#THANK you for sending me this va is my favourite thing in the world i could talk about it for years

[bluewaterhigh2005]

hii i know this is random but bear with me. ive never read the vampire academy books but i have seen the movie for the first time last week and ive been like COMPLETELY insane about it ever since. the absolute craziness of psychosexual obsessive girlbestfriendism has captivated me and now i live breathe eat roselissa. spent a lot. of time on vampire academy wiki...thinking abt reading the books even but that seems a little excessive plus i dont wanna read about rose dimitri relationship i dont condone it. BUT i am getting desperate ive seen bad fanart on pinterest ive even venturend into some bad fanfic territory theres nothing in the roselissa tumblr tag and your blog is the only light in the darkness. im so obsessed with them its really bad. NOBODY does it like them theyre so insane. okay so-> i was thinking you could use this ask to dump some roselissa opinions/headcannons/notes app essays etc or like literally anything🙏. also sorreee for how long it is & thank you & also should i watch the show? ok ok have a nice day byeeeee❤️

i am so fucking glad that it's 2023 and people are still watching this stupid perfect lesbian camp masterpiece of a film. okay first of all you are soooo real not wanting to read the books because of fuck ass dimitri like what a pathetic flop. *i* love the books like i would love my own children but keep in mind i did read them for the first time as a 12yr old and even now when i reread it's mostly to warmup before rereading bloodlines which i think is the most perfect magical romantic series ever written. heterosexuals won that round.

anyway i think everyone in the world should watch the show it's so much fun and the roselissa necromancy reveal goes soooooooo crazy like it's gay excellence. also a) australian rose hathaway is INSPIRED, b) the rose/dimitri of it all pisses me off significantly less in the show purely because he's like. not even a teacher he's just lurking and hanging around and i find that very funny. no friends no job he's just like me fr, and c) lissa wears funky little hats and that's so special to me she is my baby girl princess sweetie pie forever and ever and ever

okay moving onto actually talking about roselissa it is first of all very important to me that you know the 3rd book opens with rose inside lissa's head during a lissa/christian sex scene and she's very much like "i don't want to have sex with lissa..... BUT-" and it sends me every time especially because that was actually the first book i read so my literal introduction to this series was rose being weird and psychosexual about lissa which kind of coloured my view of them forever. roselissa above everything of course but i AM a roselissachristian throuple truther i think they're very fun and rose and christian best friendisms are very dear to me.

i do keep a running list in my notes app of songs that i would put on a roselissa playlist (like an insane person.) and the #1 entry is mitski's i don't smoke because well literally if you need to be mean be mean to me i can take it and put it inside of me..... that's literally their whole entire thing for a while there like rose spending an entire book like. siphoning off lissa's mental illness and making it her own SOUNDS like a joke but no it's #real and #devastating. bonus i also have a list of lissa songs which is topped by BRUTAL by olivia rodrigo because nobody has ever suffered the pains of being a teenage girl more than my perfect bisexual vampire princess.

my post-series thoughts /headcanons are often pretty depressing on the roselissa front but i don't want to get into depressing shit so i will instead talk about my current favourite idea which is that after they break their bond at the end of the series. you'd think they'd start being normal about each other. but NO they get even more freaky and codependent. i like to picture people coming to court and just sighing when they see them sitting in each other's laps on lissa's throne like not AGAIN. and dimitri idk dies in a fire or something. idk if you've ever seen grey's anatomy but there's this bit where a guy is like "my wife and her friend have sleepovers together in our bed with me in it" and TO ME that is soooo roselissachristian core. he's THEIR third wheel and he knows it.

also sidebar it pisses me off SOOOOOO bad seeing how people on the internet so fundamentally misunderstand lissa and her relationship to rose like for literal years now like they're always out here calling my girl self-centred and saying she doesn't love rose as much as rose loves her which is crazy because hello she brought rose back from the DEAD with her mind powers. her whole flop family was dead in that car and she brought back her girl best friend like what more can you even say about that. she's gay and she's insane and she's so completely Not Normal about rose

#okay i put a read more because this got long as fuck and i am so sorry for anyone seeing this if it didn't work sdkjdjd #THANK you for sending me this va is my favourite thing in the world i could talk about it for years #basically. absolutely watch the show it's perfect i have no notes #and i Won't tell you to read the books but. they are very fun and easy to get through if you do decide to #and while the rose dimitri of it all is. gags. i DO think roselissa is very clearly the core relationship #it's so funny that ms mead accidentally wrote a crazy gay masterpiece for the ages like. roselissa will ALWAYS be famous #answered #anonymous

[youre-ackermine]

hello dearest, I hope you’re doing well 🩵

for the aot ask I’ve come with new questions:

15.a) if you could have prevented the death of a single character, which one would it be? (I already know the answer but still 🤣)

15.b) what is your favorite (top 3 if you can’t choose one) soundtrack?

15.c) do you prefer the anime or the manga?

much love to youuu 💓💓

Hi my dearest Dee ✨

I'm fine, even if I barely slept last night. I hope you're doing well too!

<><><><><>

15 a- If you could have prevented the death of a single character, which one would it be?

As you already guessed, I would have saved Hange of course!

Like Erwin died when the answer to his lifelong quest was within his grasp, Hange sacrificed themself before they could explore the outside world, quench their thirst for knowledge, help make people's lives better with new discoveries... I'm fascinated by their intelligence & all those amazing qualities that make them one of the best written characters in SNK, personality-wise. They would have been such an asset in the post war SNK universe.

15 b- What is your favorite (top 3 if you can't choose one) soundtrack?

If it's about the instrumental OST only, those I listen to the most at the moment are:

For the songs with a vocalist, my all-time favourite are:

I can't listen to 'Bauklotze' without crying now obviously 💔

15 c- Do you prefer the anime or the manga?

To be perfectly honest, I read the whole manga only once. I often read a random chapter or a few panels online but I still have to read it again (& it's a pain in the ass because I have the Edition Colossale & every book is f*cking heavy lmao). Besides, the French translation is not very good imo, it missed most of the dialogues' subtleties / nuances :((

Still, the manga panels are amazing, Isayama has a real talent for drawing the facial expressions & making us understand what's going on or feel so many emotions without a single word.

But I love the anime, even if a few things missing or changed kinda rub me the wrong way! The animation is insane (Levi's action scenes are always flawless & omg it's part of why I love the short badass so much!). The music is amazing & epic. The VAs are phenomenal (I only watch the Japanese version with French or English subtitles). It's a f*cking great show!

Just a few words about the scene between Eren & Armin in the last episode. As much as I cannot accept Eren's actions, I still felt sorry & sad for him. But the scene with Armin in the manga was so pathetic it almost swept away my sympathy towards him. Thanks Mappa for fixing this scene, making it a real moment of emotion between soulmate friends, & giving Eren a bit of his humanity back.

So anime it is!

<><><><><>

Thanks for taking the time to send these to me!

Sending much love back ❤️

Have a nice Sunday lovely Dee 😘

#val has mail 💌 #moots game #ask game #snk ask game #aot ask game #lovely moots 💕 #dee ✨ #atruewarrior #spotify links #spotify

[kitamars]

hope you don't mind me sending in another ask so soon but i always find this kinda stuff interesting- now that you've survived two big serious arcs how would you rank the main cast in terms of like. favs & stuff?

don't apologise for the asks at all!! i love answering them and rambling about my thoughts so actually thank YOU for giving me a viable outlet haha

so I had to pull out my notes app to draft this one bc i can't do things simply apparently. i can't rank characters for shit so I'm just gonna rate the main ones (at least to me) out of ten and that's that lol, so onward beyond the cut!

Gintoki: I'm in love with him. 10/10.

He's captivated me with his dead fish eyes and pathetic charm, the way he subverts the general shonen protag archetype really works for me (bc i tend to get annoyed with the genre every now and then) but other than that he's such an interesting character on his own that I cannot get into for fear of rambling too much but yeah. I like him a lot. I might cry about someday in the tags of some art or whatever

(also beam saber arc is UNDERRATED (to me) and its very much overshadowed by everything before and after it but I DON'T CARE it has some of my favourite gin character bits this is my propaganda i just felt like i had to put this here THANKS)

Shinpachi: the human-wearing-glasses gag is absolutely hilarious and I hope it never stops. 8/10.

I love shinpachi a lot I promise, i love how dedicated he is to the straight man role and also the times when he's not. Honestly he could have very easily annoyed me after a bit, but he's genuinely just so loveable and a lot of his charm just comes from his VA's delivery, I've never heard anyone else able to convey the emotional range that I've heard from shinpachi in this anime fnsnjrjgjs

I do think he needs more screentime though (watch beam saber arc),,,kagura tends to get a lot of the spotlight (which I'm not mad about) but he also needs some love!! he's just some guy yk gotta give some appreciation!!

Kagura: queen of kabukicho and the queen of my heart. 10/10.

SHE IS LITERALLY EVERYTHING TO ME. i don't have words to express how much I love her, she's one of my all time favorites ever. She's just doing her thing, eating gin-san out of house and home and kicking ass while she's at it and she's so valid for that.

A big part of why I like her is also just her relationship with the yorozuya. the amount of times I've felt like exploding when I see her and gin or shinpachi just interacting in the background of a scene or something similar is impossible to count. She's my little mimi and she deserves literally the world

(Also there's this one compilation of her singing on YouTube and i listen to it RELIGIOUSLY kugimiya rie is a blessing for this character for real it's insane)

Sadaharu interlude: Big ball of fluff/10 (he's adorable)

Hijikata: this man makes me feel a similar range of emotions I feel cramming the night before a final, if not more. 10/10.

He drives me NUTS. you know me, i love my dark-haired chainsmoking men with issues, and he's just chock full of them, it's like a dream come true. Every arc that's focused on him has been absolutely incredible, and even on his own he's such an interesting and funny character. Fully biased towards his VA btw, i don't think anyone else could voice him as effectively, the delivery is always top notch.

His dynamic with the rest of the shinsengumi is honestly one of my favourites, he's got so much range as a serious and gag character, especially when the plot decides to chuck his coolness out the window with that little mayonnaise addiction of his (now everytime I put mayonnaise on anything at all i give myself a dirty look, idk why).

Also i should mention that tosshi was one of the only things that made my watching experience truly difficult. I'd just cringe out of existence everytime he opened his mouth it was. An experience. I still love him very much. Too much maybe.

Sougo: sadism has never looked more fun. 9/10.

I don't think I really have much to say about him? he's genuinely a really fun character, and his endless quests to smear hijikata across the asphalt is always the highlight of any viewing experience. i loved him regardless, but the mitsuba and farewell shinsengumi arcs gave him that extra bit of depth that really solidified him as a fav hehe

YOU DONT GET CHARACTERS LIKE HIM VERY OFTEN AND I LOVE HIM SO MUCH

kondo: gorilla gorilla/10 (9/10)

thi guy is just the fucking funniest. he's one of the perfect examples of how gintama does characterisation through comedy because by introducing him with all his hilarious gags, you start to care a lot more about him when things actually get serious. Plus the joke never really gets old with him, if he shows up in an episode I know I'm about to have a great time.

but as a serious character as well he's just so good. Him being the glue of the shinsengumi is incredible and sometimes in the plot (crisis and farewell arcs) you can see exactly what it is in this man that makes people want to follow him to the ends of the earth, he is just a good person and I love him for that.

also he's the reason i realised I have not grown out of my 14 year old dick joke phase so there's that

Otose: gintoki's overdue rent/10 (9/10)

I enjoy her so much actually, she's already incredibly fun, but whenever they show more background to gintoki and her's relationship, all of a sudden i am in a puddle of tears on the floor, it's one of the most important things ever to me, the foster parent trope is my weak point.

evidently, kabukicho four devas was my kryptonite (in a really really good way)

Catherine: the heavy accent is pretty funny. 7/10.

I don't really have strong feelings about her tbh, she's alright and funny enough, that's pretty much all I can say

Tama: total number of her leukocytes/10 (9/10)

I LIKE TAMA SOOOOO MUCH SHES SO SWEET AND KIND AND ADORABLE. all of the tama centric arcs have been really fun and each episode involving her is so nice. Finding out she was the time traveller in the bfy movie was such a great twist but immediately made sense bc OF COURSE she would go that far for her very first friends!!!!! i love her innocence so dearly and the way she simply just wants to help others, also otose seeing her as a daughter makes me so emotional

Hasegawa: the madaodog madaonaire episode made me choke at the speed at which I got that reference. 8/10.

Incredibly funny character, the fact that he cannot win a single W is both hilarious but also a bit sad and pathetic, but he's authentic to himself regardless.

He also ruined my later attempts at trying to watch NGE

Otae: the price of one dom peri/10 (8/10)

I love her SOOOOO much she's so entertaining...again I don't have much to say but it's not really in a bad way, i just like her a lot and that's mostly it hehe

Kyubei: otae love/10 (9/10)

as a nb person I have a huge bias towards kyubei, their struggle to figure out where they stand in the binary is pretty relatable, and while I can say that you don't always see a character like that in media who is also hopelessly in love with a woman (so real for that though) i can also admit that this show isn't the best handling of it all, but honestly it's a very "take what I can get situation" so I try not to be too bothered, dekobokko was a bit strange but the ending for kyubei is better than most other instances I've seen, even if it doesn't stay consistent in the series

Also where is jugem jugem? i miss that little bastard so much that arc was so good

Tsukuyo: where does she stash all that kunai. 9/10.

TSUKUYO IS MY WIFE AND GINTOKI NEEDS TO MOVE OVER BC I WANT TO KISS HER. thank you

no but seriously she's a really fun character, and I love everything about her and yoshiwara and her relationship with hinowa and seita and he hyakka and ACK. yoshiwara in flames and the red spider arcs were really good for her, and her slightly confused air at most times is so charming, i love her muah

Sacchan: uhhhhhh huh. 7/10.

I'm gonna be honest, she's one of the only characters I really didn't like since she was introduced, i just found her so incredibly annoying all the time. But then came shogun assassination and suddenly I could stand her a lot more when her personality didn't revolve around gin-san's massive d– (but like. I hate that I can relate to her)

also I don't know where her strange friendship with tsukuyo came from but I actually genuinely like it a lot..........sillies with sharp knives, what could possibly go wrong?

Okay I'm running out of steam here honestly so if I've missed anyone (I'm very sure I have) feel free to ask in replies and I'll tell you what i think jgjekkfkd

this is terrible. Everyone is a main character in my eyes

EDIT: I MISSED THE REST OF THE JOUI 4. I WILL DISEMBOWEL MYSELF. BUT FOR NOW HAVE A LIGHTNING ROUND

katsura: 10/10.

One of my all time favourite characters ever, literal definition of head empty no thoughts, he is so stupid and I want to kiss him passionately under the moonlight

Sakamoto: 10(00000)/10

He is my everything. He needs more screentime. I'm begging on my knees. He is the perfect man.

Takasugi: 9/10

He's great. Shogun assassination made me cry over him. I'm forever sad about him now he was so mochi.....and then the trauma.............ue

Anyways now I think I'm done. time to atone

#thanks for enabling me op #i like to talk too much about them but also holy shit there are so many words #i definitely havent gotten all my thoughts out but nevermind! I shall convey them through art~ #i love this show. so goddamn much #nimki talks

[castleaudios]

HI CASTLE, WELCOME TO TUMBLR!! (thank the gods you made one, I cannot keep track of twitter to save my life) I considered sending this outside of anon but, I am not ready to be perceived. Anyway- hmmmm I wanted to know a couple stupid things and now I can ask them.

How bad is Celine at keeping updated with the times? We know she uses spectacles. Does she still use quills and ink bottles???? Can she at least use a brick phone?? Does she know what a tamagotchi is.

What does evie do for work? We know what Beth does for work, but as far as I can remember we haven't heard about what evie does.

What is Rose's favourite genre of book? We're certain that she reads in her free time but we don't really know what she reads. Is she into fantasy? Does she secretly have a taste for those mature books hidden in the back of the library that Chloe mentioned? or something else? I MUST KNOW

What name would Ro like to be their official legal name? I'm assuming Ro is short for something but, if I'm wrong just correct me.

I have no questions for Claire, she just deserves a hug.

Actually no, has she talked to ranger about what she's discovered yet?

Who got Beth into therapy? She's clearly grown a lot over the last few years, and her therapist definitely worked overtime for that first year, but I can't imagine that Beth was the one to first take that step.

Will Abby ever follow up on that story of how she felt drawn to glenwood? She seemed pretty excited about it

Speaking of that, is that whole "glenwood called to me" thing, something rooted in magic? Is it orchestrated, is it just things coming together coincidentally? Or things falling into place through some force.

I know you mentioned collabs in your q&a and, I won't rush you cause that's pretty daunting. But- have you considered who you'd want to voice Simon? I know that there's probably other characters who may show up in the future but, Simon is so cool and I would love to see who you envision playing him if you ever push through with a collab in the future.

Did you ever find that color palette of each character that you mentioned during your q&a?

Once again, you do such great work and all of it just brightens my day! I hope you have a good one -Arry

THANK YOU! And don’t worry, I’m still not used to being perceived, this shit is weird

But onto the questions!

1. She’s actually very good at keeping up with the world, it’s just the digital age that’s been so quick, plus the rest of the vamps saving her from the internet. Celine’s a collector by nature so she had every tamagotchi

2. Evie worked as a math tutor and at a grocery store to pay the rent, but now she’s on the pack’s payroll helping maintain the finances for the whole operation.

3. Rose is a sci-fi/fantasy reader and she most certainly knows all about that secret shelf in the back! Her favorite series is the original John Carter books, her most recent read was “The Fifth Season” by N.K. Jemisin

4. Ro is their full chosen name! They no longer go by their deadname and the whole pack has moved on from using it. All the paperwork was to simply make the change official on all their legal documents!

5. She does 😔

6. That little conversation will be next week’s audio! (1/18/23)

7. Beth has been in therapy since she was 13 years old. She stopped going for a while before reconnecting with a new therapist after the whole pack situation happened. Simon was the one to officially get her started and we’ll learn why in Beth’s next audio!

8. Yes, she will! There will be more explanation for what that “pull” is and why the Open Wielder felt it as well

9. I promise that Glenwood isn’t nearly as sinister as people are thinking.

10. Simon is a character who is very dear to my heart and will appears in multiple audios, so finding a VA who could be on standby for that has been tricky! I’d love to hold auditions for anyone who’d like to try out and play him. I always imagine Simon as just a brick wall of a man (think Sig Curtis from FMAB or Massimo from Luca) so I’d love to find a voice that fits that image. No VA’s immediately come to mind but I also wouldn’t want to put any pressure on any creator mentioned.

11. I… completely forgot about the color pallet… adding it to the To Do List!

Thank you for all your questions! I hope you have a great day as well 💛

#castleaudios #castlereplies

[kitakati]

🎶✨ When you get this, you have to write down 5 songs you actually listen to and post them. Then send this (ask or tag) to 10 of your favourite followers/cool ppl✨🎶  

Thank you for the tag @kiyosims it took me way too long to narrow down songs that I've been listening to for a while that I would love for others to experience tooo. I'm posting the non MV youtube links under the cut, but Bet by Mereba isn't from their actual channel so I'm also linking the MV versions of these which are sooo good tooo.

Also one of these songs, the one by La Isla Centero, the guitarist is Isai's voice claim 🤭 examples here and here. I feel like Isai would have a kind of similar softer voice especially when he sings with guitar, which is one of his favorite things to do in my game.

I'm sorry I'm not tagging anyone but if anyone who sees this post wants to do the tag game go right ahead! 😌💖

A couple that I really can't keep from sharing would be Calle Barcelona by La Vida Boheme and No Soy Para Ti by Maria Isabel

Dreamer Isioma - Fuck Tha World

070 Shake - Cocoon

Be Forest - Bengala

Mereba - Bet

La Isla Centeno - A Donde Vas

#non sims #ziramusic #tag game #Spotify

[lesbianakaashi]

The Forgotten Shounen: Katekyo Hitman Reborn

This is not a “Why you should watch/read khr” or anything like that. This is just me going into the deep dive and throwing my findings at you. I’m making this because khr used to be my favourite series when I was 15 (I had plushees, posters, tradingcards, the art book etc) and now as an adult I constantly find myself baffled at how unknow it seems to be.

1. Okay first what is khr?

Katekyo Hitman Reborn! or just Reborn! is a series by Akira Amano which was published in Weekly Shounen Jump from 2004 to 2012 (with 42 volumes) and got an anime adaption which run from 2006 to 2010 on Tv Tokyo (with 202 episodes and one OVA).

2. What’s it about?

Khr is a parody of the italian mafia and plays in a world where the mafia is heavily influencial. The protagonist is the japanese middle schooler Sawada Tsunayoshi who is known as “No good Tsuna” because of his failing grades, general weak and cowardly personality and weak physics.

He becomes aware of the mafia world when a 2 year old baby called Reborn arrives at his house claiming to be the greatest hitman and declaring himself his home tutor. Reborn was send by the 9th head of the Vongola famiglia who is ready to retire and looking for a new heir. Which of course, is supposed to be Tsuna and now it's Reborns job to shape him into a worthy sucessor.

Tsuna rejects the violence of the mafia world and refuses the position as the 10th. Thanks to Reborn and his general craziness Tsuna meets different people and starts to make real friendships. Reborn wants 6 of those friends to be Tsuna's future guardians, basically a group of people which will be closest to him in the vongola famiglia. Tsuna might have no interest in those positions but the friendships he builds with them become really precious to him.

Reborns arrivial also brings in the enemies of the Vongola family which leads to Tsuna being forced to engage in battles. Generally Tsuna openly avoids fights and prefers to run away but will put himself in danger for his friends' sake or because of something Reborn did.

Through out the series Tsuna matures and gains strenght but he never becomes a power fantasy. He's just a guy with many flaws who grows through the human connections he makes.

Personally I think the relationship between Reborn and Tsuna is one of the best student teacher reltaionships in all of manga only topped by Mob and Reigen from Mob Psycho 100. Especially the last arc really underlines their unique relationship to me.

Furthermore, khr offers a new and unique battle system: The flames. I'm not gonna go into to too much detail but the general idea is that one fights with their dying will flame which basically turns off your the savety switch so you can fight with everything you have. The flames are seperated into different categories such as: sky, storm, mist, rain, sun, lightning and cloud and have different attributes asigned to each one. Tsuna's use of the sky flame and his transformation when using it is still one of my favourite shounen transformations to this day.

3. What happened?

The series did really well and then not so well over the course of its serialisation. After the manga got an anime adaption it increased in populairty and video games, light novels, and other products such as CDs were created based on the series. Reborn is one of the best selling series of Weekly Shōnen Jump and has sold around 30 Million volumes overall. It was and still is very popular in Japan but rather unknown in the west.

According to the article "The Rise and Fall of Weekly Shonen Jump: A Look at the Circulation of Weekly Jump" khr was the 10th bestselling series in Weekly Shōnen Jump, with a total of 7 million copies sold in 2007.

This number increasing to 15 milion in 2008. Which placed khr into the 4th best selling series of 2008 in Japan.

Between 2008 and 2010 those sales declined but still kept strong with khr as the 6th top selling manga in 2009, 8th best selling in 2010 and then 24th best selling in 2012.

In November 2014, readers of the Da Vinci magazine voted khr number 17 on a list of Weekly Shōnen Jump's greatest manga series of all time.

After the anime came to an apprupt stop in 2010 for unknown reasons the manga sells took a visible hit. (Apparently the studio wanted to put the anime on halt because they were busy with other projects and give Akira Amano time to develop her story but I couldn't find any source for this claim) Furthermore, the rushed last chapters of the manga in 2012 declined the popularity of the series even more. There's no offical statement as to why the manga was ended in such a way but it's reasonable to assume that Jump either cut it considering the decreasing sales or Akira Amano choose to end it for personal reasons.

Nontheless, Tsuna not being included in Jump Force (a fighting game where you can play as different characters from Jump) in 2019 even tho he made it in earlier Jump Stars games also underlines the decreased interest in the series.

Rumors on a reboot or anime adaption of the last two arcs surface from time to time but are genereally unlikely. Artland the studio which made khr has gone bankrupt around 2015-2016. It might be taken on by another studio but rather uncommen especially with such an old series.

4. Art style

The khr anime ended over 10 years ago and the old art style might not be appealing to newer audiences.

Especailly because the anime adaption follows Akira Amanos old art style which heavily developed within the years. Here a picture comparing characters in the new art style:

A modern anime adaption in the new art style would be aesthetically pleasing. It would probably look similiar to Psycho Pass since Akira Amano did the concept art for this series.

(My personal art student hot take is that both art styles are unique and fun. Up to this day Akira Amano still has my favourite art style and even if the amount folds in the characters clothing is a little extreme I love it dearly.)

5. Criticism

The show is not without flaws and even if I greatly enjoy it it wouldn't be right not to adress them.

Daily Life Arc:

A lot of people view the first 20 to 25 episodes as fillers and quickly lose intererst in the series. This is due to the fact that Akira Amano inteded the series to be a gag manga and focuses the first chapters on world building, character introduction and comical narratives. It's rumored that the decision to develop the story into a battle shounen was made because the sales weren't doing well enough at first. So the first chapters/episodes may seem titidious but are necessary for the story and the development of the characters. The tonal shift from a more gintama like gag manga to a darker battle focused story can also be offputting to some viewers.

Either way a lot of people blame this arc when discussing why khr never got an english dub or didn't end up on Toonami. I've also read that the manga never finished serializing in the north america. However, it finished in other western languages like german and spanish.

Censoring:

The anime censors A LOT. From Gokudera's smoking habit, Yamamoto's whole character arc which deals with heavy themes such as depression and suicidal thoughts. The general bloodiness of the manga was censored and sometimes whole chapters and characters were left out even if those were important to the devolopment of others.

Filler episodes:

Out of the 202 episodes the anime has around 29 filler episodes which makes roughly 14 %.

Sexism:

Even if Reborn was written by a woman most female characters are rather flat and their storylines often tied to a male character in one way or another.

Genereal things:

Khr, like many other long running series, is sometimes criticised for a lack of world building or unpopular narrative choices.

6. Hope?

Khr isn't exactly dead. As stated before the series is still very popular in Japan and still gets new merch pretty regulary. There are also petitions floating around for a reboot or a new anime season but those never get a lot of traction. Furthermore #Reborn2期アニメ化 (#Reborn2ndAnimation) used to get some traction on twitter not too long ago. Last year the Anime News Network did a poll on which anime the readers would like to see a rebooot of and khr placed second.

Either way here's a collection of recent khr things I could find.

- In 2018 a new bluray set was released in north america

- The khr stage play reached yet another new season

- A mobile game was released last year

- Currently ongoing anime cafe event called "Concerto di Vongola"

- Last month there was an event with the former VAs and stage play actors where they discussed their favourite khr episodes.

- There has been an increase in blind reacts to the openings on youtube which might bring in a new fan base. The biggest one I could find had around 90k views and was made in 2019. On this note check out the soundtrack. The first openeing Drawing Days by SPLAY still makes me go insane (but I'm biased of course)

There also renewed hope for a new season/reboot because Shaman King, Inuyasha and Bleach got anounced for new seasons after a long hiatus. It's important to keep in mind that the circumstances for those series are differnt tho. For example bleachs new anime is often tied to the immense success of the gatcha game.

7. Conclusion

Khr is a series which used to be a flagship for Weekly Shounen Jump and is deeply beloved by it's fans, especially in Japan. It influenced other shounen series like bnha. It would be nice to see it gaining a bigger fanbase in the west :)

#khr #khr meta #anime analysis #shounen jump #katekyo hitman reborn #mirytalks #long post #manga

[madamewriterofwrongs]

my sweet darling - how about an armed forces 911 AU? Maybe Eddie meets Navy Seal Buckley overseas? Maybe they meet back stateside at the VA?

You, my darling, always send me such fun and interesting prompts. I promise I didn’t forget. 

Ooh, okay. Let’s see...

Prompt Me with AUs

Delta X-Ray (I am Sinking) 

Read on Ao3

Eddie first sees him as he’s getting off the plane in Washington. He’s going to receive a medal. Apparently his work in Bagram made him a hero and not a broken, shell of a man. Who knew. And really, it’s just a glance because he has other things to worry about besides a Navy man getting dressed down by his captain. He doesn’t need to hear what’s being said to know that’s exactly what’s happening. He’s seen that look too many times, felt the hot breath of his superior as they spat harsh words meant to ‘toughen him up’.

As he passes the sailor, he hears something to the effect of “if it happens again, you will be dismissed.” And Eddie wonders how many times this particular man has received this exact lecture. It doesn’t really matter, anyways. He just wants to get his medal, shake a few hands of politicians who think they had anything to do with his ‘accomplishment’ and go home to his wife and child – ex-wife, he reminds himself. Shannon had the papers shipped to Afghanistan. Couldn’t get away fast enough, his mind bitterly supplied. All he would have at the end of the day was his son, and a medal to replace the wedding band he’d worn since he was 19.

Before he knows it, he’s standing on a small stage, a million lights flashing in his eyes as cameras and stage lights practically blind him. His shoulder aches – out of the sling for the afternoon so he can at least look more put together than he feels – and he’s dizzy from the attention. That’s his excuse for why he doesn’t recognize the man standing beside him.

“Seaman Petty Officer First Class Evan Buckley.” A blond man steps forward and Eddie catches himself staring at the dress whites and stone expression for longer than is strictly necessary. He seems a far cry from the officer being scolded less than an hour ago, but it is definitely him. And he was standing on stage beside Eddie, about to receive a medal of his own.

“For distinguishing oneself by heroism not involving actual conflict with an enemy of the United States, Petty Officer Buckley is awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal.”

As he watches the stripes being pined on the officer’s lapel, he lets himself wonder what crime the man could have committed to be dressed down and rewarded in the same afternoon.

He’s so curious, in fact, that he nearly misses his own name amongst the titles thrown around.

“Staff Sergeant Edmundo Diaz.” He steps forward, holding his breath until the entire ordeal is finally finished. “For gallantry in action against an enemy of the United States, Staff Sergeant Diaz is awarded the Silver Star.” The medal is heavier than he anticipated, but he supposes that makes sense. It is quite a burden he’ll be carrying around, and now he has a gold star to go with it – he wants to chuckle at the irony of his ‘Silver Star’ actually presenting as a golden one.

It seems everything about his life is a life.

There were a lot of reasons Eddie hated attending events like this: The politics, the bravado, the crowds of people ‘thanking him for his service’. Mostly, though: he never knows anyone. Sure, he can charm a senator or two for a few minutes, swap stories with other officers from other divisions about where they were and what they saw. But those are fleeting relationships, meant to get him through the day. He’ll go back to his hotel room at the end of the night with no more friends than when he’d stepped off the plane in this awful, awful town. Eddie is tired of ‘schmoozing’. With any luck, today will be the last time he has to tell the governor’s wife how lovely she looks in her dress.

That’s when he spots the man sitting at the edge of the bar like he’s trying to hide from the world, and he decides to make his way over.

“Do you mind if I join you?” He asks, even as he sits down.

The other man’s eyes light with recognition – and damn, are they as blue as the sea. “Not at all. Diaz, right?”

“Eddie.” He supplies, raising a finger to the bartender to snag his attention. If he is going to make it to the end of the evening, he’s going to need one, good drink. “And you’re Buckley.”

“Actually, it’s Evan but you can call me ‘Buck’.” His amusement must be evident because his new drinking buddy supplies the answer. “There are a surprising amount of ‘Evan’s in the Navy.”

It had never occurred to him to check how many ‘Eddie’s were in his squadron. Maybe he should ask his CO if that’s why he always called him by his full first name.

“Congratulations, by the way.” Buck looks somewhat nervous even as the words leave his mouth. “On your medal. Good job.”

“Oh.” Is all Eddie can bring himself to say as he stares into the bottom of his glass. “Thanks.”

“You don’t look too happy about it.”

He really isn’t doing a good job of hiding his emotions if this relative stranger ca read him so easily. “No, I-” he takes a deep breath to recalibrate his thoughts and paste his best fake smile. “It is a great honour.”

“Bullshit.” Buck laughs in his face but for some reason, Eddie doesn’t bristle nearly as hard as he expected. It almost feels playful. The rest of Buck’s response is cut off by his buzzing phone on the counter. The man quickly grabs it long enough to check his notifications, returning it to its place at the bar with a disappointed look.

“Are we keeping you from something?”

“Uh, no.” It’s Buck’s turn to look caught out and in need of recalibration. His expression changes much slower. “I’m just waiting for a call from my sister. I sent her an invitation to this thing but she never responded.”

Eddie has experience with family not coming to big social events like this one. Of course, in his case, he never invited them in the first place.

“Family ain’t easy.” He shrugs as he takes a long sip of whatever burning liquid he’d ordered – it really doesn’t matter so long as he can stay sitting here and not mingling with the crowds of vultures.

“It’s more than that.” Buck looks worried, and the way he bites his lip is… Eddie shouldn’t be focusing on that. “It’s just…” The man shakes his head, dismissing whatever feelings were eating at his gut. “I don’t want to bore you.”

“Please.” Eddie leans into his space with a playful smile. “It can’t be any more boring than this event. Please try to bore me to tears, if you dare.”

When Buck smiles, Eddie’s heart flutters out of his chest and sits beside him as they listen to Buck begin to speak. He tells Eddie about his sister, how she cared for him growing up, how she went away with her asshole of a boyfriend – now her deceased asshole of a husband – leaving him to fend for himself. He talks about travelling the country, trying every odd job he could get his hands on, until a buddy of his suggested he join the Navy. And he loves the work, he really does, but he hasn’t seen his sister in over a year. Their last conversation ended in a fight about some family secret that Buck is reluctant to talk about. Even Eddie can tell that the man just misses his sister. No matter what the argument was about.

Eddie finds himself talking – in less detail – about Shannon and the divorce and his son at home. At Buck’s prompting, he shows off his favourite photos of Christopher (avoiding the one burning a whole in his shirt pocket, torn and bloody, which never leaves him). The man’s face positively lights up when he sees the kid, offering an appropriate amount of sympathy for his divorce without pushing him for more emotions.

It’s easy talking to Buck, he realizes after a few hours. Because suddenly, the venue rental is nearly up and he’s still sitting at the corner of the bar, talking to Buck. Sure, a few people have passed by and shaken their hands, thanking them for their service – Eddie cringes every time and Buck has to hide his laughter once he realizes – but for the most part, it’s just the two of them, sitting and talking.

“The flag signalling we use now was established in 1855.” Buck explains as he leans further into Eddie’s space. “And while Robert Morse invented Morse Code in the 1830s, the International Morse Code that we use didn’t come out until the 1850s.”

“How do you know all of that?” Eddie was fairly certain he hadn’t had to study the history of communication when he was in training. But he’d also been very focused on his medical textbook.

Buck was incredibly cute when he blushed, Eddie decides – though he opts to keep that opinion to himself for now. “I get bored and I read.” The man shrugs nonchalantly, as though he hasn’t been entertaining Eddie with stories of Naval history and his own dumb-ass mistakes all evening. Honestly, Eddie wants to sit here all night and listen to Buck tell him stories of the world. It seems like he’s lived a lifetime already. And what has Eddie done? Gotten a girl pregnant, joined the army, gotten shot, and now he doesn’t even have a wife to go home to.

“Can I ask you something?” Eddie realizes too late that Buck looks nervous. He thinks he probably wouldn’t have said yes if he’d noticed. “How did you get your medal?”

Now he knows he doesn’t have to answer – and his initial instinct is to close out his tab and see if he can run to El Paso on his still-injured leg. But he also realizes that he hasn’t told anyone since it happened. Not the full story. Even now, he might not have the words. But he tries.

“Our helicopter got shot down while transporting wounded. I could still move so I got everyone out. Or I tried to get them out.” The echo of gunfire is not as distant as the others told him it would be. He can still smell it. “Support finally arrived and they decided to give me a medal for holding down the fort.”

Buck places a gentle hand over his and Eddie gasps, reminded that it has been a very long time since anyone has touched him. God, how he misses it.

“You saved wounded soldiers in the middle of the desert while being fired on. And you think you were just doing your job?”

“I’m an army medic.” He reasons with the bottom of his glass. “It’s my job to save people.”

“Maybe. But I don’t think that’s why you do it.” Without elaborating, Buck smiles at him and Eddie forgets the question.

“What about you?” He asks instead. “What’s yours for?”

Unlike the enthusiastic, bubbly personality he’s been talking to for the last few hours, Buck melts into the face he saw up on that stage. The stoic, professional.

“We were on our way back from an escort mission when we encountered some rough seas. I happened to be on deck with the chief mate when he had a stroke. I tried to tend to him but the storm was getting worse and no one could find the captain, so I just took over navigation. It was rough, I had no idea what I was doing, but we all made it out safely and the chief mate was okay.” As Buck shrugs, memories of an overheard conversation come flooding back to Eddie’s mind.

“Wait, were you on the USS Angelo?”

“Yeah. Why?”

Eddie can’t believe it. He has to laugh. “You were the cadet who sailed out of Hurricane Ida?”

“I am a petty officer first class, I’ll have you know.”

“Buck, you navigated a 2,000 ton ship out of a hurricane and all they gave you was a lousy medal?”

“I should get that printed on a t-shirt, or something.”

“That was incredibly reckless but also incredibly brave. Buck, you’re a hero.”

“I was just doing my job.” The smirk tells Eddie he knows exactly what he’s doing but it still hits him that he’s throwing Eddie’s words back in his face. Cute and cheeky.

He doesn’t know why he asks – well, he does, but it’s incredibly stupid and impulsive, and he definitely can’t blame it on the alcohol but he sure would like to.

“How long are you in town?”

Buck looks pleasantly surprised by his question but answers with regret in his eyes. “I head out with the Fifth Fleet in the morning.”

Wow. “You just got a medal, and you’re headed out to earn another one?”

“Something like that.” Buck laughs and Eddie wishes he was braver than he felt. “But I won’t be gone forever. And I’m really good at telegraphy if you wanted to send anyone a message.”

He’s so grateful that Buck has the good sense to be everything he needs right now. Because asking the next question is easier with someone standing next to him. “I suppose I’ll need a way to get in touch with you, then.”

Buck winks and Eddie has never been gladder that the concept of ‘standing’ was only metaphorical. The man should not be so irresistible after only a few hours, but Eddie can’t help but watch him push off his barstool and walk around the side of the bar.

“Hey, Diaz!” The spell is broken long enough for him to look across the room at where his name is being called. He waves at old friends – well, Senior Airman Han and Space Force First Sergeant Wilson are the closest things he has to old friends but in actuality, he’s not sure he knows their first names. “We’re going to the afterparty, want to join?”

On a normal night, Eddie would decline on the basis that he doesn’t want to go, and would rather lay in bed and watch reruns of ‘Murder She Wrote’. Tonight, Eddie wants to decline on the basis that he doesn’t want to go, and would rather stay up all night talking to someone who makes me feel curious about the future.

“Not tonight.” He shouts back across the room. “I’ll catch you at the next ceremony.”

They wave him off because they know it’s the same excuse he makes every single time but the only thing that matters is getting back to Buck.

“So.” He turns to the bar only to find it empty. The seat beside him is also unoccupied, as is any of the space surrounding him.

Had he dreamed up Buck? Had he been imagining this person who made him feel like divorce wasn’t his last chance at happiness? Was he truly so desperate and lonely?

“Hey.” Eddie looks up with too much hope in his eyes to only come face-to-face with the bartender. “He left this for you.” The man – who is not Buck, no matter how much Eddie hopes to see those eyes again – slides a napkin across the counter and walks away before Eddie can ask anymore questions.

He picks up the napkin and reads the blue ink-stained note written in messy scrawl.

Kilo

--... .---- --... ..... ..... ..... -.... --... ----. .----

The dots and dashes he recognizes as a series of numbers – a phone number, he hopes – but the word above? He tries to recall his academy days.

Kilo. Short for Kilogram. Used in the International Code of Symbols to represent the letter ‘K’. In Maritime Signal Flags, it indicates: I wish to communicate with you.

He’s pretty sure the bartender hates him for how late he stayed and how loudly he laughed at Buck’s note, but he can’t bring himself to care. Instead, he spends his energy memorizing the napkin’s contents long after he’s input the number. It’s more than just a piece of paper: it’s hope.

#military au #911 on fox #911 fox #buddie #eddie diaz #evan buckley #buddie fic #911 fic #first meeting #cj answers things #florenceandthemachine #cj writes things #love flo

[ladyblogger-margie]

Permit Pending - Part 1

Pairing: Will Miller (Triple Frontier) x F!Reader

Summary: All Will Miller wanted was a park permit for a VA fundraiser, what he got instead was an unscheduled afternoon exploring different parks with F!Reader.

Word Count:  3890

Rating: G (smut to come in chapter 2!)

Warnings: Course language. Eventual smut in future chapters. 

a/n: My first time writing reader insert and for Will Miller AND for Triple Frontier, so any feedback at all is appreciated. No Y/N. 

Series Master List

3-2-1, Will Miller counted down to the ring of his morning alarm clock. Just like every single day his phone blared a monotonous alarm sound at exactly 05:42 and Will shut it off. He spent the next three minutes practicing mindful breathing and preparing for the day ahead. At 05:45 he rose and changed into his gym clothes. 

He shook together a protein shake as he rode the elevator down to the surprisingly decent gym in his building where he did exactly 30 minutes of cardio followed by an hour of weight training. Today was back and chest day – his favorite – so of course he decided to listen to a podcast instead of a playlist of high tempo motivational music. It was easier to be motivated for something you already wanted to do after all. The podcast today was about finding a balance between order and relaxation, something his therapist had recommended he do before his insurance ran out on therapy sessions and he opted out of continuing the process.

After the gym he returned to his apartment and started the coffee maker. After a quick shower and some facial hair maintenance, he dressed in one of his branded polo shirts and drank his coffee with his breakfast. He had two talks scheduled for the day before lunch, then an errand to run after lunch. Later that evening he would meet up with Benny for fight training. Today could not be any more normal for him - exactly the same as the day before, and the day before that. 

Or so he thought. 

You woke up groaning when your alarm went off at 7:15am. You snoozed it. You also snoozed your 7:22am, 7:31am, and 7:40am alarms. You finally rolled yourself out of bed at 7:50am in time for your quick 30 minute yoga routine before you got ready for work. 

You breezed into the parks and recreation office at City Hall at exactly 8:57am. You grabbed a cup of coffee from the office machine knowing that if you got up at 7:15am as planned you would’ve had time to stop at Starbucks on your way into the office. 

You spent your morning as you usually did - catching up on your passion projects which were the youth sport organizations. You ensured all the public teams had access to the necessary fields and confirmed with the greens team that they were all in working order. You loved your mornings at work even though you weren’t necessarily a morning person. 

After lunch was another story. After a series of poorly timed budget cuts, your department was forced to cancel the internship program. That meant you were drafted into working the permit desks in the afternoons. You knew that it wasn’t actually the worst thing in the world, it was just so boring. The applications were longer than they had any right to be and filled with confusing language. This meant nearly every single application required a specific follow up that never fit one of the many form responses you’d been accumulating in the hopes of streamlining the process. 

Of course you wanted your community to take advantage of the awesome parks in your town, but apparently the legal department didn’t. It put you in a difficult spot where sometimes you were forced to give the park permits to corporations instead of individuals and it drove you crazy to do so. It also locked you to a desk unless a specific permit issue arose that required an in-person follow up which never happened. Which is why after lunch you went off campus to get yourself your favourite Starbucks order because the permit desk on a Monday required the heavy artillery to survive. 

Or so you thought. 

After a few hours of pouring over pages and pages of documents, the most handsome man you had ever seen walked into the office. He had blonde hair and soft eyes which you noticed right away but immediately after you were drawn to his strong chest tightly wrapped in a blue polo with some logo you didn’t recognize over one of his firm pecs. 

“My name is William Miller, and I’m hoping you can help me with a park permit,” the man said, holding out his hand to you. 

You composed yourself as quickly as you could and introduced yourself in return, shaking his hand. “I’d be happy to help you with that,” you said as you let go. His hands were firm and from the callouses you could tell he worked out, though his general physique already gave that away. 

He smiled at you and you felt something stir inside you that was not exactly professional, “Did you have a specific location in mind?”

“No, actually I was hoping to get your opinion. I’m helping to put together a community fundraiser, a BBQ actually, to help support the local VA, but I’m not exactly sure where would be the best place to set something like that up,” he replied. 

You knew exactly where to send him. There was a perfect location you often recommended for huge family reunions, outdoor wedding receptions, and concerts. But as you looked down at the desk for the correct application form you saw the huge pile of pages still left unread taunting you and you got an idea, “Why don’t I give you a tour of a few different locations to help you make your decision?” 

“That’s a service you offer here?”

“We aim to please” you said, desperate for an excuse to get out of the office. 

Will hesitated as he fiddled with his keys for a moment. 

“I could drive if you like,” he offered.

You smiled as professionally as you could, trying to contain your glee. 

“Thank you, let me just check out with my boss and I’ll be right back” you darted away before you could blow your composure. 

You stuck your head into your boss’ office. “Hey, I’m stepping away from the desk. Some guy is insisting I help him pick a park location for his permit request. I’m on my cell if there’s an emergency” you said, not stopping to hear their response before darting off. 

You grabbed your coffee off the desk and landed in front of Will. “Ready,” you said as he smiled warmly at you. He held the door open for you as you left the office, and your boring afternoon, behind.

He led you to his truck in the parking lot and held open the passenger door for you which made your heart flutter though you tried to control it and you reminded yourself that this was a professional outing, not a date. 

He climbed into the cab beside you and started the truck before he turned to you and asked, “Where to?”

You gave him directions to a park you know wouldn’t work, but it did have a couple of soccer fields, and you wanted to check the nets there for holes and figured you could push your luck a bit more today. 

He pulled into the park parking lot and looked around with a slight purse of his lips and a furrow in his brow. He cleared his throat before asking, “I did explain it was a BBQ, right? I don’t really see a place for that,”. 

You suddenly felt guilty, thinking he probably had somewhere else to be today and you derailed him for your own selfish reasons. “I’m sorry, I’m keeping you. I just had to get out of the office, and I took advantage of you. If you’ve got somewhere to be, leave me here with your information and I’ll get everything arranged for you at the perfect place,” you said, avoiding eye contact.

To your surprise he smiled at you, “You should’ve said, I’ve got nothing going on this afternoon, I can help you play hooky.” 

You smiled back at him, relieved that he was on board with your scheme. 

Will watched as you inspected the soccer nets for tears and he felt a warmth in his chest he hadn’t since his fiancee, who had left him after the incident at the Publix. You were really nice and he could tell you were passionate about your job, at least parts of it, especially hearing you explain exactly what your job was while he drove you both to this destination. Plus there was no denying that he found you incredibly attractive. 

You returned to his side at the edge of the field after completing your inspection. “Thanks for waiting, there’s a middle-school tournament here starting tomorrow and I wanted to make sure everything was set,” you said to him and he knew he was in trouble. 

“Ready for park number two?” you asked. 

He nodded and led you back to the truck. 

When you arrived at park number two, Will realized this had to be the place you intended for the permit and he was a bit disappointed. He had been hoping to stretch out his afternoon with you a little longer. Before he could ask if you needed a ride back to City Hall he heard you let go a soft, sad sigh. He looked at you but you were gazing out the front window at the park. 

“Is something wrong?” He asked. 

“I’m going to kill the guys in City Planning,” you muttered upset. 

Will tried to figure out what it was you were looking at, but he couldn’t see anything wrong with the park. It looked like the perfect place for a fundraising BBQ. 

You turned to Will hopeful, “Do you have tools in this truck, or is it just for show?”

He smiled at your joke, “I’ve got a box in the back. What’s the problem?”

You gestured to a park bench, “City Planning keeps installing anti-homeless architecture in my parks and I’m not going to let them get away with it,” you said with a sly smile. 

Will knows for sure now that he definitely has a crush on you. He gets out of the truck and grabs his modest tool box from the bed and follows you over to the bench. He sees a metal arm rest in the middle of the bench, obviously installed to ensure no one lays across it. He checks the back to see how it’s attached and scoffs at the simple way it’s been bolted in and opens his tool kit. 

“Am I going to get arrested for this?” He jokes as he gets to work. 

You laugh, “You’re with me, I’ll protect you”. 

You smile at this; you could get used to the idea of having his back. He gets the bar free and you take it from him. He gestures to another bench a few steps away and he gets to work on liberating that bench too. You happily follow him as you ask, “So, you work for the VA?”

“Yeah, I mostly just run my mouth though,” he grunted as he loosened the much tighter bolt on the second bench. 

“Were you military?”

“Yeah,” He rolls up his sleeve and shows you a tattoo on his forearm, “Delta Force”. 

“But you’re retired now?”

“Something like that,”.

“Aren’t you a bit young to be retired?”

He paused and handed you the second detached metal arm. 

You felt self conscious, maybe you were being rude? “Sorry, it’s none of my business,” You said nervously. 

He shook his head, “You’re fine. It’s just not something I’m necessarily proud of though”. 

“You don’t have to explain, it’s none of my business,” You said, as you led the way to the third bench. 

“I had some trouble, and I was told my services were no longer needed in the field,” he explained getting to work on the third arm, “But I found a way to be useful, stay involved”. 

You nodded, “That couldn’t have been easy,”.

He shook his head, “There are good days, and bad days,” and he handed you the third arm. 

He looked around and didn’t see any more pieces of hostile architecture so he turned to you, “Do you need a ride back to City Hall?”

You looked at him and felt bold. “This is obviously the best park for your event, but if you’ve got nowhere to be, did you want to make one more stop and see my favorite park?”

He smiled at you and nodded his head. You led the way back to his truck where he put his tools away and took the arms from you and dumped them in the bed. 

“I can’t wait to drop those off at the City Planning office tomorrow,” you giggled triumphantly. 

You and Will loaded up into the truck and you directed him out of the parking lot. 

Park number 3 was your favorite place in the entire world, though to be fair you hadn’t actually travelled much so you couldn’t really compare it to anywhere else, but still. To you the lakeside beach next to the tree covered green grass was a slice of heaven. You’d go there on the weekends with a podcast lined up or an old book and spend the whole afternoon on a bench with a coffee and some fresh air. 

When Will pulled into the parking lot, you suddenly got nervous. You had lost some of your earlier boldness that suggested you open yourself up like this to a man you just met. But there was something about him, a warmth and a vulnerability that made you want him to know you, and you to know him. 

You both got out of the truck and the sun was starting to get low in the sky as you walked him to a bench that bordered the beach and the grass. You took a seat and he sat next to you, your thighs gently brushing. The contact sent a shiver down your spine that had nothing to do with the cool breeze that brushed through the leaves above your head. 

Will looked out across the lake and around the park. He felt the warmth of your leg against his and the urge to lean over and brush your cheek with his thumb nearly overwhelmed him. You were so close, it would be so easily for him to just kiss you. But he wasn’t sure you’d want that. You wanted to play hooky from work, and share your love of the parks. He couldn’t let himself think that your enthusiasm for the day had anything to do with him. Instead of holding you under his arm and against his chest, he folded in on himself and looked at you.

He was about to ask what you were thinking about when his phone rang. He pulled it from his pocket and noticed Benny’s name on the caller ID and cursed under his breath. “I’m so sorry,” he said to you as he answered, “I’ve got to take this.”

He stands and walks a few paces away and you watch him leave, disappointed. You thought maybe he was about to ask you on a date, and tried not to let yourself be too upset that he didn’t. You watch as he rubbed his forehead and shook his head as he talked on the phone to someone you couldn’t hear and didn’t know. 

He hung up the phone and turned to look at you, and you turned away, a little embarrassed to have been caught staring at him. He walks back to you on the bench but doesn’t sit down again. 

“Thank you for showing me this place, it’s beautiful,” he said softly and his sweet voice drew your gaze to his lips as he spoke. You felt the electricity surge between you all the way through to the tips of your fingers and your toes. “I hadn’t realized how late it’s gotten, I’m supposed to be at the gym, training my brother,” he explained. 

You nodded and stood up next to him, so close you had to look up to meet his eyes. “That’s fine, I can call an Uber or something back to City Hall” and you pulled out your phone. 

He put his hand on your arm, “Don’t be silly, I’ll take you back. Plus gotta make sure those city planning guys get their gift.”

Your breath hitched when he touched you and you couldn’t contain your smile as you nodded. “Are you sure? I’ve already taken so much of your time” you said, unable to tear your eyes from his. 

“I want to”.

He walks you back to the truck and opens your door for you again and you hop in both flustered and excited. 

The drive back to City Hall is more quiet than you’ve been all day. Your previous trips were full of chit chat about sports and books and random small talk. Now all that existed in the truck was the electricity and tension between you. You wondered if he felt it too, or if the surprising infatuation was a one-sided affair. 

Will gripped the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles went white. He had spent most the afternoon with you and he failed to buck up the courage to ask you out. You took him to your favorite place and basically hand wrapped a romantic moment, and he blew it. He didn’t know if you noticed the potential romance of the location, or if you intended to entice him so completely, but you had. And he blew his shot. 

Back at City Hall he handed you the metal arms from your adventure and you stayed by the truck. You were hoping he’d ask you out before he left. 

“Thanks for the ride, and the impromptu bench liberation, and the excuse to get out of the office,” you said with a smile, lingering longer than you needed to. 

He smiled back, maybe he could ask you now and he could still pull off the romantic gesture. “I had a great day, which I hadn’t actually expected when I went in earlier looking to fill out boring paperwork,” he said leaning unconsciously closer to you. 

He took a deep breath, ready to ask - when his cell phone rang again. He silenced it and tried again, “Hey-“ and the phone rang again and he answered it. “I’m on my way, asshole. Start with cardio,” he said, frustrated, “you don’t need me for that”.

He hung up and looked at you embarrassed by his outburst, absolutely believing that he had blown it for sure now. But you just looked at him amused, not annoyed. 

“Friend of yours?” you asked, stifling a laugh. 

“My baby brother. He’s a fighter and I’m his trainer, which I do for free by the way, but he loves to act like he’s my boss”, he explained. 

“Sounds like a character.”

“He is something that’s for sure. He’s also really special, really talented. He deserves a better lot than what he’s got”, Will's voice trailed off as he thought bitterly about how Benny left service when he did and the guilt he carried, unspoken, about that ever since. 

Will leaned back, “Do you need a walk to your car?”

“I’m alright, thank you. I better head back up to the office first anyway. Thanks again for today. Maybe I’ll see you around”, you forced a smile, abandoning all hope of a date and retreating into the building. 

Will kicked himself mentally all the way to the gym. When he got there he was in a bad mood. 

“Finally!” Benny shouted at him when he walked in.

“I have a life outside of you, you know that right?” Will spit towards Benny.

“Fuck’s wrong with you?” Benny asked.

“I told you I was on my way, what was so important that you had to call me again and nag me?” Will asked.

“You’re never late, I was worried,” Benny admitted. 

Will paused. He hasn’t thought of it like that. He was never late, it was so unlike him. It was actually kinda nice Benny worried, even if he was an ass about it.

“Well I’m here now, let’s get to it”, Will shrugged and he climbed into the ring opposite Benny. 

After training they grabbed some food together. After scarfing down most of his meal without breathing, Benny asked Will, “Why were you late? You didn’t say.”

Will cleared his throat, “I was trying to get a park permit for the VA BBQ”.

“I thought you did that right after lunch?”

“It took longer than expected,” Will said vaguely. 

Benny squinted his eyes at his older brother until the metaphorical lightbulb went off. “Oh shit!” he said, “You were with a girl! Fuck, I never would’ve called you away if I knew, you’ve been alone for so long!” 

Will threw his used napkin at his taunting brother, “Fuck off.”

“Seriously,” Benny said, not laughing anymore, “I hope I didn’t blow it for you, I want you to be happy.”

Will sighed, “I didn’t get her number, and I didn’t ask her out.”

Benny gave him a sympathetic smile, “At least you got the permit for the event.”

Will pinched the bridge of his nose, “Fuck, I completely forgot to actually get the permit.”

Benny smirked at him. “You know what that means, right?”

“No,” Will groaned. 

“You gotta go back and see her tomorrow.”

Will leaned back in his chair, his mood dramatically improved. 

The next morning you dragged yourself out of bed after your third alarm and skipped yoga, just not in the mood. You hoped stopping at Starbucks would get you out of your funk, but even your favorite coffee didn’t have its usual effect. You felt so stupid for feeling like this today. You literally knew Will Miller for all of one afternoon, it shouldn’t ruin your whole week that he didn’t ask you out. 

You walked into the office ready to be grumpy for the rest of the day when you noticed Will stand up from the chair in which he was sitting. 

Will had been waiting for you since the office opened. He was there long enough to wonder if what he was doing was creepy or sweet. The longer he waited, the worse he felt about his plan. Though once he saw you, his resolve formed and he stood to greet you. Any insecurity he had melted away when he saw how you smiled at him when you noticed him there. 

“Hey,” he started, finding his voice. 

“Hey,” you replied, breathless. 

“I never did fill out a permit yesterday, I got distracted by someone way more interesting than paperwork,” he said, unable to contain a grin. 

You felt something deep in your center as you too failed to contain a beaming smile. 

“I can help you with that,” you walked behind the permit desk and he met you on the other side. 

You handed him the paperwork and helped him fill everything out. The entire time neither of you could contain your ear splitting smiles. When he finished you stamped his form and returned his copy. 

“You’re all set, Mr. Miller,” you said, “Will there be anything else?”

He looked you the eye, “Are you free Friday night? I’d love to take you out.”

You nodded eagerly, “I’d like that.”

PART 2 

#will miller #will miller x reader #will miller x f!reader #triple frontier #triple frontier fanfiction #william ironhead miller #william ironhead miller x F!Reader #william miller fanfiction #fanficion #fanfic series #permit pending series

[creativenicocorner]

Guess who remembered this glorious piece of art exists!! (I want to personally hug and thank the creators for making Bagheera’s VA a woman, because damn! Oof! Bagheera’s always been my favorite character before, but HECK my HEART)

Growing up The Jungle Books in all its variations impacted me greatly. Especially as someone who’s always felt torn between two worlds, (but I’ll leave that personal stuff for another day) It is still my favorite collection of stories to this date as well as a mass majority of Kipling’s short stories. My purse and my person is never too far from a copy of the Jungle Books, there are parts I can quite literally quote on the spot. 

Kipling’s stories still console me in the darker hours of my life, despite the author’s personal views. Neil Gaiman wrote an excellent introduction on loving the work despite Kipling’s views. The Introduction can be found in the collected works titled ‘Rudyard Kipling’s Tales of Horror & Fantasy’. I invite everyone to give both the introduction and the collection a read.  Here is the Introduction for the curious:

“Years ago, back when I was just starting to write Sandman, I was interviewed, and in the interview I was asked to name some of my favourite authors. I listed happily and with enthusiasm. Several weeks later, when the interview had been printed, a fan letter arrived at DC Comics for me, and was forwarded to me. It was from three young men who wanted to know how I could possibly have listed Kipling as a favourite author, given that I was a trendy young man and Kipling was, I was informed, a fascist and a racist and a generally evil person. 

It was obvious from the letter that they had never actually read any Kipling. More to the point, they had been told not to. 

I doubt I am the only person who writs replies to letters in his head he never sends. In my head I wrote many pages in reply, and then I never wrote it down or sent it. 

In truth, Kipling’s politics are not mine. But then, it would be a poor sort of world if one were only able to read authors who expressed points of view that one agreed with entirely. It would be a bland sort of world if we could not spend time with people who thought differently, and who saw the world from a different place. Kipling was many things that I am not, and I like that in my authors. And besides, Kipling is an astonishing writer, and was arguably at his best in the short story form.

I wanted to explain to my correspondents why ‘The Gardener’ had affected me so deeply, as a reader and as a writer - it’s a story I read once, believing every word, all the way to the end, where I understood the encounter the woman had had, then started again at the beginning, understanding now the tone of voice and what I was being told. It was a tour de force. It’s a story about loss, and lies, and what it means to be human, and to have secrets, and it can and does and should break your heart. 

I learned from Kipling. At least two stories of mine (and a children’s book I am currently writing) would not exist had he not written. 

Kipling wrote about people, and his people feel very real. His tales of fantasies are chilling, or illuminating or remarkable or sad, because his people breathe and dream. They were alive before the story started, and many of them live on once the last line has been read. His stories provoke emotion and reaction - at least one of the stories in this volume revolts me on a hundred levels, and has given me nightmares, and I would not have missed reading it for worlds. Besides, I would not have told my correspondents, Kipling was a poet, as much a poet of the dispossessed as he was a poet of Empire. 

I said none of those things back then, and I wished that I had. So when Steve Jones asked me to write the introduction to this book, I said yes. Because I’ve said them now, to you. Trust the tale, not the teller, as Stephen King reminded us. And the best of Rudyard Kipling’s tales are, simply, in the first rank of stories written in the English Language.  Enjoy them.” - Neil Gaiman’s Introduction, as found in ‘Rudyard Kipling’s Tales of Horror & Fantasy’ 

#2 cents #Nico blabs into the void #The Jungle Books #Rudyard Kipling #Neil Gaiman #Trust the tale not the teller as Stephen King reminded us.

[chemitaromance]

“Rules: Answer 21 questions and then tag 21 people who you want to get to know better”.

Hello, this is my first post here, and I can’t say I’m not nervous. I was tagged by @fleeting-blossom-of-the-dawn with who I’m very thankful, also all this stuff seems lots of interesting and looks like a challenge, so why not doing it.  Before begging with the matter, I’ve to clarify that english isn’t my mother tongue, even if sounds like an excuse for grammatical mistakes I wanted to said it for any grammatical horror.  Nickname: I haven’t it, because I don’t like the nicknames or stuff like that. Anyway, that doesn’t get away from my friends, they call me “Sof” or “Sofi” instead by my name “Sofía”.   Zodiac: Pisces.  Height: I’m too short, 1.54 cm. Last movie I saw: I don’t remember, I think it was “King’s Girl”. For a while I was obsessed with Queen Kristina and even more when I read about her past.  Last thing I goggled: I was watching for fifth time Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s S02E15 and I searched the test that Gina did to Captain Holt. Seems like I’m a INTJ, the worst part is the test result is very accurate.  Favourite musician: Definitely Marina and the Diamonds, Cuarteto de Nos, Sia, Lana del Rey and my guilty pleasure, the olds Shakira’s Albums.  Song Stuck in my head: It’s very embarrassing, I was watching Mulan’s clips and now I can’t get out of my head the song “I’ll make a man out of you”. Others blogs: In the moment no, I had a second blog but I always forget about its exiscente, so I deleted it the last year. Do I get asks: No, because the blog isn’t propitious for that. I’ve a couple but was send it a few years ago when I didn’t used with frequency this site.  Following: 479.  Followers: 34 people who I don’t know why are they follow me, honestly, I’m like the worst blog ever but thank you a lot for support me. 

Amount of sleep: Right now I’m on vacations, so I rarely go to sleep early. However, I try to sleep at least five hours even if the next day I regret it.  Lucky number: 73, it’s the last number of my mother’s birth year. And I kinda like how sounds in spanish.  What I’m wearing: Sport pants and a black T-shirt of Guns N’ Roses. I’m burning alive, in Uruguay there 26°C. Dream Job: I want to be an historian, or history professor.  Dream trip: Japan and Europe, but I’m too lazy.  Favourite food: “Pasta con tuco” or “Puchero”. I’m very simple.  Play any instruments: No, I’m terrible, one time a friend tried to tought me but I understood nothing and I failed as ever. That’s was so frustrating, I wanted to have an special talent but the same day I discovered that I’m bad at everything except studyng.  Languages: I’m a mess learning languages. I can handle english and read in portuguese, and obviously spanish I live in Uruguay. Favourite song: All my favourite songs make me cry, I’m too emotional.“Strangers” By Halsey and Lauren Jauregui, “Cuando sea grande” by Cuarteto de Nos and “Cielo de un solo color” by No Te Va Gustar because I can’t overcome the World Cup.  Random fact: I have a list of 91 book titles that I want to read, most of them are about history and my strange love-hate relationship with Daniel Defoe. And if for some reason you are wondering if I could do it, the answer is no, I recently found Bernard Cornwell's Books and my vacation plan goes down the drain. I hate myself. Describe yourself as Aesthetic Things: I don’t know what say in this section, so I just will say read “A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the most notorious Pyrates” and cry with me.  Well, this part is dificult because I don’t want to bother anyone, this tag is optional and you aren't forced to do it. Well, I would like to tag @slam-dunk-the-children​, @wobblyjellyfish​, @integra-sama​ and @lyricallinder​, mainly because I really like their blogs,, I’d tag @fleeting-blossom-of-the-dawn​ but you did the tag.

Greetings. 

#tagged #thanks for tagging me #i would die for gina

[orionwhispers]

Devil Like Me (Part V)

(A/N Hey guys! Sorry, this took so long, been super busy and had a few power cuts, but hope you enjoy and thank you all for the lovely feedback! My inbox is always open! This is my favourite chapter so far, so hope you like it x ) 

Then

Your arms ached as you hauled the next bunch of books up the stairs to your bedroom, earning a confused glance from Aunt Jean. You piled them on top of the already overflowing heap and settled cross-legged on the floor, grabbing the heaviest one and scouring the pages. You had almost cleaned out the school library, determined to put a name on the beast you had encountered. You had read all of the Human Anatomy books, scraped every page of the Historical paperbacks and now you were on the last lot, Mythology. The books were dusty and heavy, your eyes straining from the amount of excessive reading you had done over the past few days, but you needed an answer. Your finger skimmed the brown pages as you came across a line that caught you off guard -

“A creature like this one feeds on the life essence of their victims. This usually occurs by drinking the blood of their prey. Some feel they need blood to flow through their veins to keep their bodies animated and limit the damage of decay. Others feel that the beasts feed as a sadistic habit in order to wreak havoc and fear. They look just like us and it can be hard to spot them amongst the rest of the humans, although they cannot face the sun, so you will usually only encounter them at night. “

Your breath hitched as you scrambled to find the name of what they were describing, but it all made sense when you did,

Vampire.

Now

You settled into the bath, the scalding water soothing your muscles and calming your senses. You could hear the rain pattering against the window panes and the clock above the marble counter told you it was almost nine. You had spent the past few hours trying to come up with the best plan to attract Klaus' attention and had finally come up with one, it was going to be hard to perform but hopefully ultimately worth it. 

You climbed out, wiping your body with the fluffy lilac towels as you walked back into the bedroom. Ears picking up noises from downstairs, you stilled for a moment, allowing your heightened senses to tune into the sounds. You couldn't make out the exact words but could hear the muffled voices of the Mikaelson brothers arguing, undoubtedly about you, smiling inward you thought - Game on Klaus.

The next morning was a stormy one, the rain clashing loudly and the trees billowing in the wind. You paced across the floor, feet sinking into the plush carpet, it was almost 8, Sebastian would be bringing you breakfast soon. You had been up since five, reminiscing about the past and plotting your next move. You heard the locks sliding, and perked up, immediately leaping on top of the mattress as you tried to look nonchalant. 

'Morning, Y/N." Sebastian began, smiling as he entered the room, handing you a tray of buttery pancakes and a glass of dark red blood. 

"Hi, Sebastian," You smiled taking a large animated bite of the pancakes and let out a moan of delight, "Delicious! My compliments to the Chef!" 

He smiled brightly, watching as you took a small gulp of the blood, cherishing the metallic warmth as it flowed down your throat. 

"Ok, I'll see you at lunch," He started, heading for the door, "Oh, almost forgot- Elijah sends his regards but the brothers have to deal with some things, you'll have to get used to this ugly mug for the next few days."

You smiled sadly and pulled a dejected face despite your insides singing at the fact it couldn't be more perfect. As soon as you heard the click of the door and the thud of his heavy footsteps down the stairs you bounced off the bed and into the bathroom, clutching the cup of blood. Without a second thought, you threw the liquid into the marble sink, watching as the crimson fluid flowed down the sides, bubbling as it travelled down the drain.

Lunch came and went, Sebastian full of smiles again as he gave you a bowl of soup and a salad; and another glass of blood you hastily poured down the drain when he left. You couldn't believe someone as friendly as Sebastian could work as closely with Klaus as he did. All of Klaus' old acquaintances were either dead or on the run from him and you hoped the same fate wasn't in store for Seb.

By dinner, the storm had begun to settle and the sky was dim, the grey clouds fading into the dusk. You heard noises approaching the door and settled deeper into the comfy armchair. Sebastian entered, carrying a tray of what looked like pasta and a tall goblet of warm blood, the violent hunger inside you bubbling and clawing at the smell.

"Here you are Y/N, have a nice night." he started to turn but you grabbed the end of his sleeve.

"Sebastian, could I ask you something please?"

"Of course." He started, resting on the antique desk and folding his arms.  

"Would it be possible to get some more books?" You gestured to the empty bookcase behind you, showing him all of the dusty novels you had sprawled on the floor for the effect. "I've read all of these."

He quirked a brow, "That was quick."

"I'm a fast reader."

He rolled his eyes playfully, "I'll have to ask Klaus when he gets back."

"All I want is a book, not a knife. Does he really not trust me that much? I'm so bored in here," You whined like a child "Please? I'll read anything!"

He stared at you, breathing heavily through his nostrils before rubbing a palm over his face. "Fine! I'll see what I can do, but no promises. And you are not to tell him!"

You smiled graciously, marking a cross over your heart for effect. Sebastian groaned before giving you a quick wink and leaving, phase one complete.

The next morning along with the tray of breakfast was a small book. You gave Sebastian a genuine smile, he hardly knew you and was risking a lot under Klaus' orders, but it meant the world that he would bring you a book. At dinner you grinned as you showed him the number of pages you had ploughed through,”Only three chapters left!” you laughed.

The following day there were two more, slightly dog-eared but still in good reading condition. “One of my favourites.” Sebastian had told you and a twang of guilt shot through your core, you knew that he would get in trouble for what you were planning on doing, and Klaus could never control his temper. You never thought you would like Seb as much as you did, but he was genuinely nice and you vowed that whatever happened, you wouldn’t let Klaus’ wrath hit him.

At dinner you plucked up the courage again, “What’s your favourite genre?” you asked as you ate a spoonful of rice, staring at the glass of blood you would later toss down the sink.

“I love mystery.” Sebastian began, “Classic whodunnits.”

You smiled “Ah, would have had you down as more of a rom-com guy.”

He flipped you off and you threw a tomato at him which he caught with ease, “What about you?”

You scraped your fork against the bowl, cringing at the sound “As cliche as it seems, I love anything to do with History and Mythology, I find it so interesting.” You lied “I guess being so curious got me ended up in here.”

He snorted, “So like Harry Potter?”

You rolled your eyes, “I mean non-fiction.”

He nodded, taking the empty bowl from you. “See you in the morning Y/N.”

When you woke up again, sprawling your limbs across the mattress you were pleasantly surprised to see that Sebastian was early, already arranging your tray neatly on the bedside table.

"Good, you're up!"

You smiled rubbing the sleep out of your eyes, 

"I went into the library downstairs today and picked out what I thought you would like." 

"Wow! This is amazing." you yawned, staring at the vast pile of books Seb had bought, your eyes flickering over a leather-clad journal that looked promising. He waved you off and disappeared downstairs again.

You reached for the bound book, ignoring the others and ran your hand down the worn spine. Again, your stomach twisted with guilt. Sebastian was obviously newly turned, you guessed only a few months and obviously had no idea what he had picked up from the Mikealson's storage. 

A spellbook. 

As you fingered the mysterious carvings on the pages you wondered when you became the type of person that used others, but you shook it off immediately, you were not the girl you once were and you had to get used to that.  

You stood bouncing on the heels of your feet on the tiled bathroom facing the door, you flicked through the pages, landing on one that seemed promising. You shut the door and raised your hands. Over the years you had encounters with witches and spirits and had often been told that you had some mild powers in you, which you never believed to be true, but hopefully, it would come in handy today.

"Effice ut ostium clausum est, et non sinebat ut quisquam vas in." 

You chanted, holding out your palms as you had seen others do, you paused, waiting for something magical to occur, but nothing happened. You rolled your eyes, stamping your foot impatiently and shaking your head already feeling weak from the lack of blood. 

"Effice ut ostium clausum est, et non sinebat ut quisquam vas in." You repeated, glaring at the door but again, nothing happened and as you reached for the handle the door swung open with ease.

You groaned holding your head in your hands, anger spurting through your veins. This was just typical. You needed something to anchor yourself to, something to help the words flow and charge like a battery into the door. You needed to focus. You thought back to everything that had transpired over the past few years, you thought about Klaus ignoring you, you thought about Jasmine and Aunt Jean and finally, Sarah.

"Effice ut ostium clausum est, et non sinebat ut quisquam vas in." 

A puff of grey smoke shot through the door, and you flew back, your spine cracking against the wall. You scrambled onto all fours, shielding your eyes from the sparks that were darting out of the doorknob. "Oh God," you murmured waiting for them to die down with a hiss and a fizz. Cautiously, you crawled forward reaching for the handle and let out a yelp as a shot of pain blasted through your whole body. You were pretty sure you had done something wrong but at least it had worked.

Thundering steps came up the stairs, followed by the locks frantically sliding out of place. 

"Y/N? Y/N?" 

You lifted your head up from your position on the floor and spoke meekly, embarrassed about what you had to say, "I'm in the bathroom, Sebastian." 

"I heard a crash, are you-" You watched the doorknob rattle followed by a loud "Fuck! What the hell was that?" 

"I'm sorry," You began, trying to calm him down "I had to do this, it's the only way he'll talk to me." 

"How did you manage to shut me out?" You could almost hear the cogs turning in his head from behind the door, "The book. You used me." His voice was so accusing it broke your heart. 

"It had nothing to do with you." 

"Klaus is going to kill me." 

"I will not let that happen, send him up here before anything else. Tell him that if he lays a hand on you I will never let him in." 

You were greeted with silence, "Sebastian?" You asked but all you could hear were the locks snapping back in place and the drone of your own voice.

Shouting woke you up, well actually, a British accent screaming profusely woke you up from your slumber. You felt so weak and one glance at yourself in the mirror told you that the lack of blood was taking its toll on you. Dark purple-grey bags were forming under your eyes and your were lips sore and cracked to the touch, you ran a finger over your now protruding collarbones before a voice broke you from your thoughts. 

"Y/N. Open this door now."

Your dead heart yearned for his voice and if it were any other circumstance you would smile at the sound of your name from his lips.

"Finally decided to talk to me, hm?" You say shocked at how hoarse your own voice is. 

"This isn't funny, open this door now or so help me I will break it down." 

"I'd like to see you try." You murmur, "The only way this door is getting open is if you promise to talk to me and stop treating me like a child."

You can almost see him rolling your eyes from behind the door. "Stop treating you like a child?" He hisses, "Maybe I will when you stop acting like a spoilt brat." 

Your nose twitches at the insult as you reach towards to rose gold taps above the bath and turn them on, watching the boiling water flow into the tub. "Goodbye, Niklaus. Do think about my offer." You retort, grinning as the clashing water drowns out his voice and the thump of his fists against the door.

By morning, you can hear Klaus' insistent voice harassing another poor soul.

 "How can you not know what she's done? You're a witch. Figure it out."

 If you weren't feeling so pathetic you would have congratulated yourself for actually completing a spell, albeit not correctly, but still. 

"Niklaus, whatever she has done, simple magic cannot undo. I will have to consult my elders and their spell books and after that probably find more components that I don't yet have!" 

"Fine." He says, inching towards the bathroom door so that you can hear him clearly, "Let her sit there and wither away. Feeling thirsty yet Y/N?"

You're not sure what day it is when you next wake up. Your head is thumping loudly and your entire body is aching and sore, just by stretching out your palms you can see all the veins and bones in your skin and your fingertips turning blue. It hurts to breathe, your chest heaving with pain with every gasping breath you take, but the worst of all is the hunger. It's driving you insane, clinging to your skin like a heavy boulder dragging you down. It reminds you of when you were first turned, the insatiable hunger that coursed through your undead body. But at least then you had Klaus to help you through it.

From what you could gather, it had been a few days. Your feeble body was sinking in and out of consciousness, your head felt like a bowling bowl and your throat was painfully dry. You were pretty sure at one point Elijah had come to plead with you, but your decaying body had tuned him out. You were also convinced you felt Klaus behind the door, in silence, just listening for you, but you were certain it was just hallucinations.

'Solve fasciculos carmine cantatum aperire ostium!" 

A chanting phrase made your eyes flicker open with the remaining strength you could muster, the room began to shake and you clung to yourself to stop from flailing around.

"Solve fasciculos carmine cantatum aperire ostium!" 

The voice repeated and the door creaked and moaned, cracking at the hinges and finally bursting open with a loud groan and puff of air. The blast pushed you further against the wall and you shivered with pain. Hands were scrambling across your body and you were too weak to push them off, your eyes were straining to see who it was but your vision was blurred. Whoever it was held a chalice to your lips and you immediately smelt the familiar warmth of the blood you had been craving. You pawed desperately at the glass but your hands shook with pain so it just dribbled down your chin. 

"For God's sake." The voice muttered, Klaus.

Through bleary eyes, you watched his shaky silhouette tear into his own veins and raise his wrist to your mouth. Despite the weakness you felt, you latched onto him like a newborn kitten, sucking the blood and cherishing it as it warmed your throat. You mumbled in thanks and started to lift your head to meet his, but he used his hand to push you back down and continue drinking. His palm snaked behind your back lifting up to tangle in your hair and pull you closer to him, stroking you softly and gently as you nourished your body. You both lay like that, entangled in each other, the love and care you both held for one another radiating the room as you sank into his arms, his hands twisting patterns into your hair, finally feeling at ease. 

#klaus mikaelson #klaus imagine #tvd imagine #the originals imagine #the originals #klaus blurb #klaus fic #the vampire diaries

[quakerjoe]

A CUPPA JOE for Independence Day 2017

 Happy 4th of July to all my followers here at Quaker Joe! As I sit in my flat in upstate Vermont, I can see over the tree line the fireworks going off over Lake Champlain and I begin to ponder things about this country that I love so much. Sure, I’m a right bit pissed off at this nation as a whole at present, but this is part of the dichotomy of life. If you’ve ever been royally pissed at your parents or children or spouses or somebody you love, then you can understand why I rail on sometimes against the United States of America. I’ve had people accuse me of hating it, sometimes citing the ol’ bullshit line of “Love it or Leave it” which only makes me want to get more involved with projects finding a way to reach through the internet to slap the living shit out of someone. C’est le Guerre.

 I got to thinking a bit about what “PATRIOTISM” means. Clearly it means a lot of different things to everyone. Some of these definitions are radically different, evidently. For some, “Patriotism” seems to mean something akin to being one’s duty to hoard cash, get rich, and screw everyone else. To some, it means being anti-government at all times, regardless of whether the government is good or not. To others, it means being responsible for one’s own self but it could include taking care of those around you, and sometimes watching them drown because you feel that THEY are not being responsible. Some see patriotism as a sort of nationalism or being prideful towards the US regardless of how good or how shitty the place is. To cheer “USA! USA! USA!” all the time and put “Support the Troops” crap all over the car, even though as a nation we’re academically tanking (and celebrating the fact that we, as a people, are getting progressively dumber and dumber as the rich and powerful get richer and more powerful- you know, because educated, smart people aren’t that easy to fool, but more on that later).

 From what I’m seeing, the rift between us is getting widened and the chasm deeper. We’re failing to realize that what the actual majority of us want is actually the same thing- to see the United States prosper and be the best nation in the world. It all seems to come down to the divide of who one thinks the USA is. Most, I believe, want “We the People” to live better lives than our predecessors, and to make the country a better place than when we found it. This means, to most of us, that we’re all better educated and that the job market is strong so that we can all hold our heads up high with dignity that we can get jobs that pay livable wages and that we’re not in constant fear of bankruptcy over a medical emergency. In my opinion, you’d have to be either really fucking ignorant to not want that, or just that self-centered and utterly selfish and as far as I’m concerned, as NOT patriotic as can be. Hearing people bitch about taxes is a good indicator. Sure, taxes can be a bit high, but it’s also an investment in the USA. If you like safe roads and bridges, the best public schools, and so on, then it’s not only the law but your DUTY to pay your damned taxes! The uproar, which there isn’t nearly enough of, is that “We the People” are not seeing a good return on this investment today. Our infrastructure is shit, and we all know it. Our education system is on the path to total collapse, and we all know it. Out military… Jesus Horatio Christ, don’t get me started. Never mind; I’ve already gone there…

 As a veteran and coming from a family of military men and women, I love and adore our military. Nobody, and I DO MEAN NOBODY works harder than these people do and for so little reward. I mean, face it- their pay is utter shit. To keep them supplied and to survive, these people live in a certain structure that dictates what job they’ll do, when they’ll do it, and the ‘perks’ like healthcare and so on are “free”… you know- Communism. It’s a life of structure and order, take and receive orders, do your duty, and for little pay and almost no thanks. Then you have to look forward to a failing system (The VA) to help you out and care for you after you get out, showing that all that “Support the Troops” shit all over cars amounts to more of a punch to the crotch than an expression of thanks. All true-believers and “patriots” seem to think we send our beloved family members around the globe to defend our nation and our freedom, but how many of you have actually THOUGHT about this much? I mean, REALLY thought about this… Think- We’re surrounded by… NOTHING. Canada isn’t ever, even at their best, never going to invade us. That much is clear. Hell, just the people with hunting rifles alone could repel an invasion from Canada, numbers alone. Mexico? Not a chance. There will never be a day, nor has there ever been one since the Alamo that Mexico will come marching up to invade us. So that leaves us with what? The Atlantic and Pacific oceans. So, one would think that’s a sure bet that fucking Aquaman’s people aren’t going to rise up out of the waters to kill us or an unexpected attack from Atlantis is going to catch us all off guard. I’m former Navy. I was in the submarine force, and believe me, after all these years, we’d have found Atlantis by now if it was active. I’m pretty sure we’re safe in this regard. So when was the last time you asked yourself some important questions like “Who are we currently at war with?” and “Why?” When was the last time you read up on the history of the Middle Eastern nations, you know, that dumpy, desert area where everyone’s favourite hero Jesus came from? Did you read about how Western wars like WWI and WWII essentially tore the area apart in a modern colonial fashion? Did you read up how borders were drawn by the USA and other European governments, essentially making Iran and Iraq what they are today? Did you catch how these Western powers totally ignored the regions that were Shiite and Sunni? (Do you even know the difference between them? Think, very loosely, that there are differences between Catholics and Protestants, the constant conflict in Ireland, for example.)

 What about Afghanistan? Is that a nation, on any level, that’s a threat to the US? Do you think they’re going to come here and kill everyone? Apart from it being numerically impossible should they show up on our soil, it’s also impossible for them to get here. It’s also ignorant to wonder WHY we’re there. We’re not defending the USA. We’re not defending our freedom. So why are we there? Did it have anything, anything at all, with making Haliburton rich by cock-blocking the Russian oil pipeline down through Afghanistan? Would it have anything to do at all with Big Pharma’s stakes in the massive amount of poppy fields there which are used to make their opioids? Take a moment to think this through… we can wait. Too often politicians praise our military for their strength, courage and sacrifice for “protecting” us here at home and (listen carefully and pay attention to the wording here) “our INTERESTS abroad”. What interests? The Iraqi oil fields? The Afghani poppy fields and a block against Russian oil magnates? Who benefits from that? “We the People” certainly do not. When we lose a loved one because he or she is over there in combat, be it Iraq or Afghanistan or wherever, did they die to save our lives here at home? Did they lay down their lives to protect financial investments of America’s rich and powerful? You know, those same fucktards who are always getting tax cuts in the tune of millions while the shrinking middle class and working poor get stuck with the nation’s tax burdens? Yeah, THOSE mega-fuckers. So essentially, on this 4th of July, I’m reminded that the rich and powerful pay people in our government to deploy our military to places that will make them rich, and not have to pay a dime for it. These rich fuckers certainly don’t pay taxes, they don’t pay our military, but they’re sure willing enough to spend their lives to make them richer, aren’t they? Do you think for an instant that a professional mercenary would do the same job for less? Do you think, if these rich assholes on Wall St. had to foot the bill personally, that we as a nation would be at war and throwing away the lives of our own men and women in uniform so lightly? Do you think the rich assholes are willing to step up and pay veteran’s medical bills? Do you see them stepping up to take care of their widowed spouses and children? Of course not. They know full well that our military are expendables. They see vets as the by-product of war to be cast off. They treat this like our servicemen and women are their conscripts; the underpaid cannon fodder that they can laugh at as their bank accounts get bloated with their profits. They think of us as suckers, and to a degree, they’re right.

 You see, this is where staying PROPERLY informed is so paramount. KNOWING what’s what is the key to realizing who’s doing right by you and who’s screwing you. QUESTION. Question everything. Question motive. Question who is benefitting and why. Question who is being hurt by legislation. Question why. We used to be able to rely on the media to do this for us. We used to be able to rely on something as basic and simple as our public schools to teach us. We had such high hopes that something as majestic as the internet would bring us together, not just as a nation but as a member of the world community, to have a clearer and better understanding because we can now look shit up and read up on just about anything. But since Reagan shafted the laws that required Truth in Reporting, fake news began to rear its ugly head, and actual journalism with integrity began to suffer. The rich and powerful know that when you keep people in the dark, they’re easier to con out of their money and even their own lives. They bought up media outlets and began to filter what got reported. Any fucking moron knows this. A big corporation that owns a news outlet is certainly not going to let a story out about how the parent company is poisoning the air or water or how they treat their employees like shit and endanger them in unsafe working conditions. FOX News came into being, casting a shadow of doubt over ALL news outlets, and because they prey on people’s fear and hate, they can continue to literally lie, promote conspiracy theories, and damage the integrity of journalism on such a wide scale that there may never be a comeback for honest, truthful and ACCOUNTABLE journalism. It was once considered to be our PATRIOTIC DUTY to be well informed. Now, it’s a national pastime to listen to whatever drivel the news outlets are willing to shit out, like having diarrhea while trying to run a marathon.

 I have, as one of my favourite pastimes, read an awful lot of history, from ancient times to present. I don’t see things getting better in the near future. I’m not confident that this nation is going to survive. It would be vain to thing it can. The Soviet Union didn’t last nearly as long. Nations rise and fall, and Republics, fragile things that they are, fall the hardest. We’re on the precipice of total collapse as a society and as a nation, and nobody’s talking about it. I want us to get through this, but nobody’s listening anymore. People believe what they WANT based on their feelings and facts-be-damned. There are those on the political right who want pretty much the same end results as the left, but through different means. The right is also poisoned with poor education and understanding as well as riddled with a hate for anyone not straight, heterosexual and male. Both sides have lost the path to any sort of enlightenment. The importance of art and music is now a comedic happenstance that’s underappreciated like nothing more than a pleasant wrapping paper around a gift; something to be grinned at and then torn off and thrown away, sort of like personal relationships. We no longer have a sense of pride stemming from neighbourhoods that spreads out from communities to surrounding communities, surrounding cities, counties, and finally states. “E Pluribus Unum”; from one, many, now has no significance. We violate the Constitution daily by putting “In God We Trust” in place of what was a very important national motto because we no longer care about the many it seems. We only care about the one, for the most part; the one being “ME”. We’ve strayed quite far from “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country” haven’t we? Today, we’re more the “I got mine; fuck the rest of all y’all” sort of people.

 I attribute this to our inability to talk to one another anymore. Personally, I can’t readily speak to a Trump supporter. I can only take so much stupid. These people are either easily conned, or they’re so pissed at the US and the Democrats for turning their backs on the middle/working class to become a diet version of the GOP that they were willing to go with Trump just to watch the house burn down. Not very patriotic… or is it? Debate at will. The point I’m driving at is that there are some very stupid, gullible people out there. They’ve got their five pieces of silver from FOX and buy into their shit while actual scientists, economists and so on are trying desperately to warn us all about the pitfalls ahead. Trump and the rich and powerful, who profit on disaster, don’t want you or me to know about the dangers ahead, so they’re clouding the credibility of all media. While their followers fall in line like sheep to the slaughter, the rest of us are, or at least WERE working to try to save them, even from themselves, but they don’t want to be saved.

 I think we don’t talk to one another anymore mainly because I don’t think people like me, the Liberals, Progressives, the actual “Christians” who walk the walk and not just talk the talk, are DONE trying to save them. We’ve got ourselves to worry about and time and resources are getting short in supply. We USED to want to help them; to reach down and help pull ALL of the “We the People” up so they could have better paying jobs, better health care coverage, better education and so forth. However, when you reach down to help bring someone below you up and all they do is pull hard to try and bring you back down, it’s time to let go. When they’d rather bring you down with the ship instead of letting you help them into a lifeboat, then it’s time to pull back and let them drown. We used to see Patriotism as focusing on our OWN nation first and, if we’ve got something in surplus, to send that as aid to others around the world, unconditionally. We can’t get our own house in order anymore.

The way I see it, Progressives/Liberals see America/Earth as a house; a gift from God or Nature, to be taken care of and its inhabitants respected and treated with care and dignity for all. Looking at it as a house, we want to upgrade all the utilities whenever possible, to ensure efficiency and safety so that all living in it will be protected and happy. On the other hand, Conservatives have come to represent something akin to the inhabitants of “Animal House”; something to party in, something to ignore when drinks spill on the carpet or when someone’s sick and puking in the sink or having a shit on the floor somewhere. Conservatives take what they can and give little to nothing back and call themselves “Christians”, and that really pisses me off. It’s why I left religion. These people make me sick. The big reason I can’t talk to them isn’t because I lack material, research or information. The big reason is because they REFUSE to listen or to take an interest in doing their own research. They refuse to listen, and I’ve wasted enough breath to know that further talk is pointless. Their ignorance keeps them in bliss, one would think, yet these conservatives are so very, very angry at the dumbest shit. They’re all pro-Jesus yet all pro-guns. They’re pro-fetus, yet so very, very anti-life overall. They’re hypocrites on far too many levels it’s a wonder they haven’t actually imploded like a black hole; an entity overwhelmed by too many contradictions.

 So on this 4th of July, try to focus on what YOU think is the true definition of “Patriot” and “Patriotism”. Does it go as far as the simple, dumb-sounding definition you can find instantly on Google? “Vigorous support of one’s country” it said. But what if your country is turning into a shit hole and sinking fast? Should you support that, if that’s what the government is doing? Should you FIGHT against that instead? Which supports the country? Wiki says ‘Patriotism’ is “an attachment to a homeland”. Simple, and yet a bit baseless, don’t you think? Dictionary.com defines patriotism as “devoted love, support, and defense of one’s country; national loyalty”. How often do we confuse this with nationalism, pride and vanity?

Think about that. Ponder all of this on Independence Day, a day of national vanity. Blasphemous? Perhaps. You see, when a prisoner ‘declares’ himself free, it doesn’t make him/her so until escape or parole comes around. America’s Declaration of Independence was finalized and began being signed on the 4th of July, 1776. It didn’t MEAN we were a free and independent nation. There was a war to fight first, and that didn’t conclude until 1783 when Britain conceded and recognized their loss and our right to be a free and independent nation. That was almost seven years later, man. THAT was when the WORLD knew we’d won and the United States of America was now fully out of the womb and born. But hey, what are historical facts in this “Post-Truth” and “Alternative Fact” nation today?

-Joe

[garden-of-succulents]

So this is thanks to @wheeloffortune-design's art/AU proposal about a world where Jack doesn't play hockey and is a chubby history nerd. I got thinking about him as Bitty's French tutor who got dragged unwillingly into a Youtube series, and @udnoestaaqui proposed that the series' viewers had trouble figuring out if it were fiction or reality, and well.... (Thanks to Talhi for help with the French!)

You really can't blame them for wondering. Jack Zimmermann has an online photography portfolio that says he's doing a minor in Fine Arts at Samwell, and he (along with Larissa Duan) is listed as a camera operator for fellow Samwell student B. Knight's self-produced documentary Patriarchy In/Action. Fans can point out that there are camera angles and tricks he seems to enjoy in his photography that are used in Cuisiner en Français but have never been seen before in Check Please!  It would make sense if a long-time Youtuber like Bitty had teamed up with a fellow Samwell student and budding auteur and tried to make the next social media sensation.

Not to mention? It's so meta. It works on so many levels.

In the first episode, It only takes little clips of Bitty trying to do his cooking show alone to realize he knows how bad his French is. "Bonjour!" he says, with a bright smile that turns into a self-conscious grimace. Cut. Then he's stirring a bowl. "Dez effs? Dez offs?"  "Des ouefs," someone says off-camera. Bitty makes a face and mutters, "Yeah, like that's gonna happen." Cut. Then he pulls a pan of cookies out of the oven and says, falsely bright, "Voila!" and cracks up into uncomfortable giggles. Cut.

Then he's sitting in the chair behind the table where he usually stands and does his cooking show, looking disgruntled. He runs his hands through his hair and mutters in his native English, "I just feel so stupid, you know? Mama always said I didn't talk til I came out in full sentences. I'm so used to being able to just talk, and sound good. I used to read Webster's Dictionary to come up with new words to try out on my folks. And now in French I just... I feel like someone's cut out my tongue. I can't do this."

"That's why you keep failing?" the person behind the camera asks.

Bitty sighs dramatically. "Yeah. But I need this class to graduate, and every other language seems worse."

"You can do this," the person offscreen says.

Bitty throws an entreating look at--or behind--the camera. "Can you come here and do this with me? Maybe it'll feel less stupid if it has a purpose. If I'm talking to somebody, then the point isn't perfect grammar, the point is that you get my meaning."

"That's... what your viewers are for." The offscreen voice has doubts.

Bitty looks charming. "But it'll be even better if you're here when I'm filming."

Cut.

Jack settles down in front of the camera, looking a little ill-at-ease. He turns to Bitty and says, slowly and clearly, "Bonjour."

"Bonjour," Bitty says, as though he still isn't sure he's mastered it.

Jack's gaze doesn't waver from Bitty's face. "Je m'appelle Jack." He holds out a hand.

"Je m'apelle..." Bitty hesitates, his hand in Jack's. "Bitty." They shake.

"Comment ça va?" Jack asks seriously.

"Il va..." Bitty seems to have to think about this. "Bien."

"Bien!" Jack smiles, and Bitty relaxes, smiling back. A connection has been made.

These videos seem to be about so much more than cooking or studying for a class.

Jack is the anchor for the solely Francophone audience, who can follow Bitty through the series' impeccable human-coded captions. (Viewers can choose translation subtitles in French, English, or both.) Jack is uncomfortable in front of the camera the way Bitty is uncomfortable in French; his body language is passive, languid, like someone who's learned to avoid attracting the attention of predators or making other people think he's a threat. His eyes are hooded, face shuttered, and beyond the videos' obvious theme of a language barrier, there's a gap between Jack and Bitty because of all the things Jack chooses not to say.

Like when Bitty dashes hair back from his forehead with a floury hand and demands, "How does a boy from Mun-tree-awl not have any favourite hockey players?" (a fury not wholly unwarranted; Jack had responded to his laborious but ultimately successful French speech about his sport, and a question about what hockey players he likes, with a brief, "Uh, je n'ai pas de joueur préféré") Jack only looks at the camera with a brief amused irony and says in French, "I'm not telling that story to someone who can't even pronounce Montréal."

But slowly the language barrier breaks down, as Bitty gains some comfort in French and Jack slowly thaws. In one video he's separating egg yolks for Bitty and mutters in French, "I don't see why the cooking is necessary."

"What?" Bitty demands, then, "Qu'est-ce que c'est?" Carefully, he amends. "Qu'est-ce que tu dis?"

Jack sighs and relents, making his French very slow and clear and elaborating on his meaning with hand motions. Bitty listens to him, wide-eyed and blinking, until he's very certain he's absorbed what Jack is saying.

Then he dips his pastry brush in milk and flicks it at Jack liberally, like a priest trying to cover an entire crowd with an aspergillium. "Jack! Cooking is the entire point! Le point entire!" and they're both laughing. When Jack apologizes, they finish their tarts.

During the end credits, they've dropped their performance personas and Jack is slowly coaxing Bitty through learning the phrase, "Si je ne peux pas cuisiner, je ne veux pas faire partie de votre révolution"

Not to mention, the vlog goes from being a carrot and stick to coax Bitty through study sessions to a bit of an obsession on both their parts. Jack has stopped charging Bitty for his tutoring services; Bitty is fully engaged, forging ahead in broken French just so he can send Jack a script to look over and correct. Jack gets his own Youtube account just so he can interact in the comment section.

And as for how real some of it was--they didn't fake their relationship, precisely. But the first kiss onscreen was scripted and staged. Not out of an intent to deceive, but because ten minutes after Jack first kissed him into surprised senselessness, Bitty roused himself on one elbow and exclaimed, "Jack! How are we gonna tell the vlog?"

#stuff i wrote #the french vlog au #zimbits #fannish synergy