#so I figured this would do as a slightly less exciting standalone for now

[darwinquark]

chapter 10: ‘1939’ word count: ~8.5k rating: ✌️

"Did you mean what you said last night?"

The question was aimed behind him, eyes trained sightlessly forward.

"New York? Logistics?"

Silence hung at his back.

He swallowed, fingers flexing a little around the doorknob.

He knew it was shitty timing, that she was defensive and rattled from waking up to all this, but he was tired of having to guess. Tired of blinkingly emerging from interactions without knowing where they stood, a guitar string that was always a little loose, making every song a little off-key.

His jaw clicked at the lack of response.

"Veronica."

"I was drunk, Jughead," came the stiff reply, and his eyes fell shut. "So were you."

Not that drunk.

It slid down his spine like a blade.

[specialagentsergio]

hands to myself

summary: You and Spencer have just confessed your feelings for each other. And now, he simply can’t keep his hands off of you.

pairing: spencer reid x f!reader

category: smut, 18+ (minors DNI)

content warnings: swearing, dirty talk, making out, heavy petting, fingering, hand job, lil bit of overstimulation, penetrative sex, protected sex (no glove no love y’all), lmk if i missed anything.

a/n: this is a companion to my fic side effects may vary, but can be read as a standalone. enjoy!

a/n 2: just a quick reminder, in case you missed it above—the original fic is gender neutral reader, but this is female reader.

word count: 2.3k

song: hands to myself by selena gomez

masterlist

You lift your head from his chest and look him in the eyes. “Kiss me again.”

Spencer does. He can hardly believe this is real. Yesterday he was waking up in his own bed, alone and grumpy about having to get up. Today he’s in your bed after spending the night with you. You confessed your feelings to him just moments ago, feelings that he was thrilled to inform you that he shared. And now, he’s kissing you.

You pull back eventually, and he’s about to complain, but then notices how loose the shirt you’ve slept in is. With the way you’re leaning over him, it gives him a great view right down it. He quickly looks away, but it’s already burned into his mind.

You adjust positions slightly, pulling your legs up under you to kneel at his side, then lean back down to resume kissing him. He keeps one hand on the back of your neck, but the other wanders; it eventually comes to a stop right under your breast.

You tilt your head, pressing a kiss to his jaw. “You can touch, Spencer,” you murmur.

He doesn’t need to be told twice. He immediately starts feeling you up through your shirt, then thinks better of it and moves his hand underneath the fabric. He’s so caught up in exploring what may possibly be the best pair of tits he’s ever had the privilege of touching that he doesn’t notice your hand descending his body until it’s at the waistband of his underwear.

Your eyes flick up to his, asking for permission; the way your pupils are dilated makes his heart skip a beat. There’s no denying he’d love your hand on his cock, but he still says, “Wait.”

You slide your hand away and to his waist. “What’s wrong?”

“Oh, nothing’s wrong,” he says breathlessly. “I’m enjoying this. But I realize there’s a sort of… societal expectation for women to…”

“Put out?” you offer.

He wrinkles his nose. “I hate that phrase. But yes.” He pushes a strand of hair out of your face. “I just want to tell you that it’s okay if you don’t want to, you know… go all the way right now.”  

“Oh, I want to,” you answer right away. Your nails dig into his side a little. “You have no idea how much I’ve been fantasizing about you lately.”

Spencer inhales sharply. “Christ, (Y/N).”

“But likewise,” you continue, as if you didn’t just cause his brain to explode with one sentence. “If you don’t want to do this right now, we can wait.”

He doesn’t answer with words; instead, he pulls you back down into a passionate kiss.

“I’ll take that as a yes to me touching your cock,” you murmur against his lips.

“God, yes,” he corrects.

He had taken off his pants to sleep last night, so you have easy access to his dick. You push his briefs down his hips and take him in your hand. He can’t stop the groan that leaves his mouth. You take a moment to glance down and run your hand every which way across it, getting familiar with it.

“Your cock looks even better than I imagined,” you mutter as you begin to jerk him off.

Spencer throws his head back against the pillows. “Well, I definitely feel a lot less guilty for jacking off to thoughts of you now.”

You smile. “You got yourself off thinking of me?”

“More often than I’d like to say,” he admits. “But from the sound of it, I wasn’t the only one.”

“No, not at all. What would you think about?”

It’s then that he notices you grinding down on the heel of your foot. He’s had a hand on your ass, and slides it forward now, replacing your heel with his hand. “I thought about doing this,” he says, rubbing his hand up and down over your clothed pussy. “More than this, too.”

“Tell me. No, wait,” you correct. “Show me.”

He doesn’t oblige right away; instead he latches his lips to the skin right above your collarbone and sucks hard enough to leave a mark. The corners of his mouth turn up when he feels you squirm against his hand. “I’d love to,” he finally says.

Deftly, his hand moves past the waistband of your panties, past fabric, skin and hair. “Lovely,” he murmurs when he feels the wetness gathering at your entrance. The pace you’re rubbing his cock at falters a bit when he slides a finger inside. A second finger quickly follows, then he matches your movements, thrusting his fingers into you when your hand moves down his cock; pulling them out when you stroke up. He relishes in the moan you let out when he crooks his fingers to hit that spot.

“Oh, fuck, that’s so good,” you breathe out.

With his free hand, he pulls down your panties so he can watch his fingers glide in and out of you. “Contrary to what my coworkers think, I have done this before,” he murmurs.

“Doesn’t surprise me at all.” You pause in your strokes to play with the head of his cock, prompting a moan of his own. “You’re so pretty. I’m surprised more people don’t throw themselves at you.”

He shrugs. “It’s the social ineptitude, I believe.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself. You’re—oh shit,” you gasp. He’s just adjusted so the heel of his hand is grinding against your clit on each thrust of his fingers into you.

This goes on for a few more minutes, the room filled with the sound of heavy breathing, gasps, and moans. Suddenly, you stop stroking his cock. He pulls back from kissing you and looks at you questioningly.

“I want you,” you whisper.

Spencer frowns a little. “You have me? My fingers are literally inside of you.”

“I meant I want your cock,” you laugh. “I’d really like to fuck you.”

He didn’t think it was possible for his dick to get any harder, and yet…. “I’d really like that, too.”

He removes his fingers from you rather reluctantly. You cup his face in your hands, giving him a passionate kiss before moving away from him, and he wonders briefly what to do with himself as you root around in the bedside table, but the answer quickly occurs to him. When you turn back to him with a condom in hand, he’s popped his fingers into his mouth and is sucking on them.

“Oh, Jesus,” you murmur. He just smiles around his fingers, holding out his other hand for the condom. But he does, unfortunately, need two hands to open it. After taking his underwear off all the way, he uses his wet fingers to stroke his cock a few times, then rolls the condom on.

He’s about to ask what position you’d prefer, but you answer it for him, moving to straddle his hips after tossing your panties aside. You pull his shirt off of him, then take off your own. He immediately fixates on your breasts again, placing his hands on your waist and tugging your closer so he can take one into his mouth.

“You really like my boobs, huh?” you ask.

He hums an agreement against your skin. “I mean, I really like all of you. But I’m particularly fond of these.”

He keeps at it until you let out a little whine, rolling your hips against his erection. “Spencer, please.”

“Alright, alright,” he relents. He places one kiss on each breast, then leans back.

You smile in excitement, wiggling your hips a little. You take his cock in your hand and run the tip through your folds. “You ready?”

He nods. “I’m ready.”

You line him up, then sink down onto him. He’s done a good job getting you ready; his cock slides in easily. You both let out sighs of relief and pleasure when he’s fully inside you. You lean forward slightly, gripping the headboard. “God, you feel so good,” you say breathlessly.

All he can do is make an affirmative noise, overcome with the pleasure of being inside of you. You feel perfect. “Y—yeah, you… you too,” he manages to get out.

It makes you laugh. “And they say romance is dead.”

After some deliberation, he settles on putting his hands on your hips. “Who says that?”

“It’s just a figure of speech.” You press a few soft kisses on his lips, then begin to move. You take it slow at first, lifting yourself up, then dropping back down. It takes him a moment to get accustomed to it, but when he does, he adjusts his legs so he can lift his hips up to meet yours on each stroke.

“I realize I didn’t express my thoughts very well,” he says, pulling your chest down against his so he can whisper into your ear. “So just to be clear, your pussy feels fucking amazing.”

“Fuck,” you gasp. You press your forehead against his and he follows your gaze to between your legs. The sight of his cock sliding in and out of you makes him groan.

“Yeah,” you agree. “It’s a good view.”

Some of your hair has fallen into his face; his pushes it to the side so he can see better. It’s an intoxicating sight, even more so when he starts fucking up into you faster.

You brace yourself with a hand on his chest. “Your cock… it feels like it was made just for me,” you pant.

“Mmhmm,” he agrees. “It’s… oh, I’m close.”

The side of your mouth turns up. “Already?” you tease.

“It’s the first time I’ve fucked you,” he protests. “I’ve been thinking about this for months. Of course I’m not going to last as long as usual.”

He may be feeling his orgasm approach, but Spencer hasn’t forgotten about you. He slides a hand down to where your bodies are joined, gathers some of the wetness there, and uses it to rub your clit.

“Oh, Spencer, yes,” you praise, and start bouncing on his dick faster.

In general, Spencer prefers for his partner to come before he does, but he doesn’t think he’s going to make it this time. Your skin is covered in a light sweat and your hair is messy, and it’s so… charming. Naked on top of him, he doesn’t think you’ve ever looked more beautiful.

“I’m gonna cum, baby.” The pet name slips out of his mouth on its own.

Your hand finds its way to his hair—you tug—and he’s gone. He thrusts up into you sloppily as he cums, moaning your name loud enough for the neighbors to hear.

“Your ‘o’ face is so hot,” you say when he’s come down and is able to look into your eyes again.

“My what?”

“The ‘o face’ refers to the expression someone has when they orgasm,” you explain. “Yours is really hot.” Then your bottom lip drops out in a little pout, a clear contrast to your words. You grind down on him just a little and it clicks into place. His thumb had stopped moving on your clit when he came, and now you’re left without release.

He goes back to it rubbing your clit immediately, so suddenly that it startles you. “Spencer!” you yelp.

His free hand slides up the expanse of your back. “I’ve got you. Gonna make sure you cum, too.”

“Please,” you whimper. His dick is still inside you, and the little rocking movements you’re making cause a little overstimulation, but the condom helps and the way you clench around him every few seconds… he couldn’t pull out even if he wanted to.

Your hand grasps his; you move his fingers around a little, showing him exactly how you like it. And when he gets it right--

“Oh, shit. That’s it, Spence. That’s it. Don’t stop.”

He kisses your neck as he does just what you say—he doesn’t stop.

Shortly you’re gasping out against the skin of his shoulder. “I’m gonna—I’m gonna--”

You throw your head back as you cum. The rhythmic contractions of your pussy around his cock makes it twitch inside of you. If he wasn’t still in his refractory period, that alone could make him hard.

“There you go,” he murmurs. “Told you I’d take care of you.”

You settle down completely against him, chest to chest, and he listens as you catch your breath. “Thank you. Not everyone… well, every man, will do that.”

“I’ll always finish you off,” he promises, and presses a kiss to your cheek.

You lay there together for five blissful minutes, running fingers across each other’s bodies and whispering sweet nothings. But then you push yourself up with a huff. Naturally, Spencer immediately protests. “Where are you going?”

“Gotta go pee,” you say with a shrug. “The chance of a UTI trumps cuddling with you right now. Sorry.”

“Well. Understandable,” he concedes. He watches his now-soft dick slide out of you as you get up; it’s rather captivating. He starts cleaning himself up as you walk off towards the bathroom, carefully rolling the condom off and tying it off.

“Spencer.”

He looks up. You’re standing in the bathroom doorway. “Yes?”

“You know how earlier I said I had been trying to get you into my bed for weeks?” you ask. “And I said that I didn’t mean it that way?”  

“I do.”

“Well, that was only half true.”

The side of his mouth turns up. “Clearly.”

Your little bashful smile makes his heart flutter. But then you say, “You should thank your psychiatrist the next time you see her. You know, for prescribing you a medication that made you fall asleep, and subsequently led to you getting laid.”

Heat rises to his cheeks. He clears his throat before speaking. “You know, I think I’ll keep that to myself.”

---------------

tell me what you thought here!

[aminiatureworld]

Wings

Characters: Xiao, gn!reader

Word Count: 3,523

Warnings: Slight depictions of violence

Premise: In which the reader has wings

Author’s Note: It’s been a while! Hopefully I’m not too rusty, although I can’t account for how late(/early) this is being posted. I’m going to bed.

Xiao

Even from the beginning Xiao had been enthralled with your wings.

They were larger than that of any bird or creature that Xiao had ever seen before, stretching far beyond your arms when they were unfolded, before bending to cover you in a cloak of downy feathers the color of warm soil, shot through with the occasional birch colored feather.

He’d decided to appear in front of you almost the moment he saw you in the distance, at first wondering if you might be an adepti or a god from one of the other lands in Teyvat. Although the look of surprise that crossed your face when he shed his invisibility before you quickly robbed him of that conviction. It was too late to go back at that point though, so Xiao begrudgingly let out his question.

“Who are you?”

Your smile was an odd one; it seemed to convey to Xiao that you didn’t have the answer to his question at all. Nevertheless you answered. You were a half-adepti, and as of such you had been born with wings. When pressed upon your adeptus side you merely shook your head. Both of your parents hadn’t stuck around that much, and you knew little of your heritage, or of the beings who walked the land who weren’t Morax.

Xiao had stared at you then, disbelief mixing with a vague sense of pity. What must it be like to be unable to recognize an adeptus despite being one yourself. It seemed ludicrous, but Xiao couldn’t find it in himself to disdain your state. Pausing then he decided upon what immediately after seemed a very foolish decision.

“Call for me if you are in need. I’m called Xiao.”

He didn’t bother waiting for your response before disappearing, unwilling to let his emotions be known.

 The next time he saw you was in the sky. The yaksha certainly hadn’t expected such a thing, and while the initial shock was certainly something, it was almost immediately replaced with a strange appreciation. Though Xiao had seen that the vision you wielded was a Geo one, he almost immediately began to associate you with his own element, with the winds that carried you where you wished to go. Any clumsiness or human fault in your step was almost immediately shed, for how could one be anything but graceful in the air, no matter how they dipped or shook or stopped suddenly. If Xiao was honest with himself, he was utterly enthralled.

Eventually you seemed to grow tired and soon you grew closer. Shifting slightly Xiao backed up as you landed on a branch next to the roof, face flushed with exercise and happiness. Spotting Xiao you smiled brightly.

“It’s a beautiful place to fly here.”

Seemingly unfazed by the lack of conversation on Xiao’s part you sighed, leaning against the branch and staring into the sky. Murmuring something to yourself you seemed so utterly content. A begrudging curiosity swept over Xiao as he found himself responding to your words.

“Really?”

“Oh yes!” You immediately replied, face brightening. “It’s much nicer here than where I came from.”

“Where?” Xiao found himself once more asking.

“Oh this small village on the outskirts of Liyue, near the Chasm a bit. It’s a poor mining town, always covered in soot and coal dust. It’s very difficult to keep things clean there let me tell you; and the people don’t really like things that stand out. I haven’t flown in a while actually, since everyone was so hostile when I did. Now that I’m here I think, I hope, that I can do what they want.”

“You can.”

“I’m so glad to hear,” you smiled once more. “I wasn’t really sure what it would be like here. I’ve mostly stayed in the village, but people seemed more hostile than usual so I figured it’d be better to leave now before I ended up on the wrong side of a pitchfork or a shovel.”

“Humans are so foolish.”

“Maybe you’re right. Still, I’m here now and who knows! Maybe things will turn out well.”

With that you clambered off the roof and walked into the Inn proper, leaving Xiao a swirl of questions and surprisingly burning emotions.

 After this you seemed to have gotten it into your head that Xiao was now primed to be your general confidante. Though this initially ruffled the adeptus, he didn’t truly feel like dissuading you, and by the time he’d gotten over the initial shock of your conversation he decided that your voice was surprisingly nice to listen to, and thus settled quietly enough into his new and strange roll of sympathetic ear.

“I registered for the Guild today,” you were saying today, voice bright with excitement. “It’s funny the lady at the stand, Ms. Katheryne? She didn’t even bat an eye at me! I was sure that I was going to get some questions, but besides the stares nothing happened. I’m supposed to start tomorrow. I have to make sure some supplies get to the quarry. Hopefully I won’t run into anyone there.”

“They will leave you alone. The Guild I’ve heard is a powerful force in Liyue.”

“I hope so! I don’t want my first commission to go wrong. I never thought about what I’d do in my life, beyond the usual village work. It’s exciting to have something new out in front of me.”

Xiao thought that was unbearably peppy of you, but he said nothing. Surprisingly he found himself also wishing that you’d do well.

 Xiao wasn’t exactly sure what he was doing, following your commission on wind currents. It was none of his business how things went today, after all what did he care about the affairs of humans, even those who were half adeptus? Still he found himself following you, cursing himself all the while for doing something so stupid.

The usual unshakeable happiness that you seemed to exude seemed to disappear almost the moment you left the Inn, instead replaced with a face grim and jumpy with anticipation. A few times you even turned back, studying the Inn or the sky around it. Sometimes your gaze even seemed to pierce through Xiao, something the adeptus found slightly unnerving. Nevertheless he followed as you continued on your journey, all the while wondering what could cause such a massive shift in your demeanor.

If Xiao had any questions about the extent of the reality of your words they were quickly answered. The atmosphere of the quarry was absolutely suffocating, and you could’ve cut the tension with a blade as you slowly approached the drop off.

The foreman said nothing to you, merely glaring as he approached the balloon that you were accompanying. Scouring the barrels and boxes his scowl deepened and deepened. Turning around abruptly he disappeared into his hut for a moment before coming back out. Gesturing towards to open quarry he glared at you.

“There.”

“Thank you,” you replied, voice suddenly small. “Uhm, where exactly should I put this?”

“You lived with us for how many years and couldn’t be bother to retain a shred of information?” The foreman swore under his breath. “Damned half-creatures like you. Put it in Section 4. Tell the Guild master that I never want to see your face here again.”

You said nothing to that in response, merely continuing on your way. Though Xiao couldn’t help but notice how white the knuckles were on the rope you were using to lead the balloon with.

The hostility didn’t ease up when you walked in. Instead things seemed to grow worse, as men and women stared at you with open disdain. The occasional insult could be heard, but for the most part it was deadly quiet, and your steps seemed shorter and shorter as you approached your given destination. At first Xiao was trying to convince himself that such a spectacle didn’t affect him. After all, what did he care for the strange whims and fears of humans. None of this had anything to do with his contract, and he was under no obligation to help you in such an instance. These thoughts were chipping away however, and before Xiao was entirely aware of what he was doing he found himself lowering himself on the ground.

A chorus of gasps rose up as he emerged from the invisible winds that cloaked him. Standing in front of you Xiao nevertheless didn’t catch your eye, instead focusing his glare on the people around him. At first you stopped, taken aback as well it seemed by his sudden appearance. Almost immediately however your posture seemed to relax slightly, and your pace seemed to go back to normal as you walked towards him, continuing on as he followed you to your destination.

Everything else was done in deadly silence, as you got the paperwork you needed and headed out of the quarry. Xiao said nothing the whole time, merely following a few steps behind you. He half expected you to start chattering again the moment the foreman’s hut exited the field of view, but instead you remained quiet. Still you seemed much less grave than in the morning and though Xiao couldn’t explain why this somehow reassured him. Walking next to you now he found his hand drifting towards you, as if the two were being drawn together by magnets. When your hands finally connected Xiao couldn’t help but think how warm yours were.

 After that a ritual of commission sharing seemed to inexplicably pop up, though how exactly Xiao wasn’t really sure of. At first it had been to make sure there was no repeat performance of the first day, but then it quickly developed into something else, although what that something was Xiao didn’t really know. All he knew was that every morning when you went to leave he’d find himself next to you, frowning grumpily, muttering about how this wasn’t his duty. You were usually groggy in the mornings, but always managed to give his hand a squeeze before embarking.

If Xiao had subconsciously assumed that the mining incident was a standalone thing he was quickly robbed of that conviction. At first it seemed as if everyone was out for you, though in general the reason seemed to be less your status as half illuminated beast and more due to the figure you cut soaring against the sky, wings obviously too big to be a glider. Everyone seemed to be after you. Treasure Hoarders and Fatui Agents would try to shoot at you, though often you were much too high for their weapons; bandits would ambush you, aiming for your feathers as they attacked; even geovishaps and other such creatures seemed weirdly obsessed with going after you.

Though Xiao had told you more than once that it would be faster if you let him dispatch the monsters and knock out the hunters you always forbid him from doing so. It was your work after all, and if you couldn’t do it yourself then you might as well resign. Xiao usually responded to this with grumblings, but he had to admit that a part of him admired your tenacity.

Still it was difficult to sit back and do nothing. It wasn’t your presence that irritated Xiao, it was more everything else. Besides, he felt as if he was neglecting his duties sometimes. Thus when you told him one day that your commission tomorrow was going to see if a citizen had found a ruin network Xiao excused himself. You didn’t seem to mind too much, though you joked that you would miss your adventuring companion. Still the idea of suddenly not going with you seemed strange after weeks of this new routine.

“If you find yourself in trouble, do not forget to call my name. No matter where you are I will hear it.”

“I’ll make sure to do that,” you replied, smiling softly. “But it’ll be fine. I probably won’t even need to fight anything, besides maybe some slimes. I might even get back before you.”

“Don’t do anything stupid.”

“I won’t. I’ll come back as soon as possible, and then maybe we can fly a little together?” For some reason you seemed to like the idea of flying alongside Xiao, who found himself more and more often indulging you, though he wouldn’t really call his use of currents flying.

“Maybe.”

“Good! Then I’ll try to wrap things up quickly. Can’t miss something like that, can I?”

Xiao didn’t say anything in response. Later that evening, after you went to bed, he stared up at the night sky, trying to grasp onto his thoughts. He seemed to be awfully worried about you, or rather you seemed to be invading most of his thoughts. Why Xiao couldn’t tell. At first it had simply been that your strange situation somewhat interested him. He couldn’t imagine the idea of a half-adeptus who had lived as you had. Then it had been the mining, then the commissions, then the gliding. Now he couldn’t even think of the next day without a strange sense of worry.

What did all this mean? Xiao never thought he would find himself infatuated with anyone. His only loyalty was to Morax, his only connections had been with the yakshas who were now lost to him. His only remaining duty was to guard Liyue, to clear the land of the curses that remained. Nevertheless he found himself thinking about you, worrying about you even. What did this mean?

Staring out into the sky Xiao asked himself what he wanted. An image of you seemed to materialize in his brain. You were flying high in the sky, arms stretched out wide, smile as wide and clear as the sky above you. He wanted you to feel that way, and, more than that, in that moment Xiao wanted nothing so more as to share that feeling with you, to be some piece in that vision of happiness. Shaking his head the yaksha let out a snort. What a stupid idea.

 The next day started in a way much more similar to the days that had passed before you arrival. Xiao left early, finding it easier to deal with the lingering evils of the world when there were less people going about to get in the way. He thought of waiting for you to wake up, but for some reason the action seemed foolish. Or maybe it seemed somehow unlucky. After all, Xiao was embarking on a day that would surely have to end with some sort of cleansing ritual.

The monsters weren’t excessive, and the going was fast enough, though the sun had risen high in the sky by the time Xiao stopped to rest. Traveling towards Jueyun Karst Xiao thought of the pool of water up near Cloud Retainer’s domain. It would be good to rest for a moment, up near sure pure energy. Summoning some winds Xiao found himself in a weirdly clear frame of mind, detached once more from the world around him.

Then he heard your voice.

Almost immediately Xiao found himself above you, instinct reacting before his mind had time to catch up. You had never called for him before, and the unexpectedness caused a flood of hot panic to rush through him.

Staring down at the scene above Xiao felt another wave of burning emotion rush through him. You were backed up against a few stones, panic evident in your stance. One of your arms appeared to have suffered a gash, and as of such the claymore Xiao knew you carried lay in the grass next to you, too heavy now to be of any use. You also seemed to have suffered a blow to the head, and your awkward movements seemed to indicate some sort of dizziness. But what drew Xiao’s eye the most was the blood staining the brown of your wings, the feathers that were scattered around you.

The people surrounding you wore the crest of the Fatui, and their smiles were ones of absolute triumph.

“You should’ve flown away. What could a half-baked fighter like you do against the greatest army in the world? Now your wings will decorate the walls of the palace of Snezhnaya.”

You were mute to the Skirmisher’s jeers, your head bobbing to the side slightly. Once more Xiao heard your voice ripple through his head, though this time it was fainter, unsteady. The anger welling up inside of him seemed to ripple, and before he knew it the yaksha found himself standing in front of you, not caring about the black tendrils that licked at his polearm, only coherent thought that the Fatui members should have picked a different assignment.

Xiao despised fighting humans. They seemed to bend around him, shredding like paper. Though a part of him jeered that he was fighting nothing but monsters, the adeptus still pulled himself back. Some burdens were too heavy to bear, and even fighting a human was something that he would normally never do. Still the fight was brutal, if painfully short, and when Xiao finally found himself standing alone he surrounded by the groans and shrieks of those whose injuries would not be forgotten tomorrow.

Taking his mask off Xiao pushed through the tendrils of darkness that were now clinging to his skin. There would be time to bathe and clean off all the evil he’d generated and purified later. For now the adeptus ran over to your side, scooping you up and traveling as quickly as possible to the Inn. The smalls groans that escaped you cut through him, but at least you were alive. At least he had made it in time. At least.

Though there was nothing that the adeptus could really do to cure gashes and a concussion, Xiao found himself unwilling to stray from your side in the aftermath. Pushing away the guilt that threatened to burn through him when he was alone Xiao became a constant figure in your room. Perching no your dresser, or eventually in the chair Goldet dragged next to your bed, Xiao supervised your health with a regiment that would’ve been impossible for a mortal. Yet it didn’t feel like enough, it never felt like enough. Watching over you as you fell in and out of naps Xiao felt the guilt buzzing behind his ears. Your fault, this is your fault.

One evening Xiao found it all too much. Covering his face with his hands he rasped into the silent room.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.”

Whipping his head up Xiao was met with your slightly groggy face. Reaching over to grasp his hand you smiled as the adeptus moved to intertwine his fingers in yours.

“I didn’t go with you.”

“I didn’t ask you to. I thought, I thought it’d be easy. But it wasn’t so I called for you and then you came and saved me, so it was fine.” Your voice was heavy with sleep and your words slightly slurred, but there was still some urgency behind them, an urgency Xiao found himself responding to.

“I still wasn’t fast enough.”

“You seemed pretty fast to me.”

“I still, it’s still my fault.” Xiao didn’t know why he found himself repeating the same words over and over. Somehow he seemed completely unequipped to deal with the panic that had been slowly crushing him for the past few days. How could he explain this to you? How could he explain the fear that shot through him, the anger, the… something?

“No, it wasn’t. It’s not your fault that I look strange, or that I have these weird wings. It’s not your fault that people don’t like it.”

“Humans are fools,” Xiao spat out. “They try to destroy something that is beautiful, all because they cannot understand it.”

“You think my wings are beautiful?”

“Yes.” Xiao didn’t realize that was a question. Somehow the looked of sleepy happiness on your face filled him with a sense of embarrassment. Ducking his head the adeptus shook his head. “Never mind.”

“Thank you for telling me,” you replied, happiness in your voice. For a moment you paused, before piping up again. “You haven’t been sleeping a lot have you?”

“Sleep is unnecessary for those who are full adeptus.”

“Still, it can’t be fun to sit here alone for hours,” you frowned before scooting over slightly.

Xiao stared at the unspoken invitation for a moment, disbelief mixing into the thoughts that were cramming his head. He said nothing, but as the look on your face dimmed slightly he sighed. Laying his mask on the nightstand the yaksha lay next to you.

You smiled, seemingly satisfied. Linking your hand once more with his you let out a small sigh, before relaxing slightly, closing your eyes and drifting off to sleep.

Xiao stared at the ceiling, listening to the soft cadence of your breath. The panic that fizzed through his brain only moments earlier, replaced with a contentment that the yaksha rarely felt. Suddenly everything seemed at peace with the world, and despite the summer heat Xiao felt no more discomfort.

[junnie133]

where’s the flower girl? pt.2

Continuation of this. Pt.1 | Pt.3  ft. some Wind & Sky bonding time bc my boys deserve it. This is set some years after they end their journey together (like 4 i think), so they’re all grown up already. You can read this without reading the other parts if you like, there is kind of an standalone.  Enjoy! 

{+}{+}{+} Skyloft was a beautiful place, even without all the wedding decorations hanging from buildings all around the plaza. Everyone was happy for their local hero and recently named princess, helping with the preparations and sporting wide smiles on their faces. The Statue of the Goddess was crowded with villagers, as Sun’s father made sure everything was in order.

Skyloft reminded Wind a lot of Outset Island.

Every person living there knew each other, just like back at home. He remembers his neighbors and family getting all excited for a wedding when he was little, and honestly, it wasn’t very different from the actual situation here. People laughed, people cried, all of them happy for their friends, and suddenly he wondered if his Grandma and Arryl would cry and laugh as well when Tetra and he decided to take the next big step on their relationship.

He grimaced at the thought. Don’t get him wrong, he absolutely loved Tetra with all his heart, and if he could be honest, Wind didn’t imagine himself marrying anyone else than her but…

Wind sighed, leaning over a railing at the top of some hill. The fall behind the railing promised to be painfully long, but he couldn’t care less about it right now. Sky told him that some knights and their loftwings were patrolling under the floating island, making sure to catch everyone who fell from the edge before they trespassed the wall of clouds below them, he would be fine.

But what?

He was eighteen already, practically an adult, he could get married if he wanted.

But he wanted it, though? Did Tetra want to?

Growling under his breath he closed his eyes, feeling the cool, pure air gently caressing his face as he slumped on the railing, arms dangling over the void.

The New Kingdom of Hyrule was getting bigger and bigger as the years passed by on his world, Tetra was an amazing leader and someday she will be an awesome Queen. The question here was, could he be a remotely decent King for their people? For her?

After he finished his adventure along with the other incarnations of courage and Wind returned home, they both had been dancing around the other for months, figuring out their feelings, and for a long time Wind couldn’t really put a name on the… thing, they had before.

A couple, friends, crewmates… friends with benefits? He shook his head, a blush spreading over his cheeks. He learned not to go with Warriors for relationship advice that time, even if the description he gave him back then was mostly accurate, despite being unbelievably embarrassing.

“Everything alright, Wind?”

He jumped in surprise as he heard Sky’s voice behind him, his back now straight and hands clutching the railing so hard his knuckles turned white.

His brother laughed quietly, walking towards him to make him some company. When Wind calmed down he took a look at him, raising a brow as he noticed he wasn’t dressed for the ceremony yet.

“Aren’t you supposed to be dressed up already?” he asked, puzzled. It was still early for the ceremony to begin, but his friend was still in his everyday clothes. Didn’t Warriors say something about preparing the groom taking a lot of time or something like that?

“There’s still time” he shrugged “What are you doing here?” he asked then.

Wind bit his lower lip, avoiding Sky’s gaze. Well, who better than him to share his insecurities with? The guy was getting married, and with a princess, too.

“Is it… hard?”

Sky looked at him like a lost puppy, and Wind almost laughed at this. He only smiled softly though, and coughed into his fist, awkwardly.

“Uh… getting married, I mean”

It was Sky’s turn to smile, raising a brow and looking funny at him.

“Can you be more specific?”

Wind pouted slightly and would deny he did it if someone pointed it out. Pirates didn’t pout, he was a man now, not a child anymore.

...do kings pout? Serious question.

“I…” he inhaled deeply, letting the air get out of his lungs little by little under the patient blue gaze of his brother “Is it hard to get married to a princess? Does… does this make you a king?”

The man’s eyes widened for a second before he relaxed again, and Wind feared he touched some kind of sensible subject. However, Sky only smiled, just as calm as before.

“Yeah, I think this kinda makes me a King. I mean- I’m starting the Royal Family line, aren’t I? Your girlfriend, Miss Tetra, is my great-great-great-granddaughter or something like that I guess” he laughed, a little bit nervous. Suddenly he seemed to realize something, as Wind's expression changed slightly with the mention of his significant other “Oh, I get it now”

“What?” asked Wind, a little bit quicker than he intended to.

Sky sighed, and said nothing for a while. Wind looked at him out of the corner of his eye, alternating from the sight in front of them and his brother from time to time. Then Sky made up his mind, and kept talking.

“I think none of us intended to fall in love with royalty.” he began, catching the young man’s attention with a tired yet lovingly voice.“You see, the hero and the princess are always involved with each other. I mean, Legend and Miss Fable are siblings, Miss Artemis and Warriors are princess and knight, and Miss Dot and Four are best friends since childhood,” he wasn’t looking at him, blue eyes the shade of the sky itself fixed at some point in the distance. “and even if some of the others and their Zeldas are not in the best terms...” Wind nodded, an image of Twilight and Wild appearing on his mind “They’re destined to help the other and build a kingdom together, full of peace and hope”

Wind swallowed hard. Sky continued.

“I’ve known Zelda, Sun, since we were babies I think,” he scratched the back of his head. “And yeah, she’s the daughter of someone very important in Skyloft but when I fell in love with her I never imagined we would be forming a family so big it would persist through the ages.” he chuckled. “For what you say in the stories from your adventure, you weren’t thinking on continue it, either”

“How could I know? Not even she knew back then” Wind sulked.

“And does it change something between you two?”

Wind frowned. “No, I don’t… I don’t think it does…” then a tiny smile made its way on his face, his gaze turning gentle and loving, and a little bit exasperated. “She’s the same bratty pirate I met while trying to save her from that giant bird”

“Then… that should be enough, don’t you think?”

Wind kept frowning. He doubted he would ever stop loving Tetra anytime soon because even if they tried to deny it, the both of them were hopelessly in love. The thought of it made him feel lighter, happier, but he was also terrified.

“What… what if it isn’t?” he hesitantly said.

“I honestly haven’t seen someone more in love in a long while”

“That’s very hypocritical from you, groom boy” a huff.

“Shush” he nudged him with his elbow with a smile before sobering up again “...you’re feeling insecure not for your relationship, but because you don’t think you can be a good King”

“Is it that obvious?”

“Yeah, after all those questions it’s hard to get lost” he patted his hair like he was fourteen again.

He didn’t slap the hand away as he did with Time or Warriors this time. It felt good, not only the touch but the fact that someone actually understood.

“I don’t have the answer, sadly” Sky sighed, giving a last pat before withdrawing his hand “But you see, I asked Time some things…”

Wind snorted a laugh. “Old-men reunion,” said under Sky’s half-hearted glare.

“In the end, the answer he gave me was very simple” he adopted a straighter posture and a stoic face, closing an eye as Wind wheezed “If there are love and trust, what else do you want?” he made his impression, voice cracking in the end as he joined Wind on his fit laughter.

“You nailed it!” Wind said, patting Sky’s back roughly. His laughter subdued for a minute, smiling with sincere thankfulness to the other man “Thank you, Sky”

He nodded, getting close and hugging him tightly. “No problem buddy”

Wind returned the gesture with his head more clear and a mess of feelings on his chest. The insecurities won’t disappear just like that, but knowing that he wasn’t alone well… made things not as confusing as before.

“So, that’s how I sound like?”

They froze, feeling a heavy glare on them from behind. They separated slowly, watching Time standing not far from them with arms crossed over his chest.

“You’re lucky you’re the groom” whispered Wind “He won’t kill you today”

“I might not be Miss Tetra’s predecessor after all, then…” said Sky back.

[voiceofthe-rain]

Novel Prep Tag: Dust In My Eyes

thank you to @magicalwriting for tagging me in this, I love tag games 💕 I might do this for Moonfolk as well, it just depends on how confidently I can answer the questions lol. Game + tags under the cut!

First Look

1. Describe your book in 1-2 sentences (elevator pitch) 

Bernadette moves back to her hometown with her father with the intention of starting fresh, but this soothing trip home turns sideways when her father goes missing. Now, with new and old friends alike, Bernadette has to figure out what’s going on in the town and stop more people from going missing.

2. How long do you plan for your novel to be? (Novella, single book, series, etc.)

DiME is supposed to be one novel (hopefully), maybe with a little spinoff/companion about the shenanigans her brother gets into while she’s saving their hometown. Mainly it’s supposed to be a standalone novel.

3. What’s your novel’s aesthetic?

Open dirt roads, prairies, old decrepit houses, shadows in the corner of your vision, old rundown motels, black dogs crossing your path at night, half-collapsed telephone poles, a single payphone in the middle of a field, canola fields at sunset, water collecting in highway ditches in the country

4. What other stories inspire your novel?

The Riverman by Aaron Starmer inspired Cheyenne as a slightly-off-the-hinges protagonist with an odd villain, and Dust by Arthur Slade has come to inspire the dirt-road-in-the-prairies aesthetic I want for DiME. 

5. Share 3+ images that give a feel for the novel

In the interest of saving space I’m gonna skip this one, but let me know if you’re interested in seeing a pinterest board or smth for DiME!

Main Characters

6. Who is your protagonist?

Bernadette Longwinter, local weird pale girl! She’s the one with the missing family, and she’s Very Bitter About It. She’s a little weird and a tiny bit feral, but we love that about her.

7. Who is their closest ally?

Probably Cheyenne, her childhood best friend! They meet again when Bernadette moves back into town and very quickly become bros again. They have a lot of shared secrets between them.

8. Who is their enemy?

The House. Not even kidding.

9. What do they want more than anything?

To get her family back. She wants her grandmother and mother back, she wants her father to come back, she wants her brother here with her. Too many of them are missing or dead, and those who aren’t are across the province getting into their own sorts of trouble.

10. Why can’t they have it?

Like I said, some are missing under mysterious circumstances. Some are dead. Some are too far away for that to be possible. Also, it’s kind of hard to see your dad again when there’s some kind of awful supernatural force keeping you apart. 

11. What do they wrongly believe about themselves?

Bernadette thinks she’s responsible for her father going missing and her brother leaving. She carries guilt that isn’t hers.

12. Draw your protagonist! (Or share a description)

Bernadette is a twig-skinny girl with hair so dark it looks black. She’s pale and blotchy, a bright pink blush colouring her cheeks and nose. She’s got a few freckles and moles here and there. She’s gangly and tall, but holds herself with a surprising amount of poise and grace. You can read her emotions like an open book on her face, but that doesn’t mean she’ll admit it. She usually wears clothes that are a little too big and in darker, monochrome palettes with a few earthy tones mixed in for flavour. 

Plot Points

13. What is the internal conflict?

Bernadette feels guilty about things she couldn’t have helped, and that guilt messes with her ability to function properly on her journey. She struggles with feeling worthless and helpless in the face of something so big, as well as taking care of her allies. Just a lot of anxiety, basically. 

14. What is the external conflict?

Bernadette has to figure out. So much. The House, her father, keeping her and her allies safe. 

15. What is the worst thing that could happen to your protagonist?

Everything she knows and loves dying, including herself. Oof

16. What secret will be revealed that changes the course of the story?

That would ruin the secret! Let’s just say it has to do with her father

17. Do you know how it ends?

More or less! I’m still refining the details and specifics, but I know the broad brush strokes and it’s pretty much all set for when I actually start writing it.

18. What is the theme?

Sometimes you can’t fix everything on your own in one go, and that’s okay. It’s okay to fail. You’ve survived things before, you can survive this. You’ve lost a lot, but you haven’t lost everything yet. Fight for it.

19. What is a recurring symbol?

Oooooh, this is a good one. I’m still in the first draft/planning stage so it’s still in the works, but right now I’d say... empty fields, maybe. Ravens or crows. 

20. Where is the story set (share a description!)

It’s set in the middle of Canada’s prairies in a fictional town based on my grandparent’s. It’s small, not on many maps, and the only residents are people who grew up there. Nobody just moves there like they do the city. It’s set in that time in the fall where the grass is yellow and just beginning to brown. Barbed wire surrounds the whole thing, Main Street is the only paved street, there are old train tracks running along the back side of the town that lead off to nowhere. Overall, just very... isolated. But beautiful in its own way, with small mom-and-pop shops and a handmade ice cream place. 

21. Do you have any images or scenes in your head already?

Absolutely! I have one specific scene between Cheyenne and Bernadette stuck so vividly in my head. I swear to god, I know what the House smells like in that scene. 

22. What excited you about this story?

The concept. An old, spooky town in the middle of a land that I’m incredibly familiar with filled with its own charm and mystery? Sign me up! Some mysterious force and disappearances sprinkled in for flavour, and there you have it. Also, the thought of going up to my best friend, handing her a copy, and going “Look. This one is for you.” That was really big too.

23. Tell us about your usual writing method!

I... don’t really have one? I write any sudden scenes or bursts of inspiration in my notes app or on any scrap paper I have. This is usually where a rough plot comes together and characters pop into my head, because I look at all these individual scenes and go “wait a minute... I might be onto something here.” Then they get put in order, lots of brainstorming and scrapping ideas gets done, then I have a rough outline! From there it’s all mostly refining and last-minute ideas, and then actually typing the thing.

Oh my god, it’s finally done! This was a lot of fun, and it made me think hard about DiME and where I’m going with it. Thank you for the tag, and please feel free to tag me in other games in the future (this goes for everyone!)

If I tagged you and you don’t want to do the tag, don’t worry about it! Let me know if you don’t want to be tagged in the future, and the same goes for if you want to be tagged in some games!

Tags: @woodhouse-jay @dogwrites @writing-with-melon @ambitiousauthor @aziz-writes @bittermagic @angelolytle aaaaand I’m out of people to tag. If you think this would be a fun thing to do, please feel free to play! 

[veroticker]

At a stranger’s mercy - Brittany Cournoyer

Summary (from Brittany Cournoyer’s website)

Making eye contact with a killer wasn’t exactly how Bradley Danforth had planned to start his day. As an accountant, he craved structure and routine. What he hadn’t anticipated was being part of a real-life murder mystery with him cast in the starring role.

Death and sorrow were part of Max Donohue’s job description, leaving the detective hardened after years on the job. On his latest case, he’s the one stuck protecting the only witness in a sadistic homicide.

One death becomes two… then three. And soon Max and Bradley find themselves playing a deadly game of cat and mouse. Can Max save Bradley from the clutches of a serial killer? Or will the killer finish what he started?

Blurb

“I blinked my eyes a few times as I allowed them to adjust to the sun pouring through the pale blue curtains hanging on my bedroom window. I still felt tired, like I hadn’t achieved my full, must-needed, eight hours of sleep. Then something hit me in my still-groggy state—my alarm hadn’t gone off.

With a slight groan, I reached for my phone where it was lying on my nightstand, glanced at the phone display, and saw I still had a full thirty minutes left before I was supposed to be awake. This was not good. My entire day was going to be off now.

I set the phone back down and flipped over onto my stomach, my head on the pillow and eyes closed, as I willed my mind to shut off and my body to go back to sleep. I concentrated on evening out my breathing—deep breath in then slow exhale—but it was to no avail. After lying there and wasting a good ten minutes, I finally gave it up. It was no use. My body wouldn’t go back to sleep, no matter how hard I tried, and I was going to have to start my day earlier than usual.

Sitting up slowly, I reached over and grabbed my phone. After pushing a few buttons, I turned off the alarm then got out of bed. I felt unsettled. Unsure of what woke me up so early, I made my way to the bathroom. I kept my shower quick even though I had extra time and went back to my room to grab the clothes I’d ironed the night before. After ensuring my hair was combed off my face and sweeping to the right, I doused my neck and cheeks in aftershave, gave myself a final onceover, and went to the living room to grab my briefcase.

Being a CPA wasn’t the most exciting job in the world, but considering it was close to tax season, my work load had increased quite a bit. Accounting wasn’t the job for everyone, and I was certain most would call it quite boring. But I enjoyed sifting through numbers and figures, determining what could and couldn’t be written off. Numbers only changed when I computed them. Numbers didn’t surprise me or try to throw me for a loop. Numbers didn’t lie.

I had just twisted the knob on my door to head to my car when I caught a glimpse of the time on my watch. I was still early. Following my morning routine and not allowing myself any time to dawdle had left me with an additional fifteen minutes to spare.

I was at a loss about what to do. My trash was already sitting at the curb, I’d stopped the night before and filled up my gas tank, and I wasn’t hungry since I usually ate one of the containers of yogurt that were waiting for me in my office mini fridge. Maybe I could make myself a cup of coffee before I left? Unless... That’s what I would do. I’d swing by my favorite coffee shop and treat myself to one of my preferred drinks. I typically only went at the end of the work week, but I did have the extra time today, and my workload was high. So why not indulge?

Mind made up, I double checked I had my keys and wallet and opened my door. After locking up behind me, I walked to my sensible Kia parked in my driveway and used the key fob to release the locks. And that’s when I felt the unease settle around me.”

(review under the cut)

Review

(audiobook) This is NOT romance. At least, not until the very end, and even then, it’s a suggestion of romance. This is a murder mystery, with a serial killer and lots of blood. But it’s also the story of two men who meet under less than agreeable circumstances, and slowly learn to at least appreciate each other, and maybe more.

The book navigates between scenes of carnage or police investigations, and more everyday scenes--I loved the details of Bradley’s life with Max. There’s a contrast here that makes the crimes scenes even more gruesome. All those scenes help building Bradley and Max’s characters.

The narrator did a fine job--although I’m not a fan of his Max’s voice, it makes him sound older than he is, and not particularly handsome. Technically, the recording isn’t great though, as we often have the last word of a sentence slightly cut.

There’s no cliffhanger, but if you want to know how Bradley and Max’s relationship develops, you need to read also book 2 AND 3--this one was just released. It’s a very slooooooow burn.

Quickie

Series: Badge and bullets series #1 (this one can be read as a standalone, the mystery is resolved, but the rest of the series follows the first book)

Hashtags: #romantic suspense #MM romance #serial killer #slow burn

Triggers: gruesome murders with graphic depiction

Main couple: Bradley Danforth and Max Donohue

Hotness: 0/5

Romance: 1/5

+ the case is interesting and the suspense is there

- no romance in this first installment, but we’re warned about it

Stalker mode

You can suscribe to Brittany Cournoyer’s newsletter on her website.

You can also follow her on Facebook.

[comicbookuniversity]

Lessons for the MonsterVerse

by Bunnypwn Gold

I have always been a big fan of Godzilla. I’ve been watching the movies since I was a kid. Now that they’re making new movies again, there’s a lot to be excited about and look forward to. Recently, I re-watched the newest one from the American MonsterVerse, Godzilla: King of the Monsters, as well as the last film from the Millennium era, Godzilla: Final Wars. Both films are big, ambitious, and include some major flaws, one of which they have in common, or at least they have flaws with overlap. While the MonsterVerse, so far, is great and is on track to continue that trend, Final Wars suffered greatest from this shared flaw, and so I am here to set out what the MonsterVerse needs to do to avoid self-destruction: take itself seriously.

Briefly, I want to provide a review and synopsis of King of the Monsters. So spoilers, it’s really good. Five years after Godzilla made landfall in San Francisco and fought against the parasitic MUTOs, Monarch is struggling to figure out what it wants to do with the Titans, as the monsters are now known, while the government and military are pressuring Monarch to kill them all. At the same time, one of their own scientists, Emma Russell, betrays them to assist ecoterrorist Alan Jonah in awakening the Titans with a bioacoustics device called the ORCA so that the Titans can spur regrowth in the environment and undo anthropogenic climate change. They revive Ghidorah in Antarctica, who then awakens all the other Titans still sleeping around the world at once, thus precipitating a conflict with Monarch and Godzilla for the crown. The film sets out to cover a lot of narrative ground while introducing several important elements to the series, and all the while it held together some solid character work for its main cast. Based on the new, expansive mythos that this film lays out—with the many new Titans and the abandoned Hollow Earth society discovered in vast underground caverns which used to live in harmony with the Titans—it looks like things will only get more exciting, and the future of the MonsterVerse is set out effectively and in grand style.

Godzilla: Final Wars is also about a large amount of monsters fighting for control of the Earth, feature monsters trapped in Antarctic ice, and ends with Godzilla fighting Ghidorah, but that’s where the similarities end. Final Wars was released in 2004 as the commemorative 50th anniversary film for the franchise. In it, the Earth has been defended from monsters for decades by the Earth Defense Force, who managed to trap Godzilla in ice in Antarctica years prior. All the other monsters around the world attack at once in the present, and the EDF was unable to keep up until the Xiliens arrived from space, removing the monsters and promising to make a peaceful alliance with humanity. In reality, the Xiliens were invading the Earth in order to herd humans like cattle because they need to eat human mitochondria to survive, and they were secretly controlling the monsters. So the heroes free Godzilla so he can help them fight the aliens and their army of brainwashed monsters. The plot also involved mutant humans and a fake rogue planet that was also somehow an actual asteroid that Godzilla later blows up. It’s a mess of a movie. That aside, it’s clear the film is trying to borrow elements from the three previous eras of Godzilla movies. It took an edgier look from the majority of the Millennium movies (from 1999-2004). The use of serious, formidable super vehicles is like the various super planes from the Heisei era films (1984-1995). However, the element borrowed from the Showa era films (1954-1975) is where it falters: campiness. The difference in this film compared to the Showa films being that they purposefully made Final Wars campy, despite the opportunity they had and despite the tone of the Showa era movies.

The original film, Gojira, is a very serious and tonally heavy film depicting the horrors of the modern era, with rapid industrialization in post-war Japan, the advent of the Cold War arms race, and the reason for that arms race, nuclear weapons, with the one man capable of killing Godzilla horrified by the devastation such an ability would grant. This movie and its first sequel were the only Godzilla films made in black and white, which impacts the way they look and how their special effects come across. After a several year hiatus, Godzilla returned to the screen to fight King Kong, this time in color. Seeing those monster suits and the limited special effects capabilities in 1960 of a B-list sci-fi flick in color really emphasizes how phony it all looked at the time. Throughout the Showa era, Godzilla shifted from an entirely villainous character to an erstwhile hero, and though the movies never stopped being presented as dramatic, they were made with an acknowledgement of how they look despite the drama and seriousness the creators otherwise wanted them to have.

Over time, of course, special effects improved. Starting with the Heisei era of films, Toho was able to produce much better suits and visual effects, and so they resumed making their movies with the kind of drama and seriousness that they had wanted all along. The Millennium era began in response to the 1998 American Godzilla, which depicted the titular monster with CGI, in contrast to the Toho tradition of using suits. The Millennium era was the last hurrah to suitmation effects, and these films, overall, looked great, probably the best that a giant monster movie can look with people in suits. Accordingly, they also hold up the more dramatic tone of the Heisei era while allowing each creative team the freedom to make the standalone Godzilla movie they wanted to make. The exception to this is Final Wars, which, as previously said, was not serious at all. Despite the successes of making serious, dramatic monster movies since 1984 and the ambitions of the Showa era’s large and imaginative canon, Final Wars decided to celebrate five decades of filmmaking by using cheesy comedy, camera work that screams “we had to edit heavily to make our actors look like action stars,” and what may very well be the least convincing acting of the entire series. The only person on set who seemed to understand any of this is alien commander X, who looked like he was being goofy on purpose, instead of on accident like the rest of the cast. Final Wars had the same opportunity as the rest of the Millennium era had to present a serious, dramatic battle for the fate of the Earth, and wasted it with aliens that seem completely unqualified to invade another planet and cramming most of their monsters into throwaway fights with Godzilla that lasted on average less than a minute.

This purposeful camp and goofiness of Final Wars is presumably meant to provide a lightness and humor to the film. This is where it overlaps with King of the Monsters, which ventured into the modern era of ironic, self-aware humor to provide levity. Borrowing from the MCU, King of the Monsters cracks wise during dramatic moments relatively often, in an attempt to lighten them up. Unfortunately, the jokes they go with are the weakest material in the film, and they do more to undermine the dramatic tension than enhance the film or provide levity. It’s like the scene in Thor: Ragnarok when Korg says they can rebuild Asgard, and then it blows up more, so never mind; or Hawkeye explaining how ridiculous his fighting robots with a bow and arrow is to Scarlet Witch in Age of Ultron. Maybe those are funny jokes, but they do more to undermine the dramatic tension than they add in humor, and both have the capacity to turn parts of the audience off by poking holes in the premise. It’s rather insecure and shows a lack of confidence in the work to stand on its own merits despite critics or easy jokes from the peanut gallery. This brand of humor gave us moments in King of the Monsters like Sam Coleman mishearing Ilene Chen saying “Ghidorah” as “gonorrhea.” It’s really not that funny, it wasn’t a moment that needed lightening up, and there’s no reason he would have misheard her since he was standing within ten feet. It ultimately undermines a moment in the film for an Asian woman to demonstrate her expertise by locating vital information about the threat at hand. But yes, Sam, I guess monsters sometimes have slightly silly-sounding names, like Ghidorah, which is based on the Japanese pronunciation of hydra, a very popular and well-respected mythical dragon.

The 2014 Godzilla film that started the MonsterVerse was enjoyable, but didn’t quite live up to its potential. That’s part of the reason I delayed seeing Kong: Skull Island far longer than I should have. When I did see it, I was amazed. I expected it to be good, and I heard great things about it, but it was far better than anything I could have imagined it to be. It was a truly great movie. After seeing it, my hopes and expectations for the MonsterVerse skyrocketed. I don’t think these expectations have been let down yet, and I expect them to be satisfied moving forward. However, the one thing I wanted most going into King of the Monsters was for them to lean into the tone and style of Skull Island more. In certain respects, I think they did, and the ambitious mythos being built here is far more substantial than anything in the Godzilla franchise so far, which usually has stuck to “monsters keep showing up and fighting.” The dramatically absurd tone, though, was what they lost by using the ridiculousness of what’s happening to make quick, weak, sometimes self-aware jokes instead of to highlight the intensity of the drama experienced by the characters. In Skull Island, when the squad had to fly their planes through a permanent thunderstorm, Sam Jackson’s character started quoting a speech about how the righteous men will win by not backing down and so inherit the Earth. The speech makes the whole thing feel even more ridiculous than a permanent thunderstorm already is, and in doing so amps up the drama and tension. This ultimately makes the arrival of a giant gorilla, which the audience is expecting to see, much more impressive and intense. That’s what I wanted for King of the Monsters. Yes, there are ridiculous aspects to giant monster movies, but the characters are living it, not watching it and thinking, “This crazy.”

Having this more serious tone is also important in really hitting the audience with the larger thematic power of the film. In Skull Island, the way Sam Jackson didn’t want to back down from killing Kong, even after seeing that it’s pointless and even detrimental to the troop, is reminiscent of the way America is currently stuck in multiple seemingly never-ending wars. At least part of the reason people don’t want to leave Iraq and Afghanistan is because they don’t want to create another Vietnam, the war that this film centers around on purpose. Having that tension of a dedicated army colonel who was just forced to “abandon” his war amplifies the drama of the other characters wanting to understand the problems of the natives and come to a real solution to their problems, and it all works because of how it resonates in the current political climate. The Godzilla side of the MonsterVerse so far is focusing on climate change, which, while abstract for far too many, is also a very real and pressing concern for a lot of people, paralyzing at times. Seeing the dramatic steps needed to fix the problem almost makes Alan and Emma’s plan in King of the Monsters feel heroic. The film is filled with images of crumbling, flooded American cities, and Ghidorah, an alien creating imbalance in nature a la humanity thinking itself separate from nature, is literally a living hurricane. There’s a lot of strong, serious, intense potential to make such a movie really meaningful. If they had taken themselves more seriously, it would have had this level of impact. It really is sad that they squandered this potential on silly jokes and a story arc for their generic, useless white man hero, Mark Russell. Like I said at the beginning, it’s still a good movie, but I can so clearly see how much better it could have been, too.

To me, dramatic movies making fun of themselves in important scenes always comes across as insecure, like filmmakers can’t simply make their movie first, they also have to preempt the internet to protect their egos. As the MonsterVerse moves forward, my biggest piece of advice is to do what Skull Island did and take itself seriously. We live in a time when a lot of previously niche franchises and genres are getting more spotlight due to the demands of studios wanting more high-action, effects heavy movies to sell huge on the international market. As these genres, once mired in cultural neglect and seen as silly and childish, come into the limelight, they both prove they always were to be taken seriously and poke fun at themselves to prove they know they shouldn’t be. I get the appeal of ironic, self-aware humor and wanting to be silly at dramatic high points, because it can be very fun and, when used properly, be incredibly funny; look to Thor: Ragnarok for an overall great example. But besides issues of improper use, this kind of humor is arguably at saturation at this point. It’s being misused and overused to the detriment of otherwise good movies in an attempt to compete with Marvel, who remains the poster child on this. So MonsterVerse, let Marvel, Disney, and all those imitators try to outdo each other by proving they can make more fun of themselves before Honest Trailers get to them. Just have fun making movies about giant monsters with the kind of drama and seriousness only modern special effect can give them, and use the ridiculousness of it all to amp up that drama instead of undermine it. Get over people calling you a nerd and just do your thing. As they say, being cool is all about confidence. 

[holy-fate-worse-than-death]

If I could make a DC comics character

Just a big + strong lady. No superpowers, she's just fucking jacked. Carries Batman over one shoulder fireman-style when he's knocked unconscious.

But she's not the stereotypical strong woman. She doesn't grunt and she's not portrayed as unintelligent, none of that "gentle giant" trope. She's just like a big strong gay lady who probably thinks Batwoman is a goddess and wears Wonder Woman t-shirts to bed.

You thought Jason Todd had the thickest thighs in Gotham? Well watch out, there's a new contender on the block.

She works with Robin (Damian) one time and he's being stubborn, so she just lifts him above her head like she's playing keep-away and wades through a sea of thugs with him squirming in her arms

Everyone assumes she's pretty young, but she's actually slightly older than Bruce Wayne, and occasionally she drops these deep-cut references to pre-Zero Year Gotham and Batman just frowns as he tries to puzzle out who tf she is

Her patrol route in Gotham primarily encompasses The Narrows, because she has a knack for being able to help the seemingly helpless, and she has a deeper understanding of poverty than the bats ever could

In her day-to-day life, when she isn't doing superhero stuff, she's an activist of some kind. She probably runs one of Gotham's most well-established NGOs, and she's probably been invited to speak at the United Nations at least once. (Wonder Woman was there and she got so excited she cried.)

This means she keeps up with Gotham's current events and has an intense knowledge of the city's socio-political landscape.

She reads every news publication in Gotham: all the usual suspects, plus the Gotham University paper, every Vice-style indie news outlet, even the gossip rags.

But she also trawls social media. She knows every bit of drama that's going down at Gotham Academy, and knows that there are four different tenants in the same apartment building in Lower Gotham all complaining about the same strange odour coming from the 5th floor that sounds a lot like Scarecrow's doing.

Her guilty pleasure is that she has notifications turned on for the accounts of every Wayne family member, and she keeps up with them like they're the Kardashians.

... Even though she's definitely protested outside of Wayne Tower a time or two in her day.

When she finds out Batman is Bruce Wayne, she leverages it to make Gotham a better place. She'll just burst into his office like:

"Mr Wayne, I think it would be very beneficial to the community for you to invest in this black-owned start-up business."

"Mr Wayne, don't you think it would be worthwhile for you to support this Native American organisation, given how much of their land your ancestors took from them?"

She's a ruthless intersectional feminist and she's the leftism to Batman's liberalism

OC: "Bruce, one of Gotham's oldest gay bars is closing down, I think you should buy it."

Bruce: "The optics on that are... complicated."

OC: "Not really, Dick Grayson was photographed there last week."

I like the idea of her being a mental health practitioner of some kind (idk what the proper terms for MH workers are in the US, I'd have to look into it), but I think she should be focused on community service and trauma-informed care. She probably also cares about recovery-oriented MH a lot and would work well with people experiencing addiction, and people experiencing poverty who don't have the money for clinical mental health care (psychologists, psychiatrists, etc).

She's also definitely lobbying for Arkham Asylum to be renamed and restructured (seriously, who still calls them asylums? It's 2019)

Appearance-wise she's jacked and has a tonne of someone-did-this-in-a-kitchen-at-a-party-with-a-sewing-needle-taped-to-the-end-of-a-pencil tattoos that are faded and patchy. It makes people think she's been to prison, and when people ask she never gives an answer one way or another. As a result of said tattoos, she's always dressed in long sleeves and long pants (turtlenecks or button-downs, the occasional blouse), and her superhero suit covers her entire body. It's similar to something like Red Hood's suit, because she values armour and protection over speed, but she still wants a level of manoeuvrability.

I think at some point she figured out Superman was Clark Kent, so in her day-to-day life she wears glasses even though she doesn't need them, she just thinks it's really funny and always chuckles in the mirror when she puts them on.

She probably has really drab, long brown hair (going grey) that she wears in a bun 24/7, and she rolls her sleeves up when things get intense. She's either wearing a button-down (when she's at work) or a checkered flannel shirt (when she's not at work) almost all the time, and watching her carefully and neatly fold up her sleeves around her elbows is the most nerve-wracking thing in the world. It's even been known to make Bruce Wayne flinch on occasion.

Things she said in front of Bruce Wayne once she found out he was Batman:

Batman and Superman have definitely fucked

*detailed explanation of exactly what furries are and why half of the superheroes and villains in Gotham are, in fact, furries, including Batman*

I think she's a bit of a conspiracy theorist, which means her and Red Robin should never be allowed in the same room alone. She's got a vibe similar to The Question in that way, but she's not a full-on, push-pins-and-strings-covering-the-whole-room conspiracy theorist. She's just a bit of a tin foil hatter. Disturbingly, Batman, Nightwing, etc. can't find any evidence to refute a lot of her theories, and their stories together often end in an eerie, open-ended conclusion that implies she could be right about everything.

I like to think she uses old phrases and Gotham-isms that people routinely forget are a thing. E.g. "What in the name of Riddler's left testicle?" (A reference to that time during the Zero Year when Riddler turned his camera on too early and broadcasted his entire scrotum to every citizen of Gotham.) Otherwise, she mostly speaks like Jack McCoy from the early days of the original Law & Order. E.g. "You really screwed the pooch on this one, Batman!" and other obscure North American idioms that haven't been used in 30 years.

I either picture her family-less, or like that part in season 2 of NCIS: LA where Agent Hanna just casually drops that he has two kids and a wife, btw, and up until that point you've been convinced he was single and a workaholic.

Honestly the more I think about it, the more I think this might just be an AU for Susie Su where her character is actually fleshed-out and not just fatphobic and two-dimensional

...

Guess I'll add this to the list of fanfics I gotta write, right behind the one I'm writing right now (*Jake Paul voice* link in bio) and the sequel to Batman Forever /Batman & Robin that's a standalone Nightwing movie lmao why am I like this

[douxreviews]

Shazam! (2019) Review

"You more of a Supes guy? Yeah, me too."

By nature I love brevity: Easily the best film I've seen so far this year, and far better than the vast majority of the DCEU. A very funny film that surprises at many turns, entertains the whole time, and has something meaningful to say.

SPOILER WARNING: I'll keep it spoiler-free for the first part, then I'll get down to the details for the rest.

The part every Shazam! review is apparently required to have: Yes, this is a DC movie. No, your friend who keeps calling it Captain Marvel by mistake is not just out-of-touch with the culture; this character used to be called Captain Marvel back before Marvel played some dirty tricks and stole the name, and it makes no sense for him to be called Shazam. Yes, there also used to be another Marvel character other than the one from the movie who was called Captain Marvel. Yes, it's confusing as heck to the average moviegoer. Google is your friend.

Apparently IMDB isn't, though, so don't look up the movie before you see it. Way too much spoilery information on that page. You were warned.

Spoiler-Free:

This movie is a refreshing approach to the superhero film. Its comedic roots give it the distance and the self-awareness to mock the genre's most tired and useless trappings, but its definitive place within the genre itself also allows it to take what works and then use that for its own purposes. The film leans heavily on its humor, which is great and works, but it simultaneously works just as well as a superhero movie and an action movie.

The cast is wonderful. Zachary Levi carries the film as Captain Marvel Shazam himself, and you can see so clearly the fun he's having at the same time as he delivers a good performance. The emotional parts of Billy Batson's story, though, are given to Asher Angel. Angel is quite strong, and definitely pulled it off, though in a few places he struggled slightly. Still, for such a young actor, he has talent. Mark Strong's villainous performance is good, too, providing what I would venture to say is the best villain of the DCEU so far. But the true stealers of the movie are Billy's foster family, particularly Jack Dylan Grazer, Grace Fulton, and Faithe Herman. Their characters ground the movie emotionally and thematically, and the reliance on them is deserved. They are also a large part of what kept the third act from slipping into the traditional superhero movie pitfalls.

One last thing I will say about Shazam! is the strength of its story and construction. Everywhere I expected it to zig, it zagged. Everywhere it could have given way to cliche and mindless slugfests, it didn't. The third act is one of the strongest I've seen from a superhero film in a long while, and I sat in the theater overjoyed at many of the fascinating and fun creative choices the film made. There were few places where they could have done something interesting and didn't, but without seeing what it would have become had they capitalized on that, I can't tell if it was a missed opportunity or a good avoidance of narrative clutter.

Final spoiler-free word on Shazam! is that you should absolutely go and see it. It is wildly entertaining and amusing, meaningful in a deep way, and a great time from beginning to end. Go enjoy the heck out of this one. Now, since in-depth analysis is the way I review things, I'll move on to discuss spoilers.

It's not an 'S.' It means 'Spoilers ahead.'

Many will call this film a sign of DC's return to the brighter side of things. But, though it is a less gloomy film than a Man of Steel or a Batman v. Superman, I would argue that Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and Joss Whedon's parts of Justice League were the benchmarks of DC's return from the shadow of death. What this marks, more than anything else, is the best look at the joy and wonder of being a superhero since Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.

Shazam! also provides us with the best example of a focused standalone superhero movie since that movie. So many films nowadays put their connections to other planned, produced, or released projects first, and their stories and characters second. Shazam! does not do this, just as Spider-Verse did not do it. This is not to say that either film leaves no potential for sequels and spinoffs. This film is full of easter eggs and references that could very easily play into any related projects, and indeed they probably will in the announced Shazam 2 and Black Adam. But the goal of the filmmakers in this movie was clearly to tell a good story, and to let the connections and references come later. This is why they pulled out all the stops in this one rather than save things for the sequel unnecessarily.

This, of course, resulted in the ENTIRE MARVEL FAMILY! I cannot tell you how excited I was in the theater to see that. As they led up to it, I said to myself, 'There's no way. They wouldn't.' And then they did. A film that was focused on keeping the audience excited for the sequels would have teased Freddie Marvel and Mary Marvel and never given it to us, but it was necessary for the story this film wanted to tell, and so they did it.

See, that's the thing that I find most interesting about the character of Captain Marvel Shazam. The fact that he's a kid is an intriguing idea, and it's enough to carry the first half to two thirds of the movie. But once you get past that, Captain Marvel Shazam is just a Superman rehash... that is, until you bring in the Marvel Family. As soon as he's a superhero who's part of a family of superheroes, suddenly everything becomes interesting again. That's something we don't often see, and that's what makes Captain Marvel Shazam interesting to watch.

The casting of the Marvel Family is spot on, especially given the kids they started with. All of them seem to share completely in Zachary Levi's joy, and for the most part they are able to maintain the characters of the children in their performances. Especial props to Adam Brody and Meagan Good.

There were, however, several parts of the film that I felt were not used to their full potential. The first of these was the portrayal of the Seven Deadly Sins. Granted, Greed was put to good use in the boardroom, and Envy in the final battle, but it's telling that a film featuring the embodiments of the Sins that also has several scenes set outside a strip club cannot find the time to say anything about Lust. The other thing is that, while I'm certain I could figure out which Sin was which if shown clear, still photographs of them, I had a very difficult time telling most of them apart for the majority of the movie.

The second thing that Shazam! failed to deliver on was the resolution of Mary's character arc. The relatively few scenes we got in which she pondered her future and the possibility of leaving her family in order to secure it made me extremely sympathetic to her and her situation, but the movie never returned to her story to give us a decision or a conclusion. I didn't notice until I was reflecting on it later, but I found myself wondering what happened to her and whether or not she decided to go to CalTech.

One last thing I want to say is that I have a hard time imagining a sequel that is successfully able to balance all of its inherited elements, introduce and develop its new ones effectively, and still be a good story. The thing about having all of those kids be a part of the Marvel family is that having that many superheroes with that much power, and the same powers, for that matter, would be difficult to juggle. Not to mention that the villain couldn't just be one guy, like Black Adam, without the cliched army of faceless soldiers. That's why I'm glad they're keeping Black Adam separate in his own film. Go ahead and let that be terrible on its own. Perhaps they will surprise me, and turn out something that is fun and meaningful in its own right. It is the same creative team, after all.

Pensees:

-The phrase 'Holy moly' is a classic line that Captain Marvel Shazam loves to use.

-Little Billy wanted the tiger from the balloon pop game, and in the end, he gave it to a kid to calm her down. In the comics, Billy has a friend that is a sentient tiger animated from a stuffed toy.

-The talking caterpillar that shows up at the beginning and at the end is called Mr. Mind, and he's a classic Captain Marvel Shazam villain. So are the Crocodile-Men seen playing cards through the door in the Rock of Eternity. Why yes, those comics do seem to feature a lot of talking animals. It's a thing. Both the Crocs and Mr. Mind were voiced by director David Sandberg.

-Djimon Hounsou has had a busy time lately with comic book movies. He was in Aquaman last December, then Captain Marvel in March, and now Shazam!

-John Glover has now played the dads of two bald DC villains. First it was Lex Luthor in Smallville, and now it's Sivana here.

-Effective use of the magic 8-ball. I'm impressed.

-The scene with Superman is probably funnier because Henry Cavill wasn't available to film it.

-Loved the gag where Sivana yelled villain dialogue from way too far away and was completely inaudible.

-I enjoyed all of Freddie's t-shirts, and the dig at Aquaman in the end was glorious.

5 out of 6 pleasant surprises.

CoramDeo is more of a Supes guy.

[h0spitalreacti0nsh0t-blog]

The Mountain Goats - In League With Dragons (Review)

In League With Dragons, The Mountain Goats MERGE RECORDS, 2019

In League with Dragons is the 17th studio album by indie/folk/rock staples The Mountain Goats, and as such is the result of nearly 3 decades of development. The group’s founder, songwriter, and only consistent member John Darnielle has evidently made huge advancements since his early days yelping into a broken cassette recorder, and album opener Done Bleeding serves as an unexpectedly emotional reflection on this. 

The song’s opening bars serve as a symbol for where In League with Dragons’ priorities lie, starting with a subtle bass guitar riff reminiscent of the beginning to 2002’s Tallahassee before introducing drums, an uncharacteristically proggy piano line together with rhythmic guitar backing, and finally Darnielle’s vocals. This slow build, introducing instruments one by one, feels like a statement – In League with Dragons is a rock album. The traditional Mountain Goats formula has served the band well since 1991, with countless (even Darnielle admits to having no idea how many hundreds of songs he’s written) tracks following the same recipe – a frantic, percussive acoustic guitar providing texture and rhythm while Darnielle sings. While his oeuvre has definitely expanded in recent years – 2015’s Beat the Champ containing a near 3-minute atmospheric piano solo, and 2017’s Goths being written and recorded entirely without guitars – In League with Dragons feels like a refinement. While the group’s two most recent LPs have been perfectly solid, this release seems to have a far more cohesive view of what it wants to be. 

This clarity is represented by Younger, the album’s second song. The real star of this piece is surprisingly drummer Jon Wurster, whose percussion here sounds more influenced by John Bonham than by any of his contemporaries. The song is based around a repetitive, simple guitar riff, while various instruments and a choral backing provide just enough variety and texture to keep the track from becoming too slow-moving. While the song’s 6+ minute runtime could definitely benefit from some cutting down, it’s a nice enough track, and the saxophone solo at the climax is cathartic and gloriously indulgent. Its main fault is also the main drawback of the album as a whole, however – the production is incredibly bland. It feels silly to criticise the production of a Mountain Goats record, given that the first decade of the band’s existence sounded like a lethargic cat being run over by a vacuum cleaner, but the album is so glossy and so immaculately recorded that it’s hard to believe that it’s being played by real people. Everything is so clean, so sterile, that it sounds less like a smart, experienced wordsmith telling you stories from his life and imagination with his trusty acoustic guitar and more like something that plays on the radio in a supermarket. This isn’t to say that I just want the group to do what they’ve always done – far from it, the new style they show on this album is exciting and interesting, and I want to hear it done with real passion and enthusiasm. While the songwriting is as strong as ever, if not stronger, it’s hard to mask the fact that Younger, together with a few notable other tracks on the record, sounds like toothless radio rock.

The third track, Passaic 1975, feels like a much more traditional Mountain Goats piece – Darnielle laments the pathetic nature of ‘rock star’ life, describing an unnamed stadium-filling frontman unashamedly telling the crowds and cameras that “I want everyone to get high”, and eventually succumbing to the inevitable consequences of his vices. He begins to forget lyrics and pass out on stage, and his once daring and exciting lifestyle rings out hollow and pathetic. Darnielle begins the song in seeming admiration of its subject and ends it in a state of vague pity. Were it not for the guitars, the track could easily be an outtake from Goths - as it stands, it’s an enjoyable song with a creative vocal style and a trademark Darnielle chorus that’s funny, ironic, catchy, and slightly sad. After Passaic 1975 comes Clemency for the Wizard King, one of the album’s absolute highlights. Everything about this song is just strange. The main rhythm is unremarkable enough, and supported only by some similarly ordinary arpeggiated guitar chords. The vocals, however, are an extraordinarily tight duet between Darnielle and Matt Douglas that manages to be faltering and nervy, yet still authoritative and downright sinister. The lyrics give the listener just enough information to get a basic image – a group of people coming before some authority and demanding the release of their leader. Everything else is filled in by the listener’s imagination, and the song works excellently as a piece of standalone fantasy fiction – the fact it manages to do this while still being a straightforward and catchy rock song is commendable, and the fact it does this in under 3 minutes (not counting repetition, the song only has 15 lines) should cement Darnielle’s place as a legend. The vocals are strange, creepy, and unique, and the lyrics just cryptic enough to be evocative.

The next track, Possum By Night, is equally creative. Again, Darnielle manages to do something that no one else could – a piano led, melodramatic belter sung from the point of view of a possum, that manages to be not only excellent but remains completely straight-faced. It sounds like an elaborate joke, and in the hands of any other songwriter, it would be. What separates Darnielle, however, is a complete seeming lack of self awareness, that allows him to completely surrender to whatever he’s singing about – be it suicidal heroin addicts having paranoid, delirious visions of salvation, or a possum cult leader warning his brothers to “try not to get stuck in the intake vent”. While Darnielle has never been one to shy away from serious, heavy, extremely personal topics, the fact that he can give as much credibility to a song about rodent cults as he can to a song about his violently abusive stepfather and tragic childhood is a testament to his ability as a storyteller. The vocal performance is so dripping with raw feeling that all silliness immediately fades. Why the hell is he singing about this? I don’t know. But the important thing is that no one else is, and his writing and voice are so on point, so deft at describing this series of events, that you can’t help but get caught up in it.

The title track is another simple one – a breather, if you will. The sunny melody and hopeful tone have a dark subtext, as the protagonist (presumably the figure on the album cover) waits patiently for his accomplice to annihilate all the faceless evil in his way. “It’s so hard to get revenge, the human element drags you down”. The song’s hero comes across somewhat sociopathic, not so much establishing himself as a virtuous figure as he is frustrated by his own empathy and humanity making mass slaughter hard to stoumach. As a result, he befriends a dragon (as you do), and is now unburdened by conscience. The song manages to keep this darkness purely lyrical, however, with the cheerful, jaunty acoustic melody and Nashville pedal steel making the track into an unholy hybrid of Neil Young and Rush. “It’s so hard to be yourself, when you’ve already seen the inside” – even legendary heroes have to sleep at night. 

The second side of the album remains fairly consistent – Doc Gooden is yet another Mountain Goats song about a miserable ex-celebrity that justifies itself with its sheer bitterness (“When my name was everywhere, none of you were there”) , Going Invisible 2 is a slow, organ led, dramatic vocal track not unlike the aforementioned Possum By Night, and Waylon Jennings Live! is another perfectly enjoyable country-esque song that uses a few neat tricks including a slightly dissonant, atonal Moog synthesiser to create an effective earworm of an instrumental bridge. Cadaver Sniffing Dog feels a lot like Younger – a decent track that’s a little too long and repetitive for its own good, but the real highlights of side 2 are the closing two tracks. 

An Antidote for Strychnine is pure atmosphere, and the slow build is one of the best instrumentals the Mountain Goats have ever put out. The central character’s identity and backstory are unclear, the only thing that’s absolutely true is that he really needs to find a cure for rat poison (while seemingly crushingly aware that no such thing exists). The track starts with a despondent, slightly slurred vocal over a slow, noir keyboard, before steadily building into a full Dark Side of the Moon groove, layered with funky synth organ and guitar. That Floyd comparison isn’t for nothing, by the way – this track really sounds like Dark Side once it gets going. Frustratingly, the song fails to ever reach a genuinely cathartic climax, and once the build has reached its critical point, it just ramps down and ends. It’s still an excellent song, but there’s a permeating feeling that it could have been so much better had the group just committed to it a little more. 

The album closes with Sicilian Crest, an absolutely unashamed air-punching anthem. In it, Darnielle subtly and intelligently analyses the appeal of fascism in the 21st Century, through the lens of fantasy. As with many of his songs, he tells the story through pure rhetoric, abstract phrases and images that sound important without actually specifically meaning anything. The true genius of this track, however, is that in this case he’s directly using the lack of meaning to make his point. “Look to the West, look to the man bearing the Sicilian Crest” – combined with the triumphant musical backdrop, he paints this figure as a hero without actually saying who he is or what he believes. The actual identity of the man bearing the Sicilian Crest is completely irrelevant – he’s a symbol, a convenient solution to the dire times described in the verses. The entire song is propaganda for some unspecific figure, and the gloriously cheesy melody has an air of brutal cynicism. It’s saccharine, it’s not the truth, even inside the fiction. Annoyingly, Sicilian Crest also suffers from the same affliction (heh) as An Antidote for Strychnine, in that it feels like it’s building to a cathartic climax that it never delivers. The final chorus is delivered exactly the same as the first, except there’s a “woo!” at the end. While this is a minor flaw, and doesn’t detract from the song as a piece of writing, it can become frustrating on repeated listens.

In conclusion, In League with Dragons is a hugely creative, memorable and colourful record. The flaws that it has don’t seem to matter much, the Mountain Goats have never been about making hugely dynamic, musically ambitious songs (most of the group’s early material can be recreated using only D, A, Em and G chords) as much as they’re about telling a story that affects you in a medium that inspires you. Despite that, the album is far from flawless, and some moments could do with being seriously refined. The main thing holding this album back from greatness, however, is the aforementioned production. No matter how many times I listen to this record, it still sounds boring. There’s a fine line between polish and castration, and especially on Younger and Cadaver Sniffing Dog that line is blurred too heavily to ignore. All in all, In League with Dragons is absolutely worth your time, and is a very possible contender for my album of the year, but it’s best enjoyed as no more than a piece of thoroughly creative and entertaining rock music.

8/10

[shadowlineswriting]

Stiefvater

I have a friend named Ellyn who is also a bookworm. I’ve known Ellyn literally my entire life, and the hallmark of our relationship is passing book suggestions back and forth. I tend to read a pretty wide variety of genres (in case this blog hadn’t already proved that to you). Ellyn stays more within one or two genres, so it’s less frequent for her to tell me about a book than vice versa.

But in high school, she told me about a series called The Wolves of Mercy Falls. At the time, it was a trilogy (three years after the conclusion of the series, there was a fourth book, but I’ve never read it and it’s described as a “companion” but “standalone” to the series.....so, I don’t really include it when I think of the story).

Anyway, the three books are Shiver, Linger, and Forever, and they’re about werewolves. I remember liking them when I read them because, even though werewolves have been done so, so many times, this was a very unique werewolf story. For one thing, it’s the cold that makes them go from humans to wolves. They stay human in the summer and turn to wolves in the winter. The series revolves around the pack figuring out how they can lead human lives half the time without it seeming suspicious to the townsfolk.

There’s a lot more to it than that, but I appreciated the fresh take on werewolf life.

I only read the trilogy that one time in high school, though. I was excited to read them again this weekend. And then I was slightly disappointed.

I still like Shiver very much. It’s a good book. It has a great plot and I like the characters. It’s about a girl named Grace, who figures out that some of the wolves are also people sometimes. It’s entertaining to read and moves along smoothly. 

I did not enjoy rereading Linger and Forever. Actually, Forever wasn’t that bad. Too long, definitely, but it at least had a plot. A poorly-paced plot (loooooots of buildup for one big event, and then the big event only takes about three pages), but a plot nonetheless. It’s Linger that ruined the trilogy for me.

First, the entire plot of Linger could’ve been covered in about thirty pages, tops. It was a very, very slow read. Second, it is super depressing. I can’t think of one single happy thing that happened in the entire novel.

And third, and this is probably the biggest problem I had with it, is that things become so utterly unbelievable. I’m not talking about the werewolf thing--that’s unbelievable from the beginning, so you automatically suspend belief when you read about it--but everything else. The real-life stuff. I’ll give you an example.

Grace is an only child. Both of her parents work jobs with crazy hours, and clearly were not prepared to be parents when they became parents. So for all of Shiver, the story moves forward with the understanding that Grace looks after herself, does all her own cooking and grocery shopping and car shopping and laundry and whatnot, and barely sees her parents. That’s not out of the question. In fact, I knew people with parents like when I was in high school. It’s a little bit annoying because her parents are supposedly successful careerists, yet at one point we learn they are literally so helpless that they don’t know how to order a pizza. I had a tough time believing that, but the rest of Shiver is enjoyable enough that I was willing to let that one go.

In Linger, everything reaches an absurd level of bizarre. Grace’s parents, who met her boyfriend in the first book, suddenly decide that they hate him. This comes completely out of the blue and seems incredibly unrealistic. The explanation we’re given is “Once upon a time, Mom had really liked Sam...but that was back when he was just a boy that I was seeing. Now that it was clear that Sam was here to stay, Mom’s friendliness had evaporated and she and I communicated in the language of silence.”

Um, what?

We’re supposed to believe that these parents, who remember are literally so helpless that they can’t order pizza, the parents who totally forget they have a daughter sometimes, and leave their daughter alone for days at a time, suddenly decide they don’t like her boyfriend just because she has one that lasts longer than a month?

Why the heck would they care? If we’re supposed to believe that they’re as standoffish with Grace as they seem, why would they suddenly be assertive about her dating a guy they like?

It makes no sense, and that confusing mentally carries all the way throughout the book, which is the main problem I have with it. Things like that start to happen with alarming regularity, which seems like the author just needed more plot points (remember, there’s a lack available for Linger) and decided to toss stuff in at random.

I can’t do it. It’s not enjoyable to read, and it actually kind of irritates me.

That being said, Shiver is still worth it. I like to read that book and I actually think it would make a good film. Forever is pretty good, too, but to get to Forever you have to get through Linger, and that is definitely not happening for me again.

Ergo, Shiver stays, but Linger and Forever are out.