Throw all your hell towards the heavens
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| Introduction
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xxxxx Brash and bold and loud, Ryan has been disappeared from the world once and doesn't plan to let it happen again. He wears his notoriety like armor, a cheerfully in-your-face shield that -- doesn't, really, let him flip off the government and yell about mutant rights with impunity. But no matter how many times they throw him in jail, now, at least, they're stopping shy of outright killing him. He'll take that as a win.
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| Description
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xxxxxTall and wiry-toned, Ryan sports grey-green eyes and a messy crop of dark hair around his deep tan face. His features are clean-cut, a strong jaw, high cheekbones, a quick and warm smile, though he breaks up his boy-next-door look with a sprinkling of piercings through ears and lip and eyebrow and a few brightly noticeable tattoos -- a weaving of branches and leaves from a ginkgo plant sleeving his right arm to the elbow, an outline of the chemical structure of adrenaline by his right wrist, a treble clef by his left.
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| Reputation
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xxxxxAnyone who doesn't live under a rock has probably knows Ryan's name, and those even passingly in tune with pop culture are likely to recognize him when they see him. A well-established star in the music world, his debut album was met with wild critical acclaim and topped the charts since its release; his shows sell out routinely, and he is the second artist in history to win all the general field Grammys in a single night -- following which he outed himself as a mutant on stage in his acceptance speech.
He cheerfully and deliberately cultivates his rebel image; brashly outspoken about leftist issues, once in the news for missing a show due to spending the night in jail after punching a neonazi in the face at a Black Lives Matter protest (the footage has been turned into a common reaction gif). The paparazzi likes to call him a bad boy; he says he's just passionate.
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| History
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xxxxxRyan's life history changes blithely with the telling if it; he makes up stories both plausible and farfetched to anyone who asks much about his life. What is widely and publicly known is that he's the son of a Baptist preacher from Down South, he got his start in folk music before hitting it big.
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| Powers
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xxxxxEmpathic audiokinesis. Generates and manipulates sound, manipulates people through sound.
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| Skills
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xxxxxSinging, playing violin/guitar/keyboard, making a spectacle of himself, snark.
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| Connections
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Friends
Foes
And everything in between
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| Trivia
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- His fans commonly refer to themselves as Blackbirds.
- Yes, there is no end of four-and-twenty references among individual fan groups.
- When they're being particularly troublesome or aggressive en masse it's also common to refer to them as Blackguards.
- At around 90m followers on Twitter he has learned to be at least somewhat careful what he says on there so as not to send his fanbase swarming unsuspecting people.
- The day of Captain America's coming out wasn't the first time Trump threatened him on Twitter -- that happened a couple years earlier, the day Ryan's follower count passed Trump's own.
- Has a tattoo of the chemical structure of adrenaline near his right wrist, a treble clef near his left, and a weaving of gingko leaves and branches sleeving his right upper arm.
- Well known to be BFFs with his partner in crime Jackson Holland.
- There are many and frequent gossip page rumors about all the people he's probably sleeping with (generally assumed to be most anyone he'd seen hanging out with.) He generally neither confirms nor denies.
- Known to be vegan, an anarchist, and loudly outspoken on a range of leftist issues as well as frequently throwing his monetary support behind them.
- Despite being quite openly bisexual and speaking about it plainly on many occasions, including writing it into several songs and being quite direct about dating people of all genders, media frequently refers to him as "a strong ally to the LGBT community" when he is at fundraisers, Pride events, etc.
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| Music!
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- No Strings - the first single of his to meet with any widespread success, kind of an angsty teen rejection of being told how to behave
- Blackbird - a lyrical vignette about a quiet moment in the bayou and a partial inspiration for his hardcore fans' nickname for themselves
- Enough -an angry meditation on bigotry and capitalism, very popular with leftists who haven't dumped him for being a mutant
- Why Not Both? - a whimsical song about being bisexual, probably a collaboration with at least one other bi artist
- See it Through (Grammy - Album of the Year)
- Sing me to Life - musically spectacular piece, usually what other violinists play if they like him and want to show off their skills
- See it Through - pretty much about mutual aid and activism, was immensely popular with leftists writ large and still is to some extent
- Brighter (Grammy - Song/Record of the Year) - basically a love song to Jax, and also very danceable
- Disappear - angry song about losing friends and refusing to be silenced, popular with angry young mutants
- Firefly O' Clock - ballad about simple joys and southern nights
- Little Wonder - an ode to defiant kids, transparently about Spencer to anyone who knows him. "I blink and I miss it, just look at you go/Really little wonder, no wonder you glow"
- On the Ball - about ballroom culture and queer families of choice, basically
- Dreaming in the Light - actually about Prometheus, though probably not obvious to anyone who doesn't know him
- Lost & Found - very catchy 2nd single widely regarded as not being political, contains thoughtful commentary on belonging and community. "We're never lost, we will find each other/A friend a teacher, muse or a lover"
- Home Again - a lament for losing one family and a celebration of finding another, plays off the saying "you can never go home again".
- Rogga (Off the soundtrack of a movie adaptation of N.K. Jemisin's "The Fifth Season") - very popular with younger mutants for its theme of defiance at oppression specifically directed toward those whose powers are feared by others. "You took me down, I wasn't alone/Our voice will shatter hearts of stone"
- As I Am - an unapologetic defense of coming out, though it's not clear whether it's meant to be about being queer or a mutant
- New Skin - single about the mutant experience, debuted at the Met Gala, interrupted by a bombing that reportedly killed Ryan, which has given the song a kind of cult status.
- Growing Season (theme song for Garden Variety) - a sweet song about love and family and self-discovery
- Stonewall - queer power ballad dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, makes some LG(B) assimiliationists very uncomfortable
- Save Me - seems to be about superheroes but is actually about surviving the Met Gala bombing and learning to make art again (with a lot of help)
- Stop For Death (Theme song for James Bond No Time to Die movie) - total nonsense, total earworm, no one's sure what it means exactly
- Care Less - fierce, slick, danceable song that's actually about caring more
- Safer - catchy, poppy, and pretty straightforwardly about vulnerability, trauma, and consent
- Keep Your Family Closer (off the Fast and Furious 9 soundtrack) - very popular with mutants, despite not being about mutants at all
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| Gallery
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| Montgomery Ryan Black
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| Codename
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None
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| Birthdate
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August 22, 1990
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| Birthplace
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Louisiana
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| Species
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Mutant
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| Affiliation
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None
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| Alignment
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Loud
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| Powers
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Audiokinesis/Empathy
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| Occupation
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Rock Star
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| Registration Status
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n/a
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| Played By
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Sebastián Yatra
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| RP Hooks
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| Notorious - Ryan isn't just famous for a mutant, he's really famous. His music and media presence has been such that most people who follow pop culture at ALL will almost certainly recognize him, and even people who don't are likely to be familiar with some of his songs.
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| Wild Child - Sex, drugs, rock and roll? Ryan is not above living down to some stereotypes... a lot. If you want the hookups for all the best parties or are into a wild night out, you might well run into him.
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| Role Model - For better or worse, often has young queer kids or Latinx kids or mutant kids excited that One Of Theirs has made it big. Very protective and solicitous of The Youth, though his advice is prooobably to be taken with a heap of salt.
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| ...Notorious - Together with Jax has spent the past many years working to liberate other mutants from the Prometheus project, earning him an entirely different sort of reputation among those unlucky enough to have been through the labs.
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| Logs
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| Date
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Title
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Cast
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Mentions
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Accidentally Incidentally Aspirationally Prepared
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Roscoe, Spencer
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Jax, Ryan
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Work, In Progress
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Jax, Ryan
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Scott
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Generation 🔇
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Ryan, Scott
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Jax, Shane
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Doppelcheck
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Cerebro, Scott
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Charles, Jax, Mystique, Ryan
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Asueto
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Ion, Jax
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Scott, Ryan
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Quiet Quitting
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Charles, Scott
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Jax, Ryan, B, Shane
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Jail Support
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Jax, Ryan
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Hive, Rasheed
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Diversity of Tactical Apparel
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Anahita, Ryan
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Rules for Thee, Not for Me
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Horus, Scott, Joshua
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Jax, Dusk, Ryan
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Not a Disaster
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Horus, Ryan
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Shane, Joshua, Spencer, Amo
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Chag HaAsif
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Jax, Spencer
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Ryan, Scott
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Soldiering On
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Akihiro, Ryan
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Jax, B, Shane
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Prepare war, stir up the warriors. Let all the soldiers draw near, let them come up.
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Lucien, Mirror, Leo, Regan, Hive, Charles, Quentin, Sriyani, Ryan, Spencer
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Less One
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B, Jax, Ryan, Spencer
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Shane
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I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them with justice.
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Joshua, Ion, Jax, Scott, Amo, Kiri, Regan, Leo, Charles, Ryan
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Hive, Sriyani
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Lean Staffing
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Horus, Halim
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Joshua, Ryan, Shane, Scott
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Unpleasant Awakening
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Matt, Ryan
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Hive, Lucien, Elie, Charles, Leo, Dawson, Shane, Jax, Lily
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For I am ready to fall, and my pain is ever with me.
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Leo, Ryan
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Lucien, Jax, Shane, B, Kitty, Joshua
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Curfew (and Other Religious Obligations)
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Bryce, Roscoe, Spencer
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Hive, Ryan, Sriyani, DJ, Jax
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Of Deceits and Disappearances (Or, Vincent Adultbird)
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Horus, Matt, Ryan, Kavalam
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Jax, Lucien, Charles, Joshua, B, Scott, Spencer
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Sneak Jet
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Amo, Jax
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Ryan, Spencer, Avi
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Life and Destruction
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Ryan, Amo
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Spencer, Jax
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Capriccio delle Regine
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Ryan, Shane
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Over/Under
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Gino, Lumin, Nessie
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Anole, Zack, Jax, Ryan
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Rolling
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Anahita, Lucien, Rocket, Ryan, with Matt & Jax & Steve via text
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Damien
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Dry
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Anahita, Lucien, Ryan
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Damien, Jax, Matt
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Slippery as Fuck
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Anahita, Damien, Joshua
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Lucien, Matt, Jax, Ryan, Charles
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Against All Odds
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Ion, Nanami, Roscoe
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Gaétan, Sriyani, Ryan, Jax
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A: Several points of disharmony among pts. stemming from widely different reactions to/interpretations of trauma. Tense session, with open hostility averted via some physical distancing.
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Daiki, Joshua, Polaris, Zack
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Jax, Ryan, Dawson, Harm
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Fairytales
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Lucien, Matt, Flèche
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Damien, Ryan
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Find Your Place
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Damien, Matt, Ryan
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Lucien, Jax, Elie
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Dance and Sing
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Damien, Matt, Ryan
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Lucien
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S: After three (3) inhalations, pt experienced impaired verbal processing skills (reported noting conversation becoming illogical and confusing). P: Experiment with strains and dosing to see how postmortem manual metabolic processing affects tolerance.
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Leonidas, Zack
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Jax, Ryan, Gaétan, DJ
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Of Broods and Bravery (Or, Unsung Heroes)
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Joshua, Jax, Ryan, Marinov, Scott, Halim, Shane, B, Ion, Tian-shin, Nanami, Gaétan, Kavalam
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Steve
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Workshopping Future Chaos
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Avi, Sriyani, Tok
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Ryan, Jax, Quentin
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Tesssting
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Charles, Jax, Joshua
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Harm, Naomi, Daiki, Shane, Ryan, Avi, Lael
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Accidentally: / can mean by chance, mistake, or / as a by-product
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Celestine, Natsumi, Spencer
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Jax, Ryan, Tag, Sriyani, Taylor
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Worries
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Lucien, Steve
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DJ, Taylor, Jax, Ryan, Dawson, Matt, Elie, Fury
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Of Raids and Remembering (Or, Crime School)
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Joshua, Kavalam, Roscoe
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Ryan, Halim, Harm, Charles
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Package Deal
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Harm, Jax
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Naomi, Ryan, Joshua, Avi, Lael, Charles
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Hands On
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Jax, Lumin, Ryan
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Taylor, Lucien
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For Future Reference
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Ford, Hive, Roscoe, Sriyani
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Ryan, Charles, Scott, Jax, Joshua, Quentin
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Many Hats
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Anahita, Jax
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Taylor, Tag, Dawson, Lucien, Ryan
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In Which Some Noise is Planned Over Hot Beverages
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Marinov, Ryan
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Taylor, Lucien
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Make Them Care
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Quentin, Scott, Sriyani, Roscoe, Kelawini, Ford, Dallen, Nessie, Bryce, Spencer
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Charles, Jax, Nanami, Ryan
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Pay Attention
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Matt, Ryan
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Making Wonders
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Dallen, Jax, Quentin
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Erik, Sugar, Spencer, Matt, Ryan, Dusk, Scott, Lucien
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Sip it Slowly
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Matt, Ryan, Spencer
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Elie
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The moon blots all light / the future is not sure, but / the sun will return
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Natsumi, Roscoe, Sriyani
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Matt, Jax, Ryan, Gaétan, Nevaeh
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Weird/Boring
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Avi, Roscoe
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Bryce, Alma, Moab, Nanami, Kelawini, Gaétan, Matt, Ryan
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