#the CHOKEHOLD this video had on me as a kid

[kamitv]

Thinking about Toji who…

Is so big in comparison to you.

He’s simply that— big. His shoulders are so broad that when he’s standing behind you, his shadow almost always casts over you. Even if you’re not exactly small yourself, this man is just fucking huge and beefy.

You’d tease him about it too and “joke” about wondering what it’s like to be put in a chokehold by him. He’d probably put you in one too if you asked nicely.

Isn’t completely broke but damn sure isn’t rich either.

He makes enough money to please you. Although his gambling is a bit of a problem, Toji tries to distract you from it by flattering you with occasional gifts that he bought using his wins.

Toji makes do with the money he has. If he’s not gambling it away, it’s 100% going to you to keep that pretty lil’ smile on your face. He’s happy you weren’t hell bent on marrying a rich man and that you accept him for who he is financially.

Has a breeding kink.

For someone who didn’t do much for his children, he was very determined to fuck you full of his cum after seeing how you sweet-talked some little girl on the street. Something about such a small interaction drove him crazy later that night.

Your legs would he dangling over his big shoulders, body folded exactly how he wants you, pussy sopping with every harsh thrust of his hips as he buried his thick cock inside you over and over again— listening to the way you babble his name and watching how your jaw hangs open, eyes rolled back with drool dripping down your chin.

Fuck, you’re a complete mess but he loves it. Especially with the way your cunt spasms around his dick every time he starts talking to you. Toji would have his face hovered right over yours so every breath is shared and the sex is beyond intimate.

Saying things like, “Gonna let me stuff this pretty pussy full of me, huh?” “Yeah? Y’like the sound of that, baby?” “Want me t’make you a mommy? Hm?”

To which you’d just nod along, not against the idea in the slightest but too fucked out to truly respond. Toji would groan at your agreement, heavy balls slapping against your skin whilst his cock splits you open. Huffing an almost desperate, “Uhuh… You’ll look s’pretty walkin’ around with my kid, ma’.”

Is infatuated with your ass.

Toji almost feels as though he shouldn’t go twenty-four hours without feeling your ass at least once. The way the fat fits and molds into his palm perfectly, how soft you are, and the way it’s every movement captivates his attention like a baby with a sensory video is quite amusing.

Even if you didn’t think you had the fattest ass in the world, Toji believes otherwise. He doesn’t care if you nearly fall over every time he slaps your ass as he walks by, hearing the loud smack that follows and the squeal of surprise that leaves your lips makes him happy.

One time, he found you lying on your stomach and saw that as the perfect opportunity to lay his head against your ass, the rest of his body weight rested against your legs and leaving you immobile.

It never really matters what you’re wearing either, he knows what’s under all those clothes so he’ll compliment you on how your ass looks in anything. Though, he will admit that seeing your ass in a tight dress makes his cock spring up.

Would never admit it but is often needy for you.

If you ever call him such a thing, he’ll curse you out while fucking you dumb— claiming to show you just how “needy” he is for you.

He hates when you catch faint pitches in his groans or moans, especially while you’re kissing him. His neck is so damn sensitive, more-so right under his jawline, so whenever your lips and tongue swipe against that area, his throat would vibrate with a deep groan. And fuck if you’re sitting on top of him, steadily rocking your hips against him, you may catch him slipping and he might just whine-

Not that he’ll ever admit he did or does.

Hates when you ignore him.

And you know he hates it too so that’s exactly why you do it.

After any argument, you just go quiet and start giving him those annoying little mhm’s or uhuh’s, clearly not paying attention to a word he’s saying.

Sometimes you ignore him on accident though, not that it changes how much he hates it. It’s usually when you’re working on something or trying to focus and he’ll come talking to you only to receive silence in response as everything he’d just said goes through one ear and out the other.

Typically, he fixes this problem by getting really close to you and talking right against your ear, forcing you to hear every word he’s saying and smiling at the way you find his lips ticklish against your skin.

Forgets important dates sometimes.

He once forgot your anniversary with him and you put him on sex ban for a month. To you, it should’ve been longer but Toji tried his best to make up for his forgetfulness during that month.

Forgot Megumi’s birthday but was happy to have you there to remind him. Again, you scolded him and he promised to work on it.

Doesn’t bother getting jealous.

The fuck is he getting jealous for? You’re his woman. Any man that looks at you doesn’t disturb Toji’s peace, he knows you’ll never leave him (he tells you that you’d be dumb to do so).

If he ever caught someone flirting with you, he’d casually walk up to you and shower you in lewd kisses and touches just to scare the person off. Toji will walk up mid-conversation and grab a firm hold of your jaw, tugging you toward him just to press his lips against yours. After which, he’s dragging his kisses down to your neck, moving a hand to your waist and the other to your ass, silently telling others to fuck off through his touches alone.

Would kill for you.

This should be obvious too. Taking some’s life for you is no different than his job— even though you don’t know much about it…

He may not tell you he’d murder someone for you but if you seemed distressed enough by someone’s presence, Toji will have them dealt with. You’d later ask “Hey, what happened to…” Only to hear that they got into some “strange accident”. But in reality, your lover had disposed of them.

Cherishes you in his own way.

He doesn’t say anything too sappy to you but he does have his ways of showing his love for you.

Toji has a tendency to stare at you, admiring your features and wondering how or why the hell you still put up with him. You’re so perfect in his eyes that sometimes he thinks you deserve someone better and less forgetful or violent.

And yet, every time he comes home— you’re there with that sexy smile of yours and gentle voice that drives him crazy.

Pet names with Toji slip off of his tongue naturally. “You look s’pretty today, doll.” “Love you too, pretty girl.” “I like your hair like that, ma. Looks nice.” “C’mon, don’t be mad at me baby, I can buy you more snacks…”

Loves fucking you from behind.

He’s always bending you over some surface or pressing you against some wall. While, yes, he loves that pretty face of yours, he also loves pressin’ it against the bed as his drills his fat cock inside you.

Toji likes watching the way your ass bounces back against him. He loves looking at the arch in your back, watching your nails scratch and scrape at the sheets, and staring at the way your pussy messily spreads around his cock— such a pretty white ring of cum forming at his base.

He’ll get the whole scene even messier too, spitting down where you’re connected, making his cock slip in and out of you faster so he can fuck deeper. Oh how he loves smacking your ass til’ it’s left with marks, gripping onto your cheeks and just toying with you while he fucks you to tears and incoherent cries.

Then he’s teasing you, “C’mon, throw that ass back on me, girl.” “There ya goo, such a good slut f’me, aren’tcha?” “Uhuh, take my cock baby, jus’ like that.” “Look back at me, lemme see those tears, doll.” “Mhm, feels s’good, huh?” “Oh fuuuck, don’t stop. Keep… Keep movin’ those fuckin’ hips baby, doin’ so good f’me.”

Doesn’t mind listening to you ramble.

You’re a talker, that’s for damn sure. In the beginning of the relationship, he thought he’d grow to hate how much you talk but he actually loves it.

When you talk about your day or any drama that’s happened, he’s happily sitting there listening to every word. Hell, sometimes Toji even makes sassy comments, “Girl, you need better friends.” “You told her off? Type shit.”

And if you pay attention close enough, you may notice how he’s picked up on things you say and started saying them himself. Whatever phrases you often use, you’d catch him using from time to time & you think it’s just the cutest thing in the world.

Would lose his mind if you ever called him Daddy.

You did it one time as a joke and you nearly got pregnant the same night.

A/N: Not proofread— apologies for errors. This is for those that requested! Lastly, UHM HELLO THANK Y’ALL FOR 3K FOLLOWERS HERE? ^.^ y’all are so sweet I’m gonna eat you guys.

[magicalmysteries777]

"You're clueless, you know that?" - Reader x Eddie Munson & Reader x Steve Harrington (fake)

Summary: You agree to accompany Steve to Enzo's for Valentine's Day with only one shared goal in mind - to make Eddie so jealous he has no choice but to have the one conversation he's being avoiding.

Pairings: F!Reader x Steve Harrington & F!Reader x Eddie Munson.

Chapter: 1 of 1.

W/C: 2314.

A/N: Happy Valentines Day, besties! This trope paired with Steve and Eddie has had me in a chokehold for a while now and I'm so happy that the lil ADHD gremlin in my brain has finally let me write the damn thing. <3

This one-shot can also be found on AO3 here.

“You really think that’ll work? Pretending to go on a date with you?” you asked, leaning against the counter at Family Video.

“It better work. Personally, I’m sick of hearing you pine over him. He’s had a thing for you ever since you joined Hellfire but he’s completely clueless when it comes to all the hints you’ve dropped,” Robin chimed in without looking up from the ‘returns’ pile of videotapes she was sorting through.

Clueless didn’t even begin to cut it.

You’d known about Eddie’s crush on you for months now, ever since Dustin slipped up and spilled the beans at lunch one day. The poor kid made you swear on your own life that you wouldn’t tell Eddie you knew.

True to your word, you kept the secret and began dropping hints instead. Eddie couldn’t read the room to save his life.

Any time you caught him staring, he’d break eye contact before you could smile back at him. Any time your hands accidentally touched, he’d move his hand away and play it off if you didn’t keep your hand perfectly still.

“I think it’s perfect,” Steve smiled. “There’s nothing like a bit of jealously to make you realise what you want.”

“I dunno,” you mumbled, chewing your cheek while you weighed up your options.

“When he sees you all dolled up, thinking it’s for me, the dots will connect. Trust me.”

“Fine, I’ll find out when he’s working.”

-

Steve’s plan had been in the back of your mind the whole time you’d been sitting around the table with your fellow Hellfire members. It was a long game of highs and lows all night. Despite the distraction, you’d manage to come out of the battle victorious with a mere five health points left. The party, albeit a little bruised and battered, was one step closer to defeating Myrkul and Eddie was in a good mood.

It took the usual fifteen minutes to pack up Eddie’s maps, dice, tokens, and other various game pieces before you climbed into the passenger side of his van. “Sorry for the mess,” Eddie apologised.

“You say that every week and yet you never clean it.”

“I do, it just gets messy again,” he smirked.

You were halfway home when you glanced over at Eddie. His hair was frizzy, sticking up in places from all the near misses in battle where he’d had his hands running through it. The rings on his left hand were glowing gently from the reflection of his lit cigarette as he used it to control the steering wheel. His right hand was methodically fiddling with the busted cassette player that he’d been meaning to fix for months. As always when Eddie was concentrating, his tongue was sticking out and resting against his top lip.

“Got it!” he exclaimed as Rainbow in the Dark started blasting from the speaker, a huge grin spread across his face.

“When are you going to buy a new one?” you chuckled, prodding at the battered box.

“Stop touching it,” he slapped your hand away. “It’ll start crackling again. I’ve picked up some overtime next weekend, I’m hoping the gents will be tipping big to impress their dates.”

“No Valentine’s plan with anyone special then?”

“Nope, just work. Doubt there’s anyone out there who would want to spend their Valentine’s Day with the ‘Freak of Hawkins’ anyway.”

“You’d be surprised, some people like their men a little freaky.”

“What about you? Any plans?” he asked, the change in tone rather subtle.

For a moment, you weren’t sure if you were going to go through with the plan. Steve’s words echoed through your mind listed the pros and cons. ‘Trust me.’

“Yeah, I’ve got a date at Enzo's. At least I don’t have to worry about it going bad now if you’re working, you can come over and scare him off for me.”

“That’s great. Wow, a date. Um, yeah, I’ll fend him off for you if things go pear-shaped. Do I, uh, know the guy?” he stuttered.

“I don’t want to jinx it,” you answered, remembering Robin's claims that a little bit of mystery would be the key to the whole plan working.

“Of course,” Eddie agreed, a sarcastically dumb look plastered on his face. You couldn’t help but notice that this was exactly how he used to act when Dustin mentioned Steve. “Would you look at that? Here we are. Once again, dropped off in one piece, as requested.”

“You okay, Ed?” you ask, one eyebrow raised.

“Yep. Fine. Tired,” he mumbled through an unconvincing yawn. “Long game. I’m gonna go and, uh, get some sleep. Night.”

-

“And he said it exactly like that?” Steve asked.

“Yes, Steve, how many times do I have to go through it? He basically kicked me out of the van,” you answered.

“It’s definitely working.”

“Are you sure?”

“One hundred percent. Wait until he finds out it’s me, he’s gonna freak.”

“He might not react at all. Believe it or not, he is professional at work.”

“Bet on it?”

“Shut up.”

-

Eddie had been an asshole all week.

Jeff and Gareth got the worst of it. You, however, had been getting the silent treatment. It was Thursday lunchtime when Eddie finally acknowledged you again.

“So, what are your plans this weekend?” Dustin asked Mike.

“Movies with El then dinner, you?”

“Arcade with Will. What about you, Eddie?”

“Work and band, why?”

“It’s called small talk,” Dustin answered. “What is with you this week?”

“Nothing, I’m fine,” he snapped.

“Tell your face that, man,” added Jeff.

“Lay off it. Why don’t you ask her what she’s doing this weekend instead and leave me alone?” Eddie prompted, gesturing in your direction. He did not stick around to hear the answer, walking away dramatically.

“Well, what are you doing?” asked Dustin.

“I’ve got a date,” you answered quickly and quietly, sinking into your seat as a sense of guilt began to creep up on you.

“You what?!” asked Gareth.

“I said I’ve got a date.”

“Yeah, I heard you. The fuck do you mean you’ve got a date? With who?”

“Does it matter?” you ask asked.

“Evidently it does. I’ve been taking the brunt of his crap all week and you’re telling me it’s because you’re going on a date?”

“How was I supposed to know he’d react like this?” you quickly try to defend yourself.

“Are you blind?” Jeff asks.

“No, but he is. I’ve dropped hints. Lots of them. If he doesn’t want to acknowledge it then that’s on him.”

-

“Wow,” smiled Steve, looking you up and down. He took your hand, albeit rather dramatically, and began leading you to the car.

“Save it for the restaurant, you dingus. Does this look okay then?” you ask.

“The dress alone might kill him, never mind the heels and hair.”

Ten minutes later, Steve parked up outside Enzo's.

“When we get in there, sit with your back to the bar. You’re about to get the full Harrington charm, okay?” he asked.

“Got it.”

“Hi there, table for two under Harrington,” Steve told the hostess.

“Follow me.”

“Here we are,” the hostess said as she gestured to a small table. “Here are your menus, the waiter will be over to take your order shortly.”

“Thank you,” you replied, taking the seat that Steve had pulled out for you.

“So,” you began.

“So,” Steve replied with a grin.

“I’m not going to lie, Steve, I feel really awkward.”

“I can tell,” he responded. “Relax. We’re just two friends, dressed up, and having a nice meal. Loosen up a little and have fun, or this isn’t going to work.”

You tried to relax, really, you did. But you couldn’t help shake the feeling that Eddie was burning holes into the back of your head with his staring.

“Welcome to Enzo's, my name is Ruben and I’ll be your server this evening. Any drinks to start?”

“Sparkling water for me, and…” Steve prompted.

“Lemonade, please.”

“Awesome, I’ll get that put in at the bar for you. Any starters today?”

“Do you-” Steve began, turning his attention back to you.

“More of a dessert person,” you answer.

“Me too,” smiled Ruben. “What mains would you like?”

“Lasagne for me, please,” answered Steve.

“Chicken Alfredo, please.”

“Awesome. I’ll get all that put in for you, enjoy your evening.”

“Thank you, ‘preciate that,” Steve told him before he left the table.

After a couple of minutes of the usual “how was work?” and “how was school?” small talk, Steve’s gaze quickly shot behind you as he sat up a little bit straighter.

“Here’s your lemonade,” Eddie announced, placing the glass down in front of you.

“Thanks, Eddie. How’s your shift?” you asked with a smile.

“So-so. Started going downhill about twenty minutes ago,” he answered.

“Nothing worse than a shitty Friday shift,” Steve chimed in.

“Evening rush,” Eddie responded, unwilling to meet Steve’s gaze. “Everything okay over here?”

“Great, thank you,” you respond.

“Harrington,” Eddie muttered, placing Steve’s water in front of him with a little bit more force than he did the lemonade, before heading back to the bar.

“He won’t even look at me, this is working even better than I thought,” Steve chuckled.

-

One hour and one chicken alfredo later, Ruben returned.

“Well you two are looking cosy over here,” he told you. Steve had been giving you cues on how to sit and when to laugh all evening. “How about that dessert? I highly recommend the ‘brownie and ice cream for two.’ Chef special tonight.”

“Sounds perfect,” answered Steve.

“Alrighty, that’ll be about ten to fifteen minutes. Any more drinks?”

“The same again, please,” you answer.

A couple of minutes later, Steve gave another instruction.

“Rest your left arm on the table.”

“What?”

“Now.”

Steve let out a sudden laugh and adjusted himself in his seat. He placed his arm on the table, his fingertips slightly brushing against your own.

A loud crashing noise from behind you had heads rolling to see what was going on. Every pair of eyes in the restaurant landed on Eddie.

“Sorry folks,” he announced. Eddie quickly began picking up the larger shards of glass whilst another bartender brought over cloths and a broom.

“Hook, line, and sinker,” Steve whispered, loud enough for only you to hear.

-

You really were getting the full Harrington charm, as promised. Steve had been feeding you brownie on and off for ten minutes, his glancing over to Eddie quickly now and again.

“It’s almost time,” Steve whispered.

“Time for what?”

“The grand finale.”

Steve leaned in slightly and wiped the side of your mouth gently with his thumb. “Ice cream,” he smirked.

“Is that really necessary?”

“One hundred percent. On my cue, you’re going to excuse yourself to go to the bathroom,” he began.

“But-”

“If this whole fake date has gone to plan, which by the way has been lovely, then I do believe Munson won’t let you make it that far. Go now.”

As instructed, you excused yourself from the table and made your way towards the bathroom. Just as you got to the door you felt a hand close softly around your wrist.

“Hey, can we talk?” Eddie asked.

“Everything okay?”

“No, actually, it’s not,” he answered. Eddie glanced around before pulling you through a door labelled ‘staff only’.

“Eddie, wha-”

“You can’t date Steve.”

“I can date whoever I like Eddie,” you respond.

“Why him?” he asked, his hand still wrapped lightly around your wrist.

“Why not?”

“Because,” he began, pausing in thought. “Because he’s… he’s got a reputation. Surely you’ve heard all the rumours?”

“And we both know him well enough to know he’s not that person anymore,” you answer, your gaze locking with Eddie’s who, surprisingly, held it.

“You just can’t, please,” he pleaded.

“Give me a good enough reason as to why I shouldn’t go back out there and I won’t.”

Eddie stayed silent for a few moments, his big, brown eyes locked on yours. The small staff room became stuffy all of a sudden, the air so thick it felt like you could barely breathe. You held your ground, waiting for him to speak, but he didn’t. You stared back at Eddie, your eyes pleading with him to just say something. Anything.

You broke your gaze from Eddie’s and turned towards the door, ready to give up and go home. Eddie’s grip on your wrist tightened and he pulled you back towards him, using his free hand to cup your face as his lips met yours.

You weren’t sure how long you’d been there, Eddie kissing you, but it felt like forever. The tension in the air vanished, leaving you with a cozy feeling deep in your stomach, where the butterflies used to live. 

“You can do better than him. You deserve better than him. You deserve someone who knows that you take extra sugar in your coffee when you’re studying. Someone who knows that you’re a completely evil genius in the best way possible when it comes to D&D. Someone who knows you’d rather be in bed with a book at-” he glanced at his watch, “nine o’clock at night. Someone who apparently isn’t very good at making the first move.”

“You’re clueless, you know that?”

“I am?”

“Yeah,” you replied, leaning in to kiss him again.

If it wasn’t for Ruben who knows how long you would have stood there, entwined together, lost in the moment.

“Hey man, you heading home?” Eddie asked casually, placing a little distance between the two of you.

“I was, but turns out I’m staying late. Guy with the hair on table twelve tipped me a hundred bucks to finish your bar shift and fetch a fresh brownie out. Said you ‘owe him one’ and you can ‘square it up later’. Brownie will be out in five. Enjoy.”

[jaegeraether]

Sunsets and footballers (Part 64)

Lucy Bronze x Reader (54) / Alexia Putellas x Character (23)

Masterlist (other parts here)

Join our WOSO Discord chat! Link in bio :)

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Ridley POV

“She’s handled this very, very well.” Ridley murmured to Lucy.

Lucy nodded, looking so fatigued it was almost comical. “She and Joe were up all night doing crisis management.”

“You as well it seems?”

“She made me get some sleep for the game. I think I managed a few hours.”

They’d just arrived and were standing in the kitchen area, watching Blue on the phone again, giving another interview. She’d released a video stating that JK Rowling was in no way involved with the company, and the way she said it was impressive to Ridley because it was almost toying with Mark. Anyone who watched would have absolutely believed her when she almost mockingly denied the rumours with a virtually stress-free and amused demeanour. On top of that, her boss had somehow managed to get JK Rowling to post a video statement saying she was not involved, and that a year ago she remembered having accepted and agreed to the request that this new company also be allowed to be named Lumos. Mark was officially looking like a twat. But even more interestingly, it made Ridley wonder who this obviously rich and influential ‘Joe’ actually was.

Ridley watched Blue proudly as she expertly navigated her way through the drama. She’d always been great with people.

“I figured since you look like someone fed you after midnight.”

Lucy scoffed, her eyes moving from Blue to the food the pair had brought over, and back. She couldn’t help but shake her head and smirk at the sound of Lucy’s stomach grumbling. Blue must have heard too because she looked over and gestured for her to start eating without her. Lucy shook her head and crossed her arms. It appeared Lucy had her priorities straight which satisfied Ridley.

She looked down at Chiquito who was being vetted thoroughly by Narla, and her heart string tugged watching him sit patiently waiting, his tail curled around his body and resting atop his paws. He slow blinked at her a few times before his attention turned behind Ridley, and that’s when she realised that Alexia had been far, far too quiet during the whole exchange which alerted Ridley to her intentions. She heard Alexia before she saw her and as she went to attack, Ridley spun and ducked, her arm going around her neck in a chokehold. She pressed her body up against her back, enjoying the feel of her ass against her core and murmured in her ear. “Nice try, la Reina, but you’re too predictable.”

Alexia fought against her until she let her go and turned with a frustrated expression that Ridley enjoyed far too much. She’d been teaching her self-defence all morning and Alexia now seemed to have a new hobby of trying to catch her off guard. It hadn’t been successful thus far, though Ridley had been enjoying this new, playful side to her. “How?!”

“You were too quiet. And then too loud right before you went for it. And then then there was Chiquito.” She reached out and patted her cheek. “We’ll get you there, kid.”

Alexia smacked her hand away and Ridley couldn’t help but smirk. She loved how independent she was. The pair had also gotten a lot closer recently as they were enjoying building their friendship amongst the feelings. The strength it had taken Ridley thus far to not act on her almost-paralysing attraction to her had been the farthest she’d ever tested her discipline.

“Hey Riddles.”

Ridley looked over at her Blue who was now off the phone and smiling at her. She walked over and leapt over the couch, ducking to kiss her cheek.

“Hey baby Blue. You look happy.”

“All he’s done is give us a whole lot of promotion. And with JK’s statement… this is just great. I’m hoping to put out the promo today for Alexia’s interview to ride that popularity wave.”

“Great idea.”

That was another one of the reasons they were there. Alexia was going to review the interview and say if she was happy for it to be published.

“I’ll show you over lunch Alexia, just to make sure you’re happy with it and we can make any changes you want.” She smiled at the Spaniard as Lucy reached over the back of the couch to give her girlfriend some love.

“Thank you.” Alexia replied as she sat on the couch near Blue. Hearing her speak in English always did something to Ridley.

“Luce, you should have started eating, your stomach is so loud that it almost interrupted the interview,” Blue laughed as she held her head close to her cheek with her good arm.

“I wanted to wait for you,” Lucy murmured in response with a kiss on the cheek.

They both looked tired – Blue more so of course, and so Alexia and Ridley had thought it would be a good idea to bring lunch over before the girls went to the game. However as she watched them, Ridley grew suspicious and her eyebrows frowned.

“What’s wrong with you?”

“You two.”

They both looked amusedly confused.

“You two have been having sex. And now that I think about it, it even smells like sex in here. The fuck are you doing, Bronze?”

The pair looked sheepishly guilty.

“What are you, a sex sniffer dog?”

“Please tell me it was just once.”

Their expressions didn’t change.

“She’s a fucking walking bruise!”

“To be fair… my bruises are healing really well now…”

“You know what I mean. You have more breaks than a Kit-Kat Blue - you need to be careful.”

“We are. Very careful, aren’t we?” She turned her head slightly to look at Lucy. “And very creative.”

“Argh.” Ridley reacted disgustedly before tilting her head as she looked over Blue’s bandaged body. “Actually, the logistics would be fun…”

“Right?!” Lucy agreed.

Ridley scoured. “I’m still disappointed in you two.”

Blue shrugged and winced hard at her collarbone, Ridley’s stomach dropping as she did so. “As long as we’re happy. And to defend Lucy, it took a lot of convincing to-”

“Please don’t finish that sentence.”

Blue grinned and Ridley couldn’t help but smirk in response. She was happy. So, so happy and Ridley loved that. And the way Lucy looked at her… like she was her entire world.

Ridley looked over to Alexia who now held Chiquito in her lap, studying the pair and must have had the same thought as her eyes met Ridley’s.

Ridley had never wanted somebody so bad in her life. God, she was beautiful. She’d fallen asleep on her shoulder last night, her body twitching until she was fast asleep and breathing deep, sleepy breaths. The footballer had naturally cuddled her body to her own and it made her feel… a lot. And something she wasn’t ready to name just yet. Ridley had spent a good amount of time just studying her as she slept and eventually, she’d let herself fall asleep with her head on her own.

Ridley hadn’t slept that well in a long time. She was grateful that Alexia had used that favour because she couldn’t even admit to herself how much she’d wanted to stay. And then there had been the morning. Ridley had waited for her to wake, slowly twitching and coming back to life. She’d been apologetic for falling asleep on her, yet they both knew she didn’t mean it, and that Ridley hadn’t minded. It had changed something in her, just knowing that she was there next to her and safe, happy and comfortable. It took away that feeling of almost stress that she experienced as she lay in her hotel room staring at the ceiling and wondering if Alexia were feeling those things.

They’d spent the morning working out as it was an important part of their lives, and then another hour or so on the gym mat practicing self-defence. It had only been the basics, but the both of them had enjoyed being so close to each other, their sweaty bodies moving against one another as they’d tussled on the mat. There were multiple time when they’d moved or ground not because they had to, but because they had an excuse to feel each other like that. There was only one point where Alexia had almost gotten the upper hand, and that was because she’d distracted Ridley with a look of lust she failed to hide.

Lucy’s stomach interrupted her thoughts.

She looked over at Blue chuckling and reaching back to stroke Lucy’s belly. “Thanks for bringing lunch, guys. What did you end up bringing?”

“Sushi.”

“Ohh I’ve been craving that!”

“You’ve been craving everything, Luce.”

Lucy came around the couch to pick up Blue and move her to the kitchen table. “Ale, I’ll set you up with my laptop so you can watch now if you want?”

She watched a happy smile form on Alexia’s face at the shortening of her name. Her stomach felt strange in a good way. Blue was the most important thing to her and Alexia getting along with her was very, very important to her. So much so she didn’t even realise herself.

Alexia and Ridley set up the sushi they’d bought on the table, their fingers brushing and bodies seemingly wanting to be near each other. It was something she wasn’t used to, and she liked it. A lot.

Alexia sat at the laptop Blue had set up for her and put on her headphones, watching the interview while she ate her lunch.

“Will Chiquito eat this?” Lucy asked from the kitchen, holding up a can of Narla’s food.

“He’ll eat anything, but he prefers a specific brand. I brought him some, it’s in the bag there.”

Lucy nodded and laid the food out for the pets. “Don’t worry, Narla won’t steal his food.”

“I’m not,” she laughed. “He’d never let her.”

“Sit here Riddles…” Blue said, pointing to the chair next to her. She’d wanted to sit next to Alexia but she was at the other end of the table. She was about to question it when she saw the iPad set up in front of them.

“Sit.”

Ridley raised an eyebrow and sat, Lucy sitting on the other side of her and already choking down sushi. Blue fiddled around with the iPad and suddenly the trio were staring at her nan and brother. Now it made sense.

“Hey nan! Hey bro! I have Luce and Riddles here.”

“Hello, it’s so good to see you all!”

“Put the camera down nan, we just see your forehead,” Ben laughed.

“Oh… is that better?”

“Yes.” They all said in unison.

“Hey Riddle-me-this, it’s been a while,” Ben grinned. He looked and sounded much older and than when she’d spoken to him last.

“Hey mate, up to trouble lately?”

“Only what you taught me.”

“Oh Ridley you look so good, lovey. It’s so good to see you.” Nan said. She didn’t realise how much she missed them.

“It’s really good to see you both too.” She said with emotion. It was a great surprise.

“We just want to hear from you. Don’t be a stranger, okay?”

“Yes, nan.”

She looked over the iPad and caught Alexia’s eye. It looked like she’d paused the video and was listening to them. She didn’t look surprised which meant Blue had told her about their video call, and her eyes held sympathy and curiosity. She gave her a reassuring smile before pressing play on her video again.

“Christ, sis, you look shit. Are those bruises?”

She nodded. They could only see the upper half of their bodies so it was just the sling and bruising, but she knew she would have told them both the full story. She was always honest with them. “Yes, but it’s almost gone. I should be able to put weight on my knee soon.” She turned to Lucy with that look Ridley had seen multiple times. “Luce has been taking really good care of me.”

“Oh Lucy you’re looking so good!” Nan praised. Lucy smiled and gulped down a piece of sushi.

“Thanks nan, you’re looking well. Hey Ben, whereabouts are you at the minute?”

“Kyoto living my best life.”

“Oh yeah, I’ve been there, it’s a whole other world. I loved it.”

“When did you go?”

“Uh 2021 Tokyo Olympics. We travelled around and explored while we were there. Have you learnt any of the language?”

“Yeah… I’m getting there. It’s hard but I can have conversations.”

“That’s a big achievement to be able to do that, though. Well done, just keep practicing yeah? Even if you leave, keep on top of it.”

“For sure I will, I have a lot of friends here now.”

“Good! It’s hard to make friends overseas, especially when you speak different languages so that’s amazing.”

“Thanks Lucy.”

Ridley didn’t miss Blue’s proud smile.

“Do you remember when you two said you’d be excited to come over for a game one time? Well YFN and I have been talking and we were hoping you’d come over for Christmas? All expenses paid, of course. We have accommodation here and I’ll pay for the flights-”

“-flights will be free.” Ridley interjected.

“And Ridley and I will argue over who’s paying for flights.” Lucy continued. Blue chuckled between them.

“Really?!” Ben sounded excited.

“Are you sure it’s not too much trouble?” Nan asked.

“All expenses paid.” Blue promised. “Riddles will be here, you’ll get to meet Luce, her family are excited to meet you two as well. It’ll be a happy little white Christmas like you’ve never had, nan.”

“I’m in. Come on nan, we need to go!”

“I’m getting old…”

Ridley jumped in. “It’s first class, nan, so you’ll have a bed on the plane. It’s like a hotel. You’ll board first and I’ll have people with you the entire way. I can come to pick you up, if you’d like?”

“No, no.. it’ll be fine, Ben can help me. You’ve already done so much for us.” She adjusted her glasses and squinted at the camera. “You’re looking so well, lovey. We really miss seeing you.”

“I miss you too nan. I’ll be here for Christmas, yeah?”

“Off to England it is, then!”

Lucy clapped, excited. “I’ll let my family know.”

“Do you have a game we can come see you play at, Lucy?” Ben asked, genuinely admiring her.

“Lionesses have their last games of the year next week, so not for England, but I have some late December matches with Barcelona if you don’t mind a little trip over to Spain.”

“Ohh YFN said the food is great.”

“The food is the best part.”

“And Barcelona are iconic. I can’t wait to see la Reina up close.”

Ridley looked over to Alexia to see if she’d heard it. She was zoned out looking at Ridley, blinking out of it when she was caught.

“Well today’s your lucky day.” Blue laughed.

Ridley caught Alexia’s eyes and gestured with her head towards them. She took her headphones off and came to stand behind and join them, her hands on the back of Ridley and Blue’s seats respectively. When Ridley looked back at the screen, Ben was bright red and staring like he didn’t believe it.

“Uh… hello…” Alexia greeted, not knowing why she was there.

“Th… that… that’s…”

“Is that the one you have a crush on?” Nan asked.

Lucy and Blue laughed. “No nan, I said she’s hot.”

“You said it a lot of times,” she responded, not realising how embarrassed he was.

“You do realise she can hear you, right?” Ridley said. “Nan, Ben, this is Alexia Putellas. Nan, she’s the Captain of both Barcelona and Spain, and she’s known as the greatest female footballer to ever play.”

“I’m right here.” Lucy responded with a mouthful.

“Don’t worry Luce, you’re still my number one.”

Lucy grinned. “I’m getting old.”

“Stop that.” She admonished and gave her a light slap.

“Hello nan, Ben. It’s nice to be meeting you.”

“Are you coming for Christmas Alexia?”

“Nan, she has her own family!”

“Well they’re friends so I don’t know.”

“Uh, normally I have Christmas in Barcelona with my family,” Alexia said slowly in broken English.

“Yeah I thought so, sorry, I think nan’s excited about Christmas.”

“Nan are you trying to hook Ben up?”

“Well it doesn’t hurt to try does it?”

Alexia laughed behind them – one of Ridley’s favourite sounds.

“What about Riddle-me-that? She’s older than me.”

“Oh yes, Ridley are you bringing someone to Christmas?”

Lucy choked, Blue laughed into Lucy’s shoulder and Alexia smothered an amused sound behind her.

“Still single.”

“Oh that’s a shame.”

“Why’s it a shame, we’re living our best single lives.” Ben said.

“Well it’s nice to have someone…”

“Ridley and I aren’t like that nan.”

“Oh rubbish, everyone’s like that. You’ll find a good one sooner or later Ridley.”

Ridley sighed. If only they knew the woman she wanted was right behind her. “Thanks nan.”

The rest of the conversation was catching up and organising Christmas. Ridley lifted Chiquito to introduce him to them while Alexia excused herself to watch the rest of the interview. Ridley worried how much she was watching though as she felt her eyes drift to her often. She didn’t blame her, Ridley herself was tempted to look at her but managed to keep her focus on the people she considered family.

“Aren’t you supposed to be working?” Alexia asked from behind her.

God that voice. Ridley always needed to build up something inside her before she looked at her. She turned and smiled, holding up her phone. “No surprise attack?”

“It looked like a serious phone call.”

Ridley hummed. “I’ve pushed back a few meetings until tomorrow.”

“And they agreed?”

“That’s the great thing about being the boss.”

Alexia nodded and took a step forward onto the grass. “Did you do it to spend time with Blau?”

She knew her so well. “Yes, just a few hours. She needs her sleep.” She looked inside to where Blue was giving Lucy a kiss goodbye.

“You’re leaving now?”

“Yes…”

“Ah, come to say goodbye did you?”

“I wanted to know where you’d be staying tonight...”

Ridley let a moment of silence hang in the air. God knows where she wanted to be. “My later meetings are in the hotel.”

She wasn’t lying. Most would be in the hotel… on a video call. One actual face to face in the conference room.

She nodded like she knew that would be the answer. “Will I see you tomorrow?”

The wind blew a strand of her hair loose. That beautiful hair. Ridley was obsessed with it. She stepped close and tucked it back where it belonged, unable to not meet Alexia’s big hazel eyes staring up at her. She knew she shouldn’t go over there, it was too risky. But how could she say no to that face?

“Well I do need to make sure you’re properly trained to protect yourself.”

Her smile softened her face and she looked down, nodding. Ridley’s reaction was immediate. Again, something she shouldn’t do. Her fingertips found the spot just below her chin and lifted her head. “Shall we say nine o’clock?”

“I’ll cook breakfast,” she breathed.

The temptation to kiss her was overwhelming. Ridley’s eyes wandered to her pink lips and she needed to step away from her to not lose herself.

“I’ll see you then. Don’t forget to pick up Chiquito after the game.”

“I’d never forget him.”

Ridley stared at the photos Alexia and Lucy had posted and her insides did that thing she wasn’t used to. ‘Feeling’ she knew Blue would say if she told her. Feeling. Never before had she studied someone so closely. She zoomed in on her face, that smile in the stands with Lucy, her beanie on because she was cold and used to the Spanish weather. Her happy hazel eyes and slightly upturned pink lips. Ridley had dreamed about those far, far too often. She should have gone with them. What if she needed another jacket?

Ridley forced her phone down and looked at Blue responding to another message. She was about five minutes from falling asleep.

“Lucy being needy?”

Blue chuckled. “Always, but I love that. No, it’s Leah worried about tonight.”

“Oh?”

“She was at the Arsenal game with Luce and Ale but now she’s on her way to surprise Jordan at her game in Birmingham.”

“Oof. Two hour drive. Very cute, though. Your idea?”

“Maybe…”

Ridley rolled her eyes. “It has you written all over it, Blue.”

She put her phone down. Narla was on one side of her, curled up and Chiquito was exploring the house, ever the curious cat.

“Come here.” She said, patting the couch to the right of her.

Ridley could have said something funny, but she didn’t. Blue’s expression was too serious for that.

“What can I do for you, madam?” She asked, sliding next to her.

“It’s what you can do for yourself…”

“Ah, of course. You just can’t stop worrying about everyone else, can you?”

“Riddles-”

“You know. Better than anyone else. You know what I’ve done.”

“And yet I’m still here.”

“She deserves better-”

It was Blue’s turn to interrupt. “Better than someone who will her protect her with every fibre of her being? Someone who will always do what’s best for her and not themselves?”

“This is what’s best for her.”

“Don’t take away her choices, Riddles.”

Ridley sighed. “You seem worried.”

“I’m worried you’re going to make the mistake of pushing away the best person in your life.”

“You’re the best person in my life.”

“Riddles, it’s different, you know that. I just… I don’t want you to make a mistake of hurting her to push her away…”

“Oh come on, it wouldn’t be the first time I’ve slept around to give someone a hint.” It was harsh, but Ridley needed to be to avoid her own emotions.

“You’d never with her. And the difference is that you never liked the people you were pushing away.”

“I liked some.”

“Only for sex. And not like this.”

Ridley sighed. “And how, pray tell, do you know there is something more to my ‘liking’ of Alexia.”

“Because you’re my best friend, and I see the way you look at her.”

“Mmn. I do wonder what advice you’ve given her about this whole situation, though.” Ridley watched her intelligent eyes pondering that she’d been caught. Of course Ridley knew she’d give advice to Alexia, because she was always trying to help without being too pushy. To be her benefit, she didn’t look stressed or surprised at all.

“And why would I ever speak to you about personal things I talk to Alexia about?”

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe because you’re my best friend.” Ridley teased, repeating her.

She rolled her eyes and gave that dimply smile, shaking her head.

“What?”

“I know you were mocking me, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard you say that before.”

Ridley tilted her head. Had she not? “You know what you are to me.”

“It’s nice to hear it sometimes though.” She said kindly, though Ridley knew it was a polite reminder.

She nodded and reached out to touch that scar over her eyebrow, a reminder of how cruel people could be. She’d sacrificed her own body so that she’d have no such scars and now… now she needed to trust that Lucy would protect her when she wasn’t there.

“You are my oldest friend. My best friend. Someone I would happily do anything for. I respect your opinion above all others, and I trust you with my entire being. I’m sorry I don’t say that enough.”

She cupped her cheek when she saw her getting upset, the tears forming in her eyes. She tried to nod to stop them from falling, but she was always the more openly emotional of the two. “I love you Riddles. I love that we’ve been around each other so much more recently. A… and I don’t want that to change.” She looked down and sniffed. “I know you like your space to go off and explore and be independent, and I said I was okay with it but truthfully… I love having you in my life. You’re such a big part of me. I feel like something is missing when you’re not around.”

Her words hit her hard. She was always so good at communicating. Ridley didn’t know how much of a burden it had been to be apart and not talking for months at a time. She had assumed the same thing – that she needed her own space for independence and that perhaps they reminded each other too much of their past. It wasn’t like that at all though. They wanted to be around each other. They felt supported in doing so.

Ridley moved closer and gently pulled her into her neck. “I feel the same, Blue.” She kissed her hair. “I’m sorry, I had no idea. From now on, I’ll be here as long as you want me around, okay?”

“N…not if you don’t want t-”

“Trust me, I want to.”

Ridley had always kept an eye on her from afar without her knowing. Where she was, what she was doing, who she was doing it with. That protective nature of hers was never-ending when it came to Blue. Knowing all of that had made it easier, but she’d never thought before of just how Blue had felt not knowing where she was or with who, or if she were happy. She should have reached out more.

“I love you, Blue. I’m right here.”

She felt her relax at that reassurance they both needed so badly. ‘I’m right here.’ She’d heard Lucy say it to her multiple times and knew just why she’d fallen in love with her. She supported her with that obsessive, all-encompassing love. And when Alexia had said it to her… she’d almost given herself completely to her right then and there.

Blue let out a large breath as her body calmed. “I don’t want to push you. I don’t want to tell you what’s best…” she said as she pulled back far enough to look up at Ridley with red puffy eyes. She needed sleep. “But I love you too much to let you miss out on love, Riddles. And that’s what this is. I know you haven’t admitted it to yourself yet, but she’s perfect for you. And you’re both in love with each other. She’s been here for you since you first saw each other at that bar in Barcelona…um…”

“Javier’s.” Ridley offered in a murmur.

“That’s the one.” She stroked her cheek and Ridley leant into it. “And no one deserves happiness more than you.”

“You do.”

“We both do.” Blue’s thumb stroked down that scar her dad had given her, and her eyes followed it. “Isn’t it finally time for us to both be happy?” Her tired big blue eyes met Ridley’s again. “Don’t we both deserve that?”

Silence followed as they sat like that, and by the time Ridley responded, Blue was already fast asleep.

“I suppose we do.”

[rintarolovebot]

TO WAKE UP TO AND COME HOME TO

summary just like the title suggests, this is the best thing suna rintaro knows a man could experience whenever he wakes up and returns home.

warnings/tags none. suna rintaro x fem!reader. momma reader <333

author’s note this week had me in a baby fever chokehold. i was watching this youtuber’s daily life and made me think about suna (what’s new?). so, here’s my take on how your everyday life will be with suna rintaro!

additional notes d/n = daughter’s name. n/n = nanny’s name. this fic is just all over the place oh my god i wrote this at 2 am when i was on the verge of falling asleep.. embarrassing.

suna rintaro knows that the best thing to wake up to is when he sees your sleeping figure beside him. the cute little noises you make as you twist and turn in his arms.

you flutter your eyes open as the sun shines through the curtains, you guess, your husband had just opened. he turns to you and smiles, opening his arms wide open and plops down on you.

“rin, you’re heavy,” you mumble against his neck. he moves his nose towards your cheek and nuzzles it. “good morning, my love,” he says and continues to nuzzle his nose gently on your cheek.

“g’morning,” you whisper and gave his cheek a kiss as it was the nearest part of him that you could kiss as of the moment. “d/n’s awake and i think our nanny is feeding her right now,” he says as he gets up and takes your hand in his, giving the back of your hand a soft kiss.

you smile and let yourself get pulled up by him, cradling you in his arms. his arms were wrapped around you as he gave you multiple kisses on your temple.

“come on, babe. let’s eat breakfast,” he says. you nodded but continued to nuzzle yourself against him. his warmth and smell were comforting in a way. he smelled of a faint manly smell and lavender as it is the aroma coming out of your air freshener.

you pulled away after a few seconds as you stretched. rintaro was just watching you with a loving smile while his hands were in his sweatpants’ pockets.

when he saw your stretching had stopped, he wrapped an arm around you and guided you out of the bedroom towards the kitchen.

you smiled when you saw your daughter on her feeding chair as the nanny fed her.

“good morning, my baby,” you beamed as she giggled with her arms raised up, also excited to see you.

rintaro, as always, watched you in awe. loving how you were this mama-like with his kid. he always had this thought wherein he is so damn lucky to have you as his wife and the mother of his kid.

hopefully, his kids soon.

atsumu had always teased him whenever they had high school reunions, asking how he pulled you. you and your husband just laughed it off and even joked about how you just barged in his life.

he practically watched you two grow.

from high school sweethearts and to the happily married couple with a kid in the present.

“have you eaten already, n/n?” you asked your nanny. “yes, ma’am. thank you for asking,” she smiled at you. you returned the smile and grabbed a water jug inside the refrigerator.

you made drinking at least two jugs of water a routine ever since your daughter was born. you breastfeed your baby so it was very important to always produce a lot of milk — and you’ve read a mother’s guide book that drinking tons of water everyday can help produce a lot of milk.

“rin, you have practice today, right?” you asked as you put down the glass of water. he was leaned on the counter as he watched your daughter gurgling in her high chair.

he smiled before turning to you. “yeah, i don’t want to go, though,” he said. you furrowed your brows, “you have to, my love. championship’s just around the corner,” you explained.

he sighs. “i know, i just don’t want to leave today. look at how cute d/n is,” he frowned.

you knew how your husband hated leaving the house because he wanted to spend more time with your daughter. though, every time he’s out for practice, you always send him pictures and videos of your daughter just so he wouldn’t miss her too much.

spoiler: it does not work.

in fact, he misses her even more and video calls you just to see his girls. he never fails to greet you with a loving smile and a “you’re beautiful” every time you accept his video call request.

and when he does come home from practice, he is always greeted with a warm side hug from his wife (you) and his little girl in your arms.

and so suna rintaro knows that the best thing to come home to.. is when he sees his girls running towards him with a smile.

end note this sucks goodbye but reblogs are appreciated <3

[ghostsbimbo]

the boys & hearing a song from your phone on shuffle a/n: nsfw songs ahead <3 ur welcome. tw: some songs contain heavy subjects such as rape.

simon "ghost" riley - good lookin' by dixon dallas

He's bouncing off my booty cheeks, I love the way he rides I can hardly breathe when he's pumping deep inside I kiss him on his neck and then he kisses on my bussy Call him "Daddy" while I holler Man, that boy so damn good looking (looking, looking)

He has a thousand yard stare as you try to contain your laughter at the song. you love this song, and the artist in general. You originally found him when he was just doing rap, his name being iamjakehill. you completely embraced both the pop punk (ur pretty) project & the country project of his. and now, you're showing your lieutenant one of his very gay masterpieces, despite the artist being a very straight man.

könig - dana dan by bloodywood

Not all men, yes, all men Need all men for what we're solvin' Can't be what it's been but we're evolvin' You see for yourself now get involved in Talking all in, do more, boy, it's a war Chainsaw to the dead weight, leave it raw Bloody galore as we clean out the core Yeah, we do it for her, so we kick in the door

he definitely looked up the lyrics, meaning behind the song, and translation as soon as it was over, and with that he found a new band to listen to. listen, the dude may basically be a war criminal [ they all fuckin are, lets admit it ] but he sure as hell would fucking destroy a rapist as soon as he had the opportunity. all of them would.

john price - i threw glass at my friend's eyes and now I'm on probation by destroy boys

But fuck you! You're so old, dude! Like seriously, what do you think you're doing? Your hands are so big and you're so tall, wow! You know, I kinda wish I had let you do that one thing that one time But in retrospect, it would've been a bad idea 'cause You don't care about me like I care about you so I feel bad

man, this dude felt this song was a personal attack on him. yes, y'all had an age gap, but you needed to assure him he was perfectly fine, and you just liked the song because of trauma prior to meeting him. being a kid/teenager with unmonitered internet access really fucked you up, buddy.

keegan p. russ - chokehold by sleep token [ cover by will ramos ]

So show me that which I cannot see Even if it hurts me Even if I can't sleep Oh, and though we act out of our holy duty to be constantly awake

to say he loved the dudes voice would be an understatement, and then to figure out it was a cover of a song and he heard the original? the man was offended you kept will ramos, his band lorna shore, and the band sleep token from him. his phone would end up being filled with both bands discography.

kyle "gaz" garrick - to the hellfire by lorna shore

Accept this descent into the night Releasing your grasp to induce separation Plunged into the shadows Lost in sensation, we're free falling down into the everblack Can you feel it? These pins and needles

He got scared. He also wondered how you could understand what the guy was saying the whole time. He got VERY confused when the pig squeals started - confused enough to ask if they had a pig in studio. You laughed and explained that no, the vocalist that was screaming - Will - did it all himself. It then lead to you info dumping on the genre of music as a whole.

johnny "soap" mactavish - pisces by JINJER

No promises I ever give Don't rely on me and I won't deceive The beginning or the end you can't tell When I wave my fin and shake my tail I grew in different normality With unblamable morality Hooks and nets are there for me But I'm skittish

The soft voice is what got to him, his eyes going wide when he heard the screaming. He didn't believe you at first when you told him the woman singing was also the one screaming, too. - "No fuckin' way is that a bonnie doin' that." - so you pulled up the song on youtube, and then also pulled up a few live videos of the band, too. He believed you after a few videos, and may have gotten a little jealous when you said she causes you to have a MAJOR gay panic. You also state you wish you had the same amount of talent as her, especially with the screaming.

[arsonist-resurrectionist]

Update: I am still simping for Yung Gravy

okay so hear me out:

Warrant 1: he brought Addison Rae's mom to the VMAs, then when her husband(they're separate but still married) challenged him to a boxing match he was literally like "we're grown as adults, You have one of the most successful daughters in the world, and yet you insist on acting half your age and embarrassing her and your whole family. If we meet in public, don't do something stupid"

Warrant 2: he's collecting all the bras thrown at him at concerts and donating them to charity for the unhoused and matching their value monetarily in donation

Warrant 3: men with long hair that they take care of slap, like please be secure enough in your masculinity to wear your hair long if you like that vibe

Warrant 4: he looks great in a white three piece suit, which is arguably hard to pull off so gives him points

Warrant 5: He likes thicc bitches. I am a thicc bitch. I appreciate the representation in his videos and also it gives me a weird level of hope for an unreachable celebrity. Like oh you like ass? we call me family's ass The Zaharopolous Ass (all capitals) for a reason. You 'don't like your girls too slender'? I gotchu

Warrant 6: he dresses like a funny little man

Warrant 7: he's 6'6" and tall ppl make me feel both safe and incredibly angry which is a good combo

Warrant 8: he's not racist which is literally such a low bar, but like he's a white rapper, the bar is very low, though in his case it will need to high because he's so tall that otherwise he would have difficulty going under it (i am aware that sentence doesn't make sense but i am sleep deprived so i can get away with it i think)(maybe)

update (s):

Warrant 9: he’s good with kids, like when he offered to mentor the walmart yodeling kid

Warrant 10: his first cartoon crush was raven from the teen titans anime and honestly same bro, that girl was my entire childhood, like the chokehold she had in me was insane. So i’m conclusion he has good taste (this should just be a subpoint under 5, and be combined as a good taste point)

[hoodie-buck]

Ooh more about the 911/OTH AU???

I have so many thoughts too, by no means an exhaustive list:

- They’re always grounding forces for each other and trying to save each other

- Buck/Nate have a history of being promiscuous—imagine Eddie is feeling petty after a fight and demands a list from Buck! And then Buck makes two lists, one with only Eddie’s name on it 🥹

- Haley told a story on their first date about feeling like she was the only one who could take care of her mom when she was sick, kind of like Eddie felt responsible for driving his laboring mom to the hospital

- Although different in nature, Nate/Buck’s parents make it clear to their sons that they weren’t wanted and only existed for a singular purpose (Nate to lives out Dan’s failed dreams/Buck to save his brother); Dan then abandoned his other son altogether, and the two eventually united against him like Buck/Maddie did against the Buckleys

- “Always and forever” vs. “have my back”

- Ooh, traumatic incidents with both kids involving water! (Jamie falling in the pool/Chris in the tsunami)

- Nate/Buck dealing with Haley/Eddie “leaving” for extended periods of time

- Haley depression/Eddie PTSD eras

- Buck/Nate for sure have ADHD

- Oh there was a moment when Haley/Nathan were talking to Jamie about handling a school bully and Haley said gave a stern look and something like “Violence isn’t the answer, right, honey?” to Nate; kinda like the video game scene! 🎮

Now I’ve rambled lol, these two shows have me in a chokehold, even though one of them is over 20 years old 😵‍💫 oh and not to be on the nose, but as of a few days ago, we knows there’s a 🏀 theme to both shows

yesss they absolutely are always there for the other no matter what!

oww i love the name thing 🥺

the parents and kids relationships have so many parallels! just the parents putting all their failures on their kids and not wanting them to do better, but to do what they couldn’t.

i meant to mention the always/forever thing vs the i’ve got your back bc they’re so??? it’s just their things 🥹🥹

the tsunami and pool is soo good! damn how did i miss that! (i’m totally adding these things to my idea list for the au btw 😂)

ahhh the good cop vs bad cop parents!! that’s so good too!

i’m definitely gonna be doing some blending on the characters bc not all the ideas/character traits match up exactly or work for the ideas i have in mind, but they just parallel the basis of naleys story so so well!

oh yea, both these shows definitely have me in a chokehold so i get it 😂 i’m on my—i don’t even know what number rewatch tbh 😂 i watched season 5–9 live so it’s definitely been a fave for awhile. i saw vicki @wikiangela was watching so i had to go rewatch with her 🙈 but i’m alway up for talking about these pairings, so feel free to reach out whenever 🤗

[sunshinecassette]

I need y’all to know the absolute CHOKEHOLD ScareTheater had on me when I was a kid. I’d be watching his videos about the evilstick or candle cove or I feel fantastic or whatever with headphones in while sitting on the couch in the living room with my dad who had no idea what I was watching. “He’s probably watching his little 80s toy commercials or free children’s movies or something he loves that stuff” WRONG, your son is discovering the intrigue of death in places it shouldn’t be and experiencing the feeling of not being able to look away from being unsettled . And loving it a little too much probably

[cellsshapedlikestars]

GIRLLLLLLLLLL YOUR NEW WIP HAS ME ON CHOKEHOLD!!!!!!! The vibes!!!! The suspense!!!!! Immaculate!!!! Did you base this in a particular show? I love me some true crime!!!!!

alsooooo sansa the one looking for jon ooohhhh i am so innnnnnn

No, I haven't based it on a show. I almost wish I had, because I was having trouble with some of the plot details. Like I know the backstory and WHY Jon disappears (I gave the most vague of hints to his backstory in the first chapter lol), but I couldn't figure out some of the later-game stuff (but I actually had a revelation while I drove out for lunch today, so I'm hoping to get an outline written!)

Mostly what this was based on was me watching too many true crime/mysterious disappearance youtube videos...

And yes! Sansa will be the one looking for her damsel in distress :)

(also, I'm so glad everyone is liking the vibes!! I genuinely wrote it and was like, I think this is boring?? It really just goes to show how different a writing experience is from reading. Like obviously I know what happens & what will happen, so that suspense isn't there for me, and so I can't always gauge how suspenseful/scary/etc is actually is. Also, this is my first time writing them as an established couple WITH kids. yikes.)

[melis-hellis]

mel | 22 | she/her

main blog (which i interact from): aloftmelevar

caddicarus blog: beautifully-lumpy

this is a blog for my general hyperfixations and special interests, as well as a place for me to talk about my own story i'm writing and its characters. i have a separate blog for caddicarus, which is a major special interest i've had. as of june 2024, smiling friends has me on a chokehold, and if that continues i may end up starting a separate blog for it.

interests:

all types of western animation (film and TV)

cartoon network/adult swim is my favorite

specific shows i love are TAWOG, regular show, gravity falls, ducktales (both versions), amphibia, TGAMM, the marvelous misadventures of flapjack, chowder, foster's, kid cosmic, scott pilgrim takes off, smiling friends, and many others

scott pilgrim (anime and comic specifically)

vinesauce

vargskelethor

scott the woz

the sims games (minus 4)

katamari

retro video game history

and many many other things

toyhouse | neocities | linktree

[allseeinganalyst]

Frozen II Novels - Review

It's been a while since I reviewed or analyzed anything here. This blog was made for that exact purpose, but I've posted one half-hearted review-ish thing about Mob Psycho and the Nanoha look-back is taking a while.

Part of that is due to being that I find myself in weird mental spaces more often than I'd like. The internet is a hell-hole, but it's also one that's borderline impossible (and certainly very impractical) to actually just sever ties to. I've ditched Twitter and I don't use TikTok (except to look at videos my partner sends me), but I still get, somehow, hit with a lot of LOUD, SHOUTY voices that seem to make it impossible to enjoy anything.

After about three-to-four midlife crises about things (i'm 30 this November), and a chat to my partner, I've managed to get the mental TARDIS that is my mind up and running again, ready to tour the fictional universe and enjoy what is has to offer, getting back into the things I love, without getting bogged down in the screeching of fandoms and social media.

Gods, that was a very long way of trying to say "I read a cool Frozen book."

Frozen 2 - Forest of Shadows and Frozen: Polar Nights - Cast into Darkness are two original novels set in the world of Frozen (Duh.) Forest of Shadows was released in 2019 and I actually read it back then, while Polar Nights was released in 2022, and I picked it up from Target and read it in march of 2023.

To get this out of the way, while it does sometimes throw people off, I am actually a big fan of Frozen. I've loved it since the first movie. It's not my favourite Disney film (that would be Tangled, and whoo-BOY, will we get to Tangled related media at some point on this blog!), it's probably a close second. I love the animation, I love the songs, I love the characters and I love the world. I was even sad when the hype for Frozen died down, and no, I don't think Enchanto is better - That's another LOUD SCREECHY OPINION that I'm not sad to hear less of.

These are obviously not the only Frozen novels out there. I do own "A Frozen Heart", which I've really got to get around to, because apparently it contains some Hans backstory, and Hans is a character I'm really interested in learning more about, and obviously there is a slew of additional Frozen media. Frozen-Mania gripped the world in a chokehold not seen since the god-damn Shrek movies, and it had an effect on our media and culture so great that no doubt, someday there will be an essay on youtube by Super Eyepatch Wolf explaining and analyzing the overwhelming impact of a Disney movie from 2013 and the INSANE fandom that sprung out of it - which I was a part of from very early on, and quite honestly you can use it as a self-contained example of how fandom has changed since then... BUT I'M DIGRESSING.

The point I was trying to make here is that, most of the media released post the original Frozen movie is fairly generic. Baring one or two things, and of course, the animated shorts, a lot of it is standard kids stuff - Storybooks, Quick Reads, Junior novels, picture books, etc. Some of it is really fun, and the art was almost always either a wonderful, bright cartoonish 2D style, or a painterly, soft style that's really pretty to look out - But not a lot of is espeically unique. It's got a "Frozen Flavour" to it, but it's all very standard. If you changed one or two things, you could swap out Elsa and Anna for Rapunzel, or Ariel, or any other number of Disney Princess characters and the stories would be more-or-less the same. Stuff that mum and dad can give to their kids to let them have their Frozen fix without having to endure "Let it Go" one more time. (Side note: If you do happen to be one of those people who're bitching about how over saturated that song is - Fuck you, I'm going to play it again on purpose.)

The point I'm getting around to is that these books, cheep target paperbacks they may be, are not that. There's a distinct world and continuity here, and it's even possible to place a timeline.

These books (I believe there may be a third between them for a reason I'll get too shortly) have recurring characters, direct continuity and callbacks. All of them expand on the world of Frozen, moving away from the generic Disney-Princess storytelling of kingdom mishaps and "oh-no! character X is lost/upset/lost a precious item/wants to do something special/has a special occasion/etc" and into a deliberately constructed world, with a soft but distinct influence from Nordic and Sandenavian folklore.

They are not perfect, but they are worth talking about. Spoilers abound below, for those of you who are interested!

I'm not going to summarize the plots. I want to talk what I find interesting, annoying, curious, fun or frustrating about these books. These reviews are intended as a form of looking after my own mental health anyway. If you're interested, I've given names and pictures of the covers. Go look them up. Or better yet, read the books yourselves and tell me what you think!

The coolest (pun 400% intended) part about these books is they are clearly on a timeline. They're designed to slot very nicely into Frozen canon, and do so very tightly I might add. The timeline that we can establish is:

Frozen > 3 YEARS > Forest of Shadows > Frozen 2 > Polar Nights.

Forest of Shadows leads directly into the events of Frozen 2, even referencing the scene where Elsa wakes up the spirits at the end, while Polar Nights is explicitly stated to be a matter of 2-3 months since Anna took the throne.

During that 3 YEARS period there, you can obviously slot in Frozen Fever, Olaf's christmas special and probably one or two of the storybook stuff released post Frozen. If the (hilarious) "Olaf Reenacts Disney Movies" shorts are in ANY way canon (and... They MIGHT be to some degree, I'll get to this later...) they almost definitely slot in between Frozen 2 and Polar Nights. Again, I'll get to why later.

I believe I am missing a novel or story somewhere that fits into the same timeline as Polar Nights references an event that's a bit too specific to not have been depicted in some form of media, but I can only work with what I find locally. Although I am in no uncertain terms a fan, I only have so many resources and time to put toward things, and Frozen isn't at the top of that list. If a novel appears on a store shelf, I'll buy it. If it doesn't, I go without.

While my thoughts are mostly focused on Polar Nights, because I read Forest of Shadows over 3 years ago. I'm talking about both novels for the most part.

They are decent in size. Small enough for kids to read with no trouble, but more than a short story. Both tell full length, original stories.

These books paint a slightly wider view of Arendelle and it's surroundings than what we see from the movies. Neighboring kingdoms are mentioned by name (including Corona - Rapunzel's kingdom from Tangled. - Again, I'm going to get back to this later), and there are several named, recurring characters like Tuva and Ada, lesbian blacksmith wives (explicitly mentioned as being married) or Sorensson, the Astronomer who lives far outside of Arendelle and is introduced in Forest of Shadows, then plays a small but significant role in Polar Nights. There's recurring references to Aren of Arendelle, the founder of Elsa and Anna's kingdom, and a secret room or passage discovered in one book is referenced and used again in the next. It's really consistent and it makes it feel rewarding to read these novels. I very much doubt that any future Frozen visual media will reference their events, but if the stories themselves can keep a continuity across writers, then that's good enough for me to feel like I'm really in a bona-fide expanded universe.

There's some stuff in these books that I have personally wanted to see since the first movie. Things like finding out how Anna never recovered the original memories the trolls took from her, or finding out what Elsa spends a lot of her time doing in Ahtohallan...

(conjuring ice memories, apparently. Yeah, seems like while she's not going to "drowning depth" again, she is using her magical ice powers to pull up home-movies of her parents... Gotta wonder if she didn't accidentally pull up one of their date nights and then shattered the whole thing into ice shards in a panic once her dad put on the Barry White music.)

The books ALSO give me something that I have held in my head since the very first movie - Anna cracking jokes about her past and her mistakes.

I've always loved the idea that Anna doesn't seem the type to get all "Shell-Shocked PTSD Veteran" over her traumatic memories. That's Elsa's job, so I've always imagined she makes a lot of jokes and lighthearted fun out of it. Like, she seems the type to go: "OH HEY! That's a great statue of me! And I'd know! I've been a statue! Made of ice! Wanna see me do the pose?"

And while we don't get that exactly, we do get her ribbing Elsa about having Marshmallow throw her out of her ice castle, grumbling about how "Hans isn't actually THAT good looking", and generally having a sense of "oh no, I remember what happened LAST TIME..." about her. It's not as explicit as I'd like, but it's there and it helps with that feeling of the world being alive and moving. These characters do remember what happened yesterday. They are actively learning their lessons and trying to avoid the mistakes of their past.

The stories are compelling enough. While not groundbreaking, edge-of-your seat page turners, they both offer an adventure that's very much on brand for Frozen, effectively utilizing the characters and the world. This isn't a story where you could change a few names and slap Aurora or Belle or Ariel in instead. These stories feel tailored to Elsa and Anna. Unfortunately, there's a bit of an issue that I assume arises from being an author hired to write your own original entry into a carefully curated, multi-million dollar franchise, owned by the real world's full on Mega-Corp.

See, while I love the connected, constructed world these novels build around the movies - They do in-fact, happen to be being built around the Frozen media franchise, and Disney have been notoriously strict with this before.

If you were a part of the early Frozen fandom (again, I was), you might remember the sheer excitement around when it was announced that Elsa and Anna, as well as Arendelle and a number of other movie characters would be coming to Once Upon a Time, flinging the universe of Frozen into unexpected live action.

I'm not going to get into my thoughts around OUAT, because... YEAH I'm trying to be focused and that is worth a WHOLE other blog post - which I don't have any REAL desire to write out unless someone BEGGED me to do it, but long story short, given that the show explicitly is alternate continuity for ALL Disney's franchises, it had a lot of leeway in what it could do with it's regular cast... But not the Frozen characters. Although the writers did get to play around creating new backstory and lore, and chopping and changing a bit, there was a strictness to what they could and couldn't do with the characters. They couldn't give Elsa a love interest. They couldn't dramatically change anything from the movie. Characters had firmly fixed personalities that were absolutely not allowed the usual "flex" of OUAT - No extra edginess snuck in, nothing out of character.

(They did have incredible costumes though. Way better than any other live action projects that I've seen).

My point in all of this is, that was explicitly in an alternate universe. OUAT had NEVER had any bearing on any of the franchises it pulled it's roster from, and was marketed to a whole different audience.

These books are NOT. They are marketed toward the same audience as the movies, and are intended to fit alongside it. And it is painfully obvious that Disney holds a tight leash when it comes to ways for writers to interpret their billion-dollar characters. Obviously this is pure speculation, but I would imagine the writers for these novels were given dedicated character bios of characters like Anna, Elsa, Kristoff, Olaf and not allowed to deviate or even go into much depth beyond what was listed in those bios.

I say this for a couple of reasons - The most notable of which is the dialogue, and to a lesser extent the character actions. Characters have an unfortunate tendency to sprout stiff, unnatural dialogue, based on certain things that were mentioned in the moves.

Nowhere is this more egregious than with Anna and chocolate. The movies mention her having it as her favorite treat, and she has like two memorable moments involving it in the first movie, but the books treat it like it is NEVER off her mind. If the books mention Anna wanting to do ANYTHING, most of the time, it involves chocolate in some way. She brings it with her on expeditions. She can't wait to get back to the castle and eat some. She has a "choco-versary" with Kristoff, the anniversary of the first time they ate chocolate together. It comes off as a weird obsession, instead of the favorite food it was in the movies. Similarly, she's mentioned as having "Sandwiches" as her favorite meal a few times. Not only is this FRUSTRATINGLY non-specific, it also seems PURELY based on her one line in "Love is an Open Door" and it's callback during her conversation with Kristoff in the first movie... Although to be fair, this did also get a call back in Frozen Fever where we see her be enthusiastic about one, so... whatever.

It gets stiff with dialogue between characters too. Almost every conversation with Elsa and Anna seems to drift towards "we were seperated, but now we are together again, and I love you and am so proud of you!". They'll discuss the plot, and they do have some genuinely great moments (like Elsa talking about the trolls and Anna pointing out, somewhat sadly, that "no, sis, I can't remember, they took my memories as a child...") but a lot of it is re-hashing their end-of-movie "sisterly bond" stuff. It's a real shame especially in Polar Nights, because that is set AFTER Frozen 2. We could have had scenes of Anna asking Elsa for help ruling as Queen, or Elsa observing how Anna does things differently from her, but we learn nothing more about how these two interact than what we already knew.

The other problem that I assume crops up from Disney's strict oversight is that it's obvious the writers are not allowed to affect the world too much. They can play with the figures in it, but can't change the landscape dramatically. This is understandable, as it's unlikely the Mega-Mouse wants some kids novel throwing out a detail that might force them to change how they write the next movie. They're not going to kill off Kristoff, or suddenly give us a Hans redemption arc - As interesting as that would be, the writers need the all clear from Disney, and Disney won't want some hired novelist to make a major change to their giant money making machine which is no doubt shaped like Elsa's head.

This means that, although the stakes do feel real for the books themselves, there's a sense that nothing that happens within really affects the world that much. Characters don't learn a vital lesson or change in any significant way, and those that do are new characters, constructed for the book, who can easily be ignored by the wider narrative - Polar Nights has a whole segment with a pair of sisters, obviously designed to parallel Elsa and Anna, who's past and backstory, and the mysteries and mistruths thereof, form more-or-less the basis for the entire plot, but our ACTUAL sisters can't have a chat more complex that "boy I'm glad we're not separated anymore, also we're proud of each other!"

The result is - and this is kind of what I've been driving toward this entire time - these books give me a VERY distinct feeling, and it took me a while to identify what it was. I didn't catch it when I read "Forest of Shadows", but it WAS there, and Polar Nights has it there in full force.

These novels feel like FILLER.

Traditional, ACTUAL, filler.

SIGH - Quick sidetrack.

The term "Filler" is thrown around a lot these days, often by people that I don't think realized the term originally had a more specific meaning - At least from what my experience is.

"Filler" was primarily a term used by the anime community, referring to episodes of a show that were not adapted from the original manga. This practice was done as most anime, especially Shounen anime like those pictured above, ran almost continuously, and when your airing an episode a week which is sometimes able to adapt multiple chapters from the manga, you're going to close the gap pretty quickly.

This meant that things would be done in the episodes to stretch them out. Anything from lengthening fight scenes, to additional dialogue, all the way up to - perhaps most famously - whole new arcs created purely for the anime. These arcs had to tell their own stories that were entertaining, but obviously couldn't massively shake up the status quo, as they had no idea what would be coming next for these characters and this story. They relied on events distanced, often entirely unrelated to the plot at large (in-fact, rather infamously, Bleach once went to a year long filler arc in MID-SWORD-FIGHT BETWEEN CHARACTERS). Often they would invent new characters, new powers, and often draw on events of the past, or spotlight background characters to create an unobtrusive narrative.

These arcs can, and have, been good. There's nothing inherently wrong with filler, but as TV Tropes says: "These arcs can, and have, been good. There's nothing inherently wrong with filler, but as TV Tropes says: "At their most extreme, absolutely nothing that happens in a filler episode will affect things going forward, even if it seems like a character developed or grew in some manner."

Filler's definition has expanded a lot, and was never really as fixed as I tended to take it, though I still see it used incorrectly. If an episode of a show had the characters sitting around talking, with the plot not advancing at all, but we still learn things about the characters that matter, and have an impact or call back later, or their relationships change in SOME way, then it's NOT filler. In the words of my Media Teacher: "Just because it didn't feature a car chase and a shoot out, doesn't mean it doesn't matter." - Filler doesn't matter. Slow paced slice of life episodes can matter a LOT.

As a side note, to this side note, Filler in it's most traditional sense is dying out, and has been largely, though not entirely, gone from anime by the mid 2010's. Anime have switched over to the "cour" style of episode production, with a season consisting of usually around 12-or-24 episodes (a little leeway in either direction is common, like having 26 or 10 episodes), which focus on tightly adapting one arc or novel or portion of the story. They then take a break, and return with the next season whenever, picking up where they left off. This is why you don't really see stuff running for 200+ episodes in a row anymore, and why something like, say, Attack on Titan has five seasons. This has allowed for MUCH reduction of filler, and virtually eliminated the need for the filler arc. They do still pop up, but notice how today's "big shots" like My Hero Academia and Demon Slayer have multiple seasons instead of just running for a billion episodes like shows such as One Piece, or Naruto.

Though speaking of that, apparently some new shows are determined to carry on the traditions laid by their parents... *side-eyes Boruto*

AHEM. I really need to drop this topic and get back on track. QUICK, what's an appropriate Frozen-related GIF to use to move on?

I fuckin' told you I was gonna play it again.

ANYWAY, so my point is that - despite feeling like we've really entered a living, breathing world, with its own history and people, it feels like we're never allowed to see that world DO anything.

This wasn't too bad in Forest of Shadows, because even though it couldn't do anything massive, it could create the illusion of movement, by transitioning characters from their Frozen selves to their Frozen 2 selves, laying down hints of what would be fully realized in that move, but it is REALLY on display in Polar Nights - The set up involves exploring Anna's first major kingdom event as Queen, and yet, we really don't get any meaningful detail about that. We don't get a sense of how it feels for her to suddenly wield all this power and responsibility when, not just a few months ago, she was more or less the spare princess that could spend her days having picnics with snowmen. I mean sure, there's mention that she's nervous, but it really doesn't go into much detail. She's just "Queen Anna", the same way we saw her at the end of Frozen 2.

(Elsa's also still referred to as Queen - sometimes she gets directly called "The Snow Queen" - but this is a detail I like. It's not like the people forgot or disavowed her as their monarch. The two are called "The Queens of Arendelle" at one point. It's an interesting touch.)

The events of Polar Nights involve a lot of things happening (including major characters losing their memories of each other), but it all amounts to a problem that's easily resolved with Sisterly Love, and by the end of the book, everything's normal. I know these books are not going to affect the movies, but one of the cool things, as I mentioned, was that they did have continuity between each other. Sorensson was introduced as a man of science in Forest of Shadows, and then in Polar Nights, Anna and Elsa go to him for help with something they want a scientific explanation for. While some of these characters might pop up again to be mentioned in the next novel, it's hard to believe it'll focus on Anna dealing with the fact that... Say Dragurs are real, and exist out there, and that things like grudges and nasty legends and rumors can bring unwelcome power.

Some of the dialogue and phrasing is just plain awkward too. A lot of the time, when Anna spoke to Kristoff, it felt very bland, and forced-romantic, rather than their natural, more banter and warm interactions in the movies. We don't even get a call-back to "I prefer you in leather ;)" - Although that may have been pushing the biscuit. If they went any further with how Anna feels about that, the LOUD SCREACHERS might lose the ability to pretend she was being 100% wholesome and child-friendly with that line...

There's another line where Elsa's narration indicates she wants Anna and Kristoff to have kids so she can be "the cool aunt, literally" - A line that exists purely for that one lazy joke, since no other mention of them having children exists that I can remember.

(Though I am borderline certain that Frozen 3 will focus on their child, but again, that's getting distracted)

Polar Nights also avoids any direct appearances of Northuldra. No Honeymaron or Rider or anything - The only other significant characters that appear from Frozen 2 are Mattias (who fills a bit of a generic "general/captain of the guard" role, but that's his job so it's fine), as well as Gale and Burnie and the Water Nokk, who do have roles to play, but relatively minor ones. They are mentioned, but even when we see the Enchanted Forest, it's purely featuring the cast from Frozen, plus the wind and the new plush mascot lizard. Again, it's a shame because beyond: "Elsa loves the fact that she is living free" and "Elsa spends time pulling up home movies made of snow", we get nothing about how the former Queen is living as a spirit. Okay, I don't expect the book to explain about how Elsa hates needing to pee in a bush now or something absurd like that, but when you go from living in a castle to living in tents and caves, you've got to feel more than just "free" right? We don't even see how she interacts with the Northuldra. How do these people, who revered the spirits, interact with one who can speak to them in their language? Who can sit and chill out with them? Who can pop round for dinner? We get none of that, and it's sad, because it would have been nice.

Polar Nights features a mystery story between two sisters, one of whom is said to have outright murdered the other, several fights between Elsa and a Nordic zombie wraith that mimics her powers at one point, a Pirate Queen and her fleet sitting menacingly at Arendelle's borders, at one point escalating to firing on royal ships during a massive storm in an eternal night, Anna and Elsa traveling to a whole different neighboring kingdom, and Anna's fiance explicitly losing his memory of her, and anything they ever did together...

... and somehow it comes off as less compelling and impactful than Frozen 2, where - and I don't want to downplay or insult Frozen 2 because I think it's amazing and obviously it's themes run far deeper BUT - the main antagonist force boils down to "Dam that a bastard-man built one time".

(On that, Polar Nights is intent on reminding everyone that King Runeard was a Bad Man™ and every single character essentially goes "BOO! HISS!" whenever his name comes up. And yeah, the dude was an absolute bastard, and he only gets revealed to be worse in Polar Nights but you would think Anna and Elsa would have more complex feelings than "hate that guy" to their granddad who they believed was a bit of a legend up until the events of the second movie. Still, maybe they genuinely don't and at any rate, unpacking those feelings might be a bit more complicated than a novel intended mostly for kids is willing to get into.)

There's more that could be said, but I worry I've been sticking to the negative for too long. Yes, these novels do feel like anime filler. Lots of stuff happens, but it doesn't really impact anyone. There's new characters introduced and side characters discussed and all sorts of things that really don't mean that much to the world in the long run, and no doubt will be forgotten by the time Frozen 3 rolls around BUT...

BUT

The books are an enjoyable read. They let me return to the world of Frozen and explore a bit more of the land these characters live in. Yes, I wish the book featured a conversation between Anna and Elsa that didn't just feature them rehashing what they've learned in the movies, but it is STILL good to see them together again. It's heartwarming to know that Elsa still stays in the castle, that Anna let her keep their parents bedroom, that the people of her former kingdom still call her "Queen".

It's great to see side characters mentioned, and not just appear once. It's great that these books are allowed to look outside of the generic fairy-tale fare and bring up things like Dragurs and Huldrefólk and, while I do think the Sisterly Love being the solution to Polar Night's problem isn't the best ending, it does FIT with the themes for the franchise and it isn't a re-hash of Anna and Elsa, instead holding up a mirror to them and showing them what they could have been had their lives been but a tiny bit different.

They're good books, and I would rate them:

A solid B

Was originally a B-, but upon writing this out, I re-evaluated and I wanted to stress that I actually really do like them, and I hope they make more. I really want Frozen to be that thing that winds up having 20 different novel series, six comic books, two original TV series and a line of successful movies. It'd make me happy.

That is just about all I have to say on this topic except for:

OKAY SO YOU KNOW HOW I HAVE BROUGHT UP TANGLED A COUPLE OF TIMES AND I'VE BEEN SAYING I'LL GET BACK TO HOW I THINK IT INTERACTS:

Well - We all know Frozen featured Rapunzel and Eugene visting Arendelle and, ignoring some of the crazy and common fan theories (they're cousins I swear it still works if you squint), that suggests that there is a shared universe and I believe these books CONFIRM that when taken in conjunction with other evidence...

Consider that, Corona is directly mentioned in Forest of Shadows, and that would seem to confirm it, but I've still seen that, and the Tangled character's cameos waved off as cheeky Easter Eggs, BUT... REMEMBER THOSE FUCKIN' OLAF SHORTS? The ones where he re-enacts disney movies?

YEAH WELL, in the Tangled one, he has a bit of extra dialogue where he goes something like "this one is for one of my favorite people in the world, Rapunzel" or SOMETHING LIKE THAT THAT SUGGESTS HE'S MET RAPUNZEL PERSONALLY, and...

AAAAAND...

Polar Nights reveals that he and the others HAVE stayed in the Enchanted Forrest before, which gives him a timeframe where he could plausibly tell these stories in universe, AND AND AND AAAAANNNNND:

He also has a short where he re-enacts "The Little Mermaid" which IS CHEEKILY IMPLIED TO BE A BOOK THAT ANNA LOVES in Polar Nights, so Olaf has a REASON to know that story, AS A STORY--

AND BASICALLY THIS CONFIRMS THAT FROZEN AND TANGLED ARE SET IN THE SAME UNIVERSE AND THE FRANCHISE IS GOING TO CONCLUDE WITH AN ULTIMATE CROSSOVER THAT puts Avengers to shame and I SWEAR THAT IT'LL BE SO AWESOME AND--

The Analyst has been dragged off into the night by sensible people. Please ignore his ramblings.

[reasoningdaily]

Jordan Neely NYC subway chokehold death sparks outcry: 'We've got a deep problem'

Before Jordan Neely was killed on a New York City subway car this week, he was known for his swift Michael Jackson dance moves that entertained many — yet he struggled with the trauma his mother’s murder had left him with at an early age.

“He told me about how much his mother’s passing impacted him. He disclosed that she was murdered, and her body was put in a suitcase,” Moses Harper, an artist who knew Neely, told CNN.

Harper and Neely became friends quickly after they met in 2009. When she took him under her wing, Neely opened up to her about how hard it was losing his mother as a young teenager.

“It traumatized him. He was not expecting that, the brutal way she was taken. That had a big impact on him. The brutality behind that, that traumatized him,” Harper told CNN. “This kid has cried in front of me. That hurt him in his heart.”

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On Monday afternoon, Neely was killed after being held in a chokehold by a Marine veteran on a subway after Neely got on the train and shouted at passengers that he was hungry, thirsty and fed up with having nothing. A witness told CNN Neely – who was experiencing homelessness, according to a source familiar with his case – did not harm anyone nor did they see him armed with any weapon.

The 30-year-old’s death was ruled a homicide, but that does not mean there was intent or culpability, which is a matter for the criminal justice system to consider, a spokesperson for the New York City Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said.

The last time Harper saw Neely was in 2016 when she bumped into him on the subway and saw that he was experiencing homelessness when he asked passengers for food. “I had never seen him like that before,” she said.

Harper, who described Neely as a kind and sweet soul, said people from around the world have been reaching out to her about his death.

“It’s crushing people. Members of our circle are texting me. They’re just finding out, and they’re crying, they don’t know what to think,” Harper said.

The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office is investigating Neely’s death, which has triggered protests in New York City demanding justice in the case, in which no charges have been filed days after the killing.

“As part of our rigorous ongoing investigation, we will review the Medical Examiner’s report, assess all available video and photo footage, identify and interview as many witnesses as possible, and obtain additional medical records,” Manhattan District Attorney’s Office spokesperson Doug Cohen said in a statement.

“I don’t care if I die. … I don’t have any food’

In the minutes leading up to the deadly chokehold, Neely had been “acting erratically,” but he did not attack anyone on the train, according to Juan Alberto Vazquez, a witness who recorded the altercation on video.

As soon as Neely got on the train, he started yelling about being “fed up and hungry” and “tired of having nothing,” Vazquez told CNN.

Before he was killed, Neely said, “I don’t care if I die. I don’t care if I go to jail. I don’t have any food … I’m done,” according to Vazquez.

At some point, Neely took off his coat and threw it on the train’s floor, repeating he was ready to go to jail and get a life sentence, Vazquez said.

As that yelling continued, many passengers became visibly uncomfortable and moved to other parts of the train car. Neely did not appear to be armed or looking to attack anyone, Vazquez told CNN.

Then a rider came up behind Neely and put him in a chokehold, with the two eventually falling to the floor, said Vazquez, who noted Neely did not interact with that passenger at all prior to the attack.

New York police officers respond after a man riding the subway was placed in a chokehold by another passenger on Monday - Paul Martinka/AP

In the video recorded by Vazquez, Neely and the other man are seen on the floor of a subway car with the man’s arm wrapped around Neely’s neck. The two men were on the floor for about seven minutes, Vazquez said, adding that he started recording about three or four minutes after the chokehold began.

At some point, two other passengers approached Neely and the man holding him down. One appeared to be mediating the situation while the other seemed to help the man restrain Neely, according to Vazquez.

After a while, Vazquez noticed Neely stopped moving and talking, he said.

When police officers arrived at the subway station in Lower Manhattan before 2:30 p.m. Monday, they administered first aid to an unconscious Neely. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead later in the afternoon, according to a law enforcement source and an NYPD spokesperson.

CNN has not been able to independently confirm what happened leading up to the incident or how long Neely was restrained.

‘Always a dancer’

Neely lost his mother in 2007, when she was killed by her boyfriend in a northern New Jersey residence. The man was sentenced to 30 years behind bars for Christie Neely’s murder at their home and “dumping her body in a suitcase in the Bronx,” according to the Jersey Journal.

In the years after, Neely began experiencing “some hard times” before high school ended, Melyssa Votta, a high school friend of Neely’s, said.

“He was jumping from house to house,” she told CNN.

Through it all, Neely was “always a dancer” who was “a really good kid,” she said.

“He’s very well known on the Internet,” Votta said. “Internationally, people have reached out to me looking for him.”

Neely also had a series of run-ins with New York police, a law enforcement source told CNN’s John Miller, including 42 arrests on charges including petty larceny, jumping subway turnstiles, theft, and three unprovoked assaults on women in the subway between 2019 and 2021.

Andre Zachery, Neely’s father, noted the painful parallel in his son being killed like his mother, the New York Daily News reported. And although he hadn’t seen his son in four years, he praised how well Neely impersonated Michael Jackson.

“I sat him in front of the TV and showed him the Jackson 5. … He took on the Michael Jackson thing and he really formed it very well,” Zachery told the newspaper.

Some officials decry Neely’s death

As of Thursday evening, no charges have been filed in Neely’s killing, a move that has increased demands by officials and the community for legal action.

The man who placed Neely in the deadly chokehold has been identified as a 24-year-old from Queens who served in the Marines, according to law enforcement and military records. He was a sergeant and served from 2017 to 2021, and his last duty assignment was at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, military records show.

Detectives interviewed and released him, a law enforcement source told CNN.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Neely’s family “deserves justice.”

“I do want to acknowledge how horrific it was to view a video of Jordan Neely being killed for being a passenger on the subway trains,” Hochul said Thursday during a news conference. “There had to be consequences, and so we’ll see how this unfolds. But his family deserves justice.”

The governor added that Neely was held down “until the last breath was snuffed out of him,” describing the passengers’ response as “very extreme.”

Jumaane Williams, New York City’s public advocate, echoed the governor’s calls for justice, demanding that charges be filed “immediately” against the killer. The public advocate office helps with complaints involving government-related services and regulations.

“To say anything else is an equivocation that will only further a narrative that devalues the life of a Black, homeless man with mental health challenges and encourages an attitude of dehumanization of New Yorkers in greatest need,” he said.

CNN’s Sharif Paget, Brynn Gingras, Laura Ly, Maria Santana, Ray Sanchez, Omar Jimenez, Nicole Grether, Elizabeth Hartfield, Gloria Pazmino and Zenebou Sylla contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com

[allamericansbitch]

My fav songs off the album are definitely the bonus 3am songs, I feel like they are so so much better and different than the original 13? The only ones that stand out to me of the 13 are karma and bejeweled, maybe sweet nothing too. The 13 song album kind of fells like red+1989 to me? It feels like an old sound. like it's promo for 1989 taylors version in a way. the 7 3am songs are so, different and i much prefer them.. What are your favorites what do you think/feel abt the album?

i've seen a lot of people say they prefer the 3am songs which is interesting. i think they definitely go more in depth and have a more familiar type of writing for taylor, in terms of it being closes to folklore and evermore writing that people loved. I feel strange saying which one i prefer because they both offer two very different things. I think the standard version is easier and more fun to listen to, i can already assume i'll listen to it the most out of the two, but the 3am version is more to digest and has more interesting things happening. preference will all depend on my mood at the time i guess.

i do think having both options really shows how taylor can do the fun pop with catchy melodies and easy-listening and then also do experimental, less structured, story-driven songs. i am really curious on like... why she chose to do one and then the other. like she separated what she did on folklore, with the whole album being catchy pop melodies but interesting storytelling and instrumentals. it combined those two styles but this time she separated them into two different albums... i would love her for to explain why just out of curiosity.

im gonna put my thoughts on each side/song under the cut because i have a lot of thoughts and this is the first time someones asked lol

(update: i said so much im so sorry lol)

standard:

i saw some people hating the production and i do not understand them tbh. i love this style i think it suits taylors vocals so well. i think her vocals are so good on this album and her falsetto on lavender haze and labyrinth is INSANE. but her lower register on maroon and anti-hero are amazing too.

people saying it's a blend of rep and lover confuse me tbh because those are like... my least favorite albums but i love this so idk what thats about. i dont hear rep or lover influence at all... both had very rough, clunky production and this has softer smoother production and the lyrics are wayyyy more mature...

one thing no one can discount is her ability to write interesting melodies and hooks and this side of the album proves that, every single song has a melody i love on it.

lavender haze: obsessed with the production and again her vocals are insane. the r&b vibe is everything to me. and the bridge is so cool i love how she delivers.

maroon: the CHORUS?? those lyrics are so good and the story is so cute, that chorus melody is one of her best of all time to me.

anti-hero: perfect single choice and the way she described it i didnt think it would be upbeat btu is slaps. the lyrics are so good and the bridge is really interesting to see people react to. fans who are used to getting the meaning of things fed to them like in some of her other songs are just like 'well thats weird!' but it's one of the saddest things shes ever admitted under the disguise of a catchy upbeat melody.

snow on the beach: lana haters we won. this song is sooo calm i love it. i dont love the 'weird but fucking beautiful' line that much... i feel like she couldve done a little better than that tbh lol. but it doesnt ruin the song for me. i lose my mind at the way she sings 'and it's coming down no sound it's all around' ugh its gorgeous.

you're on your own kid: i've watch two reaction videos so far and they both didnt like this song and want to jump through my screen and put them in a chokehold wtf. im obsessed with the warm, fuzzy guitar production and the chorus melody. amazing. how it just keeps growing in energy is amazing and the story is beautifully told. her highlighting always wanting to feel special and wanted and for people to like her is a constant in her life, and then turning that into needing to remember the good things and wanting to appreciate them. she nailed it. the bridge is just euphoric and deserves to be screamed live i need it.

midnight rain: this one had to grow on me a little but it's a vibe. the melody kinda carries it for me. the lyrics are good and the production being moody but having these moments of sparkling keys or sound being representative of how she was moody but he'd bring in happy moments is cute.

question...?: i think this might be my least favorite, it's still good but i have no idea what this girl is talking about to be honest. i feel like she should've expanded on it way more because it feels like i walked into a story when it was halfway done already, i need more context lol. but it's cute and the melodies make it fun vibe to. the bridge is the highlight, the melody is so fun and the thing jack does with dragging out the last parts of the line is so cool.

vigilante shit: if we ignore the first line it's great lol. i can see why people dont like it and i can see why people love it. i'm in the middle. if it went longer i probably wouldn't like it. i think it serves the story of the album more than just being an individual song. the bridge is my favorite part.

bejeweled: i dont think i liked this song when i first heard it, it was a little too cheesy for me but once i leaned into it i think it's fun and catchy.

labyrinth: everyone give it up for my boy labyrinth!!! this is amazing and her voice is so gorgeous. the production is amazing and that chorus is so comforting? obsessed with the way she sings the plane part. the outro is so pretty too.

karma: she's soooo fun!!! the people with a sense of humor really won with this one. 'karma is my boyfriend' is literally the best sentence. her being like 'me and karma are so tight doesnt that like... suck for you?' the biggest song on the album for sure. the party song.

sweet nothing: the cutest song. i think it's something the album really needed a moment of cute sincerity. the melody in every part is amazing and the fact she highlights that he always says she smart and has a beautiful mind made me want to rip my heart and use it as a tissue. that bridge??? the lyrics are amazing. those classic jack horns go beautifully as well.

mastermind: this one was another grower but i like it. i think its a perfect ending track. the second verse is my favorite lyrically. but also the bridge is heartbreaking and beautiful. the part when she says 'because i carreeee' and a bunch of harmonies come in is amazing.

3am version:

the great war: i think this one is my least favorite simply because it gets a little repetitive. and it's very long for a song that doesn't really change that much from the beginning. and it's a topic we'd heard from her... relating her life to a battlefield. i do like the line 'diesel was desire you were playing with fire'. she's a fun song but i dont think i'd play it intentionally, if it comes on shuffle i'll listen.

bigger than the whole sky: this one is good but it suffers form the same thing as great war, it's too long and doesnt really go anywhere. i think the production is gorgeous and the lyrics are beautiful so that helps a lot.

paris: she's cute and she's fun and the idea is so cute. the first verse is so funny i love it.

high infidelity: calcium harvest come get you juice. i love the way she sings 'do you really wanna know where i was april 29th' and that whole part. that whole refrain is amazing and probably my favorite part of the song.

glitch: i LOVE this one. it's so experimental and weird. i love that guitar and the way she sings and drags out the end of certain lines. the melody of the chorus is everything.

would've could've should've: this is the other favorite of mine. im so glad she finally told him to fuck off again he needed a reminder, he was getting too comfortable. obsess with the production on this one and how dark and threatening it is. within 5 seconds you know shes about to kill someone. this is also one that goes really long but she has a lot to say and she should say it!!! the best part of the song is basically the bridge and every part after that. GIVE ME BACK MY GIRLHOOD!!! IT WAS MINE FIRST!!! best lyric on the entire album.

dear reader: a cute ending as well and the production is amazing, very similar to labyrinth. i've seen a lot of people think this is taylor giving the audience lessons she's learned overtime... and that's scary because she's telling people what not to do lol. she herself reveals she's an unreliable narrator by saying 'never take advice from someone who's falling apart' and she is very obviously that in this song. so... no one listen to the advice. it's really clever though and an interesting subject for a song. i don't think she's ever done that so it's cool.

[lestappenforever]

🎶✨️when u get this u have to put 5 songs u actually listen to, publish. Then, send this ask to 10 of your favorite blogs (non-negotiable, positivity is cool)🎶✨️

The fact that you sent this to me. 🥹

(Posting this as a video, because it's not as easily accessible on Spotify as the others)

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These songs have had me in a chokehold for weeks, and will likely to continue to have me in a chokehold for quite a while longer.

[dhampiravidi]

cupid's chokehold/breakfast in america

(ok this happened to me in middle school but I needed to share)

this song is EXCELLENT. the verses are set at a fairly chill pace (I can't listen to fast or loud things for the 1st hour after getting up or my anxiety gets the zoomies) & the chorus gets stuck in your head.

it's 1 of those songs that I vaguely remember hearing as a kid. this makes sense bc I was born in 2000 & the song came out in 2005. that meant I was in 1st or 2nd grade. I didn't have a phone, but I WAS given an MP3 player (maybe a year or 2 later?). anyway, the only time I listened to pop was when I either EXPLICITLY asked my mom to turn that radio station on (wasn't often) or if the bus driver for field trips put the station on (sometimes they didn't bc they knew they'd be getting a Kids Bop version of everything 😅).

I say this bc I went from not caring about music at all as a small kid, to having the "early" iWatch in middle school (aka an iPod that fit on a wristband--so much cheaper) that included radio, to being an annoying Linkin Park fan, to having multiple alt rock phases in HS...anyway, I started liking Fall Out Boy COINCIDENTALLY a few months before they came back (late 2012).

it took me 6 years to find "Cupid's Chokehold" again. & when that chorus kicked in, I nearly cried, especially when I realized that Pete Wentz had a working relationship w/Travie McCoy as well as Panic! At the Disco (I liked that group until a few yrs ago).

yeah, so. re-discovering music. love it. especially when it's a badass collab btwn some of the best pop musicians at that time.

also, look up "Open Happiness" (a song commissioned by Coca-Cola). it features Patrick Stump, Cee-Lo Green, Brendon Urie, Janelle Monáe, and Travie McCoy. music video is trippy yet silly.

& IDK if it'll work since they gutted Flash, but try to go play Fall Out Boy Trail (it's Oregon Trail plus Guitar Hero, where you drive an oxen-drawn van & hunt for Chicken McNuggets using a laser gun 😁)

[tripleyeeet]

Hi I always see you posting songs and they're always so good can we get some more recs? Maybe some Loki related songs if you've got any?

OH BOY DO I EVER!!

seriously, aside from writing and gaming, making playlists is my one true passion so i can defs give you recs. here's five random songs i've really been into:

today by q — sounds like it came straight from the 80s. strictly a good vibes song. really good for night drives imo.

runnin' by the pharcyde — arguably my favourite 90s rap group out there. labcabincalifornia is such a good album but this (and drop) are for sure my faves. also, if you like music videos definitely watch the mv for drop because it's so good and was actually directed by spike jonze!

suicide doors by blk odyssy — blk vintage: the reprise is another really good album but this song is definitely my fave.

sympathy by too close to touch — a little change in genre from the others but oh my GOD. this song hits me in the feels and the vocals are just so good. as a pop punk kid growing up this really feeds my teenage soul. <3

the summoning by sleep token — THIS FUCKING SONG HAS HAD ME IN SUCH A CHOKEHOLD it's literally the sexiest thing i've ever heard, like genuinely the last minute and a half makes me feral and i stg sleep token will most likely be my top listened to artist on spotify this year because of it.

i'm also gonna rec some loki songs; all of which can be found on this playlist because i'm a whore and whenever i find songs that remind me of him at all i throw them on there.

sexy villain by remi wolf — pretty self explanatory, hehe.

time moves slow by badbadnotgood & sam herring — this is the song that started the playlist. mostly it just reminds me of how loki's constantly leaving; opting for a life of solitude, and ultimately how much harder it gets each time he disappears. originally it was the inspiration for a tva!reader x loki fic that had some major severance vibes i had going but like always i got distracted and switched projects.

they don't want by electric wire hustle — when i tell you this song is MY loki song, i mean it. i swear, just listen to the lyrics and you'll get it.

trouble by cage the elephant — another self explanatory one. loki's always getting into trouble.

laughing on the outside by bernadette caroll — as someone who's obsessed with movie/tv scores, my dream is that one day marvel uses this song for loki.