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eleanorblythe · 4 months

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Romantic Homicide - Anton Chigurh x Orginal Female Character - One Shot

This is a supplemental to my first three chapters and explores Anton and Her before the events of Romantic Homicide.

This is how she died.

Also on Ao3 with author notes and translations - here

Winter of 1978

She just needed to hold on a little longer.

She needed to move.

She was starting to feel numb. And cold.

She couldn’t remember the last time she was this cold. A bone deep chill. Her mind flashed to a morning from her childhood. The first time she had ever seen snow. Her nose, touching the window feeling the wet of the condensation. The distant voice of someone calling her.

The irritating rustle of polyester as she sprinted through the house in her winter coat, with the speed and determination that only a child can possess. A woman’s voice scolding her about inappropriate shoes as she whizzed past and out into the garden.

The snow was dancing.

She danced with it.

She remembered trying to move around the snowflakes, tasting them. She remembered allowing herself to fall face first into the snow, trying to be as quiet and as still as possible - wanting to be enveloped by it. Buried under it. Consumed by it.

Strong arms lifted her out of the snow and spun her round and round. She had never felt as free and as happy as she had that day, in the snow.

She felt like she was face down in the snow again, feeling the cold slowly starting to seep into every part of her being. Only instead of the peace and stillness of the earth, she was staring at mineral fibre tiles with yellow damp stains and watching a rickety ceiling fan stutter as it span slowly above her.

She just needed to hold on a little longer.

But, hold on for what?

She had other flashes of a life that felt so long ago and so removed from the person she was now, they didn’t feel real.

Family dinners with faceless parents, holidays in towns she couldn’t name, losing her virginity on an unexceptional Tuesday, graduating with classmates who must have assumed she died years ago.

Her first kill.

Sitting in the aftermath, watching the blood drip and spread over the linoleum. Feeling the heavy weight of the kitchen knife clenched in her hand. Staring as her panic and pain turned to curiosity and pragmatism.

Her first contract.

Sitting in a waiting room filled with older, hardened and grizzled men, waiting to be called into the nondescript office. Feeling a great sense of pride. Knowing she was better than any of them. Praying one of them looked at her funny so she could prove it to them.

The first time she nearly died.

She remembered a beach, from the ever distant memory of her youth. Those same strong arms hoisting her onto their shoulders and wading into the ocean, feeling and tasting the foam and salt on her skin. She had nearly drowned that day, but she remembered an overwhelming sense of peace as she dipped beneath the waves that final time - before being yanked out of the water and her name being called out, over and over, in panic. A scratchy terrycloth towel being wrapped around her and being shaken until her eyes opened and she saw the blurry faces of her mother and father leaning over her.

This time she knew she would not be so lucky.

As she lay on the nondescript floor of the nondescript office, staring up at the speckled ceiling tiles, she tried desperately to remember the faces of her parents.

She couldn’t.

She would die soon, and they wouldn’t be there to save her.

She tried to look down at her sticky red hand clutching her side, but her body was starting to shut down. She could not move.

She had been gutted, like a fish and left for dead.

She could live (and soon die) with the physical pain, but she could not accept the betrayal. The greed. The dishonour of it all.

She never claimed to be an innocent, or even moral. No one in her world was, but there was an unspoken code within her world.

1. Don’t interfere with others’ contracts.

2. Settle your debts.

Sometimes the first was unavoidable, with as surprising many operatives and agencies as there were in this little underworld - mistakes could happen. In her experience sometimes happy accidents.

But the second rule.

If you were prepared to break the second, then prepare yourself to be hunted to the ends of the earth. By everyone. You would be found. No matter where. No matter how long it took. You would never know a single moments’ peace ever again.

It was unfortunate that she would not be the one to do the hunting. She had done everything she needed to do. She had completed the job, she had extracted the information she needed. She delivered in a timely manner. Yet she was killed for it.

She was deemed a ‘liability’ and needed to be put down, ‘like a bitch’. She remembered thinking, as two men held her down and her former contractor sliced her open; “You’ve damned yourself, for money that was never yours anyway…”

She could still hear the distant voices of her betrayers, drinking and laughing in the next room. Toasting her demise. She supposed the plan was to wait for her to bleed out and then go and have a celebratory dinner. How inconsiderate of her to die slowly. Eventually they got bored of waiting and left anyway, leaving the lackey behind to make sure she died.

She was unsure how long she lay there. If she were in a better mood she might have scoffed that they couldn’t even kill her properly. Then again, a slow death may have been part of the design.

Her breathing became more shallow and the cold sensation had now fully enveloped her. A tear escaped the corner of her eye as she lamented that her last view would be of this stained ceiling in this tired looking office in the middle of the desert. She’d always hated the desert.

Her vision was starting to darken and she finally let her hand that had been desperately clasped at her side, drop to the piss and shit stained carpet.

She thought about praying, but who should she pray to, who would listen? Instead she thought about those who she would miss.

Not a long list.

She thought of her parents and wondered if wherever she ended up, she would see them again. She had friends, she supposed she would miss them, but they weren’t true friends, she had shown them only a fragment of herself and as a result, her friendships were mostly surface level.

And then there was Anton.

Anton was the only person who really knew her. Her only ally. She wondered in another life, if she might have married a man like Anton, found a normal job, bought a house, had a few children, got a dog that would bark at everything. Live.

But life was not a Norman fucking Rockwell painting and that life was something she could never have. Was it even something she would ever want?

Too late for that now.

What little of a life she had started to build with Anton- late night drives to nowhere in particular, weekends away exploring everything like tourists, leaving each other’s personal items at each other’s houses, tentative and disguised discussions about the future - ended here.

She felt a shadow pass over her and the blurry figure of a man standing over her. She wondered if her father was finally here to take her away.

For the first time since this ordeal, she smiled. A small, weak, smile. She was finally ready to admit defeat. She was ready to go.

With what little strength she had left, she lifted her bloody hand up to reach for her father.

“Is it time?” Her voice was barely there. She continued to reach, but her father would not take her hand. Maybe he could only take it when she finally crossed over.

__________

Anton stood over her body. He thought she was already dead until her glassy eyes moved over him, she smiled and her hand stretched out towards him.

“Is it time?” She whispered.

His gaze flicked to her wound, despite the thickness of the carpet, her blood had spread everywhere. She was still alive, but barely.

“Not quite.” He responded.

Her eyebrows furrowed slightly and she blinked in confusion.

“Where’s mom?”

Anton titled his head, before replying,

“Your mother’s dead.” He said.

“So are we,” she strained “aren’t we?”

“No, we’re not dead,” he said quietly, still observing. He didn’t want to think about the tightness of his throat. He saw death everyday. He dealt death everyday. Why should today make him feel any differently?

Because it’s her.

He had enjoyed himself this last year. She was fun, he found that he actually quite liked having her around. He had even humoured her and gone on a few trips and played the part of a regular person who takes vacations and goes sightseeing. He would never admit, that he really enjoyed those trips and would wait patiently until she brought up planning the next one.

The company was good and the sex was great.

That’s all this was meant to be.

So why did he have her birthday memorised?

Why did he make sure he always had strawberries in the house, just on the off chance she came over and wanted some?

Why did he once drive to three different florists to get her favourite flowers? For that matter why did he even know what her favourite flowers were?

Why did he never sleep peacefully on nights when she was away in jobs?

Because it’s her. Because you-

He knew why. It was that same ‘why’ that told him to come out into the desert.

Earlier, his relatively mundane evening was interrupted by a phone call. As soon as he answered and heard her signature “hey handsome” the corners of his lips turned up and he relaxed into his seat. It had been a couple of weeks since they last saw each other and she announced she was staying at his place once she had turned in her latest assignment. Three hours later and she still hadn’t arrived. Anton inexplicably felt something wash over him. Dread.

And now here she was. Dying. Her outstretched hand had lost its strength and it hit the carpet with a quiet thud.

“Is it snowing at the house?” She murmured. Anton finally knelt down and took her hand. He watched her eyes refocus and scan his face. “Oh. It’s you,”

“Who did you think it was?” Anton asked, genuinely curious.

“My father…hey handsome,” she said weakly.

“Can you feel my hand?” He said giving her hand a small squeeze.

“No.”

“What can you feel?”

“Cold.” Anton only managed to catch the first sound, she was fading. Her watery eyes found his. “Can you end it, please? It hurts.”

Anton wasn’t unfamiliar with people begging him for death, he was usually happy to oblige. It made the job cleaner, more efficient. He didn’t like the idea of doing it to her.

As if sensing his hesitation, she used the last reserve of strength she had to squeeze his hand.

“The coin will tell you.” Anton’s eyes snapped to hers where they had previously been staring at her hand clasped weakly in his. He shook himself out of his thoughts and took out a coin. She had never pretended she was fully on board with the concept of fate and the way Anton chose to strictly adhere to the coin face, no matter what, but she knew it was important to him. She knew it would help.

She knew it would show the right choice.

Anton made his choice.

Heads, he kills her.

Tails, he holds her hand until she dies.

He flipped the coin and let it land on his open palm.

Heads.

He quickly shoved the coin back into his pocket and turned his gaze back to her. She gave a pained smile.

“It’s okay, Anton,” She mouthed.

The choice was made for him. Every choice they had both made brought them to this. The end. He nodded and leaned down to kiss her clammy forehead. He spoke her name against her skin and whispered an apology.

He had made his choice.

He leant back and ripped a strip of fabric off of the end of her dress and pressed it hard into her wound. He heard a stuttered gasp of pain, the biggest sign of life she had shown thus far. He ripped more of her dress to fashion a tourniquet. He wrapped it around her waist and secured it tightly. She jolted up from her prone position with an agonising scream. He kept murmuring apologies and kept talking over her cries of pain- for her sake or his, he wasn’t sure.

Eventually the catastrophic bleeding finally stemmed and Anton was able to scoop his arms under her and pick her up. He carried her out of the nondescript office, past the nondescript lobby (over the dead lackey), and out into the desert night.

She twisted her head from Anton’s shoulder once she felt the night breeze on her face. She looked up to see stars, every one of them glittering and bright. She gasped and wept. She wouldn’t die staring at a stained ceiling, she would die surrounded by millions of stars, swirling and circling around her.

Like snow.

Her eyes fluttered closed and she felt the pull of darkness, carried in those safe, strong arms.

#fanfiction #anton chigurh #no country for old men #anton chigurh x reader #ncfom #anton chigurh fanfic

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obae-me · 1 year

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I’m not really sure if this is considered a prompt but! I was thinking about the New Years event from a few years ago and at the beginning of it, I believe Lucifer had said that they don’t celebrate New Years because time moves differently for demons. So would all the holiday celebrations the characters do be so people like MC and Solomon feel more comfortable in the Devildom or would it be something Diavolo implemented for better unity between the three realms? And who do you think enjoys celebrating human holidays the most/least? You don’t have to include all the characters of course, I was just wondering what your take on this would be!

I’ll take anything to talk about! Just mostly wanting to get used to how I write things out even if they aren’t specifically in a narrative format, so this works just fine! Thank you for the suggestion!

I’m pretty sure it’s been mentioned somewhere in canon that, yes, they don’t celebrate human holidays. It would make sense if it was mostly for the human exchange student’s benefit, and I bet it would enrich the program as some sort of “cultural exchange”. I think it was mentioned that celebrating birthdays was fairly common (although who knows if it is regular practice to do every year or perhaps every decade or even every century since they live so long). Even with Halloween, it’s not so much talked about as a holiday on it’s own, but a celebration for Diavolo. Which brings up an interesting concept, that would they celebrate anything around “human Halloween” time were it not for the prince’s birthday? Is Diavolo so old that he’s been around ever since humans came up with the concept of Halloween? I’m sure there’s more flavor text around somewhere, probably in some Halloween cards or maybe even Diavolo’s birthday card, but I don’t feel like digging around for them.

As for general enjoyment, I have a pretty good idea of who would enjoy them most! From most to least:

1. Diavolo. The prince always has such a genuine curiosity and wonder for humans, it seems, in general, and I personally don’t believe it’s fake or just a diplomatic act. He always seems to want to learn, to experience things on his own, to go through what ‘normal’ people do. So I’m sure he makes the most of the human holidays.

2. Beel. Not only do most human holidays encourage being gluttonous, but I’m sure Beel feels some sort of stronger connection to his sister through humans, and so he definitely enjoys the celebrations they come up with. Plus he gets an excuse to eat a bunch, so it’s a huge win/win.

3. Mammon. I feel like right after gluttony, greed is something human holidays also encourage a lot of whether it be gifts or attention or what-have-you. Point being that usually when the big celebrations come around, we expect something in some way shape or form. So Mammon of course would love human celebrations. He would probably say he couldn’t care less about the holidays themselves but he does care quite a bit, especially after MC has come around.

4. Satan. Much like Diavolo, I’m sure he would want to take the time to learn about human culture. Knowing him, he probably has read up on it and knows more about the history than even the MC does, but nothing beats experiencing it for yourself.

5. Asmo. He was kind of hard to place, but I think he would rate fairly high. Although I have the feeling that he would mostly treat human holidays as some sort of new trend before he would truly understand it. But he adores being social, and I can see him using human holidays as an excuse to decorate the House.

6. Levi. Now, I know Levi isn’t a social butterfly, and most human holidays expect some sort of social gathering since we are community creatures, but I do think that his otaku-ness would mostly outweigh the social anxiety. He would probably want to try out things he’d seen in anime before. Plus there’s always holiday anime specials and game events.

7. Lucifer. I don’t think it’s that he hates human holidays...well, he didn’t really have the greatest outlook on humans when the MC first came down, did he? I think he just takes things too seriously (obviously) and instead of taking the time to appreciate human holidays, he’s more worried about whatever Diavolo or his brothers are going to come up with and whatever he’s going to get dragged into, but I’m sure his pride keeps him from admitting that he does enjoy hanging out with family, and trying something different for a change.

8. Barbatos. Mostly the same as Lucifer. Holiday time usually means a huge workload (poor Barbatos.) However, I do think he would enjoy seeing the Prince happy and I’m sure he finds joy in making special treats for the occasion. I just don’t see Barbatos as a character to go out of his way to celebrate something unless someone else does.

9. Belphie. Now, I know placing him at the bottom is a pretty basic stance to take, but I can’t help it. I think he probably would’ve been up right near Beel, especially since humans like to use the holidays as an opportunity to take a break when they can, but with everything that happened, he has some bitterness I’m sure. With the MC I’m sure there’s certain exceptions but I get the feeling that he’s not one for big celebrations anyway. If someone else does the prep (like Lucifer) sure he’ll show up, but I doubt he would go too far out of his way to be excited for a holiday.

What I really wish we could see more of with the game is more Demon culture. I want to know more about demon holidays, I wish the writers could get really creative and come up with something on their own that they would do instead of taking a human holiday concept and twisting it a bit. I do know they talk about some events that happen in game, but I want more.

#obey me #obey me shall we date #anon

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slowpoke272 · 10 months

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“catch-22″ by joseph heller

finished: june 30, 2023

I DID IT, AFTER SEVERAL ATTEMPTS IN MY ADOLESCENCE AND MAYBE 1-2 OTHER TIMES DURING MY TWENTIES, I WAS FINALLY ABLE TO READ THIS BOOK. ooooof, we’ve a lot to unpack here!

idk what it was about starting this book and not being able to keep going. i think my ability to not get through this book was probably one of the biggest indicators that traditional reading, while preferred, was not my most efficient way of capturing books and stories. i’m fine with that now, but it took me a long time and some significant ego death to get here. basically, i loved this book, it’s everything i always wanted from a war novel, it’s satire and whimsy and absurd and unchronological and the characters are not reliable narrators and the novel is relentlessly indirectly addressing so much about america, war, soldiers, and the human condition. all rolled into one book. supremely masterful.

my only criticism about the book is that i think it was too long. i do, however, love the way we were able to get so in depth with all the characters, all the angles that came with their decisions, and it wasn’t just solely focused on “yossarian good guy, we want to bring him home!” but there was so much more to it than that. i think the parts i didn’t particularly care for were the action scenes, but also some of the funniest moments were in there, too. idk, i might have a different opinion on this upon a second read, and this is a novel i’ve had a hardcopy of for years, so i will certainly be reading it again.

i also have to point out the irony of me reading this book right now, just before the 4th of july holiday. other war holidays (memorial day, labor day, veteran’s day {damn we have so many holidays about war and military huh lol}) maybe take a back seat to 4th of july this year, if for no other reason than the fourth falling on a tuesday this year, and therefore providing me a four day weekend instead of the usual three day weekend. as a child, i was a good lil american and would be excited to go see fireworks, we would have pie or whatever, my mom always bought us the newest line of old navy shirts with the american flag plastered all over them. as i grew into my own person and learned what america was really all about, specifically our military operations, i drifted away from this holiday and all its traditions. i don’t fight about it with my parents but it’s sort of like how my husband stopped going to church and his parents had a hard time accepting it at first, but eventually understood that was who he was; i don’t need this holiday and i don’t need to jerk off america. don’t get me wrong, love to all the soldiers and everything, but the principal of the matter is i don’t think anyone should die in war, ever, the fact that war even exists at all is so bizarre and insane to me. humans adapted over millions of years, learned to use tools and the resources available to us, built fires and homes and cities and made social structures and communities... all just to have it blasted away because of greed and racism, basically. tell me any war or “conflict” is about anything else, i dare you. it’s not. it’s always those two, sometimes both.

anyways, i grew up around my parents and my parents’ parents watching M*A*S*H and the like. my grandpa served in the army as well as other family friends and extended family members. near the end of my grandpa’s life, when i had enough curiosity and inquisition to ask about his military life is when he dwindled away to barely even being able to acknowledge it at all... so i never really got anything negative about war or the military, if anything it’s been super glorified throughout my life. queue soldiers coming to high school campuses to recruit, 9/11, and more friends and family joining different branches of the government and it’s been quite a different story. all that is to say that i’ve never felt comfortable with the idea of war, or even organized military, and these days i “celebrate” my long fourth of july weekends with my husband and cats, not seeking out fireworks and not wearing any flags. i think the last time i wore an american flag was when i was 16, i’m ashamed to admit that but it’s true.

catch-22 and joseph heller provides exactly the counterpoints to military operations that we need to hear. unfortunately, like most well-intentioned novels, the people who need to hear these ideas most are the least likely to be exposed or actually think critically about it. they are the next major major majors and will eventually become major major major majors in their obedience and loyalty, unless they get unalived in combat first. i deeply love how some parts of this novel were so whimsy and absurd, but that ending with snowden is gut-wrenching. also the alley scene in italy... with the SA. if you’ve read the book, you know the one. joseph heller is a remarkable author and i would be interested in other works of his but this is definitely an immediate favorite of mine.

the audiobook i borrowed on libby also had an extra 40 minutes of joseph heller reading selections from the novel and maaaaaaaan i wish i could buy this section alone and/or see him perform it with my own eyes. heck, it inspires me to recreate some of his prose and monologues. the back and forth between some of the characters becomes so painstaking that you can’t help but laugh. great book, immediate favorite, can’t wait to read it again and if you are like me and somehow got by 3 decades in life without finishing this book... HERE’S YOUR SIGN.

now i’m gonna reblog a bunch of things that resonated with me, but i know my favorite parts aren’t rebloggable. just read it, guys! for the love of humanity.

rating: 10/10 this deeply resonated with me, i will re-read it again numerous times and recommend it to anyone i know, the story and characters will stick with me forever; crave discussing it all the time and bring it up unprovoked

#catch-22 #joseph heller

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bookoformon · 3 months

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3 Nephi Chapter 28, Part 1, "72."

3 Nephi covers the transfiguration of the Christ found in the Book of Matthew 17 from a different perspective, suggesting anyone who follows Him can transfigure. The knowledge of transfiguration is considered forbidden but the Jesus, speaking through the Spirit of God gives instruction in how to do it starting with this section.

First, one must follow the instructions named on the Greater and Lesser Plates of Nephi, this is a given.

Nine of the twelve disciples desire and are promised an inheritance in Christ’s kingdom when they die—The Three Nephites desire and are given power over death so as to remain on the earth until Jesus comes again—They are translated and see things not lawful to utter, and they are now ministering among men. About A.D. 34–35. "the Passover."

1 And it came to pass when Jesus had said these words, he spake unto his disciples, one by one, saying unto them: What is it that ye adesire of me, after that I am gone to the Father?

2 And they all spake, save it were three, saying: We desire that after we have lived unto the age of man, that our ministry, wherein thou hast called us, may have an end, that we may speedily come unto thee in thy kingdom.

3 And he said unto them: Blessed are ye because ye desired this thing of me; therefore, after that ye are seventy and two years old ye shall come unto me in my kingdom; and with me ye shall find crest.

4 And when he had spoken unto them, he turned himself unto the three, and said unto them: What will ye that I should do unto you, when I am gone unto the Father?

5 And they sorrowed in their hearts, for they durst not speak unto him the thing which they desired.

The entire section above has Gematria in it, including the rubric.

The three Disciples that were separated from the rest to witness the Transfiguration were Peter, James, and John, but for reasons we cannot take for granted here, Jesus does not name them.

If we look for the pattern in the Numbers, here is what surfaces:

One Disciple: the Number is 295, בטה‎, beta, "a phobia."

Two Disciples: the Number is 1340, אגדאֶפֶס, a bundle of agadephes, "a bundle of aces."

Three Disciples: the Number is 488, דח‎‎ח‎, "pushed."

Nine Disciples: the Number is 384, גחד‎ , "greed."

Twelve Disciples: the Number is 2020, ב‎אֶפֶסבאֶפֶס, in epsabes, "I will miss."

"Fear I will push away from the aces, the greedy I will exile from the rest."

And what are we afraid of the most? Other human beings.

Transfiguration through discipleship, therefore is a way of magnetizing the mind towards the annals of the Holy Ghost, delivering mankind from his traditional and wicked ways. The Values in Gematria, including the Rubric are:

Rubric: The Value in Gematria is 11397, אאגטז‎‎, agtz, "the scorn." All sinful desires must be scorned and the soul must be tuned towards the whims of the Holy Ghost instead:

The Zohar (III:195a) states that one's will is to be like that of a pauper. Thus consider yourself like a pauper and always speak with soft and beseeching words like a pauper.

Which is the most excellent of all [prayers]? It is the prayer of the poor - it takes precedence to all prayers of the world. This is because he is broken-hearted, and it is written, "G‑d is near to the broken-hearted". (Psalms 34:19) Thus, when praying, a person should make himself "poor". When a person always makes his will as that of a pauper, his prayer ascends and will be received favorably before the Holy King.

v. 1: One by One. The Value in Gematria is 9731, טזגא‎‎‎, tezga, "represent."

v. 2: We desire that after which we have been called. The Value in Gematria is 14999, אדטטט‎‎‎‎, edttt, "the testimony together."

v. 3: After you are seventy two years old. The Value in Gematria is 10752, אאֶפֶסז‎הב‎, "the golden passage."

v. 4: He turned Himself unto the Three. The Value in Gematria is 9650, טו‎‎האֶפֶס, "two zeroes."

v. 5: And they sorrowed into their hearts. The Value in Gematria is 6183, וא‎חג‎, "it's a holiday."

The "golden passage" that leads to two zeroes and the "holiday" the Passover results from the negating of one's irrational desire to mistreat others:

Not The Golden Rule

"When someone challenged Hillel the Elder (b. 110 BCE) to teach the entire Torah while his listener stood on one foot, he famously replied, “That which is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow. That is the entire Torah, and the rest is commentary. Now go and study.”1

Of course, Hillel was expounding upon the verse in Leviticus: “You shall neither take revenge from nor bear a grudge against the members of your people; you shall love your fellow as yourself. I am the L‑rd.”2

Hillel’s teaching looks pretty similar to the classic “Golden Rule” (which goes something like this): “Do unto others what you want them to do to you.”

However, if we further examine the two aphorisms, there are stark differences.3 Many are struck by Hillel’s negative phraseology. Why did he say not to do that which you do not like instead of saying you should do that which you do like?

The question of Hillel’s word choice is more than just “Why go negative if you can go positive?” As we explained, the source for Hillel’s teaching is the verse in Leviticus, “You shall love your fellow as yourself.” So why switch to the negative?

Some explain that the reason Hillel focuses on what not to do is because the verse itself introduces the commandment of loving your fellow with the prohibition of not taking revenge or bearing a grudge against your fellow, indicating that the mitzvah is best framed as an instruction of acts to avoid.4 But we are still left with the question of why this is so.

Some explain that this is based on the Torah principle that when in danger, one’s own life takes precedence over that of the other. As such, Hillel did not go so far as to tell us that we should treat others like ourselves, as this is not the truth. Rather, he was teaching that we may not mistreat others, just like we do not want to be mistreated.5

Alternatively, knowing that his questioner was a beginner and potential convert to Judaism, Hillel was telling him that although it may seem very hard to reach the ultimate level of this mitzvah (of loving others like yourself), you should start off with at least not doing to others that which is hateful to you.6

However, Hillel ended off his words with “The rest is commentary. Now go and study.” Some commentators explain that Hillel was intimating that his words had many more layers of meaning, and to understand the depth of the mitzvah beyond the negative phraseology, “he should go learn.”7

Lest one repents and atones, and harbors compassion for the poor in one's heart, and is impoverished of all malice and corruption, one shall not see the Christ, or heaven, or attain to immortality while living in a mortal body.

There is more to come on how transfiguration actually works in the next section of 3 Nephi 28.

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cinemapsychosshow · 4 months

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Is Die Hard Really a Christmas Movie? | What Makes a Movie a Christmas Movie - Episode 296

Is Die Hard REALLY a Christmas Movie? This is a question that every holiday season gets asked. And while Die Hard is a popular choice for those of us who are into unconventional christmas films, there have been a rise of others such as Batman Returns, Eyes Wide Shut, Lethal Weapon, and many many others that all claim to be Christmas Movies. So we are answering the question once and for all, what makes a movie a Christmas movie?

CHAPTERS:

00:00:00 intro 00:02:33 Follow us and hit the subscribe button 00:04:06 Is diehard a christmas movie? 00:06:46 What you watch on christmas is entirely up to you 00:08:08 The definition of a christmas movie 00:08:39 62% of people don't think Die Hard is a Christmas movie 00:10:53 movies about christmas and movies that are set in christmas 00:11:52 Is Silent Night, Deadly Night a Christmas Movie? 00:14:37 Toxic Masculinity in Die Hard 00:17:51 The role of release dates in Die Hard and Batman Returns 00:19:57 What movies can you watch any time of the year vs. holiday movies 00:21:07 Christmas Criteria #1- Does the movie take place during Christmas? 00:23:16 The real reason why It's A Wonderful Life is a Christmas Movie 00:26:02 Shane Black and Christmas Movies 00:28:22 Our Christmas Classics never set out to be Christmas Movies 00:32:06 Criteria #2: Is Christmas Music Present In the Film? 00:33:47 Brian's Super Scientific Litmus Test For Die Hard as a Christmas Movie 00:34:51 Criteria #3- Emotional Drive 00:38:25 Criteria #4- Greed is Overcome 00:40:49 Criteria #5 -- How Does Anti-Christmas Play into it? 00:45:28 Go (1999) is actually a Christmas movie 00:49:50 Criteria #6- Viewing Traditions 00:54:37 More Unconventional Christmas Movies 00:58:29 The Defense & Prosecution for Die Hard as a Christmas Movie 01:04:10 Batman Returns is also a Christmas Movie 01:06:12 Outro

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occupyhades · 4 months

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Operation Deimos

Operation Deimos keeps track of the Agents of Behemoth: The Backstabbing Parasites of Corporate Personhood.

“If you do not listen, and if you do not resolve to honor my name,” says the LORD Almighty, “I will send a curse on you, and I will curse your blessings. Yes, I have already cursed them, because you have not resolved to honor me." Malachi 2:2 (NIV)

What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? Matthew 16:26 (BSB)

His eyes are on the ways of mortals; he sees their every step. There is no deep shadow, no utter darkness, where evildoers can hide. Job 34:21-22 (NIV)

Wealth is treacherous, and the arrogant are never at rest. They open their mouths as wide as the grave, and like death, they are never satisfied. In their greed they have gathered up many nations and swallowed many peoples. Habakkuk 2:5 (NLT)

Dear friend, do not imitate what is evil but what is good. Anyone who does what is good is from God. Anyone who does what is evil has not seen God. 3 John 1:11 (NIV)

And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne. And there were open books, and one of them was the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their deeds, as recorded in the books. Apocalypse 20:12 (BSB)

And if anyone was found whose name was not written in the Book of Life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. Apocalypse 20:15 (BSB)

#greed #sloth #big polluters #avarice #judgement #damnation

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dailyaudiobible · 5 months

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11/28/2023 DAB Transcript

Daniel 5:1-31, 2 Peter 2:1-22, Psalm 119:113-128, Proverbs 28:19-20

Today is the 28th day of November, welcome to the Daily Audio Bible. I’m Brian, it’s great to be here with you today as we continue forward on our voyage through the Bible. And continue our voyage through the holiday season, as we approach the landing of this year. We’re out in front of that, that's our destiny. But we’re not there yet, we are back in the book of Daniel at this point in the Old Testament, and our next step forward leads us to Daniel chapter 5 today.

Commentary:

Okay so, in Second Peter today, we watched Peter sort of go off against these false teachers. And these were people who had come to faith and maybe even come to prominence in the faith but were falling away from the essentials of the Gospel and they were leading others to do the same. And it wasn’t just like doctrinal or like theology matters. These people were using the gifts to exploit the weak. And Peter said it like this, they will be paid back with harm for the harm they have done. Their idea of pleasure is to carouse in broad daylight. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their pleasures while they feast with you, with eyes full of adultery. They never stop sinning. They seduce the unstable. They are experts in greed and accursed brood. So, that's pretty direct and Peter’s pretty inflamed about it. We need to understand something here because false teachers are getting labeled everywhere, all of the time in this modern day and age of the Internet and this kind of stuff. So, we have these kind of labels all over the place and the false teacher that Peter’s talking about aren’t people who are wrestling with their faith in pursuit of Jesus and binding revelation and understanding. Like, wrestling with our faith struggling and growing and reaching, reaching and reaching for God, that's part of our Christian tradition. Peter's distinction is, is that the false teachers here are intentionally and maliciously deceiving God's people for personal gain. They know what they're doing. And Peter’s upset about it. And this is what he has to say about it. If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it, and are overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. It would've been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them. Of them, the Proverbs are true. A dog returns to its vomit and a sow that is washed, returns to her wallowing in the mud. So, Peter’s speaking forcefully against false teachers who lead people into sin and people who know the truth and fall away into sin. And in that context, he quotes from the book of Proverbs something very poignant, a powerful image. A dog returning to its vomit. I don't know if you've ever seen that before. If you're a dog person, you probably have. I’ve had dogs most of my life and I’m familiar with this concept and its gross. It’s disgusting. Right, and it's even more disgusting when they let it cool off and then go back and chop it. It’s disgusting, a dog returning to its vomit and eating it. Let's consider the starkness of what's being said here. What sewage are we returning to because we’ve been deceived into believing that it's something that is good and desires for us, when we know better. What kind of crap are we eating here. And what influences do we have over those around us that we might invite them into the same vomit to eat it with us. This is the opportunity that the Bible always brings us, a chance to look in the mirror and say what am I doing. What is going on here, Jesus? I surrender. These are tough questions. Why would we choose crap over the banquet God has prepared for us? Let’s invite the Holy Spirit into this because as the Scriptures told us today, we are a slave to whatever controls us.

Prayer:

And so, Holy Spirit come. There are so many entanglements, so many hooks in us, pulling us in so many directions and most of them are unnecessary. Some of them just drag us down for so long, we need to be free, we need to stop returning to our own vomit and repeating and repeating and repeating the same thing. Holy Spirit come, there is no freedom without You. We cannot set ourselves free. All we can do is collaborate with You and obey You. So, come, lead us into freedom we ask, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Announcements:

dailyaudiobible.com is home base, that's the website and that's where you find out what’s going on around here. Obviously, it's Christmas time. It's hard to miss the fact that it's Christmas time. Everything is full of lights and blinking and so, we are about ready to do our annual Daily Audio Bible Christmas party. Our Daily Audio Bible Family Christmas that we do each year. So, here's the deal, for the next about 10 days, it's your opportunity to call in your Christmas and holiday wishes to the community here. And you can do that by using the numbers that we have and the Hotline. Now, typically these are obviously for prayer requests and encouragements. You can also for the next few days, call in your Christmas greetings and we will get those and assemble them together and make our annual Christmas party. And Jill and I will get together and we’ll have a fireside chat, and we'll talk about where we've been and where we’re going. And things like maybe our word for next year, and just have some time together. And then we’ll hear from each other. I love literally getting a cup of hot cocoa and listening to this. It makes me cry every year, just, just the family. The family that we’ve become on a journey like this. Showing up for each other every day like this. It just matters a little doesn't it. It’s like, it's good to have this, it's good to have each other. It's good to be together. So, you can call in your holiday greetings now on the Hotline or at 877-942-4253.

And also, Christmas time around The Daily Audio Bible this year is centered around what's coming next year. The 2.0 Daily Audio Bible app, brand-new from the ground up, will be landing sometime in 2024. And so, for this year, we’re not doing a Christmas box. We’ve pressed up all the different music, all the stuff that you hear underneath the Daily Audio Bible. And some other things. We’ve pressed up all the music from the Daily Audio Bible onto five different vinyl album packages. And vinyl has made such a resurgence that it's, it's a way to hold your music again. And I remember them from when I was a kid, and I loved it then, and it's come back in. It's a way to hold a commemorative piece of the Global Campfire and have that near and dear while sowing into what's coming for us as a community here in the new year. So, we have pressed up the Sleep album, songs for sleep. The Promised Land album soundtrack from the Promised Land films. We’ve repressed Songs of the Heart, and that's got all new packaging, brand-new packaging. Family Christmas and Christmas Time, Max's album that came out last year and was really a big surprise. Everybody loved it. And so, that's on vinyl as well. So, you can get those in the Daily Audio Bible Shop. Just look for the Christmas section and you can find them there.

And we love you and thank you profoundly for your partnership, as we push forward into what's coming next. And if you want to partner with the Daily Audio Bible. Obviously, you can do that at dailyaudiobible.com. If you're using the app, you can press the Give button in the upper right-hand corner or the mailing address is P.O. Box 1996 Springhill, Tennessee 37174.

And as always, if you have a prayer request or encouragement, you can hit the button, the red button up at the top, you'll see it. It looks like a Hotline. You can press that or you can dial 877-942-4253.

And that's it for today, I'm Brian, I love you, let's all run away from that vomit, let's get as far away from that as we can. I'll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Prayer and Encouragements:

I just heard the prayer request from Eyes of a Dove. Sweet sister, I just pray that the Lord would just wrap you in His wings and give you comfort and give you peace at this time. Lord, I just ask that You would, whatever is going on in her body, Lord, I pray that You would just heal it. In Jesus name. And Lord, that she would be able to just go on with her weekend as she waits but she would be at peace knowing that You are there and that You are working in her behalf. I just pray this in Your mighty name. Amen.

Hi DABers, this is Kristen, aka Christ in Me. And I am calling in to pray for the prayer warriors. I’ve seen attacks on the prayer warriors. I’ve felt attacks on myself. And I would just pray that the enemy would not be able to prevail in these situations, Lord. I pray that You would put a hedge of protection around each of the prayer warriors. Lord, keep them safe from the enemy, from his arrows, Lord. That we would be able to concentrate on You, Lord. And that we would be able to continue to pray, Lord. And do Your will, in Jesus name, that we could be mighty warriors for You, Lord. So, that we could do Your will, Lord. And I just pray Your arms around us, Your wings around us. Give us peace and comfort and that we would not fear. And that we would be strong, we would stay strong for You, Lord. And we would continue on this path of being warriors for You, Lord. And we just thank You, Lord, that You’ve chosen us and that You are using us and that I just pray that You would continue to strengthen us in Your will. In Jesus mighty name. Amen.

Hello Daily Audio Bible family, it’s Doctor John from Jordan, New York. I come to you with urgent prayer request for my dad. He went into the hospital on, yesterday, with coughing and wheezing and ended up basically with a respiratory arrest. And ended up on a ventilator, which actually, he did not want. They didn’t have his living will. So, my sister came in, was able to get the vent withdrawn and the medication stopped. But by that time they had stabilized him. He’s still unconscious. And stabilized, having some respiratory issues. They’d also given him antibiotics, which he had not wanted. And cause he really is ready to join my mom in heaven. So, if you could pray for my dad. Honestly, I would prefer for him to pass and to have comfort and be kept comfortable. They are giving him medicines to keep him comfortable. And that we would have peace as a family with this process. We went through it with mom. It was 4 days and we prefer it not for dad, to be there for four days, waiting to pass. So, please keep our family in your prayers. I love you guys. I appreciate you. Take care. Doctor John from Jordan, New York.

Good morning Daily Audio Bible family. This is John O’par, calling in from South Sudan, except that today I’m actually in Uganda. I’m going to Compala this morning to submit my application for Visa at UK visa. Anyway, it’s been a while that I have called in. But I’ve been following with the community, praying along, thanking God for the praise reports. And also noting that the many members of this family are going through so much struggle. But I, as usual, I just want you to know, that we are on the winning side. We are on the winning side, regardless of what is happening in your life. The Lord is with you. I want to thank God for Ben and China, who have their new newborn. I can’t remember the name right now. I also want to thank God for the Hardin Family, the entire Hardin Family. And the DAB technical team for the amazing things that are happening. May God bless every one of you. May you continue this race because we have won. In Jesus name. Amen.

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fairykukla · 5 months

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Season's Greedings, 2023!

Every year I try to post my Greed List (What I want for Christmas" which includes the even more vital "Do Not Want" list.

Do Want:

1. A functional dishwasher.

We have one, we've had it serviced several times, and I don't think it's ever going to properly wash dishes again. It needs to go away, a new one needs to be installed, and I have terrible decision fatigue about figuring out which one I want. I want it to wash dishes. I don't even fully understand the choices I'm faced with.

You can contribute in one of the following ways: cash or electronic transfer donations to the dishwashing fund, solid recommendations for a specific make and model, or bad "features" I should avoid.

2. Laundry on-site: I own a washer and a dryer. The washer is down in the basement, but has nowhere legit to drain. The dryer is still at my neighbors' house, in the garage.

You can either be part of the team to bring the dryer home and set it up, or throw some cash at the plumbing problem, or offer assistance to solve the plumbing problem.

Those are the Big Things. Here's the little stuff:

A handcrafted card. I'm a sucker for those, and it will be kept, treasured, and probably displayed every year for a long time.

BJD shoes. All my dolls have lost shoes due to the vinyl or adhesives disintegrating. I need all kinds of shoes, particularly in 1/4 and 1/6 scale.

Shoes for me. I need a good solid supportive pair of shoes to wear to work.

Feed my dish collections: black octagonal glass pieces are always welcome. (They say "France" on the bottom.) Also Steubenville Woodfield pieces, particularly the dinner plates which seem hard to find. All colors welcome.

DVDs: we can't stream, so I need hard copies of anything I want to see. I'd particularly like Marvel stuff (especially recent movies, I'm way behind), Leverage Redemption, anime, or something unusual that you love and aren't sure if I've seen it yet. Ditto for CDs.

Funny collectables: I still love gnomes, mushrooms, fairy aesthetic items, the Nightmare Before Xmas, Tea Party items, etc.

Cat toys. My cats like them and I love to play with my cats.

I do like shiny jewelry, but I appreciate handcrafted items the most.

Hand crafted items. Support an artisan and it's like getting two gifts in one.

I still love to get Lush gift cards. One year I got several and it was The Best Xmas Ever.

Toilet Paper. I am always delighted to receive disposable paper products like TP, paper towels, paper plates, etc.

Food: teas are always welcome. Heck, just bring me a bubble tea and I'll be thrilled! Candy is super tricky; I'd rather get a card and warm wishes than candy. Baked goods are welcome early in the season, but I really don't want a bunch of sweets in the house the week before I give up sugar altogether. (Jan 1) There are very few places I can go to eat, but I'd love gift cards for Thai Nivas, any sushi place, Panera, Cafe Mochi, or Pearl.

Food that you canned yourself. Jam, jelly, apple butter, even regular pickles (because my partner likes them) or, if you want to see me happy-cry, pickles with no garlic or onion in the mix.

Experiences: indoor things are fraught. However, if you want to give me a gift card for The London Tea Room (or better yet, offer to take me for tea) I would love it. Outdoor concerts or performances might be ok, but talk to me about it first.

Do not want:

I have a lot of post Covid issues, as well as my pre Covid IBS problems. Add in my Big Sugar Fast from Jan 1st to late March, and suddenly certain holiday standards don't work for me.

No MSG. This means soup bases, seasoning packets, salad dressings, flavored snack chips, etc. It also means no Alfredo or tomato sauces, and no mushrooms.

No garlic, onion, chocolate, coffee, or peanut. None. Zero. I can't have it in the house. Cross-contamination is a problem. If one molecule gets in the food I can't eat it. These were all things I loved to eat before Covid; now they are completely and totally ruined for me.

Try not to make me part of your Christmas cookie baking. May I suggest instead that you bake some salt dough "cookie" ornaments, and paint one to give me for my tree? Cookies and sweets are cruel unless you give them to me very early in the season.

I hope this helps.

#2023 #seasons greedings #greed list #2023 greed list

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animusrox · 3 years

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LETTERBOXD

Note: This will include a few releases from 2021 due to the pandemic/awards season 1. Minari 2. The Vast of Night 3. First Cow 4. I’m Thinking of Ending Things 5. The Forty-Year-Old Version 6. Palm Springs 7. Sound of Metal 8. Black Bear 9. Nomadland 10. One Night in Miami…

[Grade A]

11. Bull 12. Boys State 13. Never Rarely Sometimes Always 14. Tenet 15. The White Tiger 16. Let Him Go 17. Mogul Mowgli 18. Judas and the Black Messiah 19. His House 20. The King of Staten Island 21. Wendy 22. Mangrove 23. Pieces of a Woman 24. Possessor 25. VFW 26. The Short History of the Long Road 27. The Mauritanian 28. The Platform 29. You Cannot Kill David Arquette 30. The Lodge 31. Swallow 32. Soul 33. Wolfwalkers 34. Run 35. The World to Come 36. Time 37. Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom 38. Bacurau 39. The Assistant 40. Big Time Adolescence 41. I Care a Lot 42. MLK/FBI 43. The Other Lamb 44. FP2: Beats of Rage 45. The Father 46. Saint Maud 47. Mank 48. The Trial of the Chicago 7 49. Our Friend 50. Sweetheart 51. Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) 52. Hamilton 53. The Rental 54. 1BR 55. Guns Akimbo 56. Alone 57. Proxima 58. Host 59. Ordinary Love 60. Greenland

Click Keep Reading For My Full List

[Grade B]

61. I’m Your Woman 62. Promising Young Woman 63. Bad Education 64. La Llorona 65. Another Round 66. Valley Girl 67. Skylines 68. Malcolm & Marie 69. A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon 70. The Invisible Man 71. Da 5 Bloods 72. Underwater 73. The Way Back 74. Color Out of Space 75. Happiest Season 76. The Croods: A New Age 77. Nocturne 78. Love and Monsters 79. Superman: Man of Tomorrow 80. Sputnik 81. Enola Holmes 82. News of the World 83. Project Power 84. The Wolf of Snow Hollow 85. Hammer 86. The Empty Man 87. Bad Trip 88. Borat Subsequent Moviefilm 89. The Quarry 90. The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart 91. Vampires vs. the Bronx 92. Shadow in the Cloud

[Grade C]

93. Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga 94. The Personal History of David Copperfield 95. Bad Hair 96. Superman: Red Son 97. Scoob! 98. Land 99. On the Rocks 100. The Photograph 101. An American Pickle 102. Lost Girls & Love Hotels 103. The Broken Hearts Gallery 104. Summerland 105. Sonic the Hedgehog 106. We Summon the Darkness 107. The Beach House 108. Relic 109. Gretel & Hansel 110. Freaky 111. The United States vs. Billie Holiday 112. Black Box 113. Peninsula 114. Rebecca 115. Impractical Jokers: The Movie 116. Class Action Park 117. Downhill 118. Extraction 119. The Devil All the Time 120. The Gentlemen 121. Let Them All Talk 122. The Dark and the Wicked 123. Kajillionaire 124. Come Play 125. The Little Things 126. Unhinged 127. Dreamland 128. The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run 129. Happy Happy Joy Joy: The Ren & Stimpy Story 130. Bad Boys for Life 131. Vivarium 132. Blood Machines 133. Hubie Halloween 134. Onward 135. The Hunt 136. Ammonite 137. The Lovebirds 138. Amulet 139. The Witches 140. Fatman 141. The High Note 142. Blood Quantum 143. Cherry 144. The New Mutants

[Grade D]

145. Irresistible 146. Ava 147. You Should Have Left 148. Last Moment of Clarity 149. Justice League Dark: Apokolips War 150. Evil Eye 151. Emma. 152. The Old Guard 153. Shirley 154. The Rhythm Section 155. Bill & Ted Face the Music 156. Arkansas 157. Greed 158. Becky 159. My Spy 160. Mulan 161. Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge 162. Antebellum 163. The Tax Collector 164. Greyhound 165. Hillbilly Elegy 166. The Banker 167. Trolls World Tour 168. The Jesus Rolls 169. The Call of the Wild 170. Deathstroke: Knights & Dragons 171. The Midnight Sky

[Grade F]

172. Wonder Woman 1984 173. All My Life 174. The War with Grandpa 175. Force of Nature 176. The Night Clerk 177. The Iron Mask 178. Chick Fight 179. The Babysitter: Killer Queen 180. Capone 181. The Grudge 182. Songbird 183. Bloodshot 184. Monster Hunter 185. Above Suspicion 186. Jiu Jitsu 187. Blue Story 188. The Turning 189. Brahms: The Boy II 190. Dolittle

[Bottom 10]

191. Seberg 192. Like a Boss 193. Artemis Fowl 194. Fatale 195. Fantasy Island 196. The Lie 197. Homeward 198. Money Plane 199. Music 200. A Fall From Grace

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seventeendeer · 2 years

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it's true that valentine's day is over-commercialized and frequently made into something toxic in the name of corporate greed and forced heteronormativity, but also today I wished an online gaming server a happy valentine's day in perfectly good faith and was immediately met by a flood of frothing gamers requesting I shut the FUCK up and kill myself, and when I noted that it seemed everyone was not having a very swagalicious day of love celebration, unlike myself and my dear partner who was watching me play, they all collaboratively came to the conclusion that 1. I must be a heterosexual male (perhaps willingly overlooking the 'lass' in my username), 2. my partner must be my wife, 3. I made up my wife for gamer clout, and 4. I was a terrible husband, forcing my sweet fake little wifey to watch me play video games on a day like today

so I think we can all agree that in the end the invention of this holiday was worth it and we should keep doing it every year for as long as possible so I can continue to sadistically torment incel gamer bros with the concept and existence of human marriage

#i did try to ask them if they thought marriage wasn't real but no one was keen on giving me a direct answer for some reason #anyway i wasnt lying btw im literally living the gamer dream of being in a committed relationship with a sexy fellow gamer who #sincerely enjoys watching me play games for hours on end #they said it was no wonder the cishets thought i was male bc i had 'more casual masculine swagger' than any of them so. you knoe #we shall have a summer wedding. etc etc #suicide mention cw #valentines day

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cozycottagetarot · 3 years

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Pick A Pile: Your Next 6 Months

July - December 2021

Disclaimer: All readings and tarot/blog games are for fun and entertainment purposes only. It is in no way meant to act as or replace professional advice of any kind. You know yourself and what’s going on in your life best so I asks that you trust yourself above all else. Finally please take only what resonates from the reading which may be some of it, all of it, or none at all.

Reading Specific Disclaimer: Keep in mind this is just for fun and ultimately your actions and things you can’t control are the factors that will truly determine how the next 6 months pan out for you.

PILE 1

Theme // The Lovers Rx — Hello Pile 1! The theme for your next 6 months are all about finding your passion and building a relationship with yourself. Are you going through a rough patch right now Pile 1? Because I’m seeing you getting out of it or having a major shift by the end of the year.

July // Knight of Cups — With the knight of cups, I see you need to get your mood and mindset in check during the month of July. The energy you are in right now could be sooo much better my love. I feel like you’re holding back, there’s this brooding energy I’m picking up on. Focus on expressing yourself in some format (creatively, journaling, when talking to others) because if you do so I see you can allow yourself to begin this journey of transformation.

August // Seven of Pentacles — I’m picking up this energy you may potentially have of “when will things start to get better?” The answer— when you start putting in the work. That’s what August is about. Take some time during this month to really check your strategy at whatever it is you’re brooding about and come up with a game plan.

September // Ten of Swords Rx — So far if you’ve taken the tarot’s advice, then in September you’ll find yourself finding your momentum and strength again as the Ten of Swords Rx can signal getting off of rock bottom in a sense.

October // Ace of Pentacles — To me aces represent new beginnings. During the month of October something you’ve been manifesting (remember August?) is going to start coming thru. I’m also picking up on your financial situation improving or new financial opportunity coming through.

November // Ace of Swords — Your are going to be able to think and see things much clearer during November Pile 1. I don’t see a major ‘aha’ moment, but I do sense a subtle "oh my gosh look how well I’ve been doing" type of energy. 6 may also be a number of importance for you here too.

December // Death — Finally we’ve made it to December and I feel so much good vibes. The previous months may have been… challenging and have pushed you to grow, but when I look at the cards I see something beautiful, and I see progression. You started out, Pile 1, with the knight of cups riding forward with his/their white horse, cup in hand (an intention of sorts) and end with Death on their white horse but now a skeleton holding a flag of what we’ll call victory. I know, it sounds morbid, but the point I’m trying to make is that Death represents transitions and endings, and that is what December had in stored for you.

Oracle Card — Chant//Invoke

Yogi Tea Messages — “In every moment of life, you should be what you ought to be.” | “If we are happy, everybody looks up and shares our happiness.”

PILE 2

Theme // The Fool — Pile 2, I’m not sure the cards wanted you to know what’s in store for you over the course of the next three months. Therefore your reading is kind of short so if you have specific questions just send it in an asks. The general energy is very guarded. The fool here represents, beginnings and potential.

July // Ace of Cups — Ace of Cups is mainly about love and peace. I felt inclined to draw another card and out popped the Ten of Swords. Maybe you’ve had a not-so great experience happen recently, and July is about healing from it and trying to find a place of love and peace within yourself.

August // The Hermit — On this idea or energy, I see The Hermit as hinting that during the month of August you may find yourself doing a lot of self reflection Pile 2. I wanted to know what you were potentially doing self reflection on and out came the Six of Wands which, summarised, is about success and recognition. Self reflection on your progress maybe?

September // Death Rx — During the month of September beware of being resistant. Alternately, things maybe moving slowly and in wanting things to move faster, you maybe creating resistance to your blessings coming thru. Ultimately going with the flow.

October // Eight of Wands — I moved the eight of wands and under it was The Star which I hadn’t realised and was pleasantly surprised. With these two cards, I’m hearing if you heed death’s advice of being aware of your resistance to whatever is going on, you’ll see a sudden improvement in your situation. In October things are picking up and the things you’ve been wishing for will come to you.

November // The Chariot — One of the first things to come to me with this card was ‘faith, trust and pixie dust’. I have no idea why but maybe you do Pile 2. I see you having lots of motivation with The Chariot, finding balance, and success with a problem or situation you maybe having.

December // Four of pentacles Stability will be yours by the end of the year pile 2. However there’s an energy I’m not feeling. I pulled a card to clarify and got the Knight of Swords. Things are coming through for you in December but there is also a message to be aware that the chariot energy you’re carrying from November to December doesn’t morph into an energy stemming from greed and superiority.

Oracle Cards — Mystery//Dream & Align//Ignite

Yogi Tea Messages — “Think seriously and think honestly.” | “We are born wise, we are born complete.”

PILE 3

Theme // 10 of Swords — Have no fear pile 3, I’m reading this card as the next 6 months marking completion to a rough phase in your life.

July // 6 of Wands — Success and victory you’ve been growing and working on yourself or a creative endeavor. During July you may find yourself acknowledging your progress, or other’s may comment on how well you’re doing.

August // 8 of Swords Rx — If you have been feeling powerless or trapped Pile 3, that is going to change. You may be opening your eyes to a situation or a truth maybe revealed.

September // King of Swords — I’m seeing you stepping up and being in-charge... being more levelheaded. With the butterflied on the throne, I’m thinking maybe you were more erratic in thought or and emotion? Or maybe during September butterflied will be of importance. Honesty and good communication is also key.

October // 6 of Cups — During October you maybe taking a trip down memory lane, or indulging in old/childhood enjoyments. Someone from your past may also be showing back up in your life.

November // 10 of Pentacles — I see you coming into abundance. It could be material abundance but it doesn’t have to be. There’s also a message of keep doing what you’re doing.

December // 9 of Cups — To end the year off you maybe feeling more content and satisfied with the things you’ve been doing. Keep up the mindset you’ve seemingly come into and enjoy the good things life has to offer.

Oracle Card — Love//Empathy

Yogi Tea Messages — “People who love are giving.” | “Let your energy be used to build not destroy.”

PILE 4

Theme // 6 of Swords Rx — Pile 4, my chaotic little bunch. With the 6 of Swords reversed I feel you maybe regressing if you’re not careful.

July // 5 of Wands Rx — Here this card represents the end of conflict and moving on. I don’t know if it’s working out for you... I feel like you might just be like ‘screw it’ and move on. Throughout the reading I kept feeling like it was related to familial disagreements so for some of you that could be it.

August // The Fool — The fool is about fresh starts, potential and being carefree. While I do see that, in this reading the dog by the fool’s foot jumps out at me as a warning of sorts. While new beginnings may be in the works, be careful of making rash decisions and not thinking things through.

September // Justice — I see things as balanced for you during September Pile 4, maintain that energy of balance going forward.

October // Queen of Wands — For me this is one of my favourite cards because I see it as being in your ideal energy, being your own muse. It’s time to come into that healthy, attractive, confident, creative energy.

November // Queen of Cups Rx — Why would you be wallowing Pile 4? You were doing so well and now the cards show me you finding yourself in an upset and moody energy. This is where familial disagreements really came to me since depending where you live the holiday season really kicks off in November and potentially so does family tension. Regardless of what it is, during November you may need to show yourself some extra love and prioritize self care.

December // 5 of Swords — You’re fiery Pile 4, and I don’t see you as they type to take crap from anyone. You know your situation best and the people around you best so there are two main messages with this card. The first message being one of ‘the world doesn’t revolve around you’. While you need to put yourself first, you also need to understand your actions and decisions affects those around you. Alternately — you need to claim control your rights, your power... whatever you want to see it as. If someone is taking advantage of you, you need to break free and be able to choose yourself.

Oracle Card — Spiral//Cycle

Yogi Tea Messages — “Life is a flow of love; your participation is requested.” | “An attitude of gratitude brings opportunities.”

#pick a card #pick a pile #pick a picture #pick a card reading #tarot reading #tarot reader #tarotblr #ariesmoontarot #tarot predictions

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crowdvscritic · 2 years

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round up // DECEMBER 21

’Tis the season for Christmas favorites and squeezing in potential Best of the Year contenders. This Round Up is shorter than usual since December is for rewatching lots of Christmas favorites—you can find some all-time faves in my Letterboxd list if you’re still in the Christmas spirit. (I still am!)

The fun facts about this Round Up comes in threes…

There are two three-quels

There are three musicals

Andrew Garfield, Vanessa Hudgens, and Lin-Manuel Miranda all make more than one appearance, and you can catch them all together in one of my picks

At least three of these movies will almost certainly make my Top 10 of 2021—check back in on my January Round Up to see which ones make the cut

December Crowd-Pleasers

1. Free Guy (2021)

Ryan Reynolds further proving he is a master of the comic facial expressions. Also, I just want Joe Keery to be a movie star! Crowd: 9/10 // Critic: 6/10

2. The Running Man (1987)

Before The Hunger Games (or Squid Game), Arnold Schwarzenegger starred in a Stephen King adaptation about a life-or-death TV show in a future dystopia. It’s a spoof of consumerism and culture that wants us to entertain us to death; it’s also a solid ‘80s action-adventure. Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 6.5/10

3. Double Feature - Absolutely Bonkers Sequels With Christmas Settings: Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990) + The Princess Switch 3: Romancing the Star (2021)

Do you want Christmas movies that are shy on the schmaltz and heavy on the bonkers? These sequels are made for you! In Gremlins 2: The New Batch (Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 6.5/10), much of the original cast returns, as do those evil little buggers with a knack for destroying everything in their path. It’s somehow even more bonkers than the ’84 original, and now features a Gremlin who can talk! In The Princess Switch 3 (Crowd: 7/10 // Critic: 4/10), Vanessa Hudgens and Vanessa Hudgens and Vanessa Hudgens play a lookalike heiress, princess, and baker from Chicago, respectively. It’s the best kind of bad movie, full of over-the-top fashion, convoluted/poorly explained hijinks, and tons of Christmas decor.

4. Spider-man: No Way Home (2021)

Some of the best cotton candy you’ll ever taste. You’ll realize later there was no lasting substance for the arc of Tom Holland’s Spider-man, but gosh darn it if it wasn’t the most delicious, spectacle-filled snack. Crowd: 10/10 // Critic: 6.5/10

5. Encanto (2021)

If spending the holidays with your family has confirmed your belief that your family is both the most amazing and the most dysfunctional group out there, Encanto knows how you feel. Mirabel’s family can control the weather, grow flowers, shape shift, lift anything, cure any ailment with baking, and hear a pin drop between them. But, like all families, the Madrigals have some drama. Fortunately, we get to work through it with new music from Lin-Manuel Miranda and another solid story in the Disney canon. Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 8/10

December Critic Picks

1. House of Gucci (2021)

Gaga! Driver! Pacino! Irons! Heck, I even loved Leto in this. House of Gucci was exactly what I hoped it would be—so much so it’s one of maybe 15 movies for which I would happily watch a 3+ hour version. This fashion-filled, Italian accent-overloaded, Macbeth meets King Lear drama of greed, succession, and murder rules. Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 10/10

2. West Side Story (2021)

I wasn’t sure Steven Spielberg could pull off a worthy remake to one of my all-time favorite musicals, but this updated interpretation matched or exceeded the ‘60s classic in almost every way. (I did miss Russ Tamblyn quite a bit, though.) I suspect it’s even better when you don’t need to make an unplanned intermission for a tornado watch. Crowd: 9/10 // Critic: 10/10

3. I’ll Be Seeing You (1944)

Joseph Cotten and Ginger Rogers meet on a train over Christmas holiday and are immediately smitten, but secrets and a nosy cousin (Shirley Temple) threaten to ruin their vacation. A sweet but not-too-sentimental (and under-seen) Christmas classic. Crowd: 8/10 // Critic: 8.5/10

4. Double Feature: Being the Ricardos + TCM’s The Plot Thickens Season 3 (2021)

Guys, I’m all in on Sorkin, and I love Lucy—Being the Ricardos is for me. While it took a bit for me to warm up to Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem stepping into the pearls and coif I grew up watching in reruns, they won me over in their portrayal of all the drama behind one of the great sitcoms. Listen to TCM’s third season of their podcast all about Lucille Ball to learn how accurate Sorkin’s take on this season of her life is. Crowd: 8.5/10 // Critic: 9/10

5. tick, tick…BOOM! (2021)

Yes, this taps into my I’m-almost-30-and-what-have-I-actually-done-with-my-life anxiety, but Andrew Garfield and Lin-Manuel Miranda are affirming why they’re both big winners of 2021, and Jonathan Larson’s musical is full of music you’ll want to listen to again and again. Bonus: Vanessa Hudgens reminds me why I want the High School Musical squad in tons of musicals! Crowd: 8/10 // Critic: 9/10

Also this December…

On SO IT’S A SHOW?, Kyla and I got smart with Get Smart in the season 5 finale of Gilmore Girls. It’s a a James Bond spoof that is still making us laugh today. So put down your shoe phone—unless that’s how you listen to podcasts—and join us for a discussion of spies, robots, KAOS, brainwashed dogs, switched briefcases, lots of apologies to the Chief, and a couple that likes to steal yachts for date night.

I checked out Finch and The Mitchells vs. the Machines in my quest to watch buzzy 2021 movies before the end of the year. They didn’t make the cut for my Round Ups, but it did inspire me to make a Letterboxd list of movies with notable St. Louis moments since my hometown appeared in both of those films.

Photo credits: IMDb.com.

#Round Up #tick tick...BOOM!#Being the Ricardos #I'll Be Seeing You #West Side Story #House of Gucci #Encanto #Spider-man: No Way Home #Gremlins 2: The New Batch #The Princess Switch 3: Romancing the Star #The Running Man #Free Guy #Turner Classic Movies

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judyhopps934-mt-zd · 3 years

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Thoughts on Miraculous Shanghai: The Legend of Lady Dragon

Warning: Spoilers! Other than that, have fun!

Also, if you want to watch the full English Dub, click here!

I love how we saw Fei's backstory as to how she became guardian of the Prodigious and how it was actually stolen because there are people who want money from her adoptive father's studio. It was also sad to see that the values her father implemented into her fade due to the circumstances they found themselves in. I speak for all of us to say that this girl needs a hug.

The intro as always is beautiful! Since it was not the first thing we saw, I was confused when looking through the episodes on YT.

I always enjoy Marinette's monologues, and this one was over how she looked forward to her holiday (it was like a vacation type thing). And how she looked forward to spend time with Adrien since his father was going to let him out. It was all perfect...

...until she went to deliver Uncle Wang's package and found out Adrien left for Shanghai at the last minute. But all is good though because she could go to Shanghai, deliver the gift personally, and see Adrien.

It hurts me to see that the writers made Marinette's purpose to go to Shanghai is to see Adrien when she can do that in Paris! It frustrates me that her character development goes back to square one, even as the protagonist of the show. People might point out this was before season 3, but I have a few points that say otherwise or that the writers are mixing things up. But first, the plot points and thoughts of everything else.

Also, I get that Marinette is 14/15/16 at the time of this episode, but how likely is it to send your child on their own halfway across the world??? On SHORT NOTICE??? I swear Sabine and Tom are too chill with this, but then again, there would be no story.

Also, I love how Ladybug and Chat Noir took the opportunity of their patrols without akumas to bond more. The Ladynoir in this episode I stan!

Gabriel you piece of trash! If you did not plan to spend time with your son, why take him to Shanghai when he was hoping to spend time with you?! And do not say "for business purposes" because even though Adrien is a face in the brand, at least don't give him false hope and that bs!

Nooro, thank you for trying to talk Gabriel out of it, but he is literally a wall (talking to Gabriel=talking to a wall)

I will say, the waiting for 15 years thing is very concerning.

Uncle Wang has been looking forward to see Marinette in person in Shanghai to learn more about her roots. He is ecstatic and its just heartwarming and heartbreaking when you think that part of Marinette's stay will be related to Adrien.

At least we see one thing that makes Marinette's stay not all about Adrien though: she is genuinely interested in her origins! Like when she asks about her family's traditional songs and about her mom, even learning her real name!

Speaking of which, Sabine's name is Xia Ping and only called herself Sabine when she started living in France. Also, I love her photo!

Bastille the bird that was around since forever is an icon!

Also, I can't believe Uncle Wang has not taken a break since Sabine moved to France, like what the hell??? Give this guy a break for goodness sake.

Thank you Gabriel for having one brain cell and allowing your son to leave the hotel! We still hate you for everything else though.

Its cool that Kwamis speak all of the languages. It is also the most logical thing because their wielder could be from anywhere. My question is are they taught the languages, does it form when a concept forms in the universe and they start existing, or like everything else is it magic?

Gorilla is iconic for two reasons: he is still a self care king, and he was willing to give Adrien some space to get action figures.

And now as I wrote that, this is where I am getting confused and start to believe this is post season 3: 1) Gorilla seems less anxious about being in a new place (unlike NY where he stayed in the hotel room the entire time), and 2) His obsession for action figures was shown in Party Crasher (season 3), which makes me wonder if the explanation is during season 3 or this episode hints at season 3. For the first point, it could be because Gabriel was not in NY to his knowledge.

Fei appears again and explains how she views the world and how she also uses that to help and take advantage of others.

She almost steals Adrien's phone and miraculous until Gorilla steps in. It hurts me because she is a good person but had to resort to stealing for a reason that we will explore soon.

Plagg, we always say your stomach causes trouble, but this time, you brought Adrien to Marinette's uncle...

...but also that ironically separated them as Marinette found them just as they climbed into the taxi.

This is also where Fei (wearing a disguise) crosses paths with Marinette and steals her purse. Then she went for the kwagatama and miraculous.

Things get worse for Fei as these boys that took a photo with Adrien earlier started chasing her. Then Marinette started going after them.

That is when she realized she was robbed and understandably, she was more horrified of losing her Miraculous.

Adrien shows up to Uncle Wang's home/restaurant. So many iconic moments happen.

1) Bastille says something about love between Marinette and Adrien. And Adrien responds with the line that makes us want to jump into the TV and talk some sense into him.

2) You say that "she's JuST a fRIenD" yet you stay over with her mom's uncle so you can surprise her lol. Adrien, you kill me and every other Adrienette fan with this contradicting statements.

Speaking of Marinette, she gets lost and has trouble communicating with others because she does not speak Chinese. And at some point says that she regrets not taking lessons?! Uh, what does this imply, that she refused lessons or that she did not have the opportunity for lessons??????? I NEED ANSWERS!

Can we say once again how talented and artistic Marinette is? Bad time? Moving on!

Uncle Wang is unaware of Marinette's tardiness, and Adrien just jokes about it. Considering that she is technically missing (reality is that she's lost), I don't think its time to joke about it.

The lady that gave Marinette some earrings that look like the Miraculous is so nice and bless her soul

The person from the pawn shop is the bad guy that we see at the very end of the NY special! And he knows about what happened to Fei's father! I am grateful that he sees no value in Marinette's stuff so he won't sell it for a lot, but I hate how he's greedy for money and was willing to exploit Fei's hunger for answers and Marinette needing her miraculous for personal gains.

Meanwhile, the boys from the photo with Adrien that chased Fei were trying to get Marinette's attention (they found her kwagatama when Fei dropped it running away and fighting them), but she thought they were gonna attack her. And then she bumps into Fei, who helps her escape.

Marinette finds comfort in Fei for being willing to "help" her (remember that she was gonna bring her to the pawn shop). She also finds Fei as a helpful, kind person who is brave: something that Fei does not see in herself, but does not have the heart to tell Marinette the truth.

Meanwhile, Chat has transformed to find Marinette and its the most endearing thing I've seen! Adrien, you blind oblivious fool! You care about her more than you think!

They arrive in the pawn shop, Tikki escaped the claw machine, and Marinette finds the earrings...for 100000 Yuan.

Fei, understanding what its like to have something entrusted to you be stolen, gets in a spat with the pawn shop owner in Chinese, accusing the owner for greed and accusing Fei for theft, while Marinette just stands her.

Also, when did Marinette become naive???????? I get that she's in another country and they are speaking in a different language that she does not understand, but based on the tone of their voices and shouting, I feel like she should have sensed something was off.

Fei swaps the earrings the lady gave Marinette and took the miraculous back. To the lady, this is why your soul is blessed. So bless your soul!!!

Apparently, Marinette realized what happened and said that Fei stole her earrings and feels bad for the man. Girl, you do not have to feel guilty for the man! He was about to destroy them before he thought about sentimental value! Also, he did not pay Fei anything for them! (Felt that this should be brought up because even though Fei was wrong in stealing her stuff, she was also robbed from potential cash and answers, therefore the man was owed nothing.)

The boys from Adrien's photo are actually vigilantes of Shanghai (and will be referred as such from now on), wanting to bring Fei to justice for stealing, which catches Marinette's attention, but not enough to ask any questions.

Also Marinette is not wanted as a criminal. She is missing as Uncle Wang called the police.

Fei still lives in the school, which has been in ruins. Despite not having much, she still offers Marinette a cup of what I believe is water (or tea?). See peoples, Fei is a good person at heart (if y'all aren't aware of it by now)

Gabriel saw and recognized Marinette. This is horrifying and if it is prior to season 3, we see why he tries so hard to target her. Or reasons why he targets her in season 4 along with everything else we know from "Truth".

Fei should have been given the chance to explain why she stole Marinette's things, but the pawn shop owner was like "you know, I might as well expose Fei myself"...

...and it really broke Marinette, who heavily trusted her. But she can't dwell on it for long...

...because AKUMA COMES FOR THE PAWN SHOP OWNER! AND HIS FAN SHOOTS KNIVES! AND HAS GREEDY MOTIVES! AND HELPED HAWKMOTH GET INTI THE CAVE WITH THE PRODIGIOUS!!!

Also, Nathalie was involved in obtaining the bracelet years ago. Again, the 15 years thing is concerning.

Marinette flees to transform, but not without telling Fei how she broke her trust and how she feels that Feinwas not genuinely helping her. It hurt me so much!

Ladybug transforms, hears Chat's voice-mail (to which she is swooned by the fact her kitty cares for her civilian self), and calls him. The best Ladynoir scene so far!

So the prodigious is like a jewel with powers, there is only one prodigious from what we see, and that one prodigious has multiple renlings that only the wielder can see. Oh, and the bracelet is like a key. Cool.

I don't like how Fei's Lady Dragon outfit looks whitewashed, but at least her hair is red instead of blonde (which still does not make this okay)

Epic Showdown between the akuma, Hawkmoth, Ladybug, and Lady Dragon. Hawkmoth corners Ladybug and Lady Dragon gets caught in some rocks.. All hope seemed lost...

...until Chat shows up and frees the akuma with the help of a basketball.

We learn something new folks: the same butterfly can create a different akuma. This is very frightening because...

The statue that determines who is worthy of the prodigious gets akumatized! The horror!

Also, if the statue says Fei cannot become the dragon because her intention to seek vengeance for her father is not noble and worthy, then what makes Hawkmoth think he will be successful in becoming the dragon??? Because it seems that his intentions are not pure or noble. Just saying.

Hawkmoth notices the akumatized statue heading to the city and all of a sudden remembers about Adrien. Confronting the statue, he gets turned into ashes(?).

CHAT, HAWKMOTH IN ASHES WOULD HAVE BEEN FOR THE BETTER IF THE STATUE DID NOT DESTROY SHANGHAI AND YOU WOULD NOT THINK AS SUCH IF YOU KNEW HE WAS YOUR FATHER! But I am not mad at you, just wanted to point out your irony.

ML WRITERS, WHY DO YOU KEEP KILLING OFF CHAT????? LADYBUG DOES NOT NEED ANY MORE TRAUMA AND THAT WAS COMPLETELY UNNECESSARY!!!! I AM SCREAMING INSIDE!!!!!

Fei is understandably upset and blames herself for what happen. I want to hug her so badly.

Marinette reassures Fei and forgives her, even though Fei felt that she could not be forgiven.

The structure they were standing on collapses and it was Fei as the Dragon who saved her, not Chat. Honestly, I love how it turned out as it strengthens their friendship, but I still prefer a Marichat alternative. WHERE IS THE MARICHAT PEOPLES???

Final showdown!

Poor statue guard was upset about the damage they caused as an akuma, but Miraculous Ladybiug fixes everything.

Fei learned an important lesson: let justice take its course, not enact revenge. But it was quite funny to have the pawn shop owner be flown away to court in a literal sense.

The bracelet has a renling-like creature, who is just so adorable, especially since they missed Fei and was waiting for the day they would be reunited. Aww!

Ladynoir version of the Moon scene from NYC! Except no dancing, just them challenging each other over who will get to Paris first if they traveled in opposite directions. No one shall ever know we were in Shanghai as civilians lol (Reminds me of my best friend when eating grapes during choral rehearsals)

Marinette, Adrien, Fei, and Uncle Wang enjoying a birthday (?) dinner was wholesome.

I love how Uncle Wang calls them boyfriend and girlfriend because of how they act around each other, yet Marinette and Adrien both deny it. Bruh, these children need to open their fricking eyes! I really wanted to jump through my phone screen!

The Shanghai Vigilantes came to return Marinette's kwagatama necklace. They are so precious even though we thought they were enemies in the trailer.

Even though they were at odds at first, love how the Vigilantes blushed when Fei played the accordion and she's just like "whatever". I stan an asexual queen.

Do I even want to know what Marinette accidentally said when she mispronounced "sister" in Chinese? Based on what Fei said, probably not.

Uh...NOW I WANT TO SEE MORE OF ADRIEN TEACHING MARINETTE CHINESE! While I do take some issue of Adrien (a white French boy) teaching Marinette her culture like most of us had issue with in "Kung Food", I also want to see them interact outside of school and hopefully bond. ML writers need to keep their word otherwise Adrienette stans will riot!

Love how the final scene turned out! Its just *chef's kisses*

Also, the hell with the business trip?? It was mentioned once again IN THE ENDCARD! It might not be as interesting, but I want to think that there was more truth to it.

Also, wifi troubles kept interrupting the show at crucial moments, but okay.

Overall, I live for the Shanghai episode! The animation is just as incredible as the NY special (which I also live for) and I love how this episode has a great focus on Fei and the prodigious. I mean, before the intro, she tells her story. And she has her monologues alongside Marinette's. In many ways, it's refreshing. Also, Ladynoir and Adrienette stans will be satiated with the scenes associated with each ship. Also, I love Fei's character development! And the final scene is wholesome!

I won't lie though: there are a few issues regarding whitewashing Fei's transformation and such. It is important to see these things and as a good friend of mine always says: you can enjoy something while also being critical of it. And that is very important no matter how devotive to something you actually are.

Anyways, we are being well fed with all the Miraculous content and I will see you all very soon! Also, get some sleep peoples! I know some of you aren't sleeping!

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mlqctranslations · 3 years

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Victor 偏爱 SP Date

Reposted from my instagram account, @mlqc_translations!

Chapter 1

The car stopped in front of the familiar white mansion. Victor and I took the gifts out of the trunk, and then rang the doorbell. The door was soon thrown open, and Victor's aunt appeared.

Aunt: Ah, you're finally here!

Victor: ...Aunt. MC: Hi aunt! I'm here to disturb again! Aunt: Don't be silly, of course not! Come in, come in! We walked into the living room. The faint smell of tea was in the air, the TV was playing quietly, and everything was the same as I remembered. Aunt: Brother, Victor and MC are here! MC: Hello! Happy New Year! Setting down the teapot, Mr. Li nodded and smiled at us. On the night before spring festival, Victor's aunt had called and invited us to spend the new year at the mansion. The memory of coincidentally spending New Year's at Mr. Li's home was still fresh in my head. Thinking of this warm memory, I had carefully selected appropriate gifts. We chatted for a little while, and then Victor's aunt got up to add more water to the teapot. Mr. Li stood up and called out. Mr.Li: Victor, help me get something from the balcony, will you? Victor: Sure. He agreed, and then looked at me. Before he said anything, Aunt grabbed my hand. Aunt: You can go, I'll chat with her a bit! She moved closer to me, and finally started speaking when the men were out of sight, smiling at me warmly. Aunt: Let me take a look at you. I think your complexion has gotten better. Have you been taking care of yourself? MC: Thanks, but I don't think I did anything special. I think I just ate pretty good these days. I laughed awkwardly when I saw her confused look. MC: Victor is really good at cooking, I always eat a lot...... Victor's aunt patted the back of my hand and started laughing. Aunt: No need to be polite with him, if you like it, tell him to make more! Aunt: Hm...if it's like this...I guess Victor doesn't bully you anymore? MC: Thanks to him always bullying me before, I'm not scared of any kind of work now. Aunt: He was like this since he was a child. His actions always different from what he says and feels. Once you get used to it, though, it's kind of cute! MC: Yeah. Even though sometimes his tone isn't very good, he's never really hated me or disliked me in any way. Actually, a lot of the time, he's helping me tirelessly. The big and small events of daily life, he would always worry for me...... MC: I always feel very safe around him. It was quiet for a few seconds, and I looked up to Victor's aunt instinctively. She was staring at me with a mix of surprise and joy. I realized what I had said, and instantly felt my face heat up and turn red. MC: I'm sorry... I said too much, didn't I...... She was about to say something when I heard footsteps behind me. I turned around, and locked eyes with Victor. Victor: It looks like I've interrupted you. Aunt: No, no, you came at just the right time! Brother, stop occupying Victor, let the young people speak to each other! Victor's aunt winked at me and stood up, bringing Mr. Li away. Victor walked towards the kitchen, and I followed. Victor: Then I'll take care of supper. MC: I'll help! Once we were in the kitchen, Victor handed me some vegetables. Victor: Did you have fun talking with my aunt? MC: Yeah. We talked about you! Victor: Hm. A certain snappy and grouchy person suddenly starts giving out compliments? I gave a small start, and looked up at him nervously while I was washing the vegetables. MC: Y-You heard? Victor: Just a bit. MC: Then what are your thoughts after hearing such sincere compliments? Victor: Definitely the kind that only you would give. Most of it is just facts, though, so it doesn't really count as a compliment. I looked at the faint smile in his eyes and pouted, unsatisfied. MC: It looks like I've said too many good things about you. You're already used to it. Before, you would be surprised for a bit and ask me if I really mean it. Victor: All your thoughts are written all over your face. Of course I can tell if you mean it or not. He glanced at me, and I knew how red my face must be right now. Still, however, Victor was calm, and didn't seem flustered at all. Perhaps it's because he can tell what I'm thinking. Whenever I prepare some sort of surprise, he can always expect it. ...If I think about it, I haven't seen Victor embarrassed or flustered because of me in a long time. I gave a huff and shook the water droplets off of the vegetables. It's so unfair to have only me blush and my heartbeat to go wild.

A new year, a new start, I want to see a new side of Victor!

Chapter 2

After a while, Victor's aunt walked in and set a bottle of red wine and a decanter on the countertop. Since Victor was cutting up the vegetables. I took the wine and tried to start decanting it. Victor's aunt watched me, her eyes following my movements, and then moved closer to whisper in my ear, "You're very familiar with this!" MC: It was all learned from Victor. Aunt: You like drinking wine? I instinctively turned to look at Victor, but he didn't seem to be listening. MC: Well...actually, I'm not that good with alcohol. I can't drink much. Aunt: That's okay, we'll drink a little less later, then. It's a holiday, you gotta live a little! MC: But... Aunt: Don't worry about him stopping you. This time, I'll cover you! She patted me on the back and left the kitchen. Now, all I could hear was the faint bubbling of the soup on the stove. I leaned against the counter, facing Victor, bringing up what his aunt had said on purpose. MC: She said I can drink wine with you today. Victor: Yeah. MC: I promise I'll just drink a little bit. I won't embarrass you today. Victor: Didn't she say she'll cover you? No need to report to me. MC: ...... Nothing escapes his ears! I furrowed my brows and watched out of the corner of my eye as Victor took out a few pieces of rock sugar from a glass jar and added it to the pot. There were also a few wine glasses nearby. I looked around, ready to seize the chance to get him back. I picked up a wine glass and poured wine from the decanter into it, handing it to Victor. MC: Want to see if it tastes good? Victor: ...You've only decanted it for five minutes. MC: Is CEO Victor afraid of the wine tasting sour? Victor looked at my smirking face and took the wine, swirling it in the glass a few times. Victor: What, are you trying to make me drunk first so you won't be laughed at later when you're drunk? MC: It's just a little. You won't be drunk. Victor studied me for a while but still drank the wine. When I saw him wrinkle his nose, I took a piece of rock sugar from the jar he was using, held onto it with my mouth, and stood on my tip-toes to be able to reach his lips. Victor: ...! He froze, and I pushed away his hand holding the wine glass and moved even closer. My feet began to feel sore, but the man in front of me still didn't bend down and do what I wanted. I tried to maintain my balance with difficulty, and then blinked at Victor aggressively. He raised an eyebrow and finally lowered his head and bent down. I raised my head to meet him, but accidentally bumped into the corner of his mouth instead. I tried to bite down on the piece of sugar, but all that was left in my mouth was a few tiny sugar crumbs. The rock sugar fell and landed on the ground with a small thud. MC: ...... Victor: ...... We stared at each other for a while. I tried to ignore my reddening cheeks, and stepped backwards with an air of forced calmness. I picked up the sugar on the ground and tossed it into the trash, then turned around and returned to the sink, my back turned towards Victor, and started to prepare the lettuce for supper. Victor: MC. Before he could say anything, I instantly raised a hand to stop him. MC: F-First let me calm down, right now I...! Before I even finished my sentence, someone grabbed my wrist and pulled me backwards. My eyes widened, and I stared at the man in front of me. His warm lips stopped me from crying out in surprise, and I was suddenly enveloped in his scent. My mind suddenly went blank and I instinctively tried to push him away, but Victor held onto me tightly, one hand at my waist. I couldn't move at all. Victor: The wine wasn't good, I didn't get to eat the sugar, and you want to run away just like that? MC: Wait! Mr. Li and your aunt...they're still in the living room! Victor: I'd have thought you remembered this when you got the sugar. His lips were basically against mine when he said this, and then I felt them over my mouth again. I could smell the faint fragrance of red wine. The sounds in my ears all disappeared, only leaving the sound of my own frantic heartbeats. It was as if the world would no longer moved. No one would know what was happening in this quiet corner. The crumbs of sugar on my lips and the sweetness on my tongue were taken from me by Victor, and I was reminded by the meaning of this sudden kiss. His actions were gentle and slow, but I could taste a hint of greed and possessiveness. I was finally able to breathe in the cool air when my tongue started to feel numb. Victor's hand caressed my cheek tenderly and then he gave a soft laugh. Victor: Looks like your ability with wine and intelligence both didn't improve. You've only tasted a little...but you're already blushing? His voice made me conscious of what was happening, and I quickly stepped back. MC: T-This isn't related to anything like that! You... This is against the rules!! Victor: You were the one who started it, how could you push the blame onto me? Did you forget the things you did so quickly? MC: I- I was going to protest, but then I started to hear the background noise that had once faded away when Victor had kissed me. Victor, however, still held me in his arms, smiling and waiting for me to finish my sentence. Meeting his teasing gaze, I opened my mouth to speak but found I couldn't say anything. The awkward silence was interrupted by the sound of footsteps. Aunt: MC, come over here and take a break! MC: Oh, okay! I jumped, surprised, and instantly ducked under Victor's arm, heading towards her. Everything happened so suddenly. Why is it only me who gets flustered? Victor was still calm and collected. I felt a little dejected and told myself not to try something so daring next time. Operation Rock Sugar had failed. When the housekeeper walked into the kitchen, Victor was carefully preparing the shrimp. When he heard the footsteps behind him, he turned around and greeted her. Victor: ...Mrs. Wang. Mrs.Wang: I've come to lend a hand, since the young lady was called away. Victor: Thank you. I appreciate you staying here to help out, even though it's the spring festival. Mrs.Wang: Oh, it's nothing! I'm by myself on New Year's anyways, so I'm quite content with staying here, where everything is so much more lively. I barely help anyways--you cook so much better. Victor: I'm honoured to hear that you like my cooking, but the food you make is loved by the whole family, no matter how you make it. Victor: You know, I don't come home very often, so it's quite natural that I should prepare a meal for them.

The housekeeper motioned in the direction of the living room. Mrs.Wang: When they heard that you were coming with her, your dad and your aunt were overjoyed! Your dad even bought new plants for the living room! Victor: He probably just wants to garden more. Mrs.Wang: Ah, but I've heard that if you keep plants at home, it's good for developing feelings! Victor smiled but didn't answer. Mrs.Wang: You have to believe it! See, didn't something good happen? She laughed and pointed to the corner of Victor's mouth. Victor looked startled and brushed the back of his hand over his mouth. There was a faint red streak on his skin. .....it's the lipstick that hasn't been wiped clean. Victor coughed, looking awkward and self-conscious as he thought back to what had happened before. Victor: ...Mrs. Wang, please don't inform my father of this. Mrs.Wang: Ah, but it's perfectly normal with young people! She smiled and then lowered her voice. Mrs.Wang: Victor, do you usually cook for that young lady? Victor: .....Yeah. She's often busy with work, and she doesn't cook very well, either. She always tries to get her meals from me. Mrs.Wang: Then she must love your cooking! Victor gave a soft laugh. Victor: She isn't very picky. She tells me that everything I make is delicious. When she's hungry, she may complain about this, about that, but she forgets all that when she's full. She really is very easily satisfied... The soup on the stove had started boiling, making loud sounds, and Victor's words were interrupted. He seemed to realize what he had been saying, and instinctively turned to look at the housekeeper.

She was smiling at him, staring at him wordlessly. Victor: Mrs. Wang, I... Mrs.Wang: It's totally fine, totally okay, no need to be embarrassed! You always put a lot of effort into everything. She can notice that, you know! That's why she's satisfied!

Mrs.Wang: I don't understand any big laws of life, but even I can still tell that making food for someone you love gives great happiness. If that certain someone also enjoys your food, it's double the happiness. Don't you think so? Victor avoided her gaze but nodded his head in agreement. Victor: Yes, you're right. He didn't say anything else, and finished preparing the shrimp. Then, he smiled to himself.

He turned his head to look in the direction of the living room. A porcelain flower pot was faced towards the balcony, a couple of small flowers sprinkled among the green leaves.

Many people want important incidents to have beautiful meaning. Victor, however, knew that, even without that radiant significance, he would hold her hand tightly and never let go. Victor: Mrs. Wang, what kind of flowers did my father buy? Mrs.Wang: Orchids, why? Victor: Nothing. Victor: If he likes it, he can keep it.

Chapter 3

After supper, the four of us started playing mahjong. We played a few rounds, and then the two older people began to feel tired. Before going upstairs, Mr. Li turned to me. Mr.Li: MC, the spare room is ready for you. You can go right over once you feel sleepy. MC: Okay, thank you!

Victor and I were afraid to disturb them by staying up too late, so we both got ready for bed. After washing up, I passed Victor's bedroom. Faint light was shining through the space between the door and the door frame. He didn't seem to be asleep yet. I knocked on the door, and then pushed it open, sticking my head in to see what he was doing. Victor was sitting on the couch, looking at his laptop. When he saw me peek into his room, he shut the laptop and got up. Victor: Come in. You drank wine today. Are you feeling sick or uncomfortable at all? MC: No, I'm fine. Today's wine was great. You were right in deciding how long it should be decanted. I shut the door and looked around his room curiously. The bedroom was neat and tidy, but I couldn't see many traces of anyone living here. The bookshelves and desk contained many books from student times, and there was a jump rope nearby. All of this didn't seem like it would fit with the Victor in front of me, yet it also seemed to somehow make sense. MC: Victor, you used to live here? Victor: I've always lived in Loveland city. When my father moved here, he brought my belongings here as well. MC: So, that means this room is some kind of "storage area" for you? Victor: Basically. I walked over to the desk, looking at the neatly organized books, and carefully touched the supplies on his desk. MC: Who would have thought. The CEO used to have the same life as me when he was a student. Victor: Would it be anything different? MC: We both took the same classes. Why is that you're so much better than me when we're all grown up? I looked away, pouting, and then caught sight of a few thick dictionaries on the shelf. The red cover of an idioms book caught my attention. I felt instantly excited, and turned back towards Victor, clearing my throat. MC: Victor, I'm going to test you. What's the fourth idiom of the sixteenth page of this book? Victor: What are you talking about? MC: You always love to use idioms when you speak, so I've always thought that you memorized this idioms textbook. Victor: ...... Victor sighed, sounding exasperated. He didn't answer me, but forced me to sit down on the couch. MC: ?? Victor: I knew you were drunk. MC: I'm not drunk! Victor: That's what all drunk people say. I looked at him defiantly. MC: You drank a lot with your dad. Are you drunk? Victor: No. MC: That's what all drunk people say. I copied his tone and repeated his words back to him. Victor looked at me in resignation. Victor: If I were drunk, who would take care of the tipsy idiot? MC: ...Wait, you were awake all this time because you were waiting for... me? Victor: You only realized now? I knew you wouldn't go back to your room that easily so I left the door open. My heart felt warm and happy when he said that. I took Victor's hand, laughing softly. MC: Then are you planning to have me stay here? Victor: As long as you don't wreak havoc, sure, I'm fine with that. MC: I'm not drunk, I wouldn't wreak havoc! Plus, this room is filled with your past. I want to get to know it better. He stared at me for a while, and then finally gave in. Victor crouched down and wrapped his fingers around my hand. Victor: Go on, what do you want to know better? I raised my head, looking around the room, and my gaze landed on a medal standing on the desk. MC: What's this? What award did you get? Victor: The allied nations meeting simulation award. MC: Wow, impressive! I've heard of this contest before. Apparently it's already difficult to get in, but you even won! Victor: If I think about it now, I suggested quite a naive plan. It probably helped with training my critical thinking, though. I made a face at his know-it-all comment, but then turned my attention to another object. MC: What's that dark blue folder for? Victor: The school gave it to me. I think it's some sort of student committee note taking folder. MC: As expected of CEO Victor. You were a leader ever since birth...

I continued looking around the room, and I suddenly saw an object in the corner that was out of my expectation. A memory in my mind was suddenly brought to the surface, and I widened my eyes in surprise and joy. I walked over to the box in the corner and fished out a ball, nearly empty of air. I held it up triumphantly to Victor's face. MC: It looks like you really love soccer! You've still kept it until now... Victor: I only liked it when I was really young. MC: But still, it's thanks to this soccer ball that I could eat the pudding you made. Victor: You only remember the pudding? MC: Of course not, I remember many details! For example, the shape of that sandcastle you destroyed...the weather of that day...the colours of the water bottles sitting in a row, under the tree...... I suddenly thought of something, and stuffed the soccer ball into Victor's hands. I brought my hands up to his face, cupping it in my palms. MC: But still, what I remember most clearly is the nervous you, at a loss for what to do. You weren't such a serious Victor back then. Your height was...maybe about up to your chest? Your hair was a little curlier back then, and you were kind of chubby...... MC: You were the adorable big brother Victor! I drew patterns on his face with my fingertips as I spoke, laughing in a silly sort of way. Victor watched me silently, not reacting at all to my words. I felt the temperature under my palms rise, and I moved in closer to stare at him, slightly bewildered. His pupils dilated for a second. MC: Victor? What happened? Victor seemed to realize that he was rooted to the spot and instantly stepped back, tossing the soccer ball back in the box. Victor: ...It's nothing. It's late, you should go sleep. We're returning to Loveland city tomorrow. MC: Then can I sleep on your couch? Victor: No. Go back to your room. MC: But you just said I could stay for the night... Victor: I changed my mind. He was avoiding my gaze. I seemed to understand something, so I turned and faced my back towards him. MC: You're misleading me. You've always said "If you want to convince someone, you need to bring out an appropriate reason." Victor: ...... MC: But if you're feeling too embarrassed, I can understand. Victor: Why would I be embarrassed? When I heard his awkward tone, I smirked sightly and then turned around and grabbed him. MC: If so, then I'll take it that you agreed! I could hear his heavy breathing, and it was as if he were suppressing something and trying to control himself. I turned my head, but then caught sight of the roaring, complicated emotions in his eyes. A second later, I was enveloped in his arms and trapped against the bed. The emotions in his eyes were mixed into the embrace. Victor: You said you wanted to stay. MC: I- Victor: You really talk a lot today. He lowered his head, biting my lip as if it were a punishment for rambling on and on. His teeth glided over my lip and I let out a small noise of pain. He loosened his hold on me and touched my lips with his finger. Victor: Shh. My dad's a light sleeper. Don't wake him up. I stared at him, realizing that the bedrooms weren't far away from each other, and instantly turned red, covering my mouth. MC: W-Why didn't you say that earlier? Victor: Well, now you know. I glared at Victor, but this didn't stop him from doing what he originally had wanted to do. He moved my nervous hands away from my mouth, grasped the back of my neck with one hand, and slightly tilted my head upwards. He leaned down towards me again. This time, his movements were gentle, brushing his tongue over my lips and causing a hot, tingling, irresistible sensation. The feeling seemed to unfurl into every corner of my body. My mouth was slightly aching from his actions. The air seemed to thin around us as our breaths mingled and we breathed in each other's warmth. I felt slightly dizzy, and my hands clutched at his shirt as I subconsciously reached for something to hold onto. My body was trapped, and I was forced to go along with his actions. With every second, however, I sank more into the kiss and followed his lead willingly. I could hear the ticking of the clock. Victor didn't stop time like he had done in the daytime. I didn't have the energy to worry or think about the world around us, anyways. Our movements left our clothes a creased and wrinkled mess, and the necklace at my throat slid to the side, landing on the bed with an almost unnoticeable sound. The small sound seemed to snap him back to reality, and he ended the kiss, nuzzling his nose against my cheek. The sound of our breathing filled the quiet room. We stared at each other for a second, and then suddenly Victor turned his face away, getting off the bed. I was still holding on to the fabric of his shirt. He paused, and then gently pulled my hand off his clothes. MC: Victor...... Victor: ...Go to sleep. MC: What? Victor: You can sleep here. I'll go to the guest room. He didn't give me any time to react, and hurried out of the room without so much as a backwards glance. I froze for a while, and then moved myself into a sitting position, staring at the door. I opened my hand and stared at my palm, thinking back to the warmth I felt when I touched his face. Was he...blushing? Was it because of this kiss? But...he was totally fine with the one we shared in the daytime. Even though I didn't know the exact reason for his embarrassment, I felt a bit triumphant. MC: So. You could be flustered as well.

Chapter 4

The morning sun shone through the car window and I instinctively raised an arm to block the light from my face. I couldn't stop thinking about the embarrassed Victor last night, so I didn't get much sleep. The tiredness and fatigue still remained until today, so I decided to rest on the car ride back home. Oddly enough, Victor didn't say anything about my decision to sleep on the car, and played soft, relaxing music for the ride home. After a period of time, the car finally stopped. The bright sunlight falling over my eyelids was partially covered, and I could smell a familiar scent around me. Victor: MC, wake up. We're here. I lifted my heavy eyelids, still exhausted, and discovered that the surroundings weren't familiar. A cottage was sitting beside the quiet road. A fence ran along the front of the house, tracing out the edge of a garden bursting with life. If you looked carefully, there weren't many weeds or fallen leaves in the garden. It seemed that someone has tended to it recently. MC: Where are we? Aren't we going home? Victor: This is my house on the outskirts of the city. My family stays here when they occasionally visit.

Victor: My dad had someone come over to fix the plumbing before spring festival. He cleaned this place up a bit while the pipes were being repaired, and told me to bring you over so you could rest here for a few days. Victor opened the front door, and I looked around at the space in wonder. It was in the same neat, minimalist design of Victor's house, but the colours were warmer and the house felt cozier. Sunlight was pouring out of a floor-to-ceiling window, filling every corner with a soft glow. The view beyond the window was filled with lush green colours, a few clusters of multiflora roses appeared occasionally among the plants. MC: It's so beautiful...thanks, Mr. Li and CEO Victor. I yawned again. Victor took my suitcase and led me to the bedroom. Victor: I'll give you the full tour once you're not half asleep. Go rest. Call me if there's anything you need. MC: Okay. I cleaned up the room a little bit, and then opened my suitcase to get my pyjamas, but they were nowhere to be found. I tried to think back to the morning, when I packed my suitcase, but couldn't remember anything, as I was too sleepy to care at that time. MC: I slept in Victor's room last night...did I put my pyjamas in the wrong suitcase? I decided to go and ask him. MC: Victor, where are you? Victor: Over here. His voice came from behind a door close by. I walked over, pushing it open, and then stood there, momentarily stunned. There was a huge walk-in closet with clothes and accessories neatly sorted in the surrounding drawers and wardrobes. Victor was standing in front of one of the closets, the light illuminating the side of his face. He had changed into a loose-fitting robe, the belt tied casually at his waist. The soft fabric was draped over his skin, showing the clear and defined lines of his figure. He hadn't been able to fix his robe yet, and his chest was bare. His strong muscles contrasted to the dark coloured fabric. My heartbeat sped up uncontrollably, and I stood there, not knowing what to do. My eyes were glued to his body. Victor: What's wrong? I realized what I was doing, and swallowed before starting to speak. MC: Um...I can't find my pyjamas. I think it's in the wrong suitcase. Victor: Oh, then I'll go check mine. He turned to walk out, and I caught sight of a stack of neatly folded shirts. An idea popped into my head, and I quickly stopped Victor. MC: Wait! I...I think I remember getting it dirty. Can I borrow something from here? Victor: ...You don't even behave when it's time to sleep. He still searched around in the wardrobe and passed me a white shirt. Victor: This one's soft. Try it on to see if it's comfortable. I took the shirt and compared it to my body. The fabric was slightly see-through, and it stopped at my thighs. ......maybe it's a little too short? I could feel my ears redden, and I stared at the mirror, hesitating. But when I thought of the shy Victor I saw last night, I felt determined and decided to try making him embarrassed again. I walked in the direction of the door, holding the shirt in my arms and turning my head to thank him. MC: Then I'll go try it on, thanks! Victor was rummaging though the closet, bringing out a pair of shorts and wanting to hand it to the person behind him, but then discovered that she had run away. He stared in the direction that the girl had disappeared, and gave a soft sigh. Victor: You never finish listening to what other people have to say.

He cleaned up the mess in the walk-in closet, and then remembered that the girl hadn't had breakfast yet. He went to her room and knocked on the door, waiting to ask her if she was hungry. There was no answer, and he pushed open the door, feeling puzzled. Victor: ...MC? It hadn't been long since she ran out of the walk-in closet, but the girl had already fallen fast asleep, hugging her pillows. The borrowed shirt was draped loosely over her body. She didn't cover herself with a blanket, nor did she shut the curtains. Sunlight shone over her, faintly illuminating her figure hidden under the fabric of the white shirt. He stood by the door awkwardly, not knowing if he should go in or head out. She didn't seem to be in a very deep sleep, mumbling softly, and then buried her head into the pillow. Victor sighed, walking quietly over to the curtains and shutting them. He then gently covered the girl with a blanket. Victor gave her forehead a soft push, lowering his voice and reminding her gently. Victor: Don't bury your face into the pillow. MC: Nnngh......Victor...... Victor: Hmm? MC: ...Cute...... She smiled in her sleep, and he was reminded of the night before, when she had called him "adorable" while smiling sillily. Inexpressible emotion crept up upon him again, and he instantly left the room. Victor leaned against the wall and took a deep breath. Victor: What an idiot...

When I opened my eyes again, it was nearly night time. I looked down at the blanket covering my body and rubbed my head.

I was planning to wait for him after changing into the shirt, but the bed was too comfortable and I fell asleep...

I raised my hand, looking at the long sleeve hanging over my arm. I probably only slept well because I was surround by his scent, right? Even though I was a little disappointed, I knew this was Victor's way of expressing his feelings. MC: Victor, I think you're the dummy here. I muttered, but my chest still felt warm and happy. Sounds came from the kitchen downstairs. I changed back into my own clothes and ran down the stairs, my stomach growling with hunger.

Victor turned his head around when he heard me coming, and he frowned at me, sighing. Victor: You're finally awake. I thought that you would sleep all the way until next morning. MC: How could I miss the meal you prepared? MC: But, speaking of sleep, I express my gratitude to Mr. CEO for covering me with a blanket. Victor: You're welcome. I just didn't want to spend my holiday taking care of an sick idiot. I made a face at him and walked closer to him, curiously examining the food he was making. Seeing that I was hovering near him, he stuffed the soup ladle into my hand. Victor: You need to help if you want to eat sooner. The warm yellow light lit up the kitchen. Victor and I worked side by side at the stove. Even though Operation Pyjamas had failed as well, I felt content to have a holiday where I could always be near Victor.

I made up my mind, choosing to ignore all my plans about making him embarrassed and decided to just enjoy the peaceful times with Victor.

After supper, I began to wander around the house curiously.

The darkness seemed much quieter and more serene than the nights in the city.

I was going to go and find Victor, but there was a sudden snap and the lights went out. MC: What happened? Victor: MC! His voice rang out from not too far away, and a streak of light appeared in the darkness. Victor: Stand there and don't move. I'm coming. I watched the light come closer, and a warm hand grasped my arm. Victor: They just fixed the electricity channels a while ago, so the power is a bit unstable. MC: I'm glad I came with you. Being alone in such a big house would be sort of scary. Victor: What is there to be scared of? MC: It's too quiet here, and it's also really dark...all those horror movies all start with the power going out... I said that as a joke at first, but started getting nervous and held on tightly to Victor's arm. MC: Um...we've closed all the windows, right? Victor: I already checked that when you were sleeping. Victor: A certain someone was sleeping from the morning to the evening with no worries at all. Of course I had to check it myself. I laughed awkwardly, thinking back to how I fell asleep. MC: I was...way too tired. Mr. CEO is always so thorough in his plans! Victor: Leave your strange thoughts behind and follow me. Let's go check on the power switch. I walked over to the front door with Victor. He pointed the flashlight at the main switch, and we could both see that it was pointed to "off." He flicked it on, and the lights in the house lit up one by one. I blinked, adjusting to the brightness. Victor: There. Now there's no need to be scared. Victor: I'll go check on all the electrical appliances. MC: Okay. Victor: ...When are you going to let go? I gave a slight start, realizing that I was still hugging his arm tightly. Victor looked at me, trying not to laugh. I tried to ignore the heat on my face, and held on to his arm even tighter. MC: ...I mean...this means...I want to go along with you. Victor: Huh. Sticking to me even though you aren't drunk? MC: This isn't related to being drunk! MC: It just means... if the power goes out again, I can help you hold the flashlight. I made a random excuse up on the spot, and Victor glanced at me. Still, he put the flashlight into my hand. Victor: That was a dumb excuse. Try a different one next time. MC: But you already agreed... Victor: That was to prevent someone from lying awake at night, thinking of strange thoughts and being too scared to sleep. MC: But that's not something I can control. MC: You're right, though. I have no time to think about those things if I'm around you. Victor seemed to stop moving for a second. I didn't raise my head to look at him, but I heard a low laugh by my ear. Victor: This isn't a bad excuse. I'll accept it. Our entwined arms caused us to be pressed to each other, and the familiar warmth took all my fears and worries away. It was a special kind of privilege to be able to hold on to his arm so tightly.

When it's just the two of us, I always want to take full advantage of this privilege.

Chapter 5

I finally felt refreshed and awake this morning. When I got up, the door to Victor's room was still closed. It was kind of rare to wake up before him. I snuck into the kitchen and took out a few simple ingredients out of the refrigerator, planning to surprise him with breakfast. The second I set the sandwiches on the table, I saw Victor walking over, buttoning his shirt. MC: Good morning, Victor! He paused when he saw me, and then nodded his head. Victor: Good morning. MC: Thanks for taking care of me yesterday. In exchange, I'm going to make breakfast for you! Take a seat. It'll be ready soon. I pulled out a chair, but he didn't sit down. Instead, Victor just leaned by the table, watching me work. I finished preparing the iced coffee and walked back to the table, handing one cup to him. MC: This is a new recipe I've discovered a few days ago. Let's start off the new year with a new flavour! Victor looked at me, and then glanced at the messy countertop, sighing exasperatedly. Victor: ...You really tend to make yourself at home. MC: Hehe, that's because this is your house. MC: Plus, I'm always very interested in things related to you. I met the "Student Victor" a few days ago. Maybe I can meet another you today as well. Victor: You're going to be disappointed, then. Victor: I don't come to this house very often. There's nothing interesting to learn about here. MC: Then...we can make some new memories here together! ...But if it's like that... MC: Student Victor, CEO Victor, and the normal loveland citizen Victor...can I have them all? Victor was still for a second, and then he walked over to stand in front of me. Victor: Didn't you say you want them all? You're missing one. MC: Huh? I paused, not expecting him to act serious like this, and then carefully thought back to all his other identities. MC: ...and...Chef Victor? Victor: That's not right. MC: Professor Li? Victor: No. MC: ...It's not YanYan, is it? I said cautiously, and received an annoyed glance from him. He leaned towards me, trapping me by the table, his eyes watching me carefully. Victor: Are you really an idiot or just pretending to be? You mentioned it just the day before yesterday. Did you already forget? I blinked, trying to remember the conversations we shared on that day. Other than looking at his belongings from student times, there seemed to be some important detail that I missed... I stared at the face in front of me, and the images of a faintly blushing Victor holding the soccer ball emerged from my memories. It was like some corner of my heart was instantly lit up, and I suddenly realized what he was referring to. My pulse began to speed up. I knew what the answer was, but I decided to first tease him for a bit. MC: I was drunk on that day. Victor: Who was it that insisted they weren't drunk back them? MC: Isn't that what all drunk people say? Victor: ...... Victor let out a long breath. His hand wound around my middle and pinched my waist. Victor: Okay then. Since you have selective memory, I guess I'll help you remember.

The next second, I was lifted into the air. I wasn't able to respond in time, and both my slippers slid off of my feet. He carried me over to the table behind us. My skin touched the marble surface and I cried out. MC: Ah, cold! I instantly tried to move my legs in order to avoid the cold marble table. Victor took advantage of the situation, grabbing my ankle and pulling me forwards suddenly. I instantly toppled into his arms, hastily wrapping my legs around him in order to keep my balance. I held the cup of iced coffee in my hand carefully, trying to check if I had soiled his clothes.

A shadow suddenly loomed over me, Victor leaned closer to me, blocking the sunshine spilling down from the skylight. Victor: I remember someone saying that they're only going to drink a little bit. They also promised not to embarrass me. MC: ...I really didn't drink much! It was just that...I felt fine while drinking, but I didn't expect to feel the effects so strongly afterwards... Victor: Mm. It seems that you still remember this part. He placed a gentle kiss on my forehead like a reward for answering correctly. Victor: Thanks to those after effects, you didn't go to bed, but instead, headed over to my room. MC: I just wanted to know if you were sleeping or not... Victor: And you examined every corner of the room, claiming that you wanted to get to know my past. I gave a nervous laugh and tried to scoot backwards. Victor stopped me by holding on tightly to my waist. Victor: Don't remember this part? MC: I do! You have lots of books, won lots of prizes, and you would diligently take notes in your student committee folder. Victor: And? MC: And... I let my gaze slide away from his face on purpose, avoiding his stare. Victor pinched my waist again, and I instantly straightened up, meeting his eyes. Victor: Answer the question. MC: I, I can't remember anymore! Victor: Oh? Then I can give you a reminder. Victor leaned closer and closer. The glass in my hand slipped, and I instantly raised a hand, pressing against his chest in order to stop him from getting any nearer. MC: Wait, the coffee's gonna spill! Victor: Then hold on to it tightly. He grasped the hand I was using to hold the coffee. I wasn't able to let go of the cup, nor was I able to avoid him. I raised my head in surprise, and I could feel his warm breathing on my face. Victor: There was a soccer ball in the corner of the room. You were especially interested in it. His lips brushed against the skin of my face, and I gave a little gasp of surprise. MC: Soccer ball? Isn't that what you loved to play with when you were young? Victor: Mm hmm. This soccer ball destroyed an idiot's sand castle. She cried for a long time. Victor: She wouldn't be comforted no matter what, but when the topic of food came up, she completely forgot about the castle. Victor: But still, it was understandable, since she was only five years old at the time. He didn't seem to want to say any more. He just looked at me silently, his fingers subconsciously stroking the back of my hand. I didn't know if it was because of the sunlight warming me on one side, or because I realized I was walking slowly into his trap...... ......I felt that every inch of my untouched skin was sweating slightly, overheating my brain. I had originally thought I had caught on to a special detail that would make him blush, but instead, I found myself ensnared in his traps. The name that I tried to avoid saying on purpose was becoming more and more embarrassing to say... My hand tightened around his shirt, and I forced myself to speak. MC: ...And then...? Victor raised an eyebrow, but he didn't seem annoyed. He moved his gentle kisses from my forehead over to my lips. His eyelashes brushed against my face, and all the details of that night instantly reappeared in my head. Victor: And then, this is what happened after.

The sunlight outlined his silhouette in brightness, but his eyes lay obscured in the shadows cast by his hair. Victor's eyes were filled with desire. He grabbed my hand and pulled me towards him. I wobbled, losing my balance, and had to tighten my knees around his waist in order not to fall over. Victor: Do you still need more reminders? Before I could even answer, his lips were already pressed up against mine. I let out a muffled sound of protest, and he glanced at me but didn't stop his actions. How am I even supposed to answer like this?! I raised my head and bit his bottom lip, irritated. Victor finally stopped and looked down at me with a smile, his eyes gleaming teasingly. Victor: You've learned to bite. MC: You did that on purpose! Victor: You clearly knew the answer but you still hid it. Didn't you do that on purpose as well? Victor: The best way to deal with an idiot is to do the same exact thing back. MC: ...Victor, you've become sly! Victor gave a soft laugh, not seeming to mind my accusations. I looked at his calm expression and muttered under my breath dejectedly. MC: I still can't make you blush, huh... Victor: Who do you think made me act like this? I paused, startled at his sudden question. Victor was no longer smiling, but instead, staring at me seriously and waiting for me to answer. Victor: ...So that's why you've been doing such odd things these days. Victor: Trying to trick me into drinking, pretending to be drunk, insisting on wearing my clothes......you had planned this from the beginning? My mind was a mess, and I blurted out all my thoughts. MC: It's because you're always so calm and collected...I wanted to see if I could make you flustered and embarrassed. MC: I know I do silly things sometimes, but I don't want you to see me as a child. I'm no longer that naive five year old girl. I want to see you blush and turn red because of me. I glanced at Victor, and then buried my head into his shoulder, feeling slightly embarrassed. MC: You don't know how cute you are when you're flustered... MC: And that's a side no one will ever see, except for me. He was silent for a moment, and then let out a sigh. Victor: Have you ever seen anyone invest five billion in a child's company? MC: ...... Victor: Starting from the first time I've met you, I've never once thought of you as a child. I call you an idiot, only because the silly things that you always do...they really don't fit with your age. I lowered my head, giving a small huff of annoyance. This person really never stops insulting me...... Victor: And also, I'll repeat the same thing back to you. MC: Huh? Victor: You're really cute when you do those silly things. Victor: The same goes for when you're not doing anything silly. I stared at Victor, feeling the heat on my face rise. My quickening heart beat gave me away, clearly showing Victor my surprise and happiness at his confession. The corners of my mouth lifted in an uncontrollable smile, and I straightened up. MC: Victo- Victor: Wrong. The man in front of me furrowed his brow, and I swallowed nervously. This topic still wasn't over yet... MC: You've heard me say it so many times when I was young. Still haven't gotten tired of it? Victor: This is different. I want the "you" now to answer. Last chance. I took a deep breath, getting ready to answer, but then felt a sudden chill on my leg. Water droplets had formed on the glass of the iced coffee. The cold drops of water had landed on my thigh. I instinctively tried to look down and wipe it away, but Victor grabbed my chin. Victor: Stop getting distracted. MC: But I'm just- Victor: Answer me. Which Victor did you forget about? A drop of water slipped down my leg, leaving behind a trail of faintly itching skin. The voice of the man in front of me was low. Every word brushed softly against my heart like the gentle touch of raindrops in spring. I opened my mouth, almost unable to control my trembling voice. MC: Brother Victor......

The air was quiet for a second, and then the glass in my hand was whisked away, clinking against the plates behind me. Victor pushed them away, hard. I stared unwaveringly at the man in front of me. He avoided my gaze, opening his mouth and starting to speak in a low voice. Victor: Close your eyes. MC: Why? Victor: No reason. He leaned over to gently kiss my eyelids, and I was forced to close my eyes. His hand supported the back of my head, and then a warm, strong kiss to my lips cleared all the thoughts from my head. Even if I couldn't see his face, I could clearly feel his unspoken feelings. The puzzle piece from long ago had finally been placed into the last empty spot. I reached out, feeling for his shoulders, and then wrapped my arms around his neck. My crossed arms made him lean in closer, and the feeling of our mouths together burned towards every corner of my body. Our hot breaths mixed together, and my skin felt both warm and cold at the same time. His warm palms held on to me, keeping me from falling but also making me shiver from the sensation. I repressed a small cry of surprise, and secretly opened my eyes, looking up at him.

The sunlight shone on his face, revealing his blush, and I could see a kind of simple pleasure in his usually unfathomable eyes. I lifted my arm to cup his face in one hand, and he looked at me, meeting my gaze. For a second, he looked at a loss for what to do. It was probably that he didn't expect me to look at him. Even his ears turned bright red. MC: Pffft... Victor: Why are you laughing? MC: Nothing. I just think you look really cute when you're blushing. Victor: ...... Victor: Your wish was granted. Happy now? MC: Very happy! I ignored his slightly annoyed expression, and gently pinched his cheek, smiling happily. I pressed down his head and gave his lips a small peck. The man in front of me was poker-faced since childhood, but he was also warm and soft to the touch. My heart was filled with an indescribable warmth, and I wrapped my arms around him, kissing him again. Victor: You... The voice in my ears trembled slightly. I let go of Victor, laughing. MC: Thank you for letting me get to know you better. MC: It doesn't matter which side of you I see. You'll always be my favourite. Victor looked at me for a second, and then let out a chuckle. Victor: Are these your true feelings? MC: I thought you always know what I'm thinking. Victor: That's true. Victor: Then, let me hear more of your true feelings. The sun shining through the skylight overhead cast Victor's shadow over me, overlapping with my own behind us. Time seemed to stretch on... And mixed into the passage of time, was his long and affectionate answer.

- End -

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