#Sure naming the victim is nice but the whole thing is that Berry caused the first fuckery Karson experienced in DECADES

[sammydem0n64]

I say "lilyheart is a period piece (2020-2021) for no reason" as if it isn't great to have an exact date for events in the story. like 2001 for Nicholas' murder and 2014 for Plum's death. Y'know

#Like 'the 2001 incident' in the context of a peaceful town finally having a major case after eons is sooo much better than #'the assa incident' yknow #Sure naming the victim is nice but the whole thing is that Berry caused the first fuckery Karson experienced in DECADES #Bc the last like. full on crimes have been turned into mythos! The kids going missing was so long ago it's practically all rumor now! #Shows just how far along it's been and gives you a specific time frame for when things went fucky #I may have said this before but yknow. 2020 was often regarded as a time 'the world ended' due to all the shit happening at the time #And while none of that applies to Lilyheart like theres no covid pandemic it's a nice little tongue in cheek thing #bc yeah. sure. why not. during the year shit was fucked suddenly the world is being reintroduced to monsters #mark that off the 2020 bingo card. oh hey people are being murdered too. oh well #really the only casuality involved with giving it a specific date IS of course outside oc interaction. but that's what aus r for!!! #teehee. anyways

[dcforts]

[day 13: poinsettia]

It started as soon as Cas joined them at the diner and slipped into the booth next to Dean liked he usually did.

“Thanks for coming, Cas. We really need your help with this one,” Sam said.

“I’m here. Tell me everything.”

Sam was shuffling through his papers, about to bring him up to speed on the case, when he heard Dean snap, “Can’t you sit on the other side?”, with such vitriol that Sam looked up at him, shocked. His brother’s face was twisted with hostility, “It’s a little tight in here.”

Cas rolled his eyes in an exaggerated manner but got up anyway to move next to Sam.

“So,” Sam started, frowning at his brother, back to sipping his coffee like nothing happened. He turned his focus on Cas, “just in this past week, twelve couples from this town filed for divorce.”

Dean scoffed, “Yeah, I’m still not sure this is a case. It’s Christmas, everyone fights during the holidays.”

“Yeah, but the point is – once they started, they simply couldn’t stop. The neighbours say -”

“So we’re playing marriage counselors now, what a way to hit the botto-“

“Could you be quiet?” interrupted Cas sharp, throwing Dean a glare. “I’m trying to listen to Sam.”

“What’s there to listen? I told you, there’s nothing for us here.”

“How can you be so sure -”

They were raising their voices and people from nearby tables started to crane their neck towards them.

“Guys,” Sam hissed, “I don’t know what’s happening here but can we -,” he tried to say, but it was like he wasn’t there anymore. Dean and Cas were throwing daggers at each other and as Sam’s gaze moved between the two of them, he started to suspect that something not normal was going on there. So maybe the marriage requirement for the curse wasn’t as literal as they thought.

He started sweating, “Uh, can we go back to the case now?”

“I don’t know,” said Cas, his voice dripping sarcasm, “maybe Dean has something more interesting to do.”

“Look, you’ve been here five minutes and-”

Sam sighed heavily. “Alright. Guys- guys, w-why don’t you take this outside? I’ll pay the check and be right out.”

Scoffing and grumbling, then slipped out of their seats and stormed out of the diner.

Sam sighed and raked his hands through his hair.

He tried to tell himself that it could be a coincidence, but his confidence whitered considerably as he watched through the windows his brother stomping through the parking lot and Cas following him with his arms crossed on his chest.

He took out his phone and called Rowena.

“What is it now, Samuel?” she answered.

“Hey Rowena. I- I need your help.”

*

Not even halfway through the story she interrupted him with a chuckle, “Oh, don’t worry Samuel. I know exactly what you’re dealing with.”

“You do?”

“But of course. And I know who’s doing it. It’s a witch, goes by the name of Emlen. They like to cause mayhem during the holiday season. Harmless curses, wear off right after Christmas. It happens every few years.”

“How are they doing this?”

She thinks about it for a moment, “At the victims’ houses. Did you happen to notice a poinsettia?”

“Th-the plant?”

“Yes, a poinsettia Sam, the Star of Bethlehem, the Fire Flowers of the Holy Night.”

“Yeah, got it. I don’t think so, I mean, everyone’s got one these days. So, maybe?”

“Well, the last time that’s what was setting off the curse. It’s very clever actually,” she went on, “They have them delivered to their door, and the plants let out these fumes -”

As she talked, and the wheels turned furiously in Sam’s head, his eyes fell on the centerpiece in the middle of the table. In a little jar, among glitter red berries and snow covered pine-cones, set a fresh plant with red and green leaves.

Sam shook his head, defeated. There was no doubt now.

Dean and Cas were in trouble.

He sighed, and snatched the plant to stuff it in his bag. He threw a couple of bills on the table and hurried to the exit still with his phone attached to his ear.

“So I need to look for a florist?”

Rowena sighed, exasperated. “No, Samuel. They are way smarter than that. I bet they enchanted a florist to do the work for them. You’ll need to go and gather all the plants and in the meantime – I imagine I could prepare an antidote of sorts to stop the effects right away. You’ll have to give it to the victims.”

“What about the witch?” he asked as he pushed open the glass doors and stepped out in the cold parking lot.

“I’ll take care of Em. We’re old friends, I’m sure they’ll be reasonable if I asked it as a favor.”

Sam let out a sigh of relief but his worry spiked again as the Impala came into his view. Even from there he could see Dean and Cas talking fast at the same time, clearly arguing.

Rowena said, “Did you say twelve couples, right? It’s twenty four vials.”

“Uh – actually. Can we make it twenty six?”

“Sure, Sam,” she said, sarcastic, “and I bet you want the express shipping as well? You know I only have two hands and can’t possibly…”

“Just – Please,” cut her off Sam, trying to express the frustration he was feeling. And he was feeling a lot of frustration as he was approaching the car and could hear indistinct shouting from the inside, “I’ve got a bit of a situation here. Um, Dean and Cas are kind of at each other’s throat.”

Rowena chuckled, but didn’t sound surprised at all as she said, “Of course they are. Fit the profile, don’t they? Alright Samuel, I’ll be there soon. Just try and hold tight, my poor boy.”

“Yeah, thanks Rowena.”

*

The ride to the motel was frosty at best. Sam stayed absolutely still in the backseat and did not comment on the Dean’s jerky driving or the fact that Cas stared grumply out of the window the whole time.

He had tried a weak, “Are you guys still fighting?” when he’d slipped in and they both had given him a stern “No,” that obviously meant the opposite.

Back at the motel the situation did nothing but worsen. They sat on opposite sides of the room and resolutely did not look at each other.

Well, at least until Sam broke the silence to say, “Rowena is on her way. This will be over in no time,” and his brother commented under his breath, “Yeah, Rowena is always there when you need her. Must be nice.”

And Cas whipped his head around, “If you’re referring to me, I’ll have you know that I came as soon as you called.”

Dean snorted, “You mean, as soon as you decided to pick up your phone.”

Sam let out a whimper.

“As I already told you -” thundered Cas but Dean cut him off, raising his voice, “I don’t wanna hear it, Cas. You say the same thing everytime and they you disappear again for two weeks!”

“Uh, guys? Why don’t we -” Sam tried to interrupt them by blocking their view of each other but they just stood up and walked around him.

“You know what’s funny?” Cas went on, sarcastic, talking over him, “That you’re always saying that I should be around more, but when I am around, you sure go out of your way to make me feel unwelcome.”

“Fine!” exploded Dean, “If that’s how you feel than I’ll just stop asking you…”

“… as if you ever asked. You just assume…”

“… then I won’t have to…”

Sam resisted the urge to press a pillow on his face and just closed himself in the bathroom.

*

When he finally heard knocking, Sam ran to the door and pulled Rowena in uncerimoniously.

“Oof, Sam, this is no way to greet a lady,” she complained but then her attention was caught by Dean and Cas behind his back, shouting in the middle of the room a few feet from each other. Her jaw dropped.

“... wish you’d just stop covering your feeling with humor...” Cas was saying.

“... well, I wish you’d stop snooping in my head every chance you get...”

“... If you think one needs to have celestial powers to see what’s clearly on your face Dean Winchester...”

Rowena met Sam’s desperate gaze and winced.

She patted his arm, reassuring, “I’m here now.”

*

“I’m not drinking that.”

“This is ridiculous. Dean and I are not married.”

“I know – just – please. You’re driving me nuts,” said Sam, pratically shoving the vials in their faces. Rowena had proposed to magically bind them and Sam was starting to consider it.

Thankfully - without even stopping glaring at each other - they took them from his hands and downed them in one go.

There was a moment of stillness and then Sam saw them sprinting towards one another. He gasped and tried to step in, thinking that they were about to throw punches but instead they ended up – smashing their mouths together.

Which was definitely more jarring for Sam. He stood frozen in shock and then made his way to Rowena, who was calmly putting on her coat, her back to the scene.

“Er, Rowena?” he called, alarmed. “Uh, they’re – is this normal?”

She threw a look over her shoulder at Cas wrapping Dean in his arms and Dean yanking Cas’ hair.

“Oh, it’s just a little after effect,” she said lightly. She met Sam’s worried eyes and explained, “The antitode has some ingredients in common with love potions. A little nudge, just enough to reverse hostility. It brings out desire. It’s nothing, Sam,” she shrugged, “and it’ll wear off in a couple of minutes, so I say we get out of here now and go deal with Emlen and the other couples. You know,” she smirked, “in case they decide what’s good for them and decide to stay.” She shouldered her bag, “Chop chop now, Samuel,” she said cheerfully, shoving him slightly. “We got work to do.”

*

Two minutes later, Dean and Cas pulled away from each other in the empty motel room.

They looked wide eyed, their faces red, their lips swollen. Dean’s voice was on the verge of hysteria and disbelief when he said, "We kissed.”

He was still holding the lapels of Cas’ trenchcoat and Cas still had his arms tight around his waist.

Cas blinked at him, “Yes,” he said, “I think we were cursed.”

Dean nodded briefly and tried to think fast. “Sam must be working the case,”. He thought about calling him, making sure he was alright and didn’t need assistance but his eyes couldn’t stop flicking between Cas’ eyes and lips, “Seems like whatever he’s doing is working. Uh - Sorry about -”

“I’m sorry too,” Cas said, still a little out of breath, “Can we keep kissing now?”

Dean exhaled, “Yeah, good idea,” he said, throwing his arms around his neck.

joining @bend-me-shape-me in doing this!

#SPNAdventCalendar2020 #deancas #destiel #deancas ficlet #destiel fanfic #1.8k #rowena #this is very silly #they get cursed #case fic #old married couple #im still sorry sam #it's not me it's them #all my works should be tagged #season? what season? #i may take a break after this #my writing

[dafukdidiwatch]

Fantasy High Rant (and why you should watch it)

Ok I got suggested this and I cant believe I've been sleeping on this series in the last two years. This series is freaking fantastic! I’m screaming.

Overview is this is a modern d&d fantasy land a la Onward Style, where we follow fantasy Scooby Doo gang as they try to solve the mystery of missing students while interacting with the fantastical citizens of Spyre.

I hella love it, because while it has such a great mystery of whats going on in the town, who is doing what and why, etc etc, and it just GROWS the more you watch it. You think it was something simple, but the conspiracy rabbit hole gets deeper and deeper. But to me the main pull is just seeing how our Party just interacts with everyone and each other. This is a very character driven series, which makes sense this is a d&d party, you have to get attached to the party if you want them to work together.

Fabian Seacaster: God he’s fun to watch. The rich kid high class type of character but is just has so much gusto. I love his relationship with his family, it’s adorable. He just adores his parents and his parents adore him back. Like Addams style adoration. He is a bit full of himself and arrogant and has a thing of living up to his father's legacy as well as his family name, but I think his arc is him learning that he doesn't have to define himself through his dad and can be his own person. Plus my favorite moments are him screaming “WHAT IS HAPPENING” because out of everyone he mostly the straight man dealing with people.

Gorgug: I just love him. He is just so sweet. He is just a gentle giant and confused all the time. I feel so bad that he keeps getting the shit end of the stick to save the rest of the party. Like the whole "stealing backpack" shit to basically set him up as the outcasts of outcasts. Granted I’m laughing my ass off when it happens, but he is just so anxious it’s cute. He is just very sweet and genuine, even if he is a little awkward. I also love him just asking if people are his dad lol he just wants to know. But when he rages he’s basically God-Tier Shaggy. 

Fig: lol her angsty teenage years finding out she isn't who she thought she was. Tbf her dad basically said she was the reason for her parents divorce soooo take that as you will. Her being the "bad girl" but also very helpful when she can is great. Her flirtatious punk attitude, the winking, and rocking bard stuff. I low key like the idea of her being with Gorgug because of the moments in Barbarian class and giving him drumsticks. And I also like her with Fabian as just a wild cool kid power couple. Also her fucking with Goldenhoarde is the best with her being sexual,with him. Its super funny.

Riz: I freaking love him. Kid detective on the case. The business cards for friendship which I mean, makes sense. His goal from day one was to find the missing girls and babysitter. I'm sorry he has a poor house to use water cereal, but his mom just loves him and I think that’s sweet. His family is the coolest and he isn’t afraid to admit how cool his family is. But he has direction, he has a mission, and he does it with determination. Plus I love how he is The Ball and everyone is just going with it and now supports it. Him fucking with Fabian is great. And I'm glad he is reconsidering his life choices after meeting the AV kids.

Adaine: She needs help. The panicking one. I mean, her family,obviously looks down on her and she is literally jealous of all the other kids parents (love the gnomes). She is learning to find her own magic her own way and trying to shatter the expectation forced on her. God I support her just fucking people up, especially with Pixie Boy.She is just trying to deal with things which honestly this adventure is getting her to open up and not take shit. Character Arc: Don’t Take Shit.

Kristen: I’m just watching a train wreck here. Like she was 100% Helios all the way. But now it is just watching her questioning everything about religion after dying. Its amazing from looking into other religion herself and just how it ALL escalates from there as she is pulled further and further away from her religion and old life. Learning that how she was raised was just so fucked. Like I'm just seeing how far this goes and if she will pick another god instead or just not be a cleric anymore.

Also I'm like never going to post a completed version of this post because I’m way too fucking obsessed. I went from ep 8 yelling about Kristen’s religious life to episode 13 plot-twist end. I basically am physically restraining myself from watching episode 15 before I type this or else this will never be typed. I can literally go off about all the characters there is just so many good moments.

Basically, check out the show yourself. It’s on Youtube, it’s hilarious. Watching the reactions and faces is just so much fun to see. 100% recommend.

Now excuse me while I scream spoilers for episode 8/13/14 underneath:

Midway through Ep 8:

Ok it was fucking Kristen! Like not her obviously, but she was the hellmouth! She was the initial sacrifice! Demon-Dad Garthox said that the Hellmouth can be opened inside a person, and Goth Kid Blane was working for the Harvestmen Helios to get that page. And lo and behold the page was in the corn vat that Kristen's book was pushed into! Coincidence? I think not!

They thought that it was somehow Adaine's magic that caused it, or the very least it was the bully,guy who chucked Kristen's book in. But no, the page was already inside her book and fell into the corn! If bully ass McGee didn't hit the book out of her hands, then she might have been the victim! Which makes sense, why not have a follower of Helios bring the end times in His name.

Which means that it could be Daybreak or her parents that gave her the page in her bible for this.

God,is this what Helios meant when it "wasn't her time?" Because she is needed as the Hellmouth Sacrifice?

And this makes the whole "sneaking into heaven" part make sense now. If Aguefort was trying to be assassinated by Helios, he could sneak into Helios Heaven and spy on them from the afterlife. He's a weird ass man I'm sure he can pull it off.

Also Fig's Dad is hella cool and I totally love him for,trying to be a parent and mature about this. Fig is totally supportive of him and I love it.

Ok I'm going back to finish episode 8 I just REALLY needed to rant about that.

Screaming about Episode 13:

The oracle was going to return,if the country was in danger. It was but she was,kidnapped/killed on an illusion ship to stop,her. Rix dad is a spy and he was 100%,super dope about it and him just finding his family secrets I was just crying like, he found his legacy, his entire family was,badasses he was so happy and took up his dad's gun for justice. Like how cool is it for a goblin spy,being small and already default evil to infiltrate that is so clever. That is what gets me on this show,is that they take these cool setting and ideas and how they are twisted to fit the fantasy. Cops? Fantasy cops. Skateboarders? Fantasy skateboarders.

Which lets be real, I think the best battle where they really,worked together was during the skateboarders.

This mystery is building and building and I,guess Penelope is,trying to,be queen,via homecoming queen which is,weird and has a Sarah berry vibe to,it. Which is fucking nuts.

Now I’m wondering if nice guy,pixie actually was in on it day 1, or if he was turned over after he was "beaten" like the bad guys offered him a way to make his dream girls his 2D pets. Which, gross. But Biz part doesn't necessarily fit with the main plot. He obv isn't behind this.

Kalvaxus is a demon with money. His money needs to be destroyed. So they are funneling his money through the banks. They used his ship in disguise to kidnap/capture/kill the oracle to prevent her from returning, which she said she would if the country was in danger. Yes the religious Harvestmen wanted to start the apocalypse via Kristen, but ass-elf diplomat said it wouldn't really work, but it would break the treaty and start war. Kalvaxus. Coach Daybreak had control,on Zane, who had control over Johnny Spells to kidnap girls, and since Alwin had a spell to find "maidens/virgins" they need the girls, either as a sacrifice or as conduits to power the arcane source. Was all of this to raise Kalvaxus from hell to the mortal world? That would explain the power source at the arcade with the trapped girls, to keep the connection going. The only,thing I can think,as to why Penelope would be as high up as she is in this conspiracy is if Kalvaxus is her dad. Which I guess,everyone has dad issues in,this group.

Side note, I appreciate how Gorgug thinks himself as,dumb but gets really smart ideas and the whole party agreed they are smart. Like,he was the first to,put 2 and 2 together about Kalvaxus== KVX bank, even if he didn't outright say it.

All,the adults are really,enjoyable,to see. I fucking love Rix’s mom shes so cool. And Gilear is actually really,pitifully funny. I wouldn't think I would like,him as much after that first episode, but he is actually hilarious being the lunch lad and just trying his best.

Live Screaming Episode 14 (lots of incoherent):

fucking He'll Riz got the drop on Biz but he fumbled the attack with a nat1.

Ah shit! This is their shit! The prizes are the girls shit as trophies. Zelda headphones. Skateboard girl. You need to give the items back!!!

Fig's German Shepard patrol finally works out

And Riz is now in Penny's game, oh this hurts because this is the girl that he wants to help.

Biz is like a terrible chucky cheese mascot.

I love it when Fabian says "whats happening" because for all his rich person elegance his bafflement amuses me.

It's so sad to see these girls just be this, shadow of themselves. Like no personality at all.

Adaine does will with the divination rolls, I don't think I,could be able to,do this that well.

Damn they are taking the girls,into the power source, they need girl power. Literally.

Gorgug is just so sweet to call his parents for help. Too bad it didn't work. Its a gnome game, sweet.

damn this is a lot more dangerous than before. This is why we don't split the party.

Make Gorgug fly again that would be awesome. But Adaine flying is good too.

Riz using his gremlin powers to fuck up the parascepts from the inside is fucking amazing, why the hell is it funneling to the school.

Sucks that Fabian just kept running all the way out the building. But lets say Fabian having that motorcycle is just so op. Plus it called him Daddy let's not forget that.

Gorgug using the headphones with Zelda’s music is just so sweet and clever. See hes a simple man but very smart. Practical I think.

Lol only the guys got sucked into the game. No girls in video game.

The Bebe raises Gorgug’s rage. Riz is right: hot topic vs av nerds.

Where is devil dad, like he wasn't kidnapped or kidnapped figs mom or whatever right??? Like i get suspicious when people don't respond immediately.

OMG Gorgug is God Tier Shaggy.

Biz is doing the Fantasy Truffle Shuffle.

Cut his wings Gorgug!

Riz!!! Keep her here!!! FUCK!!! HE DIDN'T!!! Biz is soooo creepy.

Yes! Keep the ghosts so sad I would love the bag of holding but too bad it didn't work.

Gorgug’s parents are just so freaking sweet and supportive.

Hold shit Gorgug’s honesty got him double crit. That sucks but I lowkey hope he keeps the white hair.

That motorcycle is so op. But hes in a racing game with the hangman, at least he has an advantage.

Kristen's philosophers are just so op. I love how her religion is just searching for eternal knowledge.

NAT 20 THE NAT 20 FUCKING YES LETS GO RIZ JUST FLIPPING IT OFF AND SCREAMING FUCK YOU holy,shit that was funny. Too bad it was wasted on such a dumbass moment.

Just smashed the palimpsest that's how the owlbear popped out. Wow it was hilarious how biz popped out. But holy,shit Riz not even giving biz a chance as he starts shooting off fingers that’s amazing

I love them fucking with him because hes an ass. Oh, Alwin modify memory to make him think it was his evil plan. You know still fuck him tho. Ugh are those pictures. No. They know it was the group and photos of their house. Ughhhhh and now things are getting more dangerous,

#dafukblog #fantasy high #fantasy high episode 8 #fantasy high episode 13 #fantasy high episode 14

[sunnyrosewritesstuff]

Day 4 Hobbit Plot Bunnies

Title: Just to See You Happy

Summary:  Time Travel AU. Frodo has carried the Ring and deserves as much rest as any mortal can bear. He refuses to see his mission as complete until Bilbo finds his happiness. And if that happiness is found in a group of dwarves from long ago, Frodo will fight the Valar above to see it done. Along the way though, he may learn it’s not the ‘dwarves’ but perhaps one dwarf in particular.

POV: Frodo

Bilbo Baggins was many things in the eyes of his nephew both before and after the incident with the ring. He was courageous. He was kind. He was encouraging. He was everything Frodo needed him to be when suffering the tragedy of losing his parents. He could so clearly recall the memory of running out as a tween without a waistcoat in his eagerness to get to the market to get the first pick of raspberries for Bilbo’s tarts. 

Of course, he had managed to run into Lobelia Sackville-Baggins who gave him such a scolding on the shame he brought his family name to be underdressed, running wild, with uncombed feet hair to top. Frodo could barely stomach the lashing, and ran back to Bag End, tears in his eyes, ready to never leave the hole again. Well, that certainly wouldn’t do for ‘Mad’ Baggins as he promptly stepped out in his bathrobe of all things! Returned Lobelia’s barb words tenfold making sure she knew just who the shame upon the family name of Baggins was, and then sent Frodo out into the woods where the ‘best wild berries’ lay hid. 

It really was no wonder Frodo offered to walk upon the slopes of Mount Doom itself just to protect his uncle. He would do anything for his uncle’s piece of mind. And while the Big Folk may sit around and argue as to whether or not Bilbo could be faulted for picking up what he deemed a harmless trinket that turned out to be the singularly most evil item in all of Middle Earth, Frodo decided he could carry those invisible sins. All for Bilbo’s happiness.

Happiness. A curious word in retrospect. If one had asked Frodo prior to the whole mess with the ring if his uncle was happy, he would have said yes easily. After all, he had shared laughs and smiles with Bilbo. He had been subjected to tender hugs and kisses as a faunt. He knew the stories that could tickle him pink. What else could happiness entail?

However, in the weeks leading up to their departure to the Undying Lands, Frodo looked introspectively, and realized Bilbo had been happy in the Shire in the same way Frodo was happy now. A mask of contentedness that hid the drowsy emptiness inside. A phantom pain that couldn’t be explained, and that couldn’t be chased away. A sad thing that clings to the back of the mind once they were alone. Perhaps it was the way one felt after having witnessed true tragedy, and there was no cure. Or perhaps it was the lingering effects of the ring that refused to give up even after its destruction. Either way, Frodo hoped with his entire being that the Undying Lands were the answer. That sailing west with the elves would heal this hurt upon his and Bilbo’s minds to show them true happiness once more.

Frodo watched his uncle’s face light up in pure delight when he deemed himself ready for ‘one last adventure’. It was so nice to see Bilbo coherent once more. That was the one thing he feared the most as he grew older, the loss of his wits. Seeing that he found them once more gave Frodo hope as he climbed into the boat with him. That hope was dashed within the first hour of their voyage.

“As soon as we land in Valinor, we must stop at the Gardens of Yavanna and maybe the Lands of Lorien before we head to the Halls of Aule.” Bilbo began to murmur excitedly.

“The Halls of Aule?” Frodo questioned with a laugh. “What business do you have in the Valar’s Smithy?”

“The Valar’s Smithy indeed.” Bilbo huffed. “I’ll have you know that is where my dwarves are, and I intend to see them.”

“Bilbo, my dear fellow, you and Frodo are the first mortals to get to visit Valinor.” Gandalf pointed out delicately.

“Meaning what exactly?” Bilbo asked with a raised brow.

“Meaning you won’t exactly have free reign to wander into anyone’s afterlife. You will be treated as a mortal in an immortal’s land.” Elrond answered gently.

The joy that had been shining in his eyes swiftly left making the already old hobbit seem nearly decrepit. After that, it was hard to get Bilbo to engage with them again. He just sat there looking out across the ocean with that pained look Frodo knew only too well. However, now he was wondering if the reason behind that look had nothing to do with the Ring. What if it had to do with something that happened during Bilbo’s adventure?

Frodo went to sleep that night wishing for more than anything to just be able to erase that look from Bilbo’s eyes forever. After closing his eyes, Frodo actually began to dream for the first time in a long time. He was standing amongst the stars where several tall figures began to appear.

The first was a blind man with hair fairer than Lady Galadriel. He looked over at Frodo and winked before turning to the rest of the gathering. With a jolt, Frodo realized what he was witnessing. He was in a meeting of the Valar, and that man was Lorien, Master of Dreams and Desires. As he spun around, more names became associated with the faces above him.

Lady Yavanna, earthy and proud, next to her husband in the dwarven armor and long red beard, Aule the Smith. Manwe’s electric blue eyes practically radiated the power as King stood next to his wife and queen, Varda, shining stronger than the stars around them. Mandos, Nienna, Este, Tulkas, every lord and lady Frodo had ever grown up learning about was present, and not a single one of them was aware of his meager presence. Well, until Lady Yavanna had the gull to wink at him.

“Why have you summoned us, Lorien?” The impressive voice of Manwe bellowed.

“To answer the call of your Chosen.” The blind Vala answered.

“Yavanna and Aule’s children?” The shadowed persona of Mandos questioned. “Have we not already granted them asylum?”

Yavanna shared a look with her husband, giving his hand a squeeze of support.

“After the service they have done us, is it too much to give them an audience?” Aule gruffed.

“Oh yes! Please, let us hear Frodo Baggins out.” Nienna pleaded her Mercy with tears streaming down her face.

Frodo suddenly found himself the intense victim of the immortals’ weighted gaze. The fact that his legs hadn’t given out on him yet was a strong reminder that this was only a dream.

“Well, let’s have it.” Este’s sweet voice, as the Lady of Healing would have, carried down to Frodo making him feel almost giddy. “What would you desire of us, Young One?”

Frodo gulped struggling for a moment to find an answer for the Vala.

“You see, it’s my uncle, Bilbo Baggins. I just want him to be happy. He doesn’t deserve to be so burdened. The choice to Bear the Ring was mine and mine alone, but Uncle...he just thought he was helping thirteen dwarves get home.”

Eyes shifted to Vaire, the Weaver, as she pondered Frodo’s request.

“It’s true there were many paths laid out before Bilbo Baggins, but...it was the fall of the Line of Durin that sealed his pain. I cannot free him without going back nearly eighty years in the mortal’s lifetime.”

Yavanna gripped Aule’s hand in support as his face twisted into a pained grimace.

“The three deaths in question were young and unnecessary, but unavoidable when considering the proximity of the One Ring that Bilbo Baggins carried at the time.” Aule pointed out.

“And we cannot surrender that front.” Manwe interjected. “This mortal’s pain is unavoidable.”

“Not necessarily.” Lorien gave a tight grin. “I have called us all here because I have heard the calls from both Frodo and Bilbo Baggins, and I believe there is a way to fulfill their desires. Vaire, could there be a path to peace created from the presence of Frodo Baggins after what the mortals referred to as the Fell Winter?”

Gasps were heard around the room.

“That far back?”

“Can it be done?”

Vaire seemed to give this a considerable amount of thought, and as she thought her fingers glided through the starry landscape as if she were sewing a pattern in the vastness of the sky. Her eyes widened at whatever it was she saw, and she turned towards the rest intrigued.

“There is a pattern I see. It’s very risky, but it can be done.”

“You’re asking us to risk the fate of the world on the happiness of a single mortal?” Manwe scoffed. “Why would we ever consider such a thing?”

“Because if anyone deserves happiness, it’s the ones we burdened with our shame and inaction.” Nienna cried out. “We must give Frodo Baggins a chance.”

Varda took that moment to address Frodo causing silence amongst the rest of the Valar.

“Frodo Baggins, do you understand what is being asked of you?”

“Forgive me, My Lady, but I’m afraid I do not.” He admitted.

She nodded gently but her voice still rang firm. “If we grant this wish for you. To see your uncle’s happiness, you will have to carry the One Ring once more. Could you bear such a burden again?”

Frodo hesitated and the pain in his shoulder from the Nazgul’s blade throbbed as if in denial of the deed that lay before him. He was broken from the quest the first time. Would there be anything left if he had to carry such evil once more? He came to the Undying Lands in search of peace. Peace for himself and for Bilbo. This entire conversation seemed to counter that point. His anxiety must have shown on his face, because Este’s calm broke through his dark thoughts. 

“I cannot see the future, Frodo Baggins. But I can feel out this timeline, and if you succeed, you and Bilbo will finally be free of the pain you carry.”

Frodo heaved a heavy sigh. There was really no question then, was there?

“I don’t know if I am truly the right person for such a monumental task as this. But for Bilbo...for myself, I would be willing to try.”

Tulkas laughed hard enough to shake the foundation upon which they stood.

“What did you do to these ones to make them so courageous, Aule?” He questioned.

Frodo stared at the smith in confusion as he just smiled fondly.

“I let my wife have some input in the design. She wanted them born with a healthy dose of hope.”

“Then let us carry that hope forward. Manwe, with your permission, I wish to send Frodo back in the timeline where he can make a real difference. He will remember much of his previous life, and he will know of the task that lies before him.”

Manwe sighed a gust that threatened to blow Frodo over. “So mote it be.”

“So mote it be.” Everyone else repeated.

Frodo looked expectantly up at Lorien who was gazing down at him softly. “Go Little One. May you fulfill all your wishes, and if you need guidance, may you always know where to find me.”

Slowly, the world faded around him until he was once again enclosed in darkness. Waking up instantly, Frodo found himself in a world much unlike the one he just left. And the first thing he noticed was how it was unbearably cold.

#7 days of plot bunnies #bagginshield #thilbo #frodo centric #birthdayplotbunnies #starterdrabble #that one time Frodo traveled through time #to be his uncle's wingman

[fireemblem7x]

Prototype supports

A- Happy April Fool’s!

B- no pranks here today, but in the spirit of fun, here’s a look at some prototype support conversations I wrote before we began production. some people say that the script is a little verbose and long-winded - this is certainly much closer to the simpler style of early GBAFE

-Marcus/Uther C

[Uther] Hey, you. [Marcus] Hm? Me, sir? [Uther] Yeah, what's your name? [Marcus] C-captain Marcus Alexander, son of Isaac the Dragon-blooded, knighted by- [Uther] That's great, kid. [Marcus] Kid? With respect, m'lord, I'm at least a year- [Uther] That's fantastic. Have you seen Madelyn around? [Marcus] Ah... I believe I may have seen her walking with Sir Harken- [Uther] Thanks. Seeya around, kid. [Marcus] My word... he's Lycia's future? -Marcus/Uther B [Uther] Mark! [Marcus] M-M'lord! [Uther] Easy, soldier. You're as stiff as they come, aren't you? [Marcus] I'm afraid I don't follow, sir. [Uther] Well, you've been with us since we departed from Pherae, right? [Marcus] That's correct, sir. [Uther] Yet, I've never seen you sit down. [Marcus] That's... that's a little ludicrous, sir. Of course I've sat down... [Uther] Never in my presence, though. [Marcus] W-well, that's a matter of code and respect, sir. [Uther] Uther. [Marcus] P-pardon? [Uther] I have a name. Uther. [Marcus] Sir Uther, then. [Uther] No, just call me Uther. [Marcus] ...of course. I have a request, though. [Uther] Name it. [Marcus] Don't call me Mark. [Uther] Ha! You got it, kid. You're alright. [Marcus] Sir, I'm older than you are. [Uther] Don't call me sir. [Marcus] Yes, m'lord. [Uther] ... -Marcus/Uther A [Uther] Marky, my boy! [Marcus] Y-yes, m'lord? [Uther] Uther. [Marcus] Yes, my apologies. [Uther] I wanted to talk to you about Elbert. [Marcus] Of course, sir. I'll be serving as Lord Elbert's attendant for many years to come. [Uther] Yeah. Does he seem like he's changed to you? [Marcus] Changed? [Uther] He's... I don't know. I really don't know what I'm asking. [Marcus] ...sh... should I leave? [Uther] What? No. Here, have a drink. [Marcus] ...alright. Perhaps you should explain your concerns? [Uther] Ah, I guess I'm worried that he's maturing too quickly; leaving me behind. Father's always berating me for being irresponsible - even Madelyn says I've the discipline of a child. I'm supposed to be Lycia's next leader, after all. [Marcus] I'd... I'd imagine it would be a large weight on your shoulders. [Uther] Yeah. I've got an eternity of paperwork and politics ahead of me, so I guess I'd rather enjoy myself while I can. Elbert, though... Elbert seems to fit nicely into that world. [Marcus] P-perhaps you should talk to him about it? [Uther] Oh, no. How would you start a conversation like that? 'Hey, I want you to be a child with me a little longer.' [Marcus] Uther. [Uther] Huh? [Marcus] You know Elbert better than I do, and even I know how he'd respond to that. [Uther] Heh.

[Marcus] 'You can be Eliwood's milk brother if you'd like.'

-Madelyn/Hassar C [Madelyn] Oh, hello there! [Hassar] Hm? [Madelyn] Hi! [Hassar] Hello. [Madelyn] Eheh... [Hassar] ... [Madelyn] ... [Hassar] ... [Madelyn] So, uh... [Hassar] Yes? [Madelyn] Um, so you're from the plains? [Hassar] Yeah. [Madelyn] Oh... that's neat. [Hassar] Mm. [Madelyn] ...ahh... [Hassar] ... [Madelyn] I'm Madelyn, by the way! [Hassar] I know. [Madelyn] Well... I'm pleased to meet you, Sir...? [Hassar] Hassar. [Madelyn] Hassar! That's a neat name. [Hassar] Thank you. [Madelyn] Does it mean anything? [Hassar] Yes. [Madelyn] ... [Hassar] ... [Madelyn] ...well? -Madelyn/Hassar B [Madelyn] Hassar, look! [Hassar] Hm? [Madelyn] Look, look! [Hassar] Berries? [Madelyn] Yes! [Hassar] ...what of them? [Madelyn] 'The fruit of the hawk,' right? [Hassar] No. These are tyralles. [Madelyn] Oh... I could have sworn I got it right this time... [Hassar] You were close. Tyralles are very similar to hassar in appearance and aroma. The only real difference is that tyralles are a potent poison, while hassar work as excellent vulnerary reagents. [Madelyn] ...p-poison? [Hassar] Yes. While nonlethal, tyralles will cripple their victim and send them into a state of shock. [Madelyn] Oh! O-oh my! [Hassar] Is there something wrong, Madelyn? [Madelyn] Oh, no! Nonono no! Oh dear, no! [Hassar] ...? [Madelyn] I've gotta go! [Hassar] ... -fade out then back in- [Hassar] I'm sure he forgives you. [Madelyn] H-h-how cuh... could he?! I c-could have kuh-killed him! [Hassar] No, you couldn't have. [Madelyn] Hassar! [Hassar] Yes? [Madelyn] I p-poisoned him! [Hassar] Calm down. [Madelyn] Stop it! Just stop it! [Hassar] ... [Madelyn] ...sniff. [Hassar] Listen, it's not that bad. [Madelyn] ...i-it is so... [Hassar] It isn't. I made the same mistake when I was younger. [Madelyn] Reh... really? [Hassar] Yeah. I was mixing a salve for my mother to treat a wound. [Madelyn] ...oh no... [Hassar] Mm. It sent her into convulsions and she bled out. [Madelyn] ...oh god, Hassar... I'm so sorry... [Hassar] It's alright. -Madelyn/Hassar A [Madelyn] Hey, Hassar? [Hassar] Mm? [Madelyn] Do... would you meet my father? [Hassar] ...Madelyn? [Madelyn] I don't... I don't want you to do anything you don't want to do... [Hassar] ... [Madelyn] ...a-and my father's a little... a little old fashioned... I mean... well... [Hassar] He wouldn't approve of his daughter marrying a savage. [Madelyn] Hassar! I didn't- [Hassar] No, it's fine. I understand what this means to you. [Madelyn] Mm. Even if there's no chance we'll recieve his blessing, I want to try. [Hassar] Of course. [Madelyn] Thank you, Hassar. [Hassar] Mm. 

-Shen/Gado C [Shen] Gado? [Gado] Yeah, s'me. [Shen] Ah. It was either you or a mule. [Gado] A mule? [Shen] You share a distinctive smell. [Gado] Hey! [Shen] Ahah, I jest. How are you coping with the job? [Gado] S'not like it's my first campaign, bro. [Shen] True enough. These fights are a little more intense than we're accustomed to, though. [Gado] You know me. My hide's thicker'n most! [Shen] Oh, I know. I doubt I'd be alive today if it weren't for your tenacity. [Gado] My what? Is this another stink joke!? [Shen] Hahahaha... Oh, my friend. How do people live without you in their lives? [Gado] Damn it, Shen! What's so funny? [Shen] Your naivete, Gado. [Gado] What? Argh! It's like y' live on a different world. Heck, even when I get th' jokes, I feel like you're laughing fer a whole other reason! [Shen] That's what I just said. -Shen/Gado B [Gado] Ho, Shen! [Shen] Hello, my friend. Do you need something? [Gado] Naw. Jus' takin' advantage of a lull in th' fightin'. These skirmishes are gettin' downright serious, but our allies are jus' laughing it off. [Shen] I'm certain that they are having as much trouble as we are, Gado. [Gado] If they are, they ain't showin' it! [Shen] To the eye, perhaps. I can hear the stress in their voices, brother. We aren't alone in this trial. [Gado] I s'pose. Knowin' there's a dozen men at our back is nice, but... [Shen] But? [Gado] It's nothin'. [Shen] I'm blind, Gado, not stupid. [Gado] Eheh. I'm just not used t' there bein' so many people around. Any one o' them could be a bounty hunter or assassin or thief - heck, some of them are! [Shen] We have made some enemies in this business, I admit - but these people are friends. We're all here for the same cause. [Gado] Th' gold? [Shen] No, Gado. For the Dara and for the fate of Elibe. [Gado] Oh. I'm here for th' gold. -Shen/Gado A [Shen] We've come some way, haven't we, friend? [Gado] Wh- oh, Shen. S'not often *you* sneak up on *me*. [Shen] Ha. Stranger things have happened. [Gado] Oh, don't I know it. This whole adventure's been nuts! [Shen] Indeed it has. Tell me, Gado, have you considered what you will do when this is all over? [Gado] Ah, well... I fig'red I'd just stick with you an' Celeste. Nothin' needs to change, right? [Shen] Unfortunately, the boss will be returning to Ilia with the prestige gained from this adventure. She has plans beyond our short campaign, Gado. [Gado] Oh... [Shen] So do I, as a matter of fact. [Gado] W-well, I'm sure I'll think'o somethin'! I'm the greatest axe on th' dark cont'nent, after all! There mus' be thousands o' jobs jus' waitin' for me to finish here! [Shen] I'm glad to hear that. I doubt I could retire in peace, knowing you were stranded and lost. [Gado] Retire? Shen, you can't retire! Y're way too young! [Shen] Young I may be, but we both know I'm not exactly in fighting form. [Gado] Shut up, Shen! You're more than a match for any o' these dorks, blind, armless and unconscious! Knowin' you were at my back, I never had e'en a second o' fear in my whole life. Y're like a... like one'o Elimine's disciples, sent down 'specially to keep me safe an' whole. If e'eryone had a friend like you, the whole world'd stop fightin' and talk out their problems o'er some mutton and ale. [Shen] ...hah. You really mean all that, Gado? [Gado] Well, sure. Just don't ask me t' repeat it. [Shen] Ahaha! Oh, my old friend. Come to the Isles with me. There'll be plenty of brutes for you to butt heads with, and I'll be able to relax. Maybe find myself a lady. [Gado] Does sound kinda nice, don't it? We should talk to Tristan. [Shen] Mm.

#fe7x #fire emblem: immortal sword

[lilsliceofpie]

Mistaken Evil

I wanted a superhero au so me and @an-angel-on-earth​ collaborated on this fic. She wrote this part(and started this cool au) based on my prompt, which was this:  The Trickster and Venator(Sam) are nemesis. Trickster complains that he’s just misunderstood. So he ties up Venator and tells him all about his past as Gabriel, the “archangel hero”, and tells him that the only victims he’s had were ones who deserved it(aka dicks). And long story short, falling in love with your nemesis does not go well with the press.

She did an amazing job so I’m gonna stop explaining this and show you the story.

They called him the Trickster. Sure, he did like to mess with some people. Sometimes people deserved it. But the public just turns somebody trying to get justice into a villain with a twisted mind. He only killed those who had killed. Never any innocents.

Gabriel. That was his real name. And surely no one would ever suspect the cashier at the small corner candy store to be the person everyone feared. So he lived out his normal civilian life there, trying to make people happy and make up for the fear some felt. Because of him. He would see people talking about him. Talking about how he had killed another politician just last night. They didn’t realize it was because that man had lied and cheated his way to power. Every victim of his had left several in their wake. But he was known, and they weren’t. So they got away with it, and he was forced to hide.

Granted, there were some fun parts to being a villain. Gabriel had no shortage of knowledge. After all, he had been fighting for a long time, which they wouldn’t expect out of someone so young looking. He did enjoy messing with the minds of the people he killed, sending them into vivid hallucinations of various worlds. And there was no better satisfaction than a job well done, than seeing a killer become a victim. Sometimes he took certain liberties with his work. Killing them in the way they had killed others. And he could wait, in the shadows, watching as carefully laid plans took place over weeks, months, years, decades. He had all the time in the world. He could choose the take their life quickly, or turn their life into a living hell.

The bad parts, well, were very bad. If he wanted to strike, he had to be on alert the whole time. There were heroes too, and they wouldn’t take kindly to him. There was one in particular he had clashed with more than once. And Gabriel hated it. He didn’t even know who the man was as a civilian, just the fact that he seemed to want him dead. Trying to take down a hero has hard enough. But one that would have visions of the future, strength, speed, weapons, actual training? That was harder. Visions are tricky things, but they would give away his location, his plan, everything he was doing. If he wanted someone dead, you bet that man would be there to stop him.

Their name was Venator. And while they were loved by the public, Trickster hated them.

A bell softly jingled as the door swung open, letting in a just of cold air. Gabriel leaned against the counter, looking at the new customer. He was freakishly tall, that was the first thing he noticed. He wore a plain black jacket with plaid underneath, and regular looking jeans. His hair was long, with a small dusting of snow on top.

“Hello, what can I get you?” Gabriel said, peeling his eyes away from the stranger’s face.

“What’s the best chocolate you have?” His voice was nice. He ducked down, having to kneel to look at the displays. Truffles, chocolate bark, chocolate covered berries, mints, taffies, you could buy a lot of different things here. His gaze stopped for a second over the jar of moose shaped lollipops before looking at Gabriel. “Well?”

“Oh! Yes, well, I recommend the chocolate caramel with sea salt. If you want anything other than chocolate, it’s all the best. Buying for yourself? Or you got a girlfriend on her time on month?” Maybe the best course of action wasn’t to ask that last question. But hey, it was a reasonable guess. And if he was single... Well, he was pretty cute. Probably got a lot of chicks.

“Nah. Single as a pringle. Just like chocolate a lot. And it’s winter, you know, gotta beat that seasonal depression. I haven’t tried that chocolate, so I’ll take a piece. And, uh, hmm... Get me a small bag of assorted truffles. I don’t care which flavor.” Gabriel grabbed the requested chocolate, fingers punching the codes into the register. “Okay! So that’s nine dollars and... Forty five cents. Do you need a receipt?” The man took the bag, looking at Gabriel.

“No. I’m fine. Have a good day!” He turned and left, walking back out into the cold. Gabriel smiled a sad little smile, cursing himself for falling in love so easily. Then he realized there was a small piece of paper left on the counter.

My name’s Sam Winchester. You’re pretty cute. If you swing that way, you want to get hot chocolate with me tomorrow? Meet me at the cafe next door at 11. I’ll see you there.

Gabriel felt like he could fly, as his face practically beamed from the huge smile he had.

That night, though, it was a different matter. He had put on his typical ‘villain’ outfit, and set out. He had laid out his plan carefully. Tonight, if Venator tried to stop him, he would win. No, he wouldn’t kill him. He just wanted to talk. Explain what he was doing. Honestly, he was just misunderstood. He was basically being a hero, but the media managed to turn him into a villain.

His target today was the owner of a small company that sold computers and hardware. He sounds like he would be somebody who cared about his company, but there were two things wrong with him. First, the computers and hardware were bugged, so he could find out whatever he wanted about anyone. He used this for money, blackmail, etc. The second thing was that the company ran a secret business smuggling, producing, and selling drugs. For someone like Gabriel, he was a good target.

Bodyguards are surprisingly easy to take out. Their strong, but dumb, and Gabriel infects their minds, causing them to destroy each other. Minds are fragile things, and for Trickster, they were easy to manipulate.

“Trickster. I knew I would find you here.”

“Well of course you did, you have visions of me. Tell me, do you also dream of me? Or maybe you just dream of crushing me once and for all.”

“Surrender now, and I won’t harm you.” Venator said, his voice shockingly deep. He was serious with his hatred of Gabriel.

“Well, what would be the fun in that? There’s nothing to be gained for me. Besides, you don’t even know me. I’m shocked. For a nemesis, you’re a pretty shitty one.”

“Trickster, surrender. End this plan, turn away. The thing you will gain is the knowledge that I won’t be hurting you tonight.” Honestly, it sounded like a pretty good deal. While Gabriel could heal fast, he didn’t like having to cover up all the bruises he got. And his coworkers would get pretty suspicious. But tonight, he had decided on a different plan. Putting his hands up in the air, he began whistling a tune as he strolled away.

“What the- you release me at once! Put me down! You little piece of-” Venator’s voice was cut off as Gabriel walked forward. “Bet you didn’t see this. At last, you’re the one being trapped. Feels almost good. Now, you listen to what I want. If you do as I say, I won’t hurt you. Deal?” He smiled, turning back around. Venator was struggling against the chains which had come out of, well, nowhere.

“It was almost too easy, How did I not think of it before? All I needed to do was make you think that you had this whole entire big alleyway. But really, there was a little tiny wall in the way. All that was left to do is project an image of me walking away. But, you know, no hard feelings. And all I want to do is talk. Then you can go on your merry little way, stopping crime, doing whatever you do.” He couldn’t resist the smile that was spreading across his face. Now, today, he would get the last laugh. Revenge was sweet, a dish best served cold, and exactly like the ice cream that was waiting back at his house to celebrate his first real victory.

“Fine. You want to talk? Talk to me all you want. If it means you don’t kill that man tonight, fine.” Oh man, he was angry. Even his enhanced strength didn’t help him against the metal chains. Obviously, he wasn’t very used to being the one who was restrained. Gabriel rubbed his hands together, pleased that his plan had worked.

“Okay! Where do I begin? How about... I’m not a totally evil supervillain, that’s just what people think. Really, I kill people who are dishonest, who cheat, who kill, who are actually evil. Never any innocents. But all the articles, all the reporters, they don’t have the intel that I have. They don’t know what those people have actually done. And of course, my past is complicated. I know about you, Venator. I know that you’re part of a group of people who call themselves ‘hunters’. I know that you fight demons, and vampires, and creatures who people don’t believe in anymore. But you, you don’t know about me. I’ve been around for a while. But I used to go by a different name. Have you ever heard of a man called the archangel hero?” Venator gasped, looking at Gabriel.

“No way? You’re Gabriel? But you’re so different now. The archangel hero was loved by everyone. He was the voice of hope and salvation. He was like an actual angel. You’re more like a demon now.”

“Now you’re confusing me with my brother Lucifer. I wasn’t just like an angel. I was an angel. Still am, except I had to cut the hero act. People could have figured it out. So now, I work mostly in the shadows. Yeah, I know, I’m an angel, big shock. Actually, I’m an archangel, hence the name. Do you understand what I do now?”

Venator looked at him, eyes wide. Sure, he was a hunter and knew about angels. He had even enlisted the help of one named Castiel before! But learning that the person you hated most was an angel... Well, that was a little more surprising.

“Yeah yeah. So let me get this straight-”

“Well, actually, I’m not straight, so...”

“Please kindly shut the fuck up. So you were the archangel hero. But then you couldn’t, so you... Faked your own death? I remember hearing that he died on unknown circumstances. So then you ended up becoming a villain?”

“Were you not listening? Are you deaf or something? I. Am. Not. A. Villain! Never was one, never will be one. I’m a hero, same as you. But because of the way I fight, and the things that I do, and the way that I do it, well, they all seem to think I’m a villain.”

Venator looked bored. “Is this going to go on all night? Or can we make peace and just go home? I have to get ready for a date tomorrow.”

“Wait, you’re not single in your civilian life? Wow, good job. Anyway, I actually have a date too, so I can let you go if you promise you won’t attack me.”

“Yes, I can actually get a date. It’s a first date with a guy, so I gotta impress him. We’re getting hot chocolate together. However, I expect it would be a lot harder for you. No one would want to date someone who’s seen as a villain.” Venator rolled his eyes at Gabriel. “Now, if you could release me, we can work something out. You can continue killing, I’ll put up a show trying to stop you. You always manage to get away in the end, it won’t be that hard.”

“Yes, I don’t think it would be very hard, Sam Winchester.”

“How- How do you know my name?” Sam looked at Gabriel, eyes wide. “How?”

“A guess. But seeing as we’re going on a date together, it’s only fitting that I should be able to recognize you. Nice to meet you Sam, I’m Gabriel the archangel.”

Sam did nothing but stare at him for a long, long time. After a few minutes of silence, he spoke. “I think I love you even more now.”

“Aww, I love you too.” Gabriel snapped, and the chains were released. Instantly, Sam raced towards him, arms wrapping around the shorter man. Sam smelled nice, like smoke and chocolate. They embraced for a while, before a noise interrupted them.

“I am live on the scene of a fight between Venator and Trickster, and, um, as you can see, something unexpected has happened. It appears that the two... Are gay? And in love? This could be a problem. Um, back to Mike with the weather.”

Sam and Gabriel waited until the lady was out of sight, before turning back towards each other. There was a moment of hesitation before Gabriel took the lead, grabbing the collar of Sam’s shirt and pulling him downwards, kissing him hard. It was passionate, and lasted for a while before both men had to breathe. No words were needed as Sam took Gabriel’s hand, and the two walked down the alley together.

“You know, I did like the look of you all tied up like that...”

“You kinky bastard.”

“Yes, but you love me...”

#sabriel #superhero au #enemies to lovers #superhero boyfriends

[stargleeksil-blog]

Criminal Minds s04e02 Angel Maker review - or more aptly named, oh my god this is amazing yet gross at the same time. Why do this to me?

Episode 02 – Angel Maker

Hey guys! So I’m still reeling from that first episode. Oh my goodness gracious. That was a definite showstopper. But, I’m over it, I hope it’s going to be fine. I hope for a little breather, and that this one will be a little funnier. But let’s see what happens. Okay?

Let’s get it started.

Creepy music isn’t instilling me with much confidence, you know.

A young cat lady? Oh honey.

Oh boy. Someone else is walking in the house.

Oh boy.

Why is that creeper hiding in her closet till the morning to kill her? What the fuck?

And why a hammer?

“You’re experiencing hyperacusis. It’s caused by sudden loud noises, like an explosion.” REALLY?

(that’s sarcasm) – hyper sounds loud.

Wait. So the doctor wants to take him off the field? Oh boy.

I mean, I get it, and I want him to get better, but poor baby, he can’t sit still forever. He hated being a prosecutor.

“W-what if I said I’d … take it easy and … limit my role in the field?”

So cute! He’s like, I need to get back to work.

Wait. He’s so damaged in the ear he can’t hear his phone ringing? Oh, baby.

Wait. That fucker raped and hammered her to death? Ugh.

JJ: “Lower Canaan, Ohio.”

Emily: “Lower where?”

Ha! I love you, Emily. I have no fucking idea where that is either.

“Ritual. Nice hair, by the way.”

Hey! Leave my poodle’s mane!

Wait what? It’s the same victimology of a serial killer who was executed? Makes no sense.

Oh. A copycat honoring the anniversary of his hero’s death. Ew.

I’m sorry, Reid saying ‘semen’ is like hearing me talking in Japanese – unnatural.

Hold up, the jizz they found in the girl is matching to the DNA of the Angel Maker? WHAT?

Oh boy.

Chuck Palahniuk: “We all die. The goal isn’t to live forever, the goal is to create something that will.” AMAZING

“They have parachutes on board, right?”

“They should. It’s standard on all federal air transport.”

“Maybe we can give one to the elephant in the room, get him out of here?”

OH MY GOD! ROSSI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I JUST DIED! SOMEBODY GIVE THOSE WRITERS A GOLD STAR!

“That’d be the elephant with the dead man’s DNA.”

“Well, obviously somebody planted the semen on the victim.”

Derek: “In the victim.”

“Reid, you’re not seriously floating around the idea of an evil twin, are you?”

WHAT?

“No, I’m not. I’m floating the idea of an eviler twin.” DOES HE NOT UNDERSTAND SARCASM?

Oh my god, I’m dying right now.

“Traditionally, the concept is a good twin and an evil twin. But in this case, it’s evil twin and eviler twin.”

Oh god, I love my pure angel.

Why would the puncture wounds seem familiar to Emily? Weird.

That’s a pretty prison.

“Real lady killer.”

REALLY? Did that guard just make that lame ass joke? Oh god.

“The type of DNA that cats in lockup don’t have occasion to use.”

Wow. That’s some strong language there, Derek!

Can I ask? Why does he speak to everyone normally on the phone, but when he talks to Garcia, it’s to the hearing piece? Is he that desperate for her voice? I don’t get it.

Wait. There are rumors about the execution being sloppy? Oh boy.

Wait. They’re digging up the angel maker to prove he’s dead to get the townies off their backs? That’s wrong. Listen to the FBI.

Okay, so I’m naturally extremely sensitive to loud noises, like the buzzing in Hotch’s ear, so can they NOT do that please? UGH

So that’s an empty coffin. And it’s not a good sign.

Oh boy.

Oh god, Shemar is sitting on a desk. Why do I find that hot?

“What does that mean, doctor?” God, no one should sound that hot. Fuck. No really, if you check out my lady parts, you’ll see them all aflutter.

Wait. So they killed him with drugs, and yet he was still alive? Oh boy.

Wait. When they killed Cortland he said he’d come back right before they attempted to execute him? Oh boy.

“Did you know that John Wayne Gracie painted clowns? A murdering pedophile paints clowns, and people hand them on their walls. It’s creepy on so many levels. I mean, clowns –”

“Garcia, I didn’t know you had that hang-up.”

Aw, Derek is learning stuff about baby girl.

“Coulrophobia – abnormal fear of clowns.” Good to know, female Reid XD

“Oh, no, there is nothing abnormal about it. When I was twelve, a hobo clown groped my breast at a birthday party and made this old-timey honkey noise when he did it. Apparently making it funny makes it okay.”

YOU ARE ONE AMAZING GIRL! AND I COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND THE FEAR OF CLOWNS! THEY CREEP ME OUT TOO! (never seen one in this country, but still).

Derek’s face is like, who the fuck touched my baby girl’s boobs? Only I am allowed! Who is this clown and how can I kill him?

“Oh, my vision, I found a ton.”

That’s sad. Angel Maker memorabilia. Ew.

“He also made these little origami figurines out of cigarette boxes, which, I hate to say, are really cute.”

Oh honey.

“Shebang!”

Wait. The guard sells his crap? Oh boy.

“Wakey, wakey, my man.”

Well, Sid’s dead. Shit.

“One to the grill, one to the groin. That’s personal.”

Damn straight.

“Strikes me as an Aqua Velva guy.”

Bam. Nailed it. That’s his cologne.

Ha!

What’s in the pill box?

Wait. It’s a woman now? Oh boy.

Wait. Rutledge blackmailed the unsub? OH BOY!

“We now know that Rutledge was transferred to Hawkesville from a female prison, in the wake of allegations that he was using his position to leverage sexual favors from inmates.”

Oh boy.

“That and the fact that he took a PDE-5 inhibitor shortly before his murder.”

“A what?”

“Viagra.”

Oh damn.

Are they allowed to say that on CBS? Hahahaha oh my god.

“Hybristophilia. It’s a sexual attraction to men who commit violent crimes.”

I’m sorry, but Derek talking about sexual attraction is seriously sexy and he can’t talk about unhealthy attraction and look sexy at the same time because it ruins the whole point.

“She’s using an instrument to simulate the sexual assault …” did they actually say she was using toys on the victim? OH BOY!

“Hey, you ever get groupies at your book singing?” “Sometimes, if Barry Manilow isn’t in town.”

I love you, Rossi.

“Waits an average of three hours for a ten-minute visit, mandatory strip search. Would you endure that for a guy?”

“For Barry Manilow, maybe.”

OH MY GOD EMILY!

Wait. This lady professed she was the fucker’s lover? Oh boy.

“Last time I checked, they didn’t allow conjugal visits on death row.”

True.

Wait. So the lady then stopped loving him because she got a letter addressed to a different woman, but it was written in a different dialect, how can it be from him, then? It makes no sense.

Oh god. Another victim.

She killed a day-care lady? THAT IS CRUEL!

Wait. The puncture wounds mean something? Oh boy.

The letters to ‘dove’ were a code? Oh boy.

I love you, Reid.

“What do you need to crack it?” “The ability to clone myself and a year’s supply of Adderall.”

“I’ll put on the coffee.”

Oh my god, that was genius.

“So they both had home-based businesses. A stranger could walk in off the street and be a prospective customer.” Oh god.

SHIT. The puncture wounds represent constellations. Damn.

“Delphinus, the dolphin; Equuleus, the little horse. Anything sound familiar?”

“His origami things.”

Oh boy.

Shit. One more kill to complete the set. Shit.

“They weren’t just close. They were in love.”

Gross.

“How’d you crack it?”

“I profiled the author. Cortland Ryan was on death row with several high-ranking members of the Aryan brotherhood.”

“He got the code from the Aryans?”

“Either that or he read a lot of 16th-century literature.”

Wait. “The Aryans liked to use a cipher based on a 400-year old code written by Sir Francis Bacon.” Oh god.

“Normally you’d use a computer to run all these combinations, but it was quicker to just to do it longhand until I found the right one.” WHAT?

“He’s so lifelike.” OH MY GOD! EMILY!

Seriously, those letters were so romantic, if it weren’t for the horrible fact that he fucking killed people and she continued his ‘mission’ after death.

JJ’s right. Reid confirmed, “Well, she did say ‘us’ – watch over us from the stars.”

Wait. The victim survived? Because she screamed? GOOD FOR YOU LADY!

Wait. So Shara did the whole thing, trying to get pregnant with the wacko’s kid? EW!

“So if you want me to find baby angel maker, we’re gonna have to narrow it down.” I love you Garcia.

“Ten months, actually.”

“Really?”

No wait. Hold up. Seriously? I didn’t know that a woman was pregnant ten months. Wait. Are they making this up? Hold on. Nope. They’re right. So why are we so convinced that it’s always nine months? MOM! HAVE YOU BEEN LYING TO ME????

HAS MY SCHOOL SEX ED CLASS IN THE SIXTH GRADE BEEN LYING TO ME THIS WHOLE TIME?

“We’ll do single mothers only, in case she wanted to keep the father a secret, you know, didn’t want to brag: ‘oh, your baby daddy’s a third-grade teacher? Well, mine likes to poke people in the stomach with tools, so there.’” LOL

So gross, yet so awesome

Wait. Why is the name familiar to my poodle?

Damn. She was on the jury. So she knew the case. Fuck.

Shit. Her baby died in the hospital, she wanted a baby so bad, and she fell in love with the fucker so deeply that she was willing to continue his legacy and let her new baby know who his daddy was? FUCK.

“Completing the murders was the only way she could hold on to him.”

I’m with you, baby, that’s gross. She stole the body from the grave. Fuck.

“Meetings with Delilah Grennan and Maxine Chandler the day of each murder.” Oh boy.

Bam. found the next victim. Let’s hope we get her in time.

Shemar leaning over a car. Hot.

Sneaky, yummy Shemar.

Shit. She took a gun and is roaming the house and my baby is there, too. Fuck.

Wendell Berry: “The past is our definition. we may strive, with good reason, to escape it, or to escape what is bad in it, but we will escape it only by adding something better to it.” Sounds weird. Then again, I’m pretty sure I’m high on caffeine. Which is weird.

“Morgan doesn’t like to follow directions. You didn’t know about that?”

“Yeah he likes to vibe it.”

What does that even mean?

“Ok, smart ass, you drive.”

Emily: “Oh, great.”

I love this cast so fucking much!

And Morgan said ‘ass’.

 Okay, so this episode was creepy in so many ways, but we had more fun between my superheroes which was amazing beyond belief! I’m so happy they put everything in one episode and also addressed what happened to Hotch and didn’t just glance over it.

I’m not gonna elaborate too much, seeing as this is already heavy on the verbosity and I’m planning on adding tons of pictures of Shemar, Kirsten and Matthew anyway. So I’ll see you all for the next episode, and thank you again, for taking the time to actually see what I have in my filthy mind.

Love you all!

<3

#criminal minds reviews #criminal minds #reviews #s04e02 #angel maker #aaron hotchner #hotch #thomas gibson #derek morgan #shemar moore #jennifer jareau #aj cook #jj #spencer reid #matthew gray gubler #mgg #penelope garcia #kirsten vangsness #emily prentiss #paget brewster #david rossi #joe mantegna #poodle #hot stuff #baby boy #baby girl #chocolate adonis #god of chocolate thunder #tech kitten #goddess

[weekendwarriorblog]

WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEKEND May 17, 2019  - JOHN WICK CHAPTER 3, A DOG’S JOURNEY, THE SUN IS ALSO A STAR

Well, the summer is grinding along at a rather slow pace. Granted, it’s only the third or fourth official weekend, depending on when you started counting, and if you live in New York City, it doesn’t really feel like summer at all, but as has been the case since starting my beat at The Beat, I hope people will be reading this for the limited releases and repertory stuff, which I try to make fairly comprehensive and complete.

Normally, I wouldn’t be too impressed with Lionsgate’s decision to release Keanu Reeves’ JOHN WICK CHAPTER 3 - PARABELLUM in the summer, but surprise, surprise, I actually liked this one. A LOT! I already reviewed the movie for The Beat, a review which you can read here, but I do think that most of the people who liked the first movie will like this one, too, as it adds the likes of Halle Berry, Asia Kate Dillon  (Orange is the New Black) and Mark Dacascos to flesh out the mythology while sending John Wick on the run as he’s excommunicated from the assassin’s guild.

I don’t have as much an opinion about the doggie sequel A DOG’S JOURNEY (Universal). I mean, I like dogs just fine, but I never got around to seeing A Dog’s Purpose, and I’m not sure I can follow this movie’s high-concept premise without having seen it. Apparently, a dog dies and then keeps coming back as another dog in order to protect Dennis Quaid’s daughter… no, I don’t get how that works either, but I’ll probably never see this.

The other movie I’ve seen which opens Friday is Ry Russo-Young’s THE SUN IS ALSO A STAR (Warner Bros./MGM), based on the novel by Nicola Yoon, starring Yara Shahidi (black-ish,grown-ish) and Charles Melton from Riverdale. If you know me at all, then you can probably guess that I’ve never seen those shows, but I have seen Russo-Young’s other films, and she’s a director that’s definitely grown on me as she’s taken on YA adaptations. I’m not going to write a full review of this one (due to time constraints and illness) but I was generally mixed on it. I thought the two young actors were fantastic, and this was a perfectly nice romantic film that generally used its New York locations well, but there were definitely parts where I was just bored and not that into the story. It’s a shame, because I usually buy into the whole fate and destiny thing, especially when it come to romance, but this one just gets silly at times.

You can find out what I think of the above film’s box office prospects over at The Beat.

LIMITED RELEASES

This is a very busy week for limited releases with a lot of things coming out of the woodwork at the last minute… and honestly, most of what I’ve seen is just okay, at best.

Jack O’Connell plays Cameron Todd Willingham in Ed Zwick’s TRIAL BY FIRE (Roadside Attractions), based on the true story of the Texas man accused of murdering his three young daughters via arson in 1991. He spent 12 years on Death Row before his case found its way to writer Elizabeth Gilbert, played by Laura Dern, who tries to negate the evidence against Willingham. I wanted to like this movie more than I did, because it is an interesting story with a decent script written by Oscar winner Geoffrey Fletcher (Precious), based on an article by New Yorker writer David Grann (apparently all of his articles become movies, so he has a good agent, huh?). The movie is generally okay, mainly due to the fantastic rounded performance by O’Connell but it’s also quite long-winded and didn’t need to be over two hours to get its point across.

Joanna Hogg’s autobiographical British indie THE SOUVENIR (A24) stars Honor Swinton Byrne (yes, that’s Tilda’s daughter) as film school student Julie who encounters and gets involved with a gregarious and opinionated older man named named Anthony (Tom Burke) who turns out to be a heroin junkie who effectively sabotages the film she’s trying to get made. While I can generally understand what Hogg was trying to do with this movie, I found it very long and drawn-out, and I was even more shocked to learn that this was meant to be the first of a two-part movie, but no, I won’t bother with Part 2 even if it does star Robert Pattinson, probably as another dick who tries to derail Julie’s career, cause that’s what men do.

The Lunchbox director Ritesh Batra returns to India for the romantic drama PHOTOGRAPH (Amazon) about Rafi (Nawazuddin Siddiqui), a man from a poor village who takes a picture of student named Miloni (Sanya Malhotra) and sends it to his grandma, saying it’s his new girlfriend, so she’ll get off his back about marrying. Rafi sends his grandma a picture of Miloni, but then has to convince Miloni to play along and meet his grandmother when she comes to Mumbai. As the two spend more time getting to know each other, a romance begins. It’s a nice movie, maybe not quite as great as The Lunchbox, but a nice date night movie for sure.

Opening at the Metrograph, which is in the midst of a Ryusuke Hamaguchi retrospective, is the Japanese filmmaker’s most recent film ASAKO I AND II (Grasshopper Films), based on the novel by Tomoka Shibasaki. It begins with a romance between a shy girl from (Asako, played by Erika Karata) who falls for a young man named Baku (Masahiro Higashide), who suddenly vanishes on her. She ends up moving to Tokyo and meeting another man named Ryohei, who is Baku’s spitting image – maybe because he’s also played by Higashide. A relationship develops between them until Asako learns what happened to Baku. This is definitely a strange but mostly satisfying romance story that would be a great date night double feature of Photograph.

From Sweden comes Pella Kagerman and Hugo Lilja’s sci-fi thriller ANIARA (Magnet Releasing), which takes place on the title spaceship which is taking the three-week journey to Mars full of thousands of passengers when it’s knocked off course. The problem is that it might take years to get back on course, which immediately throws everyone on board into a panic. At the center of it is Emelie Jonsson’s woman who runs a “Mima chamber” where people can go to relax, a chamber that gets increasingly more busy until it breaks down and then things just get completely crazy.  If you wondered what Passengersmight have been like if Gaspar Noe directed it then Aniarais the movie for you, but I did like Jonsson’s character arc as she ends up starting a relationship with a woman officer on the ship and where that story goes.

Karen Gillan stars in Collin Schiffli’s ALL CREATURES HERE BELOW (Samuel Goldwyn), which is written by and co-stars David Dastmalchian from Ant-Manand other films. It deals with a couple living in poverty, forcing him to break the law, as they set off to find refuge in Kansas City. I haven’t seen it but it sounds interesting with that casting.

Shirley Jackson’s 1962 mystery novel WE HAVE ALWAYS LIVED IN THE CASTLE (Brainstorm Media)is adapted by filmmaker Stacie Passon with an all-star cast including Taissa Farmiga, Alexandra Daddario, Sebastian Stan and Crispin Glover. Farmiga plays Merricat who lives with her sister Constance (Daddario) and uncle (Glover), the only survivors of a poisonic that killed the rest of their family five years earlier. When their cousin Charles (Stan) arrives, asking about the family’s finances, it begins a battle for control as tragedy looms.

Now playingat the Film Forum is The Third Wife (Film Movement), Ash Mayfair’s Vietnamese drama set in the 19th Century about a 14-year-old named May, who becomes the third wife of a much older man. With a mostly female cast and crew, the film has drawn comparisons to Zhang Yimou’s Raise the Red Lantern and some of the flashbacks in The Joy Luck Club (which I recently rewatched and cried my eyes out, but don’t tell anyone).

Then opening Friday at the Film Forum is Andrey Paunov’s documentary Walking on Water (Kino Lorber), about artist Christo and his late wife Jeanne-Claude, who had built some of the most amazing large-scale installations including the famous “The Gates” in Central Park and their most recent project “The Floating Piers” over Lake Iseo in Italy. The movie will open in L.A. and San Fran next Friday, May 24.

Johnny Depp stars in Wayne Roberts’ The Professor (Saban Films), a movie that seems to be getting dumped into theaters after a DirecTV release. Depp plays Richard, a college lecturer who discovers he has six months to live so he turns into a party animal, much to the shock of his wife (Rosemarie DeWitt) and chancellor (Ron Livingston). Also costarring Zoey Deutch, it opens in select cities.

Kevin and Michael Goetz’s A Violent Separation (Screen Media) stars Brenton Thwaites as Norman Young, deputy of a midwstern town who is forced to arrest his older brother Ray (Ben Robson) for murder. Things get more difficult when Norman gets involved with the victim’s younger sister (Alycia Debnam-Carey). It opens at New York’s Cinema Village and a few other theaters as well as On Demand.

Now playing at the Roxy Cinema in New York is Matt Hinton’s doc Parallel Love: The Story of a Band Called Luxury (Abramorama) about the small-town band Luxury, whose career almost ended in a wreck, but who continue to make records even as three members become priests.

Another music-related doc out this week is the Cordero Brothers thriller Room 37 - The Mysterious Death of Johnny Thunders (Cleopatra Entertainment), which as you might guess from the title is about famed rocker Johnny Thunders (Leo Ramsay) and how his trip to New Orleans to get his life together turned deadly.

This week’s Bollywood offering is Aki Ali’s De De Pyaar De, starring Ajay Devgn, Tabu and Rakul Preet Singh in a London-based love triangle.

Opening in New York this Friday, then in L.A. May 24 and VOD June 21 is Eddie Alcazar’s Perfect  (Breaker Films), exec. produced by Steven Soderbergh, which stars Garrett Wareing as a troubled young man sent to a clinic by his mother (Abbie Cornish) to help with his dark visions.

Next up is Rachel Carey’s Ask for Jane  (Level Film) starring Cait Cortelyou in a timely movie set in Chicago 1969 where abortion is punishable by prison and two women try to find a doctor to help a pregnant student at the University of Chicago has tried to kill herself. The two women end up forming the Jane Collective, an organization that helps women get safe abortions.

Asa Butterfield, Finn Cole, Hermione Corfield, Michael Sheen, Margot Robbie, Nick Frost and Simon Pegg star in Crispian Mills’ horror-comedy Slaughterhouse Rulez set in a British boarding school where monsters have been unleashed from a sinkhole. The movie was a hit in England but is barely getting a release in the States even with that amazing cast.

STREAMING AND CABLE

Not much of note on Netflix except Kate Melville’s rom-com Good Sam, a movie about a reporter who is trying to find a stranger who is leaving bags of money all around New York City.

I probably haven’t been paying enough attention to the streaming service MUBU, but in honor of the Cannes Film Festival that started this week, the service is doing a “Cannes Takeover” which includes Gus Van Sant’s Paranoid Park, Crisi Piu’s The Death of Mr. Lazarescu, Alejandro Innaritu’s Amores Perrosand other films that broke out of the French film festival.

REPERTORY

METROGRAPH (NYC):

Sci-fi author Samuel R. Delaney will be at the Metrograph for Delaneymania, a collection of films selected by him including This Island Earth (1955), Ingmar Bergman’s The Seventh Seal  (1957), Jean Cocteau’s Orpheus  (1950), as well as Orson Welles’ Touch of Evil: Director’s Cut  (1958). The series will also include Fred Barney Taylor’s doc about Delany called The Polymath and more. Playtime: Family Matinees is also getting involved into Delanwymania with screenings of The Boy with the Green Hair (1948) on Saturday and Sunday morning. Also this weekend is the firstMetrograph Book Fair of the year with lots of rare and vintage books and magazines on sale.This week’s Late Nites at Metrographincludes screenings of Michael Mann’s Thief  (1981) and more screenings of Gasar Noé’sClimax, which seems to be Metrograph’s new go-to movie. (Sorry, Carol!)

THE NEW BEVERLY (L.A.):

Weds and Thursday seems double features of Elaine May’s Mikey & Nicky  (1976), starring Peter Falk and John Cassavetes, and Between the Lines (1977), while Friday and Saturday’s double feature is Martha Coolidge’s 1983 film Valley Girl (with Coolidge and special guests on Saturday!) and Sofia Coppola’s 1999 debut The Virgin Suicides.  The Sunday/Monday double feature is two from Dorothy Arzner, Merrily We Go To Hell (1932) and First Comes Courage(1943).Friday’s midnight is Tarantino and Rodriguez’s 2007 anthology Grindhouse, while Saturday at midnight, you have another chance to watch The Love Witch from 2016.  The weekend’s KIDDEE MATINEE is Agnieszka Holland’s 1993 film The Secret Garden  (which is being remade next year). On Monday afternoon, there’s a screening of Josie and the Pussycats… no, I’m not sure why either.

FILM FORUM (NYC):

Sadly, the Trilogies series ends Thursday, but the Film Forum will screen a 4k restoration of Alain Resnais’ Last Year at Marienbad (1961), and this weekend’s Film Forum Jr.offering is Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands  (1990), starring Johnny Depp. Dan Streible is back with his eclectic of shorts called More Orphans of New York.

EGYPTIAN THEATRE (LA):

On Friday, you can catch a “New York Sleaze Triple Feature” (yes, in L.A.) with Fulci’s The New York Ripper (1982),Nightmares in a Damaged Brain  (1981) and Abel Ferrar’s The Driller Killer  (1979). The Cassavetes & Scorsese: Love is Strangeseries continues on Saturday with Goodfellas and Husbands, plus the 1965 film The 10th Victim is showing as part of the Art Directors Guild Film Society Series on Sunday. Also on Sunday, Spanish filmmaker Ivan Zulueta (who died ten years ago) gets a tribute with a screening of 1979’s Arrebato.

AERO  (LA):

This week, the Aero begins the Passion of Pier Paolo Pasolini series (probably in conjunction with Abel Ferrara’s film, which finally gets a theatrical release) with a series of double features: Solo, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975) and Pigsty (1969) on Thursday, The Decameron  (1970) and Oedipus Rex (1967) on Friday, The Canterbury Tales (1971) and Teorema (1968) on Saturday, and Arabian Nights (1974)and Medea (1969) on Sunday. On Monday, they’ll screen a rare 35mm print of Pasonlini’s The Gospel According to St. Matthew(1964). Since I really enjoyed Ferrara’s new film starring Willem Dafoe, I’m bummed I missed the Metrograph’s retrospective of Pasolini last year, but this is a good chance to see this prolific Italian filmmaker’s often-controversial work.

QUAD CINEMA (NYC):

Another great series begins at the Quad this weekend with Fighting Mad: German Genre Films from the Margins, based around Dominik Graf’s two-part documentary A Journey Through German Film. Graf programmed the series with Olaf Müller, who presents a few of the screenings. It’s a pretty rich series with no films that I personally have had a chance to see – I have a couple screeners to watch – but there are sure to be a few gems in there if you have time to see some of the 17 movies.

IFC CENTER (NYC)

Waverly Midnights: ParentalGuidance  will screen Roman Polanski’s horror classicRosemary’s Baby (1968) and James Cameron’s Aliens (again). Weekend Classics: Love Mom and Dad screens Pier Paolo Pasolini’s 1962 film Mamma Roma, while Late Night Favorites: Spring shows the Coens’ Fargo, David Fincher’s Fight Club and Pee Wee’s Big Adventure.

BAM CINEMATEK (NYC):

Black 90s: A Turning Point in American Cinema continues this weekend with Waiting to Exhale, The Five Heartbeats, Fear of a Black Hat, House Party, a 20thAnniversary screening of The Best Man and a lot more. It’s a really good series with a lot of movies worth checking out.

MOMA (NYC):

Abel Ferrara: Unrated continues with 1986’s Crime Story on Wednesday, 1993’s Dangerous Game on Thursday, Welcome to New York  (2014) on Sunday and Piazza Vittorio (2017) and 4:44 Last Day on Earth  (2011) on Sunday. The series will continue through May 31. MOMA is also doing a Jean-Claude Carriereseries, honoring the amazing prolific work of the French screenwriter, including Louis Malle’s Milou en Mai  (1964), Milos Forman’s Taking Off (1971) and many more, which will be screened between now and June 16.

ROXY CINEMA (NYC)

A new addition! The theater in the Roxy Hotel in Tribeca is showing Joanna Hogg’s earlier film Archipelego (2010), as well as Sally Potter’s 1992 film Orlando in 35mm!

MUSEUM OF THE MOVING IMAGE (NYC):

On Saturday, MOMI is doing a Filmmaker Memorial for John Singleton, put together by The Black Filmmaker Foundation and the Black Film Critics Circle with BFCC President Michael Sargent and other critics discussing Singleton’s work. Otherwise, MOMI is finishing up Panorama Europe.

LANDMARK THEATRES NUART  (LA):

This week’s midnight movie on Friday is the Japanese horror filmHouse (Hausu) from 1977.

That’s it for this week. Next week, we get Guy Ritchie’s Aladdin, starring Will Smith; Olivia Wilde’s hilarious Book Smart and the James Gunn-produced Brightburn. Oh, yeah, and it’s Memorial Day weekend!

#JOhnWick Movies Reviews DogsJourney Repertory LimitedReleases

[ruleandruinrpg]

CONGRATULATIONS, LISSA!

You have been accepted for the role of MARGARETE STARIKOV. Admin Bree: Margarete is easily one of the darkest characters I’ve ever written, and I don’t say that lightly. Her darkness is the sort that’s so deep and depraved that it can be much more difficult to understand and put into words without romanticizing or excusing, and even when she was but an idea in the back of my mind, I worried we’d struggle to find someone to do her justice. But Lissa, you did so wonderfully! Her mannerisms, her ways of thinking, her sick little mantra, and even her love for berries—all of them painted a clear picture of the twisted little thing she is. Well done! You have 24 HOURS to send in your account. Also, remember to look at the CHECKLIST. Welcome to Ravka!

OUT OF CHARACTER

ALIAS: Lissa

PREFERRED PRONOUNS: She/Her

AGE: Twenty

TIMEZONE & ACTIVITY LEVEL: During the summer probably an 8/10, though I might be taking trips throughout, but I’ll be sure to shoot the main an ask giving notice. As for when the school year starts, I can’t say for certain since I haven’t registered for classes yet, but hopefully it’ll be either a 6 or a 7 since my unit load shouldn’t be as heavy as it has been.

CURRENT/PAST ACCOUNTS: Redacted.

IN CHARACTER

DESIRED CHARACTER: Margarete Vera Starikov

MARGARETE: It is such a lovely name for such a lovely girl, especially one who is every bit as treasured as her moniker implies—she is a pearl, iridescent and bright, but her outward appearance is a demure facade hiding a darkness thick, sweet, and enticing like syrup though closer to poison in composition.

VERA: To some it means truth and to others it means faith, but both are correct when it comes it to the doll-faced girl. For even though they try to hide her and make her someone else, she cannot fight her nature and has never once wanted to. But in terms of faith, it’s what she asks of others, to believe that she can be great and deadly. However, it also refers to the faith a Healer needs to do their job when the ill and the injured place their lives in their skilled hands. 

STARIKOV: It has been known to strike fear into people’s eyes because often it’s associated with an entire line of gifted Heartrenders who have served at the foot of the Darkling for ages at his beck and call. She is the first and only Healer in her family, something she believes is a great shame although her parents are convinced otherwise. It makes her bitter and brittle to know that she is unlike the rest in this sense, at least. 

WHAT DREW YOU TO THIS CHARACTER?:

I’ve never shied away from playing “evil” characters—in fact, I quite enjoy exploring moral gray areas—but in all my time writing, I’ve never played someone filled with such guiltless malevolence. Of course, one could argue that there’s a reason for it: she’s trying to prove herself, trying to be who she truly is, but then what does that say about her? Well, she’s a killer and fine, there are people who must kill in order to protect or serve, that’s justifiable. However, her victims are the wounded and the ill, the weak and the weary, and what she does is not out of mercy however sick that would still be—no, Margarete kills purely out of spite, bitterness, and pride. There is no nobility in her cause and because of that I think there is no chance for a redemption arc which is what draws me. She is so determinately set in embodying death and making an impression on the world that she cares little about what it does to others. Her search for infamy and recognition will leave a huge scar in her stead and I think it’d be such an interesting challenge to tackle because I don’t want her to be sympathetic, I want her to be the worst that she can be cause only then will she be, in her eyes, the best she can be.

WHAT FUTURE PLOT IDEAS DID YOU HAVE IN MIND?:

She presses on Konstantin’s bruises by merely existing, but she has never been interested in inflicting the barest pain—instead, she twists the blade in his abdomen by wordlessly taunting him with her presence, situating herself firmly in his line of sight whenever she can. Let him come for her; let him try and prosecute her—when she fells a general, who then could deny her? So she hones her craft in secret, waiting for the moment he snaps like a twig in her vise grip. If he misses his dead wife and child so much, she’d be happy to reunite them, all he needs to do is ask. 

In stories it is usually the older that corrupts, but here the roles are reversed. Rita is so sweet it makes her teeth sorely ache, but how grand it would be to map out and see through her fall. They both know pretty things, but darkness obscures and death preserves, so there is a sort of refined beauty in both. Margarete wants to show the other girl that glamour will fade—that it is better to practice things that are much more definitive and permanent. 

This feels like dying and in some ways it is—to see who you could’ve been turn to ash in your hands. If she is forced to be a Healer for the rest of her long life, she will surely go mad. There are only two who can stop that from happening, two with the power to give her what she wants. The Darkling is a busy man, she escapes his notice, but Altan with his haughty gaze holds her whole world in his palms. If he can’t see it, she will make him, even if it means squeezing the life out of him for once. But how can a girl take on a monster? The answer is clear: she must become what she wants to destroy even if it means it destroys her as well.

WOULD YOU BE WILLING TO HAVE YOUR CHARACTER DIE?: As hard as it would be, I am open to the idea! Of course, it’d need to have proper justification, but if push came to shove I think I’d be able to let him go if it were under the right set of circumstances.

IN DEPTH

IN CHARACTER PARA SAMPLE(S):

I think it goes without saying, but to be on the safe side TW: DEATH, STRANGULATION, and also just general unpleasantness so if that’s not your cup of tea look away.

                —I.

From their likeness, they sculpted five children, each undoubtedly theirs, thus Death was their birthright and murder their call. It was hard to argue with fate or, in actuality, genetics—they all had hair dark as a raven’s feathers and they all possessed the same taste for the metallic tang of blood. However, after their second eldest had fallen soon after their first, when the dirt was still damp on their marked graves, they realized there was a sixth to come. Stricken, they fretted over the future of their young babe, and when she was born, they sighed in relief for she was nothing like the others, nothing like them—with hair the brown of a wren’s downy body and eyes that were a bright, shining blue, Margarete or Molly, as they would come to call her, was sugar, spice, and all things nice.

What they had failed to realize in that moment was that although her looks were completely her own, she had indeed inherited their proclivity for blood. When they resigned her to her meager fate, they starved her of it and as a result she became ravenous and wanting. 

                —II.

She arrived with a ruddy guard in tow, about to jump headlong into a fever let in by a chill. Gaunt-faced, she knocked on Margarete’s door, begging for some semblance of relief if not for herself then for the poor babe kicking forcefully in her womb. It was a simple case in all honesty, one that could be resolved easily with no testament to her skill—except if the noblewoman were to veer sharply in another direction, exhibiting symptoms more resembling death than life. It was a challenge the young girl accepted readily, all too eager to prove her worth, but not as a Healer like some would believe, but as something else altogether.  

Her slender hands were placed protectively around her belly, half-swollen with a child’s growing form—the miracle of life, Margarete thought sardonically, though her face expressed nothing except insincere joy. “Don’t you worry,” she stressed, lips pressed into a sly smile, “I will take care of you, just put your faith in me.” 

The noblewoman shivered under Margarete’s scrutinizing stare—perhaps she knew deep down that this was end. As she tucked her long legs together and lied down passively, hands still hovering around her unborn child, she murmured a quick and simple prayer to her saints. 

Margarete was careful to go gradually—after all, her assigned guard was stationed outside—and beat by beat the woman’s heart slowed. It was a subtle feeling, not too unlike the apprehension she had felt in coming, so much so they were indecipherable from each other: the dying and the fear. 

First she fell into a slumber, drawn in by the lull, and then she gasped as her lungs struggled to draw a breath no longer propelled by the rushing of blood. In a matter of moments she had gone from living to dead and with a pleased smirk Margarete looked upon her hard-won triumph, now pale and still. Schooling her features to reflect a mask of terror, she peered out the door, her voice even trembling as she spoke, “Something awful has happened—quick, get your superior!”

He ran down the hall and around the corner, gone as soon as she finished her sentence. Then turning around, she looked back at the lifeless noblewoman—was this number two or two and a half?

               —III.

They called her murderess and gleefully she rejoiced. It was a nice change from what they used to say when they’d tell her she was like glass or a long bolt of uncut silk, but in their haste to compare her to fine things, they forgot that even glass could cut and silk could strangle in the right hands—well hers were ready, willing, and skilled enough to do just that. 

She felt his dark blue eyes bore into the back of her skull, likely wishing to crack it open on the granite floor of courtyard and spill the blood that pulsed within her. 

“I’m sorry Sir, for failing you so,” she told him one day when he insisted on knowing just what had gone wrong, “I am no saint, but if it provides you any comfort, her last moments were peaceful.” 

His jaw tightened, the muscles there taut and stretched; Konstantin was the very picture of restrained fury and she reveled in the ability to make a man—a general, in fact—feel so helpless and incensed. 

Where did the girl go; the one that was so full of sugar, spice, and everything nice? Well she was the first victim, strangled by her own hands and brute strength the day she donned that gray-sleeved kefta. She tried it their way through hard work and perseverance, but after that failed, it was time for her to show them what a grave miscalculation they made. Her proof was in the bodies and in each life that she took and she will continue until her heretic’s song is recognized as truth.

CHARACTER HEADCANONS:

She favors certain fruits, especially ones that are berries. When she bites into them, the juice drips down her chin and stains her lips and fingers red like blood.

In the more recent years, she has become cold and aloof—almost unrecognizable from what she used be, because in her quest to become her heart’s desire, she has sacrificed everything, even herself. All her old friends regard her with a great deal of caution, she seems off-kilter and slightly awry, so now she is more of a lone wolf which only further encourages her to spiral since there is no one really her stopping anyways. 

Although she wasn’t originally, now Margarete is more methodical in choosing her victims for fear someone will start asking questions about her less than stellar record. It wasn’t that she didn’t think of the consequences earlier, just that she didn’t care for them when the opportunity arose. In truth, she targets the fearful ones, finding their terror at her delectable. Often she’ll utter the line, “I will take care of you, just put your faith in me,” just to humor herself. 

She has never seen the Unsea, but oh how she yearns to. It’s a morbid curiosity of hers to see where so many have died, kin or not. While everyone tries to avoid it like the plague, she does not, but only when she’s rightfully a Heartrender will she visit the Shadow Fold.

EXTRAS: Nope, didn’t have anytime for them!

ANYTHING ELSE?: Either The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald or East of Eden by John Steinbeck.

#raraccepted #accepted: margarete