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chibi-honey-cake · 4 years

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Imposter in Our Midst - Imposter x Crewmates

Okay, so this is some A.mong U.s/Within Us content, whoo-hoo! Yeah, that’s right, besides the Voretober content! (I have another Within Us story written up for the Ship entry already~) So to be fair, this was written in like 2 hours, barely proofread, and is WHOLLY inspired by this post over on @nom-central’s blog by a lovely anon named Vee. Vee, this is your fault, so this is for you! Also with bonus additions from the tags. So have this take on some ali-yum noms~

Contains: Soft Vore, Safe Vore, Fearplay, Teasing, Same Size Vore, Nonbinary Pred, Alien Pred, Unspecified Prey, Multiple Prey, Female Prey, Willing Prey (eventually), Begging Pred (eventually), Fatal is briefly mentioned but it doesn’t happen, also a bit of magic shrinking is involved to explain the multiple prey thing Word Count: 2.5K

She'd seen it gobble up another crewmate with her own eyes, stuffing them into a wide maw on their stomach and swallowing them up. The 'crewmate' in the black suit purred loud, patting their belly as it shrank to contain the other being without a trace. Chloe gasped and dropped the clipboard in her hands out of shock, the loud clatter immediately giving her away.

Black whipped to stare in her direction, the lime-suited scientist felt her blood freeze in fright. No...! This wasn’t happening...!! Black growled low and deep, dark tentacles springing from their back as their stomach growled loudly. Drool slicked what should've been their face-shield, a grin splitting their visor.

The voice in the back of her head whispered 'run,' and that was all that it had taken to free up her legs. She bolted out of the room, fright fueling her desperation. She heard the monster in human's clothing tear after her and she knew that if she made one wrong move, it was over for her. Chloe fled through the facility, careening around a doorway so fast that she almost slammed into the wall in her panic. She knew it was practically breathing down her neck- she couldn't let it catch her!

She ducked through the lab, slipping through a decontamination cycle with ease. She thought it might trip up the monster after her as she turned to check the doors- but a loud and ominous creaking filled the room. Those black tentacles seeped between the doors, prying them slowly apart with pressure alone. An alarm started squealing as Chloe's voice quavered a cry- this thing was strong and intent on catching her!

She bolted as soon as the other doors opened, not looking back to see the creature forcing its way through the first door. Into the greenhouse she fled, the humidity fogging her face shield quickly. She slapped her helmet open, panting in terrified exertion. She couldn't let it catch her- her only chance was to make a quick loop on the catwalks and avoid the carnivorous plants that they were studying, then bolt into the decontamination again and hope that the monster has to pry open the doors again. Chloe didn't want to think about if this plan didn't work...!

She ran out onto the catwalks, her footsteps shaking and echoing on the metal grating. The vines of the plants twitched and twisted at the new and erratic movement, sensing a meal in their midst. Chloe swallowed, panicking as the heads of the large purple 'flowers' began to turn and open in her direction. Now she was being hunted by even MORE creatures...! She ran down the middle path out of desperation, hoping that the monster couldn't follow her through such a busy path. Rustling and thumping rattled the metal pathway beneath her- she had no clue how many of those vines had just barely missed her.

She turned to run to the left- but a sudden shadow loomed in front of her and blocked her path. She shrieked, recoiling back and stumbling over her own feet. She fell back onto the grating hard, the rattle of metal echoing in her ears as she looked up in terror. It was the creature, still in the form of the black crewmate, grinning wide with its impossible face. Two sets of eyes opened on its visor, that grin stretching wide enough to reach up to the sides of its 'face'. Its stomach growled, loud, low and angry.

Chloe gasped, scrambling back on the pathway in fear. Everything else was forgotten. Her pulse pounded in her ears. This was it, this is where it was going to end- But rather than pounce, the creature... tilted its head with that grin still on its face. And then it spoke.

"Lofton, Chloe." Its voice was low and hissing, sending shivers down her spine as it said her name, "Role: Technician." It was almost purring, approaching with slow steps. She tried to crawl back further, it hovered close before she could. "Intelligent, but oblivious," it grinned wide as it stood over her, its belly beginning to split like it had before. Chloe whimpered, remembering flashes of Red being stuffed down into its gullet. "I wondered how long it would take for someone to notice my- eating habits." She shivered, the alien creature standing almost directly over her now. The maw in its belly opened, teeth and tongue visible inside. "I've been waiting to devour you for so long..." it purred, staring down at her ravenously, "I saved the best for last~"

Above this creature, movement caught Chloe's eye. She shifted her attention, still terrified- when she noticed one of the open flowers moving above them. The creature hadn't noticed, reaching down towards her... But it took a moment to realize that her attention had moved to something ABOVE. The creature in human guise halted, squinting its eyes. Just as it turned to look above them, vines lurched downward towards the two figures. A look of dawning horror crossed the alien's face just as it was suddenly ensnared in the tough vines of the flower.

The creature let out an unholy shriek, thrashing against the grip on its body as another vine added to the mix. Chloe gawked, her jaw falling open as the plant scooped away her attacker. It was- It was trying to eat the creature? Chloe sat up in complete shock and mild terror. That was... That was almost her. She was just almost eaten...! But... From what they had found out about the flowers, it was not pleasant for victims. Being consumed over days, alive for most of that... It was a terrible, painful death.

The alien shrieked again, a grinding and desperate rasp as it fought. Its tentacles tangled in the vines, but they didn't seem to be able to pry them off. Chloe hesitated, working herself to her feet as she stared. It... As much as it was as close to eating her as it was being eaten right now... She couldn't just stand by in good conscience. Even though it had eaten her crewmates, she couldn't let this happen when she could do something. This was- crazy and practically suicide, if not from the plant then from the victim... But she didn't want to just stand by!

The girl sprang into action, leaping up onto the rail to meet the vines that were taking the alien away. She reached out, grasping at the vines. The alien whipped around to stare at her, all four eyes wide with terror and astonishment. Chloe ignored the look, gritting her teeth as she tugged. The vines gave slightly, but started to tighten further. She grunted, using her feet on the railing to anchor herself. The plant was trying to draw both of them towards its open flower and she wouldn't let that happen!

In the back of her head, her mind told her that the alien had clearly spoken english- so it understood her. She reached out, trying to free the black imposter. "Grab onto me!" she ordered, "Hold on and I'll get you loose!" The creature hesitated, clearly mystified on why she was attempting to help it. But after a second, she saw its tentacles shift. It let go of the vines around it and the black tentacles reached for her instead. They wrapped around her shoulders and waist, anchoring them together. She resisted the urge to shudder at the strange sensation and reached her arms out to it again. "Link arms with me!" she told it. Quickly it obeyed, reaching out and grasping her arms.

Chloe grasped its arms just the same, steadied herself on the rail, then pulled backwards with all of her strength. She strained and heaved as hard as she could manage, her voice trailing with a high groan. Her teeth were on edge, her arms trembled as her legs pushed back, and the alien stared at her with terror in its eyes. Slowly the vines started to give, creaking and slipping away from the other creature. They found that if a meal was too much of a fight, the plants would back off. Apparently Chloe was triggering that, more vines slipping. "Come... ONNNN!" she grunted, strain tight in her voice.

Then suddenly the creature was freed. It bundled into her from force alone, both of them colliding and spilling painfully onto the walkway. Chloe panted and gasped, reeling from exertion and the fast trip. Suddenly there was a tug at her arms, pulling her to her feet. "Quickly!" the creature hissed, yanking her along. She followed blindly, running behind it without regard to what was going on.

They ran back into decontamination, not stopping as they ran past the ruined door and into the lab. Finally Chloe could run no more, tripping over her own feet and skidding to a stop on the floor. She gasped for air, involuntary tears trailing from her eyes. Everything hurt, her heart was pounding out of her chest, she was absolutely terrified... And she was probably about to meet the same fate as her crewmates. The thought occurred to her that she saved this creature and it was probably still going to eat her anyway. A quiet sob shuddered her shoulders as she laid prone on the floor, the girl giving up then and there. She wouldn't be able to fight it, anyway...

Black boots appeared in her vision, sluggish tears making her vision wobble. This was it... But rather than grabbing her in those tentacles like she thought- A soft hand patted her head instead. Still the tears flowed, stopping wasn't an option at this point. She whimpered a soft sob as the hand stroked her head gently. "Hush, human," the low voice above her soothed softly, "It is alright. Don't be afraid."

"B-But..." her voice stammered shakily without her consent, clogged with mucus and exhaustion, "You'rrrre... gonna eat muh-me... t-too..."

"I will not," it responded softly, "You risked your life to rescue me, even when I was trying to devour you and your crew..." There was a low purr and Chloe dared to look up at the creature, her tear-stained face meeting its distorted one. Its eyes were narrowed with concern, that impossible grin gone and replaced with a soft frown. "That is more than I have ever been offered before. There is nothing stronger than a sacrifice like that."

Chloe sniffled, reaching up to wipe the thick tears on her cheeks. Mostly she just spread them with her lime gloves. "You're... not gonna... eat me...?" she asked slowly, still sniffling and panting. Her tears had slowed but were still leaking from her green eyes.

The creature shook their head. "No," it replied, "You are safe." Chloe paused briefly... Then let out a shuddering, sobbing breath as she collapsed on the floor again. Relief flooded her as a few more tears squeezed out of her eyes, her hands grasping feebly at the tile. She was safe... The black suit turned and sat down in front of her, still reaching out to pet her head. "And I want you to know your crewmates are safe as well," the creature added.

"Huh?" she asked, glancing up at the larger figure, "But..." She sniffled, rubbing her wet cheeks again. "D-Didn't you... eat them?"

"Yes," it replied without hesitation, "But they are safe." It reached up to its midsection, patting it with its free hand. "Within me. I have a device that shrinks and places others inside into stasis. They are safe, just asleep." Chloe looked to its hand, then back to its face in confusion. The creature hesitated, then began to explain further. "I was ordered to covertly capture and deliver the humans to our base for observation," it spoke slowly, "But... I believe it might be best if I observe here... plainly instead?"

Chloe sniffled, mulling the words over. There was a pause between them, then she looked up... and gave the creature a soft, watery smile. "Y-Yeah..." she replied. It broke into its own wide smile, creasing its four eyes up with happiness. Chloe paused, wiping her cheeks again. "Um..." she started slowly, "What, um... What do I- call you? Since you'll be around?"

The creature hesitated, then leaned down to her face. "I... That is very private. True designations are private among my kind," it explained quietly.

Chloe frowned, realizing that she probably had overstepped a boundary already. "I-I'm sorry," she murmured, "I didn't mean to... ask something so personal-"

But the creature's hand reached out to her, shushing her with a soft tap to her lips. It smiled again. "But I will tell you. No one else must know my real designation- it is only for you to know."

=-=-=-=-=

It had taken a while, but now Imp was a regular part of the crew. Ever since the incident, Imp stuck close to Chloe for the most part. It often had to be reminded that it too had tasks to accomplish. It had sworn off all covert activities and made a pact not to hurt anyone on the crew.

But one of the things that separated Imp from the others was that it still craved live meals. It still desired prey to wriggle inside and mostly the crewmates served that role safely. However, the one that Imp seemed to crave the most was Chloe, whining and begging through the loud growling of its tummy.

"Please, please, Techie," it whined, its black head nuzzling against her own as she connected wires in the barracks, "Please, I'm so hungry... Please, I just want a little taste, a little moving inside, please?"

Chloe rolled her eyes, stepping over to the laundry chute. "Lemme dump this-" she started before Imp was nuzzling her again.

"Please, Techie..." it begged, a loud whining growl of its stomach matching its words. "Please let me swallow you, I'm starving..."

Chloe pulled the handle with a sigh, shaking her head as she let go. "Now I'm done," she announced, "You're free to eat me, then-"

Tentacles lashed out, snaring the smaller human by the waist as Imp grinned. Drool slicked its jaw as its belly opened to reveal those teeth again. "Thank you.... Thank you!" it purred, practically shoving her into its stomach. Chloe grunted and fidgeted as the huge tongue in its belly curled around her, pulling her in greedily. One quick slurp was all it took and the jaws closed over her and sealed her in. A swallow tucked her deep into the damp, slick, and familiar confines of the imposter's belly.

Imp sank to the floor with a long, grateful sigh. Its belly rested on the floor, full of the smaller human. It caressed the lump in its middle lovingly, both arms and all of its tentacles getting in on the act. The growling had turned to sated grumbles and gurgles and the human's wriggling inside felt amazing. Its toes curled, a low thrumming churr pouring from its mouth. "Delicious... as always, my dear Techie..."

Chloe kept up her 'struggles' inside, making sure to reach all the sensitive areas she had mapped out in her head. "Mmph... A-Anything for you, Rinth," she murmured over a burble beneath her.

The imposter melted from her movement inside, then from her use of its real name. "And for you... Chloe..." it whispered reverently.

#chibi writes a thing #within us #v.ore #soft vore #safe vore #extreme cuddling #same size vore #fearplay #belly mouth #alien pred #nonbinary pred #unwilling prey #Multiple Prey #begging pred #willing prey #fatal mention #This was a hard one to tag lol

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canyouhearthelight · 3 years

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The Miys, Ch. 122

Annnnd WE’RE BACK!

Thank you so much for your patience during the hiatus. Work is still crazy, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel there *crosses fingers*. And I was able to build back up my cushion of chapters, so that was a huge win for me.

As a reminder, this is a skip forward roughly 4 years from chapter 121. So, if you read a bit and start to wonder “wait, did I miss something?”, you probably didn’t and it’s most likely something I am going to circle back to. Don’t be a afraid to shoot me an ask, however, if you are just really thrown off by something! I’ll gladly clarify unless it’s something plot-specific.

Thanks, as always, go to @baelpenrose, @raven-fae, and @charlylimph-blog. By the way, Raven is working on a podcast of The Miys, which I am incredibly stoked about. Please follow @glimmeringfeatherspodcast for updates!

I carefully adjusted my glasses as I suppressed a giggle at Noah, who was swarmed with small yellow puffs of fuzz. In the last seven years since their discovery, Else’s hyper-fast evolution hadn’t slowed down much, although Grey did promise that it had slowed down. Noah buzzed at the puff resting on one of its vomu, eliciting a purr. “I believe they learned this behavior from Mac.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised,” I admitted. “I caught him playing with several of them a couple days ago.”

“I have observed them together on frequent occasions.” Reaching up, it plucked another puff from the top of its head. “I cannot hear if you sit on my sensory organs, podling.” Soon after Else evolved to the point they could live outside of a habitat tank, Miys had developed a tendency to treat them like its own young, and generally had several of them perched somewhere.

“How many of them are there now?” I asked, reaching out slightly before stopping myself from petting the closest canary-sized fluff. “Else, can I pick you up?”

In response, it bounced onto my hand. I’d noticed how little they spoke now, but Miys had assured us it was a normal stage in hive-being evolution - once Else became too large to actually fit in our bodies, it wasn’t able to communicate through the translator chip. At this stage, it could still hear us, but communicating back was a work in process. Mostly, they just trilled and chirped.

“Currently, there are five hundred and seven thousand, six hundred and twenty-three.”

“They’re very adaptable,” I observed.

With the one free vomu it had, Noah made a nodding gesture. “Most species that reach sentience are. We are able to observe Else’s evolution on a much shorter time scale than most, as well. Consider humanity’s evolution, and imagine seeing it take place in years rather than over the course of millenia.”

“I know,” I laughed. “But seeing it is way more incredible than imagining it.” I adjusted my glasses again, eliciting the buzz that usually meant Noah was exasperated with me.

“Why do humans insist on using those instead of having their eyes repaired?”

“My eyes aren’t damaged,” I reminded it. “And you did repair my eyes. I’m wearing these because my eyes are working right. You know this.”

“In principle, not in practice.”

It was my turn to sigh. “Our eyes evolved to work in a specific kind of light. Earth’s sun is yellow, I think? But Von’s sun is more blue.” I gestured at the light emitters in the corridor. “When the light is in the twilight cycle like this, some humans can’t see as well as we could in Earth-twilight. Hence the glasses.”

“Sight is so inefficient.”

I just shook my head. I couldn’t exactly argue. “Between the light and the gravity, it’s been a huge adjustment.”

“You have all adjusted in quite - innovative ways,” Noah replied. “My kind have done many of these relocations. Not all species adapt well.”

“What was it you called it?” I squinted, both from trying to see what was ahead of me and from thinking. I’m going to have to talk to someone about some flashlights, I swear… “We ‘persist’?”

“Humans are remarkably stubborn, yes,” it confirmed. “As Arthur Farro seems to prefer explaining it, your species began space travel by attaching chemical ignition drives to your posteriors.”

Even after so long, some things just did not translate. “Yep, we very much strapped a rocket to our asses to achieve spaceflight,” I laughed. “Everything on Earth kind of evolved and adapted like that. We learned what wouldn’t poison us by watching others die from eating it, that kind of thing. Even our superstitions, and later our laws, were basically ‘hey, let’s not do this, it kills people’.” A liw made its way into my line of sight, rocking to mimic a confused head-tilt. “You rescued us for our sight, not because we are a particularly bright species.”

“I understand that the polite thing to do, according to your customs, is to object to that statement, however I have been told on several occasions that I lack any skill in falsehoods.”

“We bombed ourselves back to the Stone Age the second we hit our highest peak in technology.” I reached out and patted what would have been a shoulder on a human. “You don’t have to lie about that. Arthur has studied an absurd percentage of human history. Even from a scholarly perspective, I am assured we are a singularly idiotic race. Besides, we’d already ruined an entire planet at that point...”

“It has evidenced itself to be a lesson well-learned.” It returned the pat, gently. “For a species historically inclined to warfare, those on the Yjq have demonstrated a profound proclivity toward peace.”

“Trying to keep it that way, bud,” I admitted.

Removing yet another puff from its sensory organs, Noah continued. “Please be assured, also, that Terrans are far from ‘singularly’ idiotic. There are many species in the Galactic Community that are demonstrably lacking in what you refer to as ‘common sense’.”

Noah was still a terrible gossip. “Do tell,” I asked, crossing my mental fingers that we weren’t the worst out there.

“Preeyar,” it listed immediately.

“The rift-valley avians?”

“The same. They experience terrible reactions to liquid water, and yet they are fascinated by fountains and insist upon touching them!” Startled chirps erupted as all six appendages on Noah’s upper body flung out in frustration. “Any vessel transporting Preeyar has specific instructions on how to treat the resulting burns.”

I had to admit, that was pretty bad. “Terrans at least learn not to touch things that will burn us by the time we can speak, usually.” My nose tickled as several little Else-puffs migrated over to me, upset by the grand gesture from my friend. I was almost glad it was so difficult for humans to see in the corridor, because I probably looked absurd.

“Shalt’krii are somehow just as difficult,” Noah confessed. “As a species that have what you term an ‘allergy’ to sonic waves - they develop painful rashes and can have seizures when exposed. Yet, it is entirely inevitable when transporting a large group that several will have forgotten or neglected to bring dampeners.”

“Oh my gosh,” I gasped, trying not to laugh and upset Else again. “How?”

“It has eluded the Galactic Council since they joined. The dampeners are far less barbaric than what the So-K’nor do to resolve a similar concern, but I must privately admit that the So-K’nor are at least more consistent and effective.”

Well, yeah, deliberately deafening yourself permanently when you go off-world tends to be that way, I thought to myself. I knew I didn’t need to say it out loud, but I also knew that Noah would not address my thoughts out loud. “Okay, maybe we aren’t that bad,” I granted. “I think the worst we do is ingest mild poisons.”

“On an alarmingly frequent basis, yes. Including plants native to your world that actually attempt to digest you as you eat them.”

I shook my head. “Not this girl. I don’t like pineapple.”

“And the number of humans on the ship who willingly consume lactic acid, knowing it will cause them digestive distress?” If it had eyebrows, they would be arching, I just knew it.

“You have pointed out several times over the years that you can’t taste,” I pointed out. “So you have no idea how tempting cheese can be.”

Noah shook one vomu like a head. “Incorrect. Having witnessed the sheer amount of it that Tyche consumed once she realized that you were not lactose intolerant, there is empirical evidence to support your claim.”

Unconsciously, my hand jumped to touch my left ear before I could force it down. “I remember the spicy food,” I said carefully, stroking one of the fluffs on my arms. “But I didn’t know about the cheese. Come to think of it - “ I stopped in my tracks and turned to face Noah directly, “Why weren’t the consoles just adjusted to make all the food… I dunno, lactose-free, I guess?”

Two liw reached to pluck several yellow beings from my arms and head as Noah used one vomu to start ticking reasons. “One, because I was specifically asked not to by Grey Hodenson and Xiomara Kalloe, the consensus being that bovines are, in fact, in the genetic database. Two, because that was attempted several weeks before you were brought on board, and I was tempted to damage my sensory organs to block out the sheer number of complaints regarding how everything tasted.” Thankfully, its vomu was still empty when it flung outward. “Do you have any idea how difficult it is to accommodate requests regarding something you do not experience?”

I felt slightly ashamed. “Not entirely, no.” Trying to lighten the mood slightly, I felt the need to point out “Besides, I really like goat cheese.”

“Something about chetter and mootsareeleh,” Noah grumbled.

“Ohhhhh,” I whispered. “Eyeah… do not mess with Italians’ mozzarella, I have learned. And cheddar does have a very specific flavor. I can see those being very loud complaints.”

“In eight Terran years, I am still confused why the color of the chetter is a determining factor, as well as how something so soft can be compared to an edged weapon.”

I felt like I was going to explode from suppressed laughter. I had to stop, tears streaming down my face, and catch my breath. “Oh, Noah… I honestly don’t know if I can explain that, but I can try…”

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#the miys #humans are weird #found family #humans baffle aliens #humans are space orcs #earth is space australia #original science fiction #science fiction #sci fi #original sci fi #my writing

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aion-rsa · 3 years

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Tumblr’s Top Fandoms of 2020

https://ift.tt/37LLRPI

It’s been a weird and often devastating year, and our social media has reflected that. Tumblr has just released its top fandoms of 2020 and it’s fascinating to see how a year of pandemic and quarantine has affected transformative fandom and broader cultural trends. In a year when almost everyone spent a lot more time at home, Animal Crossing: New Horizons was the most blogged about topic on the social media platform, followed by animated dramedy Steven Universe, Belgian SKAM adaptation WtFOCK, K-pop supergroup BTS, and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. We talked to Tumblr’s Trend Expert Amanda Brennan about how she interpreted the biggest trends of the year, how this was a big year for animation and international media, and why 2020 was the year everyone stopped worrying about what was cool and just embraced what they love. But, first, some 2020 Tumblr statistics:

Top 20 of 2020

Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Steven Universe

wtFOCK

BTS

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker

Artists on Tumblr

Critical Role

Avatar: The Last Airbender

Boku No Hero Academia

Black Lives Matter

Pokémon

COVID-19

The Witcher

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power

The Magnus Archives

Reylo Rey & Kylo Ren, the Star Wars universe

RWBY

Sanders Sides

Catradora Catra & Adora, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power

Zuko | Avatar: The Last Airbender

Top 25 Ships

Rey & Kylo Ren, the Star Wars universe (m/f)

Catra & Adora, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (f/f)

Richie Tozier & Eddie Kaspbrak, It (m/m)

Geralt of Rivia & Jaskier, The Witcher (m/m)

Aziraphale & Crowley, Good Omens (m/m)

Zuko & Sokka, Avatar: The Last Airbender (m/m)

Luz Noceda & Amity Blight, The Owl House (f/f)

Kara Danvers & Lena Luthor, Supergirl (f/f)

Park Jimin & Jeon Jungkook, BTS (m/m)

Dean Winchester & Castiel, Supernatural (m/m)

Live Action TV

Wtfock

The Witcher

The Mandalorian

Good Omens

Skam France

The Umbrella Academy

Doctor Who

Supernatural

The Untamed

Killing Eve

Animated TV

Steven Universe

Avatar: The Last Airbender

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power

Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir

The Owl House

Invader Zim

Ducktales

The Dragon Prince

Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Gravity Falls

TV Characters

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

Zuko

Catra

Jaskier

Sokka

Adora | She-Ra

Geralt Of Rivia

Katara

Aang

Crowley

Aziraphale

Movies

Frozen

The Old Guard

Star Wars: Episode IX The Rise of Skywalker

Birds Of Prey

Twilight

Hamilton

Little Women

Parasite

Sonic Movie

Lord of the Rings

Movie Characters

Kylo Ren

Harley Quinn

Bucky Barnes

Batman

Steve Rogers

Tony Stark

Rey

Spinel

Peter Parker

Richie Tozier

Actors

Chris Evans

Henry Cavill

Sebastian Stan

Adam Driver

Tom Holland

Pedro Pascal

John Boyega

Robert Pattinson

Tom Hiddleston

Timothee Chalamet

Actresses

Katie Mcgrath

Jodie Comer

Daisy Ridley

Margot Robbie

Zendaya

Lili Reinhart

Naya Rivera

Brie Larson

Florence Pugh

Jodie Whittaker

Books

Harry Potter

Percy Jackson & the Olympians

Warrior Cats

The All for the Game series

Pride And Prejudice

Midnight Sun

The Secret History

The Raven Cycle series

Carry On

Six Of Crows

Authors of Books

J.K. Rowling

Rick Riordan

Erin Hunter

Nora Sakavic

Jane Austen

Stephenie Meyer

Donna Tartt

Maggie Stiefvater

Rainbow Rowell

Leigh Bardugo

Video Games

Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Among Us

Pokemon Sword And Shield

Undertale

Minecraft

Sims 4

Fire Emblem: Three Houses

Danganronpa

Overwatch

Persona 5

Video Games Characters

Obey Me Lucifer

Obey Me Mammon

Tom Nook

Link

Sans

Cloud Strife

Dandelion

Kirby

Raihan

Arthur Morgan

Animal Crossing Villagers

Raymond

Marshal

Poppy

Fauna

Julian

Claude

Marina

Stitches

Bob

Ankha

Anime & Manga

Boku no Hero Academia

Haikyuu!!

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure

Beastars

Naruto

Mo Dao Zu Shi

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba

One Piece

Fruits Basket

19 Days

Anime & Manga Characters

Midoriya Izuku

Bakugou Katsuki

Dabi

Wei Wuxian

Aizawa Shouta

Hawks

Todoroki Shouto

Kirishima Eijirou

Lan Wangji

Levi Ackerman

And, now, our chat with Brennan. (This Q&A has been edited for clarity and length.)

Den of Geek: I’ve heard you refer to the users as the Tumblr hive-mind or the orchid, whatever it is. I was just hoping you could generally talk about what the Tumblr hive-mind is to you? Which is the way of saying, who uses Tumblr generally? And how and why? If you can even extrapolate those things. Go!

Amanda Brennan: Most of our audiences is Gen Z; it’s at 48%. Our new user registration with Gen Z is even higher; I’m pretty sure it’s 60%. These are people who come to Tumblr because they love something so much they just want to share that love with people who love it as much as they do. I know that feels like a giant umbrella, but that’s the thing: Tumblr is what you make of it. If you love sports, sports Tumblr is intense hockey Tumblr, so good. If you love TV, you’ll have all of that. K-pop Tumblr, totally amazing. Furby Tumblr is off the hook and they make these incredible creations. I’ve recently gotten into Stained Glass Tumblr.

There’s layers upon layers. No matter what you love, there’s something on Tumblr for you. That’s both the easiest thing and the hardest thing about it. You have to go in being like, “Alright, I’m so into this thing, what does Tumblr have for me?” It’s not like the other social media networks, right? It’s really about what you love rather than who you know.

Yeah, I like that. I did want to ask you specifically about the process of how you track trends and how you make decisions about what to track?

We built the whole taxonomy that powers fandom metrics based on what Tumblr talks about. I’m a librarian, as you know, and I kind of reverse engineered it. My first year in review at Tumblr in 2013, they handed me a spreadsheet and they’re like, ‘OK, go to town.” So I was like, “Cool, let me pull out the threads that I see.” We really let the data tell us how to analyze it, if that makes sense. So when it comes to what we track, I have a running notebook that I’ve kept all year of the things that I’ve wanted to have in year in review.

The Witcher has been on my list since it came out. Animal Crossing has been another one. The Old Guard had a huge moment. I was just writing notes, like, “Oh, what is this thing? And we’ll keep an eye on it.” I have an amazing team. We all are into our own pieces of Tumblr. So we’ll all work together to just keep an eye on different fandoms. I don’t know if you know about Minecraft YouTuber fandom?

Yeah. I was actually listening to the latest Fansplaining last night and they mentioned it in that. I was just like, “OK, a new thing.” There’s always a new thing to learn about.

There’s always a new thing. That’s the beauty of Tumblr. It’s so fluid in fandom. You can go from one fandom to another and then you’ll see like, “Ooh, what is this thing?” I’ve got Supernatural on the brain, as who in the fandom doesn’t right now. [This interview was recorded on the day of the Supernatual series finale.] I was telling someone, the whole reason I got into Supernatural was because I saw a gif from the show on Tumblr and I was like, “What is happening? Let me go back and watch this entire series.” That’s the vibe of Tumblr, right? You see a thing and you’re like, “Oh, I need to know everything about that.”

Supernatural Series Finale: Why Dean’s Fate Works

By Juliette Harrisson

Supernatural: The Internet’s Best Reactions to the Series Finale

By Kayti Burt

Hmm. Yeah, for sure. I was interested in talking to you or getting your insight into how trends you saw or data you saw that were maybe tied to the very unique experience of being in the middle of a pandemic.

Yeah. I was looking back at the predictions that I had made last year and like four of those things didn’t even come out. It was just so unexpected. There’s two things that we really saw tied to the pandemic. The first was “cottagecore” as an aesthetic. It kind of touched everything because it’s soothing, it feels comfortable. In March and April in the early days, when you didn’t know what to do, you’re stuck in a forest isolation. Cottagecore has got this vibe of chosen isolation. It was very fantasy-driven and something to reach out for.

That evolved also into nostalgia. I think this year’s really big theme is nostalgia and comfort. We saw huge returns to fandoms like Twilight and Avatar: The Last Airbender. Avatar going on Netflix was such a world-breaking moment. Not only did it introduce a new, younger fandom to the show, there’s a lot of Avatar content once you get into it, but it brought people back to a younger time in their lives. Remembering and rewatching. The Avatar fandom, as you see, it’s all over all of the lists. Zuko is number 20 on all of the things on Tumblr this year. Avatar was able to redefine people’s year. Because you know what, we’re all at home, I’m going to binge Avatar. Reignite my love for this fandom.

A lot of TV too, because TV is episodic, you get lost in it. Movies had a really rough year. When we look at the movies, movies like Megamind were trending this year. That comfort movie that you go back and watch 17 times.

Yeah. I was curious about that too. The balance or proportions between older fandoms and newer fandoms, like the Avatar example. I was curious how much that changed this year? How much you thought it was tied to the pandemic? How much is tied to accessibility and things, like Avatar coming to Netflix? Do you think that is an interest in older fandoms? Or that it’s going to continue past the pandemic?

Yeah. I think another high-level theme of this year is the rejection of cringe culture. I’m getting a little ahead of myself, but I’ll tie it all back in. I think people are realizing what their values are and not being afraid to admit that they like a thing. Not caring what other people think of the things they like. Unabashedly loving the things they love. That’s why I think we do see a resurgence in these older fandoms.

Because people who may have loved them their whole lives, or may have been nervous to share that they liked it when they were younger they’re not afraid anymore. They’re like, “You know what? Twilight, it’s not that great, but I love it. This is my emotional support vampire.” Recognizing that you can be critical of something. You can see where its flaws are, but you can still love it. That duality of fandom is something that is going to persist into next year. That freedom to just like a thing, because you like it. Be able to see its flaws, but still be like, “You know what? Overall, this brings me joy and the world is melting down.”

I’m on board with that mission, that plan for 2021. I did want to ask about the role of non-English language media, especially live action stuff. Generally because I was someone who fell into The Untamed this year, but I saw that there were two SKAM remakes as well that are on the top 10. In general, have you seen over your time at Tumblr, and maybe especially in the past few years, an increase in non-English language content? Do you think that is mostly English speakers and Americans being more open to that or being able to find it easier? Or do you think it’s also an influx of people from outside the United States coming to Tumblr? Or both?

Interesting. The data that we work with is actually stripped of all user information. I don’t really have an insight into where these people are coming from. I do think that users in general are more open to content in any language. Tumblr is more interested in characters than where the story comes from. Thinking about The Untamed, it’s just such a compelling story, it doesn’t matter if you have to read subtitles.

To parallel it to something in major pop culture, Parasite. People are becoming more open to just watching content because it’s good. SKAM is really fascinating to me because the number one live action show is wtFOCK. Then, I think two years ago, 2018, the original SKAM was number one at some point. This show really transcends language barriers. It transcends geographical barriers. At the core, the story of the teenagers is just so relatable to anyone. We’ve seen lots of translation happening and not just into English. Translation of SKAM into other languages, just because people want more of these characters and their iterations, no matter what locale they’re based in. I’m waiting for some professor to have a class on it, because it’s so fascinating to me.

I also wanted to ask about how you thought the election cycle affected Tumblr this year, if there were any trends or data that you were like, “Yes, of course this is what people were doing on Tumblr this year.”

Tumblr has always had this backbone of social justice. This year, it came out stronger and in more force. No matter what fandom you were in or interests, everyone I know on Tumblr was participating in sharing social justice stuff. Even politics, if they weren’t from the US, those kinds of memes that were like, “I feel for you”. The way that fandoms do. I see your show is ending and I’m sorry.

The one thing that Tumblr really had leading up to the election was such an appreciation for the postal service. Especially Gen Z, their world is so much larger due to digital connection. Mail order, just as well as sending letters and keeping in touch with your digital friends is just as important as keeping in touch with your IRL friends. All of the artists on Tumblr, so many of them turn to mail order to replace cons. This is their livelihood. By the time the fall hit and the postal service was having all these issues, people are ready to jump in. There were the Transformers dressed like mail people.

https://morethanmeetstheass.tumblr.com/post/626466946047705088/i-completely-forgot-to-post-this-guy-here-this-is

There were all these comments like “support your postal workers,” “support the USPS.” It really boils down to the fact that we are all connected and the mail service is something in the US that connects everyone. Even overseas. Supporting these artists whose livelihood went from IRL to online and having to deal with all of this.

And the “Super Putin Election.” The confluence of those elements. I was just surfing on my personal computer and I was on Tumblr and I saw a post being like “Destiel’s canon.” I’m like, “Excuse me?” I immediately texted my team. I was like, “Open up your work computers, let’s go.”

It’s time.

We all signed on trying to figure out what’s going on and watching the numbers. That, to me, is thrilling. I said this to someone else, but it felt like the night of The Dress. To have that moment where everyone on the internet is feeling the energy. The things that kept getting layered on top of it. Putin and Sherlock and all the anime mysteries. It was breakneck speed, and it was really thrilling just to be in that moment, and so Tumblr.

I did want to ask you about an increase in animated fandom and potentially anime fandom. A lot of these things I’m anecdotally or just observing things in my own little corner of the internet. It just seems like animation and anime, probably at least partially because Netflix has accumulated a much larger anime collection and seems to be investing in these sorts of things. Have you seen that increase? Could you talk about it, if so?

It plays into what we were talking about earlier, twofold. That nostalgia vibe, the late nineties anime vibe, that art style. Also your comfort zone and being open to more stuff just because it’s good. Not worrying about reading subtitles and stuff like that. But anime in general had a huge year. Haikyū!! ending also transposed into other fandoms because that moment of the final panels, it brings people together. People being so excited to see this massive thing come to a close. You might not be familiar with Haikyū!! in general, but you’ll see the fanart and be like, “Oh, I feel that.” It’s the emotion of it.

The popularity of Avatar did also open people’s doors to like, “Oh, well, what else can I watch? What else do I want to learn about”? Boku No Hero was consistently on our Week In Review every week. BEASTARS is another Netflix anime that’s at the top. Then Mo Dao Zu Shi, thinking about The Untamed, the story of Mo Dao Zu Shi is so fascinating. I don’t think I can name another piece of content that has that storyline. People are just ready to take it all on.

I did want to ask you, I think you’ve probably talked about some of these already, but what were some of the biggest fandom moments for you on Tumblr this year?

Oh boy. So many things going canon. Catradora was a huge, huge moment. I cried watching that. The Witcher, Jaskier, introducing this whole new world to Henry Cavill. I saw a post yesterday that was like once Superman was goth, a lot more people realize that he’s hot. Repurposing and looking at things in a new way. Among Us, so huge. There is a user who is doing a comic about White and Pink being in love. She’s giving them lore. She’s giving them backstory, personalities. It is amazing.

Unus Annus, I am not very into streamers, but I’ve caught some of those videos. When they had their final stream, I was tuning in. I was like, “Are you really going to delete the channel?” Then they did. Just watching the fans have that moment, even though I am not in that fandom, it was wonderful so meaningful.

Harry Potter being taken by the fans. Fans own Harry Potter now, and that’s what matters. The Old Guard also came out of nowhere and really blew Tumblr away. The Immortal Husbands. I love that ship. I’ve got to touch on almost all of the places, MCR, My Chemical Romance. Those fans have woken up and they didn’t get their tour, but they will. They’re not going to sleep until they do.

Because we maybe all have Supernatural on the brain, to a certain extent. I’m just curious how you think, that show’s been on for 15 years. The fandom has gone through literal generations. How do you think the fandom is going to change?

There’s always going to be a supernatural gif for everything. People will continue gifing it. It’s going to surpass what it is and it’s going to become that comfort show. This is a personal anecdote, but when I go to the dentist, every single time supernatural is on. It’s just like, “Oh, I get to watch my boys while I’m getting my teeth cleaned. That’s good.” It’s always going to be there. It’s always going to be there for people when they need it the most. We’re going to see a lot more fan creations. People love these boys, men now they’re adults. People love these characters. I haven’t watched this season. I am going to watch the finale tonight. I’m going in almost cold. I know that a lot of fan favorites have returned. My prediction for Supernatural fandom going forward is seeing these side stories come through in fanfiction even more than they already do. Lots more Charlie. That’s personal of mine because I love her.

I don’t think you’re alone in this.

Yeah. Who doesn’t love Charlie? Seeing these smaller characters come out and just shine in their own fan works, more so than the world might’ve provided them in canon.

It feels dangerous to make fandom predictions based on what happened this year, but if you have any predictions and or hopes for the coming year in terms of Tumblr and fandom?

Where we’re at now and going forward, it’s all about true authenticity. Screw what people think. We’re rejecting our old ways of thinking. We’re about flipping perspectives and forgetting what you thought was important in exchange for what you truly love. 2020 has helped us all figure out what our values at our core are. It’s about choosing something that makes you happy, that supports you, and your people. Choosing the happiness of those around you and making sure that you’re fighting for the goodness in life. Which sounds really sugar sweet, but one of the things, again, that I love about Tumblr is it is about putting people first based on the things they love. That’s what I see happening.

Explore the rest of Tumblr’s Year in Review lists here, and let us know what your biggest 2020 fandoms were in the comments below.

The post Tumblr’s Top Fandoms of 2020 appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/3lPIRa9

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acioo · 4 years

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anonymous asked: I was just wondering if you have any ideas on how to get inspired to create characters?? I want some new muses but I don’t really know where to start? And your muses are Exemplary. Tyvm!!

hi, anon ! first of all, thank you so much ! you’re so sweet <3 i thought about this a while & i’ve made a list of things i take inspiration from / ways to get inspired ! also, i got some help by rachel ( @tombraiders ) & ( @laurakinnvy ), so thank those legends for that !

media ( tv shows / films / books / etc ) ― now, there’s a lot of ways to go about this. i’d never suggest taking whole parts of characters ( like, anything hyperspecific, i’d say, for example: your characters parents are scientists living in africa and your character contracts a rare disease that your char's parents cure your char from by injecting your char with a serum that turns your char green and gives your char superpowers AKA garfield logan ). BUT, what i mean, is that it’s very easy to take a singular idea and completely adapt it to a character and turn it into something that’s very different from the og idea but still so much fun. so, make your character the child of the sheriff ( stiles stilinski, teen wolf ), make your character the child of psychic/s ( blue sargent, the raven cycle ), or give your character a fraternal twin ( pines twins, gravity falls ), but run with it in your own way. give it a specific twist that came from you alone. remember to respect other writers, and i would NEVER suggest doing this with your fellow writers in the rpc, but no writer owns the idea of being a demigod, or have superhero family members, or being the child of a senator. if you are watching something, and you’ve always loved a particular detail, then run with it, and give it your own twist. you can develop an entire character by starting with one thing.

pinterest ― one of the first things i do when creating a character is begin their board. my layout is i’ll start pining general things ( clothing, physique, some words ) just to get into the feel of it. once i start getting more deep into a character, i will add sections to their board, all rooted in specific aspects of their lives ( so, for example, a sibling, a significant other, a power, a job ). i’ve even made pin boards where there are sections based on different aus i have for them. it allows me to flesh out the character while also keeping a more big picture view of them ( meaning, how all the aspects and qualities work together to make a dimensional char ), and i can pick up qualities that fit with the character by stumbling on them in pins ( for example, seeing a pin of a dog, giving the character a dog, expanding the relationship with the dog, so forth ). here’s an example of a pinterest board of mine, if you are wondering what i mean exactly ( and with the board, even more examples for sections: future children, family, childhood ).

a single thought ― i took a creative writing class a few years back, and an exercise we went through was posting a list of first lines from books ( here i will name a few, if you wish to try this: i had just come to accept that my life would be ordinary when extraordinary things began to happen, one summer night i fell asleep hoping the world would be different when i woke, it was a pleasure to burn, all children except one grow up ), and then she made us create an entire character with full background and as many clever aspects as we could ( within the span of forty-five minutes ). she’d also do it for short stories. it was a clever trick of hers to get us to think outside of the box, but it’s also a fun exercise to take forth in. it gives you a start place, but the finish line is wherever you so please. i once wrote a prize-winning short story based on a singular quote ( that being, there is one mirror in my house, from divergent. ) i used the quote “ it was a pleasure to burn “ ( farenheit 451 ) to create a character of mine who loves fire, and has shaped her entire life around it, but has begun to melt. my point being: it is possible and it’s sooo much fun. by the time you get finished ( though i don’t personally believe you should EVER be truly finished in delving into your character. by that i mean, don’t be afraid to change things up, because more often than not you’ll wind up better than you were before. i don’t care if you’ve been writing them for five months, or five years, if you have a thought, like hey what if their mom had a specific job that had an effect, for example, go with it and see where you land after ), you will have a character that should have a relation, but a thin one, to your source, if done properly.

playlists ― playlists are usually something i do after i begin my character, but i’ve ben open to a whole new world by rachel and han, who say they use playlists to create. which, makes a whole lot of sense. i posted specific mood playlists here that are available to help, but i also have something in the works in terms of songs to help, so look out for that. here are some songs that i think would be good in creating characters, or at the very least, starting to create characters: 8teen by khalid, bloom later by jesse, cold by rich brian, devil town by keep for cheap, everybody loves me by onerepublic. to explain further, here’s an example, using happy pills by weathers ( i take my pills and i’m happy all the time / happy all the time / happy all the time ), you could begin by making a character with a mental illness, then go into how they take medication for it, why they got it, and so forth.

real life ― this can be used in a lot of ways. maybe you have dual citizenship, and you can easily give this to a character, and use it to expand them: where do they live, which country do they feel more connected to, etc. or maybe you are funny, so use that: is it a coping mechanism, when did they become funny or were they always. there’s a number of things to include ( and it also sets a really good precedent, because i think one of the MOST important aspects of a character is making them a dimensional being who you could basically pop out of the pages and stick in a house and would reasonably work ): a family dynamic, a sexual orientation, a religion, an anecdote. it’s also a good way to get out feelings you may have, and can be some of the most compelling of writing, but i really do urge you to watch where this goes, because it can get out of hand, and you can wind up upsetting yourself, or creating a character that is a bit of a modge podge and not a painting if you will ( in that the parts don’t all fit together ).

muse inspo blogs ― lastly, muse inspiration blogs are a good way to do this as well. they have numerous tags where you can begin, maybe a label that you can use to fully explain your characters or a dynamic, and then go from there by scrollling through. there’s a number of muse inspo blogs that you can use, and i’m happy to string together a few if you send me another ask. i also have some musing tags, which you can find here.

#rph #rpt #writing #mine: guide #answered #moral of the story IS that i use examples way too much #im honestly not 100% sure how i make chars #they just ... suddenly exist #but i tried my best !#this is lng but i dont want to cut it : (#im sorry dash #long post

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oikawa-tuwu · 3 years

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Hey everyone!! Happy New Year! (for most of the world, I think? it’s still 12/31 for me oops)

I figured I would start the new year off with a little bit of both a thank you and an update on what’s happening with this blog.

Firstly, thank you all so much? I’ve only had this blog since quarantine started and honestly it’s the only thing that kept me sane, so I just wanted to give credit where credit is due. I know I’m not a super big blog, and my stories don’t get as many notes as some other writers, but I wanted to thank each and every one of you who decided my blog was worth following, who decided my writing was worth reading. Writing for this blog has been an absolute blast, and I can already notice the leaps and bounds my writing has progressed over the months. I wouldn’t have kept writing if no one was reading, so, for that, I thank you.

And if you’re realizing that this thank you also sounds like goodbye, it kind of is.

I’ve decided to put my blog on hiatus.

As much as I loved this blog, I realize the confines it put me in. I just... don’t want to write x reader content anymore. And that was, essentially, what this blog was for. I was never really one for being on the reader end of self-shipping fanfiction, either, so once that desire to write it had faded, it didn’t make much sense to put effort into moderating a blog meant for x reader content. I’ve also been noticing that my love of Haikyuu is slipping a little too. It was my comfort media for so long during quarantine, but with the manga over and the break between seasons, that original hyperfixation has turned its gaze elsewhere.

I’ll still be writing! I still write original stuff (that I don’t usually post online, but if I ever manage to get a publishing deal on any of it, yall are DEFINITELY gonna hear about it. it could be ten years from now. I’m bragging on this account too. Deal with it.) You can find my fanfiction writing on my ao3 account (semipeaceful). It won’t be x reader content, but I do have five haikyuu wips in various stages of progress that I’ll be posting over the course of the next couple months (kuroken, iwaoi, daisuga, bokuaka, tsukkiyama). I might still advertise them on this account like I’ve been doing in the past, but other than that, this blog will be dead. I'm not deactivating it, so you'll still be able to read some of my old stuff if you wish, and I'll probably still check notes every once and awhile, but posting will be little to none for the eminent future. Maybe I’ll take it off hiatus when the new season comes out, but who knows.

If you want to keep following me, you can follow my main blog here (it’s mostly the raven cycle and the magnus archives content with some shitposts thrown in for taste, sorry), or you can subscribe to my ao3 profile (I just posted a hanahaki renison this morning if you’ve read All for the Game), or if you want to be bold, shoot me a message and I’ll send my discord information.

So yeah. I’m really bad at being genuine and honest with my own feelings, but thank you. I have no idea how to explain just how happy all of you had made my experience in this community. I will say that if you sent me a nice message about me or my writing, chances are, there’s a screenshot of it in a folder I have on my phone called “chin up babe”, which I only pull up when I’m feeling really insecure and vulnerable about myself. I don’t think I said it enough while I was writing on this blog, but thank you. Seriously. I have been met with nothing but kindness and grace and yall have no idea how much you mean to me.

Well. That’s what I had to say. I hope everyone had an incredible New Year’s Eve, and I hope 2021 treats you with a little more kindness than 2020. You deserve it.

#well.#new year new me?#but seriously. thank you guys.#i'll see you all the next time i'm crying at two am and need a pick me up #this is a reference to the chin up babe folder #umm yeah #bye?#FUCK THIS IS WEIRD #it feels like a goddamn breakup #okay okay #i love you guys.#bye :(

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nxtritething · 4 years

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TASK001 : MUN QUESTIONNAIRE

name / alias : caro / care / carebear gender / pronouns : female / she&her where ya from ? : u s of a . orig n y c. the current time : 9 pm ( when i started? ) , 1 pm ( when i finished ) job or major : i majored in mechanical engineering and math. no, i canno favorite thing ( s ) about yourself : i have some good one-liners.

why you joined hqclouds : ... i helped make it. also its felt like a long while since i got to play some of my favorite babes, and i just missed them, so i obviously had to jump at an opportunity to bring them back !!!

meaning behind url : it’s uh...... next right thing , as in anna’s big song in frozen 2. and i just felt it like, FIT.

last thing you googled : zac efron high school musical gif icons, bc i wanted to use for this, but then that account was flagged as adult content and i guess those beloved gifs are lost to the void now...

zodiac : pisces in your opinion , does your sign suit you ? : yes. i am a crying fish. also i’m a pisces venus. it makes a LOT of sense. myers - briggs : istj ??? i think?? moral alignment : i can be chaotic good, but mostly neutral neutral i think hogwarts house : i used to be a slytherin, now i’m a hufflepuff. idk what happened to me.

three fictional character ( s ) you see yourself in + why : uhhhh... 1) bubbles from powerpuff girls. because i am baby. 2) juliet o’hara from psych. i’ve just been rewatching a lot of psych and i love how she’s such a serious yet funny / soft and idk why i just relate to that. 3) john mulaney in mulaney. because this is a cop-out to say i relate to anything / everything john edmund mulaney every does.

i started roleplaying : i first started on some fourms ??? on an app on my itouch ??? but my first tumblr rp group was percy jackson and everyone though i was this all knowing pjo fan... when really i was just fast to look shit up on the wikia. i had never read a single page of the series. types of rps i enjoy : fandoms, typically ! i used to be exclusively love animated roleplays? like cartoons? but then i transitioned to musicals? like, exclusively playing musical characters??? at this point, tara is like the one exception nowadays... favorite fcs to use : um... olivia holt is a recent fave? joshua basset, also. my old faves are mary kate wiles and hunter parrish tho. real old. otherwise, i don’t know if i’d say i get attached to fc’s? fandom ( s ) you’d like to write in : i kinda wanna go back to some of my cartoon roots, maybe? i really haven’t deviated from the same 8 - 9 mostly musical characters in literally years... fandom ( s ) you aren’t in but are curious about : um... the raven cycle , miraculous ladybug , uh..... everything else. i’m so randomly interested in everything.

share a funny roleplay horror story : my favorite is when i was in a youtuber rpf / oc rp, and this girl... made an oc... and made the fc... herself. she made a literal self-insert oc. with herself as the face. like low-res gifs of herself. why, you ask? i think she was trying to ship herself with dan howell. that didn’t age well, did it?

favorite canon muse ( s ) to play : do i just list all the characters i’ve been playing for literal years? my recent faves are katherine plumber from newsies and princess anna. favorite original muse ( s ) to play : i had a hunter parrish oc. he was in both the pjo and youtube rp. he was obsessed with hanging out with trees and pranks. don’t ask me why. canon ships you can’t help but love : kristoff / anna , jack kelly / katherine plumber , jake peralta / amy santiago , orpheus / eurydice , && donny novitski / julia trojan. yes, most of these are musicals. who doesn’t love a good love ballad? trope ( s ) you tend to be guilty of : uhh... adorkable, one of the boys, badass adorable

i prefer . . . angst , smut , or fluff : i am a massive sucker for fluff, but i’m so guilty of angst... i love pain. i don’t really do smut tho. sorry. long or short replies : i generally prefer short replies, unless we’ve somehow developed a thread into something long. or i’m feeling particularly inspired. pre plotting or chemistry : i love chemistry with all my heart, but sometimes it’s fun to plot past connections that can reignite? idk. mostly chemistry sentence starters or headcanon memes : headcanon memes, because im never creative to turn a sentence starter into something that makes sense, esp between two characters who don’t know each other. single muse or multimuse blogs : multimuse, because i spent too many years reblogging replies to the wrong sideblog and those days are over !!! gif icons , medium gifs , or static icons : i prefer gif icons for shorter replies and medium gifs for longer ones... or whatever my partner is using. i like some sort of consistency.

grab the book nearest to you and pull a quote from it : ‘ what’s the rush? ’ repeat this phase when you’re feeling overwhelmed or stressed out. ask yourself whether somethings really needs doing immediately. are you ignoring your needs in order to do it? - the little book of sloth philosophy.

what’s a quote or song lyric that speaks to your soul ? : “ did you fall? or did you let go? ” - connor murphy to evan hansen, dear evan hansen. ( idk why this immediately jump to mind but... )

top current celebrity crushes : jeremy jordan, corey cott, jordan fisher, claire saffitz, brian david gilbert. last movie you watched : bridal boot camp did you like it ? : yes. i loved it. it’s absolute garbage and i loved it. favorite movie ( s ) of all time : idk but i can always rewatch prince of egypt. godspell favorite tv show ( s ) of all time : uhh.... i keep rewatching psych. favorite tv show ( s ) that hasn’t ended : brooklyn nine-nine, zoey’s extraordinary playlist. sports team ( s ) you rep : uh... grew up in a yankee / mets household. favorite video game ( s ) : pokemon, animal crossing favorite youtube channels : drew gooden, danny gonzalez, jenna marbles.

put your music on shuffle. what six songs pop up ? :

greased lightin’ from grease live ; oh mother by hunter parrish ; nerds by bo burnham ; a miracle would happen / when you come home to me from the last five years ; just another day from next to normal ; who tells your story from hamilton mixtape.

i haven’t listened to any of these in forever, but i am still, indeed, musical theater trash.

personal aesthetic : demin overalls, scrunchies, the color teal, big stuffed animals. dream vacation ? : somewhere beautiful with people i love. dream job ? : perhaps like designing custom 3D prosthetics dream car ? : i hate driving, but a big ol’ truck. like suv. big one. favorite musical : gospell, dear evan hansen, bandstand, newsies, shrek the musical, mamma mia, i could go on... unwatched stuff in your netflix / hulu / etc : sailor moon crystal, crash landing on you, locke & key, all the bright places, the half of it, younger, meteor, hello my twenties ...

what’s a subject you know too much about + never get tired of talking about ? : musicals. so many musicals. i know both know too much and not enough.

#cloud:task #cloud:ooc #「 ooc 」♪ ˙ ˖ ♬ ❝ wait... what? ❞

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gotatext · 5 years

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PREFERRED NAME — nora. i think i started going by it in like, 2009?? my full name is eleanor but i hated it n thought it was way too pretentious n i never felt like it fitted me so when i started writing on forums i decided i’d be a nora rather than eleanor and then my school friends called me it and it just kinda stuck, the only person who calls me eleanor is my mum

PRONOUNS — she / her / ethereal being beyond comprehension

AGE — 23 but i tell everyone im 21 because even tho time is literally fake im desperately clinging to that fleeting thing we call youth trying to catch it like smoke in my hands

PINTEREST — i actually have two. this one is my main one where i just cram all my shit n i’ve had it for years and some of its super unorganised. then i also have this one which is one i made for exclusively female characters. it started as mythological figures but now its like, women in literature and the occasional oc as well. variety is the spice of life!

DISCORD — lindsay lohan’s meth#8664

TUMBLR (PERSONAL/MUSE/RPH) — i used to be froseths but now im pvrscphones cos ya gal is a fucking whore for mythology

OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA YOU’D LIKE TO SHARE — oi oi guvna ere’s me twitta. also here’s my letterboxd n my goodreads if anyone still uses tht

MYER-BRIGGS — enfp / infp border .... the classic profile of a lit student

HP HOUSE — hufflepuff, am fuckin mad.

ZODIAC — libra which is a joke because i am in no way balanced but i guess i AM indecisive and a peacekeeper so?

DO YOU BELIEVE IN ASTROLOGY? — i believe it when it says good shits gonna happen in my life and blame it if bad shit happens but i don’t strongly follow it i just find it interesting

HOW OLD WERE YOU WHEN YOU STARTED RPING ON TUMBLR — maybe like 14?? my first rp blog here is literally so embarassing i wrote as clove from the hunger games n my best friend irl wrote cato :/ it was wild

WHAT YEAR WAS IT? — like 9 years ago?? 2010 maybs

NAME A RANDOM ROLEPLAY THAT STICKS OUT IN YOUR MEMORY — me n my friend ellie made this really cool group the summer before we left for uni which was loosely based on a concept mentioned mayb once in the divergent series, but it gave us loads of freedom to make it our own thing. it was called the fringe n it was like..... this dystopian society where people with different genes were cut off from the rest of society n lived in overrun slum cities where different groups had like, a monopoly over weapons, produce, etc.... my character jack was the leader of this lost-boy-esque tribe called the wolf pack who were hunters n used to run across the rooftops wearing the skins of animals they’d killed and engage in tribal rituals with sacrifices to the gods n shit. sounds lame but everyone there was so invested in their character arcs that it was a shame to see it go. but ! it kind of reached its end point so we blew it up w nukes n they all died. tragic.

WHAT WEIRD ANIMAL WOULD YOU HAVE AS A PET IF IT WAS REALISTIC — a fox?? do ppl keep foxes? idk i’ve always just felt a sense of connection w them like when a fox stares at me im like this shit is life i am living and breathing in this bitch.... visceral

NAME THE FIRST SONG ON YOUR DISCOVER WEEKLY ON SPOTIFY OR THE FIRST SONG THAT COMES ON APPLE MUSIC / ITUNES SHUFFLE — everbody party tonight by cobra man n summer girl by haim..... not my usual stuff but big summer chillin vibes,.....

NAME A BOOK THAT YOU READ IN SCHOOL THAT YOU SURPRISINGLY LIKED — lord of the flies and also the handmaid’s tale. one of assignments was to write a chapter from another character’s perspective n i chose moira

NAME A BOOK YOU HATED THAT MOST PEOPLE LIKED — skellig. fuck off with ur asprin ugly bat man i don’t care. also of mice and men. don’t care about the rabbits or curley’s goddamn wife.

WHAT TV SHOW DID YOU RECENTLY BINGE? — im not a big binger bc i find it jst makes me depressed if i watch tv all day but im nearly finished stranger things season 3 n i recently finished euphoria (big rec but proceed w caution as quite triggering content)

FAVOURITE QUOTE — cool girl speech from gone girl. but also “there’s something dangerous about the boredom of teenage girls” i know its like.... such an overused quote but it really encapsulates this kind of feral girlhood that a few of my characters like bridget n greta have tapped into. i also loved the line “i feel like i could eat the world raw” from song of achilles, that really captures this kind of.... pure n childlike enthusiasm tht i wanna achieve w rory

LINK TO A VINE THAT EXUDES YOUR ‘ENERGY’ — this is my energy completely am always covered in glitter n staring broodily out of the windows of ubers at 4am like im in the sad bit of an indie film

DO YOU WRITE OUTSIDE OF RP? WHAT DO YOU WRITE? — uhh.... not as much as i shd.... i want to be a writer so i shd be makin some effort to get my stuff Out Into The World but im just not.... lol. ive done a lot of poetry collections . i wnt to finish a novel @ some point too.

THREE YOUTUBERS YOU STILL TRUST — bold of you to assume i trust any youtubers

A CELEBRITY CRUSH THAT JUST WON’T QUIT — id literally die for saoirse ronan n timothee chalamet :/ chance perdomo also owns my ass.

EVER MEET A CELEBRITY? SHARE YOUR STORY — i once high-fived dani harmer, the actress who played tracy beaker. today my sister text me tryin to make me guess what celebrity she just saw on holiday in wales and for ages she let me think it was timmothee but it was actually bradley walsh from the chase :/

WHAT’S YOUR PICTURE-PERFECT NIGHT? — i am in a bomb ass crop top and mini skirt, several scrunchies in my hair, glitter all over my face, wearing cowboy boots. we eat dinner in a trendy but affordable pub that doubles up as a cocktail bar n then we drink zombies or sex on the beaches n go to a rave where everyone is on the same wavelength n i share drugs with girls in the toilets and we swap numbers knowing we will never text each other but its ok bc in that moment we feel like we are soulmates and everyone is super drunk n touching everyone else n its all very visceral and we walk through the woods when the rave ends and lie in the grass because we wish to suck out all the marrow of life

A CONSPIRACY THEORY YOU KINDA BELIEVE IN — princess diana was murdered

ARE ALIENS REAL? — maybe the real aliens are the friends we made along the way

PLAY ANY PHONE GAMES? WHICH ONES? — love island game im addicted and way too invested in my fictional relationship with bobby, a cartoon

WHAT’S A FILM YOU LOVED WHEN YOU WERE YOUNG AND RECENTLY WATCHED, ONLY TO FIND OUT YOU DON’T ANYMORE — bold of u to assume i remember my childhood. but if we’re talking last 10 years angust, thongs n perfect snogging is so so cringe

DO YOU COLLECT ANYTHING? — pairs of glasses belonging to other ppl when they break / get new ones even though i can see perfectly well.

WHAT’S SOMETHING YOU WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT BUT YOU’RE TOO LAZY? — mythology...... always a craving and a wish i’d read like ancient texts but my school wasn’t good enough to do greek or latin or any of that shit n even tho i could read english translations i cant be bothered. also criminal psychology

THREE LANGUAGES YOU DON’T SPEAK, BUT WISH YOU COULD — italian, french and latin

MOVIE YOU’VE WATCHED MORE THAN 5 TIMES — ladybird, about time, angus thongs, shrek 2, what we do in the shadows, the history boys, atonement, coraline, the breakfast club, ferris bueller’s day off

NAME A FICTIONAL CHARACTER FROM TV/FILM/MOVIE/GAME/BOOK THAT YOU FIND YOURSELF PROJECTING ON / YOU RELATE TO — cecilia lisbon. rue in euphoria. alison brie in glow. adam parrish in the raven cycle. richard papen. olivia cooke’s character in thoroughbreds. allen ginsberg in kill your darlings. lily in sex education. holliday grainger’s character in the film animals --- i too am an aspiring writer who never writes and just gets drunk instead .

DO YOU FOLLOW ANY SPORTS? WHO DO YOU ROOT FOR? — no. cba

HOBBIES BESIDES WASTING AWAY HERE? — i go to the movies basically every day bcos i work in a cinema. im also a voracious reader n i occasionally do theatre or costume making

PLUG A TV SHOW / MOVIE / BOOK / VIDEO GAME / ETC… YOU WISH MORE PEOPLE WOULD CHECK OUT — where the wild things are (film by spike jonze). animals. beats. the book fen by daisy johnson and a girl is a half formed thing by eimar mcbride. andy warhol’s biography from a to b and back again

WHOSE BRAIN WOULD YOU LIKE TO PICK, ALIVE OR DEAD? — phoebe waller-bridge on how i get her life. carey mulligan on how she got to be such a good actress n how i can become her. maybs wes anderson. maybs gillian flynn. i tend to listen to podcasts w the ppl i really wanna pick the brains of.

TEAM EDWARD OR JACOB? — edward :/

LAST MOVIE SEEN IN THEATRE — blinded by the light n i lovd it

DO YOU STILL READ? — when i finished uni i kinda got out of the habit but this week i finished two books so ive set myself the challenge of a book a week.

IF SO, WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING? — i finished song of achilles yesterday n i also finished call me by your name yesterday. started circe by madeline miller today, im also partway through milkman by anna burns and the plays of annie barker

ON A SCALE OF 1-10, HOW MUCH DID YOU HATE FILLING THIS OUT? – 3 i didnt hate it bcos at heart i am self-indulgent and love fashioning some sense of self when i feel lost in a world that is scary and constantly changing

#wshedtask002

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angelinxjohnsons · 5 years

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sorting MYSELF

ayyy i love the new sorting quiz that @sortinghatchats put out!!! since i stumbled across their blog nearly 3 years ago i’ve changed my own sorting so many times: from solidly a gryffinclaw, to perhaps a hufflepuff with a slyth sec model and raven sec performance, the back back to a gryffindor primary with a puff secondary and puff primary model,,,

to say i was surprised when i took their quiz is an understatement. the gryffindor primary part wasn’t a surprise, of course, nor the puff primary model (although i’m wondering if it’s more of a burned puff model, since technically that’s possible, but just not on the quiz). what was surprising was my secondary. i have never ever, not once in my life ever identified with a gryffindor secondary, and yet, time and again, after multiple times taking the quiz, and with arguing with the hat within the quiz, the result has consistently been gryffindor secondary. slytherin secondary measured fairly strongly as well, so it wasn’t entirely surprising to find that i model it; however i’ve never thought of my slytherin being particularly “good” - and maybe, after careful consideration (and after re reading harry potter lol) it’s because i don’t consider code switching to be a tool, in that, i don’t activate it consciously. it’s a reflex, it’s like breathing (or maybe s backup pair of lungs since honesty and integrity is still more intrinsically me), the same way harry potter, a slytherin secondary, kinda just goes through life without a clue of what’s going on. he reacts, and he does it unconsciously. i think often when i consider slytherin secondaries, it’s more akin to that of loki, someone who recognizes it as a talent of his and uses it both like breathing and as a very powerful tool.

before i talk about the lack of ravenclaw, i’d like to dive deeper into the duality of having a gryffindor secondary with a slytherin secondary model, because they are two seemingly contradictory things. why not say i’m purely a slytherin secondary, and those gryffindor-like traits are just my neutral state coming out? or why not have gryffindor be the model? for me, if adaptability is my backup lungs, the straightforwardness of the gryffindor are my true lungs. (i’m not sure why i settled on this analogy, of all things. it’s very bad. i’m sorry). honesty is almost always the best policy and i’m often very blunt with my truth; or at least, i try to always tell the whole truth, but may, with help from my slytherin secondary, phrase it more kindly. but as a whole, i think that my gryffindor secondary pairs best with my gryffindor primary: how do i accomplish the goals of my primary? with a straightforward, sometimes combative gryffindor secondary. it feels disingenuous, and as if i’m doing the world a disservice, to use the adaptability of the slytherin secondary as the primary way to get my point and purpose across. The World Is Awful, and people need to understand that; the best way to do that isn’t to coddle them, it’s to tell them straightforwardly. this isn’t a slytherin in its neutral state when it feels relaxed or apathetic and like an immovable object; it’s a gryffindor at its best and most passionate as an unstoppable force. using Blue from the raven cycle as an example (a gryffindor/gryffindor), suddenly my gryffindor secondary makes perfect sense. i see a lot of myself in her.

perhaps the most distinguishing point between gryffindor and slytherin was that for a slytherin, it doesn’t matter how they get the job done, it matters more how effective they are. this is where i drew the line and was like nope, no way, that is absolutely not true. how you do the thing is just as important as the thing that you do. i think the line “some things are just wrong, no matter what pretty words you use to explain it” are both a testimony to my primary and to where i draw the line between my two secondaries.

all this being said, my slytherin secondary model is still a very strong one. it just falls away when we start talking about morality issues and things that fall in line with my gryffindor primary. i’d say i use this secondary most of the time, even more often than my “true” gryffindor secondary. this one shows through when i’m caught off guard and need to think fast. and, surprisingly, it works really well with my puff primary model. group settings- especially groups i care deeply about- are a place where careful wording, posture, mannerisms, etc, are most important. and besides, how can you not act differently with different groups and individuals?? everyone has different needs and different ways of communicating so if i want to continue to be a part of these groups i have to blend in with their “style”. here, this sounds unhealthy and perhaps like i’m not actually close to the groups my puff primary model has bonded to. maybe. maybe not. but again, this code switching and facade shifting is largely unconscious and therefore hardly feels disingenuous. if i ever have to use this tool consciously, then i know i’m not comfortable with the people i’m with or situation im in, and, more importantly, that’s where the model drops because that’s where it does feel a bit like lying and therefore conflicts with my gryffindor secondary’s honesty.

ok so now, after that very detailed breakdown of my secondaries, however could i not be a ravenclaw secondary?? or, how could i have thought that i was a foundational secondary? (hufflepuff didn’t even register on the quiz as a potential house btw which is kinda hilarious idk why). simple. both my parents are foundational secondaries. i think if they took the test they’d both be puff secondaries, and my dad would have a ravenclaw model or performance (or both??). i’ve been brought up in an environment where having a foundation- especially a foundation of people- is essential. planning, organization, all that is essential. so i’ve been taught that it’s a thing i should strive for. and i do, somewhat. i bullet journal, and i make lists for which college is the best college, but all of that is very surface level. a ravenclaw performance, perhaps. it’s not intrinsically me. at the end of the day, usually i just go with my gut instinct, and throw out the plan.

as far as me thinking about puff secondary, i think i was tripped up between the slytherin ability to act like most things versus the puff ability to be most things. that, combined with the puff primary part of me really liking groups and wanting to bond to them, possibly got me mixed up. wanting to do things the right way? follow the rules? that was part of the puff description, sure, but it is also very much an important aspect of my gryffindor secondary’s integrity.

anyway that was hella long i’m just so happy to have found out my houses!! gryffindor primary and secondary, with puff primary model and slytherin secondary model.

#**#sortinghatchats #my sorting #gryffindor

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linernotesandseasons · 4 years

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My 19 Favorite Albums of 2019

2019 is coming to a close. The entire decade is coming to a close. This list has been an increasingly comforting exercise the last few years. I guess this will be the eighth annual version of the linernotesandseasons favorite albums of the year list! Crazy how time passes. So here are the collections of songs that I used to mark my personal time & space this year. The lyrics that I learned by heart & sang out in dark & dirty rock clubs. I also made a spotify playlist with two songs from each album if you’re interested in listening along as you read.

This year most of my writing focuses on when & why I fell in love with a specific album. Sometimes the history is important, building a base or connecting some threads, so when relevant, I have also included my history with when I fell in love with a specific artist. And finally, as has become more important to my music chasing brain in the last few years, why this artist or album is important to music right now. What they’re doing to leave a mark on the world, in whatever small space or way.

So without any further ado, here it is, in no particular order (unless you’re particularly knowledgable or fond of the english alphabet) my 19 (well actually 20 cuz freaking Big Thief put out two!) favorite albums of 2019. It’s been a pleasure.

BETTER OBLIVION COMMUNITY CENTER / Better Oblivion Community Center

Spring 2019 in Denver was cold & breezy, sunny & exciting. I had spun the Phoebe Bridgers/Conor Oberst match-made-in-indie-emo-sad-folk-heaven record once through, but in late March I made a game time (like I bought a day-of ticket off stubhub at 6pm!) decision to drive down from work and see their show at the Gothic on South Broadway. I’d been up since 7am the night (morning?) before, watching opening day baseball live from Japan (on March 20th?!). Ichiro’s final game and I was feeling maybe a little emotionally fragile already. But anyway… Better Oblivion Community Center’s live show (they call them meetings) has all the potential to come off as cheesy or contrived. A recorded voice welcomes you, self-help-cult style, and invites you to “celebrate sound & light” & “travel the well worn pathways,” because “we are one.” A mystical backdrop gives a hint of what you’re in for (I didn’t know what I was in for...) with letters at the top reading “It will end in tears.” The band is brilliant, loose, & fun. They play all the songs. They play “Lua,” “Bad Blood,” & “Easy/Lucky/Free” from the endlessly varied Bright Eyes catalog. They turn Phoebe’s “Funeral” into a punk blast. They cover The Replacements! They wear shades and sing a song from lawn chairs! The show feels effortlessly cool and I feel like I’m part of something special again. Music has a way of doing that.

The record is perfectly equal parts Phoebe & Conor. From the opening lines, where Phoebe takes control with “my telephone it doesn’t have a camera” sounding for all the world like a gloriously mopey “Smoke Signals Vol. 2″ to the way Oberst sings the first lines of ethereal closer “Dominoes” sounding 100% like Cassadaga-era Bright Eyes. If you know & love either, you should know the other now. Phoebe carries a torch from early 2000′s emo with a sad-at-heart, genius songwriting style that emphasizes pinpoint autobiographical lyrics, a cutting, (even humorous at times) wit, and a teenage, feminist, internet, millennial heart. Oberst for his part has kept up a steady output since Bright Eyes, and (at least lyrically) doesn’t seemed to have cheered up much. Better Oblivion Community Center’s self titled debut feels fresh & catchy. While there is definitely an aching sadness in the duo’s songwriting, light hearted moments abound, and the writing often points to getting older, all hard work & growth. There is the bouncing outro to “Sleepwalkin’” where their voices rise in unison singing “Acting insane, playing it safe, I wasn’t sold on that plan anyways. Feeling afraid of making a change.” Or in the bright, rolling verses of “My City” where they go looking for “little moments of purpose.” But the one song I kept going back to; the one I recorded to cassette tape and played on almost every drive home from work at 4am through April & May, is the bittersweet closer “Dominoes.” Ironically, this one is a Taylor Hollingsworth cover (I think that’s him adding the random, spooky voice overs) but Conor takes the lead on vocals, singing a mostly lonely, hopeless tale, until the last verse when Phoebe cuts in. She’s “carpooling to kingdom come, into the wild purgatory.” Encouraging us to “Experience a magic rainbow, all you gotta’ do is follow. & if you’re not feeling ready… There’s always tomorrow.”

“The world will not remember when we’re old & tired / We’ll be blowing on the embers of a little fire…”

BIG THIEF / U.F.O.F. & Two Hands

2019 was the year that I finally finally got really really into Big Thief. A band’s band known for their live show (I still have yet to see them live) their following seems equal parts cult-y and universal. How a band that sounds the way they do, made it almost to the top of the indie-rock world is an exciting & inviting mystery.

This year, for me, the catalyst was “Cattails.” Released at the beginning of April, this song struck me and stuck with me, making its way onto almost every mix I made last Spring, Summer, & Fall (including this one for my Mom!) A real song of the year contender (& my #1 most listened to song of 2019 on spotify!), “Cattails” is a melodic, driving, beautiful tune, that finds singer & front person Adrienne Lenker marking Time (”riding that train in late June”) & Space (”going back home to the great lakes”) with grace & depth. There is a sacredness & mysticism tied up in a lot of Lenker’s writing and she refers to her writing experience with “Cattails” saying…

“It was one of those electric, multicolored waves of connectivity just sweeping through my body. I stayed up late finishing the song and the next morning was stomping around playing it over & over again. We thought why not just record it … & when James and I were playing it felt like a little portal in the fabric had opened and we were just flying. Listening back to it makes me cry sometimes.”

In truth, U.F.O.F. (the last f stands for “friend,” a way of humanizing the foreign) is a gorgeous record. Soft & gentle, full of songs about the constant tussle between things known & unknown. A real headphones-on-an-airplane record. And then, out of nowhere, Big Thief announced that they had a second (!) record on the way in the Fall. A dirt & earth twin for U.F.O.F., a special surprise gift for their burgeoning fan base. They announced Two Hands with the vicious single “Not,” a song very unlike “Cattails.” A brooding, ravenous rock song that made me remember why I love unhinged, well-written, unafraid rock & roll music. Another song of the year contender. If you’ve followed this blog the last few months, my well thought out comments to “Not” were “ohhhhhhhhhhhhh shit” & “oh my holy shit.” to the live version! But it was actually the second track on Two Hands that solidified Big Thief’s greatness for me. “Forgotten Eyes” is sonically similar to “Cattails” and rides the same effortless rhythm, driven by Lenker’s repeating guitar riff and James Krivchenia’s consistently impressive drumming. The riff seems to fall in & out magically, and the writing bookends “Cattails” with lyrics that speak to both a great pain & a great universal truth. While she wanders through homelessness & death, Lenker reflects beautifully on the life cycle we (& our planet, & maybe everything?) are all going through.

“Forgotten dance is the one left at birth / Forgotten plants in the fossils of earth / & they’ve long passed but they are no less the dirt / Of the common soil keeping us dry & warm / The wound has no direction / Everybody needs a home & deserves protection…”

BLACK BELT EAGLE SCOUT / At the Party With My Brown Friends

After finding Black Belt Eagle Scout’s debut album late last year, I soundtracked many a dusk, dawn, or midnight drive with her swirling vocals & entrancing guitar, usually in the cold & dark, through the early part of 2019. It made my 2018 favorites list, and her Larimer Lounge show in May was a highlight. I guess it makes sense then, that I didn’t truly fall for her sophomore album At the Party With My Brown Friends (released in August) until it got cold in November and I was able to take it out for some dark, snowy drives. Moody & serious at times, Black Belt Eagle Scout sounds every bit like the gray Pacific Northwest where front person Katherine Paul (KP) hails from. The lyrics are simple, repeating phrases, full of deep, important ideas. Family & friends. People & land. There are bursts of guitar coming out of rewarding slow builds, shredd-y, rhythmic, & melodic. Also, all the instruments on ATPWMBF are played by KP, and the drumming is fucking fantastic.

I have some sort of longer form writing building somewhere in the back of my mind about listening to music in cars, and both Black Belt Eagle Scout albums are perfect examples for that. I have always loved the feeling of having roads (highways or simply long straight dirt back roads) & music to listen to. In high school, we would sometimes get in the car simply to drive & listen to music (small town life ya know?) and I still relish any chance I get to take new (or old & long loved) songs & albums on road trips or just commutes around town. The time to sit with the songs, to focus on nothing but the words & melodies, instruments & voices, & the pull of the road, mystical & magical. Black Belt Eagle Scout’s songs have been a calming companion on a lot of drives over the last year, and I recommend you taking them out on a spin of your own. Drive to that coffee shop that’s 30 minutes away that you’ve been wanting to go to, drive out of town just to drive, alone with your thoughts & the road. You just might learn something about yourself.

“& I wake up / I love you / Screaming loudly / Screaming softly too / Am I here? / My heart dreams…”

BON IVER / i,i

Bon Iver is a long time favorite and if you’ve followed this blog at all, you know how much I love his albums and how much Justin Vernon’s Eaux Claires festival has helped shaped my musical timeline. Seeing 22, A Million (the record that precedes i,i) live in Wisconsin by the river for the first time, was something special. That record made my 2016 favorites list, but until this year, until i,i, my story of the music felt very insular. Special & secret for me, confined to very specific times & places. Only to make me feel certain things. It’s why I was hesitant to buy a ticket to see the Red Rocks show last September. Or why I questioned streaming the album early while I was on vacation in Holden Beach, North Carolina. I thought the songs were only meant to carry me back to the river, back to Wisconsin, back to the Summer. Back to a very specific, special place in my heart. But thanks to the wonders of spotify, and the Bon Iver crew just up and releasing the album a week early under the simple & generous guise of “wanting folks to have the album & learn the songs before the tour!!” I obliged and… YESSSS that’s how you do an album release in 2019! I had the album in my headphones as I ran and sweated on the beach in North Carolina, letting brand new songs transport me thousands of miles away.

i,i is a gloriously weird, perfected mess of a hit indie record. It’s everything I wanted the next chapter of the Bon Iver story to be. It feels personal & widescreen. Little moments stretched out and shared with family & friends. Lyrics about growth & hard work & life (& a few WTFs, it’s Bon Iver after all!) The gang’s all here again (the massive crew that worked on the album are all pictured on the record’s gloriously, weird inside gatefold!) recorded from Vernon’s home (April) base in Wisconsin, to Sonic Ranch in west Texas (also pictured in the liner notes) walking distance from our southern border. The sounds are all here again too. There are hints of For Emma’s Winter falsetto folk in the gorgeous acoustic guitar of “Marion.” There are the industrial swells & stomps, bleeps & bloops of bi, bi’s Spring in the warbling, green grass, warmth of “Holyfields.” Then there is the distortion, the choppy samples of 22, in the jigsaw glory of “iMi,” the way it starts & stops, all choruses & voices, real & programmed. Threads of new songs tied up with threads from long, long ago. There is a fullness to i,i, a generosity, a true front to back album, with hits & new favorites sprinkled everywhere. The second half blooms with the charging folk of “Salem” & “Faith” and the contentedness of closer “RABi.” These are songs that I will love for years to come. These songs make me happy. They make me think. They make me want to share them with friends. They make me want to work on relationships. Songs about life. Songs about true, unconditional friendship. As Justin said way back in 2015, when my journey with the Bon Iver story began “The story is history, nothing more. Only the music can rise anew. & it is gone as soon as it is sung. & so we sing again…” I am soo soo happy to sing again, with songs anew.

“Living in a lonesome way / Had me looking other ways / Cuz I am lost here again / But on a bright Fall morning I’m with it / I stood a little within it…”

EARTHGANG / Mirrorland

EARTHGANG’s major label debut Mirrorland comes in hot & dancing, a hip hop duo with a true tribute to Southern culture, and a whole world encapsulated in 14 tracks. My personal introduction to the EARTHGANG universe, came courtesy of a dusk till dark dance fest at Denver’s Underground Music Showcase on South Broadway back in sweaty July. Their energy was infectious, their stories hilarious, & their songs stuck in my head. Specifically the Young Thug featuring “Proud Of U,” a song that carries enthusiasm & positivity through to the end. Other standouts include colorful, bouncing opener “LaLa Challenge,” & the squealing horns of Atlanta hot spot, name dropping “Wings.” A concept album of sorts Mirrorland references “The Wiz” as a jumping off point saying,

“We thought about how, if we’re going to make a project sonically to rival The Wiz, we got to create another world for people to imagine & go to. You know when Dorothy got swept away and she met the Munchkins? That was such a beautiful thing. You could see Quincy Jones on the piano, just playing away. It’s really colorful. It’s really dangerous. It’s really trippy. It’s literally Freaknik Atlanta in the summertime—folks riding around in cars with big rims with paint on their faces.”

EARTHGANG was formed in 2008 by high school buddies Johnny Venus & Doctur Doc in Atlanta, GA. It’s impossible to ignore Outkast comparisons and for their part, EARTHGANG does their best to keep up the Southern hip hop tradition. Mixing in bits of soul, blues, & jazz, Mirrorland plays like an homage, a soundtrack to the South. A real reminder that the album is not dead. These songs sound best played together. Also, that the hip hop group, or duo, is not dead. And finally, that touring and playing live shows is most definitely not dead. I probably still wouldn’t have heard about EARTHGANG if it wasn’t for their primo UMS slot (at the same Import Mechanics stage where Leikeli47 & Kiltro played!) and infectiously positive live show. Speaking of their live show, see y’all at Cervantes on February 3!

“One time, one time for your baby moms / Two time for the hand in the candy jar / Holy Ghost showed up in my favorite thong / Three times in the car for the way we are / Another white man scared, another black man dead / Another rich man war, another red man bled / I been writing this album down way too long / When I drop my shit, pray it hit the toilet like lala, lalalalala...”

FRUIT BATS / Gold Past Life

In the Autumn of 2013, my coworker Cassandra Disney at Mile High Organics played me “When You Love Somebody” by Fruit Bats (had that song already been out for 10 years in 2013?!) on one of her early morning work mixes, and I immediately put it on one of my favorite (if embarrassingly bro-folk heavy) mixes I have ever made myself. Discovering a weird/cool indie band in the vein of all my other loves (Band of Horses, The Shins, Modest Mouse, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, etc…) but more underground (!) was hipster heaven. I subsequently forgot about Fruit Bats for awhile, but was reminded with their graceful “comeback” album Absolute Loser in 2016. Although that one missed my favorites list, it gradually became a constant road trip companion; from the mountains of Colorado, through the great American Southwest, and even on some epic Mexican back roads. All alt-country, lost 70′s AM radio classics, and wistful, witty, & wise writing about highways and scenery. A true classic.

I was therefore super excited for Gold Past Life (Fruit Bats’s seventh album?!) to drop on Merge Records this Summer, and fell in love pretty quickly on a late afternoon drive across the high road between Taos and Santa Fe, New Mexico back in late June. Swirling guitar, bouncy piano. and Eric D. Johnson’s piercing, clear, impassioned vocals. Fruit Bats sound timeless & effervescent. Upbeat guitar rock with some weird twists, and Johnson’s consistently bittersweet, humorous, & big hearted lyrics. Growing up, growing older, & grinning a wry smile at a golden world. After catching back to back beautiful Fruit Bats shows in Fort Collins & here in Denver at the Bluebird this September, these folks are the real deal. Long live touring bands, long live seventh albums, long live music marking time & space! Here’s to many more Fruit Bats albums, Gold Past Life will be car stereo classic for awhile.

“Still waiting around for some mystical shift in the winds / So honey please, don’t go just yet / Cigarette fingers, a shake in the knees / A bit blue, kind of tired, but not broken… Anticipating a magical bend in the road / So hang on, take it slow / Your go bag is packed & your hangover gone / Another dawn at the edge of the known world…”

HISS GOLDEN MESSENGER / Terms of Surrender

Durham, North Carolina’s Hiss Golden Messenger (folklorist, family man, & singer-songwriter MC Taylor & revolving crew) have become something of a mainstay on this music blog & in my car’s cd player over the last five years. I picked up a used (!), advance (!) copy of Lateness of Dancers in the $1 bin at a record store in Seattle, Washington. after having been passed a burned copy of his 2010 solo album Bad Debt by an old coworker. Lateness ended up on my 2014 favorites list. Two years later, Heart Like A Levee made my 2016 list, and the next year, Hallelujah Anyhow was one of my favorites of 2017! I referred to the songs on Hallelujah as Hiss “building a repertoire, creating a legacy.” This may seem like quite a bit of superfluous backstory, but believe me, it is essential to the story, a journal of the journey. Geographic art for a topographic heart if you will. But anyway, Terms of Surrender…

The title is cryptic, referencing (as Taylor puts it “what we are prepared to sacrifice in order to live the lives that we think we want”) and the songs are deep (& growing deeper) & timeless. Not so much timeless in the way Yola’s songs sound timeless (skip down a few albums on this list to read about Yola!) but timeless in the way the songs seem to seep their way into my bones and stay for years. Terms burst on the scene with the release of the first single “I Need a Teacher” back in stormy June. With bright, rolling guitar stabs courtesy of The National’s Aaron Dessner (whose upstate New York recording studio was home for the Terms recording sessions), “Teacher” is about “the search for infallible guidance in an ever-changing universe.” but it is also about everyday work. Dedicated every night of the tour to all the teachers in the room, a political statement wrapped up in the seemingly obvious sentiment of “Defend Public Schools.” See what I mean? Timeless songs written for the here & now. “Bright Direction” & “My Wing” are reminiscent of Hallelujah’s “Jenny” & “Darkness.” a 1-2 punch of driving, drifting major key numbers, written from a hillside in Virginia, high on mushrooms. They contain multitudes. With a murky middle (Brad Cook gets funky on “Old Enough to Wonder Why” & “Cat’s Eye Blue”) & the already canonical Hiss’ live fav “Happy Birthday Baby,” the back half of Terms spreads out the Hiss’ sound in new ways. New live favorite, the nostalgic “Down at the Uptown,” had me googling maps of San Francisco to find the mythical Uptown bar where Taylor first heard Patti Smith’s Horses.

In late October, Hiss played an absolutely glorious three night run at little Globe Hall over in Globeville, just Southeast of where Interstate 70 meets Interstate 25. I went to all three shows. The shows were special & career spanning; from “Jesus Shot Me in the Head,” to Dead covers (& a Jesus & Mary Chain cover!) to all the Terms songs. I spent the Saturday afternoon before show #2, walking around the disappearing & rapidly gentrifying neighborhood in & around Globeville (& drifting across the highway into Sunnyside) listening to Terms of Surrender on my headphones. Thinking about the things I’m willing to sacrifice, thinking about the life I want, what are my Terms? After all, “It’s a real live world & I wanna live in it.”

“Something drove me crazy / Love had me lazy / Backwards won’t get me to my destination / Move me in some bright direction / Looking to be captured, looking for my freedom / Oh, dreams will come to get you / So careful what you’re wishing / Your family might correct you / Your heart might take a pounding / Make sure you take a picture…”

JUNE JONES / Diana

I can’t remember where I first heard of June Jones, but I’d like to think it was from one of my many Australian music friends (thanks Camp Cope, Julia Jacklin, Middle Kids, Courtney Barnett, Gang of Youths etc…!) The music community is a wonderful thing. June’s songs can be hard to explain, but Diana is an epic album that burns with a steady, stately drama. Most of the songs ride swelling synths and measured, 80’s sounding drums and center around June’s unique, emotive voice and head turning lyrics. Jones had fronted the Australian rock band Two Steps on the Water and written songs on the guitar for many years, but it’s pretty clear from listening to the writing and sound on Diana that these songs were meant for piano, synth, and a solo album. Her own writing. Her own words.

The album begins with the brooding “Rome From Afar” and the opening line “I got drunk again last night & I fell down outside the bathroom at my little sister’s party.” It then follows a dancing bass line into an apocalyptic nightmare of a world ending. “Meryl” is a gorgeous, autobiographical (?) song, an ode to “complicated” hard working women everywhere. There are parts of Diana that nod to it being a break up album, like in the gorgeously melancholic “Boulder Falling Slow” (”I am a boulder falling slow / You’re a magnificent spiderweb”) but I have been viewing it as just a complex, everyday life album. Jones lets her magnificent voice trail slowly over seemingly uncomfortable or awkward topics that she strives to make… not so. Sorry Alex Cameron, your “eating your ass like an oyster” line in “Miami Memory” is only the second best “eating ass” line this year after Jones’ “Look at You Go!” Her voice often belies the emotion in her lyrics, she works it up & down, and lets it stretch out over words, like in lonely closer “Sixteen Horses,” but she also sounds almost matter of fact at times. There is a moment in the piano led “Thorn” where she glibly throws “Have you seen the moon tonight? No, me neither, who cares about the moon when everything is dying?” over an understated horn trill. Everything is dying after all, but I want June Jones to sing it to me like an Australian Lana Del Rey or Matt Berninger. Trust me, you’ll be hearing more about June Jones in the coming years. Watch out.

“I haven’t thought too much about family / Ain’t got no husband or a couple of kids / I’ve spent 26 years in this office / I said goodbye to my relationships a long time ago / What does the mayor of a small town heart do after she retires?”

JUSTIN PETER KINKEL-SCHUSTER / Take Heart, Take Care

My long time music friend Adam over at songsfortheday had been trying to tell me about Justin Peter Kinkel-Schuster for quite a few mixes with songs I loved from his 2016 release Constant Stranger. But it somehow wasn’t until I needed Take Heart, Take Care, that Schuster’s work hit me right. It didn’t feel like a light at the end of the tunnel, but more like a light in the tunnel, something lasting, a collection of songs lifting up & out towards a light. As Schuster wrote upon it’s release…

“Here, I’ve fumbled my way, as always, and of necessity, into a collection of songs that hold a light to the joys & comforts of life not given up on, those that appear over time as we are looking elsewhere, to surprise & delight us when we need them most. Sure, it’s me, so there are glimpses of and nods to the dark, but the dark is not winning anymore. I simply mean to acknowledge its presence. To me, that’s the most fundamental job of songs, of stories, of all art — to be allies, friends, companions, when we need them most and it’s my hope that these songs can do that work in a world that seems to need it. If you are lucky enough to have something good to say, say it. Please. We’ll thank each other, now & later.”

So i guess it’s that second part that I have found solace in through my 20′s and into my 30′s. That songs (and stories & all art, but songs & albums seem to be my thing) can be allies, friends, & companions, and that sometimes (like Hanif Abdurraqib wrote in his brilliant collection of essays “They Can’t Kill Us Until They Kill Us”)…

“If you believe, as I do, that a blessing is a brief breath to take in that doesn’t taste of whatever is holding you under: say I Speak To God In Public and mean more than just in his house, or mean more than just next to people who might also speak to God in public, or say God and mean whatever has kept you alive when so many other things have failed to.“

Take Heart, Take Care is a straightforward, well written, indie rock album. The songs ring true with light & darkness, an uplifting take on growing older and finding “Plenty Wonder” still to be found in the world. Schuster played the Hi-Dive on South Broadway in November, the last show on the Take Heart tour. A show I had bought tickets for months in advance, and I found myself in a crowd of maybe 15 people, celebrating the songs of Take Heart, Take Care. Listening to a writer with something good to say. Trying all in our own way to hold our own. I have a feeling I’ll keep these songs with me for awhile.

“Time is the mender / Whose strange mechanics yet untold / Bid us rise entwined together / So take heart, take care / Be true but beware / & honey we need not be scared…”

KARA JACKSON / A Song for Every Chamber of the Heart

In only 10 minutes & 42 seconds, Kara Jackson creates an intimate, magical world with just her voice and a guitar on her debut EP A Song for Every Chamber of the Heart. Four intricate & intentional songs, none longer than three minutes, finger picked slowly & methodically, Jackson balances a poetic, whimsical wandering with a steely focus on the craft of songwriting. These are the bones of songs, played honest & upfront, with no adornment. There is room for Jackson’s lyrics to really shine, all aching & wistful, yet practical. Like the way she balances “I have a crush, I have an ache” with “I know that love’s just a pain in the ass” in the bittersweet “Crush.” Her songs buzz with a youthful energy & teen angst. Wise beyond their years, finding their way in the world. As a songwriter and a poet, Jackson writes about race, activism, social justice, self, bodies, & humanity.

At 20 (!) years old, Chicago’s Jackson is... oh also a poet. The 2019 National Youth Poet Laureate (!) in fact, and it was her absolutely breathtaking writing about being a teenager that first caught my attention. She quotes Gwendolyn Brooks (pulitzer prize winning American poet) in her Ted Talk saying “write what’s under your nose.” She says that Brooks took the mundane and put it on a pedestal. That she understood there are “poems in train cars, poems on front lawns, & poems in microwaves & tea kettles.” An almost obligation to celebrate the ordinary. Ordinary folks celebrating similar ordinary folks. It’s the way that John Darnielle howls on The Mountain Goats song “Werewolf Gimmick” (track nine on 2015′s Beat the Champ) about “nameless bodies in unremembered rooms.” In his prerelease essay for Merge Records, music writer Joseph Fink wrote that the entire career of The Mountain Goats has been about “giving names to nameless bodies and remembering unremembered rooms.” and what a worthy cause that is. That thought has stuck with me for years and I have always loved the specificity of it. Whether it is Darnielle resurrecting historical characters real or fictional, or the way Lady Lamb (keep reading a few more albums down!) celebrates the specifics of her friends & family, in all the messy details. Written in song, remembered forever. It is also essential that all cultures have artists who look like them and think like them, as the ones doing the remembering. It’s why it’s so important that Kara Jackson is the one doing the remembering for young black girls. The same way Eve Ewing did for her, and Gwendolyn Brooks did before that. I can appreciate the magic of the remembering, but I need to let them be the ones to tell the stories. Oh, speaking of appreciating, I bugged Jackson enough on social media and got a handmade PHYSICAL copy of the EP that I’m hanging onto forever cuz it’s probably gonna be like the next original pressing of Bon Iver’s For Emma! Thanks Kara!

“Don’t take my pillowcase, that's my place to be alone / Don’t take my lamp from me, it helps me read about places I don’t know / Don’t take a lot for me to be on my own...”

KILTRO / Creatures of Habit

My end of the year albums list usually has at least one local Denver band. The Lumineers way back in 2012, Gregory Alan Isakov & Covenhoven in 2013, Nathaniel Rateliff, Covenhoven (again!), & The Yawpers in 2015, Nina de Freitas in 2017 (hey Nina & the Hold Tight, new album in 2020 please?!), and Izcalli last year. Kiltro is a part Coloradan, part Chilean folk band that have been putting on one of my favorite live shows around town this year. The brainchild of Chris Bowers-Castillo, a native Coloradan who spent time growing up in Valparaiso, Chile, Kiltro is named after the Spanish word “Quiltro” meaning a mixed breed dog. A dog that Kiltro has taken for their logo. In their own way, Kiltro is a mix breed; both in the way they mix the sounds of South America with the folk music of North America, and also the way they mix organic, acoustic instrumentation, with electronic, looping sounds and effects pedals. Their live show is a masterclass in layers, with Bowers-Castillo adding loops of guitar rhythms (sometimes simply bare hands slapping beats on the top of the guitar) to steady bass & drums, until the songs swell & build into dramatic crescendos and almost EDM-influenced drops. The extended intros & outros are my favorite parts of their songs and the live versions (from their sweaty 2pm UMS dance party, to Lulu’s Downstairs in Manitou Springs) have stirred hearts & feet alike with dancing not usually found in the Colorado “indie-hipster” scene. Keep an eye on these guys and maybe come out to Larimer Lounge in January and witness the dance party for yourself!

“Somewhere down the bank where the dogs go / Por la calle que te lleva a Curicó / & down the beach, where no others can find / Ni por agua, piso, coche, ni avión...”

LADY LAMB / Even in the Tremor

As I have been writing this year’s favorites list, I’m realizing that so many of the albums I loved & learned, came hand in hand with experiencing the artist, and specifically that new album, live. Lady Lamb released Even in the Tremor, her masterful & moving third album, way back in April, and I had a Spring-y three weeks to learn all her intricate, visceral lyrics to sing back at her Larimer Lounge stop in Denver on the Deep Love tour. Maine by way of Brooklyn’s (by way of a bunch of other places) Aly Spaltro has always written songs for Lady Lamb like her hair’s on fire. Wailing & gasping about blood & guts & death over spiraling electric guitar, there is a realness to her writing that reminds me of the east coast emo I grew up on. But for all the blood red gore & messy heartbreak that colors much of the Lady Lamb discography, there is a light hearted tenderness as well. Tremor has songs written for & about friends, lovers, parents, & god. Quirky opener “Little Flaws” is a first-dance-worthy love song, while personal favorites “Strange Maneuvers” & “Emily” are odes to platonic friendships, mental health, & growing up. In the same way I wrote about Kara Jackson celebrating the ordinary, Lady Lamb has always celebrated specifics of people, time & space. Tremor’s characters are Spaltro’s real life people (Emily, Shervin, Kurt (Kurtie Bear), Isaac, & her Mom), and the places (the diner, the batting cage, Templehof Park, Midtown, Berlin, Montreal, Madrid, a fast food joint, the stage of a church, someplace upstate, Lavanderia & Graham Ave) are specific, varied, & globe spanning. Her stories are autobiographical and rewarding and the music is stirring, singer-songwriter rock & roll with some punch behind it. She is one of my favorite modern writers for her ability to not just tell a story, but to find wonder in the small things and to celebrate the ordinary. Like she tells Shervin, minutes before “Emily” closes the album on a gorgeous, uplifting high note, “No photographic artifact, but here is something better than that.”

“There’s a picture that I found, my first car in the falling snow / Seems like yesterday I drove down into low tide / & Isaac snapped a polaroid of me pretending I was sinking, pressed against the glass pleading / I misplaced it but I’m looking... / When we are young, if only we could see beyond our fears where we are free / When we are lonely if only we could know that in our stillness we are growing... / All the portraits we collected, while we were running around in the desert / We were trying to seem fulfilled to rewrite our New York City narratives / But Emily we were utterly dejected / We took turns crying on the passenger side of America / Too clouded to be empowered by towering Redwoods... / When did we lose the ancient truths? / Is it what we’re born bending our bodies toward?...”

LIZZO / Cuz I Love You

For much of 2019, Lizzo could be heard playing everywhere. The 31 year old Minnesotan’s third full length album Cuz I Love You, came out in April, after a busy three years of huge singles, consistent touring, & building a repertoire of songs capable of headlining arenas. When Lizzo finally exploded these last few years, it has been fun watching the whole world embrace her uptempo, bold, self-love anthems, and hearing them blaring from open Subaru windows in Cap HIll, from balconies & rooftops in uptown, and on the lips of countless joggers & bikers, loving themselves in the Denver Summer sun. I know for my part, I took Lizzo with me to the beaches of North Carolina & through the Southern mountains of Colorado, dancing, singing, & gleefully giggling along. Bottom line, the songs on Cuz I Love You are FUN! You try not to crack a smile as Lizzo romps through “Never been in love before, what the fuck are fucking feelings yo?” on the bouncing, brassy, vocal led, track one title track MOMENT. Or the way she makes up the word “accessorary” on the spot (“my ass is not an accessorary”) and then fires back with “Yeah, I said it, accessorary!” Lizzo has been an outspoken supporter of our generation’s version of the self-love, body positivity movement, and has put her money (and body) where her mouth is, inspiring legions of teens & twenty somethings to do the same. “Soulmate” is a loner anthem that finds Lizzo belting “True love ain’t something you can buy yourself / True love finally happens when you’re by yourself / So if you by yourself, then go and buy yourself another round from the bottle on the higher shelf.” The soulful slowdown “Jerome” is about being the bigger person and ending a relationship that isn’t working. Lizzo manages to actually address her own issues, focus on the work she needs to do (“I’m trying to be patient & patience takes practice.”) and still absolutely belt a singalong chorus that rhymes Jerome with “take your ass home.” Also, the deluxe version of Cuz I Love You tacks on three previous Lizzo singles that hadn’t found an album home. Those singles? “Boys,” “Truth Hurts,” & “Water Me.” Three songs totaling almost 555 MILLION plays on Spotify. With apologies to Ariana Grande & Billie Eilish (Billie see ya in a few months at the Pepsi Center!) Lizzo is the biggest superstar that I want on this list. And she 100% deserves every bit of it.

“If I’m shinin’ everybody gonna’ shine...”

ORVILLE PECK / pony

There is an appealing, theatrical quality to the dramatic country songs on Orville Peck’s debut record Pony. I spent my high school years growing up in small town Western Colorado so country music has been embedded in my brain since I was 11. I’ve gone through so many phases of loving it, hating it, loving it ironically, nostalgically, hating it for it’s sound, cheesiness, backwards politics, etc... But with Pony; these are true country songs written by a gay, masked cowboy anti-hero from.. Toronto? Maybe? Who is Orville Peck?!?! It’s like all the best parts of “country” music came together. And the mask? The fringe? All the packaging & theatrics? It makes it fun. Part Bowie, part Coheed & Cambria, part Grace Jones, part Ghost, part Brandon Flowers. Hollywood meets Vegas meets Carson City.

When I listen to Orville Peck’s songs it brings together so many feelings from my youth. From country radio & boxes of old country cds, to the dramatic side of theatre, play acting on a stage, dress-up, halloween, cowboys, loneliness, & the open road. From the tumbleweed roll & mournfully powerful coyote howl of opener “Dead of Night,” to the shoegaze rumble, autumn ride of “Winds Change.” Peck’s lyrics are honest & heartfelt, drawing on sweeping, western imagery, & idolizing the classic country ideal... the cowboy. Music marks time & place and Peck makes sure to reference the cities along his highway songs. Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Carson City, Kansas, a veritable Rand McNally road map of the American West. In the same manner as both Black Belt Eagle Scout albums, Fruit Bats, & Caroline Rose from last year, it wasn’t until a highway drive that I truly fell in love with Pony. It was a brilliant November sunset & still warm, but windy & changing, and we knew we had to hustle to beat the snow back to Denver. Highway 159 from the Southern Colorado border through Costilla County, on the way towards Fort Garland & then Walsenburg. Purple & Orange out the window to my left, Winter on it’s way. Peck’s songs sang with a heartache... a loss. a rhinestone loneliness that country finds a way to revel in. When “Kansas (Remembers Me Now)” statics out like a long lost FM radio. When “Hope to Die” fake ends at 3:30 and instead key change pivots like a washed-up Broadway starlet, shooting her shot on a dusty jukebox. When “Nothing Fades Like the Light” draws its last, peaceful breath, closing Pony like the last light of that November sunset. Thanks Orville, this one’s a classic.

“Fell in love with a rider / Dirt king, black crown / Six months on a knucklehead hog / I like him best when he's not around / He gets me high, oh, big sky... Fell in love with a boxer / Stayed awake all year / Heartbreak is a warm sensation / When the only feeling that you know is fear / I don't know why, oh, big sky...”

RAPSODY / Eve

Rapsody’s third album Eve is a masterclass on rap music, and the Snow Hill, North Carolina rapper sounds relaxed & loose, while still staying focused & on topic with an album that reads as, as Rapsody herself puts it “a love letter to all black women including myself.” She is at the top of her game right now, and these songs cement Rapsody as one of the premier rappers in an exciting field of rap talent both young & old.

Each track on the album is dedicated to one of Rapsody’s personal heroes, and I am going to focus these words & my research for Eve (besides listening to it nonstop, which I’m currently doing now!) on those black women. Track one is for Nina Simone (”without Nina there’s no Lauryn Hill, & without Lauryn Hill there’s no Rapsody.”) and features critically important verses about black heritage & culture over Nina’s terrifying & sobering classic “Strange Fruit.” Rapsody is recognizing her legacy and the importance of heritage, but she is clearly claiming her spot in that bloodline. “Cleo” preaches standing up for yourself over a Phil Collins sample (between Cleo & Lucy Dacus, “In the Air Tonight” is getting some serious love this year!) and is named after Queen Latifah’s character in the 1996 movie “Set it Off.” From there Rapsody recognizes artists (Aaliyah), philanthropists (Oprah & Michelle Obama), actresses (Whoopi), athletes (Serena Williams & Ibtihaj Muhammed), writers (Maya Angelou & Reyna Biddy), models (Iman & Tyra Banks), and historical figures & activists (Hatshepsut, Myrlie Evers-Williams, Sojourner Truth, & Afeni Shakur). Bottom line, ALL of these women are essential google material (you’re reading this on your phone or laptop, google and give yourself a five minute refresher if there’s anyone you don’t already know!) While you’re at it, google the lyrics for Eve (and Jamila Woods’ equally incredible, equally name dropping LEGACY! LEGACY!) and listen along. This is an important time capsule document for Rapsody and it’s just a damn good rap album.

“I am Nina & Roberta, the one you love but ain't heard of / Got my middle finger up like Pac after attempted murder / Failed to kill me, it's still me, woke up singing Shirley Murdock / As we lay these edges down, brown women, we so perfect...”

SABA LOU / Novum Ovum

When I listen to Saba Lou’s intoxicating sophomore album Novum Ovum, I am transported to somewhere magical & different. Maybe older, maybe out of place & time. Everything about Novum feels… classic. From the dusty, record-store-bin-find look of the out of focus cover photo, to the laidback natural way Saba Lou seems to dance along on top of a rollicking house band lifted from the 70’s. There are elements of surf rock, shoegaze, late night soul, and classic rock & roll on Ovum, but it is all driven by the singular writing & vocals of Saba Lou. In the liner notes of the record, a note can be found, claiming that this album is meant to be from the future. 2286 to be exact! Is a concept album?! Is it actually from the future & delivered to us by a time traveling band of Germans?!! Does it have songs about Star Trek??!! Maybe, mayyyybeee... & YES!

Yet to turn 20 (!), Saba Lou is a German born singer songwriter who has been making & releasing music since she was literally six years old! Novum Ovum is Latin for “the new egg” and features a hot four piece full band, and wonderfully fleshed out songs that bounce and swing with palpable energy. The lyrics span an awesomely wide spectrum from endometriosis pain (the title track obv) to a Star Trek mindmeld tune sung from the perspective of Gracie the pregnant whale (closer “Humpback in Time”)!! All in all, Saba Lou is an absolutely electric songwriter and her youthfulness & fervor are contagious. It’s the reason I love making this list every year, and what makes discovering new music so exciting. Can’t wait for the next one!

“A brick wall around your placenta / Cut them all off from her mother blood / The hounds call for appassionata / A phoenetic paste for the fetal bud...”

SHARON VAN ETTEN / Remind Me Tomorrow

Over the last few years I started the practice of making a draft favorite albums list in January and adding albums throughout the year, as I fall in love with them. This way I don’t forget the ones I loved in January & February, the ones that got me through the backend of the Winter. I’m able to track my year in music as it develops, a sort of captain’s log. A living, personal journal using music to mark time & space as I sprint my way through another increasingly faster, increasingly chaotic year. Sometimes, scrolling through the list acts as a comfort. “That album only came out this year?! OK, this year isn’t moving too fast, that feels like forevvverrrr ago!” Sometimes it helps to show me how much I’ve grown, how much an album has meant, or has helped with my mental & emotional growth. This year, the very first album I added to that list, the very first album that I fell hard & holy hell in love with... was Sharon Van Etten’s Remind Me Tomorrow.

A blast of energy. A weird synthy, pulsing red & blue darkness. Simultaneously club-y & indie rock vibey. Van Etten’s fifth album is supposedly written from a place of contentment. A marriage, a child, a life & happiness discovered. Less desperation, more introspection. I hear in her voice & words, how taking care of yourself, how striving to be your best self, can bring out the most powerful, most emotional art. She also isn’t afraid to let her voice go and I think her vocal performances are what truly take Tomorrow to another level. “Memorial Day” rides a haunting vocal loop & tumbles in nearly wordless, glimmering vowels, all ethereal magnificence. The chorus of the brooding “Jupiter 4″ spirals upwards & then rollercoasters, a late night drunken banger. But at the heart of Remind Me Tomorrow sits one of my songs of the year, one of my songs of the decade, “Seventeen.” I had heard it first live, way back in October 2018 in the rain in the mountains at Red Rocks. I got tipsy & wrote about it the day it came out, January 8, 2019, after a long, cold stretch working the night shift. This album & especially this song will stay with me for a long time. Sharon has taught me to keep working on myself. To look back in fondness. To think about how, with hard work, how much joy & peace & comfort await in my coming years. But she also taught me to lean into emotions. To embrace the ache of memories and the bittersweetness of growing up. Thanks for making this album Sharon.

“Downtown hotspot, halfway up the street / I used to be free, I used to be 17 / Follow my shadow around your corner / I used to be 17, now you're just like me / Down beneath the ashes & stone / Sure of what I've lived and have known / I see you so uncomfortably alone / I wish I could show you how much you've grown...”

TIM BAKER / Forever Overhead

I have a special feeling tied to the collection of intimate, swirling songs Tim Baker released this year from Canada. Forever Overhead carries a certain small town holiness, recognizable to those who grew up in small towns , but specific to his own personal, north-north-eastern-eastern “small” town, St Johns, in Newfoundland & Labrador, Canada. Growing up on the farthest coast of the Atlantic on the tippy, tippy point of Canada (seriously google it!), Baker fronted emo band Hey Rosetta! for four albums until striking out this Spring on his own with Arts & Crafts Records. There is a very Springsteen-esque bent to the way he writes about growing up somewhere (as someone) small & wanting to be somewhere very big and exciting. He captures the bittersweetness of growing up so perfectly. From the teenage romantic feelings in swaying opener “Dance” & the rousing “Mirrors,” to the friends & bars & singing found in the melancholic “Spirit” and the absolute hit “All Hands.” The latter is the core of the album, a bright, rhythmic guitar number that builds & swells with voices & instrumentation to a few huge, singalong choruses. A real song of the year contender. Baker isn’t afraid to let the songs go on journeys on Forever Overhead and they rarely finish where they begin. Horns & handclaps burst in at points, celebratory & fearless. The sexual tension of “Strange River” is lightened with a false start and a “sorry. In ‘D’” followed by a belly laugh, before restarting. The light & dark are present throughout Overhead and listening to these songs remind me of growing up. I feel like I’m being given a secret glance into Baker’s youth and the parts that mirror mine make me want to lift my voice in unison with those that understand. Sometimes small collections of well written & well played songs can do that, and to me... it’s sacred. Hopefully I get a chance to visit St Johns someday, and if I do, these songs will be playing as my soundtrack.

“A boy in bed, all the windows wide / You can hear the hot rods running from the light / From the light, into the dark / That's all I wanted in my cousin's car / To listen to the wind & to the lead guitars / & feel the reckless running of your heart / Now is that gone or does that all remain? / Can I go back and have it all again? / Well now I know it, where I'm going / I'm going back behind the river / I'm going back behind the rain / Cuz no matter where you're heading / You end up where you’ve been...”

YOLA / Walk Through Fire

It’s clear from the first minute & 30 seconds of Yola’s debut full-length Walk Through Fire, that this album is destined to be an all-time classic. She comes in slow & wistful with “wish I knew what you were wishing for...” over a soft wash of cymbals and mournful country-soul guitar. Then one minute in, her voice swells to gigantic proportions, seeming to lift the song right off the page, carried into another stratosphere, timeless & magnetic. That “Faraway Look” in your eyes.

From there, Yola (36 year old Yolanda Quartey from Bristol, England) takes her commanding voice through bluesy, fiddle-led country (”It Ain’t Easier” & the title track), and laid back soul (”Shady Grove” & “Deep Blue Dream”). Personal fav “Ride Out In The Country” became a backroads, summer anthem for me this year on multiple trips through Southern & Western Colorado. Through it all, her voice booms, whispers, & rocks gently, propelling the songs forward with warmth & light. Her lyrics are full of both dreamy memories & work-a-day stories about the challenges of life. It was fun this year to have different friends & family members get into Yola at different times, getting texts like “have you heard of YOLA??!!” Sharing songs, & collections of songs (like the ones on Walk Through Fire) is what makes making this list every year so fun, and I’m always excited to see what new, life-long favorites I will discover. See you in a couple months at the Bluebird Theater on Colfax here in Denver Yola!! Can’t wait!

“A little shady grove / A memory long ago / A tale too old to know the ending / I gave it all away / It takes my breath away...”

#yola #tim baker #Sharon Van Etten #saba lou #Rapsody #orville peck #lizzo #lady lamb #kiltro #kara jackson #june jones #hiss golden messenger #fruit bats #earthgang #bon iver #black belt eagle scout #big thief #better oblivion community center #justin peter kinkel-schuster

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inactivesimblrr · 5 years

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get to know me tag!

tagged by @literalite (thank u lamer clone!) n im not tagging anyone bc.............. every1 i think i know has already been tagged so thats calm, there r 125 questions below!

1. WHAT IS YOUR FULL NAME? Pat[REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED]

2. WHAT IS YOUR NICKNAME? pat

3. BIRTHDAY? 23rd of nov!!!!! <3 (2001)

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE BOOK SERIES? hmhmhnnnn,,,,, lotr, the hobbit, harry potter, anything from the grishaverse,,, idk man i like books a lot,,, the raven cycle,,, hnmgmg,,

5. DO YOU BELIEVE IN ALIENS OR GHOSTS? aliens 100% i believe in them! ghosts? i mean... i half kind of do half dont but my kind of ghost aint the same as the usual idea of a ghost yanno? mine r nicer <3

6. WHO IS YOUR FAVORITE AUTHOR? leigh bardugo, tolkien, i would say j.k rowling but shes trash! her books r good tho ://

7. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE RADIO STATION? ??? idk so im gon pretend this means podcast and in that case im listening to the black tapes rn!

8. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE FLAVOR OF ANYTHING? matcha or strawberry!!!!!!

9. WHAT WORD WOULD YOU USE OFTEN TO DESCRIBE SOMETHING GREAT OR WONDERFUL? thats swag (i began using it ironically but now i cant stop)

10. WHAT IS YOUR CURRENT FAVORITE SONG? uhhh eve or the wonderful world by mark joshua! orrr shiloh by little chief!!

11. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE WORD? grinned

12. WHAT WAS THE LAST SONG YOU LISTENED TO? walking back to georgia by jim croce

13. WHAT TV SHOW WOULD YOU RECOMMEND FOR EVERYBODY TO WATCH? honestly.... drop dead diva... im sorry.... but tbh i dont watch tv all that often!! ACTUALLUY HECK i would def recommend merlin the bbc tv series and ofc sherlock the tv series but keep in mind both those recs will rip out your heart MULTIPLE times,

14. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE MOVIE TO WATCH WHEN YOU’RE FEELING DOWN? .......... im down all the time lolol but tbh all the harry potter films + the 1st fantastic beasts movie, all the lotr films and all the hobbit films AND sherlock both the rdj and jude law films and then the bbc sherlock christmas special the abominable bride

15. DO YOU PLAY VIDEO GAMES? yah! my all time favourite game is tes oblivion!! it has been my fav since i was 6!

16. WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST FEAR? my life not working out the way i want to!! i want my life to be happy and long and spent with the people i love and not having 2 worry abt money or health!!!

17. WHAT IS YOUR BEST QUALITY, IN YOUR OPINION? i think maybe my ability to find everything funny??

18. WHAT IS YOUR WORST QUALITY, IN YOUR OPINION? my temper is beyond vicious honestly like im not kidding my temper is.... disgusting

19. DO YOU LIKE CATS OR DOGS BETTER? birds

20. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SEASON? winter

21. ARE YOU IN A RELATIONSHIP? nah!

22. WHAT IS SOMETHING YOU MISS FROM YOUR CHILDHOOD? im still a kid im only 17!!! and uh,, i miss the innocence!! i miss being oblivious!!

23. WHO IS YOUR BEST FRIEND? i dont have one!

24. WHAT IS YOUR EYE COLOR? brownn w/ a bit of green!

25. WHAT IS YOUR HAIR COLOR? dark brown!

26. WHO IS SOMEONE YOU LOVE? my parents and my family!

27. WHO IS SOMEONE YOU TRUST? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

28. WHO IS SOMEONE YOU THINK ABOUT OFTEN? jude law, sebastian stan, emma stone

29. ARE YOU CURRENTLY EXCITED ABOUT/FOR SOMETHING? back to school shopping!! also i get to eat fried chicken and cheesecake tonight because even tho my birthday was yesterday im celebrating it today!!!!

30. WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST OBSESSION? stationery??? video games?? FOOD??

31. WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE TV SHOW AS A CHILD? jane and the dragon!

32. WHO OF THE OPPOSITE GENDER CAN YOU TELL ANYTHING TO, IF ANYONE? i dont know what a male is sorry

33. ARE YOU SUPERSTITIOUS? a baby bit only

34. DO YOU HAVE ANY UNUSUAL PHOBIAS? n’aw i dont think so!

35. DO YOU PREFER TO BE IN FRONT OF THE CAMERA OR BEHIND IT? i mean... if i weren’t as ugly as i am id love to be in front of a camera doing fun acting stuff or whatnot! but bc i am ugly im usually behind the camera + i do film at school!

36. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE HOBBY? lettering/calligraphy!

37. WHAT WAS THE LAST BOOK YOU READ? what if its us by becky abertalli + adam silvera (its so cute but the ending was.... not satisfactory...)

38. WHAT WAS THE LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? fantastic beasts the crimes of grindelwald!!!

39. WHAT MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS DO YOU PLAY, IF ANY? used 2 play piano, accordion, and violin! but i dont do tht anymore!

40. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ANIMAL? bird!!

41. WHAT ARE YOUR TOP 5 FAVORITE TUMBLR BLOGS THAT YOU FOLLOW? too many 2 pick from !!! im srry!

42. WHAT SUPERPOWER DO YOU WISH YOU HAD? gdgs all of them!!!!! maybe the power to warp reality bc i could do anything then?? a reality where im married to jude law or emma stone? done, a reality where i have all the powers in the world? done

43. WHEN AND WHERE DO YOU FEEL MOST AT PEACE? a cliff somewhere where its cold and the water is vicious underneath!

44. WHAT MAKES YOU SMILE? babies, animals, happy couples, pregnant people, old people, a lot of things really!

45. WHAT SPORTS DO YOU PLAY, IF ANY? i used 2 do karate but now i dont do sports!

46. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE DRINK? idfsng idk! strawberry milkshake maybe?? matcha boba??? milk!!

47. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU WROTE A HAND-WRITTEN LETTER OR NOTE TO SOMEBODY? last week!!! i love handwriting!

48. ARE YOU AFRAID OF HEIGHTS? nah!

49. WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST PET PEEVE? ppl who r rude for no reason and also ppl at school who just pick on other ppl for no reason looking at you rahni teagan and the other f*ckheads!!! hope u die literally i know thats a horrible thing to say but you all deserve it

50. HAVE YOU EVER BEEN TO A CONCERT? i went to two twenty one pilot concerts!! the first one was in the forum in melbourne and then the other one was a few years or one year later and it was in a sold out stadium!! both were in the mosh! and then idk if this counts as a concert but i went to and did the meet and greet for dan and phil’s first tour! i dont like them anymore tho ! ://

51. ARE YOU VEGAN/VEGETARIAN? no way in HELL!!!!

52. WHEN YOU WERE LITTLE, WHAT DID YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GREW UP? a lot of things!!! famous actress, spy, war general, prime minister, pro wrestler, explorer, cartographer, filmmaker, architect, interior designer, dragon, PIRATE

53. WHAT FICTIONAL WORLD WOULD YOU LIKE TO LIVE IN? i know this is a bad idea but honestly the harry potter universe PROVIDED i had magic!! bc like,,, yah

54. WHAT IS SOMETHING YOU WORRY ABOUT? a lot of things! my future mainly lol :(

55. ARE YOU SCARED OF THE DARK? no but i gotta say sometimes in the middle of the night when i wake up and the undefined shape my clothes sitting on my desk chair looks like That i get a bit worried yanno it looks like a demon im not gonna lie

56. DO YOU LIKE TO SING? ya but i dont htink im any good at it!

57. HAVE YOU EVER SKIPPED SCHOOL? only due to sickness, funerals, or holidays!

58. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PLACE ON THE PLANET? my house! OR the cliffs of moher :o)

59. WHERE WOULD YOU LIKE TO LIVE? in some old old old european castle in the middle of nowhere on a mountain and next to the sea

60. DO YOU HAVE ANY PETS? nuu :( but i do feed a lot of birds that come to my house and ive named them and love them even if the lorikeets dont love me back which is fine!!!! :(

61. ARE YOU MORE OF AN EARLY BIRD OR A NIGHT OWL? early bird i guess

62. DO YOU LIKE SUNRISES OR SUNSETS BETTER? sunsets??

63. DO YOU KNOW HOW TO DRIVE? yes! but i dont have my full lisence only my learner’s permit!!

64. DO YOU PREFER EARBUDS OR HEADPHONES? headphones (noise cancelling!!)

65. HAVE YOU EVER HAD BRACES? yup!! they were green!!

66. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE GENRE OF MUSIC? soft rock, indie folk, indie-everything mainly except for indie-rock,,, country music dont hate my i love country music as long as its certain country music!! aint having none of this keith urban rubbish in my house!! we only listen 2 the james taylor brand of country music in this house!!! so i guess country folk. folk music in general is my jam!!! i love ballads as well and ofc blues!! theres so many more jbdsgjbas but i cant possibly list all of it!!!

67. WHO IS YOUR HERO? the idea of me living out the future i want if that makes sense!

68. DO YOU READ COMIC BOOKS? yah!!

69. WHAT MAKES YOU THE MOST ANGRY? a lot of things honestly!!!! 2 many to list im really passionate!

70. DO YOU PREFER TO READ ON AN ELECTRONIC DEVICE OR WITH A REAL BOOK? real book but i read more on electronic devices bc its easy and i dont have to worry about lights !!

71. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SUBJECT IN SCHOOL? idk!!!!!!!! maybe history!

72. DO YOU HAVE ANY SIBLINGS? nup!! im an only child thanK GOD

73. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU BOUGHT? movie tickets to crimes against grindelwald last night!!

74. HOW TALL ARE YOU? i think im like 176cm??

75. CAN YOU COOK? only if i have a recipe! but i can make really good drinks (non alcoholic ofc!!)

76. WHAT ARE THREE THINGS THAT YOU LOVE? rainy weather, good literature, my family

77. WHAT ARE THREE THINGS THAT YOU HATE? hubris, wrath, pococurantism

78. DO YOU HAVE MORE FEMALE FRIENDS OR MORE MALE FRIENDS? female

79. WHAT IS YOUR SEXUAL ORIENTATION? ?????????? who knows

80. WHERE DO YOU CURRENTLY LIVE? australia!!

81. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TEXTED? my group chat

82. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? my birthday yesterday lol

83. WHO IS YOUR FAVORITE YOUTUBER? dont want youtube tht much anymore tbh

84. DO YOU LIKE TO TAKE SELFIES? nah

85. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE APP? procreate

86. WHAT IS YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR PARENT(S) LIKE? incredibly close with both parents but fight with my dad like cats n dogs

87. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE FOREIGN ACCENT? irish or strong strong american or posh english also scottish

88. WHAT IS A PLACE THAT YOU’VE NEVER BEEN TO, BUT YOU WANT TO VISIT? israel, republic of ireland, and so many more places like nksgskbgs i cant list them also all the nordic countries

89. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE NUMBER? 3

90. CAN YOU JUGGLE? no

91. ARE YOU RELIGIOUS? nah

92. DO YOU FIND OUTER SPACE OF THE DEEP OCEAN TO BE MORE INTERESTING? both!!!!!!

93. DO YOU CONSIDER YOURSELF TO BE A DAREDEVIL? daring in terms of i like to do things that could potentially kill me for the adrenaline rush but not daring in terms of introducing myself to other ppl lol

94. ARE YOU ALLERGIC TO ANYTHING? nah thank GOD

95. CAN YOU CURL YOUR TONGUE? oui

96. CAN YOU WIGGLE YOUR EARS? non

97. HOW OFTEN DO YOU ADMIT THAT YOU WERE WRONG ABOUT SOMETHING? ill happily admit i’m wrong provided the other person wasnt a douchebag about it but even then ill admit im wrong! aint no shame in recognising ur wrong ma dude

98. DO YOU PREFER THE FOREST OR THE BEACH? dont like the beach but i love the sea?? so forest i guess bc i dont like sand

99. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PIECE OF ADVICE THAT ANYONE HAS EVER GIVEN YOU? "two things stand like stone, kindness in another’s trouble, courage in your own” - adam lindsay gordon

100. ARE YOU A GOOD LIAR? an excellent one, but i dislike lying and value honesty so!!

101. WHAT IS YOUR HOGWARTS HOUSE? ssssss slytherin!

102. DO YOU TALK TO YOURSELF? ya

103. ARE YOU AN INTROVERT OR AN EXTROVERT? cop out answer here but it depends on the situation

104. DO YOU KEEP A JOURNAL/DIARY? yes

105. DO YOU BELIEVE IN SECOND CHANCES? depends

106. IF YOU FOUND A WALLET FULL OF MONEY ON THE GROUND, WHAT WOULD YOU DO? try and find the owner and track em down but if i cant ill hand it in to the place where it was lost

107. DO YOU BELIEVE THAT PEOPLE ARE CAPABLE OF CHANGE? yes

108. ARE YOU TICKLISH? yes

109. HAVE YOU EVER BEEN ON A PLANE? yes

110. DO YOU HAVE ANY PIERCINGS? ears but theyre closed up!!

111. WHAT FICTIONAL CHARACTER DO YOU WISH WAS REAL? thorin oakenshield

112. DO YOU HAVE ANY TATTOOS? nah

113. WHAT IS THE BEST DECISION THAT YOU’VE MADE IN YOUR LIFE SO FAR? ? idk man

114. DO YOU BELIEVE IN KARMA? no, too many bad people are living good lives right now

115. DO YOU WEAR GLASSES OR CONTACTS? nope! perfect vision here my dude!

116. DO YOU WANT CHILDREN? in the future i want 1 child only

117. WHO IS THE SMARTEST PERSON YOU KNOW? my little cousin

118. WHAT IS YOUR MOST EMBARRASSING MEMORY? a Lot

119. HAVE YOU EVER PULLED AN ALL-NIGHTER? a few times only, but i value sleep

120. WHAT COLOR ARE MOST OF YOU CLOTHES? black and green

121. DO YOU LIKE ADVENTURES? hell ya !

122. HAVE YOU EVER BEEN ON TV? audience member for the xfactor!

123. HOW OLD ARE YOU? 17

124. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE QUOTE? “so comes snow after fire, and even dragons have their endings.” -tolkien OR “always seek the giant.”

125. DO YOU PREFER SWEET OR SAVORY FOODS? savoury

#nonsims #non-sims #non sims #saviorhide #saviourhide #tag #tagged

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mild-lunacy · 5 years

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YA and the Bane of Adulthood

On the one hand, there's the recent post in reply to Maggie Stiefvater, with the idea that YA as a genre is changing. Here, the idea of 'adult' content and what it means is relatively broad. In the case of The Raven Cycle, it's mostly about the audience and how that audience alters the available content on the genre level in the long term. Some people have critiqued Six of Crows characters for being too adult in their thinking or abilities, but overall most readers don't seem to care about realism in fantasy YA, per se. So if Kaz talks like an adult and is improbably powerful as a major gang leader, it's more or less OK with both teenagers and adult readers. No, the critique of 'adult' readers or content goes three ways: as with the original blog post Stiefvater was responding to, one issue is the different needs and monetary resources teenagers have, and the way the industry focuses on adult interests and needs instead. A very valid point. With some YA books like Six of Crows, the problem becomes (at least potentially) the sexualization of Kaz, at least according to @krugerevengeinej. To be honest, though, online fandom doesn't get too excited unless it's a question of race representation and/or sexuality, though. When most people say certain YA books are 'too adult', they mean they're too sexual.

It's definitely awkward, isn't it? I'm not here to claim Sarah J. Maas' books are 'really' YA, and you could certainly argue they shouldn't be marketed as such, though it's hardly an issue unique to this one author or even initiated by her individually. Still, you wouldn't argue Aelin can be 'too sexualized' by adult readers, even though she's nineteen. She's having plenty of sex, after all. It's easier to talk about Kaz, because he's seventeen and sexually abstinent, so he seems more like a teen at first glance, though I'd question that. Both characters are old for their age and have experienced a lot of violence, taken care of themselves from a very young age and suffered extensive personal loss: stuff that is way out of the average teen's experience. It's pretty arguable that the Throne of Glass series is more adult than Six of Crows in any but the sexual content sense. Of course, that's what most people seem to care about, even if one reply to the @sleepingfancies SJM critique mentions that being interested in smut is normal for older teenagers. The idea is that this is the wrong kind, since smut for teens should be educational, I guess? Even though not much else about either series is really educational, in my opinion. And also it's still not properly classified as YA, which is possible but more than likely moot since it's a marketing strategy and not an inherent reflection of the subject matter involved.

Sex is always treated differently, though. It's somehow more important to be educational about sexual mores than other types of morality or ethics, which both Six of Crows and Throne of Glass consistently fail at. Kaz and Inej on the one hand, Aelin, Manon and Rowan on the other-- let's just say, do not do what they do. But no one's concerned with the authors glorifying armed robbery or assassination here. The most common source of fan concern with the changing YA market is about social justice or representation issues and the smut, like I said. Even if one has to twist the text quite a ways to make it queerbaiting, the logic goes that if we can imagine the subtext and 'symbolism', surely this is proof enough. For example, Manon loved battle, killing men and the taste of blood on her teeth, etc. Surely this means she didn't want to have sex with them, right? I mean, she wouldn't kill women unless they were Crochans... oh, wait. And of course, passionate friendship between men or women is only believable if it's hinting at a future romance. Not that any this excuses the lack of queer representation, by any means. I'm just saying, there's a difference between that and queerbaiting that overly enthusiastic fans may miss. Although I suppose that's just a separate issue and has nothing to do with adulthood or the lack thereof, honestly.

In general, I have observed that the protestations about unhealthy relationships happen no matter what, even in response to actual erotica and/or NC-17 fanfiction. It's just so neatly justified and 'obviously' relevant with the YA genre. It's extra ironic because Sarah J. Maas goes out of her way to portray an actual abusive relationship with her ACoMAF contrast between Rhys and Tamlin's behavior with Feyre. And of course, even if Rowan is Aelin's mate in the Throne of Glass books, she clearly remains super close to Dorian and Chaol, her earlier love interests. But it's easier to make fun of the educational value of the popular (and common) 'fated mates' trope and suppose it's somehow meant to disparage a girl's early relationships, or wonder if twelve-year olds should know about bodily fluids and dirty talking. In general, I think it all comes down to taking words out of context and purposely imagining an audience that doesn't exist. I mean, it seems like most twelve year-olds aren't even reading The Raven Cycle according to Stiefvater's poll, let alone the Throne of Glass books. But they *could*. They could also go looking beyond the YA shelves, as I myself did, but it's the principle of the thing, I suppose.

As a teen of thirteen and up, I read smutty romance novels, and it didn't harm me beyond exacerbating my existing tendency to idealize romantic love. I can't imagine the only thing that saved me from trauma is the silly euphemisms and lack of explicit reference to bodily fluids in those books, though I agree that individual teens are all different in terms of their readiness. Those who are ready will seek things out. Those who aren't, won't. People wouldn't enjoy a book with a multitude of adult themes and then suddenly get shocked and traumatized by Rhysand being a little too toppy and arrogant about flirting and sex, even though he's actually patient and caring with Feyre in many other ways. Older teenagers lack life experiences, but most are fully capable of reading and understanding such behavioral subtleties. Plus, teen boys in real life are certainly bigger assholes than Rhys and their talk is uglier and/or dirtier, any day of the week. And if these inexperienced or younger teen readers can't make sense of it, they're more likely to be confused or bored than to suddenly change their whole understanding of relationships to reflect this book they're suddenly reading. That takes both a broad trend and some corresponding experience in their real life, as well as a total lack of guidance from the adults in their life. Books aren't so dangerous that any exposure to the 'wrong' ideas is somehow tainting.

The bottom line is that books don't have the power to brainwash young people (or older people, for that matter). They are more likely to simply seem boring to those who aren't ready or interested in the 'adult' content. If there's some reason to keep reading, a book is certainly capable of stretching young minds and eliciting curiosity about all sorts of things, and that includes sexuality. Even if teens often think in black and white terms, good books can stretch their understanding. Reading a bit above one's understanding or experience level is something I'd recommend for that reason. Overall, though, both teens and adults are most likely to stick with what they know. People's fiction interests are essentially self-sorting, marketing strategies aside. That's *how* the genre is changing.

#writing #ya lit #throne of glass #six of crows #sarah j. maas #characterization #oh fandom #me myself and i #raven cycle #pointless rambles #romanticism

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callsign-blue · 6 years

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The100 5x13 Damocles pt2 The Finale review

I have absolutely no idea on what to review on....

Well my eyes hurt from crying, my heart is racing because im amped up to see what season 6 has in store for us!

Like we all were thinking “Fuck Mcceary” and diyoza is still alive.

Shannon Kook’s charater shook me to the core. Jordan Jasper Green, i’m so happy that shannons charater was introduced in such an amazing and different way.

Marper. May We Meet Again❤️

The conversation between Diyoza and Octavia was really interesting a good interesting.

Im honeslty loving the murphy x emori ship hella.

I thought it was really interesting, is that monty and harper decisided to wake up bellamy and clarke instead of like bellamy and echo....but i mean that could mean that they still see them as main leaders in their minds and even though madi is heda.

I feel like becho will be tested(saying this is just like a foreshadowing like who knows they might be strong or weaker. And im NOT being bias)

I wonder what the egliuis3 ships are using the oil or what ever their mining for on?

The radio calls were talked about but bellamy and clarke havent talked to eachother about it hmmmmm madi you sly dawg you.

Harper and Monty, im so happy that they lived the way the wanted to live. You can tell during their time at polis that they just wanted nothing to do with this war and at the desert. They made the decision to keep living when there wasnt war but that didn’t stop them on finding a solution for everyone else. Just the fact that both harper and monty grew in positive ways even though they’ve had tramatic things happen to them. They made peace with it. Instead of one them changing the other they changed eachother for the better. They fulfilled what they wanted life to be about.

Im so excited to see what jordan has to offer! Im so pumped for SEASON 6!!!

And there’s an article saying that there might be a Season7? If yall are on insta look at some fact blogs that are from the 100 they might have that on their story or something.

I think Octavia and Abbey scene was much needed because it showed the resent meant. Octavia could’ve just let the people die but she took theor choice way but not all by herself, abby suggested it. Felt like taking their choice away was kinda taking away their, Octavia and Abbey’s, humanity away. But by the end they both owned up to what they done.

A true leader knows when to step down and I applaud Octavia for doing that even though she had to do not so nice things to them to forcibly gain their respect. Being in the bunker with clans that gave more respect to a 12 yr old then to a girl who won the conclave to save THEM ALL must’ve bruised her ego but she realized that since there was a true commander out there no one was gonna follow her.

Spacekru is still strong.

Wonder whats gonna happen between abbey and kane with diyoza in the mix. I mean if there anything romantic between them, probably or probably not.

The tension between Octavia and Bellamy, wonder how they make up or IF they make up. How everyone who trusted Octavia is gonna forgive her or IF they do. If raven and clarke are gonna have a conversation that doesnt include a gun in bewteen them(lol).

Right now for me there’s a lot of if’s, or’s, how’s, and when’s , going through my head.

I guess we just have to wait and see till what, spring2019? I wanna see bts pictures already....even though they haven’t started shooting yet.

I wonder how or what madi is gonna think about the new planet, like i feel like her leader ship role is gonna be tested. I feel like everyone is gonna be tested. But bellamy telling madi that she could DO BETTER, BE BETTER, BE DIFFERENT, and that she could Break the Cycle was like A++++++.

And im FREAKING READY FOR THE CHARATER TO TALK ABOUT THEIR FEELINGS! I think its about time that they stop ignoring their feelings and keeping it all inside.

I’m curious on how everyone is gonna react about what happen to harper and monty, their son, and where their headed. I bet raven is gonna be pissed that monty cracked the files before her.

Like i’m just curious how people are gonna adapt to the new planet. If there are people already on the planet, like how are they gonna be when these new people are coming. Like i was ready for the 10 yr jump but fucking 125 yr time jump was like insane, and montys video logs ❤️. But that bellarke ending scene...my heart.....

Im sad but not as sad as i thought i was gonna be, like i’m more excited because now its literally, were gonna land in fresh soil(peep the pun) but like everything is different. Heda, prionser are with them & diyoza, new planet, jasper, like theres so much possibly and room for imagination and improvement. Like all we have to go on is just imagenation or predictions.

In my opinion I think we shouldn’t get discouraged about how we haven’t seen bellarke yet, i still have hope, i hope other bellarkers do. I know its been like a really long time and we’ve only gotton hugs, screen time, and kisses on cheeks, and them working together but like there’s gonna be season 6 and possibly a season 7 (so i’ve heard and/or read). Don’t give up guys.

Also i caNOT FUCKING BELIEVE THAT MCCEARY SENT A FUCKING BOMB, ATOMIC OR NOT, TO THE LAST SURVIVABLE PLACE ON EARTH. WHO THE FUCK DOES THAT. A WEAK ASS BITCH, THAT’S WHO!

One Garden. Two Serpents. Eden Never Stood A Chance.

(I bet echo is gonna be butt hurt about the fact bellamy and clarke woke up first. Lol dont hate me i just wanted to say that and there is NO heat behind them)(again i respect it doesn’t mean i have to like it)

5x12Side note :

I got really mad at echo one time, the whole season and the one time was, when they were in the village and she said to clarke “i should’ve killed you when i had the chance” like that made my blood boil. Like i get it echo was mad at clarke for leaving bellamy behind but clarke was doing what she thought was right even though later she came to her sense and actually did something smart. But, like, echo old habits die hard dont they?hmmm.

Side note done.

(i may later on update this review because i might think of more things or just edit it)

SEE YA TILL NEXT SEASON! ✌️

7 notes · View notes

thorne93 · 6 years

Text

Deadly Mistake

Prompt: Hey, ❤ i'm love with your blog, especially your Gambit stories. Can you do a oneshot (when your Requests are open), where the reader (maybe she can control the darkness/daughter to Mystique and Magneto?) and Gambit are dating and one night, she can't control her powers and nearly killed him. She runs away to the Xavier Mansion but Remy is looking for her and they meet again. I hope it's not problem 😊

Warnings: near death experience?? maybe language? Running away...angst...?

Word Count: 2896

Notes: Thank you for this request! As soon as I got it, I started brainstorming. Gambit is like my closet love, idk why. Like, I’m not ashamed of him. I adore him. I just don’t talk about it much...Lol...Anyway, Of course it’s not a problem darling! So sorry this took so long to get back to you! I really hope this lives up to your expectations.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“No, no please don’t…” you moaned in your sleep, clearly distressed. Remy was alerted to your tossing and turning, and now your verbal fight against the thing in your nightmare.

“Mon Cherie?” Remy asked, sitting up, attempting to wake you, but he just gripped your sweat soaked body, his attempt to wake you futile.

“Let me go. Let me go! Let me go!” you screamed repeatedly. Images of men grabbing you, taking you away to hurt you, to experiment on you…

“Darlin’. It’s me, Remy, wake up,” he urged again, trying to jostle you. Finally, you jolted upright, but not thanks to your boyfriend. The nightmare had reached its peak and you woke up screaming, clenching the sheets, your heart hammering in your chest as the world around you enveloped in black, your panic attack releasing your power. Your pulse was racing, your head spinning. The nightmare had terrified you, it felt so real, you could feel pain and fear. The more you recalled the dream, the stronger your powers became, the air around you growing blacker and blacker.

On the outside of your cloud, sat Remy, trying to find you. Your cloud was darkening your bedroom that was saturated with moonlight only moments ago, but now...now your bedroom was as black as squid ink.

“Y/N, sweetheart?” he tried to get out as his arms flailed around wildly, trying to find you, but his senses were cut off. The darkness behaving like smoke, making it difficult for him to breathe or find his bearings. He reached where you should’ve been, but he felt a wall.

“Must be the headboard,” he thought to himself as his hands tried to find their way in the dark, but with every passing second, his oxygen was depleting. “Y/N, please! Where are you?!” he rasped out, terrified you were scared, or hurt somehow.

But you couldn’t hear him, the darkness was closing in all around you, shielding you from any outside danger, but not being able to see, hear, or feel Remy made you panic further. Your alarm revitalized the adrenaline and the vicious cycle continued, worried that you were hurting Remy, your powers doubled, making the air outside thicker and unable to breathed in.

Remy clawed at the darkness, the smoke-like substance that you could always create (but had very little control over) trying to get it away from him, away from his lungs...but it was futile. Your powers were erratic and strong as your hysteria continued, too much for him to conquer. A few more moments of the strangling concoction and he was forced to succumb to its power.

After a few more minutes of you finally trying to calm yourself down and succeeding a bit, the blackness receded, the moonlight’s silvery haze illuminating your shared master bedroom. You turned to tell Remy that you were okay now, but as you turned, you saw his form lying beside you, motionless.

“Remy?” you asked quietly, hoping he was just sleeping, that your assessment was wrong. “Rem?” you tried again, shaking him. “Remy?!” you called with more fright than before, shaking him harder. The worst thoughts started to circulate in your head. Had you killed him?

You grabbed your compact mirror from your nightstand and held it to his nose, relieved beyond any measure when it fogged up. “Oh thank god,” you breathed. Now that you knew he was just passed out, you tried slapping his face some more, to get him to wake up...to no avail.

All too soon, your relief was shattered and replaced with guilt.

You’d done this.

This was your fault.

He more than likely had passed out due to smoke inhalation, and had you not calmed yourself in time, you could’ve killed him. Your powers usually had a mind of their own, sure, but...you’d never hurt Remy. Strangers that scared you, sure. Brutes in the dark alleys of New Orleans, yes. But never your loving, devoted boyfriend Remy. He always knew your powers weren’t exactly stable and he stood beside you for a long time. The two of you had been through a lot in just a little over a year and now...your mind could hurt him. Just because you didn’t know you were hurting him didn’t make it okay. It didn’t excuse the fact that you’d hurt him, the last person on earth you’d ever want to hurt...and tonight you nearly killed him.

Now you knew what you had to do. For Remy’s sake, you needed to leave. You couldn’t chance these damned powers of yours coming to life when they felt like it, just to strangle the life out of the person you loved most. Hurting like hell, your chest constricting at the very thought of leaving the love of your life, you knew this was for the best. He didn’t deserve this. Deserve to be with someone who could hurt him without even realizing it...He deserved a good woman. Tears pricked at your eyes but you swallowed them down and set to work.

Swiftly, you jumped up, grabbed your suitcases, threw essentials and a few outfits in the bag. When you were ready to go, you stared at Remy, beautiful Remy. The most charming, sweet, protective man you’d ever met. Granting yourself one final kiss, you leaned down slowly, touched your lips to his, the sensation sending a surge of heartbreak through you, causing hot tears to break through finally, unable to bear the thought of leaving him, and it being nearly physically impossible for you to move your legs to get away from him.

With a rock in your throat, a knot in your stomach and chest, and hot tears streaking rapidly down your face, you tossed your things in the car and started to drive. Calling 911 to tell them about Remy and that he’d had smoke inhalation on your way from your shared home. It would be hard to believe when they got there because there was nothing on fire, nothing charred...but they’d have to believe you. They just had to.

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

Minutes turned into hours and you seemed to be driving for who knows how long. All you knew was the sun had broken over the horizon and you needed something to keep you going so you pulled over at a diner and got coffee, orange juice, and a small bit of food. Before you just burned through gas and continued to travel the country in your pajamas, you needed a game plan. Where were you going to go? Where could you go? You could just throw a dart on a map...that seemed viable at this point. But you weren’t that type of person, you liked roots, a home. If you were going to spend a lifetime somewhere, it needed to be somewhere nice, homey, inviting. Someplace you looked forward to having a future at...even if it would be a lonely one...a future without Remy.

Fresh tears welled in your eyes before you wiped them away. The waitress refilled your coffee for the third time as you contemplated a place to go.

You considered calling your mom, Mystique, to see where she was, what she was up to. Probably doing something with Dad. Probably causing problems for the humans. Maybe you could call your Dad. He would never leave a mutant, let alone his own daughter out on the streets. But your dad would also probably try to recruit you, yet again, to join is militia and you just didn’t want that life. Not when you were so young and had so much ahead of you. Maybe if you were older, and didn’t have anything to look forward to, you’d risk it all, but not today.

That’s when it hit you. Dad. He had told you about Charles, the man who ran a school for mutants. You were certainly out of any sort of school age, but maybe he could help you nonetheless. To your knowledge, Xavier had never turned a soul away. How could he turn you away? Daughter of his oldest friends. It was worth a shot at the very least.

You paid the bill you’d racked up and set out, still in pajamas, towards New York.

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

It took a long time, but you finally got to the home for gifted youngsters. You parked in the circular driveway, jumped out, ran up to the door, and knocked, only slightly embarrassed to be in your nightwear.

A blue man with glasses opened the door.

“Hello. Can I help you?” he asked politely.

“I’m Y/N. I’m Myst--Raven and Erik’s daughter,” you informed, hoping that meant something to this man.

The man’s eyes drifted down your form, as if he was trying to figure out whether or not he believed you.

“Yes, I’ve heard of you. Are you alright? Does he need our help?” he inquired.

“Uh, it’s not them that needs your help. It’s me.”

He nodded knowingly and stepped aside to let you in.

“I’m Hank McCoy. I’m one of the teachers here,” he greeted as he held out his hand. Which you took. “You look a little old to be here for classes. Do you know Charles?”

“I know of him, through my father. I know I’m not exactly the right age to be enrolling in classes but...I’m having trouble with my powers...I was wondering if you all could help. I don’t really have anywhere else to turn and I don’t want to hurt anyone.”

Hank nodded. “Of course. Come with me.”

You followed the big, furry, blue man through the huge mansion, to a study, where a man in a wheelchair sat. That must be the man Dad spoke so highly of.

“Charles,” Hank’s rough voice called.

The man whipped his head up. “And who do we have here?” he asked.

“This is Erik and Raven’s daughter,” Hank introduced. “Y/N.”

“Ah...Y/N. Your father has told me wonderful things about you. I hear you got a peculiar power, mmm?”

You nodded. “That’s actually why I’m here, sir. I...I need help controlling them.”

Charles nodded slowly, his eyebrows slowly rising as he dismissed Hank.

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

The two of you talked for a couple of hours. Charles wanted to know all about your upbringing, when your powers first started, if they ever changed over the years, everything there was to know about them. Finally, you were brought all the way up to last night, explaining how you had never hurt him, but then they were uncontrollable. He mentioned that he had met Remy a couple of times and even helped him with his powers.

Charles was patient and kind, everything your dad had ever boasted about. He offered you a room, a hot meal, and a good night’s sleep. You gathered your things from the car, changed into different sleepwear, and got into bed after a shower. As soon as your head hit the pillow, your tears flowed. All of your energy and attention had been diverted to get here, to get to a safe place. Now that you were here, and alone without Remy, it hurt you like never before. He’d probably never want to see you, not after what you’d done to him, and with that thought, you sobbed loudly into your pillow, trying to drown out the choking pain in your chest.

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

For two days you worked with Charles and the other teachers after their teaching hours. Unbeknownst to you, while you were training with Jean Grey, Charles was at cerebro, looking for new recruits, but your name was being shouted, and he was drawn to the sound. He traced the source of the sound to Remy - he was searching for you. Charles’s heart broke for the two of you. You had confided that you didn’t want to be near Remy again, too scared and worried that you’d hurt him or worse. But here, Charles was seeing the man that loved you, willing to search the ends of the earth to find you.

He was torn. He could very well reach out to Gambit and tell him. To inform him of where you were, how upset you were. But you had asked him to not tell Remy, should he ask about you.

Hank was there, about to ask if Charles had found anything, when he saw the look on his dear friend’s face.

“Charles? What is it?”

“It’s Remy Lebeau. He’s looking for Y/N,” he informed, still in thought.

Hank nodded, listening. “Are you going to tell her?”

“I don’t see how I could. She’s so upset over hurting him, adding that burden to her would just impede her progress with her powers and cause unnecessary pain.”

“What about Gambit? Will you tell him where she is?” he wondered.

“What good would that do? He would show up and know that I betrayed her trust. No. She specifically asked me to not tell him. I’ll respect her wishes,” he stated as the two of them worked their way down the brightly lit corridor.

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

Only two more days later, you were wrapping up your training that was going well with Storm. She was patient and kind, just like Charles. You could see why the kids loved her. Your powers were slowly starting to listen to you and now you weren’t as afraid of them, but being with Remy...seeing him again, that still wasn’t in the cards.

Cards….You sighed at the thought of your beloved’s favorite throwing object.

Grabbing your notebook, you wished Storm a good evening, and left her classroom. Headed to the kitchen to grab a snack, you passed by the huge front door, where Hank was talking to someone.

“I told you, she’s not here,” Hank insisted.

“Now, Beast, don’t lie to me,” Remy’s distinct voice and accent warned, piercing right through you. You froze in your spot. “If I know her, and I like to think I do, she’s woulda come here, now be a gentleman and point me in the right direction.”

“Remy--” Hank started but he had moved an inch to the left, exposing your form.

“Y/N?” he breathed, looking at you as if he were looking at a ghost.

You couldn’t think of anything to say, hell, you could hardly register to move.

He pushed past Hank gently to run to you, his hands finding your face as he touched all over you, as if making sure you were real, and okay.

“Remy?” you questioned, looking up at the dashing Cajun.

“Yeah, mon cher, it’s me. What on earth happened to you? You had that awful nightmare and I---I guess I musta passed out. I wake up and I’m in the hospital and you--you’re just...gone,” he said in a flurry, his hands gently gripping your upper arms. “Lawd, I missed you,” he breathed as he gripped you in a tight hug suddenly. “Why didn’t you tell me where you were goin’?”

“Remy...I...I left. I hurt you,” you managed to get out.

“Darlin’ that wasn’t your fault,” he promised, sincerity so strong in his voice it nearly killed you.

“It was my fault though. I’m the one who nearly caused you to die. It was my power that sucked the oxygen out of you…”

He soothed your hair before kissing your forehead, lingering there a moment. “Mon cherie, when are you gonna learn that ain’t nothin’ gonna keep me away from you? Not your crazy powers or your worry for me or nothin’. You got that?”

“But Remy…” you started, not sure how to continue. How to tell him that you loved him too much to be with him, to put him back in that danger.

“You’re scareda hurtin’ me, that it?” he inquired, his eyes intense on yours, so much love in them.

All you could do was meekly nod.

“Well you’re at the best place to keep you from doin’ that. The Professor and his team, they’re a wonderful group of people, they’ll help you through it, and if you’ll let me, I’ll help ya too. I love you, and I want to help you. I would rather get hurt by you with your powers than be away from you. So if that means we gotta stay at this mansion for the rest of our lives to make sure you’re comfortable then I’m okay with that.”

You pursed your lips. He shouldn’t have to give up his life for you, to be endangered by you.

“Are you--are you sure?” you asked softly. You wanted him, more than anything in the world, but you wouldn’t be so selfish as to make him stay with you.

“As sure as there will be beads at Mardi Gras,” he stated confidently with a sideways grin. “I love you, Y/N. Let me help you. Let me be with you. I promise we’ll get through this together, alright?”

You nodded, a tear escaping, signifying your worry and heartbreak.

He hugged you quickly, soothing your hair, before kissing your head. “Oh, mon amour,” he breathed in that accent you loved so dearly. “Don’t you ever leave me again. I love you too damned much.”

“I love you, too,” you admitted, hugging him tightly back, thanking your lucky stars that you had such a wonderful, perfect man to share your life with.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Forever Tags: @capsmuscles @cocosierra94 @essie1876 @magpiegirl80 @letsgetfuckingsuperwholocked @harleyquinnandscarletwitch @iamwarrenspeace @marvel-imagines-yes-please @marvel-imagines-yes-please @myparadise1982sand @missinstantgratification @thejemersoninferno @rda1989 @marvelloushamilton @munlis @thefridgeismybestie @bubblyanarocks3 @random-fluffy-pink-unicorn @hardcollectionworldtrash @igiveupicantthinkofausername @kaliforniacoastalteens @feelmyroarrrr @kaeling

#deadly mistakes #gambit #gambit fic #gambit x reader #Remy LeBeau #remy lebeau x reader #remy lebeau fic

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olympivnshq · 5 years

Text

congratulations grace! we loved reading your rendition of KHIONE. you captured her icy nature perfectly but what really sold us was how you infused your application with such passion for this character. after some consideration, we’ve decided to accept you with your first faceclaim choice: CLAIRE HOLT.

☆ﾟ*・ﾟ OOC INFO.

hi !! i’m grace/g and am twenty-two, use she&her, reside in EST, and am super warm and friendly despite who i’m auditioning for !!

☆ﾟ*・ﾟ DEITY — GENDER. AGE RANGE.

khione — she&her anywhere from 30-40.

☆ﾟ*・ﾟ MORTAL NAME. JOB/OCCUPATION. BOROUGH/NEIGHBORHOOD.

A colette callahan. interior designer/design. ( for private/wealthy clients ) manhattan + central park south. she likes her neighborhood for the views of the park, as she feels a general connection to nature and tends to admire it often due to her own isolation ( self-inflicted ) it gives her a sense of connection and peace. she can’t stray far from nature and is very ACTIVE. i see her running through the park daily its much preferred versus a gym any day. is known for being progressive with her interior design. her aesthetic and trademark is white. clean. she puts a heavy strain on negative space and purity with her work and for her clients. if they don’t like white, silver, gray, black….. don’t hire her. ( refer to 1, 2, 3 )

☆ﾟ*・ HOW WOULD YOU PLAY THEM?

how she acts/thinks/works with others in the group/generalized rambling of khione: ( goddess ) she isn’t one to make friends or be friendly. an introvert among the glitz and glam of olympus. there’s a harshness inside khione that will not be fractured. it’s not anger necessarily though most would assume so she’s just independent and knows her power and worth. she understands her importance ( of her element/powers ) and this influences her behavior. though not high on the hierarchy, you’ll get a brain freeze trying to convince her that she and snow/cold aren’t of the utmost importance. she demands respect even though she doesn’t often receive it. i don’t imagine her being a favorite among olympus but i can see her playing nice and able to charm when she needs to. though often stand-offish she values true, deep rooted friendship. ( big on family aka her father and two brothers * from the lore i’m going off of ) do not mistake this with her needing companionship because she does not, what so ever. loves her solace. isn’t a being seeking the warm fuzzies ( literally ) and is sharp and blunt but ( i see ) this as possibly refreshing amongst the crowd of immortals. she isn’t a ass-kisser and is blunt by fault and will tell you how it is. though ideally she’d be higher on the chain of command you wouldn’t find her kissing ass to get there. ( mortal ) similar in how she acts, but as a mortal she’s cool and calculated in her work. that is her art form and it makes her happy. she’s kind of bland in the sense she doesn’t open up easy nor have many friends. she finds companionship in sleeping around often, but only of those she deems worthy. ( high intellect, class, money, etc ) she’s materialistic. she has a dog with whom is probably shown the most of her affection. she’s married to a man who believes is homosexual and closeted ( maybe a fellow god idk when she finds out/gets memories i can’t imagine her staying with him otherwise ) and so it’s more of a partnership which works for her because she enjoys her sexual side and being able to give 100% to her work so seeing him a few times a month just works out. ( i see her as bisexual ) think power couple, but strictly prestige. she’s good arm candy for him and he has deep connections in new york to get her where she wants. like her immortal self once crossed will not give another chance, i can see this being the same case with her immortal family. ( or maybe give her a few centuries and then she’ll reconsider ) also going with the hc she’s extremely active/self absorbed. not the annoying instagram story kind but moreso she’s connected deeply to her health and feels complete looking her 100000% best. generally best dressed in the room, well versed in trend and fashion for new york standards. she knows she’s better than you ( god and mortal ) but isn’t the kind to rub it in your face necessarily? more so she knows her worth and is very secure in that and that she is attractive. ( very pale skin, crystal blue eyes, natural pale blonde hair, tall ) but like……… is arrogant. will still call you out for your last season gucci or ( immortal sense ) tell you the shit job you’re doing with your respected duty and how she could do it better.how she speaks/accent/tone: ( mortal ) i actually really like the idea of her being somewhat foreign? her “mortal” life and memories have her starting in norway so her accent is there though she’s hiding it. she thinks norwegian accents aren’t that tasteful so she’s done her best to cleanse it from her speech pattern but it resides since she didn’t arrive to the states until college/university. partners find it appealing ( in her mind at least ) that she’s foreign and she’s smug in that sense to be different from the rest. when she’s speaking to you, you know its her. her words though accented are rather musical and her speech and english flows well and without flaw. because colette would have it no other way.

( goddess ) in her true form however she’s kind of ……. annoying. i see proper diction and pronunciation of things every. single. time. her tone is a feminine alto. speaks drawn out and on the slower side. her words and tone come off conceited among fellow gods and goddesses. she’s a true intellectual and knows this and won’t hesitate to make you feel like the smallest being in the room. full well knowing she isn’t top dog on the chain of command. don’t talk down to her, total pet peeve.how she thinks: this is complex and i could depict this in a small novel BUT in summary i see her thinking in a generalized word………. negatively? ( mortal and goddess ) because mortals never worshiped her, and immortals don’t see her value. ( but going off the lore she’s goddess of winter/snow/all seasonal things cold * if this needs to be tweaked we can because in some things i read her father passes winter onto her as he’s aged and he just holds reign on the north wind ajksd ) she knows just how important her and her father are and in a positive way of thinking sees it as ignorance that she wants to educate. without winter/snow/cold life for the mortals would be hell, the earth couldn’t withstand constant heat everything would die. cold is needed. things must cool town to allow for new growth and rejuvenation. doesn’t necessarily think she’ll make it to top dog, nor does she want to, just thinks in a progressive sense of always moving forward and up in olympus. on earth she feels stuck and incomplete. ( makes sense with the whole predicament ) and so behind small smirk and a questioning brow among crowds she is sad, so she finds brief fulfillment in one night stands and a limited edition handbag. she’s trying to find what will make her whole ( aka memories ) but thinks she’s too good for a therapist and will ignore her nagging thoughts with a glass of four of wine.

1. would you like your character to be entering the roleplay at this stage in the plot, with or without their memories?

without, because i’d love to depict and play out the blizzard that will happen when she does recollect them. rip she’s going to be so angry.

2. are they more likely to stand with the pantheon or against it? ( if you are choosing a god they may endeavour to dismantle it for whatever reason )

mixed more so against in a selfish sense because eternal screaming of HOW COULD THEY DO THIS TO HER. THE EARTH WILL F*CKING DIE IDIOTS. but also is big on balance and respects such a drastic measure. she’s glad it was done but is like JUST NOT TO HER. so all in all, probably won’t stand she ??? a ???? mortal ???? indefinitely ??? wait till you feel/hear khione’s wrath.

3. what is their stand on mortals?

doesn’t care for them. they don’t appreciate her or her father, so why would she? they curse and spew venom for loss of crops ( or used to ) power, death. but death is the natural cycle. cold is part of the natural cycle in order to maintain BALANCE. ( o ya she’s super big on that, fairness and equality in all things if u get a quarter the next person should too )

☆ﾟ*・ GIVE US A SAMPLE OF YOUR WRITING!

intricate. slender fingers move with ease, sculpting. she breathes life and beauty into this flake of ice. this single snowflake. with a soft breath she blows and watches its descend. it dances down towards the earth landing delicately into a gloved palm. a small mortal with raven hair peers back up at her cheering in delight, fueling her further on. soon a whirl of art is gifted to the tiny mortal who dance merrily in the fresh snow as snowflakes greet the earth. a small delicate smile finds khione….. though brief, and fleeting. a new scene appears, a scene much harsher. a shuttering man with bluing lips and expanding pupils. the chilling wind rages on before him and he pleads to whoever, whoever being her. khione is unphased. not even a twitch. a tisk. her planned snow would not be interrupted due to a single mortal. better yet, a dozen mortals would not invoke interference. leaning back into perfected white pelt beneath her her gaze flickers to her approacher. cal. though bonded by their father she never quite understood why her father would offer such a feeble minded demigod immortality. he seems to understand her disgust, yet enters her chamber stumbling and stuttering. eyes roll by fault and a drawn sigh is released, gaze flickering to her nails. her skin gleams in contrast with the color, so pale that she seems to glow. she is a goddess after all…. as for cal? a half blood. half her worth. regretfully tall frame rises from her seat. “ calais, ” a annoyed greeting is given.

A PREVIOUS BLOG OR A REPLY: https://www.tumblr.com/dashboard/blog/laurrakinncy/182778944087 ( real talk haven’t been in tumblr in like 6 months sooooo………….. i can’t remember old blogs/passwords im sORRY my content is dry )

REPLY TO A STARTER: this ONE !!!!

“ should? ” she echoes boredly in response. fingers tap busily at a work email on glowing phone, paying no attention to the other. taupe brows drawing together in thought as she pauses, then continues her typing. “ shouldn’t. ” colette corrects with smug emphasis.

eyes finally lift as the dribble of liquid trickles towards cashmere coat and she gets to a swift ( and entirely graceful ) stance. “ last i checked isadora you aren’t a bull and we aren’t in a china shop. ” sculpted features twist with her own dismay.

#original rp #semi appless rp #literate rp #lsrpg #new rp #khione #claire holt

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