#side note: this reminds me of this one comic I found a while back that I THOUGHT was going to be some good alien lesbian content

[spiritshaydra]

Ngl one of these days I kinda wanna try making a comic about space lesbians out of spite, just because I’m sick and tired of all the gay space comics being just,,, two twinks. And there’s a severe lack of science-fiction yuri in general 😭 (I can think of like. One off the top of my head. But it’s dimensional travel yuri not space yuri)

The gays got that Bravern anime but us girls need something too!!

I’m specifically talking about a story that’s got delicate care put into it and how the characters are written, with the focus being entirely on their dynamic and not the [CENSORED FOR SAFE READING] and [REDACTED] along with [CARTOON SOUND EFFECTS] that runs rampant in most of the stories I’ve seen on AO3.

[avelera]

Headcanon: ADHD Hob and Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria

So I went down the rabbithole on ADHD and rejection sensitivity dysphoria (and found this lecture that legit made me tear up if you have or think you have ADHD, go listen to it here) and it got me thinking, as everything is wont to do, about Hob Gadling and how if he had ADHD, which I think there's lots of fun in-text hints at that at least allow that interpretation, what are some other ways that could manifest besides his ebullient and never-ending love of life in all its endless variety?

So as sufferers of ADHD know, it's not all fun and games. The flip side of living with a dopamine-starved brain that's always seeking out new experiences and seeing the world through that lens is that other emotions slam us hard too, like rejection sensitivity dysphoria aka, "the most minor criticism can feel like an actual knife in the chest, no I don't mean mildly bummed out, I mean full on fight-or-flight brain meltdown because someone told you a comma is in the wrong place in your manuscript (not that I'm speaking from personal experience yes it's that dumb)".

ANYWAY, so I'm thinking about Hob and RSD and specifically 1789.

Specifically the line, "It's just how it's done," referring to horrific practice of human trafficking and how Hob basically shrugs while, to his minor credit, looking suddenly uncomfortable and guilty, about the fact he actively profits from this industry, and the way he cringes in on himself when called out kinda seems to indicate that he knows it's a vile practice and isn't super comfortable with being reminded of his fact by someone he respects, like Dream.

A couple notes on that little exchange between Hob and Dream:

1 ) The face Ferdinand Kingsley-as-Hob makes in that moment is absolute textbook adult ADHD rejection sensitivity dysphoria. Namely, the point where you know criticism hits you like a knife in the heart, particularly from people you respect, and you just have to cover that flinch of literal physical pain with a careful poker face.

The way Hob's tone suddenly goes cold and with his very genteel, received-pronunciation manners he levels Dream with perhaps the closest he's ever come at this point to lashing out, "You're giving me advice...?"

I'm not saying that canonically it's RSD, or that neurotypical people don't suffer pain and disappointment when receiving disapproval, but to my eyes at least, Ferdie Hob takes Dream's comment very seriously, much more so than the comic counterpart did (who needed multiple nudges before he even realized what Dream was trying to tell him about getting out of the shipping business and still seemed a bit clueless about why Dream would want that or care by the end).

2 ) Going into proper headcanon territory, I personally chart Hob's journey from destitute to wealthy slave trader as the product of someone who stopped giving a shit about others after everything he suffered in the 1600s. To be perfectly clear, this is not a fucking excuse for it, it's an examination of motives.

Because technically, after everything Hob suffered in the 1600s, he could have emerged with more empathy for the plight of others. But clearly that didn't happen. From an entirely human motivation level, that leads me personally to the conclusion that since no one helped Hob when he was at his lowest (not even Dream, though I dearly wish it was otherwise and wrote extensively on what would have happened if he had) that led him to the belief, put simply, that fuck the world so long as he got his. Why should he care about anyone else if no one cared about him?

But to go back to the topic of this essay, RSD, there's an additional element to that theory on why and how Hob leaned into not giving a shit about others, and that missing factor from what's described above is the element of everyone is doing it. Specifically worded as, "It's just how it's done."

Another really fascinating lecture I listened to on ADHD talked about how the most common trauma reaction ADHDers have to their sense of rejection, shame, and guilt that comes the way our brains react to the world is by hiding. And that also got me thinking about 1789 Hob in this context.

Because Hob as we see him in 1589 is loud in his happiness. He's sitting there, bold as brass in the middle of the White Horse, showing off his wealth with a banquet, loudly declaiming about how he pretended to be his own son twice, worked in the Tudor shipyards (what would have been 50+ years before) and just how he spent the last 100 years working his way up to his knighthood. The man does not have an ounce of caution in him. But, he is also by far the happiest we ever see Hob (up until Dream ditches him in the middle of their date).

This is important because to my eyes, Hob is living openly and unashamed and with only the barest hint of caution typified by pretending to be his own son every couple decades. The way he describes his last 100 years sounds like an ADHD dream, basically getting a boat load of money from Caxton's printing press (basically the first tech startup unicorn of the modern era) and then running around wherever his interests took him where he also made money hand over fist, kept climbing, and eventually reached the point where he could purchase the acclaim and regard of a member of the (albeit minor) nobility. All of this after being born a peasant. That's just validation and money and prestige and getting to pursue your special interest and live as your authentic self all over the place. And I do mean authentic, Hob doesn't even seem particularly worried about talking openly in the White Horse about being 200+ years old, a strong case could be made that he's not that careful in his personal life either.

So anyway, Hob has this amazing century literally followed by the worst century imaginable, filled with the sort of horrors that can tear a man's soul asunder. Losing his family, his beloved wife in childbirth with their new baby, his adult son, his home, his money, everything he spent a century building. His title and name are gone too because of the nature of how he lost it with the accusation of witch craft, which also means he can't just fake being his own son again to get it all back because they're explicitly going to notice that this time.

And how did this all happen? Because Hob got noticed. He lived there 40 years, overconfident is his own words. Which is a wild thing to say about a bunch of witch hunters showing up at his door! He blames himself for being drowned as a witch. On the one hand, I imagine he has to think that way because otherwise he has to admit to the sheer brutal randomness of life, so in a way he's trying to take control of the narrative by blaming himself.

But it also smacks of ADHD again because ADHDers very commonly shift the blame onto themselves after years of their unique nervous system response making them a round peg in a square hole of wider society. We learn over and over that the mistakes we make are our fault, because of "laziness" or "apathy" which isn't apathy at all but deep agony over our inability to accomplish tasks in a neurotypical way without the support we need, but I digress. But it sure sounds like Hob may have been paralyzed by grief for literal decades and then blamed himself for not getting the mental spoons together in that context to move on and reinvent his life after losing his wife and child. Which would be a very ADHD thing to do.

So after this absolutely brutal smackdown by reality for living too openly, too loud, too ADHD, getting paralyzed by the powerful emotions he felt (if we follow the headcanon) over the grief and loss in his life, what is Hob's next step?

Hiding.

Blending in.

Not rocking the boat.

And again, not excusing it, there's plenty of other industries he could have gone into to blend in that didn't involve human trafficking. That said, if he went to sea, which we know Hob did on many occasions from the comic, it would be seen by his peers there at sea as a normal way to make one's fortune, and then.... well, we have as evidence that this is his current peer-group the sort-of pride with which Hob announces how he's making his fortune these days in the "shipping business", as if he's expecting Dream's approval.

That to me, reads a bit like the people pleaser/social chameleon aspect of ADHD. Hob is expecting to be praised for being successful by Dream the way he would likely be praised by his peers in the shipping business or among the wealthy privileged men of England. He's so steeped in that world now that he's clearly taken aback when Dream takes the (at the time more radical but not uncommon) stance of, "This is wrong."

And Hob knew it. But he was blending in. He was going along with how things are done. He wasn't rocking the boat. He has other hints at trauma responses too, "salting money around the world" in case there's political upheaval, for example. This is not the loud, boisterous Sir Robert Gadlen untouched by loss or trauma. He has been humbled and tempered and, indeed, made afraid by what happened to him.

This sort of wild swing towards protectiveness? Again, also ADHD. As the lecturer I linked first noted, ADHDers are textbook defenders. They are always defending themselves from the world that can suddenly, unexpectedly, plant a knife in their heart because of a perceived rejection. From a world that wants their brain to work in a way it doesn't, so they have to come up with myriad painful coping mechanisms to fit in, blend in, mask, and function. Hob was forced to protect himself after the 1600s, so he did, with money, and with not caring about other people, and with insulating himself from privilege, and becoming a social chameleon.

1589 Hob tries to earn back Dream's interest, but he doesn't fawn. Dream shows interest in Shaxberd and Hob, already starting to get irritated, tells him no, Shaxberd is crap.

And you can tell in 1789 that Hob is thinking about that day again when he gets Dream's disapproval, because who does he reference? That lad, Will Shaxberd. He's fearing rejection and abandonment again, or at least it's crossed his mind after Dream's admonishment. But this time, Hob is fawning more, very nearly flirting. He's trying to play the game better this time, trying to keep Dream's interest, social chameleoning the subject onto safer topics, things he thinks will interest Dream, as Shaxberd so clearly did, so let's talk about him if that's what you care about. Again, another ADHD social chameleon, people pleaser aspect. We are nervous empaths, we are constantly picking up a bazillion signals both real and imagined. And we're so fucking terrified of that RSD knife in the heart, we become people pleasers to avoid it. After the shipping business brag fell through, Hob pivots to talking about Dream and what, in his experience, Dream seems to like and talk about favorably.

So anyway, many many ADHD-esque rambling words later, there's a few more little details I'd add to the list of "possible ADHD behavior, not just the fun parts" for Hob Gadling. Is it canon? Maybe not. But it does make for a great headcanon, in my opinion.

[kingsandbastardz]

I've reached episode 25 of Mysterious Lotus Casebook and current thoughts and questions:

Amnesia a-Fei is fantastic because his personality stays the same except being less restrained with his facial expressions.

His sense of humor (comic timing on the mountain is A++) and style of wandering in and out of the scene bearing unexpected "gifts", digging his heels in when he doesn't want to do something, and attacking full force when the group is in danger -- it reminds me of a very large house cat

Are they implying that his lack of taste is psychological? Since he's able to taste food with his memories wiped. That means he lost his sense of taste as an adult, right? I wonder if it was gradual or a triggered event...

One scene i found particularly interesting: Li Lianhua asks a-Fei about his past history and a-Fei truthfully tells him that he remembers killing a lot. And that he came from "a mountain of corpses" with an almost-smiling and completely pleasant expression on his face. Li Lianhua changes the topic immediately without blinking or reacting. I'm split between whether he realizes it's a heavy topic and he personally doesn't want to know? Or if maybe he realizes that a-Fei was using a style of phrasing I like to call "shock and awe conversation stoppers" You know when you drop a bomb into a conversation you want to end with a banger like "They split my ribcage open with giant forceps while I was still half awake. It sucked." *pregnant pause, pleasant smile* So being sensitive to that, he prioritizes moving the conversation to something more comfortable?

I like how Fang Doubing is seriously cute but in a quietly burly-bro-potentially-strong way (which is especially reinforced with his style of stomping ppl into the ground during fights). Li Lianhua is also similarly deceptive where his fighting style and physical build is delicate but he's actually deeply imposing and overbearing when active (verbally or physically). Which is interesting because I find it's the opposite with Di Feisheng. Di Feisheng is super imposing on the surface and ok about 10 feet near that surface? But put him in the right conditions (like around the other two guys) and all the softness comes out. It's just the softness has natural claws like a feral cat or a snake or something. I mean, when you're a strong as he is, softness is relative. So in the case when he was fighting at the wedding party, he felt actually... gentle, to me? Despite wiping the floor with everyone. From the sect's perspective he was viciously attacking, but he didn't strike me as even being seriously upset at getting trapped in the array. It was like... I'm here's an analogy - you know when zoos give giant cardboard boxes to a lion? And it plays with it but cardboard doesn't stand a chance so it'll be crushed pretty quickly under its weight and butt just from the act of playing. I feel like in a lot of fights, Di Feisheng actually modulates his force a lot more than his reputation suggests. It's just he's THAT fucking strong.

Side note: this also explains why Li Lianhua used to think the sect couldn't do without him. I mean if he was the only one strong enough to go against an enemy that his ppl couldn't fight even as a group...

Lol what was it 7 vs 1 and Di Feisheng still wiped the floor with the entire sect leadership in the cherry blossom security trap

Li Lianhua attracts all the single ladies looool (and lads)

The alliance guy that does Di Feisheng's errands is cute. And loyal, which makes him more cute. Does he have a name at all?

Li Lianhua's smiles any time DFS does whatever is great. Oh he's wandering the mountain side and this widget gave him sensory issues so he yanked it out and brought it back in his own volition (like a cat with a corpse) ? That whole episode Li Lianhua was dropping secret smile bombs even more than when DFS folded himself into a 6yr old body

I want to see DFS as a 6 yr old again. Deliberately for a case.

[foolsocracy]

Do you have any fic recommendations? I've just read the open road and other anesthetics, which was good, but I'd love more Noir content.

oh boy do i

Here are a few fics i have on hand! If I have time or stumble across more, I can make another post/add to this one. Heads up, the open road and other anesthetics is pretty light hearted and these probably will not be. so say vigilant LMAO (its noir, ya know?). If you wanted more spiderverse centric fics rather than noirverse let me know i'll see what i can pull together.

Burning Matches by HopelesslyLost (complete) 344,746 words

Cant have a Spider Noir fic rec list without the gospel itself. Definitely on the whumpier side, lots of "this guy can never catch a break huh" but very good! Takes the noirverse and makes it so so cool. I pull a lot from this fic. Great stuff Its a post ITSV setting and features a great deal of everyone but Pete is def the focus. The spider gang is trying to get back together, but when they get to Noir's world things don't go as planned. Heavy on the found family. Heavy on the angst. Love Noir's relationship w/ Miles' parents

The Wind Follows by HopelesslyLost (incomplete) 99,501 words

Goes along with Burning Matches as a side story of Pete infiltrating the KKK to get them tf out of NYC. Very heavy handed on the angst. Even whumpier than Burning Matches. Where it stands right now, it ends on an incredibly low note, very much like Eyes Without a Face. Peter's kicked while he's down & physically incapable of getting a win. But Peter does kick Nazi ass which is always nice to see If you like the noirverse HopelesslyLost writes this is very interesting! Gotta be my fave part of this fic. I love seeing Noir Cage, Daredevil, and Tony Stark. Plus the who "cursed" situation.. mwah

i'll go back to december by snapplebee (incomplete, recently updated) 14,503 words

This fic reminds me of the open road and other anesthetics, but if it was a little angstier w/ Noir. The spider gang is hanging out for the holidays, Noir doesn't know how to fuckn relax.

Catch a Tiger by the Tail by Gruoch (completed) 40,049 words

Just finished this one today! Was very fun. It's an MJ spider-man (her POV) and a Black Cat Peter. Gwen Stacy, a dancer at Felica Hardy's place, is found dead. Her fiancé, Peter Parker, is found dead soon after. Its very much a mystery! TBH i think i was out of it reading this because a twist got me that I'm almost positive was obvious from the beginning LMAO. Slight Peter/Johnny Storm as well

Between Midnight and Dawn by Gruoch (incomplete) 14,158 words

Prequel to the previous rec. I love this one and I'd do anything to see it update again. Shows you how Peter got to be the Black Cat, he has cool run ins with the Dare Devil and Stark, all the fun noir folks. Heads up on the dysfunctional found family tag, thats for sure Peter and Felicia. But they're strange in canon anyway so its not really much of a surprise.

He Sleeps in a Town of Darkness by luckystarsandgarters (complete) 21,278 words

This is the fic i mentioned a post or 2 ago about Johnny Storm being a drag performer. I really love the atmosphere of this fic, I thought it was pulling from an offical comic thats how well it got me. This one's Pete/Johnny Storm! They're cute. Lots of focus on the gay subculture of the 30s I think.

Trust by Ackerhardt (complete) 6,989

Peter & Jean De Wolfe vs the world. Quick read in the classic noirverse. Jean is fun we should talk about him more tbh. Peter/Jean actually! Just colleged aged guys taking on crime in the city.

[drifting-pieces-blog-blog]

Breaking down the comics: Denial is Strange (Issue 36)

Moon Knight, Issue # 36: Ghosts

Written by  Alan Zelenetz and drawn by Bo Hampton 

Now, I’m a long time fan of Dr. Strange. In fact, he’s number three on my list of favorite comics! (Number two being Scarlet Witch and number one being MK if I even need to mention that). So a Moon Knight with early Dr. Strange cross-over? Yeah, I’ll dip into that no problem! 

The first page is a note from the editor, Denny O'Neil. You see, in previous issues, they had asked where fans wanted to see Moon Knight go. They were running low on ideas and didn't know how they wanted to further develop the character, as it looked like he was going to stick around for a while. 

Since Moon Knight started in a supernatural horror book (Werewolf by Night), it only seemed fitting that Moon Knight continue to carryon his career as leaning heavily on the supernatural side of things. A fist of the moon and Spector of vengeance, they have decided to let Moon Knight continue on his path of walking the line of what lurks on the other side of the shadows. 

"Lots of heroes catch crooks. Moon Knight will be going after a different quarry. We hope you'll go with him." 

Also it's interesting to note that they introduce Zelenetz and Bo Hampton as the new MK team, when they only did three issues before the 1980s series ended and things had to get a re-vamp as MK again went in a new direction. Hmm. (He does come back periodically in later runs, but doesn’t stick around.) 

For those unfamiliar with Dr. Strange, ....things get strange. An original Marvel character from back in the day, created in 1963 by Steve Ditko himself, he embraced the psychedelic comic art style of that time. Let me put it this way, if Dr. Strange gets involved, you know things are about to get colorful, confusing to look at, and WEIRD. 

That out of the way, we open in Nubia, in Ancient Egypt during the twentieth century B.C. 

We see a classic Egyptian styled man about to sacrifice a cat for 'the demons of the dark'. He declares himself Amutef, first among necromancers and worthy to be a pharaoh. 

Okay. That's a start. 

Suddenly a bunch of men run into the room. "Seize him, priests of Khonshu!" 

Yeah, it's illegal to slay 'the holy cat in mockery of the gods.' 

Amutef declares revenge (Mummy style). "On a moonlit night, ages hence when we meet once again." 

Once the mummification of Amutef is done, the head priest prays to Khonshu that 'this enchanted pendant will keep the base Amutef's soul bound within these linen grave clothes for all eternity." 

Amutef's spirit enters into the necklace, waiting for his curse to come to light. 

And right on cue, we head to the present where we see a beautiful blond woman wearing the necklace. 

"I may have been an archeologist's daughter, but these cat mummies can still give me the creeps." 

Aw jeeze. It's Marlene. 

And we see her there with Steven at the grand opening to an Egyptian wing of a museum as a memorial to her father. 

Marlene, why are you wearing an antique Egyptian necklace? 

"It will go to the museum one day, Mr. Director. I'm wearing it tonight for the first time since my father found it in one of the tombs of the Seti Kings." 

Yeah no. 

Their social session is interrupted by a security guard trying to kick out a party crasher. 

"Listen, we get all kinds of crackpots crying CURSE every time we open an Egyptian exhibit--" 

"But I am Stephen Strange, and my conjurations have led me here. I fear that evil will be born this night--" 

(I’ll start by saying the art style reminds me of the comic art from around late 1960s, but I’m also not a fan of how Marlene is portrayed here. She’s too soft and arm candy-esque. I miss the Marlene from Bill’s days where she was capable and intelligent.) 

Also, Steven clearly has NOT heard of Strange fully if he dismisses him after that display. You’d think by now that Steven would be like ‘oh. Right. I’ve fought zombies. This isn’t that odd for me.’

A cat (belonging to the security guard?) breaks loose and instantly goes to attack Marlene. Steven backhands it easily before it can sink it's fangs into Marlene. 

"In the name of the Vishanti! Don't you see? The animal senses evil." 

"Look. How are you at sensing harassment suits, Mister Magic?" 

"Dr. Strange, this is a museum, not a circus show." 

I love how no one ever takes Dr. Strange seriously when they first meet him. Even in today's age, they just write him off as a cheap palm reader. 

Marlene notes she feels terrible and wants to go home. Steven and Marlene head home and Stephen follows above. 

Stephen…This is why no one takes you seriously. I hate to hear how he talked BEFORE he became a sorcerer. Can you imagine him in the ER? “By Gray’s Almighty Anatomy, someone hand me the mighty retractor of Senn!” 

(Stephen what is that pose? Steven…What is that lurking image of you?) 

He scans Marlene while doing what I like to think of as his Vampire flight pose. 

"Yes--But wait, there is a mystic aura about this man, Grant, as well. Then there are occult forces at work here that appear to defy even earth's sorcerer supreme, thus--" 

He lays a protection spell on Marlene that will keep the possession at bay for the next 24 hours then flies home to do research. 

Back in the mansion, Marlene gets into her usual skimpy night gown STILL WEARING THE NECKLACE. 

Look, if I ever go to bed still in a necklace that gaudy, please consider me cursed. 

Marlene is worried about the curse. She feels terrible and she's a little spooked. 

Steven Grant feels differently. 

"That black cat at the museum has got you all strung out. You'll sleep it off. As for curses... You should know better than anyone, Marlene, that these days--for sanity's sake, I like to keep a cool distance between myself and thoughts of the supernatural." 

Steven no… 

Jokes aside, we must remember that DID is a form of self preservation, protection, processing, and denial. When it comes to their DID, Stephen has ALWAYS been the first one to go "Nawh. I'm fine." and then try to strong arm his way through every situation. Marc is the first to go "May as well die" and throw himself head first into a dangerous situation, and Jake is the first to go "It ain't my problem. I'mma chill here with my buds." 

Here is classic Stephen Grant, fresh off his most recent run of self doubt and slow crawl into a mental break (for the third or fourth time) and he's living in denial land and choosing a path that he feels is the most conducive to compartmentalize and keep his distance from their trauma. 

"I try to forget that the ruthless mercenary I once was--Marc Spector-- apparently died and was reborn in a desert tomb years ago... 

Under the gaze of a cold white statue of Khonshu, God of the moon... Whose spirit I use to believe reanimated me." 

And yet you won't shut up about it. (I kid, but seriously, Steven.) 

"Believed only too well. I relied on that superstition until I'd almost lost my mind --Forgot just where Khonshu ended and Spector or Grant began." 

Why does he always forget about Jake? 

"But you helped me see that I derived my strength and abilities from my own will and commitments, not from some long-dead mythology. You redeemed my soul and my sanity, Marlene...

And I'm not about to lose either of them again. So no more talk of witchcraft, okay? Just sleep tight while Moon Knight makes the rounds." 

Steven sure is in a mood. I don't blame him. 

(I also love how depending on who tells it or remembers it, we either see bloody beaten up Marc at the foot of the statue or we see a gently and sexily sprawled out Steven rendition with a gently weeping Marlene memory. I’d love to see how Jake remembers it.) 

Moon Knight takes off and a clearly possessed Marlene mutters a classic line about “After thousands of years we have met once more, fool Thosbi. Now Amutef’s spirit, given voice by inhabiting the mortal frame, shall utter incantations of revenge.” 

Classic. 

Meanwhile, Stephen Strange is doing his own thing. 

Stephen is...wordy. I'm going to summarize the WALL OF TEXT that is his ramblings and chantings. 

Marlene is possessed by an ancient sorcerer. Steven Grant has been mystically endowed with the spirit of an ancient priest of Khonshu. 

Meeting up on this moonlit night spells trouble with a capital T and now the curse is real. 

He must get Steven Grant to cooperate with him or it will spell doom for them both. 

And then we cut to Moon Knight, still angry about the implication of something supernatural happening to him. 

"Steel and glass and concrete. There's reality for you. No room in a city like this for superstitions." 

He spots some thugs assaulting a couple and he decides to glide down to intercept. 

Yeah that…that seems about right. 

He barely manages to dodge a gun shot, his crescent dart whacks a guy right in the face and cuts him, and he barely manages to catch up with the other two fleeing villains. 

And of Course Detective Flint arrives to drive in the nail. 

"Say, everything okay? Not like you to lose your wind over a trio of amatures." 

"Just an accident, Detective--Cape got caught, you go on and treat the punks to a night in the slammer. Put it on my tab." 

And to make his night even better, Stephen Strange shows up. 

"It was no accident, Steven Grant." 

"YOU again!? Am I supposed to admire your persistence or--Wait, you called me Grant?"

"Yes, it was Steven Grant I sought, and I'm afraid your costume does little to disguise HIS psychic aura. But, that is inconsequential--It is your life, not your identity, that is in jeopardy." 

I...Could have SO much to say about breaking down that statement and we'd be here all night as I talked about the psychic aura of Steven vs. the others, his life vs. his identity, and all that fun stuff... But I have a feeling the writer wasn't aiming for that line...sadly... SO I'll leave it alone....this time. 

He tells Steven that he's in danger and Steven demands to be shown the demons after him. 

Stephen tells him that they were the ones that grabbed his cape, but he banished them before they could destroy him. 

Moon Knight still isn't buying it. 

I swear, half the Dr. Strange cross-over comics are spent with Stephen trying to convince everyone that magic is real and that he isn't full of it. 

"I have learned that you are endowed with the spirit of a priest of Khonshu whose mystic powers are needed to save Ms. Alraune from the evil spirit which possesses her." 

Honestly, while this isn't the first instance of the OG comic showing the cult of Khonshu and the priests, this is the first time someone has considered Moon Knight to be imbued with the spirit of a priest of Khonshu. 

As many of you may be aware, the current run with MacKay pushes heavily into the Priest of Khonshu plot line, which has often been dropped and lost by subsequent writers after this one. 

However, Strange is insisting that the priest himself is inside Moon Knight, while it's long been determined that Khonshu himself has imbued Marc and the others with his own power to make Moon Knight his own sort of priest. 

Let's see how this issue plays it out. 

"I would have mesmerized you without asking in order to summon the Ancient Priest within your being... But even your unconscious will is incredibly strong and I could not break through it." 

I'm cackling about this. Imagine Strange trying to get in there and just being met by a really pissed off Jake Lockley. 

"Bet on it, Mister." Steven is thinking the same thing. You know it. "My will's like granite, because that's what holds the real world out there together for me. It's my sanity." 

Oh Steven... 

Moon Knight calls Khonshu a myth and make-believe. "Do you think I'd ever embrace that madness again?" 

He calls for Frenchie. He's done with this. 

"If the spirit is not exorcised from Ms. Alraune by tomorrow night, she will be the one who knows true madness. Without the mystic aid of KHonshu, my spells can protect her no longer than that." Stephen Strange calls after him. 

Moon Knight calls him a "blasted Looney" and takes off. 

The next evening at Grant Mansion, the doctor informs Steven that he can't figure out what's wrong with Marlene. 

Steven tells her that he'll cut the Moon Knight patrol short and be back before midnight. 

(She's still wearing the necklace). 

As Moon Knight leaves, Marlene sits up, possessed again, and sending the evil spirits out after the Khonshu priest Thosbi. 

This time they attack the chopper. 

Oh no. Not the chopper! 

While the possessed Marlene chants of vengeance from the balcony, cats start to gather in the nearby tree. 

Dr. Strange arrives to the chipper and starts to fight off the invisible demons that only he can see. 

Frenchie tells Moon Knight to glide to safety. The chopper is going down. (My dear Frenchie always looking out for his friend.) 

Moon Knight refuses to jump and the chopper starts to function again. 

A particularly nasty demon shows up to fight Strange. 

"Begone, Mage, for my chaotic powers are summoned by a spell more ancient than any your mortal lips can utter." It taunts him. 

While Strange battles the demons, Frenchie manages to land the chopper. 

Side note, I do love the way they draw Moon Knight’s costume. This is the start of the era where his shorts start to actually look like shorts and not underwear outside his outfit. You also see more black mixed in with his top and leggings. While you see the muscles, he isn’t drawn HUGE and ridiculous. It’s believable. 

Also behold Strange before the goatee! It looks wrong… 

Anyways, Moon Knight is not pleased to see Strange again. 

They argue and give me my most favorite image of Frenchie EVER. 

This man. I love this man. 

Look at it. The moon hat. The lighting on his face. The relaxed sit. The smoke rings. Not one not two but THREE pens in his pocket. The gloves. The match book in his other hand. This is just another day for him. 

The copter nearly crashed for unknown demonic reasons and his BFF super hero buddy is outside arguing with a wizard about being possessed by an ancient Egyptian priest. 

Jean-Paul Duchamp I love you. 

Strange tells him that if they don't contact the priest of Khonshu within the hour, Marlene is going to be lost to them. 

Moon Knight concedes. He jumps in the chopper and they follow Strange back to the mansion. ....Why he doesn't let Strange fly in his chopper but makes him fly...You got me? 

They arrive to find the mansion crawling with cats and Marlene in a trance staring contest with one of them. 

Moon Knight decides to take a short cut to get to Marlene as fast as he ....OH FOR CRYING OUT LOUD. THERE ARE SO MANY Other WAYS TO ENTER YOUR MANSION! YOU BUILT IT! 

(Adds another hash tag to the list) 

Moon Knight crashing through his own window with his nunchucks out in a room full of cats. I just... He is the ultimate catboy. 

They send away the cats, who were apparently there to attack the evil. 

Stephen sets the room up for the ritual and Steven carries Marlene to a chair. "Save her, Strange... Even if it costs me my mind." 

We get some interesting art here... They made Steven look like a bad anime magical girl transformation reaction or something. I can't even begin to describe this. I apologize for what I’m about to show you. 

Flew too close to the sun with Frenchie. Now we must all pay the price with anime boy Steven Grant. 

So Strange does his thing and forces the demons to show themselves. 

"Do you think to conquer Amutef with glibness of tongue, mage?! I who was first among necromancers, who dared blaspheme the names of Khonshu and Osiris.." He summons his own demons to battle Strange. 

He summons the priest of Khonshu through Moon Knight and we get some CLASSIC Dr. Strange art. We got the symbols, we got the squiggle lines, we got the colors, we got the eyes, we got the floating heads and we even got the floating hour glass. 

As much as I love Dr. Strange, it takes me a while to read his old comics. My processing skills can't handle the barrage of EVERYTHING on every page. I’m glad it’s just a little in this comic. 

We watch the two men do battle through time and space and in King Arthur's backyard for some reason... We see the great pyramids and some temples that my geographically challenged mind does not recognize... 

Just as the battle is picking up...

"What?! I sense emotions of abnormal pitch. No! They flow from the mind of Grant. The strain on his will is too great! But he can't succumb now---!" 

We see chanting and...wait... those words... They sound familiar...

"Khonshu, Nehem kua her entet ari-na maat! Amutef, thosbi! Affirms thee no longer to be!" 

Parts of that sound suspiciously like something Harrow chanted from the MCU show. HMMMMMM....

Yeah, the battle is over and Marlene and Steven come out of their trances. 

"You've survived, Steven Grant, and your mind is whole, stronger than before. You have experienced life AND death, the natural and supernatural. You have mastered your will and become a complete man." 

Then Strange essentially does the "I must go now" thing and zips away to fight the occult forces of evil elsewhere. 

We are left with Steven thinking things over. 

"Occult forces. Like Marc Spector's dying and being reborn through the ghost of an ancient priest. You know, Marlene? I believe him. I don't for one minute like the idea...But I believe him." 

The End! 

Okay you guys… This was a wild one. It was a disaster start to finish but it did what comics are meant to do and it made me laugh and it was fun. 

The art was…all over the place. It worked for an issue with Dr. Strange, but they made everyone FAR too baby faced and pretty. What’s weird is that the next issue is the same artist but he gets his shit together and it’s back to Moon Knight nitty gritty. What the hell happened? Let’s blame Dr. Strange on this one. 

But….

Can you imagine THIS being the face of Steven Grant, Marc Spector, and slap a mustache on that and you got Jake Lockley!? THIS?! 

He’s so judgy! 

I’m dying out here you guys. Someone draw a mustache on that and I’ll love you forever. I think this broke me. 

So… Aside from the… What ever all this was… It reminds me of the issue recently with Mackay. Where we got to go into Moon Knight’s mind-scape and we got to see Marc, Steven, and Jake all work together to defeat outside forces. They worked as a team and it was their special weapon. Going after Marc? No you aren’t. You’re gonna get punched in the face by Jake and Steven (steven gonna look at you like a highly disapproving father). In this early run, we don’t have the wonderful understanding and research into DID to fully comprehend or experience this, but looking back, I like to imagine it’s there under the surface. 

I also look at the priest as not being the one that revived them. Again, I cite Khonshu himself. The priest issue can be folded into current and then building lore of the Priesthood of Khonshu. This was an early and powerful priest that happened to have a grudge against this particular bad guy. Perhaps this is where Mackay starts taking his ideas and lore from. We’re already seen other ideas from the OG run that he’s explored. If this is the case, it’s nice to see him doing his research and getting back to basics. 

So what did you guys thing? Did it make you laugh too? Are we all cursed by the Magical Anime Steven image? 

Next time I’m dipping back into the past to cover some of the issues I skipped. We’re getting to the home stretch you guys. 

[kingdicemrwheezyflowertor]

I'm sorry, Medic, did what with the devil?? Kinda reminds me of when Spiderman sold his child to the devil and also side note-

How does medic have eight souls??? O-o

Well; It was stated in the comics that at one point, Medic sold his soul to the devil for reasons unknown to me. But how I know he sold his soul is because when he died after getting shot twice by the Original Heavy (Not Tf2 Heavy), He found himself in hell. (Comic #6: The Naked and The Dead)

Then as Medic goes on to say that while the devil owns his original soul; Since he had been back to the living world, He surgically added 8 more souls. So he’s on the board of Directors for the ownership of his other souls. I don’t know how the hell he did that but he did and he sold one of those 8 souls to the devil for a Pen that he can use when he got back to the living world to save his Heavy.

Medic is Twisted; To say the least.

[dangerous-advantage]

why is usagi yoimbo so fucking good? (an analysis.)

usagi yojimbo is one of the most interesting, well-told, intelligent, heartfelt stories i have ever read. it's stories are nuanced and likable, supported by characters and relationships you root for.

it's simple, balanced, and when things get serious, you feel it.

and if anyone had recommended it to me, i probably wouldn't have read it.

(spoilers for usagi yojimbo: volume two; jizo. fair warning: this will probably go long.)

i picked up uyv2 on a whim. i wasn't really planning on reading it, and if i did, i didn't think i would particularly like it.

but it was related to my current hyperfixation (they didn't have 'the last ronin' in stock, which was what i was looking for), and it was a special day, so i thought, "fuck it, i'll buy this."

a couple days later, i finished it and immediately needed more. yada yada, tale as old as time.

but what exactly made it so good? a lot of people will get into media and be hooked by the very first installment. usagi yojimbo, for me, required a little bit of faith.

i started with uyv2: issue one, aka 'shades of green.' if you're a tmnt fan, this is a great jumping off point, because it lures you in with tmnt lore all while putting intrigue in your mind about what these other guys are doing, i guess.

there are callbacks to past comics that might interest you by creating a greater sense of lore and history. you'll find yourself eventually wandering back and maybe reading the next installment, just because.

this is very good, because the next installment following the shades of green arc (at least, in the usagi yojimbo saga: book one') are the "side stories," which will stick in your mind until your thoughts are overtaken by the funny rabbit guy, and you give in.

i love shades of green as much as the next guy, but damn, those side stories fuck. even if you didn't give a shit about the turtles and only read the stories (and maybe the origin tale), it is my belief that you would know basically everything you need to know.

jizo is what originally "hooked" me. in the og comics, it was a side story for the first part of the shades of green arc, which was ingenious, seeing as it's fucking amazing.

in my humble opinion, jizo is an example of sakai at his best. it's eight pages long with three panels per page, each following the same composition. its so simple, and yet, throughout my read-through of volume two, i found myself returning to it again and again.

it starts off with an image of a road, with a series of travelers passing by. a woman toting a small stone statue brings it to the edge of the road and starts on an iconic sakai infodump, with might disinterest some, but fully delighted my autistic mind!

(here she is, by the way.)

she explains (by talking to the statute) that said statue is a representation of 'jizo-sama,' "guardian of the souls of lost children. her son was murdered five days ago on this very road, and the ones responsible, a party of bandits, have not yet been caught.

her hope is that by praying to the statue, nobody else will suffer the same fate.

she also explains some lore-- that the souls of lost children are "doomed to pile stones in the dry river bed of souls." by offering pebbles at the statue's base, she hopes to ease her sons' burden.

she then leaves, noting a chill in the air, and promises to bring back a coat for the statue the following day, in order to keep it warm.

now, by all accounts, this is an example of bad storytelling. just info-dumping is uninteresting to the audience, and clunky. well, here we are reminded that actually, if your story is worth telling, nobody gives a shit if you commit "writing sins" (see 'lord of the rings' for more examples of this. yes, uy is good enough to be compared to lotr.)

but anyway, the day progresses. there are lots of fun details in these scenes --

--like this guy ^, who we meet/meet another person akin to later on in volume two (music from heaven). we also see a couple of people make offerings on their way past, which is nice (:

night falls, and with it comes-- holy shit-- its the funny rabbit guy again!

he's alone, just passing by. he doesn't even seem to notice the statue on the side of the road.

we then get some of my all-time favorite uy panels, and a perfectly-executed scene showcasing some of usagi's core beliefs and character.

so the bandits (yes, those bandits) attack. and usagi five-v-one's them. the guards come, clean things up, etc etc. more usagi characterization shines through. and usagi leaves.

all the while, jizo-sama observes.

but wait. if you're anything like me, you might notice a small detail between in two frames.

that's right-- the statue of jizo smiles. which could be creepy in any other context, but its only for a single panel, so you might assume it was just a quirk of the artwork on that one page.

but, no.

in the morning, the woman comes back.while wrapping the statute in a coat, she says, "huh? your expression has changed-- you look more at peace-- but that's impossible! isn't it?"

she ultimately decides not to worry about it, but does mention that it'll probably cause more people to be willing to give offerings as well. which leaves us with our final panel.

so. what exactly does jizo accomplish?

well, a lot of things. it sets up worldbuilding for the more 'mystical' side of uy, introduces us to sakai's ability to make you feel like you've been punched in the gut in a good way, and characterizes usagi using only eight of the twenty-four panels that make up this story. in which, he doesn't say a word.

but beyond that. why does this work so well?

for me, a part of it is the inversion of the idea of "fate." let me explain-- in a lot of stories like this, there's this underlying trope of the "chosen one" or that things will end up a certain way. while these stories aren't bad, i generally find myself uninterested in the idea of beings beyond our comprehension pulling the strings for characters that are "special."

these characters are chosen ones. they're supposed to know everything that will go down, because they're important. whether or not fate actually plays a part, you get this idea that they were always supposed to be 'chosen,' in some way or another.

uy doesn't do that. while there is some "meddling" implied, it's not because usagi is the specialest boy ever. he's just some guy making his way through japan while trying not to starve. just... figuring himself out.

in thise story, the only people who know the full extent of the narrative are ourselves and the statue of jizo. the woman shows no indication that she's heard of the bandits' capture, and for usagi, this is just another night.

it's meaningful because we get to see all these parts of the story come together, while knowing we are the only ones this is meant for. this isn't a grand story or some epic of old. it's just a small, intimate moment of retribution.

the gods-- or, in this case, jizo-sama-- doesn't care about heroism outside of this moment. it's left vague whether or not the statue or any being it represents put this moment into fruition. if anything, it could just be a coincidence, and the statue is smiling at in gratitude.

regardless, it feels so much more meaningful than if it had been done any other way. usagi is just a character traversing these lands, weaving in and out of stories, many he will never know the full extent of. and that feels real. genuine.

i do think that this changes a bit, later on in the comics, but this beginning sense-- that usagi is just travelling through a greater world, pulled this way and that for no particular reason (unless otherwise noted) is very refreshing for a series like this.

jizo does a lot of other stuff, too-- like that core characterization i mentioned above-- but this post is long enough. i wanted to get more into other aspects of why uy is so good, but there's just so much, and honestly, you should read it yourself if you haven't already to find out what. (at the very least, read jizo-- it's short, but very, very good.)

i might do more of these for the rest of uyv2 and how it hooked me, but for now, i this this works well enough to begin answering the question of why this series is so good.

(okay, i caved-- the core characterization is his unwillingness to fight unless it's necessary. now, go read jizo!)

[imdonnalynn]

A little bit about me…

Far as online is concerned, I would be recognized as a muse-stricken fanfiction writer. I started writing fan fiction 23 years ago on fanfiction.net. The first work posted online was Party with the Old Fly-Boys, fandom was JAG and the ship was Harm/Mac, that was September of 2000. And it went from there… Over time, I wrote 100 pieces of work for 26 fandoms ranging from books, television and movies and 27 different ships’. Since, my works have been purged (found only on my inactive LiveJournal) because they no longer reflect me as a writer. For years I’ve been trying to get back on the saddle, but my muse only goes as far as the ideas. Soon as I try to transcribe to paper or type it, I draw a major blank. Writer’s block for the last two decades has been disheartening. I still try, leaving things in my drafts and such but I usually just end up deleting it all and starting completely over. Amazing how one can feel like they’re on top of the moon writing to not being able to muster even a drabble.

Outside of writing? I’m a full-time mom to 2 autistic sons. Wife to a marine veteran, Semper Fi and thank a veteran or active member for their service they will appreciate it. And to top that already full plate I am a full-time daughter to my mothers. If I’m not taking care of something to do with them then I’m dealing with the horde of animals, we have. 9 dogs and 18 cats we have strays coming in all the time. I basically run a rescue all on my own and with my own money (but not a legit rescue just FEELS like I’m running a rescue).

What do I love?

Yellowstone I don't know that I will finish watching this series after all the behind-the-scenes drama with Sheridan and Costner. I just don't think they can pull off a decent ending to a train wreck without Costner coming back. 1923 I can’t wait for season 2, I’m beginning to lean toward Spencer and Alex being the grandparents of John Dutton III in Yellowstone. Shame this series has the been the best of the Yellowstone Universe thus far. Outlander I'm going to finish the series out however it finishes but I'm drained with it. The way they have structured their last three or four seasons has been a rollercoaster, slow then rushed and it's took a lot of the joy out of watching. Reacher Season 3 still has Neagley coming back to do her usual bonding with Reacher so I will continue to tune in every season. Though I will say I liked the writing and pace in season 1 better than season 2. The Terminal List Looking forward to where this goes next season and I'm definitely looking forward to the spin-off for Taylor Kitsch. Stranger Things I resisted watching this show simply because everyone loved it and I didn't want to admit it was good. It is good, it's great even and I can't wait for the final chapter of this awesome constructed series. Reminds me how well the Babylon 5 series was. Marvel Cinematic Universe I have been a fan of the Marvel Cinematic Universe since The Avengers. Since that moment I have been an avid MCU fan. I am not a comic fan or expert, the extent of my comic knowledge comes from the many other experts I have watched online talking about these incredible complex stories.

Who do I love?

Beth Dutton from Yellowstone. I relate to her in so many ways, like her no bullshit attitude and utter dying devotion to family. Where we differ, I don’t smoke cigarettes, I don’t drink alcohol anymore, and I would LOVE to own Yellowstone Dutton Ranch GLADLY. She hates it and would have no qualm selling it once her father passes but while he is alive, she will defend it to her last breath. Beth doesn’t let anyone scare her, she won’t let anyone get that satisfaction from her ever again since her mother died and since she lost the ability to have children. (side note: Beth has a shit ton of trauma from her childhood that contributes to her erratic often childish behavior when she lashes out, but I still love her it's what makes her the most human of them.)

Wanda Maximoff from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Most particularly in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and before you say anything let me explain. I have two sons, like Wanda did, and a husband, like Wanda did. And I imagine what it would be like to lose my husband and my children...the grief that would consume me would no doubt turn me evil, and I'm not using the word lightly. If I were in Wanda's position in Multiverse of Madness with that grief and guilt and the Darkhold in my possession anyone who stood in my way would be fucked, like the Illuminati. The only thing that would be able to stop me would be my boys, just like Wanda. And like Wanda, when she realized what she had become and how her own boys perceived her...it was enough to turn her away from the dark path and truly LOVE her sons...which is what I would hope I would do because I would only hope their love would be enough to bring me back from that place.

I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE WANDA AND HER FULL REDEMPTION ARC COME TO PASS!!

SHE IS NOT DEAD.

SHE WILL GET HER OWN SOLO MOVIE BET IT WILL BE ANNOUNCED AT SAN DIEGO COMIC-CON! (update 8/6/24 - there was no announcement of anything related to Scarlet Witch at San Diego Comic-Con)

Why did I write and post this?

I managed to actually write it out fairly quick, so you damn right I’m posting it! May not be a story but its about me so I guess in a way it is a story.

Requests for stories and Asks welcome!

[purplerose244]

Watched the eighth episode of LEGO DreamZzz: Loved it!

EVERY NEW EPISODE IS MY FAVOURITE EPISODE! I feel very attached for all five of them, I want Mateo to keep working on his confidence, I wanted Cooper to keep walking his own way, I want Izzie to save her friends, I want Logan to better himself, I was Zoey to have more friends I... I... 😭😭😭

Also side note, the how to draw videos are super cute, Mateo is super good and also...

Mateo: I'll make a tutorial on how to draw all of these wonderous creatures, quite fascinating right? Anyway TODAY I'M GONNA DRAW MY VERY COOL FRIEND ZOEY

Yeah I'm pretty sure this guy has a crush 😂 And he thinks her eyelashes are pretty 💕💕

I'm super curious! ONTO THE EPISODE

(Yes I watched the whole first season already, and I was wondering if anyone knew where the second season is? I know someone on Youtube post it, but how? Where did it come out?)

THE BIGGER PICTURE

THE THUMBNAIL IS SHOWING MATEO AND ZOEY! ARE THEY FINALLY INTERACTING?!? I feel like we got lots of time to define Zoey's character, so I wonder if we'll see Teo showing more of his crush

DUDE THESE COMICS ARE SO COOL LOOK AT MY BABY GO 😍😍😍

Lol Mat dedicated two whole pages to Zoey and Zian, sweetie you're no subtle, it saves you only your shyness 🥰🥰

AWW HE WANTS TO TALK TO HER 💕

I know that he got a crush and obviously that's a major reason, but I really like how it's so simple. Mateo thinks she is really cool, she wants to talk to her. He really reminds me of me a lot 😅

Ah, the whole important milestone for every artist in school: having the courage to show his art to someone else

So not even Coop saw these comics? Only Izzie did? Interesting...

Logan is up to stuff apparently?

LOL we're finally seeing other professors aside from prof Oz and that one jerk coach! Interesting change from sensei Wu from Ninjago and sir Brickland from Nexo Knights, she seems nice

LOGAN IS BACK IN OUR TEAM?!?! 😍

Awww, he did have a bit of a change of heart! Did he realize Mateo is actually kinda great at leading and wants in? Or just really likes the team? Whatever the reason, welcome back mah dude! 💪💪

Gotta say that Izzie got great instinct, whenever something is wrong she feels it right away, so I'd trust her about this Insomniac Club

... or maybe it's a bunch of people playing Spyro or Ratchet and Clank, who knows 😂

Noooo stealing is a bad idea

NOOOO STEALING IS A BAD IDEA

Vincent's characters are quite different from each other, but they do have a common pattern: they make some pretty amazingly bad decisions 😂😂

TEO NO DON'T AGREE 😱

My baby got confidence only in the Dream World while not in the real world COME ON SWEETIE YOU CAN DO IT

Oh so we are using that locator thingie! It seemed very useful when they found it in the Night Bureau, even though the discarded it so easily

Is that thing not enough to find the Sandman? I guess not?

LOOK AT THE SCHOOL 😂

ZOEY IS THERE 👏👏👏👏👏

"Hey broseph, que pasa?" I just love these little spanish snippets, love to see some rep, especially in a LEGO show!

DUDE WHAT IS THIS COACH DREAMING

Interesting this aspect of this world, I thought that dreams were just the people landing on these realms and exploring, but I wonder if these worlds change according to the influence of the person dreaming

Julia seems like a very sweet lady... unfortunately she teaches math, therefore making her the evil incarnate 😡

I hate math sorry miss school memories

LOOK AT Z BLOB PUSHING MATEO I LOVE HIM SO MUUUUUUCH 💚💚💚💚

Zoey playing the guitar 😍 Well she has always showed she was a musical person, between the song and recognizing music notes in the seashell message, I didn't realize to which extent! It fits her

Is the Rad Radioactive some sort of narrative about drinking junk stuff before going to sleep? 😂😂

I... did not expect the Nightmare King to straight up say "dude-bro" 🤣

Awww, is Logan becoming self-conscious over causing so many troubles? I realize I've been very against him in the past but in retrospect, that must have been tough

Hey Nightmare Kin- I mean, Lance

Dude you're seriously using his insecurities against him? HE IS A KID DANG IT

I LOVE MATEO SO MUCH I CAN'T EVEN I SWEAR 😭😭😭😭😭 We got so many wonderful protagonists in the past but all with ego, with confidence, with inner strength, which is great. Then there's this kid who struggles so much into the real world, he's self-conscious about his art, he can't even talk to the girl he's into and he feels so little about himself

THIS KID WILL LEARN THAT ONE STEP AT THE TIME YOU CAN GET EXACTLY WHERE YOU WANT TO BE AND I'M ALL HERE FOR IT 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Also can I just say, love me a guy who thinks his girl is the coolest person ever 👌👌

Fun fact, in the English dub Mateo says "T-That was amazing! Your song, I mean...", while in the Italian dub he says "Beautiful, amazing... your song!". It makes his feelings even clearer 💕

WELL HELLO MORE ANGST FOR ZOEY? Gotta be honest I did think that the song debacle was a big weak, but I didn't think there was a whole thing about losing everything, included a best friend! My poor super cool girl 😢😢😢

... is... is Zian the best friend? Did the Night Hunter hit the best friend, making it a night terror, but managed to break free and now he looks like this?

HEADCANON MOMENT DON'T MIND ME JUST HAVING A BLAST 😍

Now I get why Zoey was adamant over Izzie not calling her her friend... but I think this group is making her change her mind 💕

Logan, sweetie, why did you think rapping was a good idea? 😅

Okay, new theory... what if Ms. Castillo is Lunia? Maybe when defeated, Lunia retreated into the Waking World and stayed there. She seems to be always there to help, I kinda think it could be true

PLAN TIME WITH MATEO- Logan no stop what are you doing- DROP THE MATTIE NICKNAME DANG IT HE DOESN'T LIKE IT

I know you're trying but come on

I KNOW YOU'RE TRYING BUT STOP

YEEEEEE ZOEYYYYYYYY 😍😍

"That's what friends are for, right?" I'm super happy for her but also I love that Mateo is not smiling, he looks genuinely shocked like "DID I MANAGE NOT TO MESS IT UP?!" 😂😂

THERE'S A FROG TAXIE 😵‍💫

Julia seems like another stressed character, she just wants to play her music and relax for once in her life... yeah, she teaches math, that's understandable

Okay, see, Castillo is the first one to clap! I feel like she knows more than what she lets on and after my experience throught Ninjago and master "there's something I should've told you" Wu, I don't trust old LEGO people not to know stuff

They got the answers... still bad idea 😅

LOOK AT THAT EXCHANGE OF LOOKS THEY DIDN'T HAVE TO TALK ZOEY KNOWS NOW THAT HE WANTS TO BE HER FRIEND AND STRUGGLES WITH TALKING AND OMG LOOK AT HOW SHE LOOKS AT HIM WHILE HE WALKS TO HIS DESK SHE LOOKS HAPPY AND I BELIEVE GRATEFUL AAAAAAA- 🥰😍🥰🥰😍🥰🥰

Yes I might be shipping them, we'll see what happens but so far I like what I see 🥰🥰

Ah, so the answers were useless I see

And Teo knows they screwed up, alright that's nice that he didn't loose his integrity over something like this 👌👌

Okay but did all the other people hyped up the Destroyers the entire episode to troll them or because they actually fear them? Just how mean are these middle school students, seriously 😅

Yeah Teo needs to train, my son sucks at sports just like moi 😅😅

Nice to see Cooper is not letting Logan off the hook on this one! And still Teo is kind enough to apologize for being hard on him... even though he had rights for it 😅😅

Noooo Logan don't do something stupid

Logan??

LOGAN????

ONLY TWO EPISODES LEFT AND OMG I'M LIKING THEM MORE AND MORE 😍😍😍

[2004videovixxxen]

actually insane that i find these pictures now; i was just looking for an old polaroid that i thought i kept but yet another artifact too easily forfeited under false pretenses. i said to myself "if only i had those photos that are long gone from my old tumblr" and in class today i noticed a usb that i hadn't seen in so long and decided to plug it into my laptop. there, i found papers i wrote in high school, college application essays, college essays, prom photos and these photos.

they aren't all the ones we took as most of them were on my laptop, also long gone, but they are something. and funnily enough, i wish i could send him one of these, just so he could see, but i don't know if he'd find that appropriate. he might think it's another one of my ploys to tell him how i'm not over him and blah blah, lol (blame that on me actually saying that to him after too many shots and heightened emotions from me forcefully saying what was on my mind). it sucks because i don't have that much pride these days, but i do have respect for boundaries and he said he wanted to be better for his relationship, sending this would not be beneficial to him (not assuming he'd think anything more of it than an old memory, just respecting his wishes).

made me smile though, to have a piece of him with me. yes i know he will always be a part of me, but i like to have pictures and letters too! (lol) and i still have that original print of our prom photo that's all bent up and creased from many moments of us being at odds. it was wild of me to think that he could have ever been attracted to me, because i really wanted him to be, while i was looking like a wannabe becky. i mean seriously, what the hell was that hairstyle??? but at the same time props to my hair for lasting in that style lol the way i can't do any kind of side bang to save my life, my hair has possibly lost its thickness, might be the veganism.

was another nice walk down memory lane. the first one provided to me from my favorite high school pastime, unsolicited i might add, definitely didn't make me feel the way this did today.

thanks intuition, you literally led me to what i asked for!!!! and thanks God, i know you got me always

okay side note!!! is brandon wearing a WATCH? lmfaooo yo it's not anything comical but it reminded me he also used to wear earrings! these pictures truly brought me back to how i used to feel seeing him walk down the hallway, or when i tried to plan it perfectly where i left my class so that we could bump into each other and go to yearbook together, or where i would just miss him so i'd walk in after and he'd see me walking in, to come over and sit with me. i've always liked his style. he could never do wrong in my eyes (and secret but when you let go of the pain someone caused you, forgive them and yourself, you truly do really remember the good times and as much pain as he may have caused me, i know i caused him pain as well and well, i would think he only thinks of me in the good kind of way too). my best friend, once upon a time. our type of party.

[glapplebloom]

Like the one Jaidenanimation played...

Master Research Link

What I’ve learned...

So I started with the three Gameboy Color Games... When I said quick cash grab this is what I meant. It’s basically the same game three times in 4 months. With the only difference being the bosses. And they did this on purpose because Blossom’s game (the first one) references Bubbles' game (the last one). And man, they definitely look as bad as Jaiden explained it.

HIM and Seek looks fun, and has the best sprites for the Powerpuff Girls made by a game company. In fact, HIM and Mojo Jojo sprites I use are edited/reshaded versions of these. And man, this game has a lot of great assets I could really use for the Powerpuff Girls side of GLAB. Meanwhile Mojo Jojo a Go Go looks so so and is a shmup.

Chemical X-Traction has some amazingly good CGI Animations for a PS1 era game. And you thought Pinkie Pie was the one who coined the phrased Baked Bads, but it was Bubbles who first uttered those words. Shame that’s probably the best thing about it. The Load times are long, it’s an arena fighter before it became more publicly known and it doesn’t look fun to play. 

Relish Rampage, their final console game, the graphics reminds me of Dance Pants, except not as artistic. Honestly, I like the CGI cutscenes of the PS1 era game better. So technically the Powerpuff Girls rigged an election in favor of the Mayor. While Mojo mind controlled citizens to vote for him, they took out ballot boxes containing those votes. Then there are Pickled Aliens invading. Other than that, nothing really of note other than Dynamo Suits that does... Something?

I was worried there wouldn’t be anything good from the games, but DANG Gamesville pulled through. HIM basically turned all of Townsville into a video game and brought back the Broccoli Aliens from the Dead. Not only did he threaten to erase Townsville and make it so the girls couldn’t do anything specific, he also destroyed that dimension that all the data was being sucked into. Thank you PC Gaming! 

Princess Snorbucks is similar to Mojo Jojo’s Clone zone, except mostly everything was done in a dream. Still, the cutscenes were pretty good for an educational game. Cartoon Network Punch Time Explosion is basically the plot of Learning with Pibby. Other than that, not much besides fun interactions. And finally, the Powerpuff Girls: Defenders of Townsville is the last Major Powerpuff Game released. It’s based on Dance Pants but you can unlock the OG designs.

And thanks to Archive.org, I found one of the missing DC Comics. #48 has Sedusa making all of Townsville into a reality show so while they focus on being the star, she robs them blind. And when it was revealed the Professor doesn’t watch TV (which is a lie), Sedusa seduces him. The Girls beat her. The second story has Mojo having a garage sale. It's another story that becomes the plot of an episode. Granted, no Gangreen Gang. But Mojo still goes to jail despite stopping the moon from crashing.

Archive also has this presumably unpublished comic for DC... But I don’t buy it considering the art doesn’t match DCs as well as its an issue about the girls being naked (with nothing shown)..

Best Feat I found... 

It has to be HIM destroying that Dimension he was using to suck up all the data of Townsville. It’s basically the proof that he can pretty much erase something fully. If it wasn’t for that, it would have probably been the Powerpuff Girls beating the Beat Alls.

Next Time...

The Movie, original shorts, and some other stuff.

[impoverishedrat]

Assignment 2: Storytime!

Storyboard

When I learnt that we had to create a storyboard for this assignment, I thought of Peanuts, a comic strip from my childhood that I still read religiously.

The Complete Peanuts, Vol 1

This particular strip reminded me of the assignment requirements as the story relied on the positions, actions and expressions of the characters, without words. I also felt that storylines involving food contain lots of potential for development.

Main idea: A and B found a biscuit and were going to eat it together, but B finished it while A was gone, betraying A’s trust. 

Idea One: A returns in time to catch B red-handed, and B faces the music.

Idea Two: B leaves after finishing the biscuit. A returns and realises, and she looks at the direction that B left in with complicated feelings.

I settled on Idea One as the ending is easier to understand and more interesting. After deciding on figurines as my characters, I refined my storyboard further by noting the positioning of the characters and the props used in each panel. I didn’t plan the camera angles as I wanted to take a few shots of each panel at different angles to compare their different effects. 

Photo Taking Time!

For panel 1, I experimented with high-angle, eye-level, and low-angle shots. I didn’t like the high-angle shot as it seemed to communicate “Look at Purple. Look at Yellow. Look at the biscuit. They are all the same size”. It didn’t seem obvious that Purple’s hand was slightly outstretched too. I was quite torn between the other two as it felt like Yellow was ‘listening’ to Purple or giving her some of his attention in the eye-level shot due to the clearer view of his body angle, whereas Purple’s hand is obviously outstretched in the low-angle shot, and I liked the composition better. I decided to use the eye-level shot tentatively.

For panels 3-4, I thought that the camera angle should be standardised since they are supposed to convey together that Yellow is looking left and right, so it would be really abrupt if the camera angle changes in panel 4. 

For panel 3, I took high-angle and eye-level shots, and played with the rule of thirds as well. I liked how eye-level shot 2 turned out as it allows the viewer to focus their attention on all the objects at once, compared to high-angle shot 1 where Yellow and the biscuit are very distinct entities. Both high-angle shot 2 and eye-level shot 2 made use of the rule of thirds but the eye-level shot feels closer to the viewer, and the space on the left seems to convey that Yellow is looking really far away to make sure that Purple is definitely not around. I tried to replicate this angle for panel 4.

Panels 5-7 were supposed to feature the characters’ back view, but the results were hilarious when I tested it out because Yellow’s head was so big that it blocked the biscuit. Yellow also looked less identifiable due to the circle on his head. It wasn’t shown in the previous panels so its sudden appearance was confusing, especially when there were no other signs to identify the subject in the photo as Yellow (besides his colour). It just looked like a yellow cube, not Yellow. I decided to photograph Yellow from the side instead to include his body in the frame and make him identifiable.

For panel 9, I didn’t make use of the dutch angle initially, and it looked like the characters were marching in both photos. I then played with the dutch angle and it looked slightly better but Yellow looked like he was tripping in the 1st photo, so I positioned my phone camera more towards the front of the characters instead. I liked how the 3rd shot turned out because Yellow occupied a significant amount of space on the left which makes him the primary focus of the photo, adding on to the comedic effect when the viewer realises that Purple is chasing after him, ready to give him a whack. I felt that the dutch angle made the characters stand out more too as they looked more animated.

Layout

I came up with 3 layouts while making sure that panels 3-4 are next to each other to make it clearer that Yellow is looking around.

Layout 1: Each row can be seen as a stage of plot progression which makes it easy to follow, but it felt strange having only one panel in the first row. I wasn’t sure if aligning the 1st panel to the right would confuse the viewer as they might mistake the 4th panel for the 2nd panel. Aligning it to the left would result in a break in the story flow as the reading order would be: panel 1 → title → panel 2. 

Layout 2: It doesn’t follow the typical layout conventions, and it is slightly strange having 2 pictures in each row when there are so many pictures. 

Layout 3: It doesn’t affect the flow or have a strange format. I submitted this for critique.

Post-critique edits

1. For panel 1, my classmates preferred the low-angle shot as it felt like Yellow and Purple discovered the biscuit, due to the composition. Someone also suggested that Purple could be facing Yellow more (instead of the biscuit) to show that they are communicating. I decided to reshoot panel 1 at a low-angle and adjust Purple’s position.

2. A classmate thought that Yellow was looking around for Purple so they could eat together, although he gave up waiting eventually. I felt that this slight misinterpretation doesn’t impede the viewer from understanding the main ideas of the plot, so I didn’t make changes based on this.

Final product! 3 Ritz crackers were harmed in the making.

[honeymilktea-writings]

May I request something about a Yautja who has an Autistic/Neuro-Divergent mate? I’m sure there are likely to be some cute or comical situations with how we Autistic people view the world. ^^ Have a great day!

A/N OMG HI YES I LOVE THIS!!! I personally am not autistic, but i am neuro-divergent (#severeADHDgang) so this ask is sending me to cloud 9!!!!!!! Idk this might end up being more ADHD based than anything-- if it is im so sorry 😭

Nauro-divergent S/O

for starters, your mate ADORES the random bursts of energy, it ~spices~ up the day, like just going from a lazy day in bed to suddenly, BOOM LETS GO OUT AND DO SOMETHING

really takes note of your current hyperfixations so they can talk to you about it, no matter what it is!

When you suddenly hyper-focus on something, it confuses them. One moment yall could be having a conversation while you fidget with something, to suddenly you quit replying and you are just insanely focused on the thing you are fidgeting

While they may find it confusing, they do end up also getting hyper-focused on watching you do whatever it is you're doing

a majority of the random antics yall get into happens whenever you suddenly change the topic in a conversation. It always leads to some weird adventure or an odd moment where one of yall are trying to prove/disprove the other person's weird statement, they find it endearing

freaked out once when they found you rearranging the entire bedroom because you impulsively decided you didn't like the way it looked anymore

they become your impulse control

You want to throw away all your clothes and redo your entire closet? they hit you with the "Do you really want to, or did you see a video/photo that made you want to try it on spot?"

random notes from Jasper rq, but I could really use that-- I need to stop impulsively dying my hair and giving myself stick-n-pokes

anyways back to the hcs

If you take medication then they will remind you every morning/night to take them

they just want you to be at your healthiest :)

if anyone gives you any shit for your neuro-divergency, then your beloved mate will have a few... words with said person, no one is allowed to make you feel bad bout yourself!!

if you start getting self-conscious because of the mean thing said, or even just naturally, then they will be at your side comforting you and telling you that it doesn't matter if you're neuro-divergent or neuro-typical, they love you no matter what and all your little quirks make them love you more

your #1 supporter

[frog-writes-for-fun]

oKay so.. hermitcraft x reader highschool au, where reader has a harem but like- reader is an antisocial aromantic geek who just wants to be left alone and read comics but everywhere they go someone who has a crush on them finds them (you can pick wich hermits are in the harem)

Hello anon! With my break from Tumblr, I have found motivation! And so I give to you: the Hermitcraft High School AU!

A First Day’s Nightmare

c!Hermits (various) x Aro!Reader (one-sided)

Summary: You are the new kid at HC High School, and everyone wants to get to know you. Unfortunately, you are antisocial and aromantic, and extremely not interested. If only all these extroverts could get this through their heads.

Notes: This could have turned out a lot creepier, but I was motivated to write and not feeling depressed so you get mild annoyance instead of full-on yandere. Boatem is poly, so are Ren and Doc (if they can get you), based on the American school system, these sound like AO3 tags, I think that’s it? Let me know if I need any warnings. 

Being new to the school was a blessing in disguise. Everyone already had their friend groups, and so they wouldn’t bother you.

At least, that’s what you’d thought (hoped) would happen.

In true high school movie fashion, your first period teacher had you stand up in front of the class and introduce yourself. Rather than the lack of attention you craved, everyone’s eyes were on you. And there were some… rather interesting eyes. 

A few of your classmates stared with wide eyes, while others watched with more narrowed gazes. One boy even had a robotic eye, which was something you hadn’t seen before. It kind of reminded you of one of your comics- wait, he was staring right at you. You shivered, glancing down at your feet to avoid the grins and whispers. 

(Not) soon enough, you were sent back to your seat. Practically rushing, you returned to your spot before the teacher could even consider calling you back. The girl next to you sent a sympathetic glance, leaning over slightly to whisper.

“There’s quite a lot of us, aren’t there?” You nodded in response, fixing your eyes to the front of the room, where the instructor was spelling out the morning’s lessons. “I’m Gem, by the way. Nice to meet you!” After a moment where you did not respond, Gem sighed slightly. 

You felt a twinge of regret; she sounded a bit dejected. But you weren’t here to make friends. In fact, the sooner your classmates decide to leave you alone, the better.

The rest of the class passed without issue, if “without issue” included the continued stares of your classmates. You caught more than a few of them continuing to gawk at you. At the end of the period, you packed up quickly and left without a word.

The rest of the morning was much the same. There were always eyes watching you, curious about the new person in school. As you looked up for one reason or another, you sometimes caught the glances. You shared classes with many of the people from your first period, and somehow it always seemed to be one or more of them watching you. 

In your second period, science, you were made to join a lab group. Immediately, a boy with sunglasses and dog’s ears stood up and volunteered to have you join his group. His partner nodded in agreement. It was the boy with a prosthetic eye and, now you looked closer, a matching arm. Ren and Doc. Ren was enthusiastic, happily showing you around the lab while Doc began the setup procedures. Even though he chose to remain mostly silent, Doc still watched your interactions with Ren, seeming ready to step in at a moment’s notice.

During third period, math worksheets were handed out and you were instructed to pair up with someone. Glancing around, you found someone who looked quiet, like you. Maybe the two of you could work independently if you grouped together. Moving over to his table, you introduced yourself to a boy in a helmet. You could barely see his eyes. Xisuma, he said his name was. He was perfectly willing to give you the space you so desired, but you still caught him looking at you with more than just a casual glance. 

You thought you were safe when the fourth period began. There’s no way you’d be put into a group during history, right? Of course, you’d thought that about math, too. And in line with the theme “never give Y/N alone time,” history was not a lecture, but group discussions. You were assigned to a group of five. Before joining them, the girl seated next to you- Gem, right?- whispered, “I don’t know whether to warn you or apologize. You seem like you like the quiet.”

With that dire warning, you progressed across the room to where some ecstatically grinning classmates sat. “Hello there! Welcome to Boatem!”

You were all but ready to claim sickness and skip class altogether by the time the bell rang. At least now you would have some time alone. 

Taking your lunch, you made your way to the school’s library. Giving a small greeting to the librarian, you weaved between the shelves to a small table. Pulling out your book, you began to eat while reading, flipping the pages every so often. So engrossed in the story were you that you didn’t notice someone coming up next to you until an enthusiastic voice said, “What’cha reading?”

Letting out a squeak, you nearly jumped. Looking up, Ren leaned on the table, head tilted to one side as he tried to read your comic upside-down. Behind him, Doc lingered at the edge of a bookshelf.

“Oh, sorry. Is this your table or something?” Quickly, you grabbed the book and your backpack, starting to move away.

Ren laughed. “No, no, not at all!” You remained wary. “See… the Goatfather and I just wanted to ask you something.” He glanced back at Doc, who nodded, letting a smile cross his face. It was surprisingly soft, from what you’d expected of a creeper hybrid with a mechanical eye.

You hummed. “So, Doc here and I were wondering if you might want to go out sometime. We think you’re totally groovy, dude!” You blinked at him.

“Um.” The words almost didn’t compute. “Sorry, I’m aromantic.”

Ren grinned. “Well, I consider myself quite a romantic as well!”

Doc sighed. In disappointment at your rejection or Ren’s behaviour, you couldn’t quite tell.

A quieter voice came from behind you. “They said aromantic, Ren. Not a romantic.” Xisuma emphasised the pause between the latter term as he stepped away from the wall towards you. How long had he been there? Did he look disappointed?

Ren seemed confused. “Aromantic?” Doc stepped forward, speaking softly to the boy who was, presumably from Ren’s earlier statement, his partner.

As Xisuma was distracted by his classmates, and Ren was engrossed in Doc's explanation, you took the chance to duck out. After leaving the library, you took a sigh of relief. Turning down the hallway to where your next class was, you nearly collided with a group of students. They seemed just as shocked as you, before one of the boys perked up. 

“Hey Y/N!” Impulse, if you recalled correctly. The others were Grian, hanging (almost upside-down) off the much taller Mumbo’s arm, Pearl walking a half-step behind to catch him if he fell, and Scar, sitting in a wheelchair near the middle of the group. They all smiled as they recognized you from history class. This was the energetic group known as Boatem.

Grian nearly launched himself upward until he could truly perch on Mumbo’s arm. “We were just looking for you!”

You’re sure you must have had a look of horror on your face as Scar leaned forward. “Have we got a proposal for you.”

[adult-kinda]

𝓜𝓮𝓭𝓭𝓵𝓮 𝓐𝓫𝓸𝓾𝓽

"I'm sorry, you want to do what?"

Yeah, you were expecting that. But you thought if you got dressed before asking he'd have no choice but to say yes!

"But Jake..."

"Hell no! I told you not to get involved!" He reminded while grabbing his charger.

You rolled your eyes. "You said not to get involved with the members! It's just one concert! Please?"

The boy huffed and turned around to you. "No! You want to hear it in Korean? 아니!"

Jay sighed on the couch and looked up. "Bro chill. She's already dressed and ready, just let her go."

Your cousin looked at him comically. "Oh so you're on her side now?"

"I'm not taking sides, but we're gonna be late if you can't make a decision and she seems pretty stubborn."

Heeseung nodded. "Bro, he's got a point. Besides, it's just one show! She's here for the summer, let her have some fun."

Jake pinched his nose bridge and took a few deep breaths. He knew that the two were right but damn, he hated that they were.

"One show-"

"Yes yes! Thank you Jakey!"

"I'm not done." He interrupted.

You calmed down and waited for him to finish.

"One show but that's it. Don't talk to anyone, don't touch anyone or anything. If security asks you are my cousin, to anyone else you say nothing. Understood?"

You nodded. "Understood! Thank you Jakey!"

He rolled his eyes and got in his car. The Sunghoon got in the front while you say in the back. The other two got in their own cars, Jimin joining Heeseung.

"I'm gonna regret this." Jake muttered before starting the car.

-------

"Take this note and head to the front row. If security asks about you show them this paper." Jake instructed.

You nodded and headed out to the front. Apparently Jake had a bit of power since showing him the paper worked. You sat right in the front and waited for the current set to end.

"Thank you guys! And shoutout to all my closest fans!" The guy said into the mic.

It wasn't long before your cousin and his group came on. Just as they did you felt a presence next to you. When you looked over you were relieved to see Jimin.

"Are you ready to be amazed?" They said.

You nodded with a smile.

"How's everyone doing tonight?" Jake spoke into the mic.

The audience screamed and you assumed that was an acceptable response.

"That's what I like to hear! Tonight we got a couple of covers for you guys!" Heeseung said.

Jay smirked and nodded. "Yeah I think you'll like this one. This is called Meddle About by Chase Atlantic!"

Everyone seemed to go ballistic at that. You were intrigued, especially when Jay glanced down at you specifically for a moment.

Heeseung started on the guitar for two measures before Jake added percussion. The song started to come together and you found yourself enjoying it.

You were bopping your head with Jimin, generally having a great time.

When the chorus kicked in that's when you temporarily lost your sanity.

Jay looked you right in the eyes and sang the lyrics to you.

We only met each other just the other day

And you already got me feeling some type of way now

Why? Why did he do that to you? He clearly knew that would impact you because he smirked after seeing your reaction.

Throughout the whole performance you noticed the difference between them and other artists you had seen in concert. The experience was more intimate. You noticed how Heeseung sang specific lyrics to Jimin;

Hey just scream it out

Tell me what you're thinking oh

I wanna see you undress now

Wanna hear you confess now

The whole concert experience was like Jay described; it was a high.

But the second chorus the boys moved around on stage and interacted with the crowd. You noticed how Sunghoon sang the second half of the chorus seemingly to Jake. He was next to the drums and everything, it looked like something was going on between them.

If I could figure it out I'd take you back my house so we could meddle about

As the boys interacted with the crowd (and each other) you watched Heeseung and Jay come closer to the crowd. They both crouched down and sang, Heeseung to Jimin and Jay to...you? Yes, he was singing to you, this time more directly.

Well come and get it now

Come and get it now

Baby show me what you're doing

Come and turn around

Jay pointed at you somewhat discreetly and smirked as he sang the next lyrics.

'Cause it's not just a figure of speech

You got me down on my knees

It's getting harder to breathe out

The two returned to their original spots as Sunghoon and Jake finished off the song.

It was perfect. The atmosphere, the adrenaline, the sexuality, the chaos, it was everything. After living such a structured student life in Australia you were ready for the change of pace.

"Thank you! Our next song is gonna be a cover of Champagne and Sunshine by Plvtinum and Tarro. You ready?" Sunghoon announced.

Once again, the audience screamed.

Jimin looked at you with a smile. "How are you liking it?"

You nodded enthusiastically. "This is great! 20 out of 10!"

This was a song you have heard of so to say you were hyped was an understatement. All was better than expected with their vocals being perfect and instruments accompanying well. Then the pre-chorus came in and Jay was singing this part.

She got that rich girl L.A. vibe

She whip it good in her daddy's '95

Rough sex in the bedroom floor

Hop in the shower she's begging for more

Do not disturb on the hotel door

Waking the neighbors

Once again, directly to you.

The eye contact combined with the smirking and eyebrow raises was dangerous. You couldn't determine whether it was him flirting or just his charismatic duality.

The boys encouraged the audience to join in for the chorus. You and Jimin gladly participated, screaming the lyrics at the top of your lungs.

All I want is champagne and sunshine

Looking for a good time

Sipping on the stars while we laying under sunlight

Tanned skin, light eyes

Oh my, she's so damn fine

Kissing on her neck

We be running from the night time

The energy was incredible. Everything around you was at an all-time high, but at the same time it was under control.

It seemed that the song ended too soon for your liking. Just as the final lyrics were sung the crowd cheered loudly.

"Okay okay! We got one more final song for you guys! Damn, you guys really know these lyrics!" Heeseung said breathlessly into the mic.

You laughed with Jimin and watched the guys grab waters. Jay peered down at you as he drank his and to say that was attractive would be an understatement. He had you wrapped around his finger already, and you weren't even fully conscious of how it happened.

"Okay! Our final song is gonna be on a more calm note and hopefully less sexual?" Jake announced.

Sunghoon chuckled into his mic and shook his head. "Nah, you guys are too dirty minded!" He teased.

The guys laughed at his words. Jay brought his mic to his mouth so he could announce the next song.

"Okay this last one is Cherry Cola but Kuwada! You guys ready?"

As the audience cheered they began to play the chords.

This song was a great way to end the night. It was more chill and relaxed, nothing to aggressive. You noticed that the guys were also more relaxed performing it. Jay's face was more calm and eased. He played the chords gently and smiled at you when he looked up.

They sang through the verses effortlessly.

She my cherry cola

She gonna' keep me sober

Let me keep you closer

Bubbly like a soda

Sweeter than the champagne

Smoother than this Coltrane

Keep me from the chardonnay

I'm just sipping one thing

You smiled at Jay when he sang that with the group. The guitar and bass really added to the song. Jay's solo was beautiful and reminded you of beaches. It was a perfect road trip song. You took a mental note of that so it would be added to the playlist.

-------

"So did you like it?" Jake asked you.

You smiled at him proudly. "I loved that! I'm so happy for you and the group! You all just came alive up there, I've never seen you look so excited Jake! I can't wait to see more shows!"

Your cousin chuckled. "If you enjoyed it that much I'll consider another show, maybe. But thanks for coming honestly! I'm glad you enjoyed yourself! It seemed like you and Jimin got closer, yeah?"

You looked over at them and they smiled. "I'd like to say so! We're gonna get along just fine!"

I nodded. The rest of the guys came out of different rooms. I looked at Jay and he smirked at me expectantly.

"Hey! So you enjoyed yourself?" He asked.

You nodded. "It was amazing! You all did amazing, honestly!"

Heeseung chuckled and looked at Jimin.

"And how about my baby?" He asked.

Jimin chuckled and nodded. "I agree with Y/N, you guys did amazing as usual!"

Heeseung smiled and kissed their temple gratefully. "Let me take you somewhere so you can compliment me in private."

The guys rolled theirs eyes and made gagging sounds.

"Hey, you guys still going to the after party?" Sunghoon asked.

Heeseung nodded and escorted Jimin to a back room.

You looked at Jake curiously. "After party?"

He shook his head. "You're not going, your parents would kill me if I let you go. I'll take you home."

Jay stood up and stopped Jake. "I'll take her. I wasn't planning on going to the party anyway."

Jake frowned. "Really? Bro it's like the third time in a row!"

Jay sighed. "You know my mom is back so..."

Sunghoon nodded. "Ah sorry bro. Must be one hell of a shit show?"

He nodded and eased with his keys. "Yeah, I don't wanna get into it. I'll take her home and head to mine."

Jake nodded and pointed to you. "Make sure to take my baby outside and refill her water bowl!"

You rolled your eyes. "I think Sunghoon drinks from a cup."

Jake blushed and coughed out of nervousness. "I-i meant Layla-"

"Yes I know you meant Layla! I'll see you when you get home." You said.

You followed Jay out to his car. He was stopped a few times to be complimented, but he made it clear he was trying to get you home.

"You can sit shotgun. Feel free to adjust the temperature and music." He said.

You said a quick "okay" before getting in the black BMW.

"How do you have a BMW at your age?" She wondered out loud unintentionally.

Jay chuckled and started the engine. "My dad's a CEO. My mom insisted on me getting a luxury car, but I wanted something simple so my dad compromised with this baby."

You nodded. "I like it, it suits you."

Jay brought his hand behind your headrest and backed out, seemingly oblivious to the impact it had on you.

"Why do girls like that shit?" He muttered.

You looked up at him confused.

"Like what?"

"When guys back out. Like all I'm doing is backing the car out and suddenly your legs are pressed together, why?" He wondered.

You bit your lip at his attentive nature.

"Um... I guess we feel protected? I'm not really sure honestly. Your side profile is attractive so that might have something to do with it." You admitted.

Jay glanced at you and smirked. "So you think I'm attractive?"

You laughed and shrugged. "Well you're not bad to look at! I won't lie to you and say you're ugly."

"But you'll feed my ego and say I'm hot." He added.

You sighed. "Now you're twisting my words!"

Jay laughed and smoothly made his turn. "Go ahead, princess! Say I'm hot!"

You shook your head and looked over at him. "I'm just saying you're not bad to look at!"

He hummed in understanding as he made his way to a convenience store.

"Come on, you need to eat."

-------

"And that's how your cousin embarrassed himself his first year of high school!"

You both laughed at the story that was just told. Jay had parked the car in a building parking lot so you both could eat the snacks he refused to let you pay for.

"You and him are very different." He stated.

You hummed and sipped your soda briefly. "How so?"

"Jake is a bit more impulsive whereas you seem to like plans. Not too structured, but generally planned out, like this. The plan is to take you home, but right now we're eating and talking, then I'll take you home. Jake would rather get in the car and just see what happens."

You chuckled at the accuracy.

"Well what about you? You seem to be somewhere in between." You mentioned.

Jay sighed. "You could say that. I like plans, but I don't mind spontaneous moments every once in awhile. I believe plans were meant to be broken."

You looked at him curiously. "Really? Elaborate."

Jay glanced at you and fell in love for a split second. The moonlight was doing wonders to your face. Something about the whole atmosphere was perfect once again.

The boy chuckled dryly and looked away. "Damn, you got questions."

You nodded. "I would apologize but to be fair I don't really know you that well. I've met you what, twice? Tell me what you're comfortable with."

Jay exhaled and tilted his head back against the headrest. "This is one of my dad's buildings."

You nodded for him to continue on.

"He's my biggest inspiration. He's hardworking but balances his time well, he's humble. I admire him so much."

His eyes lit up when talking about his dad. Usually it's the other way around; a father lights up talking about his pride and joy. For Jay he seemed to admire his father just as much if not more.

"But then there's my mom." He continued, "My mom is such a pill. She never leaves me alone, never lets me make my own decisions. She has to have a say in what's eat, who I'm friends with! She's obsessive and I hate it. You could say because of her I think plans should be broken because everything I do ruins her plans for my own life. I can't do anything to please her. Even when I was sent to the hospital for...I don't even wanna go there."

"You don't have to!" You reassured. "I told you to only say what you're comfortable with saying. For what it's worth, you seem stronger because of it."

He sighed. "I pray that I am. She's the reason I turned to less than appropriate things. Remember what I said about performing yesterday?"

You nodded. "You said that it gives you a high."

"Before that I wanted that high from other things." He explained.

Questions we're crossing your mind without looking both ways. It seemed Jay could tell because he turned to you.

"I know what you're thinking and yes, I was involved with drugs, fights, small crimes, alcohol, sex, the whole nine. Then I got on a stage and suddenly I felt higher than any intoxicator could ever get me." He explained.

You sat in a comfortable silence to take it all in. Jay's life on the surface seemed pretty shitty, but that's not what mattered. What mattered was the person who came out of it, and it was not the same Jay from before.

"So why do you still make dirty jokes around me?" You asked playfully.

"That's just my personality, some things never change."

"Then what about the flirting on stage?" You questioned.

Jay smirked and set his soda back in the cupholder.

"Is that what it looked like?"

"What it looked like was you singing lyrics to me directly."

The boy nodded and picked up his soda again. He bit on the straw and glanced in your direction.

"Maybe I was just trying to make your first concert experience better." He suggested.

You chuckled lightly and shook your head. "BS I'm calling it right now!"

Jay laughed and took some time to eat before speaking again.

"Okay I won't lie to you, I was. And what about it? You clearly liked it anyway!" He pointed out.

You shoved him lightly and fidgeted with your keychain.

"Is it bad if I did?" You wondered aloud.

Jay looked over to you and sighed.

"I mean, Jake said-"

"Fuck what Jake said. I know it hasn't been long but I feel some type of way about you. No rule of my cousin's or mommy issue of yours can change that." You interrupted.

Jay brought his leg up on the seat and leaned back.

"I don't do feelings." He started.

You opened your mouth to speak but he shushed you before you could.

"Let me finish. I don't do feelings because my heart's been broken too many times and I've broken too many myself. But why are you different? It's been what, three days? Why the fuck are you so special? You've been on my mind like crazy." He explained.

You were at a loss for words. For someone who didn't do feelings he was laying everything out for you pretty clearly.

"So you don't wanna fuck me?" You asked somewhat sarcastically, hoping to bring some humor to the situation.

Jay chuckled and faced you. "Of course I wanna fuck you, but that's the problem. Part of me wants to be that guy to ruin you, but the other part of me wants to hide you from the world and protect you with all strings attached."

A silence filled the car for a bit before Jay checked the time.

"It's 12:30, your cousin will be back by two-ish. Let's get you home, yeah?" He muttered.

You nodded and watched him drive for another 30 minutes.

"Are you scared of me?" Jay asked suddenly.

You glanced at him and smiled lightly. He seemed so concerned about how you viewed him. It was cute to see him a little nervous.

"No, I'm not scared of you." You answered.

Jay shook his head, seemingly unsatisfied. "No no, are you scared of me? After all I just told you, from the mommy issues to the illegal activities, after everything I just confessed, are you scared of me?"

You nodded without hesitation. "My answer is still the same. I told you none of your confessions could change my feelings for you."

The boy took the next exit off the highway. Music from the stereo played softly, not willing to intrude on your conversation. Everything was as it should be, everything was so nice.

"What do you think of me?" You asked.

Jay looked over at you when he reached a stoplight.

"What do I think of you?"

You nodded, encouraging him to answer.

"I think you are so incredibly kind, caring, a great listener, hot, accepting, and so much more."

He quickly turned away to drive through the now green light.

"Well thank you, but summarize. What's your honest description of me?"

Jay smiled as he pulled into the neighborhood.

"Angelic, you're an angel to me."

You blushed and smiled like a little school girl. Your heart was beating too fast for your liking and you were way past butterflies.

"Am I making you nervous, baby?" Jay asked in a deep voice.

That did it for you. You whined quietly in your seat as the boy beside you laughed. He knew exactly how to push your buttons and you knew he would toy with them for as long as he could.

He parked in front of your house and got out to open your door.

"Lemme walk you to the door." He suggested.

You nodded and got out the car carefully. As you walked Jay smirked when he finally took in your outfit. When you felt eyes on your figure you turned around to find Jay shamelessly checking you out.

"Is there something you like, Mr. Jay?" You teased.

He nodded and came up beside you.

"I'm seeing a lot that I like. And please, call me Jongseong."

You rolled your eyes and walked up to the front door.

"Ah yes, the classic call me by my first name move on a girl to make her feel special."

Jay chuckled and shook his head. "I don't do that to everyone. The only people with that privilege are my fraternal grandparents, my dad, and now you."

You raised your eyebrows, slightly shocked. "Not even the guys or Jimin call you that?"

"Nope! Welcome to the exclusive club."

You both smiled and gave each other a look.

"Well you should head in the ho-"

"Angel, I'm not even gonna play with you right now. I wanna kiss you so bad before you go so can I?" He asked shamelessly.

You smiled and nodded. "Thank you because I don't do well with beating around the bush!"

Jay stepped closer to you and slowly leaned in. He meant to give you a simple peck, but then you locked lips properly. The kiss quickly turned into a longer one as neither of you wanted to let go.

"Jongseong!" You moaned lightly.

Jay was about to ascend right then and there. His name coming off of your lips was perfection. He could listen to that for the rest of his life.

He made a move to deepen the kiss as he had you pressed up against the door. His hands traveled underneath your skirt to your thighs, but he didn't touch anymore than that. Your hands were tangled in his hair and his lips took yours in gratefully.

After a few minutes Jay brought himself back and remembered breathing. He pulled away and took a few breaths as he looked at you. Your eyes were alight yet you still looked so innocent and angelic.

"Damn I'm fucked over." He mumbled.

You giggled and placed another kiss to his lips.

"I'd like to do that again sometime." You mentioned.

Jay nodded and placed his hands on your tiny waist. "Me too, but your cousin will kill us."

You nodded and took your phone out.

"Put your number in. What Jake doesn't know won't hurt him." You said.

Jay took the phone and quickly put in his number before calling it.

"Great, I'll save it to my phone. Now go inside before I do more to you than I intend!"

You chuckled and nodded. "Goodnight Jongseong."

"Goodnight angel!"

-------

Jake stumbled down the stairs with Sunghoon following behind. You were at the stove making hangover soup for him, not expecting to see the other male here.

"Okay, what the fuck is going on!" You asked loudly.

Jake looked up and sighed. "Damn it I was hoping you would be sleeping."

You rolled your eyes and gave him a bowl of soup.

"Eat this. Now you!" You pointed at Sunghoon who looked equally as tired. "Explain what the fuck is going on here!"

Sunghoon reluctantly sighed before explaining. "I won't speak on Jake's sexuality since it's not my place, but I'm not sure why I'm attracted to him. So we're trying to figure out how to label whatever this is. Until then we fuck, go on dates, flirt, and all that other romantic shit."

You looked at Jake for confirmation. He nodded as an answer.

"I'm bi and he's right. Last night we got carried away and-"

"Yeah yeah I get it. I'm glad you're happy but Park Sunghoon if you ever even think about hurting my cousin I will cut your dick off and your dog's too."

Sunghoon nodded and watched you grab your house keys.

"Woah woah woah! Where are you going?" Jake asked.

You smirked to yourself and headed out the door.

"I'm going to explore a little, maybe do some shopping. I'll be back by five-ish!"

[kittenminari]

Nothing is worse than a hot summer day, nothing except having to be stuck outside on said hot summer day.

Momo squints up at the blue sky, one hand shading her eyes while the other has an almost death grip on an empty water bottle. It’s not even a week into running errands for the local summer camp and already the sun wasn’t pulling any punches. Who knew it could be this hot before noon? 

She’s fixing her water bottle to the side pouch on her motorbike when a small ding rings out in the humid air, accompanied by a shuffling over gravel, before a man is standing before Momo. 

“Sorry that took a bit, but everything should be in there,” he says, handing her a box. Momo thanks him and watches him return to his small shop, before pulling down her glasses and hopping on her bike. 

The summer camp isn’t far from town, and some might even say the road up is rather scenic; but right now under the cloudless sky, the air shimmering with the heat, Momo thinks the trees look just as ready to melt as she is. 

By the time she arrives at the camp, the kids are all running to the dining pavilion. Apparently there was some bet going on between the kids and the counselors - something about the kids eating all of their veggies in return for ice cream Fridays. At least that’s what she’s heard from Jihyo- 

Oh yeah, Jihyo. The sole reason Momo was working at this camp in the first place. Well, her and the fact that she needed a summer job anyway. Really it was the other way around, the need for summer employment making itself known the moment Momo realized her parents wouldn’t shut up about it. Park Jihyo just happened to be a bonus, an unforeseen and really good bonus at that. So really it was just a matter of semantics. 

She pulls around the main cabin, not able to keep herself from rolling her eyes - Counselor Cottage as it is so aptly named - before seeing a familiar mess of long blond hair. 

“I believe you have something for me,” Mina says, smiling as she walks up to Momo parking her bike. 

“That I do, but what even is in here? The pharmacist took a while to get everything, and he looked almost alarmed when he handed it to me.” 

The other woman gives her a sheepish smile then, one hand brushing through her hair in embarrassment, “It’s all anti itch cream. Some of the kids found a patch of poison ivy… and for some reason decided to go to the flag football event before coming to see me.” 

“Ahhh so there was a hoard of itchy children afterwards, I’m guessing?” 

Mina just laughs, nodding, and the two chat for a bit longer until she gets a call over the walkie-talkie about a splinter and needs to rush back to the medical cabin. 

“By the way,” she shouts over her shoulder, “Jihyo was looking for you, I think she’s in her office now.” 

Momo just waves an affirmative, feeling her cheeks heat up at the mention of Jihyo looking for her… but no, it’s just the heat of the day getting to her once again, at least that’s what she tells herself as she climbs the few steps into the main cabin. 

Once inside, Momo groans, disappointed that the interior isn’t much better than outside, and immediately hears a laugh from in the office. 

“If you were hoping for a reliable aircon, you’ve come to the wrong place,” and the woman occupying many of Momo’s thoughts in the last week reveals herself, leaning against the door frame, “though I don’t know if any of the air conditioners here work anymore… remind me to make a note of that.” 

Momo has to swallow at… the heat, of course. Not Jihyo before her, clad in jean shorts and the camp’s t-shirt (one she had apparently cut to be an off the shoulder crop top), head turned to the side to generously display her jawline as her hair was tied up today. There was a quizzical look drawn across her face, one that was almost comical with how she was pouting, and Momo had to assume Jihyo knew she was looking.

“Thirsty?” Jihyo snaps Momo out of her thoughts, and she almost chokes as she watches Jihyo walk over to the water cooler, only to bend over and grab two small bottles. 

Oh, so this is how it was going to go. 

“You could say that,” Momo says slowly, taking the bottle offered to her. She makes a show of running a hand through her hair, before opening the bottle and downing it in one go because why the hell not. 

Once finished, she holds the other woman’s gaze while tossing the bottle in the nearest bin, smirking as it lands first try. 

The two have a little stand off for a few seconds more, but the intensity is soon dissolved with both breaking into laughter. 

“You really are something else, Hirai.” Jihyo chuckles, finishing off her own water bottle. 

“I could say the same about you, you know.”

“Well, you flatter me then,” and she steps closer to Momo, once again holding eye contact as she tosses the empty bottle into the trash, “Though I do like to think I can hold my own pretty well.” 

Momo doesn’t get a chance to reply, watching Jihyo take a step back and resume her cheerful demeanor, all prior intensity dropped.

“I was going to ask you to pick up some extra paper towels, there was a mishap in the art cabin earlier and Chaeyoung came in yelling that she needed all of them… so we are currently out…” 

“You couldn’t have texted me about this?” the older woman asks with a smile.

“I could have, but maybe I wanted to see you.”

“Did you?”

And Jihyo just returns her smile, “Maybe.” 

“Alright, alright, I got you,” Momo says, turning towards the back door, hearing Jihyo follow her out, “Industrial package of paper towels.” 

“Thank you, Momo” and really it’s not fair that even with her back to the woman, Momo can hear the smile in her voice, “and by the way, curfew is at 9 tonight if you wanna stop by, I’ll be free after that.” 

“It depends on the weather,” the older woman says, not bothering to look back at Jihyo on the cabin steps as she lifts the kickstand on her bike. 

“That’s a shame, I can’t promise it won’t be hot.” and this time, Momo has no other explanation for the heat rising to her cheeks.