#so yeah romance is not a focal point

[blank-house]

In regard to this answer "So if it feels “slow” or there’s not enough romance— well I hate to break it to ya buddy haha romantic love was never my priority." Is there not going to be much romance at all since it's not priority for you guys? I play otome/amare games for the romance/romantic aspect of it. I'm mainly curious since I'd like to support the kickstarter but I'm unsure if this game will be a fit for me and it's hard to make an informed decision. Some of the answers have been confusing if you're only funding for summer and romance only potentially starts in fall?

No there will be romance-- it's just, we're not making a game that prioritizes it/encourages it to happen right at this moment. So hmm let's put it this way, if you're hoping for something major to happen in Summer in regards to your relationship with an LI-- that's not going to happen. The most I'm planning for them to do is reciprocate your crush if you have one, or for them to crush on you if you have enough points. Fall is when I'm planning for confessions and actual romantic things to happen. Soooo if you can't wait that long, then odds are this game isn't for you. And likewise-- if you're hoping that after getting with an LI, all events are catered to them and it's a happily ever after moment where you spend the rest of your days going on dates and doing cute couple stuff. Then, again, probabbllyyy not for you ^^, whichhh like-- if that ends up being a deal breaker to not back the Kickstarter, then understandable! We always knew that some players were in it for the romance, and I can't blame them-- we do have an adorable trio to choose from hah. But like I've said before, it was never the intention to make a game where you solely get with the guy. It's supposed to be college-- or as much college as we can condense in a visual novel game lol. So in college, yes you date people, yes you have crushes. But more importantly-- and this is what I will always point to be the objective of this game-- you try and figure stuff out. Figure out if this person was a right match for you. Figure out if these feelings you were feeling were right. BUT ALSO figure out if this was the career path you wanted to take. Figure out if there were regrets you could mend, new friends you could make, new experiences to discover, what family means, what life means, who YOU really are.

There is so so much I want this game to tell, that each character has been carefully crafted by me and the writing team so that when you play through their route (romantic or platonic) you can hopefully come away from this game feeling seen or with a new perspective.

So yea-- if you're planning on ONLY looking for romance now and in any future updates of Keyframes, then yes this game isn't for you.

[i-suggest-aro]

SO. Hi. I was looking for games with aromantic characters or aromanticism as the focal point (surprise! scarce results) and I found a game titled 'I'm too ace for this' but that's not what bothered me (obviously, because ace people are awesome) - what bothered me was that the description said 'for aromantic awareness week' eughggh the game seemed nice enough (basically "typical visual novel" but aro) but can people stop conflating aro and ace </2 for both aroallos and alloaces honestly I'm probably overreacting a bit but yeah

also I hate that when I search up anything along the lines of 'aromantic' I'm punched in the face with romance results instead. I'm this close to saying "anti-romantic" (humourously)

that pisses me off so bad. "for aromantic awareness week" ARE YOU AWARE OF AROMANTICS? ARE YOU?

[kestrel-of-herran]

people who say they want Gemma as the protagonist as the main character in season 3 are the biggest glazers like just say you think she’s pretty and feel bad for her . yeah I hope her character is developed and is given a cool storyline but it’s so fake since you barely know anything about her personality wise besides being self insert for a romance montage

STANDING OVATION YES

it's nothing but self-inserting into the blank slate character because they thought the mark from the flashbacks was hot, and they completely misunderstood who the focal point of the show is.

and it all ties in with the misogyny directed at hellyna for (1) being a flawed character who has actual depth and negative traits, like, you know, any human person, and (2) "homewrecking" a marriage that was only included to provide mark's character with an unexpected twist that would also explain why he severed and give him issues of his own to work through, meanness and disassociation from grief, before he can reach the end of his arc in the story.

the story was always intended to get him to a point of healing, and healing isn't being granted a magic wand that disappears the thing you were hurt over in the first place, but a long process of growing and processing your pain and moving on. gemma is at best a mystery character who is going to turn out to have a sinister connection to lumon and the severance programme to tie her story in with the main plot arc, but she's never going to outshine hellyna in terms of screen time and narrative importance because the writers have spent two seasons building hellyna and her inner conflict and severance-defying connection to mark. from a writer perspective, you're always wary of side characters stealing your main character's thunder, because you need the audience to know who to focus on and who's telling the story, so season three will continue giving helly and helena bigger agency to influence events and fight against lumon.

the characters we're meant to sympathize with are the innies, because severance is a dystopia, not only a romance. dystopia is preoccupied with exploring if the human spirit can survive under conditions of extreme deprivation and brainwashing, and what better way to tear down the new world order than have its heir awaken to the monstrosity of the programme she's poised to launch into being. if anything, i see gemma eventually helping the innies dismantle the company by providing evidence of lumon's plan, but her and mark are never getting their old life back. protagonists cannot move back to square one without invalidating the journey, which is the entire point of fiction. and this story is mark and hellyna's.

[queer-ragnelle]

can i ask your opinion on wildly different portrayals of arthurian figures? like, there are versions of the story that paint Arthur as a decent king, but an abysmal husband and bloodthirsty warlord. and there are versions where he's a great, loving husband and an overall good guy.

I think variety is great. Arthuriana is meant to evolve. Static Arthuriana has never existed. There’s no consistency to begin with.

That said, it pisses me off when there’s a double standard about how Arthur acts and the things Guinevere does. Like he’s allowed to cheat but the subtext slut shames her. Otherwise go ham. Make Arthur as good or as bad as you want.

I especially like this when an author chooses to write a more nuanced or sympathetic version of the character. I’ll never be upset if Mordred or Agravaine are kinder to women, if Gaheris doesn’t kill his mother, etc.

I think the exception is when a character with a consistent theme is overturned in a drastic way and left unrecognizable. Some characters have more wiggle room than others.

So for example I don’t like when Maiden’s Knight Gawain is made into a rapist (this has happened many times, to my dismay as a hapless reader). Gawain’s love and care for women is such a consistent, prominent detail tied to his role in every story that it feels like gutting him to change it in such a negative way. That portrayal defeats the purpose of the character. That’s not Gawain anymore. Why include him if the character doesn’t resemble the source whatsoever?

Another example would be writing it so Tristan and Isolde aren’t in love. Their romance is the whole point. I won’t say you shouldn’t write that, do whatever makes you happy. But I wouldn’t enjoy it. Their love is the focal point of the story so removing that fundamentally breaks the story. If someone were to say “Well that’s not the story I want to tell,” of course that’s their right, but then I wonder why they’re using Tristan and Isolde as a basis at all. Make OCs!! I will enjoy your narrative as you write it without you having to warp Arthurian characters to fit your vision. I think in the end that makes for better writing all around.

But generally speaking yeah I approve of wildly different character portrayals. Whether Arthur is super evil or super good isn’t as drastic a shift for me because the point is that he’s a powerful king. Some writers have chosen to interpret that as fierce, ruthless warlord, some also throw in that he’s a great loving husband. But the latter isn’t a requirement. He just can’t be a wimp. Cowardly Arthur wouldn’t make any sense and not be an engaging read for me. Do you see what I mean? So I support everyone making changes, but for me personally, they have to be thoughtful changes which enhance the story without coming out the other side alienating Arthurian fans and new readers alike.

[princelylove]

Oh I happened to choose all characters from part 3? I'm sure have something for muscular dominant men 🫢

May I ask for Polnareff and Avdol with their darling's first time too?

I love your headcanon for Jotaro, I find it quite cute for him to not know much about sex and awkward with it. And he has virgin kink, very interesting. Do you think he has other kink too?

Feel free to share about other characters you want to write too, I just love reading your work, your highness ❤️

~ 🏵️ anon ~

For future reference, I spell Avdol as “Abdul,” since it makes more sense in Arabic. There’s no v sound, but there is a b and f sound. 

These two are both romantics when it comes to sex. Except one is out of genuine respect, and the other is out of delusion. 

Mohammed isn’t bothered by your past. It was before you met him, how could he hold that against you? Your experience, or lack of experience, isn’t any of his business. Sex is something intimate to Mohammed- he was younger once, he’s not without a past, but he doesn’t really want something casual with his darling. He’s rather vanilla when it comes to sex, but he’s willing to humor his darling’s requests, as long as they don’t expect to dominate him, or top him. He just doesn’t prefer it, don’t take it personally. Mohammed asks his darling what their sexual expectations of him are now that you’re together. He wants a proper answer, do you want it often, do you not want it at all, do you want it weekly on the dot, do you have anything specific you’d like to incorporate, etc. He’s already forcing you to live with him, he’s not going to ruin his chances of his darling developing stockholm syndrome by forcing them to do something they don’t want, or aren’t going to enjoy. Slow and steady wins the race. 

Jean-Pierre will never, under any circumstances, force his darling to have sex with him. Is he fine with it being dubious…? A little. Depends on his mood. Does he realize that holding you down and repeating how much he loves you and how much he wants to touch you is forcing you? Nope! To him, it’s all sweet talk. And if you cry, or scream, or kick, he’s just going to assume it’s your way of introducing him to some sort of kink you have. Ohh, he’s the big bad man, coming to eaaat youuu, hm-hm-hm. You’re a pretty good actor, you were making him nervous there! Jean-Pierre has opened up to you about his past- it was traumatizing to not be there for his sister when she was murdered. It makes him think of the torture Sherry went through before she died, and to be honest, he’d rather not have to stop pounding you because of a panic attack. It doesn’t look good for his suave, charismatic presentation. It stresses him out to think that he isn’t your protector, so let’s not do this kind of play often, alright? Only as a little treat when you’ve been good. He isn’t too thrilled about his darling trying to top him, but honestly, he’s down to switch if you really want to. He’s often loud when he bottoms- be prepared to hear him practically screaming your name and every lovey pet name he can think of in french, alongside begging you to keep going. He won’t mention it the next morning. 

As far as Jotaro’s fetishes and kinks… I put him in the same category as a recluse mama’s boy who learned what relationships should be like from his mother + old romance movies. Creep. His primary focal point is how “delicate” and “helpless” you are- it makes him feel needed, and therefore loved. Regardless of your actual strength and durability, Jotaro is forever convinced that you’re constantly on the verge of breaking. As for some specifics, besides from his virginity kink:

Praise. This man goes crazy for some genuine praise. Even if you say it more like an observation, if it can be taken as a compliment, he’s fighting his body’s reaction. “You’re very tall.” is more of a statement than anything else, but being tall is attractive to most people, yeah? So you like his height… He never slouches in your presence after that. Jotaro’s delusions aside, if you were to praise him during sex, he’d lose himself entirely. 

Breeding. Even if his darling cannot get pregnant, a man can dream. It isn’t about having an actual child, he just thinks it’s hot to finish inside of you and how fantastic you’d look pregnant. You’d have trouble doing things for yourself, won’t you? Jotaro isn’t about to complain about finding a way to force you to let him do everything for you. Maybe he can tell you to just pretend to be pregnant…

Somnophilia. You just look so sweet and innocent while you’re sleeping, he can’t really help it. Jotaro touches himself quietly- as to not disturb you, he’s worked hard to get you to actually relax enough to sleep- next to your ‘shared’ bed. He likes to think of it as belonging to both of you, but it really doesn't.

[real-total-drama-takes]

I’m glad the Mary Sue discourse surrounding Zoey has died down. Being in the fandom was tough back then, because the allegations just…weren’t true?

Some said that Zoey was perfectly boring (or boringly perfect?) which is false. She is a flawed character. Frequently, she’s gullible and gives people the benefit of the doubt way more than she should. See: Scott in ROTI, Mal in AS. She can even swing to the other side of the pendulum and become too ruthless, as we see in her alter ego Commando Zoey.

Others said her kind, mild personality was also boring, but I feel that it’s underappreciated. In a season full of strong personalities and villains, some of whom are directly based on pop-culture icons, you need 1 or 2 cast members who are grounded. Zoey’s character provides relief from the Scott’s schemes, Jo’s zingers, Lightning’s self-obsession, Sierra’s Cody-obsession, etc. She comprises some of the only friendships that canonically survive Total Drama’s…well, drama.

People say she’s too fixated on Mike to showcase her indie-chick stereotype, and while I partially agree that she should’ve had more confessionals outside of Mike or Mal, Mike’s storyline felt just as tied to Zoey too. While his ROTI storyline is about struggling with his DID secret, Zoey is the focal point of it in that she’s the main person Mike is scared of revealing it too, and in All Stars, Mal is the main person duping Zoey and ultimately clashing with in the finale. Not to sound cheesy, but their very first appearance is them making googly-eyes at each other. The “star crossed lovers” plot was always going to intertwine them, and that’s not a bad thing!

Both characters got time to have their personalities and interests showcased outside their romance, like Mike and Svetlana’s gymnastics, his and Zoey’s mutual love of action movies, Zoey’s New Age interests like tarot cards, her clothes-designing, etc. I’d even go as far as to say that between Gwent’s 22-episodes of competing together (16 episodes of Island, the Island finale, 5 episodes of Action) and Zoke’s 22 episodes of competing together (9 episodes of ROTI, 13 episodes of AS), Zoke has the healthier relationship, the more cohesive development, and the more cathartic resolution. Not to knock the OG Total Drama summer-camp romance, of course (shout out to The Big Sleep).

So yeah, I’m glad more people are appreciating Zoey’s character and storylines more (or at least, not hating it as much).

Here’s my opinion that no one asked for:

zoey was definitely meant to be the “main character” of her season. I think Zoey is supposed to be the POV character. Not necessarily because she’s BORING, but because she’s relatable to a large chunk of the TD audience circa 2012 as a naïve, socially-awkward alternative teenage girl. I think for a lot of people, when you’ve got a cast as weird as the others in ROTI are, that comes off as Mary Sue-ish. If you took zoey out of ROTI and placed her alongside a more subdued cast, I doubt anyone would be saying that about her (for example, if you kept everything about Zoey exactly the same and put her in season 1 instead). Like I said in an ask recently, ROTI might be my favorite cast— but I don’t think it’s my favorite season.

All that aside, the thing that made me love zoey was during the bathroom argument with Jo and Anne Maria, when Anne Maria makes fun of her by calling her Princess Leia, to which Zoey says that her hairstyle is actually more like Padmé Amidala.

(Anne maria responds with “more like padmé Ami-dork-a!” Which is also hilarious)

As a Star Wars fan whose favorite character is padmé Amidala, I appreciate every mention of her I can get, especially since lucasfilms seems to forget she exists. Thank you Zoey, for doing what lucasfilms won’t

[canonizzyhours]

You know what I particularly enjoyed in S1?

How Izzy and Stede absolutely hated each other.

First of all, Stede's intro to Izzy is basically an attempted ambush to get the hostages back, during which point his bravado and determination (probably based in trying to prove Badminton wrong) sways him to approach the tough-looking Izzy with the intention to intimidate.

Meanwhile Izzy really just thinks Stede is a moron, and he's clearly going to enjoy killing him.

But this moron outmaneuvers him, and while Stede is willing to be civil about it after their compromise, Izzy flat out refuses (which yeah is understandable).

Neither of them like the other from the start.

But Stede manages to temper his own dislike, as Izzy is Ed's first mate and therefore he has to put up with him if Ed wants Izzy around.

Izzy continually tries to kill or get Stede killed, yet the silly sunbeam manages to not only survive, but replace Izzy as Edward's confidant. I mean, that just must have been infuriating.

It's interesting to watch Izzy kind of shift antagonistic focus from Stede, to Stede and Ed, to Ed, with the crew not too crazy about him from the start since he's just so resistant against the usual positive vibe on the ship.

The show almost did set itself up to seem like this was going to be a situation of Stede vs Izzy, but it turned into a love story that made Ed and Stede's relationship more of a focal point. It's actually kind of interesting that not only did Stede get in the way of Izzy's relationship with Ed, Ed got in the way of Izzy's rivalry with Stede.

So Izzy effectively tries to sabotage Ed and Stede's budding romance with him thinking that being rid of Stede Bonnet is pretty much the answer to everything.

The S2 beginning highlights how Izzy's rivalry with Stede was an obstacle to Ed and Stede's relationship, how its Stede and Izzy fighting with each other and with Ed running up afterwards once their feud is dissolved by way of Izzy's death.

So in the beginning of S2, while Izzy still has no particular fondness for Stede and still remains a bit of a dick to the crew (I mean, if Archie's 'dick' comment is anything to go by), he finds himself is in a situation where Stede has every right to hate him, after repeatedly trying to get him killed.

But Stede still rescues Izzy, and the crew welcomes Izzy into their circle. That seemed to be where the hatred kinda dissipated, and Izzy started to find a bit of peace with Stede.

And yet, Izzy can never seem to find a place with Stede and Ed as a couple, rather as individuals. While the past relationship with Ed is severed and he switches to becoming a mentor to Stede, he really doesn't fit much into their dynamic of being together (unless it becomes a throuple...)

Y'know, I guess what I'm saying is that the crew is really owed an apology for getting them mixed up in all this drama.

#366.

[novelmonger]

LotR/Tolkien for the Fandom asks, please?

(I'm just going to limit it to LotR/The Hobbit, so I don't have to try to run through all of the Elves with names that start with an F for each question :P)

The character I least understand

Denethor, probably. Makes no sense to me why you would burn your own son alive, even if you are succumbing to despair.

Interactions I enjoyed the most

FRODO AND SAM a;dkfss;kdfj;sdkfjd;sfkj TT-TT Any and every time they're just talking, supporting each other, Sam making sure Frodo gets a bite to eat, Frodo saying "my dear Sam" *clutches heart*

The character who scares me the most

Ngl, the Witch-King of Angmar has always seriously creeped me out. All of the Nazgul, really, but he's kind of the focal point, isn't he? Just the thought of these kings of old who've been corrupted so far that they're just shadows of their former selves, now carrying out Sauron's bidding. They're a constant reminder of what any of the Fellowship could become if they succumbed to the power of the Ring.

The character who is most like me

I've been told I'm like Sam, which is a higher compliment than I deserve. Really I'm just a quintessential Hobbit - I want to stay home with my books and my good food, and not have no adventures, thank you very much. (I would say Bilbo, but I don't think I'm quirky and mischievous enough.) But yeah, I suppose if my friend was going on a desperate quest and they needed my help, that might induce me to leave the comforts of home. I think I would complain a lot more than dear old Sam, though, and wouldn't be quite as helpful or as stouthearted.

Hottest looking character

Going by twelve-year-old Novie's crushes...it's a tie between Frodo and Legolas XD

One thing I dislike about my fave character

I do love Samwise Gamgee, but the older I get and the more times I read the books, the more I realize how prejudiced he is. Against Big Folk, against pretty much anything outside the Shire that doesn't have to do with Elves, and especially against Gollum. Some of that is warranted, of course, but it still limits his worldview, and that's not something I want to emulate.

One thing I like about my hated character

Uh, I guess we're talking about Denethor here? He really does care about Gondor, and he loves both of his sons - though he has a funny way of showing it with Faramir, yes. Those are admirable things, even though it's a bit muddied by despair at the end of his life.

A quote or scene that haunts me

The Barrow-Downs are utterly terrifying. The mental image of those huge stones and the fog among them chills me to this day.

A death that left me indifferent

Okay, this might make some people upset, but...I've never gotten all that broken up about Theoden's death? I thought it was a fitting end, and he was able to redeem himself and restore his honor. So I've never really seen it as all that sad of a death.

A character I wish died but didn’t

Hmm...I can't really think of any? All the deaths feel either deserved or at least realistic. None of the major villains get away with what they've done, either.

My ship that never sailed

Also can't think of any for this. There isn't a whole lot of romance in these books to begin with, and what there is I have no problem with, nor do I want much more from that area.

[animeniacss]

Seoksoo - imperfect Part 1 - Chapter 9 - Callbacks

Synopsis: Lee Seokmin likes a lot of things: karaoke, stuffed animals, his friends, his family (when they're not at each other's throats), and when things go according to plan. It's perfect that way. That is...until Joshua Hong, the Education Department TA, stumbles into his view one day and suddenly Seokmin has to start facing the fact that maybe not everything in life will be perfect...but with Joshua, that might just be ok.

Tags: College!AU, ActingMajor!Seokmin, Teacher!Joshua, Romance, Angst, Fluff, Mutual Pining, Misunderstandings, Side GyuCheol, Side JunHao, Side Verkwan, Other Idol appearances, Anxiety/Panic Attacks, Domestic Violence (not between the main couple), Joshua is a dork 90% of the time, (More Tags will be Added as needed)

Length: approx. 6.6k words

Chapter 9 - Callbacks

            Joshua was never on social media. After being the subject of Joshua’s latest Instagram post, Seokmin grew curious. Seungkwan seemingly was too, wondering what else they could learn about Joshua by scanning his social media photos. Seokmin was reluctant. “Isn’t that weird?” He asked, only to be met with a shrug from Seungkwan, who took his phone and sprawled out on his back. Seokmin sighed, lying beside him and glancing up at his phone in his roommate’s hands.

         “Looks like the last thing he posted was….” Seungkwan tapped on the next photo after the morning’s walk. Sucking a deep breath in, Seungkwan cocked his eyebrow. “Jesus, like four months ago.”

         “Really?” Seokmin craned his neck to see, and there it was; a picture of the outside of a church, the Jesus on the top being the focal point of the photo.

         “Yeah. Looks like there’s some of him and friends on an outing.” With two fingers, Seungkwan zoomed into the picture. “Looks like they’re at the beach.” He smirked. “Wonder if he has a shirtless bathing suit photo.”

         “You’re so gross.” Seokmin shoved him. Scrolling through the collection of photos, Seungkwan listened to the other as he pointed out Jeonghan as a familiar face; the girl he was hugging from behind most likely being his girlfriend. Joshua had snapped a few pictures of them, and the very last one was Joshua and Jeonghan doing a very dramatic recreation of one of the poses, Jeonghan gripping Joshua in a back hug like a couple. The duo chuckled.

“What’s wrong with him?” Seungkwan scrolled further down the posts. They were scattered over different points in his life. The only time where posting seemed consistent over the years was over the summer, even as far back as what looked like his high school days back in LA. One of the photos was of him with three other boys, a slideshow of the trio - Joshua included - posing dramatically behind what looked to be their school. There was also a video posted from a few summers prior. It sounded like club music was playing in the background, and across the screen, walked two American teen boys doing a very dramatic cat-walk from one end of the camera to the other, with those recordings cracking up in the background. Seokmin immediately identified Joshua as one of the recorders by the way the laugh made him smile. 

The taller, black haired male ended by falling onto his back with one leg outstretched, the camera shook with laughter. “Your turn, Joshua!” Someone shouted, but Seokmin could only make out ‘Joshua’ since it was in English.

“No way! Kyle, come on!” Was shouted back before the video ended with another familiar laugh. 

“Wow, he’s so handsome.” Seokmin breathed, and Seungkwan began laughing.

“He really is.” Seungkwan agreed. “Even in high school. He was probably so popular." Seokmin sat up, taking the phone back into his hands and scrolling back up to the more recent photos. Another photo, more recent, was of Joshua with what looked like his parents, standing in the airport. Seokmin checked the date it was posted; two years prior. Most likely around the time he came to Korea. The caption read a simple: New beginnings and new places. So grateful for my parent’s support! Seokmin pursed his lips, unable to only make out a few words with his limited English. He had to translate it in Google.

Seungkwan rested on his friend’s shoulder, seeming to study the caption as well. “It’s definitely a far cry from your novel-length Instagram captions.” Seokmin’s lips perked up in a shy smile.

         “I think they’re very sentimental.”

         “I think I celebrated two birthdays and the death of my goldfish before I finished reading your last birthday post to me.” Seungkwan pointed out the over exaggeration sending Seokmin into a laughing frenzy.

         “Sorry, sorry.” He shook his head, setting his phone on his bedside table and falling backwards onto his bed. Seungkwan followed suit, hands behind his head as the duo stared up at the ceiling.

         “I can’t believe he basically soft launched your relationship, Hyung.”

         “Relationship? We’re not dating.”

         Seungkwan rolled over onto his side, grinning. “That’s why I said soft launch. Start off slow, casual, then BAM-!” Seokmin flinched at the sudden shout in his face. “He’s changing his social media status and putting kissy faces in his bios.”

         Seokmin’s nose scrunched up. “He doesn’t seem like that kind of guy.” Seungkwan shrugged.

         “You never know.” He said simply. A moment of silence draped over the two roommates as they lay in Seokmin’s bed. He lolled his head to look at Seungkwan, who was still facing him on his side, eyes closed though not seeming to be asleep.

         “Kwannie…” Seokmin said softly. Seungkwan only hummed, eyes cracking open a bit. “I really like him.” Seungkwan smiled a bit.

         “He’s nice.” He agreed.

“Do you think it’s too soon?” Seokmin asked. “It feels too perfect. He feels too perfect. What if he doesn’t feel the same?”

Seungkwan shook his head. “Nah. I think you’re worried about nothing. Maybe your life is turning into one of your romance books.” Seokmin just remembered he was half way through the one he borrowed and had to return it to the library in a week.

“Am I weird for liking him so much already? It’s only been a few weeks, if even that long….”

“You’re not weird.” Seungkwan chuckled. “Well, you are, but-.”

“Hey.” Seokmin turned his head to his friend as he chuckled.

“Seriously. You guys are so cute together. It’ll be fine.” Seokmin nodded, smiling a bit. “You two have already been on two dates.”

“I don’t think he counted this morning as a date.”

Seungkwan snorted. “Yeah, that’s why he posted a candid picture of you on his social media.” Seokmin bit his lip instead of replying. “Just don’t forget about us when you two are off canoodling or something disgusting, okay?” Seokmin laughed, crossing his arms over his chest.

         “I could never.” He assured, that he already knew what it felt like to have to choose between two groups of friends. He’d never do that again. 

⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔(im)perfect🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌

         The following weeks, between picking up shifts at the store and attending class, were uneventful. The only thing keeping Seokmin up at night was the thought of callbacks. They were coming one day this week, and would ultimately make up the rest of his junior year of college. He couldn’t stop thinking about how badly he wanted the chance to redeem himself from what he considered a bad performance. 

         Seokmin found himself in the library with Junhui often, the duo working on the newest project for theatre class: monologues about something that means a lot to them. It would contribute heavily to the final exam, and since it was paired with a short paper describing their thought process, they had the rest of the semester to work on it. This wasn’t because of the known rule to stay quiet in a library - a rule Seokmin knew and enforced well - but it was because both of them were completely stumped on step one of their project: brainstorming. 

         “What are you going to write about?” Junhui asked, eyeing Seokmin from behind his notebook. His feet were pulled up to the chair, putting him into a squatting position on the chair yet somehow, he didn’t fall. Seokmin glanced up.

         “I have no idea.” He sighed.

         This part was also the hardest and the least fun.

         Seokmin set his notebook down and frowned. “Sit correctly. You’re going to get us in trouble.”

         Junhui scanned the area, seeing only a few other disinterested or stressed college students even within earshot. “Nobody can see us.”

         Seokmin wasn’t convinced. “Hyung.” Junhui sighed, planting his feet back on the floor and twirling his pencil in his fingers. Seokmin stared down at his notebook page, littered with scribbles and crosses as he tried and failed to come up with a good idea for his monologue. The college experiences? Unoriginal. The first time he got a lead role? Boring and unoriginal. His familial trauma? Interesting, but way too personal. Seokmin crossed that one out so hard it ripped into the next page and he tore both out to toss into a nearby wastebasket. “We have time to come up with something. It only has to be a minute and a half right?”

         “Something like that.” Junhui sighed.

         “You could do a monologue about coming to school in Korea, learning a whole new language and culture, and adjusting.” Junhui’s lips curled up in a smile.

         “I thought that would be too obvious.” He admitted, but Seokmin shook his head.

         “I think it’s a unique perspective. And you can add something about Hao in there.” Junhui chuckled, and Seokmin grinned. “How are you guys doing, by the way?”

         “In what sense?”

         Seokmin cocked an eyebrow. “In the dating sense?”

         “We aren’t dating.” Junhui said simply.

         “Could have fooled me.”

         “We don’t put labels on anything, that’s all.” Junhui shrugged. “It is what it is, and we’re happy about that.” Seokmin nodded. “I could say the same about you. Seungkwan showed me the Instagram post.”

         Seokmin sighed. Of course, he did. “Well, unlike you two, we aren’t dating at all.”

         “Could have fooled me.” Junhui worked up his best Seokmin impression, nose scrunched up to mimic his almost high-pitched voice. Seokmin’s eyes narrowed.

         “I don’t sound like that.” He gasped, leaving Junhui in stitches. Seokmin rose from his seat, hoping to mask his rosy cheeks by leaving the table. “I need to find a book.” Junhui nodded him off, eyes returning to his notebook as Seokmin headed into the library section that houses smaller collections of books for more niche topics. Screenplays and scripts, some campus history, self-help books. Something about the latter drew Seokmin’s attention and he slipped into the aisle. As Seokmin rounded the corner, he came face to face with another man, his neck craned up at some of the books on high shelves. He didn’t have a baseball cap on since they were inside; shoulder-length back hair currently fluffy and slightly unkempt. With lips puckered lost in thought, his eyes trailed the selection before him.

         “Jihoon-Hyung.” Seokmin called, and he looked over. Seokmin nodded his head. “Sorry. Are you-?”

         “Hm? Nah.” Jihoon stretched his head. “I have to get some books for my Music Theory project.” Seokmin cocked an eyebrow.

         “So, why are you in the self-help section?” Jihoon smirked.

         “Because I don’t want to do my project.” His tone was playful, and Seokmin chuckled a bit as well. Turning back to the selection before him, Jihoon rocked on his heels, his hands in his pockets. Seokmin turned to the other side, scanning the books. He had no intention of taking one out, but he needed something to distract himself. Every few books, his eyes would dart to Jihoon as he stood still, only his eyes darting up and down the shelves. Seokmin felt a question bubbling up in his chest, one he wanted to ask but worried how it would be perceived. Did he really want to be the guy who pesters the director about callbacks? Then he’d be like Seokjin. The thought alone made him shiver.

         So, Seokmin simply pulled a random book from the shelf and looked down at the cover. Asking the Important Questions: Putting Yourself First.

         “Of course.” Seokmin muttered under his breath. Was he the unlucky one who was chosen to be God’s punching bag for the day? Stuffing the book back on the shelf, he turned to Jihoon, who now had a book in his hands. He was right in the middle, skimming it silently. “Hyung.” Seokmin caught Jihoon’s gaze and felt his anxiety bloom in his stomach, a bitter taste that threatened to bubble into his chest. “About…” Seokmin coughed. “I uh…I wanted to ask.”

         “Callbacks will be announced Friday. You did fine.” Seokmin’s mouth fell open a bit, eyes widened at the sudden blunt comment that cut through Seokmin’s question like a knife. Jihoon snickered, shaking his head. “I’ve done this same song and dance with eight other people since the weekend ended. Seokjin was two of them.”

         “I…I wasn’t going to ask about callbacks.” Jihoon now looked displeased. Not a fan of liars, it seemed.

         “You’re only good at acting when you have a script in your hand, aren’t you, Seokmin?” he stuffed the book back on the shelf before returning to the taller male. Seokmin avoided his gaze. “Hmm…You know I can’t tell you about callbacks ahead of anyone else.”  

         Not only did Seokmin want to know something he knew he couldn’t, but also tried to be sneaky about it and it made him feel guilty. The same knife that cut through his thoughts earlier stabbed him in the chest now, and he felt even smaller than Jihoon in that moment.  “I know…” he muttered, neck craning to the side. 

         “But you did fine.” Jihoon watched Seokmin glance over. “Your auditions are always good. I was impressed.”

         “Oh…” Seokmin was unsure how to process this, so he simply said: “Thanks…”

         “I could tell you were nervous, but it fit the scene you read from. So, I think it balanced out.” Jihoon checked the time on his phone, clicking his tongue. “I have to go. Class is on the other side of campus.” He nodded his head quickly. “Callbacks are on Friday, yeah? So, don’t worry until then.”

         “Alright.” Seokmin nodded his head politely as Jihoon turned around and exited the aisle, leaving Seokmin alone with the self-help books that encouraged positive mental health or assured financial success in just a few simple steps.

         Seokmin’s read them all and yet has never found the success they claim.

⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔(im)perfect🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌

         The breeze of fall turning into winter meant Seokmin needed to finally dig his jacket out from the back of his closet. He much preferred the freedom of a tee shirt, but when he tried stepping out of the house early Wednesday morning, he felt as if he stepped into an ice box. So, jacket it was.

         The last of the leaves were melting from greens to oranges and browns, while others had long since fallen from the branches and piled up around campus. Seokmin loved one thing about fall, and that was the crunch the leaves made under his feet as he cut through the grassy parts of campus to get to class. It scratched his brain in a way nothing else could, at least nothing else he had tried – the only other option being hard drugs but Seokmin would never find out if that was true or not.

         Hand gliding along the strap of his sturdy messenger bag, grinning behind a plush scarf, his feet pressed into the freshly fallen leaves. The piles were already getting higher and higher; it was only a matter of time before campus maintenance came in and whisked them away, only to return through paths of wind as if they never left. The vicious cycle would only continue until winter covers the city in snow and drowns out the crunch of leaves Seokmin loved so much. Seokmin hates when things leave him, but he knows the leaves will always come back each fall. Maybe that’s why he loves them so much. 

         Seokmin fixed his earbud when it stopped for a second, pouting to himself. With one quick tap, the music flooded his ears again, and he continued his walk to class in relative peace. He was listening to the XCalibur soundtrack. 

         Manifest the role and you’ll get it! That’s what his sister said. At first, he brushed her off with a shrug, but after his talk with Jihoon, he found himself downloading the entire playlist onto his Spotify. Maybe it would work. Or not, and he’d look like a fool.

         As Seokmin headed towards the theatre building, he thought he heard someone calling his name. He paused, stopping dead in his tracks. It was muffled behind the music, but Seokmin definitely heard his name. Tilting his head to the side, the earbud fell into his palm, and he finally heard his name clear as day. The voice sent tidal waves through his body, and when he turned Joshua was heading over. He was grinning.

         November weather put Joshua in a long black coat, puffy enough to keep all of his body heat enclosed. Underneath he had what looked to be a brown sweater, and dark slacks held together by a belt. Professional. Very professional. Seokmin covered his mouth just in case his jaw wanted to fall onto the floor with how good Joshua looked.

         He approached, putting his hands in his pockets. “Hey, stranger. Nice sweater.” He motioned to the pastel-striped sweater Seokmin had picked after tossing aside several others. “It’s a nice color on you.”

         Wow… Seokmin was eyeing his slacks. “I mean what?” His eyes snapped up to Joshua, cheeks boiling when he saw the other grin.

         “You didn’t say anything.” He was amused. Seokmin nodded his head. “I saw you heading in and I just wanted to say hi in case I don’t see you today.”

         “Oh.” Seokmin smiled, finally moving his hand from his lips to show it. “Hi.”

         Joshua chuckled. “Do you have a break at all today?”

         “Not until 1.” Seokmin sighed.

         “Ahh.” Joshua looked around. “I’ll have fifteen minutes around then.” Joshua was silent for a second. “Can I…walk you to class?”   

         If Seokmin’s body was a rocket, he’d have taken off right out of his boots and shot straight into the atmosphere, only to combust immediately. Joshua only smiled, one hand in his pocket as he waited for a response. Seokmin’s mind was racing with thoughts of what this could mean, what his intentions were. He ran his tongue along his bottom lip. Seungkwan would kill him if he said no.

         “Okay.” He turned his head to the building before them. “I’ll be in this building all morning, so…” Joshua nodded.

         “Got it. I’ll meet you here.” Silence, until his eyes widened, as if he realized that he did in fact come here to ask something specific. “Oh!” Joshua dug into his phone, pulling up his Spotify and turning the screen to Seokmin. He leaned forward; eyebrows furrowed as to what it was Joshua was trying to get him to look at. “Sunday Morning. We will be listening to it.”

         “We’ll only have fifteen minutes.”

         “I can state my thesis in eight.” Seokmin laughed as Joshua flashed a grin. “There’s no going back. It’s happening.”

         “You only want to walk me to class to show me a song by…” Seokmin completely blanked on the name. His eyes glanced down at the Spotify screen again. “Mayron 5?”

         The complete butchering of the English language made Joshua tilt his head back in laughter. Those eyes. Living proof that the moon did not only shine at night.

         “Maroon 5. And yes.” Seokmin grinned shyly. “I’ll see you later. Have fun in class.”

         “You too.” Seokmin waved a bit, watching as Joshua quickly started speed walking down the path and towards the Education Building. Seokmin bit his lip, making his way into the building and towards his classroom, students making their way into their classes for the morning. When he nestled into a seat, he immediately pulled up Joshua’s last Instagram post. The one from four days prior, and still his most recent one. He nestled his phone in his lap, out of anyone else’s view, as he stared at the photo of the two of them with their coffees and their smiles. He bit his lip as he studied it.

         Okay, he didn’t look that much like a troll goblin in it.

⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔(im)perfect🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌

         Seokmin felt nervous about seeing Joshua after class only fifteen minutes before his afternoon class came to an end. He kept eyeing the clock every time the professor turned his back, playing with the pages in his Music Theory book. 

He needed to work on his monologue. It was due in a month. Joshua was going to see him in fifteen minutes and walk him to class. That was far more important. 

         When the clock struck 12:45 and the Professor dismissed with a dry reminder of the end-of-week chapter quiz, Seokmin grabbed his bag and hurried out the door. When he got outside, much to his surprise, Joshua was waiting. He was holding his bag over his shoulder, wrist lifted as he examined the face of his fancy Apple watch. Am I the late one this time? Seokmin’s heart sank at the thought.

         Seokmin made his way over to Joshua, who immediately glanced up at the sound of footsteps. Instantly, he broke out into a grin. “Hey. How was class?”

         “Fine.” Seokmin said. “You?” Joshua shrugged.

         “My class was good. The first discussion I did for Mr. Moon went off without a hitch, too.”

         “That’s good.” The duo began to walk towards Seokmin’s next class. “Do you have afternoon classes? I don’t think I ever asked.”

         “I have one at 3, then I tutor until like 6 three days a week.”

         “Wow.” Seokmin’s eyes widened. Joshua shrugged, unbothered by the packed schedule he had.

         “I like it, so it’s okay.” He said. “I’ve always been good at explaining things to people. That’s what my friends always told me.” Seokmin could see how that was true about Joshua, nodding his head. Joshua fumbled for something in his pocket, pulling out his wallet. “I’m kind of in the mood for a snack. Want anything?” he motioned to the upcoming vending machines against the side of the Sciences Building.

         “Oh, uh.” Seokmin fumbled for his wallet, pulling out money. “Sure. I’ll pay.” Joshua opened his mouth to speak, but Seokmin interjected. “I want to.” A nervous laugh. “Sorry.”

         Joshua paused for a second, then shrugged. “Alright. Thank you.” The duo headed to the vending machines. Seokmin slipped money in and immediately bought a bag of chocolates and a bottle of water. When he turned to Joshua, he punched in for a bag of cheesy popcorn. As the snack dropped from the machine, he checked the time. “We have 8 minutes.”

         “Perfect timing for your thesis, hm?” Seokmin picked up his snacks as Joshua laughed, Seokmin’s smile only getting wider. 

         Joshua motioned to the empty bench nearby. “Want to sit for a second?” With a nod, the duo sat together. Seokmin saw Joshua scoot closer to him, fumbling for his phone. He turned bright red, covering his cheeks with his hands until the blush subsided. “Alright, get ready to listen to the best song ever written.”

         “Isn’t that Girl’s Generation’s I Got A Boy?” When Joshua cocked an eyebrow at him in confusion and slight offense, Seokmin laughed nervously. “We can listen to that one next….” Joshua passed him the earbud, sticking the other in his ear. It took a second for everything to connect, but Seokmin looked down at the phone as the song began to play.

         Seokmin didn’t understand the music since it was in English, but the opening tune immediately calmed him in a way. He pursed his lips together, before glancing at Joshua and immediately biting back the grin on his face.

         Joshua was singing the song as if he fucking wrote it. He was grinning, singing each word directly to Seokmin. He didn’t know what Joshua was saying, but he could tell by the little hints of red on those beaming cheeks of his that it was possibly romantic.

         I can’t believe he basically soft-launched your relationship.

         Seokmin turned his head, laughing a bit in amusement, but it only encouraged Joshua to scoot even closer so their shoulders were touching. Seokmin looked over again, just as Joshua was hitting the part of the song from his Instagram post. Seokmin was glad nobody was walking this way now, and he wondered how much longer he had before they were both late. He watched Joshua pretend to strum a little guitar, Seokmin threw his head back and laughed. For a fleeting second, he didn’t care about time.

         As the song came to a close, Joshua sighed. “It’s so good.” He said. Seokmin nodded. 

         “I like it.” he said. “It sounds like you.” Joshua’s eyes sparkled.

         “You think?” he asked, and Seokmin chuckled.

         “Yeah.” He said. “I don’t know what they were saying but it just sounded really romantic.” Seokmin looked down at his unopened water and bag of chocolates. “It makes me want to learn English just to understand it.”

         Joshua nodded. “I can do you one better and sing it to you in Korean.”

         Seokmin almost choked. “What?” he asked.

         “Guitar and everything.” He added.

         “You play guitar?” Joshua nodded, finally ripping open his popcorn and popping one into his mouth as the next song on his playlist, another English song, began playing.

         “Since I was five.” He said. “I played in my local church and my school’s band. I even was in a few local contests.”

         “Wow,” Seokmin said in amazement. “I’d….” he blushed. “I’d like to hear you play…if you want….” Joshua smiled as he stuffed another bite of his popcorn into his mouth. Seeing Joshua halfway through his snack, Seokmin finally lifted up his water and went to open it. The cool weather made his fingers a bit chillier than normal, leaving him unable to get a good grip on it. Joshua must have noticed when he let out an annoyed grunt of annoyance, sticking his hand out.

         “I’ll open it if you give me one of your chocolates.” Seokmin glanced over, watching as Joshua grinned at his playground-level trade deal. “Maybe two~.”

         Seokmin couldn’t resist handing over his drink, watching as Joshua cracked the cap open almost immediately. When he was handed it back, he muttered a shy thanks, before taking a few of his chocolates and pouring them into Joshua’s waiting hand. He tossed them back, allowing Seokmin a quick look at his neck and shoulder muscles. His body tingled. “Thanks.” Joshua grinned. He checked his watch. “We’ve got like 2 minutes. Shall we?”

         Seokmin hopped up, maybe a bit too eagerly. “Yeah, I don’t want to be late.” Joshua smiled. “You should go, you’ll never make it if you walk me then go to your own class.”

         Joshua scanned the nearby area, eyes calculating the time it would take to get from Seokmin’s class to his own. With a frown, he nodded. “You’re right. Damn. I’m sorry.”

         “Don’t be!” Seokmin said quickly. Despite the slight disappointment in not getting to walk with Joshua longer, he knew if Joshua was late, he’d feel guilty for days. “I’m glad we hung out for a few minutes.” He motioned to Joshua’s phone. “Thanks for the song.”

         “We have to listen to yours next time.” Joshua reminded him. “I’ll bring my guitar. We’ll have a little music date.”

         “Date?” Seokmin blinked, and Joshua seemed to match his confused stare. The word registered one more time in Seokmin’s brain, and his heart did a somersault. “Date…” he nodded, breaking into a grin. “Okay, yeah. Okay…”

         Joshua’s eyes folded into little smiles to match the one on his lips, laughing a bit. “Okay. We’ll figure it out later.” With a wave, he turned on his heel. “Bye.”

         “Bye…” Seokmin called. A second passed, and Seokmin gasped. “Hyung! Joshua-Hyung!” He called, and Joshua’s feet immediately stopped in their tracks. He spun back around, eyes intensely staring at Seokmin. It made him flinch a bit in shock. “Uhm…” he needed a second to remember what he wanted to say. “My callbacks get posted Friday. If I know Jihoon-Hyung, probably around 1 or 2?” Joshua smiled. “If you’re not busy, maybe you can-.”

         “I’ll let you know, okay?” Joshua smiled. “I’ll try my best to be there and congratulate you!” Seokmin nodded, smiling again as Joshua continued his way to class, Seokmin turning around and heading to his own. He looked down at the water in his hands, pressing it to his lips and taking a sip.

         He asked me on another date… Seokmin thought. He felt giddy, even more so than he did when leaves were crunching under his feet.

⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔(im)perfect🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌⚔🦌

         Friday needed to skip over to Saturday. Seokmin will not be a ball of nerves on Saturday. However, when one o’clock struck, he headed over to the theatre building. Jihoon would be putting a big callbacks sheet on the theatre door at 1:45, and already it was packed with eager actors and actresses clamoring to see if they were asked for another shot at showing their skills. He felt a hand on his shoulder, and looked to see Junhui. His hair was brushed back a bit, and rimmed glasses sat on his face. He glanced at Seokmin and smiled.

         “I’m nervous.” Seokmin breathed. Junhui took his hands and shook his head.

         “We will be fine.” He assured. “Manifestation, remember?” Yes, he remembered. His sister texted him again to remind him. His eyes darted around just as Seungkwan and Mingyu approached. “…Waiting for Joshua-Hyung?” he asked. Seokmin immediately sensed the annoyed tone in Junhui’s voice.

         “No.” He said quickly. Junhui didn’t look convinced. “Well, yeah. But he said this afternoon that his class ends at 1:30, so he’ll try to leave the class a bit earlier.” Seokmin saw Junhui shrug. “Where’s Minghao?”

         “Same thing.” He said. “Class until 1:30. But he knows who made callbacks, so he said he’ll stay away.” Seokmin’s eyes widened, so Junhui had to clarify: “His art class is leading the set design for their final project, so he’s been working with Jihoon and the entire team pretty closely.” Seokmin nodded, before Seungkwan poked his head into the conversation.

         “Your little boyfriend was finishing up in Professor Moon’s office when I saw him.” Seokmin checked his phone. It was 1:30. Shit, where did the time go? He looked up, seeing the crowd of people by the front door growing even larger. He gulped.

         “We should probably wait until it thins out a bit.” Seokmin said when he saw Seokjin making his way over, grinning and chatting with a few friends and a gaggle of adoring fans. “I don’t want to have to push through.”

         “Good idea.” Mingyu stretched his arms over his head. Seokmin rubbed his arm, turning to look over his shoulder. He bit his lip, looking between his three friends as they formed idle conversation about relationships. Mingyu chatted about Seungcheol being way too loud with his games, Seungkwan gushed about how Vernon sat next to him in class for three days straight so it’s getting serious, and Junhui shared a little update on Minghao’s excitement for his art class final. Seokmin always listened in moments like this because he had nothing to contribute. He wanted to be part of their conversation beyond just a listener. He felt a nervous seed plant into his stomach, but he took a deep breath.

         “…Joshua asked me on another date.” He muttered under his breath. Silence. All eyes were on him, and Seokmin stared directly at the floor. “I think. Well, he called it a date, so-.”

         “That’s awesome, Min.” Mingyu grinned, nudging his friend. “Where too?”

         “Uhm, he said something about music. Not sure of all the details yet.”

         “But did he specify it was a date?” Seungkwan asked. When Seokmin nodded, Seungkwan gasped. “Ohhhh my gosh. Seokmin, how cute. Congratulations~.”

         “Called it.” Junhui grinned. Seokmin laughed shyly, nodding his head.

         “Yeah, I’m excited.” He said. Just then, another voice was heard calling his name, and his eyes shot up.

         “Speak of the devil,” Mingyu murmured, a grin still on his face as Joshua hurried over. He looked down at Seokmin, seeing the nervous smile on his face fully form into a genuine one.

         “Am I late?” Joshua asked, almost nervous as he looked around. Seokmin shook his head.

         “No.” he said. “No you’re not late. You're right on time.” He was practically singing those words. He wondered why there was an unfamiliar feeling in his chest as he said them. “You're not late…” he said one more time. Joshua smiled proudly. 

         “Then what are we waiting for?!” Joshua asked. He led the charge towards the crowd, Seokmin and Junhui immediately following the charismatic leader. Seungkwan glanced at Mingyu.

         “I thought we were waiting for the crowds to die down.” Mingyu only shrugged, and the two of them followed behind. Seokmin hurried to Joshua’s side.

         “I hope you didn’t get in trouble for leaving early.” Joshua shook his head.

         “I made sure to ask permission. Professor Moon just told me to take anything I didn’t finish home and make up the extra thirty minutes.” Seokmin smiled. “It’s worth it, though, so I don’t mind.” Seokmin chuckled. “Unless you don’t get a callback, then I’ll make you do the work for me as reparations.”

         “I don’t think that’s how that works.” Seokmin commented. As the group got closer, the sheet was already posted on the door, Jihoon most likely sneaking in and out to post it amongst the chaos. Seokmin watched as everyone shuffled in between others to try and get a glimpse. His eyes darted amongst the people passing him by, gauging their reactions. Faces of disappointment, anger, joy. All of the emotions radiated off each person who passed by Seokmin, attaching to him like a magnet. It weighed him down, and made his bones feel heavy with nerves. If people like Kim Jisoo or Park Jinyoung were leaving frustrated, what did that mean for him?

         Junhui took a deep breath, a stone cold look on his face. “I’m going in.” He said.   

         “God speed.” Seungkwan called. Joshua’s laugh hit Seokmin’s ear and made him shiver. He pressed his finger to his lips as Junhui navigated through the crowd. It was thinning with each passing second as people discovered their fate, but Junhui still had to wiggle through like a tall sardine. Seokmin looked at the others.   

         “He’ll definitely get something.” He said. “He did so good.”

         “So did you.” Mingyu assured. Seokmin glanced at Joshua, who was focused on scanning the crowd, eyes darting between different people. He looked interested in the chaos.

         “It feels like I’m back home.” He said. “I live right by the Staples Center back in LA. You ever hear of it?”

         “No.” Mingyu and Seungkwan said. Seokmin felt guilty shaking his head as well when Joshua looked at him next.

         “Well, they have lots of sports stuff there and concerts. I’ve seen people topple one another like this to get tickets last minute or right as they go on sale. It’s nuts.” He flashed a smirk of amusement.

         A few moments later, Junhui reemerged. Nobody needed to ask what happened, because he was beaming.

         “I got a callback for Lancelot.” He said, and was immediately swarmed with congratulatory hugs and cheers. Seokmin clapped for him, but he was too nervous to really relax and celebrate, at least for now. Seokmin caught a beeline straight for the list, but he was still too far to see his name. Junhui patted his back. “You should go look.” Seokmin looked up at Junhui, who was still grinning.

         “Did I get one?” he asked.

         “Why would I tell you?” Junhui smirked. “The paper’s right there.”

         “I’ll die if I have to walk over there and not get anything. That’s the worst walk of shame I’ll ever do.” Joshua snorted at his use of words, and Seokmin’s cheeks tinted red. “That’s not what I-.”

         “We know what you mean.” Mingyu gave him a supportive pat on the back. “Want me to come up there with you?”

         “Sure.” Seokmin smiled at his friend as the duo made their way through the crowds. Seokmin saw a few people he knew from previous plays, and he said his brief hellos in passing, wishing them luck as they made their way up front. Mingyu wasn’t one for violence, but he was big and buff, so most people didn’t want to risk pissing him off. The one that didn’t know him at least. Never judge a book by its very broad cover. Seokmin approached the front, covering his eyes. “Aaaaa, Gyu, I’m terrified.”

         “Don’t be.” Mingyu said. He could sense a bit of excitement in his friend’s voice, and he finally found the confidence to open his eyes. His eyes scanned under each male character’s name, then to the ensemble. Finally, his eyes landed on the lead: Arthur. He scrolled down the handful of names placed underneath, and his eyes widened.

         “Oh wow.” He blinked. “...Oh wow! I got one! Really?!”

         “Hell yeah, you did!” Mingyu threw his arms around Seokmin’s shoulders, pulling him into a tight side hug. “I knew it!”

         When Seokmin turned back, Junhui’s smile was the first he caught, the smile of someone who knew and was waiting to see the other’s reaction. He and Mingyu made their way back over.

         “I got one for Arthur.” Seokmin gasped, hands cupped over his mouth in surprise and excitement. Seungkwan cheered, throwing his arms around Seokmin almost immediately.

         “Congratulations, Hyung! Did I ever doubt you?!”

         “I know, I know.” He grinned. Finally relieved, he turned to Junhui and their smiles immediately mirrored one another. Seokmin hugged him tightly. “I knew you’d get one, Hyung. It was so obvious;  they should basically just give you the role!”

         “You give me waaaay too much credit.” Junhui laughed. “But thank you. Same to you!”

         “I told you.” Seokmin turned to Joshua, who was brushing some of his brown hair from his face and smiling. Seokmin blushed, covering his cheeks. Joshua stepped closer. “What was it you said when we hung out and practiced?” he asked. Seokmin was quiet for a second, but Joshua only stuck his hand up in the air, fingers pinched together. “Salute?”

         “Oh God.” Seokmin sank to the floor, covering his face. He immediately heard Seungkwan burst into laughter, doubled over at the memory of how hard Seokmin laughed the first time he heard that in the movie. “I forgot I told you about that.”

         Joshua grinned, standing Seokmin up. He threw an arm around the blushing mess, pulling him to his side before once again shouting. “SALUTE!”

         “Oh God, stop, people are looking at us!” Seokmin gasped, his cheeks flaring red as he buried his face into Joshua’s shoulder in hopes of avoiding their gaze.

         “They should! They’re looking at the lead for XCalibur and they don’t even know it yet!” Joshua cheered. “We have to celebrate!”

         “Agreed! Dinner on Mingyu and Seungcheol-Hyung!” Junhui shouted.

         “We paid last time!” Mingyu shouted. When Seokmin lifted his head up, he immediately saw other passerby’s staring at them. He wanted to die. He covered his face, and Joshua only chuckled, continuing to hold him to his side.

         “Awww, don’t be shy.” He begged, putting a hand on Seokmin’s hair. He chuckled. “You’re so cute.”

         “Stop, you’re giving people the wrong idea.” Seokmin looked up at him, but Joshua only grinned.

         “Am I?” He asked. Seokmin had nothing to say in the moment. He only kept his red cheeks covered and stared at Joshua’s face. Was he?

         “…I need to call my mom.” He finally said, turning away from a snorting Joshua and scrambling for his phone as he headed outside. He pressed the phone to his ear, the ringing hopefully a distraction from the way his heart pounded against his ribcage and the way his face and neck burned. Joshua’s adorable, perfect smile was burned into his mind, but he didn’t mind.

         When his mother picked up and he told her the news, her cheers only distracted him for as long as he had her on the phone. She was busy at work and eager to tell her coworkers the news, so the call only lasted 10 minutes. Fuck. 

Seokmin was staring down at his phone screen when a hand was thrown around his shoulder. The force made him think it was Mingyu, but when he turned to his left, Joshua still had the same scrunched-up nose and an amused grin on his face. 

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[microsuedemouse]

I think I’ve figured out what’s bugging me about season two of vmars, which I’m a little over halfway through

(as a disclaimer - I am spoiled for most of, if not all, the major plot beats. I know who the big bad of the season will be and why, I know the timeline of Veronica and Logan’s ons and offs, I knew what was coming with Duncan… I genuinely don’t know if the suspense would have me more engaged if that weren’t the case. it’s hard to say!)

and I think it’s. hm. to put it all under one descriptor, I feel like this season is all just… waiting to earn back the payoff we got from season one.

there are a few parts to that. for one, I feel like a major theme in s1 is that Veronica starts out as an outcast and pariah, with people she likes well enough (see: her pilot interaction with Corny), but no actual friends. and throughout the season we get to see her grow closer with several people. she’s still guarded, and for good reason, but she’s connecting with people! she and Wallace become best friends, she and Weevil develop a very fun dynamic, she and Mac become friends, she and Meg develop some really wonderful sisterhood. she and Duncan slowly return to speaking terms and start to trust each other again. and, obviously, she and Logan go from former-friends-now-bitter-enemies to cautiously-allies to stupid-in-love. a lot of those relationships have serious bumps, largely due to who Veronica is as a person, but by the end she has several great friends and a deeply adoring boyfriend (though that last bit is admittedly complicated in the last episode).

and that’s a great payoff for the season. The Veronica/Logan especially so, since their chemistry clearly became a huge focal point for the show, and their romance a big draw for viewers. season two puts them… back to square one. she and Logan have broken up and clearly both are bitter about it. she returns to Duncan and their romance is very sweet - and, arguably, important for Veronica’s personal development, because she gets closure on their relationship this time - but it also lacks a lot of what makes her and Logan compelling. (so much so that Duncan soon leaves the show!) meanwhile her friendship with Weevil is strained, Meg hates her then falls into a coma and they only barely make up before she dies, and Wallace straight up bails out of the entire show for several episodes. in general I feel like there’s a lot less of the great character dynamic work the first season had, whether for Veronica or even amongst the other characters. (season one saw some great Logan + Duncan and Logan + Weevil, for instance.) even Veronica’s relationship with her father, which is major in s1 and was one of my favourite elements of the show when I started it, feels like it’s fallen to the wayside by mid-s2.

it makes sense, in some ways. especially, again, with Veronica and Logan - two thoroughly damaged, extremely headstrong teenagers. no matter how in love they are, yeah, of course they’d have issues. but breaking them up between seasons and taking the whole of s2 to get them back to where they were in the last few eps of s1? when the build-up of their relationship was so well-paced and so effective the first time? it feels rude! in s1 it was payoff; now it feels like I’m just waiting to get back the thing I waited so long for in the first place. and even friendship ups and downs make perfect sense in this kind of character-driven work, especially when - again - it’s about teenagers, but sending Veronica back to being lonely and ostracized (if to a slightly lesser extent) is just… mean. we’ve done this before. let’s move forward, not just repeat.

the other thing is in relation to the season’s overarching mystery. in s1, Veronica is trying to solve her best friend’s murder - obviously extremely personal. as a secondary running plotline, we have her searching for her missing mother, which is also really personal. and eventually she also investigates her own rape, which… jesus. it’s easy to get invested, because she’s invested. she’s connected. every secret she uncovers, every step closer she gets to the answer, is a revelation that affects her directly: secrets kept by Lilly, by Lianne, those have real impacts on Veronica. on how she understands her life and the people around her.

the s2 mystery is a lot less personal. yes, Veronica should have been on that bus, and yes, it’s heartbreaking what happens to Meg… but the bus crash is much less intrinsically linked to Veronica than the big plots from s1. she doesn’t get her foundations rocked with every new discovery. now, again, because of the spoilers I’ve seen, I know that the endgame of this mystery does link back to her in a very personal way, but there’s no real suggestion of that throughout the season as a whole. a couple times she worries that there is, that she was the target, but they find out before long that that’s not necessarily the case. so like… I am kind of waiting for the character-level payoff she’ll get at the end of the season, which will be gratifying, but I wouldn’t know it was coming if I hadn’t been spoiled.

to be clear: I’m still enjoying the show. there’s a lot to love. but I think all of its greatest strengths are lacking in s2, and I suspect I was right when I guessed, upon finishing s1, that that would be its best season. season one really tells an entire story, in a way that’s difficult to effectively replicate a second time around.

[ballsballsbowls]

It REALLY is, to the extent that it's almost a little jarring when they get their dicks out and I go, "Oh YEAH this is pornography. I bought this to read porn."

I'm having a super fun time of it so far, and if I read the whole thing and they don't do anything really offputting, I'll be happy to tell everyone what the book and the series is.

I talk about it sometimes, but I think what really separates a "this hit all the right plot beats and was good, but I didn't LOVE it" from a book that you love—probably in all genres but in romance and erotica especially—is being passionate about one of the focal points of the story. If you are, readers can tell, and it adds to the story. Having something to talk about outside of the love/sex plot can do a lot for the story if you're any good at it and wow, does this author love the land on the CA/AZ border and the people who live there (including centering an entire bdsm erotica around the long-term effects of uranium mining).

This is book 5 in a series, and I probably will read at least one more in the series after this unless something incredibly awful happens in the rest of the story.

[fellforfiction]

Shows I watched in 2024

and my thoughts on them…

Shameless 4/5

I loved this show I’ve always liked dramedy’s and shameless was the perfect mix between dark humor and good writing. The characters were all interesting and charming in their own way. I like shows that are family centered/ focus on family dynamic since my family is fairly small i find big families super interesting. I didn’t like the last couples seasons because of course their main character left the show but overall it was very good and i would say it’s my comfort show

Fleabag 5/5

Love love loved this show. I still think this is one of the funniest shows ever. I love phoebe waller bridge and her writing is always fantastic. Her sense of humor is one of a kind and it kinda gives me succession vibes. Loved Andrew Scott in this as well fleabag and the priest will remain iconic forever i fear. i definitely will watch this show again whenever i want a laugh or whenever i want a cry.

Ted Lasso 5/5

This show is so wholesome and funny and a perfect pick me up. It remains lighthearted without overlooking struggles within the characters. It had a hallmark movie / this is us vibe to it. It tugs at your heart strings and makes you cry and smile at the same time I don’t know how to explain it but it’s just such a nice show.

This Is Going To Hurt 4/5

I haven’t seen many people talk about this show which was so sad to find out because it is SO good. It’s about a male OB/GYN and his resident working in an understaffed and underfunded hospital. It portrays the decline of their mental health as they loose patients and as they struggle to balance their work life and at home life. It’s a short series but I highly recommend it, I watched it in like 2 days.

Daisy Jones and the Six 5/5

A perfect mix of two things I love. Romance and Music. So of course I immediately became obsessed with this series. I’ve always liked Sam Claflin but he really said I’m an ACTOR with this show. The soundtrack is SOO FUCKING GOOD. I still have songs of theirs in my playlists.

The Artful Dodger 4/5

This show is everything I ever would want in a show it’s an oliver twist spinoff set in 1850s australia about Jack Dawson trying to leave his criminal life behind and pursue surgery. I loved the romance most of all because it is so cliche and sometimes I just want a cute traditional romance. I highly recommend this show to anyone looking for something different than what they usually watch and who likes a chaotic plot.

Peaky Blinders 5/5

I can’t express with words how much I loved this show. This kickstarted my love for cillian murphy I genuinely can’t believe I waited this long to watch this brilliant show ummmm. Yeah I have nothing else to say except that it’s a perfect show and I’m excited for the film.

Love & Death 3/5

Elizabeth olsen shined in this series I lovedddd to see her portray a crazy lady in crisis. I never noticed how amazing of an actor lizzie really is until I watched this show. The storytelling was a little slow in my opinion and I didn’t love how it was told. Overall the show is made well and it was interesting to watch just not paced the best and at times I would get bored.

Game of Thrones 5/5

I finally watched game of thrones and i was not disappointed. it definitely lives up to the hype. it’s just fantasy magic and i love it. and ofc the ending was terrible.

House of the Dragon 5/5

I love Olivia Cooke. I love Emma D’arcy. I love this show with all my heart. My favorite part is the relationship between Alicent and Rhaenyra as they ARE the stars of the show and their relationship IS the focal point. I can’t wait for season 3

Interview With The Vampire 5/5

This show does not compare to the movie or the books it is 1000x better. There has always been so much material to play with and the movie just didn’t do any of it, and i’m so glad that the show writers did. I love that the first season was set in new orleans it added so much charm and character to the show. I love vampire romance so so much and this show does it so well. the characters have so many layers and so much personality I couldn’t be happier. I think this show is one of the best of all time.

Baby Reindeer 5/5

Every actor/actress deserved all the awards oh my goddd. This show was outstanding. Richard Gadd is not only brave for writing this and putting it out there but also for acting in it. Him acting in it added so much meaning to this show and I’m happy he could do it. It unfortunately gave a platform and gave attention to his stalker which she should never ever have again. but overall this show was a masterpiece and is so meaningful.

Fellow Travelers 4/5

Jonathan Bailey. Jonathan Baileyyyyyy. What can I even say. Bro is magical. This show hit all the heartstrings. It was also a history lesson because I didn’t know half of the shit that they talked about in this show and I should have. I love the message this show tells and I love that the romance didn’t overshadow the message. Everyone in this show is so talented and I would encourage anyone to watch this series.

One Day 5/5

UGHHHHH this show was so fucking heart breaking and so well done. I love a romanceeeeee I will never not watch a romance. I never saw the film and I don’t care because the show was better I don’t need to watch the film the show was better (jk) but not rlly. Ambika Mod is so talented I love her so much and I hope to see much much more of her.

White Lotus 4/5

Binged in one week. This show is so entertaining I don’t know if it’s laced with crack or something but I couldn’t stop watching. It’s so funny and it almost has telenovela/soap opera level drama I love it. I initially started watching this because I saw that Aubrey Plaza was in the second season but I stayed for Jennifer Coolidge because she was hilarious.

Alias Grace 3/5

I don’t know what the hell inspired this freaky show but it’s very well done i must say. I don’t love a narration in a tv series but It wasn’t as overbearing as other shows i’ve watched. the narration was important to the story though because it’s about a woman telling her story. I didn’t love the freaky ass doctor patient relationship going on. I did like how it leaned into the supernatural but I wish it leaned into it moreee. this show had one foot in supernatural territory and the other in psychological thriller and i wish they blurred the line a little more. other than that this show was really interesting to follow and the visuals were amazingggg.

Abbot Elementary 4/5

I actually haven’t finished this show but I wanted to include it because it’s so talked about rn. It’s definitely not exactly my sense of humor but it still gets me giggling every once in a while. it’s got that ted lasso charm to it just because it’s so innocent. I like the fact that it’s majority African American cast and that’s part of the reason why I enjoy it so much. It’s rare to find a show that isn’t flooded with white people so best believe i’m gonna continue watching abbot elementary.

[cadwo]

Sometimes I'll remember that "in BL stories you'll always see women in positions of power but never see them as key players in moving along the plot" and feel a little guilty thinking about one of my main writing projects because like, yeah I guess I'm guilty of that

I like to think that some of the girls do actually get meaningful scenes, but of course in that one guy's twisted tragedy romance story it is not going to have them as the focal point. The lesbian trio running about a tenth of the Underworld and the lesbian quad who have freshly taken control of Haven are all very important people to him just by proximity. One of those people is his employer(and someone who becomes a dear friend to him), and the Haven quad are all people he grew up with. Of course they'd be important to him, but maybe not necessarily so important to have them in most scenes as far as the story goes, as far as what his plot events are focused on.

Is this me making excuses? Maybe. But hopefully it makes some sense to future me reading this back whenever I think about that post again.

[swapauanon]

My Opinions on RWBY: Volume 9: As A Whole

Okay so, let's start with this: Is RWBY Volume 9 the best Volume yet?

And the answer is, no. Volume 7 is still peak RWBY.

It is, however, a very close second.

Volume 9 has a lot going for it, from its writing, to its surreal animation, to the culmination of Ruby's arc, there are very few things wrong with it. LIke, if not for one character, this would be the best Volume yet.

Unfortunately, it has to follow-up on V8C14, the worst episode of the show ever made, and thus it ends up being held back by retreading ground we've ALREADY COVERED in the Mistral Arc thanks to Jaune's presence. Volume 8 had been building up Nora finding herself and carving out her own identity, but because Jaune fell into the Ever After instead of her, we instead get a sad old man feeling sorry for himself and refusing to take responsibility for his own choices.

The fact that nobody calls him out for his verbal abuse of Ruby still has me hoping someone will deck him.

His ship tease with Weiss was absolutely infuriating though. As mentioned before, one of the key facets of Weiss' character is that she is NOT attracted to him. A well-written Weiss would be NAUSEATED to discover her first fictional crush was Jaune all along!

At the very least, they toned the shiptease DOWN from what they had originally planned, so it's only a couple of moments instead of the focal point of Weiss' arc. The fact that they chose to de-age him has me worried that they're planning on making it endgame and realized how creepy the pairing was with Jaune looking his actual age, but I'm HOPING someone on the writing team comes to their senses and realizes how sleazy this entire thing is and cuts that romance arc ENTIRELY in future Volumes.

Volume 9 could have been great, but Jaune's presence means it has to settle for merely being good instead.

The Soundtrack, thankfully, is pretty stand-out, with Quiet being the only song I can't at least remember the FEEL of. It has its own unique style I struggle to put into words.

The antagonists are also all pretty good.

I like how the Ever After is portrayed as a threat to our heroes, up until Neo makes her first move in the episode set at the market, at which point we get a shift to how humans can be a threat to the Ever After. Admittedly, we only get two episodes of this before Ruby's clash with Neo, but it is a neat change of pace while it lasts.

I also appreciate the hints at Penny's revival. I still hold the opinion that it would be terrible writing to end her arc on the note it closed on in the Volume 8 finale, so all of the hints at Penny returning in the future feel well earned.

The new world-building also feels great, and we have a means to separate Ozpin and Oscar, as well as get around Salem's curse. We just need to find a way BACK into the Ever After.

The final battle at the Tree was great, and I loved Ruby's chats with the Blacksmith.

And also, there's the Bumbleby kiss. The framing of that part of the episode was great, and the fact that it was used to hint at Nuts & Dolts (via Ruby's own reaction to it) was also appreciated. It feels like the perfect level of grandiosity attached to the kiss that's been built up for so many years. The music was beautiful as well, and the animation did a good job of taking advantage of the Ever After's surreal animation.

As much as I hate Jaune's presence, his reveal as the Rusted Knight was a good moment.

Oh yeah, I brought up that the antagonists were pretty great, but then didn't explain my thoughts at them.

The Red Prince and the Peddler are great as villains of the week and setting up the Ever After's rules. The Herbalist works well as an example of how someone can unwittingly cause harm while trying to be helpful. Jaune's tenure as an antagonist was brief, and I feel like he got off FAR too lightly for the role he played in Ruby's breakdown and suicide attempt (as he actively and DELIBERATELY tore her down MORE just to make himself feel better), but I like how he served mostly as an example of how humans can hurt the Afterans, more an antagonist to the Paper Pleasers than he is to Team RWBY.

But then there are the Big Bad level threats: The Jabberwalker, Neo, and the Curious Cat.

Firstly, I love how each "new" Big Bad ends up taking out the previous one in order to establish themself as more threatening.

The Jabberwalker, in spite of being a MASSIVE threat to the Ever After, only menaces the heroes ONCE and is anticlimatically taken out by Neo's Semblance evolution in its next appearance. Team RWBY only learns its a Big Bad level threat AFTER Neo has disposed of it.

Neo's tenure as central antagonist is a good culmination of her storyline since her introduction, and I like that you don't have to read Roman Holiday to get the gist of her backstory from the paintings and the smoke. It's also nice to finally see her Semblance reach its full potential. Her Jabberwalker clones also allow for the Volume to have an analogue to the Grimm encounters of previous Volumes in a world without Grimm. Her being left feeling hollow after finally achieving her revenge also feels perfect, as she had based her entire identity on getting revenge. With that gone, she had nothing.

The Curious Cat works amazingly as the Big Bad, mostly in how they feign friendliness to Team RWBY. You can even see all the ways they manipulate and wear away at Ruby in the episodes prior to their reveal, when they begin openly antagonizing the heroes. Also, the way they possessed Neo was insanely creepy.

Speaking of, I like how they used Maya's default texture with Neo's eyes while she was getting possessed. That was a great way to take advantage of something built into the engine matching up so well with the Curious Cat's aesthetic.

And then there's the Volume 9 animatic.

First of all, I'm hoping Jax gets a redemption arc. Team RWBY are currently alligned with his abuser, Theodore.

Secondly, Neon/Nora shiptease? It's not a pairing I'd ever think up, but if my aroace Lie Ren interpretation ends up being canon...

Good to see Ozpin doing everything he can to buy Oscar time by helping him fight off the merge.

Salem's relocated from Evernight to Vale, which could imply she's using Beacon as her headquarters now.

I don't get why they'd cure Winter's paralysis. They have so few disabled heroes, so it feels WRONG to get rid of Winter's disability now that she's on the side of good. It'd be like if Yang's arm grew back, or they shoved Penny into a flesh body she never asked for. (Wait, they actually did that second thing.) Tune in next time when Fox's eyes are "fixed"! (Apollo DNI.)

As for the ending, I still stand by what I've said previously, Raven is not entitled to Yang's time or forgiveness, and the healthiest thing for Yang to do for herself would be to call Raven "Branwen" instead of "Mom". Raven is not her family.

But back on topic, in spite of Jaune's best efforts, this is a real step up from Volume 8!

Here's to Volume 10 being even better!

[sobaboyos]

I’m the previous anon that sent in the ask about Nesta not having another book. I strongly believe that the Valkyries will take over the Prison with Nesta ruling over it as a general. From political standpoint, it makes a lot of sense, or to me it does. And I just love the idea of the Prison being this little sanctuary for the Valkyries with maybe some Pegasus in the future.

As for Azriel’s book, I definitely think plot wise it will involve Illyria for obvious reasons, I know some believe an Illyrian rebellion might happen. And definitely Enalius because of Truth-Teller, Ramiel could be his plot or Elucien’s (or split in half), same with the Autumn Court but it feels more for Azriel’s story since Eris is more connected to Autumn than Lucien, and like you said, Eris has been working with the IC, and then the theories that Gwyn is a Vanserra. Imagine the drama that would unfold, but it would be funny imo. Especially since Azriel hates that family.

I think Gwynriel romance won’t start until the middle of the book/second part of his story, which I’m fine with. I want the slow burn to burn. Please make that man grovel. The first part could be him working on his self worth, unresolved feelings for Mor, and then maybe what happened with Elain. But dealing with Mor feels more important since he spent 500 years obsessing over her. I’m not sure if Merrill will be a villain or not. I’ve seen theories on Gwynriel being a retelling of the Little Mermaid. I think Gwyn helping with research is going to come into play and in the Blood Rite we saw some spy qualities from her, so maybe she’ll go on missions. I think Azriel and Gwyn will become closer from training, teaching each other Illyrian and Valkyrie techniques, late nights researching together, and if she does do spy things then he’ll have to train her for certain things. Also, I think it’s very possible that Gwyn will find Narben based on some things from ACOSF. The Prison is Valkyrie territory, and Nesta is the general that rules over it with Gwydion and Narben safely in their possession.

I could see Azriel and Gwyn discovering something with Ramiel that could be used to build up the plot for Koschei and the mortal queens. Some crumbs might be sprinkled. I have a lot of ideas with Gwynriel. Elucien’s book will be Vassa’s curse, taking down Koschei, dealing with the Spring Court, and perhaps the mortal queens. I want to see courtier Elain and Lucien. They’re the courtier couple. Sorry for the long ask! I’m in an excited mood!

Hey nonnie! Sorry I got busy and then fall asleep didn't mean to leave ya hanging! Don't be sorry for the long ask! Be excited!! I love it!.

Idk about the prison cause they need the prison, and idk how the Valkyries would feel being basically guards there. Not to mention, the IC never wanna go there unless needed. So Cassian and Az, especially if Gwynriel happens, will have something to say about it. Unless they wipe out the prison, maybe which honestly begs the question of what or who else is the prison. But I'm living for the idea of the Prison becoming a place for Peagus so if the prison comes down in here for it. I wouldn't mind them taking over this spot. I just don't want them to become badass prison guards lol.

100% on the second paragraph and I highly doubt the Illyrian rebellion is done. You're telling me it was a huge focal point in acofas and then somehow, off page it was resolved??? Yeah I doubt that. I don't know how to feel about the Gwyn is a Vanserra. I get where people are coming from with it so it would make sense if sjm does it. Since there's already an established family drama plot line with Lucien idk feels like too much of the same to me. But if she's going for Kardashians level of drama for the Vanserras then yeah let's do it.

I have seen the Little Mermaid theory around too and my advice is like for or other folktales and mythology that can be franksteined into it. It's a fairly sound theory but Sarah is and has never been straightforward with a retelling. There are always twists that pull in elements from other fairytale, folklore and mythology. And yeah I definitely agree with your Gwynriel/Az book points. It has to be slow burn for so many reasons. Yeah he says he's over Mor and let it go but did you my guy??? Did you??? The necklace needs to be addressed although I don't think it's going to be this huge thing that alot of readers believe it will be. I think it's gonna be one scene that plays out, and there's gonna be a visceral reaction from Elain. It's gonna be a catalyst for both or one pairing. Regardless if Elain and Az both moved on its still kinda weird to see a gift given to you on someone else. I also think it's important for a Gwynriel romance to be slow burn bc Az is fucking clueless and needs alot to work on and Gwyn has a lot of healing to do.

And yes, I would love to see Lucien and Elain play courtiers. I think, well, I know Lucien can play the court politics game, but Elain would fit into that so well. They both have so much charm, charisma, and observation skills. It's gonna be so good. I'm so pumped for their book. I know a lot of people want and are expecting Gwynriel/Az book. I, too, think it's possible.. but ugh, I want The Elucien book so bad, and I've always been in the camp of its next.

I guess it's gonna come down to who's the big bad...Koschei or Merill? I doubt it's the mortal queens

[dawllick]

Stranger Things Thoughts

No one asked but after my annual rewatch wanted to share some season 4 musingssss

Okay so first:

I really hope that Nancy ends the series single. I don’t see the writers back tracking to make Robin x Nancy thing (which I’m for and find delightful and hilarious due to their canon dynamic), and I don’t want her to end up with Steve or Jonathan at this point. Jonathan wants something different, and I feel Steve has this idolized version of Nancy. Her character is one I could see still seeking mystery and adventure in the future, if they kill Nancy in S5 I would be genuinely shocked. I truly love the idea of her ending the series single and on good terms with everyone, mainly due to her age. Going through college I saw way too many people that have been dating or haven’t been single since middle school, and it’s be cool to end the show with a character was a focal point in the romance aspect for a good chunk of it single.

Kiddos:

Dustin: I literally just want him to live. I don’t think they’d kill any of the kiddos but like….Max is on thin ice soooooooooo

Lucas: For the other kiddos to give him more love? Season four he gave and gave and gave and gave. Lucas needs more like…appreciation lol

Max: omg girl I need you to live or something pls

Mike: …..they won’t kill him and nothing bad has happened to him. Like no, the worst thing to occur to him was when Billy knocked him out in S3 and he was fine a few mins later. He’ll be fine.

El: my sweet baby angel, I want you to tear a whole dimension apart. I’d love to see her do smth new with her powers…idk what but like if she’s back to full steam I think she deserves some new tricks as a treat

Will: best boy for last, I am still holding out on Will getting powers. He was in the upside down for a week, AND had Vecna in his mind for like…..a few days and managed to still get a message to the gang. Plus! I wanna see more sibling interactions between him an El, I am more interested in that than whatever shipping is going on between the children which I can’t get behind bc….they’re like…13? 14? They’re babies. ALSO I hope Will comes out to his friends as well, but also I hope they don’t introduce some random new character for him to get a crush on. I’m not huge on Will x Mike mainly bc I’m not a huge Mike fan, and again….shipping….

Adults:

Joyce: this woman and her children need a fucking vacation, Joyce should get a gun and like….idk what else Joyce is a great woman and she and Hopper deserve a long nap

Hopper: I hope he has like something go right for him this season. Like have a super good time with something and it not be a direct part of story development let the man have emotional rest. Also get him some lasagna and bread sticks.

Enzo: pls give me more Enzo, he’s a lil daddy also seems like a…character who has more to add to the story

Murray: He’s my baby girl, he has a black belt, he speaks Russian, my father and I both adore him, he’s a bitch, he’s got the biggest heart, he flew out to check on Joyce after she lost the call, he went with her to Russia to get Hopper back, and the funniest guy on there (to me). IF he dies, after making me watch Bob, Aleksi, and my beloved Eddie die I actually become a hater. He is the one character whose death I don’t think I could handle, well maybe Steve but yeah

Teens:

Robin: let her function, like a bit better around Vicky, I still need her to be a disaster otherwise however. Also live, she’s sweet and should not be separated from Steve

Nancy: see above

Jonathan: I hope he and Nancy amicably break up, and be better friends because of it. They do work well together. If they stay together I’ll be surprised because they had some issues in season 3, and then more obvious ones in season 4. Narrative wise they are headed for break up city, I’ll be shocked if they make it.

Argyle: I need him to live, he’s the gentle giant, the Shaggy and scooby, he’s precious.

Steve:

…

Where do I start? Okay SO Steve is babygirl, and I’m over here thinking it would be neat for Steve to work on himself S5. I don’t see Nancy x Steve working again because 1: I’m not a fan of a character ending a relationship and jumping to another. I didn’t like how quickly Jonathan and Nancy got together in S2. 2., Steve had no romantic interest in Nancy in season 3. Literally none, it felt weird to have him pining over her in season 4. Steve has been used to subvert quite a few tropes already, and has become a very kind character because of it. He spends time with Dustin and gives him advice, he went to the basketball game and cheered for Lucas when everyone else was doing something else (Max gets a pass but she wasn’t there tho), constantly put himself between the kids and danger, accepted Robin for who she was when she came out to him, and ran back into danger for Nancy and Jonathan when they first fought the demogorgan.

I think Steve is my favorite character in this entire show, there are aspects of him that I relate to. He’s not the smartest guy there, but he tries, he wants to help his friends. He wants to protect, he wants to love and be loved so bad. Steve looks out for others so much, and I want to see him have a happy ending, but like…a satisfying happy ending. Idk how else to put it.

Hopes/Theories:

Eddie is still alive, because I’m delulu but also it would be fun to have him come back in season 5. He doesn’t have to come back as a bad guy, but I’m not opposed to him coming back with suddenly no memory and to be used against the kiddos and teens as a friend they left to die in the upside down (again), annnnndddd maybe having some more monstrous features about him…that go away as he remembers his friends and humanity. Anyways I really would love to see him again because also…like Eddie / Robin / Steve / Nancy as a group working together had such chemistry oh my God. Like they all had such fun chemistry together, and Jonathan is def better suited to be with Will/Mike/Argyle. Good dynamics.

Will should get powers and rip Vecna apart or at least help El in doing so. See above for more reasons why. But also Vecna put Will through a lot. Will needs some closure from the trauma he had.

Alternatively: Max gets powers from where El brought her back, being connected to Vecna who tortured her mental health, and being “blank” at the end of season 4. Her mind it’s own sensory deprivation tank, and during her “coma” maybe she develops something.

Thats all I got and if you read this, I’m so sorry this is just rambles and I’m not even going to tag it other than long post lol