#this drawing is also well after the tour has ended but i was thinking about when i went with my friend and matchablossom has been on my mind

[lilyinthevalley-art]

They were both very excited for the MCR reunion tour XD

[buddiebeginz]

Since I'm still seeing posts where people are saying Buck wanted Tommy's attention in 7x04 I thought I would do a break down of the episode. Cause the entire thing was about how Buck wanted Eddie's attention full stop and I'm baffled that some of you missed that it wasn't exactly subtle:

This is going to be a long post with gifs so I'll put it under the cut

First there was the mansion call. (I know some might say this scene is different because it was meant to be a part of episode 7x05. Doesn't matter they changed the order so it's canon for this ep and so Buck's behavior in it is relevant).

Buck trying to get Eddie's attention with the random facts he knows and also because he knows no one listens and appreciates that stuff about him like Eddie:

Buck glued to Eddie's side the whole call.

Buck also not showing any interest in the ladies from the Bachelor while he's standing with Eddie.

---

Then you have the scene at the hanger:

Here's the thing I do believe Buck has an attraction to Tommy and is interested in him but the main draw Buck has to Tommy is because of the multiple similarities Tommy has to Eddie. The show was practically putting a neon sign above Eddie and Tommy multiple times saying that Tommy is a mirror of Eddie.

I'd also like to point out that maybe it was just me but Tommy didn't seem all that interested in Buck throughout this scene or really any scene until the last one. Now yeah he could have been being cautious because he didn't know if Buck was into guys but I honestly got the vibe he was into Eddie. I can't help but wonder if he was trying to get with Eddie and then maybe in Vegas Eddie told him he was straight (not that he is) or maybe Eddie just told him he has a beard girlfriend. No one can convince me otherwise that Tommy doesn't think there's something between Eddie and Buck. I 100% believe all Eddie did was talk about Buck when they hung out and Buck did the same thing right up until Tommy kissed him. That whole "my attention" line was very telling. Tommy you're gonna get your heart broken but I get it dude Buck is hot.

So anyway Buck goes for a tour and unsurprisingly he brings up Eddie before Eddie ever shows up. And while yeah it's him responding to Tommy saying he was in the army it just feels like a partner moment. Like yeah no way my boyfriend was in the army. Buck talking about Eddie is as second nature as someone talking about their spouse. They're such an integrated part of their life that they don't even realize how much they talk about each other. It'll be interesting to see if Buck does the same thing when he's on his date with Tommy too.

Then Eddie shows up and if you watch Buck the whole scene once Eddie arrives he's almost exclusively watching Eddie.

(watching Eddie walk away)

Here's the difference btw in one of the few times he looks at tommy (when Tommy speaks) after Eddie show up 👇

Then at the end you have Buck make this face:

Which I think isn't so much about feeling left out as it is seeing how happy Eddie is and knowing he's not the one making him happy. Although I don't think Buck is consciously processing all of that right now but I definitely think that was a big part of it.

I think in this whole scene what's going on in Buck's head is this: 1. surprise that Eddie is there because he didn't expect him 2. Why didn't Eddie tell me he was hanging out with Tommy (I usually know everything going on with Eddie). 3. Trying to understand what he's feeling when he sees Eddie and Tommy together. 4. Feeling confused about everything. 5. Jealous that Eddie is going off with someone who isn't him but not really understanding that's what it is.

I get some people might watch that scene and say well Buck was essentially asking Tommy out on a date and then Eddie showed up an took off with him so he must be jealous that Eddie is getting to spend time with Tommy. Buck obviously has an attraction to Tommy but the person he really wants and wants to spend time with is Eddie this is further highlighted by the next scene we see them in when Buck keeps getting more and more upset over hearing about how Eddie is doing things he enjoys with someone who isn't Buck. But also in how Buck acted while at the at the hanger. He wasn't focused on Tommy. I mean have you ever been crushing on someone when they're in the room it's like no one else is. The person who Buck couldn't take his eyes off of was Eddie.

-------

Next we have the sewer rescue scene with Ravi. (We really need more Ravi and Buddie scenes btw I love them together) We have Buddie working together as per usual. Highlighting like in the Bachelor scene how well they work together which they always do.

You have Buck telling the story from the pilot about when he saved that baby in the wall and Eddie smiling fondly like a typical spouse who has heard that story a million times.

While they're working Buck is spending the whole call trying to find out what Eddie was up to when he went to Vegas.

Buck is asking a million questions which implies that Eddie hasn't told him yet about the trip. This goes back to the helicopter scene where Buck didn't know Eddie was spending time with Tommy and is really starting to feel left out. Again this isn't really about Tommy or Buck feeling like he's missing out on spending time with Tommy it's Buck feeling like he's missing out on Eddie's life.

Buck calls out the similarities between Eddie and Tommy

Although he's still clueless that this is what is primarily causing him to be drawn to Tommy. More than anything this was for the audience to again say in case you didn't catch it by now Tommy is like Eddie. They want to keep reminding us of this before the kiss so we know Buck is going to date someone who is like his best friend.

Also want to point out that while Buck is talking about Tommy to Eddie the camera shakes at points so we feel Buck's nerves. He's nervous to hear what Eddie has to say about Tommy.

Also the whole conversation about "naked men pummeling each other" and Eddie saying that he was wrestling with Tommy. Like I'm sorry but not one ounce of that convo felt heterosexual.

I've seen someone say that Buck's jealousy must have been about Tommy because Buck isn't even interested in the things Eddie and Tommy were doing together like Muay Thai and basketball etc but you can hear/see Buck getting more and more hurt as he and Eddie talk because Eddie is sharing parts of himself with someone else.

I feel like there's multiple reasons why Eddie and Buck haven't been spending as much time together. I mean yeah Eddie made a new friend but for the longest time it's been BuckandEddie like peas in a pod in work and outside. But I think the end of season six played a role in some of that changing

At the end of last season they were both dating someone else and they had both gone through some major trauma with Buck literally dying for 3+ minutes. We know that seriously affected Buck but the show didn't touch on how I know it must have affected Eddie. If you watch the scene (from 7x01) where Buck talks to Chris and we see Eddie's reaction in the hall when Chris talks about how everyone leaves. I can't help but think Buck's brush with death made Eddie think of Shannon and how scared he is to lose another person he loves or worse put Chris through that.

Not to mention what Buck said in the cemetery how he felt like Natalia this woman he had known for less than a minute saw him better than anyone. I feel like all of that combined made Eddie distance himself a little even if he wasn't doing it totally consciously.

There's also the fact that I think Buck has kind of taken Eddie for granted a little. We find out later in the ep that Eddie had asked Buck to play basketball with him many times but he'd always turned him down. I also got the impression in this ep that Eddie has all these hobbies that he was sharing with Tommy when he would have rather been doing them with Buck (he was so excited when Buck showed up on the basketball court).

And I'm not saying Buck doesn't love Eddie or hasn't tried hard to be there for Eddie and Chris over the years but it's something that happens in relationships sometimes. You think the person is always going to be there and you get distracted with life stuff.

This combined with things Oliver has been saying in interviews about how Buck is going to have to put in work for his next relationship. How Buck has always gotten whatever person he wanted mostly and I can't help but wonder if that's going to play a role in how Buddie is developed. Is Buck going to have to prove to Eddie how much he means to him?

This part of the scene if no other really lets you know it's about Eddie and not Tommy. We can see how Buck is looking at Eddie when he says I do I really do and we feel all these intense emotions from him more than would make sense for the brief amount of time he's known Tommy. He's clearly thinking of when he met Eddie.

These are really just the baby steps of Buck recognizing how deeply he feels for Eddie. Because right here he's thinking that he thought their connection and place in each other's lives was special and unique to every one else they knew but then he hears Eddie talk like that and thinks maybe he was the only one who felt that way. Maybe he's easily replaced in Eddie's life.

----

So Buck goes to talk about his feelings on everything with Maddie. Tbh I wasn't thrilled with how they did the Buck and Maddie scenes in this ep. Though I do think we're going to get more of a heart to heart with the two of them in future eps when Buck officially comes out. I just feel like Buck needed someone to really listen to him and Maddie was a little dismissive both times he talked to her. I also really want someone to try to ask Buck about his feelings for Eddie.

It's kind of crazy to me how no one in the 118 has ever really brought up the fact of how close Buck and Eddie are. Maddie has said the whole "boy crush" thing and that elf mistook them for being married but what I mean is you know the 118 sees how they are. Look at when Eddie was shot. It was assumed automatically that Buck was going to be the one to talk to Chris because they knew how close Buck and Eddie are and how they're essentially raising Chris together. This is how people talk about someone's spouse not just their friend.

Back to the convo with Maddie

Buck is complaining to Maddie about Eddie and Tommy. His feelings in that scene don't come across like he's unaware of some attraction he has to Tommy or like he's trying to hide feelings for him. He comes across as hurt, and frustrated, and confused that this new person has moved in on his place in Eddie and Chris' life.

Again I'm not saying Buck doesn't have an attraction to Tommy but I do think Tommy is a distraction more than anything. I think Buck is focusing on him rather than looking at the entire situation. Instead of asking himself why does it matter if your friend has a new friend? Why does it matter if Eddie spends time with new people? Why does it matter if Eddie shares parts of himself with someone else parts he might not be sharing with you?

----

Then of course there's the gym scene at the firehouse. I've seen people say Buck thought Eddie was on the phone with Tommy. And maybe he did. But you expect me to believe he was upset and jealous over Tommy and because Eddie was getting to talk to him and his way of dealing with that was to try and get Eddie's attention through lifting weights and pointing his dick at him. o_o

Literally sitting up in the middle of lifting weights so he can see if Eddie is looking over at him.

Nothing about this scene is telling the audience that Buck is thinking about Tommy. It's saying he wants Eddie's attention.

This scene is actually very similar to what happened at the hanger

Buck saw Eddie looking incredibly happy and he wasn't the one making him happy. Eddie also wasn't sharing what's been going on in his life with Buck. Buck felt shut out and ignored from the one person who he's been the closet with for years. Even when they've had girlfriends it's clear Buck and Eddie have been close and connected in ways they never were with anyone else. Buck is scared he's losing that.

If the show wanted us to believe that the scene was about Buck and Tommy and Buck's growing attraction to Tommy there are so many different things they could have done to highlight that. Have Tommy ask Eddie about Buck (if that even was who Eddie was talking to) and have Eddie tell Buck he was talking to Tommy maybe direct a question from Tommy to Buck. They also at the least could have said that's who Eddie was talking to and they didn't even do that. They could have had Buck ask Eddie hey is that Tommy? But they didn't because the scene wasn't really about Tommy it's about Buck's feelings for Eddie that he still hasn't fully come to terms with yet.

Buck buys a basketball literally has it sent to the firehouse so Eddie can see him with it and hopefully ask him to go play basketball with him. Because remember he's feeling left out of Eddie's life. It's not like he asked Tommy to play basketball or asks Eddie if he can go with him to the court in hopes of seeing Tommy. No he wants Eddie to invite him. He wants to know Eddie wants him there.

Watch how Buck acts even when he's opening the basketball. He's trying to do it quickly and even while he's doing that he's looking over to Eddie to try and get his attention.

Also someone on twitter pointed out that in season 3 it was shown in Buck's loft that he already had a ball. My head canon is that he still has that ball and the lunatic that he is he just bought a whole new one and had it sent to the firehouse so eddie would see him with it. 🤦‍♀️

---

Next is the infamous basketball court scene where I knew the minute I heard "basketball beard" and playing with the boys and other Top Gun references that canon bi Buck was a go.

Similar to the hanger scene Buck's attention is almost exclusively on Eddie through the whole scene.

Oh I'd also like to point out that both times that Eddie was with Tommy in this ep he was wearing sunglasses particularly when the two of them were side by side. I feel like it's the shows way of saying that Buck is not seeing Eddie right now and he's not connecting with his true feelings for Eddie.

I know Oliver is good at basketball but I couldn't help but laugh when they included that shot of him spinning the ball. Like we're meant to believe Buck doesn't play how did he learn to do that 🤦‍♀️

If the basketball scene had really been about Buck wanting Tommy's attention or being jealous that Eddie was getting Tommy's attention Buck wouldn't have been spending the entire time trying to get Eddie's attention. He also would have been competing with Eddie for Tommy's attention and he wasn't he was trying to get Eddie to notice him because he felt like all Eddie was doing was focusing on Tommy.

You can watch Buck get progressively more upset through the game as he feels like Eddie is competing against him and partnering with someone else when for so long that's been his role on and off the court. It's been Buddie against the world.

Also there's a moment when Buck runs into Tommy but the show never plays it as some kind of moment between the two. I mean they had more of a moment on the boat after the cruise ship when Buck patted Tommy's shoulder. But like according to some this is supposed to be the episode Buck is all into Tommy but that's just not present most of the episode.

Buck immediately knows he's fucked up after Eddie is hurt. I've seen people say why wasn't he running to help him but I've been in a similar situation like that where you're so stunned that you did something to cause someone you cared about to be hurt you can't even move.

Then as soon as Buck wants to try and help Tommy swoops in and says he'll take Eddie to the hospital. Taking care of Eddie has been Buck's job for a long long time. Think about how he saved Eddie during the shooting and took care of him and Chris. Also he took care of them during Eddie's mental health crisis. Buck is feeling like Eddie doesn't need him anymore.

Here's another thing I want to bring up about the basketball scene. Like I keep saying people have said that a lot of Buck's motivations in this ep were about Tommy. I'm sorry but you don't have those kind of strong emotions over someone you just met. Even if his emotions were that he had a crush on Tommy and felt like Eddie was taking all Tommy's time away. If Buck behaved that way from a simple crush on a guy he barely knew I would think he'd lost his mind. No he reacted the way he did because all of these feelings (that he's just now scratching the surface of dealing with) are connected to Eddie someone who means everything to him.

Remember too that Oliver said in his interviews that Buck doesn't even know why he's jealous or who or what it's about. Which is why I think even by the end of the episode when Buck thinks he's figured some things out there's still a lot he's missing.

----

The second Maddie scene

I definitely agree with what others have said that unfortunately Maddie's words here only served to further confuse Buck. What he was feeling was not just being left out and excluded from this friend but mostly jealous over a man he loves being all excited to spend so much time with someone else. Buck was jealous and scared of someone taking his place in Eddie's life and doesn't really know how to process that.

Oh and for people who say he wasn't jealous over Eddie he literally says he was to Maddie.

Buck admits he was trying to get Eddie's attention which like I said in the basketball scene you can see because Eddie is all Buck is focused on.

----------

Then of course we have the end scene with Buck and Tommy.

First we get the opening shot where Buck answers the door. And before he even answers we the audience are made to think it's going to be Eddie and made to think Buck also thinks it's going to be Eddie. Because all of the tension that's been between them in the ep hasn't been resolved and Buck hasn't talked about how he's been feeling to Eddie at all. So we're left waiting for that resolution.

Instead however when Buck opens the door it's Tommy

One thing I didn't mention earlier was that the show has made it a point to have Tommy only call Buck Evan. I've seen a number of theories people have for why this is, personally I think it's a reminder to the audience that Tommy for all his similarities isn't Eddie. Like they give us all these signs that say look Eddie and Tommy are so much the same but everytime you hear Tommy say Evan so casually like that you remember they're different.

Eddie who knows the real Buck only ever calls him that and it's only on the rare serious occasion does he use Buck's real name. Maddie is similar. It's like when Ana called Eddie Edmundo. These people have an idea of who Buck and Eddie are but they they don't know all the little intricate pieces that's something Buck and Eddie only have with one another.

So Buck is smiling and laughing (somewhat out of embarrassment for how he behaved on the basketball court) but watch his body language at even the mention of someone replacing him in Eddie's life:

I find it extremely foreshadowing of what's to come with Buddie that the show chose to have Tommy and Buck spend most of the time before their first kiss even right down to the seconds before it talking about Eddie and even talked about him afterwards. I mean if you didn't want your audience shipping a ship or giving them hope it was going to happen would you do that?

Buck not only talks about Eddie before the kiss he talks about how great he is and brings up memories of their past. Almost like someone talking about an ex they're still in love with. Like you're trying to move on but you can't help what your heart wants.

Like I said above I fully believe that when Tommy said "my attention" he knew that Buck is all about Eddie. Buck's response being "I guess" is even more telling because it shows his confusion. I definitely think that when Buck and Tommy break up (or however far they get in their dating) that we'll get some kind of confirmation that Tommy always knew Buck and Eddie were in love.

I think a lot of the stuff Buck talks about in this scene is him trying in the moment to make sense of the confusing way he's been feeling. I do think he's attracted to and likes Tommy but there is also a whole host of other feelings he has that really were the main motivating factors into why he acted the way he did in this episode.

The last time Buck was with someone and there was an I love you it was with Taylor and it was like Buck just went along in that relationship because he felt like he was supposed to. Buck and Eddie are similar in that way. They have this amazing love and bond with one another but there's a reason besides the fact that they're both guys that they keep avoiding really confronting their feelings. They're scared. They're scared to loose what they have. They're scared to change it. They're scared of fucking it up like they believe they have their past relationships. Scared of so many things. So they just kind of side step it at every turn.

The show mentioning Eddie right before the scene ends is one of the biggest indicators that this is all leading to Buddie.

If the episode was really just a misdirect where Buck was really into Tommy all along they wouldn't have made the last scene so Eddie heavy and especially not the last bit of dialogue about Eddie. The last few lines are what you're leaving the audience with until the next episode and the words they left us with are about Eddie (and Buck) so we're meant to focus on them.

If you read all this thank you ❤️. This post took me forever (which would be why it's getting posted a full week after the ep >_< ) please reblog if you like it. Can't wait for the ep tonight.

[leafofkudzu]

Hello and happy endless January! Despite how long this month may have seemed, it is almost over - and that means it's soon time for another art party hosted by my guild, Verdant Shield [VS]! We're taking a little tour of the cozy size of the jungle this time, over at Mabon Market in Caledon!

For those who aren’t familiar with art parties, they’re a concept carried over from Final Fantasy XIV - in-game get-togethers for artists/writers/creatives of all types to hang out, chat, and create together! Get your favorite character/look together, head to the location, find someone that catches your eye, and create! Afterwards, everyone posts their creations in a shared tag (ours is #VSArtParty) so others can see, interact, and share! Tl;dr: the ‘goal’ of an art party isn’t to be drawn, but to draw others, and share with the community!

Time and /squadjoin information is under the cut, but will also be posted again via reblogs as the squads go up on the day of the party!

Location Information:

Caledon Forest is a nice easily-accessible map for everyone, and Mabon Market even has its own dedicated waypoint (that is, Mabon Waypoint)! I imagine we'll kind of scatter out across the market and beach, so don't take my exact location in this screenshot too seriously!

Time & Squad Details:

As we always do, we'll be having two parties - one on EU servers and one on NA ones - with an hour break in between. People tend to arrive early and/or jump between accounts as soon as the break comes up, so don't be surprised to see tags and announcements going up ahead of schedule!

The first party will be on EU servers and begin at 9pm Central European Time (aka 3pm Eastern Standard Time or 4 hours before in-game reset). I’ll be hosting on my EU alt account, so to join either /squadjoin or whisper Aemryn of Dusk for an invite.

The second party will be on NA servers and begin at 7pm Eastern Standard Time (aka 1am Central European Time or at in-game reset). I’ll be hosting this one on my main account, so to join either /squadjoin or whisper Kirslyn for an invite.

Closing Words:

A few days ago some nasty info came to the surface about various GW2 sources being scraped for AI purposes, with tumblr tags specifically being mentioned. Though I certainly wouldn't blame anyone for being discouraged and not wanting to draw at all (even this post was delayed because of it), I think at the end of the day, even if you don't post anything publicly, you still shouldn't deny yourself the company and community of your fellow creatives! If you'd like to make this art party have more of a focus on screenshots, or even just hang out and not draw at all, please feel free - your presence is what makes these parties...well, parties, after all!

If you are still interested in posting your artwork though, please check out Glaze and Nightshade as potential ways to protect yourself (and hurt AI datasets) if you haven't already! And even if you don't do that, make sure to slap signatures/watermarks/etc wherever you can. This may be a disheartening time for us, but it doesn't mean we have to stop doing what we love.

So, whether you're coming to create or just to hang out, I look forward to seeing you all this Saturday. Take care, stay safe, and see you soon! ♥

[artificialstardust]

roommate!ruffilo roommate!ruffilo roommate!ruffilo

just a soft spoken, introverted sweetheart. just wants to watch anime with you and i mean, hey, if you end up cuddling on the couch together oh well. mhm if you fall asleep on him can’t be helped.

personally imo a dream of a roommate — respects boundaries, cleans up after himself, do we think he cooks at all???? on occasion????? mayhaps??? stealing his graphic tees????

(also i want friends who are tattoo artists that’s so sick)

Okay so I’m assuming this is roommate!ruffilo that you’re more than friends with but not dating(?) so I’m going off of that

Roommate Ruffilo is genuinely so sweet. He’d always make you coffee in the morning when he makes his. You’d typically join him on the balcony and enjoy your coffee together while he has a smoke. It’s typically not a surprise if you walk out of your room in the mornings wearing one of his hoodies you stole from him while he was away on tour (you have four or five of them in your closet) and he just smiles and shakes his head when he sees you in them.

He’s pretty quiet for the most part. Your relationship with him is basically black cat and orange cat energy. He’s the shy reserved one, but will always listen and entertain you because you like yapping to him and get bored easily sometimes. He thinks it’s cute listening to you ramble. If you ask if you can braid his hair, he’s saying yes and sitting between your legs on the floor so you can braid it. If you’re outside, he lets you put flowers into the braids.

You typically take turns cooking, occasionally you’ll help each other. If he cooks, you do dishes and vice versa. If you do actually make anything together, is usually dessert. Then you both do dishes (one washing, the other drying and putting them away). Usually on those nights, you’ll sit on the couch together watching a new anime one of you found. It’s not uncommon to find the two of you sitting on the couch with your legs in his lap or one of you cuddled up to the other (he loves to cuddle into you, he thinks you’re soft and warm).

It’s also not uncommon to just lay in bed together if one of you gets bored and wants to just chill with the other. Usually it does end up with the two of you cuddling and showing each other memes you find. Neither of you are surprised if the other falls asleep on them. You’re comfortable with each other.

He ALWAYS asks you if it’s okay if the guys can come over, because the space is just as much yours as it is his. And you give him the same courtesy. If it’s someone you’re both friends with you’d just be like “I’m inviting xxxx over” and you’re both typically chill with it.

On days he knows you’re not feeling good or are just not in the best mood, he’ll leave a small gift bag outside your door with your favorite snack and a singular rose he got from the flower shop to make you feel better. When you say thank you, you end up hugging him longer than usual. He never complains because he loves having you in his arms, but won’t ever admit that to you.

And don’t think he doesn’t steal anything from you, because he does. He will very much steal your hair clips, hair ties, headbands and scrunchies for his own hair. From where he gets lost in drawing or working on something he doesn’t want his hair in the way at all. Especially if he’s cooking. He will casually grab the hair tie off your wrist without saying anything about it if you’re just sitting there watching him so he can tie it back while he cooks.

He also offers to give you tattoos when it’s around your birthday, holidays or just because you’re both bored. You don’t take him up on it 7/10 of the time because you like thinking pieces though, but you do have a couple he has done for you.

Rarely if he’s drunk, he is very cuddly and much more extroverted. He’s laying on you, saying random shit and just giggly. He will just casually mention that he wants to kiss you but forgets he said it the next morning. He falls asleep on you every single time.

One last thing, he can and will scare the shit out of you by jumping out at you from around the corner

[nerdieforpedro]

The Lake Between Us - Part Two

The Solitary Captain’s Circumstances

Ezra AU x plus size OFC (Nickname Moonbeam - has a name in later parts)

This fic is for those 18+ MDNI

Word Count: 945

Warnings: crime, heist, police involved shooting, death, Ezra being cute also disturbed, anxiety, PTSD, alcohol, fire, nightmares, voyeurism,

Notes: We’re continuing to introduce our lovely pair. It’s Ezra side of things. How he got to where he is now and what he may be dealing with. My bad Ezra, he is a very haunted pookie. I left him his other arm so something had to go. 👀 I might be a tad deranged.

Main Masterlist/ Ezra Masterlist/ The Lake Between Us Series

Ezra used to be able to sleep anywhere. It was a necessity of maybe having a life that was outside of the conventions of society. He needed adequate rest to be able to plan, scheme and think. That period of his life is over, he’s had his large paydays and invested the money in his home, his airboat which he does some tours occasionally and in his charge Cee. She was an unforeseen variable at the end of a heist fifteen years ago with her father Damon. The dim-witted sod hadn’t fully grasped the escape plan that was gone over thrice in detail leading to him being on the wrong end of the police’s overzealous shooting. The man’s light was snuffed out in a violent instant.

His death allowed for the crew’s escape and for them to sort out which of their band of scoundrels would care for a wee human of four years old. Arguments ensued so Ezra suggested a completely diplomatic and fair way would be to draw straws. “The smallest straw gets the short stack.” He recalled stating. He always overestimated his luck in these situations and had the shortest straw. Since he had proposed the idea, he couldn’t back out. Thus began his journey with the child Cee.

Things were tenuous at first but they worked out she’s to call him ‘Uncle’ or Mr. Ezra. It worked better in social situations and she became his little ‘Birdie.’ Scaling down the jobs he took on to mitigate risk was a challenge and were worth less but he had to live not only for himself now. The pair moved around some before he enrolled her in school in Louisiana but ensured that he taught her when she came home in the evenings and on the weekends. The child hated the extra lesions, but it enabled her to be leagues ahead of her peers as far as studies went. Ezra was determined not to suffer another fool and would do what he could so that Cee wouldn’t follow in her father’s steps of idiocy. The results of his care, diligence and support was realized at both her high school graduation which he had never imagined attending anyone’s graduation except his own and to travel with his charge to see the college she’d chosen.

Cee was away studying at Columbia University as she’d gotten a full scholarship with room and board on her own merits. Ezra did not have much to hang any pride on as he viewed it a way to a quick death but he couldn’t help but feel well pleased that he’d had some part in her success.

His charge would write and call, which he’d accept, not letting on how happy he was that she’d call. On the last break, Cee visited with her girlfriend Zora and they stayed at his home. The young woman he’d raised expressed concern about the circles under his eyes and his unfocused eyes. Ezra denied her claims stating, “I am fine my sweet Bird. It’s something you’ll encounter when you reach the privilege of middle age Birdie. This weariness of life. I will find my way through it and gallop to the other side.” She shook her head and laughed him off as the three spent time together and Ezra drove them to the airport. It was rare that they embraced but it felt appropriate as he knew it would be a while yet before he saw his little Bird again.

It was roughly a month ago that he first saw the striking vision that was across his lake.

He’s come out to his porch after spraying on some bug repellent. He brought out his whiskey and glass. He had closed his eyes and was confronted with the scars that remained on his soul. He’d long thought that he rationalized them away. It was part of the life he once lived but not now. The still eyes and distorted features that he saw through the fire… “Dammit to hell. The shit’s still there. It was for a reason, there were reasons behind all of it, why must I recall that now?” His fingers massaged his temple as he poured his first glass of the night. He quickly swallowed the alcoholic elixir and peered up at the moon. It was full tonight and dancing across the small waves on the lake’s surface.

A moonbeam. It’s the first thing he thought of when he saw her. She was wearing a white nightgown - if he had to guess cotton with a thin robe about her shoulders that she decided to slip off. That’s a good choice, it’s a bit warm out tonight. Her hair is under a purple bonnet which she removes as well and sets it on top of the robe, both are on the back of her rocking chair. Black voluminous hair fell around her shoulders, it looked pillowy to the touch like the rest of its owner. Her substantial legs carried her to a small table beside her where she lit a candle. The minimal light makes her face glow. He can make out full lips, round cheeks and bright eyes behind her glasses. She eases down into her rocking chair and pours herself a brown liquid that looks similar to his and orange juice maybe? Well she could be one for mixed drinks. He wonders why she would be up at this ungodly hour drinking? She couldn’t have similar demons to him could she? Maybe some unknown or known fears? Could she be separating herself from someone inside the home?

Ezra is left with many questions and no answers. This does not please him.

Part One Part Three

Taste-testers of Ezra’s gumbo 🍤: @rav3n-pascal22 @maggiemayhemnj @morallyinept @survivingandenduring @bonezone44 @magpiepillsjunior @yorksgirl @gemmahale @missredherring @missladym1981 @alltheglitterandtheroar @megamindsecretlair @readingiskeepingmegoing @pedroshotwifey @tinytinymenace @inept-the-magnificent @vivian-pascal

[suzakisbbygirl]

“I miss you…”

Pairing: Hyunjin x gn!reader

Warnings: mentions of loneliness, slight angst, crying, mentions of food (snacks), happy ending, fluffy fluff

Word count: 1.5k

AN: I’ve had a few drabbles in my drafts that I have been meaning to post, so here’s another one for the night… I hope everyone is well, and that everyone is happy :)

Much love ~ember

~~~~~~~~~~

Dating an idol is hard. You knew this going into the relationship, but you couldn’t resist him. Hyunjin stole your heart. When the two of you met, you only saw him as a friend, but he knew from the first time he laid eyes on you, he wanted to be with you. After some time, getting to know Hyunjin and spending quality time with him, you couldn't help but fall for him. His personality, how passionate he gets, learning a new dance or showing you his drawings, his heart of gold. Everything about him captivated you over time, and you realized that he is the man of your dreams.

The two of you have only been together for a little over a year, yet the relationship is still hard for the both of you. Between Hyunjins schedules, and your own work life, times are busy, but the two of you manage to make things work. Of course, there are still times that the two of you miss each other, but being together, no matter the difficulties, is better than not being together at all. The love that is shared between the two of you overtakes any feelings of doubt or loneliness. A relationship that works for the two of you. One that always has. One that will always be.

Regardless, there are still times when you miss each other. With Stray Kids’ comeback, Hyunjin has been busier than normal, and he has been more exhausted. Typically the two of you call every night before falling asleep, or he shows up at your door to spend the night, but even that is beginning to slow down. Knowing Hyunjin and his schedules, you were not terribly worried about the relationship overall, but you couldn’t ignore the loneliness that you feel.

After another night without a call, and without seeing Hyunjin, you found yourself sitting outside looking at the stars, something that you do often when you don’t feel right. For some reason, looking at the night sky has always brought you an immense feeling of comfort, but tonight was different. Looking at the stars, you began crying. Everything reminding you of him. You have been bottling up your emotions for the last few weeks, saying that everything will pass soon and things will go back to normal. But seeing the stars, thinking about the dates Hyunjin has taken you on to the most beautiful places, and looking at the stars together, everything surfaced, and you could contain the sadness that you feel anymore.

After two hours of looking at the stars, and thinking about Hyunjin, you finally decide to retire to your bed for the night. When you wake up in the morning, you see the typical good morning text from Hyunjin, followed by an apology for not talking the previous night. Not wanting him to worry, you reassure him that you understand, and that everything is okay. The last thing you wanted is to worry Hyunjin, on top of the stress that he is already under with the comeback. You knew that if he worried about you, he would drop everything to see you. It was something that you loved about him, but you also knew that it was something that he couldn’t afford to do.

Before you know it, the tour arrives. You had seen Hyunjin occasionally throughout this time, but not nearly as much as either of you would like. He knew that you were upset, whether you told him or not. He knows you better than you know yourself, yet you still assured him that you were fine, and that he wasn’t going to lose you. The day Hyunjin left for tour, you went to the studio to see him, and the others off. Both of you attempting to hide the sadness that you feel. Trying to contain the tears that are stinging your eyes, threatening to fall down your cheeks. There is no doubt that Hyunjin could see how proud you are of him, but he could also see the sadness hiding in your eyes. Reading your emotions through your eyes was something that only he could do, and he was never wrong.

Before stepping on the bus, he wrapped you into a hug, and held you for as long as he could, making it harder for you to contain your tears.

“I'll be back in no time my love, and I'll call you every chance I get, and text you as much as possible.” He said, failing to contain his tears. “I love you. So much. I can’t even explain it. I love you.”

His rambling makes you giggle slightly, but that still didn't cover up your sniffles.

“I love you too, Jinnie. I'll be waiting for you to get back. Please don’t stress yourself out too much. I hope you have a great time.” Was all you could say before the tears threatened to spill over.

No matter how long the two of you have been together, seeing him leave never gets easier. Driving home, you cried the entire way. It’s not like you would never see him again, you know that he is always safe when he travels, and that there would be plenty of security around all of the guys, but you felt like part of you was lost when he was gone.

The next few weeks were hard. Hyunjin made every effort to talk to you, and regardless of the time difference, you would wait for him. Hearing his voice brought you a sense of comfort. Seeing his texts made your heart race. But even still, there was nothing that you wanted more than to be with him. Experiencing the things that make him happy, and making new memories together.

“I miss you so much, (y/n). I can’t wait to see you.” His sweet voice eased you and brought you comfort.

“I miss you too, but I'll see you soon. Can’t leave STAY behind, they need you too.” You reassured him, knowing that STAY would hate if he wasn't there.

Talking throughout the night, things felt normal again, even though he was so far physically, it was like he was just down the street. Still, you couldn’t wait till you could hold him again. The calls while he is gone were what gave you motivation to continue through your days like normal. The timing of the calls may be different, but it was still something that felt normal, in a relationship that was anything but that.

Creating a schedule of talking to Hyunjin at obscure times, things became easier. The loneliness that the two of you feel was alleviated with phone calls and texting, but it still was not the same as cuddling together watching a movie, or looking at the stars, or even silently hanging out together while he worked on a new drawing, and you read a new book.

Returning home from work, you get a rather uneasy feeling. Not that something bad was going to happen, rather something unexpected. Walking into your house, still full of suspicion, you enter rather cautiously. Seeing that everything seems normal, you proceed as you typically would. Entering your kitchen for a snack, your suspicious feeling is answered.

There he is. The love of your life. Standing in your kitchen with a bouquet of your favorite flowers, and an arrangement of your favorite snacks.

Stunned, you freeze, trying to process the sight in front of you. Finally letting all of the thoughts and emotions settle in, you run to Hyunjin, jumping into his arms. Tears streaming down your face. Unable to say anything, the two of you stood in the kitchen in each other's embrace. Slight sniffles coming from both of you.

“I know I haven’t been around much lately. I’m sorry (y/n).” Still unable to talk, all you could do was shake your head, yet he continued.

“I’m sorry I have been so busy. I've been a terrible boyfriend. I should have spent more time with you before I left, I should have bought you more flowers, because you deserve all of the flowers in the wo……” His rambling is cut off by you pressing your lips to his.

“You are the greatest boyfriend, and I happen to be the luckiest person alive. I love you Jinnie. We knew that this relationship would be hard, but it’s worth it if I get to call you mine.” Your words calming him down, and reassuring him that the two of you were as strong as ever. Reassuring that he still gets to call you his. Reassuring him that you aren’t leaving him. He was overwhelmed with happiness, and joy. Embracing you, he was at a loss for words. Both of you were. Not wanting to let go, the two of you stood in the kitchen, simply enjoying each other's presence.

Finally returning to reality, Hyunjin grabbed your hand and led you outside to the back yard. As if the night couldn’t get better, there in the yard was a romantic picnic set up. A soft blanket, fairy lights, hanging in the trees, your favorite foods, pillows, even your favorite candles. Everything about it was impeccable, but what made it perfect was enjoying the moment with Hyunjin. It was perfect. He was perfect. There was nothing that could make the night more perfect. Your hearts are full of love. The love you could never have imagined would be yours, right in front of you.

[deweydecimalduck]

Thanks @0sharisa0 for tagging me!

Are you named after someone?

No, my mom just liked the name and that’s how I came to be called Agnieszka.

When was the last time you cried?

Today when I, for some reason, accidentally kicked a chair and writhed in agony, crying.

Do you have kids?

I do not.

What sports do you play/have you played?

Volleyball because that’s pretty much all you do during PE lessons in Polish schools. I also did climbing for a year or so, but I had to give it up because I didn’t have time for it. I might come back to it someday, who knows.

Do you use sarcasm?

I try to refrain from using sarcasm when I am with people that either don’t get it or find it rude, but in general I usually do.

What is the first thing you notice about people?

Maybe the sound of their voice? I don’t know.

What's your eye color?

Green

Scary movies or happy endings?

Happy endings! But I also do not mind not-happy endings!

Any talents?

I can edit videos, learn languages, draw, and I’m also said to have pretty handwriting.

Where were you born?

In Małopolska, Poland.

What are your hobbies?

Reading books (especially 19th century novels, fantasy, and history books), making DuckTales music videos, drawing, playing the piano (albeit terribly), writing (said she who has not written a single thing in six years), watching cartoons and musicals.

Do you have any pets?

No, currently not, but I used to have a cat!

How tall are you?

158 cm

Hold on, let me convert that to feet.

There you go!

Favorite subject in school?

Math, English (as a foreign language), German (as a foreign language as well), and history. And when it comes to the subjects I currently have at university, then probably all those that are connected with history.

Dream job?

I would probably like to work as a translator and/or a tour-guide.

Tag 15 friends

I don’t think I have that many friends, but I will tag people that I find cool and that I would like to be friends with!

@georgiarose @writebackatya @hueberryshortcake @justaboot @godfrey-the-chaos-duck @queer-in-a-cornfield @gyroinabirdcage @glomscrooge @boingodigitalart

[kyotakumrau]

2024.02.16-17 sukekiyo at Kyoto Gekijo

I really wanted to write about each show separately but then the 17th was filled with too many exciting things and there was no time. So I'll try about them together. And because of the setlists it also feels like they both belong together anyway.

2.16 The first day flow felt like the young idol started bright and excited, innocent, but then fell, experiencing the dirty side of love and people, but wanted to find love somehow anyway. And it finished with 呼吸・kokyuu...

As the BGM they are playing another movie (sound only).

5 minutes to and then at 6:30 the theatre buzzer sounded to signal the start of the show.

They had the usual see through screen in front of the stage (always done for the seated shows). sukekiyo and the tour name appeared as the snow was softly falling in the dark. At the same time band members walked on the stage, Takumi first, followed by Yuchi and Mika, then utA and Kyo last.

And Takumi started the piano melody of Margaret. It's so nice that they again chose to start with the last song from the previous tour, like they're creating a connection between then and now.

The stage was mostly their normal setting, but Kyo's stand had a dark bouquet laying in the middle of the table, I'm pretty sure it was the one with the doll in it that he shared in his Instagram story. There was also a high chair on the right side of his stand, right next to it.

And a new addition were big light bulbs hanging on wires over the stage, one over each band member hanging lower and four more a bit higher, nine in total. When グロス・Gloss started they lit up but dimmed when song got quieter.

During 愛した心臓・Aishita shinzo Kyo was dancing, he also came close the screen stretching his arm towards audience. (but I'm always unsure how much they can see from the other side because of how the light works on the screen), he crouched when dancing. Kyo was very dancey, utA as well (I was sitting on utA's side that night, aisle seat though).

They all wore outfits from their last artist photos. utA's hair was more standing, full 90s visual kei style. Kyo changed his look having a very different hairstyle. Because he shaved his head to get a new tattoo in January his hair is still very short, like in Citta he glued things on though, for sukekiyo he had two thin pink braids, one on each side, styled in a way they created two rings. And he had the porcelain doll effect make up, shiny face with drawn eyebrows, dark eye make up and full lips. The back of his dress is quite open so we could see his tattooed back. And he wore pink tabi boots to complete the look. (you can check those tweets 1️⃣ 2️⃣ to see fans drawings of him, just pls don't repost)

Both Candis and Valentina were quite fun with the pen lights. And this part had a lot of dancey songs that even come with set dance moves... But since it was a seated show it was only Kyo dancing, with other band members rocking and jumping as well, fans had to endure and stay in their seats😂

With 口に林檎・kuchi ni ringo the stage went darker and Kyo was lit up by his mic stand's pink light. aftermath followed with the soft dark mood in the venue and the video on the screen. Some of the autumn temple has been edited and changed to pink cherry blossoms with petals scattering. Kyo sang standing by his mic stand, illuminated in pink.

And after the song ended Takumi played the piano melody that starts the session. Kyo softly walked towards the chair and sat with one leg over the other, very dignified, like a film noir singer or a diva. A black clothed staff member walked on the stage from the left side holding a make up case and started to 'do' Kyo's make up. He patted Kyo's face with a towel, he then used a sponge and a brush, then 'did' Kyo's lips. I don't think he actually changed anything but it was a part of the performance. Kyo stayed seated almost motionless through the whole process.

Then Kyo softly got up and walked to his mic stand, the session continued as Kyo joined singing. The cheerful idol from the start of the concert was gone by now, the innocence lost. The want, the hurt, the darker feelings took place to create someone new.

訪問者X・HomonshaX had Kyo dancing like a bug, very different from the way he danced as a cute idol.

It felt to me that the lights towards the end of the performance were changing between red - fiery, angry and strong - and blue - calmer and sadder, to me it felt like there was a battle of various emotions inside of our heroine. I aways have a ton of respect for Mika who is creating the visualisations for the shows. Like during 変わってくれませんでしょうか・kawattekuremasendeshouka? when the front screen is very simple and the sides are dark with water falling over Kyo in the middle as the rain is supposed to wash everything away.

During 夢見ドロ・Yumemidoro Kyo was dancing more seductively, even wrapped his leg around the mic stand, baring it to the people. During Scarlet Kyo was pointing his lips with his index finger, 'I want you to kiss me'. Even broken things want to find love.

And at the end the acceptance came and resignation. Ending with 呼吸・kokyu had many people crying, if they were not crying by then anyway.

At the end Kyo slowly turned and left the stage. The end credits started on the screen, the audience was clapping as the rest of the band members slowly left as well. But many people kept crying even then (yours truly included).

But we did get the Gion Matsuri tour announced! 4 days at Kyoto MUSE! I wonder how many people will manage to hit all tickets on one account... I'll try😂

2.17

One more thing that was different was Kyo's stand, on the second day there were no flowers there. So I guess it was a present for his birthday?

The setlist flow was was different on this day. They started with 訪問者X・homonshaX and Kyo's bug dance. He was also pointing at the audience as he sang.

During グロス・Gloss the light bulbs lit up again. There was one moment when Kyo made a movement raising his arms like he wanted to catch his light bulp between his hands.

The video for The Hole had a mix of colours and Kyo was dancing. He definitely had more of a seductress in his movements on the second night. He stretched one arm and moved the other with the music and switched them. The idol songs following felt quite different because of the way they started the set and the mood.

After aftermath the staff came again to 'do' Kyo's make up and it was followed up with a session. At the end the stage was quite dark with a simple spotlight on Kyo.

With 論外な生き物として・rongaina ikimono toshite I love how the song switches from soft to heavy, from Kyo carresing the mic stand softly to him headbanging.

And the hair set he had made it kinda interesting for headbanging 😆 he had thin pink braids glued to his hair again, this time the loops were shorter so the end of the brace was behind the loops. So they bounced when Kyo moved. He wore a cropped black top with puffy sleeves and strands of pearls over it. Flowy pleated black skirt and again pink tabi boots. Make up was very similar to the first night. (fan's drawing)

The rest of the band members had different outfits too. utA again had a very classic v-kei outfit, this time his hair was styled to the right side. Takumi had a long white collar outfit. Mika I couldn't see, from my seat Mika was obstructed by Kyo's iPad stand 😅 Yuchi had a sleeveless Nike top with long gloves, he changed his hair style too to add more braids.

I can't play any instruments and I don't have especially trained ears, but I'm always impressed with the sound quality at sukekiyo shows as well. I can cearly hear all instruments and they create this amazing harmony together. And I also enjoy the fact that band members use different instruments for some songs (like aftermath). I could hear the wonderful bass promised by Yuchi, Mika's powerful drums, utA's guitar, especially during solos, Takumi's piano and guitars. And Kyo's voice. 🖤

For ただ、まだ、私。・tada, mada, watashi. there was no visualisation on the screen, so it looked like there was no screen besides a bit of a smoke by the floor. There was light coming from the back of the stage and very lightly the band members silhouettes appeared above the stage. And because of this the stage appeared to be very deep.

I liked the flow of the last part of the setlist, it didn't feel as gut wrenching as the first night.

The end credits started aready during Margaret and Kyo calmly left as soon as the song ended. The rest of the band followed as fans started to give applause.

I'm so curious what we will see in Tokyo. Only one more performance left.

[lightandfellowship]

Are there any worlds or Disney stories that you would have liked to see in Dark Road? Or any headcanons for worlds Xehanort went to (after the main story)?

I think Castle of Dreams would have been a really great world for a Vor and Vidar side-story.

Why Castle of Dreams? For one, all the Disney worlds in KHDR are reused from KHUX. Realistically, that's the only pool you can draw from when thinking about Disney worlds that "could have been", because otherwise the artists on the game would've had to make completely new assets and, well, KHDR is pretty much KHUX Reused Assets: The Video Game. All the KHUX Disney worlds not featured in KHDR would work fine in the game apart from Wreck-it-Ralph since it's a special world.

Actually, I just realized Castle of Dreams is the only non-WiR Disney world from KHUX that didn't make it into KHDR. So I guess Castle of Dreams is the only reasonable choice, lol.

Two, I feel like Castle of Dreams would work well thematically with Vor and Vidar in a variety of ways. Though I don't know if I'll ever finish that fic with them I wanted to make (probably not), perhaps I'll try to create short comics of some small moments I had in mind for them instead. I can better talk about and illustrate my ideas for this world then.

As for Xehanort post-KHDR, I'd probably be more willing to draw from non-KHUX worlds since KHDR doesn't really cover that time period much, anyway. I can just imagine this theoretical KHDR sequel in my mind that doesn't rely so heavily on reused assets. Xehanort's conversation with the MoM suggests that he must've seen some pretty messed up stuff involving darkness on his "world tour", so I'd probably go for Disney properties that are like...a bit darker or more tragic than Disney's usual fare? Stuff that you'd look at and go, "Yeah, makes sense why Xehanort ended up like this."

The question then becomes, what properties? Maybe stuff like:

Bambi: Xehanort's relationship (or lack thereof) to his mother could make witnessing Bambi's mother die to hunters be pretty upsetting. Much like Xehanort, Bambi was also the descendant of a noble bloodline and was expected to do great things when he was older.

The Fox and the Hound: Involves two unlikely friends becoming each other's enemies because of who they are and what they're expected to be, so that could remind him of his relationship with Eraqus, and make him question what the future has in store for them (and Xehanort does call Eraqus a "sly fox" on multiple ocassions).

Hunchback of Notre Dame: We've only ever seen it as a Sleeping World, so we have no idea when exactly the movie's plot occurs during the course of the Kingdom Hearts series. There are plenty of comparisons to draw between Xehanort and Quasi: tragically separated from their mother, raised by someone else, forced to live in isolation away from people and the greater world, has "imaginary" friends, desires freedom, is made to feel like an outcast, etc. Quasi could make Xehanort reflect on his childhood in Destiny Islands and Scala, but in a far more negative light that ends up tainting his perception of it.

Thanks for the interesting question, Starlight!

[polteergeistt]

Vessel runs around in the woods and howls. It's canon. I know. I have visions.

One day he dragged the others in this too and they thought it was weird at first but they didn't want to offend him so they tried and turns out it's really fun so now there are 4 masked cryptid guys running around and howling in english forests.

I also like to imagine them playing by a river and splashing each other and looking for pretty rocks (III got the most prettiest rocks. He's a natural at this.). I also like to imagine II crawling and climbing on a fallen tree or a low thick branch on all fours and settling on it like a panther. IV likes to climb too but he wants to go really high and sometimes scare the shit out of the others but he's fine he's a big boy.

And then when they're tired they find a patch of comfy grass or moss and lie down together (as the gods abandon the heavens to find them, you know the drill). They just lay flat on their back with their hands under their head or they cuddle and use each other as pillows. They make crowns out of random plants. Sometimes, they chose someone who will be some sort of canvas and the others will pick up things and arrange them on him and make him look pretty. When Vessel is the chosen one, he gets daisies on his nipples.

I feel like they would do Land art. For those who don't know, land art is basically art with natural items. It's usually done on the ground. It could be rocks arranged in a certain manner to form a drawing or something with plants and sticks. I imagine they would do their logo, like some kind of offering to Sleep, or marking their territory. They see that their runes scare the locals and make them come up with crazy conspiracy theories and they laugh at them. I feel like IV is more the kind of guy to do a sculpture out of sticks. II makes fragile towers of pebbles and rocks. III obviously does things with flowers (mostly crowns) because he's a flower boy. Vessel plays around with moss mostly.

Vessel : moss boy

II : rock boy

III : flower boy

IV : stick boy

And yes, I know, I said that III was the one who finds the prettiest rocks. It's true. But those rocks are mostly fit for decoration and not construction. He does give some of his little treasures to II rocks for his towers. As the prettiest and most special ones, they belong at the top of the towers. And II offers III flowers as well. They all kinda find good stuff for each other.

Now that I think about it, it would be more logical for II to be the stick boy because he's the drummer. But he still likes rocks and he has a patience monumental, which us greatly needed when making rock towers. It requires a willpower and self-control that he masters to perfection and he feels really proud of himself afterwards. And IV likes sticks because he can make 3D stuff easily, with a bit or string and imagination.

And of course, all of their creations come together. They end up making villages for fairies, when in reality their inhabited by bugs and small mammals. It's nice to dream sometimes. They are also offerings to Sleep as I mentioned earlier. At the end of the day, it's just a nice way to spend time together and unwind after an overwhelming tour or a random date just because.

This is what being seen by my fav writer and by other ppl obsessed with this band like me does to me <3 i love this fandom to death so take care of yourself, yeah ? Go hang out in the woods, it's always nice.

Worship <3

[delicatebluebirdruins]

Lockwood & co 5-8

part one, and with the colours same rules apply. link to my thoughts/ reactions to the first two books

episode 5: not to repeat myself but i want a set tour so bad

"nothing we can't handle together" Lockwood is great

I love Lockwood's little recoil when Lucy tells him "to make an effort"

roleplay version 2. I love the little movements on Lockwoods face when he saw Danny's body. missing scene (sort of) does Barnes ever find out who the body is? and that Danny was someone Lockwood knew?

talking about Flo and then meeting her at night. inbetween: what was happening? what were they doing?

the way "her" was said and Lockwood yelling "run"

book quote "Flo Bones annoyed me" came through loud and clear. I love Lockwood's face watching Flo and Lucy bicker.

Sugar count: 6/7 I think

I love Flo noting the buttered toast exchange (makes what she says later on so much better.) random note: what's on the board

I actually really like the design for Joplins flat and this conversations with her

"incase anyone misses me. unlikely..." poor George

missing scene: they should have had a Winkman thug killed by the mirror which was partially why they wanted to get rid of it so quickly

love breaking and entering, and there being so many things in the warehouse

scene: I hope Leo gets to be a little shit like he is in the book (though i do love Lockwood and Lucy are so sweet when talking to him)... George is not doing well is he? (so glad they showed us this)

Poor Lockwood but he is so funny talking to Winkman

Lucy: "my friend is really hurting"

Winkman "is she a friend? is she family?" good questions the answer is yes and more

still don't know why Lockwood poured the brown bottle onto the floor. Love this small confrontation between Lockwood and Lucy and poor George was so worried about them.

I love this bit with Carver final words being "come with me" is so eerie

episode 6

such a ritual to prevent ghosts (the salt and light is pretty)

again Barnes cares for them in his own way. I love how nervous Lockwood was watching Lucy think before answering Barnes. and I love the little insights we get into how Barnes works and his thoughts on them as a trio.

I love Lockwood and George showing their anxiety waiting for Lucy then going after her (random thought chalk would be great make arrows on the ground or wall showing which way she went)

should have been added: the boneglass ghosts asking for their bones back. It would have added to the emotional moment of freeing them at the end.

the lockwood slide hand hold I love the umbrella stand of swords

hello Flo. I love this moment between Lockwood and Flo the shared history, the history of the house still being present and her talking about Lucy. Also George calling Lockwood "Locky" and him being all smiley at George and Flo getting along to him going "only one person in the world can call me Locky"

also I think there is a piano in the background and I need someone to play it (go tomorrow from Hill House specifically no idea why but you know)

I love the bit with Kipps honestly. And how emotional they made the gift of the necklace (in the book it was like a paragraph) and him fishing for what's on her mind after seeing the talk with Kipps.

just noticed the map George draws has Lockwood written on the other side

the relic collumns are gorgeous and i love the delivery of "famous legacy" so much. this chat is so funny

I get the impression that they changed Penelope Fitters to daughter of Marissa instead of granddaughter is a good change (05/01/23 I say this as I have not read Empty Grave yet so it might change). and i love the "you feel safe with him. Mr Lockwood" and Lucy fiddles with the necklace.

I love the bit in the library them leaving evidence that someone was in there and it being spotted (and them fleeing the party is so pretty)

episode 7

random note: where did Lockwood put the book? and if it was in his pocket the entire time how did it not get soaked?

love the way they hide. and love Cutter.

"you were petrified at the thought of me leaving you" i always think of this entire scene and then think of Steve Crains quote about walls at the end of Hill House "I thought that wall kept the both of us safe, but walls don't work that way"

thought: someone had to get killed when covering the mirror right

I love the chat between Flo and George.

I love Lockwood's smile at Winkman as he steals the Sources.

Love the look between Lockwood and Cutter and the music and how how differently Lockwood and Lucy handle everything

the Golden Blade is so cool but such a jackass.

love the musical transition from "you, me and herons" to cruel world. and the shove

episode 8

Love the sopping wet look. and this bit between the two (imagine if Lucy told Lockwood what Penelope said to her at some point)

"don't give up on us... don't give up on me"

I love them reading the book together

Love the skull. and Lucy blaming herself and them leaving with "For George. For George"

I love this bit with Kipps

Joplin is so manipulative and plays on George's curiousity so well

love this chat with skull telling Lucy how best to use the boneglass

just reckless enough + completely necessary touch = love them

I love this "parade of Fittes agents" and the hype speech "lets bury them"

Not to let my resident evil brain rot come up but this bit with Winkman reminds me so much of Jack Baker it's insane

I love the fight with the thugs and searching the catacombs with commentary from the Skull

Love the reveal of Joplin being a bad guy

"scrubber girlfriend"

I love Lucy and looking into the boneglass with the skull

Poor Kipps is freaking out this entire time. Lockwood looking like how he feels

the frozen Lockwood bit in the boneglass visions could this be a reference to a certain walk he and Lucy go on in the Creeping Shadow

"you set them free" I really wish they kept the bone glass ghosts request.

I love Lockwood saving Lucy and George and collapsing to his knees

I love how long they made the ride to the surface feel

I love Barnes (George or Lucy should have got a pat on the shoulder maybe)

and the actor for Kipps did his scene talking about his Talent fading deserves praise as I love it so much

and I love Penelope Fittes and the golden blade

imagine: how Norrie's parents feel if they listen to Lucy's messages for her

"George turned out to be a bit of hero" love it

narration: when Lucy talks about herself it's a little weird and doesn't quite work as it should on rewatch

Love this end between them all. George getting excited over a mystery and Lockwood needing to recover and the shoving of donut into George's mouth to shut him

ending: I wish we saw a little of the inside of the room and just see the look on their faces as they see what lays inside.

random thoughts that didn't fit anywhere else they could have had Lockwoods sunglasses and could have worked in the toy mobile scene not in this season but maybe future seasons (you know if we had any)

[livewireprojects]

This took a little too long & I've also been having multiple days were I've felt too exhausted to get onto my laptop to post this. Sorry about that.

-

I was commissioned by my friend @tay-likes-toons to make this for their rewrite/reimagening(LINK) of their fanfic(LINK) Your Favorite Martian the movie which was a fic made with the help of an RP we did to likely get some inspiration for some stuff.

The fic was meant to take place after the final episode of Your Favorite Martian the series were Puff risked house arrest(well he had to stay close if not fully in the tour bus) to have a date night with Tig. In YFM the movie Puff was able to get with Tig after getting out of jail but an incident led to their divorce & Puff living a miserable life in a run down house. At some point Puff meets a fan of the band at a bar he regularly goes to, in an attempt to show off/woo her he convinces her to travel with him to get the band back together. There does seem to be a problem though, the band split up when he went to jail so he has to go searching for them as they have moved on & got their own lives. Another issue is a mysterious person that seems to have plans for them.

The rewrite has been changed some, instead of being after the house arrest episode Puff gets arrested for drunk driving & causing some serious issues. The band broke up & left having had serious issues/life changing of their own at the time of Puff's arrest. Years later Puff is a drunk that misses the good days & his marriage is on the rocks thanks to becoming strained due to Puff becoming disillusioned. Everything seems to turn around when he meets Dimentia, a fan of his that he by chance met at a bar. She leads to Puff deciding to get the band back together to impress her(along with wanting his old life back) leading to the two going on an adventure to find the other band members who have moved on & try to convince them to come back. As they travel around & see what Deejay, Axel & Benatar are up to someone seems to have dark plans for the band.

Vincent asked me to draw everyone in the art style of gen 2/reboot YFM, it was tough but I finally got everything setup. A lot has changed since I last drew everyone, Dimentia while mostly the same as ever has had a big design change.(Link1 & Link2 to old refs)

I'm making this a little too long so I'll put some stuff under a keep reading & put the bios in posts meant to be splitting everyone up into groups. There's some extras under keep reading so hope you like it.

Links to cropped vers:

Puff & Dimentia | Deejay & his family | Benatar, Axel & their kids

This started out as wanting to make a second pic of Benatar & Axel without the apron & Axel off the clock, in the end this ended up just an extras section for some stuff I wanted to draw & alt outfits.

Left to right

Dimentia: This is an update of her original design for the original version of YFM the movie. This is a mix of a Kisekae version of her meant to be a ref & the design I sketched at some point.

Benatar: Exactly what it says, just a better look at him without the apron on

Axel: Axel off the clock with his hair untied & his favorite hat on. His daughter put a sticker on & he likes it cause it makes him think of Nicki.(She also put the drum sticker on his clipboard)

Pixie: This is the very first version of Pixel, Pixie was an OC Vincent made to pair with Deejay. It's also at this moment of typing that I realize I forgot her tights that have holes in them & I can't do anything about that.(Well I could with some editing) Link to reference pic of Pixie, link to sketches I made of past designs for Pixel.

"Original" Pixel: This is a design that was going to be Pixel's design for the original YFM the Movie, he's meant to be pastel goth. There were other designs that I drew them in in the past but the designs are too detailed in certain parts to try & the design refs were lost to time, in fact I remember checking something & the description mentions I had a fit over dealing with all the details. I guess you could say this is the most recent version of the design I guess.

Club outfit Pixel: This is an alt outfit for the current version of Pixel, for the club they work at with Deejay

YFM Watcher: He's not really suppose to be here I just wanted to try drawing him in gen 2's art style.

[nayialovecat]

The Ink Demonth 2023 - Day 26. Demon

Day 26. Demon Crossover: The Owl House You're wrong, Luz. This is Earth. Just a very, very strange and specific piece of Earth. Yes, this is the exit door from BATIM. Now you know why there was such a strange light coming from them X"D

It was even fun to draw, although I was very hesitant to do it, which became even more intense just before colouring (which I will tell you about in a moment). The premise was that Luz opened a portal to the Workshop during her attempts to recreate the Portal Doors - this is the period in which King was searching for his father (and didn't know who he was). By the way, this also explains how Bendy managed to get out of the Studio, breaking the curse, and went on his tour around the multiverse :D

And now it will be less fun. I've had a really bad panic attack and anxiety in the last twenty-four hours - and for a while I didn't want to post anything else. Never. And it all started with a short exchange of comments under picture Day 23. Contraband on dA (screenshot here). It doesn't seem like anything (I tried to make it a joke, but then they blocked me), but I checked this person's account and discovered that they were publishing other people's works there (mainly from Twitter and Pinteres). I don't know if it was with their consent, but it seems to me that if they have consent to it, they should still include information about the original author of the work in the description of the image (I'm not even saying that it would be perfect to provide a link to the original work), and this is not the case does. If it weren't for the fact that some of the works have watermarks or signatures of the original authors, you might think that the guy draws themself - nowhere does they state that this is the case, but they comments on the pictures as if they were their author. Plus as I said earlier, they blocked me before i could ask about these (probably stolen) arts. Why did it make me anxious and paranoid? Well, 'cause I am very, very afraid of my works being stolen. I'm not very popular, so there's little chance of this happening - and I usually don't remember such things happening. Sometimes I feel anxiety when I find my arts on Pinterest or strange websites with pictures - I didn't give permission for that. This person, however, reminded me of it with their indignation that how do I have the right not to have a picture of Owl House when the search engine returned it as Owl House. As I say, I was ready to give up further work not only on Ink Demonth (especially since, as you can see, this entry is about Owl House, on which that person clearly has an unhealthy fixation), but also any work that I had post on dA or tumblr. I blocked them on dA, but cannot block myself for them in the whole internet, right? First of all, my paranoia resulted in me blocking the visibility of my tumblr for people who are not logged in, I'm also trying to do something like that for dA, but I don't think it's possible. I don't know where I'll end up with my paranoia - but my friends have made a lot of effort to convince me that everything is ok. Finally, I decided to post this picture and I'll probably upload other Ink Demonth entries at last. I hope I won't regret it :c But I'm afraid and I don't know if after finishing the Ink Demonth challenge I won't give up (for some time or forever) publishing my drawings on the Internet. I wanted you to know. It's bad. My anxiety doesn't necessarily make sense - but it has huge consequences.

My paranoia brought another bad thing. Although I really liked the show The Owl House and was looking forward to the translation and dubbing of the next season in my country (the one that takes place on Earth) - I'm not waiting for it anymore. To be honest, I'm sick of it and feel anxious just looking at the characters of the show. Here look, how can a bad fandom ruin even the coolest thing :/ Someone will say that I am exaggerating. YES I KNOW. But that's how my fucked up, full of illnes mind works and I have no influence on it.

I didn't want such a monologue under this art. I wanted to write here which characters I like and who I'm shipping with whom - but right now... well. No. Sorry.

I just want to have the joy of creating again…

Bendy and the Ink Machine (c) Joey Drew Studios Inc. The Owl House (c) Dana Terrace Sammy and the Ink Machine (c) Nayia Lovecat

[caralara]

I know Louis' your fave so I hope it's okay that I send you this. But recently the blinkers have been coming off for me in regards to Louis. I think I used to have him up on a bit of a pedestal. I just thought he was this really intelligent guy, really aware of social issues and willing to fight for the right thing and be rebellious when necessary. I don't know. I saw things playing out very differently. But unfortunately, lately, I've been seeing a lot of laziness and complacency and a willingness to settle from him. A lot of contradictions as well. Like he gets the anarchist symbol tattooed but doesn't speak out or place his support behind anything substantial. I'm sorry, legalizing weed is his most political stance. And then being seen with the Starbucks cup and actually covering it in the video like lmao. Not knowing what number year your festival is when he supposedly had big dreams for it. I know this is so small but it irks me that he's been going on about playing the guitar for years. And he is yet to bring it on stage for even one song! I know it comes from a place of self-doubt and insecurity no matter how confident he makes himself appear but like he just doesn't help himself. And fans exaggerating and praising every little thing he does as if he isn't just some basic white man does my head in. Sorry I word vomited on you and I know this sounds harsh but I acknowledge it comes from a bitter place where I feel like his potential is just not being met. At the end it's his life and I genuinely hope he doesn't have many regrets later on.

hi babe

I think I am completely in the same situation as you! I might not be triggered by exactly the same things but I’ve been going over and over it for the last couple days asking myself why I’m so annoyed with him right now?? And I think it really is just the disappointment finding out your fave man is after all, just a man.

Like, to me, it feels like he’s been stagnant since early 2023. right now, to me it feels like he’s just on the hunt for the cheap thrill, getting the validation in that he also can pull massive crowds of screaming girls just like he did during 1D (and it isn’t even the actual validation he’s looking for??? Like he still starts yapping every time a man validates him as if it’s so much more important??)

I feel like he lost focus, or energy, or both. You know, you said it!! You know I love Louis to death, he’s my favourite, and genuinely, I don’t blame him. It makes a lot of sense to me. He’s finally proven himself to not be a flop to all the people doubting him. He’s overcome all the obstacles, did LTWT and had massive success with it, way beyond anyone expected, rode that wave, made a second album that proved he’s not a one hit wonder either, an album he actually enjoyed making, and proved his fans liked it, too. And then… it just kind of stagnated. His team made mistakes and miscalculations. Announcing Asia tour so short notice thinking, then cancelling bc it didn’t sell out, handling the announcements horribly, not realising LTWT was massive bc of all the pent up excitement and desire throughout years of a pandemic, the magnetism of it being the first solo world tour. They also didn’t get it when it came to Milano Summer fest vs. AFHF. The 35k sold out bc it was announced many months in advance and it was the last LTWT show - that’s meaningful to fans. It was easily accessible. You can’t translate just the numbers to „it’s bc he’s popular in Italy,“ there’s so many factors at play they ignored, and therefore AFHF Italy only sold 2/3 of tickets, and a lot of these people didn’t even show up (couldn’t, I better say).

For me, FITF felt like he had checked out a little. He’s plateauing. The excitement and irresistible draw he has is largely due to his resilience, his underdog persona he created that allows normal people to identify with him. And there just wasn’t any… growth since early 2023. He‘s also alienated a large part of his fandom with the bbg pushes, and as you know, I still believe it was all part of the bigger plan to end it, but it does feel like he gave up, got comfortable. And it’s not that I blame him for it necessarily?? Like all he’s been through? It makes a lot of sense to me that now he’s achieved all the things people told him he wouldn’t be able to achieve, that now the burn out sets in, that now, the driving energy of spite and wanting to prove himself has run out.

I feel like the jokes of “oh I’m a pothead I can’t remember if it’s the third or fourth edition of my super duper important close to my heart festival project” or “oh yeah sometimes I forget I’m an actual parent and have a kid” are getting old. Like, it doesn’t serve him anymore it feels like? To me it feels like the weed was a coping mechanism that helped him get through hard times, and that’s completely valid, but now it looks like to me it’s holding him back, blurring his genius.

I’m sorry for the rant back to you. I’m deeply upset because Louis is my escape, my happy place, fandom is my comfort, and I feel like it’s slipping through my fingers because it causes me more upset than happiness at this point. The amount of “kill yourself” messages I have gotten over criticising louis for announcing AFHF so short notice is frankly INSANE. Do people not talk to other people in real life?? How do the people around these people that send those messages deal with them in real life?? It’s so upsetting to see how many people feel comfortable typing out these kind of messages and sending them.

I do hope this feeling of mine calms down, and I can go back to just glorifying louis and have him as my comfort place, because I do not like the thoughts I have and the way it makes me feel.

[astheswarmitcalls]

PART 4: THE BUSINESSWOMAN

This is the final part of my 4-part analysis of MCR5, the Masterpost for which can be found here. Link to previous part found at the bottom of the post. If there's something I missed, or you'd like to add your own spin/elaborate on something I brushed over, by all means I'd love to hear it!!

We fucking made it. This is my magnum opus. The apotheosis of my life’s work. This is what it is, what it’s all about. This is MCR5.

I alluded to the character of the Businesswoman a good 11,000 words ago during my deep dive of The Foundations of Decay. ‘She will always be the whore.’ Yeah, that’s her. I also omitted her when talking about FEMCR because I wanted to do it here. She is the only character to appear more than once on tour, aside from Cheerard. The latter appeared in two US shows, Nashville and LA, but the Businesswoman appears in 8 shows total across three countries. We also know it’s the same character apropos of Marina Toybina’s Instagram post, and her appearance evolves throughout. Strap yourselves in, we’re in for a ride.

AUCKLAND: FIX FAX FUCK YOU “But it’s not the end. It never ends. Because WAR never ends. Because war never ends. WAR!!!”

The first appearance of our lovely lady. As opposed to Cheerard and our Nurse, she’s a lot less cheery, which is what leads me to believe her story isn’t particularly sparkly or sweet. She screams a lot. The blazer and mid-thigh skirt are this nice grey, and due to the specific cut of the blazer, I believe this specific ensemble is utilised for this performance only. I believe the black tie stays consistent throughout the rest of her appearances. She has black heeled boots and black stockings.

I’ve seen a lot of people speculate that the ‘Vampire Mansion’ is where MCR5 is going to take place, and all these character Gerard is portraying on tour are residents of the mansion. With how little we know about MCR5, it’s possible, but I don’t believe this narrative to be as likely. It’d be so much fun, don’t get me wrong, but the fabric of each concept album has intrinsic ties to the psychology of the band at that point in time. Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge is a love letter to horror flicks, but also deals heavily with grief and loss since Gerard and Mikey had just lost their grandmother. The Black Parade is about death and moving on but has those personal undertones in the lyrics about addiction and mental illness that are pulled directly from the band’s experiences. Mikey Way talked about how the band’s stay in the Paramour Estate had exacerbated the issues he was facing, and that Gerard was looking into having him committed.

Two weeks after Mikey left, Ray and Gerard wrote Famous Last Words which of course fits into the storyline of The Black Parade, but also is a direct response to Mikey’s departure and the emotions Gerard was feeling at the time. This pattern of the albums pulling from the band’s experiences at that moment in time is a reason why I don’t think the Vampire Mansion MCR5 Theory is so credible.

Back to the Businesswoman. We know Gerard’s stance on war from the numerous on-stage rambles they have across the tour. The backdrop of the tour is quite literally a warzone, and there’s references to war and 9/11 in the lyrics of The Foundations of Decay. They spoke out about the war in Ukraine (the band was supposed to play a show there, but it was cancelled), and war is this tragic, persistent thing that never seems to end. 2022 and 2023 have been rife with it.

This character is surrounded by war, by terrorism and bloodshed. She’s bitter and angry, and she has every right to be. ‘Fix fax fuck you’ has this sharp tone to it that introduces this character incredibly well. We already have a gauge of this person, and her setting. The next outfits build upon that.

BRISBANE NIGHT 1: EVERYTHING UNDER CONTROL “I will not wear a hat in this outfit! And so we move on, we move on, we move on to war! You know what’s in store? More fucking war!”

(Sidenote: The drawings on the speakers from Mikey’s kids are so endearing.)

The Businesswoman outfit appears a little more conservative here, but it’s our same favourite gal. She’s got sheer black stockings and heels with straps. Her skirt’s just below the knee tonight. She loses the jacket fairly early on in this show, as well as her tie; most photos are of the 1st photo where the outfit is stripped down significantly. I’ve found it incredibly difficult to find decent quality pictures of this show with the full outfit, I think Gerard just Does Not Enjoy Australian weather.

I’ve heard some claims that ‘Everything Under Control’ was what came over the speakers at the World Trade Centre during 9/11, but I can’t find a source for this. At this point, there may be a little bit of plausibility with the Businesswoman Theory. Similar outfits two nights in a row? That’s new but maybe they’ve got a limited wardrobe. They are halfway across the world anyways. ‘Everything Under Control’ seems a little vague, you could tie to just about anything, if it isn’t a reference to 9/11.

Would also to mention here, Gerard Way arrived in New Zealand with a Gucci shopping bag. I’ve done my research and can’t pinpoint exactly what part of the Businesswoman outfit he may have shopped for, but my guess is the sunglasses, shoes or coat. She’s a luxury girl. She doesn’t deserve any less. (EDIT: I found it, but I’m going to leave this here as I add more.)

BRISBANE NIGHT 2: HERE COMES THE AIRPLANE “I have two kinds of perfume on this tour; one smells very calming, like the last day of summer, the other smells like a hospital. It gives me anxiety. Do you know which one I’m wearin’ tonight?”

If you had any inhibitions about the 9/11 ties to the Businesswoman, this should do it. ‘Here comes the airplane’ implies she’s some sort of accountant or secretary working at the World Trade Centre when the attacks occur. A 9/11 narrative for MCR5 would be macabre no doubt, but no more than the content of the preexisting albums. Skylines and Turnstiles was written in direct response to the attacks, and the band itself was formed in the wake of the events. I don’t think it’s coincidence either that they played that song at this show.

MCR5 as the 9/11 album would be this beautiful dichotomy of old and new; building on the birth of the band itself but speaking to the rebirth and healing that is so integral to the psychology of their return. The Foundations of Decay is all about moving on from your past, and that’s exactly what this band is doing.

The blazer is darker than the one at the previous two, and the skirt is shorter again. They added a grey trench coat and these elbow-length black leather gloves that are remarkably cunty. I can’t tell if these are the same sunglasses to the Auckland show, or if they just have a few pairs and recycle them through the tour. Ms. Businesswoman has a briefcase, likely the same one as the night before, and I can’t find a good picture of it so please just take my word for it. She’s wearing the same shoes as the previous night.

I actually solved the Gerard Gucci Mystery 8 hours ago (I’ve been working on this for about 10 now). The skirt he wears at this show is shorter than the rest and tweed. I found a Gucci skirt that’s $1975AUD and looks incredibly similar if not exact. If it isn’t this skirt, then it might be the perfume. If it’s not the perfume I’m totally lost.

Fun Fact: This was the show my barber was at. Amy you are so fucking cool.

MELBOURNE NIGHT 1: TERROR “See you in church! I’ll see you in hell! Punish! Punish!... Gorgeous! Gorgeous fucking violence!”

The order of the Australian shows stumped me for a few minutes. Auckland to Brisbane is all fine and dandy, but then they jump down to Melbourne and back up to Sydney instead of travelling down the east coast. Maybe Sydney just has a nicer international airport.

At first glace I thought this was the same blazer/skirt combo as the Auckland show, but the pockets are different. It’s also not dark enough to be the suit from Brisbane2. This is incredibly pedantic, but the Brisbane1 skirt goes past the knees, and this cut sits just above; being able to differentiate the skirt lengths is vital because otherwise it’s fairly difficult to tell what show each photo is from. The shoes are the same pair from the Brisbane shows, and the gloves make yet another appearance. The trench coat also makes a return, and tonight she’s wielding a black umbrella with a dog head on the handle. I’m not looking into it too much. She’s a dog person.

The ‘Terror’ written on the drumhead could refer to the feelings of many at the time of the September 11th attacks. Our Businesswoman character is amid the action, she’s terrified. Also terror as a root word for terrorism, which coincides with war. My immediate thought was ‘Tower of Terror,’ which is a Disney park attraction, but also,,, tower,,,, twin towers.

MELBOURNE NIGHT 2: BARK BARK BARK

This is the first time in 4 shows Gerard has worn a normal outfit, and the last night of him wearing this. As for the drumhead message, we have a few references to dogs, like Gerard howling before House of Wolves at Firefly Festival, but it’s not something to read into. That’s sort of hilarious thing for me to say, considering I wrote about 400 words on the colour green, but I digress.

SYDNEY NIGHT 1: UNKILLABLE

She’s back! She’s bloody! She’s never looked better!

Based on the style and skirt length, I’m confident this is the same outfit as the Melbourne outfit, now with the boots from the Auckland show and no stockings. Most photos of this show will have her with her jacket still on. Our favourite professional woman in back, now with a pretty nasty head wound. Her preceding appearances as Very Much Alive and the incriminating drumhead messages imply that she has perished in the 9/11 attacks. ‘Unkillable’ could reference how this character is a survivor, her inability to die and her curse to continue to walk the earth even after her death. I did make mention of zombies earlier, and how they could be a metaphor for MCR5’s themes of rebirth. As we’ll see, Ms. Businesswoman refuses to be laid to rest. More likely, it’s a reference to Frank Iero’s accident in Sydney that nearly took his life. Copy and paste everything I just said about My Chem weaving their own experiences into the narrative of the concept albums.

SYDNEY NIGHT 2: UNKILLABLES

Our girl is still dead!

This looks to be the same as the Brisbane1 outfit, now with the Auckland boots. She’s bloodied up, and now she’s got these gnarly whiteout contacts that make her look Extra Dead. Like the Brisbane1 show, she loses the jacket at some point, and I think the blood gets sweated off in some of the photos.

Not much to add about the drumhead, could be in reference to the full band; they’ve overcome quite a lot and continue to make art alongside their rocky pasts.

TOKYO: GEMINI

Our girl is extra bloody tonight!

This looks to be the same as the Melbourne outfit with the same heels. Gerard took them off at some point in the show and was walking around barefoot. I learnt this trying to find pictures of this show; just too many with his dogs out. They have both the briefcase and the black umbrella. We have an exponential increase in blood, and a return of the whiteout contacts.

As for ‘Gemini’ it appears fairly left-field because astrology historically hasn’t been a motif within MCR. None of the members are Geminis (I checked, unfortunately), but do you know what the symbol for Gemini is? That’s right. The twins.

My line of thinking is so skewed, genuinely. Maybe Ms. Businesswoman is an astrology girlie.

OSAKA: ENDLESS NIGHT

Exact same outfit as Tokyo, but the blazer comes off, and there’s a little less blood. I’m going to make a flowchart because I’m having the hardest time trying to place all of these photos.

‘Endless Night’ is a lyric from Vampires Will Never Hurt You, which Gerard has cited as their favourite vocal performance they've ever done.

Before I start the spiel, here’s the flowchart:

I see a few potential storylines for MCR5 that centre around the Businesswoman.

The Businesswoman was working in the World Trade Centre when it collapsed, but she was able to make it out. The album would follow her complete mental dissolution in the wake of the events, where she imagined she had died in the attacks. We would explore her reckoning with healing and her eventual rebirth. She is subject to sensationalism from her peers as a woman surrounded by tragedy, which only exacerbates the issues she is having. Only when she has completely broken and dealt with her trauma, she is able to move forwards. Alongside healing, the album would feature anti-war sentiment throughout. We would continue the swarm/rot/vermin/decay imagery as a metaphor for her decline and eventual resolve. This narrative would be more grounded like The Black Parade, but still have fun in its lyricism and concepts.

Alternatively, the Businesswoman perishes in the attacks, but is stuck in a time loop that would have her relive her death over and over again. This could explain why she seems to ‘die’ on tour but continues to come back night after night. We’re painted a vivid picture of our iconic lady in the World Trade Centre succumbing to the rubble as she submits to her fate. In those hazy moments between each restart, she’s greeted with these visions that revisited her past and put her in the place of other women. She’d see herself as Joan of Arc, burning at the stake. She would revisit her glory days as a cheerleader, only to see her perfect image slip through the cracks and distort into who she is today. She would reckon with her hopelessness. How easy it is for her to lie down and let the flames engulf her, but in seeing these visions, she’s filled with a new hope and a bitter vengeance. She thinks of the endless cruelty of war, all the lives it takes, and that rage fuels her. She gets up, and she makes it down the staircase. She lives. The bizarreness of the time loop would allow for some interesting songs. I’m really hoping for a Joan of Arc song, it would be the coolest. Like with the previous idea, we’d have explorations of healing, rebirth, femininity, and war.

Any number of narratives surrounding the Businesswoman could be true. She could be alive or dead. She could be in purgatory. She could die in the attacks or be fighting for her life in a hospital bed. She could be in one of the towers when it collapses or be watching from the curb. The concept could be grounded in a way we haven’t seen before, or twice as insane as Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge. Here’s the concrete facts of the album:

It centres around some professional woman.

She has ties to 9/11.

She is dead or has a close call with death.

She hates war.

She heals and experiences rebirth.

I’ve already made note of how a 9/11 album would tie fantastically with the fabric of the band’s return, but another question arises. Why a woman? Historically, MCR’s concept albums have centred around male characters, such as the male Demolition Lover and the Patient. It’s plausible Gerard just wanted to switch things up a bit, but I think it goes a little deeper than that.

As I mentioned before, Gerard has a longstanding connection to femininity. This is something that was definitely alluded to in the Revenge Era, but it would’ve been dismissed as Typical Emo Androgyny from a non-queer audience. In 2014 they opened up about how they empathised with trans people and women, and that at points in their life they had experienced confusion surrounding their identity.

"I have always been extremely sensitive to those that have gender identity issues as I feel like I have gone through it as well, if even on a smaller scale. I have always identified a fair amount with the female gender, and began at a certain point in MCR to express this through my look and performance style. So it's no surprise that all of my inspirations and style influences were pushing gender boundaries… Masculinity to me has always made me feel like it wasn't right for me."

"I never really subscribed to the archetype masculinity growing up... There was a time where I was called a girl so often that when I discovered the idea of transgenderism I considered myself to be more of a girl. So I identify with trans people and women a lot because I was a girl to a lot of people growing up."

The former quote was from the Reddit AMA, and was followed up with “It was really freeing to be able to talk about gender identity btw.” Representations of female characters on the return tour spark commentary on multiple fronts, a lot on how we view femininity and how society loves to make spectacle of tragic women. This fits in well with how MCR has critiqued masculinity, but I think it also has more emotional value. Portraying these characters has allowed Gerard to express himself in a way that just would not be accessible in the early 2000’s and even the 2010’s. The fact that they’re clean, sober and have gotten professional help (Mikey too) is undoubtedly a reason as for why the whole bands seems to be at their happiest in this era, but I think being able to experiment and express femininity onstage has added another layer of catharsis for Gerard.

Copy and paste AGAIN everything I’ve said about the concept albums being an outlet for the band’s experiences. MCR5 is going to centre around a female character, and I think more explorations of gender identity are incoming. It’s a concept that’s not been so explicitly explored in MCR’s history, and I think Gerard should be given the space to vocalise and represent those experiences on an album. It’s something I believe is alluded to in one particular unlisted song, but more to be said in the next part.

This album is a personal statement from the band, it’s a work of deliverance, a visitation of their ruins and a promise to rebirth. We do not move forward in spite of our pasts; we move forward alongside them.

<<< PREVIOUS PART | [BONUS PART COMING: EAGLES ANALYSIS]

[everybodyisasebfan]

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Sebastian Vettel on retirement, Mick Schumacher’s future in f1 and being sore after Champions for Charity. x

Translation below the cut 

Peter: Today was the first stop on your farewell tour.

Seb: I hate that word but okay.

Peter: That's kind of what it is though.

Seb: I don't think so. I’ll finish the season and then I'll continue, not with more races but something else will happen. That's why I don't see it as a farewell tour, but yes I will be - will be gone.

Peter: Have you had time to think about what happens next during the summer break?

Seb: Yes, I mean, it wasn't a spontaneous decision. I didn't say oh time to do something else now. I do have a few things planned, but I'll just have to wait and see what happens. Timo still drives, so at some point he’ll face the same challenge, at some point we all do, we don't know anything else, have never done anything else in our lives. We have a set rhythm during a season, it starts in the winter with testing, then the season goes on until - I don't know - October, November, December depending on which series, and then the next year again. So I’m looking forward to the races to come and then doing nothing at first, taking some time. But I'm too young, and not the kind of person either, to sit around and do nothing at all so…

Timo: We’ll watch the first race together and have a beer.

Peter: Well, I have to say you're in a good position (to do what he wants after he retires). By the way, Timo sent his application to McLaren, Andreas Seidl asked him to. If that works out we have an open position, you’re very welcome -

Seb: I don't know, I think I still have - I think it's a very difficult role, Timo does a good job, others not so much.

Peter: You don't mean Ralf (Schumacher)?

Seb: No! No, no I mean, (Peter: They both do a good job.) generally I think - Timo and I we’re both from the same area and where we’re from you say dumm gebabbelt is glei (means something like anyone can talk nonsense - thanks to @grussell63 for the help!) So I think for some it's hard, but I understand, you're not in the car so it's easy to judge from the outside, and of course you have to say something when you stand here (in front of the cameras).

Timo: When the red light is on, you have to say something.

Seb: Yes, exactly.

Peter: Now that we've got you're here with us we’d like to know your opinion on other things. Mick Schumacher is very important to us, we support him, he does a good job. What do you think about his future?  

Seb: I wish him a bit more drive for the next races. Unfortunately, these days you're judged only on your last results. I believe Mick is someone that continuously keeps learning and even at a point where others stop learning he doesn't, that's his strength. He also has the pace. He may not have had the start that he wished for but he managed to gain some momentum. We have to be honest, the car is no longer as good now as it was at the beginning of the season, it wont put you in P5 or P6 at this point, so it's hard to draw attention, but he does his thing in the background. I hope he stays and gets a good car so he can prove himself. Maybe he can send his application to McLaren as well and Timo can get in line behind him.

Timo: I’ll withdraw mine!

Peter: Timo will withdraw his, for Mick definitely. Sebastian, lastly, there was a football match on Wednesday, Champions for Charity, we talked to Mick on Thursday and he said he felt sore, how did you feel coming into this weekend?

Seb: My legs were a bit sore but thank god we don't have to do sprints in the car. But yes, we had fun, it was different to what we usually train for, which is more of a steady run, not sprinting. I tried to use that as an advantage and ended up running a lot but I had fun.

Peter: Thanks for the interview and congratulations on P8!