#15 th of july

[clandestina76]

15th of July

St Swithin's day, if thou dost rain, For forty days it will remain; St Swithin's day, if thou be fair, For forty days 'twill rain na mair.

[strangersteddierthings]

Platonic Stobin bodyswap AU idea I'll never write. This has been in my drafts for over a year (since July 2023 per the timestamp)

Post season 3; During the season 3 bathroom confession scene Robin came out to Steve, and Steve came out to her. She knows he's bi, and she's the only one who knows. Swap starts off slowly for Steve and Robin. Little moments of vertigo where the world doesn't look right for a few seconds, that progresses to black out periods of time spanning 5-15 minutes. It's them switching bodies but it's so traumatizing (they are FREAKING out) that they don't remember it. So, it's like they're just losing moments in time, which still freaks them out.

Then one day they wake up and they're... each other. And they just don't go back.

And Steve can't really pass as Robin to her parents but thankfully they just blame it on 'moody teenage angst' and "you can talk to us about anything babygirl we love you so much and we're here when you need us." Which. Yeah, Steve cries about. But it also comes with the side of GOD FUCKING DAMMIT I HAVE TO FINISH HIGH SCHOOL AGAIN??? I CAN'T PLAY THE TRUMPET ROBIN YOU HAVE TO DROP OUT OF BAND

And Robin also cannot pass as Steve at first, but she gets to see how that matters exactly 0% because the Harrington's don't even notice. They also aren't around near as much as Steve makes them out to be. But she does get to enjoy the freedom of a legal drivers license and no job currently. HOWEVER she has walked Steve's pretty face into several doors/poles/walls because cute girls keep looking at her with hunger in their eyes and she doesn't know how to handle this.

(It makes more girls interested in a suddenly shy, stumbling, nervous Steve because those girls think they're the reason Confident Sex God Steve turns into a mess but really it's just Robin not knowing how to exist in a world where woman want her and fish fear her (sorry bad joke))

Anyway, queue shenanigannary for a bit. Steve encourages Robin to go on dates because why not get some practice in while they wait to swap back again? (he's holding out hope)

Do they have the awkward discussion of 'what are the limits to what I'm allowed to do in your body????? I dunno yet.

Anyway, Robin goes on dates. ((Does she end up going on a date with Vickie? Canonically Vickie's got no problem dating older boys? How to solve this plot line for when(if?) they switch back bodies? IDK dudes, that's Future Jess's issue.))

At some point, the gang finds out. Probably Dustin realizing Steve isn't as Steve-like as usual. He'd sniff out something was wrong with his brother for sure.

But then season 4 starts. Robin taught Steve how to play the trumpet back in August/Sept and it's then they realize that they kind of share their knowledge? Like... Steve picks up how to play the trumpet EASY. At first they think it's just Robin's body using muscle memory but then Robin realizes she knows things only Steve should.

Anyway, Steve is in band with Vickie the night of the Championshipgame, chatting easily while also trying to hint that 'Hey, I think Steve Harrington is checking you out???" while trying to tell Robin with telepathy (that they don't have... yet? Decide if they end up with telepathy later) to try and subtly check out Vickie. But neither girl is subtle so they both just whip around to stare at each other and Steve is facepalming.

NO WAIT. DO I MAKE CHANGES TO THE NARRATIVE BECAUSE IF STEVE IS IN HIGH SCHOOL AGAIN, THERE IS NO WAY HE'D LET DUSTIN AND MIKE SKIP OUT ON THE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME. Maybe??? Will decide on this point later. Until then, above points stay.

Anyway, Chrissy still dies (sorry) and Eddie's still on the run, but like this time in the boathouse, Robin invites Eddie to stay at 'his' big empty house 'cause the parents are gone and Robin has no hangups about Eddie like Steve did in canon (he is the first person we hear call Eddie The Freak).

The end point here is that Robin, Steve, and Eddie spend A LOT of time together at Steve's house and then the angst falls in because Steve starts to fall in love with Eddie.

So, he has a breakdown in a bathroom with Robin about it, all sad and crying like "I really fuckin' like him Robs, but I can't- there- we can't-"

"I need you to take a breath and tell me what the issue is," Robin says.

"I like him Robs, but this is your body. I can't take things from you. Like your first kiss. And I certainly can't- I won't put your body through... you know. I can't do that to you."

And it takes Robin a moment to process what he means. Romantic entanglements that Steve might want to have would have to happen with her body. And maybe Robin isn't sure what to say/do because the thought of a guy and his dick anywhere near her body immediately freaks her out but... she's not in her body. She's in Steves, and has been doing things with girls in it. It never occurred to her that Steve might want to get hot and heavy with a guy in her body and maybe she's got something to unpack there???

Anyway, no time to worry about that. Vecna's gonna kill Max so they gotta go. Also, Eddie does NOT know about the body swap.

She does tell Steve to kiss Eddie, though, in the end. When they're not sure they'll live. So, Eddie calls out to Steve. "Make him pay." So, to Eddie, it looks like Steve gives him a nod and it's Robin who marches up, grabs his face, and plants one on him. Robin(Steve) doesn't stick around long enough for Eddie to kiss back (Steve wants him to because he wants a proper kiss from Eddie, but he also doesn't want him to because Eddie thinks he's kissing Robin and if he kisses back it means he likes Robin, not Steve, so Steve doesn't lock lips long enough find out).

Something something they all survive and then Eddie, hopped up on pain meds in the hospital, demands to speak to Robin. So, Steve slinks in, afraid of what's going to happen, and Eddie's like 'Robin. I appreciate that you like me but you are unfortunately a girl and I am not into that.' And Steve is like!!! my time!! It's come!!! I HAVE to get back to my body.

And then at some point they switch back. Maybe El doing some mind fuckery? Idk.

And for fun, here's the beginning of the fic that idea written out:

"Whoa," Steve blinks rapidly as the world tilts and shifts. It's very sudden, and over just as quickly as it started, but it still leaves Steve unanchored for a moment. It was probably brought on by the concussion he's been nursing these last two days, since the whole Starcourt shit. He leans sideways to try and use the wall as an anchor until everything feel right again.

He should, probably, be more concerned about this because this has been like, the fourth time this has happened and when he told Robin about it, she confessed it was happening to her, too. That Owens guy had told them there could be unknown side effects to whatever the fuck they'd been injected with and this might just be part of that. It'll fade, Steve's sure, as the days go on. Never mind that it has been happening more lately. It's going to fade. It has to.

Except, it doesn't. The sensation of be unanchored gets worse, and now it comes accompanied with loss of time. Steve will feel the tilt and shift while standing in the doorway to his room and the next thing he knows he's got a hand on his front door, keys in his hand, and doesn't know where he was trying to go.

Ring Ring

Steve shakes his head, shakes away the feeling of wrongness and goes to answer the phone. "Harrington residence, Steve speaking."

"Steve! Steve, it's getting worse!" Robin's voice sobs at him from the other end of the phone. "I-I was in the kitchen and then I was, like, huddled in the bathroom and I don't remember going there."

"Fuck, me too. I just came to standing at my front door, about to leave but I don't remember getting there, or where I was planning to go," Steve confesses back. It's strange, how easily Robin has become a part of his life. He was expecting her to not want to be withing five miles of him ever again, after what he got her dragged into, but it seems Robin isn't scared away. Perhaps it's just that he's the only other person she knows who went through Russian torture. Even if that is the case, Steve'll take it. He likes Robin a lot.

"Should we... call Dr. Owens?" Robin sounds so small when she asks.

"I don't want to," Steve confesses but doesn't elaborate. Calling Dr. Owens means admitting that something is wrong wrong. Steve doesn't want anything to be that wrong. He wants to get back to his life. He's got to get back to job searching, too, and Dr. Owens might deny him that.

[whumpsday]

Kane & Jim x Catharsis - Kane & Luan

K&J chronological masterlist / K&J writing order masterlist

Catharsis masterlist

content: vampire whumpee, escape, begging, starvation, caretaking, dubious caretaker, whumpee turned caretaker, death wish, suicide attempt, recapture, torture, gore, burns, rescue, brief self-harm for vampire feeding purposes, side robot whumpee

Whumpmas in July Day 15: A Soft Reprieve

the first time i've ever done a crossover between two different series of mine! this one's been living in my brain rent-free. massive props to @sowhumpshaped for inspiration!

-

Luan’s heart practically stopped when he looked through the doorbell camera to find a vampire.

The camera  wouldn’t matter if it was a vampire. The door wouldn’t matter if it was a vampire. He would be taken, again, this time manhandled from his own apartment. The fact that he couldn’t sleep all night was the only reason he had this last moment of freedom.

“Stay back,” he said through the speaker, trying not to let his voice shake like his hands as he clumsily looked up the number for the local hunters. There was no way they’d get here in time, not even with their base just down the road. Not with a vampire’s speed.

“Please,” the vampire whimpered, kneeling on his doormat. “Please help me, I beg of you. I’m not a threat, I promise, please don’t call the hunters, I’ll do anything!”

Now that Luan really looked, he could see beyond the bright-red of his eyes and the intimidating fangs: the figure at his door was… not well. Clearly emaciated, a feeling Luan knew all too well. He could see what looked like burns, and what were definitely cuts. Tears tracked from terrified, desperate eyes.

“What do you want?” Luan snapped, thumb hovering over the dial button.

“Please, please, sir, I can’t find anything to end myself, the sun is coming, they’re going to find me, please, mercy, I can’t go back, please help me!” the vampire begged, weeping into his hands. “I can’t use persuasion, I promise, I wouldn’t even if I could!”

It was objectively stupid. It was going to get him killed or worse. If Luan opened this door, that would be the end of it. The vampire would take one look at him, use persuasion, and his freedom would be gone again, just like that.

There was no faking the way his stomach turned inward like that, worse than Luan had ever been. If Luan had ever starved that badly, he suspected he would have died.

Would there be any point to a vampire going to these lengths just to trick him, when he could have just used persuasion from the first moment?

“One minute. Stay there.” He dashed to find something, ending up with a ruler he hasn’t dug out in years. Sawing at it with a kitchen knife made something resembling a stake, though he knew in his heart that it likely wasn’t strong enough to get through flesh. He just had to hope it would be intimidating enough.

Luan hesitated. Was he really going to do this? Let a starving vampire into his home?

He looked through the camera again, at the pitiful man collapsed on his porch.

He opened the door, makeshift stake in hand. “Get inside.”

The vampire scrambled in, crouching like a cornered animal on his floor, panting hard. “Th-thank you, sir. Thank you so much. Please don’t call them, please, I just–”

“You can stay the daytime and that’s it.” It wouldn’t be the first time Luan had stayed awake a full 24 hours. He could do it again. “At sunset, you leave, and you don’t come back. You never take a human. Agreed?” He pointed the stake at the vampire with both hands. “Try anything and it’s the stake.”

What Luan wasn’t expecting was for the vampire to look up at him with utter adoration. “Yes, sir! Thank you, sir! I’ll be good, I promise, thank you so much! You can kill me if you’d like, I don’t mind, I won’t resist. Whatever you want.”

Luan slowly lowered the stake. “That’s… probably not necessary.” A look around the room. The sun would start rising in a few minutes, he had to act fast if he was really offering this vampire refuge. “Go wait in the bathroom,” he pointed, “There’s no windows in there.”

“Yes, sir!” The vampire started to run, but tumbled over himself, collapsing to the floor. Before Luan could react, he picked himself up to his hands and knees, crawling quickly to the bathroom and closing the door.

“Jesus,” Luan muttered. The blinds were already closed, always closed, but he knew some light could trickle in through the gaps.

What to do next? He knew what he wanted next when he was rescued. To feel safe, to feel free, to feel in control, to know Cyrus couldn’t hurt him anymore. Food, water, blankets, a fucking warm shower. Home.

What had even happened to the vampire to make him like this?

In the end, he gathered up some sweats and sneakers he wouldn’t miss–he wasn’t going to make the vampire run home half-naked and barefoot when sunset came–and a blanket, then knocked on the door, stake stowed in his pocket. “Hey.”

“Yes?” the vampire called back.

Luan opened the door, finding the vampire huddled in the bathtub. “Brought you some stuff. You can use the bath and whatever too if you want, you know.”

The vampire’s eyes widened as Luan set the bundle down on the edge of the sink. “Thank you, sir! That’s so kind of you! Thank you so much!”

“Mm-hm.” It felt good to be the one in control. Safe, somehow, even with a vampire.

He wanted to ask what happened to him, but he hated when people asked for details. Those fucking true crime junkies. If the vampire wanted to talk, he would talk.

“I’m Luan,” he offered. “You?”

“M-my name is Kane. No one’s asked me that in a very long time.” The vampire stared at him like some kind of divine being.

“Alright, Kane. Glad this isn’t going to shit immediately. I’ll be… out there. Knock if you need anything, I guess.”

“Yes, sir!”

With that, Luan let him be. The vampire did not return, staying locked in there well after his shower ended. As the hours ticked by, he couldn’t keep his mind off the vampire in the bathroom. How could he?

Food. He was probably hungry. Starving, if his appearance was anything to go by. Luan knew that feeling, the never-satisfied clawing in his gut.

He pinched at his skin. He had blood to go around, didn’t he? Just once.

Luan knocked at the door. “Kane? You doing okay in there?”

“Yes, sir,” came the vampire’s muffled voice, “Do you need something?”

“You need something,” Luan corrected. “I’m gonna feed you some blood. Open up.”

The door opened fast, Kane’s wide, red eyes greeting him. “You would give me blood?” he asked in a hushed whisper, the blanket still wrapped around him.

“Yeah. Here.” Luan held out his arm. That’s where they did blood draws at the doctor’s, right? “I know you’re hungry. Go ahead.”

Kane burst into a huge, fanged grin. “Thank you, sir!” He took Luan’s arm gingerly, with a gentleness he wouldn’t have expected from a monster of the night. Deciding on the wrist, he bit in slowly, carefully at first.

As soon as he broke the skin, all that gentleness disappeared.

The vampire bit in hard, making Luan wince at the pain of it. But he’d expected pain. It was a goddamn vampire bite, of course it was gonna hurt. He grit his teeth and bore it. He’d had worse.

“Okay, that’s enough,” he announced as he started to feel woozy. “I get you’re hungry, I wanna help, but I’m not a buffet.”

Kane paid him no mind, continuing to gulp down mouthfuls of blood, eyes wild.

Luan’s heart began to race, either from the depleting blood or the sudden terror or both. Suddenly, he wasn’t in control anymore, and that meant the vampire could do anything to him. It wasn’t like with the robot, who had to follow his orders. This was a vampire. What was he in comparison to that? He was powerless. He was–

No. Not again. He would not be that helpless thing again.

Luan hit the vampire as hard as he could, bringing his fist down on the back of his head. “I said stop!”

Kane reeled back, his bloody fangs tearing from skin, the blow jerking him back to reality. Landing clumsily on the floor, he looked up in horror as he realized what he had just done.

“I’m sorry!” he cried. “I’m s-so sorry, sir! I didn’t mean to, I swear, I was just so hungry I couldn’t control myself, I’m sorry!”

His eyes grew watery, his breaths quick and panicked. Kane backed away on the floor, cowering against the tub. “Please just k-kill me, please kill me, I’ll be good, I won’t resist, please, please, I’m sorry, I can’t, please kill me!”

Luan clutched his bleeding arm, staring at the pathetic creature before him. Was that what he’d looked like?

“You’re fine. Just don’t do it again or it’s the stake,” he said firmly. He was in control again. He got to make the rules.

“Please don’t call them,” Kane begged. “I’ll do anything, sir.”

“You’re fine,” Luan repeated. He picked the blanket up off the floor, having fallen in the chaos, and draped it back over the vampire. He instantly clung to it, his shaky hands curling tight in the fabric.

“Th-thank you, sir.” Kane gasped. “Thank you, thank you, I’m sorry.”

“Good.” Luan grabbed a box of bandages out of the cabinet and left, closing the door behind him. He was sure the both of them would feel better that way.

-

Luan woke up to insistent knocking at his door.

He wasn’t supposed to fall asleep. There was a fucking vampire in his apartment. As soon as his head was clear enough to realize, he bolted upright, looking to the still-closed bathroom door, then to the window.

The evening sun still filtered through the blinds: it was still daylight, at least for a few hours more.

“Who is it?” he asked, unlocking his phone. An emergency alert from hours ago plastered the screen before he could check his doorbell camera: VAMPIRE IN AREA.

“I’m with the local vampire hunters. We just wanted to ask some questions,” the man at the door said.

Not a sound came from the bathroom.

It would be more suspicious if he didn’t answer the door, right? Luan opened it. “What questions?”

“We were holding a vampire in the base a few streets down when it escaped last night. This one can’t hypnotize you, and we had it pretty weakened, but it’s still dangerous–caught it before it could take anyone, thankfully. We know it couldn’t have gotten far, already combed outside. It has to have snuck into someone’s home, so we’ve been making the rounds before it can escape come nightfall. Have you seen anything suspicious?”

“...Take anyone?” Luan asked, the floor falling out from under him.

“Yep,” the hunter nodded, “When we caught it, it already had someone. Almost got away with her, too. If that thing managed to get her over the border, that’d be it. Last thing we want is for that to happen again. Luckily, we’ve got the sun on our side.”

How could he have been so stupid? Of course a vampire wouldn’t be in human territory for any good reason. Kane had already gotten a taste for his blood. He was just a few hours away from being lured into captivity again, and this time, there’d be no one to save him.

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Luan grit his teeth, chest tight. Cyrus would never let him hear the end of it if he knew. “He–he tricked me,” he mumbled. “He’s in the bathroom.”

“Fuck. Least we caught it before sundown. Read up some on vampire safety,” the hunter instructed him, strolling inside.

The bathroom was no longer silent.

A sob accompanied the frantic scratching of nails against wood for only a moment before the hunter yanked the door open, the shitty lock giving way on only the third try.

“No! No, please, I was out!” Kane screamed, clawing at the sink cabinet ever-harder. “Please, please, mercy! I can’t! I was out!”

“Behave yourself,” the hunter spat, and Kane and Luan both flinched. He grabbed the vampire by the hair. “Come quietly and you get a tarp, not that you deserve that much after the stunt you fucking pulled today. Make a fuss and it’s the sun.”

Kane wailed, a cry of anguish so long and deep Luan thought it might never end. When it did, a shaking Kane wrapped his arms around himself. “I’ll be good, sir,” he whispered, eyes distant.

He offered no resistance as the hunter dragged him away, only tears.

Alone once more, Luan knew he’d made the only choice he could to protect himself, but the tightness in his chest didn’t go away.

-

In the coming weeks, Luan couldn’t get the vampire out of his mind.

Even taking it out on the robot didn’t help, not that it ever really did. He found himself turning it on less and less, leaving it in the closet. Seeing Cyrus’s face just made him feel worse.

The hunters had to have killed Kane, right? That would be fine. Humanity would be safe from him if they did that, and Kane had been begging for it, anyway. What reason would they have to keep him alive?

Luan knew the answer to that better than most.

One call to the hunters confirmed it: the vampire was alive, though they promised ‘improved security’.

“Can I see him?” he blurted out.

It took some convincing, but Luan was able to secure himself an appointment.

-

“Keep away from the bars,” the hunter leading him downstairs instructed. Down, down, down. Concrete walls, concrete floor. Luan fought the urge to run. “You can talk with it for five minutes. Get some closure on whatever it was doing in your place. I’ll escort you back up later.”

“Mm-hm,” Luan agreed.

At the bottom of the stairs was a cell, and in the cell was a metal trunk. Luan dug his nails into his palm.

“It might look a little gnarly, but remember, these things aren’t human. They heal like that.” The hunter snapped his fingers. “Wait here.”

The hunter unlocked the cell, then the trunk. “Out.”

The lid flung open, a skinny, burnt hand retracting as soon as it appeared. Kane climbed out of the trunk, landing in a mess on the floor.

He was much worse-off than Luan remembered him. In only six weeks, the clothes he’d given him had become so torn and bloodstained as to be practically unrecognizable. Nearly all the skin he could see was burnt, his face a mess of severe welts. He looked to Luan with utter terror in his eyes, far more than the robot could ever hope to mimic.

“H-hello, sir,” Kane stammered.

Luan had to run. He knew he was safe, he wasn’t a vampire, but the danger emanating from every crack of this place was far greater than any he’d felt with a vampire cowering in his bathtub.

He didn’t move. He didn’t speak.

“I’m s-sorry,” Kane continued, clutching at his shirt. “Please, please, I’m so sorry.”

“What?” Luan asked. “Why are–”

“Please don’t take the clothes away! I’ll do anything!” Kane bowed his head, trembling. “Anything, anything, p-please, I need them, I’m so sorry, please! They’re the only thing protecting me from the silver!”

He picked his head up to look back at the trunk and then Luan with a sob. “Please, I know I don’t d-deserve it, I’m sorry, but please, please, I’m trying. I won’t run again, I’m sorry!”

“They’re yours,” Luan assured him quickly. “I’m not… taking them. That’s not why I’m here.”

Kane let out a massive, shaky exhale, the grip on his shirt still tight. “Thank you for your m-mercy, sir. Thank you for letting me keep them. Thank you for giving me one good day. I treasure it, sir. It–it was the best day I ever had. What can I do for you?” He looked up, eyes shining and watery.

Luan turned and ran.

-

He brought the robot out that night. No one else had the guts to tell him what a piece of shit he was. No one else who wasn’t in prison.

Luan didn’t tell Russ what happened. He didn’t need to. The robot did its job, and by the time he was done, his knuckles hurt. The robot winced as Luan reached down to switch it off, then fell limp.

He called the cops. They didn’t care. It wasn’t a crime to hurt a vampire.

Luan thought about moving, but he didn’t. Instead, he did the opposite, took long walks out to the hunters’ base with his hand on the unused pepper spray in his pocket. It was just a building, as far as he could see, but he knew Kane was in there. Someone had to know.

Until one day, Kane was outside.

He was strapped to a propped-up metal board, baking in the sun, the clothes Luan had given him gone. It was the least human he’d ever looked: his skin boiled like sugar syrup on a stovetop in some places, crisped like burnt marshmallow in others.

There was no one else out there.

He ran home, came back even quicker with his car, and hopped the fence. Barbed wire tore at his skin, but didn’t slow him down. Kane writhed, pulling at his bound wrists.

“I’m getting you out of here,” Luan whispered, taking bolt cutters to his shackles. Kane fell to the ground, letting out a muffled shriek as his yet-untouched back set ablaze.

He didn’t have time to be careful. He hauled Kane up–he hardly weighed anything–and threw him over the fence, following quickly.

Tossing the vampire into his trunk, he added, “Don’t say you’re sorry if you have nothing to be sorry for. I’m sorry. You’re going home.”

Kane’s mangled face was unreadable, but Luan could have swore he saw him relax just a little amid the pain.

-

Luan drove. He couldn’t go home yet, that much he knew. They’d find him in a heartbeat. He drove as far away from that place as he could get, the cargo in his trunk surprisingly quiet.

When he’d gotten a few hours away, he found a secluded corner of a parking garage and popped the trunk.

“Easy, it’s me,” Luan shushed when Kane started to cower. “We’re far away. Here.”

Kane’s mouth was sealed shut, his lips fused together by the heat of the sun. It took some prying, but he managed to get them unfused. Kane didn’t seem to mind, not even when his skin tore and bled.

There were no fangs in his mouth.

Whatever. That wouldn’t stop him. He grabbed his pocketknife from the glove compartment and slashed his palm open. Kane writhed again, a desperate whine dragged from his throat, but stopped when Luan made a fist over his waiting mouth and squeezed.

“Drink up,” he encouraged. He kept going for a while, eventually bringing his hand to Kane’s mouth to let him lick the excess blood from it. His hand left scabbed over, as if it had been healing for hours rather than minutes.

“Better?” he asked.

“Yes, sir,” Kane rasped, his voice hoarse. “Thank you, I’ll b-be good this time. Thank you for giving me another chance.”

Oh, he’d screwed this guy up bad. Another achievement in his worthless fucking life.

“Who should I contact about getting you home?” he asked. Time to get straight to the point. “Any vampire who could come here when it’s night and get you?”

Kane was silent for a moment. “Bellamy Verta,” he said eventually. “S-safe. Safe for humans.”

The guy wasn’t hard to find, and from what his profile said, he sure seemed to live up to safe for humans. His profile linked to a website that looked like PETA for vampires.

“I’m sending a DM. He’s probably asleep right now, but he’ll probably see it when he wakes up,” Luan reported.

Kane wept, blubbering gratitudes.

-

Luan cleared the area an hour before Verta was set to arrive. No matter how innocent his page looked, he wasn’t taking any chances. He left the trunk closed so no one would find Kane besides the one who was supposed to, not that he expected vampire hunters to be prowling an unpopulated parking garage in the middle of the night. Not exactly prime vampire ground. He was sure Verta would be able to figure out opening it.

He didn’t go back to the car until he got an emoji-filled DM back from Verta with a picture of what looked like Kane’s attempt at a smile.

His trunk had a hand-shaped dent in it, not that he really gave a shit. By the time he got home, it was almost sunrise. He really had to do something about his sleeping before Monday.

Luan stared blearily at the closet.

He opened it, turned on the robot. Russ flinched back at his touch, looking up at him with a harsh glare. “What?” he spat.

Luan unplugged the charger and shoved it into Russ’s hands before backing away. “You can go.”

Russ opened his mouth, then closed it, the glare melting from his face. He turned and ran through the door without a word, off into the sunrise.

It felt better than any time Luan had hit him.

taglist in reblogs

event: @whumpmasinjuly

[wheatnoodle]

part 3 :)

read part one and two

—

july 13th, 1989. it was on a pure gut feeling alone that max was biking to loch nora at just gone 9:30pm.

steve had dropped dustin off earlier at the arcade, around three in the afternoon, but an hour in, walkied to let him know mrs. byers would be driving him home. dustin whined and complained into the receiver, only to get short, tired answers from the older teen, and shortly after that, silence. he switched it off.

he’d been doing that quite a bit lately. shutting off. shutting up. shutting down. he’s putting space between himself and the rest of the world. but this time felt…different. it felt wrong, even. and so, max’s scores dropped. she lost at pac-man four times. and she’s barely got even thirty tickets.

she can’t focus. even as she skates home, her brain is heavy with concern for her friend. for her brother. she pushes her food around on her plate at dinner, stares blankly at the table while her mom- while susan cracks open another beer. her homework stays in her backpack and she lays on her back on her bed, searching for advice in the ceiling.

and so she waits until 9:15 rolls around and she hears susan crash on the couch. then max is up and toeing on her shoes, stepping out of her room. she grabs her bag, shoves in two cans of chicken noodle soup, and sneaks out the front door.

she really shouldn’t be riding her bike when it’s this dark out, her glasses only helping in the daylight. but she pushes forward anyways. she has to. she makes it to his house in no time and parks her bike next to the front door.

unlike dustin, max rings the doorbell. few seconds later and the door cracks open about a foot. god, he looks…awful.

“hey, kid. um…’m sorry, but now’s not a good time,” steve slurs as he speaks, runs an uncoordinated hand through his hair that’s so messy it looks like he’s been yanking it all night. her eyes focus in on the red splotches in his cheeks, tear tracks illuminated by the porch light. his eyes are red rimmed and puffy, making them even bigger, even browner. the neck is stretched out in his shirt, the scar across his throat an angry red with scratches up and down his skin. sweatpants slipping just slightly down his hips and showing off more scarring.

“actually, it seems like now is the right time,” max says softly and nudges her way inside. there’s empty beer cans on the floor, couch pillows and throw blankets strewn everywhere.

“sorry ‘bout the…y’know. the mess,” he mumbled and gestures vaguely to the living room. she turns to face him, takes in how exhausted he seems, how he curls in on himself.

her backpack hits the ground and max walks forward, throwing her arms around his neck and holding on as tight as she can. it takes a few seconds before he hugs her back, burying his face in the top of her head. she’s not even the slightest bit grossed out as she feels fresh tears in her hair. her heart clenches.

“I brought soup,” she says into his shoulder. it gets a weak laugh into her hair and she pulls back with a little smile. “i’m gonna go make that, ‘cause i didn’t eat and i don’t think you have either. i think you should come sit at the table while i make it because quite frankly, i don’t trust you to not fall down your basement stairs.”

he nods a bit, cringing at the pain in his head. “fair enough.”

she’s made dinner and cleaned up for her drunk mom plenty of times, it’s like second nature. but this time, it doesn’t feel like a chore. like something she has to do. she wants to do it. she wants to take care of him. she’s helping. he needs a friend, and she is here. just like he always is for her.

it’s silent while they eat. comfortable silence. and soon enough he’s sipping on a hot tea and she’s doing her homework across from him.

“did i ever tell you about the russians?”

she looks up when he breaks the quiet. his voice is scratchy, dry from all his tears. “hm?” she hums, pushes him to elaborate.

“the russians. at starcourt,” steve says casually, like he’s talking about the weather. it happens so often, it might as well be. she puts her pencil down.

“no. do you want to?” max asks. her full attention is back on him. the bags under his eyes are so dark.

“yeah. it’s heavy shit though, so you don’t have to hear it if you don’t want to.” it blows her mind that even in such a state, he offers her an out. he lets her know that he puts her above him.

“tell me about it.” she’s sure in her words. she’s grown too quickly. wise beyond her years. it breaks his heart.

“you know the mall was just a front for the russians and their gate to the upside down. i won’t bore you with how we got there, but we ended up in their like…lab, bunker thing? in like…the basement?” his brows are scrunched and he’s staring straight into his mug, playing with the teabag string. “and…and they saw us. me, robin, dustin, erica. god, i can’t believe i got those two involved-“

“you wouldn’t have been able to stop them if you tried. you know that,” max interrupts him. she knows how stubborn those two are. she also knows how undeniably loyal they are as well.

“yeah…yeah, i know. but…anyways, they saw us. and we’re getting chased by russian soldiers through this underground lab and i’m dressed like a fucking sailor with nothing but an ice cream scoop in my pocket.” max snorts at the memory of his old uniform. (though of course she can’t help but miss the shorts.) “yeah, yeah, laugh it up.”

“i’m sorry, i’m sorry. go on.”

“okay. so they’re chasing us, and we make it through this door. we get is shut and luckily, there’s this like hatch in the floor. and robin and i are using our whole body weight to hold this door closed. they’re pounding on the other side and it’s so loud. i’m yelling at the kids to go down that fuckin’ hatch. dustin just stops. looks like he’s gonna try and stay back. if i could kick him down that hole, i would.

“finally, the kid goes down and it’s at just the right time because they open the door. i don’t know what they did to robin, yelled at them not to hurt her, but they grabbed me and i’m being…dragged to this room. at some point they get cuffs on my wrists and the bench in this room is metal and it’s so, so cold. and they shut the door. big, heavy fuckin’ door. there’s two dudes there.” he pauses, shuts his eyes and takes a deep breath.

“steve…you don’t need to it it’s too much to think about,” max says, reaches her leg across and kicks his shin. he looks like he’s been going back to that room tonight.

“no, ‘s fine. gotta at some point,” he shrugs. “anyways, they start asking all these questions. they start with like, how did you get down here? what do you know? how did you find us? and…and i keep telling them that it was a mistake, that like…our shipment didn’t come or some shit and we went to look for it. said the elevator fell. that wasn’t good enough. they didn’t believe me. and the other guy who’s standing there, he just starts…he’s…he’s just fuckin’…wailin’ on me.”

she watches with sad eyes as he mimics getting punched in the face, his own fist lightly connecting with his jaw.

“no matter what i said. and he’s…he’s asking me who i work for. i tell him the truth, tell him i work at scoops. fuckin’ ice cream, dude. might as well have been telling him the best joke he’s ever heard. the other one just keeps punching me. i can’t hear them anymore. i don’t remember when that happened, but suddenly my ears were just ringing and my eyes were so blurry, all i can see is my own blood. it’s all i can taste.”

his hands are trembling as he scrambles in his pockets for his pack of newports and a black bic lighter. when he can’t get it to light, she reaches across and takes the lighter, flicking the flame and holding it steady. he nods his thanks.

he pulls in deep, holding it in his lungs until it burns. “dude, i’m fuckin’ begging them at this point to just kill me. i can feel the bones in my face just like, breaking every time he punches me. at some point, i pass out. finally, y’know? in the back of my mind, i’m hoping i’m dead. and then i wake up! tied to a chair! and to make things worse, robin hasn’t gotten away because she’s tied to my back. and after i get the life beaten out of me, at some point she reminds me what an asshole i was. which sucked, i was already hurting. then they gave me the ol’ mad max.”

“the what?”

“needle in the neck with some random drug.” a hand covers her mouth. she can feels tears in her eyes that she tries to blink away.

“holy shit…who- who knows about this?” max’s voice shakes as she speaks. she wants to reach out, run her fingertips over the barely there scars. she pulls the sleeves of her sweatshirt over her hands instead (it’s two sizes two big since it’s technically not her’s but it’s been a hard night and he’s dead, so he can’t tell her not to take it anyways).

“hm…robin, dustin, erica…now you too,” he says, staring off into the distance. she can’t get him to meet her gaze. “every time i close my eyes, i’m back there. i can’t fall asleep without dreaming of being there, or being…eaten…by fucking bats in another dimension.”

“i get that. every day i see that…thing killing him. i see vecna…taking his image and using it to hurt me. i’m hoping the memories from in the creel house don’t come back though,” max mumbles. steve passes her a napkin and she realizes she didn’t do as good a job holding her tears in as she thought.

“i hope you don’t remember it either,” he agrees. “i hate it here.”

“where? this house, hawkins, or life?”

“all of the above?”

“fair.” she nods, takes a sip of her neglected water. “would you leave?”

he doesn’t say anything. just takes a drag from his cigarette and taps off the ash in an empty cup. a look takes over his face. like he’s searching for the right words to avoid hurting her.

“yeah. in a heartbeat.”

she can’t be mad at him. she gets it. she loves the family she’s made in hawkins, but if she had the choice, they never would have moved here. “have you been looking at places? like…outside of here?”

“i…” he sighs. he knows he can’t lie, not to max. “i was lookin’ at this little place out west. it’s all the way out in california.”

max smiles then. bright and crinkling her eyes. “you would love it there.”

“yeah?” he chuckles weakly, clears his throat of the smoke.

“yeah. the sun and the water. you can be a stupid volleyball jock.” that one gets a real laugh out of him, one that’s got him slapping a hand over his mouth and her snorting at him. “but really. if it feels right, like leaving here will…will make life even just a little bit easier, do it. we’ll be okay. you have saved us so many times, it’s time you save you too.”

“max…”

“steve. it’s over. you can take a break from fighting for your life.” she watches as it all seems to click into place. something in his eyes changes and she knows he’s made his decision.

he writes down the address in her math notebook. tells her that if she’s more than welcome any time.

“i don’t know what to do about eddie,” he mumbles with a heavy sigh, his shoulders deflating.

her brows pull together and she looks at him in pure confusion. “what about him?”

“just…i dunno…” he says into his tea mug. she takes a second to look at him, squints as she thinks things through. and then she’s nodding.

“personally, i think eddie will wait until you’re ready. nothin’ wrong with needing to focus on yourself for a bit. besides, you can’t get into a special friendship with a special friend if you’re just gonna drag them down because you haven’t given yourself the time you need to heal from the shit the world dealt you.” max leans back in her chair, sips more of her water.

it’s steve’s turn to squint at her, glancing at her with faux disgust. “since when did it become you giving me advice? supposed to be the other way around.”

she smirks cockily, crosses her arms over her chest. “what can i say, i’m like, really good at it.”

—

they’ve gathered in eddie’s government present mobile home, everyone far too cramped together but nobody uncomfortable. dustin thought it felt like safe ground to break the news to everyone.

they’re sitting around, staring up at robin who’s standing in the middle of the room as she explains the events of the past few days. how steve had acted at the bonfire, to him no call no showing a shift and not answering keith’s calls, all the way to dustin letting himself in to the harrington household.

“…everything was just…gone. it was like he…like he never even…existed,” she chokes on her words, tears overflowing her large eyes. there’s a collective gasp amongst the group. nobody knows what to say.

max leans back on the couch, out of most people peripheral. there’s a soft smile tugging at her lips. proud and in disbelief. he really did it. he chose himself for once.

she looks over to eddie, sitting on the other end of the couch and separated by lucas on the middle cushion. his eyes are wide, every single emotion running through his face until it settles on one.

realization.

slips into another.

desperation.

he will be there when steve is ready.

—

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[miffy-junot]

'The intimate yet posed nature of The Emperor Napoleon in his study at the Tuileries introduced an unusually modern dimension into the iconography of portraits of sovereigns. The painting probably represented the basis of portraits of French heads of state from the July Monarchy to the Fifth Republic. It was not commissioned by the Emperor, however, but by a powerful Scot, the Marquis of Douglas, the future 10th Duke of Hamilton 1767-183, who was infatuated by French art and was a fervent admirer of Napoleon. Douglas wanted a portrait of the Emperor, because he was fascinated by the Great Man and because he wanted to resuscitate the old alliance between France and Scotland. In fact, he commissioned other royal portraits' to adorn his castle and, in the British tradition, to symbolise his pretensions to the throne (Haskell 1975). His letter was sent to David via the painter and dealer Ferréol Bonnemaison in August 1811. The artist, who had never been happy with his official portraits of the Emperor, all rejected, accepted immediately; he must also have felt flattered that his reputation had gone beyond the boundaries of the Empire. He delivered the canvas the following year. The requirements of the Marquis were very precise. David should 'commit to the canvas the features of the Great Man and represent him during one of those events that have made his name immortal'.

[...]

In the painting delivered by David, the Emperor, wearing the blue uniform of a colonel in the Foot Grenadiers of the Imperial Guards, is standing in front of his desk, beside a ceremonial chair designed by David and located in the Grand Cabinet in the Tuileries, rather than in Napoleon's study. On the back wall, the hands of the clock stand at 4.13 am; the candles are almost burnt out, giving us to understand that the Emperor has been working all night. He is preparing to don the sword that is lying on the chair and to review his troops. It seems that David did not meet the expectations of the Marquis fully; Douglas was probably hoping for the depiction of an exceptional action, which would serve to identify the Great Man. In the painting, the artist discards the exceptional in favour of the habitual, the exterior in favour of a carefully staged intimacy: 'I have represented him pursuing the activity that is most habitual to him, work,' wrote David to the Scottish aristocrat on 8 May 1812. During the process in which the incarnation of the 'Great Man' takes over from his apotheosis, David emphasises (at first glance) the realism of the portrait. On the one hand, the accessories (desk, sword, uniform) are all painted from life, and, on the other, the artist has depicted Napoleon's features with painstaking accuracy, striving for a good likeness: the dishevelled hair, the rings under the eyes and the paunch, emphasised by the whiteness of the breeches. Alexandre Lenoir praised the portrait for being 'the best likeness that has ever been done of the Emperor'.

[...]

David, who used accessories sparingly in his portraits, introduces a lot of them here, painted with great accuracy, for example, the candlestick. They require close attention because, surrounding the figure as they do, they bear the weight of the symbolic narration requested by the Marquis; they would have been omitted from a run-of-the-mill portrait. The allusion to the great men of antiquity is not provided by busts, but by a book: Plutarch's Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans on the footing of the desk. The uniform, the sword placed on the chair, the map on which David has placed his signature all betray the man of action, the general-in-chief in the classical tradition, the hero in its revolutionary sense. The lion, which acts as the foot of the bureau, painted in a highly realistic way from the front, is like an echo of the figure. Should we interpret this as an allusion to the Emperor's sign of the zodiac (he was born on 15 August), or as a puzzle connected with Napoleon's own name?Whatever the intention behind the lion, it adds an element of determination to the figure of the 'Great Man'. On the desk, the pen and papers inform us that Napoleon has spent the night drafting legislation.

[...]

David started restoring the sovereign's image with this exceptional painting. Unencumbered by the traditional attributes of power or the ostentation connected with it, Napoleon is portrayed as a modern statesman; the sources of his greatness and the justification of his power are to be found within him. In some ways, David rejects transcendence in favour of immanence; the man is placed at the heart of the representation and the expressive value proper to a portrait is reaffirmed. David proves that the realism inherent in the genre can convey the idea it embodies, and that the tension between truth and decorum, between the myth and its incarnation, at work in the portrait of a ruler, can be resolved without forgoing appearances.'

source: Citizens and Kings - portraits in the age of revolution 1760-1830

[gnarskillediv]

The Dunblane Massacre

The "Deadliest Mass Shooting" in British History.

Date:

13th of March, 1996 (9:35-9:40) - The shooting lasted 5 minutes.

Perpetrator:

Thomas Watt Hamilton (TH) 10th Of May, 1952 - 13th Of March 1996, (43 years old). Born in Glasglow, Scotland.

Thomas Watt Hamilton front and centre, surrounded by his victims, in a news report a day after the massacre.

Weaponry:

Two 9mm Browning HP Pistols Two Smith And Wesson M19.357 Magnum Revolvers

Attack Types:

School Shooting Pedicide Mass Murder Murder-Suicide Mass Shooting

Location:

Dunblane Primary School, Stirling, Scotland.

A police officer walks on the grounds of the Dunblane Primary School, Scotland.

Victims:

Victoria Elizabeth Clydesdale; 5 Emma Elizabeth Crozier; 5 Abigail Joanne McLennan; 5 Mellissa Helen Curry; 5 Hannah Louise Scott; 5 Charlotte Louise Dunn; 5 Emily Morton; 5 Kevin Alan Hassle; 5 Megan Turner; 5 Ross William Irvine; 5 Sophie Jane Lockwood North; 5 David Charles Kerr; 5 Mhairi Isabel MacBeath; 5 John Petrie; 5 Gwen Mayor; 45 Brett McKinnon; 6 Joanna Caroline Ross; 5

“We saw a large number of dead and injured children when we arrived,” one first responder said at the time. “They were distributed within the room in various positions. The dead with the injured.”

Timeline

8:15am:

TH was seen shaving ice off his car on Kent Road, Stirling. He left soon after and drove 5 miles to Dunblane. From Kent Road to Dunblane Primary School, it would've taken 16-18 minutes, yet TH took 1 hour and 15 minutes to get there. He had much time to reconsider.

A police officer in the playground of Dunblane Primary School a day after the shooting.

9:30am:

TH intentionally parked his car near a telephone pole, getting out to sever the phone line connected to houses near the school. This was an attempt to make sure the police were delayed as long as possible.

Stuffed animals and bouquets lined the front of the school after the tragedy. “May God take better care of you than this world ever did,” read one of the messages.

9:30am-9:35am:

TH entered the school and headed toward the northwest side of the building, near the gymnasium and the toilets. He fired two shots into the assembly hall stage and into the girl's toilets, hitting nobody.

Meanwhile, in the gymnasium, a class of 29/28 students, along with Gwen Mayor; Teacher, Eileen Harrild; PE Teacher, and Mary Blake; Assistant Teacher, were in the middle of their PE lesson.

"This was an a day I shall not forget. As the newscaster read out the names of those small innocent and unknowing children my son's name - Ross Irvine - was included in that list. My Ross was born on 19th July 1989 and at the time of this awful catastrophe he looked liked any 7 year old,unkempt hair, food around his mouth and that stupid didn't know any different boyish grin. I loved him them and love him even more as he enters his 4th and final year at uni and looks forward to a career with Barclays Bank after a rigorous selection process. Ross Irvine- Dunblane-could have had the same opportunities as my Ross Irvine -but his demise has changed the future of everone else from there on. We, and my my Ross have a lot to thank Ross for. God bless." - Don Irvine, Ross Irvine's father.

9:35am-9:37am:

TH entered the gymnasium and fired immediately, shooting Gwen Mayor, and killing her. Eileen Harrild was shot in the arms and chest, stumbling into an open planned storage cupboard with four other children and Mary Blake, who was shot in the head and both legs.

At the same time, TH moved to the east of the gymnasium, firing six shots at the wall, and whilst walking, turned around and fired eight shots, possibly, at the west side, also. Striding back to the centre of the gym, he mercilessly fired 16 shots into injured children at point-blank range. Another 24 shots were fired in all directions of the gym, including the windows next to the fire exit, and the southeast, at a possible adult in the playground). 4 more shots were fired.

An adult and child heard the loud bangs and screams and went to check what was happening. They looked through the window, causing TH to fire towards them. The glass shattered and injured the child, though none of the two were seriously injured. TH exited the gym through the fire exit. He fired four shots into a library classroom, injuring Grace Tweddle, a member of staff, but not hitting any students inside.

Emma Crozier, who died aged five in the Dunblane Primary School shooting. Her family now advocates against gun violence, having spoken to the parents of some of the children afflicted by the Parkland Shooting.

9:38am-9:40am:

Inside a mobile classroom nearest to the fire exit, Catherine Gordon was teaching her class. She saw TH approaching, bravely shouting for all of her students to get down seconds before he fired 9 shots inside, hitting school equipment, a chair and some books. But no students.

TH turned tail and walked back to the gymnasium. He stood blankly, dropping one pistol and pulling out his revolver, placing the barrel at the back of his mouth, pointing upwards and shooting, killing himself.

Alison Ross’s sister Joanna was one of the 16 children who were murdered.

9:41am:

Assistant Headmistress, Agnes Awlson, alerted the Headmaster, Ronald Taylor, who called the police. He had heard the loud bangs and shots beforehand, saying he "assumed the noises were builders he had not been told about". He felt immeasurable guilt about the situation.

Ron Taylor is still “racked by guilt” 20 years later. “Evil visited us yesterday. We don’t know why.”

9:43am:

Ronald Taylor ran toward the gym, catching a view of what had happened, and told Fiona Eadington, Deputy Headmistress, to call the ambulance.

Charlotte Louise Dunn, "She was always talking about her little brother. And after she moved she wrote to me and would send me pictures of her new life in Scotland."

9:48am:

Stirling Royal Infirmary was informed of a major incident.

Some of the victims are pictured above, most likely the class that was in the gymnasium at the time of the shooting.

9:57am:

The first ambulance arrived at the scene.

“That is the one regret I have, I’d like her mother to have been with her when she died. I’d liked her to have had her mum. That’s an absolute betrayal.” Mhiari MacBeath's mother on the death of her daughter.

10:04am:

A medical team from Dunblane Health Centre arrived.

10:15am:

Stirling Royale Infirmary arrives on the scene.

ONE OF THE PICTURES RELEASED BY POLICE OF THE HOME OF MASS KILLER THOMAS HAMILTON.

10:35am:

Falkirk and District Royal Infirmary arrive, with Doune and Callender's medical teams arriving a few minutes earlier.

Tony Blair lays a wreath outside Dunblane Primary School whilst John Major comforts his wife Norma.

11:10am:

By this time, all injured were cleared and at the hospital.

Gwen Mayor is remembered as an “intelligent, elegant, vivacious and artistic” person.

Summary:

743 rounds of ammo in total. 106 shots were fired. 105 by the pistol. 1 by the revolver. 32 gunshot wounds, all between a three to four-minute time period, 16 of which were inside the gymnasium.

Children with injuries were taken to either the District Royal Infirmary or the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Glasglow. One child died en route to the hospital.

TH wore shooting earmuffs, telling us that he was still relatively new to firing guns, as he was unused to the noise it generates.

[valscodblog]

so when i was younger, i wrote a song right?

and yes i knew OF cod...just wasnt a part of the fandom yet.

and no i didnt know johnny died, no i didnt know abt A N Y TH I N G bc i was like...15 when i wrote this. SO...enjoy lyrics abt my uncle, Johnny (yes that is rlly his name and yes the lyrics r rllly what happened to him) so it goes like this, kinda sorta..

"Where are ya, Johnny boy? Your mama's missin' you, and your brothers are all a fret! you sisters are asking when you'll come home, and i don't have the heart to tell them yet..."

"Where are ya, Johnny boy? Your kids are missing you, and their all asking us when their papa will be home..."

"Aunt Julie just watered those flowers you got her last spring...but their dying, just like you."

"Where are you, Johnny boy? They said you'd be home by may 21st but now, your eldest just turned eight without you..."

"Johnny boy, Oh my sweet Johnny boy! Where could you be? And if they say you died the way you truly died...oh Johnny boy, won't you please come back-To me, at least?"

"Where are you johnny boy-your mama's missin' you...and your siblings, well their worryin' too..."

"Your father just passed-and we're all scared you have too, so Johnny boy, where are you?"

"Where are you, Johnny boy? We're all missin' you! It'd be nice to know if your okay..."

"Where'd my Johnny boy go? Well...he went up with his father, up in the sky and clouds and into the land of endless sunshine and play!"

"Some say he died of a broken heart-other's say it was a bullet going the wrong way...but all I say is, "Where are ya, Johnny boy?""

"SO, where are you Johnny boy!? Your mama's missin' you! And your siblings have all moved away...and I'm the only one who stayed...so, where are ya, Johhny boy? I'm really missin' you! Won't please send for me someday?"

"Where are you, Johnny boy? ...Where are you Johnny boy? WHere did you go, Johnny boy? Where are you, where are you, just where on earth are you? Where is our beloved Johnny at Today?"

so yeah. My uncle died. and i wrote a song bc back then i rlly wanted to be like a singer or sum, y'know? and yes, I rlly didget away with calling my uncle Johnny boy. That was our little inside joke. he called be "Valley Girl" bc well. I dont think i have the heart to explain it.

i came across the lyrics to this song in an old ass diary whilst cleaing. So yeah.

DEDICATED TO SOAP-

[mushroomweirdo]

Please take a minute to read our story in Gaza, after I lost my home for the third time, we lost our work, and we are in a tragic situation.

This sums up my daughter's situation with her four siblings. She cannot continue living without your help. Donate, share the story and send it to your friends. Any small amount helps save my children's lives, share now on your account.

https://www.tumblr.com/monashamali/755533032132395008/donate-to-help-the-munna-tashmali-family-rebuild?source=share

The campaign has been verified by Nabulsi

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This fundraiser has been vetted and as of July 15, they have reached €3,066 out of their €30,000 goal so please share and/or donate as much as you can.❤️

[ausetkmt]

Black women have made important contributions to the United States throughout its history. However, they are not always recognized for their efforts, with some remaining anonymous and others becoming famous for their achievements. In the face of gender and racial bias, Black women have broken barriers, challenged the status quo, and fought for equal rights for all. The accomplishments of Black female historical figures in politics, science, the arts, and more continue to impact society.

Marian Anderson (Feb. 27, 1897–April 8, 1993)

Underwood Archives / Getty Images

Contralto Marian Anderson is considered one of the most important singers of the 20th century. Known for her impressive three-octave vocal range, she performed widely in the U.S. and Europe, beginning in the 1920s. She was invited to perform at the White House for President Franklin Roosevelt and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt in 1936, the first African American so honored. Three years later, after the Daughters of the American Revolution refused to allow Anderson to sing at a Washington, D.C. gathering, the Roosevelts invited her to perform on the steps of the Lincon Memorial.

Anderson continued to sing professionally until the 1960s when she became involved in politics and civil rights issues. Among her many honors, Anderson received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1963 and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1991.

Mary McLeod Bethune (July 10, 1875–May 18, 1955)

PhotoQuest / Getty Images

Mary McLeod Bethune was an African American educator and civil rights leader best known for her work co-founding the Bethune-Cookman University in Florida. Born into a sharecropping family in South Carolina, the young Bethune had a zest for learning from her earliest days. After stints teaching in Georgia, she and her husband moved to Florida and eventually settled in Jacksonville. There, she founded the Daytona Normal and Industrial Institute in 1904 to provide education for Black girls. It merged with the Cookman Institute for Men in 1923, and Bethune served as president for the next two decades.

A passionate philanthropist, Bethune also led civil rights organizations and advised Presidents Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, and Franklin Roosevelt on African American issues. In addition, President Harry Truman invited her to attend the founding convention of the United Nations; she was the only African American delegate to attend.

Shirley Chisholm (Nov. 30, 1924–Jan. 1, 2005)

Don Hogan Charles / Getty Images

Shirley Chisholm is best known for her 1972 bid to win the Democratic presidential nomination; she was the first Black woman to make this attempt in a major political party. However, she had been active in state and national politics for more than a decade and had represented parts of Brooklyn in the New York State Assembly from 1965 to 1968. She became the first Black woman to serve in Congress in 1968. During her tenure, she co-founded the Congressional Black Caucus. Chisholm left Washington in 1983 and devoted the rest of her life to civil rights and women's issues.

Althea Gibson (Aug. 25, 1927–Sept. 28, 2003)

Reg Speller / Getty Images

Althea Gibson started playing tennis as a child in New York City, winning her first tennis tournament at age 15. She dominated the American Tennis Association circuit, reserved for Black players, for more than a decade. In 1950, Gibson broke the tennis color barrier at Forest Hills Country Club (site of the U.S. Open); the following year, she became the first African American to play at Wimbledon in Great Britain. Gibson continued to excel at the sport, winning both amateur and professional titles through the early 1960s.

Dorothy Height (March 24, 1912–April 20, 2010)

Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images

Dorothy Height has been described as the godmother of the women's movement because of her work for gender equality. For four decades, she led the National Council of Negro Women (NCNW )and was a leading figure in the 1963 March on Washington. Height began her career as an educator in New York City, where her work caught the attention of Eleanor Roosevelt. Beginning in 1957, she led the NCNW and also advised the Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA). She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1994.

Rosa Parks (Feb. 4, 1913–Oct. 24, 2005)

Underwood Archives / Getty Images

Rosa Parks became active in the Alabama civil rights movement after marrying activist Raymond Parks in 1932. She joined the Montgomery, Alabama, chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1943 and was involved in much of the planning that went into the famous bus boycott that began the following decade. Parks is best known for her December 1, 1955, arrest for refusing to give up her bus seat to a White rider. That incident sparked the 381-day Montgomery Bus Boycott, which eventually desegregated that city's public transit. Parks and her family moved to Detroit in 1957, and she remained active in civil rights until her death.

Augusta Savage (Feb. 29, 1892–March 26, 1962)

Archive Photos / Sherman Oaks Antique Mall / Getty Images

Augusta Savage displayed an artistic aptitude from her youngest days. Encouraged to develop her talent, she enrolled in New York City's Cooper Union to study art. She earned her first commission, a sculpture of civil rights leader W.E.B. Du Bois, from the New York library system in 1921, and several other commissions followed. Despite meager resources, she continued working through the Great Depression, making sculptures of several notable Black people, including Frederick Douglass and W. C. Handy. Her best-known work, "The Harp," was featured at the 1939 World's Fair in New York, but it was destroyed after the fair ended.

Harriet Tubman (1822–March 20, 1913)

Library of Congress

Enslaved from birth in Maryland, Harriet Tubman escaped to freedom in 1849. The year after she arrived in Philadelphia, Tubman returned to Maryland to free her family members. Over the next 12 years, she returned nearly 20 times, helping more than 300 enslaved Black people escape bondage by ushering them along the Underground Railroad. The "railroad" was the nickname for a secret route that enslaved Black people used to flee the South for anti-slavery states in the North and to Canada. During the Civil War, Tubman worked as a nurse, a scout, and a spy for Union forces. After the war, she worked to establish schools for formerly enslaved people in South Carolina. In her later years, Tubman also became involved in women's rights causes.

Phillis Wheatley (May 8, 1753–Dec. 5, 1784)

Culture Club/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Born in Africa, Phillis Wheatley came to the U.S. at age 8, when she was captured and sold into enslavement. John Wheatley, the Boston man who enslaved her, was impressed by Phillis' intellect and interest in learning, and he and his wife taught her to read and write. The Wheatleys allowed Phillis time to pursue her studies, which led her to develop an interest in poetry writing. A poem she published in 1767 earned her much acclaim. Six years later, her first volume of poems was published in London, and she became known in both the U.S. and the United Kingdom. The Revolutionary War disrupted Wheatley's writing, however, and she was not widely published after it ended.

Charlotte Ray (Jan. 13, 1850–Jan. 4, 1911)

Charlotte Ray has the distinction of being the first African American woman lawyer in the United States and the first woman admitted to the bar in the District of Columbia. Her father, active in New York City's Black community, made sure his young daughter was well educated; she received her law degree from Howard University in 1872 and was admitted to the Washington, D.C., bar shortly afterward. Both her race and gender proved to be obstacles in her professional career, and she eventually became a teacher in New York City instead. 

[robhorninginternalexile]

2024 Book List

January

1. Trances of the Blast, Mary Ruefle

2. Falling Star, Patricia Moyes

3. Labyrinths, Jorge Luis Borges

4. Introduction to the Work of Marcel Mauss, Claude Lévi-Strauss 

5. The Sweet Dove Died, Barbara Pym

6. The Prison-House of Language, Fredric Jameson

7. The Order of Things, Michel Foucault

8. Illuminated Manuscripts, Tamara Woronowa and Andrej Sterligow

9. Structuralism, John Sturrock

February

10. Immediacy; or the Style of Too Late Capitalism, Anna Kornbluh

11. The Dark Frontier, Eric Ambler

12.  Macbeth, William Shakespeare

13. Michel Foucault: Beyond Structuralism and Hermeneutics, Hubert Dreyfus and Paul Rabinow

14. Don’t Look at Me Like That, Diane Athill

15. The Most of It, Mary Ruefle

16. The Archaeology of Knowledge, Michel Foucault

March

17. Henry IV Part 1, William Shakespeare

18. A Murder Is Announced, Agatha Christie

19. Shakespeare, Johan Gottfried von Herder

20. Literary Theory for Robots, Dennis Yi Tenen

21. Henry IV Part 2, William Shakespeare

22. Richard II, William Shakespeare

23. Lucy Gayheart, Willa Cather

24. Henry V, William Shakespeare

25. Mimesis, Expression, Construction, Fredric Jameson

26. Four-Legged Girl, Diane Seuss

27. Death of a Nationalist, Rebecca Pawel

28. The Flight From the Enchanter, Iris Murdoch

29. The Purloined Clinic, Janet Malcolm

April

30. King Lear, William Shakespeare

31. White Butterfly, Walter Moseley

32. Humanism and Antihumanism, Kate Soper

33. The Illusion of the End, Jean Baudrillard

34. Discourse on Method, René Descartes 

35. Meditations on First Philosophy, René Descartes

36. Cambridge Companion to Descartes, John Cottingham ed

37. The Ordinal Society, Marion Fourcade and Kieran Healy

38. Much Ado About Nothing, William Shakespeare

39. Primer, Bob Perelman

40. As You Like It, William Shakespeare

May

41. A Midsummer Night’s Dream, William Shakespeare

42. The Ballad of Peckham Rye, Muriel Spark

43. Preface to Shakespeare, Samuel Johnson

44. The Weariness of the Self, Alain Ehrenberg 

45. Harmonium, Wallace Stevens

46. Mr. Scarborough’s Family, Anthony Trollope

47. Computing Taste, Nick Seaver

48. Hamlet, William Shakespeare

June

49. On Shakespeare, Northrop Frye

50. The Taming of the Shrew, William Shakespeare

51. The Double Shift, Jason Read

52. Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare

53. La Vendée, Anthony Trollope

54. Mirror Worlds, David Gelertner

55. The Commercialization of Intimate Life, Arlie Hochschild

July

56. In Our Own Image, Fred Ritchin

57. Bending the Frame, Fred Ritchin

58. After Photography, Fred Ritchin

59. Cue the Sun!, Emily Nussbaum

60. Appointment With Death, Agatha Christie

61. The Friend, Sigrid Nunez

62. Libra, Don DeLillo

63. The Interpretation of Cultures, Clifford Geertz

64. Mimesis, Erich Auerbach

65. Julius Caesar, William Shakespeare

August

66. Antony and Cleopatra, William Shakespeare

67. Nonrequired Reading, Wisława Szymborska

68. Traveling, Ann Powers

69. Annie Bot, Sierra Greer

70. Regency Buck, Georgette Heyer

71. Coriolanus, William Shakespeare

September

72. Troilus and Cressida, William Shakespeare

73. Fools of Time, Northrop Frye

74. Bel Canto, Ann Patchett

75. Measure for Measure, William Shakespeare

76. William Shakespeare, Terry Eagleton

77. Shakespeare’s Problem Plays, E.M.W. Tillyard

78. Twelfth Night, William Shakespeare

79. The Merchant of Venice, William Shakespeare

80. Othello, William Shakespeare

81. AI Snake Oil, Arvind Narayanan and Sayash Kapoor

82. Passage of Arms, Eric Ambler

October

83. All’s Well That Ends Well, William Shakespeare

84. The Book of the Courtier, Baldesare Castiglione

85. Fables of Aggression, Fredric Jameson

86. Intermezzo, Sally Rooney

87. The Pleasure of the Text, Roland Barthes

88. Liars, Sarah Manguso 

89. James, Percival Everett

November

90. Aesthetics and Politics, Bertholt Brecht, Walter Benjamin et al.

91. Protocol, Alexander Galloway

92. Sartor Resartus, Thomas Carlyle

93. The Unaccountability Machine, Dan Davies

94. Timon of Athens, William Shakespeare

95. Machines Who Think, Pamela McCorduck

December

96. Henry VI, Part 1, William Shakespeare

97. Henry VI, Part 2, William Shakespeare

98. The Triumph of Achilles, Louise Glück

99. All Shot Up, Chester Himes

100. The Saint-Fiacre Affair, Georges Simenon

101. Henry VI, Part 3, William Shakespeare

[todaysdocument]

Message of President Thomas Jefferson laying before the Senate the conventions with France for the cession of the province of Louisiana to the United States

Record Group 46: Records of the U.S. Senate Series: Records Relating to Treaties with Foreign Countries File Unit: Records Relating to Foreign Relations during the 8th Congress

[number "182" and "Henny" penciled in top center] Gentlemen of the Senate In my message of this day to both houses of Congress, I explained the circumstances which had led to the conclusion of conventions with France, for the cession of the province of Louisiana to the United States. Those Conventions are now laid before you, with such communications [superscript "X"] relating to them as may assist in deciding whether you will advise and consent to their ratification. The Ratification of the First Consul of France is in the hands of his Charge des affaires here, to be exchanged for that of the United States, whensoever, before the 30th instant, it shall be in readiness. Th Jefferson [signature] Oct. 17. 1803. Note: "X" The Communications transmitted to the Senate are The [illegible...] of March 2, 1803 [struck through - Extract from [illegible ...] Apr 22, 1803 The [illegible ...] of Apr 18 1803 Extract from [illegible...] Apr 28, 1803 [included as an insert in the left margin- + to Mesrs Livingston + Monroe of May [illegible] [illegible...] Letters from Mesrs Livingston & Monroe of May 13 ^and May 16 1803 Letter from Mesrs Livingston & Monroe June 7, 1803 Extract of a letter from Secy of State of 29 July 1803 ------ from Mr. Monroe at London 15 Aug 1803 [included as a bubble insert in the right margin - M. D'Yrujo to Secy of State Sept 4 1803, [illegible] 27 1803] ------ from ^Mr Monroe & Mr. Livingston 6 Oct 1803 ------ [struck through - from Mr. [illegible] to Mr. Pinckney 4] Letter from Secy of State to M. D'Yrujo - 4 Oct 1803 Letter from M. D'Yrujo to Secy of State - 12 Oct 1803 ----- Secy of State to D'Yrujo - 12 Oct 1803 Mr Pechon to Secy of State - 14 Oct 1803

[dahlia-shifts]

Introduction (NCT DR)

I promised I'll be making intros to my DRs, so let's start off with my Main DR ! I have not shifted to this DR yet, but it's the one I try to shift to almost every night and it's one of the two DRs that stay consistent in my scripts !

Time ratio : 1 Hour CR = 5 Months DR (I know it may seem like a lot, but I really want to experience as much as I can on each shift.

First shift : November, 2015. I will be shifting to the day I get picked to debut in NCT. The next couple of months will be filled with practicing and getting to know the members. I want to live through these moments, and not just remember them as memories. The morning of my first shift will be filled with my own training, going to vocal lessons, study sessions, since I don't attend school, and by the end of the day, I get called to a meeting, where I find out I'm set to debut with NCT.

Personal Info

Name : (CR name) ; Jung Soobin (Korean Name)

D.O.B : December 08, 2000

Age As Of First Shift : 14

Zodiac Sign : Sagittarius

Height : 150 cm (As Of First Shift)

Nationality : Korean-Bulgarian

Ethnicity : Slavic/Bulgarian

Idol Info

Stage Name : Dahlia

Training Period : Since early 2010

Positions : Main Dancer, Lead Vocalist, Lead Rapper, Face Of The Group, Maknae (127)

Debut : The 7th Sense (NCT U - April 09, 2016) ; Fire Truck (NCT 127 - July 10, 2016) ; Chewing Gum (NCT Dream - August 27, 2016)

Timeline

DEC.08.00

Born in Bulgaria.

2000-2005

Going to kindergarten in Bulgaria. My parents get promoted at their workplace, which requires us to move to Seoul, SK.

2005-2009

Going to public school, but not being able to make many friends. Getting bullied often, so taking up a hobby, which is dancing. I begin dancing every night to popular K-Pop songs in my room, and deciding that becoming an idol is my dream.

OCT.2009

I begin auditioning for SM, YG, JYP, but am continuously rejected for being too young, not being able to sing and rap. I go to every audition I can, which my family soon finds out about. I get scolded a lot afterwards, but I decide to prove everyone wrong, so I begin training in my room to sing and rap.

DEC.2009

I decide to audition for SM Ent. one last time. The judges already know me by then. They give me one last chance, and after a lot of mumbling from their side, they tell me they will call me soon.

JAN.2010

I begin training under SM Ent. There aren't many trainees my age, so I befriend older trainees, which are Sehun (EXO), Johnny (NCT), Irene (Red Velvet). Soon after I begin training, my family informs me that they will be moving back to Bulgaria, where my older brother can receive better higher education there, so I am left alone in Seoul. They tell me to come with them, but becoming an Idol is my dream, so I refuse, to which they get furious, and tell me never to contact them ever again.

2011-2012

I become great friends with Yeri (Red Velvet) and we train together, aligned for the same group. We are roommates, so we become good friends the moment she becomes a trainee. I've gone no contact with my family, aside from my aunt, uncle and cousin. I also befriend Mark (NCT), but we get close due to me not being able to speak good Korean and communicating in English instead (same situation with Johnny). He helps me improve both my English, and my Korean.

The rest of the years leading up to my debut are honestly kind of boring but some key moments are :

Not debuting with Yeri

Becoming the greatest friends with Donghyuck/Haechan (NCT), which we still are to this day

Dating History

Vernon ( Seventeen ) May 19 2017 - January 11, 2018, 8 months Age Difference : 2 years Reason for break up : Falling off, companies finding out.

Juyeon (The Boyz) October 16 2018 until August 15 2019, almost 10 months Age Difference : 2 years Reason for break up : He was cheating on me

Taeyong (NCT) February 10 2020-January 10 2021; March 11 2021 - ongoing Age Difference : 5 years Reason for a break : Fans speculating our relationship, so we didn't know how they would react if they were proven right, so we decided to take a break

[mariacallous]

The sound of birdsong is so loud outside Yulia Mykytenko’s current home, an abandoned house somewhere in the Donbas region of Ukraine, that I can hear it through my laptop. We’re speaking on Zoom, Mykytenko visible briefly – young, wearing black, her dark bobbed hair with blue-dyed streaks in it – before she turns the camera off because her signal isn’t great. She has some outside space and, she says with a laugh, a local sheep sometimes comes to visit her dog. Mykytenko, a lieutenant in the Ukrainian army, also feeds the street cats, pets abandoned by residents who fled, and has her own cat. In her new memoir, How Good It Is I Have No Fear of Dying (the name comes from the first line of a poem by the Ukrainian poet Vasyl Stus), she writes that each of the houses her 15-strong platoon live in has a cat, to catch the mice and rats that chew everything, including the cables to the generators and satellite communications. Their numbers boom in the area, she writes, as they “feed on the bodies of hapless soldiers”.

Mykytenko, 29, spent two years here between 2016 and 2018, when Russia invaded the region, then again after the full-scale invasion in 2022. One of the first female frontline commanders, she leads a reconnaissance and attack unit. Her pilots use drones to track the Russian army and to locate the dead bodies of fallen colleagues and support their retrieval. Just this morning, some of her men – she lives with five of her platoon – told her there had been some heavy shelling at 5am, but she slept through it. “I got used to it,” she says. This current house is “quite comfortable” – it has running water (at the previous one, they had to fetch water from a well), but it is cold and takes an hour to heat.

She is “tired, very tired”, she says. A year ago, she felt more motivated: “I was ready to be at war for at least maybe three years more, but now, sometimes I really want to go home [to Kyiv]. But I know that nobody will replace me, and I know that my experience can preserve my people, my fellows [her name for her comrades], which is why I’m ready to work for them.” Is it a struggle to keep her morale up? “I wouldn’t say that it’s a struggle, but yes, it takes some resources.” On bad days, Mykytenko will ask her sergeants to take over, and she’ll spend the day watching Harry Potter movies.

The coming year, she thinks, “will be most critical. I think maybe we will see some results, and maybe peace agreements, because our side is completely exhausted, and the enemy is also completely exhausted.” There have been concerns for what it could mean for Ukraine if Donald Trump wins the US election, including decreased military spending and pressure on the country to negotiate an unfavourable settlement with Russia. She doesn’t spend much time thinking about global politics, she says, “but I believe in US democracy, and the only thing I can do is support the American people and their choice. I just hope that the western world may see that this is not only a war between Ukraine and Russia, it’s a war of democratic values. For now, it’s a critical moment for the democratic world, whether they push away dictators, or they continue with intolerance.”

Mykytenko is resigned to war fatigue from the west; that Ukraine only gets attention “if something extremely bad happens, like the bombarding of a children’s hospital in Kyiv”, as happened in July this year. “I can understand. Our citizens are exhausted and try to live not seeing war. I can see that with donations, it’s a very small amount now, compared [with what] it was one or two years ago.” (Like other platoons, Mykytenko’s raises money online to pay for expenses, such as new drones and fixing vehicles.) “So it’s not so surprising that the west is also tired.” In her book, written with the journalist Lara Marlowe, she states she doesn’t expect to see peace in Ukraine in her lifetime. “I think that my generation won’t,” she says now. She just hopes that future generations will.

Mykytenko grew up on the outskirts of Kyiv. Shortly after her younger brother was born, their father left, though she still saw him. She and her brother were brought up by their mother, who went back to work to support them, getting a job in a call centre (later, she would go back to university and become a psychotherapist, working for the military). Until she was 17, she spoke Russian, and viewed the country “as our friend”; her father, especially, was very pro-Russia. Mykytenko hadn’t been particularly interested in Ukraine’s 1991 independence, a few years before she was born. At university, though – the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, which actively promotes Ukrainian identity – everything changed. “The history events that we learned at school had a Russian perspective. At university, everyone spoke Ukrainian.” She started, she says, “to think in Ukrainian. Language gives you the right perspective on your history, on your culture.” She started removing whatever aspects of Russian language and culture she could from her life.

Mykytenko joined the 2013 protests at Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square) in Kyiv, which ended with the Revolution of Dignity the following year and the ousting of Ukraine’s pro-Russian president, Viktor Yanukovych. She says she felt as if she had been at the right time and place in history, and was “doing the right thing” even though back then she was “a good girl”, she says with a laugh, and found it hard to disobey the law. It was frightening to see protesters armed only with cycling helmets and plywood shields shot by snipers, and experience smoke bombs and teargas – nothing, in retrospect, compared with what she would go through later. “I saw bodies of protesters, the price we paid for that, but it definitely was worth it.”

Around the same time, Russia occupied Crimea. Mykytenko wanted to join up, but stayed on to finish university. In 2015, she met her husband, Illia Serbin, a young soldier – he was on leave from his unit in Mariupol and was lodging with Mykytenko and her mother in their Kyiv apartment. They fell in love and married quickly. They joined a unit together the following year, the day before her 21st birthday. “He supported my decision, and with him, I wasn’t so frightened,” she says.

Serbin was transferred to an infantry unit, but Mykytenko was only allowed to do admin work, which was frustrating. “I wanted to join to a combat unit, but I was told that I’m a woman with no experience, there is no way. My husband told me, just calm down, you are at war, and you have to do your job best in the place where you are.” Was she scared when he was fighting? “Yes, I was really frightened for him, because I knew that he’s a warrior and he won’t just sit in one place. He wanted to be in action, to go somewhere, to a grey zone [between the Ukrainian and Russian lines], or go and steal weapons from the enemy.”

Eventually, Mykytenko managed to convince one of her superiors to let her be on the guard duty rota (a packet of peanuts may or may not have helped with his decision, she says with a laugh). It wasn’t a huge leap – she was guarding the building where she had been working – but it felt big. “It was important to insist that I can be the same as a man. I can do the same job.”

Mykytenko found out that, as a graduate, she was eligible for officer training. There weren’t many female officers – those that there were had mostly been medics, psychologists and financial workers. Mykytenko was determined to be in combat. Once she was commissioned, she was put in charge of a reconnaissance platoon of 20 men; 16 of them resigned. “It was one of the hardest times in my service,” she says. She told them it was their choice whether they stayed or not, but they weren’t going to push her out. Did she feel strong, or was it an act? Mykytenko laughs. “At first, maybe acting,” she says, but her confidence in herself and her decisions grew. “I felt that I was working in the right way, so I felt strong.” It took a few months to earn respect, she says, and she gradually built the unit back up. “I was doing everything with them, I didn’t refuse hard work. I also lived with them, so they felt that I shared this service with them.”

Of her early experiences of coming under fire, she says: “To be honest, I was mainly excited, and with a lot of adrenaline, I actually didn’t think that I could die.” She hadn’t seen anyone killed then. “The war wasn’t so intensive as it is now.” The fighting worsened, though. As a drone commander, she would watch battles on her video screen in real time. It was the hardest to watch colleagues being killed. “You understand that you can do nothing,” she says, then adds that at least they can see where that person fell, to later retrieve their body. “I just don’t let feelings come too close, that it was a human being, my friends – I just do my job, and after that, when the person is evacuated from the battlefield, I can give myself a few hours of mourning.”

In February 2018, Serbin was killed. There were moments in that intense early grief, she says, “when I wanted to die”. She describes walking out into the open during shelling, “hoping that something …” She pauses. “During the shelling that I would die.” It only lasted a few moments, she says, “then I thought that it wasn’t a very competent and reasonable decision”. I hear her give a small laugh. She requested a transfer out of combat, and back to Kyiv. Some people might think of it as weakness, she says, but “I completely understood that I couldn’t take the right decisions” and never wanted to put her unit at risk.

Back in Kyiv, Mykytenko joined the military training academy. It helped her recover, she says. “I was working with teenagers, and I put all my energy and resources into preparing them. And some of them actually are now fighting not far from me, unfortunately – I was hoping that they wouldn’t do that.” She was responsible for the first class of female cadets. To succeed in the Ukrainian army, she thinks, women “have to be ready to work hard and also have a tough skin”. She has heard stories of sexual harassment, but says she hasn’t experienced it, beyond inappropriate “jokes”. She differentiates between “warriors” and “soldiers”. “I was surrounded by warriors – warriors respect you and accept you and support you, so I was pleased to be surrounded by such men.” She has heard plenty of sexist attitudes from men in senior ranks, but says she has stopped responding. “In the first years, it did hurt, but for now, it doesn’t bother me. It isn’t worth my resources.”

Mykytenko is not yet 30 and has been through so much, not just losing her husband, colleagues and experiencing the horrors of war. In 2020, her father, Mykola, died by suicide in Maidan square, after posting on Facebook about Ukrainian independence. He had changed his pro-Russia stance and had been campaigning against what he saw as President Zelenskyy’s capitulation and withdrawal of troops. How does she cope with it all? “I’m trying not to concentrate on it, just because it’s not the right time,” she says. “Sometimes I think I need some psychological support.” She supports herself with “books, movies, to try to find a way to have a rest”.

She works much less now than when the invasion started. Back then, she felt like a sprinter “when I should have been preparing for a marathon”. Mykytenko is mindful of her health and energy, “because it’s not only my productivity that depends on my resources, but also the health and lives of my fellows. I understand when I have no resources that somebody might die because I could miss something.” In her book, she writes about not fearing death. “I just hope that it might be fast,” she says.

She seems to live in such a present and physical way – whether heating water with chopped wood just to go through her basic morning routine, or enduring shelling, or watching drone footage in real time. Does she think about the future? Or allow herself to think about peace and what she might do when she can leave the army? She is quiet for a moment. “Not really,” she says, but adds that she has started to renovate her flat in Kyiv. “I don’t know [if that’s] thinking about the future, but at least it gives me some stability.” I hope she gets there one day, with her dog, and her rescued cats, and peace and birdsong.

How Good It Is I Have No Fear of Dying: Lieutenant Yulia Mykytenko’s Fight for Ukraine by Lara Marlowe is published on 24 October (Head of Zeus, £20)

[cherrythepuppet]

Corpse puppet [Part 15]

as everyone began screaming and panicking once more of the dead came

"Fetch me musket!" Lord piller yelled "Fetch your own musket. l'm off!" The butler yelled as he ran out of the house "who invited these people?!" Lady piller asked

"They must be from your side of the family" lord piller mumbled "Certainly not!" Lady piller yelled as she hit lord piller in the head

"Why, if my Grandfather Piller could see this, he'd be turning in his grave!" Lord piller said "Harold Where do you keep the spirits?" Grandfather piller said

Lord and lady piller looked at each other then screamed and ran off

"ln other news, the dead walk the earth!" The town crier screamed "Get back! Don't try and sneak up on me!" 

"Get back! l'll give you such a wallop!" Everyone was screaming as the dead ran around as Cherry stood in the street enjoying the chaos just then She noticed two Old Men running off to try and get to safety

The old men noticed Cherry and the two stared at each other Before one of the old men slowly came up to her, Cherry's eyes widened and she felt like crying but There was silence for a few moments "Cherry?" One of the men asked "Dads!" Cherry exclaimed as she hugged them

As Cherry hugged her dads she saw Ms Beagle Being hugged by Barnaby Meanwhile Eddie was backed into a corner and he grabbed a stick "BACK UP!" He yelled as Frank saw him and ran towards him

"Eddie!" Frank exclaimed making Eddie's eyes go wide now "Frank?" He asked "But- You died fifteen Years ago" he said as frank hugged him "Frankly, my dear, l don't give a damn" Frank said as he then kissed Eddie

Once the living had realized who everyone was they all were over joyed to see their passed loved ones

"Wait That's it! We're going to take whatever money we can and get out of here" julie said as she came out from hiding "Money? What money?" Howdy asked

"Your dowry! lt's my right!" Julie yelled "But my parents don't have any money...lt's my marriage to you that will save them from the poorhouse" Howdy told her

"Th- The poorhouse?! You're lying! It isn't true...Tell me that you're lying!" Julie yelled "Did things not go according to your plan, Lady Joyful?" Howdy asked

Julie in a fit of rage kicked a chair then left the house and so did Howdy and he was shocked to see the dead and living all heading to the church

"Be gone! ye demons from hell!" Pastor Kermit yelled as the dead along with some living people came to the church "Back to the void from whence you came! You shall not enter here Back, back!" He yelled

"Keep it down, we're in a church!" A skeleton said as the dead and living ignored him and walked into the church and took a seat

Cherry sighed as she sat behind a table with home on her shoulder "Frank owes me for this, I'm not even a licensed minister or whatever their called" Cherry groaned as wally stood in front of the table

"Whatever this is a dead wedding it doesn't count do it?" Cherry asked as the dead and living sat down and Howdy snuck in and hid to see what was happening 

(Y/n) soon came and stood across from Wally "Dearly beloved and departed we are gathered here today to join this woman and this corpse in marriage" Cherry said

Wally and (Y/n) stood in front of the table unaware by the fact that Howdy was hiding behind a piller "(Y/n)?" He mumbled 

"Living first..." Cherry sighed "I'm too old for this" She mumbled "With this hand l will lift your sorrows, Your cup will never empty for l will be your wine" (Y/n) said as they put the ring on wally's hand

"Now Apple man" Cherry said "With this hand l will lift your sorrows, Your cup will never empty. For l will be...l will be..." Wally trailed off as he noticed Howdy hiding 

"Go on Apple Man" Cherry said "Your cup will never empty for l will be...l will be your wine" Wally said

"He's having second thoughts..." Frank mumbled "l can't..." Wally muttered "What's wrong?" (Y/n) asked "This is wrong! l was a Groom My dreams were taken from me Well, now...Now l've stolen them from someone else" Wally told them as he put a hand on their face

"l love you, (Y/n)...But you're not mine" He said as Howdy came out of hiding "Howdy?" (Y/n) asked "Oh, how touching l always cry at weddings!" Julie said loudly as she entered the church

"Our young lovers together at last! Surely now they can live happily ever after" julie said as she walked up to Howdy, (Y/n) and Wally

"But you forgot one small little thing" julie said with a sinister smile "he's still my husband!" She yelled as she grabbed Howdy's arm "l will not leave here empty-handed!" She yelled

Julie noticed Wally and she was frozen with terror "You?" Wally asked as he noticed who julie was "Wally?" Julie asked "You!" Wally yelled

"But- But- l left you!" Julie said as she backed up still holding onto to howdy "For dead..." Wally mumbled "This man is obviously delusional! Sorry to cut things short but we must be on our way!" Julie yelled as she was about to run off with Howdy

(Y/n) grabbed Julie's arm "Take your hands off him" they demanded and julie sighed "Do l have to kill you to?" She asked as she ripped the sword out of Sally "HEY!" Sally yelled 

"(Y/n) catch!" Poppy yelled as she threw a fork at (Y/n) "Really poppy?!" (Y/n) asked "Sorry! Its all i have!" Poppy said 

Julie had let go of Howdy and attacked (Y/n) with the sword. Fortunately, the sword went in between the fork (Y/n) was using as a weapon.

"THIS ISN'T F!CKING FAIR MAN!" (Y/n) yelled, their voice rising in pitch and intensity.

Julie was taken aback by this sudden outburst, but she didn't let it stop her. She lunged forward with the sword, aiming for (Y/n)'s neck

(Y/n) managed to dodge as Julie ended up stabbing one of the benches. "YOUR F!CKING INSANE!" (Y/n) yelled

Julie gritted her teeth in exertion as she tried to bring the sword down again. (Y/n), however, was too quick and agile for her, dodging every attack with ease

Julie felt her anger rising and the fury within her building up with every missed strike

"(Y/n)'s Adorable." Wally mumbled as he and Howdy, along with everyone else in the church, watched "Agreed," Howdy said

The two boys stood in front of the table as Cherry was reading manga, both of the guys watching (Y/n) in front of them with a similar expression of awe and fondness

The clashing of steel filled the air as the two people engaged in combat Just as (Y/n) thought they could possibly win, but we both know that was just wishful thinking

Julie hit the fork (Y/n) used as a weapon away now leaving them defenseless Julie pointed the sword at (Y/n)'s throat, "Any last words?" she asked menacingly

Just as Julie was about to stab (Y/n) directly in the heart, there was a sickening crunch sound. Julie's eyes widened when she saw Wally standing in front of (Y/n) with the sword going through him

(Y/n) looked at Wally with wide eyes "Wals?" They asked which caught him off guard for a moment as Wally pulled the sword out and held it out to Julie. "Leave now," he demanded, his voice cold and hateful

"Touche, my dear" Julie said "Get out" Wally repeated "Oh, l'm leaving...But first a toast! To Wally! Always the Best man and never the Groom! Tell me, my dear can a heart still break once it's stopped beating?" Julie told him

"Let me at her! Let me at her!" Home yelled as all the  dead got up from their seats ready to beat Julie but frank held them all back and cherry held Home back "No, don't hold me back!" Home yelled

"Wait! We must abide by their rules We are amongst the living!" Frank told them "Well said..." Julie mumbled as she grabbed the wine glass unaware of it having poison in it

She drank it and as she was leaving she froze and clutched her heart and started coughing...before she turned blue "Not anymore!" Sally exclaimed "Yep, you're right She's all yours" Frank said

the dead slowly came up towards Julie "No...No! GET AWAY FROM ME! S-STAY AWAY!" She yelled as Barnaby grabbed her arms and dragged her to the church backrooms and José threw a book at julie

"New arrival!" Sally exclaimed as the dead dragged julie away...and after a moment of silence Howdy spoke up "Oh (Y/n)...l never thought l'd see you again!" Howdy said as he hugged (Y/n) 

"Wait!...l made a promise" (Y/n) said as they looked at wally "You kept your promise...You set me free Now l can do the same for you" Wally said as he left the church

(Y/n) watched him leave with a painful look "Wally wait!" They yelled and wally turned to face them "Please...don't go" (Y/n) mumbled "Why?" He asked 

"Because I love you" (Y/n) told him "what?" Wally asked with wide eyes "I said I love you" (Y/n) repeated "but- I thought you loved Howdy" Wally said "i...I thought I did but..." (Y/n) mumbled 

"Darling" Wally said quietly as he placed as hand on (Y/n)'s face "I love you...I really do but I cannot stay here" he whispered "Then take me with you" (Y/n) said 

"I wish I could...but you have your whole life ahead dof you dear" Wally muttered "But-" he cut you off "No buts okay? I have to go But I'll be waiting for you" Wally told you

(Y/n) stared at him with tears beginning to form in the corner of tjeoe eyes "Wally we have to go now..." Cherry announced and wally sighed 

He looked at them then smiled "Goodbye Darling" He said before lightly pressing his cold lips onto theirs after a moment his lips left theirs and he stared at them for a moment 

"Please don't go..." (Y/n) begged "I told you Already (Y/n) you have your whole life ahead of you and I'll be waiting for you" Wally told them "But what's the point of living without you by my side?" (Y/n) asked

Wally didn't know how to answear "Please promise me I won't see you till you die from a natural cause" He said randomly "What?" They asked "Promise me (Y/n)" Wally repeated 

(Y/n) sighed "I promise..." they mumbled and wally smiled at her "Your the absolute Most my dear" He told her before turning his hand in the direction of the rest of the dead and Cherry

Cherry looked as if she was going to cry "C-come on apple man" She said and wally let go of (Y/n) and walked towards the others

Cherry held her book tightly before she sighed "Has everyone said their goodbyes?" She asked and everyone had nodded "Then let's go..." She mumbled As she began to read a spell from her book

All of the dead was engulfed in beautiful blue butterflys that swarmed around them all yet when they butterfly flew away into the moonlight the dead were gone

(Y/n) had small tears coming down their face "Goodbye my Lovely Corpse Puppet" She whispered quietly

4 Years Later...

Four years had passed and the story of the dead became a fairytale people would tell their kids, (Y/n) was the only one who remembered every detail about it

They also now lived in a small cabin located in the very woods they met Wally and played with him and Cherry as Kids

Whenever they were asked "Why live so far out?" They would respond with "I Had the best times of my life there!"

It confused people but made (Y/n) smile, as they finished the dishes and put them all up after drying them (Y/n) sat outside on the porch while reading a book

(Y/n) had read the book several times but it was their favorite! It appeared on their doorstep a year after the dead incident with a whole thing about how everyone in the little dead town was doing

Sally created a play inspired by everything that happened, Frank and Eddie reunited after Eddie was hit by a stagecoach, Poppy now owned a bakery, Barnaby amd Cherry finally resolved their issues...mostly

And Wally...Wally was still upset over everything but he was slowly getting over it 

(Y/n) sighed...they knew that soom they would see their beloved friends...it was only a matter of time, You see (Y/n) recently was diagnosed with Tuberculosis a year ago

And since then (Y/n) knew that one day they could die out of no where "Morning (Y/n)" Howdy said "Oh Morning Howdy" (Y/n) smiled

"I brought you your groceries" Howdy told them "Thank you Howdy but you know you don't have to do that" (Y/n) mumbled 

"I'm aware but I want to since your getting weaker...you barely leave your house now" Howdy said "It's okay..." (Y/n) muttered as they slightly coughed

"See?!" Howdy said "I know...I know" (Y/n) replied "(Y/n) you could die any day now..." Howdy mumbled "Howdy please don't worry about me...just enjoy your life" (Y/n) told him

Howdy sighed "Get well soon (Y/n)" He said "Goodbye Howdy and tell your wife I said Hello" (Y/n) grinned as Howdy smiled then waved goodbye and left

(Y/n) stayed outside for a while before going back inside, it was eight o'clock at night so they decided to get some sleep

After getting ready to sleep they laied in bed and blew out the candle before closing their eyes...

.

.

.

.

.

And peacefully dying in their sleep as it began raining 

"New arrival! New arrival!" (Y/n) heard a familiar voice exclaim as they fluttered their eyes open and then their eyes widened and they felt like crying...

(Y/n) saw all the familiar faces of their dead friends 

Sally, Barnaby, Cherry, Eddie, Frank f!cking everyone stood around (Y/n), they all stared at (Y/n) in shock 

They were all confused, overwhelmed yet happy to see their friend once again as Sally grabbed (Y/n) and pulled them into a tight hug as the others joined in

Normally (Y/n) would have been asking for air yet they weren't breathing and they could no longer hear or feel their heart beat

"Apple Man is going to start ugly crying again" Cherry mumbled as she released from the hug before telling the others to let go "Shall we go see him?" Cherry asked

(Y/n) grinned and nodded instantly, Cherry grabbed their wrist and began walking towards the bar with the others following closely behind

During the walk there Cherry was quiet as the others asked questions and asked how (Y/n) was "Your here early..." Cherry mumbled "Tuberculosis" (Y/n) said "Oh...that must have been painful" Sally replied 

soon the group stopped in front of the bar doors "NEW ARRIVAL!" Sally screamed making sure she gained everyone's attention and I mean everyone...but that included the specific Corpse (Y/n) has been missing for the past four years

"(Y/n)? Is that you?" Poppy asked which made wally's head snap towards you and his eyes widened "(Y/n)?" He asked

"Hi wals" (Y/n) said with a small smile "(Y/N)!" Wally yelled as he ran towards them and hugged them tightly "Darling I missed you so so much! How are you?!-" Wally paused

"It's much to early to be seeing you..." he mumbled "May I ask how'd you die? And be honest or I let Cherry throw books at you" He said

"I was diagnosed with Tuberculosis a year ago" (Y/n) told him "That's horrible but goodness I'm glad your here love!" Wally exclaimed 

(Y/n)'s smile grew as they hugged him back "I missed you so much my lovely Corpse puppet" they whispered "(Y/n)?" Wally asked "Yes?" (Y/n) asked back "Can...can I kiss you?" He asked and (Y/n) didn't hesitate 

They grabbed his face and kissed him instantly, Wally was limp for a second but he gladly returned the kiss "Alright enough I'm going to throw up" Cherry groaned but then got smacked on the head with a newspaper by Sally

~

"But I don't wanna officiate the wedding!" Cherry groaned "Cherry it's either that or sit next to barnaby" Frank said "Ugh fine" Cherry muttered 

Home was asleep on her shoulder as cherry sat behind the table not even reading from the correct book as she was reading Spy X Family manga

Sally sat at the organ as poppy gave her a thumbs up signaling for her to start playing, Sally began playing the 'Here comes the bride' music as Wally stood in front of the table

"I'm still going to beat them y’know" Cherry said as she continued reading her manga "I'm aware...just don't hurt them as much please" Wally told her as Cherry muttered an 'Okay'

Two skeleton children walked down the aisle throw blue rose petals onto the carpet, as they finished (Y/n) slowly walked down the aisle 

They walked up to the table and stood across from Wally "Dearly something something" Cherry announced as she began reading from the actual book now

"I don't know how to read..." She mumbled "Uh whatever you know the vows and sh!t" Cherry said then went back to reading manga

Frank facepalmed as (Y/n) recited their vows then Wally did the same, Once they put the rings on the other was when Cherry looked up

"With the power vested in me which is a lot im like Thanos! I now pronounce you Apple Man and (Y/n)" Cherry told them as (Y/n) grabbed Wally and instantly kissed him

"I'm going to throw up again" Cherry said which made Sally throw a newspaper at their head "SALLY YOU HOMOSEXUAL RAT!" Cherry yelled as she got up and ran towards her

As chaos began to unfold (Y/n) looked at wally and entwined their hands together "I kept my promise" They said "I know" Wally replied 

"I love you" (Y/n) mumbled "I love you too dear" Wally mumbled as well as he tightened his grip on their hand

"Aw what a cute ending....Can I throw up now?" Cherry asked....

@sketchquill...It's been an Honor NOW I CAM MAKE A WIZZARD OF OZ FANFIC [if I ever watch wizard of oz-] working on an Alt ending for Howdy though rn so :P

[oh-hell-help-me]

July 15: Be A Dork Day

Luigi knew himself to be a grade-A dork.

He knew it. His brother knew it. Peach knew it. Even Bowser and the Koopalings knew it before they considered him a part of their family.

It was a facet of himself he accepted and even embraced around his friends and family.

Sometimes, however, it can be a bit chaffing to not be taken seriously. Especially after he became a Hero in his own right- never mind his new position as a co-ruler.

So, when he realized what day was coming soon, he had an idea that might just work.

First, he asked Bowser if he wanted a break from court hearings.

The Koopa looked wistful at the thought, but he is quick to disparage the suggestion. After all, hearings were a necessary evil, as the drawbacks tend to entail frustrating discussions that may actually lead to some sort of improvement to the Kingdom.

It was also impossible since it required Koopa Royalty to be readily available to the Kingdom’s citizens.

Luigi was quick to point out that he was now part of that Royalty. And yes, he knew exactly what that entailed.

The vehemence behind it was enough for the Koopa to close his mouth with a click.

More gently, Luigi also pointed out that he noticed the stress that has been getting to him. Heck, Bowser’s time after the recent hearings has been cut with an hour or so of enforced relaxation.

Hours that are undone by paperwork right after.

Bowser glanced away, sheepish, but Luigi’s hand on his muzzle guided his gaze back to him.

He urges him to take the opportunity- maybe take one of the Koopalings for some company.

After some contemplation, Bowser concedes- if Luigi promises to ask for help if the citizens give him trouble.

He promises and says that he can handle it.

(If he leaves out how he’ll ‘handle it’, then it’s no one’s concern but his.)

…

The first day of hearings had been greeted with a dramatically changed Throne Room.

The blazers were dimmed, the lava was concealed (except for the falls behind the podiums), and his throne was situated lower than usual- placed where the lava’s light would only light him from the back.

Perfect, for what Luigi planned to do.

By the time the first citizen waltzed into the Throne Room, Luigi had long since settled himself on his throne, casually splayed and wearing a crown instead of his signature hat.

The Koopa that came in had slowed down as he approached, almost looking apprehensive for a second before seemingly registering that he was looking at Luigi, not the Koopa King.

(Luigi would never voice it, but the flippancy and moment of distaste he saw in the citizen's eyes made him feel uncharacteristically spiteful.)

"Where's the King?"

"Having a vacation." Luigi couldn't exactly see his own face, but friends in his high school's theatre club have called it his 'devil-may-die glare'. He never actually looked in a mirror to see it, but the Koopa's reaction as he lets the light pass over his face is priceless.

"Th-then I can come back-"

"There is no need." He eases forward, crossing his legs and primly twining his hands together to rest his chin on his knuckles. "I am right here, am I not?"

"Yes, but-"

"Do you, or do you not have important business here?" And maybe Luigi is laying it on thick, because he now has a suspicion that this is the same Koopa that bothered Bowser over his position as royalty- still questioning the decision after they married, after they had worked to improve the Kingdom's near famine, even after Luigi worked his butt off to contribute in every way he could-

"Of course!" And this isn't helped when the Koopa seems to rally under some sort of inflated snobbery. "I just feel that the matter should be handled by someone-"

"Someone what?" And Luigi didn't raise his voice, but the delivery is what he focused on when he cut off the sentence.

"I, ah-" The Koopa was certainly unsettled, maybe even scared by the way his head sunk into his shell.

Silence.

"If there is not a reason that makes myself unpreferable," He lets his eyes narrow, and the Koopa's flinch was all he needed to know that he didn't slip from nearly laughing at the situation. "Then you may be granted audience."

The Koopa's hearing was short and benign, after that, but the citizens who came after became more and more respectful as time went on.

The rumor mill is better than he thought.

Though he hopes that this doesn't get back to Bowser.

…

(When Bowser came back from his break, he was never told how exactly the court hearings went, but the collective change of disposition towards his husband was visible.)

(He’s… not sure he wants to know, but he feels like he should be proud.)

[wlw-webcomic-bracket]

Group Stage Stats and Standings

With two out of three rounds of the group stage complete, here's a summary of where things currently stand. Remember, there are two ways to qualify for the championship bracket - winning a group (10 characters), and having the most total votes without winning a group (6 characters). By receiving enough votes, any character in the tournament could still technically qualify for one of the six wildcard slots.

First, these tables show standings by group. Purple indicates the group leader (by number of wins; ties broken by number of votes) and red indicates a character who has been locked out of winning their group. Note that since Rain Flaherty and Lucas in Group A have been in three matches rather than two, their vote totals are multiplied by 2/3 to allow a fair comparison.

Next are standings by total number of votes. Group leaders are in purple, and the leaders for the six wildcard championship slots are in blue.

The last batch of group stage polls will go up later this week. Until then, if you're interested in more stats, I've put them beneath the cut because there are Many.

The main reason I decided to have this tournament start with a group stage is that I think it's fairer to the characters (more on that later), but I'd be lying if I denied that More Stats was also a contributing factor. To begin with, here are the total number of votes by group (Group A adjusted as noted earlier):

Group H - 6,573

Group B - 2,653

Group J - 2,081

Group F - 2,002

Group E - 1,254

Group C - 1,196

Group D - 968

Group G - 950

Group A - 785

Group I - 485

These are the individual matches with the most votes and the most notes:

Dainix vs Zhusen (Group H) - 3,674 votes, 1,139 notes

Eddie Kaspbrak vs Lucy Marlowe (Group B) - 1,869 votes, 314 notes

Dainix vs White Chain (Group H) - 1,401 votes, 239 notes

Carla Rutten vs Davepeta (Group J) - 1,118 votes, 155 notes

Penny Spender vs Gaueko (Group F) - 985 votes, 239 notes

Zhusen vs Lupe Jara (Group H) - 824 votes, 109 notes

Vote totals in the remaining matches were distributed as follows:

600-699 votes - 1

500-599 votes - 1

400-499 votes - 4

300-399 votes - 4

200-299 votes - 11

100-199 votes - 14

0-99 votes - 1

The widest margins of victory (by number of votes, not by percentage) - all four matches from Group H are in the top four:

Zhusen vs Lupe Jara (Group H, 724-100) - 624

White Chain vs Lupe Jara (Group H, 605-71) - 534

Dainix vs White Chain (Group H, 946-455) - 491

Dainix vs Zhusen (Group H, 1,999-1,673) - 326

Carla Rutten vs Fleet (Group J, 396-81) - 315

Eddie Kaspbrak vs Fenic (Group B, 375-112) - 263

Eddie Kaspbrak vs Lucy Marlowe (Group B, 804-1,065) - 261

And the narrowest margins of victory (again, by number of votes):

Merlow the Rose vs Chau Le (Group G, 128-130) - 2

TIE Rain Flaherty vs Luck (Group A, 92-98) - 6

TIE Lucas vs Luck (Group A, 75-81) - 6

DIFFERENT TIE Bacon vs Julie (Group D, 113-102) - 11

DIFFERENT TIE Tedd Verres vs Merlow the Rose (Group G, 145-134) - 11

Rain Flaherty vs Elle Argent (Group A, 95-110) - 15

Maggie vs Sulla Pinsky (Group E, 79-97) - 18

In two groups, the current group leader and the group member with the most votes are not the same:

Group F: Gaueko (2-0 record, 747 votes) and Penny Spender (1-1 record, 810 votes)

Group J: Davepeta (2-0 record, 743 votes) and Carla Rutten (1-1 record, 916 votes)

All four characters are currently set to advance to the championship bracket - Gaueko and Davepeta as group winners, and Penny and Carla via wildcard slots.

Something interesting I noticed the other day is that the nine top-ranked characters by vote count all got there in part by facing each other:

In Group H, Dainix (#1) faced Zhusen (#2) in the first round and White Chain (#5) in the second round

In Group B, Lucy Marlowe (#4) faced Eddie Kaspbrak (#5) in the first round

In Group J, Carla Rutten (#6) faced Davepeta (#9) in the first round

In Group F, Penny Spender (#7) faced Gaueko (#8) in the second round

These are the same five matchups that had both the most votes and the most notes. All five of them were reblogged by at least one of their characters' creators. And all but one of the nine characters received more votes - often several times more - facing their highest-ranked opponent than facing their lowest-ranked opponent:

Lucy Marlowe - 8.3x (1,065 vs 128)

Davepeta - 4.1x (598 vs 145)

Gaueko - 2.3x (522 vs 225)

Zhusen - 2.3x (1,673 vs 724)

Eddie Kaspbrak - 2.1x (804 vs 375)

Dainix - 2.1x (1,999 vs 946)

Penny Spender - 1.3x (463 vs 347)

Carla Rutten - 1.3x (520 vs 396)

White Chain - 0.8x (455 vs 605)

This seems to indicate popular characters actually benefit from facing each other, especially taking into account that the championship bracket will be seeded by total number of votes. Of the six characters currently holding a wildcard qualification slot, five of them are ranked in the top seven qualifiers overall.

On the flip side, these are the characters with the most nominations who don't currently qualify for the championship:

Cheryl (Group E) - 8

Rain Flaherty (Group A) - 8

Teige Carroll (Group I) - 7

Lucas (Group A) - 6

Of the fourteen characters who received five or more nominations, ten are currently slated to advance. The remaining six current qualifiers received either three or four nominations each.

These characters have received the most votes so far without winning a match:

Merlow the Rose (Group G) - 262

Cheryl (Group E) - 244

Rosemaster (Group D) - 235

And these are the characters who have the fewest votes while winning both of their matches:

Yoshi (Group I) - 156

Luck (Group A) - 179

Vaarsuvius (Group I) - 200

Elle Argent (Group A) - 285

Group A and Group I are the only groups with two undefeated characters who will face off in the final round, and the only groups in which number of votes had to be used as a tiebreaker to determine the current group leader.

Vaarsuvius has the lowest number of votes of any character currently winning their group. While there's only a difference of 85 votes between Elle Argent and Vaarsuvius, there are quite a few characters between them - Elle is ranked 15th, while V is ranked 27th. V is the only character currently slated to advance over other characters with more votes.

One of the dangers of a round-robin format is a match in the final round between two characters with a 0-2 record, both of whom have already been locked out of winning their group. That will only happen once here, between Teige Carroll and Eri McCure in Group I.

Finally, here's a piece of etymology I learned while preparing for the tournament: The "robin" in "round robin" has nothing to do with the bird or with the English given name. Instead, the term originated from the French phrase "ruban rond," meaning "round ribbon," but over time "ruban/ribbon" was idiomized to "robin."