#whats the difference between the palette owners and the weird kids all around just kinda out of it

[raredrop]

since palettes are just a part of someones soul pulled into the memverse

maybe agent 4 is passed the heck out at home

slept through the horrors

but also while im talking about agent 4....whats with the game saying parallel canon looks like 8? the main model shown looks like 4....thats not an octoling.....like.....????

[venus-says]

Kiratto Prichan Episodes 59-64

Welcome back, Meltic StAr!

I bet you thought I forgot about Prichan right? This gonna sound like a lie but I didn’t, for real. XD

The problem Prichan has is basically the same one as AiFure, the subs come out late and things just pile up. Last year I used to watch Prichan without the subs as normal because I wasn’t as invested in the story and if I felt like I was missing out on something I could check on tumblr and see what actually happened. But this time around I actually wanna know what's going on with these characters, especially for this batch of episodes that give major focus to my favorite members of this cast.

But anyway, I got a lot to cover so let's get right into it.

Episodes 59 and 60 are pretty boring. 59 is one to try to promote the new rarity in the game while 60 is to promote the new toy, and I didn't really care for neither of them.

59 had some cute moments on it, specially Daia she was pretty adorable on this one. The owners of that bookstore were also fun sometimes, and I do like the idea they came up to save their business. But the rest of the episode I just couldn’t care less, boring stuff from left to right.

Episode 60 I had quite a lot of problems with it. First I don’t like how they made Mirai so over-obsessed about the palette thing, as far as I know, she never showed signs of being crazy over something at this level before and is just awkward. Second, I don’t like how they make the design palette be such a big deal when we probably won’t see it again after maybe one or two months, also if it’s such an important and rare thing why would Aira give it to Mirai? It makes no sense to me. And in overall it’s just not an interesting episode at all. IF only IF, the new Prism Stone uniform was good I think I could give it a pass and say at least something good came out of it, but these new ones are nowhere near the ones from S1 so...

I think I would've liked 59 more if instead of a repeat performance of Rinka we got one in that Snow White coord. If they still wanted to use Yumeiro Energy it'd be fine for me, I've come to accept this song more from the last time I did one of these, but still I don't think that Miracle Idol coord fits neither the song or the stage and is just a generic group coord because they were lazy to make new performance coords for each new song. But nothing could save 60 for me, not even Super Cutie Super Girl.

Episode 61 is when things get interesting again because MELTIC STAR!!!!!!!!!

The first episode of this mini ark is great, I was surprised by how much I liked this one since it was very focused on Emo and Oshama Tricks was a big part of it as well, and these are normally two elements that if put together could make me go crazy and bored because I don’t like neither of them. But in this one, it worked very well and I enjoyed this episode a lot.

They’ve made a very good job showing how important Anna is for Emo even though they drive each other crazy, and because it was so well done that you can really feel both Emo sadness for thinking that everything was just a lie and her happiness right after as soon as the girls introduce themselves on stage.

If there’s only one thing to complain about this episode is that Meltic StAr’s new unit coords are weird as hell, I really dislike them and I don’t get why they would go with this aesthetic for them. Maybe if these were introduced with a new group song that had this Circus vibe to it I wouldn’t dislike it as much, but since that’s not the case I can’t like them, at least not yet.

I also don’t understand why they would have to announce they’re taking part in the Jewel Auditions since I though everyone doing prichan was eligible for it, but this is honestly just a minor nitpick and not a problem per se.

The next two episodes are used to finally cement Meltic StAr as active parts in this season this gets evident by looking at the opening that features them on it.

I think that, to me, the best that episodes 62 and 63 do is creating bonds between Meltic and Ring Marry, and I’m not saying this just because the 5 of them are my favorites and I love to see their interactions. I promise. I think it is just natural having the two groups together when you consider that Kiratts and Daia have a strong relationship and this has left Maria and Suzu behind for a little.

And honestly, both groups work really well together. Even though both episodes are mainly focused on Mel and Suzu, they still add some other nice little touches to it like for example, saying Sara knows Maria’s channel. Sara loves cute things so is just natural that she’s aware of Maria’s channel. Are small details like this that make me appreciate and enjoy these episodes a little more.

These episodes are so well constructed that they alone made me raise Suzu in my faves list, I really enjoyed seeing her with Mel and seeing how they’re very different from each other which makes possible for both of them to learn a lot from their time together. Given that in both episodes Suzu basically was the one in charge of learning rather than teaching, I believe Mel was able to extract some good this from this experience as well.

Talking about 63 more specifically, I have two problems with it. First is Mel getting jewel chance in the first episode she performs alone in this season, I already mentioned that I don’t like this but since it seems this is the trend for all idols who were already a part of the original cast I can let it pass, also Universe Queen jewel coord is gorgeous and probably my favorite of all we’ve seen so far so this makes me even less mad about the whole situation.

The second is that part where Mel insists for Suzu to sing, I know it’s a minor moment, it goes very quickly, and it’s there just to consolidate even more the fact that Suzu doesn’t want to sing yet. I also know that Mel had good intentions there, but I still don’t like it. As someone who constantly has people trying to force me into doing things I don’t like/want, I can’t stress enough how bad this is.

Thankfully this episode does so many other great things that in the end they overcome these bad points and results in a good episode. My favorite bits being all the moments where Mel was the most hyperactive kid on the planet. Gosh, I love her so much. ALSO, Mel promoting education and saying that learning is fun is very valid.

The highlight of this episode is definitely Mel’s performance!!!!! What a great song it is!!! I have the same problem as before where the Circus Ringmaster Coord doesn’t fit the song and the stage, but I still enjoyed every single bit of it. Even using the repeated stage was good, I think the Amusement Park stage works better here than the palace stage and the sweet shop stag does for Mirai and Rinka’s song. I must say, I didn’t expect Mel’s song to be like this, I expected it to be more like Cometic Shilouette, but I really like it and it fits Mel PERFECTLY. I also think the Meltic StAr generic Yattemita for this season is better than the Kiratts generic one so that’s another plus for this performance.

Closing up this batch the show goes down again in Episode 64. I really don’t like this episode, I really don’t see the point of it and the execution of the thing was kinda wonky.

This Daia Fest was very confusing. First, I don’t get the concept of going through a competition to win a single piece of a coord. I know this is something they do since the Pretty Rhythm days but still, I don’t get it.

Second, I don’t understand why the only two participants are Mirai and Mel, I’d think that more idols would get jewel coords as well, it’d be a good way to showcase in the show that the jewel coords come in various colors in the game. Making the two of them the only competitors make the competion even more pointless.

Third, I don’t get how someone could come out victorious of this thing, they’ve done the exact same thing with nothing different being added to spice things out. Yeah they performed in their Jewel Coords, but in general they share the same value so, is not like they’ve done anything special.

Fourth, Mirai’s victory feels empty. They tried to set up a conflict with Mirai not knowing what her dream was but they don’t do anything with it. If they made Mirai lose they could give her an ark about finding herself, and finding a dream for her and make the culmination of all that be really amazing. But no, she’s the main character so we have to give everything to her very easily.

But to not say I dislike everything this episode has done, I liked the excuse they came up with to why Rinka didn’t got in, I think this thing she has with her mom is very funny and probably the only thing I REALLY like about her.

Oh there’s also Naru who’s in the middle of love and hate. I do like her character here but since I never watched the PR season she’s from I have this sensation in the back of my head that i’m already loosing lots of information about this character, even though like Aira she’s not the same naru from Pretty Rhythm and technically all we’re seeing here is new.

And this is it for now! It took me way longer than I wanted to write this down but I’m finally done.

A FEW SIDE NOTES:

Maria is very relatable.

IS THIS A MOTHERFUCKING BRAZIL REFERENCE?

Despite all the bad things I had to say about these episodes, I can’t deny that we got some very adorable shots from them. LOOK AT IT, THEY’RE SO CUTE.

Now that’s everything I had to say.

I’ve already watched Episode 65, but I’m leaving it for its own post because I have lots of things to talk about and this post is already long enough as it is. I’ll probably post it later today by itself or tomorrow with Episode 66, it will depend if Aikatsu subs will be coming out today or not. Regardless, the symphoger review will be out very soon, I’m finishing up some things here and I’ll be watching the episode in no time.

See yall soon (very soon this time, I promise).

[maraudergirls]

Smores ( Harry x Luna Carnival Au)

For @wizardingworldwaitforme from @hermione-who and @@beaubcxton We love you and surprise!

“Just bloody ask her mate!”

“I can't. You know that!”

“Why not? Stop being a wuss!”

“What if she says no, Ron?”

“What if she says yes?” The boy, Ron counters back, frustration seeping into his tone. Some would call it a privilege, attending to Harry Potter, but his best friend thought it was a right nuisance.

Especially, when the said boy was pining after a girl.

Harry Potter was many things. A fighter, the Gryffindors would call him after he’d ward off the dementors. The hufflepuffs would chime in with a “He’s selfless!” after he gave his life up once more. The Ravenclaws and the Slytherins wouldn’t say much, too immersed in their work but if pestered, they’d retort that he was a rather resilient fellow who should pick up a book once in a while.

If asked, the professors would smile fondly and say he was a smart student and then share caring sentiments regarding him. They’d follow the statement by saying that their parents were rather bright students as well. And like most people, they’d soon wander off in their blissful thoughts.

Harry Potter was many things.

But charmspeaker, he was not.

Perhaps, one might consider it bizarre that the boy could fight soul reapers, death eaters and even corpses but couldn’t even stomach the idea of asking a girl out.

Particularly when that girl was Luna Lovegood. Caring, kind of oblivious and wouldn’t hurt a fly, Luna. Goddess Number 1, Apple of his eye, light in his darkness and wackspurt to his nargle. He’d been pining after her for ages, perhaps ever since she brushed her hand against his when he had asked for a pencil.

Harry groans. He was pathetic.

A girl like Luna deserved to see the whole world on a date. Taste italian pizza and drink American Iced Tea. He doubted she would like that much, however. Luna seemed like the person who find contentment in standing still.

Weather (and his mother) forbade him from taking her to a beach.

“You’ll catch a cold, Har!” Lily had scolded him earlier that morning, her hands dusty with flour as she set a plate of cookies on the table, cookies she’d made for his father.

Harry had stuffed one in his mouth and proclaimed, “Its for a girl, Mum!”

“And she can say yes to other sensible and safe events or she’s not the right girl for you.”

Harry supposed there was some truth in her words but to his love riddled brain, it was the worst of betrayals. And he had sighed, mournfully and clambered up the stairs, plate hidden and a grinning mother at the end of it.

“Mate,” Ron sighs and sits next to the boy. “I’m sure she’ll say yes.”

Harry smiles abashed and runs a hand through his hair. “You think?.”

Barely managing to suppress a thankful sigh, Ron claps his friend on the shoulder. “I’m positive.”

When the other boy doesn’t respond, he quickly walks out the door, happy that his best-friend duty could be considered fulfilled.

“Mate!!”

The call sounds at lunch time and Ron looks up as he stuffs a leg of chicken in his mouth. It was perhaps the third time his eating had been interrupted that very day, Ron thought morosely. Truly a travesty.

“She said yes!”

The other boy gives a thumbs up and widens his eyes proportionally to add effect. “Conhuhasdu”

“Where should I take her?”

Not again. How was he supposed to know about girls? Harry should have been asking Hermione these questions. Or his own parents. James and Lily Potter were married. They obviously had some experience in the whole dating thing.

Swallowing” “Take her to a carnival, mate. Girls dig that.”

Harry bites his lip. “Yeah? You’d think she like that?”   

Ron hums for good measure. For a moment, Harry looks transfixed and Ron can hardly believe his luck but then: “Why though? Why not the beach?”

Oh for Merlin’s sake.

“Harry.” Ron said very rationally. The food that spewed from his mouth is a testimony of the level of nonchalance the boy exhibits. “If you want to go to a beach, go.”

“Mom’s not allowing me to go.”

“So?”

“So? So, I can't go. Girl or no girl, I can't worry Mom like that. Not after what she’s been through.”

For a brief second, Ron wonders if this is the same boy who flew a car with him and took out a whole unit of villains but then he nods. After what Lily had been through, indeed.

“Luna’s a pureblood, right?”

A sound of assent.  

“She’d love how weird carnivals are.”

Harry’s eyes lit up. “Yeah! And we’d go on all those rides and I could get- Wait, you’re a pureblood.”

“Bloody hell! Will you look at that? I am!”

“Oh sod off. How do you know about muggle fairs?”

“Hermione took me once.” Ron says shortly. “Fairs?”

And after all the help he had offered, Harry has the gall not to answer his question as he bounces off and shoves his coat on, knocking the lamp post while he’s at it. “Thanks, Ron. You’re the best.”

Only after Harry strides out of the room does Ron allow himself to bite into his cheese burger with a blissful moan.

“Car- nee-val” Harry teaches as they walk under the entrance arc. Dozens of kids run around with painted faces. Luna giggles as she notices one boy sporting the face of a dragon. The scent of fried food wafts through the air and the pair hear their stomachs grumbling mournfully.

The feeling of happiness was rich in the air and the laughter of the children near them who asked for balloons was contagious.

Tugging her along, Harry was content as they breezed past several booths, hardly noticing anything besides the presence next to him.

Luna gently touched his hand once to get his attention. “What’s that?”

Following the direction of her hand, he answers, “It’s sand art.”

“Its beautiful.” Luna murmurs in awe.

Indeed it was. The palette was a sight for sore eyes. Purple, green and blue sand occupied the space of several containers.

“Want to play?”

“What do you do?”

Harry scrunches up his nose trying to remember. “You choose a container, I think and place one funnel at the top. And then you’d uh, put the sand in the bottle till it’s filled to the brim. Its kinda cool if you’re into ah, designing.”

Luna inspects the booth for several seconds, “Maybe later.”

And so, they go on. Several times, Luna would stop and ask him a question and Harry would explain how crazy hats worked and they're not actually popping butterflies but rather butterfly like balloons.

At first, it was tiresome. Question thrown after question but then he’d looked at Luna and all his misery drowned away.

He had never seen her so excited. So full of childish glee.

Wisdom always shone like tears in those blue eyes and he’d never have the opportunity to see anything different but now, he found he rather loved the new look and with a bounce in his step, apprehended her.

McGonagall once asked him why circumstances revolved around him and he’d chirped I don't go looking for trouble. Trouble usually finds me. It seemed like the statement still applied, even if he didn’t go to Hogwarts anymore.

For several people cast them weird looks and they scoffed about Luna’s attire.

He thought she looked gorgeous. A normally sized chunk of radish hung from her left earlobe and a small carrot dangled from the right. She was wearing a knee-length colorful dress with an enormous butterfly design on her back. Her shoes were multicolored but Harry failed to understand why people seemed to think it was their business.

When the third person to call her out that night laughed with his friends, Harry took a glance at Luna and was speechless to notice she still wore that airy and bright smile. Was she not affected at all by the taunts? This was probably the fourth time they teased her in his presence. And he hoped it’d be the last time.

As if answering his question, she shakes her head slightly when Harry steps forward, adamant to teach someone a lesson.

“Leave it be, Har.”

He protests. “They have no right-”

“And so they don't. They’re misguided. Hecates are to be blamed.”

Disgruntled, he listens.

A wide smile splits Luna’s face. “You’re cute when you’re worried.”

And all thoughts of shoving a wand in someone’s ear turned to dust with that coy admission.

Harry had never noticed how loud carnivals could be, and how dim they got, so dim you could barely see when you accidently trod on someone's toe, but now he did.

Now he was conscious of everything, stealing what he hoped were secret glances at Luna every so often, hoping she was enjoying herself.

The bright smile she had on her face as she drank in the scene comforted him, but then he hastily reminded himself that Luna Lovegood was always smiling.

He loved that about her, he realised with a jolt.

That no matter how dark and crowded the carnival, or even the world, got, she still somehow managed to find the light, and just smile.

It’s infectious, her energy.

He really, really loved that about her.

They can hardly hear each other over the noise when Harry pulls Luna over to a wooden stall, standing on the outskirts of the crowd.

“Want anything?!”

Luna tilts her head to show she hasn’t understood.

Harry makes a point of pointing at the pink candy wound over sticks, shouting even louder.

“WOULD YOU LIKE SOME?”

Luna blinks, her smile slightly faltering as she follows his gesture. Her blue eyes flicker over the stall, taking in the impatient stall-owner, who is also pointing to the candy in a similar fashion, and she nods.

“THE CANDY LOOKS NICE, SHOULD WE GET SOME?”

The scene is so ridiculous that Harry can’t help but laugh as he proceeds to pick the largest treat on the stall.

Luna seems hesitant as she receives the gift from Harry’s hands, which worries him.

Had he mis-heard her, did she not want any? Had he already made a fool himself, not even an hour into his date?

She tentatively reached out, grasping a small piece between her fingers, and pulling. She let out a soft gasp as the candy tears clean off, and Harry realises something.

Of course, candyfloss was a muggle thing, Luna’d probably never seen the cloud-like sweet, and while incredibly wise, Luna was fascinated by littlest of things.

He leans in closer, just so she can hear him better, and desperately tries to ignore the warmth rushing to his ears.

“Try some.”

Luna, ever-trusting, lifts her gaze from the pink, and keeps her eyes locked on his, as she lifts the candy up, and deposits it in her mouth.

Harry watches as her eyes widen slightly, and her smile returns, brighter than ever. He stepped back then, the urge to pull her close being too strong.

“Muggle’s come up with the most amazing things.”

She breaths, and Harry was glad to see she went in for more. And more, and more.

At least now he knew what to get her for christmas.

When it’s finished, and believe me it didn’t take long, the pair seem to be drawn to the ride that towered above them all. The wheel spun, every cart occupied by some sort of couple. It seemed like the go-to place for letting people know you were on a date.

And maybe that’s why Harry suggested they ride the ferris wheel. He wanted make sure Luna knew how he felt.

And when she excitedly squeezed his hand, commenting on how he’d “read her mind” and explained something to do with “Nargles and their fear of heights”, he was glad he’d asked.

They were an odd couple, that was for sure.

What, with Luna’s special even for a wizard wardrobe, and Harry’s dug up old muggle clothes that he hardly wore, they didn’t exactly look like a couple you’d run into on the street.

Normally, maybe, they might have cared about the indiscreet stares they still received, as they paid for their tickets, and the scoff a woman sent their way when Luna smiled at her, but together? So high up that even the noise didn’t bother them anymore, and the stars winked at them from above, perfecting an already perfect day? All they noticed was each other.

The ride came to it’s usual standstill, Harry and Luna at the very top. It was mesmerizing for him, watching her shut her eyes and take in the cool breeze, fingers stroking the air as if she could feel something no-one else could.

To Harry, Luna was a whole world. She lived it, breathed it, floating between reality and just plain fantasy.

It was the best way to live.

“Look.”

She was pointing at something far in the distance, something Harry couldn’t even see from where he sat.

She giggled slightly as he struggled to find it, pulling him closer.

“There.”

This time her lips were right by his ear, and she whispered her next words.

“Aren’t they beautiful, the lights?”

And Harry saw. He had to agree, the city lights of Muggle london did glow rather brightly, and on any other day he’d have admired them for longer. But, at the word beautiful his eyes twitched back towards Luna, who’d been watching him.

“Yes,” He agreed, whispering for no apparent reason, “beautiful.”

Twelve times. Twelve more times they rode that ferris wheel. And each time they stopped high enough for Luna to spot something else to be fascinated by. By about ride five her hand was in his, Harry somehow also finding the courage to move close enough that their shoulders touched.

He was trying really hard not to sweat.

Her fingers were soft and slender, and he revelled in her touch. He loved the feel of her skin on his, and at sometime, he didn’t know when, maybe the sixth ride? His thumb was stroking her palm, the feeling regular, like he’d done it a million times.

When they spoke, their conversation flowing from each topic, Harry always wondered why he hadn’t seen this side to Luna before.

The incredibly thoughtful, grounded, funny Luna. That was just it. She was so, ridiculously funny that by ride seven he was sure he had tears in his eyes from all the laughter.

“You know, Harry, you surprised me.”

This kind of brought the laughing to a stop, just as ride 11 ended and 12 began.

“I did?” Harry cleared his throat, wondering what he’d done.

“Well...with everything you’ve been through. I’d have thought things like fairs and carnivals would be a breeze.”

“But I can feel your nervousness.”

And there it was, the marker screaming that the whole date had been a disaster. She could tell he was anxious.  He was obviously acting weird, putting her off. Was he sweating?

I mean, it was practically freezing, but he still felt the heat of sahara with her so close.

“That’s okay though. I’m nervous too.”

And she says this with such a comfortable air about her, that Harry can’t help but think she is saying this to make him feel better. But then, the thought of Luna lying at all was even more crazy.

It was funny, how things had changed in the space of 12 rotations. It was like a clock on fast-forward, each ride symbolising a stage in their relationship. Discomfort, tentativeness, touch, closeness, realisation and learning and perhaps even loving, it was way too far to tell Harry scolded himself when his thoughts strayed, all thrown into one.

In a way, Harry was grateful, for when he took Luna’s hand, and led her from the beginning of their “us”, it felt like he’d been holding her forever. He told himself it didn’t make sense, how right Luna felt, that he was surely dizzy from the perfectly slow ferris wheel, but he lacked the enthusiasm to make it believable.

It was quite a funny story, how Harry came to be holding a fish in his hands. Even he didn’t quite understand it.

I mean, it was normal, right? Buying goldfish at fairs, people did that, Harry was sure.

Only, the funny part was the stall-owner’s face when Luna had pointed past all the giant teddy-bears and the array of colourful balloons, after Harry had finally managed to land his arrow in the target and win, following many, many tries.

He’d asked her what she wanted, for he’d played for her, and wasn’t really surprised when she singled out the small orange sea creature, as it swam in reply.

“Are you sure?” the stall-owner seemed genuinely surprised, like he’d given up on the thought of selling that fish long ago, but, Harry thought with a smile as he handed his date her fish, (a thing he’d never really had to do before), the stall-owner hadn’t known Luna was coming.

And so he held the fish with pride, as Luna cooed through the bag, talking to the creature like an old friend.

“What shall we name you?”

Luna mulled it over, then straightened, lips tugging into a smile.

“Denis.”

Harry blinked, “Denis?”

Luna waved his question away, like her answer was obvious.

“All the cutest people are called Denis.”

He wondered idly if she was possibly referring to an old boyfriend, but this quickly diminished when she bent down again, peering at the fish with such a look a person would give their pet, “you’re so adorable, aren’t you little denis?”

He doesn’t really decide to tell her then, the words just kinda spill from his mouth. He lets them though, figures he needs to voice how much he likes Luna in some way other than blushing.

“Reminds me of the first time I knew that I, uh… you know.” He’s obviously not very good at the whole actually talking to your date thing yet.

“That you?” Luna regarded him with a kindly curious look, genuinely interested.

Fascinated by the littlest of things.

“Reminds me of the first time I knew i liked you.”

When he finished, her smile grew wider, how was that even possible, and she looked even prettier, again how?

Harry kept talking, hoping he could always make her smile like that.

“We were still in school back then..”

He didn’t get it, not at all.

She wasn’t angry.

Hanging up posters for her stolen possessions with such a carefree attitude, like it all didn’t matter. Like it was all just ‘good fun’.

Well, he certainly didn't find it funny.

Humor was not one emotion he’d feel. Rage and bitterness though? Definitely.

Why bully someone as lovely as Luna? He didn’t get it at all.

“I’m sorry about your godfather, Harry.”

The words froze him in his tracks, and he waited for the rush of pain, the choking feeling in his throat that usually arose whenever he thought of Sirius.

But it never came.

He looked down to see she had grasped his shaking hand, and her touch healed it. Blocked him, even if it was just for a moment, from the sea of prodigious grief.

Somehow, just Luna’s timid smile, managed to convince him that ‘everything was going to be okay.’

“Are you sure you don’t want help looking for your stuff?”

She pulled away, and he felt the inexplicable urge to stop her, but instead took a half-step back, clenching his fist in an attempt to shake off the feeling of her fingers touching his.

Merlin, what was she doing to him?

“That’s alright. Anyway, my mum always said, the things we lose always have a way of coming back to us in the end.”

Harry didn’t get Luna at all.

Maybe that’s what made her so special.

“Looking back, I probably should’ve asked you out right there and then.” The hand that wasn’t holding the fish went to the back of his neck, rubbing the blush away.

She nodded, seriously considering his statement. Then, her eyes slowly drifted over the carnival.

“D’you think the nice man has any flossing candy left?”

“Wanna sneak out?”

Luna considers and then, nods her head thoughtfully.

If asked, many people would say the greatest love story to exist was Aristotle and Dante. In a world which is blatantly homophobic, perhaps the pair bring a promise of a greater future. A hope.

I’d like to believe they fell in love with Ari’s fierce and protective love and Dante’s open and deep soul.

Among the many who believed, one lover sought to live.

They creep forward like spies. The atmosphere is amusing enough that they both have smiles tugging at their lips as they slide in the truck.

Harry assumes the role of driver and shifts the gear and pushes forward. In a matter of seconds, they pretend they are no longer strangers and zoom against the inky black darkness.

Luna laughs and her date thinks it's a beautiful sound. It was a mixture between a snort and a bell and he decided that it was a melody he’d listen to forever if he could.

Rolling past, the figure of trees blur into the night sky and soon, they’re leaving the city, leaving civilization and entering the void.

Taking a quick glimpse to see if Luna was okay with the proceedings, Harry is assured as she smiles fondly.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder proved true. Hair flying with the breeze and lips parted in happiness, Harry could think of no painting that could rival the image he was gazing at.

Switching his attention to the road, he leans back and they drive, crickets chirping as the car ground. 

Luna falls asleep. Blaming it on the crunelo, she says with rather too much enthusiasm, “They’re not very fond of civilization. Makes them all jittery. Did you see one? We’re so lucky to be in their presence.”

Harry quirks an eyebrow at her rambling though it goes unnoticed “We’re here.”

Let me paint a picture of their surroundings: From their vantage point in the truck, enormous mountains rose, their dark peaks nearly imperceptible. Fireflies hummed in the sky, their light offering a golden glow to the soothing darkness. Stars trailed the night sky and Luna knew that they were blinking down at her, silently promising that they saw.

The stars had always meant something special to Luna. Her mother often used to say, “The stars are our ancestors, love. Whenever you seek comfort, look upon the stars and wish and hope for the posterity.”

The world was etched in charcoal, the once vibrant colors of dawn now, a long forgotten memory. It was only them in this fantasy world where no plague of politics or racism existed. Time stood still as Harry led them to the back of the truck. Luna hadn’t noticed it before but there were pillows littering the space accompanied by a blanket. A lone basket stood at the base and Harry burrowed in it before he magicked a sandwich.

“I figured we wouldn’t be happy with the carnival food.” He grinned at the precipitous enlargement of Luna’s eyes. “I brought you s’mores for dessert because I remember hearing you say it was your favorite.”

Luna whispers, surprise, and awe seeping into her tone. “I knew I liked you for a reason.”

And it’s ridiculous really, how happy the sentence, the fact made him. The events leading up to now were considered as a date but right now, he felt something more tangible in the air. Make or break, after all, and by the end of the night, he’d understood where he stood with the fairy next to him. For better or for worse.

“I could do this forever,” Luna exclaims softly, staring so intently at her food, mesmerized.

Harry chuckled, “Yeah, these s’mores are pretty marvelous.”

She looks up, and lets out such a melodious sound Harry’s taken aback. She’s laughing.

He would never get used to it.

It was probably the trick of the light or lack thereof, but Harry was sure Luna’s eyes glowed in that moment. Brighter than bright, as her laughter died down and she lowered her s’more.

“You’ve got…”

Her words dwindle into nothing, and Harry was sure the thing that happened next was no trick. His heart constricting, he could feel it, and it felt like the right side of his face was melting. A very good, painless fire in the form of Luna’s fingers lay on his cheek.

Her finger trailed his lip, taking the chocolate with it.

“Chocolate on your face.”

She was whispering, why was she whispering?

Maybe it was because he was moving closer, and she was leaning in.

Or maybe it was because he’d dropped his s’more to cup her cheek, and was gazing into her eyes like he’d never seen anything so beautiful.

Or maybe it was because she had closed the distance between them, and her lips were on his, and everything was black and blue and black again as colors and thoughts whizzed around Harry’s mind, settling on perfect.

He was still reeling when the kiss ended, and he watched as Luna blushed, pulling back to bite her lip.

If things were up in the air before, now they were definitely firmly on the ground, spelling it out simply.

They liked each other.

A lot.

“Do you want to know when I started liking you?”

Sighing in relief, he nods. He wanted to ask her ever since he murmured the story about how he fell for the pixie. His pixie, hopefully. Assuming she’d tell him her story in return, he was left rather disappointed as she changed the topic and bounced off for more cotton candy.

“I didn’t realize, Harry.” She murmurs, her gaze as soft as his own mother’s and he embarrassingly tries to hide the tears that now shine in his eyes. It constantly baffled him that people felt affection to his persona. “I think I always knew and whenever you’d smile at me while you ate or whenever you defended me, you’d feed the burrow of feeling that I wore on my sleeve.”

Harry smiled at her and offered her his hand. Nestling in his warmth, she goes on, “If I had to choose a memory-“

Luna was the last to leave class, concluding that she couldn’t get bullied if no one else was left to tease her about her earrings or her name.

Walking out of class with extreme foreboding and caution, it’s unsurprising when a loud and cruel laugh cuts the silence preceding the contents of her bag spilling out.

“Loonie LOVE-good!” They chanted. “Who’d love you?!”

Never fight back with swords, Luna, but rather with silence and wit.

And so, she had taken the wise words of her father to heart and never tried to include herself in their pointless arguing. Luna was in the midst of collecting of her things when footsteps sound near. Glancing up, her heart stills as it takes in a very livid Harry Potter.

The anger is not directed at her. Merlin, no. It never will be but rather at the students behind her who now shuffled under the might glare of the boy who lived.

“Luna? Are you okay?”

His voice is laced with compassion and drowned with sweetness. Quite contradictory as his face looked like it was made of stone. However, Luna noticed worry lines creasing its way on his forehead so she nods and smiles at him for good measure. “I’m fine, Harry. just dropped my things.”

A silent plead not to hurt them which reluctantly, Harry listens to for he drops his wand back and clenches his jaw, as the bullies slump with obvious relief.

“Do you know who she is?”

Luna winces. She probably should have asked him to drop the whole issue altogether. Harry’s bark was worse than his bite and she shuddered to wonder what rumors would fly around.

Probably, ‘Star-Crossed Lovers.’ They certainly did make a weird pair. Would, would make a weird pair.

Laying a hand on his arm, she says, “Harry, you don’t need to-“

“No, Luna. They’ve got to know that they’re cowards-“ He throws the pale boys a glare. “I doubt they’ve fought death eaters and survived to tell the tale but you have. And you’ve remained as kind as ever whereas-“

“Harry.” She says again and perhaps, it's the unexpected whisper that surprises him, for he breaks the scrutiny of annoyance and tears his eyes towards her. The boys seize the chance and hurry away. Sighing, Harry lets them after Luna prompts a quick, “it’s okay.”

 Harry sighs and helps her. “I don’t know why you let them be so rude.”

“You can’t change everyone.”

“I suppose that’s true.” Harry says grimly. Standing up, he moved rather awkwardly and shuffled his feet.

“Thank you for helping me. You’ve always been kind.”

The boy flushes and coughs. “S’alright. Just take care, yeah?”

“And then you ran away.”

Harry splutters. “I did not run. And why did you like me, then? I acted like a tosser.”

Luna yawned and snuggled closer to Harry. “I don’t know. I suppose you were the first person to care for me besides Ginny.”

The world didn't deserve Luna but perhaps, his feelings for her would offer some consolation.

“This is my favorite part of our date.”

Luna grins at him. “I can’t relate. I rather liked the cotton candy.”

Kissing her palm quickly, he drapes the blanket over them as the darkness winnows over them, cocooning them in some hazy dream. The stars fade as he blinks.

Harry supposed that Ron was wrong. You don’t need fireworks and adrenaline electrifying your marrow to feel happy.

Maybe you just needed that someone.

And maybe a fish too, he thought with a chuckle back to Denis, who sat comfortably in the backseat of his truck, a shiny new bowl as his home.

He wouldn’t trade the world for today but he concluded grande gestures weren’t always necessary. Not that today was grande but he had already planned the second date and since Sirius planned it, it was hella posh. Sometimes, you just need the quiet, the feeling of someone’s hand on yours. Them lending you their love and the trust that you wouldn’t abuse it.

The feeling of Luna nuzzling in the crook of his neck would never be forgotten. Decades later as he bounces his children on his knees, he will call their mother a flower.

Tranquility can bring happiness too, Harry concluded as he traced Luna’s soft features with his eyes.

Harry chuckles lightly.

Luna was right. The treats were indeed delicious.

[lucky-clover-gazette]

season 4 first watch impressions

under the cut are my thoughts and my new overall series episode ranking (spoilers)

ep1 - uss callister

- by far my favorite of the season

- a perfect blend of comedy and tragedy 

- i would have loved this as a full movie

- honestly nanette is amazing, like she owns her smarts and sexuality and never gives up i love her

- male coder: “it won’t work, i’ve already tried”

nanette: “well i haven’t” HELL YEAH

- i honestly loved all the ‘crew’ characters, even the gym rat boss

- i especially enjoyed the speech from the boss to robert, where he’s like ‘i acknowledge that i was an ass, but dude, YOU PUSHED MY SON OUT AN AIRLOCK’

- also the fuckin casual dialogue between the monster and bad guy and the crew

- OHHH BOY AND THE FACT THAT ROBERT’S GONNA ROT TO DEATH IN HIS APARTMENT BECAUSE HE PUT ‘DO NOT DISTURB’ ON HIS APARTMENT DOOR, HELL YEAH

- ‘oh my fuck’ 

- 10/10, watch it now

ep2 - arkangel

- preface: the kid playing young owen teague and his family were actually really close with my family when he and my little sister were kids. it was goddamn surreal to see that lil guy talking about porn when i remember him being, like, eight. but nice going nick, keep kicking ass lil dude

- okay so this episode was... conflicting 

- the opener made sense, but in some ways i thought it was TOO obvious and indicative of the episode’s message and tone. i can’t help but wonder if it would have been better just starting like five minutes in

- her father looked like counselor healy from orange is the new black, so that was distracting

- okay jesus christ lady, i get that losing your kid is scary, but implanting her with ‘optional’ optic spying and censoring software is such a massive violation of her privacy. like, it’s one thing when she’s tiny, but how the hell are you going to feel okay with yourself as a parent when she’s an adolescent? 

- the blocking especially pissed me off. that’s so fucking dangerous. either this woman is just very stupid, or very desperate

- at least the narrative established that it kind of was the latter. when her father gets sick, the mother has to care both for both her father and her child. that’s a lot. but still not an excuse for such mental violation of a quickly-growing human being

- young edgelord and sara are fucking adorable

- sara’s self-harm and rage issues are not, however,, and i’m glad that her mother took her head out of her ass and ditched the tablet

- is it just me or is fifteen-year-old sara kind of an idiot? like i get it she’s grunge and artsy, and i loved her giving a treat to the dog, but she seems to be almost hanging out with owen teague because he deals, and not despite it. like i get that i’m supposed to buy that their romance has kind of a subtext of him ‘teaching’ her about things, but like the underage sex and coke are kinda yikes. i feel like he definitely should have had more restraint, and although what the mother does is royally fucked, he and sara are also both to blame

- all right, so the smoothie motif. what a great narrative tool. the miscarriage pill was the most clever part of the episode. sara’s reaction was very well-acted, and the standoff between her and her mother was intense as hell

- i liked that sara’s rage issues remained into adolescence. i was glad that the tablet got wreckt, but i can’t help but wonder if it would have been more effective to have her rage-smash it prior to her mother coming come, leaving the pieces for her to find. the actual beating up of the mother with the tablet seemed to literal, too much sinking in the message. there were moments in crocodile and hang the dj that were the same way. 

- the ending, with sara hitchhiking in some stranger’s truck, was very smart. the ambiguity of a young girl, on her own, hopping in some stranger’s vehicle, is powerful without much explanation. any parent would be horrified by this; that’s what i don’t think we actually needed to see the mother screaming sara’s name and bleeding to understand the horror of losing a child to the unknown

- this one definitely gives me the most complicated feelings of the season; on one hand, it had a lot of great devices going for it. on the other hand, it was over-written and at times trying too hard to be ‘black mirror.’ the grey morality and ambiguous ending reminded me of a literary short story, which i love in my TV.

- 7/10, watch it if you liked most black mirror episodes that weren’t san junipero

ep3 - crocodile

- ah yes, the ‘i watch black mirror to be fuckin ashamed of humanity’ episode

- idk man, i liked it. it was bleak, and fucked up, but i’m all about that downward spiral. i liked that the story kind of began in three different places and then tied together. just as i had with ‘hated in the nation,’ i love police procedural stuff

- also damn, it was freaky as hell to see the straight-laced white blonde soccer-mom type being a despicable murdering sociopath!!! like, gotta go kill an entire family of POC, including a goddamn INFANT, and then see my kid’s show, that’s great. i was so happy when she got what she deserved. 

- all right, so i had one MAJOR PROBLEM with this episode: why the fuck did they make the son blind? the guinea pig twist was so GOOD, and mia fuckin killed a BABY, they didn’t need to further modify that!!! this is another example of black mirror doing just a tad more than it needs to make the audience feel horrible. 

- okay black mirror, we get it, that song is your thing, but can you maybe slide it in as a less glaring easter egg? 

- 8/10, but only if you’re into dark shit and bad endings

ep4 - hang the dj

- not nearly gay enough

- seriously, the entire episode i was unable to focus on the main characters because i kept looking around this Tinder-esque 20′s dating paradise and saw ZERO GAY OR LESBIAN COUPLES. i’m so surprised by this, especially after ‘san junipero.’ at first i was like, maybe this is like society’s way of encouraging procreation because of population decline, but that wasn’t the twist at all. no reason for nearly everyone to be hetero

- THAT BEING SAID, i see you. bi amy. even before the girl partner, i was aware that she used ‘they/them’ pronouns when referring to hypothetical partners. i just wish we could have seen more gay couples in the background (for example, at the choosing ceremony thing, it coulda been two dudes of something)

- uh okay, so everyone loved this episode, and it was okay. some of the banter and jokes were funny and relatable, but honestly, this wasn’t *that* good. the plot wasn’t super original (reminded me a lot of ep1 of hulu’s ‘dimension 404′) and the execution was kind of suuuuuuper basic. like, black suited Enforcers with tasers? a massive matrix wall? the whole thing seemed so predictable and just... basic as hell. 

- but shit man, amy was cool. loved that character in a vacuum. 

- honestly if someone could explain the reasons for loving this episode, i’d like to hear them. because i just don’t get it, man. maybe it’s because i’m gay, or young, or single, or unexperienced... but i just wasn’t very impressed

- 6/10, not even fuckin close to ‘san junipero’ lmao 

ep5 - metalhead

- black and white seemed sort of pretentious, not gonna lie. i think i would have preferred the dirty palette of ‘white bear’ post-apocalypse

- i am all for these female protagonists this season. hell yeah

- soo those corpses in the bed were heavy, but i actually kind of wish we got to see more of that? like, the remains of humanity after the dogs attacked? also, more small explanations for the dogs’ attack would have been interesting

- loved the chase and fight scenes. i can see how they’d be boring, but the moments of conflict between man v. machine were fucking awesome

- K N I F E  D O G

- anyone else get serious farenheit 451 vibes?

- the teddy bear thing was dumb. i don’t think we needed to see what was inside the warehouse. yet another time black mirror threw in just a little more than we needed

- okay so belle keeps alluding to the fact that she has safe family members out there somewhere, so am i to believe that there is some place where humans are safe from dogs? if so, why the actual fuck did she leave? i can’t believe it was just because of fuckin teddy bears

- alllllll the david lynch vibes

- 7/10, but you gotta actually pay attention to the visual details to get the best parts

ep6 - black museum

- BOOOOYYYYYYY! this entire episode i waited for the fuckin shoe to drop and then SHE! DID! THAT!

- the amount of callbacks to previous episodes was,, nice,, but also it was kind of annoying??? and unnecessary? 

- the museum owner was reaaaaaalllly annoying, which is think was intentional. what a fuckin sleaze. in comparison, i thought that jon hamm in ‘white christmas’ was still a somewhat charismatic narrator, but this dude was just yikes

- so, the first story was... kind of a lazy reach? idk, it just felt kinda like a parody of black mirror itself. i get the entire ‘mad science’ vibe they were trying to evoke, but as opposed to the next story, this one had very little to say about human nature. black mirror works its best when it tells stories that use technology as a way to analyze humanity; this one really didn’t (we all already know we’ve got weird kinks)

- the second story was better, but, like, SUPER heartbreaking. poor carrie. i don’t think her husband should have done The Thing at all, honestly, I don’t believe that he couldn’t have seen what happened next coming. it’s like the arkangel mom again; either these characters are just SUPER present-oriented, or just fuckin dumb

- the most tragic moment in this season was ‘monkey needs a hug.’ i felt nauseous 

- okay, now for THE TWIST! the accent drop was a great touch, and i loved that she was poisoning him the entire time. also fuck white men and supremacists, and fuck the museum dude for enabling them. 

- the ending was great. i liked that her mom was chillin with her. the building blowing up was very tarantino. loved her a lot

- 8.5/10, boring in the beginning but the end is worth it 

and now.. 

BLACK MIRROR EPISODES RANKED (AS OF SEASON 4)

1. U.S.S. Callister

2. Nosedive

3. Hated in the Nation

4. San Junipero

5. Fifteen Million Merits

6. Be Right Back

7. White Bear

8. White Christmas

9. Black Museum

10. Crocodile

11. Arkangel

12. Metalhead

13. Hang the DJ

14. Playtest

15. The Entire History of You

16. Men Against Fire

17. Shut Up and Dance

18. The National Anthem

19. The Waldo Moment