Lavender, 30s, she/her. Entirely unhinged about Ghost, there'll be other assorted nerdery as well (eventually. Maybe). I post/reblog a fair bit of adult content, so if you're a minor please do not follow/interact (I'll periodically block ageless/blank blogs just in case).
You asked for asks and I'm also hungry, so assuming you could wrangle the whole group into an ice cream or gelati parlor, what dish/flavor would each Papa order? What about the ghouls?
Love this question, especially because it says The Whole Group so it lets me poke characters I don't normally touch on. We're going with ice cream because I don't have as much experience with gelati/o flavors. This is an unhinged family bonding outing and it's gonna go so poorly. Somehow everyone is either alive or a ghost able to eat.
For one, Cardi is driving and Perpetua is sitting shotgun next to him giving him the HARDEST time - poking the seat, are we there yet, and it's a five minute drive to the ice cream parlor. They have taken a huge SUV so everyone can fit. The first three Papas are in the back seat with the old folks in the middle seats and Terzo is glaring daggers at the back of Sister Imperator's head. One Ghoul has come, Dewdrop, and he's hiding in the trunk like a trapdoor spider.
They all sit down at the bar (it's one of those old timey soda fountain ice cream parlors so that they can sit and eat there, with the 50s looking stools). Sister Imperator and Nihil, insufferably, get a huge frothy strawberry milkshake with two straws and split it. Marika and Mr. Psaltarian get the same thing but chocolate and are less insufferable about it - each couple occasionally lets the others sneak sips from their shake. The Papas all try to ignore this and pretend it's not indicative of some weird polyamory thing that happens between the four of them behind closed doors.
Primo gets a classic banana split sundae with cherries on top, with nuts and hot fudge, and if the fudge is not hot he complains, and if the fudge is hot but melts the ice cream too fast he complains. He eats it while making eye contact with the terrified employee the whole time. Secondo and Terzo are lightheartedly bickering over flavors while Primo puts in his orders, both wishing they were at a fancier place, before Secondo settles on coffee flavored ice cream with fudge and Terzo on mint chocolate chip. The two of them have stolen extra napkins and have challenged each other to an increasingly obscene origami contest between bites. Secondo is grudgingly impressed that Terzo could make a vulva that realistic by folding a napkin.
Cardi, Dew, and Perpetua are sharing a corner of the bar. Perpetua has a triple scoop - each one a different flavor, all flavors that do NOT go together for any sane person - something like peanut butter, lemon sorbet, and matcha. He thinks the combination is delicious. He obtains little packets of pepper from somewhere and sprinkles it on the ice cream first. Neither of his tablemates notice. Dewdrop orders a single scoop of one flavor on a cone - and swallows it whole, unhinging his jaw. Then orders another, in a different flavor. And another. And another. For the entire time they're there. The poor employee is, between this and Primo's staring, about to have a meltdown - but the others know that Dew is...somehow...using this method to transport the different ice cream cones back to the other Ghouls at the ministry who couldn't all fit in the car. At the end of this sequence he orders himself a black coffee.
Cardi has a triple scoop of chocolate chip cookie dough and is waiting for the sweet embrace of death, and keeps making obscene little happy noises every time he chows down on a hunk of cookie dough. Cardi has gone completely into a "don't talk to me, I'm eating" zone and comments are bouncing harmlessly off of him like rain drops. He has his ice cream. He has a good 20 minutes at least before he has to drive this crew back to the Ministry. Thus, he has everything.
Yes, it’s months later. But it bugs me that I never did a proper writeup for this one with the pictures and everything, so. Here you go.
This was the night I wore my ghoulette costume, and got some lovely compliments from my fellow congregants. One of Ghost’s people asked if she could take my photo, too; I should have gotten her to airdrop it to me or something. I intended to get at least a confessional photo, but the line was already huge by the time I got there, so alas, no pictures from the night.
(This is the worst photo, but I'm still proud of it, dammit!)
There was some kind of problem with the freight elevator at the venue, so they had to set up the VIP museum in two different places. As we lined up to go downstairs, the VIP coordinator was saying that we were being trusted by Richie, even though our phones were unlocked please don’t take any photos. We’re all like….okay? Sure? Who here is going to risk Richie being disappointed in us over basic cinderblock hallways?
Well, to get to the second place, we had to walk through a hall where the band’s crates were stored, and past some of the signs pointing out where the dressing rooms and catering were. So that was neat.
That morning I got in line about half an hour earlier than Columbus, for a whole five places closer (lucky #42). I ended up in almost the same spot—on Dewdrop’s side, near the steps up to the platform, about a foot closer to the center than the first night.
During the wait one of the venue’s security guys was being very grumpy, trying to convince us that the no-phone policy was just about greed, cause if people could just watch the youtube videos no one would come to the shows. He refused to believe that Ghost fans aren’t comparable to Metallica fans (as I’m standing right there in full glittery ghoulette costume, like…dude), or that we were the kind of people who see videos and say “this isn’t enough, I need to be there.” The fact that all of us told him we loved the communal experience at the no-phone shows apparently made us easily fooled? Idk, he was determined to be in a bad mood, it went past frustrating into funny at a certain point.
Peacefield - the curtain blew towards us when it dropped, I was just resting my arms on the barrier, not even reaching, and it brushed against my fingers as it fell. I could probably have snatched a scrap of fabric if I’d had faster reflexes. I could tell Aurora spotted my costume immediately, so that was fun.
Lachryma - Ryan caught me unable to look away from Papa while everyone else was watching Dew (bottom left).
At the end, Perpetua said “But we’re not done, Cincinnati! We’re just getting you lubed up for a long fucking night!”
Spirit - The only time in all the rituals that I saw Tobias peeking out from behind Papa’s mask was during this song. There was one point where he looked back to smile at Mountain for a moment and I was like “oh it IS you under there!” I couldn’t have said what exactly it was, there was just something about that expression that wasn’t Papa. And then two seconds later he looked towards the audience again, and Tobias was gone.
I didn't even realize until I was putting this together just now that you can see Papa in the smoke, this might actually have been that moment.
They were one song short on this night, no Faith/Pinnacle. Instead of Per Aspera, we got Elizabeth, which was my first time hearing it live and I about died. I really hope they filmed it at some point to put in the concert film, cause that performance deserves to be preserved. And it had fabulous red and blue lighting, as seen here:
Call Me Little Sunshine - something went wrong on the last chorus, most of the lights went out and the lead vocals vanished. There were a few other moments of technical issues around this part of the show, I think the glitch going into Devil Church was the other big one.
TFIAFL - The main thing I remember from this is trying not to cry, because “I will hold you for the minute it takes” had hit me so hard in Columbus, and sobbing in a mask seems like a bad time. So, I ended up staring very disrespectfully at Perpetua, because if anything can distract me from the lyrics it’s trying to figure out if what I’m seeing is fabric folds or the papal scepter (pretty sure it was the latter...).
Cirice - So at the previous show in Columbus, Papa came over to bewitch me on the second verse, before going to the other side to properly Cirice someone. This time, he went to the other side on the verse. At this point, I had no idea whether there was blocking for this one (there is), or if he just wanders the stage to pick out his victims. Probably he’d go somewhere else.
No, in an exact mirror of last ritual, on “can’t you see that you’re lost?” he was walking toward me. He knelt right in front of me…at an angle, clearly Ciricing someone else nearby. I got to stare at his pretty eyes up close, at least. And I got to see him pout when the person who got Ciriced didn’t blow a kiss back to him (how do you not?!). I already got my special moment in Columbus and I definitely wasn't cursing my choice to wear a mask to this ritual. I swear. Really.
Satanized - someone in the pit passed out little signs that said “Blasphemy!” or “Heresy!” so we held those up on the proper words. Which is good, because my voice was well and truly gone by that point (I was completely unable to speak for three days after I got home). I finally had to give up and take my veil and mask off after this one, the veil was just not secured well enough to hold up through a full concert (but hey, it made it to the halfway point!).
Ritual - I swear to you, after I took my mask off there was a moment when Dew looked at me like “Oh! It’s you!” From this point on, he made sure to stare me down whenever he was about to do something feral, like he remembered I was easy prey. The ghoulettes didn't come down to dance on the outro this time, boo. We did get Dew continuing on after everyone else had stopped, which was cute.
Year Zero - The Raindrop moment the night before had been relatively tame, just some nuzzling. This time Dew escalated to groping Rain’s chest (and staring me in the eye as he did it, the gremlin), then wrapping his hand around his throat before going in for the neck nuzzle/cheek kiss. Being in the pit for this was as close as I think I’ll ever come to a Beatles concert in 1964, the delighted squealing was intense.
Mummy Dust - Dew stared me down on the first verse, he's too good at the eerie eyes. On the mummy thrusts, Papa kept leaning back a little more with each one--not to Phantom levels of backbend, but I was impressed with his balance.
Dance Macabre - Rain and Aurora's little dance moment is so cute.
Square Hammer - the one time in all of these I actually saw myself onscreen, it was just long enough to realize “oh that’s my ghostly pale face, oh no” before the screen turned black before the final chorus.
Sorrow in the Wind - lots of heart hands and kisses with the ghoulettes and Storm, they’re a bunch of sweeties. Dew saw me and my Swedish “thank you for the music” sign again while he and Papa were on the platform, and he pointed at me and patted his chest. Papa looked down, and I’m like 80% sure he saw the sign and blew me a kiss—the angle was weird and I didn’t have clear eye contact, but you know what, I’ll take it.
While the theatrics of fire are common with the Papas, I feel they hit a bit different with our dear Cardinal. Watching him bask in the chaos of the blaze; reveling in the flames as they feed his soul. He is truly born of fire and brimstone; liberating us unto damnation.
Damnation is where I find my salvation, my freedom.
The way the flames accentuate his silhouette in the black suit... 😩
him fucking you feral because you have been apart for a week, but it has felt like an eternity — him fucking you with all of his weight and so deep, kissing a spot inside of you that’s been ignored for so long. him spilling all of his seed inside of you, until it’s overflowing and he’s cooing at how precious you look underneath him, how well you take him
My brain: Hmm, plot? No, no, no, none of that here, my good friend, my good sir, my good ma’am, but may I offer you an overall general Vibe, an aesthetic if you will, a vague feeling to convey, a-
