#I feast on the reblogs that show up on my page

[luckyyyduckyyy]

Hey I'm curious. This isn't my usual thing but I think it's fun to ask.

Personally, I am a "For You" page purist. I search things one time and somehow Tumblr just fills in the rest. Also following people helps. Yippie! :D

[jjcre8]

✩˚｡⋆ 𝐁𝐀𝐓𝐌𝐀𝐍: 𝐀𝐑𝐊𝐇𝐀𝐌 𝐀𝐒𝐘𝐋𝐔𝐌 𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐒.

below is a list of dialogue said by various characters , including villains , guards & doctors , & The Batman himself. this dialogue was gathered from the game wiki page , & compiled into a list for easy access & use. feel free to change names & pronouns as needed. do not add to the list , & always reblog from the source.

TW DISCLAIMER. this meme may contain potentially triggering content , pertaining to care of patients in the batman franchise.

" How did he get out? I mean, you're here and... "

" Some loyalty! Do you need any help? "

" You and your men are safer here. I'll find you if I need anything. "

" I saw the alert, what's wrong? Where are you? "

" I don't get it. This place is supposed to be secure. "

" Unfortunately, some of the patients will always try and escape. I'll stop them. "

" Thanks for the concern, officer, but it will take more than guns to stop me. "

" I'll take care of this. "

" Thanks. Let me know if you need backup. "

" Exactly. He's left me a trail to follow. He's alive. "

" You wait here. I'll be back. "

" You heard the lady. We've got another psycho on the way. "

" Keep your weapons trained on it at all times. "

" It's my favourite show. I'm Warden Idiot, You'll Never Escape'. "

" Just gotta check your prisoner. "

" You have to listen to me! It's a mistake. I didn't do it! "

" I've waited a long time for this, Bats. Let's start the party. With a BANG. "

" I think you need a little more...! Tell me, what demons do you have left to beat? Shall we see? "

" This isn't a simple escape attempt. Joker's been planning this. "

" Please help me! "

" You're going to be fine. Stay here. "

" Batman's here! Just hold on a little longer! "

" I want all the doctors rounded up. Search every inch of the Medical building. I mean it. "

" La la la la lu lu lu la! Hey! Scram, Bats! This is my me time. "

" Shut it and get down there with the others. MOVE IT!! "

" Batman's as good as dead. "

" The medical building is ours. No one's takin' it from us. "

" I can't wait to get outta here. This hospital scares the crap out of me. "

" Man, I hate the smell of hospitals. "

" Ain't hospitals supposed to be clean? This place stinks. "

" The room's clear. You're safe now. "

" Did they have anyone with them? "

" They took someone into the elevator, I couldn't tell who it was. "

" We'll be fine. "

" What about the others? We heard gunfire. They could be dead. "

" Batman, we've got another problem. "

" Why are you doing this? I have done exactly as you've asked "

" Look at me, you think I care? Stop your whining and listen good. "

" Keep quiet. I'm not sure how much more of your yapping I can take. "

" Bad publicity will effect his campaign for Mayor. "

" Don't speak. You're safe now. "

" What are you waiting for?! April Fools' day?! Get down there! "

" HE'S HERE! "

" Yeah. Big Bad Batman. C'mon, tough guy, come and get us. "

" Oh. Look at him, stuck out there. Ain't ya got a cat to rescue from a tree or something? "

" Yeah, that's right. Go on. Get lost. We're in control. "

" Is he dead? "

" I think so. "

" You may wanna do a quick head count. "

" BABOOM! Another one bites the dust. "

" Batman's as good as dead. "

" Yeah. Give us orders and then sit in your nice safe room while we fight Batman. Nice... "

" Batman? Can you hear me? Show yourself! "

" Oh, I'd like to thank my fans for their undying support, and the people of Gotham, who I will be seeing very soon. "

" I salute my fallen enemy. "

" Oh. Isn't that cute. Little Bat's a-sleepin'. Someone finsh him off. "

" That loser didn't stand a chance. I mean, look at me. "

" Gotta say. I thought you'd last longer. "

" Loser, Loser, Loser! "

" Bye bye, Bats! "

" Once again I have defeated you, Batman! "

" I will enjoy feasting on your bones. "

" Tick, tock. Feed the Croc. "

" And at the end of fear, oblivion. "

" Now madness takes you, forever. "

" You're dead and buried, darling. "

" Sorry, love, you're plucked. "

[confusedflareon]

In the spirit of disappointing those who no doubt followed me assuming this page was exclusively made to reblog cute Splatoon and Pokemon art, allow me to share the tale of Peter the Possum!

Context: Australia, brushtail possum, not feral American opossum!

So, my partner comments that it’s been a while since he trimmed back the trees from the roof, and a possum may have moved in above his room. We figured this was an easy task, and took to the extend-o-saws to trim the offending front tree. Access denied, good possum!

Alas, this possum figured since he’d already unpacked his pyjamas and arranged the insulation just so, he really might as well stay - so he simply climbed up the neighbour’s tree out the back, and entered over my room instead!

Never one to be put off, my partner lopped off the interloping limbs (of the access tree, not the possum) and we congratulated ourselves on a job well sorted.

So Peter the Possum shrugged his furry, undeterred shoulders and climbed up what we call the Owl Tree. The Owl Tree is just behind our screen room, and is so named for the pair of tawny frogmouth owls who call it home. (Look up a picture of them, they are amazing!)

Despite having to cling to precariously bendy branches and avoid two disgruntled tawnies, Peter nonetheless embodied the dauntless spirit of the explorers who first crossed these very mountains, and inelegantly scrambled his way over drain pipes and corrugated verandah roof to continue to access his cozy one-bedroom-one-bath.

So, we looked up what kinds of things deterred bastards, and we acted accordingly. After a week of swapping batteries in portable LED lights and thoroughly annoying my cat with frequent brushings to harvest fur for cat-balms (remember in Legends: Arceus how you make lil mixes of the noble lords’ favourite snacks in handy grenade sized baggies to lob at them? Think that, except instead of snacks it’s disgruntled black cat fur, and instead of quelling the frenzy, they shoo away pests with the fresh scent of Eau du Predator) - we thought we had won! Nothing had been heard above either bedroom!

Alas, celebration was too soon. Peter the Possum, ever determined to persevere in the face of all adversity, packed up his possum bags and moved - to the other end of the house. Free from cat-balms, annoying lights, and any way for us to access the space, Peter settled right on in to finally sink his teeth into his favourite hobby, which I assume is practicing hard for Dancing With The Stars. Also into the insulation and wooden beams above the lounge room.

Short of cycling through the season of Pokémon we were watching until we found one that Peter liked enough to simmer down, we were out of ideas. So we called in the experts!

Steve and Diane assured us that this sort of thing was common, and quickly set up a humane trap filled with delicious apples, and a motion-sensing camera, ready to receive Peter in the most dug-up part of the roof where we heard him most recently. They were confident that most of these cases were sorted inside of 24 hours - what possum could resist the all-you-can-gorge apple feast?

As it happens, the answer to that question is: Peter could. And did. For the first night, the camera caught naught but the sound of scratching footsteps and mocking laughter.

On the second night, we saw him on the camera… He sauntered in, examined the trap, then turned to the camera, offered an expression of possum disdain, and proceeded to relieve himself to show just what he thought of such tactics.

Steve the possum man was most unimpressed.

So, they moved, tested and refreshed the trap, and set up a second on the roof outside, next to Peter’s assumed front door. More apples and a tasty banana next to a large sign reading “Free Possum Snacks”! And yet, despite scratching around all night… nothing. We honestly thought Peter was simply too smart for traps.

But then… at 5am. Snap-bang! Hoorah! The call of the fruit buffet was too great at least! How about *them* apples!!

At first, Peter assumed this was simply a misunderstanding. At around 6.30am, he ran out of fruit and finally determined that this was in fact, not a misunderstanding - these bars were not, in fact, for his protection, and he was in fact being detained without legal consult.

From that point on he made his displeasure known by re-enacting the entirety of Stomp! from inside his new cage - until, finally, he was carted away, swearing and threatening legal repercussions, around 9am by a smugly victorious Steve the possum man.

And so ends the saga of Peter the Possum - defiant until the end.

(Although since native animal protective legislation states that Peter must be released within a certain distance from his point of capture, he will very likely be back. However, he will return to find the entrances barred, all trees trimmed - and a bright and shiny new recycled-materials possum box installed in the big tree out the front for his comfortable use!)

[botwstoriesandsuch]

OK SHUT UP SHUSH SHUT THE FUCK UP IT’S 1AM BUT SHUSH LISTEN! HEY, LISTEN!

I AM GIVING YOU THE TOOLS TO FIND THE EXACT DISTANCE OF ANYTHING ANYWHERE IN HYRULE, CUSTOM MAKE YOUR FIC JOURNEYS TO THE METER, FIND THE AREA OF ANY TOWN OR LANDMARK, OR JUST FIND OUT HOW BIG (or small) HYRULE KINDGOM TRULY IS ONCE AND FOR ALL SO GO AHEAD AND SAVE THIS POST TO YOUR DRAFTS CAUSE YOU MIGHT WANNA SEE IT FOR FUTURE REFERENCE

 Ok so this all starts with THIS

FEAST YOUR EYES LADIES, LADS, AND GENTLEFOLK ON THE ONLY PIECE OF INFORMATION IN ALL OF HYRULE CONCERNING DISTANCE AND TIME. 

[Image ID: A screenshot from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, depicting a picture of Ash Swamp hanging in Impa’s house. The dialogue box from Impa reads, “Does it look familiar? From this village, you should be able to get there in a half day’s time.” End ID]

Impa states that it would take you half a day, about 12 hours, to travel from Kakariko Village to the depicted 13th memory, which is at Ash Swamp by Fort Hateno. 

Now here is where I took this information. I took it to

objmap.zeldamods.org

A fantastic online Botw map resource with tons of features like finding specific objects, and highlighting areas, and placing pins, and the basics of showing the locations of everything like shrines and korok seeds and all that. 

BUT the thing that we care about today is this ability, here:

DRAW!

With those widgets on the right, I can specifically mark lines and shapes and the website will give me the distance of it in meters!

“But Kip, if the map already gives you the distance of anything you want then isn’t this entire post pointless?” Ashshshshshhshh no, shut the fuck up, shush shut, no, stop, silence, I am high on caffeine and I haven’t slept for two days. No. 

As great as the map is, the exact ratio isn’t the best. Like, it tells me that the length of Hyrule is only 10km, or 6.2 miles. 

I wager that realistically, Hyrule would be a bit bigger than that. And THAT, is where I come in. Or, more specifically, Impa.

Impa states that it takes 12 hours to travel from Kakariko to Fort Hateno. (I am saying Fort Hateno and not Ash Swamp because I am going of the nearest prominent landmark location near the 13th memory, and I highly doubt that Impa knew the exactly square foot patch of dirt that Link needed to stand on to activate his memory)

According to Google, it takes around 10 to 12 minutes to walk a kilometer. (I am assuming Impa was referring to walking and not riding, because I feel like she would have said, “You should be able to get there in half a day’s ride” or something of the sort. So, walking it is)

So: 

12 hours divided by 12 minutes 

(Which is 720 minutes / 12 minutes)

gives us

60

The distance between Fort Hateno and Kakariko village is 60 kilometers.

Badabing badaboom, great job! We did it. BUT NOW this is where our handy dandy online object map comes in.

[Image ID: A screenshot of the Breath of the Wild map showing the area of Kakariko Village and the plains in front of Fort Hateno. A blue line highlghts the path from the village to a marker on Fort Hateno. The line reads “1.89km.” End ID]

[Image ID: A screenshot of the Breath of the Wild map showing the area of Kakariko Village and the plains in front of Fort Hateno. The blue line from the previous image is still there, however, there is now a more prominent yellow line. The yellow line runs from Kakariko village, but ends at a marker point at the location of the 13th memory at Ash Swamp. The yellow line reads “1.55km.” End ID]

So while this map doesn’t give me distances that are exactly to my liking, it DOES give me a measuring means that will stay consistent. SO! As you can see, the map says Kakariko to Fort Hateno is 1.89km. (And just to be safe, I also did the distance exactly to the point of the 13th memory as shown in Impa’s picture, which came out to 1.55km. But! It’s doesn’t matter anyhow, because) We’re going to round this to 2km for the sake of my sanity because surprise surprise! I actually suck at, and hate, math. 

So the map says Kakariko to Fort Hateno is 2 kilometers, but we know that in real life, the distance is actually 60 kilometers. So, if you want to use this object map effectively, you have to make a means of converting the “false” measurements, (which I will be refering to as “zelda” (kilo)meters, or zm/zkm) from the actual ones. 

So THIS is what I fucking did oh my god help me it took me way too long even though it was really simple in hindsight I was just stupid and spent two hours trying to get the ratio equations right when really all I had to do was divide, it was a whole thing, anyhow, read away. 

[Image ID: A screenshot of MATH oh my god it’s fucking math...BUT it’s kinda color coded so that’s nice. The top left of the page depicts text. In red text reads “zkm (Zelda km) = per the measurement on the objmap.zeldamods.org” and below that, in black text, reads, “Kakariko to Fort Hateno = 1.89 zkm ~ 2zkm,” which is underlines in yellow. Another line of black text reads, “Impa says it takes half a day’s time to travel from Kakariko to the 13th memory location AKA 12 hours.” Another line of black text reads, “It takes about 10-12min to walk a kilometer,” which is underlines in green.

Handwritten in blue ink is the equation, 

“12 hours = 720 min

720/12 = 60″ 

The 12 is highlighted in green, and the 60 is underlined. In green text, below it, reads, “It takes 12 hours to walk 60 kilometers.” In black text under this, it reads “So Kakariko to Fort Hateno is 60 kilometers.” Another line of black text under this reads, “So based on that, we can find the actual values of a zkm (Zelda kilometer).” 

Handwritten in yellow ink is the equation,

“2zkm = 60km

1km = 30km” [typo, I meant 1zkm = 30km]

The 60km is in blue, and the equation 1zkm = 30km is circled. 

To the right of everything, in bigger, yellow text, reads “So: 1zkm = 30km 1zm = 30 meters

The map of Hyrule measures roughly 10zkm (length) by 8zkm (height) [typo, I meant width] giving it an area of 80 square zkm.

Therefore, the “true” size of Hyrule Kingdom os 2400 square kilometers.” End ID]

SO ARMED WITH THIS NEW KNOWLEDGE, you can now use this map to measure whatever you want, and by converting 1zm to 30 meters, you can get accurate result as to what that distance is. 

Chart the roads, measure the rivers, the map even gives area tools for polygons, squares, and circles! This entire post was born out of a desire to see how long the characters in my fic should rest for when travel between different stables. 

Now before anyone asks, yes! 2400 square kilometers is fairly small. That’s around 930 square miles. I believe even Wales is more than three times bigger than that. BUT! Considering Hyrule is a medieval kingdom that’s actually pretty sizable considering the average size of a Kingdom was 100 to 900 square kilometers. 

And juuuust to double check, I ran the size though a Medievil Demographics generator, and 2400 (under the conditions of Fertile Land with 64% of the land being arable since I figured roughly 46% for lakes, the ocean, plus unusable land was more than enough to cover the Hebra, Death Mountain, and the Gerudo Desert. Which honestly is even MORE generous considering there are races that occupy these areas, but I digress) This still gives Hyrule Kingdom a good population of 108,000 people! Before the Calamity when all of its villages were up and occupied, of course. So the area is definitely more than enough, and can still give Link a more realistic amount of time to travel between areas (when you add eating and rest of course. Don’t make my guy walk for 10 hours straight from the Great Plateau to Hebra D: plz)

TL;DR: Hyrule is 2400 square kilometers; use the map, plus the conversion 1 zelda meter to 30 meters to measure anything you want; I am tired

Quick Edit: Please note that this conversion is for the purposes of people out there who need more realistic means of measuring distances for larger scale travel and such, like for writing fic journeys, or dnd campaigns. This conversion isn’t the best for smaller scale measure like buildings and such (EX: I’ve checked with buildings in Castle Town and the Coliseum, and they come out much too big, just a symptom of game design ratios not being perfect since it’s hard to balance consistent measurements and the immersion and plan a creator has for their game world!) So if you are measuring those smaller entities using the linked map, just stick with the given zelda meters! (EX: The Coliseum radius in zelda meters matches up nicely with the real world Roman Colosseum, beating it out by a few dozen meters!)

Also if you are a true believer in the interpretation of Impa’s dialogue as “half the amount of daylight hours,” see the reblogs!

[watchmegetobsessed]

Our Home - Harry Styles

a/n: this is my small but very heartful thank you for 5k followers!! i know it’s not a lengthy, chunky story, but this is all i could bring you in the midst of everything and i hope you’ll like it still! again, thank you for so many of you, its so crazy!!

based on THIS request!

pairing: Fiancé!Harry X Reader

word count: 1380

masterlist

It’s a usual Friday evening, you’re sitting on the couch, the TV on with the volume set on low, more like just as a background noise while you type away on your laptop working on an assignment you’ve been trying to finish these past few days. Going back to school four years after you undergrad seemed like an easy and fun idea, but when the assignments and projects started to come up you realized how much you’ve forgotten what it’s like to be a student. In addition, you kept your job so now you often find yourself quite busy with either work or school related tasks.

Harry has texted you earlier that he would pick up some takeout on his way home and now your stomach is growling impatiently for your fiancé to finally arrive home and have a feast with you after a day of hustling.

You hear the familiar jingling noise of his keys turning in the lock of the front door and you hit the save button just as he walks in, the bag of your favorite local restaurant hanging from his hands as he kicks his shoes off.

“Hey love!” he singsongs and you set your laptop to the coffee table to go and greet him the right way.

“Hello handsome,” you smile as you wrap your arms around his waist from behind and you immediately feel him relax in your embrace. Turning around he drops the bag to the side table you have in the hall and his hands cup your face as he grins down at you, pressing a soft kiss to your lips. “Mm, missed you all day,” you mumble into the kiss.

“I’m all yours now, baby,” he smirks before pecking your lips one more time. “You hungry?”

“Starving,” you huff dramatically, making him chuckle.

“Let’s eat then. Can’t have my future wife be famished for too long.”

The two of you settle in the living room, the food boxes littering the coffee table completely once you put your laptop away, deciding you’ve had enough work for the day. Harry asks you about how the paper is going and he tells you about the new song they started recording today. Hearing about each other’s day is always such a comforting part of the evenings, spending time separated, but coming home to your other half and sharing what might appear useless and boring, but these little things just strengthens the bond between you and him.

“So, do you have anything planned for today?” Harry asks, seemingly a little nervous to bring up whatever he wants to talk about.

“Not that I know of, no. Why?”

“I just… I was looking at ads during lunch and I know we agreed to put aside the home buying project for a little while since we are both pretty busy, but I found a really good one and I thought we could… check it out, if you want to.”

Your eyes soften at him, he is all nervous to even bring it up just because you suggested to wait a little longer.

The thought of buying a home together first came up a few months ago, not long after Harry proposed. You’ve been living with him for two years now and back then it was a logical step to move into his place since it has enough space for the two of you. But as time passed and Harry got on one knee, you realized that even though you’ve been living here for quite some time, it was still more like his space rather than yours and his. You brought up the idea of finding a place that’s new for the both of you and you can turn it into your shared home together and luckily he loved the idea. You’ve checked out a few estates, but then you decided to go back to school and Harry started working on his new album and things got a little hectic so you agreed to wait for a better time, when moving wouldn’t be just an additional stress factor in your already busy lives. But that doesn’t mean that you don’t want to find a new home and you don’t want him to think he can’t even bring it up.

Reaching out you cup his chin in your hand as you pull him in for a short but sweet kiss.

“I would love to see it. Do you have pictures?” you ask and you see his eyes brighten up at your reaction.

Harry pulls out his phone and shows you the ad, excitedly sharing his thoughts on why he found it so endearing and fitting for the two of you and it warms your heart. See him so excited for the future the two of you are building together, finding the place where you’d eventually start your family. Though you’ve known it for a long time that for you, he is the man you want to spend the rest of your life with, it’s still nice to see him being on the same page, planning with you by his side.

Saturday morning, after a lazy breakfast on the terrace and some extra loving on each other you finally get ready to leave and check out the house Harry has found. The pictures already caught your interest but the actual home is just… perfect.

The size, the layout and the huge backyard, it’s exactly what you imagined when you first started talking about what you want in your new home. With a total of five bedrooms and four bathrooms and a wonderful sunroom facing the backyard, it’s all like as if someone just took your fantasy out of your head and built it just for you.

The agent walks the two of you through the whole place, telling you all about what you need to know and you find yourself already seeing your future here with Harry and possibly a baby sometime later. Or maybe more than one. You can already picture Harry flipping pancakes in the kitchen in the morning, having garden parties for your friends in the summer, lounging in the living room together after a long day and painting Harry’s nails sitting on the marble tiled floor of the bathroom only in your underwear or just a towel wrapped around your body after showering together. This house is calling your name.

“You’ve been quiet, baby. What do you think?” Harry asks as the two of you are wandering in the backyard after the tour. The agent has left you alone to look around some more if you’d like to check something out one more time.

Smiling your hand reaches out to Harry’s and you lace your fingers together as you glance up at him.

“I love it.”

“Really?” he breathes out in relief.

“Yeah,” you nod with a chuckle. “It’s the perfect size, it’s got everything we talked about and… it’s just the perfect fit.”

“I was really worried you hated it,” he admits with an airy chuckle. “We could have some fruit trees at the back and maybe a swing set over there,” he points to the right corner of the backyard and you can already see it all.

“Yeah, that sounds great,” you nod, feeling the warmth of your excitement spreading in your chest.

“So… what do you think? We could just buy it now and move in whenever it’s convenient. We can stay at mine as long as you want, I’m not rushing you. I’m just…” he lets out a sigh as he grabs both of your hands and bringing them up to his lips he kisses your knuckles, giving your ring finger an extra one, the diamond in your ring pressing against his pink lips. “I’m just really excited to do this with you. I didn’t think I would get to this point but the moment I met you I knew that I want all of this with you.”

“And I want it with you.” moving your hands to the back of his neck you pull him down so your lips could meet halfway, his arms wrapping around your waist, holding you tight in his embrace.

“I can’t wait to call this place our home,” he breathes out resting his forehead against yours.

Thank you for reading, please like and reblog if you enjoyed it!

[mysticgoblinwriter]

Driving In A Cold Sweat; There Is No One On This Highway

Warnings- Murder, infidelity, swearing, food imagery, shitty parents, i made Steve the villain who’s in the HOA and a politician, adult content, dark!reader, cheating, a bit of flirting, mental health joke (mental health is NOT a joke, y’all), religion symbolism, dark!steve, peggy x bucky,

Word Count- 1.9k

kudos to @blackberrybucky for being my soundboard, and @fandomsandxfiles for being my beta reader. Love y'all

a/n- This is inspired by Hypothermic by Goodnight Texas.  Its really dark, and I surprised myself writing this but I like it. I also changed the landscape to desert. Leave comments if you want! As many as you like, I fangirl over my work too. All writers should, its selfcare.

IF YOU WANT SOMETHING FLUFFY AND SOFT TURN AWAY NOW; MINORS DNI

DO NOT COPY OR REPOST ANYWHERE. A REBLOG IS APPRECIATED. A REPOST IS NOT.

Bucky looks you up and down, taking you in like you are the gods own ambrosia.  “So, doll.  What brings you to this shit hole?”

You laugh to yourself.  “I murdered somebody.”- was the sentence that also inspired this but its not in the actual story.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The radio gave out miles ago.  It was emitting nothing except for crackling and static.  Every now and then it would cut back to a sermon, funnily enough it’d been the same one that was on when you started your trip.  Sunset was a little ways off.  If you looked hard enough you could see coyotes just off the asphalt.  Alive, yes.  But just how long had their souls been gone?  Someone was screaming.

A man.  You’d heard that scream before.  Seared into you memory like that steak you had for your 15th birthday. It was right next to you.  Oozing blood and raw-red.  You could hear the clink of the knife as it scraped against the plate.  Shaking your head to clear it, you notice an exit with a gas station.  “Now’s a time as good as any to stop.”  Gravel crunches as you slide up next to the pump. The neon beer lights from the bar across the road are calling.  But you can’t answer. The gas handle is slick and grimy, you’ve felt something like that before, but you can’t remember what.  A fuzzy noise in the back of your ears gets your attention.  Another truck has pulled in.  Right in the spot next to yours, never mind the dozen others that are free.  A bulky man steps down, his face hidden by a rangers hat.

You could tell he worked out though.  And had hair in need of a washing.  Clunk.  The tank was full.  You thought it best to leave before anyone could place you, but your stomach needed something other than greasy two-bit fast food.  You glance around, looking for any sign that promised a hot meal.

“Looking for something, doll?” You let out a small gasp.  He was staring straight at you now.

“Does this shithole have a place to eat?  I might have to start eating the cactus.”

He lets out a soft laugh, “Yeah, there’s a diner about half mile down the road.”

His face brightens like he just thought of something.  “You wanna meet me there?  I’ll buy dinner?”  You weigh the options.  You can’t have anybody recognize you; but your cash is getting low and however you can stretch it, you must.  You nod once.  “Sure.”

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The diner is every trope you’d seen in the movies your pops watched when he got off work.  Flies buzzing, neon sign flickering, checkered tile.  It even had the shiny red leather booths.  What a dream.  “Getcha a seat anywhere, honey.  I’ll be right over,” came a perky voice from the back.  Presumably a waitress. You choose the booth near the back exit.  Its always good to have a backup plan.

The man said he needed to get something at the mini-mart, that you could go ahead and he’d catch up.  Somebody screamed right next to you, causing you to jump out of your seat.  You whip your head around.  No one was even in the dining area.  It sounded so real.  Like you could reach out and grasp the shattering inky blackness.  You take a couple of deep breaths.  Try to remember your happy place.  Tahiti, its a magical place.  Or so you’ve been told  You just picked it from a magazine that was open on the coffee table the night your mother set fire to the curtains in the living room.  The flames had licked up the page, burning the island resort into ash.  Boots thudded as they made way to where you were.  He slides in across from you.

“Um, the waitress’ll be right out,” you said softly.  He barely heard it over the rickety air conditioning.  He nods to show he heard.  He’s sitting close.  Closer than you’d thought another human would ever sit next to you again.  His hands are rough and calloused.  The sleeve cuffs of his hoodie are frayed; as if someone clawed at them.  Eyes traveling up his body, you take in more details.  The hoodie isn’t faded, its brand new.  He wears a bracelet of leather on his right hand, with a charm you can’t quite see.  His necklace is corded hemp, plain and understated.

A light stubble that’s maybe three days old covers his jaw.  His eyes... are piercing right through you. You take in a quick breath, not being able to look away.  You’d never seen that shade of blue before.   He’d been watching you watching him.  Quirking an eyebrow, ”See anything ya like, doll?” You start to sputter an answer but the waitress comes over.  “Sorry about the wait.  Here’s your-”  Blue eyes interrupts her, “We don’t need those.  I’ll have the special and she’ll have the ‘Its Impossible To Go Away Hungry’ plate”  “Okay, then.  I’ll get that right out to ya folks.”

You glare at him, he mirrors it with dicky nonchalance. “Why did you order for me?”  He leans forward, tilts his head the right the tiniest fraction.  “You’re starved.  I really don’t give a damn what kept you from eating but I ain’t gonna let you go without giving you a meal.  The steak plate is the biggest meal they have.  You can take a to go box, that is if you don’t eat the whole thing.”

“Oh.”  You cast out a huff, “Well, thank you.”  He flashes a killer smile. Pearly white teeth in a straight line.  Not an imperfection to be found anywhere.  A silence falls between the two of you.  You can’t decide whether its comfortable of not.

“My name is Bucky.  I thought you wouldn’t like eating with a stranger.  I like to doodle in the margins of my books sometimes.”  “Please tell me not library books.”  He scoffs as if you suggested the impossible, “Never.  Do you think I’m crazy?”

“Jury’s out on that, Bucky.”  He looks at you more intently now.  “Really?  Same could be said about you.  When I first spoke to you it was like a deer in headlights.  Ya running from something, sugar?”  He’d said it jokingly but you didn’t laugh.

“No.  Nothing like that.”

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Shirley came back with your plates, and two root beers.  She left the check at the end of the table and Bucky swooped it up.  The meal passed by in the comfortable sounds of silverware clinking and ice clacking in the cups.  You both ate in record time.

You were careful to save enough for a second meal. That went into the to go container.  Now both cups were drained and plates scraped clean.  You start to slide out of your seat, mumbling a thanks but Bucky stops you.  “Wait, won’t you sit here a while longer?  I’d be kinda sad sitting here alone.”  After a moments hesitation, you resume your position.  “What do you wanna talk about?  It can’t be the weather.  Its been dry as bones for weeks.”   He ponders for a moment, “You.”  He shifts a little, resting one ankle on the opposite knee.

“I want to know what you’re running from, and see if I can offer...a distraction.”  That shocks you.  “Life?  Aren’t we all running away in some form or another?  I just happened to take the mobile route.”  You shrug, “What do you want me to say?  It was all shitty so I left it behind.  And as for the distraction part, I got a whore last night, so don’t bother.”  He is silent.  Just sits there and gazes at you.  You cock your head, getting impatient.  “Am I allowed to leave now?  Or do you want to talk about our feelings?”

“I slept with my best friends wife.”

“I-I’m sorry you what??”

“I slept with my best friends wife.  He owns half the town, what with him being mayor and all.  I couldn’t take it anymore, he’s always been the golden boy.  Always been the beacon of light.  I just wanted a slice of what he had.”  He looks up, his eyes are dead.  “She was willing, and I just... took her.  There on his desk.  He’d been out for lunch with some bigwig, and I made her cum twice on my cock.”  He chuckles darkly.  “That’d been the first time.  All the other times don’t matter, he doesn’t know about those.  But he does know about the time in the craft shed.  Peggy did pottery.

Had a nice little workshop, it was connected to the mansion they had.  I wanted to bring her pleasure in the place where she gets frustrated often, so she’d have something else to think about.  Steve caught us on the floor.  A big bunch of daffodils in hand.  Stupid, those weren’t even her favorites.”  He was gone now, lost in memories, not even knowing he was talking.  “Said he had come by to take her to lunch.  That was always like Steve.  Expected her to clear her schedule at the drop of a hat but never doing the same for anybody. He didn’t even get mad.  He just walked away, muttering something about his office.

Peggy said she could talk some sense into him.  The next day I found her in the garbage when I took out my trash.”  Your sharp inhale and big eyes do nothing to catch his attention.  “Steve comes strolling out of nowhere, said that she was a threat to his image.  Said that I need to leave or face the same.  I asked why he left me alive and he said ‘So you can remember the pain until you lay down in the ground and the mice and carrion drag your body up from its silk cocoon to feast.”

But that’s not all.”  He said the last bit so quietly, it was as if he said nothing.

“What?”  He’s crying now, tears are forming rivers in his eyes.  “She knew.  She knew  he was going to be there and that’s how she wanted to go out.”  Your puzzled expression makes him laugh.  “Don’t know many politicians, do you?  Good.  Keep it that way.  That day when the mail came I got a letter.  From her.  It said how she wanted to divorce Steve ever since he became the HOA president.  But she couldn’t.  He had threatened her once, just once and what he said was so blisteringly awful.  And he did it.  He is a man of his word, after all.  He kept his damn word.”

“So...she used you as an out?”  He winces.  You hadn’t meant to sound like that.

“Yes.”

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Out in the diners parking lot you say goodbye to James.  Wait.  No, no.  His name is Bucky.  He’s got a green  Chevy and blue eyes.  Or was it red?  It doesn’t matter anyway.  You back out and head for the next state, ignoring the blood leaking from the tarp in your trunk.  The screams have stopped.  And the moon is bright.

[thelazyhermits]

School Briefs Volume 5 : TABF Version

As promised, I’m gonna share my thoughts about the 5th light novel like how I did on the post @euan112358 made that I recently reblogged. It’ll all be under the cut! 

For starters, I wanna say that in between all the main chapters there are four mini Homecoming Tales chapters that focus on Jirou, Asui, Uraraka, & Momo visiting their homes for New Year’s Eve. They’re only a few pages each, so there’s really not anything to do with them since they really wouldn’t be any different than canon.

Now lets get to the five main chapters.

UA’s Underground Dungeon

While everyone is cleaning up the dorms for end-of-the year cleaning, Iida, Kirishima, Kouda, Tokoyami, & Shouji accidentally end up falling into an underground labyrinth, hidden under school grounds, filled with traps galore. Just what kind of place did they stumble upon?

As I mentioned in this post, during this big cleaning day, Fortune & Vlad King end up deciding to have a cleaning competition between Classes 1-A & 1-B to see who has the cleanest dorm by the end of the day.

Originally, I had planned on for the chapter’s events to happen while this is all transpiring, but on second thought, it does seem strange for Fortune to not have a vision about this event since things do get kinda dangerous for the poor boys.

So, now I’m thinking that, upon receiving a vision of her students falling into a trap-filled labryinth, she quickly warns the boys in order to avoid that incident from happening. Thankfully, because they heed her warning, the boys are able to avoid the craziness from canon lol

As a result, Fortune ends up taking the pain that Iida received in canon when he shielded Tokoyami. Thankfully, the pain isn’t severe and doesn’t last for a long time since he got healed by Recovery Girl after he and his classmates got out of the underground dungeon.

Aside from warning the boys, she also talks to Nedzu who promises to take care of things so they won’t have to worry about any other students falling into the underground dungeon.

Naturally, Fortune questions Nedzu about the underground dungeon. Rather than go into complete detail, he just says that that’s the place where Power Loader keeps all of Hatsume’s inventions.

He’s able to get away with this since Fortune’s vision didn’t show her the hot springs or all the other places that were clearly made for Power Loader’s entertainment. 

This leads to Fortune asking if Power Loader needs any help since it must be a lot of work taking care of that dungeon and dealing with all of Hatsume’s crazy inventions.

While he’s pleased with her kind offer, Nedzu assures her that Power Loader has things covered on that end. However, he does ask that she continue to help out in the support studio since he knows how much Power Loader appreciates her help with Hatsume.

He’s also secretly hoping that Fortune will become someone the introverted Power Loader can become friends with since he’s seen how well she has helped introverted people like him (aka Tamaki) open up. 

Thankfully, despite not knowing the principal’s thoughts, Fortune seems to be on the same wavelength as him since when she returns to Heights Alliance she decides to do some baking for Power Loader to thank him for all his hard work.

As far as the competition is concerned, it ends in a tie since both dorms are completely spotless by the end of the day. While Vlad King is a little disappointed that there isn’t a clear winner, Fortune’s just happy that Class 1-A did such a great job.

To celebrate everyone’s hard work, Fortune whips up a huge feast for both classes, much to their delight. 

The Unlikeliest Santas

It’s Christmas Eve, and several of the UA teachers decide to play Santa for Eri. Unfortunately, things don’t go quite according to plan.

A Plus Ultra Christmas was inspired by this chapter since, after finding out about the teachers playing Santa for Eri, I just had to write that out with them and also the students doing that for Eri and Fortune.

So y’all already have seen what the TABF version of this chapter is haha

For a substitute chapter plot, I guess the only thing that could be done is a chapter focused on Class 1-A’s Christmas party since that’s the only thing for this Christmas I haven’t covered. Well, that and the staff party since I’m sure the teachers would all get together for some fun too.

So, if there were to be a Christmas-themed chapter, it’d focus on either one or both parties since I really wouldn’t wanna do a chapter focused on present opening and reactions cause there are so many lol

For whatever reason, the novel has the Underground Dungeon chapter before this chapter. I have no idea why since you’d think the end-of-the-year cleaning would be after Christmas, closer to New Year’s Eve.

That’s why, if a Christmas chapter is done, it would be the first chapter cause that just makes the most sense to me.

Awkward Year’s-End Soba

Todoroki gets to visit his home for New Year’s Eve. While Natsuo tries to deal with his guilt over not being a better big brother in the past, he and Todoroki make up for lost time and get to spend some quality time together.

Overall, there wouldn’t be any changes with this chapter since this focuses on Todoroki and his siblings. However, the ending with the soba would turn out a lot better in TABF since by this point Fortune has taught Todoroki how to make soba. While he’s not exactly perfect at it, he’d at least make something that he’d enjoy more than the soba dumplings from canon lol

If I were to make a chapter for this subject, I guess I’d go the route of Natsuo getting to learn more about Fortune and the effect she has had on his brother during the time the two boys are cooking together. 

Natsuo still hasn’t met Fortune by this point, but he’d definitely want to after seeing firsthand how important she is to his brother.

New Year’s with a Childhood Friend

During their winter internship with the Endeavor Agency, Midoriya & Bakugou encounter a pair of childhood friends who get into a fight. As they get involved with the children, the two heroes-in-training relfect on their own relationship. 

This is a chapter that wouldn’t get majorly changed because it happens while the boys are away for their internships. The only real difference would be that Bakugou would be less openly hostile toward Midoriya since those two have a better relationship at this point as compared to canon.

Since things are overall the same in TABF as they are in canon, I wouldn’t want to do a chapter on this particular plotline.

Instead, I’d probably do a chapter focused on Fortune & Eri’s first New Year’s celebration which they spend with the UA teachers that aren’t away guarding the students who went home for the holiday.

Hot Pot Party to Get Fired Up

After returning from their winter internships, Classes 1-A and 1-B get together for a hot pot party. Unfortunately, as per usual, Monoma has to stir up trouble, resulting in a punishment game that takes a very unexpected turn.

Because Fortune would be present, none of the events of this chapter would happen since the last thing Monoma would want is to challenge food made by her and risk insulting her. Plus, he does his best to act on his best behavior when around her haha

So, as a result, it would just be a normal hot pot party where everyone enjoys the food prepared by Fortune, Satou, and the other 1-A students who pitched in, while talking about their winter internships like what was originally planned before Monoma started scheming in canon lol

Honestly, I can’t say I’m too interested in writing anything about the actual hot port party or the story exchange since that’s kinda boring imo lol However, I do think it could be fun to write about what happens after the snow comes.

I like the idea of a chapter focused on everyone playing in the snow the following morning after the blizzard abates, which would be the first time Fortune & Eri have ever done something like that. Naturally, the students all want to make this as fun a first time experience as possible for the girls, and of course, Monoma is bound and determined to ensure he and his class are the ones who help Fortune & Eri have the most fun.

While this would happen on a weekday, I’m sure it would take a little while before the snow can be cleared so the students can get to their classes, so in the meantime, they can have fun with Fortune & Eri. 

Also, during this chapter, I learned that Monoma doesn’t do well academically like I had first assumed. That’s why he ended up in remedial lessons back in the summer. So, I’ve gone back and edited TABF chapter 31 to showcase this. 

[royallyprincesslilly]

Title: Kismet {12}

Henry Cavill x Famous OFC Aliya Taylor

Warning: Plot, Slow Burn, Mild Cursing, Dialogue Heavy

Words: 4.2k

Summary: Aliya is a singer turned model turned actress. Since she was fifteen, she’s been creating her empire in the entertainment world. As the daughter of a famous fashion model/designer and Hollywood director, you’d think life is easy for her, but her past has been anything but easy. Due to past trauma, she’s forever changed and no longer trusts any man that is not in her family and a select few in her team. She’s sworn off love and serious relationships and has planned never to fall again, but love isn’t something that can be planned. It just happens when it’s meant to. Can Aliya outrun a love that seems hellbent on holding tight to her, a love that is Kismet?

Note: How are you guys liking the pacing of this story? I think this might be my slowest burn of all.  😬😬

If you enjoyed this please LIKE, COMMENT, REBLOG!! 😘  

As always, thank you so much for reading. ❤️❤️

***Loosely Edited/Proofread***

***Interactive***

Previous Chapters: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |

When one thinks of a vacation, you think of beaches, sand, salty ocean water that you can see right through, a blazing sun that is a joy to be burned by, tropical drinks, lounging by the pool in a hammock with an endless supply of bathing suits. When one thinks of the quintessential French vacation, you could think of waking up the smell of flowers from the countryside and the ocean salt, the warm caress of the sun as you sip your French coffee, lounging on the beaches, touring the countryside by day, feasting on the best authentic French cuisine, sipping the best of wine country offered all the while soaking up culture and relaxation. In other words, live like the French.

 Your vacation, though it started awkwardly, didn’t remain that way for too long. You and Henry had made it a mission to take relaxation and freedom to the max and, by doing so, you had created somewhat of a routine. Usually, either you or Henry would make breakfast and coffee then have it outside. After breakfast, you’d both lounge by the pool for an hour or two. That was before you found out he liked to work out first thing in the morning. Though you weren’t much for working out, you vowed to do it with him. which led to you having your coffee and then out for a run through the fields. He often went four miles out then four miles back, but when he realized you were not a runner, he cut it down to two and two. Even that was torture for you.

 Then once you’d returned and showered, whoever came out first would make a simple breakfast that you’d have out back and then to the pool. After you’d take a drive, often going miles and miles checking out neighboring towns seeing sights. On each day, Henry always had something planned. One day it was a tour of a vineyard where you learned all about the winemaking process, helped harvest grapes, and even did the traditional squishing grapes with your feet. That was the day Henry had the brilliant idea to play up your ticklishness, which led to you falling in the barrel staining your white shorts ensemble red. He laughed his ass off to that. By the time you left the vineyard, both of your outfits were ruined, but you had plenty of pictures and a crate of the wine you’d made.

 Another day it was sailing around the Mediterranean in a boat that Henry manned himself. You couldn’t help but watch in awe as he steered it like a pro and taught you the proper terms for things on the boat. When he’d found a good spot to drop anchor close to some rocks, you lounged on the hull soaking up the sun, then taking a dunk in the ocean when the heat became too much where you snorkeled around the reef. On a particular day, he took out a speedboat to St. Tropez for shopping and spa treatments that really had your entire body feeling like jello.

 While he liked to spoil you with luxurious options, he also liked the rugged things too. He taught you how to fish and took you on multiple nature walks. While you enjoyed nature, you realized you didn’t like it as much as he did. According to him, he would choose to be out in nature as often as he possibly could. You were slowly beginning to enjoy it as much as he did. A few times, you took him to a club where you saw firsthand that he was a real party boy in another life. You liked the club nights because it showed you a whole other side of him. The side that was carefree, able to cut loose and not take himself seriously. It was a side you made a silent vow to bring out as often as you could.

 To round out the experience, he did as the French and took advantage of France’s natural romance. There were plenty of romantic dinners at romantic restaurants that overlooked the ocean or the cliffs or the city lights and even a few at romantic vineyards with the view of the rolling hills and a sunset. The romance was not something hard to find, and it wasn’t always in going out. You spent plenty of nights in the villa lounging together with candlelight in the room and a gentle breeze wafting through the opened doors while watching something on tv together. While it was awkward before, you were becoming more and more comfortable around him. 

This comfort also helped you feel closer to him and though you teased each other often, said sly things to one another, and even flirted shamelessly, nothing else of significance had happened. Henry didn’t make any moves to kiss you or cuddle or even hug you, really. The most he’d done was hold your hand at the most sporadic moments, for the shortest amount of time. It made no sense, and it drove you crazy because you could feel the attraction between you in everything you did. You could sense the desire in the air was strong, but everything remained lukewarm.

 Though your comfort level rose, your insomnia never subsided. When Henry had gone to bed, you often remained up just writing music, journaling, or making things with the pictures you’d taken throughout the day. Your sleepless or low sleep nights gave you the chance to either reformulate your plan or think about your progress. A lot of times, thinking about the progress had you thinking about him, and if you did that, it was only a matter of time before your mind drifted to your want for him.

 It was funny to you that before him, you could push affection, intimacy, and sex to the side and act like they were not even actual things, and it never bothered you or had any effect. Since Henry, it was damn near impossible. You thought about his touch at every turn, about his lips more times than you could count, and imagined him between your thighs at least once every other day.

 One night it had gotten so bad from remembering him swimming in the pool in slow motion. Everything he did was in slow-mo like he was posing for some men’s porn magazine. That was the night you had to please yourself to thoughts of his wet lips, memories of his voice, and body as it moved through the water and muscles as he hoisted himself up out of the water with it dripping off of every inch of him. that night, it was the quickest you’d ever come. You wondered if he was struggling the way you were, but throughout the days, you saw no evidence he was, and that made you more insecure than you’d ever felt in your life.

 ~~~~~~~~~

-Nine Days Later-

 The night was young—well, young for you. While Henry slept, you found yourself in the back yard with the breeze brushing against your bare skin. The glow of the moon beamed down on you, bathing you in its pearlescent illuminance, making you feel like a goddess of the night. It could have been the moon, the fact you were naked under it, or the 2nd bottle of wine you were on. It didn’t matter what it was; you felt good. The wine made your thoughts flow more freely, and where your thoughts went, your pen in your notebook mapped. You got your best writing done at three in the morning when you were naked and feeling wine-nice.

 With your pen hooked on your bottom lip, you looked over the new lyrics you’d written for a song that Henry had inspired. The notebook was filled with at least ten more from the same muse. This song was the night’s second one. The first centered around your anxious thoughts about making the first move and how to do it in a way with little to no risk, and your worries of being in the friend zone the second was drastically different. This one focused on you admitting your attraction, the possibility you were falling for him, and your fear of him making you feel out of control. It was raw and real, the realest you’d been in a long time when it came to your feelings.

 The words across the page were sensual and painted a clear picture of arousal and desire. As you hummed to yourself the way you imagined it flowing, you began replacing your hums with words. You quickly got lost in your process and zoomed through putting everything down on paper. Once your brain sparked off, it never stopped until it finished the mission.

 “Aliya?”

 You turned to the sound of Henry’s voice, forgetting your state of undress. Almost immediately, you gasped and grabbed the blanket holding it to your breasts.

 “Shit.”

 Henry was already turned away, his back facing you.

 “Um--.”

 “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. God, I—shit.”

 Henry snorted then slowly released a breath in a loud huff.

 You rearranged the blanket then spoke, “You can turn around.”

 Slowly and cautiously, Henry turned to you again. With your lips pressed together, you gave him your best apologetic face.

 “I’m so sorry. I thought you were asleep. I didn’t think you’d come out here,” you explained.

 Again, Henry snorted then chuckled to himself as he nodded his head. You were so embarrassed that you covered your face.

 “I’m sorry,” you whispered one last time.

 “No need for sorries,” Henry began trying not to make eye contact. “It’s um—it’s okay.”

 The awkwardness had returned.

 “I didn’t see anything. Don’t worry.”

 You didn’t believe him one bit but pushed any remaining awkwardness deep down and fought through it.

“Don’t you sleep at all?”

“Not really. Remember, insomniac.”

 “I know you said that, but usually insomniacs can manage something,” Henry said.

 “Um, well, since I was diagnosed, I can on occasion get three or four hours tops.

 “Wow. We’ve been sharing this house for a little over a week, and I didn’t know that much.”

 You smiled and took another sip from your glass. “You’re off the hook, you actually sleep, and it’s great.”

 “How long have you had it?”

 “Since I was maybe eighteen,” you explained.

 “So what do you do when you’re not sleeping?”

 After finishing your glass, you moaned and leaned back in your chair. “Walk around, find a good spot to sit, write, sometimes go for a drive, online shop, work. Usually, it is mainly work,” you confessed.

 Henry gave you a stern daddyish look. “Are you working now?”

 You bit your bottom lip and scrunched your face. “Guilty but only sort of. I’m writing music. That’s not work for me. For me, it’s a component for my sanity.”

 Henry nodded. “So you sit up all night naked writing music?”

 The way he put it had you laughing out loud.

 “Wow, pretty much. Fuck, when you sum it up like that, you make me sound like an insomniac exhibitionist.”

 You laughed together for a few short moments. “Can’t they prescribe something?”

 “They have, quite a few things actually. When I was eighteenish, I was on several sleeping pills. I was the guinea pig, and I must have tested at least twenty brands and formulas, but none of them seemed to work well with me. Of course, they had to monitor my intake to make sure I didn’t become addicted, but after a few years, I said, forget it let’s not try anything anymore. I just stopped taking the pills and sucked it up,” you clarified.

 Henry looked impressed. “So you function on three hours of sleep?”

 “Pretty much.”

 He whistled then bowed his head. “Wow.”

 “it’s not bad. Honestly, it might be a blessing in disguise. I get so much work done they wouldn’t believe.”

 “You literally make money while others sleep,” Henry joked.

 You softly snickered and nodded.

 “Do they know why it started?”

 He was asking all the right questions, you thought to yourself.

 “Yeah, we know.” You really didn’t want to say anything else, and you had a mini internal fight. Groaning, you continued. “Trauma.”

 You could feel his eyes on you, and you rearranged your things on the table and picked off invisible lint off the blanket, all in an effort to not look at him. Though you were physically naked, you felt emotionally so as well. Taking a risk, you glanced at him and held his gaze. He was unreadable.

 “Here,” Henry said, holding out a spoon to you.

 “A spoon? What’s this for?”

 Henry smiled and took a step toward you. “Close your eyes.”

 You scoffed and wrinkled your nose before you closed your eyes and waited. You didn’t hear anything and wondered what he was doing.

 “Uh—hello? Henry, are you there?”

 The sound of Henry clearing his throat told you he was in a different location that was somewhat closer.

 “I’m here. Open.”

When you did, you looked around expecting something but not sure just what. When your eyes landed on the ice cream before you, you smiled.

 “For your massive sweet tooth.”

 You couldn’t help but giggle. He’d learned a few things about that sweet tooth over the last week. This was him being cute about it.

 “This Is my favorite flavor and brand. You don’t play, huh.”

 “Of course not. I pay attention.”

 “Thank you.”

 Henry nodded, then pulled another spoon from behind him. “Cheers?”

 You knocked your spoon against his and said the same thing. Henry sat beside you while you opened the ice cream, then both of you dug in. the first spoonful had you moaning so loud it echoed around you.

 “That good?”

 “Mmmm, so good, better than sex,” you joked.

 “Then I am sorry, Ms. Taylor, you are having sex with all the wrong ones.”

The spoon paused at your lips as you quirked your eyebrow at him. Henry wasn’t backing down, though. He held your gaze almost like he was challenging you. Damn, you thought before you looked away first.

 “So you write all your own songs?”

 Nodding, you put another spoonful of ice-cream in your mouth. “All by myself.”

 “Impressive. I know artists try, but not a lot do it alone. There will usually be a few co-writers,” Henry added.

 You were a little surprised he knew that. “You’re right. More and more try to get on it for the added profits that being a writer brings in. for me, I do it for far more selfish reasons.”

 Henry quirked his brow, silently asking you why.

 “I need an outlet, something to get everything in my head out. I’m up for twenty to twenty-one hours a day, and I have a lot going on in there. So, I need to be able to get that out to start fresh the next do, that means---I write.”

 The way Henry’s eyes rested on you made you feel like he had so much to say, but he was holding back with doing so.

 “It’s good to have an outlet.”

 “What’s yours?”

 His goofy smile made a return, and you couldn't help but smile back.

 “Don’t judge me, okay, but it’s video games.”

 You smiled and raised your hands. “No judgment here, ever.”

 “I like video games, Warcraft, Witcher, Call Of Duty, HALO. Anything bloody, I’m there for it. I also use exercise a lot. I have to work out, have to.”

 “Have to?”

 Henry took another spoonful of ice cream and sighed out. He looked like he was thinking about something, and you gave him the time needed.

 “Yeah, when I was a kid, I was heavy--,” he began sighing. “I was a fat kid, and it meant I got teased and bullied a lot. My nickname was fat, Cavill.”

 “Oh no, that’s horrible.”

 “Yeah, plus I was at private school. Let’s just say—it was hard, really hard. I had some dark times, and I’d be lying if I said it didn’t stick with me some even to this day.”

 You bit your bottom lip, reached your hand out, and rested it on his knee. Your heart sank thinking about what he’d gone through. You knew how painful words could be, especially as a child. “I’m sorry. Kids can be such assholes.”

 Henry snorted and gave your hand a gentle squeeze. “They sure can.”

 “Plus, I could tell working out is a joy for you. I’m not blind, and neither is the female population of the world and some of the male.”

 Henry’s laugh was unexpected but welcomed all the same. You liked his laugh, and the more you heard it, the more it was becoming one of your favorite sounds.

 “Seriously though, I’m sorry you went through that. I know it couldn’t have been easy to work through.”

 He looked down at your hand that was still on his knee and nodded before he cleared his throat.

 “You mentioned you’re close with your grandmother?”

 Taking your hand back, you rearranged the blanket again and nodded. “I did. Yeah. She’s my mother’s mother, and she is—she’s my world.” With a soft smile on your lips, you quickly went through your fondest memories with her.

 “I don’t think it’s healthy to depend on her as much as I do, but--.” You shrugged. “She helps me with so much, like being forgiving, being more open, being a better person in general. She gets me and doesn’t judge me or make me feel like something is wrong with me. In her eyes, I’m—Corrin, my middle name, and it’s great. All the pressure I constantly carry around is gone.”

 Talking about how much your gramaw meant to you made you emotional, and the sting of tears in your eyes told you just how emotional you’d gotten.

 “That’s great to have at least one person in your life that can do that for you. you’re lucky.”

 “Yes, ha, she’s—uh, she’s the reason I’m here,” you confessed. Henry looked very interested to know what you meant.

 “How so?”

 “She uh, she just reminded me of a few things and pointed some other things out to me,” you said, giving him the CliffsNotes version. You could tell it wasn’t going to cut it, though, so you continued. “She pretty much made me think from a  different perspective, the one that I was desperately trying to ignore.”

 Henry still looked interested, but he nodded. “I have to thank her because I’m glad she changed your mind.”

 You studied him for a little while as you put another spoonful into your mouth. “Are you?”

 Henry didn’t look away or give way to any emotion on his face. He just nodded. “Yes. I’m glad you’re here.”

 You didn’t see any indication that he was lying or stretching the truth. You did notice that the pull between you was still there. Henry was the first to look away this time, and the two of you continued to share the half-gallon container of ice cream while chatting. He told you more about his private school days and painted a clearer image of what he was like as a boy, and the image you got was absolute adorableness and tenacity.

 By the time you both walked back inside, two hours had passed, and the beginning of the sunrise was peeking out behind the mountains. You stood in the long hall that separated your room from his clutching the sheet wrapped around you and your notebook.

 “So, in the morning—or a few hours we’ll catch a flight out,” Henry confirmed.

 “Still won’t tell me where to?”

 Henry smiled, rubbed the back of his neck, and shook his head. “You don’t like surprises, do you? This is the fifth time you’re trying to pry it out of me.”

 You pinched your lips then groaned. “No, no. It’s not that I don’t like surprises. I love surprises—well, good ones. I just like to know every detail. I like--.”

 “Being in control,” Henry finished, hitting the nail right on the head. You knew it was the loss of control that was making you antsy.

 You closed your eyes and slowly breathed out.

 “Yes. I guess I might have a control problem.”

 Henry looked very amused. “Might?”

 The two of you laughed together, and you couldn’t believe the call out.

 “Shut up.”

 “It’s okay. I get it. I like control too, a whole lot, and I don’t usually like when control is taken from me, but I’ve gotten better with it. Now, I won’t die if my control is taken. Then—it felt like it.”

 You nodded at yet another thing you had in common. It was becoming more than you could count on your fingers.

 “Good for you, but I—I might die.”

 Henry laughed again, this time not with you, at you.

 “I’m going to make you a promise. By the end of this vacation, you will be better at giving me control,” Henry said, his voice so deep and commanding that your spine tingled. When the tingling traveled around to your gut and moved downward, you clutched the sheet tighter.

 “Oh, will I?”

 He smirked; it was a cocky one. “Yes, you will. I don’t break promises. Never have.”

 Your eyes locked, and that tingling intensified, making your lady parts beg for some attention. He was downright captivating, and it was so hard staying on your side of the hall.

 “All you have to know is that I won’t abuse my control. You can trust that. You can trust me.”

 You almost made the yikes face hearing the T-word. You knew he remembered you saying that trust was a tricky thing for you, and you also knew this was probably a test. You were in between a rock and a hard place. After sighing out, you spoke.

 “Okay.”

 “But, you do have to say these five words, though,” Henry said with a smirk.

 “What?”

 “I—relinquish—control—to—you.”

 With every word, his voice got deeper and deeper, his eyes more and more focused on you. It was so easy to get lost in them, and he must have known it.

“Uh—no. I can’t say that.”

 “Sure you can. I know it’s not easy, but I promise you will not regret it.”

 Your nose flared, heart raced, mouth went dry, all points of your anxiety. You hated feeling backed in a corner, and you hated giving away your control even more.

 “Will you relinquish control to me?”

 With a grin, he spoke, “I will.”

 “When?”

 “One day,” Henry said, that grin still on his face.

 Of course he’d say that you thought. “How about, I will try,” you appeased.

 “Nope. Not good enough. I want it all, Aliya.”

 You groaned and ruffled your curls, still clutching the sheet with one hand. He was not going to let up.

 “God, Henry.”

 He didn’t say anything, just waited. He didn’t even look pressed like he was worried you’d say no. He looked confident, commanding, and in complete control, and it called to you. There had never been any other man who you’d ever thought about giving control to. None of them felt like him. He felt different.

 “I,” Henry perked up but kept his eyes firmly on yours. another thing you loved about him. “Relinquish—control,” you paused again, feeling the full weight of the words you were going to release. You weren’t just saying that you were giving him control to make the decisions. You were giving him control, period. That was when the panic picked up. “Control to,” you rolled your eyes then hissed. “You.”

 The silence stretched, but the longer it went on, the less anxious you felt. Yeah, there was some residual panic lingering, but the look in his eyes only comforted you.

 “Thank you. I know how hard that was for you,” Henry softly said.

 You looked down and took a shaky breath. “You have no idea.” When you looked back at him, he was still staring at you. “Okay. Well, good night, Henry.”

 “Good night, Aliya.”

 A visible shiver ran through you, but you ignored it and turned around to walk to your bedroom door. After a few steps, you stopped and smiled as an idea formed. Instead of walking forward, you turned around and walked back to him. Once close enough, you tiptoed, threaded your fingers into his hair at the nape of his neck, then pulled his head down to yours. It was then you pressed your lips to his.

 From the second your lips touched, it felt like you’d been standing out in the rain and gotten hit but a lightning bolt. Your moan was loud, and once it slipped out, Henry grabbed you, pulled you flush against him, and held you there. The hand on your hip squeezed while his right hand sneaked around your back to press his palm against your tailbone. That was when you realized you wanted more—a lot more. You sucked his bottom lip into your mouth, then nibbled, sinking your nails into his curls. You were second away from dropping the sheet, so you pulled back, grasping to the fraying threads of your self-control. Henry’s eyes were still closed, giving you a few extra seconds to admire his beauty. He still had the same effect as the first time he’d kissed you. 

 “Good night, Henry,” you said again, pecking his lips once more before walking away again.

 Though you’d given relinquished control, you just took a little of it back. It felt good.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

***If you want to be tagged/untagged please SEND AN ASK SO IT WILL BE EASIER FOR ME TO KEEP TRACK OF. Thank you for reading!!!***

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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[ladymidnight77]

Ooh first time someone’s tagged me in a game @iwillpunchyouinthenose I’m so excited!!! Sorry it took me so long to join in, I’ll be your friend if you’ll have me 🥺

Last Movie at Home: Sonic 2020, I know I know. My partner made me watch it after we went to the movies cause I mentioned to them I still hadn’t seen it, love that dr.stone/robotnik dynamic tho 😏

Favorite Color: sunset, but not like orange or anything the the colors of orangish, pink, and purple all melding together (fun fact: I have a mermaid tail that includes all those colors)

Sweet, Savory, or Spicy: hmm I adore chocolate, especially dark chocolate so I guess sweet, but I had the his one dark chocolate that had chili in it and it was to die for!

Currently Reading: Grandmaster of Demonic Cultuvation (魔道祖师) by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu, since it came out it an official English translation. It’s the book the Netflix show The Untamed is loosely based on. And I say loosely since they cut out all the mlm pining *sigh* why must we censor love. My on again off again book would be The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien, I got the LOTR and hobbit books as Christmas gifts since I enjoyed the Peter Jackson movies. I wish I could say I’ve ready more but I’ve only gotten like 80 pages in🙈

Currently working on: I wish I could say I write but I haven’t really found a muse yet, currently working on sewing some new outfit, trying to get back into practicing my craft, and planning a Mardi Gras feast on Tuesday, I did just complete a clown fish themed mermaid tail 🥰

Lol I have like one friend so I’ll tag some people I’ve noticed who’ve liked/reblogged my shizz: @seraphim-s , @colormetherainbow , @entishramblings , @gayshitandmemes Ya’ll seem pretty chill and you bring smiles to my face when I see you pop up on my activity. Have a lovely evening chickadees! 😘

[puppyluver256]

[Image Description: Three fan-made Pokemon made to resemble the northern cardinal bird, one of which is presented as two sexually dimorphic individuals.

The first Pokemon is a young bird with yellow feathers, tipped red-orange at the wings and on the tail. It has a small rounded blue beak, blue legs, and big dark blue eyes. It has its wings tucked against its body and is looking to the left of the image as it faces the right. The feathers on its head stick up to imply the beginning of a crest. Light blue text to the right of the image reads "Cardling".

The second Pokemon is a juvenile bird with tan feathers on its body and red feathers on its wings and tail. It has a blue beak and legs and light blue markings around its dark blue eyes. Feathers on its head stick up in a crest. Its legs are pulled up against its body and its wings are outstretched in flight. Light blue text to the right of the image reads "Purdinal".

The third Pokemon are two adult birds with large three-feathered head crests, maroon beaks and legs, blue facial markings, dark blue eyes, and turquoise talons resembling icicles. The individual on the left is a little larger and has bright red plumage with blue tipped wings and tail, while the individual on the right is a little smaller and has dull tan plumage with bright red belly, wingtips, and tail. Their wings are tucked up to their bodies and they are positioned to that their bodies are facing each other, while their heads are facing away. Turquoise text outlined in light blue to the right of the image reads "Frostinal", while smaller text in the same colors reads "male" and "female", indicating the larger red individual is a male and the smaller tan individual is female.

End ID.]

-----

Cardling - Chick Pokemon | flying While Cardling are capable of flight a lot earlier in life than some bird Pokemon, they are almost incapable of dealing with the cold until maturing. They tend to become quite close to their parents while they can before they make the trip back north. / Cardling are very susceptible to frigid temperatures, and as such their parents must nest much further south than the typical location of their home. They feast upon a wide variety of berries several times a day in order to build their strength.

Purdinal - Fledgling Pokemon | flying They are capable of fluffing up their down undercoat in order to provide some better cold resistance than they previously could. They seem to be quite fond of Snover berries, but their opportunities to taste them are quite rare. / Beginning to develop some mild cold resistance, Purdinal sometimes travel further up north than they could as Cardling. They are still not fully capable of living in cold climates, merely visiting to briefly reunite with parents while they are still fairly young.

Frostinal - Cardinal Pokemon | ice/flying It lives in the northernmost parts of Cantessy, except for during breeding season when mated pairs will travel south to raise their less resilient young. Males can be seen feeding females berries plucked from Snover during courtship. / Its talons are as cold as the snowy north it calls home. A mated pair will fly south to warmer climates during breeding season as their young cannot withstand the cold very well until fully grown.

I know the tradition with Fakemon stuff is to introduce all the starters and their evos together, but I wanted to post the full evo lines for my starters pretty close to posting people who would reasonably use them, ie. the player(s) and the rival characters. So we're gonna wait a bit on Calflame's evos for now and instead focus on Cantessy's "Route 1 bird": Cardling! And of course its evolutions Purdinal and Frostinal! Compared to the origins of the starters' inspirations, the Route 1 bird was fairly simple to figure out. I knew when I was figuring things out that I wanted my Route 1 bird to be based on Kentucky's state bird, the northern cardinal. I see 'em all over the place here, and they're really not hard to spot, especially the bright red males for which the species gets its name. (fun fact, when I first learned about catholic cardinals I thought they were named after the birds, luckily I was old enough to have the critical thinking to realize it was probably the other way around pretty quick on my own hehe) So Cardling are based on a mix of the babies and fledglings, Purdinal on the juveniles, and Frostinal obviously on the adults. This is going to be the only Cantessy Pokemon to have a gender difference, as I wanted to reference how the females are closer to olive drab rather than that iconic vibrant red. Better egg camouflage, y'know?

Thanks to my buddy Tav for suggesting the final stage of this evolution line gain the ice type! This was the only major hang-up I had with this line at any point, tbh. I knew I wanted it to gain a secondary type, but I didn't want to just play into the red coloration and make it fire type, and becoming fire would also make it too similar to Talonflame with fancy colors. They suggested ice, and I was reminded of all those winter images and holiday cards that have cardinals on them, not to mention the red plumage would artistically stand out against a snowy scene in a really lovely way. (come to think of it, that's probably why cardinals are used in those images hehe) And speaking of ice-type cardinal Pokemon, please check out the Pokemon Cardinal series on YouTube! It's a really cool Fakemon series and I think y'all would liiiike it O:

Also if anyone wants to suggest other moves for these guys to learn and some physical stats (ie. height and weight, idk much about scaling hehe), feel free to throw ‘em at me :3 Links to their info pages will be provided in the replies!

💖🐶 Check out my pinned post for ways to support my artwork, among other things! 🐶💖

~If you like, please reblog to show your friends! Likes are appreciated, but reblogs let more people see my content! If you have something to say, feel free to give feedback in tags/comments/replies as well!~

Pokemon and related concepts © Nintendo/GameFreak Cardling, Purdinal, Frostinal, the Cantessy region, and artwork © PuppyLuver Studios

[avrenn]

PROFILE - AVREN

Anger is better than tears, than grief, than guilt. If I am to do whatever it takes to survive, I will be angry, and I will stay angry, until my job is done.

the basics ––– –

NAME: Avren Moonbrooke

AGE: adult; late 20s for humans, he guesses

BIRTHDAY: born during the Feast of the Moon, celebrates his birthday on the first of Nightal (December 1st, Sagittarius)

RACE: half-drow

GENDER: cis male

RP ROLE: introverted company, tough love, mentor

ALIGNMENT: chaotic neutral

physical appearance ––– –

HAIR: snow white

EYES: hazel

HEIGHT: 5′7″

BUILD: lithe; built for agility and speed rather than brute strength

DISTINGUISHING MARKS: white freckles smatter his face and body, his light eyes despite being drow, his famous golden eyeliner

SCARS: a scar upon his right cheek, etc. on his body, a long gash across his back

COMMON ACCESSORIES: misc. gold beads woven through his hair, four piercings in his ears, septum in his nose

personal ––– –

PROFESSION: rogue, assassin branch

HOBBIES: drinking, gambling, whittling, knife throwing

LANGUAGES: undercommon, common, elvish, thieves’ cant

RESIDENCE: wherever he ends up for the night

BIRTHPLACE: Menzoberranzan, the City of Spiders

RELIGION: Eilistraee, The Dark Maiden

FEARS: to let people in and to trust them, only to be betrayed due to ulterior motives; abandonment and betrayal

relationships ––– -

SPOUSE: none

CHILDREN: none

PARENTS: Mother; unknown status. Father; alive, unfortunately

SIBLINGS: none that he knows of

OTHER RELATIVES: none

PETS (companion animals): he keeps no pets, though there is a raven that follows him that he talks to

sex & romance ––– -

SEXUAL ORIENTATION: pansexual

PREFERRED ROLE: submissive | dominant | switch

LIBIDO: medium-high

TURN ONS: size difference, light knifeplay, praise, body worship, hair pulling, long foreplay and aftercare

TURN OFFS: overly chatty/loud partners, PDA, overbearingness

LOVE LANGUAGE: shows love through gestures, hair preening, and shiny objects

RELATIONSHIP TENDENCIES: almost always noncommittal. if you are the one to catch feelings, that’s a you problem. if he is the one to catch feelings, he would sooner die than utter that truth

traits ––– -

extroverted / introverted / in between

disorganized / organized / in between

close minded / open-minded / in between

calm / anxious / in between

disagreeable / agreeable / in between

cautious / reckless / in between

patient / impatient / in between

outspoken / reserved / in between

leader / follower / in between

empathetic / unemphatic / in between

optimistic / pessimistic / in between

traditional / modern / in between

hard-working / lazy / in between

cultured / un-cultured / in between

loyal / disloyal / unknown / in between

faithful / unfaithful / unknown / in between

additional information ––– –

SMOKING HABIT: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

DRUGS: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

ALCOHOL: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

RP HOOKS ––– –

avren never stays in one place for too long, he’s always on the road

he likes to keep to himself, but will tolerate traveling companions, for the most part

his job isn’t one of a typical roguish assassin--he hunts targets on his own, specifically slavers, traffickers, and their group caravans. he returns all captured persons to the nearest city, and back to their homes, safely

quiet until you get to know him; once he trusts, he is a fiercely loyal friend and partner. he’s actually a bit of a goof, especially after drinking

a cautious, introverted pessimist isn’t easily anyone’s friend, but he’s more than his negativity and trauma; he’s working on it

if he’s staying in town, he sleeps in the inn with the best bar, and can usually be found at a table by himself there

EXTRA ––– –

this was definitely all for fun, thanks to a friend!!

avrenn is a side blog attached to my main one, so i cannot IC send asks, but i can reply/rp in reblogs and tags!

i love rp and interaction, don’t be shy! i like reblogging interactive asks when i come across them

my main blog is linked to my page, so if you get an IC ask from there, it’s just avren stopping by and saying hello! i’ll make sure to signature if it’s IC or OOC

this was shamelessly stolen from @j-egr​

[sanders-sides-fics]

In My Dreams: Chapter Two

Warnings: food mentions, Deceit (named Dorian here)

Masterlist

Word Count: 2204

Author’s note: I will be reblogging with the link to AO3, which will also be on the masterlist!

-

Virgil fidgeted uncomfortably in his spot at the main table next to Remy. Even once the court was seated, he could feel the eyes on him. When he looked out of the other tables, he could never see who was staring, but he knew they were. He was sure it would be worse if he caught someone staring at him.

The crown felt heavy on his head as he looked around again. Logan had advised him the weight would be unnoticeable once he wore the crown enough, but combined with the feeling of being watched, it felt heavy and very uncomfortable.

“Not hungry?”

Virgil looked over to Remy and shrugged, “It’s weird being on this side of things.”

“Nothing to do with lords that keep looking at you?” Remy asked. “I got that too, the first time we had an event at the castle after the attack.”

Virgil frowned at him and made a point to move around some of the food on his plate around with his fork, just to make it look like he had eaten. He could still feel the eyes on him and that helped nothing.

“Why did they stare then?” he asked quietly.

Remy shrugged, “To see the poor little orphan playing prince.”

Virgil wrinkled his nose and set down his fork. He glanced around the feast hall once more. Nothing had changed. Lords and Ladies still chattered at each other as servants bustled around as Virgil had every time there was a feast in Sandres.

“Did they not like you?”

Remy scoffed, “No, they just wanted to feel some pity. Got it out of their systems real fast. Now, eat up.”

Virgil turned back to his plate and tried to eat a bit. He still pushed things around before settling on the roast beef. He picked up a juicy piece with his fork and bit into it. It was good, but he preferred how his Dad made it. He hoped he was okay without Virgil there to help him in Sandres. Virgil would have to write to him soon and try to figure out how long he should wait before he made a visit.

He kept eating quietly until his plate was mostly cleared. As he ate, he listened to Remy and Logan’s discussion of their trip to Sandres and what steps would be needed next. Remy suggested that they could arrange trade between the kingdoms to foster the relationship and Logan smiled proudly.

“We could write to King Thomas to make arrangements tomorrow,” Logan said. “What do you think, Virgil?”

Virgil startled at the mention of his name, “Um, it sounds like a good idea? What do we have to trade?”

Logan smiled approvingly, “We have our fabrics and fruits. Meat from the northern border and salt from the east and south.”

“Salt?” Virgil asked.

“From our lands bordered by the ocean,” Logan explained. “I can show you a map after the feast, though I often find myself pulled into the dances following dinner.”

“That’s because you’re still not married,” Remy teased.

Logan raised an eyebrow, “As are you, due to my refusal to allow for an arrangement for your hand as your regent.”

Remy shivered at the mention. Virgil watched curiously, pondering what Picais was like under Logan’s reign as Regent.

“I would never marry someone so tasteless,” Remy commented. “She didn’t know matean from silk.”

Virgil tuned out the rest of the conversation as the conversation dissolved into gentle teasing. Before he knew it, the plates were being cleared from the table and the court began to stand from their seats to move to the ballroom. Remy tapped Virgil’s shoulder and offered his hand to guide him out of the feast hall.

“If you need to get away, go to the library. No one usually goes there during our feasts,” Logan advised. “I have gone there a few times to hide myself.”

Virgil smiled, “Thank you.”

Virgil made sure to think of where he knew the library was from the brief tour the night before. It sounded like the perfect place to escape to. Virgil took Remy’s offered hand and followed his brother to the ballroom.

Remy smiled at him, “Do try to mingle for a while before you run off to the library, alright?”

Virgil rolled his eyes at his brother as Remy let go of his hand.

“What makes you so sure I will?” he asked.

“Brotherly intuition,” Remy answered.

Virgil snorted, “Yeah right.”

Virgil looked around the ballroom as his brother walked away. There wasn’t a single face he recognized beside Remy’s and Logan’s. He wasn’t surprised by the lack of familiarity, but would need to grow used to the idea of it being expected.

He went about the room, ducking his head with care not to lose the crown. He had never experienced a feast where he was being served instead of being serving others, but perhaps it would not be hard to cruise through the night near the wall, talking to the servants.

Was he avoiding his court? Yes, but he would also like to know those that were serving him and his brother. They were just as important as the court members, Virgil knew a castle couldn’t function without its servants from experience.

“Prince Virgilius!” a voice exclaimed excitedly. “I’ve been hoping to catch you all night!”

Virgil flinched at the outburst and turned to face the person who called his name. Before him stood a heavy set man in bright green. The man bowed to him and smiled.

“Hello?”

Virgil wasn’t sure how he was to acknowledge this. He had seen Roman dance around the ballroom and talk with nobles frequently, yet the mannerisms fled his mind as he looked at this man.

“I am Sir Gary Ashdown, your Highness, I worked with your Father, the late King Dorian,” he explained. “It is an honor to meet you and see you returned to us alive and well.”

“Thank you,” Virgil said, fidgeting.

“That’s all I wanted to say, your Highness. I look forward to seeing what kind of leader you’ll become.”

With that Sir Gary turned and disappeared into the crowd of nobles.

Virgil wasn’t sure what to make of that conversation, but guessed the rest of the night would be full of them if he stayed in the ballroom. Quietly, he made his way to the hallway, sticking close to the servants as he walked, knowing most nobles ignored them unless they needed something during a feast.

Virgil walked down the halls, trying to find the doors he knew lead to the library. The main floor was much smaller than the one in Sandres’ castle. If anything, this would make the search much easier on him.

He kept walking around until he found the door Remy had shown him the night before. He opened the door and the candles around the room all flickered to life. He jumped back and looked around for someone who could have done so.

“Hello, Prince Virgilius.”

Virgil yelped and back to the door again.

“Sorry, sorry,” an older woman stepped out from the shelves. “I am Mavis, I am the caretaker of the library. My eyesight is not very good so I do not use the lighting system, but when I heard you, I started it.”

“Light system?” he asked.

Mavis smiled sweetly, “Your father created it with his magic. He was a talented fellow.”

Virgil looked around at the candles, “They’re magic?”

“They are. He created them when he grew frustrated from trying to carry books and his candle around at night. Too stubborn to ask for help,” Mavis smiled. “Solved his issue quickly.”

Virgil nodded, “It seems.”

He glanced around the library. Wondering if he could find anything from King Dorian’s life or study within the library.

“Shouldn’t you be at the feast, my prince?”

Virgil awkwardly shrugged, “I just… got overwhelmed. I wanted some quiet. Can I look around?”

“Of course! This is your castle, dear,” she reminded.

Virgil smiled and walked into the array of shelving to see what he could find. Many of the texts were unfamiliar to him. He picked a book off the shelf and examined the cover. The cover had an intricate design of flowers and vines surrounding the title, “Guide to Herbology and Medicine”.

Virgil opened the book curiously and flipped through a few pages. The pages were old and worn, clearly studied meticulously. As he turned the pages, a leaf fell from between the pages. Virgil knelt down to pick it up and place it back into the book.

Kneeling on the floor, he reached for the leaf and took it into his hand, something sticking out from under the shelf catching his eye. He grabbed the item as well and stood up. He put the leaf back into its book and replaced the book on the shelf. Virgil then examined the item.

It was a leather bound book with pieces of paper sticking out from pages. Virgil walked over to a table with the book and sat down, before wiping the thick layer of dust off of the book and untying the string around the book. He opened to the first page, curious yet not expecting anything from the plain covered book.

On the first page of the book was written Dorian Picani in a neat script. Virgil’s eyes widened and put his finger on the page to trace along the name. He wondered what one of his fathers’ books was doing under a library shelf…. He could ask Remy…. After he’d gotten the chance to look through the book himself.

He flipped to the next page and began to read.

I haven’t spoken to Emile about the possibility of Virgilius’ developments becoming permanent yet, hoping that it is residual magic from being carried by a magic user, as Remy’s were. If the developments continue and do not disappear, I will need to tell my husband before something happens. I haven’t noticed anything permanent yet.

Details of developments:

1.  Speaking to spiders in the castle:

            This could be due to developing magic in my son, or this may be antics of a toddler. I will be watching for these interactions as he grows older.

2.  Levitation:

            Levitating objects that he wants, such as his bottle or his stuffed animal. The heaviest thing he has lifted is a large story book so that I could read from it for a bedtime story. This is undoubtedly a sign of magic.

Similar instances to these occurred when Remington was still toddler, but he grew out of them by age two. Virgilius is approaching his third birthday without a cease of magical activities. As the day grows closer, I will continue monitoring my son. The traditional test for magic is still years away but if these instances do not cease prior to Virgilius reaching ten years of age, it will merely be a formality.

Virgil’s eyes widened as he read on, reading his father’s words about him and his magical development. The King seemed anxious about something the more he went on about Virgil’s powers. Now that Virgil had faced the Dragon Witch, he understood that worry. King Dorian had feared her finding out about his son’s abilities…. Fears that were justified when Virgil considered his family’s fate and the Dragon Witch’s final actions in Sandres.

He flipped through more pages, coming across more stories of his powers and listings of what he could do before his loss of memory. As it became clear that these powers came from Virgil’s own magic, the King’s tone changed to fondness as he described what he did to teach Virgil.

Virgil paused in his reading to examine a page that was entirely full of scribbles and mysterious splotches of ink. After a moment, he flipped to the next page and looked for an explanation.

Virgilius’ masterful use of a quill and ink. Today is the first day he managed to steal my journal without my notice and begin to take his own notes on his magic. Upon an examination of his input, I have found it extremely valuable and will ensure the page remains within my journal for further use.

Virgil smiled at the note, relieved to see his father did not punish his younger self for the instant. A tinge of sadness pulled at his heart, knowing he would never know the man who spoke so fondly of him. He shook his head and continued his read through.

“Virgil?” Remy’s voice called through the library. “Are you in here?”

Virgil closed the book and looked around for a place to hide it. He knelt down and quickly put the book back where he had found it, vowing to retrieve it later when he could sneak it to his room. He wasn’t sure why he was hiding it from Remy, but it didn’t feel right to share it just yet.

“Yeah, I’m over here,” he called, standing up.

He stepped out from the shelves and walked toward his brother.

“I’m sorry, I got a bit overwhelmed by it all,” he explained.

Remy smiled softly in sympathy, “At least find anything interesting in here?”

Virgil shook his head.

[batbobsession]

So I saw the Hunchback of Notre Dame to alleviate the isolation...

Spoilers ahead.

With @lumiereswig‘s recent reblog of her Hadestown experience, I thought I’d share a musical that I saw virtually—the Hunchback of Notre Dame.  This was not a Disney adaptation, I repeat, they took the good stuff from the movie and then told the story straight from the book.

And oh my gosh, it got dark, so spoilers ahead.

Frollo got humanized and it makes him more terrifying.  First off, he’s played by Patrick Page, who, thanks to my recent research, plays Hades in Hadestown, and if that doesn’t draw parallels I don’t know what will

Anyway, Frollo has a brother who is actually a good person and elopes with a Roma woman.  Frollo finds him dying and he gives Frollo his child, who is disfigured, and Frollo, giving us the first reason why we should hate him, tells his dying brother “wow, this thing is a monster because of your sins” and then his brother dies.

Of course, they sing the Dies Irae directly after—an indirect foreshadowing of Frollo’s death by Quasimodo’s hands

“The saints blessed him and the monsters protected him.” my GOODNESS what a line!

And my gosh, the way they introduce Quasimodo is so freaking genius.  Michael Arden comes out like any regular man and then SMEARS HIS FACE WITH BLACK PAINT as Frollo ties the hump to his back (THE SYMBOLISM THERE OMG) and the bells descend from the curtains above as the chorus swells.

Also the chorus plays the statues and each one has its own personality.  It’s so obvious that the statues’ voices are all Quasimodo’s inner psyche tugging him one way and then the other, and every time they speak they use small bells or cymbals to accent their words.

Also Quasimodo can barely speak…UNTIL HE SINGS.  Arden has such an amazing, youthful voice, and I could feel his anxiety for freedom in “Out There.”

And then Frollo comes upstairs and RUINS EVERYTHING.  He uses this kind but CONDESCENDING tone that just makes me want to throw something. Instead of ABC’s, Frollo tells Quasimodo the story of the flight into Egypt, when Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus fled from the persecution of the firstborn and were protected by St. Aphrodisius—MORE FORESHADOWING.  But they are so RUDELY interrupted by the Feast of Fools, and on that note

Phoebus is actually a cocky SOB—like sure, they sent me in just in case the festival goes awry, but all I’m really here for are the ladies, rest and recreation!

AND THEN CLOPIN SHOWS UP and introduces ESMERELDA and she dances and Phoebus is like “I’ve seen the face of an angel! I’ve been forever changed!”

With Quasimodo’s arrival they announce the contest for the king of fools, and that scene is pulled straight from the movie.  Aside from a few little details, they didn’t change much.

And after all that Esmerelda chases him down and tries to apologize, but is stopped by Frollo, who’s like “ew, I know your kind, you practice dark magic” and Esmerelda’s like “if I had magic, I’d use it to save my people!” and Frollo is like “well shoot she’s smart” and then gets tempted

Esmerelda says something very Christian-like and Frollo is like “oh, you wish to be saved? Stay until the end of the service I’d be happy to teach you” and leaves and she sings “God Help the Outcasts” and holy moly does Ciara Renee have a voice or what

But at the end of the song she sees Quasimodo watching her and runs after him, and the statues are yelling at him to find a place to hide, quickly, quickly, she’ll see you

But she finds him and finds out he’s nearly deaf because of all the bells he’s been ringing all his life. He tells her he was talking to his friends and then berates himself, and Esmerelda’s like “No, that’s wonderful, I like your friends.”  And Quasimodo’s face just lights up and immediately starts ringing the bells and telling them to sing for her—if that’s not the most wonderful show of affection I don’t know what is.

They both sing “The Top of the World” and throughout the whole thing Quasimodo slowly realizes that she’s not going to berate him like Frollo would and you just see him become more and more animated throughout the song.  At the end of the song she kisses him on the cheek and you can tell, you can tell that’s the first time he’s been kissed at all

And then Frollo comes upstairs and RUINS EVERYTHING. “Quasimodo what were you doing ringing the bells off-schedule?” He turns and sees Esmerelda and is all like “oh, I thought you had left! I can still teach you the ways of the church, just stay here forever.” And Esmerelda, bless her soul, actually turns him down politely.  “I don’t think this is a good idea.” Frollo reaches for her hand and she backs away.  “I see the way you look at me.”

Frollo jumps back like he’s been stung by the most overdramatic wasp in the world “hOW DARE YOU! Your soul is so unclean you can’t see goodness in others!” And calls the guards on her.

And then he berates Quasimodo for having impure thoughts and the gargoyles whisper around him, like snakes in the shadows as Quasimodo promises to never again think about her.

AND THEN STALKS HER TO A TAVERN. Okay, it’s indirect but stalking all the same.  And watches Esmerelda and Phoebus fall in love.

Then we get into Heaven’s Light, and Quasimodo has seen the true face of God, because there is a human down there who isn’t afraid of him, who touched his face and suddenly the darkness is filled with light, a light so bright it must be from Heaven…

And the next song is literally the flipside of Heaven’s Light; while Quasimodo sings about how pure and open Esmerelda was to him, Frollo clutches Esmerelda’s scarf and sings of Hellfire.  And I mean, Hellfire was the most dramatic part of the movie for me, so this part was a little underwhelming…but Page carried that entire scene.  My GOODNESS his voice.  And him stumbling around as the saints look down on him and berate him while Frollo just keeps repeating “It’s not my fault!” Like, you can tell he believes what he says but he knows there’s evil in him now (I mean, there was evil in him before, but the sneaky kind) as the lights slowly change from blue to red, closing in on him until everything is bathed in a hellish glow…

And for the rest of the musical he wears a black and red cape over his otherwise white robes, showing how he has fallen and is acting on his own urges.  

He visits the prison—literally swoops in like a bat from hell with his new cape—and King Louis XI is there overlooking the prison and he just looks at Frollo and goes “oH! My astrologer told me I would have an unexpected guest!” Frollo just…. dies inside.  I lost it.

Anyway he manipulates the king to give the church military power and now soldiers are going left and right searching for Esmerelda; they come to a brothel and the women refuse to talk and Frollo’s like “fine, burn it down.” and Phoebus is like “whoa, hell no.” and Frollo shrugs, stabs him in the back, and blames Esmerelda

We interrupt this moment to remind you that everyone in the chorus is literally an angel and together they sound like an actual cathedral choir, thank you for your time.

Meanwhile Quasimodo’s like “oh shoot, what do I do? I want to protect her” and the statues tell him to go after her, find her and protect her like St. Aphrodisius protected Mary. Quasimodo is still unsure, but St. Aphrodisius himself comes out of his stained-glass window and gives Quasimodo his blessing (and a bit of unneeded comedy along with it).

Esmerelda makes Quasimodo take care of Phoebus, Quasimodo lies to Frollo for the first time, and Frollo’s like, well, we found her hideout, we attack at dawn.

Phoebus and Quasimodo have the same chemistry in the musical as they do in the movie.  “You can barely speak!”  “You can hardly walk!” Their arguments are funny, but just like the movie, Clopin finds them and is like “well, they’re gonna hang!” Esmerelda stops it, and Frollo shows up and RUINS EVERYTHING.

Frollo has her locked up, he confesses his love in literally one of the most horrifying ways a person can confess.  He starts out soft, believing that he can save her, rescue her from dark magic and be her sanctuary forever.  He says Esmerelda has made him feel human…and then tries to force her to kiss him.  She strikes him. “Help, a demon! Help me, please!” (FINALLY, someone shows him the respect he deserves)

Phoebus and Esmerelda grieve over what’s going to happen, and when they sang “Someday” I cried.

But the song that shook me to my very core was “Made of Stone” where Quasimodo is tied to a post while the statues plead for him to do something and Quasimodo yells back, “I’ve wasted my faith believing in saints of plaster, but the only one worth believing in was my master”

“Take all the dreams you’ve sown, take all your lies and leave me alone!”

“All right, Quasimodo, we’ll leave you alone All right, Quasimodo, we’ll trouble you no longer You’re right, Quasimodo, we’re only made of stone We just thought that you were made of something stronger.”

And when he sings the last line….HOLY. HELL. I just…I don’t have words for that.

But he quickly changes his mind and rescues Esmerelda from the fire.  The choir swells again, singing the Dies Irae, as Quasimodo lays waste to the crowd outside Notre Dame with giant rocks and molten lead.  Phoebus rallies the crowd into rebellion.  As chilling as this scene is, I think “Oh, now it’s gonna be like the movie, right?” NO.

She dies.  The smoke got to her or something.  But she definitely dies.  And Quasimodo’s talk with Frollo doesn’t end with Frollo pulling a knife. It’s sad, and slow, and Quasimodo finally comes to the terms with the abuse he’s been living with while they both grieve over her death in different ways.  The shock on Quasimodo’s face as Frollo repeats the same pious talk of sanctuary just after killing someone…at this point, I want Frollo dead, obviously.

And so does Quasimodo. He stands up straight for the first time and we see…he’s taller than Frollo, and that scares him.  “The wicked shall not go unpunished,” he says.  “The wicked shall not go unpunished,” echo the statues.  The Dies Irae swells one final time as Quasimodo drags Frollo to the balcony, lifts him up—“I told you, master.  I am very strong.”

“You don’t want to hurt me!” Yes you do, whisper the monsters.

“Quasimodo raised his two huge hands, and with a great bellow threw his master over the edge of the roof and into the abyss below!”  And I am chilled to the bone.  Thanks for that.

And then Phoebus arrives cuz he missed everything. He can’t even lift her up, and they’re both grieving.

Then the chorus—they are seriously the best chorus in the history of ever—approach Quasimodo one at a time, smearing black paint on their faces and hunching over.  Quasimodo sets Esmerelda down and turns his back to the audience. The ghost of Quasimodo’s mother sings for him. Esmerelda gets up and walks through the doors to eternal salvation. She turns back to look at him. He stands up and faces the audience, no longer hunched over, not a speck of paint on his face. 

“What makes a monster, and what makes a man?”

And the chorus swells, and they all bow, and I want to see it again.  So I watch it again, because that’s the beauty of the digital age.

[beatrixacs]

Rules: Answer 30 questions and tag 20 blogs you are contractually obligated to get to know better.

Tagged by @brasandsocks 💖😘

Name/Nickname: Tereza/I don’t really have an IRL nickname (not anymore at least), all are just dimunitives of my name

Gender: Female

Star sign: Pisces

Height: 161 cm

Time: 15:35 (Central European Time)

Birthday: March

Favorite Bands: Audiomachine, Imagine Dragons, One Republic (I guess, I’m not really much of a band type unless I can list orchestras)

Favorite Solo Artists: Eminem, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry... (again, not really much of a fan of some artist - aside Eminem - I just generally love music and I don’t care who is the artist)

Last movie: Home Alone

Last show: Vikings and Mr. Mercedes

When did I create this blog: October 2014

What I post: Links to my fanfics, occassional rants and other personal stuff. Usually like and reblog gifsets from my favourite fandoms.

Last thing I googled: An animal called Javan Rusa or Sunda Sambar

Other blogs: I have a sideblog dedicated to my challenge of reading everything Sigmund Freud has ever written.

Do I get asks: Almost never but my Ask box is very hard to find on my main page.

Why did I chose my URL: It’s my online nickname.

Following: 108

Followers: 232

Average hours of sleep: 7 - 9

Instruments: Violin, piano and saxophone.

What am I wearing: All black - from T-shirt to leggins. When I feel cold, I take on my red sweatshirt I was gifted by Autumn Cozy. 

Dream Job(s): Always was and always will be - lawyer.

Dream trip: Right now, London.

Favorite food: Lasagne, Pizza, Teriyaki Chicken

Nationality: Czech

Favorite song: Don’t have just one as every normal person in the world but current favourite is Heimta Thurs by Wardruna (Blood Eagle song from Vikings)

Last book I read: The Feast for Crows by George R. R. Martin (4th A Song of Ice and Fire book)

Top 3 Fictional Universes I’d Like To Live In: Discworld, The Witcher 3: The Wild Hunt and... Cyberpunk 2077 starts growing up on me (or definitely Azeroth from World of Warcraft).

Tagging @lexinoctura :)

[thefairefolk-rp]

Welcome to TFF, Bri! Your application for Orla Fang has been accepted!

OOC INFORMATION:

Name/Nickname:

Bri

Age:

22

Pronouns:

She/hers

Timezone:

EST

Activity and Availability (Please answer in words as well as rating your availability from 1-10):

I am a relatively slow writer and I work full-time, but I’ve been looking for a way to write in community. This will definitely be a priority for me! So I’d say my availability will be at least 6/10. I’m totally new to rps and tumblr, so it might take me a while to get up to speed on … literally everything. But I’ll get there!

IC INFORMATION:

Desired Character:

Orla Fang

Second Choice Character:

Ingrid Faolan

What made you choose this character?:

Orla caught my interest because of her many contradictions. I really love the idea of a character who is so set on a goal, but has increasing doubts about it. Who is she when the goal is done? If the goal is never accomplished? Right now, in the middle of striving for it? She allows herself so little, but that’s unsustainable (even if she’s been at it her whole life). That’s great ground for a growth arc.

She’s definitely going to be haunted by a lot of her father’s behavior, and have some unprocessed feelings about whether his torment was self-inflicted, or even merited. Due to her father’s disgrace, she has lived 600 years in a place she was taught not to call home, while her “real” home remains out of reach. Now, she’s in a Clan where family means very little, but it’s her driving value! I’m also excited to write all the little clashes and complements that come out of her taste for the fancy things of nobility and her more rugged, battle-ready life in the Wildlands.

Her goal might be to return to the Seelie court in favor, but her loyalty is not to the Seelie court — it’s to her family, and her late father. Add in the recent rocky reputation of good Queen Mab and the fact that the Wolf Clan allied with the Unseelie in the war, and Orla could really ally with anyone.

I also love the slight parallel between her and Luna Crow, made all the better for the blackmail dynamic between them. Both are pretending to be someone they’re not, and living in realities they only tentatively accept. I saw that Luna isn’t taken right now, but that’s still an exciting direction for the future!

Her aesthetic also really interested me. In keeping with some of the advice I read in a blitz of rp-101 articles, I’ve started a pinterest board and playlist for inspiration. Links here :)

Pinterest board: https://www.pinterest.com/brialikescheese/orla/

Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5ralXJE5Uyo3D1YbfbxwgI?si=Z8btNQVVSDyIPIBFKIUXXw

Are there any changes you would like to make?:

Nope!

Questions/Comments:

Do you have any more resources available or examples of gif chatting?

What if I can’t find a lot of gifs/images of my face claim?

Do you recommend looking through other characters’ blogs to get a sense of how people start and continue plot threads? That seems really intimidating to me! Also, I don’t exactly know the ins and outs of reblogging and replying. But I’ll get there.

If I say something in my para that isn’t true (contradicted by earlier things) or not super convenient to future storytelling, will somebody tell me, and will I be able to edit it?

If my application is accepted, should I wait until the current event is over to kind of leap in? Starting cold intimidates me too. Are there any guidelines, recommendations, or examples for a starter?

Is it common practice for people in this rp to plot or worldbuild together?  I guess I’m trying to gauge the degree to which people prefer to plan out a detail or respond to it directly in the text. I’m sure it depends on personal preference, timing, and the importance of the detail too.

Is it okay to create random NPC characters to facilitate scenes in (self)paras? I’ve seen people mention unnamed guards etc., but what about recurring minor named characters?

I’ve seen xkit around a lot. Do you recommend that?

Writing Sample (Must be 300 words or more, third person limited, in the character you’re auditioning for’s point of view):

Orla ran a hand over the braids coiled at her neck, fingers catching on jeweled pins. One came loose. She turned it over in her palm — a silver branch twined around sapphires and diamonds. In the dim light of the carriage, its glittering gems seemed to laugh at her misfortune. Once again, she’d left the Seelie court with little more than petty gossip to show for it. No matter. She would return.

The carriage pitched on the cobblestones, growing uneven as they left Wisteria behind. Orla watched the gold arches and shimmering lanterns give way to thorn thickets and thin creeks at the edge of the Wildlands. Soon, these too would vanish, replaced by mountains, rolling mist, and ever-taller pines.

Until then, Orla was left to dwell on the city she was promised.

Orla passed the silver pin wordlessly to Sionnach, who sprawled beside her in comfortable silence. Sionnach slipped the pin into a leather pouch. She would know its proper place in Orla’s room, and see that it returned there.

“I will be late to the fires tonight,” Orla said.

“Of course,” Sionnach replied, but raised a brow. “I hope not too late. Your sparring partners need to keep their skills sharp.”

“Not too late,” Orla agreed.

“Good. You promised me a spar, remember.” Sionnach grinned. “And it will get less and less friendly the more you keep me waiting.”

Orla pressed her lips to avoid smiling.

“I’ll be there when you’re warmed up. You’ll need it.”

In the Wildlands, Orla disembarked from the carriage. If she were a mortal, or simply less attuned to the subtle cues exchanged between a warrior’s body and environment, the slim points of her shoes might have sunk into the earth, unbalancing her. Instead, she allowed a moment to savor the way the ground met her weight — with just enough give to ensure it could push back.

Sionnach followed. She tossed a handful of honey-braised carrots to the harnessed elk at the carriage head. She laughed as they nosed the matted grass and pine needles, and patted their necks. In Wisteria, Orla had pretended not to notice Sionnach pocketing food from the feast table while the nobles tittered and scoffed away. Gossip and carrots. Those were her spoils.

Within the round walls of her tent, Orla exchanged her court garb for sparring leathers and sat at her desk. Her eyes fell on the stack of books in its center. The spines were mismatched: one of green leather and another of brushed grey suede; still others wrapped in birchbark, woven reeds, and the stretched, pebbled skin of an unknown reptile. The casual looker would never guess they were all penned by the same author, which suited their purpose. Their one unifying mark had long since faded, but if Orla touched the spines, her fingers could still find the depressions of the name. In the right light — one candle, lit across the room, or the moon as it set — tiny flecks told of a time when the name was written in full gold leaf.

Azriel Black.

A name she hadn’t spoken aloud in quite some time.

That wouldn’t change today. She pulled out the journal bound in grey suede and thumbed the pages, skimming for the names of the nobles she had seen at court. Though the script itself was neat, reading it was no small act. Text filled a page and even turned the corner to fill it crosswise. Arrows arched between names and fell on diagrams and symbols. It got worse as the text went on. Some of the last  journals, Orla could barely stand to touch. She hated the ache in her chest they produced.

There. The names she was looking for. In the margins Orla wrote down all the details she remembered, even the most frustrating and inane. Lord so-and-so wore a waistcoat with abalone buttons, possibly sourced from that contentious new colony. Lady such-and-such laughed at a tasteless joke and stood guard by the pomegranate puff pastries all night.

She wrote until she ran out of white space. Just as well. Orla closed the book, and then her eyes. These fae were welcomed to city life, taking the parties and pastries as facts of life — things that were owed to them, by name, birth, and the guilelessness that kept them from ever hearing whispers of treason, let alone mustering the will to whisper it themselves.

She slipped the book between its neighbors and went in search of a weapon to suit her mood. Something heavy, tonight. Blunt. Court had soured her appetite for delicacy and grace.

One day, these journals and parties would amount to something. Everything would change.

Until then, the fires were lit, and Sionnach was waiting.

[itsyourchoicedevotionals]

Rebellion

“But Queen Vashti refused to come at the king's command delivered by the eunuchs…” Ester 1:12ESV

Are you aware the spirit of Vashti lives on? One day in prayer, I kept hearing myself say the word ‘Vashti.’ As many times, as I’ve read the Bible story, I knew where to look for her. I strictly thought of Vashti as a former queen, always a little sympathetic to her cause. When in doubt, Google it. Vashti’s story was of a rebellious woman.

According to online Jewish and Hebrew scholars regarding this queen, Vashti was a very prideful woman. The king wanted her to appear before he and his friends wearing a crown— that’s all folks. One of the words in her few short verses indicates Vashti had gained a little roll of fat around the middle. Unable to hide it when naked, she refused. (Understandable.)

Per V9 “Queen Vashti also gave a feast for the women in the palace…” a very racist feast. Where Ahasuerus was hosting all of his officials, (various nationals from conquered nations), she shunned their wives. Her feast was given only to those closest around her— aka family and close knit friends. (This information came to me from various online Rabbis.)

The spirit of Vashti is still alive and well— even within the church. Don’t think so? When was the last time, you or your church went out and brought the homeless, the street corner drunks, druggies, prostitutes, fatherless and widows inside your churches’ four walls for a banquet? If you did bring them in, did you share your table with them, or sit with your friends? Love is only love if it’s real. Or how about the last time the preacher said, ‘we need to bring in the dirty, poor, unwanted people to church,’ and you said ‘I don’t think so?’

I’m very well acquainted with the rebellion side of Vashti. My entire nature was geared to rebellion. There were times in ‘Stupidville,” where I purposely did wrong, because I was told not to do so. Proverbs 22:15TPT “Although rebellion is woven into a young man’s” (woman’s) “‘heart, tough discipline can make him into a man (woman).” When I was finally able to quit smoking, it was because I’d been delivered from the spirit of rebellion. To this day, a rebellious thought comes into my mind, followed by the thought, ‘you need a cigarette.’ Does that show how closely the devil is lurking around the door of our minds/hearts?

Today, we see people across the USA rebelling against our President. There are thousands, who’ve decided history doesn’t suit their taste. They’ve decided to change history by disfiguring, maiming, or burning monuments and buildings. Sadly, not enough parents disciplined the rebellion out of their children, when they were young. In reality, they’re not rewriting history. Instead they’re writing ‘Stupidville’ and rebellion across their page of history.

Rebellion is a blight on our nation. Vashti is alive and destroying. Having grown up in the 1960’s, I am interceding for these lost children/adults for God to cover them with mercy. Otherwise the spirit of Vashti will destroy them all, because they’re refusing to come before the true King— Jesus.

Please join with me in praying for those possessed by Vashti to be freed, delivered and set ablaze with the love or God. It’s your choice. You choose.

PRAYER: Father God, forgive us for allowing the spirit of Vashti’s rebellion to take control of our nation. Help us to destroy this stronghold, with prayer, and the use of our weapons, in Jesus’ name I pray.

by Debbie Veilleux Copyright 2020 You have my permission to reblog this devotional for others. Please keep my name with this devotional as author. Thank you.