#((op is confirmed age 18+ above))

[pink-anonymous-person]

After Peter bites her cheek he should kiss again in the same spot. Like kissing the boo boo just he made.

hehe he’ll give her more than a kiss, alright. his darling is so cute he just can’t help himself <3

she angy

he did gave her a goodnight kiss though 🌙 💤

[fearfulfertility]

CONFIDENTIAL MEMORANDUM

DRC, Black Ops Command, Covert Acquisition Unit

To: Director [REDACTED]

From: Administrator [REDACTED], Covert Acquisition Unit

Date: [REDACTED]

Subject: Surrogate Recruitment via Social Media Application

Executive Summary

This memorandum summarizes the initial pilot testing of "Broodr," a mobile dating application developed by the DRC Covert Acquisition Unit as an identification and capture tool of viable surrogate candidates within the Los Angeles metropolitan region.

The Broodr pilot program aims to:

Test effectiveness in luring suitable surrogate candidates aged 18-25.

Assess the app’s capability to profile and locate high-fertility individuals discretely.

Evaluate the overall success rate of transitioning online interactions into physical capture operations.

Operational Procedure

Broodr was launched covertly through standard digital app distribution channels. It is marketed as a casual social/dating application targeted at young, romantically single men. Four other apps in the market were also disrupted to reduce competition and increase public awareness. The application utilizes advanced profile analytics to identify users displaying surrogate-compatible traits based on fertility indicators such as age, athletic status, height, genetic background, and health metrics.

Once identified, candidates receive targeted messaging from AI bots and doctored profiles using altered photos of athletes and models designed to entice them to designated physical meeting locations. These meeting spots are strategically placed within zones easily secured by DRC rapid response capture teams.

Initial Test Results

Since the pilot launch [REDACTED] weeks ago, Broodr has attracted over [REDACTED] registered users within the target demographic.

[REDACTED]% of identified high-value targets initiated interactions leading to physical meetings.

Capture success rate currently stands at [REDACTED]%, exceeding initial operational goals.

Captured surrogates demonstrate above-average fertility rates, with an average fetal load of 12-16 embryos upon initial insemination.

Key Incident

On [REDACTED], Broodr successfully identified, seduced, and facilitated the capture of a high-profile fitness celebrity at our DRC detainment site in [REDACTED], Beverly Hills.

Mr. [REDACTED], a 23-year-old fitness influencer known for his muscular physique, extensive social following, and endorsements of health products, was identified as a prime surrogacy candidate due to exceptional fertility markers (5'11", 174 lbs pre-pregnancy, optimal athletic conditioning). 

Four real profiles and 28 tailored AI-generated profiles initially contacted him, depicting attractive, athletic personas that closely matched his profile's interests. This sophisticated digital interaction rapidly evolved into sexually graphic exchanges, successfully convincing him to attend what he believed to be a home address for a physical engagement.

“Hey, handsome ;)  Hott as fuck! A stud like you promising an unforgettable night got me seriously curious. What are you into? I would love to work out all your kinks, physical and sexy!” - Copy of Chat Log

Upon arrival at the designated location, a rapid response team swiftly and discreetly apprehended Mr. [REDACTED]. Upon completion of on-site insemination, secured transport protocols were immediately enacted, moving Mr. [REDACTED] to the nearby Paternity Compound 141, best equipped for his subsequent gestation, birth, and expiration. Mr. [REDACTED] was assigned the surrogate ID S-141-548-P (which will be used henceforth to identify the surrogate).

Post evaluations confirmed highly successful insemination, resulting in an exceptionally high fetal load of sexdecuplets (16 embryos), and in under 33 days, S-141-548-P's weight jumped to 534 lbs (+360 lbs) with an abdominal circumference of 96 inches (+64 inches), rendering the surrogate wholly bedridden and dependent on continuous medical supervision. Despite his extreme size and rapidly declining mobility, regular medical evaluations confirmed that S-141-548-P's health remained within acceptable operational parameters.

"I can barely process what's happened—my body’s unrecognizable. I used to flex these abs for millions online, and now they're buried beneath a mound of babies. I'm so enormous and heavy that breathing feels like a workout! I never thought I'd feel this helpless—or this big." - S-141-548-P, Gestation Day 21

Labor commenced on day 33 of gestation, and over 22 hours, all 16 fetuses were successfully delivered. Upon completion of delivery, vital signs deteriorated rapidly, culminating in S-141-548-P’s expiration approximately [REDACTED] minutes after the last fetus was expelled. Post-mortem assessments indicated complete [REDACTED] shutdown, extensive [REDACTED] to the [REDACTED] and [REDACTED] system. 

"I can't stop it! They’re coming! Everything's ripping apart, and every contraction feels like my belly's splitting open. Oh God—I can’t move, I can't breathe, but my body... I'm just so... fat…" - S-141-548-P, Gestation Day 33

Of particular note is that S-141-548-P was well known on social media channels for exemplifying his abdominal muscles, mainly using the moniker “All Core, No Compromise.” The primary cause of expiration was confirmed to be the macroscopic tearing and rupture of all abdominal muscles, a typical result for surrogates subjected to such high fetal loads.

Recommendations

The capture and subsequent pregnancy of such a notable public figure not only significantly boosted internal operational morale but also underscored the strategic efficacy of Broodr as an unprecedented method of securing high-value surrogate candidates. This incident has provided robust proof-of-concept evidence, strongly supporting further investment and nationwide deployment of the Broodr initiative.

Based on the Los Angeles pilot:

Expand Broodr's implementation to additional high-density urban areas (e.g., New York City, [REDACTED], San Francisco).

Increase application analytics capabilities to enhance fertility trait profiling.

Implement additional security protocols to ensure continued operational secrecy.

Conclusion

The pilot deployment of Broodr in the Los Angeles metro area confirms the application's high efficacy as a discreet surrogate recruitment and capture tool. Expansion into additional metropolitan zones is recommended to bolster surrogate conscription efforts further nationwide.

Prepared by: Assistant Director [REDACTED]

DRC, Black Ops Command, Covert Acquisition Unit

----------------

Click Here to return to DRC Report Archives

[southparkxreader]

pairings:  post covid ! kyle broflovski, kenny mccormick, stan marsh x reader. trigger warnings : age gaps . reader is in her middle twenties , everyone else is forty nine . specific uses of she/her pronouns ,  uses of y/n + l/n ( get that interactive fic extension loaded , lads  ) .  disclaimer : i haven’t written anything like this in a long time .  only interact with this post if you are 18 or above , minors are not welcomed on my blog . small intro of a future series im going to start in a fic form , putting this out there to see if anyone is interested and to get a taste for how alive the fandom is .

stay with me ... fanfic series being kenny’s assistant.

kenny has a nasty habit of losing track - it can range from his paper work , to notes when he’s going on one of his tangents and just needing to let it all out before it fleets from mind, to as simple as forgetting what day of the week it is : forgetting dates, scheduled events, that sort of thing. he really cannot coordinate his own life if it meant saving it, he’s just got too much going on, ten fold when it comes to his work -

it was kyle’s idea, actually - listening to kenny apologize yet again for forgetting one of the days they were supposed to meet up on. he sighs, exasperated, annoyed, any rational person would be when plans kept going haywire because someone couldn’t even bother to turn up “have you thought about a personal assistant ?” leaning on his kitchen counter, watching the new snow fall as he leaned into the phone “it’ll help. if it doesn’t, i’m just going to stop making plans with you.”

is he being serious ? no, but still - he’s on thin ice.

kenny starts interviewing a week later, because it really isn’t a bad idea - he’s ashamed that he never thought of it sooner. the applications come flooding through, who wouldn’t want a front row seat to a genius like him ? the things they’d get to witness first hand, new discoveries, seeing his mind in person and with a front row seat. it was too good to be true, nobody in their right mind would pass up the opportunity to put their application through.

after about a dozen interviews, he’s just about ready to give up.

then,,,, you come in - it was like he took a shot of vodka with how you snapped him awake - his eyes trail over you for a moment, he could see straight away how nervous you were - despite how much you were trying to hide it. cheeks were clearly flushed, fidgeting with your fingers before you held out a hand towards the man, smile shaky but bright as you did your best to put on a brave face, a little tremble in your hand as anxiety shot through you didn’t go missed, either  “its a pleasure to meet you, mr mccormick, truly, it’s an honour. ” 

well, right then and there, kenny thought you were just the sweetest little thing he’s ever laid his eyes on. he had his mind made up before your hands locked together, his large palm swallowing yours so easily as he sent you a dazzling smile, if any of his friends were in the room they’d make faces, sending him an accusing glare , they know the look too well and it’s anything but innocent “it’s a pleasure meet you too, mrs. l/n. you flatter me too much, please, sit - let’s begin, it says here that you - “

he has to at least pretend to be professional.

you got the phone call later that night with confirmation that you got the job.  did you dance around your apartment, scream the minute the phone call ended ? absolutely you did. now you have a chance to actually enjoy work, to do something with your life rather than dragging yourself through it, to work along side the brightest mind of their generation.

he called kyle up the minute things were confirmed. telling him it was the best and only good idea he'll ever have again. to which he responds with a "fuck you... wait, what are you talking about ... why do you sound like that?" kyle knows, he knows kenny too well not to know.

when stan, kyle and kenny next have a meet up, it’s an annoying shocked and open surprise that kenny graced them with his presence, for having the ability to turn up on time. after a lot of shit talking, kenny finally falls into speaking about you, a little too much, stan and kyle have no choice but to want to meet you.  

when they do ... ?

oh... oh they get it . 

[sanchoyo]

arc v episodes 101-115 thoughts under the cut but first....yuyas dad is FINALLY here and I feel bad for being so suspicious of him. but also still Mildly Distrusting bc i KNOW how ygo dads ARE

-NEW OP!!! its very Cool, sounds like smth in ddr. still think believexbelieve and kirifuda are above it but its a solid third place I think. very hard to pick bc theyre all rly Good and the visuals on this one are rly rly good

-strongly disagree w yuya saying 'umm kaito if u card ur enemies ur just as bad as them >:/' dude cmon lol hes fighting against ppl hunting everyone in his city for sport. not the same thing at ALL

-the second shingo fckin said hed duel kaito i was like. well shit rip lol. gon and yuya reluctantly doing the action duel chant with him was so funny pls

-kaitos deck is weird as hell what happened to it. where is your galaxy eyes photon dragon i MISS Her. photon deck > cipher deck just bc photon had his magical girl transformation. i do appreciate how rainbowy cipher dragon is. wait wasnt photon stuff implied to be from another dimension (like, barian/astral stuff, not..arc vs version of Other Dimensions) so..yeah this kaito never got his Space Illness!! hes Healthy Kaito! wild

-ok. so just from yutos like exposition of saying he knows of kaito and his expression is different now (and us seein a flashback to a smiley happy kaito…) …and the lack of orbital and his photon form and the fact he was going to be a duel champion…haruto never got sick in this au version did he? which means faker wouldnt have had to shove tron/kazuma into the barian/astral portal thingy, and faker wouldnt have made a deal w vector or made kaito a numbers hunter? so he could focus on his own goals and live a more normal life I guess? so..does that mean yuma and astral NEVER MET?? DO THEY EVEN EXIST IN THIS WORLD. SAD. like even in a world that seemed to be kinder to kaito by not making his dad such a dick or his bro sick, he still got fucked over by a WAR in the end which is worse than what happened in zexal akjsfkjhn. well. at least this kaito hasnt taken the Moon Trip.

-ohhh my gosh yuto, shun, and ruri in casual clothes hangin out and watching kaito duel (also, this heartland has duel schools! named after card suites! thats fun) shun and kaito must be the same age, right? …so I assume the flashback is when they were 17ish and kaito is 18 now like in zexal? so the attack on heartland took place over the course of a few months to a year (ongoing it seems like but only to get stragglers now…oof) I thought shun, ruri and yuto were all the sameish age but nope. knowing yuzu and yuya are 14 makes me think all the counterparts are the same, so its probably pretty likely all three went to normal (non dueling) school together AND then duel school together, but yuto and ruri are prob in the same age so they mightve been friends first from going to the same school, and ruri later introduced yuto to her brother? so they have a cute lil trio now…this is my headcanon. (it rly does seem like all the yuboys and bracelet girlies were bffs from young ages EXCEPT serena and yuri jkdshfk)

-also can I assume at least SOME of the original characters from zexal are in this universe if not yuma for whatever reason (and prob not any of the barians?) like. would kotori have been goin to school and been in the grade right under yuto/ruri? …I want ruri and her to be bird friends

-the ED is still a dsod commercial booo let me see the ed animation! I had to go look it up on youtube. and its prob my least fav so far sadjfhkj its nice looking but so Plain compared to the others..the song is nice?

-oh my god kaito said he dueled yuto countless times and yet it took him halfway into the duel to realize yuya looked like him. kaito faceblind like me confirmed? also I like how kaito didnt beat yuya SUper fast like jack did the first time lol, makes me think yuyas getting a lot stronger gradually which is fun!

-yuto during the kaito stuff started speaking to yuya? he literally has not regularly done that at all up until this point. was..he able to do that all along and just Never did?? lmao?? not even to pass along messages to his bestie shun??? nope, kaito is Thee Important Guy to talk to yuya abt I Guess haha. good to see him again. also still good that yuya is not Questioning Why yuto is Tagging along inside of him or why that happened in the first place. lol

-yuto rly told yuya YA DONT TELL THEM IM HERE DONT TELL THEM MY SOUL IS IN YOU bro…theyre just gonna assume ur missing forever….yuya NEEDS to let them know lol

-'then my dad rly wasnt a coward!' yuya why is that your reaction to your dad having gone to xyz?? did he rly not tell ur mom at least?? was he helping in the War??? i still am salty he left yuya at home to do that seemingly w/out word of when he could be back or what was going on to at least his WIFE?? I get not telling ur small child maybe but cmon... the xyz ppl called him a coward tho lmaooo??

-ARE ALL THE GIRLS IN FUSION DIMENSION!!! YES!!! GIRL TIME

-14 yr olds HAVE to be in academia…literal child soldiers!!! oh god yuzu!!! (but also I NEED her to go and hang w the other girls lmao) the fact kids regularly run away and the adults are like WE GOTTA SEND HER BACK…chasing her down for it…GOD

-LOVE THE DRAMATIC REVEAL OF ASUKA. AS IF I COULDNT RECOGNIZE HER. I lichrally dont recall anything abt her but im glad to see her again anyway. looks like shes not with academia despite still wearing the uniform LOL. love cyber angels designs too

-on the other hand im very lukewarm to edo being here. hi I Guess u were not my fav in gx nor did I dislike u...just some guy to me... same hat on us both not liking yuyas dad? (I DONT HAVE A VALID REASON I AM JUST SUS ABT HIM AND DONT LIKE HIS VIBES SO FAR. like i GUESS theyre implying hes a good guy but im like :/ ok.)

-yuyas dad. right there. running a duel school for academia runaways. cool? glad hes kinda helping stuff?? god yuzu's reaction to seeing him broke my HEART she is so compassionate and immediately cries out of relief bc she knows how much everyone was worried abt him. she prob was too bc he was prob like an uncle to her...agh

-oh my god yuto POSSESSED YUYA and his eyes turned grey. gonna be real bodysharing is one of my fav tropes and im enjoying yuto being more Active A Lot :3c (also, yuya seemed to be in PAIN before and after yuto did this. so. interesting)

-this monster is AMAZING LOOK AT THOSE STAINED-GLASS WINGS!!! BRO DARK REQUIEM XYZ DRAGON IS EVEN A COOL NAME. LOVE HER

-shun talking to kaito abt the power of friendship was RLY cute and I appreciate his effort BUT HES GONNA BE A TOUGH NUT TO CRACK. HIS WHOLE FAMILY IS CARDED. poor haruto :( (do not care too much for dr faker at all tho tbh)

-ppl rly just accept when yuya says yuto is inside of him. love the ygo universe bc its such a Normal Whatever thing

-106 kicks off with some BOMBSHELLS. leo and yuyas dad worked together to make real solid vision?? I was under the impression his entertainment dueling was created separately but No. they worked together. classic ygo dads moment. and yuyas dad looked tiny baby reiji in the eyes after being asked to be the leader of the lancers and decided to go do stuff on his own anyway to try and TALK to leo. I get it! he didnt want the kid to be involved! understandable actually but he fucked up by going before the system was ready and landed in xyz oof...dumbass moment but I get it. he wanted to try and solve things himself...does he know what leo's plans entail?? can he tell me if so jkdsjfn is it rly just Rule All Dimensions bc thats sooo lame if so

-glad to see a lot of fusion kids were running away and doubting stuff going on… the random girl begging asuka to run away with her…lesbian moment. and shes a nameless bg character. damn. so sad

-yuzus new outfit is SOO cute!! and hair down moment!! need more hair down gel-less hair moments in ygo lol

-there had better be fanart of yuri or fanfics where he has plants (esp venus flytraps and stuff) bc of his deck

-OJAMA MOMENT. YURI CALLING THEM UNPLEASANT TOO LMAOOO says the guy with plants with eyeballs on them!! his reaction was SO funny. he is like a little cat to me. funney little guy. also when it zooms in on him and in the last (or the one before that?) op he has slit eyes sometimes. is that like. for a reason or just stylistic. its FUN

-jesus christ he took 5 of them out in 1 turn! overkill much! but also once again showing him as a Threat. right before he gets teleported AGAIN LMAO yuzu is Immune to Yuri

-YUGO IS IN FUSION TOO?? HOW LONGVE U BEEN HERE BUD I MISSED U

-the…effect yugo has on women.......... ^ (+how serena was constantly kicking/punching him away) hes like a golden retriever JKSDHFJK he just needs to find someone to match his energy!! poor boy 😂

-leo could not look more like a villain if he tried. my god sitting on his chair with THAT villain pose. ordering ppl around but seemingly doing NOTHING himself. his vibes. I RESPECT the aesthetic even tho hes a piece of shit father (the same goes for reijis MOMs vibes, my god its a wonder reiji doesnt have Villainous Mannerisms from being raised by them LMAO)

-NEW GIRL VILLAINS? NEW GIRL VILLAINS? NEW GIRL VILLAINS? NO ONE TOLD ME THERE WERE EVIL WOMEN IN ARC V HELLOOOO

-GRACE AND GLORIA YOURE BOTH SO. CHEFS KISS. MORE EVIL WOMEN ALWAYS. AND AMAZONESS CARDS!!!! OOOOH. >:3

-poor sayaka with her survivors guilt ;^; Feel Bad for Her

-OH!! sayaka uses fairies!!! FAIRY CHEER GIRL IS BACK YES KOTORI DECK LETS GO. I have now decided sayaka, ruri, and kotori were besties. two birds and two fairy users. it just makes Sense!

-'the professor would never send us for duelists of your caliber' they say then keep taunting the kids. my god grace and gloria arent just evil women. theyre MEAN women pro assassins for academia. I am OBSESSED with them. are either of them single

-iron wolf trains design is so funny to me. ive seen the card before but i didnt kno there was a character who used it in the animes...train deck is such a funny concept. beep beep

-I mean Obviously yuya/shun would win against the ladies, but it was very nicely done? gloria/graces strats were cool, they got their LP to an INSANE number before bein taken down and yuya did it with STYLE and a FLARE and put smiles on everyone (sans edo)'s faces which was. good to see. good.

-hey i was gonna say 'edo love ur shoulder fringe thingies' but then…I saw the rest of his fit…what are u WEARING. SNUGGIE??? thought u had beef with xyz but maybe ur mad the barians stole ur fit like HUH. WHAT IS THAT OUTFIT. LMAO. (going to get roasted alive if it turns out he wore this in gx and I just forgot but tbf I remember like. 4 things abt gx. yubel was there. there was a...caveman? dinosaurus guy. he got the dino bone in him and went to space. vampires? that is all. manjoume was there.)

-sayaka's visceral reaction/panic when the obelisk force's monster came out…I knew she had severe anxiety+ptsd but GOD IT MAKES ME SO SAD. PROTECT HER. (+ the chaos named monster being in xyz world…yes. good)

-i think kaito is the only person not to flinch at all during the 2000 interference policy bs. icon

-'i will KILL SAYAKA YUUSHOU'S SON' …I wonder if the literal translation is KILL?? thats what the subs said but my god edo, do u not mean 'turn into a card' kill seems like. well. a bit SEVERE.

-aww edo fuckin. put yuya in a CAGE MATCH. I was hoping we'd get edo v kaito. I am still holding out hope for kaito and jack to interact somehow

-grace wanting to watch while gloria is like UGH LETS GO ALREADY peak sisterisms. …damn they arent gonna keep these women evil are they (they were prob child soldiers too, which, fair enough)

-kaito rly said nO PROB takes out entire obelisk force alone KING SHIT

-this duel prof guy whos name I am not committing to memory (guy with coconut hair) is mad annoying. I miss the actual professor from gx, he at least had cute clothes and lipstick for that certain gnc flair. this dude is like if spock sucked

-oh. ok edo has pants under his robes and stuff. from the side its more obviously like, a cape situation with hangy bits, but, I like my idea that its a snuggie better. </3

-it makes perfect sense why edo is upset but him being like 'I DIDNT SMILE!! I DIDNT!!' is a LITTLE funny. and ofc he would think duels arent supposed to be fun, yuya. my god hes only known them as tools of war! its like goin to someone and being like 'i KNOW guns are scary but where IM FROM all the bullets are marshmallows and we shoot them in each others mouths and into our friendship cocoa so dont worry, I want to understand u by shooting u gently with marshmallow gun :)' and u gotta be like. ok well where im from they are Death Weapons :( HHHH.

-also now that we're seeing more of yuyas dad can I just say. I DONT UNDERSTAND YGO GENETICS. DOES YUYA DYE HIS HAIR??? HIS DAD HAS BLACK HAIR AND HIS MOM IS A REDHEAD. anime genetics in general are screwy but with multicolored hair…its like. it MUST be hair dye right. if we are being honest. in a realistic au where that IS the case do we think yuya has 1. natural black hair or 2. natural orangy hair like his mom 3. some mix of the two (brown hair??) hmm.

-I feel like yuya's performer persona has come out 10000% more in these two past duels than the entire series and i LOVE IT YUYA FEELS LIKE HES GETTIN IN THE GROOVE OF IT. YES. MAKE THEM SMILE BABY. i am smiling too. cute…

-aw edo swapped sides and threw his fake snuggie away. also grace being SO READY TO JOIN YUYA HAHA. even edo and the tyler sisters hear yuya explain 'o ya yutos a guy whos Me from xyz ^^' and theyre like oh ok :) I LOVE HOW THEY ARE JUST. FINE WITH IT. I LIKE when everyone is friends so this is fine.

-kaito putting the fear of god into loser spock. amen

-…ok academia soldiers immediately switching sides and helping was cute. idc if its a bit unrealistic for all the child soldiers to flip that quick. its NICE in theory.

-edo being like 'o ya we can return the carded ppl to normal' casually and everyone being SHOCKED. i …kept forgetting everyone prob thought it was forever Permanent LMAO??? like. obviously /i/ know they return everyone to normal (just bc on a meta level Killing Everyone including minor charas FOREVER is too Much for ygo probably, and itd make academia a LOT more unforgivable imo) but. still. wild

-yuya/yuto speech abt 'yeah, we NEED to forgive to move on, ofc theres unforgivable stuff and thats even more painful but the best we can do is try to make ppl smile' …sweet sentiment. like I get what he means but I also dont 100% believe ppl in xyz would realistically be That WIlling to let academia ppl Help Them jdsafhkj

-so yeah, the cards are being used for Soul Energy or whatever, and edo thinks all the ppl are gonna be reborn. wonder if thats bs from leo or real? and 'reborn' as in like, immediately the same? so more like respawn that reBORN right. anyway what in the world is leo ACTUALLY aiming for bc i still dont believe its some utopia bullshit. hes using child soldiers and kidnapping girls…

-they put shun in A POD?? MAGIC HEALING POD??? HOW IS HE /THAT/ INJURED CMON. WE NEED FIGHTING BIRD. nooo are we rly leaving him in xyz for now boooo :(

-wait we're really going to fusion NOW? are we coming back to xyz after? it feels too SOON we have like 40 eps left, also, we spent way longer in synchro comparatively…

-christ, im GLAD yuyas dad is finally like 'yes ill go, ill take charge and talk to leo' buddy your old pal is using child soldiers and causing genocide, we are a little past trying to get him to egao!!! also how long have u been in fusion, u didnt IMMEDIATELY GO TO DO THIS??? IF UR SO SURE U CAN TALK TO HIM??? annoying asf im sorry i dont have a valid reason to dislike this man but i DO i do dislike him. one thing abt ygo is all the dads usually suck so im just WAITING to hear some SHIT abt him ToT

-dennis is finally back??? I forgot he existed. sorry dennis. you're FUN but not one of my favorites

-i do love all the students being like. NOOO YUYA'S DAD SENSEI STAND DOWN LET US HANDLE DENNIS. fuckin DENNIS trying to be a threat jdsfkj. as if yuyas dad is like, old and weak?? his leg might be injured but my god I seriously doubt he, as a pro duelist, who INVENTED A NEW TYPE OF DUELING, cannot beat DENNIS. funny

-…I do think dennis wouldve lost, but THEY RAN AWAY FROM THE DUEL. how many times has this happened in ygo ever?? wild!! theyre rly going for academia right NOW?? OH GOD ITS HAPPENING. WILL THE BRACELET GIRLS ALL FINALLY MEET UP

-YUYA YUZU REUNION. AGAIN.

-the INSANE BACKFLIPS KAITO JUST DID. I AM ON EP 113. HE JUST. KAITO WERE U A CHEERLEADER AT SOME POINT?? WHAT WAS /THAT/

-kinda mad abt yuzu being relegated to Damsel a bit, but glad she can also protect herself and duel

-yuto is SO funny popping out while yuya homosexually Duels kachidoki right after he says smth like 'bring out ur evil xyz dragon' and yuto says 'wow he rly hates u…' BRO ITS /YOUR/ DRAGON HES TALKING ABT LMAO??? yuto is so. well. im glad after this long, for this arc hes so much more PRESENT

-ok, yuya says smth REALLY interesting to me. he makes a point to be like 'because of how I was dueling back then (against kachidoki the first time, when the Demon Thing overtook him n yuto) I couldnt save kachidoki, but it's different now!' and. yeah? his character development has been kind of subtle, but in MY opinion he went from trying to force himself to smile as …a kind of Repressing of his Real feelings, and to just kinda emptily echoing his dads words without understanding them deeply, to actually wanting others to smile with him because hes Witnessed the Horrors and Injustices and wants to uplift ppl genuinely while honoring his dad too and…idk, it's NICE. I think the Demon thing is Less of an Immediate problem now bc hes! feeling his feelings More or smth? …is the Demon Form a Metaphor. (I know it wont be lol im still mildly worried abt it, esp since we got all the yuboys in the same dimension now..) anyway its nice and i already KNOW hes gonna befriend kachidoki :)

-kachidokis rainbow magic evil tattoos are so fun. love those

-the way yuya is struggling on roller shoes but was a natural on a bike in sychro is SO funny. granted his mom was a biker, so

-yuto's little 'hey are u doing this on purpose…' to yuya my GOD he is SO funny. emo king has JOKES (I think hes being serious which is even funnier actually)

-my god kachidoki's backstory is so sad but hes been fixating on yuya for EIGHT YEARS? yeah they are so. hmm. rotating them in my mind together. kachidoki was willing to make them both lose if it meant yuya losing…and yuya stopped him from doin that…offered him a friendly hand….going to CRY

-this is prob the first time kachidoki got praised like that in a duel too HHHH IM SAD. also why are u walking away, ur in a random dimension king, howre u gettin home? DENNIS? is DENNIS gonna send u home? jdsfkjhk

-my god dennis v kaito. why am I laughing so hard. kaito is like the biggest straightman ever to dennis' silly Menace and…yeah it's very funny to me. kaitos gonna beat his clown ass. kaito is THEE undefeated ygo rival I am not even a little worried

-ok quick card appreciation moment. bubble gardna is so CUTE

-Ok i expected kaito to win. did not expect. DENNIS TO, INSTEAD OF JOINING THEM, TURN HIMSELF INTO A CARD. jeez. ok. this was immediately overshadowed by the fact SERENA BACK!!!! ITS BEEN TOO LONG. HIIII SERENA :D

-…PIRATES ARE CANON. yet another epic win

-Moment. (followed by immediate betrayal, lmao I was wondering why we didn't get to see what she'd been up to and she just gave a vague summary...up to being brainwashed I Guess? unsurprising)

-I'm actually mad at how easily yuzu gets captured and goes along with this tho. bc it looked like serena just..mildly twisted her arm?? s1 yuzu would've fought Harder and been yelling (her being so spirited was one of my fav things abt her!) and they keep making her More of a Damsel and im >:( u still have legs girl! kick! bite! I want u to go down swinging if u must be caught!! struggle more!! damn!!!

-YUYA CAN SKATE ON TIGHT ROPES!!! i think I wondered earlier in this liveblog if he could do Circus Skills and he CAN MY GOD I AM SO VALIDATED RN. LOVE THIS

-reiji, layra, tsukikage, and crow are finally here. about god damn time. AND SORA IS TOO. YAY. why is jack not with them :<

-sora using a kraken monster against the pirate (pirate..cosplayer? lmao) so why DOES academia employ Fake Pirates exactly. like im not complaining I Just Want To Know

-this little?? approving nod and smile reiji gives to sora?? so cute ;_; genuinely glad to have both of them back, reiji is Best Team Leader and sora is very much needed if we're goin to academia (and look..hes all buddy friends with the other lancers now…cute…his FRIENDS…HE HAS FRIENDS NOW.......PROUD OF U DOT COM)

-also very glad yuya was like 'yeah serena wouldnt fucking DO THIS of her own will' and they did establish its Brainwashing. like, good on them for being smart and trusting their friends. refreshing to see

[knightprincess]

Heart & Soul (Crosshair x Fem Reader)

Words: 4.7k (yeah sorry long one) Warning: 18+ Mature content, sexual content, unprotected sex, P in V. praise, teasing. 

If there was one thing Crosshair hated, it was the uncomfortable feeling he got when been denied or teased in any sexual manner. He'd lost count how many times (Y/N) in particular had teased him, it always being in a way he couldn't complain about. Mainly her choice of nightwear. A random tank top paired with loose fitting mini shorts. There was just something about those shorts, his body never failed to react, sometimes to the point he struggled to get his words out without stuttering. His brothers too had noticed his reaction, if they weren't teasing him about it, they were normally staring after (Y/N) with desire shinning brightly in their honey eyes. Wrecker never failing to make a loud comment, loud enough for any stranger passing by to hear. Hunter would always stop what he was doing, often times forgetting what he'd been doing and suddenly make an excuse up to go to the refresher. Tech and Echo on the other hand were the most normal, bidding (Y/N) good morning, asking her how her night was, Tech always with a cup of caf waiting for her. 

Many of times had Crosshair found himself imagining what he would do if the pair of them were alone, the many scenarios playing out. Nearly all of them having something to do with (Y/N)'s pleasure filled moans filling the quiet ship. Yet to the snipers frustration, the chance had never arisen. The only time it had was when (Y/N) had been severely injured and knocked unconscious during a mission, he'd stayed by her side, holding her hand. Refused to leave until she woke. He'd stayed with her after that too, her admission of feeling safe with him and her simple question of asking him to stay had him all to eager to share her bunk. 

That event had kicked started their close bound. If there was ever a moment where Crosshair needed medical attention, he'd only ever allow (Y/N) to attend to his injuries. He'd also be the one to watch holo-films with her, just as he'd shared his secrets with her and vice versa, she'd also been the one he told of his hatred for Kamino and the reason for it, about his scarring training. (Y/N), had somehow made it a little better, knowing she was listening helped a lot, never once had she judged him for his past but instead accepted him for who he was. Yet despite that she seemed to deny him the acknowledgment of being teased by her. It wasn't just the shorts but other things too, the way she would sway his hips a little more when she knew he was watching, the comments to escape her perfect lips every now and again, even the way he would press up against him in the tight spaces of the ship. 

Often in those moments had Crosshair's mind played tricks on him. There being times he swore she whispered something to him, or when he felt her gentle touch burnt through his armor, yet never once could he confirm it in anyway. Yet still his body had reacted, goosebumps raising in the area she touched with her softly burning touch, the hair on the back of his neck would raise as he'd find his chest tightening and words becoming stuck in his throat. His member would twitch and begin to throb, almost begging to be touched and paid attention to. 

The nights after these chastise interactions, his mind filled with seductive encounters with (Y/N), his short soundless sleep being filled with vivid dreams, his mind tricked him into believing they were a secret reality, those dreams eventually turning into pinning wishes of his heart. Those wishes he was sure would be unfulfilled. The same ones he refused to utter a single word about, not even to (Y/N). Instead he suffered in silence until he could escape to the refresher unnoticed and jerk himself off. Those moments always being to the thought of (Y/N) in her loose fitting black night shorts, although he would occasional wonder if it was wrong of him to satisfy himself while thinking of her. Just as he found himself hoping no one heard his soft moans of her name when passing by the refresher door. 

It wasn't until a special stake out mission did the unfulfilled hopes and fantasies really begin torment Crosshair. The small Inn the team found themselves in, not having enough rooms for all of them to be alone. Instead pairing would happen. Tech and Echo had voiced their acceptance of being room mates for a few nights, not finding anything out of the ordinary since the pair often fell asleep in the cockpit. Crosshair on the other hand had quickly been paired with (Y/N), Hunter resigning himself to the fate of sleepless nights, knowing Wrecker could snore loudly and often moved around in his sleep. The occasional time he'd have imaginary arguments with someone. 

Each pairing heading to their rooms moments later, all with the hope of having a bed to themselves. Echo and Tech had the luck of the draw, both wasting no time in stretching out over the beds with Tech setting up his equipment moments after entering the double room. Hunter and Wrecker also had beds to themselves, Wrecker almost breaking his with his eagerness to try out the bouncy mattress, a few comments escaping about how fun the stake out mission would be. Crosshair and (Y/N) on the other hand weren't as lucky. The room housing a single double bed, if anything it appeared to be the honeymoon suite. Both looking to the other with uncertainty before returning their gaze to the room before them. The roomy bed pushed up against the back wall, ottomans at the end of it, a single door leading to the on-suite bathroom, another double door leading to a spacious balcony, one with a breath taking view. The pair had stood in the open door way for what seemed like forever, neither speaking a word as they both tried to work out a solution to what could only be described as the awkward situation. 

"Congratulations" come a unknown voice from behind the pair. The duo looking around quickly. Crosshair's hand on the weapon holstered to his hip, the other reaching for (Y/N) as if to protect her from the intruding voice. (Y/N)'s hand reaching for her lightsaber, as if on instinct, yet both falling into confusion upon seeing a middle aged woman peering at them, a bright smile on her lips as her eyes washed over the pair. Yet letting a sigh escape her lips upon seeing their confusion reigning down on her. "On your wedding. Only wedded couples stay in this suite" added the woman, dressed in simple garments, it being likely she helped run the inn and unaware of them just staying for a mission. Just as it was unlikely anyone knew about the ongoing war on the backwater planet they found themselves on. 

"Oh erm ...." (Y/N) had began, her cheeks turning a pale shade of pink. One of Crosshair's hand finding its way to the back of his neck in an awkward manner, clearly as lost for words as (Y/N) was. The surprise of the assumption knocking them both off guard, to the point they were unsure what they were to do now. In a rare moment, Crosshair had been pleased for Hunter's sudden appearance, his honey eyes begging for help in the situation. Although it was clear Hunter found amusement at the scene he found himself walking into. 

"It was a secret wedding. Only a few of us in attendance" spoke Hunter in response, his smokey voice barely above a whisper as if it was a secret only the middle aged woman could know. Crosshair could only throw Hunter a highlighted I hated you look, (Y/N)'s glare accompanying it, both unsure how that played into the stake out mission but couldn't object without making it obvious something was amiss. Crosshair soon reached for his stash of toothpicks, his eyes growing wide as he recalled something from days before hand, although he'd believed it was a vivid dream he'd began to wonder if it held truth to it. 

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Crosshair had been sat on his bunk, when news of the stake out had been delivered by one of the many Jedi General's, the republic having decided the group of five and (Y/N) were the best for job. Maybe it was there unparalleled success rate or their abilities to improvise when the time arose, or the fact they weren't so obviously identified as clones as others had been and (Y/N) was often mistaken for a Senator rather than a Jedi Knight. Although Tech had stated that was from her well known undercover op a few months prior to the war beginning. 

A joke had been made about how to blend in further. Echo throwing in (Y/N) marrying one of them would be a good diversion, Tech agreeing quickly despite the laugh to escape (Y/N) as she believed it to be a joke of some sort. Hunter had thrown forward the idea of (Y/N) using her Senator persona, with the rest of them being her security, although that would mean her giving them her lightsabers, something they all knew she was unsure about. Crosshair on the other hand had been close to (Y/N), sat opposite her in the tight confinement of the Marauder, he could see how unsure she was about being the center of it all. Especially after her last uncover op had resulted in injury for several of them after a fire fight had broken out. 

Crosshair had been lost in thought while looking at (Y/N) with softness, he'd not heard Wrecker agreeing with the marriage idea and volunteering the sniper for the role. Using Crosshair's calm and collective nature as reason for his recommendation. (Y/N) getting up with a sigh and snapped Crosshair out of his thoughts, not a single word passed her lips as she climbed up into her quiet spot above the bunks, it being clear she wanted time alone to think over everything, where as Crosshair turned his attention to his brothers, quickly understanding he had missed something important. 

"The stake out mission, will require a believable distraction for being there. (Y/N) unfortunately will have to bare the brunt of the stress" started Tech, finding himself overwhelmed with guilt over his agreement to the idea, just as Echo found himself the same for submitting the idea in the first place. "The distraction will be (Y/N)'s honeymoon" carefully spoke Tech, as if fearing how his younger brother would react. He watched as the others did, as the different emotions passed over the snipers features, confusion, uncertainty, anger and concern. A unspoken question on his lips of wondering if there was a better way. 

"(Y/N) just said decided among us and tell her after" excitedly spoke Wrecker, as if the idea of marrying a Jedi Knight was the best thing he'd heard in a while. Although he stopped upon noticing the glare Crosshair shot in his direction. "We were going on which one of us would be best. Since none of us are really keen on the idea either" calmly proclaimed the human bulldozer, as if attempting to calm Crosshair's murderous glare and redirection the attention elsewhere. Even now the glare Crosshair had mastered terrified Wrecker, far beyond what the war had thrust far thrown at them. 

"I'll do it" muttered Crosshair, unsure what had come over him, he'd felt the need to protect her and correct what had been deemed an injustice done against her. Plus deep down he knew he held a secret love for her, not just lust but pure adoration too. She brought out his soft side, showed no judgment towards him, instead only care and acceptance, the least he could do now was this to help her through the mission and bare some of the burden weight. 

Crosshair had climbed up to her hideout seconds later, joining her in the tight space above. Lying next to her. He knew she had turned the cramped area into a little room for herself, a couple of pillows and blankets one side, the other (Y/N) laid across the floor with a book in her hands, although it was clear she wasn't reading it, instead staring at the printed words as if they held the means of her escape from what troubled her. 

"Come to tell me who the unlucky one is?" quietly whispered (Y/N) her voice unenthusiastic as she listened as Wrecker pulled down his bunk and the remaining three make excuses to leave the area and uncomfortable silence. Crosshair merely hummed in response, tucking his arms behind his head as he looked up to the drawing taped above, softness returning to him as he realized the drawing were portraits on him and his brothers. Each portraying them in the midst of something. Hunter seemingly lost in thought as he span his vibroblade between his fingers, Tech captured talking of something, Echo as he watched the colors of hyperspace, Wrecker while holding his Tooka doll, Lula. The one of himself depicting him doing his normal rifle cleaning routine, he did after every mission. Yet as Crosshair strained his memory, he couldn't ever recall seeing (Y/N) around during any of the moments depicted, as if she had drawing them from pure memory rather than being there with them. 

"That would be yours truly" admitted Crosshair, reaching out one of his hands to gently take the book from her hands, instead reaching for the holopad close by. Pulling her close upon retrieving it, his mind focusing on comforting her and accepting the burden they would both be sharing. He wasn't sure why he place a soft kiss to her hair line, but felt the need to do so. The pair finding comfort in each other as they decided on a film to watch, Crosshair feeling a little more confident the longer (Y/N) stayed in her position, her head against his shoulder, one of her arms stretch across his chest. 

The pair having fallen asleep like it. Tech having noticed Crosshair hadn't come down so checked on the duo, moving a blanket from the opposite side and draping it over the pair, before returning to the cockpit, where Echo had already nodded off. Hunter and Wrecker too had fallen for the lure of sleep. The next day would bring the short wedding, nothing too special, although Tech had began to question whether it would be valid or not in the minds of the pair and those to witness it. 

The following morning the little ceremony took place. (Y/N) in her Jedi robes, her lightsabers attached to her belt, Crosshair donning his normal armor, rifle attached to his pack with other weapons on his personnel. The group stood next to the Marauder. Hunter, Tech, Echo and Wrecker stood by as witnesses. Crosshair and (Y/N) facing each other, as they had done many times in the past, although not with the meaning this time had.

"Mhi solus tome. Mhi solus dar'tome. Mahi me'dinui an. Mhi" spoke both (Y/N) and Crosshair in unison. The pair of them being serious. Yet as quick as that it was done. 

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As if a wave hit Crosshair, he seemed unsure how he'd forgotten it, was there a mind trick being played on him or did both he and (Y/N) suffer some injury during the trip to get to the backwater planet. Yet he didn't voice his thoughts, neither did (Y/N) stood next to him as if she was in some sort of trance. Without a second thoughts Crosshair slipped the bag from her shoulder, gently picking her up moments later, as if to play the role he'd just remembered, a playful scream and laugh escaping (Y/N). One of her arms hooking around the back of his neck, the other reaching up for his free shoulder. 

"Please tell me you have those shorts" whispered Crosshair, wondering if he'd be blessed with such a sight. He'd never admit those tiny black shorts turned him on. (Y/N) merely nodded her head in response, already being able to guess where this was going. His lustful looks and terrible excuses hadn't gone unnoticed by her. Nor had his jealous looks when they'd all find themselves at 79's. Crosshair never failed to scare some poor soul away or intimidate them into leaving, most of the time without uttering a single word. Most clones learnt quickly Crosshair wasn't to be messed with, especially over something that was his or someone he cared about, other patrons had also learnt the same lesson through a few fights. 

"Hmm. Maybe I can use them to motivate you into doing a good job" commented (Y/N), hearing Crosshair chuckle as he carefully dropped her on the bed, the yelp to escape her only serving to make Crosshair chuckle a little louder than before. The sniper soon sat beside her on the bed, both suddenly becoming lost in the view from the balcony doors. Crosshair found himself wondering what was so important about the planet they were on, why they would need a cover for being in a place so far out of the way, he was surprised both the republic and separatists even remembered it. Even he couldn't remember the name of the planet, even when Tech had spoken it several times. 

"A reward for a job well done ....." whispered Crosshair, breaking the silence between them, gathering the necessary things, needed for the mission, (Y/N) looked to him, sensing there were words left unsaid. "ner kar'ta bal runi I have a few other ideas too" admitted the sniper before their conversation was interupted. Both walking from the room moments later, Crosshair with a stronger feeling to protect the woman he gained the right to call "His Jedi" 

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Upon returning to the suite that night. (Y/N) went to the shower as she had stated she would before hand. Washing away the mixture of mud, blood and anything else dirtying her. She made sure to clean up after herself, if only to ensure Crosshair could shower in peace too. Before leaving the fair sized bathroom, she dressed in the loose fitting black shorts and a figure hugging black tank top. Wrapping her hair in a towel to ensure it didn't drip water everywhere. Upon entering the main suite, she found Crosshair effortless cleaning his rifle, although she knew he had already done that, so had likely been doing it to pass the time. 

"All yours" softly spoke (Y/N), causing Crosshair to jump slightly, it being so clear he'd been lost in his thoughts, although he soon stood and turned towards her, his breath getting stuck in his throat upon his eyes landing on her. The top she wore leaving little to the imagination, the fabric hugging all her curves and showing her erected nipples clearly. Yet soon enough Crosshair snapped himself out of it, sending himself to the bathroom. The moment he stepped under the warm water of the shower, he felt his tense muscles relax, yet his wonder got wilder. Questions floated through his head as he washed away the boggy mud sticking to his skin and rinsed his short hair back to the natural silver color. He wondered what would happen between himself and (Y/N) now. By Mandalorian rule they were technically married, he a clone and she a Jedi, a pairing not too uncommon since the war had began. 

As the sniper stepped from the shower, he felt his confidence rise as the nippy crisp air bit at his exposed skin. Although he barely noticed as he wrapped a towel loosely around his waist, using another to catch the water droplets making their escape down the back of his neck and face. The same towel becoming useful again moments later as he cleared the steam from the mirror before him. Just seconds later leaving the bathroom to find (Y/N) on one of the chairs in the corner of the room, holopad in hand as she read over something.

Once again Crosshair felt his confidence rise, just as he wanted to see where things would go from here. (Y/N) had worn those shorts as she said she would if he did a good job. Yet once again he noticed she wasn't actually reading what was one her holopad. She was a fast reader, her knew that, so knew she would have likely turned the page by now. The sniper wasted little time getting to her, sitting on the stool before her, resting her bare feet on his toweled lap, hearing her hum as if she had been waiting for him to return. Without really thinking began to run his fingers up and down her calf, soft strokes as if he was teasing her in ways different to how she often teased him. 

He soon moved up her body, connecting their lips within seconds, his hands trailing down her arms and body. Her own arms swinging around the back of his neck, as if to pull him closer to her. The kiss seeming so right to them both, Crosshair feeling as if the missing part of him, had been found. Where as (Y/N), felt the love she knew had been missing from her life, the passion she had only dreamed of one day experiencing for herself. The too soon parted, if only to catch their breath. Their heads resting together as they looked into the others eyes, as if looking for any sign of rejection or regret, both pleased to find nothing of the sort. 

"Ner kar'taylir darasuum, maybe we should take this to the bed" whispered Crosshair. Seeing her agreement as she placed the forgotten holopad to the side, standing up moments later. (Y/N) allowing him to lead her to the bed, his instruction to lay on her back something she did without question, not being surprised when he pulled the rim of her top down, exposing her breasts to the cold air surrounding them. Although his hands soon found them, his lips following shortly after. Crosshair's free hand soon began to move lower, reaching beneath the hem of her black sorts, although he stopped in surprise to realize she wore no underwear beneath the shorts. His eyes growing darker with lust as he looked to her, continuing on with play with her nipples and finding her sensitive spot hidden beneath the shorts. 

The moment contact being made, (Y/N), softly moaned, it sounding so sweet to Crosshair as he continued to play with her. Running his long fingers through her folds, hearing her moan every time. The sound only serving to get him excited too. He didn't stop (Y/N) when her hands reached for the towel hung around his waist, gently undoing it, finally pay him attention. Her hands soft as she pushed him over, connecting their lips once he was on his back, her hand finding its way to his member, wrapping around him as she began to pump. Crosshair's only response was to hold back his own moan as his hands found her breasts again. Pulling her top up and over her head moments later. If only to gain better access to her. 

"Want me to take the shorts off too" teased (Y/N), seeing the way his honey eyes darkened further. Yet before she could reached for the hem of her shorts, Crosshair's hands found his wrists. In a blink of an eye their position changed again. Once again he was back on top of her. His lips finding hers as his hands found his own member. His patients showing through as he continued to play with her, his own games in mind and desires. Just as he wanted to pleasure her in a way she hadn't been before. 

"No" responded Crosshair after what felt like hours passed. "I want to take you, while you're wearing them" added the sniper, swiftly pushing the shorts to the side, enough to give him access to her core. With a silent request and (Y/N) nodding in response, he soon began to run his member through her wet folds, hearing her moan further. "All this wetness for me. whatever did I do to earn such a reward" whispered Crosshair, as his lips found her jaw, not wishing to stifle her quiet moans. He soon lined himself up with her entrance, looking to (Y/N) once more before slowly pushing himself in, feeling how tight her walls were around him, it taking all his strength not to come right there and then. "Fuck you're tight" whispered Crosshair, placing his hands beside her head to stabilize himself. His other hand resting on her cheek once he was completely sheathed inside her. Allowing her time to adjust to his size. 

Upon (Y/N) nodding, he began to move, pulling almost all the way back out before thrusting back into her. Feeling her legs wrap around his waist, she soon pulled his lips back to hers, feeling each and every thrust he made into her. Her moans growing louder although stifled by Crosshair's lips on hers. Their tongues fighting for dominance all the while. Crosshair soon began to pick up the pace of his thrusts, obeying her request he goes faster, soon finding her sweet spot. His self given order to hit it as much as he could, thrust giving her the maximum amount of pleasure he possibly could. Without warning he soon pulled out, positioning her on her hands and knees, sliding back in without much effort. Keeping up with the same pace as before. Hearing (Y/N) moan even more than before, as she felt him go even deeper than before. 

"Sing for me cyar'ika" spoke Crosshair breathlessly, gently moving his hands from her hips to her shoulders, pulling her up to rest against him. Her head against his shoulder as he went deeper inside her. Her lips against his ear as she moaned his name with pleasure. His hands finding their way back to her breasts once he was sure she wouldn't fall, giving them the attention they deserved. "Good girl" praised Crosshair, his own lips finding her neck as he gently began to nibble and suck, determined to leave a mark that would mark her as his own. 

"Cross" moaned (Y/N), feeling as her stomach began to knot, knowing she was close to her climax. "I'm gonna come" moan (Y/N), as she screamed out moments later. Crosshair not letting up on his pace, riding her through her high. Switching positions again when she was had come back down. This time allowing her to straddle him. Pushing her shorts to the side again, as he re-entered her, the sound of their moans ringing out and mixing with the sound of skin slapping against skin. Although Crosshair soon sat up, wrapping his arms around her waist, her lips finding his neck as he had done with her earlier. Stifling her moans as she nibbled and sucked on his neck, leaving a mark that would be visible there for days. 

In a last whim, Crosshair flipped them again, back to the original position, although not pulling out this time. His thrusts becoming sloppy as he reached his own end, yet determination in his eyes to get her to climax again before he did. "You going to come for me again Cyar'ika?" asked Crosshair breathlessly, seeing her nod beneath him, he soon reached for her sensitive spot, rubbing in circles to bring her to her climax sooner. Hearing her moans grow louder again as she began to beg for her end. The pair soon coming at the same time. Crosshair deep inside her, collapsing on her moments later, pulling out, using what remained of his strength to do so. His lips once again finding (Y/N)'s as he brushed some of her hair from her forehead, stuck there by the layer of sweat to coat them both. 

His arms soon wound around her waist again, (Y/N) finding the energy to reach for the blanket to cover them both. Snuggling closer to him upon doing so. Both trying to catch their breath, while trying to avoid the lure of sleep. The day tiring both of them out, although neither could argue with how it ended. 

"Ner Mesh'la" whispered Crosshair before dozing off, his arms still around (Y/N), his head resting against hers, a rare soft smile on his lips. (Y/N) following along shortly after, her last thoughts on how the rest of the scout mission was going to play out. But also being thankful, she had Crosshair with her. 

[theredhairedmonkey]

What do you think will happen in "Through the Moon"?

Hmm, I’ve changed my mind a couple times as to what I think will happen, but I’ll let you know what I’m thinking right now, anon:

Since this story takes place in the Moon Nexus (and involves some kind of invitation for a ritual there), I imagine that some time must have taken place since the Battle of the Storm Spire. Just throwing out a number, I’ll guess that something like a year to 18 months have passed, which gives the trio enough time to change and adjust to the new peace they helped create.

So, some background on each of them before we dive into “Through the Moon.” All three are now living in Katolis.

Ezran is having a tough time, as he now has the most responsibilities of the three of them (oh, how the tables have turned). It turns out that Opeli’s “peace will require just as much strength as war” was not a joke. The battle to save Zym might have led to peace with the elves and dragons, but it has upended the entire world order. Katolis now has closer ties with the elves (the Sunfire elves in particular) and the Dragon King Azymondias than it does with several of the Human Kingdoms (particularly Neoloandia, which has cut off ties to Duren and Katolis after Prince Kasef’s death). 

The battle also shifted the balance of power; Katolis lost much of its army, while Duren, which suffered the fewest casualties, is now the strongest Human Kingdom and breadbasket for the Pentarchy. While Queen Aanya means well, King Ezran has been encouraged to allow General Amaya to rebuild the Katolian army. Additionally, racism against elves and dragons is a hard beast to overcome, and Ezran has been struggling with certain voices in his court that are urging him to take an aggressive stance against Xadia. Keeping these people pacified has been a challenge…especially now that Rayla is living in the capital as a permanent guest.

In spite of his age, Ezran is pretty much on top of this all—Corvus once commented that he had shown more “courage, strength, and grace than most leaders show in a lifetime,” and I think that will shine through here. He might not be the most learned or most well-informed person in the room, but he knows when to rely on experts and when to rely on his sense of right and wrong.

So, “Through the Moon” might show a little bit of that–how Ezran has begun to fill his father’s shoes (as well as make his own), how well he’s adjusted to being a ruler during peacetime, and how much he still has to grow.

Callum is a prince reborn. In just a few months after the battle, he quickly mastered Sky Magic in its entirety, even coming up with several new techniques along the way. He has also learned quite a bit about the other Primal Sources and their respective Arcana. Callum is also within striking distance of finally understanding the Moon Arcanum (more on that later).

He’s trying to help Ezran as best he can, but this “awkward step-prince” always had trouble succeeding at his princely duties, and that extends to administrative and political matters. He’s no Viren, and neither his personality nor his Sky Magic provides much help at court. His abilities are more physical than the creative, complex spells that Viren often does.

Instead, Callum finds that he’s most helpful outside and beyond the walls of the castle—this is, after all, where the sky is, and where Callum is at his strongest. He’s often flying to other towns, and helps the common people with building roads, constructing dams, clearing out fields for farmland, irrigation, and the like.

The people who knew him before are quite surprised by this change. He used to be this bookish artist boy who could barely hold up a sword, wearing a signature red scarf and blue jacket. Now, he’s a strong, confident mage, sporting sleeveless shirts that reveal elaborate runes on his arms. He can fly and is therefore more physically capable than any ordinary human in the kingdom. Many less tolerant people are also put off by how protective he is over his new elven, um, “friend” Rayla.

Now, on to Rayla. Hoo boy…

Here’s what we first hear about her—Only Rayla is still restless

At first, I was wondering why she was refusing to believe Viren is dead, when it seems everyone else is ready to move on. And then I remembered this scene:

Viren: “I’ll return for you soon. It will be a pleasure to add one more Moonshadow elf to my collection”

Both her terrified expression and her registering what Viren is saying help explain why she’s so restless—whatever was in that bag must contain something related to other Moonshadow elves (either their remnants or their essence).

Then, when talking to Callum about what he saw in his spell, she’ll start to put two and two together. Even if he didn’t understand what he was seeing, he must have seen Lain and Tiadrin get coined by Viren.

Rayla doesn’t know if they’re dead or not, but she realizes she needs to find that bag. Maybe they can be revived, maybe they can’t. But the pain of not knowing is overwhelming.

She’s also probably fearful of the man himself. While she’s been overpowered before, she’s never been so helpless as she was before Viren. His “I’ll return for you soon” line stays with her, and not being able to confirm beyond a shadow of a doubt that this monster is gone will haunt her.

And to make matters worse, no one has been able to find Viren’s remains. Most assume his body was just lost, perhaps in a ravine somewhere. But Rayla needs to find his bag of coins. Combine that with the sheer terror she expresses in the scene above, she probably doesn’t fully believe that something like a fall could kill someone like Viren. And part of her hopes that’s the case; if she’s right, there’s a chance she can find her parents’ coins (and whoever else) and either revive them or, at worst, make peace with the fact that they are gone for good because the uncertainty is just that painful.

Without knowing for sure whether Viren, her parents or Runaan are gone, she’s lost. At least Callum, who tragically lost his parents, knows they are gone. There is a bit of solace in the finality of accepting your loved one’s passing. Rayla, on the other hand, is trapped between hope and fear. Hope that they may be alive, fear that she’ll never know.

Callum will pick up on the fact that something’s wrong, and Rayla will likewise let him in. She knows now that she’s safe around him. She can be vulnerable and scared and raw around Callum, because he will never think less of her, never judge her, and never love her any less.

And this is just something she will absolutely adore about him. Even though he’s incapable of giving her closure (even as a mage, he can’t just bring them back or give her an answer), he’ll always try to make her feel better, even if only by a little bit and for a short while.

Nevertheless, the three of them are called to an ancient ritual at the Moon Nexus. I’m guessing that, since there’s peace with Xadia, Lujanne either invites the trio back, or reveals the Moon Nexus to the Human world. In either case, there’s an invitation for Ezran, Callum, and Rayla to come back and take part in this ritual.

At some point, either by accidentally overhearing something or just from Lujanne explaining the ritual, she learns that the lake is a portal between life or death.

This is her chance, she thinks. This portal contains the answers to all the questions she’s been craving. The questions that have been eating away at her that no amount of “Big Feelings Time” has been able to ease.

Part of it is to see once and for all if Viren is dead, but the main reason is that she wants closure. She wants to know whether she needs to save her parents and Runaan or mourn for them. At least then, in either case, she can move on.

But the portal is unstable, and the ancient Moonshadow Elves who destroyed it never intended for it to be reopened. It seems as though Rayla will have to risk life and limb (and maybe not just her life and limb) to reopen the portal. I’d wager that, in the midst of the ceremony, she’ll jump right into the lake because, let’s face it, jumping into certain danger is something she’s used to at this point.

And speaking of things certain characters are used to, Callum will for sure have another episode of “here I go doing something reckless to protect Rayla,” and follow her.

As a quick side note, if there’s a time for Callum to unlock the Moon Arcanum, it’s here. He’s already worked through his understanding of reality and appearance well enough to apply it when facing Sol Regem. He’s also cast his first Moon spell, and hence knows how it “feels” to do Moon magic. Just as with the Sky Arcanum, Callum’s got all the details he needs “swirling in his head,” and just needs a way to bring it all together.

But, for Rayla, this is very much an introspective journey– Will Rayla’s quest to uncover the secrets of the dead put her living friends in mortal danger?

I am very skeptical that we’ll learn Viren is alive before S4. That is such a huge reveal to occur before we even see the trio on screen! And to a lesser extent, I have a hard time imagining how S4 could start off with Rayla knowing that her parents and Runaan are indeed alive.

Instead, I imagine “Through the Moon” to be more of an introspective look into Rayla—How does she see the world? How does she see herself? What’s bothering her, and what does she do to overcome her internal strife?

This would honestly be a breath of fresh air—while S3 does a good job shining a light on Rayla, it’s mostly from Callum’s perspective (he notices her sobbing and goes to comfort her; he observes and comments how she’s a hero; he helps her work through her feelings about her parents).

This graphic novel is a great way to focus on Rayla’s perspective instead. Her journey at the end of S3 left us with a bit of a “now what”? So, this book might be a good way to begin answering that.

[tordcallout]

callout for @nyadmin

this callout is best read on desktop.

this callout contains: racefaking, blackfacing/brownfacing, pedophilia, incest, grooming, systemfaking, antisemitism, nazism, cult jokes, and more.

his current url is nyadmin. his twitter is adminpowers. his discord is ROMY O NO#6477. click here for a list of past names. click here for a list of his past urls. his other blogs are: amblyopic, racefakery, todayphobe, exadmin, askmychampion, and supercrushhighschool.

tords past callouts: one, two, three.

the rest of the callout is under the cut.

racefaking:

tord claims his mom is white and native and that his father is half black and half white. people who have known tord irl in the past say that his dad is not half black and those who’ve known him online say tord has never mentioned it before or joined in when they discussed issues related to being black. he also refuses to ask his dad for any photos of his grandmother who he says is black.

in the past tord has tried to claim that he doesn’t benefit from white passing privilege despite being extremely pale.

photos of his parents found on facebook show that neither his mom or dad have anything resembling ethnic features. his mom’s hair is dyed blond but regardless they both have basic white features:

below is proof that the woman shown is tords mom:

tords own blood related brother, felix, claims he doesn’t know where tord is getting their black heritage from:

below is a screenshot of an anon on mikas blog asking if tord has ever said the n word in front of him:

on 8/23/18, tord made this post. in the post he says this:

if it isn’t clear, he basically just said that he is white.

there’s also this screenshot from an older blog of his:

and if that wasn’t enough proof that tord’s racefaking he has also done both blackface and brownface. however, before we get to that here’s some more:

tord wondering if he could participate in the black men smiling tag and blackout.

now for the moment you’ve all been waiting for. tords blackface and brownface.

the first image is the brownface, the second is blackface.

on the left tord has obviously edited his skin to appear darker. in his blackface cosplay he claimed he wasn’t actually painted black and that the snapchat filters were making him darker. this is clearly a lie considering nearly all snapchat filters lighten your skin and this filter is no exception:

here is the filter applied to a white person, and as you can see, her skin is smoothed out but it is no where near dark the way tord appears in his selfie.

adding onto this, if you look closely at tords selfie you can tell the outside of his lips have a very pale ring around it. this is obviously because he didnt do very well coloring in his skin. you can also tell there is a grainy texture on tords skin but not anywhere else in this image, more evidence the image was edited.

more info on the blackface cosplay selfie can be read here and here.

you must either be on desktop or reading this post through a chrome browser to view this part, apologies. in these posts tord has a conversation with someone named frost about his callouts and being mixed. please keep in mind that the conversation in that link took place on may 7th of 2018. meaning, that in the past tord agreed to stop claiming to be mixed black and native but then threw that all out the window and began to reclaim it again.

grooming, incest, and pedophilia:

i was very hesitant to include this however, many people have said they feel the same way about this so it felt important enough to have its own part. multiple people believe that the relationship between tord and his brother felix is extremely inappropriate. the way he interacts with his brother is really something he needs to re-evaluate.

this isn’t meant to be about kin drama or anything of the sort, i’m only stating this because of the way tord and felix take kin so seriously. he and felix often match kins which isn’t an issue in itself, however, the only kins they typically match are those of which have a canon romantic relationship; and if not canon tord will still tag felix in ship art of their kins, as seen here. 

when you visit the op of that post, you will see that it is tagged as both “shipsworld” and “tordedd”. the art is very obviously ship art anyways.

tord is obviously one of his main ids, so to tag your own sibling in ship art of your main id with one of theirs seems incredibly off. not to mention the very large age gap between tord and felix in the first place.

this isn’t a recent thing of theirs either, they’ve been doing this for years now. couples they’ve kinmatched have been: greg and rose from steven universe, eliza and alexander from hamilton, and penny and billy from dr. horribles sing a-long blog. along with tord and edd from eddsworld and romeo/admin and jesse from minecraft story mode who are not canonly dating. there are most likely even more than those listed above.

there aren’t screenshots of them both being kin with these characters, but the hamilton one isn’t hard to believe considering tords main id used to be alexander hamilton from the hamilton musical.

to add onto this, felix apparently had a set of ocs and a persona oc at one point. his oc skit, was to represent himself, and his oc aiko, was implied to be skits romantic interest.

here is a photo of skit, as you can see skit represents felix. you can also clearly see that aiko is labeled as skits “enemy and crush”, confirming that these two characters are supposed to have a sort of romantic relationship.

now here is a photo of aiko. as you can see from the relationship box, it is 100% that skit and aiko are supposed to be in a romantic relationship or something similar to that.

now the reason this i’m telling you all of this is because of on tords old deviantart, he has a folder of art of his kins. in that folder you could find images of skit and aiko along with one of aiko on her own, implying that tord kins her.

to make things even weirder, the photos added to this folder of skit and aiko are incredibly romantic in nature, hugs with hearts around them and a photo where the two of them are basically kissing with a heart above the two. the folder also includes more romantic tordedd art as well.

back to their matching kins however, as stated before, tord and felix kinmatch jesse and romeo/admin from minecraft story mode. i know little to nothing about this game, however, i do know that tord ships these two characters together. felix kins jesse and tord kins romeo. 

UPDATE: i have been informed that the ages previously listed here were a mcsm fans headcanon ages for the characters and that they do not have canonical ages. however, it does prove that there are fans that would see the ship as a pedophilic one due to hcs of romeo being 30+ and jesse being >20.

now, here is a disgusting screenshot of tord saying he’s going to show his brother porn. i’m sure this was meant to be taken as a joke but i find it highly disturbing due to the fact that at the time of this screenshot being taken felix would only be 12 years old and tord would’ve been 16 years old.

i am in no way trying to say tord is a full on pedophile, not am i accusing him of having romantic or sexual feelings for his brother, however, i am saying the way he interacts with his brother is not okay and that he needs to learn how to separate friend interaction from sibling interaction.

cult jokes:

tord previously had a cult joke in his about: “mixed but i drank the racefaker koolaid”. when told about this, he refused to remove the joke and tried to hide it under the guise of the phrase being “aave” (his explaination was that black people like to drink koolaid). he was messaged by someone on his blog @/racefakery who asked for him to remove the joke from his about, as it is incredibly insensitive to joke about something like that where everyone can see.

in the conversation, tord doesn’t take the person who messaged him seriously at all and says “i don’t see why i should care?” about cult victims. i don’t think i have to explain how horrible and insensitive that is to say.

the joke continued to stay in his about for nearly a month after this conversation. on top of that, tord never apologized nor admitted that cult jokes are just as serious as jokes as any other traumatizing kind of event.

UPDATE: after doing a little digging, i found an older blog of his. in the links of this blog there is this: “thanks for reading and welcome to the lonely hearts cult” at the end of his links. so there’s another cult joke made by tord.

nazism:

tord has had multiple accounts of him being antisemetic, however, for this we are going to focus on the fact that tord is kin with habit and kinned eridan.

archive of this page.

habit from everymanhybrid is a canonical nazi. this was displayed on tords “alters” blog. now even if were going to pretend tord is a system here, unless tord is comfortable with antisemitism there is no reason for his “alter” to kin a nazi. all alters share similarities with their hosts, this mainly includes moral standpoints, saying tords “alter” is okay with kinning a nazi but not tord is the same as saying you can have one alter be a terf but the host isn’t. it isn’t simply isn’t possible. anyways, here’s evidence of habit being a nazi:

the person he claimed to have possessed was josef mengele. i don’t want to repeat the things he did but you can google it if you’d really like to know of it.

on top of habit being a nazi, here is a list of his “hobbies” & crimes he’s commit:

as for eridan, his main goal from what i’ve been told was to “wipe out the landwellers”, as he is a “seadweller”. his whole character is a metaphot for nazism, eridan being hitler and the “landwellers” being jewish people. if you want more info on this it can be found here. not sure why you would though.

tord was also briefly friends with ethan, a known nazi & rapist, for a while. there’s a lot of screenshots and information on that. you can read it on this google doc.

systemfaking:

this one isn’t going to take very long to explain because of how blatantly obvious it is but tord is systemfaking. from what i and quite a few others can tell, one of the biggest implications is that tords “alters” would reblog one anothers posts and talk to each other via the posts. there a many reasons this makes no sense:

if his alters are conscious enough to have their own blogs and set up themes similar to tords, why do they need to reblog one another’s posts to communicate? at that point, they should be able to speak via headspace.

these posts of his alters interacting with each other are made just seconds apart from each other, it is literally impossible for anyone to shift this fast, the average shifting time is 5-15 minutes. however, these posts aren’t even made a full minute apart from one another.

this is a post where tords “alters” habit and cora are interacting on a post.

if you look into the source code of these two posts you will find that they were made literally not even a full two minutes apart from one another. the original was posted at 8:10:46 and coras was posted at 8:11:10. like i already stated, this isn’t possible in systems.

tord and his “alter” gem do this again. gems first reblog of this post was at 17:51:49. and their second reblog of the post was at  17:53:48. under 5 minutes apart from one another, meaning tords reblog must’ve been around 17:52. but it just isn’t possible either way.

you may think that this is all that tord has done, but it really isn’t. despite all the information in this callout there is still a lot here that isn’t shown. this was thrown together as a sort of “birthday gift” for tord. i hope you appreciate your gift, tord.

[fieryanmitsu]

((Thanks for letting me add on to your post, @a3-randomness!!))

Super stoked about OP’s post because I am a nerd who obsessively thinks about these things and spent hours upon hours plotting timelines out. I just wanted to add on to OP’s post with the following revised possible years of birth based on some additional information and my own theories. If a character is not mentioned below, it’s because I am in agreement with OP’s year assignment (I also have the same assumption that the Act 1 story takes place in 2017).

1990: Homare

1992: Tasuku, Tsumugi

1993: Tasuku, Itaru

1999: Sakuya, Banri, Juza

2000: Sakuya, Masumi, Tenma, Taichi

2001: Masumi, Kumon

I came to the above conclusions based on the following:

1. Japanese School Year

The first thing to keep in mind is how the Japanese school system works. Students start first year of elementary school if they are 6 years old by the time the school year starts. The Japanese school year starts in first week of April, so the cut off for starting school is that the student must be 6 years old on or before April 1. This means that students in a particular school grade will span two calendar birth years. For example, one grade of students will have those born in April to December of 2017 AND those born in January to March of 2018.

This would mean that by the time a student graduates high school, they would have turned 18. The school year ends in mid-to late- March, and then there is a spring break of approximately 2 weeks before the new school year starts in April.

2. Itaru and Tasuku are born in the same year

Apparently, in certain dialogue in the Japanese version of the game, Itaru confirms that he and Tasuku are the same age/year. This also lines up with Tasuku being in the same school year as Tsumugi. Based on how the Japanese school system works, Tasuku must have been born two months after Tsumugi to be in the same school year as him. If he was born 9 months before Tsumugi, he would have been in the grade above him (and as far as we can tell, their backstories indicate they were in the same school grade).

If we take this into consideration, then why would Tasuku be listed as 24 in Act 1 and Itaru listed as 23, even if they are supposedly born only two months apart? This brings me to my next two points.

3. The Prologue takes place between March 30 and April 9, 2017

This part of my theory isn’t perfect, but it’s mostly because the A3! timeline is a bit of a hot mess, but I did what I could to reconcile inconsistencies.

Also we’re just going to pretend that all of Act 1 somehow took place in only 12 months despite having gone through seasons/holidays twice and squeezed in like 8 more plays before the Rookies join in Act 2 (which technically starts in April 2018). They’ve obviously been living in a time loop à la Torment Doll.

To begin with, when Izumi first meets Sakuya, he introduces himself as 17 years old. This means that the Prologue must have taken place after March 9 of Sakuya’s second year of high school (i.e. it’s at least the last month of his second year). However it’s most likely that it’s actually after the school year and it’s taking place during their spring break. This is because, when Tsuzuru joins, he is already graduated from high school and is looking for a dorm for university. Though it’s also possible that the school year has already started, but it would only be the first week or two of the school year.

There’s also confirmation that the Prologue takes place in March/April because Izumi mentions that Sakyo is only giving them until the end of the year (and she specifically says 10 more months are left in the year) to put on 4 shows. Now, this is where the inconsistencies come in. If there’s 10 months left, it would make more sense for the Prologue to be in February, but that clashes with Sakuya being 17. And he can’t be 17 turning 18 in a month after February, because then he would be too old to be in third year of high school (and we have no reason to believe he got held back a year or started school later than other students). It would also clash with the fact that he is listed as 18 in Act 2 profile which starts in April 2018 (after his birthday). I’ve kinda had to handwave this away as Izumi miscounting the months or that the Prologue occurs in March (so it’s kiiiiinda 10 months still if we count March as a full month, haha).

More specifically, I believe that the Prologue begins on or after Masumi’s birthday (March 30) and before Tsuzuru’s birthday (April 9). This is because of how Masumi and Tsuzuru’s ages (and others) are listed in their Act 1 profiles.

4. Act 1 ages in character profile are listed as of the date of the start of the Prologue and they age up as Act 1 unfolds (and not as of January 1, 2017 or even December 31, 2017)

This is the only reasonable conclusion I could come up with that would make sense if we take into account the ages of the students in their Act 1 profiles and how the Japanese school system works. Masumi would have to be 16 when he starts his second year of high school and Sakuya would have to be 17 to be starting third year. (Again, this is assuming no one was ever held back a year or started school later than normal).

But, if the ages are as of January 1, 2017, then Masumi should be 15 and Sakuya should be 16 in order to match their grade level. If Sakuya is really 17 on January 1, 2017, then he would be graduating from high school by the end of March 2017 (which is not the case). Which comes back to the fact that Sakuya says he’s 17 as well (and no reason to believe he is lying about his age), so the Prologue must be after his birthday.

So then, could it be that the Act 1 profile ages are what their age would be on December 31, 2017 (i.e. has taken into account everyone’s birthdays passing in 2017)? This also doesn’t make sense when taking into account student ages, in particular, but also conflicts with Tsumugi and Tasuku having been in the same school year. If the ages were as of December 31, 2017 then Itaru should be listed as 24, Tsumugi as 25, Tsuzuru as 19, Banri as 18, Tenma as 17, Yuki as 15, etc. Or else they wouldn’t be in the right school years as listed in their profiles.

So, it only makes sense that the ages are as of when the story starts and they age as time “passes” during the story. For example, those born before April (like Homare, Tasuku, Masumi etc.) already had their birthdays by the time Izumi meets Sakuya for the first time. Meanwhile those who are born April and later haven’t had their birthdays yet. So, if we take Tenma as an example, when Spring Troupe first forms, he is 16, but he turns 17 at some point between Spring’s first play ending and Autumn’s first play starting.

AND THUS CONCLUDES MY THESIS!! 🤣Thanks for letting me hijack your post, OP, and thanks to anyone who bothered to read my word vomit, HAHA.

Also, A3! timeline is a damn nightmare, why did Liber do this to us?!

A3! Game Birth Years

*See bottom for notes

1986 : Sakyo 1989 : Homare 1991 : Chikage, Hisoka 1992 : Tasuku, Tsumugi 1993 : Itaru 1994 : Citron 1996 : Omi 1997 : Misumi, Kazunari 1998 : Tzuzuru 1999 : Sakuya, Banri, Juza 2000 : Masumi, Tenma, Taichi 2001 : Kumon 2002 : Yuki, Muku 2003 : Azami

UNKNOWNS: Azuma & Guy….. any ideas? NOTES: 1. Assuming Year 1 takes place in 2017:

Act 4 mentions that it has been 26 years since Mankai theatre was founded (1991 according to logo)

1991 + 26 = 2017

2. Based off their age by the start of the year (meaning how old they are during Jan 1).

This is obviously not official information, but I think this makes sense as Sakuya becomes a part-timer in Year 2 and Banri becomes a university student, which is also normally true for people born in 1999 in Japan/America.

[pink-anonymous-person]

Yin please get away from Peter! He's watching you right now from the closet. Take your trouts and leave while you can.

I think that's a red flag.

I don't want to get stabbed.

[verdiprati]

Upcoming performances by Dame Sarah Connolly

[NOTE: this post is now out of date. Check the schedule tag on my blog for the most recent version of this list.]

After the jump: an unofficial schedule of Dame Sarah Connolly’s future performances. Those of you in Britain may catch a performance in London, Nottingham, Oxford, Gloucester, Lewes, Cheltenham, or Painswick, or possibly a public masterclass in Aldeburgh. Those on the Continent may see her in Berlin, Paris, Vienna, Brussels, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, or Vilabertran (Catalunya). And finally, those of us in North America have engagements in New York and Philadelphia to look forward to! Plus, Dame Sarah's agency has mentioned future performances in Paris and Madrid, though no details are available yet. Don’t live near one of these places? Take in a concert from afar: I am adding online broadcast and livestream details as they become available.

This is not an authoritative list. These are the upcoming performances by Dame Sarah Connolly that I have been able to learn about from Dame Sarah's website (not currently being updated), her agent's website (Askonas Holt), Operabase, Bachtrack, Dame Sarah's Twitter, and generally ferreting around the web.

I sometimes list concerts that are not yet officially confirmed; you should of course check official sources before making plans and be aware that cast changes and cancellations can happen at any time.

I have added links to venue, ticketing, and broadcast information where available. Tips on new information are always welcome! Please contact me via email (verdiprati [at] selveamene [dot] com), Tumblr messaging, or ask box (plain prose only in the ask box; anything with links or an email address will get eaten by Tumblr filters) with corrections or additions.

Handel, Ariodante (title role) at the Wiener Staatsoper, February 24 and 26 and March 1, 4, and 8, 2018. With Chen Reiss (Ginevra), Hila Fahima (Dalinda), Christphe Dumaux (Polinesso), Rainer Trost (Lurcanio), and Wilhelm Schwinghammer (Il Re di Scozia). In a new production directed by David McVicar with music is supplied by Les Arts Florissants conducted by William Christie. Note: although Christie, LAF, and many of the soloists from this Ariodante will be performing the opera in a concert tour following its staging in Vienna, Dame Sarah is not scheduled to join them; Kate Lindsey has been announced to take over the title role for the tour.

[Broadcast] The opening night performance, February 24, is scheduled for live radio broadcast on OE1. It will also be carried live by Radio Clásica in Spain and possibly other European radio stations that I have not run across yet.

[Livestream] The opera is scheduled for video livestreaming on Sunday, March 4. There is a fee of €14 to watch the livestream.

Schubert, “Zögernd leise” in a Mothering Sunday concert at Gloucester Cathedral, March 11, 2018. With the Girl Choristers of Gloucester Cathedral; conducted by Nia Llewelyn Jones. This concert is just an hour long altogether and the one song Dame Sarah is scheduled to sing runs about five or six minutes, but it’s one of my favorite pieces I’ve heard her sing live—she’s like a storyteller in this song—and the £16 ticket price a) is pretty affordable and b) includes “a glass of pink fizz.”

Mahler, Symphony No. 8 “Symphony of a Thousand” at de Doelen, Rotterdam, March 23 and 25, 2018. With the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin. The other soloists are Angela Meade, Erin Wall, Erin Morley, Mihoko Fujimura, Michael Schade, Markus Werba, and Christof Fischesser. On choral duty are the Groot Omroep Koor, Rotterdam Symphony Chorus, Orfeon Donostiarra, and Nationaal Kinderkoor. UPDATE: Dame Sarah, citing illness in a tweet, withdrew from all three performances with the Rotterdam Phil and was replaced by Michelle DeYoung.

[New! Broadcast] The March 23 performance will be broadcast in live video by Medici.tv. My understanding is that the video will be available for “limited replay” to those with free accounts on the service and “unlimited replay” to those with paid accounts.

Mahler, Symphony No. 8 “Symphony of a Thousand” at BOZAR Centre for Fine Arts, Brussels, March 24, 2018. With the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra; same details as the Rotterdam performances listed above. UPDATE: Dame Sarah, citing illness in a tweet, withdrew from all three performances with the Rotterdam Phil and was replaced by Michelle DeYoung.

[Broadcast] I found a web page saying that all concerts at the 2018 Klarafestival can be followed live on the Klara radio station (“Tot slot zijn ook dit jaar alle concerten van Klarafestival live te volgen op radiozender Klara”); I should be able to confirm the Klara broadcast schedule closer to the time. UPDATING just slightly to add: although I can’t find a page specifically for the Mahler 8 broadcast, I can confirm that “Klara Live - Klarafestival” is appearing in the relevant slot of the program grid for March 24.

[Masterclasses] Public masterclasses for the Britten-Pears Young Artist Programme at Snape Maltings in Aldeburgh, England, March 26, 27, 28, and 30. Part of a course on Handel’s Theodora to be co-taught with conductor Christian Curnyn. Although this doesn’t really count as a performance by Sarah Connolly, I am adding it to my “unofficial schedule” of her work with the thought that fans who live in the area might want to attend some of the public masterclasses Sarah Connolly will be co-teaching or the culminating performance on March 31 by young artists she will have coached.

Verdi, Requiem at the Royal Concert Hall in Nottingham, April 28, 2018. With Elizabeth Llewellyn, Gywn Hughes Jones, Wojtek Gierlach, and the London Philharmonic Orchestra. The chorus will be supplied by Nottingham Trent University, where Dame Sarah was awarded an honorary doctorate of music in July of 2017. 

Recital at St Mary’s Church, Painswick, Glos., May 12, 2018. With Joseph Middleton; sponsored by the Painswick Music Society. Works to include songs by Vaughan Williams, Gurney, Parry, Howells, Holst, Britten, Tippett, “and others,” as well as the premiere of a new song cycle by Sally Beamish.

Handel, Giulio Cesare (title role) at Glyndebourne, June 10 through July 28, 2018. In a revival of the legendary 2005 production by David McVicar, with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment conducted by William Christie. With Joélle Harvey as Cleopatra, plus Christophe Dumaux and Patricia Bardon reprising the roles of Tolomeo and Cornelia respectively; also starring Anna Stéphany (Sesto), John Moore (Achilla), and Kangmin Justin Kim (Nireno).

Bach, cantata selections in a concert with Mahan Esfahani at the Cheltenham Music Festival, July 1, 2018. Specifically, Dame Sarah is scheduled to sing “arias from Bach’s cantatas Widerstehe doch der Sünde and Ich habe genug and a complete performance of Vergnügte Ruh, beliebte Seelenlust,” according to the festival website.

[New!] Recital for the Cheltenham Music Festival at the Pittville Pump Room, July 4, 2018. With Joseph Middleton. They will be performing “a survey of composers from the Royal College of Music,” including songs by Stanford, Parry, Vaughan Williams, Holst, Gurney, Howells, Bridge, Britten, and Tippett. Tickets go on sale to the public April 4. 

[New details!] Recital at the Schubertíada Vilabertran, August 18, 2018. With pianist Malcolm Martineau and viola player Jonathan Brown. Repertoire includes songs by Brahms, Mahler’s Kindertotenlieder, and a selection of traditional English songs. 

Wagner, Das Rheingold and Die Walküre (Fricka in both) at the Royal Opera, London, September 24 through October 28, 2018. A revival of Keith Warner’s Ring Cycle, with Antonio Pappano conducting. For cast and date details, see the ROH web pages linked above. As of this writing, the ROH is only allowing customers to purchase tickets for an entire cycle of the four operas; I’m not sure whether they’ll allow separate booking later. Curiously, two performances of Die Walküre—but none of Das Rheingold (nor of the other two operas)—are marked “Filming” on the ROH website. Do we have a Walküre webcast or DVD to look forward to? Or is Pappano gathering clips for a future documentary? I do not know.

Mahler, Das Lied von der Erde at the Royal Festival Hall, London, September 29, 2018. With Stuart Skelton and the London Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Vladimir Jurowski. In a concert with Mitsiko Uchida playing Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 27.

Mahler, Das Lied von der Erde at the Philharmonie Berlin [PDF], October 14, 2018. With Torsten Kerl and the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin conducted by Vladimir Jurowski.

[New! Broadcast] The concert listing on the RSB website includes a notation “Konzert mit Deutschlandfunk Kultur,” implying (I believe) that it will be broadcast on said radio station.

[New! Details TBA] Appearance with the Oxford Lieder Festival, sometime in the range October 12-27, 2018. I can’t find any details on the OLF website as of this writing, but a story published by The Ocelot and presumably based on an OLF press release promises that Dame Sarah will be among the artists involved with the 2018 festival. 

Concert with the Tenebrae Consort at Wigmore Hall, London, October 24, 2018. Part of Dame Sarah’s yearlong residency at the Wigmore. Repertoire TBA. Listed in the season preview brochure [PDF].

[New!] Blow, Venus and Adonis and Purcell, Dido and Aeneas in concert at the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam, November 3, 2018. With the Early Opera Company conducted by Christian Curnyn. Dame Sarah’s co-stars are Jonathan McGovern, Lucy Crowe, Susan Bickley, and Rowan Pierce. Tickets go on sale June 1. 

[New!] Tippett, A Child of our Time at the Paris Philharmonie, November 7 and 8, 2018. With Michelle Bradley, Mark Padmore, John Relyea, and the Orchestre de Paris conducted by Thomas Adès in a concert also featuring symphonic works by Berlioz and Adès.

Ravel song recital at Wigmore Hall, London, November 16, 2018. With James Newby and Joseph Middleton. Part of a Ravel song series being presented by the Wigmore over the course of the year. Listed in the season preview brochure [PDF].

[New!] Recital with Julius Drake at the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam, March 5, 2019. Works by R. Schumann, Brahms, Wolf, A. Mahler, and Zemlinsky. 

Recital with Julius Drake at Wigmore Hall, London, March 15, 2019. Part of Dame Sarah’s yearlong residency at the Wigmore. Repertoire TBA, but may have some works in common with those programmed for Connolly and Drake’s other recitals in the same month. Listed in the season preview brochure [PDF].

[New!] Recital with Julius Drake at the Kimmel Center, Philadelphia, March 22, 2019. Sponsored by the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society. Repertoire includes works by Brahms, Wolf, Roussel, Debussy, and Zemlinksy. 

[New!] Wagner, Götterdämmerung (Waltraute) at the Metropolitan Opera, New York, April 27, May 4, and May 11, 2019. In a revival of Robert Lepage’s production of the Ring cycle, with all shows to be conducted by Philippe Jordan. Dame Sarah’s co-stars in Götterdämmerung include Christine Goerke (Brünnhilde), Stefan Vinke / Andreas Schager (sharing the role of Siegfried), Edith Haller (Gutrune), Eric Owens (Hagen), Evgeny Nitikin (Gunther), and Tomasz Konieczny (Alberich).

Recital with Malcolm Martineau at Wigmore Hall, London, July 23, 2019. Part of Dame Sarah’s yearlong residency at the Wigmore. Repertoire TBA. Listed in the season preview brochure [PDF].

[Details TBA] Future appearances at the Opéra national de Paris and the Teatro Réal in Madrid are mentioned in the current bio that can be downloaded from Dame Sarah’s page on the Askonas Holt website (click “Publicity Pack”). 

Previous versions of this list can be found under the schedule tag on this blog. This version published on February 10, 2018. Edited February 15 to add the Scubertíada Vilabertran, the Met Götterdämmerung, and the Elgar concert at the Barbican. Edited February 16 to delete the Elgar concert at the Barbican after clarifying with Dame Sarah’s agent that the listing was erroneous. Edited February 27 to add the Concertgebouw double header of English baroque operas in concert. Edited February 28 to add the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society link. Edited March 1 to add the Concertgebouw recital with Julius Drake and fill in more details on the Philadelphia recital. Edited March 8 to add details to the Vilabertran recital and to add the Tippett piece with the Orchestre de Paris. Edited March 10 to confirm the appearance of the Klara Festival on the Klara program schedule for March 24. Edited March 17 to add the recital with Joseph Middleton at the Cheltenham Music Festival, the broadcast note on the Berlin Das Lied, and the Medici.tv livestream of Mahler 8. Edited March 26 to correct a typo in one of the Cheltenham Music Festival entries (I had mistakenly placed both concerts on the same day, July 1) and to belatedly reflect Dame Sarah’s withdrawal from the Rotterdam Philharmonic Mahler 8 concerts. Edited April 4 to add the Oxford Lieder Festival. I may continue to edit this list as I receive new information.

[earperconuk-blog]

Photo Sessions FAQ

For everything you need to know about buying photo ops at EarperCon UK 2018, to how they will work at the event, please see below :)

1. When will photographs go on sale?

Photographs will go on sale on our website from the 1st March 2018 at 8:00PM UK time.

2. What payment methods can I use?

You can pay by debit/credit card, apple pay or BACs.

3. Will receive confirmation of my purchase?

Yes, you will receive a receipt from our shop and this is your proof of purchase. You will not receive a further email from EarperCon.

4. Do I need to print the receipt and bring it to the convention with me?

No, when you arrive to register at the convention you will receive a pack which will have all your photo tickets you have purchased printed for you and included in your pack.

Please do not lose your photo ticket.

5. How many photos can I buy?

SINGLE GUEST PHOTOS:

On total over the weekend you can buy a max of 2 single photos for each of the guests. You must remember if you have a Black Badge Ticket you need to include your free photo in this limit. For instance, if you have Katherine as your free photo choice you can only buy one more single photo with her for the convention.

DUO PHOTOGRAPHS:

You may buy one of each type of DUO photo only over the full weekend.

CAST GROUP PHOTOGRAPH:

You may buy a maximum of one group photograph over the whole weekend. For instance if you have a Peacemaker ticket you cannot buy a group cast photo as you have one free with your ticket.

These limits apply over the full convention and not per day.

6. Can I buy a photograph for someone else?

Yes, you can, this will count against their photo limit as above and you must ensure you put their name on the ticket purchase (beside the address would be best)

If you are buying photographs for yourself and someone else we ask that you do them as separate transactions to avoid confusion.

7. Are photographs limited?

There will be an overall limit on every type of photograph and we shall issue notifications via our social media channels if a photograph is close to being SOLD OUT.

We aim to try and ensure everyone has the photographs they wish but due to time constraints we have to limit photographs.

8. Are photographs transferable or refundable?

No, unfortunately as per our terms and conditions photographs are not transferable or refundable.

9. What happens if I have a photograph with a guest and the guest cancel?

We certainly would hope that this situation does not arise but, in the instance, that it does we would be looking to transfer your photograph to one of the same value with another guest or guests.

10. How any people can I have in my photo?

You can have a maximum of 2 attendees per photo. Each attendee in the photograph must have purchased a photo ticket.

(Children under 12 are not included in the limit)

11. What size are the photo print outs we will receive?

Your photo will be 8” x 10”

12. When will I receive my photo?

We will aim to have everyone’s photo printed ready for autograph sessions. However please understand this is not guaranteed if something happens out with our control.

13. Can we do poses in the photograph?

Yes, you can as long as the guest is comfortable with the pose and it is not anything inappropriate, no lifting or kissing is permitted. Poses are subject to time constraints. Please have your pose idea ready in time for your photograph due to limited timescales.

14. Can I bring props for my photograph?

Yes, you can, please show the item to a member of our crew for approval prior to your photograph and please do not bring any real weapons or sharp objects. The use of props is subject to the guest’s agreement for the photo.

15. Can I chat to the guests at the photograph session?

Photograph sessions are very busy and we aim to have everyone through as quickly as we can to ensure they have the photographs they wish. To do this we need attendees to be prompt when having their photo taken. There is no problem with a quick hello, thank you or good bye but please respect your fellow attendees who are in the queue and please do not engage in long conversations with the guest during photos.

16. Can I give gifts or letters during photograph sessions?

This is not permitted during these sessions, we will have a post box for letters that can be given to the guest at the end of the convention. We ask that you do not bring gifts as the guests have limited luggage space to take items home.

17. Where can I collect my photographs?

We will have a dedicated desk where you can collect your photographers, this will be manned by a member of our crew who will hand your photographs to you. After your photograph is taken you will be provided with a ticket which you should hand in exchange for your photographs.

18. Will we have digital photographs?

Digital photographs will be available on our website for you. Each attendee will be provided with a password to access the page and obtain their photographs. Please do not share this password with anyone else or download any other photographs other than your own. We will provide details after the convention has finished when these will be available.

19. Are children allowed in photographs?

Children under 12 are permitted in the photograph with the adult free of charge.

Children aged 12 up to 16 who are in possession of a child ticket will be required to purchase the child photo ticket available on our shop.

20. When will I know to go for my photograph?

Photographs will be called by badge type and number. There will be boards around the whole floor advising what badge type, numbers and guest photograph is happening.

We will also update this on our twitter page.

We are looking into other methods so that no one misses being called for their photographs.

21. What if I have to leave early or I am only coming for one day and need my photos done sooner?

We ask attendees to bear in mind the event is for the full weekend and whilst we do our best to accommodate everyone we cannot guarantee to put people in front of the queues. Please contact a member of the crew if for any reason you are in this position.

Please note that our attendees who have disabled badges will go through photographs first when their badge types are called.

Please ensure that you find your allocated crew member who will guide you through.

Photo ticket sales will be released in batches in order that we may monitor the numbers being sold.

We will have 2 photograph rooms side by side and 2 photographers.

You must hand your photo ticket to the member of crew at the door to have your photograph taken, once your photograph has been taken you will be handed your photo collection ticket and guided out of the room by a member of crew.

[neeraeyecarehospitals-blog]

Treatment of Keratoconus  by Collagen Cross-Linking with Riboflavin (C3R)

Dr. Neera Agrawal, Neera Eye Centre, Darya Ganj, New Delhi

Keratoconus is a bilateral non-inflammatory corneal ectasia (fig.1) with an incidence of approximately 1 per 2,000 in the general population. It normally presents in early teens or twenties and is known to be progressive. Despite intensive clinical and laboratory investigation, the aetiology of keratoconus remains unclear. Thinning of the corneal stroma, breaks in Bowman’s layer, and deposition of iron in the basal layers of the corneal epithelium comprise a triad of the classical histopathologic features found in keratoconus.

Fig. 1- Natural Progression of Keratoconus in a patient over 1.5 years

Till date, accepted methods of treatment have been contact lenses, intra-stromal corneal rings (INTACS), Photo-refractive keratectomy and cornea transplant. Cornea transplant is reserved for advanced cases in which vision can not be improved with contact lenses. Unfortunately none of these modalities prevent the progression of the disease. Now with the advent of Collagen Cross-Linking with Riboflavin and UVA, there is scope to arrest the progression of disease in these patients. Moreover, it is technically simple and less invasive than all other surgical therapies proposed for Keratoconus. 

Mechanism of action

Similar to photo polymerization of polymers, Collagen Cross-Linking of Cornea using ultraviolet light and the Photo-sensitizer Riboflavin was developed to treat corneal thinning and ectasia by increasing the biomechanical strength of the tissue. This procedure is also addressed by various eponyms such as C3R, CXL and CCL.              

First studies in Photobiology began in 1990’s, with attempts to identify biological glues that could be activated by heat or light to increase resistance of stromal collagen (2). It was discovered that the gluing effect was mediated by oxidative mechanism associated with hydroxyl radical release. A similar mechanism of natural hardening and thickening of collagen fibres has been demonstrated in corneal aging (3). Similarly, young diabetics never develop progressive keratoconus due to natural cross linking effect of glucose, which increases corneal resistance.

Fig. 2- Mechanism of action : C3R

Fig. 3- Mechanism of action : C3R

Collagen cross linking results in an increase in inter-fibrillar covalent bonds by photosensitized oxidation (fig.4), and causes bio-mechanical stabilization of cornea. A significant increase of   328.9% in the biomechanical rigidity of human corneas has been documented after collagen cross linking (5).

Fig.4- Effect of Collagen Cross Linking on Corneal Collagen

Fig. 5 – Effect of Cross-Linking on Cornea

Riboflavin plays a dual role in the procedure; it not only acts as a photo sensitizer for the photo-oxidative cross linking process but also has a barrier effect. It acts like a shield and prevents UV induced collateral damage to sensitive ocular structures like Corneal Endothelium, Lens and Retina. 

Quality of Beam 

All safety considerations regarding the Cross-Linking procedure assume an optically homogenous irradiation of the cornea. Optical in-homogeneities can lead to damage to corneal endothelium, which represents most endangered structure. Thus, having homogenizing optics and as well as pre-compensation for corneal curvature in the system is important (fig.6).

Fig. 6: Quality of beam for C3R

Indications

Most common indications are –

1.     Mild to moderate Keratoconus – In a case of Keratoconus, the selection criteria for C3R are as follows -

·        There should not be corneal scarring.

·        There should be reasonably good acuity with glasses or contact lenses.  

·        Corneal thickness should be more than 450 microns (400 microns after epithelium removal) at thinnest point. This is based on the fact that UV light can penetrate cornea up to a thickness of 350 microns and will damage endothelium if enough corneal thickness is not there. That is why some people advocate doing specular microscopy before and after the procedure.

·        Age should more than 16 yrs.

·        Maximum K readings should be < 60Diopters.

·        Keratoconus must be documented to be progressive. Progression of Keratoconus is ideally determined by Kaplan Meier or Fourier analysis which are based on Spherical equivalent power, Decentration component and Irregular astimatism component and calculation their yearly rate of progression. It is generally accepted that 1 dioptre increase in the power of cone per year is an indicator of progression of Keratoconus. It can also be seen as steepening of Keratometry readings (17) 

2.   Post Lasik Ectasia – Good results have been reported in treatment of post Lasik ectasia (13).

3.   Progressive Hyperopia post RK – good results have been reported (12).

4.   Pellucid Marginal Degeneration

5.   Bullous Keratopathy – reduces Corneal oedema by increasing stromal compaction after Cross-linking. It may be combined with Intra-stromal administration of 0.1% Riboflavin with the help of Femtosecond laser (Can also be staged i.e. anterior and posterior separately)(16).

6.   Infective Keratitis – to prevent Corneal Perforation by increasing resistance to the effect of collagen digesting enzymes.(16)

7.   Scleral CXL for Glaucoma and Pathological Myopia (16) 

Types of C3R

C3R surgery can be of several types depending on the technique used –

 1.     C3R Epi-off – this is the most commonly used technique where you remove the epithelium mechanically. Commonly follows Dresden Protocol which means that you instill Riboflavin for every 2 min for 30 min and cross link for 30 min at 3 MW energy. It needs min Corneal thickness of 400 microns after epithelium removal. It has been there for longest time and has proven its efficacy. 

2.     Trans-epithelial C3R or epi-on C3R – here we use special Riboflavin which can penetrate through epithelium and do not remove epithelium, rest of the protocol is same as above. However, I have noticed that despite leaving the epithelium in situ, healing is much slower after this procedure compared to epi-off C3R. 

3.     Rapid C3R – here Riboflavin can be of any of the above type but machine setting used are 9 MW for 10 min or 18 MW for 5 min. The efficacy and safety data on this type is still awaited. 

4.     Lasik Extra – In this treatment C3R is combined with Lasik surgery. After making the flap Riboflavin is directly put on the flap and cross linking is done with short duration of settings like 5 min or 2 min. It is said to be useful for suspected ectasia cases where you would like to do Lasik. However, there are no studies to prove its efficacy. In my opinion, it may help in preventing ectasia but will significantly alter the refractive result by causing flattening. 

Types of Riboflavin in C3R- 

1.     Iso-tonic Riboflavin

2.     Hypo-tonic Riboflavin

3.     Trans-epithelial Riboflavin

4.     Rapid Ribo-flavin

5.     Riboflavin for Lasik Extra 

Iso-tonic Riboflavin

It is of two types –

1.     Riboflavin in Dextran

2.     Riboflavin in HPMC 

Iso-tonic Riboflavin with Dextran

It contains Riboflavin 0.1% in 20% Dxtran 500. It is time tested and gives predictable results. It causes better Corneal staining. Unfortunately not many companies produce this. 

Iso-tonic Riboflavin with HPMC

Fig 7: Riboflavin with HPMC

Contains 0.1% Riboflavin with 1.1% HPMC.

Causes poor Corneal staining. I have noticed higher incidence of post operative Corneal oedema and Descemets folds after this. 

Hypo-tonic Riboflavin

It is used for Corneas which are thin for Iso-osmolar Ribo-flavin. It is used after use of Iso-osmolar Riboflavin for 30 min. Therefore, you will need both types of Riboflavins for one case. It can swell Corneas upto 60 microns but the flip side is that effect lasts only for 10-30 minutes. You will keep repeating its use after repeating the per-op Pachymetry. That is why its use has gone down specially with advent of Trans-epithelial Riboflavin. 

Trans-epithelial Riboflavin

Contains EDTA or BAK, which loosen the bonds in epithelium and allow Riboflavin to penetrate. Different companies have different composition.

Fig 8 :Trans-epithelial Riboflavin

Fig 9:Trans-epithelial Riboflavin

Trans-epithelium Riboflavin with Iontophoresis

Is a new modality. It reduces the diffusion time to 5 min.

Main advantage is that it is less toxic to the epithelium. It substantially reduces post operative pain and debility to the patient. 

Rapid Riboflavin

Contains Riboflavin 0.1%, Saline and HPMC

Has a diffusion rate twice of normal Riboflain

Used only as epi-off .

Fig 10:Rapid Riboflavin

Riboflavin for Lasik Extra

Contains Riboflavin 0.22% in Saline and is applied to Stromal Bed.

Fig 11: Riboflavin for Lasik Extra

Technique ( Dresden Protocol)

 The procedure is conducted in an operating room under sterile conditions. Topical anaesthesia is given by Proparacaine Hydrochloride (0.5%) eye drops & Xylocaine 4% drops. Central 7-8 mm of corneal epithelium is removed by mechanical debridement (gentle scraping with hockey stick knife) or Alcohol. My personal preference is mechanical debridement.

This is followed by instillation of 0.1% Riboflavin (3 mg Riboflavin - 5 Phosphate in 3 ml of Dextran-T-500 20% solution) eye drops at every 2 minute interval for 30 minutes (15 times).

To confirm adequate penetration of Riboflavin into the cornea, the patient may be examined on slit lamp. A greenish flare, similar to that seen with fluorescein dye instillation, may be seen in anterior chamber, signifying penetration through the thickness of cornea.

Fig.12 - C3R being done in a patient

There are studies available which say that epithelial debridement is not necessary. However, it’s mandatory to demonstrate the penetration of the riboflavin in the corneal stroma when performing the treatment without removing the epithelium.

Following this, the cornea is subjected to Ultraviolet A radiation (365nm) from a distance of 5 cm (Peschke Meditrade UVX system was used) for the next 30 minutes (fig.6). During this period, topical Riboflavin drops are again instilled at 5 minute intervals, to complete photo-sensitization and provide photo-protection by the ‘barrier’ effect. Thereby, a dose of 3 mW/ Sq cm (+ 0.3 Mw) (5.4 J/Sq cm) UV-A is delivered. The UV-A radiation lamp is checked for calibration with a UV- meter before and after the treatment. On completion of the treatment, eye is patched with antibiotic eye ointment or sterile bandage lens is applied. 

Post-operative Care 

Topical antibiotics along with lubricants and viscous tear substitute, mild steroids are prescribed 4-5 times a day for 3-4 weeks. Complete re-epithelization usually occurs in 3-4 days. Patients may experience mild pain and discomfort for first 2 days, for which oral analgesics are also required to keep them comfortable.

A mild epithelial haze with transient, mild stromal oedema may be seen in some cases after C3R, which usually disappears completely in a few weeks. There is no damage to the corneal endothelium. 

Histopathological changes in cornea post C3R 

C3R treatment leads to a dose-dependent keratocyte apoptosis (1) that can be expected in human corneas to a depth of 300 microns from the anterior surface utilising a surface UV-A dose of 5.4 J/ sq cm. In the first few weeks after the procedure, a ‘vertical transition line’ may be visible on the slit lamp, delineating the anterior cross-linked zone with the posterior unaffected stroma (fig.13).

Repopulation of corneal stroma may take up to 6 months.  It is well documented that the corneal epithelium attains a regular morphology and density within 5 days after C3R. Initially, disappearance of the sub-epithelial stromal nerve fibres was observed in the treated area and initial re-innervation was seen one month after the procedure. Complete recolonization of the anterior sub-epithelial stroma by the keratocytes was observed in 6 months after C3R, with restoration of corneal sensitivity.

Figure 13- Effect of Cross-Linking on cornea

Histopathologically, it has been demonstrated that there is a significant increase in collagen fibre diameter after collagen cross linking. After Collagen Cross-Linking, the cornea shows an increase in thermo-mechanical stability as well as a markedly increased resistance to collagen digesting enzymes (5). 

Results

·        C3-R appears to stabilize corneas up to six months after treatment.

·        In a 5 year study, it was noted that in all treated eyes, the progression of keratoconus was at least stopped. About 70% eyes show regression with a reduction of the maximal keratometry readings by 2 dioptres and of the refractive error by 1 D was found (14). Best-corrected visual acuity improved by 1.4 lines. I have personally experienced similar results in my 7 years experience with the procedure.

·        The addition of C3-R to the INTACS procedure results in greater keratoconus improvements compared to INTACS alone (10).

There are reports available that surface ablation procedures could be used to correct refractive errors following C3R in Keratoconus patients but conclusive evidence is lacking.

Fig 14:About 5 D Corneal Flattening after C3R

Fig.15: About 4 D Corneal Flattening after C3R

Fig 16: Corneal Flattening after C3R in PMD

Safety 

During corneal Cross-Linking, 95% of UVA energy is absorbed by only 350 microns of Riboflavin soaked Cornea (fig.17). As long as the treated cornea has a minimum thickness of 400 microns (after removal of epithelium), the corneal endothelium will not experience damage, nor will deeper structures such as lens and retina.

Fig. 17 - Absorption of UVA by Cornea

The light source should provide a homogenous irradiance, avoiding hot spots.

It has been seen that corneal and lens transparency, endothelial cell density, and intraocular pressure remained unchanged after the procedure (9). 

Conclusion

C3R for ectatic Disorders of Cornea has revolutionised the treatment of Keratoconus and other ectatic disorders. Cornea Collagen Cross-linking with Riboflavin is a simple, safe and effective procedure in the management of early progressive ecstatic disorders of the cornea.

Different types of Riboflavin and machines have made this techniques useful in more number of patients.   

Bibliography

 1.     Apoptosis After Corneal Collagen Cross-linking using Riboflavin/UVA treatment. Wollensak G. et al. Cornea 2004; 23: 43-49

2.     Photodynamic biologic tissue glue. J. Khaderm, T. Truong, J.T. Ernest. Cornea 1994;13: 406-410

3.     Collagen fibrils in the Human corneal stroma . structure and aging. A. Dover, K. Misof et al. Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sc. 1998; 39: 644-648

4.     Stress-strain measurements of human and porcine corneas after Riboflavin- ultraviolet-A induced cross-linking. Wollensak G.,Spoerl E., Seiler T. J Cataract Refract Surg. 2003;29:1780-1785

5.     Increased resistance of cross-linked cornea against enzymatic digestion. Seiler T., Wollensak G., Spoerl E. Curr. Eye Res. 2004 July; 29(1): 35-40.

6.     Thermo-mechanical behaviour of collagen cross linked porcine cornea. Spoerl E., Wollensak G., Dittert D.D., Seiler T., Ophthalmologica.2004, Mar-Apr; 218(2):136-140

7.     C3-R Treatment Opens New Frontiers for Keratoconus and Corneal Ectasia. Roberto Pinelli, MD. Eyeworld 2007, 34-36

8.     Safety of C3-R UVA at the Retinal Level and Compared to Outdoor UVA Exposure Leonard Yuen, MD and Brian S. Boxer Wachler, MD

9.     Safety of UVA-Riboflavin Cross-Linking of the Cornea Eberhard Spoerl, PhD, Michael Mrochen, PhD, David Sliney PhD, Stephen Trokel, MD, Theo Seiler, MD, PhD, Cornea 2007; 26:385-389

10.                       The Effect of Inferior Segment Intacs with and without Corneal Collagen Crosslinking with Riboflavin (C3-R) on Keratoconus. Colin C.K. Chan, MD, FRANZCO, Munish Sharma, MD, Brian S. Boxer Wachler MD, J Cataract Refract Surg 2007;33:75-80

11.                       No Progression of Keratoconus 5 Years after C3-R. Wollensak G. Crosslinking treatment of progressive keratoconus: new hope.  Curr Opin Ophthalmol. 2006 Aug; 17:356-60.

12.                       C3-R for Stabilization of Progressive Hyperopia (Farsightedness) after Radial Keratotomy and Laser Ablation. Presented at the American Academy of Ophthalmology Annual Meeting, 2006

13.                       Visual rehabilitation and outcomes of ectasia after corneal refractive surgery. Woodward MA, Randleman JB, Russel B, Lynn MJ, Ward MA, Stulting RD - J. cataract Ref. surg. 2008 mar; 34(3): 383-8

14.                       Riboflavin/UVA induced collagen cross-linking for treatment of Keratoconus. G. Wollensak, MD et al, Am. J. Ophthal. 2003 May; 135(2) : 620-627

15.                       Staged Intra-stromal Delivery of Riboflavin with UV-A Cross-linking in Advanced Bullous Keratopathy. Krueger RR, Ramos-Esteban JC, Kannelopoulos J – J. Refract. Surg. 2008; 730-736

16.                       Corneal Cross-linking for Different Corneal Diseases. Aylin Kilic Ertan – Cataract & Refractive Surgery Today Europe. April 2009; 25-28

17.                       Progression of Keratoconus Assessed by Fourier Analysis of Videokeratography Data. Tetsuro Oshika, Tatsuro Tanabe, Atsuo Tomidokoro, Shiro Amano – Ophthalmology 2002; 109:339-342 

For Reprints request to -

 Dr. Neera Agrawal

Neera Eye Centre

B-99, Bharat Ram Road

Opposite Commercial School

Darya Ganj

New Delhi- 110002

Phone: 23270775, 9810134653

[eva-nine-has-a-sonic-rifle]

OP really doesn’t know what a pedophilic relationship is.

If the only justification is literally “because Anubis is technically 18+, and thus over the age to be considered a legal adult so he is an adult, ergo, the relationship is pedophilic” that’s a woeful misunderstanding as to why 18 and above are the ages when children are considered adults. Age for humans isn’t just a number, it correlates with mental and physical development which is a HUGE aspect as to why 18 is considered the beginning of adulthood. Because it is assumed, generally, that at that age children now have the physical and mental development and faculties to handle adult topics and responsibilities. Now, why is this important? Because... Anubis isn’t physically or mentally an adult. He says so himself, he’s existed for 5000 years but he has the body and mind of a 16 year old. He’s literally missing the essential part of why being 18 and older is considered being an adult.

He also can’t really have human conventions of development applied to him... because he’s a god. A completely different species. And they’re confirmed to not mature at the same rate as humans. Trying to imply a god, who has a significantly longer average lifespan than a mortal, matures at the same rate as a human is like implying myself and my dog age at the same rate. It just doesn’t add up. Furthermore, implying that Anubis is an adult just because he’s technically 18+ means that... Hazel and Nico are also adults. They’re technically 18+, despite not matching that mentally or physically, just like Anubis. Frazel is now pedophilic by OP’s criteria and Nico is an adult despite being physically and mentally 14. Like, OP, seriously, there’s enough problems with Sadie’s ships without fabricating problems that don’t exist.

rick riordan really wrote a pedophilic relationship and never addressed the fact that god was dating a literal child. a 12 year old at that.

[libertariantaoist]

James T. Hodgkinson, the would-be assassin of Republican congressmen, wasn’t  a radical. If you look at his published output – a  series of letters to his local newspaper in Belleville, Illinois, as well  as the majority of his Internet postings – it’s mostly about matters nearly  every progressive cares about: taxes (the rich don’t pay enough), healthcare  (the government must provide), income inequality (it’s all a Republican plot).  All in all, a pretty unremarkable worldview that any partisan Democrat – either  a Bernie Sanders supporter, as Hodginkinson was, or a Hillary fan – could sign  on to.

So what drove him over the edge?

One of his more recent Facebook  posts was a link to a petition that called for “the legal removal of the  President and Vice-President, et. al., for Misprision of Treason.” Hodgkinson  had signed it and he was asking his readers to follow suit: “Trump is a Traitor,”  he wrote, “Trump Has Destroyed Our Democracy. It’s Time to Destroy Trump &  Co.”  He was also a big  fan of Rachel Maddow, who – incredibly — has spent the majority  of her airtime ranting about “The Russian Connection,” as this  Intercept piece documents. Hodgkinson was also a member of a Facebook group  ominously dubbing itself “Terminate  the Republican Party,” an appellation Hodgkinson apparently took quite literally.  The group has over 13,000 members. The main  page of the Terminators is adorned with a  cartoon of Putin manipulating Trump like a puppet.

When Hodgkinson left his home and his job to travel to Alexandria, Virginia,  he told his wife he was going to “work on tax issues.” But is that what motivated  his murderous spree? Do “tax issues” really seem like something that would inspire  someone to plan and carry out an assassination attempt that, but for the presence  of Capitol police on the scene, would have certainly resulted in a massacre?

Hodgkinson clearly believed that the President of the United States was an  agent of a foreign power. He had signed on to the idea that Trump not only benefited  from a Russian campaign to discredit Hillary Clinton, but that he is engaged  in a war against his own country. As  Maddow put it in one of her more unhinged broadcasts:

“If the presidency is effectively a Russian op, right, if the American Presidency  right now is the product of collusion between the Russian Intelligence Services,  and an American campaign, I mean, that is so profoundly big. This is not part  of American politics; this is not, you know, partisan warfare between Republicans  and Democrats. This is international warfare against our country.”

“International warfare” – and Hodgkinson, a soldier in that fight, saw it as  his duty to use the sort of weapons that are commonly used in international  warfare. That’s why he sprayed that baseball field with a hail of gunfire –  over fifty rounds. And when his rifle ran out of ammunition, he took out his  handgun and continued firing. Because “this is not, you know, partisan warfare  between Republicans and Democrats. This is international warfare against our  country” – and it’s the obligation of patriotic citizens to take up that fight  and take out the enemy.

This sort of craziness is usually reserved for the farther fringes of the American  polity. Back in the 1960s, far-right groups like the  Minutemen – who believed the United States government was effectively under  the Kremlin’s control – armed themselves to prepare for the day when they would  “liberate” America. Indeed, this sort of lunacy has traditionally been a fixture  of extreme right-wing politics in this country: that it has now appeared on  the left – and not the far-left, but in the “mainstream” of the Democratic party,  which has taken up the Russia-gate conspiracy theory to the virtual exclusion  of all else — is the proximate cause of what I call Hodgkinson’s Disease: the  radicalization of formerly anodyne Democrats into a twenty-first century version  of the Weathermen.

How did this happen? Democratic party leaders, in tandem with their journalistic  camarilla, have validated an  unconvincing conspiracy theory for which not  a lick of definitive evidence has been provided: the idea that the Russians  “stole” the election on behalf of Trump, and that the Trump campaign cooperated  in this treasonous effort.

Yet that hasn’t stopped the Democratic party leadership from taking this ball  and running with it. As Jennifer Palmieri, a top official in the Clinton campaign,  put  it, Democrats should push the “collusion” issue “relentlessly and above  all else. They should talk about it in every interview.” The New York Times  writes about  this conspiracy theory as if it is uncontested fact. Democratic officeholders  have declared that the alleged “hacking” of the election was an “act  of war” – with the NeverTrump Republicans echoing  the party line – and the Twitterverse’s conspiracy theorists are having  a field day with the dangerously loony contention that we are at war with  Russia. What’s more, the wildest imaginings of the nutjob crowd are being  taken up and amplified by “respectable” people like constitutional lawyer Laurence Tribe.

In this way Hodgkinson’s Disease was incubated, its toxicity penetrating the  mind of a suggestible and embittered little man until the poison had accumulated  to such an extent that it burst through to the surface in an explosion of uncontrollable  rage. Rachel Maddow is the theory: James T. Hodgkinson is the practice. The  ultimate result is civil war.

That such a conflict would be born out of a full-scale delusional system that  resembles a third-rate cold war era thriller just adds a Bizarro  World cast to the whole sorry spectacle. The “Russia-gate” conspiracy theory  that has consumed the energies of the media, the Congress, and President Trump  is an elaborate hoax. This farrago of falsehood rests on a  fallacious assumption: that the Russians necessarily “hacked” the DNC and  John Podesta’s emails. The contention is that the methods supposedly utilized  by the alleged hackers were similar to those used in the past by “suspected”  Russian hackers, and that this makes the case. Yet this argument ignores the  fact that these tools and methods were already out there, available for anyone  to use. This is a textbook example of what cyber-security expert Jeffrey Carr  calls “faith-based  attribution,” which amounts to, at best, an educated guess, and at worst  is the end result of confirmation bias combined with the economic incentive  to tell a client what they want to hear. In the case of the DNC/Podesta “hacks,”  the company hired to investigate, CrowdStrike, had every reason to echo Hillary  Clinton’s contention that the Russians were the guilty party. CrowdStrike, by  the way, never gave US law enforcement authorities access to the DNC’s servers:  indeed, the FBI’s request for access was rebuffed.

The “Russia-gate” hoax has injected a pernicious and highly dangerous theme  into our political discourse: the accusation that the Trump administration is  a traitorous cabal intent on “destroying democracy,” as Hodgkinson put it, and  handing over the country to the tender mercies of a foreign power. Taken seriously,  this theme necessarily and inevitably leads to violence, which means there’s  a good chance we’ll see more Hodgkinsons in the headlines.

And standing behind it all is the Deep State – the leakers (with access to  all our communications) who are feeding disinformation to the Washington  Post and the New York Times in order to bring down this presidency.  One prong of this operation is embodied in the Special Counsel, Robert Mueller,  whose investigation was provoked and fueled by Deep State leakage. The other  prong consists of the useful idiot crowd, those who believe the propaganda and  can be mobilized to take to the streets.

The Deep State types don’t have to get in direct contact with people like Hodgkinson  in order to provoke violence against this administration or Trump’s supporters.  They have only to continue to do what they’ve been doing since before Trump  even took office, covertly spreading the idea that Trump is “Putin’s puppet,”  as Mrs. Clinton put it: radicalized useful idiots like Hodgkinson will do the  rest. It is eerily similar to the methods the CIA has used to overthrow foreign  governments: spread rumors, utilizing their journalistic sock-puppets, and indirectly  motivate and mobilize mobs to carry out their “regime-change” agenda. The only  difference now is that they’re doing what they’ve always done on the home front  instead of in, say, Lower Slobbovia.

Yes, that’s where we are right now – we’ve become Lower Slobbovia. Get used  to it, folks, because it won’t end until the Deep State is defeated and dismantled.

[in-the-key-of-f-major]

Tagged by @recalcitrantlycaffeinated

A - Age: 18 B - Biggest fear: Not being able to go to my dream school. C - Current time: 21:37 D - Drink you last had: some cold Chinese tea E - Every day starts with: me checking tumblr for messages and asks F - Favorite song: I like too many pieces, but I like Adolf Henselt’s Piano Concerto in F minor, Op. 16. G - Ghosts, are they real: Nah. H - Hometown: Singapore. That tiny island just above the equator. I - In love with: Nobody. I’m aromantic. J - Jealous of: People who have it all together. K - Killed someone? Only in my dream. I’m not kidding. I killed someone in Shadowhunter style in my dream. L - Last time you cried: Probably a few days ago. I don’t remember. M - Middle name: Don’t have one. N - Number of siblings: One younger bro. O - One wish: Knowing for sure that I’m going to my dream school and that I will thrive there. P - Person you last called/texted: My dad. Q - Question you’re always asked: How old are you? R - Reasons to smile: I’m making good progress on my driving skills. And I have a confirmed offer from my dream school. And my friends care about me. S - Song last sung: I hummed the timpani part to the last movement of Oboe Concerto No. 1 in F major, Op. 37 by František Kramář-Krommer. T - Time you woke up: 10.40am. U - Underwear color: Are you serious? Who came up with this question? A better question would be “Umbrella color”. V - Vacation destination: A cruise. But my ideal vacation would be somewhere in Europe or Canada. W - Worst habit(s): Flaring up easily, being messy, too indecisive X - X-rays you’ve had: None that I remember. Y - Your favorite food: Brownies? Ice cream? Chicken wings? Idk Z- Zodiac sign: I don’t think I care about this enough to post it here.

Tagging: @dissonance-and-harmonies @ironic-flute @bachs-babe @treasured-trash @musingsofareader @starsfelllikerain @raystorso @minutenwalzer @itsjustnine @violaaesthetic @cellogirl22 @moz-arent @the-alto-clef @nerdy-viola-player @thequietviola @tempo--tantrums @spaghettipunsandanime @oneyungflutist @punny-one-porkchops and whoever else wants to do this.

[ladystylestores]

Your Wednesday Briefing – The New York Times

Europe is considering barring American travelers

European Union officials are racing to determine who can visit the bloc beginning July 1, as countries try to restart travel while keeping new coronavirus infections at bay.

A draft list of acceptable travelers includes those from China and Vietnam, but visitors from the U.S., Russia and Brazil will not be welcome, according to the document seen by The New York Times. A final decision is expected early next week, though European officials aid it was highly unlikely an exception would be made for the United States.

Prohibiting American travelers from entering the European Union has significant ramifications and is a blow to President Trump’s handling of the virus. Millions of American tourists visit Europe every summer. Business travel is common, given the huge economic ties between the United States and the E.U.

In other news:

Boris Johnson announced that pubs, restaurants, museums and hair salons in England would be allowed to reopen on July 4 and cut the required social distance between people to about three feet, prompting warnings from scientists on the increased risk of transmission.

Facebook, Google, Amazon and others in the business world reacted with anger after President Trump suspended new work visas for foreigners at least until the end of the year.

The virus is gaining steam across Latin America, and experts fear the worst is ahead. Inequality, densely packed cities, weak health care systems and fumbled government responses have contributed to the spread.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infectious disease expert, said at a congressional hearing that the next two weeks will be critical in the country’s disease-fighting efforts, as he warned of a “disturbing surge” in cases.

Novak Djokovic, the world’s No. 1 in men’s tennis, is the fourth player to be infected with the coronavirus after he organized an exhibition series in Croatia and Serbia.

The Times is providing free access to much of our coronavirus coverage, and our Coronavirus Briefing newsletter — like all of our newsletters — is free. Please consider supporting our journalism with a subscription.

Heartbreak as annual hajj is essentially canceled

Saudi Arabia announced on Tuesday that only about 1,000 people will be allowed to perform the annual hajj pilgrimage at the end of July — a decision that effectively cancels one of the world’s largest gatherings of Muslims.

The restrictions are meant to slow the spread of the coronavirus in the kingdom, which has one of the largest outbreaks in the Middle East. Last year, 2.5 million people took part in the pilgrimage. This year, those allowed to perform the hajj will have to be younger than 65 and will be required to undergo a virus test in advance.

The announcement disappointed Muslims around the world, many of whom have saved for years to travel to Mecca, and will deal a financial blow to the kingdom’s economy.

Paris death renews scrutiny of the police

“I’m suffocating.”

Those were the words Cédric Chouviat called out seven times as police officers in Paris pinned him to the ground and put him in a chokehold, according to footage analyzed in an internal police report in April, but revealed by French outlets this week.

The video of Mr. Chouviat, a white, 42-year-old delivery man who died with a broken larynx after the confrontation in January, is reigniting scrutiny of the heavy-handed tactics used by the police as protests against police brutality, particularly against black people, have swept the country.

The four officers involved in the arrest were not questioned about the incident until last week and have not been charged with any crimes. “We don’t understand why they still haven’t been suspended,” said Sofia Chouviat, Mr. Chouviat’s daughter.

Context: Earlier this month, France’s interior minister said chokeholds would be banned and that officers would no longer be allowed to press on a suspect’s neck. But the French police have pushed back, and officers will be allowed to use the technique in the field until September.

Case study: In the postwar era, Germany overhauled policing to confront in detail the shameful legacy of policing under the Nazis, and to prevent it from happening again. The country’s experience might offer insight into how to redesign institutions. But clashes between the police and young men in Stuttgart on Saturday point to long-simmering tensions and criticism, with immigrants saying they are racially profiled.

Also: Eton College, one of Britain’s most storied boys schools, has apologized to one of its former black students who said he was told never to return after publishing a book in 1972 detailing abuse at the school.

If you have 7 minutes, this is worth it

In West Africa, terror from both sides

Burkina Faso has fallen into chaos over the past four years, becoming a recruiting ground for international terrorist groups in West Africa. At least 2,000 people are thought to have been killed there in the past 18 months. Above, soldiers protecting refugees at a camp near Dori, in northern Burkina Faso.

Our correspondent and photographer traveled there and found that government forces are now killing about as many people as jihadists are. “The government is traumatizing people,” a herdsman and farmer said. “It’s what pushes people to sign up to the armed groups.”

Here’s what else is happening

Australia judge: A court inquiry found that Dyson Heydon, a judge who presided over the country’s highest court for a decade, had harassed at least six women. He has denied the accusations.

U.S.-China trade: Stocks on Wall Street followed global markets higher on Tuesday, after President Trump reaffirmed the trade war truce between the United States and China and investors focused on new signs of economic recovery instead.

U.S. presidential campaign: A surge in donations has helped Joe Biden cut into President Trump’s financial advantage ahead of the November vote. Mr. Biden will hold his first presidential campaign event with Barack Obama on Tuesday.

Snapshot: Art restoration experts in Spain called on Tuesday for tighter regulation of their work after a Baroque-era painting of the Virgin Mary, above, was disfigured by a furniture restorer. The Association of Conservators and Restorers said in a statement that, if the poor restoration is confirmed, “part of our heritage is disappearing by these disastrous actions.”

French literature: With her strident, pro-sex views, Virginie Despentes upsets people on the left and the right. After years of being the outsider, she is finally taking over France’s literary establishment.

What we’re reading: This Atlantic article about blackness and racism. “Imani Perry writes beautifully about the full-body grief of being a black American,” says Jenna Wortham, staff writer for The Times Magazine.

Now, a break from the news

Cook: This tomato chickpea salad is the taste of summer. If you can, savor this meal outside, which is always the best way to celebrate the beginning of tomato season.

Watch: The director Joel Schumacher, who died on Monday at age 80, will be remembered for the flash and style of “Batman Forever” and “Batman & Robin.”

Listen: While live concerts and operas are on hold, the spotlight has turned to individual artists. Here’s a look at some memorable solos.

Do: If you are fortunate enough to have a terrace, a porch or a backyard, here are a few tips on how to make the most of your outdoor space.

At Home has our full collection of ideas on what to read, cook, watch and do while staying safe at home.

And now for the Back Story on …

America’s unpredictable medical bills

Last week, Sarah Kliff, a Times reporter, noticed something strange. A medical lab in Dallas had charged as much as $2,315 apiece for coronavirus tests, even though a test typically costs $100. Sarah called the lab to ask about the price — and the lab quickly dropped it to $300.

It isn’t the first time something like this has happened. In her years of covering health care for Vox and now for The Times, Sarah has frequently reported on the arbitrary nature of medical costs, often highlighting extreme examples. After these examples receive public attention, health care providers sometimes reduce the prices.

Of course, most medical bills don’t become the subject of journalistic investigations. Which means that medical labs, drug companies, hospitals and doctors’ offices are often able to charge high prices to insurance companies and patients, without consequence.

“If you look at pretty much any other developed country — Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Singapore, the list goes on — the government does some version of rate setting,” Sarah told The Morning newsletter recently. “The United States doesn’t.” That’s one reason that the cost of health care in the U.S. is higher than in any other country.

That’s it for this briefing. See you next time.

— Isabella

Thank you Melissa Clark wrote the recipe, and Theodore Kim and Jahaan Singh provided the rest of the break from the news. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com.

P.S. • We’re listening to “The Daily.” Our latest episode is about the future of the U.S. Senate. • Here’s today’s Mini Crossword puzzle, and a clue: Like roasted marshmallows (five letters). You can find all our puzzles here. • Mary Suh is returning to The New York Times as acting Op-Ed Editor, Charlotte Greensit of The Intercept is the new managing editor and associate Editorial Page editor and Talmon Smith has been promoted to staff editor.

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