#ALLIANCED FORMED AND ALLY BAGGED

[moontidemints]

YEAH, YOU GET TWO OF US MY GUYS! DOUBLE TROUBLE w/ MY COMERADE @shardkn1ght

Remember guys, double leo's and hueso's means double the fun.

And now get a complimation of memes I made at 2AM:

@tmntseparatedaucompetition

What is this??!!?! @moontidemints and I forming an alliance!?!??! The two Hueso father aus joining forces!!!

@tmntseparatedaucompetition

[thisisourlovestory]

Safe and Sound

Finnick Odair x reader soulmate AU

Summary: you are a victor from district 4. The Quarter Quell has just been announced. How will you cope with the turn of events coming your way.

Word count- 2.1k

Please bear in mind that this is my first fanfic. It will be multiple chapters but release dates are uncertain as I am fairly busy and also procrastination is my best friend. I am open to constructive criticism if you have any. Thanks and enjoy!

Prologue:

The moment President Snow said those words I froze. I couldn’t breathe. Because I could be going back in. Back into the arena. My breath came in short gasps and I leaned against the wall. When I finally gathered the courage to go out the others were already there, Annie, Finnick and Mags. Huddled together in the centre of victor's village, Annie’s face red with tears, Mags opening and closing her mouth in what could only be anger. And Finnick holding himself together, just barely but managing it, holding Annie tightly in his arms as if she was the only thing stopping him from breaking. 

I stood on the porch, leaning against the wooden frame of my house, arms crossing my body. None of them noticed me, I was invisible to them. I was the victor they didn't need, I was just a pretty thing for the capitol to put on display every night. Most of the time I stayed away from victor's village and none of them ever made any attempt to get to know me, I guess I just faded into the background for them. It's not really their fault, they didn't expect me to survive my games, no one did, I was just another tiny thirteen year old in the 68th Hunger Games, no allies, no weapons, no food and no hope. Just a pair of worn ballet shoes and a small bag I had nicked to keep them in. I would have died in the bloodbath had a tribute from 10 not stepped in front of an axe meant for me. I remember the blood splattering across my face as he fell onto me, I had pushed him off, grabbed his bag and ran into the forest. 

I barely managed to survive, the frozen wasteland was unforgiving, animals were scarce but there had at least been enough water. At the end of the first day there had been eight cannons, the second three, the third five, the fourth two, the fifth another two. There were four of us left, the others all career tributes who had plentiful supplies and an alliance. I was able to hide from them for five more days before they had found me. Their leader, Arion from district 2, had shot me in the arm as I tried to get away, I fell and my blood painted the crystal white snow red. They weren't smart now that I think about it, they wanted to play with me; that was their mistake. I killed the girl first, hit her over the head with my ballet shoes, the hard box disorienting her long enough for me to slit her throat with her own knife, the cannon sounded and I killed her district partner as well, piercing his heart with the same knife. That had only left Arion.

I avoided him for a few days but he found me again, probably following the trail of blood I left behind. Except this time I was ready for him. I struck first, flinging my shoes through the air, hitting him on the temple, a trickle of blood falling from the cut formed. He reacted quicker than I expected, swinging his sword wildly, but I was small and fast- like a little bird my mother always said- I threw the knife in a practised motion, letting go of the handle, spinning it slightly, my hand following the line as it hit him dead centre in the chest. He had stared at me. In shock and disbelief that I'd been able to best him. The final cannon went off and I had won. I was the victor of the 68th annual Hunger Games.

For a while it was okay, chauffeured around, fussed over and doted on by my stylists, I was living the dream of every child. But it got old, I became used to people cooing over me, patting my hair, asking me questions. And then I discovered that even if you get out of the arena, you never truly win, you always have to give back something of yourself, a repayment of sorts. You get to live and we get you was how it sounded when President Snow made me the offer. Except it wasn't an offer, it was an order; that's how I found myself as a Capitol slave at the age of fourteen, performing night and day for the rich, barely getting a second's rest. Dancing until my toes bled through my shoes, smearing red across the delicate satin. Singing until my throat was raw and I coughed up the same red my shoes now were. 

The only person who ever offered me some comfort was Finnick. About a month after my games had ended I started having nightmares, I would wake up screaming in the middle of the night and he would hear me and come over to make sure I was okay. We formed a kind of friendship, me thirteen and traumatised, him seventeen and still carrying on. He would fall asleep watching over me, reassuring me that I was okay, I got out. We fell into a routine and by the time I was fifteen the nightmares were a rare occurrence. Then Annie won and it all changed. She became the priority for him, the priority for everyone, she had been broken in the arena and her mind never seemed to fully return to her. I thought he would come back to me, but as I woke up screaming one night and there was nobody there to hold me while I cried, as another scream pierced the air; a door slammed open and I saw Finnick running across to Annie's house, I knew I had lost him. I had lost the one person who I had loved and who truly seemed to care about me. 

I watched them grow closer to each other. He built her up again brick by brick, unknowingly tearing me apart again piece by piece until I was nothing but an empty shell. He stopped her nightmares, whispering soothing words to her as I tossed and turned, eventually I would wake up, sweating and screaming, eyes wide and frantic as I clutched the knife I kept by my bedside. But no one ever came. I couldn’t blame Annie, she was the kindest person I knew and it wasn't her fault Finnick loved her, it wasn't her fault he didn't love me. 

So I dealt with it. I swallowed the pain that welled up in me and buried every thought I had ever had about him deep in my memory, never to see the light of day again. And it worked, I got on with life, going about my daily routine, dancing, singing, eating, sleeping, then doing it all again. I attended parties in the Capitol, laughing and smiling at people, agreeing with their every word. I wasn't happy, but I didn't need to be, I just needed to be alive.

So that was how I found myself after the announcement of the Quarter Quell, watching Mags, Annie and Finnick from the sidelines. My face blank as they comforted each other, not sparing me a second glance. They had all but forgotten I existed. I waited for them to go inside before I ran out of the large gates separating us from the rest of District 4. I ran along the cliffs, wind whipping my hair into a tangled mess. I reached the edge and stood still, staring out at the roiling ocean, grey waves crashing against the shoreline, foam spraying the cliff face. My heart was pounding in my ears, drowning out the sound of the sea. The air grew cold around me as my chest constricted and I gasped for breath. I couldn't think. I couldn't breathe. 

Tears poured down my face as I sank to my knees and cried. Guttural sobs tearing from my throat, my chest heaving with each one as I clutched the grass beneath me. Fingers digging into the wet soil, clenching and unclenching in time with the beating of my heart as I tried to ground myself. Gradually, my heart slowed and I pulled my hands out of the ground. I breathed shakily, dirt trapped under my nails as I scratched at the skin on my wrist. I lifted it up so I could see the mark laying there. Stark black against pale skin. Forever inked on my body. A trident and a flower, interwoven with each other.  

It was a soulmark. It appeared when I turned 17, as they did for every other person. The person with the same mark is my soulmate, they could be anyone. But I already know who it is even if he doesn't. I saw it one night and then when I got mine I knew immediately but by that point it was already too late. He was already in love with Annie. I stared at it, it wasn't very noticeable, easy to hide from people; pretty as well I suppose, then again they say it's the most beautiful things that are the most dangerous. And this mark, this tiny little mark held the power to destroy me if the wrong person so much as caught a glance of it. I let out a soft laugh, how pointless it all seemed now that everything I had could be taken from me again. I had worked so hard to build up this facade, pretending everything was fine and with a few words it had all come crashing down. 

I shook my head and stood up, giving a last look to the sea as I turned and walked back the way I had come. People talking about the announcement anywhere I pass, I paid them no mind, holding my head high as my feet hit the cobblestones with sharp thwacks. 

“Who do you think will be reaped?”

“It's such a shame really.”

“We only have three victors anyway.”

I ignored them all, they pretended I didn't exist and I'd do the same for them, it's not as if they cared. I finally reached the small gathering of houses the victors lived in and stood outside the gate. The metal tarnished from years of standing in the elements, wooden stakes seeming to wilt under my heavy gaze. I reached out a shaky hand and pushed the metal forwards, opening it only slightly so I could slip in without making the usual clanging sound. I slowly walked towards the fountain in the centre of the square and sat down on the edge, trailing my fingers in the water as my gaze focused on the centrepiece. A mermaid, carved from marble, her hair flowing in the current, tail curving up to the sky, each scale distinguishable. A steely expression was painted on her face, that of a commander, a leader. An odd message from the Capitol, to show the mermaid as being powerful, to show us as powerful, and yet hidden in the water below the statue, in the basin of the fountain, laid a golden net. A message that we had won, but we would always be theirs and we could never escape. 

My hand ran through my hair as I hummed quietly to myself, my other hand drifting along the water as I sat cross legged on the edge of the fountain. My eyes wandered across to Mags’ house where they had all decided to go. They were talking amongst themselves, Mags placing a reassuring hand on Finnick's shoulder and him muttering calming words to Annie. I felt sick, all the feelings I had locked away bubbled back to the surface because why could it not be me? Why was it her? What had I done wrong? My eyes watered slightly as I tried to hold back tears at the sight of them being so sickeningly perfect for one another. Not that it should've been me in his arms but it would be nice to know someone cared enough to check up on me, help me through the hard moments in life. Once upon a time I had thought he was that person and look where that got me, in deeper pain than I had been before. 

I sighed deeply, taking in lungfuls of fresh air, and started up the steps to my house, the front porch, a few small plants in ornate pots, wisteria growing up the trellis, light purple blooms adding a little something to the otherwise grey picture. I took a last look at them across the square, smiles on their faces as if they had forgotten the news we received earlier. I guess that's what happens when you have people you can talk to, who understand and try to help. I twisted the doorknob, stepping inside, closing the door behind me, leaning against it for support. I didn't notice the eyes that watched me. Or maybe I just didn't want to. 

[mariacallous]

It's election season in Eastern Europe, and for the Kremlin -- bogged down in Ukraine and desperately in need of allies -- the stakes are higher than ever.

Moldova is holding a presidential election and referendum on October 20 that could help secure the country's future in the EU. Romania has just banned a pro-Kremlin rabble-rouser from running in its November presidential election. And the pro-Kremlin, far-right Revival party in Bulgaria is expected to win a sizable presence in parliament after upcoming elections.

So what is the Kremlin -- and its populist regional allies -- pulling from its playbook to influence the votes?

Don't Be Too Fussy About Who You Work With

Plan A, according to Anton Shekhovtsov, a Ukrainian political scientist and expert on the far right, "was always to cooperate with mainstream forces" and then corrupt them to align with Russian foreign policy interests.

In some countries, Plan A has worked, with the Kremlin maintaining good relations with politicians such as Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico.

"The problem for Moscow," Shekhovtsov said, "is that mainstream forces are less likely than the populists to cooperate with Russia, especially after 2014 (the annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula) and even more so after February 2022 (Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine)."

That has meant increasingly falling back on Plan B. "Russia has tended to align with far-right parties," said Mitchell Orenstein, professor of Russian and East European studies at the University of Pennsylvania, "but it will also form alliances with far-left parties and even support centrist parties to some extent."

Acting pragmatically and working with the political fringes can sometimes bear fruit. For years, Revival leader Kostadin Kostadinov operated in extremist circles, once referring to Romany people as "parasites" and venomously castigating migrants. But now his party, which has opposed democratic reforms and advocated for Bulgaria's withdrawal from NATO, is tipped to finish as high as second in the October 27 parliamentary elections.

Be Careful With The Bags Of Cash

Authorities in Moldova -- which has struggled to shake off Kremlin influence and still has more than 1,000 Russian troops stationed in the breakaway region of Transdniester -- recently announced they had uncovered a scheme led by Ilan Shor, a pro-Russian fugitive accused of the country's biggest-ever bank fraud, to buy votes and disseminate false information about the EU, with more than 130,000 Moldovans receiving over $15 million in Russian cash in September alone.

Such schemes, however, are rarely discovered -- and often very hard to prove, with financial support masked by shell companies and offshore accounts. And for the Kremlin, direct financing is a risky tactic. "They are being very, very cautious," Shekhovtsov said, as "we're talking about criminal activity here because there are no taxes [and parties are] taking money from a foreign power."

A Deluge Of Disinformation

For the Kremlin, a cheaper and more efficient way of boosting its allies in Eastern Europe is to flood the market with disinformation.

In addition to Russian state outlets such as RT, "Russia has websites in different European languages that promote messages beneficial to antiestablishment, populist forces," Shekhovtsov said. "This compensates for the populists' lack of media influence in their own countries."

U.S. tech giant Meta said on October 11 that it had deleted a network of accounts aimed at Russian-speaking Moldovans, which spread pro-Russian content and ran pages masquerading as independent news outlets.

Such operations are often part of larger networks, sometimes known as "mushroom sites," which are created in bulk and on the cheap and monetize the spread of disinformation.

Mobilize Through Fear

If you buy into the disinformation, migrants are coming for your jobs, the LGBT community is coming for your children's souls, foreign-funded NGOs are plotting to topple governments, and only Russia can restore peace to fascist Ukraine.

Igor Dodon, Moldova's Moscow-backed former president, has recently warned, without any evidence, of "LGBT quotas" in state institutions if the country's pro-EU President Maia Sandu wins reelection.

And in Bulgaria, Revival is pushing for a Russian-style foreign-agent law, which would target Western NGOs. "You will be next!" party leader Kostadinov told the America for Bulgaria Foundation, the country's largest foreign donor.

In socially conservative societies, with people disillusioned with democracy and reeling from economic hardship, much of it from the COVID-19 pandemic, such emotional narratives often strike a powerful chord.

By scaremongering about threats to traditional lifestyles and sovereignty, Russia is positioning itself -- not for the first time -- as the region's potential savior.

Tailor The Message

A key part of the Kremlin's strategy is localizing its messaging. "Russia looks for any possible commonality between their approach and the parties they're supporting," Orenstein said. "In one country, they might appeal to pan-Slavism; in another, to Orthodox religious connections; and in yet another, to anti-Ukrainian sentiment."

For example, in Bulgaria, pro-Russian parties play on Soviet nostalgia and well-established narratives of Russia as a liberator from Ottoman rule. In Hungary and Slovakia, pro-Kremlin parties exploit fears about migrants and the perception that the EU is undermining national sovereignty.

In Moldova, Irina Vlah, a pro-Moscow ex-governor, has said the country's large number of Romanian passport holders is evidence of a sinister Romanian plot to take over its smaller and poorer neighbor.

What Is The Kremlin's Endgame?

In the long term, the Kremlin's goal is to undermine the EU and NATO and pull countries in Eastern Europe back into Russia's orbit.

In the short term, it's all about Ukraine. For the Kremlin, that means blowing apart the fragile European consensus that Kyiv is deserving of military and economic support.

What the Kremlin cares about most, Orenstein says, is the "foreign policy orientation" of parties it supports in Eastern Europe -- in order to secure their backing on issues such as sanctions or the status of Crimea.

"You have some parties that [when] they began taking Russian support, they actually changed a lot of their foreign policy positions to orient them towards Russia," Orenstein said.

Crucially, though, Russia doesn't necessarily need explicit support to succeed. Sometimes sowing discord and polarizing populations can also chip away at the democracies and civil societies the Kremlin so desperately fears.

[streamdotpng]

"Your Majesty?" Enid pushes the black door open, looking down at her superior. "You wanted to see me?"

"Yes," the Queen is facing the window. It's dark outside. "There is important news."

"Well," Enid wiggles the fluffy ears on her head, "I'm all ears!"

The Queen mutters something under her breath in a different language. She turns to face the taller.

"There was a symbol of threat on the outermost edges of our wall." She looks Enid in the eyes. "From the Barclay monarchy."

Enid sputters, "I thought we were allies?"

"We were, but we refused to comply with their wishes."

Enid feels her hands tighten.

"What wishes? I thought our alliance benefited everyone in it?" Her hand falls to rest on the hilt of her sword. It provides some comfort.

"It did. But they got into a... disagreement with the Ottingers, and I refused to yield to them. So, as it stands, I've made enemies of them."

"Okay. With all due respect, your Majesty, I fall to see why this required me of all people? Shouldn't this be between you and your advisors? Or the head of the Royal Guard?" Enid tilts her head.

"I have spoken with them already. And they all said the same: I need someone to aid in watching me."

"But you're plenty strong and capable on your own?"

"Yes," the Queen nods, "that was as I said as well. But, they had a fair point." She walks over to Enid. She's so much smaller, Enid almost has to look straight down. It stretches her neck. She can't imagine how bad the Royal's neck must hurt.

"I need more protection, especially considering that Barclay is one of the bigger powers. So, you are hereby to guard me at all times."

"Oh—kayyyyy?" Enid watches her walk to her desk, taking out a quill and ink. "Why me, though? I'm hardly the best. I'm pretty sure the captain of the Royal Guard is better suited."

"Are you questioning me, Sinclair?" She raises an eyebrow. She puts writing utensils in her bag.

"No Ma'am!" The knight yelps. "Just— uh. Worried..." she clenches her fists and bites her lip, looking at the ground. "That you might've made. The. Wrong. Choice? Sorry?" She offers.

"Ha." Is the dull sound she gets. The Queen walks past Enid, right to her door. "Come. You are to guard me at all times." Enid squawks, almost falling with how fast she turns.

"Yes your Majesty!"

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

It's surprisingly fun to follow the Queen around on her duties. Hah.

Duties.

She's much busier than Enid first thought. She knew the royal woman had things to do, but she always thought it was maybe three things and then she just sat in her room all day.

Turns out, she does stuff all. Day.

Enid doesn't want to sound bratty, but she's bored. She's stuck next to her Queen, listening to old people complain about old things.

Trees apparently need to be cut because of rain and rocks or something, there's some kind of small riot forming because of no honey being sold. There's some old woman who somehow killed a trained guard by scaring him. They aren't sure if she should be charged or not.

Enid wonders when this will end.

The Queen is nice to look at, at least. Enid consoles herself with looking at the fine silk and leather of her dress. She's pretty sure she actually knows the man that made it. Some farmer-semester who takes commissions. Enid should visit sometime.

She watches as the Queen tells off some idiot for suggesting something. She's not paying attention as to why.

She forces herself to look at everyone but the only person she wants to look at.

She wonders what's for dinner.

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

The Queen's room is fucking cold, all the time. She understands that she likes feeling like a corpse, but Enid is about to lose her fucking mind. The metal of her armor is just becoming ice with how cold it is.

But she needs to wear it to keep them both safe, and it's rude to be unarmored as a guard. So, she sucks it up and calmly sits in the corner while her Majesty writes letters. She writes a lot. Enid wonders what they could be about.

"Blah, blah, blah, everything sucks and I'm mad." She mutters under her breath. That's what she thinks the letters say. What she likes to imagine, anyway. It's more fun than just staring at the wall.

She jolts when a voice speaks.

"Are you alright?" The Queen is facing her now. Dark eyes making her stomach knot and twist.

"Huh?" She asks.

"You've been glaring a hole in the wall for some time." The Queen blinks.

The knight nods.

"Yeah. I'm okay."

The Royal stares at her with an intensity that has her skin feeling hot under her armor.

"If you're lying, confess now. I will not have deceivers guarding me."

They have a staring contest for a few clock-ticks.

Tock.

Tock.

Tock.

Tock.

"Okayyyyyyyyy," Enid drawls, embarrassed. "I may have lied." She lifts up pinched fingers. "Just a little."

The Queen raises an eyebrow when she doesn't elaborate.

"Speak the truth, then."

"Well." She shuffles foot-to-foot, caught and flustered. "It's cold and I am so bored." Her voice gets whiny and she suddenly has the urge to scratch her neck with her sword.

"Cold?"

"My armor is made of iron and I'm in a freezing cold room. I'm in an ice block." She tries to keep her tone respectful. She hopes she's done it well.

"And bored?"

"With all due respect, I need enrichment. I feel like a horse not being given its sugar cube." Enid mopes, her ears dropping.

"Ah." The Queen says, calmly. She turns and grabs a paper, holding it out. "Here."

"What?" The Queen holds the paper aloft. Enid cautiously walks over, expecting rebuke with each step. She gingerly takes the written-on paper. Their hands bush.

"Help me review my letters. Be my aide. And take your armor off if it's distressing you." Enid swallows her spit and nods.

"Uh... are you sure? I thought it was bad to be unarmored. Rude."

"When have I ever been one to obey social norms?"

Enid presses her lips into a line. "Fair enough." She slowly takes off her armor, careful to not be too loud or damage the fine-crafted plating.

"I'm not the best writer," she takes a paper. "I don't think I could help you."

"Your eyes are better than mine. You could see something that I couldn't." Enid looks at the paper. She hands it back, pointing at a spot near the middle.

"You missed three letters and a period." A pause. "Ma'am."

"This will benefit us both." She takes the paper back, fixing her mistakes. "Unless you will tire of aiding me?"

Enid sits on the floor, crossing her legs so her sword's sheath doesn't sit at an angle and pop out.

"I don't think I could." She takes a paper, reading all the loopy characters and fancy words. "You're fun to be around."

She's warm.

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

They're out on an excursion through some big-ass forest. Something about land markings and fruits. She didn't pay attention; she was focused on their hands touching while holding the horse reins.

("I am capable of controlling my own horses."

"I don't doubt you, your Majesty," Enid lifts her hands to placate, "but I don't think it's possible for you to take two separate reins and guide both horses smoothly. Ma'am."

The Queen scoffed. "Fine. The point you make has some sense. But you are the only allowed to aid me," she turned back to the wagon, climbing on, "should anyone attempt to remove you of your post, full permission to fight them."

Enid nodded. "Yes, your Majesty.")

The Queen's hand brushes hers every four gallops. Every 8 or so seconds. The cold of her skin against the warmth of Enid's is oddly soothing.

"We need to go left, there's a large amount of apple trees."

"Yes, your Majesty." She leans to the side to lead the horses correctly, and pushes their arms together.

"Sorry." She whispers, almost hoping the Royal doesn't notice.

"It's fine, Enid." The horses even out as they finish turning, almost falling off as they go up a hill. "You're just aiding me."

Her hands are so soft. Cold, too. So cold.

"Right," she agrees, ignoring how much she'd really love to take her Majesty's hand. "I am your aide!" She cheers.

"You're foremost my guard. You are only an aide because everyone else is too incompetent."

"You think I'm competent?" She asks. Her heart smacks her ribs.

"You're the least incompetent." She repeats.

In a rare bout of teasing, she grins softly.

"So I'm competent in comparison?" The Queen sighs, whipping her horse slightly.

"If it will make you quiet, yes. You're competent by comparison."

Enid smiles, tail wagging behind her.

She's warm.

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

It's night, and the Queen insisted that she needed to go out for crow feathers.

"They hold ink far better than that of a swan." She was told.

Truthfully, she thinks the Royal is dramatic and likes the birds. She doesn't voice her thoughts, though. She'd get left in the middle of the forest if she did.

Enid holds the lantern while the Queen pokes at a fat bird, making it shake and lose a few of its dark feathers.

She waits patiently for her Superior to fill her little wicker basket full of them. It's weirdly nice. They aren't talking, but she feels close. Personal. It's nice to just follow and listen to the final bird calls and animals founding homes for the night.

It's still freezing, though. Her armor is ice-cold against her warm skin, sapping her of body heat. The Queen kneels down, rubbing her hand against the ground, checking for more quills.

"Enid?" She asks quietly, barely above a whisper. The Werewolf jolts.

"Ah— yes, your Majesty?" Her hands are held in front of her, polite and ready to aid.

"Do you..." her hand stays on the ground, but she's no longer moving it. "Do you ever regret becoming a knight? Being involved in royalty?"

"Uh." Enid lets a hand rest on her sword. "I... can't really say I do, your Majesty. If I may ask, what brought these thoughts to you?" Enid keeps her voice low.

"Sometimes I worry if you aren't happy." She rips a rose out of the ground, "protecting me. Being a part of my business."

"I chose to be a knight, my Queen. I made the choice to be involved in everything."

"Do you think you'd be happier if you did other things? A gardener, an animal caretaker. A medic." She places the rose in her basket. She stands up, and faces the knight. "Would anything else make you happier?"

Enid takes a second to think.

She hates the feeling of dirt on her skin, under her nails.

She doesn't have the stomach to handle all the grossness that comes with animals, no matter how cute they are.

She couldn't handle failing someone and costing them their life.

"No, your Majesty." She shakes her head. "Nothing."

She's warm.

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

She's tired. She hasn't slept and she's been lying, because she needs to be good enough to keep the Queen safe.

Her armor is still sucking in the cold like a sponge, and it's making her sleepier.

It's the middle of the day; why can't the sun warm her at least a little bit?

"Stupid glowing asshole." She grumbles.

"What?" Comes sharply.

"Ah! Not you, you Majesty! The sun!" She explains quickly, waving an arm wildly to the window.

"The." The Queen turns to look at her from her chair. "Sun?"

"Yeah! It's—" now she's embarrassed. "It's cold and yet the sun is out! The big fuc— thing isn't warming me at all!"

The Royal just blinks at her, like she's stupid.

And looking at it: she's blaming the sun for not being hot enough to warm her indoors. Maybe she is.

Just a little.

"If you're cold, just strip."

"WHAT?!"

"Your armor!" The Queen adds, much too late to cool the blood rushing to Enid's face. "Take off your armor!"

"Oh..." Enid bites her lip. She's only wearing the standard tank top and thin pants— the armor is meant to keep her warm, but apparently, no one making the armor ever considered that maybe iron would intake cold and expel warmth.

She slides her sleeves off first, then the chest. The legs, then the armored boots.

It's still cold, but she doesn't want the Royal to get annoyed.

"You're shivering." Enid chokes.

"Uh... it's from... the... excitement of being a guard?" She says, voice rising in pitch.

The Queen stares at her.

"I'm freezing my tail off." She blunts. She wraps her arms around herself.

"Grab a blanket from my bed and get over here," a black-nailed finger points at her bed. "I need help proof-reading."

Enid slowly walks to the plush looking bed, grasping the first blanket she can. It's a raven colored one, thick and soft and oh-so-warm.

She wraps it around her shoulders and pads over to the Queen. She drops and sits cross-legged on the floor next to her chair, taking the paper she's handed.

She listens to the scratching of quill on paper, the quill being dipped into the inkwell. The Queen is a quick writer, she learns. But with that speed, she loses focus on her words and makes mistakes.

After a few hours, the sun goes down, and it's colder than before. The blanket does a good job on keeping her warm.

But is the Queen?

Enid looks up and she's shivering, ever so slightly. Her hands tremble from the frigid air. When Enid gets a letter, there's more mistakes and her writing isn't as neat.

She can hear the Royal's teeth chatter, short bursts of clicks. She pouts in thought.

'Could I convince her to put on a cloak?'

She stares at a tense jaw, shaking hands, and shivering frame.

Her Queen is cold, and it wouldn't befit her to leave the Royal cold and unable to do her job.

She takes the left side of the blanket and stands up, throwing it over her Queen.

It's big enough that she can sit down and still be completely covered, along with her Majesty.

Dark eyes bore into her. She grins.

"So you don't get too cold!" She says, looking back at her stack of papers. She sorts through them, and hands one to the Queen.

"You forgot to sign this one."

"Right." The hand that takes the paper from her is cold. "Thank you."

After a few beats, Enid feels a hand rub in between her ears, scratching at the base of her left one. Her tail smacks the ground.

She's warm.

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

Since then, things have been nicer. The Queen is less cold, snappy. She's not talkative; Enid is pretty sure was born with resting bitch face.

Since their little...

Moment.

She's been calling Enid an idiot less, which is nice. It feels like they're some weird form of friends now.

Buddies.

Enid learns how she takes her coffee, which is apparently some kind of state secret. She was sworn to not telling any other living creature that she likes black coffee.

She's weird.

Enid doesn't mind.

She writes her own letters, sometimes. Never anything too important; she wrote a letter to Yoko. That was fun.

But now she's got a new issue.

She is touch-starved like a bitch.

She already doesn't hug anyone because of the 'it's rude to be unarmored' bullshit, plus wearing the armor constantly, and the only real physical touch she gets is getting hit during training.

So, to have her ears scratched by someone she trusts?

She didn't realize how starved she was until she was given just a crumb of touch.

And she is needy. She is so, so needy.

She tries to ignore how nice it felt, but damn is she a weak-willed woman.

"Enid?" The voice knocks her out of her thoughts.

"Yes, your Majesty?"

"When was the last time you slept?" Enid laughs nervously.

"Whaaaaaaat?" She says, shaking. "I slept on... y'know," she waves a hand in gesture, trying her best to remember the current date and pull something out of her ass. "Friday?"

The Queen's eyes get wide.

"It's Thursday." She hisses.

"Uh..." Enid smiles unsurely, "I took a long nap yesterday?"

The Queen's black eyes stare at her, unimpressed.

She clears her throat. "Sorry."

"You are going to sleep until morning," Enid opens her mouth to convince otherwise, but the Royal makes an 'ah!" sound. "This is non-negotiable. You are sleeping for at least a few hours." She pauses.

"You are of no use protecting me if you're too tired to fight properly."

"I truly appreciate the concern, your Majesty, but I assure you," she flexes her arm subtly, "I am able to fight just as well as ever!"

"So, if someone threw a knife at you, you'd dodge it?"

"Without iss—" s slap cuts her off. She wasn't even aware the Royal could reach her face.

"You can't even avoid a slap to the face. You have no chance to evade a sword swing." Enid rubs her cheek, whining.

"Did you have to hit so hard?"

"Pain is the best teacher." She turns around and faces the bed.

"Take off your armor and get in." Enid stops the passive aggressive comment she feels in her mouth and quietly removes the metal.

It's only once she's once taking off her left armored boot does the truth stab through her sleep-deprived mind.

"We're sleeping in the same bed?"

"Yes." The Queen takes the edge of the warm blanket from the day before and lifts it, sliding under it. "If you are still going to protect me, as is your job, then you need to be in close proximity."

"Close..." she whispers to herself, shaking hands grabbing the side of the blanket. She slides under it, facing the Queen and watching her quietly.

She sleeps weird; arms crossed like a corpse and lying like a log. Enid busies herself

Suddenly, the Royal turns to face her.

"Why aren't you guarding me?"

"I— I am!" She defends.

"You aren't; anyone could strike me. Protect me." She says.

"I— how?" She can't really think of anything else. Maybe she needs to get her sword?

"Cover me." is all the Queen says.

Enid feels her face heat and her heart beat faster.

"What?" The Royal rolls her eyes and takes a hand to grab Enid's arm, draping it across herself.

"Cover me." Enid nods, moves closer.

"Okay." She moves herself more and more, expecting reprimand with her every wiggle.

She's fucking cuddling her Majesty and the Royal is saying nothing of it.

Her heart is slamming her ribs, but this is too nice to let up.

She tucks her chin on her Queen's head, pressing her side against Enid's chest.

The knight feels her muscles relax, going slack and loose.

The Queen is cold, shockingly so. Like a block of ice.

"I'll... keep ya'safe, y'r Majesty..." she says sleepily.

She's warm.

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

Enid wakes up to a body in her arms. She looks down to make sure everything is real, and the Queen has turned to her side and is snuggling back.

She carefully holds her tighter, trying to make sure she stays asleep. Enid would be executed if the Royal found out that she was being cuddled.

Enid holds her so close she can hear the other woman's heartbeat.

She's indulging herself, selfishly. Letting herself get a bit too close for a bit too long. Is it so wrong to want, though?

Ugh. She's been spending too much time with the librarian. She needs to punch a wall, or something. Maybe slam her head into a wall.

The Queen shifts, and all too suddenly Enid wonders if teleportation is possible.

"Why are you holding me?" Is the raspy whisper that questions her.

"You, uh... asked me to? To guard you, and you let me get closer 'till..." she looks at their bodies pushed together, canoodling. Platonically. "This."

The Royal blinks at her, sleepy and adorable threatening.

"Tell anyone of this," she points a finger at Enid's neck, "and I'll mount your head above my desk."

Enid mimes zipping her lips, twisting a key then throwing it away.

"Good." She hisses, snuggling back under the covers, pressing her face right into Enid's neck. "You will stay silent."

Enid has to force her jaw closed to stop herself from making a sound. Comedic timing is so good, but she'd prefer to keep her head stuck to the rest of her body, thank you very much.

She lets a hand rest on the other woman's head, the other falling to her lower back. Her hands leave the chilly skin warm under her palm and fingertips.

She shivers, because it's all so warm. Her skin is well heated and she feels so nice. It's been so long since she last had this kind of affection lathered on her.

She holds the shorter so close it feels like she's burning. She finds that it's surprisingly pleasant. She always imagined that burning would be painful.

She's warm.

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

Things feel so nice. Enid's being hugged again; a small thing, sure, but sometimes after a calm day, she'll get a tight, snug hug from the smaller lady. It's so nice.

She's been one cloud nine for the past two weeks.

"Your Majesty?" She asks.

"Yes, Enid?" The queen doesn't look up from her writing, hands flicking and looping her letters.

Enid opens her arms slightly, some part of her still worried of scorn.

"Hug?"

The queen keeps writing with her right hand, lifting her left arm up.

Enid quickly half-wraps herself around the woman, melting into the touch. It's nice.

"Do you need help writing? 'Cause, ya know, I'm your aide and all."

"Hm. I have nothing for you to aid me in. I was simply reviewing a list of corrections from my advisers." The small royal takes a paper and hands it to Enid, then a quill. "Draw a picture of whatever you wish, though."

Enid takes the paper and sits on the floor next to the queen, hunching over to place her paper on the floor.

She's by no means an artist, but she thinks the black rose she draws looks pretty good. The stem is bent and angular, the petals weird and messy, but she thinks it's nice, regardless.

She looks up and the other woman is done writing, staring down at her with this look in her eyes.

"Creeper," she says grinning, "watching me. Pervert."

"I am your superior, Enid." Her voice is about as sharp as Enid's fluff-covered ears. "You'd do well to not misspeak."

"I'm your favorite of anyone in the entire kingdom." She would never dare to have said any of this a couple of months ago, but it's comfortable now. She knows her limits. "You'd be so sad if I was gone."

"Who said you were my favorite in any regard?"

Enid feels her heart slide down in her chest, her ears drooping. She faces back to her drawing.

"Oh."

She picks her quill up, doodling a little wolf in the corner.

A boot taps her forearm.

"You understand that I was joking, yes?" Enid looks up.

"You were?" She asks, voice wobbly.

"Yes." Cold hands grab her face, thumbing under her eyes. She hadn't even notice the tears building. "You are my favorite in every regard."

"I am?" Maybe she's fishing, but it feels nice to know the royal woman likes her.

"Yes." She leans forward and presses a kiss to Enid's forehead, "my absolute favorite."

Enid nods when she pulls away, savoring the warmth's imprint on her skin.

"Do you want this?" She hands her drawing to the shorter. Small hands take the paper delicately, flipping it to observe it

"I will protect it with my life." She turns and sets it on the table, smoothing it out and gingerly folding it into a little square, then sliding it into her breast pocket.

"Well, I'm protecting you with my life, so I think ultimately I'm protecting it with my life."

"Perhaps," a hand brushes her bangs off her face. "But I would protect with my life."

"Protect what?"

"We must get going, Enid." She stands up and grabs her own sword, pointing at Enid's with her finger. "We have work in the city."

"Yes, Ma'am!" She stands up and immediately falls back down. "I stood up too fast!" She stands back up and doesn't fall this time, grabbing her sword off the queen's bed.

"Let's go!"

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

"We should get some sheep!" Enid declares. "For blankets!"

"No."

"Why?"

"Because," the woman faces away, slashing a vine with her sword, "I have you to keep me warm." She holds her arms open, waiting.

Enid squeals and scoops her up, pressing her against her chest.

"I'll keep you warm so long as you want me to!"

The smaller woman rests her head against a strong chest. Enid's voice vibrates her bones.

"Hm."

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

("Your Highness?"

"Yes, Eugene?"

"Permission to speak freely?"

"Granted."

"Why Enid? She was hardly the best choice, and our near-conflict with Barclay is over."

"Is it? Or is this all an elaborate ruse to poison me? Or you?"

"Your Majesty, I have seen how you look at her."

"I have no idea what you speak of."

"I won't say a word, just... be careful. Enid's not the best knight, but she's a good person. I'd hate to see her hurt."

"As would I.")

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

"We should get a blanket for us." Is all Enid says into the room while the queen writes. "That would be nice, I think."

The royal sits in her lap, her arms wrapped around her center.

"Hm. Maybe so, though I don't think that would work well." She gestures to herself, then Enid. "Our color palettes are extremely different. Pink and black would fit about as well as you and I." Enid pouts.

"I mean, I think we fit pretty well together." She rocks them slowly, subconsciously. "I think it'd be nice to have a together-blanket."

"I will look into it." She dips her quill in the inkwell. "For now, be quiet; I need to write."

Enid rests her head on the other woman's head, pouting despite the fact she can't see the knight.

"Spoil-sport." She kisses the smaller's head, mindless and uncaring.

They both stiffen, as if waiting for the other to react.

They don't react. No apologies, no sense of wrong.

Enid rests a hand on her thigh, the other on her belly.

They're warm.

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

"Okay," Xavier starts in the knights quarters, "I can't be the only one to see how lovey-dovey Enid and the Queen have been, right?" He jabs a finger at the two, chatting while the Royal draws on a map.

"I mean," Yoko tilts her head side to side, not quite seeing it. "Maybe? I think Enid is just easy to get close to really fast. I guess even Royalty isn't immune to Enid's charming looks and sweet words." She sips her blood.

"I think Enid is just really nice and the Queen likes that." Is Divina's only input.

"Well," Xavier throws his hands up in exasperation. "I'm going to spy on them." He begins walking.

Ajax grabs his shoulder and stops him.

"You're going to spy on the Queen? With her appointed knight, who, while not the best in all forms, is by far the strongest, while the Queen herself has her own sword and poisoned dagger?" Ajax asks, snake wriggling under his helmet. "That Queen?"

Xavier stops and glares at the gorgon, reluctantly going back to his seat.

"Well." His jaw tightens. "Shit. Damn."

He drops back in his seat, crossing his arms. "damnit."

"I don't see why you're so upset," Yoko flies her left ring finger nail down, blowing the dust off, "it's not like you had a chance."

"I— HOW. DAR—"

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

"So, I believe that if we grant ourselves a few hours to explore this area," a quill drags across the forest on the map, outlining it, "we could find the resources we need and more."

Everyone is silent, looking at the situation.

"Your Majesty..."

"Yes?"

The woman that spoke lifts a hand in gesture to the issue.

"Why?"

The Queen looks at where the hand points, referring to herself in Enid's lap, arms holding her.

"She is my guard. She needs to protect me at all times. And sh—"

"And I can do that better by holding her!"

The room gets suffocating, all the air leaving and abandoning them to die.

No one speaks over the Queen.

"What she said." Is her only response. "Now." She points at a lake on the map.

"Here, I know is a valley." She marks it. "I have hope for storage buildings so more houses can go in the main city."

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

Enid doodles a little raven on the other woman's paper, small and in the corner. It's not like anyone will see it, so she doesn't care.

She adds a little wolf next to it, nibbling it. She giggles. She thinks the queen would like it.

She turns to face her back.

She's writing, like always.

Enid likes looking at her. She's pretty. There's freckles on her nose and cheeks, Enid noticed she has a tiny scar along her jaw.

She could give a perfect description of her.

"Enid, you're staring."

"Sorry, your Majesty," Enid lets her eyes trace the woman's nape, the outline of her shoulders under her clothing, "you're very easy to focus on."

"I would hope so. I must command the attention of any room I enter."

"Well, you do so very well."

The queen hums in appreciation, scratching her quill along the paper.

"Enid?"

"Yeah?"

"Why do you still call me by my title? Surely we're close enough that you no longer feel it necessary."

"Oh..." she adds a snake, "I... never really thought about it, I guess. I always just thought of you as 'the Queen' in my mind, it never occurred to me to not call you that." She shapes a tree.

"...Do you know my name?"

"Yes!" She adds leaves.

"What is it?"

"Wednesday!" She fills in the trunk.

"Oh." She turns back to her paper. She's writing a letter of truce to Barclay. "I was hoping you wouldn't have known."

"Why?" She adds an apple.

"I would've teased you."

She gasps, and adds the apple's stem. "That's rude!"

"Hm. Would it ease my rudeness if I let you call me by my name?"

"Yes," she adds a storm cloud. "It would ease it greatly."

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

She holds Wednesday closer as they relax. Presses her nose into the smaller's nape, enjoying the black ink smell. There's an underlying sweetness. Like... vanilla. Enid sighs.

"Something is wrong?" Enid nuzzles her, breathing her in.

"Nope," she kisses the skin, "just sniffing you. Enjoying our lil' snug."

"Mm." She grunts, pressing back into her knight. "I enjoy our time." She says.

"I do too! You need to let me paint your nails!" She grabs her hand, looking at them.

"I'll enjoy a bright, sunny day before I allow you to put color on me."

"I mean..." she pulls Wednesday's fingers apart, inspecting them. "Who said I'd paint them any bright colors?" She folds the other woman's hand and kisses the back. "There's black nail polish in some markets in the citadel. Give me some funds..." Wednesday's face scrunches up, turning away from Enid.

"Absolutely not."

"You're smiling."

"Am not."

"Are too!" Enid kisses her shoulder. "That's why you faced away." She leans into the smaller's ear.

"You didn't want me to see it." She sing-songs. Wednesday pushes on her hand, half-heartedly shoving it off.

"I turned away because..." Enid can see her jaw tighten, looking for some snippy comment. "Shut up. That's why."

"Wow, so regal and elegant. Such queen-like behavior."

"I will kill you."

"You wouldn't kill the most competent person in your life, would you?"

"Who said you were any level of competent?"

Enid blinks, grinning.

"You did." She makes a quiet 'boop!' as she taps Wednesday's nose. "You silly goose."

"I am no avian. And I didn't say that."

"Well, not exactly that," she drags her nails down the smaller woman's back slowly. "But you said I was 'competent by comparison' so," she clicks her tongue, "y'know."

"..."

"Come to think of it, wouldn't that make you a deceiver?"

"If you tell no one," she turns to Enid, looking at her face, "I'd be very happy."

Enid leans forward, pecking Wednesday's lips.

"Let me paint your nails and I'll keep quiet."

"..."

"..."

"Fine."

"Yay!

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

"Y'know," Enid takes the hair-brush through dark curls gently, careful to not damage any of it. "I think you should let me style your hair."

"No."

"That's what you said about your nails!" She takes a section of hair, beginning to braid it. "And look at you now."

"You might have been right on my nails —also, you need to repaint them soon— but my hair is too noticeable to be changed without a reasonable explanation."

"Aw." Enid whines. She finishes off one braid, starting on the next.

"Couldn't the 'reasonable explanation' be that you love me?" She grabs a tie. "Could it be you don't love me?" She says, voice fake-dramatic.

Wednesday goes quiet as Enid begins the other braid, feeling the silkiness on her fingertips.

"Wednesday?" She makes a twist, "did I say the wrong thing?"

"I do love you." Her voice is stony. Hurt. "Did I fall to show you that?"

"No!" Enid walks in front of her, leaning down, "I know you love me. I was joking, Wednesday." She sees her shoulders loosen.

"Good." She sighs softly, "I was worried I didn't express it well enough."

"Any expression of love is enough from you, Honey." She walks back to behind Wednesday, actually starting on her hair this time.

"Is it?"

"Of course," she leans down and kisses her head, "because I know it means you trust me."

"Mm. Maybe I should fear for our relationship in front of you more often, if it means you call me Honey."

Enid drops the half-finished braid in her hand, yelping.

"What?! I didn't call you Honey!"

"But you did."

"Didn't! I called you... funny?"

"Sure you did, dear."

"Ah! See! You called me dear."

"I absolutely did, dear."

Enid drops the braid again, collapsing.

"Wednesday!"

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

"Okay, I'm starting to think Xavier was right for once." Ajax stares at the Queen, sitting in Enid's lap and facing her, talking together. "That does seem a lil' sweet and loving, dudn't?"

"I can see it." Divina nods, watching as her Majesty gets up and walks into a different room, Enid trailing her. "I still think the Queen is just happy to have someone be close to her without an ulterior motive. I'd be pretty buddy-buddy if I was her."

"Oh, so when Ajax says it, it's a good point, but when I say it I'm jealous?" Xavier glares at Divina, "bullshit."

"I wouldn't think Ajax is jealous of a lesbian couple," Yoko looks at Xavier like he's stupid, "considering, y'know." She lowers her glasses to look him in the eye.

"He's a homosexual himself." She drinks her blood. "Plus, they're holding each other, and they weren't doing that when you said it."

Xavier mumbles Yoko's words back to her in an annoying voice.

"Annoying-ass..." he grumbles.

"Nuh uh." Yoko sticks her tongue out childishly.

Xavier stands up and draws his sword, entirely intent on killing her.

"FUCK YOU MEAN 'NUH UH'?!"

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

Enid feels her hands shaking as she holds her roses.

She's about to ask the Queen on a date. Something that goes against royal law, and, if declined, could result in her being executed.

She waits for her Superior to get back, having been told to wait in the Royal's room. Something about Enid not being privy to information, and needing to wait.

She hates it. The black roses burn her hands and make her itchy feeling. She wonders if maybe she should leave. Run away. Change her name.

She giggles, nervously, imagining herself changing her name to Rose.

She doesn't think it would fit her. Maybe a color?

"Orange," she says to herself, laughing, "Imma name myself Orange."

"Don't ever change your name. It suits you far too much."

"AH!" Enid almost throws her flowers in surprise, yelping.

"Your Majesty! What are you doing— back so early?"

"The meeting ended sooner than expected, so I thought I would come back." She turns to her chair, pulling it out and sitting down. "Though, I would've stayed the extra time if I didn't hear you saying you would name yourself Orange."

Enid tightens her hold on the roses, licking her lips.

"Uh." She shakes the flowers, catching the Royal's attention. "Rose."

They both blink at each other, like deer staring at an actively flying arrow.

"Rose." She nods. Enid feels like death would be so nice. "Why?"

"Flower." Enid can feel tears in the corners of her eyes, but she keeps smiling because if she doesn't, she will break down. "Red."

"Are you alright?" The Queen reaches and presses a cold hand to her forehead. "You don't feel hot..."

"You." Enid's teeth press so hard it hurts. "Flowers."

"Do you need a moment?" Enid nods and swallows, turning away from her.

She takes exactly three deep breaths, then turns back.

"Flowers." She's shaking. "For you."

"Oh." The Royal takes them from Enid's hand, clutching them softly. "Thank you. I'll need to get water." She turns to place them in the pot that she doesn't own.

"And a pot."

"Date."

The smaller woman turns back. "Pardon?"

"Flowers. For date." She forces out. "Me?"

Her Superior stares at her for a long, long few seconds. Enid considers jumping out of the window.

"You... wish to romantically court me?"

"Yes." Enid whimpers like a hurt animal. "I want that."

"Then I agree." Wednesday stares at her, thoroughly unimpressed. "Is it that hard to simply ask me out? I thought you'd be braver than that."

"You scared me and you're so pretty, and I was worried I'd be executed in the town square—"

Wednesday lifts a hand, stopping Enid before she gets going.

"Why on Earth would you be executed?"

"'Cause... that's what happens to people who ask out royals and get rejected, ain't it?"

"No? Who told you this?"

Enid looks at her feet, weighing the pros and cons.

"Xavier..." she mumbles.

"Ugh." Wednesday groans, "remind me to kill him."

"What?! No!"

"I think he deserves it."

"But he's my friends' friend. They'd be sad. So, I'd be sad."

The smaller woman sighs, and hugs Enid close.

"Fine."

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

Enid takes her to a cliff, overlooking a gorgeous little patch of forest, a large lake in the center.

Wednesday has her head in Enid's lap, enjoying the werewolf's hand stroking her unbraided hair.

"This is... perfect, Enid." Wednesday presses up into the hand rubbing her hair.

"I'm glad!" Enid leans down and kisses the top of her head. "I stole a map to find this place!"

Wednesday laughs, a from-the-chest sound. Enid feels herself fall deeper in love.

"You—" a giggle "—you shouldn't tell the Queen Herself of your crime, Enid."

The knight leans down, covering Wednesday from the sun.

"Oh, but the queen won't turn me in for my crimes."

Wednesday pushes up.

"Oh, but she would. She took an oath to never allow crime."

Enid hunches further until their lips are almost touching.

"Oh, but I think the queen loves me too much."

Wednesday glares, the effect ruined by her smiling.

"I can't argue there." She presses their lips together.

She drags her nails lightly across Wednesday's scalp, grinning when the other woman groans softly.

"You like it when I scratch your head?"

"Yes." She pushes into Enid's nails, melting. "Very much."

"Aw. You're just a lil' black cat, aren't you?" Enid starts scratching her jaw, cooing. "Just a lil' guy, can't hurt no one. Pretty girl."

"I'm not an animal, mutt."

"D'aw, does Kitty got claws? Huh?" Enid scratches down her chest. "Lil' baby. Dumby."

"I am not an infant, nor unintelligent, Sinclair." She pouts and flips on her side, ignoring Enid.

Enid pokes her cheek with a finger, giggling at the jutting-out lips.

"You're pouting." She sings, teasingly. "You don't like being called a kitten? Huh? Lil' baby."

"I am no infant, Enid." She glares at the finger poking her. "And if you don't stop poking me, I'll bite your finger."

"Go ahead, it won't hurt." She places her finger right to Wednesday's mouth.

"It will if I bite it off." Enid pulls her finger back just as Wednesday chomps. She can hear the other woman's teeth click.

"Wednesday!" She puts her hand on her chest, fake-hurt. "How could you? After everything we've been through?!" She wipes a finger under her eye.

Her finger is completely dry.

"What have we been through, though?" Wednesday rolls back. "Nothing dangerous has happened."

"This whole me-guarding-you thing happened because of a threat." Enid pushes the smaller woman's hair being her ear, admiring her jaw. "You never told me what happened. Are we still in a near-war with the Barclay kingdom?"

Wednesday's eyes get huge and remind Enid even more of a black cat. She rolls onto her side.

"Wednesday?"

Wednesday starts to fake snoring; a loud, nasally noise.

"Wednesday!" Enid shakes her shoulder, giggling at her silliness. "What happened?" She gasps falsely, and covers her mouth. "Did Bianca die?"

"No."

"Then what happened?"

"...our conflict ended almost immediately."

"Wha?"

"I received a letter of temporary truce after we got back from finding the apple trees."

"That was, like... two weeks into me guarding you. I've been guarding you for four months." Enid narrows her eyes in suspicion. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Enid, we must go back to the castle." Wednesday stands up and starts walking away, back to their horses. "I feel deathly ill."

Enid grabs her wrist and yanks her down, pulling the smaller woman into her arms.

"No, you don't. Tell me why."

Wednesday stares at her for a moment, then tries to escape like a trapped dog. Making the same noises, too.

When that doesn't work, she slumps and looks down.

"I..." she looks at Enid's arm. "I liked having you around. You made things... better. For me."

"Wednesday..." she leans down and kisses her jaw, melting at her words. "You don't need to hide that you love me, from me. I like hearing that."

"I need you to feel safe around me." She doesn't look at Enid; staring at the grass. "How can I make you feel protected if I'm weak?"

"Firstly, I'm your guard—" she boops her nose, "—and secondly, I feel safer when you're open. It means we have no reason to hide ourselves."

"Hm." Wednesday presses against Enid's arm, and this time the knight lets her get up

"Can we go back to the castle, though?" Wednesday offers her a hand. "I'd like to be held."

Enid takes her hand and pulls her down, picking her up into a bridal carry as she stands up.

"I get to carry you." She says smugly.

Wednesday snuggles into her chest, against the soft shirt she wears.

"Okay."

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

Enid pushes Wednesday face into her neck, smiling at the way the other wraps her arms around the knight.

The werewolf rubs slow, calming circles on her back, feeling the fine texture of silk against her fingertips.

"Wednesday? You awake?"

"Yes, Enid. Why do you ask?"

"Nothin', just wanted to see." She leans down and kisses dark hair. "I love you, you know? So sweet. And nice. And pretty. So pretty."

"I'm pleased to hear my genes make you happy, Sinclair."

Enid grabs her leg and slides her up, staring her in the eyes when they're eye-level.

"Y'know, you said I shouldn't change my name from Enid—"

"And you shouldn't."

"—but you never said anything about changing my last name."

Wednesday hums and closes her eyes, adorably sleepy.

"And what would you change it to, if I let you?" She nips at Enid's jaw.

"Addams."

Wednesday's eyes pop open.

"What?"

"I'd change it to Addams." She kisses the other's forehead. "If you'd let me."

"Did you just... propose?"

"Yes."

The smaller woman stares unblinkingly at her, shocked.

"It's too late for this conversation. We'll talk in the morning."

"Okay, Wednesday."

"I love you, Enid."

"I love you too, Sweetheart."

-Writer Anon.

I'm finally awake, took a quick power nap while my phone charged and I think I'm sick

But it don't MATTER BC THE WENCLAIR??

Yknow what this all makes me think? That Wednesday fell first. You're telling me, she chooses not to have the best guard to protect her for totally normal reasons? Despite being known as pragmatic? Mmm okay

Totally normal behavior, totally not pining or anything that would be ubsurd

And then the slow thawing of professional and unprofessional makes my heart absolutely soft. I see a pattern in your works tho, that one bed? 😏 Ik what you are writer anon, Ik what you are

The lil comments from the nevermore gang always makes me laugh, I do love seeing Wenclair through other people's lenses, absolute delight to see how either odd or nauseatingly sweet they must be

Enid being so nervous to ask Wednesday out for a date despite being the only one to interrupt the queen, gets to cuddle wednesday and overall be personal.. Man, I totally understand, it's alright Enid we have all been there

The whole work is just.. So fluffy man, no wonder I passed out great after reading it

Yknow it's a great piece of work when it reminds me of how single I am like FUCKKK, WHEN IS IT MY TURN

Also Wednesday being cheeky enough to fake snore after Enid asked what happened with the whole Barclay thing is very funny, thank you for that

[sid471]

Tom Disventure Camp needs a time out >_>

I made a post before DCAS started about Jake where I pretty much said, to sum it up, ‘Sure he’s a mess but he’s a justified mess 😊’ now that All Stars has started airing… I have some thoughts 😓. I’ll get to Jake another time. Maybe 😊. This is about Tom. Because I have a bone to pick with Officer Tom <_<

Let’s start with a flashback to Season 1. I cover the gist of what happened between him and Jake in the aforementioned Jake post. But what I didn’t mention is at the END of Disventure Camp season 1, Tom and Jake have a final conversation and they agree that they while they both still have feelings for each other, they shouldn’t get back together yet because they’re both pretty messed up. Jake asks if he’ll still talk to him and Tom says “I think we should take some time and grow as people. We are on the right path, but starting anything could ruin that. We’ll see where we are later in 🙂” and earlier in the finale he’d promised to keep in touch with Miriam. Sounds promising no? :3

Come All Stars, we find out Tom hasn’t talked to Jake OR Miriam at all in the last two years! ._. Now, listen, Jake and Tom’s relationship was… tumultuous. To say the least. And Tom DID say they should take some time apart. But he did NOT say… ‘Hey let’s go out of our way to avoid each other like the plague’ 😶 All Jake wants is clarity on where they stand. Are they friends? Are there still feelings between them? Is there even a chance they can reconcile at all? That’s all Jake wants.

If Tom can’t give him that, he should just say that. If Tom doesn’t want to be Jake’s friend, he should just say that. If Tom has moved on with someone else, say it with me now, he should just SAY that ._. And the kicker is… Tom was the one who got onto Jake so hard about communication in season one! .-. Now, Jake is TRYING to get Tom to talk to him and nothing .-. It’s understandable if Tom is still hurt over what happened in their season. All Stars has shown he can still hold a grudge with Ellie. But if he IS hurt… You know the pattern 😊 He should just say that >_>

Oh ho, and I’m not done. It gets worse. On top of avoiding Jake like the plague… He’s also being a massive hypocrite in regards to Jake 😶 In episode 4 the challenge is to get a sandbag and bring it back to the starting point, and the other players can use any means necessary to get the bag from you. Tom takes and throws Ally’s glasses then ALSO trips Grett later on. When Jake tackles Aiden to get the bag he has and gets the point, Tom gets petty and says ‘Wow! Real nice Jake 🙄’ .-. Tom… come on now ._. You know you’re being a dumb ass 😶

Episode 6, our latest episode, Ellie insists for their performance the two couples, her and Gabbie and Aiden and Tom, HAVE to kiss at the end of the song. Now… I don’t think I have to hold your hand and explain to you why that’s fucked up 😶 Especially because she EXPLICITLY said the only reason she did it was to psychologically fuck with Jake .-. Ugh >_> Sorry, this ain’t about Ellie, this is about Tom <_<. Tom, in a confessional, says “I haven’t talked to Jake yet and this kiss with Aiden will make it even weirder between us than it already is (who’s fault is that Tom >_>). What should I do? >_<“ And it’s like… Gee Tom… I dunno. Maybe you should TALK TO JAKE! ._. And yes, I know they’re on different teams. But Alec pulled someone from both of the other teams to form the villain alliance soooo… not like it’s impossible to talk to people from other teams .-.

In conclusion: Tom is pissing me off >_> Jake is on the rise, and I love to see it as a Jake lover and defender :3… Okay Jake has had his annoying moments too >_> but lately? Tom is the more annoying one 😶

[accirax]

Disventure Camp All Stars Power Ranking (Round 14)

With last episode's elimination weighing heavy upon us, I'm at a bit of a loss as to what will happen next. Still, I have to stick to it, and hope I'll be luckier with this week's upcoming ranking.

In case you haven't seen my previous power rankings, the Power Ranking Format is essentially a way of ranking how well each player is doing in the game. So, in essence, this is a long form way of predicting who I think will be eliminated from the competition in the next episode. There will be spoilers for last week's episode (obviously) and its power ranking, so make sure to read that first if you don't want to be spoiled on how I ranked our last boot. If you want more clarification on the rules, that first post will help you out as well. Furthermore, I'm going to be spoiling the preview for next episode, so if you want to go in TOTALLY blind, save this for later. Let's go!

Recap - Gabby's Elimination

Current Score: 61 acquired/90 total

(Points versus @venus-is-thinking: 12 acquired/17 total)

Oh boy.

Look, I already rambled about how weird it is that Gabby was eliminated in this manner in my initial thoughts, so I won't waste my time writing the whole thing out again. It is true that Gabby already had a pretty complete character arc (going from insecurely relying on Ellie 100% to being afraid of what would happen when she was alone to overcoming her intrusive thoughts), so I can understand why the writers thought it would be okay to get rid of her now. I-- and I think a lot of others-- aren't so much upset with Gabby being eliminated as with the fashion in which it was done. Certainly for these power rankings, throwing in an elimination without voting was not something that I'd accounted for.

Thankfully I did well enough on Yul's elimination that how poorly I did with Gabby kinda got canceled out. Although, it also means that I wasn't able to reap the benefits of getting a 9/9 last week, and am now back in the 70% accuracy zone, though. Sigh. I fear that it won't get any better from here.

Let's just hope that there's an ACTUAL VOTE THIS WEEK HAHAHAHAHAHA (/lh)

Trailer Analysis

Ally pulling herself up into this tree and then Grett seeing a leaf falling from above makes me think that Ally might hide in a tree to spy on people, and Grett might spot her doing it. Embrace that Spy Nest, Ally.

EMILY???? MAYBE?????? Idk, I just miss her so much and I want her to come back.

Idol hunting, maybe? Or trying to spook people into thinking there's an idol to be found?

I assume this is actually Derek trying to check up on Trevor/see if he's okay, he's just doing it in his own Derek way.

It even seems like Trevor and Derek might both be serving as challenge tester interns for this challenge, which would add to the reading that Derek wants to make amends with Trevor.

Friendship! :D Death flag? D:

I hope that this is Jake telling Connor to get his head in the game instead of just yelling at him for no reason. If you're angry at him for being mopey, you're being a bit of a hypocrite, Jake.

Okay yeah, more treevidence.

This is a pretty standard strength-based Survivor challenge. Although, much like the balls challenge, this was also one that was discontinued for injuring the real life contestants too much. It's interesting to note that, for some reason, Connor's light turns red instead of being blue at some point in the challenge. It could just be an indicator that he makes it farther into the challenge (he's shown with eight bags instead of four). However, it could also be some sort of penalty, including one that starts at the beginning of the challenge.

To quote Venus, "IT'S THE BREAK CONNOR'S LEGS CHALLENGE???"

"I'm starting to feel like myself again~!"

This is presumably about Grett returning to her more villainous ways. Ironic, considering that she's just left the villains alliance, or at the very least it's less powerful now than it's ever been. I guess Yul and Gabby were both keeping Grett in check, in their own ways. Still, I missed s1 Grett, so hopefully we can get a bit of that flavor back in this end stretch. Also, this is the only scene we see with sunset lighting. That means that this scene is definitely the last chronological scene to appear in the trailer, and probably from after the challenge is over.

Power Ranking

#1: Grett

Speaking of Grett, let's keep talking about her.

Although I think Grett is in a much less safe position than she was before Yul or Gabby's elimination, I would still be surprised if she was the next to go. Obviously, I said that about Gabby too, but Gabby's elimination also strengthens Grett's position. Would they really eliminate Yul and Gabby AND Grett back to back to back? I sincerely hope not.

There also seems to be a lot of foreshadowing that Grett will be in a position of power/decision making in this episode. Last time, she said that she wouldn't forget that Alec and Riya continued to stand by Yul, and this time, she's clearly getting up to some sort of scheming. Obviously, it's possible for a character's own meddling to wind up taking them out in the end. However, I don't think that's what they'd want to do with Grett right now. She doesn't need to have what power she's finally managed to accrue swept out from underneath her again.

Oh, and she just told Gabby that she'd kick ass in the competition for her. That's not something you say right before getting cancelled yourself. Grett really should be okay.

#2: Jake

And, sure, why don't we put my other best winner candidate in the #2 position as well? If I think these guys could make the finale (together, even), then surely they have to make it past this episode, right?

I am a little bit worried for Jake, as there is definitely potential for Ally to shoot some votes his way. I'm almost expecting him to get some votes this episode, I just don't think it'll be enough to have any effect on him. Given his growing relationships with Aiden and Connor, I don't think that either of them would really ever vote for Jake at this point. That means, that, assuming all three of them vote together, Jake would need literally every single person in the game-- Alec, Riya, Grett, and Ally-- to vote for him in order to have a majority. Like I said, I am a little worried that that could happen, but overall, I don't think it will.

Despite the level of focus Jake has gotten this season, I still feel like there's more to come with him. I think the writers might want to expand more on his relationship with Connor, with both of them feeling like screw-ups, and Aiden and Jake's newly friendly dynamic is super fun to watch. In either case, as is probably evident by the fact that we haven't seen Connor or Aiden on this list yet, I think that Jake is the least narratively expendable of the true heroes. If you removed him, Aiden and Connor don't have much tying them together. Jake is the lynchpin of that alliance from a storytelling standpoint, and I think they'll want to keep him around for that reason.

#3: Connor

Okay, potentially a bold choice, given how many death flags Connor was throwing up at the end of last episode. You can't just spill your entire backstory in a heartfelt conversation, dude, you're gonna die. And now he's in the #3 spot that's been cursed by Gabby?! Now I'm really second guessing myself...

I do think that Connor's clock might not have ticked its final tock yet, though. Despite the fact that I honestly think it's more likely that he's been impaired (probably by Riya) in this challenge than that they spoiled that he makes it to some sort of second round, I still think Connor might win. Sure, in the superhero challenge, he wanted super strength; it's not that he had it already. But, who else is supposed to win this challenge? Twink 1 or 2? The gamer girl, or the depressed bookworm? Riya's snappable-looking arms?

My money's on Grett if not Connor, but I think that Connor winning immunity this episode would be an appropriate level of win for him after the rough time he went through last episode. It would prove to him that he can be strong and have good things happen for him, even if the circumstances are actively stacked against him. Jake's supposed pep talk could also help get him in the proper mood, which could bring the two of them closer together.

It's also still true that I think that Aiden, Jake, and Connor is still the voting block that's most likely to work together in the upcoming vote, making it harder for the villains to get enough numbers to eliminate Connor. I could definitely see Riya and possibly Alec wanting to continue targeting him, and if Ally has become Riya's lackey, she could go along with it too. Grett, I don't really see, but... I can't deny it's a possibility.

Still, I find it unlikely enough that Connor will be immediately eliminated that he's at #3. Ugh, now I totally feel like I've jinxed it, and it will just be that Connor goes home again. C'est la vie, I guess. Use that old man strength to prosper, Connor!

#4: Aiden

Blah blah blah, Jake, Connor, and Aiden working together means that they're all less likely to be eliminated in this episode, you've heard it twice before immediately prior to this. I do think that Aiden is probably the most likely of the trio to be eliminated this episode, though, even if I can't exactly put my finger on why.

Part of it is probably that Aiden was a finalist before, which makes me less likely to think that he will be again. Aiden also already beat Riya via James in s2, so there isn't as much of a need to have him outlive/triumph over her again this time. Also, while we've debatably concluded Connor's character arc with that conversation at the end of last episode, it definitely feels like we're winding down on Aiden's content for the season. He's certainly made it far enough to appease James and Lake at this point, and that fist bump with Jake may be a signal that they are truly and undeniably friends at this point. If that's the case, why is Aiden still here?

To be honest, a big part of why I've put all of the heroes pretty high up this week is because of Grett's quote from the end of the trailer, the one about feeling like herself again. If Grett has started stirring up trouble, how is that supposed to result in Aiden going home? Or Jake or Connor, for that matter. Given that Ally has seemingly flipped over to the villains' side, Grett voting with them to take out a hero is, like, the default. What's so spicy about that? I mean, it's spicy that Ally is now voting with the villains, but that has nothing to do with Grett!

It is definitely possible that I'm overthinking things, and that continuing to work with the villains (but of her own volition instead of Yul's) is making Grett excited to be a bad guy again. If that's the case, I'll surely regret putting all of Jake, Connor, and Aiden in the upper echelons of the list. However, I feel like Grett is planning to scheme something beyond what's more obvious, and that it's more likely that she will turn on Alec and Riya to work with the hero boys instead. If that's true, then all of them really should be safe.

#5: Alec

Welcome back from the brink of death, Alec. Don't make me regret moving you back up.

Alec was taking an unprecedented number of Ls last episode, and I fear they may keep coming for him. But, if that's the case, it may actually make him less likely to go home. No longer having any power, Alec at least appears like much less of a threat. He is still a worry when it comes to physical challenges, but there's much more of an appearance, at least, that he could now be taken out whenever.

I also feel like taking him out right now would be a little random. Like, if you were gonna have him go out as a direct result of the kiss, it probably should have been last episode. The current timeline of events would be Alec kisses Riya, then the truth is revealed and there's a strain on their relationship, then Alec just waffles around for an episode or so before being eliminated. Why have that period of waffling around in? The same felt true of Ally, and then they picked her up for a new plotline and some continued relevance!

Everybody keeps reiterating to me in the comments that there desperately needs to be a true villain in the final three, and they'd never eliminate Alec before that point because they need him there to be a losing finalist. And, you know what? Fair. I don't know as much about how Total Drama works as I do about how Danganronpa works, so if that really is a rule that's written in stone, maybe I should start listening to the wise words of the more informed fans. I'm always a fan of messing with the rules to catch people off guard, and I personally would probably prefer a finale where I'm not already certain that one of the three finalists isn't going to win. (Like, let's be real, ONC knew to cut off the s2 finale part 1 at whether or not Aiden would be saved instead of whether James or Riya would win, because once James jumped off that cliff it was basically a foregone conclusion that he'd be the winner.) However, it's nice to have some villain representation in the finale as well, and maybe that still can be Alec.

#6: Riya

I don't have much specific to say about Riya, just, like... bad vibes.

I could completely see Grett's scheming be in an effort to get Riya out of the game. Currently, I think Riya reads as the biggest dog on campus, so if Grett is looking for her "game defining move" (to whatever extent that actually matters), it could totally make sense to target Riya. Now that Connor is moving towards moving on, all she has to do is say the word to Jake, Connor, and Aiden, and I'm sure they'd comply. The scheming would be to the extent that it's a blindside, and Riya doesn't realize that she lost hold on Grett to an extent that Grett would be looking to target her.

There's also the fact that Riya was a finalist before, and therefore may not be again. I maintain that if they're going to have a repeat finalist, it's more likely to be Riya than Aiden, but there's always the possibility that it's just neither of them and Aiden could be taken out later.

I really don't have much else to add. I think Riya could very easily be in danger this episode, and there isn't much depth to it. Leaving Alec to fend for himself could be an interesting turn of events as well, as he never competed in s1 without Fiore by his side, and his plan going into the season of focusing more on his social game would have totally backfired. I'm not fully convinced on Riya going home, but it seems like a likely enough outcome.

#7: Ally

Oh, how the mighty have fallen. To be clear, I'm talking about Ally's placement in the power rankings-- from first place to last place-- as opposed to the decline of her character. Even if she's choosing to act a bit more villainously, I haven't started to dislike her more, or particularly think that she's being written worse. I merely think that she's put herself in a pretty precarious position.

As I said earlier in this power ranking, I think that Grett is going to be a major player in this episode, and as such I think that those scenes depicting her and Ally in the tree will be Relevant. Basically, I wonder if Grett will stir up trouble by throwing Ally under the bus this episode. It won't be hard for Grett to convince Jake and Co. to take her out, and if she can convince Riya that Ally has been spying on her (while still pretending to be under Riya's wing), Riya and Alec might turn on her, too. The scheming, therefore, can be a plot to humiliate Riya by tricking her into voting out someone who genuinely wanted to work with her. And, with Grett now joining the heroes, Riya and Alec's days are totally numbered. It's a brilliant plan to pin all six votes on one person in a move that secretly swaps your major alliance and gives you lots of power... just like what I predicted Riya would do to Alec last episode. Mannnnn...

Anyways, if you're like me, you might be wondering what an Ally elimination would do in terms of Ally's character arc this episode. It is possible that there would be some issues with Ally's heart simply being broken by an elimination in ways the writers don't want. However, there are a few ways around it. The first is that Ally, already having learned that it's better to play as herself instead of who she thinks the audience will like, will be satisfied by her elimination as a result of her trying to play the game as she thought best. That's like, super unlikely to have happen, but it's not totally impossible.

The other is that Ally will be upset, freaking out over whether flipping to being a villain and then immediately being eliminated as one will have totally ruined her rapport with literally everyone. But, she'll be comforted either in this episode or in the eventual Loser's Motel episode. In the case of being comforted this episode, I could honestly see Grett being the one to do it. In season 1, Grett was eliminated after the villains turned on her, and then faced a lot of public backlash for her actions. It was tough, but she made it through. Ally should be proud of the game she's played, having made it this far, and not take it too harshly that she got outplayed.

The Loser's Motel option would probably include Hunter and/or Tess trying to cheer her up, with the added bonus that Ally could see what people really thought of her this season. If they actually thought that she was more funny/engaging/interesting this season, that could lift her spirits. It could also be a combination of both, where Grett gives her word of confidence now and social media finishes it out later.

The other point of conflict is Ally's relationship with Jake, which... uhhhh, I don't know. If Ally does go out here by Jake's hand, I don't think that their relationship will be at all salvaged. However, I also don't know if that's one of the goals of this season? They might just hate each other, and that's the end. I think the biggest issue with that is, if Jake wins, it might be a bit of a weird look to have your winner have a lot of animosity towards another fairly rootable character.

Should that convince me out of putting Ally down here? I don't know, maybe. But on these trajectories, how would Ally and Jake ever make up, even if they had the entire rest of the season to do it? Both of them being losing finalists? I don't know! So, Ally stays here for now.

Well, that's the power ranking for this week. Unlike either of the past two weeks-- despite how different their outcomes were-- I'm not confident at what I've put here at all. I'd put, like, everyone here other than Grett at like 5 or 6 if I could. Will that lack of confidence be unfounded in a brilliant result, or will I have swung for the fences and missed wildly again? Honestly, as long as there's a genuine vote out this episode, I'll be happy. I look forward to seeing what happens on Saturday.

[daylightisminetoconsume]

There's a soft wing beat as the large form vanishes into the night, the scent of salt left behind alongside what appeared to be the carcass of a rather large bluefin tuna, bundled in with a small bag of tart fruits. A gift from one king to another in times of misfortune.

Gunmar hurried forward, catching just the ghost of wingbeats as he looked across the massive bounty.

Could he have an ally, after all this time? Someone who understood the necessities of his rank, and could discuss alliances?

[cyndaquillt]

I'm sorry to bother you but all the elections stuff is really confusing me and i don't know what's happening

I'm not at the age of voting but will be by the time of the next elections

Again sorry to be a bother

Not a bother at all! And good on you for wanting to learn about this stuff already! The more informed you are by the time you are of voting age, the more informed of a decision you can make 🙂

Full disclosure, I'm not a social scientist or anything, just an average Indian citizen/voter with some academic expertise (not in this field). If someone reading all this finds something wrong, please feel free to point it out, preferably politely.

TL;DR : Indian parliamentary system is built to thrive on diverse viewpoints representative of its people. An attempt to smooth out dissensions and differences without healthy discussion goes against a democratic system. What we are happy about this week is election of a healthy opposition and a coalition that has the potential of keeping power concentration into one hands in check.

This is a bit of an expansive topic but I'm gonna break down certain key terms that you're gonna hear a lot in the news or other election commentary in the next few days. I'm not sure how much of a background knowledge you already have, so this is super long and detailed. Sorry about that in advance! Take your time reading this, or use it as a reference. Up to you! Follow up questions are more than welcome.

The Indian Parliament: The Indian Parliament is split into two houses, the Lower House or the Lok Sabha/House of the People, and the Upper House or the Rajya Sabha/Council of States. Lok Sabha members are appointed through elections while Rajya Sabha members are selected by the State Legislative Assemblies (Vidhan Sabha) and the President. When a new law is proposed as a bill or an ammendment to the constitution is proposed, it must pass through BOTH the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.

The Lok Sabha: Lok Sabha has a total of 543 seats, representing 543 electoral constituencies throughout the country. Note that these 543 constituencies aren't exactly based on existing district divisions (eg: The Ayodhya district in UP is in the Faizabad constituency). Constituencies are split by population density. This means a region with more people will have more seats/stronger voice in the Lok Sabha. As a result, the largest state by area, Rajasthan has 25 seats in the Lok Sabha, while the most densely populated state of Uttar Pradesh has 80 seats in the Lok Sabha despite being the 4th largest state in the country. Also means if a political party bags UP, it gives them a huge leg up in winning Lok Sabha elections. To form a government, a political party or a group of political parties (a coalition) needs to have majority in the Lok Sabha. This mean winning over 272 seats or in other words, winning majority votes in 272 or more constituencies. Lok Sabha elections happen every 5 years, and the one that just happened, was a Lok Sabha election.

Important parties and alliances to keep in mind while parsing the news and comments are :

Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP): The ruling party that formed the government in the past two Lok Sabha terms (10 years). Note that in the 2014 and 2019 elections, BJP won a majority without forming an alliance with any other party. BJP's core politics are right-wing, which typically translates to capitalism, socially conservative, and maintaining class hierarchy as a form of order and structure in society.

Indian National Congress (INC or Congress): The main opposition party against the BJP. Indian National Congress's politics are liberal/center. While their polities don't entirely dismantle class/caste divide, they don't entirely aim to privatize sectors or take capitalism as the end all be all.

National Democratic Alliance (NDA): BJP-led coalition that secured majority in Lok Sabha elections and will form the government for the upcoming election term.

Indian National Development Inclusive Alliance (INDIA): Congress led coalition which didn't get the majority, but did secure 232 out of the 543 seats in the Lok Sabha. Even though those that are part of the INDIA coalition won't be forming the government, they will be present in the Lok Sabha as the elected representative of their respective constituency to voice their opinion on any motion that passes through the Lok Sabha.

Janta Dal (United) or JD(U): A political party from Bihar led by Nitish Kumar. JD(U) is currently part of the NDA, however JD(U) joined NDA pretty much right before the elections. As a matter of fact, Nitish Kumar has a tendency to switch sides depending on what he thinks would ensure his power and position. In 2014, when it became apparent that BJP was aiming for a Modi-led government and that Nitish, as someone who is not formally in BJP, didn't stand a chance of even being a cabinet minister, much less the Prime Minister, Nitish left NDA. However, back then, BJP managed to get a clear majority and Nitish's pullback didn't have weight. However, with JD(U) winning 12 seats in this election and BJP having to rely on a coalition government, Nitish's pullback has weight. At the time of writing this, word on the street is Nitish is sticking with the NDA and has made demands for 2 cabinets being handed over to JD(U) (See below cut for info on what is a cabinet).

Telugu Desam Party or TDP: Led by Chandrababu Naidu, TDP is a party with a stronghold in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Currently also in the NDA coalition, TDP managed to win 16 seats in Andhra Pradesh. While Chandrababu Naidu isn't as much of a flip-flopper as Nitish, he has been fairly outspoken against the Modi government in the past. That being said, word on the street is also that Naidu garu may have been offered the position of the Lok Sabha Speaker (as in the person who mediates Lok Sabha discussions) and to also assign 2 cabinet berths to TDP in exchange for their continued support of NDA.

Other notable parties and names:

- DMK : Won 22 seats in Tamil Nadu. Is in the INDIA coalition/opposition. Led by M. K. Stalin.

- AITC or TMC: Won 29 seats in West Bengal. Is in the INDIA coalition/opposition. Led by Mamata Banerjee.

- SP : Won 37 seats in Uttar Pradesh. Is in the INDIA coalition/opposition. Led by Akhilesh Yadav.

All in all, the Indian parliamentary system allows for diverse voices and points of view to be a part of the discussion regarding national policies and lawmaking, even if the said voice doesn't make the ruling government. Something also to keep in mind about Indian politicians specifically is that they rarely think about public welfare and rather prioritize their personal hold on power. None of them are above the other when it comes to scheming on how to maintain power and these schemes often involve tactics to deflect their accountability towards the people.

In its decade long term, BJP as a ruling party has invested on multiple levels to maintain a one-man stronghold. I want to keep this answer objective and won't comment on any specific ruling. However, know that a one-man stronghold and a weak opposition defeats the purpose of the parliament and the constituencies. What most people are celebrating today is having a healthy opposition in place in addition to a coalition which would be a sort of check against power being concentrated into one person's hand.

When you vote in the next election, keep in mind that Indian politicians aren't like bands or artists you should root for. What you will be electing them to are positions of public service. Their priority is power and YOUR vote helps them have that. You are not answerable for their loss, THEY are answerable to YOU.

Also whoever you elect to the Lok Sabha is among the candidates in your constituency. A random schmuck from South Delhi who voted for BJP didn't vote for Modi, they voted for Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, the BJP candidate running from South Delhi. You could make the argument 'they voted for Modi Sarkar!' but the real, flesh and blood person that vote put in the parliament was not Narendra Modi, it was Ramvir Singh Bidhuri. Only people in Varanasi could vote directly for Modi because he contested from there. Had Modi lost the Varanasi seat, he wouldn't have been a member of the Lok Sabha. In which case, even if BJP or NDA made the government, Modi would have to become a part of the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha in the next six months to be chosen as the Prime Minister. Long story short, learn more about the constituency you are in, the candidates and parties in that constituency, the demographic of your community, the problems it faces, and in light of all of that, who is the best candidate to represent your community's voice in the Lok Sabha.

Adding an additional note cabinets, but I think that's a little tangential so it's under the cut. Again, follow up questions more than welcome. Hope this helps you make some sense of the mess that is Indian electoral politics!

Cabinets and Socialism: A Cabinet Minister assumes leadership of one of the 53 ministries within the government. Most countries around the world, regardless of their government system, have a similar structure. Though, I do want to point out that India is a Socialist Republic. What this means, is that there are entire sectors that are folded into a centralized, government funded cabinet as opposed to a third party, like a private company, being responsible for it. Indian Railways are a great example for this. From literally manufacturing trains to operating railway stations to laying down rail lines to issuing tickets, the Ministry of Railway is responsible for all of it. While Indian Railways do have subdivisions to handle different aspects, the Minister of Railways is in-charge of the management of ALL of those subdivisions. There are also sectors like Aviation or Telecom where while the government doesn't own ALL airlines or telecom companies, the government does have it's own public funded unit (Air India in case of aviation and BSNL and MTNL in case of Telecom) and there are cabinet ministers who oversee the management of these units in addition to laying out guidelines and regulations which the entire sector has to follow.

Socialist structures with their govt centralized system help regulate cost and keep cost inflation in check because the purpose of a cabinet that runs on government money is public service, not profit margin (eg: general compartment train tickets are affordable and have been affordable for a long time). In the meantime, privatization of sectors may increase efficiency of a service (eg: Ministry of External Affairs outsourcing passport services to TCS has been a huge success), it may also drive cost inflation, unless checked on by the ministry responsible for the third party contract. We will find out who in the NDA will lead which cabinet on June 8.

[melishade]

What if starscream in AOP ? I dont think he's gonna be a threat, still be a bootlicking sycophant

TFP Starscream was really done dirty by the end of the TFP series. As he was then, he would not have been much of threat.

RID2015 Starscream on the other hand!

Look, I bag on RID2015 a lot, as do many others in the Transformers fandom. It was a C show at best, but attaching itself to Transformers Prime did it no favors long term. But RID2015 Starscream was a highlight because he wanted to take over the world and get revenge on Megatron and everyone else who did him dirty. Cause let’s be honest: Starscream got screwed over and was left to die at the hands of the Predacons. On top of all the abuse that he’s gone through in the show. Doesn’t mean Starscream is a good person. He’s a piece of shit, but I am all for someone getting revenge on their abuser. And Megatron was the abuser. So I was with Starscream screaming:

A shame Megatron didn’t show up in RID2015, but considering how it went, probably a good thing.

Fun note about me, If I’m actively rooting for the villain in a show to win, it means the show’s writing is not good.

So TFP/RID2015 Starscream. Let’s get to it:

TFP Starscream survives the Predacons, but is left mortally wounded to the point where the Autobots take sympathy and get him a new form to keep him alive. But the minute he wakes up, he knows he’s not going to get off that easy. So he escapes, hijacks a ship and books it off Cybertron. He still wants to get his revenge on the Autobots because they were dicks to him too, but he doesn’t have the resources to take them down. So he gets them.

He hires bounty hunters like he did in RID2015, goes to Earth to try and find any additional resources and ends up coming across the Dark Star Saber like he did in the show. And then goes on a mad hunt trying to find Megatron, since he’s top priority at the moment. He has no army, no ship, nothing. Megatron in theory, should be all alone. Prime opportunity to find him and kill him. Takes about two years for Starscream to find the AOT world and he orders the bounty hunters to scope it out because they picked up some interesting signatures. And the bounty hunters come back with footage of Zeke’s titan transformation and his desolation of Marley Military.

Starscream...is on the fence about this. On one hand, Zeke is very powerful. On the other, the abomination of an organic has energon in his system which is bringing back...memories. But through other intel, Starscream finds out about Optimus supposedly being alive and Marley being against him and his allies and Starscream is completely on board with that shit. He might not be able to kill Megatron right now, but Optimus clearly the next best thing. And to kill his human allies on top of that too, oh that’s just the cherry on top!

So he decides to lend his aid to the next battle and makes up a lie saying that Optimus Prime, is a known criminal to Cybertron and he and his bounty hunters are trying to locate him and arrest him for crimes against Cybertron and the Decepticons. Starscream shows off the powers of the Dark Star Saber and the might of the bounty hunters, and uses his greatest weapon, his silver tongue, to convince Marley to form an alliance. 

Marley Military is completely for this. Four titans, one who seems to know more about the dark energon better than anyone, and they want to get rid of Optimus? Oh it’s like a gift from the heavens. Starscream is still picky and choosy about the information he wants to give, and holds the humans at arms length. He’s learned his lesson with MECH and his T-Cog to not trust the insects. The Dark Star Saber resists him like in RID2015, but he makes sure not to let the Marleyans know. He’s also sending spies to learn more about the power of the titans. Even though this power was strange and greatly revolting, it was still power. And he needed that if he was going to take revenge and rule the cosmos, better to control it than have it be used against him.

Two people don’t buy this. Zeke Jaeger and Reiner Braun. Pieck is suspicious of him, but she herself doesn’t have enough information to go off of in order to make an objection. Zeke and Reiner do. All the times Reiner has been in Optimus’ presence before he revealed his identity as the Armored Titan, he was...really kind to them. To everyone. Whether or not the Prime knows the truth about the outside world, he still wishes to defend the island. He offers opportunities for peace. That doesn’t sound like someone who would be a criminal. If he was, would it be penance?

Meanwhile Zeke is suspicious because of the way Matthew (or Megatron’s alias) has always talked up Optimus. Optimus was someone who didn’t betray his morals, stuck to his guns, chose honor and protection of others. And Zeke remembers very vividly how Optimus demanded that Zeke turn the Eldians back into humans. 

So both of them know someone’s lying, and they talk about this in private. They don’t know if they should trust Starscream at all. And Reiner knowing the truth about the island also makes him even more suspicious about Starscream in his mind. So instead of Zeke keeping Starscream a secret from Megatron like in the Shockwave Timeline (AKA The Dark Timeline), he does decide to tell him, with Reiner present. 

Megatron sees Reiner come in with Zeke in the titan shifter’s office and is using his fake voice, but then Zeke tells Megatron about Starscream and he immediately gets serious. Freaking Reiner out because Megatron switches back to his regular voice and realizes: Holy Shit! This is the Flying Titan! Zeke immediately covers Reiner’s mouth to prevent him from screaming and also tells Megatron about there being three others and Starscream having a purple sword. And Megatron’s now worried, because he realizes that Starscream has the Dark Star Saber. So they need to go, RIGHT NOW! Megatron tells the both of them to get Pieck because he’s aware of how closely monitored Porco and Annie are right now. And he needs to get as many has he can out of Marley as possible. Reiner does not want to agree with this, but Megatron is stating that he doesn’t have a choice because Starscream is trying to get power and weapon is his silver tongue and he is merely buying his time with this. 

Zeke agrees, Reiner isn’t sure if he should. Because it’s not just fearing Megatron, it’s also leaving his family behind. And Megatron tells him that Starscream won’t give him a choice once he’s aware. They need to leave while Starscream isn’t. It causes Reiner to reluctantly agree, despite his better judgement. But they don’t know how to get Pieck to even agree to this. Megatron decides to make this easier and get Pieck alone before knocking her out. Zeke and Reiner are mortified, but Megatron likes “It’s either me or Starscream. Take your pick.” 

They make their escape in the night, trying to get to one of the ships that were sent to Paradis, but someone caught them trying to flee and Starscream just happened to be in the area. A little amused at the humans turning tail and going traitor. He assumed the brainwashing was full proof. Oh well. He can finally test the powers of the Dark Star Saber on Zeke. He’s not complaining. And Starscream straight up attacks and nearly destroys the ship, but Megatron deactivates the holoform and blocks the attack from hitting the ship, greatly damaging his shield and hurting his arm. And Starscream is in a brief moment of shock before saying: 

And immediately goes feral and attacks Megatron. Zeke has to hold a gun to the captain’s head and tells him to drive, causing him to reluctantly do so, and as they are all fleeing, Reiner can only watch Starscream and Megatron battle it out on the ground. Megatron notices the damage and takes it up to the sky, where Starscream immediately follows. And Starscream doesn’t engage in small talk or gloating. He just wants Megatron dead right now! And Megatron is noticing the change in character. The calmness with the hint of insanity in his optics. The optics of someone who has nothing to lose. This is serious! And he’s already having a hard time dodging the Dark Star Saber. And Starscream actually sees the concern in Megatron’s optics and it only fills him with glee. Megatron was fearful because of him! GOOD! He wanted Megatron to fear him! He wanted Megatron to tremble and beg! He wanted Megatron to suffer after everything he did to him! Megatron does get a few good shots in, and notices for a brief moment that Starscream is struggling with the Dark Star Saber.

Starscream notices the ship a good ways out and throws a stream of energy at it. Reiner braces for death, but Megatron ends up intercepting it and taking the brute force. His shield gets cut in half and his arm gets cut off while he get a pretty nasty wound in his side. Starscream is stunned by the act of selflessness while Megatron plummets to the bottom of the ocean. (Has a habit of doing that, doesn’t he?) Reiner is left stunned at the act while Starscream is currently processing. He...did he kill Megatron? No, he should probably confirm that. But...he bested Megatron. He brought fear in Megatron’s optics. He brought the mighty Megatron to his knees. And even if Megatron came back, he had the power to kill him.

Starscream darkly chuckles before he fully laughs like a maniac, earning the attention of everyone on that ship and everyone that survived on shore.

“HOW DOES IT FEEL, MEGATRON?!” Starscream shouts at the water, “How does it feel to be at my mercy?! How does it feel to be bested by someone who you belittled?! Abandoned?! I devoted my spark to your cause, and you threw what I had to offer away! Well no more! I succeed where you fail, master! This galaxy will me mine to command and control! The people will remember the name Lord Starscream!”

Starscream turned his attention to the ship and pointed with the Saber. “Run while you still can, humans! There will be no place in this universe where you will be able to hide from me! You are all powerless at my hand! I’ve won!”

Reiner is just in a state of horror as Starscream continues to laugh with unhinged glee. A few days later, the ship arrives on the island and Optimus and Eren are about to do their thing, when they see Reiner coming out to surrender. Eren’s shocked but ready to kill him, but Optimus immediately tells him to stand down, because something is clearly wrong. Why is he here? Both take notice of Pieck yelling at Zeke and demanding what the hell is going on, and some of the Marleyans on that ship are fucking swallowing their pride and asking for the island’s help. And the Survey Corps and Optimus are literally wondering what the fuck just happened?

So we’ll call this timeline The Revenge Timeline, which include:

-Starscream dismantling the governments, holding the world hostage, bending the power of the titans to his will. All that jazz. He doesn’t like the place, but killing both Optimus and Megatron here would be the perfect symbolism and start of his own empire. Why Starscream hasn’t attacked the island? He’s heard about the powers of the Founding Titan and the Rumbling and decides he needs more intel before tackling such a power. Sure the Dark Star Saber would be able to cut down a Colossal Titan, but cutting them down in sheer numbers would be difficult.

-The Warriors in an uneasy alliance with the island, but explain everything that they know about Starscream. Optimus then gives a run down to everyone on who Starscream is, his position in the Decepticon fold, and his numerous history of backstabbing and betrayal. But he laments that the Dark Star Saber is a problem because that blade was made to counteract the Star Saber, and the Star Saber can cut a mountain in two with a single blow. 

“So why target Megatron?” Hanji asked, “Wouldn’t he want to rally behind his former leader?”

“Starscream and Megatron’s relationship is...strained at best,” Optimus replied.

“Meaning fucking morbid,” Levi concluded, “Let me guess, this Screamer guy wanted revenge for Buckethead’s shit attitude.”

Optimus reluctantly nodded his head.

“It’s not fucking hard,” Levi adds.

-Speaking of Megatron, they have no idea if he’s alive or not, but they gotta try and proceed as such without him because Starscream is clearly not going to wait to enact his plan. Hanji tells Ymir to train in her Sharkticon form to try and find Megatron, since Reiner reported he was in the water. And half of them don’t really want to look for Megatron. It’s very reluctant. 

“We need to find Megatron,” Optimus declared.

“...should we?” Levi asked.

“YES!” Hanji yelled.

“Okay, but must we,” Levi corrected.

No one likes him. He’s the Grade A asshole and this is all his fault, but they need the extra manpower, so Ymir trains to search the deep to find him.

-Pieck is pissed off at Reiner and Zeke because she was taken without her consent! No, she doesn’t care if it saved her life! They left their families at the hands of that titan! She cannot forgive them, and refuses to talk to the both of them for a while.

-The 104th still hate Reiner, but do ask: how did he and Zeke know Starscream was lying?

“He said that Optimus was a criminal,” Reiner answered.

All of them:

Sorry, Optimus Prime?! A CRIMINAL?! AND Y’ALL FUCKING BOUGHT THAT?! ARE YOU SERIOUS?!

-Meanwhile, Starscream’s holding prisoners, keeping slaves and forcing them to do his bidding and make more technological advancements for his new army. Marley eagerly hands over Eldians to do the job and save their own necks. Slaves are implemented with shock collars and threats to their homes being destroyed. So the Warrior Cadets are currently worse off right now, forced to build Starscream’s arsenal.

-Porco is an interesting case, because Starscream notices that every time he holds the Dark Star Saber close to him, Porco reacts negatively. Now Starscream would chalk it up to dark energon just being toxic, but he’s the only human he’s noticed to have such a reaction. Porco’s analyzed and oh...he has dark energon in his system. No doubt because of Megatron, but to have Porco as a mindless creature under his control with the power of the Dark Star Saber, Starscream would be invincible with the powers of the Colossal Titan at his side. The power of the transformation alone makes Starscream giddy. 

-Arcee and Wheeljack do make it to that world, but not because they were trying to get the word out that the war was over, but because they were after Starscream. The Autobots didn’t want him causing problems for later.

(I don’t pull from RID2015 very often, but RID2015 Starscream was really the only aspect that I liked and the only story that would really work here at the moment.)

[fandom-fandom-fandom-17]

Day 5 dancing

The event was for chief and chieftess and high rank officials to get together to form new alliances. That practically never happened so it had become tradition to wear masks. The idea came from a man who was forced to go by his ally and really wanted to avoid a war with a man he knew was going to be there. Those in his alliance wore masks as well out of solidarity.  Those who organized the event as well as those in attendance noticed that that year until the masks fell off that things were much more peaceful.  So it became a tradition. 

Viggo had received the invitation a week ago and as much as he'd preferred to continue to work on his plans gripping to his brother but his grandfather insisted. Hiccup received the invitation with a letter from his father  saying that Hiccup should go in his stead because the location this year was closer to the edge than berk. The location moved every year so that no one could plan anything sinister ahead of time.

So there was Viggo dressed to the nines. Another tradition was to show off ones wealth. Viggo played it safe with the optimum amount that made him look high class without making him a target. So the young man with a prosthetic leg out like a sore thumb. Not he because of the wooden prosthetic ever other guest had one, but because he looked like an easy target. Someone without power the big leagues could make themselves look good. The young man didn't have the age or presence of a chief having likely just been appointed. Viggo hardly ever entertained other guests especially ones that are likely just climbing the metaphorical ladder. But for whatever the young man dressed in a fur far too big for him being harassed had caught his.

The young man was about to trip because he was leaning to far back likely leaning for a weapon that wasn't allowed at the gathering. Viggo caught him at the waist simply stating

"Sorry my dear took me awhile to find the kind of ale you like" Viggo slipped his drink into his new acquaintances hand. He simply gave a small embarrassed nod. He gave the large gentlemen a small glare 

"Its good to see you again advisor" Advisor was said with a tad bit of venom

The two ladies on his sides gave him a look of disgust before walking away.

"Thanks for that" A sneer etched on the mans face

"Some advice from a real chief don't extend beyond your means" Viggo said with a snarl on his lips

"Is that a treat from your tribe?" The man asked with only a slight quiver in his voice

Viggo simply smiled "Who knows? perhaps I need to check in on your tribe and renegotiate  my prices"

The man walked away with fear in his eyes

The young man spoke up "I'm sorry I didn't mean to cause a rift between you too" Viggo simply guided the young man to the dance floor from his grip on his waist.

"Don't be sorry I've been meaning to threaten them they've been filling bags of gold with sand to trick my traders." A frown formed for a moment behind Viggos mask. Then turned chiper "So whats your name? you could at least tell your savior that"

The young man seemed to hesitate "Horrendous of the hooligan tribe"

'Hiccups tribe interesting' The music picked up in the background.  Viggo took his drink back lifted his mask just enough and chugged it.

 "Well Horrendous may I have this dance?" Viggo reached out his hand and Horrendous took it.

Horrendous was well a horrendous dancer. His leg made him unsteady. Horrendous had to lean on Viggo chest for support. Never meeting his gaze likely because he was embarrassed. unfortunately for Horrendous he felt every little twitch and shake and he cant say he didn't it amusing. Like a terrible terror caught in a trap for a much bigger dragon. He explained his usual one had been bent along with his back-ups. That he had the leg lost to a dragon. I told him my tale of my own obvious scar.  We drank , danced and laughed exchanging stories throughout the night. 

At one point in the night Viggo had picked up Horrendous from behind and twirled him across the floor. They were certainly getting strange looks but neither cared.  They both felt the heat in their checks and the chemistry between them but they didn't act so that they didn't ruin the rhythm. They twirled and dipped and dance moves that were quite dancing. Simply what felt right.

We were probably once of the last people dancing seeing as the musicians having gone home awhile ago. But Viggo hadn't bothered to look up and check for his eyes were on the beauty in front of him. Horrendous hands were linked behind Viggos head. His lips only a few inches away. Viggos hands were lower on Horrendous hips then they probably should have been, but neither Viggo or Horrendous seemed to mind. Horrendous used the hands behind Viggos neck to bring himself up to Viggos ear. His lips ghosted his ear

"Wanna see something cool?"

Viggo knew he couldn't see his dopey smile so he just gestured for him to lead the way. Horrendous lead him outside. Viggo simply gasped in awe. It looked as tho hunderes of dragons were dancing in the sky.

 "A nadder is migrations coming through here. They preform their mating dancing on that island over there" Horrendous pointed to a island barely in sight. Viggo turned to Horrendous and slipped his thump under his mask.  Horrendous caught his hand. Viggo closed his eyes and Horrendous followed. Viggo  slipped the mask off hold it in his hand along with his own. The kiss was messy and sloppy but it eventual found its way.  Viggo slipped his hands  into Horrendous hair. Not long after slipping his tongue in. They went until they had to come up for air. Horrendous turned way flipping up his hood simply stating 

"Next time I'll bring a mask you can kiss me in"

Viggo caught his wright "Next time?" questioned Viggo

"Right here next month" Horrendous turned around covering Viggos eyes in the same instant giving him one last kiss. 

Perhaps Viggo thought to himself this party hadn't been all that bad.

No beta 1074 words. I had no idea what to do for this one.

[toomanyf4ndoms7]

Mortal Kombat: In the end: Never left behind.

Summary: After the destruction of Sektor’s warships, both sides recuperate.

Chapter list.

Chapter list part two.

Jax didn’t know where his escape pod had landed. The glass was tinted to keep privacy. Still, he could make an educated guess on what to expect. He heard muffled voices from outside. Military voices, perfect.

The pod was damaged by Sektor’s rockets and couldn’t be opened conventionally.

Time for some unconventional ideas.

With a few punches to the door, Jax was able to make an opening to tear the door off the pod and exit to the outside world.

His eyes adjusted to the sunlight, thankfully covered by trees. Before him was a group of OIA soldiers and Sonya Blade at the head with a look of shock.

“Listen, I know-

Before Jax could continue, Sonya wrapped her arms around him. This was an incredibly uncommon situation.

“Woah, missed me?” He joked, while appreciated the sudden warmth instead of cold steel.

“When your signal went down, I assumed the worst.”

Jax chuckled.

“Come on, give me a little credit.”

After breaking the embrace and forcing themselves back to business, Sonya’s posture shifted.

“Now, did you get any intel while you were captured?”

“I heard him talking about making alliances. Something big is coming.”

Sonya’s face was steel, yet clearly trying to work out the scheme. She had slight bags under her eyes. She must’ve been hard at work.

“That matches up with Cage’s info. Shinnok’s back and making allies for some new plot,” Sonya mused.

Jax would’ve been more focused on the mention of Shinnok were it not the mention of Johnny. He didn’t hate Johnny, but he didn’t consider the man a strategic genius who could uncover an unknown plot.

“I’m sorry, maybe that escape messed with my head, did you say that Cage gave you information?”

Sonya smiled and shook her head.

“You heard right, he and a bunch of our allies have had visions of some big battle. We’ve been going around making our own army for whatever Shinnok’s up to.”

“And I’m guessing we’ve been enlisted,” Jax bitterly added on.

Sonya fixed her partner a sympathetic look, he was one of the few she’d give them too.

“You don’t have to join up; you’ve been held captive by Sektor. If you wanted to sit this out, I’d understand.”

Jax shook his head, flexing his metal hands into a fist.

“This is what we signed up for. And if it means payback against Sektor, I’m ready for another scuffle.”

Sonya knew there was no arguing with him, she’d probably respond the same way in his situation.

“Alright, but we’ll send you back to base for medical assistance. We’ll need you at your best and check if Sektor left anything on you.”

As he was led to a military jet by other OIA soldiers, Jax felt himself exhale in relief at the return to form.

It was good to be back in safe hands.

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

Sektor teleported to the tekunin cyber factory and immediately entered the facility. His soldiers looked to him and bowed in accordance with their programming.

“Grandmaster.”

“Is the tracking device intact?” He ordered with mechanical efficiency tinted with the slightest frustration.

The soldier nodded, activating a screen that was tracking Jax’s location. It would lead them right to the SF base. He couldn’t enact his plan yet; Shinnok still required his services.

Everything was going according to plan. Once his alliance with Shinnok was over, there would be a new era of automation.

And Jax would be the key to unleashing it.

[cowboymaterials]

It’s international overdose awareness day (August 31st) so today is a good day to learn about your local harm reduction services! Since the beginning of the pandemic, overdose rates have skyrocketed. In Ontario where I work there has been a 79% increase in overdose related deaths, which can be largely attributed to people using alone (x). Similar figures can be found for the United States. The supply has changed too. We are seeing more frequently fentanyl cut with benzodiazepines, a combination with a significantly higher fatality rate. Those hit the hardest have been people who are homeless with 1 in 6 deaths being someone experiencing homelessness (x). If you aren’t educated on how to identify and prevent overdose deaths now is the time to learn.

Naloxone (generic) or Narcan (brand) is a fast-acting drug that temporarily reverses the effects of an overdose, restoring breathing and providing time for life saving intervention. Naloxone is used to respond to only opioid-related overdoses such as Fentanyl, Heroin, Morphine, and Codeine. Naloxone administered to someone not having an overdose has no effect and is completely harmless. It generally comes in two forms, a nasal spray and an injectable. If you can, have a naloxone kit in your home, car, bag, or workplace.

In Canada you can get naloxone at almost any pharmacy for free (or free with a prescription) provided you have a health card. The pharmacist will give you a short demonstration on how to administer naloxone as well. Multiple harm reduction agencies exist across Canada and also supply naloxone as well as other free supplies such as needles, alcohol swabs, pipes, and sometimes testing kits to verify the purity of a drug. If your province does not have free naloxone at pharmacies, majority of needle exchange and harm reduction services will have it for free.

Alberta

Grande Prairie & Fort McMurray: Northreach Society

Hinton: Options HIV West Yellowhead

Edmonton: Streetworks

Red Deer: Turning Point Society

Calgary: Safeworks Harm Reduction Program

Calgary & Medicine Hat: HIV Community Link

British Columbia

I would list them all but there’s more than 1000 harm reduction programs in the province. This handy map can help you locate the one nearest to you.

Manitoba

Street Connections provides a list of naloxone and needle exchange programs.

The Manitoba Harm Reduction Network

New Brunswick

Fredericton, Miramichi and Bathurst: AIDS New Brunswick|SIDA Noveau-Brunswick

Saint John: Avenue B Harm Reduction

Moncton: Ensemble

Newfoundland and Labrador

St. John’s: AIDS Community of Newfoundland and Labrador (ACNL)

St. John’s: St. John’s Women’s Centre

Nova Scotia

Halifax: Mainline Needle Exchange

Truro: Northern Healthy Connections Society

Cape Breton: Ally Centre of Cape Breton

Ontario

The Ontario Harm Reduction Network has a list of harm reduction programs.

Prince Edward Island

Charlottetown: PEERS Alliance

Charlottetown, Montague, Souris, Summerside, O’Leary & Albertson: Needle Exchange Programs

Quebec

Montreal: Cactus Montreal

Montreal: L’Association Québécoise pour la promotion de la santé des personnes utilisatrices de drogues (AQPSUD)

Saskatchewan

Saskatoon: Prairie Harm Reduction

Multiple harm reduction programs can be found across Saskatchewan here

Yukon

Whitehorse: Blood Ties Four Directions Centre

This is by no means a definitive list of all the harm reduction organizations in Canada. If you can’t find a harm reduction service in your community many HIV and AIDS organizations, First Nations community and friendship centres and homeless shelters carry these supplies or can direct you to the proper organizations. As well call your local public health organization for more information.

[dimdiamond]

Bagginshield fic list

Yeah, I decided to make one too because there are enough to cause me headaches and I'd like to have them somewhere organized. Please look at the tags before reading them!

Fix-it fics

Desperate magic by BeautifulFiction: Bilbo is left to tend Thorin as he hovers on the brink of death after the Battle of the Five Armies. Is love enough to save Erebor's king, or is this the last farewell?

Lay your troubles down by Avelera: An extended version of "the acorn scene." Bilbo sees his chance to snap Thorin out of his madness, and takes it.

The Riven Crown by BeautifulFiction: The aftermath of war is no laughing matter. Those who died must be honoured, those who are wounded must be healed, and those who remain need food and clothing, peace and sanctuary. With Thorin's life hanging in the balance, it is up to Bilbo and the rest of the Company to rule the rag-tag remnants of Erebor in his place. Then there is the matter of the gold... Can Bilbo save both king and kingdom, or is Erebor destined to fall deeper into ruin?

The Color of Possibility by lindoreda: When Bilbo puts himself between Thorin and Azog's blade, his mithril shirt protecting them both, it isn't long before some dwarves whisper that 'Oakenshield' might not be the best epithet for their king anymore. But for Bilbo, barred from Thorin's sight since the battle, this new epithet only adds to the sting. Spending his days caring for the recovering princes, Bilbo wonders how much more of this he can take, not suspecting his place at the center of a silent divide in the company.

Homesick by Margo_Kim: Five years after they've reclaimed Erebor, Thorin is sick of home, Bilbo is just sick, and neither is handling the situation ideally.

The Road Delivered Us Home by keelywolfe: In the years since Bilbo left Erebor, he has lost his respectability, gained a nephew, and gotten on with life at Bag End. He'd left aside adventure for the comforts and peace of his little Hobbit hole, and for the love of a child who needed him. Though perhaps, adventures can yet find him.

Notices in the Paper by YamBits: Bilbo returns to the Shire after his adventure, newly married, and newly homeless, after his two year absence allowed the Sackville-Bagginses to obtain Bag End. Bilbo and Thorin go to the Tooks for help, and find newly orphaned Frodo Baggins, also looking for a home.

A Royal Guardianship by ladyoakenshields: When Bilbo and Thorin return to the Shire for a sabbatical during Yuletide, they find a reason to retire the throne in Erebor sooner than expected.

The Shire's gems by awkwarng3: Thorin, Bilbo, and Frodo move to the Shire after raising Frodo in Erebor, and Frodo makes a friend.

Time travel fix-it fics

An expected journey by MarieJacquelyn: For years Bilbo has written about his adventures and told stories about his dealings with dwarves and dragons. To most it seemed like fanciful nonsense but to Bilbo it was all very real. A weight followed him home from his travels, one called regret. Now in his final moments Bilbo has a choice to make – go quietly into death’s embrace or go back again and face all the fear and pain for the chance to make things right? Of course, change is a fickle thing and not everything can be done again as Bilbo is about to find out. In the end, it may not only be salvation that he’s fighting for.

Bilbo Baggins, warrior of the Valar by Pallalalo: Bilbo raised his eyebrows. “And you’ve come to the Shire to look for this someone? My, Gandalf, I wonder if you know Hobbits at all. They would tell you that adventures are nasty, disturbing, uncomfortable things. That they would make you late for dinner.” Bilbo recalled his own words perfectly. It had been something he and Gandalf had looked back on with bittersweet laughter. This Gandalf however noticed his exact words. “Would they now? And what about you, mhm? What would you tell me about adventures?” #The Valar send Bilbo back in time, to the day where Gandalf asks him to join in an adventure. After living a lifetime of regret and suffering, he vows to change things for the better. For Thorin. For Frodo. But will he succeed?

I'll die to care for you by thehufflepuffhobbit: His gaze landed on Mahal's eyes once more. "You did your best, Thorin." It was tempting to look away; he wanted to deny that with everything he had. It certainly didn't feel as though falling into Gold Sickness and then dying was doing his best. Mahal smirked, as though he knew Thorin's desire to contradict him, and pinched his cheek before walking over to a table. "Aye, I didn't think you would believe me. I'm not lying, it certainly could have gone better. More according to my plan, but I know you really did try." "Your plan?" He didn't know if he should ask, really. Knowing that his Maker had set a course for him, he didn't want to think about the ways he had done everything wrong. There were too many examples of mistakes in his long life, too many opportunities that he had missed that had probably been planned for him from the beginning. Or:Mahal feels like Thorin fucked up his legacy and gives him a do over.

Darker times ahead by Reach4theSky: Bilbo is sailing to the Undying Lands but wary of letting go of the guilt that has been with him for many decade. His most sincerest wish is to go back and change what was done. Before reaching the lands of peace and healing, he dies aboard the ship and finds that his wish is being granted, not because he is the one to wish it but because this is the dwarves last chance to escape a fate of eternal waiting. He finds that not only is he going to be sent back to his younger body, but so is the entire Company of Thorin Oakenshield. Time is a fickle thing and not all the members have their memories returned to them at the same time. The journey on becomes interesting as the dwarves slowly remember and fight for themselves and their kin, yet new hurdles are thrown at them when they realize that more people remember than expected...

Of an arcane binding by Salvia_G: An inexplicable magic ties Bilbo Baggins, hobbit of the Shire, to Thorin, dwarven prince of Erebor.

Legends by DomesticGoddess: The fellowship has set out on its noble quest to destroy the ring and put an end to the threat that is Sauron! Just set out really, barely left the gates of Imladris, but things are going smoothly enough so far. That is until the two most unlikely party crashers fall upon their little fellowship. Uncle Bilbo and the Legendary Thorin Oakenshield?! Frodo just wants to know what's going on but the two of them won't stop hollering at each other long enough for anyone to get a word in edgewise. Suddenly, their little group is joined by Frodo's two biggest heroes and he discovers there was a lot more to Uncle Bilbo's stories than he realized.

Beside myself by bliboboggins: "What are you doing? Just who do you think you are?" Startled, Bilbo turned around slowly. And there, in a familiar patchwork dressing gown, brandishing a fire poker wildly about, was... Bilbo.

Erebor never fell au fics

The hearth doesn't make the home by Moonrose91: For things Bilbo could not change, he was condemned to a life of isolation, with the belief that none could love him. And then a Dwarf came to Hobbiton.

Clarity of vision by Mithen: In a Middle-Earth where Erebor never fell, a shadow remains in the heart of the Lonely Mountain. Bilbo Baggins finds himself drawn reluctantly into a quest that will lead him across the continent--from Bree to Lake Evendim to the icy North and beyond--with a party of five dwarves searching for an artifact that will cure the ailing King Thrór.

Ghivashel by mdseiran: The last thing Bilbo expects when he stays up late one night is company. The strange dwarf and his companion crash into his life and prove unexpected saviours. But the dwarf seems to think he will be joining them on their travels, and Bilbo has no such intentions.

The Song of My Heart by DomesticGoddess: After a failed attempt of trying to carve out a new home in the Blue Mountains for his people, Thorin finds himself beseeching the Hobbit Thain and his council for a place for his people in their bountiful land. An agreement is struck and plans in the works for integrating his people into their land. The only condition being an arranged marriage between himself and one of their family heads. A small price to pay to see his people safe and well fed. Unfortunately, he’s to marry the most disagreeable hobbit in all the Shire who also seems to hold a personal grudge against him. If only he could figure out why his new betrothed hates him so much.

Oak and Mistletoe by HildyJ: After a life dominated by a strange form of sickness, Thorin is sent to the Shire to seek a cure only Bilbo Baggins can offer.

Karkûn shukula - A Cinderella AU by harrypanther: When the Prince of the Shire visits the Kingdom of Erebor, there is great excitement. There are hopes he will choose to marry one of the Royal Family, cementing an alliance that would secure food supplies for the dwarven Kingdom and gain new allies. All eligible dwarves are expected to attend a series of Balls. Unknown to the guests, there is a third royal child, manoeuvred out by his ambitious stepmother, for whom this may be his last chance of restoring his fortunes and escaping his fate…

Alone this Yuletide by Emsiecat: 'Alone this Yuletide? Irritated with prying and nosey family members? I am an out of work blacksmith currently trying to make my way by any means necessary that does not involve my resorting to thievery (prisons are most uncomfortable, I've unfortunate first hand experience). However, if you would like me to be your strictly platonic companion for any social function, but have me pretend that we are in a serious courtship, so as to torment your family and ward off unwanted suitors then I am more than obliging...' After becoming increasingly irritated by overtures of romance from various Shire residents following the death of his mother four years ago, Bilbo is more than ready to resort to desperate measures. That is, up to and including pretending to be in a serious relationship with a certain surly blacksmith currently inhabiting the Bindbale Woods. It's a good idea after all; all they have to do is pretend to be in love over the Yuletide period and Bilbo's family and suitors will surely leave him alone after that. It's perfect! And nothing can possibly go wrong, right? Certainly nothing as preposterous as falling for one another for real...

Modern au fics

Nothing gold can stay by perkynurples: Bilbo Baggins led a rather peaceful life, thank you very much, until an old acquaintance decided to turn it upside down, and he found himself agreeing to take a job that’s… let’s say not exactly up his alley, and might eventually cost him a little more than his treasured cozy lifestyle. Who would have thought tutoring a slightly menacing monarch’s more than slightly overbearing nephew could prove to be such an adventure?

Love-In-Idleness by perkynurples: Taking Bilbo Baggins, a successful movie actor who is only just getting used to the perks and intricacies of becoming A Face People Want To See, and putting him together with Thorin Oakenshield, with his very traditional (read: slightly backwards) ideas about what constitutes Real Art and Real Talent, might very well be viewed as just some clothead’s idea of a joke. But there are jokes, and then there are carefully calculated risks the size of controversial reproductions of classic Shakespearean plays - for Bilbo, it is the chance of a lifetime to prove himself to all those who have ever deemed him too one-dimensional to even attempt stage, while Thorin has the opportunity to get out of the rut that’s been hindering his career for so long now, and shine in a role worthy of his talent once again. That is if the two learn how to share the same space for more than ten minutes without wanting to tear each other’s hair out. The course of true love never did run smooth, after all…

Candid by northerntrash: Thorin wasn't entirely sure why there was a six-foot candid photograph of him hanging in this exhibition, but he was going to wring the neck of whoever had put it there. In which Bilbo is a photographer, Thorin an accidental model, and Gandalf just likes to make trouble for everyone.

How the west was won and where it got us by stickman: Bilbo is a harried 1st year British literature Ph.D. (early 20th century fiction) who happens to have an interest in spatial narrative structures, a lack of time-management skills, and a tiny apartment with a lot of books and very little furniture. He’s stressed, always, and doesn't quite know where he belongs. He tells himself that really, this is, in fact, what he wants to be doing. But sometimes, as much as he loves books, he gets an urge to do something with his hands. Thorin is a disgruntled M.Arch. 1 in his last year who can’t be arsed to shave and frightens his students, and, frankly, his profs, but his work is top-notch so no one can really say much. They can, however, bully him into running a hands-on design workshop on Saturday mornings, which is complete crap, because he’s used to drinking his Friday nights into oblivion so showing up at Milstein at 7:45 the next morning and trying to teach in a room of wall-to-wall windows as the sun rises is not at the top of his list. Besides, no one ever shows up. Except one morning, someone does. [graduate school AU]

Butterfly effect by eyra: Yoga wasn’t for him. Yoga was for interesting people. Luminous people; people who took gap years and spoke a foreign language. People who ate lentils and burned incense and had fantastic, colourful friends with fantastic, colourful lives full of travel and silent retreats and those baggy trousers with elephants on them. Yoga was decidedly not for people like Bilbo, who wore cardigans and ate beans on toast and whose linguistic capabilities stretched only as far as a rusty Spanish A-Level. Just your regular story of boy meets yoga instructor.

Remover of the obstacles by MistakenMagic: "Dis often chided her older brother for being a misanthropist. She did it so often it had become a term of endearment. It was true that Thorin struggled with people; he struggled to form and maintain relationships. Dr. Grey had diagnosed him with this and Thorin hadn’t the heart to tell him this wasn’t a symptom of his PTSD, it was a symptom of his personality. He exercised a sense of apathy with almost everyone he met… But Bilbo was different. Thorin actually found himself wanting to know more about him."

Color outside the lines by andquitefrankly: Kindergarten has just gotten significantly better. Just ask Thorin, who's got the biggest crush on the new kid in class, Bilbo Baggins. With the help of his friends, Thorin knows that he can take back the swings from the 1st graders, show up the K-1 class in the school pageant, and win the heart of one curly haired boy. Yup. Kindergarten is going to be a year to remember.

Bran' New Suit by pibroch (littleblackdog): Andrew's description had been sufficient to recognize him— a riot of honey brown curls, short in stature, a well-favoured face with expressive features— but it hadn't quite been enough to prepare Tom for the sharp, almost painful tug in his gut at the sight of the man. They had never met before, to the best of Tom's recollection, but there was something eerily and inexplicably familiar about him all the same.

Different species au fics

I've grown a hedge around my heart by pibroch (littleblackdog): "Thorin was the essence of so many Buckland oddities, distilled into one misfortunate young hobbit, much to his infinite embarrassment. Built like a stork, his father had said once, in an example of Thrain Brandybuck’s usual tactless humour. All beak and legs." Thorin Brandybuck, just recently come of age, still lives in his family’s smial in Buckland, with his parents and two younger siblings. Thorin is an odd duck amongst his relations and neighbours-- unsociable, grumpy, shy, and awkward. And beyond that, he looks rather strange even for a Bucklander, strongly favouring the thick, dark haired build of his Stoorish blood. It defies all sense and reason why Bilbo Baggins, an exemplar of all the respectable traits Thorin lacked, would ever desire a friendship with him. Bilbo, as Thorin discovers, is not always as sensible as he appears.

In which the dwarves are satyrs for reasons by HiddenKitty What the title says basically.

Bride of the demon king by DomesticGoddess: Thorin is King of the demons, a beast-like race feared by humans. Ever since the demons and humans formed a truce years ago, the humans have sent a young human every year as a tribute to the King of demons. Thorin is tired of having to deal with the tribute that has long since lost its meaning. The only tribute he'd be interested in is the boy he met fifteen years ago on the border of the demon and human realms. Despite his fantasies, Thorin knows the chances of ever seeing the boy again are slim to none, until they're not.

Lost He Wandered Under Leaves by serenbach: Thorin son of Thrain is a struggling blacksmith descended from a fallen line of kings. In an attempt to provide for his family over the winter, he reluctantly accepts an impossible sounding task - to hunt down an enchanted deer that lives in the Old Forest that borders the Shire, and make armour and weapons from its hide and antlers. He never expected to succeed. And he certainly never expected what he found to change his life so completely.

A Dryad's Tale by Bilbo Baggins by Moongazer12: Bilbo is a dryad (think little sibling to ents). Long ago a curse was placed upon him from destroying one of the rings of power. Whenever he touches someone with his bare skin he will make them insane. But despite this, he and Gandalf have gone on many adventures to help protect Middle Earth (What was the point to destroying the ring if something else destroyed it instead?) Gandalf has called on him once again to help on a quest, Bilbo just hopes that they read his amendments to the contract.

The quest but with a twist au fics

King, come at the red morning by Tawabids: Bilbo has heard fairytales of the lost prince of the dwarves, Thorin son of Thrain, who disappeared the day Smaug attacked the Lonely Mountain. But he does not believe in fairytales until he comes across the dwarf sleeping in the depths of Erebor, and kisses him back to life. Now Thorin - a hundred and fifty years out of his time - has to confront a world in which his city is empty, his people scattered, his baby brother Frerin is king, two nephews he's never met are missing in action, and a war is brewing right on his doorstep. And as if that wasn't complicated enough he's trapped in the body of an old man and falling stupidly in love with a gossipy, grudging little hobbit.

When the sun rises by Harry1981: Bilbo Baggins of Bag End was not a very respectable Hobbit. No respectable Hobbit had a sword and crossbow hanging in their home, nor did they have Dwarves as family. But Bilbo Baggins did, and all of Shire knew of his husband, blacksmith Thorin Oakenshield. When Bilbo comes home to find his Husband earlier than expected, he learns of a quest to reclaim Erebor. It is a death mission. Bilbo knows that Dwarves are stubborn creatures, and none more than Thorin himself. But nobody said that Bilbo himself was any less stubborn. So he will follow his dearest husband across all of Middle Earth, through plains and mountains and forests, all while hiding the true nature of their relationship (Dwarven politics never helped anyone), brushing off some old wounds (and getting new ones) and finding out new things about the dwarf Bilbo calls husband (and his extended family). Nobody ever said love was easy, after all.

Small, but fierce by DomesticGoddess: As a result of a magical mishap during the trip to the lonely mountain, Bilbo is reverted to a wee little hobbitling. Only in body, of course. His adult mind is still very aware of the indignity of it all (seriously! He doesn't need to be coddled, carried, and fed like a child). It turns out, dwarves love children and there is nothing cuter than Hobbit children. Bilbo soon realizes that he can get away with just about anything in his babyish form and starts taking full advantage of it. Even the grumpy brooding king can't deny the angelic little creature anything he desires (and Bilbo's going to milk that for all it's worth).

Your song like a home in my heart by Nennvial: In Middle Earth, all creatures have a soulmate. Not all have some, but if they do, it is a bond nothing can break, not even death. The more famous story of such a bound was the story of Bren and Luthien, who even defied detath. The way someone can find out that the other is one’s soulmate is through song: when they meet and hear the voice of the other, a song sings in their heart, which feels like home and makes them complete. They may refuse it if they wish to do so, but they hence risk a life of bitter looniness. Thorin Oakenshield and Bilbo Baggins are soulmates, but they must admit it to themselves throughout their journey to Erebor.

To Dungeons Deep (And Caverns Old) by KingUndertheMountain: Bilbo Baggins was not your average hobbit. Of course, he had the wonderfully groomed and well-taken-care-of hairy feet like every other one of his race, yes, but he was not like other hobbits. He was cursed. Or, as the witch who gave him the enchantment put it, was “gifted”. She had given him the “gift” of obedience – whenever there was a direct command given to him, for example “cook a large meal” or “take a walk”, he could not disobey. Not without a lot of pain and eventual submission.

Chocolate candy one-shots

The world is sleeping (my world is you) by katheneverwrites (mandolinearts): I asked Persephone, “How could you grow to love him? He took you from flowers to a kingdom where not a single living thing can grow.” Persephone smiled, “My darling, every flower on your earth withers. What Hades gave me was a crown made for the immortal flowers in my bones.” - Nikita Gill ---“What do you mean, my friend?” There is a line of thought that surfaces in Gandalf’s mind, but he drowns it before it can take root. Surely not. But Bilbo’s chuckle sets him on edge. The small, gentle god of harvest, nature, and flowers sits up straighter, and in his crown of flowers there is a wire of strong metal, his cloak is suddenly not colorful anymore but the deepest black and he is terrifying, horrific, powerful - “I married Thorin Oakenshield, King Under the World.”

Of seasons by northerntrash: As far as he could tell, he had been kidnapped, which in itself made this week more than a little unusual. In which Bilbo steals away the Lord of Death, and Thorin can't quite bring himself to stay angry about it.

Warm up by paranoid_fridge: On one of their walks, Bilbo tumbles into a stream. They make it back to Bag End and Bilbo demands Thorin warm him up.

Royal Blue And Crimson Red by Mistofstars: Here's what happened before and after Bilbo accidentally eavesdrops on Gandalf and Elrond at night in Rivendell, as they discuss Thorin's quest and his family's history. Oh, and Thorin and Bilbo share a room, of course ;)

I was young when I left home by Margo_Kim: There was a pity clapper somewhere in the third row. Thorin finished his fourth song to polite applause from the people who noticed that the song was finished, but within the smattering of claps was someone beating his hands together like he was trying to rhythmically kill a fly. There was usually one of those, the kind who notices that no one else is paying attention and so is determined to compensate for that regardless of how they feel about the actual music. Thorin ignored him. It was easy to do so—he'd always hated looking at the audience when the singing was done.

A matter of buttons by StupidFatPenguin: “Your shirt,” says Thorin, quite out of the blue, and Bilbo looks down his front to see if there is a spot of tea or jam or anything equally embarrassing spilled on it. He is relieved to find nothing of the sort and looks up at the dwarf with an eyebrow raised in question. Thorin sits mute, his still-smoking pipe forgotten in his hand. He looks on for long moments still, seems almost lost to a thought before he shifts and lifts his gaze to meet Bilbo’s inquiring face. “It is familiar to me. Did you not wear this on the eve we met?” In which Bilbo and Thorin re-enact the evening they met.

The ladder by Milliethekitty27: Inspired from a post made by wheeloffortune-design on tumblr. Tired of his lonely kitchen in Yavanna's Garden, Bilbo Baggins wonders if the dwarven love of being underground is true in death. If so, maybe his dwarves are living (ha ha) under the very land Bilbo is weeding. With that thought, Bilbo goes and asks Hamfast for a shovel.

Love hobbit by HybridOwl: Bilbo Baggins considers himself a bit of a cock up, all things considered. He never made it out of his small highway adjacent town, can't seem to stop chain-smoking, and overall has more to talk about with the plants in his shop than 90% of all the rest of Middle Earth. So when he's reading the morning paper and a love note that can't be for anyone but him pops up, he's pretty sure - almost positive, really - that he's being made fun of. "TO the chain-smoking little stud who collects two metros from Gamgee's Goods every morning, will you be my love hobbit? - Bearded Biker." (heavily inspired by tumblr posts)

Fusion with other fandoms au fics

The Second Time by authoressjean; Sebastian Moran can't pull the trigger on John Watson to save his own hide, and what the hell is it with the doctor, anyway? Then Gandalf shows up, meddlesome wizard, and reminds him none too gently of his past life: as Thorin Oakenshield, leader of a company that had once included a small hobbit named Bilbo Baggins. One that looked decidedly like John Watson. And this would be the perfect chance to make things right with Bilbo the way he really hadn't been able to before he died, and that's when Gandalf tells him John doesn't remember being Bilbo, and to leave him alone. Right. Like that's going to happen.

And sow a star divided in us by MistakenMagic: Short summary: Gays in space! Longer summary: After his first successful solo mission, Jedi Knight Bilbo Baggins, trained by High Council member and full-time nuisance, Master Gandalf, returns to the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. During an excursion to the sparring arena, he meets a group of Dwarven Jedi from Ered Luin, a mountainous planet located in the Outer Rim. Young padawans, Fili and Kili, are full of curiosity at this strange, barefoot Jedi, but Master Thorin, who appears to have the personality of a rancor and mental shields like blast doors, is less than impressed.

Comics you should definitely check

Every work by rutobuka, seriously they're criminally cute and they're not still favored by everyone without reason.

Retelling the Hobbit by Mellow_Comics: Bilbo has never been good at telling the "true" story of what happened on his journey to the Lonely Mountain. Now he's trying to turn the tale of his quest into a lighthearted children's book-- a bedtime story for his young nephew Frodo. But what really happened on his journey? And how did it actually affect him? This is a comic adaptation/retelling of the Hobbit! It's framed as a bedtime story that Bilbo is telling a younger Frodo.

For now these are some of my personal favourites! However, I'm sure my list will grow since my reading list has some gems still waiting for me to read, so be certain that there will be a part 2 of this list!

[kinetic-elaboration]

November 19: Miller/Bryan, Defect

Miller/Bryan, Canon-divergent sometime in S3 I guess, ~700 words

Eh. This didn’t flow smoothly for sure, which doesn’t make me feel confident for getting back into writing, but maybe this practice will ultimately help. Just a little writing exercise thing.

*

Divisions grow, until eventually they’re exes living in two different settlements, each surrounded by its own walls. For a long time, the two groups do not speak to each other. An icy silence, a frigid stretch of winter. Bad blood. You'd never think that up in space they were all neighbors. Crammed together and bordered by nothing but blackness, an abyss, whole childhoods saturated in lessons about their humanity as a light for the future, and all that, they had to survive together or not at all. Now they put miles between them, stretches of forest, arcs of rolling hills. Frozen, calcified silence.

In Miller's view, the Farm settlement has stuck itself in the past. They're in Ice Nation still. They've never left. They're buried in snow. He can't entirely blame them because he's seen his friends killed, too; he's fought in wars, too; he has his scars and his bad nights, too. He's never actually forgiven anyone in his life. But damn has he gotten tired of carrying around burdens that only bend his own back. He doesn't understand choosing your own sickening rage over alliance, and peace, and growth.

Last time he tried to explain this, Bryan said he was too trusting—spit it out like an insult—and he wondered if they'd ever known each other at all.

Trusting. The last people to save his life then turned around and tried to kill him. The boyfriend he welcomed home from the dead packed his bags in the middle of the night, left at dawn with his people, absolutely stone-faced when he said it, as if Miller hadn't been his people since they were fourteen years old. Too trusting. It's pure fucking selfishness, his own form of survival, and Bryan, he thinks, should understand that.

Summer eases in after a long, wet, and chilly spring, and they start meeting by the river near the old Dropship site. It's a good cover. He feels like a spy, talking low over the rush of water as it nearly overflows the banks, still swelled with that year's snow, listening for sounds sneaking in underneath it or above. Bryan tells him that Farm had a hard winter, and Pike is losing his grip. The whole situation— Well. There's no satisfaction to it. Miller listens with a grim expression as Bryan talks and talks.

"It helps to have friends," he says once, vaguely, his fingers playing with Bryan's fingers as they hold hands, palms crushed into the dirt.

Bryan snorts. "Sure. Easy for you to say. We're just so used to seeing enemies on both sides."

Miller could tell him, hey, I was dropped into this hostile world all alone too. And it didn't get better. He's been thrown aside again and again, belongs nowhere some days, wears a Guard jacket that doesn't fit him, longs for that time when he had exactly what Bryan thought he wanted: a small band of allies for whom he'd kill or die, the simplicity of knowing you had who you had in your corner and you could trust every single one. This world's too big for people like them. The complexity is dizzying. He doesn't even know what he longs for anymore.

"It's not about politics," he answers instead. "It's about what you think is more important, your alliances, this shit that sounds good on paper, or your... your real human connections." He can't say friends because it sounds too lame, and because it would seem like he is talking about them, and they were never only friends.

"Sounds like the same thing to me. Who you trust."

"It's not. It’s— You can't trust everyone who spouts the stuff you want to hear." He pulls Bryan's hand up, kisses the heel of his palm still dirty with bits of soil, hard so it hurts and his lips taste like earth.

"You mean I should only trust you," Bryan says, voice perfectly level, gaze unflinching.

"I'm saying that the people I'd die for, they're the people I'd abandon everything for. That's loyalty you feel in your gut. You can’t rely on anything else out there, Bry. That’s the only thing I’ve really learned down here.”

[ally22042000]

Linked by fate

Involuntarium Invidia

Commenting and reposting is appreciated.

Werewolf AU

Angst, Fluff

TW: Sexual Assault / Offensive Language / Violence

OT7 x Reader

Pack Alpha: Namjoon

Alpha: Hoseok, Jimin, Jungkook

Beta: Seokjin, Yoongi, Taehyung

Omega: Y/N

Wordcount: 7.3K

A/N: This is sooo long. I hope you guys will enjoy it. Please be mindful of the trigger warnings. Let me know what you think in the comments or as a request. You can also request your ideas for the pack. -Ally

Involuntarium Invidia (lat.) = involuntary jealousy

The inner space of the car was quiet. A calming atmosphere surrounding the three of you. Namjoon had fallen asleep in the passenger seat. His head leaning against the window, light snoring filling the car every once in a while. It was good that he was able to catch a few more hours of sleep. The next few day were going to be rather exhausting for him, he needed all the energy he could get. Hoseok was planted in the driver’s seat. His hands were gripping the steering wheel tightly, his body sitting rigid in the leather seat.

The three of you were on your way to the quarterly UP meeting. United Packs. Every three month the heads of every pack that was part of the union met up, to talk about trading, threatening rogue actions, ectara. It was also used to form alliances that could profit the pack. Namjoon and Hoseok were required to attend as the future pack alpha and master of fight since they were fifteen. They came here with their parents to learn how to create partnerships with others. Take note of how much to offer to seam trustworthy but never enough to put your packs safety in danger.

Since you had turned last summer, Namjoon’s mother thought that not only should you accompany them, after you had finally proven to be a real wolf and knowing that you will bear her son’s mark as soon as you turn eighteen but that the boys were also old enough to hand the weekend trip on their own by now. It was a trial run, obviously. Testing the alphas if they were able to fulfil their business duties by themselves as well as they completed every other task thrown there way. And they were testing you. Were you able to support your pack alpha during this journey? Would you know how to carry yourself, interact with others, without bring shame to your pack?

As am omega, you were mainly arm candy on this weekend. An accessory for Namjoon to show off. Be seen but not heard. An antiquated requirement but one that your elders and a lot of the attending alphas still valued. After announcing that you would be joining the alphas, Namjoon had told you multiple times to just be yourself but keep low profile. You knew what that meant: he wasn’t happy with how things worked but had accepted the situation. You understood his point of view. These weekends were important for your pack. If you didn’t behave as expected it could cost your people a lot of alliances – vital alliances.

Knowing the weight that your appearance held, it didn’t surprise you that sleep hadn’t overcome you the previous night. You had to put on an extra layer of concealer this morning to cover up the bags beneath your eyes. It was also the reason why you had fallen asleep twenty minutes into the car ride. After a little stop halfway through though, you were more awake then ever. Your knee bouncing up and down the closer you got to your destination. The navigation system said it would take another seventeen minutes.

That was also the reason why Hobi was releasing more and more stressed pheromones. None of you enjoyed being here. It was a weekend of lies, fake smiles and a well performed dance of demanding and giving.

You scooted forward in your seat, knees pressing into the back of Hoseok’s. Raising your arms your warped them around his shoulders, forehead pressing into the cool black leather. Hobi released one hand from around the steering wheel and placed it on your forearms, thumb drawing small circles on your skin. Letting out a heavy breath you tried to let go of the anxious feeling that had settled into the bit of your stomach. A choked whine escaped your lips when it didn’t work.

His grip tightened, fingers pressing firmly into you, trying to give you his silent comfort. Startled you flinch when a hand softly landed on the back your neck. Your eyes flew open, only to close again, when said hand glided upwards, into your hair. Namjoon had woken up. The light pulling of your tresses forcing you to relax. Mouth staying shut, none of you said a word. Sucking up the last peaceful moments and bracing yourselves for the upcoming weekend.

All to soon you reached the hotel where the UP meeting was held. It was a neutral building, not claimed by anyone and only built for the UP. While Hobi parked the car, you marvelled at the sight in front of you. It was huge. An old build, U-shaped house, with dozens of windows. After the car parked you excited the Hyundai.

White gravel greeted your feet, your pumps creating a crunching sound. The November wind whipped around your body, tousling your hair. The temperature was cooler here than back at home, the mountain drew in the cold. Your cocktail dress provided little warmth, your body heat slipping away fast. You wore a black sateen knee-length dress with golden dahlias on it. Your shoes golden as well like your earrings, bracelets, and rings. A black sateen chocker wrapped around your throat.

Sudden warmth enveloped you, as Namjoon placed your coat on your shoulders. You didn’t bother putting it on properly, knowing that you’ll be inside soon and the heat there would be unbearable with the extra fabric. Silently he gave you your clutch before grabbing your free hand.

“Are you ready?” he whispered the words. Not wanting the bellboys unpacking your car to pick up on the conversation.

Looking deep into his brown eyes you nodded. He raised an eyebrow in question, showing he wasn’t convinced. Letting out a breath you pulled your shoulders back gave him soft smile. Reluctantly he nodded in return before turning around and make his way towards the entrance, your hands still intertwined. Checking quickly, you noted that Hobi was following behind you.

The portier opened the door for you three and pointed out the direction to the reception. There you were greeted by a nice middle-aged woman who checked you in. It was shortly past four in the afternoon, so your suite was ready for usage. You each got an individual key, after Namjoon requested one for your specifically. Camille, her name tag read, didn’t let the unordinary request falter her professionalism. Omegas didn’t have their own key; it wasn’t needed because they were expected to stay by their pack alpha’s side throughout the duration of the trip.

A young page boy brought you up to your suit on the fourth floor. The design was, like the rest of the house, vintage. The furniture was made out of rosewood, the dark colour perfectly correlating with the creamy colours of the walls and carpet. There were three separate bedrooms each with their own bathroom attached.

Unnecessary, of course, it was clear from the beginning that you would be sleeping together in one of the queen beds. Choosing the one with the few of the lake which was found on the left side of the building.

Hoseok immediately fell face first onto the rich mako percale bed linen, the Egyptian fabric luring him in. After the four-hour drive in was understandable that he was tired. You helped him out of his jacket and took of his shoes. You wouldn’t have to attend the opening dinner for another two and a half hours. He could get some sleep before he had to get read.

Leaving the room, you heard the shower running in another room. Your luggage was placed next to the front door, only Joonie’s missing. Happily, you slipped of your pumps and laid on the couch in the open area. One hand thrown over your face, the other placed on your stomach, right beneath your rib cage. Vibrations suddenly came from your left, your clutch shaking on the coffee table, where you had put in previously. Reaching for it, you fished out your phone, smiling when you read the caller’s name.

“Hey”, the word left your lips softly, careful not to wake Hobi.

“Didn’t I tell you to call me the second you arrived safely?”, his tone was accusing but you couldn’t help the huff of laughter that left you.

“We just arrived twenty minutes ago, mom.”, you added an eyeroll with the last word, knowing it was basically his second name with how often you used it.

“Not in that tone, young lady”, he played along. A giggle escaping both of you. Silence followed, as you both took a deep breath.

“How are you feeling?” So, there was the reason for his call. Miles away and he still knew you needed his comfort.

“I-I don’t know. I’m nervous. There are some many people, Jin. There were at least sixty cars parked outside, when we arrived and more coming. I don’t want to mess this up. I feel like just one slip up and I’ll ruin everything. I don’t know how to do this. You know me. I’m none of this well-behaved, only-speaks-when-spoken-to-omega.” With a heavy breath you ended your little outburst. Your thoughts laid out in the open.

“No, you’re not. And that’s what we love about you. You are perfect the way you are, honey. You are going to go to that dinner tonight and you are going to enjoy it. You will meet knew people and exchange stories. There is nothing you are going to mess up or ruin, okay? And the second somebody makes you feel this way or anything but nice to you, you tell Namjoon or Seok and they will put an end to it. You know they will.”

“But that is exactly the problem, isn’t it? What if I offend somebody important and Namjoon has to decided between my butthurt feelings and a crucial treaty?” You started to nervously play with the hem of your dress, spilling what had hunted you for weeks.

“No contract is more important to us than you, you hear me?” One question that brought tears to your eyes because you could hear the conviction in it.

“I know”, you timidly said. Having known the answer all along, but still not wanting to be the reason for it.

“Good. So, tell me, what are you going to wear tonight?” The question brought a smile to your face and happily you told him about your planed outfit.

-

The dining room full of commotion when you entered. Twenty-five big round white tables distributed around the room; silverware ready for the first course. You were led to your table number elven by one of the employees, carefully meandering through the crowd. Your arm was hooked around Namjoon’s bicep. Your pack alpha was wearing black slacks with a matching jacket and a white dress shirt beneath. Hoseok was wearing the same clothing but in all black, the outfit matching his hair which was parted on his forehead. Namjoon had dyed his hair silver a few weeks ago because of a lost bet with Seokjin. To say it drove you crazy was the understatement of the century. He picked up on your liking of his new look quickly, noting the way you would use any excuse to run your hand through it, pulling at the strands and leading him between your thighs on more than one occasion.

Arriving at your table you were greeted by an elder alpha who had two female omegas sitting on each side of his. His name was Kim Do Hyun, the omegas weren’t introduced. You hadn’t heard of him before, but he seemed to know Namjoon, greeting him with a hug and nodding towards Hoseok.

On your right was sat a she-wolf alpha called Park Sun Hee in attendance with her omega Hyo. Park was the first who had introduced herself to you and asked your name. Your answer almost a whisper before you turned your attention back to Namjoon, missing the way her red lips curved upwards.

On your left sat alpha Hyun Jae with his son Seung, an alpha as well, and his omega Mi Kyong. A beautiful girl, but she couldn’t have been older than twenty. Seung was obviously older than his father’s omega and whenever his father paid the omega any kind of attention, a snarl painted his lips. His disliking for the girl was obvious.

Namjoon pulled out your chair and your carefully sat down, mindful of the long cut on the right front of your azure blue dress. Namjoon sat down to your left and Hoseok to his.

“It’s good to see you again, Namjoon-Boy. How have you been?”, Do Hyun asked.

“I’ve been well, thank you for asking. How about you?”, your alpha replied politely. There was a heaviness to his voice. He couldn’t be open and talk freely like you were used to with him. Here he had to mull over each word in his head and make sure not to fall into any hidden traps.

“Ah, same old, same old. I see your mother finally decided you were old enough to attend the meeting on your own. And you brought a newcomer”, he let his word trail of into nothingness, waiting for Namjoon to introduce you.

“This is Y/N, a part of my pack.”

“She doesn’t bear your mark”, Sun Hee pointed out, her tone irking something deep within you. It was more than just an observation.

“Not yet”, Namjoon responded with a sharp edge, “she will turn eighteen next year. That’s when I will mark her. That has been decided long ago.” His words leaving no room for misinterpretation. The she-alpha simply raised one eyebrow but stayed silent.

“You should take note, Jae. Seung is how old now? 23? 24? There is now reason why he should still be accompanied by his father”, Do Hyun said with a laughter.

“Ahh, the boy isn’t ready yet. There is still so much he has to learn. He isn’t as smart or studious as Namjoon. The boy never listens”, Hyun Jae answers. If Seung is hurt by his father’s words he doesn’t let it show. He simply waves down a waiter and requests a whisky.

“You see?! The only thing he’s good for is drinking himself into an early grave”, Hyun Jae says, his accusation filled with laughter. Seung’s eyes met yours, his pupils holding a dark heaviness. Pain written in the depth of them.

Before a new conversation could be started or more insults could be dished out, the first course was served. Throughout the evening various topics were breached. Do Hyun wanted to talk with Namjoon the following day about a potential trading contract, assuring him that he would profit greatly from it. Sun Hee talked with Hyun Jae about the coming winter while his son was asking to Hoseok about different fighting styles he had acquired and which one he deemed best.

Whenever possible Namjoon had put a hand on your leg, giving you his silent comfort as you stayed silent unless you were asked a question.

“So, Y/N, tell me something about you”, Sun Hee next to you demanded.

“Ahm, there isn’t really much to say about me”, finishing you sentence with an awkward laugh.

“I’m sure that’s not true. I bet you’re more interesting than you think”, her eyes bore into yours as she said that.

“Uh, I guess. I am seventeen and still in Senior High. It’s my last year, although, I’m not sure what I’m going to do afterwards.” While you were talking her eyes ran over your body, catching on the cut which provided her a nice view of your leg.

“And have you ever considered to leave your pack? To travel, gain new experiences?” Her eyes travelled back up, lingering on your unmarked neck. Her pink tongue came into view as she licked her fangs.

“Ahm, no, not really. I- I am very happy with my pack.”, you stamped, leaning slightly in the opposite direction.

“Maybe there are other places that could make you happy – other wolfs”.

A threatening growl arose from your left, Namjoon’s hand grabbing the back of your neck and pulling you towards him. Sun Hee immediately replied with a threatening rumble of her own, not backing down from the challenge.

“Believe me, I keep my omega very happy. There is nothing you could give her, that she doesn’t already have.”, the words were hard to distinguish over the deep growl that wouldn’t stop vibrating from his chest. Red covered your cheeks as you understood their meaning.

Suddenly Sun Hee’s growling came to an end, and she got up and left. Her omega trailing timidly behind her. Namjoon didn’t move keeping you tucked close to him while he followed her with his eyes. Making sure she left the room.

Your eyes connected with Hoseok’s, his mouth moving silently: are you okay? You nodded slowly, not wanting anyone to worry. Slowly Joonie’s hand travelled from the back of your neck to your check as he steered you so he could look you in the eyes.

“Are you alright?”, he eyes searched yours thoroughly, telling you silently that one word from you was enough for him to take you up to your suite.

“I’m fine, really. Nothing happened. Don’t worry. “, you gave him a reassuring simile. A pregnant silence filled your table, nobody sure how to respond to the situation, nobody but one.

“Don’t worry about it, Namjoon-Boy. You know how Sun Hee is, she’s a flirt. You should have known that that would happen if you brought an unmated omega to this place. They are nothing but trouble.” A scoff followed Do Hyun’s words.

They hurt, deeply, but you didn’t let it show. You had realised throughout this dinner that he was one of the main trading partners of your pack. You wouldn’t let his old-fashion view cost your wolfs their food. You whispered an “Ignore it” to Namjoon and resumed eating your chocolate cake.

The rest of the dinner thankfully advanced without another disruption. By the time you reached your chamber your feet ached because of the silver high heels and it was difficult to keep your eyes open. As soon as you had taken of your makeup and put on a nude-coloured negligee you climbed into bed with your alphas. Claiming the middle, like most nights. Their alpha instincts never allowing you to sleep at the edge if other wise possible.

You laid your head on Namjoon’s pectoral, hand landing on his ribcage. Behind you Hobi rolled over until he was spooning you from behind, nose nuzzling into your hair as his arm wrapped itself around your waist. There was no spaced left between the both of you. Namjoon’s left arm laid outstretched below both of your heads, fingers buried in Hobi’s hair.

“Well, that was a good start to this weekend.”, at Hoseok words your pack alpha visibly deflated. Stress and tiredness were written all over his face. He buried his right hand in his hair, pulling slightly at how frustrated he was.

You whined lowly at seeing him in such distress, reaching up to tuck your face into his neck. Inhaling his scent of coffee and old books you ran your tongue over his scent gland. A happy rumble echoed within his chest. You felt it more than you heard it.

“It’s going to by okay. Tomorrow will talk with her and settle the situation. Remember what we’re here for and let’s focus on this task. We have to do what is best for our pack”, you are surprised at your own words. Trying hard to keep a clear head.

Namjoon nodded shorty, agreeing with you. The three of you exchanged your “goodnights” and “I love you’s” before you let your eyes drift shut. The days taxing events easily knocking you out.

-

The following day Namjoon was occupied with a meeting where all the pack alphas from the west met. Outsiders weren’t invited. Hobi was having a meeting with the fellow masters of fight near our border. Talking about new defences and how to overview rogue actions. A possible hunt of them also being part of the discussion. Meanwhile you spend most of the day in your room, reading a book about wolf anatomy, the content part of the questions in a nearing exam, ordering room service and having a call with Jimin and Taehyung.

The both of them where on their own little adventure this weekend. Taehyung took the kids he was watching over, at the day care he helped out, on a little camping trip to the south. Chasing the last warm rays of sunshine this year had to offer. Jimin immediately asked if he could be part of the trip as soon as he hear about it.

They told you about the adventures they had been on since the morning before being called away quickly, the kids demanding their attention. After their call, you take a nap on the couch, only awoken by Hoseok hours later. Waking you to get ready for tonight’s dinner.

This time you wore a forest green dress. A simple A-line that touched the floor, thin straps sitting on your shoulders and black ankle strap lace heels gracing your feet. Namjoon wore the same suit as yesterday, but with a dress shirt that matched your dress. Hoseok went with light green slacks, a with dress shirt and white sneakers.

Same room, same table, same guests. But this time Namjoon didn’t take any chances and made sure you sat in the middle.

Sun Hee kept the conversation strictly business, not looking in your direction once.

Hyun Jae, however, couldn’t stop talking about Namjoon and what a competent alpha he was going to be. Praising him for finding such a capable master of fight and well-behaved omega. The more praise your alpha got; the more drinks went down Seung’s throat. The young alpha sending of enraged pheromones whenever his father passed an insulating comment.

As soon as dinner was over, Do Hyun stole Namjoon away, previously complaining that they hadn’t talked about the trading contract yet. Hoseok stolen away by Hyun Jae, the elder wanting to introduce some wolfs to him, who had just gained the title of master of fight.

You all agreed to meet at the suite, knowing that those conversations would take awhile and you already being rather tired. You held a polite conversation with Mi Kyong for a few minutes before excusing yourself from the table.

“I’ll bring you to your room”, Seung said while pushing his chair back.

“Oh no, that isn’t necessary”, you replied. Uncomfortable with the thought of being alone with the unfamiliar alpha.

“Please, it would be remiss of me if I were to let you go by yourself.” His tone didn’t leave any room for debating. Not wanting to make a scene you accepted his offer and bid your goodbyes to the rest.

Entering the elevator, Seung suddenly became very nervous. He started to fiddle with his hands and his breathing picked up. His scent laced with nervousness filled the limited space. Pressing the number to your floor, you looked at him concerned.

“Are you alright?” A curt nod was all you got in return. When you reached your floor there was a shift in the air. Determination colours his features and he rolled his shoulders back, the anxious behaviour whipped away. He silently followed you off the lift, walking behind you and watching as you opened the door to your suite.

You stepped inside, turning swiftly to look at the alpha. You suddenly notice how tall he was, at least a head taller than you, hovering over your form. He was leaning against the door frame, head hung, eyes focused on his pointy leather shoes.

“Alright”, you said hesitantly, “thank you for accompanying me. Have a good evening, Seung”, you were about to close the door when no replay followed but he stretched out his arm, holding the door open.

“You know, since my father met Namjoon he doesn’t stop talking about him. How great he is, an amazing alpha who is going to lead his pack to great success. Everything I do, always gets compared to his actions, pointing out how inferior I am. All the aspects I am lacking in constantly thrown in my face.” His head was still pointed downwards while he uttered those words. He said it with a passive voice, that scarred you to the bone. The wood creating a creaking sound underneath his hand which was still holding the door open.

“I thought there was nothing else he could outclass me in. And then he shows up here, with this beautiful, obedient little omega, that he can call his. It is so unfair. I will never catch up to him. There is nothing I can do against him- but there is something I can take from him.” With his last words his gaze rose, settling on your neck. Your mouth went dry, and a freezing fear settled into your bones.

The law, that betas and omega weren’t allowed to be marked before their 18thbirthday was well known in your world and ruled over every wolf. Alphas were able to leave their mark way earlier, but it was deemed illegal. Most off the time young wolfs aren’t able to comprehend the severity off the marking and regret it for the rest of their lives. This can lead to heavy depression and the death of one or both wolfs.

A forced marking is even worse. If the process doesn’t happen willingly, most of the time, your inner wolf doesn’t accept the claim and forces themselves to harmful measures that will cause death sooner or later.

Before you could process what happened, Seung threw the door open and forced his way inside. You fell backwards with the presented strength, landing harshly on your back. A throbbing pain shot through your ankle, which had been twisted in the process. The door was closed with a deafening slam. Seung tuned towards you, letting his eyes slither over your form.

“First, I’ll take your pussy and while I’m buried within you, I’ll pierce my teeth through your skin. Marking you as mine, body, and wolf. Namjoon will never want you back and I’ll finally have something he hasn’t”, he growled, moving towards you.

You scrambled back fearfully, tears springing to your eyes. The carpet beneath you leaving burning scratches, when he bends down and pulls you towards him by your calf, his grip hard enough to leave bruising.

“No, no, no, no. Please stop. PLEASE.” Your scream was followed by a tearing sound as he ripped your dress open in the front. A cut from the bottom to the ending of your thighs, black thong peaking out from beneath. You tried to pry of his hands as he pushed your legs apart, forcing his way between them. After delivering a deep scratch to his right forearm he grabs your wrist and holds them above your head. Keeping them there with the injured arm.

His other arm trailed down your arm to your shoulder and chest. Harshly grabbing your boob, realising it only to pinch your nipple. A scream slipped past your mouth, the sting forcing the dam to break. Tears flowed over your face as you begged him to stop, sobbing into your arm when you had to turn away from the view of him. Mascara and lipstick smudging over your face.

Your pain didn’t hinder him, if anything the look of disgust and fear only spurred him on. His hand continued its journey, landing at the tear in your dress. Thumb reaching down to press into the black fabric of your underwear. The intimate touch caused you to jolt, nauseous consuming your senses. Clutching the top of your thong he pulled upwards, making your pussy lips, and scraping your clit with the harsh tug.

He placed his hand on your thigh to pull you closer. Grinding into your vulva, you could feel him hardening in his pants. Trembling violently, you pleaded for him to stop. He shushed you, leaning down to firmly press his wet lips on to yours. Sobs racked through your body. Forcefully he pushed his tongue through your opening. Salvia and tears reached your taste buds, the flavour causing your gag reflex to be triggered, a retching sound filling your throat. Unconsciously you bit on to the foreign body part. Blood filled your mouth as Seung pulled back, screaming in pain.

“You fucking bitch. Ah, fuck. You whore.” His hand released your thigh and pulled upwards. His first connected with your jaw, pressing your head into the floor. A ringing sound arose in your ears as black dots clouded your vision. Another slap was delivered to your face. The ring on his middle finger causing the soft flesh on your bottom lip to tear.

Suddenly his hands released you. Looking down you saw him undo his belt. A sticking fear jolted through your body and before you knew what happened you drew your right leg up to your chest and kicked him in the solar plexus.

The force sends him flying backwards, laying on his side, trying to draw in air. Jumping to your feet, you ran past him, out the front door. Far away, that was the only though on your mind while you stumbled forward in your heels. Looking backwards every once in a while, still continuing down the corridors, trying to see if he was following you.

A dinging sound in front of you drew over your attention. The elevator doors glid open and both of your alphas departed the transport mode. Their eyes falling onto you when they heard your footsteps racing towards them. Eyes springing open, as they saw the state you where in. Before they could react, you had flung yourself into Namjoon’s arms.

“Y/N what happened?” “Who did this?” Their voices overlapped, frantic in their questioning. You tried to answer but couldn’t the words stuck in your throat as you sobbed into Namjoon’s neck. He held you close to him, trying to calm you down but failing as his concerned and angered pheromones filled the air. You heart beating violently in your chest.

Faintly you could feel Hoseok’s presence leaving but you couldn’t focus on anything. Inhaling Namjoon’s original scent beneath the raging emotions he felt, your omega was able to calm down slowly. Your alpha’s here. He is going to protect you. Nothing can happen to you while he’s there.

“Alpha”, the name leaving your lips in a whimper.

“Shush, relax omega. Whatever it is, I’ll take care of it. Just calm down. Breath”, his soothing word had the hoped-for effect.

It wasn’t often that you tracked back to calling each other by your hierarchical order, deeming it humiliating and degrading in most case. But there were these moments every once in a while, where the regression had to happen to comfort one or more party. Creating a simpler mind set that could cloud a frantic mind. Thankfully, most of your alphas knew when a situation called for it; Jungkook still learning how to read the signs.

The adrenalin left your body, and your weight came crashing down on your limps. Heavy breaths filled your lungs. It was difficult to keep your eyes open, the crash sucking away all your reminding energy. Before you knew it, your consciousness left, leaving your limp in Namjoon’s arms.

-

The first thing your noticed when you opened you woke up was the sharp pain thrumming through your skull. The second thing was something heavy on your tummy. The third thing was a phantom hand that grabbed your thigh. Frightened you sat up, the heavy object lifting of you in the process. Pushed up on your arms you leaned forward in your sitting position heavy breath filling your lungs as your eyes focus on your upper leg. No hand. Closing your eyes, you exhaled relieved.

Something wet pressed into your forearm and when you turned you saw a black wolf was laying next to you on the bed.

“Hobi?” The wolf whined lowly, leaning forward pressing his head into your chest, forcing you back on the mattress. He shifted closer until he could rest his head on your collarbone. Suddenly the memories hit you like a truck. They were fragments and messy: marking, dinner, Seung, elevator, thumb, punch, carpet, comparison, kiss.

You shook your head vigorously, trying to rid yourself of the recollection. The movement only worsening your headache. Burying a head in Hobi’s fur you tried to focus on your breathing. You were here, unmarked, untouched. You were fine. Everything would be fine.

You don’t know how long you laid there, subconsciously petting the wolf next to you while attempting to calm your thoughts. Sometime later Namjoon entered the room, glass of water in one hand, headache pills in the other. Urging you to empty the entire cup.

“What happened?” Your voice was horse, but you weren’t sure if it was from the lack of use or the previous screaming and crying.

Namjoon took a deep breath, quickly glancing at the wolf before settling his gaze on his watch clasp, fiddling with it while talking.

“After you pas- after you passed out in my arms, I called for the stationary on call doctor. We brought you into this room and he looked you over. Turns out your body went into shock and shut itself down. You didn’t sustain any serious injuries, he didn’t- “a deep breath pushed past his lips, his fists balling, “you have some bruising and we have been icing your jaw. They should be gone in a week or two. You have a mildly sprained ankle which will take about the same amount of time to mend itself. Physically you’ll heal fast.”

The silence that filled the room was deafening. His apprehension to talk about the person that caused all off this obvious, but you had to know. You gaze drifted to the window on your left. It was dark outside, the sky filled with little stars. The moon only being partly visible form this angel.

“And what about- “, you let the sentence trail off, not able to speak his name. Hoseok answered with a deep growl. You ignored him, not able to console him right now.

A faint crack was heard. Turning your head, you saw that Namjoon had broken the clasp off his watch.

“After Hoseok saw the state, you were in he went to investigate. When he entered our suite and found Seung there. He put two and two together quickly. He- detain him. We informed the reception who called the police. They said they want to talk to you tomorrow, hear your version but they have your dress with his fingerprints as evidence.”

Silently you digested the information. Looking down on yourself your noticed that you were indeed not downing your torn dress anymore. You were wearing a pair of black sweatpants and a black jumper, both Namjoon’s. You notice purple fingerprints covering your wrists, your mind immediately taking you back to the moment you got them. How he laid on top of you, caging you in. Forcing himself on you.

Only when Namjoon lifted a hand to your check, did you notice you were crying. His touch was soft and delicate as if you could break at any moment. His hands had been rough when they touched you. Grabbing at you, pushing you, gripping you.

A new wave of sobs arose from your throat as you were brought back to that awful moment. Crying harder when you think about everything that could have happened.

Your alphas stay with you, holding you through it. It wasn’t long when you fell back into a restless sleep.

The next time you awoke, your suitcases had already been packed and your car was ready for take-off. You were supposed to leave around four in the afternoon, not seven o’clock in the morning, but none of you wanted to stay for the last lunch with the other packs.

The talk with the police had been short and taxing. The evidence clearly indicated what happened and on the hotels security footage they were able to see how Seung had force himself into your room. Interestingly, the footage of when Hoseok entered the suite had been lost.

The hotel apologised multiple times for the incident, promising to improve their security system on each floor and that something like that would never happen again. Camile checked you out, her customer smile from the beginning not present this time.

While you were backing out of the parking space you made eye contact with Hyun Jae who was standing in the entrance of the hotel. A stoic look covered his face as he watched you. You heard from the police that Seung was in the hospital at the moment. From there he would go straight into custody after he had healed enough. No visitors allowed until his trial was over.

When you didn’t give a reaction to his sight he turned around and walked back inside. Deep within there was a voice that screamed at you, telling you that this wasn’t over. You turned you gaze away from the hotel and focused on the trees that were flying past you. Hoseok speeding down the forest road, wanting to get away from this place as fast as possible.

Namjoon had told you that he had informed the others, a grimace painted your face when he did. Knowing that they would worry themselves beyond saving.

The car door was ripped open before the vehicle had stopped moving. Jungkook unbuckling your seatbelt and pulling you into his arms. With your legs hooked around his waist he stepped away from the Hyundai. He held you tighter than he had in a while. Scarred someone was going to take you away from him.

“I am happy your okay. When Hyung called I was so worried. I couldn’t bare not being able to hold you, to know you were alright.” He pressed his face into your neck, his tears staining your skin. Slowly you lifted your arms to submerge them into his hair, pressing him closer.

“I’m here. You don’t have to worry anymore. I’m right here”, you tried to calm him down, knowing how sucked up in his own thoughts he could get, without sharing his fears with the others. Always ready to be leaned on but never the one to lean on anyone. It was seldom that he showed his emotions so openly.

Movement behind you caught your attention. Turning your head, you saw Yoongi and Seokjin standing there. Holding out your hand toward them, you made a grabbing motion. Quickly they came over and engulfed you and the youngest alpha. Jin put his head on yours while you could feel Yoongi burying his face in your back.

You stayed there for a while, letting them scent mark you to calm their inner wolfs. Fully aware of how stressed they must have been; knowing their youngest was attacked but not being there to comfort you.

“Come inside, I want to look at your wounds”, Seokjin said while detangling himself.

“The doctor at the hotel already check me. I’m fine.” A pointed look from your oldest made you close your mouth. This wasn’t open for discussion. His gaze was caught by the purple and blue colouration on your face and his jaw locked, furry dancing in his eyes.

It took awhile to convince Jin that your injuries weren’t that major. He ordered you to lay back for the following week and to ice the bruising places regularly. And to immediately inform him if there were any new symptoms arising.

Jungkook hadn’t left your side since you got home. It was decided that all of you would stay at Jin’s house since your parents were on a vacation. Kookie would lay beside you on the bed eyes tracing every emotion that crossed your features, following you to the toilet and wating impatiently outside while you did your business. Sitting next to you at dinner, feeding you whenever he thought you were eating too slowly and that it must be because your wrist was hurting.

Jimin and Tae had insisted on a phone call before bed. They didn’t return until the following day form their trip. Asking you a million question and always needing one of the others to confirm that you were indeed fine. Tae cried over the phone and Jimin had to end it before he could wake the kids.

All of you fell asleep on the couch together, cuddled together.

The first nightmare woke you an hour later. Seung torturing your mind. You jostle awake, mind slowly processing your surroundings. Thankfully, neither Jin nor Jungkook had awoken, both of them laying next to you.

A clearing throat captured your attention, eyes finding Yoongi in the old brown leather seat next to the couch. His designated seat. A steaming mug sitting on the coffee table next to him. With a tilt of his head, he called you over. Carefully you untangled yourself from the two boys and walked over to the beta. Seating you across his lap sideways he moves your head, so it rested against his shoulder.

Silently he handed you the mug, blowing on it slightly to make sure you didn’t burn your tongue.

“Do you want to talk about it?”, he asked into the darkness. Shaking your head, you lifted the mug and brought it to your lips. Peppermint tee, Hobi’s and your favourite since you connected the scent to Yoongi. The beat also smelling like soil, a fresh mix for the sleepy wolf.

“Okay”, was all he said. Accepting your silence for now. It was going to take awhile before you would be fine again. The colourations on your skin would leave but the psychological scars would take longer to heal. Nightmares would torment your nights and loud noys and rapid movements your days. But you would get through it, because you had your seven protectors that would fight every fight by your side. Even the ones in your mind.

They would be overbearing for a while; Seokjin almost having a heart attack when you missed your bus back from school and came back thirty minutes late. His calls going straight to voice mail because your accumulator was empty. Chewing you out on the front porch about the importance of being available at all times; or why else would you carry a phone with you. Fear and worry being edged into every crease of his body.

Jungkook almost starting a physical altercation when he saw an alpha talking to you at the mall, thinking he was making you uncomfortable, when all he did was ask for direction. Storming over and shoving him away from your form. Needing Namjoon to pull him away from the stranger.

Namjoon and Hoseok suffered their own mental torture. Blaming themselves for what had happened; repeatedly saying that they should have never left you on your own. Hoseok throwing himself into training; working out daily until his muscles hurt too much to move. Jin constantly preparing vitamins for him to help heal the little tears in his muscles faster.

Namjoon on the other hand almost becoming overbearing, thinking he had to improve his leader skills, constantly fretting over the youngest until he was pushed out of the room. Taehyung growling at him when he wanted to tag along on the youngers exclusive forest run where he tried to discover new plants.

It took you all a while to get back to normal, but you managed; together. And three month later, you didn’t hide away from your responsibilities and stayed at home; like Namjoon’s mother offered. No, you went with your heads held high, chest puffed out and clear mindsets – all eight of you. Making a clear statement, that Kim Namjoon’s pack wasn’t one to mess with. That there was never a fight that you could win against them. They only came back stronger, prepared to take you down in order to protect their own.

[mariacallous]

The ruling party has been losing ground in the last months and a tough winter lies ahead. Yet the democratic opposition has more work to do to convince voters of its unity and ability to govern.

For the first time in years, the Polish democratic opposition is giving off a less downbeat vibe. With a year to go before the next general election, its polling numbers are looking up too.

According to an aggregated poll by Ben Stanley, associate professor at the SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities, the only plausible parliamentary majority at the moment is an alliance of the three largest opposition forces: Civic Platform, Polska 2050 (the centrist party founded by Szymon Holownia) and the left-wing alliance Lewica. While the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party allied with the far-right Konfederacja comes close, a united opposition is more likely to form the next government, according to the latest numbers published by Stanley.

Stanley’s aggregate, which is based on 14 different individual polls conducted by various research institutions, shows PiS’s support has been on a slow downward trend since early summer, weakening from around 38 per cent to 36 per cent. If this continues, the sociologist writes in a text for the weekly Polityka, “PiS’s aura of untouchability might quickly disappear.”

Reversing the tide is not going to be easy for PiS. In addition to the natural erosion in support for parties in long-term power, additional pressure is coming from surging inflation and energy costs, which are only likely to get worse as the cold season begins.

Furthermore, political commentator Galopujacy Major points out PiS has lacked any ability to come up with a fresh campaign theme that might rally its supporters behind the party. “PiS still can’t impose a narrative and each new attempt is unsuccessful,” Major tells BIRN.

“They already tried to start a scapegoating campaign against trans people, to accuse the opposition on the issue of war reparations, and now they’re trying to impose their narrative on the issue of the Vistula Spit canal,” he says, referring to a canal over the Polish section of the Vistula Spit that would allow ships to avoid the currently used Russian strait.

“That’s a controversial investment because it cost 2.5 billion zloty [525 million euros] and yet it turns out that larger boats can’t use it,” Major says. “That might be dangerous for PiS, because each billion lost in these times of inflation is a poke in the eyes of voters.”

Preserving living standards

Despite the challenges PiS faces, however, Major cautions it is not yet time for the Polish opposition to uncork the champagne.

PiS might not have been able to present an attractive new offer to the electorate, but in times of such extraordinary economic pressure the most important battleground is likely to be whether the governing party can maintain its traditional promise to voters, that of safeguarding their living standards.

While the opposition describes the current economic situation as disastrous, Major points out that unemployment is still low, medium and large companies are reporting profits, inflation is to some extent being mitigated by hikes in salaries, and the economy is not yet in recession.

On top of that, PiS has already announced that the minimum wage will be raised twice over the 12 months, reaching 4,000 zloty (850 euros) a month in 2024.

The government is already offering some subsidies to make up for the rise in energy costs and it could always pull new ones out of the bag as the election approaches.

“PiS is the most vulnerable it’s ever been since 2015,” Anna Wojciuk, a political scientist at Warsaw University, tells BIRN. “But that doesn’t mean it is weak or that it has lost.”

Wojciuk points out that PiS need only return to 38-40 per cent in the polls to find itself back in a winning position, which is both doable and something the party has achieved before.

“Nobody knows if PiS are capable of regaining support or not. But what we know for sure is that for them winning is priceless,” the political scientist explains. “That means they will not hesitate to spend as much as is necessary in order to win back voters.”

She also warns the governing party has previously shown it is not averse to resorting to more nefarious means to win support. In previous elections, for example, it engaged in surveillance of the opposition using the Pegasus spyware.

“It’s an increasingly uneven playing field,” is how Wojciuk regards the state of democratic elections in Poland.