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crescentsteel · 3 years

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Keeping a Secret - Prologue

plot: ehehe lemme leave this blank for now as this is only a prologue genre: fluff, crack, slow burn, eventual smut, sexual tension, angst at some point wc: 2.7k

[a/n]

I am reeling just from finishing this one because Tsukki is my boy (Kuroo ily too i swear)

Who writes 2.7k words of prologue? lol me

I’ll set up the masterlist when I’m done with the 1st Chapter.

Thank you so much @oii-sugasan and @haikyuu-is-for-lovers for the betaread! :)

Let me know if you wanna be tagged

Chapter 1 || masterlist

You aren’t just annoying. You’re a fucking menace. Every time he goes to the gym, your presence is like a plague. You're just a manager, but sometimes he thinks that you think you’re the assistant coach. There’s nothing he’d love more than to shower you with the nastiest, most off-handed comments, just to shut you up and wipe the cheery grin that taunts him every time he sees you.

Seriously, you’re all over the place -- you talk to all members of the team as if you’re a player yourself, you nag everyone to take care of themselves outside training like you’re their older sister, you hand out self-gathered information on upcoming matches as soon as matchups are announced, you scamper around the gym tossing balls, assembling the net, doing whatever the hell you can get your hands on, all the while wearing those stupid shorts that distract the majority of the team, especially the new members.

As his eyes follow you, you suddenly turn around to face him, breaking him from his reverie. Even when you’re halfway across the gymnasium, he can see the sharp playfulness that you always exude whenever you talk to him.

“Tsukishima!” You wave at him with that disgustingly sweet grin. “If you’re done staring at my sexy back, you can start your blocking drills, okay?!” you shout with a voice loud enough for everyone else in the gym to hear. Tsukishima feels multiple sets of eyes glance towards his direction and he ‘tsks’ in annoyance under his breath.

He immediately walks away. He refuses to hear more of the unnecessary and untrue prattles directed at him by you.

He hears footsteps follow him. Judging from its pace and heavy strides, he already knows its Kogane without even looking

“Oi, Tsukki. Do you like our manager?”

He doesn’t understand why Kogane is whispering when you’re half a court away from them. More than that, he doesn’t understand why Kogane assumes he likes you. For one, you were wrong: he wasn’t even staring at you. He was staring randomly at nothing while thinking about how irritating you are and you just happened to be at his line of sight.

“I don’t see anything to like about her,” he replies passively.

“What? Why? She’s super helpful -- and pretty too.” Kogane, just like the rest of the team, believes so. Even Kyoutani is fond of you because of that one time you received his spike on full force. You rolled on your back from the sheer power of it but you were able to receive it perfectly, making the whole team go wild when you did, with him as the only exception as he found it inane.

“If you think so, go confess or something then.”

“You know we can’t!” Pink stains begin to surface on his teammate’s cheeks, obviously infatuated with you. Then again, this is not new to him. It was a basic reaction from anyone whose dick is more functional than their brain. Maybe it’s because you’re the only female so close to everyone else. Honestly, he really doesn’t know. But one thing’s for sure. Kogane has 0 chances with you, and neither does every player of Sendai Frogs.

He remembers the conceitedness you displayed even in your first year as a manager. You two became part of the team almost at the same time. He was two months in when the former manager introduced you to the team. As she finished introducing you, you whispered to her to add something. It went something like ‘oh, umm. y/n-chan also said that no one from the team can’t date her.’ Even the former manager looked at you weirdly but you were just there beaming as you bowed to everybody.

They thought it was a joke, but when you became a full-pledged manager in less than six months, you announced it yourself.

‘I know I’m kind of cute, but I won’t ever consider dating anyone from the team. Okay?’

You announce it with a sickening smile every time there are new members, reminding everyone else that you’re untouchable.

It’s fucking atrocious, to him at least. Unlike the other players from his team, he’s not shallow enough to fancy you just because you’re not disgusting to look at, or that you did your managerial duties so exceedingly well.

He grits his teeth. He hates it. How can someone so chaotic as you be so effective in managing the team. What grinds him even more is that you go to the same university he does, and even there, your presence stinks. He once had a class with you only to find out that you’re not as dumb as you make yourself out to be.

It’s infuriating. He can’t wait for the day you mess up -- only then would he finally get the chance to diss you. He’ll turn that shit-eating smile of yours upside down.

Man, nothing boosts your mood better than bugging Tsukishima. When you felt his sinister stare boring at your back earlier, you just couldn’t waste the opportunity to say something about it. He just ignored you, but the scowl on his face was enough response to satisfy you.

The truth is, you have nothing against Tsukishima. Yeah, he has a sharp tongue and a vile attitude, but hey, he’s a good team player. He doesn’t speak much, but he gets shit done in matches. Despite his foul personality, he’s actually manageable: he listens to you and he rarely shows up late. He’s not particularly motivating to look at, but he still does what’s asked of him. For some reason that you don’t know, he still hasn’t spat out his usual, rancid remarks towards you. You know he’s itching to, and honestly, you’re kind of curious of what he’ll throw your way.

Still, for the last three years he kept his mouth shut even though he looks at you like you’re the most unpleasant being he’s ever laid eyes on.

“Y/n!”

You jog towards the team coach, Coach Mira. “Yes, Coach?”

“Do you like Tsukishima?” she asks curiously. The question is funny to you but you hold back the laughter and smile instead.

You like Coach Mira a lot. She’s more like an older sister than a coach to you. You’re free to share a few laughs with her, and she values your input to the team. Maybe it’s because you’re both women drowned in a sea of male athletes that you sort of have that innate connection.

“No, Coach. Why?”

“Cause you pay attention to him the most.”

“I don’t see what’s to like about him,” you veer your gaze towards his direction, watching his scowling face as he walks away, Koganegawa following closely behind him. You can’t hear them, but the sight is already amusing as it is. “I just like putting him in place whenever he’s being extra nasty,” you add.

“If you say so, y/n. Honestly, I don’t really care if you go out with one of them.”

You wave your hand back and forth like you’re swatting a fly. “No way, Coach. They’re like little boys I’m taking care of.”

She sweeps her gaze behind you, scanning all the players present in the court. “Can’t say they feel the same way though.” Then she looks at the same person you’re looking at. “Well, maybe except for Tsukishima.”

“That’s why I like messing around with him the most,” you admit with mirth as you watch Tsukishima get away from Kogane.

Everyone in the gymnasium is staring as they enter the arena. If there’s one thing opposing teams remember about the Sendai Frogs, it’s their female tandem of a stone-cold coach and a ‘hot,’ bubbly manager who walk side by side in front of the whole team, not the players.

It’s not really an issue for Tsukishima. He doesn’t really care. Shimizu had the same reputation back in high school. But you? You’re not Shimizu. You aren’t even close.

And you, being the chaotic mess that you are, you milked the attention. Whenever someone blatantly gapes at you, you’d wave at them. You’d even entertain those who openly flirted with you. In retrospect, he should find it despicable. Rather finds it entertaining. So does the rest of the team.

When the Sendai Frogs reach their spot, a guy wearing a Tamaden Elephants jersey approaches you shamelessly. A brave (maybe a little bit foolish) act, considering you’re with the whole team.

“Hi!”

You turn around and greet him just as enthusiastically, maybe even more.

“I just want to say, great game from last season, he says as he scratches the back of his head.

Liar.

If the guy really wants to acknowledge the team’s play from last season, he’d approach one of the players. He also wouldn’t have that stupid blush on his awe-struck face.

“Thank you! Great game indeed,” you return the compliment.

As soon as the guy starts fidgeting, Tsukishima can already guess what comes next: it’s either a date or your number.

“If you don’t mind, can I get your number?”

Tsukishima sneers at how predictable the scene is, and he can’t wait to see what comes next.

You beam at the guy. “Sure! It’s number 1.”

He still smiles even though he’s obviously dumb-founded. “Sorry, what?”

“My number, right? It’s 1. Cause we’re number 1 in the district,” You say with that fake innocence that isn’t really fooling anyone.

“...Uhh.”

“Go Sendai Frogs!” You cheer out of the blue and as if an automated response, the rest of the team, even Tsukishima (though lifelessly), answers.

“Sendai Frogs fight!”

The loud baritone of deep male voices drew the attention of other people in the area, brightening your face up even more as you focus on the guy in front of you again. He looks scandalized by what just happened.

“How about you? What’s your number?” you ask, pushing the guy to a mental corner as Tsukishima and his team glares at him while waiting for how he’ll answer. An embarrassed blush replaces the previously infatuated one as he realizes that he shouldn’t have made the mistake of hitting on you.

“I-I’m not really sure,” his voice loses any shred of confidence it once had.

“Oh. That’s too bad,” you feign sympathy.

“Yeah.” The guy looks down. “Guess I’ll see you around,” he adds before retreating defeatedly.

“Bye! Nice to meet you,” you wave cordially. ‘Whoever you are, newbie elephant,’ you say to yourself as you watch the unfamiliar member of the Elephants go back to his team, a team you wiped the floor with last season.

Until now, you don’t understand why people still even bother. You welcomed the flirtations, but never really went out with anybody. You’re not really opposed to getting in a relationship, but like -- Gooood! They’re all so uninteresting. Rejecting them is more fun than the mere prospect of dating them.

You feel a familiar touch on your shoulder.

“Good job boosting the team morale,” Coach Mari says in a volume that only you can hear as she pats you.

“Thanks, Coach!” You grin at her praise.

You turn around to check your players and your eyes instantly land on Tsukishima who had just put on his white headphones and began scrolling at his phone. Around him, everyone else has already started stretching.

You bounce your way to him, knowing that you’d instantly get his attention even without saying anything. But even with you ogling when you stopped in front of him, he still doesn’t budge.

“Tsukishima.”

No response.

‘Heh,’ you snicker internally. He never fails to amuse you when he tries to ignore you.

“Tsu~ ki~ shi~ ma~” You bob your head sideways, popping at the opposing sides of his phone so he’ll notice you.

You don’t miss the minute twitch of his eyes as he drags his phone closer to him in an attempt to shut you out.

Tsk tsk. He should know better by now that you're not the type to back away.

You go beside him instead, tiptoeing so you can see what he’s so busy looking at. As soon as your arms touch his, he puts down his phone and irritatedly removes his headphones.

He’s shooting daggers at you, making you giddy with excitement as he looks like he’s about to say something you. You hold his gaze with a raised eyebrow and subtle smirk that you couldn’t suppress. Did he get fed up already? Is he finally going to say something?

‘Do it. Do it. Do it,’ you chant in your head.

He takes in a painful deep breath instead. “What?” The single word contains so much disdain that you want to cackle so bad.

“Shouldn’t you be stretching?” you query.

“In a bit.”

You leisurely shake your head with disapproval. “I know you’re a lazy ass fucker sometimes,” you begin. “But you always help us win. You’re our meanest, tallest, best blocker.” Your gaze drops down to his ankles and travels up.

“So,” you continue, dropping your voice amusedly, “stretch those gorgeous, God-given, legs you have.” Your eyes linger on his thighs before landing up to his face to smile sweetly at him. “Will you?”

This is one of the moments you’re pretty sure he won’t dare talk back at you. Why? Because you’re one hundred percent right, and he knows that too.

That doesn’t mean he doesn’t hate it.

He glares at you for one second and walks towards the rest of the team to join them.

Playing at the professional level, he always considers one match to be a big win already, even if it’s just the first match of the regular rounds. Ever since he became a starter for Sendai Frogs, he was not allowed to slack off even for one rally. He could take the lecture if it’s from Coach, but he couldn’t stomach it if it’s from you.

Even before the match started, you were already on his grill, pestering him just because he wasn’t warming up yet. He was pissed the whole game and put extra effort than usual to make sure that you won’t have anything to say after.

“Um, excuse me.” A girl from Red Rabbits blocks him on his way to the restroom. “Tsukishima, right?”

He can tell that she is trying her best to look nonchalant, but the familiar tint on her face is telling.

Tsukishima had never understood girls who approach him for anything remotely romantic. Does he look like he’s interested? It’s not that he’s not open to the idea of dating, but he finds it unpleasant when people go after him because they like how he plays. Worse, for some obtuse reason like him being ‘cute.’

“Yes. Why?”

She smiles at him bashfully with her arms crossed behind her. “I’m also a middle blocker. I was really inspired with how you read block so well. If it’s okay with you, can you teach me how you do it?”

Why would he do that? He’s already a senior college student who’s also a professional athlete. He has no reason to go out of his way to teach someone read blocking. Especially someone who’s already supposed to know it since (as she claims) she’s also a middle blocker. Judging from where they currently are, someone from Division 1 no less.

“Sorry. I’m really busy,” he says bluntly.

“Oh, okay. Sorry for bothering you.” She bows then takes off immediately.

He watches as the girl from Red Rabbits scampers off as quickly as humanly possible. Did she really think he’d agree to it?

He is too occupied to notice the faint sound of footsteps behind him, and only when you speak does he notice your presence.

“Aww, poor girl going out of her way to ask you out.”

He groans. Why are you even here? You’re supposed to be checking on the team since their match just ended.

You fall into step beside him as he brushes your comment off and continues heading for the rest rooms.

“I didn’t ask her to,” he calmly responds despite your irksome presence.

“How are you going to get a girlfriend like that?” you ask exaggeratedly as if not getting in a relationship will lead to his ruin.

“I don’t need one.”

You gasp. “Damn, Tsukishima. Men your age are all about raging hormones. Where do you put all that raging testosterone?”

He purses his lips in a corner, his jaw tensing at your remark. Men his age? You talk as if you’re older when you’re in the same year he is.

Also, what the fuck?

Now you’re nagging about his personal life too? You’re already aggravating as the team manager. Now you’re even sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong.

His blatant irritation must have shown in his face because you suddenly let out a giggle. “My bad, my bad. Don’t look so scary. Geez. Where you get action is none of my business. I just followed you to let you know that we’re leaving in twenty minutes.”

You turn around, about to go back but stop before you make the first step. “Oh, and we have a meeting later. I did the stat sheets of the game and gave it to the coach already. Great blocking, Tsukishima!” You pat his shoulder twice with a proud smile, then saunter off back to the arena.

Damn it. If only you aren’t so good at being a manager, he would actually be able to dislike you to the fullest. Not only that, he wouldn’t feel that silly, tiny contentment he felt upon hearing you.

Chapter 1 || masterlist

Taglist:(those crossed out can’t be tagged)

@ameliaxo @suikrem @akaashisslave @tsumurai @babythotshq

#tsukishima x reader #tsukishima x you #tsukishima fluff #tsukishima crack #haikyuu x reader #tsukishima angst #tsukisima series #haikyuu fluff #haikyuu crack

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dreaminae · 3 years

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We All Need The One Friend

Chapter 8

Hours rolled by as sunlight shifted to moonlight. Friendly competition soon became dangerous as personal tensions rose within the group.

"Rise of Batman!" One person guessed of Jordan's pose.

"Transformers!" A friend playfully argued.

Jordan changes poses in hopes that it might be easier to guess.

With time up, Jordan cracked up as everyone failed to guess his term.

"Okay, what even was that?" Simone giggled.

"Back to the future." Jordan responded in a 'duh' tone as if everyone should've known. "Greatest movie of all time!"

"I've never watched that movie in my life." Simone chuckled, "Plus, the greatest movie of all time is Parasite. Hello!"

"Jordan doesn't do subtitles." J.J laughed. "Like have you met my man?"

Everyone joined in the laughter, but Simone couldn't help but feel like it was strange that she hasn't known a small detail like that.

The game went on as Vanessa took the reigns.

"One word." One person shouted.

"A place. No no, a person." Another one added to list of clues.

"Uh, a painting.... a movie." Layla interjected.

"No, a plane. Wait, what?" One of them fumbled over when Vanessa switched stances.

"You're on a plane."

Giggling, Vanessa changed gestures again.

"Bald. You're bald. A bald eagle." J.J guessed.

"No, not an animal." Vanessa choked up.

"Aye, no cheating." Jordan chuckled as Vanessa spoke.

"C'mon guys." Vanessa encouraged, ignoring Jordan's rules. "You had a poster of him in your room when your ten." She spat out in Asher's direction.

"Samuel L. Jackson!" Asher shouted, jumping up as if he won the lottery.

Liv glanced between the two of them as if they grew two heads. It was stupid how one small detail held a bigger picture.

"Well, you don't get a point for that one." Simone scrutinized, gaining a careless shrug from Vanessa.

The game rolled on, leading to Spencer's turn.

Galloping his feet and twirling his arm, Spencer caused everyone to gather into fits of laughter.

"A cowboy," Jordan shouted first.

"The rodeo." Asher chuckled.

"Wild, wild west." Layla joined in, holding back her laughs.

Adding to his performance, Spencer shook his foot hysterically, while twirling his arm like a madman.

Finally catching on to his charade, Olivia thought back to the night she made Spencer rewatch all her favorite childhood movies. Quoting one of her favorite lines, Spencer had her in hysterics for half an hour. She could still remember him using her belt as a rope, shouting 'There's a snake in my boot'.

"Woody," Olivia muttered with a small smile.

"What?" Her brother asked curiously, not completely hearing her response.

"It's woody!" Olivia laughed, which Spencer replied to with a smirk.

They met each other eyes, before bursting out, "There's a snake in my boot!"

The entire group fell out laughing, excluding Layla.

Spencer returned to his seat grinning like an idiot, but couldn't help but to notice his girlfriend's harsh mood.

"Hey, are you alright?"

Layla nodded lightly. "Guess I am just tired." She muttered, not bothering to look in his direction.

Sensing there was more to it, Spencer left it alone, not wanting to cause a scene in front of his friends.

"Alright, I have the perfect game to play next," Vanessa announced, as she returned from the house with her bottle of booze. "Anyone up for a game of Never Have I Ever. The more you've done the more you drink."

Her announcement soured the mood as Spencer immediately shut down her idea. "Sorry, Ma." Spencer asserted firmly. "Ain't bo drinking happening this weekend."

His eyes flew to Olivia, followed by everyone else's. She rolled her eyes at their dramatics.

"Oh, please. Don't stay sober on my account." Olivia dryly encouraged. After all, this was the first time in weeks she'd been completely sober. With all of her friends within proximity this weekend, drinking wasn't an option for her.

Noting Liv's bitter tone towards her, Vanessa tried to ease the tension. "Sorry, Liv. I forget that you don't drink. That was so insensitive of me." She apologized, placing the booze on the ground.

"It's okay. It's not something I'd expected you to know, so.." Liv shrugged it off, dismissing the subject all together.

"No, liquor. Got it." Vanessa summed up, ignoring Liv's clear implied diss of Vanessa's newness to their group.

Asher rubbed Olivia's thigh, silently asking her to lighten up. Cocking up a brow, she gave him her iconic 'I could careless' glare.

"No drinks doesn't mean no turn-up." J.J cheered. "Introducing the burns of all burns -- jalapeno-infused pickle juice."

"What don't you have in that box man?" Spencer questioned, seriously wondering where J.J randoms items came from.

"Let the burns begin."

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

"Alright, never have I ever walked in on my parents doing it." Simone started the game off.

First victim up, Asher gulped down his first dose of the throat burning juice.

"Oh, God. Asher. No!" Olivia cringed.

"I don't wanna talk it." Asher chuckled at the memory. "RV trip...'08....super weird."

"Oh, you're gonna talk about it." Spencer and Jordan laughed together.

"Not the one to up to Sanoma. How could you not to me?" Vanessa asked playfully, catching Olivia's attention yet again.

Liv couldn't help but wonder just how much did Vanessa know about Asher, that she didn't.

"Cause I was scarred for life," Asher replied, oblivious to the questionable expression of Liv's face.

"Alright, my turn. Never have I ever bought 300 dollars shoes for my one night in Vegas." Simone teased Olivia's bad spending habits.

Tensing up, Liv looked everywhere besides at Layla.

"No cheating. Drink up, Liv." Simone laugh, unaware of the big secret she just revealed.

Layla's eyes narrowed in Liv's direction, fed up with the secrets.

Spencer gawked at his girlffriend, realizing that he and Liv might have to come clean sooner than expected.

"Alright, never have I ever said I love you just to get someone to hook up with me." Vanessa added to game.

All the boys drank besides Spencer.

"Yikes, that was a test that you all failed." Vanessa taunted, "Besides Spencer."

"My bro is a real one. When he says it, he means it." J.J admired, increasing the growing tension between Spencer and his love interest.

In Liv's case, her heart clenched at the mentally, replayed memory of Spencer professing his love for her. She yearned to have a chance just to tell him how she felt, despite the chance he no longer felt the same.

However, in Layla's case, all the times that Spencer claimed to love her we're burning in a flame of betrayal. Because despite that fact she had no solid evidence, that conveyed her worse thought she knew Spencer wasn't being truthful with her.

"You're a lucky one, Layla."

Layla's sneer went unheard by the majority of the group besides the two people who knew the jig was up.

Unaware of the conflicts brewing, J.J continued the game. His hand already pointing at his aimed victim.

"Never have I ever ran naked through a football field."

Admitting the embarrassing memory, Jordan gulped back his shot of pickle juice.

"Jordan! Tell me you didn't!" Simone teased.

"Okay. Okay. I did it. I run through the field, butt naked." Jordan chuckled. "What was it? Freshmen year?"

He and J.J chuckled laughed over the recollection.

"Varsity team stole all of our clothes, thanks to Ash -- over here --- acting like he owned the place during tryouts" Jordan recalled funnily.

"Cause I did." Asher cockily popped his collar. "It's called confidence."

"Confidence. Okay." Jordan playfully mocked. "Whatever you want to call it. Your dumbass stays getting us in trouble."

Asher nodded with a knowing smile. But Vanessa saw nothing funny about it.

"Wow." She gasped seriously. "Okay. Never have I ever crapped all over folks that we're supposed to be my friends."

The laughter stopped, and the smiles dropped in reaction to Vanessa switch up.

"Uh, Vanessa it's alright." Asher tried to jump in before she took things too far.

"It's just jokes." Jordan defended himself, not seeing the harm in messing around.

Vanessa's scornful expression was enough for Jordan to see that she couldn't disagree more.

Maybe it was her role as a protective sister that came into play. Perhaps, it was the jealously towards Vanessa knowing things about Asher that Liv didn't. Or maybe it was simply that Liv didn't feel Vanessa had any right to make presumed assumptions on any of the dynamics within their group when Vanessa barely knew any of them beyond a first-name basis.

Whatever it was, Vanessa's attempt to trash talk her twin was Olivia's last straw. And with that, she felt it was only right to return the favor.

"Hmm, well, Never have I ever spent the summer getting to somebody else's boyfriend a little too much." Liv snapped at Vanessa.

"Liv! What the hell!" Asher choked up, unable to believe that she publically humiliated Vanessa in that manner.

"Yo, Ash. Relax. Let's just play the game." Jordan instructed, trying to ease the tension he caused.

"You wanna play? Fine." Asher groaned. "Never have I ever cheated a concussion protocol to play in a game." He added spitefully.

"What is he talking about?" Simone inquired seriously, over the entire game. "You cheated your concussion protocol? How could you not tell me something like that?"

"You mean like you told me about Princeton?" Jordan asked, trying to guilt trip her right back.

"Wow!" Simone gasped in awe, tossing her blanket aside before storming off.

"Ah, babe, wait! I didn't mean it like that!" Jordan quibbled, following behind Simone. "Baby, wait. Sweetie!"

With the fun atmosphere ruined, the remainder of the group broke off to deal with their own problems.

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

"Can you believe Liv?" Asher groaned, as he and Layla entered the kitchen.

"Not really. Find it hard to believe anyone with all the secrets that's been hidden." Layla replied harshly.

"What do you mean?" Asher asked, clueless.

"Simone's Never Have I Ever!" Layla responded in a duh tone. "When has Olivia ever gone to Vegas."

"Olivia wouldn't lie about going to Vegas. She has no reason to." Asher scoffed.

"You mean like she had no reason to lie about being in Mexico." Layla revealed.

"Liv came to Mexico? When?" Asher asked desperately. "She never told me."

"She went to Mexico to surprise her boyfriend." Layla groaned, annoyed that she had to be the one to tell him. "Only when she got there she saw you and random girl boo'd up." She gestured towards Vanessa as the brunette and J.J entered the room.

"Wait, you and Asher?" J.J asked heartbroken, catching the last part of Layla's statement. "Since when?"

"Where's Olivia now?" Asher requested to know, needing to hear all of this from her.

"I don't think that" Spencer began to suggest against going after Liv, but was interrupted by his girlfriend.

"She's down by bonfire," Layla interjected before her boyfriend could continue to shield his side piece from the mess they made.

Bypassing the other three teens, Asher went to find his girlfriend and demand some answers. Meanwhile, Vanessa and J.J left Spencer and Layla to handle their business in private.

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#3x07 #all american #olivia and spencer #spelivia #olivia baker #spencer and olivia #spencer james #3x06

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geekgemsspooksandtoons · 3 years

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Why Bioshock Rebirth Part 3 won’t be a thing for a while

Guessing that title will work. I think considering now and on this day. There isn’t much else to do. I’m finally gonna talk about this. This is gonna be a long one. I’ll think about adding a keep reading thing as I make this.

If any of you are a Bioshock fan or follow me. Or whatever else. I have this reimagining AU named Bioshock Rebirth. It has people who like it. There are mainly three parts on my mind.

Part 1 and 2 basically deal with Rapture. Which are basically a reimagining of the main stories of Bioshock 1 and 2. With the events of Minerva’s Den being the epilogue. Part 3 from my mindset would deal with something outside Rapture. But I’ll talk about that later.

Yet I feel like to me. The reason I am not wanting to make a part 3 as soon as possible. Because it’s really tricky for me. I think I’ll just make the points and what my plans possibly were. Including I am gonna publicly reveal what my version of Zachary Hale Comstock would of been. Which is may be the most craziest decision. Whether people like it or not.

Now I just finished this post. I’ll put the tag after I write this. I will reveal I have a Bendy reimagining AU on my mind. But I want Dark Revival to come out soon. Which is why I don’t wanna focus more time on part 3. Along with other things. I feel proud or so with my work on Rebirth. I’m glad people love this AU/reimagining of Bioshock I made. :) So I will add the keep reading option. Now here is my detailed development of part 3. Not everything about it is there. But it’s a lot.

1. Part 3 would of taken 5 years after Bioshock Rebirth parts 1 and 2. Parts 1 and 2 took place in 2002. While part 3 takes place in 2007. Meaning the character ages have changed.

Basically Archie Wynand is 28. Elizabeth Comstock is 24. Brigid Tenenbaum is 40. Eleanor Lamb is 22. Even though Archie/Jack and Eleanor had her their ages sped up by people. With Archie being 10 and Eleanor being 12. But again there ages were sped up. Also the Little Sisters and Big Sisters that have been rescued have grown up too.

It depends on what characters would return. Like Delta/Johnny being 42. Daisy being 34. Booker being 43. Considering it’s not in Rapture. I don’t know if many characters would of returned. Yet that’s because I didn’t start writing possibly the main story for part 3. In case if anyone is worried. Many of the Vox Populi are fine. They must of moved on with their lives with Rapture sadly being a mess.

2. From what I get. The main story again was outside of Rapture. I seemed to be going with my old ideas I had for this AU. A public Rapture or the idea of Rebirth’s version of Columbia.

Considering Rebirth was born from the mistakes and retcons of Burial At Sea breaking the multiverse. Basically me disowning, shaming, yet acknowledging that DLC. So the idea I seem to be going with is that Columbia is the aftermath and America trying to make their own kind of Rapture. A public Rapture in a way for tourists. Something kind of like Jurassic Park.

Yet I don’t think it would be fully in the sky. It would be an island on water. With possibly Rapture under it. They built it over Rapture.

Again Columbia is like America’s pale imitation of Rapture. With Rapture being discovered by America. Basically making profit off of it. Despite how tragic the results of Rapture of.

3. More on the main story. I think what it would be or as of now is Archie, Elizabeth, Brigid, and Eleanor going to Columbia or America’s public Rapture to stop Comstock. Considering this city has become a mess. The original idea is that it some how became worse than the tragedy of Rapture.

With Big Daddies and Little Sisters being legalized. And Splicers or so possibly becoming more I guess crazy. With an old or possible dark idea of a Splicer eating out of a Little Sisters neck. Yet that’s really dark and just me showcasing some how this place became worse than the original Rapture.

4. Vigor’s in Rebirth would of been America’s knockoffs and pale imitation of Rapture’s Plasmid’s being reworked by Jeremiah Fink to make them more accessible so that you don’t have to inject them into your wrists. You could just simply drink them.

Basically again they are strangely knockoffs and pale imitations in a way.

Shock Jockey is Electro Bolt. Devil’s Kiss is Incinerate. Bucking Bronco is Telekinesis. While some are again knockoffs. But some are original being the other Vigor’s.

But considering an idea from my anonymous friend who has helped me with this AU. With them mentioning well I’ll copy what they said instead. I’ll put the “ around it.

“Ironic considering the stereotype about most of the world's products being inferior knockoffs made in China. I can imagine that Fink's imitation of Rapture's products might be even more unscrupulous and dangerous compared to the original versions in Rapture, as the greater capitalist system intersects with the small-scale capitalism of that city.”

5. To be honest and I want to get this out of the way. The reason I am not making part 3 right away. Because I want to see if the leaks about Cloud Chamber’s Bioshock 4 are really true. Spoilers.

Basically the leaks being about that Rapture seemed to have been discovered. Now London is at war with ADAM being used. You play as a character named Lucas with other characters like Eleanor Lamb joining you. I want to see if this is all true. So I can see how Cloud Chamber interpreted of how the world would react to a city like Rapture.

While there are folks who have made criticisms about people discovering Rapture being the end of the world. Basically being critical about the Bioshock series going in a Resident Evil like direction. Which I can totally understand.

But I’m gonna be honest. I want to see what Cloud Chamber are doing. Yet this horrible thing I’m gonna say next. As someone who’s.....opinions of their planet and maybe species is I guess low....I kind of don’t care. Because I want to see the chaos of the consequences if a place like America discovered Rapture.

It’s maybe my darker side and my action junkie side having the best of me. I am strangely interested to see Hell on Earth all because governments got fucking greedy with ADAM. Again my opinion on my planet and whatever else is tricky.

Fuck it like we as a species deserve it. But I’m sounding pessimistic. I want to see war torn London destroyed by ADAM junkies.

5. My direction for part 3 I feel is weaker and not as powerful as parts 1 and 2. Because the general idea of part 3 seems to be, “America is fucking stupid. Because it empowers young rich pricks like Zachary Hale Comstock and makes shit like Columbia. Our country needs to be fucking better if really are the land of the free” It feels less original and been done before.

Compared to the first two part’s stories of humanity, found family, love, forgiveness, empathy, and compassion. Along with other stuff.

While I recall my inspiration for this idea long ago was this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXjJOmRkN6s If I recall it being like an example of....America’s thought process of it thinking it’s awesome or whatever the Hell. I wanna say stupid thinking. But that video is awesome. Amazing what that person did.

Also my version of Comstock I feel is less threating and less interesting than the likes of villains like Andrew Ryan, Atlas/Frank Fontaine, and Sofia Lamb. Unless I really tap and dig deep into his character.

There’s also the other thing part 3 I feel unless I decided. It doesn’t deal with dimension travelling and all that crap.

6. There’s another thing is that I used many of the major characters from Infinite and incorporated them in Rapture. Such as Elizabeth, Booker, Daisy, and the Lutece twins. I haven’t done much with Annabelle because she sadly died before the events of parts 1 and 2. Also Bluto is practically Rebirth’s version of Songbird when he was in Rapture. He was the Proto-Daddy.

Fink and Comstock are the only major Infinite characters I haven’t used.

7. Bluto’s robotic corpse would of been found by Fink and Comstock. He would of been rebuilt into Songbird as being the supposed mascot and guardian of Columbia.

It’s also a way of torturing Elizabeth mentally. Because two men practically took her protective older brother’s corpse and rebuilt him as something else. With the added angst that Songbird still have memories of Elizabeth.

8. Another reason why I don’t feel so highly of part 3. It’s because it just seems unrealistic. Which may sound stupid. My ideas of America’s own Rapture like place becoming somehow worse than the original Rapture seem crazy.

Along with things like legalized Big Daddies and Little Sisters seems crazy. Despite how stupid my country is. The idea of taking human beings and turning them into that under an American government seems like bullshit. Unless they didn’t know.

Yet it seems to be dissing on America. Considering the direction of Comstock I’m going with is more like, “We’re America and we are great.” Yet everything goes to shit.

Along with the crazy idea of the place being built in 5 or maybe 4 to 3 years. Which is why I wanted to give it a timespan.

Also it’s a fun easter egg that it’s the time span of the original Bioshock’s development. Unless I make part 3 in 2013. But don’t think I should.

9. There’s been a recent idea of Lucas being an antagonist. Something similar to the Arkham Knight from Batman Arkham Knight. But I should wait and see if this Lucas character is seriously real. Yet what I have read about him, he reminds me a bit of Booker.

I’m guessing and even was thinking a bit more in detail. Lucas being a US Marine who was born in 1981. He’s 26 during part 3. Possibly being an anti-thesis to Archie’s character. Now I’m thinking he may of met Arch during possibly tours. Even though they weren’t really friends but knew each other.

With Archie being an earnest and kind man. Now this makes sense. Lucas being jealous of Archie’s position as, “The Demon Of Rapture” and, “The Killer Of Fontaine”. Lucas being a bit more angry and less honorable than Archie.

Man these ideas make more sense than Comstock being an anti-thesis to Arch. Yet we also have Frank Fontaine and Booker Dewitt being anti-thesis to his character too. But the idea of Lucas is strangely perfect.

The ideas I am having are he’s Columbia’s poster boy of a super soldier. But without the horrifying results of Archie’s origin possibly. Since Lucas I’m imagining is more equipped with stuff(Again thinking of Arkham Knight)....fuck this is strangely perfect.

Man we haven’t gotten more info on this who I am calling Lucas Parkside....fuck I thought of more of him being a deeper character or so.

10. But again about Bioshock 4. Considering Rebirth is the result of Burial At Sea and also Infinite breaking the multiverse. It combined the worlds of the main universe(Bioshock 1, 2, and the Rapture novel if you want to include that) and Infinite. Which resulted in a timeline where Rapture was made later during the cold war. Along with characters like from Infinite being more connected to Rapture because of the events of Burial At Sea.

Yet Bioshock 4 or those Parkside leaks. I question if I should put them in here too. Because it’s unknown if well the events of 4 happened yet in the main universe. Unless we take into the good ending being canon. With 4 taking take in the 70′s what I read.

I’m rambling, I’m sorry about that. Basically the events of the novel and first two games happened. But the events of Infinite and Burial At Sea disturbed the main universe. And whatever I’m using some weird comic book logic.

Again I hope sometime but soon I want more information considering Bioshock 4.

11. I guess I’ll just reveal this now. Including I called him a young rich prick. I gave a hint early on. In fact this character was hinted at in memes. But him combing in Comstock was something I was surprised by long ago. Yet I felt I guess could be genius or whatever.

Only two friends of mine know. The anonymous friend. And also @feckinatlas

Zachary Hale Comstock in Bioshock Rebirth would of been the Mark Zuckerberg of Bioshock.

While there was the idea of making him the, “Radec” or something similar to make him more threating. But Booker is already that. Including the Mark Zuckerberg angle is something I’m interested in.

Yes Comstock is Rebirth is younger than his main universe counterpart. He’s also not Booker and possibly not related to him.

One of my original ideas was that he’s a year younger than Elizabeth. But I changed that and may make him possibly 30 or so. Or even Archie’s physical age or 29.

An old idea I even told Feckinatlas that him being Fontaine’s kid. But Frank never knew about him. Practically making even more of a terrible father. Yet I don’t know if I’ll go with that idea. Yet it seems better than Comstock being a kid of Booker. Which I don’t like. I was trying to keep the Booker and Comstock connection. I’m still wondering now.

Yes I think that’s all I’ll reveal now.

Edit I forgot this one other important thing. Oh crap two actually.

12. Considering Ava Tate survived and escaped Rapture. She would of been one of the villains in part 3. Basically she sided with Fink and Comstock. Ava is kind of like that character who might not care what side she’s on. Despite she has redeeming qualities in her.

13. Even though this wasn’t part of the main story. To be honest there are ideas that one of Elizabeth’s looks is like her Burial At Sea look. Yet she’s not a femme fatale. Basically it was the idea of her and Archie going undercover. With Elizabeth trying to pose as a femme fatale. Which in reality she isn’t. She’s still the same joyous girl that people love. It’s something a bit more strangely adorable.

Also Brigid tried to teach her some stuff of trying to act different. I remember talking about this with my anonymous friend. It’s mainly silly and adorable stuff before meeting her seeing Ava. Like Arch being pouty that he may have to put on a tux. When he’ll put on something like maybe Clark Kent would wear. He doesn’t wanna look like a rich prick and would rather have black ops gear on. While Brigid and Elizabeth find it adorable and funny he doesn’t wanna dress like Ryan and whoever else. Despite they would kick him out if he looks very normal.

But again Brigid teaching her some tricks. Along with Elizabeth trying to smoke to look cool. But she coughs and again it’s adorable. XD

This idea is like before the main story. But I should develop it more. It could still be before the main story. I wanted to share this because I forgot about it.

#bioshock rebirth

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ziracona · 4 years

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I reread your bit about rin in the last chapter and oh my god im crying. You did my girl justice. I'm so proud of her and i'm glad she had fun. I love the thought that she's helping him in little ways. ;') and oh my god. i love the myers siblings. Do you mind if I ask for hcs? because oooohhhmygod. need more

Awww thank you so much! I really liked the Adam-Rin segment too. I wanted to talk about Rin, but being an Onryo made it so I just couldn’t feasibly in the bulk of the story. Really glad I still got to give her her moment in the sun. : ) Adam’s such a great dude too, and I’m so happy he found meaning the way he did and keeps up such an active and deep relationship with someone who’s passed on. It’s not an easy thing to do, but I think it’s kind, and meaningful. And sure! I’m not sure if you mean Laurie and Mikey or Judith too since I got a few Judith asks yesterday, but ima assume this is ILM related and you’re looking for post-fic Laurie & Michael (sorry if that’s not the intended ask TuT). I did more but this is already a lot so I didn’t post them all haha. Here you go!

Laurie would be very unlikely to make the first move in a romantic relationship. She’s so used to prioritising survival, even when she’s okay again her brain is always, “keep homeostasis” as her directive, and adding a relationship does not fall under that listing. That said, she definitely still develops feelings, and would want things to happen. But I think it would be slow. I think with Laurie, she’d be going to lunches and having long talks and drinks and staying up and falling asleep on the couch together, in and out like each others’ presence belongs in their respective homes, come to each other for support and with hard days and for life advice, go to the theatre together and let them buy her a drink like they always do without being asked, brought back a nice gift from a trip, she waits up for them to get home to greet them, for like 1-3 years solid before one day they just take her hand and kind of smile and she realises she’s been in a relationship for two years and they just never said it, and maybe they won’t now, maybe not for another two years, but they know it, and she’s so happy.

Michael never cuts his hair short, but does not mind Laurie making him let her give him ponytails when they’re working on something, because it does get in his face.

Laurie softballs Michael for a while, since, well, she’s trying to help him reintegrate into society as a human being after having had a childhood that was basically just a 15 year stretch of psychological trauma, and being kind and supportive is a must. But after a few years, she’s gotten much more comfortable and sibling-ish in her interactions. She’ll definitely still be serious and supportive if anything happens and he needs it, but she’ll also give him shit for eating her food or not getting up off the bed she’s trying to make. He enjoys annoying her and does it for fun. Will hold eye contact and eat the cupcake she was saving just to watch her flip, like a cat batting an orange off a counter (or, you know, a sibling who’s feeling /that/ vibe rn.)

Laurie is 99% of Michael’s impulse control. If he and Quentin do something together without her, it /will/ be a disaster, because where Laurie inflicts neutral levels of chaos on the group w her lawful, Michael will almost instantaneously get Quentin to swap from lawful to chaos if she’s not there. They will both be fine, but there /will/ be something on fire when she gets back.

Laurie, walking into the house and seeing then throwing objects into a burning wastebasket in the living room: I don’t like what I’m seeing. Bring me up to speed.

Quentin: So, we maybe have illegally destroyed a car—but it’s okay! We had a good reason! Plus, we destroyed the evidence. Let me explain. So, this guy-

Laurie: :/

Michael: *gives her a ‘what’s your problem?’ gesture*

Michael and Laurie physically fight for nostalgia’s sake sometimes (for fun-get exasperated and performatively MMA. They would not actually injure each other).

One time, Laurie and Michael were walking home together from a movie and a guy drove by and whistled at Laurie and said something vulgar, and Michael stepped into the road and smashed the front of his car with his foot. It was beautiful. They did have to flee the scene but Laurie was /gleeful/. The dude in the car saw his gd life flash before his eyes and rethought some life choices.

It is a long time before Michael is willing to take any kind of meds for his psychosis (very understandably), but when Quentin eventually graduates Med school, six or so years later (bless u Jake for forging him some credits), he is willing to try a few given by him. It is not a good or easy couple of months, but he does it.

Michael gets along surprisingly well with the survivors. Most of them are pretty intimidated, but he’s genuinely chill, and they’ve been through weirder shit so 🤷🏻‍♀️ it’s like “Welp. This might as well happen.” and accept him in. Meg is a big thot. She’s into Susie and would never cheat and Susie knows this, but Meg will still flirt like crazy with Michael bc it’s her personality, and Michael, who’s never had this ever happen, is /beyond/ confused. Every time she says something stupid like, “Damn you’re tall. If I wasn’t a married woman, I’d climb you like a jungle gym.” He gives her the exact look Sam gives Gollum when he’s dissing potatoes in lotr.

Since she knew his and his family’s whole names and his wife’s face, Laurie tracks down Sujan’s family and tells them everything she can about what happened and how good he was, and what a difference the first person in the realm who was kind to her made.

Michael really enjoys traveling. He’s been cooped up his whole life. Spent 15 years in one little white room, and then 40 in reproductions of Haddonfield in the realm. Really, except for his solo journey from Wisconsin to home, he’s never left the state of Illinois. He goes with the survivor squad on their group trips, once he’s comfortable enough, and is consistently amazed. He’s not a very visibly emotive person, and can’t physically be bc of his psychosis symptoms, but his eyes will get big seeing the northern lights from a platform, and he’ll grab Laurie or Quentin’s wrist & point to make sure they’re seeing it too, and Laurie has never been so happy. After his first trip, he very much looks forward to the annual event.

Dr. Loomis is the only thing Michael as an adult has ever feared. (Obviously all humans feel temporary fear, like if a car comes at you or someone with a gun. But past instantaneous shock-fear, I don’t think Michael has ever been afraid of anyone else). This is based off of canon, because to me Michael reads as scared of him, especially in Halloween 2. He pauses and then retreats from Loomis in the first film, and when he sees Loomis running down streets looking for him in 2, he hides (I actually really love the Michael pov in Halloween 2 in the open. It was very humanising). Then, at the end of 2, when he’s blind and Laurie and Loomis have filled the room with ether, and Loomis tells him it’s over, he stops trying to find and kill Loomis and freezes. I genuinely think because he was scared of Loomis and has been for years (after that treatment constantly in isolation as a child, how could he not be?) and has known since he was 6 Loomis wants to kill him, so when he basically says “I’m about to kill you,” he believes him and it scares him. It’s the axe that’s been waiting to drop since he was a kid.

Laurie goes to cons with Nea, Quentin, & Min occasionally, and has dressed up as all three OG Star Wars protagonists like the lovely huge nerd she is. Has also made Michael sit down and watch all the movies w her.

Michael and Laurie go visit Judith a lot. They’ll pack a picnic lunch and talk with her and about her at her grave. It was very hard the first time they went there, especially for Michael, but after a while, it helps. It’s a way to deal with what was done in the past that makes it seem surmountable. It also helps to deal with the loss of someone they both cared for. When they go, Laurie always gets Michael to tell her something about her older sister she hast heard yet. David tracks down an old high school album from 1963, and is able to get three pictures of Judith colorised and they’re able to have a nice full-color photo of her to hang up in the house.

#long post #ask #anonymous #in living memory (fic)#in living memory #ilm spoilers #spoilers #laurie strode #michael myers #dead by daylight

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johnnysnostril · 5 years

Text

Lights Out

Chapter Five

I groaned, feeling like my face was completely swollen. All I could hear around me, was beeping and light chatter. I couldn’t understand what was being said though. Squeezing my eyes tightly, I tried moving my body a little. Feeling pain shooting up my legs and back, I winced and ripped my eyes open. Looking up, I noticed a white ceiling. It smelt really clean and the air was almost as fresh as water. In the process of trying to sit up, I ripped a few chords from their machines.

I was in the hospital, although I couldn't remember how I got here.

“Zoey?” I called out. My voice was hoarse and my throat was so itchy. “Oh honey, don’t move.”

A nurse came walking in and gently pushed me back down on the bed, hooking my chords back up to the machine. “Everything is alright, just relax and try not to move so much.” I immediately started crying as I thought about Sapphire. “Where are my sisters?” I could feel the tears running down my face as I looked around the room for them.

Junwon’s POV

Looking past the curtains, I glanced out towards the crowd of people. I was actually surprised at how many people decided to show up. Oddly enough, I didn't see Hazel. She was never late and the show was about to start. Pushing the curtain closed, I threw my head back and sighed. I was never nervous, but the fact that Hazel wasn’t here, made me feel that way now.

“Come on, Haze. pick up.” I mumbled as I listened to her dial tone. Nothing. I tried again but, same result.

“My man, Ph-1!”

Quickly turning around, I spotted Mr. Jay Park, himself. My mouth hung open a little and I smiled. “What the hell.” I laughed. “You didn’t think I was going to miss this, did you?” we gave each other a quick handshake. “How did you know i was performing tonight?” I asked.

“I stalked your instagram dude. It was actually everywhere on my feed. A few people sent it to me and told me to come and check you out. I'm here with my team.” Jay turned around and pointed to about ten people standing behind him. “Okay, so you roll deep?”

I was shocked that he was here. We talked a few times via dm on instagram and he did say that he liked my music, but I didn't actually think that we would meet in person.

“I wanna run a few things by you tonight.” he said with a huge smile on his face. “It’s an offer you can’t refuse man.”

Hazel’s POV

Laying on my side, I curled into a ball as best as I could. All I wanted was Junwon.

“Hazel?” I heard Zoey’s voice. I shot my gaze to the entrance of my room and there she stood along side with Sapphire, in hospital gowns. I immediately started crying.

“I’m so happy you guys are okay.” Sitting up slowly, I stood to my feet and opened my arms. They both ran over to me and gently hugged me.

“I’m so sorry..” Zoey mumbled.

“Don’t be. This wasn’t your fault, Zoe.”

She cried on my shoulder before pulling away. “I shouldn’t have drove in the first place.

Sapphire wrapped her arm around my sisters shoulder. “Stop beating yourself up over this. we’re all fine and everything's okay.”

“How are you guys?” I asked sitting back down on the bed.

“Just a sprained wrist, thank god.” Sapphire announced with a soft chuckle. Zoey nodded. “Just a few bruises, but i’m okay.”

“Woojae’s here and he’s worried sick about all of us.” Sapp announced. “So, he went to go get some real food.”

“And Junwon?” I mumbled. “He probably hates me for missing the show.”

Zoey shook her head. “I don’t even think he knows, Hazel.”

I sighed.

“He can’t be mad after he finds out.” Sapphire said approaching the side of the bed. “Do you know his number by heart, we can call him right now.”

I shook my head as she picked up the phone, ready to dial. “I don’t even know my mom’s num- Oh my god! Mom.”

Zoey sat down next to me. “She’s on her way. I already know that I’m so dead when she gets here too.” She admitted.

“She’ll be happy that we’re alive Zoe, stop.”

later that night

the ride home was quiet. mom and her boyfriend sat in the front seat, holding hands like they were on a romantic boat ride of something. yeah, she was worried, but i was expecting a different outcome.

zoey’s head was rested on my shoulder and she was slowly falling asleep. i winced as pain shot through my back. i lied to the doctors when i told them i was fine. i just wanted to go home, badly. tonight was a complete mess and i just wanted to be in my bed.

getting up the stairs, zoey helped me to my bed.

“you know i can walk on my own.” i joked. she didn’t respond. i watched as she pulled back my sheets and picked out a pair of pajamas for me.

“sheesh, shut up- will ya?” i chuckled.

her eyes shot up and she had the look of a baby deer, who was lost in the woods.

“i said it’s not your fault.” i calmly repeated. zoey looked down at started to play with the fabric on the sheets.

“i feel like it is though..”

i slowly climbed into my bed and zoey did the same.

Junwon’s POV

after the performance, i waited outside the venue and expressed how extremely happy i was that everyone came.

as the crowd started to die down, i leaned against the hood of my car and dialed hazel’s number again. still nothing, so i decided to leave her a voicemail.

i was pissed.

why would she just diss me like this?

beep

“hey..i don’t know where you are or if you’re still mad at me or whatever. i think it’s pretty fucked up that you missed my show tonight.”

i sighed and paused for a moment.

“you’re probably with bryan.”

just saying his name made my blood boil.

“i dont even know why you’re with the kid. how do you ditch me for someone who doesn’t value you, hazel? i’m always fucking there for you and you know i value your time and i would never-”

i stopped myself.

“i just feel so damn stupid cause i had something really special planned for you.. for us, and you just.. whatever”

hanging up the phone, i shut my eyes and clenched my jaw.

“trouble in paradise?” i heard jay’s voice say. i quickly switched up my attitude and chuckled. “nah, i'm definitely single, bro.”

the words pinched my sides.

“well, you’re in luck cause someone was really feelin the show.” jay nodded in the direction of a small framed girl who stood just off to the side, with the rest of his crew. i glanced over at her and she smiled, tucking some hair behind her ear.

i thought of hazel for a moment.

she’s got an entire boyfriend, so who cares if i entertain this chick.

“she’s single.” he added.

smiling back at her, i felt my anger slowly disappear.

“so, how does korea sound bro?” jay asked as he changed the subject.

caught off guard, i furrowed my brows. “what?” i turned my attention back to him.

“i wanna sign you. but i need you in korea.” jay laughed. my eyes got big. “wait, you wanna sign me?” i said confused. “why else did you think i showed up tonight? i wanted to see if you were down to be apart of h1ghr music.”

what he was saying, still wasn’t connecting in my head. “so, you wanna sign me?” i repeated. jay rolled his eyes in a playful manner.

“yes, dude. think about it. here’s my number.” he said slipping me a piece of paper. “think about it and get back to me by the end of next week.”

i took the paper and glanced at it.

“we’re going to an after party at this club, wanna join us? tons of beautiful ladies will be there, plus your little secret admirer.” he said rubbing his hands together. “maybe you guys can get to know each other.”

the next day

Hazel’s POV

the next morning, i woke up to laughter coming from downstairs. i furrowed my brows and sat up, making my way to the hallway.

i tilted my head as i heard sapphire’s voice.

“sapp?” i yelled out. “haze? you awake?” her voice was happy and i could tell she was skipping over to me by the sound of her shoes.

“hi.” she said looking up at me. i leaned over the ponywall and smiled down at her. “what are you doing here?” i laughed. “get yourself together, you’re coming with me today.”

i shook my head. “for what?” sapphire groaned and stomped up the stairs. “go! zoey needs to get herself together too. we’re going to be late.”

“late for what?” i asked.

moments later

getting in the car with sapphire, i sighed. it felt so weird to be in a vehicle after the accident.

“so, where are we going exactly?” zoey said strapping her seatbelt on.

“my house- we need a girly time and i’m also throwing a party tonight and i need some help setting up.” she smiled back at zoey through the review mirror.

i looked over at sapphire. “a party? sapphire, we just got into a car accident. how do you have to energy to have a party?” i said annoyed.

she rolled her eyes and sighed as she began driving. “look, we almost lost our lives last night. by the grace of god, we’re alive and that deserves to be celebrated.”

as we pulled up to sapphire’s house, zoey gasped. “no way! this is your freakin house?” she shouted. sapphire laughed. “its my parents’ house, i just happen to be their roommate.”

walking in, zoey grabbed my hand- squeezing it tight.

“remind me why you’re always at our house.” i said sighing. every time i walked into sapphire’s house, i instantly felt like a peasant.

“cause, it’s too quiet here. i hate it. the place is too big for just one person all the time.” she wined.

as we walked through the entrance, she lead us up the double stairs and into her room.

sapphire’s room

“sapphire, you’re not allowed to come over anymore. we’re moving in.” zoey said standing in the door frame. sapphire laughed. “be my guest. my parents are never here.”

later that night

looking through sapphire’s closet, i groaned. “sapp, i wont be able to pull any of these off. can’t i just stay up here while you have your party?”

she shot her eyes up from her phone. sapphire was busy sending out invitations via text message and dm.

“absolutely not. now move.” she laughed. making her way towards her closet, she went straight to a tan dress with sleeves. “this. now go get dressed so we can do your hair.” sapphire patted me on the head and shooed me away.

“as for the princess, this one will look amazing on you.”

as i walked past zoey, her eye lit up and i shook my head.

hazel’s outfit:

sapphire’s out:

zoey’s outfit:

as the house started to fill with people and the music blasted, i felt so out of place. zoey was out in the center of the floor, dancing with sapphire like we never got into an accident in the first place. i didn’t want to do much moving since my back was on fire. even these heels were hard to walk in.

i walked over to the kitchen, grabbing something to drink. i said hi to a few familiar faces then made my way back over to the bottom of the stairs and took a seat. i kept a close eye on zoey, since wondering eyes were already drooling over her. as i took a sip of my drink, i heard sapphire squeal.

that was the ‘woojae just walked into the room’ squeal.

i turned towards the door and seen him and junwon walking inside. i dropped my drink, letting it spill all over my dress.

he was with another girl.

she was glued to his side as they pranced through the crowd of people. sapphire’s smile instantly faded as she spotted the female with junwon.

#ph1 #ph1fanfic #ph1boyyy #h1ghrmusic #h1ghrgang #Jay Park #park junwon

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shurisneakers · 6 years

Text

espresso [1]

Summary: In which your best friend’s brother begins to set you up on dates when you mention that you haven’t been in a relationship in years, but things don’t go as expected.

Warning: a lot of swearing

A/N: hi :))) this is my entry for @bithors writing challenge! Thanks for the huge extension, k <33. Also, huge thanks to @samingtonwilson for being my beta reader and reading the same draft like 3 times. Unfortunately I love you, Taal.

here’s my ko-fi if you’d like to support my writing <333

Espresso Masterlist

College wasn’t easy.

It was actually pretty shit.

“A whorehouse full of caffeine zombies and nervous breakdowns.” As Rebecca once put it, the filter on her vernacular seemingly disappearing the moment she left her mother’s radar. “And you and I, friend, are in the smack middle of these hormonal beasts.”

Rebecca Barnes had no concern for her dressing sense or her family’s reputation of being polite and proper.

As she trudged beside you in her worn out sweatpants and a pink hoodie, her white converse dragging tiredly across the ground, she was a sharp contrast to your jeans and normal sweater.

It was a chilly morning, but there was a smile on your face because the beginning of autumn at college wasn’t actually that bad. The air was slightly cold, the trees looked beautiful and the warmth of coffee in the morning was something you’d come to love.

You weren’t exactly excited about college, but you would rather not have to write “Please” on the “Why should we give you this job?” part of your application. You were just as sleepy as Rebecca, but you handled it better seeing as you had one of the best roommates ever who let you sleep in for five more minutes.

“I just don’t see why I was forced to pick classes in the crack ass of dawn,” she grumbled, eye bags seeming to hold the weight of the world.

“From what I remember, you only picked morning classes because you thought you had to compete with James to assert your dominance.” You quirked an eyebrow at her amusedly, as she groaned.

“Listen, first of all, it’s too fuckin’ early to diss you, so here’s a fuck you. Second of all, don’t call him James, it’s so weird. You’ve practically known him your whole life; just call him Bucky like everyone else.”

She tugged the hood of her hoodie over her head and pulled on the sleeves to cover her fingers. You already defended your choice of clothing in the morning, saying that you preferred to feel the sharp coolness of the air before it turned too cold.

You loved Rebecca. Honestly, you did. She was extra as hell, had the mouth of a sailor and quoted Vine references like an English major could quote Shakespeare.

Too bad none of them could be used in her law course.

“I know, but-” you began before you were cut off by a sudden push from Rebecca. You nearly tripped before her hand tugged you back into place, preventing you from hitting the tiled floors.

Jesus fucking Christ-

“Ah, here’s my favourite piss goblin and her best friend! Good morning, ladies. How’s the first week of the second year treating you?” Bucky’s cheerful grin as he ruffled his sister’s already messy ponytail made you laugh while she swatted his hand away.

“I’m the piss goblin? Remind me who was the one who peed their bed every day until they were 10?” She narrowed her eyes at him, shoving him away, only to earn a chuckle from him. “Egotistical ape-”

“The first week’s going okay, barista boy,” you interrupted her before she got more graphic, tearing his gaze away from her and to you. You noted the way his hair was sticking up slightly after being messed up by his cap, and the small stain on the corner of his sleeve that he didn’t seem to notice.

“I told you not to call me that,” he whined, removing his arm from around his sister’s shoulders as she squirmed furiously away from him. He sighed before ignoring her altogether.

“You called me Mario for six years straight,” you responded with a grin, sparing him a sideways glance. You wondered if he was feeling cold under that plain white full sleeved t-shirt because his nose and the tips of his ears were slightly pink.

“Still does, sometimes,” Rebecca piped up, unable to keep the laugh out of her mouth at your indignation. You narrowed your eyes at Bucky who looked away quickly.

“You promised you wouldn’t tell, snitch!”

“Don’t you have some American McFrappegrande- or whatever they’re called- to make, barista boy?” she retaliated, earning a huff from him.

“Your face is a-”

“If you both don’t shut up right now I’ll cut off both your arms and beat you both to death with them.” You stepped in between them just as he opened his mouth to spit something equally senseless.

“Geez, you’re full of fire today, Johnny Storm- ow, fuck, what was that for?! Have you seen that guy? It’s a compliment! He can flame on my ass anytime he’d like.” Bucky rubbed the part of his arm that you punched, glaring at you.

These were the people you willfully chose to hang out with on a daily basis.

“Anyways, you know Thor right? The one who got fuckin’ hammered and nearly lost an eye? He’s having a kick-back tonight at his apartment. Not a party, more low-key. I thought you both might want to come.”

“Is Natasha invited too?” Rebecca murmured, adjusting her bag straps over her shoulder.

“Of course. The more the merrier.” Bucky winked at her. She just rolled her eyes.

“I guess. You’ll drive me back to my dorm, right?”

“Do I fucking look like-”

“Alright, here are our respective stops. Please fuck off now,” you announced loudly. “Have a good day, infants.”

“I’ll see you there, right?” he asked hopefully, walking backwards while facing you both.

“Yes, you mosquito fucker, you’ll see us there.” Rebecca rolled her eyes again, shaking her head.

“Awesome.” He grinned before turning around and taking off in the opposite direction. ��Have a great day, Mario! Go fuck an orange, sis!”

The both of you shared only English and while you personally enjoyed the class and the creative liberty it allowed you, Rebecca thought it was the next worst thing since Joss Whedon.

“What were we supposed to read for this class? I don’t even remember,” Rebecca asked drearily, stepping into the large room.

“We were supposed to read something?”

___

Thor was the exact opposite of what everyone expected him to be. With short cropped blonde hair, blue eyes and the impressive height of Wreck-It Ralph, he is the nicest human being on the campus.

His apartment ceilings often had fairy lights strung across it, he had numerous potted plants thanks to his shy roommate Bruce, and each wall was off-white in colour.

Thor and Bruce were fucking pure.

All of you were gathered in their living room, some a little tipsy and some who were sober. Sam, Thor, and Bruce were on one of the couches, Nat and Rebecca were on the floor where Rebecca’s head lay in Nat’s lap and Steve was draped across the armchair with Peggy half lying on him. Wanda and Bucky were the designated drivers for the evening, but Wanda took a grand total of fourteen minutes before she grabbed a beer as well. Having no other place, the three of you were shoved onto the last couch with you in the middle.

“Dude, Professor Cage was there today as a substitute. His biceps were bigger than all my hopes and dreams,” Sam groaned, dropping his head into his hand. “He could like, strangle me and I’d thank him.”

“Gamora, though,” Nat added, shaking her head. “She’s a fucking badass.”

“I swear, Professor Gamora owns my whole ass. I would literally die for her,” Rebecca declared to the raising of a couple of bottles. “It isn’t fuckin’ fair. “How can someone be so smart and good looking at the same time?”

“I think I’m best qualified to answer that, sis.” Bucky grinned, earning a snort from you and a few laughs.

“You are, without a doubt, the ugliest fucking thing I have laid my eyes on, James.”

“There is a mirror in your room for a reason, Rebecca. Use it sometime.” He took a swig of his beer, tipping his jaw up as a sign of smugness.

“I’ll shove that mirror up your ass so that maybe you can finally see how deep your head is in there, Bucky,” she grumbled, to which Nat laughed, continuing to thread her fingers through Rebecca’s hair.

It was around 11 and the earlier part of the evening had been spent in eating pizzas, or anything you could get your hands on really. There was a debate about whether the colour changing dress or the Yanny-Laurel shit was more annoying (which Sam ended up winning, for some godforsaken reason no one could remember) and the excitement had worn off so there was just a comfortable silence hanging in the air.

“Does anyone want to play truth or dare?” Steve asked from the couch, his voice muffled by his girlfriend.

“No.”

“Fuck you guys.”

“Been there, done that, wouldn’t recommend,” Peggy said, shrugging. He poked a finger into her side, making her jump and curse at him, but retreating back to her original position with the hint of a smile playing at her lips.

You stared at them, head tilted. “You guys are disgusting. Feel like ’m going to vomit glitter.”

“Just for that comment, truth or dare?”

“Oh, fuck me in the ass- dare.” You threw your hands up, spilling some of your drink onto Bucky who winced. You immediately mouthed an apology that he shrugged off with a smile, an amused expression on his face.

Everything was hazy and little funnier and happy. You liked it.

“I dare you to eat that bug on the wall over there.”

“Truth.” You ignored his statement, nodding your head at him.

“Fine, would you eat that bug on the wall over there?”

“Never have I ever.”

“That’s not how this fucking game works-“ Steve shot up as loud laughter cut him off. “I hate you.”

“I can live with that,” you said, shrugging.

“Bucky, truth or dare?” Bruce offered, shooting Steve a half smile who instead returned an appreciative nod.

“Truth,” he said lazily but smiling albeit.

“Most embarrassing moment of high school?”

“Um,” he paused, eyebrows furrowing, “I-I’m not sure-“

“Oh, how about the time Y/N walked in on you writing a love letter?” Rebecca raised her hand helpfully, only to be met with a glare.

“Jesus, Becks!”

“That was a love letter?! To who?!” you exclaimed, twisting your body to look at him.

“Nobody!”

“Liar! I remember that day! You nearly jumped out the window so that I wouldn’t see it.”

“I am not answering the question.” Bucky huffed, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Spoilsport,” Thor called out only to receive a middle finger.

“Tell us who the special person was, James,” you sang, leaning your head on his chest, laughing.

“You tell us the guy you were hung up on the entirety of high school,” Steve fired back in defence of his friend, a smile on his face. Your body immediately stiffened up before you forced yourself to relax.

“It was no one,” you mumbled, sitting up straight. “I’ve been single all through high school.”

“Didn’t you date-“

“I’ve been single all throughout high school,” you say loudly, hoping to get your point across. Fuck, one of the reasons you joined Becka as she moved across half the country was to avoid this exact scenario.

“Well, shit-“ Sam’s eyes widened “-we need to get you laid.”

“Who said I’ve been lacking in that department?” You raised your eyebrows, feeling Bucky shift under you before returning back to normal, except wrapping an arm around your shoulder.

“Damn.” Peggy whistled, chuckling to herself. “How about a boyfriend?”

“What about one?”

“Don’t you want someone to have that cheesy college romance with?”

“I gotta say it isn’t on my top 3.” You shrugged, downing the rest of your drink before standing up. “Besides, there isn’t anyone on this campus who is dateable. Maybe if there was someone, I wouldn’t mind. It’s getting pretty late, so we should probably get moving.”

You avoided everyone’s gazes, and instead offered your hand to Nat who waited until Rebecca moved to pull herself up and dust herself off. Wanda had already fallen asleep, so Sam offered to help carry her back to Bucky’s car, which Bucky accepted.

After a round of quick goodbyes, the five of you got into Bucky’s car. Sam and he were roommates, as were Rebecca and Wanda.

“Bucky. Play Africa by Toto.”

“I will not play that godless song in this car.”

“Lil’ bitch.”

After fifteen minutes of ridiculous arguments, he finally dropped Rebecca and a half dead Wanda to their dorm building and rounded the corner to yours and Nat’s.

As Nat got out and you stepped out behind her, you turned to say goodnight to Bucky and Sam, finding them finger wrestling over the radio controls.

“Bye, guys. Drive home safe.” You nodded, shutting the door behind you.

“Mario, wait!” Bucky called out, making you spin on your heel to look at him. He had half his body out of the car window, looking at you over the roof of his car.

“I can- I can help you out if you want,” he said loudly, half shrugging.

“With what?” you asked, confused.

“F-finding someone who’s- you know- dateable. If you want.”

You stared at him blankly. You hadn’t considered this possibility when you said that.

“Why do you want to help me?”

“Because I care about you?” he said incredulously. “You’re like my little sister. Of course I’d help if you wanted it.”

That made sense. You’ve known Bucky as long as you’ve known Rebecca, including through his teenage emo phase, his high school jock phase, and his mature college phase and in that time you both helped each other equally, even though your only common link was his sister.

“I don’t want you to feel like I'm forcing you or anything, I just thought-“

“How?” you interjected, tilting your head.

“What?” His eyes widened comically as he leaned forward slightly.

“How are you planning to help?”

“Oh. Oh. Oh okay, yeah, um, I’ll tell you tomorrow. Meet me at the coffee shop?”

“Alright barista boy,” you agreed, giving him a half smile that he reciprocated. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Awesome,” he breathed out, a grin growing on his face. “Awesome. Yeah, I’ll see you tomorrow. Night Mario.”

You waved at him as he popped back into the car and started up the engine before turning around to walk back into your building.

“Is that such a good idea- you know- considering the circumstances?” Nat’s voice broke the silence. She had her hands wrapped around her torso with a small look of concern on her face, her red hair slightly out of place because of the wind.

“What circumstances?” You knew what she was talking about, you just didn’t know how to answer it.

“High school. With him. Shit, Y/N, you were torn up for over a year-“

“It’s fine. I’m over it. It doesn’t matter now,” you interrupted her, shaking your head. You began walking towards the building, ignoring the beating of your heart.

“Are you sure?”

“Postive.”

Part 2

#bucky x reader #bucky barnes x reader #mcu fic #bucky fic #bucky barnes fic #bucky barnes fluff #bucky barnes angst #bucky fluff #winter soldier #winter soldier x reader #the winter soldier x reader #college!bucky #college!au #kumis5kchallenge

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throwpillowshavenopurpose · 6 years

Text

Okay so...

I know I’m going to get lots of hate because it’s been a while since Japril and Jaggie were “fighting” but with the recent season direction going where it’s going, I feel like I should explain why I don’t like Jaggie. I never really did that, and maybe it’s too late, but, eh, oh well.

Also, I haven’t seen a lot of Japril on my newsfeed thing, which is also another reason I’m posting this. I don’t want Japril to end. Just because the show killed it doesn’t mean we have to stop shipping it.

Okay so first, unlike many Japril fans, I DONT HATE MAGGIE. When she first enter the show, i though she was cool. She was a dork and I related to her because of that, like I first did with April. Her storyline was brilliant, and I loved how she acted with everyone. Like she was this incredible smart young lady who was incredibly brave enough to move to a new city all on her own to meet her real parents, and took the possibility of them not like her as a chance. Maggie was amazing. She was a really amazing chracter who has delt with things other characters haven’t and she was just a splash of something new to the cast. She gave the audience a person to relate to.

Okay now we get to the real stuff.

She doesn’t have chracter development. A good chracter slowly changes in front of your eyes. That’s what good characters do. That’s why we love watching them. She never really did that. In fact, I think she has become less than the chracter she was. All she does now is complain. She doesn’t really have a personality. It almost seems like she’s nothing more then Jackson’s love interest. It’s not fair to her or her fans. She deserves more.

They (Jaggie) don’t have a foundation. They aren’t really standing on anything. I love Japril to death, but honestly if the writing had build Jaggie right, if they would have slowly build up their relationship, Jackson and Maggie getting to know each other very subtle like instead of just making them talk for the first time since, what? Months. Having a “deep” very force talk and sudden Jackson liking her, I wouldn’t have mind. Or you know, the deep moment talk wasn’t that bad, if the writters would have then used the next season AND I MEAN THE WHOLE SEASON to allow them to get to know each other. Then on the last episode, THATS when Jackson realizes he likes her. That would have been okay with me. I wouldn’t have like it, BUT I WOULD HAVE RESPECT it. Because then at least I could see how it happen instead of a snap of my fingers and sudden they’re head over heels for each other.

It’s rushed, and that’s why it’s bad. Jaggie relationship is the equivalent of the “I know I just met her, but I think I love her” in bad fanfics. Japril relationship (and I’m talking about human connection, not love) started season 6. They did not rush. It was lovely and great and it could have happen in real life which is why it was so freaking brilliant! It made sense. Jaggie doesn’t make sense. And really, it’s super unrealistic.

There isn’t an actual storyline. If you think about it, Jaggie is actually Japril storyline, just with an added chracter. I like the idea of Jackson and Maggie, who have never really know about each other but working at the same place for a long time slowly realizing that the person they wanted was there the whole time. I think that’s an amazing storyline but they didn’t go along with that. They just got them together real fast. And then the whole brother and sister thing happen and I was like ‘oh, okay, this is going to be interesting. Are they going to try to stay away from each and hide their feels for one another because their technically siblings, but doing so builds the foundation they desperately need in order to get together, and then when they do, it’s going to be this epic thing because it doesn’t matter what the law says if they really like each other?’ BUT THEY DIDNT DO THAT EITHER. They kind of pushed them together and then focused on April, relaying on her storyline to be entertaining enough.

Jaggie fans are settling. I understand why so many people want to support Jaggie. Why they want to believe that Jaggie is this amazing ship. They want to believe so bad that they overlook every reason why the ship is bad. Maggie, again, was an amazingly build chracter at the start that deserved a equally amazing partner. Maggie fans deserve an epic love story too. They deserve little catch phrase like ‘me and you’ and hot bathroom makeout sense. But instead they’re getting forced towel bathroom talk and bad flirting and...I don’t know what else... I skipped them when ever I still watch the show. They should be settling for this forced relationship. They deserve more.

Jesse (Jackson’s actor) is clearly a Japril fan. He has admitted that his favorite sense from the whole show were with April over and over again. Just google it. In recent interview he talks about how much he love it and how Sarah (April) and him have work so hard to create such a beautiful couple.

The writters stole Japril from right under our feet. We have need in this ship for SUCH A LONG TIME. I even have a picture of them on my wall. What Jaggie fans have to understand is how we were so attach to this ship and suddenly the writters are telling us it’s not going to happen. OF COURSE we weren’t just going to accept that. OF COURSE we would fight back every way we can. OF COURSE we would get angry and upset that the thing we held so precious to us, the thing we (in a way) help build was taking from us and then given to a very bad, not even thought fully of ship. And the things I read on twitter after episodes from Jaggie fans made me feel really bad. They were dissing us. And I know we’re not innocent either. Hell, im sure I rebloged a couple of Jaggie hate stuff. But what happen to Japril was unfair, you have to see that. Which bring me to my last point.

We all got screwed over. Jaggie fans. Japril fans. Jackson fans. Maggie fans. April fans. Arizona fans. WE ALL GOT SCREW OVER. Arizona’s and April’s actors got fired to get out of the way. Writers did a awful job of ending April’s storyline, making her marry a guy she clearly wasn’t in love with (without any of her family let me remind you) in order to kill Japril. Maggie has because less of chracter, labeled as nothing more than ‘Jackson’s girlfriend’ and does nothing more than whine. She has no real personality. Jackson is a completely different chracter. He’s all over the place and now he left to ‘figure things out’ which means the amazing Jaggie storyline Jaggie fans wanted is nothing but some rocky crap. Now there’s no April, no Arizona, no Jackson, Maggie with barley any storyline and a whole billion (I believe so) so done with this show they are no longer watching.

Okay..I’m done.

#japril #april kepner #grey's anatomy #jackson avery #jaggie #sarah drew #jesse

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sanrionharbor-blog · 5 years

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Thoughts on Sansa S8 Endgame

Speculations galore! Long post ahoy!

Let’s run through every possibility I can think of for the end of show-Sansa’s story (and yes, there will be many more possibilities besides these because GOT is layers upon layers, man, I’m still new to the fandom, and there’s probably a lot I’ve missed).

At the very least, let’s do this categorically.

Dead, Alive, or a Fate Worse Than Death?

1. I’d bet money that Sansa survives the whole dang thing

2. But if she does die…it could be A) Sacrifice to save Arya, Jon, and/or Bran, B) in a possible collapse of Winterfell, C) after ensuring the demise of Cersei or a similar threat, D) something worthy of a song

3. Crack Theory: Sansa Becomes the Night Queen?

Shipping...

1. Let’s start with the most popular ship: Jonsa. While I’m not personally a Jonsa fan, I neither hate it nor see it as a complete impossibility. And while I’m not personally a Jonerys fan, I neither hate it nor see it as a no-brainer. Jonsa makes sense practically (uniting Targ and Stark, North & South; they already trust one another; cousin marriage isn’t considered incest in-universe, etc.), though I’m not entirely convinced if the show goes this direction that it would be the most romantic ship ever. The best I see is that it has vibes similar to Ned/Cat when they were first married to one another; they didn’t love each other romantically at first, but it would come with time. As for political!Jon Theory making this ship possible, while I wouldn’t completely put it past the GOT universe to make Jon that cold, it honestly doesn’t jive with what I think is at the core of Jon: which is a hardscrabble sort of nobility, decency, honesty. I mean, if he was politcal!Jon, wouldn’t he have come up with a smoother way to handle Cersei in their first meeting? Anyhoot, the ship isn’t hateful. I think the biggest obstacles are the fact that, even though they are technically cousins, they were raised as brother and sister. You don’t just erase that. This is somewhat “remedied” by the fact that they were never close and Sansa pretty much treated him as a whole-lot-less-than-a-brother for most of their childhood. But GOT has never shown incestuous relationships (again, I don’t really consider historically based cousin relationships as incestuous, but it is a close family bond never-the-less) as a good thing. At all. The Targ’s went mad; Dany’s brother was creepy as fudge; UMM Jaime x Cersei dear Lord; Craster and his Merry Brood, etc. (But this mainly just spells doom for Jonerys, IMHO). So, as with anything in GOT--it’s possible, it’s also not possible, there’s undertones, but there’s undertones for the complete opposite thing happening, etc. Lastly, as for the “romantic framing” of S7, I think it falls under that same maybe/maybe-not. I LOVE Jon and Sansa’s dynamic, even if I don’t see it as romantic, even if does or does not end up romantic. It is certainly one thing: intimate. And the framing (forehead kiss, bittersweet reunion, worrying for one another’s safety) supports that at the very least. If they don’t end up romantically, Jon is the last real strong male relative that Sansa has. That’s not to diss Bran, but D&D have made him a remote magical old man stuck in a teenager’s body. In some ways, he’s dead to Sansa too (as Meera said, “You died in that cave.”). The poetry, the irony, is that the people Sansa had the most problems with in her family (Arya and Jon) are all that Sansa has left now (yes, yes, I love Bran, but again he’s acting more like a solo unit than a family unit at this point)--and she realizes how much they’ve always meant to her. Jon, and Arya for that matter, are different sides of Sansa, just as she is a different side for each of them. The parallels are lovely, and this ship could very well set sail.

2. My personal favorite: Sanrion (Sansa x Tyrion, Tyrion x Sansa, whatever the preferred parlance is). Yes, I’m biased, so this entry will be the longest--BUT, let’s remove my shipper goggles. This, to me, is just as possible as Jonsa. That is, I don’t see it as guaranteed at all, but there’s plenty to read from the text. Let’s get the trouble spots out of the way: 1) the build-up has been few and far in-between since S4 (though they did throw us a bone in S7). 2) the 50/50 chance of Tyrion dying in S8 (no, I’m not basing this on “leaks,” interviews, or what-not--I’m just using this as a baseline guess, given that this is GOT and given that Tyrion is at the center of a very dangerous web of relationships), 3) the show possibly not wanting to ask a twentysomething actress and a nearly 50-year-old actor to act out anything deliberately romantic (however, I don’t expect an on-screen ship to be anything but unconventionally romantic--I very much see it being done with subtle dialogue, color theory, ambiguous looks, an epilogue, etc), and 4) Tyrion may or may not be in love with Daenerys. None of these trouble spots spells doom for me. The greatest “doom” is simply Sansa ending up alone (thematically possible) or with someone else (also thematically possible). Let’s break down counter-points to the trouble spots, then I’ll list my reasons why this ship could sail. 1) Almost all relationships in GOT are troubled and/or unconventional, built up over one season, hidden underneath layers of symbolism, or suffer from the fact that one or both partners are either dead or seperated (by this same token, Sansa’s other popular ships, Jonsa and Sansan, also suffer the same dearth of “development” or copious screen time. Arguably, Jonsa’s foundations were mostly built over the later seasons), 2) yeah, Tyrion could die (and I would be heartbroken but not blindsided) or Tyrion could live (but I would bet money that Sansa lives through the whole thing), 3) the show already put them through the most awkward phase of their “relationship” (i.e., their wedding night, though it was toned down compared to the books) and they can still sell this relationship in any number of ways (again, dialogue, color theory, looks, just holding hands again geez Louise), 4) Tyrion’s “love” for Daenerys is incredibly debatable and may only be used as fuel for a soap opera plot that I really hope doesn’t happen, but even the director of the S7 finale said Tyrion’s main concern was political and Dinklage proposed the idea that Tyrion only “think he’s in love” with Dany, that what most people feel for Dany is awe (I’m neither a Dany fan or hater, but it’s hard to deny that she’s shocking, enthralling, powerful, attractive, a force, for lack of a better term). Now, on to the practical/thematical reasons why I think this ship would work. Let’s use letters for this, haha. A) Fairy Tale parallels/Turning Tropes Upside Down: It’s easy to read inversions of fairy tale archetypes into Sansa’s storyline, as that is what her character is naturally drawn to: songs, princesses, true love, beauty. So far in the story she has learned that looks can be deceiving; life is not a song (though I wouldn’t be surprised if GRRM turns this on its head again, and Sansa simply learns that all great tales involve sorrow and darkness as well as joy and light--i.e., bittersweet vs. simply sweet); people are not black and white (Tyrion shows her that the Lannisters aren’t necessarily all evil and Littlefinger shows her that allies, even someone who loved her mother, are not necessarily all good); etc. Just some of the fairy tales/tropes that play into Sansa’s personal storyline and the subtext of Sansa x Tyrion include: Beauty and the Beast, Psyche and Cupid, Hades and Persephone, The Princess in the Tower archetype, and many, many more (I’ll meta about it one of these days--and there are already many excellent posts under the Sansa tag that expound on these). B) The Queen Elizabeth Theory: So Sansa has parallels with two remarkable historical Queen Elizabeths: Elizabeth of York and Queen Elizabeth I. Since this has been said by so many before, here’s a quote and link to the article as summary: “The show is based off the War of the Roses, the real-life family feud between the Lancasters and Yorks that ended with the two broods combining their houses. Since the storyline happening at the end of season seven is extremely similar to this moment in history, we can infer that GoT will follow that path...” Link C) Character Actions Written Especially For the Show: Just to name a few: GRRM purposely changed a moment in the books to where Sansa hands Tyrion a cup instead of him having to crawl underneath a table to do so; Tyrion remains loyal to his wedding vows (and this is probably inspired by his trauma for having killed his father and lover as well) even when it was very possible that Sansa had left him high-and-dry and the marriage was, in Tyrion’s own words, a “sham marriage”; Sansa and Tyrion both stick up for one another’s character, etc., and D) Also, aren’t they technically married? :-p [There’s a lot more, but again, I’ll save that for a future meta]

3. Sansan: While there may end up being a slight possibility in the books, I don’t think show-Sansa and show-Sandor are heading in this direction. However, the same fairytale motifs play into play here: Beauty and the Beast, Hades and Persephone, etc. Also, bridge4 over on Youtube has a fabulous analysis of the “unKiss” over on his channel, which I think could pop up in some shape or form in S8. Here’s the link

4. Sansa Alone: Also supports the Queen Elizabeth theory. Specifically, Elizabeth I “the Virgin Queen.” This would a different form of poetry/irony: Sansa, the one who wanted most to be a queen consort and be married to a handsome king and have babies, ends up as a queen (full-stop) but leverages her power as a single lady. Not my favorite ending for Sansa, as I’m Teh Unabashed Romantic, but it’s plausible, thematic, pragmatic. Only time will tell!

The Fate of the North, Night King, Direwolf Theorizing

Just spitballing various takes:

1. The war is “won” (as in mankind survives), but Winterfell or possibly the entire North is compromised. As in, perhaps they have to trade the North to the Winter King at the promise he won’t invade the rest of Westeros. Or Winterfell explodes, so the North and all of Westeros is saved but the Starks lose their home

2. The Starks deliberately blow up Winterfell, for any number of reasons. Perhaps a bunch of wights or what-nots ended up there. Perhaps the dead in the Crypts were resurrected, and this was the only way to neutralize that threat. Or something deeper and darker lurks in the Crypts, something worse than the Night King. In fact….

3. Maybe the true enemy ends up being something awoken within the Crypts of Winterfell, and the Night King is not what he seems….

4. The old gods play an unexpected role

5. The godswood is burned or ends up in splinters or is used to create a new throne (ending the age of iron, fire, blood and making this a “time for wolves”)

6. Sansa’s direwolf Lady is resurrected (of course, poor Lady is headless…) and manages to wound Cersei (if she gets her arse up north, which seems unlikely) before Cersei’s killed by whoever the heck the Valonquar is

7. Speaking of, could Ghost be the Valonquar? I mean, he was the runt, the littlest brother of the brood. Eh, dunno. I just don’t expect the Valonquar to be anything close to what we think he/she/it/them is.

8. I like the idea of parts of the ocean being permanently frozen over because of something the Night King does. Dunno why. I don’t think there’s any foreshadowing to that in the show; it just sounds cool, and represents a permanent consequence to the land. Because I do not expect there to be zero consequence for the landscape of Westeros itself. The Greyjoy’s are already kinda sorta doomed (with eunuch Theon being the last male of that line, unless Euron’s got a kid somewhere and he ends up surviving to take the throne and not be a dick about it), so it’d be a bit of tragic poetry if their islands, their seas were frozen and lifeless but thanks to their efforts the rest of Westeros is safe and their people will have to make a life on land

9. One or both remaining dragons are frozen for all timez

10. Sansa becomes Queen in the North or Queen of the Seven Kingdoms (is there really an in-between?)

Bonus

Lastly, here’s just an observation on an important part of Sansa’s storyline and character development: Arya Stark. I believe Sansa and Arya adopted different pieces of the original storylines in GRRM’s book proposal outline--not that I put much stock in the outline. Sansa was created, at first, to add tension to the Stark family. GRRM says he was surprised by Sansa’s developments; he also says he empathizes with whichever character he is currently writing, so I think he just naturally found things that he liked in Sansa that made her more than a complication device. Because his original vision included Arya as the sole Stark daughter, I wouldn’t be surprised if Sansa and Arya aren’t the result of this once singular character being developed into two very different ways. The archetypal Amazon Wild Child and the Princess in the Tower. Two sides of the same coin--or, in Ned’s words, Sansa is the sun to Arya’s moon and vice-versa. For this reason, I don’t put it past Sansa to continue developing her personal brand of Brave Northern Lady and Arya developing her personal brand of Brave Northern Lady. Because that is what they both are: brave, northern, ladies. Will Sansa find herself at the center of a love triangle? I really, really hope not, but at this point if it is gonna happen I find it much more likely with Sansa than with Arya.

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sneek-m · 5 years

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Billie Idle “Not Idol” Interview

Billie Idle was recently interviewed by Natalie about their new album, Not Idol, and its new life as a five-member group after the addition of Pour Lui. The details about those two topics are certainly enlightening, but I think it’s an even better piece of media to introduce the people who make up the group. They all answer so much in line with the personality they put forth publicly as idols, and their back and forth comes across as interactions between long friends. What I loved best is how they define Billie Idle as this group that has a much looser, freer structure as an idol group than any other. They seem to have taken that for granted until now.

I loved the interview as a Billie Idle fan so I translated it for any other Billie Idle fan who can’t read Japanese to enjoy too. If anything needs editing, let me know!

Billie Idle Had to Change

Natalie: I went to go see your show at UNIT in May, and when the surprise addition of Pour Lui was announced, I thought I saw mixed feelings from Uika-san’s expression. There was probably some pride in you about pulling up Billie Idle and building it from the ground up, so I wanted to know how you really felt.

First Summer Uika: There were 4 months between hearing that Pour Lui was going to join and the official announcement, so my feelings were settled. Billie Idle had to change, and Pour Lui had to change. If not, there was a possibility Billie Idle would have been like oil and water, just splitting apart. I thought it would be more fun to take the stance of “let’s try something new” rather than be stubborn and try to protect what we already had. If you’re in a group for 3 years, there are some parts that become routine, and I thought the fans would be happier if we showed them something new.

But you didn’t want to continue along with the Billie Idle you built with the four of you up until Last Album?

Uika: First of all, was I really building the group? [laughs] If you think about it, after old BiS broke up, me and Non-chan (Hirano Nozomi), who both didn’t have a set path on what do next, got invited by Nigo-san to start Billie Idle. Then, some things happened along the way, and we kind of ended up with the four of us. From there, with Pour Lui of BiS joining, Billie Idle settled as a four-person group would obviously be done, and I think it has always been this kind of term for this group.

Doesn’t Pour Lui joining the group feel like a former superior at your work who quit some years ago joining you as your equal at your new job? I feel that kind of a situation would be tough.

Uika: Maybe because I was in BiS for about a year and a half, and I’ve been Billie Idle longer for a long 3 years, but I was able to have the perspective of a director. Why did Nigo-san as the producer want to include Pour Lui? I was thinking about things like that.

Pour Lui: Also, we don’t have a senpai-kouhai relationship. When we were in BiS, we had a rough relationship as members, and we still met up with each after the group split. If we didn’t have that and I just suddenly joined, I think they would’ve been like, “...huh?” [laughs]

Uika: I also record videos with Pour Lui and Non-chan for BYS, so I feel like we are the together as the three of us in a more creative environment than before.

Around the time Billie Idle was going to have a fifth member, how did you feel, Hirano-san?

Hirano Nozomi: I thought Billie Idle as a whole was going to end before Last Album, so I was wondering what to do after being thrown in the world at this age.

Uika: So you were worried about getting a job. [laughs]

What did you think about Pour Lui-san joining?

Nozomi: I was surprised. I thought anything would happen but that. I met Lui-chan when I was 18, so I feel like we both aged quite a bit. [laughs]

The Wide Possibilities of “Not Idol”

Do you think anything changed with the Momose-Akira sisters from working together with Pour Lui-san?

Momose Momo: I think we were able to see our goals more clearly. We started to discuss together about what we want to accomplish after Pour Lui-san joining. Right now, we are doing what we have to do to accomplish our goals one thing at time.

Uika: The staff in charge of Billie Idle also didn’t really give us clear, solid directions like how many CDs we have to sell or let’s play at this venue. I think Nigo-san too had a goal he wanted to hit. We were able to be involved in those thoughts and ideas, and now we’re headed towards that goal as one whole team. We were able to see how we move after three years, and we got more people joining us. I do also feel like the staff want to chase the top.

Pour Lui: We have a clear goal, but we’re don’t feel desperate, in a good way.

Uika: Right, right. Not like kicking off other groups to get to the top, but I just want others around us to fail. [laugh]

Pour Lui: That way, everyone can start to realize, “hey, Billie Idle is great!”

Uika: We’re the turtle in Turtle and the Hare. We’re slowly walking forward and gaining experience.

Pour Lui: When I returned to the world of idols with BiS in 2016, I felt the short lifespan of girl idols. The period when idols can shine the most is about 22, 23, and now, even if I share cute pictures of myself, I can’t compete with young girls. But age doesn’t really matter for Billie Idle. If I wanted to show off my cute side, I wouldn’t step out on stage in a T-shirt and jeans either.

It’s truly in line with the “not idol” theme you started out with.

Uika: Really, we have to move forward like the hare, but there are parts where we’re laid back. Though, we do get asked, “shouldn’t you be a bit more desperate?”

Pour Lui: Billie Idle feels like a group that already got over that sort of competition. We slowly climbed over the mountain, so I feel like we can keep on with this pace even if we’re 35. [laughs] Though, I do also feel like we have to get to the top, so now’s the time to get serious. We’re speed-walking, should I say?

Uika: We’re talking about age lightly right now, but actually, there are things that come my way that really concern me. And who supports me through that are the Momose sisters! There’s a relationship between them as sisters that won’t budge no matter what, so I think it deepens the meaning of “not idol.”

I Think I Now Know What It Means to Grow

It has been almost two years since Akira-san joined, but do you find it tough to be in a group with your sister?

Akira: It’s easy for me!

Momose: It’s easy for me too!

Pour Lui: These two are so funny. And they’re cute.

Akira: I think it’s wonderful to share moments as family while gaining many different experiences through our work.

Momose: We make more memories, and we get to be closer.

Akira: If I just lived a normal life, I don’t think I would’ve ever visited Hokkaido or Okinawa, so it also feels like a field trip.

Pour Lui: Hey, hey, tour isn’t a family vacation!

What was something that stuck out to you touring with five members for the first time?

Uika: Pour Lui looked like she was having a lot of fun. I haven’t seen her have fun too much. [laugh] She has said, “that was fun” in the past but it was more interesting than fun.

Pour Lui: We’re all adults, so Nigo-san tells us to do what we want, so it’s fun. I never understood it when, my time with BiS included, members would say “I feel like I’ve grown.” I wondered, what grew in them? But after doing this for 8 years, I think I finally know what that means.

Uika: That just means Pour Lui has been in the front pulling the rest with her for that long.

For Hirano-san who has known Pour Lui-san the longest, do you feel like her position or anything else has changed?

Nozomi: Since Lui-chan came, she taught us how to mark our spots on stage.

Uika: Hey! Are you dissing me for not using that this whole time?

Nozomi: No, no! We just didn’t really have to use it before.

Pour Lui: I only learned it during BiS’s farewell show in Yokohama, and then kind of figured it out when I was in my band. [laughs]

Lyricists Billie Idle Explain Their Songs

You just finished your first album with the five of you. The album has songs written by each one of you, but what theme did each of you have in mind when you were writing the lyrics?

Uika: I have three songs in the album, but the lyrics all have a rock feel to them. For the first song, “Run3,” I decided to make it something comical with a sense of story while also thinking about the staging. It’s about the bittersweet feeling of love, I guess you can say, with this naive middle-school boy as the main character. The next song, “Everydays,” when I first heard the demo, I thought I could do a J-pop style and wrote lyrics for a cheer-up song with some kind of message. I thought there hasn’t ever been a Billie Idle song in the past that helps push the listeners. [laughs] It’s not something I should say myself, but I thought it should be a song that helps push a lot of different people.

You also wrote the last song, “Message,” on the album.

Uika: The eighth song, “Message,” I aimed for it to be a title song for an anime. I thought it would be great to have a spot in an anime as our next step forward, so I put in a vague message. [laughs]

Seems like Uika-san isn’t the type to pour your own feelings into lyrics.

Pour Lui: I haven’t seen a song with Uika as the main character. I’ve been with her for a long time, but her true self is the biggest mystery.

Uika: But really, I wrote “P.S.R.I.P.” while looking at Pour Lui, and it turned out be a song with lyrics as if I predicted her joining the group. Last Album does also have songs based around my own experiences, and I guess I exhausted all my emotional parts on that album. This time, you can feel the emotional parts of Billie Idle from the songs that the four wrote. And I think the third song, “Doki2,” that Akira wrote is also Billie Idle-ish.

Akira: Recently, it’s been so fun. I’m not kidding, I really do feel excited. [laughs]

Uika: It’s not a metaphor?

Pour Lui: If that’s the case, I’d actually be concerned about her body. [laughs]

Akira: The simple fact that being alive is exciting, I wrote that feeling into my lyrics. There are times when I hate being alive, or people around me are saying all sorts of things, but I think it’s best to think simply during those times. Each person has their own opinions and feelings, so it can’t be wrapped up with just one view. If your views don’t agree with others, I thought you should first take care of your own views.

Uika: That’s something Jaian would say. [laughs]

Akira: But I think you first have to affirm yourself, or you can’t hear out others around you. I can’t put it to words very well, but the bottom line is, everyone is going to die in the end, right? So I wrote the lyrics with a thought that that’s more of a reason for everyone to take care of their own feelings.

Akira-san’s own feelings are definitely in the lyrics then. And Pour Lui-san wrote the lyrics for two songs.

Pour Lui: I wrote “Cinderella Anthem” and “Bye Bye Loneliness,” but it turned out to be the opposite of Ui-pon with the point of view being about me. When I first heard the demo for “Cinderella Anthem,” I had this image of the club on my mind because it was a dance song, but I’ve never been to a club so I couldn’t write it from that perspective. [laugh] I was able to write from the world of Cinderella, so I thought about how it might feel if I was Cinderella.

So it comes from the perspective of Pour Lui as Cinderella.

Pour Lui: Yeah. There are some annoying feelings that comes across through the lyrics, but the way she flirts is like me. I live my life being attached to men so.

...And how about “Bye Bye Loneliness”?

Pour Lui: So you’re gonna skip that part? [laughs]

The members aren’t disagreeing, so I figured it's probably true. [laughs] But other women might relate with you.

Pour Lui: People who relate with me with that probably are a lot of girls who are a lot to handle. [laughs] For “Bye Bye Loneliness,” it turned out to be a sad thing where I sang about being unhappy about the current state of the idol world, but then I realized it was about me.

Uika: Kind of like Dayu Koume? [laughs] “I tried writing about idols of today but it turned out to be about me! Damn it!”

Everyone: [laughs]

Momose-san wrote “Tanchou Na Elegy.”

Momose: I tried to match the China-like music, and I wrote lyrics about wanting to escape. I’m the type to write about myself when writing lyrics too, but from experiencing dark and bright moments in Billie Idle for 4 years, I think you can relate with parts about how everyone has something they’re not showing. I thought I could fit in a lot of words, and I wrote with this feeling of release.

There are certainly a lot of words. Are you good at writing lyrics?

Momose: I can’t really write lyrics. I turned in three songs-worth of lyrics, but my manager told me “they’re all about the same thing.” [laughs]

Uika: Maybe that’s the only thing you wanted to say. [laughs] But there are parts where it sounds like she’s writing about the flip side to Akira-ty’s song, and there’s a contrasting part about them as sisters that’s pretty fun to hear.

“Under the Sun” that Hirano-san wrote for is a metal song and it leaves a strong impact.

Nozomi: At first, the phrase “chi no soko (bottom of the earth)” popped in my head, and it wouldn’t leave my mind.

Pour Lui: That doesn’t sound good. [laughs]

Nozomi: I really wanted to say chi no soko, but it wouldn’t fit music-wise, so I went with jigoku (hell). I can’t write happy lyrics. Even with older songs, if it didn’t have a solid concept, they would be all dark.

Uika: That’s unfortunate because recent stuff from you like “Pet” and “Youki No Beach Side” sounded happy.

Pour Lui: It’s because she had to work with me. [laughs]

Nozomi: There definitely was a feeling that it couldn’t end like this after moving to Tokyo.

From Now On, It’s Billie Idle’s Turn

At the August show at UNIT in Tokyo, Uika said “from now on, it’s Billie Idle’s turn” during her MC section. Can you clarify what you meant by that?

Uika: There hasn’t been a moment where Billie Idle was on the offense. From the music industry to the idol industry, other people really push so they can succeed, right? There are times I think we take an offensive approach, but it has felt like “we’re passing on this one” for the most part, and we were watching our surroundings from the side. But I wanted to let them know now it’s our turn. It’s our time to attack with all our calling cards that we’ve accumulated.

Pour Lui: Billie Idle only has offensive cards left in our hands, so if this was a card game, I think we would have an insane deck. To defend ourselves from attacks, we have to keep attacking. [laughs]

Uika: And it’s up to whether or not we can keep attacking. [laughs]

Pour Lui: Before I got in, Billie Idle has never done 15 in-store events in a row or have been on a bill with another band. Our position has been changing now, and I think that also goes with it being “Billie Idle’s turn.”

Uika: I have it sorted out in my head, but we haven’t had a fight that takes up so many rounds, so I’m going into this slowly by training little by little while trying out new things as the five of us.

From here is Billie Idle’s time to attack.

Uika: Finally our turn is here! Be ready!

#Billie Idle #translation

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nctinfo · 6 years

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[TRANS] [Interview with male friend] NCT Taeyong “SM street casting and striving to become a “soobagsang”!

Today, we share a truthful story of Taeyong that you have not heard before. - The concept of this interview was having a casual talk with a friend -

[Interview with male friend Part 1] NCT Taeyong “SM street casting and striving to become a “soobagsang”.

Q: Taeyong! Do you usually enjoy cooking? A: I used to cook a lot but I don’t do it frequently anymore since we switched dorms. Q: You suddenly went “euheuheu” (laughing) when you were cooking just now. A I was trying to break the awkward atmosphere. I was just making a toast so I wondered why everyone was staring at me (euheuheu) Q: Have you always been shy around strangers? A: I’m extremely shy. So even when people approach me to become friends, I can’t get close to them. I have a pretty strong image, so people don’t approach me easily either. Actually, to be honest, my emotions have a lot of ups and downs. One moment I’m non-stop chattering but when something comes to mind, I can suddenly just fall silent. Q: However, isn’t Taeyongi’s strong gaze his charming point? A: Sometimes, my gaze can be pretty scary. Not nowadays, but when I used to look in the mirror of the practice room I couldn’t even look at myself. My gaze was too strong. Q: Isn’t because your eyes are dazzling (laughs). You yourself know that you are handsome, right? A: It seems like most people are attracted to somebody who has an opposite face from themselves though. I don’t really like my face shape and my gaze is too scary. I even had staring contests with myself in the mirror to overcome that. I think a person’s thoughts reflect on a person’s eyes, so when I was a trainee, I thought “NCT will definitely debut” and had that strong/venomous gaze. But now, I get to be more relaxed and my gaze has become a lot softer.

Q: You are a typical “Watermelon face (soobagsang)”. You can have pride in that.. (t/n: it’s a slang made by netizens, it means “a face that would make Lee Sooman clap his hands”, but it can directly be translated to “watermelon face”. Taeyong doesn’t know this slang and mistakes it for “watermelon prize” instead of “watermelon face” since they are similarly pronounced.) A: Watermelon face/prize (soobagsang)? Q: A face/prize that would make SM’s Lee Sooman clap his hands. A: I didn’t know that word. I am a watermelon face/prize? But since you brought up teacher Lee Sooman, I suddenly thought of a story I remember. After the SMTOWN concert in Tokyo was over, we had a company dinner and I felt quite intimidated being around many artists. Teacher Lee Sooman said at that time “A-ah, it’s been hard on you right?”. As soon as I heard those words, I felt like a new bond was formed between us. I was so moved that I cried my eyes out in the SMTown Tokyo bathroom stalls. I felt like he had been watching me going through everything. But I’m not a watermelon face/prize yet. I will work harder so that teacher Lee Sooman can happily clap his hands for me. Q: Huh? “Watermelon face” actually refers to the unique visuals SM likes, but you added a new interpretation to the phrase. Let’s work hard so you can actually receive an applause! A: Ah, that’s what it means (laughs). I not only want him to clap for my outer appearance, I want him to clap for my inner growth too.

Q: How did you get into SM Entertainment? A: I entered through a street casting. Q: Have you dreamed of becoming a singer since you were a child? A: I was just someone who liked K-Pop, and I did not know exactly which artists belonged to which agency. Frankly, when I was casted on the street, I thought SM was one of the big three like KBS, SBS and MBC. Q: So you were like a blank paper. From what age did you start the trainee-life? A: From when I was 18 years old. Compared to the average age, I started a little late. Back then, I was in a blank state. Should I say I was detached from the usual life. My parents cared a lot for me because I’m the youngest. My sister and I have a seven years age difference.

Q: You must have been pampered since you are the youngest. Still, your parents allowed you to follow this path? A: My parents actively supported me. Even so, when I had to move in the dorms they asked me “can you not go?” but I later received a scolding from the dorm-manager for this. Q: So, living in the dorms was your first experience of being independent? A: Yes. As expected, I was also a little scared of the dorm life. But now, the dorms are more comfortable than my family house and the practice room is more familiar.

Q: Every time I see you on stage I realize that you are really good at dancing. How were your skills when you first started? A: I really wasn’t good. The hyung who taught me how to dance even told the company representative “I don’t think this kid can do it”. Q: I see it was rather your hard work than your natural talent. Did you ever receive casting offers from other agencies when you were a trainee? A: When I walked around Apgujeong I was asked if I was already with a company. Also, back then when Cyworld was still popular, I uploaded a picture and received a message that said “come join, I’m debuting a group”. It was scary (laughs). Q: What if you were never casted on the street and never became a singer? A: I would have felt sorry towards my parents because I didn’t really have anything else I knew how to do. When I became a trainee, they were very happy. If I did not follow this path, our household would not have become better. Every household has their difficulties. But everyone was happy when I became a singer.

[Interview with male friend Part 2] NCT Taeyong “Yunho sunbaenim monitored NCT while he was in the army”.

Q: It’s good to hear that you got happier when you became a dinger~ But, how did you become NCT’s leader while you were the youngest (at that time)? A: When I first entered the company, I was the youngest. I was streetcasted, so there wasn’t anyone who also started at the same time as me. However somehow, I became the sunbae. From then on, I started realizing things and that got me really fired/powered up. Q: What things do you realize? A: The realization that it won’t turn out well if I don’t work hard and that I should lead my hoobaes well. I was under a lot of pressure. Just to get recognition, I practiced so much till the ground was swaying. So, at first, I was really strict towards the hoobaes. It’s a memory I can confidently recall. Q: It seems like you are a strict leader. A: Yes. The NCT members may still resent me for it. Through NCT, I started my first experience as a leader. I would probably really hate it if I had a leader like myself. It’s something I also tell the members and then they make fun of me and say “Yes, that’s right” (laughs).

Q: Through NCT, you promote through various acts: NCT127, NCT DREAM and NCT U. Was it difficult to understand that system at first? A: I definitely understood the group system. However, not only me, the members have these concerns too. As a team.. you would want to stay as one. But, I don’t want to seem anxious in front of the members so I tell them “Let’s not mind the other teams. We are 127 and let’s just only look at our direction”. Q: That’s right. 127, DREAM and U, they are all NCT. It seems like you have a lot of burdens as a leader. A: There is a certain amount of burden. I always strive to build trust with my members. Of course, we are colleagues and teammates before I’m the leader so it would be nice if everyone can happily walk this path together.

Q: NCT is slightly different from the SM’s usual music style. A: It does have this new vibe to it since it’s from SM, right. In our team, there’s Mark and me who are rappers. There are still things we need to learn, but we’re working on trying to find a way to make the rap look more stylish and stand out. Q: What kind of content is there in your rap lyrics notebook? A: I wrote about a lot of stories from the past, but weirdly, the lyrics are very depressing. Nowadays I have changed the topic the stories of the present. Q: Are there any diss raps that would be difficult to release through NCT? A: Of course there are. I too, sometimes want to write strong rap lyrics. There are also profanities. It’s fun to write about this and that. No matter, NCT has members who are still minors so you will have to adjust the level of the lyrics. Q: In the future, I want to listen to a strong solo rap song by you~ The performances of your team are usually very strong too. Isn’t it tiring? A: When I perform on the stage, my body aches not the next day, but actually on that day. (ㅜㅜ) I can’t control my strength, that’s what could make my body hurt. Even when you dance, you should control yourself.

Q: Do you have an artist you want to resemble performance-wise? A: I really like Rain sunbaenim. I still look up his videos. In SM, I want to resemble the performances of DBSK’s sunbaenims. I heard they had a 2.5 hour rehearsal for a fanmeeting. There are many reasons to respect them. Q: I can imagine that you communicated with your sunbaes since you were a SMROOKIE. Are there any memorable events? A: Since SMROOKIES, DBSK Yunho sunbaenim has showed a lot of interest in us and gave us a lot of advice. Even when he was in the army, he monitored NCT. He really knows everything in detail. It’s really touching. Q: Of course! A reliable sunbae! A: Yes. He always takes care of us and teaches us earnestly. Also Super Junior Yesung hyung and Heechul hyung. Especially, Heechul hyung, I play games with him. He recently gave me a really great computer as a present. Q: So you can play better? A: Can I say it’s as a gaming computer? LED light comes out of the mouse and keyboard. It must have been very expensive so I really want to thank him for it Q: What games do you enjoy? A: Overwatch or LOL (League of Legends)… I play almost everything that is popular these days. Still, I play games that require teamwork. So it can also help in NCT’s teamwork (laughs). Q: You must be good at gaming. A: I can proudly say that I’m in the upper middle class.

[Interview with male friend Part 3] NCT Taeyong “I don’t even have one female friend, it’s not the time to be dating”

Q: You release stress through playing game! A: Yes. I release my stress by gaming or by tidying up. When I’m cleaning up, it also feels like my head is getting tidied. Living in dorms suits me pretty well. I’m normally the cleaner type of person. Q: I personally relieve my stress in the karaoke bar. Perhaps, do you not like the karaoke bar? A: I think it’s been like 5 years since I went to a karaoke bar. Q: What about alcohol? How much can you drink? A: Half glass of wine is enough for me to feel tipsy~~ I get drunk easily. Alcohol doesn’t suit me. Q: We’ve been listening to you the whole time now.. when will you date? A: Really, I have not had any dating experiences during my school days. The members even make fun of me for it. Q: Really? It is possible to have no interest in dating yet. However, I think you must have been famous around for being ‘shinlim-dong’s handsome guy’ during your school days. (t/n: shinlimdong was his neighborhood) A: That never happened. (laughs) I went to an all-boys school before I transferred to SOPA. At that time, I was not interested in the opposite sex, and rather felt more comfortable with the guys? Since I could fool around with them. Anyways, there’s no such thing as being ‘shinlim-dong’s handsome guy.’

Q: So you must be shy about your appearance! But still, isn’t your fashion style that of a handsome boy? A: I like the comfortable style. Actually, I just came out of the house wearing a t-shirt today. Q: What kind of style do you like recently? A: Recently, I really like the clothes the stylists make me wear. Q: But didn’t NCT have a controversy about outfits that are out of season? The clothes seemed hard to understand. A: Honestly, it’s hard for me to say that the clothes were not hard to understand. But, NCT stands for ‘Neo Culture Technology’ and also holds the meaning of being in the forefront of trends. Unique costumes show our identity. Q: So confidence is what completes the fashion? A: Yes. Maybe the controversy came up because we have not been able to pull off the clothes perfectly yet. Even though we try to act naturally, we are rookies so it can’t be helped that we must have looked awkward. But I think we are slowly getting better at it. Rather, we were able to challenge ourselves because we are rookies. Me and the members are trying to gain interest in fashion itself, too. Q: You have started to open your eyes to fashion! A: Is that so? I suppose confidence is what completes the fashion.

Q: Let’s talk about 'shinlim-dong’s handsome guy’ again. If you are not interested in the opposite sex, it seems like you don’t have any female friends. A: Someone I can introduce you to as female friend.. I don’t think I have any. Q: So then, what’s your ideal type? A: As for an ideal type, since I don’t have any experience it would be nice if the other one could lead me. People are usually attracted to the opposite style. Contrary to my outer appearance, I’m soft on the inside. So I like somebody who’s a bit more on the strong side. Q: Is there a dating ban? A: The contract didn’t have that. In the 20s, it’s natural to think about dating… but I think dating is not something I should be doing now, I think that’s a given. Now is not the time to date. Q: Your determination is amazing~ As NCT’s A, the goal you want to achieve must be firm. A: Yes… they tell you to dream big right? I want to receive a daesang. We received the rookies award in 2016, but with the heart of receiving a daesang we will work so much harder. We want to become idols who receive recognition and are loved by many people.

Translation: Esmee @ FY! NCT (NCTINFO) | Source: Sports Donga [1], [2], [3]

Please take out with full credit!

#nct #taeyong #t:interview #t:trans #171107

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jonathanleobl · 6 years

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Justice League: Blending Revisions (Revised Vision), Entertainment, Optimism and Wrecked Opportunities.

It started with MOS, then, with the critically divisive BVS…. and after that, the studio deciphering what to do (which voice/direction to follow), paved way to the “Marvelesque” ultimate DC superhero team-up event!

There are those who wanted the BVS tone and those who prefer heroes to be smiling (or comedic?)

Adjusting the tone to satisfy criticism for a lighthearted one and would gain the approval of many, but would acquire the irk of those who wanted the grittier tone, which will lead to a backlash.

If the original tone was continued, those who liked it will give support, and probably at least some of those who don’t prefer the tone will still come to see the movie. Better still, there is a possibility to have new fans to discover and appreciate the superheroes coming together with that tone. If the tone was changed, thereby changing character presentation and story, would it gain additional quality to the overall film and within its cinematic arc? There are only conjectures, and on these conjectures the studio hopes for the best (at least as guided by some “voices”).

(image courtesy of dccomics.com)

The Power of Critics

The studio really wanted to set itself apart, and even the structure of presentation for the cinematic universe – the story arc to give reasons to put the team together at an earlier stage – was made to make itself unique. Indeed, it must stand out! Continuing with the tone will reinforce the banding image which sets it apart from other existing superhero presentations, but DC is unsure of cementing their brand and the only way to do with uncertainty is follow the advice of critics. And seemingly, critics are influenced with a one sided look at how superhero movies should be, and behold its the image of Marvel! Despite this, many people loved the Snyder tone and want it as an emerging superhero portrayal while dissed by negative reviews. On the other hand, the negative reviews are valid when it comes to film coherency and gaps, and this was addressed in the Ultimate Cut, thereby insinuating the responsibilities of studio bosses for the quality of theatrical release.

Critics are sacred, and the response of WB while definitely trying to comply, left behind people who believed and were brought in by the original vision of Zack Snyder (trilogy?). Forced comedy over clear continuity. Where’s justice? And now, WB is experiencing the backlash of listening too much to critics.

It wants to be original while avoiding the original DNA which has been ostracized by critics in its presentation – and what do we expect to come out from that? The outcome is the dull and ambiguous result despite its ambition. This is when the balance between “daring to push originality” and “openness to criticism” was not executed to make it favorable. Dare enough to be original, or dare less to listen? Over- compromise is not beneficial when the outcomes are disassociated where they belonged, and still, any outcome of the film is always subject to the voice of critics.

(image courtesy of moviepilot.com)

Sidelining Originality and the Supporters of the Original Vision

For those who love the preceding movies, maintaining the originality and the vision w/c initially brought them in the first place should have been considered, since they have supported the previous films in the arc and they only want to see success of the succeeding films. People who were drawn with the tone that made them love the previous movies will respond to see the continuity, thereby an opportunity for cementing originality for the brand’s own character in the market. This would have been a great opportunity for recognition to elevate it far from the prospect of damaging the brand. Since Justice League has tried to become something else, it roughly fits from what could’ve been originally theirs. But the opportunity to be original is now thrown at the window in exchange to be in the mold of Marvel fashion. Quality is doomed since imitation will always be a lesser quality. People got what they want but it comes with distorting its potential act of closure to the arc by Znyder.

The problem is that it doesn’t want to be viewed in its original conception and therefore has tried to become appealing to the current opinion about superhero genre. In effect, it has become a copycat of where Marvel excels – seeking to win criticism and incite interests from the disparity of audiences. It therefore resulted to lose the interest of those who were there expecting a sense of tonal continuity with MOS/BVS, and at the same time, failed to win the critics and the audiences that WB tried to accommodate because people will still have to deal with a sense of continuity in the cinematic arc. Anything that don’t naturally belong seems forced. Given that Justice League achieved giving a pure form of entertainment, it was also a being a mess in its presentation! It was indeed fun and new audiences are won, but it has lost the weight of what it could have been in the series.

The product became a second rate flavor which wanted to disassociate from its precedent, while resting on what the previous films have established. Even if the movie which began with MOS is divisive, there is a strong base of people that dig the grittier tone against those who just want their heroes to smile and punch without hassle. (For others, just making Superman smile is enough to make a superhero movie achieve a near perfect status). The people who wanted to see the grittier tone may have their opinion sideline – they were not the consideration here. Indeed, there could be less appeal when heroes are subjected in difficult situations where they need to make a tough call for moral decision. But the envelope should be pushed to test core characters that may deal with resulting consequences, and this happens in a cinematic world where there is a good grounding on emotions, and people’s rejection/acceptance of them that superheroes need to face.

(image taken from batman-news.com)

The Struggle for Profit as Reflection of Reception

Audiences must also understand that the film is not only about itself – its storyline, character and tone – but it is also about profit. Studios need to see that they become profitable and make measure to ensure that. This is understandable, and trimming the film down to 2-hour runtime thereby increasing the viewing cycles per day is one way of doing it. However, trimming down a film at the expense of its quality is like an “in your face money grab”! Indeed profit needs to be considered and the movies needs to sell, but this can be helped by focusing on what is more important than increased viewing cycles can offer. What is more important was movie quality! People will happily their give money when quality is maintained. It could have been more productive when consistency and being respectful w/ the product have taken more weight in the overall arc.

The divisiveness brought by BVS is not only about directorial responsibility, but also in relation to other film-making considerations mandated by the studio, which rest on the shoulders of studio bosses who decide certain features for the product presentation, such as post-production concerns, the runtime, and the different parts and components planned for the cinematic universe as a whole. In JL, the divisiveness is becoming focused as singular reception in which the “mess” that is seems to have a universal affirmation.

Continuity and Reviews in Retrospect and Prospect

Considering this, how would the previous films be viewed in retrospect with the future films of the cinematic universe? is continuity important enough over financial profit? or can the things un-addressed in the previous films doesn’t really have to matter to over the critical reviews, or probably the continuity can make away to still create a cohesive cinematic universe through the potential of characters to shift the narrative? (A good look at this idea can be seen in: “Justice League, Batman’s Knightmare & the Future of the DCEU” by Mark Harrison in DenOfGeek.com.)

Rotten Tomatoes seems out of touch by giving it sub-level scores (and also for BVS) when some feels of lesser quality can have a higher rating – it really feels that no one is going to let Snyder pass with this unless tone is shifted. However, it is clear that even though Snyder has been attributed by critics and others as prime culprit in what they hate, JL baggage cannot fall on Snyder alone. I think, that if JL received a good critical standing, they would attribute that to Josh Whedon’s involvement. But since JL is badly reviewed and people said it was fun, now they can’t point all fingers to Zack Snyder since Whedon’s finger prints are all over, and at the same time studio bosses must have a hand in managing or micromanaging the film in response to the reviews. In relation to Zack Snyder, people who says that Zack creates “murderverse” need to acknowledge that the highly praised Wonder Woman origin film was made based on the story in which Zack Snyder is a contributor. Also, there are many Disney cartoons/animations which include a significant person who is to die (such as parents or brothers/sister) to set the mood of the story. Zack Snyder must have lend a sort of “brain-child” position but the responsibility extends to the whole DCEU. (An interesting article for this “Why Wonder Woman’s Success Isn’t Zack Snyder’s Failure” by Andrew Dyce of ScreenRant.com.)

If JL was a Marvel film, with that level of execution, my judgment is that majority would give it a cheer – this while considering the scores given to previous Marvel movies that I have watched, which in my opinion have qualities that seemed to fall far less, little less or within the range of the JL movie), but amazingly had managed to get good ratings. Another probability is that the low rating of JL was due to a very high expectation of how the film would be (based on Marvel’s mold?! And expectation due to the load of amazing of staple characters invovled). (A good conjecture for this was given in this article: “Why DC Characters Can’t Get Reviews as Good as Marvel’s” by Stephen M. Colbert of ScreenRant.com.)

Also, what if the trilogy(?) was finished without interfering Snyder’s take? What could have been there if the director’s vision was free to take its course? If WB has stood with its attempt not to replicate the tone of Marvel and be curbed by the “preferences” of the critics about what a superhero movie is about, definitely, Snyder’s take on JL must have fleshed out something entirely. It must have been as solid fit that amalgamates the tone of the franchise that many supporters in that direction clamor about. However this completed work is not available for audience to have (for better or worse), unless a “Snyder Cut” is available, and if the studio is convinced to release such cut for home video. Also, a completed continuity of Snyder would have made a different scenario in the reception of the movie and how it fared well at the box office. (for more of this, check this article: “Why Warner Bros. should have left Zack Snyder’s DCEU alone” by Anghus Houvouras of FlickeringMyth.com)

(image taken from moviepilot.com)

IN THE END

In all, JL was a great opportunity but falls short of being great, it was entertaining and fun, but it could have been more.

(image taken from comicvine.com)

The coming of the three icons is indeed a memorable event in the history of superhero cinematic universe. I’m glad to have witnessed it.

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faithandfairies · 7 years

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(via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svWoaRWStMU)

Oh.

I’m watching Lana’s panel and I get it.

Huh.

Lana is getting bored with answering the same questions every single time. Hell, I’m getting bored hearing the same questions. Not that I’m sure that I would have any better ones. Although I did tweet some different questions at Yvette Nicole Brown last year for SDCC of which one sort of got asked in a form, which I was very happy about.

But yeah, I think it’s really good to watch old panels to see which questions have already been asked. Because a lot of the panels are available online after the fact. So when you’re there at a panel in person, you represent all fans and it’s great if you ask a question that hasn’t been asked before so all fans benefit from learning something new about the characters and actors.

Then again, they’re paying to go, following these actors around the world, and I’m not, so maybe I don’t have a say. They get to ask whatever questions they want as long as they’re not being disrespectful.

BUT and this is a big BUT

Lana also knew the “Sleep with, Marry, Kill” question was coming. It seems like Rebecca warned her, which I think is a good thing. And I think she tried to deflect by saying she’d already played that game.

And funnily enough I understand her frustration. Because her frustration isn’t really that fans are asking the same questions, I think, even though that does bore her I believe. But I think her frustration is because it seems that people are asking certain questions and sometimes turning it into multiple choice so as to limit her options in order to get certain answers.

Like with the above question. “Emma, Zelana and Rumple” as answer options, really? I mean, really?

Zelena is her sister on the show. And Golden Queen is unsettling on the show, I believe that “romance” was explicitly written that way, even though Lana and Robert Carlyle’s dynamic is great.

Her only viable option is to say “sleep with Emma”. Which, I get it, I’d like to hear that too, but not through manipulation. Which is what this looks like.

One of the reasons I love Lana, even though it’s not the main reason, is that she chooses to support Swan Queen because she wants to. Or at least actively chooses to. FREE WILL. Despite all the flack and death threats and shit I hear she gets, she still does it.

And I know the moment she doesn’t or says something that seems to go against that *Humongous sigh Swan Queen fans feel shunned by the one person associated with the show who seems to accept them, us. The them, because I don’t feel shunned, the us because I am a Swan Queen fan.

I’ve thought about this. Because I know it’s a big deal in the fandom.

I don’t feel shunned because, well, because I really don’t give a rat’s ass whether the show and the actors support the Swan Queen ship or not. Well, I mean I do, because it’s nice to be acknowledged, but at the same time I don’t. Because if they don’t, oh, well. Unless they butcher the characters in show. Which so far, for me the writing makes sense although the promotion sucks. But anywhoo, I think I’d only feel shunned if I was personally at a CON and Lana or someone else I looked up to associated with the show dissed me personally because of what I like. Part of what I like when it comes to this show being Swan Queen.

I also don’t feel shunned because as I said, I feel like people are purposefully manipulating Lana into giving the answers they want so they then can say later “Lana said this and she supports that.”. I might be interpreting it wrong, but that’s what I’m getting. And I’m heavily against that. Heavily. It’s one of my pet peeves. And even if Lana’s character is manipulative on the show, that doesn’t mean you get to use manipulation on her. It’s her job to act Regina/The Evil Queen that way, you know.

And thirdly, even if Lana actually hates Swan Queen and Swan Queen fans and all her fans and is just doing this because she feels it’s part of her job or something-I’m not saying that’s what she’s been doing, mind you, just giving you a unlikely worst case scenario,-in the end it doesn’t take away from the inspiration she has been for so many people, it doesn’t diminish the hope she’s spread throughout the years. For some just seeing her play Regina, fighting, persevering, being strong, not giving up, has been a reason to go on themselves, I’m sure.

So how she actually feels? It doesn’t really matter. You know why else? Because she still has the sense to treat all of her fans with the love and respect they deserve. And that’s what matters. So how about we return the favor?

(In class the other day-I’m a medical student, btw- we were talking about treating patients whose life choices we don’t agree with. Murderers, rapists and sadly LGBTQ+ fell into this category because there are people who don’t agree with the existence of LGBTQ+ people basically, even though it’s not a choice. I would also like to add that sometimes even when certain things are a choice the choices are often still limited and people tend to make certain choices out of necessity, because of their circumstances. But anyway, my teacher said something that I wholeheartedly agree with but is sometimes easier said than done. She said, when it comes to treating people who need help, your feelings don’t matter. This person is trusting you, putting themselves in your hands, It doesn’t matter whether you don’t agree with their life(style) choices. It will be your job to treat those that need it, counsel those that need it. And your prejudices don’t matter. And the people, they’ll feel it if you’re prejudiced against them. So it doesn’t matter how you feel, but that you’re able to put your own feelings aside to do your fucking job. She didn’t say it exactly like that, I’m paraphrasing, but that was the gist. She also said that if you can’t do your job, send the person to someone who can.)

Lana has been trusted with this character that is Regina when it comes to bringing her to life. Through the relationship her character has built with Emma, Swan Queen was born and she has also been trusted with Swan Queen. Especially evident during CONS. And she has delivered. She didn’t really have to since the show has never acknowledged this ship outside of writing, acting and directing choices, but she did anyway. I don’t know why she did it, but it matters. It made a difference. And so the last thing she deserves is to be manipulated into saying things she doesn’t want to. If she chooses to it’s fine, but manipulating her into giving answers she clearly doesn’t want to and then fans publicly showing their disdain when she doesn’t give the answer they want to hear. Going so far as to turn against her? That’s kind of low. Maybe I’m wrong, I don’t know. But this is what I’m thinking.

Someone even said “Sleep with Emma” and then she said something like yeah, I know that’s what they want me to say. Is it bad that I’m secretly delighted she didn’t give in? She just said that she was giving the same answer as Bex, which is anticlimactic. Ha! Like I said, I would have loved to have heard it too, but not like that. And when you’re being manipulated, especially publicly, it’s very easy to give in just to please the crowd, but I’m glad she didn’t.

And maybe I’m blowing things out of proportion and the person who asked this question didn’t mean anything by it. But there are people who are capable of using Lana’s words against her. And even when they don’t, once something is out of her mouth she can’t take it back and everyone will interpret it however they want, including me, and she can’t really control that. And I’m not against her being mindful of that. Because she’s the one who has to deal with the fallout.

And she can’t really win, because if she gives an answer that is “in the favor of Swan Queen fans” she runs the risk of alienating none-Swan Queen fans. If she gives an answer that doesn’t come off as completely Swan-Queen friendly she runs the risk of alienating Swan Queen fans. Phew. It’s like a minefield.

(I know people were mostly angry about the Hook answer, but I’m not even there yet and this happened so.)

Anywhoo, so I stand by my “Lana Parrilla is a gift” statement.

She’s a phenomenal actor, she seems like a hard worker, a genuinely kind person, an inspiration to a lot of people including me and she has the sense to acknowledge all of her fans publicly and treat them all with love and respect. In spite of the backlash and even without the consistent public support of others associated with the show. So again, how about we treat her with the same love and respect, hmm?

Also, letting Lana and Sean read messages written to them out loud made something that should have been sweet weird.

They should have let them read those messages for themselves and then had them thank the people who wrote them out loud. And if the rest of the fans asked to hear the message too and the actors wanted to share, then it would have been okay.

#ouat #lana parrilla #Storytelling CON

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richmegavideo · 5 years

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We Talked to Stand-Up Comic Dave Merheje About Arab Representation on TV

This article originally appeared on VICE Canada.

Last week, a right-wing extremist gunned down 50 Muslims at two different mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. In his 74-page manifesto, the attacker said he was inspired by President Donald Trump who once said “Islam hates us,” French anti-immigration writer Renaud Camus, and Candace Owens, a right-wing social media pundit who predicts that Europe will soon become a Muslim majority continent with Sharia law.

Add this political rhetoric to the depiction of Arabs and Muslims in popular culture.

For decades, movies and TV shows have portrayed Arabs as villains, terrorists, misogynists, barbaric, or just plain incompetent. Arabs are not a monolith but are routinely painted as such. Jack G. Shaheen, an Arab American scholar, found that Hollywood projects “all Arabs as Muslims and all Muslims as Arabs” even though just 12 percent of the world’s Muslims are Arab and about seven percent of the Arab population is either Christian or Druze.

From 1943 to 2012, Shaheen archived nearly 3,000 moving picture records including movies, cartoons, news clips and television and found a pattern of “hateful Arab stereotypes that rob an entire people of their humanity.“

Consider the original lyrics from the 1992 Disney classic Aladdin: “where they cut off your ear if they don’t like your face, its barbaric, but hey, it’s home.” Or the 2000 war film Rules of Engagement in which Yemen is portrayed as a radical anti-American country where even the children are “gun-toting killers.” On small screens, shows like Homeland and 24 are full of Muslim character that are either “duplicitous spies or bloodthirsty terrorists.”

These depictions have real-life ramifications ranging from the perpetuation of harmful stereotypes to unfavorable policy positions, and even violent hate crimes. One way to combat the narrative is for Arab entertainers to tell their own stories.

Stand-up comedian, Dave Merheje, is doing just that with his comedy and acting roles. Merheje, born and raised in Canada, is the son of Lebanese Christian parents. He recently won the Juno Award for Comedy Album of the Year for his comedy album Good Friend Bad Grammar. His latest role is on Hulu’s new show Ramy, which follows a first-generation Egyptian American who works at a failing tech startup in New Jersey as he navigates his complicated Arab, Muslim, and American identity.

Merheje plays “Ahmed,” one of the main character’s best friends. Seldom, if ever, do we see funny, nuanced young Arab men on American television, let alone see them as subjects of a coming-of-age story.

While Merheje ‘s primary goal is to make sure people have a good time, he also hopes to tell stories that matter and “create something that moves things forward.” Much of his comedy is inspired by his own life with bits about how his mother still babies him, how his dad was called a “camel jockey” at work, and his awkward sexual moments with women.

I recently spoke to Merheje over the phone about his comedy, upcoming Hulu show, and why representation matters.

VICE: You just won the Juno Award for Comedy Album of the Year. What does that mean to you? Dave Merheje: It feels great, especially for all the people who worked on the album with me. That award wasn’t even around; they stopped giving it out in 1982 and recently brought it back. As a Canadian Lebanese guy, I am just trying to share my experience. My dad was in the audience so it was really special.

How did you get into comedy? As a kid, I remember playing with my sister Mary and my cousin Danny, we would make tapes, record imitations or jokes, we would try to do scenes from TV shows and play them back to each other. I would diss my aunt in front of my mom, I didn’t even know it was a diss but I thought it was a joke and I realized I would get a laugh. My uncle Brian introduced me to comedians like Andrew Dice Clay, Eddie Murphy, Richard Pryor, and I was like ‘what is this thing?’ And around 14 years old, I told my best friend at the time that I wanted to be a stand-up and, at 19, I did an amateur competition. I lost.

Where does most of your stand up material come from? My life. I try to talk about my family and it’s actually like everyone else’s family. We have these issues like everyone else. I talk about my upbringing and my experiences.

Do you think about representation when you write material or perform an act? If I think something will harm my culture, then I don’t want to do it. I want to do things that are comfortable for me but also things that I think are dope. I have gotten into arguments with my managers and agents about roles I don’t want to take. If I can shed some positivity on my culture then I will do that. There are certain roles I won’t even audition for. And I am not knocking anyone else who decides to take those roles, but I’m personally not comfortable with them.

Have you been the victim of any stereotypes? I have a beard so people think I am Muslim. People don’t even know there are Lebanese Christians. So I’ve had people heckle me and say racist things about Muslims at shows and then I educate them, sometimes on stage and sometimes off stage. I remember this kid going to school in Windsor, he turned around to me and said, “tell your dad to stop bombing my country.” I think he was referring to Saddam Hussein. As you get older, you understand better how respond and say positive things to those people. When you’re young, you’re scared and don’t know how to handle it. Back then, I would be hurt and more vulnerable, now I can say “nah man, that’s not right” and inform them that racism is wrong no matter who it’s directed to.

Can you tell us about the role of Ahmed on Ramy ? I play one of Ramy’s Muslim friends who is there for Ramy in different ways at different points in the show.

Why did you agree to being on the show? It’s a funny, smart, dope project that I love being a part of. I respect everyone behind the show. I think it’s a unique story that will shed some light on a culture that typically gets a lot of negative treatment. I am really excited and proud to be part of the positive experience the show highlights.

In your opinion, why do you think a mainstream outlet picked up Ramy? I can’t say for sure, but I am guessing it’s because it’s just a really good story—a unique, interesting, and positive story. I think when you tell a story in an honest way, it resonates with people.

What’s the goal of comedy for you? I think Richard Pryor said something along the lines that he wants to be remembered as a good person and a good time. I am probably misquoting him, but I just want people to remember that I was being myself and telling my truth. They may not know me off stage but I want people to feel that I am being authentic. If my work happens to be informative and smart, that’s a bonus.

Follow Samar Warsi on Twitter.

The post We Talked to Stand-Up Comic Dave Merheje About Arab Representation on TV appeared first on .

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#Hip Hop

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richmeganews · 5 years

Text

We Talked to Stand-Up Comic Dave Merheje About Arab Representation on TV

This article originally appeared on VICE Canada.

Add this political rhetoric to the depiction of Arabs and Muslims in popular culture.

I recently spoke to Merheje over the phone about his comedy, upcoming Hulu show, and why representation matters.

Can you tell us about the role of Ahmed on Ramy ? I play one of Ramy’s Muslim friends who is there for Ramy in different ways at different points in the show.

Follow Samar Warsi on Twitter.

The post We Talked to Stand-Up Comic Dave Merheje About Arab Representation on TV appeared first on .

from WordPress http://www.richmeganews.com/we-talked-to-stand-up-comic-dave-merheje-about-arab-representation-on-tv/

#Breaking News

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princesslov27 · 6 years

Text

Elven World Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Hard Times

Emily went to go check on the lunch tray while she did that. She struggled and it took several hours but she finally came out of the bathroom.

“Figured it all out?”

“Yeah.”

“Good.”

She looks at her.

“What?”

“Now what?”

“Go tell the stablemaster I’m going to need my horse after lunch.”

“Okay.”

Gwyn gave a half smile and then went to find an outfit to wear. She opted out of informing the headmaster that she was coming. Ambrosia told the stable master and looked at all the horses. The horses were all different colors. Some were regular horses others were special elf horses. She blinks and stares at them.

“Something wrong?” the stable master asked.

“No. Just amazed.”

“Aw yes.”

“Do I get to pet any?”

“Only if they let you.”

“Oh...”

“You can try.”

She just looks around again. Most of the elf horses were ignoring her but a couple fouls were eyeing her curiously. She smiles at that. It was clear both of them were very young, not even a few months old yet. She went over and put out her hand. The older one backed away a little but the younger one looked at her. She just held her hand out. The younger foul inched forward a little. She didn’t move. The stable master watched as the younger foul sniffed her hand. She still waited despite wanting to just pet his head. The foul could tell that she was different, certainly not an elf. But it leaned up into her hand. She began to pet it happily. The stable master was rather shocked. Young elf horses were naturally very timid and shy. They usually didn’t let anyone touch them until they were several months old. She kept petting and then looks at him.

“What do I feed it?”

“That one is a female so she eats sunlight lilies.”

“Sunlight lilies? Anyway... what’s her name?” she asks as she began searching nearby for the food bag to get some.

“She doesn’t have one. Not yet. Only the elf who owns her will name her.”

“Oh...” she responds with a sigh but found the food and began to feed her and kept petting her with a smile. The foal ate the sunlight lilies happily. “She’s so cute. I’m not happy not letting you have a name so... just for now your intermediate name is Dark Light.”

The stablemaster was about to tell her to stop but before he could the gem on her forehead glowed and turned a mix of black and gold.

“What have you done!” Hoya said from behind her.

She jumps. “I.... I... I just.... I mean... it was... I was gonna call her.... Whatever the elf named her... I don’t know.... I’m sorry...”

She hadn’t expected Hoya and he’d just kinda snuck up on her. That and the fact that the foal had changed.... She had a sinking feeling she’d screwed up.

“I’m sorry your highness. I told her she couldn’t name the foal,” the stablemaster said.

“I’m sure you did,” Hoya said, “But of course you didn’t listen and now a vampire has sole possession of an elf horse.”

She looks at him. She took a deep breath and stood tall, walking straight to him, her arms crossed. Sure she was in the wrong, and she’d admit it. But she was not going to cower to an asshole and that was how Hoya was acting. “I’m sorry. But you know... I actually don’t care. I finally had an animal here that liked me. I will fight you if you keep this up. I screwed up, I admit. I didn’t hear that there was a special reason that only the person who is supposed to own her names her. Course that wasn’t told to me. I’m not an elf. I don’t have fucking immediate knowledge about elf horses cuz I didn’t grow up with them. So how am I supposed to know that she would change? I just wanted to have something I could call her until someone else had her and then I was gonna call her that name and respect that it belonged to who it belonged to. You want a direct exchange, fine. They’ll be an egg in your room by morning,” she hisses. He may be taller but she was not backing down. “I can best you, I will best you, and I can and will humiliate you if you continue to act like I’m not supposed to be here. I am not just a vampire, I am a woman, I am a warrior, and I am a Princess. And if you cannot respect me as the latter three, you don’t deserve any of my respect either as a male or a Prince.”

Hoya grabbed her hand.

“I do not care if you know nothing about about our people or our culture. But you should respect it and you should respect and listen to what we have told you. It is going to take twenty more years for another female foal to be born and by then the person that foal was intended for will be eighteen.”

“Oh. So the same as a unicorn. So the same as every other idiotic thing here. Basically you just ‘wait’ and then get angry if something doesn’t go your way. 20 years? Really? Fine. So it’s not for you. Who was she meant for?”

“Idiotic? You really have no idea about who we are or what we do. And who the foul was for is none of your concern.”

“It is my concern. Considering I as you called it stole it from them. I have two solutions that I’m going to give and be active and all you care about is yelling at me. You won’t even listen enough to find out what I’m trying to say. And I know enough. You’re nature obsessed people who sit around growing things and enjoying the animals. And if you don’t care that I know nothing.... Then really you’re only hindering yourself because I assure you this will continue to happen otherwise. And I don’t just want some bullshit, this is how it’s done deal. I get enough of that from the royal men back home who think that I’m a lesbian or unmarriageable because I can and have whooped all of their asses, not that they actually know that cuz I was in full armor but still. I also get enough of it from my own father. But those who tell me the reason behind things, that I understand and I respect and do my best. Also... stop touching me. I didn’t give you permission to in the first place, and I don’t care that it’s just my hand, stop touching me.”

“We are not nature obsessed. We use nature to make life better for everyone. As for the foal it was for the next princess.”

“You mean your mother’s pregnant again? Anyway.... I could give the baby a phoenix to trade or I could undo what I did. Which do you like better?”

“You can’t undo what you did. It is a fixed process. And a phoenix in a palace of wood and nature? Are you crazy?”

“Yeah sure,” she responds with a sigh, took a deep breath, and her eyes turned red. Wings started to form as did fangs come out. But more than that was a barrier of magic. She concentrated and then spoke olden vampire language. The black and gold started to recede and went back into the gem on the foal’s forehead. When it was gone, Dark Light the words were brought out of the gem and physically vanished. Ambrosia took a deep breath and looks at Hoya. She took a step closer, the blood lust starting to get to her but she pulled herself back and let herself sit on the floor. Then she returned to human form and slowly got up, and held onto the stall to keep her upright. She glowered at Hoya but that was all she could currently do since really by herself she wouldn’t be standing. “There. You have her back. Happy? Cuz I’m not.”

“Yes, I hope you’ve learned your lesson. And before you start dissing our culture perhaps you should learn more about it. If you want respect then you have to give it in return. There is a reason all elves have a basic understanding of the culture of all species and those who are in higher positions have a better understanding of them. For example I know and understand why you have your bloodletting ceremony rather than the old tradition of blood slaves and nabbing people off the street.”

She looks at him and her blood started to boil, enough that despite being weak she stood and walked to him, dangerous intent starting to rise from her. “You are full of bull! And even if that’s true, that you ‘understand’ you can’t understand. You also can’t understand me and you can’t understand what I just told you. I told you to tell me so that I understand about the reason of things. I didn’t tell you to tell me about culture. Culture is the bane of my existence and I do not give a shit. I just undid that, but if you tick me off I can undo what I undid, at any time and place. No matter even if she ‘belongs’ to your upcoming sister. The bloodletting ceremony is important but people are still blood slaves, especially for high ranking people and royals. Because due to the powers we possess as royals, we need more blood than what the ceremony provides. You are truly pissing me off.... For the first time in my life I want to take a blood slave. As in you. I hate culture and ‘this is the way it is’ and ‘you should do as your told because society says so.’ That’s not the way life fucking works. It’s not all about culture. It’s about being you. And if you’re brainwashed by culture, which all of you fucking are apparently, then you’re not being you. Do not tell me about culture. You tell me what something is called and the reason behind it. If you can’t give a reason for it, then don’t tell me. Or if the reason is one of those other two bs statements.”

"You want a reason. Biology. Plain and simple."

"Biology? Biology? Biology says to most guys that I should bow down and do them and be their wives and not like the things they do. My 'culture' as you put it, puts down and degrades women. So no, I have absolutely zero reason to ever respect culture. Or biology. I started learning to fight because I liked it and my own people for that reason, because I went against our culture and biology, multiple times kidnapped, tortured, and other things just so that I would fit in with their culture. One man even tried to cut out my womb when he realized I wasn't changing so that way I was a man, severely messing up my ability to have children. Do not tell me culture is good. Do not tell me I should respect culture. Tell me what something is and the reason and I'll respect it," she hisses, trying not to falter but the awful memories starting to come back and tears flowing without her being able to stop them.

"I am sorry you have had a difficult time. But I meant biology is the reason for you not naming the elf horses. It is in their biology that whoever names them owns them. And honestly, besides the fact that you are biologically a vampire the actual stuff you like tells me you're more of an elf or fairy."

She wipes her eyes and looks at the foal and nods. "Okay. I understand. Sorry girl," she says as she pet the foal again, letting herself come down from the high and sitting down. Blood loss was definitely happening now that she was letting herself calm down again. She looks up at him. "You won't try to hurt me because I like to fight?" she basically whispered.

"Why would I do that? All of our women are trained to fight."

She smiled a little and then closed her eyes and let the blood loss and blood conservation take over and she fell asleep on the ground. Hoya blinked a little but let her be. A little later she came to, starving but able to control herself. She got back up and sighs. Gwyn was on her way into the stables. She was going to the academy and she needed her horse. She got up and went back to petting the foal and feeding it as she waited. To her it was still Dark Light and had been beautiful. But she was gonna have to keep her mouth shut. 20 years was too insane though. It didn't make any sense. Gwyn spotted her.

"You've been in here a while."

"Yeah I have."

"I thought you might have gotten lost."

"No. Your brother and I talked."

"Hoya or Raphael? And you actually talked? Not like blew up at each other?"

"Hoya and it was... a bit of both."

“Aw.”

She shrugs.

"I tried to give an intermediate name to this foal that likes me and she was gorgeous but he got pissed."

“Oh.”

"It's fine. It's undone. Your sister will have her horse."

"My sister?"

"Well it has to be your sister. Who else is gonna be given the title of Princess?"

"Hoya's daughter."

She blinks and tilts her head. "Huh? But... he's still Prince..."

“She’d be a second princess. A first princess is like me or my sister.”

"So... he's gonna get a girl pregnant soon with a girl? How does he know it'll be a girl?"

“No, his wife is pregnant.”

"Then his daughter will be nearly 20 not 18 when the new elf horse foal will be born. And why didn't he correct me when I called it his sister?" She sighs. "Your brother's odd."

“No, he’s not wrong. Elf pregnancy is longer than vampire or human.”

Ambrosia grimaces.

"That's not fun."

“It’s how things are.”

"I see."

“Well I’ve got to go, see you later.”

"Have fun," she responds finally, slowly, heading back to her room to get blood.

Gwyn smiles and gave her a big hug and then took her horse from the stablemaster.

“Hey Sunrise, miss me don’t ya? Yeah I know I look different but I’m the same. Come on, we’ve got a little trip.” She said as pet her white horse. Her horse had a golden tail and main. Her eyes were a beautiful purple and her crystal was all reds, pinks, oranges and purples. Sunrise neighs. She smiles and gave Sunrise a kiss before she swung up onto Sunrise and then whispered the destination in Sunrise’s ear. Sunrise headed off in the direction. Gwyn smiles and lightly held onto the reigns. It had been too long since she’d done this. Sunrise neighs. Gwyn stroked her mane and once they had reached the academy she slid off Sunrise and gave her a little kiss. She neighs again. Gwyn gave her a little pat and headed into the Academy. Sunrise stood where she was to wait. Gwyn climbed the front stairs and pushed the door into the academy. She’d only been here once before but this...this was even better than what she remembered. It was gorgeous. The walls and beams were all made of gorgeous white birch and there was a clear glass ceiling that let in the sun. The light from the sun made the mirrors, and gems on the walls glitter and sparkle. The floor was a mixture of white stone and sand. The hall went on for as far as the eye could see and there was a long gorgeous grand staircase a few feet away that lead up five stories and there were also vines dropping down around the staircase. Music and song from the orchestra and choir could be heard making their way down the long hall. Someone came up to her.

"Your Majesty, what are you doing here?"

“I’m just visiting. And you would be?”

“A teacher.”

“Oh what do you teach?”

“Fencing.”

“Oh, lovely. That’s a fun class.”

“Yes it is.”

“You don’t mind if I just take a look around do you?”

“Alright. If you’d like.”

“Thank you. I promise I won’t bother anyone.”

“I’m sure you won’t.”

Gwyn gave her a little smile and then walked on down the hall. She peeked into the classrooms, it seemed like most of them were your typical language, math, science, and history classes on this floor so she went up to the second floor and peered into those classes. They were more extracurricular in nature. Not really what she was looking for so she went to the third level. There were the fighting ones. She grinned and looked around for the more advanced fighting classes. It wasn’t easy to figure that out. She finally found one that look to be an advanced class and she slipped into the back of the room to watch. They were hard at work, concentrating in their own world, they noticed her but didn’t care. She watched with a good eye. She’d seen the vampire soldiers and bodyguards practice hundreds of times. It was different but similar to the way the vampiric soldiers were. As she watched she looked for good fighters. Really good fighters. There were a few that sort of stood out. Gwyn pulled out her phone and snapped a few photos of them. If she didn’t have time before she left here she could find their files at the palace. That caused people to be confused. She gave them a little smile and continued to watch. They went back to work then. Gwyn continued to watch. If she had not gotten kidnapped then this would've been her class. They tried to ignore her presence now that they knew she was watching them. Gwyn wished she could join in but she knew she could not. It was too late for her. If she wanted training she would have to go to her brothers or the palace guards. The instructor just let her be. There was obviously a reason. Gwyn suddenly started to teary eyed and rushed out of the room. Crying in front of everyone was not a good idea. It was just hard though. She was the first and only member of the royal family that would not be attending the academy. It had never happened before, ever. Sunrise neighs as she saw her. Gwyn gave her a little pat and then climbed back onto her.

“Come on girl, lets go home.”

She ran home quickly. The wind stung her eyes but at least that would give her a good excuse for the tears. Sunrise licks her. Gwyn gave her a little smile. Ambrosia came back in.

“I saw you come back.”

“Yeah..”

“You alright?”

“I’m fine.”

“You’re crying.”

“So, it was just the wind.”

"No it wasn't."

“It was.”

"You're lying to me."

“It doesn’t matter okay.”

"I'm your friend. It matters to me."

“And some things you don’t need to know.”

Ambrosia walks over and hugs her. Gwyn gave her a half smile. Now she just needed to get to the records room.

“Shall we go?”

“Sure, have you been helping Emily?”

“Yeah.”

“Good.”

"I am doing my work."

“I know you are.”

She smiles at that.

“I have to go to the records room, take Sunrise back to the stables for me.”

"Okay," she replied and went back to the stables happily. Now she got more time with the foal and that made her happy. Gwyn took a breath and headed to the records room, which was in the west wing on the second floor. It was the only place she could get information on those students without getting them from the Academy. Ambrosia looked around. The stables hadn’t changed, except for the fact the two fouls were not in the stables. She got a little sad but sighed and put Sunrise in her spot, fed her, and then left. Gwyn knocked on the door of the room of records and then stepped inside.

"Welcome," the man said.

“Hi, thanks. I need some information on these students at the Academy,” she said and showed him the photos of the five students that had caught her eye.

"Of course," he responds and went to the spot looking for the files.

Gwyn browsed around while he looked for the correct files. He handed them to her. She smiles and took them.

“Thank you.”

“Of course.”

“I’ll return these when I’m done with them.”

“Take your time.”

She nods, “Thanks again.”

“Of course Your Highness.”

Gwyn smiles and then left, heading back to her room with the files. Ambrosia was back in the room working. Gwyn plopped down on the sofa and opened up the first file. Ambrosia walks over.

“Did you need something?”

“What’re you looking at?”

“Just some files.”

“Now you won’t tell me anything,” she says with a sigh.

“Cuz you’ll find out later.”

“Okay fine.”

“Besides, I don’t want to tell you until I’ve made my decision.”

“Okay okay.”

Gwyn smiles at her a little. She went back to work, bored but diligent. Gwyn poured over the files for the next hour or two. The files had just about everything in them, she just had to figure out which ones she could fully trust. Ambrosia left to go get food at around dinner time and set the tray down. Gwyn gave her a little smile.

"Thanks, you guys can go get your's I won't need you for an hour or two."

"Okay..."

Gwyn gave her a little wave as the two of them left. Ambrosia just went to the room. There was a letter from Dean on her nightstand. She blinks and immediately opened it. Dean was just generally checking, seeing how she was doing. She wrote back to him all that was going on. Of course Dean asked if she was doing alright and if they were treating her right. She wrote back how it was including what had happened with Hyuk. She was still writing when Emily got back.

“What are you doing?”

"Writing my brother. I got a letter from him."

"And telling him what?"

"Why is that your concern?"

"Just curious."

"No. You want to tell on me because you dislike me if it's something you think is tattle worthy."

"I just don't like how you think you are above everyone and leave me the majority of the work."

"First of all, I am still trying to learn how to do this stuff, secondly everyone else treats me as if I'm below them as a vampire, not because I'm a maid so if I don't give off an attitude of superiority they'll attack me, and thirdly you're lying through your teeth about the fact that that's why you don't like me."

"I am not lying."

“You are too. You’d sell me out for any slice of anything. Because I’m a vampire and you’re some vampire’s meal some nights.”

“That is not true. You don’t know a thing about me.”

She rolls her eyes.

“What?”

“Just keep lying.”

“I’m NOT lying.”

“So what really happened to you last night?”

“I went to go see someone.”

She sighs. “Half truth is still a half lie.”

“I wouldn’t sell you out. I’ve worked too hard to get this job. But is it really any of your business what I do in my free time? I’m sure there’s things you don’t tell your own family.”

“Yeah well they know most of it. Except for actually what happened whenever I was kidnapped and tortured.”

“So you can understand why I don’t tell everyone everything.”

She shrugs a little then.

“Would you, if you were in my shoes?”

“I’m just saying you’re even lying to yourself as to why you hate me.”

“I don’t hate you, I dislike you.”

She shook her head and went back to her letter. Emily sighed a little and pulled out some paper and charcoal from her night table and stretched out on the bed, drawing. She finished the letter and then set it aside. Emily was still drawing, not speaking again. She took out her phone and began to watch videos on cleaning. Around seven Emily got a text. She glanced at it and sighed. Why tonight? He couldn’t possibly still be thirsty. He just ate last night. She looks over but didn’t say anything.

“I have to go, but I’ll be back before Princess Gwyneth needs us again.”

“Okay.”

Emily grabbed her jacket and headed out. She lay back and then got up and went to mail the letter. Emily took the long route to the house. Ambrosia began to wander the house. There was a lot still going on. The family maybe at dinner but there was plenty of other things going on. She just took it all in. Some elves were repairing things, others were carrying things from one place to the other. A few children were running around playing tag. And there were various animals walking around the palace as well. She missed her thunderbird. Gikwang spotted her as he was on his way back from the kitchen.

“Hey, your day going okay?”

“Not really.”

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

She shrugs.

“You alright?”

“That I have never been.”

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s too complicated to explain.”

“Okay…”

She gives a half smile. “I don’t trust male vampires basically.”

“Why? Cuz we’re guys?”

"No. Cuz you get angry that I test your manhood."

"I don't think that is true."

"You haven't ever been a bad man. But they exist."

“Yes, I know bad people exist. I’m not an idiot.”

She shrugs. "So for the most part I don't trust male vampires.”

“Then you should’ve made sure one you trusted came along.”

"I did. I do trust you."

“Oh...nice to know.”

She smiles a little. Gikwang gave her a little smile.

“Well let me know if you need anything.”

"I need my thunderbird."

"I'm not sure you could get it here. Especially without the elves blessing."

She sighed.

"Well you could always ask."

She smiles slightly. Gikwang gave her a small smile. She tried hard not to blush. Gikwang gave her a little bow and then continued down the hall. She watched him go.

"You two flirting?" Gwyn said from right behind her.

She jumps a little, blushes brightly, but responds with a flat out, "No."

"Shucks. You should. This is the only place you could do it without your parents knowing."

She blushes more. "Yeah... can I get my thunderbird here?"

"I would have to talk to my parents and the grounds keeper about that."

She nods a little.

"Give me a little time.”

"It's fine. So Emily left again.”

"Again? Why?"

"She refused to say. So... did you need me."

"Nope, just finished dinner and saw you and Gikwang talking."

She nods a little.

“I’ll try to get your thunderbird here but most of our animals here are scared of thunderbirds.”

She raises an eyebrow. "Wouldn't they like them? I mean they do bring rain."

“Yes, they bring rain but when it comes to unicorns, they don’t get along with Thunderbirds.”

"Of course," she mumbles to herself.

“I’ll do my best to get your thunderbird here.”

She smiles at that. Gwyn gave her a smile and a hug. She hugs back tightly.

“You already had your dinner right?”

"Yeah."

“Good.”

"So what are we gonna do?"

"Watch a movie."

"Oooo fun." She hoped she sounded enthused. She didn't feel it. She was positive it was a documentary.

"Yeah, I got Hoya to pick up Princess Diaries two."

"Really?! Yes!"

"Yes really."

"Awesome!"

She gave a little smile.

"I just hope I don't get out in the same position."

"Huh?"

"Have an arranged marriage."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

Ambrosia hugs her. Gwyn gave a little smile.

"Shall we have fun?"

"Yep, oh you wanna go get us some popcorn, candy, drinks and cookies."

She grins and nods. Gwyn smiled and headed back to her room. She got the stuff from the kitchen and came back. Gwyn was all settled on her couch with the DVD already in the player ready to start. She settled in next to Gwyn with a bright smile. Gwyn played the movie and pulled the blanket closer to her. Ambrosia snuggles up to her. Gwyn gave a little smile and settled in to watch the movie, munching on the snacks. Ambrosia pressed play and grins. Gwyn got through half of the movie before she fell asleep on the couch. Ambrosia held her.

“You should put her to bed,” Emily said, she was leaning against the door frame and was looking pale again.

"The movie's not done. And you're back quickly."

“She’s asleep though.”

"And quite comfortable."

“You should still put her to bed.”

Ambrosia shook her head, sighs, paused the movie, got up and put Gwyn in bed after undressing her and dressing her. She narrowed her eyes to glare at Emily before finally managing to get comfortable again and able to press play. Emily helped out a little, starting the fire and setting out Gwyn’s clothes for tomorrow. But it was clear she was rather shaky.

“You need to sit down.”

“I’m fine.”

“No you’re not.”

“I’m not trying to be mean but please just drop it.”

She shook her head and just watched the movie then. Emily finished and then just made it back to their room before she collapsed on the floor. She winced as she heard the sound but didn’t got to help. Emily didn’t want it. Emily had done what she thought was best, kept her mouth shut. She knew what her owner wanted but she didn’t believe in doing that. So, instead of giving him what he wanted her ‘punishment’ was letting him feed every day, for however much he wanted. Ambrosia finished the movie and went back to the room and sighs, picks up Emily, and then sat in her bed. Emily shifted a little and when she did Ambrosia could see that she had two very deep puncture marks on her neck and the back of her gown was dark and wet. She made a fist. It was a vampire. It wasn’t that late actually, only ten. And outside it was pitch dark but the beauty of the elven forest was that one could look up and see so many stars. She stared at the stars. Emily started to mumble in her sleep. She looks away. While she was still sleeping there was a text on Emily’s phone. She avoided looking. Around five the alarm went off. She jumps up. Emily groaned and hit the alarm with her pillow. Ignoring how sore and painful that was. She sighs in relief. Emily almost got up without falling on the floor but she caught herself on the nightstand.

“You can’t keep doing this. You’re gonna die.”

“Doing what?”

“Letting your blood be drunk.”

“Do you think I have a choice?”

“Well you are gonna die.”

“Do you really know anything about blood slaves?”

“I hoped to never have to.”

“I’ll make one thing clear, blood slaves don’t have a choice on when they get fed on.”

She sighs. “Fine but... he’s gonna kill you.”

“He won’t, I’m too valuable.”

She raises an eyebrow.

“What?”

“Valuable how?”

“Think about it.”

“I don’t see how. You’d be replaceable.”

“Never mind.”

“I’m just stating the truth. Blood slaves are easy to replace.”

“And I don’t want to talk about it. If you want to get all the facts ask one of your own kind.”

She sighs. “I don’t want to. I’d rather not talk to a male vampire. Well most male vampires.”

“You think male vampires are the only ones who know about this and who have blood slaves?”

“No. But they’re the ones more willing to talk about it.”

“Yeah, cuz they like to brag.”

“Yup.”

“So ask somebody else, not me,” she said in a firm tone and then left to go have breakfast.

“Whatever,” she mumbles going to grab her blood.

Ambrosia clearly didn’t get it and she wasn’t going to tell Gwyneth either. Even if she wanted to she couldn’t. Woohyun slowly knocked on Gwyneth’s door. Gwyn was still half asleep.

“Come in,” she mumbled.

He walked in and turned away.

“Um... it’s time for breakfast... I’m sorry I’ll go, you’re naked.”

“Relax Woohyun, I’m not naked. I’ll be down in a minute.”

Well it felt that way to him with how little she was wearing. Then again, his job didn’t give him much time for fraternizing. He still quickly left the room. Gwyn grabbed what the girls had left out for her and changed before running a brush through her hair. She pocketed her phone and then stepped out of the room. He walked her down to the table. She gave him a little smile and took her place. He pushes her in and stepped back. For the first time since she’d gotten back Gwyn was late but she didn’t care.

“Where were you?”

“Asleep.”

“Darling, we do not sleep in. One doesn’t waste the sun.”

“My alarm just didn’t go off.”

She sighs a little but nods.

“Besides, I spent a long time waking up at 4:30.”

“Make that wench wake up at that time.”

“Ambrosia has a name Mom.”

“She doesn’t deserve my respect.”

“Because she’s a vampire? Mom, Ambrosia wasn’t the one to kidnap me.”

"It was her family, so it was her."

"It was not her."

She rolls her eyes. "Mom, they're not all bad."

"Of course they are."

"No, they're not."

"Honey, they're evil, we're not. It's that simple."

"No, it's not."

"Of course it is."

"Now sit up and start eating."

"I am."

She nods and began to enjoy her own meal. Gwyn sighed but ate her own meal. Her sister looks at her.

"Yes?" Gwyn asked her.

“You sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah, why you asking?”

“No reason.”

“So what have you been up to? You’re attending the Academy right?”

“No. Home tutored.”

“Why aren’t you attending the Academy? You should be at the Academy. I was going to go but I’m too old now. They’ll still accept you.”

“She will only be at the Academy for the weaponry bit and for a few hours. We need to be more careful.”

“About what, the Academy is perfectly safe.”

“We know. But you were kidnapped. In transit. So that’s it.”

“And?”

“If you don’t get it that’s fine.”

“I just think you’re just having too tight a hold on everything.”

“For a good reason.”

“You gotta let us breath.”

“Why? So I can lose you again?”

“No. Not at all.”

“Just eat. We have things to do.”

“Fine. wait, what things?”

“The next dance is coming up.”

“And?”

“And so you’re gonna be ready.”

“And you don’t think I am?”

“No.”

“Why? Think I forgot how to dance?”

“No. But how to interact with eligible men, yes.”

“Eligible men! Mom!”

“You aren’t gonna be married soon. But we’re gonna start the process.”

“Way too soon.”

“For what?”

“To start the process. I just got back mom.”

“Yeah. You’re not gonna be married until after that wench is gone and we don’t have to deal with evil vampires anymore.”

“She’s not a wench, she’s a person and her name is Ambrosia. And she is NOT evil. And since it is clear you and everyone else here can’t seem to see that vampires are not all evil maybe I should just break the agreement. Send Ambrosia back to her own family before she is stuck here through a war. Because you and everyone else here want a war no matter what.”

Her mother's eyes narrowed.

"Am I wrong?"

"Not till we're ready for war."

"But there doesn't need to be one."

"Getting rid of the vampires is something every other species would help us do.”

"That is not true! And you're just preducest.”

"There is good reason for prejudice. Now go back to your room."

"I'll go where I like!"

“Go to your room.”

"No! I will do what I like."

"You are a child."

“No, I am not! I’m 19.”

"And you need to grow up."

“I have grown up. What makes you think I haven’t?”

"The fact you still fight me on everything."

“So you just want me to go along with everything, say yes to everything and have no opinion of my own.”

"What opinion are you wanting to have?"

“On everything.”

She sighs.

“Or am I not allowed my own voice?”

“It’s not the best but alright.”

Gwyn gave a little smile and then left. She wanted to have some fun. Archery actually, she hadn’t done it in years. Woohyun walked behind her. Gwyn didn’t say anything, she didn’t even bother to change, instead Gwyn headed straight for the outdoor archery range. He followed, worried for her. When she reached the range Gwyn picked out an armband to protect her arm, one made from white leather and embossed with gold flowers. She then looked through the bows until she found a beautiful red oak one she liked and then grabbed a quiver of arrows. He watched her, a small smile on his face. She took her spot at the far end of the field and fitted an arrow to her bow, took a breath, and then released it. He watched it, relaxing for this. It was a bull’s eye, and over a hundred yards away too. Gwyn smirked a little. She still had it.

"Beautiful."

“Thanks, been a while but I think I’ve still got it.”

“You do indeed.”

“Tell me, do you agree with my thinking?” she said as she fitted another arrow to her bow, “or do you agree with my mother’s thinking?” she finished as she released the arrow.

"I don't agree with your mother although I would have to do as she said as she is my employer."

Gwyn nodded a little.

“A good answer.”

"Thanks.”

She gave him a small smile. Gwyn knew she was the odd ball in the family. She also knew that it was in large part due to the fact she had spent four years living with the vampires.

"I agree your friend isn't evil."

“Thanks.”

"I hope it works out."

“We’ll see. Everyone here is too prejudiced against them.”

"Sadly."

“And of course me speaking out just looks like I got brainwashed,” she muttered as she released another arrow.

"Well a little."

“Well I’m not. Besides it’s not like all of them treated me like Ambrosia did.”

"I'm sure that's true."

She gave him a half smile. He smiles back. Gwyn fitted two arrows to her bow, tools breath and released them. He watched them fly, knowing they'd hit the target. They did, both hitting the center of the bull's eye.

He grins brightly. "Great job!"

“Thanks, so you married yet? Last I heard you were thinking about it. And that was four years ago.”

"Oh no. That was a bad lapse in judgement."

“Oh? Why?”

"She used me to get closer to the Princes."

"Aw...cunning."

"Yeah. So I cut it off. She's still trying to get with your single brother."

"Well that won't happen unless he wants to."

"I know."

"So, nobody since then?"

"No."

"I'm sorry."

"I'm fine."

“I can see that,” she said as she released another arrow.

"I don't really want another."

“You don’t want to marry?”

"I do. But... don't really have an idea of who."

“Aw, well I’m sure you’ll find someone. At least you are free to marry who you choose.”

"Unless your parents decide for me."

"Why would they do that?"

“If I’m in one of the selected.”

"That is not going to happen for a long time."

“It’s happening soon.”

“My mom thinks it is happening soon. I just got back, I’d rather settle in than have to deal with a line of suitors.”

“And your parents will be looking for suitors. They want to ensure they know who you’re marrying in several years.”

“That can wait, it should wait.”

“I don’t think from your mother’s attitude it’s going to.”

“Yeah, I know.”

#princess supernatural stories #elven world #B2ST #highlight #Infinite

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