little longer. We saw how Craig reacted. 

“Ah, Quinn—” she starts after I finish explaining a bit of Hobby Lobby.  I blow right past her interruption and continue to the car ride.  “He’d be wise to listen to Our Lady Sabrina!”  “You are so right, Willy,” I laugh, “I thought it was goofy he got mad about ‘Feather,’ but I digress.” 

I suck in a deep breath, bracing myself for Willa’s reaction as I launch into the final part of our afternoon. 

“He said WHAT?”  “You heard me,” I close my eyes, pinching the bridge of my nose.  “I need you to repeat it because I must be losing my mind.”  “He saaaaaaaaid that nothing I say matters.” 

I watch through my phone screen as Willa stands up from her couch and walks through her apartment. 

“What are you doing, Wills?”  “What does it look like? I'm getting my shit together, and I’m coming over.”  “He’s not even here right now. He’s off doing god knows what.”  “That's perfect, Quincy. Gives us time to plan what to say to him. I just need to pick up a bottle of wine.” 

She hangs up the call before I can even protest. 

Not that I would protest; I am well aware that there is no stopping Willa once she gets an idea in her head. 

I tidy up the apartment while waiting for Willa to arrive, throwing dirty laundry into a basket. I fight an eye roll (and maybe a tiny gag) as I pick up his empty beer cans from his “game sesh” with his boys last night. Willa will kill me if she finds out how many of Craig's messes I clean up for him. I'll just keep thaaaaaaaat fun fact to myself for the time being. 

I plop back down on the couch, pull out my phone, and scroll through Instagram. Now that I'm alone with limited distractions, my thoughts are drawn back to Josh.  I should have gotten his socials; he seemed sweet. My lips quirk up into a grin as I consider trying to hunt him down. It can't be too hard to find the one queer dude who works at Hobby Lobby. Woah there, Quinn. That's pushing it a bit.  My smile drops, and I know I can't do that.  He would have mentioned connecting before I left if he wanted to be friendly like that. He did say, “You know where to find me,” before I left, though. Clearly, that means he wouldn't be opposed to seeing me again.  I pick up one of the throw pillows sitting beside me and slam it over my face, letting out another muffled scream.

“WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH ME?!” 

I keep the pillow over my face until I hear Willa walk in. She entirely bypasses me and heads right to the kitchen, immediately pulling down two wine glasses and filling them before meeting me back in the living room. 

“Babe, I know it's still kind of early,” she practically shoves a glass into my hand, “but, we’re gonna need a little bit of this to sustain our plotting.” She clinks her glass against mine, and we both take a sip.  “But, before we start. Let's talk about Stock Boy.”  I sigh, knowing full well I can't lie to her face. Fuck. She got me. She did this on purpose. She lets out a small laugh, and gestures for me to go on. 

And so, I tell her all about the first boy who has made me laugh in months.

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[cinamun]

*opens my notes and adjusts glasses.* Okay now bare with me bc I swore I saw what bishop was convicted for being soemthing related to bodily harm but I struggling trying to find where I saw it. But regardless, let's remember he was convicted and spent 30 yrs. He himself says he doesn't like that moment of his life.

I haven't read into bishop in his previous gameplay with his original creator so!! Imma have to get to that. But in this case in this story, I think it plays a part to why he suddenly acts caring.

So I think he's doing this to avoid being suspect one. Jay already knows his toxic behavior, mostly mentally abusive. Bishop when around always made a sort of barrier between Mercy and Jay, from disrespecting him and purposefully making him uncomfortable to the point Jay was gonna put a boundary on the contact between him and his mom. Even though Bishop went to Jay to tell him not to do that, he did it in a way that just gave Jay more reason and anger to not unblock his mom. A common thing abusers do with their victims is isolate them. And he's a good manipulator as we saw. His is one of the time he acknowledges himself and her family cutting her off in the same sentence. I'm pretty sure he knows what he was doing.

Obviously he failed at that when her grandbabies where born and she wanted to be involved and now she's becoming more resilient. But, he still has some power over her bc he's a good manipulator.

Moving on, not only does Jay know, but Indya knows and she knows details that she can point out its not healthy and toxic and warns mercy like whatever you choose to do, itll effect your son. Then it effects my daughter. Then it effects me. You don't want shit with Indya. And then, let's remember Mercy went on that public podcast and Bishop exposed himself to ppl listening in, usuing her name, and manipulated his way in again. I remember Indya not rlly buying it.

So, that's 2 ppl, plus their family members that know bishop isn't great.

Now let's move into the whole mercy with a knife situation. I wanna say that even though mercy pulled a knife on him, with he fact he already has abusive patterns and uses sex to get control, and he admits he likes controlling her, and his previous conviction, and she's clearly mentally distressed, they'd probably see maybe he triggered it. But also, as much as I love Mercy and wish she did it, if she truly wanted to harm him, she'd do it. She instead yelled, and let him talk. This shows me she has hesitance. She not ready yet to actually do it. So, she doesn't really have intention to harm.

She'd definitely probably get in trouble for pulling the knife, it's complex, but then he takes to literally smashing her so hard against the wall after taking her down to drop the weapon and de-escalating the situation. He then threatens to murder her. He clearly has intentions to harm if he is threatening to murder and physically harm to the point she's losing conciousness. And also, he has a habit of bringing up her grandkids. He did it here and he did it long before when she was moving out of San Myshuno apartments.

During her unconsciousness, Jay tried to text her bc they do in the end have a close bond. Jay knows his mom. First he assumes maybe she's dating. That's at 2:13 pm. Several hours pass, it's 11:19 pm. Still no response or a simple yes to him asking a question. So now he's worried. Bishop takes her phone and acts like her to make Jay worry less.

Lastly, if Bishop REALLY cared about Mercy's health, he'd drive her to the hospital. If he wanted to avoid suspiciousness, he could of left her and drove off. Act like a civilian. Instead be brings her to an unknown location, isn't letting her leave until she can stand up and not wobble (that's so she doesn't look disoriented) and eat up cus clearly she hasn't. Then also text her son so kess suspicion is thrown on him.

That's been MYYY theory. I think he's avoiding suspicion cus he doesn't want get charged again. He has a pattern of behavior that calls for concern. U stayed before he could of been surprised she was almost gonna get him with the knife. If she's able to pull a knife, who's to say if he left her there, she finally spills to Jay or someone what's happening? Now he's in trouble.

So, take her to a random location, hidden away, seemingly underground, and don't let her leave till she looks normal.

Now I pray to God my phone didn't autocorrect some random crap and make me sound crazy 🙏🏼

[kenna-is-reading]

Crescent City: House of Flame and Shadow Review

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Dear Readers,

I have, at long last, finished HOFAS!!! And I might just have more thoughts, questions, comments, and concerns than I did when I finished HOSAB. Strap in, cause we're in for a long post. I'd give a TLDR, but I think if you can get through 2,500 pages of Crescent City books, you can skim through this too :). I really enjoyed the book, but I feel like I want more time with these characters in order to really solidify them as a group. I am looking forward to the next book just to see how it all continues, especially given some of the connections that were made and the history that was revealed in this book. That said, let's wrap up the preamble and get into it.

Brannongate

I'm just gonna start with what was probably everyone's biggest takeaway from HOFAS, and that is Lidia being a confirmed relative of Aelin's. I was waiting for the TOG tie in, and I've had many different theories, but I knew as soon as we started getting into the deer shifter stuff, combined with Brann being Lidia's son's name, that it was coming soon. I definitely gasped out loud regardless when she said his full name, and I would very much like to get deeper into that history as soon as possible, because I miss TOG with every ounce of my soul and spirit. I love that Lidia is able to be so powerful with her fire, if only because I'm still mad that Aelin lost hers. I am not one of the genius Maasverse fans who have probably already figured out what everything means and how it will all happen going forward, but I am excited to be along for the ride to find out. Speaking of Lidia...

2. Lidia & Hypaxia

I would really love to see more of Lidia and Hypaxia as sisters and figure out what their dynamic will be. I feel like there could be a lot more to discover as far as the witches go, and I really like both characters. I really just want to see Lidia be able to love and trust and have a family. She has suffered a ridiculous amount and I want to see her happy. I think Hypaxia being the head of House of Flame and Shadow was a very interesting development, and I am interested in following that storyline further. I still feel like I don't know Hypaxia very well as a character, but that could also just be because we only really hear about her from other characters' perspectives. Her relationship with Lidia, if one is ever built, is definitely one of the aspects of the story that I am most excited to see develop.

3. Tharion or Sathia or Colin or Ariadne (to the tune of Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus)

These were the biggest questions I was left with at the end of HOFAS. Is Sathia okay? Did she get Colin out? What happened with the Viper Queen? What is Ariadne going to do? Why does Tharion consistently make such bad decisions? I knew that Tharion and Ithan, arguably the worst, most self-sabotaging decision makers in the series (if not the entire Massiverse), being the ones to transport the antidote was going to end...como se dice...badly. While I still love both of them down, I felt like Tharion definitely continued his streak of making me facepalm while reading to a very serious degree. His dedication to ruining his own life would be nearly admirable if it weren't so painfully stupid. That said, I don't think it was as bad as book 2. I liked his dynamic with Sathia, and I think he had good motives for marrying her. As I previously said, I do love Tharion. He's definitely one of my favorite characters in this series, but I want better for him. He and Ithan are so wracked by their own guilt that they only worsen things for themselves, but I'm really hoping it will get better for them as they all work as a group to establish a post-Asterian society. And speaking of Ithan...

4. Sunball McGee, Prime of the Valbaran Wolves

Some of y'all are about to be real mad at me. But it must be said.

Ithan Holstrom is one of my favorite SJM men.

Now, now, now- Let me finish- I have seen such a huge and, in my opinion, unwarranted amount of hate for Ithan as a result of his actions in this book. And while I 100% understand the frustration, (trust, I do!!!), I also understand Ithan. Think about it. This is a very young kid who is essentially a frat boy. His only personality trait, other than Make your brother proud, is sunball player. This is everyone's biggest complaint. Every time he is mentioned, he is reduced to sunball. And I know people find this redundant and annoying, but let's consider this for a moment. Walk with me. Sunball is all Ithan is reduced to, and I think that's the point. He thinks very lowly of himself. It is clear that he does not think he has anything else to offer aside from his sunball skills. In the whole quest to save Sigrid, (everyone's other complaint about him), he never once considers that he himself should lead. Again, this annoys people, but I think that is the point. His opinion of himself is so negative, and he lacks so much confidence, and he has lived so much in his brother's shadow that he seems like he had to cling to what he was good at in order to stand out and have something of his own. His identity as a wolf was somewhat overshadowed by Connor, his love for Bryce was overshadowed by Connor, and while he obviously loved his brother dearly and that's nothing against Connor, it would have made it very difficult for Ithan to develop his own sense of identity and sense of self outside of who he was related to and what he was good at. Now, am I reading too far into his character? Maybe. However, I am nevertheless appointing myself captain of the Ithan Holstrom Defense Squad, and I am trying to convince SJM Nation to join me. Signup sheet is by the door, grab a badge on the way out. I think becoming Prime is exactly what he needed to come into his own and figure out who he is, as a wolf, as a leader, and as his own individual. He has never been given permission to lead his own life, and now he must step up and take the reins of not only his own life, but the wolves' as well. All the deep psychoanalyzing stuff aside, I think him and Perry could be really cute. Don't know where y'all stand with that, but I was sensing some vibes between them that I wasn't mad at: "...Flynn and Dec across from him, the former eyeing Perry with an interest Ithan didn't entirely appreciate. Perry was blushing, and Ithan didn't appreciate that either...Perry laughed, and...okay, maybe Ithan liked the sound." (pg. 829). I really like Perry, despite seeing relatively little of her in the book. (I've only known Perry for a day and a half, but if anything happened to her, I would k!ll everyone in this room and then myself). I'm curious as to what will happen with her, given that her scent didn't change when she took the antidote, etc. And I'll be done with my Ithan rant, but don't think I didn't notice the whole ice magic thing. I clocked that tea faster than Bryce can teleport. I won't make any theories, but all I'm saying is SJM men w Elsa magic >>>.

5. Call me Sigrid the way my life keeps getting progressively worse

Now I know we're not really supposed to care about Sigrid whatsoever at this point, but I feel obligated to note that she is out somewhere wandering, and the gang does not know where she is. I make it my personal mission to keep tabs on the opps of my favorite characters. I think she could have been more complex than a throwaway-side-villain character. She hasn't had a lot of choice in the things that have happened to her thus far in her life, but I do think she has to be kept out of the way so that Ithan can be Prime, so I can't guess at what will happen there, but I'm glad the Astronomer is gone. He was ticking me off.

6. Reapers and Necromancers and Lion Shifters, Oh My

I feel obligated to discuss with my fellow readers- do we all think the Lion Shifter Reaper that talked to Ithan and Hypaxia was the same one Bryce banged in book 1, or am I tripping? Ithan does think, "Gods, Bryce would have a field day with this guy-- his long golden hair was very carefully mussed" (pg. 608). Just something to think about, something I noticed, not important to the plot. Carrying on!

7. Ember & Nesta & My Tears

Let's just take a moment to read some lines that made me (No. 1 Nesta Stan) tear up!

"But Ember continued, looking only at Nesta, 'I am glad of one thing: that I was able to meet you.' Nesta's lips pressed into a thin line, and she glanced down at their joined hands...'Your mother loves you,' Nesta said quietly, reading the exasperated expression on Bryce's face. 'Don't for one second take that for granted.' Bryce could only incline her head to Nesta. 'I'm lucky,' she admitted. 'I've always been lucky to have her as a mom.' Ember really looked like she might cry now, especially as she turned back to Nesta and said, 'This time with you was a gift, Nesta. It truly was.' With that, she pulled Nesta into a tight embrace, and Bryce could have sworn something like pain and longing crossed Nesta's expression. Like she hadn't experienced a mom-hug for a long, long time" (HOFAS 813-814).

I truly love Nesta so much, and this book set up a lot for her in the next ACOTAR novel, which I really hope will have her perspective in it. I love Nesta and Bryce's potential friendship, and I hope there is more crossover content coming. I know a lot of people thought there was too much info-dumping about Fae history in this book, but I loved learning about the lore, and I think with Nesta's eight-pointed star situation could lead to us learning even more, which I am excited about.

8. Wyrd - Urd

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Finally some insight into the whole Urd thing! I have so many thoughts and theories about the different powers and gods in each series, and I'm so interested in the ways that they are intersecting and connecting. We learned that Urd is the Cauldron - "A cauldron of life, brimming with the language of creation...Wyrd, we called her in the old world" (pg. 692). The symbols on the "bowl" the statue of Urd is holding in this scene are most definitely Wyrdmarks, but the way they are described as tattoos running onto the statue's arms reminded me of Feyre's tattoos, which I thought was kind of a cool image: "And those symbols running from the bowl onto her skin...they were like tattoos" (pg 690). I am very interested in learning about the origins of the Under-King, too, him having come from the shifters' world. Again, I need to look further into theories to see if anyone with more brain power than me has figured it out, but I am really enjoying putting the pieces of this gigantic puzzle together.

9. HELLO????? VIKTORIA??????

Finally, I have to at least mention the gang's complete and total neglect to retrieve Viktoria from the bottom of the ocean, yet again. I understand y'all had a lot going on the first couple books, but come on. You've now worked closely and allied with not one but two Blue Court water queens, and you've gallivanted all over Midgard via submarine, and you're telling me not ONE person had so much as the THOUGHT of "oh hey, we should try to find Vik's box"??? And now that Asterigate has been resolved, they have no excuse! I feel so bad for her that they just...forgot about it? Assumed she's beyond help? I don't know! Justice for Viktoria!

10. Jesiba.

I love Jesiba Roga so much and I am so sad about her sacrifice, but I should have seen it coming. I think I did, but I was living in a river in Egypt. Talk about characters who are always two steps ahead, her having Ithan packing those boxes knowing darn well what she was going to do...Absolute icon. I shall never forget her. I've heard people saying that not enough people died, but I feel like it was simply spread out through the series and done a little differently than other SJM endings. This series started out with like seven people who meant the world to our MC being brutally slaughtered, we lost Lehabah, we lost Viktoria and Justinian, we lost Cormac, we lost Sofie, we lost the Prime, which some might not consider a "real" loss but he was on the right side, and then Jesiba. I think our characters suffered plenty, considering some character or another spent like half the series in an Asteri dungeon being horrifically tortured.

In closing, I will say that I really do love this world and these characters. I am so intrigued as to how it will change and develop going forward, especially with such a drastic shift in power in so many areas. I don't really care if the only conflict in the next book is them figuring out the Firstlight problem, I just want to know what happens next. I can't wait to dive deeper into the whole multiverse situation and see what is next for all of our favorite characters, and the more time goes on, the more ready I am for a new ACOTAR. Now that I have caught up on Crescent City, I will be diving headlong into Summer Reads, so I am thinking about doing some summer themed posts the next couple weeks to get into the summer vibes! If you read this far, thank you so much for giving half a crap what I think, and let me know what you think is next for the Maasverse! I want to hear all the theories, or things I may not have caught, or things you guys have figured out! Until next time! :)

XOXO,

Kenna

[its-a-me-mango]

I wanna point out, music wise. the music that currently plays while 3 and Luigi dance- it's so sad and melancholic. To me at least. And, when you look at it, 3 was the only one to make an actual self aware moment. Also it's the only one other than the "give me 5 stars" that plays music that doesn't sound wrong. I'm just saying- what do you think though?

I got no thoughts tbh, I do agree that it's the most "put together" song, most of the other ones are either slowed down or glitched out, I still can't tell what it is so it's likely a slowed down version of another song, though it doesn't sound like the same one as before to me so??? Who knows lol.

The gameshow song is still the most "normal" one but I think because Mr Puzzle is the star of that one, then it would be more coherent, it's his show.

My Epic Theory is that regardless, Mario is gonna be the star of this movie, he's not been self aware this whole time because he was never affected by Mr Puzzle in the first place, he just played along. We can see it in Mr Puzzles gameshow that breaking out of bounds did nothing to him, he's chill with it. I hope they make him smart enough to get this all fixed, we know he always has that will to help his friends so I'm sure he's got it in him <3

[gayandgayerforventi]

꒰ ָ֢ ׁ 𓈒 venti ◌ hcs ׁ 𓈒 𝆬 ꒱

𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊

-idol boyfriend au

♡ The Youtube MMD's of him are fr the only inspo I have rn-

♡ Definitely passionate about being an idol

♡ In an au where you're dating, you can't tell me he won't look you in the eye whilst you're on stage and wink. ( Assuming you're at the concert of course. )

♡ Definitely supplies you with front row seats, who would he be not to? Lmao.

♡ People probably notice the not-so-subtle ways he looks at you on stage and as a result there might be a lot of theories about it.

♡ Y'know, tiktoks going ' Oh my god guys, you won't believe this what the hell. Guess who I just spotted walking home. The person Venti winked at!! '

♡ Most contracts forbid dating as part of the job though.

♡ But rumors would probably start up regardless. Hey, would you rather they were shipping you and Venti, or him and Xiao?

♡ I can see him wearing literally any outfit. Like I can just imagine him rocking a skirt in a music video.

♡ I can see a lot of people simping over him to be honest. It won't just be you </3

♡ Like, in the contacts, one of the members ( probably Venti tbh ) could shout out, ' which member do we all love most? ' and it's like a billion people saying different idol members.

♡ I can see people thinking of Xiao as the hot ass emo guy of the group.

♡ I have no idea why I decided to add that as it's totally unrelated, but alright.

♡ I feel like Venti would probably keep the things you give/gave him very close to him, considering he'd have to closet the fact you're dating, and you probably wouldn't get to see each other much.

♡ Like, imagine one night you managed to sneak a small home date with each other where you ended up doing his hair.

♡ I know for a fact I struggle sometimes with braiding his kind of hair, so imagine just trying to brush your fingers through his hair before you finally decided maybe you should actually plait it? Lol.

♡ You'll see him wearing whatever you've done to his hair on stage ;)

♡ Probably updates you on how things are with his job. As in, ' Oh Windblume, we're gonna be having another concert in a few months! ' or, ' Windblume, we're gonna make a new music video! '

♡ Probably plays pranks on the other members. I'm leaving that open for though.

♡ Jean probably suspects something's going on, so you'll have to be careful.

♡ She question the tiktoks and Youtube theories 💀 but then come to terms that obviously, as an idol things like that are bound to happen when you let your guard down.

♡ Chooses to trust Venti, whilst she puts and eye on him.

♡ I can see Venti lyric pranking you-

♡ Okay, but that's all for now. Honestly, I recommend lunASMR's channel on Youtube as she's done Idol Venti before, and she's great. :)

[ask-the-totally-real-peppino]

Hello, i'm cheese anon's evil (not really) alter ego, theorist anon and i've come here to tell you my theory or uhh... actually personal hc of what happend to bruno (headcanons are like theorys but less fancy shut >:[), (i tweaked it a bit to fit your context just a tad better as i have some ideas with how you portrayed bruno (or well part of him))

SO. First of all i have to say i liked the uniform you gave bruno, very cute tbh, but more than pizzeria it's giving ice cream or candy shop thb, not that is a bad thing just saying so uhh fuck it pizzeria no more he runs an ice cream shop now in me mind

OK WITH THAT OUT THE WAY NOW WE FR THIS TIME.

Ok so. Once upon a time this italian guy called Bruno runed an ice cream shop with his wife, pizzahead saw how succesful they were on their own and said "shiiid imma need that" so he made a deal with the happy couple. BUT then he tried to bribe and trick them into giving up pretty much all rights to uhh.. i don't have a name for the ice cream shop actually lmao, just think of amything. anyways, they said no bc the ice cream shop was something they hold very dear to them, they have been saving for this for literal years and risked it all to get it running so who would want to give it all out like that really? But pisshead can't accept a no for an answer so what did he did? He just killed them in the spot. If they aren't gonna sing these papers might as well just kill the guys so they stop growing you know? He cannot afford ANY sort of competition (even tho he sells horrible pizzas and they are a fucking ice cream shop). But then he realizes "shit i fucked up imma get sued" so he just tried to recreate bruno using his brain as a base, couldn't replicate the wife tho, he accidentally shot her in the brain without thinking he would have to clone her too oops.

Anyways they go thru the cloning process but uh oh the clone isn't perfect, guy doesn't even remember who he was. The solution? Lie that they sold their shop and flew out the country with the money without telling anyone, aslo they changed their numbers you cannot find them ^-^. Btw the shop closed down literal months after he "acquired" the shop, the ice cream was bad it tasted like pizza :(.

That gets us to today, pizzahead now found some new guy to torment and since he had the clone laying around he just kind of managed to make it change looks so it can look like peppino and then used them as a boss on his tower.

Ok i'm done talking :] hope you like this mess of a theory imma go, cheese bitch wants to take control again mkay bye was a plessure to speak to ya'll <3

(Ohohoho, Theorist Anon! What a delight to read!

I cannot confirm nor deny your theory, but I will say that part of it is pretty spot-on! And it's generally an interesting story regardless!

Just some silly and goofy pizza man absolutely snapping and killing a couple bc he's a jealous bitch, and then he goes 'whoopsie daisy' and remakes one of them, and uses them to torment another guy??? Incredible

If dear Cheese Anon allows you to return, I'd love to read any more theories you have! (And I will continue to smugly grin as I do not confirm nor deny them)

ALSO, I totally get the ice cream shop vibes from the outfit, not intentional, but it is very funny to imagine Pizzahead taking over a non-pizza related place and making bad pizzas or pizza-flavoured ice cream!

Who knows! Maybe the tower warped Bruno's Ice Cream to Bruno's Pizza, bc it is Pizza tower and not Ice Cream tower hehe

Also, Pep does love ice cream, but that's maybe unrelated!)

[recreationalfanfics]

FINISHING UP THE YANDERE! SYMBIOTE HOST! SHIDOU IDEA AND NOW DC/MARVEL X BLLK IS KINDA GETTING INTO MY HEAD BUT LIKE, REO MIKAGE BECOMING BATMAN OR A HERO LIKE BATMAN BECAUSE HE'S SO DOWN BAD FOR YOU.

FYI, this will be OOC and obviously have nothing to do with canon Blue Lock since I'm aging them up to be like, 20 or 21 and in college, BUT LIKE:

Reo falling in love with you, a comic book nerd and journalist for the local paper. His father managed to talk him out of his dream and now he's just dragging his feet until he meets you. He's a business major who took a creative writing class, mostly just for easy credit, and he's so happy he did because he gets to meet you! You're so cute and silly, goofy and adorable, how can he NOT love you? However, you seem to be one of those people who prefer fictional 2d men because of how you gush over something amazing that your comic book crush did or laugh about them being silly and goofy and when Reo asks you what it is. its typically a war crime or something-

REGARDLESS, he wishes you'd be more focused on the people around you then guys who only exist in those comics of yours and he's always so torn because he wants to get you the latest issue just to see how you'd react but he also doesn't want you to cancel plans to read it and hyperfixtaite on it. So he decides to at least read it before handing it to you to see the big hype. Then he reads stories about rich men dedicating themselves to fighting crime off of the streets and suddenly, he gets an idea.

Normal! Reo would not do this but this yandere! Reo who is delusional as hell.

You become concerned when he shows up to classes all bruised but he assures you that its nothing when in reality, he decided to pick up a few self defense classes while hiring people to stalk watch over you when he couldn't. He starts to develop his own arsenal, maybe not as excessive as Batman but it will look cool as hell and after some trial and errors, he starts to follow you.

Now he might simulate danger for a bit or something but he definetly does it with you first, to make himself seem like a hero for you. And you eat it UP. You're already writing stories, have those cliche meetings on the rooftop, and just you overall swooning over him!

However, this wasn't a comic book an actual comic book and the more you looked into this hero to do an article about him, the more you began to suspect he was a fraud. You tell your theories to Reo, who acts interested but on the inside is panicking. HE WAS ACTING LIKE HOW YOU WANTED HIM TOO, WHAT MORE DID HE HAVE TO DO!?

I'm gonna have to cut it off there bc I do not have ENOUGH BRAIN POWER TO WRITE THIS OUT BUT YEAH.

[fuckyeahorangecassidy]

I haven't shared much of my own thoughts on the implosion of the Best Friends faction.... So I'm gonna do this in a semi-list format lol;

Please, and I can't stress this enough, get THAT BLOB OF TOXIC WASTE DON CALLIS AWAY FROM ORANGE - DON'T TOUCH HIM, DON'T TALK TO HIM, DON'T EVEN LOOK AT HIM - Do NOT drag him down with you and the rest of the huge stars whose careers you've put at a standstill just because you're affiliated with them 🤮

I don't like how Kris keeps trying to hold OC back, she better not be in on this somehow. I know she seems projected to turn on my husband Willow and that already annoys me, lol

THEY BETTER BE LYING ABOUT CHUCK, I saw Jon Alba was saying that he'd been asking around regarding him being unable to wrestle every again and so far he said he's heard that it's legit 😭😭😭😭 I'm still holding out hope

My initial theory is that Trent has joined the Don Callis family and that they're in cahoots to mess with OC psychologically even further, which is nasty work regardless of whom he's trying to recruit or already recruited, cuz Callis is a bum lol

Another theory I had, which I think could be a best possible option if this is in fact going to unfortunately involve Callis, is; if for whatever reason it IS Orange that joins the DC family; this could work in Orange's favor in terms of having a bunch of big dudes that could defend him again when he gets ragdolled cuz he's smol boi (i.e. Takeshita, Hobbs if he wasn't injured, Ospreay for the time being, Fletcher), kind of "replace" what Best Friends used to do for OC... PLUS, it could mean a wardrobe change for OC which I personally would welcome lol, but the Callis variable is the one that makes it all feel gross lol.

I'm hoping also that Chuck doesn't end up turning on Orange also because I don't think my heart could handle that lol

I have a few other theories too but I can at least say, I don't know where this is going so kudos to the boys for that! I want to see Orange completely go off the deep end on Trent though, like get some heavy machinery to chase Trent down with and such 😭

[shadowphoenixrider]

(So I fell down the down the Gambit rabbit-hole, and this self-insert fic/drabble resulted. Although it's self-insert fic, the descriptions' probably vague enough for a reader to slot themselves into it if you want. Enjoy, regardless!)

"Gambit's got you, mon amie. It's ok."

I groaned, leaning into the strong arms that looped around me. The world slid away from me, starting to swing uncontrollably. My head and body started to turn to lead, and I squeezed at the arms holding me.

"Remy - floor, floor. I need to-"

He acquiesced immediately, hand protectively shielding the back of my head as he helped lower me to the ground. I rolled onto my back, only to be greeted with a solid blue sky, not a horizon nor a cloud to focus on. My stomach cringed as everything continued to spin - maybe if I chose a point in the zenith, that'd work? I had to hope, I didn't want this to get worse, or-

Next thing I knew was the blue being bisected by grey - a straight line - that I could definitely use, and I focused upon it. My vision continued swim but slowly, it began to solidify around the grey 'horizon' - a bo staff, I realised - the spinning sensation easing bit by bit.

"Helping, mon amie?" The Cajun spoke gently, somewhere in my peripheral vision that I dared not glance at, least I set the spinning off again.

"Yeah, definitely. Thanks for that, Remy. You're a lifesaver." I offered him a weak smile.

"Gambit be happy to help." Came the reply. "First time your vertigo come on out here. An' quick too. You doin' alright?"

"I should be. Can't think of anything it'd be except for my time of the month." I sighed. "Just my luck."

"Why don't ya get one of those implants?" Gambit asked, not unkindly. "Don't they help with that?"

"In theory, yeah. But I don't really need contraception when I'm not exactly sleeping with anyone. That and I'm not looking forward to everything going haywire for a little while."

There was a silence - brief, but enough that I sensed a switch in the demeanour of the man cupping my head.

"No-one caught ya fancy?"

I raised an eyebrow.

"You're suddenly very interested in my sex life, Gambit. Didn't realize you became my gynaecologist when I wasn't looking."

That made him choke, the staff wobbling. It didn't seem to restart the vertigo, though.

"Well, uh, Gambit jus'...Ah, forget about it." I didn't need to see him to hear his embarrassment, the spare hand that would be scratching the back of his neck.

"I'm gonna try sitting up," I said.

Bracing myself on my arms, I slowly levered myself upright, pausing to let myself adjust to each change of angle.

"Feelin' better?" Gambit asked from behind me.

"I think so...Need a bit before I stand up, though." I reached backwards blindly. "Stay with me? Just in case."

"Gambit not goin' anywhere." His hand brushed mine, gently squeezing it in reassurance. I wished I could turn to see him and not the grass and tree-line; despite his words and touch, Gambit could easily vanish and I'd be none the wiser.

"To answer your question," I began, hoping to hold his attention, "I need to know what you mean by 'fancy'. 'Fancy' as in what Jubilee and Roberto have going on, or 'fancy' as in getting an implant so there aren't any unforeseen consequences to certain indiscretions?"

The sudden silence implied that Gambit was blushing, and I cursed my vertigo that I couldn't see it.

"Both?" Came the oddly shy response. "Is there both?"

"Not yet." I replied. "I got a few crushes going on, but it's mostly aesthetics."

"Any in particular?"

"Storm, for definite. She's very beautiful."

"Ain't that the truth." I could hear his smile. "Anyone else? Rogue?"

"She is pretty, but no." I smirked. "There is this one guy, though."

"Oh? Just the one?"

"Just the one." A smile played over my lips. "I think you'd approve. He's very handsome."

"That don't exactly narrow it down, mon amie." He commented, and my smile became a grin, thrilled to hear his humour returning. "Though Gambit might have some questions if it be Wolverine."

"Mmm, no. Think taller. Has gorgeous eyes I could stare into all day."

"Ain't Cyclops married?" Gambit teased, and I swung an elbow at him. It didn't matter that I missed completely.

"You know what I mean, Remy! Eyes that won't physically fling me into next week!"

"Alright, we down to Gambit, Beast, and Bishop..." He paused. "Do Morph count?"

"No. They're sweet, but their powers are a little too uncanny for me."

I hummed thoughtfully, choosing my next words with care.

"The guy's got a really nice voice. Always makes me smile when I hear it. And even though he can be a huge pain in the arse, I know he's always got my back." A heartbeat's pause. I took the chance, daring to look over my shoulder. "He also cheats at cards."

"Gambit don't cheat! He-!" The Cajun's sputtered indignation came to a screeching halt, and that was when I decided to turn to face him. Gambit blinked at me, his face such a picture of baffled confusion and surprise I couldn't help but giggle.

"Figured it out?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. His expression softened, a small smile pulling at his lips.

"Reckon so." He looked me up and down. "Think you can stand now, mon amie?"

"I think so. Help me?"

Gambit didn't need to answer, taking my hand and supporting my weight as I gingerly got to my feet. He didn't let go as I surveyed my surroundings, turning my head experimentally.

"I think it's passed now." I smiled at him. "Thanks Gambit, glad this didn't happen when I was on my own." I cringed at the memory. "It wouldn't have been a pretty sight to find."

"Non." Gambit agreed. He still hadn't let go of my hand. "Perhaps we better head inside, find something else to do?"

"I suppose." I pretended not to notice as we walked back. "Although, if it's cards..."

"Gambit don't cheat, mon amie." He grinned at me. "You jus' got a terrible poker face."

I lifted a shoulder, chuckling.

"True enough. Never been very good at subtly."

[anaid-queen]

The Rolin Cut (3min) - a description of all scenes & all my thoughts

(observations as well as theories, mine and others')

as i'm dealing with every single quote and frame we see, it's under a cut - because this bitch is over 10k

Section 1: The Interview

Lestat's portrait (you know the one, the co-founder / Wolfkiller one) is completely engulfed in flames [starting off strong... Louis i see you!!]

Louis: "It is how it happened. I didn't think it at the time, but...yeah. Yeah." [would love to know what memory this refers to.... probably nothing too dramatic, if he manages to be somewhat collected about it? either that or, tbh... who knows. maybe he remembered smth correctly and then was gaslight into thinking differently?? it's not like we don't know someone who'd do that]

corresponding shot of Louis saying the above line in the present day, looking very contemplative [is he (relatively) collected, or is he barely holding it together? why can't i quite tell]

Armand: "May I make an observation?" [asking politely literally for the sake of politeness huh]

Louis: "I lost control of the interview." (AMC+ YT channel says this is Daniel but that's bullshit, doesn't sound like him & wouldn't work at all) [he's embarrassed, of course he's embarrassed, poor sweetie's immediately on the defense]

shot of Louis smoking ... at a bar ? [not sure what to make of this]

Armand: "Yes." [he's sooo fast to say this, god, he sounds almost desperate the way he hisses it... polite veneer OFF]

Louis: "He's skilled." [i know he's being defensive / trying to cover the cracks in his own armor, but i love that he's praising Daniel regardless]

Armand: "He wants you in piece for the privilege of putting them back together again as he sees fit." [ok savage accusation... and every bit of pain aside, projecting much, like HELLO]

Daniel walks into the nature room, where Armand already is, floating among the shelves reading; meanwhile a servant (Rashid?) brings Daniel his food [which begs the question... where is Louis? is Daniel really going to eat there, with his back to Armand, floating high in the room? i'm having so many thoughts y'all, and none of them are in the bible- ahem.]

Louis: "It's his job." [definitely defending Daniel now! baby ily]

Armand: "It's his drug. He's reveling in it." [god he really is soooo pissed isn't he. the harshest/meanest interpretation right off the bat.]

Armand: "You should end it." [and there lies the crux of it. he wants Louis to end the interview (because of course he does), and he's chosen to frame it as 'Daniel manipulates you / enjoys manipulating you, you shouldn't enable him'. wonder how far that's gonna get him...]

a shot of the curtain that's become as much of the trademark logo as the stylized name of the show itself

Daniel: "Session 10 - the vampire Louis and the vampire Armand." [he sounds so annoyed. sick n tired of these vampires]

shots of Daniel adjusting his glasses and the mic [trying his best to appear professional(ly detached) huh]

Louis: "You have our attention." [so generous! wonder if these lines of dialogue go together or not, they could but they could also very well not]

Louis and Armand sit next to each other on the couch; both are smiling slightly, but Louis appears to be challenging Daniel / trying to appear in-control, while Armand's smile is...indecipherable [he's sooooo obsessed <33 sorry not sorry it's all i can see]

Daniel: "Are you two going to finish each other's sentences for the whole session?" [ohhh he doesn't like it... i wonder why. probably because they annoyed him before (this conversation feels pretty cut-together at this point), but i like to think he feels weirdly jealous and doesn't know why :3]

corresponding shot of Daniel - he looks bemused / like he can't quite believe what he's seeing [question remains whether this is too much / uncalled for, or whether he even turns his discomfort down to phrase his question as politely (or unthreateningly) as he can - we really need the true context for this!]

shot of the past: Louis and Armand sitting on a bench, turning to look at each other as one - Louis smiles first, then Armand breaks out in a (happy? relieved?) smile [no freaking clue what scene this clip could be ripped from; but it's clearly supposed to emphasize how in sync they are (finishing each other's sentences, moving as one, making each other happy (?))]

Daniel: "We've been together 77 years, Daniel." [good narrative opening objectively... i'll withhold further comment for now]

shots of Louis and Armand taking a walk in the park and near some building (?) at night, still in the past [not sure if both are from the same scene (one long walk) or not, but the message is clear - they're comfortable together and have been for a long time]

still in the past, Armand kisses Louis' cheek, Louis smiles happily [out of context, a very cute moment, 50/10 no notes. in-context i've seen someone point out a possible relation to a later scene and called in a Judas kiss, and frankly i have no been the same person since]

Louis: "Shall we let the math of that settle?" [i still think this dialogue is very patched-together, but we obviously can't know at this point. he's definitely trying to convince Daniel that he and Armand are a unit, inseparable, why does he even question that. (yeah, right; he's definitely not just trying to convince Daniel.)]

Louis and Armand all but swagger into a room right after one another, Louis giving Claudia (presumably) a Look [they seem happy, and i've seen many people say "they just had sex" and attribute the Look to that as well - it's possible! but i somehow doubt Louis would be so brazen (by his standards) about to in front of Claudia (still assuming this is her); but i'm pretty sure Something just happened between them]

Claudia smiles at someone - fake? genuine? strained, in-between? - while holding a box of some kind under her arm [presuming this is indeed the same scene, it would make the most sense she's smiling at Louis in response. why is she there? are they meeting up? it looks like Louis and Armand are arriving to meet her. is whatever they're gonna talk about related to that box?]

Armand: "She's something, your Claudia." [clearly an overlayed line from the Mansion Massacre scene - but i wonder, not for the first time, how sincere he is being there. clearly he wants Louis to think he means it as a compliment, but could he? at least to a degree? would he be impressed with her, despite himself (his rules, his growing resentment)? a little like Lestat?]

Louis: "A spark in the dark." [still a line from the Mansion Massacre; and can i just say i will never ever ever get over how proud and happy he sounds (seemingly utterly unaware of how he's portraying his life as terrible and Claudia as barely making a dent in the overwhelming darkness of it all..... so typical Louis, really.)]

Claudia leans on a windowsill, raising her eyes to look at something/someone off-screen with apprehension (or disdain?) [no idea who she could be looking at, or when this is - i'll pose a totally wild guess and say either it's Armand or Santiago approaching her]

Section 2: Claudia & Louis

Claudia looking sad (and disheveled?), almost fearful, sitting in a sort of moving vehicle covered by linen (?) [hiding / travelling through Europe?]

Louis: "I wanna say somethin' to you. Our life is shit. It's been shit. It is shit. It's gon' be shit again. Stop feeling sorry for yourself. A shit life beats no life." [someone said Louis is channelling his own mother in this speech to Claudia (it can only be Claudia he's addressing). and i really don't have much to add there. something something generational trauma is a monster.]

a top-down-shot of a convoy of moving vehicles... military vehicles? [i can only guess, it's so dark i can barely see for shit, but maybe Louis and Claudia are travelling in a troop transport? it is wartime after all]

then, a shot we already know well - Claudia and Louis, in ragged-looking clothes (Claudia carrying a bag or suitcase) running away from a building, right before the back of it explodes [speaking of wartime! this is not a good time to be travelling Europe guys...]

Louis is watching a picture burn, in a room where pictures hang behind him on strings [is he burning pictures? if so, of what/who? and the flame looks strangely disconnected... does he have the Fire Gift already? while it would be cool if he discovered it here, i doubt it, because he would look much more surprised/shocked. but what IS he burning? the idea that he's trying to photograph his hallucinations of Lestat but is presented over and over with empty frames really stuck with me...]

Louis and Claudia walk through dimly lit streets, still looking ragged, paying no mind to the rain beating down on them [no idea when or where this could be, sorry]

Claudia crawls out of a hole in the ground, looking extremely ragged and soot-covered and desperate (?), a fire burning somewhere on some trash behind her [either revenants or wartorn Europe; with the fire, i'm cautiously guessing wartimes, but what is Claudia growing out of? looks more likely to be a grave than a bunker, but the fire and the soot would fit with war...]

Claudia, in fancy, all dolled-up blue outfit, ripping down a string with photographs on it and throwing it to the ground in a rage [likely connected to a later scene - she's mad at Louis, and takes it out on his pictures. this still being under the "life is shit" monologue is also very telling... ]

Louis sitting alone on a bench, the camera positioned as if someone's watching him through the bushes but we don't see anyone [what time is this? IS someone watching him? don't ask me!!]

another shot we already know, of Claudia staring at some huge fire, Louis beside her - she still looks ragged, but not despairing anymore, her face a mixture of shock and (very cautious) joy [someone said Louis just burned the revenants...? but i confess i don't know anywhere near enough about that section to make a guess myself. it would work with Claudia being both relieved and shocked (at what's Louis's capable of), though.]

Louis: "And where we're going now, can't be running away again!" [i have turned this bit over in my head again and again. what the hell does he mean? does he just crave stability this badly, or is this a dig specifically at Claudia? his tone of voice almost seems to imply that... but what happened that made him feel this way! is this really about killing Lestat...? or smth else since that we haven't seen? what he says after this implies that they already met the revenants, but surely he can't blame her for leaving them behind?? is he just desperately trying to put his foot down like 'third time's the charm come ON now'. in any case though it's terrible foreshadowing... they "can't" leave, huh?]

Louis and Claudia in rags approach the Panthéon in Paris [at a guess they just arrived in Paris, and are marvelling at the sights / are simply overwhelmed, after everything they've been through]

Louis, standing next to a big wall and a lantern, waiting for a figure from the right to approach [we can't see who it is, but a later scene that seems to be going very well with this one shows us it's likely Armand]

Section 3: The Théâtre des Vampires

Louis: "We're gonna to find others like us. We can't be the only good ones out there." [and this is the bit i said that implies they already met the revenants and that's what Louis is referring to; others "like them" aren't just vampires, but functioning, non-feral ones]

members of Armand's coven bow to Claudia and Louis [part of a clip we've already seen, i believe - this should be when Armand introduces them to the others]

in a big room with at least five coffins at it, it's bedtime - everyone's shutting their lids, but we only get a glimpse of Armand who shuts his last (behind each coffin is also a small area with what i assume are personal effects?) [of all the things i didn't expected, it was the coven having a communal sleeping room... and Armand to be right among them! but maybe i should have ?? idk, i think it's weirdly precious in any case]

a very VERY ragged-looking lady is licking something off her black fingernails [either a revenant or someone even more insane - considering the voice-over is still talking about "good ones", i'm betting on revenant for now, but once again who the hell knows - i sure as heck don't! all i know is that she could likely be the same lady who seemed to be clawing at Louis in an earlier trailer... is she licking his blood off her fingernails now? no... the scenes have totally different lighting. but maybe this is her MO?]

someone we only see a hand of operating a projector (could this be a cinema setting?), someone else looking into the same room from a window beside them [apparently the character is called Tuan Pham and he's part of the coven, but that's all we know so far]

Santiago: "Welcome! We here at Théâtre des Vampires delve into the underbelly of the human soul." [he's clearly presenting the show to the human audience, he's got his showman voice on; and it's certainly fun to hear how it's being pitched to the bewitched audience!]

a shot of a figure on stage, viewed from the back and lit from the front, slowly raising their (his?) head to the light, followed by a shot of Santiago raising his head up to an overhead light - i'm going to cautiously assume those belong together (you never know) and both are Santiago (you see part of the gear from a different trailer where he flew on his back, too) [i'm mostly stuck on why he looks so...apprehensive, you could almost say? like, he could just be bowing out after a show, i can't say for sure. but wouldn't be smile a smug smile? or look extra menacing? and not...this, this almost-afraid expression? i wonder if there's going to be a confrontation in an empty theatre.... horror movie style]

we briefly see boots lift off the stage (whose is impossible to tell) to a few shocked faces in the audience [just gonna assume this is still Santiago, because frankly why wouldn't it be]

someone with Santiago's hair (i can't quite make out his face, but it's likely him) is riding a motorcycle and being quite passionately kissed by a woman sitting on his lap [no idea who the woman is / if i'm supposed to recognize her, but i'll assume she's a vampire as well - and because i cannot assume the worst every second in my life, i will just say right here, to both of them: good for you!]

a stage production - we see a projected background, showing a meadow, a dead tree and three (apparently living) skeletons of humanoid-looking bird creatures, and in front of it are two actors, one with an axe standing in the back and one with a scythe walking towards the bird-things (?), dressed in a hood like Death (the creature closest to him seems to be shaking in fear) [once again no idea who the person in the background could be, or what this play is supposed to depict, but it reminds me of an earlier trailer - it seems to be the same scene, with the same two people and projected backdrop, just minus the skeletal creatures. and in that other trailer, the hooded Reaper was clearly visible as Santiago, and he seemed to be casting the axe out of the other guy's hand with the Mind Gift?? so he could be a victim...]

then there's a reused scene - a group of eight vampires in similar plain clothing crowding around (about to devour?) a red-haired lady who screams in terror; they quickly pull her under [is this part of a theatre performance? it looks very choreographed, and not very efficient... also the lighting? i will say stage for now. also, the woman looks suspiciously like Madeleine, but i doubt it's her. i've seen someone theorize that this is Madeleine's sister, and Madeleine comes to seek out the theatre after her mysterious disappearance...]

Santiago: "We do horror shows so we can eat people!" [skipping over how cute i somehow found this because that's for another essay, i wonder who he's talking to? he's so exasperated! who's not getting the concept / who does he think is not getting the concept? it's Louis isn't it]

corresponding shot of Santiago saying (shouting) the above line, while throwing away a script (?) he held in his hand [is he angry at a change in script, maybe? does he want to go back to the good old days when it was simple(r), and not do whatever is written on the pages he just got? all possible!!]

Section 4: Lestat (x9)

an almost black-and-white (black and warm beige) shot of Lestat strutting through a..backstage area?, taking off his coat - lit from the outside so only silhouettes are visible to us [first thought: diva! :D second thought: wait is he in a hurry or is he angry...]

Armand: "Lestat Lestat Lestat Lestat Lestat Lestat Lestat Lestat Lestat!" [100/10 meme. all i have to say. he sooo can't stand him <333 yes obv i know this is about him being annoyed with Louis constantly thinking (and at the time, as this seems to be the first interview, also talking) about him. but also. 100/10 meme.]

corresponding scene: Armand is clearly very annoyed at Louis; we don't see much of the room they're in, but the window has been taped over with newspapers to block the incoming sunlight [again, i maintain this is during the first interview; basically nothing else makes sense. also, Armand seems to be wearing the same shirt and undershirt (?) as he did at the bar, minus jacket. (his hair is super mussed though... i assume he ran his fingers through it a LOT before he had this outburst)]

Lestat eats a piece of paper... VERY enthusiastically [if this isn't a hallucination i'll eat some paper myself. it's even weird for a hallucination tbh :'D though extremely hilarious]

Armand: "There is no scripting Lestat. You cannot script a hurricane." [i've seen one person suggest this is pre-trial, but i doubt that honestly..? who would Armand be talking to then, and in so contemplative a voice, too. my best guess (which also isn't good tho tbh) is that this is during his early-ish days as an actor. and i still have less than no clue who Armand would be talking TO.]

a short frame of Armand's face, contorted in...rage? despair? he's yelling, and gesturing with his right arm (though that's not clearly visible) - his fangs are out a little. there are two guards, presumably human, in background [whatever the HELL is happening must be extremely emotional, to make him lose control in public and even bring out his fangs!]

Lestat, in his red Wolfkiller cloak, is sliding backwards on a cobblestone road - apparently thrown by the figure he glances at despairingly (who we can't see defining features of). there are humans (?) in the background paying the scene no mind, but someone with nicely done-up hair (with a bow!) is standing next to the person who (presumably) push/threw Lestat, and is watching [it's not difficult to assume the two scenes happen exactly in this order, and that Armand telekinetically yeeted Lestat (his overcoat seems to be the same) - and the other person is very likely Nicki...]

Lestat, in make-up and a very fancy outfit, is lowering a mask from his face with a pleased (?) smile - a theatre performance [i've seen multiple theories on what role he's playing here, so i'll reserve my own judgement - i have no idea :'D]

a very fancily dressed audience very excitedly claps for something... with one figure absolutely not fitting it between the pastels and the finery: Armand, in dark rags, not clapping just staring, seemingly half in shock [another two scenes very likely to belong together - Armand seeing Lestat for the first time, perhaps??]

what can i say about this shot. it's the trial, that's what it is. a big audience, Lestat swaying down the center column between them, Louis, Claudia and Madeleine (Claudia in her yellow dress) tied up behind him on the stage. Santiago in a wig (presumably presiding as judge). the film running on the stage wall behind everyone shows burning picture frames (?) [someone suggested that the pieces of paper displayed on the stage in a display case are pages from Claudia's diary, and they're being used as evidence - that would be a clever twist, though i wonder how they'll match that up with the present (remind me what was missing from her diaries again? not all/most of the patricide plot, right?). i also want to say something about Claudia's yellow dress, but i won't, because it would not really add anything here. if you know, you know.]

Lestat bites into Armand's wrist and drinks. he is dressed relatively well (is that a bow in his hair?), while Armand seems to be in rags. they are underground (catacombs?). Armand appears to be watching with fascination, while Lestat sighs and closes his eyes in bliss. [i have so many goddamn questions about this. more than about any other clip tbh. this does NOT happen like this in the books, not even remotely. and why is Armand in rags? that would indicate this is quite early in their relationship ("relationship"), right? i guess they're really changing up a LOT...]

Louis and Armand in a room with big windows, a lit desk with pictures hung beside it, and a painting on an easel - Louis is holding Armand from behind while Armand also reaches for him, clearly an erotic/blissful moment between them [two things here - theme of Louis' lovers getting over their trauma associated with their dream craft in his presence (/ for him?), and theme of That Embrace... only that Louis isn't the one being embraced this time !]

Claudia: "Let me guess, he's your companion finally. Picked another one over me!" [we can only guess what led up to this, but Louis probably tried to justify something Claudia didn't like by giving an argument a la "but Armand" - because while her rage and resentment are very understandable, i doubt they were triggered just by Louis choosing to date Armand; if everything else was going well for them, why would she mind? no, at a guess, Claudia wants to leave the theatre behind (for whatever reason), and Louis doesn't want to leave Armand. and just like that, her worst fears are realized...]

shots of Armand and Louis, sitting down (?) smoking together - the camera is zoomed so closely to their faces you can't see anything else [if my memory doesn't deceive me, this clip was already shown in an earlier trailer]

the clip belonging to Claudia's line - she's all dolled up in blue, and absolutely furious at (who we can't see but only presume to be) Louis [as i commented earlier, during the scene where Claudia ripped down a string with pictures dressed in the same outfit - these probably belong together. i assume whatever Louis responded to her here only served to make her even angrier... or did she tear down the pictures even before this? she kind of looks like she's about to storm out, though the clip cuts before it can become quite clear]

Claudia, still in the blue doll outfit, apparently posing as a living advertisement for the theatre - having a small altercation with a white man, and clearly very, VERY annoyed at the entire situation [which i 100% understand - i've seen several people call for the head of whoever put her on advertisement duty, and i've also seen theorized that that dress/look was chosen for her so that she appears more appealing; more childlike. all in all, extremely fucked, i'd be just as mad if i was her.]

Section 4: You should fear the other one

Daniel: "Paris sucks." [audio from the Alice clip we've gotten before - and CLEARLY what Claudia was thinking in the scene it's voiced-over to]

Louis: "That's not the point she was making." [still from the Alice clip, and most definitely what she meant Louis...]

Daniel: "Fuck these vampires." [he's quoting - and it should be no leap to assume he's quoting Claudia, she does not like the role (evidently) assigned to her at the theatre]

the corresponding scene where Daniel reads from an old notebook (very likely one of Claudia's diaries) [as above - he's quoting Claudia. though i have to say i don't quite know what to make of his facial expression after he reads the line aloud... provocative, or genuinely thoughtful? knowing Daniel, probably a bit of both, but mostly the former]

Daniel: "I wanna get out alive!" [alright, someone's definitely scared! more than he's ever been before, or at least, more than he's ever appeared to be before. i wonder how long he's been pretending for, or whether something very specific pushed him to this point... i strongly presume the latter]

corresponding shot of Daniel saying that with a desperate sort of expression, and a mystery man he's speaking to just out of focus - he looks like he's trying to convince the man (who only turns to look at him during the sentence), and not much can be gleaned from the surroundings (there's a yellow curtain or partition ?) [my best guess is that Daniel is seeking council on how to best proceed in the dangerous position he's gotten himself into, though who he may be speaking to is impossible to say for sure at this point]

mystery man: "You fear Armand. You should fear the other one." [two things to unpack here - firstly, it's almost obscene how much i relish the thought of Daniel being scared of Armand; i want to scream "BABY!" from the top of my lungs lol. but secondly... are we all in agreement that 'the other one' is Louis? because i've seen at least one person theorize he means Lestat... but surely not. surely not?? if Lestat suddenly showed up in Dubai, i have a feeling a lot things would happen, but not Daniel stepping out to talk about it with someone else... no, this is about Louis. who, may i just remind those doubtful, has nearly killed Daniel at one point before !]

close-up of Daniel's face, an indecipherable expression on it, but clearly some kind of deep emotion is being felt [several people apparently seem to see him having earbuds in...? on my life i swear i don't see them, but whatever he's looking at or listening to (or, of course, remembering), it seems to be very intense. if he's indeed reviewing some kind of material or another, people have put forth him watching some of the tapes he made with Armand back in the day... and ngl i would dissolve into a big puddle of tears on the spot, goodbye cruel world, so i'm rooting for that!!]

Armand gives a very meaningful Look [another bit from a trailer we already saw - i dubbed it bedroom_eyes.png then already, and i am unafraid to do so again. (i also said then how hilarious it would be if Daniel didn't catch his meaning at all... if this expression is being put in direct relation to Daniel being SCARED of Armand, honestly i would just freaking die XD what are you scared of, boy? being gay??)]

mystery man & Daniel, corresponding scene to the man saying the abovementioned line - you can now see his face and more of his clothes, he wears a suit and tie, very thick-rimmed black glasses, and cropped grey hair [it's no secret one of the most heavily debated aspects of this trailer is the identity of this mystery man played by Justin Kirk. he seems perfectly cut out to play Marius, but this look (as well as (apparently) being a human aware of the existence of vampires) made many feel he could only be playing David. however, lately there has been a post pointing out that Marius also wears a similar look at one point in the books, confining his signature color (red) to his pants... i for one know what i'll be watching for in particular when this exact scene flits across my screen!!]

shots of Louis throwing a glass of blood at a painting [people smarter than me have tried to figure out the meaning, i'll withhold my judgement here]

Louis: "You're not here, I'm just fucked in the head." [ngl, Louis, if your hallucinations try to ARGUE with you / make you feel like you have to argue with them - you're already at a bad stage of things!! (if indeed he's seeing a hallucination - i'd just about cry if he said this to the real Lestat when they finally reunite, and he just can't believe it...)]

Louis walking down a street (presumably) in the past [brief scene that at least i can glean nothing from]

hallucination!Lestat birthing a fleshy bird (?) out of his throat wound, trying but failing to speak as the creature screeches [something something the bird in Nicki's mind, the birds speaking to Paul... the bird now birthed from Lestat in Louis' hallucination cannot be a coincidence (also this is from the same scene where Louis finds ("finds") him lying crucified, right?)]

a sequence of shots - Louis snarling in anger, fangs out, flips a table with a tape recorder and some beer and other things on it, attacking young Daniel; they crash down on the floor out of focus, just after the tape recorder falls to the ground [i guess Daniel just asked for Louis to turn him into a vampire!! or rather, told him he doesn't even understand the meaning of his own story, as seen in ep 1x07 and later in this trailer as well]

Louis blowing smoke out of his mouth, possibly in a café in Paris (?) [just saying that because it reminds me of the café he sat in with Claudia talking about his new picture-taking hobby]

Claudia: "You're stronger." [she's talking to Louis as we'll soon see, and i have too many thoughts about what she could mean. what happened that made her asses him in this way? is he drinking human blood now? did he do something drastic she hadn't expected him capable of, and she wonders at what changed? there are simply too many possibilities to say]

shots Claudia and Louis sitting next to each other on two armchairs with a lamp between them, talking - corresponding to the previous and following lines between them [again no idea when this happens or why]

Louis: "Ah yeah?" [he's not looking at her as he says this, and his tone holds ever so slight of a challenge - he's not flattered, quite the opposite - it's almost like he doesn't want to hear her words at all (by their track record, presumably because they're making him uncomfortable - and *that* they presumably do because they are true...)]

Claudia: "Harder, too." [she's relentless, especially if she wants something, or wants to figure something out - she wants to know something about Louis, something she didn't get to witness anything but the result of, i'd wager]

Claudia: "But you gotta give up something to get something." [aaand there it is. at my best guess, something changed in Louis, and Claudia wants to know what it is - specifically, what he gave up for that change.]

shots of Claudia holding an umbrella, watching Madeleine through her window lighting a match (and sewing? there's a sewing machine next to her in any case) [once again re-used, but i won't grow tired of seeing them; they're lesbians your honor!!!]

Louis and Claudia drinking from Madeleine's throat from both sides as she stares at the ceiling, gasping quietly [this now (apart from the deviation from text, now apparently they're both her makers..??) makes me particularly worried in regards to the quote still overlayed on it. could Claudia be talking to Louis after he (/ they) turned Madeleine? did Armand indeed force him, and Claudia notices the change (the loss of the last of his soul, as he says in the books) now and wonders at it? that would be quite ironic... and INCREDIBLY painful]

Section 5: You and Me, Me and You

Louis: "It's you and me. Me and you. You and me. Me and you. You, and me!" [he's swearing to Claudia, as we'll soon see (and that also makes the most sense) - but the quote is obviously hijacked to portray multiple significant relationships for Louis, as per the montage it's set to]

corresponding shots of Louis and Claudia sitting across from each other in a moving vehicle, covered by a sheet of whatever linen (?) vehicle covers are made out of [judging by the way they look this is still wartimes... and judging by Claudia's expression, she's not buying Louis' fervent declaration. my personal theory is that this happens just after they escaped the revenants, but there is no way to know. it seems to be the same scene from earlier in the trailer though, where it's set to Louis "our life is shit" speech]

Armand and Louis standing across from each other (several feet apart) in the middle of a big road, not looking happy [someone suggested this could be a sort of break-up... i'll withhold judgement, but whatever it is, it sure seems serious]

Armand and Louis standing very close, Armand's hand cupping Louis' cheek - only for Louis to move sideways and walk away, seemingly disgusted or heavy frowning for some other reason, as Armand stands almost frozen [probably the same location as the previous scene (judging by a neon light visible behind them), and whatever Armand tried to say or do to salvage the situation, Louis is not having any of it. extended version of the very short clip we got in an earlier trailer, where some people feared Armand may be putting Louis to sleep - worries set aside! Louis is not falling, that's just the perspective making his evasive movement look odd]

Santiago, seemingly sitting down (he's only visible from the chest up), in a wifebeater and suspenders, muscles on display and hands offscreen, staring indecipherably at... someone. [is it Louis? the next scene, as well as the voiceover, sure seem to imply so. and no i can't even begin to theorize on the why.]

Louis staring up at something or someone, clearly conflicted in some way [it reminds me of the moment they showed as his reaction to Lestat's portrait in the first trailer, though it's clearly not the same clip - it's also very unlikely that he's looking at Santiago though, because Santiago was very well-lit (like he's on stage or smth) and Louis' clip is very dark, and people are moving blurrily behind him which wouldn't be the case in a stage setting. nonetheless, cutting these two clips together with that audio strongly implies a close connection between him and Santiago, which would be all kinds of interesting...! (especially after all the theories that the wink from an earlier trailer spawned)]

Louis in the present day, smiling very fondly (almost mischieviously?) at someone off-screen [is it Daniel? again, the next clip implies this, but i've ceased trusting almost any editing in these trailers (if i ever did to begin with). then again - who ELSE would he be smiling at this way? no one it could reasonably be would fit... he's not looked at any of his lovers like that, at least not since his early days with Lestat]

Daniel is looking at Louis, something between doubt and the beginnings of a smile on his face [or maybe the two scenes do belong together here? at least in Daniel's shot, you can see Louis in a blurry outline. i wonder what they are discussing? whatever it is, it has Louis emotional and Daniel still on the side of doubtful... so nothing new really :'D only Louis' emotional cadence being positive is very new, and therefore very interesting indeed]

a shot of Lestat, still clearly a hallucination with a throat wound and white shirt [duh, this can't be a montage of Louis' significant relationships without Lestat!]

and the quote finishes up on Louis speaking the last words in that same moving vehicle - all but spitting them in his conviction, really [one can only guess what's got him so riled up - is he trying to convince the ever-doubtful Claudia, or himself?]

Daniel: "I mean you don't understand the meaning of your own story!" [did they really take the same quote as heard in the tapes on the show (evidently, the provocation that made Louis attack Daniel), but removed a word? there's an "even" in there in ep 1x07! sorry, i notice this shit :'D]

corresponding clip of Daniel yelling this at Louis in his 'shitty apartment', newspapers covering the window still visible [3...2...1... cut to the earlier clip of Louis throwing the table before fucking launching them both to the floor (and yk, attemping to drain Daniel of every last drop of blood)]

Louis, on the floor, looking beaten, face contorted in pure agony, staring at someone just out of focus of the camera (Armand ? it's impossible to say for sure), being picked up and taken away by an older man [i'll say it this way: no idea who the old man is, or who exactly Louis is looking/pleading to, but i can really only imagine one scene that would have him come apart at the seams this badly...]

Louis: "NO!" / sobbing [even without the corresponding clip, hearing his voice drag out and then break over that one-syllable word would've been agonizing. all i have to say to that, really.]

another reused shot, this time the one of Armand leaning on a railing (in the theatre?) and crying, seemingly alone in the room [to quote someone else: 'the look of a man who couldn't prevent it'. coupled with the previous clip, that interpretation seems increasingly likely... this could well be Armand post or during Claudia's death]

Armand: "I failed Louis once in my life, it wasn't in San Francisco." [now this one is very interesting - i've seen many theories on it, but personally what i think far likeliest is the most obvious one: that Armand is trying to sugarcoat/reframe Claudia's death in front of Daniel (but also in front of Louis, of course, always) - either maintaining his claim that he could not prevent the events (but had nothing directly to do with them), or admitting his agency in it but glossing over it as "whelp, i did something i knew was going to make Louis unhappy, i was a terrible boyfriend there for a hot second, but i regret it deeply and it was only that one time!!" and trying to keep it contained in that fashion. also not to be ignored here though is the rest of the sentence... i can only presume he was asked about something in San Francisco (maybe something he regrets / something directly relating to a 'failing' in his & Louis' relationship?), and he tries to say 'nah that wasn't bad, there was only one other time that was bad'. or is this just a transition of topic after they've talked about something in San Francisco? in any case, he is talking to Daniel, and Louis (likely) isn't present, and they're mentioning San Fran. i am not vibrating with excitement, you are!!!]

another re-used clip - the one of Louis looking extremely tough and confident, blood splatters on his face [people have said he just set fire to something, which could be true... in any case, he seems to be feeling very confident, and not very haunted or devastated or overly angry... so my bet would be on the revenants for that.]

someone with white (?) hair walks through the streets of (i presume) Paris at night, carrying a big bag over their shoulder [from behind, it's impossible to say whether that is Santiago, or someone else with silver fox-y hair... could be that old man we saw pick up Louis for all we know! (and putting that together with a certain other clip... i still have the people in my air yelling that Louis has been put in a sack...)]

Louis grabs Armand to kiss him; judging by the blurry green behind them, they could be in a park ? [this could be the "leaked" (= fan-recorded) kiss that went around on twitter a bit ago... that's just about all that i have. i saw someone theorize that this is a break-up kiss, which would fit with the microsecond glimpse we get of Armand's eyes looking sorta glassy... but irdk, i'm also withholding judgement here, no idea]

Section 6: *screams*

Lestat: "Ha!" / yells [weird enough by itself... but much weirder yet with the scene it's attached to]

corresponding scene of Lestat having his little outburst... standing next to Louis, who is frowning heavily at Armand (next to the camera, just out of focus) - they all appear in a gallery that smarter people than me have interpreted as the Louvre [so Lestat is not only haunting the narrative, but Louis & Armand's dates as well! at least he is when Louis is upset... as others have pointed out plenty before, he could well be manifesting every time Louis feels he can't express / has to suppress a certain emotion, and that's why he acts so extremely when he appears. and i for one would love to see that!!]

a red-haired woman, very likely Madeleine, has her hair cut with silver scissors by an unseen person, and has her mouth open screaming in pain/terror [people say this is prep for... you know... and i'm strongly inclined to believe them. i do however have a sickening feeling on top of all the sickening feelings at play here... the way the scissors wiggle, there? together with how extremely her face is contorted? i doubt she's fully screaming in fear... it looks almost like the person holding the scissors is either intentionally, or very uncaringly, cutting into her *ear*.]

young Daniel, looking very pale/sickly (?), appears to get thrown into a concrete wall - hard enough for pieces of it to come crumbling out after the impact [now this is more than curious - is he freshly drained? did Louis yeet him? or rather, did Armand yeet him away from Louis? he is wearing the same shirt he was wearing for the interview, and while Louis first fed from him lying down (well - smushed to the floor), Armand could well have pulled them both up and then removed Daniel from the danger zone (so to speak) by force (and obv, moved to deal with Louis first, before his victim). seems plausible enough for me! (just, whatever you do, don't think about the possible brain damage he could've gotten from that, or the connection between brain damage and Parkinson's...)]

two figures we can only presume to be Louis and Lestat are walking up some very fancy stairs, with Louis holding a flashlight; meanwhile, someone we can only presume to be Armand is floating straight up in the middle of the frame, apparently taking a shortcut next to the winding stairs [Google wasn't exactly helpful in trying to figure out whether this is the Louvre or not, because no staircase i could find precisely matched this one - don't tell me this is a full-scale rebuild of what it looked like back in the day?? :'D - but for now, i will assume that this is indeed in the Louvre. and in any case, the main question is, What The Fuck Are You Doing, Armand?! are you trying to give Louis & Hallu!Stat some space? the whole night-dark place some truly creepy atmosphere?? sorry i'm more yelling than actually theorizing, but i've gone over this so many times and i have no goddamn idea why in the world Armand would just float upwards like this except for how he's an absolute and complete weirdo (affectionate; but affectionate and weary :'D)]

Armand: "I was in love." [yet another hotly debated line - who could he be referring to, many wondered? to me, it seemed obvious from the start - he can hardly be referring to anyone but Louis, not in so blasé a tone (even if he might be acting). admitting love for anyone else - Daniel, or god forbid Lestat - would be a much bigger act for him, and therefore not happening so easily in conversation (imo). also, it's pretty clear he's using that as an excuse/justification - this could very well come up as Daniel is confronting him about something he's done to or in relation to Louis!]

Daniel: "You buy that?" [while this clear provocation could be in response to almost anything (that is talked about with both vampires in attendance), let's pretend for a second it is indeed not cut together with the previous line for the fun of it - just imagine Armand trying to justify something he did by claiming he did it out of love / was crazed by love, and Daniel directing that right over to Louis so brazenly. where would we be without Daniel, truly.]

Lestat, sitting down, holding a cigarette (in what looks like the past to me), absolutely melting with laughter [ok, putting this right after Daniel's question is the clearest bait i've ever seen - by the scene backgrounds alone these two clips couldn't possibly go together. whatever is going on, this is just ("just") the signature crazed Lestat Laugh..!!]

Louis: "Back to hell with you!!!" [yes, the exclamation marks are necessary, he's all but howling it after all - the only logical conclusion to who he's addressing being, of course, our dear friend Hallu!Stat. i guess he's really had enough of him now!!]

the corresponding scene, which features a POV not previously seen (far as i remember) - Louis is angrily yelling directly at the camera, even grabbing it and throwing it to the ground, so presumably grabbing the person he's yelling at. and all that in public! at a café, or at least out in the streets (of, presumably, Paris) [the easiest/closest assumption is that he's trying to grab Hallu!Stat after he's said smth particularly provoking... but what if Louis is actually grabbing some poor uninvolved human who he's mistaking for Lestat (maybe overlayered with a hallucination)? now that would be extremely interesting, and explain the strange POV better too - because that would be the plottwist then revealed to the viewer, likely in the same moment as it hits Louis]

a continuation of a scene from earlier in the trailer - Lestat in his red Wolfkiller cloak, charging at (presumably) Armand, full of rage; while interestingly, the humans behind him appear to be frozen [did he stop time? did Armand, in order to deal with the scene better? in any case, i appreciate the frozen pedestrians, because their positioning is what makes me so sure this is Lestat getting back up from his first run-in with Armand repelling him (as opposed to the reason that Armand threw him on the cobblestones to begin with). i wish him the best of luck, he does seem to have a lot of fury going for him... unfortunately, so does Armand, from what we saw earlier]

a brief shot of Louis screaming, with his face split in a nasty wound - this too is a scene reused from an earlier trailer [people have pointed out it's the same wound he received in ep 1x05 at the hands of Lestat, which makes this very likely to be one of those revisits that have been promised to us... i will hold back on any & all theorizing on what could possibly be revealed there, really, all i want to see is what happened during the brief moment of silence where Claudia couldn't see them. anything else i'll let myself be surprised by!]

another reused clip, this time of the bloodied woman falling from the ceiling onto a prepared blanket on the wooden floor [everyone's working theory then the same as now was/is that this is a victim being tossed through the stage's trap door for later disposal]

a very close close up of a pointy-toothed mouth screaming, seemingly covered by some kind of cloth - also reused [aaand that's where the theory that Louis gets dragged away from (you know) and trapped in a sack came from... can't say i can't see what people mean ! though it would have to be some formidable cloth indeed, to hold even a weakened/"vegetarian" vampire...]

someone (Claudia? impossible to be sure, but who else would it be) sits beside a corpse (one of three visible in the frame) on the frozen ground, and rips out and tosses the corpse's heart - right towards the camera [while people who had seen the full trailer said this scene was even more gory there - with the heart impacting the 'screen' and sliding down - this is already plenty vicious... i wonder why she does it? just anger, or is there a method behind it? could it possibly be related to the revenants somehow?]

Section 7: Pieces

Louis: "Pieces of my life, gone. I knew who I was without those pieces." [started with truth & reconciliation, and now we're here... challenging every 'truth' Louis thought he knew about himself. but this, crucially, does not seem to refer to mainly altered memories (regardless if altered by denial or by outside force) - was/is he actually unable to access whole chunks of memories like Daniel? and if so, why? Armand can't beat the allegations much longer, i'm afraid..!]

Lestat puts his fingers in Armand's hair (specifically, the bow in his hair), and leans up into him for a kiss - the shot cutting barely a frame before their lips would touch [now there's a billion and one things to say about this... but one would be that i highly doubt this is their kiss from the books. for one, Lestat initiates it, for another... that bow. i pointed it out in (who-we-presume-is-)Nicki's hair earlier, and...well. if you were Armand, infinitely powerful in the Mind Gift, and your crush absolutely refused to entertain the notion of smooching you because he's already seeing someone? well, there's a solution to that...!! there's many "solutions" to that, obviously, one more horrifying than the last, so frankly if this is how they're gonna play it here, i won't complain... though i don't actually think they're going to downplay or omit *ahem* certain canon events that are severely worse than a dastardly case of impersonation could ever be - if that is indeed what we're even seeing here. because if it isn't, well, there are about a dozen more theories waiting right around the corner!! from 'he's about to dramatically reject him like in the musical' to 'he's trying to buy Louis' freedom' to 'in show'verse, they actually dated for a bit'. guess we'll just all let ourselves be surprised!!!]

a seemingly ordinary apartment (Louis' apartment in the 70s? impossible to be sure), Armand is staring at something (someone?) off-screen with an indecipherable expression, while a blurry figure in the background is levitating on a chair [so much to unpack here - the blurry figure can hardly be Louis, he doesn't have the Cloud Gift, but then who is it?? and the location, plus Armand's attention being so thoroughly occupied... several people theorized he's watching over the drained/recovering Daniel here, and possibly catching feelings in real time?? but at this point we can't possibly know more about either occupant of that apartment/frame]

two blurry figures walking along an underground tunnel, the figure closer to the camera lighting a fire in their fingers - a reused scene, we know the person ahead is Louis, and the person behind is likely Armand (as we've seen what's very likely the same scene shot from the other perspective in an earlier trailer) [the theories here range from 'Armand first meeting Louis' to 'Armand teaching Louis self-defense', to various more]

one more reused scene - this time of Louis smacking Lestat's head into a wall so hard it leaves blood, and him seeming to enjoy it greatly [as he'll always enjoy any emotion he can elict from his Louis <3 question is only whether Louis is abusing a hallucination, a real person (!) (see above), or whether this will be a flashback... or the future?]

a shot of young Daniel, red-faced and ugly crying [there is absolutely no context, and the background is way too blurry to assume anything but that he's inside a building - people have theorized that this is when Armand tells him that he'll have to / he will take his memories, and while i can't fully rule that out ofc, i've grown increasingly doubtful that Armand took his memories in any sort of a rational act or after a detailed conversation, so...i cast doubt here! no idea which other scene Daniel could be crying this badly in, though... maybe it's not because of Armand at all?]

scene corresponding to the quote - Louis in the present day, with red-rimmed eyes, shaking his head in slight confusion (refusal? upset-ness?), talking to a blurry figure who appears to be Daniel from the silver-y outline we get [he seems... no longer happy to have taken the interview, that's for sure. but not angry, nor (completely) overwhelmed... he's just cracking open, and surprising himself with how much he's leaking all over the place.]

Section 8: Memory Is The Monster

the show's signature curtain, reading "Memory"

Armand strolling up to meet an indiscernable figure in a park, wearing the same outfit (or at least hat) we saw in an earlier trailer [is he meeting Louis for their park bench date? this seems to be the same scene as the bit earlier in this trailer, where Louis waited under a streetlamp - just from the opposite perspective. not 100% sure though]

Louis, Claudia, Madeleine and Armand clinking glasses together at a restaurant or café; Claudia is wearing her yellow dress, Madeleine a jacket (?) in a tasteful dark red, and it has all the vibes of a double date [now we could focus on the absolute sweetness - or the absolute horror - of the idea of this actually being a double date. but since this post is already more than long enough, i'll only bring up the two major things i've seen people theorize are connected to this... well, mainly one thing, two scenes. one thing: the trial. two scenes: the trial scene (duh), and - the cheek kiss from early in this trailer. the trial for obvious, yellow-dress-related reasons; though Claudia could obviously just be wearing the same dress for multiple occasions, that would be a really strange production choice particularly in this matter - and Madeleine seems to be wearing a dark-red skirt on the stage of the trial earlier, and a blue blouse (and the color of the blouse peeking out under her jacket in the date clip could well be a light blue). Louis could also well be wearing the same outfit to the trial later, just minus the jacket. which brings us to the theory that that sweet cheek kiss... could be the Judas Kiss of this story. Louis' and Armand's outfits from the cheek kiss scene seem to match the ones in the date scene relatively well, and the context would work perfectly. picture it: Armand arriving just a little bit later than the others, apologizing with a charming smile, kissing his sweetheart and sitting down - and no one asks questions about where he's been...]

Claudia is blindfolded, and sitting on a chair that is being lifted by various members of the theatre coven as the rest stand around and clap and cheer - she is laughing with absolute delight [the absence of Armand and Louis from this rite (at least as far as we can see) is striking, but Claudia seems perfectly happy - like she has finally found her place to belong, where people love and accept her just as she is. (now if only that were so easy.....)]

the show's signature curtain, reading "Is"

Santiago floating (speeding? speed-floating) through a tunnel [no idea where he's going, no idea what's going on... but ngl, a bit hilarious]

very close close-up of Louis in the modern day [straight-up no idea what we're supposed to read out of this, sorry, pass]

Louis in the darkroom, rubbing his eyes [he looks like me when i'm overtired again... which a vampire shouldn't get, though!! so whatever he's developing, it's clearly really getting to him... (the theory that he's trying to capture Hallu!Stat on camera is well-known at this point, yes?)]

the show's signature curtain, reading "The"

a shot of an incredibly overly bright room (sunlight not just streaming in but flooding it), flowers in a vase in the middle and Claudia on the right side of the frame, smiling broadly and wearing her yellow dress [very VERY clearly a memory / hallucination, from the impossibility of it alone but also simply the theme of overly lit clips usually being hallucinations, often of dead or lost loved ones. and if there's any doubt remaining that this is just that... may i just point to the yellow dress again]

Louis hugging Lestat, really pressing into the crook of his neck and splaying one hand on his back like there's nowhere he'd rather be [to many, surely THE clip of the trailer - spawning untold speculations of whether or not we'll actually get to see them reunite, in the flesh, and happily within this very season. i for one... am sorry, but i cast #doubt. i just don't know how they would fit that narratively. i would love to be wrong though, i truly truly would!!!]

a shot of Lestat, his hair perfectly splayed out in little golden waves and his throat totally bloody [it could be belonging to one of the scenes we already saw, i.e. the Jesus-on-the-cross-pose one... when he comes abruptly up from that pose, he does seem to have similar wounds and hair]

the show's signature curtain, reading "Monster"

yet another scene we already know - the books (and plenty of glass splinters) coming crashing down around Daniel as he's sitting at a desk with his laptop and microphone etc. in front of him [and i still can't unsee the theory that his arms are tied in this scene... it's like Schroedinger's Rope, i can't be sure he is tied up and i can't be sure he isn't! but no matter that, the main question of all is of course what caused that extreme bookcase breakage we see there?? many people's money seems to be on Lestat, one way or another, but i really don't know. not the faintest idea.]

Santiago baring his teeth [and ngl... looking just a bit too goofy with it :'D no idea what the context could be. i just hope he's playing and that this isn't his actual attempt at being intimidating!!]

Armand: "ENOUGH!" [so that WAS what he was yelling! good to know. still wondering what the fuck got him so mad... i can't wait :33]

the scene where Armand hits the table and all the vampires sitting alongside it drop unconscious, reused but extended now - at the end of the table, off the right side, the camera captures someone pulling at Santiago's tongue, at a clearly painful angle [and who could that be but Louis? question is only what the hell happened to make him do that specifically... that is a cruel and unusual punishment..!]

the camera moving over a bridge in Dubai (?) at night [no idea who could be leaving or arriving there - anybody's guess. Daniel leaving for a short while? Louis leaving forever?? something or someone entirely else??? don't ask me!]

Daniel: "Memories just keep bubbling up." [i did not giggle at this... you don't have witnesses, you can't prove anything. i'm just so happy he's remembering!!! (on a more serious note, i have a feeling like he's talking to a friend or someone else he trusts, but not Louis (or Armand)... he sounds too thoughtful for that, i don't think he'd let his guard down like that around them. just doesn't seem the vibe. i could be wrong ofc!)]

Louis: "I want this… to remember…" [the first and likeliest guess would be that he's saying this to Daniel - affirming, almost declaring, that he chooses the pain. chooses knowing over sweet, numb oblivion. but a horrible little voice asks me... what if he's saying it to Armand? pleading with Armand to *allow* him to remember, against Armand's better ("better") advice? ('no, you don't want that...')]

scene corresponding with Louis brave declaration - he's nodding, but he's crying (we see the first blood tear spill), and looking like he's barely holding on by a thread [no matter the precise context - he is being incredibly brave, no longer hiding from his worst memories, but walking towards them with a seeing eye. he is embracing the pain, finally recognizing it's better than just letting it all fester and rot, and i for one could not be prouder of him <33]

shot of Louis smoking a cigarette leaning on a bar - likely the same scene or from the same scene as the clip where early in this trailer [i'm gonna be honest with y'all - i have no idea what might be significant about this one. it's a full circle tho! i guess :'D]

[getvalentined]

A-Z ask game: O(tailored) bc I would like to slide you a song[String Theocracy, Library of Ruina], R, U please!

O - Choose a song at random. Which ship or character does it remind you of?

I looked up the song and I'm assuming it's this!

I was gonna say that I was getting huge A Turtle's Heart vibes off this, then I realized it was the same person so that explains it. I'm not a huge fan of the track itself* but those lyrics!

I'm going with Genesis, for sure, specifically Genesis to Zack.

Cut it off, cut down your loss All that stubborn loyalty is gonna get you killed In a world built on convenient theories For the puppets on TV There is comfort in the strings If you're gonna control me At least make it interesting theatrically [...] Cut it off, you've already lost All that precious bravery is gonna get you hurt In a world that feeds on the minority May that self-centered belief lead you to peace If you're gonna replace me At least have the audacity to kill me thoroughly

I'm not sure there's anything I could say to explain that interpretation that these lyrics don't already say loud and clear. Thank you for sharing it with me!

* I'm not generally a fan of jazz, and this song is really jazzy; also the way Mili mispronounces words to fit a rhythm that they could have fit anyway is pretty egregious in this track, and that's the thing that keeps me from listening to more of her music. The combination of the two makes me a bit "ehhhh," but that's just me! It's a really solid track, just not my vibe. THOSE LYRICS THOUGH, GODDAMN.

R - Which friendship/platonic relationship is your favorite in fandom?

Answered here! A little convoluted because for me, all ships are friendships regardless of whether there's a romantic context.

U - Three favorite characters from three different fandoms, and why they’re your favorites.

Oh this is a fun one!

1. Vincent Valentine (FFVII) is my favorite character in all of fiction and I've explained the why of that a couple times over the years, but suffice to say there is just nothing like finding a character with whom you resonate so intensely that you can love them even more after over a quarter century than you did when you first discovered them as a child.

2. Harle (Chrono Cross) is way up there! I love her entire character arc, starting as an agent of human destruction who falls in love with the very person she was created to kill, and holding that love so tightly that the horrifying superweapon she was fused into uses magic to sing him the song he needs to save the entity responsible for the destruction of her own people. Harle is my favorite female character ever, even moreso than Miyazaki's Nausicaä, which is saying a lot coming from me.

3. Turo (Pokemon Violet) will be my third. Not Professor Turo, mind you, the other Turo, the one who actually gave a shit about the safety of others, who loved the son that wasn't actually his so much that he gave everything to make sure the world he lived in would be safe. I have a soft spot for characters willing to give themselves up for love, and familial figures determined to set things right even if it means they won't get to live with the family they're saving will make me sob every single time. I'm not normally into mainline Pokemon titles (I like Arceus, Gale of Darkness, Snap, etc.) but Turo is literally what sold me on this one and it turned out to be one of the best story experiences I'd had in years (even outside his part).

I wanted to include a Zelda character, but I realized that's basically impossible because I love too many of them to choose one as a favorite. I managed to narrow it down in my head to Midna, King Rauru, or Nabooru, and then I thought of Mipha for .027 seconds and literally burst into tears because I love her so much and I can't not talk about her if I'm talking about favorite Zelda characters—and I decided I couldn't do that so I set that franchise down for this one.

[ for the A to Z ask game ]

[babeyvenus]

My Future

Derek Hale x OC

Samantha, Stiles and Scott are always joking about the impossible. Who wouldn't when your best friend's dad is the sheriff of Beacon Hills? All jokes stop when they realize the impossible is indeed possible.

Chapter 63: We Hear You

Regardless of how he was feeling, Stiles sat on a bench, keeping himself from crying. He shouldn't have to. He wasn't gone. Not yet.

He felt the bench shift and saw an old woman turned to him, smiling. "I'm waiting for a train."

Stiles nodded a bit. "Yeah, it's probably running late.", he mumbled.

"I'm going to see my grandchildren.", the lady smiled widely, her manner surprisingly making Stiles' smile as well.

The small woman laid her shaky hand on his shoulder. "Who are you going to see?", she asked.

"Uh," his jaw shifted as he swallowed. "No one."

The lady furrowed her brow, confused. Stiles looked at her confused and before he could ask what was wrong, the intercom came on, a voice speaking through it. "The following stops have been canceled, Hollatine, Batten," Stiles got up and took a few steps towards the speaker of the intercom. "Bay Burry, Deer Ridge, Red Oak Trenton, Anderson, King Springs."

Once the calls were done, Stiles' eyes tracked the wires that ran across the ceiling, wrapping themselves around different poles of each speaker.

He followed where all the wires gathered, moving into a room he hadn't seen. Peter's eyes followed him as he leaned on a pillar, his arms crossed against his chest. "Intercom.", he said. and Stiles glanced at him. "Maybe a radio?" Stiles looked back, going up to the door and opened it, walking in with Peter behind him.

Stiles looked at all the controls of the radio. Something he was familiar with in his jeep.

He frowned, his eyes widening. He has a radio in his jeep that connects to the sheriff's station.

"If I could fix this to contact the sheriff's station, I could get someone to get us out.", Stiles said, already touching up on some stuff.

"Your theory is ridiculous.", Peter spoke as he paced behind him.

Stiles noticed a black wire was broken. "Magnetic disturbances and a few pixelated photos doesn't mean that you can use a ham radio to communicate across a supernatural barrier.", Peter said, making Stiles look at him with an unimpressed face before the boy reached down, grabbed both ends of the cord and focused on putting it together.

"Ghost Riders can't be seen, heard, or remembered. You really think they're gonna leave a gadget around that you can use to call your friends?", Peter asked.

Once Stiles got the two ends together and twisted them, he turned the dial on the radio which caused a loud high-pitched feedback to come through. Both him and Peter covered their ears, groaning.

On the other side of the world, Sam, Scott, and Malia wince, trying to block out the high pitch whine coming from the jeep.

"How'd you turn it on?", Malia asked. Sam frowned. "I don't have the keys.", she said and rushed to open the driver's side door.

Her eyebrows furrowed. "A radio?" How had she not noticed that before?

While Stiles was trying to figure out the ham radio, trying new things, Peter sat relaxed. "Take your time. No rush. Only thing at stake is any evidence of our existence… soon to be lost… forever.", he mumbled.

"Okay, not helping.", Stiles retorted, turning a dial on causing and with Peter's sensitive hearing, he heard the horses, his attention snapping towards the door.

"Shit.", Peter muttered before running up to the machines and unplugged them all.

Before Stiles could ask, Peter snuck them out before the Ghost Rider could find them. The both of them hid behind the one pillar, watching the rider go in with his gun and after a bit, came back out, visibly looking angry at the passengers.

Peter leaned in over Stiles's shoulder, whispering. "In case you're keeping count, that's twice I've saved your life today."

Stiles frowned before following the eldest Hale.

Scott searched the jeep with Lydia and Sam. The noise that came from the radio suddenly stopped. Scott looked up. "Why'd it stop?", Malia asked.

"It doesn't matter." Lydia stated, trying to push on the Master Switch, but it wasn't working. She sighed, "There has to be a reason."

Scott sniffed, looking around the jeep. "What…?" He mumbled, closing his eyes to breathe in the rush of familiar scents.

"You caught a scent?" Lydia perked up. "Yeah. Uh….ours… mine, yours, all four of ours.", Scott said.

"Mine?" Malia asked, confused. "I've never been in this Jeep before."

"Neither have I.", Scott shook his head. 

"Well for some reason, I was in there but I still don't know why.", Sam said. Lydia spoke up. "Yes, you guys have been in here. You just don't remember it."

"I thought we were done with that.", Malia said before glancing at Scott who cleared his throat.

"Parrish checked the VIN number, though. There's no record of the owner."

"Well, the jeep is here somehow. Are we just gonna ignore the fact that I somehow magically appeared in it?", Sam emphasized with wide eyes.

They looked at her with unsure faces. "Sam, he can't be real. Maybe you just sleepwalked your way inside.", Malia said.

Sam frowned at the girl. "I don't sleep walk. I never have. And how could I have gotten in the jeep, there's no signs of aggressive entry. I didn't break a handle or a window, and it was locked."

"Well we might have some type answers.", Lydia said, holding a registration form. Scott reached for it, grabbed it and read it. "This is from '96. And there's no name."

"But there's an address.", Lydia pointed out and Sam moved closer to see the address. "129 Woodbine Lane. That's–"

"The sheriff's house.", Lydia said, sadly. She took a deep breath before readying herself. "I need to go there."

Sam and Scott frowned. "By yourself?", Sam asked. Lydia nodded. "I feel like I need to."

The three gave her a nod, watching her leave the jeep and ran into her car, leaving the school's parking lot.

Sam got into the jeep, moving to the passenger side and sighed. With glossy eyes, she settled into the seat, looking down at her hands.

Where she sat felt so… real. It felt normal. She didn't feel out of place. Visions flashed through her mind once more.

She was in the passenger seat. In a dress. She went to the winter formal? She remembers that.

She remembered waking up, covered in dirt. She remembers seeing the light scar over her eyelid but never questioned why it was there in the first place.

She turned to the back seats, moving back there as she looked at the front seats, another vision flashing through her mind.

She remembers being outside the sheriff's station, watching the receptionist. Two guys were in the front seats but she can't remember their faces.

She remembers a man with a black leather jacket and a boy with a red flannel shirt talking. Who was the man? Why wasn't he here? Was he affected too? Did he know Stiles?

Moments later, Lydia had shown up and they watched as the guy from earlier backed his tow truck in front of the jeep and got out to face the teenagers. "We already paid you. I gave you all of my money for that drop fee.", Scott said.

"Yeah, I dropped it, all right? Now I'm picking it up again.", the man said.

"How much?" Lydia asked, getting into her purse. "I'll write you a check."

The man stopped her. "It's not about how much.", he said. "They want it out of here, okay? It's not up to me."

"Well, this vehicle isn't abandoned. You saw me in it!", Sam exclaimed as she stepped in front of the jeep. 

The guy scoffed, a slight smile coming to his face. "Either you move, or I move you. I'm hookin' this thing up and I am towing it away."

Sam glared at the man. "You're not touching this damn jeep.", she growled.

Scott noticed the girl's nails had gotten longer and darker and before he could say anything, the back of the tow truck squealed and gained the teenagers' attention, seeing Malia holding the hook. 

As she held it up, she yanked it off of the wire, making the guy turn around to take notice. "Your truck's broke.", she said, nonchalantly handing him the metal hook.

In shock, he grabbed it with slow hands. Malia grinned as the man left. 

Scott looked at Sam who had yet to calm down, and grabbed both her hands. "You need to relax. Breathe.", he said, softly making her fists clench before helping them unclench as he takes a breath and softly lets it out.

He had her repeat the motions, slowly calming her down and saw her nails had shortened once more.

"How'd you know to do that?", Sam asked. Scott smiled. "I think you taught me."

In the train station, Ghost Riders gathered, making the passengers hurtle into mass hysteria. Stiles jumped over a bench, crouching down behind it and Peter did the same, watching everything unfold.

Stiles saw one of the Ghost Riders drop a Beacon Hills Lacrosse player and others. "This place is really starting to fill up.", Peter muttered.

One Lacrosse player got up taking off her helmet and another girl was near, seeing her on the floor. "Gwen?" Gwen glanced up, seeing the other girl who she seemed to know. "Gwen!"

"Phoebe?", Gwen hugged her and Phoebe hugged back. "Oh, my god, you're here!"

Stiles frowned as he watched the interaction. "Wait a second. That girl — I know that girl. Her name is Gwen. She plays lacrosse." 

He looked at Peter before looking at the Ghost riders. "How long has this been going on?", Stiles whispered to Peter. 

Peter glanced at the Arrivals and Departures board, seeing how Beacon Hills was listed first and he turned back, realizing what was happening. "This isn't a train station, this is a way station.", he said, now frustrated. "It's not gonna stop."

He looked back at the board once more. This was it. Beacon Hills was going to be a big hit within a few days and there wasn't much they could do. Peter sighed harshly as he placed his forehead in the side of the bench. 

"What is it?", Stiles asked, noticing Peter's sudden behavior. "What are those places? Bannack? Canaan? I know you know something."

"We gotta get out of here. Nobody is safe.", Peter said.

"Yeah, in here?", Stiles asked, sarcastically.

"In Beacon Hills. Your friends, your family, everyone. Everyone that you've ever known.", Peter said, crouching. "They're gonna be taken.", he said before hurrying off into the tunnel.

"Where are you going?", Stiles called out, before following him.

He caught up with Peter, panting. "What did you see up there? The towns. What did it mean?"

"I just told you. They're never gonna stop.", Peter said. 

Stiles frowned. "Okay, so what's the plan then?"

"I'm goin' through the portal.", Peter simply said.

"Wait, wait, wait.", Stiles stopped him. "No one gets through the portal. You said that yourself."

"No human can. But I'm better than a human, remember? I'll heal.", Peter reminded him.

Stiles moved to stand in front of Peter. "If you survive, you have to find my friends, okay? You have to tell them about us, 'cause they're not gonna remember me, so you have to tell them that I'm here—"

Peter cut him off. "Stiles, lemme make this perfectly clear. When I survive—if I survive, I'm going to get as far away from Beacon Hills as I possibly can," Peter told him.

"And, if I happen upon one of your below-average friends and it doesn't inconvenience me, I might mention your name.", he says and walks around him.

"Yeah? What about Malia?", Stiles asked, making Peter come to a stop. "Even after all the shitty things you've done, I know you're doing this for her. You're risking being incinerated for her. And I'm okay with that."

Peter turned to Stiles promptly, only to get cut off by the sound of neighing in the distance. "You need to stall them.", he told Stiles.

"W-What? How?", he asked, knowing he didn't stand a chance against those things.

"Use your head.", Peter said, rushing to hide behind a pillar.

Peter shifted his foot and felt something hard underneath it. He looked down and saw Stiles' keys to the Jeep. With a frown, he picked them up, watching as Stiles threw a bench into the middle of the tracks, which slowed the horses down a little.

After the one passed, Peter jumped from the platform, grasping onto the back of the horse, fighting with the rider on the way out. 

Stiles watched the interaction, a weird sense of relief flooded his body as he saw Peter go through before looking at the rider who looked up at him.

Before Stiles could run, the rider cracked his whip, wrapping it around Stiles' neck, and pulled him down to the tracks before leaving through the portal.

Stiles groaned as his back hit the wall behind him, rubbing his sore neck. His eyes widened as he saw a light shine from his wrist, seeing the illuminated crescent moon on the corner of his wrist.

He remembers that Sam had linked him to her whenever something went wrong. Either she got the message, or something was wrong on the other end.

He hoped it was the former.

The four that sat in the jeep, almost lulled to sleep, had jumped at the loud, ground shaking roar they had heard.

Once it stopped, they looked at each other. "What the hell was that?", Sam asked.

"You guys heard that too?", Malia asked. Lydia frowned. "I think all of Beacon Hills heard it."

"Who is it?", Scott asked, looking at both Sam and Malia.

"I'm not sure, but I think I recognize it.", Malia said hesitantly.

"It does sound scarily familiar.", Sam said. Impatiently, Lydia snapped at them. "Go!"

The three rushed out of the jeep, the two following the burnt scent while Sam followed them.

"Hey, any luck?", Scott asked, finding Sam and Malia in a small clearing.

"No.", Malia said. "He hasn't roared again. I've got a scent, but…"

"There's something wrong with it," Scott finished for her, knowing what she meant.

They heard another loud roar, weakening as they got closer. After a moment of looking, they spotted a charred body on the ground.

They could barely recognize the body but Sam paused as she saw it. Another vision flashed as she remembered red eyes. She remembers being chased into the woods.

"I hear a heartbeat.", Malia said, glancing between Scott and Sam.

"Who is that?", Scott asked.

"I don't know, but I know the scent. Even through the barbecue.", she told him.

Sam frowned at her. "You don't remember who it is?", she asked as she knelt by the body.

Malia frowned in confusion and kneeled at Peter's other side. Scott looked around for any signs of fire. "How do you think he got here? There's no tracks, no fire…", he said.

Peter's eyes flashed open, the light blue the only color against the black remains of his body. Malia and Sam gasped and flinched away.

"Oh, my God!", Malia exclaimed, looking up at Scott. "Peter!"

Scott came and knelt near Peter's head, still confused. "Who's Peter?"

"Peter Hale — my dad.", Malia clarified.

"Peter….?", Sam muttered as she looked at the man before looking in his eyes. Her memories of the man flooded her brain, making her gasp softly.

She remembered his snarkiness, his sarcasm, even him defending her and vice versa. She especially remembers him biting her. "He bit me…"

Scott nodded. "Me too.", he muttered, remembering every moment specifically with Peter. "How could I forget him?", he asked, looking down at the man.

"How did I forget him?", Malia asked, frowning. She glanced down, seeing Peter trying to move his hand. "He has something."

Peter tried his best to speak, but he couldn't. His wheezes spoke for him. Sam quickly grabbed Peter's hand, shocked at the pain she absorbed.

It seemed to be helping him heal faster, but still. Where had she learned to do that?

Groaning at the pain she absorbed, she watched as her arms darkened as she looked at the charred man.

Scott and Malia helped, wincing in pain as well, helping the eldest Hale ease into relief as he teetered his way in and out of consciousness.

Malia checked his hand again, and she grabbed what he was holding.

"What is it?", Sam asked. The three frowned as she held up what he held tightly.

It was a set of car keys.

Before any of them could say anything, a bright light shined in Scott and Malia's face as they looked at Sam.

Both of them looked at the girl in shock, while Sam looked at them in confusion. "What?", she asked.

Scott hurriedly pulled out his phone and showed Sam her reflection, showing that a bright crescent moon was shining on her forehead.

Her eyes widened. What the hell…?

A quick vision flashed once more. She saw the jeep toppled over with fire near it. Why was the jeep toppled over? What happened? Who was in it?

She shook her head, watching the crescent moon dim into a black print now. She pulled her hood over her head, covering it and looked at the two in front of her. "We gotta get him help."

They nodded, looking at the man who slowly passed out. It was easier to pick him up now, helping him to the hospital.

After Malia went with her father to the hospital, Scott, Lydia and Sam sat in the Jeep. Lydia sat in the driver's seat, holding up the key to the car, looking at it intently.

The one question bothered Sam. Why did Peter have the keys to the jeep in the first place?

Lydia put in the key and turned it, only for the Jeep engine to sputter, refusing to start.

"This damn jeep.", Sam sighed.

Lydia huffed before trying again, pressing on the gas pedal repeatedly while twisting the ignition. The car sputtered, but it wasn't enough to turn on.

"Don't flood it.", Scott told her.

Lydia looked at him confused. "Do you even know what that means?"

Scott shook his head. "Not really." Sam looked at Lydia's foot. "Ease up a little."

Letting out a breath, Lydia turned the key one last time, suddenly hearing the rumbling of the Jeep. The headlights of the car shined the graveled ground below them, making them let out relieved laughs.

However, that didn't bring back any memories. They got one thing done, but they were far from finished. "Now what?", Sam frowned.

"No clue—", Scott was cut off by the radio in the car cutting on loudly, the static hurting their ears.

"Hello?"

Scott reached to turn it down, but Lydia quickly grabbed his wrist to stop him. "Wait, wait, wait, wait!" she said quickly, her eyes wide. The car went silent.

"Hello?", they heard. "Is anyone there? Can anyone hear me?"

Their eyes widened.

Lydia grabbed the radio and held it to her mouth, shaking before she spoke. "S-Stiles?", she asked. They waited in anticipation for an answer.

Scott leaned in close as well. "Stiles? Are you there?"

"Scott? Lydia? Is that you?", Stiles asked, the relief in his tone clear.

Everyone's face brightened into relieved smiles. "Oh, my God, Stiles! We can hear you!", Lydia exclaimed. "I told you guys he was real!", Sam exclaimed.

"Sammy!? Oh, my God. You know me? You guys remember me?", he asked, excited.

Lydia hesitated again, looking at Scott and Sam. "Stiles, is this… you? Is this actually you?", she asked.

"Yeah.", he said, sniffling. "Listen to me. Do you remember the last thing I said to you?"

"You said…", Lydia closed her eyes, faintly remembering his voice echoing in her mind. "You said, 'Remember I love you.'"

Stiles was quiet, but where he stood he was relieved, more hopeful than he was before. Peter had done it.

Sam grabbed the radio from Lydia's hand. "Stiles, where are you? Are you okay?", he heard.

He smiled. "You have no idea how good it feels to hear you guys. Yeah. Yeah, I'm okay. You guys have to remember me."

"Everything's in bits and pieces for me, but I'm remembering.", Sam says with a smile. "Did you see the moon? Did you get it?", Stiles asked.

"The moon?", Sam asked, confused. "You made a link to me whenever something was wrong, whether I was sick or hurt.", Stiles explained quickly. "It's a crescent moon on my wrist."

Sam frowned as she realized what he meant. "We saw it on my forehead. That was you?"

Stiles nodded, though she couldn't see him. "Yeah, it's a long story, but–"

"Where are you?", Lydia questioned.

"We're comin' to get you.", Scott said quickly.

"No, no, no. You can't. You won't be able to find me.", Stiles told them quickly.

"Stiles, what – what are you talking about?", Scott asked, shaking his head. "Just tell us where you are, and w-we'll come and—"

"Look, just remember this," Stiles interrupted him, rushing. "Canaan. Okay? You have to find Canaan. Just find Canaan."

Then the radio cut off on his end, sending the three into unsettled silence. "The Nogitsune…", Sam said, suddenly, making Scott and Lydia look at her in shock.

"I remember hearing his voice. He sounded so scared and alone… it was so sudden. He kept hanging up and we couldn't find him.", Sam said, her eyes glossing over.

Scott placed a hand on her arm. "We're gonna find our best friend." He looked at Lydia who looks at him with glistening eyes. "We're close.", he says, nodding at her.

[rocketturtle4]

Eclipse in progress part 2

Okay so I've only seen two more episodes and I kind of had in my head I'd watch till the end of 8 before writing anymore because I have the time but episode 7 just one two suckerpunched my feelings so I need to go regulate.

For the record while I'm a sucker for crying I get WAY MORE OVERWHELMED when things are bitter sweet and this episode is whoooooooaaaaaa

@wen-kexing-apologist @plantsarepeopletoo @grapejuicegay also @thegalwhorants I'm basically gonna @ you cause you interacted with my eclipse stuff, let me know if you'd rather I didn't

So some thoughts

I had forgotten about Namo he could also have stolen the diary and I think logistically this makes mroe sense because he is in a different year level so not expected to be in class BUT where did he get the key? Whereas Thua being class president potentially gives him key acces idk and I still feel like there's more layers

We still really haven't gotten background on anyone which is why I wasn't going to post yet so my theories havent changed much except

TURNS OUT AKK IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CAR

Did both Ayan and his uncle have a necklace? I'm really unsure about whether or not Ayan legit saw his suicide or has just vividally imagined it but n the dreams they're both wearing it whereas I had previously assumed Ayan was wearing his uncles necklace.

Namo also seems to genuinely believe in the curse so where did this rumour come from, I don't feel like it's NEW, did Akk hear it and just capitalise on it? or has someone else being doing this in the past? Is it passed down from the head prefect

also Khan and Wat are prefects were they indoctrinatinated by candelight??

1984 stuff was WAY LESS SUBTLE than I was expecting when Akk first found that book

Ayan convincing Akk he needs to 'tell the truth' and Akk being woried about his family and his reputation is obviously legit but also feels like a coming out metaphor ngl

Khan thinking Ayan is playing with Akk and Thua but gently confronting it rather than getting jealous made me appreciate him even more

ALSO THE POWER DYNAMICS in the framing of Ayan and Neo’s convo on the stairs, Neo is SO MUCH HIGHER and yet from the loew position Ayan managed to be confident and understanding.

IM SORRY ARE THESE CHILDREN EXPECTED TO WEAR THEIR BLAZERS REGARDLESS OF TEMPERATURE????

The three prefects convo was interesting when you consider the queer metaphor of the fact that Wat (so far) ISNT queer and is the one most openly empathetic to the protests, because he doesn't have the same personal stake as our gay boys

I want to know what wanna-be-prefect Nom and Aye think of the three prefects clearly non-prefect behaviour.

FUCK Firsts Goofy Smile is nearly as good as his doe eyes

Akk is way to relatable help me

god they're so proud this is gonna hurt

As a person who silently cries VERY SIMILARLY to Ayan (and just Khao in general because he cried like this on TC as well) I feel VERY SEEN by the way his tears just fall

HOW CAN I BE RELATING TO BOTH CHARACTERS HERE

I spent way to long examining the order of the boys and realising that Aye and Namo had swapped places

and that arguably you're more vulnerable when you're sleeping

THis ENTIRE SCENE

the interchanging eye opening

they both think each other was asleep

he's never really sleeping is one of my FAVOURITE tropes for forwarding a relationship and they doube whammied it but this one was CRAZY BECAUSE ITS NOT GOING TO FORWARD IT

Khan looked SO HAPPY TO HAVE KISSED HIM WAAAAAAAAH

DOUBLE WHAMMY

I have taken way to many screenshots and I can't believe episode 6 was a dream kiss and then episode 7 left us hanging but I'm still stopping for a bit. Have a few more moments that punched me in the gut

bye for now.