#we see all the recent posts about her Val | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

weebsinstash · 2 months

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could we get some valentino x male reader pls?

Bruh I've been actually on Valentino x male/intersex male Reader so hard lately (and I don't mention intersex for like fetish reasons but. I don't know what having a dick feels like and sometimes I'm like "well what if boy but. Vagine" and, shut up its my gender expression power fantasy, maybe I wanna have muscles and broad shoulders, leave me alone 💀)

Right off the top of my head, I've had ideas recently for:

-boy band lead vocalist! male Reader! Just. Ok. Imagine Reader and Angel having kind of a beef with each other and at some point it becomes a sort of "oh yeah, well I can XYZ better than you" kind of competition amd Angel says some shit like "you wouldn't know what it takes to come out here and strut for a bunch of perverts who look at you like you're a piece of meat" and you just hit him with some shit like "bitch I LITERALLY sucked FIVE DICKS so I could headline for the Superbowl, you fucking LOSER, you dont know ACTUAL music, i was AN ARTIST" and you start belting out something sexy with a choreographed dance that is clearly professional level skill

-male Reader with a little sister and you protect her from Valentino by offering to take her place. You've never sucked a single dick in your life and hell you might not even be gay but Valentino has your baby sister's life in his hands and, you've got to protect HER if not yourself

- ughhhhhh I'm probably gonna make this it's own post too but I've been ON my "unwilling red string soulmate" personal indulgence lately and. Just. Valentino who sees his red string appear and OBVIOUSLY he's gotta RUN to find his boo and he finds you and immediately thinks you're the most precious adorable sexy little thing, BUT. You just. Look straight at him and how HUGE he is and reply "i-im not... actually into men 😳" which is a LIE of course and, here's Valentino thinking, AW, his poor little baby gay! You've never had a boyfriend or gone to any clubs? TRAGIC! But also perfect because he is just TICKLED watching you get flustered beyond belief! So cute!

-I feel like. He would try and give you boners on purpose and think it's the cutest most erotic thing. He's got you sitting next to him and you're filled with liquor and he starts REALLY laying on the flirting, maybe even... places his palm on your upper thigh and BOOM. Hard as a rock and you can't even hide it because he makes you wear tight pants all the time. He's just over there, "what's going on amorcito? :3c you feeling a little hot under the collar?" as if he didn't just spend like 15 minutes talking about how he'd love to get you on your back and touch EVERY INCH of you, how he'd love to TASTE you--

-this is gender neutral but, convinced he eventually forces you to do some of those sexy pin-ups with him and one day you're walking around Vee Tower and he just has that shit HANGING UP. Poster You is just braced against his chest looking at the camera all demure and vulnerable while he's like. Got his guns out looking all tough like "mess with my pookie and you're through" and of course he makes you do. Sexy ones. Matching lingerie?

-I think of forced feminization with a male Reader sometimes actually. Like you wear boxy unflattering shit on purpose and one day Vals just like "you've got a small waist for a guy" and is checking you over. It starts off small. He starts wanting to style you. Then he wants you to update your skincare routine. Which is all fine right? But then he starts pushing his personal tastes. You've got such nice muscular thighs... which is why you would look so nice in some fishnets. He'd love to see your cute little butt in a thong while you cover your dick with your hands in MAJOR EMBARRASSMENT. You've got such pretty eyes; can Daddy put some mascara on you?

Valentino straight up punishing you by dressing you in full lingerie, your ass is in garters, heels, full glam makeup, and forcing you to pose for some cell phone pics

-still over here just mentally 🤌🤌🤌 at the idea of Valentino taking male Reader out with him and Angel and you've got matching outfits. You and Angel are in little skimpy, color matching fits while he's in a suit and gold chain, something that makes him feel powerful while he shows off his favorite toys

-I rllllly like the idea of like, a male Reader who is a honeypot assassin. You can be extremely charismatic and charming and seductive but it's all a front; you're an S tier actor and you take your targets down when they least expect it. The Vees are all at the club and some upstart wannabe new Overlord decides to attack and you just JOHN WICK THAT SHIT. Picture the Vees just sitting there, everything is peaceful, suddenly, in a flash, you move your serving tray in front of Valentino just in time to block a bullet. All three Vees are like wtf? How did you even know? What's going on? You proceed to totally wreck shit improvising weapons as the attacker and his goons charge forth and you even wind up grabbing a whip from a nearby dancer and using it as a WEAPON WEAPON and that shit looks like it HURTS. You're out here "Michelle Pfeiffer taking out 5 mannequin heads in one take"ing that shit. You're cutting people IN HALF (because having hell powers is cool leave me alone)

-i like the idea of male Reader who was a professional male model and a bit of a tailor himself, like a real kind of posh art student kind of type. You're with Valentino and Velvette notices how impeccably you're dressed and asks you where you bought it, you just, not so humbly brush yourself off. "Oh no, I made this myself. Nothing down here really fit my tastes" and suddenly you're like, custom designing wardrobes for ALL the Vees

Honestly just "Reader in XYZ Profession is exploited by Val/the Vees for their skills" is an idea I've had a lot. You have a hobby in baking so they always want food from you. You used to cook drugs so they make you work for them. You're a polyglot so youre taken along on business meetings to make sure none of the Vees business partners are planning shit in front of them. Like. Imagine just being the bitch who sits in the corner of the meeting room and shoots project/product ideas at them and it's like ACTUALLY successful and they're totally receptive and like you. You're just "Hey Valentino, what if you and Velvette did a collab on a waterproof mascara where you shot a porno in one continuous take so you can show the actor putting on the mascara, setting it down on the vanity, and then they start choking on a dick and their mascara doesn't run" like. They love you. Vox is just like "so, any new ideas today" and you're just using your VoxTek Premium Exclusive Black Card to cut coke into lines, "*snooooooort* uhhhhh.... I got some ideas for some stupid little mobile games you can put tons of micro transactions in? Like just before i died there was this one game that was getting really popular but it had a lot missing, we could-" and they could all just kiss you

-on God, Fs in the chat for virgin male Readers who have Valentino finally pop that cherry. I feel like he'd find out you've never had so much as fingers in your ass and within that WEEK you're being dosed with love potion and taking him balls deep

-Val's the kinda yandere where he tells you you're safe being closeted with him, he'll keep your secret, he'll let you stay on the downlow, but one day he so much as ASSUMES disrespect from you and he's immediately letting everyone know exactly who you belong you. You're arguing with him and you go completely silent and cross your arms or some shit and he just takes a hit from his cigarette, "you know you looked a lot more handsome when you were screaming on my cock the other night" and outs you just like that, either as gay or as fucking him or both. Imagine Angel not knowing you slept with Val and he immediately gives you this hurt expression BECAUSE HE TOTALLY DOESNT HAVE A THING FOR YOU TOO

-Valentino would absolutely make male Reader and Angel fuck while he watches and or films it, and also tbh I feeeeeeeel like. Angel would be ok with trans or intersex men tbh? Idk. It's not clear exactly what his taste in men is? He doesn't mind when men are shorter than him, so, like, is he a switch? He gives huge switch energy and let's face it, that's one TALL twink. I mean look at him holding Charlie! He's strong for his size too! Pole dancing takes a lot of upper body strength!

Oh no... not me suddenly thinking about a scarier yandere angel dust who is a lot stronger than you thought... Yandere Angel Dust who corners you and takes you completely by surprise and you get a GUTTING display of just how strong his arms actually are. You're thinking "oh he's just some lanky bottom twink, he couldnt overpower me, in fact I'm scared i might hurt him, he's delicate" but like HONEY HE CAN SUPPORT HIS ENTIRE BODY WEIGHT BY JUST HIS ARMS OR THIGHS. He's a FIT twink.

-ive said it before but uh once Angel Has It Bad Enough, like Bad Bad Bad, he's over here, "oh Daddy, I'm just soOoOo scared uxu ya know my buddy Reader, that one ya think is cute? Well, he was drinkin' earlier and he mentioned wanting to move FAR away and he wouldn't tell me WHERE 🥺 I'm just so worried he won't be able to take care of himself, you know, what, with all that trauma about his FATHER and-- oh he didn't tell you? He's really vulnerable to BIG. SCARY MEN and im wooooorrrrrriiiied, what if he gets hurt, talk to him Daddy PleeeeEEeEease? 🥺" like. He might still hate Val's fucking guts but he's high on coke and watching Valentino put some real inches in you and he's having the most explosive guilt-filled nut of his entire afterlife

-im sorry I'm just picturing Reader being like "I'm not fucking gay, fuck off, leave me alone" and Velvette just not even looking up from her phone, "I saw you using that $200 hand cream. You're so deep in the closet you're finding Christmas presents"

"I'm not fucking gay" "amorcito I've seen the pants you like to wear. No straight men wears those"

"I told you guys I'm not into men!!" "That's what I thought too until I met Al- VAL! Until I met VAL! [OuO']"

Then one night you're off work and none of the Vees or even Angel know where you're at and they wind up in a club and, there you are, getting absolutely fucking wasted, on top of one of the counters, you know those clubs that have random pokes everywhere, and you're dancing, you're getting real zesty with it, you're dropping your ass, and here's Valentino jumping to his feet pointing a finger, "so you DO know how to pole dance!!!" and your fate is sealed from there on in 💀💀💀

#yandsre hazbin hotel #hh #yandere hellaverse #yandere x reader #sinprompts

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stitchpunk1 · 3 months

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YO GUESS WHOS HERE TO TALK ABOUT HAZBIN FANKID OCS BITCHES!

Yeah Ive been wanting to do this for a bit but been super fucking lazy. Got some other fandom ones too I wanna talk about but what with Hazbins first season ending wanna talk about mine with a few tweaks I've done plus one I forgot to add in the last one. I will put this one under spoilers sense the eps just came out and now I have to change shit around till season two for a few of them.

First I have Lucy(used to be Mara and cliche name I know but i like it). She is Charlie and Vaggies kid and named after her grandpa(who spoilers her fucking ROTTEN). Kinda got a design in my head for her that goes with a lamb/goat theme because she is half demon and half angel. Shes got charlies blond hair but more in Vaggies short style and its slightly curly. Shes also got the little hooves, sheep ears and eyes are that horizontal goat type. Like before she is still an absolute artist and loves doing bigger art installations around hell. She ends up dating Husks daughter Heather when they get older.

Second we have Isabella who is by blood Angel and Alastors daughter but her other dad is Husk and sister is Heather. Still got the same design for her that shes a bit more centaur deer like. Shes got the ears(and tail because I'm not giving that headcanon up) of Alastor but with Angels color scheme and fur and kinda a mix of spider claws/hooves(trying to picture her like head/hair in my mind has been a BITCH trying to not just think of it as a carbon copy of Angel). Recently she has become absolutely fucking unhinged as a child in discussions with Musekicker. She is 100% a cannibal and loves to take bites out of people out of pure curiosity of how they taste(leading to many many child leashes that she usually manages to chew her way out of). I like to think that she becomes popular on the hell version of tiktok with cottagecore vibes with a mix of her cannibalism. Dunno why but I like to think that if Alastor sheds his antlers she collects them and makes them into headbands she wears(also uses them to stab people).When older she ends up dating Moxxie and Millies daughter Mable.

Heather is just Huskys by blood and a one night stand but after becoming a couple with Angle and Alastor they become her parents too and Isabella her sister. Every time I think of her design all I can picture is something like Sawyer from Cats Dont Dance. Shes mostly white with a bit of her dads dark grey. Her face all around is just a pure resting bitch face even if she isnt mad or in a bad mood("its literally just my face" is something she has to say a lot). Her biggest secret is how much she LOVES to sing especially musicals and wants to be a stage performer but she thinks she could never make it. She does start to try out in school or any local theater productions thanks to Lucys encouragement. I like to think that after quitting Mammon that even Fizz sometimes does shows for fun and he kinda mentors her after seeing her talent.

Two more to go! Vea is Val and Voxs little accident that they just decide to keep around. She looks mostly like a moth demon but more bluish and sometimes has a little bit of electricity that goes between her antenna. Shes pretty powerful as she can sometimes match Voxs powers if he say fucks around and locks electronics or tv channels. She ends up not exactly running away from home but just kind of wandering away as her parents pay her little to no mind. She ends up at the hotel and kinda taken in by everyone after they learn her story. She ends up becoming the hotels electrician and is fucking terrified of Niffty.

Lastly is one I forgot on my last post who I am not sure what to do with her after the last episode. Her name is Pia and she is Pen and Arackniss kid. Body type she looks mostly like Niss with a little snake tail but she can go full naga like with extra arms/legs when she wants. She has a hood/hair like Pen and is insanely venomous(took me like ten tries to fucking spell that right) do to being half snake/spider. If Pen is in heaven whenever these kids are around she is raised by Niss who stays around the hotel more to take care of her/keep her from his father(who you know is a fucking prick). When he isnt around Angel takes care of his niece. Shes mostly quiet and keeps to herself but she loves weapons of all kinds, being an absolutely crack shot with most firearms.

#hazbin hotel spoilers #stitches ocs #vaggie #hazbin hotel #charlie morningstar #angel dust #alastor #husk #vox #valentino #sir pentious #arackniss

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notyour-valentine · 9 months

Note

Hi Val! Sending you a lovely wintry scene to help cool you down during the under bearable heat! Isn't it beautiful? I'm not sure what lies beyond the door, but it seems mysterious and I like that 😉

Come Hell or High Water

[Masterlist]

Summary: Tommy remembers something, albeit a little late

Note: I believe we had 30°+ when this snowed into my askbox and truly made me giggle. I had to take some time before completing this, but I still hope you enjoy it nonetheless- it's not my usual forte. It's a bit of a crack fic/nonsense but here we go. Thank you so much @zablife for sending this in and making my day

All my writing is produced by an adult and created with an adult audience in mind (18/21+). You are responsible for your own media consumption. I do not consent to my work being translated, copied or posted elsewhere on this platform or any other.

Wordcount: 518 words

“Fucking hell!”, Tommy cursed, pulling his hand back from the door handle and shaking it in the air. “Thing’s practically boiling.”

“Well, the sun’s been shining on it for hours, so…”, she reminded him, trying to swallow a smile. Poor Tom. His palm was already reddening. For all his skills with numbers and horses and wires even, sometimes he was so horrifically inept. As if this whole thing wasn't already comically enough.

Speaking of wires - she only caught the last bit of his suggestion, partly fueled by his quite recent, quite painful experience.

“...blow it up.”

“Tommy!”, she gasped. “You can’t blow the door up - it’ll make the wall come down like a house of cards.”

He only shrugged, spitting on the palm of his hand to ease the burning sting.

“You want the door open, I’ll get the door bloody open.”, he muttered again, glaring at the side entrance to the rose garden as if it had personally insulted him.

“I wanted the door open in december.”, she reminded him as gently as she could while still suppressing a giggle.

It had been then, with snowflakes the size of coins swirling in the air and their breath summoning smoke creatures, when the large square stones that led to the main entrance to the rose garden had gone slick and slippery with thin sheets of ice.

Even in winter the rose garden had been a beautiful place to be, to see the branches and the statues covered in delicate blankets of white, to see the pond frozen over like the mirrored entrance to another world. No cold could keep her away. The only fear she had was slipping on her way there.

The last thing she had needed was a broken wrist or twisted ankle. The last thing Tommy had needed was yet another thing to concern herself with.

So she had turned to the side entrance, but the icy cold had made the door freeze in place where it was, unused for all this time.

She had asked Tommy for help, and he had promised her, but then so much had happened, and it had gotten pushed into the far corner of his mind. Before too long snow had turned to rain, only for that to grow scarcer and scarcer with the relentless march of the seasons, and she had been sure he had forgotten all about it.

Until lunch, a few hours ago, when Tommy had stared at her in the middle of a sentence, his aquamarine blue eyes widening.

“You wanted the door open!”, he had remembered. She had tried to assure him that it was of no matter, that it was summer now and truly no chance of snow and ice.

Still, Tommy had assured her despite her giggles that if she wanted the door open he would get it open.

Of course, why her husband chose the warmest day of summer to try and open a door that had been frozen shut in december, she did not know. Well, she’d say that when describing the hilarity of the situation to Polly, Ada and Lizzie, but in truth she knew exactly why. Because she had asked him to.

There we are, I hope you enjoyed it and if you are suffering a heatwave, remember to drink lots of water and keep your head in the shade xx

Taglist

Overall

@lilyrachelcassidy @jyessaminereads @chlorrox @watercolorskyy @books-livre @quarterpastmidnight @lilyevanswhore @polishcrazyone @zablife @just-a-harmless-patato @stevie75 @flyingjosephine-blog @runnning-outof-time @cillmequick @babayaga67 @butterfly-skinnylegend @shelbydelrey @mrkdvidal1989 @raincoffeeandfandoms @midnightmagpiemama @adaydreamaway08 @kmc1989 @trixie23

Tommy

@knowledgefulbutterfly @babayaga67 @signorellisantichrist @lespendy @geeksareunique @look-at-the-soul @lothbrokcore @rangerelik @elenavampire21 @evanore

#valentineswritings #tommy shelby #thomas shelby #tommy shelby x reader #tommy shelby imagine #thomas shelby x reader #thomas shelby imagine #peaky blinders #tommy shelby / reader #thomas shelby / reader #tommy shelby x you #tommy shelby / you #thomas shelby / you #thomas shelby x you #come hell or high water

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ageofbajabule · 9 months

Text

Dawn of Love | Chapter 2

Josh Kiszka x F! Reader

Word Count: 7k

Warnings: Arguing, Fluff, Anxiety, Self doubt, Making out, Alcohol consumption, Partying, Talk of Virginity,(no 18+ in this chapter. be on the lookout for the next one), (also please let me aware if I miss any, I always try and double check as I do my final edits)

Series Masterpost

Read Chapter 1 if you haven’t!

Want to join my Taglist? Fill out this form or send an ask!🤍

AN: I just want to make a quick note! I would like to try and have a new part posted on Saturday’s. I can’t promise that it will be updated every Saturday, but just know that I put a lot of thought and work into this. Hence why it may take a little longer than normal. I also work 3rd shift so I try and write in my free time as much as I can. Thank you all for being so patient and understanding❤️

March 2014

It had been a month since the dance, and since Josh and you had officially become a couple. Throughout the month, Josh has been nothing but sweet. Leaving you little notes in your locker, doing the same in return. It was hard only having one class together, so you were only able to see each other during lunch and poetry.

You spent most weeknights together and spent every weekend together - whether you were at his place, or he came over to your house. You had been helping him more on his film as it finally completed and you both were getting ready to present it to everyone you cared deeply about.

“Sunshine! Can you hand me the hard drive please?” He turned towards you, as you grabbed the hard drive, placing it in his hand.

“This film came out really well Josh.” You smiled softly, kissing his cheek.

“Couldn’t have done it without your help mama.”A blush crept on his face as he chuckled softly.

“So my family is going to come over Friday night to watch the film with all of us.” You smiled nervously.

Your dad always thought the film dream you had was silly, but you truly had a passion for it like Josh had. And it often resulted in arguments with your father. You had applied to different colleges for a filming and photography degree. With Josh’s help of course, he had applied to most of the colleges you did too.

“Has your dad said anything…” He trailed off, unsure about how to go with the conversation.

“Well we didn’t argue if that’s what you’re trying to ask.”

He stood up wrapping his arms around you in a hug. “He’ll eventually see how important film is to you. You’re going to be amazing.” He smiled, kissing your lips softly.

You kissed him back, then pulled away slowly hugging him tightly before parting away.

“Come on, we should probably head out to the garage. Jake wants to get another practice in order to be ready for Saturday’s gig.” He rubbed your arm.

You nodded, following behind him out to the garage. You opted on sitting on the couch, sitting next to Valerie - the girl Jake had recently started going steady with.

“Hey!” You smiled softly at her,

“Hey Y/N! Are you excited for Saturday?” She shifted her attention towards you.

“Yeah, this will be the first gig I see them perform. It’ll be a very different atmosphere.” You rubbed your hands together.

You and Val had sat there watching the guys play a couple songs from their setlist they had made up. Josh always made you proud no matter what he did, but seeing him perform with his brothers was something else.

The week had gone by, and Friday was here already. Your poetry class felt longer than usual today, Josh and yourself sat in the back of the classroom. Mr.Zawalski had wanted to finish the film Beowulf, so you and Josh decided to just watch the film as you wrote notes back and forth to each other.

Is your family still planning on joining us tonight?

Yeah, but my dad has been in a mood the past few days. :(

It’s okay, he’ll open up eventually. I think this film will show him. :)

I’m just glad I have your support <3

Of course Sunny, always <3

Then Mr.Zawalski turned the lights on in the classroom, causing everyone to groan from the harsh lighting adjustment. You folded your note between you and Josh stashing it into your folder.

“Do you want a ride home?” He smiled at you,

“If it’s not an issue, I don’t want Jake getting his panties in a bunch like the other week.” You giggled remembering them bickering about practice.

“He can suck it. I just don’t want my baby to ride the bus.” He smiled, wrapping an arm around your shoulder, walking over to your locker to gather your things to head home.

“Josh…”

“What’s the matter Sunny?”

You melted at his nickname for you. It always drove you crazy, no matter what.

“I just. I’m really worried about my dad’s reaction. Especially because I think I’ve decided on where to go for college…” You walked out to his car with him, Jake hadn’t gotten to the car yet.

“I know how much his support means to you Y/N… And I want you to know that you will not disappoint him. Just show him how much this means to you.” He rubbed your shoulders.

“And you not only have your mom and sister’s support, but you have mine, the guys, my sister and even my parents.” He chuckled softly, caressing your cheek.

“Sometimes I feel like I’m making the wrong choices…” You put your head down in his hand.

He lifts your face up to meet his gaze. He pushes a piece of your hair behind your ear.

“Sunshine, you’re not making the wrong choices. You’re following your heart. And that is most important.”

He smiled, leaning forward and placing his lips against yours softly.

“Can we go?”

You two pulled away to see the voice coming from Jake, leaned up against the car chuckling softly as he watched the scene in front of him.

You blushed and nodded, getting into the passenger seat. While Jake sat in the back and Josh got in the driver's side.

Josh then dropped you off at home, after reassuring him you would be at his house later to watch the film you both worked on. Walking into the house, you could hear the television playing the news as your father sits in his normal spot on the couch, staring at the tv intently. Your mother on the other hand was finishing up the days work of cleaning the house, while your sister sat in the living room doing her homework while trying to ignore the sounds of the tv.

Walking into the mud room you set your things down, taking your shoes off and walking into the living room sitting down.

“Hi pumpkin.” Your dad smiled at you softly.

“Hi dad, how was your day?” You smiled bringing your knees up to your chest wrapping your arms around them.

“Oh it was good, how was your day?” He turned the volume of the TV down.

“It was good…” You smiled softly,

“What time must we be at the Kiszka’s tonight?”

“Josh wants to start the film at 7. It’s about an hour long…” You chewed the inside of your cheek nervously.

“An hour? Wow… I’m impressed.” Your father replied in a sarcastic tone.

“Yeah. It was going to only be a 30 minute film. But Josh had insisted on using an idea of mine to the film and extend it.” You placed your feet, getting ready to stand.

“Pumpkin… I just. I don’t know-“

“Honey! Someone is on the phone for you.” Your mom yelled for your dad, giving you the chance to leave the room.

You felt tears at the brim of your eyes. You had decided to take a shower, to make yourself feel somewhat better and get ready for tonight.

It was around quarter to 7 and your family was ready to head over to Josh’s. You had packed a small bag, considering you would be staying the night to help the guys tomorrow for their gig.

Your sister and yourself got in the back of you dad’s pick up, as your mom got into the passenger side. Your dad drove off to make the way to the Kiszka’s.

Upon arriving your dad had gotten out, helping your mom out of the truck while you and your sister followed behind them. Your father knocked on the door, and Kelly had answered it. “Hey! Welcome, come on in. Karen is finishing up making drinks and getting popcorn ready.” He motioned for everyone to file in.

You had immediately made way to Ronnie’s room setting your bag in there to make your parents aware you would in fact not be staying in Josh’s room tonight. Not that it would matter, since you would be sleeping in the basement anyways.

Walking out of Ronnie’s room you ran into Josh - making him fall back a couple of inches from the sudden impact.

“Oh, sunny. You scared me.” He chuckled, clenching his chest.

“I’m sorry Joshy…” You giggled, grabbing his hand rubbing circles.

“It’s okay mama.” He smiled, kissing your cheek.

“Josh… I don’t think he’s going to like it. He was ready to go on about how film isn’t a good career choice…” You sighed.

“Y/N. You are going to be amazing. Don’t let one person’s judgment dictate your dream.”

He caressed your cheek looking into your eyes - giving you one of his most reassuring smiles he could muster.

“If anything, only you can judge your choices. No one else.”

“Thank you… Thank you for being so understanding about everything.” You sighed feeling a little bit of relief, grabbing the hand that rested on your cheek, squeezing it gently.

“Now come on, we have a film to show.” He giggled dragging you downstairs to the living room with him.

You opted to sit on the loveseat with Josh, while your parents sat on the big couch with Karen and Kelly. Everyone else made themselves comfy on the floor or pulled a folding chair from the closet.

Josh had held your hand the entire time while the film played. Rubbing circles into your hand to keep you calm as he could tell you were tense from what your father would think of your work.

Once the film had finished everyone in the room was cheering and clapping on the film. You smiled, hugging Josh tightly.

“My god, you kids are going places!” Karen shot up from the couch hugging both you and Josh.

“Thank you mom.” Josh smiled at her,

“Thank you Mrs. Kiszka. It means a lot.” You smiled softly, looking over her shoulder to see your parents making their way.

“Sweetie, you are absolutely brilliant. Amazing work to both of you.” Your mom smiled, pulling you and Josh in for a hug.

“I’m proud of you pumpkin. You as well Josh.” He smiled, sticking his hand out to shake Josh’s hand.

The two of them shake each other’s hands smiling back at one another. Kelly had chimed in congratulating the two of you on your work. Then you had walked your family out to the truck to say goodnight before heading back into Josh’s.

“Thank you guys for coming and watching it. It really means a lot to me.” You smiled softly.

“Sweetie, you will always have our support. No matter what!” Your mom kissed your cheek, hugging you tightly.

“I still think you should reconsider your major…” You dad put out flatly, giving you a deadpan look to show that he wasn’t budging about this matter.

“Dad…” You groan,

“Y/N… I just. I want you to be realistic here. How many directors or filmmakers are successful right away?”

“Just say you don’t believe in me dad. It would hurt a lot less…” You felt the tears forming in your eyes.

“It’s not that I don’t be-“

“Really! Cause it sure seems like it… All my life I was trying to figure out who I truly am and what I want to do with my life. And the moment I do, it's not good enough for you! I’ve always done everything to make you happy dad, it’s my time to do what makes me happy…” You spit out at your father as you wiped the tears away that spilled out of your eyes.

“Y/N, we will continue this discussion at another time.” He said sternly.

“No, I’m tired of discussing this. I’ve made up my mind of what I’m doing with my life. Whether I have your support or not…” You turned on your heels,

“I’ll be home Sunday afternoon…” You then walked into Josh’s house shutting the door behind you.

Running to the guest bathroom, locking yourself in there quietly crying to yourself - until you heard a soft knock.

“Sunshine…”

“I’ll be out in a minute…” You sighed softly.

“I’ll get us some hot chocolate, okay?” He said through the door.

“Okay…”

You heard him shuffle away, as you turned to look at yourself in the mirror - wiping away the tears that were there. You resituated yourself making your way to the kitchen.

“You okay mama?” Josh was finishing up making the two of you hot chocolate.

You nodded, “I’ll be okay.” You smiled at him as he handed you a mug.

“You can talk about it whenever you want. Not now, but whenever you’re ready.” He smiled and kissed your forehead softly.

Morning came pretty quickly, and was filled with absolute chaos. The guys ran around making sure they had everything they needed for tonight's gig. Going over setlists, and making sure everyone’s gear was in tip top shape.

“Jake everything is loaded up. It’s going to be fine!” Josh pinched the bridge of his nose.

“You don’t tell me that everything is going to be fine. This is the first real gig we have! This is the start. This is my dream!” He yelled at him.

“Really Jacob? It’s not just your dream.” He threw his hands up,

“I didn’t mean it like that…” He sighed,

“I understand how important this is to you Jake. I really do. But you need to loosen up, being all tense and worried doesn’t make things better for yourself.” He patted his shoulder.

“You’re right, I’m sorry… It’s just. I don’t want this to affect how we go about this road…” He rubbed his face.

“If it makes you feel any better, Val will be there!” You chimed in, smiling softly.

Jake chuckled, nodding his head. “Yeah, that does…”

You smiled softly, dragging Josh with you. “Listen, I know you guys are going to be amazing tonight. And you’re going to kill it!”

Josh smiled as a blush crept up on his face. “Thank you, sunny…”

“Anytime Joshy…” You giggled, kissing his lips softly.

Jake suggested he drive over to Fischer Hall, while Val sat in the front and you and Josh sat in the back. Sam and Danny had rode over with Kelly and Karen, with Danny’s parents to follow them.

You all arrived about an hour before they would start so they had time to set up, and get everything in tune before the show started for them.

After everyone was settled, people had started to come into the small venue. You offered smiles to the guys.

“You guys are going to be great.” You hugged them all, then once you made it to Josh a blush crept onto your cheeks.

“You guys act like you never kiss in front of us…” Sam started laughing with Danny.

“Shut it Sammy.” Josh snipped at him, then turned towards you smiling, kissing your lips softly. You kissed him back then pulled away.

“Break a leg handsome.” You giggled softly.

Josh chuckled and went with the guys onto the stage. They lit the room up with their presence making everyone cheer them on.

You sat by the parents with Val - cheering the guys on with them.

After they performed a couple songs they finished their small set. Getting a great response afterwards makes your smile widen. You saw Josh coming over to you all flustered.

“That was amazing!” You giggled.

“It was exhilarating.” He chuckled, “Let me help the guys clean up and we can get out of here.” He smiled and ran off to help the guys.

April 2014

The twins' birthday was coming up on Wednesday. But Karen wanted to throw them a party this weekend, since they were turning 18. She had stressed how important it was that her babies have a great party, and one to remember. You have been helping out in any way.

It was hard to keep it a secret from Josh, you hated to keep secrets. But this one was just for a surprise party - so one secret wouldn’t hurt.

It was Tuesday the day before the twins' 18th birthday. Josh has been completely asking you all the questions about what you had planned. And of course you had to tell him he would have to wait and see.

“But sunny…” He groaned, walking to your locker with you.

“No ‘buts’ Josh. I’m not saying another word about your birthday.”

You opened your locker, seeing a bouquet of flowers and a note - blushing, you picked up the note reading….

To my sunshine, will you go to prom with me?

You turned to Josh, “Yes.”

He smiled, pulling you in for a hug kissing your lips.

“I know it's a month away… And I should’ve asked sooner.”

You stopped him, “Josh, it’s okay. I’ve had my dress since the beginning of the month.” You giggled softly.

“Oh, okay… I guess that's some relief.” He laughed nervously.

“And I think my mom may have already sent your mom what I was wearing. So I think they already had an idea that we would be going together.” You shook your head at their antics.

“I’m glad they’re ahead of it.” He kissed your cheek.

“I’ll see you later mama.” He winked and made his way to his morning class.

It was finally Josh and Jake’s birthday, you all decided on skipping school and going on a hike. Classes lately haven't been filled with many lessons considering you graduate in the beginning of June. And missing a day wouldn’t hurt, you just wouldn’t let your parents find out.

You all made it look like you were heading to school, but changed route and went towards where the boys family lake house was. Once arriving you had gotten out of the car, looking at the house.

“She is something…” Josh came up beside you chuckling.

“I’ve never seen anything like it.”.

“We like to come up and get away… Helps us get creative, or just to clear our minds. But we spend most of our summer days here.” He rubbed your arm.

“Well, I’m sure it’s lovely. But I’d really like to get on this trail that Jake and you were talking about.” You kissed his cheek softly.

He shook his head and walked over to Jake grabbing his gear. You did the same, tightening your laces to your shoes, and putting your bag on your back.

“So how long is this trail exactly Jake?” You stood up, soaking in the fresh air.

“About 2 miles, so a 4 mile hike today.” He smirked at you.

“But the view is nice when we get to the end of the trail. See’s over the lake and everything.” Josh chimed in.

“You might just have to carry me on the way back down.” You giggled grabbing the small lunch bag.

They both started walking on the trail, following in between them. Jake played music from his bluetooth speaker. The trail was pretty flat for most of the first half, then the other half the trail got a bit uneven and mainly stones created a path.

You felt absolutely winded, it wasn’t exactly hot out. But the temperature today was enough to make you sweat from the hike. You were a little behind Jake and Josh, it's not like you grew up in an environment to partake in hiking trips. But you wanted to spend time with both of them.

“Y/N, you alright back there?” Jake turned around, smiling softly.

“I’m okay, this is just new for me. I’m not like you monkeys…” You giggled softly.

“We’re almost there, sunny.” Josh came down beside you, rubbing your back.

“Just drink some water.” He pulled out a water bottle and opened it for you.

“Thank you…” You smiled softly, taking a couple sips from the bottle, closing it up and following them the rest of the way.

Once you made it to the end of the trail, there was an overpass that looked over the lake. It was beautiful, Josh wasn’t lying.

You set your bag down pulling out the big blanket to set on the ground, and pulled out the sandwiches you made for them. Handing them out, they smiled and said their thanks munching away. You sat down eating away at yours.

After finishing your sandwiches you had pulled out a small cake that you somehow managed to fit in the cooler. You pulled it out putting some candles lighting them, walking over to the twins.

“Happy Birthday to you!” You giggled softly.

They both sat up smiling, then blew the candles out.

“Thank you, Y/N!” Jake smiled,

“Thank you, sunny.” Josh blushed smiling softly, he kissed your cheek.

“Of course! I don’t know what I’d do without you guys.” You sighed softly, setting the cake on top of the cooler, cutting slices up for them.

Jake then pulled out a joint that was pre-rolled. “Shall we?”

Josh nodded timidly, “That depends….did you actually get some good shit for once?”

“The shit that knocks you on your ass? Yes, yes I did.” Jake chuckled, lighting it up. He took a couple puffs before passing it along to Josh.

Josh took a couple hits, then passed it to you. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to.” He smiled softly.

“I do, I just… Never have…” You looked down ashamed of yourself.

“Hey, it’s alright. All you do is place it between your lips, inhale a little then exhale.” He handed you the joint.

You nodded your head, doing as he said. You exhaled, and coughed a good bit as Jake grabbed the joint from you.

“She’s a champ!” He chuckled softly, patting your shoulder.

“Woohoo sunny!” Josh smiled, kissing your cheek.

Saturday came, and you had opted to take Josh out for brunch to get him out of the house for his mom to set up for the party. Jake was already out with Val for the morning and early afternoon, making it easier for her to decorate the house.

“So what does Sunshine have planned for me today?” Josh chuckled as he buckled himself in the car.

“Brunch, maybe a little walk around downtown? And then cake at your place.” You smiled at him as you buckled yourself, putting the car in gear to drive.

Josh took over the aux in the car, immediately playing his playlist. He started off by playing John Denver’s Sunshine On My Shoulder. You gave him a look, shaking your head slowly.

“Oh come on sunny!” He grabbed your hand and kissed it softly.

“It’s a song I can dedicate to you now, until I write a good one about you…”

“You’ll write me a song…” You blushed,

“I’d write you a million…” He smiled softly, then began belting out to the song.

Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy

Sunshine in my eyes can make me cry

Sunshine on the water looks so lovely

Sunshine almost always makes me high

If I had a day that I could give you

I’d give you a day just like today

If I had a song that I could sing for you

I’d sing a song to make you feel this way

The drive to downtown was nice and filled with laughter and singing. Josh’s voice always blew you away, he was just a beautiful person to be with.

You stopped by a local diner, heading in to sit at a booth. The two of you had ordered your favorites, and ate in bliss. Enjoying each other’s time with one another, after brunch. You two decided to walk around downtown. It was only 2pm and you have another hour and a half to kill before making your way back to the Kiszka’s.

While walking downtown Josh pointed out a record shop, pleading you to go in with him.

“Okay! But we can’t spend the whole day here.” You giggled as he was practically dragging you in.

He chuckled, walking into the store with you. It was a pretty big store with a wide collection to choose from.

You went to the disco section, immediately searching for a copy of ABBA’s self title. It was the only edition you needed to complete your collection. You had all their other pressings available, but every time you went searching you had no luck finding it.

And to your avail, there is no self title available. You sighed, looking over the rest of the selection of great disco vinyls.

“What’s wrong, sunny?” Josh came up behind you rubbing your arm.

“Still no luck in finding the self title of ABBA…” You groaned looking up at him.

“We’ll find it one day.” He chuckled softly, kissing the top of your head.

You nodded and made way to find a couple records for him, you had already had his gift wrapped up and in your car. But another gift of two wouldn’t be an issue, you thought to yourself as you grabbed two of what would definitely be Josh’s favorites.

You had checked out with a pressing of An Evening with John Denver and a pressing of Port of Morrow by The Shins. Josh had a very interesting music taste, and you loved that about him. He was always showing you different indie artists, as you showed him your favorite rock artists.

After having a successful shopping spree in the record shop, it was finally time to head back to the Kiszka’s.

“Come on Josh!” You smiled, watching him check out.

“So what did ya get?” Josh whispered in your ear, coming up behind you, wrapping his arms around your waist. Holding you flush against his chest.

“You’ll see later.” You smiled softly, getting into the car and heading back to his place.

When the two of you had arrived, Jake and Val had pulled up too. Perfect timing you thought to yourself. You gathered the small gifts you had for both Josh and Jake. Heading to the door with them.

You let the twins enter the house first, hearing everyone yell ‘Surprise!’ and ‘Happy Birthday!’ The twins chuckled, smiling softly at everyone present.

“Thank you everyone!” They said in unison.

You came in behind them with Val. “Did you know about this?” Josh asked you, smirking.

“I may have helped your mom…” You giggled softly.

For the next hour or two, everyone was socializing and eating. Karen knew how to make a feast for any special occasions. You truly enjoyed her cooking, in fact you found it better than your mothers.

You handed Jake his gift, allowing him to open it. He unwrapped it, revealing a Jimi Hendrix ‘Are You Experienced’ vinyl.

“Holy shit! Are you serious Y/N! Thank you!” He smiled and gave you a hug.

“It’s nothing, really.” You smiled softly, hugging him back.

“It’s not nothing! This is very thoughtful, thank you.” He then went back to sit next to Val opening her gift.

Josh then pulled you into the basement, away from everyone. You smiled, handing him his gifts sitting on the couch next to him.

“Happy Birthday, Joshy…” You blushed watching him go through the shopping bag from today’s finds.

“Sunshine! These are great!” He smiled, then went to grab the one that was wrapped.

“This one was a little bit harder to find… I’m not going to lie, but you kept talking about it. And I just had to deep dive…” You chewed your lip nervously.

His eyes lit up, as he tore the wrapping paper off. Revealing an original pressing of John Denver’s self title. Josh hadn’t been able to find a copy at all, and it was driving him nearly insane.

“Y/N… This…” He smiled looking at you, placing it on the table in front of the two of you.

He cupped your face in his hands kissing your lips softly.

“I love you…”

He said it. He said it first… You had been worried to have said it too soon, or too late. But, right now was the perfect time for it to have happened. You felt your stomach flutter from his words.

“I love you too…” You giggled, kissing his lips softly again.

May 2014

Prom was here. And to say you were stressed, was an understatement. You had recently completed your admission to Michigan State University after discussing with Josh your plans for the future. He was beyond excited for you and had also enrolled into Michigan State.

The two of you would be pursuing the same degree, therefore you would have pretty much the same courses. You were happy that you wouldn’t be completely alone at college, and that you would have someone you know there.

All morning you had been waiting to get your hair done, then your makeup to follow suit after your hair was done. Your mother was making sure everything for your senior prom was going smoothly. Even though you had reassured her multiple times that you were okay and everything was fine.

Hoping she isn’t like this for your wedding one day…

After leaving the salon, you headed back home to finish getting ready. All that was left was the dress. It was absolutely stunning - opting for a print color, you had decided on a sky blue gown.

It was strapless and flowed beautifully, though it wasn’t a ball gown, but it stood out from most dresses that were available for this prom season.

You slipped it on, then put your heels on. Looking at yourself in the mirror, putting on your necklace and earrings. Giving yourself a final touch up on your lipstick, then making your way down stairs.

Your mother was at the bottom of the steps, waiting for you to take you to the golf course where Josh and his family would meet you to take pictures together. You had wished Josh could’ve picked you up beforehand, but didn’t want to cause an argument.

As you were heading out the door, your father followed behind helping you into the car making sure your dress didn’t get caught in the door. You smiled buckling yourself, as your parents drove to the course.

Once you had arrived, you got out meeting Josh and his family. Along with Jake and Val’s family, it was a beautiful sunny day for prom. Most cases it had rained on prom for others in the past, but today it didn’t.

“You look extravagant sunshine!” Josh smiled, holding your hands in his kissing your cheek softly.

“You don’t look too bad yourself.” You giggled softly, then Karen came over handing Josh and you, the corsage and boutonniere set. It was white rose assortment again, like it was for the Valentine’s dance. You giggled softly remembering that night.

“What is it, sunny?” Josh smiled as he slipped the corsage on your wrist.

“Just remembering our first dance together…” You blushed, as you helped pin his boutonniere to his tux. He smiled, and kissed your cheek softly.

“Alright kiddos! Come on, time to get some pictures of you all.” Karen smiled, getting her digital camera out, your mother did the same.

The two of them kept taking pictures, in front of the ponds, the trees, the garden. You name it. You were already exhausted and the fun of the evening hadn’t even started.

“Mom, I think that's enough pictures…” Jake groaned, fidgeting with his tie.

“Oh alright! I just can’t believe my babies will be graduating in two weeks!” Karen cried out teary eyed, as the twins pulled her into a hug.

Prom was what you expected it to be. Another dance in which everyone dressed to impress. The only thing that made it sentimental was that it was the last dance for your class. Sure you only had a handful of friends, but you were all going to different schools and some were even moving out of state to pursue their dreams.

Jake had gotten invited to an after party, inviting you and Josh to join him. In which the two of you couldn’t turn down. But before heading over to the after party you had stopped home to change into a more party-like fit, and an overnight bag to stay the night at Josh’s.

Your parents had been more lenient about you staying over at Josh’s considering they trusted him and yourself. But they also knew that they couldn't necessarily control your life as much, as you were turning 18 right after graduation.

Pulling up to the party, Josh and you had driven over with Jake. Val couldn’t join as she had cheer practice in the morning for her upcoming competition. The house was a lakehouse that wasn’t too far from the Kiszka's lakehouse. It was about the same size, maybe a tad bit bigger.

But after all it was Gabe Sanders throwing the party - his parents were loaded with money. The house was filled with probably the entire senior class, and anyone who attended the prom. The music was loud, there was alcohol everywhere. Definitely a different vibe then what you were used to.

“It’s gonna be alright Y/N, it's our senior year after all! And besides I’m sure we’ll go to some college parties.” Josh chuckled softly, rubbing your waist to comfort you.

“I don’t know, I guess it’s just because I’ve never really attended parties like this before.” You quipped walking into the house.

The scene in front of your eyes was like straight out of a movie. People were crowded everywhere, red solo cups in everyone’s hands. Couples lounged together not caring that people saw them hooking up. You made your way to the kitchen with Josh, as he got you a cup of Tequila Soda.

Josh had been around alcohol more frequently than you, so he already had an easy drink to go for. You smiled softly as he handed you a cup, taking a sip you felt the alcohol run down your throat feeling the burning sensation.

“It’s good isn’t it!” Josh smiled softly,

“I’ll manage.” You giggled softly, as he threw his arm around your shoulder.

The rest of the night Josh and you had a couple drinks, definitely now under the influence. He decided to take you to a bedroom upstairs.

Josh and you hadn’t even gotten past 2nd base yet - it’s not that you weren’t ready to take the next step, you just were scared of what he wanted as well. It’s a topic the two of you haven’t generally come across yet. But in the end you knew that when the time was right, it would happen.

The two of you giggled as you made way to the bedroom, kissing and whispering sweet nothings to each other. The two of you sat on the edge of the bed unsure of what to do next. Nervous as all ever, Josh rubbed your shoulder reassuringly.

You smiled and pressed your lips against his, deepening the kiss with him. His hands rubbed your waist, while your hands were tangled in his hair.

Then you heard a floorboard creek,

“Oh my god!” You knew that cracky voice from anywhere.

“What the hell Sam! How did you even get into this party?!” Josh turned away from you, shifting his attention towards his little brother.

“Because the older ladies love me Joshua…” He wiggled his eyebrows.

Josh then picked up a pillow chucking it at Sam.

“Get out Samuel!” His face was beet red.

Sam zipped out of the bedroom, shutting the door on his way out. Josh sighed softly, turning back towards you.

“I’m sorry about that, I should’ve locked the door.” He chuckled nervously.

“It’s okay Josh, really… Besides, I think it's best that our first time isn’t under the influence…” You trailed off, caressing his cheek with your thumb.

He nodded, “You’re absolutely right, sunny… I want our first time to be more meaningful and at a proper setting.” He kissed your cheek softly.

“Come on, we should probably leave soon. Especially before Sam gets into any trouble…”

Josh stood up, putting his hand out for yours. Taking his you intertwine your hands walking downstairs to regroup with Jake and Sam heading back to their place.

June 2014

The last two weeks of school had dragged, it felt longer than usual. But alas, graduation was here. The morning felt absolutely hectic and long, as your mother was frantic on planning your graduation party. Why did she have to have it the same night as graduation, beat you. But you didn’t want to upset her and not have a graduation party.

The assigned seating was based on height, those graduating that were in choir were separate from the rest of the graduating class. Therefore Josh was in the choir section, leaving you and Jake to sit by yourselves. You and Jake were a couple rows away from one another. Then you were next to your good friend Mallory.

The ceremony was a complete bore, talking about how to make sure all the choices you make in life are never taken for granted. And to always remember where you’re from…

Before you knew it, everyone was placing their tassels onto the other side of their caps.

“Congratulations to the 2014 Class of Frankenmuth High!”

The principal smiled, clapping his hands. All of the students threw their caps in the air, catching them afterwards. You found Jake and Josh immediately after the ceremony hugging them tightly.

“Oh sweetie!” Your mom was in tears, flailing her arms to wrap you into a hug. You smiled softly at her, hugging her tightly. Soon after your father engulfed you into a hug.

“Congratulations pumpkin! You’re a high school grad!” He kissed the top of your head.

“Thank you guys…” You smiled softly, going to hug your sister Olivia.

“Congrats sis.” She smiled softly,

“You’re up next…” You giggled, squeezing her more into the hug.

Josh made way back to you after finding his family, he pulled you into a tight hug, kissing your lips softly. You blushed, kissing him back softly in front of everyone, pulling away.

“My mom wanted to get some pictures of all of us.” He chuckled softly.

“What a great idea!” You mother chimed in, standing next to Karen to get pictures of you two and then Jake to join as well.

“Come on now! Smile!” Karen had motioned for you and Josh to pose.

He pulled you by the waist, keeping his hand rested on your hip drawing circles with his thumb. You smiled, placing a hand on his chest taking what seemed like a hundred pictures.

“Alright, one more couple picture then a group picture! Don’t be shy now.” You mother giggled, then Josh and you giggled kissing each other softly for one last photo.

Jake had then joined in, making you stand in the middle like a twin sandwich. You ruffled his hair a bit, fixing his cap and then posed for a couple more pictures that suited both the parents' liking.

“Okay! Can we please go, don’t want to be late to my own graduation party….” You giggled softly.

Your mother gasped, “Oh my god! I almost forgot... Let’s hurry home and get you ready!”

The graduation party your mother had planned for you went well. Part of your graduating class showed up to join the fun, which included games of cornhole, horseshoe, and some good ole campfire songs.

As the night drew nearer, everyone had left the party leaving you to help clean up with your mother. Josh had also stayed behind to help clean up, where Jake had gone to take Valerie home.

“Thanks for helping…” You smiled, tying up the trash bags.

“Of course sunshine, I’d help anytime.” He flashed a smile at you.

The smile you loved most, when his eyes crinkled and his dimple was visible. You’ve started to notice more little things about him, the things you had grown to love even more about him.

The way he laughed, the way he talked, the way he looked while peacefully sleeping after a long night of band practice. The way his hair rested, just above his shoulders… The way his honey golden brown eyes stole your breath away. He always knew how to make you smile, and how to make you laugh. He wasn’t just any ordinary guy. He was Josh. Josh had become a safe space for you…

And he had no clue how much you loved him… How much you care for him, and how much he meant to you. Josh was like a missing puzzle piece that fit your puzzle to life that you were trying to figure out. And there he was all along.

After taking the trash out to the trash cans, Josh had asked you to go on a drive with him. And which of course you agreed to go.

“Where exactly are we going?” You giggled softly, as he sped off to wherever he had planned.

“Just trust me!” He smiled softly, rubbing your hand with his thumb reassuringly.

A 20 minute drive later, you had pulled up to what seemed to be an abandoned cabin. You got out of the car, waiting for him to join your side.

“You’re not planning on killing me, are you?” You looked at him.

“Now what kind of gentleman would I be to bring you all the way out here to do such a thing.” He chuckled softly, earning a giggle from you.

“So… What’s special about here?” You looked at him questioningly.

“This is where I come to get away and have time for myself… I’ve always been drawn to this location. Whether it's the energy that resides here or whatever higher being is calling to me… I don’t know…” He rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

“Josh…” You placed a hand on his cheek, rubbing it softly. “There is no need to get nervous or shy around me…” You kissed him softly.

He pulled you in closer, kissing your lips back softly.

“I just… I love you, and figured I’d show you a spot that could be ours… and perhaps, one day we can buy this land and make this a cute winter holiday home.” He chuckled nervously.

“Mr. Kiszka wants to get a holiday home with me?” You blushed, poking his chest softly.

“Perhaps one day… When the time is right of course.” He smiled, grasping your hands softly intertwining them. “One day, I’ll make you mine forever…”

“You’re sunshine forever…” You smiled softly, leaning in to kiss him once more.

The start of your summer break had just begun. And there was so much left to experience before starting college. You were nervous to say the least about starting this new chapter in your life. But having Josh by your side helped ease the anxiety. Or would it…

Taglist-

@lyndszee @laneygvf @sacredthefran @starcatcherry @fkfearandliveyourlegend @hi-hi-hello11 @gretnavannfleet @themoreyou-love @gvfmuse @meetingthestardust @myleftsock @jordie-gvf-admin @radmads-gvf @twistedmelodies @thunderstomp-and-tequila @sinsofstardust @jakesdogss12 @vanillabear27 @dharma-divine33 @holybananafuck @thecoldwind

#greta van fleet #gvf #greta van smut #gvf smut #greta van fleet fluff #greta van fluff #greta van fic #josh gvf #josh kiszka x y/n #josh kiszka fic #josh kiszka #josh kiszka fluff #josh greta van fleet #josh kiszka x reader #joshua kiszka #joshua michael kiszka #josh kiszka series #dawn of love #greta van fleet fic

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empirearchives · 8 months

Text

Women artists in Napoleonic France

(Young women copying: ‘Love begging Venus to forgive Psyche’ which was displayed at the 1808 Salon. Sketch by Georges Rouget)

Quotes from an article about women’s participation in the art world during the Napoleonic era.

Article:

Heather Belnap Jensen, “The Journal des Dames et des Modes: Fashioning Women in the Arts, c. 1800-1815,” Nineteenth-Century Art Worldwide 5, no. 1 (Spring 2006) (source)

“More and more women artists began exhibiting their work in public venues and receiving recognition for their contributions at this time. While only three women artists had participated in the 1789 biennial Salon, fifty participated in the Salon of 1806–an increase in women’s participation of over 1600 percent in seventeen years.”

(Woman artist giving a drawing lesson — Self-portrait, 1810, by Louise-Adéone Drölling)

“We see a move away from the emphasis on the public sphere to the private space as motifs, intimating a valorization of a woman’s world. While history painting, which played such a crucial role in Revolutionary visual culture, remained the privileged genre at the turn of the century, the rise in portraiture, landscape, and genre painting in Napoleonic France indicates this shift in values.”

(Young Woman Drawing—Portrait of Charlotte du Val d'Ognes, 1801, by Marie-Denise Villers)

“Women’s journals, which often published art-related materials, have been largely overlooked in discussions of developments in late eighteenth-and early nineteenth-century French visual culture. This is surprising, given that bibliographies on art criticism of this period frequently cite items from these publications.”

One of the most influential women’s journal of the period was Journal des Dames et des Modes. It was created by Jean-Baptiste Sellèque and Pierre de La Mésangère in 1797 and continued until 1839.

“La Mésangère’s key collaborator during the Napoleonic period was a woman, Albertine Clément, née Hémery, a well-known figure in both journalistic and cultural circles in post-Revolutionary France, and that several women were regular contributors to this journal during this era.”

Annemarie Kleinert did a study on the journal:

“She determined that the journal targeted bourgeois women between the ages of 18 and 40 years old who could afford the annual subscription rate of 10 livres, and that the majority of subscribers during the period from 1800 to 1815 were from the provinces.”

(Portrait of a Young Woman Drawing Herself, early 1800s, by Louis-Léopold Boilly)

Interest from women in creating their own designs:

“Fashion plates that accompanied each issue of this journal gave visual testimony to this heightened interest in women’s artistic engagement. Indeed, women in fashion plates were sometimes presented in the act of sketching and drawing, as shown in a plate that appeared as an insert in an 1802 issue of the Journal des Dames et des Modes.”

The act of women creating art was compared to motherhood. In that way, women were encouraged to make art, but in terms which enforced traditional and patriarchal ideas:

“Furthermore, the vocabulary used by the author stresses the ways in which artistic creativity mirrors childbirth and elicits feelings of exaltation over one’s art that are similar to those evoked by motherhood when he writes that ‘she smiles at the objects which are born of her colors’ and calls the site of her production a ‘creative space.’”

There were opportunities for women to paint nude subjects for classical style art:

“Recent scholarship suggests that there were opportunities for such study in the Napoleonic era. By 1800, female students could attend anatomy classes given by the surgeon Sue and also by the École du Modèle Vivant at Versailles, and artist Adele Romilly reported that David, Régnault, and Guérin all provided mixed studios that offered courses on life drawing from the nude.”

One of the claims made against the women’s journals is that they were sexist. The author points out that it’s more complicated and not entirely true. The journals included laudatory reviews of paintings by female artists at the salons, biographies of women artists, such as Angelica Kauffmann, and published excerpts of pamphlets written by women, such as Angélique Mongez.

(Portrait of an Artist Drawing after the Antique, c. 1800s, Jean François Sablet)

However, the author also says there was a lot of anxiety about the increase in female participation in the art world, both as creators and as spectators. There were articles describing women at museums in derogatory terms. One in particular described a young girl being overcome by emotion at the sight of the statue of Apollo Belvedere and creating such a large scene that she had to be dragged away in tears.

These articles imply that women spectators had become dominant enough that it could inspire critics.

Women had become so important in the art world that a really unique phenomenon happened:

“Roger Bellet has demonstrated that there are known instances in late eighteenth-and early nineteenth-century France when men published under a female pseudonym.”

Many of the top artists who were admired in the era were women such as Élisabeth Louise Vigée-Lebrun, Marguerite Gérard, Constance Mayer, Adèle Romany, Adélaïde Labille-Guiard, Pauline Auzou, Jeanne-Elisabeth Chaudet, Marie-Guillemine Benoist, Constance Marie Charpentier and many others.

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neko-loogi · 4 months

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Alright! It's time for me to give my thoughts on episode two!

I actually managed to watch the whole 6 episodes that have been posted (thanks to a friend) without wasting my money on Amazon Prime! So yeah, that's pretty good.

Anyway, let's begin!

Warning: minor spoilers!

So to start off, in this episode we get introduced to Sir Pentious and The Vees (Valentino, Vox and Velvette).

***

Alright so, I actually liked this episode to be honest! It's not as bad as I thought it would be, but I still wanna give my opinion on a few things!

So far, Sir Pentious is the one character that I actually don't dislike compared to everyone else, he's the character that they butchered the least. He's still the silly and goofy villain that he was in the Pilot, so yeah, he's my favorite now!

Then we have The Vees, I'mma be honest, I actually like them all, well except Velvette, she's a bit too rude for my liking. I also have mixed feelings about her voice, like her VA sounds okay, but the voice doesn't really suit her. The British accent just sounds a bit off to me. I was legit expecting her to have a really high pitched girly voice and a Harley Quinn personality, but she's the complete opposite of that. It's not a bad thing though, but eh, it's not my cup of tea if you know what I mean.

Then there's Valentino. To be fair, I don't like him as a character, he's a terrible person and all the shit he does is disgusting, but I have to admit, like his design! But again, I also have a bit of issues with his voice. The thing is, Valentino speaks Spanish (I mean, I guess the name makes sense), and I recently discovered that his VA is from Puerto Rico (I'm from there too!). But I don't like that he speaks with the stereotypical Spanish accent you see in movies. It almost feels a bit.. offensive. I also don't like how he speaks full English sentences, but sprinkles in a few Spanish words, again this is a huge stereotype, we don't speak like this-

As for Vox, I think he is alright, I mean, there's not much to say about him, he's an attention seeking business man. But I actually like him, I think his electricity and hypnotic powers are cool. I also really like when his voice pitch shifts, it's a pretty neat detail! Like this clip for example, I like when he gets angry at Val and screams his name really loudly. I dunno, I like that sound effect.

Anyway, moving on. This episode also features two songs (yeah, I've noticed that every episode has at least two songs, it's honestly a bit unnecessary since they don't add much to the show, but eh, some of them are alright-). So the first song "Stayed Gone" I absolutely love- it's hella catchy, and I really like the rivalry between Alastor and Vox. I'm happy we get to see more of those two since the Pilot didn't show us much (except for the comics). This is kinda random but I find it funny how I've seen people complain about Alastor using modern language and slang in the song, personally I don't mind this, I mean, it's not a big deal. I just like to think he's adapting.

Later in the episode we find out that Sir Pentious was actually working for The Vees, because Vox wanted more info on Alastor (and planned to spy on him with a camera). But then Charlie decides to forgive him for his mistake and let him stay at the hotel. And then we get another song. I don't know the name of the song, I'm assuming it's called "It Starts With Sorry". This song is not that bad, I mean it's a little lackluster, but I like that Sir Pentious is actually singing! So that's alright in my book.

And yeah, that's it! I think this might be the episode I like the most, but I still have yet to give my opinion on the rest of the episodes! Which I will do later- just give me some time.

Anyway, I'm done for today, bye!

#vivziepop critical #vivziepop criticism #vivziepop critique #anti vivziepop #hazbin hotel criticism #hazbin hotel critical #hazbin hotel critique #spindlehorse critical #spindlehorse criticism #///#by neko loogi #do not repost #neko loogi rambles 😬#neko loogi rants😔

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sherlokiness · 7 months

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been reading your Lyanna and Rhaegar posts and I very much agree with you about them having a wedding. If we assume that those Kingsguard's weren't false Kingsguards like Jaime and weren't lying about them keeping their "vow" then the most logical explanation would be that Jon is legitimate. When Aerys died, they should have gone to protect their new King Viserys yet they refused to do so. The reason for staying in the ToJ must have been because whatever they're guarding there takes higher priority than Viserys.

What do you think will be for the future of Sansa and Jon then? They will be the second Stark and Targaryen union in the current story we'll see. Since Sansa is a bastard just like Jon that means Jon isn't a bastard at all. They're made to pose as bastards by a father figure or else people would have their head. Stone and Snow. She's a Stark, he's a Targaryen.

Hi, anon! Thanks for the ask.

Great point about Sansa saying she's a bastard just like Jon. If we take that as a hint of RLJ then what she says is actually the truth. She was made a bastard exactly like Jon yet in reality they were not at all. We also have a clue to what Jon might feel once he learns of his heritage.

He is not my father. The thought leapt unbidden to Jon's mind. Lord Eddard Stark is my father. I will not forget him, no matter how many swords they give me.

They might offer him the IT(made up of many swords) and the allegiance of noble houses(my sword is yours.) He will never forget Ned and Rhaegar could just fuck off.💀💀

RLJ parallel for Jon and Sansa for me would probably them having a secret wedding. I mean, the books already teased Sansa having one with a cousin. But unlike RL, jonsa will have a public wedding too much like Jahaerys I and Alysanne. Next I would say is Sansa as the Girl in Grey. I very much believe the theory that Lyanna met Rhegar again at the Inn at the Crossroads which is where another iconic kidnapping took place- Cat seizing Tyrion. It resulted in hostilities between two major Houses where the Starks didn't know the inside story. It would have looked like a kidnapping specially if we have hostile forces against Lyanna there which were the King's men. So Sansa/Lyanna would be fleeing kidnappers only to end up with a Targaryen for safety. The elements involved would be a tourney, a crime, a wedding, and a rescue by a knight. Jon disdaining princesses in towers only to end up rescuing an actual one is peak comedy imo. 🤡🤡

As he walked toward the armory, Jon chanced to look up and saw Val standing in her tower window. I'm sorry, he thought. I'm not the man to steal you out of there.

This could be interpreted as it is or could be that Jon is not the man to steal Val because he will steal another princess later. Jon, Sansa's brother, might also give her a bastard's head - Ramsay's. She already has Janos but she doesn't know that.

After my name day feast, I'm going to raise a host and kill your brother myself. That's what I'll give you, Lady Sansa. Your brother's head."

A kind of madness took over her then, and she heard herself say, "Maybe my brother will give me your head."

Jon vs Ramsay has been foreshadowed by Ghost defending a prize from a yellow bitch three times his size. The most recent one would be Chett, a leech man's son with lordly ambitions, being defeated by "Snow and his pet pig." Lady Piggy is Jon Snow's lady love. There's only one notable guy in the story using leeches and it's Roose.

He will know me. How could he not? She considered throwing herself at his feet to beg for his protection. He never fought for Robb, why should he fight for me?

Sansa's already considered doing before what Alys did.

Alys knelt before him, clutching the black cloak. "You are my only hope, Lord Snow. In your father's name, I beg you. Protect me."

UndeadJon will know her and will fight for her. Jon has failed twice to fight for his family - Robb and Arya. He will succeed on the third one.

#idk anymore #jonsa #I'm tagging cause if the girl in grey mentions #sherlokiness ask

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reikunrei · 1 month

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"...the most scared out of all of us."

Several months ago, when I first started playing around with Doctor Who analysis as it pertained to Stranger Things, I decided to watch one of my favorite episodes for fun:

Season 4, Episode 11: Midnight

I posted some screenshots of it because some of the lines/ideas presented in it are very.... y'know. And while I didn't go into the episode with any memory of similarities to st, I found myself surprised by the number of shared details between the two shows. So, I figured... why not make a little postie about it?

So, the episode stars the Doctor and his companion, Donna, visiting a crystalline planet named Midnight. Donna stays behind for a spa day at the so-called "Leisure Palace" that's been erected as a tourist spot while the Doctor goes on a many-hours-long shuttle tour to a sapphire waterfall. The planet itself is extremely dangerous with an entirely uninhabitable atmosphere - there is absolutely no life on the planet, aside from visitors who are in highly equipped buildings and vehicles that stave off the literally vaporizing planet exterior.

Thus, with Donna staying behind, the Doctor is now alone with a bus full of strangers, who tuck in for their long trek to the crystal falls.

Just to get the other characters out of the way for clarity's sake, we have the hostess, a lone passenger named Sky, husband and wife Biff and Val Kane and their son Jethro, and Professor Hobbes and his assistant Dee Dee. There's also a driver and a mechanic on board who are in the cockpit.

The driver explains to them all that they're taking a slight detour, as part of the usual path has been obstructed by debris, and they begin their venture into totally uncharted territory.

While normally the bus has myriad entertainment for the long trip, the Doctor, using his Sonic Screwdriver, shuts down the overwhelming number of devices, which results in all of the passengers talking and getting to know each other better. We get several short scenes of everyone talking and laughing, sharing stories and such. Most notably, the Doctor sits with Sky over lunch and they chat about why they're there. The Doctor explains he didn't come here alone, he's with Donna, but she didn't want to come along the tour. Sky explains that she's recently become single because "she (her partner) needed her own space" and is still getting used to traveling alone.

Prof. Hobbes even gives a brief presentation on the planet Midnight. It's his specialty, and he's been on this exact tour to the falls 14 times now.

This is emphasized a lot through the episode: there's no life on the planet, no one has ever set foot on it or touched it in any actual way, and they really don't know what's out there, aside from the general agreement that there shouldn't be any life that can exist on its surface. As I said earlier, they've even taken a path different from the normal route, so they wind up in places that literally no one has ever been before.

While it's confirmed that both the UD and Dimension X contain forms of life in the shape of the democreatures and the Shadow, the sentiment reminded me a lot of Vecna's whole "unspoiled by mankind" thing; and Henry's exclamation in the VR game that "there's life" in the UD, as if it's a surprise.

Then, suddenly, the bus stops. It shudders, the lights flicker briefly, and they come to a halt for seemingly no reason. Everyone is immediately concerned, especially Sky, who snaps that there's "no point in denying it" when Prof. Hobbes explains that the buses never stop on these tours.

The Doctor weasels his way into the cockpit to talk to the driver and mechanic to see what's up, and they all confirm that nothing is actually wrong, they've simply stopped. As they're stopped, the Doctor goads the driver into lifting the screens on the windows (as seen in the last screenshots) just to get a glimpse of the planet in the few minutes of safety they have behind the glass. However, the mechanic spots something strange.

No further comment necessary.

When the Doctor returns to the other passengers, Sky is still agitated. Dee Dee probes him on his explanation that the engines are "just stabilizing" because they're "micropetrol" engines that don't stabilize. When Prof. Hobbes further asks what's wrong, the Doctor gives a non-answer. Someone throws out the question of how much air they have; Val and Biff overhear and ask, frantic, what they just said. Even the hostess gives a non-answer when asked if they're running out of air, what's going on, etc. etc., until everyone, frightened, begins yelling over one another. The Doctor quiets everyone down and Dee Dee explains that these buses are designed to filter air so they won't run out, shutting down that fear. However, they still don't know why they've stopped.

Then, something bangs on the outside of the bus - two knocks. Prof. Hobbes and Dee Dee try to explain it away with the metal of the bus cooling/settling or rocks falling on the sides. However, the banging happens again and again, moving down the length of the bus. Again, it's (allegedly) impossible for anyone to be outside. The knocking even moves to the back emergency exit, where it begins trying to rattle with the door handle.

"It" is what "Henry" calls the Shadow in TFS rather than "he."

The banging moves to the roof of the bus before trying the main entrance. Biff knocks on the door three times, and the mystery knocking returns the three knocks. The Doctor knocks four times, and it returns four times. Now it's confirmed that it's something sentient. Sky is especially freaked out by this.

When the bus finally settles again, Jethro notices that Sky is sitting, crouched, on the floor at the front of the bus with her hands on her head. The seats around her have been ripped off the floor, as if by some unnatural strength. The Doctor approaches her to comfort her, telling her they're alright and the wall of the bus is still intact, though horribly dented inward.

The hostess can't get ahold of the driver, and thus tries the door to the cockpit, only to find that it's been entirely ripped off of the front of the bus. They slam the door shut before anyone can get sucked out. Thankfully, a distress signal and their location had already been sent out, but the driver and mechanic are dead, "reduced to dust." Like they were...... dematerialized......

The Doctor re-approaches Sky in an attempt to get her to come out of hiding. Jethro comments that the knocking has stopped, but what if that means it's now inside? "It was heading for her," he says as he nods toward Sky, who the Doctor is finally pulling out of hiding. However, when she turns to look at them all, she's unnatural. Her gaze flicks rapidly between everyone as she stares, wide-eyed and blank, like she's studying them. The Doctor cocks his head at her, and she cocks hers back. He asks her name, and she repeats it back to him.

He begins asking if she's hurt, etc., and she repeats the same questions and phrases right back to him. When the others start speaking, she whips her head toward them and echoes their words as well.

Again, no further comment necessary, aside from a quick link to Em's post about doppelgangers and making a special highlight of "when One kills, he consumes."

This continues to frighten everyone, who begin talking over each other and yelling at Sky to stop copying them when she, obviously, continues. Jethro gleefully begins shouting silly things to get her to repeat, specifically yelling "666." Ah, Victor Creel, emo kid Colin Morgan would've believed you when you said it was a demon.

Only when the backup power system kicks on does everyone get startled out of their panic, but as the hostess is telling everyone to calm down, they find that Sky's condition has progressed...

Here I also want to point out the growing change in Sky's physical demeanor. At first, as seen in the previous set of screenshots, her expression is fairly blank. However, as seen above, she starts to appear almost smug. And this continues through the episode; even the cadence of her voice is almost sing-song-y and smarmy. This isn't actually pointed out in the show, nor is there any clear explanation offered, but in my opinion it's likely due to the entity feeding off of/finding glee in the fear its behavior instills in the passengers, and likely beginning to pull from the actual personalities of the people on board to form something other than a blank slab repeating words.

The Doctor speaks with to her directly again, asking if it's really Sky, asking how she's doing this, and pondering what the "next stage" is. When someone asks if it's not Sky anymore, the Doctor says he doesn't think so and ushers everyone to the back of the bus, as far away from Sky as possible (though this doesn't stop her from echoing them).

The Doctor urges them to not even look at Sky, and Dee Dee quotes Christina Rossetti's "Goblin Market," specifically the lines, "We must not look at goblin men, we must not buy their fruits: Who knows upon what soil they fed Their hungry thirsty roots." I don't quite have the bandwidth to delve deeper into this whole poem, as it's quite long, but shout out to the word "roots."

Another shout out to the word "sick" here, especially when we were told earlier in the episode that Sky is queer. Thank you Stav for your words in the words show analysis.

Much like how the Shadow was confirmed in TFS to feed off of fear/is triggered by fear, this entity clearly sought out the fear in Sky and found her a suitable target. It's never outright confirmed or explained, but this is a fairly easy assumption to reach based off of how frantic Sky was, more so than anyone else on board. As for "monster" getting struck down in favor of her just being a woman... well, no further comment necessary, once again.

The Doctor speaks to everyone about how while there's a consciousness inside of Sky, she might still be in there and they have to help her. However, everyone is too afraid to get near her, to the point that the hostess suggests they throw her out instead. Val cries about how she can't even look at Sky's eyes (a sentiment that's been stated already and comes up again; they're frightened by how she's looking at them, which reminds me of the weirdness with eyes and eye-color changing in ST that James and Em have spoken about).

There's a lot of back and forth, with most people hesitantly then enthusiastically agreeing that they should throw her out, because maybe if they kill the physical body, it'll remove the threat, but the Doctor pleads with them not to kill anyone. He asks if they really want to meet this new life form and show they're just a bunch of murderers, or will they decide they're better than that?

Ultimately, all fearful, they, one by one, agree that they could, in fact, throw her out with no remorse.

So much good st2 language, mwah tasty.

When people still don't back down, the Doctor says they'll have to go through him first if they want to throw out Sky, and everyone sorta just goes "...okay." The Doctor asks, again, if any of them could really grab hold of someone and chuck them out the door. His insistence begins making them suspicious, and they all start to turn on him. The Doctor insists he's frightened and confused just like them; he isn't in on this, he's not "working with" Sky, but he, trying to hide his identity and being naturally fascinated by this never-before-seen lifeform, only makes them more wary of him. Val even says that "his eyes are the same as hers... It's a symptom!" and he's accused of lying from the very start of their trip. They all begin to believe that he's somehow involved with what's going on with Sky and threaten to throw him out with her.

Then, Jethro, again, notices a change.

She's latched onto the Doctor alone, likely because of his heightened fear due to having his life threatened. Val once again uses this as evidence that they're working together, but the Doctor ignores her and crouches in front of Sky. He asks her why she's "captured" his speech. He wonders if the entity has picked up that he's the smartest one there as a Time Lord rather than a human, and maybe it's chosen him because he's the only one who can help, whether it be giving the entity "life or form or consciousness or voice," and insists she doesn't have to "steal" it. However, he also sees the look in her eyes, and gets the feelings it's not help the entity wants.

He promises to help her, asking "Do we have a deal?" But the words come out of Sky's mouth first.

When the others ask the Doctor what's happening, Sky answers first, saying, "I think it's moved. I think it's letting me go." As they speak to Sky, they all come to the conclusion that this entity has moved from her and into the Doctor instead. Dee Dee, however, seems unconvinced. She's ignored, though, in favor of listening to Sky as she expresses that she's "coming back to life."

When they get Sky back onto her feet, this conversation ensues:

It's a lot of similar language to stuff about the UD and the flayings, especially irt Will in st2 and Henry listed as being "possessed" in the Weekly Watcher and possibly having an exorcism. I continue to be shocked by how so many episodes in Doctor Who revolve around concepts that are so akin to the Shadow.

Sigh. Once again, no additional comment necessary, aside from another Stav post about blood.

I want to emphasize the change in pronoun use. Throughout ST, most often the Mind Flayer/Shadow and Vecna have had "he" used for both of them, as they've become conflated. However, in TFS, "it" is solely used to refer to the Shadow. Throughout this dw episode, "it" and "she" were used quite interchangeably when speaking about Sky, and same here, we get this use of "it" and "he" for the Doctor, starting out separate with "it went into him" until he just becomes one whole entity under "he." It's conflating things, narrowing it down to be "easier to understand."

Dee Dee shouts that it's not the Doctor who's doing it, he's "just repeating." However, that's what it did the first time, so it's the same this time, right? Dee Dee disagrees, saying that this seems like the progression the Doctor talked about earlier; this is the next stage, not the entity having moved to a new host.

Val, frustrated, insists that she saw it move from her to him, despite none of them having seen such a thing, simply assuming it instead. Even Jethro is hesitant to agree with his mom, but ultimately does so when she pushes him. Everyone begins arguing as Dee Dee continues to say that it's not inside the Doctor, and Sky smugly says that, "That's how he does it. He makes you fight. Creeps into your head... and whispers... inside." It's all very “Henry” being goaded into killing animals by the Shadow in TFS, and the Shadow and Shadow Brenner talking to and taunting Henry in the VR game.

Being egged on and having their assumptions confirmed by Sky, Biff grabs the Doctor and begins dragging him toward the door to throw him out. The Doctor, now frozen due to being controlled/taken over by the entity, cannot fight back and simply continues repeating what Sky says.

However, Sky begins saying things that, through the episode, were established as being things the Doctor specifically says (the phrases "molto bene" and "allons-y" being common catchphrases in this episode and through David Tennant's three seasons). The hostess takes immediate notice of this, since she was present for the times he used these phrases, and she finally really realizes that Sky has taken his voice. Under the clamor, Sky is saying that, "The starlight waits! The emptiness. The Midnight sky."

Acting fast, the hostess rushes Sky and grabs her, hits the button to the emergency exit door, and throws out herself and Sky. The door automatically shuts behind them before anyone else can be affected by the atmosphere, instantly cutting off the Doctor from the entity, and he falls to the floor, muttering that, "It's gone, it's gone..."

Golly, did I say this post would be little? Sorry, I am incapable of making these posts without listing out the entire plot of the episodes so you guys have full context! Anyway.

What I really wanted to talk about irt this episode was the immense focus on fear, and specifically fear of the unknown and how that makes people behave in illogical, dangerous ways. It's a lot of knee-jerk reactions and wanting to swiftly remove the threat before fully understanding what the threat actually is. We don't even know if Sky could have actually been saved! She very well may have still been alive underneath the entity, but in the mess of everything, they couldn't take the time to figure it out and actually try to save her.

Obviously, all of that made me think of things with the Shadow, and especially of Will in st2 when he fully changes as a person/seems to be entirely taken over with everyone else being hard-pressed to break through to him.

However, more specifically, everything else about it just screams the situation around Henward, and specifically what we see in TFS.

"Henry" is dealing with something unknown having taken over his mind and body, feeling urges that do not belong to him that he's being pushed into anyway. But what drives the mess deeper and deeper is the fact that people (Virginia, Patty, etc.) are frightened of him. They think it's him and not something else making him do these awful things. They refuse to actually help him, or even listen to him to figure out what would actually best help him, thus condemning him... essentially to death, just like Sky, all because they simply don't understand and are scared of that.

They listen to their own fear instead of understanding that Henry is scared too. This is also an issue with the fandom at large, but we won’t get into that rn.

Similarly, the Party and the rest of our main cast are, understandably, scared of Vecna. However, it’s clouded their judgement. We all know I’m a huge proponent of the “there’s more than one guy” theory, and thus this issue of conflating people and things leads to poor decisions when it comes to trying to fix the issue, ultimately resulting in a worse outcome.

In Midnight, the rest of the passengers, terrified and frazzled, believe the first and simplest solution presented to them: the entity has left Sky and instead entered the Doctor. Therefore, if they throw the Doctor out of the bus, the problem will be solved; they'll be safe. However, obviously, this isn't the case, and due to their misunderstanding, they would turn a completely innocent man to dust and still have the entity residing among them.

Similarly, in st4, we're presented with a "new" villain: Vecna. Our team has discovered that the source behind everything that's happened to them is this one guy locked in another dimension, hidden in (more or less) plain sight. He is wreaking havoc and boasting about it, but it feels like a very big, flashy way to cover up another, more long-existing villain that's been present since the start of the show: HNL and, specifically, Brenner.

Take a victim -> Push him into unsavory acts -> Mold him into a villain, whether in real life or in retellings (lies) of his existence -> Hide in his shadow and fall out of focus.

It all feels a little too planned, y'know? Because the beginning of everything can always be traced back to the lab, but suddenly it's like everyone has forgotten the roots of the tree and decided to chop off one of the branches and call it good.

Which leads me into a brief thought I had about NINA when I was watching this dw episode, which was spurred by the characters claiming their voices were "stolen" or "captured" by Sky. Especially once Sky fully captured the Doctor's voice and was speaking "on her own." She uses his voice to goad the others into killing him, which, presumably, would have given the entity full control/absorption of his voice.

I've said it already, but the goading feels very akin to TFS Brenner saying things to Henry like "you liked it" irt killing animals, putting words in his mouth and conflating Henry's personal feelings with the desires of the Shadow. Or even of the Shadow and Shadow Brenner taunting Henry in the VR game, telling him that he always loved snapping bones and killing things, but we never actually hear Henry confirm this. The Shadow and Brenner are often "stealing" Henry's voice by way of putting words in his mouth and thoughts in his head that he wouldn't have on his own.

But circling back to NINA specifically, it makes me think of Henward being used as a puppet for Brenner's meddling. Brenner has stolen Henward's voice, his looks, his mannerisms, in order to say and do things that Henward may never have said or done on his own in order to paint a specific picture for El.

And, again, because El is scared, because she doesn't understand what's going on or have the resources to even try, she simply lashes out. Remove the threat and she'll be safe. No matter if this is the real threat; he's an immediate threat in her eyes, therefore he's her target. Killing him is the closest answer she has to "solving" everything.

It's high-stakes situations, fear of the unknown, and mob mentality that results in the passengers on Midnight and our Hawkins gang having their knees knocked out from under them. Without taking the time to think, to stay calm, to mull over their options, they will always come to the wrong conclusions and not fix things like they hoped.

In st4, they're scared and on a time crunch, and with only some of the necessary information at their disposal, they're going to work with what they've got, even if they'd find contradictions if they looked just a little bit harder. They have their immediate threat, someone they can point at and see harm happening because of them, so why see if there's someone else hiding in his shadow? Why waste their, quite literally, precious time when they can, theoretically, still do good with what they have?

#st dw #stranger things #i say things

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topaz-carbuncle · 1 month

Text

OC in 15: Valerie Michaelis

rules: share 15 or fewer lines of dialogue from an OC, ideally lines that capture the character/personality/vibe of the OC. Bonus points for just using dialogue without other details about the scene, but you're free to include those as well!

Thank you for the tag @crownleys! <3

I have been missing Val and Nate a lot recently, so it's been fun to go through my older stuff for this, especially as she's the OC who got the most love so far in terms of written dialogue!

Dialogue from posted works will be marked with " <x>"!

1: "Nate...I'm sorry, but I couldn't just sit and hide while you got hurt, especially not because of me. I might not be anything special, like you four are, but do you think I could bear to stand by and watch you get hurt either? I know that you are trying to protect me and I appreciate that so much…But you need to let me work with you, as a team. You need to trust that I can do this, that I can be a part of your world." <x>

2: “I promise. I’m sorry for worrying you, I just couldn’t bear the thought of losing you,” she gives him a watery giggle, a giggle that transforms into a shy smile as he raises a neat eyebrow at her- urging her to continue, “we really make quite the pair, don’t we? Constantly worried for the other, to the point of ignoring our own safety and how it would affect those around us.” <x>

3: As if on cue, Val’s melodic voice cuts through Adam’s rant before Nate could even raise a hand to interrupt him. “Aww, you do care about me!” <x>

4: With her hands still on his chest, she looks up at him bashfully, biting her lip as she considers her words. ��Is this a bad time to admit that, despite being the one to suggest that we come to the beach, I don’t actually know how to swim…?” <x>

5: “Well, most children who have parents to take them on holiday probably do.” She struggles to keep the bitterness out of her voice, wincing slightly as she sees the sadness in Nate’s eyes, the same sadness that plagues him whenever she brought up her childhood...Or lack thereof. “But this is my first holiday! My first family holiday, so it would be nice if one of you could teach me…?” <x>

6: “Punishment… what punishment?” Before she can fully register the situation, a cold gust of wind brushes past her as she stares up at Mason in confusion, slowly realising that her vampiric defence had vanished from in front of her. “Wait… Et tu, Nate?” <x>

7: “I’m not exactly sure where to start,” Val runs her hands through her hair as she paces, the action doing very little to bring her comfort as she tries to pull at the stitches holding her heart and mind together, “or how to start actually… This might take a while. It might take a few days.” <x>

8: “No, she didn’t know. I had changed my emergency contact for the hospital to Tina a few years before that. If Mum knew…she certainly never visited, so there's a good chance she doesn’t know at all. She can’t know, Nate. I’m sorry to throw all this onto you like that.” <x>

9: She cocks an eyebrow up at him before giving him her best dramatic gasp, her hand planted on her chest, "Agent Sewell, do you mean to tell me that you've been snooping through my possessions? What would the others say?"

10: "Yeah well...It's about to sound a lot more like begging in roughly 2 minutes if that disgusting spider isn't dealt with. Are you all here to watch, or can one of you do something since Adam is more content to be a pain in the arse?"

11: "Are you proposing to me, Agent Sewell?" She peers up at him through her eyelashes, the humour in her voice falters as hope takes over.

12: "Am I doing this right?" She breathes out a small laugh at the adorably confused look he sends her way. "I'm not doing a very good job at coherently starting my sentence. It's just… I'm worried that I don't know how to love properly, it's not like I had an example to follow while growing up."

13: “A lot of people prefer putting their thoughts out for the public to read. This can work out well for me when the station finds evidence out in the virtual open like this, you have no idea how many people incriminate themselves through this. Books can be burnt, but this? This stuff is forever, so uh…be careful if you plan on committing any crimes and then posting about it online.”

14: "And you are a powerful man, Agent Sewell."

15: "...Yes Nathaniel ?" <x>

Tagging: @serenpedac @lucysarah-c, @humanitys-strongest-bamf, @youre-ackermine, @l3visthighs! (i'm not sure if some of you have oc's that you write for, but it could be fun to show some "reader" dialogues as well / instead of! <3)

#tag games #the wayhaven chronicles #twc detective #i didn't go for the bonus points since half her lines are separated by actions #it was a semi 'bad' habit i had last year when i wrote for val!

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labyrinthofsphinx · 26 days

Text

Statistical Outliers

Part 4 and 4.5 of drabble. Couldn't really figure out how I should chop it up so, extra long one this time. Still working on something else in the meantime.

“Voxtek is proud to present the newest innovation in headset technology. Gone are the days when the screams of the damned or your annoying mother-in-law ruin your gaming experience! The sound cancellation on them is guaranteed to see you through even the noisiest situation!”

As if to accent the point, Vox, while wearing them, stood in front of comically large speakers. The sound cut out just as the speakers activated, the force of the sound enough to send his employees flying. Vox, himself, couldn’t hear anything. A quick press of a button to the side activated a secondary feature, sound filtering.

“And if that wasn’t enough, they can also filter out any sound you want, save for your voice. Again, perfect for the unfortunates still stuck in their mother’s basement! Not only are they connectable to any and all of your Voxtek devices, but the wireless communications can hook up straight to your speaker function. You can take your call and enjoy walking through a scream park without a problem! The perfect gift for a busybody like myself!”

On cue, Velvette slid into frame, sporting a brand new, very modernized outfit. On top her head was the special one she requested, the one with ears. The lights dimmed ever so slightly, and Velvette’s outfit jumped to life, including glowing eye shadow and, of course, the frames of the ears. Again, not sure why it was such a necessity but he’s rolling with it.

“And right now, we’ve got a specialty line of them, working in collaboration with Velvette Designs! You might’ve seen them on the web lately! These items are limited release, so get them while their hot!”

Then, of course, the finale.

“Here at Voxtek, we strive for innovation! So Trust Us and take a look at our newest product!”

Before the commercial even finished, the limited release items sold which, at least informed Vox, that Velvette had once again been right. Apparently, people were fighting each other tooth and nail outside of stores for a set. Muggings and an odd black market popped up almost immediately. And that also meant the knock offs were starting up too, things that only ever made his products look even better by comparison. People wanted these things so badly that they were willing to risk getting ripped off. And these were people that hadn’t been hypnotized. Odd.

He might’ve felt compelled to thank her, but the kid was reward enough. Speaking of…

He watched him sitting there in her studio like a glorified trophy. Velvette was working on some designs that Val came up with for his models, things that looked trashy and were made even trashier. Naturally, that just wouldn’t do for their brand. While Vox didn’t usually care about this sort of thing, especially since none of Val’s workers ever wear clothes long enough for it to ever be noticeable, he will admit that it looked better on the poster if Angel wasn’t wearing cheap stockings and fake leather.

Anyways, the rest of the studio was treating the kid like a set piece, something to look at, coo at even, and then quickly return to work. He wasn’t speaking, but he was sunken into the couch like a boy dragged out to go shopping. Just sit, smile, and pretend everything everyone puts on looks lovely. Velvette had him in an oversized sweater which only made him look even punier. Looked good in pictures though, he noted as he scrolled through her recent posts.

He waved the footage away. He had other matters to attend to.

Like, for example, filming that segment about the horrors and potential health hazards of a specific frequency of radiowaves.

…

Just a few more hours. Then, he’d turn in for the night. Just had to go over the stock list again, product numbers, sales, and finally the new pitches his lesser technicians came up with. Only a few more things to do…

His sharks started to swim agitatedly, circling more, and then disappearing from his peripheral. Oh, great. He had a guest. Three guesses who.

“Val, I don’t have time for this right now! I’ve got-”

The smell of coffee caught him off guard. Val didn’t bring him coffee. He brought coffee to Val sometimes, but the only person who brought him coffee he threw off the building the other day. He didn’t expect him back to work so quickly either. Huh. Employee loyalty was a heck of a drug.

“Ah, great timing, and here I thought I’d have to go grab one myself-”

When he spun the chair around, he was greeted to the kid. He had a tray in his hand. Sitting atop it was a coffee, apparently handmade, and a muffin, chocolate chip from the looks of it.

“What’s this?”

The kid opened his mouth, then promptly shut it without uttering a peep. Vox rolled his eyes.

“You can answer when I ask you a question. What is this?”

“Black coffee, only a sip of cream. And a chocolate chip muffin.”

He peered at them, eyes narrowing.

“I’m not fucking blind. I know what they are but what,” He gestured. “is all this?”

“You…you’ve been in here all day.” His ears folded behind him, granting him an odd insight into just torn up he seemed to be. “I notice you haven’t eaten anything for hours…and I thought, well, you know.”

“…where’d you get the coffee?”

“The coffee bar.”

“How’d you know what I liked?”

His ears perked up almost immediately, and a thin smile crept up on him.

“So I was right?”

Well that remains to be seen. He snatched up the cup, the need for caffeine just overriding caution. Sure, it might be poisoned, but the deadliest kind around here was Val’s kind, and Vox regularly makes out with the man. If it was going to kill him, it should’ve done so already. Now, that didn’t mean he didn’t do a secondary analysis, testing the coffee as he chugged it down. The results came quick, almost as quickly as the warm liquid hitting his stomach.

It was…coffee. Black, with just a sip of cream. Actually, this was better than the ones his assistant made for him on the regular. That’s…not what he expected.

How exactly had the kid figured out his order?

Not that he’d admit that he liked it, of course.

He made a sour face, looking at it like it had been poison.

“Disgusting.” He tossed his hand up before the kid made a move to take it back though. “But better than nothing I guess.”

He snatched up the muffin this time and took a bite. Okay, it was actually good. Warm still, the chocolate was melted slightly into the muffin. Their kitchenette wasn’t fully stocked, so he had to assume the kid used the ingredients from his cooking kitchen. A quick double check at least told him that the kid cleaned up after himself so…not so bad. Certain things were out of place and would need fixing before his next kitchen segment, but it wasn’t a bad price to pay, sort to speak.

“God, kid. Where’d you learn to bake? You should get your money back.” He snarked.

But, as he chanced a glance, the kid’s delicate smile grew slightly. His ears weren’t pulled back anymore. In fact, they flicked up with excitement. It was annoying.

“What?”

The kid’s attention flickered between the coffee cup and the remains of the muffin. There was pride drawing on his cheeks, almost turning them flush. He had to pull back the urge to shock some sense back into him.

“Well, why don’t you run along now? You’ve handed over your revolting-”

“But you’re eating them.”

He blinked. Did this kid just interrupt him? Him?

“Excuse me?”

“Nothing.” He quickly added. “I’m sorry.”

He didn’t look sorry. In fact, he looked almost gleeful. Had he been among friends, Vox imagines he’d be bouncing off the walls. Even his tail was wagging like a dog.

And there was only so much disrespect Vox could take in one turn. Especially to his face. And despite the coffee and snack.

“Get. Out.” He sneered through his teeth.

That wiped the smile off the kid’s face. His ears tugged down again, and his tail pulled at the bottom of his legs. His eyes drooped as he nodded, bowing out. His head lifted only for a moment, peering at the aquarium. Vox couldn’t see it directly, but the mirrored image of him in the glass seemed to wag a friendly finger towards his man-eating friends. He didn’t stop walking though. The door hissed shut as he left, giving Vox back his space.

The coffee was warm on his hands. The warmth seeped into the very soles of his shoes as he took another sip. You’d think he’d be used to the cold now, since he often kept this room colder than others to save his monitor’s the extra workload of having to cool. But heat was something he craved, just like moths crave the moon.

He bit into the muffin again. When was the last time he had a chocolate muffin? He can’t remember. He should look back into the security footage, steal the recipe for his next dessert special. At the very least, he needed to write it down so that when his assistant does finally reform, he can have it whenever he wants.

Work called back to him again, even as he polished off the muffin. The coffee made the extra time bearable, as usual. Not great, but better.

The news was the usual assortment of dramas. Another turf war has broken out, pitting southeastern kingpins against each other in a violent exchange that encircled the block. Fifty eight dead so far, but who counts death that aren’t permanent anyways? His new headsets were doing wonderfully, and the fakes were proving themselves to be both a disappointment and, as Velvette keeps tabs on such things, akin to social suicide. It was Voxtek or nothing.

And not to worry, they should have new shipments coming soon! It’ll only cost an arm, a leg, or a soul.

The bitterness of the coffee held back the sweetness leftover from the snack.

Alastor was asking around now, about the kid. He caught him disappearing to the cannibal part of town, old stomping grounds to him. There were less cameras there, but he didn’t need them to know that he’d be visiting his old gal pal. Rosy, for all else that she was, knew a lot of gossip. Gossip that, ironically, really wouldn’t help here. Alastor should know that. The kid wasn’t even close to there when Vox’s men picked him up. Was he dragging his feet? He seemed less enthusiastic about the kid’s safety than Vox would’ve expected. They had seemed close. Well, as close as any of those deadbeats seemed to be. Alastor wasn’t the type to purposefully turn his back on a friend…or potential ally. Then, he considered how similarly he was treated once upon a time. Close enough to seem close, but never enough to truly care. For a moment, he wished the coffee was more bitter.

Finally, after a few hours slipped into a few too many, Vox was done with today. The rest had to wait for tomorrow. What was the point of being an Overlord if he couldn’t draw the line where he wanted? Oh, wait, no. That project needs to be reviewed and-

He caught an odd alert. Someone was looking something up on his T.V., something not in the library.

Sitting there on the couch, the newest waste of time sighed to himself as his search yielded no results. Vox tapped into the camera just in time to hear him complain.

“Oh, come on! He has to have it here somewhere. It was his show.”

A show of his? He brought up the search.

Well…it was one of his, one of his first ones. Back when he was still fresh off the hooves of the mortal realm fads. It was a sitcom of sorts, featuring characters dealing with life in a POW camp during the war. It was so old; it was still filmed in black and white. Half the actors in it had died to exterminations. One had drained his career down the bottle and drugs. Another had faded into obscurity when he refused to sign on for a different project, an insult Vox treated kinder back then.

It had been fun though, at the time. One of his first big breakout shows. People ate it up. Until times changed and tastes changed and no one wanted to hear about that war anymore. Vox got with the program. He wasn’t about to let an opportunity slip.

Unfortunately, that was the end of his first experiment. He gave it one last episode, ending like any other, before moving to the next thing. It’s too bad too. He’d been hoping the end of that show would showcase the actual end of the war, but…well…as he said, times had changed.

So, what was the kid doing looking it up? He hadn’t the slightest clue.

The kid kept digging, trying to find it on his streaming, his internet, even digging through the cabinet looking for DVDs. He wasn’t going to find anything. Once everything went to digital, that was the end of the DVDs.

He had half a mind to call Velvette up and tell her to watch her pets. In fact, he was going to but…his fingers curled around the warm mug.

Ugh, fine. Whatever.

A ping noise popped over the T.V., making the kid jump to attention. Look at that! All eight seasons of the show just got downloaded onto the platform! Aren’t you lucky?

He’d not seen so much joy in someone down here in a long time. Like, childhood giddiness. He was smiling like it was Christmas and the first present he opened was the one he wanted all along. It was odd, to say the least.

“Yes!” The giddiness spread to his legs now, and he could barely keep from leaping off the couch as he turned it on.

The intro song played. It was a chipper tune, playing along the lines of the old marching songs but lighter toned for general audience viewing. The kid knew every beat of it, and he twitched his head to the drum. Personally, it’d always been an earworm for him. That’s one of the reasons he went with it. Anything that could stay inside your head all day was something you’d give another watch later.

But, again, it’s been a while since any of this aired. It made sense that he’d still remember the beat. He invented it. The kid had no reason to know it, not this well. Maybe he heard about the show from some old sinner lurking about, that he could kinda understand even if he didn’t get the fascination with it. But knowing the song?

The more he watched, the more he realized that the kid wasn’t just excited to see the show, he was a fan of it. He knew the characters, knew the catchphrases, knew the twists. Hell, he seemed to know most of the episodes in general, from guest stars to side plots.

By the time he’d finished with work, the series was up to its last season. It’s this one the kid fell asleep watching. Vox wasn’t even sure the kid ate anything this whole time. Vel and Val were still out partying or whatever at this ungodly hour of the night. Given how he hasn’t moved at all, he can only imagine that Velvette abandoned her little toy or, worse, expected Vox to make sure he was still alive by the end of the day.

Speaking of food, he’d need some himself. The coffee was gone hours ago, and the muffin felt like a lifetime away to his stomach. He could make himself something. Hey, those cooking shows weren’t just an act. But that would require so much more work than he felt capable of right now.

He dragged himself away from his monitor room, his pet sharks darting about for one last look at their owner before the doors slammed shut again.

Was the meatloaf he made the other day still there? Probably not. Anytime Val smokes too much, he devours any leftovers that managed to make it the day. The bar had some snacks stocked in it, some for Velvette and some for bar prep, namely lemons, limes, and small accompaniments. At this point, he’d eat a whole fucking tree of lemons if he had to.

When he got to the longue, episode eighteen of the last season was playing. He remembers filming that one, where the POWs snuck out dressed in drag to pretend to be army nurses for the other side. At the time, even in hell, the drag caught people off guard, mostly because Vox made sure it damn well looked convincing. He snickered to himself as the lieutenant asked if the outfit complemented his figure. That was an adlib. The actor actually asked to keep the costume afterwards. Vox obliged.

Okay, now, bar.

He found some of the spread snacks lying about: crackers, chips, and different cheeses. He also found the whiskey, which he needed after a day like today. He grabbed them all and sat at the coffee table, just as the characters flirted past the guards to get to the secret plans hidden in the hospital. Ordinarily, they try not to eat here, on account of the expensive furniture and because Vox himself has made a habit of standing on the furniture when he got too excited. But with both of them gone, he didn’t care.

As for the kid, well, he was too small to take up much space on the couch as it was. That, and he was curling up as much as possible, so he hardly took over much more than elbow space. He sat down beside him, eyes unfocused and starting to drift.

In the world’s worst excuse for a sandwich, he smushed a piece of cheese, the kind didn’t matter, between two crackers. He downed about twenty of them before he reached for his whiskey. Yeah, there definitely wasn’t enough of that for tonight. He finished the bottle way too fast. Great. Well, better get back to the crackers. Otherwise he was gonna have a massive migraine later. And that just wouldn’t do with the morning news!

God, he needed another drink-

“Do they get out, in the end?”

He almost spit the crackers and cheese out like a rocket. Thankfully he didn’t. Velvette would throw a fit if she sat down and ruined an outfit on spit out, half chewed crackers.

“Where you just sitting here the whole time awake-?”

“Because the last episode doesn’t say if they got out.” As the kid pouted and, before he could even come up with an intelligent response, noticed the empty bottle and snack food. “…is that your dinner?”

If he wasn’t so tired and, admittedly a little tipsy, he might’ve snapped at the kid for talking over him, then not even giving him the second to think. As it was, the alcohol, the sleep deprivation, and growling of his stomach was making his mind a little too fuzzy to answer like he normally would.

“I dunno, kid. Didn’t think too much on it.”

“…regarding the show or dinner?”

He blinked slowly. It didn’t make the world stop spinning.

“Both. I think both.”

The kid went silent for a moment, just enough time for him to sit up a little bit more. Geez, was he always that small? Was it just his stupidly big ears that made him look bigger?

“I can only make muffins.” The kid announced randomly.

He swears his processors were lying to him. He did not just say that.

“…What?”

“Lucifer taught me how to make muffins, but I haven’t figured out pancakes yet. Do you want PB and J?”

“The fuck are you on about, kid?”

“Everybody says hangovers suck, and that it’s worse if you don’t eat anything. You want crust or no crust?”

The alcohol was swimming in his brain too much. The kid had a point. He’s drunk too much and ate too little. What would the viewers say tomorrow if Vox, the Vox, looked like he drank himself stupid the day before? Logically, his numbers automatically fed back to him, he should eat something.

But his mouth wasn’t running by his logistics, unfortunately.

“What do you mean, ‘everybody says’? What, you’ve never been hungover?”

The kid’s face pursed like he ate a lemon, or a girl with kooties tried to kiss him. Revolt, the kind that only kids had for stupid things like love, baths, and vegetables, tugged on his face.

“I make it a point not to drink anything I could run a car on.”

A deep throated laugh burst from him. He’s not even sure where it came from. It kinda just puked right out his mouth and filled the room.

“That was funny.” He managed between filling his lungs. “Where you always funny, or am I way too drunk?”

He doesn’t think he should’ve said that last part out loud now that he thinks about it. Thankfully the kid didn’t answer the stupid question with a stupid answer. Instead, a small grin peeked under his muzzle.

“So, PB and J?”

He put the bottle down, the empty clang of it echoing in the room. He forgot how quiet it was when everyone else was gone. He was so used to this being their space, their collective space, that any time spent alone felt…odd. The kid wasn’t much. Even drunk off his ass, he couldn’t really compare to having one of the other Vees here.

But, you know, he was funny. A bit.

And he offered peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Even the other Vees never offered as much when he was drunk, not that he remembers anyways.

“Yeah, kid. Go make me a fucking sandwich.”

“Okay, but don’t watch the last episode without me!” He leapt up and over towards the cooking set. Again, he needed to chase his staff over and clean that up later, for tomorrow’s lesson. He was going to go over a filet mignon with red wine reduction sauce. That was the plan. Now, for some reason, he was wondering if he was better off showing how to make muffins.

The intro song played again. It was the last episode of the series. Nothing special, he didn’t get to have the grand finale he’d once envisioned. It was still as good as any other episode though. And no, he didn’t feel like waiting either.

The kid came back with the sandwiches about a fourth of the way through. He had removed the crust and sliced it down the middle to make two even triangles. It was a fucking lunch his mother could’ve packed him for school. He was eating school lunch. He didn’t feel drunk enough to be eating school lunch, though he was just hungry enough to cave.

It was good, obviously. Hard to mess up PB and J, especially with his own ingredients.

“I told you not to watch without me.”

The kid huffed as he bit into a different sandwich, also peanut butter and jelly.

“Did I ever say I agreed to that?” He mentioned back.

“…you’re kinda a jerk.”

Of all the insults he’s taken: the curses, the lengthy speeches, the loudmouth screeching of a certain radio, he’s not sure he’s ever been called a ‘jerk’. It was so wildly immature, but not in the ‘I’m spouting whatever curse comes to mind’ kind of way. But, probably because he was drunk and because it wasn’t the usual cursing white noise it hit harder than expected. Like, he laughed, but there was a bitter edge to it.

“A ‘jerk’? Really? That’s the best you’ve got?” His toothy grin might remind one of a shark, though it probably looked less intimidating with peanut butter all over his teeth.

The kid shrugged.

“I don’t know. Just seemed to be the word that fit best, I guess.”

Somehow, that was even more insulting.

“…shut up.”

He did as he was told, staying quiet for a good couple of minutes, but Vox didn’t really talk much either. He usually loved talking in the middle of movies or shows, partly to annoy but partly to entertain when the watchability wasn’t there.

“Do you still have the sets from the show? I know sometimes people in Hollywood would reuse sets.” The kid asked, interrupting the silence. And giving Vox plenty to talk about.

“From this show? Nah. We used some of it for other programs at the time, but a lot of it was scrapped when we branched out into Sci-fi shows. The space race was a hell of a time for TV.” Notably, the kid seemed genuinely upset to hear that, though something about the sag of his shoulders told Vox that he expected that answer.

And, okay, he was still drunk and not thinking right.

“I’ve got the captain’s hat in my closet.”

The kid’s jaw snapped open.

“Really?”

Wow, he just wore his emotions on his sleeve, huh?

“Yeah, it’s got all the pins on it still too.” Why had he kept it? Even he didn’t really know the answer. There’s been a few times where he’d thought about throwing it away, like the rest of the old, outdated junk but…well, then there were moments like these. When drunk, he liked thinking about those stupid passion projects. It was better than focusing on more recent events, usually.

“That’s so cool!”

Well, that might be going a step too far.

“It’s just an old hat, kid.”

“From a classic show!” He argued. “It just sucks that Hell doesn’t have museums or something.”

His show as a dusted up old display in a museum? Even drunk, that sounded suspiciously like an insult.

“That’s because Hell is the museum, kid.” He flashed his teeth again. “Too many old bastards long past their time hanging around and dragging their fucking heels. It’s all a museum and a fucking zoo down here.”

To that, the kid didn’t seem to have an argument. He gave up a little sigh.

“You’d think people with knowledge from, like, thousands of years ago would be really cool.”

“Fossils.” Vox, now hitting a little too close to his chest, stopped smiling. “Just a bunch of fucking fossils who are pissed off that the world didn’t fucking stop turning when they died. Bunch of narcissistic assholes who think everything should revolve around them.”

The kid stopped mid-bite and just looked at him. After a moment, it started being pretty funny.

“Hey, the world actually does revolve around me!” He stated. The kid raised a brow and gave a slow blink of his eyes. “It’s true! If it wasn’t for me, nothing would’ve ever changed down here. Trust me, before I got to Hell, you would’ve thought we were in the dark ages.”

The episode’s outro played, a reprised version of the intro song. As the last episode though, it seemed a little slower pitched than he remembered, as if it wanted to go on just a little bit longer. It was an absurd thought, especially since all episodes fitted nicely into the exact TV slot allotted to them, with commercials. None of them were any longer than others. But this? It seemed longer. Did he do that on purpose? He doesn’t remember doing that on purpose.

He snatched the remote before the kid could. His eyes were dipping a bit from the need for sleep, and the cocktail of PB and J and whiskey settling in his stomach. So, rather than take a chance on the remote, he flicked the signal between his fingers, telling the TV to put on a game show. Guess he still had old crap on the brain because the one that popped up was one of the ancient, prerecorded ones. That was back when TV was on more of a schedule, meaning that at some point in the night the broadcasts would stop.

It was a non-creative project, something he’d ripped off from a show he’d used to watch, except instead of trying to figure out someone’s job, you’d typically be figuring out how they died. Vox had found some pretty amusing ones over the years. One of his favorites was the guy who’d been reporting the weather and died when a fish leapt out of the water and smacked him in the face. Poor bastard wasn’t even sure if it was the impact of the fish that killed him or if it was falling off the dock and getting run over by a boat.

Some of the best ones resulted in sinners that looked really fucking weird, because, apparently, part of being in hell was remembering, forever, how and what killed you. He remembered a guy that looked like his face was squashed by an old cartoony hammer because he’d actually died to a piano being dropped on his head.

Vox, of course, had been the host. Some other demons filled in the guessers’ positions, people who’ve long faded into the background of his mind. In this one, a demon resembling a polar bear wrote his name down and sat beside Vox as the questioning began.

“He got sliced by a hockey skate, didn’t he?”

Okay, color Vox surprised.

“How’d you figure that?”

“’Cause his fur looks like a hockey jersey and he keeps trying to hide his neck.”

Huh. He supposed that was true. Maybe he’d seen the episode before though. Maybe he was just lying. Well, there was one quick way to test it.

“Not bad. Alright, here’s a tougher one. How did I die?” He challenged. He better not say he got crushed by a TV. He’s heard that one way too many times, and he was sick and tried of people assuming he got knocked off like a looney tunes character-

“My guess would be a power surge.”

“…huh?”

“Well, I mean, you don’t look like you’ve got any scars on you, but you’re a kind of dark blue everywhere. And you short circuit the city when you get mad. So, my guess would be you got electrocuted or something.”

That was a first. Obviously, his death was a little more graphic and detailed than some random electrocution. Here, come watch the death of your favorite TV star! Live for one night only. Or alive for one last night only. And there were still people out there that thought the chair was merciful. Merciful, my ass. That shit had hurt.

“Couldn’t be further from the truth, kid. You really suck at this.” He teased. “But since we’re on the subject…”

There honestly wasn’t much to go on for the kid. He was used to having these answers behind an info card, rather than having to guess himself. Sure, constant practice showed some consistent things. He’s not sure how the fox part of his appearance played into things, but he could spot the pattern of his ears and arms well enough. The slight glint of his freckles reminded him more of taillights than of actual freckles. Also, he was a kid. What was the most obvious thought there?

“What? You go chasing after your ball and get hit by a car?”

The kid suddenly found interest in his feet, kicking them around like he was caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

Oh, he could picture it now. A stupid little kid on his way to school, playing in the street when all of a sudden-

“I got run over by an eighteen-wheeler.”

A What?

“Come again?”

“I was driving my car, took my eyes off the road for a second. An eighteen-wheeler had come barreling down the road going the wrong way.”

What the fuck?

“Like, run over though? Not just crashed into the car?”

He nodded.

“I think that’s why I’ve got treads on my arms, legs, and ears. If you get my meaning.”

Holy shit. Like karma was a bitch and, yeah, obviously the kid was down here for…something but-

“Was it quick at least?”

The kid bit his lip, and his body curled closer to him.

“I…I just remember the headlights.”

He was lying. Vox knew that. Oh, fuck, that’s a hard way to go. Plus, he’s a kid. He felt like his brain was running too many programs at once, never a smart thing to do while intoxicated.

“How old are you?”

“Um…twelve, I think. Maybe thirteen. I…I don’t really remember. Time’s so weird down here.”

Twelve? They threw a twelve year old down here with the likes of serial killers, sex offenders, and power hungry dictators? What the fuck did he do? Did he accidently bring a super psycho into the Vee tower?

“Where you murdering other children behind the school cafeteria or something? How does a twelve year old get into hell? You’re not even alive long enough to do anything. Or big enough. Or have a functioning brain.”

“Can we talk about something else?”

“No, we are clearing this up right fucking now. Why are you down here?”

He was not going to let this go. The last thing he needed was for a deranged little twerp like Alastor’s girl running around stabbing things. Sure, he hasn’t shown any of that yet and he did check into that loser’s hotel but he’s learned better than to trust that. If the kid wasn’t going to spill, he’d just make him, with a quick suggestion of course.

“I…I mean.” The kid shuddered, and he seemed to gulp down air. “I-I went for a drive. It was dark, and it was raining. I-I honestly d-didn’t mean to hit him! He just walked out from the woods somewhere a-and I-I-I didn’t see him.”

Oh. Well, that made more sense then. But damning a twelve year or thirteen year old for an accident? Seemed excessive, even to Vox. Usually he punished people for, you know, actual mistakes. There was the occasional fuck up that couldn’t be ignored obviously, but he’d think kids would get a special pass, at least.

“So, what? You bury his body in the middle of nowhere?”

He shook his head.

“I just…I just panicked. I drove off…I…I didn’t even try to help.”

“…okay, then what? You lie to everyone and get someone else convicted?”

There had to be another reason…right?

“No. I only drove another few miles before the truck happened.”

Wait. Wait.

“You mean to tell me that you got damned to hell because of an accident? You? A kid?”

“…I…I think’s it more because I ran instead of helping-”

He said more but Vox toned him out because what the actual fuck. No wonder hell was overpopulated. An accident? An accident was all it took to send an otherwise innocent soul to shack up with the murderers, rapists, and tyrants of the world?

You knew something was wrong when he thought that heaven or whoever was in charge of this nonsense went too far.

“I am not drunk enough to process this.”

“You’ve had two bottles already.”

He had? Huh. Where’d the second bottle come from? A quick look revealed that he was holding a bottle, a different one from the one on the table. Though, from his spot on the couch, it’s started to look like four bottles rather than two. Again, not a good sign.

A quick check of his internal clock told he needed to be in bed like two hours ago if he’d planned on getting up without issue in the morning. He went to stand, putting just the barest amount of weight on his legs when he felt them buckle. Okay, too drunk and too weak to walk. Brilliant.

“See that blanket over there?” He gestured to the same one the kid found yesterday, labeled with their logo in that warm flannel knit. It was on Val’s couch which meant it might not exactly be clean, but if he’d been scared away by that about Val, they wouldn’t be in their stupid little back and forth all the time. “Go get it.”

He did as he was told. Being sober granted him the ability to at least check it before bringing it over. In that time, Vox pushed around pillows, making a small wall that he planned to use as a rest for his screen. The kid held the throw out, and he wasted no time in tossing it over himself. He always had to make sure it didn’t accidentally cover his fans, least he overheats and really needs a tune up in the morning. Almost as soon as he laid down right, everything in his body seemed to be losing power. Feedbacks were starting to fail. Limbs started turning to jelly.

“Do I have to sleep on the floor again? It’s cold on the floor.”

“Kid, could you just shut up? I’ve had too long of a day to deal with this.”

“…is that a no?”

Sparks started flying about his face, some getting dangerously close to the blanket. By now, most of the casual fabrics lounging around their inner sanctum up here have been made fireproof. Live and learn and all that. That doesn’t mean he hasn’t been known not to melt a few of them when in a particularly bad mood, anger he tries to keep tight on a leash.

Except when he’s drunk. Like now. Which is a bit of a problem.

Calm down. You don’t want to set the tower on fire now, do you? No, you don’t. That’d be bad for the reputation, the brand’s reputation, and especially your reputation. You don’t want him to win again, do you?

Plus, you’d have to deal with pissed off Val and Vel.

He steeled his nerves and opened his eyes a bit.

“Clean this shit up and I’ll think about it.” He wouldn’t. He’d be passed out long before clean up would be finished.

“…pinkie promise?”

Were pinkie promises deals? He didn’t think so. Nothing in his database said they were.

“Yeah, sure.”

Despite the dark circles on his eyes, the kid was surprisingly springy. And trusting, because he seemed to just take Vox’s word on the matter. He caught him bounding around the table like a jack rabbit in his fading peripheral vision, his red fur blending in with the maroon hues of the cushions around. Right before everything went offline, he had an odd moment of clarity.

He was unarmed, drunk, passed out on the couch at the disposal of someone who would literally only gain from his death. It wasn’t like he was under contract. His guards wouldn’t be so stupid as to let the kid leave, but it’s not like any of them could reach him in time if, say, the kid poured the whisky into his outlet.

This is a bad idea, he concluded. Then he knocked out.

Part 1/ Part 2/ Part 3/ Part 4/ Part 5/ Part 6/ Part 7/ Part 8/ Part 9/ Part 10

#hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel oc #hazbin hotel vox #hazbin vox #vox #hazbin hotel fanfic #hazbin hotel fic #hazbin hotel ficlet #hazbin fanfic #drabble #hazbin hotel velvette #hazbin hotel vees #the vees

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eljeebee · 4 months

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As a "sim parent" (sim maker) we shouldn't have favorites - but we do. Post your favorite sim baby (the golden child) and least fav. Pass it on!

Thank you for the ask Pru 💜! Beware though, this is a loooong post! 😅

Yes, Priscilla's my number one child but I don't consider her as a sim. She's an OC from a different story. Let's just say I used TS4 as a visualizer for her and the others (Tony and Albert).

Anywho, if we put Priscilla aside, my golden child in the sims is her:

Lady Lana Beau! Before starting the Davis Legacy Universe, she had existed already, and was named literally after myself when I was exploring the vampire life state in TS4. I almost almost made her into a super-sim because of that.

Currently, she is one of the heads of House Beau-Asvang, derived from an ancient vampire noble house (combination of House Beau and Clan Asvang). Its members consists only of her, her older sister, Lady Lenora Beau, her cousin, her fellow head of house, Valentina Asvang, and Valentina's clan descendant, Percival Asvang. She, along with her cousin, had only recently reawakened in the modern world. Originally, she planned to revive their house, and probably dominate all of simkind. To do that, she had to reawaken her older sister who had a failed human transformation, and was forced to hibernate to heal, retaining her vampiric self. To reawaken her sister, she planned to use Valentina's descendant, Percival, as the key ingredient for the reawakening.

Obviously, that didn't work, because a certain Overlord thought of something else that doesn't involve a sacrifice, which gave Valentina relief. I'm sure she's disappointed, because Lenora was revived, but she was "incomplete". Lenora will have to heal naturally, and it would be long, and on top of that, Lana's not sure if her sister will return to her normal self, like how she was before their hibernation.

She continues to seek how to fully revive her vampiric house, no matter the cost. Why? I have no idea either.

This is her before the makeover (and before I discovered CCs):

Very different, no? Only one thing remained: her color is violet. Because that's my favorite color!

Now, on to my least favorite:

Percival Asvang. A descendant of the Asvangs through Valentina's youngest brother, Rufus, so not as ancient as the others. You see, I don't hate him, but his creation, and the lore that followed that, was kind of abrupt. Side: Swanson & Harper went deeper the more I write about it, and luckily that side story will now conclude (not done with shooting though lmaooo).

He's my least favorite because story-wise, I think his lore is weak. I have to make it up for myself how to write him, in the other segment that I'll write.

Anyways, some background: he was the key ingredient for Lenora's revival. You see, Clan Asvang served House Beau. Thana forced her family to clung to the Beaus, seeking to raise their power and influence by doing so. To do that, however, you need to also have literal strength in your vampiric power. In their case, their bloodline was weak, and so they were treated only as the Beau's servants. Not until Valentina evolved through Lana's rigorous "training" (don't ask me what that is, all I know is that it was the reason Val despise her).

Anyways, this earned everyone's respect for Valentina, but not the whole family. Fast forward to modern times, Percival is an example that their bloodline is evolving. They're not weak anymore.

He was among the vampire attackers that attacked two prominent families. One of the family contracted him and his sisters to eliminate the Swansons. They did, except the sisters spared two (Elizabeth and Sid). When asked to provide proof, especially the proof of Sid's death, they couldn't present anything. They hurt his sisters, which resulted him killing the family on a rampage. His sisters told him to flee, and he did. What they didn't know that the contract was sealed with magic. He would hear whispers to finish the job, which then leads to the story of Side: Swanson & Harper.

Currently, he lives under House Beau-Asvang. Thankfully, the Overlord casted a charm that helps him calm down temporarily. He's not entirely sure what to do now, but he's going to follow Valentina.

#long post #long text #lady lana beau #percival asvang #ask lana and she shall answer #treason-and-plot

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the-musical-cc · 6 months

Text

FRANKELDA AND HER GHOSTS 1. (Part 2)

Seeing how more and more english-speaking audience is apparently watched Frankelda now, I feel like it's a good moment to post the translation transcript I did of the first live event with the Ambriz brothers, 'Frankelda y sus Fantasmas'. Posting on parts for easy reading because it's over 20 pages long. These are basically Q&A of making-of aspects of the series, going from concepting and design to even edition and post-production, going through Voice-acting and even trivia. They do sometimes comment some lore, but are restricted in how much they can talk about it as it would apparently spoil upcoming things. Latter episodes have some guests, including Mireya Mendoza herself (Frankelda's VA both in english and spanish) Kevin Smithers, who composed the score and songs in the series and even the edition team in the most recent one! (It honestly gives me life to see how much Cinema Fantasma values the whole team.)

It's fair to warn you that it's probably better to have watched the entire first season before checking it out, as it contains commentary on things that might spoil you if you haven't. It's also worth noting that this one was recorded on November the 26th in 2021, back when we had no word of the film being made or the new dub and USA release. Some additional notes:

-El Coco and the Boogeyman are both used for the same character in this one because it's how they do it in the dub. -Something happens in there that I cannot describe with the screencaps alone and the transcript would feel naked without, so description is provided. It's magical, you'll see.

Arturo Ambriz: Good, let’s move to this question which is also really nice- well, we already replied to Val Guerrera’s question, which is: ‘Are you thinking about publishing a book for the show?’. Well, that one’s already settled. Let’s do… let’s move to the next one, which is: ‘Is there one puppet per character and a lot of changes, for instance, mouth, eyes, etc.? Or are there multiples and a lot of changes?’

Roy Ambriz: They’re one-of-a-kind.

Arturo Ambriz: Ah, wait. The question is by Bailey Val… Bailey Valquion.

Roy Ambriz: All the characters are unique, they’re priceless, they have a personality and that’s why there’s only one for each… no, but seriously, yes, there’s only one, because…when you watch the ‘Nightmare Before Christmas’ making-of and you see there’s ten Jacks or something like that, I don’t know when- sorry, how many. We… I reiterate, being a Mexican production, new, and the such, we obviously didn’t have the budget to make a thousand copies of each character. So, what we did was make them the smart way in the puppet wing, so that we could fix them, and we had a very talented and… arrrgh! Super strong and buff puppet hospital team, just constantly fixing them again and again. Frankelda… yeah, there’s two Frankeldas, which is… something we hadn’t mentioned up ‘til now. There’s two Frankeldas because she was the character who had the most animated minutes on-screen, and the cool part is, if you look really closely, you can actually tell which is which, and that’s something we love.

If you watch the original ‘King Kong’ movie, the one from the 30s, there’s like three… the King Kong puppets were hand-made, they didn’t even cast them, Ray Harryhousen made them with wet cotton on latex and built them over… over skeletons he made…

Arturo Ambriz: Willis O’Brien.

Roy Ambriz: Ah, my bad, Willis O’Brien. I said Harryhousen but it’s Willis O’Brien. And he made them by hand. So, they’re not identical and there’s like three King Kongs, but it doesn’t matter because the illusion of life is there and, and you know it’s real. But, yeah, the hardcore ones, which I think is all of you, can figure out which one’s Frankelda mark one or mark two. But really, she’s one and the same, don’t worry, she sometimes just… likes to do her hair a little bit different, or arrange her dress some other way, because Frankelda never sits still and her… her spirit can take any shape she wishes to.

Arturo Ambriz: Next question… and it’s from Noemi Juárez… I wanted this one to show up. ‘¿Did you use the same figurine for Frankelda’s grandma and Magali’s hen witch?’ Let’s see, we can answer this one very plainly. It’s not that it’s the same figurine, it’s not that it’s the same puppet. Could it be that perhaps, perhaps, it’s the same character…? Anything you’d like to add?

Roy Ambriz: Well… Frankel- I mean. Frankelda, her stories, to write them she has to base them off her own life because, and this is a tip I’m giving you, we’re giving you, if you want to tell your own stories, write about what you know. Write about what… what you’ve learned, what you like…

Arturo Ambriz: What you’ve lived, what hurts you.

Roy Ambriz: But this doesn’t mean it has to be hyper-realistic and like… a copy, an exact replica of what is. You can tackle it from fiction, fiction can help to make-up and transform, because you can transform yourself. So you can create characters from an aunt you knew or your friend’s mom who is really interesting, and you can create… and that’s what she does, and so, ask yourselves why Frankelda drew inspiration on her grandma, right? To… to make the witch- who, by the way, her name’s Totolina.

Arturo Ambriz: Good. Next question… ‘What was the production process for the songs? Did you guys make the concepts for the lyrics?’ Alex Rosas asks.

This question is really interesting, we’re definitely inviting Kevin Smithers to one of these, he’s the composer of our songs and our orchestral pieces, and we’ll be able to talk more about this. But look, here’s a really fun little history tidbit… originally, we’d only planned for one song in the whole series, and it was El Coco's.

It was the very first one we wrote, it was the very first one that got recorded. Actually, that one… the Boogeyman’s story only exists because when we… I think it was literally the day we got greenlit to produce this, Roy and I were talking about what we wanted to see on-screen and we said: ‘Ooooff… this hobo monster, El Coco. All scruffy and ragged… in an alley in Coyoacán… playing a thousand instruments and flying ghost kids out of his hat and forming a dead kids orchestra.’ We were like: ‘Yes! That’s what we want to do for this season of ’Frankelda’’. And we started working on the story, we started creating everything and that’s when we made the lyrics for what at the time we still called ‘The Boogeyman’s Waltz’ …

...and here’s El Coco dropping by, and- hang on, let me get this out of the way… we started to work on the Boogeyman’s song. Sergio Carranza sang it, it turned out amazing, it turned out absolutely breath-taking, and, well, we realized...

[Here Hernevalito hilariously falls off Herneval's arms and Roy tries to silently non-react to it...]

...maybe it was worth it for the whole series to be a musical and have one song per episode. Why? Because we love musicals, because at the end of the day… think about this, I mean, each song… and here’s a little tip in case you like to write songs… each song is a poem.

[Roy then discreetly sits Hernevalito on El Coco's horn.]

Each song is actually a poem, that’s why Herneval tells Francisca ‘Hey, why don’t you read me that poem you just wrote?’

[Success! No one saw that, right?]

and it’s a sung poem. Well, songs are poems, right? I don’t know if it’s our way to put in a little bit of… creative, poetic and philosophical writing into the show, on top of it making it a lot flashier, making it more memorable. You listen to the song and it reaches faster. So what we worked on with Kevin was, while we worked on the lyrics…

Roy Ambriz: Specially him.

Arturo Ambriz: We kept working them, writing them, and like… turning them over, looking for… concepts, which, come entirely from the scripts, because the scripts were there first, and once we were clear on which ones they were- what it was we wanted to say and how it could have a nice ring to it- it was then that Kevin Smithers got involved and he helped us to, well, create the music proper, and there’s some… some texts that got edited, and some got longer or got shorter, and it was a very organic process where we included parts of the script, the poetry part, the conceptual and musical part, and everything got combined. And, believe us, we’re really glad to see you liked the songs, you’ve sang them, you’ve posted videos, you know the lyrics. That’s a dream come true for us.

Roy Ambriz: Besides, soon you’ll be able to sing with Frankelda or Herneval. So stay tuned to our Tik Tok channel on the next weeks.

Arturo Ambriz: Yes. Yeah, that’s right.

Next question… ah, this is a good one. ‘Will new kids inspired on your crew show up for the next episodes?’ Danitza Rivas asks us.

Roy Ambriz: Yes! We’re really excited, we have a lot if ideas, we want to see them already. I really like how… I want to clarify, just because they’re based off… as a fun little nod, from- the characters, it doesn’t mean they’re, like… exact copies, right? Of… I mean, they’re fictional characters, that should always be clear.

But yeah, we’re really, really excited about getting to include more kids. Tormenting even more characters; because a writers job is always to torment their characters, that’s how you put them to the test and depending on how they face the challenges you make for them, that’s how you discover what their nature is like. In this case, we like how… they don’t make it, and it’s something really fun to do because there’s a nice little reflection in there. But yeah, there will be many other children- but also expect to catch a glimpse of old acquaintances, of old friends in there, for sure.

Arturo Ambriz: And… I was precisely trying to look for the question to see who made it a while ago… the truth is I lost it, hope someone can help me over here…

Roy Ambriz: Tinta Invisible.

Arturo Ambriz: Someone… no. Someone was asking how we got the idea to use members of the Cinema Fantasma team to be the inspiration for the kids. And yeah, that’s the reality, not everyone may know this but, all the kids that app-

Female background voice: Daniela Herrera.

Arturo Ambriz: What? Daniela Herrera? Daniela Herrera was asking this just a while ago. And we realized we needed a bunch of kids and we didn’t want them to be generic. We wanted each one, even the ones in the background, just walking by, to have something unique to them that took a step away from cartoon stereotypes, where you always have… the chubby one, the red-haired one, the goth one. I mean, those stereotypes get on your nerves, right? So, we wanted everyone to be a combination of very particular elements, and we were like: ‘Well, people who work in Cinema Fantasma are visually fascinating, it’s like a whole new range of personalities, of shapes, of colors, of voices, everything.’

So, that was the best inspiration because it really is also an homage for our team, they do so much. I mean, this, the stop-motion, the series, the movies, it’s teamwork! And for the next seasons, we’ll keep using people from the team and new people too, people who’ve joined this crew to create more and more characters. I mean, this is part of ‘Frankelda’s DNA and will always be.

Roy Ambriz: Mm-hm.

Arturo Ambriz: OK. Let’s see… ah, this one. Go on and answer this one, Roy. It’s a question from Valeria Palacios: ‘Do people turn unto Spooks when they die or are Spooks born some other way?’

Roy Ambriz: No, a normal person doesn’t necessarily turn into a Spook when they die. It’s actually quite strange but, there’s Spooks who want to be human, like the Gnome- the Gnomes. They want to be human because they don’t like the… the place they were assigned to as Spooks. There’s Spooks who are fascinated by humans, like, from an anthropologic point of view. Like the Boogeyman, who loves to study them and has been doing it since he was… his dad used to bring him to watch him work when he was a kid.

Arturo Ambriz: Don Coco!

Roy Ambriz: Don Coco would bring him to watch him work, and he’d be gawking at them, and he loved them, and he’d say: ‘I just don’t get them. They’re so fragile and so… so stupid…’

Arturo Ambriz: ‘So temperamental!’

Roy Ambriz: So, they loved that. There’s Spooks that absolutely loathe humans, like the Mermaid, who used to have control over the territory and was worshiped as a goddess and now she hates that no one is even aware she’s there, and on top of it they polluted her world, and her pyramid lays forgotten. It’s undiscovered, it’s in Xochimilco but no one’s discovered it yet, it’s underwater.

And then there’s humans who want to be Spooks because they aren’t happy with their lives. Like Tamazola, Tochina and… which one am I missing?

Arturo Ambriz: Totolina.

Roy Ambriz: Totolina! Who are the three witches. In order to become Spooks, they had to figure out a lot of things, I can’t really give away too much because it’s a spoiler. And they had to perform a ritual which they’d been constructing for a long time before they could actually do it, and they hadn’t accomplished it until Magali came along… but there’s a reason they have so many caged animals in their kitchen, y’know?

Arturo Ambriz: You touched upon one of the questions someone… someone else made. This one’s by Alexa Casas: ‘Will we be seeing Don Coco in the next seasons?’

Roy Ambriz: Don Coco! Who can say?

Arturo Ambriz: What do you guys think? A bit of homework for you, you’ll see.

Next… ah, this one’s great: ‘Why did Herneval’s attitude change so much when he became a book?’ Picture this. You guys are maybe, I don’t know…

Roy Ambriz: No spoilers!

Arturo Ambriz: Yeah, no spoilers. You guys are… I don’t know if in middle school, high school, college or already graduates. What were you like five years ago? Picture yourselves ten years ago, the kind of personality you had, the way you spoke, OK? It’s been a hundred and fifty years. That’s all I’m saying.

Roy Ambriz: But, Herneval aged, didn’t he-? ahhh.

Arturo Ambriz: Spoiler! Spoiler, spoiler, spoiler… soc! OK, next question. Ooff, no, I’m not answering this question because it would be a huge, huge, huge spoiler…

Roy Ambriz: Let me see, what is it?

Arturo Ambriz: I’m gonna skip it.

Roy Ambriz: Read it and I won’t… they’ll just see my expression.

Arturo Ambriz: You sure?

Roy Ambriz: Yeah.

Arturo Ambriz: They’re asking, and there’s actually more than one person asking: ‘Whatever happened to Francisca’s body?’

…next question…

Roy Ambriz: Tinta Invisible.

Arturo Ambriz: Yes, yes, next question: ‘What’s Herneval’s biggest fear?’ by Meru Chan. Look how- this is a really nice question, it’s true, Spooks have fears too, right? I mean… specially Herneval, Herneval shows himself as… fragile, vulnerable despite… he’s such a good… I was going to say ‘Good person’, but, let’s say he’s such a good Spook, and…

Roy Ambriz: A handsome lad.

Arturo Ambriz: And a handsome lad.

Roy Ambriz: The fussy book.

Arturo Ambriz: He’s gentlemanly, he’s kind, he’s passionate… but I definitely think that… not to give away to much: Herneval is very scared of loss. He’s afraid of having- people he loves and…

Roy Ambriz: Ah-ah! Erm…

Arturo Ambriz: OK. Yes. Yeah, that would have been a spoiler.

Let’s see, this question has no, no, no spoilers at all, and it’s… they’re asking… ‘What can I do if I want to learn animation but I’m already studying for a different career?’ Paulina Cortés is asking.

Roy Ambriz: I think this question might also be exemplified better along the next sessions as we get more of our friends parading here, who also created ‘Frankelda’. But in order to animate, to make an animated production, you’ll need lots and lots of different talents and abilities. It’s really funny because sometimes we get called ‘Animators’. The two of us. It’s like- that’s not true, we don’t animate. Well, I animated… a couple of things, but we’re not animators per se, we’re directors, were writers, we’re sculptors. So, an actual animator and with a big range too… I think that might be… too much, and it might be- what’s that word again? Like, overwhelming. Right? Like… too much. It’s… when, really, when you shred animation into tiny pieces, you realize you need someone who knows how to write, someone who knows how to administer a project, someone who can paint, someone who can draw well, and design. Someone…

Arturo Ambriz: Book-keeping.

Roy Ambriz: Book-keeping! You need a musician, or someone who knows about music, you need actors and voice actors. It’s endless, right? Someone who knows about tech, someone who knows about IT, someone who knows computer programming, who can do motion-controls. Who can do post-production-

Arturo Ambriz: Social-media.

Roy Ambriz: So… college is always a starting point, and this is something we always say, from experience. We graduated more or less, ten years ago, give or take. College is a starting point, it’s not that you have to stay there just because you got your degree in that area, it’s a starting point you chose for… a project. But from then on, it’s up to you and your guts, and your continued studies of many other things you didn’t really see in school, and to living, it’s up to you where you lead your life to and where you want to go, and whether you achieve that your calling is… aligning what you want to do for work, with earning money, and on top all of this, with your reason to live, because it’s your life project; and this is how you feel accomplished, and this is how you know you can do some good in the world, and if you manage to align all of that, it’s beautiful. We’re very happy we’re able to do this for a living, but it implies a lot of work and for you to move to where you want to be.

Arturo Ambriz: Next, it’s a question by Bets Chan Ching, and it’s: ‘What is the Spooks’ life cycle and is it the same as humans?’

Roy Ambriz: Hmmm…

Arturo Ambriz: This question is a really good one, such a good one, it’s something that will be gradually answered as the next seasons roll by. What we can say is, it’s definitely not exactly like a human being’s. But I think you can reflect on, I don’t know… have you realized there’s times you don’t want to do a specific homework, you’re scared of doing it because you’re convinced that you’re going to mess it up? And maybe if you’d done it immediately you would have spent half an hour doing it and then you’d be done, but because you didn’t do it during the week, well, it just keeps getting bigger and bigger in your mind, and it’s gigantic by Saturday and it’s even bigger by Sunday? And by Monday at four AM this homework, this fear of doing homework is just massively huge and it’s crushing you? And now something you could have gotten done in half an hour ruined your entire week? I think if we understand, like… fears, we can get a better idea of what the life cycle of Spooks is.

Roy Ambriz: ‘Anything? Heeheehee…’

Arturo Ambriz: Yes, exactly. It’s a very, very interesting question, but… actually, if we tried to completely explain it right now, it wouldn’t make any sense to you, you have to see it, you have to watch it happen little by little in the next seasons.

Ah, this question is really nice, Mansand Saga asks: ‘Did you have any problems with friends or family when you picked your career and to pursue your passion?’ …no. We happened to be in luck…

Roy Ambriz: In our specific case.

Arturo Ambriz: The two of us, specially, were lucky to have our parents, our friends, our family always supporting us. We specially got a lot of artistic stimulation- and corporate as well, from our parents, that’s how it’s always been. Our mom always made us draw, made us sculpt, made us get our hands dirty… I’m even exposing her a little bit here, but my mom would sometimes even let us skip school so we could go to an amusement park, or to the movies, or because- I don’t know, maybe even something like the weekend’s game got a bit too long and we wanted to finish it properly, like, we had those kinds of permissions.

So, it did help us big time to have that kind of help. In conclusion, if you see one of your friends wants to do this for a living, support them, cheer for them, because yes, there is a professional life for arts. Now, obviously, we’re aware that not everyone has this kind of family support, we have a lot of friends who experienced rejection in their homes in order to be able to make a living with this. But what we’re saying, the best message we can send about it is episode four of ‘Frankelda’s Book of Spooks’. That’s why we created the El Coco, that’s why we created Tere, that’s why we created these ghostly children who dance and make music, it’s because we’ve watched a lot of our friends and acquaintances get their passion stolen by the Boogeyman…

Roy Ambriz: And they just settled…

Arturo Ambriz: They settled, they dedicated themselves to something they didn’t even want to do, and suddenly it’s been ten, fifteen years, and they’re like: ‘Oh, my God, I wish I could turn back time and give myself unto the things I’m passionate about.’. So to keep that from happening to you guys, we made the Boogeyman and Tere.

Roy Ambriz: Play it for your aunts and uncles, the Boogeyman episode, when they get on your case.

Arturo Ambriz: Oooh, this one’s really, really good, only detail’s that the username of the asker is JICJ2442. They’re asking in Tik Tok, and it’s… ‘Will we see…?’ ah, we’re mixing our sources for the questions from all the social media, eh? They’re asking if we will ever see the Spooks’ world.

Roy Ambriz: Tsss… it’s what we want to show you the most!

Arturo Ambriz: It’s not so much the world, it’s the Kingdom of Spooks.

Roy Ambriz: Herneval’s Kingdom, y’know? And that of his parents, hm? So… that’s what we want to show the most. That’s where Francisca’s headed to right now, Frankelda, and, well, we hope we get to show it to you.

Arturo Ambriz: Alright, Camicatura is also asking when they’ll get to watch the series if they’re in Spain. This is a very, very good question. Look, there’s no precedent for this kind of series made in México or Latin-America, like… a stop-motion, horror musical, and one of such a high quality. I mean, it’s like a very odd mixture of elements, and there’s definitely plans for the international launch, so it can be watched all over the world, but that’s something we’re going to achieve little by little.

For us, the ideal scenario would be to get to a point where… where season two can launch simultaneously in every country that has HBOMax. But it’s a matter that’s not really in our hands, rather, they’re completely strategic on the part of HBOMax and Warner Bros.

Roy Ambriz: Now, if you want to watch it, you can write to HBOMax’s social media about wanting it to also arrive on Europe, and that would be great help, y’know? If more people around the world start requesting it, there are more chances that it’ll be authorized for more countries.

Arturo Ambriz: Great. Herneval’s little wing is covering your face quite a bit. Let’s see, you’re going to love answering this one, Roy, I’m sure. It’s: ‘Do Spooks only haunt kids or adults too?’

Roy Ambriz: They haunt everyone. Really, I think… children can get a better grasp of what a Spook is, and humans… they look for another explanation…

Arturo Ambriz: Adults.

Roy Ambriz: Adults. Like, children will see them as Spooks, and adults will too, but the Spooks won’t… won’t allow themselves to be seen quite as easily, because Spooks live anywhere you look, but you can’t see them for lack of knowing to look.

Arturo Ambriz: Great. This question is very nice, asked by Axel Imanol and it’s: ‘What was your inspiration for making ‘Tinta Invisible’? Honestly, I love that song a lot.’ Look, the lyrics to ‘Tinta Invisible’, like we said just a while ago, are a poem. It’s literally a poem, its inspiration comes from what writing implies, what making fiction implies. For instance, this line about… it’s one of the lines we like the most, it’s: ‘Reading, you inhabit the hidden.’ Picture it, right? If I have my ‘Harry Potter’ book here, well, it’s just an object, it’s like some sort of brick, right? A paper brick, my ‘Harry Potter’ book. But within those pages lies in hiding all of Hogwarts, and all of Diagon Alley, and it conceals… I don’t know, Azkaban Prison within. And it hides… the Weasleys with all of their kids.

So, within a paper brick, there’s this whole world, hidden. So, when you read it, when you read a book, when you read a story, you inhabit the hidden. Because, I swear to you, I’ve been in Hogwarts- because when I read Harry Potter, I picture myself walking around and climbing the magic stairs, and getting into one of the rooms… I don’t know, the classroom for Potions Class with Professor Snape. I mean, I’ve lived in Hogwarts by reading fiction. That’s what ‘Frankelda’ is about, that’s what ‘Tinta Invisible’ is about. ‘Tinta Invisible’ is a song that pays homage to the art of writing and fiction. If you analyze each line, it becomes very clear… well, not all that clear but all of the… the symbolism of what writing and creating something that doesn’t exist is hidden there.

Roy Ambriz: Here’s Frankelda’s ‘Harry Potter’ collection.

Arturo Ambriz: Oh, that’s so cool!

Roy Ambriz: The books.

Arturo Ambriz: Where did that come from?

Roy Ambriz: Walmart.

Arturo Ambriz: I’d never seen it. It’s really cool! Ahh, goody. Well, let’s see… ‘Frankelda and Herneval’s personality, did you plan it in advance or did you base it off someone?’

Roy Ambriz: Yes… our task as writers is to plan out the personality of each character, it’s… when you write a character, it’s like you’re living it, it’s like you’re placing yourself in their shoes and seeing the… I mean, you’re within their perspective and looking at the world from their eyes. Counterweights start emerging, right? And Dramatic Orchestrations, as they’re known, start emerging, like… Herneval, you’ve seen it yourselves. Young Herneval with Francisca isn’t the same as…Herneval-libro with Frankelda, and it’s not the same as Herneval-libro with Procustes, right? I mean, he changes, depending on who he’s with. Why? Because that’s life, you’re not the same when you’re alone with your friends to when you’re in a Christmas dinner with like family members you rarely see, you only meet them once a year, or when you’re in class. It changes.

So yeah, each personality and each character has to be written, has to be pondered, has to be rewritten, has to be erased and… and raised again, and gradually discovered. And, obviously that process starts with writing but is run by character design, art design, animation, run by voice actors, who also permeate it, and the character is uncovered throughout all of these processes.

Arturo Ambriz: Very good. Also… that’s the thing, I mean, you guys can see that so many of the characters we’ve seen in TV or movies are opposites, aren’t they? And Frankelda and Herneval-libro, spending so much time together on-screen, well they had to be opposites, right? One of them is red and the other is blue, it’s that simple, I mean, it’s a visual-psicological-narrative codification. Frankelda is an optimist, Herneval’s a pessimist. Frankelda’s cheerful, Herneval’s a grump. Frankelda always moves in circles, her hair has circular curls, her hand movements are circular; and the book is a small square, and everything about him is a square, right? So, this is a good tip for writing characters, thinking about opposites, thinking about complements, thinking about the Ying and the Yang.

Next question… this question is Meru Chan’s: ‘What made you change Herneval’s appearance from the Pilot?’

Roy Ambriz: It was a… that’s a rather interesting question. As we’ve said, when we made the season as opposed to the Pilot, we agreed that we had to improve everything. And the Pilot- we didn’t really wonder about that many things because it’s a Pilot, y’know? Obviously, we’d gotten less time, and the top priority was to show that the series could be great, so what we did when they greenlit the season was to think better about the characters. At some point, as you’ve seen in the concept art, Herneval was thought up as more of a demon, but it was way too obvious, and it could also have religious connotations we really don’t want there to be, so, we decided to ponder it. He’s not the Demon Prince, he’s the Prince of Spooks, I mean, he has to be a Spook. What’s a Spook? It’s something new.

So, we started to ponder and around this time, Ana Coronilla, who is the art director, had the idea- she was like: ‘I kind of see him as an owl.’ Because with Herneval, in order to make him princely, we kept thinking and got- we were creating with the Awesombrosos, trying to make him more reptilian, or some other thing, and when we said ‘Owl’, it was like ‘Wow, he looks amazing!’ and on top of that, he has to… like, the personality we want, and that’s when we said ‘It’s just, if this were a live-action, he’d be played by someone along the lines of Timothé Chalamet-‘ not sure I’m saying that right.

Arturo Ambriz: Timothee.

Roy Ambriz: Timothee Chalamet, so… well, we said ‘Him, plus owl, plus some other elements.’ And, well, we got hunk Herneval, and then we saw the book and the character progression made no sense anymore, the one from the Pilot, because he’s more snakelike. So it was like ‘OK, how are we going to rebuild the character so he still has Herneval’s essence that we’ve already gotten to know from the Pilot, but make it make sense that this character turned into the book?’. And that was the ruling on which we decided to make… to change the Hernevals.

Arturo Ambriz: Well, next question, by AB_8A_7: ‘If Herneval used to be the Prince of Spooks, does that mean the King will show up in a flashback?’

Roy Ambriz: Oooh…

Arturo Ambriz: You’re getting close to the… the heart of the matter. Definitely, obviously, we’re going to meet the King of Spooks, we don’t want to disclose anything else about him, but… but props to you guys for realizing it, right? If there’s a Prince, then who’s the King?

Roy Ambriz: Besides, somewhere… well. Nope. I was just about to spoil it!

Arturo Ambriz: No spoilers.

Roy Ambriz: But that’s the thing, it’s… how cool is it to think, who is Herneval’s dad? Why… why does Herneval have to go to the human realm? Why wasn’t he in the prologue? That is, why was he with Procustes and not his father? So you start to… to develop and sprout a lot of fun things…

Arturo Ambriz: Why is there an hourglass that’s close to the limit?

Roy Ambriz: No one’s talked about the hourglass, have they?

Arturo Ambriz: I haven’t really seen that much…

Roy Ambriz: Hmmm… go figure.

Arturo Ambriz: Anyway… well. This one was by La Reina Cuervo, who we’re already familiar with because we had an interview with her this week, real fun. She’s asking how much time Frankelda spent with Herneval before they got trapped. And that question, well, can’t be answered because it’s something we’re going to see in the next seasons, what happens during this process. That is, once they cross that threshold at the crypt, at the graveyard, what Herneval and Francisca had to do, how they got to where they are right now. For sure, it’s in there, this story that’s still going to develop further.

Next question… ah, well, this one’s really simple. 199501 asks: ‘I don’t know whether you already answered this one, but what are the three witches’ names?’ And, the witch who speaks the most, the one that turns into a hen, the one that sings, her name is Totolina. We just barely realized we never had them mention their names, but in production her name was always Totolina. Then, the witch that turns into a toad, her name is Tamazola, and the witch that turns into a rabbit, a hare, her name is Tochina. Yeah?

Next question… ‘Does Herneval have some sort of power?’ question by Blackroses.

Roy Ambriz: Well, you saw that already, he does, right? And… his power is used three times along the first season. We can’t say more, but he definitely has. Well, he’s the Prince of Spooks, he has to have something special to him.

Arturo Ambriz: OK, next question… ‘Why does Tere play the theremin?’. Question by Lagunas X. Look, we realized long ago that… the theremin is like, the musical instrument of ghosts. The theremin, in every B-movie in Hollywood where there’s ghosts or aliens, zombies, it’s like… a sound that doesn’t seem to belong to this world, because it’s really similar to a human voice. But at the same time it sounds like the mix between a robot and a… a howl. So, it’s like, hard to decipher. So, the theremin has this whole symbolic weight which we love, ever since we created this studio ten years ago, the bumper of the intro we had, which was the Cinema Fantasma bumper, you can hear a theremin. So, for us it’s always been like the theremin is the Cinema Fantasma musical instrument. Personally, it’s my favorite musical instrument.

So, when we started to unravel this episode which I’ve told you about a while ago, that we wanted to get to this big moment of the orchestra in the alley with the dead children and the Boogeyman dancing, we start to realize we needed, like… a character who wanted to make music in order to get to this moment, and we realized it would be very original to have her play the theremin, because we’ve seen a million boys and girls who play the violin or the guitar, even Coco and Book of Life have this, right? You can always look for something different to… to give the show a unique flavor.

Moving on, Yara Edith asks: ‘Why is Frankelda from Hidalgo?’ And, get this, originally, this was only going to last one hour and we’re at, I think, an hour and a quarter. Let’s… let’s answer a few more questions and we’ll call it a day, also so you guys can have a nice Friday and not just sit there listening to us. Right, so let’s go back to Yara Edith’s question. Why is Frankelda from Hidalgo?

Roy Ambriz: Because, well, something both of us really wanted to do is… make something that felt… a series that felt Mexican but by someone who actually lives in México, y’know? Like, for there to be these little elements no one else who didn’t live in México could have, and it’s mixed in with experience. One of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been to is the Panteón Inglés. I love it. One of my best friends hails from there, from Pachuca, but she’d take us… back in college we went a lot of times, to- Hi, Rosa, if you’re watching.

Arturo Ambriz: I don’t think she is.

Roy Ambriz: I don’t think so because I didn’t even give her a heads-up, but OK. But we traveled a lot, and we made a lot of- she’s a photographer. And we did a lot of photography exercises at Panteon Inglés, and it’s just gorgeous. And… truth is that when we were framing this series, we said: ‘It just would be so cool that she was a Victorian ghost, right? In this big house.’ And back at the Pilot we couldn’t really get into it, show it, how we want to break away from that cliché, I mean, she is Victorian, and she is from that period, but it’s not in Europe, it’s in México. Because mixing in with history -which is something we also love, like, mixing in bits of truth- it’s around this time that the British arrived in there to, well… care for and extract from the silver mines, they brought in a lot of things, right? Soccer, the pasties, which turned into pastes, and whatnot. We figured it’d be really nice if Frankelda’s house is European because his dad is British, but he’s a British man who fell in love with a Mexican woman, and Frankelda’s born from that union. Why? Because Frankelda- as you know, well, in México we’re a mixture of the European and the Mexican-origin, and, and we’re not- it doesn’t matter anymore, to us, origin doesn’t matter anymore, just that we’re Mexican, and that’s very Mexican.

And so, Frankelda is Mexican. She makes her stories up with the mixture of things, of elements within her head, and what better place than… I mean, if this beautiful place that actually exists in real life inspires us, well, we wanted to also pay homage to that place, and even though it’s not exactly identical, it is a rather latent inspiration for us.

Arturo Ambriz: Alright. Now, Emily Delgado asks us whether we’re giving some kind of courses or bachelor, and, yeah, actually yes, we’ve given several of them. Next year, we’ll reactivate our section called ‘Cinema Fantasma EDU’ which is where we give our courses, bachelor degrees, workshops, conferences on stop-motion. That’s a great way to learn. Stay tuned to our social media, cause that’s where we’re giving notice. Thing is, between COVID and all the work we had with ‘Frankelda’, we had to put this project on hold, well, this whole year. But we’re eager to get back into it and get it done. This is something we love, and we’re exploring other options, really cool ones too, with a certain… how do I put this, brand that makes online courses to make a very specific kind of thing. Really cool, we’re working really hard, I don’t want to spoil that either, because it will be announced in due time, but we’ve got more options coming up so we can talk and we can try to impart some of the knowledge we’ve been saving up all these years by making these productions.

Roy Ambriz: Good.

Arturo Ambriz: Very good. And… I think this will be our last question.

Roy Ambriz: Last question!

Arturo Ambriz: Let’s see… I’m looking for one that’s real good.

Roy Ambriz: Yeah, close it up with some meat, go on.

Arturo Ambriz: Something that makes fans speculate?

Roy Ambriz: Yeah.

Arturo Ambriz: …there’s just so many good ones. Let’s see, for instance… ah, look, this one’s nice because it additionally comes all the way from Chile. Sent by Gabriel Beltrán, and it’s: ‘Are the Spooks’ stories told on the show based on real legends or inspired on something of the sort?’

Roy Ambriz: And, well… it’s a mix of everything, right? We aren’t basing them on anything specific per se. I feel like we’ve already seen so much in México, in Mexican adaptations about Mexican legends. Which is really cool, but it’s already been done, even in animation. So, we wanted to do new ones. There’s characters like, for instance- in the… originally in the pitch, back when we hadn’t thought so much about it, the witches… the original concept art is somewhere around, they were more… European, more classic, or United States-like, with the hat and the broom and the stockings. And we were like: ‘No, we want it to be…to feel more like… witches who have somehow been living around a lot of places in México or Latin-America for a while, and who, as luck would have it, right now are living around Colonia Roma maybe, or La Condesa, something to that effect. How do we make it feel specific?’

So… it obviously comes from, well, people- we can’t say ‘We invented witches, we invented mermaids.’ Or anything. But they’re more like… characters and archetypes we take and resignify to things we’ve lived through, things within our imagination, and things we want to see. Maybe the one that’s more inspired in an existing character which we felt had barely even gotten representation in Latin-America is El Coco. The Boogeyman, always-he comes from… our mom always tells us this story, we’d mentioned it a couple of times, but my grandpa used to say to her, because we collected toys, and back in the nineties they were all monsters and stuff like that, really cool stuff. And my grandpa used to tell my mom: ‘Why would they ever be afraid of the El Coco if they have that kind of toy and aren’t scared by it?’. So, this Boogeyman character, like… a bum, or, just something that’s not exactly what we have in the collective imagination, but we had that idea floating around, and, well… we decided to capture it. And I hope we can see more of the El Coco in the future.

Arturo Ambriz: Totally… well, I think we’ve reached the limit with this session. We’re obviously absolutely thankful to you, this is why we want to keep creating these opportunities to chat. We know there was a lot more questions but, think about it, we’d be here for five hours. We’d be happy to, but we also don’t want to ruin your Friday, so I think the good stuff has to be, like… like, in moderation.

We’ll also take this chance to tell you that we seriously are on the constant lookout for everything you’ve posted on social media- look, for example, I have a physical fanart right here, and it’s so cool! But trust me when I say all the digital ones, all the ones I’ve found, I’ve shared them on my Instagram account and I’ve been saving them. I feel like it’s like I’m filling up my Panini album, I’m logging in all the time to see what I can find and save it. And something we would love to do here in Cinema Fantasma, we’d just have to rearrange the space, is to print all the fanart you’ve made, print out all the fanart you’ve made and post it over a wall in Cinema Fantasma even just a small print. Because, trust me that, for both of us as well as the whole crew it’s mind-blowing to see you liked what we worked so hard on, what we toiled so much to make. Right now, we’re seeing some of the fanarts we love on screen…

Roy Ambriz: Just not Tik Tok because…

Arturo Ambriz: Uh-huh, not Tik Tok.

Roy Ambriz: Because we’re… on a different one.

Arturo Ambriz: But it’s not that…

Roy Ambriz: Look how gorgeous! Wow!

Arturo Ambriz: It’s not that we’re only seeing the ones we like the most, y’know? We like all of them, it’s just that we did a quick search right now and these are the ones we had close-at-hand to show, but really, we love all of them, and all of them have their charm.

Roy Ambriz: Yes, and they’re beautiful, thank you so much. We’re very, very, very grateful with all the Fankeldos and Fankeldas…

Arturo Ambriz: Or Spooks.

Roy Ambriz: Or Spooks, or…

Arturo Ambriz: The Owls.

Roy Ambriz: The Owls and the Writers.

Arturo Ambriz: The Quills.

Roy Ambriz: Anything you like, thank you so much because Frankelda is alive thanks to you. Something we can say is… ‘Frankelda’ is a celebration of fiction. So although there’s a… an official storyline which comes from us and Cinema Fantasma, Frankelda, the thing she likes the most is to be alive. So, consider the stories you make for her, when they’re in your minds, in your hearts, to be canon as well. To you, to the one reading right now, it’s real, because Frankelda is alive. So… draw her, write her, think about her. It's so nice to see it, really, we’re super thankful. It’s… this is the best possible present for us after… for the whole team, after… such difficult years in order to keep it afloat, where we had to, well… work so much, sacrifice some things in order to get it out there. So, this is super gorgeous, and we’re sending hugs to absolutely all of you guys and… an announcement. A fun one.

I think it should be up by now, a new filter that you can find, called ‘Frankeldízate’. If you want to turn into Frankelda or in… if you want to be real Fankeldos and Fankeldas, you can use that. Please, use it, it’s really fun. You can use it to sing, you can use it to write, for anything you want, it’s up. Start using it. Tag us, please, we love to see everything you make.

Arturo Ambriz: Something very important we nearly forgot is… we have a little surprise giveaway, OK? We have 5 posters, signed by the whole team. By the team who made ‘Frankelda’s Book of Spooks’, the Cinema Fantasma team. And we’re going to give it to the first five people who answer the following question and sent it to our mail, [email protected]. Repeating the address, [email protected], OK? First five people to send the answer to this question, we’ll get in touch with you through the mail to see about sending it. If it’s within México City, it will be through our messenger boy, our dear Arturo, but if you’re not in México City, well, we’ll look for a way to get it to you through national or international mail. OK? So, the mail is [email protected] and here’s the question, OK? And it’s: How… where does-? We mentioned it a while ago. Where does Herneval’s name come from?

Roy Ambriz: Go!

Arturo Ambriz: There it is, we went into it in detail a while ago, so if you paid attention, you can answer that question. And we’ll look for a way to make… make some other dynamic so we can give away this kind of things. Is there anything else you want to add, Roy?

Roy Ambriz: Well… please use the #Frankelda. You can use the other ones, they’re really cool. The ‘Que Listo Sos, Herneval’ one, all the ones you’re making up, but also use the #Frankelda on its own, because that way we can get everything thrown together and it’s like evidence for us to show the producers of you wanting a second season. Be insistent. If you wish, insist at the Cartoon Network LA and HBOMax LA social media accounts in your different kinds of posts, but use… flood them with requests for ‘Frankelda’s second season because that’s the only way we’re getting it. So, if there’s a massive second season bombing, it’s way easier, I hope no one kills me for saying that, but it’s the truth and I have to ask. So, well, I think that’s all for this session. If you liked it, expect more. We’ll be announcing the date for the next one along with our guest star soon.

Arturo Ambriz: Also, believe us when we say, as Roy did a while ago, if we can talk for a bit about what ‘Frankelda’ represents, well, we highly, highly, highly recommend for you to read. It’s never too late to get close to literature. We already made it easy for you, why not start with ‘Frankenstein’ by Mary Shelley? I’d be very surprised if you didn’t love it, truly, it’s fascinating. It’s a beautiful, philosophical, horror, science fiction book, it’s got everything, y’know? It has family drama, it has traditions, it has murder, it’s an incredible book. Read. Write. That’s something I struggle with a lot regarding my students, as we’ve mentioned, we teach in a handful of classes, and I do see sometimes how they lack… reading, and this is also why we were so insistent on the main character of the show being a writer.

So, well, we’re finishing up and, I just read a great suggestion and it’s that we should leave but first we should put Herneval and Frankelda together, and we should leave them like that for a minute, leave them like this for a minute… and leave. Thanks, goodbye.

Roy Ambriz: Goodbye!

Arturo Ambriz: It’s been great.

#Frankelda #Sustos Ocultos de Frankelda #Frankelda's Book of Spooks #Cinema Fantasma #cc translates #And now you know why the latam fandom makes so many jokes about Hernevalito falling on his face

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