Since tumblr is basically my diary rn, I'm going to track how deep of a fan I am of a bunch of bands. This post will be about boy groups.
The ratings are of how in deep I am, not how I'm rating their quality, fyi.
Kickflip - 8/10. I know all their names, have listened to all of their discography, have bought merch. I just don't view ALL of their content. I love the garage band vibes of their songs and how they capture the essence of youth and summer and fun. Favorite song - Freeze; Bias - Dongwha; Bias Wrecker - Keiju;
2. Nexz - 6/10. I know all their names, main songs, and I have watched most of Real Nexz. My only thing is I treat them more like Youtubers than musical artists. I like their music, but I watching them as people more because they are kind of unhinged. Favorite song - ride the vibe; Bias - so geon; Bias wrecker - hyui (because I love squirrels); Favorite Real Nexz - the money bag one or the prince one
3. Stray Kids - 6/10. They were my first real stanning moment that I had in k-pop, I love their music. I know most of their title tracks. Favorite song - holiday; Favorite album - Karma; Bias - suengmin; bias wrecker - lee know
4. Enhypen - 3/10. Guys I love their music, but I find their content a little boring and I just entered kpop at a bad time for them with heesung leaving, so I figured it might just save me song trouble if I avoided the fandom a little. That being said, I love the vampire aesthetic, the music videos are so good, and I LOVE the music. Favorite song - Tamed-Dashed; Favorite Music video - Brought the heat back; Bias - Jay; bias wrecker - jungwon
5. BTS - 4/10. I know a bit of their music, but it's lowkey intimidating to get into with so much backlog to catch up on. Favorite song: ON or Go Go; Favorite solo song: Super Tuna or Don't Say You Love Me; Bias: V; Bias Wrecker: Jin
6. Boynextdoor - 7/10. guys I am so ready for their comeback. I think they are so funny and the dynamic sometimes reminds me of my own friends. I watch both a lot of their content and listen to their music a lot. Favorite song: Hollywood Action; Favorite EP: The Action; Bias: Woonhak; Bias Wrecker: Sungho
7. Santos Bravos - 5/10. I know they're not TECHNICALLY k-pop, but they're owned by HYBE and the model is the same so whatever. They're helpful in my Spanish learning journey and I enjoy hearing different Spanish accents. They are also just fun people to watch and have really good music. Favorite song: 0% Bias: Gabi; Bias Wrecker: Alejandro
8. P1Harmony - 6/10. I love any video with Princess Theo (iykyk) and I think about the live where Soul pulls out a katana so often. Also I love their music. Favorite song: Fall in Love Again; Favorite album: Killin' it; Favorite EP: Sad Song; Lyric I've been thinking about a lot lately: All you need is one yes when they all say no. Bias: Soul; Bias Wrecker: Jiung
9. Ampers& One: 6/10. I love their chaotic nature. These aren't really blasting in my car songs, but more I'll put an EP on repeat as background music when I study. Favorite song: he + she = we; Favorite EP: One Question; Favorite moment: "Do you have games on your phone? Do you have games on your iPad? Can I play Roblox?" Bias: kyrell; Bias Wrecker: Jiho
10. Xdinary Heroes: 4/10. I like their music and I like their content, but I'm not as into them as I am other bands. I do love that Hello82 karaoke video tho. Favorite song: Save me; Bias: o.de; Bias wrecker: junhan
Honorary Mentions:
Ateez - 1/10. I don't even know all their names, but they do have some really good songs. Favorite song: Wave, Work, or Bouncy
Seventeen - 1/10. Same as Ateez. Favorite song: Rock with you; Favorite Solo Song: Warrior (OST from Falling into your smile); Favorite album: Face the Sun
TXT - 1/10. Same as Ateez. Favorite song: antiromantic
Riize - 1/10. I'm just lowkey obsessed with Get a Guitar
feel free to ask your own questions in my ask box :D
Q: What’s the deal with this circus?
A: it exists. Boom
Q: Who are the performers?
A: There are two main performers in the circus are two animated puppets, otherwise known as dollmen. These dollmen were experiments created by the ringmaster to entertain the patrons that come to their shows.
Q: Who is The Ringmaster?
A: The head of the cirus. The first face you see, and the man behind the show. He’s built everything he owns from the ground up. Why? I don’t think he ever needed a reason.
Q: What’s the red one’s name?
A: While technically nameless, they prefer to be called Sphalerite(Saph for those close to her) As a part of the main duo, they tend to be more outgoing and cheerful by design. Not much bothers her, but she is very accident prone and often has to be fixed or have parts of her replaced, which impacts their memories. She has a hard time holding onto memories short term, but could recount the act of her creation about 500 times over if asked. She isn’t easily deterred, but can be serious when the situation is dire. They’re very reckless, often putting themselves in harm’s way to protect their partners. Leads with the more aerocentric tricks, such as trapeze, hoop, aerial silk, and general acrobatics.
Q: What’s the blue one’s name?
A: While technically nameless, they prefer to be called Jasper(Jaz for those close to him). As a part of the main duo, they tend to be more reserved and gloomy by design. He’s much more pessimistic. His best work is written and spoken, but given he’s one of the main performers, just about nobody knows that detail. Due to being more cautious, Jasper is less accident prone, but still has some noticeable scars from falling. Leads with the more geocentric tricks, such as the rolling globe and juggling, twirling, and balancing (Noticeably better at it than Saph)
Q: Are there talents that they share?
A: Of course. Some of these are but are not limited to contortion, juggling, fire breathing(Saph’s favorite), & balloon blowing(Jaz’s favorite).
Q: Are there more of these puppets?
A: But of course :}
Q: What acts are performed in the circus?
A: Just about anything you could imagine. Most of the performers are known as “Jacks of all trades.” There’s no limit. It’s not exactly like the puppets can’t be fixed if they’ve been broken.
Q: Where do they host these shows?
A: Most of their shows are performances coming to random fairs around the world and never returning. They don’t repeat locations until they’ve fully run out. It’s on and off. Anually they’ll travel, and then switch to staying in one stationary location. It’s a tradition made by The Ringmaster.
Q: Do the dollmen have autonomy?
A: Saph cares so little about that she may as well not have any, but Jaz does. Or at least he thinks he does. You’ll find him asking himself that question looooonnngggg before you get an answer. And the closest you can come to that is an hour long winded spiral that would fit better on a sheet of paper
Ten was half listening to the meeting he was in. Max had called all of the rangers in that morning for a talk. There were going to be several field trips that month so everyone was to be hypervigilant. “Teenagers are always the same no matter what year it is. They think they know better, they fuck off, and touch things they shouldn’t. So pay attention.” Max gave more of his usual spiel. It didn’t matter to Ten, he wouldn’t be directly interacting with anyone unless he had to, and he could find anyone in the woods, so watching them wasn’t his problem. He didn’t care for being at these meetings. He had worked in these woods for a long time, but it was necessary to keep up appearances. Make sure everyone knew, at least, of him, even if they thought he was some weird loner that never left. None of that mattered to Ten.
“Ten, can I talk to you in the back?” Max had finished addressing the others. “Just a few things to talk about.” Ten followed Max to the back room without a word. “I might need you to keep an eye out also.” Ten groaned, “We have some newbies still and they might be overwhelmed. I just need you a bit more…aware. Generally on the days when…” Max trailed off, his eyebrows raised. “Are you okay?”
Ten’s eyes had gone wide. His pupils were dilated and staring a hole into Max’s forehead. “She’s here. Vanessa is back.”
Ten could feel her presence, if he focused he could hear her voice, she was not alone. She was laughing and walking to the rangers station. His chest felt tight. He couldn’t tell if he was nervous or excited. It had been a long time since he felt such things, such strong emotions. Max dug around in the drawers of his desk retrieving papers, “Good. I can finally finish this paperwork and never worry about it again. Ten don’t leave yet.” Ten had his hand on the door knob and stopped. “I still have more to say.” Ten turned around and tapped his fingers impatiently as he listened to the rest of the man’s words.
Vanessa and Sandy walked into the station arm and arm. Sandy was bouncing with energy and Vanessa was hoping to siphon some of it purely by contact. It was surprising to see so many people inside, she was hoping to get through this without too much notice.
“Hello ladies! Looking to sign in?” A ranger standing in front of the counter caught their attention. “Sorry if we are in the way, just had a meeting so it’s a bit packed.” The man smiled at the two of them.
“It’s all good,” Sandy walked and squinted at his nametag, “Chris. We are actually looking for someone.”
“And who would be so lucky to have two beauties tracking them down?” Chris took a step closer, looked them both up and down, then gave them both a smile.
Vanessa gave a side eye to Sandy, “We are looking for Tenant.”
CRACK
A loud snap was heard from the back. Everyone turned to look at the back offices. Max was staring wide eyed, aghast. Ten had snapped the handle off the office door and was gripping tightly.
Ten’s heart was all aflutter. Not only had Vanessa come back already, but she was asking for him specifically. As he stared at the door handle he realized that what he was feeling was neither nerves or excitement. He was fucking estatic. His mind and body were buzzing like a beehive. Ten didn't even look at Max. He sat the door handle down as he muttered some half assed apology then walked out the door. His eyes locked right on to hers as he made a beeline for her. Vanessa’s heart was pounding at his approach. All of her worries and anxiety returned with every stride he took. Ten walked into her space, his smile was wide as he looked into her eyes. He wanted to touch her. No. He needed to touch her. Needed to know the feel of her skin on his fingertips again. “You are back already.”
“You did say soon.” Vanessa could barely recognize her voice. Her throat tight and dry as she squeaked out her reply.
Ten brought his hand to her chin and Vanessa instinctually held her breath. He rubbed his thumb across her skin as he tilted her head left and right. “You seem to be healing well. No pain or problems?” He was so close to her. She couldn’t focus on his words, just his eyes that were keeping her held in place. Dark and stormy. Wanting.
“Doesn’t seem like it. Not like she would be honest about it anyway.” Sandy’s voice chimed, breaking Vanessa from the spell she was stuck in. The hum of conversations returned. The two hadn’t noticed just how quiet the room had gotten.
Not that Ten cared about anyone else there anyway.
“Planning on introducing your friends?” Chris spoke from the side, still eyeing the two women. Ten begrudgingly pulled away from Vanessa, allowing the woman to take a deep breath. Ten looked at Chris with irritation, he could feel the desire radiating off Chris. Any other situation Ten would mind his own business and move along.
But not here and now.
Not when this irritant had his eyes on Vanessa.
His Vanessa.
“No, definitely not. Move along.” Ten stepped in front of Chris to block his view. Chris muttered words Ten didn’t even try to hear, and walked away.
“We brought gifts. For yourself and Max? Is he also here?” Vanessa looked for the head ranger, afraid to look at Ten in the eyes again, lest she be mesmerized by his gaze once again. She saw the other man and rushed towards him, Sandy in tow.
“Well back so soon Vanessa, and I assume Sandy. I recognized the voice as soon as you spoke.” Max smiled at both of the women as leaned forward on the front reception counter.
“Yeah, sorry about that but not really? But, we come bearing gifts of thanks!” Sandy reached into her tote bag and pulled out four paper bags. Sandy smiled and talked to Max, giving more of her thanks.
Vanessa grabbed the bag closest to her and turned to Ten, his eyes already glued to her. “These are for you.”
Ten brushed his hands along Vanessa’s as he took the bag from her. He opened the bag and pulled a muffin out. He looked it over in his hand then raised his eyebrows inquisitively. “I have seen these before. But I have never actually tried one.”
“You’ve never had a muffin before?”
“Muffin. No. I have never had a reason to.”
“Reason? The reason should be because they are tasty and you can. And you should always have one when available.” Vanessa took the muffin from Ten, removed the paper cup, then handed it back to him. “Well, try it.”
Ten’s eyes lit with mirth and mischief. He was going to enjoy this side of her. The same side he saw in the clearing. Assertive and sure. He bit into the muffin and was surprised. It was good. No, it was really good. He looked back and forth from her and the muffin, taking another bite. A well deserved smirk on Vanessa’s face.
“Good huh?”
“Did you make this?”
“Of course. Muffins aren’t that hard to make, and we wanted to bring a gift.”
“Can you make more? Do you make other foods? Are there other things like muffin?”
Vanessa couldn’t help but laugh to herself. Here she was losing sleep all week. She was skipping meals and nose deep in books. She was desperately trying to find a solution, anything to quell the fear that was in her chest over this creature. And here he was in front of her, losing his marbles over a damn muffin.
Ten froze mid chew. The sound of her laughter made his heart swell. It was full and hearty, sweet and genuine. He reached for her hand and brought her knuckles to his lips, but this time he kissed them, gently.
Max dropped his muffin and Sandy grinned from ear to ear. Max picked up his muffin and cleared his throat, “Um so it's good you came back. I need to file an incident report about last week. Could you come to the office in the back?” Max gave a confused smile to Vanessa and gestured toward the back door.
Vanessa gave a nervous smile back, “Oh yeah of course.” She turned to Ten and whispered in his direction, “What the fuck do I say? What the fuck can I say?”
Ten relished her closeness, and leaned in closer to her. He brushed his thumb across the back of her hand, “You can trust Max. Tell him what you want.”
“Sure but what did you tell him?”
“I told him everything, I have no reason to lie.”
Vanessa hesitantly followed Max to the back office. Ten followed behind but was stopped at the door. “Aht aht. You stay here.” And Max closed the door in his face.
Vanessa took a deep breath. She felt nervous again, unsure of what she was going to be asked. And even though Ten said she could tell him everything, she still seemed unsure.
Max sat down on his chair and took a deep breath. “You know honestly Vanessa I am perplexed. All the years I have worked here, I don’t think I have ever had to file a report about Ten. Nor have I seen him choose to interact with another person.” Max straightened in his chair and gave Vanessa his full attention. “Especially not a human. What happened last week? And I need you to start at the beginning, when you showed up in the afternoon.”
Vanessa relayed everything from the moment she drove up, to when she fell, running for her life, making the deal, and when Ten brought her back. Max wrote down every detail, his face becoming more and more scrunched and disgruntled as the story went on. At the end he dropped his pen and raked his hands across his face.
Back outside the office Ten walked away from the door and back to the counter. The other bags of muffins were open so he went for a different flavor.
“So what’s your deal?” Sandy stood with her arms crossed staring at Ten suspiciously. “You are either real smooth or a player? So what do you want with my best friend?”
Ten looked at Sandy with curious eyes. He was interested in the different muffin options, but this seemed to be someone important to Vanessa. Important enough that he probably shouldn’t ignore her. “Did she not already tell you about our deal? We are bound. As for what I want, I got it.” Ten continued eating his new muffin with delight. It was a berry mix, he liked this one more. He would have Vanessa make more and bring them next she comes back.
Sandy, however, was confused and a bit worried. What did he mean by bound and what the fuck did he get? Sandy opened her mouth to ask more questions when a loud yell came from the office. “TEN GET IN HERE NOW!”
Ten froze for only a moment. He had heard Max yell, but never his name. He turned slowly towards the office and hesitantly walked in, Sandy in tow with a worried expression on her face.
“I had hoped you were lying about what happened. That it was all some stupid joke on your end I didn’t understand, but she said the exact same shit! What have you done? You do know I have to report this right?”
Ten shrugged, and pulled out the muffin hidden behind his back, “You will do your job as you are expected to. I will handle whatever comes later.”
“You know they’ll send people right? Have you given her any warning? Hell you should’ve just lied!”
“What warning? What’s going on?”
“Yeah I would like to know the same.” Sandy stood beside Vanessa, thinking the worst of situations.
“I was technically not supposed to make a deal with you. And now. Well, after he files that report, there will be government agents that show up here and ask questions.”
“What?” The women said in tandem
“No, it is not that simple and you know it. Unfortunately they are also going to question you,” Max said to Vanessa, “They will want to know everything about all of this. And they are not going to be kind about it. When were you planning to tell her Ten?”
“Today. Didn’t get the chance to tell her before she left.”
“I have a phone, you can call it.”
“I don't use those if I don’t have to.”
“I still don’t understand what fucking deal, what’s going on?” Vanessa turned to Sandy and grimaced. “Right so, umm I made a deal with a fae creature of this forest.”
“Forest guardian.” Ten corrected.
Vanessa turned and pointed,“Shut the fuck up Ten, and eat your muffin.” He did.
Vanessa explained the whole fiasco and Sandy’s widened then glazed over. This was both a better outcome and so much worse than she thought.”I didn’t tell you because I didn’t know if I could. And now you know. And you,” Vanessa turned her attention to Ten full of ire, “We are going to have a long talk.” Vanessa grabbed Ten by the arm and began walking out of the building. Ten swallowed the last bit of his muffin, the mischief gone from his eyes. He was happy to finally get his moment alone with her, but at what cost.
How much more do you think you have until we can read the masterpiece again? 👀👀
honestly? not much 😭
i might end up pushing Act Three back another chapter (i’m sorry) and leaving this one on a… decent note? this chapter has opened up some stuff to discuss, and it’s already nearing 20k words… i don’t think i could safely add smut and have it be less than 30k at this point, as well as the end of Act Two 😭
but hopefully it’ll be out soon! maybe tonight if i can manage it, but by the new year at latest, i’d say :3
She believes that knowledge must always be shared and no knowledge is inherently evil, it's what people do with it that could be bad.
One of her parents died of an incurable illness when she was a child; she decides to become an archeologist bard in order to find a cure while traveling the world, so that if it happens again to another of her loved ones, she can save them.
Totally clueless to flirting, romance and such unless it is spelled out clearly to her.
She trusts people too easily . These quotes said by James Pendrick (from Murdoch Mysteries tv series) represent her well: "How do I keep doing this? How can I, a man of reason and intellect, possess such terrible judgement in those I trust, in those I give my heart to?" & "I keep making the mistake of thinking people are better than they are". Nevertheless, she loathe betrayal; her response to it is "kill first, ask questions later (if you avoid the death blow)".
Now that I think of it, Ginevra could be described as a female Pendrick (but who is slightly evil and selfish, unlike him).
Book-smart but not street-smart. After all she has 16 INT but only 10 WIS.
She prefers to avoid battles if possible (that's easy thanks to her starting 19 CHA) but she will fight if it's unavoidable.
She traveled to the Stolen Lands in pursuit of a cure: she hoped helping someone establishing a kingdom would have helped her secure funds for researching it (instead of trying to find the remedy already made). Therefore, she's incredibly nervous when Jamaldi chooses her as one of the people to lead an expedition, given that she's doesn't think she's the right person to bear the responsibility for the well-being of her (future) subjects.
Follower of Nethys, starting alignment True Neutral.
