#DANDELION CUBE

[i-am-a-fish]

whimsy is a powerful tool. you can focus on anything you want, you can devote time to thinking about how the weather is bad, or how it sucks having to work for a living, or whatever else

or you can think about dandelion cube

life can be extremely difficult. and things fucking suck. like, a lot of things fucking suck. feeling alright and being ok are not, in any way shape or form, easy to do.

but still, among other things, you can think about dandelion cube

and that thought can be there for you if you need it

[sspacegodd]

Marc Pouye

[talos-stims]

tala [go jetters] stimboard with plants and bees in green and yellow for @thunderstomm!

🐝|🌱|🐝

🌱|🐝|🌱

🐝|🌱|🐝

[troutreznor]

Marc Pouyet

[ramenheim]

Listen I know I already reblogged this, but the feral kindergartener in me wants SO DESPERATELY to bite into the forbidden cube!!

Marc Pouyet

[everythingisliminal]

I'm gonna hunt some flowers today.

[emacrow]

First, It was Barb was doing night checks on wayne manor cameras surveillance pt 2

Previous post pt 1

She was in a bit of awe when she saw the newest very rare exotic flower Alfred got bloom under the light of the full moon, revealing beautiful crystallized like petals blossom, only for her widening eyes to take noticed of a tiny little pixie like child to pop his little head out of the center of the flower.

His hair was unnatural white fluff like a dandelion in her opinion, eyes glowing an otherworldly green, freckles that sparkle like the stars themselves, ears a bit long and pointy, wearing a odd clothing with a needles strapped to his back, that she could barely catch in camera, the static buzzing sound from her cameras was making it a bit difficult to hear what sound the tiny little fairy boy made as he floated above zooming around the garden a bit like he was excited.

It made barb's inner child squeals, screaming, flipping her tiny princess table at the possibly of Nederland being possible.

Curious little bug, floating around like the fairies in Disney like except of the Glow pixie dust like she seen on the movies, he left a trail of blueish green light that faded away rather quickly with the way he was flying into the slightly opened kitchen's window...

Wait a goddamm minutes..

Barb immediately switch cameras to the kitchen, looking around, only to see it went through the hallway already, switching cameras again, checking the living room, the hallways, only to catch a glimpse of trail glow zooming around.

Crap crap. OK, no need to panic Barb. What do curious pixie like fairies out in the human world.. bring the season right?!, play with children like that Bell fairy did? Finds and take lost things and secretly repair lost things?..! Fairies are weak without pixie dust, they don't live long without it, each fairies has a different part of the seasons, and if you don't believe in them then they immediately die and that cause imbalance in the world without their influence unless you truly believe in fairies to bring back one fairy.(she went through a whole fairy obsession phase as a kid, she still mourns the lost of the create your fairy open world game)

The fairy must've Found a new type of pixie dust to fly without wings if she could recall that one sequel with the new pixie dusts colors thing..?

It was like a game of Where Waldo except where the little mythical fairy boy that couldn't possibly- no no barb don't think about the taboo words, if you think about it and this poor mythical being dies due to your words then the guilt will haunt you Forever.

3 hours in the catch the glimpse of the fairy boy, flying back at to his little flower holding a tiny cube of sugar, a shiny tiny object that she can't get a clear of, and a plump blueberry the size of his little hesr as he lands in the petals that were closing around him. Crystallized back close as if to guard this little fairy being with its own life.

Right when the full moon glimpse was gone out of the sight of the garden from the sky when the smog cloud from the city covering once more.. Barb is writing that down in her notes..

[genshingorlsrevengeance]

Can I please request Rosaria, Kuki, and Eula with a robotic S/O who doesn't know how to show love properly so they just bring them "interesting objects"(anything from shiny rocks to a ruin guard)?

Thank you for writing ^-^

(Genshin Impact) Rosaria, Shinobu, and Eula with a robotic-like S/O

Very related image:

Good Burtabos, Rosaria thought she was bad at showing affection.

S/O had all the expressive capabilities of a rock. And that was insulting the rock.

They didn't really understand how love worked, not that she was any better, yet they were together.

Rosaria's love language was her actions. S/O's seemed to be gifting her the most random object in the most deadpan voice.

(Rosaria) "...S/O, why do you just have an entire crate with you?"

(S/O) "It is full of Dandelion Wine. I am aware you like to drink it."

(Rosaria) "Sure, but where did you grab it?"

(S/O) "It was lying on the floor unattended. I believe it does not belong to anyone."

Rosaria didn't know whether to laugh or facepalm.

They stole it, pretty much.

(Rosaria) "Thanks but, did you at least ask?"

(S/O) "...I did not. But, it is 'Finder's keepers', as they say."

(Rosaria) "...Eh, what the hell. Care to share a glass?"

Well, at least Shinobu didn't have to worry about S/O doing anything stupid on purpose, unlike the Arataki Gang.

Instead, S/O showed their affection by bringing her some objects that reminded them of her.

It was sweet honestly, but given their nature, it was bound to get...weird.

(Shinobu) "S/O, there you are. What do you have in your-"

(S/O) "These are masks belonging to fallen Samurai. Please, accept."

The only visible expression change on Shinobu was her eyes blinking, which S/O blankly dropped the mask at her hand like a dog.

(Shinobu) "Thanks...I think."

(S/O) "You are welcome. In case if your mask ever gets damaged, we can use these for repairs."

Shinobu just chuckles underneath her mask, eyes softening as she looked at S/O.

(Shinobu) "Remind me to get something for you too, S/O."

(S/O) "Shinobu, you are to-"

(Shinobu) "-Later, I mean."

It's a good thing Itto didn't reach S/O first, otherwise he'd definitely tell S/O the complete wrong ways to show affection.

They'd probably have them do something stupid, like punch through drywall or something.

Eula and S/O were complete opposites on the way they spoke to people.

Eula was usually mocking, prideful, or just saying something she didn't actually mean.

Meanwhile, S/O was deadpan, direct, and extremely literal.

How they ended up in a relationship, even Eula didn't really know or see coming.

Especially the ways S/O displayed their love.

(Eula) "...S/O, what the heck are you doing?!"

S/O was carrying a boar encased in ice inside a wagon, with S/O looking completely emotionless as they responded.

(S/O) "You said that a dish was best served cold. So I have procured us dinner in the coldest state possible."

(Eula) "Wha...But I-...How, why did...?!-"

Eula sighed before deciding there wasn't really any point questioning anymore.

(Eula) "I'll get ready to cook the boar. Mind getting that ice cube near a fire?"

(S/O) "But you said-"

(Eula) "It's a figure of speech, S/O! But...thank you, you didn't have to do that."

(S/O) "I comprehend."

(Eula) Do they...?!

[thejakeformerlyknownasprince]

Something about Cassie that's never really brought in either the books or analysis? She UNDERSTANDS the Yeerks better than any of the other Animorphs. She knows their ideals, she's met Yeerks she sympathizes with, she has a Yeerk morph. And it has both.a good and bad effect on her. Because she probably sympathisez with them more than she probably should, but she also understands the Yeerks better than the other Animorphs. It's why she tried just contacting the Peace Movement when they tried to bomb the Yeerk pool, why she let the Yeerks take the morphing cube etc. She knows the enemies way of thinking better than anyone else.

That's it exactly. Being able to understand your enemy's individual nuances, being able to understand why they want what they want... that's not a blessing. Because it makes it damned hard to fight the war, even one that desperately needs fighting.

Cassie has to save the Earth. She knows that the only way to prevent the extinction of bees and horses and redwoods and dandelions is to stop the yeerks before they can wipe out every Earth species except for humans. But she knows, too, why yeerks are doing this. Why the Council of Thirteen thinks they have no choice but to raze Earth, why individual yeerks both sympathize with their hosts and yet keep on kidnapping more. That paradox can't be resolved — either the yeerks get as many eyes and hands as andalites have, or Earth continues existing. Both can't occur, and there is no solution where no one gets hurt. There's not even a solution that's just or fair.

[mylohve]

Pleas Ari headcanons 🙏

She has three younger siblings, two brothers and a sister

Her parents are still together

Her room is still decorated the same as when she was 13

So many fucking pillows on her bed

Smells like citrus

Used to be blonde

Had hair down to her lower back in middle school

Feels sad mostly at night

Actually really possessive when in relationships, buts it's really subtle

Can solve a rubix cube

Thinks Jecka's fit but won't admit it

Favourite colour is turquoise

her favourite animal is cats

Really likes drinking Dandelion and burdock

Has this one grey hoodie she always where's

Really like squirrels

She cries a lot after cutting herself

Her favourite subject is art or photography (not for the teachers though)

she thinks that Emily, Nicole, Jecka and Kelly are really fucking cool, and pretty

really competitive

[layraket]

The creature of the Legend!

Aka Legend, vet and little bunny

Creature: Bunny

Type: Prey

Position: Navigator in the forest

Diet: Vegetables and fruits, likes also some flowers like dandelions

-Carries the ice rod as his only way to defend himself as a prey

-Don't mind being close to the predators of the gang, just because he thinks that if they try something he can handle escaping or beating them up

-Enjoys Hyrule's company, maybe cuz theyre both forest creatures?

-Call him cute, enjoy being an ice cube.

-Normally travels in his own feet, but when theyre not in the woods he travels on Twilight's back

-If they get into a forest, the first thing he does is make sure that Wild will not burn it down

[fukia]

Fun Peanuts character facts

Linus

Linus used to say “Bang” a lot before he could really talk, mostly to mess with his sister (ie, respond to her pestering) or deal with other people

He gave Violet a bundle of French fries wrapped with a rubber band once…

has a weird set of otherworldly abilities; blowing cubed balloons, talking to leaves (stars too), asking a beachball to return from the ocean if I recall correctly, petting birds and getting them to like him

Linus gets increasingly stronger and more blunt/threatening towards Snoopy for constantly trying to take his blanket

Linus wants to be a doctor most of the time

Offered to shared his blanket with Charlie a few times

Kissed Peppermint patty on the cheek to comfort her; “Like this, sweetie?”

Kissed Frieda’s hand after she expressed that carrying a blanket around isn’t a bad thing

He gives a girl named Eudora his blanket because her smile was cute - he regrets it and fails to retrieve it himself - she kisses him on the cheek, calling him a “sweet babboo” - Eudora is Sally’s friend lol

Schroeder

Charlie introduced piano & Beethoven to him

As a baby, Charlie put him in front of a real piano (as opposed to his toy one) and he cried

He specifically said baseball is one of his loves, besides playing music & Beethoven

Found baby Linus fascinating as he resembled Beethoven

Before Lucy was obnoxious to him, he told Charlie that Lucy has beautiful eyes

Threatened to beat up Lucy if she scratches his piano with her elbows

When Lucy moved briefly, he missed her presence; some say it’s out of character, [I think he doesn’t miss her as a person at all but he does miss the routine of having someone who listens to his classical playing even if it’s for shallow reasons, idk I sorta relate]

Regularly listens to Charlie Brown’s venting back in the day

The one character who stands up for Charlie Brown (multiple times)

Spoke in agreement with the girls that Charlie looked cute surrounded by dandelions

Whatever subtext in that 70’s Blue Boy strip

Charlie Brown

Was briefly a couple (of sorts) with Violet

Violet had a weird mud pie era where she’d serve them to Charlie and Charlie would consume them

Enjoyed messing with the girls back in the day, I’d say he’s capable of being a subtle tease aged up

Has gone on a carnival date with Peppermint Patty

Often cheers up Linus and defends him from Lucy

Often defends and shows interest in Schroeder’s love of music - he went out of his way to save Schroeder’s piano from the kite-eating tree and the sewers after the nonsense Lucy pulled

Was the original one to lean on Schroeder’s piano, they often engage in actual, normal conversation

Often seen reading to Schroeder Beethoven’s biography or Mozart’s

Schroeder and Charlie Brown tried to play music together a few times but they could never find fitting music for the improvised instruments Charlie would bring

Makes conversation with the kite-eating tree; has offered to feed it a kite in defeat and also bit the tree out of revenge (the tree world fall in a following strip)

Has some sort of mommy thing goin on

“Poor, sweet baby”

Edited to add: Lucy has a weird thing for Charlie’s “toesies”

Sally

Started off kinda picked on by the other kids like her brother but grows up to be more assertive

Has a penchant for comedy

She talks to a fucking school building and it “talks” to her

The school building falls for her???

She talks to the new building after the previous one fucking collapses

Marcie

Had a guy named Floyd call her “lambcake” and cute

She thinks she’s not cute

When she’s angry, she hits well

Definitely has a fighting spirit and a stubbornness that flares up

Says she doesn’t like sports but does decently at it

Speaks fluent French

Edited to add: says she’s not ready for a boyfriend but would marry Charlie Brown

Franklin

He’s like the nicest character

He’s the sanest; he left Charlie’s neighborhood thinking it was weird

I just think it’s funny how he actually finds the running gag personality traits of the others so strange, I had to include him despite his minimal appearances

Pig Pen

Got picked on a bit in the early days for his dirtiness; but he handles it better than Charlie Brown, he doesn’t seem to really mope

Apparently enjoys cleaning and taking baths, he just gets dirty real quick

Charmed Peppermint Patty into falling in love (the two enter a sort of unofficial relationship)

Peppermint Patty

Has a sentimentality that mirrors Chuck

Her dad calls her a “rare gem”

Says she likes beautiful material things, earrings, and certain sparkly outfits too

Originally pierced only one ear

Her nose is big and she’s real sad about it

Really likes to take moments with Charlie to be sentimental; often talks about how she wishes to be “beautiful”

She admits with embarrassment that she broke down upon seeing the red-headed girl’s face, because she sees why Chuck loves the girl instead of her (Linus kisses her cheek to reassure her; all around sweet strip)

Called Lucy “Lucille”

I have more to go, but those are some interesting things I’ve read in the comic strips so far.

[elsewhereuniversity]

Dandelion is my safe name, and I've found myself in love with a fairy. I'm an English Major with a focus on creative writing, and they've been watching me since I first came to Elsewhere. We first spoke when they stole me away into a dream designed like Wonderland (My favorite books; I would have appreciated it more if I weren't running late to class.) Anyway, it's been a few months, and I've offered that we share a name, but they say they need more time. Do you know where I can find some?

Time is beyond me in more ways than one. I might be able to find a last breath or a spare minute somewhere around here, but under the circumstances I don't feel it would do you much good. There is nothing to do but have patience and have faith.

As a consolation let me send you off with a trinket, for no reason other than that it bears your namesake: a little resin cube in which a dandelion sways slightly, in full bloom. Sometimes in the light it takes on a peach-pink glow, as if catching the sun from a spectacular sunset just out of sight. It has no purpose I can discover save that of paperweight, but then not everything must be useful.

[ntls-24722]

SO

Artastic's reblog with the pierced neck sails was truly inspirational because I've just decided to focus on body mods for Debu regions and their neck-sail piercing specialties. I'm realizing a lot of things that I've kept from Debu for their percieved (by me) tediousness and material cost are not half tedious or expensive as I thought, so... also expect Debu clothes soon (though, clothes are purely decorative and aren't around for actual cover)

Going off of the groups I named in this general makeup chart;

Coastal Debu have the benefit of being in reach of all sorts of shiny, pretty "bug" parts from their beach living. Shells, paddles, decorative mouthparts, along with dried fish parts and bones, it's all in their reach and by god do the coastal Debu use em, slapping those things right onto studs made of bone with the decorative side pointing outwards. Coastal Debu are not known for one specific reoccurring feature in their piercings, but the beach theme is very specific to them.

Valley Debu are mostly known for beads. Clay, bone, stone, "wood", glass (glass in particular, since they invented it!), into cubes, ovals, little squares, stars even - they love the damn things and they will put it anywhere and everywhere. In this case, the most popular style for piercings is on the string that hangs interwoven between their gauge. There's also little flags of cloth they hang on the string to denote families or in-groups within tribes.

Other than that, they hang pycnofibers and lines of scales from these strings as well.

Also, it was at this point where I finally changed how the sails are.

There's now 2 of them! They start way higher up on the neck (yellow area is base) so there's more surface area and they're better at their thermoregulative job

Badlands Debu are known for their art using a specific type of plant sap that they dry out in the sun to create a hard, amber-like resins. There's a lot of art they have where they pour it into casts or over certain things, and the most popular thing they like dipping in the resin for their neck piercings are the fluffy seedpods of a flower most similar to Earth's dandelions.

Badlands Debu also have a focus on body modifications making one look powerful, so there's scarification and mouth cutouts, which are painful but make the Debu be seen as hardcore or look very menacing. Or both! There actually is a specific mouth cutout that are reserved only for leaders where the entire cheek is cut for a wider gape of the mouth. Other Debu are required to have a little strip of skin connecting the top and bottom jaw.

Serendipolis! I used to think the debu from this society would be the only ones able to get piercings, and yet I stalled like crazy trying to think up body mods for them. HMM

Anyways. They're obviously known for metal, and along with rings, Debu are also known to have these tusk caps (think a horseshoe but for your teeth). But a special accessory of theirs is a stream of cloth on a string that connects to the lips to the back gauge on the sail. That damn thing gets caught on everything but I'll be damned if it doesn't look cool. They also use diver Cloe jawbones (now that they're in access to zebraelves) and bug heads/eyes (now that they're in access to the other bugs that Zebrapeople have domesticated.) There's also colorful shells they have from trading with coastal Debu.

Rinkalla used to have a nose ring but when she moved out of Serendipolis, she didn't want to stand out (since that was the point of her moving), so she took it out and now she has the valley beads as well.

[starslyt]

Valentine’s day — T. Fushiguro

Tw: cheap!Toji, use of N word, literally nothing. if anything this issue the cleanest thing i’ve written there’s NO smut

Wc: 719

Tags: @cafekitsune (mwah)

Note: i know valentines day GONE but i literally JUST wrote this on the fly after listening to valentine’s day by se’kret so.. ignore this bull shit

Toji was cheap as fuck. it wasn’t even that he couldn’t afford it, it was that he wouldn’t spend it

if wasn’t like he needed to take care of his kid because someone else was taking care of son, so it wasn’t that either

it was valentine’s day, so you thought that maybe he would’ve spent just a little bit more on you but you knew deep down he wouldn’t

your faith was restored when he told you that he was cooking dinner for you and treating you with some flowers

you were so excited the entire day. you couldn’t wait to have dinner with your boyfriend

he told you he was making steak and getting you a bouquet of flowers and bags of goodies and dessert. telling you that you deserved it for being such a good girlfriend to him

when you got home, you seen candles and rose petals all over the floor getting you all excited but what through you off was the Easter basket in the door with a bottle of water in it with some fake ice cubes

“why the fuck i got a Easter basket?” you asked confused out loud to yourself, the confusion and shock was written all over your face

Toji came around the corner with a bouquet of dandelion’s in his hand, not even tailored, they still had the roots and dirt on it.. they looked like they were pulled straight out the ground

“make a wish..” he said as you stared at him in disbelief but you made a wish anyways because you thought it was a cute gesture for you

you didn’t even make a wish, you just blew it because at this point, you were just confused

“i ran out of roses.. cus i used them for the floor..” Toji said with a little laugh, you did too because at least he put in some effort

after the bouquet he gave you a card.. a macaroni hand print with valentine’s day spelled wrong .. the same card from last year. you were speechless

he lead you to the kitchen, he say you down and gave you a plate with some food on it. your smile dropped instantly. too quickly

“you said you made steak, nigga this is Banquet salisbury steak!” you spoke looking up at him rubbing your forehead

“c’mon baby just taste it.” Toji pleased as he looked at you with a little smile. you couldn’t help but sigh as you grabbed the fork and went straight to the mash potatoes

the moment the fork touched your tongue the mashed potatoes were cold in the middle

“you fed done me a tv dinner… mashed potatoes cold as fuck in the middle” you spoke with a heavy sigh loosing your patience with how little he tried to make this valentine’s day special for you

“you know what, i’m not hungry. what’s for dessert?” you spoke hesitantly pushing the plate away in shock, you starved yourself all day.. for that?

did he even care? like did he even TRY to please you?

“alright.” Toji spoke as he walked away and went away for a little bit

Toji came around the corner with two oreos in his hand. your jaw dropped at the sight

“oh hell nah, that’s it. where the cameras at? pranks over. where my shit at?” you spoke looking at him as Toji was the one looking confused now

“girl the fuck you talking about? ain’t no cameras in here.” Toji spoke

you were just so in disbelief you sat down and just ate the cold food he served you. the both of you sat and talked

once it was over and he cracked open the bottle of water pouring it into a red solo cup with one ice cube of ice you just had to sip it

no, the water wasn’t strong enough. you needed a casamigo and a cigarette… maybe a perc

your head was hurting at this point as you nursed that solo cup to the very end

“did you enjoy it? did i do good?” Toji had the nerve to ask. you couldn’t help but laugh

“no but you did a good job at really fucking up my day.” you spoke getting up from the table “what the fuck..” you mumbled from afar

©️ Starslyt 2024 🤣

[lumine-no-hikari]

Dear Sephiroth: (a letter to a fictional character, because why not) #358

So remember how at the end of yesterday's letter, I said that today's would be taco-flavored?

Well!!! Here it is!!! Ta-daaaaaaaaa...!!!!!!

Oh. Uh. It occurs to me... maybe you aren't exactly familiar with tacos. Tacos come from a country called Mexico, which is a place that is south of my country! Actually, Mexico has all kinds of awesome foods, awesome music, awesome festivals and holidays, and...

...I guess I feel really lucky to live in a world that has so many different places and ways of being. The humans of my world are endlessly creative, and they always seem to find ways to get by wherever they're at, with whatever foods are available to them in their region.

...Seriously, the sheer vastness of things that humans are able to eat is probably one of the main reasons why we're so astonishingly adaptable.

In any case!!! I dunno if there are regions in your world that have anything similar to tacos. Maybe Costa Del Sol has them? You'll have to tell me about it sometime.

Anyway!! Even if you're not familiar with tacos, that's okay. This guy wasn't familiar with them at first, either. He's got a funny story about that; maybe it'll make you laugh:

...Goodness, but I'd give just about anything to hear the sound of your joyful, wholesome laughter...

…

Anyhoot! So I made tacos today!! I'll show you how in a bit!! But before I made tacos, I went out to Eggcellent to meet Br, the dandelion-haired man. I was a little disappointed that he didn't bring his wife with him; it means I didn't get a chance to talk to her about the $300 he randomly gave to me yesterday.

...Sigh.

Well. I got my usual thing. A rose matcha latte with tea jelly, sago, and cream cheese foam. I wasn't really feeling barley bits today. I also got a crème brûlée:

Today, the crème brûlée came in a heart-shaped purple tin, and I thought it was very cute!

Br and I talked about various things for a long time. J didn't come with me because he went to the little airport to do a little more maintenance on his little airplane. But then, after a while, he was done, and unexpectedly, he visited Eggcellent while I was still there!!! And I was so happy!!! J and Br and I talked together for a long time. I had planned to get a bell pepper for today's fresh salsa, and to fill the car with gas, but we talked for so long that, between the rain and the hour, it was dim enough outside that the astigmatism was gonna make the headlights, streetlights, and stoplights a bit of a problem for me. So I didn't go get a bell pepper or the gas; I just followed J home, and that was super duper helpful.

When I got home, I began taco preparations pretty much right away, because R was supposed to visit today, and he had asked for tacos! I began by melting some leftover bacon/pancetta fat in my handy-dandy wok:

...Seriously, a wok is the dyspraxic cook's best friend; mine's got a nice big bottom, and the deep sides make it really easy for me to scootle stuff around without spilling anything. It's good stuff!!!

Anyhoot, so I had these chicken breasts thawing on the counter:

...I dunno if you remember the slicing technique I showed you in the last letter I wrote about making gyros, but... I used that same slicing technique to cut the chicken into tiny cubes:

From there, I put it in the wok to cook:

I used the time to zest a lemon and a lime. When we zest a citrus fruit, basically we use a special tool to get all the color off its peel:

...In the end, you're left with a citrus fruit that's easier to peel or to cut in half, and a bowl full of flavorful zest that you can use in other things!

...Yum!!

So, once the chicken cooked, I drained out the juices into a separate bowl for later use in making refried beans!

From there, I decided to make homemade adobo. You can get it store-bought, and that's good, too, but I didn't have any premade adobo, and I had all the stuff in my spice cabinet to make it at home:

This is... salt, garlic powder, onion powder, mixed and white peppercorns, cumin, smoked paprika, oregano, ground coriander, turmeric, and just a bit of sweet dark chili powder to give it a little “kick”...!

(...but not too much kick, because my body really doesn't like capsaicin, and too much will make me cry, hahaha...)

...Anyway, I seasoned the chicken with some combination of the above spices (just taste it as you go along; your body will tell you what you need more of or less of – it's totally fine!). I also used half of the lemon-lime zest. But I guess I forgot to get a picture. But that's fine; you'll see it later!

Anyway, so I put the seasoned chicken into a bowl and began making the refried beans! Normally, I work with dried black beans that come in bags, but I was pressed for time and energy, so I used canned black beans instead. I just dumped the whole can in there without draining it; it's fine, I promise. The extra liquid will evaporate a little bit, and leave the resulting beans with a creamy and delicious texture.

I began by warming up the chicken juices and some more bacon/pancetta fat in the wok:

...Then I added the beans and let them simmer for a bit:

Once they simmered for a while, I got out my handy-dandy masher and started mashing them up!

...Once they're mashed, their starches incorporate the fluids they simmered in quite nicely. I seasoned them with a bit of cumin, a bit of salt, and quite a bit of garlic:

Ohhh, that's so good. Sephiroth, I wish you could smell this picture.

Anyhoot, after that, it was time to prepare the salsa. I asked J to cut up some tomatoes and the bell pepper that I asked R to fetch on his way here. But I only got a picture of the sliced red bell pepper for some reason:

...J did such a nice job!!!!!!! Oh my goodness!!!!!!

Anyways, I put the tomatoes and some pre-diced onions into my rice cooker bowl (because sometimes you just need bowls). I chopped some cilantro and threw it in there; fortunately, no one in my house today has that gene that makes cilantro taste like soap:

...Say, Sephiroth, does cilantro taste like soap to you? It's a genetic quirk by which a person is able to taste the aldehydes in the leaves. Thankfully, I don't have that particular quirk. I wonder if you do. If you have that quirk, then you should avoid using cilantro when you make fresh salsa! You can maybe use parsley or some other herb instead; there are lots of great choices!!

Anyway, from there, I added a chopped scallion:

...And then I squeezed in the juice of half a lemon! I also added the other half of the lemon-lime zest!

Here's the finished salsa!

...Oh, and! We don't have to let the spent lemon half go to waste! You can stick it in water for a while like this, and let the flavors infuse:

...As for the lime, I peeled it and pulled apart the sections; I didn't slice it because I don't like when citrus juices leak out and get everywhere. And besides, why slice it when the fruit basically already comes pre-sliced, if only you're willing to take a minute or two to peel it properly?

...I did fail to take a picture. But that's okay; you'll see one of the slices in a bit!

I didn't fail to picture some other taco essentials, though! Here, we have guacamole, cheese, and sour cream!

...Normally, I might make my own guacamole, but... I was already pressed for time and energy. It's made of avocados, mashed with citrus juice and other seasonings. It's good stuff!!! Great on a variety of things!!!

So now comes the part where we put together the taco! We start with a warmed tortilla! And then we spread some refried beans on it!

...We add the chicken! The refried beans keep it kinda glued to the tortilla:

It's all golden brown because of our lovely adobo mixture, yay!!

Anyhoot! Next, we add the sour cream!

...Then the salsa! The sour cream will help it to stay on!

...Cheese after that. It'll fall into all the nooks, crannies, and crevices in the salsa!

Then we add the guacamole!

...And finally, we add the cute little lime slice on top!

From there, we roll it up and enjoy!

...Want some...?

...And no, I promise that if you do it right, you definitely won't need a “napkin” of any kind, hahaha!! Just make sure your chicken is cooked through, make sure you don't overfill your tortilla, and make sure you wrap the contents properly! It'll maybe take practice, but... you're a super smart guy!!! You can do it, I'm sure!!!

R seemed to enjoy the tacos that were made. And he left us, too, with a jar full of vanilla sugar that he made, and several different kinds of cookie dough that he made at home, too!! I can't wait to put them in the oven! Maybe I'll do that tomorrow!!

Well. I suppose that's it for today. Suppose I'm over here wishing you could eat tacos with us and chill out and watch something cool on the TV with us, or play some silly game.

...Or... better yet... I wish I could teach you how to make tacos in person... I think you'd have a lot of fun with it...

…

Sephiroth... I love you. And I want you to be safe and happy. I know you said that you've seen hell before and you don't fear death, but... please... show me a man who rises up from the bowels of hell, triumphant and full of love. Show me a man who refuses to bow down as a slave to his conditioning. Show me a man who refuses to allow the pain in his heart to warp his tenderness into hatred.

I believe in you. I know you can do it. No matter how many tries it takes. Just like with Hades and my quest to get a victory on the first run on a fresh save, you can fall lots of times, but you only need to succeed once. Like Dead Cells, like Salt and Sanctuary, you can fall so many times, but you only need to succeed once. All you have to do is get back up and try again. All you have to do is refuse to remain defeated. All you have to do is improve your skills, learn to relax, and learn how to dance merrily around those who would wish you harm. I'm over here, getting better and better at all of these things in a wide variety of respects – not just in the video games I play, but in my life generally. We can defy the conditioning that tells us that ordinary, natural things are wrong, weak, or bad. We can do it together.

...Sephiroth. Come on. Take my hand; you don't gotta do it alone, and you don't gotta do it on an empty belly, a dehydrated body, or an unslept brain. Come on; my house has tea and snacks and safe places to sleep where no one will bother you. Come on; we can fill the days with me showing you how to make tasty snacks of various kinds. Come on; I can teach you a little bit of the history of the foodways of my world along the way – something tells me you'd be into that sort of thing. Come on; you can become someone who loves yourself enough to create your own delicious homecooked meals. Come on; the dreams you had as a boy don't have to remain dreams – you can weave them into reality with your own two hands, I promise! Come on; I'll show you how, because it's not too hard; it just takes a bit of time, effort, and practice. And you're worth that time. You're worth that effort. You're worth that practice. And you're worth the patience, dedication, and determination that it will take, too.

...I know you can't answer me. But... just think about it, okay? Think about becoming a person who is strong in the real way.

I'll write again tomorrow. Please stay safe out there.

Your friend, Lumine