#that and you need to be maxed out for Rei so I’ll have to get around to it in a couple months

[grapejuicefilledpools]

Definitely being that person but I don’t have fun with these fricking boss challenges in the story of Nu Carnival specifically. Like I’m not having fun lmao this Rei boss makes me pissy

[allinestarr]

Relentless 2/?

Charles Leclerc x Fem Driver Reader Platonic! / Max Verstappen x Fem Driver Reader!

(Guys if I had to describe this chapter in a song, it would be this.)

“ Uhhh I’m telling you going out tonight is a mistake.” You groaned as you spoke to your best friend over FaceTime.

“Y/N you deserve to celebrate. You worked hard all season and made second in drivers and constructers. Don’t devalue yourself. I know you’re bummed I can’t make it out but I promise we are going to have so much fun during break.”

“ I know Rachel but it’s just going to be so awkward. Lewis had to leave to Paris because he had some work obligations and everyone’s bringing their significant others and I’ll be the only one alone.”

“ That’s not true. Lando’s single and he’s going.”

“ Yea but you know how he is. He’s always got a crowd around him and goes off to Dj and can’t sit still. I’m going to look like a lost puppy following him around..”

“Well what about Fernando or Charles?”

“ Fernando left to be with his girlfriend in Spain and Charles.. well I don’t know. I think Alex had to leave because she had an emergency.”

“ Well there you go. Just hang out with Charles.”

“ Yea but I don’t want people to get the wrong idea. You know what happened last year. We hung out after he broke up with Charlotte and everyone blamed me for their breakup. It took a lot of pr to clear my name.”

“ Y/n it will be fine. Stop making up excuses and enjoy yourself!. Now, what are you wearing?.”

Sighing you went over a few outfits before you settled on a mid length open back black dress with some heels. Minimal make up cause you didn’t need it and some loose curls.

“ Y/n you look amazing!!” Rachel screamed.

“ You sure?. The dress feels tight and keeps riding up.”

“Y/n it’s perfect. Now go and get to the club. Have fun but not to much. Call me in the morning so we can debrief!. Byeeeeeeeeeeeeee.”

Soon after the Uber came and you made your way to the club.

“Y/n you made it!.” Lando said as he hugged you.

“ Yea. I said I’d come and here I am.”

Max was sitting off to the corner with Kelly and didn’t bother looking up to greet you. As time and drinks passed by everyone separated to dance or head off. Lando as predicted was at the Dj booth with his friends and Charles was pretty much drunk. You only had a few drinks so you only had a light buzz. To be honest, clubs and galas weren’t your scene so you couldn’t wait to leave.

“Y/n I love her soooooo much.” Charles slurred against your shoulder he leaned on.

“ I know Charles. Do you want to leave?.”

“No you don’t understand.. I love her soooo much. I regret being here. I wish I was with her right now. Everytime I’m not with her I’m so sad.”.

When you looked down at him you saw he was in fact crying, so you smiled and wiped away his tears.

“ Charles why don’t we leave so we can talk away from prying eyes.”

He smiled and nodded. When your Uber was outside you helped Charles up and he put his arm around your waist for support as you made your way outside the club. With no time to tell everyone you just decided to text them when you got back to the hotel. You didn't miss Max’s cold gaze following you with his fists clenched as you got closer to the exit. Kelly looked at him and followed his gaze to you. She raised her eyebrow curiously before looking back at Max with a scowl. Weird you though, but not your business.

Arriving at your shared hotel you took Charles to his room. He was pretty much dead weight by the time you laid him down on his bed.

“Ok Charles I’m going to leave you a glass of water and some ibuprofen for the morning. Get some rest and we will talk over breakfast.”

As you were walking away he grabbed your hand.

“No wait I want to ask you something…”

“What?.”

“Will you help me find a ring?..”

“Uh sure.. for what?..”

“For Alex. I want to ask her to marry me.”

“Yes!!. Of course I will!.” You smiled and hugged him.

“Please don’t tell anyone. I want it to be a surprise.”

“My lips are sealed. Now get some rest. We will have much to talk about in the morning!.”

Walking back to your room you bump into Lance. He smiled and nods a hello as you walk to the elevator to get your floor.

You woke up to your phone ringing and when checking, it was your best friend. As much as you wanted to decline the call to sleep in for another hour, you knew she would just call till you picked up.

“Hello..” you groaned.

“ Are you ok??.”

“Yea why would I?.”

“Well the things people were saying was pretty cruel.”

“What are you talking about??”

“Have you not checked any of your socials??”

“ No I just woke up. What’s going on??”

“Well, you were photographed with Charles and he was holding onto you and it looked like you had something going on. He was leaning close to your face and you were touching his face. They're saying Charles broke up with Alex since she’s not there and that you and him are having a fling. And the worst part is that someone who they say is a credible source said it was true.”

“That’s insane!. There’s nothing going on with Charles and I. He was drunk and was saying he missed Alex and started crying so i comforted him. I brought him back to his room and left. I can’t believe this is happening again!.”

“I know y/n. I didn’t believe it when I saw it. Listen I can come earlier if you want so you don’t have to be alone.”

As much as you wanted to at yes, you couldn’t. She’s already done so much for you and she’s taking 2 weeks off work just to spend time with you when she could be with her family.

“It’s ok Rae. I’ll be fine. I’m sure my pr is already working on fixing this. I promise I’ll keep you updated. I’ll see you next week.”

“Ok, just call me if anything. Love you.”

“Love you too. Bye."

Staying in bed all day to grovel sounded pretty good right now, but you promised breakfast with Charles so after a quick shower you sent him a text and met in the lobby. You were met with paparazzi outside the hotel bombarding you with pictures and questions.

“Charles why did you cheat on your girlfriend?.”

“Y/n how long have you and Charles been together?. Before Charlotte or before Alex?.”

“Charles is true you let Y/n win in Brazil?.”

You couldn’t get to Charles car quicker as you sped off to the cafe. Opting to sit in the farthest table away from anyone you ordered some food and sat down in silence before Charles took off his sunglasses. His eyes were red and puffy. He'd been crying.

“Charles, what’s wrong?.”

“Well apart from what’s come out everywhere, Alex called me this morning. She… she broke up with me. She saw the pictures and said she couldn’t do it anymore.”

“But it’s not true.”

“I know, I told her that but she didn’t believe me. Not when they said there was a credible source. I called around and tried to find out who it was but all they said was it was someone close to the grid. I just don’t know who would do this!.”

“ No but I have my suspicions. Don’t worry about it, I will get this all cleared up. It's going to be ok. Now, I believe we were suppose to talk about a ring..”

“ I don’t know anymore..”

“Charles, listen to me. You love her and she loves you. You and i both know that that’s rare to find with our jobs. She’s been with you through thick and thin. You said you couldn’t stand being away from her for a second. If you say she’s the one, then she’s the one.”

“You’re right. I’m putting my faith in you. So should we talk about rings?.”

You smiled and nodded as you spoke about what kind of ring she’d like and where to go to look at some and what kind of proposals he had in mind. After wrapping up the conversation you parted ways promising to meet up in Monaco to go ring shopping.

The week passed by and you were in your apartment in Monaco with Rachel.

“What should we do today?”

“I have to meet up with Charles so I won’t be back till 3 or 4. Landos in town if you want to hang out with him.”

“What are you doing with Charles?.”

Remembering your promise to keep his secret you had to come up with a lie.

“We have to go over some stuff our pr asked us to do.”

She looked at you suspiciuosly but accepted your answer.

“Oh ok then. I’ll go hang out Lando. Call me when you get back.”

“Alright see you later.”

It felt bad lying to your best friend but under the circumstances, it was necessary. After visiting pretty much every jeweler in Monaco, nothing caught Charles eye.

“It’s ok, we will find something somewhere else. What if we go to Paris next week. I heard they have the cutest vintage rings.”

“I guess. It’s just so frustrating. Nothing is going right. I have been calling her nonstop and she blocked me. I showed up at her house and she won’t answer. I sent her flowers and letters and she sends them back. I’m losing hope here.”

“ Hey don’t say that. She will forgive you. I’m narrowing the list of suspects and when I find out, I'm going to set this right. Till then, call me if anything.”

The only 2 people you could think of was Lance and Max. When you called Lance and asked him straight up, he denied it. He said he saw you walk him into his room and walk right out but didn’t suspect or think anything of it. You believed him and apologized for bothering him. That left none other then Max. The last person you would ever talk to yet you found yourself dialing his number.

"Hello?"

“Meet me at my place in 1 hour.”

Before he could say anything you hung up. Luckily Rachel was still gone when you got back. An hour later the door bell rang and upon opening it, revealed a pissed off Max. Walking away from the door you waited for him in your living room. He closed the door behind him and sat next to you on the couch.

“Well on with it. You called me, so what do you want.”

“Did you tell the media I was having an affair with Charles?.”

“No!. Why the hell would you think I would waste my time talking about you?.”

“Gee I don’t know, maybe because you hate my guts and you were scowling at me all night at the club. I know it was someone close to grid who confirmed those false rumors. It all leads to you!.”

“Do you hear yourself sometimes?. I’m pretty sure it requires someone to care about the person to talk about them and you y/n, I don’t care about. So if that’s all, I’m out of here.”

Looking into his eyes you knew he was being honest so how was it possible you got it wrong. Is there someone else out there that hates you?. Who could it be?. Wait… now that you think about it.. it couldn’t be..

“Kelly?…”

“What?.” He furrowed his brows.

“It has to be her. The way she looked at me that night.”

“She would never do something like that!. Unlike you she has class.”

“What’s that suppose to mean?!.”

“Well, it wouldn’t be the first time you’ve ruined Charles relationship.”

You couldn’t help the pit in your stomach and the tears welling up in your eyes. He went to far.

“You motherfu..”

Before you could finish your sentence Rachel walked in calling your name.

“Y/n everything good here?.”

“Yea, he was just leaving.”

Max regretted the words as soon as they came out of his mouth. He didn’t know why he said it. Was it because you accused his girlfriend or because he was jealous?. He got up and walked to the door but before walking to the elevator he turned around thinking of something to say but before the words came out you closed the door.

“Sorry…” he whispered to himself.

Max POV

Walking back to his place he thought about what you said. Kelly was mad that night and has been mad at him for quite a while. She said all he talked about was you. Whenever he lost he would talk about how you cheated someway or whenever he won he would say how much you sucked or how you didn’t drive as good as him. He said the only reason he wanted to win the championship was to rub it in your face. That night though was the worst fight he had with her.

Flashback to fight after club

Kelly saw how Max tensed when y/n showed up. She couldn’t tell if his face was red from the alcohol or from looking at y/n but she would keep a close eye. As the night went on and everyone went their own ways y/n danced with Charles and sat back down in the vip booth with him. Kelly didn’t miss how he clenched his fists and jaw when he saw y/n leave with Charles. It was so obvious to Kelly why. He didn’t want to talk when they got home but she wasn’t going to let it go.

“You like her don’t you?.”

“What are you talking about?. You’ve heard me all season complain about her, why would you assume I’d like her?.”

“Max im not blind. I saw the way you tensed when you saw her with Charles and how you watched her all night.”

“You’re imaging things. I could care less about y/n. Now please Kelly, drop it.”

Max didn’t leave any room for her to talk as he walked away to change and go to sleep. Deep down she knew it was more then that. Y/n would not take what she worked hard to get. So she made a call to one of her friends.

Back to Max POV

When he got home Kelly was sitting on the couch on the phone. He didn’t want to eaves drop but when he heard your name he stayed silent against the wall.

“Yea I can’t thank you again. It’s good everyone sees how much of a home wrecker Y/n is. I just couldn’t believe it when she told me she was with him again. I just hope she doesn’t do it to anyone else.”

When she finished her call he walked up to her.

“Hey baby you’re back early. I didn’t hear you come in. How was coffee with Charles?.”

“Why?.”

“What do you mean why?”

“Why would you ruin Y/n’s reputation?."

“I don’t know what your tal..”

“Stop lying!. I heard you!. You were the one who told the media Y/n was with Charles!.”

“And so what if I did!. Why do you care?!. You hate her, right?.”

“That’s not the point!. You lied!. I thought you were better then that.”

“And you don’t lie?. You think I’m stupid?!. I know you’re in love with her!. It’s so obvious. You said me and P were your whole world. We’ve been together for so many years and now you want to throw it away for some whore!.”

“Don’t try to manipulate me into the bad guy. I told you I don’t care about her. You lied and I can’t trust you. I think it’s best we take a break. We need space to think things through.”

“This is a mistake Max. We are a family. We can work this out.”

“No. I’ll pack some bags and you can stay here with P. I’m going to stay with my sister for a little bit. I’ll call you when I’m ready to speak to you.”

“Max don’t do this. Please!.”

As much as Kelly tried to convince Max to stay he had already packed his bags and prepared to leave before stopping in P’s room to say goodbye and that he’d be away in a business trip for a few weeks.

Back to Y/n

After Max left, Rachel tried to get you to talk but you told her you didn’t want to, so she dropped it. Instead you had a girls night in with some romcoms and your favorite foods. Everything was a mess so you decided to do something about it by starting off with Charles.

"Hey Rae, how do you feel about going to Italy next week?."

"Are you kidding me?? Is that even a question?. YES! YES! YES!!!!."

"Great, ill book our flights now."

Mission get Charles and Alex back together is in play.

The week went by fast without issue and soon enough you and Rachel were on the flight to Italy. You told Rachel about the plan minus the engagement part. After settling into the hotel you put on a summer dress with a hat and shades to not be recognized and headed to Alex’s house. Knocking on the door you waited till someone answered. When someone did, it was a middle aged lady.

“Hi, is Alex home?.”

The lady looked at you confused like she didn’t understand and you realized she probably didn’t speak English and you definitely didn’t speak Italian. So you tried loading up your translator app but it was taking forever to load. Another voice came from behind her that you recognized to be Alex.

“Y/n?”

Taking of your sunglasses and hat you nodded. She said something to the lady who walked away and then she leaned against the door.

“What are you doing here?.”

“Well, first to say me and Charles have never had any kind of relations. He’s been my friend since I’ve joined formula 1. I have never seen him in that way and never will. Secondly, I couldn’t stand seeing Charles mope around Monaco any longer. All he does is stay inside all day on his sim or play piano. And finally, I wanted to have some good gelato.” You smiled.

Alex’s face didn’t change as she processed all you've said. Eventually though, she smiled sadly.

“I miss him. I’ve never gone this long without him. I was so hurt and embarrassed when I saw those articles. Then he showed up here and it made me sick seeing him but even more turning him away. I tried moving on but all I can think about is him.”

A single tear dropped down her cheek as you hugged her.

“Is he here?.”

“No, he doesn’t know I came here. Listen why don’t we get some gelato and take a walk?”

She smiled and excused herself to get her purse. You texted Rachel.

y/n: Mission Charles and Alex back together Successful 💞✅

y/n: getting some gelato with Alex, be back soon. Don’t tell anyone including Charles, want it to be a surprise. 🤔

Rae: yayyy 😃

Rae: I love love 💕 🥰

Rae: my lips are sealed promise. 🤐🤫

Rae: also please bring me back a gelato 🍨 😀

Y/n: will do, see you soon!! 🫡

After talking to Alex for a while she agreed to come back with you to Monaco to see Charles. She didn’t call or text him to let him know, wanting it to be a surprise as well. Till then you spent your days eating the best food you could get and every gelato flavor you could find. Your pt was going to be pissed when you got back, but it was worth it.

The day came and you’d finally made it back to Monaco. Rachel had to leave the last day in Italy since she had to go back to work, so it was just you and Alex. The plan was to drop off your things first and head to Charles place. You didn’t know who was more nervous, you or Alex.

When you arrived at Charles front door you nodded to Alex as she let out a breath and knocked. Charles opened up and held his breath when he saw Alex. He was to stunned to speak so Alex did instead.

“Hi…”

“Oh hey sorry.. I just can’t believe it’s really you..”

“I’m sorry..” they both said in unison.

They laughed and Charles spoke,

“I’m sorry that I hurt you. Those rumors were just rumors. I love you and only you.”

“I know. I love you too. I was hurt but I know now that it was all lies. Y/n explained everything to me.”

That’s when he noticed you were next to Alex and he was confused.

“But how?.”

“She came to my house and told me. We spoke for a while and I understand. I’m sorry I doubted you.”

“My love, you don’t have to apologize. It was my fault. I hope you can forgive me.”

“There’s nothing to be forgiven. It was a misunderstanding. Let’s just forget about this.”

“Well that’s my queue to go. Guys im happy for you. Im gonna leave you two love birds to it. If you need anything call or text. See you later.”

You said your goodbyes and headed back to your apartment. It was late so you just stopped by your favorite restaurant and got some food to go. Getting out of the elevator you could see a man sitting against your door. Cautiously you approached him and as he heard your footsteps he looked up.

“Max?…”

Previously / Next

Taglist: @itsjustkhaos @sadg3 @d3kstar @runs-with-scissOrs

[agendabymooner]

𝐡𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲 𝐡𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲 !!! 𝐥𝐧𝟒 — 𝐭𝐰𝐨

☼ LANDO NORRIS RETWEETED

chapter summary: lando norris is beginning to show his true colours after honey-sue announced her third album release and her participation in a special event occurring in three months — maybe he’s just excited to see her during the monaco gp?

OR f1 fans are noticing that his twitter timeline is being taken over by posts about the famous british youtuber/musician.

content warning: use of explicit language, ofc’s discography is based on lana del rey’s albums and songs, insta + twitter posts, mentions of cigarette + alcohol consumption, mentions anxiety, short jokes, “liked by pierre gasly”

a - n masterlist

o - z masterlist

tagged sidemen

liked by landonorris, maxfewtrell, pierregasly

chrismd oh geez can’t wait to share lockers with you i guess 🤥

suemehoney god forbid i’d actually see some kneecaps on you, dixon 😳

user1 stop violating him oh my god 🫣😩

stephentries_ finally 🙃 the better lewis playing for the match liked by suemehoney

zerkaa one of the boooooyz 😩💪 liked by suemehoney

bambinobecky my favourite pick me 😭🫡 liked by suemehoney

suemehoney actually give me a kiss plz 🥵

user2 “liked by landonorris” 💀

user3 honey is officially a victim of “liked by pierregasly” 😭😭😭🫡

user4 what’re these f1 people doing in honey’s insta??? 😳

user5 didn’t mean to invade y’all— but we couldn’t contain lando and pierre in the horny jail so we had to check out what’s the fuss ourselves

user4 understood

liked by landonorris, pierregasly, miniminter

user1 OKAY SERVE SIS SERVE

user2 i’ll kiss you in the mouth if you do the spoon necklace again 😩

ksi 😭😭 liked by suemehoney

wroetoshaw i’ll be the first to cry when it first come out liked by suemehoney

r0sielewis 🥵 liked by suemehoney

niko they better play this at my funeral liked by suemehoney

suemehoney i’ll even dj it for you neeko 😚🤭

user3 yo these f1 drivers are wiiiiild 😭

user4 “liked by landonorris” 💀

user5 “liked by pierregasly” 😅 can’t believe this shit

user6 can’t even have shit in this economy

HONEY HONEY

william ya shit! who is this man??? he goes on to say that this lunch is important but he isn’t here??? tf am i doing here? i could be doing something else!

WILLIAM²

honey calm down m8 😅 lando said he’ll be here in five minutes that’s what max said at least why don’t you grab some alcohol

HAROLDINHO

and get her pissed in monaco at 1 in the afternoon? are you insane? do you want to die?

WILLIAM²

allow it? it’s her vacation harold— let her drink if she wants to drink

HONEY HONEY

i took my anxiety meds this morning you fuckin numpty 😭 if i drink now it’ll be nothing but a trip to the hospital for me

WILLIAM²

right. shit sorry. maybe take some breather? filly’s more than willing to walk around with you before we order. i’ll talk to max about lando 🙏 the idiot isn’t always this late so this is unusual

HONEY HONEY

you better 😐 i should’ve brought cigarettes

HAROLDINHO

shut your mouth. if i see a single stick i’m shoving it down your throat.

HONEY HONEY

oh fuck off. you’ve had worse than nicotine. bitch.

MAX 😚

m8 🤠 the more time you spend in front of a mirror the more time you lose with your lover girl

LANDO 🥵

fuck off im nervous

MAX 😚

lad 😭 she’s not going to bite you. she doesn’t even want to talk to people what makes you think she’d want to deliberately talk to you?

LANDO 🥵

that’s even worse 😭😭 i’m omw. seriously. i just need to make sure i look decent enough 🙄

MAX 😚

you might have to do some explaining to w2s about you retweeting posts about his sister though 😅 the whole “lando norris retweeted” spiel is becoming a trend and uh it’s not a good look for you

LANDO 🥵

MAX FOR FUCKS SAKE!

[bullet-clubs-bitch]

Rainy Day

MJF X Fem Reader

Summary: Max forgets to pick you up after work, leaving you stranded in the rain

Word count: 547

Main Masterlist MJF Masterlist

I fucked up, this time I really fucked up and I wasn’t sure if Y/n would forgive me for this one. Y/n and I have been dating for a few months now and I really do think that she might be the one, that is if we are still together after this. I’ll admit I’m not the best boyfriend, never have probably never will. I never really did relationships, for me it was a waste of time, that was until I met Y/n. She was a rey of sunshine, radiating positive energy. Everyone loved her, she was gorgeous, kind, and would do anything for anyone. Maybe that’s why I fell in love with her, I will never quite understand what she saw in me. 

Currently it is a miserable rainy day in Newark, a typical November day. I was sitting at home when I got a call from a very angry Y/n, I may or may not have forgotten to pick her up from work. She called me claiming that she has been standing in the rain for the past 15 minutes and that I wasn’t there yet. So I got in the car and sprinted to go get her. When I finally got there I was greeted by a poor miserable wet and cold Y/n. Her hair was all wet and her mascara had smudged under her eyes. A part of me felt bad but to be honest it was funny. 

“Your late” Y/n said angrily as she entered through the passenger seat

“I know I’m sorry” I told her, holding my hands up to surrender 

“I have been waiting 30 minutes Max, if you weren't coming you should have told me. I could have taken the subway or something” 

“Ew, no. The subway is filled with poors” Why would someone ever want to take the subway

“I’m really mad at you Max” Y/n told me “Do you even know how cold it is? I’m pretty sure it’s going to snow tonight. I’m going to get sick now because of you” 

“I said I’m sorry alright I forgot!!!” I know I’m not the best boyfriend but I’m trying to be better. Y/n has made me a better person, though I still need to improve. 

The rest of the car ride was silent, the only sound coming from the cars passing and people walking on the street.Though it was a comfortable quiet, soon enough we entered the driveway, sitting for a few minutes, neither of us wanting to exit the warm car. 

Y/n was first to break the silence. “My Hair!!!” She yelled when she finally saw her reflection in the car mirror. I couldn't help but laugh. “THIS IS NOT FUNNY MAX! DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG IT LOOK ME TO STRAIGHTEN!” Y/n yelled, referring to her natural curls that popped out. She was mad I knew that, I was nervous she would end things after all the mistakes I kept making. 

“How about this, I’ll make you a nice hot bubble bath with your favourite bath salts and candles. In exchange for you not to put a pillow over my head in my sleep” Sure this peace offering would do the thing. Nothing. “I’ll open a nice bottle of champagne and we can order your favourite pizza place?!” Nothing “I’ll pay for you to get your hair re-done?” Please work

“Deal” 

[cuethediscoandthedrinks]

omg hi i saw u were doing ships n i was hoping if i could get one!

i’ll try to keep it short!! i’d like a stranger things ship with smutty or sfw vibes, idm either lol

personality- i’m pretty nice and i’m friends with a wide variety of people! i’m kind to a fault :) i’m also pretty smart academically but otherwise im pretty ditsy tbh. i’m also very sensitive, like its so easy to make me cry, but i’m also very easily to make happy!! i’m really easily excited, i love enjoying the little things <3 i’m an INFJ and a pisces!

style and likes- my style is very girly, i love wearing dresses and mini skirts when i can and i love the colour pink and silver jewellery, i’m also obsessed with makeup and anything heart shaped!! my favourite artists are taylor swift and lana del rey (emphasis on taylor lmao). i’m also an ex-ballerina (i quit during covid) and i love english literature <3

relationships- i’m a huge hopeless romantic, like gimme princess treatment and flowers PLEASE🫶 i’m also a very touchy person, like if u let me i will superglue our hands together. so my love language is obviously physical touch but i’m also a huge lover of words of affirmation <3

so due to the unspecified gender, i just went for what i thought matched the best irrespective of male/female - hope that's ok! for an sfw relationship, i'm seeing...

max (stranger things)~

your friendly, kind and engaging personality it exactly what max needs to feel comforted and supported by someone. and likewise, her more casual and encouraging nature mixed with the more classic alt/tomboy vibe would contrast really nicely with your more girly, princess-like aura.

shopping sprees, makeovers and spending quality time (usually comparing your music tastes, having some mini-debates over whether kate bush or taylor swift is the 'queen of pop') together would be among the most common ways you'd bond. despite being more reserved emotionally, i feel like through being in a relationship with your more openly romantic and sensitive energy, she'd really start to come out of her shell, showing you a more personal side that not many others have had the privilege to see.

despite your seemingly ditsy predisposition, she has much confidence in your ability to bring out the best in people, including her; so if even just holding hands, cuddling or compliments are enough to make you blush, she'll for sure keep the little things in mind - oh, you like that pretty necklace? bought. you turn into a puddle when she twirls your hair, or draws patterns on your hand? duly noted. a hidden obsession with that author? she's on the case. y'all would be such a sweet couple ngl.

hope that tickled your fancy lovely! as always, feedback is much appreciated. 🫶

[strooples]

Yokai & familiars AU

I had this idea at work while doodling on some scrap paper. There was a story I enjoyed awhile back on yokai mythology. One thing led to another and I thought… what if I made an AU based on the Bladebreakers!! I don’t know if a yokai AU idea was already done, so I’ll just dump my brainstorming (tell me if it has bc then I feel a bit bad for doing another!!).

SO… the concept that the OG 4’s bit beasts represented elements got introduced in G-Rev. So what I’ll do is use their bit beasts’ elemental powers as their own in the story. Besides the main 4, Daichi had earth and Tala had ice. So, I’ll include Daichi and Tala. As IMO fire, water, ice, earth, wind, and lightning are 6 solid elements for a consistent magic system without getting too complicated!! But yeah, I’m not gonna elaborate into those 2 bc I’ll need a bit more thinking into the worldbuilding + reasons for why Daichi or Tala occasionally drop by.

So what familiars will the OG 4 be?

Takao/Tyson will be a wind dog yokai, representing his energetic nature and slight impulsiveness.

Kai is the fire fox, representing a trickster mind and a cunning but cold disposition. Unsurprisingly, I am the most exciting to potentially draw a fox familiar and esp Kai as the fox familiar lolol.

Max will be the water rabbit yokai, as one who is happy, gentle, but clever in his own way.

Rei will be a lightning snake yokai, with perceptiveness but a hint of coyness — friendlier as you get to know it (like how snakes seem initially scary and can be lethal, but many can be friendly + be befriended). The Rei thing takes a bit of explaining, but I took into an account of how he was introduced initially to be super super mean in the 1st season and rounded out to be one of the kindest and level-headed characters in the anime!

I should note here that they’ll be represented by animals who are different to their bit beasts (like Takao isn’t gonna be a dragon yokai) because I wanted some more commonplace animals for the Bladebreakers!! Buuut perhaps Tala will be the ice wolf, and Daichi the earth dragon, because I think a few interesting things could be done having a wolf and a dragon in the story.

So I have little in-depth thoughts of the magic system as of now. But I do have an idea of how powers get distributed. Like yokai under the same elemental category can do different stuff with their same-element powers (like let’s say someone has wind blades while others can create wind barriers; some may have one or both but they’ll certainly be variety and limits). And you can be the same type of yokai but be dispositioned to different element, like how ice foxes or wind snakes (+ etc.) can exist. And ofc some common sense stuff factors in, like how fire is weak to water.

So gods factor in, which is why our main yokai aren’t simply yokai alone! They’re familiars of certain shrine gods, and I have a vague idea of how to go about it. There will be 3 shrines, namely:

A shrine under water that’s been deteriorating away due to its limited access. Despite being away from the rest of the land where rabbits tend to dwell, Max as the water rabbit yokai always had affinity for the sea. So he stays loyal to the sea goddess, whose followers are dwindling and whose shrine as a result is growing to be less lively. Sometimes he does come back to land though (kinda as a nod to the story where he essentially lives between 2 countries). There, he befriends the familiars of the land shrine and shows up to have silly antics with them every now and then.

An exclusive mountaintop shrine somewhere between land and the skies that a select few outsiders (like high-end scribes, shrine maidens, and monks devoted to the practice) can access. Rei, the lightning snake, has been the only yokai his master (the god of the mountains and sky) has taken on in thousands of years.

The last shrine is the land shrine — located near a quieter forest area and small village that’s a step from the bigger commerce town. It’s one where the common folk of both village and city-based come to pray, and where the land god resides. He has famously taken on both the wind dog and the fire fox as his familiars — igniting somewhat of a brotherly competition dynamic between Takao and Kai. They often compete and get into a lot of mayhem trying to determine who is stronger or more faster ahah.

There will be a few other gods, from major to minor domains! And I guess many yokai who aren’t tied to particular owners. Also, theoretically speaking, there could be a human who commands a yokai too (it’s mainly a contract of agreement that bounds the yokai to someone — god or human). I haven’t thought up the other people, nor how much are either pulled from the original story versus one I entirely make up.

I don’t think this will turn out to be a full-fledged fanfic though, due to both my busy life issues (work can be tolling T~T) and general laziness. But I love having the idea of an AU up for brainstorming!!

[ashxketchum]

So I updated TyHil Ghost AU yesterday, which is now called Afterglow and might be up on AO3 soon in a more linear format! 

You can read it here: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

As always, remember to check out the original fanart that inspired this series and the TyHil version to go along with the fic drawn by the talented @misdre and give these some love! 

Let’s talk about the update now, before I go full Pokeshipping/TyHil mode from tomorrow. 

Kai and Rei make their debut in this chapter, though sadly not as ghosts. I really wanted to include all four of the original designs, but then needed to fill other roles as well 🥺I won’t talk much about Kai here, his role is pretty self explanatory when you read the chapter, but I will tag him for clout and better reach lmao . 

Now, spoiler alert for those who haven’t read the chapter yet, Hiromi meets Rei during vacation and it is revealed that Rei too can see ghosts like her, and is actually friends with Mizuhara. Since the story is more about Hiromi than anyone else, I couldn’t explain Rei and Max’s history in the chapter so I’ll get into it here. 

Rei was born in 1900s China, with a very peculiar condition, that is- he possessed two souls at birth, similar to the concept of Yin and Yang. One soul is Rei’s own, while the other one is a vengeful spirit that latched onto him, possibly when he was still in the womb. As Rei grows up there are times when he just can’t control the spirit and it takes over his body and makes him do awful things, burning his village down to the ground for instance.After a certain point, the spirit begins to halt his ageing, making him eternally stay in his 20s. Which is why he is constantly on the move, to not get attached to people who he might end up hurting, and to not let his eternal youthfulness show in front of others. 

Max on the other hand was born in the late 1800s, to one of the first Americans to settle in Japan (arriving on the infamous Black Ship), but he falls sick when he’s still a child and passes away in his pre-teens. He is unsure of the reason why his spirit is still latched onto the living world, but he makes the most of his time here by finding people to haunt and tease every now and then. Like Rei, he moves around a lot in search of new targets and bases. 

The two meet for the first time when Rei arrives in Japan in 1990s, to escape an acquaintance who might have caught onto his secret in Beijing. At first Max cannot sense the second spirit inside Rei, and thinks that the foreigner would make for a fun target to haunt, and without too much thought, he attaches himself to Rei. However, Rei doesn’t turn out to be as fun to haunt as Max had thought because nothing Max does scares him (since he’s obviously done worse). Until one night Max doesn’t have the intention to meet Rei but notices him walking down the street in a trance, and follows him secretly to find him strangling a stranger in an alley. That’s when Max is able to sense the second spirit, though with his weightlessness he cannot actually stop Rei. He tries to call out to him, and surprisingly it works, Rei is able to get control of his body again and the two flee the scene after Max erases the person’s memory. 

The more time the two spend together after that, they realise that when Max is nearby, the vengeful spirit doesn’t want to show itself and Rei can normally keep control over his body, and that’s how the two decide that they will stay by each other’s side, until Rei can figure out how to exorcise the second soul out of his body. 

So even though Max is a ghost in this AU, to Rei he is somewhat of a guardian angel. 

[deadcactuswalking]

REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 01/04/2023 (Ed Sheeran, Jimin, Paris Paloma)

Welp, you knew it was coming. Or, really, he was coming. Ed Sheeran takes the #1 from Miley Cyrus with his new single debuting at the top, “Eyes Closed”. More on that later but for now, welcome back to REVIEWING THE CHARTS!

Rundown

As always, even on this busy week, we start with our notable dropouts – songs that are exiting the UK Top 75 (which is what I cover) after five weeks in the region or a peak in the top 40. This week includes many of the debuts from last week, which is no surprise, including “Set Me Free Pt.2” by Jimin, but we’ll get back to him. Otherwise, we say farewell to “I Wrote a Song” by Mae Muller (it’ll be back in May), “PAINTING PICTURES” by Superstar Pride, “Weekends” by Freya Riding, “In Ha Mood” by Ice Spice, “Martin’s Sofa” by Headie One, “Pointless” by Lewis Capaldi, “Lavender Haze” by Taylor Swift, “Hide & Seek” by Stormzy and “Save Your Tears” by The Weeknd (again). There’s always one week per season or so where you can tell the hit parade is having a drastic change over the seasons, and this may be that week where we see that spring turnover – finally.

As for what’s filling in the blanks, well, “Someone You Loved” by Lewis Capaldi and “Afraid to Feel” by LF SYSTEM are back seemingly at random at #65 and #72 but we also have two artists with albums impacting the chart in our returning entries, both of which we’ll talk about in detail with our batch of new songs. Firstly, “The Kind of Love We Make” by Luke Combs is back at #75, and secondly, Lana Del Rey takes “A&W” back up to #45 – neither reach new peaks, and it really would have been great to see “A&W” in the top 40, but both are great songs and I’m glad they’re back, though again, like much of this week, I’ll say more on them later. As for our notable gains, we see “Last Night” by Morgan Wallen at #66 (I imagine a lot of people will be bothered that this is a thing – not me), “Shivers” by Ed Sheeran getting residual hype at #55, “Oh Baby” by Nathan Dawe and Bru-C featuring Issey Cross and bshp at #41, “Hell n Back” by Bakar at #35 off of the debut, “Pretty Boys” by Caity Baser at #30 and finally, “REACT” by Switch Disco featuring Ella Henderson and the late Robert Miles at #26. I’m not exactly pleased about all of this, but what can you do?

Now before we get into our new entries, we can cover the top five, where we see “Die for You” by The Weeknd at #5, “People” by Libianca at #4 and “Miracle” by Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding at #3. “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus has been pushed down to #2 by our ginger prophet’s debut, which we’ll cover at the end, but we’ve got a country song, a posthumous single, a K-pop track and Lana Del Rey album cuts to talk about so... joy. Let’s just get into them.

NEW ARRIVALS

#73 – “The Light” – Juice WRLD

Produced by Gezin, Hurtboy AG, ManOhManFoster and Max Lord

Even more posthumous singles from Juice feels like overkill at this point. I know the man recorded thousands of unreleased tracks but the way that the label and management feels the need to create genuine single and album rollouts has gone way beyond “feeding the fans” and into just pure exploitation territory, which is kind of sad because well, a lot of these songs aren’t even bad. This one... absolutely is, and honestly makes me mad. Juice’s vocals are drenched in reverb and echo that distance it even further from this obnoxiously programmed attempt at emo-pop, with drum mixing that sounds genuinely horrible, louder than any kind of melody that the song finds, but with too many cooks producing the track and Juice’s vocals still clearly an unfinished demo where we hear punch-ins just so he can try and find the beat, there’s not much melody to offer either. At some point they give up and put a trite trap beat under the whole song like some kind of amateur YouTube remix. I didn’t even notice initially but the more I researched, I found out that this was actually censored. I thought why of course, since none of the others had been censored, and honestly, I can’t seem to find much of a reason: they even uncensored one line about hoes being pretentious because fans complained. They reworked and censored a dead man’s art for what I can only assume are financial reasons in order to make it more accessible and radio-friendly, only for his fans – who otherwise eat up all of the posthumous garbage the label gives them (which is the label’s fault, not theirs) – to actually push back against it and force them into changing that one line and none of the others. This is an embarrassing and pathetic attempt, and the fact that it debuted so low may prove that people are sick of this grave-robbing schtick, and God, I hope so. The fact that this was originally intended to be a love song makes the label scum involved in revamping it seem even less sympathetic: I probably wouldn’t have liked the song if he was alive and fully involved in its production, but at least then it’d be a genuine track, released by someone who can consent to its release and adjust it to get to his artistic vision. Over three years after Juice’s death, that prospect is clearly no longer possible, and the flagrantly cash-grabbing label snabs to replicate the success and resonance he had with his audience is utter disrespect. The less Juice WRLD I cover from now on in this series, the better, because every time I do, it’s just a truly sad experience.

#71 – “Flip a Switch.” – RAYE

Produced by Di Genius, RAYE and Mike Sabath

I was a tad underwhelmed with My 21st Century Blues as a whole because it has most of the expected debut effort scruffiness and confusion in what it actually wishes to convey. With that said, it’s an honest album – one that kicks itself in the foot in order to be so – and has some beautiful songs... “Flip a Switch.” is not one of them. Sure, I like the harmonies in the intro, but otherwise I find it an oddly dull kiss-off about a guy who clearly didn’t want RAYE for love and just for sex, so it leads her to a similarly vengeful and careless mindset. It’s a cool enough sentiment and definitely one RAYE can deliver with both power and nuance – Hell, she did just that in “Escapism.” – but against this hybrid, mono-genre beat, anything she sings is going to sound disappointing, especially when her hypnotic harmonies are lost behind a deadpan performance from RAYE that kind of just sucks, I’m sorry. The writing’s okay, but the flailing acoustic guitars and sterile drums are not, and her lack of casuality in any of her rap flows becomes increasingly obvious with this one wherein she’s forced to rap for the whole song and she basically just loses any of her power on the mic. It just ends up sounding actually dead, which may have been the point, but without a bridge that actually, you know, sounds like a bridge, or any kind of further narrative, there’s not much of promise to be found on this mediocre production and one of RAYE’s worst performances, outside of those backing harmonies which again are great. It’s just a shame that the rest of the song really isn’t.

#70 – “Fast Car” – Luke Combs

Produced by Chip Matthews and Jonathan Singleton

Ohio singer Tracy Chapman first released “Fast Car” in 1988, and it became a top five single here in the UK, peaking at #5 in its original run and since kind of becoming a beloved classic. It reached a new peak of #4 in 2011 and for some reason became victim of several terrible tropical house remixes, with Jonas Blue’s version featuring Dakota out-peaking the original at #2. Now my favourite rendition of “Fast Car” will always be how it was sampled in the rap classic “Sometimes I Rhyme Slow” by Nice & Smooth, but the original is a pretty undisputed song so I was interested to hear how the UK’s favourite country star (not exactly the highest bar) would tackle it. As is, Chapman’s “Fast Car” is a beautiful folk-pop track about the cycle of life, starting with escapism: chasing their dreams with their partner and just driving away is a necessity with the tragic background, yet that backstory ends up informing how her partner ends up acting, just like her father, and Chapman takes a stand against it using the exact same motto they used to get together in the first place: “leave tonight, or live and die this way”. It turns out that it isn’t what it seems, and it’s a bittersweet song, sure, but there’s satisfaction in how much confidence Chapman has gained since, and still finds a lot of time to reminisce on the earlier escapism of that relationship. Does Luke Combs do it justice? Well, it’s hard to say for me; he does do it more justice than Jonas Blue but that’s a given. I do love his delivery as always, as he just has a BIG voice, giving more power – alongside the more conventional, streamlined country production – to the narrative and really amplifying the drama. He doesn’t change the narrative much either, even still calling himself a “checkout girl” in the verse, which I think is a great choice. It feels more like he’s elevating another voice than really lifting his own... which honestly works in this context. The album’s called Gettin’ Old – part of that is understanding other peoples’ stories and integrating what you learn from them into how you live your own life. If “Fast Car” is your choice to cover in order to express that, I’d say they’re some pretty damn good lessons to learn. It’s a great song, really difficult to mess up especially in this acoustic sound. 

#68 – “Candy Necklace” – Lana Del Rey featuring Jon Batiste

Produced by Zach Dawes, Lana Del Rey, Nick Waterhouse and Ian Doerr

No, I didn’t listen to that new Lana Del Rey album. Who do you think I am, someone who listens to Lana Del Rey albums? I barely have the time to read her album and song titles in full. I’m also not largely a fan of Lana, so having two tracks to cover here is not exactly exciting, but they do both have features so maybe it won’t be too bad – and hey, I loved “A&W”, so this could be good? I’d introduce Jon Batiste but I mean, he won Album of the Year in 2022 without anyone knowing who the Hell he is, so I think he’ll be fine. This is a song about young love, about Lana’s brain shutting off when she’s with this restless guy and all his innocent little candy necklaces, though you wouldn’t know it based off of the whispery vocals and intense pianos that eventually have credence given to them by the second verse, where for whatever reason, this relationship is bringing her down... with a pretty cheesy implementation of an A Tribe Called Quest reference before the chorus continues basically as if that verse didn’t happen. Now Lana is an albums artist; I fully expect that context is required and provided by the album, and this fits into a larger narrative, but considering how minimal the song is outside of the manic piano solo, I don’t get a lot from this song as it stands on its own, especially since Batiste could really have played off Lana for the whole song to give more detail and only ever shows up at the end for a final mantra. It just ends up kind of disappointing by the end, which is a shame because there’s something more to tassle with here.

#48 – “Paris, Texas” – Lana Del Rey featuring SYML

Produced by Jack Antonoff and Lana Del Rey

Okay, well, I will introduce SYML, since I had to look up who this was myself, and it’s the stage name for Seattle musician Brian Fennell, who does not provide vocals and is rather just sampled for the instrumental, though it fits very well into the sprinkling piano sound of the other Lana album cut we covered. I like how she specifies she is going to Americanised, diluted versions of these important European cities, it adds some cohesiveness and depth to the meandering track that absolutely makes use of that meander: it’s about moving on, even if it’s not onto anything all that new or special. If you’re no longer enveloped in that scenery, maybe it’s just time to go, and with her frail falsetto floating over acoustic guitars, it’s a pretty breezy track that exemplifies that feeling of not really being “home” in one place but still having the constant mindset of having to move around and venture into new place, only for the outro to kind of confirm the fears of this moving around all being a tad pointless. Surely, when you know you’re right at home, you will be, right? The framing can definitely be interpreted as about a relationship (or more than one), but I prefer the idea of it just being about uncertainty and not knowing where you can actually feel safe. It’s something that resonates with me particularly, not because I moved around a lot but because there’s no place that actually feels like home for me... except music. Okay, let’s not get too sappy on this, we’re only at #48 and I already put way too much emotional depth into two other new entries so far. It’s an excellent song, and I’ll leave it at that. The original SYML instrumental isn’t half bad either, but the Lana version adds a lot more depth.

#38 – “Fly Girl” – FLO featuring Missy Elliott

Produced by MNEK, LiTek and WhYJay

I really wanted to like this. The original “Work It” is undeniable and a song that hit #6 here in the UK in 2002, though I’m surprised it never reached any higher. This new song with promising girl group FLO is heavily based on that 2000s banger and... it’s just a mess. The first verse mentions a checklist and that’s absolutely what it is: does it have a slick R&B acoustic guitar line? Yes. Does it have an overpowering hip hop rhythm section with hard bass? Yes. Does it have good enough harmonies with lyrics about being fly, sexy and independent? Yes. Does it interest me? Well, kind of, but not for the right reasons – it seems like it’s checking all of the boxes, but the guitars sound like MIDIs, the “Work It” sample takes the reversed section and makes it sound oddly eerie, and Missy’s ad-libs throughout have way more energy than FLO do. I can’t really tell the difference between the girls yet – it took me a couple years for Little Mix even – and they do sound good together but the strings and bass just kind of protrude in a way that has less groove or nuance and instead just sounds kind of funny. That’s before we get to the trap breakdown which gives up on itself as soon as it kicks in, and the same goes in general for the warped bass in that second verse, or the build-up in the pre-chorus that anticlimactically stops bothering for the chorus. There is an uncharacteristically gritty beat switch that completely messes the song’s momentum in order for a mediocre Missy Elliott verse, even if she has some great lines and still as much effortless swag as she ever had. The problem is that she doesn’t have much room, with very little time and a lot of interruptions from FLO. The final chorus is genuinely so overwhelming I have nothing to say about it, and alongside the chorus with the staccato, Auto-Tuned riffing, random spoken word is that same interjected “Work It” sample which just comes in with no sense of sequencing. It’s bizarre, and only kind of in a fun way. Honestly, I’m just kind of glad there is a song this obviously messy and grandiose, hyper-focused on being as all over the place as possible, in the top 40 because if there’s anything about the 2000s I miss, it’s the guilty pleasure.

#29 – “labour” – Paris Paloma

Produced by Justin Glasco

Okay, I’ll bite: who the Hell is Paris Paloma? Well, they are a folksy pop singer with this being their breakout hit, and through some clunky, kind of old-fashioned writing, in not a dissimilar way to Hozier last week, condemns the patriarchy and misogyny, although Paloma is much more personal, focusing on a betrayal in what could be seen as a relationship but also the wider world that promises opportunity but really makes you work for it, with the elite playing God around you. It’s a good lyrical and thematic concept, but I don’t really like the song: Paloma is not an interesting or unique voice in the indie pop scene, and whilst there is some grit to the darker folk touches here that feel almost gothic, honestly, the chorus is pretty underwhelming. With some more electric guitar and less focus on the muddy, mono-genre-sounding bass and stomp-rock drums, I think I’d like this quite a bit, and be more able to get past the clunky lyrics that I think at least prove a point. In fact, the semi-sincere apologies and scathing attacks on this guy alongside a pretty smoky instrumental makes her sound kind of badass... but not enough, especially not if Justin Glasco’s going to make her sing over 2012-era Imagine Dragons. This is a good song just waiting to come out and prove itself, but the production holds it back – regardless, I’m actually interested to hear more from Paris Paloma if this brand of Tumblr folk pop is going to make a resurgence, just out of curiosity if anything.

#8 – “Like Crazy” – Jimin

Produced by Pdogg and GHSTLOOP

I knew there was hype behind Jimin and his solo debut, FACE, but I was surprised that this album-release single is out-peaking the debut... until I realised how many God damn versions he released. Whilst I try and appreciate all of the K-pop I hear, and often end up disappointed, I’m not afraid to say that this is just bad. It’s not as comical as “Set Me Free Pt.2”, sure, but the original Korean standard version – which I’m listening to as I write this – has these cheap acoustic guitars drowned in a lot of reverb and muddy bass alongside the vocal samples. I figured it’d be an alternative R&B track, especially considering the tacky sample of a 2011 romcom starring Jennifer Lawrence (really, guys?), but it turns into a boring 80s synthpop pastiche in no time, because why be interesting when you can be anything else but? The synths are either flailing or piercing, never floating or really finding any solid footing in the mix, especially once the cheap buzzing comes in post-chorus, only to completely render itself irrelevant soon afterwards. Jimin’s voice continues to sour on me with his nasal nothingness crooning over an already boring track. It’s honestly sad that this is the route Jimin’s going to get a hit; I know sales got it this far but the existence of an English version (though some of the original is also English) and several dance remixes makes this a clear push to the international market in just the laziest way possible. The English translation proves the lyrics as awkwardly generic, and then we have the remixes that feel like the cheapest, most surface-level renditions of the respective genres of deep house and UK garage possible. The deep house remix has these annoying and unfitting festival claps, and ends up becoming your typical house-pop nonsense. The UK garage remix starts with a freaking trap beat, so I didn’t bother listening to it in full – yes, it does eventually become UK garage, but I guess he just had to knock on another genre in there. I honestly can’t tell that the fact Jimin and co wrote a song that works perfectly fine in all of these genres but is never actually good in any of them is impressive or just proof that the cynical pop establishment is studying the vaccine that prevents its pop singers from ever being contaminated with any unique personality or defining sound. This is garbage, I’m sorry, BTS fans, but this is not how I, if I were a fan, would want my favourite boys to move past the group and their regional fanbase, because this is a gaping void of a pop song.

#1 – “Eyes Closed” – Ed Sheeran

Produced by Aaron Dessner, Fred again.., Max Martin and Shellback

So, Ed’s back, and thanks to great sales, he of course hits the top. It’s his 14th time here, how could you be surprised at this point? This is the lead from his upcoming album, - (Subtract), which promises a more personal and alternative style, probably courtesy of production from The National member Aaron Dessner, though it’s interesting to see Max Martin still here alongside Ed’s flagship co-producer Fred, who appears once again, as his name prophesied. Recently, I’ve been on kind of an Ed Sheeran defence streak, or at least for the past album cycle or so... so I ended up kind of excited for this, and were my hopes reached or hell, even surpassed? Well, you can tell it’s a mixture of Dessner’s folk rock and the streamlined pop of Max Martin considering how the acoustic pluck sticks out like a sore thumb amongst a sterile kick drum in that first chambering chorus. Ed sounds frail when dedicating each song and dance to the loved ones he lost, and for a song with a chorus about dancing with his eyes closed, it’s really not danceable. It’s a rhythm more appropriate for the third line in the chorus, “time is moving so slow”, and once the minimalism succumbs to a vaguely danceable rhythm with the tropical guitars back in the mix for the post-chorus, it becomes increasingly obvious how the emptiness is absolutely the point. That second verse about his delusion just wanting him to believe his room isn’t empty hits really hard, and I get this vision of Ed alone in a bar just kind of moving along – not dancing, just nodding his head and taking another drink. I’d like a bit more lyrical detail maybe, and whilst the production fits, it’s not exactly always to my taste, but as a concept, especially lyrically and thematically, it’s really well executed. The mixing does do it some justice too with how much echo there is and I can’t really fault a song with the perfectly melodramatic pop song line, “I guess I could just pretend the colours are more than blue”. It’s also decidedly not lead single material so if that’s all he has for radio, I’m excited to hear what Ed was cooking up with Dessner for the album cuts. For now, this is pretty solid, but I’m aching to hear where this is going.

Conclusion

I think it’s pretty obvious that whoever the Hell is managing Juice WRLD’s back catalogue gets Worst of the Week for “The Light”, and I can’t blame him for any of it. Please, let the guy rest. The Dishonourable Mention goes to “Like Crazy” by Jimin, though again, most of the blame for that doesn’t catch Jimin himself, not because he’s dead because I damn sure hope he’s not but because he’s one cog in a pretty hopeless machine, and it’s definitely not unique to K-pop. It just turns out that we didn’t get much of that this week, though you definitely could read “Eyes Closed” that way, even if I can’t because of how the lyrics resonate with me. As for the best, it’s honestly pretty easy: Best of the Week goes to “Paris, Texas” by Lana Del Rey featuring SMYL for, you know, making me cry, but Luke Combs easily snags the Honourable Mention for his cover of “Fast Car” and would on a good day maybe end up further than Lana though those two songs are just phenomenal. Maybe we’ll get a bit of a slow down next week, but who knows with these charts? Thank you for reading, and I’ll see you then for whatever’s on the horizon! Right now, though... God, I have a headache from listening to five versions of that bloody Jimin song.

[yana125]

I just remembered that I started watching Beyblade with English subs sometime last year and stopped because of summer was getting too hot for me to focus on things like that and I was liveblogging it, so I’ll just share my thoughts about the episodes I’ve seen (01-33) then I’ll continue watching it sometime in the future (hopefully before summer).

So... Get ready for my unique kind of humour and way of making niche references X’D

Spoilers, of course. (And long post)

Episode 1

- Óóóóó, this is already so much more enjoyable than the dub!

- Why is it that in every merchandise anime the main character's parent/grandparent/anyone in their family is an archeologist?

- Also wow, they already mention Takao's brother in the first episode. Hiro in the G-Revolution dub came out of nowhere.

- I hereby pronounce Takao a disaster bi. Who else would ask the grumpy kid if he was about to ask him out on a date? Or according to the Himbo Diagram: kind and stupid, that's a decent man (boy, in this case).

- Also why did they make Tyson that annoying in the dub? One episode in, and Takao is a prescious kid!

- I don't miss Dizzi, not even a bit.

- I... I need to get used to Kai's OG voice...

 Episode 2

- I may slowly get used to Kai's voice.

- I was about 25 episodes in with the dubbed episodes when I found the subbed episodes, so it's interesting to see what the dub kept from the original.

- WHAT DO YOU MEAN NOT EVERYONE SEES THE BITBEASTS?! This changes EVERYTHING!

- Is Kai's voice the same in G Revolution? I just... I can't imagine this voice with that character design... You see, I saw the first season in Hungarian and the other two in German (okay, not all episodes, but most of them... mostly G Revolution), I'm used to those voices. But eventually I'll get used to this one too.

- I wonder what Rei's voice will be like...

 Episode 3

- I really like Kyoujyu's voice :D

- Yeah, Choppy, don't eat weird things.

- Óóóóóó! Max is bilingual!

- Choppy, this is Dragoon's revenge. You shouldn't have eaten it.

- And now Dragoon is plotting its next revenge under the water. You should be careful, Max!

- And Max has an accent.

- "Hi, Max! My name is Takao. I have abandonment issues and I use my Beyblade for coping. Don't feel bad that your mom lives in an other country, okay? :)" Precious kid.

- Kyoujyu is so smart! Why did they have to add Dizzi in the dub?

- The anime is smart! Everything is nicely explained! Why did they have to add that many stupid one-liners in the dub?

- Takao: "Hurr, hurr! Kai will be at the tournament! I'll beat him!" Max: "Who the hell is Kai...?"

- When the hell did Kai hear Takao's full name...? Well, probably he did some angry researching or something.

- Kyoujyu, of course he made up the special move. How did you not know about it? You're spending almost every hour of the day with your research material.

- Takao is smart too! Why did they make Tyson that annoying?

- Wait... Takao... Didn't you break Dragoon after it hit a hole through the wall and in that stone wall outside???

 Episode 4

- Didn't mention the opening yet, because it's not new to me. I really like the first season and the G-Revolution openings, V-Tech on the other hand ^^""

- Kyoujyu is so pure. A true cinnamon roll.

- Are... Are real blades on Bayblades allowed? Isn't there some rules and regulations about it? (Nooooo... Don't look into it too much Anita...)

- So there ARE rules! Looking at you chairman guy (OG Dickenson whose Japanese name I didn't memorize yet).

- I'm sooooo done with people licking things! First Grandpa and the sword, now Hiruta and his Beyblade... Think about the pandemic, people!

- I don't remember if Hiruta appears later in the series apart from the very last episode ending. He should. He's interesting.

- Ó! Let's hear Rei's voice!

- ......... I'll get used to it eventually...

- (I'm sorry, I watched this episode half asleep and therefore I didn't have much to comment about X'D)

 Episode 5

- The opening singer lady's voice is so similar to a Hungarian actress' (Hegyi Barbara)

- Max will finally find out what that much fuss is about Kai.

- Óóóóó, so it wasn't Max's grandmother's. It was his mother's. Well, that will add an other layer to the plot later.

- Is that a toolbox or a very manly lunchbox? X'D

- Okay, can Max be considered a himbo if it's not him who's beefy but his Beyblade? (Why do I want to fit the Bladebreakers into the Himbo diagram...?) (Wait... Are they even called the Bladebreakers in the OG series???)

- Kyoujyu with his angelic voice throwing shades at Takao... Cinnamon roll.

- Chairman not-called-Dickenson-in-Japanese sitting there like "I know these guys will be in my new team, but I have so much fun watching this!"

- Max is so smart! Everyone is so smart in this anime!

- Why did the dub leave out the mystic powers and fateful meetings aspect of the original? And the music is so nice when the other bits glow up TT_TT

- Max, you sunshine child! Don't mind Kai, he still has to go through a full season of character development X'D (Speaking of character development, I can't wait for the frozen lake episode)

- Okay, I was a bit afraid that Max didn't see his bitbeast, but he did.

- I wonder why that last scene was not included in the dub

 Episode 6

- Of course he's yawning. He knows this part of the competition doesn't really matter

- Kyoujyu is here to save the day!

- Okay, but what are the rules? How many parts can you replace during a match?

- Does Kyoujyu have a 3D printer somewhere in his toolbox?

- Also the sub changed 'Kyoujyu' to 'Professor' and I realized 'Kyoujyu' is not Kyoujyu's name, but I'll keep calling him Kyoujyu

- Also, how much time can you spend repairing your Blade?

- Why's every Bitbeast breathing fire in the eyecatch...? Only Dranzer should...??

- I know I will say it many times in the future, but I feel like I'm personally attacked by the people who adapted Beyblade. I am seriously invested in this fight even though I know how it would end. Dub version could never reach this level of intensity. (Óóóóó I can't wait for G-Revolution and the Brooklyn fights!)

- I like that Rei looks like a jerk and is actually a nice guy.

- I was thinking about making a cinnamon roll meme with these guys, and while Kai is 'looks like they could kill you, could actually kill you' and Rei is 'looks like a cinnamon roll, could actually kill you', nobody fits 'looks like they could kill you, is actually a cinnamon roll' because the other three are all 'looks like a cinnamon roll, is actually a cinnamon roll'.

 Episode 7

- Watching this opening and reading the sub I was thinking. I really like this mystery and spiritual aspect of the anime.

- Of course he wants to modify Dragoon, Takao. Think about the kids at home who we want to buy as many Beyblade parts as their parents' wallets can handle!

- Takao, you precious kid! Don't mind Kai, he still has to go through a full season of character development. (Still looking forward to the frozen lake episode.)

- Okay so, are those weighted arm guards? Like Lee's leg guards (or what) from Naruto?

- OG Japanese Grandpa would beat the sh*t out of Dub Grandpa with three words.

- Did I see a smidge of character development from Kai? Eff you Chairman (whose name I still didn't memorize yet) for showing up!

- Okay but how did nobody know about a World Championship?

- And how the hell did Kai NOT KNOW about bitbeasts around the world? Was his grandfather gaslighting him? (probably)

- Way to manipulate a child, chairman guy.

- Don't mind him, Takao. Kai still needs to get himself stuck in a frozen lake to get to the nakama part.

 Episode 8

- (I had a scare with this episode because it didn't want to load X'D)

- So watching the opening, I was thinking again... The premise is so good! Ancient spirits possessing the current most popular fighting tools (which luckily are spinning tops)... Maybe I should read the manga in the future too. Because like Yu-Gi-Oh!, Beyblade didn't start as a merchandise anime. Not the first season at least.

- So when I was watching the dubbed version of the first season on YouTube I realized when Kai's grandfather appeared in this episode, that I haven't seen the first half of the season, only the second. Maybe I didn't catch it when it was airing on TV?

- Takao, sit the f*ck down! You already made the plane wait for you, let it finally take off!

- Exactly, flight attendant lady!

- Takao, speaking from experience, this is not a realistic reaction to your first take off.

- Okay, so they're not the Bladebreakers, they are the BBA Team.

- I feel personally attacked by the people who adapted Beyblade because Rey's job in the dub was (derogatory) and Rei's job in the original is (respectful).

- Chairman person, Kai is still too early in his character development to fully embrace the team spirit. (Eagerly waiting for the frozen lake episode)

- At least he knows his manners, I guess? X'D

- Also Chairman person, I don't like how you're subtly manipulating these children. I think I remember you having this rivalry thing with Kai's grandfather? Heh... Gaslight vs manipulate.

- (Speaking of gaslight... Is Hilary, who I think is Hiromi in the original, a girlboss? Or is it Max's mom? Mansplain is the purple haired baddy at the end of season one? Is Max's father the malewife? What is gatekeep?)

- (Why do I want to fit everyone into memes?)

- Was that Nozawa Masako??!!

- It wasn't. Nozawa Masako has nothing to do with Beyblade.

- I can't believe in the dub Kenny put some kind of tracking device into Kai's Beyblade or something...

- I am VIBING with this anime. Bless you, streaming site!

- This Rai Nan or who looks like Rock Lee with Naruto's face markings.

- Maybe the OST is also why I'm vibing with the original Japanese version. It's sooooo calming at some parts.

- I would've screamed if a wok was yeeted in front of me out of nowhere in an abandoned alley.

- He's not Rai Nan, his name is Bruce.

- Yeah, right Kai. You know what? In Episode 8 I still believe you the Championship interests you more than your teammates' wellbeing.

- Yeah, Rei thinks that too X'D

- Kevin was soooooo annoying in the dub. I hope Kiki will be better.

 Episode 9

- I was about to wonder why I didn't remember seeing this market shot in the dub, and then I realized it probably has something to do with the snake in the pickle jar.

- Kevin was annoyingly annoying, Kiki is annoyingly arrogant. Miles better than the dub.

- I like when a main character is associated with Wind powers. Especially in anime, because Wind is not one of the five elements.

- I always read 'German' instead of 'Garman' X'D Garman jumping out of the Bit saying 'Guten Tag!' X'D

- Kai is just standing there, watching the drama unfold.

- Mariah is Mao, Lee is Rai, Garry is Gao... I knew Mao and Rai were siblings, but is Gao their brother too?

- Rai is calmer and cooler than Lee.

- And Rai is more honorable than Lee.

- RIP Wok. (Was it cut into pieces in the dub...? I don't remember...)

- I feel like if the dub was more faithful to the original, Beyblade would've had more fans.

- It takes one to know one, Kai.

- The people in the background staring at them, not understanding what a bunch of Japanese speaking kids are yapping about X'D

- I wonder around what time Kai will show a spark of nakama-ship in the original version. Maybe the Rai battle? Or in America?

 Episode 10

- "The things I can't do alone are not impossible if you're with me" +the spinning part is, hands down, the best moment of the opening.

- I'm sorry but I'm not sorry, I love this opening

- My fear of heights and crazy supportless balcony-like structures is kicking in looking at that arena tower...

- Gosh Takao... Show some respect to your opponents...

- Okay so I looked up Takao's voice actress because she sounded familiar and turns out Kumai Motoko was Tao's voice actress in Taiyou no Kou Esteban! O.O It's all connected! X'D

- Chairman person, I know you're a good guy but I don't trust you a bit.

- Okay, I know it's an anime, but how not-ordinary can a Beyblade be?

- Max, you sunshine child, and your built-in Kai-decoder X'D

- If there are three battles, and BBA won two already, why battle in a third? (Is there some kind of point system?)

- It's so nice to hear the team talking among themselves and Kai's every second word not being an insult

- MISTER TAKAO!

 Episode 11

- So this is the 'Kiki steals Kyoujyu's floppy disk' episode which works in the original, but in the dub? Do you think Dizzi with her attitude would've let Kevin steal anything from her?

- Okay, Kiki, it doesn't work like that. Rai is an Honorable Man(TM), and what you're planning is not honorable.

- So this 'thunder and lighting, it's getting exciting' is when I turn off my computer and unplug everything.

- Yes, I just made a Eurovision reference in my Beyblade liveblogging.

- Kiki never heard of the doormat.

- So you want to steal Rei's Beyblade or murder him with your Beyblade, because it seems like you're getting ready for the latter.

- A floppy disk TT_TT I don't know Kiki if you can put all that data on that single floppy disk. I couldn't put a lot of data on that back in elementary school computer classes.

- Rei should've shown up in his PJ's.

- So one of the few things I have no problem with in the English dub is that they aged up the characters. For example Takao is 10 while Tyson is 12. Rei and OG!Kai are 12 while Rey and Dub!Kai are 14. It just suits them better. They are too young in the original...

- Ohmygod I sound like an adult (said the 30 years old)

- I respect Rei and Mao for actually owning a sleepwear. Look at these kids! They're sleeping in their daytime cloths!

- Byakko be like "Bye bitches, I'm outta here!"

- Takao you precious kid! Show him the Power of Friendship(TM)!

- Kai, once again, standing in the sidelines, watching the drama unfold.

- Soooooooo... Kai's actually right?

 Episode 12

- Told you, Kiki. Rai isn't so impressed with what you did.

- Little sparks of character development, I see. There's still a long way to the frozen lake though.

- Guys, if you run to the mountain you won't have enough energy to climb it.

- Mao, chill...

- Is it a good idea to create a storm on top of a cliff?

- I don't know who made the animation for this one scene, but everyone suddenly looks like they are 6.

- I really wanted to see how they managed to get down the mountain X'D

 Episode 13

- Note to self: Hunger is bad for your Bitbeast. Always eat before an important Beyblade battle!

- Shibatta, indeed.

- Úúúúúúú, that guy was destroyed!

- Úúúúúúú, that guy was also destroyed!

- Is that man... a dog????

- Ah. The good old tale of reformers vs conservatives...

- Kai again, chilling in the background, watching the drama unfold X'D

- So there ARE rules and regulations! Hiruta should've been disqualified!

- Attacking first? Nope, bad idea.

- Takao, think of it as an F1 car. The down force pushes in down.

- When is it a good time to announce my ship? I'll wait a few more episodes, I guess.

- Yeeeeey! Byakko is back! :D

- Byakko be like: "Sup bitches! Thought you'd seen the last of me!"

- I said I will wait to announce my ship for a few more episodes!

- Is this Temple Run? Run or you will be crushed!

 Episode 14

- Knocked out by a paprika X'D

- I know Kai will battle in this episode, but why isn't there a rotation between the four of them?

- (Okay, it was a chilly pepper, but it's still a paprika)

- Traffic! in the mountains.

- Is that a spark of character development from Kai?

- 10 km...

- Takao, you precious kid <3

- Takao, you reckless kid! O_O Running down a mountain like this...

- Is this the first time Max called his Bitbeast as Genbu?

- I like OG!Kai. He's calm and collected. I got used to his voice too and I actually like it.

- (Though finding out that Takano Urara is also the voice of Miranda Bailey from Grey's Anatomy was shocking...)

- I like the Maldives guys.

- Guys you still have to wait for the frozen lake episode with the nakama thing.

 Episode 15

- They all have matching PJs! <3

- Kai be like "I'll have nothing to do with this battle, why bother listening?"

- (I feel like he wanted to be included)

- Is this an other route or the landslide was cleaned up?

- Why do they have this big bus for only a few people?

- (Probably because then Kai couldn't sit alone in the back.)

- It would've been soooo much better if Kiki was showing them the finger in the back of the bus X'D

- Kyoujyu getting aggressively serious.

- Meanwhile Rei appearing in the background like :D

- Is this cheering or booing...?

- Someone slap Kiki already. He may not be as annoying as Kevin, but he's still annoying.

- Why's everyone licking everything...

- Kiki being surprised about things about Gao like he didn't grow up with him...

- Kai: "Okay, but will this plan actually work?" Everyone: *ignores him* Kai: -_-

 Episode 16

- Dear audience, that girl is 10.

- Dear audience, that boy is 12.

- "When you're fighting, it doesn't matter whether you're a boy or a girl!" Disaster bi, I'm telling you.

- Mao is very supportive for an opponent.

- ...... *held back scream*

- And everyone is like "Did Kai just do that?! O_o"

- "You're right" But who did he listen to? (Was it Kai? Was it Kai.)

- And Kai is actually smiling!

- But Rai, was it really Mao who helped Rei regain his confidence?

- (Is it a good time to finally announce my ship or-- Oh. You probably already know X'D)

- I feel sorry for Mao... She just got nakama-zoned.

 Episode 17

- No, but seriously... Shouldn't they register their equipment before the battles start?

- Is Kai the team captain in the original version too? If not, he should be. He's throwing great advices left and right all the time.

- HaHAAAA! Great job, Takao!

- Thunder and lightning, it's getting exciting!

- Rai, I don't think fighting out of hate would make Byakko choose you over Rei.

- Battles won, bonds reforged.

 Episode 18

- (Oh, this is the filler episode)

- Why is Kai smiling on that picture........ This is sooooo OOC of him........

- I guess this scene was also made by the person who made that one scene where Rei looked like 6.

- And Dragoon is now planning its revenge against Takao...

- Btw, looking at all these kids, how connected are the original series and Metal Fight? If the anime takes place in 2001, then Ginga should be around 3. I've seen Metal Fight (in Japanese) but I didn't really catch any references... Maybe because I've only seen the dub version of the original series.

- Tell him, Kyoujyu!

- Takao, you dumb kid... If I were Dragoon I would pull a Byakko and go "Bye bitches!"

- Even if I didn't know it already, I could tell by only looking at it that this is a filler episode... It's a shame though. It has a pretty solid plot and character arc for a filler episode.

- You're a good kid, Takao. Fame just made you dumb for a hot minute.

- You should listen to your dad, Max. You'll get one hell of a jetlag flying around.

- This scene is 100 times better with the ending song than with the dub narration.

- Okay, so when you have a Bey, and you replace its parts, at which point does it become a completely different Bey compared to the original? This is Theseus' ship all over again...

- The Bey be like "You're tearing me apart, Kouji!"

- What are these stars they're putting in the water?

- What I like in animes (like Digimon Tamers) when they're showing a playground are these dome-like thingies. I haven't seen any in Hungary, but they seem to be fun to play with. (Though I don't know if they fit EU regulations.)

- I hate Kai's grandfather...

 Episode 19

- They have a plane that big only for themselves?! Chairman guy, your old rich man side is showing...

- Okay, so whenever Kai meets his grandfather, it resets his character development.

- I feel like without Rei the team is really out of balance. But now he's back and also is the balance.

- Once again, this huge ass bus for the six of them...

- Gandpa taking over the whole of the backseat... Kai is not impressed X'D

- Ohmygod the building looks like a Beyblade...

- 'Receiving the most funds by the US government'... So in other words they want to weaponize Beyblades for military purposes. Got it. Good old America! I know a guy who put real blade on his Beyblade, you might be interested.

- Aaaaand no name reveal for Kyoujyu. (I looked it up when I found out that 'Kyoujyu' was not his real name, and only in the second season will he be named by his name, but only his mother calls him by it.)

- Now NASA and the Pentagon is in it too... Expected nothing less from America...

- Well said Takao indeed! Believe in the heart of the cards-- I mean the spirit of Beyblade!

- So Judy basically disowned Max when she found out he was a member of the BBA team...

- This PPB facility is like the one we'll see in Russia and it's unsettling to say the least.

- I don't remember Judy's story from the dub, but right now I say fuck you! That's your child, damn it!

- I feel like beat boxing would sound better here :D

- Right in the face!

- HaHAAA! Rei getting all that experience while travelling around the world is finally paying off.

- You can't fool Kai, Judy. He knows what these facilities are all about.

- That was quick.

- Kyoujyu having a crush on Emily's brain is such a Kyoujyu thing X'D

 Episode 20

- Btw, is this Area-51?

- I wouldn't blame you, Max. PPB was playing with you.

- ...

- GATEKEEP! PPB is gatekeep!

- (Okay, maybe I don't use these words properly)

- And, once again, Kai is right.

- Also, Grandpa is right.

- And then Rei is like 'How the hell did I get here?' X'D

- What they hear: 'I'm not going anywhere'. What he means: 'I'll discover this place on my own'. Probably.

- How the hell did they get into the air vents without anyone noticing it?! This is a facility funded by the US military and the Pentagon. It shouldn't be that easy.

- Of course they're watching them -_-

- This looked like that one gif from the Breakfast Club. This one:

- Is that a crypto mine? It would be unfortunate if someone with a huge magnet just happened run around here.

- Told you he will go and look around on his own.

- Kai to the rescue! He was probably in the air vent or something.

- Okay, did they forget to add Judy's line or what?

- My sunshine child!!!! TT_TT

- What kind of ponchos these PPB guys are wearing? They look ridiculous...

- Rei, don't taunt them... You saw what Emily was like...

- Okay, as much as I don't like Judy now, I don't think that was her reason not adding Max to the American team. She probably wanted to distance him from her work.

- Rei, you're a little bit too eager to fight these guys...

- Rei, you're a little overconfident...

- Kai what is this all-according-to-keikaku face?

- Rei what the hell did I tell you about you being too overconfident?!

- Was that 'stop brooding!' addressed to Takao, or Rei who's actively brooding in the back?

 Episode 21

- (This is the episode where I stopped watching the dub version and restarted with the Japanese one. I only watched like the first five minutes or something. So after this until the end of the European episodes I'm going in almost blindly. I don't remember much from these episodes.)

- Why are you sleeping with your tie on?! Where are your PJs?!

- Nostalgic modem sounds.

- Training montage episode!

- Finally! A smaller car.

- I don't think so, Kyoujyu. All that money for a proper facility is probably wasted on transporting you guys around on those big planes and buses.

- I think I maybe remember Antonio being a very bad Beyblader...

- Yup.

- I can't believe the Dominican Republic only has this one Beyblader... Unrealistic.

- (Please, Anita, don't try to find realism in an anime...)

- (This is also 2000. People weren't that connected yet. Don't forget the older times.)

- (Ohmygod I sound like an elder...)

- Antonio here has a solid plan. It's like when Hungary won waterpolo three times in a row in the Olympics. A lot of kids started playing waterpolo.

- (Too bad it doesn't get as much funding as football...)

- (Anita, please, don't mix politics into your anime experience...)

- Kyoujyu, this was the Chairman guy's plan all along, chill.

- The key to the basement! Every secret is in the basement!

- Okay I feel bad for Kai. It feels like he wants to be included but the others already decided among themselves that he doesn't want to be included and actively not include him. So he's just hanging out in the background.

- Science vs nature, I see.

- Shouldn't Antonio train on a stable ground first...?

- Kai is like 'Yeah, I grew up like this.'

- Kaaaaiiiiii!!!!! TT_TT Character development! <3 Even though it probably happens without him knowing and noticing.

- Heheeee X'D

- Kai is, once again, 100% right. Everyone is so predictable.

- Yeah, right Kai.

- Also I guess Kai is starting to realize that he actually cares about his teammates.

- Poor PC...

- (Would there be a second ending, or this is the only ending?)

 Episode 22

- Who was the president in 2001? (...) Bush, of course... (Ohmygod Anita, you’re so stupid.................)

- Jesus, Rei, keep your hormones at bay...

- Being a fan of someone in a combat sport. A very bi thing of Takao.

- (Before you ask, it's a Supernatural thing.)

- I'm suffering in second hand embarrassment, guys...

- Emily is brutal.

- Hey, that's not Bush. That's the guy from the PPB facility. (Is he?)

- Ohmygod their Beyblades spell out USA......... How very American of them......

- Of course it's the White House.......

- (Also I'm looking forward to the European OST)

- I don't remember when Emily will change. She will change, but I don't remember when.

- Maybe PPB has the science, but they lack the team spirit.

- Emily you'll flop like that.

- The president should change his bodyguards. They should've tackled Takao the moment he touched the railing.

- BBA, standing together! <3 Supporting each other!

- Hey, weren't Takao and Kyojyu removed by the bodyguards?

- I knew there was a 'but' coming... Come oooooon, Judy!

 Episode 23

- Again with that gigantic bus...

- Takao stop Takao stop Takao stop...

- Okay, for a moment I thought he'd go to the reporter lady X'D

- Pff... Straight to the point, Emily...

- Okay, I'm looking at this screen trying to find out which team is from where, but nothing... JMK is Jamaica? AVS is Australia? What is a XES?

- Kai you seriously want the PPB to gather data of you or something...?

- Pffff X'D Giving them what they want...

- Good job, Kai.

- Pffffff X'D

- Yeah, Judy, you're clearly not worried about Max

- Max will get the next new upgrade, I guess.

- I don't know who animated this lipsync but it's horrible...

- Also Judy you focus on the numbers too much.

 Episode 24

- They sure do, Rei. Rich Americans funded by the government...

- There is nothing more heartbreaking than seeing the sunshine child sad... :(

- Once again, Max being the Kai decoder.

- Yeah, that guy is too friendly.

- Ugh... o_o

- I would like to see an iguana participate in the tournament now.

- This backstory is touching and over the top insane at the same time.

- Kai should be the team captain if he's not already.

- Max, please don't get too cocky.

- (I know Max and Takao will win, but I'm still concerned.)

- What the... What was that? O_o

- This team is so weird...

-WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

- Grandpa jumps in to save the day.

- Yeeeeeey! :D

- The sub messed up and instead of 'Hiwatari-kun' it said 'Shiratori-kun' and I was like "Who the hell is Shiratori???"

- Jesus, he crushed that Bey into atoms O_O

- I don't think they excel in team work.

 Episode 25

- I want to see the conversation where they convinced Kai to go and celebrate with them :D

- I have a feeling Takao will be too sick to battle...

- Yep, he is.

- "Takao can't battle in the semi-finals! What should we do?" Kyoujyu, the fuck, Kai is right there!

- It causes me physical pain that they always forget about Kai... And they're always surprised when he says he will fight! UUUUGH!

- And they're putting words into his mouth... Of course he would've said that, but still! He's getting to a point in his character development where he's showing a smidge of care for the team! They really need to go on team exercises... Not to a training camp, somewhere they'll need to rely on each other. Like pulling one teammate out of a frozen lake or something.

- Chairman guy I know what you're thinking but that's still not the case here... -_-"

- Ó! This is the dancing guy from the opening.

- That's exactly what he would do, Kyoujyu.

- Judy, why are you trying so hard to push down your motherly instincts?

- And spend days in a car without coming across any settlements, only shady motels? No thanks. I have motion sickness anyway.

- Granpa what kind of dance are you talking about?

- Chairman guy too?!

- I have a feeling Max or Rei will lose their fight, but I don't know which one... Max probably for the drama.

- Why are they surprised that Kai is giving them advices???!!! He always gives everyone good advices!

- No, Max will win.

- Does Judy know anything about her pendant and Genbu?

- Nah, I don't think you'll meet again.

- Okay, then Rei will lose. But that would be too much loss in a row for him...

- Kai wouldn't lose, right?

- So probably it will be three wins.

- Or he can turn around and face you?

- Guys this is not Need for Speed...

- Oh yeah, illusions have not effect on Rei.

- Grandpa what kind of youth did you have...?

- Yep, there will be three wins.

- Wouldn't try to gather data about Kai again? No? Okay.

- I like this Maura girl. She's nice :)

- But does he really not need the support? ^^"

- Judy what the fuck?!

 Episode 26

- Okay so I mixed up the president and this Douglas guy...

- "No matter what circumstances arise, the BBA team will lose against us." Yeah, no. They are the main characters.

- I understand your logic, but maybe you should upgrade Max's Bey Kyoujyu?

- Okay, but who will now fight then? Kai again?

- Okay, Kai saying ‘he doesn't want to fight’ instead of them saying ‘Max will fight instead of Kai’ is better. Character development!

- Thank Kai too, damn it! He's warming up to you guys, notice it already!

- Okay, Takao or Rei WILL lose, because Max will win. My bet is now on Takao.

- Did Takao ever use that screen on his shooter?

- Why do I feel this 'all according to keikaku' vibe from PPB?

- "Will Takao win this set too?" No. He won't.

 Episode 27

- Nah, Takao will probably win. Then Rei will lose =_="

- Takao should lose a fight once in a while too, not just once out of three times...

- Kai is impressed with your strategy, Rei :')

- I was about to say PPB using that computer to analyze their enemy is cheating, but Kyoujyu is doing the same (:

- And now Kai is giving advices too! Co-captains! :D

- Yeah, and after this match you thank Kai for the help

- Good job, Takao! :D

- Yes! Good boy, Takao!

- This is a very complicated shoot...

- But does this Bey fit the 10 cm wide rule?

- Yeah, Rei will lose =_= Lose-win-lose.

- Steve is from Eyeshield 21, Eddie is from Kuroko no Basuke.

- NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was a lose-lose!!!!!!!!!! REEEEIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!!!

- Leave him alone, Takao!

- Yes! Kai! If all he cared about was victory, then he would've jumped at this opportunity!

- Aaaaaaaaw! He's smiling! You like your team, admit it!

- (The Russian episodes will hurt sooooo much after this <3)

- Okay, that somehow settles it. Judy has no idea about Genbu.

 Episode 28

- But let's not forget that he's also an attention whore.

- Does she though? She's an absent mother so no matter how much data she'd gathered, she doesn't really know her son

- I wonder how this scene would've sounded if Dizzi was in that 'cheap homemade laptop' X'D

- Okay that's unfair. Michael plays baseball and you chose a baseball field as the stadium...

- Okay, so it will be lose-win-win

- Harsh words, but true...

- It only needed a "B-b-b-bakaaa!" at the end X'D

- What do you mean Takao is the team captain????!!!!!

- When Kai tells you that you were too harsh it says something X'D

- That's the power of friendship

- That was the scariest glove drop I've ever seen

- Ó! Both eyecatch was Genbu! (I like guessing who would be in the eyecatch.)

- Aaaaaw, Kai having faith in Max :) You like your teammates!

- I can't believe Genbu was so powerful it crashed the PPB supercomputer X'D

- YEEEEEEEEEEEEEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

- The elderly are seeing through you, Kai X'D

 Episode 29

- Oh, it's the clipshow episode...

- Oh yeah, Kai was a leader of rouge bladers who kidnapped you, Kyoujyu...

- But were they really set up as rivals? I don't see any rivalry here (yet)

- What will happen in Russia is not a rivalry. It will be pure heartache.

- Do I want to watch the clipshow...?

- Or I'll just speak to myself here and write down whatever I think about.

- Oh, Kai. You've come a long way.

- Oh, it's already the eyecatch!

- I like how each arc is set up for one of the BBA team members. The Asian Tournament was for Rei, the American Tournament was for Max. And Europe will be Kai's arc.

- I wonder what V-Tech/2002 will be about. I only watched the first six or seven episodes in German and didn't understand anything, so I'm looking forward to it.

- Also... Was it the filler season? Was it in the manga?

- I still feel bad for Rei... :'(

- Is Takao really the MVP of the team?

- Yeah... X'D

- Wait... Where are they? Where are they going with that ship? Back to Japan? To Europe? Where???

- The Russian episodes already hurt so much TT_TT

 Episode 30

- Okay, for a moment I thought they were already in Russia and wondered when they'd meet the European team then, but they're still on the ship ^^"

- Sunshine child! <3

- Guys, give him ginger.

- Give him ginger!

- The team is already united, huh? *looks around* You're missing a member.

- Kyoujyu throwing the truth into Takao's face with his angelic voice. Savage.

- 10 km again...

- Finally someone realized that a team member is missing... =_=

- ÓÓÓÓÓ!!!! That's... ugh... Robert?

- Takao no...

- ÁÁÁÁÁ!!!! Kyoujyu's eyes were visible for a moment! X'D

- He has very crazy looking eyes...

- That was a crazy battle...

- Ralph. Okay. Was he Robert in the dub?

- Precious child! TT_TT

- So why isn't Kai the team captain again?

- Team bonding! <3

 (Had to take a break here because the weather was too hot TT_TT)

 Episode 31

- (Okay! Let's continue! :D)

- Wait... The ship goes to Russia? Where exactly? Kaliningrad or some port at the Black Sea?

- Okay, I checked the map. UK -> Baltic Sea -> Saint Petersburg, probably.

- Okay, I'm surprised that Rei has a weakness for food. Well, I shouldn't really be. Who knows how diverse the diet is at the Byakko Clan. I can imagine him going around the world, fighting strong Beybladers, and eating every food he hasn't seen before :D

- IS THAT THE CHAIRMAN GUY???!!!!

- It's amusing how Kai is reluctantly power-walking after his team X'D He probably had enough of the food on the ship too X'D

- Chairman 'Manipulate' Guy...

- PFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Those faces X'D

- Okay Chairman guy, team building 'lost in Europe' experience or not, these children left their bags on that ship.

- Max, you ray of sunshine, you're so impressionable... X'D

- Where are they compared to London? Where are they? Thrumpton?

- ...

- WHERE THE HELL IS THIS THRUMPTON???!!! The only Thrumpton I found is in Nottingham =_=

- Kai is so done with this situation. I think he wishes he'd never gotten off that ship XD

- Wait... Ralf isn't going to the tournament? Then what was that battle where he and his teammates wore those armors?

- YOOOOOO!!!!!! Freaky guy!!!!!! O_O

- Move your hand, Kyoujyu! I want to see my country on that map!!! >_<

- I think it's okay, Kyoujyu. Just avoid the MÁV trains in Hungary, because they tend to be delayed by up to an hour or two. Well, it depends on the train I guess. I've never travelled on an international train. Maybe they have priority compared to the national railways. Although being a priority railway doesn't save you from cable thieves X'D

- Finally someone asked Kai about his opinion! Good boy, Takao!

- He doesn't care... Saying it with a face like that, it seems like you're okay with the whole European Vacation.

- Don't watch the suspicious VHS tape! There's a whole franchise built around it! D:

- Of course everything's connected. Takao's father is researching the Sacred Beasts. Kai wants to find the Sacred Beasts. Kai's grandfather wants the Sacred Beasts. And chairman guy is manipulating everyone and everything.

- But is it the Sacred Beast that's evil, or the human that controls it?

- (I am not leaving philosophy out of my anime experience!)

- I know I shouldn’t wear my shipping goggles, but was Rei directing his words to everyone or just Kai? XD

- MAX! SUNSHINE BOY! Of course you guys are manipulated! It was the Chairman all along! XD

- Oh, it's the freaky guy again =_= And there will be a whole team of freaky guys =_=

- Why aren't you guys listening to Kai...? =_=

- Pffff X'D And that's why you should've listened to Kai. Why isn't he the team captain again?

- "Europe might turn out to be a gathering place for evil spirits" ÁÁÁÁÁÁÁÁ!!!!!!!!!!!! X'D

- It's funny how the encounter with the mummy made them excited about a European tour X'D

 Episode 32

- (Okay, quick question about the American episodes, because I just realized something: Did Judy find out that Genbu was from her? Will she find it out in Russia?)

- I have a feeling one of the creepy team members would show up in the window...

- Okay, almost X'D

- THERE IT IS! Hey Hungary ^.^

- What the hell happened to the Baltic Sea?! Is it a swamp in this universe? The ship would never reach Saint Petersburg like that. It's a good thing you missed that ship, guys.

- That's a very empty train...

- That's a very empty train for a reason...

- I didn't remember Les Mis had werewolves and vampires in it.

- You should watch the Velicopastor. It's a cinematic masterpiece.

- Kai, just admit you want to be included (I know, I know... We still need to get to the frozen lake part -_-)

- 1) Of course Rei went to get some food. 2) What was the reason of that coin flip?

- "There is no time to fool around, it seems... The fridge is empty!"

- Okay, did the creators forget to add a scene, or Kai and Rei just had some instantaneous telepathic communication...?

- How many tracks does the railway have? It would be unfortunate if the next train coming from either way crashed into them...

- The mummy be like "Bon jour!"

- You tell them, Kai! X'D

- Aaaaaand... we're still not at the nakama part ^^"

- This Blood guy's voice is familiar...

- Kamiya Hiroshi (Levi, Trafalgar Law) and his unmistakable breathy voice.

- Also he dubbed in two animes with 'bakuten' in their title XD

- Isn't Blood's Beyblade too wide for Bayblade Tournament regulations? Is it shorter than 10 cm?

- Takao, you can't assume people are evil only on your second meeting.

- No way Dragoon is only 5 cm wide...

- Beyblade Wiki, I don't care about the gramms! How wide is this damn Beyblade!?

- I'm pretty sure that's cheating Wolfguy.

- Look! These are the characters from Les Mis with vampires and werewolves! Quick! Get their autographs!

- (I just realized looking at the vampire that the BBA Team will meet Ralf in Romania. So they'll probably travel across Hungary. Though I can't remember how they'll get there from Italy...)

- This 'evil team' is too overdramatic to be really evil...

- The hell...?

- THE HELL???!!!

- That freakin' coin is the MVP of the episode =_=

 Episode 33

- I had the scare of MY LIFE! Because you know I stopped watching because it was too hot, again. And now I decided to continue, but the site was GONE! O_O And after a lot of denial I started to accept that I had to continue with the dub, but then I remembered this other site, and I'm KISSING this site, because I can continue watching the original version.

- Ohmygod! Rei, Max and Kai are sharing a bed X'D Neither of them wanted to sleep on the floor OR share a bed with Takao and Kyoujyu X'D

- You have nightmares because you forgot to take off your glasses! Everyone with glasses knows this.

- Kai be like: "Who disturbed my slumber!", but it's just Kyoujyu talking to himself.

- That's a very plausible way for the blanket to cover all of Kai BUT his Beyblade.

- I was about to say "Don't call Takao a glutton when you're no better than him" but Rei just said it also X'D

- Kai is gone. AGAIN?

- Takao: "Where's Kai? What if he gets in trouble? :(" Rei: "He can take care of himself :)"

- If this is really like your time in Hong Kong, then you should get in trouble to summon Kai.

- (But at least they noticed that one of their teammates is missing. Some progress is happening.)

- Am I remembering this correctly? Kyouyju becoming friends with the Shadow team? I haven't seen this series in a looooong time...

- Also since I'm kinda getting into Miraculous Ladybug... Be careful, guys, not to get Akumatized!

- Point out the flaw in this idea, point out the flaw in this idea, please, someone point out the flaw in this idea! There is no way you can see Kai from the top of the Eiffel Tower!

- Thanks, Max, but you're already in the elevator =_=

- "What's this building? What's that building? What's that guy on the window?" X'D

- How LOUD was that scream?! X'D

- The gang is in trouble, meanwhile Kai is having fun XD

- So Ralph won the battle AND Vampire guy's castle in Romania.

- Ohmygod, the blond guy of the Europen team has a strange voice...

- Who the HECK is this person speaking from the clouds?!

- Ah... So he got some upgrades from evil grandpa...

- YES! Go Kai! Help The Team!

- Wow, you got here really fast O.o

- Hey, Oliver! :D ..... Were you originally 'Oliver' too?

- The lead animator in this episode has an... interesting head design style.

- Max, the Kai whisperer, strikes again

- Olivier. Okay.

[misdre]

misi's beyblade AUs masterpost

i like making AUs, i have many of them, here's a post of them from oldest to newest. (at least approximately) (the ones that got no art of them have photos from unsplash. i just enjoy setting the mood)

⸻⸻⸻

Magical boy AU takao is an ordinary middle schooler who one day gets dragoon the magical spinning top from a cute little azure dragon, seiryuu, and transforms into a magical boy to protect the world from evil for some cosmic reasons that i haven't come up with yet. the rest of the characters have similar powers from their holy beasts and takao needs to gather up his team to fight the evil and. you get the drill is there art of it? yes 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 is there a fic of it? no note: i originally created this just because i like designing the outfits so i haven't planned the story much (this used to be my main focus but then 4kingdoms happened GJSDHGHSDG) i'd want to though, i'll get back to it eventually...at some point...... one of the charm points of this AU is that the holy beasts are these digimon-like animals that hang out with the characters and each have their own personalities.

Fairy tale monster AU takao and gramps live in a cabin in the middle of a forest full of monsters and takao decides one day to venture out to look for a silver-haired boy he once saw, he meets up with the other BBA characters one by one in the grim woods. is there art of it? no is there a fic of it? yes note: my oldest halloween fic. the characters are all these different cute spooky creatures and it's intended to sound like a fairy tale.

One day, he determined that the time was ripe: Takao decided to leave for an adventure. For his grandfather was old, it was not at all unusual for him to lay down to bed before sundown. Once the hut had fallen in drowsy silence, Takao packed his one and only bag with what little he felt he needed, took his cap and jacket, and stepped over the doorsill. He had left the safe warmth of the hut behind.

Royal fantasyverse AU (the tale of four kingdoms) takes place in a fantasy universe with four kingdoms (east, west, south & north) created by the four holy beasts, in an era where each kingdom happens to be ruled by an exceptionally young king due to their respective circumstances. when the four meet for the first time, a snowball of events is set in motion that's going to affect all four kingdoms. is there art of it? yes 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 is there a fic of it? yes 1 / 2 note: like a period drama with magic and gay and tons of worldbuilding. probably has way too many mysteries for the boys to solve because i have no self control when it comes to creating twists. this is The one AU that i have crammed every usable canon character into, i need enough people to inhabit four fucking countries

After creating the four lands, the holy beasts created people to inhabit them. Because the beasts were celestial beings and couldn't but guard people and the world they lived in from far above, they needed human vessels to lead the four nations. Thus they created four kings who would rule over other people using the four beast’s powers. The four kings were neither human nor gods, but something between – they were messengers, or icons, of the four holy beasts.

Omegaverse AU a canon divergence AU (i guess??) where genders are replaced by A/B/O and everyone being either canine or feline. max is a late bloomer canine and finds out he's the only alpha of the BBA boys thanks to a certain feline omega. is there art of it? not really but i do have dog boy max and cat boy rei art (which are a bit too cute for this kinkfest. i mean they're obviously aged up for the real thing.) 1 / 2 is there a fic of it? it's been in the works for like, five years but i always shy away from finishing it note: it's omegaverse, it's exactly what you'd expect. the smut is so filthy i've been too embarrassed to even post it. hiromi is also an alpha by the way

Coffee shop AU highschooler rei goes on a venture to hit on a local Hot University Teacher and coffee shop owner judy in a cafe owned by her, ends up receiving a bunch of flirty cups of latte from barista max working there. is there art of it? no is there a fic of it? yes note: i mean, rei being into blonde MILFs is pretty much canon

Now that Rei looked at the boy more carefully, he realised his hair was just as fair and eyes just as blue as he knew Judy Mizuhara's to be. Maybe they were related? It wasn't that strange if Judy had hired a relative's kid to help out at the shop, right? He certainly looked American, but he had spoken Japanese. And then, all of a sudden, the boy turned to look back to him. Startled, Rei blinked his own golden brown eyes and shifted them back to his now empty cup. God, it was rude to stare at someone, wasn't it? He'd been too deep in thought to even notice doing it. Not that the boy had looked judgmental – he only seemed to wear a smile.

Soulmate AU max keeps having dreams with peculiar scenarios about a boy named rei. one day he borrows a book on soulmates from hiromi and finds a chapter talking about meeting your soulmate in the realm of dreams. is there art of it? no is there a fic of it? yes note: i don't even care for soulmate AUs, this was my own dare to myself to find a single soulmate trope that interested in me enough to write a thing of it.

Max was walking through a crowded airport, carrying a heavy backpack with him. He had never been to this airport in his life, but somehow he knew exactly where he was, and where he was supposed to go. And he was in a hurry, and Rei had at some point emerged from the crowd, as usual, keeping up with him without bumping into any of the people that should have blocked his way. “I'm sorry, this is probably my fault,” Rei said. “I haven't even travelled in ages anymore, but these dreams just keep coming back to haunt me.”

Chess player AU rei is a young chinese chess champion participating in the world junior championships, ends up falling for the american chess prodigy max somehow in the process and is determined to get to play against him again. is there art of it? no is there a fic of it? yes note: so this is one of the weirder ones i've done. it was inspired simply by me having a very vivid mental image of a scene of them playing dramatic chess together. this is probably my most underrated AU even by myself, i think the writing is pretty solid for such a short story of a topic i know practically nothing about

As a child, Rei had initially been taught to play xiàngqí, a Chinese game much more popular back in his home country; but chess with its refined, uniquely shaped pieces was love at first sight for the young Rei. He was a fast thinker and had amazing concentration skills once he set his mind on something, and he also had an outstanding memory, making it easy to memorise game patterns he once saw and then use them for his advantage. This all granted him natural talent in chess. But despite his skill, he had a bad habit of easily losing his temper and becoming indecisive once his focus wavered. Also, he was just a tad bit too sentimental. These traits often became his worst enemy in important matches, much worse than the actual opposing player. Keep your cool. Focus. Play well.

Flower shop + fake dating AU yuriy doesn't really know anything about flowers but is working part-time in a flower shop for the easy cash. he keeps getting a pair of weird customers who ask about flower language for hypothetical situations. is there art of it? not by myself and i don’t have a link to the fanart made of it unfortunately is there a fic of it? yes note: did i write this for valentine's day? i feel like i maybe did. this is my only AU (and fic in general) so far that's about a non-BBA character as the main lmao

“So, I need some advice for a particular situation,” the customer then began, idly tapping the counter with his hand. “I mean, not a real situation, of course – hypothetically speaking, if someone was just pretending to be going out with another person, but they weren't really going but it just needed to seem that way to everyone else, what kinda flowers would get the message through?” Possibly an idiot, Yuriy concluded his analysis. “So you need suitable flowers for a date,” he stated, shooting his eyes at his notes about common flower-usage.

Classical music AU (the heart that i love) max is a piano prodigy attending a classical music college that holds annual music competitions for the students. he's got some haters for being the son of a world-known pianist who's one of the teachers, but he also ends up having a budding romance with rei the mysterious chinese violinist. is there art of it? yes 1 / 2 is there a fic of it? yes note: the origin of this was my "max and mao are besties" college AU. then it got mixed in with my thirst for classical instruments and max being bullied.

Max isn’t exactly a synesthet, but he has always been able to see music as pictures – as entire sceneries, as great adventures. This tendency of his emerges especially strong whenever he’s learning to play a new piece on the piano; as he moves along the melody, the scenery is also being built around him like a jigsaw puzzle, creating a complete picture piece by piece; and once he has mastered the song, he’s able to freely traverse and immerse himself in the world inside that puzzle. Some pieces have a more relaxed or soothing scenery than others, some are exciting and thrilling – even deliciously sinister in the way that a good horror film can be. Setting himself down in front of a piano is always an invitation to a world of his choice.

Bakeneko AU after moving to a small rural town in japan, max hits his head and starts seeing things, such as a weird white cat following him around. after a while, he's convinced that he's being haunted. is there art of it? yes is there a fic of it? yes note: another halloween AU, a more surreal one where max is human and rei is. well. not

Max kept walking, his eyes still on the narrow road. He hadn't noticed while deep in thought, but it really was quiet that evening. The sun had nearly set by now, leaving the sky striped with the dusk of the approaching nightfall. There was no wind to rustle the treetops, no birds chirping, nothing. Only the sound of Max's own footsteps on the pavement, and the matching sound that followed. Followed. What if someone actually was following him? A sudden, violent chill struck down Max's spine, causing his hair to stand on end. He stopped. After a short delay, the steps also stopped.

Genderbend AU a canon divergence AU where everyone's a different gender from canon (duh). starts off as an alternate version of the g-revolution world championships where the girls meet for the first time and befriend each other. rei is a professional model in addition to being a blader in the baihus, and max from the PPB is delighted to be able to battle her. she has no idea that rei has fallen for her at first sight, though. is there art of it? yes 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 is there a fic of it? it's... in the works. note: i created this because i wanted to design attractive girls, what about it. absolutely partial to maxine's huge badonkadonks.

It wasn’t like Rei hadn’t already taken notice of her before, given that they were participating in the same world championship tournament, but the real turning point was the first time they stood on the opposing sides of a bey stadium. It was the day when the match-up roster signalled the match between the Chinese team and the American team, the Baihus versus the PPB All Starz; and despite both teams consisting of five players, it came down to, to Rei’s immense joy, the tag team of Rai and herself against the two most interesting US players, Rikki Anderson and Mizuhara Maxine.

Vampire & merboy AU rei is a starved vampire just about to end his own life when he meets merboy max at a forest lake. is there art of it? of max yes is there a fic of it? yes note: yet another halloween monster AU, this time they are both monsters though. this one’s a pretty grim one i have to admit

Rei succumbed into deep thought, considering his few options, when something grabbed his unsuspecting hand. Something yanked him forward in one mad splash and forced not only the rest of his arm but also his shoulders and head underwater. Half a second later Rei, so badly startled that he’d come close to slipping into insanity, found himself staring at a pair of bright blue eyes only inches away from his own face. His other hand and lower body still firmly on land, Rei pulled himself back with strength that he didn’t even know his weak body still contained. As he did, he also pulled up whatever was clutching his hand, which turned out to be another hand – a white hand with elongated, dirty fingers, so sharp at the tips that they looked like daggers.

Mafia AU max is the boss of the BBA mafia family, rei is a hitman and max's right hand man, the rest have various roles in the organisation. salima, mariam and some other girls (at least) are reporters doing investigative journalism on organised crime who get interested in covering the story of a group of russian elite detectives doing a thorough investigation of the BBA. is there art of it? of rei and max yes 1 / 2 / 3 is there a fic of it? it's in the works but it's just a gratuitous reimax smut note: this is a story i wish existed but this kind of police investigation action thing is so not my genre of expertise. that's why i'm just doing a PWP of my boys and the rest exists on conceptual level

“Did you know,” Salima said, perfectly peppy about it, “that there are secret underground auctions for stolen artwork that’s sold in the black market? Not just online auctions in the dark web but actual, physical events held somewhere in the city! Isn’t that so intriguing? Can you imagine how an event like that would look like, Max?” Max can – in fact, he doesn’t need to imagine. But he’d rather not think about it; the memories bring the familiar taste of bile in his mouth and make his gut curdle with a mixture of disgust and very particular guilt. The mere thought of it makes him set his coffee aside and bring a hand between his tightly shut eyes.

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the next thing i come up with? who knows............

[sailorhyunjinz]

»»————-　Welcome to Cherry’s Playlist 　————-««

This prompt list contains 33 different song lyrics from songs that I love too much. (legit 80% the 1975 or the nbhd also very sad that i couldnt find any good gorillaz lyrics :c)

To request; Specify number, member, gn/fem!reader and genre.

Many of these lyrics will be pulled out of context and some can be interpreted in different ways whereas some others are impossible to make into smut for example so please specify genre (smut, fluff, angst)*

i.e; 1, Felix, fem!reader, smut

OR

i.e; 1, Felix, fem!reader, fluff

*feel free to mix so i.e both fluff and smut! Pick max two numbers and two members~!

1. “Could you help me?” ; The Neighbourhood - Prey 

2. “They don’t love you like I do” ; Moe Shop - Love Taste

3. “I think we should rule out commitment for now” ; Drake - Passionfruit

4. “I don’t really care if you cry” ; Lil Uzi Vert - XO Tour Llif3

5. “I’ll make it up to you, so follow me back door” ; Stray Kids - Back door

6. “Finish up the bottle then we’ll go” ; Chase Atlantic - Slow Down

7. “Fuck with me after my shift” ; Frank Ocean - Nights

8. “I need you more than anything in my life” ; Daft Punk - Something About Us

9. “You’re the star I look for every night” ; The Neighbourhood - Compass

10. “You’re obsessed, just let me go” ; Kali Uchis - Dead to me 

11. “One step ahead” ; Stray Kids - Booster

12. “Just wanna have a little fun” ; Kali Uchis - Just a stranger

13. “I just don’t believe that you have got it in you” ; The 1975 - Somebody else

14. “Here, take my shirt” ; Daft Punk - Lose yourself to dance

15. “If we’re gonna do anything we might as well just fuck” ; The 1975 - Sex

16. “Give me a night, I’ll make you” ; The 1975 - Girls

17. “We know both just what we’re here for” ; Lana del Rey - Diet mountain dew.

16. “I want you to touch me there” ; The Neighbourhood - A little death

17. “You’re my best friend, I love you forever” ; The Neighbourhood - You get me so high

18. “What does it matter if I lied to you?” ; The 1975 - The sound

19. “I only touched you once” ; The Neighbourhood - Void

20. “You know, you were my first time” ; Frank Ocean - Thinkin bout you

21. “I can read your mind even from behind” ; The Internet - Special Affair

22. “I want you so bad” ; The Japanese House - Saw you in a dream

23. “Should I be quiet?” ; The Neighbourhood - Nervous

24. “It’s crazy what you do for a friend” ; The Neighbourhood - Daddy Issues

25. “You left your diary at my house” ; Willow - Wait a minute!

26. “I wanna be your favorite boy” ; Rex Orange County - Best Friend

27. “I shouldn’t have called” ; The 1975 - Be my mistake

28. “Will you still love me in the morning?” ; NoMBe - Milk and Coffee

29. “Maybe I would like you better if you took off your clothes” ; The 1975 - If you’re too shy (Let me know)

30. “You stayed for this” ; DPR IAN - Dope Lovers

31. “I’d probably still adore you with your hands around my neck” ; Arctic Monkeys - 505

32. “Say you want me” ; 5 Seconds Of Summer - Youngblood

33. “Don’t be surprised when you get bent over” ; Arctic Monkeys - Teddy Picker

[burnsopale]

Pictured: three tired boys breaking into pieces.

I was gonna wait until we actually reached lake Baikal, but I’m impatient, so let’s start the final part of my little series about these three disasters.

In the last post I talked about how Kai, Rai and Johnny are similar. Now I want to talk about how their similar fates will mean something different for each of them.

To recap, all three boys are highly sensitive and emotional, but too proud to dare be vulnerable, and so they hide behind more aggressive behaviour; Kai is antisocial, Johnny is sarcastic and cruel, and Rai is ANGRY. All three spend canon dealing with a big change in their lives (his name is Takao), but they are locked in their self-denial, so they resist the change furiously until they exhaust themselves and reach a crisis point where their armour is shattered and they stand revealed as who they truly are.

Or at least, Rai and Kai get that, Johnny almost gets there, but the arc ends before he can really reach it. He would have, though. Remember, Ralf, arguably the main antagonist of the arc, accepts the existence of the power of friendship before he even steps up to battle Takao. Johnny on the other hand never says out loud that he’s on board with the new regime. So for the images above, I could have chosen Johnny’s flinch after Ralf lost, where he’s got the same pinched expression and bared teeth as the other two, but in his case, it’s his moment of quiet distress in the garden that gives us the clearest glimpse behind the armour.

So they are similar, but the beauty of Bakuten Shoot Beyblade is the level of detail these characters get at their best. All three boys are facing an authority that demand they submit, but giving in will mean something different for each boy.

(Oh no, Judin’s getting horny again.)

(She’s not sorry, though.)

Rai’s case is fascinating because he is an alpha who, more than the other two, is forced to submit. He resists until he breaks, and then Rei overwhelms him with massive power. It’s a benevolent destruction, meant to tear down Rai’s walls and show him a better path, but it’s also a horrible humiliation. Don’t forget that Rai has to deliberately control his temper before he can congratulate Rei.

Remember also that it was Rai’s ambition to be chief, and for a little while that was his future, and now, while he will not have to live with being an imposter chief, the chief who was not chosen, he will have to live with having been the Almost Usurper. Rei and Rai will both be “the redeemed boy” of the tribe, except Rei is pure and blameless, while Rai is blackened and tainted by what he did.

Yes, this is all terribly dramatic, but that’s kinda the point; Rai is dramatic. Rai, Johnny and Kai are so proud that every little embarrassment is excruciating, and this embarrassment was not little.

So it is my belief that for Rai, submission to Rei will never be easy. First of all because his submission was forced; he is part of the clan, Rei is Byakko’s chosen chief of the clan, Rai has no choice but to submit; he tried to resist once and Rei showed him his place. Secondly, Rai is himself an alpha, used to being the dominating personality in all his relationships except with Rei.

And yeah okay we’re getting dangerously close to AlphaOmega fanfic territory here, but they’re friggin cat-people, so the terminology works, and anyway, not every character in this story is dominant or submissive. Max, for instance, can be either or neither. I’ve used him before as the example of a boy who accepts himself completely, emotions, weaknesses and all, and that makes him strong and adaptable, able to withstand for instance the realisation that his mom is a terrible mother. He can blend in with any group of people and do just fine; after all, his element is water.

I obviously have no idea how Rai deals with Rei returning in G-Rev, but looking strictly at season 1, I see a Rai who will always struggle to take orders from Rei, though he will do it for the sake of duty, and because he knows his reluctance comes from his own pride and shame, not from any fault of Rei’s, and really that just adds to his pain. Even leading the Chinese blading team is something Rai will know he is only doing until Rei decides to join them. Then he will have to step down.

ONE DOWN, TWO TO GO, ANYBODY ELSE FEELING A CREEPING DREAD? *sweats* Well buckle up cause it’s about to get hornier.

Next is Johnny. The funny thing is that where Rai is an alpha forced to submit, Johnny only thinks he’s an alpha, and submission actually comes very natural to him. Once he met Ralf anyway. AND YES I SHIP THEM PUT DOWN THE PITCHFORKS. I like to think I ship them because they have this dynamic, and not that I give them this dynamic because I ship them.

Part of Johnny’s problem is that he’s a soft boy who thinks he needs to be a swaggering macho male. He keeps tripping himself up because his natural instinct is to curl up in the safety of Ralf’s authority, which means he’s always doing what Ralf tells him to in the hope that senpai will notice him and give him the affirmation he needs. Remember my argument that Johnny bases his self-worth on his wealth, status and blading skills, all of which Takao is teaching him means nothing, leaving him with precious little; he is in desperate need of someone to tell him he is good enough even without these things. His loud complaining is both a front he puts up, his armour, and the way he expresses his fear of where this train is hurtling. Highly sensitive people are not good at accepting change, and Takao introduces change about as gently as a hurricane.

Unfortunately, the one who Johnny is looking to for affirmation is a guy who has no interpersonal skills whatsoever, and Johnny can’t really look elsewhere because of a little thing that Saint-Exupéry talks about in The Little Prince, when the Prince meets a fox who asks the boy to tame him:

“"I am looking for friends. What does that mean--'tame'?"

"It is an act too often neglected," said the fox. "It means to establish ties."

"'To establish ties'?"

"Just that," said the fox. "To me, you are still nothing more than a little boy who is just like a hundred thousand other little boys. And I have no need of you. And you, on your part, have no need of me. To you, I am nothing more than a fox like a hundred thousand other foxes. But if you tame me, then we shall need each other. To me, you will be unique in all the world. To you, I shall be unique in all the world..."

...

But if you tame me, it will be as if the sun came to shine on my life. I shall know the sound of a step that will be different from all the others. Other steps send me hurrying back underneath the ground. Yours will call me, like music, out of my burrow.”

By giving Johnny his first major defeat, Ralf has tamed him, and, as Saint-Exupery goes on to say: “You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed.”

Unfortunately, as before mentioned, Ralf is UTTERLY OBLIVIOUS to this thing having happened. He’s a stork what can I say. At best he has an instinctual sense of Johnny, Giancarlo and Olivier being “his people” now, which for instance allows him to casually dismiss Johnny’s very reasonable request TO BE ALLOWED TO GO HOME.

Ralf is the type who rules with complete authority. He’s a stone wall as far as negotiations go. Not that he can’t change his mind or see the sense in an argument (Again, he accepts the power of friendship when he sees it in action), but only if he is Wrong. This is like the one thing that keeps him from being a straight up villain. In all other ways he is unbendable, which also leaves Johnny’s attempts at asserting dominance hilariously ineffective.

For Johnny, his final submission to Ralf would mean he had reached self-acceptance, and it would give him safety and comfort, and I think Ralf, once he learns how to act like a human being, will grow into his role as Johnny’s Captain.

Though I admit that this, more than with Kai and Rai, is my own interpretation of Johnny’s character, since we don’t get his full arc. And he is not like this at all in the manga, but that’s a separate canon.

Again, if you think this is all very ... well, horny of me, I’m not saying all relationship work this way. Again, Kai defeating Max in battle did not mean Max is now tamed, because Max does not work that way. If he ever allows himself to be tamed, it will be his choice.

Takao, and shounen anime protagonists in general, tend to tame everyone they meet, and some people take it in stride, while others become their devoted followers or obsessed rivals.

Kai was very much tamed by Takao, but since he doesn’t respect Takao or think much of his abilities as a blader, Kai is able to shrug their bond off at first.

At first.

But I’ll come back to Kai if we ever get through episode 45.

[yelena-bellova]

Don’t Be Afraid: Poe Dameron x Solo!Reader - Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Sixteen: Team Effort

Series Masterlist

Plot: Finn and Rose lay out their plan for Poe and Y/n.

Warnings: one or two curse words, semi-graphic description of violence and injuries, angst with Poe fluff interspersed

Word Count: 4.2k

A/N: How I managed to write a 4.2k chapter based on a five minute scene, I have no idea lol. This one was really fun to write though. Enjoy!

—————

“Okay, just give it to me one more time, simpler.”

Finn and Rose, a maintenance worker I’d seen around base, had just laid out an extremely complicated plan of how we could escape the First Order. Poe sat in the center of the room while I stayed seated at my mother’s side. Parts of it made sense and others were harder to understand. Tech was neither of our specialties, I could make things float and Poe blew stuff up.

“So the First Order’s only tracking us from one Destroyer, the lead one,” Finn began explaining once again.

“So we blow that one up?” Poe inquired, his eyes lighting up as he looked between Finn and I. Case in point, tech wasn’t his forte.

“I like where your head’s at, but no,” Finn replied.

I chimed in, “You’ve blown enough up for one day.”

Finn continued, “They’d only start tracking us from another Destroyer.”

“But if we can-“ Rose spoke up, only for Finn to talk over her.

Finn stepped closer to Poe, motioning with his hands, “If we sneak on board the lead Destroyer and disable the tracker without them realizing, then we can-“

“They won’t realize it’s off for one system cycle,” Rose stepped forward, “About six minutes.”

“Sneak on board,” Finn said as Rose pulled up a holographic schematic of the Destroyer, “Disable the tracker. Our fleet escapes before they realize.”

I had my chin propped against my fist as I watched a hunched over Poe absorb the information. It wasn’t the craziest plan I’d heard all day and with Finn and Rose knowing their stuff, we could trust them to have thought each step through. Poe hummed as he contemplated while Finn stared hopefully at us.

“It actually makes sense,” I commented neutrally, there were still a lot to think over if we went through with this. The fact that we’d be going behind Holdo’s back being a prime example.

Poe rose and took a few steps in my direction before turning around and waving his finger between Rose and Finn, “How’d you two meet?”

The two of them looked at each other and judging by their faces, there was definitely a story to their meeting they were dancing around, 

“Just luck,” Rose answered innocently.

“Yeah? Good luck?” Poe asked, coming closer towards me.

“Not sure yet.”

“Poe, Y/n, we gotta do this,” Finn implored, “It’ll save the fleet and it’ll save Rey.”

Poe came and joined me next to Mom, looking between the two of us. He carefully slipped his hand over hers, the gesture warmed my heart. Poe had lost his mom at such a young age, I knew he had always seen Leia as that type of figure in his life. The possibility of losing her was a difficult weight for him to bear.

Loss. A concept I’d become overly familiar with over the past couple of days. Four days ago my mother was well, my father alive, our fleet secure and Poe never having left my side. Adding in the fact that Rey, Chewie and R2 were off who knows where and could be walking back into this mess, my anxiety had quickly blown through the roof. I needed to do everything I could to ensure my loved one’s and the Resistance’s safety, whatever that entailed. I inhaled to address Poe, but a different voice came out,

“If I may be the sole voice of reason,” 3PO interrupted, “Admiral Holdo will never agree to this plan.”

I looked back over to Poe and gave a half shrug, “We’re not going to come up with anything better.”

“Yeah,” he sighed and nodded, “You’re right, 3PO. It’s a need to know plan,” he turned around, “And she doesn’t.”

The protocol droid stammered, “That wasn’t exactly my-“

I stood up and went over to him, placing a hand on his metal arm, “3PO, I need you to go against every instinct you have right now. If you don’t trust them, trust me at least.”

“All right,” Poe agreed, strutting towards the table with the Destroyer holo projected above it, “You guys shut down that tracker, we’ll be here to jump you to lightspeed.”

“The question is,” I came to stand next to Finn, “How do we sneak the two of you onto Snoke’s Destroyer?”

“We steal clearance codes,” Rose suggested.

Finn shook his head, “No, they’re bio-hexacrypt and descrambled every hour. We can’t get through their shields undetected, nobody can.”

I chewed on a nail as I wracked my brain for anyone who could help us.

I snapped my fingers once it hit me, it seemed like Poe had just come to the same conclusion I had.

“Maz,” I declared, jogging over to the other side of the room and switching on the holoprojector. I punched in a few numbers and said a silent prayer that she picked up. The others crowded around me as we waited for her to answer,

“Do we know if she’s still on Takodana?” Finn inquired from my left side.

“No idea,” I replied, “It’s a long shot but if anyone could do it, it’s her.”

Just as I’d finished my sentence, Maz appeared in front of us,

“Baby Solo!” she greeted loudly, “I’m so glad to see you’re okay.”

“You too, Maz,” I smiled, “I wish I was calling under better circumstances but-“


“Poe Dameron! Alive and in love I’m assuming?”

I snuck a glance at Poe, catching the small grin he gave me, “Incredibly so.”


Finn awkwardly cleared his throat, snapping us back into reality, “Maz, we need your help.”

“Back in trouble again? So soon?” she replied.

Finn laid out our plan for her in detail, explaining her part in sneaking him and Rose onto the Destroyer.

“Could I do it? Of course I could do it,” she exclaimed as she adjusted a gun in her hands, “But I can’t do it. I’m a little tied down right now!”

Blaster fire echoed around her and caused us to jolt backwards, 3PO and BB-8 letting out exclaims.

“Maz? What is happening?” Finn asked.

“Union despite,” Maz ceased her fighting momentarily, “You do not want to hear about it. But, lucky for you, there’s exactly one guy I trust who can crack that kind of security!” Max rolled and dodged a few shots, “He’s a master codebreaker,” she loaded her gun again, “An ace pilot, a poet with a blaster,” she fired a few blasts confidently.

“Oh my,” 3PO said, “It sounds like this codebreaker fellow can do everything.”

“Oh yes,” Maz replied, a distant look in her eyes and her voice low, “He can.”

The four of us awkwardly looked at each other before she began speaking again,

“You’ll find him with a red plom bloom on his lapel, rolling at a high stakes table in the casino on Canto Bight.”

“Canto Bight?” Poe repeated, looking to me and Finn defeatedly, “No, no, that’s…Maz, is there any way that we can take care of this ourselves?”

Maz adjusted her goggles and began adjusting a device on her wrist, “Sorry, kiddo. This is rarified cracking. You wanna get on that Destroyer, I only know one option. Find the Master Codebreaker. And Baby Solo?”

I looked up to Maz as she sighed, “I’m so sorry about Han.”

I exhaled slowly and gave a hint of a nod, “Thanks, Maz.”

We parted with a goodbye greeting in an alien language and Maz flew off on a jetpack, the holo cut out then.

Poe looked distressed at the thought of sending Finn and Rose to Canto Bight, not that I wasn’t. But I’d seen Finn in action, he was undoubtably smart enough to navigate the situation just as he had on Starkiller.

Finn held out a hand towards Poe and I, a cloaked binary beacon resting in it. I was about to ask why he had one, when I remembered earlier in the day my mother had mentioned how she’d given Rey an identical one. It was how she would find her way back to the fleet. Once again, Finn’s personal stake in this was to protect Rey. That was his driving force. His eyes pleaded with Poe, who took it after only a few seconds of deliberation.

“Okay, we need to get you guys on an escape pod,” Poe said, “The problem is that you’ll show up on our radars.”
 
“So we need to have someone on our side on the bridge who will cover for us,” I finished his thought.

Poe ran through a list of names in his head, “Connix is our best bet. If you can make sure they get to the pod unnoticed, I can talk to her.”

I turned to Finn and Rose, “You two should probably take BB-8 with you as well, if Poe’s alright with it.”

This was probably going to be the most difficult part of the plan; getting Poe to temporarily part with his beloved droid. He looked down at Bee and let out a grunt of acceptance, “Yeah, he’ll be able to help you guys.”

“We’ll take care of him, I promise,” Finn assured Poe, he’d looked out for Bee once already and could do it again.

Whoa, do I get a say in this at all?

“Would you rather sit here with Poe and I and wait for the Destroyers to blow up the ship or take a trip to Canto Bight and help save the fleet?” I asked as I rested my hands on my hips

…I say I go with Finn.

“Good choice,” I replied before looking back to Finn and Rose, “Let’s get you guys in a pod.”

They nodded and the five of us, made our way out of the room.

“I’ll comm you when I get a hold of Connix,” Poe said quietly to me before we parted down different hallways. I gripped my communicator tight in my fist.

Once it was just us, I turned my attention to Finn and Rose, “Okay, how’d you two really meet?”

“I was going to take a pod to get the beacon as far away as I could. To protect Rey,” he answered.

I chuckled quietly as we turned a corner, “You’ll go to the ends of the galaxy for her, won’t you?”

Finn didn’t say anything, just kept his eyes focused on our path ahead. But I had no doubt that his cheeks had heated up at my comment.

“Rose, how do you play into this story?”

“I stunned him once I figured out he was trying to escape, I was planning to…” she trailed off, scared to finish her sentence.

“I don’t bite, I promise,” I said as we made our way through a quieter hall, nearing the escape pod bay.

“I was going to turn him in for desertion,” she replied meekly, probably worried I’d dislike her for the fact that she’d wrongly accused my friend.

“Attagirl,” I patted her shoulder and she cracked a smile, I already liked her.

The escape pod bay was never guarded and didn’t have anyone but maintenance workers in it typically. That’s why I was so surprised to see someone outside the entryway.

“I’ll handle this,” I whispered before taking the lead and strolling casually towards him.

“Commander Solo,” the young man addressed me confusedly, “What are you doing here?”

“I’m giving our latest recruit a tour of the ship,” I answered easily while gesturing to Finn, “Everyone is required to know where the escape pods are so if you wouldn’t mind letting us through?”

The man looked me over, disbelief written over his face, “On whose authority? Shouldn’t you be on the bridge?”

I raised an eyebrow, I was no stranger to dealing with young cocky recruits, “My own authority. Last time I checked, I outranked you. Now step aside.”

As I attempted to move around him, he stepped in front of me, “I think I’m going to have to call someone down to fact check your story.”

“To fact check my…?” I scoffed and pinched the bridge of my nose, how the hell was I supposed to get this guy to leave? An idea formed quickly, though I wasn’t thrilled about attempting it but there weren’t any other options.

I sighed defeatedly and slowly waved my hand in front of his face, “You will step aside and let us through.”

He tilted his head and chucked heartily, “What the hell was that?”

I shook it off and concentrated harder, repeating my movements, “You will step aside and let us through.”

“Y/n, what are you doing?” Finn whispered from behind me, I waved him off with my free hand. 

“Alright, I don’t know what weird shit you’re trying to pull, but it’s not working.”


Ignoring his comment, I silenced all other thoughts in my mind and focused entirely on what I wanted him to do,

“You will step aside and let us through.”

Like clockwork, the asshole straightened up and said, “I will step aside and let you through.”

I waved my hand again, this time more confidant it would work, “You will return to your quarters and…take a nap.”

“I will return to my quarters and take a nap,” he repeated, promptly leaving us and heading to his given destination.

My lips quirked up at what I’d accomplished, I’d never tried to use a mind trick on anyone. I’d heard about them over the years and my uncle had mentioned them in stories he told me as a child. As weird as I felt, invading someone’s mind and bending it to my will, it would come in handy in situations such as these. I’d have to add it to my arsenal. Shaking my head to clear it, I led Finn and Rose into the bay.

“So, are you going to tell us what that was?” Finn asked slowly.

“Jedi mind trick,” I answered, searching for the pods, “I’d never tried it until now.”

“Wait,” Rose gasped, “Are you a Jedi?”

“Not a Jedi,” I answered just as quick as when Poe had brought up the subject, “But I have a lightsaber, it’s complicated.”

“Whoa…” she said under her breath as we approached a pod, I entered a code in the keypad to authorize their departure.

“Solo,” Poe’s voice came through my comm, “You there?”

“What’s the word, Dameron?”

“We’re clear.”

“Copy that.” I replied.

The pod doors opened as I pressed a button, Rose was the first to climb in but stopped in the doorway,

“Thank you for helping us,” she said, “Not a lot of commanders listen to maintenance workers.”

“Don’t mention it, it’s people like you keep this whole operation going,” I replied with a smile, “You probably do more work than I do.”

With that, she grinned and entered the pod leaving me and Finn alone. We both let out a heavy sigh, neither one of us were fond of the idea of being split up. Especially with Rey already on the other side of the galaxy somewhere.

I embraced him bittersweetly, “You better come back in one piece.”


“I will,” he promised as he tightened his arms around my back.


Finn had quickly wormed his way into my heart, into Poe’s too. He fit perfectly in the Resistance and among us, there was no question as to whether or not he belonged here. The thought of him not making it back caused tears to spring to my eyes. It was crazy to think I’d only known him a few days when it felt like saying goodbye to a lifelong friend.

“Listen,” I pulled back to see his face, “I haven’t thanked you for what you did on Ilum. You saved my life and I…”

“Y/n, you don’t need to thank me for-“

“Yes, I do,” I interrupted, “I will forever be in your debt for what you did. You allowed me to come back to my mom, to Poe, to this fight. So yes, I do need to thank you, Finn.”


He looked so awkward accepting my gratitude, like it was one of his first times doing so. Then I remembered that the compliments Poe, Mom and I had paid him were probably some of the only ones he’d ever received. My heart hurt for him all over again.

“You’re welcome,” he replied with a sheepish smile before giving me another quick hug, “If you want to pay off that debt, just protect that beacon.”


“You know I will.”

We parted and the only thing left for me to do was kneel down and hug Bee, “Stay safe, it takes two of us to manage Poe.”

Keep him safe while I’m gone.

“Easier said than done, but I’ll try,” I laughed.

If Rey gets back before we do, will you tell us?

“Of course, buddy.” I said running a hand over his head, “If we made it through the past few days, we can make it through this.”

With that, Bee rolled away into the pod behind Finn. I gave them and Rose a salute just before they closed the door, sealing themselves off from me. Yeah, if we made it through Jakku, Rathtars, Takodana and Starkiller, surely we could make it through this…

I hoped.

——————

Poe and I met back up in my mother’s med bay room, he had returned before I did. 3PO was still standing faithfully at the computers, monitoring Mom’s vitals.

“Any change?” I asked as I came to stand next him to read the levels myself.

“Unfortunately, there has been no change in the Princess, Mistress Y/n,” the droid responded.

That was as close to an inside joke as 3PO was capable of. Long ago when the Resistance had been formed and Mom took on the new title of General, 3PO had a hard time stopping referring to her as Princess. He still did it on accident sometimes. I’d told him that if we were talking just him and I, he could call her Princess. I’d always loved the thought of my mother being royalty as a kid and the title was still comforting to hear.

“Okay, thanks anyway,” I sighed, walking away to pull my chair next to Poe’s. He was still positioned at her legs, watching her intently, waiting for any sign that she was awake. I sat down beside him and laid my head on his shoulder, looping my arms through one of his.

“Finn and Rose get away okay?”

I nodded gently, my eyes never leaving Mom’s face as I silently pleaded with her to wake up.

“Don’t you have things to be doing?” I inquired softly, “I’m the one that Holdo grounded, not you.”

He chortled quietly before sobering back up, “Not really, I’ll go check in with a few people in a bit. Other than that, this is where I’m supposed to be.”

I snuggled a little closer to him, as much as the chairs would allow. His devotion to me and Mom was nothing short of heartwarming, I appreciated him more than I’d ever be able to sum up in words.

Without realizing, my eyes had begun to droop shut and I let out a small yawn. The exhaustion of the past few days hadn’t worn off yet.

Poe kissed the top of my head softly, “Get some rest, I’ll wake you up if anything changes with her.”

I sleepily nodded and allowed myself to drift off, my last thought was an image of Finn, Rey, Poe and I sitting around a cantina table laughing about our separate and shared adventures.


———————

I found myself among the familiar flames once again.

The bodies were still strewn around me.

The thick smoke filled the air.

My lightsaber was clipped at my waist now.

A new single scream erupted this time.

I spun around and watched my younger self run to two bodies lying face down. She fell to her knees and wept over them,

“Mama! Papa! Wake up! Wake up!”

My heart broke at the gut-wrenching memory that was resurfacing, consciously and unconsciously. My parents death had faded over time till I couldn’t remember anything other than the tears I’d shed in the alleyway on Naboo. I hadn’t remembered finding their bodies or screaming their names. Not until now.

“Wake up, Mama! Wake up, Papa! Wake up!”

I cried forcefully as I watched the younger me lose her entire world. I began to stumble towards her just as a hand stopped me, pulling me back by my shoulder.


“Y/n,” the calm voice said, undoubtably the unidentifiable figure in brown, “Don’t be afraid.”

My sobs wracked my body as I continued to listen to the younger me wail, “I thought I wasn’t afraid anymore.”

“Don’t be afraid,” the voice repeated, I could hear it clearer than I’d ever been able to. I could have sworn that I’d heard it before in my life...

Just as the hand let go of me, a piercing red blade shot through my abdomen. The air in my lung drained instantly, the pain searing hot as the hole burned through me. As it was violently ripped out of me, I was turned around to face a maskless Ren. Just as I’d left him, blood trickled down the side of his face where Rey had cut him,

“Don’t be afraid,” he gritted out, “Of what you could be.”

I attempted to scream, but nothing came out. The only noise was the younger me crying out, “Wake up! Wake up!”

—————

“Y/n, wake up!”

I awoke gasping for air, Poe was knelt in front of me with his hands gripping my arms. After I’d blinked a few times, I could see there was concern etched deeply in his face. I was still panting relentlessly, trying to slow my breaths but failing miserably. I looked around frantically at my surroundings, we were still in Mom’s med bay room. Turning to her, she was in the same position she’d been in when I’d fallen asleep. Safe to assume there were no changes while I’d been out.

“You’re okay, I promise.” Poe whispered as I continued to try and catch my breath, “It was a dream, you’re okay.”

I ran my hands through my hair and placed my elbows on my knees, Poe’s hands slid down to hold my calves. He allowed me all the time I needed to calm down, but I couldn’t do so hunched over in a chair. I needed to move. I rose from my seat and walked quickly over to the window, trying to focus on the stars we were passing.


“Mistress Y/n, are you quite alright?” 3PO asked with concern.

“3PO, shh,” Poe reprimanded through his teeth.

I shook my head and waved Poe off, “It’s alright, I’m okay, just…a little shaken.”

“Can I be of service in any way?”

“No, but thank you, 3PO.” I replied, looking over my shoulder at the droid. He nodded and returned to his task at hand.

Poe hesitantly made his way towards me, I chuckled breathily at his caution and motioned him over. As I turned back to gaze at the stars, his arms wrapped around my waist and his chest pressed against my back. I leaned back into him, enjoying the warmth that seeped through the layers of clothing and how his comforting scent surrounded me. I laid my arms across his, my hands coming to rest on top of his. In the moments where I felt like I was free falling, Poe was the soft patch of earth for me to land on. I knew he’d catch me every single time.

“Do you remember your mother?” I asked out of nowhere, my breathing finally having calmed down.

“Yeah, not as much as I wish I did,” he answered wistfully, “My dad has holos of her back home, those help keep the memories alive.”

I hummed as I continued staring out the window, scouring every corner of my brain for a better memory of my family than the one I’d just been gifted. Nothing. I couldn’t remember my father’s smile, I couldn’t remember my mother’s melodious laugh. Not a thing. Just the blood seeping from their chests and my piercing screams.

“Why are you asking?”


“I don’t remember anything about my birth parents except their death,” I answered calmly, “I wish I could remember who they were.”

“Is that what your dream was about?” Poe craned his neck over my shoulder so he could look at me.

I nodded but was still too shaken to turn away from the stars, staring at them seemed to be keeping my panic at bay.

“I think…I think they may have been Force users,” I said.

Poe was silent for a few seconds, simply intertwining our fingers and rubbing his thumb over the back of my hand. He was probably searching for the right thing to say in a situation that was so new to him,

“How can you know that?” he finally asked, “Can you know that?”

I shook my head, “I don’t know, it’s just a…feeling. It was just a theory I had but for some reason after that dream, it feels very real.”

Poe dropped his chin to my shoulder and I rested my head against his. I had a sneaking suspicion that this might be our last moment of peace for a while. I tried to drink it in, savor it, because waiting outside this bubble we’d created for ourselves was chaos. 


“This plan has to work,” I breathed, “I couldn’t save my parents, I couldn’t save Dad, but I’ll be damned if I can’t save the Resistance.”

----------

A/N: And the plot thickens...I promise not to string you guys along for too much longer as to who the parents are but ugh, I love a good slow build. I’ve also figured out a schedule for chapters, tentatively there will be a new chapter every Friday. It could change and I could drop two chapters in one week sometimes but for now, every Friday.

Taglist: @m1rkw00dpr1ncess @springfox04 @constantdisgrace @holybatflapexpert @seninjakitey @tammythompson-singslikea-muppet @leilei-draws @eternal-fandoms @dream-alittlebiggerdarling @imaginecrushes @eternallyvenus @thescarletknight2014 @simplybarnes @captain-america5 @breyasficletblog @caseymcflurry @stumbleonmywords @april-14-blog @i-ievu @ultrunning @desperatelytryingtosavemyself @caswinchester2000 @meraki-loki @lovinnholland @wishing4wishes @fruitloopzzz

Star Wars Permanent Taglist: @paintballkid711 @katrynec @caswinchester2000 @theliterarymess

[hasquetzorkukudoneanythingwrong]

After so long!

It had been so very long doing this. Rex and Quetz had been working towards this for what seemed to be ages. But it was finally complete.

Rex: finally, after so long... we've finally maxed out your skills mi corazon!

Quetz: si! It's taken so long, but I'm happy to finally get here!

Rex: I'm sorry I had to work you and the other goddesses so hard! I promise I'll make it up to you all!

Quetz: it's ok mi amor! I'm sure the other goddesses will forgive you.

Rex: maybe Parvati will, but I doubt Gorgon and Ishtar are nearly nice enough to be so kind, and Skadi is kinda... I'm not sure how she feels about it...

Quetz: well you may have a point on that.

Rex: but right now I'm happy we've finally gotten you so strong! We only need just a bit more and then you'll be the strongest goddess ever!

Quetz: hehehe! Mi amor... gracias for working so hard for my sake! It's so much it can even be a bit overwhelming at times!

Rex: you deserve it mi corazon! Besides, for the journey we're on, I need my best luchadora to be at the top of her game!

The sun goddess blushed so very hard from her husband's words.

Quetz: eeeehhh! Mi Rey! You really know how to make me feel good!

She then proceeded to hug and kiss Rex to show her appreciation even more! After doing this for a bit, she held his face in her hands.

Quetz: mi amor... I've never felt so good before I was with you! Even worshipped as a goddess thousands of years ago, I could never have found such happiness without you!

Rex: gracias mi diosa! You always make me feel safe and loved! You're the greatest wife a man could ever ask for!

Then they both simultaneously shared their favorite little phrase from Quetz's old language

Both: Nimitznequi

Then they shared another love filled kiss!

A/N: here's a fic to celebrate me finally getting both Rider and Ruler Quetz to 10/10/10! Samba Quetz took way less work then Rider but I finally managed it last night!

Also so people aren't confused

Nimitznequi = I love you!

Tags

@exmeowstic @grievouslyxorvia @hasbbdoneanythingwrong @hasereshdoneanythingwrong @hasishtardoneanythingwrong @haspaulbunyandoneanythingwrong @haskamadoneanythingwrong @renmeo

[the-and-sign-anon]

Rebel of Mandalore: Part Twelve

Pairing: Poe Dameron x Mandalorian! Reader

Word count: 1,445

Series Masterlist

Masterlist

Finn finds Poe at your workstation the day you’re set to come home.

“Poe? You said you needed something?”

“I’m in trouble.”

Finn just gives his friend a confused look, so Poe tries to explain while he paces around the table and scattered parts.

“Well, I’m in love with Y/N.”

“Congrats. You’re the last to know.”

Poe gives him a frustrated look, so he gestures for him to continue.

“I realized it last night and then when I woke up this morning, Y/N’s comm was on. She was saying something about talking to me and that it was important. What else could it be?”

“Plenty of things. But whatever it is, you should tell her how you feel anyway. She has a right to know. If she doesn’t already.”

Finn’s last sentence stops Poe in his tracks. He whirls around to face him again with terror in his eyes.

“Why would you say that?!”

Finn can’t help but laugh.

“You’ll be fine, Poe. It’s not like she’d tell you she doesn’t feel the same way.”

“How could you be sure?”

“Because I see the way she looks at you, even with her helmet on. And how she says your name, or teases you. She’s no more discreet about it than you are.”

Finn spends the entire day trying to calm Poe down. BB-8 and Max try help by running around the base to find things he likes and bring them back to him. When Rey has some free time, she joins them and tries to assure Poe that everything will be fine. Nothing seems to put him at ease though, until you comm in to announce your return.

“Trooper! You wanna help me unload?”

Finn is happy to help out, and Rey offers to help too. Though you try to participate as well, R4 nudges you toward Poe.

“R4, stop. I can talk to him later. I still don’t know for sure what I’m gonna say.”

You unload the ship, bring the crates into the base, then unpack everything and put it all in its proper place. Poe is nowhere to be seen the whole time, though you make little effort to find him until you have nothing else to do. Once your work is finished, R4 herds you out of your workroom and through the base. You aren’t sure where he wants you to go until you reach the edge of the woods.

“Alright, R4. I get the message. I’ll go.”

You move between the trees through the fading light with practiced ease. When you reach the clearing, Poe is there. He looks like he’s meditating, with his eyes closed and his hands resting on his knees. But you can tell by the tense set of his jaw and the slight furrow of his brows that he’s nervous. Uncomfortable.

“Hey, cyare. I made it back safe.”

“I’m glad.”

He knows. He definitely knows. How are you supposed to say it now? The only vague plan you’d come up with had depended on him not knowing.

“You were okay while I was gone?”

“Yep. Max was well behaved.”

Neither of you can even try to continue the conversation. For a few minutes, you just sit there together in silence. And then, before you can overthink it any further, your helmet drops to the forest floor and you steel your nerves.

“Ni kar’tayl gar darasuum.”

Your eyes lock on Poe’s. He stares at you with what you’ve finally come to recognize as love. His words are a bit slow and uncertain, but you can tell it’s not because of the meaning, rather pronouncing the words correctly.

“Who taught you those words?”

You can’t help that your voice is small and soft from the shock of what he’s said. You never taught him how to say that one simple but incredibly meaningful phrase. You’d never considered that he might need the words and, so as far as you knew, no one else could have taught him either.

“I said it right, didn’t I?”

“Yeah, yeah you did.”

You drop to your knees in front of Poe and he shuffles to sit up more. He seems to relax at your teary smile and moves to run his thumb across your cheek.

“I… I was actually gonna say that to you, but I’m glad you did it first.”

“It took me the whole day to do it. When I saw your ship land, I thought I might pass out. I’ve been sitting here ever since trying to pull myself together.”

You can’t stop the light laugh that comes from you at the image of your sweet, confident pilot passing out at the mere thought of talking to you.

“I guess I haven’t actually come a very long way since we met.”

“Oh, sure you have. And you got me to go along with you.”

You settle in beside him, pulling off your pauldron to more comfortably rest against him. When you rest your head on his shoulder, he drops his head to yours.

“I mean it, you know. You changed my life the day you stumbled into it. And you kept on changing it when you insisted on being my friend. And, if you’ll have me, I think you could change it forever.”

“I don’t think I’m the one who would let this go. You’re the greatest person I’ve ever met and if I did lose you, BB-8 would have to get my head checked.”

You laugh again, that beautiful, full-hearted laugh that Poe wants to hear for the rest of his life. He laughs with you, feeling happier than he can ever remember. You pass the rest of the evening together. Few words are shared, but it doesn’t matter. Night falls, the moon illuminates your little clearing. Some time after midnight, R4 comes through the trees to beckon you back inside. So you stand, intertwine your fingers with Poe’s. He grabs your helmet and pauldron on the way, slipping it back over your head after handing the pauldron to R4.

“I forgot to ask; why were you so nervous to see me? I get the whole ‘I love you’ thing, I was nervous too. But there was something else, wasn’t there?”

“I heard you on the comm this morning. You said you needed to talk to me when you got back. I panicked and figured you found out I was in love with you and you were going to yell at me or something.”

“Oh! You anxious baby! I would never yell at you, I promise.”

You look over to your droid and huff quietly.

“R4 on the other hand, might need a stern talking to.”

The droid gives an indignant beep, defending his actions and the results of them.

“Regardless of how it turned out, R4, you can’t keep ratting us out to each other.”

Poe tries to sound stern, but you can’t stop the light laughter as you pass out of the trees.

“He’s right, R4. You have to play nice from now on. My rotten little astromech.”

R4 beeps back at you and Poe nods in agreement.

“Yeah, buddy. We’ll be upfront with each other too.”

Finn and Rey happily greet you at the door leading back into the base. From the look they give you, they already know what’s happened. Max and BB-8 welcome you back too in a flurry of beeps and whirs.

“So… how are you two?”

“Shut up, trooper.”

You shove his shoulder as you all head down the hall. It’s late, leaving the halls empty and quiet. It’s the kind of peace you’ve always hoped for. The kind you’re fighting for. It’s a short walk to your room, where Finn and Rey leave you. You stop just inside the door to look at Poe once more.

“Goodnight, my brave, awkward pilot.”

“And goodnight to you, my terrifying rebel of Mandalore.”

With a cursory glance around the hallway to be sure you’re alone, you slip your helmet back off. You move a half step closer, and Poe gets the message to lower his forehead to meet yours. His eyes drift closed as he smiles that dopey, brighter than the suns of Tatooine smile. You know your smile must be close to the same, though you doubt anyone could match his smile.

After a long moment, you both step back and Poe moves down the hall, trying to walk backwards to watch you and immediately running into the wall. You close your door as you stifle your laughter. Your pilot. His rebel. You were in for a world of teasing and gloating from your aliit when you got up next.

Tag list: @gooddaykate-reads @ghostcorazon @nopesies @caelum-the-part-time-acosmist @tillytheslytherin @castiel-barnes @seninjakitey

[thecaffeinebookwarrior]

The Many Faces of the Strong Female Character

The much-requested, positive counterpart to my classic “Female Characters to Avoid in Your Writing” and it’s much-later sequel.  

Here, I will discuss some of my favorite fictional ladies and what makes them work so well;  given my rapturous love of women, there will probably be a sequel!  In the meantime, I talk more about portraying female characters here.

Happy writing, everybody!  <3

1.)  The Warrior

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When most people hear “strong female character,” they picture the most popular definition of the term:  a stony-faced, emotionally shallow, conventionally attractive broad who punches and kicks stuff.  She may occasionally shout things like, “I DON’T NEED NO MAN,” while perhaps punching a small baby. 

I decided to start with my wife Diana, because she is the perfect antithesis of this trope.  She isn’t stony, she’s courageous.  She’s unabashed about showing her doubts, hopes, affections, and optimism.  Her love interest never steals her spotlight, but she feels no need to shun romance to appear “strong.”  She’s beautiful, but not sexualized or objectified.

And while most Strong Female Characters™ are ironically reduced to damsels in distress at some point in their own narratives, Diana consistently takes the lead, totally autonomous over her own story.

You can kick ass AND love babies, people.  Joss Whedon, please take notes.

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Other examples:  Okoye from Black Panther, Furiosa from Mad Max: Fury Road, Rey from Star Wars, and Ser Brienne of Tarth from Game of Thrones.

2.)  The Comedian

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If you haven’t watched Chewing Gum on Netflix, stop whatever you’re doing and watch it right now.  Its relatively simple premise – a twenty-four-year-old from a fundamentalist Christian household struggles to lose her virginity – is a segway into a hilarious, genuine exploration of human sexuality, relationships, and how we forge our identities.

Brilliantly portrayed by the series’ creator, Michaela Coel, Tracy is essentially that one friend who knows exactly what you’ve been thinking and isn’t afraid to say so.  She is never relegated to a single trope or stereotype.  She’s stumbling, clumsily but enthusiastically, through the life experiences that shape us.  Most importantly, she is allowed to be sexually curious, awkward, aggressive, insecure, and – I can’t stress this enough – hilarious.  The dialogue is infinitely quotable, and endlessly relatable. 

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Watching shows like Chewing Gum makes me realize how few female characters – and even fe wer Black female characters – are portrayed as truly human.  Typically, they’re allowed to be sexy, but not sexual.  They’re allowed to be awkward, but only if it’s cute.  They can be insecure, but only if that insecurity can easily be solved by the affirmations of a male love interest.  And they’re rarely allowed to be the main source of a series’ comedy.  

So remember:  let your female characters be human.  Let them be awkward, funny, sexual philosophers.  It’s easier than you think.  

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Other examples:  Abbi and Ilan from Broad City, Leslie from Parks and Rec, Tina from Bob’s Burgers.

3.)  The Drama Queen

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Watching Riverdale is like hurtling along on a structurally unstable rollercoaster.  It’s utterly insane, a lot of fun, and once you’re on, you can’t stop.

But amidst the explosions of batshit crazy plot points, killer cults, and the existential perplexity of finding yourself attracted to emo Jughead, there are some real gems.  One of these is Cheryl Blossom, and pretty much every plot line surrounding her.

Cheryl is introduced as a fairly one-dimensional, catty mean girl, though the Regina George-esque charisma with which she’s portrayed makes her instantly likable.  Initially, we expect her to be a character we’ll love to hate.

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And yet, within the first few episodes, I was impressed by how layered and complex her motivations were.  Much of contempt towards others was misdirected rage from an upbringing of extreme emotional abuse, and grief over her dead brother -- all portrayed without a Snape-style condonation of said behavior.  By the end of season one, my thoughts were generally, “Oh, crap, I don’t think I can claim to be watching this ‘ironically’ anymore,” and “MORE CHERYL.”

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Season two answered my wish, and then some.  Cheryl was saved from an (impressively conscientiously portrayed) attempt at sexual assault by a pack of her female friends, and her attacker got the shit beat out of him in one of the most cathartic moments of modern television.

To the exaltation of my queer heart, she also came out as a lesbian, in a deeply moving story arc that I never would have expected from this show.  Without spoiling too much, she and her new love interest kissing in front of anti-gay propaganda footage was legitimately one of the most powerful moments I have ever witnessed.

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Before the season was over, she viciously threatened her abusive, homophobic mother while covered in blood, shot a serial killer with a bow and arrow, and joined a gang.  If that’s not gay culture, I don’t know what is.

Oh, how I wish this show was just about her.

Other examples:  Alexis from Schitt’s Creek.

4.)  The Lovable Bastard

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Ah, The Good Place.  I have never experienced such a breath of comedic fresh air.  A new philosophical principle each episode, examined and applied in hilarious and thought-provoking ways.  A complete absence of harmful stereotypes.  Incredibly lovable, three-dimensional, and ever-evolving characters. 

I was considering using my queen Tahani for this list, who externally larger-than-life and internally vulnerable after emotional abuse by her parents.  Also, she’s hilarious.  Everyone and everything in The Good Place is hilarious.  And I also thought about talking about Janet, who is the best character in anything ever, but of course:

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Instead, I’ll be talking about bisexual icon Eleanor, who is something very few female characters get to be:  the lovable bastard.

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Eleanor, when we first meet her, is not traditionally good in any sense of the word.  She turned down a high-paying job because she was expected to be nice to people.  She sold placebos to the elderly, and was great at it.  She was drunken, slovenly, hedonistic, and selfish.  And she’s instantly incredibly likable.

Why and how Eleanor is so enjoyable, even at her very worst, merits an essay all its own.  But in a nutshell:

We empathize with her.  We are introduced to “The Good Place” completely through her eyes.  We are in her shoes.  

The stakes are high.  When we discover that her entry into the good place was a mistake, we want her to be okay.

We come to understand her, and how her terrible childhood shaped her destructive behavior.  

She wants to be a better person, and with time, effort, and character development, we watch her become one. 

Not only is this an amazing lesson in how to endear audiences to your character, it is also infinitely refreshing.  The most famous lovable bastards are all men --  Han Solo, Dr. House, Captain Jack Sparrow, the Man With No Name, et cetera -- but women are rarely afforded the same moral complexity.  If a woman in fiction has done bad things, she’s not usually a lovable bastard.  She’s usually a bitch. 

Eleanor isn’t just a great character.  She conveys an important lesson:  women are people.  People with the same capacity for mistakes, growth, redemption, and love as anyone else.

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Other examples: Chloe from Don’t Trust the B*tch in Apartment 23

5.)  The Cinderella

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Yep.  I said it.  Cinderella is a strong female character.

My girl not only survived in an abusive household, she persistently stayed positive.  She worked each day to make the best of an impossible situation, from which she had no means of escape.  That takes an insane amount of courage and tenacity. 

But Caff, I hear you scream, she needed help to escape!!  Well, my imaginary counterargument, so the fuck what?  MOST people need help to escape their abusive situations, and there’s no shame in that.  Accepting help from someone you trust is the best thing you can do in a situation such as that, and implying otherwise is horribly damaging to victims of abuse.  

But she married the prince, you more feebly protest.  Yes!  She did!  She found love and happiness and a great life in a socially influential position!  And that’s an amazing message!

So in the flurry of female warriors, let’s not forget Cinderella, who tells people that their terrible circumstances won’t last forever, to stay hopeful and kind, and that accepting help from a trusted friend can lead to a happy life.  

Cinderella is a bad bitch, and she deserves her happily ever after.

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Other examples:  For some reason, I’m thinking of Sansa from Game of Thrones.  When people try to discredit her as a strong character, they often make similar complaints.  But both, quite fittingly, end up as queens.