#while still keeping a samba rhythm

[beevean]

Sonic Superstars

Speed Jungle Act Sonic

#sonic the hedgehog #sonic music #sonic the hedgehog music #sonic superstars #music of the day #i don't know why i liked this one so much in the medley that they had released lol #i guess i was surprised by how dark it sounded #while still keeping a samba rhythm #(nvm that in game it gets frequently interrupted...) #now i'm reminded a bit of silent forest act 2

[kanene-yaaay]

Cuddle Time

Kanene's notes: This was supposed to just be posted tomorrow but I got too excited dfghjhgfgh. I am extremaly weak for any fanfic with cuddles and Guapoduo so I decided to get one of my favorite tropes and add some giggly fluff to it. Hope you like!

Warnings: This is a tickle fic. There's a lot of swearing. But besides that, this is purely fluff with a pinch of angsty thoughts that are barely there before going away. Ler!Roier and Ticklish!Cellbit. Around 2.500 words. My spanish is still something I'm trying to improve so pls forgive any grammar mistakes.

[~*~]

Roier was on his lap. 

This was a common occurrence, nowadays. Still, it made Cellbit’s heartbeat in a samba rhythm before calming down to a song of safety and happiness every time he thought about it. Feelings which only increased as Roier kept idly playing with his hair and massaging his scalp.

Technically, he knew exactly what his husband was doing. He used the same technique every time the detective got too lost in his enigmas, trying to claw and rip his way into the Federation’s secrets so they could have a tiny chance to escape from this island. First he would come to his office (not the one in Order Theoritas, but the old one because he kept forgetting to move the computer to the new building) and call him to go home, one, two, even three times before giving up and following one of the three usual routes: 

1) Going away and doing whatever project he had in mind - usually with Richarlyson, - ending up in their Castle to sleep when he was over.

2) Staying on the coach nearby and sing while going through his albums, both the one with their investigations or the other with their daily lives, pulling Cellbit’s attention from time to time to remember some lost memory while showing him a fun picture of Cellbit’s first day in the island or Foolish shooting Slime in their wedding.

3) Deciding to make this the perfect opportunity to have his own quality cuddle time with his husband. This route usually brought plenty of other options that could consist in: Choosing to drap himself on the other’s shoulders and play with his free hand, talking about any and everything or just keeping the soft silence between them. Or giving him a massage, not without chuckling and throwing pokes of fun in a teasy tune about how the other would absolutely melt with the touch and pretend that he wasn’t fighting to keep his eyes open. 

Sometimes, like this one, he would simply sit on his lap and rest his face on the creek of his neck, smiling half amused and half fondly about how Cellbit wouldn’t even comment or blink when he decided to do that, just open his arms and then keep writing or typing when he was comfortable on the new position.

The brazilian couldn’t actually point with precise exaction when each route was chosen every time, especially since others factors played in this like his husband’s feelings, Forever and Felps coming with Roier to help him to pull him out of the dark places of his mind after a bad day of working for the Federation or when Richarlyson would be around, wanting to spend time with him and Cellbit would be too much of a butter heart to actually deny his son anything under the Sun. 

(He was doing all of this for them after all.)

Even when he thought he had finally come to find a pattern in Roier’s choices, his love would just come with a new route or decision that would totally throw him off the track and oblige him to reorganize all his thoughts. 

But it was okay. He didn’t mind being wrong in this at all. Actually, it was like a domestic, nice puzzle that Cellbit could spend the rest of their lives trying to solve and he just couldn’t wait for when this would be his only worry.

He only was certain on one thing: most of the time Roier preferred to keep the third option for when Cellbit spent too much time on his books and forgot to keep up with simple human things like day and night, sleep schedules and eating. Cellbit was actually grateful that, even so, his husband would still keep trying to quietly convince him to let go of his enigmas with soft touches, some jokes, distracting kisses and complaints until the other finally caved and went home with him than Roier actively coming and physically pulling him out of his chair to rest. 

Even if the idea of being carried in his strong arms, toned with muscles and strength, would sometimes make his brain and face fry, both knew that his investigation was way too important and his mind too set in find a solution for him to try to rest even when papers and books and photos weren’t in front of him. This action would just make both of their frustration grow when his thoughts wouldn’t just shut off and Roier wouldn't get to rest as well.

So, they played this game. 

Roier pretended that each one of his moves were just him enjoying some quality time with his husband and not a plan to lovely break his resolve bit by bit until he went to eat and sleep and Cellbit pretended that he wasn’t, piece by piece, archiving a few good leads to follow on the next days and finishing his thoughts with the ones he already had in hand as yawns crept their way up his throat with each minute of the snuggle.

Right now the mexican was rubbing his back, changing from feeling the goosebumps following his fingertips when they lightly traced the skin to listening to his small (barely even audibles if he wasn’t so close) appreciative hums when he firmly pressed his thumbs in circles on his shoulders, following the path to his neck and going back before re-starting his circle.

(...)

It’s been a couple of hours since Roier first appeared and demanded cuddles - determined to make his husband get out of his office this night after spending the last three days there, - until he finally stopped listening to the typing of his computer. He turned his head from its resting place on the other’s shoulders, watching as Cellbit pinched the bridge of his nose with a tired, frustrated expression on his face.

Trying to know anything about their current prison was a painfully slow and exhausting process. It was no news to watch the shadows under his husband’s eyes get darker and darker as each answer brought other 4 new questions. Sometimes, Cellbit would confess in the sleepless nights, he came out of his investigations feeling much emptier than when he started, sensing his hope starting to give out to desperation.

And how could Roier let him shimmer in those thoughts under his supervision?

He turned around and kissed his chin, hands slowly creeping up to his sides, laying there for comfort and warmth as Cellbit twitched instinctively, sighed and opened a tiny smile at the other, letting his hand fall on Roier’s arm and rubbing circles there, still staring at the computer.

“Terminó? (Did you finish?) Did you already…” he then began typing idly on the back of the chair, pretending to be the detective “....hacked la Federacion?” (the Federation?)

“Uh hm, uh hum.” Cellbit immediately jumped on his silliness, also typing quickly and senselessly on his computer before doing a lower, grave voice full of glitching. “I’m in.”

“Apoco si, pendejo.” (Sure, stupid.)

“É verdade, é verdade. It’s true. I called a boat to come get us all of this, it must be getting close.” 

“Si, si. Ya están en Vergiça, cabrón.” (Yes, yes. They’re already got on Dickland, idiot.)

“Oh, did you find them when you went there?”

“En portugués, Cellbit, en portugués.” (In portuguese, Cellbit, in portuguese.)

The brazilian let out a fond snicker, rolling his eyes, trying but not succeeding to hide how much happy it made him that the other was making a true effort to learn his language just as much as he tried to learn spanish.

“Ok, ok. Você encontrou com eles quando foi pra lá?”

“No, no, no. No pude ir porqué (I couldn’t go because) mi pepee is very small.”

Cellbit couldn’t stop the crackle that was fished from his throat at this, hand lightly hitting his tabletop and coming to hide his eyes, losing their battle of keeping a serious face as the conversation grew more and more foolish and they went deeper and deeper in the joke.

Roier smiled. He missed hearing that freeing sound. Even though Cellbit got much more relaxed and happy around him, it was easier to see that, since Jaiden’s mission in that giant dungeon, he had been much more stressed and on edge. 

That is why he couldn’t help but immediately reflect the joy in his husband’s face as his laughter took turns in being totally quiet or having high pitched sounds. It was adorable.

Also, it gave him a very good idea.

He absently adjusted his hold on the other’s waist, glad that his smirk was hidden due their position.

“Que te ries, cabrón, eh? Que te ries?” (What are you laughing at, huh, idiot? What are you laughing at?)  He threw the bait, already knowing what the other would say.

“Nothing, nothing.” Suddenly a squeal filled the room, which might or not be related with Roier choosing this exact time to rhythmically squeeze his sides, going up and down on the tickle spot quickly and skillfully, counting that the surprise attack and fast scribbling of his fingers would be enough to not allow the other to turn the tables before he could enjoy at least a good amount of Cellbit’s cute laughter. “Guapito!”

“Huh? Que dije, gatinho? No hablo inglés, sorry, sorry.” (Huh? What did you say, gatinho? I don’t speak english, sorry, sorry.)

“Pendejo!” He tried to grab his wrists, but with a swift movement Roier caught one of his hands and intertwined their fingers, pulling his arm up and then having no obstacles to attack his unprotected armpit with all the scratches and pokes that he knew that would make the detective completely lose any trace of coherent thought. 

Cellbit threw his head backwards with a short ‘eee’ sound, silent laughter ringing in the air for a few seconds before he tried to become a ball of protection, squeaks and yelps falling like a waterfall from his lips as his hand went from trying to hide his smile to pushing the tickling away.

“Awww, no mames, wey. Cellbit you’re so ticklish, man. You’re ticklish everywhere.”

As if to prove what he was saying, Roier began spidering his fingers anywhere his fingers could reach, prodding the space between his ribs, scribbling on his sides, squeezing his hips, tracing his neck all while watching the other’s laughter descend in a string of high pitched giggling that made his cheeks burn and eyes gleam in mirth. 

“Literally ticklish everywhere. A ver, a ver: Boom” (Look at this, look at this) 

A poke on his armpit and another squeal shot through the room, more of them following as he kept poking his entire torso randomly, drinking on the gigantic smile on Cellbit’s face. “See? Very, very ticklish. Boom. Boom. Boom.”

“Não, sem cócegas, sem cócegas!” (No, no tickling, no tickling!) His voice was breathless, the words barely understandable with all the giggles.

Roier adjusted himself to a sitting position on his lap, letting go of his arm so both of his hands would be free. Cellbit latched on his wrists but didn’t actually push him away.

“Oh no,” He gasped dramatically, making his voice in a deep tune of despair that he knew sounded ridiculous enough to increase the foolishness of all of this, both of his hands following Cellbit’s torso around when it instinctively tried to squirm away from his hold, digging on any tickle spot available before happily jumping to another, no matter how much the detective tried to wiggle away or cull in protection. “Las cosquillas, Cellbit! Las cosquillas te encontraron, nooo! Ya no puedo salvarlo, és muy tarde.” (The tickles, Cellbit! The tickles found you, nooo! I can no longer save you, it’s too late)

Roier then added a few grunting sounds as he made an entire show of fighting his own hands, throwing himself from one side to another and swearing before finally stopping his attack. He felt a bit silly in doing all that but seeing the blush crept in Cellbit’s neck and how his snickers still danced joyfully in the air for the next few minutes even after he ceased his attack, he felt proud.

The brazilian tried for a third time to open his eyes - black and glinting with a playful mirth and a few unshed tears - and endured exactly two entire seconds of looking at Roier before his chuckling grew anew. Roier couldn’t help but laugh with him.

“Se murió, noo. Estás completamente muerto.” (He died, noo. He is completely dead.)

Cellbit weakly punched his shoulder, his own still bouncing with the leftover laughter.

“Callate, estúpido!” (Shut up, stupid!)

“Eh? Estúpido?” Roier didn’t wait not a single second before clawing on his stomach, sniggering malefically at the surprised crackling that exploded from the other, his hand hitting the tabletop. “Ya está, ya está. Ya no voy más a dejarte ir. Grosseirinho. Gatinho grosseirinho” (Enough, enough. I’m not letting you go, now. Rude. Rude gatinho)

“Desculpa, desculpa.” (I’m sorry, i’m sorry)

“Nah, nah, nah. Con esa boquita me besas?” (Do you kiss me with that mouth?)

With a bolt of strength Cellbit adjusted his hold and pulled the other forward, making him lose his balance and fall on his chest. He lost no time before capturing his lips in a kiss, immediately making Roier’s brain stop and his entire body freeze before melting on his chest, the tickle attack coming to halt, totally forgotten.

They spent a few moments like this before breaking apart. 

“Si, con esa boquita te beso.” (Yes, I kiss you with that mouth.) Cellbit replied, satisfied in taking the other’s teasy grin right out his lips.

Roier, ignoring how hot his cheeks felt, snickered at how proud and playful the other’s smirk was, especially when Cellbit didn’t try even the slightest bit to hide how smug he felt since, even with a rushed plan created while he was laughing his ass off, he knew his husband well enough to know exactly what to do to stop his thoughts and attacks immediately. 

It wasn’t easy to catch the flirty fighter out of guard but it was worth it every single time.

Still, Roier just couldn’t help himself but tease his love just a tiny little bit more.

“Nah, pinche beso sin fueza. (Nah, what a fucking weak kiss) One more, one more.” 

He then lowered his head, pretending to go for another kiss before quickly changing his direction and planting a raspberry on the other’s neck, quickly following it with another and another and a fourth one before losing the battle against his own crackles and resting his forehead on Cellbit’s shoulder, still not believing in the honest to god shriek that came out of the other’s mouth, more laughing quickly following it.

Cellbit sweared at him and lightly pushed his arm, but both just let themselves calm down from the adrenaline and the high in a melody of increasingly quieter giggles.

“How did you say cosquillas in portuguese? Co… consewhat?”

“Nah, nah, nah. I’m not teaching you that.”

“Come on, man!”

Cellbit squeezed his side, making him jump with a yelp and get out of the chair while he was quick to follow, standing on his feet and stretching with a yawn. A worryingly number of cracks followed that action and that made Roier relax, knowing his husband would be too tired to get any revenge now. It was almost 4 am, afterall.

“Outro dia te conto. Vamos, pendejo,” (I will tell you another day. Let’s go, idiot) the detective turned off the computer and held his hand out, giving Roier’s one a tender kiss when he immediately answered the gesture before intertwining their fingers. Roier could feel a bolt of electricity and warmth travel his entire body at that “Let’s go to the castle. I will finish the rest of my work tomorrow.”

Roier kissed his cheek and pulled his warpstone, smiling. “I will follow you, gatinho.”

No matter what or where, he really would.

Cellbit smiled, pulled his own warpstone, starting to disappear in sparkles of purple. “I will wait, guapito.”

And, for forever, that is also true.

They slept relaxed and in peace that night.

[~*~]

Random fun fact: Forever and Felps are the only ones capable of making Cellbit stop working for very different reasons: Forever because he also has a thick skull and can and WILL spend the entire night complaining about the fact that Cellbit isn’t getting out of his office and how HE is already bored for being in his office and even calling Richas and Roier to try to help him. While Felps is because the logic and serious part of his brain automatically shut off everytime his best friend is around and usually they get lost talking about semantics and philosophy and random questions like what can and can not be considered a soup.

#I was today's years old when I discovered that q!Cellbit's eyes are actually black/dark brown like DEFRGYUIOIUHYGT #qsmp tickles #Ticklish!Cellbit #Ler!Roier #yeah when he gets Roier back he will teach him how to say 'cócegas' and asking for him to say it while he is in a mess of laughter #<3 them #qsmp tickling #I could honestly spend hours and hours writing about how I love to read fluffs where they are cuddling and hugging and being soft #and I still wouldn't be done sdrftyuijhj but also I wanted to add a lot of pokes of fun here because they really do be teasing each other- #-all the time #Kanene's fic #Kanene's fanfic #bruh I forgot but I have to update my masterpost augh

[aneenasevla]

Red Velvet - Chapter 2 (part 1)

MasterList / Akane’s profile / Last chapter here Art by @aneenasevla

Chapter 2 - Shake It! (part 1)

"Hey, babe, I found a good place!," Okubo says, while  Tomori gets into the car.

"Great! What's the name?," she asks as she sits next to him, in the passenger seat, and puts on the seat belt. "So I can send her the address."

"Put it on Google: Brazuca’s Bar, in Romaji because you won’t find it in kanji. I've already sent the address to Iron Fingers, privately," he starts the car, heading down the main road. "It's a Brazilian bar that Himuro recommended to me, he said the music is great and so is the food. There's a lot of other stuff there too. I'm kinda curious, I've never listened to Brazilian music much. It's gonna be something new for me, and I think it'll be new for you too."

"Brazilian, huh?," Tomori smiles at this. "Good choice! She has loved these places since high school. She'll feel at home there," She searches for the address on Google. "And it will be fun for us too! Brazilian establishments are very cozy."

"So you've been to one?," he asks, curious. "What is it like? Do you have a song reference so I don't feel lost? Put one on the stereo for us to hear."

"Only once, when I was eighteen and Kane was nineteen. Teenage girls, recently graduated from high school and with more hormones than common sense, you know the drill," She blushes a little, playing with a strand of hair, giggling. "But that wasn't the place you chose, so I'm very curious! Anyway, the music that plays most in these places are very famous genres in Brazil. Pagode and funk. And no, it's not American funk. It's another type," She looks for a song to use as an example.

"Pagode? Isn't it Samba?," he raises an eyebrow. Then he listens to the song when it starts playing. "Hmmm… the rhythm is quite romantic, isn't ir…? Which one is this?"

"Pagode. Music to dance close to, skin to skin," She giggles. "Everything is very physical in these places. I think it's the perfect place for Rihito, and for Akane too. But only if he knows how to behave. But we can both dance too, I'm available for you, hehe."

"I'm a terrible dancer," he blushes a little. "But for you, I can twerk like I'm the master of gigolos, so you can laugh in my face."

She laughs loudly right there, her shoulders shaking. "Laughter is what keeps a relationship alive and well, love! I laugh now, but I'll give you all the treats later to make up for it."

"Anything you want to give me," he smiles, and then laughs softly. "Wow, the music is really putting me in the mood! Show me some Funk, so I know what to wait for."

Tomori's smile is now a little more embarrassed. "Okay... but don't judge...," She chooses a specific one, putting the music on. And the rhythmic and intense beat startles him a little.

"Wow," he blinks. "Okay, I kinda like the beat, ahahahhaha... holy crap...," He starts laughing like an idiot. "I don't even know what this girl is singing but it seems very vulgar..."

"And it is! Akane loves these things, seriously," She laughs again, scratching the back of her head. "It's really fun to dance to, but if you read the translation of the lyrics, you'll blush like a virgin girl, hahaha!"

"Sorry, but now I'm curious to see this friend of yours in flesh and blood, and I think I hit the nail on the head, again. I'm getting scared with my luck..."

"I told you that day, Naoh. Rihito has no idea what he's gotten himself into," She gives a sharp, dangerous smile again. "But seriously, this could work out really well. She has the ideal energy to be on the same wavelength as him. Someone who won't be intimidated."

"I still have doubts, that dumbass only gets along with nut jobs and sex workers, 'cause they're paid to put up with him. So I dunno...," he then looks at her. "Are you in the mood for a bet?"

"A bet? What kind?," She arches an eyebrow, interested.

"What do you want from me?," he waggles his eyebrows.

"An autograph from Kaolan Wongsawat!," She says immediately, her eyes shining with excitement. "I only need his for the trinity of my biggest idols to be complete!"

He makes a face, as if he had sucked on a lemon. Of all the famous fighters he knew, it has to be the Thai God of War… "Okaaaaaay… if I win I want to take you on a tour on Osaka for a month. Give your boss a heads up because you're going with me after Christmas and you won't be back until the middle of February. Got it? Oh... one more thing," he looks at her, in an intimidating but lascivious tone. "You won't be able to walk for a while after that."

"Oh my God, you...!," She blushes a lot, giving a nasal laugh followed by a snore. "You're terrible, Okubo Naoya...!," She holds her face in her hands with an adorable smile. "Now I feel like losing on purpose, ahaha... even though taking a month off from the bakery would make Kanny's life difficult. But okay, I'm in! I'll see what I can do..."

"Alright! And it's gonna be good timming 'cause if he doesn't get this girl he'll cry in my fucking ear for weeks, and I want to be far away when that happens."

"Tell me about it…," She sighs. And then she looks up at him, her expression serious. "And I saw that face you made, y'know? I already told you that you don't need to be jealous of Kaolan Wongsawat, silly. I wouldn't trade my human mountain for anyone..."

"I know, it's just that you're too pretty and he's too…," he stops himself. "Well! I want my girl to only care about me, and to look at me, and only me, with star in her eyes," he looks at her with a smiles. "Just like you're doing now."

She pats his shoulder, and then snuggles her head there, closing her eyes. "I won't call you cocky only because I've caught you looking at me the same way manny times. ‘We’re even."

He laughs a little, before changing gears in the car.

…

Panther: 

honey, I’m already here!

wya?

Wolfie:

we're almost there! 

just one more block away

we'll be in a blue suv

are you at the entrance?

Panther: 

yep

and I'm enjoying the music already

a brazilian bar, eh

you know me so well

hey, I'm gonna get a table for four

it'll be easy to spot me

but just to be sure, I'm wearing my favorite coat, you know which one

Wolfie:

I'd recognize that coat from a mile away lol

ok we'll park and then meet you inside

brings back some memories, right?

both of us, sneaking into that pub to get shitfaced lmao

Panther: 

it sure does lol 

we'll talk more at the bar, it's cold as hell outside

And her icon went offline.

Akane goes inside the bar, looking for a table big enough for four people. She found one on a good spot, sitting down and taking off her coat, letting it fall to her waist. She was never ashamed of showing her tattoos off, but she still adjusted her cleavage to keep her breasts in place. This caught the attention of a waiter, and she ordered a juice. If that Rihito guy was like Tomori told her, she wanted to be sober to face whatever he threw at her.

The atmosphere was already buzzing, despite it still being relatively early. She could only imagine what it would be like later, at nightfall, when the music was at its peak and the alcohol had risen in the blood of all those people. The buzz of random conversations gradually increased in volume, making it difficult to hear her own thoughts, which might be a good thing, all things considered.

It doesn't take long for her to see the waiter further ahead, bringing the juice she ordered, walking a little slowly so as not to bump into the customers.

"There you go, miss..."

"Send the menu, sweetheart," she smiles. "I’ll look at it for now. I don’t even know how much the juice costs, I ended up ordering it on impulse…"

"Of course. And no need to worry about that, miss," The waiter places the menu on to the table and the tray under his arm. "Your juice has already been paid for."

"Huh? Really? By who?," She raises an eyebrow. Was there some busybody who wanted to ruin her date? She gets worried, pushing the juice away lightly so as not to give this annoying stranger any ideas.

"That gentleman over there," The waiter indicates with a discreet nod of the head the long counter facing the bar, where some people were sitting. "He said you know him..."

And she sees him there, sitting on one of the stools with his back to the bar, his arms resting on the counter. He wore a dark green shirt that molded to his muscles in such a way that it could only have been planned. He lifts his head a little and smiles, his expressive green eyes looking at her with obvious, warm interest, a few strands of unruly bleached hair falling over them.

Oh yes, she knew him. From photos, but there was no way to get confused. And apparently he wasn't confused either. She felt relieved that it wasn't some other cocky man and then smiled, taking the glass.

"Thanks, darling," she nods to the waiter and drinks some of the juice, looking directly at him. She knew her look was spot on, so she put it to good use.

No sooner said than done. The interest on his face was so obvious it was funny, a second before he managed to compose himself. He himself was already drinking, picking up a glass and slowly turning it into his mouth without taking his eyes off hers. He almost seemed to be waiting for something...

"Akane!"

The excited scream steals her attention, and as she turns around, she comes across her friend, Tomori, coming towards her with a huge smile, and right behind her, the almost seven-foot gorilla she recognized as her new boyfriend.

"Girl, I missed you! Still the biggest clotheshorse in the whole town, eh!"

"Go big or go home, isn't that what they say, Peahen?," she gets up and hugs her friend, laughing. Then she look at Okubo. "Holy smokes, did they build a freakin' wall in front of me and I didn't see it 'till now? Is that your pet gorilla, Tomori?"

Tomori returns the hug with a loud laugh, before turning around and saying, "In the flesh, honey! Kane, this is Okubo Naoya. Champion of Ultimate Fight and of my heart," She coos playfully. She had always been an helpless romantic, even in her days as a crazy delinquent, and she knew how hilarious her friend found it. "Naoh, this is Agata Akane, the crazy girl I told you about."

"Hey, nice to meet ya," he bows a little, hugging Tomori by the shoulder. "Tomori talks about you a lot. She really likes you, y’know."

"And who doesn’t?," she jokes, laughing afterwards. "Nice to meet you too, Mr. Okubo. So… that blonde bull over there is your friend, right? Is he shy? Why don't you introduce him to me?," she points with one of her well-painted claw-shaped nails.

"Big bull- jeez, has Rihito arrived yet?," Tomori looks where Akane was pointing. And sure enough, there was Lihito, sitting with his back to the bar. He widens his eyes a little before looking away, mumbling to himself for a second before seeming to make up his mind and standing up from the bench. "Yes, it's him! Wasn't he going to arrive just half an hour later?"

"He must've tried to lose us," Okubo murmurs to his girlfriend. "Welp, sucks for him, but we arrived...," he says out loud, pulling a chair for Tomori to sit down, then taking his place, while the other man comes closer. "This is my friend, Rihito…"

Rihito approaches, looking momentarily embarrassed. Apparently, the cute couple ended messing up his plans of wooing her with his mysterious charm... well, at least paying for her juice had worked. And the look of embarrassed annoyance, even though it only lasted a second before being suppressed with a confident smile, had been strangely cute.

"Hey. Is this the lady I've heard so much about, Tomori?"

"Yep! Rihito, this is Agata Akane. Akane, this is Nakata Ichiro, but he prefers to be called by his nom de guerre. It's something you have in common," Tomori smiles, and Rihito a little to the side, his eyes narrowing a little as he smiles crookedly.

"Seems like it. Noms de guerre and the fascination with big cats...," He deliberately lets his eyes roam over her shoulders, focusing for a second longer on her set of tattoos "Nice to meet you, Miss Agata."

"Likewise, Rihito," she smiles sharply, extending a hand to him, as if waiting for a kiss. "I saw you from afar, but up close... it's more interesting this way."

"Yeah, same to you," He takes her hand, and Okubo and Tomori are secretly relieved to see that he had managed to contain himself, not pulling her towards him with that wild excitement that they knew well. He just brought her delicate hand to his lips and kissed it, his eyes fixed on hers. "You were already beautiful in the photos, in person… 'Panther' couldn’t be a more appropriate definition hahaha…"

"My spirit animal, my dear," she winks and then looks at the other two at the table. "So, shall we start with an appetizer to warm up? I started with a glass of juice because I didn't want to get hammered before you guys got here, so I'll stick with that for now. Here's the menu," she sits back down and hands it to them.

"Thanks", Okubo takes the menu. "Oh, nice, this one looks tasty," he points to some cheese cubs. Akane looks at him as she sits down, crossing her legs elegantly. Rihito immediately looks at her. She was wearing a short dress with a side slit… that was open almost all the way down to her hips. No sign of panties there. Or a bra; that red dress and those stockings were the only thing that prevented him from seeing everything. And that thing covering her entire thigh... was that the same tattoo she had on her shoulder?!

He swallows discreetly. Holy shit, how the fuck was he supposed to hold back? None of those two saps prepared him for that! He knew from her Instagram profile that she was the confident, "likes to leave nothing to the imagination" type; he didn't mind at all, he even liked that type of woman, because they were the most likely to accept his advances. But that? Walking around in such a revealing dress and without any sign of underwear, with all the confidence in that hot, tattooed body that she was displaying? She was basically asking him to fuck her right there in the pub's bathroom! He couldn't believe how lucky he was!

He forces himself to keep his thoughts in order and his blood away from the lower half of his body. He had made a promise, and he was a man of his word. He was going to take things calmly, test the waters and tame that wild cat until she was all soft and eager to get busy with him. The juice scheme had only been partially successful thanks to the interference of those two, but that was okay. They still had all night.

"Hehe, of course," He nods, making a point of sitting right next to her, hands together on the table to contain the urge to take a good grip on her exposed thigh. "You can order more of them, if you want. There may be more where that came from, after all...," He arches an eyebrow.

"How generous," she laughs softly. The invisible clothing tactic never failed, he had his eyes on her and only her. It was exactly what she wanted. "But for now the juice is enough... help yourself, an empty bag won't stand, and if you fall, you'll take one or two poor bastards with you," she laughs softly, drinking some more.

Rihito was so taken with her that he even began to notice details in her face: the vibrant red lipstick on her full lips didn't stain the glass, it was so well applied. Even her makeup looked flawless; he had no idea how much she'd applied on her face, but her blue eyes seemed to want to hide shyly, beneath her thick, dark lashes. Her vibrant blonde hair had some well-hidden colored streaks. He had to concentrate on responding to her appropriately and not look down to look at her cleavage, which happened to be very evident in his point of view.

"Haha, lady, I can knock down a lot more bastards than that," He manages to say, forcing himself to keep his eyes fixed on hers; he discovered it wasn't that difficult, because those blue irises were quite impressive. Contact lenses? Or was it natural? It was hard to say, and if it was the second option, he wondered if that meant she was mixed race, like Kanami. "But no need to worry. I can be quite gentle when I get the right encouragement, hehe..."

"A stuffed gorilla, as I said," Tomori jokes with a smirk.

"Oh, c'mon! A gorilla?," He turns to her, his bravado lessening a little, giving way to a slight embarrassed indignation. "You'll make your friend think I'm a Neanderthal or something!"

Tomori laughs a little, shaking her head. "Considering how long it took you to make an Instagram profile, that definition is appropriate."

He snorts, rolling his eyes. And then he smiled, looking sideways at Akane. "I had a nice incentive."

"Hahahahaha…," she laughs softly. "In that case I'm happy I helped you with leaving your cave. It strokes my ego, you know?," She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear, showing the colored lower part; how many colors were there he didn't know, but he counted at least three. "But it'd be good to eat, you'll need energy for what's to come. I heard that the dance floor gets really busy at eleven. What do you think?," She looks at the other two too.

“Lady, I want to stroke much more than just your ego!” He hums in thought.

"In that case, I'll fill the whole tank. We don't want to lose steam for the night... but anyway!," He leans a little towards her, and Tomori and Okubo enter into a brief alert, which passes when he just rests an arm on the table next to hers. "Tomori told me a little about you. You've been friends since high school, right?"

"Yeah! Did she ever told you guys about how we met? It was very intense," she smiles at her friend, leaning a little on the table. Okubo gets a little embarrassed and discreetly looks at the menu, and then turns to call the waiter. Akane laughed a little and turned her body towards Rihito, out of respect for her friend, looking at her with a naughty little smile. "How can I describe it... once upon a time there was a peahen who liked a lion... except that the peahen was a wolf underneath all the feathers. She challenged a panther, who also liked this lion, and they fought. Then they saw that the lion was an asshole, so they got together and put the sucker in his place. They shook hands and have been friends ever since. The end," She waves the fingers of one hand theatrically. "But of course, the wolf went to college and now she makes delicious cakes with her Butch friend..."

Tomori laughs loudly, her shoulders shaking a little. "And on top of that, the butch friend  managed to get herself a 'stone' in the last few months!"

Rihito blinks, confusion written in every line of his face. And there was the stupid face she had seen in the photos Tomori had sent her. "Stone? Like... in 'stoner'? Tokita isn't a pothead, even if he looks like one... Hey, what's so funny?," He blushes a little when the girl laughs even louder, placing a hand over her mouth.. "Okubo, your girlfriend is parroting those bizarre slang words again!"

"Relax, 'stone' is what you call a lesbian's very masculine girlfriend. Or in that case, a bi chick's boyfriend," Akane looks at Tomori. "But, like, for real? I saw a hunk near her in the pics you sent me. It wasn't him? She's dating a girl?"

"No, it’s a real guy. Black hair, kinda stuck up...," Okubo says, now more relieved, as there is no cleavage in his field of vision.

"Oooh... oh honey, that's no 'stone', c'mon now," she makes a face, and then she looks at Okubo. "So you're all friends?"

"Sometimes he is, when Kanny decides to act like the 'man' in the relationship...," Tomori laughs again, while Rihito, still a little confused, responds, "Yes, we are! Okubo and I have known each other for almost five years and have been hanging out together ever since. It was actually thanks to me that these two met, hehe."

"Oh, you?"

"Yep! I was the one who invited him to stop by the bakery the day he met her. He kept bitching, but I convinced him. You're both welcome," He smiles smugly. "And like you girls, we kind of met because of fighting, right, man? We're both fighters. We were lucky to come across two hot-blooded fighters too. There's no better way to form a solid friendship, right?," He laughs at Akane.

"Actually there is, but some take longer," she laughs too. "In our case we had a common enemy, that's what brought us together and we saw that it wasn't worth fighting over him. So, are you a fighter too? Wow, now I'm interested in seeing you in action later, in a controlled environment, of course...," she smiles suggestively.

"Maybe one day...," He arches an eyebrow at her, also smiling suggestively. "Then you'll see that I also have a lot in common with panthers and leopards... I can even give you a quick demonstration, if you want."

"Oh yeah? Let me see," She gets excited and slowly holds his chin in her fingers. "C'mon, gimme a smile, I swear I saw little fangs in there..."

Okubo laughs at the Rihito's surprised face.

Tomori gives an absurdly devilish smile when she sees Rihito shuddering, becoming completely disconcerted for a second, his eyes widening.

“I warned you, you casanova wannabe. Now deal with it.”

Rihito, on the other hand, was trying to remember how to move his tongue to form cohesive sentences. He had been warned to behave more courteously and was trying to follow that to the letter, so the last thing he expected was for her to go the opposite way. Damn, no one had ever told him he had “fangs”… he felt the long, manicured nails brush against his chin, sending a shiver down his spine that reverberated through his muscles and bones, and he could only imagine them scratching on his shoulders and between his shoulder blades as he pounded into her. Wild as a big cat, a dangerous predator... the thought caused a brief lapse in his self-control, making him open a wide, sharp smile, his heart racing in a brief jolt of adrenaline.

"Lady, you can look as much as you want. But be careful, I don't warn you before I bite. Raaawn!," And he closes his teeth very close to her fingers.

Tomori and Okubo exchange tired looks. He had held on for about ten minutes. Must be a new record or something.

Akane, on the other hand, laughs out loud for half a second. "Hahahahhahaha, there you are…," she purs, withdrawing her hand, but smiling immensely. "And I was right, you have little fangs! So cute!"

Okubo looks at Tomori, whispering, "Okay, it wasn't his fault this time..."

"No, it wasn't. I told you she was terrible," Tomori whispers to him in response, arching an eyebrow. "Do you still doubt that they can get along, love?"

"I do, but at least now I'm hopeful," he smiles a little, and then he looks to the side. "Hey, our order's coming!"

The waiter arrives with some snacks and four colorful drinks in the Tropical style, leaving the plates on the table - curiously made of black clay - in front of the two couples - "Here it is! Please enjoy."

They saw a variety of cold cuts, French fries, salami and a small plate of what looked like dried meat accompanied by fried cabbage and a strange yellow sand-like flour. According to tthe waiter, it was called "Farofa”, cassava flour, typical of Brazil. And there were some yellow buns too, which looked warm and freshly made.

"Thanks! Finally, this looks delicious...," Tomori sighs contentedly, straightening up in the chair, while Rihito laughs too, his gaze now showing the hunger he feels more clearly. And not just because of the appetizing food that was placed on the table. He was still going to try to contain himself, he had promised, after all. But damn, it was so good to see that he seemed to have met his match in that woman. He couldn't wait until he was alone with her...

"It arrived just in time, I’m as hungry as a lion. Or a leopard," He smiles again. "And I don't have only fangs, miss. I have claws too."

"Ohhh… really?," she looks at his hands. "I don't see any... do you play the guitar or something?"

"He does, we even have a band. Nothing too serious 'cause our schedules won't allow it, but we had our moments of glory," Okubo adds happily.

"Oh my... tall, strong, green eyes, cute little fangs and now he even plays guitar? What a catch, eh...," she jokes, patting him on the shoulder as she laughs a little coquettishly. "All that's left is you being a good dancer, then I'll be a goner," she takes a salami and bites into it, still looking at him.

Tomori had to rest her forehead on her boyfriend's arm to stop herself from laughing when Rihito's chest ballooned, his face lighting up in an absolutely hilarious smug happiness. If he were a peacock, he would probably have opened his huge tail by now.

This was one of Akane's specialties. Grabbing men by their giant egos and making them dance to the beat of her tune, like trained dogs being led on leashes. Obviously that incorrigible womanizer would not be an exception to that rule.

"Then today is your lucky day, Miss Akane, 'cause I'm a hell of a dances! Hey, can I call you by your first name? It sounds too good not to be pronounced, haha..."

"Call me Sekihyo, it’s my nom de guerre. Then I call you by yours," she smiles more, her eyelashes falling slightly, only making her eyes look even more piercing. "And you are, eh? Then let's hit the floor at midnight. I want you to show me these moves."

Okubo tries not to laugh, and busies himself with the food, offering a bite to Tomori, as a cute gesture.

She accepts immediately, all happy as she bats her eyelashes at him. The next few hours would be a real show in itself, so it was good for them to enjoy it with a little cuteness while they still could.

Rihito doesn't even pay attention to the other couple, completely absorbed in his back-and-forth with Akane. It was the first time in a long time that he felt so encouraged to have a conversation with a woman, instead of rushing things so he could finally take her to the nearest bedroom. He decides he wanted to enjoy it more, seeing how far they could go before the attraction became unsustainable.

She wanted to play, didn't she? Oh, they could definitely play then.

"Haha, alright then. Sekihyo...," He lets the H click on his tongue. "Midnight then. Always that magic hour, right? Until then, I can show you other of my attributes…"

"If you want, I'll show you mine too. I have some," she continues eating the food, taking a sip of the juice; now it was in another glass, more alcoholic, but still not much. "You're being so generous with yours, I think it's only fair I show you too."

"All in good time. Anyway, I was the one who asked to meet you first, right? I think it's fair that I first show you that I'm not wasting your time," He puts a salami in his mouth too, chewing slowly, insinuatingly... and then widens his eyes and says, amazed, "Wow, it's so salty! But it's actually good, you know? I-I mean...," He swallows quickly, a little red, and Tomori once again hides her laughter in Okubo's arm.

“Who knows, maybe she’ll go easier on him after she sees that, deep down, he’s just an idiot with the personality of a golden retriever?”

Akane, however, smiled even more; Tomori felt that she was enjoying this more and more with each minute. Oh boy, he was teasing the monster too much...

"It really is, right?," she eats another salami. "There's a spicy one here too, if you want," she takes a toothpick and offers it to him. "Be careful, Brazilian food tends to be very deceiving. This is one of them."

He swallows again, looking at the snack she offers him. Oh, damn, had they already reached that stage? He was really enjoying how she wasn't making a fuss, exactly as Tomori had described. He smiles sideways.

"And how can I say no to such an offer? And I don't mind. I like a little spice...," He closes his mouth on the snack, his lips close to her fingers, and he had to restrain the perverted impulse to stick his tongue out and lick them. He had already taken enough risks with that playful bite.

And the intense burning came straight to his tongue, after a few bites. She looks straight at him, a mischievous smile on her lips while she herself eats the same snack as if it were nothing.

"So? You like it?," she says as if she wants to laugh, looking at him seductively. Something about it reminded him a lot of a certain twink from a certain bakery, and that gave him goosebumps as much as the spiciness.

The snack went tearing down his throat; he had to hold back to keep from coughing and panting like a thirsty dog. Holy crap, that shit burned! He hadn't imagined it would burn so much! Did- Did she know that? Was that why she were smiling like that?

What a she-devil. Satan's spawn, like the scary twink from the bakery. But that only served to stir him up even more. Oh, he was going to give her a well-deserved retribuition later...

"It's- It's very spicy," ​​He nods, quickly pouring himself some water, trying to ignore how Okubo and Tomori seemed about to burst into laughter. "Strong flavor. Apparently you're quite used to this type of food... do you like a little heat?," He asks, the provocative tone becoming implied.

"I was baptized in Fire, honey," she raises her eyebrows. "I'm not perfect but I'm training to go to Hell, since there's no way I'm going to Heaven anymore," she throws her hair back, revealing the color underneath. He saw blue, purple, pink and red amidst the yellow, falling like silk ribbons on her shoulders, and now the leopard skin tattoo was completely visible.

"... Good girls go to heaven. Bad girls go wherever they want," He was surprised how he managed to say that sentence clearly, considering that his tongue was a bit numb. It was probably that rainbow she had for a hair that made him regain his focus. Or the tattoo on her shoulder, which he was already fantasizing about kissing and biting later. "And they can drag someone with them. Not that said someone would complain."

"I'm almost asking for us to change tables, Naoh. Things are going faster than we expected," Tomori confides quietly to Okubo, with an air of laughter.

"Not yet, babe, this is getting funny as hell. I'm getting all the details for the guys, they'll want to know," He laughs softly and speaks in the same tone. "but, hey... we can hit the floor as a excuse to make ourselves more comfortable, what do you think? And honestly? These songs are putting me in the mood to rock with you, and I'm not even good at that..."

"I think it’s perfect. I want to let Akane do her magic," She laughs softly, placing her hand over his on the table "And don't worry about that. The important thing is to have fun, not to put on a show. We'll make our own show later, at your place or mine..."

"My place, please. My bed can handle it better," He jokes, laughing softly.

Akane noticed them, feeling  if she teased any more it would look awkward.

"Ohh, what time is it now?," she pretends to be surprised and raises her head, looking around, her hand on top of Rihito's, even running her nails a little over his skin. "Guess it's time for us to shake it up a little, right?"

"Yeah, I guess," Rihito looks at the clock on his phone. "It’s almost midnight. Time flew, damn..."

"Get ready, because this place is going to get heated pretty soon," Tomori assures, smiling excitedly. "If you're still not sure, boys, just follow Akane and me, and we'll know what to do. Right? War veterans and such..."

"Hey, I don't need guidance. I know my way around a dance floor like that. And I've always been the type who likes to coordinate...," Rihito smiles insinuatingly, straightening his shoulders and looking even broader and more imposing.

"Oh, so you like twerking too?!," she opens her eyes, pretending to be absurdly excited. "Nice! I wanna see!"

He didn't even have time to justify himself, when the lights suddenly went out and a bunch of neon lights and colored spotlights invaded the room along with the sound of a characteristic siren. A bunch of people suddenly cheered, clapping and howling at the sound, alerting the two fighters. An extremely seductive male announcer's voice speaks with a strong accent:

"Laaaaadies and gentlemen, from now on the most awaited moment of all begins, the Dance Floor is officially opeeeeen..."

Akane howled a little along with the chorus that followed. Several people gathered in the middle of the dance floor, leaving the tables.

"Woohoo! Right in time!," she smiles a lot, getting up and leaving her coat on the table. "Tomori, how about we go first? So we can warm up a little, like we used to do?"

"Girl, that’s exactly what I was thinking!," Tomori throws her arms up with an excited exclamation, exchanging a high-five with Akane afterwards. "We'll be right back, Naoh, Lihito!"

"Wha- you two will go first?," Rihito blinks, surprised, immediately turning to his friend when they leave the table. "Are you cool with this, man?"

"Oh c'mon, don’t you wanna watch it first?," Okubo smiles, suggestively. When the girls were far alway enough, he adds, "Are you gonna waste your chance to look at her the way you've been wanting to since you saw her pics on Instagram? Now you can, and no one's gonna judge you…"

That made Rihito pause. Okay, when he put things like that, the perspective became very interesting…

"Damn, what’s worse is that you're right," He smiles, excited. "But in my case, I’m just in this to have fun. Aren't you worried that someone’s gonna grind against your girl in the middle of the dance floor or something?"

"Nah, not this time. Tomori said the girls always go first, and then the guys join. Hey, look," he pointed with his head, and there were only women in the dance floor. "Man, that's a really nice sight," he said, but he was looking directly at his girlfriend.

Okubo was grateful that Tomori told him beforehand that first only the girls will go for the first song, then the couples would mix.

Rihito immediately follows the direction of his gaze, and finds himself compelled to agree. Damn, apparently they had been incredibly lucky, because there were only hot girls on that dance floor! The thought of seeing them dancing close to each other left him almost on edge... and one of them already had his special attention, her incredibly tanned skin and multicolored hair making her stand out in that ocean of curves, legs and tempting breasts. Without the coat, he could clearly see all her curves, shamelessly displayed in that tight little dress.

"Hell yeah… it’s practically the best buffet in all of Tokyo… and I’m going to try the most exotic dish," He smiles hungrily.

"Heh, there’s an exclusive dish there, don't you fucking forget," Okubo warns, half seriously, half jokingly. "But they are giving us a hell of a gift, so enjoy it. Damn, Tomori," he practically groans, seeing his girlfriend swaying to the rhythm of the music along with her friend. "Fuck, she's such a tease…”

Rihito laughs out loud. "Looks like I'm not the only one getting lucky today, huh! Feast with gusto, pal... because I'm going to do the same..."

He watches the two girls dancing together, his eyes fixed on that scene that seemed like something out of one of his most erotic teenage fantasies. But Okubo could rest assured that he wasn't interested in Tomori, but in her dance partner. And what a partner, may God be fucking blessed... he watched attentively every movement, every sway of those hips, how her breasts swayed lightly under her dress, the sweat already dotting her golden skin like small pearls, or drops of dew that he wanted to catch them with his tongue, following their descent until they were lost in her folds, in her navel, between those wonderful legs...

What he wouldn't give for her to be wiggling like that in a hotel room, just for him, preferably without any clothes on...

The first song ended, which was the signal for the rest of the patrons to join in. Okubo gave his friend an encouraging slap on the shoulder. "Come on, Iron Fingers, let's have a feast!," he smiled very naughty, so much so that Rihito wondered which one of them was the single guy after all.

"Right behind you, Egghead!," He quickly follows him, restraining himself from running like a dog that was called to eat by its owner. He felt completely confident now, sure that he wouldn't be rejected and that now he could go all out. That dance was very physical, insinuating, so the prohibitions imposed by the sugary couple did not apply there. He doubted his illustrious company would want it any other way.

The two girls were laughing with each other, panting and sweating a little, but they didn't look tired. Great. The two men got closer, and Rihito takes advantage of his size to make Akane feel everything when he leans against her, not enough to make her feel cornered, but enough to make his intentions clear. It was a strategy that Okubo and he used frequently, even when they were both single. He found himself really appreciating how smaller than him she was, how delicate she seemed close to his impressive frame. That did a lot of good for his male ego.

"Excuse me... are the two ladies up for a different partner for the next song?"

"Oh? I was wondering how much longer I'd have to wait," Akane smiles, leaning against him and taking his hands with hers, facing away from him. "Let's dance..."

Okubo approaches Tomori and holds her hand, turning her a little before bringing her against his chest. "Hey, did you miss me?"

"Always...," Tomori arches an eyebrow, smiling lasciviously, and damn, who would have thought that such a cute and petite girl could look sensual like that? Rihito now understood well why his friend had fallen head over heels for her. But he doesn't pay too much attention to it, because Akane's hands intertwined with his and her back pressed against his chest demanded all his attention, and he would give it with pleasure.

"Come on... I always thought of panthers as graceful animals, you know, Sekihyo? I want to see if its true," He says quietly in her ear.

"I thought you already knew, handsome," he feels a volume passing between his legs, and he notices that it was her buttocks passing right over that spot as she rolled her hips. "But it only gets better if you show me what you can do…"

She turns and faces him, starting to dance to the rhythm of the music, moving her feet and shoulders, snapping her fingers, looking him up and down, inquisitive and expectant.

... Holy. Fucking. Shit.

To hell with self-control. To hell with promises. She clearly wanted him to be direct and physical with her. The sugary couple could stay there, circling each other slowly as if this were the slowest foreplay in the history of humanity. That gourgeous woman and he weren't really interested in taking it slow. They had already played enough.

She wanted it fast and hard, didn't she? Then that was exactly what he would give her.

She feels that huge hand wrap around her waist with the speed of a snake's pounce, bringing her to him in a single pull. And she sees that Tomori hadn't exaggerated when she said that the blonde gorilla was strong. His hand was like an iron noose. He also had a lot of control over his own strength, because she didn't feel any pain or discomfort. She just found herself unable to escape those fingers.

"I'll show you... you'll see as much as you'll feel."

And he began to move his hips along with hers, rubbing himself against her without any shame. And damn, that unit of a man really know how to twerk!

Akane didn't expect that, panting lightly with his grip. Wow, that was a really nice surprise. Now things were getting really good.

"Wow, so you aren't all bark and no bite?," She smiles a lot, turning around to face him, one hand on his shoulder, placing it close to his neck, the other going on top of his butt, moving her hips along with his, following the rhythm. Her excitement was reaching the stratosphere, may Daddy Satan be blessed… "You'll make me fall harder and literally..."

"Not here on the dance flor, babe," He gasps at her, smiling that predatory smile, and once again showing off those little fangs. The way he was glued to her, leaning down so he could whisper in her ear, made her think he must have been dying to have those canines on her neck, like a male cat would do with a female when he wanted to mate. "Let's just dance for now. We can continue the show later, behind closed doors, if you want."

His hands held her tight around her hips, guiding her movements to coordinate with his. He then makes her turn around, again pressing his broad chest against her back, wanting her to feel all his muscles working in sync as they dance. Rihito was both proud and a little embarrassed of his resourcefulness. Many people considered dancing something only for women and fags... but damn, if he could stay like that with her for longer, he would continue twerking like there's no tomorrow!

And the woman in front of him seemed to fully agree with that, he was sure; even more so when she held his face while she moved, so there was no one calling him anything!

"Holy shit," Okubo commented when he took a look at his friend, seeing if they had the green light to do their thing. "Okay, love, I think we're free to go. Look...," he smiles while looking at the other couple. "From now on it's an adult film session and I want to do my own, not watch others do theirs."

Tomori laughs loudly, taking the opportunity to imitate Akane's movements, just to make the poor man behind her even more excited. "Fine be me! They can sort thing out themselves from now on. Come, I want to dance like this for you in your bed...," She takes his huge right hand, slowly biting the tip of his index finger.

"I swear, woman, you're begging me to carry you outta here," he laughs. "And I really liked it, you know? If it's going to always end like this, I want to come here often," he follows her as eagerly as she does, both of them disappearing into the crowd. "We can send Miss Agata a message saying that we left, so they won't look for us, just in case..."

"Take it from me, Naoh, there’s no need. She's quick-witted enough to figure it out on her own," Tomori guarantees with a chuckle. And then she confides in him, quietly, a little astonished, "But damn, babe, I didn't know Rihito could dance like that! Have you ever seen him make those moves?"

"Yeah, one time when we're playing Just Dance," he laughs. "Everyone ended up knowing about it later. We don't make fun of him only because Himuro ended up winning, the dude is a GoGo Boy to the fuckin' core.

She laughs loudly, pulling him by the hand with excitement. "​​There's something I want to see. But now I just want us dancing, preferably without clothes to get in the way."

"I love you so fuckin' much," He laughs in a very idiotic while leaving the bar with her, like two teenagers going to do something naughty.

Akane, all the while, had seen a glimpse of the couple disappearing. She smiled to herself; her cue was right there. She turned to him, moving a little away to look at him dancing, with the excuse of twirling to show herself, and she was loving what she was seeing too. Under the lights, with his eyes half closed and biting his lip, he became sexy... she approached him and pulled him a little, bringing his lips closer to his, and moving away, just to see if he would follow, trying to complete the distance. And she felt like she had won when he did exactly what she had predicted.

Big, dumb and hot. Exactly the way she liked it.

The current music ended, and she smiled, looking at him. They didn't really need any more games, he was wrapped around her little finger.

"So... let's get going?," She indicates the exit with her head, in case he didn't hear because of the loud music.

"Show me the way," He says in a breath, and yes, she no longer saw any bravado or presumption there. He would probably grab her right then and there if it was socially appropriate. His arm immediately circles her waist, bringing her close, almost possessively, as if he were afraid she would change her mind midway. "I'll follow you wherever you want."

"Come on, I’ll just get my coat, pay my share and we can leave…," she pulls him by the hand, languidly leaving his embrace. "Then we can talk more in private… I know a nice place."

"I can pay if you want, no problem," He says quickly as he follows her. "It’s the bare minimum. I said there could be more where that juice glass came from, didn't I?" He jokes, smiling sideways.

"Alright... just this time, handsome," She smiles sharply. "'Cause this time I really wanto to."

She grabs her coat from the back of her chair, and they prepare to pay the check and leave.

Damn, that could only be the universe recognizing how unfair it had been to him all those years and deciding to make it up to him in one fell swoop! He really wanted to kiss her again, but no, there would be a much better place for it. He could wait a little longer. He had waited all that time after all.

It's then that he receives a text message. Okubo had transferred him some money, saying, 

EggHead: sorry bro, I forgot to pay our tab 

sort this out for us LOL

He rolls his eyes with a laugh. That pervert who was almost as helpless as he was... he was so eager to get home fuck his own girl that he almost turned into a deadbeat. Not that he blamed him. He understood it perfectly. He himself was almost running with the tabs in hand, wanting to end this as quickly as possible so he could go with Akane to a place much more appropriate for what they wanted to do. If he hadn't been determined to preserve a modicum of dignity, he would already be jumping and punching the air like an idiot.

NEXT PART SOON

#kengan omega #kengan ashura #kenganverse #heavybakery #fanfiction #kengan oc #fanart #lihito #rihito #ichiro nakata #nakata ichiro

[sunskate]

Oh, thank goodness Marjo can safely compete. It would have been devastating for them to have waited this long for a Worlds debut and then have to miss a home event. On the subject of the rhythm dance...mashing rhythms together didn't always work back in the days of the short dance. The 2011 Tango/Waltzes were not good and most of the 2013 Polka/Waltzes weren't much better. Not all rhythms go together as well as cha cha/rumba and quickstep/foxtrot because those two pairings literally share the same rhythms but at different speeds! But I thought they were really getting somewhere with the themes at the end of the last quad. Broadway with Finnstep and Street with Midnight Blues allowed for a range of directions and varied music choices while still retaining key point requirements. Sure some of the choices were tacky but it's ice dance, tacky is unavoidable. But there were also many excellent, memorable, diverse, cohesive programs. The pattern matched well with the theme. But jamming a Samba into an 80s theme was never going to work because there's no correlation between the two. They could've just keep going in the same vein as last quad...themes like 'movies' paired with the Golden Waltz (it would allow everything from Fred & Ginger to Mary Poppins to La La Land to Batman to Harry Potter to Sweeney Todd to The Godfather... and that's just off the top of my head, it's hard to find a movie soundtrack that DOESN'T have a waltz), '21st century' with the Ravensburger Waltz (tons of modern pop and soft rock is written in waltz timing), 'folk' or 'national dance of the country you represent' with Yankee Polka would be great fun. That way teams still learn compulsories but audiences wouldn't have to sit through 3 hours of everyone dancing like they're in Vienna in 1889 to the same Blue Danube waltz music. Something authentic like the Kerrs' Scottish dance would be much more likely to go viral today than people trying to pop and lock to Turn Down For What. The obvious answer to the question of how to expand dance outside the narrow range of ballroom/latin seems to me to be...create more compulsories? Hire Scott and Madison and Marie France and Carol Lane and Barbara Fuser-Poli to create jazz/urban/disco/rock/contemporary patterns that could then far more easily be paired with a theme like 80s.

Sorry for the very long rant! It's just frustrating to me that in 2020-2022 they seemed to finally hit on the perfect balance of a RD that combined the more audience friendly aspects of the old original dances with the technical requirements necessary for credibility under IJS while maintaining the foundations of the sport with the pattern, and after cracking the code they're ditching it instead of expanding it. I don't get it.

those seasons, there was still grumbling that the pattern was broken up, including from me lol but you're right, there wasn't a jarring mismatch. there are so many better ideas than dismantling it altogether like they seem intent on doing

[the-one-where-casey-watches-tv]

Frasier episode 3.13 "Moon Dance"

I came to the 90’s sitcom scene for Friends, but I stayed for Frasier. More specifically, I stayed for Dr. Niles Crane. The best episodes of Frasier are the ones that open with Kelsey Grammer casually ducking out to visit Frederick for a few days, not to be seen for the next half hour while Niles quite literally trips over himself for Daphne. I don’t dislike Frasier as a character, but he’s a lot. He’s yelly and condescending and he’s been around for so long that it’s nice to have a breather from him every now and then. And the rest of the Crane clan has no problem holding their own. The sign of a truly well-rounded cast of characters, when Frasier returns to bookend these episodes, I find myself thinking that I can’t believe how much has happened since he left.

             “Moon Dance” is one of these episodes. I’ve seen it more times than I could count, and every time I find myself shocked that it’s only 22 minutes long; it really is an emotional rollercoaster. Frasier deftly ducks out to take Frederick to Williamsburg in the cold open, yet it doesn’t feel at all offbeat to find Niles in his apartment in his absence- in fact, he’s here to bemoan his lack of a social life. Niles and Maris have separated, and he’s become privy to rumors and photos of Maris seeing other men. Martin, honestly an adorably patient dad, suggests Niles put himself out there and have some more self-confidence.

            The next day punctuates Niles’ extremely social circle: he’s already in the living room when Martin, Daphne, and Eddie return from a walk. He’s practically giddy when he asks his dad if he’s free on Saturday.  Martin can barely get out his “yeah, why?” before Niles blurts out “well I’m not, I have a date!”. He’s taking an acquaintance, Marjorie, out to their social club’s annual dance (“rumors persist about her husband’s death, but hey, a date’s a date!”). Considering it’s the catalyst of the entire episode, the subject of dancing comes up incredibly naturally- of course it would never consider to Niles that he might actually have to dance at this dance (“Maris always hated public displays of rhythm”), and of course Daphne would offer to give him some lessons. Everything that happens in this episode makes for great TV and it’s also really just exactly what all of these people would do.

David Hyde Pierce has said that he didn’t expect anyone to like Niles, but he just has that extra ounce of innocence and integrity that earns him my sympathy when Frasier doesn’t. The dancing lessons start out harmlessly, not that Niles could be anything but. At first, he’s not even having that good a time: “this is boring, yet difficult” (the one-liners just keep coming and they’re too good not to highlight). But of course, after a couple drinks he can’t get enough of this quality time with Daphne. While she runs off to get another CD, Marjorie calls, cancelling their date. Martin apologizes to his son but heads off to bed before he can see Niles, tempted by the close contact of the samba, neglect to tell Daphne that he no longer needs the lessons.

The next day Martin is properly confused, then concerned, when Niles has bought several new CDs for that night’s dancing lessons. In a quick aside, Martin tells Niles that he’s “sticking a fork in the toaster” by spending this intimate time with Daphne, which is instantly met with “well my muffin’s stuck!”. But when Daphne is back in earshot, Niles does the right thing and tells her about the cancelled date. Of course, his strength can only hold out for so long when Daphne offers to go to the ball with him herself. There’s no dishonesty in the situation anymore, and besides, she says she would have a great time.

Cue Frasier’s timely return from his visit with Frederick on the night of the dance. He’s his usual unpleasant self, announcing to Martin that he’s still on vacation and doesn’t want to hear a word from his family until tomorrow. The good news: he’s the butt of this joke, as the doorbell rings and Daphne, dressed to the nines, runs to answer it, excitedly declaring that her date has arrived. Of course, it’s Niles and the two head out, arm in arm, with Frasier’s jaw on the floor. Who could explain the situation? Certainly not Martin, who’s been forbidden to speak to him for the night.

At this point in the story, we’ve had some fun with Niles and Daphne, and Frasier has returned to bookend the episode. It could end here, and I’d feel satisfied, but we still have to go to the dance! This is when the silly and whimsical takes a turn for the emotional and poignant. Niles and Daphne arrive at the dance to many an apologetic look and anecdote about who has recently seen Maris where and with which attractive man. But soon, Daphne pulls Niles onto the dance floor and the fruit of their labor is on full display.

They take it one step further by attempting a tango, something they never worked on at home, but which Daphne insists Niles will love- after all, their bodies have to touch the entire time. Caught up in the heat of the moment, Niles declares that he adores Daphne as he twists and spins her around the dance floor, which at this point is all theirs. He claps a hand over his mouth as soon as he says it, but Daphne responds that she adores him too. Shocked but clearly elated, Daphne and Niles finish what has become an award-winning dance, and even share a kiss on the lips before landing in their final pose. This must be it, right? They danced, they shared some powerful words, they kissed, and it all happened so naturally.

Niles is visibly blown away from the electricity of the moment, sitting down and barely even able to get a word out. They talk giddily about how everyone there was watching them, when Daphne revels over the fact that not only is Niles a great dancer, he’s also an impressive actor. The wind is kicked right back out of Niles’ sails as Daphne explains that they were doing a bit, going the extra mile to get Niles his street cred back amongst his peers. Niles lets this sink in, then, physically and emotionally drained by the most loaded tango I’ve ever seen, decides that it’s time to go.

When Daphne makes a quick run to the bathroom, a female acquaintance approaches Niles and gives him her card- in case he ever wants to go dancing again. Niles is very civil with her and is flattered by the offer, but when Daphne returns, he leaves the card on the table with no intention of taking it with him. Yet, as they make for the door, Daphne praises Niles for stepping out of his comfort zone tonight: “and to think you almost didn’t come. It’s a shame when people let fear stop them from trying something new.” Niles is struck by this, and excuses himself to return to their table and put the woman’s business card in his jacket pocket. In a layered closing line, Niles holds his arm out to Daphne; “I’m ready now”.

I think of this episode so fondly, and it is such a sound reminder that sitcoms can have depth, substance, and heart. And it did it all without its title character! Any time I want to think, laugh, and feel, all in 22 minutes, Frasier is my go-to. And I haven’t even gotten to say anything about the queer undertones that impact the entire show without ever being brought to the surface, so I’m sure I’ll be back another time with much more Frasier.  

#frasier #niles crane #niles x daphne #sitcom #tv review #tv criticism

[saucylittlesmile]

The ISU technical requirements for ice dance 2023/2024 have finally dropped, and with it comes some saucy thoughts!

~

First of all... confirmed is 1980's rhythm dance, to no one's surprise. For some, it will only come as a surprise that the 1980's was 40 years ago.

The theme selected for the Rhythm Dances for both Junior and Senior for the season 2023/24 is “Music and Feeling of the Eighties”. Any music is possible provided it was originally released in the decade of the 1980s. The couple should demonstrate through dance the culture and feeling/essence of this decade. The selected music may be remastered.

Music and feeling? I guess that's to help keep the skater's in line - no obscure, ahead-of-their-time, or 'made in the 80's but with a retro vibe' sneaky RD's allowed. And, it needs to have been 'originally released' in the 80's, but may be 'remastered', which to me means, the recording was fixed up to sound better - but does that mean that it can't be a cover that was done at a later time? Guess we'll see.

The Rhythm Dance should NOT be skated in the style of a Free Dance. The couple must use dance movements and dance holds to interpret the chosen music from this decade.

I mean - the dance movements that I'm picturing are not especially ice-dance friendly, aside from those still-present (and personally irking) numerous stops that are allowed. And I can genuinely say I don't know of any particular dance holds that are representative of the 1980's, unless the school dance hold is one of them (and no idea when that originated).

Choreographic Rhythm Sequence Tempo: 100 beats/minute minimum Steps: Silver Samba, steps #9, 9a, 9b to #47 Woman’s steps and / or Man’s steps skated by either the Man or the Woman or a combination of both provided there is continuity of prescribed steps always performed by at least 1 partner (starting on step 9 and concluding on step 47). No restriction in the number of beats per step. Hold(s): in contact, any holds are permitted Pattern: starts on the judges’ left side with step no. #9 of the Woman and #9a and #9b of the Man and finishing with step #47 May cross the long axis without any restriction Separation - 1 separation is permitted for not more than 2 arm lengths and duration not more than 2 measures of music Loop - One (1) permitted Retrogression - One (1) permitted Stop - Not permitted The Choreographic Rhythm Sequence (ChRS) is evaluated as a Choreogrphic Element as one unit.

The choreographic step sequence is gone!!!!! Well, sort of gone. Sort of a mess. They took the steps from the silver samba - more on that in a moment - and then said, you have to do them, but you can do them however you want! Someone needs to do them, the other one doesn't. Pick a tempo, any tempo. Pick a hold, any hold. Pick a way to skate them, any way. Skate in one direction, do a retrogression (but not more than one because that's where they draw the line!).

And then, it's all GOE, baby!

So I can't complain, exactly, because hey, I hated that the choreographic step sequence was useless in every possible way besides entertainment (and as a judged sport, I do want to be entertained but not at the expense of the validity of it as a sport. Technically, we got back the compulsory, which is what I sort of wanted. But it's been so tweaked that it is next to impossible to compare teams, even then. After all, if the skaters can do any combination of the steps (the man's steps, the woman's steps, or any combination as long as all the steps from 9-47 are done, performed by one or the other skater, and they can do a loop and a retrogression or one or neither... well, you get my drift. There is a vague idea of similarity, like they are trying to placate me specifically, while also giving themselves so many loopholes that they almost might as well not have bothered. (I would make a little meme of Madonna's Vogue into Vague, but it was released in 1990 and is not the music nor the feeling of the 1980's, unfortunately.)

And then, the judging is still the same. There are no levels, no particular requirements about edges or turns being correct, no expectation beyond being able to decipher and follow an arbitrary set of rules, and Sell the Samba! to receive your happy face sticker from the judges. Unless they don't like you, and then they pretend you just didn't do it as well.

The Silver Samba. It is a quick tempo, and the steps are almost all quick feet and few demands on edges. It is a short dance - to do the section of steps that is required here, assuming that the team doesn't stretch it out, will take less than 30 seconds. It is not a compulsory that was used very much at a senior level, since it's origin (just three times, from what I can see). Here is Grishuk/Platov performing it; but also, here is a team that is doing this as a dance test, because the camera is stationary and it gives you a better perspective on the dance as a whole (the camera is opposite where the judges would be, so step 9 is starting on the far side of the rink from the camera, in the corner, and step 49 is on the side closest to the camera.)

As another interesting note, this is the only step sequence that is permitting a retrogression this season; every other step sequence specifically prohibits them.

~

On to the FD!

One (1) Set of Synchronized Twizzles At least 2 Twizzles for each partner, with a minimum of 2 steps and up to 4 steps between 1st and 2nd Twizzles. (Each push and/or transfer of weight while on two feet between Twizzles is considered as a step) Partners may be in contact between the 1st and 2nd Twizzles.

Unlike recent seasons, the partners are not required to touch between twizzles, though they are still allowed to do so. I guess the ISU got tired of watching teams reach out and literally place a hand on a boot or arm, and consider the rule fulfilled, lol.

Choreographic elements...

Three (3) Different Choreographic Elements chosen from: Choreographic Lift Choreographic Spinning Movement Choreographic Assisted Jump Movement Choreographic Twizzling Movement Choreographic Sliding Movement Choreographic Character Step Sequence Choreographic Hydroblading Movement

Yes, that's right, Yet Another choreographic element added to the list of possible choices, to allow judges to give egregious marks expand the creativity of the dances, and get points for them specifically instead of being creative just for creativity's sake. Hydroblading, which was popularized in the 1990's by Bourne and Kraatz, has continued to have skaters who make use of it during their programs. But, they will have a fine line to balance, as any hydroblading they do must be careful not to allow any body part to actually touch the ice, or else it will become a choreographic sliding movement, instead.

Choreographic Hydroblading Movement: performed anywhere in the program, during which both partners perform hydroblading movements The following requirements apply:

A low movement with the upper body almost parallel to the ice. The core of the body must be clearly positioned away from the vertical axis. No other part of the body other than the boot of the free leg is allowed to touch the ice. If any other part of the body, (other than the allowable boot/foot drag of the free leg) touches the ice it may be considered a Chorographic Sliding Movement

Hydroblading movement by both partners at the same time for at least 2 seconds. The start and end of the Choreographic Hydroblading Movement does not have to be performed simultaneously.

May be in hold or not touching

Also of note - if the team choses to do a choreographic character step sequence, they must not do it in the same pattern as their required Style B step sequence (circular, midline, diagonal, short axis).

~

The other aside, was that the junior teams, also skating to the 80's, also have an interesting caveat to their pattern dance, the Rocker Foxtrot. The original pattern is only 14 steps, taking up half the rink. The juniors will skate two sequences of this pattern; the first is the traditional pattern, while the second half on the other side of the rink, has the woman dancing the man's steps, and the man dancing the woman's steps! Now, they may have chosen that to add interest, but it feels like a very, very minor way to play with the idea of moving past defining ISU ice dance as 'one man and one woman'. (There is also a note about being allowed to alter the type of hold expected in the dance overall, except for the key points, which I of course find interesting after talking about it so much over the years.)

Two (2) Sections of the Rocker Foxtrot: skated to any dance style with the range of tempo: 26 measures of 4 beats per minute (104 beats per minute) plus or minus 2 beats per minute. The first step of the dance begins on beat one of a musical phrase. 1RF and 2RF: Steps #1-14 Two (2) Sequences of Rocker Foxtrot may be skated in any order, one after the other or separately. Step #1 of 1RF skated at the Judges left side. Step #1-14 of 2RF skated at the Judges right side. 1RF must be skated in accordance with Rule 707, paragraph 2, the Man must skate the Man’s Steps and the Woman must skate the Woman's Steps. 2RF, the Woman skates the Man’s steps and the Man skates the Woman’s steps (switch tracking/sides on Key Points in a recognized hold excluding hand in hand). Variation of Hold is permitted except during the Key Points. Crossing the Long Axis is permitted for Steps #5, #8 – 9. The description, chart and diagram of the Pattern Dance Element Rocker Foxtrot are included in the ISU Handbook Ice Dance 2003.

~

One last video for some definitive 1980's music and feeling (and dancing).

#sorry for the long post #(but not really sorry) #obviously I only picked and chose for the items to focus on #mostly for if they are different from last/recent seasons #didn't touch on things already expected

[pulsdmedia]

The Week Ahead 7/16-7/22

This week is a hot one - both in temperature & happenings!

$65 Ticket To Sips & Spritz: A Cocktail, Wine, & Food Festival

Refreshing ice-cold Spritz - it's the best way to cool off, and Eataly is ready to serve up that and then some at the Sips & Spritz: A Cocktail, Wine, & Food Festival! Divine over the sounds of glasses clinking and live music filling the air as you savor the joys of the spritz will come in many different forms, alongside an ever-flowing foray of stunning wines and drool-inducing eats like Shrimp Cocktail, Panini with Spicy Calabrian Cheese, Pizza Margherita, and dessert, of course! A sensational spectacular is on the horizon, so come hungry, thirsty, and ready to dive into summer, Italian-style...

Chloe Gong Book Talk

Join Strand Book Store for an in-person event with #1 New York Times bestselling author Chloe Gong, for the launch of her adult fantasy debut Immortal Longings. You won't want to miss this intriguing chat!

$59 Rooftop Nights Experience For Two With Food & Drinks

Elsie Rooftop - it's a stylish, sophisticated, and oh so sexy jewel in the sky that showcases sultry revelry, exceptional cuisine, inventive drinks, and jaw-dropping entertainment. Amidst glimmering candles and lush greenery, picture a Moroccan oasis, with scents of Onion, Sun-dried Tomato, & Feta Flatbread drifting through the air, getting you amped for the indulgent fare that is on its way to your table. All the while, talented belly dancers, singers, and the like will blow you away with their alluring acts...

The Present & Future of Jazz Piano

Jazz in July artistic director Bill Charlap is joined by a dynamic virtuoso of modern jazz piano, the sublimely talented Aaron Diehl, and two fast-rising piano stars of the next generation. Hear them all in solo, trio, and two-piano performances, with the masterful rhythm team of bassist Noriko Ueda and drummer Carl Allen.

$29 Open Bar Ticket To The Immersive Copacabana Disco Party

Since it's opening in the 1940's (with mob boss Frank Costello as parter), the Copacabana has through the years evolved and maintained its fabulous staying power. Since it's disco era in the '70s, lifelong Bronx resident and owner John Juliano still keeps the club poppin', even at 93 years old! Toss back a complimentary Ola Tropical Welcome Shot as you enter into this blast from the past. You'll marvel at a midnight “Copa Girls” Samba performance as you drink endlessly and bite into flaky, buttery empanadas. Let's do it!

Ali Sethi, Raja Kumari, & Roshni Samlal

Drawing from ancient traditions, Pakistani musician and author Ali Sethi’s compositions tell stories of exuberance and joy from the margins. GRAMMY-nominated singer, songwriter, and rapper Raja Kumari opens with her fiery lyrics and explosive dance performances, paying homage to her Indian roots. Roshni Samlal, performing a DJ set, bridges communities with her unique poetry and sound collages.

[bysumex]

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+info: https://bysumex.com/rio-de-janeiro-brazil-2023-with-viator/

Jesus Gomez - bysumex

#bysumex #brazil #sefety tips #travel #rio de janeiro #Youtube

[delulu--lulu]

The class 500 students step through an arc of red carnations and strange pink-colored marigolds to a blur of jewel-toned silk outfits and sparkly fairy lights strung in zigzags that look like someone took their time putting them up. 

The hall feels pretty cinematic to Azusa, yet the thought of the awkward tension going on between the Yuni siblings and Ka’eyna makes her turn back and look longingly at the exit. But there’s no escape now. 

The tinkling of her silver-belled jewels signals the not-to-be-missed approach of Xiomara. Her smile is big and her eyes are bright. “Kíimak ‘oolal, 500 kids.” She wears a colorful patterned traje, a nice top to match it, and jewel necklaces and bracelets that glitter and decorate her skin. On top of her head is a giant feather peacock-like headdress with tons of glittery jewels.

“I was so excited about this celebration I almost forgot about you guys even though you gave this idea to me.” Xiomara spies their faces. “Sorry.” She mumbles softly, still smiling. Then she walks away leading the rest of the kids with her. “Anyways, you may sit wherever you like. These parties tend to go on from 9 to 2 in the morning or even longer.” 

She continues to tell them that the whole time will be music playing and dancing and not to be surprised if they go back to their tent and random little kids are sleeping in there. 

Haru goes to sit next to Sachiko who scowls at him. “So are you going to the after-party?” 

Sachiko lifts her chin off her hands for a quick second and glances at him with a glint of curiosity in her eyes. “After-party?”

“It’s in a private area of the beach.” He says. “One of Aapo’s friends put it together. So the younger people can get down on it away from the prying eyes of the adults. It’s a surprise for his girl, Natanya.” 

“Not as if she didn’t have other plans for this party tonight.” The words spill out of Sachiko’s mouth before she can stop them and she turns bright red. 

Haru laughs. “I’m sure they’ll only put in a brief appearance. I can pretty much tell you there’s only one thing on Aapo’s mind and that’s not cutting that cake. I’m mean, you see the way he looks at her.” 

Sachiko’s eyes quickly scan the crowd of people to spot Aapo sitting at a table next to a beautiful girl with short curly hair. Sachiko guesses it’s Natanya. Aapo’s eyes flicker up and down Natanya’s body while she’s talking and he doesn’t seem to be listening. His tail sways back and forth softly.

Sachiko turns back to Haru with wide eyes. “Well.” She starts. “He did say something about wanting to marry her so I wouldn’t be surprised.” But her gaze is taken away to the start of the drums opening a song. And for a split second, she thinks she sees a musical note. 

Sachiko rubs her eyes, they must be playing tricks on her. 

But they aren’t. As more musical instruments join in she sees more musical notes as they all come together in different colors. 

Drums, blue, string instruments, orange, guitar, purple, brass, red, and so forth. Sachiko can’t believe her eyes. She runs right to a dancing Xiomara and grabs her shoulders, startling her. “Can you see it?” She demands.

Xiomara frowns. “What? Can I see what?”

“The notes.” 

“Oh.” Xiomara smiles. “You really are one of us.” That’s all she says and doesn’t seem to give Sachiko any more answers. She grabs her arms. “Come. Dance with me.” Sachiko follows the water princesses’ movements of hip shaking and leg motion but fails to keep up. 

Xiomara notices this and winces. “Um, maybe just try to feel the music and dance to whatever your body feels with the music.” Then she sambas away.

Jai spies his sister looking lost in her musical rhythm in the corner of the dance floor. He chuckles at her idiotic ness but then feels a twinge of guilt. He stares at her, his eyes squinting a little closer to see the four-fingered handprint right on her chest, peeking out of her shirt collar. 

“What are you looking at?” Vasilisa, who’s sitting next to him, asks with a slight frown. It’s been almost a week since Jai snapped at Sachiko and they both won’t speak or even share a glance at each other. This is the first time Jai’s looked at her. 

“Her mating mark,” Jai grumbles. “She really did do it.” He sinks into his seat with a deep frown, picking bits and pieces of his bread.

“Why do you care?” Vasilisa makes a face at him. “Ka’eyna isn’t your promised one anymore. She’s free to get with anyone she wants. And Sachiko isn’t a little girl anymore, you don’t own her. You never had and you never will.” Jai stares up at his sister with squinting eyes and his frown is lighter than before. 

She’s right. Even though he’ll never admit it, Jai still wishes Sachiko was this baby that he’d take care of and protect but she isn’t. Sadly for him, not long after Jai’s upcoming adulthood is hers.

“Sorry.” Jai mumbles. 

Vasilisa raises her eyebrows. “Don’t apologize to me. Who do you think you should be apologizing to?” Her gaze leads Jai over to their unrhythmic sister on the dance floor. He sighs, standing up. “Now go distract her. Mama would be ashamed if she saw her dancing like this.”

Jai slowly makes his way past the dancing water people with a few grim smiles in an apology for bumping into people. Sachiko spots him from a mile away and turns the other beginning to dance with a bit more rhythm. 

Jai dances beside her to make it look more natural and inconspicuous than standing and talking to her in the middle of the dance floor. “Can we talk?”

“No.” Sachiko fakes a smile and Jai does the same. 

“Why not?”

“Oh, I don’t know. I didn’t think you wanted to talk to the person that brought shame to this family.” She sticks her tongue out at him. 

“What I said was a mistake.”

“No. What you mean is 17 years ago Mama gave birth to a mistake.” 

Now that one hurts him. His eyebrows crease in a slight frown and his lips tighten with a downing look. Sachiko notices this. 

“Sorry.” She says and stops dancing. “I was mad.” 

“It’s okay. I’m sorry for how I treated you. That day was a bit much for me already and finding out that you and Ka’eyna… you know, unleashed the storm.” Jai explains and Sachiko nods in an understatement. “I just have one thing to say.”

“What?”

“Vasilisa doesn’t have a reason to call you ‘virgin’ anymore.” 

Jai turns back to face his sister and what he doesn’t realize is her fist of Sachiko coming barreling towards him and ultimately knocking him out.

#original story #original character #culture #im going insane #this is one of my favorites #Spotify

[bricktonki]

Rhythm thief

#Rhythm thief download#

If you're knocking some of them for being too simple because their only control input is tapping and stroking the touch screen, then I would like to ask whether you enjoy any other rhythm titles on DS or 3DS, because that's pretty much how they all play. I'm a stone's throw away from reaching the end of Rhythm Thief, and with the exception of the ones with clunky motion control, I have found all the rhythm games to be both well-executed and fun to play. With the lavish presentation, the intriguing story, and the assortment of collectibles, it is so disheartening to see gameplay that ranges from "kind of okay" to "pretty broken." And though I recommend that everyone experiences Rhythm Thief & the Emperor's Treasure, the whole package is disappointing and not worth rushing out to get. While I had a good experience with Rhythm Thief, it is not a fantastic game. Even if the gameplay doesn't necessarily inspire replay value, the urge to replay for bonus chapters and a complete collection of stuff is clearly prevalent.

#Rhythm thief download#

There are also songs and movies to collect, StreetPassing to accomplish, an incentive for clearing every song with a high grade, and a competent multiplayer component featuring both local and download play. Two major side quests task you with finding paper scraps and sound clips throughout the game, and collecting all of either unlocks a bonus chapter that further fleshes out a relationship in the game. Outside of the story, there are tons of collectibles. The music is good, but it’s not memorable. With so much diversity and excellence, I was especially surprised that I could barely remember any of the specific songs after I turned the game off. Even at its best, the games in Rhythm Thief don't feel fun enough to warrant replay, and likely won't even be the parts you remember when all is said and done.ĭespite this, the music throughout is outstanding, featuring hip-hop, folk, classical, upbeat jazz, and more. This is only assisted by a horribly broken grading system, where slipping up for a moment can immediately bring you from a perfect score to a near-fail. The fun and polished ones are overly simplified affairs of tapping the touch screen to a beat, while an equal number of games (specifically the gyro-controlled ones) feel so clunky that I was actually upset when the game required them to progress the story. This in itself isn't problematic, as the game still has a ton of diversity, but it's apparent that, in coming up with so much variety, almost none of the games feel fully developed. Rhythm Thief features 50 rhythm games, ranging from "swipe the touch screen in a direction to do an action to the rhythm" to "press buttons to take out enemies." Of course, the game features plenty of diversity, like a one-off Samba De Amigo inspired game and a very competent sword-fighting affair, but the games still generally fall into those two camps. With that said, the gameplay is not nearly as refined as the presentation. There are also some non-rhythm puzzles to keep the story sections fresh, and they are really cool (despite a total lack of difficulty). Furthermore, Raphael progresses across Paris using in an almost-identical static screen format as Professor Layton, all the way down to "tap everything to find secrets" trope. Like the Layton series, anime cut scenes are frequently used to push the story forward, and likewise, the animation is stunning. The story and presentation are both absolutely excellent, complete with great pacing despite a short length of six hours. As the story develops, Raphael meets a mysterious girl Marie, faces off against the local police force, and tries to stop a man who claims to be the resurrected Napoleon Bonaparte. The story follows Raphael, an adolescent who steals objects of rarity as the mysterious Phantom R with his dog Fondue. Rhythm Thief is a Sega published-and-developed rhythm game that takes place in a relatively modern Paris, France. Unfortunately, only two of those assertions proved to be correct. For a while now, Rhythm Thief & the Emperor's Treasure has been seen as the 3DS answer to Elite Beat Agents, with quirky settings, fantastic style, and great gameplay.

#Rhythm thief

[jumukus]

A3! Translation: Muku Sakisaka’s SSR [Mankai Glitter] - To Virgo: Muku

translation under the cut.

Muku: For this part, you've gotta do it like this…

...And done! I've finished making the cat doll!

Omi: Oh, it's come out pretty well. You've improved quite a lot on making a felt doll, Muku.

Muku: It's all thanks to your teaching, Omi-san. Besides, I'm still far from good…

But I want to be as good as you and Yuki-kun.

Omi: Hey, you're fine, all right? But hmm, so you want to become better at this, huh…

That's right. I know a handicraft cafe that can help you improve your skills in a relaxed way. Are you interested?

Muku: A handicraft cafe, you say!? That sounds really fun!

Omi: Why don't you invite all the Summer Troupe guys to go with you? You can make matching things there, after all.

Muku: Together with my Summer Troupe mates… Now that you mention it…

Since my birthday is fast approaching, they told me to think of a place that I want to go with them all.

I've decided where to go now! Thank you, Omi-san.

Omi: Haha, glad to hear that. Have fun there.

Muku: Yup!

I need to think of a wish after that…

Omi: A wish?

Muku: The one that we asked to the "Hello, Celestial Sphere."

Omi: Sorry, but… what's "Hello, Celestial Sphere"?

Muku: It's one of the troupe's urban legends that Kazu-kun and Misumi-san found in the warehouse.

If you wish for something to your constellation during your birthday month, it's said that your wish will come true for a day.

Omi: Heh, I didn't know there's such a thing.

Muku: I heard the old members used this as one of their party goods, so we decided to use that during our birthday parties as well.

It's sort of become the Summer Troupe's tradition to use this thing.

...Did Banri-san not tell you, though? I assumed all troupe leaders know about this…

Omi: Nope, he didn't tell me anything. But well, I feel like he's gonna tell us when the time comes.

Hello, Celestial Sphere, huh… I hope you can come up with something good.

Muku: Yup!

***

Muku: Thank you for clearing your schedules for today, guys.

Kazunari: No biggie~! We're gonna celebrate our beloved Mukkun's birthday, after all!

Kumon: Let's celebrate your birthday splendidly!

Izumi: Is it really okay for me to tag along, though?

Muku: Totally! Rather, I'm happy that you come along with us, Director-san.

Yuki: So where do you wanna go?

Muku: You'll know once we arrive there. Let's go!

Tenma: Handicraft cafe, huh?

Yuki: The interior is cute.

Kumon: Wow! We can make things like dolls and the likes here, right!?

Misumi: Sounds fun~!

Izumi: Ah, I've come here with Omi-kun before…!

Muku: Oh, really? To tell you the truth, Omi-san was the one who told me about this place.

I heard you can both improve your skill and have fun here, so I want to come here with the rest of Summer Troupe.

Kazunari: Since this is a cafe, they should have cakes and teas here.

Tenma: Yeah, let's order something before we do the handicraft. Here, the menu.

Misumi: Yup! We're here to celebrate Muku's birthday after all~!

Kumon: IKR!

Muku: You guys… Thanks!

***

Kazunari: Our orders are all here, rite? With that said…

Mukkun, happy birthday!

Summer Troupe: Happy birthday!!

Muku: Thanks! Ehehe. This made me happy…

I love acting with you all, hanging out with you all, and spending time together like this.

Thank you for everything. Let's stay good friends.

Misumi: I love spending time with you too~!

Kazunari: Same! I really, really, really love it!

Tenma: Let's keep doing our best together.

Izumi: (The Summer Troupe members sure are close with each other, huh. Muku-kun also looks really happy.)

***

Kazunari: Alrighty! Now that we've enjoyed the tasty cakes, it's time to make the felted dolls!

Yuki: Do you have any things you wanna make?

Muku: I want to make matching items with you all.

Misumi: Whoa, I like that idea~!

Kazunari: Ah! How about we make a rival for William!? We'd have six in total then!

Kumon: That means we'll make them battle over William's girlfriend Mari?

Muku: What!? But both of them already have a happy ending during the puppet show the other day. Making a rival would be kinda…

But love comes with many challenges…

Six powerful and charming rivals are appearing before William… However, later on, they all will become the best of friends.

Tenma: You're gonna make the story be more complicated at this rate, y'know.

Izumi: Fufu. I think it's a great story, though.

Yuki: Well, putting the rivals aside, it'd be nice to make something with the same size.

Kumon: Yup! Okay, let's go ahead and make it~!

Misumi: Yup~!

Waiter: Here are the kits that we have prepared. Please choose what you like. For those who have gotten used to this, naturally, you are allowed to make some arrangements.

Tenma: Which one should I choose?

Kazunari: Prick this one, and then…

Muku: I think it goes like this...

Kumon: This is so hard!

Misumi: What should I do, after this, Yuki~?

Yuki: This one goes like this. Then, for this part…

Izumi: (Despite struggling at some parts, they all look like they're having fun.)

***

Misumi: It's done!

Tenma: Alright, me too.

Kazunari: Good job! With that, now it's all done!

Izumi: Whoa, they're all cute! You guys went with different animals, huh.

Kumon: It was hard yet so fun~!

Muku: Right? I had a lot of fun too.

Yuki: Since they're all from the series, it's become a matching set. Isn't that great?

Kazunari: It's very cwute! If you line them up like this, we can see our own personalities in them!

Muku: Fufu, you're right.

OPTION 1: Your rabbit is adorable, Muku-kun.

Izumi: Your rabbit is adorable, Muku-kun. You're really good at this, huh.

Muku: You think so? Ehehe… Thank you.

Yuki: Yeah, I also think you did great. You paid attention to the details.

Misumi: The rabbit looks like Muku somehow~. It's fluffy and smiling so gently.

Kumon: I think so too!

Tenma: It does look like Muku.

Kazunari: Down to your healing vibes too!

Izumi: You're right.

Muku: R-Really? This kinda makes me shy, but… I'm happy.

OPTION 2: I tried making this, you see.

Izumi: I tried making this, you see.

Muku: Ah, a cake! Whoa, it's so cute…!

Izumi: I found this sweet series among the kits, so I decided to choose this. It's perfect for Muku-kun's birthday.

Kazunari: Oh, yeah! Hey, let's line up our animals together and put Director-chan's cake in the middle~.

Muku: Whoa…!

Misumi: It looks like the animals are celebrating Muku's birthday too~!

Kazunari: IKR!? It's very cwute~! I've gotta take a snap and post it on the blog! Captured!

Muku: So happy~. I'll print this picture and put it in the room.

Kazunari: Sounds great! Let's write some birthday wishes too after this, guys! I'll send the photo to y'all!

***

Kazunari: Once we're home, let's take a photo of them with William!

But hey, you see, I've actually come up with this idea when making these dolls. Say, don't you think having all 24 of us William's rivals is interesting!?

Kumon: A 24-way relationship!?

Izumi: If we include William, then 25…?

Tenma: That's too many!

Muku: Whoa…! I think I've read a shoujo manga with that kind of story before!

Yuki: 24-way relationship?

Muku: Yup! The boys are competing for one girl's heart!

Each of the boys have different personalities, and the one who is chosen by the heroine is beyond our expectations…!

Misumi: Is that so~?

Muku: I'm sure it'll be great if our company members reenact that manga and become the heroes…

Yuki: Well, there are also some of us who don't look like the type to date, though.

Kumon: Ah! Speaking of, Muku, have you decided on your wish to the Celestial Sphere?

Muku: Celestial Sphere…

That's it! I've decided on my wish!

Yuki: I feel like I know what it is.

Misumi: What is your wish~?

Muku: Umm…

Tenma: You've brought the Celestial Sphere, huh.

Kazunari: Oooh! Kumon also did this before. That's our cousins for ya!

Izumi: Feel free to say your wish, Muku-kun.

Muku: Yeah!

Hello, Lord Virgo…

I want our company members to reenact "Honey Concerto in Love!"

Muku: Nnggh….

(Hm…? I feel like someone is staring at me…)

Kazunari: Good morning, Mukumi. Seeing your face first thing in the morning is truly the happiest moment in my life.

Even your sleeping face is really cute today☆

Muku: ...Ka-Kazu-kun?

Kazunari: What is it? By the way, you look so cute even when spacing out… haaah, your beauty is truly a sin, Mukumi.

Muku: (Mukumi? Is he talking about me…?)

(While I do wish to have everyone reenact my favorite shoujo manga, I don't mean it like this…)

Kazunari: Come on, it's time for breakfast. Let's go, my sweet roommate☆

Muku: Y-Yeah.

***

Muku: Morning.

Yuki: Morning, Mukumi. Did you sleep well?

Misumi: Goodness. Do you have to be that cute from early in the morning, honey?

Tenma: Well now, let's begin our "Morning Appeal Time" to Mukumi.

Muku: Appeal Time!?

Misumi: I'm going first, then.

Take this, my triangle present for today. I also include my love for you.

Muku: Thank, Thank you…

Kazunari: You like this better, right, Mukumi?

This bittersweetness of citrus… reminds me of our heart-thumping meeting in that certain country.

Muku: U-Uh… I met Kazu-kun during the Summer Troupe audition, though.

Yuki: Mukumi, I saw you in my dream last night. To think that you even visited my dream…

You sure can't stand being alone, huh. You really are adorable, my angel.

Kumon: Nice weather today, huh….During summer like this, the sun is shining as bright as you.

You make my heart heat up so much I feel like it's burning… you know?

Tenma: A day like this makes me want to go to a private beach with you. Say, baby, let's have a samba dance as we match our passionate rhythm with each other.

Muku: (Whoaaa, I knew it! I'm the heroine!)

(Now that I think about it again, there's a scene like this in the manga…)

Tenma: Alright, now that the Appeal Time is over, let's have breakfast. Sit beside me, Mukumi.

Muku: Huh? Oh, okay--.

Banri: Hey, watta minute.

Juza: You're the one who should wait.

Muku: Ba, Banri-san…!? Even Juchan…!

Banri: Mukumi will sit beside me, of course. Right, Mukumi?

Juza: The heck? Since when did we ever decide on that, bastard? Come sit next to me, Mukumi.

Muku: Whoa, whoa, whoa…

Banri: Tch… Look, bastard, you made Mukumi troubled. Guess it's faster to just ask the person in question right away.

Juza: Yeah. Mukumi, who do you choose? ***

Muku: Huh!? Ummm…!

I-I'm sorry!!

Banri and Juza: Mukumi!

Muku: (I should have made my wish pretty clear and asked the Celestial Sphere to turn Director-san into the heroine...)

***

Muku: ...Ah!!

Huh…?

It, It was… a dream….

(That dream felt very real, though. It was a little bit different from what I hoped for, but the Celestial Sphere still made my wish come true…)

Kazunari: Mukkun?

Muku: Ka-Kazu-kun…

Kazunari: Morning! What's wrong, though? Jumping out of bed like that.

Muku: (Thank goodness. It's the usual Kazu-kun…)

It's nothing. Morning, Kazu-kun.

#a3! #a3! translation #summer troupe #autumn troupe #tenma sumeragi #yuki rurikawa #muku sakisaka #kumon hyodo #kazunari miyoshi #misumi ikaruga #juza hyodo #banri settsu

[modmamono]

Why Space Channel 5 is one of SEGA’s best dumbest games ever, no questions asked. (Report 1 & 1/2.)

Space Channel 5 on the Dreamcast is one of my favorite things ever, let alone favorite video games. Though I more often watch it on YouTube then actually play it.

For those not in the know, Space Channel 5 is a game series developed by United Game Artists and published by parent company SEGA. And that’s the most Wikipedia quoting I’m gonna do in this gush piece.

There aren’t many games quite like this rhythmic, Simon says game. At least in style because this game has that in spades, the gameplay anyone can do. And I am not at all qualified to explain its style because I wouldn’t how to describe it as besides maybe very 70s?

Point is there’s something charming about this game, and I think SEGA agrees with me on that. The lead character, Ulala (seen above), appear in these games to name a few years after new Space Channel 5 games stopped being made after 2002:

2004: Sega Superstars

2006: Sonic Riders

2008: Sega Superstars Tennis and Samba de Amigo

2010: Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing 

2012: Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed and Project X Zone

2015: Project X Zone 2

And not to mention the invading aliens have been skins of the titular Puyo Puyo in that series for a while I can’t determine. Possibly since at most 2007 up until current day with Puyo Puyo Champions in 2018/2019.

ALSO not to mention the VR game that came out recently! (How could I forget that? That’s the main reason I’m doing this.)

So it is clear SEGA loves this game and it’s sequel a lot. I don’t think their most beloved cult classic NiGHTS: Into Dreams gets that much love from the company though it certainly does get a lot itself, most games wish their parents still loved them that much long after they had a game. Anyway...

Now the part where I actually talk about the game.

I wanna say, first and foremost. This is not a review of the game. This is just gushing about why this game makes me happy.

And everything I’m gushing about is just what you get from the from one playthrough of the game. Save for one exception, I will not be talking about supplementary material, nor Space Channel 5′s lore.

And yes, this colorful dancing/rhythm/simon says game has lore. Basically any non-repeated character model has their own biograph. So I will not go into that.

You’re not missing too much, there are interesting tidbits, sometimes they fill you in on background details of the story.

Speaking of the story. I’ll start in a second. But if this is new to you, you can watch it here first (The first playthrough is only half the video):

Prologue:

We start off with a bunch of alien sitting on a space couch watching space TV. These aliens are known as the Morolians and they’ll be the main antagonists for the evening.

This cutscene has no dialogue, so this is all open to interpretation for a first time viewer. Though I do enjoy this split second foreshadowing:

And that’s when the title screen appears. Blasting you with the series’ main theme Mexican Flyer. Look it up if you must. You’ll be hearing it a lot, it’s the game and Ulala’s leitmotif.

Report 1: This is terrorism attack on an airport... I’m gonna ignore that.

This is the only piece of supplemental material I’ll talk about, as it’s present in the game itself, but not elaborated on, and it is important to two of the character.

The game starts in a flashback. In the year AD 2489 a spaceship exploded. Everybody on board died safe for a little girl.

She was rescued by a man working for Space Channel 5. A news organization that with a specific focus on dancing. That last bit is nothing special though, as everything in this galaxy revolves around dancing.

After the little girl is saved by this kindly Channel 5 Gent (Age 25) she knew what she wanted to be after she grew up. She wanted to be a sexy dancing reporter for Space Channel 5 just like him (presumably). And to meet him so she can thank him in person.

10 years later......

It is AD 2499! And the Morolians attack a space airport and their ray beams hypnotize people to dance silly.

THE HORROR!

And that’s when Space Channel 5 sends in Ulala to report on the progress.

But what they’re actually doing is for Ulala to solve the problem instead of the Space authorities.

One character I do wanna mention now is that Ulala’s producer, Fuse, is an unseen character yet is important later. He’s the one briefing Ulala in the screenshot above. And oversees Ulala’s every move.

Also Ulala never got to meet her rescuer. He either left shortly after Ulala got rescued, or shortly before Ulala joined. Given what we learn later, likely the former.

Anyway onto the show:

BAM!

BAM!!

BAM!!!

I will always love that. Ulala got down on the ground in the panicking space air port to coolly report on the panic.

As quick aside, I wanna mention that Ulala doesn’t run in this game, she slowly struts and all of her struts are simply majestic. And those amazing struts lead her to the first gameplay section of this game.

Some Morolians hold a few hypnotized people hostage. This is is a dance battle. Meaning you got repeat exactly what the aliens do in the exact rhythm they did it in order to save the hostages. And I love this gameplay. It’s simple yet fun (provided you got minimal lag, you should look into that if you wanna play this game).

The controls are:

Up: Up

Down: Down

Left: Left

Right: Right/Light

Button 1: Chu (Aliens)

Button 2: Chu (Humans)

And this is how normal people settle things in this world apparently:

Party 1 (usually the Aliens) make up a tough but fair pattern for Ulala to copy in the hopes of psyching her out.

Party 2 (Ulala & Co.) gets as many chances ad she got. And the better she does more people tune into her news report. If she wins she gets what she wants. Saving the hostage and getting Party 1 out of her hair.

Every single one lives by this code of honor and I honestly have no clue if there’s an in-universe reason. But I love it regardless. I love it when people say: Up Down Chu Chu Chu. And the Ulala repeating it.

Though frankly, I don’t like it when the Morolians issue the commands. I like it when others do the exact same commands in this same game, so it’s a little bit of a bummer the Morolians do it.

Anyways. You save the hostages and they join in on Ulala’s unstoppable strut as will always happen if you rescue people. And they strut to the second gameplay type: The Shoot-out.

The controls are the same as the above but now you gotta watch out for humans in the mix.

In general these are trickier. And I might go into that later. But they do work on the same rules.

Don’t worry I won’t go over every dance or shoot-out unless there’s something special about it.

Also I’m pretty sure you kill people if you push the wrong Chu. Don’t do that, it’s bad for the ratings!

Skipping over three battles.Something new happens, rival space news station: Space(?) Channel 42 has a reporter of their own out on the field. And that reporter is planning to steal Channel 5′s viewership. And this is HER!

You do a dance battle and she dies.

Though seriously, I like this game does this. It’s not only aliens you fight, but other factions of the Space News Media. And it’s always a nice shake up when someone besides her shows up.

You see, for the most part any reoccurring enemy has recognizable mannerisms you gotta batlle, and her is no different. It’s hard to describe for me. You kinda gotta play or watch the game for yourself to see what I mean, but I think it’s best exemplified in Report 2. And the following games.

Though one thing’s for sure, each non-normal Morolians or rival reported does bring their own genre switch with them. Heck sometimes even normal battles have unique genres. I’m am not musically inclined so I wouldn’t know hers or most others. 

Any way, before she dies she give an emotional speech and gracefully suggests to take her Channel 42 guitarist with her and Ulala accepts that’s the least she could do for a lousy reporter like her.

And then it’s boss time!

Yeah, actual bosses with actual boss characters. And not like the recently deceased as shown above. She’s practically for all intents and purposes another Morolian dance battle.

And it’s down to funky jazz music, not unlike what you’d see in Sonic Adventure! Even Ulala comments on it, confirming it’s dietetic  Where does it come from? Not sure, there might be an explanation somewhere. But do keep that in mind. That the music we hear is also the music the characters hear as well.

Anyways:

Not Pictured: Super Stretchy Arms.

I think it’s a bit of a misnomer. Invader is correct, that’s what it’s here for. But is it really a robot? It moves like an organics and is a bit rubbery. This basically goes for all Morolian robots.

I can suspend my disbelief. You shouldn’t nitpick too much about Space Channel 5, it doesn’t want you to think too hard about it’s world even if there’s a lot to it. I’d be concerned if Space Channel 5 did wanna put its story and world building first and foremost.

But “Hypnotized Robot Invader”?

What?

Spoiler.

Robots and hypnotism... I’m pretty sure a sign that we made perfect human-like Artificial Intelligence if they can fall susceptible to Hypnosis. Even then I doubt it.

Sorry, that’s always bothered me, I get what they mean by it. It’s just the word choice... Did they mean Hypnotizing Robot Invader? This boss is great.

It starts off with a normal dance battle, but you get to watch a new Morolian enemy’s moves. It’s also quicker on the draw along with a few softballs to throw your timing off. Pretty good stuff.

And that applies to the next phase as well, where the the shooting starts.

I don’t have much to say.

Unlike the robot’s final phase where it’s the first phase again, but with guns and the robot goes to berserking speeds with the input commands.

And after you beat it, it joins you in a strut.

As does everyone you saved, No matter the gender, nor age, nobody is embarrassed imitating Ulala no matter what she does. We’ll be half as lucky to get a cool future as cool as 2499.

And with that the first report is over.

Report 2: (Age 35)

At the Morolian HQ (Presumably), their boss doesn’t like failure.

But like a good boss he doesn’t dwell on failure and moves on to the next plan. One of his lackeys has this plan: Another boss battle dance robot who operates on:

The everyone at the table is impressed. So I guess Ulala is screwed, game over.

This level is more of the same as the last one more or less, it’s possibly the most boring level in the series in that regard. It’s not bad, this is just the game bulding enough a status quo before they change things up in Report 3.

But that doesn’t make this level any less interesting to talk about, so I won’t go over it much.

The short story until something new happens is: Space Ship (think of it as a fancy yacht but in space) is being attack by Morolians, Ulala is send to report on it, and being the professional she is saves hostages as well.

She saves the captain, crew members, stewardesses, waitresses, the Space Diva (OH NO! NOT THE SPACE DIVA!), passages and the like.

UNTIL!

He voice says “I’m gonna steal you show, Space Channel 5”. And you see this ship flying by:

Another rival reporter, this one a pirate broadcasting station.

Side note: That’s sounds like the most important kind of pirate ever. Alternative news/non-mainstream with no money/rating motive blinding everything with journalistic integrity? Yes, by all means. If they’re pirates then so are Secular Talk & The Humanist Report.

Back to the silly dance game. The Pirates either jam or hack Channel 5′s signal and the Ulala is stuck with them for a while.

And then we meet that where we meet the gent above.

“[His] name is:“

“JAGUAAAAARRRR!!!” “JAGUAAAAARRRR!!!“

(Age 35)

LET’S DANCE!

Dude, I love Jaguar (Age 35) he’s gotta be my second favorite character in the series on account he’s just cool and incapable of embarrassment.

Remember the deceased of the last report? The Channel 42 reporter in the blue dress? He’s her counterpart for this chapter.

But whereas the deceased’s gimmick sounded air headed for a lack of a better term. Maybe, girly? Point is, battling her didn’t feel too dissimilar to battling Morolians despite her rhytmic mannerisms.

Jaguar (Age 35)’s gimmick is that he just adds. He starts with a simple Up. And then he adds a Chu, and another Chu. Eventually it becomes a really long chain of commands, it has to be some of the longest in the series. And you have to do them all from start to finish because he does them all sequentially. Can you repeat?:

Up. Chu. ChuChu. Right. Left. Down. DownDown. Down. Chu. Chu. Chu.

He is easing you into it, but it is by no means an easy fight. Because after the chain is at its longest, he just spamming ChuChuChu in quick succession. And then a simple Chu.

After defeat Jaguar & Co, escape by jet-pack, saying they will meet later.

This battle is a highlight for me. Coco Tapioco and the big bosses to come are better if you ask me (with exceptions). But Jaguar (Age 35) is some of the best the normal gameplay goes.

And you could argue what normal means in the context of Space Channel 5. But effectively, like Channel 42′s deceased, functionally he might as well be another Morolian if he wasn’t there to be set up for later. Because you do get person that just joins your Strut Club like everywhere else.

You gain his Jazz Man and you get a great sax solo as a reward beating him. Like how you got Channel 42′s guitarist for beating them. I like the think the Jazz Man can work for Jaguar (Age 35) again while the Channel 42 Guitarist is blacklisted.

And before we move on from Jaguar (Age 35) check out his Chu pose:

BOSS TIME!

Jaguar (Age 35): The alien mothership is retreating. Don’t you have to follow them, Channel 5? Fuse: Blast you, Jaguar [Age 35].

With the pirates giving chase, Ulala is left with the cowardly alien robot to elegant music.

Ignoring the robot’s title, while silly, its cowardice is its greatest asset. For it has kidnapped some space schoolkids, making their space teacher worry. Their space teacher can actually be seen at the start of the report.

Space fashion, am I right?

I’ve exceeded Tumblr’s invisible limit of what to put in a blog post. I’ll have to rewrite this boss what I have to say for this boss. So full, can’t spell check! We’ll be back!

#space channel 5 #sc5 #ulala #dreamcast #chu #gushing #jaguar #fuse #pudding #coco tapioca #morolina #morolians

[bubblyani]

A Pleasant Reversal Pt. 2

(Nikolai x Reader)

Part 2 of Nikolai One Two Shot (The Song of Sway Lake)

Rating: Mature (18+) it’s Nikolai..c’mon 🔥

Author’s Note: Bless the Anon who wondered if there would a continuation for this supposed ‘One Shot’. It was such a great discovery that this story had potential for a part 2. And I must say I enjoyed writing this immensely, increasing my love for this Russian Sex God. Enjoy y’all! *wink*

Part 1 HERE

Bliss was what you felt, while the softest touch of your fingers caressed your skin on the crook of your elbow, drawing small triangles out of the blue for no reason, as you relished the comfort of your bed.

After a much needed cold shower, you lay sprawled in bed, the towel still wrapped around your body. And randomly ,  you could not help but recall the not-so random incident that occurred that fine morning.

The incident that made you bury your face shyly into the mattress, giggling to yourself, biting your lower lip as your thighs pressed together tightly. The incident that felt so incredibly unreal, of how won you a date with Nikolai, the handsome Russian. The Sexy naked man, who certainly lived up to your expectations. Just the thought of it made you giggle even more.

But enough wasting time! You had chores to do, and a date to prepare for.

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7 o’ clock 7 o’ clock....just you and me.

You kept your composure as you walked along the pavement. You weren’t late, you were sure of it. Still you couldn’t help but wonder, were you walking towards a possible embarrassment? What if he never shows up? What if you  end up drinking alone?

But the sight of the Nikolai’s towering figure in the distance suddenly eased your mind, allowing you to sigh in relief. The tall and very handsome Russian stood outside the bar, grinning from ear to ear the moment his eyes found you walking towards him. Dressed in beige trousers and a bright blue shirt, he certainly looked good with clothes on as he looked good without any.

And you did not hesitate to look your best as well. Black Downtown Cami paired with denim shorts, sandals and a ponytail, definitely brought out the sun kissed tone in your skin even during the night time.

“Hey” you said, giving a small wave with a warm and excited smile. “Hey...” Nikolai greeted back, smiling with a slight nod.

Surprisingly nervous, you didn’t know how to proceed with your greeting. Yet A sense of familiarity was mixed with an unfamiliarity at the same time. Admittedly, the physical nature of your relationship didn’t exactly begin in the way anyone ever expected. For there you both were, passionate and physical in the manner of lustful lovers this early morning. But tonight, you both acted as if this was your first ever date. And technically, it actually was.

As far as “First Impressions” went that night, Nikolai was indeed a gentleman. Opening the door, ordering the drinks, you felt pampered. “Y/N, I bet you have never tried vodka with a Russian eh? Here...” You chuckled as Nikolai placed the shot glass in front of you. Funny how it felt so different from the first time you ever laid eyes on each other at the bar. And you were grateful that there were no misunderstandings this time. “Oh my...” you began, taking the glass “Now I’m so interested to get to know you, I think I might die of curiosity” you chuckled. “Shhh...” You were suddenly silenced by Nikolai’s index finger resting on your lips. “Don’t die just yet” he said softly. You swore you could feel your lips burn by his mere touch, instantly taking you back to the moment those lips indulged his own. A part of you was ready on all fours, ready to straddle this man before you, ready to kiss him and ensure your means of living. But your self control had the upper hand tonight.

“Wow...I forget how impressive your English is” you replied, attempting to hide your flush, eyes never leaving his own as you emptied your glass.   “Well...America has been kind to me” the young man said, “So...you live here then?” “I used to...” you said, “now I’m only here for the summer, helping out my folks” “Oh...they have business here?” “Hehe...i guess being the owners of the oldest grocery store here can be called a business” you smiled, as the bartender surprised you both with two plates of appetizing savory treats.

“On the house” the older man said with a smile, moving over to the other customers. Nikolai looked at you with bewilderment. “Like I said...the oldest grocery shop. We practically know everyone here” you said shyly, offering him food. “What about you guys?...you’re on holiday...or? ” you asked. “Oh...I’m here with Ollie on a ...” he paused, “...special mission...” “Really? So special you can’t tell anyone? No...” you chuckled, “...don’t worry...you don’t have to tell me...” “No I wish I could..but..it won’t be good to Ollie...” “No i understand...loyalty is important” “You know Y/N...when I first came here...I didn’t realize what an amazing life Ollie’s grandparents actually had” Nikolai said, his hands moving about with purpose as he spoke “looking at their photos...just...” Your eyes couldn’t help but shine bright by those words. “I’ve always felt the same about the Sways...” you spoke out, “I have nothing but great memories with them” you were happy to find a kindred spirit in Nikolai, someone who agreed.

“By the way... “ you began, “I really appreciated how you stood up for the Lake House this morning ...you know...against Jake” you said, “Maybe I’ve just been spending too much time with the Sways but... I wish Jake and the others could just...leave the Lake alone...ya know?” “No you’re right ...they should...” he said with a tone of assurance, “I keep telling Ollie: “Ollie! You should protect your property ...like a man!””   You nodded, surprisingly enchanted by his enthusiastic response and his passionate expression. You were oddly comforted, you couldn’t help but chuckle out of the blue. “What?” “Just...” you paused, sighing with a warm smile, “You are quite the fascinating character” “Really? You think so?” The young man leaned forward with interest. “Yes I do...” you said, leaning towards him “and I also I have a feeling you’re so fascinating...that all the girls know it...” you said, proceeding to whisper, “and so do you” “Ahhh well...” You felt chills upon hearing him reply back in a whisper too. “Heheheh you don’t have to be so humble about it” you said. “My ...fascination wont matter at all if I don’t have the right girl...” “Hmmm...then I hope you find her” “What if I already did?” You parted your lips in surprise as he replied, looking at you with a confident smile. “Aha!” You snapped your fingers in defense, “See? Classic line...right there! You are so smooth...Cheers” Clinking the glasses, you really had a hard time suppressing your innermost desire with Nikolai. Yet you somehow found comfort conversing with him, which was surprisingly enjoyable.

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“I will never enough of this view...ever” You said, looking at the starry sky with much longing. After a much entertaining evening of drinks, food and conversation, a relaxing ride on the ‘Adirondack Guide-boat’, as Nikolai specifically mentioned, seemed like the perfect idea.

Nikolai smiled, whilst rowing effortlessly through the Sway Lake, under the veil of the moonlight. “Mrs. Sway used to tell me, how she and her husband would swim in the lake ...naked, when they were young” you said, with a mischievous smile, “It must have been so exciting ....and brrr so cold” “You’ve never done that before?” Nikolai asked nonchalantly. “No ...absolutely not” “Why not?” “I...I don’t know...hehe”you laughed nervously, “Oh look!” So the chatter was indeed true, Jake really did organize a small party in the little island. “Oi! Ollie!!! “ you were suddenly startled by Nikolai’s loud voice, which echoed through reaching Ollie’s ears,who happened to be at the party, chatting up     with Isadora. The four of you greeted each other with waves. With youthful energy brimming with most of the young crowd gathered together, the party can be described as fun. “Do you want to join them?” Nikolai asked, although you could tell he did not sound excited. Heather and her posse did not hesitate to throw you dirty looks instantly from the crowd. “Nah!” You shook your head, “...not interested” And you didn’t regret it, the moment his beautiful eyes flashed and his face lit up with his signature smile.

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Given your shared enthusiasm with the Sways and the Sway Lake itself, Nikolai suggested to end the date at the Lake House. And you didn’t object one bit.

“Ahh...I just love this place”  you breathed, the moment you entered the living room, “I remember Mrs. Sway would play some of her old records to me...good times” you said, admiring the space around you. “Then we shall listen to some music” Walking over to the record player with confidence, Nikolai bent down to pull out some cases. Being the guest, you cherished the freedom as you walked around looking at the old framed photographs. “Ollie...he recommended some good ones...you want to listen?” He asked. You nodded enthusiastically, “I would love that...” you said, watching the tall figure of Nikolai bend down to carefully place the record to play.

The atmosphere felt lively by the sounds of a samba tune that started playing. Walking over rhythmically, you felt bubbly and vivacious by the wonderful music that flowed in to your ears. “Oh wow...this is good ” you said, unable to stop smiling as you stared at the record player. It didn’t take you long to realize how Nikolai watched you with such interest. The moment you turned to him, the clever young man spun around, offering you his hand. “Shall we?” Holding his hand to dance was no different to when you held it to climb out of the boat. For you felt warmth in equal measure. Your attempts on Latin dancing was not perfect but commendable, but at least you had the feeling of rhythm, and you did not shy away from swaying your hips. Gleeful laughter filled the air, at least until he finally pulled you close to him, allowing your hands to rest on his shoulders while his rested on your waist. Being this close, being touched this way, you couldn’t help but remind yourself of this morning. His touch suddenly felt like fire, lighting your haystack of frustration so fast you felt you were almost losing balance. “Oh!” And you finally did. Fortunately Nikolai’s strong arms held on to you, helping you stand up.

“Are you okay?” He asked.

Panting softly, you heard your thoughts out loud the moment the song ended.

“Yes...” you panted, “more than okay”

He smiled, panting alongside you.

Those green eyes shone bright, you wished they were stars. Then You suddenly wondered why his face was that close to you. “I...” you began, “I feel so hot” and that was the truth, your body could not take it any longer. “Oh Nikolai-“

To hell with all control, you kissed him. Pulling away instantly, you made sure it was short.

But Nikolai’s pleased and proud look signaled your move was not in vain, as he hurriedly kissed you back.

And all you wished for,  at that very moment was time. Which was purely uninterrupted and uninhibited.

Impatient kisses from Nikolai greeted your jawline, then your bare neck. You felt his impatience even more the moment he lifted your ponytail up just so he could sprinkle his soft lips on every inch of bare skin that was available. Moaning softly, You wondered if he was as hungry as you were, for you had a hard time bottling yours up. Your hand reached down, stroking his manhood over his pants, gleeful the moment you felt an erection grow, making him wince by your constant caress. Greedy, you proceeded to dip your hand inside, craving for better access. But you were too late as he distracted you with his lips once again.

Nikolai’s kisses contained the same enthusiasm and passion that was infused in his words. His kisses made you feel wanted, they were more intoxicating than vodka.

You found yourself backing him towards the sofa, finally pushing Nikolai down to sit. Pulling you by the hand, you remained standing in front of him. His hands held on to the ends of your cami, pulling it up to your surprise, slowly revealing your stomach. It clenched with shyness as his captivating eyes focused on it, as if he just discovered lost treasure. “Y/N...” he began, “Your body...it’s so beautiful” A gasp escaped your lips the moment his kisses resumed. But on your stomach instead. You held on to his refined curls in his head as he continued to savor your exposed stomach, kissing every inch ranging from your exposed rib cage to your hip bones. The heat between your thighs grew as his tongue suddenly inserted itself in your bellybutton, forcing your grip on his hair to tighten.

Groaning in frustration, you dove down, hands on his belt hoping to unbuckle it.

“No no wait...” Nikolai’s voice was soft yet certain. “But...” you began, as you knelt before him, “I want to make you...feel good too” You paused, becoming the center of attention once Nikolai held you by the head, surprising you by removing your hairband. You felt relaxed as his fingers went through your hair, allowing it to fall on the sides of your face. “Y/N...” he said, now holding your hand, pulling you up to his lap as he spoke. “You... being with me...tonight...that makes me feel good...my darling”

You were tempted to clutch your chest. My darling. Young men these days rarely used that. But he did.

“Oh...You’re such an old soul Nikolai...” you said, as you straddled him “...just like me...” your toned laced with sheer warmth and adoration.

“Which is why...I’m sure you know how...” you said, “ to push...” you continued, brushing your nose against his,”my...buttons” suddenly your tone progressing into a lustful one, inciting a sound of satisfaction from him. And it grew louder as you relished taking the time to pull your cami off your head, revealing your black strapless bra.

You two may be old souls, but that did not stop the fun.   You heard him growl, as he leaned forward, hungrily holding you by the waist whilst he kissed your collarbone, moving down to the exposed cleavage.

Impatiently, he looked at you, while his hands traveled towards, hoping to help you with much needed removing.

Stopping him, you bit your lip with a naughty grin, gingerly unhooking the piece of lingerie off your torso.

“You know...I’ve been thinking...” you said as you threw the bra away, inciting a deep breath of satisfaction from Nikolai, with view he indulged.

“You look really really good in blue...” you purred, to which he purred back, inching closer. Quickly holding his face, “But then I wondered ...” you said playfully, “How would that look on me?..” “Oh ...” he chuckled, “So... you like my shirt yes?” He asked in a deeper tone.

“Hmmm...” you hummed, brushing your lips against his, “да” Yes

Nikolai’s eyes grew wide with surprise as he heard your reply. Suddenly he was more distracted, as you kissed his jawline, slowly unbuttoning his shirt at the same time. Kissing along his neck, the low moans that exited his lips fueled you, making you place longer and more enthusiastic kisses, forcing him to lean back on the sofa.

His responses of pleasure continued to please you, as you proceeded to shower kisses along his collarbone and his chest. Undoing the last button, you pulled the shirt off of him, stretching yourself against him, that your nipples hardened as they brushed against his toned chest, affecting both of you in different ways.

“Finally ...” you whispered in his ear, “It’s mine now” quickly getting off his lap as he recovered.

This felt torturous for Nikolai, as he was forced to watch you stretch your body whilst putting on his shirt in front of you, dressing up instead of dressing down.

Also, the way you moaned softly by the soft cotton material of his shirt brushing against your bare chest, certainly made his lips part in pleasure. You on the other hand, close to insanity as you imagined his musk, his sweat against you.

Motivated to tease him further, you buttoned it back up, much to his disapproval.

“Y/N...Y/N” he clicked his tongue with frustration.

“Well...what do you think?” You spun around, “Do you like it?”

“I do...” he replied, with lips that needed licking, “It’s like ...I’m wrapped around your ...beautiful...body” he said, leaning forward, his eyes growing more lustful.

You pouted, “Mmmm...it’s quite big though...” as the shirt almost covered your buttocks, “guess I don’t even need my shorts” Turning your back to him, you couldn’t believe the adventurous side of you that had sprung out as you unbuckled your shorts, pulling them down while bending over. A victorious sense came over you when you heard Nikolai shudder loudly, exclaiming in Russian. “Ah...” you said, as you turned towards him, “...much bet-“ Super frustrated, you were suddenly hushed with Nikolai’s passionate lips. And he certainly was not merciful.

“Stop driving me crazy Y/N!” He breathed between kisses, hands slithering around your waist.

If you were ever needed to be distracted, then Nikolai’s kisses were truly essential. Pulling you closer, his tongue begged permission to meet yours, and you didn’t waste a second to approve, opening up deepening it to the point you feel your legs might turn into jello. Moaning in to the kiss, you felt his hands grab on to your buttocks.

“Jump” he breathed into your lips, bending down as you complied, wrapping your legs around his waist. Once you were secure, he guided you over to the dinner table, which was thankfully empty. Kisses continued with much intensity, you wished the both of you morphed into one.

“This shirt ...” Nikolai said, as he sat you on the edge of the table, “...it looks good on you ...But...right now...” he said, “I prefer it...off” he purred, whilst slowly unbuttoning it, and there you were, watching him, breathing heavily.

Your heaving chest waited impatiently, as it was revealed to him finally.

Holding on to the table and to your dear life, you threw your head back and kept your balance, moaning as he resumed his quest from this morning, his hungry lips suckling on one hardened bud, while his fingers rolled and pulled the other, later switching it around. He certainly seemed to enjoy it. And so did you.

The tease was certainly over. At least for Nikolai.

Those moans of yours grew shamelessly loud as you felt surprising light strokes between your thighs through the thin material of your panties.

For it seemed that his other hand was certainly crossed and bored, and had  decided to take action.

Flushed faces with swollen lips began staring at each other, the moment his hand realized how damp you were down there.

Now the teasing was definitely over, for the both of you.

Peeling those wet panties off you seemed like a piece of cake for Nikolai as he watched you proceed to unbuckle and unzip his pants with much enthusiasm and focus.

Finally undressed together, your eyes shone by the light of his own as this Russian god of a man entered you with ease.

“Did you miss this?” He asked, softly as he began to move inside you. “Yes...” you whispered, in sweet recollection of this morning, of the first time

“Did you miss ...me?” He asked, as he began increasing speed.

“Yes...yes” you panted, unable to fathom the doses of pleasure injected in you, which increased more and more.

“Ahhh YES!”

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The peaceful expression of sleeping Nikolai was as soft as the skies at dawn, and as sweet as the birds that sang outside.

Curled up together, the passionate night of ravishing ended up at the carpet, exhausting the both of you to sleep right afterwards. And of course you woke up to find yourself facing the man you had no regrets with.

With your fingers caressing his skin on the crook of his elbow, You hoped Nikolai was in bliss as you drew small triangles out of the blue, but with much reason.

Your imagination mindlessly wandered everywhere. It wandered to an imaginary instance where Nikolai would tirelessly clean the race boat, fixing it while you watch him, admiring his strength. It wandered to an instance where the both of you would spend countless hours talking, sharing stories with vigor, either with your elbows on the table or with your naked bodies wrapped around each other, after a passionate session of love making. And  Oh, the love making. Anywhere , everywhere, anytime, every time.

You didn’t hesitate to imagine it either.   Whatever this will be, you wanted to be ready. You wanted to look forward to it.

Your thoughts suddenly vanished the moment you heard Nikolai wake up. Eyes opening slowly, he hummed deeply yet sleepily, tempting you to lean over, to nibble on his ear. “Mmmm....You’re up?” He said. “Uh huh...” you replied with a smile, turning to lie on your stomach while he lay on his back. “Спасибо” You said, softly with absolute sincerity. Thank you He couldn’t be more surprised. “Did you just...Thank me in Russian ?” He asked with pure curiosity. “Hehehe...” you chuckled shyly, “Sorry ...that’s all the Russian I know” “Well...I like it very much “ “Really?” You giggled, “My pronunciation might be a bit o-“ You loved being interrupted by his kisses, for he just did. Hovering over, your body was reborn as his hands roamed all over, his lips joining them later on.

This certainly was the best way to wake up, you thought. Suddenly your eyes were reunited with Nikolai’s eager ones. “Y/N...I know what we should do...”

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“Come on Y/N...don’t back down now...” “I don’t know ...I’m having second thoughts” “No! I won’t accept it...never surrender!”

Taking a deep breath, you gingerly took a step outside, the morning chill suddenly enveloping you to your dismay. But as you saw Nikolai hold out his hand to you, surrendering was the last thing you hoped to do.

Being the first time that you have ever walked outside naked, you wondered if you were dreaming, for your never imagined yourself gracing through the woods without a single stitch of clothing on you. And never had undergone such a daring feat. Until today.

But with Nikolai alongside  you, it all felt so exciting. And the fact his hand never left yours, reassured you were not alone here.

You felt your heart jump as he began to run, pulling you along with him. The two of you ran, the two of you pranced, till the dock was in your sights.

You took in a deep breath as you finally jumped into the lake together followed by joyful screams.

If the young Sways could do it back then, then what stopped the two of you?

Heads finally popping out the water,  you felt your senses reawaken by the chill of the morning water.

“Now I can understand why it’s a habit for you...” you laughed, for this was certainly exciting.

“Y/N...” Nikolai said, pulling you over, allowing you to wrap your legs around his waist as he floated.

“You may have convinced me to stay here a bit longer”

Suddenly, you didn’t feel the chill, for his words warmed your heart enough to warm your body. Suddenly, you wished time would stop, for you longed for this summer to be endless.

“Well...” you said softly, “I hope you won’t regret it” His grip tightened on you, as his lips brushed against yours. “Never...”

Nikolai said with confidence, sealing your lips with his, pampering you with intoxication in the break of day, over at the Sway Lake.

———————————————————————

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[delta-roseblr]

Hello, wonderful writer! I just had an idea for a prompt. When my head hurts and the medicine does not work for me, it sometimes relaxes me and helps me to sleep that someone I trust massage my head and touch my hair. Well, I imagine Dean and Felix in this situation. What do you think?

Hello, Lovely!

I hope you enjoy this little fic!

Dean had really worked himself up forvisiting Felix’s mom and sister in Vermont since the moment he was invited. Itwas insanely nice for Felix’s mom to invite him after only meeting him once,but Dean had really wanted to say no just because he was so nervous. At thatpoint, Dean was pretty sure that Leonard was never going to like him, but therewas still hope with Shelia. It was just a lot of pressure.

He hadn’t said no. How could he turn downa week with Felix under the same roof? But it wasn’t just time with Felix, itwas a chance to see parts of Felix’s past that Felix wasn’t usually big ontalking about. Dean really couldn’t pass that up.

It was only his second day, but thus farthings had been going really well. Felix’s mom lived in the suburbs outside ofBurlington in an area that was more populated then Dean was used to inTennessee, but the area was still pretty nice. Felix’s old house was also huge…Okay,huge was maybe a bit of an exaggeration, but it was still larger than what Deanwas used to with three floors, four bedrooms, and a pool.

Felix’s mom, Shelia, had been verywelcoming from the moment Dean had arrived. Being around her for an extendedperiod of time did give Dean a glimpse at some of the things Felix had beencomplaining about since his mom had found out about his sexuality. She wasprobably trying to be supportive, Dean guessed, but she was overdoing it by amile. It wasn’t like Aunt Naomi didn’t overdo it a little too, but it feltdifferent with Shelia. There was something about a lot of what she did thatfelt forced and unauthentic. Dean didn’t take that personally, but he couldunderstand why it annoyed Felix as much as it did.

She wasn’t supportive enough to let Deanand Felix share a room or even hang out in Felix’s room together with the doorcompletely closed. Dean wasn’t really surprised by that although it did havehim really jealous of Will and Nico. Aunt Naomi had given up on keeping apartwhen Nico came to visit almost immediately. They had no idea how lucky theywere for that.

Then there was Felix’s younger sister, Alley.Dean was sort of in love with her in the ‘I want to adopt her as my own sister’kind of way. She was sweet and funny and more than a little like Felix exceptmaybe a little more tactful. She was also great because she was completelyhabituated to the fact that Dean and Felix were a couple, so she acted likeeverything was just run of the mill.

The only awkward bit came with Shelia’slive-in boyfriend, Chad. It wasn’t that he was weird about Dean and Felix beinga couple or anything like that. It was more like the guy being around wasawkward. He was nice enough even if he was a little hippy-dippy. He was in hismid-twenties, which made him closer in age to Dean and Felix then he was toShelia. That wasn’t really Dean’s problem, but he got why Felix hated that.What made it awkward for Dean was just how hard the guy was trying to get Felixto like him. At one point, Chad asked Felix if he wanted to join him on a run,which if he knew Felix at all he would have known that was ridiculous to ask.It was all sort of painful to watch.

Even with a few awkward moments sprinkledhere and there it was a nice trip thus far. Of course, as he sat on the couchwhile Felix played video games next to him that day was quickly becoming his favorite.With Felix’s mom at work and his sister at dance class, they had the housemostly to themselves except for Chad who was doing yoga or meditating in hisbasement studio. It was probably the first time since Dean had gotten toVermont that they had a moment to themselves. Maybe they weren’t using theiralone time very well considering Dean was reading and Felix was playing RedDead Redemption, but it was really nice.

Actually, it was almost perfect except forthe pressure that was slowly growing behind Dean’s eyes. He had noticed itstarting a little while after breakfast, and he had been trying to ignore it. Hesuspected it was a caffeine headache because Chad had a coffee ban on the housefor some reason that Dean didn’t completely understand. Dean never realized howdependent he was on coffee, but apparently, he was because the headache was areal thing.

He had been able to ignore it for a while,and when that started to get difficult, he was able to distract himself byreading and occasionally playing with Felix’s hair. Unfortunately, the headachejust kept growing to the point that a good book and Felix’s soft hair weren’tenough to distract him from it.

Giving up, Dean marked his page and sethis book aside in favor of closing his eyes and let his head fall back so itwas resting against the couch behind him. The dark of the back of his eyelidswas at least a little helpful.

“Book that bad?” Felix questioned. Hecontinued to play his game if the sounds that Dean heard were any indication.

“No,” Dean replied as he was careful notto move his head because he was pretty sure that wouldn’t end well. “I justhave a bit of a headache,” he admitted.

Felix didn’t reply right away, but Deanalmost immediately heard the music coming from the game change drastically andthen abruptly stop completely. Dean felt the couch shift and then he feltFelix’s hand come to rest on his knee. “I’ll get you something,” Felix stated.

“No,” Dean replied as he caught Felix’shand before he could stand up off the couch. “I’ll be fine,” he assured. Itwould have to go away eventually, or his head would explode.

“Shut the fuck up dude, I’m getting yousomething,” Felix declared more insistently. Felix slipped his hand out ofunderneath his, and Dean didn’t fight him. He didn’t see the point in arguingwhen Felix was just trying to take care of him. He expected Felix to just walkout of the room, but Felix didn’t do that. Instead, before leaving he leaned inand pressed a kiss on Dean’s forehead before assuring, “I’ll be right back.”

Felix didn’t come across as a warm andfuzzy person, but Dean knew he was actually a sweet and affectionate guy. Still,after such an over the top show of affection, Dean couldn’t have argued if hehad wanted to. He still wasn’t used to someone taking care of him. Normally, hewas the one taking care of other people.

Felix returned in a few minutes anddropped onto the couch. Dean heard the jingle of pills and the thud of somethingbeing brought to rest on the coffee table. A hand came to rest on Dean’s kneeonce again before Felix spoke in an almost comically soft voice. “I got yousome Excedrin and water,” he explained.

Dean dropped his hand, so it was restingon top of Felix’s hand. “I’m fine, really,” he assured even though the pulsingbehind his eyes seemed to be getting more intense with each passing moment.

“Dude, don’t make me tell you to shut thefuck up again,” Felix huffed. Felix didn’t wait for Dean to respond beforegrabbing Dean’s hand by the wrist before turning it over so that his palm wasfacing upward. A few pills were promptly dropped into his hand and then thecouch shifted as Felix sat forward. “Just take the fucking pills,” he ordered.

As much as he didn’t want to, Dean openedhis eyes and cursed the low light of the living room even more then he thoughthe would. As the halos of painful light receded Dean saw Felix staring at himwith eyes filled with worry as he held out a bottle of water for Dean to take.

God,Dean thought happily despite the headache, Felixwas the sweetest thing I’ve ever experienced.

“You’re such a romantic,” Dean commentedwith a smirk. He reached out and accepted the bottle of water with his freehand as he tossed the pills Felix had given him into his mouth. He used thewater to chase down the pills, swallowing hard before handing the bottle backto Felix. “Happy?”

“Not the word I would use, but its an improvement,”Felix admitted. Dean watched as he returned the bottle to the table beforesettling back on the couch. He just seemed to watch Dean for a minute beforereaching out and pushing a stray piece of hair off Dean’s forehead gently. “Youshould lay down,” he stated thoughtfully.

Dean had to admit that laying down soundedlike it could be a real relief, but it came with too many seriousdisadvantages. “No,” he replied. He went to shake his head to really drive homethe point and immediately realized that was an absolutely horrible idea. Hestopped any effort to move his body from the shoulders and upwards abruptly andreally hoped Felix didn’t notice. Carefully he reached out and mirrored Felix’searlier gesture by placing his hand on Felix’s knee as he spoke, “I want tostay with you.”

Felix let out a little noise that wasextremely close to a full-on snort, not that Dean was going to point it out. “Iwasn’t sending you to your room,” he declared and then patted his lap as aninvitation, “Come here.”

Oh,temptation thy name is Felix, Dean thought as hedared a glance at Felix’s lap. As his head pounded with the rhythm of a sambaand his brain threatened to ooze out his ears, the idea of curling up inFelix’s lap like an overly friendly cat sounded like the best of ideas. Itwasn’t a sexual thing at all. It was really just about comfort, but he couldn’tdeny how it could look with his head in Felix’s lap. Felix’s dad already hatedhim, and Dean knew he really didn’t have any chance to change that, but hestill had hope for his mom. He didn’t want to give the wrong impression if shecame home and found them in what could be seen as an indecent position. “Idon’t know if that’s the best idea,” he admitted with disappointment.

This time Felix really did snort in themost dismissive way Dean had ever heard, “Guess I know where your mind is at.”Dean was pretty sure he blushed which just increased his embarrassment. Felixgently nudged Dean’s shoulder with his own before reiterating his offerinsistently, “Come on Dean, just lay down.”

Dean could have argued or resisted, butthe throbbing in his head was draining him of all his energy. He gave in andlaid himself down so his head was resting in Felix’s lap. It took a couple ofseconds of shifting and moving before things were comfortable but once theyfigured it out it seemed like exactly what Dean had needed.

Felix started absently playing with Dean’shair as Dean used his muscular thighs as a pillow. It was blissfully perfectand even the smallest of Felix’s touches had soft waves of sensation runningdown Dean’s spine. He let his eyes flutter closed to better enjoy the soothingfeeling.

  Felix was pretty sure that Dean fellasleep within in minute of laying his head down. It looked sort of ridiculousbecause Dean was so tall. He didn’t really fit on the couch laying down like hewas. His head remained rested on Felix’s lap, and he stretched out, so his legswere hanging over the arm. It might have been the cutest thing that Felix hadever seen.

He waited a little while to make sure thatDean was really and completely asleep before retrieving his Xbox controller andrestarting his game. Dean was a heavy sleeper, so Felix knew he didn’t have toworry about waking him up, but he still focused his attention on more casualgameplay and absently played with Dean’s hair when the game was stuck onloading screens.

It was all pretty nice, and Felix wasn’tthinking about much beyond the immediate comforts. Or, at least that was thecase until he heard the pounding of footsteps coming up from the basement.

Felix had every intention of ignoring it.A lot of the time Chad seemed to do his own thing, especially when Felix’s momwasn’t home. Felix figured the guy just wanted to avoid him, but he knew thatDean had a different theory. Dean also lived a charmed life when it came toanything close to step-parents, so Felix wasn’t going to be too swayed byDean’s thoughts on the matter.

It was stupid for Felix to think he wouldbe that lucky. Instead of going to the kitchen or going to hide in his bedroomlike he normally did Chad decided to visit the living room. “So, Felix,” Chadstarted as he jogged into the room (whojogged when they were indoors?). “I was thinking-,” Chad stopped abruptly.Felix had intended to just ignore him (like he normally did), but there wassomething in his voice that caught his attention. The guy sounded sort of likehe suddenly hit a second puberty. When Felix looked up, he noticed Chad staringat where Dean was laying in his lap. “Oh, ya…”

“Don’t worry. Dean sleeps like the dead,”Felix assured as he turned his attention back to his game, “You’re good.”

“Um, yeah. It’s not that,” Chad explainedsounding so nervous it made Felix uncomfortable for him. Felix sighed, pausedhis game, and looked up to see Chad was red-faced and carefully not lookingtoward the couch. “I don’t know if Shelia would be cool with this,” heexplained.

Felix was annoyed for so many reasons, andhe couldn’t believe he even had to have that kind of conversation. “Seriously!”he exclaimed. He gestured to Dean still sleeping peacefully in his lap, “He’sfucking sleeping, not blowing me!”

“I know,” Chad grumbled. His face waspractically purple at that point, and he started rubbing his neck in a way thatlooked almost painful, “I just…”

Felix realized he wasn’t willing to dealwith that level of stupidity. “You know what Chad?” he offered sharply, “I’mnot taking shit from the guy currently sticking it to my mom so why don’t youjust run the fuck along,” he waved Chad along dismissively and before he couldretort he picked up his controller and restarted his game.

[dwtsfun]

Dancing with the Stars Rewatch: Season 1 Week 4

Okay. My bad y’all. I was super busy this weekend and just got around to doing this. This week was the week I was most looking forward to during for this season. My favorite dance of the season is this week. Everyone is doing a samba as their individual dance and then the group dance is a Viennese waltz. So let’s just get this started.

Joey and Ashly- Samba (My Score=7, Judges’ Scores=20)- I think this dance was slightly better than his jive from the previous week. He lacked some rhythm and grace. His hips were a little stiff. And the technique wasn’t as good as it could have been. But his performance was a lot better than it ever has been. So it was an improvement to me.

Rachel and Jonathan- Samba (My Score=8, Judges’ Scores=25)- As far as technique goes, Rachel is definitely the strongest contestant of the season. There are a few issues that keep me from completely loving her dances, especially this week. The first was that Jonathan’s choreography was very bland. Even looking at it with season 1 goggles, it was just boring. The second issue is that she moves too gingerly. While her technique is really good and is incredibly precise, she is overly cautious. I want her to really go for it. It would give her dances the strength that they lack. She can do it. She just didn’t have faith in herself. Which brings me to my third issue. She is still not comfortable performing. While I get being shy and being unsure of herself (I’m the king of that lol), it really hurt her dances from a performance point of view. Someone as gifted as her, should be better at owning the stage. This makes the All-Star season so much more frustrating for me. Rachel was a perfect candidate for the show. Ugh. If she had had a better grasp on the last two issues, she would have had a 9 from me. Easily. It is also unfortunate that she was eliminated this week. I don’t think it was deserved, but I understand it.

John and Charlotte- Samba (My Score=6, Judges’ Scores=21)- John will always give a good performance. That much is a given. However, I had to agree with Bruno and Carrie Ann about his dance. His footwork was messy. He was heavy footed. He did a lot of stomping. And his musicality was off. Everyone usually has an off night. This just happened to be his.

Kelly and Alec- Samba (My Score=9, Judges’ Scores=26)- This was the dance I was most looking forward to. I absolutely love this dance. Kelly improved immensely from week 1 to now. And strangely, I think the wardrobe malfunction really helped. She started out good, but kicked it into overdrive after the strap snapped. The spins were good. Her arms were mostly under control. Her technique was really clean. And she went out there and performed the hell outta that dance.

Group Viennese Waltz- So since this isn’t scored, I’m going to give a few thoughts about what I saw. First of all, I miss these kinds of group dances. Kelly was much improved and I think her solo was my favorite. It was so surprising seeing a similar dance (waltz vs. Viennese waltz) and seeing the amount of growth in such a short amount of time. John was really strong here. Rachel wasn’t as good as she usually is. But it was still good. I just wanted her to fix her frame. And Joey was a mess.

My Rankings and Scores Out of 30:

1. Kelly and Alec- 26 2. Rachel and Jonathan- 25 3. Joey and Ashly- 21 4. John and Charlotte- 20

So John and Rachel were in the bottom 2. And as I said earlier in the post, Rachel was sent home. Next week, the top 3 do a foxtrot and a paso. I remember really enjoying Kelly’s paso so hopefully I still love it. We’re almost done with this season. This six weeks went by quick. But other than all of that, let me know what you all thought and I will see you all for week 5 on Saturday.

#dancing with the stars #DWTS #Kelly Monaco #Joey McIntyre #John O'Hurley #Rachel Hunter #jonathan roberts #charlotte jorgensen #ashly delgrosso #alec mazo #season 1 #DWTS rewatch #Viennese Waltz #samba

[gussolomonsjrtest]

PARSONS DANCE

Making its annual, two-week appearance at the Joyce Theater, May 14-26, is David Parsons’s stalwart troupe, offering a premiere by Trey McIntyre, “Eight Women,” commissioned by Parsons Dance, and Paul Taylor’s 1975 mysterious “Runes.” Also included are three Parsons pieces – “Round My World” (2012), “Nascimento” (1990), and the dance that identifies him, “Caught” (1982), which on Thursday was danced with as much virtuosity as I’ve ever seen it by petite powerhouse Zoey Anderson.

David Parsons is the apple that fell not far from the Paul Taylor tree. Like his artistic papa, Parsons is fond of aerobic, space-gobbling movement that requires muscular, athletic physiques – male and female – to articulate. His choreography is structurally clear, built of clearly defined, musically driven sections – like the dance equivalent of pop music. His female dancers tend to throw hundred-watt, “please like me” smiles at the audience, while the men are less effusive but cordial, nonetheless, all while flying around the stage and through the air at sixty miles an hour.

Zoey Anderson in EIGHT WOMEN by Trey McIntyre. photo by Roberto Ricci

Choreographically, he finds motifs that are arresting in design, like the jump in “Nascimento” where dancers are in the shape of a reclining nude in midair, bent legs pressed together and stretched to the side, forearms bent forward as if pressing against a windowpane. This shape also becomes a lift as well as a pose on the floor. In “Round the World,” the motif is circles. Dancers’ arms held in a rounded shape swirls around an arching torso or surround another dancer. Or the circle becomes a recurring floor pattern, or dancers travel in curving pathways. The pulsing string music of Zoe Keating – who composed the theme music for Terry Gross’s “Fresh Air” on NPR – drives the dancing in “Round the World” with only momentary pauses in momentum.

Brazilian composer Milton Nascimento made the samba score for the eponymous closing number, and its several, radical changes of pace seem almost incongruous in the context of all the leaping and jumping that surround them. There’s one striking image that interrupts the onrushing flow, where dancers recline in a cone-shaped pile and lie still for a long time, before Zoey Anderson’s sunny blond head slowly pokes up from the cone’s peak, like magma, oozing from a volcano’s mouth. After the final, rambunctious section, the dancers in a line wrap arms around each other’s waists and stroll upstage into the sunset of Howell Binkley’s remarkable lighting, which is a large factor in the popularity of most of Parsons’s dances.

Zoey Anderson and Joan Rodriguez in EIGHT WOMEN. photo by Roberto Ricci

Binkley also illuminates “Eight Women” by independent choreographer Trey McIntyre, which Parsons Dance commissioned, perhaps to commemorate Aretha Franklin’s death. It is danced to a selection of the most commercially arranged songs made famous by the Queen of Soul. Such hits as “(There is a rose in) Spanish Harlem,” “Do Right Woman, Do Right Man,” “I Say a Little Prayer,” and, of course, “Natural Woman” are exploited for rhythm and funk but nothing spiritual.

(l-r): Sasha Alvarez, Henry Steele, Zoey Anderson (partialyl hidden), Joan Rodriguez, Katie Garcia, and Dierdre Rogan in EIGHT WOMEN. photo by Roberto Ricci

The eight dancers, four women and four men – dressed alike by Sylvie Rood in, flowing culottes with mesh necklines – spell each other like a relay in fast moving solos, duets, an trios, framed by brief ensemble passages that spill onto the stage and off again. For variety, McIntyre makes use of ever-changing, tried and true, spatial arrangements – front to back line-ups, stage crossings that each time leave one person centerstage, when the dust clears, or solos emerging from the group action. The choreography keeps dazzling our eyes with speed and intricacy, but never really achieves “soul,” even with three strong men of color in the company. At the end, the dancers arrange themselves across the stage and pulse, like churchgoers they are simulating; they’re doing the moves, but not really feelin’ the spirit.

(l-r): Sasha Alvarez, Henry Steele, Shawn Lesniak, Zoey Anderson, Dierdre Rogan, and Katie Garcia in EIGHT WOMEN. photo by Roberto Ricci

(l-r): Dierdre Rogan and Joan Rodriguez in Paul Taylor’s RUNES. photo by Yi-Chun Wu

The highlight of the program is a revival of Taylor’s 1975 dance “Runes,” restaged for the company by Cathy McCann Buck. It’s costumes by George Tacet are skin-colored unitards with fur “backpacks” at the shoulders; they are a primitive clan in a prehistoric locale, created by Jennifer Tipton’s brilliant, shadowy lighting with a glowing orb – the moon, Earth. Over the course of the dance, it travels imperceptibly from low on stage left to high, stage right.

(-r):Sasha Alvarez, Katie Garcia, and Zoey Anderson in RUNES. photo by Yi-Chun Wu

The dance begins with Justus Whitfield lying supine and the other seven in a knot opposite him. They tentatively investigate the body then carry it center and reanimate it with the men’s big, bent-kneed, body contracted jumps. These and the use of the women as a kind of chorus, rushing in and out, reflect the dances of Martha Graham, with whom Taylor danced early on. But here, the women are as likely to hoist the men as the reverse. The company includes also Shawn Lesniak, Henry Steele, Katie Garcia, and Sasha Alvarez, champions all.

(l-r): Joan Rodriguez, Dierdre Rogan, and Zoey Anderson in RUNES. photo by Yi-Chun Wu

Behind featured solos, other dancers cross the stage, men carrying women in impressive overhead lifts; one man carries two women at once, slowly revolving as he progresses from wing to wing. Martial side stepping lends weight and gravitas to the proceedings. The ingratiating smiles are gone, replaced by serious demeanors. The dancers make tableaus like ancient sculptures. In one section, they burst back and forth with gliding grapevine steps that seem to be plowing furrows in the earth with their feet. It’s wonderful to see “Runes” again – one of Taylor’s archetypal dances – in the capable bodies of these powerful dancers.

Gus Solomons jr, © 2019