#trying to learn an instrument probably isn't the best idea but I think I need something to get me a little out of the

[starpros-sunshine]

!!!! Only 40€ missing then I can maybe afford the 50 year old instrument that hopefully is still in a well playable condition that I previously didn't have enough money to afford!!!!!!

[drdemonprince]

I wanted to ask you something controversial bc I feel like you're willing to go against common consensus when your judgement disagrees. My question is, is self harm always bad? When I start spiraling, I hurt myself and that immediately helps me calm down and get grounded. I can get similar effects more slowly if I go for a run, but it's bc it hurts (after a while). My therapist says the running is a healthier choice, but isn't it the same? I'm releasing endorphins and getting reconnected to my body via pain either way. What do you think?

Self-harm is not always bad! Self-harm is just a strategy that has its benefits, costs, and use cases, and we would all be a lot better served if we discussed it dispassionately rather than treating it as wrong, scary, or disgusting.

People self-harm for the endorphins, because it provides grounding and stimulation without the use of any substances, in order to blunt sensory overwhelm, to kick the body into a relaxed state following a meltdown, to express control over their bodies when they're otherwise being controlled and denied agency, as an alternative to suicide, as a form of self-stimulation, and probably for dozens of other equally understandable reasons that I can't think of at the moment.

Self-harm is not innately good nor bad, and abstinence is not the only responsible way to approach a person who is self-harming. I believe a harm reduction framework to self-harm is self-evidently more responsible and morally correct than trying to force all self-harmers to stop. Providing wound care, safe, sterile instruments, supervision, and less-damaging alternative forms of self-harm to the people that engage in it is the way to go, and first and foremost we should be guided by the belief that the self-harming person knows what they need best.

If you're interested in learning more about this, I recommend the book Saving Our Own Lives by Shira Hassan. A harm reductionist approach to self-harm is out there! The groundwork has already been laid for this approach. This essay of mine also does touch on the idea a bit:

[starlight-nerd]

what about your hcs for Bedannibal as parents?? yeah we need to talk about this part too

Bedannibal Headcannons Prt. 4

Bedannibal as parents?? I love a good parental AU!!!

... So I wrote alot. You've been warned.

1. Becoming parents was not planned by either of them.

2. Bedelia was very unsure about her pregnancy at first, but Hannibals pampering and excitement helped ease her into the idea.

3. Despite the pregnancy being high risk due to age, it was relatively smooth for Bedelia, practically a text book pregnancy much to her own relief.

4. Hannibals office hours change for his practice during the 3rd trimester of Bedelias pregnancy. He no longer does later appointments after 5pm so he can be home with his family.

5. I feel like Bedelia is a girl mom, for sure, she knows how to do all the hair styles, has the cute aesthetic, yet functional, baby clothes in various pastel and neutral colors, she handles the mood swings, and doesn't fall easily for the puppy eyes and pouty lips.

6. Hannibal I think would have his reservations about having a daughter, but would parent his child, son or daughter, equally, he'd teach them how to cook once theyre older, speak to them as if they're adults to help further their language development, he'd read to them, and be, over all, a very attentive father.

7. Hannibal definitely has either one of those baby rocking chairs, or baby bouncing seats in his kitchen so that he can keep an eye on the baby while he cooks.

8. Bedelia splurged on the nursery, sparing no expnse on the things their child would need for a while, and wouldn't outgrow quickly. She even hired a painter to do a forest mural for an accent wall.

9. Their child learned to roll over very early to escape tummy time while Hannibal was watching them in the livingroom, and skimming a TattleCrime.com article.

10. Despite their agreement that it wasn't a competition, when it comes time for their child to say their first word, they're both secretly coaching the little one to say either 'mama' or 'dada'.

11. The little ones first word however is neither, it ends up being 'More', much to their parents disappointment.

12. Hannibal was unfortunately at work when the little one took their first steps. Bedelia had called him around his lunch hour, narrorating what their child just accomplished.

13. Neither Hannibal or Bedelia outwardly freak out while their child is reaching their milestones, like walking, talking, or rolling. They let the child try on their own, not interfering unless encouragment is needed. Once the child succeeds, they give their praises, and if they don't succeed, they'll reassure them that they'll get it next time.

14. Bedelia and Hannibal, for sure, have their child playing some sort of musical instrument, probably starting them off with Piano.

15. As soon as the baby is old enough to eat regular foods, Hannibal has the little one trying all sorts of things.

16. If the little one is a picky eater, Hannibal will accommodate them, but not without being vaugely annoyed about it, and blaming Bedelias side of the family.

17. If the little one has any food allergies, Hannibal would be a bit disappointed, or very upset with himself if his cooking caused the reaction, but ultimately will do what's best for the little one and keep the allergen out of their home.

18. Hannibal and Bedelia parent equally, and divided the work load so that one isn't doing more than the other. They're as attentive to eachother as they are to their baby.

19. Bedelia took one 'Mommy and Me' class at the insistence of others, just to try it, and came home shaking her head, saying 'never again'. Not that the class was inherently bad, she certainly saw how they could be useful to some people, she just didn't care for it.

20. Bedelia hates others calling her 'Mama'. It annoys her to no end. She is her babies mama, and only her little one will call her mama. She is Dr. Bedelia Du Maurier to anyone else. It was more frequent of an issue when she was pregnant, but sometimes people still try to call her that.

21. They have a pretty solid routine for their little one during their baby-toddler years. But they make sure to instill variations and wiggle room for other activities.

22. Hannibal originally wanted to be a reusable diaper household, but Bedelia was having none of it.

24. Bedelia has one strict rule for their child's diet. No human. Hannibal respects it, and she knows he does, but she still double checks every time he makes a dish with meat.

23. Hannibal quickly gave up on trying to persuade her once the baby arrived. Diapers became a mostly Bedelia job very quickly since Hannibals sense of smell is so strong. He quickly grew fond of trash day when the used diapers and their smell would disappear from their property momentarily.

25. Hannibal is the designated driver. Bedelia was already an anxious driver, but with a young child in the back seat, her anxiety is even worse.

26. During check ups and evaluations for their child, Hannibal and Bedelia are both attentive, prepared, and equally answer all the doctors questions.

27. Their child definitely goes to private schools, smaller class sizes, uniforms, challenging courses, expensive tuition, etc. They want the best for their little one, and to provide them with all the tools they can to succeed.

28. School bullies? With this kid? As much as Hannibal would love to threaten them with body parts in the mail, Bedelia gets her way in these situations, and the bullies parents get very firm, and slightly threatening, phone calls about the behavior of their children.

29. If their child is a girl, Bedelia would definitely be the one to give her the talk about menstruation and how to handle her cycle. Hannibal, however, is the one that warns Bedelia when the time is coming.

30. Bedelia and their child both share a love for Ice Cream/Gelato. No other desserts hit the right spot.

[beautifulpersonpeach]

Hey BPP! I'm glad you're back and active! I liked what you had to say about how beautiful Jimin's voice and how you would love to hear more fun stuff from his voice. I wanted to push back on the idea that the way to do that would be to have less vocal training though. In reality, I think it's the hard work that Jimin has done in his vocal training and practice that has created the Jimin we see in front of us today.

I wanted to reference, for example, how Jimin sounds from years ago on this stage https://youtu.be/snjhQBs1oSw?t=388 starting at 6.20. I hear a voice that is untrained and cannot sustain the emotion he's trying to evoke, you can even hear him going to belt but deciding against it and dropping the note instead. It's no secret that Jimin has always had concerns about singing live and in videos like this I completely understand his concern. While his voice is beautiful and unique without control or training, it's not able to deliver the same experience on stage that it does in the studio.

I think because of his vocal training, because of the practice he's put in (6 hours a day prepping for face performances) every single Face performance was an eat. He was able to do the rapping growly part in set me free while still hitting the high notes. I don't think 2016 Jimin or 2018 Jimin could have done Tony Montana and then switched to Like Crazy within 5 minutes and nail the emotion and tone of each song without vocal training. In fact, I think all that you want and ask from Jimin, especially in live performances, comes from learning how to control his instrument, and to me, that's all vocal training is. While I do not think he should lose his unique tone of voice I don't think he could and I don't think that's what's happening in his training, I think whoever he's working with is unlocking different ways that Jimin can use his voice to take him to new heights. I think Yoongi put it best by saying Jimin is a genius of hard work. Jimin is beautiful and has a unique voice and kind spirit. But the absolute demon that he is on stage, to me, comes from his insatiable need to practice practice, practice, and his vocal training is a part of that.

***

Hi Anon,

Your link.

You've made very good points I didn't consider initially. Thanks for sharing your perspective. I will say though, my desire for Jimin to be more unrestrained vocally, even if the result isn't 'perfect', is more due to my style and taste preferences. For example, I love Rod Stewart's voice. One of my favourite songs by him is his rendition of Reason to Believe - originally by folk singer Tim Hardin. Hear Rod's vocals here:

*

Another example of a male singer who drives me gaga with his voice is Kurt Cobain. Hear him in Lithium.

*

And now hear Jimin in Ma City.

*

Jimin blows me away because he's able to give me that vocal effect I'm starved for in k-pop, a sound and vocal style I crave. That grit and candour. The only vocalist in the entirety of k-pop who gives me that every single time, is Jimin. While also being able to create feather-light vocal inflections, so delicate it feels like his voice can pass through you. He has such a beautiful, youthful tone too, under it all. I felt more of that grit in their earlier years, and even now sometimes, but in recent years he's emphasized control. There's a magic to watching him display so much skill in that aspect too. I too loved his music show performances and noted his precise vocal delivery every time. He did wonderfully. But, you know, I like the cracks.

Still, I know I'm probably in the minority, and you're right that it's healthy for him to lean on more vocal training.

Thanks for taking the time to send in that thought.

[randoimago]

I've had this idea for Spy x Family in my head for a while, and I finally decided you'd be a good person to ask for this. But it's a bit of an unorthodox ask, since the reader isn't actually an S/O. Let me explain:

My idea is that the Forger family decide to adopt another "child" so that Anya can have an older sibling to look up to. So, they eventually decide to adopt the reader (who we'll say is canonically 19-20 years old). The reader looks relatively normal, is very intelligent & friendly, and cleans up well whenever the family goes on an outing. But lo and behold, it turns out the reader is part of a Pink Floyd-esque rock band that isn't incredibly famous (YET), but still receives critical acclaim from both music critics & their fans.

So I'd like to request how Loid, Yor & Anya reacted when first hearing the reader's music, and what their thoughts were after listening/going to one of their performances.

(NOTE: I chose Pink Floyd as an example for this because I figured their music would fit the setting/time period of Spy x Family the best; it would be unlike any music ever heard before, but it would still be approachable by most people, if that makes any sense)

Reader is a Secret Rockstar

Fandom: Spy x Family

Characters: Anya Forger, Loid Forger (Twilight), Yor Briar

Type of Request: Headcanons

Notes: The idea of yet another person in the family with a “secret identity” is great. I love this. Also big Pink Floyd fan (Shine On You Crazy Diamond is so good)

Forger Family

I mean, Anya knew immediately. She can read minds and so she knew you’re a super cool rockstar and thinks that’s so cool! Has definitely done her best to slip hints to you about wanting to learn music. Probably has grabbed a broom and pretended it was a guitar or bass to show you that she’s dedicated to learning from you. 

Absolutely your number one fan at a concert. She probably tries to light a candle to wave it to the rhythm of a slower song, but I can see her accidentally burning herself, but it doesn’t stop her from enjoying your music!!

Loid finding out is interesting because it’s good that you have hobbies, but he’s also afraid of what might happen with this sudden attention. Maybe his targets like your type of music so he can get closer to them easier? But what if your music gets noise complaints and puts his mission at risk?

It’s very much him trying to figure out how best to handle this scenario because you’re technically his kid now and he needs to be a good parent, but he also doesn’t want to fail his mission.

Yor saw that you had some instruments in your room when she moved in and thought it was really neat that you have musical talent to go with your genius. She’s learned some piano in her time as an assassin so she wouldn’t mind playing with you!

I can see Yor being a huge fan of your type of music, tbh. She loves it and does her best to support you! Probably tries to get the seamstress she goes to to make merch for your concerts (with your consent)!

[redacted-updates]

Getting To Know Your Mysterious Stranger (Halloweek Day 3! New Hush Video)

CW: [threatening tone][brief gore sounds][character death] //// (I'm sorry this one is so long, I typically want to keep these summaries as short and sweet as possible, but there was just so much information in this and so much that I thought was important that I basically gave you the whole video...sorry lol)

Listener, "Doc" is confronted about their involvement in the "murder of a de(a)mon" by...someone. This individual is being quite threatening, and Doc does their best to comply. They are asking about Hush, about why he let Doc live and about the "connection" the two have.

We learn that Hush told the Chorus that he didn't have a name, and this stranger asks if Doc knows what Hush is. Obviously, they're pretty much as in the dark as the stranger.

The stranger keeps pressing, giving further details about what happened to Hush before Doc came across them. Doc defends Hush, but the stranger points out that Hush has and will harm or even kill others for whatever reason he seems fit.

Hush comes in! Threatening this stranger, saying "get away from them, or die."

Hush brutally kills the stranger with ease, Doc is left horrified and Hush is confused. The pair discuss further.

Hush offers to make dinner for Doc, saying "I've read that food and drink can ease the nerves" and that he as "read a lot lately." He points out that Doc is nervous often, and he struggles to understand why...and seems to want to understand why. He says that he is "trying to learn." He doesn't like it when Doc is nervous, he doesn't like when he "contributes to their nervousness" and wants Doc to feel good around him.

Doc asks if he feeds on emotions, and he does not, but he can detect emotions like de(a)mons. He'd claims that he is missing "context." He says that he is better at identifying feels he is more accustom to, saying fear, anger, nervousness...people feel those a lot around him. He's used to them, so he picks up on them easier.

Hush says that he doesn't feed on anything, I assume that Doc asked if he does. He says, "everything I need, I have." Doc asks and Hush says that he does not run out of energy, claiming, "it's not how I work."

Hush doesn't know everything about himself, he's actively learning about that too. He says that he can't explain much.

Hush offers to make food again, claiming that he learned to make some things. His reasoning being that Doc needs to eat, so it seems like a good thing for him to know.

Doc asks, and Hush says again that he has no desire to hurt anyone, but that he is willing to hurt those who "try to stop him."

Hush cleans up his mess (the articulate he killed). He knows that 'they' will send more, and claims that it isn't a smart idea. However, he says that he understand why they do send more. Doc asks why. Hush says, "because they think I'm going to free their gods from the prison they're in." Doc asks, and Hush says, "they think that, because that's exactly what I'm going to do...among other things."

Doc expresses their concern with this, and Hush assures that nothing will go wrong. Doc presses and he says that he won't let anything go wrong.

Hush says once more that he is "instrumental force," given purpose and form. Doc claims the he is being vague, and he claims that he is being blunt. Hush says that they don't have the context to understand. Doc asks if he can make them understand, he tells them to take his hand. Hush says that Doc is a Freelancer.

Freelancer asks if they are about to bridge, and Hush says that he is not capable of bridging.

Doc says that everyone's core sings different, and that if you really listen you can tell the differences between everyone's cores by their songs. He says that everyone's magic makes the 'Spellsong.' Hush says that he is the space between noise, he is the silence in the Spellsong.

Doc asks why he told them this. And he says that he doesn't know...and that he probably shouldn't have. But that he wanted to tell them, and that he's never wanted to tell anyone anything before.

Doc asks what happens 'after.' Hush says that he never thought about it, that he doesn't know. His conclusion is, "when I don't need to exist anymore, I won't."

Hush asks what Doc is feeling, as he is unfamiliar with their current emotions, and they tell him that they will tell him later.

He asks if they are hungry now. Doc offers to teach Hush something (presumably how to cook) and he agrees, saying he has a lot more to learn. That he wants to learn from them.

[quillheel]

🌸 If you get this, answer with 3 random facts about yourself and send it to the last 7 blogs in your notifications, anonymously or not! Let's get to know the person behind the blog. 🌸

I'm a little late to answering this, been very busy, but thank you very very much! I won't be continuing the chain since I know it's not always appreciated and for some of my mutuals its just something they avoid outright, but if any of my mutuals wanna do this too, feel free!!

━ 1 ... on top of writing and being an artist, I play ukulele! or, at least, I'm trying to learn it! I'm a beginner but its very fun when I have the time and the bravery to play it! ( You never realize how loud an instrument is until you have one in your hands and are trying to learn it-! it makes it real tough sometimes since I don't like bothering people ). I also try to do crochet, though I am Very inexperienced and bad at it rn

━ 2 ... I play D&D! this probably isn't a big surprise since, well, roleplayer AND writer AND artist over here ( I swear to God, my brain's like a bingo-sheet ) but I do! It's very fun and I'm very interested in being a DM when I'm not as busy! which... will be a while, I think. I'm relatively good at managing my schedule but that sure didn't stop me from getting involved with 5+ campaigns,,! wish me luck!

━ 3 ... this one's more-so a tip for just talking to me, especially for characters, but if you're having trouble striking up a conversation with me ( WHICH I GET I'm very forgetful and sometimes very busy and sometimes it just slips right past me, you're 100% okay to text me multiple times! Just don't spam all in one day yk! ), PLEASE throw ideas at me! even just muse headcanons help or a dynamic your interested in or really anything, I am an idea generator but my fatal flaw is I need a prompt or nudge to start! I work best when somethings being tossed at me, a 'my muse would respond to xyz in this way' goes a LONG LONG way and I click best with people like that! elaborate on things! insight to your characters gets me hooked because if I wasn't on a base-line interested with them I wouldn't be here yknow!

[funkymbtifiction]

hi, i’ve been trying to figure out my type for a while, and i think i’ve got it down to esxp 6w7. i was unsure between 6w7 and 7w6, but i think i prioritize work too much over fun to be a 7w6. for example, my family and i planned to see a concert, but i realized i had a quiz the following day and told them i couldn’t go because i would’ve been too stressed out about studying to fully enjoy it. while i seek shortcuts, escape routes in life, and new experiences, i do prioritize work over play. i also don’t think i could go back and forth between trying jobs to see which i enjoy and appeals to me better. financial security is way too important to me, and there’s not really any other job i see myself working in the future other than nursing. 

Yeah, that all indicates a strong sp6.

as for esxp, i’m fairly sure i’m an extraverted perceiving type. i’m terrible at planning for the future, although i have a certain vision of what i want it to look like. brainstorming is difficult for me, and for ideas, i look to other people to and then come up with my own. theoretical, abstract information is hard for me to understand, and i prefer hands-on approach to things, which is why i enjoy learning instruments, crafting with clay, or baking. i’m a bit impulsive and sometimes act first, think later. however, i have questioned if i’m ne dom, bc i do like looking at possibilities of “what could be.” one show i watch had a terrible ending to a season finale, and i like looking at what would happen in the next season to potentially make it better, focusing on characters that i think were written badly. i also like envisioning experiences that could happen, if i’m unhappy with my circumstances, like transferring to my best friend’s uni in new york. i later realized the cost and practicality of it was not worth it though. i get obsessed with things (like buying sample perfumes) to the detriment of my bank account, and then move on to the next phase. as much as i like looking at possibilities and theories, i quickly get tired of it and need it to happen and experience it in real life. 

That's ESP for sure and some 7 wing stuff.

for fi-te and ti-fe, i have no idea. i do have morals, but they’re pretty universal, just the basic be kind to people. i think of everyone as the same at the core of it, so it shocks me when people are rude to others. i don’t think i could date or befriend someone who was homophobic, racist, etc. when i’m upset, i feel solace in other people probably feeling the same at one point in their lives. yes, those cringy posts about how the world is infinite and how could your problems matter if you’re just a speck of dust in the universe and will it even matter in 5 years? yeah, that really puts things in perspective for me when i feel lost. i rarely dip into how i feel about things, but when i do, it’s usually a temper tantrum that i regret soon after. i tend to invalidate my feelings and find external things to blame if i feel negatively. 

I'm honestly not sure. Some of this sounds low Fe-ish, but it's also 6ish to blame other people for your problems. There's a lot of focus here on what is/isn't something you would tolerate (Fi), but it overall seems more generalized morality (low Fe) to me, so I would look at ESTP first. (I go in-depth into both types in my book, if you're interested. It's called 16 Kinds of Crazy and the link is on the website.)

[reachrealitystudiosnyc]

5 THINGS TO CONSIDER BEFORE RECORDING YOUR DEBUT ALBUM

If you are thinking about recording your first album, there are many things to consider before recording begins. Obviously, it's a big commitment and if you start thinking about all of the different things that may happen along the way, it can be overwhelming.

If you are considering recording your first album, you will no doubt have many questions. What equipment do I need? How do I get started? What should I look for when preparing my studio space?

When it's time to record your first album, there will be many things on your mind. You'll be worrying about the music and whether or not you're doing everything right. Here is a list of five things to consider before recording your debut album.

Set goals for the album

Find what works for you

Don't experiment too much with new instruments

Develop and test the concept before you record

Create a unique identity for yourself as an artist through songwriting.

Set goals for the album

Make sure you have a clear idea of what you want to achieve when it comes to recording your first album; this will help you stay focused and motivated throughout the process. If you don't have any goals in mind then it's easy for distractions to creep into your life and take over your thoughts.

Set small but achievable goals for yourself so that you can keep track of how well or badly you're doing throughout the whole process. For example, if your goal has been to write 10 songs then writing 10 songs would be an achievement in itself!

This is extremely important because without a plan you won't know how long certain pieces of work should take!

Find what works for you.

The most important thing is finding what works for your recording music album. What do you want to record? Do you want to hire someone else or do everything yourself? Are there any special requirements (like having access to multiple studios)?

If sometimes you don't have a good idea or even get stuck on a song. It's okay if the first draft isn't perfect, because we all start somewhere and everyone has their own way of doing things.

Sometimes writing songs is more about feeling than it is about thinking. When you write songs, you're putting yourself out there and allowing people to hear what you have to say. You're opening yourself up to criticism and judgement, but as long as you are true to yourself, then that's all that matters in the end.

It would be also incredibly stressful and exciting at the same time. But it's all part of the learning curve when you're starting out.

Don't experiment too much with new instruments.

When you start out, it's easy to get carried away with experimenting with new sounds and trying things out that may not work or aren't realistic for your music. But it's much better to be consistent with what you're doing, because then people will know what kind of artist you are from the outset.

The best way to learn how to record is by recording. There are plenty of ways to get your ideas on tape, but the most important thing is to get in there and start recording, as fast as you can.

Take enough time to figure out what is your sound.

Develop and test the concept before you record.

Before you sit down in front of your computer or start recording, make sure you have a clear idea of what kind of album you want to make. You should have a vision in mind for what kind of sound you want to develop and how it will be expressed.

It's also important that you know what kind of music makes up your favorite albums, as this is something that will influence your songwriting process.

However, if your process is more involved, or if you do not know what kind of music you want to write yet, then developing songs will probably not work well for you.

Create a unique identity for yourself as an artist through songwriting.

A great way to do this is through creating a unique identity for yourself as an artist through songwriting and creating your own style. This means learning about who you are as an artist, what motivates and inspires you, and then writing about those things in songs on your debut album so that people will recognize them when they hear them.

Pick out songs that are representative of your overall sound and theme for your album

Conclusion: In the end, you ultimately want to record an album that reflects who you are and what you wanted to create. An album that captures a moment in time, or a picture of your life at this point is historical.

It sounds corny, but it's the truth: once the music is recorded, there's no going back. So before you decide to record your debut album, it's best if you're prepared. But you don't need to be so serious about it all – after all, it's about having fun!

We hope that these insights are helpful to some of you, and will at least help guide you in the right direction when starting your own projects.

If you haven't recorded yet and feel inspired by our advice, we leave you with this final thought: make sure you're having a good time. If there are moments where things get difficult or don't go perfectly according to plan, make sure to let them slide for now and remember why you started in the first place – because music is fun!

[thevindicativevordan]

On Livewire

You know Leslie is probably the most popular and well known female Superman Rogue mainly because they use her so heavily in outside media.

Which makes sense given her debut in Superman: The Animated Series, but it still kind of fascinates me. They didn't bring her into comics continuity until 2006 apparently, with Gail Simone and John Byrne (Byrne of all the creators!) being the ones to finally fold her in. Even after they brought her in, they still have never given her that much attention or focus which is a disappointment for me frankly, because Livewire is honestly fantastic in Scott McCloud and later Mark Millar's Superman Adventures runs, and I would say with complete sincerity that those two are probably her best writers. "Millar writing a female character well?" you scoff at in disbelief. I know, I was shocked too! But she's funny, clever, and a huge pain in the ass for Supes. Reading how she was used there, and rewatching her STAS incarnation recently, really made a big realization for the character hit me like a lightning bolt (couldn't resist):

She's basically an evil superpowered Lois Lane! I know I can't have been the first one to realize that, although I haven't seen anyone else actually outright state it anywhere, but c'mon it's so obvious! She's a reporter of a sorts as well thanks to being a disc jockey, her debut in STAS even has her interviewing Lois and Clark! She's got strong opinions on Superman that conflict with the general opinion about him (Lois being pro-Superman when everyone else is more hostile towards him at first, Livewire being anti-Superman when everyone else has embraced him as their hero). She's rude and abrasive, and doesn't care if her opinions offend people, which sure does remind me of Lois at her meanest.

Livewire to me is an examination of what Lois would be like if she abandoned her morals or never really had them in the first place. Leslie doesn't care about the "truth" which is the big difference between her and Lois. Lois can be headstrong, willful, and outright rude, but it's all in service of her pursuit of higher ideals. Livewire doesn't care about that, she carries about getting people to pay attention to her, and getting the recognition and wealth she believes she's owed.

What I'd Do With Livewire

It wasn't until I had that big realization about Leslie that I figured out what role she should play with regards to Clark: She should be Clark's old college ex who was the one who got him into journalism in the first place.

Clark's college years are unexplored territory narratively, typically we jump from his childhood in Smallville right into his debut in Metropolis. Now I know Clark dated Lori that mermaid back in Pre-Crisis during his college years, and while that's a fun bit of trivia, it doesn't really add anything meaningful in the same way that I think Leslie and Clark dating could. So I'd rather go with Leslie because I think she makes for a better foil for Clark and because the two of them would benefit from having a deeper connection established, plus Leslie could get fleshed out as a character more.

I like the explanation that Clark chose journalism in part because it challenges him in ways his powers can't, but in the comics they've rarely bothered to explain how he chose that field in the first place. I would have meeting Leslie at college be that big moment where he starts to figure himself out. She's assertive and confident, and Clark is attracted to that for similar reasons he's attracted to Lois. Leslie would start out as an optimist and idealist in the same way Clark is, and the two would bond and go into journalism together, with Leslie being the one who really believes in the field initially. They'd both be big believers in the duty of the press to inform and the presses ability to shape public opinion, with Clark attracted to investigative journalism and Leslie attracted more to broadcast and digital journalism. They start to date and for a moment, Clark seriously wonders if this is the one.

The big break between them comes when Clark and Leslie go on a trip around the world during their senior year of college. That trip would be where both of them learn how crappy the world is. Clark always had some idea of how bad things were because of his powers, but the trip is where he really starts to realize that there is a real need for someone of his powers to step up, and that there are hard limits to just how much he can accomplish as a member of the press. That same realization is what shatters Leslie's idealism and optimism. She loses faith in the ability to make a difference, to punch through the wall of public indifference, and as a result she gives up that dream. Instead she decides that if you can't beat them, join them: she switches instead to telling the masses what the powers that be want them to hear in exchange for money, to saying whatever the masses will give her attention and prestige for, embracing tabloid journalism that prioritizes clicks and engagement over information. Ultimately it destroys the relationship between Leslie and Clark with her viewing him as a sap and him viewing her as a sellout.

I think that origin really would help flesh out her worldview and motivation a lot more. She's a former idealist who has been broken by the world in a similar way to Poison Ivy. Leslie thus acts as a foil to Clark and Lois in that she's someone who let the world rob her of her idealism and sold out on the truth in exchange for material success. She's what Clark or Lois could've been if they took Lex's offer to work for him, and they should recognize that to some degree. Clark should have conflicting feelings for her, not romantically that relationship is dead, but in terms of sometimes he wonders if he's just wasting his life trying to fight for truth and justice. So few people seem to care about those principles, why hold on so tight to them? Why not just look out for his own self-interest the way everyone else seems to? It's the refusal to give up even when it looks pointless that makes the two of them different, and makes Clark a hero and Livewire a villain.

How I'd Like Livewire To Operate

There's a lack of imagination in how Livewire is used on the comic side as I see it.

Like most Superman Rogues the typical Superman writer doesn't seem to have a clue what to do with her beyond generic "villain" stuff, but that does a disservice to what Livewire brings to the table. Livewire does want to fry Superman to a crisp, but that's not what her daily goal is to accomplish. More importantly, she wants respect and she wants money, and the way she gets both is not by trying to rob banks, it's by leaning into her background as a media personality combined with her new powers. Unleashing electric bolts is honestly the least impressive part of her powerset in terms of her ability to manipulate anything and everything technology.

The Internet? Livewire can crash the entire thing with ease, or restrict access to portions of it. She can do the reverse and smash through firewalls and encryption like it's made of paper. Imagine Livewire shutting off the power grid or causing it to explode, secretly using your "smart" tech to record your every move, uploading ransomware to every piece of technology in Metropolis, emptying the bank accounts of anyone who annoys her, or bringing Metropolis to it's knees thanks to the "City of Tomorrow" being a test ground for the Internet of Things, so everything is connected and thus easily manipulated. Smart cars crash into each other, elevators randomly drop, trains are unable to stop and simply accelerate onward unceasingly, plans attempting to land find their instruments on the fritz, anything and everything is Livewire's to control. But terrorism, while entertaining and occasionally profitable, isn't Livewire's main focus either.

One of my favorite Superman Adventures stories with her had Livewire manipulating TV broadcast signals so that any time there was a male news reporter on screen, the signal wouldn't come through. Stuff like that, where Livewire is making life hell for people in a way that isn't immediately life-threatening is what I envision as her day to day operations, but her bread and butter is fake news. What Livewire is REALLY good at doing is manipulating the public due to her journalism background plus her powers. She can make fake videos that look totally authentic, fake articles that seem to come from credible sources, fake voice recordings, she can make anyone appear to do or say anything through the Internet, and then she can upload that to the devices of every single person in Metropolis.

You can get stories about the mayor being framed for taking bribes, local activists cast as grifters, and supposed upstanding citizens such as Lois Lane and Clark Kent appearing to take orders from criminals like Intergang on what stories to run. Basically you lean into the journalism aspect for Livewire stories where Clark and Lois have to investigate to see whether what Livewire is putting out there is fake or legit, with peoples lives and reputations at stake (including frequently their own).

And when Superman and Livewire actually do clash physically? I don't care how it gets justified, Livewire simply being that powerful, her lightning being "special", she has the ability to manipulate Superman's bioelectric field, whatever: she can hurt him. When she hits Supes with lightning, it burns. It's painful as all hell. Livewire needs to be a threat and I'd like her to be treated as a powerhouse since I don't see a reason why that shouldn't be the case. Livewire is a really cool Rogue, there's a reason she's managed to keep getting used long after the DCAU ended. I hope the comics creators start utilizing her to her full potential.

[rosemary-is-in-pesterquest]

I am. SO. frustrated. that they keep fucking up davekat. like I just wanna go off. just wanna go the fuck off, man, I didn't even ship them that hard at first but god damn I do now and it's pretty much because the epilogues and HS2 have fucked them up so bad and I know they are better than that. let me just.

okay so originally, davekat is built on themes of mutual defensiveness in response to insecurity. when Dave is first introduced, he portrays himself as a cool guy, and gives us the concept of Strider irony. where a normal person might claim to love something shitty as an ironic joke, or maybe the ironic joke masks sincere enjoyment... Strider irony, according to Dave, has a billion more levels of sincerity and insincerity, to the point where you have no idea what the real intent is. in part, this is due to teen pretentiousness... but in some ways this is a reflection of him genuinely finding his Bro unfathomable, and wanting to protect his own genuine thoughts, opinions, and interests from criticism, without actually coming off as insecure. as time goes by, you can watch him and figure out what is sincere and what isn't... he doesn't actually keep that tight of a lid on things, but that's partially because the game allows him more freedom than he usually has. he at least isn't living in his Bro's shadow anymore. some might extrapolate this to mean that he's experiencing more physical and mental security than usual, while others might just say he's coming into his own via this journey, but the fact of the matter is that he felt the need to hide behind this facade in the first place. and the tricky thing with Dave is that it isn't all fake. it's a weird mixture of who he is, who he wants to be, and what he thinks others will respond well to. his development isn't so much discarding the mask, as it is reconciling what it's made of, and incorporating it into his true self as he matures. he accepts it as a piece of him. it's very subtle, and natural, and true to what growing up is really like. I think this is why so many people like Dave and relate to him so much.

for Karkat, insecurity manifests in the form of being hyper critical of everyone around him. to be honest, this also comes from a deep sense of concern for the people around him, and the fact that his friend group is made of a bunch of loose canons who do destructive shit for fun, and people who are easily dragged into that sort of thing. but the thing that keeps Karkat's hyper critical nature from irritating people too much is that he's also super extra critical of himself. he admits it when he's done something wrong... though admittedly often after it's made people angry at him, and he has a good amount of very sincere apologies that he delivers so that they come off as very sincere and actually work in terms of reconciling with people. Karkat's biggest issue is that criticizing your own internal flaws and actually fixing them are two different things. and while Karkat can identify many problems with himself, he's not always the best at making them go away. it takes him a long time to learn how to change himself, because in order to change yourself, you have to accept the flawed parts of yourself and work with them, rather than just trying to push them out of your sight. this is why his anger at his past and future selves is ultimately unhealthy. it keeps him from truly addressing the fact that his current self is just as subject to those same flaws. for example, if he's talking to a past self and a future self, and his future self is condescending to him, and his past self is naive, then his present self is both of those things to his conversation partners. but he's so repulsed by his own negative attributes that he's not really dealing with them. his saving grace is that everyone can see how hard he's trying, and how worried and scared he is. ultimately, Karkat doesn't want to be the reason for screwing everyone over, and that's more concern for others than anyone ever asked for. it gains Karkat a lot of good will, without him necessarily even realizing what he's doing.

what's excellent about davekat is that they come out the gate fully critical of one another... but neither is willing to back down either. somehow, these two insecure idiots trick each other into defending themselves. and it's brilliant, because they get all their critical bullshit out of the way immediately. they don't fear criticism from one another. they already criticize one another all the time, and it's fine. like, their worst complaints about each other are right out there in the open, and how freeing must that be for a couple of guys who worry about other people's opinions of them so much? Dave has nothing to hide and nothing to prove. Karkat defends his own positive qualities. it's good for them. eventually, they just kind of run out of material... and there's something comforting about knowing that they've said every bad thing they can think of about each other, and none of it was a deal breaker. they're still in each other's business constantly. and that's when they start to learn from each other. see, Karkat is really blunt. he wanders into the thick of things, yelling at people and making mistakes all over the place... and Dave is just more cautious than that. his whole cool guy persona is made to keep that kind of raw emotion from leaking out, and to make every mistake seem like he meant to do that. but Karkat makes mistakes all the time. and apologizes all the time. and he comes out okay. Karkat is sincere. but Karkat is also high strung... and Dave isn't. Dave knows how to chill, and he plans things, and he can sit down with people and calmly talk through a plan. get it in simple terms and hash things out without panicking. Karkat often exhausts himself trying to run around and manage everything, and while it can be kind of endearing to see how much he cares... it's not exactly healthy. Dave has more of a level head, beyond just his cool kid persona, and isn't afraid to make people walk things back and take it from the top. and actually, what Dave and Karkat have in common is that they try really hard for the people around them, and feel great concern for the people they love. when the chips are down, they value similar things. and once they've run out of ineffectual ways to badmouth each other, that's what they have left. probably the thing that bugs them the most about each other is how much they actually have in common in terms of priorities. and while I do think that in their relationship, they'll probably always bicker with each other, that's the core foundation. they're caring people who look out for their group and try to help wherever they can. in essence... they're both knights through and through.

and then HS2 fucks it all up. legit why even confuse anything about their relationship? just let them uncontroversially date, keep it lowkey and tasteful, realize the wonderful potential of their friends razzing them about it a little, and write a better story for them to exist in. god damn. like, seriously, just give them more people to actually care about, because Dave and Karkat feel out of character if they aren't constantly in the lives of a plethora of friends who are important to them. look at them in homestuck. look at everything they do best. of course they wouldn't thrive in HS2, none of the cast even likes each other anymore!! Dave and Karkat were basically instrumental in setting up rosemary, which fits so well with all of their characterization its insane. I just want everyone to periodically go back, and reread homestuck, and remember when these characters were good people.

BASED WENDELL COMING IN WITH THEIR ANALYSIS BETTER THAN WHATEVER THE FUCK THE HS2 WRITERS SHIT OUT 

[serenityseventeen]

Love & Letter: To The Thirteen Boys I've Loved Before

The Sixth Letter

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

To: Lee Jihoon

From: Y/N

I'm sorry.

Jihoon, I will not blame you for anything. If I were in your shoes, I would have been even more irritated than you were. I'm still irritated, actually.

I know for certain that you probably hate me so I will begin this letter for you by reminding us of our good times when no one was there to butt in.

When we first met in tech audio, I was really surprised that you were a musical genius. You knew how to work the garage band app right away and since we sat next to each other, I could already tell that you were familiar with it.

You were also able to play the guitar and the piano. I've always liked music so seeing someone play those two instruments just fascinated me. Not only that, but you also played the clarinet well.

You've probably lived around music all your life, right? I listen to music almost everywhere I go, every day, it's one of my human needs, but I have to admit, even after learning a bit of piano from you, I still have almost no idea about music. Genres of music are still hard to identify for me and I can still barely tell the difference in chords. I'm still thankful that you took the time out of your worktime to help me understand more about music.

Honestly, when I first saw you, Jihoon, I was intimidated. You didn't like exactly friendly and I just stupidly thought that you were one of those ‘perfectionist’ students who only cared for their grades and being the best. Also, just the way you looked when you didn't smile gave me that impression. However, when you smiled, you looked completely different. You looked cute. We laughed a lot together too.

I bet you that on our first assignment, I must've looked like a complete tech idiot. The assignment was just to come up with your original piece of music by messing around on the app. Was my confusion that easy to see through?

I don't know, but I think the moment that you helped me was when I started to realize you as the person you are now. You taught me how to use the app in such a gentle tone, you know that? I still feel like I can listen to your voice forever and I won't get bored of it.

I was happy with our forming friendship. I felt like I could truly be your friend. Plus, we had one other class together so I was able to talk with you a lot about music. Everything you say fascinates me and makes me believe that you are a musical genius. I still believe that you are even if I can't hear your songs anymore.

Speaking of your music, I think you should become a ‘pro’ music producer, lyricist, composer, songwriter, of them all. Your talent in music is truly undeniable!

That first piece you showed me called “17”, I have to say that that song may be my favorite out of all the songs you've sent me. I still have all the music files stored in my phone and I'll never delete them. It's not because I still like you that I'm keeping them but it's because I like the song. I might put them into an mp3 player and stick them on the back of this letter. Out of the 13 songs you've shown me, there was not one that I disliked.

Your voice is also heavenly. I love it. I don't understand why you aren't getting yourself a whole career already! You don't know this but when I was playing your song “Rock”, my father was totally digging it! Even my next-door neighbor wanted to know who was the artist behind “20”!

There was also that time when you were helping me learn how to read music using the piano and our hands kept brushing against each other. Our shoulders were also glued together because the seat was so small. If your heart was racing just as much as how pink your ears turned, then please, believe me, my heart was beating twice as fast.

You didn't just teach me music and show me your creations, you also shared music that you enjoyed. A lot of the songs are still in my playlist. You have great taste in music too, Jihoon. I enjoyed every moment we spent just sitting at the window of the classroom, sharing headphones and listening to the songs you liked.

When they were love songs, I just couldn't help thinking that you chose the song for a reason. I'm quite an overthinker. I always thought that maybe one of the songs you showed me held your heart and maybe they did, but now I'll never know.

I'm your fan, Jihoon, even though you probably wouldn't want me to be anymore. I still admire you and I respect you a lot, that's why I'm deciding to write you this letter. I'm not going to get too close to you, I won't even try to bring us back to what we were because now, it's too awkward between us. I know that deep inside, you must feel so a deep hatred toward me, even if it wasn't entirely my fault.

I've realized what kind of person you are, Jihoon. You're kind, caring, talented in almost everything, shy, and stubborn. You love music. You hate it when someone who isn't close to you gets all up in your business as if they know everything. You also hate narcissists. You're selfless and humble.

I don't know who you told but I'm sorry. Your trust must have been completely broken. I mean, I can just imagine how painful it would be, being an introvert and telling someone your crush while trusting them to keep the secret only to have them spill it to the person's friends.

I hate my friends because they ruined our relationship but since they are my friends, I just can't abandon them as if we didn't spend years being best buddies. I've been distancing myself from them for a while now but I think it won't be long until we continue hanging out again. I want to hang out with you too but you must feel so... angry.

I heard that you're not friends with the guy who leaked the secret that you liked me. I truly hope that you can find a friend that is a true friend. I don't want you to live in fear and keep everything to yourself. I'll always be here for you though, so please, even if I don't speak with you, you can speak to me.

Gosh, what am I saying? It can't be fixed.

You must've overheard it when my friends dragged me away from your cafeteria table and whispered to me, “Did you know? He likes you!”

I was flustered and when I turned back to you, I still remember seeing your hands clench. That's when I sort of knew that we wouldn't be friends anymore.

Even after having your trust broken, you continued to hang out around me, which made me believe that if I confessed my feelings to you when the time was right, we could fall in love. So, I spent a lot of time learning about you.

That's when my friends came in again. They started teasing us in front of the whole class, saying all that stupid cheesy shit. I was ready angry and kept telling them to stop but they wouldn't because they just thought I was like them.

‘When you're in high school, you don't want the person in the relationship, you just want a relationship.’

That was not the case for me but that's what they thought. I wanted you, Jihoon. I was ready to teach you about me and get to know you better so that when I was ready to love, we would be able to stay together.

My friends are stupid.

They continued to pressure us to be together.

Knowing you, you must've gotten extremely annoyed and fed up with it, enough for you to end your friendship with me. And that's exactly what happened, right?

Each day, for a month, they came to our desks singing stupid love songs meant for children. They were so childish and I was growing so sick of it. I knew that you didn't like that shit. I knew that you were just enduring it but I couldn't stop it and I'm sorry.

We went through all that humiliation together. I think we could have had a better love story if your friend didn't leak your secret and my friends didn't act like children. I saw sparks in your eyes, that's why I had hope that we could fall in love together, but we couldn't even get ready to love.

I just remember that day when you ignored me. I was telling you that your piece sounded good and asked if I could get a listen, but you didn't reply to me at all. You still don't talk to me. It makes my heart ache.

When our friendship got ruined, I almost ruined my other friendships too. You don't know this but they kept pestering me, asking if you and I were finally dating and if we had a couple fight. They kept reassuring me as if they knew what we were going through and saying that it was just a small love fight and that we would recover soon. They didn't even know the problem was them so I yelled at them.

In the middle of the cafeteria, I slammed my hands on the table and shouted at them. I'm sure you heard me, you were in the same room. I'm pretty sure that you didn't know about this either but when I left the cafeteria in anger, I cried in the stall of a bathroom.

Now, I'm fine.

I wonder what you thought of me then. I mean, we still had to see each other but we didn't talk to each other like we were strangers. I was angry at you for not understanding me so I didn't want to speak or even glance in your direction, even if it did hurt to ignore you.

I think I know what you feel but all I'm thinking about your emotions are just assumptions in the end. You're a stranger to me now. A stranger that I loved.

You brought me the colors of music.

If only things didn't have to turn out so negatively. If only one friend kept his promise of keeping a secret... If only a group of friends didn't tease so annoyingly... Maybe then, things would be different.

Oh yeah, I'm sorry about this too. I overheard you playing a song the other day. Don't worry, I didn't record it but I cried to it. I just have a feeling that the song was about me. All the lyrics, the depressing but gorgeous sound of the piano, your emotional voice, it all brought tears to my eyes. Were you in pain?

I had never heard the song before. When I cried to it, I had my hands covering my mouth to keep noise from slipping. I don't know if you heard me because you just continued singing.

“Maybe I could have been a man

when everyone was telling me to.

But both choices were selfish,

keep you close or let me go,

so I chose

let's just not fall in love.”

I think your choice was for the better.

Sincerely,

Y/N

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

© serenityseventeen

6/21/21 - 11:01 am

a/n: sigh... I feel like this letter was so relatable on so many levels. My former friends were like that, always wanting a relationship but not the person in the relationship. They're too desperate. + ARTHUR KYEOM COMEBACK!??!? SVT CHINESE DRAMA OST!?!?

[handern]

Devy this is a weird question but you're my only mutual I know who speaks French. Do you have any recommendations for french language children's books? Especially geared at like 6-10 year old readers? I'm trying to practice my language skills, but my french isn't quite good enough yet to read the book reviews. There's "adult readers", but they have a startling lack of anything at all fun in them. I want dragons and spaceships and shit, not sad people buying groceries

Oh I'm going to pull out my list of french writers books I read when I was 7/10 but I'm not sure if it's really what you're searching for?

Even when they're aimed at kids french books by french authors can have a lot of very pedantic words no one uses on a daily basis

Also keep in mind that most popular books written in english out there have probably been translated into french at some point !

Erik L'Homme :

- Le Maître des Brisants (just read book 1 and 2, the 3rd one was a mistake sorry mister Erik sir) : Steampunkish scifi, I don't remember the whole plot but it was pretty epic and I think it was about a boy coming on a spaceship for an internship? Now I need to re read it

- Le Livre des Etoiles : a young boy training to become a mage in a world that was part of ours and is still linked to ours but through a very small gate. It has celtic themes and epic fights but in a more modern way than most fantasy books

- Phaenomen : four kids in a "hospital for children with special needs" realize they have some powers while they go searching for their favorite doctor who vanished one day without a word. Kind of a modern take on changeling kids, smh it gave me a coping mechanism for ADHD and sensory overload that I still use haha

Pierre Bottero : all his series are linked somehow so here's the publication order, which is not the chronological order

- Ewilan series : a girl finds out she has the power to cross from our world to another one, and also that she's the most powerful magic user born in that world. She goes in search of her biological parents trapped somewhere in that world along with a very eclectic band of weird people. It was some of my favorite books ever.

- L'Autre : set in our world, it follows two heirs of some 7 or so families of people who can use magic, they have to learn to control their powers and I also forgot the main plot but hey the girl can turn into a panther and at some point she murders someone which was very cool of her

- Elana : following my childhood hero, Elana from the Ewilan series. It starts with her as a toddler being raised in the jungle after her parents' death (the best book) then it follows her growing up and being trained as a Marchombre (less interesting but still good) which is a thing that would take too long to explain like, they could be assassins but they're not and they could be thieves but they are not but also they're both assassins and thieves for most of them except they're not, they follow a goal way more important than just assassinations and thievery, of spiritual and physical perfection. I started practicing climbing bc of these books.

Erik L'Homme and Pierre Bottero :

- A comme Association : monsters hunting monsters (4 first books are by both of them, the rest is Erik L'Homme alone). It's pretty fun but I didn't get the end at all. But it's pretty fun yes and makes me very emotionnal bc Pierre Bottero was my favorite author and he died right after the 4th book's completion. The characters are really cool and very fun, and of course there's some monsters befriending

Serge Brussolo : each of his series has like 10000 books, I have no idea how this man writes so much but I'm pretty sure his writing rate should be illegal somehow

- the Peggy Sue series : my grandpa gave me the second book instead of the first by accident and thank goodness he did because the first book absolutely TERRIFIED ME, the rest is really kids books but the first one is horror. It tells the story of a girl who can see ghosts and they make her life miserable for it like, literally try to murder her and her family. She ends up travelling through weird places/worlds, it's pretty cool but jesus christ the first book. Warning for graphic murders, mind control and cannibalism in the first book. Some kids get almost boiled alive to be eaten in the second book but you know what? That's tame compared to the impression the first book left on me! There are sheep who eat people in the 5th book also if I recall correctly

- the Sigrid series : A girl born and raised in a weird submarine realizes that something is wrong and weird, ends up travelling through very eerie worlds where she has to learn the rules very fast to survive, it's also kind of horror-like, but less horrifying than the first Peggy Sue book. There are some spaceships, submarines, ghost boats and a lot more

Fabrice Colin : this man is a genius but also sometimes a dirty little copycat man I love him so much. He wrote a lot and not all of his books are equal in quality but when it's good it's really excellent

- Les Enfants de la Lune : set during WWII, a child who lives with his grandmother finds a letter adressed to his grandfather who died 10 years ago, he goes to the meeting to announce it to the people who wrote the letter and ends up meeting the last elves trying to leave our world before the last portal closes. It's very bittersweet and has absolutely amazing characters including a crocodile who probably ate a nazi at some point, evil pterodactyles and a mechanical kraken in the Seine. I spent 10 years hunting for a copy of this book, I would borrow it ten times a year at the local library

Eric Sanvoisin : I was absolutely obsessed w the atmosphere of his books. Horror but not scary? Kind of intriguing and creepy but in a very cosy and familiar way?

- Les buveurs d'encre : vampires but they drink books ink

- Les chasseurs d'Ombres (type in the author's name or you'll just get the Moral Instruments in the results) honestly it's been so long I don't remember much except that I harassed my parents until they bought me the book after I read it at the library. I think it has vampire-y vibes too with investigations

I also read every single book of the "Autre Mondes" collection by the Mango editor, which has really cool scifi books but there are so many it would make this list way too long so I'll just recommend "Les Abimes d'Outremer" which is about space whales being spaceships, but this collection is a goldmine if you want well wrapped together short-ish novels

[theelliottsmiths]

So anyway, Mein Herz Brennt Making of liveblog, one of my favourites

First of all, I do take any use of piano MHB as a slight towards my tiny hands. -1 point

I really would love to visit this place, it's beautiful

I love that Oli introduces it and then Till is straight in there talking about murder and stabbings. Trust that to be what intrigues him. I feel like 'smells like murder' isn't a direct translation but that's purely because I spent like ten minutes trying to work out what words he says. It rhymes, which is suspicious.

Oh this was before he let his chest piercing reject all the way out in the grossest way

When schneider says Krankenhaus it sounds very Geordie and I'm convinced that kind of thing is why Auf Wiedersehen, Pet was created

Richards eyes light up when he's talking about the room he's in and it's one of those looks where it's just. I would love to listen to anything anyone has to say when their eyes have that sparkle.

"the scavengers had already been here" cue Paul talking about his criminal past thieving from there. See, another example everyone forgets of him being the biggest bastard of them all. The smile is a front.

One of my favourite ever Rammstein things is the combined joy and mockery from Paul when Richard is revealed to be wearing the bird mask and it wiggles as he nods. He looks like a little black cockatoo. Richard looks embarrassed to be wearing it but Paul is having the time of his LIFE.

The way is echoes in his mask makes him sound like he's clucking

Flakes glasses perching in his cone make him look like that sesame Street doctor or scientist

They all suit this make up so much and I wish they'd consider it as a stage look

Peck. Not intimidated.

Considering the nightmares Till has/had, ouch

Richard looks so much like a little vampire prince but like, a character from what we do in the shadows. He makes his own smokescreen entry/exist and everything.

Melanie!!!

Richard has many tendons in his neck huh.

The sounddd. I used to always be curious as to whether or not people in music videos were making the sounds it looks like they're making and now I know and I'm uncomfortable. This and also later when till does the heart

His laugh is never what I expect it to be

That uh. That doesn't look like he's in pain the way the injection sounds implied. At all. Not that I'm complaining but it gives mixed messages.

I'm so sure Richard is the only one I've ever heard use the word quasi. It makes sense for him if true but maybe I only notice because of the tone he uses? His is quite a punchy nasal tone it might just be more noticeable.

Till with kids is always the most adorable wonderful thing. He's really helping to keep them relaxed despite the creepiness of the stuff they're shooting.

"if you look at the cover then you'll recognise a morbidity to the whole thing" till, my darling, do you think people don't already ~see the morbidity~?

I googled and the lady doesn't pronounce renaissance with a g like Till does and that interests me. In fairness I have to assume it's like in Norwegian how words like restaurant are pronounced with a g sound because it's closer to the French sounds? It's not like we in English donut the French way either but the Google translate lady does. This is why I always suspect that when I'm learning a language I'm learning the language wrong and at some point I'll find out there's a Real, For Adults version if the language that's totally different. This is irrelevant. Accents are fun and I like being able to notice them.

It feels so strange seeing this knowing what Eugenio did

Paul taking pictures because he knows better than them

Something about a child saying "ah yes, I know Till and Flake very well" is hysterical.

You can feel the dismay and disapproval radiating off till as he tries to be diplomatic about the Spanish understanding of linear time. He struggles to find a positive and only comes up with the fire walls. "It should have gone out before we filmed anything because they were fucking around with the playback so long but it didn't" is his only compliment.

The German word for French is wild.

Do they know they could have hired an interpreter? Interpreters existed in 2012 I know this

This whole thing with Melanie is beautiful you can't deny that the arm Eugenio made with then was lovely.

Till in the dress with Melanie in his lap. I don't off the top of my head remember seeing it in either video so I simply must assume that it was just what he was wearing that day when he showed up. She's so tiny on his knee I'm glad they're still friends.

"you're left in a state of trauma when everyone stares at you all the time" did this need to get so heavy? It's interesting that he focused more on her voice than her appearance there, though in fairness it's pretty high

They all love her so much and it's totally understandable.

Mit rock n roll und cola trinken

I have to skip the screaming the secondhand embarrassment is too much.

Part 2

Again, this liveblog is so long

Sometimes Oli speaks like his body isn't used to talking.

I want, so badly, to know if Richard was having memories of his dreadlocked youth The tiny cup in his elegant hand is so pleading and then you look left and. It sure is something.

Are they freckles or acne scars across Tills shoulders?...cute. The first set of arm/chest wounds, not so much. I do spy his lil tummy scar

Richard does look like he almost swooped in for a kiss and then changed his mind because of the camera. Paul turns his head that way and then Richard tries to save with a step back and face rub (his own). Just saying.

The fact that a few of them have taken pictures on their personal phones warms my soul it's such a nice reminder that they're good friends outside of work and My Heart

Schneider and Paul ready at a moment's notice to be Dumbasses. J'adore.

What if Zoran was more of a background character tho actually

God, schneider is beautiful. An ethereal, pure beauty that exists no matter how he's being styled.

See okay how is flake almost taller than Oli right now he's not even doing his standard open legs and swan spine thing

It must be so hard to find Oli sized clothes. Flake is also tall and slim but he's a lot more leg, whereas Olis height seems largely to be torso. I have to assume a lot of his stuff is tailored or custom made now.

I always forget about the marks on tills back when he's in the nightmare dress

The child staring with great confusion at a bright red flake reading. I would love to know what his favourite books are.

The childs plural poking and prodding at a very patient Oli, who gracefully bends his spine in ways I've never seen a human do before. I wonder if he's ever dressed up as Lurch from the Addams family.

The actress playing the woman in this half is so beautiful and has a power her younger counterpart lacked when she was threatening him with her weapon.

I am a dummy and was like weird why is Paul speaking Norwegian. I know full well he wasn't saying unnskyld because I've heard Germans say their equivalent before and I assume Entschuldigen either sounds like that fast or shortens so what the fuck, rhi

Till guiding people through him murdering them is truly one of life's greatest pleasures. They trust him so completely. I would like to watch them dance the elegance would be astounding.

Paul lurking watching with what I choose to see as pride as till slaughters an old woman.

Paul being critical (again, as always, rightly so) of the hallway mouthing the lyrics decision.

"for this in prepared to make compromises" he says, hating every bitter word of it

I would like to know what he wanted to say about till and then see him get into trouble over it.

I would like to see till in a bouncy castle. He's adorable jumping into the comfy pit I want to see him in a bouncy castle. Child, utter child.

Paul takes every opportunity to say how hot he thinks they all are and I love that about him. Sometimes your friends are all hot and everybody needs to understand that fact.

Their approaches to pretending to play cello are all so uniquely them. Flake and Richard are taking the time to try and understand what they're being told, whereas Paul just fucking. Lays into it, attracting the weirdest looks from Oli. Richard looks beautiful with that cello and I think he should learn to play. For fun not for work. It's not just that he looks so handsome, but I think that's the easiest way to convince him. I think he'd be good at it, and not being the lead at something might be good for him.

I appreciate that Oli is skeptical because yeah they do all look like they've never held a cello before.

They do, however, all look lovely in their dresses. I'm trying but actually I can't not say that Schneiders little sternum dip makes it seem like he has breasts in that dress and it's a good look for him.

Till singing it in such a high voice, more like his speaking voice, is both interesting and lovely. Oli is trying... So little compared to the others. Laughably incorrect

Why yes, I am laughing at the sheer length of the spikes. They're just... They're so fucking long. So long.

Paul is actually probably the best one there, ironically. They're all comically out of time. They're professional musicians. I know they aren't used to bowed instruments I do understand and I don't want to be uncharitable but also they are struggling. I want to see cellists react to this.

Pretty dresses! And the nightmare but with the most awful and worst fingers! Like the Grinch but goth.

Both Schneider and Richard had the same neverending shoot idea and I am Intrigued.

Till waiting for Schneider with the umbrella :)

Wir brennen! Paul is always so happy to play with fire.

[mononyann]

a while back people requested that i share some of my headcanons for certain bnha characters, so here's some of the characters that i did

Shota Aizawa

- he absolutely has at LEAST 3 cats, he spoils the heck out of them too. that's why he's always eating those gel packs... he spends too much on his cats.

- he really does love his class. and we all know honey??? u haven't expelled any of them. ur soft for them ok.

- he likes to sleep with his cats bc he gets lonely at night... he will not admit it, but he likes having someone/something there :)

- he has reuccuring nightmares about the usj attack and how he could have failed to save his students

- has a very low alcohol tolerance and often ends up getting dragged back to his apartment by mic or midnight when they go out whilst he rambles and whines the entire time

- he hates crying and tries his best to keep his emotions held in, he's only cried in front of a select few people

- he tries not to let others opinions on him rule his life and tends to block it out if someone hates him

- he doesn't know it, but he is the entirety of class 1-a's dad.

- he really likes tea, and dislikes sweets

- as you would expect, he takes his coffee black

Hanta Sero

- he really likes kpop! he stans multiple groups and really wants to attend a concert

- though he seems really chill on the outside, he's actually quite sensitive and has some self confidence issues

- he loves being around people and finds that he gets his energy from being around those he loves

- definitely into e-boy fashion, and he is open about it

- pierced his own ears at 3 am and called kaminari crying about how he screwed it up

- he actually likes to draw a lot in his free time, it's very relaxing. he puts on some nice low-fi music and draws for hours

- he hasn't had many crushes in his life and doesn't find romance to be a big issue currently, but he's open to anything

- accidentally taped his hamster to the ceiling in 2nd grade, he didn't mean to and cried for hours (the hamster was ok)

Nemuri Kayama

- she is a BRO, she likes to crack a cold one open with the boys on the weekends

- she is bisexual and thinks everyone is beautiful in their own unique ways

- most likely talks shit about her coworkers to her classes

- she thinks children are adorable and loves them, often scaring them with her enthusiasm

- very touchy, she loves hugs and will probably not pass up a chance to use you as an armrest if she has the chance

- she secretly worries about aizawa a lot and is scared that he lets the past effect him too much

- did you guys know she has a cat?!

- i like to think she and mic are like... EPIC bros, she loves to paint his nails and do his hair while gossiping with him (aizawa would NEVER let her do this to him lmao)

- she isn't a mom, but finds the idea of having her own children very nice, for now having a cat will suffice

- she enjoys trying to make all might flustered, she thinks his reactions to things are always very cute and funny (it's all in good fun!)

- she's the mom friend! though she may seem very sexual, which she undoubtedly is, she is also very caring and has a very nuturing motherly personality, she's a lot more than just fanservice !!!!!

Todoroki Shoto

- completely oblivious when it comes to love... he doesn't even understand his own crushes

- "of course you can borrow my credit card uraraka" *pulls out endeavors card which he sneakily took*

- would be the person to tell a child that their pet guinea pig didn't go to heaven and be confused when they start sobbing... like "what... don't be honest?"

- allows his friends to huddle up to his warm side when they are cold

- is confused when people show him copious amounts of love and affection

- he would beat up anyone if they tried to do ANYTHING bad to midoriya

- he wants more friends. he really is enjoying meeting new people and having some new friends at ua!

- he gives really good hugs, he doesn't try to hug you too tight, but he doesn't half ass it either, very nice and warm

- he hates his scar. like. a lot. he wants to cover it up so bad but it just doesn't work. he's afraid it'll make other people scared of him.

Shinsou Hitoshi

- loves patd! and fall out boy, a brendon urie STAN

- loves to kiss his kitties on the forehead but dreads human interaction

- he loves to squish his cats' toebeans... he takes pictures of them and posts them to his secret cat social media acc

- he is gay but doesn't know how to feel about it and/or come out, he's really nervous and doesn't trust people to accept him

- he doesn't smile often but when he does it's the cutest thing ever

- he secretly really likes deku and kaminari and is hesitant about accepting their friendship, but appreciates the gestures a lot

- he suffers with social anxiety and doesn't really know how to make friends very well??? like, in middle school people were total dickbags to him so he kinda just closed himself off and decided he was gonna like... not make friends, but now that there's nice people around him he just kind of- doesn't know how

- this is actually canon! but he feels guilty about having to manipulate people when he uses his quirk, during the 4th school briefs book he feels guilty when he overhears midoriya and ojiro talking about him using his quirk during the sports festival, and he's like "i wish ojiro would say something rude about me to show he's angry so i wouldn't have to feel so guilty about this" since ojiro showed no ill feelings towards him

Izuku Midoriya

- "hold on I'll go get a blanket!" *opens closet* *thousands of all might figurines tumble out*

- watches cat vine compilations until 2 am, than freaks out when he realizes it is 2 am

- very good with children!

- used to be very self conscious about his freckles bc of bakugou insulting them; hid them with concealer for a while until someone told him they were beautiful

- loves his momma so muchhh he would do anything for her, he likes to surprise her with small favors to see her happy

- does not understand the concept of letting people handle their own problems

- stays after to class to offer his teachers help

- he has a lot of self doubts and is still struggling to this day to come to terms with the fact that he is worthy of having one for all

- he wants to learn how to cook for his mom and friends

Kyoka Jirou

- she is a lesbian!!!!! she has a crush on momo but is completely convinced that it's unrequited

- struggled with judgmental kids in middle school because of her sexual identity and style

- gets very easily flustered by anyone complimenting her

- that one person sitting at the back of the bus with their earbuds blasting full volume

- was a GOD at guitar hero

- acts like she's fed up with kaminari's (which she can be sometimes), but truly he's one of the people she can trust the most. she secretly appreciates the way he hypes up her talents and how he really helps her through the day sometimes!

- she loves heroes so much... when she was a little girl and didn't know what to do she'd ask herself "what would my favorite heroes do!?"

- she also secretly buys hero merch but hides it in fear of her being seen as sappy

Amajiki Tamaki

- would have trouble standing up for himself but if he sees ANYONE messing with mirio he WILL throw hands

- likes to watch bob ross videos when hes feeling anxious

- he once went to a butterfly museum with his parents and cried out of joy when one landed on his nose

- leaves food out for strays in his neighborhood, ends up attracting an entire hoard of animals.

- he can paint very nicely, he began to paint after he discovered bob ross

- mirio then saw his paintings and showed the entire class to tamaki's dismay, but everyone absolutely LOVED them!!!

- every day he becomes more and more capable and sure of himself, he is still very anxious, but he's learning to open up and embrace his talents <3

- he really loves to listen to music and any time he's not around others he'll probably have earbuds in, gently swaying back and forth to whatever he has on

- nejire loves to try out new hairstyles on him, and strangely enough, tamaki lets her, he loves it when people play with his hair

Shirakumo Oboro

- shares one collective braincell with mic

- that one person that brings EVERYONE valentine treats on valentines day at school

- most likely plays ding dong ditch

- *draws stick figure* "ah yes. just like van goh" (he cannot draw)

- hates to see his friends (and even random strangers upset) and will go out of his way to do dumb things to make them smile

- probably played soccer

- he's a massive flirt and likes to believe he will become a stereotypical anime protagonist with a massive harem

- he really wants to see aizawa come out of his shell more and tries his best to encourage him to see the best in everything

- he has most likely worn a schoolgirl uniform to class once

- he's very affectionate and loves to hug his friends (even if they don't want hugs), it's his way of showing he likes people

Hizashi Yamada

- he lives off of caffeine. he is a teacher, pro hero, and radio show host, im honestly not sure how he does it

- gives out stickers when students get the correct answer in class and has class parties when they are well behaved for the semester

- just like everyone else, he has his own turmoil as well, he likes to stay busy because it prevents him from having a lot of time to dwell on the past

- he gives really good hugs, and loves to feel the touch of others, it's very comforting to him

- was probably pretty troublesome when he was very young while he learned to get control of his quirk

- overall a really happy and excitable guy, he loves being the center of attention and if he can make people happy by being what he is, that's awesome!

- he shows his appreciation for people in odd ways, but he always means good, even if his wild antics can be a bit stressful lol

- he likes to sing a lot and does it a bunch when he's alone, he can also play a lot of instruments

- he can be very serious if needed, he does often put on a persona when he's present mic

- when he's hizashi (out of hero persona) he's even more of a dork than usual, very goofy, awkward and pouty. a manchild.

OK so I reached my image limit, if u guys wanna see the rest I might post some more later PLUS feel free to request some in my asks, I don't really know how all that stuff works bc I'm kinda new to Tumblr but ILL FIGURE IT OUT

[galactic-melodies]

Hiiii, could you please make a royal tutor Yandere AU, where Bruno goes absolutely nuts from the mere thought that he would have to share his Master with someone else? Kidnapping and all that stuff is just so fun, isn't it?

Spoilers for the end of the anime!

Also, this is my first time writing a Yandere type thing, so hopefully, it’s good!

Bruno can usually be described as passionate about what he chooses to pursue. He did not see himself as incredibly smart or a protege in any way. But he wanted to be respected. More than anything. So he worked for it. While his other brothers pursued their own interests, he studied. He learned arithmetic, chess, science, music, geometry. There was not a subject that Bruno did not know something in, and there was great pride in this fact. The young prince was as self-made as you could get. This is probably why when he met Heine for the first time, it bothered him so badly.

Here was this unqualified, tiny man, who was going to teach him something new? Without even a degree to his name, nor a prestigious letter of recommendation. How outrageous. Bruno von Grannzreich has conversed and shook hands with the best of the best. His father only hired the best of the best. And yet, with everything working against this man, he turned out to be the best one! Heine knew how to dance, how to play instruments. He was well versed in the sciences and mastered the arts. Physically, he could do anything. Logically, he could out-think anyone. This was the moment Bruno was humbled. He was so unworthy to even be in the room with someone as capable as Heine Wittgenstein. Heine never saw Bruno how he deserved to be looked at, Heine saw Bruno for who he was and who he could be. It only fitted for Heine to be his Master. There could possibly be no other.

He had learned so much from Heine through his careful tutoring. Heine could look into the depths of your soul and see what ailed you as well as what you needed. Bruno was fully convinced that Heine was the only one who knew him thoroughly. Not even his brothers could say that about the young prince. He loved them dearly, but Heine had a special place in his heart. Placing exactly where his emotions landed turned out to be a tad more complicated than Bruno expected. Why did Master have so much control over his thoughts? Not a day went by that he was not thinking of his Master in some way. Where did Heine spend his days? How did he get to be to where he is? Bruno wanted to know everything about Heine.

One day, he had an epiphany. It happened shortly after his family almost lost its most valuable member. The day Heine left as his royal tutor. Bruno felt his world crumble to pieces. He had never felt more dejected or miserable in his entire life. Sure, they got Master back. All it took was a heartwarming speech to the royal council from his fellow siblings. That day, Bruno realized two things. One, his brothers need Heine as much as him. Two, he could never rely on always having his Master beside him. The later thought terrorized the young male, the former idea motivated him. Some way or another, Bruno had to do something. Perhaps if someone had seen the dangerous way the young prince's eyes had changed or how he looked at Heine just a little too long...the following could have been prevented.

He planned it well. While Bruno was no genius, he did work hard at his strategies. Bruno used to say that his Master always had the best winning strategy... but then he trained Bruno. It took weeks to plan. If his plan failed, Heine might leave forever. That could not happen. Occasionally, a bit of guilt would pang in his chest. Was he going too far? He shook the idea off as quickly as it came. Heine would understand as soon as he explained everything. He always understands. Bruno knew he was on his own. Kai, as loyal and protective as he was, would never assist with keeping the tutor against his will. Leon would be unable to follow his every direction to the letter. There were too many unknown variables that would appear with Leon's help. Licht would be the most ideal out of the three of his closest siblings. Bruno could not shake the suspicion that Licht would try and take the lead and all the credit for his brilliant idea. He would not have his glory stepped on.

The plan would be simple to execute, difficult to keep going. After mapping Heine's schedule, he knew he had a three-day vacation planned for tomorrow. Heine did not have plans with anyone in particular, he was going to catch up on housework, reading, and sleep. Bruno was suspicious on whether or not Heine had been lying about not having plans with anyone. It was imperative to his idea that no one would be expecting Heine. To determine this, Bruno suggested to his father that Heine might be overworking himself. Viktor then requested Heine to have tea with him, where Bruno overheard the whole conversation. Bruno then bribed a guard to stakeout Heine's home for the week to see if he made any plans or not. The prince made a variety of strategies depending on Heine's arrangments with anyone. Luckily, no one had made any, so Bruno was in the clear for part two of the plan.

After tutoring, Heine always went to Viktor to discuss the day. Bruno had mentioned that for this weekend, he would be away for a conference and was leaving the same day Heine was. As Heine prepared for his home, Bruno would offer him a ride. From there, Bruno had two separate plans that would be executed depending on whether he accepted or not.

"Good evening, your Highness," greeted the tutor.

Bruno's pulse quickened, a cold sweat breaking out on his neck. This was it. "Greetings, Master. Where do you find yourself going this evening?" 

Heine regarded the prince for a moment, his eyes moving around the prince's face before he responded. "I am on my way to have a cup of tea and perhaps grab some supper at a local business."

Bruno nodded thoughtfully, "I see." His breath quickened. "May I offer you a ride to your destination?"

The tutor put a hand up, dismissing the thought. "It is not too far of a walk, and the weather is quite beautiful." He gestured to the outside with the dimming sun and light breeze. "Besides, I believe that you have a lecture to give? You worked hard on preparing for it, being late would not give a well-received reaction, your Highness."

"I was about ready to grab some supper as well." Bruno clenched his fist against the seat, tapping his fingers against the cloth. "Master," he ventured, "may I eat with you?"

Heine starred directly into the young prince's eyes as he mulled it over. His eyes moved around as he assessed the situation.

There was a chance he would reject Bruno, but that resulted in a more... uncomfortable incentive. Bruno did not want to hurt the tutor in any way. He felt it would wound him far more to cause harm to someone he respected the most. At the end of the day, he would do what he must.

After what felt like an eternity to the young prince, he received an answer.  

"As you wish, your Highness."

With that, Heine jumped into the carriage, moving next to Bruno.

Bruno let out a deep breath he had not even known he was holding in. His hands rested against the seat, relaxing. Even with this small victory, the plan was far from over. He knew how capable his Master was. Bruno had seen Heine escape from the hardest places.

The next phase of the plan. Bruno was unaware of how high the tutor's drug tolerance was, nor his senses to detect it. The young prince had spent hours mixing chemicals in his lab to create the perfect elixir. It would keep the tutor unconscious for a few hours, but be undetectable. He had tested minor douses on the royal taste testers. They were unable to tell anything had been added to their drinks. Bruno was convinced it would work. He rested his hand against the vials, running a finger against it slowly. His eyes bore into the curtain ahead of him, running through the plan several more times. A tiny hand waving in front of his face tore him out of his thoughts.

"Prince Bruno," Heine called sternly, concern coloring his gaze. "I asked if you were alright."

Bruno waved a hand dismissingly, smiling. "Yes, yes, I am well." His eyes drifted towards his pocket again. "Just," a finger tracing the vial, "thinking."

Heine leaned back, revealing his tutoring stick. He gave Bruno a light tap on the hand. "Worrying will not calm your nerves. Only practice and confidence." The stick disappeared into his robes as quickly as it was revealed. "Besides," he turned toward Bruno, gracing him with a rare smile. "I tutored you well, you will do wonderful."

A pang of guilt knocked against Bruno's chest. "Yes, thank you, Master." He folded his hands in his lab, twiddling his thumbs.

Soon, they arrived at their destination. A restaurant on the outskirts of town. Well-known for good food, but not popular enough due to the inconvenience of travel. It was the perfect spot to do what needed to be done. They would get a table in the back, purchase some drinks, and then be on their way. By the time the elixir took effect, they would be long gone.

As Bruno sat at the table, drink in hand, he realized Heine would be a lot more perceptive than he gave him credit for. It alarmed him that he would still underestimate his Master- even after everything! Bruno got up after a moment, excusing himself for the restroom. On the way, he passed the waitress, carrying a tray full of refills.

 "Excuse me, miss," Bruno announced, touching her hand to stop her.

The waitress looked at him, giving him an up and down. "Yeah?"

"I need you to put this in a drink and give it to my counterpart," he whispered, passing her one vial. "As a prince of Grannzreich, I can guarantee compensation for your silence."

The women's eyes widened, realizing her position. She had caught the edge to the prince's voice and realized she had no choice... but to bey. "Yes, your highness."

He walked past her, continuing to the restroom. "We were not here tonight."

The waitress took a deep breath, returning to the kitchen. There she prepared refills for the prince and his counterpart. She dumped the vial into the young man's drink and mixed it around. Her hands shook slightly with the weight of what she was asked to do.

 She brought the drinks to the table, setting them down with a slightly clink.

The tutor looked up from his reading to regard the young women. "I did not order another drink."

The young woman gave her best flirtatious smile. "It's on the house." With that, she headed off back to the kitchen. She tried not to think of what would happen to the child. What grievance could the prince possibly have? Shaking her head, she decided to clear her questions. It was none of her business to question the royals. And in doing so would be entirely pointless.

Bruno finally returned from the restroom, sitting down. Heine had finished half of his second beverage. Bruno decided to bring attention to it. "Two drinks? Will you be fine getting home?"

Heine sipped his beverage thoughtfully. "Do not worry, Your Highness," his eyes locked on to Bruno's. "I will have no trouble making my way home."

After a few more drinks and the consumption of their meals, the pair headed outside.

"I will bid you good night now," Heine smiled up at the prince. "Thank you for the meal, although you did not have to pay for my side."

"Nonsense, Master!" Bruno waved his hands fervently. "What kind of disciple would I be to not tend to your goodwill?"

The air was crisp with a slight fog. The moon was hiding between some clouds with not a star in sight. Bruno vaguely wondered if even the sky was hiding its face for the next part.

Heine nodded. Not in agreement, but in acknowledgment. He seemed uncomfortable being called Master but had adjusted to it. "Yes," he huffed, "so it seems I must head off."

"Do let me give you a ride home," the young royal offered. "I would hate to be worried about your safety during my trip."

The tutor rolled his eyes. "I am not some child, your Highness," he stated bitterly. "I am more than capable of walking myself home that you do not need to fret over my safety."

Bruno's heart started to race, and he tensed up. "Forgive me for suggesting you are incapable, but it is easier this way."

Heine regarded his student for a moment. "Bruno," he finally said, dropping the formalities, "what is the matter with you?"

 The young prince's mouth went dry, a cold sweat forming on the back of his neck. Master never called him by his name. "What could you possibly mean, Master?"

"I am no fool," he muttered, pulling out his teaching stick again. "There is some type of foolery. You are guilty and yet level headed." He tapped the rod against the carriage. "For whatever reason, you are convinced to spend your evening with me, and I need to know why." His eyes squinted suspiciously.

Bruno sighed. "I cannot tell you here, please get in the carriage, and I will explain the whole thing."

Heine shook his head. "I cannot do that, your Highness."

"It will be so much easier if you do."

"What game are you playing?" Heine huffed.

Bruno narrowed his eyes, slamming his fist against the vehicle. "Get into the damn carriage."

Bruno blinked in shock at himself. He had not expected him to lose any of his disposition. It was no apparent to himself who was more shocked. Heine did not appear to be fazed in the slightest.

"Your Highness, I know more about you and what this is all about than you think," the tutor responded calmly. His head tilted towards the firey prince. After observing for a moment, he conceded. "I already know you drugged me."

Bruno flew backward, his eyes flying open in unveiled confusion. "How could you possibly have known?"

"I am no child, your Highness." Heine made movements towards the carriage. "I suppose we will see where this goes." As he gets into the carriage, he leans against the seat.

Bruno moved to the other side of the carriage, still in bewilderment. "Why are you surrendering?"

Heine laid his head back, sighing. "It's time for a lesson, but I do not believe I can teach you this one directly." He looks out the window, biting his cheek. "Do as you must." With that, Heine succumbed to the drugs and fell asleep.

Bruno exhaled sharply. The deed was finally done. As he ordered the guards to drive to his hideout, he could not help but feel he had been bested again. This was no victory. This an allowance. If Heine had not allowed himself to be captured... The young prince knew Heine could teach him so much. Now that he would have unlimited access to his tutor, he could learn everything from him 24/7. As they slowly drove towards their destination, Heine's words repeated in his head. "Do as you must." It started with a chuckle, but eventually, Bruno blossomed to gut-wrenching laughter. If he had his Master's approval, of course, he was in the right. Bruno would do as he must.