#((So its like 4 shades of blue and black and white and some red gold and green))
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It's difficult, isn't it? When you confront yourself, you have to notice things about yourself that aren't too flattering...
#Pokemon#Pokemon Black and White#Rival Cheren#My Art#((GOD this took awhile. The og one is still w me but. I heavily prefer this one.))#((I've had an idea for awhile now but had trouble making the palette. And I wanted it to be mono cos I made mono tarot cards before..))#((So I tried w BW Cheren and it worked hehe))#((So its like 4 shades of blue and black and white and some red gold and green))#Eyestrain CW#Hanging TW#((OH and. Short explanation for why Hanging Man specifically.))#((Ultimate surrender/sacrifice and being suspended in time))#((My characterization of Cheren specifically ehe))#((Technically. His brainwashing and his near death were both sacrifices needed to awaken both Reshiram and Zekrom))#((And of course. Suspended in time is referring to his want to move on but his fear of leaving the past and forgetting Hilbert))#((ANYWAY I'M PROUD OF THIS HEHEHE))
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Pepsi Can Designs Ranked
as you may have noticed i'm very into soda and beverage containers in general, and i've had pepsi on the brain for a few days so here's my ranking of every can design they have listed currently on their website. i'm sure there's been like a million others through the years and years that pepsi has been a thing, but it's just for fun and i'm not gonna make a list that's a full book long
13. Nitro Pepsi Vanilla
really don't care for the color scheme here. i get that it's meant to be the color of vanilla but it's just not the kind of shade i want to see on my soda can, y'know? it's giving pilk. big pilk vibes here. and the spray-paint logo doesn't pop, especially not when it's only the blue without the red. maybe the biggest nail in nitro vanilla's coffin, though, is those big ugly brass-colored block letters. yuck
12. Diet Pepsi Wild Cherry
diet pepsi already has this ugly tin color that doesn't exactly appeal the appetite, and all the additional detail here is like putting a lipstick on a pig. except the lipstick somehow made the pig uglier. the flowing red on the top and the bubble detailing just does not work with this backdrop, and their simplicity really becomes painfully evident when there's nothing else to occupy your eyes
11. Pepsi Caffeine Free
sigh. i wanted to like her, but i just don't. it feels so metallic but in the wrong way, reminding me more of a cavity filling than a winner's medal. this is a case where i actually wish they had used detailing instead of just coating the thing in a (surprisingly rather dull) gold sheen. what might have been...
10. Diet Pepsi
once again, it's just dull. soda is meant to be a fun drink, something that pops out at you in the grocery aisle. i guess maybe if you're drinking diet you may not agree, but either way this just looks like a dog food tin. here, i'm glad they didn't do any detailing, but it still just leaves it looking sad :(
9. Pepsi Zero Sugar Mango
has a lot of the good elements of both classic pepsi zero sugar and pepsi mango, but ends up being less than the sum of its parts. orange works with black since just about anything works with black, but it lacks any real sense of synergy between the colors. don't care for the bubble detailing over the more subtle black background, either; i get that it's there to give some more visual excitement but basically i just wish they'd use some other type of detailing lol
8. Pepsi Zero Sugar Wild Cherry
basically all the same issues as zero sugar mango but i like red and black as a match better than orange and black. moving on!
7. Nitro Pepsi
now we're starting to get somewhere. still suffers from some of the problems as vanilla, but that deep blue color is gorgeous, and works nicely as an allusion to the blue of classic pepsi without ripping from it directly. i don't even mind the details as much here, because at least they pop more against the colored background. white against blue is far better than blue against off-white. still don't love the spray-paint style logo, though
6. Pepsi
something to be said for the classics, eh? it's a lovely shade of blue, really, with a tasteful metallic trim and a halfway decent version of the logo. we could complain about the modern lowercase logo, but it's not like many of these other varieties are offering much as an alternative. except...
5. Pepsi Real Sugar
mostly the same as classic, same blue, same logo. obviously the text logo is different, but i'll be honest this is not one of the logos i'm sentimental for. at least it has some swagger though! now let's be real - the big draw here is the slopes at the top. see how they're shorter than the other cans? those are the bony hips of a lady with a harsh, narrow, boyish frame. and we love her for it
4. Pepsi Wild Cherry
(sorry some of these images are kinda fucked up lol, i'm trying to find ones that match the specific designs on the website)
ultimately just pepsi classic with some extra pizzazz. the red flow detail at the top is like an extension of the red in the logo. not too much to say, just a slightly snazzy option
3. Diet Pepsi Caffeine Free
ohh pretty pretty girl. this is what regular caffeine free wishes it could be. a nice delicate pure white background that doesn't need any detailing because it has that tasteful gold trim and elements of the logo. it maybe feels a little overly clean, but not in a sickening way. the design really makes me believe that this drink is gonna be refreshing. what a sweetie :)
2. Pepsi Zero Sugar
call me edgy but i'm just a sucker for darker black palettes. keeping it simple here: just a black can with the logo and some white text telling you what makes it special. it's purposefully low effort. it doesn't need to try any harder because it knows it has already done everything it came to do without breaking a sweat
1 . Pepsi Mango
complimentary colors? how fucking revolutionary!! look at that blue and orange palette - now THAT'S synergy! the bubble detailing is perfect here, although i wish it extended into the orange section. also a problem i have with basically all the fruit variants is that they just kinda slap a jpg of the fruit in the corner of the logo. could have tried to make the mango look like the circular logo or something fun like that. in any case, this is my favorite of all of these; it's bright but not blinding, knows how to use its colors, and just overall strikes a brilliant balance that's appealing in each and every way it needs to be!
that's all! now time to see if tumblr will let me post something with this many images 😓 thanks 4 reading!!
#*char noises*#long post#i don't have a can talk tag yet... i guess i have the gallery tag but that's for finds. idk i'll decide if i even feel like it#also i'm aware i'm basically just like. advertising for pepsi rn. so i'd like to remind everybody#that corporations are a fucking blight on this planet and should be eradicated#and besides i haven't tried like basically any of these besides classic so i offer no insight into their quality ok
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Tiefling
To be greeted with stares and whispers to suffer violence and insult on the street to see mistrust and fear in every eye: this is the lot of the Tiefling. And to twist the knife Tieflings know that this is because a pact struck generations ago infused the essence of Asmodeus (Overlord of the Nine Hells.) into their bloodline. Their appearance and their nature are not their fault but the result of an ancient sin for which they and their children and their children's children will always be held accountable. Tieflings are derived from human bloodlines and in the broadest possible sense they still look human. However their infernal heritage has left a clear imprint on their appearance. Tieflings have large horns that take any variety of shapes: some have curling horns like a ram, others have straight and tall horns like a gazelle's and some spiral upward like an antelopes horns. They have thick tails 4 to 5 feet long which lash or coil around their legs when they get upset or nervous. Their canine teeth are sharply pointed and their eyes are solid colors (Black red white silver or gold) with no visible sclera or pupil. Their skin tones cover the full range of human coloration but also include various shades of red. Their hair cascading down from their horns is usually dark from black or brown to dark red blue or purple. Tieflings subsist in small minorities found mostly in human cities or towns often in the roughest quarters of those places where they grow up to be swindlers thieves or crime lords. Sometimes they live among other minority populations in enclaves where they are treated with more respect. Lacking a homeland Tieflings know that they have to make their own way in the world and that they have to be strong to survive. They are not quick to trust anyone who claims to be a friend but when a Tieflings companions demonstrate that they trust him or her the Tiefling learns to extend the same trust to them. And once a Tiefling gives someone loyalty the Tiefling is a firm friend or ally for life. People tend to be suspicious of Tieflings assuming that their infernal heritage has left its mark on their personality and morality not just their appearance. Shopkeepers keep a close eye on their goods when Tieflings enter their stores the town watch might follow a Tiefling around for a while. and demagogues blame Tieflings for strange happenings. The reality though is that a Tiefling's bloodline doesn't affect his or her personality to any degree. Years of dealing with mistrust does leave its mark on most Tieflings and they respond to it in different ways. Some choose to live up to the wicked stereotype but others are virtuous. Most are simply very aware of how people respond to them. After dealing with this mistrust throughout youth a Tiefling often develops the ability to overcome prejudice through charm or intimidation.
Traits
Intelligence increases by 1 and Charisma increases by 2. Tieflings mature at the same rate as humans but live a few years longer (105). Tieflings might not have an innate tendency toward evil but many of them end up there. Evil or not an independent nature inclines may Tieflings toward a chaotic alignment. Tieflings are about the same size and build as humans. Your size is medium Your walking speed is 30 feet.
Darkvision: Thanks to your infernal heritage you have superior vision in dark and dim conditions. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light and in darkness as if it were dim light. You can't discern color in darkness only shades of gray.
Hellish Resistance: You have resistance (Half damage) to fire damage.
Infernal Legacy: You know the cantrip Thaumaturgy. When you reach 3rd level, you can cast the spell Hellish Rebuke as a 2nd level spell once with this trait and regain the ability to do so when you finish a long rest (Note you need to be damaged in order to use Hellish Rebuke). When you reach 5th level you can cast the spell Darkness once with this trait and regain the ability to do so after you finish a long rest. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for these spells.
Languages: You can speak read and write Common and Infernal.
How NPCS react to Tieflings: Half-Orcs are greeted with a practical caution but Tieflings are the subject of supernatural fear. The evil of their heritage is plainly visible in their features and as far as most people are concerned a Tiefling could very well be a devil straight from the Nine Hells. People might make warding signs as a Tiefling approaches cross the street to avoid passing near or bar shop doors before a Tiefling can enter.
Source: Players Handbook
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How to discover your seasonal color!
♥ what is seasonal palette? ♥ how i discover mine?
Seasonal palett is a color analysis system that discover what colors suits you best based on the colors that you are made of. Johannes Itten realised that his students used colors matching their appearences, in his book "Art Of Color" Johannes he categorized the colors in seasons based on their hue (temperature), value (brightness) and chroma (saturation).
You can discover your palette analysing how this categories are present on your body then you can emphasize your natural beauty. While you are doing the analysis please, wear no makeup, have a natural good lightning in front of you and look at yourself in a mirror for accurate results!!!
♥ hue/temperature
!the temperature is NOT related with your ethnicity you can be white and warm and black and cold!
1- the undertones of your skin
while cool skins have more pink and red undertones warm skins have yellow undertones:
2- The blood vessels
this one might be harder to identify, check only your wrist veins cause they have less skin over what makes the result more accurate:
3- silver or gold?
when it comes to the silver and gold tones people tend to just pick their favorite, but this is not just based on what do you like best, so pick some jewelry and put next to your face, analyse which one reflect your shades and seems like its part of you, if they both look good but none look exepcional, it means that your skin may be a neutral skin.
4- what if i´m neutral?
the temperatura is something that have to be defined so you can find your ideal palette, so if your skin is neutral you have to analyse your hair and eyes to define if their color is warm or cool.
if your eyes are blue, ice blue, grey, very dark brown or black, they are cool toned. if the eyes are ambar, hazel, green, brown or chocolate brown, they are warm.
if your hair reflects the sun light in white, like in white blond, ash blond, dark blond, grey and black hairs the temperature is cold. if the hair reflect a gold or red color like in redheads, auburn, golden blond, light brown, medium brown and chocolate brown the hair is warm.
♥ Value/ dark or light
1- Pale or dark skin
if you are light skin black or pale white consider yourself light.
if you are brown or white consider yourself neutral.
if you are a dark skin or tanned white consider yourself dark.
this might be a shallow description, so try to just to consider yourdelf in what you fit best, comparing your skintone whit others may help.
2- Eye color
if your eyes are light consider light and if its dark consider dark, but don't trick yourself, define this values inside the palette of your eye color, if is light brown then its light, and if is dark blue is dark, even that blue may seem lighter than brown you should only consider it inside the palette of you eye color.
3- hair thickness
thin hair = light
volumous hair = dark
if is neutral analyse your strands, if they are thin then is light and if they are thick they are dark.
♥ Chroma/bright or muted
1- the facial contrast
pick a photo of you in a good light, and put it in black and white, then put the image right below in the photo and identify the numbers of your hair, eyes and skin.
now compare the highest number and the lowest.
if the difference between them is of 6-8 numbers, you are a high contrast.
if the difference between them is of 3-5, you are a medium contrast.
if the difference between them is of 1-2, you are a low contrast.
it doesn't matter if the colors are dark or light you can have dark colors and be a low contrast.
if you are a dark contrast consider yourself bright.
if you are a low contrast consider yourself muted.
2- the size of face shape X features:
if your face shape is big/large and make your features look small (like Lana Condor face) than consider youself bright.
if your face shape is small and your features are big (like Audrey Hepburn) then consider yourself muted.
If you are none consider neutral.
3- The side face:
if the side of your face is straight an small, like Lana Condor's face, is muted.
if the side of your face is 3d and make a volume on this part, then it´s bright (the majority of the faces are like this so if its not like the first consider this one).
♥ Final Results
in every category i put 3 atributes, so comeback in your ansewers and verify where you make more points.
if you scored 3/3 in cold features your dominant feature is cool.
if you scored 3/3 in warm features your dominant feature is warm.
if you scored 3/3 in light features your dominant feature is light.
if you scored 3/3 in dark features your dominant feature is dark.
if you scored 3/3 in bright features your dominant feature is bright.
and if you scored 3/3 in muted or stayed in neutral in every category the your dominant feature is muted.
now the final results based on your dominant feature
COOL> bright > true summer
COOL> muted > true winter
WARM> bright> true spring
WARM> muted> true auntumn
LIGHT> cool> light summer
LIGHT> warm> light spring
DARK> cool> dark winter
DARK> warm> dark auntumn
BRIGHT> cool> bright winter
BRIGHT> warm> bright spring
MUTED> cool> soft summer
MUTED> warm> soft winter
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KinnPorsche and the Use of Colour
Episode 5; Significant Scenes
Surprise! I’m still doing meta! i know it’s been a while, but i do plan on continuing this series, might take me a bit longer than i used to tho...
So to start off with; the morning after immediately sets a trend for Porsche being surrounded, almost drowned, in golden light. We even have Kinn as a silhouette against it here, positioning him as close to the origin or even being the originator himself. If you want to sound dramatic, and i always do, you could even say Kinn is close to the source of Porsche’s oppression here... There is still something brighter behind him after all (and that something likes chess.)
Oh, look, more gold and sad boy hours. There is a bit of green here as well, but mostly Porsche is swallowed by gold/orange. There’s practically nothing of his blue left in this moment.
He is also most unlike the usually up-beat little chaos man right now, which is understandable given his day so far. At the same time i might say he’s closest to understanding how the mafia runs as well.
And speaking of a better understanding of his own circumstances, here we have Porsche turning up to ask Kinn for permission to go out with Tankhun.
In the last few episodes we saw them swap colours to denote a growing closeness, but now Kinn is back to wearing his own red. Of note however is that Porsche is positioned in front of a green backdrop while Kinn is backed by blue. Maybe Kinn is clearer on his thoughts than Porsche is in the moment, he doesnt know why Kinn reacted the way he did while Kinn is fully aware both of what Porsche must think about the night before (even if he ends up being wrong) and why the punishment was necessary.
During the night out with Tankhun Porsche is back in familiar territory, he starts to feel more like himself again and is back to wearing blue himself. I thought it’s really interesting that his conquest of the night was also wearing a dress in dark red, so Kinn’s colour, though i had to brighten the picture above a bit so it’s visible.
Porsche’s blue shirt is really obvious here, when he bashfully says goodbye to a snake. Bye snake, hope to never see you again :)
Ah damnit, forgot i needed to mention that Vegas has a red bike again. He does really like using red, which is interesting, because that seems to be mostly in direct relation to Porsche or Kinn...
Speaking of shady colours and/or people: here we have a nice frontal shot of the abduction-mobile that conveniently has green mood lighting to let us know it’s a seriously dangerous situation right now.
Meanwhile the inside is lit in blue, with a greenish tint, very similar to the lighting of Kinn’s firefight/escape in episode 1. I’d say its a bit more blue tbh, so likely a hint that Porsche isn’t as helpless as he looks right now, and already forming an escape plan with Kinn.
And while we’re on the topic of green, let me direct your attention to Pete’s outfit. So far we have mostly seen Pete in black and white, especially when outside his uniform, but this time we have some subtle green accents. I gotta be honest, i’m getting really worried for this sweet lil angel.
While on the topic of angels, let’s look at babies! These babies to be exact! Yes, you see correctly, Kim is finally wearing a colour i expected from him, so a shade of red. This red is much darker than Kinn’s burgundy as well, interesting since Tankhun, the older and arguably more innocent brother (by first impression), is a much lighter presence with his pinks. Kim however seems almost brooding with his very dark red.
In contrast Chay is back to blue again, like his brother. Gosh, i just love the attention to detail!
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More Colour Theory Meta:
Major Players: Porsche
Major Players: Kinn
The Intersection of Kinn and Porsche / Green
Kinn’s Colour: A revision
Episode 2; Significant Scenes
Episode 3; Significant Scenes (+Tankhun)
Episode 4; Significant Scenes
Extra: Hidden Messages YT Video
This is, again, dedicated to my IMM mates!
#kinnporsche meta#kp meta#kinnporsche#my IMM mates#Kinnporsche the series#kinnporschetheseries#my stuff#Colour Theory
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The Start Of A Family
Percy Jackson One shot
READ ON AO3
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The blanket started out small. Just 3 squares of fabric. Annabeth pointed out that if it was 3 squares it couldn’t really be a blanket, it was the wrong shape. Percy always said that he didn’t care, that it was theirs and it was special so it didn’t matter. A blue square, a grey one and a green. Percy, Annabeth and Grover. The beginning of a family.
The next summer a couple more were added, a second blue one and a patched red one. And so Sally and Tyson joined the family. That same summer Annabeth added two more; black and a bright blue joined the collection. Thalia and Luke. Her first family.
The summer after that Thalia added another one, this time her own. A new one. It was still blue, but this time she stitched on a yellow bolt of lightning and a bow, then gave it to Annabeth to pass on. Clarisse joined the mix at some point, a red square, it was charred and ripped and the edges but it was added nonetheless.
Through the years at camp more and more were added until it became a map of everyone who had lived and died. A soft red from Juniper, pink one from Silena, light brown from Beckendorf. Two purple ones from Castor and Pollux and when Castor died Pollux stitched his brother's name in silver thread onto his square. Yellow for Lee and a sort of cream colour for Micheal.
Chiron added a brown square that had additional stitches around the edge, Mr D begrudgingly added a purple one that shimmered in the light. Will added a pastel yellow one soon after the war. Then, once Malcolm sat down to add his, he stitched the names of everyone who died into their squares.
When Thalia returned to camp she added a silver one for Zoe, Annabeth added a new one for Luke, this one a dark blue. Rachel added a bright red one to the mix at some point and no one really knows when but the Aphrodite cabin got a hold of it, and the next time Percy pulled it out of storage there were 4 new squares in varying shades of pink scattered around the edges.
Travis and Conner added a teal, and bright pink square respectively. Saying that they were the most obnoxious colours they could find. Chris added a plain brown one, the fabric of that square was oddly soft Percy had noticed. A green one stitched with daisies was added by Katie soon after Chris added his.
And then Percy went missing and no one touched the blanket for a very long time. It was only when Jason, Piper and Leo got back from their quest, Grover returned from searching and they all knew where Percy was, did Annabeth pull it out of its box under Percy’s bed and take it to the campfire. Grover and Annabeth sat at the edge of the campfire with some of the younger campers telling the stories behind each square.
When Percy found it in his cabin on the Argo there was a new square, a light grey one, so light it was almost white. Whose is it? He’d asked Annabeth, she glanced at the blanket. Paul's, he's part of the family too. She answered.
It was only after the pair got back from tartarus did they add more squares: a gold, reddish brown, sky blue, orange and a dark pink. Hazel, Frank, Jason, Leo and Piper. They were part of the family now too. Whether they liked it or not.
It was around the same time that Percy sat down and stitched everyone's names into their squares. Not just the people who had died. Annabeth added another two patches, both silver, for Bob and Damasen. Bobs with a small gold cat stitched in the corner.
After the war with Gaea, the camps sat together and more squares were added. Purple, black, olive green. Reyna, Nico and Bianca. Various oranges, Nyssa, Harley and Jake. The blanket was getting bigger now, It could comfortably fit Grover, Annabeth and Percy under it now.
Camp Jupiter got hold of it at some point and Dakota added another purple one near his half-brother's set. Gwen added a pale yellow. Lavina predictably added a bright pink one.
Lester- Apollo ended up at camp at some point, while he was there a few more squares were added. An earthy green, shiny gold, bright orange and a dark grey. Austin, Apollo, Kayla and Meg. Meg was oddly hesitant about adding a square and everyone noticed how her eyes lingered on the bright yellow fabric, but no one said anything.
When Leo got back, they added a cinnamon coloured one for Calypso, and when the pair returned after seeing Jo, Emmie and Georgina they added a square for the family, a dark red patch that felt like velvet. That was when the Ares cabin added a few in varying shades of red and black.
When Jason died Thalia came back to camp and stitched a small pink heart in the corner of his square. Leo stitched a red one inside of that heart with surprising skill.
After the fight with Nero, Meg returned to camp and added a bright yellow square over her old one. No longer hesitant to add a patch to the family. The rest of her cabin added patches in a whole array of colour. Slotting them into the missing spaces. A purple and black square were added by Cecil and Lou Ellen at Will's insistence.
The blanket made its way through the camp, picking up squares from people they missed. Evening out the edges and fixing any big gaps in the fabric. It made its way back to the Athena cabin where they stitched up the edge and put it back in a box under Percy's bed. That's where the blanket sat. For years and years. Until Percy upon returning to camp, long after starting a life with Annabeth, found it there.
He sat on the edge of the bed running his hands over the fabric, his fingers seeking out missing stitches and particularly worn patches absently. Having long memorised the little imperfections. Annabeth found him there, with it in his hands staring at it.
The next time they saw Grover, the group sat under it, together, telling stories about their first adventures and reliving a time they never thought they would wish so desperately to go back to. When they were young and didn’t realise the pain and heartbreak that sat before them.
The blanket was big and worn with singed bits where it got too close to the campfire, there were holes where campers hadn’t lined up the squares properly. Sloppy stitches and crooked lines. The right side was uneven and a few of the squares had snarky messages stitched into them by older campers who were leaving, but it was made by them and they would never see some of the people who added to the blanket again.
It was a map of everyone who had lived and died, but it was also a map of the people who had joined the family, who had found a place to be loved, to love, even when the rest of the world didn't seem to want them.
So yes, the blanket wasn’t as small as it was in the beginning but that's only because their family had grown with them. And it was very much like the blanket, big, miss matched and messy. So yes, it was different, but amongst all the newer squares and marshmallow stains, sat the first three squares, A blue square, a grey one and a green. Percy, Annabeth and Grover. The beginning of a family.
And the beginning of a family it was indeed.
#oneshot#percy jackson#pjo#hoo#the riordanverse#percy jackson oneshot#hoo headcanons#percabeth#my writing#winters writing#posted on ao3#will be posted on wattpad at some point#friendship#bromance#tlt trio#thalia grace#jason grace#leo valdez#piper mclean#frank zhang#hazel levesque#nyssa pjo#jake mason#harley pjo#drew tanka#silena beauregard#clarisse la rue#the stolls#travis stoll#connor stoll
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I love pins too!!! What are your favorites???
omggg okay I’m glad you asked this because it made me actually sit down and pick out some favorites (it was so hard lol)
so. buckle up.
first off, there’s this absolutely gorgeous, gold metal LE50 Cody pin from ElectricInkStudios! They’re a smaller company, and I absolutely love the softness and detail of all their designs. I have their Rex and Obi-Wan pins too, but Cody is my fave. It’s so warm and sunny and goes perfectly with the sandstone-orange baseball cap I wear all the time!!
Next, this fuckin badass Ahsoka pin from Tomorrowlanddesign. I just loveee how detailed and dramatic the art style is!!!
Next, this LE66 pin of the 501st battalion from ZARPindom. I love pins with unique little details, and this one has a real cloth flag, handsewn by the grandma of one of the shop owners!! 🥺🥺
Also I love my “who the fuck is ahsoka tano” pin from Whatthewhatpins purely for its comedic value. Cracks me up every time I look at it tbh
Moving on, another of my favorites is this glow-in-the-dark holo Ahsoka pin from Hyperspacepins, as well as this beautifullll Threepio and Artoo pin from Punchitchewiepress!! Again, I love the Ahsoka pin because it’s so unique, and then honestly every PICP pin I own is just a work of art.
Then we have this awesome Plo Koon pin from TeamTanoAlive. I love how big and detailed it is and his pose is just so cool!! When it’s not summertime and boiling hot, I love wearing this pin on my farm overalls :)
Next up, more pins I love for their uniqueness:
1. Mando + Gideon’s TIE fighter by Macguffingoods! The little Din hanging off the chain is just. So good
2. Jedi holocron pin, another lovely one from Punchitchewiepress. The blue is sandblasted enamel and it is sooo pretty in the sunlight (I also have their Sith holocron pin and they go so well together!!!)
3. Death Star + Millenium Falcon pin from ZARPindom. These guys honestly always knock it out of the park with their pin designs, this one is absolutely gorgeous - from the silver plating to the translucent blue enamel to the screenprinted details on the Falcon and the TIE, I just love love love this pin!!
4. Mando flamethrower pin from bbcre8. It’s a sliding pin, so you can slide the flame back and forth as though it’s coming out of his vambrace! Again, just super unique and such a fun little detail :-) and the level of detail on the screenprinting is amazing!!
Last but certainly not least, all my clone helmet pins from FulcrumDawn. They honestly might be my favorite shop, and I could make a whole post talking about my pins of theirs! The one pictured below is of Captain Keeli, and I keep it on my backpack because the colors go so perfectly together. But I also have 11 of their other clone helmet pins and counting, along with some of their iron heart pins and a Sentinel pin! I just really love how they make pins of less popular characters. They’re coming out with a Colt pin soon and I’m definitely snagging that!! :’)
aaah okay this post is pretty long so I’ll stop but I definitely have more favorites!!! Like I said I could honestly make a whole post dedicated to my FulcrumDawn pins, or my PICP pins, or my Ahsoka pin collection, or my Mando pin collection, or or or —
Image IDs below the cut!
Photo 1
[Image ID: Enamel pin of Commander Cody from The Clone Wars. It is chest-up with his helmet on. The plating is shiny gold metal, and the enamel colors of his armor are shades of soft, muted orange and white. There is no black in the image, just dark gold for the shading. Behind Cody’s head is a large Galactic Republic wheel logo, edged in gold plating with white enamel for the blank spaces in between the spokes of the wheel. The pin itself is pinned on a sandstone-orange baseball cap. Below the pin are hand-embroidered desert plants - ephedra, rabbitbrush, and scarlet paintbrush. End image ID.]
Photo 2
[Image ID: Ahsoka bust pin held in my hand; it’s a bit longer than my fingers. The art style is kind of cartoony and dramatic. Ahsoka’s lekku are long, like they were in Rebels, and also her dark blue lekku markings are wavy like they were in Rebels. Her skin is dark orange, as though you were seeing her at dusk; her eyelashes are huge and dark, and her eyes are vivid electric blue. She is wearing a simple black cloak with silver trim, and a dark gray headband with a light gray stone set in the middle. End image ID.]
Photo 3
[Image ID: The first pin is of four 501st troopers, including Captain Rex, holding up a red cloth flag with a black Galactic Republic symbol on it; they’re in the pose of that famous Iwo Jima flag-raising photograph. they are wearing phase 2 armor and standing on brown dirt, and a discarded phase 2 clone helmet is half-buried in the dirt towards the right edge of the pin. The second pin is round and has a thin light blue border around the edge, followed by a thick band of dark blue with the words “WHO THE FUCK IS AHSOKA TANO” in light blue over top of the dark blue band. In the center of the pin is a padawan-aged Ahsoka; just her head and lekku. She’s wearing her akul-tooth headdress, and looking over her left shoulder and glaring at the viewer. End image ID.]
Photo 4
[Image ID: The first pin is another bust of Ahsoka... lol can you tell I love her?? With this pin, it’s just her lower back and up; she’s looking back over her right shoulder at the viewer, in the pose from that one scene in season 7 when she contacts Anakin. The pin is all light and dark blue, striped with pale white-blue like how the holograms in Star Wars look. You can’t tell from the picture, but the pin glows pale green in the dark. The second pin is a waist-up design of the droids Threepio on the left and Artoo on the right. It’s all gold plating, and Threepio is very shiny gold. He is resting his right hand on top of Artoo’s head. In the background is a jagged slice of space - black enamel with red, white, and blue dots of varying sizes to represent stars. End image ID.]
Photo 5
[Image ID: Large pin of Jedi Master Plo Koon. It’s about 4 inches tall. The design is him from the waist up, clad in his dark brown Jedi robe with the hood up, and wearing white clone armor vambraces and gauntlets, decorated with the 104th wolfpack symbol like he wore in the Clone Wars show. His right arm is stretched out and down, and he holds his blue lightsaber in a backwards grip, the blade extended up and behind him, extending past the left side of his head. His left arm is bent, his hand up near his face, and his fingers are extended, palm towards the viewer, as though he’s using the Force on you. End image ID.]
Photo 6
[Image ID: Pin 1 is a dark chrome enamel pin of Moff Gideon’s TIE fighter from The Mandalorian show. It’s sleek, dark gray and black. There is a metal loop on the bottom of the TIE fighter body, from which hangs a short dark metal chain; on the other end of the chain is another metal loop, attached to a tiny little Din Djarin pin. He is wearing his silver beskar armor, and one arm is reaching up above his head to hold onto the chain. His cape flares out behind him to the left, and his legs and other arm dangle down.
Pin 2 is a Jedi holocron, all gold plating and turquoise-blue sandblasted enamel that glitters in sunlight. It is a two-point perspective of the holocron, meaning you can see both the left and right sides and the top of it.
Pin 3 is the first Death Star, with chrome plating and light gray enamel and screenprinting to show all the details of the surface. It is a pin-on-pin design, and the Death Star is the lower pin; the pin attached over top of it is the Millenium Falcon, flying away from the Death Star, trailing blue light (shown with blue translucent enamel) and being pursued by a tiny dark gray and black TIE fighter. Red and white blaster bolts streak in front of and behind the Falcon, as if the TIE fighter is shooting at it.
Pin 4 is Din Djarin in his silver beskar armor, shooting his flamethrower out of his vambrace (forearm armor). He is facing to the left, and his right arm is held straight out in front of him, with the screenprinted orange-and-yellow flame shooting out from behind his arm. It’s on a sliding attachment, so you can slide it back behind him or fully extend it along his arm. His left arm is bent and his hand is held up in a defensive posture, as though to shield his face. The design shows him from mid-thigh and up, and his dark grayish cape swirls around him. End image ID.]
Photo 7
[Image ID: This is a pin of Captain Keeli from the Clone Wars. It is square on the left, right, and bottom edges; the top edge slants up from the left to the right top corners, so the pin forms a trapezoid shape. The pin shows his helmet, which is white with a light maroon-red border around his black visor, and darker maroon designs curling around the upper sides of the head and across the cheeks of the helmet. The curling designs resemble ram’s horns. The background behind the helmet is an even deeper maroon color, with a pale maroon ram’s horn curling design in the upper right corner. The pin is secured on my maroon red waterproof REI backpack; the fabric is the same shade as the ram’s horn designs on Keeli’s helmet. End image ID.]
#personal#asks#lol i could ramble about my pins for so long#star wars#star wars pins#enamel pins#pin collector#the clone wars#tcw#the clone wars pins#commander cody#ahsoka tano#501st battalion#r2d2#c3p0#artoo#threepio#plo koon#din djarin#captain keeli
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Stars Align
pairing: harry styles x y/n
warnings: fluff, ig you could consider it angst but its really just mysterious
word count: 2k
hello! i apologize for kind of disappearing, my fic rec account has kind of blown up and ive been super busy with that.
this is my entry for @sweetlygolden 's Harry On Holiday Challenge! i chose strangers in the same city, and the line prompt “That is the worst sunburn I’ve ever seen.” i honestly already have a part 2 planned out but we'll see how it goes!
“How much longer are you going to stare at that pretending like it’s interesting.��
Her soft voice surprised him, and he whipped his head around to see who had been speaking to him.
For the first time in a while, Harry was able to get away for a little. Of course, he travels a lot for work, but this was the first vacation since he can remember where he was alone, doing whatever he pleases. He chose Italy for this special occasion, because it’s always been one of his favorite places, and he missed the freedom of wandering around the boot shaped country without a care in the world.
The day's adventures had brought him to La Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, which is a museum that he's been wanting to see for quite some time. He started the day off by getting a cappuccino and a crespelle from a wonderful little cafe down the street from his hotel.
Right afterwards he walked to the museum, taking in the sights around him on the 20 minute trek to his destination. Before the woman behind him snatched his attention, he was staring at a painting of an abstract house. The house was only painted in blue, and the artist had used the different shades and tones of the color to create the details in the painting.
He had been staring at it for a good amount of time, which he assumed is what prompted the stranger to talk to him.
It’s his 3rd day on the trip, leaving him 4 more until he has to be back in L.A. for work. He has no plans, no schedules, no job to do. It’s just him and the world. At least, that’s what he assumed it would be. The vacation is supposed to be a solo one, however, he’s currently staring at a stranger that decided to speak to him. And for some reason, he is drawn to her. Compelled to spend time with her after just a simple sentence was spoken between the two of them.
When he fully turns around she jumped, a bit startled by his bright red complexion. “That is the worst sunburn I have ever seen!”
It was true, Harry had managed to get himself a nasty burn on the first day in Italy. He usually tans instead of getting a sunburn, but when you’re used to the dreary weather of the UK, it can be hard to forget how strong the sun is in other places.
So he had laid out on the beach and fell asleep, waking up a few hours later with tomato red skin and a burning sensation covering the exposed skin.
“That’s what happens when y’fall asleep on a beach in Rome,” he chuckled, smiling awkwardly at the woman before him.
She’s beautiful, there is absolutely no denying that. She was wearing a simple spaghetti-strap black dress that cut off right at the knee. There were no designs, no embellishments, just a black dress that hugged her figure perfectly. Her lips have a deep red lipstick smeared across them, and he couldn’t help but notice how the color complimented her skin tone. Her simple black pumps completed the outfit, and her hair was tied back in a loose ponytail, with a few of the front strands falling out of the hair tie and framing her face.
“I’d assume so.” Her demeanor is serious, even though there's a smile on her face. She’s…..intimidating?
Harry hasn’t been intimidated by anything since he was a teenager. Once you perform in front of thousands of screaming people, who also happen to idolize you, things don’t tend to phase a person anymore.
But for some reason, her presence caused butterflies to fly around in his stomach, a feeling he hasn’t felt in a long time. He actually enjoyed the feeling, it reminded him of when everything was normal.
What also reminded him of normality was the fact that she seems to not have the slightest clue of who he is. If she does, she’s sure as hell good at hiding it.
“You’ve been looking at the same painting for 10 minutes, just wanted to make sure you hadn’t fallen asleep.” A small laugh escaped her lips, and the noise agitated the fluttering butterflies residing in his tummy. Her voice is mesmerizing, and she sounds like what Harry imagines an angel to sound like. She has an American accent, and it eased his nerves slightly that she was also a tourist.
He turned back to the painting to look at it, but it was also convenient in that she wouldn’t be able to see his undoubtedly flushed cheeks.
“Yeah m’not sure what it is ‘bout it but there’s somethin’ special with this one.”
“That’s Prismi lunari by Fortunato Depero, he was very talented.” Harry spun around once again to face her, shocked at her knowledge of the random artwork.
“You know that off of the top of your head?” He tilts his head and looks at her, furrowing his brows in confusion. He’s pretty sure there was no label for the painting, and if there was it was way too small for her to see from where she’s standing.
“I know a lot of things.”
The statement was simple, but Harry wondered if her words paired with the smirk on her face are code for something else. “How long have you been here?” Her question snapped him out of his thoughts, and he looked up at her and smiled. He flicks his wrist and directs his attention to it, reading the Gucci watch adorning his wrist.
“Well I got here at 11, so about 5 hours.” It honestly surprised him when he realized it was 4 o’clock, but he knows how wrapped up he gets in artwork so he must have lost track of time.
“Jesus christ! I can barely stand to walk around a museum for an hour!” She blows out a puff of air, mocking being out of breath. They both laugh at her comment, Harry laughing a bit harder than her. “What’s your name?”
“Oh! M’Harry, s’nice to meet you.” He stuck out his ring-clad hand, and her delicate fingers wrapped around his as she shook it.
“Well Harry, wanna get out of here and walk around with someone who knows the city?” She points at herself, and the small smile she gave him earlier transformed into a silly grin.
“Well m’not sure how well an American can know the city, but I’ll bite.” Usually he would never do this. Going off with strangers is never a good idea, especially because of his status. But there’s something about the girl that makes Harry feel safe. They had just met yet he feels like he could trust her with things he hasn’t even told his best friends.
“An American who’s been living here for a year, that is.” His eyebrows raise slightly, intrigued by her new admission. But before he can even open his mouth to speak, she grabs his wrist with her daintily manicured hand and whisks him out of the quiet museum.
The air was humid, quickly drawing beads of sweat from his forehead. He’s also quite baffled at how she was completely unphased. Not a single drop of sweat was dripping on her body, her soft skin untouched like an old porcelain doll, preserved for years in perfect condition.
“I’ll show you around a little, we can go to this wonderful little vintage store I know.” She had turned to face him, her hand moving from his wrist to cup his one hand in both of hers. “Um- at least, if you want to.” For the first time, she was nervous. Although she will never admit it, Harry makes her extremely nervous. Extremely.
When he turned around when they first met, her jump of surprise wasn’t just because of his bright sunburn. In fact, it wasn’t about that at all. It was about how fucking attractive he is. He really looks like one of the statues that was put up in the museum. His sparkling green eyes send a shiver down her spine, and the tattoos peaking through his thin white t-shirt cause a fire to build in her stomach.
Having someone to talk too while he traversed the streets of Rome is a lot more enjoyable than Harry had anticipated. He purposefully told all of his friends that he was going to be MIA while on this trip. But the fact that she is a stranger changes it in some way, in a good way.
The cobblestone streets are surprisingly smooth, and they walk next to each other in a comfortable silence for a long amount of time. The silence would only break when she would point out something in their field of vision. At one point, Harry pauses, standing still in the middle of the street with a thinking look on his face. He realizes that he doesn’t know her name, which seems ridiculous to him because they were walking around a foreign country like the best of friends. She turns to him, matching his confused look when they lock eyes. “I just realized I don’t know y’name.”
Instead of reacting like he would expect one to react when asked that question, her pupils dilated and for some reason she appears to be scared. Why would someone be scared when you ask for their name?
‘Maybe she thinks her name is embarrassing’ Harry thought, still looking at her with a confused look, but now it was laced with a bit of suspicion.
He watches her sigh, and her hand went up to her ponytail and pulled the black elastic out, her soft hair cascading down her shoulders. With another sigh she said, “Y/N. My names Y/N.”
“That’s a really beautiful name.”
“Oh! There’s the store!”
He found it odd that she was so eager to switch the subject, but goes along with it nonetheless.
The vintage store is lovely, and Harry was able to find a beautiful ring and necklace set, matching gold roses on both of them. They looked around the shop for about 15 minutes, Harry being the only one to make a purchase.
The sun had set by the time they went outside, which isn’t surprising considering that it was almost dark when they walked into the little shop. They stood, facing each other outside of this small little shop in Rome. Two strangers, who just happened to cross each other's path. Harry knows this won’t last forever, and he also knows that he wants to see her again. In a leap of faith, he pulls the gold necklace out of the small brown bag and looks up at her.
“Here, I got them so we could match.” It was bold, but Harry feels connected to this girl, and he doesn’t know it, but she feels the exact same. The smile she gave him when he handed her the necklace was bright and genuine, the creases next to her eyes proving its authenticity. He motioned for her to turn around, wrapping the necklace around her neck and clasping it while she held up her hair.
“Thank you Harry. This is the best day I’ve had in a while.”
“Likewise.”
“I hate to do this, but I have to go. Have a wonderful rest of your trip Harry.”
It was then that she placed a small, tender peck on his lips, barely lingering for a second before pulling away.
“Wait! Can I get y’number?” Her smile slanted into a smirk, and she pulled a small card and a pen out of her small black clutch. She placed the card up against the brick wall, leaning it against it and scribbling something down on the paper. When she finished writing, she pressed her lips against the card, handing it to Harry.
He looked down at it, expecting to see a series of numbers, but he was met with a simple note, scribbled on the piece of cardstock next to the red lip print she had left.
May the stars align in our favor once again. - Y/N
He looked up frantically, planning to ask her to write her number down as well, but he was met with nothing.
She had disappeared into the night, leaving as quickly as she appeared earlier that day.
#HarryOnHoliday#harry styles#harry styles blurb#harry styles fanfiction#harry styles fic rec#harry styles fic#harry styles writing#harry styles one shot
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Pull the Stars Out of the Sky (And Gift Them to Me), pt. 4 (Ahkmenrah x Reader)
Description: He needs to listen. He needs to understand.
Notes: i havent been able to write recently bc ive been spending a lot of time with my boytoy but hes off being a firefighter rn so ive just been nonstop writing and drawing. its ridiculous. i finished pt 3 and 4 in like three days. WC: 5.5k
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There were less paintings in Thebes. White marble walls and pillars reigned supreme, a stark contrast from the colorful streets of Memphis. You decided not to bring it up, or at least not at the moment you realized it, as in that moment you were face to face with the mayor of Thebes. He was shaking Ahkmenrah's hand, a polite smile on his lips.
"It's good to see you again, Piye," Ahk said. You had to stop and go over the sentence again to make sure you heard it right. Piye wasn't on the same boat as yours, and wouldn't arrive for another day.
"As it is you, my King," the mayor replied.
A trail of servants, soldiers, and slaves passed both behind and in front of you, lugging the offerings to specific temples, and the royal belongings behind the Pharaoh. Haji was put to the use, as unfortunate as it was, and you couldn't help but apologize when he was asked to haul a massive reed basket full of dried dates.
"It's alright," he said, huffing with effort. "I've done this before. Not usually uphill, though."
"Sorry," you said again, wincing at the way sweat beaded on his forehead.
The massive block of shade casted by the royal house's overhang was a relief for those carrying items, and for Ahk as well, as this was his home-away-from-home. Images of Ahkmenrah remained painted across the walls, the only color in the crystal city. The Nile flowed steadily beside the house, short fences leading to a plentiful garden through which the water came, and date trees that grew taller than any building.
The mayor, who you slowly realized was also named Piye, left your group there with a bid for a good evening. Along with that, he invited the Pharaoh and you––his pet––to dinner with him and his family. You weren't sure how enjoyable that would be, but either way the decision was out of your hands.
Following Ahkmenrah, you found yourselves in a large room with a domed ceiling, tall arches framed by red curtains. Outside, trees rustled in the gentle wind with no hint of society. You silently cheered––it was better, you believed, to have a view of the land, rather than of the city.
"Tomorrow I shall take you on a true tour of the city," Ahk said, coming up behind you till his breath fell sudden on your shoulder. You jumped slightly, but arms around your waist stilled you, pulling you into an unfortunately familiar warmth. "How does that sound?"
You said nothing, staring into the silent night.
"We can go through the markets," he suggested, shifting so he held you tighter. "If you want for anything, I will give it to you. I'm sure you've gone through many markets unable to afford anything, so now's a chance to make up for some of that."
"... thank you," you said, very nearly whispered, as hesitance seized you fiercely. Giving into his words––you said you'd never do that. He was not threatening you in any way, so why would you try to please him?
"Are you tired yet?" He asked.
"Not especially," you said, voice still strained.
"How does a game of Senet sound, then?"
"I've... never heard of it," you said honestly, glancing to the side as your fingers fiddled with each other.
"Really? I think you'll quite like it. It's a game of wits and chance. Are you interested?"
You paused before saying, "sure."
He grinned, leaving you alone in the moonlit room as he raced to the servants bringing in his personal belongings. While you waited, you stared out the massive, pale arches, bright as the moon in the perfectly clear sky. Barely a breeze passed by, leaving the warm, humid climate to cling to your skin, slowing your breath as peace reached you. Thebes was nice––just not the city. The countryside was beautiful, and Ahkmenrah's home here was beautiful.
It was not hard for a room to be better than your previous room, tied up in the middle of inescapable stone walls, still you took special care to appreciate the freedom here. Yes, there was a large drop between the pristine upper floor and the ground, but that hardly mattered to you. By your reckoning, you could milk Ahkmenrah's affection for you. If he truly would not let you go, you might as well make the most of it, and earn whatever you longed for in your poorer life.
Steps echoing in the empty hall grew closer, leading to the creaking hinges of the large, wooden doors behind you. You turned, coming to see the Pharaoh grinning like a dope, entirely uncharacteristic for his royal attire.
"I brought my board from home, but I've got one here as well. Made of crystal and ivory, actually, but I don't like it as much as my wooden one," he said, rambling as he set the board down on the carpeted floor.
The board was presented as a tiny, rectangular table with black and red squares for the pieces to move on. Dark wood legs held up the board, within which was contained a drawer filled with the pieces, numbering two pairs of five. One style was a long pillar with a head on top, and the other was a round-base pyramid.
Over the course of the next couple minutes, Ahkmenrah explained the rules to you, how the pieces moved forward, and that whoever got all their pieces off first won. The basics were gone over, but you soon started without much knowledge on how to play. He taught as you went along, and soon you were truly playing, concentrated deeply on your strategy and how to win. There were a few different tactics you could try to slow down Ahk or speed yourself up, but as you grew engrossed in the game, you hardly noticed the smile spreading across the Pharaoh's face.
"You might actually beat me," he said as you took another one of his pieces, sending it back five paces.
"What, you didn't think I was smart enough at first?" You said with an almost sly grin.
"No, I – actually," he paused, "yes. Sorry. I might've underestimated you."
"Don't worry," you said, handing the dice to him. "You're not the first."
"Really?"
"I ran into this stand at one point. It was a man who took your coin and hid it under one of three cups, switched them all up, and asked you where the coins were. If you got it right, you were paid in double, and if you got it wrong, he took your money."
"Basic deal."
"Yes. I came as a young child, a stranger to the city. He thought I'd be easy prey, so he did his trick, but I noticed he was dropping the coins off the edge of the table and into his lap. So I pick-pocketed him for all the money he took from people."
"That... doesn't sound like he underestimated your smarts so much as underestimating your conniving."
"Perhaps so," you said, moving another one of your pieces to steal one of his, sending it back by three. "But for me, the two go hand in hand."
"I can see," he chuckled, his blush visible even in the moonlight.
After a long time spent finishing the game, as the last move off the board had to be an exact number, you won mostly by chance. Still you cheered, grinning satisfied as Ahk held his head low in failure. He chuckled though, his shoulders shaking with the silent laughter, bringing you great gratification.
"Where did you learn these tactics?"
"Ever been to Nubia?"
"A couple times," he said, looking to the side as he attempted to recall it. "My father was rather cruel to them, so I try not to visit too much. They don't really like the royal family."
"Understandably so," you said with crossed arms, watching him deftly pick up the pieces and cram them back in the drawer. "They memorized your father's military movements, and I assumed you learned your own tactics from him. Applying that to the fact that you're more passive aggressive than actually aggressive, I decided you'd probably be more on defensive, creating strong barriers instead of stealing my pieces."
"... Wow."
"You're also less likely to overcome my pieces because you're trying to gain my favor."
"Okay, I don't need an in depth analysis of my childhood and psyche," he said, holding his hand up but still laughing.
"You asked," you reminded him.
"I did. And I'd like to hear more, when I'm conscious enough to actually understand it," he said as he set away the board. He returned quickly to you, pulling you into a tight hug, before promptly releasing you with a kiss to your neck.
"Tired?"
"Mhm," he hummed, hand trailing down to tangle in yours.
Once affirmed of your presence, he led you along the barren, white floor, your reflections standing beneath you with chests pressed together. The plush of linen sheets and pillows caught you when he pushed you, and soon your body was cradled by the bed and overshadowed by the Pharaoh above you. Crownless, barren of cape or gold, and caught enraptured in your eyes.
As he loomed above you, seemingly caught in his adoration for you, you noted with much confusion that you were breathing normally. Your heart raced horribly in your chest, that still remained a constant sickness. Yet your muscles relaxed, sleepiness seeping into your bones, hypnotized by his loving gaze.
"You're cute," he said with a sudden, wide smile. You huffed, rolling your eyes as you put your hands on his face, pushing him away. He just laughed, falling over onto his back.
"Go to sleep," you told him, lying down on your side.
"Very well. But in the morning," he leaned over your turned shoulder, kissing your cheek, "be ready to be out in public with me."
His arms once more wrapped tight around your middle, tugging you into his heat as he tucked you under his chin. You had several questions, both concerning his statement and other things, but you decided to wait until tomorrow. Tears were budding in your eyes from your incessant yawning, and sleep was a blink away.
You dreamed of a lake that night––laced with lily pads, blue and purple petals sprouting from green buds. Inside each pocket full of pollen, a sun glowed and illuminated your searching fingers. A black stone sky towered above you, dark and cold with wind, creating a deep contrast between it and the warm water.
You awoke to a different stone sky, shaped in the same dome. This one was made of white quartz, carved delicately, and lit by the strength of the sun. Recognition came to you instantaneously, and you recalled the trip to Thebes and the game from the night before. The only difference was the absence of heat, of pressure on your waist, breath on your neck. Sitting up, you realized you were alone in the room. How rare a chance––unsupervised, with massive windows beside you that you could easily climb out of.
Before you could even think of how to act in the presence of such opportunity, the doors slowly opened, revealing Ahk with a tray in his hand. You furrowed your brow. Couldn't he have asked one of his servants to get that? Or in the very least, open the door for him.
"I have never claimed to be a chef. I want you to know that before you eat this," he said, which was a very alarming thing to be told before being presented a meal.
"Ummm..."
"That sounded bad. Let me restart. I am not a very good cook, but I did what I could."
"Why can't the chefs cook?"
"I'm not asking anyone to work during the Opet festival," he said with a frown, before calling out, "Naguib?!"
"Yeah?" He called back, footsteps soon nearing.
"What about him?" You asked.
"Oh, he's not here for work," Ahk said in a bright tone, looking over his shoulder to see Naguib entering the room.
"I'm just here to make sure he doesn't burn down the house," Naguib chuckled, leaning on the door frame.
"Yes, and thank you for that. Come here," Ahk said, motioning the servant either. He dutifully obeyed, and Ahk pulled out a small pouch, handing it to him. "Have fun."
"Thank you, sir," Naguib said, bowing to the King before ducking out.
"Funny little man, that," Ahk said once he was sure Naguib was out of sight.
"How so?" You asked, mildly amused at their antics.
"He's the only one who can switch readily between free time and work time. Not many people have that switch, you know," he said, turning back to you.
"Do you?"
"I like to think so. What do you think?" He raised himself to tower above you, his expression suddenly falling into a shadowed cold. "Can I put on the face of a King?"
That cocky bastard knew the answer perfectly well. A man so aware of his own emotions, of the way he carried himself, would obviously know about this aspect of himself. Many go their whole lives without ever cracking into who they truly are; but not the Pharaoh. He knew every crevice of himself, and he used it to his advantage. Every weakness hidden. Every strength glorified.
"I'll take that as a yes," he said, a cocky smirk on his face as you emerged from your thoughts.
You frowned.
"Oh, don't pout now, pet," he cooed as his finger trailed down the side of your face. "Let's see how breakfast turned out, hmm?"
He soothed and gained your vice attention at once with that little motion, that little motion he'd used a number of times before. Like himself, he had taken it upon himself to know you, to understand why you reacted in certain ways just as much as how you reacted. His expression gave little of that information away, so instead you turned to the tray and scanned its' contents.
You first noticed the wooden bowl of dates, set off in the corner of the platter beside two slats of seared meat. In the middle of it all was the largest plate, upon which he had placed an array of stirfry vegetables, garnished with an anise flower. Two cups were set to the side, filled with a faintly yellow tea. You reached for that first, as you had no idea what it was, and curiosity was always your main concern.
"What is this?" You asked, scanning the drink thoroughly.
"Blue lotus tea. Couldn't find any stores of beer, and I wanted to show you the flower. It's quite helpful in a number of things, medicinally... and recreationally," he said, biting at his bottom lip as he took the other glass.
"So... a drug," you said, raising a single brow.
"You could say that," he said as he took a sip, never breaking eye contact with you.
"Why don't I trust you?"
"Because I'm untrustworthy," he said, winking.
In the end you did end up drinking the tea, and the honey stirred within the warm water had you finishing the entire cup. Along with that, the two of you ate the various dishes Ahk had made with the help of Naguib, finding most of them––in the very least––edible. The meat was definitely burnt, and the stirfry was a little heavy on the anise. Overall, not bad––you probably shouldn’t expect more than that from a Pharaoh who had been handfed all his life.
He dressed himself once all was said and done concerning breakfast, twirling in the mirror to scan every inch of his outfit. There was no effort within it to conceal his identity as Pharaoh––in fact, it was enlarged, prominent and obvious on every golden brace and silk thread imbued within it. A regal, tall crown made of gold and bearing a poised cobra ended it all off, concealing the soft brown curls atop his head.
A few questions remained on the tip of your tongue, waiting for your brain to decide it was the right time to ask. After a little while of holding back, you decided that the 'right' moment would never come, and asked your question forthwith.
"Why are we here again?" You asked, thoughtlessly rubbing the sheets between your thumb and forefinger.
"The Opet festival," he answered, preening his cape. "It's an event that celebrates the strength of the Pharaoh. It'll be my first... since my father gave up the throne. We pray and make offerings to Amun, and the commonfolk are welcomed to ask their own prayers upon Amun's statue. Perhaps you've noticed it?"
Ah. That would explain the 11 foot tall statue made of gold.
"We'll be celebrating wealth for a little while, but in a week we take the barge to Luxor, where we shall enter the temple of Amun, and hopefully converse with the Gods. Amun, specifically."
"Yeah, I gathered that much. So all that food... it's offerings for this God?"
"Some of it, yes. Everyone brings their own offerings, and as I am a man of plenty, I brought plenty of offerings. It is also our duty as the government and protector of the people to replenish my citizens' energy, and so much of that food is actually for those who travel days and weeks to pray at Amun's feet. You, and the worshippers of Amun, will be well-looked after," he said, taking your hands softly in his and coercing you to your feet.
"Is that how it's always been?"
"As long as I remember. It wavers with cruel leaders... but never really vanishes. Our magic is as important as night and day, essential as fruitful trees, and as entwined with our lives as water. It is hard to break the worship engrained in generations."
While he spoke, he began to undress you, pulling at the buttons and knots until the fabric fell from you. Off your shoulders, off your hips, down your arms, until the white linen pooled on the marble floor. Soon you stood naked before him, but he kept his eyes on yours. Never strayed from your given attention.
"I know you don't adhere to our religion. I want you to know I don't mind. I would not force you into anything, especially not something as controversially widespread as religion," he said, cocking his chin upwards with a smile.
He took your hand again and led you out of the room. Chill breeze brushed by your naked stomach, sending shivers down the sensitive skin so readily bared. Once you reached the main entrance room, he let go of your hand, kneeling to dig into one of the massive bags packed before the trip. Most of them had been dumped in the front room, as the servants and soldiers were tired and ready for sleep the night before.
You attempted to look over his shoulder, an endeavor that was fruitless as it was needless. Soon he found what he was looking for, and he turned to you, presenting it in his open arms.
"Your clothes. From before. I had them washed and packed," he said, handing them to you.
Everything was there. Your long, red vest coat, your skirt with the panel tied into the waist, your buttoned shirt with the collar raised high onto your neck. Things you didn't genuinely expect to see again, and certainly not in the same shape as before.
"Thank you," you murmured, brow furrowed as you flipped through the layers. Without haste you pulled on the skirt, settling into your stolen shirt and the long coat over it. The only thing missing was your weapon––a staff with two spikes hammered into the end. Not the greatest weapon, but it served you well.
"New places can make me nervous, and personally it helps when I have something familiar with me. So I understand why you wanted them back."
"Yes, it's... good to be back in my clothes. Your style is a little much for me," you confessed, remembering the dress with no coverage of your chest except the straps holding the skirt up. A skirt that was see through.
"That's alright. I'm confused by yours as well."
If you were told anything by the various Egyptians you'd met in your travels, it was that Egypt was hot. Always sunny. Always humid. As you looked upwards, wide eyes meeting the grey sky, you nearly jumped. It had been a while since you'd seen a fully overcast sky, where clouds blocked out the sun and the horizons.
"Hmm," Ahk hummed as the two of you left the tiny palace, his hand encasing yours.
"Is it usually like this here?" You asked, looking up to Ahk. To your surprise, you had to squint, the sun still shining bright, white light through the fog.
"No," he said, beginning to walk down the steps, and taking you with. "Actually, it's usually a tad warmer than Memphis. No problem. I'm sure it'll clear out before the ceremony. We've got a week, after all."
He took you into the unfamiliar streets, through graffitied walls until stone turned to marble, great pillars surrounding a massive circle market. Stalls of various types spiraled down into the middle, where a towering obelisk overlooked all trade. Indecipherable hieroglyphs lined each side, though the base of the black stone remained invisible, hidden behind wooden stalls.
Once you entered the center, you noted brick beneath your feet, black stones running into a spiral in the midst of the white bricks. If you followed the path of the black stones, you would find yourself in the center of the market. As tantalizing as that exploration sounded, your hand was firmly set in Ahk's palm, and he had different plans.
You must've passed by a dozen carts before he finally stopped, halting you before a wooden stand showcasing a number of scarves. Each held a sheerness so intricate that you could see straight through it. The seller noticed your amazement, an amazement that had to be common, as he knew exactly what had caught your attention.
"These are made out of silk from China. Wonderful seamstresses they have, there. So thin you may draw the whole shawl through a common ring," the seller said, thumbing through a couple before pulling a blood red scarf out from beneath the stack.
He pulled a ring off his finger, and with great care, threaded the whole scarf through it. Before you could even react to the performance, Ahk was pulling a handful of coins out of his purse and setting them on the counter. The seller grinned, thanked him for the purchase, and just like that the interaction was complete. Ahk took your hand once more and led you away, continuing through the outer ring of the market.
"Beautiful color, isn't it?" He said, watching the way it wrinkled and fell in his hand. You made to nod, but paused as his arms drew over your head, placing the scarf over your shoulders.
"This is yours," you tried to say, but he shushed you, tutting sweetly.
"It's yours. And it looks fantastic on you," he said with a smile, pulling your entwined hands to his lips, where he kissed the back of your hand.
You pressed your lips into a thin line, trying your best not to say anything. That's how this day would go––he would buy you anything you looked at, flaunt his wealth in your face, utterly spoiling you in front of a whole city. Already your face felt as though it were aflame, nervous eyes set fiercely on the ground in front of you.
Along the way, Ahk stopped at a few jewelry carts, where he bought you an array of golden bracelets, faience necklaces, and ivory rings. It wasn't long till there was barely any room left for new gifts, though you suspected that was his plan.
"Here," he said, pausing your stride with a hand on your chest. "One of my friends here in Thebes runs a bakery. He makes the best tiger rolls I've ever had."
Must be good considering how much of them he's had, you thought dully. As usual, you kept your thought to yourself, and followed Ahk inside without complaint.
You were no longer scared of Ahk, you realized, watching him greet his friend with a gusto you rarely ever saw. He was just... irritating. Annoyingly sweet, painfully perceptive, and desperate to earn your favor. The things he dragged you along to do with him were the worst––markets too crowded for your tastes, too rich and uptight for your liking, or boats that you clearly stated you were uncomfortable being on.
The only good part was that outside, he didn't pay as much attention to you. While sitting around in the palace, his hands wandered you constantly, eyes set unmoving upon your body. He memorized those curves, the dips, the intricate veins, and the way you moved in those long hours. Outside, he was preoccupied with other stimulus and left you mostly alone.
Bitterness settled on your tongue. Your old routine was entirely lost, cast to the wind by the Pharaoh's greedy hands. The routine you loved, that kept you sane, and more importantly, kept you moving.
"Do you want anything, Amoke?" Ahk asked, leaning in to speak more intimately. You, of course, shied away, but was mostly stopped by Ahk's hand on your upper arm.
"Um... no. I'm not very hungry," you mumbled, and though he paused to glare suspiciously at you, he relented.
"Alright," he said, kissing your forehead before rushing back to the counter.
With a bag of tiger rolls in hand you left, Ahk continuing to pull you along just as before. This time he did take you down the spiral, and as you passed each stall, you realized it was a conglomeration of different cultures; an amalgamation of the western world. Art from Mali caught your eye. You had gone through there a few times, and the style of their statues had always intrigued you.
The Pharaoh noted your interest, and paused to take you there. He let you decide what you wanted, payed for it in full, and complimented your taste.
"You have a good eye," he had said, "for the divine."
"The divine?" you repeated, looking down at the statue. The form of a plush woman lay in your hands, smooth stone showcasing wide hips, large breasts, and a tiny head.
"A woman, a mortal who creates life, is as close to Gods as we will ever be," he said, looking over your shoulder to scan the figure as well.
The crowd had yet to notice the golden fabric of a Pharaoh, but the singular citizens who did notice were shellshocked, and hadn't the right mind to react at all. Dumbfoundedness gave way the closer you got to the center of the market, and by the time the black pyre casted you entirely in shadow, people were bowing at the King's feet, murmuring astounded praise as he passed by.
You looked up to gauge Ahk's mindset, finding something that terrified you more than it should have; he was smiling. Self-satisfied, pride puffing out his chest, silently declaring their praise to be a necessity.
A man intoxicated by his own fumes is dangerous––you knew that all too well, and fear began to seep back into your image of him, sending mold that tore down your irritation and replaced it with nauseous anxiety. His hand holding yours was now an anchor that sank you into a bottomless sea, instead of the earlier annoyance.
The combination of your own growing panic and the increasingly loud and desperate voices of the crowd sent you into overdrive. Hands reached up from bowed heads to touch the face of Ahkmenrah, to feel his grace and holiness overtake their bodies. Prayers surrounded you, and with the Pharaoh preoccupied, you fell to the ground and crawled out of the mass of the black land's people.
Once free from the writhing confines, you left the market sniffling, headed for somewhere lonelier. You hated to rely on others to heal you, but for a moment you longed for Haji. He had been kind to you. He would understand. Ahkmenrah didn't, and he never would––you swore this to yourself, your back sliding down the graffitied wall of someone's home.
Hiding your face in your hands, you pressed your knees to your chest, and curled up tight. No one would bother you; you looked like a homeless person, after all.
"Amoke?" Came a soft voice from above you.
You didn't move.
"Let's get home," Ahk murmured, his hands slowly moving up your arms till he gracefully pulled you to your feet.
Your eyes, once hidden and blurred, now opened to the grey light of today.
Ahk had no clothes on.
That was the first thing you noticed. The second thing you noticed was that he was smiling apologetically at you, nervous tics appearing as he chewed on his lip.
"Why are you naked?" You asked in a pathetically weak voice.
"Well, um... it was a little hard to leave the crowd, so I removed all my identifiers. They'll probably steal my clothes, so, um.. hopefully Naguib packed my other nice outfit," he said, beginning the walk back home. You followed quickly behind, still going over his bare skin.
"You could've left your underwear on, you know," you said.
"Oh." He paused. "The thought hadn't occurred to me."
You chuckled weakly, half-hearted as you trudged up the little hill. By the time you reached the doors of the tiny palace, the silence had stretched uncomfortably between you, and you were eager to hide away.
Ahk pulled the door open for you and said, "I'm sorry, by the way," before following after you and shutting the door behind him. The click of metal echoed in the empty, marble house, bouncing off the bare walls.
"For what?" You asked, unable to face him as your voice cracked.
"Bringing you to the market while I'm all dressed up. I knew I would get a lot of attention, but I didn't know how it would affect you," he said as he wrapped his arms around your waist, pulling your head into his chest to hug you.
For a moment you were comforted, until you very abruptly realized that he was still naked. At that point you wriggled out of his grasp, though your plan backfired a little, as the moment you drew away your eyes scanned the entirety of him, from his feet to his head, and he ardently noticed your interest. Your panic had absorbed you so entirely that you hardly felt your cheeks burning with a bright red blush.
"I'll... go put some clothes on," he said with a smile, shaking his head.
He left you alone in the big, empty drawing room, occupied by a vacant kitchen on the far side of the house, and three bags of luggage laid haphazardly in the middle. Your steps that took you deeper into the walls echoed around you, causing you to move slow and careful.
Eventually you explored the whole of the room, finding a small door to the right of the entrance, one that led into a long pathway. The chill wind snuck through the thick hedges as you padded down the stone walkway, lines of sand between the rocks sticking to the bottom of your feet. Through the thin walls, you glimpsed a sliver of a garden, the sight of a white fountain bringing the sound of rushing water to you.
The fountain, alabaster centerpiece of the small garden, flowed with crystal clear water that pooled on the ground in such depth that lilies had sprouted from the bottom. Green pads floated on the cool water, and the blue lotus flowers were all closed up in the sun's absence. The trail that had led you there continued within it, circling the fountain, and ultimately leading to a small, sandstone gazebo.
You sat on the gazebo's step, elbow on your knee as you leaned your cheek on the palm of your hand. Here the wind was not as harsh, only occasionally brushing against your hair, though the cold had yet to cease. It was a good explanation for the silent garden, barren of animal life. No, this was a haven of silence, of loneliness, and of plants. Beautiful, quiet plants.
As many things as there were on your mind, there was nothing truly in your head. Abstract ideas and emotions relating to your position, to your relationship with Ahkmenrah, to the tired nerves burnt out from your earlier panic.
"It's a bit cold," Ahk murmured in his low voice, placing a blanket over your hunched shoulders.
You whirled around to see Ahkmenrah standing above you, fully clothed. With a slight huff he sat down beside you, settling onto the hard step, his thigh pressed to yours.
"I hate my life," you mumbled, falling and landing on Ahk. You could feel the way he tensed, how his breath caught in his throat at the given contact.
"I –"
"And it's all your fault," you said, face still hidden in his shoulder.
"... I know."
#ahkmenrah x reader#Ahkmenrah#Night at the Museum#rami malek#rami malek character#ahkmenrah x male reader#ahkmenrah x female reader
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Past-Present-Future Black Dahlia
Two major tragedies bring Lee Mirae closer to the edge as she goes through the stages of grief in a more violent manner that would affect not only her relationships with her boyfriend Jeong Yunho and her half-brother Choi San, but also has her becoming closer with the immortal mutant Kang Yeosang. Fueled by rage, grief, and pain, along with a very rude awakening that has Mirae spiraling out of control and questioning everything she holds dear.
Group: ATEEZ Member: Yunho Pairing: Jeong Yunho / OC Genre: Action, adventure, angst, fantasy
Watch Out! : Violence, blood, death, grief and loss, major character deaths, use of weapons, some jealousy (but no cheating ofc), implied smut (not sure if there is any but i’m putting it out there nonetheless), mental illness (probably?), gambling and alcohol
Anything else? : Mentions of other idols of course as well as other characters. SuperM, Dean, Chanyeol, Zelo, soloist Park Jihoon to name a few.
Author’s Note: SuperM hello. Also, sexc car chase scene with Yeosang driving. This hasn’t been proofread much, so sorry for the errors you might see.
Listen to: Dark - Hans Zimmer
Masterlist
Chapter 4
Yeosang glanced over at Mirae, who was still blankly staring out the window. She had been that way in the first few hours of the drive. He wouldn’t admit it, at least right away, but with the silence coming from her, Yeosang was even more convinced that she was that sad. Dare he say it, he was beginning to feel a little concerned yet knew that sometimes the polite thing to do was not to say anything about it. The music playing on the radio acted as white noise between them, and Yeosang was hardly even listening to the songs.
Mirae looked down at her hands, feeling the deck of playing cards in her jean pocket. She barely had time to think about how expensive the clothes she was wearing were - Yeosang’s excuse was that the Dior boutique was the nearest. Mirae wanted to scoff right then and there, but she was impressed at how he got her clothes that fit her.
Her thoughts were going back to how she left Yunho. How she left him unconscious in Yeosang’s apartment while hoping San got to him, or anyone at least. A feeling of guilt was setting inside even in the midst of the overwhelming feelings of sadness and rage. Was it even possible to feel like this? She wasn’t sure. “How did you meet them?” She suddenly asked.
“Who, my dear?”
“The one you’re taking me to.”
“It’s not just one person. They’re a small group of people, people like us,” Yeosang replied, glancing at her from time to time as they entered a flyover, cars intersecting above and below them. “They felt they were above the place we lived in, so they uh, how should I say it? Created their own little world.”
“So how did you meet them?”
“I met them through another immortal. His name is Mark Lee. I’ve known him for centuries. We were rivals for the affections of Emperor Octavian’s daughter, Julia. Amazing woman in every way possible,” A smirk crept up on Yeosang’s lips as he remembered. “I nearly became an emperor if Mark hadn’t intruded that one night.”
“To this day, I still don’t know how old you actually are.”
Yeosang chuckled. “My dear Mirae, age is not important, especially my age. When I met Mark again, in recent… shall we day, decades? Or at least some few years ago, he introduced me to a group of mutants he was friends with. Some of them are quite powerful, one of them, I think, is an omega-level mutant like you.”
“I guessed as much, if they thought they were so superior,” Mirae looked out the window.
“We’ll see about that. Sometimes, mutants only intimidate others just by mentioning their powers, empty threats even though they could deliver on it, lessens the dirty work but it gets into their heads,” Yeosang said. Glancing at the rearview mirrors, he noticed three black cars in a formation behind them. “My dear, if you could assist me a little bit, I think we are being followed.”
Mirae looked over her seat at the three cars that seemed to move closer while Yeosang kept his foot on the gas to drive faster. “I wonder who they could be,” She watched for any signs of movement from the driver’s seats. Mirae saw a set of small rockets come out from the lights on the bumper. “They plan to kill us. Do you know them?”
“No I don’t, I promise you,” Yeosang swerved a few times past several cars only for the three black sedans to be able to keep up.
Mirae shook her head at the sight of the sedans keeping up, one of which was already across from them. There were spikes that extended from the rims of the wheels. The car bumped into them, Mirae clutching the armrest. “They plan on destroying your car while they’re at it,” She said, her eyes glowing red as she stared at the car next to them. The tires exploded, sending the car skidding, the rear hitting their vehicle.
“Damn,” Yeosang kept the car in its lane. “Very good, my dear Mirae. Perhaps you can do something about the other two?” He said, swerving several times so as not to bump into the cars surrounding them to get ahead.
Mirae took out one card from her pocket and threw it as hard as she could at the other sedan that caught up to them. The sedan exploded, the impact of the explosion moving them forward. “If they’re your friend’s bodyguards, then I think they don’t want us coming,” She said, her eyes still glowing. “Not that I care.”
She eyed the remaining black sedan that was following them that launched a rocket. Mirae looked at both the rocket and the car, both exploding in the middle of the road. The remaining cars began to cluster towards them. “Apparently, they were everywhere all along. The way must be heavily guarded, or that they don’t want us going,” Yeosang glanced at the rearview mirrors.
Mirae stayed still, staring at all the cars in front of them. Her eyes were glowing brighter than ever as she kept her gaze on them, the vehicles exploding one by one. She glanced at the rearview mirror on her side, the cars behind them exploding one by one as well, the smoke from the explosions blocking their view of the road.
“Thank you, my dear,” Yeosang drove on through the thick smoke in the air. “All this smoke means we’re getting close.”
The color of the smoke changed from the usual gray and black to white as he moved forward. The glow in Mirae’s eyes faded just as the smoke began to fade, only to see that their surroundings had changed.
Past the wide roads of the highway, they were at the entrance of a dreary lakeside village. “This is where they live?” Mirae glanced at him.
Yeosang chuckled. “No, they live up there,” He pointed to the nearby cliff. There was a white mansion molded in the usual 1930s art deco style that Mirae noticed in the immortal mutant’s apartment.
Mirae noticed that the residents in the village seemed to dress differently, as if wearing different variations of the hanbok. The anger seeped in again, knowing that they were approaching the home of who may have been behind the explosion of the Danger Room, behind the deaths of Chanyeol and Hyuk. Yeosang drove on, down the route of the mansion’s driveway, the sight of the house growing bigger and bigger until they finally approached the gate.
Two guards were standing by and stopped them. “Name?” They asked.
“Kang Yeosang and Lee Mirae. One of them is expecting me by now,” Yeosang replied.
The gates opened on its own and the guards stood by for their vehicle to enter the grounds. As soon as they pulled up, they saw someone standing by the front doors, dressed undoubtedly like he owned the place, but also that he was strikingly handsome. One half of his coiffed hair was blonde, the other side was red. His eye on the blonde side was also blue, the other a dark brown. He was smiling as they pulled up, opening Mirae’s door.
“Hello,” He said as she got out, taking her hand and kissing it.
“Taeyong, quite a greeting you’ve got there,” Yeosang pointed out, tossing the key to the valet.
The male with the name turned to Mirae again. “Forgive my manners, or lack of. I’m Lee Taeyong and I own this house. It’s nice to meet you at last.”
Lee Taeyong was an omega-level mutant like Mirae. Taeyong was an omega-level psychic that could not only read minds, but could also control a person’s mind and manipulate their memories. Taeyong also had the extraordinary gift of turning into organic diamond, making him almost invulnerable to harm and giving him added strength and a psychic shield. However, Taeyong’s limitation was the fact that he could not use his telepathy while he was in his diamond form.
Mirae glanced at Yeosang and before she could speak, he shook his head. “It’s not him you’re going to see,” He advised.
Taeyong smirked. “You must be jumping for joy now that you’re on a drive with the apple of your eye,” He glanced at Yeosang. Turning back to Mirae, he let go of her hand. “That’s what he was thinking. He thinks very loudly.”
“My thoughts are not for you to read, Taeyongie, as I’m sure your brother has taught you that much. Taemin, where is he?” Yeosang asked.
“He’s attending a business meeting. He won’t be here until tonight. But Mark is here, I guess you haven’t seen him in a while,” Taeyong replied. “Come in, come in, I can’t read your thoughts but I can read his and I know who you plan on seeing. Don’t bother taking off your shoes in the main area.”
He turned around to lead them inside. The interiors were decorated in shades of black, gold, and white on marble similar to Yeosang’s home. Mirae and Yeosang followed him further down the hall and they stopped in front of two mahogany doors. “At least one of us couldn’t be read,” She muttered to him.
Taeyong opened the doors, leading into what looked like a parlor, with red velvet couches and chintz chairs, mahogany chests of drawers in the same art deco style, and a crystal chandelier in the ceiling. They saw two people by the fireplace drinking champagne in crystal flutes, watching a drama on a tv that was placed above the mantle. Mirae felt her heart drop as the two figures, whose backs were turned, looked familiar.
“They’re here,” Taeyong announced, making the two people turn around.
Mirae’s eyes widened, looking like a deer caught in the headlights upon seeing their faces. “...Baekhyun? … Jongin?”
The shorter and paler of the two, Baekhyun, smiled. “Mirae, Mirae, Mirae, long time no see,” He said.
Byun Baekhyun was skilled in manipulating and creating light and light energy. Baekhyun was also skilled in hand-to-hand combat, specializing in hapkido. Kim Jongin had the ability to teleport, leaving a wisp of black smoke in his wake.
“It’s been years, hasn’t it?” Jongin spoke this time, approaching her. “You look like you’ve been through a lot.”
Mirae still couldn’t speak. She was too stunned to utter a word. All this time, Baekhyun and Jongin survived the Seoul attack but had never made themselves known. “Hello to you too, Yeosang,” He glanced at the vampiric-looking mutant, who nodded. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” He said to Mirae.
“I couldn’t blame her, we haven’t exactly seen her since that day,” Jongin patted her shoulder. “Do you like our new place? It’s not underground like the Center, but it’s here in this little village, it’s cozy,” He gestured for her to sit down while they did the same. “Mark’s here too, by the way, he’s probably off playing tennis or something.”
“So, what brings both of you here? I doubt it’s because the weather’s nice in this place,” Baekhyun poured her a glass of champagne. Mirae quietly accepted the drink, staring at the bubbles.
“Don’t act clueless, you know why they’re here,” Taeyong chimed in, giving the elder a look.
“Taeyong, it’s rude to read other people’s minds without their permission,” Baekhyun chided. “Even if I already know, it doesn’t hurt to ask to make sure. They might be misleading you, even in that respect.”
“I don’t have the capability to be paranoid when I can read everything like an open book,” Taeyong rolled his eyes. “Dinner is already prepared, by the way, I’ll call Mark-”
He stepped back when out of thin air appeared Mark himself. Unlike Baekhyun, Jongin, and Taeyong, Mark was dressed in a pinstripe suit. Yeosang’s expression stiffened upon seeing him. Mark Lee was, like Yeosang, an immortal mutant whose fortune over the centuries led him to own a business empire that had bases in both South Korea and Canada. Mark had the ability to teleport anywhere and everywhere he chose while also possessing a strong telepathic ability. Mark was also considered a doctor among his peers who studied Languages though he barely put that knowledge of his to the test as he usually tackled his businesses.
“No need,” Mark said, stopping at the sight of Mirae and Yeosang. “Brought her here to meet them, ‘Sang?” He asked.
“As a matter of fact, I did. Ruined anyone’s pursuits lately, Mark?” Yeosang shot at him, watching him take Mirae’s hand and gently kiss the back of it in greeting.
“As long as it’s your pursuits, which I can tell is this lovely woman in front of me,” Mark said.
“I’m taken,” Mirae pointed out.
Mark glanced at Yeosang. “Oh? You have pursued her? This is going to be fun.”
Mirae pulled her hand back, seeing Baekhyun and Jongin’s amused expressions. “I’m guessing you’ve been living your lives here all this time,” She said.
“Well, yeah, since the Seoul attack,” Baekhyun nodded. “Before you two arrived, we were all discussing a business venture we were looking to carry out in the capital. Maybe you could help us out, Yeosang?”
“Me?”
“Yeah, Mark and Taeyong have the capital to build it on, maybe some added manpower would help make the project solid. Let’s talk about this over dinner,” Baekhyun said, gesturing to the doors. Mark disappeared in an instant.
~
The dining room of the mansion had a view of what was outside. Yeosang and Mirae noticed that it had gotten much darker, realizing how late it was getting. Mirae still couldn’t believe that Baekhyun and Jongin were alive all this time, that they actually survived the explosion from the Seoul attack, the impact caused by her own powers. She was still trying to process this new situation.
Could they have been the ones who tampered with the Danger Room? The question reminded her of why she was there, having dinner with them, with other mutants who were also quite powerful, especially psychics as powerful as them. Mirae could only hope that Yunho would be able to read her mind at the moment, so he would know where they were.
“So, as I was saying earlier, Jongin, Taeyong, Mark, and I are looking into setting up a new business venture and Yeosang may be able to give it the added credibility it needs,” Baekhyun broke the momentary lull when everyone else tucked into the food. Mirae poked around the courses on her plate as she listened.
“Is that what you’ve been up to since the Seoul attack?” Mirae asked, glancing at him from time to time.
“Yeah, killing monsters and aliens wasn’t fun for me anymore, I’m sure you understand that,” Baekhyun smiled. “Knowing that Taeyong, his brother Taemin, and Mark are businessmen, when Jongin and I found each other and in turn found them, the business world seemed a little more interesting.”
“What kind of venture is it?” Yeosang asked. “I’d like to know what it is before I make any deal.”
“It’s called Project Apocalypse,” Baekhyun said with a grin on his face. “Project Apocalypse is going to be the next big thing among mutants and non-mutants.”
“It’s more of a think-tank. People come to us for answers, we give them the answers,” Jongin added.
“What kind of answers would those be?” Yeosang asked in between a sip of wine.
“Political answers, mostly, economic answers, diplomatic answers, you name it,” Mark replied. “You and I both have the experience for that. Didn’t you meet the adviser to Chun Doohwan during the uprising?”
“I have. I killed her,” Yeosang replied, both Baekhyun and Jongin looking surprised at how nonchalant he was about it.
“She could’ve been useful to us, you know,” Mark said. “Oh right, I see. You killed her because she was trying to get to Mirae over here,” He added, having read his thoughts.
Mirae sighed and ate a forkful of her salad instead. “You know, Mark and I can read everyone’s minds here, except for her. Why is that?” Taeyong raised a brow.
“Psychic shield, Taeyongie. I remember Junhong telling us about it when we first started training,” Baekhyun chuckled, glancing at her. “If you can’t read her mind, her psychic shield must be that strong.”
“We can’t read everyone after all, it would be too easy if we could,” Mark chimed in.
“How is Junhong, by the way? Has he been well? He’s alive, isn’t he?” Jongin asked her.
“Very well. Fixed my staff the first time we met again. He’s fixed a lot of other things, sometimes without me knowing,” Mirae replied.
“The three of you go a long while back and yet you’re acting like you don’t know each other,” Taeyong chuckled in his place.
“It has been a while since we last saw each other. We did, however, spend a few years together in the Center for Paranormal Research,” Baekhyun nodded, finishing the food on his plate. “I remember it was me, you, Minseok hyung, and Tao that were put forward because of our fighting skills.”
“Do you have any idea what happened to them?” Mirae asked.
“No idea. I thought I was the only one left, until I saw Jongin from the corner of the street, teleporting out of that place in time,” Baekhyun glanced at her. “I guess the same could be said of you.”
“Yeah, and Hyuk, and Chanyeol. Remember them?”
He smiled. “Why don’t we go take a walk? Just us, you can play catch up with Jongin after,” Baekhyun suggested.
“Yeah, I’ll tell you more about Project Apocalypse after we pitch the idea to Yeosang over here,” Jongin nodded eagerly, exchanging knowing looks with the older male.
Baekhyun and Mirae got up from their seats. Mirae eyed Yeosang, who had a look of concern all over his face at the suggestion. She followed him towards the patio doors and out into the well-manicured backyard of the mansion that had a swimming pool with a diving board and several patio chairs. The question was still nagging at Mirae as a silence came between them while they walked along the cemented areas of the estate. “To answer your question, I do remember them. Vividly, actually,” He said. “The tall dope and the guy I remember you used to like but is also your best friend.”
“Years have gone by since the Seoul attack,” Mirae said.
“I know. It changed everything. It changed everyone. You with that streak in your hair, still playing with the same stick you always used to lug around. It’s almost like a part of you, isn’t it? That staff of yours?” Baekhyun said.
“I never leave without it. Even when I go to work, it’s with me,” She pointed out.
Baekhyun nodded. “I see. No matter how much has changed, you still seem to be the same person. It didn’t help that when Professor Jang died, Ino took charge and started to play favorites.”
“You were one of them, Baek,” She said carefully, remembering the nickname he would often go by.
“That I am, Tao too. Minseok hyung too. We were like, how should I say it? Like the four horsemen of the apocalypse. We led the fighting for the rest of them,” Baekhyun grinned as he remembered. “Too bad things went the way it did, otherwise we’d all still be there, cooped up underground with all of those simulations.”
“That’s a memorial now. A lot of things happened since then, at least to me,” Mirae recalled everything, feeling her heart sink further upon remembering Jihoon, then Hyuk and Chanyeol.
They stopped in front of a ceramic bust perched on top of a small pillar. Baekhyun looked up. “What brings you here, then? You didn’t know I was alive, much less Jongin.”
“I came here because Yeosang told me I’d find answers here,” Mirae replied. “Chanyeol and Hyuk are dead now, and I find out that the Danger Room was tampered with leading to them dying. I’m trying to find out who did it and why.”
Baekhyun smiled. “I knew you were going to say that. Actually, Taeyong knew just by reading Yeosang’s thoughts over there. He was thinking of what you were going to find out upon coming here. I can hear him telling me now. Yeosang’s looking out for you, he’s kind of worried about what you will know, and how you’ll react when it’s all revealed.”
“You know who did it, didn’t you?” Mirae stared at him. “All this time, you were alive and you never meant to make contact? Not even with Junhong? You didn’t even bother to look for us in the places you figured we’d be?”
The male chuckled. “For a trained assassin like yourself, you’re getting pretty bad at stealth, aren’t you? I’ve come across you quite a few times since then, but you never saw me, much less took notice of me.”
She raised a brow. “Well I never got any message from you. Not even a hi or a hello.”
Baekhyun shook his head. He leaned closer with a satisfied look on his face. “No, no, no. My way of making contact with you was through the tragedies you have experienced. Jihoon, and now Chanyeol and Hyuk. To be honest, I was surprised at how I managed to hit two birds with one stone with both of them. The tall dope and the music producer.”
“What do you mean?” Mirae had a feeling she knew what he was about to say.
“It was all me, Mirae. Jihoon’s death, Chanyeol’s death, and Hyuk’s death? It was all me,” Baekhyun revealed calmly. “I am the author of all your pain, of all the grieving you were and still are doing.”
Mirae stared at him, feeling a chill down her spine at the revelation. “Jihoon was killed by those Utopian cult thugs.”
He shook his head. “I had a little help. I met Mark around that time, and when I told him what I wanted to do, he gladly possessed the body of the man who pulled the trigger on your dear friend, the friend you thought of as a brother,” He explained.
Mirae was still staring at him, as if prompting him to continue explaining. “Jongin, you know, of course, teleported me there once Taeyong found out the location of the so-called safehouse you put up, saw that Junhong was creating a simulation room like the one we used to have. With his help as well, I was able to make a few adjustments like rerouting some circuits to overload,”
“I was actually thinking of getting Chanyeol first, out of sentimental reasons. I knew him longer than Hyuk, so naturally I thought he should get the first strike. Little did I know,” Baekhyun smirked. “It would get Hyuk too. I doubt Junhong had a clue that the systems were hacked. Taeyong and his brother run a tech empire.”
She could feel her eyes well with tears at the explanations, the tension she was feeling slowly getting replaced by sadness and rage. “It was you all this time. Why? Why are you doing it?” She asked.
“Because I wanted you to know the pain and grief I felt after that attack happened,” Baekhyun replied, looking her in the eye. “My family thought I was dead when that came in. I was thrown into the ocean from the explosion you caused. They had given up on searching for me, in turn, they gave my brother all the money that was meant for me. Knowing you made the final blow to those goblins, all of the trouble I experienced, I knew I had to make you pay.”
Mirae looked away, fighting back the urge to break down the more Baekhyun talked. He sounded so satisfied. “And now you’re all alone, Lee Mirae. And you know the best part?” He tilted his head as he looked at her. “Ino knew all this time. Ino knew it was me. Yet he allowed it to happen anyway.”
#kdiner#ficscafe#ateez#ateez angst#ateez scenarios#ateez timestamps#seonghwa#park seonghwa#ateez seonghwa#hongjoong#kim hongjoong#ateez hongjoong#yunho#jeong yunho#ateez yunho#yeosang#kang yeosang#ateez yeosang#san#choi san#ateez san#mingi#song mingi#ateez mingi#wooyoung#jung wooyoung#ateez wooyoung#jongho#choi jongho#ateez jongho
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ranking the sdr2 cast by how much their formal wear hits
this is just my opinion, but my opinions are great and i know what i’m talking about! this will be long so it’s under a cut
S TIER:
s tier is reserved for only the best of them all, the cream of the crop, the fit that i would gladly lay down my life for. s tier is the crown jewel. s tier is what everyone else should strive to be... but only one can take the prize.
#1: AKANE OWARI
the undisputed champion. this look is everything to me. EVERYTHING. the red-trim cape with the fur. the contrast of the airy, gathered blouse with those skin-tight shiny (leather? vinyl??) pants. the pumps. the belt that screams disco style. the necklace accentuating the tasteful titty window. the red white and gold color scheme are you FUCKING WITH ME miss owari this look could bring ARMIES to their KNEES in an INSTANT. whoever drew this deserves full creative control of the danganronpa franchise and i’m not kidding
A TIER:
a tier is for the fits that frankly own bones. they’re not as jaw-dropping and legendary as owari, but they’re still razor as hell and deserve to be met with riotous applause.
#2: KAZUICHI SOUDA
kazuichi, i didn’t know you had it in you, but this FUCKS. the character of the pins on the lapels, the sneakers, and the mispinned tie. the absolute CLASS of the suspenders, watch, and tiny round glasses. the handsome slick in the hair now that the greasy beanie is gone. the tasteful highwater. he looks like the host of the larry king show if the larry king show was exclusively about ska bands and he has never looked better
#3: HIYOKO SAIONJI
tell me this isn’t the cutest shit. the colors here are EXQUISITE. the bright notes from the blue on top, the way the soft pink is a perfect middle ground of the pink + white flowers on her sleeves, the subtle way the green in her bow matches the green in her collar, the white petals breaking up the sky blue that might otherwise look out of place? remarkable. stunning.
#4: PEKO PEKOYAMA
the ELEGANCE is EVERYTHING here. the monochrome is offset by just a splash of red that ties everything together with her eyes and the flower in her hair, the checkerboard pattern is visually interesting but not distracting, and her hair in that loose ponytail with the little white ribbon? ugh. ADORABLE! but most of all, look at those BOOTS. those CUTE LITTLE HEELS on those SICK LACE-UP BOOTS..... QUEEN shit!!!
#5: CHIAKI NANAMI
rounding out our a tier is chiaki in this adorable little dress just LOOK at her!!! she looks like a little rose, a perfect flouncy skirt with a glittery mesh overlay, a fun and fresh over-the-shoulder collar, a fucking big old bow tied in the back?? i can literally feel the way this dress would feel in my hands. it’s simple and perfect and frankly a GORGEOUS color on her this is flawless
B TIER:
b tier is a perfectly respectable place to be. these fits lack the lustre and flavor of the a tier entries, but they’re still dressed to impress and they still look fine as hell.
#6: TERUTERU HANAMURA
say what you will about teruteru (and i do) but this suit is ADORABLE and it fits in with his theme + talent better than any other mfer on this list. the tasteful white/brown/red palette gives it a flashy chocolate cookie look, which is amplified in the fun pattern on the jacket. the chef’s hat switching out for a little top hat and the way the cumberbund looks a lil bit like a chocolate bar is also VERY cute
#7: THE IMPOSTOR
now on its own, the suit is just alright. a vibrant pinstripe blue three-piece with the classic red tie wouldn’t land the impostor in b tier on its own... but that FUR COAT, LUXURIOUSLY DRAPED OVER THE SHOULDERS does WONDERS to pull this look together. not only is it worn with “yeah, it’s real mink, no, you can’t touch it” confidence, but it also ties the otherwise arbitrary white loafers into the structure of the look. it’s subtle and class as hell.
C TIER
c tier is full of looks that are... fine, but ultimately either are boring, lack cohesion, or have a confusing design choice or two that make it hard to get all that amped about. c tier is a passing grade, but nothing more.
#8: NAGITO KOMAEDA
there’s a lot that’s good about this outfit, but there’s also a lot that doesn’t really work. let’s start with the good: the slutty loose bowtie and collar, the tight-fitting vest that ends before the hipbones so you can see the belt, the cute little ponytail? (chefs kiss) exquisite, all of it. but the suit itself is boring as sing, and who the hell decided to put the t-shirt symbol on the sleeves??? was it to add visual flavor to an otherwise bland suit? this does NOT have the black/white/red elegance that peko had.
#9: FUYUHIKO KUZURYUU
the silver and gold mob-boss look, complete with matching shoes vest and fedora, are a nice nod to fuyuhiko’s talent! the plaid is teetering on the edge between fun and garish to me, but the fact that it’s consistent and the only pattern means it isn’t too offensive. quick question though: why are his pant legs rolled up like that?? this isn’t a cute “cuffed at the ankle” look, dude looks like he had to wade across a pond to get to the venue. what gives
#10: GUNDAM TANAKA
out of everyone here, gundam’s suit might be the most boring of all. the scarf is just his normal scarf. the red tie and trim don’t do anything to tie the look together. the only mild point of interest is the asymmetrical vest, and i can’t even tell if that’s intentional. simply put, this “““fancy”““ outfit isn’t even in the same ZIP CODE as the level of ostentatious chuuni that gundam serves us every single day in his casual wear. maybe even worse than being ugly... it’s disappointing.
#11: IBUKI MIODA
now, look. is this dress buckwild and ugly as hell? yes. but you know what else it is? it is IBUKI MIODA’S DRESS. there might not be a single cohesive thing about this dress aside from its color scheme. the huge poofy ruffles of the skirt and arm things with the spiked bow and corset are baffling. the artist somehow managed to draw the awkward, clumping shape of the skirt to make it look exactly like an emergency cosplay sewn four hours before a convention. frankly, i can’t justify ranking it as a c! but i’m doing it anyway, because the sheer level of craftsmanship demands it, and in this house we respect diy queens that are totally off the shits.
D TIER:
d tier is for outfits that aren’t offensive, exactly... but like, they sure don’t look good! d tier is not a respectable place to be. those in d tier won’t be laughed out of the ceremony in shame, but they should really run their outfit by someone else first next time.
#12: NEKOMARU NIDAI
now don’t get me wrong: i have nothing but respect for the titties-out look. keeping the shirt unbuttoned all the way down to where the lapels of the jacket end? that’s sexy as hell. however, this flawless idea has a confusing execution. why emerald green and orange? what’s with the... long-sleeved printed (hawaiian?) shirt? why the red pocket square? and the jacket itself, while fitted perfectly along the chest and midsection, has a weird, unflattering scallop shape flaring out at the bottom. i want to like this fit, but there are just too many bad choices.
#13: HAJIME HINATA
oh, hajime... literally nothing about this ensemble is it. the creamy manila suit might have had potential if there were literally any color variation in the vest (or potentially shoes) to give it a little more shape, or even if you just went with a white shirt underneath it! i could get behind a light, off-monochrome look! but that leprechaun-green shirt is downright perplexing to me. it looks like a mistake! did you get dressed in the dark? did you spill something on your other shirt? this is a mess.
F TIER:
f tier is inexcusable. f tier should never have happened. how does it get this bad. who did this? who’s responsible for this?
#14: SONIA NEVERMIND
y’know, the colors are pretty! i dig the white and teal! but... girl... what the fuck is this construction. the ruffles are all over the place. the bodice looks like it has less fabric than space it needs to cover. the bottom half of the skirt looks like it was sewn on as an afterthought because the top half was too short for dress code. what’s with the weird choker collar detached from everything else. why is the hairband a slightly different shade of green. so many decisions were made here and none of them are flattering
#15: MAHIRU KOIZUMI
yknow, i like the idea behind this. i can see what you were going for! the dress on its own might have worked, even! but everything else about it is just... so ugly. what the fuck is happening with those shoes??? the sheer black tights aren’t the sexy OL look you think they are. the collar of the dress looks like it’s... braided for some reason??? those earrings are so huge for no payoff, statement jewelry with nothing to say, and worst of all... that headband. GIRL. that headband and that belt...... there’s nothing here. also i love orange but it’s not her color.
and finally... the worst.
#16: MIKAN TSUMIKI
what the fuck. what the fuck is this. this is straight up cheap rubber fetish gear. why is the HAT rubber? that skirt ruffle makes this look like fucking polly pocket clothes. why the fuck is she wearing that. the clothes are so bad that it makes her hair look like rubber too. was she dared to wear this? is this some cruel punishment? i don’t even know what to say. this is the worst possible outfit. there is not even one redeeming quality about it.
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Der Katzenprinz, fully illustrated, under the cut. Drawings by me.
Google slides link to read it as a book: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1gmGwl4eBx_yG-P6t69AyU7ZUgjpGuptFKpnL6QmhkpQ/edit?usp=sharing
Image ID’s
Title page: The words DER KATZENPRINZ are calligraphied across the top of the page, arcing over a drawing of a cat holding out a top hat. The edges of the cover have swirling designs on them. The words, the cat, and the designs are all gold leaf on a black background.
Page 1: Text reading "Once upon a time, in a little house on the edge of a great white wood, lived a young boy with his mother." The illustration is of a wood and thatch cottage in a birch forest. Standing in front of it are a young boy and his mother.
Page 2: Text reading "The poor boy was sick, and spent much of his days in bed, watching the days pass by from a little window in his room." The illustration is of the young boy, who is pale with orange hair, blue eyes, and wearing a green vest, sitting in his bed, looking out of a window.
Page 3: Text reading "The boy's mother loved him very much, but as it was just the two of them and the boy was ill of health and frail of form, every day she had to make the journey to town, where she worked in the kitchens of the local lord." The illustration is of the boy's mother, who is wearing a pale dress, waving goodbye to the boy, who is sitting behind the window.
Page 4: Text reading "While she was gone, the boy would mind the house, read one of their precious few books, and observe the bees and the trees and the birds in their flight, as he spent the greater part of his time resting in bed." The illustration shows the boy sitting in his bed, looking at birds flying outside, and sitting on the ground reading and playing with wooden blocks.
Page 5: Text reading "The boy knew that his mother loved him and that her time away was all for his sake, and he was grateful, and loved her in return. But it was a lonely life, spending his life rereading some of the same books or talking to the air in their little home on the wood's edge." The illustration is of the boy sweeping the floor of the cottage in front of the fireplace.
Page 6: Text reading "One day, as the boy sat in bed, looking out at the fields that lay between his home and the woods, he noticed a cat, making its way out of the forest. It was not long before the boy realized this cat, clearly making its way toward his home, was no ordinary cat, for upon his head, he wore a little top hat. The illustration is of a black cat with green eyes, two white dots above its eyes, and one white splotch on its chest, wearing a top hat and walking out of the birch forest.
Page 7: Text reading "As if that were not strange enough on its own, as the cat pattered up beneath the boy's window, he stood, doffed his cap, took a bow, and said, "Greetings young master. You look as if you could use a bit of dancing." The illustration is of the cat doffing his hat and bowing to the bow, who is leaning out of his window.
Page 8: Text reading "The boy, stunned by these words from the dapper little cat, could scarcely find his voice. "Oh no, sir," said the boy, "I don't know how to dance, nor am I made for it." The illustration shows the boy leaning over his windowsill, looking down.
Page 9: Text reading ""Nonsense," said the cat, "Why, anyone can dance, if they look to. Come out of doors and let me show you." And as he spoke, the cat donned his hat and began to turn in circles and dance." There are three illustrations of the cat in various dancing positions.
Page 10: Text reading "The boy was curious, but said, "Good sir cat, " am afraid I am ill, my lungs are too weak, and my bones are too frail." "Maybe they are, and maybe they aren't," the cat replied, "But either way, you do not want to languish one more day in bed, watching the world go by, do you? Come, take a walk with me through the fields, and I will show you how to dance." The illustration is of the cat holding his paw out to the boy, still leaning over his windowsill.
Page 11: Text reading "Overcoming his doubts, the boy managed the climb down from his window and walked a few steps closer. This was no ordinary cat and no ordinary day. And though he felt unsure, his heart did leap a little, and he began to follow the marvelous little cat through the grass, slowly at first, but with more vigor as they crossed the fields." The illustration shows the boy and the cat walking away through a field of tall golden grass, with a blue sky above.
Page 12: Text reading "And eventually he found himself stepping under the shade of the woods for the first time in a great many years. All the while the cat frolicked and capered as they wound their way deeper into the wood, and eventually the boy found himself stepping into a ring of trees." The illustration shows the boy and the cat sitting in a ring of red mushrooms on vibrantly green grass, with a circle of birch trees around them.
Page 13: Text reading "That cat whirled about, his hat in hand. The furry little dancer twirled around the boy, laughing and calling while the boy watched, his mouth agape. And then quick as a flash, the cat brought his top hat down right atop the boy's head," The illustration shows a paw tugging the brim of a top hat down over the top half of the page.
Page 14: Text reading "who was very suddenly plunged into darkness." The text is white on an all-black background.
Page 15: Text reading "But only for a moment, because all about him, shining in the dark, he saw the glow of hundreds of eyes, feline eyes, glimmering in the dark." The background is still black, but it is lit up with cat eyes of different colors staring out of the darkness.
Page 16: Text reading "Suddenly, about him lanterns flared to life and the boy saw he was no longer in a wood at all. Here he saw a grand ballroom festively decorated and filled to the brim with cats. Big cats, small ones, old cats, young ones, cats of every breed and color, and in the center of the great hall upon the stage stood the boy's feline guide, only now he was dressed in very fine robes, and upon his head sat a thin golden crown of wrought golden leaves." The illustration shows a red carpet leading up to the cat on a dais, features now sharper, wearing a red cape and a crown of golden leaves. To the right and left of the red carpet are various other cats, bowing and curtsying.
Page 17: Text reading "The boy stood in wonder and amazement as the great host of cats bowed to their prince and then in turn, bowed to him. "The world of men is heavy and hard," the princely cat proclaimed. "But here across the veil we move with a lighter step. Dance with us, child, and forget your troubles for a spell." All at once, scores of cats closed in around the boy, purring and turning about his legs as thick as the sea, and as they moved, so too did the boy's feet." The illustration shows the boy surrounded by the outlines of cats. Their colors blend and swirl into the golden background behind him.
Page 18: Text reading "He swirled amongst them like a cork on the water, and before he knew it the boy was dancing, dancing and dancing as he never imagined he could, and his breath, much to his surprise, was hearty and hale. He found he no longer felt ill in the least. Hours passed and he and all the cats danced without end, and the prince of cats more than all of them." The illustration shows pairs of cats dancing in the background as the boy and the prince of cats dance in the foreground. Red and gold leaves shed off of the prince's cape and crown.
Page 19: Text reading "After a long while, the boy suddenly remembered his mother and immediately feared she would worry. He stopped in the middle of the great hall and called out to the prince of cats, "Forgive me, Sir Cat, but I can no longer stay. My mother will worry. I have to return."" The illustration shows the boy standing before the cat, whose cape swirls up in front of him, turning orange at the ends.
Page 24: Text reading "All the cats parted before him and the prince approached the boy. "Are you sure, boy? You could stay and dance with us for as long as you wish, forever and ever and ever." "I cannot," the boy replied. "My mother has only me and I would not leave her alone. Forgive me."" The illustration shows the prince, now back to his original form, holding out his top hat to the boy.
Page 25: Text reading "The prince of cats looked upon the boy with a sympathetic eye. "Not at all, young one. Fear not a whit. You do your mother credit." And with that, the prince of cats stepped closer. "Do not look so crestfallen. Take our cat's grace with you. You can always dance if the will is there." And from behind his back he brought out his top hat again and pulled it over the boy's eyes, and once again, all was dark." The illustration shows the boy smiling, the top hat on his head, as yellow and green leaves blow past him.
Page 26: Text reading "Sometime later, the boy stirred and his eyes fluttered open. He looked about and discovered he had been asleep in the wood and the sun now dappled his face through the trees. Next, he noticed a threadbare, patched top hat lying in the soft grass beside him." The illustration shows the boy sleeping in the ring of red mushrooms, the top hat next to him. They are bathed in golden evening light.
Page 27: Text reading "He gingerly picked it up and stood within the circle of trees. As he did so, he took a deep breath and smelled the earth and the forest, and as he did, he realized his breath was strong and his legs hardy." The illustration shows the boy holding the top hat in front of him.
Page 28: Text reading ""Danke," he said as he looked down at the hat in his hands. And placing it upon his head, he smiled, picked up his heels, and quietly started to dance his way all the way back home." The illustration shows the silhouette of the boy wearing the top hat and dancing down a path, along with the silhouette of trees and birds flying in the distance. The sky and the words are made of gold leaf.
Golden calligraphy reading "DAS ENDE." on a black background.
#my art#digital art#drawing#drawings#snowbreeze64 art#critical role#crfanart#critical role fanart#critical role art#caleb widogast#der katzenprinz#long post
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Writerly ephemera meme
I was tagged by @thisbluespirit in this rather intriguing meme!
Find five bits of yourself that you gave to your fiction (memories and places and phrases and things into our stories), post and tag five or more writers to share as well.
Now I know I do write bits of myself and my experiences into my stories, one way or another, I think everyone does, but it doesn’t half put you on the spot when you have to try to remember where you’ve done it!
1) I know that recently I wrote Walsingham passing out at the end of a scene in “Mea Culpa”. The entire description is based on personal experience. I went through a scary few years as a young teen where I would pass out for little to no reason, usually at school where there were lots of people watching to cause me huge embarrassment, which then almost gave me a form of PTSD. I was constantly anxious about fainting, it was not good, and we never found out why it happened. But that’s another story... I still occasionally pass out but it’s usually for a reason, after having a vaccine or blood taken or something, but the whole process of fainting, though horrible, is like an old nemesis to me, uncomfortably familiar. I generally feel intense sickness in my stomach, my vision is puckered increasingly with white dots, my entire body comes out in a sweat, and I hear a high pitched whistle-type noise as I lose consciousness. And so since that is my experience, it became Wals’s too:
His palms sweated, his pulse raced... He shuddered and emitted another strangled breath, fingers white where he clutched the window sill, body trembling. He needed rest. Ursula's voice was becoming distant, the room was swaying like the deck of a ship caught in a storm. He felt a sudden nausea in his stomach, could hear a high pitched sound in his ears, a siren's wail beckoning him into the abyss.
“I am sorry. So very sorry,” he whispered, though he knew not exactly who he was addressing. His own voice now sounded as if it was coming from underwater, far away; he was drowning and could resist no more, slipped where he stood and descended into the open arms of oblivion.
2) This is another Walsibeth example I’m afraid because I haven’t written anything else for about a decade! So... Though the pandemic and my lack of funds has put a temporary hold to my hobby of horse riding, I am a half-capable rider and love tearing across country if opportunity allows on horseback. I can thus write people riding horses (English style, anyway) with a degree of accuracy. So in my smutty one-shot fic “In perpetuum et unum diem” (the one which is mostly a pastiche of the raunchy finale of “The Tudors” season 1, and also an excuse for me to write shameless sex), I began the ficlet with a bit of a horse-race between Bess and Wals to get the blood up (a scene that in itself mirrors Elizabeth’s racing with Raleigh in TGA, I later realised). Though I personally haven’t raced a person on horseback per se, I have done beach rides and also ridden on a horseback safari in Africa where you gallop as a group, and “giving your horse its head” is the order of the day! So a lot of this passage is me:
She turned her head back over her shoulder and caught Francis’ eyes. His lip quirked slightly at the corner but otherwise there was no change to his countenance. But that was enough. Her smile deepend as if to invite him to race her and she turned her head back around, gave her dappled grey mare its head and pressed her calves to its flanks. And the beast responded, driving its legs harder, faster, into a gallop and flew like a falcon through the trees.
...
As the wind flew in Elizabeth’s face, making her eyes water, a great whoop of exhilaration escaped her. There was nothing but her and the horse, and the knowledge that her blackguard of a lover galloped behind her. This was what it should feel like to live, even in tragically brief snippets; to feel the blood in your veins, the air in your chest, and the sun on your face, wild and free.
They then jump a tree trunk which I’d love to say I’d do, and I might, but most of my falls have been from jumping so I’d probably wimp out and go the long way around... ;)
3) Annnd another one from my Walsibeth fic “Mea Culpa”, just because it’s fresh in my mind. When I was driving to work last winter, there was one Sunday morning which had a jaw-droppingly beautiful sunrise. I tried to take a photo of it but could not do it justice. I did find a photo of Lincoln Cathedral on instagram from the same morning though which captured the sky perfectly. It literally looked like the sky was on fire, or something, and I immediately worked this memory into my story! I felt that a sky like that would make the perfect backdrop for a single, forlorn, broken bastard riding his horse in a clear, freezing morning:
There was a strange light in the sky as the sun began to make its ascent. It turned a deep crimson then lifted to shades of rich amber and gold; this combined with the few grey clouds passing overhead gave it the illusion of a huge fire, as if a great furnace now filled the heavens. Some might have called it beautiful, others would see a grim omen.
4) I had a look in my dreaded old fic archive, so full of cringe, and I found this from the end of my Doctor Who fic “Choices”, which I reckon I wrote between 2005-2006, possibly finishing it later than that. This scene right at the end (told from the perspective of Rose and the ninth Doctor’s daughter, Hope) is literally my old senior school - the class length, the finish time, the uniform was what I wore, and my history teacher was Mrs. Gaskin, and my mum would be waiting in her car to pick me and my sisters up:
By a quarter-to-three in the afternoon, she was in another History lesson with Mrs. Gaskin, and was spending another forty-five minutes hearing about the Black Death, the plague doctors, and the red crosses that were painted on people’s doors. It was fascinating, but Hope’s concentration wasn’t there. She kept looking out of the window at the school yard, noticing the little details that other days she would take for granted - like the way the trees swayed in the wind, the way a crisp-packet rolled across the concrete, and the pure azure-blue colour of the cloudless sky. Something was afoot but she had no idea what it was, or why she was feeling this way.
The bell rang finally at the end of the lesson, as the clock read three-thirty, and the class disappeared swiftly out of the door. It was home time! The voices of myriads of children echoed and shrilled down the corridors, and desperate feet, eager to get home, pounded down the stairs, making for the exits. White shirts were un-tucked from trouser and skirt hems, blue-and-red ties were loosened from about shirt collars, and black blazers were thrown off and carried over shoulders as the mass of pupils took flight.
Hope, however, took things slowly, almost as if she might never see them again, picking up on every smile, every individual laugh, and every joke pulled on every unsuspecting victim. She waved goodbye to friends, hitched her backpack over her shoulder, and made her way out of the school gates toward the spot where her mum or Uncle Jack would usually be waiting to pick her up. As she turned the corner onto Petunia Grove, though, she stopped and sighed. The car - either her mum’s or Jack’s - was not there.
Hope pursed her lips and shrugged, taking another good look around just to make sure that she hadn’t missed it, but there wasn’t a familiar car in sight. She thus let her bag slip off her shoulder, and she perched her backside on the street sign, swinging one of her feet back and forth as she waited for the arrival of her escort.
In the meantime, she couldn’t help but let her mind wander again, as it had been doing often throughout the day, and looked around the street. There was a blue tit on the hedge over the road, stood near a couple of sparrows and a robin. The front door of house number five was a brilliant shade of red, something which she had never really noticed before, and there was some graffiti on the road sign on the opposite side of the street. It read ‘Bad’ something or other, but she couldn’t read the other word since it was blocked off by the blue box.
Hope blinked and slowly rose to her feet. It couldn’t be…
5) And for number five, this is a short extract from the an unpublished Star Wars fic I wrote around 2010, where I tried for what must have been the third time to re-write the Star Wars nonsense I wrote as a teenager, all starring my very Mary Sue OC, Nadia, who became Vader’s apprentice and was mentored by Veers. I have here again worked my experiences of passing out into the story - a psychologist would have a field day with me. Nadia’s thoughts about showing weakness were also real fears of mine - I never liked to be weak, to be ill, to be a burden, and my character was the mouthpiece for my own self-disgust. It’s written in the first person with Nadia narrating in this scene where she accompanies General (Maximilian) Veers to the Kaminoan’s cloning facility to review further batches of troops and is taken ill by the experience of seeing the thousands of farmed foetuses:
Max nodded whilst I remained breathless and shaky in his shadow. I could not get those tiny, wriggling foetuses out of many head - they floated upon my consciousness, their inhuman eyes glaring into my face and their tiny hands reaching out toward me. I tried to rid myself of these infantile phantoms, but I could not, and I suddenly felt quite ill.
“We shall need many more in our next delivery,” Max told the creature, who began to babble on about the problems of this request, but was halted mid-sentence when Maximilian wheeled about and grabbed me, saying my name over and over. He disappeared amidst the snowstorm of white dots that littered my vision, however, and I collapsed upon the floor.
The next thing I knew, I was waking up in a bright, white room. The walls dazzled me for a moment and it took my eyes and my mind time to adjust and to recognise reality. I looked slowly at the plain walls, finding myself alone upon a bed with my hands by my sides and a drip feeding liquid into my arm. This seemed quite surreal - I knew I was not ill enough to warrant this - but I resolved to stay put until someone came to me. I felt extremely tired and I thought that I may as well take advantage of the rest.
I fell back to sleep again and, when I next woke, I saw Max sat in a chair beside me. I glanced about the room - we were alone. I looked at him uncertainly, my visage undoubtedly betraying the signs of my mortification, for he first said: “Do not worry, Nadia, I am not angry with you. It cannot always be helped.”
...
I wanted to defy him, to be strong, but no, I just showed him weakness and insecurity. What indignity was this?
Thanks for the tag, that was fun! I can’t think of 5 writers to tag but off the top of my head: @feuillesmortes, @robins-treasure and @captainofthegreenpeas? Have a go if you fancy.
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Feliz Ano Novo!
A/N #1: Finally! Fic #4 of my Brazil series! In this story, the gang celebrate New Year’s Eve in Rio.
Brazil series: Hottest Spot South of Havana (Part 1) | Hottest Spot South of Havana (Part 2) | A Wonderful Surprise | História
Word count: 3688
Alice’s outfit | Playlist (The last songs (starting with Carioca) are mostly bossa nova, except for the very last ones, while the ones at the beginning have more of a samba beat)
“Have you seen Alice?”
Andre had just barged into the boys’ suite, looking slightly panicked.
“Isn’t it more likely she would be in the girls’ room?” pointed out Diego.
“I come from there! I wouldn’t be here otherwise. Charlie, do you know where your girlfriend is?”
“Last I saw her, we were all by the pool this afternoon when the concierge called her over, and she said she had to go fetch something. Haven’t seen her since,” replied Charlie.
“Ugh! I’m supposed to get her ready for the reception this evening,” said Andre, raising his hand to his forehead in desperation.
“Alice needs help to get dressed? Is she sick?” asked Barnaby, raising an eyebrow as he looked toward Andre.
“What? No! It’s just that I am in charge of the way she looks, and if it’s not perfect, it will look bad on me. My reputation will be ruined!” exclaimed Andre, falling on a nearby sofa.
“Don’t you mean you made yourself in charge of the way I look?” asked a voice coming from the doorway. “Not to mention no one in Rio knows that you are in charge of my look.”
“Alice!” exclaimed all four boys when they saw the Ravenclaw standing there, her arms crossed as a smile played on her lips.
“I thought you had a deadly disease!” said Barnaby.
“Where were you?” asked Charlie, noticing the plastic bag she was holding.
“Will I have a dance with you this evening?” chimed in Diego, ignoring Charlie’s glare.
But before Alice could say anything, Andre took her arm and started pulling her toward the girls’ suite. “No time for that! You can answer them all later. Time to get you ready for the reception!” he said before his head popped back into the doorway. “That also goes for you, gentlemen. Stop messing about and get ready!”
As the boys started to get dressed in their room, the girls’ room looked as if a hurricane had passed through it. Clothes were all over the living room as if Tulip’s and Tonks’ luggage had exploded. Which, in fact, they had.
“What happened?” exclaimed Andre and Alice, looking at the scene before noticing Penny. She stood silent in a corner, her eyes wide.
“Tulip brought magical firecrackers with her, and they exploded,” said Tonks, pointing her finger at Tulip.
“Jae Kim is untrustworthy. He sold me defective firecrackers!” grumbled Tulip.
“That does not explain why Tonks’ suitcase also seems to have exploded,” said Andre as he picked up a charred t-shirt, wrinkling his nose before letting it drop to the floor.
“I may have hidden some in her suitcase…” said Tulip, looking away, her lips pursed.
“My autographed Weird Sisters t-shirt!” exclaimed Tonks, holding up the remnants of a t-shirt.
“Why does Penny look shell-shocked?” whispered Andre.
“Exploding pillow incident?” wondered Alice, though she had her doubts.
“No,” said Penny as she walked over to Alice and Andre. “It just hit me that my vacation would be way better without these two.”
“Come on… They’re not that bad,” said Alice just as Tonks turned Tulip’s hair purple.
“You were saying?” said Andre.
“Ugh… Alright. Andre, close the door,” said Alice as she dropped her bag on a chair and took out her wand. “Silencio!” she said, pointing her wand at both Tonks and Tulip. She then cast a spell on all the clothes in the room to put them back in the suitcase. “Good thing Flitwick taught us that packing charm two years ago,” she said as she watched the pieces of clothing neatly get inside the bags.
“I love watching that spell at work,” said Andre as he turned Tulip’s hair back to its bright red colour.
“Honestly, I’d rather if we didn’t have to use any of these spells. Can’t you two ever be quiet?” said Penny as she sat on the sofa, glaring at the currently mute girls.
“Well, they currently are…” pointed out Alice.
“That’s because you used the Silencing Charm on them. As soon as it wears off, Tonks will scream bloody murder about her Weird Sisters t-shirt. Tulip will just say how boring we are for preventing her from destroying the hotel,” said Penny, massaging her temples.
Alice turned to her two silent friends, who were both looking down at the floor. “Look… I know your definition of fun may differ from mine or Penny’s,” she started saying, “but I think we can find a way to compromise so that we can all enjoy our vacation. But first, let’s deal with the situation at hand. Tulip, if you have anything else that goes BOOM, let me know so that we can dispose of them without creating a mess. Tonks, I’m pretty sure we can repair your Weird Sisters t-shirt, and worst-case scenario, I’m pretty sure that getting another one won’t be too hard considering they are all still at Hogwarts. Now, apologize to Penny.”
“Alice… they can’t speak,” whispered Andre before making his way to the bedroom.
“Oops, sorry, forgot about that. Finite Incantatem,” said Alice, flicking her wand.
“Sorry, Penny,” said Tonks and Tulip.
“Great! Now that that’s over, time to get ready for the party. Alice, I placed your outfit on the bed. I’ll go back to my room to get changed and come back for your hair and makeup. Chop chop!” said Andre as he left the girls’ suite.
All four girls looked at the door closing behind Andre when Tulip turned towards Alice. “Alice Beaumont?” she asked. “Why is Andre Egwu always planning your outfits?”
“I… don’t know, actually. I think it all started with the Celestial Ball. I asked him to create an outfit for Rowan and Ben, and he then wanted to take care of my look.”
“Wait… he actually planned one of your outfits before that. Remember when we went to the Proms?” said Penny.
“You’re right! Either way, beats being thrown fashion magazines at,” said Alice, rubbing her head.
“And if we don’t want him to throw the magazines he brought for this trip at our heads, we should get ready before he comes back,” pointed out Tonks.
About 40 minutes later, the girls came out of their room, preceded by Andre. Tonks was wearing golden flared pants with a black off-the-shoulder top, along with sneakers, to Andre’s chagrin. Tulip wore a short halter-neck dark blue dress with a raven motif on it and bronze flat sandals. Penny had a yellow midi-length dress with a cowl neck that was a little form-fitting, paired with black sandals with stiletto heels.
Finally came Alice in a green A-line dress made from layers of floaty silk organza with a draped bodice. Her feet wear adorned with a pair of high-heel golden sandals with a golden sequin rose on the side of the ankle. Her accessories remained simple, with a vintage gold necklace with a charm in the shape of a heart around her neck, a gold ring with a beautiful indigo blue quartz stone on her finger, and a golden headband of overlapping hoops in her softly curled hair. The look was completed by a small clutch embellished with golden mirrored beaded embroidery.
“Are these… the colour of the Brazilian flag?” asked Alanza, who was waiting in the corridor with the other boys in a simple white dress and silver gladiator sandals.
“Oh, Merlin, you think it’s tacky, right? I told Andre…” started saying Alice, ready to head back in her room.
“What? Oh! No! It actually looks lovely! I mean, it’s usually reserved for football matches here; otherwise, we don’t really wear our flag’s colour, but it’s very subtle in your outfit,” tried reassuring Alanza.
Unfortunately, both Andre and Alice looked mortified and ready to crawl under a rock.
“Alanza just said Alice looks great,” said Charlie, as he wrapped his arms around his girlfriend’s waist from behind. “So let’s go have some fun and celebrate New Year’s Eve before the party ends.”
“That’s what I wanted to hear! Let’s go have some fun!” exclaimed Tonks, running to the elevators.
“By the way, what’s the drinking age in Brazil?” asked Tulip.
“TULIP!” yelled all her Hogwarts friends before Alanza could answer.
As they entered the Copacabana Palace’s reception room, they were dazzled by the decor, fellow attendees, and the live music. After being shown to their table, the girls headed straight to the dance floor, attracted by the lively music. The boys chatted about various topics, until someone caught Diego’s attention.
“How is Tonks dancing?” asked Diego as he observed the girls.
Tonks was squatting, swaying her hips as she gyrated her fist above her head.
“She looks like she’s about to throw an invisible lasso,” said Andre. “And… yup, Tulip just decided to join her.”
“At least neither seem to care about the looks they are getting,” commented Diego.
“Alanza really seems to be enjoying herself,” remarked Barnaby.
“Indeed. She and Penny are really graceful on the dancefloor. As for Alice,” added Diego, glancing toward Charlie, “her dancing skills have really improved since I first taught you two how to waltz for the Celestial Ball.”
“I honestly never thought we’d get through that without falling flat on our faces,” said Charlie, sighing as he remembered that evening.
“I heard you two nearly kissed that night…” said Diego, smirking.
“Good thing they didn’t, or we might never have had that kiss on the Quidditch pitch. If it wasn’t for that kiss, I wouldn’t even be certain these two were dating,” said Andre.
“Don’t forget the glow they both had coming out of that field last summer,” said Penny as she sat down. “That’s more evidence they are an item.”
“Penny...” said Alice through gritted teeth, daggers shooting out of her eyes as the other girls sat down and Charlie’s face turned a bright shade of red.
“Sorry, sorry. But Andre’s right. It’s not like you two act like a couple around Hogwarts,” pointed out Penny.
“It’s called being discreet,” replied Alice.
“Jae Kim did tell me he once caught them asleep on a sofa in the Gryffindor common room,” said Tulip.
“Did he?” said Penny, a glimmer in her eyes as they fell on Alice and Charlie.
“Oh, look! Our food is coming!” exclaimed Alice, ignoring Penny as Charlie took a big gulp of his champagne.
As the waiters placed the plates in front of them, Penny’s gaze remained on Alice, the corner of her mouth quirking up.
As they started to eat, Penny cleared her throat, “So―”
“We were studying and fell asleep,” interrupted Alice, not looking up from her plate. “Nothing worth alerting the press. On the other hand, Beatrice mentioned something about you snogging a certain someone instead of helping him study potion.” Alice’s eyes looked in Diego’s direction before slowly looking up at Penny’s face.
Penny’s cheek turned a light shade of pink as she stared at Alice, ignoring everyone’s gaze on her. She wouldn’t, would she? Then again, when push comes to shove, Alice wasn’t the kind to necessarily take the high road. No one could know Diego Caplan had once successfully seduced her. “The food really is delicious,” she finally said.
“Talk about a segue,” pointed out Tonks as she looked between Penny and Alice.
From then, the conversation took different direction, from Alanza’s time at Hogwarts to last summer’s Quidditch World Cup. Diego tried discussing samba techniques with Alanza, who revealed she had no idea how to dance a proper samba. She just danced to the beat of the music. Alanza seemed to enjoy listening to Barnaby talk about magical creatures. Andre was looking around at the other guests’ outfits, relieved they weren’t the only one in colourful clothes. Tulip and Tonks were whispering to one another, which made Penny down her champagne flute.
“By the way… How come we have a champagne bottle on our table? I thought Alanza said we had to be 18 to get alcohol,” said Alice, finally noticing the golden liquid in the flute next to her glass of water.
“Ah! I only said the legal drinking age was 18. But it’s not hard for teens to buy it,” corrected Alanza.
“Not to mention we do have someone who is 18 at our table,” said Andre, looking at Charlie.
“Oh! That’s right! Charlie Weasley is the oldest one here! Thanks for the booze, dear elder!” exclaimed Tulip from across the table, raising near-empty her glass.
“Don’t overdo it, Tulip. Champagne gets you drunk faster than you think, not to mention the hungover...” warned Alice.
“You got drunk on champagne?” asked Barnaby, taking a sip from his glass.
“No, it’s just something I heard my parents say,” Alice said, shrugging.
“Come to think of it… I never saw you drink alcohol. Not even firewhiskey at parties,” noted Tonks.
“That’s because she got sick as a kid because there was alcohol in a cake she ate,” explained Charlie.
Everyone stared at him.
“You… remembered that story I told you?” asked Alice, her hand over her chest, her eyes blinking quickly.
“How adorable!” said Penny, clapping her hands together before resting her cheek on them.
“It’s sickening,” said Tonks and Tulip.
Charlie’s face grew hotter as everyone was looking at him. Why was it so impressive that he remembered something Alice told him? He didn’t like everyone looking at him like he had discovered a new species of dragons when all he had done was remember a story. Taking Alice’s hand, he said, “Let’s go dance,” pulling her out of her chair.
“But… dessert?” said Alice as she followed him.
“Not really hungry anymore.”
As the couple made their way to the dance floor, everyone else at the table looked at them.
“They are so cute together,” gushed Penny.
“How long before he proposes?” asked Tonks, smirking.
“Well, according to Jae Kim, many have bet that―” started saying Tulip. She realized all eyes were on her and said eyes were all wide. “It was a rhetorical question, wasn’t it?”
Tonks nodded.
As everyone else shook their heads in dismay, Barnaby looked confused. “Who’s betting on what?”
“Come,” said Alanza, gently taking his hand, “let’s go dance.”
Back on the dance floor, Charlie and Alice were swaying to the bossa nova music playing. Alice’s mind seemed elsewhere, as she kept frowning as she looked at something over his shoulder.
“Is everything alright?” asked Charlie.
“Mmm? Oh! Yes! Sorry… It’s just that I’ve been thinking about what Alanza said,” replied Alice.
“What Alanza said?” echoed Charlie, his eyebrow quirking up.
“About my outfit’s… colour palette,” said Alice, looking back at whatever was behind Charlie.
“Alice, I already told you. You look amazing in your dress.”
“I know, but look around. I’m the only one wearing all the colours of the Brazilian flag.”
Charlie did as Alice asked. He noticed that many were wearing white like Alanza, while others were wearing various colours. Alice was right. She was the only one wearing the colours of the national flag.
“Maybe if I removed the ring…” muttered Alice, removing her hand from Charlie’s shoulder.
“What ring?” asked Charlie, returning his attention to his girlfriend.
“That ring!” said Alice as she stopped dancing, trying to pull the ring off of her finger. When she finally did, she looked around. “Left my clutch at the table, be right back,” she said as she started to walk away.
Charlie grabbed her wrist. “Wait. I can put your ring in my pocket,” he said, pointing to his pocket.
“You don’t mind?”
“Of course not. Unless your ring weighs a ton, I’ll barely notice it.”
Alice chuckled and gave him the ring. “Thank you.”
“My pleasure,” he said, tucking the ring in his pocket before placing his hand back on the small of her back while the other took her hand. “You know I’ll always be there for you, right?”
Alice raised her brows. “It’s just a ring, Charlie.”
Charlie shook his head.“Yeah, no, I meant in general,” he said, looking into her green eyes, “I’ll stand by you, no matter what.”
Alice stared back at him, looking into his warm brown eyes. “Charlie…” She started to lean forward when―
“And I'll never desert you,” sang Tonks in a whisper as she stood next to them with Tulip. The couple hadn’t noticed them dancing nearby, too focused on one another.
“I’ll stand by you,” completed Tulip, before they ran off.
“Tonks! Tulip!” exclaimed Alice, ready to run after them, but Charlie pulled her closer to him.
“Let them. My own fault for sounding so cheesy,” said Charlie, a corner of his mouth quirking up as he rolled his eyes.
“It wasn’t―” started saying Alice, only to notice Charlie raising an eyebrow at her. “Ok, maybe it was a little, but most romantic things could be considered cheesy in some way.”
“You thought it was romantic?”
Alice nodded. “I was actually about to kiss you when these two interrupted,” she said, her face becoming slightly red as she looked down.
Charlie let go of her hand and used his finger to gently lift her chin up. “Were you?” he said, leaning forward to close the distance between them.
As their lips were about to meet, Alanza arrived beside them, pulling Barnaby behind her. “Come on, you two! People are making their way to the beach for the countdown,” she said before disappearing into the crowd with Barnaby.
“And people wonder why they never saw us kiss in public,” grumbled Charlie as he took Alice’s hand.
“We keep getting interrupted,” said Alice with a little laugh escaping her lips as she took her clutch from the table.
They made their way through the crowd toward the doors that led outside. The horde was getting denser, and Alice could feel her pulse quicken and her shoulders getting tense. She needed to get out of that crowd. Now.
She let go of Charlie’s hand. “I… I think I forgot something in my room. Be right back,” she said before she started walking in the opposite direction.
Charlie looked at her silhouette disappear into the crowd, puzzled until he remembered her running out of the Celestial Ball. And her taking his hand after that concert. And at the Quidditch World Cup…
He spotted Andre and shouted, “I’ll just go back to the room with Alice. I think she’s not feeling well.” After Andre nodded to indicate he had heard him, Charlie made his way through the crowd to the elevators.
There were a few people around the elevators, but Alice wasn’t there. She must already be upstairs, thought Charlie to himself. He got onto an elevator, and when he arrived at the Penthouse floor, he went straight to the door of her suite and knocked. No answers. He knocked again. Still nothing. Maybe she was on the balcony. He got into his room and made his way to the balcony. He turned to look over at the girls’ suite’s balcony. There she was, quietly sitting in a chair, looking down at the crowd on the beach.
“There you are,” said Charlie, smiling.
Alice looked up, her eyes wide. “Oh! Charlie? You startled me.”
“I’ll come and join you,” he said, making his way toward the balustrade that stood between their two balconies.
“I’ll go and open the―” started saying Alice as she got up from her chair.
“No need,” said Charlie, jumping over the railing. As he landed, they heard something metallic fall to the ground.
“What was that?” asked Alice, looking around.
“Your ring!” said Charlie, a look of realization in his eyes. “Don’t move. It probably didn’t fall too far.” He looked around until he saw something glint on the floor. “There it is!” he exclaimed, raising the ring from the floor.
His eyes suddenly widened as he realized the position he was in. He was on one knee with a ring in his hand while Alice was standing in front of him. He blushed, but the darkness of the evening prevented Alice from seeing it. She simply stared at him, blinking. Did she realize what this scene looked like? Charlie decided to try something.
“May I?” he asked, taking her left hand. He slid the ring on her ring finger before looking up to see her reaction.
Alice raised her hand, looking at the ring on her finger. “I think,” she started, staring at the ring,” I was wearing it on my right hand.”
“What?” said Charlie, raising an eyebrow.
“Yes… see, it’s a bit loose on that finger, but I think it fits snugly on the other hand. See, fingers are…” started explaining Alice.
Charlie couldn’t help but chuckle. Of course, Alice had not realized what the situation had looked like. Romantic gestures usually flew right over her head unless they were obvious. That was part of her charm, really. Lost in those thoughts, as Alice explained the difference between fingers, he suddenly realized the music on the beach had stopped and that the DJ was saying something that got the crowd excited.
“Alice,” he said, interrupting her monologue.
“Yes?”
“I think they are about to start the countdown.”
“You think?” she asked.
Before he could answer, they heard the crowd on the beach shout, “DEZ!”
“I think you're right,” said Alice as she walked to the railing to get a better view.
“NOVE!”
Charlie got up from the floor and walked over to Alice, hugging her from behind.
“OITO!”
Alice looked up at Charlie, smiling softly.
“SETE!”
“I love you,” she said.
“SEIS!”
Charlie looked down at her, his eyes wide with surprise. It was the first time she had ever said this to him.
“CINCO!”
Seeing the tenderness in her eyes, he smiled back.
“QUATRO!”
“I love you too,” he said.
“TRÊS!”
He leaned down.
“DOIS!”
She closed her eyes.
“UM!”
Their lips were about to touch.
“FELIZ ANO NOVO!”
“Happy New Year,” he whispered before his lips covered hers.
As he felt Alice melt into his kiss, Charlie couldn’t help to think back at that moment when he had slipped that ring on her finger and the warmth he felt as he did so.
A/N #2: I hope you enjoyed this fic! Next up: Ipanema!
#alice beaumont#charlie weasley x alice beaumont#charlie weasley#Charlie x Alice#charlie weasley x mc#hphm#hphm mc#hphm fanfic#hogwarts mystery#jacob’s sibling#penny haywood#andre egwu#diego caplan#barnaby lee#alanza alvez#nymphadora tonks#tulip karasu#copacabana palace
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Makeup for Magick/Ritual p3: Beltane
We made it to Beltane, you guys! We did it! Is this actually going to go up in time without my computer freaking out? Only time will tell. And no, I didn't get a better phone.
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I stole my sisters. ANYWAY!!!
It's the last of the three fertility sabbats (along with Imbolc and Ostara). And that's fertility in all its forms, by the way, not just the baby-making kind. You need fertile soil to for just about any kind of plant to grow, after all. The main colors that I, personally, associate with Beltane are bright/summery reds, lush greens, and… white. All colors of fertility, growth, passion, shmex… as you do. However! The entire rainbow spectrum is fair game. Think of all the colorful flowers, plants, and trees and stuff. For instance, just looking out my widow from where I'm typing this, you got the green of the new leaves on the tree, the reddish-orange color of the little helicopter seed fellas hanging from it, and little yellow, almost white, flowers on the bush in the neighbor's yard.
Any of the more nude palettes from Ostara are still in play. And DAMMIT! The picture's cut off at the edges. Because of course it is, why wouldn't it be? *groan* Whatever, let's get into Colourpop.
Top: Strawberry Shake, Main Squeeze, Orange You Glad?, Uh Huh Honey
Middle: Just My Luck, Blue Moon, It's My Pleasure, Oh La La
Bottom: Yes, Please!
If the red/green thing is what you wanna go for, grab the Just My Luck palette and either Strawberry Shake or Main Squeeze and you're good. And of course, as the rainbow spectrum goes, there it is. Hell, if you have the Fade into Hue palette, just grab that. I don't have it because, though the eyeshadow formula is decent for the price, there are pressed glitters in the palette. And unlike the BH eyeshadow formula, I don't think the CP formula is good enough to make up for the handful of arts-and-crafts-herpes shades you have to deal with in this palette.
Yes, Please! is here because Beltane is also a fire festival and this a cute and cheap fiery palette.
On to Give Me Glow!
Top: Summer Vibes, Extra Spicy
Bottom: Vintage Rose,Vivid Rose
Where there is the CP Yes, Please! Palette, there is the Give Me Glow Extra Spicy palette. Unfortunately, she's no longer available, but it's a great pick for this fire festival if you have it.
Kindly excuse the busted pans in my Summer Vibes palette, but a good chunk of these shades could work for Beltane. You can take it fiery or flowery, depending on what you're going for.
And if you want to look like a stereotypical flower fairy (and I mean that in the best possible way), the sister Rose palettes are the palettes to grab.
Now let's get the single-palettes out of the way.
Tarte's Tartelette Toasted palette is another one of those fire festival palettes, except more of a warm toned nude version of one as opposed to the bright fiery colors of Yes, Please! and Extra Spicy.
The Too Faced Life's a Festival palette is just full of great brights and those fun duochromes. Definitely the time to pull it out if you have it.
And then there's the ABH Modern Renaissance palette. This palette will give you serious vintage flower fairy vibes, and was the first time I got said vibe while using a palette. Okay,technically that was when I used the Makeup Revolution dupe palette, but that formula was utter trash.
And as for the ABH sub-brand, Norvina…
We got two. The Pro Pigment Palette Vol. 3, and the Pro Pigment Mini Palette Vol. 3.
The Mini's cherry reds, green and pinks and beautiful, and that white has a cherry red duochrome to it. Ignore the pressed glitter in the middle of the top row, the shades are pretty enough not to.
The larger Vol. 3 has some nice bright greens, reds, etc. that makes it great for the lushness of Beltane, even though it's meant to be a fall palette. Which it's also great for, but we'll get to that in a future post.
Now for BH Cosmetics!
Top: Trendy in Tokyo, Chillin' in Chicago
Bottom: Mimosa
Trendy in Tokyo is the typical rainbow palette, except the shimmers are more satin than metallic, so not my favorite of their Travel palettes.
Chillin' in Chicago would make a pretty good fire festival palette, and lays in between Tartelette Toasted and Extra Spicy/Yes, Please!. It's not as nude as Toasted but not as bright as the two others.
Mimosa's pinks with orange and yellow pops could give you a bright, flowery look.
And now the last of the palettes, Juvia's Place!
Left Column (Top to Bottom): The Masquerade Mini, The Magic Mini
Middle Column (Top to Bottom): The Zulu, The Festival,The Sweet Pinks
Right Column (Top to Bottom): The Warrior III, The Chocolates, The Violets
The Masquerade Mini's top two colorful rows are what you're reaching for if you want to do a fully colorful Beltane look, but can be paired with the bottom nudes if all you want (or can do because work or whatever) is a little pop of color. For The Magic Mini, you're looking at the top two rows, which are the warmer rows, and the purple duochrome (Faso) and the green (Buzo) in the bottom, cooler toned rows.
Both The Zulu and The Warrior III are beautiful colorful palettes. In Warrior III, I'd stick with the top six mattes. That green and red are beautiful, and that pink is almost neon in real life. The entire Zulu palette is good for brighter plant/flower looks. And that pink/gold duochrome in the bottom left corner? So beautiful.
In The Festival palette, I'd say all the shades except the metallic black, the deeper metallic teal, and the matte mustard gold. The red, pink and oranges are so beautiful and rich, guys! And that metallic white and gold? *chef kiss* But, guess what palette is getting pulled out for Samhain. X3!
The Chocolates, Violets and Sweet Pinks are basically companion palettes. The Chocolates have some "rich, fertile soil" vibes if you want to bring that into the look, while The Violets are fairly floral and The Sweet Pinks are more bright pops with a more floral matte and shimmer shade (top right, bottom left). The two pinky floral shades could actually be cute with the Violets, now that I think about it.
And finally, the singles! A few days ago, my first Terra Moons singles order arrived, but since I haven't really got to play with them much they won't be included in this one. Though they, as well as my first order of singles from Looxi beauty, will probably start showing up in my next post. Okay, Shroud singles first!
Top: Enigma, Azura, Vigor, Ignite, Vigil
Bottom: Oracle, Pillow Talk, Scrumptious, Magnetism, Soulstone
Pillow Talk, Scrumptious and Magnetism aren't pressed glitters, but definitely act and remove like they are. So, if you pick these up when Shroud reopens, keep that in mind.
Enigma (purple with a blue shift)
Azura (teal blue with a green shift)
Vigor (bright lemon-lime soda green)
Ignite (fiery copper)
Vigil (yellow-gold)
Oracle (champagne gold)
Pillow Talk (deep purple with a gold shift)
Scrumptious (coral red with a gold shift)
Magnetism (aqua green with a gold shift)
Soulstone (magenta)
And finishing off, Give Me Glow singles!
Column 1
My Sunshine (pale sunny yellow metallic)
Lucky Charm (light yellow metallic)
Lemon Lime (electric green with shifts of banana yellow)
Limeade (lime green)
Column 2
Peach Glaze (pale icy peach)
You're Cheesy (Mac n Cheese orange)
Havana (deep coral metallic)
Low Battery (neutral-toned, medium-dark red)
Column 3
Pink Frosting (icy bubble gum pink)
Heartbreaker (electric hot pink)
West Coast (deep vivid coral)
Floral Coral (peachy-pink coral)
Column 4
Strawberry Lollipop (reddish pink)
Pink Lemonade (pink base with electric gold a baby blue shifts)
Icicle (icy white)
Marshmallow (pure white)
Column 5
Pretty Little Lilac (icy lavender)
Electric Purple (neon pastel purple)
Bubbles (true icy blue)
Sky High (bright sky blue)
Column 6
Toxic (deep neon purple)
Purple Hills (a pure deep electric purple)
Under the Sea (deep sea blue)
Starboy (deep cobalt blue)
And we've reached the end of the Beltane post! Fun fact, the Beltane crossquarter day is on May 4th so, still relevant right? Yes? No? Maybe so? The fact that I was able to get this done by Beltane is a miracle in and of itself. Use these as color story inspiration for your own looks, maybe repost with palettes/singles you've found in your own stash, and I'll see you in the next one!
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Genshin Impact character opinions (alphabetical)-
0/10 Albedo is my least favorite design... He looks so fuckin goofy and from what I know about his character the fact he looks so goofy is not great.... The shorts look so dumb and the blue of his shirt looks weird...
Just wanted to visualize my issues with his goofy outfit... wont be ‘fixing’ anyone elses.
10/10 So fucking cute. The colors are beautiful and well spread through the design, Zettai ryōiki. bunny theme...terrific. Ambers just perfect. Look at that fucking adorable face as well... look at her big ol smile and tell me she aint a 10/10. She’d get a 10 if all I ever saw was that big ol smile.
9/10 Barbara is adorable. Her costume is gorgeous. I love the white with blue and the gold accents. Very pretty my only gripe is the lighter blue on her bow...
10/10 Beidou is just gorgeous.... I love that shade of pinkish-red with the off-black and purple with the gold trim. Shes just so hot... also her English voice is also top tier which is irrelevant to my ranking... maybe but--
1/10 Bennetts not as bad as Albedo but god hes annoying to look at... and listen to.... he looks like hes a Kingdom Hearts knock off, the colors are weird, and he has the personality of s1 Ash Ketchum.... Im sure hes a swell lad... but
6/10 Chongyun I mean I love the color pallet and over all its fine. I think the onesie with the cropped jacket and the weird half robe is weird but it looks fine if I dont think about too much.
7/10 Diluc is pretty but not as fun to look at as some others. I do really like those red palm gloves. My biggest gripe is his shirt.... with the belt? WHAT? Sir do you know what a belt is for.....
8/10 Diona... so cute. I kinda just wish her hair wasnt pink. I dont like the pink in her design at all but other than that... super cute. I just noticed her gloves had little peets on them.... THATS SO CUTE.
4/10 Fischls color pallet (other than her hair) is gorgeous but other than that... hate the overall design... Im not opposed to sexiness... but come on....
7/10 Ganyu is very cute but idk whats going on with her outfit at all.... its a very confusing piece.... but I dont hate it...
7/10 Whoops forgot the new girl... Her designs cute... but it is a bit dampened by the fact I think about toilet boy Hanako.... but other than that very cute!
9/10 Jeans a hottie. Love her tight pants... is it too much to ask for more hot girls in tight pants? IS THAT SO WRONG?! I dont really like the weird open top bit or the red bits but I dont hate it either.
10/10 Kaeyas design is one of my favs. His color pallet is gorgeous, the design is cool, tasteful tiddie window... its great. Good for him. I’ll even excuse the spiked fingerless gloves which no other character could possibly pull off.
10/10 Keqing is gorgeous too. Again with the beautiful colors, a really charming outfit design combined with those little cat-ear buns. I do often see up her skirt when flying and climbing however and it makes me feel like a bad person LMAO IM SORRY KEQING!! I DONT MEAN IT. She seems like the type thatd be really embarrassed about it!!
10/10 Klee is so fucking cute. I kinda wish her eyes were green like her charm but the red is good too. That red and white with the warm brown is really nice, and you cant go wrong with a poofy hat! Shes so cute.
10/10 Lisa was designed to be a smoke show but she pulls it off better than Fischl. Love the roses throughout her design, the color pallet is on point, her hair matching the dull gold of the accents is really nice, a peak of Zettai ryōiki and her green eyes just POP. Shes beautiful.... I love her.
3/10 My issue with Mona is mostly her bottom half... I get that her tights design looks cool but with the rest of her vibe having her main clothing piece be like... a bathing suit? ITS A CHOICE and it ruins her design for me. Also I hate the baubles on the ends of her hair.... but her color pallet is real nice. I also like her bigger eyebrows...
10/10 Ningguang... also a total smokin hottie. Her colors are beautiful and really feel RICH. That brassy color and gold on white with the ginkgo designs... the bitch is just poppin. She looks fantastic.
8/10 Noelle is so cute... I like when I add her to my party and she gets all excited and eager to help... very cute. Her design is an endearing mix of badass knight and dutiful maid.... my only issue is her skirt.... looks kinda weird. Wish she had some petticoats to fill it out more. Also dont like that her roses pop out the way they do... reminds me of Shreks ears....
10/10 Qiqi is adorable I love Jiangshi, love the colors, wish she wasnt wearin horni thigh highs(I only ever see thigh highs squeeze thighs like that in l00d art dont come for me... I didnt design her.) but lolis gonna lol. But again her design is top tier. Shes so cute.
5/10 Razor... is kind of a mess but its largely the colors.... its a lot of weird colors. Also his design makes me think of the male MC... I literally thought he was like an AU version of the MC....
10/10 Sucrose is so cute. Again that white blue and gold look great... I like her frilly shorts and thigh highs.... her boots are cute... her hair color is a little weird but I dont dislike it. Kinda wish her eyes were a different color tho.
4/10 Childe is fine... but after seeing all the other Fatui designs and his own monster form I look at him like this and go.... REALLY? Thats what were goin with... alright... Also his whole design screams ‘fire’ to me not just colors either the shape of his mask and the pattern on his scarf thing.... its weird that hes Hydro.
10/10 I love the female MCs design... I chose the male MC because his colors popped more and im a dumb animal and was like ‘ooh shiny‘ but I think her design is a bit better over all...
9/10 Male MC is still good... its very cute. I like how she looks more suited to the Anemo and he looks more Geo... Thats pretty cool. I really like his colors... the browns/gold/white... its a striking look.
6/10 Ventis pretty cute... I dont get the weird... corset thing hes wearing, dont like his shoes,,, but other than that its pretty cute but nothing special imo.
10/10 Xiangling is so fucking cute. everything in her design makes me clutch my heart at how endearing she is. Love her. Weird color palette... its even weirder that it fully works.
7/10 Look I love Xiao hes a good lad so I cant be too harsh... but all the colors on his design look a bit weird which really brings his over all design down... which I think is cool over all.
9/10 Really cute design for Xingqiu! The colors are beautiful... I love blue and white and gold obviously and he even does it with more of an emphasis on the blue and its a greenish blue and it looks great. the top is just gorgeous, those frilly sleeves are super cute... not a huge fan of the shorts but I hear theyre comfy and easy to wear.
10/10 Xinyan just looks terrific. Cool and punky, great fiery color pallet, cool theme, cheeky personality without it being obnoxious.... Shes great! Weird voice tho... lmao
11/10 You cant tell me what to do! Zhongli is the only male smoke show in the playable cast for that he gets an 11 ok? I love a dumb old man. I do think the coat over his longer coat is a bit weird but I aint mad at it. Love the colors, very earthy, the subtle gold design on his pant legs are cool and really hes got a lot of cool bits on his coat, his face/hair are lovely. Hes a total babe.
A SUGABABE
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